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While Americans Are Celebrating Christmas, A Solar Eclipse Will Be Visible In Bethlehem

A lot of really strange things have been happening late in 2019, and now we have another one to add to the list.  While it is still Christmas night here in the United States, the other side of the world will be viewing a very unusual solar eclipse.  For those fortunate enough to be directly in the path of this eclipse, the moon will almost entirely cover the sun’s disk for a few minutes.  At the most dramatic moment, the moon will be covering 97 percent of the sun, and a “ring of fire” will appear to be surrounding the perimeter of the moon.  In other words, at the peak of this eclipse the entire middle portion of the sun will look like it is “missing”, and all that will be visible will be an eerie “ring of fire” that will be casting light around the edges of the moon.

This eclipse will not be visible anywhere in the United States, and so that probably explains why the U.S. media is not really talking a lot about it.

But NASA will be live streaming this event on their YouTube channel, and astronomers all over the globe are gearing up for one of the most significant astronomical events that we have seen in a long time.

The eclipse will be visible “in eastern Europe, Asia, northwest Australia, eastern Africa and the Pacific and Indian Ocean”.  Israel is in the viewing zone, but it will only be a partial solar eclipse in Jerusalem, Bethlehem and other cities in the region.  A lot of people are actually flocking to Saudi Arabia for a really good view of the full eclipse, and what they will see promises to be quite spectacular…

Called everything from a “ring of fire” to a “ring of light,” an annular solar eclipse occurs when the moon is relatively small in the sky. The moon has a slightly elliptical orbit around Earth, so it can appear larger or smaller in the sky depending on its position. When it’s close, it causes a supermoon. When it’s far away, and it crosses the ecliptic (the path of the sun through our sky) as a new moon, it fits precisely within the sun’s disk. This Christmas, the moon will cover 97% of the center of the sun.

For those viewing this “sign in the sky” in the Middle East, it will be very early on December 26th, but during the eclipse it will still be Christmas night here in the United States…

What begins at 03:43 a.m. Universal Time on December 26— that’s 22:43 p.m. EST and 19:43 p.m. PST on Christmas Day—is an annular solar eclipse. Since a New Moon is slightly further away than usual, it will appear smaller in the sky so will only block the center of the Sun’s disk. Observers will therefore see a ring around the Sun, and for a maximum of 3 minutes and 40 seconds.

So as millions of Americans are eating their Christmas dinners and enjoying their Christmas presents, millions upon millions of people in the Middle East will be gazing up into the sky at a truly bizarre celestial event.

Since the eclipse will not be visible in North America, there is no danger for us, but authorities are warning those in the viewing zone not to look directly at this eclipse without special glasses because it could potentially result in “total blindness”…

There’s a reason why this particular phenomenon is also called the “ring of fire” and sometimes, “ring of light”. That’s because watching the 3 minute 40 second eclipse without any protection for the eyes can lead to total blindness.

Yikes!

So does this “Christmas eclipse” have any sort of special significance?

I don’t know.

But this certainly comes at a time when a lot of other weird things are starting to happen.

For example, earlier this month I wrote about the fact that the very last full moon of this decade happened on 12/12 at exactly 12:12 AM eastern time.  And what made it even stranger was the fact that this full moon occurred exactly 6,666 days from 9/11.

Once again, I don’t know if all that means anything, but the “coincidences” are really starting to pile up.

On top of everything else, a “gigantic asteroid” is going to go screaming by our planet just after Christmas…

A gigantic asteroid will zip past Earth just after Christmas, NASA reports.

The massive space rock, which is known as 310442 (2000 CH59), will be closest to our planet on December 26 at 2:54 a.m. EST, according to NASA.

The space agency’s Center for Near Earth Object Studies (CNEOS) estimates its diameter will be in the range of 919 to 2,034 feet.

Fortunately, that asteroid has no absolutely chance of hitting us, but it is yet another strange event in the heavens that is getting a lot of attention.

Throughout human history, events in the heavens have always been regarded as having special significance.  This time of the year, millions upon millions of Christians will read about how “wise men from the east” came to Bethlehem to see the baby Jesus.  They claimed to have seen “his star in the east”, and they traveled a vast distance to get there.  The “wise men from the east” were actually from the Parthian Empire, and the Euphrates River was the border between the Parthian Empire and the Roman Empire at that time.  Traditionally they have been depicted as “three kings”, but the truth is that it was probably a very large procession with a strong military escort.  Parthia and Rome fought many great wars over the years, and even though there was a temporary peace at that time, any venture into Roman territory always came at great risk.

Now, a new “sign in the sky” will be appearing over Bethlehem at a time of the year when many Christians around the world are looking back and remembering the birth of Jesus.

Once again, I have no idea if it actually means anything.

Maybe this is just another really weird coincidence.

But if it is some sort of a warning, perhaps we should be listening, because 2020 is already shaping up to be quite an ominous year.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

A Plot To Make Pelosi President? Now Adam Schiff Wants To Go After Vice-President Mike Pence…

I was really hoping that this wouldn’t happen.  Within hours of President Trump being impeached by the House, the mainstream media was reporting that Adam Schiff “has declared war” on Mike Pence.  At this time of the year, most Americans are celebrating holidays and spending time with their families, but Adam Schiff continues to be deeply focused on his twisted obsession to take down the Trump administration.  When Rachel Maddow asked him if he was “actively looking at Vice President Mike Pence and his role in this scandal”, Schiff made it quite clear that he has targeted Pence.  Is Schiff doing this because he wants “justice”, or is there some deeper plot afoot?

Before we get into the specifics, let’s talk about a hypothetical scenario in which Nancy Pelosi could actually become the President.  If President Trump is removed from office by the Senate, Vice-President Mike Pence would move into the Oval Office and a replacement for Pence would be nominated.  But if Trump and Pence were both impeached and removed from office before a new Vice-President could be nominated and confirmed, then the next in line for the presidency would be Speaker of the House Nancy Pelosi.

In other words, if Trump and Pence were both suddenly out of the picture, Nancy Pelosi would become the President of the United States.

We have never actually seen the speaker of the House become the president in such a manner, and such a scenario would appear to be exceedingly unlikely, but it could hypothetically happen.

Up to now, the efforts by the Democrats to get rid of Trump have not gone well.  According to a brand new survey that was just released, only 42 percent of all Americans support removing Trump from office at this point.  And it is likely that support for removing Vice-President Pence from office would be even lower.

So why would the Democrats even bother trying?

I certainly can’t explain why Schiff suddenly has such a desire to go after Pence, because it doesn’t seem to be rational.  According to the Daily Mail, Schiff has made the decision to declare “war” on Pence…

House Intelligence Committee chairman Adam Schiff has declared war on Vice President Mike Pence, barely a week after his panel finished its hearings on the impeachment of President Donald Trump.

As an impeachment vote loomed Wednesday, Schiff demanded Pence’s office declassify documents that he claims could show the vice president knee-deep in the Ukraine scandal that has brought Trump to the brink.

What Schiff is particularly obsessed about is a phone call between Vice-President Pence and Ukrainian President Volodymyr Zelensky on September 18th.

Pence’s adviser Jennifer Williams listened in on that call, and she testified about it behind closed doors to Schiff’s committee.  Her testimony was later classified, and Schiff has been badgering Pence to have it declassified.  The following comes from the National Review…

Pence’s Russia adviser Jennifer Williams testified last month about the vice president’s September 18 phone call with Ukranian President Volodymyr Zelensky. Schiff requested ten days later that Pence declassify her testimony, contained in a November 26 letter from her lawyer, but Pence last week declined to do so in a letter to Schiff.

On Tuesday, Schiff sent a letter to Pence alleging that the testimony given by Williams “raises profound questions about your knowledge of the President’s scheme to solicit Ukraine’s interference in the 2020 U.S. presidential election”.

In other words, Schiff is inferring that Vice-President Pence “abused his power” just like Trump supposedly did.

During a subsequent appearance on the Rachel Maddow Show, Schiff was specifically asked if he was “actively looking” at Vice-President Pence…

Are you actively looking at Vice President Mike Pence and his role in this scandal? And should we expect further revelations either related to the vice president or related to the other core parts of these allegations that have resulted in this impeachment tonight?

In response, he gave an answer that was classic Schiff …

Well, we have acquired a piece of evidence, classified submission by Jennifer Williams, something that she alluded to in her open testimony that in going back and looking through her records, she found other information that was pertinent to that phone call that we asked her about and made that submission. There is nothing that should be classified in that submission but yet, the vice president’s office has said they’re going to assert classification, or it’s classified.

It is not proper to classify something because it would be embarrassing or incriminating, and that summation does shed light on the vice president’s knowledge, and we think the American people should see it. Certainly, any senators in the trial should have access to it.

Schiff has got to realize that his actions are deeply dividing America, and the drama currently unfolding in Washington could set in motion a series of events that could tear this nation apart.

So why is he doing it?

Well, there is always the possibility that he could be so deluded that he actually believes that he is doing the right thing.  And if he truly believes that he is seeking to have justice done, then that would help to explain why he just won’t let this thing go.

But the truth is that Schiff’s sick obsession with taking down the Trump administration goes back long before this Ukraine scandal first broke wide open.

Like so many other Democrats, he just can’t stand to see Donald Trump in the White House, and he won’t rest until he is gone for good.

If the Democrats could find a way to get Trump removed from office early next year, that would throw the Republican Party into a state of utter chaos and would give Democrats a massive edge heading into November 2020.  And if they could get Mike Pence removed from office early next year as well, that would make it even tougher for the Republican Party.

In the end, maybe that is what all of this is primarily about.  Yes, getting Nancy Pelosi into the White House would be a nice side benefit, but maybe what the Democrats really want to do is to keep Trump from winning again in 2020 by any means necessary.

Unfortunately for the Democrats, nothing they are doing is working.

It looks like Trump is going to be acquitted by the Senate, public approval for impeachment has been falling, and Trump now has a lead against all potential Democratic contenders.

If the Democrats had never attempted to remove Trump, they would have had a great chance of winning the White House next November.

But they just couldn’t resist, and so they have set the stage for a major political disaster for the Democratic Party less than a year from now.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

This Is A Very Dark Day In American History

The Democrats got what they wanted, but in the process they have created deep political fissures that will never heal.  Now that President Trump has been impeached by the House, he will eventually be acquitted by the Senate, and so his political career will survive.  But far more importantly, it has gotten to the point where nobody can no longer deny that America is at war with itself.  The left hates Donald Trump and his supporters with an intense, passionate, visceral hatred, and Trump and his supporters feel the same way about the left.  After this, nobody is going to be able to unite this country.  Instead, we are headed for a future of anger, frustration, desperate acts and civil conflict.  The mainstream media and many of our top political leaders have been stirring the pot for years, and the stage is set for an unprecedented explosion of animosity as we approach the upcoming election next November.

It has been horrifying to watch the Democrats treat the U.S. Constitution with such disdain.  On Wednesday, the nation was riveted as two impeachment votes were held in the House, and both votes were “almost entirely on party lines”.  The following comes from NBC News…

Trump was impeached on two articles. The first vote, 230-197, accused him of abuse of power and was almost entirely on party lines; it was followed quickly by a second, 229-198, vote accusing the president of obstructing Congress. The one-vote difference was that of Democrat Jared Golden of Maine, who voted yes on abuse of power and no on obstruction.

No Republicans voted against Trump. Two Democrats, Jeff Van Drew of New Jersey, who is expected to switch parties soon, and Collin Peterson of Minnesota, voted with Republicans against both articles. One Democrat, Tulsi Gabbard of Hawaii, who is running for president, voted “present” on both articles.

I would have liked to see Tulsi Gabbard actually have the courage to vote against impeachment, but at least two other Democrats were willing to stand up and do the right thing.

Now that the votes are over, many on the right are looking forward to a swift acquittal of Trump in the Senate, but it is being reported that the Democrats are actually considering withholding the articles of impeachment from the Senate for at least some period of time…

A group of House Democrats is pushing Speaker Nancy Pelosi and other leaders to withhold the articles of impeachment against President Trump that emerged from the House on Wednesday, potentially delaying a Senate trial for months.

The notion of impeaching Trump but holding the articles in the House has gained traction among some of the political left as a way to potentially force Senate majority leader Mitch McConnell, Republican of Kentucky, to conduct a trial on more favorable terms for Democrats. And if no agreement is reached, some have argued, the trial could be delayed indefinitely, denying Trump an expected acquittal.

Since they have already made such a mockery of this process, it shouldn’t surprise anyone that they want to trample on the Constitution some more.

Thankfully, an increasing number of Americans are seeing through their petty games.  Yesterday, I discussed a new CNN survey that found public support for impeachment has fallen substantially, and today I came across another new survey that discovered that even most Democrats believe that Nancy Pelosi and her minions are being highly disingenuous…

In the latest Zogby Analytics survey, 67% of voters said that they “believe the Democrats are more interested in impeaching the president as opposed to passing legislation that will help Americans.”

And the shocking sidebar: A majority of Democrats, 53%, believe this is the case too, said pollster Jonathan Zogby.

Prior to Wednesday’s dramatic vote, there was an extended period of debate on the House floor, and several Republicans definitely rose to the occasion.  For example, here is a great quote from Represenative Mike Johnson…

“There has never been a single-party, fraudulent impeachment process like the one being used today. Our Democratic colleagues have weaponized the impeachment provision of the Constitution to nullify the votes of 63 million Americans who elected President Donald J. Trump.”

And Representative Barry Loudermilk of Georgia made national headlines when he compared this impeachment process to the trial of Jesus…

“When Jesus was falsely accused of treason, Pontius Pilate gave Jesus the opportunity to face his accusers. During that sham trial, Pontius Pilate afforded more rights to Jesus than the Democrats have afforded this president in this process.”

But the best speech of the day belonged to Louisiana Republican Clay Higgins.  He didn’t have long to speak, but he definitely made it count…

“I have descended into the belly of the beast. I have witnessed the terror within, and I rise committed to oppose the insidious forces which threaten our Republic,” Higgins opened.

“America’s being severely injured by this betrayal, by this unjust and weaponized impeachment, brought upon us by the same socialists who threaten unborn life in the womb, who threaten First Amendment rights of Conservatives, who threaten Second Amendment protections of every American patriot, and who have long ago determined that they would organize and conspire to overthrow President Trump.”

“We don’t face this horror because the Democrats have all of a sudden become constitutionalists. We are not being devoured from within because of some surreal assertion of the socialists’ newfound love for the very flag that they trod upon.”

“They are deep established D.C.,” he continued.

“They call this Republican map flyover country. They call us deplorables. They fear our faith. They fear our strength. They fear our unity. They fear our vote, and they fear our president.”

“We will never surrender our nation to career establishment D.C. politicians and bureaucrats,” Higgins closed. “Our republic shall survive this threat from within. American patriots shall prevail.”

If you would like to watch the entire speech on YouTube, you can find it right here.

America is more divided right now than it has ever been in any of our lifetimes.

I am greatly saddened by what I believe is coming, because our nation is going to be ripped to shreds.

Now that the effort to remove Trump from office has spectacularly failed, keeping Trump from winning another term is literally going to be a matter of life or death for many on the left.  And if Trump is able to win another term in November 2020, we are going to see a national temper tantrum unlike anything we have ever seen before.

But what is the alternative?  Are we supposed to roll over and give the left everything they want just so they won’t go nuts?

I don’t think so.

Prior to this impeachment saga, all the polls showed that it was likely that a Democrat would win the presidency in November 2020, but now all of the momentum is with Trump and the Republicans.

Unfortunately, the election next November is not going to solve our deeper problems no matter who wins.

America is in the process of being torn in pieces, and 2020 promises to be a very, very dark year for our nation.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

By Impeaching Trump, The Democrats Are Destroying Both Our Political System And Their Chances Of Winning In 2020

The Democrats probably never imagined that this effort to remove Donald Trump from office would backfire so spectacularly.  Yes, it was always a foregone conclusion that they would be able to impeach Trump in the House, but they were expecting that a majority of the American people would rally around them and that simply has not happened.  In fact, we just got some brand new numbers that are incredibly good news for President Trump.  As you will see below, public support for impeachment continues to fade, and a brand new survey just found that President Trump would beat all of the major contenders for the Democratic nomination if the 2020 election was held today.  At one time, it appeared that the Democrats were likely to win the 2020 presidential election in a historic landslide, but now thanks to this impeachment debacle the numbers have shifted dramatically in Trump’s favor.  And if Trump does ultimately end up winning, the Democrats are going to be kicking themselves for ever going down this road in the first place.

Meanwhile, the heavily slanted and exceedingly bitter coverage of this impeachment process by the mainstream media is deepening the very painful political divisions that have been tearing America apart.  This week, there will literally be hundreds of pro-impeachment protests in cities all across the nation, and the anger that we see on the left is rising to a level that is absolutely frightening.

If President Trump does win again in 2020, everyone already knows what is going to happen.  Key Democratic leaders and the mainstream media have been stirring the pot day after day, and all of the frustration that they have been fueling will reach a crescendo if Trump is not defeated next November.

In order for any political system to operate successfully, most of the population must be willing to accept the outcomes that system produces.  But now we have gotten to the point where a large portion of the population is ready to start burning things down if election results don’t go their way.

If the Democrats truly believed that President Trump did something that warranted impeachment, they should have gone out of their way to make the impeachment process in the House a fair, bipartisan effort.  But instead, they alienated their Republican colleagues at every turn, and that was a tragic mistake.  After the sham that we just witnessed in the House, Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell sees no reason to take an impartial stance in the Senate…

McConnell on Tuesday made clear he’s not interested in giving in to any demands from Democrats. He said that the partisan House impeachment would result in “an almost entirely partisan outcome in the Senate as well.”

“I’m not an impartial juror,” McConnell said. “This is a political process.”

McConnell’s strategy relies on keeping Democratic requests on procedures, documents and witnesses bottled up and maintaining pressure on any wavering Republicans who might agree with Minority Leader Chuck Schumer’s push for more evidence.

Can anyone blame McConnell?  If the Democrats had tried very hard to conduct things fairly in the Senate, McConnell would have been forced to at least maintain a pretense of objectivity.

But now all of that is out the window, and the stage has been set for President Trump to potentially turn the Senate trial into his own version of “show and tell”, and many on the left are fearing the worst.

For example, the following is what one USA Today reader is anticipating from the upcoming trial…

President Donald Trump is not satisfied with avoiding conviction in a Senate trial. He wants a spectacle and platform to humiliate the Democrats, former Vice President Joe Biden and Biden’s son, Hunter. If Trump gets his way with Senate Majority Leader Mitch McConnell, a World Wrestling Entertainment event will replace a serious impeachment trial.

After all that Trump has been through in recent months, it is quite understandable that he would be eager to “humiliate the Democrats”.

In particular, I think that Trump is quite keen on telling the whole world about what Joe and Hunter Biden were really up to in Ukraine.

According to a new survey, 62 percent of Americans believe that Trump will be treated fairly in the Senate.  And since Republicans control the Senate, things are likely to proceed a whole lot differently than they did in the House.

Once the Senate trial begins in January, you might want to grab some popcorn, because it promises to be quite entertaining.

The Democrats were apparently hoping that by tightly controlling the process in the House that they would be able to get the American people on their side.  But instead, a CNN poll that was just released found that public support for impeachment has fallen substantially…

A CNN poll released this week, conducted by SSRS December 12-15, among 1,005 adults, found that 45 percent support impeaching the president. That reflects a 5-point drop from November’s results, which showed support for impeachment at 50 percent.

Support for impeaching the president, even among Democrats alone, is dropping. In November, 90 percent of Democrats supported impeaching the president. The most recent results show the number falling to 77 percent — a 13-point drop in one month.

A 13 percent shift in one month among Democrats is absolutely catastrophic for Nancy Pelosi and her minions.

This is a failure of epic proportions, and Pelosi’s political future is looking exceedingly grim at this point.

Meanwhile, things have never looked better for President Trump’s political future.  According to another new poll that was just released, Trump would beat every single one of the top contenders for the Democratic nominaton if the election was held today…

The national survey, taken as the House of Representatives planned an impeachment vote and the Senate a trial, showed Trump defeating former Vice President Joe Biden by 3 percentage points, Vermont Sen. Bernie Sanders by 5 points, and Massachusetts Sen. Elizabeth Warren by 8 points.

In hypothetical head-to-head contests, Trump also led South Bend, Indiana, Mayor Pete Buttigieg by 10 points and former New York City Mayor Michael Bloomberg by 9.

But before this impeachment saga ever began, all of the polls showed all of the Democratic contenders defeating Trump quite soundly.

Since it was never likely that Trump would be removed from office by the Republican-controlled Senate, many believed that Pelosi launched this impeachment process as a way to damage Trump and the Republicans for the 2020 election, but if that was her goal she is failing spectacularly.

At one time, it appeared that the 2020 election was potentially going to be a landslide for the Democrats.

You can forget all about that now.  By impeaching Trump, the Democrats may have just given him the edge that he needs to win in 2020, and for many on the left that is the worst possible outcome imaginable.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

Warm Your Heart With These Inspirational Stories Of Extraordinary Human Kindness

Despite all of the horrible things that we read about in the news, the truth is that there are still people out there that are making great sacrifices in order to do good for others.  My hope is that these extraordinary stories of human kindness will inspire others to act likewise.  We live at a moment in history when darkness is growing rapidly all around us, and our society can feel so very cold at times.  Those that follow my work regularly already know that I write a lot about this growing darkness.  In fact, just yesterday I posted articles about the collapse of the American family and our wildly out of control drug crisis.  One of the reasons why I write so much about the darkness is so that people will start realizing the need for radical solutions.  As Kirk Cameron has aptly noted, it can be exceedingly difficult to “try to give a cure to a patient who wasn’t convinced of his disease”.  It is time for American to wake up.  The status quo is not acceptable, we are steamrolling down a road that leads to national suicide, and we need to understand the error of our ways before it is too late.

What we should all want is a society that is filled with love.  As humans, we are meant to love and to be loved, but love seems to be in such short supply in our nation today.

Fortunately, there are still a lot of people out there that are trying to do the right thing.

Let me start by sharing the story of a five-year-old girl named Katelynn Hardee.  When she heard that some other families were having a really hard time paying for school lunches for their kids, she decided to take matters into her own hands…

After overhearing another child’s mother say she was having a hard time paying for an after-school program, Katelynn Hardee, 5, spoke to her own mother about how she could help other students.

Katelyn set up a cocoa-and-cookies stand, and it turned into a success. She soon decided the money she made would be used to pay off the lunch debt of 123 students in her San Diego County school district.

“I don’t want people to be hungry,” Hardee told NBC San Diego, which did not say how much the bill was.

Sometimes it takes a child to remind the rest of us how we are supposed to live.

I really enjoy interacting with small children, because their hearts have not yet been corrupted by the great evil that permeates our society at every level.  They instinctively understand the value in helping others, and they take great joy in making a difference.

Never lose your joy, because it is a source of fuel that will propel you in the direction of becoming the person that you were always meant to be.

And if you have lost your joy along the way, do whatever you can to get it back.

We all have a purpose, and we all have the capacity to do something really special.

Just consider the story of Nancy Banta of Rumson, New Jersey.  According to her daughter, she has been crocheting blankets for sick children in the hospital for many years…

“My mom has been donating crocheted blankets to sick children over the past 20+ years,” her daughter said. “In total she has made 49 afghans this year, 45 of which she just donated to Jersey Shore Medical Hospital’s Pediatric and Pediatric ICU wards.”

This is Banta’s 5th year donating to the hospital.

“She has probably donated over 1,000 blankets to those in need at this point in her lifetime and she’s not stopping anytime soon!” her daughter added.

What a wonderful lady.

That is the kind of person that I want in my life.  People that joyfully give to others consistently are always such a blessing to be around.

It has been said that it is more blessed to give than to receive, and it is also true that being a “giver” makes you a much better person than being a “taker”.

Speaking of giving, a large church in New Jersey made news when they put together over 1,000 food kits for needy children in their community…

A New Jersey-based nondenominational megachurch has helped to pack more than 1,000 food kits for less fortunate children living in the area.

The Paramus campus of The Life Christian Church, which meets at an AMC movie theater at Garden State Plaza, helped put together 1,056 food kits on Sunday with other volunteers.

Terry Smith, senior pastor of Life Christian, told The Christian Post that the food-packing event was consistent with one of the church’s core values, namely, to be “enthusiastic servants of all.”

As I document regularly on my website, tens of millions of American families deeply struggle to pay for the basics in this economy, and things are only going to get worse in the years ahead.

But if we had more churches doing this sort of thing, we would be in far, far better shape.

I greatly applaud what they are trying to do, and I believe that they will be greatly blessed for their efforts.

Last, but certainly not least, I would like to share with you the story of Bonita the dog.

Bonita spent 500 days in a shelter in Niagara Falls, New York, but now she finally has a forever home…

After spending 500 days in an animal shelter in Niagara Falls, New York, a 5-year-old pit bull mix is going home for Christmas!

Bonita, the shelter’s longest resident – and one of its most popular dogs – finally found a home just in time for Christmas after she was adopted by local man Ray Kinz.

In a video captured by the Niagara County SPCA, Bonita is given a loving sendoff by her former family members at the shelter. She jumps up and wags her tail as she passes through the crowd with Kinz.

Sometimes, it is those that have been through the most pain that are the most loving of all, and I have a feeling that Bonita is going to shower Mr. Kinz with a tremendous amount of love and affection in the years ahead.

If you want to live a life that really matters, endeavor to be a person of great love.  The big news networks are unlikely to cover the stories that I just shared with you on their broadcasts, but it is acts of kindness such as these that are going to make our society a better place to live.

The more we love, the more we will grow, and may we never stop growing.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

Destruction Of The Family: The U.S. Has The Highest Rate Of Children Living With A Single Parent In The Entire World

The family unit is one of the fundamental pillars of any society, and so the weaker our family units become the weaker our entire nation is going to become.  For decades, the traditional family unit has been under assault in America, and the consequences have been absolutely catastrophic.  Today, the marriage rate has dropped to levels that we have never seen before, we continue to have one of the highest divorce rates in the entire world, and more couples than ever are choosing not to get married at all.  As a result, the number of single parents has been steadily rising, and at this point the United States actually has the highest rate of children living with a single parent of any country on the entire planet.  The following comes from Pew Research…

For decades, the share of U.S. children living with a single parent has been rising, accompanied by a decline in marriage rates and a rise in births outside of marriage. A new Pew Research Center study of 130 countries and territories shows that the U.S. has the world’s highest rate of children living in single-parent households.

Almost a quarter of U.S. children under the age of 18 live with one parent and no other adults (23%), more than three times the share of children around the world who do so (7%).

You would think that with how rapidly modern notions of “morality” are spreading around the globe that someone out there would be worse than us, but sadly we are dead last on the list.

In fact, our rate is more than four times higher than India and more than seven times higher than China…

In comparison, 3% of children in China, 4% of children in Nigeria and 5% of children in India live in single-parent households. In neighboring Canada, the share is 15%.

Should we really be lecturing anyone else about how they should be conducting themselves when we are such a complete and utter mess?

We like to think of ourselves as a light to the rest of the world and a great example that they should follow, but the truth is that we are a nation of complete and utter degenerates.

Of course it wasn’t always this way.  If you go back to 1960, less than 10 percent of all American children lived with a single parent…

America’s top spot has been a long time coming, data from the U.S. Census Bureau show. In 1960, just 9 percent of U.S. children lived with one parent, and just 3 percent lived with either a non-parent relative or a non-relative. By 2019, the Census Bureau estimated that 26 percent of children lived with single parents (a figure that varies from Pew’s due to methodological differences), while just 4 percent lived with non-parent relatives or non-relatives.

So what happened?

Well, the truth is that there has been a concerted effort to radically change American culture, and this has especially been true when it comes to sexual morality.

Our televisions, our movies, our education system and most of our politicians endlessly assure us that it is perfectly fine to run around like wild animals doing whatever we feel like doing.  As a result, more than 110 million Americans now have a sexually transmitted disease, we have the highest teenage pregnancy rate in the industrialized world, and about 40 percent of all U.S. babies are born to unmarried women…

In 1960, nonmarital births were quite rare. Today, about two-fifths of all births are to unmarried women. This resulted from a complicated combination of moral and behavioral changes, and a new report from Senator Mike Lee’s Social Capital Project disentangles them.

If we want to turn America around, this is a great place to start.

Just like virtually everything else, our families are collapsing, and the path that we are on clearly leads to national suicide.

If we don’t want to do it for ourselves, we should at least do it for future generations.  Because if we don’t get things turned around, our children will continue to suffer greatly…

The results for children are often grim. Although academics debate about causality, single parenting is strongly related to risk for poverty and lower educational attainment on the part of the child, as well as incarceration among boys and teenage pregnancy among girls. As the share of single-parent households increases, the risk of these adverse outcomes also rises.

Of course these days a lot of young adults don’t want to have children at all.

Our society has trained our young people to view parenthood and family life as undesirable, and so it shouldn’t be a surprise that the U.S. fertility rate has fallen to the lowest level ever recorded…

The US fertility rate dropped for the fourth straight year in 2018, and has fallen approximately 15% since 2007, according to the National Center for Health Statistics – which reports that there were 59.1 births for every 1,000 women of childbearing age.

In total, 3,791,712 births were recorded across the country last year – extending a steep decline that began during the 2008 Recession, according to the New York Times.

As one user in Reddit’s “Childfree” forum notes: “Babies are expensive, and we’re all broke,” to which another user replied “Also, pregnancy and its effects on the body are gross and not worth it.”

Incredibly, our fertility rate is now actually below replacement level.

That means that we aren’t even producing enough babies to replace ourselves at this point.

There is no future for any society that does not value children, marriage and family.  You can’t show me one example in human history of any society that has ever thrived for an extended period of time without cherishing those institutions.

It doesn’t take a genius to figure out what we need to do.  Unfortunately, most of the country is running completely in the opposite direction as fast as they can.

If we continue to go down this road, the institution of the family is going to continue to collapse in the United States, and there is no possible way that America will ever be great again as long as that is happening.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

The Final Full Moon Of This Decade On 12/12 At Exactly 12:12 AM Is Precisely 6,666 Days From 9/11

A few days ago, hardly anyone had heard about “the 12/12 warning”, but now the Internet is buzzing with lots of speculation about what it could possibly mean.  On December 12th at exactly 12:12 AM eastern time, we witnessed the very last full moon of this entire decade.  As I detailed yesterday, there is only a 1 in 691,920 chance that the last full moon of this decade would fall on that exact minute in time.  And many have also pointed out that the individual digits of “2019” also add up to a total of 12.  You can believe that all of this is just some sort of grand coincidence if you want, but a lot of people out there are really freaking out about this.

What makes this strange confluence of numbers even stranger is the fact that it happened exactly 6,666 days from 9/11.

If you go to timeanddate.com, there is a handy calculator that allows you to instantly calculate the number of days between two specific dates.

Just a little while ago, I typed in 9/11/2001 as the start date and 12/12/19 as the end date, and it gave me a result of precisely 6,666 days.

Isn’t that weird?

And of course two sixes add up to 12, and so adding up the digits in that time span gives us the number 12 two additional times.

As I cautioned yesterday, I don’t know what significance all of this may have.  But it is interesting to note that this extremely intriguing confluence of numbers only occurred in the eastern time zone of the United States.  And this has happened just as the debate on the articles of impeachment is about to begin in Washington.

Could it be possible that someone is trying to highlight the fact that this is an absolutely critical moment in American history?  As the full moon approached, mainstream news sources all over the world ran stories about it.  For example, the following comes from the Daily Mail…

The final full moon of the decade will reach its peak in the night sky as the clock strikes 12:12am on 12/12 in the Eastern United States, delighting numerologists.

While only the Eastern United States will have such a notable time and date for the lunar peak, the full moon will be ‘bright and visible’ around the world.

This is a good time of year to watch and possibly photograph the full moon, according to NASA, because it is opposite a low sun.

And needless to say, Twitter was buzzing with plenty of chatter about this very strange full moon.

Here are just a few examples…

–Nick Hinton: The last full moon of the decade will peak on 12/12 at 12:12 A.M. Is there any significance behind this or is it just a cool coincidence?

–Pee-wee Herman: THIS JUST IN! Last FULL MOON of the DECADE happens on 12/12 at 12:12 AM EST!!!!!

–RepentantSinner: Interesting fact: The full moon happens at 12:12 ET am on December (the 12th month) 12th. In Strong’s Concordance the number 1212 refers to the Greek word délos which means “clear, manifest, evident”. I believe we are about to witness something very interesting prophetically

–Alaskan: This weeks full moon occurs on 12/12 at 12:12 AM. If that isn’t a good omen for the #Seahawks game vs. the Panthers this weekend I don’t know what is!!

–Teri: the final moon of the first decade of the 21st century will peak at 12:12 am EST on December 12 which breaks down to 12-12-12-12

–Pamela Denise Smith: FASCINATING!!! According to the Bible, God’s appointments are set by the heavenly luminaries that He set. Plus, “Twelve” is the scriptural number for tribes, family, and government.

–Jenna: The last full moon of the decade will be on 12/12 peaking at 12:12 a.m. Following with Friday the 13th right after

–JeanKP: The kids in my school were off the chain today!!! I hear the full moon will hit its full zenith at 12:12 am on 12/12/19.

–Ken Kruger: Is God Trying To Tell Us Something By Giving Providing A ‘Long Night’ Full Moon On The 12th Day Of The Twelfth Month At Exactly 12:12 AM?

–Mark McConville: It’s 12/12 and there’s a full moon tonight so at 12:12am I will be out in my yard soaking up lunar juju in the nude.

I seriously hope that Mark McConville was kidding about that last comment.  Nobody wants to see that.

The full moon that happens in December is known as the “Cold Moon” because winter is approaching and as the “Long Night’s Moon” because it usually happens not too far from the winter solstice.

And many have also found it noteworthy that this very unusual full moon appeared just one day before Friday the 13th.

But to me, if this full moon does have some sort of special significance, then it has something to do with the number 12.

When I think of the number 12, the first thing that comes to mind is midnight.  When someone says “the clock strikes 12”, you know exactly what they are talking about.  And that phrase carries with it the connotation that time has run out.  From a very early age, Cinderella and other stories teach us that there is something very special about the stroke of midnight, and it is a concept that has now become deeply ingrained in our culture.

For a long time, many of us have felt that we were living in “the 11th hour”.  We have been relentlessly warning America about what is ahead if we do not change course, but the nation continues to race down a path that leads to national suicide.

Could it be possible that someone is trying to tell us that time is either running out or has now run out completely?

I don’t know.

Perhaps all of these numbers are just some sort of giant coincidence and they don’t mean anything at all.

But if it is a giant coincidence, it is quite a whopper.

Right now, people all over the globe are talking about the giant sign in the sky that we just witnessed, and there is an enormous amount of speculation about what it could mean.

I don’t have any solid answers for you, but I am not afraid to ask the hard questions.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

Americans Are Lonely, Miserable And Depressed – The Legacy Of A Society That Has Rejected Family, Faith And Patriotism

What in the world has happened to us?  Once upon a time, America was made up of tightly-knit communities that were united by family, faith and patriotism, but now we are more isolated than ever before.  Of course one of the biggest reasons for this is the fact that we are all spending countless hours staring at screens instead of interacting with real people, and this is something that I covered in a previous article.  However, our fundamental beliefs are also significantly shaping how we behave.  For the past couple of generations, we have de-emphasized family, faith and patriotism as a nation, and instead we have become an extremely “me-centered” society that is primarily focused on doing whatever makes ourselves happy in the moment.  But this single-minded pursuit of individual happiness has resulted in much of the country being perpetually mired in loneliness, depression and/or addiction.

When you look at the numbers, they truly are startling.  For example, a recent survey that was conducted by Cigna found that almost half of all Americans feel lonely…

Nearly half of Americans are lonely, according to a survey of 20,000 people across America by Cigna, which used the well-regarded UCLA Loneliness Scale to measure responses. Indeed 46% said they sometimes or always feel alone and 47% say they sometimes or always feel left out.

And other surveys have produced numbers that are even more alarming.  A Harris Poll that was conducted a few years ago actually discovered that 72 percent of all Americans “experience loneliness”…

The survey of more than 2,000 Americans conducted by the Harris Poll last month on behalf of the American Osteopathic Association, showed that almost three-quarters (72 percent) of Americans experience loneliness. And for many, it’s not just a once-in-a-while occurrence — one-third said they feel lonely at least once a week.

Of course this is commonly known as “the happiest time of the year”, but for many it just magnifies their loneliness.

People see love, warmth and community modeled in television commercials and in Hallmark movies, and they assume that most people out there must be living lives like that.

Sadly, that is not true at all.  What we see on our televisions are echoes of the way that America used to be, and many of us would love to see that type of culture make a roaring comeback.

But for now, America is a very, very lonely place, and this reality is reflected in a song that was just released by one of our most popular pop singers…

Mabel, the singer behind the hit “Don’t Call Me Up,” has a new track for those who struggle with loneliness during the holidays.

Titled “Loneliest Time of Year,” Mabel captured how for some people, the holidays can heighten feelings like loneliness, loss and depression. In the song, released Friday, she sings lines like, “Sorry I’m not so merry/But I feel like this yearly/Christmas time isn’t my vibe/Brings no joy into my life” and “If I’m feeling lonely/I can’t be the only one.”

Yes, millions of American families will gather during the holidays, but way too many of those gatherings are filled with bitterness, resentment, strife and discord.

In fact, another new survey has found that the average American only needs 3 hours and 54 minutes “before they start to feel sick of their families”…

The holidays are supposed to be a time to come together with family and celebrate, but a new survey finds that most Americans can barely get through an evening with their family before needing a break. A total of 2,000 Americans who usually travel to visit family during the holidays took part in the research, and 75% say they will inevitably need to get away from their relatives and indulge in some much needed “me time.”

In fact, it only takes respondents an average of three hours and 54 minutes before they start to feel sick of their families.

This isn’t how it is supposed to be.

We were created to love and to be loved.  And when you remove love from the equation, people become very miserable quite rapidly.

In America today, “deaths of despair” are happening at the highest rate in all of U.S. history.  The following information comes directly from the United States Congress Joint Economic Committee…

Anne Case and Angus Deaton famously chronicled a dramatic rise among middle-aged non-Hispanic whites since 1999 in “deaths of despair”—deaths by suicide, drug and alcohol poisoning, and alcoholic liver disease and cirrhosis.1 The Social Capital Project has extended Case and Deaton’s research to cover the full American population as far back as available data permit: to 1900 in some cases, and to 1959 or 1968 in others. We present here a snapshot of the long-term trends in deaths of despair. We also attach our full dataset for use in future research, including results broken down by age, sex, and race.

Mortality from deaths of despair far surpasses anything seen in America since the dawn of the 20th century. (The trend for middle-aged whites reveals a more dramatic rise but only goes back continuously to 1959.) The recent increase has primarily been driven by an unprecedented epidemic of drug overdoses, but even excluding those deaths, the combined mortality rate from suicides and alcohol-related deaths is higher than at any point in more than 100 years.

So it would appear that our very unhappy nation is rapidly becoming even unhappier.

And it doesn’t take a genius to figure out what this is happening.

As a society, we decided that marriage wasn’t important.  So now we have one of the lowest marriage rates and one of the highest divorce rates in the entire world.

As a society, we decided that children weren’t important.  So now our birth rate has dropped below replacement level and a third of all U.S. children live in a home without a father.

As a society, we decided that patriotism wasn’t important.  So now the American flag is being banned by some schools as a “divisive symbol” and most of our young people have never even read the entire U.S. Constitution.

As a society, we decided that God wasn’t important.  So now just about every form of evil that you can possibly imagine is exploding in our society, and we are literally on a path that leads to national suicide.

If you feel lonely, miserable or depressed this holiday season, I would definitely encourage you to get my latest book entitled “Living A Life That Really Matters”.  It is filled with very practical advice that will enable you to start turning things around immediately.  But even more importantly, reach out to those that you love during this holiday season.

Life is way too short to live it alone.

Society would have us believe that those that have the most money are the most “successful”.  But that is not true at all.  In reality, those that love the most are really the most “successful”, and so let us endeavor to be people of great love.

About the Author: I am a voice crying out for change in a society that generally seems content to stay asleep. My name is Michael Snyder and I am the publisher of The Economic Collapse Blog, End Of The American Dream and The Most Important News, and the articles that I publish on those sites are republished on dozens of other prominent websites all over the globe. I have written four books that are available on Amazon.com including The Beginning Of The End, Get Prepared Now, and Living A Life That Really Matters. (#CommissionsEarned) By purchasing those books you help to support my work. I always freely and happily allow others to republish my articles on their own websites, but due to government regulations I need those that republish my articles to include this “About the Author” section with each article. In order to comply with those government regulations, I need to tell you that the controversial opinions in this article are mine alone and do not necessarily reflect the views of the websites where my work is republished. This article may contain opinions on political matters, but it is not intended to promote the candidacy of any particular political candidate. The material contained in this article is for general information purposes only, and readers should consult licensed professionals before making any legal, business, financial or health decisions. Those responding to this article by making comments are solely responsible for their viewpoints, and those viewpoints do not necessarily represent the viewpoints of Michael Snyder or the operators of the websites where my work is republished. I encourage you to follow me on social media on Facebook and Twitter, and any way that you can share these articles with others is a great help.

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