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Twenty-First Century Watch |
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Vol. 2, No. 4 Published by the Garner Ted Armstrong Evangelistic Association |
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"CLINTON DECLARES VICTORY..." by Garner Ted Armstrong Predictably, President Clinton and Madeleine Albright have declared victory in NATO's bombing campaign against Yugoslavia. So has Slobodan Milosevic. Tens of thousands of jubilant Serbs danced, shouted, drank, kissed one another and rejoiced in a massive celebration of victory in Belgrade when news of the halting of NATO bombs came. From their point of view, they withstood the West, particularly the United States and NATO; Yugoslavia is still a sovereign nation; Slobodan Milosevic is still in power; Kosovo is still a province of Yugoslavia, and the KLA will be disarmed. At least, so they thought! "We have survived!" they shouted in exultation. Already, Milosevic has promised the rebuilding of the bridges, factories, roads, and other infrastructure; has postured as a great leader who stuck to his guns against great odds until he achieved a "moral victory!" In his first public appearance since the bombing began, he stood before a huge crowd at one of the wrecked bridges spanning the Danube at Novi Sad, the city where one of my daughters-in-law and two of my grandchildren spent a month last summer. It was on one of these bridges that Dijana's mother kept vigil with neighbors night after night, daring NATO to bomb them. Thankfully, there were no people on the bridge when NATO did just that, destroying the bridge, even after it had already been heavily damaged, rendering it useless to vehicular traffic, but allowing those who had jobs across the Danube to get to work during the day. Milosevic promised the rebuilding of the bridges, of all the ruined factories and bombed buildings. One would imagine the Chinese will seek reparations for reconstructing their shattered embassy in Belgrade, and no one can say what the bill will be on American tax- payers for the countless hundreds of millions spent to mount the bombing campaign, or the mind-boggling task of rebuilding a country we virtually destroyed. As one Yugoslav citizen said, "They have bombed us back to 1945." Many thousands of Yugoslav people see themselves as having resisted until the moral victory (meaning the disarming of the KLA, and the retention of Kosovo as part of "sovereign" Yugoslavia) was achieved. Immediately, as NATO forces slowly gathered and cautiously inched forward into Kosovo, the troubles began. Russia shocked the White House, the Pentagon, Brussels, and NATO commanders by suddenly sending an armored column from Bosnia into Kosovo, deploying around the vital Pristina airport following a frenzied victory parade through the streets of the heavily damaged city. The Kosovar Albanians who so gleefully cheered the arriving Russian troops may have cause for second thoughts. The Russians are far more sympathetic toward their cousins the Serbs than they are toward Islamic Albanians. The Russians set up roadblocks, and turned back both British and French armored columns. Obviously, their orders were to capture and hold the airport, no matter at what cost. The NATO forces, taken completely by surprise, meekly turned around and tried to find other areas for bivouac, then tried to put the best face on the dangerous standoff. The Russians simply out-generaled NATO! Had NATO commanders been astute enough (or had the operation been in the hands of the Israelis!), there would have been a huge flight of C5As, carrying light tanks, APCs and many hundreds of troops already in the air, as the final moments prior to the political agreement wound down. Then, within only MINUTES of the agreement, they should have touched down at the Pristina airport, and deployed. When the Israelis rescued their hostages from Uganda, their aircraft were hours into the long flight from Israel to Entebbe; within only a short distance from touchdown, when the final word came that the operation was on. Had U.S. and NATO commanders been alert enough, intelligent enough, and aware of what the Russians would very likely do, they could have been there to meet the Russians, and send them to other areas, instead of the other way around. Now, the Russians, who bitterly opposed the bombing in the first place, have occupied the key Pristina airport. Quickly, they sent in a "resupply" column (read: "re-inforcement"). Trying to make light of the potentially deadly situation, western leaders spoke of how they would "assimilate" the Russian forces into the occupying troops. The news media and the general public knows better. The Russians want a separate command structure—they do not want their troops placed in a subordinate role to NATO, which they have cause to hate. It will remain to be seen how the situation plays out. One would be safe to assume the Russians will get what they want, since they played the bargaining chip of shocking, rapid deployment, armed occupation of the Pristina airport, and stolid refusal to allow other NATO forces access. Meanwhile, just what a nightmarish morass the Clinton administration has entered is gradually becoming clear. Now, "ethnic cleansing" in reverse is occurring, as thousands of Serbs have fled Kosovo, taking only what they can carry in automobiles, trucks, and buses, oftentimes to a barrage of rocks and shouts of obscenities by the remaining Kosovar Albanians. The Serbs feared retaliation from returning Kosovars, especially members of the KLA. Meanwhile, Kosovo represents just one more bleeding wound in America's overburdened taxpayers; one more part of the world for American troops to occupy; one more task for an already thinly-stretched military. From the outset, U.S. and NATO involvement was based upon the moral and humanitarian considerations. It was known that people were being forcibly ejected from their homes; that people were being summarily executed; that "ethnic cleansing" was taking place. While two wrongs do not make a right, and there is absolutely NO justification for such horrible atrocities, it is interesting to note that there have been equally horrible massacres among black Africans, such as the terrible bloodletting in Rwanda, and neither the U.S. nor NATO sought to intervene. NATO, by the very terms of its charter, is a DEFENSIVE organization. Member states pledged to come to each other's aid only if attacked by an aggressor. Never was NATO configured to be a "global policeman," to inject itself into regional disputes, or domestic, civil wars. While any God-fearing, Bible-believing, decent human being shudders at the horrifying atrocities committed by vicious "special police," it must be acknowledged that the United States is NOT ruling the world! We are NOT a global empire, with massive legions of ignorant conscripts; mercenaries, who can be sent to every corner of the earth to enforce our own concepts of morality! The highly selective nature of the Kosovo debacle needs to be addressed! Never forget that the Kosovar Albanians are Islamic; that Albania is the only Islamic state in all of Europe or the Balkans, except for the small enclave across the Bosporus of European Turkey. The United States depends for up to 17% of its energy imports from Islamic states in the Gulf. Europe depends upon such sources for up to 46% of its oil; Japan up to 70%. The United States, hooked on Islamic oil, finds itself in the awkward position of being Israel's friend, mentor, and would-be protector (although Israel has proved itself quite capable of protecting itself, thank you!), while at the same time maintaining friendly relations with Saudi Arabia and all the Arab Gulf states, as well as Egypt and Jordan. Was the fact that arms were flowing to the KLA from Arab and other Islamic states (such as Iran), and the fact that all Islam would have been outraged if "Christian" Serbs (Serbian Orthodox; a national form of Greek Orthodoxy) succeeded in completely forcing out the entire Islamic population of Kosovo? And then there were those who darkly suspicioned that President Clinton "needed a distraction," given the Chinese scandal, and his impeachment trial. Surely, a sitting president would not deliberately involve America in a war without consulting Congress merely to divert attention, would he? As the ghastly truth about mass executions is unearthed; as the chaos of Kosovo continues to unfold, one can only wonder at the virulent hatred of those who would murder fellow human beings because of their religious beliefs! o
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America, The "Super Power" That Is Weaker Than We Think With the Kosovo debacle, and the protracted Yugoslavian bombing campaign, the U.S. and NATO has made itself hated as never before in countries all over the world. The U.S. expended vast sums, and a huge amount of military supplies and ordnance. As an aside, see if you can name the country which is described below in terms of its military capability: 709,000 regular (active duty) personnel; 293,000 reserves; eight standing army divisions; 20 Air Force and Navy air wings including 2,000 combat aircraft; 232 strategic bombers; 13 strategic ballistic missile submarines with 3,114 nuclear warheads on 232 missiles; 500 ICBM's with 1,950 warheads; four aircraft carriers, and 121 surface combat ships and submarines, plus all the support bases, shipyards, and logistical assets required to sustain them. Is the country described by all this military force Russia? No. Is it China? No. Is it Britain? No. France? No. Then who? It is the United States of America's vanished military forces which have disappeared since the 1992 elections! Now, with a vastly reduced force, with Chinese use of American naval bases such as that at Long Beach California, and German Luftwaffe squadrons based in New Mexico and Texas, the American government calls upon a smaller force to garrison even one more country in a "peacekeeping" role. If you were a Chinese leader, you could not pick a better time to move against the Spratley Islands, the Pescadores, or Taiwan proper. If you were the North Korean leader, you could scarcely pick a better time to march into South Korea! The only amazing thing is that these countries have not, as of this writing, done just that. The Kosovo morass is not the last crisis for the United States! Who really won? No one. As in so many such conflicts, there are no clear winners, only losers. o
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WILL JERUSALEM BE DIVIDED AGAIN? Will Jerusalem again be divided? "NEVER!" say the Israelis. Yet, Bible prophecy strongly indicates otherwise. Right now, a renewed effort to DIVIDE JERUSALEM is underway. It has the support of most of the major powers, including the United States, and the support of the pope in Rome. To most, the only "chance for peace" in the Mideast is for the Israeli government to abandon all Jewish settlements, halt any further building of settlements, hand over the West Bank and half of Jerusalem to Yassir Arafat and his Palestinian supporters. President Clinton has met with Arafat on numerous occasions during the past six months; has made it clear he wanted Netanyahu out, and Barak in. Now that a new Israeli Prime minister has been elected, with the help of James Carville, well-known Clinton campaign strategist, will the Israelis hand over all that territory to Arafat? Will Jerusalem again be divided? You will be surprised what the Bible has to say about it. by Garner Ted Armstrong Prior to the Camp David accords, all seemed to be in place for a fulfillment of the prophecies of Daniel 11 and Zechariah 14. Both imply that the Middle East will be divided at the time of God's intervention in world affairs; that Jerusalem itself will be divided at the time of the second coming of Christ. Zechariah's prophecy says, "Behold, the day of the LORD cometh, and thy spoil shall be divided in the midst of thee. "For I will gather all nations against Jerusalem to battle; and the city shall be taken, and the houses rifled, and the women ravished; and half of the city shall go forth into captivity, and the residue of the people shall not be cut off from the city [the other half]. "Then shall the LORD go forth, and fight against those nations, as when he fought in the day of battle. "And his feet shall stand in that day upon the mount of Olives, which is before Jerusalem on the east, and the mount of Olives shall cleave in the midst thereof toward the east and toward the west, and there shall be a very great valley; and half of the mountain shall remove toward the north, and half of it toward the south" (Zechariah 14:1-4). Why will the population of half of the city be taken captive, while the other half will not? Obviously, because the occupying power will enslave the half against which they are at war, and preserve the half with which they are in support. Daniel's prophecy depicts the end-time invasion of Palestine by the modern, end-time successor to the "beast" power of history, found in chapters 2, 4, 7, and 11 of the book of Daniel. This is commonly known. Commenting on the four beasts of Daniel 7, Halley's Bible Handbook says, "These four world empires are commonly taken to be Babylon, Persia, Greece and Rome... representing the period from Daniel to Christ. These beasts seem to form the basis of the imagery of the seven-headed, ten-horned beast of Revelation 13" (p. 346). The four great world-ruling empires culminated in ROME, which is pictured by the fourth beast of Daniel 7, and the first beast of Revelation 13, as well as the beast of Revelation 17, which is the FINAL resurrection of the ancient "Holy Roman Empire," which will assay to fight Christ at His coming (Revelation 17:12-14). This power, located to the north of Jerusalem, will advance into Palestine following some major provocation by a "king of the South," no doubt a leader of one of the Arab countries. Notice Daniel's prophecy: "And at the time of the end shall the king of the south push at him: and the king of the north shall come against him like a whirlwind, with chariots, and with horsemen, and with many ships; and he shall enter into the countries, and shall overflow and pass over. "He shall enter also into the glorious land [Palestine; modern-day Israel], and many countries shall be overthrown: but these shall escape out of his hand, even Edom [Turkey], and Moab [probably Syria], and the chief of the children of Ammon [Jordan; Amman is Jordan's capital city]. "He shall stretch forth his hand also upon the countries: and the land of Egypt shall not escape. "But he shall have power over the treasures of gold and of silver, and over all the precious things of Egypt: and the Libyans [Put]; and the Ethiopians [Cush; probably the Pakistanis and Indians] shall be at his steps [at his borders; indicating that perhaps even Saudi Arabia will be attacked by the beast power]. "But tidings out of the east and out of the north shall trouble him: therefore he shall go forth with great fury to destroy, and utterly to make away many [the east and north means Russia and all her allies, and China!]. "And he shall plant the tabernacles of his palace between the seas in the glorious holy mountain; yet he shall come to his end, and none shall help him" (Daniel 11:40-45). Since the prophecy plainly indicates that Arab states immediately to the east of Palestine, generally those on the east of the Jordan River are exempted from occupation by the "King of the North," it follows that the half of the city of Jerusalem which is not to go into captivity is occupied by one of those powers, or in alliance with them, and will likewise be exempted from occupation. When Egypt entered into a peace pact with Israel everything changed in the Middle East. Previously, the stage appeared set for the fulfillment of the prophecies above; Jerusalem was divided—it was in the hands of Jordan—Egypt had fought several wars with Israel, and was hostile, building toward the next round of war. But when the Israelis captured, then united Jerusalem, and then Israel and Egypt entered into a peace pact, it appeared that Jerusalem would remain one city. Are there moves afoot now which would once more divide Jerusalem, and therefore set the stage for the fulfillment of these prophecies in detail? Who is the "King of the South"? The language of Daniel 11:40-45 seems to indicate he will be an Egyptian. Anciently, the "King of the South" was one of the lesser lines of Pharoahs called the "Ptolmeys" of Egypt, while the "King of the North" was Antiochus Epiphanes, of the Seleucidae of Syria. But the eventual successor to the third beast of Daniel 7 (Alexander the Great's Greco/Macedonian kingdom) was Rome, which was the seat of the fourth, and final beast. Soon, we shall know who is the "King of the South," and the "King of the North," for the final dictator who will rule over the LAST "Holy Roman Empire" will eventually become known, as will a powerful leader over one or more of the Arab nations become known. Are we about to see Jerusalem divided? The Israelis Say "NEVER!" "Not one inch!" said former Mayor of Jerusalem, Teddy Kolleck, when I asked him if the Israelis would ever be willing to allow the Palestinians to claim the old city of Jerusalem as their capital. He repeated that statement three times for emphasis. Continually, every Israeli government since 1967, when the Jewish state captured the old city from Jordan during the six-day war, has staunchly reiterated their statement that "Jerusalem is the united, undivided capital of Israel, and is not negotiable." Time and again, the deposed former Prime Minister, Benjamin Netanyahu, forcefully proclaimed the same theme. Never would the Israelis negotiate concerning Jerusalem. Israel is a sovereign nation. Be that as it may, both Europe and the U.S. are continually pressuring Israel to give up half of Jerusalem! Recently, as I reported in my comments on our web site (www.garnertedarmstrong.org/), the European Union openly stated that "no part of Jerusalem is legally under Israeli control." The U.S. has refused to establish its embassy there, albeit making a cosmetic gesture toward Israel by leasing a suite in the Jerusalem Hilton hotel for its embassy personnel and other diplomats to use while in Jerusalem. Pressure will continue to mount, now that the Clinton administration has seen one of its dreams fulfilled; the deposing of Benjamin Netanyahu. James Carville, the well-known campaign guru who helped Clinton get elected twice ("it's the economy, stupid!") went to Israel last December, along with two other Democratic committee members, to aid Ehud Barak in his election bid. Carville, joking and crowing over his victory, was quoted as having quipped to Barak that he should "Get the Jewish vote." Arafat Wants To Return To UN Resolution 181 The following facts are important to remember: (1) From the earliest conquests by Islamic Arab armies in 636 AD, there was no suggestion that the Palestinians become a separate state. (2) During the four-hundred years of Ottoman Turkish rule over Palestine, there was never a suggestion that the Palestinian Arabs should become a state. (3) The Palestinians and their Arab supporters REJECTED the UN partition plan in 1947, angered that a State of Israel would be created alongside a proposed Palestinian state: (4) From the end of the war in 1948, even though Syria occupied the Golan, Egypt the Gaza Strip and the Sinai, and Jordan the West Bank and the Old City of Jerusalem, there was never a suggestion by any of the occupying Arab nations that the Palestinians should have their own state. (5) There was never PEACE in the region when Israel was NOT in possession of the West Bank, the Sinai, the Old City, the Gaza Strip, or the Golan. Instead, these areas were used for staging of terrorist attacks, or for launching all-out war, as in the wars in 1967 and 1973. Today, millions of Americans, gullibly deceived by their ignorance of history, geography, geopolitics and therefore easily swayed by their liberal news media, believe that the solution in the region is merely to "trade land for peace." Soon, you shall see whether such pipe dreams are the stuff of reality, for officials in the "Palestinian Authority" (PA) have now announced their intention of declaring unilateral statehood on November 15, 1999—just 46 days before Y2K (the year 2000) arrives. Ominously, Yassir Arafat has now begun to return to the long-forgotten, long-superseded UN resolution 181, which he knows would have granted to a Jewish state LESS TERRITORY than that which it occupied after the war for independence in 1948! WATCH for Arafat to push this; to refer to it, to demand that the Jews return to their pre-1948 lands! What Arafat and the Palestinians really want is to dismantle the Jewish State piecemeal; to so segment, divide, and isolate the Jewish cities and towns so as to make it utterly defenseless against concerted attack. Arafat sees himself reigning over a progressive, powerful, well-armed Palestine from offices in downtown Jerusalem! Meanwhile, he may be brooding over his hopes and dreams soon from his office in the city which he will probably CALL "Jerusalem," a city which is not a city, Abu Dis. Yassir Arafat And Abu Dis In an article in USA Today recently, it was alleged that newly-elected Prime Minister Ehud Barak had reached an agreement with Yassir Arafat to allow him to occupy a village about two miles east of the Old City, called Abu Dis. The allegations were quickly denied by both Barak and the Palestinians, who claimed no such agreement had been reached; that no secret meetings had taken place. Whatever his sources, Matthew Kalman of USA Today claimed that the "compromise" would allow each man to claim victory; that Barak could continue to insist that "Jerusalem will never be divided," and Arafat could claim, since Abu Dis falls inside the ancient boundaries of Jerusalem as mapped out by the Ottomans from 1516 to 1917, that he was ensconced in Jerusalem! Kalman claimed the alleged "agreement" included Arafat giving up his claim to much of the Old City in return for having control over the some 150,000 Palestinians who live there, and having control as well over "several religious sites." This, if true (and both Barak and Palestinian leaders have vociferously denied it!) could only mean the Dome of the Rock and the Al Aksa Mosques. Barak was quoted as saying, "Jerusalem shall remain the eternal and undivided capital of Israel...on this question there is no room for doubt, nor any political haggling. Jerusalem was, is, and will remain the united capital of our nation." If the Palestinians and Barak are right, and if "no such an agreement was reached," and if "no meetings were held," then did Matthew Kalman make up an elaborate, detailed report out of whole cloth? Or was there a leak, which none of the respective governments wanted (including the White House, which refused to comment when contacted by USA Today)? According to USA Today, there is a new Palestinian Parliament building now under construction in Abu Dis, which would include an office for Yassir Arafat with a clear view of the most famous skyline in the world, Jerusalem, with the gilded dome of the "Dome of the Rock" and the Al Aksa mosques clearly visible. The alleged plan would "also establish a safe passage from Abu Dis through East Jerusalem so that Palestinians from the West Bank of the Jordan River can travel to the Old City of Jerusalem without having to pass through Israeli security checkpoints." This last is chilling, upon careful scrutiny. Palestinians? What about Iraqis, Jordanians, Syrians, Lebanese, Saudis or Iranians? In other words, ANY adherent to Islam would be allowed access into the heart of the Old City without passing through any Israeli checkpoint. Presumably, this would mean members of "Black September," the Hisbollah, and Hamas. It was alleged that the Israelis and Palestinians met secretly in undisclosed "European capitals" to work out the details of the plan. Again, remember that Barak has denied any such communication, as has Arafat. Yassir Arafat's For "Security" Once a Palestinian State has been declared, it will mean Yassir Arafat, if he is still alive at that time, will assume the presidency. Such a state would, like all others, become sovereign; have the right to form alliances, make pacts, sign treaties; do all the things which any other state is empowered to do, including the purchase of arms; the creation of an army, a navy, an air force, and any other armed services it desires. Specters have been raised of a President Arafat, presiding over the State of Palestine, asking Saddam Hussein to send hundreds of his tanks into Palestine to buttress Palestinian "security." Security from whom? First, such a new state will have no enemies anywhere in the world. Egypt, Lebanon, Jordan, Syria, Saudi Arabia, Iraq—all the Arab states would welcome the creation of such a state as that of Palestine, and would be in support of it. No doubt, large aid packages would be quickly arranged from the more wealthy Arab states, such as Saudi Arabia. Would the new state of Palestine have anything to fear from any of the Arab states? No. Absolutely not. Iran, while not Arabic, is nevertheless Islamic, and would be in support. So would China, Russia, Belarus, the Ukraine, and all of Europe. So would the United States. As no state in history, a newly-declared "state of Palestine" would simply HAVE NO ENEMIES! Since it is Israel, commencing with the late Prime Minister Rabin's programs, which has ultimately allowed the creation of the Palestinian state as a DESPERATE MEASURE TO OBTAIN PEACE, would it make any sense for Israel to pose a threat to the very Palestinian state that it, in effect, has created? Of course not! The desire of the average Israeli citizen is for PEACE, not the continual fear of terrorist bombs and mass murder. Of course, there have been fanatics on both sides, albeit far fewer incidents over the decades of Jewish terrorism against Arabs have occurred than the other way around. But such threats fall under the purview of border police, and are not a pretext for the creation of a large army. But Arafat will want arms. Lots of them. He will want heavy weapons; tanks, artillery, rockets, missiles. He will want to begin, no doubt, chemical, biological, and nuclear weapons programs. He will want to become a major regional power. He will be brooding over this, and much more, as he gazes out over Jerusalem from his high rise suite of offices in Abu Dis. Neither Israel, nor Europe, nor the United States, nor the United Nations, should allow him to have any such arms! Rather, as France has always been the mentor and guarantor for Monaco; as Austria has been the guarantor for Liechtenstein; as Spain is the guarantor for Andorra, and as Italy is the guarantor for the Vatican (all of whom are states), so Israel should be the guarantor for the state of Palestine. The Palestinians should be limited to small arms only, and those limited to a police force, which is entrusted with the responsibility to prevent terrorists from attacking Israel! There is simply no justification for the new state of Palestine to possess even a single tank; a single stinger hand-held anti-aircraft rocket; a single mortar; a single airplane except private, corporate and commercial ones, or a single warship. It will remain to be seen if Ehud Barak is the leftist liberal the Clinton Administration thinks he is. Would a general in the Israeli Army; the most-decorated soldier in Israel, scrap every policy concerning Israeli security which was held by his predecessors? Will Barak immediately hand over the West Bank and the Old City? As I write, he is putting together a coalition government. Should he do what the White House seems to want, he would be placing himself in the same jeopardy as did Ytzak Rabin, who was shot to death by an Israeli extremist who hated the idea of trading land for peace. The prophecies of the Bible do not predict peace for the Middle East. Christ's prophecy about Jerusalem is DUAL; having a previous, typical fulfillment in the destruction of Jerusalem by the armies of Titus. He said, "When ye therefore shall see the abomination of desolation, spoken of by Daniel the prophet, stand in the holy place, (whoso readeth, let him understand:) "Then let them which be in Judaea [the ancient Roman province which includes Jerusalem] flee into the mountains" (Matthew 24:15, 16). Not only did he predict a great false prophet sitting in a temple performing miracles (read 2 Thessalonians 2), but also said, "And when ye shall see Jerusalem compassed with armies, then know that the desolation thereof is nigh" (Luke 21:20). One must not assume that this is predicting the surrounding of Jerusalem by the army of only one power. The term is "armies," plural! Naturally, in the event of another "holocaust" about to occur, or already underway, which causes a massive intervention from a United Europe, by sending a huge force into Israel, the combined Arab armies would also be massed on the border, this time, no doubt, at and in Jerusalem itself! The prophecy clearly predicts that Jerusalem will be "compassed" (surrounded—besieged from all points of the compass) with ARMIES! Current trends and conditions can provide clues as to whose armies, and why they are there! Christ warned that, when those living in that region see both the horrible "abomination which will cause destruction" in place in the temple and "armies surrounding Jerusalem," then, "...let them which are in Judaea flee to the mountains; and let them which are in the midst of it depart out; and let not them that are in the countries enter thereinto. "For these be the days of vengeance, that all things which are written may be fulfilled. "But woe unto them that are with child, and to them that give suck, in those days! for there shall be great distress in the land, and wrath upon this people. "And they shall fall by the edge of the sword, and shall be led away captive into all nations: and Jerusalem shall be trodden down of the Gentiles [the "nations"], until the times of the Gentiles be fulfilled. "And there shall be signs in the sun, and in the moon, and in the stars; and upon the earth distress of nations, with perplexity; the sea and the waves roaring; "Men's hearts failing them for fear, and for looking after those things which are coming on the earth: for the powers of heaven shall be shaken. "And then shall they see the Son of man coming in a cloud with power and great glory. "And when these things begin to come to pass, then look up, and lift up your heads; for your redemption draweth nigh" (Luke 20:28). Christ plainly told His people to WATCH FOR THESE SPECIFIC THINGS! They are NOT to bury their heads in the sand, as the fable about the ostrich claims, turning inward, thinking only of themselves! Obviously the PURPOSE in our watching is so we can LOOK UP toward God in heaven; toward Jesus Christ as our personal Savior and the first-born among many brethren; so we can LIFT UP OUR HEADS in HOPE and JOY, knowing that, at long last, the INVASION FROM SPACE is about to occur; that Christ is soon going to stand on the Mount of Olives, in Jerusalem, on this earth! As horrifying as it is to contemplate, the prophecies of the Bible predict yet another terrible DESTRUCTION of Jerusalem. Will it mean only HALF of the city this time—the Jewish half? We will not have many more years to find out, for the GREAT TRIBULATION is surely coming, just as Christ warned! He said, "Heaven and earth shall pass away: but my words shall not pass away. "And take heed to yourselves, lest at any time your hearts be overcharged with surfeiting [gross excess; too much of something], and drunkenness, and cares of this life, and so that day come upon you unawares. "For as a snare shall it come on all them that dwell on the face of the whole earth. "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:20-36). Time is growing SHORT! NOTHING is more important, just now, than shouting out this witness and warning to the nations! May God bless those of you whose hearts are in the work; who have allowed God to use you as an instrument in His hands! o
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by Garner Ted Armstrong Horrifying tales of mass murder, rape, pillaging and burning continue to surface as NATO forces occupy more and more towns and villages in Kosovo. Investigators continue to expand predictions of how many Kosovar Albanians were murdered. Many now believe the number to be more than 10,000. In one particularly sickening and graphic story, survivors of a grisly massacre in the town of Poklek were shown a house where Serb police mercilessly threw a grenade among sixty-two ethnic Albanians after herding them into a room. As the grenade exploded, they sprayed the room with automatic rifle fire, then set it ablaze. Investigators saw blood-stains beneath the floorboards in a basement room; discovered a crater in the floor where the grenade had exploded, and saw walls pock-marked with bullet holes. In a tragic scene reminiscent of places like Dachau and Buchenwald, NATO troops found a plastic sheet piled with bracelets, rings and keys that villagers had found among the ashes. There were several survivors left alive to tell the story, including a young girl named Elhame Muquolli, who leapt through a window in the back of the house, suffering hand, ankle and back injuries, and fled to a nearby house. The owner of the house, which was a half mile away, said he saw two of the injured survivors coming toward him, and that he hid them. When NATO forces questioned Elhame, she was sobbing and shaking so hard she was unable to answer. However, a 22-year old woman who escaped with her related details. Another neighbor said his brother-in-law and 17 nieces and nephews were among those murdered. Prior to the throwing of the grenade, Serb police had taken the head of the large extended family, all of whom lived in a family compound, into the courtyard, and killed both the man and his brother as they pled for their lives. Mass graves, with victim's skulls showing bullet holes; horror stories of brutality—a scene almost like those discovered as allied forces advanced into Germany during World War II—evidence is being gathered which will no doubt bolster the international tribunal's case against Milosevic as a war criminal. In another development, the British Foreign office said U.N. War Crimes Investigators had discovered torture instruments in the five-story concrete building inside Pristina that housed the police headquarters. They found knives, rubber and wooden batons, baseball bats with Serb slogans carved into them, a wooden case full of brass knuckles and what was described as "savage pornography and drugs." Reporters were taken on the tour of the building, which also contained a room in which were boxes of condoms, where, allegedly, Albanian women were raped. By now, you have no doubt seen and read of similar stories as you watch your evening television news, or listen to your early morning radio broadcasts. What a sad, sickening commentary on the human race—not just on Serbs, or any other specific people, but the human race as a whole. The seeds of inhumanity, of brutality; of calloused disregard for the suffering of others are lurking barely beneath the surface in many millions of otherwise "civilized" human beings. At the core of all this ghastly rape, torture and murder is religious intolerance. Of course, since the ethnic Albanians are virtually to a man Islamic, and the Serbs are Serbian Orthodox (very similar to Roman Catholicism except for the veneration of icons in place of statuary), there is not only a deep and abiding ethnic bias in the region, but also a keen religious hatred. The Process Of "Demonizing" One's Victims How does one human being become so coldly calloused that he can laughingly disregard frantic, terrified, tearful pleas for mercy and calmly shoot a victim in the face? Whether monsters bred by American TV and Video game violence who calmly shoot to death their fellow students, or Serb police who gun down helpless women and children, the evil spirit that motivates such slaughter is the same. Satan the devil is alive and well on planet earth. Satan HATES mankind, for he knows that his day of judgement is coming; that the saints shall one day "judge angels." (See 1 Corinthians 6:3.) He is the present world ruler; the "god" of this world, who has DECEIVED all mankind! John, in vision, saw the impending SECOND attempt of Satan to overthrow God, and thwart His plan here below: "And there was war in heaven: Michael and his angels fought against the dragon; and the dragon fought and his angels, "And prevailed not; neither was their place found any more in heaven. "And the great dragon was cast out, that old serpent, called the Devil, and Satan, which deceiveth the whole world: he was cast out into the earth, and his angels were cast out with him" (Revelation 12:8, 9). Notice how he is characterized as the "god of this world" and the "prince of the power of the air," "...if our gospel be hid, it is hid to them that are lost: "In whom the god of this world hath blinded the minds of them which believe not, lest the light of the glorious gospel of Christ, who is the image of God, should shine unto them" (2 Corinthians 4:4). "Wherein in time past ye walked according to the course of this world, according to the prince of the power of the air, the spirit that now worketh in the children of disobedience" (Ephesians 2:2). Paul is reminding the Christians in Ephesus how their former way of life; of hatred, idolatry, licentiousness, and every evil was because they had been in harmony with the way of the world, which is dictated by the "prince of the power of the air" who is also called a SPIRIT who works in those who are in defiance of God. Investigators may look far and wide to find the CAUSE of horrifying murders, but until they know there is a wicked, evil SPIRIT who controls countless millions of demons, who desires nothing less than the destruction of all mankind, they fail to find the real cause. The process of "demonizing" one's enemies is a simple one. Hitler used it by naming "the Jew" as the root of every problem in Germany from its flagging economy to its deformities and mental diseases. By vilifying — demonizing the Jews of Germany; making them into a subhuman, stereotyped embodiment of evil, he succeeded in causing millions of ordinary Germans and tens of thousands of SS troopers and members of his military machine to completely suppress any feelings of compassion or pity; to murder out of hand; to torture, rape, pillage, loot and burn. The camps of Belsen, Dachau, Auschwitz, Buchenwald and Birkenau, to name but a few, are mute testimony to the brutal, calloused, Satanic, systematic killing of helpless millions, all in the name of "ethnic cleansing." Now, in the grisly aftermath of the worst spate of organized brutality and "ethnic cleansing" since World War II, the world is shocked once again at man's inhumanity to man. Christ commanded, "Ye have heard that it was said by them of old time, Thou shalt not kill; and whosoever shall kill shall be in danger of the judgment: "But I say unto you, That whosoever is angry with his brother without a cause shall be in danger of the judgment: and whosoever shall say to his brother, Raca ["You worthless wretch!"], shall be in danger of the council: but whosoever shall say, Thou fool, shall be in danger of hell fire" (Matthew 5:21, 22). Perhaps Slobodan Milosevic did not personally pull the trigger when young Serbs in police and army uniforms committed such horrifying, ghastly atrocities now being brought to light. But he is ultimately responsible, nevertheless. If he did not give direct orders, the establishment over which he presided was nevertheless given the green light to brutally and systematically engage in the cruel and pitiless business of "ethnic cleansing." He should be apprehended and brought to trial. Will the grisly aftermath of Kosovo end up like the inconclusive, hollow "victory" in the Gulf, where Saddam Hussein continues to rebuild his forces and his weaponry? Will the Kosovo "victory" result in real PEACE in the region? Sadly, the answer is no. Human nature remains unchanged. The atrocities wreaked upon the Kosovar Albanians have merely added fuel to the already white hot rage they feel against the Serbs. Serb contempt and hatred toward the Albanians, whom they view as a plague of interlopers on sacred Serb soil will continue unabated. NATO and the U.S. cannot change any of this. Only the arrival of Jesus Christ of Nazareth to this earth will ever bring lasting peace among the nations. o
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The newly-coined acronym stands for "The End of The World As We Know It," meaning the now infamous "Y2K" (Year 2000) computer problem, or the "Y2K Bug." The nearer we approach to January 1, 2000, the more hype, hysteria, nonsense, and, now and then, serious appraisals we see. Here is the latest update on "Y2K." by Garner Ted Armstrong For many months, I have been informing our readers about "Y2K," the year 2000 "Millennium Bug," which was caused by computer manufacturers and programmers many years ago who sought to save storage space by listing the years with only two digits. This means that when millions of computer clocks click over to 2000 from 1999, they will "read" the 00 they see as the year 1900, and either shut down, or begin spewing out false information. That is, unless they have been reprogrammed to recognize 2000 for what it is. For several years, strenuous, vastly expensive projects have been underway by governments all over the world; by financial, industrial, military and the communications industries, to name but a few, to correct the problem, and to avoid massive shutdown of power grids, water and gas supplies, food supplies; in short, to avoid "The End Of The World As We Know It," or TEOTWAWKI. Today, we live in a society where the more "developed" the technology, the more vulnerable to Y2K. If one lived on a farm in Afghanistan, with no electricity and no running water, one would be blissfully unaware of any problems when the year 2000 dawns. On the other hand, since hundreds of millions of Americans, British, Europeans, Japanese, and citizens of all the other "developed" countries live in homes with dozens of "energy slaves" to do their bidding, and work in offices where computers are the mainstay, unless the billions of microchips which were programmed to recognize only two digits are sought out and corrected, it is likely there will be disruptions up and down the highly complex, electronically controlled systems which serve us in so many ways each day. Practically everything we use is in some way controlled, regulated, dispensed, inventoried, billed, and paid for by computer. Every government agency, from the CIA and FBI to the Social Security Administration, uses thousands of computers. Gigantic payrolls, like those going to millions of SSI recipients each month, are generated by government-run computers. The "Financial Management Service," which is a bureau of the U.S. Department of the Treasury, is the primary disbursing agency for more than 850 million payments every year, with a dollar value of more than one trillion. The FMS reported in May of this year that they "are confident that we will complete all necessary work on our payment systems to ensure compliance well before January 2000." It is hoped that such rosy predictions come true, and that "Y2K" will merely be an unpleasant "bump in the road," and not a gigantic roadblock. All of transportation is computer controlled; from the en route Air Traffic Control Centers to Approach Control, to the tower and finally the ground control and gate handling, airliners are computer controlled. The same is true of the vast rail and trucking systems. Everything we use is in some way handled by computer. Shipping, such as the mammoth numbers of automobiles, textiles, shoes, sports equipment—a plethora of consumer goods—from places like Korea, Japan, Taiwan, China, the Philippines, Indonesia, India, Africa, Europe—countries all over the world, is controlled by computers. The ports are computer operated. In the military, everything from the sophisticated computers aboard F-15 Strike Eagles which launch its missiles to the guns in an Abrams M1A-1 tank are operated by computers. Should all those computers fail, or even 10 per cent of them fail, Y2K will be a very large bump in the road, indeed. No Spiritual, Prophetic, Or Chronological Significance No matter what some hucksters tell you, there is absolutely NO significance to the wholly arbitrary date of "January 1, 2000." The date is not even the beginning of the "new millennium," but the final year of the last millennium. The new millennium begins when the total number of the last one thousand years, which ends with the number 2000, has expired, and the beginning of the next one thousand years, or the first year, 2001, begins. Notwithstanding this plain fact of simple mathematics, the world is determined to have its insane bash to "welcome the new millennium." The year 2000 is not the end of 6,000 years allotted to man. The pattern of 6,000 years for man's rule, followed by 1,000 years of the reign of Christ on earth is seemingly portrayed by the weekly cycle. However, there is no scripture which specifically states that Christ will return at the exact end of 6,000 years of human history. Besides, the Jewish Calendar is very different from the "Christian" (read: "pagan Roman") calendar, which is based upon the ego and vanity of Julius and Augustus Caesar. There is no prophetic significance to the date whatsoever. The ONLY reason for any concern is as stated above, and in hundreds of thousands of documents available on the World Wide Web about Y2K—that unfortunate oversight in computers. Think, And Be Prepared Beginning with our homes, we must think about what happens when, for example, a winter storm causes the power to go off. Hundreds of thousands have experienced this—especially in New England and other northern states where ice storms bring down power lines. Floods, tornadoes, thunder storms, hurricanes; all can and do cause power disruptions, and floods can affect water supply. About a week ago, I was sitting in my favorite chair, reading by the light of five candles. A thunder storm had been booming and banging around; a bolt of lightning struck a transformer a few miles away, and a region in which thousands live was suddenly plunged into blackness. I knew exactly where our candles are kept, so, within minutes, I had lit a number of them, carried some to my wife's chair, and placed some on each side of mine. I knew our freezer was now shut down. Our air conditioning system quit, and it began to become very sultry and hot. Our refrigerator and its freezer compartment obviously had quit working. The house was dead silent; no quiet hum of electrical appliances; no faint swish of air from overhead vents; no television, no radio. I commented to my wife that it was like "dress rehearsal" for Y2K. For months, I have advised my readers to view their homes like a "tent." Suppose there is no power, no running water? You cannot cook food, if you have an electric range. If you use gas, and the gas supply is cut off, same comment. You cannot cool or heat your home without either gas or electric power. You cannot wash dishes, or flush the toilets more than once. By the way, before you do, just that once, you might want to think about all those gallons of fresh water in the tank above your toilet bowl. Any foods stored in freezers and refrigerators will spoil in a few days. Those living in cold climates are better off in this one regard than those in hot climates, for food can be kept much longer in the cold than in warm temperatures. Have you made that call to the electric company yet? Have you called your gas company? Have you called your bank? Have you checked with your local grocery store or super market? Have you called your broker, if you are an investor, and found out whether his company is "Y2K compliant?" If not, it would be a good idea to do so very soon. But again, a caution: such companies do not wish to frighten away clients and customers. In my own case, when I called our local bank (the same one in which we deposit the freely-given tithes or offerings God's people send us for His work), I was told they had the problem pretty well in hand. BUT, I was told, there was some concern about the hundreds of large and small businesses which are customers. Why? Take the case of a builder, or a vendor. A builder has many subcontractors. The builder has an office, (or a wife at home with a computer and a program such as "quick books" for bookkeeping, payroll, invoices, and all required tax forms and government reports) in which he keeps all his records. Want to know how your local bank can borrow one million dollars from a central bank, and turn it into 10 million? Simple. Since the banks are only required by law to keep a small percentage of actual cash on reserve against their deposits, your local bank can lend 1 million dollars each to 10 contractors. Since the money remains in the bank, and is not transferred in a lump sum, but is drawn upon as a line of credit, and each contractor is required to make regular monthly payments, including interest, on the loan, there is now 10 million dollars at work among the 10 contractors, and dozens of subcontractors and their employees. The likelihood of all 10 contractors going broke at the same time, or defaulting on the loans is so remote as to be virtually impossible. No actual money has changed hands. The original amount is nearly all intact in the bank. Each contractor merely draws down a certain amount from time to time as he needs it. Meanwhile, he is making regular payments on the loan, including interest This is called "M2," in monetary terms; the money supply other than the actual paper and coins in circulation, which is called "M1." My banker told me that, since they have no direct control over all the computer systems of all their customers, large and small; that the contractors have no direct control over the computer systems of their subcontractors, all of whom owe the bank money directly or indirectly, the bank could experience difficulties if the PC accounting systems among all their customers are not Y2K compliant. While my bank told me its computer systems which service its daily customers, such as those coming to tellers' windows for financial transactions and its bookkeeping system are all compliant, their expert in charge of Y2K compliance told me there was still some concern about the very detailed and complex system of reporting required by the Fed and State Government. More importantly, he was not sure how many of the bank's customers had really taken care of the Y2K bug; how many of them would have all their records intact. Because of their fear of thousands of lawsuits, Congress is considering legislation to limit "Y2K" lawsuits. Countless thousands will, if disruptions occur, be blaming the companies, banks, corporations, or individuals whose records suddenly disappeared, or became garbled and useless. It will remain to be seen whether the general public panics; whether a rush on the banks occurs; whether hoarding and looting occur. A wise person will, as some are urging, "hope for the best, prepare for the worst." The "worst" is probably a few weeks of various kinds of dislocations; difficulties in the various areas mentioned above, and many others. And, the problems will not be over just because February finally comes. The Y2K bug may be causing problems for a long time after January 1, 2000. Those who know Christ's warning that we are to "WATCH" world happenings will see far beyond the mere temporary difficulties involving food, water, and electricity. They will be wondering how Y2K will affect many governments of the world; whether riots and food wars will break out; whether the global financial bubble will burst; whether another "Great Depression," or something much worse will occur; whether governments will topple, to be replaced by military dictatorships, and whether and how all this will affect the Mideast, and Jerusalem. Once again, I quote our soon-coming King, "Watch ye therefore, and pray always, that ye may be accounted worthy to escape all these things that shall come to pass, and to stand before the Son of man" (Luke 21:36). o
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Editorial: Open Letter To A Palestinian Christian: The following letter was received at our web site. I believe the letter, and my lengthy answer to it, will be of interest to readers of WORLDWATCH:
"Mr. Armstrong, I am a Christian Palestinian American who watched your program on WGN about the peace process in Palestine. At the beginning, I was shocked that a `believer' has this biased point of view, but then I remembered the money your (sic) paid by the different Jewish organizations for this. I hope you know that all Christians in Jerusalem are Palestinians and proud of being so. That the Christians of Palestine are all Palestinians. That those people were not given the freedom to even pray in the holy sites in Jerusalem, Nazareth, or Bethlehem under the Israeli occupation. I lived there all my child hood (sic) and needed a permit to travel to Jerusalem to pray, which I was denied on several occasions. You compared the right of the Palestinians to their homeland with the right of the Mexicans for CA, and others. What an unrealistic comparison. The Palestinian homes were stolen, people where (sic) kicked out of their homes and never compensated (the Jewish community is still being compensated for the Holocaust up until now). When the state of Israel was declared most of the Jews where (sic) immigrants due to world war II, and Palestinians where (sic) a majority. Mr. Armstrong you need to revisit your conscious (sic) and your Christianity. Jesus taught us justice, love and honesty. Of which, the Palestinian people has (sic) been deprived off (sic) due to our U.S. government and due to people like you. With the help of our lord, (sic) Jesus Christ, I assure you that one day with (sic) we will liberate Palestine from the occupier. And people will be freed. (Name withheld).
My Response: Dear Sir: You say you "remembered" that I am "paid by the different Jewish organizations for this." You remembered nothing of the sort. I do not know any of the "Jewish Organizations," have never been in contact with any of them, have never met any of their members...and I will assure you that "Jewish Organizations" do not contribute to Christian evangelical organizations. No, not all "Christians" (and I use the term as `nominal' Christians only—professing Christians, not necessarily repentant, converted, believers in God's laws) in Palestine are Palestinians. There are many thousands of "white" Americans, Europeans; people from many, many countries living in Palestine who are nominal Christians. You are in error to say Palestinians could not pray at the holy sites in Jerusalem. Following the 6-day war in 1967, and all during what you term the "occupation," members of all faiths, from all nations, have been allowed access to the holy sites. However, from 1948 until 1967, not a single Jew was allowed to approach the wailing wall when it was under Jordanian control. Why were you denied a permit to travel? Were there reasons? I have met the mayor of Bethlehem; interviewed him for my TV programs. I have been in Ramallah, Hebron, Nazareth, Tel Aviv, Haifa, Amman, Petra, Beirut, Cairo, Suez, Akaba—in many, many places in the Mideast, a large number of times. I have dined in the homes of leaders in Jordan; I have interviewed top leaders in the Palestinian Authority. Not a one of them has ever raised, as an issue, your allegations that "Christians" were denied access to the "holy sites." The Jewish community has NEVER been "compensated" for the holocaust. How do you "compensate" the pitifully few survivors of more than six million dead? Only a FEW very elderly persons have been PARTIALLY "compensated" (a very pitiful term; as if money can replace loved ones; mothers, fathers, brothers, sisters, children) in very recent years. Your facts are wholly erroneous. You said, `When the state of Israel was declared most of the Jews were immigrants due to World War II, and the Palestinians were a majority.' Not so. The Palestinians were a "majority" only in the lands occupied by Palestinians. They were not in a majority in Haifa, Tel Aviv, Lod, or Western Jerusalem; nor in dozens of other towns on the Maritime Plain and the Mediterranean seacoast. The `stolen' Palestinian homes to which you refer concerns those homes lost to well-to-do Palestinians (and many of the poor) as a direct result of the combined attack of six Arab nations against Israel, and Israel's victory against all of them in 1948 and again in 1967. My good friend (name omitted), a Palestinian Arab who was head of the Jordanian Broadcasting Corporation lost his home as a result of warfare. It is true he was never compensated. I have been in his home in Amman; he has been in my home here in America; I have traveled with him, been to many dinners with him, including those in the home of Butros Butros Galli, former Secretary of the United Nations, when he was in Cairo, and with many of cabinet-level rank in Egypt. He set up my lengthy interviews with Anwar Sadat and his wife, Jihan. He is Islamic. We are good friends. You completely misjudge me. I do not have prejudices and biases concerning Israel, Palestine; Jews and Arabs; Christians and Moslems —but I know what the prophecies of the Bible foretell. You are right in ONE aspect of what you wrote; that there will come a time when Palestine will be `liberated' from the Israeli government. But it will not be the Palestinians who will accomplish this, but a United Europe, who will move into the Mideast as a `peacekeeping' force to prevent the ultimate and final holocaust; to save the last remaining Jews alive, when, if they did not intervene, the combined Arab forces would exterminate them to a man. Christ plainly said the complete DESTRUCTION of Jerusalem is coming. But woe to those who rejoice over it! God says, "Behold, I will make Jerusalem a cup of trembling [margin: `poison'] unto all the people round about, when they shall be in the siege both against Judah and against Jerusalem. And in that day will I make Jerusalem a burdensome stone for all people [as it is right now to Jews, Palestinians, Americans, Europeans, and all Arabs]: all that burden them-selves with it shall be cut in pieces, though all the people of the earth be gathered together against it.' Your own attitude is important to you for your spiritual salvation. Do you love the Jews? Jesus was a Jew. Are you a Christian? If so, you will be deeply moved by the horrors the Jews have suffered; you will not rejoice when the eventual destruction of Jerusalem occurs. God says, `You shouldest not have entered into the gate of my people in the day of their calamity; yea, thou shouldest not have looked upon their affliction in the day of their calamity, nor have laid hands on their substance in the day of their calamity: Neither shouldest thou have stood in the crossway to cut off those of his that did escape; neither shouldest thou have delivered up those of his that did remain in the day of distress. For the Day of the Lord is near upon all the heathen: as thou has done, it shall be done unto thee: thy reward shall return upon thine own head" (Obadiah 12-15). This prophecy is directed primarily toward the Turks, who are "Esau" and "Edom." However, it is a warning not to rejoice over the future destruction of Jerusalem. Mr. (omitted), for you to say that the Palestinians are not receiving "justice, love and honesty" because of "people like me" is so utterly and shamelessly ludicrous it is almost laughable. I am a watchman in the service of the very Christ you claim to worship. If you truly know Him, you will also know that I am His servant, and that He has commissioned me to preach a witness and a warning to all nations. I do not take sides. I look at all of these heart-breaking situations; from the bombing in Yugoslavia to the so-called "peace process" in the Middle East from GOD'S perspective, and not through the narrow racist, tribal, national and religious bias of the many millions in this sin-sick, war-torn world. Since you are a Palestinian Arab living in the United States, you need to get down on your knees every day and be thankful to God you are not living in Palestine right now, for the prophecies do not predict what you hope for, but exactly what I have explained, instead. Sincerely, in Jesus' name, Garner Ted Armstrong o
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What You Don't Know About Our School Children I received the following letter from a fourth-grade teacher in a public school in Kentucky. I will not reveal her name for obvious reasons. "Twice in the past week I have had 4th grade children threaten to bring guns to school and kill every-one. The first one I sent to the principal, who sent him to the guidance counselor, who sent him to the mental health center. Now, he is treated like a duckling on a feather pillow. Last Thursday when another kid tried it, (I could have lost my job) I took him into the next room, closed the door, and busted his rear end. My principal about had a heart attack, but I talked to the mother before and after and I think she was just glad she didn't have to deal with it. Anyway, the kid was well behaved the next day for the first time this year. If I could have done that the first of the school year, maybe I wouldn't have to be going to a specialist because my insides are falling apart. Maybe I would be able to sleep, and eat. By the time I spend the day playing headgames with 23 crazy children, my very soul is in agony. Next year I`ll have an entire class of kids who flunked the 3rd grade. Their reading levels will range from the 1st grade to the 3rd grade. I'm supposed to get them all up to the 4th grade level by the end of the year...it's a losing battle. If I had small children today I would home school them." This is from just one school, in one town, in one state. You can multiply it by ten thousand plus, and have an inkling of what is happening every day in thousands of schools all over our country, as those as young as eight, nine and ten bring their television, movie and video fantasies to school with them. Surely, as Isaiah prophesied, "As for my people, children are their oppressors, and women rule over them. O my people, they which lead thee cause thee to err, and destroy the way of thy paths" (Isaiah 3:12). The government's solution? More "gun control," more "after school programs." Why? Didn't "midnight basketball" work? When will the fools who propose such "solutions" wake up to realize it is the PARENTS who produce such children? When will the parents be held accountable? (Answer: Only when Christ comes to set up His world-ruling government. THEN parents will be held accountable!) o
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TESTIMONY OF DARRELL SCOTT, The following testimony of a bereaved father was given before the Subcommittee on Crime, House Judiciary Committee, United States House of Representatives, on Thursday, May 27, 1999 at 2:00 PM: "Since the dawn of creation there has been both good and evil in the heart of men and women. We all contain the seeds of kindness or the seeds of violence. "The death of my wonderful daughter, Rachael Joy Scott, and the deaths of that heroic teacher and the other eleven children who died must not be in vain. Their blood cries out for answers. "The first recorded act of violence was when Cain slew his brother Abel out in the field. The villain was not the club he used. Neither was it the `NCA,' the `National Club Association.' The true killer was Cain, and the reason for the murder could only be found in Cain's heart. "In the days that followed the Columbine tragedy, I was amazed at how quickly fingers began to be pointed at groups such as the NRA. "I am not a member of the NRA. I am not a hunter. I do not even own a gun. I am not here to represent or defend the NRA—because I don't believe that they are responsible for my daughter's death. Therefore I do not believe that they need to be defended. If I believed they had any-thing to do with Rachel's murder I would be their strongest opponent. I am here today to declare that Columbine was not just a tragedy, it was a spiritual event that should be forcing us to look at where the real blame lies! "Much of that blame lies here in this room. Much of that blame lies behind the pointing fingers of the accusers themselves. "I wrote a poem just four nights ago that express my feelings best. This was written way before I knew I would be speaking here today.
"Men and women are three-part beings. We all consist of body, soul, and spirit. When we refuse to acknowledge a third part of our makeup, we create a void that allows evil, prejudice and hatred to rush in and wreak havoc. "Spiritual influences were present within our educational systems for most of our nation's history. Many of our major colleges began as theological seminaries. This is a historic fact. "What has happened to us as a nation? We have refused to honor God, and in doing so, we open the doors to hatred and violence. "And when something as terrible as Columbine's tragedy occurs, politicians immediately look for a scapegoat such as the NRA. They immediately seek to pass more restrictive laws that continue to erode away our personal and private liberties. "We do not need more restrictive laws. Eric and Dylan would not have been stopped by metal detectors. No amount of gun laws can stop someone who spends months planning this type of massacre. "The real villain lies within our own hearts. "Political posturing and restrictive legislation are not the answers. The young people of our nation hold the key. There is a spiritual awakening taking place that will not be squelched! "We do not need more religion. We do not need more gaudy television evangelists spewing out verbal religious garbage. We do not need more million dollar church buildings built while people with basic needs are being ignored. "We do need a change of heart and an humble acknowledgment that this nation was founded on the principle of simple trust in God. "As my son Craig lay under that table in the school library and saw his two friends murdered before his very eyes, he did not hesitate to pray in school. I defy any law or politician to deny him that right! "I challenge every young person in America and around the world to realize that on April 20, 1999, at Columbine High School, prayer was brought back to our schools. Do not let the many prayers offered by those students be in vain. "Dare to move into the new millennium with a sacred disregard for legislation that violates your conscience and denies your God-given right to communicate with Him. "To those of you who would point your finger at the NRA—I give you a sincere challenge. Dare to examine your own heart before you cast the first stone! "My daughter's death will not be in vain. The young people of this country will not allow that to happen." o
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