#tebaldo

[magnificentposting-fabrizioart]

Still have to read @faintingheroine's inspired fic but I finished watching Spielberg's West Side Story, and I gotta say, F**K THE JETS (save Anybodys), and I'm not too fond of Maria either.

The Puerto Ricans were mostly right all along, imho, and even Chino murdering Tony ends up making peace happen, which means the biggest critique I'd have made to one of them is kinda praised by the movie, wtf.

All of my heart goes to Anita, anyway.

And no, that is not just in this version Ariana DeBose made her look and feel hotter than the Sun, but dammit, she did.

[omarfor-orchestra]

Io in 10 anni non mi sono mai accorta di le chat che non apriva bocca perché oggettivamente l'avevano preso solo per fare le capriole e avere un sottotesto omoerotico con Tebaldo?

[lesser-known-composers]

Francesco Morlacchi - Tebaldo e Isolina: Sinfonia (1821)

Performers: Conductor: Antonino Fogliani. Orchestra: Virtuosi Brunensis.

[silvestromedia]

SAINTS JANUARY 10

POPE ST MILTIADES Of African origin, Miltiades was Pope at the time of Constantine’s victory over Maxentius – that is, the victory of the Cross over the persecutors of Christianity. Miltiades began the work of reorganizing the Church and Christian places of worship, but died in 314. Jan 10

St. Thomian, 660 A.D. Sometimes called Toiman, Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland, from about 623. He is remembered for a letter he composed to the Holy See concerning the paschal controversy, namely the date to be followed for the celebrating of Easter.

St. Dermot, 6th century. Abbot and founder of a monastery on Innis-Closran Island, Ireland. He is listed also as Diarmis or Diarmaid. Dermot trained St. Kiernan of Clonrnacnois.

St. Saethryth, 660 A.D. Benedictine abbess, also called Sethrida. The stepdaughter of a local king of the Angles, she entered a convent in Gaul (modem France) eventually becoming abbess. Sts. Ethelburga and Ethelfreda were half-sisters.Jan 10

St. Agatho,Roman Catholic Pope. St. Agatho was born c. 577 and was elected to the Roman see in 678. He had been a monk before his election and was well-versed in Latin and Greek. Although the exarch of Ravenna, Theodore, desired independence from Rome, he eventually submitted to Agatho's rule. In 678, Bishop Wilfrid of York, claiming he had been unjustly deposed, appealed to the pope, who ruled that Bishop Wilfrid should be returned immediately to his see. Concerned about the condition of the English church, Agatho sent an envoy to teach the Britons about chant and to report to him on the state of the church. The Sixth Ecumenical Council (680-681) accepted Agatho's definitions of the two wills of Christ, although the pope did not attend the council. Agatho died during a plague in 681. Feastday Jan10

Bl. Anna of the Angels Monteagudo, was a Dominican mystic of Peru, and she is revered as the second St. Rose of Lima. Feastday Jan.10

BD POPE GREGORY X After the longest conclave in history, Tebaldo Visconti was elected Pope, and took the name Gregory X. At the time of his election, Tebaldo was on Crusade in the Holy Land, and was not yet a priest. He worked for unity with Orthodox in the Council of Lyons. He died in 1276 and was beatified in 1713. Jan 10

[mdiastreet]

Ponzis, Pyramids and Schemes

Direct Selling in the Digital Age

The direct selling network is thriving and predicted to continue its growth at a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of five percent between 2024 and 2032, to reach a value of USD 385.17 billion by 2032. Entrepreneurs have more opportunities than ever to be personally empowered to earn money selling a product that they endorse. However, the channel’s early days of door-to-door sales have evolved tremendously over the years as technology has advanced.

Over a decade ago, the Journal of Personal Selling and Sales Management began to acknowledge that the industry had been forever impacted by the progress of a digital age. In their article “An Assessment of the Use of Technology in the Direct Selling Industry,” Ferrell, Gonzalez-Padron and Ferrell stated, “The traditional notion of direct selling is of an industry that is face-to-face and people-oriented, with a focus on building strong personal relationships with consumers. While technology can improve productivity, it challenges the customary ‘high touch’ tradition in the industry.” Today technology has eliminated much of the human-centric nature of direct selling. It has undoubtedly allowed entrepreneurs to reach more potential clients much faster and led to the development of interactive tools to benefit consumers, but that same technology allows for decreased accountability. Unfortunately, when accountability is lost, the direct selling channel becomes a magnet for nameless, faceless bad actors. The Plague of Pyramid and Ponzi Schemes

It’s been over 100 years since Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo Ponzi was arrested for mail fraud. The scheme which bears his name now recognizes any fraudulent business wherein money taken in from new investors is used to pay debt to earlier investors. In a Ponzi scheme, returns are promised at a future date, and they are paid off by those who “buy in” later. In much the same way, a pyramid scheme relies on the recruitment of new members and usually requires purchasing products or services to pay those higher in the pyramid. The difference between the scheme and a legitimate multi-level marketing business (MLM) at first glance may be hard to distinguish. In a pyramid scheme, the investment is usually fraudulent from the outset. The investment “opportunities” may change, but the bottom line is that eventually there isn’t enough cash from new investors to sustain the growth.

Direct selling is prone to corruption within a pyramid scheme because the number of MLMs, or businesses that operate with a multi-level component, make it easy to “hide” the fraudulent element of the business long enough for those at the top to take significant profit before it collapses. When Digital Product Sales Go Wrong The gold standard in determining the validity of direct selling businesses is if they offer a legitimate product or service a consumer wants to buy. When it comes to digital products, however, it’s harder to gauge legitimacy and sometimes even to determine what product (if any) is being sold.

Kevin Thompson, an attorney specializing in MLM and a founding partner of Thompson Burton, believes the most important legal case that helped determine specific guidelines for legitimacy was the BurnLounge case. This early digital product and its misguided structure established a precedent upon which companies can be compared to this day. In 2007 the Federal Trade Commission (FTC) got wind of concerns with the company BurnLounge. The company proposed to offer consumers the opportunity to set up an online store where they could sell music and related merchandise. What the FTC learned was that retailers were mostly earning “credits” that could be converted to cash for an extra monthly fee that could only be earned by recruiting new members and selling music store packages. "The promise of easy money is but a wolf’s trap laid out for sheep seeking taller grass." - ― James Jean-Pierre

There was actually very little merchandise being sold—Thompson suggested as little as three percent of revenue was from product sales—and a “significant number” of investors were losing money. Eventually, proprietor Scott Eliot settled with the FTC for nearly $118,000 in 2008. And in 2012, the California Central District Court ruled that the remaining defendants listed in the BurnLounge complaint owed $16.2 million in redress.

Among other legal standards, the BurnLounge verdict established the importance of real product being sold. And when payments and commissions driven by recruitment are the primary revenue source as opposed to sales to ultimate users, it will undoubtedly flag those companies as pyramid schemes.

The Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) warned that potential MLM marketing programs may be pyramid schemes when there is an “emphasis on recruiting” and specifically to be skeptical if more compensation is earned for recruiting others than for product sales. A red flag is when the recruiter builds hope solely focused on opportunity—they’re usually misrepresenting what’s possible. Crypto and MLMs

Social media platforms and messaging apps are fertile breeding ground for fraudulent investment “opportunities” involving cryptocurrency or foreign currency trading (forex). They often begin with an unsolicited pitch or an invitation to join an unfamiliar trading website.

When it comes to cryptocurrency and its promise of passive income based on recruiting and investment in a digital “product” as part of an MLM, the offering was almost destined to draw in business owners with fraudulent motives. As the cryptocurrency and forex markets exploded in the last decade (at one point Forbes suggested there were almost 23,000 cryptocurrencies), the nature of the digital currency itself makes it a prime target for a Ponzi scheme.

Investing in a digital product with a short-term rate of remarkably high returns with representatives that may have little to no education in finance or banking soliciting new investors are all signs of “bad apples.” Thompson said in a recent post, “It’s time to state the obvious: Crypto + MLM = Legally Impossible.”

It’s a sentiment shared by many in the industry. As a general rule, cryptocurrency and other digital financial product companies are not legitimate network marketing opportunities. Thousands of cryptocurrencies have failed—whether because they were a scam from the beginning or because of poor management.

One of the biggest scams was OneCoin, which, according to the US Attorney’s Office for the Southern District of New York, generated over four billion Euros in sales revenue between fourth quarter 2014 and fourth quarter 2016 operating as an MLM through which members received commissions for recruiting others to purchase cryptocurrency packages.

In reality, there was no mining of coins. Founder Karl Greenwood, a citizen of Sweden and the United Kingdom, was finally arrested in July 2018; extradited to the US; and pled guilty to one count of conspiracy to commit wire fraud; one count of wire fraud; and one count of conspiracy to commit money laundering. His business partner Ruja Ignatova has been missing since 2017 and remains on the FBI’s Top Ten Most Wanted List. Masking the Investment in Digital Products

When there is no tangible physical product being transferred from seller to consumer, it is much easier for the company to use its own structure to mask how investors can actually earn money. One of the latest scams was OmegaPro. Founded in 2019 by Dilawar Singh, the company did not offer any physical product, rather it offered online trading services.

For a $29 investment, members could purchase different levels of licenses. The commission structure got confusing from there, which is yet another hallmark of a pyramid scheme according to warnings from the SEC. Affiliates needed to earn different rank volumes to maintain their ranks with stronger and weaker legs with downline requirements. There were three levels of leadership pools. And 30 percent of earned commission automatically went to an e-wallet; the remaining 70 percent was added to the passive wallet. Confused yet?

The main problem was that there was never any indication OmegaPro held any license as a broker or was authorized by any authority. Spain, Peru, Chile and France all issued warnings about the organization. When OmegaPro collapsed in December 2022, it issued a statement that it had sold its investor database to BrokerGroup, which has questionable roots itself. It came as no surprise that OmegaPro was run from Dubai.

Why Dubai?

A huge number of digital and cryptocurrency companies are headquartered in Dubai. In 2021 they expected to have at least 1,000 cryptocurrencies in the country by 2022, but that may now be impacted somewhat by regulatory and licensing requirements implemented earlier in 2023. Why so many in one city in the United Arab Emirates (UAE)? One reason may be because they have no extradition treaty, but they can actually claim to have oversight.

According to the International Trade Administration, “The Department of Economic Development (DED) consented to the formation of the Direct Selling Association in UAE (DSA), an official member of the World Federation of Direct Selling Associations (WFDSA), in order to promote transparency and to regulate the sector.”

The DSA was established in 2009 representing 14 direct selling companies operating in the region. Although network marketing in Saudi Arabia is expressly prohibited, in Dubai it is almost encouraged even though technically, according to the Dubai-based Fotis International law firm, “…only 14 companies are legally certified to work as direct sellers in the UAE.”

Fotis International stated, “The DSA UAE’s mission is to promote the direct selling industry in the UAE and the Middle East and safeguard consumers’ rights by adhering to the peak level of business integrity” and that “legitimate direct selling companies play a vital role in the socio-economic development of the UAE and the Middle East.”

The DSA outlines specifics regarding registration requirements, trade licenses and consumer’s rights for direct sellers. However, these are expressly spelled out for UAE citizens with little mention of the responsibilities of the company to consumers outside of the region. It appears that if they don’t target UAE residents, companies can operate without fear of regulation. Behind MLM’s anonymous author says, “Within Dubai, so long as they don’t target UAE locals, scammers are free to scam anyone from anywhere.”

Global Legal Insights points out in their analysis of bribery and corruption charges that “as a civil law jurisdiction, UAE judicial judgments are not available publicly,” making it difficult to determine if any of these direct sellers are being prosecuted within Dubai for any reason. But chances are that any hint of corruption in foreign countries is likely evidence of concern for US investors, sellers and consumers. As Thompson posed, “When you see smoke overseas is there a fire domestically?”

Getting Caught

It is difficult to keep up with the lawsuits, name changes and faces affiliated with one company that shows up again with a new endeavor. Global Wealth Trade Corporation became Opulence Global. Melius rebranded to BE. Dubli, Inc. is now Ominto, Inc.—just to name a few.

The fact that they are changing names is not necessarily a cause for concern, but it does raise questions about the reasons behind the rebranding. Sometimes the name change is because they’re setting up a parent company to buy other companies. But in other instances, the companies could be trying to “juice” recruiting and hope the new name will reach new investors. Thompson said that usually the impetus to change names is because there is negativity associated with the previous brand but reminds investors the name change “helps zero with regulatory activity” if there is any.

Regulators are, however, catching up to those who are not doing right by the direct selling channel. iX Global claimed to be the “fastest-growing self-betterment platform” as a fintech company that taught investors how to earn passive money through cryptocurrencies as well as other AI trading self-managed accounts.

In July 2023 the SEC named 18 defendants including CEO Joe Martinez in suing the company for securities fraud. According to Behind MLM, prior to launching iX Global, Martinez was a promoter of Investview’s fraudulent Kuvera Global investment scheme. iX Global’s top promoters and earners are also former Kuvera Global promoters. In response to the lawsuit, ix Global reminded investors, “We do not offer any guarantees of ROI (return on investment).”

The concerns about MLMs and digital products extend beyond cryptocurrency, forex and other derivatives. Social networks, NFTs, discount shopping, legal services and all sorts of education platforms (such as the ones claiming to educate investors in crypto) are prime targets for pyramid and Ponzi schemes—and frequently linked to cryptocurrency companies.

Onyx Lifestyle reported to have in the first month of business in 2019 over 4,200 “members” (aka investors), and the company claimed earnings of over $10 million. The company offered “global banking through your personal account” in addition to membership tiers that provided a “premier membership card” that was “a key to luxury” along with exclusive access to events.

A class action lawsuit was filed in 2021. Travis Bott and Clif Braun were both affiliated with the organization and according to Behind MLM, “Travis Bott is a serial securities fraud offender. Behind MLM has attached him to multiple Ponzi schemes over the years. Travis Bott first appeared on Behind MLM’s radar in mid 2017. We tied Bott to Divvee’s illegal securities fraud offering, through Ryze AI. Bott reemerged in late 2017 with Westmyn, a shell company used to commit securities fraud through Investview’s Wealth Generators. Investview was subpoenaed and subsequently fined $150,000 by the CFTC in 2018. A year later Travis Bott went solo with Onyx Lifestyle. In mid 2021 what was left of Onyx Lifestyle was rolled into Digital Profit. Digital Profit imploded with a ‘bad trades’ exit-scam in August 2021. Investors lost hundreds of thousands of dollars.”

Behind MLM also recently reported on the bankruptcy filing of Lyoness in Europe. Stated reasons for the bankruptcy include the lingering effects of the pandemic, the ongoing energy crisis and inflation. But Beyond MLM remains skeptical of both the filing and Lyoness. As stated in their article, “Lyoness is a Ponzi scheme….Over the years, Lyoness has gone through many iterations, name changes and associated shell company registrations.”

Lyoness was declared to be a pyramid scheme and fined 3.2 million Euros in 2019 in Italy. The company ignored the ban and was fined an additional 3 million Euros in 2021. The company has been outlawed in Norway, Poland, Russia and Lichtenstein. It was revealed through the bankruptcy proceedings, the company is $110 million in debt in November 2023.

The adage “if it sounds too good to be true, it probably is” couldn’t be more applicable than when examining these schemes. “It’s amazing the BS consumers fall for,” Thompson shared.

The Threat to Legitimate Direct Sellers

Direct selling’s reputation suffers because of the actions of those who don’t play by the rules of the channel. Direct selling companies are becoming much more cognizant of how cryptocurrency schemes masquerading as MLMs threaten the identity and reputation of the direct selling channel.

Conventional wisdom calls for more self-regulation to protect sellers and consumers. The very real risk is that unethical, unsustainable cryptocurrency and forex schemes become synonymous with legitimate direct selling opportunities in the minds of consumers and entrepreneurs alike. Vigilance, oversight and transparency are all key and must be a priority for all direct selling companies and affiliated trade associations.

It’s also important that prospects exploring these opportunities exercise extreme due diligence. Fortunately, investors live in a world where they have more access to information than at any time in history. Every industry has bad actors, and every investor must do their homework and seek expert guidance to avoid fraudulent opportunities. But legitimate direct selling companies operate much differently than the bad actors discussed here.

The important differentiator for direct selling is the relationships upon which the industry is built. The channel’s uniqueness rests on the fact that there is a team of real people with real relationships driving the business.

And that collaboration is key. Maybe some of those lessons from those early door-to-door days are still applicable today. The distribution channel must be the priority, and the business is all about repeat sales and loyal customers. And if the industry continues to build on that foundation, direct selling’s future is limitless.

[biblenewsprophecy]

AT: The great federal-debt Ponzi scheme

@bible-news-prophecy-radio

COGwriter

The USA continues to increase its official debt.

Back in 2009, then US President Barack Obama stated that the deficit spending at that time was “unsustainable” (https://joewilson.house.gov/media-center/press-releases/president-obama-do-as-i-say-not-as-i-do May 15, 2009) yet the USA has continued down that path.

Debt will end in disaster for the USA.

In 2021, Asia Times reported the following:

The great federal-debt Ponzi scheme

July 5, 2021

As long as the Fed is willing (and the market allows it) to buy arbitrarily large amounts of government debt, the price of US government debt is whatever the Fed says it is. It’s like the pump part of a pump-and-dump scheme in the stock market, except without the benefit of an exit strategy.

This Ponzi game can continue until inflation rises to the point where investors flee the Treasury market, yields soar and the economy falls back into recession. If the Fed and Treasury are willing to stake the credit of the United States of America on this game, it can last for a while. No matter how big a player you are, though, no one will take your marker at the craps table forever.

Without exaggeration, the US federal debt market is the most manipulated market of importance in the world at this writing. …

I examined seven important categories of “core” inflation (leaving aside energy and food prices): shelter, medical care, new cars, used cars, durable goods, nondurable goods, and urban transportation. The “breadth” index is simply the number of those indices where inflation is two standard deviations above the twenty-year mean, and the present score is six out of seven. The “surprise” index is the average of the standard deviation of each component relative to the mean: on average, year-on-year inflation of these components is four standard deviations above the mean. In other words, we have the highest and broadest-based inflation in twenty years.

There’s nothing transitory about this. On the contrary, inflation will get worse, as the bubble in home prices feeds into consumer inflation. The median US home price at sale rose 23% year-on-year as of May, according to the National Association of Realtors. https://asiatimes.com/2021/07/the-great-federal-debt-ponzi-scheme/

Yes, despite its size and impact on the world economy, the USA cannot continue to indefinitely do what it has been doing regarding debt and financial manipulation.

The amount of official federal USA debt is expected to currently be about $35 trillion. And, yes, inflation has gotten worse since that 2021 article came out.

As far as being a ‘Ponzi’ scheme by the US Treasury, here is information about Charles Ponzi:

Charles Ponzi (/ˈp��nzi/, Italian: [ˈpontsi]; born Carlo Pietro Giovanni Guglielmo Tebaldo Ponzi; March 3, 1882 – January 15, 1949) was an Italian swindler and con artist in the U.S. and Canada. His aliases include Charles Ponci, Carlo, and Charles P. Bianchi.[1] Born and raised in Italy, he became known in the early 1920s as a swindler in North America for his money-making scheme. He promised clients a 50% profit within 45 days or 100% profit within 90 days, by buying discounted postal reply coupons in other countries and redeeming them at face value in the U.S. as a form of arbitrage.[1]:1[2] In reality, Ponzi was paying earlier investors using the investments of later investors. While this type of fraudulent investment scheme was not originally invented by Ponzi, it became so identified with him that it now is referred to as a “Ponzi scheme.” His scheme ran for over a year before it collapsed, costing his “investors” $20 million (inflation adjusted to $250 million as of 2020). (Charles Ponzi. Wikipedia, accessed 07/05/21)

Basically, a Ponzi scheme is to pretend something is more valuable than it is in order to con others to support it financially.

With Treasury manipulation and military power, along with corruption in international governments, the USA has been able to pull this off for a lot longer than Charles Ponzi could.

Notice that event the US Treasury secretary sees problems that she is not publicly willing to admit:

Janet Yellen Quietly Admits Serious U.S. Dollar Collapse Fears …

U.S. Treasury secretary Janet Yellen has warned countries around the world are moving away from the U.S. dollar—as the spiraling $34 trillion U.S. debt pile fuels fears of collapse—with bitcoin and crypto slowly chipping away at dollar dominance.  … Yellen has said she fears U.S. financial sanctions will reduce the role of the dollar around the world …

“We have very powerful sanctions that are available because of the important role of the dollar in international transactions,” Yellen told U.S. lawmakers on the House financial services …

“The more we have used sanctions, the more countries look for ways to engage in financial transactions that don’t involve the dollar.”

The U.S.-led western financial sanctions “will have a certain impact on the international status of the U.S. dollar,” Zhao Qingming, a Beijing-based financial expert told the China newspaper Global Times. “In the short term, the position of the U.S. dollar should remain stable, but over time, its position may weaken.” https://www.forbes.com/sites/digital-assets/2024/07/14/janet-yellen-quietly-admits-serious-us-dollar-collapse-fears-as-trump-primes-bitcoin-for-a-4-trillion-price-surge/

Furthermore, the time will come, according to Bible prophecy, when the nations of the world will no longer accept the pledges (US Treasury Bills and Notes) of the indebted one:

2 Then the Lord answered me and said:

“Write the vision And make it plain on tablets, That he may run who reads it. 3 For the vision is yet for an appointed time; But at the end it will speak, and it will not lie. Though it tarries, wait for it; Because it will surely come, It will not tarry. (Habakkuk 2:2-3)

6 “Will not all these take up a proverb against him, And a taunting riddle against him, and say, ‘Woe to him who increases What is not his — how long? And to him who loads himself with many pledges’? 7 Will not your creditors rise up suddenly? Will they not awaken who oppress you? And you will become their booty. 8 Because you have plundered many nations, All the remnant of the people shall plunder you, Because of men’s blood And the violence of the land and the city, And of all who dwell in it. (Habakkuk 2:6-8).

Please pay attention to the fact that that above is a prophecy for the appointed time of the end–essentially the time of the Great Tribulation (Matthew 24:21; watch also Great Tribulation: 2026 or 2027?). The USA has been accumulating pledges in the form of US Treasury bonds and notes, and is the most indebted nation of all time. It is descendants of Israel, like the USA, that are prophesied to have debt issues with foreigners if they turn from God’s laws (cf. Deuteronomy 28:43-44)–that is consistent with Habakkuk 2:6-8. The above prophecy is NOT a reference to the nation calling itself Israel as it has nothing compared to USA debt.

Notice that the prophecy in Habakkuk says what will happen is so bad, that people should run who read it. That is, they should seriously consider what this means and take the appropriate steps.

Foreign creditors will rise up.

The Bible clearly warns that an indebted people will be destroyed by people whose language that they do not understand, and that the destruction will be fairly total:

43 The alien who is among you shall rise higher and higher above you, and you shall come down lower and lower. 44 He shall lend to you, but you shall not lend to him; he shall be the head, and you shall be the tail. 45 Moreover all these curses shall come upon you and pursue and overtake you, until you are destroyed…47 “Because you did not serve the LORD your God with joy and gladness of heart, for the abundance of everything, 48 therefore you shall serve your enemies, whom the LORD will send against you, in hunger, in thirst, in nakedness, and in need of everything; and He will put a yoke of iron on your neck until He has destroyed you. 49 The LORD will bring a nation against you from afar, from the end of the earth, as swift as the eagle flies, a nation whose language you will not understand, 50 a nation of fierce countenance, which does not respect the elderly nor show favor to the young. 51 And they shall eat the increase of your livestock and the produce of your land, until you are destroyed; they shall not leave you grain or new wine or oil, or the increase of your cattle or the offspring of your flocks, until they have destroyed you. 52 They shall besiege you at all your gates until your high and fortified walls, in which you trust, come down throughout all your land; and they shall besiege you at all your gates throughout all your land which the LORD your God has given you (Deuteronomy 28:42-45,47-52).

7 The rich rules over the poor, And the borrower is servant to the lender. (Proverbs 22:7)

13 And the Lord said, “Because they have forsaken My law which I set before them, and have not obeyed My voice, nor walked according to it, 14 but they have walked according to the dictates of their own hearts…16 I will scatter them also among the Gentiles, whom neither they nor their fathers have known. And I will send a sword after them until I have consumed them.” (Jeremiah 9:13,14a,16)

12 One-third of you shall die of the pestilence, and be consumed with famine in your midst; and one-third shall fall by the sword all around you; and I will scatter another third to all the winds, and I will draw out a sword after them. (Ezekiel 5:12)

Most will not believe, but that was expected:

6 “Don’t say such things,” the people respond. “Don’t prophesy like that. Such disasters will never come our way!” (Micah 2:6, New Living Translation)

16 … You say, ‘Do not prophesy against Israel, And do not spout against the house of Isaac.’ (Amos 7:16)

People will not want to hear! See also Preparing for the ‘Short Work’ and The Famine of the Word.

The ‘Ponzi’ scheme that the USA has been pulling off will not go on forever–even though politicians act like it can.

Watch also the following:

14:44 

And the Debt Goes On…

On June 3, 2023, US President Joe Biden signed a bill to increase the official debt-ceiling of the United States. According to its Treasury the “ceiling” has been changed, increased, or delayed 78 other times. The official debt has nearly tripled since the Obama-Biden Administration. The official debt increased about $2 trillion per year under Donald Trump’s Administration and has done close to that in the Joe Biden Administration. While the USA has been able to increase debt with limited consequences (like inflation) so far, does the Bible show this can end in destruction? What did God warn about debt through the prophet Habakkuk? Is getting into high amounts of debt a blessing or curse according to the Bible? Do Democrats or Republicans currently have a plan that will now be implemented to pay off the debt? Has the USA been functioning as an international “leech” consistent with statements in the Book of Proverbs? Does the Bible say it is wicked to borrow money you do really intend to repay? Steve Dupuie and Dr. Thiel cover these matters.

Here is a link to our video: And the Debt Goes On…

Furthermore, the Bible is clear that the USA will be taken over (cf. Daniel 11:39) and debt will be a factor per Habakkuk 2:6-8.

Do not believe in Ponzi schemes.

Related Items:

The End of US Dollar Dominance Is the USA losing its economic status? What about the petro-gold-yuan? A related video is also available: US Dollar being challenged by Gold-Petro-Yuan.

Is God Calling You? This booklet discusses topics including calling, election, and selection. If God is calling you, how will you respond? Here is are links to related sermons: Christian Election: Is God Calling YOU? and Predestination and Your Selection. A short animation is also available: Is God Calling You?

Spiritual Samaritans: Old and New Who were the Samaritans? Do the represent true Christianity or something else? Here is a link to a related sermon: USA in Prophecy: Samaria.Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here is a link to a video titled: The Future King of the North.

USA in Prophecy: The Strongest Fortresses Can you point to scriptures, like Daniel 11:39, that point to the USA in the 21st century? This article does. Two related sermon are available: Identifying the USA and its Destruction in Prophecy and Do these 7 prophesies point to the end of the USA?

Who is the King of the West? Why is there no Final End-Time King of the West in Bible Prophecy? Is the United States the King of the West? Here is a version in the Spanish language: ¿Quién es el Rey del Occidente? ¿Por qué no hay un Rey del Occidente en la profecía del tiempo del fin? A related sermon is also available: The Bible, the USA, and the King of the West.

Who is the King of the North? Is there one? Do biblical and Roman Catholic prophecies for the Great Monarch point to the same leader? Should he be followed? Who will be the King of the North discussed in Daniel 11? Is a nuclear attack prophesied to happen to the English-speaking peoples of the United States, Great Britain, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand? When do the 1335 days, 1290 days, and 1260 days (the time, times, and half a time) of Daniel 12 begin? When does the Bible show that economic collapse will affect the United States? In the Spanish language check out ¿Quién es el Rey del Norte? Here are links to two related videos: The King of the North is Alive: What to Look Out For and The Future King of the North.

The Great Monarch: Biblical and Catholic Prophecies Is the ‘Great Monarch’ of Catholic prophecies endorsed or condemned by the Bible? Two sermons of related interest are also available: Great Monarch: Messiah or False Christ? and Great Monarch in 50+ Beast Prophecies.

Satan’s Plan Does Satan have a plan? What is it? Has it already been successful? Will it be successful in the future? Here are links to a two-part sermon series: What are Some of the Parts of Satan’s Plan? and Satan’s Plan is More Dramatic than Many Realize.

Will the Anglo-Saxon-Celtic Nations be Divided and Have People Taken as Slaves? Will the lands of the United States, United Kingdom, Canada, Australia, and New Zealand be divided? What about Jerusalem? What does Bible prophecy teach? Are there non-biblical prophecies that support this idea? Who will divide those lands? Who will end up with the lands and the people? Here is a link to a video titled Will the USA and other Anglo-nations be Divided and Their People Made Slaves? Here is a related item in the Spanish language ¿Serán divididas las naciones anglosajonas?

British are the Covenant People What do ‘British’ and ‘Britain’ mean in Hebrew? Are the descendants of the Anglo-Saxons people of the covenant? Does the British royal family connect to the throne of David? What does the Bible teach? What does history show us? Is there any DNA evidence related to British-Israelism? When did Christianity make it to the British Isles? Could Jeremiah have made it to the British Isles? What type of Christians made it to the British Isles? Did the last King of England believe in British Israelism?

Brexit Happened: Now What? At 11:00 pm January 31, 2020, the United Kingdom formally left the European Union. Many celebrated, while many mourned. Nigel Farage stated, “This is the greatest moment in modern British history.” What will happen to the United Kingdom? Will the UK be involved in trade deals with the United States of America and the Europeans? Will the UK regret the BRitish Exit (Brexit) from the EU?What will happen with the European Union? Is Europe prophesied to have a great army and many ships? Does the Bible prophesy a reorganization of Europe? Does it prophesy that the Europeans will become a conquering military power? Is the United Kingdom prophesied to be conquered? How does the Bible name the British-descended peoples? Was the British Empire the largest in world history? Was Brexit predicted by Church of God leaders in 1970 and the early 1990s? Will the European Union be negatively affected financially by the departure of the UK? Will this turn out well for the UK or the Europeans? Dr. Thiel addresses these issues and more in this video.

Canada in Prophecy: What Does Bible Prophecy, Catholic Prophecy, and other Predictions Suggest About the Future of Canada? There are prophecies that suggest involvement with Canada. And many are not positive about its future. A sermon of related interest is also available: Canada in Prophecy.

Australia and New Zealand in Prophecy Do biblical prophecies help explain the wealth blessings for Australia and New Zealand? Might cursings from disobedience come in the 21st century? Here is a link to a related sermon: Australia and New Zealand: Origins and Prophecy.

Could God Have a 6,000 Year Plan? What Year Does the 6,000 Years End? Was a 6000 year time allowed for humans to rule followed by a literal thousand year reign of Christ on Earth taught by the early Christians? Does God have 7,000 year plan? What year may the six thousand years of human rule end? When will Jesus return? 2031 or 2025 or? There is also a video titled: When Does the 6000 Years End? 2031? 2035? Here is a link to the article in Spanish: ¿Tiene Dios un plan de 6,000 años?

Might the U.S.A. Be Gone in 2028? Could the USA be gone by the end of 2028? There is a tradition attributed to the Hebrew prophet Elijah that humanity had 6,000 years to live before being replaced by God’s Kingdom. There are scriptures, writings in the Talmud, early Christian teachings that support this. Also, even certain Hindu writings support it. Here is a link to a related video: Is the USA prophesied to be destroyed by 2028? In Spanish: Seran los Estados Unidos Destruidos en el 2028?

Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction Can the USA survive two full presidential terms? In what ways are Joe Biden and Kamala Harris apocalyptic? This book has hundreds of prophecies and scriptures to provide details. A Kindle version is also available and you do not need an actual Kindle device to read it. Why? Amazon will allow you to download it to almost any device: Please click HERE to download one of Amazon s Free Reader Apps. After you go to your free Kindle reader app (or if you already have one or a Kindle), you can go to: Biden-Harris: Prophecies and Destruction (Kindle) to get the book in seconds.

LATEST NEWS REPORTS

LATEST BIBLE PROPHECY INTERVIEWS

[processandproductionrhianna]

Artist Research - Maurizo Anzeri (Physical Manipulation)

'MakeUp', 15 December 2011- 11 March 2012, A Palazzo Gallery, Palazzo Cigola, Piazza Tebaldo Brusato 35, 25121, Brescia, Italy

Anzeri is a contemporary artist born 1969 in Italy, who works in London. He studied design and and sculpture at Camberwell College of Fine Arts, and was awarded his MFA at The Slade School of Fine Art in London. Anzeri is a multimedia artist who has worked using; photography, drawing, sculpture and more. Anzeri takes vintage photos, and sew into them with thread in interesting and complex patterns. He focuses on the human appearance, and it's connection to the mind, its emotions and thoughts. Some represent a more physiological factor, others provide coverage (costumes, nudity etc), or just interesting patterns. The contrast of the aged photos against the more crisp and fresh looking thread, is eye catching and is an interesting take on how to make old things, new. The contrast of new and old helps build a bring between the past, present and future.

Round Midnight, 2009 Embroidery on Print

This piece was eyecatching because of the girls nudity, something rather taboo, and ethnicity. Anzeri stitched a veil over the girl, a thin grasp at providing 'modesty' for her, though forced.

My own work -

Quotes -

DD: Where does this style of embroidering photographs derive from? What made you first want to embroider images? Where did you learn the skill? Maurizio Anzeri: The constant fascination with faces and the passion for transformation is the starting point. I see embroidery as the best way I know to draw and started to experiment with it without knowing where it was going to take me.

DD: Why do you think there’s a growing eagerness to reconfigure or customize? Maurizio Anzeri: Because we are constantly changing and transforming ourselves.

DD: Do you think there’s such a thing as ‘ideal beauty’? Maurizio Anzeri: 'Beauty' is always present, it is the 'ideal' that is constantly changing.

Anzeri's work is so complex, despite it's simplistic idea. The intricate details within the embroidery, using patterns and strong contrast to tell a story that the original image does not. I love the technique here, it helps build up the story, and adds a beautiful geometric texture the viewer can get involved with. I would like to attempt to utilize this technique.

[monotonous-minutia]

Nian Wang as Tebaldo in Verdi’s Don Carlo

(San Francisco Opera, 2016)

[infinitelytheheartexpands]

the Veil Song is such a bop

[patrouclous]

we were kings of the world

but now our wounds are too deep

[fabalawillpower]

MercuzioとTebaldoの決闘シーンでの「剣」についての考察

Mercuzioの剣は、十字の形が綺麗に見えるデザインがされているので十字架を身につけているように見せる意図があると思う。加えて、剣が男性という性を示すモチーフとして使われているので、「剣を腰に帯びる」ことで彼の性をアピールしているのかもしれない。

とにかく、彼自身の意思で剣を持ち、激情に任せて剣を抜き、剣をTebaldoに向かって振り上げる。彼の剣は自衛のためのもの、自分を強く見せるためのものであり、敵（世間の価値観なども含む）から身を守るためのもの。

対してTebaldoは、最初は武器を持たずに戦っていたけれど、仲間たち（つまり一族の皆）から剣がリレーされてきて渡される。彼はその勢いに飲み込まれるように、剣を受け取り、Mercuzioに刺す。周りからの「やれ」という圧に動かされる彼の様子が印象に残る演出だと思う。彼の剣は「強制された暴力」を表す。彼自身の意思とは関係なく、彼の家、家族が求める彼の姿を無理矢理に行使させる呪いのようなものだと思う。

Considerazione sulla spada usata nella scena del duello.

Volevo scriverlo in italiano, ma poiché non sono bravo a farlo, l'ho scritto in giapponese.😣

La coreografia di questo musical è fantastica👏👏👏

💋💋💋💋💋

[unanuvola]

Il cuore abiterà dove può. 

Il mio blasone mai svenderò.

Io, ma chi son’io? 

[silvestromedia]

SAINTS JANUARY 10

POPE ST MILTIADES Of African origin, Miltiades was Pope at the time of Constantine’s victory over Maxentius – that is, the victory of the Cross over the persecutors of Christianity. Miltiades began the work of reorganizing the Church and Christian places of worship, but died in 314. Jan 10

St. Thomian, 660 A.D. Sometimes called Toiman, Archbishop of Armagh, Ireland, from about 623. He is remembered for a letter he composed to the Holy See concerning the paschal controversy, namely the date to be followed for the celebrating of Easter.

St. Dermot, 6th century. Abbot and founder of a monastery on Innis-Closran Island, Ireland. He is listed also as Diarmis or Diarmaid. Dermot trained St. Kiernan of Clonrnacnois.

St. Saethryth, 660 A.D. Benedictine abbess, also called Sethrida. The stepdaughter of a local king of the Angles, she entered a convent in Gaul (modem France) eventually becoming abbess. Sts. Ethelburga and Ethelfreda were half-sisters.Jan 10

St. Agatho,Roman Catholic Pope. St. Agatho was born c. 577 and was elected to the Roman see in 678. He had been a monk before his election and was well-versed in Latin and Greek. Although the exarch of Ravenna, Theodore, desired independence from Rome, he eventually submitted to Agatho's rule. In 678, Bishop Wilfrid of York, claiming he had been unjustly deposed, appealed to the pope, who ruled that Bishop Wilfrid should be returned immediately to his see. Concerned about the condition of the English church, Agatho sent an envoy to teach the Britons about chant and to report to him on the state of the church. The Sixth Ecumenical Council (680-681) accepted Agatho's definitions of the two wills of Christ, although the pope did not attend the council. Agatho died during a plague in 681. Feastday Jan10

Bl. Anna of the Angels Monteagudo, was a Dominican mystic of Peru, and she is revered as the second St. Rose of Lima. Feastday Jan.10

BD POPE GREGORY X After the longest conclave in history, Tebaldo Visconti was elected Pope, and took the name Gregory X. At the time of his election, Tebaldo was on Crusade in the Holy Land, and was not yet a priest. He worked for unity with Orthodox in the Council of Lyons. He died in 1276 and was beatified in 1713. Jan 10

[munxson]

Modern Au: Escalus is Mercutios Dad

Benvolio, too pure for this world: 'Cutio, your Phone is ringing, oh "Daddy❤️🖤"... Aw how cute you saved Escalus daddy!

Mercutio: *answer the phone* Tybalt! Yes...

Benvolio: *traumatized for life*

Mercutio: *DAMN HIS SMILE.*

[romeo-and-juliet-sims]

Scene VII - The Ball

I don’t want to dance, Romeo decided when they arrived at Capuletti’s palazzo. His heart was still sick with love for Rosalina. May his friends be jolly, he couldn’t.

He wandered around in hope he’d raise no suspicion. The other guests were dressed as if it was still carnival. He saw the lord and lady of the house all in red and gold. And he kept an eye on Tebaldo, dressed as Lucifer himself. The young Capuletti in all his cruel beauty danced with young lady.  But he had no eyes for her. His gaze always wandered to another, Romeo noted.

He searched for her himself and found her dancing with the god of the forest. Romeo watched her closely: she was dressed all in gold and was shining brighter than the sun. Something about the girl fascinated him. The way she moved. Her smile. Romeo drew his breath. His mind was completely preoccupied with the heavenly image before him, moving so gracefully to the music. She was an angel. She stood out from the other girls like a snowy dove in a field of crows.

He couldn’t watch any longer and decided to make a move. The girl’s partner bowed and departed right then. Romeo’s chance. His heart was beating faster. She’ll reject me, his conscience told him, but his voice had already spoken:

“May I ask for this dance?”

<Previous

[wilanserulia]

Late night speedpaint of my characters Si’han and Tebaldo.

I wanted to make a fast drawing that would highlight their different personalities, but before I knew it I accidentally ended up staying up until 2am to finish it.