Happy Halloween!

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Postby Foote Hertz » Thu Oct 30, 2008 6:54 pm

8bitagent wrote:I can't help but feel sickened every time I see Halloween stuff at the store or on tv this year. Everytime I see skeleton and ghoul costumes, I think of all the countless people being maimed, raped and killed in state/corporate backed African genocide. I think of all the dead souls of innocent Muslims murdered by the US imperialistic establishment, since just 2001 alone

Has anyone here taken a look at Steven Pinker's work on the history of violence and tried to ascertain its validity?

I've only watched his Ted Talk on the subject - here
Steven Pinker charts the decline of violence from Biblical times to the present, and argues that, though it may seem illogical and even obscene, given Iraq and Darfur, we are living in the most peaceful time in our species' existence.

Here's a pdf of an article Pinker wrote for The New Republic, March 19, 2007.

I've searched around online for a refutation of Pinker's ideas. Haven't found anything worth sharing.
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Postby FreeLancer » Thu Oct 30, 2008 11:23 pm

I was in the town of Rafah when Rachel Corrie was there. My Palestinian friends asked me several times "Have you met Rachel? Oh you should meet her, she's very nice. A very good person." Every night she could be found in the little internet "cafe" writing and writing, they said. I meant to go and say hello, but the days flew by and next thing I knew it was time to leave.

A couple weeks after I got home I read that she had been killed. My Palestinian friend-- who was a Red Crescent paramedic-- wrote me and said they had tried to save her but there was too much damage. They made a makeshift American flag and draped it over her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WME495PWWJE
Thank you Billy Bragg
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Postby 8bitagent » Thu Oct 30, 2008 11:28 pm

FreeLancer wrote:I was in the town of Rafah when Rachel Corrie was there. My Palestinian friends asked me several times "Have you met Rachel? Oh you should meet her, she's very nice. A very good person." Every night she could be found in the little internet "cafe" writing and writing, they said. I meant to go and say hello, but the days flew by and next thing I knew it was time to leave.

A couple weeks after I got home I read that she had been killed. My Palestinian friend-- who was a Red Crescent paramedic-- wrote me and said they had tried to save her but there was too much damage. They made a makeshift American flag and draped it over her.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=WME495PWWJE
Thank you Billy Bragg


I usually don't condone "terrorism", but if only there had been a Palestinian bomber against these bulldozers. Sadly in this fucked up day in age, if you dare spout one shred of outrage at what's done to the Palestinians...you're "anti Semitic".
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Postby Uncle $cam » Fri Oct 31, 2008 1:45 pm

Ghoul Patrol, musica' for Samhain

Ligeti's "Musica Ricercata, II" from the Eyes Wide Shut soundtrack
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aIPAXMzdSYk

Pilobolus: A performance merging dance and biology
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FOZ6KnVPvIU
Pilobolus dance company members Otis Cook and Jennifer Macavinta perform the sensuous duet "Symbiosis." Does it trace the birth of a human relationship, or the co-evolution of a pair of symbiotic species? That's left for you to decide. Gorgeous, organic choreography blurs the boundaries between the two performers, who use the body's own geometry to lift, move and combine. The music, recorded by the Kronos Quartet on Nonesuch Records, is a compilation of works: "God Music" from Black Angels by George Crumb, "Fratres" by Arvo Pärt, and "Morango ... Almost a Tango" by Thomas Oboe Lee.


Montagues and Capulets: The Knight's Dance by Sergei Prokofiev
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jrf6VZe7qkg

Bernard Herrmann's score for Hitchcock's Vertigo
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=f1ukxgNgyPU

terrifyingly awesome Faust Cantata
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=aoQGoh4bRtw
Suffering raises up those souls that are truly great; it is only small souls that are made mean-spirited by it.
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Postby barracuda » Fri Oct 31, 2008 2:36 pm

Halloween costume ideas drawn by the demons themselves:

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Jester - Richard Ramirez

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Devil - Ottis Toole

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Clown - John Wayne Gacy

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Care Bear - Gerald Stano

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Mermaid - Charles Ng

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Demon - Henry Lee Lucas
Last edited by barracuda on Sat Oct 31, 2009 2:13 am, edited 1 time in total.
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Postby Jeff » Fri Oct 31, 2008 2:44 pm

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Devil - Charles Manson
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Postby Uncle $cam » Fri Oct 31, 2008 3:08 pm

Suffering raises up those souls that are truly great; it is only small souls that are made mean-spirited by it.
- Alexandra David-Neel
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Postby barracuda » Sat Oct 31, 2009 2:12 am

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Bump.
The most dangerous traps are the ones you set for yourself. - Phillip Marlowe
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Postby 23 » Sat Oct 31, 2009 3:48 am

In a culture where we are inclined to identify ourselves with our social masks, Halloween can be a useful tool to instruct our young ones that...

we are not the masks that we don.

That masks are just masks.

And not us.
"Once you label me, you negate me." — Soren Kierkegaard
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Postby justdrew » Sat Oct 31, 2009 3:59 am

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As Goes Halloween, So Goes Childhood

Forget all the guys in Bernie Madoff masks and tutus. If you want to see something really scary on Halloween, come to my apartment around 9 p.m.I'm letting my kids eat unwrapped candy.

They can eat any homemade goodies they get, too, and that unholy of unholies: candy where the wrapper is slightly torn. And on the very off chance they get an apple, they can gnaw it to the core, so long as there's not a razor-sized, dripping gash on the side.

Which always seemed like it would be a kind of give-away that something was amiss.

It's not that I'm cavalier about safety. I'm just a sucker -- so to speak -- for the facts. And the fact is: No child has been poisoned by a stranger's goodies on Halloween, ever, as far as we can determine. Joel Best, a sociology professor at the University of Delaware, studied November newspapers from 1958 to the present, scouring them for any accounts of kids felled by felonious candy. And...he didn't find any. He did find one account of a boy poisoned by a Pixie Stix his father gave him. Dad did it for the insurance money and, Best says, he probably figured that so many kids are poisoned on Halloween, no one would notice one more.

Well, they did and dad was executed. That's Texas for you. Another boy died after he got into his uncle's heroin stash and relatives tried to make it look like he'd been killed by candy. And that's it.

Now look at how the fear that our nice, normal-seeming neighbors might actually be moppet-murdering psychopaths has turned the one kiddie independence day of the year into yet another excuse to micromanage childhood.

It's not just the fact that churches and community centers are throwing parties so that kids don't go out on their own. It's not just the fact that Bobtown, Pennsylvania has gone so far as to "cancel" Halloween altogether -- for the sake of "safety." (The authorities there were surprised to find this decision unpopular.) It's not even that those of us who'd like to hand out homemade cookies know they'll be instantly tossed in the trash.

No, the truly spooky thing is that Halloween has become a riot of warnings that are way scarier than the holiday itself. The website Halloween-Safety.com recommends that if your child is carrying a fake butcher knife, make sure the tip is "smooth and flexible enough to not cause injury if fallen upon."

Excuse me? Has anyone ever seen a knife land blade-side up? And then fallen on it? Meantime, schools around the country are sending this note home to parents: "Please, no scary costumes." In England last year a man was ordered by his landlord to take down his lawn decorations because the zombies were too "realistic."

In other words: They looked too much like...real zombies?

Our fears are so overblown they'd be laughable if they didn't sound so much like the fears that are haunting us the rest of the year. Fears that have lead to parents to wait with their kids at the school bus stop, and keep them inside on sunny afternoons. Fears that make parents forbid their kids from skipping down the street to invite a friend out to play. That's the everyday version of Halloween fear: The fear that we cannot trust our children amongst our neighbors for one single second because, who knows, they might be pedophiles just waiting to pounce.

If you want to see what childhood is becoming, look at what Halloween has already become: A parent-planned, climate-controlled, child-coddled, corporate-sponsored "event," where kids are considered too delicate to even survive the sight of a scary costume. You know. Like if someone came dressed as a slightly torn Snickers.

Skenazy is founder of freerangekids.com and author of "Free-Range Kids: Giving Our Children the Freedom We Had Without Going Nuts with Worry."

Read more at: http://www.huffingtonpost.com/lenore-sk ... 40163.html
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Postby Username » Sat Oct 31, 2009 4:43 am

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Charisma mag.com

The Danger of Celebrating Halloween
Tuesday, 27 October 2009
Kimberly Daniels

Newsletters - Prophetic Insight

Halloween—October 31—is considered a holiday in the United States. In fact, it rivals Christmas with regard to how widely celebrated it is. Stores that sell only Halloween-related paraphernalia open up a few months before the day and close shortly after it ends. But is Halloween a holiday that Christians should be observing?

The word "holiday" means "holy day." But there is nothing holy about Halloween. The root word of Halloween is "hallow," which means "holy, consecrated and set apart for service." If this holiday is hallowed, whose service is it set apart for? The answer to that question is very easy—Lucifer's!

Lucifer is a part of the demonic godhead. Remember, everything God has, the devil has a counterfeit. Halloween is a counterfeit holy day that is dedicated to celebrating the demonic trinity of : the Luciferian Spirit (the false father); the Antichrist Spirit (the false holy spirit); and the Spirit of Belial (the false son).

The key word in discussing Halloween is "dedicated." It is dedicated to darkness and is an accursed season. During Halloween, time-released curses are always loosed. A time-released curse is a period that has been set aside to release demonic activity and to ensnare souls in great measure.

You may ask, "Doesn't God have more power than the devil?" Yes, but He has given that power to us. If we do not walk in it, we will become the devil's prey. Witchcraft works through dirty hearts and wrong spirits.

During this period demons are assigned against those who participate in the rituals and festivities. These demons are automatically drawn to the fetishes that open doors for them to come into the lives of human beings. For example, most of the candy sold during this season has been dedicated and prayed over by witches.

I do not buy candy during the Halloween season. Curses are sent through the tricks and treats of the innocent whether they get it by going door to door or by purchasing it from the local grocery store. The demons cannot tell the difference.

Even the colors of Halloween (orange, brown and dark red) are dedicated. These colors are connected to the fall equinox, which is around the 20th or 21st of September each year and is sometimes called "Mabon." During this season witches are celebrating the changing of the seasons from summer to fall. They give praise to the gods for the demonic harvest. They pray to the gods of the elements (air, fire, water and earth).

Mother earth is highly celebrated during the fall demonic harvest. Witches praise mother earth by bringing her fruits, nuts and herbs. Demons are loosed during these acts of worship. When nice church folk lay out their pumpkins on the church lawn, fill their baskets with nuts and herbs, and fire up their bonfires, the demons get busy. They have no respect for the church grounds. They respect only the sacrifice and do not care if it comes from believers or non-believers.

Gathering around bonfires is a common practice in pagan worship. As I remember, the bonfires that I attended during homecoming week when I was in high school were always in the fall. I am amazed at how we ignorantly participate in pagan, occult rituals.

The gods of harvest that the witches worship during their fall festivals are the Corn King and the Harvest Lord. The devil is too stupid to understand that Jesus is the Lord of the Harvest 365 days a year. But we cannot be ignorant of the devices of the enemy. When we pray, we bind the powers of the strong men that people involved in the occult worship.

Halloween is much more than a holiday filled with fun and tricks or treats. It is a time for the gathering of evil that masquerades behind the fictitious characters of Dracula, werewolves, mummies and witches on brooms. The truth is that these demons that have been presented as scary cartoons actually exist. I have prayed for witches who are addicted to drinking blood and howling at the moon.

While the lukewarm and ignorant think of these customs as "just harmless fun," the vortexes of hell are releasing new assignments against souls. Witches take pride in laughing at the ignorance of natural men (those who ignore the spirit realm).

Decorating buildings with Halloween scenes, dressing up for parties, going door-to-door for candy, standing around bonfires and highlighting pumpkin patches are all acts rooted in entertaining familiar spirits. All these activities are demonic and have occult roots.

The word "occult" means "secret." The danger of Halloween is not in the scary things we see but in the secret, wicked, cruel activities that go on behind the scenes. These activities include:

>Sex with demons
>Orgies between animals and humans
>Animal and human sacrifices
>Sacrificing babies to shed innocent blood
>Rape and molestation of adults, children and babies
>Revel nights
>Conjuring of demons and casting of spells
>Release of "time-released" curses against the innocent and the ignorant.

Another abomination that goes on behind the scenes of Halloween is necromancy, or communication with the dead. Séances and contacting spirit guides are very popular on Halloween, so there is a lot of darkness lurking in the air.

However, Ephesians 1:19-21 speaks of the authority of the believer and the exceeding greatness of God's power in us (the same power that raised Christ from the dead). It goes on to say that that Jesus is seated in heavenly places far above all principalities, power, might, dominions and every name that is named. The good news is that because we are seated in heavenly places with Jesus, the same demonic activity that is under His feet is under our feet, too!

People who worship the devil continue to attempt to lift him up. But he has already been cast out and down! Many are blinded to this fact, but the day will come when all will know he has been defeated once and for all.

When we accept Jesus but refuse to renounce Satan and his practices, we are neither hot nor cold but lukewarm—and the Word says that God will spit us out of His mouth. The problem with lukewarm is that it attempts to mix the things of the devil with the things of God. It is God's desire that we serve Him alone.

Second Corinthians 6:15 asks the question, "And what agreement has Christ with Belial?" As believers, we need to answer that question in our hearts. We must avoid the very appearance of evil. I would not want a demon spirit to mistake me for an occult worshiper.

There is no doubt in my heart that God is not calling us to replace fall festivals and Halloween activities; rather, He wants us to utterly destroy the deeds of this season. If you or your family members have opened the door to any curses that are released during the demonic fall festivals, renounce them and repent. I already have. Then declare with me: "As for me and my house, we will serve the Lord!"


About the author: Kimberly Daniels is a sought-after conference speaker and preacher. She is the founder of Kimberly Daniels Ministries International (kimberlydaniels.com), Spoken Word Ministries—the church she pastors in Jacksonville, Florida, with her husband, Ardell—A Child of the King Learning Center and Word Bible College. Kim is a recognized prophetic voice as well as the author of several books, including her most recent, Prayers that Bring Change (Charisma House).

Editor's Note: We realize that the article by Kimberly Daniels is controversial. It reflects her own personal views—based on her many years of ministering to people involved in the occult. We have chosen to post another column by Ken Eastburn which offers a different view of Halloween. We welcome our readers to post comments on that article as well. Click here to read Eastburn's article.
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Postby lightningBugout » Sat Oct 31, 2009 4:50 am

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"What's robbing a bank compared with founding a bank?" Bertolt Brecht
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Postby OP ED » Sat Oct 31, 2009 5:00 am

The demons cannot tell the difference.


oh yes they can.

(and the christians wonder why they aren't taken more seriously)
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Postby justdrew » Sat Oct 31, 2009 5:05 am

Username wrote:[...]"When we accept Jesus but refuse to renounce Satan and his practices, we are neither hot nor cold but lukewarm—and the Word says that God will spit us out of His mouth."[...]


:P Personally, I'd like to know just what the hell he had 'us' in His mouth for in the first place? That just about says it all right there. :wink:
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Postby Nordic » Sat Oct 31, 2009 5:16 am

C'mon, it's just another excuse to have to buy a lot of shit.

I'm broke this year, but I've got two kids. So let's see, there were the two costumes that they had to have, one of them for the school party where you had to wear your costume, then there were the pumpkins that were grown for the sole purpose of being cut up and destroyed (instead of eaten for food). Then of course there's the candy. And if I wasn't broke there would have been some decorations.

Then members of my family who have to send cars for every conceivable holiday went out and got "Halloween Cards" which they sent to the kids.

Cha ching cha ching cha ching.

It adds up.

You know, it's all about the economy!

It's like Christmas, only more fun and a bit naughty.

Spend spend spend!
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