Blog to discuss the book "The Apocalypse - Letter by Letter: A Literary Analysis of the Book of Revelation" and current events that point to the events described therein.
As predicted in the Apocalypse - Letter by Letter, by Steven Paul, the old Roman Empire would one day be reconstituted. By the Lisbon Treaty, agreed to now by the last holdout, that day has come. Already the warning signs of the coming Christian persecution are there. As Europe has abandoned its Christian roots and the Church has become weak, believers are now a minority with no rights under the new constitution. They will soon find themselves victims of hate crimes laws, speech restrictions and even mob rule.
All that is lacking from the prophecy is a head for the beast. Stay tuned...
Czech Republic Leader Signs Lisbon - No More Barriers to New European Superstate By Hilary White PRAGUE, November 3, 2009 (LifeSiteNews.com) - The President of the Czech Republic, Vaclav Klaus, signed the Lisbon Treaty at 3 p.m. Central European Time today, the last leader of the European Union's 27 members states to do so. This removes the last barrier to the implementation of the Lisbon Treaty, the document that is said to be effectively identical to the European Constitution that was defeated by public votes in France and the Netherlands in 2005. Klaus, the eurosceptic leader of the former Soviet bloc country, has warned repeatedly against Lisbon's encroachments on national sovereignty and democracy, calling the project of a "united Europe" a return to a leftist tyranny. Since the start of the battle over Lisbon, Klaus has warned that ratification of the Treaty would signal the end of his and all European countries as independent sovereign states.
After the Yes vote in last month's Irish referendum, Klaus' opposition to Lisbon was the last barrier to the full implementation of the agreement that pro-life advocates have warned will likely result in the loss of the right of countries to pass laws protecting the unborn and elderly from abortion and euthanasia. Pro-life leaders in Ireland warned that under the Treaty the laws of member states will be interpreted not through that state's courts, but by the European Court of Justice (ECJ) that is under no legal obligation to consider any other law besides EU law. Today the anti-Christian, secularist leanings of the EU's institutions were illustrated when the European Court of Human Rights ruled that crucifixes must be removed from Italian state schools. In response to a complaint from an Italian woman in Padua, the Strasburg court ruled, "The presence of the crucifix ... could easily be interpreted by pupils of all ages as a religious sign and they would feel that they were being educated in a school environment bearing the stamp of a given religion."
The court ruled that the Italian state is to "refrain from imposing beliefs in premises where individuals were dependent on it." Campaigners have warned that this type of ruling under Lisbon's terms would become binding on all member states, ushering in the effective repression in all of Europe of public expressions of Christianity or any other belief that opposes the prevailing official European secularism.
In a 2005 speech, Klaus wondered if the former communist countries were not risking falling into "another blind alley of regulated society, of unproductive welfare state, of brave new world of European social democratism and of empty and artificial Europeanism." Klaus's capitulation was anticipated at last week's EU summit, when French President Nicholas Sarkozy said, "The Lisbon Treaty will enter into force doubtless as early as December 1."
Time Magazine: "Want to wreck the environment? Have a baby." - Prince Philip Concurs
LONDON, May 13, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - A feature in the current issue of Time Magazine asks a rhetorical question, "What's an an environmentally conscious parent to do?" Time's Pamela Paul gives the response most frequently pushed by radical environmentalists, saying the answer is 'don't have children'. In a television interview this week, the Duke of Edinburgh, Prince Philip, concurs, saying the recent increase in global food prices is due to too many children. At the same time, the Italian Prime Minister is seeking ways to turn around his country's disastrously low birth rate that currently stands at well below replacement level.
"Want to wreck the environment?" the Time feature starts, "Have a baby."
"Each bundle of joy gobbles up more of the planet's food, clogs garbage dumps with diapers, churns through plastic toys and winds up a gas-guzzling, resource-consuming grown-up like the rest of us. Still, babies are awfully cute. Given that most people still intend to procreate, what's an environmentally conscious parent to do?"
The Duke of Edinburgh followed the same environmentalist playlist when he said this week that the only way to save the planet is for people to stop having babies. Prince Philip told a television interviewer this week that the solution to the burgeoning global food crisis is simply to have fewer mouths to feed. The prince, who has four children, said, "Food prices are going up. Everyone thinks it's to do with not enough food, but it's really that demand is too great - too many people."
In recent months, food prices have risen dramatically around the world and economists are struggling to identify the reason. Most have said it is the result of rising oil prices which have affected the cost fertilizers, food transport, and industrial agriculture. The prince admitted that implementation of a massive population control movement might be a problem for governments. "Basically, it's a little embarrassing for everybody. No one quite knows how to handle it. Nobody wants their family life to be interfered with by the government."
Indeed, the only governments to try a systematic programme of population control are known to be among the world's most oppressive regimes. The communist government of China has had its One Child policy in place since 1979 when it was put in place ostensibly to alleviate social and environmental problems. The result has been social unrest, arrests of pregnant women and forced abortions and state-sponsored infanticide. It has also caused a massive and likely incurable imbalance in the population's sex ratio in favour of boys and resulted in a dramatic aging of the population. The Chinese government, while maintaining the One Child policy, is now struggling to find answers to the problem of millions of elderly with few children grown to adulthood to care for them.
Ironically, Prince Philip's wish has already come true. Currently the British birth rate stands at approximately 1.66 births per woman, well below the 2.1 level at which a population is sustained naturally.
Meanwhile, the recently elected Prime Minister of Italy, Silvio Berlusconi, is casting about for ways to stop the plummeting of the Italian birth rate. He told journalists today that he would try to remove "material reasons" that push women to seek abortions. In his inaugural speech before parliament, Berlusconi promised "new and important expenditures for demographic development". Italy is facing a demographic crisis. The country once noted for its fervent Catholicism and dedication to large families, is aging as the birth rate drops. Italy is now the "greyest" country in the European Union, with the highest "ageing index," according to the Italian National Statistics Institute (Istat). Istat estimates that the birth rate has climbed slightly from 1995 to 2005, from 1.19 births per woman to 1.32, but the government agency said this was almost entirely the result of immigration.
Government interference with family life has long been a major goal of the environmental movement's population control goals through enforced abortion, contraception and sterilization.
It is axiomatic among environmentalists that the human population would outstrip the world's food supply. Last year, Paul Watson, founder and president of the radical Sea Shepherd Conservation Society, denounced the "human virus" said that a "radical and invasive approach" was required. Watson who has called human beings the "AIDS of the Earth" said, "Curing a body of cancer requires radical and invasive therapy, and therefore, curing the biosphere of the human virus will also require a radical and invasive approach."
In 2007, the UK's leading population control lobbyist group, the Optimum Population Trust (OPT), issued a warning of environmental disaster if British couples do not restrict themselves to a two-child maximum.
Note: When the EU Constitution was drafted and circulated, it contained no mention of the Christian heritage of Europe, its contributions to western civilization or any positive effect at all. Pope John Paul II and the Vatican made a request that it be amended to do so and were rejected. The article below however shows the warm relationship between Freemasonry and the EU leadership. So it's no surprise that the Church was repudiated.
Masonic Influence in the EU By The Brussels Journal Created 2008-04-17 11:11
The French Federation of Le Droit Humain represented by its president, Michel Payen, met on April 8, 2008 with the president of the European Commission, Jose-Manuel Barroso, [...] This meeting constitutes a major event regarding the place of Freemasonry in the construction of Europe; this place was underscored not only by the interest and attentiveness that President Barroso showed to the delegation and the time he accorded them, but also by the commitments he made to the values espoused by liberal and adogmatic Freemasonry, its positions and its opinions on subjects of concern. It was the first time that Freemasonry, as such, was able to express itself to such a high level European institution.
The delegation received assurances from President Barroso of his attachment to the spirit of "lacite" and to the principle of separation of religion from the State. The delegation stressed the importance of the Enlightenment in the history of Europe, a dimension to be taken into account at least equally with its religious roots, and certainly more closely tied to the roots of antiquity.
Finally, a principle of communication between the liberal and adogmatic Masonic Orders and the services of the European Commission, to be used whenever needed, was decided upon. Thus the French Federation of Le Droit Humain will propose, in the near future, a recommendation concerning the principle of emancipation that ought to form the basis of all European education systems, in direct relation to a recognition of the contribution of the Enlightenment to the common culture of the peoples that compose Europe, and in accordance with the principles of the Charter of Fundamental Rights.
It would be easy and a bit cliche to listen to this speech and fall into the trap of limiting the warning to the current administration and the restriction of civil liberties due to the so-called war on terror. Rather, we must broaden the idea to encompass the complete corruption of both political parties, government institutions and public corporations. We are in perilous times. JFK saw it coming. Very it likely, it led to his demise.
U.S. State DepartmentWASHINGTON -- A largely unreported meeting held at the State Department discussed integration of the U.S., Mexico and Canada in concert with a move toward a transatlantic union, linking a North American community with the European Union.
The meeting was held Monday under the auspices of the Advisory Committee on International Economic Policy, or ACIEP. WND obtained press credentials and attended as an observer. The meeting was held under "Chatham House" rules that prohibit reporters from attributing specific comments to individual participants.
The State Department website noted the meeting was opened by Assistant Secretary of State for Economic, Energy and Business Affairs Daniel S. Sullivan and ACIEP Chairman Michael Gadbaw, vice president and senior counsel for General Electric's International Law & Policy group since December 1990.
WND observed about 25 ACIEP members, including U.S. corporations involved in international trade, prominent U.S. business trade groups, law firms involved with international business law, international investment firms and other international trade consultants. No members of Congress attended the meeting.
The agenda for the ACIEP meeting was not published, and State Department officials in attendance could not give WND permission under Chatham House rules to publish the agenda. The meeting agenda included topics reviewing the Security and Prosperity Partnership of North America, or SPP, and the U.S.-EU Transatlantic Economic Council, or TEC.
The SPP, declared by the U.S., Canada and Mexico at a summit meeting in 2005, has 20 trilateral bureaucratic working groups that seek to "integrate and harmonize" administrative rules and regulations on a continental basis.
Several participants said the premise of the SPP is to create a North American business platform to benefit North America-based multi-national companies the way the European Union benefits its own.
Others noted the premise of the TEC is to create a convergence of administrative rules and regulations between Europe and North America, anticipating the creation of a "Transatlantic Economic Union" between the European Union and North America.
Participants pointed out that transatlantic trade is currently 40 percent of all world trade. They argue that trade and non-trade barriers need to be further reduced to maintain that market share as a framework is put in place to advance transatlantic economic integration.
Still, some participants argued that many corporations in North America already have moved beyond a North American focus to adopt a global perspective that transcends even the Transatlantic market.
"Supply chains and markets are everywhere," one participant asserted. "What's to stop global corporations from going after the cheapest labor available globally, wherever they can find it, provided the cost of transporting goods globally can be managed economically?"
Other participants argued regional alliances were still important, if only to put in place the institutional bases that ultimately would lead to global governance on uniform global administrative regulations favorable to multi-national corporations.
"North America should be a premiere platform to establish continental institutions," a participant said. "That's why we need to move the security perimeters to include the whole continent, especially as we open the borders between North American countries for expanding free trade."
One presentation on the agenda identified four reasons why administrative rules and regulations need to be integrated by SPP in North America and by the Transatlantic Economic Council, bridging together European Union and North American markets:
Standardization - to keep prices low and productivity high;
Investment - for every $1 traded, $4 is invested; right now 75 percent of investment in the U.S. comes from the EU, and 52 percent of the investment in the EU comes from the U.S.;
Productivity Improvements - to lower production costs and stimulate trade; and
Open Borders - to facilitate the free movement of labor to markets where employment opportunities are available.
The discussion pointed out the SPP trilateral working groups and the Transatlantic Economic Council were being supported by top-level Cabinet officers and the heads of state in both the EU and in North America.
Progress in EU-U.S. regulatory integration was noted in financial market coordination, investment rule cohesion, trade security measures and efforts undertaken recently to preserve intellectual property rights.
Before the meeting began, concerns were raised informally by participants worried that the Ohio Democratic Party primary had prompted both Barack Obama and Hillary Clinton to talk of renegotiating NAFTA.
Participants at the State Department meeting pointed out U.S. political candidates could be expected to argue "protectionist themes opposed to global economic integration" as a tactic, without necessarily being committed to taking aggressive steps once in office.
"The political dialogue misses the point of economic reality," one participant argued. "There is a J-curve correlation between when a currency like the U.S. dollar depreciates and when exports kick in to increase. We should accelerate the J-curve and our discussion about it, to help the local politics catch up with the international reality."
Part of the discussion was devoted to concerns that national regulators in North America and Europe were too reluctant to abandon provincial regulatory advantages.
"Regulators by nature are advocates, and they are hard to move," one participant grumbled. "What we need is more diplomats and negotiators to identify solutions, otherwise the bureaucrats will bog down the progress we need to see coming out of the SPP and TEC."
"North America is already an integrated continental economy and a continental-wide business platform," another said. "What we need now is more regulatory convergence. 'Harmonized' should mean that once approved, the same set of administrative regulations and procedures ought to be ready throughout NAFTA, SPP and the TEC."
As WND previously reported, the Transatlantic Economic Council, or TEC, was created by President Bush at an April 30 summit meeting at the White House with German Chancellor Angela Merkel, the current president of the European Council, and European Commission President Jose Manuel Barroso.
WND also reported the Transatlantic Policy Network, a non-governmental organization headquartered in Washington and Brussels and advised by a bi-partisan congressional policy group chaired by Sen. Robert Bennett, R-Utah, has called for the creation of a Transatlantic Common Market between the U.S. and the European Union by 2015.
ACIEP members include corporate officers from General Electric, Exxon Mobil, J.P. Morgan Chase & Co., Archer Daniels Midland, United Parcel Service, Citibank, Proctor & Gamble, Hunt Oil, CMS Energy, Boeing, 3M, Goldman Sachs and Cargill.
Note: As I said, i never held much stock in "one-world order" conspiracy theories but it does seem things are headed that way. Look how easily the British folk have lost their historic national sovereignty via a small group of EU enthusiasts. If it can happen there...
UK to Hand Sovereignty to EU without Referendum
"One thousand years of British history have been extinguished without a shot being fired." By Hilary White
LONDON, March 6, 2008 (LifeSiteNews.com) - Britain's MPs voted yesterday to deny the public a referendum on the Treaty of Lisbon, the European Union's substitute for the Constitution that failed in 2005 after being defeated by Dutch and French plebiscites. The House of Commons vote, 311 to 248 - a majority of 63 - defeated a Conservative amendment that would have allowed the British public a say in whether the treaty would come into effect in the country. Commentators and activists fighting the issue have called the vote yesterday in the House of Commons the effective end of British sovereignty.
The Conservative opposition are planning to reintroduce their amendment in the House of Lords later this year. The Lords, however, have little power to defeat legislation.
The vote followed closely on the heels of ten local "mini-polls" held last week in Labour and Liberal Democrat constituencies that resulted in 88 per cent support for a referendum. In the 2005 election all three major parties promised a referendum on any attempt to revive the defeated Euro-Constitution.
The Lisbon Treaty will see the creation of a permanent EU president, foreign minister and diplomatic service that are not subject to scrutiny by Parliament or accountable to the electorate, and surrenders nearly 50 national vetoes to Brussels. The new EU president will be a full-time Brussels official, serving a two-and-half-year term and will be chosen by Europe's leaders. A Brussels-appointed foreign minister will be able to make foreign policy, binding upon member states, without a full British national veto.
Critics charge that the Treaty, signed by Gordon Brown last year, will restrict Britain's ability to police its borders, control immigration, fight crime and domestic terrorism, reject EU regulations on employment law and energy policy, and leave it dependent upon an outside power in foreign policy decisions. The Treaty is to come into force January 1, 2009, in time for the 2009 European elections later that year.
The Daily Telegraph, the paper that led the charge for a referendum, called the vote "a singularly squalid example of bullying and gerrymandering that has left even hardened participants in the Commons open-mouthed at government cynicism".
Iain Martin wrote, "When the entire story is told by historians, future generations will be surprised that the Euro-fanatics who plotted to sell out British sovereignty and democracy avoided being sent to the Tower for treason."
Melanie Philips, a columnist for the Daily Mail and the author of "Londonistan", wrote that the process of the Treaty through the House of Lords is a mere formality. She wrote, "At a stroke, much of what remains of the UK's power of self-government will now be negated and the rest will surely follow in due course."
When the Treaty of Lisbon surfaced as a political issue last year, Tony Blair's successor, Prime Minister Gordon Brown, refused to allow a plebiscite, claiming that the Treaty was "substantially different" from the defeated Constitution. He made assurances that British sovereignty in key areas such as criminal law enforcement and anti-terror measures were protected. His assurances were widely rejected and have become the focus of widespread discontent with Labour's policies and the increasing power of Brussels.
The Treaty's authors and some of its European political supporters have admitted that the document is little changed from that rejected in 2005. Only ten of its 250 proposals are different from the original Constitution and the Treaty's critics say those ten are of little consequence. The author of the Constitution, Valery Giscard d'Estaing, said, "All the earlier proposals will be in the new text, but will be hidden and disguised in some way."
The Spanish Prime Minister Jose Zapatero admitted, "We have not let a single substantial point of the Constitutional Treaty go." German Chancellor Angela Merkel said, "The substance of the Constitution is preserved. That is a fact."
Melanie Philips wrote, "One thousand years of British history have been extinguished without a shot being fired." She says that the only possible recourse now is to remove Britain entirely from the European Union: "There is not one good reason why it is in Britain's interests to continue to stay in. We should come out in order to save British democracy. End of story."
John Redwood, MP for Wokingham, a senior Tory and political theorist, wrote that the vote had emboldened the Labour government to push forward with universal ID cards, a scheme that has been promoted as a means of combating terrorism, but that many outside the Labour party have condemned as a step further towards a police state in which innocent citizens are closely monitored by the state. Redwood wrote, "Everywhere we hear the smack of autocracy, as an out of touch government continues its battle against the British people and their liberties...The visceral hatred of democracy and liberty emanating from the government is now nauseating."
My Note: I've been coming across folks alarmed about the prospect of "one-world government" for many years and always thought they were from where "the bus don't run". But then I received credible reports that a massive highway was already being built in rural Texas that would run from Mexico to Canada. And there was strange testimony in front of Congress by a Bush Admin official that was neither a denial nor confirmation of the plan. This video sheds some light on it. The CFR (Council on Foreign Relations) is one of those shady secret societies that President Kennedy warned about in a speech in the 60's. President Bush and most of the presidential candidates of recent years are members.
