text:
Those of you who have been with us for our study of this wonderful book are well aware of the tremendous prophetic importance that it carries. And we have really covered so much of the prophetic picture, all the way from the history of the time of Zechariah clear to the coming of the Lord Jesus Christ and many many events in between. And one of the most significant events that is on the horizon prophetically is the rise of an individual that is commonly known as the Antichrist. Although that it is not specifically his title in Scripture, that title certainly fits him well. And we commonly know him as the Antichrist. John says there are many antichrists but there is one that we tend to think of as the most vehement rebellious Antichrist person who will ever live, apart from Satan himself.
And as we come to Zechariah chapter 11, we come face to face with this human being. He's not a demon and he's not a fallen angel, in that sense, he's not Satan, he is a human being, the most anti-God rebellious human being yet to arrive on the scene. In the context of Zechariah chapter 11, he appears as the false shepherd, the false shepherd. Or, if you'll notice verse 15, he is called the foolish shepherd. In verse 17, he is called the idol shepherd. But he is a false shepherd in contrast to the true shepherd, the Lord Jesus Christ.
Now the theme of Antichrist is not a new theme in the Bible. It's one that appears in many places. In fact, it's most interesting to me that the Apostle John writing in the first century to a wide circle of believers said this remarkable sentence, "Little children, you have heard that Antichrist shall come." Now that's interesting. How had they heard that Antichrist shall come? How had it become common knowledge as that statement seems to indicate that Antichrist should come?
Well, in the first place, it had been distinctly spoken of by the Apostles. For example, in 2 Thessalonians chapter 2, the Apostle Paul writes specifically about the coming of this individual. In verse 8, "Then shall that wicked one be revealed." Verse 3, "That man of sin will be revealed called the son of perdition." So it was apostolic proclamation and apostolic writing that this Antichrist, man of sin, son of perdition, whatever you choose to call him, would come.
Undoubtedly, they also had heard about it because it was distinctly alluded to by the Lord Jesus Christ Himself. In John chapter 5 and verse 43, Jesus said, "I am come in My Father's name and you receive Me not. If another shall come in his own name, him you will receive." Now here Jesus is really echoing the thought of Zechariah 11, that Israel will reject the true shepherd and accept the false shepherd. That's what Jesus is saying basically.
And again, I think, in the twenty-fourth of Matthew, again Jesus alludes to the coming of such and one as Antichrist. He talks about the abomination of desolations and He refers to Daniel 9, the time when they will make a covenant with the prince that shall come for one week. He goes on to talk about Tribulation. He says there will be false Christs and false apostles and so forth and the reference there back to Daniel 9 indicates that Jesus pointed out to them that this that Daniel had said would happen. And it certainly involved the prince that would come, the false Christ that Daniel referred to in chapter 9 verse 27. We'll see that in a moment. So it was not only proclaimed by the apostles, but it was alluded to by Jesus Himself.
Now in addition to that, it was strictly and clearly prophesied in the Old Testament that Antichrist would come. And here we find one such prophecy in Zechariah chapter 11 verse 15, let's look at it. And I'm going to read these three verses to you. "And the Lord said unto me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd, for lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land who shall not visit those that are cut off, neither shall seek the young one, nor heal that which is broken, nor feed that which standeth still, but he shall eat the flesh of the fat and tear their hoofs in pieces. Woe to the idol shepherd that leaves the flock, the sword shall be on his arm and on his right eye. His arm shall be completely dried up and his right eye shall be utterly darkened." Now that is one of several Old Testament passages referring to this Antichrist personality, this false shepherd, foolish shepherd, idol shepherd that is to come.
Now let me set the stage for you a little bit so you'll understand the context in which this individual comes. God and Satan have been at war ever since Satan fell. Way back in eternity before the world began, Satan pulled off a rebellion. And he said, "I will be like the Most High, I will ascend and I will be equal with God." And God threw him out of heaven and with him went a host of the angels.
And since that time, Satan and his angels have been in rebellion against God. Now the particular attack that Satan has been most concentrating on since the world began after the fall of Adam has been to attack the seed promised in Genesis 3:15. Because it says in Genesis 3:15 that the seed of the woman would bruise the serpent's head. In other words, God says there's going to be someone coming, a seed is going to come that is going to bruise Satan and his dominion. Now Satan knows this. He knows this. And he's doing everything he can throughout all of history to try to stop this seed from arriving. And the seed, of course, ultimately is Messiah. But Messiah to come must come through the nation Israel. So Satan is always trying to stomp out Israel as well as stamp out Messiah. So you see through history Satan's great effort against God's people Israel and against Jesus Christ. And even now that Christ is already here, Satan still attacks Christ and he still attacks Israel.
But initially as you go back in history, you find that Satan's first approach, once he knew the seed was going to come, was to try to corrupt the human race so badly and so devastatingly and so totally corrupt the human race that no such seed could ever be born. And he did it by having demons cohabitate with women in Genesis 6. It says, "The sons of God cohabitated with the daughters of men." He tried to produce a kind of a half-breed race demon-man, sort of a Rosemary's Baby civilization and thus corrupt humanity in some kind of a demon- human combination that would preclude the possibility of a seed being born...a Messianic seed, a redeemer. And, of course, you know what happened, God drowned that entire race in the flood, saving only Noah and his family. Satan failed.
In Exodus chapter 1, Satan again tried to destroy Israel. He tried to destroy the possibility of a seed there by trying to wipe out all male children in Israel. And you'll remember that Pharaoh made a decree while Israel was in Egypt that all male children be slaughtered. And again, God preserved the people of Israel. One little baby wasn't slaughtered, it was Moses. And Moses came to be the man who led Israel out of bondage and into the promised land and Satan's effort was thwarted again.
Again Satan tried to break the royal line in 2 Chronicles, and you might want to turn in your Bible to 2 Chronicles, I'm going to spend a minute or two there, but in 2 Chronicles chapter 20, 21, 22 and 23 which is right at the heart of the issue I want to point at, and we'll mention several Scriptures here, we find that Satan attempts to break the royal line. Now watch. Once Israel was established as a nation, and God had called out David and David's line was to be the Messianic line, the Messiah had to come through that kingly line. And so Satan tries to break the kingly line to remove all male children so the line comes to a termination. And you have in 2 Chronicles 21, for example, Jehoram killing all his brothers. And Jehoram just slaughters all his brothers which is just wholesale slaughtering and wiping out of the royal line. And it all comes down to one, just one individual is left in the royal line.
But that individual had sons, that individual had sons, we thank God for that. But then the Arabians came, as the story goes through this text, and killed all the sons, but they missed the youngest son. And in chapter 22 verse 1 it says, "So Ahaziah the son of Jehoram king of Judah reigned." They...the Arabians in the same verse, they slew everybody but Ahaziah the youngest son, they missed him. And so again the thing was reduced to one individual, he reigned only one year and he was a very, very wicked man. But nonetheless, he was in the Messianic line. He was counseled by his vile evil mother whose name was Athaliah. And he was then wounded severely and now the Messianic line was down to one individual who was severely wounded but he recovered. He was later killed in a war by Jehus but not before he had sons.
Now we go to chapter 22 verse 10 and let's pick up the story. Ahaziah is dead and he was the single thread in the line but he has had his sons. But once he is dead, when Athaliah the mother of Ahaziah saw that her son was dead, she arose and destroyed all the seed royal of the house of Judah. This woman was the tool of Satan to destroy the total royal seed. But watch, "But Jehoshabeath, the daughter of the king, took Joash the son of Ahaziah and stole him from among the king's sons who were slain and put him and his nurse in a bed chamber so Jehoshabeath the daughter of king Jehoram, the wife of Jehoiada the priest, for she was the sister of Ahaziah, hid him from Athaliah so that she slew him not and he was with them hidden in the house of God six years," while this terrible vile woman, his grandmother Athaliah reigned over Israel. One sister, Jehoshabeath, hid one little boy, Joash, who was the last thread in the royal seed. If Joash dies, there's no seed left of the line of David from which Messiah could be born.
So, for six years the hope of Israel was held in the hand of one little boy whose life was hidden. And believe me, that little boy was a little boy that Satan wanted dead. Do you believe that? You know he did.
And then verse 20...chapter 23 verse 1, "And in the seventh year, Jehoiada to strengthen himself and took the captains of hundreds, Azariah the son of Jeroham and Ishmael and all those other names, and they went about in Judah and gathered the Levites out of all the cities of Judah, and the heads of the fathers of Israel and came to Jerusalem and all the congregation made a covenant with the king in the house of God and he said unto them, Behold, the king's son shall reign as the Lord hath said of the sons of David." And as it turned out, Athaliah was later killed. And so there was a promise of victory and the little life was spared and the seed went on and Satan was again thwarted.
Satan couldn't stop it with a cross-breed race in Genesis 6. He couldn't stop it by trying to slaughter the male children in Egypt in Exodus 1. And he couldn't stop it by trying to slaughter off all the line under Athaliah in 2 Chronicles.
The book of Esther follows up on the story and how Satan again tried to get the whole of Israel wiped out. But the king couldn't sleep one night, pagan man but he went and asked someone to read to him. And the story that he heard saved the Jews from wholesale slaughter and again Satan was thwarted.
And then when you come into the New Testament, there was Herod who tried to slaughter every male child born but he missed on the Messiah. Then there was Satan who approached Jesus as He began His ministry and tried to thwart Him with temptation. And he failed again. And then there were the people of Nazareth who wanted to push Jesus off a cliff, but they failed again and He passed through the midst of them unseen. And finally Satan got Him and had Him nailed to a cross and locked in a tomb and sealed in a tomb. And that failed because He came out of the grave. And Satan is a loser, folks. He's lost every effort. He's always attacked God. He has always attacked God's people. He has always attacked God's King, Jesus Christ. And he never stops.
And he continues right in this present age to fight. Well, after all, what does it say in Ephesians chapter 6? "We wrestle not against flesh and blood but against...what?...principalities and powers, the rulers of the darkness, spiritual wickedness in heavenly places." We're in a battle against the demonic forces and Satan himself. The war is still on. And it says in Matthew 16, "But even in this age, Christ said, I will build My church and the gates of hell will not prevail against it." The assumption there is that the gates of hell are trying, see. Satan is still at it. And there's coming a future time when Satan pulls another attack. Not tonight, but sometime read the twelfth chapter of Revelation and in it you'll read about the war that's going to happen in heaven when Satan and all of his demons make war on Michael and all the holy angels. And they pull off a heavenly war. You've heard of "Star Wars," well, this is something far beyond that. This is the demons against the angelic hosts in the heavens.
Now what happens in that war is very interesting. Michael and the angels win. It's already settled. Michael and the angels win, Revelation 12 tells us, and God casts Satan and his host to the earth. And they hit the earth during the period of time known as the Tribulation. And they begin to spawn all their evil during that time period. And when he hits the earth in the Tribulation, he again goes after the same things. He tries to destroy Israel. He tries to destroy God's people. He tries to attack God's Christ, the Messiah.
Now in order to do this during the Tribulation, in order for Satan to pull this whole thing off, one final big shot there, he wants a man. He uses a man to be his tool. This man's task is going to be to try to destroy Israel, try to eliminate God's people, try to set up a world government of evil. And then when Christ returns, to try to knock Christ out of the sky and be victorious. That's Satan's effort. He's got a man in mind. And that man is going to be his tool to set up a worldwide government of evil, to kill the Jews, to slaughter the believers of the Tribulation and then to try to shoot Christ out of the sky when He returns. Satan's banking on the possibility that this can work. He's relentless, I'll say that for him, even though he's lost ever other battle.
Now when we start to look at this man that he's going to use to try to fight against Christ in the Tribulation, we find that he's a most amazing man. Let me tell you several things about him. First of all, he will be an intellectual genius. He will be an intellectual genius. That's very clear, and don't try to follow me but just note this, that's very clear in several places but particularly in Daniel 7 and verse 8 where it describes him in this way, "He had eyes like the eyes of a man." Now "eyes" refer to intelligence. And the idea of the eyes here is that he has great intelligence. And then not only is he...and incidentally, you can compare verse 20 which similarly says that he had eyes. And eyes in an image like this, and this is an image of a beast he sees here, a horn really, the image of eyes in symbolic language has seemingly a primary reference to intelligence. So he'll be intellectually a genius.
Secondly, he will be an outstanding orator. And leadership is predicated obviously on the ability to orate and to speak. And he will be an outstanding orator. It says in Daniel 7 verse 8 he will have a mouth speaking great things. And again in verse 20, the same thing again is repeated, he has a mouth that spoke very great things. So he will be an intellectual genius. He will be an outstanding orator.
Thirdly, he will be a master politician. He will be a master politician. And the reason I believe that is because he will be able to take over the whole world. He will be able to move into the slot that has been a great vacuum in human society, the one individual who can bring peace to the world. In fact, in Revelation 6 verse 2 it says, "Without any arrows, he'll come riding with a bow, no arrows, and he'll conquer the world." Which means he'll conquer peacefully through politics. He'll be a political genius. It says in Daniel 11:21, "In his estate shall stand up a vile person--that's the Antichrist--to whom they shall not give the honor of the kingdom, but he will come in peaceably--watch this--and obtain the kingdom by flatteries," Daniel 11:21. He will win the world with his flattery.
So, he will be an intellectual genius, an outstanding orator, and a master politician. Fourthly, he'll be a commercial wizard. He will have his hands on economics and commerce. He will be knowledgeable in that area. In Daniel 8:25, back to chapter 8 here, it says, "And through his policy also he shall cause deceit to prosper in his hand, he shall magnify himself in his heart and by peace shall destroy many. He shall stand up against the Prince of Princes but he shall be broken without hand." Now ultimately he will be broken. But notice, he will have a policy which causes deceit to prosper in his hand. He will be a wizard at building a world system of economics that feeds his own pocket. And if you want to get a glimpse of the economic system that he will build, read the eighteenth chapter of Revelation, it describes it to a tee. It will be commerce like the world has never known...great ships are mentioned there and great trade is mentioned there and all of the...in fact, it even tells many of the things that will be occurring in terms of trade. He will build a world commercial enterprise which is built by deceit unparalleled in history and feeding his own pocket.
So, this is an unusual man, intellectual genius, outstanding orator, master politician, commercial wizard and fifthly, a military genius as well. He will be a military man without equal. He is going to be able, according to Daniel 7:23, to devour the whole earth, tread it down and break it in pieces. He's going to be everything that Nebuchadnezzar, Alexander the Great and all the Caesars were and Napoleon Bonaparte and anybody else all put together in terms of military ability...a tremendous military power. In Revelation chapter 13 in verse 4 we read about him. "And they worshiped the dragon who gave power to the beast--this is the Antichrist, and it says--Who is like the beast, who is able to make war with him?" And it says in verse 7, "It was given to him to make war with the saints and overcome them and power was given him over all kindreds and tongues and nations." He literally conquers the world. He is a military genius unsurpassed.
Sixth, he will be a religious leader. And this is a most interesting combination. He will be a religious leader. In 2 Thessalonians 2 verse 4, I'll show you what his religion is. He's called the "Man of sin, the son of perdition who opposes and exalts himself above all that is called God, or that is worshiped so that he as God sits in the temple of God showing himself that he is God." So he's religious in the sense that he wants the whole world to worship whom? Himself.
In other words, he will be anti-God, anti-Christ, anti- Christianity, and he will call the world to worship him. Quite a man. This is a human being we're talking about, a man that will come. Satan's final effort to thwart Christ from coming and taking His kingdom will be generated through this man.
Now you say, "This demonic puppet of Satan, does he know who he is?" I don't know the answer to that. "Do we know who he is?" I don't know the answer to that. Don't worry about that. He is who he is and he will be who he will be and it will all happen the way the Bible says. It isn't important that we know that. People always want to add up numbers and come to all kinds of crazy conclusions but that's not the point.
You say, "But how could he ever pull it off? I mean, this is a sophisticated world, there's so much diversity in politics, how could everybody agree on one politician? There's so much diversity in economics and commerce, how could everybody agree on one kind of approach to it? There's so much diversity in religion, how could anybody ever imagine the whole world bowing to this guy? There have been a lot of powerful men, but it's inconceivable that anything like this could literally take over the world." Well, you've never seen a man like this. And what makes it look so easy for him, what makes it appear so very easy to me, it's not going to be hard for him, somehow the world is going to be so ready for him it's just going to all fall at his feet. And the thing that is so amazing to me is that he can even deceive Israel. And Israel is the rebel of the world, you know that. I mean, they do their own thing their own way and don't listen to anybody. And he will even deceive them and at the start of the Tribulation he'll actually bring them right under his power with the rest of the world, look at Daniel 9:26. And here it is, in Daniel 9:26, "After threescore and two weeks, Messiah shall be cut off," this is the seventieth week, adding all the ones from the previous verses up, the seventieth week, after Messiah's cut off, "the people of the prince that shall come," now here he is, "the prince that shall come" he's called, "the prince that shall come." Then verse 27, "And he shall confirm the covenant with many for one week."
Now here is the idea, and we won't go into too much background on it, but just to say this, this prince that will come makes a covenant with Israel for seven years. That's the period of the Tribulation. During that period of time, Israel falls under his spell and they make a covenant with him. In the middle of the week, verse 27 says, in the middle of the week, he violates it. He commits the abomination of desolation. He desecrates the temple. And then all hell breaks loose. And that's what Jesus referred to in Matthew 24 when He said the thing which Daniel spoke of, the abomination of desolation, where the Antichrist goes along for three and half years allowing Israel a little bit of liberty, and then he comes down and he desecrates the temple, he stops all worship. He says, "Worship me alone." He begins the slaughter that is the last half of the Tribulation. And Jesus said when you see that, grab everything you've got and run...flee. And if the Lord didn't spare, everybody would be slaughtered, it says in Matthew 24.
But the thing that is so incredible is that this individual is going to come and not only be able to set this thing up with the whole world but he's even going to bring Israel in under it as well. And I believe he'll come out of the Roman kingdom. I believe that he'll be a part of that by the indication of the fact that he's called...that it says there, "The people of the prince that shall come shall destroy the city." And the people that destroyed the city of Jerusalem were the Romans. And this prince will come out of the Roman world, the revived Roman Empire that comes together in the last days. That's why I believe he'll be a Gentile out of Europe, or at least related closely to that.
So, he makes a pact with Israel. Now stay with me. And he moves into position. The whole world is in his hands. Israel is in his hand. He's got a worldwide organization and army like no other army in history. He has total control and he is going to try to hang on to the kingdom of the world when Christ returns and defeat Christ. That's Satan's whole effort. He thinks if he can just amass the whole world against Christ maybe he can hold it against the returning Christ who comes to set up His kingdom at the end of the Tribulation.
Now Zechariah comes into the picture precisely at this point. Let's look back at Zechariah chapter 11 because Zechariah tells us in these three little verses that Israel is going to accept this false shepherd. Now let me give you a quick review now, it's not going to last long so listen. This is a chapter about shepherds, remember? The first three verses discuss the ravage of the wailing shepherds. The prophet in this chapter is acting. Remember, we told you he's like putting on a play in front of the people in the city. And he's acting out a part. And the chapter begins with the ravage of the wailing shepherds. The first thing you see is some shepherds are crying and wailing. Why? Because he is predicting the destruction of Jerusalem and the ravages and the wailing and the spoil that's going to take place. Desolation is coming, that's the first three verses. In 70 A.D. it came.
And then we saw the rejection of the true shepherd. Not only the ravage of the wailing shepherd, but the rejection of the true shepherd. And from verse 4 to 14, Zechariah acted out the rejection of Jesus Christ. Somehow he played the part of the coming shepherd and dramatized for the people what they were going to do to the Christ. He even discusses the betrayal of Judas in verses 12 to 14. There was a price, 30 pieces of silver, cast in the house of the Lord, ultimately given to a potter. All of that was fulfilled in the death of Jesus Christ.
So, Zechariah here is like a play actor. He stands on the stage which is Jerusalem in the time in which he lived, to the people who had come back from the captivity and he says, "Look what's in your future, people. First of all there is the wailing of shepherds who have been ravaged and destroyed. And the reason they have been is because when the true shepherd comes, you won't receive him." And then he goes and acts that very thing out in verses 4 to 14. And then when he hits verse 15, he talks about the reception of the false shepherd. He says what is so strange is that while you have rejected the true shepherd, in the end you will receive a false one. What a mix up. What an exchange.
Now notice this, there's a gap from verse 14 to verse 15 that jumps all the way from 70 A.D. to the great Tribulation. When Jesus came into the world, they refused Jesus. They crucified Him about 30 A.D. About forty years later, 70 A.D., the prophecy of this chapter was fulfilled. The land was wiped out. And that came because they rejected the true shepherd.
Now in verse 15 He says, I want you to act out one more part, Zechariah, I want you to take the instruments of a foolish shepherd. Put on your foolish shepherd costume. You say, "What's that?" I haven't got any idea but they must have known what it was. I'll give you a hint in a minute. And He says you act out the foolish shepherd because that's the one they're going to receive. And that's exactly what they do. Daniel 9:27, they make a covenant with the prince for the time of the Tribulation. They line up with him, Israel does.
And so, the message of the chapter flows very clearly. It says that before the destruction of Jerusalem, God will appear in the person of Christ to shepherd Israel. Only the poor of the flock will receive the word of the true shepherd and the rest will reject Him. And the good shepherd king would be valued no more than a slave and they'd sell Him cheap. And as a result of that, God would come against them in judgment, death, famine, war, civil strife, and their nation would be destroyed. And then shock of all shocks, they've done that to the true shepherd and when the false shepherd comes along, they're going to accept him.
Now as we look at verse 15, it deals with his character. As we look at verse 16, it deals with his work. As we look at verse 17, it deals with his punishment. Let's look at verse 15. "And the Lord said to me, Take unto thee yet the instruments of a foolish shepherd." Now he's going to play the part of Antichrist. He has just played the part of Christ. He will now play the part of Antichrist. As I told you last time, this is not something uncommon to the prophets. Frequently they acted out a part to illustrate a truth. That's what he's doing.
Now you say, "What are the instruments of a foolish shepherd?" Well, I don't really know that. Maybe a broken staff, it would be pretty stupid to go out and try to shepherd a flock of sheep if your staff was broken. Maybe a big club with metal on it that you'd use to beat the sheep into submission. That would be an instrument of a foolish shepherd, rather than tenderly care for the sheep. I don't know what it is. Some have said it was a great club instead of gentle staff, but whatever it was, he dressed up like a guy who would really be a stupid shepherd to be in those clothes with those instruments. And he says there's coming a foolish shepherd.
Now I want you to know something about the word "foolish." The word "foolish" in the Old Testament is a synonym for "wicked," a synonym for "wicked." And I'm not even going to take the time to show you all of the verses that make those two things synonymous, particularly are they made synonymous in the Proverbs in many many places. It equates the wicked with the fool. "His own iniquities," Proverbs 5:22, "his own iniquities shall take the wicked and he shall be held with the cords of his sin and he shall die without instruction in the greatness of his foolishness he will go astray." So the foolishness and the iniquity are co-equal. The foolish shepherd is the evil one. It's the fool who says in his heart...what?...there's no God. In other words, he lives wickedly in rebellion against God. It doesn't mean that he's, you know, retarded mentally or anything, it doesn't mean that his mind is less than adequate, it simply means he is wicked, he is vile, he is evil, he is unrighteous, he is sinful. And that's the character of this particular shepherd. He is a wicked shepherd.
And so He says you play the part of a wicked shepherd. A wicked shepherd might have a club instead of a staff. I don't know. That's his character, a wicked shepherd.
He comes along, the Antichrist does, like he's going to shepherd the whole world. And they buy it, see. And they turn around one day and it isn't a staff in his hand at all, it's a club and he starts slaughtering them. He lets the false church exist, in Revelation 17, it's called the whore, the prostitute, the false church. The true church is gone. He lets the false church go along and finally he devours it and slaughters it. He lets Israel go along for three and a half years, then he moves in and starts to slaughter the Jews. And he kills two out of every three. He is a wicked godless shepherd.
Let's look at his work in verse 16. And I want you to notice a very interesting note here, "For lo, I will raise up a shepherd in the land." Did you note that? Who is it that permits this shepherd to even arise? It's God, isn't it? Nothing ever happens outside the plan, the sovereignty of God. God is no victim. God is not biting his nails hoping that nothing goes awry. God is not second guessing Satan. God is even allowing those things to occur. You go right back to the book of Job for this, don't you? And everything that Satan ever did to Job, he did because God allowed him to do it and drew the boundaries on it. And God allows Satan his final fling and He allows this guy to come.
And when he comes, look at the character, look at the kind of shepherd he is. "He will not visit those that are cut off." Now what this basically means in the Hebrew, without going into a lot of detail, is sheep who are in the process of dying because they're cold, because they're separated from the flock, because they've been attacked by an animal and they're wounded and they're way off somewhere else, they're in the process of dying. He doesn't bother to go out and take care of them. If they're not right there, he had no concern. The true shepherd, what does he do? He goes and finds that little sheep that's cold. He goes and finds that sheep that's lost. He finds that sheep that's wounded. He finds the sheep that somehow got separated from the flock and is around the back of a hill. But this one does not. He isn't even interested at all in saving the wounded and the cold. He doesn't even look for them.
Secondly, he doesn't seek the young one. He has no concern for the little lamb who are the ones who gets lost. No concern for the little lamb who can't quite make it over the little hedge that every other sheep was able to go over, no concern. The true shepherd leaves the ninety and nine to find the little lamb that's lost. Not this shepherd...he doesn't care about the wounded in the cold and he doesn't care about the young.
Further, he doesn't heal that which is broken. One of the concerns that a shepherd had was broken limbs. Frequently a sheep would break a leg. A good shepherd would make a splint to provide for the broken leg. Not this shepherd. The shepherd isn't interested in binding the broken leg. He isn't interested in salving the wounds. Not at all.
Further, "Nor feed that which stands still." Now most commentators feel that "that which stands still" refers to the firm strong sheep. They're just standing still. They require a minimum of help. They don't have to be chased. They don't have to be found. They don't have to be mended. Nothing needs to be done except to just feed them. And he doesn't even do that. To the strong who need the least help, he is no help at all. To the weak and the wounded in the cold and the dying, he is absolutely indifferent...totally unconcerned. Well, by this time if you were in Zechariah's day and you were sitting there and you were watching Zechariah doing this little act, you'd say, "This is some crummy shepherd." This would be...you wouldn't buy this shepherd. This is all the opposite of every shepherd you ever knew. "You've got to be kidding. Who ever heard of such a shepherd who doesn't go out and find those that are cold and wounded? What kind of shepherd doesn't help little lambs? What kind of shepherd doesn't fix broken bones? What kind of shepherd doesn't even feed the strong sheep that are no trouble at all? Well what kind of a shepherd is this?"
Well, he does do some things. Well, you say, what does he do? Look at the end of verse 16. "He eats the flesh of the fat sheep." What? What kind of a shepherd is this? He eats his own flock? Yeah, the fat ones. He is greedy. He is selfish. He feeds on the fat of the sheep rather than feeding the sheep, he eats them. Listen to this, when the Antichrist comes it's all hearts and flowers for three and a half years. And then the abomination of desolations and he begins to eat Israel. He begins to feed on Israel. He begins to slaughter Israel. And Jesus said in Matthew 24, "Run for the mountains when it happens." There is a slaughter like no slaughter ever before.
"It shall come to pass," Zechariah 13:8, "two parts in the land shall be cut off and die, the third shall be left and even the third shall go through fire and refine as silver and gold." He's going to kill two out of every three. He's going to slaughter Gentile believers, every one that doesn't take his mark, he'll slaughter them from one end of the world to the other. Only God in His mercy spares one third of Israel, hiding them away in Edom, securing them. But he begins to eat the sheep.
And then there's a most unbelievable phrase, "And tear their hoofs in pieces." The translation is "claws," but really refers to hoofs in case of the sheep. And you say, "Well, what is this doing?" Well, have you ever eaten spare ribs when you're really hungry? And you want every morsel? Have you ever eaten a pork chop the same way or a T-bone steak and you're bending the bone, you're getting it there? You're scraping in there. Your wife has just told you there's no dessert and you're going to get everything. And you...you literally are tearing the bones apart. Sometimes you do it with chicken. You watch people, you give them a wing and they'll spend a half an hour on it. That's this guy. He is not only eating the flesh of the fat, but he's tearing the hoofs to pieces to get every morsel, to consume every last bit.
"Well," you say, "were the people in Zechariah's day shocked?" Of course, this was absolutely opposite of everything they ever knew about a shepherd. It's inconceivable that a shepherd would ever behave this way. But this is the shepherd that they will receive. They turned their back on the real one and this is the one they wanted and this is the one they're going to get. You know, when I think about that it's really a sad thing. You know, I have great love for Israel. I tell Jewish people all the time that my best friends in the whole wide world are all Jewish. That's right, all of them are Jewish, my best friends, Moses, Abraham, David, Jesus, Paul, Peter, James, John, they're all Jewish. And I wish I was Jewish for one good reason, I would like to live and go..if I was Jewish..and I could make it through the Tribulation and be one of the one third. But that's not going to work because I'm already saved and I've got to go in the Rapture. But if it was possible, see, if it was possible I'd like to be Jewish and not get saved till the Tribulation. And then I could live in the kingdom in my physical body and then I could really see what it would be like to be a physical person in the kingdom. As it is, I'm going to be a glorified person in the kingdom. I'm not complaining, God, I'm going to be there.
But, you know, when I think about Israel and the love I have for Israel and the...I love to go there. In fact, I'm trusting the Lord that I'll be able to go soon again. And I think about the fact that Israel is going to be saved. But before the day of their salvation comes there's going to come this terrible day when they line up with the wrong ruler...the wrong one. And you know what's so sad about it is they're going to have such great hope and such great anticipation and such great expectation and such great confidence that this is the guy and this is it, see. And it isn't. And who they think is a shepherd is none other than one who is going to devour them down to the very hoof.
So, we see his character and his work, and then his punishment in verse 17. This is what the Hebrew says, "Woe, worthless shepherd, forsaker of the flock, woe worthless shepherd, forsaker of the flock." Woe? Now there's that term. That has to do with a curse again. Curse you. "Woe to you worthless shepherd, forsaker of the flock, God will judge you." And look how it happens. "The sword shall be upon his arm and on his right eye. His arm shall be completely dried up and his right eye utterly darkened."
Now this is interesting. The arm refers to strength. The right arm is always a symbol of strength. God is going to come with a sword of judgment and is going to cut off his right arm. And it's going to wither and shrivel. It's going to be severed and it's going to shrivel into nothing which means his power will be torn away. And his eye, what did I say the eye refers to? Intelligence, his intelligence will be turned into idiocy, as it were, utterly darkened. He won't know right from wrong, up from down, in from out. The sword of God's vengeance will fall.
Now this indication is also prophesied, this judgment, in many other passages. Back in Daniel again, look with me at chapter 7. And in Daniel 7 we find again a reference to the coming judgment on this individual. This is most interesting. The Antichrist is going to get this great power. He's going to start to tear and shred the people of God. And then the Lord is going to come in judgment on him. We find this judgment indicated in many places, really. But I think Daniel 7:9 will give you a little bit of picture to start with. "And I beheld till the thrones were places and the Ancient of Days did sit whose garment was white as snow and the hair of His head like pure wool, His throne was like the fiery flame and His wheels as burning fire. Fiery stream issued and came forth from before Him."
Now here is the idea of God and he's just seeing all of His majesty and His wonder and His glory and he sees it like pure wool and flames and wheels burning and fire coming out and all this majesty of God's holiness. "A thousand thousands ministered to Him and ten thousand times ten thousands stood before Him," this is the angelic host, "the judgment was set and the books were opened. And I beheld then because of the voice of the great words which the horn spoke," the horn being the Antichrist, "I beheld even till the beast was slain and its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. And as for the rest of the beast, they had their dominion taken away, yet their lives were prolonged for a season and time."
There were four beasts in Daniel's image, you remember that? There was the Babylonian Empire, the Medo-Persian Empire, the Greek Empire, and the Roman Empire. There was a time when all four of those were really conquered, but they had a little life left. They went on. Some of their power was still retained. But in the case of this fourth, the beast who rules the revived Roman Empire, the Antichrist, he will be destroyed and there will be no thing remaining. There will be nothing left. No little bit of dominion remaining after. His case, it says, the beast will be slain, its body destroyed and given to the burning flame. Not like the others whose dominion was taken away, yet their lives were prolonged. He will lose his power and his life at the same time.
Now as you go over in the same chapter to verse 24, it's the same thing again. The ten horns, I'm not going to go into all of this, out of this kingdom are ten kings. These are the revived Roman Empire nations, ten-nation confederacy. Incidentally, today a parallel to that is the European Common Market. And out of this is going to arise the Antichrist. Verse 25, he will speak great words against the Most High. He'll wear out the saints by slaughtering them as the shepherd that eats the fat of the flock. And he'll do this for a while, a time, times and dividing of a time. A time would be one, times would be two, a dividing would be a half, three and a half years he'll do this.
But something's going to change. The judgment shall sit, they shall take away his dominion to consume and destroy him unto the end. Destruction is going to come. And then, of course, Christ is going to reign. God is going to reign.
Chapter 8 of Daniel, verse 23, "In the latter times of their kingdom when the transgressors are come to the full, a king of fierce countenance." Now incidentally, that's another name for Antichrist. In Daniel he is called many things, the little horn, the willful king, the king of fierce countenance and the prince that shall come. All four of those refer to the same individual. And the king of fierce countenance shall stand up. His power shall be mighty, not by his own power. Who's behind him? Satan. He shall destroy wonderfully. In other words, he shall create wonder and awe at his destruction. He shall prosper, continue, destroy the mighty and the holy people. Through his policy shall cause deceit to prosper and so forth and so forth. But the end of the verse, "He shall..." when he stands up against the prince of princes--who's that? Well, it's the same as the King of Kings, the Prince of Princes, King of Kings and Lord of Lords is all Jesus Christ..."he shall be broken without hand."
In other words, there won't even be a struggle. He'll just be shattered, broken. In Revelation chapter 19, listen to this, "And the beast was taken," it's the same individual, Antichrist, "and his cohort, the false prophet and they were cast alive into a lake of fire burning with brimstone." Chapter 20 verse 10, "And the devil that deceived them was cast into the same lake of fire and brimstone where the beast and the false prophet are and shall be tormented day and night forever and ever." Now he's going to be destroyed in the sense of his dominion and sent to hell forever with Satan and all those who occupy Satan's kingdom. It's going to happen.
Now that's what Zechariah 11:17 is saying. God is going to judge this false shepherd severely. Now you might be wondering in your own mind, and I'm going to do something, just digress a little bit, you might be wondering in your mind, you can close your Bible for a second...you say, "John, I can't believe this could happen. How could such a person come along, sweep over the world, gain the power, bring Israel in and then begin to slaughter and devour, how could people be so stupid as to let a person do this?" You know something? I used to wonder that until I understood the power of Satan. And many years ago here in the church, I don't know how long it's been, maybe four or five years ago, I shared with you something that was a result of research that I did and I figured if I had time tonight, I'd share it again that to me is a perfect parallel of how this can happen. And it happened one other time in history with a man named Hitler. And this is a most fascinating study that I want to share with you.
He is a perfect example of what can happen when Satan possesses an individual and how the power of Satan can actually dominate an entire culture of intelligent people. Now any given nation, take Germany for example, post World War II Germany, Germany is, in a sense, a microcosm of the whole world. In other words, all the kinds of people there are would be the people who make up the German population, in kind at least. They would have a good cross-section of all the kinds of people...poor people, rich people, educated, non-educated, medium intelligence, low intelligence, high intelligence, genius category, people who are great leaders who weren't leaders, they have all the kinds of people in any given nation, such as Germany would have. And yet one man was able to con that entire society into believing the biggest lie imaginable and to send them down the primrose path to slaughter and war that's inconceivable.
How? Well, because you have to remember the Satan behind Hitler. And you see in Hitler just a little glimpse of what this Antichrist is going to be, only he won't have the impact of Hitler, he'll have the impact of a hundred Hitlers rolled into one. Let me show you what I mean.
Satan's effort is always to destroy God's people, always. And who was Hitler particularly involved in killing? Jews. That's a typical approach of Satan...very typical. Now there's some interesting things about Hitler that I found in a book called "The Morning of the Magicians...The Morning of the Magicians." It was published by Avon books in 1969, it was written by Lewis Powells and Jacque Bergier(?). They are not Christians. They are simply analysts, historians writing from a perspective of research.
They present their case which is in a non-Christian book, as I say, they have taken their records from the Nuremberg Trials, thousands of sources, thousand of books, eyewitness accounts, and this is what they say. Quote: "It is impossible to understand Hitler's political plans unless one is familiar with his basic beliefs and his conviction that there is a magic relationship between man and the universe," end quote.
In other words, you can't just treat Hitler historically, you've got to get behind the scene. Hitler, for example, was fascinated by the ideas of mysticism. And he was immersed in them. He saw the miracle of his own destiny as the action of unseen forces, the same forces responsible for his preaching a new gospel to humanity. In other words, he knew he was a man that was commissioned to do something by forces other than himself.
They go on in the book to say this, "The Aeneids of Platonius were read during the war in the little mystical societies of pro-German intellectuals together with ancient Hindu texts, Nietzche and Tibetan magicians," end quote. Now all of that stuff is occult. And in the little mystical societies of pro-German intellectuals, they were up to their necks in studying the occult.
Again the authors say, "The probable explanation for Hitler's deeds is the existence of a magical puzzle, a powerful and Satantic mystical current. We shall never be safe from Nazism," they say, "or rather from certain manifestations of the Satanic which through the Nazis cast its dark shadow over the world until we have roused ourselves to a full understanding of the most fantastic aspects of the Hitlarian adventure."
Now what they're saying is obvious. In their study of Hitler, they find that it isn't just Hitler, it's Satan. And it's the occult. And it's mysticism. Hitler was a man out to conquer the world. But he was more than a man.
There's another book entitled "The Hollow Earth." And any of you who know anything about the occult or mysticism have heard of "The Hollow Earth." That is the belief that in the center of the earth there's a hollow place. And that hollow place is occupied by beings, the beings of the hollow earth. And these are the beings, demon beings, who with whom you make contact in mysticism and in the occult and you draw on their power. Now in Eric Norman's book, "The Hollow Earth," he says there was a macabre hollow earth mystery that was involved with the Nazi society. They were up to their necks in the hollow earth, Tibetan occultism, black magic and etc.
The Nazi Secret Society during Hitler's reign was convinced that there were advance beings in the hollow earth with powers far beyond the human. In time they planned to emerge out of the hollow earth and take over the world. And Hitler was part of the procedure to gain them the world. These creatures were called "the lords of the universe." And everybody living on the surface either had to ally with them or get wiped out when they arrived. And Hitler determined he was going to be on their side when they got here. Eric Norman writes, quote: "Nazi records seized after the fall of the Third Reich indicate that Hitler and his henchmen launched several expeditions into the hollow earth."
I don't know how they did it cause there isn't any. By the way, it is the Hollow-earth concept and is the Hollow-earth occultic teaching that gave Hitler the concept of using little children in his German youth program. He formed corps of what he called adolescent werewolves with black uniforms and death's head insignias on the sleeves, little children. And so you could see by just a couple of incidents there that Hitler's Third Reich was welded to the occultism. They were all members of what was called "The Society of the Golden Dawn," founded for the practice of black magic. They were in contact with super beings and in this society they believed these beings, as I said, came out of the hollow earth.
Karl Househoffer(?), you remember the name, was one of Hitler's very famous generals. He was one of the charter members of what was called "The German Golden Dawn." And it was he who advised Hitler to write "Mein Kamph(?)." And this Househoffer had visited India, China and Tibet. He had adopted Buddhism, he was initiated into a secret Buddha society and he was dealt a mission by these demon beings. And if he failed, he was to pay with his life.
Studying Househoffer we find out that Househoffer could actually predict the future and had amazing psychic powers. And according to Powells and Bergier(?), so could Hitler. According to Norman, Eric Norman in the Hollow Earth, Hitler successfully predicted when Nazi troops would conquer Paris, the German occupation of the Rhineland and he even predicted the death of Roosevelt. Strange black power.
Norman also points out that Hitler's birthplace, Broumenamin(?) had a reputation as an area where mediums were born. And other writers confirm this. It appears that Househoffer was the black magician who controlled Hitler. After his flight to England, Rudolf Hess is supposed to have told British Intelligence that Househoffer was the power, the magician behind Hitler and his demonic legions, says Eric Norman. So you have Househoffer, the magician, and Hitler the medium. Now there's no question about the fact that Hitler was a medium. He was in constant contact with demons.
By the way, the swastika was a powerful occult symbol that was taken out of Asia. By 1925 a group of Tibetan monks had moved to Berlin. They were members of the Black Order and had sword allegiance to the power of darkness. From that time on, funds were made available by the Nazis to finance this Black Order from Tibet, to finance further expeditions to Mongolia and Tibet and they went on for 20 years financed by the Nazis, to dig deeper into the occult. When Germany fell, several hundred volunteers in the S.S. death-head uniforms were found to be Himalayan orientals with no ID. They had been brought in from tibet. They were mediums. They were the last of the black monks who were to help Hitler in his dark menacing scheme.
In March of 1946, Househoffer killed his wife. Then before a Buddhist altar, he killed himself as a sacrifice. His son said he knew his father had been the original magician behind the Nazi monster. This is what Powells and Bergier said of Hitler, "A self-taught madman surrounded by a handful of megalomaniacs, rejects spurned the whole humanist culture, trampled on reason, involved Lucifer, conquered Europe and nearly conquered the world," end quote. Amazing.
Listen to the record of an eyewitness. Quote: "A person close to Hitler told me that he wakes up in the night screaming and in convulsion. He calls for help and appears to be half paralyzed. He is seized with a panic that makes him tremble until his bed shakes. He utters confused and unintelligible sounds, gasping as if at the point of suffocation. Hitler was standing in his room swaying and looking all around as if he were lost. `It's he...it's he...it's he...he's come for me,' he groaned. His lips were white. He was sweating profusely. Suddenly he uttered a string of meaningless figures, then words and scraps of sentences. It was terrifying. Then suddenly he screamed, `There...there, over in the corner, he's there.' And all the time he was stamping his feet and screaming," end quote. That's Hitler.
By the way, have you ever heard of the Rosicrucians? They have a place right down here. They're tied to the same thing. Same Tibetan occultism. So are the people who belong to a system called theosophy, you may have seen that.
By the way, further, the seven founders of Nazism were all involved in the occult. They promised to commit suicide if they ever broke their pact and they promised also, according to Househoffer, to perform human sacrifice which Househoffer did in the sacrifice of his wife, which amounted to a sacrifice to Satan. And because of their magical reasons, they exterminated 750,000 gypsies as a part of the occultic activity.
Further, Powells and Bergier say, "One cannot help but think of Hitler as a medium, for most of the time mediums are ordinary insignificant people. Suddenly they are endowed with what seems to be supernatural power, something outside their own personality. It was in this way beyond any doubt Hitler was possessed by forces outside himself, demonical forces of which the individual named Hitler was only the temporary vehicle," end quote.
And you know what's most interesting as I read about this, I found that his eyes were the eyes of a person in a trance, and his face turned bizarre and people said that when he spoke in public and gave speeches, the voice that he used was not the voice that was his own. Hitler said, "What will the social order of the future be? Comrades, I will tell you," he said. "Over all will reign a new and exalted nobility of whom I cannot speak." And what he was talking about was demon rule. He was Satan's man to bring about Satan's dominion. Satan convinced Hitler he was the leader of a new race of beings, man-God beings, the super race he kept talking about. He became obsessed with it. And he started slaughtering anybody who got in his way.
Hitler asked Himmler to exterminate the Jews, six million of them. He had become convinced that every Jew on earth must die. Hitler said this, "There's another species of humanity which doesn't deserve the name, left as a relic of some baser form of life, created along with hideous crawling creatures: Gypsies, Negroes and Jews," end quote. That was Hitler.
He went on to say, "They are as far removed from us as animals from humans. I don't mean I look on Jews as animals, they are much further removed from animals than we are. They are creatures outside nature. Our revolution is a new stage, the final stage in an evolution which will end by abolishing history," end quote.
So, who was Hitler? Satan's man. And he's a perfect illustration of what Satan can do when he gets a hold of the right man to con a whole society of intelligent people into believing this is the way to go. Incredible. Will there be an Antichrist? Don't doubt it. Hitler may have been a good shot at Satan's effort to make one then. But God had other plans. But there's coming a day when this man is going to come. And he's going to be like a hundred Hitlers put together. Thanks be unto God that even though Israel does listen to him and Israel hears, watch this, that at the same time he begins to tear into Israel, at that same hour God begins to redeem Israel and call them out. And it doesn't end with Antichrist, listen to this, the faithful shepherd, the true shepherd, the despised shepherd, the rejected shepherd is going to come back and Zechariah says, "They will look on Him whom they pierced and they'll mourn for Him as one mourns for his only son." And they'll look up and they'll see Christ and they'll say we made a mistake, this isn't our shepherd, He's our shepherd. And He'll save them and He'll take them into His Kingdom. Let's pray.
Father, we're so glad that the true shepherd will be back, that the devastation of Armageddon will end when the Son of righteousness rises with healing in His wings. It's sad to say that the darkness can never be removed from the hearts of those Jews who have already rejected Christ and died. But there's always a faithful remnant and there were some when Jesus lived and there were those few poor who accepted the true shepherd and there are some today, some in this auditorium tonight, all around the world there are few and they know the true shepherd and they're not going to accept the false shepherd. Thank You for the remnant. Help us to reach out to the lives of those who aren't yet saved because, Father, they must be reached. Cause if they die, it's too late for them. May we do all we can to tell Israel that their true shepherd still loves them and wants them as His sheep. And thank You, Father, that in the future that generation of those Jews living in that time, though they align with the false shepherd, that will not be the end. The true shepherd will come again, save His people. Such grace, such grace that saves us...thank You for it. In Jesus' name. Amen.
This article is also available and sold as a booklet.
This sermon series includes the following messages:
Please contact the publisher to obtain copies of this resource.Publisher Information


text:
Celluloid Slide Rule
Celluloid Slide Rule. Curious Science has a wide range of period Calculating specimens for hire as props to the tv and film industry. We have many Calculating examples available which are not on view on our web site. Please contact us on 0208 961 3113.
Prop No: 649

subset: commoncrawl


text:
Author Notes: What could be better than drowning your turkey in rich cream gravy? I'm kidding, of course, that sounds...unappealing. This lively country gravy is not meant as an accoutrement for your roasted bird, but it is mighty tasty on mashed potatoes, biscuits, or chicken-fried-anything. - arielleclementine —arielleclementine
Food52 Review: Arielleclementine's smoky, peppery gravy takes us back to the milk gravy of our childhood -- just amped up, Texas-style. It's the perfect silky cloak for fresh, homemade biscuits (like these), and roasting the poblanos is by far the most challenging part of the recipe. We love that the sauce is flecked generously with both onion and poblano, adding texture and sweetness along with the heat. Make sure not to let it thicken too much, or it will lose its velvety feel and skin easily -- you can always whisk in a bit more milk to loosen it up. - A&M —The Editors
Makes: 2 cups
large fresh green chiles (hatch, anaheim, new mexico or poblano)
tablespoons fat (sausage or bacon drippings) or butter
small yellow onion, diced (about 1/2 cup)
tablespoons flour
cups whole milk
kosher salt
- Position your oven rack so that it is 4-6 inches below your broiler. Line a baking sheet with foil and put the whole peppers on the sheet. Broil, turning the peppers occasionally, until the skin is charred and peeling on all sides. Remove the peppers to a bowl, cover with plastic wrap, and allow to steam for 10 minutes. Remove the stems, seeds, and skin from the peppers and dice the flesh. Set aside.
- If you're making this for breakfast, to accompany biscuits and your very favorite breakfast meat, fry up the bacon or sausage in a cast iron skillet over medium heat. Remove all but two tablespoons of fat from the skillet. (Or, if you're making this with butter, skip the meat frying, and just melt two tablespoons of butter in a skillet over medium heat.)
- Add the onions to the pan and cook for about 5 minutes, until they're soft and sweetly caramelized around the edges. Sprinkle two tablespoons of flour into the pan and stir for about a minute, so that the raw flour cooks off and the roux takes on a golden brown color.
- Add the milk to the pan and stir to combine. Add the diced chiles. Bring the mixture to a boil, and then simmer for 3-5 minutes, stirring constantly, until the gravy is thick and creamy. Season to taste with plenty of kosher salt (I used a little more than a teaspoon) and enjoy with your favorite starchy treat!
- Your Best Chili Pepper Recipe Contest Finalist!
- This recipe is a Community Pick!
More Great Recipes:
Condiment/Spread|American|Milk/Cream|Vegetable|Bacon|Fry|Make Ahead|Cast Iron


text:
Arrive at the park in style with your own copies of the HSB10 map, schedule, and artist bios! Simply download these PDF files and print them out at home before sauntering down to the park. Note: Friday's morning schedule for the kids is not included in these files. View the full schedule to view Friday's schedule.
Download & Print: HSB 2010 Map // HSB 2010 Schedule // HSB 2010 Bios
You will need a PDF viewer such as Acrobat Reader to view and print these files.
See below for the 2010 Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Festival schedule. If you have questions, please check out our Frequent Questions page.Note: Schedule and show times are subject to change.
Also played:
Fri Oct 3, 2008, Banjo Stage (3:35pm)
(as The Jerry Douglas Band)
Sat Oct 7 2006, Star Stage (5:15)
(as Jerry Douglas & Best Kept Secret)


text:
InformationWeek is part of the Informa Tech Division of Informa PLC
This site is operated by a business or businesses owned by Informa PLC and all copyright resides with them.Informa PLC's registered office is 5 Howick Place, London SW1P 1WG. Registered in England and Wales. Number 8860726.
SEC Gets Closer To XBRL Standard eliminates duplication of effort in preparing documents in different formats
Tech-Job Upheaval While the total number of IT pros is down, the future is looking better for the highly skilled.
IT Confidential: (I Wish I Had Some) Friends In High Places Wonderful things happen when an idea gets support it needs
Microsoft Details Servers, Search Plans Moderate predictions belie aggressive moves into new areas, including patents
Intel Delays Pentium; Talks Up Wireless Pentium 4 delay is latest in a series of missteps.
Taking Stock: Dog Days Leave Investors Sweating A lot of trading activity this summer is causing some pricing volatility.
NYSE To Further Upgrade Automated Execution System The improvements will allow the NYSE to process more trades electronically and enable "sweeping" an order.
Stocks Keep Rising Despite Oil Price Surge The key indexes closed up for the day and the week thanks to some late-day buying.
Rise Of The Attack Bots Hackers use 'bot' or 'zombie' apps to disrupt service for DoubleClick customers
EMC's Acquisitions Add Up To Storage Services Documentum and Legato technologies let companies manage data across any medium
Shift In Web Services Carmakers collaborate on project to establish transaction standards
The Magic Numbers For Servers Are 32 And 64 Dell, HP, IBM, and Sun introduce 32/64-bit options as companies load up on gear
Microsoft To Take Cheap Windows To More Markets It plans to take Windows XP Starter Edition to a number of emerging markets outside the United States and Western Europe.
Feds Take Two Routes To Supercomputer Power Navy and NASA are doing ocean modeling but building separate supercomputers
Microsoft Issues Security Fix For Internet Explorer The patch, deemed "critical" by Microsoft, fixes three publicly disclosed vulnerabilities as well as many previously fixed Internet Explorer security holes to date.
Tata Consultancy Looks Formidable With $1 Billion In Cash Tata Consultancy is looking to raise more than $1 billion in an IPO, as the 28,000-employee offshore outsourcer joins other fast-growing, publicly traded Indian IT firms.
Windows-To-Linux Migration Hits Speed Bump In Munich The proposed migration of the City of Munich's 14,000 desktops from Windows to Linux has hit a snag over possible patent issues.
Business Technology: The Death Of American IT Has Been Greatly Exaggerated Polar-opposite rhetoric isn't limited these days to political races; it's rampant in the business-technology world in discussions of workers and jobs. Bob Evans notes you can find a study to support your argument, and maybe even a bill wafting its way through the Senate.
Scientific Debuts Compliance Tool For Excel Spreadsheets The application is being offered as way to audit, track and control changes to corporate spreadsheet templates.
Fair Isaac's 3Q Profits Decline The credit-rating service and credit-analysis software supplier said revenue was up about 6% but net income was down almost 4%.
New iWay Adapters Expand SAP Integration New offerings will enable data integration from Siebel, PeopleSoft and Oracle systems.
Scripting Language Tools Get Upgrades ActiveState and Zend Technologies both have updated their tools for open-source scripting languages.
Healthy On The Front End Software companies floundered right and left in the most recent quarter. Not the reporting and analytics firms.
Safeway Turns To Velosel To Get Kinks Out Of Supply Chain The retailer is using Velosel's Collaborative Product Information Management tool to optimize its data-synchronization efforts
Location Services Find Their Way To The Enterprise Phone handsets and GPS-enabled hardware are ushering in a new wave of location-based services, Carl Zetie says. It's 2 p.m., do you know where your employees are?
SEC Gets Closer To XBRL The format's advantages include being able to query a document as if it were a database.
Auto Industry Seeks To Improve Web Services Web-services protocols can benefit from ebXML's encryption, reliability, and security features.
Investors Jump Back In A dip in oil prices helped persuade investors to get back into a buying mode, giving technology issues a boost.
Kerry's Acceptance Caps Busy Week For Democrats' IT Staff The Democratic National Convention used a combination of wired and wireless systems and networks to keep delegates, staff, and media connected and functioning.
Microsoft To Issue Browser Patch Next Week The fix for Internet Explorer will finally plug the hole that hackers exploited in a sneak attack last month.
SmartAdvice: Customer Education Key Part Of Anti-Phishing Protection Educating customers to safeguard personal information helps prevent phishing thefts and builds loyalty, The Advisory Council says. Also, test to make sure systems are compatible with upcoming Windows XP Service Pack 2 release; and follow code-review practices to make sure your developers write secure code.
Internet Pioneers Say Thanks To Tulane Jim Clark of Netscape and David Filo of Yahoo are donating $30 million each to the university, where they were undergraduates.
Apple Threatens RealNetworks The company says Real may violate federal law with software that lets customers play their songs on a variety of devices.
True Confessions: I Used My Neighbor's Wi-Fi Is it theft to use an unsecured Wi-Fi connection? Editor Mitch Wagner weighs in.
IBM Acquires Application-Management Vendor Cyanea Systems It will integrate Cyanea's technology into its existing middleware apps, including those in its WebSphere, Tivoli, and Rational product lines.
Spotlight Gary Thomson, CIO and senior VP of Choice Hotels International, sheds light on customer data integration and the role of the CIO.
Gates: Microsoft To Increase Patent Filing In annual meeting with financial analysts, Microsoft's chairman puts the focus on R&D and intellectual property.
Adding Simplicity Automated, model-driven architecture could be your ticket to simpler, less painful enterprise development.
Pipeline MicroStrategy and Business Objects lead our digest of noteworthy product releases.
NASA To Test RFID-Enabled Access Cards The access cards will be used to regulate entry at the space agency's Marshall Space Flight Center in Alabama.
Performing ETL With SQL Who needs an engine? Not Sunopsis V3, which employs SQL to bring a fresh approach to ETL.
Russian Hackers Extort Cash From British Bookmakers Russian police broke up a hacker ring that inflicted millions of dollars in damages and attracted the attention of the British government.
Government IT Sales Boost Northrop Grumman The defense contractor posted double-digit gains in sales and net income, largely due to increased sales of IT services to the government.
Outsourcing IT Education Virginia Tech is teaming with an Indian business school to offer a master's degree in information technology.
Biometric Passports Pushed Back Legislation to push back the deadline requiring countries in the State Department's Visa Waiver program to issue the passports awaits President Bush's signature.
Microsoft Takes On Spammers Again It will begin checking for the existence of Sender ID framework records on Oct. 1.


text:
On the wide expanses of Dick's Sporting Goods Park, the Colorado Rapids are able more often than not to build patiently, creating openings throughout any given game.
But in the narrow confines of CommunityAmerica Ballpark tonight in Kansas, it seemed they barely had any time to forge such openings—not enough time to spread the ball wide, lots of very quick and not necessarily effective passing in the center of the field.
Watch: FULL MATCH HIGHLIGHTS
Saying that, it was the Rapids who created the two best chances of the first half. Chances that needed to be taken given they were so few and far between. Omar Cummings blasted one from point blank range in the 23rd minute which somehow was saved by the Kansas City goalkeeper's ear. And Mehdi Ballouchy, who had done well to get into a great scoring position, blasted over from about six yards from a Cummings cross right at the end of the first 45 minutes.
"The big moment for me was when Mehdi skyed it over the bar," head coach Gary Smith told MLSsoccer.com. "The first half was a real pitched battle and, if we had come in with something, it could have been a buffer for us to hold on to."
Once KC scored the only goal of the game early in the second half, they were able to control the game a little more, stroking the ball around and frustrating any effort the Rapids made to create. The only major chance of the second half resulted in a disallowed goal for Conor Casey, set up by Cummings after Wells Thompson's shot was parried away. Cummings, however, was in an offside position. An already challenging situation was made no easier by the sending off of Julien Baudet in the 71st minute.
Things to note and quotes from the coach:
- Gary Smith partially answered some of the questions that remain about what will eventually constitute the primary starting back four by giving a first start for the season to Baudet in central defense. Marvell Wynne continued at center back while Drew Moor moved out wide to the left and Kosuke Kimura continued in the right back position. Danny Earls, who had started both previous games at left back, was the odd man out this time. Partially answered but Baudet will miss the next game given his red card tonight. "I just thought it suited us better physically to have Julien," Smith said. "Ultimately, that was our Achilles heel because he got sent off. I thought Drew Moor was absolutely terrific at left back and Marvell Wynne was outstanding again."
- Good to see some game time for Jamie Smith who was ultimately unable to make much impact on the narrow field. Smith entered the game in the 61st minute for his first minutes of the season after battling back from a hamstring injury. "Jamie did okay," Smith said. "It was tough for him but he will get more minutes on Tuesday which will stand him in good stead for Toronto." The Rapids are at home to Toronto next Sunday, April 18.
- Good experience also for new boy Quincy Amarikawa who came on for the last ten minutes following his move to Colorado from San Jose this week. Some of the players will be staying on in Kansas for Tuesday's Open Cup game against the same opposition. Smith said one or two players feeling knocks from tonight's game would be later decisions for Tuesday. "But I won't be far away from what I was thinking," the coach said. Claudio Lopez, now confirmed as having his visa issues sorted out, looks likely to play some time in the Open Cup game.


text:
Martyr and Passion-Bearer Boris, in Holy Baptism Romanus
Saint Boris was one of the sons of Saint Vladimir (July 15), and was named Romanus at his Baptism. After their father's death the eldest son Sviatopolk planned to kill his brothers Boris, Gleb, and Yaroslav in order to seize power. He sent a message to Boris, pretending that he wished to live in peace with him, and to increase Boris's land holdings inherited from their father.
Some of Vladimir's advisers told Boris that he should take the army and establish himelf as ruler of Kiev. Saint Boris, however, said that he could never lift his hand against his own brother. Unfortunately, Sviatopolk was not so scrupulous. He came to the town of Vyshegorod to ask its leaders if they were loyal to him. They assured him that they were ready to die for him.
Sviatopolk sent assassins to the Alta to kill Boris, who already knew that his brother wanted him dead. When they arrived they heard him chanting psalms and praying before an icon of Christ. He asked the Lord to strengthen him for the suffering he was about to endure. He also prayed for Sviatopolk, asking God not to count this against him as sin.
Then he lay down upon his couch, and the assassins stabbed him with their lances, and also killed some of Boris's servants. Wrapping Boris in a cloth, they threw him onto a wagon and drove off with him. When Sviatopolk saw that he was still breathing, he sent some men to finish him off with swords.
Saint Boris received the crown of martyrdom in 1015. He and his brother Gleb became known as Passion-Bearers, since they did not resist evil with violence.


text:
Meet the Woman Handling Behind-the-Scenes Biz for 'X Factor' Judge Simon Cowell
Simon Cowell is a media mogul, which makes him a media magnet, as well. He sees no less than 500 tabloid items printed about him and his entertainment properties in a single year. His 'X Factor' show antics and his love life are often the topics of the press and publicity surrounding the acid-tongued judge. Simon Cowell, Inc. is a well-oiled machine, a brand and a corporation, and as the saying goes, behind every good man is an even better woman.
Meet Ann-Marie Thomson, Cowell's PR rep, who is the global head of media for his Syco Entertainment. At 33, the blonde Brit manages Cowell's media empire (and his relationship to the media), the properties of which include the 'Got Talent' and 'X Factor' franchises, along with his Syco Records label.
In a chat with Hollywood Reporter, Cowell said, "If Ann-Marie calls you at 10:30 at night, it isn't good news." He revealed that Thomson is unique since she "understands the relationship that I like to have with the media — a close one. A lot of publicists treat the media like enemies, which is ridiculous because the media makes you. She respects press." Thomson concurred, "We treat press like a partner in the show. We're all in the entertainment business, so what benefits us benefits you."
Hey Ann-Marie, have you read PopCrush's weekly recaps and extensive media coverage of the show? We're partners.
Thomson is just one of many PR pros in the mix surrounding the show. The press teams at FOX, high-powered agency PMK and Fremenatle Media, also manage the publicity machine surrounding Cowell and the she show. But Thomson is Cowell's right-hand woman. While many PR reps are looked at as "flacks," it's clear that Cowell and Thomson have a good thing going.
View a gallery of images of Thomson managing the Cowell empire here, where the judge reveals what he looks for in a PR rep and more. He says a publicist will devote themselves to you above and beyond, giving up nights and weekends and more.


text:
The following information will assist you with the purchase of any technology products for your department.
Computer and Printer Purchases - Vendors available are Apple, Dell and HP. Products include desktops, laptops, tablets and printers.
Loaner Program - ITS has Dell laptops, LCD projectors and digital cameras available to faculty and staff for checkout when needed for travel, a special presentation or project, etc. The equipment is available on a first-come, first-served basis. The normal checkout period is two weeks. To reserve one of these units, contact Hardware Services at ext. 6520. Hardware Services is located in the ITS Repair Shop at the 5th Street (Bookstore) Parking Garage. Please see links below for more details.
All departmental technology purchases are received on campus in the Installation Services area where they are prepared for delivery. For more details, see Installation Services.
Redeployment of Computer Equipment - A department is allowed one computer move from one employee to another employee or student employee within that department according to the following guidelines:


text:
my love of lattes. further explanation.
my friend claire once asked me why it is that i love coffee so much.
the ritual, i responded.
which is some of the answer, but not all of it, i suppose.
i can drink a small latte for hours. i can milk it (pun intended) for hours. i'll begin with it in the morning and it'll last me through the late afternoon.
i like the taste of coffee, but i don't love it.
there is a respect for the thing. for the knowledge that it's not nutrition--that that's not how it feeds me. i don't even particularly need the caffeine to wake me up in the morning.
it's self-care.
it's that first sip.
this morning that sip coupled coupled with the cool spring air made me think of vacation and the love of my friends and a few stolen weeks in sydney. it made me forget--if only for a moment--the clanging of the elevator repair to which i woke, the calls i need to make to secure an apartment, the work schedule that doesn't allow me to view the locations, the emails and messages that need to be sent out, and the near crippling stress which has snuck into my life over the last few weeks.
the coffee was a pause. the first sip, a moment of respite. a reminder that all will be well and i deserve to get up, dust myself off, and continue on. i am worth the fight.
all that in a morning coffee. not to bad, huh?
16 comments:
- Brittan said...
I'm with you on this one. I'm always trying to kick coffee because I don't find that I need the caffeine and I know it's not doing me any nutritional favors... But I keep going back because there is nothing I love more than meeting someone for a latte or sitting alone in a coffee shop with a cappuccino and my daily To Do list. I even request a "for here" cup rather than a disposable one because I cherish the way the warm ceramic feels in my hands. I gotta say, I do love the taste of coffee. I take it with soy milk or almond milk (or even bring in coconut creamer, which is my very fav), no sugar, and just enjoy the ritual. It makes everything a little better.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Laura said...
"i deserve to get up, dust myself off, and continue on. i am worth the fight."
beautifully written. i needed to hear that today. thank you.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Allison said...
This post is so beautifully written. I couldn't agree with you more.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
I hear you. coffee is about more than just coffee, and I hate this constant talk about beating the habit. it's coffee, not cigarettes, or drugs, or alcohol. if you need to struggle with something to make yourself interesting, pick something else. drinking coffee is a ritual. couldn't agree more!
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Cassie said...
Yes yes yes!
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- The Lewicutt's est 2006 said...
Psh... coffee is GOOD for your health! (Not because of what it does for the psyche):
Webmd says so... so... it must be true. I trust them enough to diagnose myself with cancer every once and a while, so why not on this? ;)
Coffee is my me time in my crazy hectic always on the go life. It is sacred.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- The Lewicutt's est 2006 said...
*not only because of what it does for the psyche (that's what the was supposed to read)
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Erin said...
sometimes i think you can read my thoughts and write them so much better than i can. i like coffee but i love the ritual of it. the same is true for hot tea. it is always so much more than just hot caffeine. it is relaxation and inspiration in a cup.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Ruth said...
Yes. Oh yes. I've recently learned that I can only stomach decaf, but it's not the caffeine that I love -- it's the ritual. It's the same with tea. Or any hot beverage, I suppose. It's the slowness, the awareness, the pause.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- sophie said...
that first sip is always the best. love this.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Allie said...
I love savoring my coffee, preferably in a mug, and drinking it over a great conversation.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- From DC to Sweet Tea said...
Love this! I am a tea drinker, but I feel the same way. It' is all about the ritual. The doing something for yourself. The feeding your soul.
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- colleen said...
oh my god. FINALLY. someone who drinks coffee for the same reason i do. i don't need the caffeine (caffeine has no effect on me). i don't necessarily love the taste. it's just...exactly everything you said. the ritual. the smell. the memories. thank you so much for putting what i felt into words!
- Tuesday, April 24, 2012
- Amy said...
I love this! When I was pregnant with Eli I gave up caffeine (even though I didn't have to...I was just suuuuper paranoid about what I ate and drank during that time) but I couldn't give up the ritual of having that hot, comforting drink that smells oh so delicious every morning. I switched to decaf and I savoured it just as much as regular coffee. Which, to me, says exactly that: coffee is about the ritual, not what you're consuming. It's such a nice little indulgence and a fantastic way to start the day.
- Wednesday, April 25, 2012
- Brady said...
Ah, this is so true!
- Friday, April 27, 2012
- Jocelyn said...
Thank-you so much for your honesty in your blog. For your elegant bluntness. For not being afraid to be who you are and sharing that. It has helped me be more bold than I could have in the past few months.
- Monday, April 30, 2012


text:
News Release: June 21, 2012
Docket Nos. RM11-24-000, AD10-13-000
Item No. E-2
FERC Offers Changes for Sale of Ancillary Services, Reporting for Electric Storage Technologies
The Federal Energy Regulatory Commission (FERC) is seeking comment on proposals to bring greater competition and transparency to markets for services needed to ensure reliable operation of the transmission grid.
Todays Notice of Proposed Rulemaking (NOPR) proposes to revise Commission policies governing the sale of ancillary services at market-based rates. It also proposes to require transmission providers outside of the organized energy markets to explain in their tariffs how they will determine regulation and frequency response reserve requirements, taking into account the speed and accuracy of the resources. Finally, the NOPR proposes revisions to FERCs Uniform System of Accounts and its annual and quarterly forms, statements and reports to better account for and report transactions involving energy storage technologies.
The proposed changes are based on comments in response to a June 2011 Notice of Inquiry (NOI). Those comments argued that the current accounting and reporting requirements do not adequately support energy storage assets and operations, and that the policy requiring competitive ancillary services providers to either prove they lack market power or be subject to certain market power mitigation measures before selling their services at market-based rates presents a barrier to the sale of these services outside the organized markets.
Under the NOPR, sellers that pass FERCs existing market-based rate analyses for energy and capacity would be presumed to lack market power for energy and generator imbalance services in that geographic market. The NOPR also seeks comment on a reporting requirement that would give potential sellers of other ancillary services the information needed to develop market power analyses based on an optional screen designed solely for ancillary services, and it proposes the use of price caps or competitive solicitations to mitigate market power.
The NOPR makes a preliminary finding that the proposal to require transmission providers to account for resource speed and accuracy in determining regulation and frequency response reserve requirements is needed to prevent potential undue discrimination against customers that choose to meet their own needs for that ancillary service. It does not mandate a method for meeting this requirement, but proposes that FERC evaluate those determinations on a case-specific basis.
Comments on the NOPR are due 60 days after publication in the Federal Register.


text:
Much like the NFL has taken over Thanksgiving and the NBA Christmas, the NHL has New Year's and the Winter Classic might be the best of them all. It's a showcase game in every sense: it's visually gorgeous and an entertaining game. This year, Toronto won in a shootout after three regulation periods and one five-minute overtime netted a 2-2 tie.
Here are some of the sights, all photos are credited to Getty and AP Images.


text:
"Meet The Press" host Tim Russert, shown here interviewing one of the mothers of Travis Henry's children, has himself a new gig this morning: He's hosting a "President Of Red Sox Nation" debate.
NBC's Tim Russert, host of "Meet the Press," will make a guest appearance on NESN as he moderates a discussion among the candidates for the President of Red Sox Nation. He will be joined by NESN's Red Sox field reporter Tina Cervasio serving as co-moderator.
The show, "Red Sox Nation: The Presidential Debate," will be videotaped at Boston University 's George Sherman Union this Thursday, September 27 at 11:30 a.m. It will air on NESN at 10:30 p.m. or immediately following NESN's post-game coverage of the Red Sox-Twins game on Friday, September 28.
Seriously: This President Of Red Sox Nation thing has gotten way, way out of hand. Though we are curious what the dog's views on global warming are. We hope he blames it on Jimmy Fallon; we're on board for that.
Welcome To The Circus, Mr. Russert [Red Sox Monster]


text:
HOUSTON -- An LA Fitness club that had an estimated $200,000 in damages from a recent break-in reopened Tuesday evening.
An employee at the Houston club on Highway 6 said this morning that operations at the club have returned to normal. The floor in the club was still damp from a recent cleaning of the rugs, the employee added.
On Sunday morning, employees arrived at the club to shattered windows, paint thrown across floors and trashed offices, according to local media reports. Fire extinguishers also were discharged. The Fort Bend County (TX) Sheriff's Office responded to the club just before 5:50 a.m. Sunday.
Investigators say someone made a forced entry into the club, possibly around 4 a.m., by breaking the front window that leads to the pool area of the club. That person then poured about four gallons of paint throughout the club and set a small fire that activated the sprinkler system, which caused extensive water damage to equipment and the building.
Although suspects are still being sought, Chief Deputy Craig Brady told local media that the club recently changed management and several people were laid off.
When asked about the incident, an LA Fitness official from the company's corporate office declined comment to Club Industry.


text:
Lebanese Prime Minister Najib Mikati announced the resignation of his government Friday amid what his spokesman said were disputes among his cabinet over preparations for parliamentary elections and the future of a top Lebanon security official.
Mikati, who led a coalition government for the last two years, made the announcement live on Lebanese TV.
His press officer, Fares Gemayyel, said the cabinet failed to form -- and did not show any inclination toward forming -- a constitutionally mandated committee to supervise approaching parliamentary elections.
"The prime minister cannot work in such conditions. He needs to respect the constitution," Gemayyel said.
Mikati's decision also was prompted by a dispute over whether to extend the term of Ashraf Rifi, the chief of Lebanon's internal security forces, Gemayyel said.


text:
Faces of HIV Launches in Florida
With cities such as Miami and Jacksonville, Fla., having some of the highest HIV prevalence rates in the U.S., the Florida Health Department (FHD) is making clear that the growing epidemic in its state is a high priority. To raise awareness and educate Floridians, the FHD recently launched Faces of HIV, a new HIV/AIDS awareness campaign. Instead of going the typical route of television PSAs and bus ads, though, Faces of HIV is a multifaceted campaign that not only utilizes the Web and social media, but has a traveling art exhibit component that consists of photos and written daily journals that convey the real life stories of people living with HIV.
Thomas Liberti, chief of the Bureau of HIV/AIDS for the Florida Department of Health, told TheBody.com that the goal of this campaign is to help bring the epidemic back into the open. "Hopefully [Faces of HIV] will encourage that person who's been thinking about getting tested to get tested, or the person who is positive to get back into the doctor's office and seek care," Liberti said.
Dab Garner, the founder of the Dab the AIDS Bear Project, shared his own life story for the campaign. Garner, a native Floridian who has been living with HIV for 30 years, is most pleased with the diversity of the campaign, and believes that it will help reduce stigma. "There are [white] women, gay men and women [of color] who are putting out the message that it doesn't matter who you are," he said. "This disease can impact anyone."
Garner also hopes that his story of survival will inspire other people living with HIV/AIDS who may have lost hope: "As a long-time survivor, I want for other people living with HIV/AIDS to see my story and know that they can live with this disease."
Responses via social media and from the first stops in Tallahassee on Jan. 13 and 14 have been positive. "People left the truck telling us that the photos and personal stories really woke them up," Liberti said. Garner echoes that view: "Since the videos have gone on YouTube and then on MySpace and Facebook, there has been a lot of heartwarming comments of people sharing their own stories of living with HIV/AIDS, having HIV-positive loved ones, or how the videos have made people rethink their own behaviors."
The next stop for Faces of HIV is Orlando, at the University of Central Florida on Feb. 3 and downtown at Lake Eola on Feb. 4, with future cities including Fort Lauderdale, Miami, Tampa and Jacksonville. And while the majority of the cities on the tour schedule are large, Liberti hopes showings will expand to smaller cities.
"Midsized cities such as Gainesville, Fort Myers and Fort Peters may be smaller than cities such as Miami and Fort Lauderdale, but their HIV stats are not small," he said. "Bringing Faces of HIV to these places to talk about the epidemic would be powerful."
Watch the Faces of HIV trailer here.
Faces of HIV from Anson-Stoner on Vimeo.
Watch Dab's video:
Dab from Anson-Stoner on Vimeo.
Read his journal.
Watch Kamaria's story:
Kamaria from Anson-Stoner on Vimeo.
Read her journal.
Watch Joey's story:
Joey from Anson-Stoner on Vimeo.
Read his journal.
Watch Tracey's story:
Tracey from Anson-Stoner on Vimeo.
Read her journal.
For details and upcoming dates for Faces of HIV and for more stories and journals, please visit wemakethechange.com.
Follow Kellee on Twitter: @kelleent.


text:
Normally we'd do whatever it takes to not stand in the hot sun in East Pasadena on a Tuesday morning when there's work to be done, but on this particular hot Tuesday morning, we made an exception. It was the groundbreaking ceremony for A Noise Within, which is moving from its 19-year home in Glendale to midcentury building on Foothill near Sierra Madre Villa that once held Stuart Pharmaceuticals. The turnout was terrific, with every seat under the big tent taken and the many standing jockeying for a position in the shade. In the crowd were colleagues from the Pasadena theatre community, including Sheldon Epps of the newly reborn Pasadena Playhouse and a team of folks from Boston Court; Mayor Bill Bogaard; City Councilmember Steve Haderlein; and all sorts of supporters, patrons, season-ticket holders and media folks.
The speechifying was a little much, as is the norm at such events, but it kicked off with a rousing performance of memorable lines from classic plays, performed by members of the repertory company—the only repertory company in Southern California to focus exclusively on classic theatre, from Molière to Williams, Shakespeare to Dickens, Coward to Ionesco.
Although they called it a groundbreaking, ANW directors Julia Rodriguez-Elliott and Geoff Elliott didn't actually break any ground—the building already exists. But construction is now beginning on the interior renovations that will create a thrust-stage theatre, classrooms, offices, gardens and a learning center and library—ANW currently serves 10,000 students a year, and with the new facilities will double that to 20,000.
All this will take a full year, and they still need to raise another $3 million ($10+ million has already been secured) to finish the job, but everyone present seemed convinced that it won't be a problem, economy be damned.
In the meantime, A Noise Within will produce one more season of plays in its original Glendale home, with a roster including Great Expectations, Blithe Spirit, The Comedy of Errors, The Chairs, and a return of last season's boffo hit, Noises Off. The season kicks off with Measure for Measure on September 18th.


text:
Warehouse bosses could have been forgiven for thinking someone was pulling their leg after they discovered a bungling thief had fled with a pair of boots by breaking the leg off one of their display mannequins.
Chesterfield magistrates' court heard on Monday how Martin Neill, 38, of Pear Tree Drive, Shirebrook, damaged a £1,000 mannequin when he stole the G-Star military boots from the Sports Direct warehouse at Shirebrook.
Prosecuting solicitor Becky Allsop said: "The offence took place at the entrance to Sports Direct and CCTV shows Neill approaching where there are mannequins and he decided to steal a pair of boots.
"He pulls the leg off one mannequin and takes a boot and comes back and steals the other boot. "In an interview with police, Neill said he was aware of the dummies and took the boots and sold them on for £40 and used the money to buy food. He accepts he did not need to break the foot of the mannequin."
Neill admitted the theft and causing criminal damage after the offences were committed in January.
Defence solicitor Deborah Bell said Neill, who has overcome a heroin addiction, complied with officers after they tracked him down and he fully admitted both offences.
Magistrates adjourned the case until March 6 to consider probation reports before sentencing.
Neill was granted bail on the conditions that he does not enter retail premises and must report to Chesterfield police station.