My last email to Dennis on "the System" (my apologies to the group)

From: ed babinski <ed.babinski@furman.edu>
Date: Fri Oct 08 2004 - 20:35:12 EDT

Innovatia <dennis@innovatia.com> writes:
> I don't get any
 
>hint in the intro that Johnson has done any deep digging into the System
>itself.
>Dennis Feucht

Dear Dennis,
Hi, Ed here. Since you have killfiled my personal emails
(probably just to cut down on the duplicates you receive
from each of my messages in here), I can't have a personal
emailconversation with you, but must send you this email
via the group. Sorry group, I don't mean to continue
to discuss this matter in here, and I have been reminded
it is contrary to the Bible-Science theme of discussion.
Be that as it may, one last message to Dennis, who continues
to clog up the ASA board with his knowledge of "the System"
as he puts it.

Dennis, There may be some truth in some of the things you have
said. But knowing that you're dedicated to uncovering
"the System," and will probably incorporate any falsehood,
innuendo, or misinterpreted statistic on your way to that destination,
I confess I'm having trouble finding the truth in what you've
said so far.

You don't know anyone personally in "the System," do you?
Have you ever been a member of "the System?"
Do you know exactly how is a member and who isn't?
I guess Milosovitch and Hussein didn't pay their billion
dollar dues to remain in "the System?"

If "the System" is so entirely big and bad, then aren't you
courting your own death wish?

The circumstances and things you have mentioned seem
based on more hearsay and selective quoting than the
plain sighted observations given in Architects of Fear
(a book that has fallen out of favor with publishers, but if I was
a member of "the System" I would certainly see that more
books like that one remained in print -- the sorry fact is simply
that most books go out of print, very few books survive into
the future, period, and I've even had studios loose my music
tapes, so it proves nothing to me if some guy's book plates
went missing).

Conversely, if "the System" in the way in which you envision it,
does not in fact exist, then you've wasted a good portion of
your life worrying and reading about it. In fact, even if it DOES
exist, you seem to have no first hand intimate contact with its
members, and they are apparently ignoring you.

Anyway, I choose having a life, not paranoia. Let the rich
bury the rich, let their own children poison them or pray for their
deaths behind their backs, and take each other to court
over their parent's fortunes.

Ever read Robert Anton Wilson's book, an encyclopedia of
conspiracies, titled, EVERYTHING IS UNDER CONTROL?
At least Wilson has a sense of humor.

Finaly, here are some negative reviews of a conspiratorial book
I've seen praised on the net, even one my mother is having
pushed on her right now by some high pressure folks she
knows! It's called THE CREATURE FROM JECKYLL ISLAND.
The same author has also written a book about a conspiracy
against Laetrile, and how it is a definite cure for cancer.
Sheesh. See reviews below since they question some
specific claims made in this popular conspiratorial work, probably
claims that you've seen repeated elsewhere:
THE CREATURE FROM JEKYLL ISLAND
Review: I've read a number of books on the Fed, including Greider's
excellent book. I also like certain of the "conspiracy" works. This book,
however, is juvenille in both respects. I knew I was in trouble when the
author breaks the news that banks don't have money, they're lending out
money from other people and making money on it. I thought everyone who saw
It's A Wonderful Life knew that one already. I'd save your money, there's
nothing earthshattering here for anyone who understands anything about the
banking system.
Review: While the author has dug out interesting facts about people and
places, the central conclusion of the book that the Fed is a "free money
shop" for a few wealthy individuals (preferably of old money families) is
a typical conspiracy notion. There is also no understanding of the
monetary policy context of the Fed, nor the fact that it is a public
institution, accountable to the US Treasury with the profit from its
operations. This book caters to the uneducated, who feel a "real" sense of
victimisation and disenfranchisement from the system of financial
capitalism. As such, it does no one any favours by peddling a badly wrong
interpretation of that which it seeks to explain. The problem with the Fed
is that it has operated under the context of an international monetary
system that allows it to float a large amount of dollars in the world. The
chicken of this act are about to come home to roost, in the form of a weak
dollar and high interest rates, when the US can least afford it -- at the
peak of the 1990s stock bubble. The book, I am afraid, offers no help to
understand that. Sorry.
Reviewer: Ken Waters (Phoenix, AZ USA) In reading these one sided reviews
for the most part, it is obvious who finds this a great book. The Federal
Reserve is a financial system manager, plain and simple. Banking is built
so much upon the phychology of trust, so people don't lose faith in it and
start a run on banks. We've been there, done that, with much pain. These
nuts who love the book, have lost faith, and have a ways to go in order to
get other to bail out with them. If you are more interested in a balanced
book on the Federal Reserve, The Paul Volcker years, (thru the Reagan
years) from his appointment in August 1979 by President Carter thru 1987,
how inflation was brought under control and much, much more, the "Secrets
of the Temple: How the Federal Reserve Runs The Country" by respected
journalist William Greider, is an extremely educational book with balance,
that is hard to put down. Most would recongnize Greider from his picture,
he's been around journalism and the newsroom for decades. He also wrote
"The Education of David Stockman and other Americans", and "Who Will Tell
The People", and is a former Assistant Managing Editor of the Washington
Post. Look up Secrets of the Temple, I give it an A+, 5 Stars. I was
hoping to find a book that would pick up, with balance, the Alan Greenspan
era, and was hoping this might be the book. But it is obvious this book
has an agenda and is a one sided book without any balance. These reviews
have actually sold me off the book due to the lack of objectivity or
balance. Thanks.
Reviewer: Michael Kunikis (Lakewood, Ohio USA) Why doesn't anyone note
that the author of this book is a John Birch Society spokesman and has
been for years. Remember, this is the organization whose founder said that
President Eisenhower was a communist. Therefore, all you who enter this
book, beware. There's paranoia afoot. Review: I think this is a good book,
albeit with a few reservations. For example, readers should take the talk
of "New World Order," "CFR-Controlled Newspapers," and such things with a
grain of salt. In addition, the reader should remember that Report From
Iron Mountain IS nothing more than political satire, which has been
admitted many times over.
Reviewer: Greg Whyte (Boise, ID) So let's say you pick up a book and by
the third paragraph the author is outlining his arguments against the
topic. Would you estimate that this will be a balanced, objective view?
That the author will be taking pains to inform you of the pros and the
cons of the topic and leading you to an informed decision? This book is a
great yarn. There may even be some truth in it somewhere. But knowing that
Griffin is dedicated to the demise of the Fed and incorporates any
falsehood, innuendo, or misinterpreted statistic on his way to that
destination, I confess I'm having trouble finding those truths, or in the
end even expecting to. It's hard to see this work as more than a
one-dimensional children's book in which the antagonist is 100% evil.
What's scary, though, is reading the other reviews of this book and seeing
how thoroughly the author has succeeded in using the classic tools of
propaganda to sway the readership. For goodness sake, people, can you take
a moment to do a little independent research to verify a claim or two?
Review: The vast majority of what you have stated is either half-truths,
or downright untrue. It is true that the banking industry wanted a say in
the reforms that were to take place in our banking system. Don't you think
that they should at least have a say? Second of all, compare what the
proposals made in the "secret" meeting on Jeckyll Island were, with those
actually voted on by Congress. It is easy to see that the bankers did not
succeed in their supposed sinister plans. And third, the Act, despite the
fact that many Congressmen were absent, would have passed anyway. There
were plenty of Congressional votes to pass the act. Don't take my word for
it, look at the yeas and nays of either the Congressmen that were present,
or those absent. It won't matter because it would have easily passed
either way. Lastly, the treasury does pay interest to the Fed. But, it is
not net interest and I couldn't help but notice you have left this crucial
fact out. You sound like the conspirator to me. I don't know if a
conspiracy actually exists in the banking system or not. But if there is
one, you certainly have not uncovered it. I am sure you made killing on
the sales of your book, however. It makes me wonder who is actually
cheating the public.
Review: The author has not worked in banking and has no comprehension of
the basic money supply. I was a banker for over 28 years and have no love
for the Federal Reserve. However, the book gives so much bad information,
readers will lose sight of the real danger of the Fed. That danger is the
ability to increase interest rates to a point our economy could collapse.
The author blames the Fed for the expansion of the money supply. This is
not correct. The money supply has been extended to over 5 trillion dollars
by the Congress of the United States.
----------------
ANOTHER BOOK BY THE SAME AUTHOR
World Without Cancer: The Story of Vitamin B17 by G. Edward Griffin
American Media Publishing; Revised edition (May 1, 1996)
Review: It has been disproven and BANNED in the US. It used to be
available here and too many people died so they took it off the market,
and rightly so. They call it Vitamin B17 to avoid the drug laws, it's just
avoidance. The only reason it's still around, is cause it's so expensive
to treat with and makes the doctors RICH. Reviewer: Bill Henderson
"Author, Cure Your Cancer" (San Antonio, TX USA) G. Edward Griffin's book
was one of the first I read in my education about "alternative" cancer
treatments in 1998. It really jump-started my interest in the topic. It
makes a convincing case about the suppression of Laetrile, an effective
cancer treatment. It makes a less convincing case concerning the
international conspiracy of John D. Rockefeller, I.G. Farben and Hitler to
"take over the world." Certainly, there is corruption and collusion in
politics and medicine caused by the huge amount of money involved in
cancer treatment. However, "Politics in Cancer" by Daniel Haley gives a
much more objective and well-documented view of this. Review: Ed Griffin's
book was first published in 1974. Although he updated it in 1997, it is
still something of a dinosaur in today's Internet world. I would certainly
never recommend that any cancer patient rely on just one substance or type
of therapy. Every cancer and every patient is a complex of variables. Only
a multi-pronged approach to treatment can raise the odds of becoming
cancer-free into the 90%-plus range, where they belong, with today's wide
array of options. Reviewer: Rick Woodward (Warsaw, Poland) I would not
recommend this book to anyone seriously in need of information about
alternative cancer therapies. As an example of the low quality of the
research, the author's use of quotes from tabloids should suffice. The
book is filled with the author's paranoid, John-Birch-Society conspiracy
theories linking the pharmaceutical industry, the Rockefellers, and the
Communist plot to take over the world. The only reason I give it two stars
rather than one is that there is actually some worthwhile information in
the book; however, finding it is like looking for a needle in a haystack.
Not worth the effort. If you really want high-quality, scientific
information on alternative cancer thereapies, start with Ralph Moss' The
Cancer Industry.

>
Received on Fri Oct 8 20:40:31 2004

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