Getting the Most Affordable Car Insurance
With elevating car insurance premiums, thrifty people everywhere are looking for ways to get discounted auto insurance rates. And why not? If it can put cash back into your pocket then go for it, right? Well, there are many ways to get discounts on car insurance. Try to check if you or your car is entitled for the following deductions but remember that these are general price reductions, you have to inquire with your auto insurance agent if they offer them.
Personal-Associated Deductions
Person-related discounts are ones that depend on the driver’s own personal situation, status and driving history.
Car-Related Price Reductions
It doesn’t come as a surprise that when getting a automobile insurance policy, the insurance underwriter takes a look at your car. Some of these car insurance price reductions are given because you’ve purchased a safe car.
- Car Air Bags. There are several types of airbags: front, rear, side-curtain, etc. The greater you’re protected, the cheaper your insurance rates could be.
- Anti-Lock Brakes System (ABS). Some states require that insurance companies give deductions to policy owners whose cars are equipped with ABS.
Anti-Theft Devices. Installation of anti-theft devices like car alarms is a way to get cheaper car insurance rates. There may be an added bonus if the alarm automatically turns on when the car’s turned off.
You CAN Repair Bad Credit!
Bad credit can be devastating to your financial standing, in that it gives you a negative reputation; it can also, at times, be trouble for you if you buy on credit or get a loan. A bad credit rating also results in a high fee being charged, thus extending the overall debt.
In such cases, people mostly resort to credit repair services, and mostly end up paying high fees to settle bad credit. There are different ways to balance bad credit; and they happen to be easy as well as free.
To start with, find out the exact reason of your bad credit. It is not feasible to repair bad credit unless you’re completely familiar with the reason you got into it. A few likely reasons for this situation could be a deferred repayment of a loan; maybe some unexpected events such as medical bills, job complications, etc.
Once you’ve determined the core cause to your problem, work your way towards the centre and focus on a fix that’s practical and efficient. Get an idea of your present-day financial status by going through your recent credit reports. Make sure you’re keeping track of existing credits and financial dealings. Use the recent statements from your creditors or yearly credit reports to appraise your financial position.
To actually fix your bad credit and get your financial status back in a positive standing, you need to start supervising your expenses and workout your lifestyle. Don’t delay paying your bills. If you can, pay them as soon as they arrive. This will avoid late payment charges, if in case an unforseen problem comes up and hinders you from paying your expenses on time. Cut down your credit card expenses as much as you can. To some, this may sound pointless, but if you look back, you’ll realize that the ancient people lived a better life than we do right now, and they did not use credit cards. Stability in bill payments is the crucial point here. Slowly pay up all your credit bills and you’ll eventually repair your financial standing.
People often propose that you discuss with your creditors. If you pull the right strings and negotiate wisely, you could end up with discounts, instead of surcharges. Be positive and precautious. While negotiating with your creditors is not a surefire way of improving bad credit, it certainly can be efficient.
Prevention is the best strategy. Instead of having to face bad credit, why not prevent it in the first place? Pay your bills on time, do not hold up credit payments, and cut down on your credit card usage. However, if you do fall into a bad credit position, then abide by the tips above. Bad credit can at times impair your social profile and prevent access to loans on beneficial terms, mortgages, etc.
The Lemon Dance: Why Government Doesn’t Work
Former Senator, Daniel Moynihan, accurately summed up the
situation when
he posited that,”[t]he single most exciting thing you encounter in
government is competence, because! it’s so rare.” In the case of
politicians the public is protected from ineptitude and apathy
through term limits. Unfortunately for John Q. Citizen, the vast
majority of government bureaucrats exist in an environment devoid
of responsibility or accountability.
The endless transfer of incompetent workers rather than their
outright dismissal represents a choreographed farce known as
the “Lemon Dance.” The negligent, unqualified and indifferent
workers that fill millions of government positions do so with the
assurance that they will never be fired for their transgressions. For
example, your average sanitation worker wakes up in the morning
confident that regardless of missed routes, spilled garbage or traffic
collisions while on duty, he will continue to have a job the next day.
A recent study by the Los Angeles Daily News concluded that
only six out of thirty-seven thousand Los Angeles City government
employees had been fired for poor performance. On the national
level, the Federal Times reported in 2003 that none of the approximate
half a million workers of the eight Cabinet-level departments were
fired for poor performance from June 1993 to June 1998. The public
must ask themselves whether local and federal governments have
collected the finest group of individuals capable of error-free work,
or if there are inadequate systems in place that are unable to
address the rampant poor performance of government workers.
The outrageous misappropriation and waste of taxpayer dollars
provides another contributing step in the offbeat “Lemon
Dance.” Consider a recent example where two Los Angeles sanitation
workers made over $8,000 of unauthorized calls on city-issued cell
phones. After several warnings, and continued misuse of their cell
phones, the city workers were not terminated while management
lamented that they “did not have an adequate policy explaining to
their employees that it is wrong to use city cell phones for personal
business.”
The inability of government superiors to adequately discipline
government employees makes the “Lemon Dance” the modern-day
Achilles Heel of government. Entrusted with running society’s most
important institutions, government finds itself in a position where it
can neither terminate its least qualified employee, nor reward
exemplary standouts. Instead, government bosses tend to look the
other way when faced with the poor performance of their
subordinates. The complete lack of accountability present in
government has, in turn, created a culture of apathy where workers
have no motivation to perform at even adequate levels. Richard
Riordan, former Mayor of Los Angeles and present Secretary of
Education for the State of California, cites a lack of accountability as
the leading cause of poor performance plaguing government
institutions. Riordan admits that government run bureaucracies
“do[es] not hold anyone accountable, because [it] might hurt
somebody’s self esteem by firing them.”
Former General Electric Chairman Jack Welch’s strategy for
improving employee performance deserves consideration.
Concluding that it was better to release an ineffective employee
immediately rather than allowing them twenty-five years of wages
and retirement benefits, Welch regularly fired the bottom ten percent
of his employees based on performance evaluations. This type of
approach could do wonders for local, state and national government.
The termination of deserving employees sends a clear message
throughout the organization that incompetence will not be tolerated.
Albert Einstein suggested, “bureaucracy is the death of all sound
work.” The current state of government employment certainly
supports his assertion. However, government must begin to clean
house. Until it becomes possible for government to dismiss
incompetent workers, the public will continue to be held hostage by
unions and ineffectual procedures that would prefer the “Lemon
Dance,” to even modest accountability.
Copyright 2005 Michael Levine
Michael Levine is the founder of the prominent public relations firm Levine
Communications Office, based in Los Angeles. He is the author of Guerrilla PR,
7 Life Lessons from Noah’s Ark: How to Survive a Flood in Your Own Life.
GuerrillaPR.net is a resource for people that want to get famous in the media,
without going broke. http://GuerrillaPR.net
Internet Gaming Keeps Gamers at Their PC’s
Nearly all risk takers will likely have discovered the phrase “offshore sports betting” in recent times, though a few may not be wholly assured what that means. A foreign gaming internet site fundamentally acts extrinsically to the jurisdiction of a single state on the other hand it can also mean a networked betting website which has all of their file servers in a state in which world wide web based betting is not currently forbidden. Succinctly therefore, it is a betting business operative extraneous of the supervison of the national territory of the client. Internet based sports gambling world wide web sites are mostly governed through the agency of 3 councils. They are OSGA (the Offshore Gaming Association), IGC (Interactive Gaming Council) and the Fidelity Trust Gaming Association FTGA.
The OSGA is an autonomous “watchdog” federation that currently supervises the thriving overseas betting business with the task of to deliver the public the ability to easily discover respectable sites to play games on, without anguish. The authority labors to maintain gambling fanatic’s rights, also they do not levy any yearly dues.
The agency is a well-qualified and nonpartisan third party organization who voice unbiased points of view, indicated by your responses, impartial inquiry, chats, inside prompts and additionally imparts inside bulletins.
The Interactive Gaming Council is a not-for-profit administration. The organization has been designed to allow an arena for curious participants to discuss recent subjects also to encourage progress in the domain of common concerns in the international online betting trade, to ensure reasonable and also stable commercial precepts and practices which heighten customer faith in internet gambling merchandise and functions, and also to serve as the overseas gaming trade’s inclusive policy advocate and the Interactive Gaming Council also offers a data clearinghouse.
The IGC have developed a name for trustworthiness, ethical practise and in addition sincerity because of the criteria it demands, and in addition its allure for legitimate business enterprises. The IGC regularizes overseas sports betting through upholding an original 10-step running procedure and also bills gaming business concerns license fees to display their logo. Disenchanted betting fans can moreover state their conflicts to the Interactive Gaming Council.
The FTGA has been set up in a venture to present a standard to reform the procedures of live sports gambling websites. The IGC suggest that by conducting business solely with credible sites, they can form an alliance of the most sportsmanlike and most expert cyberspace gaming businesses in the world at large.
To recap, there are governing bodies who observe the transactions practised by internet based gaming and which should aid to allay any uneasiness felt by skeptics. Live sports betting internet sites are today entirely secure, since private details shouldn’t be requested and the payments and the odds are consistently equivalent to a regular Vegas-style sportsbet. These sites diminish travel expenditure, but retain of a casino, however today you are able to gamble in your own home.
Attention Democrats
Attention far left Democrats and all the rest, of you Democrats, who are too afraid of the far left or to hungry for power to stand up for America. Stop insulting me, stop ridiculing me, stop trying to run my life, stop trying to take away my freedoms and stop endangering me and my loved ones.
I know that you have never met me, don’t know me and don’t even know I exist. I am not famous, not rich and not powerful, but I am one of the slightly under three hundred million Americans that you are harming. I am one of the little people that you think are too ignorant to know what is best for themselves. One of the little people that you think has to be led around by the nose by superior people like you. One of the little people that, as far as you are concerned, doesn’t matter in the big scheme of things. I am one of the idiots that believe in things like, morals, values, freedom, kindness, helping others, fair play, courtesy, manners, dignity, respect, caring for one’s family, etc.. One of the idiots that loves his country, believes in his country and is proud to be an American. One of the idiots that celebrates the Fourth Of July, Memorial Day, Veterans Day, Thanksgiving and yes (horrors), even Christmas.
I am a moderate who has some liberal beliefs and some conservative beliefs. I dislike far right fanatics as much as I dislike far left fanatics. I believe in God but, I don’t belive in trying to force everyone or anyone else into believing in God. I believe in freedom of speech (As long as it doesn’t harm anyone.) and I believe in freedom of thought. I have never, untill recently, wrote letters to the editor or wrote political articles. Even though I am a Republican, I have always voted for the best person for the job. I have, in the past, voted for Republicans, Democrats and Independents. Your actions, however, have left me no choice other than to, from now on, vote for anyone who opposes Democrats. I may dislike the far right but the far left scares the heck out of me. The far left and those that support them are going to, if not stopped, cause the downfall of this great country.
I am fed up, hopefully like many others, with you trying to tell me what to think, when to think and how to think it, what to say, when to say it and how to say it. I am fed up with your use of lies, half truths, propaganda, rumors and ridicule. I am fed up with your use of celebrities and sychopants, to spread your lies, half truths, propaganda, rumors and ridicule, in order to gain control over the rest of us.
I am fed up with you and your puppets disparaging our President (When you insult our President, you insult the office of the President, thereby insulting America. When you call the President stupid you are calling everyone who voted for him stupid because, they voted for a stupid President.). When you ridicule the President, any President, whether it be President Bush, President Clinton or any other President you are harming America by giving fuel to our detractors and enemies. This endangers my loved ones and therefore scares me.
I am fed up with your attacks on the wars in Iraq and Afganistan. All you are doing is aiding our enemies by making them believe that, if they can last long enough, we will cut and run, leaving them to do as they wish. You are prolonging the war against terrorism and causing additional deaths among our troops. I’m not saying that we can win the war against terrorism (There will probably, almost, always be some form of terrorism.) but, I am saying that you are making things worse. You are also endangering my loved ones and that scares me.
I am fed up with your attempts to force the appeasement of countries like Iran, Syria, China, Russia, North Korea, France and others who would like nothing better than to witness our demise. This endangers my loved ones and therefore scares me.
I am fed up with your fighting for the rights of criminals and terrorists while ignoring the rights of victims and of our society. Your attempts to make victims or heroes out of people like Stanley Williams, the prisoners at Guantanamo Bay, the terrorists imprisoned in Iraq, Saddam Hussein, gangsta rappers, drug addicts, illegal immigrants, Michael Jackson, O.J. Simpson and anyone convicted of murder who is sentenced to death, insults victims and their loved ones. It also endangers my loved ones and that scares me.
The only thing that scares me more than the far left is that many people in this country are buying into your lies and propaganda because they don’t know anything about history (And now some schools have decided to stop teaching American History prior to the Civil War and many other schools don’t even require the study of World History.) and they obtain most of their information from sound bites, celebrities and others that you have duped who spout your propaganda while calling it entertainment.
America is a great country and there may still be time to overcome the far left’s attempt to take over and rule our country. In order, however, to stop the far left we have to wake up, we have to stop believing that just because someone is a celebrity and speaks for the far left, that he or she is an authority on the governing of this country. Celebrities are not smarter or more informed than we are, they just have a bigger soapbox than we do. Think of this, if a celebrity is dumb enough to be taken in by the far left, he or she is too dumb to be telling us what to think. We have to use a little logic and start thinking for ourselves. We have to start teaching our children to think for themselves and not to believe everything they see and hear on television. Most of all, we have to start speaking out. We have to start voting, not just for what we believe in but, against what we don’t believe in. We have to start paying attention to what is going on around us and we have to start sticking up for ourselves and for our way of life.
David G. Hallstrom, Sr. is a retired private investigator and currently publishes several internet directories including www.resourcesforattorneys.com a legal and lifestyle resources directory for attorneys, lawyers and the internet public. For more lifestyle information see lifestyle.resourcesforattorneys.com, the Lifestyle directory from Resources For Attorneys.
Censoring Adults in order to protect Children.
Censoring Adults in order to protect Children is wrong & hurts both children & this great nation!
Censoring Adults to protect Children is wrong!Censoring the Internet in order to protect your children - hurts me! It violates my rights to censor me in order protect your children. Computers are not baby sitters or parents & the internet is an ADULT Environment - the same as going out into Society!
“You wouldn’t let your child go out & play in Society, would you? And you surely wouldn’t drop your child off at a public park or down town in the city, would you?”
So, please do your parental job rather than violating the rights of all Americans!
“You can put your hand over your child’s ears & mouth - but not mine!” Censoring Adults to protect children is wrong because it is unconstitutional & it is bad for Society. Only fully informed adults can make informed decisions & ignorance is dangerous in many ways.
For example, some were surprised when terrorists crashed planes into the trade towers! I wasn’t because there has been an evolution & escalation of terrorism since our CIA put the Shaw into power in Iran decades ago! Before that - We Americans were well liked! The first jihad or holy way (as far as I can tell) was issued against America & American Citizens anywhere & everywhere by the Iotola Homani in Iran!
-There have also been numerous reports of terrorists wanting to hijack planes & use them as weapons. -There were the bombings at US Embassies & Marine Barracks as well as the first trade tower bombing! -There were numerous jihads (holy wars) declared against America!
I have been keeping up with the news daily & this was evident to me. But I don’t just rely on the usual corporate owned & censored news organizations but many different sources of media.
I watch cable cannels from the Discovery channel to the History Channel & I listen to all sides of the arguments by listening to Fox, CNN, C-Span & Book TV and others as well as World Net Daily on the internet.
I consider all sources & understand that they are all spinning the news in one way or another because they all have their agendas. I’m not a Christian for example, but I watch the Christian channel news to see what they think so that I understand all sides. The only way that I can decide the truth is to listen to all sides & consider all of the evidence.
So, 911 wasn’t a surprise to me nor was it a surprise that the federal government let the airlines spend only about 1% on security in light of the known terrorist history, plans, & threats! The head of security at the towers was a former federal official who had been stone walled by Washington while investigating terrorism in the Middle East according to a program that I watched on PBS.
It was however a surprise to me that the Commander of a Ship sailed right up into a known terrorist port! Then I was surprised to find that the Commander did this with less than 100% Security as if asking for the terrorists to take a free shot! A small rubber dingy sailed right up to them & took a free shot! Not only should the Ship not have sailed up into a know terrorist port, alone, at less than 100% security but it must have failed or disobeyed some type of safety or military regulations because this is unnecessarily putting our brave men & women in the Navy in harms way!
The question should be - “Did the order to sail up into a known terrorist port come from Washington?” and if so, “Did it say to use less than 100% Security?” In my opinion, this is one more example of the aristocrats or Nobles in Washington (career politician “federalists”) - using our service personnel as expendable pawns to deceive the American People into supporting them in order to achieve their political goals or personal desires! (Like attacking Iraq to get revenge for your family after Sadam tried to assassinate you father!)
I’m not saying that the federal government knew that an attack was imminent on the trade center towers but it wouldn’t be the first time in history that a leader allowed something to happen in order to motivate his people to get behind him so that he can do his will! The federal government was certainly guilty of negligence just for letting the airline industry buy them off & spend 1% on security!
My suggestion to my fellow American People is “Don’t be a funny monkey or a lemming- decide for yourself based on logic, reasoning, & common sense.” Just the facts not the emotions provoked by deceptive & manipulative men who desire to deceive the people into supporting them as they do their will.
And that brings me to the main point of “Censoring Adults being bad for Society”. Censoring adults helps to keep people from talking about politically incorrect issues & helps the status quo to censor us all from the necessary information to decide for ourselves what the truth really is! This keeps us all in the dark as if we have our heads in a hole until we wake up one day to find planes crashing into our buildings in immense surprise & horror felt across our great nation!
“When there is Open Debate - The truth can come out!” “Censorship is bad for America!” Adults should not censor the free speech of other adults - not even to protect their children from free speech! Censoring adults is far worse for your children in the future as you continue to burn the Constitution & keep the truth from flowing freely, thus preventing the informing of Americans & resulting in an ignorant & un-free nation for your children to live in! “Less freedom does not protect children!”
Censorship fuels & empowers that which the censors try to stop! For example, Two-Live Crew, Marilyn Manson, & Eminem are all fueled by the very censors who try to shut them up! Remember 2LiveCrew? They were made famous by the do-gooders who tried to embarrass them out of business but instead gave publicity to a group that had little publicity & this publicity enabled 2livecrew to reach the people who would like & buy their albums! And those people did buy their albums! The rest is history! The obvious answer is not always the correct one and fore every action there can be unintended consequences of that action!
Every time the censors, mostly “do-gooders on a religious crusade” in my opinion, try to deny the 4th Amendment Right to Marilyn Manson or Eminem - these artists then get inspired & come out with another major album that sells millions! Can’t people see that censoring other adults is wrong “Constitutionally” & results in far worse? It’s counter productive & self defeating!
Besides, who made these people “God” anyway? Doesn’t the Bible say “Judge not lets YE BE JUDGED?” What makes them think that “THEY” can decide for all of us what we will say or even listen to? Well, censoring others is judging them! “Censor not lets YE be Censored!”
To censor others is to play “God”. One day what you send out may just come back to you! Do wrong, thinking that the end justifies the means, is still wrong doing & will yield negative results in the end!
The Government’s job is to Preserve Life, Liberty, Property & the Pursuit of Happiness! - Not to control the actions of its citizens. No, that would be Communism! So when you go to the government to try to censor something that you don’t like - You are doing wrong & what you are doing, misguided or not, is not in the best interest of Society or “the children”. Again, “Freedom” is in the best interest of the children!
“CENSOR CHILDREN - NOT ADUTS!” Only the fully informed can make informed decisions! T-shirt available at the link below. Link: http://www.cafeshops.com/censorchildren
Political Correctness is CENSORSHIP! It is un-American for one American to tell another to be quiet because they are saying something that is not acceptable or politically correct to society. The Majority does not rule in this Republic - Individual Rights like freedom of expression DO rule in this country. The Constitution “IS” the Supreme Law of “this” land!
About the Author
Obvious often means overlooked
by Kurt St. Angelo
Libertarian Writers’ Bureau
http://www.writersbureau.org
My favorite childhood story was about a herd of hippos that played hide n’
seek. The baby hippo’s best hiding place was on a ledge just above - though
in plain view of - the herd’s elders, who never found the baby because they
never looked up. Obvious often means overlooked.
And so it is with jail overcrowding in the Circle City. County jails lack
space for everyone who’s been arrested. Last year there were almost 2,000
emergency releases to free space.
Led by a group of mostly Republicans, including Marion County Prosecutor
Carl Brizzi and Superior Court judges Cale Bradford and William Young, there
’s a move to greatly expand the county’s criminal justice budget, build
another jail facility, expand or build a new juvenile center, elect more
judges, and - if they get their way - build a brand new criminal-justice
center with even more capacity to turn suspects into government prospects.
The more prospects they can harness and herd, the more money taxpayers will
give them.
Anyone who has watched Brizzi, Bradford or Young recently on Indianapolis
television knows how callous they are toward the accused. Young, who
presides over the county’s drug court, says the defendants are from ‘a
sludge pool.” By his own count, he has personally released at least six
people who have then murdered others.
Presiding Superior Court Judge Bradford chairs the Marion County Criminal
Justice Planning Council, which also includes Brizzi and Mayor Bart
Peterson. The Council is preparing an expensive criminal justice wish list
to present to the City-County Council. At its January meeting, Bradford
noted that the county’s newest jail facility, built in 1997 to handle the
main jail’s overcrowding, was itself overcrowded.
This latest situation shows the obvious, which again won’t be discussed at
the next planning council meeting - that a new jail is not the solution to
the latest bout of jail overcrowding. As experience shows us, a new jail
will only be a standing invitation for politicians and judges to fill it.
Money is not the solution, either. Since 2001, the county’s criminal justice
budget has almost single-handedly been responsible for the county’s whopping
40 percent budget increase, from $126 million to $176 million.
The folks in charge are overlooking the obvious answer to jail overcrowding
and the legal backlog: Quit arresting so many people!
Go back to doing government’s fundamental job of protecting us from real
criminals - people who steal our cars, break into our homes, defraud us, or
are violent - not just our immoral neighbors who offend us with their petty
needs and vices.
And quit herding people who aren’t real criminals through our criminal
justice system - which is for real criminals. Then, these people who have
not harmed others can keep their jobs, support their families, contribute to
the economy and pay taxes instead of forcing taxpayers to pay for their
unneeded food, lodging and supervision in jail.
This will leave space to segregate violent and dishonest people who can’t
live socially with the rest of us. Isn’t that the point of our criminal
justice system?
If Indianapolis is true to national statistics, we spend nearly half of our
criminal-justice resources fighting vice instead of crime. The distinction
between vice and crimes is fundamental. As legal scholar Sir William
Blackstone wrote, ‘In all cases, the crime includes an injury.”
The Indiana Constitution grants jurisdiction to Indiana courts based on such
harm or injury. ‘All courts shall be open, and every person, for injury done
to him in his person, property, or reputation, shall have remedy by due
course of law.” (Article 1, Section 12)
This does not grant courts authority to punish those who merely offend us.
Article 1, Section 37 of the Constitution prohibits government from
depriving people of liberty “otherwise than for the punishment of crimes.”
(See also Article 1, Section 13 and 19.) If Brizzi, Bradford and Young
enforced this simple covenant, jail overcrowding would likely vanish
overnight.
Every time we waste our resources policing, prosecuting and imprisoning
potheads and prostitutes, then car thieves, burglars or murderers go free.
Plus, we lie about being true to the constitution.
Why is this so hard to understand or discuss? Why are the elders of our herd
overlooking this practical, moral and constitutional consideration that is
so utterly obvious?
###
About the Author
Attorney, screen writer and former chair of the Libertarian Party of Marion County.
How To Avoid Scam Artist When Donating To Katrina Relief Eff
The pictures and videos of the devastation caused by Hurricane Katrina are sadly stunning. As is true for our great nation, millions are lining up to donate to help those that have been impacted. While your actions are a shining example of the best traits of people, a few unsavory groups are trying to make a profit off of the tragedy.
Scam Artists
You can avoid these scam artists by taking a few simple steps. Charitable organizations rely on tax-deductible contributions as their primary funding source. Before an organization can offer the benefit of a tax deduction for donations, it must be classified as such by the Internal Revenue Service. The process is arduous and effectively acts as an informal investigation of the legitimacy of the charitable organization in question. Fortunately, the IRS makes this information available to the public.
You can check the legitimacy of a charitable organization by either contacting the IRS or accessing the agency list of charitable organizations on the Internet as follows:
IRS Customer Service: 1-800-829-1040
http://apps.irs.gov/app/pub78
The above link goes to a page where you can conduct a publication 78 search. Publication 78 is a list of all charitable organizations that have qualified for tax-exempt status with the IRS. Scam artist and unsavory characters are not going to be listed with the IRS. If the organization you are considering does not appear in Publication 78, you may wish to consider another organization.
E-mail Scams
You should be cautious if you receive an e-mail requesting money for the relief effort. The e-mail may not be from a legitimate organization. Fraudulent e-mail campaigns are at an unbelievable level. If you are determined to make a contribution because of an e-mail you received, make sure that you check out the organization with the IRS as indicated above.
Unfortunately, there is a second problem with responding to an e-mail solicitation for monetary donations. Assume that you regularly make donations to a large charity organization and you receive a request for a donation from that organization to help with the tragedy in New Orleans and beyond. You can safely click the link in the email and make a donation, correct? Maybe not. There is still a risk that the email is a scam. Many online businesses have ongoing problems with scam artists copying their sites, logos, headings, etc., and sending e-mail solicitations to scam individuals. There is no reason to believe that charitable organizations would be any less of a target, so be careful.
If you still are compelled to respond to an email solicitation with a donation, you should use a search engine to search for the organization listed in the email. Once you click on to the site, you can make a donation in confidence.
The devastation cause by Katrina is there for all to see. By following the above recommendations, you can make sure your donation gets to the people in need.
About the Author: Richard A. Chapo is with http://www.businesstaxrecovery.com - providing tax help to small businesses that overpay their taxes.
Source: www.isnare.com
De Gloria Olivae : the mission of the next Pope
De Gloria Olivae
The next Pope, “De Gloria Olivae”, has the duty to accelerate the convergence of the “Religions of the Book” (the olive tree).
Religions in harmony are the unique path to Peace (the olive branch).
Peace is the unique path to Sustainable Development (the Age of Glory for Humanity).
The “Religions of the Book” have lost their way
To increase their individual and collective power, some men are using religion to gain influence over their followers and to divide humanity. With the acceleration of History, with almost unlimited means of communications and with easily accessible means of destruction, this influence is translating into more and more deliberate acts of destruction and death, initiated by entire states as well as by loosely organized networks.
At the same time, religion sentiment itself is fading in many places into idolatry and superstition, leading to some kind of materialistic barbarian age.
We have the collective responsibility to overturn this situation by using our visible and invisible connections with all other human beings. The catalyst might well be the next Pope, known in Malachy’s Prophecy of the Popes as “De Gloria Olivae”.
For more insight about Malachy’s prophecy, see:
http://www.holocaustrevealed.org/english/s/P288.html
http://www.truecatholic.org/pope/stmalachyprophecy.htm
http://www.rennes-le-chateau-la-revelation.com/7.htm
Belief will give way to Knowledge
Many spiritual leaders behave as if their primary role was “to defend their parish” and to perpetuate the system that governs it - and its privileges. They promise their followers a better future - provided that these followers are (more or less strictly) obedient to their rules and just … believe.
Unfortunately, it is rare that these spiritual leaders take a public stance regarding the events of the world, not even speaking of an active role - maybe in fear of hurting the feelings of their base or by fear of risking their own position. Even worse, in history as well as today, some spiritual leaders have strongly supported the most tyrannical and dictatorial regimes, demonstrating either blindness, weakness, bad judgment or an exacerbated sense of personal interest above all.
Large crowds are looking after their spiritual leaders to dictate to them their personal opinion and belief. Instead of misleading them, spiritual leaders ought to be the first and the most vocal promoters of the values of compassion, unity and spiritual development, under any form, and of Peace.
Divisions are disastrous.
Now I urge you, brothers, to watch out for those who create divisions and sinful enticements in opposition to the teaching you have learned. Stay away from them. For such people are not serving Christ our Lord but their own desires. By their smooth talk and flattering words they deceive the hearts of the unsuspecting. For your obedience has become known to everyone, and I am full of joy for you. But I want you to be wise about what is good, and innocent about what is evil. The God of peace will soon crush Satan under your feet. (Romans 16, 17-20)
All sincere spiritual movements aim at helping individuals grow spiritually. More precisely, all monotheist religions are essentially conveying a similar message. And narrowing down even further, the “Religions of the Book” (Judaism, Christianity and Islamism) are roughly different elaborations of the same message - one of the most prevalent messages of spiritual development and Peace around the world. How can they keep on fighting each other? Can they afford to continue missing their best chance to ally and to see their common objective achieved? Islam, the youngest and the most dynamic current of the three, has a vital role to play, to help more than a billion of faithful individuals to live in harmony with the rest of the world, and achieve a Peaceful material and spiritual development.
“We presume that the disappearance [of great religions] is inevitable and that, under the influence of the worldwide expansion of consciousness, they will give birth to a universal religion that will integrate the best that the major religions have to offer humanity for its regeneration. Furthermore, we believe that the desire to know divine lawsthat is, natural, universal, and spiritual lawswill eventually supplant the need just to believe in God. We assume, therefore, that belief will one day give way to knowledge.” (Positio Fraternitatis Rosae Crucis, 2001)
For more information about Rosicrucians, start with:
Good and Evil
The existence of Good and Evil is a crucial reality to be understood, or, more correctly, to be perceived.
It has nothing to do with political arguments and judging others, nor with the iconography of “Paradise” and “Hell”.
“Good” has been defined many times, with astute judgment, as “what you would wish others to do unto you” … Essentially meaning: leaving others in Peace and allowing them enough prosperity so that they can dedicate their physical and mental energy to higher goals than mere survival.
But be prudent. All that shines is not gold: all that looks good is not always Good. Because Good is intrinsically appealing to human beings, Evil frequently presents itself as if it was Good (in Christianity, the Devil is the fallen Angel of Light). Do you usually trust a man who orders you: “trust me!” when you are in real doubt about his intentions? Certainly not! You should have the same doubts when hearing anyone teaching you: “We are the Good ones. The other ones who are with us are also Good ones. But all the rest are Evil ones. If you are not with us, you are against us”.
The reality of Good can be perceived only through the eyes of the heart, which need to be awakened by true spirituality.
“The XXIth century will be spiritual or will not be” (André Malraux)
Evil (under the form sometimes called “Harriman”) is trying to tempt you and to bind you to materiality, to fossilize your spirit. But is also gives you the unique opportunity to exercise your free will, change your perspective about the material world and just consider it for what it is: the needed support and vehicle for your current existence. At the same time, your desire will grow to educate your mind (your rationale reasoning and knowledge) and to develop your spirit (your understanding of the realities beyond the appearances).
This is why you have to take a step back from your busy life (the “rat race”), from your material desires and your appetites. You need to start immediately seeking for information. You need to understand the misery that exists around you. You need to leave your intuition tell you how you can best take action. However, intuition is good only when it combines “educated intuition” (understanding from the reason) with “enlightened intuition” (understanding from the heart).
“We feel that this degeneracy is only temporary and that it will lead to an individual and collective regeneration, provided that men and women give a humanist and spiritualistic direction to their future.” (Positio Fraternitatis Rosae Crucis, 2001)
Other perspectives:
www.gnosistraditions.faithweb.com/mont.html
www.kyberco.com/Rotasolis/cathares.htm
The Revelation will come from the next Pope
The Roman Catholic Church has created the most unified and consistent communication system around the world. You can listen to a mass in Rio de Janeiro, Los Angeles or Lyon and hear exactly the same message each and every day.
This is why the Pope, as the inspirer for this communication system, has the duty to lead the movement of reunification of the religions - in their essence not in their symbols or their expression of faith. Previous Popes have started to create bridges, such as John XXIII and John Paul II, but much remains to be done until religion can no more be a pretext for destruction and death. The next Pope, “De Gloria Olivae”, is the man who will achieve this task and bring the Revelation.
Fans of numerology will appreciate that the Latin surname of the Pope, VICARIUS FILII DEI, contains in a very transparent manner various Latin numbers totaling …666. (See also www.bibleetnombres.online.fr ).
Doing so, this Pope will actually change so much his own organization that he will lead to the end of Church “as we know it”. Changes may for example include the disappearance of a single, infallible Pope for another form of leadership, jointly with the other religions, or the generalization of marriage at all levels of the new Church …
Therefore, an elder must be blameless, the husband of one wife, stable, sensible, respectable, a lover of strangers, and teachable. He must manage his own family well and have children who are submissive and respectful in every way. For if a man does not know how to manage his own family, how can he take care of God’s church? (First Timothy, 3,2-5)
Leave in Peace or impose Peace?
Having eliminated the dissent between religions, which are responsible for a large number of conflicts (beside the conflicts triggered by the mere personal ambition and interest of a leader), all conditions are in place to start actively cooperating towards Peace.
“Peace be with you”. “Shalom”. “Salaam”. I wish you to live with Peace of mind as well as with Peace in your physical existence.
Peace is the most wonderful and awaited gift that you can give to or wish for anyone. However, as for any other gift, you cannot impose it to others; you can just leave it to others.
“Peace I leave with you, my Peace I give unto you: not as the world giveth, give I unto you. Let not your heart be troubled, neither let it be afraid.” (John 14,27)
As well, you may believe that your own Peace deserves to be hardly fought for.
“Si vis pacem para bellum” (”If you want Peace, prepare for war” - Roman legions, quoted by Plato and others)
Preparing for war in the name of Peace is right when it means fighting real Evil - don’t be mistaken - and leaving others also receiving the benefits of Peace. But if you intend to “pacify” them by violence to create your own egoistic Peace, you will just receive violence in return. Many great empires have become decadent, complacent, insisting in imposing their will to others and their sense of Good and Evil, and have finally been submerged and destroyed by “barbarians” who did not accept this domination.
“To want to govern the other against their will, under pretext that it is good for them, constitutes the most frequent argument for ‘unfair wars’” (Grotius, XVIIth century lawyer)
Can someone reach Peace independently from the material conditions in which one is living?
Theoretically, everyone could pretend being an hermit, live in isolation and be indifferent to any material aspect of life. Practically, anyone struggling to make a living or to sustain a family will have a hard time developing his / her spirituality and reaching Peace. In extreme cases, a person who needs to support a family may be ready to use shocking means in order to survive, such as stealing or killing. Just consider how looting may quickly appear when a country, however sophisticated and educated, falls into hardship, such as Argentina a few years ago.
Coalition against Misery
Peace and sustainable development go hand in hand:
- Peace is the stable ground on which physical and spiritual development can be built.
- One can argue that a basic level of prosperity is required to achieve the tranquility of mind needed to develop a positive and Peace-oriented spirit. Misery generates anxiety and removal from spiritual matters.
“Fear is on the dark side. Fear leads to anger. Anger leads to hate. Hate leads to Suffering” (Star Wars, “Episode I, The Phantom Menace”)
This is also the danger of some governments that buy time by keeping their populations in a carefully calculated state of fear.
Misery leads to violence, aggression, terrorism, degradation of the environment… Fighting misery and reestablishing a basic level of prosperity should be the fundamental objective of every government:
- the governments of the countries challenged by misery - this misery often being aggravated by corruption and the exploitation of the resources for the profit of an elite, but also
- the governments of the rich countries, which have an absolute responsibility to assist countries in difficulty. In a world more open to communication than ever, any arrogance or lack of showing compassion may just trigger an immense wave of resentment that could translate into all forms of violence. Supporting a less performing country does not have to be paternalism or colonialism. It is basic solidarity and the only form of leadership that transcends and can abolish barriers.
“For whoever is not against us is for us” (Mark 9, 38-48 - interestingly, this sentence has been sometimes reversed to rally support for aggression instead of Peace: “whoever is not for us is against us”.)
Reducing misery requires
- empowering those that you intend to help so that they can become independent from you
“Do not give a fish to the poor; teach the poor how to catch more fish” (adapted from Chinese proverb)
- eliminating violence (including the violence in the name of eliminating violence)
“You cannot simultaneously prevent and prepare for war” (Albert Einstein)
- and excluding personal profit motivations - individually or collectively - economically, religiously or politically.
Sharing existing resources
Existing resources are spread in a very unbalanced way, and are easily spoiled (energy, food…) by those who have plenty.
What is the cost of helping others?
It may be better defined by the cost of not helping them:
- September 11 devastation: 11 billion US dollars?
- Reconstruction of Iraq: 300 billion US dollars?
- Cost of not neutralizing the radioactivity created by the nuclear accident in Chernobyl: unknown yet (note Chernobyl means “wormwood” or “absinthe” in Ukrainian).
“And the third angel sounded, and there fell a great star from heaven, burning as it were a lamp, and it fell upon the third part of the rivers, and upon the fountains of waters; And the name of the star is called Wormwood: and the third part of the waters became wormwood; and many men died of the waters, because they were made bitter.” (Revelations 9, 10-11)
- the cost of leaving AIDS spread all over the (developing) world : unknown yet, civilizations annihilated, entire economies in jeopardy
- the cost of not intervening in ethnic conflicts in Rwanda, Congo and other tore down African countries: hundreds of thousands of lives destroyed, regression to barbaric systems, millions of young individuals having lost all hope in life.
- the cost incurred by Governments in Western Europe to subsidize millions of jobless people … not to work, whereas their skills would be very useful to assist those in needs in their own country or in other countries
For reference:
- 80% of the worldwide births every year (about 100 million babies) take place in countries where the revenue per person is less than 20% of the average household revenue in the USA. A lot of suffering and hunger could be spared for each of these children for a handful of dollars per week (this is about what an average US household spends on cable TV every week).
- allowing controlled copying of patented life-essential drugs in developing countries: almost for free since, anyway, these users would not be able to pay for the full price of the treatment
- many corporations have spontaneously started diverting some of their monetary resources and some time of their workers to lead programs to assist local populations in various countries. They demonstrate that ethics and compassion are not contrary to business.
Get out, speak out and walk the talk
Our future is not written. We have received free will and we are the ones writing the future.
“The future is not written; only glimpses of it can be seen”
But be careful that all interpretations of visions and prophecies must be taken with extreme reserve:
- Many prophecies are just forgeries or, at best, they have been created by individuals under the illusion that they were receiving a message or a vision from God or from any other spiritual entity
- Your may be fascinated by trying to guess the future, but you must keep in mind that any interpretation of visions or prophecies by you or by anyone else is very weak and limited, and should not be trusted. It can only be considered as a source of inspiration and you need to keep working on your understanding to receive more inspiration, and sort out between different, sometimes contradictory levels of interpretation.
Dear friends, stop believing every spirit. Instead, test the spirits to see whether they are from God, because many false prophets have gone out into the world. (First John, 4,1)
On the other hand, every contribution counts, maybe even more than you realize in the instant. Do not stay silent. Speak out. Act now.
Being contemplative or active
Contemplative spirituality deserves deep respect since it is based (depending on your faith) on the belief that contemplation and individual prayers can create a communication link with God or that positive thoughts can favorably influence, help or heal others.
But contemplation in isolation may also cut an individual from the rest of humanity, lead to the ideas that nothing material matters, that other individuals are impure and not worthy of consideration, and it may end up with egoism, self-centric focus, ignorance of others, or exceedingly high self-esteem or low self-esteem.
An individual matures through three stages: dependence, independence, and eventually interdependence. The latter happens when you realize that you can elevate yourself only when helping others to elevate themselves (freely adapted from Stephen Covey).
Interdependence is also allowing or helping others to live a Peaceful and gratifying life. Giving is more rewarding than receiving. Interdependence leads to active spirituality, in which your educated intuition guides you to act concretely to help others, materially, emotionally and possibly spiritually.
But you must keep in mind that giving is not imposing. The recipients must be ready to receive. If you impose your help, your faith, your principles, if you try to indoctrinate, convert, forcefully transform others, you will create the opposite effect: doubt, resistance, resentment, hatred. As well, you must not stop giving because the others are very different from what you are, have a different faith, have apparently different values, etc. Without tolerance, no progress will be possible.
“The things that we have in common far out-number and outweigh those that divide us” (Walt Disney).
We are all interconnected. Think about the people that you know or that you interact with. At this time, you are having, yourself, various kinds of relationship with several thousands of individuals, who in turn are connecting with several thousands. Even if many of these connections are redundant, only a handful of these relationships will link you to any other human being on the planet, including the leaders of any major nation as well as the worst criminals.
They do influence you, directly or indirectly, for good or for bad.
Nevertheless, if you do not stay passive, you can also influence them, directly or indirectly. It is actually OUR responsibility to leverage our influence onto others’ influence in order to achieve the larger goal of a better world.
Your duty
It is your duty:
- To understand better, from a variety of opinions - coming from multiple countries, backgrounds and interests - what are the real underlying causes that lie behind the problems. Do not accept pre-fabricated, simple and easy, explanations, most often designed by the politicians or by the media to prevent you from thinking.
“Panem et circenses” (”bread and games”, as the way to keep the people of antique Rome ignorant of the real issues of the Empire)
- Create your own educated and enlightened opinion, over time, from your heart and reflection, thinking alone but also speaking with anyone who can help you develop a more articulated vision - this may or may not be your religious leaders.
- Run away from futility and identify, if you are not yet doing so, how, around you, you can help alleviate suffering, reduce anxiety, and create hope. The golden rule is … start by listening. This is the key for compassion and understanding. Only then can you usefully help without imposing an inadequate answer.
- Communicate your opinion to your leaders. It is important for them to monitor what topics are important for the population that they are responsible for, so that they can address these concerns - hopefully more than with promises only. If you do not express your opinion, and if the majority around you is also passive, your leaders and the media may just, deliberately or by default, keep everyone in a state of ignorance, superstition and distraction (”bread and games”).
- Avoid the greedy, the envious, and the predator that can derail you. Do not feel intimated. The task is immense but each drop counts. If your cause is good, you will ultimately find support.
“Behold, I send you out as sheep in the midst of wolves” (Matthew 10:16)
Other Links
De Gloria Olivae provides you with the Internet links in the above text and hereunder to help you broaden your vision with a diversity of perspectives, and start your own reflection. De Gloria Olivae does not endorse nor has any connection with any of these organizations. Furthermore, they may express opinions which are not necessarily ours but are important to know about as a different perspective about many of the same topics addressed by De Gloria Olivae.
Anthroposophy / Rudolf Steiner
Christian Churches of God
Peace Corps - an organization sponsored by the US government
Rosicrucians
Theosophy
Who we are
De Gloria Olivae is a tribune for testimony and hope. It promotes the convergence of religions, spiritual awareness, Peace, and sustainable development. It is not related to any specific religion or faith and it advocates tolerance for all opinions and creeds.
We believe that the Internet is a powerful tool that may be used for the better or for the worse but that offers a media of never-seen-before reach and efficiency to convey our message.
Our name, De Gloria Olivae, is a clear reference to the Prophecy of the Popes attributed to Malachy. This reference is not from a religious or prophetic perspective but we use it
- to create a wake-up call that humanity needs to change urgently (Malachy’s list of Popes is coming to a quick end…)
- to urge all human religions to break down the walls that isolate them without real protection, to converge instead of diverging, to combine instead of divding, to cease being a cause of war and destruction and to become a common platform to guide the whole humanity with tolerance towards true spirituality
- to symbolize the need for mysticism and religion to take an active participating role in creating a better spiritual and material world
Our emblem symbolizes
- Peace and reunion (the olive branch)
- the strength and the glory of a unified humanity (the oak branch)
Contact us
If you support our ideal, your next concrete step could be to send the address of this website to your friends or beloved ones.
This document may be freely copied and distributed, in totality or in part, provided that (1) its general message is kept intact and (2) you include both the references of De Gloria Olivae and of www.DeGloriaOlivae.org.
If you desire to express any critique, comment, opinion or suggestion, we will be glad to read your e-mail and we will appreciate the opportunity to make progress.
messenger@DeGloriaOlivae.org
About the author:
De Gloria Olivae is an organization promoting the convergence of religions and the emergence of spiritual awareness, leading to peace, compassion, and solidarity, all key conditions for collective survival and sustainable development.
One Day, One Important Thing
Each day it is smart to make one thing the most important. All of us want to feel good and accomplish things, but taking on too much can cause some anxiety and a feeling of not being capable of producing. If you pick one thing that is the most important, then you will more than likely complete that one thing and feel good about it.
You could take Sunday as a day of planning. Each day of the week is dedicated to getting one thing done. Say Monday it is getting the washing machine fixed, then Tuesday it is opening and sorting your mail, Wednesday it is entertaining your friends for a healthy dinner and sewing time, Thursday it is taking your Acceletrim and meeting up with your personal trainer for some serious exercise time, and Friday is to shop for groceries. The main thing to remember here is that it is one important thing, that does not mean forgetting about everything else, it means that the one important thing will get completed. Living life like this will help you feel a greater sense of accomplishment. With each passing week you will be completing so many of the things that you have been wanting to accomplish for such a long time, it will be great.