Psalm 137 has the line:
"By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept"
Paulo Coelho has a book titled "By The River Piedra I sat down and Wept".
The blurb on the book says this about it:
In all stories of love there is always something that moves us closer to eternity and the essence of life because the stories of love hold within all the secrets in the world.
But what happens when shyness prevents an adolescent love affair from developing? And what happens when, 11 years later, destiny brings the lovers together again? In the meantime, life has taught her to be strong and to hide her feelings. As for him, he is now a handsome spiritual teacher – with a reputation for performing miracles – who has turned to religion as a refuge from his inner conflicts.
Together they take a journey that is initially fraught with difficulty as blame and resentment resurface after years of being hidden. But by the River Piedra, in a small village in the French Pyrenees, they find a way to discuss many of life's big questions and re-evaluate their won special relationship.
By The River Piedra is a wonderful novel, with a poetic and transcendent narrative, that reflects all the mysteries of love and life.
Similarly the psalm contains the line:
"If I forget you, O Jerusalem"
Arthur C Clark has a great short story called "If I Forget Thee, O Earth" about a post apocalpse people living in exile on the Moon, dreaming of a day when heir future generations will be able to return and reclaim the planet.
It's worth seeking out both stories and reading them.
Thursday, 30 April 2009
Leather and fur
While we would never condone the wearing of fur, we happily wear black leather most of the time.
The reason we are anti-fur is the usual - we don't like to see these creatures killed so their coats can be worn. A great anti-fur campaign had some tart wearing a mink stole, the caption reading "one fur coat, two spoilt bitches". Which about says it all.
As for leather, the cows are bred and killed for their meat. The leather is a by-product. So making clothes and furntiture from it is just using what would other wise be wasted, so it's practical.
Veggies of course argue that we shouldn't kill the cows for food. However, all those herds are bred for food, they are not caught wild. If we didn't eat meat, the cows would never be bred, so would never exist in the first place.
The reason we are anti-fur is the usual - we don't like to see these creatures killed so their coats can be worn. A great anti-fur campaign had some tart wearing a mink stole, the caption reading "one fur coat, two spoilt bitches". Which about says it all.
As for leather, the cows are bred and killed for their meat. The leather is a by-product. So making clothes and furntiture from it is just using what would other wise be wasted, so it's practical.
Veggies of course argue that we shouldn't kill the cows for food. However, all those herds are bred for food, they are not caught wild. If we didn't eat meat, the cows would never be bred, so would never exist in the first place.
Wednesday, 29 April 2009
Angels and Demons
Angels and Demons is the new film featuring Tom Hanks as Robert Langdon, a followup to The Da Vinci Code, based on the novel by Dan Brown.
The book was written before Da Vinci Code, so is a prequel, but has been filmed as a sequel.
Whereas Da Vinci Code has one foot in the past, and is very historical, Angels and Demons is set in the present and looks to the future. It has a story involving the Illuminati, sworn enemy of the Catholic Church, and an assassination plot against the Pope. It has a plot involving anti matter, very much in line with the CERN Hadron collider experiments we saw early 2008.
And Tom Hanks doesn't have a mullet for this one.
Rumour has it that the third Langdon novel is underway. Much like Thomas Harris writing the third Hannibal Lector book, Dan Brown will be aware that this book will be going straight to screenplay, probably with Ron Howard directing again. So it will be bound to have an affect on how he writes it. The story is supposed to be set in the USA this time.
Dan Brown has two other novels, neither of which feature Langdon, but have similar plots and characters. Digital Fortress takes place inside the NSA's computer system. Deception Point is about a possible alien life fossil discovered in the Antarctic. Both make a good read and hopefully will be filmed one day.
Let's see if Angels and Demons turns out to be as good as Da Vinci Code.
The book was written before Da Vinci Code, so is a prequel, but has been filmed as a sequel.
Whereas Da Vinci Code has one foot in the past, and is very historical, Angels and Demons is set in the present and looks to the future. It has a story involving the Illuminati, sworn enemy of the Catholic Church, and an assassination plot against the Pope. It has a plot involving anti matter, very much in line with the CERN Hadron collider experiments we saw early 2008.
And Tom Hanks doesn't have a mullet for this one.
Rumour has it that the third Langdon novel is underway. Much like Thomas Harris writing the third Hannibal Lector book, Dan Brown will be aware that this book will be going straight to screenplay, probably with Ron Howard directing again. So it will be bound to have an affect on how he writes it. The story is supposed to be set in the USA this time.
Dan Brown has two other novels, neither of which feature Langdon, but have similar plots and characters. Digital Fortress takes place inside the NSA's computer system. Deception Point is about a possible alien life fossil discovered in the Antarctic. Both make a good read and hopefully will be filmed one day.
Let's see if Angels and Demons turns out to be as good as Da Vinci Code.
Spiderman 4
Spidey 4 in under discussion.
S3 was far too crammed, with too much going on. There was the Harry Osborn Goblin Junior story, Venom and Eddie Brock, The Sandman, and even Gwen Stacey, all stuffed into one film. There was at least one more or maybe two more they could have gotten out of this material.
Now we're left with the leftovers. Kraven The Hunter and one of the Vulture's incarnations are possible. They did a team up story, so that's one area to explore.
Then there's Electro. Or even The Scorpion, which gets more mileage out of Jameson.
S3 was far too crammed, with too much going on. There was the Harry Osborn Goblin Junior story, Venom and Eddie Brock, The Sandman, and even Gwen Stacey, all stuffed into one film. There was at least one more or maybe two more they could have gotten out of this material.
Now we're left with the leftovers. Kraven The Hunter and one of the Vulture's incarnations are possible. They did a team up story, so that's one area to explore.
Then there's Electro. Or even The Scorpion, which gets more mileage out of Jameson.
Tuesday, 28 April 2009
Vassago's Blogs
Vassago's Blog at the Christian forum:
http://www.christianforums.com/blogs/u241844/
Vassago's blog at the Warriors Internet Marketing Forum:
http://www.warriorforum.com/blogs/vassago/
Vassago's Zimbio RSS:
http://www.zimbio.com/member/vassago
http://www.christianforums.com/blogs/u241844/
Vassago's blog at the Warriors Internet Marketing Forum:
http://www.warriorforum.com/blogs/vassago/
Vassago's Zimbio RSS:
http://www.zimbio.com/member/vassago
Vote for my Blog every day!
Did you know you can vote for this blog once a day every day from a unique IP address?
Using this link: Vote Vassago you can go now and cast your vote. It only takes a second.
Then using the "Vote for my Blog" link in the Recommended links box to the right you can vote for me everyday, and get me up the Top Sites rankings.
Using this link: Vote Vassago you can go now and cast your vote. It only takes a second.
Then using the "Vote for my Blog" link in the Recommended links box to the right you can vote for me everyday, and get me up the Top Sites rankings.
Editing videos
There seems to be a trend on MTV these of editing certain scenes out of videos.
In Girls Aloud's "The Loving Kind" they break all kinds of glass (presumably sugar glass) in various ways. There is one scene towards the end where Nadine kicks through a pane of glass, and her shoe comes flying off. When filming the vid, she actually cut her leg. Although it's not apparent in the vid, this scene has been edited out of one version.
Porky Clarkson has the same thing happen in "My Life Would Suck WIthout You". There's a bit where she drops a goldfish bowl out of her apartment window and watches it fall to the street. So in the edited vid, this bit is cut out.
Let's see if we spot anymore vids with edited scenes.
In Girls Aloud's "The Loving Kind" they break all kinds of glass (presumably sugar glass) in various ways. There is one scene towards the end where Nadine kicks through a pane of glass, and her shoe comes flying off. When filming the vid, she actually cut her leg. Although it's not apparent in the vid, this scene has been edited out of one version.
Porky Clarkson has the same thing happen in "My Life Would Suck WIthout You". There's a bit where she drops a goldfish bowl out of her apartment window and watches it fall to the street. So in the edited vid, this bit is cut out.
Let's see if we spot anymore vids with edited scenes.
Pussycat Dolls
PCD have teamed up with the guy who did the Slumdog soundtrack to release a track called Jai Ho!
Jai Ho is in fact the only line he sings. Which also makes it one of the rare songs where a voice other than Nicole's can be heard.
The vid is very Bollywood style, and Nicole fits very well, with her exotic looks. She even dresses the part.
(Melody also dresses Bollywood style, and even moves her mouth a bit, though she has no actual lines to sing this time.)
Jai Ho is in fact the only line he sings. Which also makes it one of the rare songs where a voice other than Nicole's can be heard.
The vid is very Bollywood style, and Nicole fits very well, with her exotic looks. She even dresses the part.
(Melody also dresses Bollywood style, and even moves her mouth a bit, though she has no actual lines to sing this time.)
Monday, 27 April 2009
7 by Prince
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
And I saw an angel come down unto me
In her hand she holds the very key
Words of compassion, words of peace
And in the distance an armys marching feet (1,2,3,4 - 1,2,3,4)
But behold, we will watch them fall
And we lay down on the sand of the sea
And before us animosity will stand and decree
That we speak not of love only blasphemy
And in the distance, 6 others will curse me
But thats alright, (thats alright)
4 I will watch them fall(1,2,3,4,5,6,7)
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
[(just how old)]
And we will see a plague and a river of blood
And every evil soul will surely die in spite of
Their 7 tears, but do not fear
4 in the distance, 12 souls from now
U and me will still be here - we will still be here
There will be a new city with streets of gold
The young so educated they never grow old
And a, there will be no death 4 with every breath
The voice of many colors sings a song
Thats so bold
Sing it while we watch them fall
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
And I saw an angel come down unto me
In her hand she holds the very key
Words of compassion, words of peace
And in the distance an armys marching feet (1,2,3,4 - 1,2,3,4)
But behold, we will watch them fall
And we lay down on the sand of the sea
And before us animosity will stand and decree
That we speak not of love only blasphemy
And in the distance, 6 others will curse me
But thats alright, (thats alright)
4 I will watch them fall(1,2,3,4,5,6,7)
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
[(just how old)]
And we will see a plague and a river of blood
And every evil soul will surely die in spite of
Their 7 tears, but do not fear
4 in the distance, 12 souls from now
U and me will still be here - we will still be here
There will be a new city with streets of gold
The young so educated they never grow old
And a, there will be no death 4 with every breath
The voice of many colors sings a song
Thats so bold
Sing it while we watch them fall
All 7 and well watch them fall
They stand in the way of love
And we will smoke them all
With an intellect and a savoir-faire
No one in the whole universe
Will ever compare
I am yours now and u are mine
And together well love through
All space and time, so dont cry
One day all 7 will die
Boney M
This Boney M song is based on Psalm 137:
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
When the wicked
Carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
Now how shall we sing the lord's song in a strange land
When the wicked
Carried us away in captivity
Requiering of us a song
Now how shall we sing the lord's song in a strange land
Let the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart
be acceptable in thy sight here tonight
Let the words of our mouth and the meditation of our hearts
be acceptable in thy sight here tonight
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon (dark tears of Babylon)
there we sat down (You got to sing a song)
ye-eah we wept, (Sing a song of love)
when we remember Zion. (Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
By the rivers of Babylon (Rough bits of Babylon)
there we sat down (You hear the people cry)
ye-eah we wept, (They need that ???)
when we remember Zion. (Ooh, have the power)
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
When the wicked
Carried us away in captivity
Required from us a song
Now how shall we sing the lord's song in a strange land
When the wicked
Carried us away in captivity
Requiering of us a song
Now how shall we sing the lord's song in a strange land
Let the words of our mouth and the meditations of our heart
be acceptable in thy sight here tonight
Let the words of our mouth and the meditation of our hearts
be acceptable in thy sight here tonight
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon, there we sat down
ye-eah we wept, when we remembered Zion.
By the rivers of Babylon (dark tears of Babylon)
there we sat down (You got to sing a song)
ye-eah we wept, (Sing a song of love)
when we remember Zion. (Yeah yeah yeah yeah yeah)
By the rivers of Babylon (Rough bits of Babylon)
there we sat down (You hear the people cry)
ye-eah we wept, (They need that ???)
when we remember Zion. (Ooh, have the power)
Psalm 137
Psalm 137
1 By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
2 There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
3 for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"
4 How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill .
6 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.
7 Remember, O LORD, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
"Tear it down," they cried,
"tear it down to its foundations!"
8 O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is he who repays you
for what you have done to us-
9 he who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks.
1 By the rivers of Babylon we sat and wept
when we remembered Zion.
2 There on the poplars
we hung our harps,
3 for there our captors asked us for songs,
our tormentors demanded songs of joy;
they said, "Sing us one of the songs of Zion!"
4 How can we sing the songs of the LORD
while in a foreign land?
5 If I forget you, O Jerusalem,
may my right hand forget its skill .
6 May my tongue cling to the roof of my mouth
if I do not remember you,
if I do not consider Jerusalem
my highest joy.
7 Remember, O LORD, what the Edomites did
on the day Jerusalem fell.
"Tear it down," they cried,
"tear it down to its foundations!"
8 O Daughter of Babylon, doomed to destruction,
happy is he who repays you
for what you have done to us-
9 he who seizes your infants
and dashes them against the rocks.
Saturday, 25 April 2009
SFI cleans up it's act!
First SFI announce the launch of their third incarnation SFI 3.0. This is the biggest rollout since T-Net back in 2005.
Then they announce they will be doing a big Database purge on Monday 18 May, purging the database of all inactive affiliates.
The purpose of this is to clear "deadwood", and speed up what must now be a huge dbase built over many years. It also cleans up the Geneology for those who seem to have big teams, but have a lot of people doing nothing and making no money.
They also announced an incentive for people to EA by the end of April:
https://www.sfimg.com/EA.sfi
and even offer a guarentee page:
Check it out at: https://www.sfimg.com/EAguarantee.sfi
a guaranteed commission check and a no-risk guarantee of satisfaction.
So they are pulling out all the stops to keep themelves at the top of their game.
For more information, and the chance to sign up and benefit from this if you haven't yet done so, go to Sophia White's SFI blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com/
everything you need for:
internet marketing, home business, work at home, work from home, internet income, make money online, SFI, SFI blog
Then they announce they will be doing a big Database purge on Monday 18 May, purging the database of all inactive affiliates.
The purpose of this is to clear "deadwood", and speed up what must now be a huge dbase built over many years. It also cleans up the Geneology for those who seem to have big teams, but have a lot of people doing nothing and making no money.
They also announced an incentive for people to EA by the end of April:
https://www.sfimg.com/EA.sfi
and even offer a guarentee page:
Check it out at: https://www.sfimg.com/EAguarantee.sfi
a guaranteed commission check and a no-risk guarantee of satisfaction.
So they are pulling out all the stops to keep themelves at the top of their game.
For more information, and the chance to sign up and benefit from this if you haven't yet done so, go to Sophia White's SFI blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com/
everything you need for:
internet marketing, home business, work at home, work from home, internet income, make money online, SFI, SFI blog
The first and last miracles
The first miracle JC did was turning the water to wine at the party.
The last miracle was repairing the ear of the guard that Peter hacked off in the garden. Healing his enemy.
Think about what this tells us.
The last miracle was repairing the ear of the guard that Peter hacked off in the garden. Healing his enemy.
Think about what this tells us.
Resurrections
People always think that Jesus was the only resurrection. Not so.
Most people, if they take the time to think will remember about Lazarus.
Jesus also raised the widow's son:
Luke 7 has this passage:
Jesus Raises a Widow's Son
11Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry."
14Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" 15The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
Luke 8 has this:
49While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," he said. "Don't bother the teacher any more."
50Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed."
51When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child's father and mother. 52Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. "Stop wailing," Jesus said. "She is not dead but asleep."
53They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. 54But he took her by the hand and said, "My child, get up!" 55Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. 56Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.
Even Elijah did some resurrecting, as he does here in Kings 1:
17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. 18 She said to Elijah, "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?"
19 "Give me your son," Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. 20 Then he cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, have you brought tragedy also upon this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?" 21 Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried to the LORD, "O LORD my God, let this boy's life return to him!"
22 The LORD heard Elijah's cry, and the boy's life returned to him, and he lived. 23 Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, "Look, your son is alive!"
Most people, if they take the time to think will remember about Lazarus.
Jesus also raised the widow's son:
Luke 7 has this passage:
Jesus Raises a Widow's Son
11Soon afterward, Jesus went to a town called Nain, and his disciples and a large crowd went along with him. 12As he approached the town gate, a dead person was being carried out—the only son of his mother, and she was a widow. And a large crowd from the town was with her. 13When the Lord saw her, his heart went out to her and he said, "Don't cry."
14Then he went up and touched the coffin, and those carrying it stood still. He said, "Young man, I say to you, get up!" 15The dead man sat up and began to talk, and Jesus gave him back to his mother.
Luke 8 has this:
49While Jesus was still speaking, someone came from the house of Jairus, the synagogue ruler. "Your daughter is dead," he said. "Don't bother the teacher any more."
50Hearing this, Jesus said to Jairus, "Don't be afraid; just believe, and she will be healed."
51When he arrived at the house of Jairus, he did not let anyone go in with him except Peter, John and James, and the child's father and mother. 52Meanwhile, all the people were wailing and mourning for her. "Stop wailing," Jesus said. "She is not dead but asleep."
53They laughed at him, knowing that she was dead. 54But he took her by the hand and said, "My child, get up!" 55Her spirit returned, and at once she stood up. Then Jesus told them to give her something to eat. 56Her parents were astonished, but he ordered them not to tell anyone what had happened.
Even Elijah did some resurrecting, as he does here in Kings 1:
17 Some time later the son of the woman who owned the house became ill. He grew worse and worse, and finally stopped breathing. 18 She said to Elijah, "What do you have against me, man of God? Did you come to remind me of my sin and kill my son?"
19 "Give me your son," Elijah replied. He took him from her arms, carried him to the upper room where he was staying, and laid him on his bed. 20 Then he cried out to the LORD, "O LORD my God, have you brought tragedy also upon this widow I am staying with, by causing her son to die?" 21 Then he stretched himself out on the boy three times and cried to the LORD, "O LORD my God, let this boy's life return to him!"
22 The LORD heard Elijah's cry, and the boy's life returned to him, and he lived. 23 Elijah picked up the child and carried him down from the room into the house. He gave him to his mother and said, "Look, your son is alive!"
Judas
THEORY
Judas was the first Vampire.
Because he betrayed Jesus he is cursed to walk the Earth forever as an immortal, denied entry into either Heaven or Hell.
His vulnerability to Christian symbols, such as the cross, is due to him seeing the crucified Christ from his hanging tree, yet having died before Jesus, not being saved for his sins. As he died at sunset, he is never able to stand the sun. The reason for his vulnerability to silver is due to the pieces of silver he was paid for his betrayal.
Bible links:
Judas led a band of Roman soldiers to arrest Jesus and he identified Jesus for the authorities by kissing him.
(Matt. 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:47)
Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss for thirty pieces of silver. Judas had been in charge of the common purse, from which he stole money (John 12:16; 13:29).
Jesus was nailed to a cross and a spear (stake) was stabbed into Jesus' side (heart).
Vampires can be killed with a stake in the heart.
Judas repented by hanging himself (Matthew 27:1,8) after buying a plot of land called Aceldama, that is to say, the field of blood? (Acts 1:16,20).
The mirror is another important symbol in the vampire legend. A vampire is never reflected.
His name comes at the end of a list of the apostles in the Bible
(Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:19; Luke 6:16).
Judas is identified by Jesus himself as ?a devil? among the apostles
(John 6:70,71).
Judas led a band of Roman soldiers to arrest Jesus and he identifies Jesus for the authorities by kissing him. (Matt. 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:47)
Judas was paid thirty pieces of silver by the chief priests for betraying Jesus (Matthew 26:15)
Judas was the first Vampire.
Because he betrayed Jesus he is cursed to walk the Earth forever as an immortal, denied entry into either Heaven or Hell.
His vulnerability to Christian symbols, such as the cross, is due to him seeing the crucified Christ from his hanging tree, yet having died before Jesus, not being saved for his sins. As he died at sunset, he is never able to stand the sun. The reason for his vulnerability to silver is due to the pieces of silver he was paid for his betrayal.
Bible links:
Judas led a band of Roman soldiers to arrest Jesus and he identified Jesus for the authorities by kissing him.
(Matt. 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:47)
Judas betrayed Jesus with a kiss for thirty pieces of silver. Judas had been in charge of the common purse, from which he stole money (John 12:16; 13:29).
Jesus was nailed to a cross and a spear (stake) was stabbed into Jesus' side (heart).
Vampires can be killed with a stake in the heart.
Judas repented by hanging himself (Matthew 27:1,8) after buying a plot of land called Aceldama, that is to say, the field of blood? (Acts 1:16,20).
The mirror is another important symbol in the vampire legend. A vampire is never reflected.
His name comes at the end of a list of the apostles in the Bible
(Matt. 10:4; Mark 3:19; Luke 6:16).
Judas is identified by Jesus himself as ?a devil? among the apostles
(John 6:70,71).
Judas led a band of Roman soldiers to arrest Jesus and he identifies Jesus for the authorities by kissing him. (Matt. 26:49; Mark 14:45; Luke 22:47)
Judas was paid thirty pieces of silver by the chief priests for betraying Jesus (Matthew 26:15)
Friday, 24 April 2009
Jesus' brothers
People always debate about whether Jesus had any brothers and sisters. The film Dogma picks up on this and explains how Bethany is the great-great-grandniece of Jesus.
The Gospels themselves make reference to Jesus' brothers. Which makes you wonder why people who start this debate don't bother reading the Book first.
Luke:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
19Now Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you."
21He replied, "My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice."
Mark:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
31Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you."
33"Who are my mother and my brothers?" he asked.
34Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! 35Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."
Matthew:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
46While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
48He replied to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" 49Pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. 50For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
Okay, so Matt pretty much says what Mark said. We knew he would.
Jesus is oddly dismissive of his family. His brother's may be Mary's sons' but they are also Joseph's son's not the sons of IHVH.
John strangely omits this story altogether. He probably had his reasons.
But, anyway, if someone brings up the issue of Jesus having brothers and sisters - tell them to read the Gospel.
The Gospels themselves make reference to Jesus' brothers. Which makes you wonder why people who start this debate don't bother reading the Book first.
Luke:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
19Now Jesus' mother and brothers came to see him, but they were not able to get near him because of the crowd. 20Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to see you."
21He replied, "My mother and brothers are those who hear God's word and put it into practice."
Mark:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
31Then Jesus' mother and brothers arrived. Standing outside, they sent someone in to call him. 32A crowd was sitting around him, and they told him, "Your mother and brothers are outside looking for you."
33"Who are my mother and my brothers?" he asked.
34Then he looked at those seated in a circle around him and said, "Here are my mother and my brothers! 35Whoever does God's will is my brother and sister and mother."
Matthew:
Jesus' Mother and Brothers
46While Jesus was still talking to the crowd, his mother and brothers stood outside, wanting to speak to him. 47Someone told him, "Your mother and brothers are standing outside, wanting to speak to you."
48He replied to him, "Who is my mother, and who are my brothers?" 49Pointing to his disciples, he said, "Here are my mother and my brothers. 50For whoever does the will of my Father in heaven is my brother and sister and mother."
Okay, so Matt pretty much says what Mark said. We knew he would.
Jesus is oddly dismissive of his family. His brother's may be Mary's sons' but they are also Joseph's son's not the sons of IHVH.
John strangely omits this story altogether. He probably had his reasons.
But, anyway, if someone brings up the issue of Jesus having brothers and sisters - tell them to read the Gospel.
Film Noir
Film Noir is all about a fractured world full of damaged people leading shattered lives. The main character is always a flawed anti-hero.
The supporting characters are physically damaged in some way, some by war, some by disease, but obviously crippled physically, the same way the hero is crippled emotionally. It's the supporting characters that flesh out the broken world which the hero travels through.
Angel Heart and Fight Club are obvious examples. FC is also a satire, a black comedy, something which a lot of people didn't realise. The supporting characters, like Meatloaf's Bob, are symbolic of the want, need, loss and longing of the main character. In FC, Tyler is who he wants to be, Bob is who he fears becoming.
Some films Noir worth watching:
Out of the Past
The Big Sleep
Night of the Hunter
Strangers on a Train (most Hitchcock is worth catching anyway)
Asphalt Jungle
The Blue Dahlia
Lady From Shanghai
Cape Fear
Angel Heart
Fight Club
The supporting characters are physically damaged in some way, some by war, some by disease, but obviously crippled physically, the same way the hero is crippled emotionally. It's the supporting characters that flesh out the broken world which the hero travels through.
Angel Heart and Fight Club are obvious examples. FC is also a satire, a black comedy, something which a lot of people didn't realise. The supporting characters, like Meatloaf's Bob, are symbolic of the want, need, loss and longing of the main character. In FC, Tyler is who he wants to be, Bob is who he fears becoming.
Some films Noir worth watching:
Out of the Past
The Big Sleep
Night of the Hunter
Strangers on a Train (most Hitchcock is worth catching anyway)
Asphalt Jungle
The Blue Dahlia
Lady From Shanghai
Cape Fear
Angel Heart
Fight Club
Clint Eastwood
Clint Eastwood stared in Sergio Leone's classic spaghetti westerns - A Fistfull of Dollars, For A Few Dollars More and The Good The Bad and The Ugly.
People refer to Clint's character in these films as The Man With No Name. This is untrue. Though Clint appears to play the same character in each film, each character is in fact a different person and each actually does have a name. Similarly the Lee Van Cleef character in Good Bad is not the same character he plays in Few Dollars More, nor does he have the same name.
Few Dollars is not a literal sequel to Fistful, but a spiritual one, and Good Bad completes the "trilogy". The same actors appear, but they are not the same characters, and they tell three different stories.
It's similar to Micheal Madsen playing Mr Blond in Reservoir Dogs and later playing Bud in Kill Bill. It's the same actor and same director, but not the same character.
The Outlaw Josie Wales is the obvious Eastwood western where he has a name - it's even in the title. Many people think that Pale Rider is some kind of sequel - that Preacher is an older Josie. He isn't. And while the actor playing the villain, deliberately chosen to look like Van Cleef, is not an earlier character appearing ina sequel, the two men have a history which we see resolved in this film. So it's not a sequel. At least, not a literal one.
People refer to Clint's character in these films as The Man With No Name. This is untrue. Though Clint appears to play the same character in each film, each character is in fact a different person and each actually does have a name. Similarly the Lee Van Cleef character in Good Bad is not the same character he plays in Few Dollars More, nor does he have the same name.
Few Dollars is not a literal sequel to Fistful, but a spiritual one, and Good Bad completes the "trilogy". The same actors appear, but they are not the same characters, and they tell three different stories.
It's similar to Micheal Madsen playing Mr Blond in Reservoir Dogs and later playing Bud in Kill Bill. It's the same actor and same director, but not the same character.
The Outlaw Josie Wales is the obvious Eastwood western where he has a name - it's even in the title. Many people think that Pale Rider is some kind of sequel - that Preacher is an older Josie. He isn't. And while the actor playing the villain, deliberately chosen to look like Van Cleef, is not an earlier character appearing ina sequel, the two men have a history which we see resolved in this film. So it's not a sequel. At least, not a literal one.
Thursday, 23 April 2009
The Walrus and The Carpenter Interpretation
'The Walrus and the Carpenter' is a metaphorical poem about organized religion.
The Walrus - with his happy and large built - represents the Buddha, or - considering the tusks - the Hindu elephant god, Lord Ganesha. This represents the Eastern religions.
The Carpenter is obviously Jesus, who was raised the son of a carpenter. He represents the Western religions.
And in the poem. what do they do? They dupe all the oysters into following them.
Then when the oysters collective guard is down. the Walrus and the Carpenter eat them.
The meaning here is that following faiths based on these mythological figures insures the destruction of one's inner-being.
Organized religion destroys who we are or who we can be by inhibiting our actions and decisions out of fear of an intangible parent-figure who shakes a finger at us from thousands of years ago.
The Walrus - with his happy and large built - represents the Buddha, or - considering the tusks - the Hindu elephant god, Lord Ganesha. This represents the Eastern religions.
The Carpenter is obviously Jesus, who was raised the son of a carpenter. He represents the Western religions.
And in the poem. what do they do? They dupe all the oysters into following them.
Then when the oysters collective guard is down. the Walrus and the Carpenter eat them.
The meaning here is that following faiths based on these mythological figures insures the destruction of one's inner-being.
Organized religion destroys who we are or who we can be by inhibiting our actions and decisions out of fear of an intangible parent-figure who shakes a finger at us from thousands of years ago.
The Walrus and The Carpenter
The Walrus and The Carpenter
by Lewis Carroll
(from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872)
The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright--
And this was odd, because it was
The middle of the night.
The moon was shining sulkily,
Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
After the day was done--
"It's very rude of him," she said,
"To come and spoil the fun!"
The sea was wet as wet could be,
The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead--
There were no birds to fly.
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
Such quantities of sand:
"If this were only cleared away,"
They said, "it would be grand!"
"If seven maids with seven mops
Swept it for half a year.
Do you suppose," the Walrus said,
"That they could get it clear?"
"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,
And shed a bitter tear.
"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each."
The eldest Oyster looked at him,
But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
And shook his heavy head--
Meaning to say he did not choose
To leave the oyster-bed.
But four young Oysters hurried up,
All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
Their shoes were clean and neat--
And this was odd, because, you know,
They hadn't any feet.
Four other Oysters followed them,
And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
And more, and more, and more--
All hopping through the frothy waves,
And scrambling to the shore.
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
And waited in a row.
"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."
"But wait a bit," the Oysters cried,
"Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
And all of us are fat!"
"No hurry!" said the Carpenter.
They thanked him much for that.
"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed--
Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."
"But not on us!" the Oysters cried,
Turning a little blue.
"After such kindness, that would be
A dismal thing to do!"
"The night is fine," the Walrus said.
"Do you admire the view?
"It was so kind of you to come!
And you are very nice!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"Cut us another slice:
I wish you were not quite so deaf--
I've had to ask you twice!"
"It seems a shame," the Walrus said,
"To play them such a trick,
After we've brought them out so far,
And made them trot so quick!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"The butter's spread too thick!"
"I weep for you," the Walrus said:
"I deeply sympathize."
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.
"O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?'
But answer came there none--
And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.
by Lewis Carroll
(from Through the Looking-Glass and What Alice Found There, 1872)
The sun was shining on the sea,
Shining with all his might:
He did his very best to make
The billows smooth and bright--
And this was odd, because it was
The middle of the night.
The moon was shining sulkily,
Because she thought the sun
Had got no business to be there
After the day was done--
"It's very rude of him," she said,
"To come and spoil the fun!"
The sea was wet as wet could be,
The sands were dry as dry.
You could not see a cloud, because
No cloud was in the sky:
No birds were flying overhead--
There were no birds to fly.
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Were walking close at hand;
They wept like anything to see
Such quantities of sand:
"If this were only cleared away,"
They said, "it would be grand!"
"If seven maids with seven mops
Swept it for half a year.
Do you suppose," the Walrus said,
"That they could get it clear?"
"I doubt it," said the Carpenter,
And shed a bitter tear.
"O Oysters, come and walk with us!"
The Walrus did beseech.
"A pleasant walk, a pleasant talk,
Along the briny beach:
We cannot do with more than four,
To give a hand to each."
The eldest Oyster looked at him,
But never a word he said:
The eldest Oyster winked his eye,
And shook his heavy head--
Meaning to say he did not choose
To leave the oyster-bed.
But four young Oysters hurried up,
All eager for the treat:
Their coats were brushed, their faces washed,
Their shoes were clean and neat--
And this was odd, because, you know,
They hadn't any feet.
Four other Oysters followed them,
And yet another four;
And thick and fast they came at last,
And more, and more, and more--
All hopping through the frothy waves,
And scrambling to the shore.
The Walrus and the Carpenter
Walked on a mile or so,
And then they rested on a rock
Conveniently low:
And all the little Oysters stood
And waited in a row.
"The time has come," the Walrus said,
"To talk of many things:
Of shoes--and ships--and sealing-wax--
Of cabbages--and kings--
And why the sea is boiling hot--
And whether pigs have wings."
"But wait a bit," the Oysters cried,
"Before we have our chat;
For some of us are out of breath,
And all of us are fat!"
"No hurry!" said the Carpenter.
They thanked him much for that.
"A loaf of bread," the Walrus said,
"Is what we chiefly need:
Pepper and vinegar besides
Are very good indeed--
Now if you're ready, Oysters dear,
We can begin to feed."
"But not on us!" the Oysters cried,
Turning a little blue.
"After such kindness, that would be
A dismal thing to do!"
"The night is fine," the Walrus said.
"Do you admire the view?
"It was so kind of you to come!
And you are very nice!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"Cut us another slice:
I wish you were not quite so deaf--
I've had to ask you twice!"
"It seems a shame," the Walrus said,
"To play them such a trick,
After we've brought them out so far,
And made them trot so quick!"
The Carpenter said nothing but
"The butter's spread too thick!"
"I weep for you," the Walrus said:
"I deeply sympathize."
With sobs and tears he sorted out
Those of the largest size,
Holding his pocket-handkerchief
Before his streaming eyes.
"O Oysters," said the Carpenter,
"You've had a pleasant run!
Shall we be trotting home again?'
But answer came there none--
And this was scarcely odd, because
They'd eaten every one.
Wednesday, 22 April 2009
Alanis Morisette
Alanis plays God in the film Dogma.
Alanis has a catholic background and writes about it in her song Forgiven:
You know how us Catholic girls can be
We make up for so much time a little too late
I never forgot it, confusing as it was
No fun with no guilt feelings
The sinners, the saviors, the loverless priests
I'll see you next Sunday
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
I sang Alleluia in the choir
I confessed my darkest deeds to an envious man
My brothers they never went blind for what they did
But I may as well have
In the name of the Father, the Skeptic and the Son
I had one more stupid question
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
What I learned I rejected but I believe again
I will suffer the consequence of this inquisition
If I jump in this fountain, will I be forgiven
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
We all had delusions in our head
We all had our minds made up for us
We had to believe in something
So we did
Alanis has a catholic background and writes about it in her song Forgiven:
You know how us Catholic girls can be
We make up for so much time a little too late
I never forgot it, confusing as it was
No fun with no guilt feelings
The sinners, the saviors, the loverless priests
I'll see you next Sunday
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
I sang Alleluia in the choir
I confessed my darkest deeds to an envious man
My brothers they never went blind for what they did
But I may as well have
In the name of the Father, the Skeptic and the Son
I had one more stupid question
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
What I learned I rejected but I believe again
I will suffer the consequence of this inquisition
If I jump in this fountain, will I be forgiven
We all had our reasons to be there
We all had a thing or two to learn
We all needed something to cling to
So we did
We all had delusions in our head
We all had our minds made up for us
We had to believe in something
So we did
Tuesday, 21 April 2009
Mona Lisa Smile
Want to know the real secret of the Mona Lisa's smile?
She's trying not to laugh as she's waiting for her silent fart to reach Leonardo.
She's trying not to laugh as she's waiting for her silent fart to reach Leonardo.
Buddha smile
Want to know the real secret of the Buddha's smile?
He's laughing at himself, for all the years searching for something he already had.
He's laughing at himself, for all the years searching for something he already had.
Foreskins
Ever wondered what they do with all the severed foreskins?
Ever wondered where Hula Hoops come from?
Ever wondered where Hula Hoops come from?
V for Vendetta
V's speech:
Voilà!
In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villian by the vicissitudes of Fate.
This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished.
However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.
The only verdict is vengence; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it is my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.
Voilà!
In view, a humble vaudevillian veteran, cast vicariously as both victim and villian by the vicissitudes of Fate.
This visage, no mere veneer of vanity, is a vestige of the vox populi, now vacant, vanished.
However, this valorous visitation of a by-gone vexation, stands vivified and has vowed to vanquish these venal and virulent vermin vanguarding vice and vouchsafing the violently vicious and voracious violation of volition.
The only verdict is vengence; a vendetta, held as a votive, not in vain, for the value and veracity of such shall one day vindicate the vigilant and the virtuous. Verily, this vichyssoise of verbiage veers most verbose, so let me simply add that it is my very good honor to meet you and you may call me V.
Monday, 20 April 2009
Acting up
Madonna, the world's most successful and celebrated female music star, was desperate to crossover to acting and duplicate that sucess and acclaim.
After many years and many films she failed.
Seeing her music vids, in which she plays many characters, she has a wide range and conveys emotions. Yet still she failed as a film actress.
What she actually failed to be was a film STAR. A leading lady, like her hero Marilyn.
Madonna is great in a supporting role. Look at Desperately Seeking Susan where she plays one of the larger than life characters from one of her owns vids. Her song Into The Groove is the main song on the film's soundtrack. The film itself, supposed to be a vehicle for Rosanna Arquette, becomes Madonna's movie, the Susan character totally dominating.
So it is with larger than life people, like Madonna, who play larger than life characters on stage and in video. They can't translate that into a leading role. They simply aren't A List actors. They are pop stars not film stars.
Look at Meatloaf - he has done some great acting, but always as a supporting character. He was particularly good in Fight Club, and was memorable in Black Dog.
When Tina Turner played Auntie Entity in Thunderdome she was just right for the role, and, like Madonna in Susan, had a number one hit with the theme song. She didn't try to take her acting "career" any further than that.
Whitney Houston, a great choice to play the singer in The Bodyguard, playing an extended version of herself. Yet hopeless in other roles.
Britney only did the one film, and just as well. Beyonce is currently failing in her film career, while her post-DC pop career is being eclipsed by new young hungry divas like Rihanna.
Even Jon Bon Jovi, who originally wanted to be an actor, and actually auditioned for Bacon's role in Footloose (we'd love to see that audition tape!) found he couldn't translate his on stage charisma to the silver screen, to be another Brad or Tom.
There are exceptions of course. Cher does particularly well in her films, as does J-Lo. Cher even won an Oscar. But these are ladies who are A List actors who are also world class singers. In J-Lo's case she can dance a bit as well. For the guys, there's Will Smith.
Then there's the likes of Jessica Simpson who can't sing as well as Britney or Christina and is no good in acting roles. Playing Daisy in the remake/update Dukes Of Hazzard fim, a one dimensional role is ever there was one, which she really worked hard to get in physical shape for, you still think of other actresses who could have done it just as well. And, of course, she gets to wash the car in a bikini in the tragic vid for the movie song - a cover song at that, not even an original.
She was parodied by Pink in the Stupid Girls video, a form of social commentary Pink is particularly good at. Of course, Pink is also attempting an acting career under her real name Alicia Moore. Similarly Fergie is appearing in films as Stacey Fergusson. But for every Cher there will be a dozen Madonnas, finding out their video characters don't translate as leading ladies.
Just as soap stars should never do pop songs, pop stars shouldn't try to be films stars.
And we'd still rather hear a new J-Lo album than see a new J-Lo movie.
(Though I wouldn't mind seeing some new J-Lo vids.)
After many years and many films she failed.
Seeing her music vids, in which she plays many characters, she has a wide range and conveys emotions. Yet still she failed as a film actress.
What she actually failed to be was a film STAR. A leading lady, like her hero Marilyn.
Madonna is great in a supporting role. Look at Desperately Seeking Susan where she plays one of the larger than life characters from one of her owns vids. Her song Into The Groove is the main song on the film's soundtrack. The film itself, supposed to be a vehicle for Rosanna Arquette, becomes Madonna's movie, the Susan character totally dominating.
So it is with larger than life people, like Madonna, who play larger than life characters on stage and in video. They can't translate that into a leading role. They simply aren't A List actors. They are pop stars not film stars.
Look at Meatloaf - he has done some great acting, but always as a supporting character. He was particularly good in Fight Club, and was memorable in Black Dog.
When Tina Turner played Auntie Entity in Thunderdome she was just right for the role, and, like Madonna in Susan, had a number one hit with the theme song. She didn't try to take her acting "career" any further than that.
Whitney Houston, a great choice to play the singer in The Bodyguard, playing an extended version of herself. Yet hopeless in other roles.
Britney only did the one film, and just as well. Beyonce is currently failing in her film career, while her post-DC pop career is being eclipsed by new young hungry divas like Rihanna.
Even Jon Bon Jovi, who originally wanted to be an actor, and actually auditioned for Bacon's role in Footloose (we'd love to see that audition tape!) found he couldn't translate his on stage charisma to the silver screen, to be another Brad or Tom.
There are exceptions of course. Cher does particularly well in her films, as does J-Lo. Cher even won an Oscar. But these are ladies who are A List actors who are also world class singers. In J-Lo's case she can dance a bit as well. For the guys, there's Will Smith.
Then there's the likes of Jessica Simpson who can't sing as well as Britney or Christina and is no good in acting roles. Playing Daisy in the remake/update Dukes Of Hazzard fim, a one dimensional role is ever there was one, which she really worked hard to get in physical shape for, you still think of other actresses who could have done it just as well. And, of course, she gets to wash the car in a bikini in the tragic vid for the movie song - a cover song at that, not even an original.
She was parodied by Pink in the Stupid Girls video, a form of social commentary Pink is particularly good at. Of course, Pink is also attempting an acting career under her real name Alicia Moore. Similarly Fergie is appearing in films as Stacey Fergusson. But for every Cher there will be a dozen Madonnas, finding out their video characters don't translate as leading ladies.
Just as soap stars should never do pop songs, pop stars shouldn't try to be films stars.
And we'd still rather hear a new J-Lo album than see a new J-Lo movie.
(Though I wouldn't mind seeing some new J-Lo vids.)
First of the Saved
The first person to be Saved was Dismas, the thief being crucified alongside Jesus.
He asks, not to actually be forgiven, but simply that JC remembers him when He goes upstairs. JC replies, don't worry, mate, you're coming up with me. It's a stirring passage, overlooked by M & M who, of course, weren't actually there. But the point of the passage is that JC died, not for the righteous, but for the sinners.
It also raises the good point that the only person in the Gospel that JC personally promised a place in Paradise was not Peter, John or any of the apostles, but a criminal being executed.
What you won't find in any of the published Gospels is the truth behind this. Peter was originally supposed to be crucified next to JC. Jesus said "you are The Rock and on you I'll build my church". Peter was earmarked to be the first Christian martyr.
There were three crosses at Golgotha and Peter was, literally, meant to be at the right hand of the Lord, in Death, then in resurrection.
However JC knew that Peter wasn't equal to the task and told him so.
In the garden, JC had his "moment of doubt and fear" (to quote the song). He asks God if the cup can be passed from him. As a man, having free will, JC knows he could just do a runner - then the whole Brian substitute theory comes into play. But He gives up His free will to God saying "your will, not mine, be done".
Peter promises he will follow JC anywhere, "even into Death". But JC knows Peter isn't up to it, and tells him: "you will deny me 3 times".
Don't get us wrong, Peter is no coward. When the guards come he is ready to draw his sword and fight to the death to protect his master. He's a courageus man. But when he sees JC being willingly led off to execution, that is when his great courage fails and he chooses to deny he was with Jesus and run away.
So Gesmas and Dismas are crucified, one of them in Peter's place. It is Dismas, who is forgiven, and goes up in Peter's place.
We see Peter at the start of Acts, then Paul takes over.
John was the only apostle to turn up to the crucifixion. JC tells him to go live with Mary, be her son, and care for her, which John does until her death. John wrote his three epistles and has the courage to stand up for his beliefs, even in the face of death. Instead of execution, John is exiled to Patmos and it is there that he receives the vision of Revelation, because he has been found worthy.
There is no Gospel of Peter, there is no revelation of Peter.
Either way, dead or alive and disgaced, there never would have been.
He asks, not to actually be forgiven, but simply that JC remembers him when He goes upstairs. JC replies, don't worry, mate, you're coming up with me. It's a stirring passage, overlooked by M & M who, of course, weren't actually there. But the point of the passage is that JC died, not for the righteous, but for the sinners.
It also raises the good point that the only person in the Gospel that JC personally promised a place in Paradise was not Peter, John or any of the apostles, but a criminal being executed.
What you won't find in any of the published Gospels is the truth behind this. Peter was originally supposed to be crucified next to JC. Jesus said "you are The Rock and on you I'll build my church". Peter was earmarked to be the first Christian martyr.
There were three crosses at Golgotha and Peter was, literally, meant to be at the right hand of the Lord, in Death, then in resurrection.
However JC knew that Peter wasn't equal to the task and told him so.
In the garden, JC had his "moment of doubt and fear" (to quote the song). He asks God if the cup can be passed from him. As a man, having free will, JC knows he could just do a runner - then the whole Brian substitute theory comes into play. But He gives up His free will to God saying "your will, not mine, be done".
Peter promises he will follow JC anywhere, "even into Death". But JC knows Peter isn't up to it, and tells him: "you will deny me 3 times".
Don't get us wrong, Peter is no coward. When the guards come he is ready to draw his sword and fight to the death to protect his master. He's a courageus man. But when he sees JC being willingly led off to execution, that is when his great courage fails and he chooses to deny he was with Jesus and run away.
So Gesmas and Dismas are crucified, one of them in Peter's place. It is Dismas, who is forgiven, and goes up in Peter's place.
We see Peter at the start of Acts, then Paul takes over.
John was the only apostle to turn up to the crucifixion. JC tells him to go live with Mary, be her son, and care for her, which John does until her death. John wrote his three epistles and has the courage to stand up for his beliefs, even in the face of death. Instead of execution, John is exiled to Patmos and it is there that he receives the vision of Revelation, because he has been found worthy.
There is no Gospel of Peter, there is no revelation of Peter.
Either way, dead or alive and disgaced, there never would have been.
Saturday, 18 April 2009
Abracadabra
The magic word.
The word originated from Aramaic.
The original meaning was "I will create, as I say," while the latter was "What was said has been done."
The original Aramaic was either עַבְדָא כְּדַברָא, avda kedavra, which means, "what was said has been done," or עברא כדברא, avra kedavra, which means "what was said has come to pass" or "caused to perish like the word" or "I will create what is told."
Over time, it was corrupted to its current pronunciation with the replacement of both "v" sounds with "b" sounds: b and v can be interchangeable in Aramaic.
Originally it was an incantation to be used as a cure for fevers and inflammations.
It was prescribed that the sufferer from the disease wear an amulet containing the word written in the form of an inverted cone:
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B - R - A
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B - R
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A
A - B - R - A - C - A - D
A - B - R - A - C - A
A - B - R - A - C
A - B - R - A
A - B - R
A - B
A
(which hasn't come out right on this post!)
The word originated from Aramaic.
The original meaning was "I will create, as I say," while the latter was "What was said has been done."
The original Aramaic was either עַבְדָא כְּדַברָא, avda kedavra, which means, "what was said has been done," or עברא כדברא, avra kedavra, which means "what was said has come to pass" or "caused to perish like the word" or "I will create what is told."
Over time, it was corrupted to its current pronunciation with the replacement of both "v" sounds with "b" sounds: b and v can be interchangeable in Aramaic.
Originally it was an incantation to be used as a cure for fevers and inflammations.
It was prescribed that the sufferer from the disease wear an amulet containing the word written in the form of an inverted cone:
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B - R - A
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B - R
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A - B
A - B - R - A - C - A - D - A
A - B - R - A - C - A - D
A - B - R - A - C - A
A - B - R - A - C
A - B - R - A
A - B - R
A - B
A
(which hasn't come out right on this post!)
Psalms sung at the crucifixion
So why do M & M have Jesus singing the 22nd Psalm?
Well, unlike John and Luke they weren't there. Somebody told them that JC was singing the 23rd Psalm - "The Lord Is My Shepherd, etc, Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, etc.."
So what happened is Mark misheard and thought they said "22nd Psalm", which starts "My God, why have you forsaken me?", so he copies this out. Matthew just copied Mark.
(So in the New testament, the first sin was plagiarism!)
John and Luke were there, M&M were not.
In M & M, both thieves mock JC, when in fact only Gesmas does. Dismas asks JC to remember him when he goes up.
Possibility: after JC goes up Dismas, a believer, starts quoting Psalm 23, The Lord Is My Shepherd. This is, of course, just before they break his legs.
It is possible, after the leg breaking, Dismas THEN asks "My God, why have you forsaken me?", reciting Psalm 22.
John and Luke would have left after JC was taken down, so wouldn't be around for anything that was said by the other two. The people in the crowd, the ones who passed the info onto Mark at a later time, didn't know which was of the three JC was, just heard someone quoting Psalm 23 or 22, or both. So that's why this ends up quoted as what JC said in the M&M versions of the Gospel.
Either way, Jesus never said either one of the Psalms while up there. Obviously.
Well, unlike John and Luke they weren't there. Somebody told them that JC was singing the 23rd Psalm - "The Lord Is My Shepherd, etc, Though I walk through the valley of the shadow of death, etc.."
So what happened is Mark misheard and thought they said "22nd Psalm", which starts "My God, why have you forsaken me?", so he copies this out. Matthew just copied Mark.
(So in the New testament, the first sin was plagiarism!)
John and Luke were there, M&M were not.
In M & M, both thieves mock JC, when in fact only Gesmas does. Dismas asks JC to remember him when he goes up.
Possibility: after JC goes up Dismas, a believer, starts quoting Psalm 23, The Lord Is My Shepherd. This is, of course, just before they break his legs.
It is possible, after the leg breaking, Dismas THEN asks "My God, why have you forsaken me?", reciting Psalm 22.
John and Luke would have left after JC was taken down, so wouldn't be around for anything that was said by the other two. The people in the crowd, the ones who passed the info onto Mark at a later time, didn't know which was of the three JC was, just heard someone quoting Psalm 23 or 22, or both. So that's why this ends up quoted as what JC said in the M&M versions of the Gospel.
Either way, Jesus never said either one of the Psalms while up there. Obviously.
Bible
If you want to understand your Bible properly then read it backwards.
Read Revelations, then Jude, then John 3, John 2 and then John 1, which is all about antichrists.
Work your way back through the Bible a book at a time. Read Acts before the 4 gospels. Luke wrote Acts before he wrote his gospel, that's obvious when you read them that way round.
Read, John, Luke, Mark, then Matthew, not the other way round. John and Luke were actually at the crucifixion. Mark was written third hand. Matthew rips off Mark (the first sin was plagiarism!).
Read Malachi, then Zechariah. Work your way through the minor profits before tackling the Big Four.
By the time you reach Genesis you'll see The Book in a whole different light.
Read Revelations, then Jude, then John 3, John 2 and then John 1, which is all about antichrists.
Work your way back through the Bible a book at a time. Read Acts before the 4 gospels. Luke wrote Acts before he wrote his gospel, that's obvious when you read them that way round.
Read, John, Luke, Mark, then Matthew, not the other way round. John and Luke were actually at the crucifixion. Mark was written third hand. Matthew rips off Mark (the first sin was plagiarism!).
Read Malachi, then Zechariah. Work your way through the minor profits before tackling the Big Four.
By the time you reach Genesis you'll see The Book in a whole different light.
Friday, 17 April 2009
Last place you look
When people find something they are searching for they always say "it was in the last place I looked".
Well of course it was. You wouldn't keep looking after you'd found it. Wherever you find what you are looking for it will always be in the last place you looked.
Well of course it was. You wouldn't keep looking after you'd found it. Wherever you find what you are looking for it will always be in the last place you looked.
Life Of Brian
People say Life Of Brian is sacriligious. But it's not. He isn't Jesus, he isn't The Messiah, and he says so repeatedly through the film.
Military funerals
At most funerals they sing two hymns - The Lords Prayer and Abide With Me - now known as The Dynamic Duo by many vicars.
The difference with a military funeral is they sing I Vow To Thee My Country.
The first verse is particularly relevant to somebody who gives their life in service:
I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.
The second verse is usually ommitted as considered "not suitable for modern use." But we rather like it:
I heard my country calling, away across the sea,
Across the waste of waters she calls and calls to me.
Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,
And round her feet are lying the dying and the dead.
I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns,
I haste to thee my mother, a son among thy sons.
The third verse is, of course, religious:
And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.
In 2004, the Rt Revd Stephen Lowe, Bishop of Hulme, called for it not to be used in Church of England services, calling it "totally heretical".
Diana requested it played at her wedding. It was also played at her funeral.
The difference with a military funeral is they sing I Vow To Thee My Country.
The first verse is particularly relevant to somebody who gives their life in service:
I vow to thee, my country, all earthly things above,
Entire and whole and perfect, the service of my love;
The love that asks no question, the love that stands the test,
That lays upon the altar the dearest and the best;
The love that never falters, the love that pays the price,
The love that makes undaunted the final sacrifice.
The second verse is usually ommitted as considered "not suitable for modern use." But we rather like it:
I heard my country calling, away across the sea,
Across the waste of waters she calls and calls to me.
Her sword is girded at her side, her helmet on her head,
And round her feet are lying the dying and the dead.
I hear the noise of battle, the thunder of her guns,
I haste to thee my mother, a son among thy sons.
The third verse is, of course, religious:
And there's another country, I've heard of long ago,
Most dear to them that love her, most great to them that know;
We may not count her armies, we may not see her King;
Her fortress is a faithful heart, her pride is suffering;
And soul by soul and silently her shining bounds increase,
And her ways are ways of gentleness, and all her paths are peace.
In 2004, the Rt Revd Stephen Lowe, Bishop of Hulme, called for it not to be used in Church of England services, calling it "totally heretical".
Diana requested it played at her wedding. It was also played at her funeral.
Terminator
The next Terminator film will be Terminator Salvation. It won't feature Arnie, but will star Christain Bale as John Connor.
After the pathetic wet version we saw of Connor played by Nick Stahl in Rise of the Machines, hopefully this Connor will fall in line more like the character we saw in T2 and currently being developed in Sarah Connor Chronicles the TV show.
Perhaps like the Superman series, which now jumps from S2 to Superman Returns avoiding any connection with S3 and S4, T4 will follow on from the TV series, and Bale will get he chance to be the Connor we know he can be.
After the pathetic wet version we saw of Connor played by Nick Stahl in Rise of the Machines, hopefully this Connor will fall in line more like the character we saw in T2 and currently being developed in Sarah Connor Chronicles the TV show.
Perhaps like the Superman series, which now jumps from S2 to Superman Returns avoiding any connection with S3 and S4, T4 will follow on from the TV series, and Bale will get he chance to be the Connor we know he can be.
Thursday, 16 April 2009
Vassago Cycles Blog
Although Blogs may appear to be the latest trend, but they really resurrect an older, more traditional way of using the Internet - the exchange of information with a personal touch.
The most important aspect of a Blog is that, like forums and chat rooms, they bring visitors back to your site again and again. Blogs create an audience that will return repeatedly, they help to create a relationship between you and the visitors to your Website.
It comes back to what I wrote before about everything moving in cycles. 2005 was the year blogs suddenly became big. It was hailed as "The Year Of The Blog". Traffic Exchange owners rushed to create new TEs just to surf blogs, some of which are still going today.
A great marketer once wrote:
"In Network Marketing, the NETWORKING always comes before the MARKETING"
For a while it seemed to be the other way round. Now we're getting the personal touch again.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
The most important aspect of a Blog is that, like forums and chat rooms, they bring visitors back to your site again and again. Blogs create an audience that will return repeatedly, they help to create a relationship between you and the visitors to your Website.
It comes back to what I wrote before about everything moving in cycles. 2005 was the year blogs suddenly became big. It was hailed as "The Year Of The Blog". Traffic Exchange owners rushed to create new TEs just to surf blogs, some of which are still going today.
A great marketer once wrote:
"In Network Marketing, the NETWORKING always comes before the MARKETING"
For a while it seemed to be the other way round. Now we're getting the personal touch again.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
The Missing Pound
Three men go for a meal in a restaurant. At the end of the meal the waiter brings them the bill and it comes to £30. Each man puts in a ten pound note. The waiter rings it up and then realizes he made a mistake and the bill was actually for £25.
The waiter brings back five pound coins. As five doesn’t divide into three very well, the men take one pound each and leave two pounds as a tip which the waiter pockets.
Each man has now paid 9 pounds, which adds up to £27. The waiter has 2 pounds in his pocket. That adds up to £29.
What happened to the extra pound from the original £30?
Try as hard as you like to make the formula for that work and there will always be one pound missing.
The answer is that there never was an extra pound.
The three men paid £27 and the waiter took two leaving £25.
The way the conundrum is worded leads you to believe that there was £27 with £2 added to give £29, and therefore one pound short of £30, with £1 missing.
It is a good example of how easy it is to mislead somebody’s thinking so they mathematically “prove" something to be other than it is.
So when you see an exponential growth chart showing you how all you have to do is recruit 5 people and you will have a downline of 1 million in 6 weeks
Or one of those schemes where if you send out 200 letters and only 1% of them responds and only 1% of their prospects responds you’ll still get back a million pounds
You’re being conned – even if you can’t quite see how or why.
And remember – if it sounds too good to be true – it’s because it is!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
The waiter brings back five pound coins. As five doesn’t divide into three very well, the men take one pound each and leave two pounds as a tip which the waiter pockets.
Each man has now paid 9 pounds, which adds up to £27. The waiter has 2 pounds in his pocket. That adds up to £29.
What happened to the extra pound from the original £30?
Try as hard as you like to make the formula for that work and there will always be one pound missing.
The answer is that there never was an extra pound.
The three men paid £27 and the waiter took two leaving £25.
The way the conundrum is worded leads you to believe that there was £27 with £2 added to give £29, and therefore one pound short of £30, with £1 missing.
It is a good example of how easy it is to mislead somebody’s thinking so they mathematically “prove" something to be other than it is.
So when you see an exponential growth chart showing you how all you have to do is recruit 5 people and you will have a downline of 1 million in 6 weeks
Or one of those schemes where if you send out 200 letters and only 1% of them responds and only 1% of their prospects responds you’ll still get back a million pounds
You’re being conned – even if you can’t quite see how or why.
And remember – if it sounds too good to be true – it’s because it is!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Fly To Vassago
I see a lot of talk about branding on the Net, talk about using your face and your name.
As Vassago, I'm not promoting an opportunity or product, so that frees me to be "myself" as it were.
I see there are a lot of SFI affiliates and leaders here at Warriors.
My friend Sophia White was looking to promote an affiliate program. When she found SFI, we believed this to be synchronicity (for those familiar with their Jung).
Sophia goes by the alias Sapphire.
Sophia - Sapphire - SFI.
(Rolls off the tongue nicely)
An alternate version of Sophia is Sofia - which contains the letters SFI
(all very Number 23, is it not?)
Sofia is, of course, the Greek word meaning "wisdom".
So it is when targetting your demographic - internet marketing, home business, work from home, work at home, etc.
Who are you trying to pull in and why?
Where are those clickthrus coming from?
Is you traffic properly targetted?
Know you enemy and know yourself.
Or in this case, at least your target demographic.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
As Vassago, I'm not promoting an opportunity or product, so that frees me to be "myself" as it were.
I see there are a lot of SFI affiliates and leaders here at Warriors.
My friend Sophia White was looking to promote an affiliate program. When she found SFI, we believed this to be synchronicity (for those familiar with their Jung).
Sophia goes by the alias Sapphire.
Sophia - Sapphire - SFI.
(Rolls off the tongue nicely)
An alternate version of Sophia is Sofia - which contains the letters SFI
(all very Number 23, is it not?)
Sofia is, of course, the Greek word meaning "wisdom".
So it is when targetting your demographic - internet marketing, home business, work from home, work at home, etc.
Who are you trying to pull in and why?
Where are those clickthrus coming from?
Is you traffic properly targetted?
Know you enemy and know yourself.
Or in this case, at least your target demographic.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Secrets of YOUR Success?
Some people may work fulltime from home on the Net and make only an average income - £20,000 for example.
Then you get someone who does this part time, who hardly ever visits his own forum, yet makes well over six figures.
It's a case of working smart and not hard.
It's very easy for me to spend $450 a month buying leads. That isn't the issue.
Most people in Network Marketing need free methods that work - the ones we give them.
For me success isn't in about how much I personally make, but how much I help my affiliates make. And again, this is not a set figure, but what it means to them.
You all have heard of John Reese - probably because of his recent campaigns - yet he was a self made millionaire long before he started anything you would have heard about - what he's known for.
So what if he's a self made millionaire on the Net - he's a nice guy first and foremost, and he's real.
At the end of the Wizard of Oz where the Wizard says to the Tin Man after giving him his heart:
"Remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not measured by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others"
I don't measure my success by how much money I make, what car I drive, what house I live in, what job I have - or don't have in this case.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Then you get someone who does this part time, who hardly ever visits his own forum, yet makes well over six figures.
It's a case of working smart and not hard.
It's very easy for me to spend $450 a month buying leads. That isn't the issue.
Most people in Network Marketing need free methods that work - the ones we give them.
For me success isn't in about how much I personally make, but how much I help my affiliates make. And again, this is not a set figure, but what it means to them.
You all have heard of John Reese - probably because of his recent campaigns - yet he was a self made millionaire long before he started anything you would have heard about - what he's known for.
So what if he's a self made millionaire on the Net - he's a nice guy first and foremost, and he's real.
At the end of the Wizard of Oz where the Wizard says to the Tin Man after giving him his heart:
"Remember, my sentimental friend, that a heart is not measured by how much you love, but by how much you are loved by others"
I don't measure my success by how much money I make, what car I drive, what house I live in, what job I have - or don't have in this case.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Ad sizes
Ad sizes.
I have had varied results.
Some sites, such as FFAs, limit you to a few words.
Some Class ad sites let you post 100 or even 200
words. Yet how many people read ALL the words before clicking to the gateway?
I have found that at the sites that allow 100 words, keeping a simple 20 word ad - an FFA size ad - often works great. It gets them to the gateway, the gateway gets them to the signup page.
Simple rule - "go for the hit".
Imagine someone reading through a 200 word ad and clicks to the gateway page and has to read it all again?
Use the ad to get them TO the gateway. The words there will get the signup.
If you are going to write a long ad, then have your URL send them straight to the signup page - your copy should have convinced them to go for it. If you are sending them to the gateway, use a simple and powerful headline and text.
To quote Doug - on the Net, the only consistency is the inconsistency!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
I have had varied results.
Some sites, such as FFAs, limit you to a few words.
Some Class ad sites let you post 100 or even 200
words. Yet how many people read ALL the words before clicking to the gateway?
I have found that at the sites that allow 100 words, keeping a simple 20 word ad - an FFA size ad - often works great. It gets them to the gateway, the gateway gets them to the signup page.
Simple rule - "go for the hit".
Imagine someone reading through a 200 word ad and clicks to the gateway page and has to read it all again?
Use the ad to get them TO the gateway. The words there will get the signup.
If you are going to write a long ad, then have your URL send them straight to the signup page - your copy should have convinced them to go for it. If you are sending them to the gateway, use a simple and powerful headline and text.
To quote Doug - on the Net, the only consistency is the inconsistency!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Motivation
Having small goals and achieving them one step at a time, create a pattern of success.
Having goal like "I want to be a millionaire" is not very helpful. How will you achieve this and in what time frame? (Because people do have this kind of goal is the reason that the Lottery is so popular.)
Set a small goal with a realistic timeframe:
I will sign up 10 affiliates in my first 3 months.
I will sign up 100 affiliates in my first year.
I will be making £100 a month within 6 months.
I will be making £200 a month by the end of my first year.
Once you've achieved this it's easy to go for more ambitious goals:
I will be making £500 a month by the end of my second year.
Then:
I will be making £2000 a month by the end of my third year.
So within 3 years you are making enough to really run your home business full time. Give up the day job.
Then it is time to set the really big goals, like Six Figure Income (and we all know where that came from), and go on from there.
Even the Great Wall of China was built one brick at a time.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Having goal like "I want to be a millionaire" is not very helpful. How will you achieve this and in what time frame? (Because people do have this kind of goal is the reason that the Lottery is so popular.)
Set a small goal with a realistic timeframe:
I will sign up 10 affiliates in my first 3 months.
I will sign up 100 affiliates in my first year.
I will be making £100 a month within 6 months.
I will be making £200 a month by the end of my first year.
Once you've achieved this it's easy to go for more ambitious goals:
I will be making £500 a month by the end of my second year.
Then:
I will be making £2000 a month by the end of my third year.
So within 3 years you are making enough to really run your home business full time. Give up the day job.
Then it is time to set the really big goals, like Six Figure Income (and we all know where that came from), and go on from there.
Even the Great Wall of China was built one brick at a time.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Vassago Black Dragon White Tiger
Vassago has been a member of both of these ryu, so has been both a Black Dragon and a White Tiger. Both are associations for "Warriors" of a different kind.
We'll be writing more about this in future issues. But the point is, you don't always have to follow one Master.
So it is with the stories and blogs and methods of the great marketers. I've already written about my admiration for John Rees, Corey Rudl and Stone Evans.
Warriors is the place where the greats meet and post. Which is why you'll find me reading more than posting (except to my own blog of course!)
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
We'll be writing more about this in future issues. But the point is, you don't always have to follow one Master.
So it is with the stories and blogs and methods of the great marketers. I've already written about my admiration for John Rees, Corey Rudl and Stone Evans.
Warriors is the place where the greats meet and post. Which is why you'll find me reading more than posting (except to my own blog of course!)
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Vassago Jabberwocky
I posted Lewis Carroll's famous poem to my blog the other day. Some people asked me why.
(I won't reprint it here but if you want to read it, follow this link:
http://vassago-vassago.blogspot.com/2009/02/jabberwocky.html )
Alice's journey through the looking glass is about a white pawn who makes her way across the board one square at a time and eventually becomes a Queen, the most powerful piece in the game.
In Martial Art, a warrior goes on a pilgramage, called a Musha Shugyu - a Warrior's Journey. I personally follow the stories and blogs of many famous Warriors from Stone to John Rees to the great Corey Rudl.
Like Alice, many of us on our own journeys feel we are through the Looking Glass or lost in Wonderland. But at the end of the journey we can all become Queens (or Kings).
We may encounter a few odd characters along the way, a Jabberwocky, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, even the odd Cheshire Cat.
The journey may be hard at times, but once you get there, the view can be spectacular.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
(I won't reprint it here but if you want to read it, follow this link:
http://vassago-vassago.blogspot.com/2009/02/jabberwocky.html )
Alice's journey through the looking glass is about a white pawn who makes her way across the board one square at a time and eventually becomes a Queen, the most powerful piece in the game.
In Martial Art, a warrior goes on a pilgramage, called a Musha Shugyu - a Warrior's Journey. I personally follow the stories and blogs of many famous Warriors from Stone to John Rees to the great Corey Rudl.
Like Alice, many of us on our own journeys feel we are through the Looking Glass or lost in Wonderland. But at the end of the journey we can all become Queens (or Kings).
We may encounter a few odd characters along the way, a Jabberwocky, Tweedledum and Tweedledee, even the odd Cheshire Cat.
The journey may be hard at times, but once you get there, the view can be spectacular.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
The Next Step
I was reading Paulo Coelho's blog the other day when somebody asked him
"Best piece of advice you have ever been given?".
Paulo's reply was simple:
"Don’t follow advices. Try it yourself."
I myself made this reply:
"So the best piece of advice you’ve ever given is not to follow advice but to try it for yourself. Genius! I’m certainly going to follow that advice! "
Alex pointed out that the best advice giver is our own intuition.
People who follow a famous blog often end up commenting at each other's blogs and it becomes the next step in the evolution of networking - oen step further than even the forums take us.
Who needs Facebook?!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
"Best piece of advice you have ever been given?".
Paulo's reply was simple:
"Don’t follow advices. Try it yourself."
I myself made this reply:
"So the best piece of advice you’ve ever given is not to follow advice but to try it for yourself. Genius! I’m certainly going to follow that advice! "
Alex pointed out that the best advice giver is our own intuition.
People who follow a famous blog often end up commenting at each other's blogs and it becomes the next step in the evolution of networking - oen step further than even the forums take us.
Who needs Facebook?!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Vassago Cycles
Everything moves in cycles.
We know this from what scientists tell us about the movement of the stars, and the movements in our bodies, even the weather patterns. Social scientists tell us they can now see and even predict these patterns in social behaviour.
So it is with marketing and sales.
With a recession in the UK, people are spending their money elsewhere. Did you know that in a slump spending on fruit machines goes up? And don't forget all those people who don't go out spending on a Saturday night. 12 million of them rang the X Factor vote line (how much a minute?)
Making money is moving money. It all moves in cycles.
As John Rees once said "sell what people are already buying".
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
We know this from what scientists tell us about the movement of the stars, and the movements in our bodies, even the weather patterns. Social scientists tell us they can now see and even predict these patterns in social behaviour.
So it is with marketing and sales.
With a recession in the UK, people are spending their money elsewhere. Did you know that in a slump spending on fruit machines goes up? And don't forget all those people who don't go out spending on a Saturday night. 12 million of them rang the X Factor vote line (how much a minute?)
Making money is moving money. It all moves in cycles.
As John Rees once said "sell what people are already buying".
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Vassago Wikipedia
"Vassago, in demonology, is a mighty Prince of Hell (see Hierarchy of demons), ruling over twenty-six legions of demons. He can be persuaded to tell the magician of events past and future, can discover hidden and lost things, and has a "good" nature." (Wikipedia)
Personally I don't pretend to be able to see the future (though I'd like to think people find I have a good nature)
However think about this.
Suppose you walk to a cliff's edge. Many things could happen. You could jump, you could be pushed, a gust of wind might carry you over, the cliff might crumble. But chances are you would turn around and walk away. You have just made a prediction, using the available information.
Now if you never go to the cliff's edge, you never run the risk of falling over.
So it is with anything, including marketing.
It's a balance between "fools rush in" and "he who hesitates".
And if you are going to hang round cliff edges, maybe take a parachute. Just in case.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Personally I don't pretend to be able to see the future (though I'd like to think people find I have a good nature)
However think about this.
Suppose you walk to a cliff's edge. Many things could happen. You could jump, you could be pushed, a gust of wind might carry you over, the cliff might crumble. But chances are you would turn around and walk away. You have just made a prediction, using the available information.
Now if you never go to the cliff's edge, you never run the risk of falling over.
So it is with anything, including marketing.
It's a balance between "fools rush in" and "he who hesitates".
And if you are going to hang round cliff edges, maybe take a parachute. Just in case.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Viral Marketing
Viral Marketing is the hot topic at the moment, but many don’t really understand what the term means. As this is an internet based business, and therefore Internet Marketing, we need to look at it in internet terms.
You know when someone sends you a joke on email and it’s a good one you want to pass it on. From your mailbox you open your list of friends names and post the joke on to everyone you know, or everyone on your “joke list”, a list of people you pass jokes on to.
Next time you do this, have a scroll down the email to see the list of people it has come from at the head of each mailing. Each person who sent the joke on will have sent it to everyone on their “joke list”. You’ll see quite a few names you’ll recognize, some of who will be on your own list.
This is “Viral” – the joke has been passed on like a virus – from person to person. Everyone they come in contact with has passed it on to everyone else they know.
The trick with viral marketing is to duplicate that process with your products and the business opportunity itself – pass your store’s website URL on to everyone who cleans their house or takes nutritional supplements, or who might, and get them to do the same with everyone they know.
Also, a lot of people who start using the products are going to want to get the products at wholesale. So they want their own store.
So they sign up under you! And you get the commission not only on what they buy, but on anything people they know buy from them, and for anyone who signs up under them, who will be in your second line! So, just as you send a joke you get to your “joke list”, you need to get the biz opp to anyone who has a biz opp list.
Congratulations, you have just become a mentor!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
You know when someone sends you a joke on email and it’s a good one you want to pass it on. From your mailbox you open your list of friends names and post the joke on to everyone you know, or everyone on your “joke list”, a list of people you pass jokes on to.
Next time you do this, have a scroll down the email to see the list of people it has come from at the head of each mailing. Each person who sent the joke on will have sent it to everyone on their “joke list”. You’ll see quite a few names you’ll recognize, some of who will be on your own list.
This is “Viral” – the joke has been passed on like a virus – from person to person. Everyone they come in contact with has passed it on to everyone else they know.
The trick with viral marketing is to duplicate that process with your products and the business opportunity itself – pass your store’s website URL on to everyone who cleans their house or takes nutritional supplements, or who might, and get them to do the same with everyone they know.
Also, a lot of people who start using the products are going to want to get the products at wholesale. So they want their own store.
So they sign up under you! And you get the commission not only on what they buy, but on anything people they know buy from them, and for anyone who signs up under them, who will be in your second line! So, just as you send a joke you get to your “joke list”, you need to get the biz opp to anyone who has a biz opp list.
Congratulations, you have just become a mentor!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Followup by Autoresponder
What you must NEVER do is when you make personal contact with a genuine affiliate is stick them on an autoresponder - that is the fastest way to lose them.
Use an autoresponder for cold leads but ALWAYS include an email address they can write to you at and that you will reply on. Once they become a personal contact NEVER make them a cold lead again.
In the old days - before the Net - all network marketing was done personal - on the phone and face to face. Email is fine - my GL only ever communicates via email - but you do need to get personal with your team as soon as you can - you'll be working together to make money after all.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Use an autoresponder for cold leads but ALWAYS include an email address they can write to you at and that you will reply on. Once they become a personal contact NEVER make them a cold lead again.
In the old days - before the Net - all network marketing was done personal - on the phone and face to face. Email is fine - my GL only ever communicates via email - but you do need to get personal with your team as soon as you can - you'll be working together to make money after all.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Caveat Emptor
What newbies need to know is not to throw away money on worthless untargeted leads by those rip-off companies you see everywhere. All these companies are doing is selling off “leads” they couldn’t use. Someone new to IM needs to take the time to learn how to spot the difference before spending money.
Caveat Emptor – as always.
I HAVE found a great lead source – my concern is that other people have not and will be throwing way money – money they cannot afford to throw away.
This has been discussed at length before.
It is the same as the TE debate – yes they work, but only if you use them properly – we know advertising affiliate progs direct on TEs just gets you “lots of hits and no signups”, while using TEs to build a list and then send them the info works great.
But to be more specific, scientific testing has four steps:
1. formulate a theory
2. test the theory
3. gather the results
4. draw your conclusions from the results
To skip from step 1 to step 4 is ASSUMPTION – and we know what that make of U and ME don’t we?
I only EVER draw conclusions after going through steps 2 and 3 thoroughly – and that applies to lead generation as with TEs as with anything else.
As I said – Steps 2 and 3 are what lead to the conclusions drawn at Step 4 – this is the info we present for others to benefit.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Caveat Emptor – as always.
I HAVE found a great lead source – my concern is that other people have not and will be throwing way money – money they cannot afford to throw away.
This has been discussed at length before.
It is the same as the TE debate – yes they work, but only if you use them properly – we know advertising affiliate progs direct on TEs just gets you “lots of hits and no signups”, while using TEs to build a list and then send them the info works great.
But to be more specific, scientific testing has four steps:
1. formulate a theory
2. test the theory
3. gather the results
4. draw your conclusions from the results
To skip from step 1 to step 4 is ASSUMPTION – and we know what that make of U and ME don’t we?
I only EVER draw conclusions after going through steps 2 and 3 thoroughly – and that applies to lead generation as with TEs as with anything else.
As I said – Steps 2 and 3 are what lead to the conclusions drawn at Step 4 – this is the info we present for others to benefit.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Triple Clicks
SFI launched Triple Clicks this year.
Personally I think it is better than EBay which has now gotten huge and clunky.
SFI are promoting Triple Clicks initially as a kind of "online garage sale", a way to clear out unwanted clutter. Triple Clicks will be a great way to substitute those many Classified Ad sites and target seller to buyer and vice versa.
It has also replaced SFI "Veriuni Store" of items, making it easier for SFI affiliates to market their many products.
You can read about Triple Clicks at Sapphire's SFI Blog here:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com/
You can see the Triple Clicks mall here:
http://www.tripleclicks.com/8492891
You can get a free listing here:
http://www.tripleclicks.com/8492891/go
Personally I think it is better than EBay which has now gotten huge and clunky.
SFI are promoting Triple Clicks initially as a kind of "online garage sale", a way to clear out unwanted clutter. Triple Clicks will be a great way to substitute those many Classified Ad sites and target seller to buyer and vice versa.
It has also replaced SFI "Veriuni Store" of items, making it easier for SFI affiliates to market their many products.
You can read about Triple Clicks at Sapphire's SFI Blog here:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com/
You can see the Triple Clicks mall here:
http://www.tripleclicks.com/8492891
You can get a free listing here:
http://www.tripleclicks.com/8492891/go
Residual Income
A lot of people get caught up in the terminology (it's just a name, don't fuss over it). A lot of the terms in the US - residual income and leveraged income to name two - are unfamiliar to many in the UK I have found. It doesn't mean it doesn't exit, it means it gets called something else. But sometimes the terms get mixed up.
Here's how I explain it to my team:
Here are the ways to make money:
1. Make a sale to a customer. The is a direct sale. This is called retail. Whether the customer is an SFI affiliate or not is immaterial, they are a customer. If you sign up Mary and she buys a copy of Mining Gold you have made a sale, you get commision. This is a one time commission on a one time sale.
2. Make a sale that has an ongoing payment from the customer, such as IAHBE membership. For the one time sale of IAHBE, you will get money each month as long as the customer keeps their membership. That is residual income. Do it once, get paid "forever" (or until they cancel their subscription).
This applies to any kind of membership in any program, whether cable TV or phone lines
(I'm not limiting this example to SFI, this a general concept).
3. Mary sells a copy of "Internet Marketing by Joe Bloggs". You as her upline get a commission on that sale. This is leveraged income. It is levered, or leveraged, from the efforts of someone else. Your action in recruiting Mary has indirectly caused you to earn money from her future sales.
4. Mary sells a copy of the "Internet Marketing Club" membership.This means from your action of recruiting Mary and her action of selling "IMC", the sale will bring you income each month.
"Level 4" is where the big money comes in - you make more money from the ongoing sales of your team than you could ever earn from your own direct sales. This is where terms like "exponential growth" and "viral marketing" start to get used.
Of course that is just my way of looking at it and how I explain it.
The compensation plan will differ for each company so you need to study the SFI plan to know exactly what you're getting, and when, and why.
You need your own plan of action and you need to show your team members how to duplicate your success so that you can benefit from their efforts.
A lot of newbies look at the scheme and want the "residual income" because it looks like "money for nothing". It's actually money made later on work you do earlier (sew now and reap at harvest time and other analogies) - work to become PTL by 3 affiliates who all EA by IAHBE and you will be making residual income each month, and can then make money on their sales.
What you can't do is sit there never having even done anything (as many do) and expect the money to just roll in from nowhere.
The same applies to bonuses - you can't do nothing and expect to just get a bonus. (The money in the bonus pool is generated by the sales other people make. Why should you get a share of that for doing nothing?)
Make enough sales and you get a bonus, but that is what "bonus" means, a little extra, your main income comes from your efforts - direct, leveraged and residual.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Here's how I explain it to my team:
Here are the ways to make money:
1. Make a sale to a customer. The is a direct sale. This is called retail. Whether the customer is an SFI affiliate or not is immaterial, they are a customer. If you sign up Mary and she buys a copy of Mining Gold you have made a sale, you get commision. This is a one time commission on a one time sale.
2. Make a sale that has an ongoing payment from the customer, such as IAHBE membership. For the one time sale of IAHBE, you will get money each month as long as the customer keeps their membership. That is residual income. Do it once, get paid "forever" (or until they cancel their subscription).
This applies to any kind of membership in any program, whether cable TV or phone lines
(I'm not limiting this example to SFI, this a general concept).
3. Mary sells a copy of "Internet Marketing by Joe Bloggs". You as her upline get a commission on that sale. This is leveraged income. It is levered, or leveraged, from the efforts of someone else. Your action in recruiting Mary has indirectly caused you to earn money from her future sales.
4. Mary sells a copy of the "Internet Marketing Club" membership.This means from your action of recruiting Mary and her action of selling "IMC", the sale will bring you income each month.
"Level 4" is where the big money comes in - you make more money from the ongoing sales of your team than you could ever earn from your own direct sales. This is where terms like "exponential growth" and "viral marketing" start to get used.
Of course that is just my way of looking at it and how I explain it.
The compensation plan will differ for each company so you need to study the SFI plan to know exactly what you're getting, and when, and why.
You need your own plan of action and you need to show your team members how to duplicate your success so that you can benefit from their efforts.
A lot of newbies look at the scheme and want the "residual income" because it looks like "money for nothing". It's actually money made later on work you do earlier (sew now and reap at harvest time and other analogies) - work to become PTL by 3 affiliates who all EA by IAHBE and you will be making residual income each month, and can then make money on their sales.
What you can't do is sit there never having even done anything (as many do) and expect the money to just roll in from nowhere.
The same applies to bonuses - you can't do nothing and expect to just get a bonus. (The money in the bonus pool is generated by the sales other people make. Why should you get a share of that for doing nothing?)
Make enough sales and you get a bonus, but that is what "bonus" means, a little extra, your main income comes from your efforts - direct, leveraged and residual.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Don't Spam!
If someone has their contact details on their site it is for you to contact them to ask for more info on their program or product. The last thing they want is YOU using it to send them info on YOUR product and opp.
SPAM is “Unsolicited Commercial Email”. Try this tactic and you are sending spam.
I get a lot of this. Mostly I delete without reading. Sometimes I report them. Recently some idiot using No BS Zone used my SFI contact form from my gateway to spam me. I reported him and was subsequently told that his account at No BS was deleted. Serves him right.
SFI has the same policy. Spam someone and they report you and you will most likely have your SFI account terminated.
Use legitimate marketing techniques, send your promotions to people who want to see them. Don’t send commercial email without prior consent.
Unless you see a website where the webmaster has a big sign saying “please send spam to this email address”, then don’t send it!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
SPAM is “Unsolicited Commercial Email”. Try this tactic and you are sending spam.
I get a lot of this. Mostly I delete without reading. Sometimes I report them. Recently some idiot using No BS Zone used my SFI contact form from my gateway to spam me. I reported him and was subsequently told that his account at No BS was deleted. Serves him right.
SFI has the same policy. Spam someone and they report you and you will most likely have your SFI account terminated.
Use legitimate marketing techniques, send your promotions to people who want to see them. Don’t send commercial email without prior consent.
Unless you see a website where the webmaster has a big sign saying “please send spam to this email address”, then don’t send it!
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Mentoring A Leader
There's that story about the sculptor who created a great statue (think it was originally attributed as Michelangelo with David). When he completed it everyone said what a great statue he had created. His reply was that the statue was always there - hidden in the rock - he just chipped away the rough edges.
That's probably the same when you mentor a leader.
Nobody "creates" a leader - they were always there, you just mentored and trained them and cleared away the rough edges.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
That's probably the same when you mentor a leader.
Nobody "creates" a leader - they were always there, you just mentored and trained them and cleared away the rough edges.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
The Empty Cup
It is something well known in martial arts – keep an empty cup so it can be filled.
But I would like to take the "water bottle" analogy further.
Yes you must open your bottle, take the top off before you can fill it.
You also choose to hold the bottle under the faucet, to fill it with clear clean water.
Now what if you came to a sewage outlet?
It would be a good idea not to put the bottle under the faucet and keep the lid firmly screwed in place.
Though there is a lot of cool clear clean water filtering down from those who have succeeded, in articles and forums, there is also a lot of sewage being pumped in by those who don’t know what they are talking about, who are jaded, who make posts such as “give up on XXX method, it doesn’t work”
And at these times we do need to speak up and speak out so new people don’t get confused.
A while back we had a certain affiliate post 2 bad pieces of advice:
“free ads don’t work, don’t waste your time”
and
“follow-ups may not work, you are wasting your time”
I spoke up on both occasions so that new people would put the tops on their bottles and not fill it with this raw sewage.
Imagine a new affiliate taking the “advice” not to use free ads – not to follow Johan’s guide – and not to do follow-ups!
Another thread one time we had a new affiliate, just joined, first post, saying online marketing doesn’t work, neither do free ads “you get what you pay for” (how many times have we heard that litany?). And to spend money advertising in magazines!
My reply was quite simple: “you are completely wrong!”
So respecting other peoples views, posts and opinion can only go so far before it starts to become damaging to others. Then it’s time to change the analogy.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
But I would like to take the "water bottle" analogy further.
Yes you must open your bottle, take the top off before you can fill it.
You also choose to hold the bottle under the faucet, to fill it with clear clean water.
Now what if you came to a sewage outlet?
It would be a good idea not to put the bottle under the faucet and keep the lid firmly screwed in place.
Though there is a lot of cool clear clean water filtering down from those who have succeeded, in articles and forums, there is also a lot of sewage being pumped in by those who don’t know what they are talking about, who are jaded, who make posts such as “give up on XXX method, it doesn’t work”
And at these times we do need to speak up and speak out so new people don’t get confused.
A while back we had a certain affiliate post 2 bad pieces of advice:
“free ads don’t work, don’t waste your time”
and
“follow-ups may not work, you are wasting your time”
I spoke up on both occasions so that new people would put the tops on their bottles and not fill it with this raw sewage.
Imagine a new affiliate taking the “advice” not to use free ads – not to follow Johan’s guide – and not to do follow-ups!
Another thread one time we had a new affiliate, just joined, first post, saying online marketing doesn’t work, neither do free ads “you get what you pay for” (how many times have we heard that litany?). And to spend money advertising in magazines!
My reply was quite simple: “you are completely wrong!”
So respecting other peoples views, posts and opinion can only go so far before it starts to become damaging to others. Then it’s time to change the analogy.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Don't use ad submission software
The sites that accept submissions from packages like that are never looked at by real people. Everyone is just using submssion software -no-one goes there to read the ads.
Most of them are just FFA sites anyway, not class ads, which is why you get the spam.
You have to do the work to post the ads and do the work to whittle down to the ones that give you constant returns. The idea you can buy a package that will do that for you is attractive, but is a scam based on people's laziness and the niavety of newbies.
The idea that it resubmits it all for you again takes that scam to the next level. The real advertisers are the people sending you the spam, the people who harvest your email name when you post.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Most of them are just FFA sites anyway, not class ads, which is why you get the spam.
You have to do the work to post the ads and do the work to whittle down to the ones that give you constant returns. The idea you can buy a package that will do that for you is attractive, but is a scam based on people's laziness and the niavety of newbies.
The idea that it resubmits it all for you again takes that scam to the next level. The real advertisers are the people sending you the spam, the people who harvest your email name when you post.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Post to free sites - don't use submitters
The whole point of free ads is they are free - hence the word.
Pay for them in any way - even for a submitter - and you are paying for advertising.
As stated above - if you have a spare 100 bucks, invest in proper paid ads or PPCs.
The same goes for buying credits on TEs - the money is best spent elsewhere.
As for these submitters, we're pretty sure a lot of the sites that accept them are worthless because everyone uses submitters so no real people go to the sites and see the ads. The best sites make you open the page you want and scroll to the bottom for the submission form it makes ure REAL people go there and see the ads.
The spam emails come from the FFA sites - a lot of free submitters actually post to FFAs as well as class ads, or sites that have both such as FFABiz.
This submitter, or any submitter, is not exactly a "scam", but it is a scheme - and it cashes in on people's laziness.
Free ad sites DO work, but you have to do the work placing the ads, tracking the results, finding which sites work best with which ads, changing the headlines, etc, until you have your goldmine.
I now have a list of sites where I can guarantee new signups each month - it didn't cost me anything in terms of money - but it did cost me a lot of time.
You have to pay your dues.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Pay for them in any way - even for a submitter - and you are paying for advertising.
As stated above - if you have a spare 100 bucks, invest in proper paid ads or PPCs.
The same goes for buying credits on TEs - the money is best spent elsewhere.
As for these submitters, we're pretty sure a lot of the sites that accept them are worthless because everyone uses submitters so no real people go to the sites and see the ads. The best sites make you open the page you want and scroll to the bottom for the submission form it makes ure REAL people go there and see the ads.
The spam emails come from the FFA sites - a lot of free submitters actually post to FFAs as well as class ads, or sites that have both such as FFABiz.
This submitter, or any submitter, is not exactly a "scam", but it is a scheme - and it cashes in on people's laziness.
Free ad sites DO work, but you have to do the work placing the ads, tracking the results, finding which sites work best with which ads, changing the headlines, etc, until you have your goldmine.
I now have a list of sites where I can guarantee new signups each month - it didn't cost me anything in terms of money - but it did cost me a lot of time.
You have to pay your dues.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Followup on followups
Followups seem to be a bit of hot topic right now.
Dave Pyne's President Club interview is one of my personal favourites.
In it Dave states:
"I know that when I started, it was difficult to develop a follow-up strategy."
also
"Working together as a Team we have developed a fantastic follow-up series of letters we send to our new affiliates. "
You can read Dave's interview here:
https://www.sfimg.com/Leaders/PyneProfile.sfi
So for those who find that followups MAY not work, or haven't worked for you, then you can read advice from someone who knows they do, a member of the President's Club.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Dave Pyne's President Club interview is one of my personal favourites.
In it Dave states:
"I know that when I started, it was difficult to develop a follow-up strategy."
also
"Working together as a Team we have developed a fantastic follow-up series of letters we send to our new affiliates. "
You can read Dave's interview here:
https://www.sfimg.com/Leaders/PyneProfile.sfi
So for those who find that followups MAY not work, or haven't worked for you, then you can read advice from someone who knows they do, a member of the President's Club.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Duplicate Positivity
The most important thing to do is stay positive, be positive, believe and then achieve. Pass this positive attitude on.
Every problem has a solution.
Over, under, round or through.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Every problem has a solution.
Over, under, round or through.
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Sapphire's SFI Blog
For Internet Marketing, Business Opportunities, Work at Home, Work From Home, Make Money Online, Internet Marketing Secrets, go to Sapphire's SFI Blog:
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
http://sapphiresfi.blogspot.com
Vassago Zimbio
There are many sections on Affiliate Marketing, Internet Marketing,, etc:
http://www.zimbio.com/Affiliate+Marketinghttp://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Secrets
http://www.zimbio.com/From+Suits+To+...king+From+Home
http://www.zimbio.com/Top+secret+Internet+marketing
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Courses
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Firms
http://www.zimbio.com/Marketing+Your...usiness+Online
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Profits
http://www.zimbio.com/Make+Money+Online+From+Home
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Strategies
I have contributed to all of these.
Anyone who has read my blog knows my interests are far outside IM so I've found this site useful for pursuing those. One member of Warriors uses Zimbio to promote his golf blog.
You can see my Zimbio profile here:
http://www.zimbio.com/member/vassago
http://www.zimbio.com/Affiliate+Marketinghttp://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Secrets
http://www.zimbio.com/From+Suits+To+...king+From+Home
http://www.zimbio.com/Top+secret+Internet+marketing
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Courses
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Firms
http://www.zimbio.com/Marketing+Your...usiness+Online
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Profits
http://www.zimbio.com/Make+Money+Online+From+Home
http://www.zimbio.com/Internet+Marketing+Strategies
I have contributed to all of these.
Anyone who has read my blog knows my interests are far outside IM so I've found this site useful for pursuing those. One member of Warriors uses Zimbio to promote his golf blog.
You can see my Zimbio profile here:
http://www.zimbio.com/member/vassago
Wednesday, 15 April 2009
Execution
My grandfather died peacefully in his sleep.
(Unlike his passengers who died screaming.)
Dying in my sleep is how I want to go. There is a famous poem/prayer:
"Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
And if I die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take."
This is how it's meant to be. Go to sleep every night of your life and one night you just don't wake up. Pass over into Spirit peacefully.
If I had to be executed I'd choose lethal injection, it's the closest thing to a "natural" death. The first injection puts you peacefully to sleep. The next two injections stop your diaphragm from moving and stop your heart. You just don't wake up again.
The electric chair would be horrible. Strapped in the seat, then the hood comes down over your head and you're left in that musky darkness knowing you'll never see the world again. The first bolt of electricity hits your brain and kills it so your consciousness is gone. The electricity that passes through your body kills your heart and lungs.
If the procedure in The Green Mile is anything to go by, you sit there with that hood over your face and the last words you ever hear are "Roll on two".
The gas chamber would be just as bad.
Hanging. You get walked into the room, noose goes round your neck, bag over your head, then that's it.
Firing squad.
Guillotine.
Axe man - the English variation.
And nobody would ever choose crucifixion as their prefered way to go.
So if I had to have it done, and I had a choice, I'd choose lethal injection.
This most humane version of a most inhumane act has some bizarre quirks. When the condemned man is strapped onto the table the prison warden is there to ask if he's comfortable, to make sure the straps aren't too tight. And when the IV is put in they swab his arm with disinfection. A standard medical procedure, it's done to prevent infection.
Everyone knows that Arnold Schwarzeneggar is now the Governor of California. One of his first duties was the appeal case of a gang leader on Death Row. After taking advice, Arnie decided there was no grounds for granting clemency and signed the Death Warrant.
Arnie now has the power of life and death over criminals in the state of California, a power most European kings don't have over their subjects in their own countries.
A couple of examples of what an insane world this has become.
(Unlike his passengers who died screaming.)
Dying in my sleep is how I want to go. There is a famous poem/prayer:
"Now I lay me down to sleep
I pray the Lord my soul to keep.
And if I die before I wake
I pray the Lord my soul to take."
This is how it's meant to be. Go to sleep every night of your life and one night you just don't wake up. Pass over into Spirit peacefully.
If I had to be executed I'd choose lethal injection, it's the closest thing to a "natural" death. The first injection puts you peacefully to sleep. The next two injections stop your diaphragm from moving and stop your heart. You just don't wake up again.
The electric chair would be horrible. Strapped in the seat, then the hood comes down over your head and you're left in that musky darkness knowing you'll never see the world again. The first bolt of electricity hits your brain and kills it so your consciousness is gone. The electricity that passes through your body kills your heart and lungs.
If the procedure in The Green Mile is anything to go by, you sit there with that hood over your face and the last words you ever hear are "Roll on two".
The gas chamber would be just as bad.
Hanging. You get walked into the room, noose goes round your neck, bag over your head, then that's it.
Firing squad.
Guillotine.
Axe man - the English variation.
And nobody would ever choose crucifixion as their prefered way to go.
So if I had to have it done, and I had a choice, I'd choose lethal injection.
This most humane version of a most inhumane act has some bizarre quirks. When the condemned man is strapped onto the table the prison warden is there to ask if he's comfortable, to make sure the straps aren't too tight. And when the IV is put in they swab his arm with disinfection. A standard medical procedure, it's done to prevent infection.
Everyone knows that Arnold Schwarzeneggar is now the Governor of California. One of his first duties was the appeal case of a gang leader on Death Row. After taking advice, Arnie decided there was no grounds for granting clemency and signed the Death Warrant.
Arnie now has the power of life and death over criminals in the state of California, a power most European kings don't have over their subjects in their own countries.
A couple of examples of what an insane world this has become.
Girls Aloud shaglist
Nadine
Cheryl
Kimberley and Sarah together
Nadine and Cheryl together
Sarah
Kimberley
Cheryl and Kimberley together
Nadine and Sarah together
Cheryl again
Nicola - so she doesn't feel left out. But from behind.
Cheryl
Kimberley and Sarah together
Nadine and Cheryl together
Sarah
Kimberley
Cheryl and Kimberley together
Nadine and Sarah together
Cheryl again
Nicola - so she doesn't feel left out. But from behind.
Constantine - Lord of the Dance
There's an interesting Constantine story where he meets the real Lord of the Dance (he's a pagan god, not Jesus).
Being Constantine he takes him down the pub for a piss up. But it does the trick - gets his mojo working as it were.
Lord Of The Dance is about Bacchus/Dionysus. It's about Dionysian orgy - drinking and dancing and shagging.
Being Constantine he takes him down the pub for a piss up. But it does the trick - gets his mojo working as it were.
Lord Of The Dance is about Bacchus/Dionysus. It's about Dionysian orgy - drinking and dancing and shagging.
Lord of the Wank
By changing the word "Lord" to the word "wank", the song takes on a different meaning. We've also changed a few other lyrics to help it make a bit more sense. And to be funnier.
I wanked in the morning when the world was young
I wanked in the moon and the stars and the sun
I came down from heaven and I wanked on the earth
At Bethlehem I had my first
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked for the scribes and the Pharisees
They wouldn't wank, they wouldn't follow me
I wanked for the fishermen James and John
They came with me and the wank went on
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked on the Sabbath and I came on the lame
The holy people said it was a shame
They ripped, and they stripped, and they hung me well
Left me there on the cross to smell
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked on a Friday when the world turned black
It's hard to wank with a bummer on your back
They buried my body, they thought I was gone
But I am the wank, and the wank goes on
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
They cut me down and I spunked up high
I am the life that will never, never die
I'll wank for you if you'll wank for me
I am the Lord of the wank, said he
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
Wank, wank, everybody wank
Wank, wank, everybody wank
Wank, wank, everybody wank...
I wanked in the morning when the world was young
I wanked in the moon and the stars and the sun
I came down from heaven and I wanked on the earth
At Bethlehem I had my first
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked for the scribes and the Pharisees
They wouldn't wank, they wouldn't follow me
I wanked for the fishermen James and John
They came with me and the wank went on
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked on the Sabbath and I came on the lame
The holy people said it was a shame
They ripped, and they stripped, and they hung me well
Left me there on the cross to smell
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
I wanked on a Friday when the world turned black
It's hard to wank with a bummer on your back
They buried my body, they thought I was gone
But I am the wank, and the wank goes on
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
They cut me down and I spunked up high
I am the life that will never, never die
I'll wank for you if you'll wank for me
I am the Lord of the wank, said he
Wank, wank, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the wanks, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the wank, said he
Wank, wank, everybody wank
Wank, wank, everybody wank
Wank, wank, everybody wank...
Lord of the Dance
I danced in the morning when the world was young
I danced in the moon and the stars and the sun
I came down from heaven and I danced on the earth
At Bethlehem I had my birth
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced for the scribes and the Pharisees
They wouldn't dance, they wouldn't follow me
I danced for the fishermen James and John
They came with me so the dance went on
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced on the Sabbath and I cured the lame
The holy people said it was a shame
They ripped, they stripped, they hung me high
Left me there on the cross to die
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced on a Friday when the world turned black
It's hard to dance with the devil on your back
They buried my body, they thought I was gone
But I am the dance, and the dance goes on
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that will never, never die
I'll live in you if you'll live in me
I am the Lord of the dance, said he
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced in the moon and the stars and the sun
I came down from heaven and I danced on the earth
At Bethlehem I had my birth
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced for the scribes and the Pharisees
They wouldn't dance, they wouldn't follow me
I danced for the fishermen James and John
They came with me so the dance went on
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced on the Sabbath and I cured the lame
The holy people said it was a shame
They ripped, they stripped, they hung me high
Left me there on the cross to die
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
I danced on a Friday when the world turned black
It's hard to dance with the devil on your back
They buried my body, they thought I was gone
But I am the dance, and the dance goes on
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
They cut me down and I leapt up high
I am the life that will never, never die
I'll live in you if you'll live in me
I am the Lord of the dance, said he
Dance, dance, wherever you may be
I am the lord of the dance, said he
And I lead you all, wherever you may be
And I lead you all in the dance, said he
Lily Allen
Lily's new song is Not Fair, the second release from her second album.
The song tells the story of an unsatisfying lover, a problem Lily is constantly afflicted with.
The bridge:
There's just one thing that's getting in the way
When we go up to bed you're just no good
Its such a shame
I look into your eyes I want to get to know you
And then you make this noise and its apparent it's all over
The chorus:
It's not fair
And I think you're really mean
I think you're really mean
I think you're really mean
Oh you're supposed to care
But you never make me scream
The second verse starts with this typically scathing lyric:
Oh I lie here in the wet patch
In the middle of the bed
I'm feeling pretty damn hard done by
I spent ages giving head
This is not the first time Lily has wrote a song for a less than adequate lover. her album Alright Still contains the song "Not Big", which has lyrics like this:
Alright, how would it make you feel if I said you never made me cum?
In the year and a half that we spent together,
Yeah, I never really had much fun.
Yeah, you really must think you're great,
Let's see how you feel in a couple of weeks,
When I work my way through your mates.
I'm gonna tell the world you're rubbish in bed now
And that you're small in the game.
Yeah, let's rewind, let's turn back time to when you couldn't get it up,
You know what it should've ended there,
That's when I should've shown you the door.
As if that weren't enough to deal with,
You became premature.
You're not big, you're not clever,
No, you ain't a big brother
Not big what so ever.
The song tells the story of an unsatisfying lover, a problem Lily is constantly afflicted with.
The bridge:
There's just one thing that's getting in the way
When we go up to bed you're just no good
Its such a shame
I look into your eyes I want to get to know you
And then you make this noise and its apparent it's all over
The chorus:
It's not fair
And I think you're really mean
I think you're really mean
I think you're really mean
Oh you're supposed to care
But you never make me scream
The second verse starts with this typically scathing lyric:
Oh I lie here in the wet patch
In the middle of the bed
I'm feeling pretty damn hard done by
I spent ages giving head
This is not the first time Lily has wrote a song for a less than adequate lover. her album Alright Still contains the song "Not Big", which has lyrics like this:
Alright, how would it make you feel if I said you never made me cum?
In the year and a half that we spent together,
Yeah, I never really had much fun.
Yeah, you really must think you're great,
Let's see how you feel in a couple of weeks,
When I work my way through your mates.
I'm gonna tell the world you're rubbish in bed now
And that you're small in the game.
Yeah, let's rewind, let's turn back time to when you couldn't get it up,
You know what it should've ended there,
That's when I should've shown you the door.
As if that weren't enough to deal with,
You became premature.
You're not big, you're not clever,
No, you ain't a big brother
Not big what so ever.
Tuesday, 14 April 2009
God and Evolution
Do you believe God made you?
Your parents concieved you, you developed from a single cell, you were born.
Do you have a soul?
Where did that soul come from and where will it go when you die?
Do you have siblings, brothers and sisters?
They are different from you.
If your parents had concieved you a year earlier or later how different would you be?
What if it was a few months?
Weeks?
Days?
A few hours?
How much of what makes you is God's design, and how much is random chance?
When will you die?
Will it be at 70 - 3 score years and 10?
Or 60?
Or 80?
What if accident or illness means you die younger?
Some people die in heir 30s, some in their 20s.
Children die all the time.
Is this individual life chance, luck, or God's plan?
So it is with evolution. If you can't see any plan, if you don't believe in it because you don't believe in chance, think again. Think about God "made" you. Then look at how He "made" the worlds and all it's creatures.
Evolution IS God's plan.
Your parents concieved you, you developed from a single cell, you were born.
Do you have a soul?
Where did that soul come from and where will it go when you die?
Do you have siblings, brothers and sisters?
They are different from you.
If your parents had concieved you a year earlier or later how different would you be?
What if it was a few months?
Weeks?
Days?
A few hours?
How much of what makes you is God's design, and how much is random chance?
When will you die?
Will it be at 70 - 3 score years and 10?
Or 60?
Or 80?
What if accident or illness means you die younger?
Some people die in heir 30s, some in their 20s.
Children die all the time.
Is this individual life chance, luck, or God's plan?
So it is with evolution. If you can't see any plan, if you don't believe in it because you don't believe in chance, think again. Think about God "made" you. Then look at how He "made" the worlds and all it's creatures.
Evolution IS God's plan.
Star Trek
So why in Star Trek so all the aliens look like us - just a human with different ears or a forehead?
Well SF is a cultural thing. We want to believe the Enterprise will find that there is life out there - that we are not alone. It's a comfort thing. The possibility that we're alone is frightening. And we want to find M class planets, like ours, and life "as we know it", albeit with a few variations.
It's the same as when the first sailors, Magellan, Columbus, etc, sailed across the oceans and found new "worlds" inhabited by humans like us, but with different coloured skin, different hair, different eyes and noses. We want to believe the new worlds we find in space will be populated with people, just a bit different. That on all these new worlds, God has still created "man" in His image.
Well SF is a cultural thing. We want to believe the Enterprise will find that there is life out there - that we are not alone. It's a comfort thing. The possibility that we're alone is frightening. And we want to find M class planets, like ours, and life "as we know it", albeit with a few variations.
It's the same as when the first sailors, Magellan, Columbus, etc, sailed across the oceans and found new "worlds" inhabited by humans like us, but with different coloured skin, different hair, different eyes and noses. We want to believe the new worlds we find in space will be populated with people, just a bit different. That on all these new worlds, God has still created "man" in His image.
The Interpretation of Daniel's dream
15 "I, Daniel, was troubled in spirit, and the visions that passed through my mind disturbed me. 16 I approached one of those standing there and asked him the true meaning of all this.
"So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 'The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.'
19 "Then I wanted to know the true meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23 "He gave me this explanation: 'The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time. [a]
26 " 'But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.'
28 "This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself."
"So he told me and gave me the interpretation of these things: 17 'The four great beasts are four kingdoms that will rise from the earth. 18 But the saints of the Most High will receive the kingdom and will possess it forever—yes, for ever and ever.'
19 "Then I wanted to know the true meaning of the fourth beast, which was different from all the others and most terrifying, with its iron teeth and bronze claws—the beast that crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. 20 I also wanted to know about the ten horns on its head and about the other horn that came up, before which three of them fell—the horn that looked more imposing than the others and that had eyes and a mouth that spoke boastfully. 21 As I watched, this horn was waging war against the saints and defeating them, 22 until the Ancient of Days came and pronounced judgment in favor of the saints of the Most High, and the time came when they possessed the kingdom.
23 "He gave me this explanation: 'The fourth beast is a fourth kingdom that will appear on earth. It will be different from all the other kingdoms and will devour the whole earth, trampling it down and crushing it. 24 The ten horns are ten kings who will come from this kingdom. After them another king will arise, different from the earlier ones; he will subdue three kings. 25 He will speak against the Most High and oppress his saints and try to change the set times and the laws. The saints will be handed over to him for a time, times and half a time. [a]
26 " 'But the court will sit, and his power will be taken away and completely destroyed forever. 27 Then the sovereignty, power and greatness of the kingdoms under the whole heaven will be handed over to the saints, the people of the Most High. His kingdom will be an everlasting kingdom, and all rulers will worship and obey him.'
28 "This is the end of the matter. I, Daniel, was deeply troubled by my thoughts, and my face turned pale, but I kept the matter to myself."
Daniel 7
Daniel's vision is similar to the vision of the beats from the sea in Revelation 12:
Daniel's Dream of Four Beasts
1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying on his bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 "The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.
5 "And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and eat your fill of flesh!'
6 "After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 "After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 "While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 "As I looked,
"thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 "Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Daniel's Dream of Four Beasts
1 In the first year of Belshazzar king of Babylon, Daniel had a dream, and visions passed through his mind as he was lying on his bed. He wrote down the substance of his dream.
2 Daniel said: "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me were the four winds of heaven churning up the great sea. 3 Four great beasts, each different from the others, came up out of the sea.
4 "The first was like a lion, and it had the wings of an eagle. I watched until its wings were torn off and it was lifted from the ground so that it stood on two feet like a man, and the heart of a man was given to it.
5 "And there before me was a second beast, which looked like a bear. It was raised up on one of its sides, and it had three ribs in its mouth between its teeth. It was told, 'Get up and eat your fill of flesh!'
6 "After that, I looked, and there before me was another beast, one that looked like a leopard. And on its back it had four wings like those of a bird. This beast had four heads, and it was given authority to rule.
7 "After that, in my vision at night I looked, and there before me was a fourth beast—terrifying and frightening and very powerful. It had large iron teeth; it crushed and devoured its victims and trampled underfoot whatever was left. It was different from all the former beasts, and it had ten horns.
8 "While I was thinking about the horns, there before me was another horn, a little one, which came up among them; and three of the first horns were uprooted before it. This horn had eyes like the eyes of a man and a mouth that spoke boastfully.
9 "As I looked,
"thrones were set in place,
and the Ancient of Days took his seat.
His clothing was as white as snow;
the hair of his head was white like wool.
His throne was flaming with fire,
and its wheels were all ablaze.
10 A river of fire was flowing,
coming out from before him.
Thousands upon thousands attended him;
ten thousand times ten thousand stood before him.
The court was seated,
and the books were opened.
11 "Then I continued to watch because of the boastful words the horn was speaking. I kept looking until the beast was slain and its body destroyed and thrown into the blazing fire. 12 (The other beasts had been stripped of their authority, but were allowed to live for a period of time.)
13 "In my vision at night I looked, and there before me was one like a son of man, coming with the clouds of heaven. He approached the Ancient of Days and was led into his presence. 14 He was given authority, glory and sovereign power; all peoples, nations and men of every language worshiped him. His dominion is an everlasting dominion that will not pass away, and his kingdom is one that will never be destroyed.
Saturday, 11 April 2009
Silicon based life
The Holy Grail of exobiology.
Life as we know it (again) is carbon based. Carbon bonds with hydrogen and forms various organic compunds, chains, rings, etc.
Silicon bonds with oxygen to form large scale rigid compounds such as rocks. So why not silicon based life? So why not living rocks?
We are already in symbiosis with rocks as "life as we know it" requires a silicon based surface for our carbon based organic molecules to stand on.
Life as we know it (again) is carbon based. Carbon bonds with hydrogen and forms various organic compunds, chains, rings, etc.
Silicon bonds with oxygen to form large scale rigid compounds such as rocks. So why not silicon based life? So why not living rocks?
We are already in symbiosis with rocks as "life as we know it" requires a silicon based surface for our carbon based organic molecules to stand on.
We are NOT alone
Doing the optimistic glass half full version of the planet-life equation, the laws of physics can be used to tell us that it would be impossible to have a planet like Earth, in a solar system like ours, and NOT have life.
So Life elsewhere in the universe is very likely. Life is, in fact, commonplace.
Our galaxy has over 100 billion suns. If one in a million of these has an M class planet with life, that means there are at least 100,000 in our galaxy. Now keep in mind there are 100 million galaxies, the odds are that we are not alone.
So Life elsewhere in the universe is very likely. Life is, in fact, commonplace.
Our galaxy has over 100 billion suns. If one in a million of these has an M class planet with life, that means there are at least 100,000 in our galaxy. Now keep in mind there are 100 million galaxies, the odds are that we are not alone.
The Future
For humanity to survive we will have to learn to colonise other planets, no doubt about it.
Sooner or later we will destroy our environment, which we are facing now with the threat of global warming and climate change, or we will run out of natural resources. Not to mention room.
The window of opportunity for space travel and colonisation is narrowing rapidly.
Sooner or later we will destroy our environment, which we are facing now with the threat of global warming and climate change, or we will run out of natural resources. Not to mention room.
The window of opportunity for space travel and colonisation is narrowing rapidly.
Thursday, 9 April 2009
Money talks...
It's likely that the next stage of the space race will be commercially driven.
There's that line in Fight Club about interstellar corporations naming the galaxies, which is probably not far from the truth. The Capitalist US government may run out of US taxpayers moeny to give to NASA, but the billionaires like Bill Gates and the huge MNCs will certainly have the money. And all those people who watch the launches. Wouldn't it be great to have the Pepsi logo on the side of that rocket for all the world to see? Choice of a new generation of astronauts. Great commercial potential. Unlimited funds.
These things don't happen overnight. Columbus' discovery of America was on the back of thousands of years of developing sailing craft. So we need to be developing space craft for our first "Columbus" to be able to sail out into the stars and discover, well, new worlds. And keep in mind he only discovered America by accident and thought he was in India (which is why native Americans were called Indians). It'll probably the same way when we discover whatever's waiting out there.
And if it is privately funded, the people funding it will want to go themselves, not just send a robot with a camera.
Richard Branson is already planning Virgin Galactic to take the first commercial space flights. He's even having 5 space shuttles commissioned. And you just know he'd love to be the first man to set foot on Mars.
There's that line in Fight Club about interstellar corporations naming the galaxies, which is probably not far from the truth. The Capitalist US government may run out of US taxpayers moeny to give to NASA, but the billionaires like Bill Gates and the huge MNCs will certainly have the money. And all those people who watch the launches. Wouldn't it be great to have the Pepsi logo on the side of that rocket for all the world to see? Choice of a new generation of astronauts. Great commercial potential. Unlimited funds.
These things don't happen overnight. Columbus' discovery of America was on the back of thousands of years of developing sailing craft. So we need to be developing space craft for our first "Columbus" to be able to sail out into the stars and discover, well, new worlds. And keep in mind he only discovered America by accident and thought he was in India (which is why native Americans were called Indians). It'll probably the same way when we discover whatever's waiting out there.
And if it is privately funded, the people funding it will want to go themselves, not just send a robot with a camera.
Richard Branson is already planning Virgin Galactic to take the first commercial space flights. He's even having 5 space shuttles commissioned. And you just know he'd love to be the first man to set foot on Mars.
It's all politics...
The first space race was politically driven - capitalism vs communism, east vs west, the good old US of A versus Russia, free market vs command economy.
The principles of capatilism won the space race and got to the moon first.
However it is the principles of communism that are being used to solve global recession.
The core communist belief was that they were never in a "war" with the capitalists. Capitlism would eventually destroy itself and an order of socialism would rise from the ashes as the State took control.
Perhaps Marx was right after all?
China, the last true Communist state, and the main Communist nuclear superpower, already has population control, so they are halving their inhabitants each generation rather than doubling them. Something we can't (yet) impose in the free world. And it's most likely China that would set off the next space race - if they started looking to go to the Moon, then the US would definately start building rockets again.
We still have to deal with global warming and climate change. Being rich won't help you when the ozone layer's gone or the ice age returns or we run out of resources.
There's an old Indian saying:
"Only when they last river has been poisioned, only when the last fish has been killed, only when the last tree has been cut down, only then will you realise that money can not be eaten."
That was said by an Indian shaman to the capatalist white man. Allegedly.
But perhaps we will have to revert to, or develop a new form of, socialism, a global state with state control, to solve this crisis.
And then we'll need to look to colonise other planets.
The principles of capatilism won the space race and got to the moon first.
However it is the principles of communism that are being used to solve global recession.
The core communist belief was that they were never in a "war" with the capitalists. Capitlism would eventually destroy itself and an order of socialism would rise from the ashes as the State took control.
Perhaps Marx was right after all?
China, the last true Communist state, and the main Communist nuclear superpower, already has population control, so they are halving their inhabitants each generation rather than doubling them. Something we can't (yet) impose in the free world. And it's most likely China that would set off the next space race - if they started looking to go to the Moon, then the US would definately start building rockets again.
We still have to deal with global warming and climate change. Being rich won't help you when the ozone layer's gone or the ice age returns or we run out of resources.
There's an old Indian saying:
"Only when they last river has been poisioned, only when the last fish has been killed, only when the last tree has been cut down, only then will you realise that money can not be eaten."
That was said by an Indian shaman to the capatalist white man. Allegedly.
But perhaps we will have to revert to, or develop a new form of, socialism, a global state with state control, to solve this crisis.
And then we'll need to look to colonise other planets.
Sleeping Satellite
So why haven't we been back to the Moon since the space race ended in the 70s?
We actually no longer have the technology - the rockets capable of putting humans in lunar orbit, let alone reach the moon, land, allow exploration, launch from the Moon, and get back to Earth. The moon is 250,000 miles away. America's current Space Shuttles can only get 200 miles up.
The Russians may have put Yuri Gagarin in orbit, but they never developed lunar technology. Although they still have heavy lift rockets, they never go further than Mir, and don't intend to.
Unless there is another Space Race, nobody will have a need to develop lunar technology again. So 40 years since the Apollo missions and we still have no Moonnase Alpha.
And that's before we look at getting to any of the other planets such as Mars.
We actually no longer have the technology - the rockets capable of putting humans in lunar orbit, let alone reach the moon, land, allow exploration, launch from the Moon, and get back to Earth. The moon is 250,000 miles away. America's current Space Shuttles can only get 200 miles up.
The Russians may have put Yuri Gagarin in orbit, but they never developed lunar technology. Although they still have heavy lift rockets, they never go further than Mir, and don't intend to.
Unless there is another Space Race, nobody will have a need to develop lunar technology again. So 40 years since the Apollo missions and we still have no Moonnase Alpha.
And that's before we look at getting to any of the other planets such as Mars.
Life on the Sun
Life as we know it - geocentric life - couldn't exist on the Sun.
But different forms of life, such as life based on magnetic fields rather than organic chemistry - wouldn't need oxygen or water.
But different forms of life, such as life based on magnetic fields rather than organic chemistry - wouldn't need oxygen or water.
Life as we know it
A scientist studying a meteor rock might spot a specific shape or feature, or a chemical signature that could indicate a biological origin.
Geocentric life - the much quoted "life as we know it" - Earth life. This would be what Star Trek calls an M Class Planet - worlds where water remains liquid.
When looking at planets from a distance we are looking for atmospheric signals such as the resence of oxygen or methane. Our atmosphere is 78% nitrogen. Oxygen is a by product of life. If all life on earth die, oxygen would quicly disappear. Same goes for methane.
Geocentric life - the much quoted "life as we know it" - Earth life. This would be what Star Trek calls an M Class Planet - worlds where water remains liquid.
When looking at planets from a distance we are looking for atmospheric signals such as the resence of oxygen or methane. Our atmosphere is 78% nitrogen. Oxygen is a by product of life. If all life on earth die, oxygen would quicly disappear. Same goes for methane.
Wednesday, 8 April 2009
NIV 666
The New International Version of the Bible.
The last page of Malachi, ie the last page of the Old Testament, is page 666.
The last page of Malachi, ie the last page of the Old Testament, is page 666.
Voodoo
In voodoo, the human spirit has two parts.
Gros Bon Ange is the Big Good Angel - the life force that all beings share and which animates them. This enters the body at conception and returns to God, to the point of origin, at death.
Ti Bon Ange is the Little Good Angel - this is the individual soul, one's essence, one karma - the sum of one's choices, actions and beliefs.
Voodoo black magic can capture a ti bon ange at the point of death.
It's thought a powerful magician can steal it from a living person.
A magus can take a corpse and install the ti bon into it, creating a cheval, a kind of zombie. The zombie is alive again, no longer a corpse, but animated by the stolen ti bon, not it's own. The ti bon yearns for heaven, but is under the control of the magus.
Gros Bon Ange is the Big Good Angel - the life force that all beings share and which animates them. This enters the body at conception and returns to God, to the point of origin, at death.
Ti Bon Ange is the Little Good Angel - this is the individual soul, one's essence, one karma - the sum of one's choices, actions and beliefs.
Voodoo black magic can capture a ti bon ange at the point of death.
It's thought a powerful magician can steal it from a living person.
A magus can take a corpse and install the ti bon into it, creating a cheval, a kind of zombie. The zombie is alive again, no longer a corpse, but animated by the stolen ti bon, not it's own. The ti bon yearns for heaven, but is under the control of the magus.
Candle magic
Red candles in red glasses bring victory.
Yellow candles in yellow glasses bring money.
White candles in clear glasses bring peace.
Yellow candles in yellow glasses bring money.
White candles in clear glasses bring peace.
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