If money is the roof of all evil, these televangelists are EEEEEVIL!

…, at least from a Christian perspective…, since all of these “pastors of the mass media” preach from a Biblical basis supposedly.

Let’s take a look at the 8 richest “TV preachers,” from #8 up to #1.

You may be amazed to find out how good a business “selling salvation” can be!

#8. Pastor Joyce Meyers, net worth $8+ million.

She owns a private jet and several homes, as well as shiny $107,000 silver Mercedes. Hey…, it beats riding a donkey I guess!

#7. Bishop T.D. Jakes, net worth $18 million.

T.D. Jakes spoke at the inauguration of President Barack Obama in 2009 and accompanied President George W. Bush to areas affected by Hurricane Katrina in 2005. So he’s a “swampy” kind of bishop!

Jakes founded The Potter’s House, a nondenominational megachurch. His sermons can be seen on Trinity Broadcasting Network and other religious channels.

#6. Franklin Graham, net worth $25 million.

Although Franklin Graham is an evangelist and son of well-known pastor Billy Graham, he didn’t even convert to Christianity until he was 22 years old! Interesting. I guess he finally figured out what “buttered his bread.”

#5. Pastor Creflo Dollar, net worth $27 million.

As his last name suggests, televangelist Creflo Dollar has amassed some riches, and he has the possessions to prove it. Dollar is the founder of the non-denominational World Changers Church International, based in Fulton County, Georgia. In 2007, he had a congregation of 30,000 as well as $69 million in cash collection revenue. Dollar preaches his philosophy that “it is the will of God for you to prosper in every way.”

And when he says “you” he means “me!”

#4. Joel Osteen, net worth $40 million.

Joel Osteen is pastor at Lakewood Church, the largest Protestant church in America. Weekly attendance at the Houston-based church is 52,000. In 1999, Osteen, now 54, inherited the church and its television ministry from his late father John Osteen. Today, 7 million people in 100 different countries watch Lakewood Church broadcasts every week.

He and his wife, co-pastor Victoria Osteen, live with their two kids in a $10.5 million mansion in the Houston suburbs.

#3. Benny Hinn, net worth $60 million.

Benny Hinn is best known for his “Miracle Crusades,” or faith healing summits, which are held in stadiums around the country and broadcast on his TV program “This Is Your Day.” He founded Orlando Christian Center church in 1983 and began holding his healing services there. Followers believe Hinn can heal any of their ailments if he prays over them.

#2. Pat Robertson, net worth $100 million.

Televangelist Pat Robertson founded Christian Broadcasting Network, which now broadcasts shows in 180 countries in 71 languages. The flagship show, “The 700 Club,” airs daily.

Annnnnd…, leading the “rat pack…,” drumroll please!

#1. Pastor Kenneth Copeland, net worth $300 million!

Kenneth Copeland heads Kenneth Copeland Ministries and preaches through TV, books, DVDs, and CDs.

Kenneth Copeland Ministries is located on a 1,500-acre campus near Fort Worth, Texas. The grounds include a church as well as a private airstrip and hangar for a $17.5 million jet and other aircraft. Copeland reportedly lives in a $6.3 lakefront mansion funded by his church. Although Celebrity Net Worth reported he’s worth $300 million, other reports say Copeland could be worth $750 million or more.

So…, there you have ‘em.

Our list of preacher’s who are riding that big, green, gravy train!

Paid for by some followers who think they can buy instant salvation, and at the expense of other donors who just don’t know any better.

Shame on them all…, and all of the others like them who didn’t qualify for the “worst of the worst” list here.

All of these “pastors” are very talented when it comes to quoting chapter and verse from The Bible. I wonder what their reaction would be to a couple verses that I have selected here?

Matthew 6:24 “No one can be loyal to two masters. He is bound to hate one and love the other, or support one and despise the other. You cannot serve God and the power of money at the same time.”

1 John 2:15-17 “Do not love this world nor the things it offers you, for when you love the world, you do not have the love of the Father in you. For the world offers only a craving for physical pleasure, a craving for everything we see, and pride in our achievements and possessions. These are not from the Father, but are from this world. And this world is fading away, along with everything that people crave. But anyone who does what pleases God will live forever.”

Matthew 6:5-13 – “And then, when you pray, don’t be like the play-actors. They love to stand and pray in the synagogues and at street-corners so that people may see them at it. Believe me, they have had all the reward they are going to get.”

I’m sure they’d all be able to conjure up a translation of these words that would not only validate what they were doing, but promote it, and herald it!

They are good at what they do…, it’s just a shame they have to pretend to do it in God’s name.

Thanks to Karen Bennett, for Cheatsheet.com, for contributing to this article.

NOTE: If you’re not already “following” me and you liked my blog(s) today, please “click” on the comment icon just to the right of the date at the bottom of this article. From there you can let me know you “like” my blog, leave a comment or click the “Follow” button which will keep you up to date on all of my latest posts.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

June 6, 2019 0

Chicago’s a “sanctuary” city?

Chicago, Illinois and its liberal democrat leadership claim it be a “sanctuary” city.

I think you’d be safer walking around downtown Baghdad, taking a hike through North Korea or spending a weekend in Benghazi.

According to Merriam-Webster, “sanctuary” means “a place of refuge or safety.”

Elizabeth Llorente of Fox News reported that “Chicago has most violent weekend this year: 52 shot, 10 dead.

Wow…, 52 shot and 10 dead in one weekend! Those numbers prompted me to look more closely at some other numbers.

My first reaction when I saw these numbers was that these numbers remind me of numbers you might see in a real “war zone.”

So I decided to look at the casualty numbers from the war in Afghanistan and see how the “sanctuary” city of Chicago compared.

From 2012-2018, 6 years, the total number of deaths suffered by our military personnel in Afghanistan was 857.

From 2012-2018, 6 years, the total number of gun deaths recorded in Chicago, Illinois was 1,216.

You can tack on another 20,000 or so casualties during that time frame as well.

This is a “sanctuary” city?

A “sanctuary” for who?

Chicago is the third largest city in the United States.

It is also, by definition, a “war zone.”

Actually…, based on the numbers, Chicago is worse than the war zone in Afghanistan.

According to Kristine Frazao of WJLA-TV in Washington D.C., “Some states with strictest gun laws also have the most dangerous cities.”

“One of the top ten states with the most restrictive gun laws in the country is Illinois, where last year there were 650 murders in Chicago alone, according to a USA Today’s compilation of crime data.”

“In Maryland, another state with some of the strictest gun laws in the country, Baltimore had 343 murders last year and has highest per capita murder rate in the nation. The city was also just named the most dangerous city in America by USA Today.”

Liberals still haven’t figured out that criminals typically don’t follow “the law!” Or maybe they have, but they just don’t care.

“Chicago Mayor Lori Lightfoot has said she’s considering replacing Johnson [Chicago Police Superintendent Eddie Johnson], but will not decide until after a more thorough study of the city’s problems, according to WGN-TV.”

“A study of the city’s problems?”

Just off the top of my head…, I would say there are too many criminals on the streets with too many weapons. Now that’s just off the top of my head mind you.

“On Twitter, [Department spokesman Anthony] Guglielmi assailed a program known as ‘I-Bond’ that allows Cook County offenders to be released on a no-cash bond. The program was implemented in 1982 to address jail overcrowding. But critics long have said it provides criminals a fast way to get back on the streets.”

‘“Letting gun offenders out on I-Bonds shows there is absolutely no repercussion for carrying illegal guns in Chicago,’ Guglielmi tweeted.”

Again…, just off the top of my head…, I would say these I-Bond things are a real issue as well…, but that’s just off the top of my head…, again, mind you.

In my mind, you would address jail overcrowding by building a bigger jail or another jail…, not letting criminals back out on the street who are a threat to the community…, but that’s just me.

A memorial of flowers, balloons, a cross and photo of victim Marlen Ochoa-Lopez, are displayed on the lawn, Friday, May 17, 2019 in Chicago, outside the home where Ochoa-Lopez was murdered last month. Assistant State’s Attorney James Murphy says a pregnant Ochoa-Lopez, who was killed and whose baby was cut from her womb, was strangled while being shown a photo album of the late son and brother of her attackers. (AP Photo/Teresa Crawford)

What?!

Are you kidding me?!

Again…, just off the top of my head now…, I would say that part of the problem is that some of these gang members are not even human beings!

These people don’t need to be let out on bail when they’re caught…, they need to be locked up and the key thrown away…, regardless of how much it costs to keep them behind bars.

The alternative is more people are going to die.

These liberal “do gooders,” which is a fallacy all on its own, should be forced to live in the neighborhoods these “things” prey on.

They are obviously willing to take their chances with the lives of other law abiding citizens in Chicago…, why not their own?

The Associated Press also contributed to this story.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

June 5, 2019 0

Interesting and funny stories and images from the past!

The kids behind the voices of the “Peanuts” characters in the 1960s.

Ha! Now that is cool!

Peanuts creator Charles Schultz thought it was important for the children on the animated adaptation of his comic strip to have the voices of actual children. The kids who were cast for the roles were all around the age of their onscreen counterparts, with Cathy Steinberg being only 4 years old when she was hired to play the role of Sally Brown. She was discovered living next door to producer Lee Mendelson.

Similarly, the voice Charlie, Todd Barbee, was discovered thanks to his father, Chuck, who was Mendelson’s director of photography.

For people who grew up with the Peanuts gang, it’s interesting to finally see “the kids behind the voices.”

These two photos both feature the same giant tortoise named Jonathan. The photo on the left was taken in 1902 and the photo on the right was taken in 2017! Jonathan was born in 1832 and today he is 186 years old!

Jonathan, the oldest known living animal in the world, lives on the island of Saint Helena in the South Atlantic Ocean.

Most animals don’t even come close to outliving their owners. The tortoise is the rare case where you may have to arrange for someone to care for your pet after YOU die.., and then even after the next persons!

The first vacuum cleaner. (Made by Siemens, in Germany, 1906.)

If you think the vacuum cleaner that you have now is a pain in the neck, imagine hauling this behemoth of a machine around the house while you try to clean up. At the time Siemens referred to these mechanized monsters as “dedusting pumps.”

These machines weighed around 660 pounds! If you wanted to “dedust” your home with one of these things it was no small effort. Thankfully, a better version of this “dedusting pump” was on the horizon, and it didn’t weigh as much as a car!

A rare photo showing a 19-year-old Jimi Hendrix during his time in the US Army, where he trained as a paratrooper in 1961.

Before he was a legendary guitar musician, Jimi Hendrix was serving in the 101st Airborne Division of the U.S. Army where he trained as a paratrooper. He trained at Fort Campbell, Kentucky after joining the military in lieu of serving time in prison for car theft. Hendrix wasn’t a fan of the military, and he really hated training.

Eventually, he received a discharge and ended up getting back to his guitar.

Tragically, his mainstream career would span only four years. He is widely regarded as one of the most influential electric guitarists in the history of popular music, but alcohol and drugs took their toll on him, and he ended up choking to death on his own vomit, while asleep and overdosed on sleeping pills.

Sad.

Grandpa Munster, 1965

Can’t you hear the theme music now? The Munsters aired from 1964 to 1966. Grampa Munster was played by Al Lewis. He had a lab beneath the Munsters’ home where he was always cooking up some weird scientific experiment. The magazine he’s looking at here is what gets me!

Too funny!

The 1980 eruption of Mount St. Helens in Washington State was a real doozy!

On May 18, 1980 Mount St. Helens erupted in Washington State. For two months prior to the explosion, a series of earthquakes continually rocked the state while St. Helens spewed steam. It was obvious that the volcano was going to erupt, but it was just a question of when. At 8:32 a.m., a magnitude 5.1 earthquake that came from directly beneath the mountain triggered the largest rock slide in history.

Following the landslide, a gas charged, partially molten rock and high pressure blast of steam exploded out of the mountain, following a series of smaller bursts that spewed ash and pumice as lava flowed freely from the mountain.

Does one major volcanic eruption generate more climate-altering gas than that produced by humans in their entire history?

This argument that human-caused carbon emissions are merely a drop in the bucket compared to greenhouse gases generated by volcanoes has been making its way around for years.

Well…, the devil is in the details.

If you’re looking at carbon dioxide emissions only, that’s not the case. But volcanoes spew out billions of tons of poisonous gasses as well, like Sulphur and chlorine, in addition to carbon dioxide.

It’s a typical case of manipulating the facts with word games to suit your narrative.

Yes…, one major volcanic eruption generates more pollution, in general, than that produced by humans in their entire history, which only includes the last 160 years by the way, which is when people started to burn fuel to run engines, machines and other equipment.

There are other natural sources of air pollution as well.

Methane is emitted by the digestion of food by animals.

Smoke and carbon monoxide are produced by wildfires. During periods of active wildfires, this smoke can make up almost 75% of all air pollution by concentration.

Vegetation, in some regions, emits environmentally significant amounts of Volatile organic compounds (VOCs).

It turns out that The Earth is pretty adept at handling its own air pollution in its own ways.

The Earth doesn’t need our help one way or the other.

The Earth will still be here, doing its own thing, long after we are gone.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

June 3, 2019 1

Try and impeach President Trump! We dare ‘ya! We double dare ‘ya! We double-dog dare ‘ya!!!

What do you call it when an investigator ignores obvious evidence to pursue desired evidence and a desired outcome?

This is what you would call a prejudiced witch hunt.

This is exactly what Robert Mueller, and his partisan team, did for over two years.

I heard Judge Andrew Napolitano, a contributor on Fox News say we should remember that “Robert Mueller was a Marine” and that he still felt that, “Robert Mueller was an honorable man.”

I beg to differ Judge.

It looks like Mr. Mueller traded in his “Marine card” for a “swamp card!”

And that’s coming from another Marine.

“Being a Marine” may buy you a certain level of credibility with some people for starters, but it’s not “credibility carte blanche!”

For an example, Lee Harvey Oswald was a Marine.

And how you can describe Mueller as anything remotely close to honorable is beyond me.

Unless you’re talking about “honor among thieves?!” This is the understanding that criminals do not compromise the activities of other criminals!

If that’s the kind of honor you’re referring to, Judge…, I guess I could go along with that.

Even though Robert Mueller failed in his mission to find (or produce) any legal means to take down President Trump, he’s still doing what he can to pathetically hand-off this invalid and ill-gotten investigation to Congress, so that they may continue their own prejudiced, partisan, witch hunt.

This brings us to Nancy “Chicken Little, the sky is falling” Pelosi!

Could it be that “Chicken Little” is chicken?

Could it be that Nancy “Chicken Little, the sky is falling” Pelosi is the voice of reason for the democrats right now?

That’s a scary thought, but it looks like that is the case.

All it would take would be for Nancy to cut the swamp dogs loose and this impeachment circus would be off and running.

This first part of the impeachment process only “brings charges against a civil officer of government for crimes alleged to have been committed.”

You can charge anyone with anything and allege anyone did anything as well.

“Impeachment” is solely a political process…, not a criminal process.

The “impeachment game” is not a game that would end well for the democrats…, and “Negative Nancy” is at least smart enough to realize that.

She likes being in charge of the U.S. Congress more than she hates President Trump…, but the rest of the democrats in Congress don’t have that position of power to consider. They’ve invested so much time and effort into this fairy tale that they just can’t get away from taking a bite out of that poison apple!

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 31, 2019 0

John McCain and his family showed their true colors at his funeral.

And what are the McCain family colors?

Blue (vs. red)…, and yellow.

In yet another display of classlessness, the McCain family snubbed John McCain’s running mate for the presidency in 2008.

According to Brooke Singman of Fox News, “Sarah Palin says it was a ‘gut punch’ not to be invited to the funeral of her 2008 running mate, the late Senator John McCain, last year.”

“Palin, who was tapped as McCain’s pick for vice president during the 2008 race, opened up about the funeral during an interview on ‘Good Morning Britain.’”

‘“I was kinda surprised to be publicly disinvited to the funeral. I think that was an unnecessary step,’ Palin told Piers Morgan. ‘They didn’t have to embarrass me and embarrass others. That was all weird. I hope that doesn’t happen to other people. It’s kind of a gut punch.’”

“McCain, who died last August from brain cancer, reportedly planned his own funeral.”

Well that’s not vain at all is it?

“According to reports, Palin learned she was not invited to the services through an intermediary, not directly from the McCain family.”

Stay classy (yellow) McCain family.

It just goes to show that John McCain had to hold his RINO nose when selecting the straight shooting conservative, Sarah Palin, to run with him in 2008.

In McCain’s book titled “The Restless Wave,” he wrote that he regretted choosing Palin as his running mate instead of his close friend, former Senator Joe Lieberman of Connecticut.

Now here is something John McCain said that I think you can believe!

Lieberman was a democrat, had been Al Gore’s running mate back in 2000. McCain and Lieberman were establishment “swamp rat” brothers from different mothers.

Then, adding insult to injury, not only did the McCains specifically not invite Sarah Palin to the funeral (as well as President Trump, which was more understandable), it turns out that John McCain called Barack Obama personally to ask him if he would deliver one of the eulogies at his funeral.

So he doesn’t invite the person who ran with him in a presidential election, but he not only invites, but has the guy deliver his eulogy who beat him in the election?

Cuckoo! Cuckoo!

Yes my friends…, John McCain definitely showed his true colors to be blue (vs. red)…, and yellow of course.

Singman adds that, “When he died, Palin posted a pair of tweets touting McCain and his record.”

‘“Today we lost an American original,’ she wrote. ‘Sen. John McCain was a maverick and a fighter, never afraid to stand for his beliefs. John never took the easy path in life – and through sacrifice and suffering he inspired others to serve something greater than self.’”

And “later, she wrote: ‘John McCain was my friend. I will remember the good times. My family and I send prayers for Cindy and the McCain family.’”

Kudos to Sarah Palin for taking the high road here, but I hate to tell you that “friend” thing was a one way street.

John McCain used you, then disposed of you.

John McCain was a member of the “establishment,” “swamp rat” fraternity through and through, and neither Sarah Palin nor President Trump were welcome at that party.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 30, 2019 0

See ya…, wouldn’t want to be ya, Cali!

Gregg Re of Fox News reports that “Organizers of a long-running initiative to secure California’s secession from the United States now say they want to give away nearly half of the state, including all of its federal land, to form an “autonomous Native American nation.”

‘“Calexit,’ as the proposal for California’s secession is known, was given the green light by the state government earlier this year to begin collecting signatures to place the measure on the November ballot.”

“But the revamp announced by Calexit’s founders on Tuesday adds an additional objective: constructing “the first ever autonomous Native American nation in North America,” by giving Native Americans all federal lands in the state, running from the border with Mexico to the state boundary shared with Oregon.”

Ha! Typical liberal “stupidness;” thinking they can give away something they don’t even own.

Newsflash…, those lands are called “federal lands” for a reason…, because the Federal Government owns them!

Taking what isn’t yours is one thing (something liberals have a knack for doing): giving away something you don’t have is another.

Oh…, and it’s very generous of these Calexit supporters to want to give this federal land to the Native Americans…, NOT!

Federal land out west is typically comprised of one thing…, a whole lot of sand, a whole lot of rocks and a whole lot of sun…, in other words…, desert. And this land is no exception.

Calexit supporters say they want to “take back their tax dollars…,” but I honestly don’t see how Calexit would accomplish that. “Take back their tax dollars” from who…, the lizards, the snakes and the scorpions? I think they’re just confused, as usual.

‘“Why not do something to right some of the wrongs of the past to the Native American people, and give them back their land?’ Calexit co-founder Louis J. Marinelli said Tuesday.”

If you’re going to go there, Louis…, why don’t you “give” them back the whole state, and not just the crap desert land you don’t even want?

What a bunch of total hypocrites.

And by the way…, what exactly do you mean by “right some of the wrongs of the past to the Native American people?”

There is nothing to make “right.”

The Native Americans that were here at the time got conquered.

People from Europe came over here, kicked their a$$es, and took all of their land.

It has happened thousands of times in thousands of lands throughout history.

It generally does not go well for the people who got conquered.

All things considered…, the Native Americans here have been treated better than most.

Like they say…, “You could look it up.”

“Because most of the federal land would include conservative-leaning portions of California, the plan also would create a ‘buffer zone between Donald Trump’s America and the new independent California Republic,’ another co-founder of the initiative, Marcus Ruiz Evans, said in a statement.”

Well, Mr. Marcus Ruiz Evans…, congratulations…, I think I’m stupider now for just having read that!

Let’s just move on.

“Speaking to Fox News, Marinelli said the plan wouldn’t be unduly disruptive to Californians.”

Oh no…, not at all…, at least not until they got their tax bill the following year!

“Our campaign is not motivated by the shifting balance of political power in Washington,” Marinelli said in an email. “We are motivated by the fact that California is a distinct society with the capability to govern itself independent of a country whose values are in direct conflict with ours, and a country whose government system [and its institutions] is broken and obsolete.”

Ahh yes! And California’s government is such a shining example to us all as to how a proper government should work!

Too funny.

“On July 4, Calexit staged a rally at the state capitol in Sacramento, calling on Trump supporters to ‘get out’ of the state, and decrying the American ‘occupation’ of California.”

Well that’s not very nice!

Obviously the new Independent Republic of California will not tolerate anyone in their country who has an opposing viewpoint or opinion…, something in the mold of the old Soviet Union.

‘“The Fourth of July is no longer a day to celebrate in California,’ the campaign said in an Independence Day statement.”

What I want to know is…, how did California get soooo screwed up soooo quickly?

I lived in California for a year, at one point, and I loved it.

California used to be a beautiful state that represented America’s pioneering spirit, adventuresome spirit and Independent spirit.

Now California represents illegal immigrants, giant homeless camps, Hollywood elitist entitlement and anything you could categorize as weird.

Sad.

I now view California as a cancerous growth on our country that I would love to see removed.

I’m not so sure the other democrats from around the country would be particularly excited about losing California’s 52 electoral votes in presidential elections, however.

“There have been multiple efforts in the past for California to break away from the rest of America. They have either been withdrawn or failed to gather the signatures required to advance.”

“But enthusiasm for such measures has grown in recent years. A 2014 Reuters poll showed that only 20 percent of Californians wanted to secede; in 2017, after Trump’s election, the number grew to 32 percent.”

“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large groups.” – George Carlin

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 29, 2019 0

The MIRACULOUS survival story of Juliane Koepcke!

17 year-old Juliane Koepcke was sucked out of an airplane in 1971 after it was struck by a bolt of lightning. She fell 2 miles to the ground, strapped to her seat and survived after she endured 10 days in the Amazon Jungle!

She survived!!!

And she was able to walk away.

Unbelievable.

How have I never heard about this story before?

In case you haven’t:

On December 24, 1971, Koepcke and her mother were traveling from Lima, Peru to Pucallpa, Peru, the city with an airport closest to Panguana, to visit their family. Things were going well on the flight until they flew into a thunderstorm. The plane was struck by lightning and started going down. Koepcke said she only remembers the “quiet” free fall into the Peruvian jungle before she passed out as she entered the trees.

Koepcke only suffered a broken collar bone. She was discovered by a team of loggers on January 3, 1972. She’d been in the rain forest for 11 days.

How did she manage to survive the crash at all?

She was the sole survivor among 91 other people on the plane.

Let’s take a closer look at an amazing story you probably never heard about.

The Ill-fated Flight:

On Christmas Eve of 1971, 17-year-old Juliane Koepcke boarded LANSA (Líneas Aéreas Nacionales S. A., translated “The South American National Airlines”) Flight 508 at the Lima Airport in Peru with her mother, Maria. The two were traveling to the research area named Panguana after having attended Juliane’s graduation ball, in Lima, on what would have only been an hour-long flight.

They had only been flying in the Lockheed Electra L-188A commercial plane for about 30 minutes when they flew through a sudden and violent storm. The plane was struck by lightening and in an instant began to break apart, at which point Juliane heard her mother declare calmly, “Now it’s all over.”

Amelia Earhart disappeared in a Lockheed Electra as well, although it was an earlier model and also a different model.

Passengers were sent falling from the plane two miles above the Peruvian Amazon rain forest.

Juliane was strapped to her seat and was catapulted from the plane, spiraling through the air, until she hit the jungle canopy, with the other two seats in her row still attached. The dense forest obviously played no small part in making her landing survivable.

The Incredible Trek:

Before Koepcke hit the ground she had lost consciousness. She awoke to a concussion, a broken collarbone, and cuts on her arms and legs. Miraculously, she was still able to walk and attempted to look for her mother and for other survivors, but with no luck.

Armed with a bag of sweets from the plane, Koepcke found a stream and followed it, reminded of her biologist father’s advice that it would always lead to a larger river and to people.

She then followed the call of the Hoatzin bird, which is found mainly near open waters, a fact she learned from her ornithologist mother, having grown up in the jungle in a hut on her parents’ research facility.

For 10 days she traveled through the jungle, often floating in the middle of the stream to avoid piranhas. Upon reaching a logging camp, Koepcke found some gasoline and used it to clean the wound on her arm, which by this point had become infected with maggots. The gasoline trick was another she had learned from her father. In another lucky turn, Koepcke was found unconscious by loggers that same day, as they rarely visited the camp.

Survival:

It seems unlikely that most people would have been able to survive the ordeal. But, Koepcke, with her unique childhood experiences, had the skills to make her way through the Amazon. Many visitors have lost their lives in the jungle due to the overwhelming heat, the sheer number of insects, and all of the dangerous animals.

A young Juliane with her mother.

Now a librarian of zoology who has studied bats, Koepcke has written a book about her harrowing experience, “When I Fell from the Sky: The True Story of One Woman’s Miraculous Survival.”

There have been two films made about her as well.

Panguana research hut where Juliane spent most of her life until the accident. Via/ Wiki Commons

Years later Koepcke would be interviewed and filmed for the film “Wings of Hope” by Werner Herzog, a filmmaker who avoided dying in the same crash that Koepcke managed to survive. Herzog had tried to book a seat on the doomed Flight 508, but had been (fortunately) unsuccessful in doing so.

Amazing…, amazing…, amazing…, and amazing.

From an article by Rose Heichelbech.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 28, 2019 0

Poster boy for term limits, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, is off the mark on trade tariffs.

Republican Senator Chuck Grassley of Iowa is currently in his seventh term in the U.S. Senate!

Seventh term!

Seven terms is 42 years!

He was first elected in 1980, 39 years ago!

He is 85 years old.

Like I said…, a poster boy for term limits.

I don’t care if these career establishment politicians are republicans, democrats, or disingenuous “independents;” serve your state or your district…, serve a couple terms, then get out and give someone else a chance. The longer these people are entrenched in Washington, the more corrupt and full of themselves they get. Period.

Too be fair…, Senator Grassley and I generally agree more often than not, but he’s just been in politics way too long. It’s time.

Stephen Gruber-Miller of USA TODAY reports that, “Chuck Grassley says he tries to remind Trump that tariffs ‘brought about Adolf Hitler’”

He goes on to say that, “Iowa Sen. Chuck Grassley on Wednesday blamed a 1930 tariff law for bringing about the Great Depression, the rise of Adolf Hitler and World War II.”

‘“As I like to tell the president when he says he likes tariffs, I try to remind him that Smoot-Hawley brought about the Great Depression, brought about Adolf Hitler, brought about World War II, brought about 60 million people losing their lives as a result of it,’ Grassley said. He was speaking to the National Association of Farm Broadcasting about tariffs imposed by President Donald Trump.”

First of all Mr. Grassley…, let’s be clear…, President Trump has never said he “likes” tariffs. In fact, he has said exactly the opposite. He has said he would be happy if all tariffs were removed and there really was “free” trade.

President Trump is only proposing raising tariffs in cases where our trading partners refuse to treat us fairly, after years of one-sidedness I might add.

This scenario is quite different from the Smoot-Hawley Act, of 90 years ago, that you love to refer to.

The Smoot-Hawley Act INITIATED and ESTABLISHED U.S. tariffs with other countries around the world.

President Trump is only attempting to level out the tariff playing field with countries that have been taking advantage of us and our inept leaders for decades.

And yes, Mr. Grassley, Smoot-Hawley may have contributed to “bringing about the Great Depression,” but you attribute the rise of Adolf Hitler, World War II, and the deaths of 60 million people around the world to it as well?

That, I believe, is what people refer to as a stretch!

Hitler’s inherent evilness and his unquenchable desire for power and control were enough to stand on their own. Toss in another madman, Mussolini in Italy, who was happy to tag along, and then add the Empire of Japan to the “axis of evil,” which was also looking to expand its control in the world, and we have a “perfect storm.”

I’m sorry Mr. Grassley…, but all of this was not caused by a tariff increase of up to 20%.

“[President] Trump last week said he would hike tariffs to 25% on $200 billion in Chinese imports after trade negotiations stalled. Chinese officials said in return it would raise tariffs up to 25% on $60 billion in U.S. goods. Trump’s administration also seeks to place tariffs on another $325 billion in Chinese goods.”

“Grassley said on Wednesday that the United States then reduced its tariffs and that poverty has dropped worldwide since the end of World War II.”

“I like to tell the president that globalism has helped everybody. Freeing up trade has helped everybody,” Grassley said.

How would you know Mr. Grassley…, we haven’t had “free trade” in decades and decades…, unless you’re referring to our end of the bargain being free, while the U.S. loses hundreds of thousands of jobs, hundreds of thousands of manufacturing plants, and most of our respect around the world. Is that the “free trade” that you’re referring to? Is that what you would propose we do in order to avoid World War III; bend over and let our “friends” and our enemies screw us over?

I think I’ll take a pass on that and see what President Trump do.

WINNING!

This article in USA TODAY originally appeared in the Des Moines Register: Chuck Grassley says he tries to remind Trump that tariffs ‘brought about Adolf Hitler.’

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 23, 2019 0

Democrat House Judiciary Committee Chairman, Jerrold “no nads” Nadler says we are now in a “constitutional crisis!”

Another one?

Perhaps if you took the time to actually read The Constitution, Mr. Nadler, and refer to the law…, you’d see there is no “crisis.” Although we know that democrats never let facts get in their way!

The dems have become enamored with the term “manufactured crisis.” Now this situation is what I would have to call the appropriate time to use the term “manufactured crisis”…, and the democrats are the architects of “the crisis.”

New York Congressional Representative, and House Judiciary Committee Chairman, Jerrold “no nads” Nadler, who once called Obama’s first Attorney General, Eric Holder’s contempt vote “shameful,” is now pushing for a like contempt vote against President Trump’s AG, William Barr.

Democrat hypocrisy here…, democrat hypocrisy there…, democrat hypocrisy everywhere!

Adam Shaw for Fox News reports that, “House Judiciary Committee Chairman Jerry Nadler, D-N.Y., led the charge Wednesday to hold Attorney General Bill Barr in contempt of Congress for not handing over documents related to Special Counsel Robert Mueller’s Russia probe — declaring the move necessary as the country enters a ‘constitutional crisis.’”

Never mind that this is not something the Attorney General is required to do, or something that is even legal for him to do.

“But Nadler took a very different stance on contempt back in 2012, when House Republicans took the same step against then-AG Eric Holder for refusing to hand over documents related to the Fast and Furious gun-running scandal, where DOJ officials tracked thousands of guns smuggled across the border but did nothing to stop them.”

Scandal? Scandal? Did somebody say scandal? But we’re always told by the “biased, liberal propaganda, fake news media” that the Obama presidency was a “scandal free” presidency?

Hardly.

Again…, just because they choose to not acknowledge something, referring to the “biased, liberal propaganda, fake news media,” does not mean it didn’t happen.

Democrats are at the point now where they don’t even have to be concerned about appearing to be consistent or “fair.” The complicit “biased, liberal propaganda, fake news media”

‘“Just joined the #walkout of the House chamber to protest the shameful, politically-motivated GOP vote holding AG [Eric] Holder in contempt,’ Nadler tweeted in 2012.”

“He joined more than 100 Democrats in walking out over the vote to hold the Obama-era DOJ leader [Eric Holder] in contempt.”

“Then-House Minority Leader Nancy Pelosi, D-Calif., argued House Republicans were more politically motivated in attacking Holder than driven to get to the bottom of the failed operation.”

‘“What is happening here is shameful,’ said Pelosi.”

“After the contempt vote on Wednesday, conservatives pointed to the vintage Nadler tweet as an example of a double standard.”

‘“Ahhh the irony. Political hacks gonna hack,’ Donald Trump Jr. tweeted.”

‘“Nadler now says the White House’s stonewalling of Congress represents an attack on the essence of our democracy – as though stonewalling were some new phenomena,’ former Rep. Jason Chaffetz, R-Utah, said in an op-ed for Fox News. ‘Where was Nadler’s righteous indignation when the stonewalling came from a Democratic [Obama’s] White House?’”

We all know the answer to that one, Mr. Chaffetz.

“Nadler’s office did not immediately respond to a request for comment from Fox News.”

Oh…, well, that’s odd!

Not really.

That’s because Fox News isn’t a part of the “biased, liberal propaganda, fake news media.”

Perhaps they should subpoena him!

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 23, 2019 0

Americans are facing DEBT, DEBT, and more DEBT!

Did I mention that Americans are facing a lot of debt?

Thanks to incompetent politicians, on every level of government, and from both parties, the American people are facing a mountain of debt.

Our current federal debt is around $22 billion, or about $63,000 for every man, woman and child.

That amount increases quite significantly if we only consider those of us who actually pay income taxes.

State debt seems to be reserved for those “blue” states which lean to the left.

Here are the heavy hitters:

California – owes $158 billion or $3,980 per person.

New York – owes $144 billion or $7,385 per person.

New Jersey – owes $65.5 billion or $7,360 per person.

Illinois – owes $56.4 billion or $4,441 per person.

Then we go down to the city level of government, where Frank Miles for Fox News says, “America’s largest cities are drowning in debt, with Chicago leading the way, a study finds.”

“America’s 10 largest cities, largely [actually without exception] Democrat strongholds, are drowning in municipal debt, according to a new report from government watchdog Truth in Accounting.”

“The two cities with the highest burden: Chicago and New York City; Chicago’s combined taxpayer burden: $119,110; New York City’s combined taxpayer burden: $85,600.”

Chicago’s Taxpayer Burden per person: $119,110

New York City’s Taxpayer Burden per person: $85,600

Los Angeles’ Taxpayer Burden per person: $56,390

Philadelphia’s Taxpayer Burden per person: $50,120

San Jose’s Taxpayer Burden per person: $43,120

San Diego’s Taxpayer Burden per person: $35,410

The United States is the richest country in the world, and our government, by a huge margin, collects the most taxes from its citizens in the world. So, what’s the problem?

“The problem is not that people are taxed too little, the problem is that government spends too much.” – Ronald Reagan

Yes…, our government spends way too much.

How can our government spend so much while so many of our people are homeless?

How can our government spend so much while so many of our schools are falling apart and many of our children go uneducated?

How can our government spend so much while much our infrastructure is crumbling around us?

The answer to these questions is we keep electing politicians whose priorities are irresponsible and politicians who are willing to keep kicking the “debt can” down the road.

Can you believe we owe all of this money, yet we still give money away to support other foreign countries?

We have to borrow money so we can give it away.

That should be illegal.

Our country should only be able to give money away if we have a surplus of money.

Duh…, just sayin’.

Thank you, MrEricksonRules.

May 22, 2019 0

Author: mrericksonrules

If money is the roof of all evil, these televangelists are EEEEEVIL!

Chicago’s a “sanctuary” city?

Interesting and funny stories and images from the past!

Try and impeach President Trump! We dare ‘ya! We double dare ‘ya! We double-dog dare ‘ya!!!

John McCain and his family showed their true colors at his funeral.

See ya…, wouldn’t want to be ya, Cali!

The MIRACULOUS survival story of Juliane Koepcke!

Poster boy for term limits, Sen. Chuck Grassley of Iowa, is off the mark on trade tariffs.

Democrat House Judiciary Committee Chairman, Jerrold “no nads” Nadler says we are now in a “constitutional crisis!”

Americans are facing DEBT, DEBT, and more DEBT!

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