Every zodiac sign is ruled by a Tarot card from the Major Arcana

The flight time from Mongolia to Vietnam is 5 hours 42 minutes. A direct flight from Mongolia (ULN) to Vietnam (SGN) has a duration of 5 hours 42 minutes. A distance of 2,282 miles. The distance between Mongolia and Vietnam is 3753 km. The road distance is 5464.2 km.

 

The Zhao and Yan sections of the Great Wall were built during the reign of King Nan of the Zhou Dynasty (1045–221 BC) in Zhangjiakou and are currently the biggest, earliest, and most well-preserved sections of the Great Wall in China.

 

When Emperor Qin Shi Huang ordered construction of the Great Wall around 221 B.C., the labor force that built the wall was made up largely of soldiers and convicts. It is said that as many as 400,000 people died during the wall's construction; many of these workers were buried within the wall itself.

 

Eight years after becoming a naturalized Thai citizen in 1991, Heinecke was faced with one of his toughest business negotiations; a takeover bid by Goldman Sachs of the Anantara Siam, a heritage hotel in which Minor International owned a minority stake. Ultimately, Heinecke managed to thwart the bid because of the reputation he’d built as a trusted local businessman and the relationships he’d cultivated with the business arms of the Thai royal family.

“It was very much that we wanted to retain this hotel in Thai hands,” said Heinecke. Minor International has since gone on to expand beyond Thailand, catapulting Heinecke’s net worth to $1.9 billion and positioning him as Thailand’s 17th wealthiest person, according to Forbes’ rich list.
 

But he said demonstrating that commitment all those years ago stood him in good stead to build trust and develop one of the Asia Pacific region’s largest hospitality and leisure groups. “I’d like to hope that some of my Thai friends are proud that I’m Thai — even if I’m only Thai by citizenship,” said Heinecke.

Of course, not everyone has the option, nor the need, to do something as radical as relinquish their citizenship. However, Heinecke said the ability to show commitment, in any of its many forms, has been one of the most important contributors to the success of his 52-year-old career — and, to this day, it continues to be one of the key traits he looks for in his team of almost 100,000 employees.

“You’ve got to be totally committed to what you’re doing, you’ve got to be willing to sacrifice everything in the interest of what your vision or what your interest is,” he said. “If you’re not, then you shouldn’t be pursuing it.”

https://www.cnbc.com/2018/09/05/bill-heinecke-gave-up-us-citizenship-to-become-a-thailand-billionaire.html 

In order to defend the enemies successfully, some construction units were built to form the complete and solid Great Wall of China defense system in addition to the walls, like passes to station troops and beacon towers to deliver messages when enemies approached.

Along the Great Wall of China there are many passes, where soldiers or troops used to station, like Juyongguan Pass, Shanhaiguan Pass and Jiayuguan Pass. When there was a battle, they could move via the wall to the battle site in no time. To strengthen the defensive ability of the passes, defensive towns and other military units with soldiers were set nearby.

For instance, in the Ming Dynasty (1368 – 1644 AD), there were eleven defensive towns with troops set along the Great Wall. These towns were all built with thick bricks and stones surrounded by quite high walls, which were easy to hold but hard to attack. Here is a list of troops’ distribution conditions in the Ming Dynasty.

Defensive Units     Number of Soldiers   
Town         3,000 soldiers or according to the actual military conditions   
Road Town     More than 12,000 soldiers   
Wei Suo         5,600 soldiers   
Qian Hu Suo     1,120 soldiers   
Bai Hu Suo     112 soldiers   
Zong Qi         More than 50 soldiers   
Fen Qi         About a dozen

As early as in the Zhou Dynasty (1046 – 256 BC), the method of using beacon towers to deliver message were already in operation. As a primary communication media, beacon towers made a great contribution to the ancient military battles.

How were messages sent along the Great Wall? The beacons towers were built a certain distance along the defense line, and firewood was put in the towers. These towers were usually built on relatively high sites, which were easy for the soldiers to observe the enemies’ situation.
 

When the soldiers found the enemies moving closer, they would burn the firewood piece by piece to send military signals with fire or smoke, which could warn the troops. They usually used smoke in the day time and fire at night.

Beacon Tower Signal Rules in the Ming Dynasty:

Day                                                       Night                                  Number of Enemies

One smoke torch, one cannon signal        Fire torch, one cannon signal            About 100   
Two smoke torch, two cannon signal       Fire torch, two cannon signal            About 500   
Three smoke torch, three cannon signal   Fire torch, three cannon signal       About 1,000   
Four smoke torch, four cannon signal      Fire torch, four cannon signal         About 5,000   
Five smoke torch, five cannon signal       Fire torch, five cannon signal        About 10,000

Apart from the beacon tower signal system, there is another important post system on land along the Great Wall, which consists of post towns, delivery stations and post houses, providing accommodation and horses for the officers who deliver the messages, as well as the safe guard for the military supplies.
 

It is roughly estimated that there are more than 10,000 watchtowers along the Great Wall of China. The exact number is hard to figure out, since the walls were built in different periods and some sections were already destroyed.

Due to the huge length of the Great Wall of China, it is impossible to set soldiers along the every inch of it. So the soldiers usually patrolled on the top of the wall to guard the Great Wall of China. The passages on the top of the wall were usually constructed widely.

 

During the battles, the broad passages also make a great contribution on troop’s movement and supplies’ delivery at the highest speed; also, the wall itself is a protection for soldiers from direct attack by enemies.

How did meng jiangnu bring down a section of the wall? When she went to the wall, she was told that her husband was dead. Then she started to cry loudly. Suddenly, the wall collapsed. Because when she cried on the wall a part collapsed revealing where her husband was buried.

How much stone was used to construct the wall? Tens of thousands of stones from the nearby mountans were carrioed to construct the Great Wall. a lot of stone was use it is said 3 million stones were used.

I dont get why they call the great wall of china "the largest grave yard"? im so confuzled. does anyone know why they call it that??? please reply. im so confused!

It is called the largest graveyard in the world because thousands of people died while building it. All the people who died { believe me there were quiet a lot} were buried inside the wall and the construction kept going.

It's called the largest graveyard because over a million people worked to build it and 1/4 of those people died while working so they were all buried into the wall. It wass 2 to tree million that died.  

https://www.travelchinaguide.com/china_great_wall/construction/fortifications.htm

 

The majority of the construction of the original Great Wall was done during the Qin Dynasty under Emperor Qin Shi Huang. He ordered fortifications or walls to be built connecting previously existing shorter stretches of walls to defend the Qin’s northern border from the Xiongnu Confederation.

Keep in mind that this was around 200 B.C., so constructions methods were very crude and there were no bricks; workers used local resources to construct the walls (i.e. in mountains regions they used stone, in plains they used rammed earth).

 

Constructing walls was hard labor, and hundreds of thousands died. Historical documentation from later Dynasties claim that there were bodies within the Great Wall; however the bodies weren’t exactly “used for the insides.”

The workers lacked to manpower to dig graves for the deceased workers, so they buried the bodies within the rammed earth, stone, etc. But because the Qin Dynasty have practically all been eroded away, and the succeeding Han Dynasty’s little remaining segments of the Great Wall do not have any dead bodies, it is unclear whether there were actually dead bodies in the original Great Wall.
 

In the much later Ming Dynasty, long segments of the Great Wall were reconstructed, this time with bricks, but new technological advances made construction much easier, and less people died.
 

It is not. Chinese education is typically ready to point out the cruelties of feudal or pre-libration times, and I did not read this anywhere (not that my education there was extensive).

It does not make sense to leave dead bodies in walls. It will weaken the structure itself when the body decomposes. It will demoralize the people building the wall and later guarding the wall. Chinese culture regards the desecration of the dead as taboo, and disrespecting the dead that way (instead of providing a proper burial) will bring you bad luck and retribution from the dead.

It’s a myth. A body decaying inside the wall would create a cavity - an obvious weakness in the construction. If the bodies of dead workers were used on a larger scale, the wall would either deform, or even collapse under its own weight. The most probable cause of the myth is that bodies of the workers, who were brought from remote places in China, were never returned home.

If there is it should have been discovered by now. Whoever has built anything should know a wall with a body in it will not hold for many years. I think the only case I am aware of in history is the built of “???” (Tongwancheng). Tongwancheng - Wikipedia During the building of the city, the quality control went like this.
 

The officer would strike the wall with a chisel. If the chisel went in 1 inch then the supervisor for this part of the wall would be killed and buried inside. The name of the city can be translated in a very cool way “One city that rules them all” haha. It fell because someone didnt lock the door…..

Absolutely there are bodies inside the Great Wall of China. It does not take a great detective to see this based on the writings and documentations of the orders to not waste any material including the bodies of those who were exiled and sentenced to work on the project. There are numerous references to this policy in the Great Library located in Beijing.

Nanjing has a fascinating history, delicious food and plenty of relaxing, shaded parks to visit. It's also a good 'starter' city if you've never been to China before, since it's not as large as Beijing or Shanghai, but large enough you won't run out of things to do.

My visit to Nanjing marked my third visit to China, and also the most personal visit. I went with my friend Yuting who was born in Nanjing and raised there during his early elementary school days. Since I was shown around by a 'local,' and his family, I got to see more sides of Nanjing than a typical visitor probably would.

If you're a foreigner visiting Nanjing by yourself though, it's really easy to get off the beaten path. All you have to do is keep your eyes open and follow streets that peek your interest.

For example, one day after ordering custard buns in Nanjing, Yuting and I wandered into a nearby art university. We had no idea it was there, but when we saw it we couldn't resist exploring. Looking back at the photos from our week in Nanjing, the ones from the university are some of my favorites.

   

A giant city wall used to wrap around the entire city of Nanjing. Today, the majority of it is still intact and can be visited by the public. Nanjing has been the capital city of China multiple times throughout history - the most recent of those times lasting up until 1937. Nanjing is home to a massive, forested park called the Zhongshan Scenic Area with over 200 culture spots to see.

   

One of Nanjing's signature dishes is salted duck (a.k.a. Yánshui ya). Give it a try during your visit! Make sure you check the weather! Nanjing gets incredibly hot and humid in the summer, and freezing cold in the winter.

The main airport in Nanjing is about 45 min - 1 hr away from the city center by car. For information on taxi services and shuttles from the airport, check out this article. Many of the large parks and museums in Nanjing require you to show your passport upon entry. Make sure to have yours on you or you may run into problems seeing the park/exhibit. If you have time, check out Shanghai while you're in Nanjing. It's only 70 minutes

https://www.wolvesandwaterfalls.com/travel-blog/20-photos-to-inspire-you-to-visit-nanjing

BIDONG, Malaysia–In June 1980, my father and I escaped from Vietnam in search for freedom but most importantly, for a better life for us and a brighter future for me. At the time, I was only 13 and scared. I didn’t know if I ever would see my mother, sister and brother again.

After four horrific days in the ocean and enduring the brutality of Thailand pirates, we finally reached Terengganu, Malaysia. There, we were quickly transferred to a small island called Pulau Bidong, one of many small islands that belong to the state of Terengganu.

In 1978, when the number of Vietnamese refugees hit a peak, thousands of so-called Vietnamese “boat people” reached the shorelines of Malaysia every day. There weren’t enough camps to house so many boat people, so the federal government of Malaysia decided to temporarily take custody of Bidong from the state of Terengganu.

The island officially opened as a refugee camp on Aug. 8, 1978, and this was where “Bidongers” stayed and waited to be resettled to another country. On any given day, Bidong had at least 20,000 residents and sometimes reached 40,000.

By the time it closed in 1991, the island had welcomed more than 250,000 boat people and delivered 2,000-plus babies at Sick Bay Hospital. After the final refugee left the island on Oct. 30, 1991, the camp closed permanently and Pulau Bidong was handed back to the state of Terengganu.

 

If you ask Bidongers how they feel about Pulau Bidong, they would tell you that Bidong is a very special place that they will never forget. Even though boat people called it Bidong Bi Dat — tragic Bidong — most would tell you that it was anything but tragic.

 

Other words people would use to describe Bidong were: freedom, hope, future, peaceful, beauty or unforgettable. If you ask Bidongers if they ever would want to return for a visit, I am sure the majority would love to take the trip.

For many years after the close of Pulau Bidong refugee camp, the island became deserted. All buildings, long houses and huts had been demolished. Only fishermen stopped by for a break and took shower using wells left behind by Bidongers. Since 1999, only a few Bidongers have made it back to the island for a visit. A boat ride from Terengganu to Pulau Bidong takes about 30 to 40 minutes.
 

A visitor can get a tour package that includes a hotel stay and a day tour to the island from local tour operators or just go to the city of Merang — which once was a landing zone for many boat people, including me — and hire a small boat with a skipper who would be happy to take them to the island for a very reasonable fee. That was exactly what I did, and this is my story of my journey back to the island that I called home 35 years ago.

Like many other Bidongers, I dreamed that one day I could take my family to Pulau Bidong for a visit. And like them, I wished my children could see it with their own eyes and experience how we managed to live without TVs, cell phones and iPads for a long time.

I searched for years but wasn’t able to find a way to get to Bidong until recently when I joined a group on Facebook called Pulau Bidong Alumni.  The group’s main purpose was to help Bidongers reconnect with long-lost friends, families or relatives, but it also was for members to post photos of Bidong and share memories among one another.

After I joined the group, I was introduced to a member who was neither a Bidonger nor a Vietnamese boat person. He was a Malaysian man who lived in Merang as a young boy. His name is Anuar Ngah, and he has much love and passion for the Vietnamese boat people —  especially Bidongers — because he had witnessed boat people landing on the shores of Merang near his house and immediately taken to Pulau Bidong by boats.

 

He often walked along the beach, stared at the island, and wondered what would happen to those boat people. So he began to travel frequently to the island in recent years to learn more about Bidong and whatever history boat people left behind. As his love for Bidong grew, he started to take a few members of the alumni group back to Bidong for a visit.

In August. I joined a group of 47 Bidongers from Australia, Canada and the United States to visit the island. Anuar drove us five hours across the mountains from Kuala Lumpur, Malaysia, to Terengganu. Through the travels, I realized I had met a wonderful person in Anuar.  We had so many things in common, and he made sure I had the time of my life in Malaysia.

The next morning, Anuar took me to the fishing village of Merang for breakfast and to meet the fishermen who used to witness boat people landing on the shore of Merang. They told me that every day, they would see boats came to shore. The boats then were deliberately sunk a few meters from shore, forcing people to swim to shore. The fishermen would run to the beach to help pull the weak ones to shore and give them food and water before calling the authorities.

 

I also met Rohani Bin Abdullah — known to the locals as Pok Anan.– one of the fishermen who used to take boat people from Merang to Pulau Bidong. He is 61 now, and he told me that when he was a fisherman in his late 20s, he didn’t make much money by fishing.

 

He made just enough to feed his family until the government called for the assistance of fishermen. If they had boats, they could load people on the boats and take them to Pulau Bidong for about $15 U.S. a trip. He ran about four trips a day for three months straight to deliver boat people to Bidong.

He made the kind of money that fishermen could never make. I wanted to ask him to take me to Bidong for one final visit, but he has retired and no longer owned a boat. But while eating breakfast, I met the local fishermen from the fishing village of Merang, and we took a boat ride to Pulau Bidong.
 

We hired a 57-year-old fisherman named Jantan bin Abdullah and paid him 300 Ringgit — about $75 — for a whole day.  He was happy to take us anywhere we wanted to go because at his age, he would be lucky to make 300 Ringgit in a week.

The water was calm in the early morning so Jantan was able to go almost full speed, taking us to the island in less than 30 minutes.  As we got farther out to sea, my memory of the 1980s “great escape” suddenly came back, and I was nervous for a moment.

 

When I saw a big ship in the distance, I thought about how Thailand pirate ships would approach on my trip to Bidong 35 years ago. A few pirates would climb aboard my small boat, swinging their machete in the direction of the boat people. Luckily the big ship was getting smaller and smaller and disappeared on the horizon.

After the uneventful ride on a small boat, we finally reached Pulau Bidong.  Before we docked on the newly constructed jetty, I glanced around the island, snapped a few pictures, took a deep breath of fresh air, and began to process all the good memories I had during my six-month stay.
 

I got goosebumps when I stepped on the jetty, thinking back to the day I first stepped on the old jetty 35 years ago with security personnel telling us to line up, members of the United Nations of High Commissioner for Refugees (UNHCR) greeting us with speeches I didn’t understand, and members of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society (MRCS) passing out snacks, water and some clothes. I also remembered looking toward the beach, where a crowd of Bidongers anxiously waited to see if they could recognize any of us new Bidongers.

All of those images in my head are now long gone. The old jetty is gone. No one greeted us, except the fishermen who stopped for a break. The loud noise on the beach that came from Bidongers asking us where we sailed out of Vietnam had been replaced by the sound of the ocean waves gently crashing onto the soft white sand. All the makeshift huts, the longhouse, and the Sick Bay Hospital near the jetty were thee no more.  All had been replaced by tall trees and bushes.

As I exited the jetty and walked toward Zone G, where I had lived for six months under a two-story hut, I met a group of Vietnamese who had built a small hut and had been living there for a while. I approached them and started asking questions.

 

To my surprise, they said they were construction workers from Hanoi. They were hired by a Vietnamese contractor and had been there for two months laying the foundations for a couple of buildings. One was going to be a church and the other was going to be public toilets. I asked if they knew who the investors were and learned the investors traveled the world from site to site to build whatever the contractor asked them to do.

 

The only rumor they had heard was that there was a group of investors from Australia who wanted to buy parts of the island to build a resort.
 

In contrast, the officials from the state of Terengganu said there had been no talk about building a resort on the island. They wanted to preserve the relics and whatever structures were left behind by Bidongers and turn the island back to its pre-1978 pristine condition.

The Vietnamese workers invited me to stay for some tea so I did not hesitate.  As we sat in the little hut drinking tea, I started asking them questions regarding their lives, jobs and impressions of Pulau Bidong. They told me there were about 30 of them from Hanoi and most of them were in the 20s and 30s.  Some brought their spouses along to cook or do other light chores.

 

They traveled in groups anywhere the boss took them, and they worked throughout the year without a break. They earn about $25 U.S. per day — much more than what they could get in Vietnam.  They were homesick but because of the money, they just tried to keep busy so that they didn’t have time to think about home.

Their impressions of Bidong were very depressing. There was nothing for them to do here after work.  Interestingly, they had a generator for electricity and smart phones to keep them informed of current events or to watch movies online.

After tea and a bowl of beef noodles offered to us by the Vietnamese workers, the delegate of 47 Bidongers from the U.S., Canada and Australia finally arrived in two large boats.  With a full stomach, I was ready to venture with the group around the island.  The group also brought in six Buddhist monks from Australia and a priest from the U.S.

 

While the Buddhist monks prayed at the jetty, I followed the delegate up to the Religious Hill (Doi Ton Giao) where a Buddhist temple, a Cao Dai temple, a Catholic church and a few monuments once covered the entire hill top.  The only thing left standing from the church was the back wall with the crucifix attached to it.

Father Tuan Pham, who is the current pastor of the Holy Spirit Church in Fountain Valley, Calif., began a mass with about a dozen Catholic members.  The Buddhist temple was gone except for the statue of Buddha, which remained standing — minus its head. There was a statue of an old man pulling his daughter out of the ocean but it had been vandalized by local fishermen.

This statue was the most symbolic piece of art on Pulau Bidong because it symbolized the will, the power and the endurance every boat person had to have to survive the search for freedom.
 

Many people have sent letters to the officials of the state of Terengganu for permission to repair the statue with their own money.  State officials are still reluctant to allow the repair because Malaysia has strong ties with the Vietnam government, which has asked for the destruction of all things related to boat people.

The only monuments still intact were the artificial boat and the sails near the Buddhist temple to commemorate those who made the journey as well as to pay tribute to those who gave their lives at sea in search for freedom.  Also, there were cemeteries on the hill. Some graves had been dug up; others had been repainted by a group of Bidongers who had volunteered to come in 2013.

 

I continued to follow the delegates through Zone C and Zone F.  All the group members were very emotional when they talked about what they used to do around a specific area.  Some shed tears as they thought about the times they were here, and some shared happy memories with laughter.

As I departed Pulau Bidong and headed back to Merang, I kept looking back at the island feeling very happy and satisfied with what I expected to see and what I saw. The cool breeze hit my face, and I felt like the souls were calling me from the graves up on the hill to invite everyone to come back and visit them more often. Chills started running down my spine as I looked back at the hill.  I nodded to them with a promise to send their message to the world.

Through one of my new friends, I met Tok Teng Sai, a former chairman of the Malaysian Red Crescent Society who was responsible for bringing food, water, clothing and whatever else the boat people needed to Bidong.  We shared breakfast — and stories — with him. He said the reason we had chicken every week was because of him.

 

He was criticized for buying all chicken available in Malaysia and sending them to Bidong for the refugees; I thanked him on behalf of all the boat people who stayed on the island for his tireless efforts and dedications in supporting the refugees at Pulau Bidong.

I also shared with the people I met the story of Orange County and its large population of Vietnamese. I proudly told them that we even have two Vietnamese mayors in Orange County. To their delights, they wanted me to send a message to the Vietnamese community everywhere in the world and specifically here in Orange County that they sincerely invite all Vietnamese abroad, especially all Bidongers and their families, to visit the state of Terengganu and Pulau Bidong.

It was especially important to him for us to tell the next generation about the history of boat people and this magnificent island. Deputy Director Azmi also added that even many Malaysians don’t know that Pulau Bidong existed.

 

One thing he said he hoped to accomplish was the establishment of a “friendship” relationship with the cities of Westminster and Garden Grove, where he believes many Vietnamese have left their marks on his beloved Pulau Bidong. I agreed to share the idea when I got home, and off I went to the airport. 

https://www.nguoi-viet.com/nguoi-viet-english/Bidong-Revisited-After-35-Years-3021/

 

Original question: Was it just luck that the Founding fathers decided to choose a Presidential democracy instead of a parliamentary one?

Luck had nothing to do with it. As anyone who has actually studied American and European history of the time would know. The Founders had just won, at great expense of blood and treasure, their freedom from the extremely oppressive and unjust rule by a Parliamentary Government. They would have been beyond stupid to then impose the same form of government on themselves.

The Founders were also an amazing assembly of some of the most literate and well-educated men of all time, in one place and with one goal, to establish a new form of government that would not repeat the injustices and tyranny of monarchies that were the virtually universal form of government in Western Europe for centuries, nor the “tyranny of the majority” which is the mob rule of democacy, where 50.1% can viciously oppress the 49.9% who find themselves in the minority. Woe be to you if you are on the wrong side of the mob!

They had to create something new, and better. They were well familiar with the philosophical arguments of Thomas Hobbes, who believed that people must give up their rights to a controlling government which will keep order by force, versus John Locke and Jean-Jacques Rousseau who believed in the innate human rights and liberties of individuals, and where government must be a minimal entity existing by social contract among people who agree to certain rules of order and procedures, and where the purpose of government is administration of those procedures and protection of the rights of individuals.

What they came up with, a Constitutional Federal Republic, was a new form of government never before seen by man. The Constitution affirmed the rights of We the People, and provided for a STRICTLY LIMITED role of government to do things like negotiate treaties and trade agreements, manage ports and forts, and adjudicate disputes between individual States.

 

ALL OTHER RIGHTS AND AUTHORITY BELONG TO THE STATES AND TO THE PEOPLE, under the Tenth Amendment. Democracy is nowhere established as our form of government. This form of government has made the United States the undisputed world leader in protecting the Liberties of its citizens, economic prosperity, and a shining example to other nations around the world who have copied, more or less, our form of government.

 

And it has survived and prospered for a quarter of a millennium so far, despite the best efforts of certain political factions which seek to erode and circumvent the Constitution to allow them to accumulate unwarranted power and wealth. You know who you are. Luck had nothing to do with it. The genius, education, wisdom, and integrity of the Founders deserve all the credit.

 

The more I study US history and the US government then the more faults become obvious. Basically, I conclude that the US is very lucky to have survived as long as it has. Although I’m not sure that “luck” is the right word in light of how horrible the Civil War was.

What I have learned is they failed with the first constitution called the “Articles of Confederation”. In a desperate attempt to salvage the nation and at the same time appease inner tensions of the alliance somehow they came up with a federal presidential republic that worked.
 

But it only worked because it was based on philosophical speculation of enlightenment philosophers of Europe. The concepts were respected and the fashion of thinking people around the world. But no one did any deep analysis in any critical sense until a hundred years later.

Before the US Civil War the US was a only a banana republic with an agricultural society based on slavery. Then along comes Abraham Lincoln, the true founder of modern America. Lincoln established policies that formed the foundation of a modern industrial society that twenty years later surpassed the output of the first industrial nation in the world - Great Britain.

Today, we can see the British engineered a great democracy around the Westminster model of parliamentary government. To most Americans, the British form of democratic government is shocking, frightening, and fearful for having actual real honest democracy. Based on observation you have to say that the majority of today’s Americans would chose old King George III before parliamentary government.

The founding fathers were lucky only in the sense of having the best propaganda to elevate them above their actual mediocre stations in life (slave owners).

The founders had one major goal which was to not imitate any aspect of the British form of government and to avoid any possibility of ever becoming another monarchy. The founders found the idea of a republic to be ideal because it is the very definition of a kingless society without hereditary aristocrats. The founders were all children of the Enlightenment Movement and most spent their youths learning about the new ideas as exciting possibilities.

Among those ideas were those expressed by the French philosopher Montesquieu who speculated that a better form of government would consist of three independent branches rather than only two branches like the British parliamentary system. The founders liked Montesquieu’s rational and at the same time they liked an alternative to the British form of government as a mark of rejection.

 

The long answer is that the framers of the US constitution wanted divided sovereignty. They wanted a separation of powers. Some powers would be vested in the legislative branch, others in the judicial branch, and yet others in the administration.

 

This would prevent any one branch from having unchecked ability to exercise its will. The framers also, incidentally, wanted powers divided between the federal and state governments. For example, the federal government has enumerated powers; all powers not in their enumerated powers, become states prerogatives.

In a parliamentary system, power is vested in the party that attains a majority. The framers did not like this. All of this resulted in part from the framers having a sort of dismal view of human nature. They did not trust in benevolent monarchy or even the benevolence of the majority. They wanted a huge number of formal checks in place to prevent tyranny.

As Federalist Papers (esp number 9) shows, there were arguments in favor of divided powers. Federalist 51 is really the best document for this in my opinion. You might also check out the Anti-Federalist Papers.

In contrast to the US system, both monarchies and modern parliamentary systems do not apportion sovereignty between branches. Parliamentary systems do not have a separate executive. Rather, executive powers rest with leaders drawn from the parliament (the prime minister and his/her cabinet).

 

This means that there is no separate executive branch to counterbalance a potential tyranny of the majority in the legislative branch (or vice versa). “Ambition is not made to counteract ambition,” to borrow a phrase from Federalist 51.

TL;DR: Because the founders wanted a separation of powers, the US has a presidential system of government with checks and balances. Who were the founding fathers of republic? Did our founding fathers establish a two party system of government?

   

What reason did the Founding Fathers have for not giving women the right to vote when the Republic was first created in 1791? Why didn't the Founding Fathers want us to vote?  Did the American Founding Fathers describe the republic as a “democracy”?

The basic structure of government described in the US constitution was inspired, in many respects, by the British constitution. And the British constitution in the late 18th century was more like a constitutional presidential monarchy than the constitutional parliamentary monarchy it is today.

In particular, the principle that the executive required the confidence of the legislature to govern was not yet established. It was thought a useful idea to follow, since not a lot could realistically get done without it, but it was not yet a fixed rule.

 

The King still had a great deal of influence over who he appointed Prime Minister and what their policies would be, and there were more than a few Prime Ministers who stayed in office in spire of a hostile Parliament, if they continued to have the support of the King.

Essentially, what the US did was come up with a system for electing their king, rather than it being hereditary; merge the now seemingly obsolete post of Prime Minister back into it; and replace the House of Lords with something more representative of the states. Besides that, the US federal government today is still remarkably similar to what the British government was doing in the 17th and 18th centuries.

It is a Democratic Republic and yes, they were very lucky. While collectively they were among the greatest brain trust ever assembled, the disagreed viciously. What they created never existed before. They had no model to follow and nothing to indicate if a concept was good or bad.
 

The issue of slavery alone could have torn everything apart. Their original idea of choosing a Vice President as the person who received the second greatest number of electoral votes is an example of one of their many really bad ideas. So if you believe that luck exists, then the founding fathers were very lucky.

 

Because they had just finished successfully rebelling against and gaining independence from a parliamentary republic. The conclusion was implicit that if a parliamentary republic could be so badly flawed that it justified an armed rebellion in order win free of it, then it was probably not a great idea to then immediately adopt that as the succeeding form of government.
 

So they tried to craft a form of government that they hoped would have better safeguards against abuses. Whether they succeeded or failed is a whole different question, however.

 

The Confederation that just barely made it through the Revolutionary war was a Parliamentary Republican government… with out any power except to make recommendations. Plenty of experience showed that a legislature can never do anything quickly… everything has to be talked out, everyone wants to have their say… and that is when they are all on hand to make a decision.
 

A strong executive is required to make the day to day decisions and carry out the legislative laws and policies. The US Constitution has that, yet separates the powers of each branch so that no branch can control the government, and each keeps check on the others. A Parliamentary government has few checks on the legislature’s power… Tyranny of the majority of the moment.
 

They wanted a much weaker central government than the parliamentary system most familiar to them, Great Britain. But at the same time they wanted a system stronger than the Articles of Confederation they were then living under, with something like today’s European Commission collectively in charge.
 

So they went for a presidential system to provide strong administration of policies set by a highly fragmented, decentralized and checked-and-balanced Congress.

Wow, has anyone here actually studied history and political science? The Articles of Confederation were effectively a parliament that elected a leader. Each state had one vote.

 

It was such a mess that they wrote the Constitution to correct it. Neither actually, the founders specifically created a Constitutional republic, not a democracy. Unlike the UK, the founders wanted a codified Constitution which the UK still lacks.

Short Answer: The Constitution was written by one of the best collections of political minds ever put in one place with some of the most well-reasoned debates ever. Read the Federalist and Anti-Federalist papers for more education on the subject, but no, there was no luck or accident involved.

Can light affect your health? In this interview, Dr. Alexander Wunsch, a world class expert on photobiology, shares the hidden dangers of light-emitting diode (LED) lighting that most people are completely unaware of.

In fact, this could potentially be one of the most important video interviews I've done, as it has enormous impacts — not only on preventing blindness as you age but it is also a pervasive hidden risk factor for sabotaging your health.

Largely as a result of energy efficiency, there's been a major transition to using LED as a primary indoor light source. In this regard, it worked like a charm, reducing energy requirements by as much as 95 percent compared to incandescent thermal analog sources of lighting.

However, the heat generated by incandescent light bulbs, which is infrared radiation, is actually beneficial to your health, and hence worth the extra cost.

There are major downsides to LEDs that are not fully appreciated. LED lighting may actually be one of the most important, non-native EMF radiation exposures you're exposed to on a daily basis.

If you chose to ignore these new insights, it can have very serious long-term ramifications. It could lead to age-related macular degeneration (AMD), which is the leading cause of blindness in the United States and elsewhere.

Other health problems rooted in mitochondrial dysfunction may also be exacerbated, and these run the gamut from metabolic disorder to cancer.

The definition of light, as applied to artificial light sources, is rather distinct. Visible light is only between 400 nanometers (nm) and 780 nm, but "light" is actually more than just what your eye can perceive. As explained by Wunsch:

   
"When we look at sunlight, we have a much broader spectral range, from somewhere around 300 nm up to 2,000 nm or so. For our energy efficiency calculation, it makes a big difference if we are talking about this broad natural range or if we are only talking about … vision performance

   

[T]he definition that we are only looking at the visible part of the spectrum [given in the 1930s] … led to the development of energy-efficient light sources like the fluorescent lamps or what we have nowadays, the LED light sources, because they are only energy efficient as long as you take the visible part of the spectrum [into account] …

   

[F]or example, [lamps providing] phototherapy with red light can be used in medical therapy to increase blood circulation, and this is a part we are taking away as long as we only look at the visible part.

   

Physicists think that infrared radiation is just thermal waste. But from the viewpoint of a physician, this is absolutely not true; in the last 30 years there have been hundreds of scientific papers published on the beneficial aspects of a certain part in the spectrum, which is called near-infrared or infrared-A."

You cannot feel near-infrared as heat, and you cannot see it, but it has a major beneficial impact in terms of health. Near-infrared is what's missing in non-thermal artificial light sources like LED.

There's also a difference between analog and digital forms of light sources, and this difference is another part of the complexity. In essence, there are two separate but related issues: the analog versus digital light source problem, and the spectral wavelength differences.

Starting with the latter, when you look at the rainbow spectrum, the visible part of light ends in red. Infrared-A or near-infrared is the beginning of the invisible light spectrum following red. This in turn is followed by infrared-B (mid-infrared) and infrared-C (far-infrared).

While they cannot be seen, the mid- and far-infrared range can be felt as heat. This does not apply to infrared-A, however, which has a wavelength between 700 and 1,500 nm.

"Here you have only very low absorption by water molecules, and this is the reason why radiation has a very high transmittance," Wunsch says.

"In other words, it penetrates very deeply into your tissue, so the energy distributes in a large tissue volume. This near-infrared A is not heating up the tissue so you will not feel directly any effect of heat.

This significantly changes when we increase the wavelength, let's say, to 2,000 nm. Here we are in the infrared-B range and this already is felt as heat. And from 3,000 nm on to the longer wavelength, we have almost full absorption, mainly by the water molecule, and this is [felt as] heating."

The near-infrared range affects your health in a number of important ways. For example, it helps prime the cells in your retina for repair and regenerate.

Since LEDs have virtually no infrared and an excess of blue light that generates reactive oxygen species (ROS), this explains why LEDs are so harmful for your eyes and overall health.

Chromophores are molecules that absorb light. There's an optical tissue window that ranges from 600 to 1,400 nm, which means it is almost completely covered by the infrared-A part of the spectrum. This optical tissue window allows the radiation to penetrate several centimeters or at least an inch or more into the tissue.

Chromophores are found in your mitochondria and in activated water molecules. In your mitochondria, there's also a specific molecule called cytochrome c oxidase, which is involved in the energy production within the mitochondria. Adenosine triphosphate (ATP) — cellular energy — is the end product.

ATP is the fuel your cells need for all of their varied functions, including ion transport, synthesizing and metabolism. Remarkably, your body produces your body weight in ATP every day. And, while you can survive for several minutes without oxygen, were all ATP production to suddenly stop, you'd die within 15 seconds.

This is why this issue of lighting is so important. Light is a sorely misunderstood and overlooked part of the equation for biological energy production, specifically at the mitochondrial ATP level. As further explained by Wunsch:

"The cytochrome c oxidase, which is this [light] absorbing molecule, is the last step before the ATP is finally produced in the mitochondria. Here we have this tipping point where light in a wavelength range between 570 nm and 850 nm is able to boost energy production, especially in cells when energy production is depleted …

We know today that many signs of aging, for example, are the consequence of hampered mitochondrial functioning, and so we have a very interesting … tool to enhance the energy status in our cells, in the mitochondria in our cells, and not only on the surface but also in the depths … of the tissue. This is one important aspect and there are hundreds of papers published on these positive effects …

Infrared saunas are another magnificent way to nourish your body with near-infrared light. But not just ANY infrared sauna. Most offer only FAR-infrared and are not full spectrum. Most also emit dangerous non-native EMFs. So you need one that emits low or no non-native EMFs.

After searching for a long time I finally found a near perfect one and hope to have it made to my customized specs in a few months. And it should be significantly less than $1,000. So stay tuned for this exciting development.

 

These beneficial effects can be seen in wound healing and anti-aging procedures where near-infrared is employed. Since the cytochrome c oxidase is responsible for an increased production of ATP, the cell has a better supply of energy, which allows it to perform better, and this is true no matter where the cell resides.

This means liver cells with more ATP will be able to detoxify your body more efficiently; fibroblasts in your skin will be able to synthesize more collagen fibers and so on, because ATP is crucial for all cellular functions. Wunsch expands on this even more in the lecture above.

According to Wunsch, as little as one-third of the energy your body requires for maintaining the thermal equilibrium comes from the food you eat. The electrons transferred from the food, primarily the fats and the carbohydrates, are ultimately transferred to oxygen and generate ATP. The more near infrared you get, the less nutritional energy is required for maintaining thermal homeostasis.

That said, a differentiation is in order. Most of the METABOLICALLY USED energy does come from food. But there is a thermodynamic aspect to it as well. Maintaining a normal body temperature (37 degrees C or 98.6 degrees F) involves two mechanisms: Energy production in your mitochondria from food, and photonic energy (near-infrared radiation from sunlight and incandescent light bulbs) that is able to penetrate deeply into your tissue, even through clothing.

   

"The radiation can enter your body and then be transformed into longer wavelengths in the infrared part. They are very important for supporting the temperature level, the thermal energy level, of our body which is … a very crucial aspect. A lot of energy comes in the form of radiation and this is supporting our thermal balance," Wunsch explains.

The key take-home message here is that your body's energy production involves not just food intake. You also need exposure to certain wavelengths of light in order for your metabolism to function optimally. This is yet another reason why sun exposure is so vitally important for optimal health.

LED lamps are a form of digital non-thermal lighting whereas incandescent light bulbs and halogens are analog thermal light sources.

"For a color changing system you have three different LEDs, a red, a green and a blue LED, and the intensity of these three colored channels has to be changed in order to achieve different color use, which is perceived by the eye in the end. The control of the intensity output of an LED is realized in a digital manner because it's very difficult to have a low intensity in many different steps.

The dimming of LEDs is realized by a so-called pulse-width modulation, which means the LEDs switch on to the full intensity and then they fully switch off, and then they switch on again. So we have the constant on and off in frequencies, which are higher than our eyes are able to discriminate. But on the cellular level, it is still perceivable for the cells …

[T]his causes a flicker, which is not perceivable for let's say 90 percent of the population. But it's still biologically active. And flicker is something that is very harmful to your [biology]."

You've likely experienced this if you're old enough to recall the older TVs that had a very visible and intense flicker. Modern flat screens do not have this perceptible flicker, but they're still switching on and off. Scientists are now trying to develop systems capable of transmitting information via high-frequency flicker in the LED lighting to replace the wireless LAN system. According to Wunsch, this is a very bad idea, from a health perspective.

"I call these LEDs Trojan horses because they appear so practical to us. They appear to have so many advantages. They save energy; are solid state and very robust,. So we invited them into our homes. But we are not aware that they have many stealth health-robbing properties, which are harmful to your biology, harmful to your mental health, harmful to your retinal health, and also harmful to your hormonal or endocrine health," he says.

Unfortunately, the use of LEDs has been mandated by federal policy in both the U.S. and much of Europe, in an attempt to conserve energy. While inarguably effective in that regard, the biological impact of these bulbs has been completely ignored, and by mandating them, options have been restricted.

Understanding how LEDs can harm your health begins with the recognition that light emitted from an LED bulb is of a different quality than a natural light source. Normally, a natural light source is a black body radiator that gives off all kinds of wavelengths in a more or less continuous manner.

LEDs are fluorescent lamps, consisting of a blue LED, a driver LED, and a fluorescent sheet that covers the blue LED, transforming part of the blue light into longer wavelengths, thereby creating a yellowish light. The yellowish light from the fluorescent layer combines together with the residual blue light to a kind of whitish light, a large portion of which is an aggressive blue light.

"Blue has the highest energy in the visible part of the spectrum and produces, infuses, the production of ROS, of oxidative stress," he says.

"The blue light causes ROS in your tissue, and this stress needs to be balanced with near-infrared that is not present in LEDs. We need even more regeneration from blue light, but the regenerative part of the spectrum is not found in the blue, in the short wavelength, part. It's found in the long wavelength part, in the red and the near-infrared. So tissue regeneration and tissue repair results from the wavelengths that are not present in an LED spectrum.

We have increased stress on the short wavelength part and we have reduced regeneration and repair on the long wavelength part. This is the primary problem … [W]e don't have this kind of light quality in nature. This has consequences. The stress has consequences in the retina; it has consequences in our endocrine system."

You probably know by now that blue light in the evening reduces melatonin production in your pineal gland. But you also have cells in your retina that are responsible for producing melatonin in order to regenerate the retina during the night.

If you use LED lights after sunset, you reduce the regenerative and restoring capacities of your eyes. Needless to say, with less regeneration you end up with degeneration. In this case, the degeneration can lead to AMD, which is the primary cause of blindness among the elderly.
 

However, and this is that most fail to appreciate, LED light exposure that is not balanced with full sunlight loaded with the red parts of the spectrum is always damaging to your biology. Just more so at night.

So, to summarize, the main problem with LEDs is the fact that they emit primarily blue wavelengths and lack the counterbalancing healing and regenerative near-infrared frequencies. They have very little red in them, and no infrared, which is the wavelength required for repair and regeneration.

When you use these aggressive lower frequencies — blue light — it creates ROS that, when generated in excess, causes damage. So when using LEDs, you end up with increased damage and decreased repair and regeneration.

There's a wide range of LED lights on the market these days. Some are cool white, others are warm white, for example. The former emits higher amounts of harmful blue light. The warm LEDs can be deceptive, as they give out a warm-appearing light but do not actually have the red wavelength. The warmth comes from masking the blue with high amounts of yellow and orange.

There are also LEDs available with less blue, which are closer to the spectral distribution of incandescent lamps with regard to the blue part of the spectrum. Unfortunately, without tools to measure it, you won't know exactly what you're getting. This is in sharp contrast to an incandescent light bulb, where you know exactly what kind of light spectrum you're getting.

"With LED, the layman is not able to tell if it's a tailored spectrum where you have the blue part only masked by excessive parts of other spectral regions," Wunsch says. "There are different technologies … Soraa, for example, have violet driver LED, not blue … By their technology, the red is a little bit more emphasized compared to the standard white light fluorescent LEDs.

So there are in fact better and worse LED types around. But the spectral distribution is just one thing … We are interested in the R9, which represents the full reds. This information is sometimes given on the package. You have, for example, CRI, which is the color rendering index of 95 with an R9 of 97 or so. This is the only sign for the customer that you have a high level or a high index for the R9."

 

So, when buying LEDs, one way to get a healthier light is to look at the CRI. Sunlight is the gold standard and has a CRI of 100. So do incandescent light bulbs and candles. What you're looking for is a light that has an R9 (full red spectrum) CRI of about 97, which is the closest you'll ever get to a natural light with an LED. Another factor to look at is the color temperature. There are two different kinds of color temperature:

1. Physical color temperature, which means the temperature of your light in degrees Kelvin (K). This applies to sunlight, candlelight, incandescent lamp light and halogens. What this means is that the source itself is as hot to the touch as the color temperature given.

 

The sun, for example, which has a color temperature of 5,500 K, has a temperature of 5,500 K at its surface, were you to actually touch the sun. Incandescent lamps have a maximum of 3,000 K, as the filament would melt if the temperature got any higher.

2. Correlated color temperature. This is a measurement that tells you how the light source appears to the human eye. In other words, it is a comparative measurement. A correlated color temperature of 2,700 K means it looks the same as a natural light source with a physical color temperature of 2,700 K.

The problem here is that while such a light LOOKS the same as a natural light, it does not actually have the same quality, and your body, on the cellular level, is not fooled by what your eye sees. On a cellular level, and on the level of the retina, the majority of the light is still cold, bluish white, despite its apparent, visible warmth.

Incandescent light bulbs have a color temperature of 2,700 K whereas LEDs can go up to 6,500 K — the really bright white LED. In this case, the closer you are to incandescent, the better. Lastly, there's the digital component, which is virtually unavoidable no matter what. To determine how good or bad a particular LED is:
 

"You would have to measure somehow if the LED produces flicker or not. Two, three years ago, it would have been much easier because the camera of an older smartphone was not as high-tech equipped as they are today. With an old smartphone camera, when you look into the light source, you can see these wandering lines, so you can detect if the light source is flickering," Wunsch explains.

A simpler way would be to purchase a flicker detector, which are available fairly inexpensively. Another way to determine the flicker rate would be to use the slow motion mode on your camera. Record the light source in slow motion mode and check it for visible flickering.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100012946081017
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Unfortunately, it doesn't always work. Some newer cameras and smartphones have a built in algorithm that will detect the flicker frequency and change the shutter speed accordingly to improve the recording, thereby eliminating the interference. If your camera has this algorithm, it will not record a visible flicker even if it's there.

 

I like being on the cutting edge of technology and I quickly switched out all my incandescent bulbs for LED lighting. I now realize the enormity of my mistake, but at the time — going back almost 10 years now — I was completely unaware that it could have health consequences. Before that, I used full-spectrum fluorescents, which is equally deceptive, as it is full spectrum in name only.

I'm now convinced LED light exposure is a very serious danger, especially if you are in a room without natural light. The biological risks are somewhat mitigated if you have plenty of sunlight streaming through windows. At night, LEDs become a greater danger no matter whether you're in a windowless room or not, as there is no counterbalancing near-infrared light.

Personally, I've not swapped all my lights back to incandescent because they're such energy hogs. But all the lights I have on at night have been switched to clear incandescent bulbs without any coating that changes their beneficial wavelengths. So the take-home message of this interview is to grab a supply of the old incandescents if you can and switch back to incandescent light bulbs.

Just remember to get incandescents that are crystal clear and not coated with white to give off a cool white light. You want a 2,700 K incandescent, thermal analog light source. Actually, fragrance-free candles would be even better. Be particularly mindful to only use this type of light at night. After sunset, I also use blue-blocking glasses.

"It is definitely a good idea to keep away the short wavelengths in the evening, so after sunset. It's also a good idea not to intoxicate your environment with too much light. We know that artificial light levels at night have reached insane intensity. The candle, the intensity of the candle for example, is absolutely sufficient for orientation.

If you have to read in the evening or at night time, my personal favorite light source for reading tasks is a low-voltage incandescent halogen lamp, which is operated on a DC transformer. Direct current will eliminate all the dirty electricity and it will eliminate all the flicker.

There are transformers available where you can adjust the output between 6 volts and 12 volts. As long as it's direct current, there is no flicker, there is no dirty electricity, and you are able to dim the halogen lamp into a color temperature that is comparable to candle light even. This is the softest, the healthiest electric light you can get at the moment," Wunsch notes.

Low-voltage halogen lights are also very energy efficient — up to 100 percent more energy efficient than the standard incandescent lamp. Just be sure to operate it on DC. Incandescent lights, including halogen, can be operated at both AC and DC, but when operating on AC, you end up generating dirty electricity, Wunsch explains. On DC, you get no electrosmog with a low-voltage halogen.

When it comes to computer screens, Wunsch suggests reducing the correlated color temperature down to 2,700 K — even during the day, not just at night. Many use f.lux to do this, but I have a great surprise for you as I have found a FAR better alternative that was created by Daniel, a 22 year old Bulgarian programmer that Ben Greenfield introduced to me.

He is one of the rare people that already knew most of the information in this article. So he was using f.lux but was very frustrated with the controls. He attempted to contact them but they never got back to him. So he created a massively superior alternative called Iris.

It is free, but you'll want to pay the $2 and reward Daniel with the donation. You can purchase the $2 Iris software here. OLED screen technology is another development that may be better than conventional screens.

"[With] the OLEDs technology, I'm not sure if the color is really stable in every angle you can look at the display," Wunsch says. "But definitely, if you have the screen technology where black is really black, then you have less radiation coming into your eyes and the OLEDs technology is able to provide this.

So the high contrasts between the black and white, all the black areas in the thin-film-transistor (TFT) screen or the standard screen are not really black. They are also emitting shortwave radiation.
 

The OLED screen only emits where you see light, where there is black on the screen, there is no light. This might be preferable as long as you have no problems with the [viewing] angle."

 

To Protect Your Health and Vision, Stick to Incandescent Lights. LEDs are a perfect example of how we're sabotaging our health with otherwise useful technology. However, with knowledge, we can proactively prevent the harm from occurring.

 

In summary, we really need to limit our exposure to blue light, both during the daytime and at night. So for nighttime use, swap out your LEDs for clear bulb incandescents, or low-voltage incandescent halogen lights that are run on DC power.

I also strongly recommend using blue-blocking glasses after sundown, even if you use incandescent light bulbs. Without these modifications, the excessive blue light from LEDs and electronic screens will trigger your body to overproduce ROS and decrease production of melatonin, both in your pineal gland and your retina, the latter of which will prevent repair and regeneration, thereby speeding up the degeneration of your eyesight.

"One thing to emphasize again, it's not the blue light coming from the sun itself which we should be concerned about. It's the blue light, the singular high energy visual light (HEV), which comes from cold energy-efficient non-thermal light sources. This is what causes the problem, not the blue light which comes together with longer wavelengths in a kind of natural cocktail that has the beneficial near-infrared spectrum …

The light surrogates from non-thermal light sources, these are [what cause] problems, and you have to be clever to avoid these Trojan horses. If you want to make it [safe], stay with the candles, stay with the incandescents," Wunsch says.

Candles are even a better light source than incandescent bulbs, as there is no electricity involved and is the light that our ancestors have used for many millennia so our bodies are already adapted to it. The only problem is that you need to be very careful about using just any old candle as most are toxic.

 

As you may or may not know, many candles available today are riddled with toxins, especially paraffin candles. Did you know that paraffin is a petroleum by-product created when crude oil is refined into gasoline? Further, a number of known carcinogens and toxins are added to the paraffin to increase burn stability, not including the potential for lead added to wicks, and soot invading your lungs.

https://www.facebook.com/profile.php?id=100008470757951

To complicate matters, a lot of candles, both paraffin and soy, are corrupted with toxic dyes and fragrances; some soy candles are only partially soy with many other additives and/or use GMO soy. There seems to be a strange mind-set that exposure to small amounts of toxins is OK, even though the exposure is exponential over time!

The soy is non-GMO, is clean burning without harmful fumes or soot, is grown in the U.S. and is both sustainable and renewable. Also, my candles are completely free of dyes. The soy in these candles is not tested on animals, is free of herbicides and pesticides.

It's also kosher, 100 percent natural and biodegradable. All of my fragrances are body safe, phthalate- and paraben-free, and contain no California prop 65 ingredients. The wicks are simply flat braided cotton coated in a natural vegetable wax and self-trimming, which reduces carbon build up.

Enjoying a Circle of Life Farms naturally good soy candle and following the simple burn instructions — located inside the candle lid — will give approximately 70+ hours of burn time. Every candle is hand-poured with love for you to enjoy a cooler, cleaner burn, all while being kind to the both the environment and yourself.

https://articles.mercola.com/sites/articles/archive/2016/10/23/near-infrared-led-lighting.aspx

 

There are quite a few man-made ideas and notions that really suck the fun out of our otherwise fantastic lives. People might have problems with a wide range of man-made concepts, but one that sits near the top of my list is the idea of waiting in line. There are only a handful of things that annoy me, and I’m sure that plenty of other folks (like the guy below) despise few things more than waiting in a queue.

Whether it’s the queue for a train ticket, at the grocery store or at a burger joint, standing idle in the same spot for too long is an unbearable activity. Ask me to take a walk for the same amount of time and return to the same spot and I will happily accept your proposal. This makes me think that the loathing we associate with waiting or standing in the same spot for too long is somehow related to the fact that it hurts our feet.

Walk around for 30 minutes, and you won’t feel a thing in your feet, but stand in a single spot for the same duration, and it’s likely that your feet will start hurting. Why is that?

While standing still, the legs aren’t really resting. There are some muscles, especially in the calves, which are constantly engaged to prevent you from swaying and keep you standing upright. Also, each foot supports the entire body weight, without being relieved of duty, even for a short while. There are some other reasons too.

This might seem like a no-brainer, but when you stand still, you don’t actually stand absolutely still. The body has the tendency to sway a little (thus shifting the bodyweight on either leg) almost constantly. In order to keep you upright, therefore, certain leg muscles, particularly in the calves, must constantly make small adjustments.

 

In contrast, when you’re walking, a greater number of muscles in both the legs are engaged. Additionally, they also get assistance from the core muscles, which keep your gait stable. That’s one of the primary reasons why walking doesn’t hurt nearly as much as standing still for the same amount of time.
 

Neither leg gets much rest when one stands still for too long - When one is walking, the body weight is borne alternatively by either leg. This way, both legs get rest very frequently, even if it lasts for only a second.
 

Cumulatively, however, that second’s worth of rest amounts to either leg bearing most of the weight of the body for only half the time. On the other hand, when you are stationary, each leg basically supports half the body weight without getting any rest actual rest.

Moreover, standing still puts the entire load of the body on the underside of each foot, particularly the heels and balls of each foot. As a result, standing still and bearing the bodyweight for too long feels like an uphill task in comparison to simply walking around.

The blood and lymph fluids begin to pool in one’s feet while standing still for too long, as it’s beyond the heart’s operational capacity to pump the blood from the bottom of the feet (i.e., a body part that lies at an extremity of the body) against gravity.

As a result, the leg muscles of a person who is stationary for a few hours will not get as much oxygen as they would if the person were moving, because, in order to pump blood, the heart partially relies on the muscle contractions that happen when one is moving around.

As we just saw, there are a number of biological reasons that make the feet hurt when we stand in the same spot for too long, but there is also a psychological aspect to the discomfort we feel.

While standing in the same spot for too long, maybe even hours, we’re basically not doing anything! In the absence of a real, physical stimulus/activity to distract our mind, we get bored and eventually start thinking about how badly our feet hurt, which doesn’t really help the problem!

Furthermore, taking a brisk walk and jogging also releases certain neurochemicals (like endorphins) or “feel-good chemicals” that uplift our mood, making walking around a preferred option over standing still for too long.

https://www.scienceabc.com/humans/why-does-standing-still-hurt-your-legs-more-than-walking-for-the-same-amount-of-time.html

 

Most/some of the native american tribes has very very different way of thinking. What comes to intergenerational traumas (and hostility toward whites) there is a big and deep shaft between to understand each other. 

 

On the other hand native americans are not one group but several different tribes with disagreeing individuals. I am glad to see ("white") America started to listen natives and some smaller changes as mascots etc. issues has been taken seriously.

What comes to sacred places and lands I believe there is a lot of people (in all colors) who would want to object destroying and building basic on history of the places. I wish native americans would be first to get their most important places to be protected and I wish it bcomes international human rights. I don't also believe human rights belongs to only for chosen groups but for everyone.
 

Rights of industry should not be stronger than everything else (nature, people etc.). There is jobs for minority anyways so all that destroying does not pay back. I read that in America businessmen killed folks (also whites) from the areas which they wanted for their own use. So there is more to benefit and a lot to fix by laws (also in other countries).

 

Sometimes there is some hope in leaders and some are total destroyers. Fixing the laws written by past idiots, that is endless job... Laws are mostly a lot of behind modern time and changes are always late. 

 

So many objects the changes and they always want to leave possibilities to not follow the new laws anyways. Sometimes it feels it would b better to burn all the old laws and write new ones with this knowledge which we have by studies etc. There has been the zero point before, it could be again to cure the rotten laws.

 

Anyways hope the best for natives and at least their treatment at school, with police issues etc. should be equal with others. What comes to some rights, sometimes should be really think if special positive rights are good thing (for minority) or not because it again creates unequal rights and unequal treatment between people. 

 

How can justify some rights just for some people?  You belgian descent cannot have your 300 years old sacred place but you native can have it... It does not work. It has to be for both or for nobody.

http://vietrealm.com/index.php?topic=36454.msg103970;topicseen#new

 

Ezekiel, also spelled Ezechiel, Hebrew Ye?ezqel, (flourished 6th century bc), prophet-priest of ancient Israel and the subject and in part the author of an Old Testament book that bears his name. Ezekiel’s early oracles (from c. 592) in Jerusalem were pronouncements of violence and destruction; his later statements addressed the hopes of the Israelites exiled in Babylon. 

 

The faith of Ezekiel in the ultimate establishment of a new covenant between God and the people of Israel has had profound influence on the postexilic reconstruction and reorganization of Judaism.

Ezekiel’s ministry was conducted in Jerusalem and Babylon in the first three decades of the 6th century bc. For Ezekiel and his people, these years were bitter ones because the remnant of the Israelite domain, the little state of Judah, was eliminated by the rising Babylonian empire under Nebuchadrezzar (reigned 605–562 bc). Jerusalem surrendered in 597 bc.
 

Israelite resistance was nevertheless renewed, and in 587–586 the city was destroyed after a lengthy siege. In both debacles, and indeed again in 582, large numbers from the best elements of the surviving population were forcibly deported to Babylonia.

 

Before the first surrender of Jerusalem, Ezekiel was a functioning priest probably attached to the Jerusalem Temple staff. He was among those deported in 597 to Babylonia, where he was located at Tel-abib on the Kebar canal (near Nippur).

 

It is evident that he was, among his fellow exiles, a person of uncommon stature. Ezekiel’s religious call came in July 592 when he had a vision of the “throne-chariot” of God. He subsequently prophesied until 585 and then is not heard of again until 572. His latest datable utterance can be dated about 570 bc, 22 years after his first.

These two periods of prophesying, separated by 13 years, represent various emphases in Ezekiel’s message. His earlier oracles to the Jews in Palestine were pronouncements of God’s judgment on a sinful nation for its apostasy.

 

Ezekiel said that Judah was guiltier than Israel had been and that Jerusalem would fall to Nebuchadrezzar and its inhabitants would be killed or exiled. According to him, Judah trusted in foreign gods and foreign alliances, and Jerusalem was a city full of injustice. Pagan rites abounded in the courts of the Temple.

After the fall of Jerusalem and his period of silence, Ezekiel now addressed himself more pointedly to the exiles and sought to direct their hopes for the restoration of their nation. His theme changed from the harsh judgment of God to the promise of the future. Ezekiel prophesied that the exiles from both Judah and Israel would return to Palestine, leaving none in the Diaspora.

In the imminent new age a new covenant would be made with the restored house of Israel, to whom God would give a new spirit and a new heart. The restoration would be an act of divine grace, for the sake of God’s name. Ezekiel’s prophecies conclude with a vision of a restored Temple in Jerusalem. 

 

The Temple’s form of worship would be reestablished in Israel, and each of the ancient tribes would receive appropriate allotments of land. In contrast to those hoping for national restoration under a Davidic king, Ezekiel envisaged a theocratic community revolving around the Temple and its cult as the nexus of the restored Jewish state.

More than any of the classical biblical prophets, Ezekiel was given to symbolic actions, strange visions, and even trances (although it is quite gratuitous to deduce from these, and from his words “I fell upon my face” [1:28], that he was a cataleptic). He eats a scroll on which words of prophecy are written, in order to symbolize his appropriation of the message (3:1–3).

 

He lies down for an extended time to symbolize Israel’s punishment (4:4ff). He is apparently struck dumb on one occasion for an unspecified length of time (3:26). As other prophets have done before him, he sees the God-to-People relationship as analogous to that of husband to unfaithful wife and therefore understands the collapse of the life of Judah as a judgment for essential infidelity.

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Ezekiel-Hebrew-prophet

 

The prophet Ezekiel was a contemporary of Jeremiah. He lived during the time of the fall of Jerusalem and was among those who were exiled to Babylon. He was exiled in 597 BC, eleven years before Jerusalem fell, and his prophetic ministry took place in the context of the exile. Ezekiel was from a priestly line, and much of his ministry centered on issues concerning the temple. 

He spent much of his time telling the exiles that Jerusalem would indeed fall (as it did in 586 BC), and so they should not expect a quick return to their land. Instead, they should focus their energies on living in their new exilic context in obedience to God. 

 

In the end, however, in a memorable vision of dry bones coming to life, Ezekiel prophesied that temple would be restored and the people would return to the land.The book claims to be autobiographical, and most scholars take this claim at face value.

Many readers are familiar with the story of Ezekiel’s call (chapters 1-3), where he sees a storm coming from the north, which represents God’s appearing (theophany). It is worth noting that in other literature of that time period, the north represents the mythical home of the storm-god. Ezekiel also sees four living creatures with four wings and four faces each, later described as cherubim and guardians of God’s throne.

The presence of wings, plus the intersecting wheels, suggests mobility, which figures into Ezekiel’s prophecies later—God does not stand still and is not tied to the temple. In Ezekiel’s call, he is referred to as “son of man,” which is a phrase used throughout the book.

 

This simply means “human” and is meant to contrast Ezekiel to God. In the New Testament, it takes on a messianic tone under the influence of Daniel 7:13. Unlike other prophetic books, Ezekiel unfolds in basic chronological order.

 

For example, in chapters 4-24 Ezekiel delivers prophecies against Judah and then Jerusalem. In these chapters, Ezekiel appears to be one of the more colorful—some would say bizarre—characters in the Bible.
 

For example, Ezekiel symbolically acts out God’s judgment on Israel in his own life: unable to talk, lying on his left side for 390 days and his right for another 40 days, shaving his head, packing a bag and pretending to go into exile, and not mourning for his dead wife.

 

As odd as these actions seem to us, they were part of the socially understood abnormal behaviors that characterized prophetic activity in the ancient world as a whole.

Ezekiel 16 and 23 portray Jerusalem as God’s wife—once faithful but now going after other gods. Ezekiel describes how God found her as an abandoned infant, but raised her and then married her. She turned into a whore, however, and paid other lovers (gods of other nations) for sex.

 

Her punishment was to be stripped naked in public, stoned with her lovers watching, cut with swords, her children killed, and her houses destroyed. This may be a troubling metaphor for modern readers, but it served its theological purpose in a patriarchal society.

 

Ezekiel 25-32 consists of prophecies against the other nations. The bulk of these oracles are centered on Tyre, the capital of Phoenicia, and Egypt. According to these chapters, Tyre is a jewel of a city, like the Garden of Eden, but in the end will get what it deserves for its leader’s arrogant pretension against God. Egypt as well faces the impending judgment of God.

 

Historically, Egypt had imposed rule over Judah just before the fall of Jerusalem, and some of Judah’s kings had sought alliances with Egypt. According to Ezekiel’s oracle, this does not matter to God, for Egypt too will come to naught.

Ezekiel 33-48 speaks of future restoration for Israel and for the temple. God will be Israel’s shepherd, and God will usher in a future time of peace. In a dramatic scene, Israel’s restoration is described as human bones coming to life. The bones are scattered in a valley, but come together, become covered with skin and muscles, and then miraculously come to life. 

 

Readers should understand that this scene is a metaphor for Israel’s rebirth after the exile and is not a literal description of resurrection from the dead. These chapters also mention the infamous “Gog” and “Magog.”

Gog likely represents the Babylonian king Nebuchadnezzar and Magog is likely tied to Babylon. Over the centuries, some have tried to identity these names with contemporary places, people or events. Many American Christians will probably remember such comparisons in the 1980’s between Gog and Magog and the Soviet Union.  

 

But such comparisons are simply imaginative and fanciful thoughts imposed by modern readers. Gog and Magog are also mentioned in the Book of Revelation, where they come to symbolize any forces that oppose God.

Ezekiel ends with a detailed vision of the future, centering on the restored temple. The temple is rebuilt with the priests back at work, and the glory of God returns to the temple and to God’s people. The temple is described using ancient mythological language: the temple is the center (navel) of the earth and set on a high mountain with a river flowing from it.

 

In the end, Jerusalem is also given a new name, “Yahweh is there,” which reflects the driving theme of the book: God’s restoration of God’s people and God’s city amid national tragedy. Through the course of all these events, Ezekiel continually points out that Israel’s God is in complete and sovereign control over God’s people’s destiny.

http://thecenterforbiblicalstudies.org/resources/introductions-to-the-books-of-the-bible/ezekiel/

 

Structured water is a molecular arrangement of water molecules that exists when water is near hydrophilic (water loving) surfaces. Much like ice, water molecules join together in hexagonally structured single layer sheets. Unlike ice, however, the sheets are flexible and move independently as they are not glued together by protons. The majority of the water in your body is structured water as your bodily tissues are hydrophilic.

In a properly designed vortex, some water molecules dissociate into hydrogen and oxygen. This newly created oxygen and any oxygen already dissolved in the water is mixed up uniformly. Oxygen itself is a hydrophilic element. Hexagonal sheets of structured water grow outward from the oxygen, layer by layer.

Chemists, biologists, physicists, engineers, and medical doctors graduating today (right now!) are not learning about the existence of structured water. That is, unless they were residents in Professor Gerald Pollack’s laboratory at the University of Washington.

 

In his book “The Fourth Phase of Water” (published 2013) Dr. Pollack describes exactly what structured water is and discusses the mountains of scientific data from his experiments over the last several years.

While it may take awhile before you can discuss structured water with your doctor or that scientist who lives down the street from you, currently Dr. Pollack’s book is the best resource on the topic. It is well-written and we highly recommend it to anyone interested in structured water.

The totality of structured water does not just include the hexagonal sheets of water molecules mentioned earlier, but also the water immediately surrounding them. As the hexagonal layers grow, protons are ejected into the nearby water.

 

This creates a most unexpected phenomenon - an electrical potential (voltage) between the structured water and the water surrounding it. In other words, structured water stores energy, much like a battery.

You might be wondering, “If structured water is a battery, what charges it?” Dr. Pollack discovered that structured water grows (charges) by absorbing radiant energy. Both light waves and infrared waves, for example, charge structured water with energy.

Structured water is a battery that needs constant charging. Energized structured water recharges the liquid battery of the body. When the body has sufficient energy, its aqueous interior is highly charged allowing for optimized cellular and metabolic function in addition to greater hydration and detoxification.

As many diseases are rooted in toxicity, dehydration, and improper cell function, consuming energized structured water may improve health in a number of ways. Recent experiments even suggest that water structuring is responsible for proper blood and lymph circulation in the body.

While vortexing creates structured water, not all structured water devices are created equal. This is because once the conditions for structured water have been created by the vortex, the water then needs to absorb radiant energy from the environment to build up the structure further and charge the water battery.

 

It can be said then that structured water needs to ‘mature’ before it is consumed. Viktor Schauberger, the Austrian naturalist and ‘water genius’ said the same thing in many of his famous writings. Freshly vortexed water, or structured water, provides the body with some energy. However, for true benefits, one should drink only energized structured water. Only energized structured water maximizes structured water’s health benefit to the body.

https://aqualiv.com/pages/structured-water-hexagonal-water-microclustered-water  

Structured water, sometimes called magnetized or hexagonal water, refers to water with a structure that’s been altered to form a hexagonal cluster. This cluster of water molecules is believed to share similarities with water that hasn’t been polluted or contaminated by human processes.

The theory behind structured water suggests these qualities make it healthier than tap or filtered water. According to structured water proponents, this type of water exists naturally in mountain springs, glacier melt, and other untouched sources.

Others believe you can turn regular water into structured water by: magnetizing it through a process called vortexing, exposing it to ultraviolet or infrared light, exposing it to natural heat and energy, such as sunlight, and storing it in gemstone water bottles.

According to the theory behind structured water, vortexing water charges it, allowing it to hold energy. This energy then may allegedly recharge the body and hydrate it more thoroughly than ordinary drinking water.

Some proponents cite a 2013 studyTrusted Source on magnetized, structured water. According to the study, magnetized water seemed to decrease blood glucose levels and reduce damage to blood and liver DNA in rats with induced diabetes after eight weeks.

While these results are promising, the study was small and the results haven’t been replicated in humans. In addition, the water used in the study was provided by Korea Clean System Co., a company that sells structured water.

   

The chemical formula for water is H2O, which means each water molecule contains two hydrogen atoms and one oxygen atom. The formula for structured water is said to be H3O2. But water’s chemical formula has always been H2O. A different chemical formula would indicate a different substance that chemists haven’t identified.

   
Proponents of structured water claim that it holds a unique hexagonal shape. But water molecules are in constant motion. This means that its structure is frequently changing.

   

A 2008 study conducted by undergraduate students and published in the Journal of Chemical Education looked at water before and after it was magnetized to see if magnetizing the water actually altered its composition. According to their results, the magnetized water didn’t show any significant variations in hardness, pH, or conductivity.

https://www.healthline.com/health/structured-water#takeaway

In the eleventh month of the twelfth[a] year, on the first day of the month, the word of the Lord came to me: 2 “Son of man, because Tyre has said of Jerusalem, ‘Aha! The gate to the nations is broken, and its doors have swung open to me; now that she lies in ruins I will prosper,’ 3 therefore this is what the Sovereign Lord says: I am against you, Tyre, and I will bring many nations against you, like the sea casting up its waves.

 

4 They will destroy the walls of Tyre and pull down her towers; I will scrape away her rubble and make her a bare rock. 5 Out in the sea she will become a place to spread fishnets, for I have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord. She will become plunder for the nations, 6 and her settlements on the mainland will be ravaged by the sword. Then they will know that I am the Lord.

7 “For this is what the Sovereign Lord says: From the north I am going to bring against Tyre Nebuchadnezzar[b] king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses and chariots, with horsemen and a great army. 8 He will ravage your settlements on the mainland with the sword; he will set up siege works against you, build a ramp up to your walls and raise his shields against you. 9 He will direct the blows of his battering rams against your walls and demolish your towers with his weapons. 10 His horses will be so many that they will cover you with dust.

Your walls will tremble at the noise of the warhorses, wagons and chariots when he enters your gates as men enter a city whose walls have been broken through. 11 The hooves of his horses will trample all your streets; he will kill your people with the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. 

 

12 They will plunder your wealth and loot your merchandise; they will break down your walls and demolish your fine houses and throw your stones, timber and rubble into the sea. 13 I will put an end to your noisy songs, and the music of your harps will be heard no more. 14 I will make you a bare rock, and you will become a place to spread fishnets. You will never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken, declares the Sovereign Lord.

15 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says to Tyre: Will not the coastlands tremble at the sound of your fall, when the wounded groan and the slaughter takes place in you? 16 Then all the princes of the coast will step down from their thrones and lay aside their robes and take off their embroidered garments. Clothed with terror, they will sit on the ground, trembling every moment, appalled at you. 17 Then they will take up a lament concerning you and say to you:

“‘How you are destroyed, city of renown,
   
peopled by men of the sea!
You were a power on the seas,
you and your citizens;
you put your terror
on all who lived there. 
Now the coastlands tremble
on the day of your fall;
the islands in the sea
are terrified at your collapse.’

19 “This is what the Sovereign Lord says: When I make you a desolate city, like cities no longer inhabited, and when I bring the ocean depths over you and its vast waters cover you, 20 then I will bring you down with those who go down to the pit, to the people of long ago.

 

I will make you dwell in the earth below, as in ancient ruins, with those who go down to the pit, and you will not return or take your place[c] in the land of the living. 21 I will bring you to a horrible end and you will be no more. You will be sought, but you will never again be found, declares the Sovereign Lord.”

https://www-biblegateway-com.cdn.ampproject.org/v/s/www.biblegateway.com/passage/?search=Ezekiel%2026&version=NIV&interface=amp&amp_js_v=0.1&usqp=mq331AQCKAE%3D#origin=https%3A%2F%2F

Predictive prophecy stands as one of the most viable proofs of the Bible’s divine inspiration. Ezekiel’s prophecy concerning the city of Tyre provides an excellent example of such evidence.

 

Ezekiel’s prophetic message is one of the easiest to place in an accurate time frame. In verse 2 of the first chapter, the prophet noted that his visions and prophecies began “in the fifth year of King Johoiachin’s captivity.”

 

The date for this captivity is virtually unanimously accepted as 597 B.C. during the second deportation of citizens from Judea to Babylon, which is documented in detail in 2 Kings 24:10-20. Furthermore, not only is the deportation recorded in the biblical account, but the ancient Chaldean records document it as well (Free and Vos, 1992, p. 194).

Since Ezekiel’s visions began five years after the deportation, then a firm date of 592 B.C. can be established for the beginning of his prophecy. The prophet supplies other specific dates such as the seventh year (20:1), the ninth year (24:1), the eleventh year (26:1), and the latest date given as the twenty-seventh year (29:17) [Note: for an outline see Archer, 1974, pp. 368-369].

Due to the firmly established dating system that Ezekiel chose to use for his prophecy, the date of the prophecy regarding the city of Tyre, found in chapter 26, can be accurately established as the eleventh year after 597, which would be 586 B.C.

THE CITY OF TYRE

According to history, the Phoenician city of Tyre, located on the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea, stood as one of the most ancient and prosperous cities in history. Herodotus, known as the father of modern history, lived and wrote between about 490 B.C. and 425 B.C. (Herodotus, 1972, p. i).

 

During a visit to the temple of Heracles in Tyre, Herodotus inquired about the age of the temple, to which the inhabits replied that the temple was as old as “Tyre itself, and that Tyre had already stood for two thousand three hundred years” (Herodotus, 2:44). From Herodotus, then, it can be supposed that the city goes back to 2,700 B.C.

Due to its advantageous geographical position and good ports, Tyre became one of the wealthiest trading cities in history. Fleming noted that it “was the most important of all Phoenician cities” (1966, p. ix). During the reigns of King David and King Solomon (circa 1000 B.C.), Hiram, king of Tyre, played a major role in the acquisition of building materials for important structures such as the Israelite kings’ houses and the first temple.

In numerous biblical passages, the text states that Hiram sent cedar trees, carpenters, masons, and builders to Israel (2 Samuel 5:11) because of the Tyrians’ renowned skill in timber cutting (1 Kings 5:1-18). 

 

In addition, the Tyrians were equally well known for their remarkable ability to navigate the seas during Solomon’s era. Second Chronicles documents that Hiram sent ships and “servants who knew the sea” to work with Solomon’s men in acquiring gold from foreign lands (2 Chronicles 8:18).
 

The city of Tyre had a rather interesting and beneficial geographical arrangement. About half a mile off the eastern shore of the Mediterranean Sea stood a small rocky island on which the original city of Tyre was most likely founded. Some time after the founding of this island city, the mainland city of Tyre was founded, which was called Old Tyre by the Greeks (Fleming, p. 4).

 

Josephus cites a Phoenician historian named Dius, as reporting that the Phoenician king Hiram, who was closely connected to kings David and Solomon, built a causeway from the original island to a smaller island, connecting the two (Against Apion, 1.17).

In addition to its beneficial geographic position, the city had great confidence in its many excellent defensive advantages. Fleming noted: “As early as 1400 B.C. Tyre was not only a great city but was considered impregnable” (p. 8).

The ancient historian Quintus Curtius Rufus (most likely writing in approximately A.D. 50), listed several of these defensive traits that had remained intact as late as the siege by Alexander in 332 B.C. 

 

The force of the water and the wind that prevailed on the side of the city closest to the land was said to have produced a “corrosive force of waves” that would hinder the construction of any type of bridge or causeway from the mainland (4.2.8). 

 

Furthermore, the water nearest to the walls of the city was “especially deep” and would force any would-be attackers to position any type of siege mechanisms in the unstable foundation of a ship, and the wall “dropped sheer into the sea,” which prevented the use of ladders or approach by foot (4.2.9).

During the time of Ezekiel, Tyre was well established and renowned for its building, manufacturing, and trade. Ezekiel said of Tyre: “Your builders have perfected your beauty” (27:4), and then he proceeded to list several different kinds of wood and imported materials used by the Tyrians (27:3-11).
 

The prophet stated: “When your wares went out by sea, you satisfied many people; you enriched the kings of the earth with your many luxury goods and your merchandise” (27:33).

But Tyre’s profitable trading had done little positive for its spiritual condition. In fact, as is often the case, the riches accrued by the city had caused widespread dereliction and spiritual decay.

 

Concerning the city, Ezekiel noted: “By the abundance of your trading you became filled with violence within, and you sinned.... Your heart was lifted up because of your beauty; you corrupted your wisdom for the sake of splendor.... You defiled your sanctuaries by the multitude of your iniquities” (28:16-18).

 

Among the sins listed by Ezekiel, one specific attitude maintained by Tyre was designated by the prophet as the ultimate reason for the city’s demise. Ezekiel noted: “[B]ecause Tyre has said against Jerusalem, ‘Aha! She is broken who was the gateway of the peoples; now she is turned over to me; I shall be filled; she is laid waste.’ 

 

Therefore thus says the Lord God: ‘Behold, I am against you, O Tyre’” (26:2-3). Apparently, in an attitude of commercial jealousy and greed, the city of Tyre exulted in Jerusalem’s misfortunes and expected to turn them into its own profit. 

Among Tyre’s list of despicable activities, the city’s slave trade ranked as one of the most profitable. The prophet Joel noted that Tyre had taken the people from Judah and Jerusalem and sold them to the Greeks so that the Tyrians could “remove them far from their borders” (Joel 3:6). These dastardly dealings with the inhabitants of Judah would not go unpunished.

In Ezekiel 26, the prophet mentioned several events that were to occur in Tyre as punishment for the city’s arrogance and merciless actions. The following is a lengthy, but necessary, quote from that chapter:

   

Therefore thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I am against you, O Tyre, and will cause many nations to come up against you, as the sea causes its waves to come up. And they shall destroy the walls of Tyre and break down her towers; I will also scrape her dust from her, and make her like the top of a rock.
 

It shall be a place for spreading nets in the midst of the sea, for I have spoken,” says the Lord God; “it shall become plunder for the nations. Also her daughter villages which are in the fields shall be slain by the sword. Then they shall know that I am the Lord.”

   

For thus says the Lord God: “Behold, I will bring against Tyre from the north Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon, king of kings, with horses, with chariots, and with horsemen, and an army with many people.
 

He will slay with the sword your daughter villages in the fields; he will heap up a siege mound against you, build a wall against you, and raise a defense against you. He will direct his battering rams against your walls, and with his axes he will break down your towers.

Because of the abundance of his horses, their dust will cover you; your walls will shake at the noise of the horsemen, the wagons, and the chariots, when he enters your gates, as men enter a city that has been breached. With the hooves of his horses he will trample all your streets; he will slay your people by the sword, and your strong pillars will fall to the ground. 

They will plunder your riches and pillage your merchandise; they will break down your walls and destroy your pleasant houses; they will lay your stones, your timber, and your soil in the midst of the water. I will put an end to the sound of your songs, and the sound of your harps shall be heard no more. I will make you like the top of a rock; you shall be a place for spreading nets, and you shall never be rebuilt, for I the Lord have spoken,” says the Lord God....

   

For thus says the Lord God: “When I make you a desolate city, like cities that are not inhabited, when I bring the deep upon you, and great waters cover you, then I will bring you down with those who descend into the Pit, to the people of old, and I will make you dwell in the lowest part of the earth, in places desolate from antiquity, with those who go down to the Pit, so that you may never be inhabited; and I shall establish glory in the land of the living. I will make you a terror, and you shall be no more; though you are sought for, you will never be found again,” says the Lord God (26:1-14,19-21).

Several aspects of this prophecy deserve attention and close scrutiny. The prophet predicted: (1) many nations would come against Tyre; (2) the inhabitants of the villages and fields of Tyre would be slain; (3) Nebuchadnezzar would build a siege mound against the city; (4) the city would be broken down and the stones, timber, and soil would be thrown in “the midst of the water;” (5) the city would become a “place for spreading nets;” and (6) the city would never be rebuilt.

In chronological order, the siege of Nebuchadnezzar took place within a few months of Ezekiel’s prophecy. Josephus, quoting “the records of the Phoenicians,” says that Nebuchadnezzar “besieged Tyre for thirteen years in the days of Ithobal, their king” (Against Apion, 1.21). The length of the siege was due, in part, to the unusual arrangement of the mainland city and the island city.

While the mainland city would have been susceptible to ordinary siege tactics, the island city would have been easily defended against orthodox siege methods (Fleming, p. 45). The historical record suggests that Nebuchadnezzar destroyed the mainland city, but the siege of the island “probably ended with the nominal submission of the city” in which Tyre surrendered “without receiving the hostile army within her walls” (p. 45). 

 

The city of Tyre was besieged by Nebuchadnezzar, who did major damage to the mainland as Ezekiel predicted, but the island city remained primarily unaffected.

It is at this point in the discussion that certain skeptics view Ezekiel’s prophecy as a failed prediction. Farrell Till stated: “Nebuchadnezzar did capture the mainland suburb of Tyre, but he never succeeded in taking the island part, which was the seat of Tyrian grandeur.

 

That being so, it could hardly be said that Nebuchadnezzar wreaked the total havoc on Tyre that Ezekiel vituperatively predicted in the passages cited” (n.d.). Till and others suggest that the prophecies about Tyre’s utter destruction refer to the work of Nebuchadnezzar.

After a closer look at the text, however, such an interpretation is misguided. Ezekiel began his prophecy by stating that “many nations” would come against Tyre (26:3). Then he proceeded to name Nebuchadnezzar, and stated that “he” would build a siege mound, “he” would slay with the sword, and “he” would do numerous other things (26:7-11).

However, in 26:12, the pronoun shifts from the singular “he” to the plural “they.” It is in verse 12 and following that Ezekiel predicts that “they” will lay the stones and building material of Tyre in the “midst of the waters.” 

 

The shift in pronouns is of vast significance, since it shifts the subject of the action from Nebuchadnezzar (he) back to the many nations (they). Till and others fail to see this shift and mistakenly apply the utter destruction of Tyre to the efforts of Nebuchadnezzar.

Furthermore, Ezekiel was well aware of Nebuchadnezzar’s failure to destroy the city. Sixteen years after his initial prediction, in the 27th year of Johoiachin’s captivity (circa 570 B.C.), he wrote:
 

“Son of man, Nebuchadnezzar king of Babylon caused his army to labor strenuously against Tyre; every head was made bald, and every shoulder rubbed raw; yet neither he nor his army received wages from Tyre, for the labor which they expended on it” (29:18).

 

Therefore, in regard to the prophecy of Tyre as it relates to Nebuchadnezzar’s activity, at least two of the elements were fulfilled (i.e., the siege mound and the slaying of the inhabitants in the field).

Regarding the prediction that “many nations” would come against Tyre, the historical records surrounding the illustrious city report such turmoil and war that Ezekiel’s prophecy looks like a mild understatement of the facts. After Nebuchadnezzar’s attack of the city “a period of great depression” plagued the city which was assimilated into the Persian Empire around 538 B.C. (Fleming, p. 47).

In 392 B.C., “Tyre was involved in the war which arose between the Persians and Evagorus of Cyprus” in which the king of Egypt “took Tyre by assault” (p. 52). Sixty years later, in 332, Alexander the Great besieged Tyre and crushed it (see below for further elaboration). 

 

Soon after this defeat, Ptolemy of Egypt conquered and subjugated Tyre until about 315 B.C. when Atigonus of Syria besieged Tyre for 15 months and captured it (Fleming, p. 65). 

In fact, Tyre was contested by so many foreign forces that Fleming wrote: “It seemed ever the fate of the Phoenician cities to be between an upper and a nether millstone” (p. 66). Babylon, Syria, Egypt, Rome, Greece, Armenia, and Persia are but a sampling of the “many nations” that had a part in the ultimate destruction of Tyre. Thus, Ezekiel’s prophecy about “many nations” remains as a historical reality that cannot be successfully gainsaid.

ALEXANDER AND TYRE

Bust of Alexander the Great, who conquered Tyre in 332 B.C. © TAOLMOR - FOTOLIA

The historical account of Alexander the Great’s dealings with Tyre adds another important piece to Ezekiel’s prophecy. By 333 B.C., Ezekiel’s prophecy that Tyre would be destroyed and its building material cast into the midst of the waters had yet to materialize.

 

But that situation was soon to be altered. Ancient historian Diodorus Siculus, who lived from approximately 80-20 B.C., wrote extensively of the young Greek conqueror’s dealing with Tyre. It is from his original work that much of the following information on Tyre’s destruction derives (see Siculus, 1963, 17.40-46).

In his dealings with Tyre, Alexander asserted that he wished to make a personal sacrifice in the temple of Heracles on the island city of Tyre. Apparently, because the Tyrians considered their island refuge virtually impregnable, with war machines covering the walls, and rapidly moving water acting as an effective barrier from land attack, they refused his request.
 

Upon receiving their refusal, Alexander immediately set to work on a plan to besiege and conquer the city. He set upon the task of building a land bridge or cause way (Siculus calls it a “mole”) from the mainland city of Tyre to the island city.

Siculus stated: “Immediately he demolished what was called Old Tyre and set many tens of thousands of men to work carrying stones to construct a mole” (17.40). Curtius Rufus noted: “Large quantities of rock were available, furnished by old Tyre” (4.2.18). This unprecedented action took the Tyrians by complete surprise. Fleming noted: “In former times the city had shown herself well nigh impregnable. 

That Alexander’s method of attack was not anticipated is not strange, for there was no precedent for it in the annals of warfare” (p. 56). And yet, even though this action was unprecedented militarily, it was exactly what one might expect from the description of the destruction of Tyre given by Ezekiel hundreds of years prior to Alexander’s actions. The mainland city was demolished and all her stones, timber, and soil were thrown into the midst of the sea.

This aerial view of Tyre vividly shows the landbridge that Alexander created. Much silt and sand has accumulated over the years to widen the area of the original causeway.

In spite of the fact that the Tyrians were taken by surprise, they were not disheartened, because they did not believe that Alexander’s efforts would prevail. They continued to maintain supremacy on the sea, and harassed his workers from all sides from boats that were equipped with catapults, slingers, and archers.
 

These tactics were effective in killing many of Alexander’s men. But Alexander was not to be outdone. He gathered his own fleet of ships from nearby cities and was successful in neutralizing the Tyrian vessels’ effectiveness.

With the arrival of Alexander’s sea fleet, the work on the land bridge moved much more rapidly. Yet, when the construction of the bridge was nearing completion, a storm damaged a large section of the mole. Refusing to quit, Alexander rebuilt the damaged structure and continued to move forward.

In desperation, the Tyrians sent underwater divers to impede construction by attaching hooks to the rocks and trees of the causeway, causing much damage (Rufus, 4.3.10). Yet, these efforts by the Tyrians could not stop Alexander’s army and eventually the bridge spanned the distance from the mainland city to the island.
 

Huge siege machines bombarded the walls of Tyre. Siculus’ description of the fight is one of the most vivid accounts of a battle in ancient history (17.43-46).

Eventually the Tyrians were defeated, their walls penetrated, and Alexander’s forces entered the city and devastated it. Most of the men of Tyre were killed in continued fighting. Siculus recorded that approximately 2,000 of the men in Tyre who were of military age were crucified, and about 13,000 “non-combatants” were sold into slavery (17.46) [Others estimate the number even higher.]

 

In describing the devastation of the city by Alexander, Fleming wrote: “There was general slaughter in the streets and square.

The Macedonians were enraged by the stubborn resistance of the city and especially by the recent murder of some of their countrymen; they therefore showed no mercy.

A large part of the city was burned”. The secular, historical record detailing Alexander’s destruction of Tyre coincides precisely with Ezekiel’s prophecy concerning what would happen to its building materials.

 

As Ezekiel had predicted, the stones, timber, and soil of the mainland city were thrown into the midst of the sea in an unprecedented military maneuver.

 

For Ezekiel to have accurately “guessed” this situation would be to stretch the law of probability beyond the limits of absurdity. His acutely accurate representation of the facts remain as outstanding and amazing proof of the divine inspiration behind his message.

ADDITIONAL ASPECTS OF THE PROPHECY OF TYRE

One of the most disputed aspects concerning Ezekiel’s prophecy is the statement that the city of Tyre would “never be rebuilt” (26:14), and “be no more forever” (28:19). The skeptic points to modern day Tyre and suggests that these statements have failed to materialize.
 

Till stated: “In fact, Tyre still exists today, as anyone able to read a map can verify. This obvious failure of a highly touted Old Testament prophet is just one more nail in the coffin of the Bible inerrancy doctrine” (n.d.).

Several possible solutions dissolve this alleged problem. First, it could be the case that the bulk of Ezekiel’s prophecy dealt with the mainland city of Tyre, the location of which has most likely been lost permanently and is buried under the waters of the Mediterranean Sea. This solution has merit for several reasons.
 

In approximately A.D. 1170, a Jewish traveler named Benjamin of Tudela published a diary of his travels. “Benjamin began his journey from Saragossa, around the year 1160 and over the course of thirteen years visited over 300 cities in a wide range of places including Greece, Syria, Palestine, Mesopotamia and Persia” (Benjamin of Tudela, n.d.). In his memoirs, a section is included concerning the city of Tyre.

From Sidon it is half a day’s journey to Sarepta (Sarfend), which belongs to Sidon. Thence it is a half-day to New Tyre (Sur), which is a very fine city, with a harbour in its midst.... There is no harbour like this in the whole world. Tyre is a beautiful city.... In the vicinity is found sugar of a high class, for men plant it here, and people come from all lands to buy it. 

 

A man can ascend the walls of New Tyre and see ancient Tyre, which the sea has now covered, lying at a stone’s throw from the new city. And should one care to go forth by boat, one can see the castles, market-places, streets, and palaces in the bed of the sea (1907, emp. added.).

From this twelfth-century A.D. text, then, we learn that by that period of time the city known as ancient Tyre lay completely buried beneath the sea and a new city, most likely on some part of the island, had been erected.
 

George Davis, in his book Fulfilled Prophecies that Prove the Bible, included a picture of Syrian fishermen under which the following caption appeared: “Syrian fishermen hauling in their nets on the probable site of ancient Tyre, which perished as predicted by the prophet” (1931, p. 11).

 

In his monumental work on the city of Tyre, Katzenstein mentioned several ancient sources that discussed the position of “Old Tyre.” He wrote: “Later this town was dismantled by Alexander the Great in his famous siege of Tyre and disappeared totally with the change of the coastline brought about by the dike and the alluvial deposits that changed Tyre into a peninsula” (1973, p. 15, emp. added).

It very likely is the case that the specific site of ancient Tyre has been buried by sand and water over the course of the last 2,500 years and is lost to modern knowledge. That the prophet was speaking about the mainland city in reference to many aspects of his prophecy has much to commend it. It was to that mainland city that King Nebuchadnezzar directed most of his attention and destructive measures described in Ezekiel 26:8-11.

Furthermore, it was the mainland city that Alexander destroyed completely and cast into the sea to build his causeway to the island city. In addition, Benjamin Tudela’s quote corresponds precisely to the statement that the prophet made in the latter part of chapter 26: “For thus says the Lord God: ‘When I make you a desolate city, like the cities that are not inhabited, when I bring the deep upon you, and great waters cover you’” (26:19, emp. added). 

In addition, Katzenstein noted that the scholar H.L. Ginsberg has suggested that the name “Great Tyre” was given to the mainland city, while the island city was designated as “Little Tyre” (p. 20). He further noted 2 Samuel 24:7, which mentions “the stronghold of Tyre,” and commented that this “may refer to “Old Tyre,” or the mainland city (p. 20).

Besides the idea that the bulk of the prophecy dealt with the mainland city, other possible solutions exist that would sufficiently meet the criteria that Tyre would “never be rebuilt” and would “be no more forever.”
 

While it is true that a city does currently exist on the island, that city is not a “rebuilt” Tyre and has no real connection to the city condemned by Ezekiel other than its location. If the history of Tyre is traced more completely, it becomes evident that even the island city of Tyre suffered complete destruction.

 

 

Fleming noted that in approximately A.D. 193. “Tyre was plundered and burned after a fearful slaughter of her citizens” (1966, p. 73). Around the year 1085, the Egyptians “succeeded in reducing Tyre, which for many years had been practically independent” (p. 85). 

 

Again, in about 1098, the Vizier of Egypt “entered the city and massacred a large number of people” (p. 88). In addition, the city was besieged in A.D. 1111 (p. 90), and again in April of 1124 (p. 95). Around the year 1155, the Egyptians entered Tyre, “made a raid with fire and sword...and carried off many prisoners and much plunder” (p. 101).

In addition to the military campaigns against the city, at least two major earthquakes pummeled the city, one of which “ruined the wall surrounding the city” (p. 115). And ultimately, in A.D. 1291, the Sultan Halil massacred the inhabitants of Tyre and subjected the city to utter ruin. “Houses, factories, temples, everything in the city was consigned to the sword, flame and ruin” (p. 122).
 

After this major defeat in 1291, Fleming cites several travel logs in which visitors to the city mention that citizens of the area in 1697 were “only a few poor wretches...subsisting chiefly upon fishing” (p. 124). In 1837, another earthquake pounded the remains of the city so that the streets were filled with debris from fallen houses to such a degree that they were impassable (p. 128).
 

Taking these events into consideration, it is obvious that many nations continued to come against the island city, that it was destroyed on numerous occasions, and that it became a place for fishing, fulfilling Ezekiel’s prediction about the spreading of nets.

Furthermore, it is evident that the multiple periods of destruction and rebuilding of the city have long since buried the Phoenician city that came under the condemnation of Ezekiel. The Columbia Encyclopedia, under its entry for Tyre, noted: “The principal ruins of the city today are those of buildings erected by the Crusaders. There are some Greco-Roman remains, but any left by the Phoenicians lie underneath the present town” (“Tyre,” 2006, emp. added).
 

Concerning Tyre’s present condition, other sources have noted that “continuous settlement has restricted excavation to the Byzantine and Roman levels and information about the Phoenician town comes only from documentary sources” (“Ancient Tyre...,” n.d., emp. added).

 

Another report confirmed, “Uncovered remains are from the post-Phoenician Greco-Roman, Crusader, Arab and Byzantine times.... Any traces of the Phoenician city were either destroyed long ago or remain buried under today’s city” (“Ancient Phoenicia,” n.d., emp. added).
 

Thus, the only connection that the present town maintains with the ancient one in Ezekiel’s day is location, and the present buildings, streets, and other features are not “rebuilt” versions of the original city. If Ezekiel’s prophecy extended to the island city as well as the mainland city, it can be maintained legitimately that the ruins lying underneath the city have not been “rebuilt.”

WHEN DID EZEKIEL PROPHESY?

Some have questioned the date of the composition of Ezekiel, due to the prophecy’s amazing accuracy in regard to its predictions concerning Tyre. Yet, the book of Ezekiel has much that lends itself to the idea that it was composed by Ezekiel during the time it claims to have been written. 

 

When did Ezekiel write his material? Kenny Barfield noted that, besides a belief that supernatural revelation is impossible,  no evidence supports the thesis that Ezekiel’s predictions were penned later than 400 B.C. 

 

Moreover, the book (Ezek. 1:1; 8:1; 33:1; 40:1-4) claims to have been composed by the prophet sometime in the sixth century, B.C., and Josephus attributes the book to the Hebrew prophet during the time in question (1995, p. 98).
 

In addition, Ezekiel was included in the Septuagint, which is the “earliest version of the Old Testament Scriptures” available—a translation from Hebrew to Greek which was “executed at Alexandria in the third century before the Christian era” (Septuagint, 1998,p. i).

Simon Greenleaf, the lawyer who is renowned for having played a major role in the founding of Harvard Law School and for having written the Treatise on the Law of Evidence, scrutinized several biblical documents in light of the procedures practiced in a court of law.

 

He noted one of the primary laws regarding ancient documents: “Every document, apparently ancient, coming from the proper repository or custody, and bearing on its face no evident marks of forgery, the law presumes to be genuine, and devolves the opposing party the burden of proving it to be otherwise” (1995, p. 16).

 

He then noted that “this is precisely the case with the Sacred Writings. They have been used in the church from time immemorial, and thus are found in the place where alone they ought to be looked for” (pp. 16-17). Specifically in regard to Ezekiel, that is exactly the case.
 

If the prophet wrote it in the sixth century B.C. his work is exactly where it should be, translated in the Septuagint around the year 250 B.C., and noted to be from the proper time period by Josephus in approximately A.D. 90.

Furthermore, the scholarly world recognized the book’s authenticity and original date of composition virtually unanimously for almost 1,900 years. The eminently respected Hebrew scholars Keil and Delitzsch, who wrote in the late 1800s, commented: “The genuineness of Ezekiel’s prophecies is, at the present day, unanimously recognized by all critics.

 

There is, moreover, no longer any doubt that the writing down and redaction of them in the volume which has been transmitted to us were the work of the prophet himself” (1982, 9:16). Indeed, Archer noted that no serious objection to the book’s integrity was even put forth until 1924 (1974, p. 369).

OBJECTIONS TO EZEKIEL’S AUTHENTICITY CONSIDERED

In regard to the objections that have been put forth, as Greenleaf noted, the burden of proof concerning the authenticity of Ezekiel lies with those who consider it inauthentic. Yet, far from proving such, they have put forth tenuous suggestions based on alleged internal inconsistencies.
 

First, these critics have proposed that the work could not have been by one man since some sections are filled with descriptions of doom and destruction, while others resound with hope and deliverance. This alleged inconsistency holds little weight, as Miller noted:

Of course, this viewpoint is based on purely subjective considerations. No inherent reason exists that forbids a single writer from presenting both emphases. In fact, virtually all the prophets of the Old Testament announce judgment upon God’s people and/or their neighbors and then follow that judgment sentence with words of future hope and restoration if repentance is forthcoming....

 

One must be in possession of a prejudicial perspective before approaching Scripture to come to such a conclusion (1995, p. 138).

The second objection to the integrity of Ezekiel has little more to commend it than the first. The second “proof” of the book’s alleged inauthentic nature revolves around the fact that in certain sections, Ezekiel seems to be an eyewitness to events that are happening in Palestine, while at the same time claiming to be writing from Babylon. This objection can be dealt with quickly in a twofold manner.
 

First, it would be possible, and very likely, that news would travel from the remnant of Israelites still free in Palestine to the captives in Babylon. Second, and more likely, if Ezekiel was guided by divine inspiration, he could have been given the ability to know events in Palestine that he did not see (see Miller, 1995, pp. 138-139).

 

Taking the prophecy of Tyre into account, it is clear that Ezekiel did possess/receive revelation that allowed him to report events that he had not seen and that were yet to take place.

 

A third objection to Ezekiel’s authenticity actually turns out not to be an objection at all, but rather a verification of Ezekiel’s integrity. W.F. Albright, the eminent and respected archaeologist, noted that one of C.C. Torrey’s “principle arguments against the authenticity of the prophecy” (the book of Ezekiel—KB) was the fact that Ezekiel dates things by the “years of Jehoiachin’s captivity” (1948, p. 164).

 

Supposedly, Jehoiachin would not have been referred to as “king” since he was captive in another land and no longer ruled in his own. Until about 1940, this argument seemed to possess some merit. But in that year, Babylonian tablets were brought to light that contained a cuneiform inscription giving the Babylonian description of Jehoiachin as king of Judah, even though he was in captivity (p. 165).

Albright concluded by saying: “The unusual dates in Ezekiel, so far from being indications that the book is not authentic, prove its authenticity in a most striking way” (p. 165).

Due to the fact that modern critics have failed to shoulder the burden of proof laid upon them to discredit Ezekiel’s integrity and authenticity, Smith rightly stated: “The critical studies of the Book of Ezekiel over the past fifty years or so have largely cancelled each other out.

 

The situation now is much the same as it was prior to 1924 (the work of Hoelscher) when the unity and integrity of the book were generally accepted by the critics” (Smith, 1979, p. 33). Miller correctly concluded: “All theories and speculations which call into question the unity and integrity of the book of Ezekiel are unconvincing....

 

The most convincing view is the traditional one that sees Ezekiel as the long recognized sixth century Hebrew prophet and author of the Old Testament book which bears his name” (1995, p. 139).

 

CONCLUSION

So accurate were the prophecies made by Ezekiel that skeptics were forced to suggest a later date for his writings. Yet, such a later date cannot be maintained, and the admission of Ezekiel’s accuracy stands as irrefutable evidence of the prophet’s divine inspiration.

 

With the penetrating gaze that can only be maintained by the Divine, God looked hundreds of years into the future and instructed Ezekiel precisely what to write so that in the centuries following the predictions, the fulfillment of every detail of the prophet’s words could be denied by no honest student of history.

“When the word of the prophet comes to pass, the prophet will be known as one whom the Lord has truly sent” (Jeremiah 28:9). Ezekiel’s accurate prophecy adds yet another piece of insurmountable evidence to the fact that “all Scripture is inspired of God” (2 Timothy 3:16).

REFERENCES

Albright, W.F. (1948), “The Old Testament and Archaeology,” Old Testament Commentary, ed. Herbert Alleman and Elmer Flack (Philadelphia, PA: Muhlenberg Press).
“Ancient Phoenicia” (no date), [On-line], URL: http://gorp.away.com/gorp/location/africa/phonici5.htm.
“Ancient Tyre (Sour)” (no date), [On-line], URL: http://ancientneareast.tripod.com/Tyre.html.
Archer, Gleason L. Jr. (1974), A Survey of Old Testament Introduction (Chicago, IL: Moody), revised edition.
Barfield, Kenny (1995), The Prophet Motive (Nashville, TN: Gospel Advocate).
Benjamin of Tudela (no date), “Traveling in Jerusalem,” [On-line], URL: http://chass.colostate-pueblo.edu/history/seminar/benjamin.htm.
Benjamin of Tudela (1907), The Itinerary of Benjamin of Tudela (New York, NY: The House of the Jewish Book), [On-line], URL: http://chass.colostate-pueblo.edu/history/seminar/benjamin/ benjamin1.htm.
Davis, George T.B. (1931), Fulfilled Prophecies that Prove the Bible (Philadelphia, PA: Million Testaments Campaign).
Fleming, Wallace B. (1966), The History of Tyre (New York, NY: AMS Press).
Free, Joseph P. and Howard F. Vos (1992), Archaeology and Bible History (Grand Rapids, MI: Zondervan).
Greenleaf, Simon (1995), The Testimony of the Evangelists (Grand Rapids, MI: Kregel Classics).
Herodotus, (1972 reprint), The Histories, trans. Aubrey De Sélincourt (London: Penguin).
Josephus, Flavius (1987), The Life and Works of Flavius Josephus: Against Apion, trans. William Whitson (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson).
Katzenstein, Jacob (1973), The History of Tyre (Jerusalem: The Schocken Institute for Jewish Research).
Keil, C.F. and F. Delitzsch (1982 reprint), Commentary on the Old Testament—Ezekiel and Daniel (Grand Rapids, MI: Eerdmans).
Miller, Dave (1995), “Introduction to Ezekiel,” Major Lessons from the Major Prophets, ed. B.J. Clarke (Pulaski, TN: Sain Publications).
Rufus, Quintus Curtius (2001), The History of Alexander, trans. John Yardley (New York, NY: Penguin).
Septuagint (1998 reprint), (Peabody, MA: Hendrickson).
Siculus, Diodorus (1963), Library of History, trans. C. Bradford Welles (Cambridge, MA: Harvard University Press).
Smith, James (1979), Ezekiel (Joplin, MO: College Press).
Till, Farrell (no date), “Prophecies: Imaginary and Unfulfilled,” [On-line], URL: http://www.infidels.org/library/modern/farrell_till/prophecy.html.
“Tyre” (2006), Columbia Encyclopedia, [On-line], URL: http://yahooligans.yahoo.com/reference/encyclopedia/entry?id=48355.
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Hearts are able to be broken for many reasons, not just for love. Hearts really gets broken

"Brain Reacts To Heartbreak Same As Physical Pain"
https://www.medicalnewstoday.com/articles/220427.php#1

What helps? Analyzing and focusing to bad sides. If your crush is just a crush and you don't really know her then you can make up bad traits as well. People love fantazying and most common are celebrity fantasies. And guys around the world knows they cannot have their celebrity crushes.

People just like to build a perfect fictive character to have some light and orgasms on their lives. Teenagers are practising their crushing and sex on their private peace in their imagination with their celebrity crushes. Real people are less adorable and people divorce a lot. Therefore only fantazying is eternal  ;)

 

Yes, most songs and movies repeats the same forms. Of course people are build by the same stuff and peoples thoughts and behaviour is mostly same. Then for some reason media wants to draw certain pictures of relationships time to time as BDSM/too lazy to google grey was massively brought everywhere.
 

Then therapists got men who said they cannot fullfill this insanity and women who said they cannot take that insanity... It is mostly what is given to us.

I am not a fan of songs because of that. Of course there is songs which hit straight to the own situations but mostly they are someone elses thoughts. Same as books and movies and movies made by books. We see books in different ways and everything can be "wrong" in a movie. This is with people also, someones trash is someones treasure.

The less you are focusing in outlooks the bigger changes is to find your loved one. The less perfect nature you are looking for the bigger changes you have to love someone and have non-divorcing relationship. The more you want the more you lose, many people live their lives alone meanwhile seeking perfectness which does not exist.

Those who meet someone are ruining their ships by fighting toalet paper roll up or downs, toothpaste squeesings and how much wrinkles or fat they have more than when they met..

 

These are not things in love and people ruin their relationships because they don't think via love. Always think via love, always. What it means to your love if... So if that will ruin your love then say or do something which keeps your love alive instead destroying it. 

http://vietrealm.com/index.php?topic=36265.msg103961;topicseen#new

  

Lobo - I'd Love You To Want Me

Virgo's Tarot Card: The Hermit

Sagittarius' Tarot Card: Temperance

Capricorn's Tarot Card: The Devil

Aquarius' Tarot Card: The Star

Pisces' Tarot Card: The Moon

Libra's Tarot Card: Justice

Aries' Tarot Card: The Emperor

Taurus' Tarot Card: The Hierophant

Scorpio's Tarot Card: Death

Gemini's Tarot Card: The Lovers

Cancer's Tarot Card: The Chariot

Leo's Tarot Card: strength