The title of this post is the name of a Senate Bill offered this congressional session. It's been proposed in the past, but now it's got a significant bi-partisan support. The short description is that it would more or less order tech companies to monitor all traffic, and report certain things. The ostensible excuse is to catch child porn and terrorist planning. We don't know how this will work against encryption schemes; that's not clear just yet. We know only that it will. However, we know that Big tech is very eager to snoop.

Right now, there is a mishmash of legal precedent suggesting that it's technically illegal for Big Tech to snoop too much. If you understand the snooping already being done by Big Tech, you realize this proposed law is only an incremental change in things. It simply adds the force of law so that Big Tech can blame regulation. However, it does mean that there will be zero legal safeguards.

It would put the US at odds with the EU on many things. People who understand this better than I do suggest it will result in a regulatory fracturing of the Internet. It will force a more conscious recognition that there is a different law for different parts of the West, never mind how some non-Western nations already do things. The trend has been there for quite sometime. We already have completely different rules for China, increasingly different rules for Russia, and now the US and EU will have their own regional firewalls. I'm not sure how this will turn out in practice, but it will tend to fracture the formerly "borderless" nature of the Internet.

Of course, this is only a proposed bill. However, the congressional atmosphere makes me think it will go forward unless some heavyweight blocks it. Then again, I have to wonder how much of this is a "false-flag" attack of sorts. Maybe they are pushing it this way to get folks upset enough to embrace a globalist regime to bring some fake relief.

Edit: Here's a convenient link to read about it -- It’s Back: Senators Want EARN IT Bill to Scan All Online Messages

I had posted this early this morning and it somehow disappeared, so I'll try again...

So, some of you may know that petroleum is called a "fossil fuel" that isn't actually made from fossils. Rather, it's something natural to sub-crustal processes in the earth. It does regenerate. Unfortunately, it doesn't do it very fast. Thus, we are using it up faster than it's regenerated. Right now, in the US, we aren't pulling enough out of the ground to cover our own use. And the investment in exploration has just about died. Shale oil turns out to be depleted very quickly, so that is out of fashion any more. Even if we opened up off-shore drilling permits again, at the great risk of serious pollution, it couldn't possibly amount to much. The known reserves would not be enough.

And it turns out that other suppliers around the world that we have used are starting to admit that their sources are declining, too. The world's economy rests quite firmly on petroleum, and all the alternatives are still just a tiny fraction of the energy we get from oil. The price has begun to rise rather quickly, and most of the increase is actually real market pressure, not just regulations.

You might know that fertilizer requires a lot of petroleum to manufacture. It is in such short supply that farmers have begun planning to shift their crops, those that aren't going to sell out. Our system of food supply depends so heavily on petroleum in ways just don't realize. So you've seen bare shelves in just about every part of the US. It's just getting started. Meanwhile, the government borrowing is off the charts. The value of the dollar will die, and it doesn't help that Russia, China and others are making a serious effort to break their dependence on the US dollar for trade. So prices are going up already, while the value of the currency is falling.

Where I live, there are tons of jobs open. One grocery store chain in our metro area has 50 openings right now. They don't pay much, but the jobs are there. They aren't being filled because there are still too many managers requiring the vax in one way or another, while paying too little to attract the folks unemployed. The only folks interested are teenagers, and there's not enough of them willing to work. That means even when they have the stock, they don't have enough bodies to get stuff to the shelves. And people are starting to panic again, stocking up on stuff they fear they won't be able to get in a few months, making supplies even harder to get.

TPTB knew about the petroleum situation, and regulated the alternatives to the point no one would invest in them. This is an engineered crisis in that sense. It fulfills the warnings we've had for a very long time, that the elites would crash everything. I suppose a revolt could save us, but that won't happen. There's not enough people willing to act, and too few who even have a clue what would be helpful. The Word forbids us from provoking a revolt, so that means we are just along for the ride, whatever happens. The Father will protect His Covenant people, but it will be a rough ride. Hang on tight.

We are participating in our weekly prayer time at 5pm EST. Check out the prayer request forum for some prayer topics, but feel free to lift up your own.

You may also fast. There's no obligation or guidelines to how you should do it, or if you should do it at all. Just fast as the Lord leads and speaks to your convictions.

The hullabaloo about the huge number of children supposedly raped and murdered at the Kamloops Residential Indian School was all a lie. The whole story rested on a very low quality ground radar check by one person with an agenda. Meanwhile, the natives who actually went to the school said it was wonderful. The tribal chief who asked for the school to be built on tribal grounds loved it. And when someone actually decided to go back and check physically where there was supposed to be a mass grave found only tree roots and other typical disturbances in the ground, but no bodies. You can read the story here. A longer version of the original story is here.

Some of the things Catacomb Resident teaches are hard to swallow in part because they are so hard to understand. You would expect a prophetic ministry to shake you from your comfort zone. The idea that our human reality is variable is not new by any means, but it's never been popular. This recent plague is a big lie. I'm not saying it's nonsense that has no effect on us. It's very effective, indeed. Beyond the propaganda about how many have died with it instead of from it, the thing has ended the lives of some. And it's because of the mass hypnosis; people at large believe it, giving it power to become "real". Reality is variable on the foundation of what kind of lies people believe, both individually (psychosomatic) and at large (mass hypnosis).

So, you see, some of the people who came up with this effort to enact their "Great Reset" were also deceived. Their false assumptions about "objective reality" led them to believe they could create a disease that would slaughter billions. It hasn't worked out that well. It added something less than 1% to the global human death rate. An honest accounting shows that the vaccines are killing far more than the plague. And the whole thing may be 100% hoax. You can bet there are some of the globalist elite who know this, but the vast majority of their lackeys are deceived. That's how it works.

There is a very real power in mass deception. Their deception can kill you and I; it works the same as Black Magic. The antidote is faith, of course. Faith is seizing upon the Father's revelation and ignoring all the apparent evidence and human reasoning against it. You might still die -- for any number of reasons -- but it should never have mattered in the first place. Faith is the perspective of ultimate reality beyond this fallen world.

Most of us have heard of a local bridge collapsing here. I and everyone I know are fine. The bridge is in a rather well-to-do neighborhood of Pittsburgh (I've been there a few times) in a highly-regarded park. The coincidence of the collapse happening a few hours before Biden arrived to hawk his infrastructure bill is a bit too convenient to me. "Infrastructure" seems like an innocuous term, but there are some questionable ideas stuffed into it, like any kind of proposed bill/scheme.

Interesting video of aerial footage of the bridge, post-collapse.

A few years ago, in October of 2019, there was a large sinkhole that opened up in downtown Pittsburgh, nearly swallowing a bus whole. Crazy optics--I was able to see it up close, since I worked downtown at the time, pre-Coofid. The sheer size isn't too obvious on photos. It's not related to the bridge collapse but it obviously is being mentioned along side it in a few articles I came across.

Jesus and His disciples have been residing in Capernaum for at least a couple of years. There were people who kept track of such things, usually connected to the synagogue, especially when it involved a popular rabbi. That's because Jewish men were obliged to pay an annual Temple Tax. God had commanded it for each time a census was taken of the military aged men of the nation (Exodus 30:11-16). Eventually this became an annual obligation, and most men paid it at Passover (late March or early April), Pentecost (May) or during Tabernacles (early October).

From what we can guess, Jesus and His crew had skipped all three during the past year. The synagogue leadership would typically go around collecting it at some point after the Tabernacles for those they knew had missed paying it, since the implication was that if one avoided the tax, he would lose his citizenship as a Judean. The amount was a half-shekel, which amounted to two drachmas -- two days' wages -- and went to fund Temple maintenance. We can bet it was abused to some degree, but that's not the point here.

When Peter ran into the collection team, they asked if Jesus taught resistance to this tax, and Peter answered honestly that He did not, at least He hadn't so far. Peter was prompted to go back to the house and ask Jesus about it. Given the time of year, it wasn't hard to guess, but Jesus knew quite specifically what was on Peter's mind. He asked a parabolic question.

If it were an earthly king collecting taxes, would his own children be exempt? Of course they would be exempt; kings tax those who aren't part of his own household to fund his household. Jesus was the Son of God. They had discussed this often enough and Peter had affirmed it boldly. If this was a tax on God's behalf, Jesus and His cohort should be exempt. However, this being too soon to make such a declaration, He wanted to pay the tax for now.

He directed Peter to go catch a fish. The first fish he pulled out would have in it's mouth a stater, the common Greek coin worth four drachmas. Fish are notorious for grabbing in their mouths anything shiny, so if you drop a coin in the water in a place where they were thick enough, at least one would lunge at it. That's why fishing lures often include shiny pieces of metal. Sure enough, the first fish Peter caught had the stater in its mouth, too big for it to swallow. It was enough to settle that year's Temple Tax for Peter and Jesus.

This business of Jesus being the future King provoked a debate. The parallel passages tell us that some time later the Twelve got into a dispute about who would hold which offices in Jesus' future Messianic court. At first they were reluctant to admit the nature of their dispute, but Matthew says at some point they raised the question with Jesus. This was another teachable moment. Jesus called over a boy still too young for his bar-Mitzvah. Thus, this boy would hardly have gotten much attention from adult men until at least age nine. That was the point Jesus was making here.

Just entering the Messianic Kingdom required that one turn around and change back into childhood, becoming rather innocent once again. It's like starting all over again, a whole new world. Your human adaptations from becoming an adult in this world would be a major hindrance. This little boy would have come to take a place in their midst with wide-eyed wonder, fascinated at the prospect of their attention at his age. What a privilege! He would be receptive to anything they told him. Jesus said this is how we must enter His Kingdom, because that's what qualifies one for leadership. If you can embrace someone like that in the name of Jesus, it was the same as embracing Him.

Have you ever seen someone who entertains themselves by pranks on the unsuspecting? Jesus says that such predatory behavior was evil. They are worthy of horrifying execution. It's bad enough that the world is naturally full of temptations, but people who delight in betraying the trust of someone like this little boy were damned. There's no place in the Kingdom for hazing. There is enough suffering in this world already; don't make it worse, as if it somehow builds camaraderie on artificial human toughness.

If you find yourself with such a tendency, you need to consider serious changes. Jesus compared it to cutting off a hand or foot, or plucking out an eye. That kind of predatory behavior is anathema to God. Indicating the young boy again, Jesus warned them never to prey on people who trust you. God was watching. Jesus came to earth precisely for the reason of salvaging the abused faithful for the Covenant of His Kingdom.

How do you suppose a shepherd acts when just one out of a hundred from his flock wanders off? He would leave the rest in the care of his assistants and go off into the wilderness himself trying to find it. And when he does, he'll rejoice over the one recovered more than over the safety of the other 99%. The Father in Heaven is like that. He's not going to let someone lead any of His sheep astray. Don't despise someone because they lack your worldly wisdom; a childlike faith in God is what gets you promoted in the Kingdom.

A professional embalmer claims that he has run into problems recently doing his job. People who get the shot(s) are harder to embalm because their major veins are clotted. Not just a little blockage, but clots that run the length of the leg, for example. The video is kind of gritty to watch. The clots are rubbery, and he said they have begun showing up in arteries, too, which is exceedingly rare. The video runs about 30 minutes, and it's not a bunch of hype. The host is a physician that does a good job of interviewing the mortician. He notes that this started on a small scale about a year ago, and it has gotten steadily worse. He's now seeing it in more than 50% of the bodies he handles.

video link

Rejoice with me. In past years, I avoided outdoor workouts below 40°F, but this year I wanted to push it a bit. I'm referring to the heavy full-body workout I do at the local park. I'm pushing in part because I believe winters are going to get tougher in the US in the coming years, at least in the sense that we should expect to see more cold days on average. So I've been testing and I have found a costume that lets me push it down to about 30°F this year. Now, I'll grant you that colder temps do reduce my performance, but I'm still getting the exercise. Glory to His name!

It's a good idea to review the parallel passages in Mark 9:2-32 and Luke 9:28-45. The slight variation between the narratives gives a better picture of what actually happened.

They were all staying somewhere in the vicinity of Caesarea Philippi. After about a week of ministering there, Jesus took Peter, James and John on a hike up into the mountains. About the only high mountain there was Hermon, a massive chain mountain with three peaks, spreading more or less southwest to northeast along the modern border of Lebanon, Syria and the occupied Golan Heights. It's elevation is so high that it catches moisture all year round as the ultimate source of the Jordan River, and is usually snow capped through the summer. We can't guess how far Jesus and the trio climbed, but it was up high enough to be isolated. You can find any number of likely places all over that area.

We are told Jesus was praying there and His disciples were dozing at some point, but woke up to find Jesus in an eternal form -- His face and clothes glowing like sunlight itself. It should be rather apparent that Jesus took it all in stride. With Him stood talking Moses and Elijah, also in eternal bodies. Whatever else these two held in common, we note that neither was ever buried, but were taken up into Heaven bodily at the end of their time on earth. They weren't among the vast majority of saints "sleeping" until the Resurrection, the only two we know of during the Old Covenant period. Thus, they both retained a physical form in Eternity, but nothing like our mortal bodies. Of course, both were also major figures in God's revelation of the Covenant. Any conversation would have been rooted in that.

Moses and Elijah were discussing with Jesus His coming death in Jerusalem. They each had their own sorrows and tribulations on the path of serving Jehovah, but neither faced death in the way Jesus would. Whatever it was Jesus got from this encounter, it was partly intended for these three to witness it. Naturally, they didn't understand. Peter spoke up and suggested building some kind of temporary accommodations for the three eternal ones to hang out for a longer time together. Given the context, he was most likely referring to using some of the trees growing on the slopes of the mountain.

Even while he had his mouth still open, a bright glowing cloud covered the place. Within the cloud a disembodied voice spoke, declaring Jesus to be His beloved Son who met His full approval, and that the trio of disciples should pay attention to what that Son had to say. The men swooned for fear, passing out completely. When they came back to consciousness, Jesus was there again in His human form, alone.

He encouraged them to get back on their feet. On the way down, He warned them not to tell what they had experienced, until after He rose from death. They were quite puzzled by this, but at the mention of rising from the dead, they asked about the prophecy that Elijah would come back to restore the Covenant obedience, as he had tried with the Northern Kingdom during his earthly ministry, but this time before the Messiah took His throne. The last few verses of Malachi's prophecy mention this. Jesus affirmed that this had to happen, but then declared that it already had. Elijah was abused and then murdered because the nation's leaders didn't recognize him as a prophet of God -- nothing new about that. Eventually it dawned on the three that Jesus was referring to His cousin, John the Baptist, as the Second Elijah.

By the time they returned, it was the next day. The other nine disciples were surrounded by a very massive crowd. More to the point, they were having an argument with a bunch of scribes and Pharisees over something. As Jesus and His trio approached, the argument broke up and the whole crowd approached on the heels of the disciples. Jesus asked what the dispute had been about. A man detached himself from the crowd and spoke of bringing his son to the disciples to deliver him from a demon. The boy would go into convulsions at the worst of times, falling into fire places or bodies of water. The demon was intent on his parents watching him die horribly. Apparently the dispute with the scribes had to do with what was required to cast out the demon from the boy.

There is some debate over just who Jesus was angry with at this point, but we will take the position that He was primarily condemning the scribes and Pharisees. His words suggest they were the primary reason so many Jewish people were distressed in the first place. It was their teaching and leadership that had so perverted the Scriptures that the people were left without any shalom. And it was their dominance that made His disciples struggle so much with His teaching.

So, Jesus demanded to see the boy and dismissed the evil spirit from him. Later, when they were alone to discuss it, the disciples asked why they were unable to make the demon leave, when they had done it so many times before with other cases. His answer has been mistaken by most readers for centuries. The reference to prayer and fasting in the Covenant points to the level of dedication and commitment that saw Jesus skipping a lot of meals and spending countless hours alone with His Father. It's not an iron discipline of human will, but a depth of passion that took the focus away from this life completely. That was the whole point of Jesus' conference with Moses and Elijah.

If you want to see the power of Heaven in external circumstances, you must first allow it to change you internally. It's not simply a delegated authority, but the very power and Presence of the Father Himself touching the world through your person. We must give Him the freedom to reign in us like that.

Thus, once they got back home to Galilee, He reminded them again that He was going to face betrayal and death at the hands of people who simply could not understand His message or ministry. They would execute Him. But on the third day after His death, He would rise again. This drove the disciples nuts. On the one hand, it seemed they were heading for the final confrontation when the Messiah was supposed to exercise the miraculous power to overcome the evil rulers over them. He would appoint the Twelve as His court ministers and rule over a paradise on earth. Wasn't that what the prophecies all said? They didn't understand how Jesus dying was part of that.