The WordPress.com stats helper monkeys prepared a 2012 annual report for this blog.
Here’s an excerpt:
About 55,000 tourists visit Liechtenstein every year. This blog was viewed about 210,000 times in 2012. If it were Liechtenstein, it would take about 4 years for that many people to see it. This blog “Impressions” had more visits than a small country in Europe!
I thank you my readers for visiting my site and reading what comes to my mind.
Since 1997, we have seen in circulation hoax emails appealing with phrases such as: “Forward this message to others and help fund medical care for a sick or dying child“.
Invariably, these messages named a large charity as the benefactor that stood ready to direct monies towards the costs of medical care for a child fighting for life. That trend continued into 2010.
Here is a heart-wringing message I came across on Facebook.
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Everyone with a sympathetic heart wants to help sick children to get better. The message about a little boy or a little girl suffering from some dreaded disease or infirmity certainly tugs the heartstrings of many. Even so, on the internet pranksters play upon the pathos of others for their personal odious amusement.
Search through the archives on the internet failed to turn up any news about the shooting of any young man by his stepfather and his struggle for life in any hospital.
Lamentably, this message is a hoax.
This message does not give the date and the place where this incident occurred nor does it mention the name of the hospital that takes care of the boy.
Similar appeals to save a young life began circulating first through e-mails and later as cell phone text messages and in social websites such as Facebook.
Here are three earlier versions of this hoax message cited by snopes.com:
Version #1:
[Collected via e-mail, February 2010]
Last friday 2-12-10 a 14 yr old boy was shot 6 times by his step dad. The boy was protecting his 2 yr old sister, in whom the step dad was atempting to rape. The young girl was not harmed, bc of that young mans courage & loyalty to his sister. The mom was at work during this time. The 14 yr old boy is now fighting for his life, and the doctors say he will not make it unless he has this life saving surgery in wich the boys mom cant afford. So At&t has agreed to donate $0.45 every time this msg is sent. So fwd & help save a life! (sic)
Version #2:
[Collected via e-mail, February 2010]
Last friday 2/12/10 a 14 y/o boy weas shot 6 times by his step dad. the boy was protecting his 2 y/o sistetr, whom the atep dad was attemping to rape. the young girl was not harmed because of that young mans courage and loyalty to his sister. The Mother was at work when this took place the 14 yr old boy “dominicjamesdaggner” is now fighting for his life, and the doctor says he will not make unless he has life saving surgery in which the mother cant not afford. So, Verizon and AT&T have agree to donate $12.00 everytime this text is sent. (sic)
Version #3:
[Collected via e-mail, May 2012]
14 YEAR OLD BOY WAS SHOT 6 TIMES BY HIS STEPFATHER, THIS BOY WAS PROTECTING HIS LITTLE 2 YEAR OLD SISTER WHO WAS ABOUT TO BE RAPED BY THIS POOR EXCUSE OF A MAN. THE LITTLE GIRL DID NOT GET HURT THANKS TO HER BRAVE OLDER BROTHER. THEIR MOM WAS AT WORK WHEN ALL THIS HAPPENED. NOW THIS BRAVE YOUNG MAN IS FIGHTING FOR HIS LIFE, BUT DOCTRS SAY HE WILL NOT SURVIVE UNLESS HE GETS AN OPERATION WHICH IS VERY COSTFUL AND WHICH HIS MOM CANNOT PAY. ALL FACEBOOK COMPANIES HAVE AGREED TO DONATE 45 CENTS FOR EVERY TIME SOMEONE POSTS THIS TO THEIR WALL, SO PLEASE PASTE AND PASS THIS ON SO THAT TOGETHER WE CAN HELP SAVE THIS BOYS LIFE (sic)
The first two versions mention a date (2-12-10) when the shooting supposedly occurred while the third version does not mention a date . The second version even quotes a name for the victim as “dominicjamesdaggner.“
According to the current version of the message, an ante of 45 US cents would be paid by “Facebook Companies” for each forwarded message. In Version #1, cited above AT&T also offered the same amount per forwarded message. Version #2 of the message surpasses these two offers; it states that Verizon would pay a fantastic $12.00 as ante per forwarded message. And the third version says: “ALL FACEBOOK COMPANIES HAVE AGREED TO DONATE 45 CENTS FOR EVERY TIME SOMEONE POSTS THIS TO THEIR WALL…”
The message “shot 14-year-old boy”, circulated on the web similar to the hoaxes that used the name of the American Cancer Society, the Make-A-Wish Foundation, or some other large social or business entity. The pranksters even roped in McDonald’s and Pizza Hut in the Justin Mallory hoax: “… epileptic in need of long-term care … ” and AOL and ZDNet in the Rachel Arlington hoax: “… brain cancer sufferer in need of an operation …“
Please, do not immediately believe that whatever appears on Facebook or any other site on the web as 100% true. First, verify the news. If it is true, and you want to help, then give your money or your time for the cause.
So, from now on, refrain from forwarding worthless messages to others. Well-intentioned forwarding of messages does nothing towards helping a sick child; however, it does make the day of the prankster who initiated the hoax.
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This video presents the latest episode of the popular “Food Investigations” series created by the non-profit Consumer Wellness Center and narrated by Mike Adams. It exposes the truth behind this beverage and what Vitamin Water really contains.
Casey Chanin is a Pop/R&B singer from Westchester, NY. She is working on her debut album to be released in 2013 via Bralec Harlit Entertainment. Check out her story below to see how she’s made it through being misdiagnosed by over 15 doctors, living with Celiac Disease and struggling with binge eating and hopes to inspire girls everywhere to love and accept themselves.
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Hi. I’m Casey. I’m 19, 5’2”, and I’ve lived most of my life hating myself for the way I look. Here is the very short version of my story.
At 13 I weighed only 53 pounds, and was going through a 2-year misdiagnoses. Everything I ate made my stomach hurt. I would eat, and then I’d be on the floor screaming in pain but the doctors said I was lying to cover up my “eating disorder”. I went through over 15 doctors, and two psychologists. I was dropped by many of them because they didn’t know what to do. I lost all of my friends. I was in too much pain, and too weak to go to school. I was in the hospital with feeding tubes down my throat to force feed me. I tried my best to eat, but no matter how much I ate, I kept losing weight. I ate through the pain to make everyone happy, except myself. I was killing myself with food.
The doctors decided to cut a hole in me so my parents could put a feeding tube through it. A week before they were going to do it a doctor saw a blood test that I had taken two years earlier and saw that I had Celiac Disease, an intolerance to Wheat, Oats, Rye, and Barley. By eating those foods, my intestines were completely damaged. My growth hormone had stopped, and my digestive system had completely broken down. I stopped eating those foods, and the pain went away.
Even though I was finally diagnosed, I was told if I didn’t gain a certain amount of weight in a week, I’d be put back in the hospital. So, every night, I’d make myself a picnic in my room, and eat until I was about to throw up. In only two months, I gained the 20 pounds I needed to. But I couldn’t stop eating. I kept eating, and eating, and eating. It became an addiction. I used food to cope with everything. It consumed my life. I would binge every night, and sometimes, be too sick to go to school. I went to a therapist after therapist trying to get help, but I just couldn’t stop. I was diagnosed with Binge-Eating Disorder. I hated myself. I felt disgusting. I thought I was a failure and had no willpower. Food had completely consumed my life. The past two years I had been forced to eat, and then I literally could not stop eating. I spiraled into depression, began cutting myself, and was diagnosed with Borderline Personality Disorder and Body Dysmoprhic Disorder. I coped with all of that now for 4 years. My highest weight was 140 pounds.
I still struggle with Binge-Eating, self harm and my weight constantly goes up and down. I have stretch marks, cellulite, and scars all over my body. I can’t help but sometimes look in the mirror and see ugly. But slowly, I’m getting better. Sometimes I can look in the mirror. Sometimes, I can take pictures of myself and that’s a huge improvement from where I was. I’m a survivor. People told me I was going to die, and I didn’t. People told me I was a liar, and I fought for my life, no matter what anyone said. So what if I have scars? It shows what I have gone and still am going through. It shows how I’m still fighting for happiness everyday, and that will start by loving my body. I am beautiful.
We all need to realize that life is too short to base it all on the way we look, or a number on a scale. Eat when you’re hungry. Eat chocolate if it makes you happy. Wear whatever you want. If the media think that killing yourself physically and mentally to look a certain way is what’s beautiful, then they are the ones with the problems. If everyone looked the same, the world would be so boring! YOU ARE MORE THAN YOUR WEIGHT. NO MATTER WHAT SIZE.
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In The Dark I See by @Lights (Cover by @CaseyChanin)
In 2008, The Board of Control for Cricket in India initiated the Indian Premier League – a billion dollar professional league for Twenty20 cricket competition in India.
After the finals of the DLF IPL (fifth season) played at M. A. Chidambaram Stadium, Chennai, on 27 May, 2012, the Kolkata Knight Riders went home richer by $2 million in prize money and the Chennai Super Kings received $1.5 million as the runners-up.
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In November 2012 PepsiCo, one of the two eligible bidders for the coveted title of the sixth IPL season, won over Airtel with a bid of ₹396.8 crore for the league to be called the “Pepsi IPL” for the next five years.
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Pepsi IPL (IPL 2013; IPL 6) Teams
Last season nine teams participated in this popular Cricket carnival. This season too, the number of teams participating remains the same; however, on September 14, 2012, at an emergency Governing Council meeting of the Indian Premier League, the BCCI terminated its contract with the cash-strapped Deccan Chargers and floated tenders for a new IPL franchise. Sun TV Network purchased the team by placing a bid substantially higher than that of PVP Ventures, and changed the name of the team to SunRisers Hyderabad. .
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Locations of IPL Teams
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The tournament of the sixth season of the Indian Premier League to be held in India abbreviated as: Pepsi IPL, IPL 6 and IPL 2013, is scheduled to begin on April 3, 2013 and end on May 26, 2013 with the opening and closing ceremonies held in Eden Gardens, Kolkata – the home venue of the reigning champions Kolkata Knight Riders. Both the opening match between Kolkata Knight Riders and Delhi Daredevils on Wednesday April 3, 2013 at 20:00 IST and the final match on Sunday, May 26, 2013 would be played in Eden Gardens, Kolkata and begin at 20:00 IST (14:30 GMT).
“But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” (Matthew 24:36)
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Harold Egbert Camping
Whenever I come across the word “Rapture” it reminds me of Harold Egbert Camping, an American Christian radio broadcaster, widely known as the doomsday radio preacher. Why? Camping has successfully predicted the Rapture multiple times.
The Oakland Tribune says that according to an estimate made in 2009, Harold Camping presides over an empire of more than 70 radio stations worth $72 million.
Camping first predicted that the Judgment Day would occur on or about September 6, 1994 and that became a significant red mark on his record. On that day scores of his crazy followers gathered at his offices in Oakland, California waiting for the return of Christ. Later, Camping attributed his prediction to a mathematical error.
Last year, Camping, once again predicted May 21, 2011 as the day of the Rapture and the Judgment Day. Camping reportedly spent more than $100 million over a span of seven years publicizing the Rapture, mainly through billboards and constant chatter on his Oakland-based Family Radio International.
Harold Camping reportedly spent more than $100 million over a span of seven years publicizing the rapture, mainly through billboards.
According to him, God started allowing his true believers 37 years ago to understand what they were reading in the Bible and recognize the signs that pointed to the exact date and time for the Rapture and the Judgment Day. Using passages from The Book of Daniel and The Book of Revelations, he predicted that the Rapture would occur on May 21, 2011 with the coming of Jesus, and the Judgment Day – “like a thief in the night.”
His website said:
“This web site serves as an introduction and portal to four faithful ministries which are teaching that WE CAN KNOW from the Bible alone that the date of the rapture of believers will take place on May 21, 2011 and that God will destroy this world on October 21, 2011.”
When asked who will be among the lucky ones, to be Raptured up to Heaven and escape this Earth before chaos ensues, Camping said that anyone who still followed a church on May 21, 2011 will not be included in the Rapture because churches do not follow the true teachings of the Bible. A true believer he said would end up in Heaven on May 21, 2011; and the heathen left here on Earth to suffer the chaos of End Times.
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In the following video titled “Harold Camping Countdown: 10 DAYS LEFT UNTIL JUDGMENT DAY / Timeline” uploaded on May 10, 2011, Harold Camping explains the Biblical Timeline that begins with Christ’s Crucifixion and ends with Judgment Day. Also they added the following in YouTube: “Judgment Day begins May 21, 2011. Daily updates will be posted on this youtube channel.”
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The mass media widely reported his prediction: “After the righteous fly up to heaven there would follow five months of fire, brimstone and plagues on Earth, with millions of people dying each day, until October 21, 2011, when the world would be finally destroyed”.
A poll conducted on the Coast to Coast AM website revealed that out of 26,634 respondents, 4.39% believed Camping’s prediction. However, an overwhelming 82.97% did not believe Camping, and an undecided 12.64% respondents.
On May 21, 2011, Jesus did not return to Earth as predicted by Harold Camping.
Dr. Michael Shermer
In the “End of the World Special” show conducted by the Coast to Coast AM website, skeptic Dr. Michael Shermer spoke about Harold Camping’s failed May 21st Rapture prediction, and why people believe the things they do, especially as it relates to the apocalypse. Sherman then said he expected Camping and his followers, while not admitting they were wrong would likely issue some kind of rationalization for the error, such as the date was slightly miscalculated or the group’s faith spared the world. “We don’t have a good bologna detection module in our brain, so we tend to believe almost all patterns we encounter, even the false ones,” he explained.
However, as the predicted doomsday passed with the planet intact, Camping switched his claim as expected by Shermer and Company, to October 21, 2011, as the “real” rapture day.
In the following video uploaded by Richard Holicker on May 24, 2011 with audio from May 23, 2011 press conference and the images from the internet, Harold Camping explains why the world did not end on May 21, 2011.
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Again as Camping’s prediction failed to come to pass October 21, 2011, he suffered a stroke, and was hospitalized.In his apology letter, posted Thursday, October 27, 2012, on Family Radio’s website, the Alameda preacher called the May 21, 2011 campaign – which according to the Times inspired Camping’s followers to empty their bank accounts and quit their jobs – “an astounding event” that raised awareness about the Bible and Jesus Christ. However, he said, his prediction a “sinful statement” and he asked God’s forgiveness.
In stark contrast to his previously staunch position on the subject he said: “Family Radio has no interest in even considering another date,” the letter said. “We have learned the very painful lesson that all of creation is in God’s hands and he will end time in his time, not ours!
“We humbly recognize that God may not tell his people the date when Christ will return, any more than he tells anyone the date they will die physically.”
Camping said in his letter that as he had no evidence that his predictions would ever come true, he would cease predicting the apocalypse. He added that he was now searching the Bible “even more fervently…not to find dates, but to be more faithful in [his] understanding.”
“But of that day and hour no one knows, neither the angels of heaven, nor the Son, but the Father alone.” (Matthew 24:36)
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The word “Rapture,” a term found in Christian eschatology does not appear anywhere in the Bible. Most Bible dictionaries and encyclopedias do not mention the Rapture at all. The word “Rapture” derived from the Latin word “rapare” means “seize,” “snatch,” “being caught up” or “take away.”
In the article “Rapture what does it mean?” published in the Belgian Christadelphians’s website, the author lists several bibles that translate the word “Rapture” as:
be seized and snatched away (carried off by force): JMNT
Taken up: BBE, Douay, GWV, LO, CPDV
Swept up: Phil2007, Philips
To meet: ECB, Amp, ESV, ABU
Seized … for meeting: ABP
Ascend (together) to meet: PNT
Conveyed together: Mace
Modern traditions of Christian eschatology use the term Rapture in at least two senses; as a general synonym for the final resurrection, and in the view of pre-tribulationists, where a group of people would be left behind on earth after the events mentioned in Matthew about “The Coming of the Son of Man”:
Immediately after the tribulation of those days, the sun will be darkened, and the moon will not give its light, and the stars will fall from the sky, and the powers of the heavens will be shaken. And then the sign of the Son of Man will appear in heaven, and all the tribes of the earth will mourn, and they will see the Son of Man coming upon the clouds of heaven with power and great glory. And he will send out his angels with a trumpet blast, and they will gather his elect from the four winds, from one end of the heavens to the other. (Matthew 24:29-31)
During Paul’s ministry in Thessalonica along with Silvanus and Timothy, a doubt arose among the Thessalonians about the fate of those Christians who would die before the return of Christ. Would they miss the glorious events of Christ’s second coming and the resurrection? Paul assuaged their fears. He assured them that God would save those who had already died, as well as those still living with these words:
We do not want you to be unaware, brothers, about those who have fallen asleep, so that you may not grieve like the rest, who have no hope. For if we believe that Jesus died and rose, so too will God, through Jesus, bring with him those who have fallen asleep. Indeed, we tell you this, on the word of the Lord, that we who are alive, who are left until the coming of the Lord, will surely not precede those who have fallen asleep. For the Lord himself, with a word of command, with the voice of an archangel and with the trumpet of God, will come down from heaven, and the dead in Christ will rise first. Then we who are alive, who are left, will be caught up together with them in the clouds to meet the Lord in the air. Thus we shall always be with the Lord. Therefore, console one another with these words. (1 Thessalonians 4:13-18)
Here are some passages from the New Testament that describe the resurrection of the dead, and gathering in of the faithful when Jesus comes again: (Matthew 16:27, 24:29-31, 25:31-32, 26:64, Mark 12:18-27, 13:26-27, Luke 17:26-35, John 5:21, 5:28-29, 1 Corinthians 4:5, 6:14, 15:12-32, Philippians 3:20-21, Colossians 3:4, 2 Peter 3:8-10, Revelation 1:7).
These passages use various descriptions and images to describe wondrous events that we cannot fully fathom (1 Corinthians 2:6-10, 13:9-12).
None of these passages depicts the image of the faithful caught up in the clouds, and meeting the Lord in the air nor did Paul use that description again in his later writings.
A few years after the crucifixion of Jesus up to the present day countless groups and people have compared the events of their time to Bible prophecies, and concluded that Jesus would be returning soon. Some even set a date for the Rapture and led their followers into the deserts, to the mountains, and into the wilderness, to await the Rapture. Though every one of those predictions turned out wrong, that has not deterred people from making modern-day predictions that Jesus will be returning soon. Most mainstream Bible scholars, however, do not think current world affairs are evidence of the imminent return of Christ.
Even so, we still do come across certain Christians who believe in the Rapture as the centerpiece of the second coming of Jesus – a glorious, dramatic event with Jesus appearing and literally taking the believers physically along with him up into the sky. Among these Christians, there are several theories about the timing of the Rapture.
In recent years, the Rapture and the second coming of Christ have spawned a lucrative industry. Besides the many books written on this subject, there are thousands of self-styled television evangelists with websites, radio stations, lecture series, audio recordings, videotapes and other Paraphernalia. Many of these accouterments feature imaginative and vivid embellishments of the Bible prophecies, and not surprisingly, in most cases properly classified as fiction, and not as Bible prophecy.
Now that we have forgotten the uneventful December 21, 2012, can we be sure we are safe?
Today when we turn on the Television or radio, or read the newspapers, we see and hear only about Israel and Iran.
If Israel strikes Iranian nuclear sites, or Iran bombs, Israel, then what would happen? Would it not trigger the real doomsday for all of us living now on this Earth?
Iran sees Israel as its arch enemy, and it also considers Saudi Arabia as an enemy since it supplies its oil to the U.S. If Israel strikes Iran then the latter would retaliate by bombing Saudi oil fields.
I came across this video titled “The Day The World Ended” released by FutureMoneyTrends.com, a top trends research newsletter. This video simulates what could happen if Israel or Iran pulls the trigger.
In this simulation, the oil prices spike from $30 to $120 per barrel when the USA receives word that Israel has bombed Iran, and after an hour, the oil price soars up to $305, and by 9:30 AM, it rises to $450 per barrel forcing a systemic collapse of the world economy. Gold and silver become unavailable. Riots, civil unrest, force the governments to take drastic actions as a prelude to World War III.
“Jeg ønsker dere alle en riktig God Jul!” (Norwegian)
“من برای شما آرزوی همه کریسمس مبارک!” (Persian)
“Życzę wszystkim Wesołych Świąt!” (Polish)
“Desejo a todos um Feliz Natal!” (Portugese)
“Vă doresc tuturor un Crăciun Fericit!” (Romanian)
“Я желаю вам всем счастливого Рождества!” (Russian)
“Желим вам све а Мерри Божић! ” (Serbian)
“ඔබට සුභ නත්තලක් වේවා!” (Sinhalese)
“Ja Prajem vám všetkým veselé Vianoce!” (Slovak)
“Želim vam vse vesel Božič!” (Slovenian)
“Les deseo a todos una Feliz Navidad!” (Spanish)
“Napenda wote Krismasi Njema!” (Swahili)
“Jag önskar er alla en God Jul!” (Swedish)
“உங்களுக்கு எனது கிறிஸ்துமஸ் (நத்தார்) நல்வாழ்த்துக்கள்!” (Tamil / Tamizh)
“నేను మిమ్మల్ని విష్ అ మెర్రి క్రిస్మస్!” (Telugu)
“ผมหวังว่าคุณจะ ร่าเริง a คริสต์มาส!” (Thai)
“Seni bütün bir Mutlu Noeller diliyoruz!” (Turkish)
“Я бажаю вам всім щасливого Різдва!” (Ukrainian)
“میں آپ سب کو میری کرسمس کاش!” (Urdu)
“Tôi Chúc các bạn một Giáng sinh vui vẻ!” (Vietnamese)
“Rwy’n Wish chi i gyd Nadolig Llawen!” (Welsh)
“איך ווינטשן איר אַלע אַ לעבעדיק ניטל!” (Yiddish)
It is no secret what Google can do;
And if I can, YOU too can do!
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Yes. It is the first snow for this holiday season here in Ellicott City, Maryland, USA. It started snowing at 1:15 PM on Monday December 24th, and hope it would be a White Christmas for us.
Impressions 