Showing posts with label Medium.com. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Medium.com. Show all posts

Tuesday, May 23, 2023

Read a Self Help Book For a U.S. History Perspective

The Robbins-McClendon collaboration was published 1997, i.e. pre-Obama. Now that America has made a choice and elected an African-American as POTUS, this self-help book could serve as a U.S. historical perspective.

Anthony “Tony” Robbins and Joseph McClendon III jointly authored a self-help book titled Unlimited Power: A Black Choice”.

Ever hear of Tony Robbins? He’s an excellent motivational speaker and author of several bestselling books on how to forge your path to success. My son appears to be a huge fan. He’s always quoting him. This article is about one of the books found in my son’s personal library, which is now in my possession because when he moved out it was left in a box in the garage. No, I won’t be taking it to the Antiques Roadshow for appraisal. Instead, I’m giving it my own appraisal and sharing my valuation.

Tony or Anthony Robbins co-authored this book with a friend and fellow professional, Joseph McClendon III. Both of these guys have unquestionable credentials. If you want to know what makes them think that they know enough to tell you anything, just flip to the pages at the end entitled “About the Authors”. Also, an important note to mention is that Mr. Robbins is a philanthropist and in addition to operating his own non-profit organization, ten percent of the royalties from the sales of this co-authored work are donated to the Young Black College Fund for the mentoring of young African-Americans. The book is called: Unlimited Power: A Black Choice.

There are several reasons why a person, regardless of their background, would probably like this book. For one thing, it has great quotes woven into the chapters from celebrities like Quincy Jones and Oprah Winfrey; and historical Americans like Sojourner Truth and Booker T. Washington. There are also quotations from two people whose sayings appear in writings by almost everybody: Unknown and Anonymous. You might be tempted to just skim through the leaves looking for all the “Who said what” remarks.

Another reason? Quickly peruse the Table of Contents and your curiosity will be aroused. Although you may say to yourself that there is no new thing for you to learn, you might convince yourself that it’s worth further examination. For example, “Mastering Your Mind: How to Run Your Brain”. Sounds fascinating! I must figure out how to do this because my brain always runs away from me! Or how about this interesting title: “The Difference That Makes the Difference”. Hmm? What difference could that be?

In all, the book is very good motivational reading. Although, to be honest, the basics of how to develop a spirit and mindset to achieve unlimited success are something that surely every human being must already know, instinctively or intuitively.

(1) Don’t lie. (2) Don’t cheat. (3) Don’t steal.

These are not optional. They are commandments.

(1) Don’t whine. (2) Don’t complain. (3) Don’t make excuses.

Well thanks a lot, Joe and Tony! Now, what am I supposed to use for hindrances to slow me down and stop me?!

The basics aside, there is some awfully good information and advice which can be extracted and learned: memory management; the precision model; healthy eating tips (food is fuel); and various motivation strategies. The insertion and application of the Peanuts® comic strip is priceless.

One final reason one might consider reading or reviewing this Robbins-McClendon collaborative effort? It is 2014. America made a choice and elected an African-American who is now serving his second term as President of the United States. This book was published pre-Obama in 1997. I think it would be a good read for a U.S. historical perspective.

Unlimited Power: A Black Choice

Sunday, May 14, 2023

Searching for Truth? Try These Two (2) Books

Many Seek Truth. Some Write Books About What They Find. Book suggestions for those searching, seeking, on a quest to find life's purpose and the meaning of truth; or for intellectuals, philosophers, or people who just like to read.


In Memory Of:

  • Grant R. Jeffrey (1948–2012)
  • John Hick (1922–2012)
  • Paul Edwards (1923–2004)

Grant R. Jeffrey believed the Bible was the Divinely inspired word of God because God signed it.

There is no way it can be deemed a forgery, a fake, or uninspired. His wrote a book titled “The Signature of God”, to present his proofs. Logic dictates if there is a sole author of the “the Book of Books”, the author must exist or must have existed at some point.

Three decades earlier, before Jeffrey’s findings were made available to the public, two other men, John Hick and Paul Edwards presented the results of their research regarding “The Existence of God”. It was an exercise in philosophical reasoning.


Jeffrey, Hick and Edwards — Believers and Philosophers / Ministers and Teachers

According to the results of research that took him decades to compile, Grant Jeffrey insisted that math, science and medicine, archaeology, and historical records provide indisputable evidence that the Bible is inspired by the Holy Spirit of God. Oddly enough one of his main indicators or proofs is the same claim made by President Abraham Lincoln, that is, anybody who reads the Bible will live and die a better person for doing so.

“I am profitably engaged in reading the Bible. Take all of this Book upon reason that you can, and the balance by faith, and you will live and die a better man.
— — 
Abraham Lincoln, 1863

It is clear in reading The Signature of God that Jeffrey’s purpose is to persuade or convince non-believers that the truths presented from Genesis to Revelation are verifiable and come from a Higher Power who reveals Himself to all mankind through His Word. Jeffrey’s work is the result of several years of research and study, the final product being presented to the public in book form in 1998. But if one is to accept his analysis and conclusions, one must first accept that God is real. Suppose the non-believers don’t even believe there is a Supreme Intelligent Being we refer to as God? Logic dictates if there is a sole author of the “The Book of Books”, the author must exist or must have existed at some point.

In 1964, two other men, John Hick and Paul Edwards published the results of a project they had undertaken. They went on a quest to gather “available” information from the ancient Greeks to the present day (the “present-day” at that time being circa 1960s) and share arguments representing both sides, i.e. FOR and AGAINST The Existence of God.

♦ ♦ ♦ ♦

My Assessment and Opinion

Both books, in paperback format, are between 300 to 350 pages. So first I’d like to say that the condensing of years and years and years of that kind of extensive research into publications that are less than 400 pages is nothing short of miraculous!!! :)

Have you ever seen “reports” promulgated by the United States government? It takes 300 pages to present the summary of whatever it is that’s being reported on! (O.o)


RE:  The Signature of God

Are you’re trying to convince me that an extremely wise and intelligent Being is the author of one of the greatest books ever written? Well then quite frankly I think that the mysterious Hebrew codes, the mathematical signature of God, and the “Undesigned Coincidences” are totally unnecessary convolutions. The information and arguments presented did nothing to convince me that the Bible is God-breathed inspired words. Hey! I’m a tough audience!

RE: The Existence of God

If one decides to tackle a topic like the existence of a Supreme Being, why start with the ancient Greeks? There were many civilizations, nations, or people who lived and walked the earth long before citizens of ancient Greece showed up. Take one look at their mythology and it’s plain to see that they were a pretty confused set of folks. They had gods that treated human beings like they were toys to play with, pieces on a chessboard. I suspect that if one went back far enough in the history of mankind, they would probably find a point in time when all men knew the one true God. His existence wasn’t a question, it was a given. :)


Are you an atheist? believer? student of philosophy? truth seeker? Then the combined reading of both books is highly recommended.


Originally published at wizzley.com

Tuesday, October 5, 2021

How to View the Top Stories on Your Medium Publication

I started publishing content on the Medium.com platform in 2014.  I should say "republishing" content.  A fellow blogger suggested I use this platform to redirect traffic to my monetized blogs.  They told me that Medium allows republished content and you won't be penalized for "duplicate content" or marked as a spammer or plagiarizer.  I took her advice and the rest is history.  

These days I publish both original content and republished content on this platform.  I am also an editor of 2 Medium Publications:  Express Yourself! and My Foodie Luv.  I wanted to check my progress and see how well articles on these publications were doing.  If you want to check your profile, just review the "Stats" in the dashboard.  But if you want to view the top stories on your Medium publication, here's how to do it.

If you publish (or read) Medium publications, there is an easy way to check for popular articles by a particular period of time. Just click on the “Archive” button, and then sort by “Most Read” articles. You can also break it down by year and by month.


Super easy!  Right?  I can use this information in all kinds of ways,  Prepare a Round Up post.  Take a very popular article and expand on the topic by turning it into a post series. You get the idea!

Happy blogging!



Friday, September 17, 2021

Movies I Hate: “There Will Be Blood” (2007)

Even though I am a loyal fan of Daniel Day-Lewis (Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis), I hated this movie!  “There Will Be Blood” (2007).

So was there blood? Oh yeah!

There Will Be Blood

The movie is loosely based on the 1927 novel “Oil!” by Upton Sinclair. It is about achieving the American Dream. This movie won 2 Oscars. The critics have said that it is “one of the greatest films of the 21st century”.

When you watch this film, you will have to admit that everybody played their parts. The acting was OUTSTANDING!! They acted so well that I HATED the 2 main characters.

Daniel Day-Lewis (Sir Daniel Michael Blake Day-Lewis) played Daniel Plainview and he wants to be rich. He will achieve his wealth no matter what the cost. He comes into a town and wants to set up business but he has to deal with the people. Mainly … he has to deal with a preacher, named Eli Sunday (played by Paul Dano) who is just as greedy and ruthless as he is! UUGGG!!! Those two men were awful! I hated both of them!

But it was a good movie!

There Will Be Blood | Official Trailer(HD)




Looking for friends to share you love for movies, music and books? Have fun finding and sharing entertainment-related content on Noise.Cash. It's a global social community. The PLUS is that you can make friends and earn Bitcoin Cash$.



Movies I Hate: “There Will Be Blood” (2007) | by Fox Marks ATX | Express Yourself! | Medium


Friday, August 20, 2021

Article Writing Sites: HUBPages vs Medium vs Vocal.Media vs Read.Cash

Can you make money writing articles at sites like HUBPages, Medium, and Vocal.Media? The answer is YES.  You can earn Bitcoin Cash writing articles for Read.Cash.  

How much money? The answer is: Everybody's experience is different and it really depends on how much effort you want to put into your writing work projects.

For me, my writing work has generated extra income, but not consistent income and although I work at it practically full-time, it does not pay like a full-time job.  Nevertheless, I enjoy it.  If you are thinking about being a content writer, the comments below are based on my own experience.  I don't know if they will help you or discourage you.  But they are truthful.



  • HUBPages is one of the few sites where I set it and forget it. Meaning that I have not been active on HP yet almost every 3 months I get $50. There are some HUBBERs who boast they make hundreds per month on their articles.  I don't doubt their truthfulness and now that HP has created the various niche sites, they'll probably make even more.  The trick with HP is to get your article featured because then they are indexed and can be found via a generic search.  It also helps when you manually share them via your social networks. HP earns a lot from Google Ad Sense and they share that revenue. So I make money from my HP HUBs without even trying. You earn whether or not the person who visits your article is an HP member or an external visitor.  HP does not allow republished content.  My oldest article at HUBPages is dated 2013.  Yes, I have been with this online writing community for a while and see absolutely no reason to leave.  VIEW my writer's profile to see all of my content.
  • Medium, on the other hand? As far as I can tell, a writer does not earn for external visitors (i.e. people who do not have a Medium account). The Medium writers who earn are those who get their content curated by the Medium curators and uuhh ... good luck with that! By comparison to HUBPages, I earn pennies from my Medium articles if you go by the earnings in my Medium Partner account. However, that's not why I publish content via Medium.  ("Why I Write for Medium")  A lot of my content is republished from my blogs and my main purpose for using Medium is to redirect traffic to my monetized blogs. That strategy seems to be working although I can not tell the exact amount of earnings from my blogs that can be attributed to traffic that came from Medium. Still! Because Medium articles are more easily found via the search engines, if a person likes my article there, they may click through the original source link and end up at my blogs. Whereas my blogs may not be so easily found via the search engines; my republished content from my blogs can be found easily via a search engine when people find the content on Medium and click through to visit my blogs and read similar content. My blogs are monetized with Google Ad Sense and Infolinks and various affiliate links.  Thus, my earnings from writing via Medium are indirect.  As with HUBPages, there are some writers who boast about the earnings they make through the Medium Partner Program.  I'm just not one of them.  But that doesn't say you shouldn't join.  To date, I have over 400 articles (dating back to 2014).  VIEW my writer's profile.  I also the editor of 2 Medium publications:  Express Yourself and My Foodie LUV.  I like it there! 
  • Vocal.media. To date, I have published 3 articles.  It's a PPV (Pay-Per-View) business model:  so many views will earn you so much dollars.  I have not earned for views from VM. However, the second article that I published at this site, a generous reader sent me a donation of $10.  "Welcome to the Wonderful World of Pesto".  Even with that incentive, I am not tempted to become an active contributor because I suspect that I don't write about topics that could really earn me more money.  My friend who writes about gaming says she's very happy with the earnings generated by her VM articles. My 3 articles are about food and they are in the Feast community.  What can I say?  Folks are more interested in video games than they are in food history and recipes.  Content published at this site must be original, i.e. they do not accept republished content.  VIEW my writer's profile.
  • Read.Cash.  This writing site is brand new!  It was started at the end of 2020.  It has a partner site called Noise.Cash.  You can write full articles or short posts at either site.  I prefer to write detailed articles at Read.Cash.  I have been active there for about 6 months.  It is a very unique earning platform.  I earn Bitcoin Cash (BCH).  If you want to earn cryptocurrency, give this site a try.  I have over 80 articles at this site.  You can create multiple accounts.  But I only have one.  No need to repeat myself.  To learn more just read this article:  Why Am I Here? (Why I Am at Read.Cash and Noise.Cash.)

Whatever you decide, I wish you success.




Monday, July 26, 2021

True Crime Story: Serial Killer, Richard Speck (1941 - 1991)

Richard Speck:  Bad Dream or Hellish Nightmare?

In one night, a 24-year-old sailor turned the innocence of eight student nurses into a hellish nightmare. One lone survivor, Cora Amurao, lived to testify and put him away. 

Richard Speck (Richard Benjamin Speck; Dec 6, 1941 to Dec 5, 1991).  He was a sailor, 24 years old at the time and he murdered 8 student nurses in Chicago in their dormitory room. 

Since I didn't do research to find out if there was a full moon the night the crimes were committed plus I don't believe in werewolves, the only similarity I can surmise by comparing "the minds" of various serial killers is they all enjoy the pleasure of the kill.

full moon

Evil Exists
~ All Murder Victims Know That

Obviously, Lucifer is dark; even though his name means "light bearer".

Lucifer's proselytes are dark as well.

Serial killers are Lucifer's proselytes.

They employ graphic, gruesome, violent methods to stalk and murder their prey. When the law finally catches up with them, they resign themselves to being caught. They know they're guilty and they don't care.

Many want to study the mind of a serial killer, like Richard Speck and others. Their rationale or reasoning is that if they could learn what is in the mind of a serial killer, perhaps they could profile and predict attitudes and behavior, and equipped with this knowledge, intended victims might be spared.

Naïve thinking, wouldn't you agree? Hey! Argue with the statistics.

Surmise is to infer with little evidence or GUESS!

Surmise is what one does because one refuses to go into the mind of a serial killer to try to figure out what makes them tick!

Perhaps some of them have real genuine stories about horrible childhoods, suffering abuse at the hands of their primary caretakers, etc. Perhaps these murderers are misunderstood, they've been hurting a long time, and it's a means of releasing rage and making others feel their pain.

But here is a salient fact and it is a contrast and comparison that anybody would be hard-pressed to ignore. There have been children who have endured unimaginable cruelties and they have grown up to become ... non-serial killers.


About Richard Speck
~ And His Victims

It was 1966 and I was 10 years old. There was an article in the Miami Herald (I grew up in Miami, Florida) describing what Richard Speck had done and explaining that the police were looking for him. One of his intended victims had escaped his killing spree by hiding under a bed and staying there until she mustered up enough courage to roll out from under the bed, get herself untied, climb out of a window onto a ledge and start screaming for help! The news article had an artist sketch of Mr. Speck based on the description the student nurse had given. Following up in a subsequent article when they reported his capture, his real picture was placed next to the artist sketch. Yep. The sketch sure did look like him.

 I remember my late mother commenting:  "You know if he had only counted the number of girls, he would have noticed one of them was missing."

 I also remember thinking: "Stabbing, shooting, strangling ... He forgot to count? (???)"

 This minor detail is mentioned only because, most reports indicate when a serial killer is finally arrested, during the interrogation they can usually state the number of victims who perished at their hands and fill in many other missing details that nobody else would now except them.

Please. Please don't strain at a gnat and swallow a camel. Please don't split hairs and argue that technically Speck wasn't a serial killer. Please don't draw a fine line and say he was a mass murderer, not a serial killer, since he did away with all of his victims in one session. Whatever! I say: He was a serial killer who got lucky!

Movies like "The Silence of the Lambs" and TV series like "Dexter" popularize the serial killer image. The script writers try to paint a picture of "everyday people" - cultured, educated, average, even law-abiding (sort of) - i.e. they're only eliminating people who are distasteful or displeasing or are somehow unsatisfactory and don't deserve to live and/or they make a tasty meal. One could say they're "cleaners".

The writers try to humanize them.

What person is human who can repeatedly commit disgusting, cold-hearted, brutal murders? Such a "malevolent creature" should only exist in a nightmare. But the reality is: serial killers are living nightmares. There is only one English word that paints them in their true colors: BLOODTHIRSTY.

I read the account of Richard Speck's murderous rampage in 1966. I never did follow up on his life in prison until recently and realized that he had escaped the executioner. Now I am convinced that capital punishment is the only fair way to treat a serial killer. If there is a God, then let Him deal with them. If there is no God, then we the people have a moral obligation to remove these loathsome creatures from our society, so we don't have to deal with them.

* {Photo of Speck's victims. Public domain images.}

Richard Speck was real.
~ Hannibal and Dexter are only fiction.

Movies like "The Silence of the Lambs" and TV series like "Dexter" popularize the serial killer image. The script writers try to paint a picture of "everyday people" - cultured, educated, average, even law-abiding (sort of) - i.e. they're only eliminating people who are distasteful or displeasing or are somehow unsatisfactory and don't deserve to live and/or they make a tasty meal. One could say they're "cleaners".

The writers try to humanize them.

What person is human who can repeatedly commit disgusting, cold-hearted, brutal murders? Such a "malevolent creature" should only exist in a nightmare. But the reality is: serial killers are living nightmares. There is only one English word that paints them in their true colors: BLOODTHIRSTY.

References

* Richard Speck, Dead at 49, Chicago Killer Of 8 Student Nurses 25 Years Ago - New York Times ~ One of the nation's most notorious killers, Richard Speck, a drifter who methodically murdered eight student nurses in their Chicago town house a quarter-century ago, died today at Silver Cross

* Serial Killers - List & Notable Murderers - Biography ~ Serial killers commit some of the most horrifying acts of violence ever known: Ted Bundy, David Berkowitz (the “Son of Sam”), the Zodiac Killer, Jeffrey Dahmer, Jack the Ripper, John Wayne Gacy and Andrew Cunanan are among the most frightening criminals in history.

CONCLUSION
I read the account of Richard Speck's murderous rampage in 1966. I never did follow up on his life in prison until recently and realized that he had escaped the executioner. Now I am convinced that capital punishment is the only fair way to treat a serial killer. If there is a God, then let Him deal with them. If there is no God, then we the people have a moral obligation to remove these loathsome creatures from our society, so we don't have to deal with them.

On the plus side ... A horrific and tragic incident could have been even worse.  Suppose Richard Speck was a doctor!!


Saturday, July 3, 2021

Book Review: The Signature of God

Grant R. Jeffrey (1948 - 2012) is a respected American writer and has authored several best-selling books. The Signature of God is just one of them.  Read the Review

books


RE: The Signature of God
Are you're trying to convince me that an extremely wise and intelligent Being is the author of one of the greatest books ever written? Well then quite frankly I think that the mysterious Hebrew codes, the mathematical signature of God, and the "Undesigned Coincidences" are totally unnecessary convolutions. The information and arguments presented did nothing to convince me that the Bible is God-breathed inspired words. Hey! I'm a tough audience!


RE: The Existence of God
If one decides to tackle a topic like the existence of a Supreme Being, why start with the ancient Greeks? There were many civilizations, nations, or people who lived and walked the earth long before citizens of ancient Greece showed up. Take one look at their mythology and it's plain to see that they were a pretty confused set of folks. They had gods that treated human beings like they were toys to play with, pieces on a chess board. I suspect that if one went back far enough in the history of mankind, they would probably find a point in time when all men knew the one true God. His existence wasn't a question, it was a given. :)

Tuesday, June 15, 2021

Does It Always Take a Revolution to Change the World?

Excerpt: "The world stage has become very crowded and America, France, Russia, and China would be foolish to believe that they can dominate. They need to work diligently to maintain good relations with these various countries who also have a prominent role to play in shaping the history of humankind."

Read more: 

Tuesday, February 9, 2021

Review of TV Series: The 4400 (2004–2007)

Summary Review of “The 4400”: If you like sci-fi/futuristic mystery plots, you’ll probably like “The 4400”. The End was kind of disappointing. But overall each episode was very entertaining.



DETAILED REVIEW: Even though the last show of the last season was kind of a disappointment, I enjoyed getting to know the characters and following the storyline and the many plot twists. Plot twists?? Oh yeah! The scriptwriters who put pen to paper went NUTS!! It’s like they received special approval from the producers to constantly change up the plot with the same characters, moving the support characters up and down giving different characters a chance to be the main character in the spotlight and then switching them out! The scriptwriters did a masterful job of writing the characters in and out! Even killing them and bringing them back!

STORYLINE OF “The 4400”: 4400 people were abducted. They came from different time periods in the history of the world — 1946, 1951, 1991, etc. These people just disappeared! Suddenly one day they all reappeared in a ball of light at the same point in time on the history timeline. Which means it didn’t matter when in their real-life they disappeared or were “snatched up”, they all reappeared as if no time had passed in their lives, but they were at a future point in time. Example: Even though the girl disappeared at age 8 in 1946, when she reappeared about 50+ years later, she was still 8 years old! The 4400 had no memory of where they had been and all they really wanted to do was go back home. Some were able to do that. But for some of them, the home they left was not the home they could return to and they had to start a new life.

Were they abducted by aliens? That’s what everyone would immediately think. But NOT! They were abducted by humans from the future. They were sent back with “enhanced abilities” for the purpose of … ??? You guessed it. SAVING THE WORLD!

What? No superpowers? Oh don’t be silly! Everybody knows humans can’t really have superpowers. But they do have science and technology and an amazing brain that thinks of and develops those scientific and technological toys, gadgets and things invented, supposedly, for the good of all mankind.

There is a belief among the real scientific and medical community that humans only use 10% of their brains. (Do People Only Use 10 Percent of Their Brains? — Scientific American)

Let’s say this is true. That means that 90% of our brainpower is unused but if we could tap into that unused part we would very likely ALL develop “enhanced abilities”. No superpowers. Just enhanced abilities that are almost like having a superpower.

This theory or belief or scientific fact lays the foundation for the storyline of “The 4400”.

Honestly! It was like a bunch of members of a “wanna be” Justice League with confused human minds, not quite sure of the best way to harness their “enhanced abilities” to accomplish their mission and who also still needed money to achieve their agenda of saving the world. Sorry. I can’t think of a better way to describe them.

Then there are others, also humans, who, for whatever reason, don’t want them to save the world. Those “others” who want to eliminate The 4400 are also humans with enhanced abilities. They came back from the future to STOP The 4400 who were abducted by the “other human beings” who sent them back from the future to save the world.

Hey! There has to be some kind of conflict to keep the story going.

The PLUS of this TV series? Very likable characters. People you wouldn’t mind being friends with in real life. I particularly grew fond of “Maia Rutledge-Skouris” played by Conchita Campbell.

The MINUS of this TV series? I don’t know what I was expecting but ~ not giving out any spoilers ~ The End was not what I expected and as such it was rather disappointing.

The series leaves you with a lingering question:

Even if humans used 100% of their brainpower, would they still know how to save themselves from themselves?


Editor of 2 Medium Publications: 

Friday, September 18, 2020

Ancient Riddles: Lost CIties: Ophir and Atlantis

King Solomon sent ships to Ophir to bring back almug (or algum) trees, along with gold and precious stones.

Research about Ophir's geographical location is scant. 

In short, no one seems to know where it is!

If it is ever found, it will probably be by accident, because everybody keeps searching for Atlantis. 

The last bit of recorded information we have about Ophir is that the ships that set sail to go there which were sent by another king, never made it to their destination!

So I can sort of understand why people would rather go look for Atlantis.  Atlantis disappeared. Not the folks who were looking for it!!!  (O.o)

Solomon and the Plan for the Temple, as in 1 K...

  • 1 Kings 9:28  - And they came to Ophir, and fetched from thence gold, four hundred and twenty talents, and brought it to king Solomon. 
  • 1 Kings 10:11  - And the navy also of Hiram, that brought gold from Ophir, brought in from Ophir great plenty of almug trees, and precious stones. 
  • 1 Kings 22:48  - Jehoshaphat made ships of Tharshish to go to Ophir for gold: but they went not; for the ships were broken at Eziongeber. 
Photo credit: Wikipedia: Solomon and the Plan for the Temple, as in 1 Kings 6, illustration from a Bible card published by the Providence Lithograph Company


Related articles:
Anyway, I did manage to find two known places that have the name "Ophir", one in Colorado USA, and the other in New Zealand. Both representing magnificent splendor!!!
* * * 

Tuesday, September 15, 2020

Bringing White Feather From the Mountain

Let me tell you about a fellow blogger who goes by the name White Feather. The information he shares is so eye-opening and fascinating, the temptation to re-share is irresistible. You must be pointed in the direction of the paths he takes online in order to see the world through his lens. From his profile at a social network that no longer exists, I found my way to his website and the other links below that were posted to his activity timeline.

The article of interest suggested for your review is:
Why is this article so interesting to me? The first reason is that I am sort of impressed by the famous Native American known as Crazy Horse. I did a little research on this historical figure and learned that he was anything but crazy! However, while researching I did not come across any information about his dealings with refugees. So this article by White Feather was eye-opening. There is so much American history that we are never taught in school.

Also, I wanted to contrast and compare to my opinion piece which was published here at Medium titled: Syrian Refugees Go Home!
 ♦ How does this relate to bringing White Feather from the Mountain?

Yes, I know. My logic defies rationale and reasoning. Before discovering this website and its fascinating articles, for me, White Feather was “up in the mountain”. I determined to bring him down from that mountain and introduce him to others.

He has a couple more articles about Crazy Horse you might find fascinating.  Crazy Horse Races and Crazy Horse, St. Bernadette and Edgar Cayce




Saturday, September 12, 2020

Books About King Arthur's Return: Knight Life by Peter David

King Arthur travels to the future and lands in New York City. New York City is to Camelot as King Arthur is to Mayor of New York. OK! Is Merlin with him? But of course! Do you think he could survive New York without a little help from a trusted adviser?


● ● ●
Storyline:
The legendary King Arthur emerges from an enchanted cave and returns to reign once again in Camelot. Only it’s 1500 years later and Camelot is now known as New York, New York. Hardly a fairy tale city. “Because New Yorkers are all crazy” and they are not in the habit of calling anybody “Your highness”. So don’t think you can just show up and take over. You have to run a campaign for a public office and win the votes of the people. Running for Mayor shouldn’t be too hard. Especially since you still have Merlin as your trusted counselor.

About the Author:
Peter David is a New York Times bestselling author that most people might associate with “The Incredible Hulk” (comic books), but Knight Life is his very first novel. After the author became popular his fans began asking for it, so he obliged them. It’s been revised and expanded. The original is out of print. The book has received excellent reviews by Booklist, Library Journal, Publisher’s Weekly, etc.

Are you wondering why it hasn’t been made into a movie? So is Mr. David.  He wrote a screenplay, only the book has yet to make it to the screen (as of April 2014).

Knight Life is part of a trilogy.
David’s follow up books are One Knight Only and Fall of Knight.


♦ Why Suggested?
It’s another election year in the USA. The witty comedic twist probably could not have been pulled off if Arthur had resurfaced anywhere else in the world other than New York City. If you decide to read Knight Life, you’ll breeze right through the first chapter. When you get to the next chapter, the armored knight makes his first appearance in Central Park. At that point … _______.

All quotations were lifted right out of the book. Were I to pick a favorite line from this novel, it would be Arthur Penn’s response to the question regarding which political party he represented. “I’m an Independent”, he called. “I subscribe to no party line save for the dictates of my conscience.”
  • Title: Knight Life
  • Author: Peter David
  • Genre: Science Fiction and Fantasy
  • Publisher: Ace Books, published by arrangement with Second Age, Inc.
  • Release Date: © 2002
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Wednesday, September 9, 2020

Read a Self Help Book For a U.S. History Perspective

Anthony “Tony” Robbins and Joseph McClendon III jointly authored a self-help book titled “Unlimited Power: A Black Choice”.

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The Robbins-McClendon collaboration was published 1997, i.e. pre-Obama. Now that America has made a choice and elected an African-American as POTUS, this self-help book could serve as a U.S. historical perspective.

Ever hear of Tony Robbins? He’s an excellent motivational speaker and author of several bestselling books on how to forge your path to success. My son appears to be a huge fan. He’s always quoting him. This article is about one of the books found in my son’s personal library, which is now in my possession because when he moved out it was left in a box in the garage. No, I won’t be taking it to the Antiques Roadshow for appraisal. Instead, I’m giving it my own appraisal and sharing my valuation.
Tony or Anthony Robbins co-authored this book with a friend and fellow professional, Joseph McClendon III. Both of these guys have unquestionable credentials. If you want to know what makes them think that they know enough to tell you anything, just flip to the pages at the end entitled “About the Authors”. Also, an important note to mention is that Mr. Robbins is a philanthropist and in addition to operating his own non-profit organization, ten percent of the royalties from the sales of this co-authored work are donated to the Young Black College Fund for the mentoring of young African-Americans. The book is called: Unlimited Power: A Black Choice.
There are several reasons why a person, regardless of their background, would probably like this book. For one thing, it has great quotes woven into the chapters from celebrities like Quincy Jones and Oprah Winfrey; and historical Americans like Sojourner Truth and Booker T. Washington. There are also quotations from two people whose sayings appear in writings by almost everybody: Unknown and Anonymous. You might be tempted to just skim through the leaves looking for all the “Who said what” remarks.
Another reason? Quickly peruse the Table of Contents and your curiosity will be aroused. Although you may say to yourself that there is no new thing for you to learn, you might convince yourself that it’s worth further examination. For example, “Mastering Your Mind: How to Run Your Brain”. Sounds fascinating! I must figure out how to do this because my brain always runs away from me! Or how about this interesting title: “The Difference That Makes the Difference”. Hmm? What difference could that be?
In all, the book is very good motivational reading. Although, to be honest, the basics of how to develop a spirit and mindset to achieve unlimited success are something that surely every human being must already know, instinctively or intuitively.
(1) Don’t lie. (2) Don’t cheat. (3) Don’t steal.
These are not optional. They are commandments.
(1) Don’t whine. (2) Don’t complain. (3) Don’t make excuses.
Well thanks a lot, Joe and Tony! Now, what am I supposed to use for hindrances to slow me down and stop me?!
The basics aside, there is some awfully good information and advice which can be extracted and learned: memory management; the precision model; healthy eating tips (food is fuel); and various motivation strategies. The insertion and application of the Peanuts® comic strip is priceless.
One final reason one might consider reading or reviewing this Robbins-McClendon collaborative effort? It is 2014. America made a choice and elected an African-American who is now serving his second term as President of the United States. This book was published pre-Obama in 1997. I think it would be a good read for a U.S. historical perspective.

Unlimited Power: A Black Choice



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NOTE:  Unlisted content on Medium.com.  Published on Read.Cash.

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