You simply must read and send this article to as many friends as may not completely dismiss it out of hand.

The true condition of post-industrial America is laid bare in this astonishing piece from the Economic Collapse blog. In it, a rare window is opened to peer into life in cities such as Detroit, Camden, and Vallejo.

Is this the face of the New America? Only God can say. The Church of Jesus Christ has the authority to go before Him in prayer for this nation but has it done so?

Our lack of intercession leaves a merciful God no choice but to bring judgment against sin wherever He may find it. As we have continued to defy Him and His ways with our increasingly unabashed embrace of homosexuality and our willingness (readiness!) to divide the land of Israel, we now stand at the precipice of national doom.

The May 21st Rapture teaching of Harold Camping and Family Radio has reached the notice of the mainstream media, with a weekend story on NPR.

It's been noted in a number of places that Camping holds the heretical belief that Jesus is actually the Archangel Michael. That in and of itself should be sufficient to cause anyone listening to Camping to spin the dial somewhere else.

But Jesus' own words, teaching his disciples that no one knows the day or the hour of the Rapture, are cleverly avoided by the Campingites, who insist that, "We Can Know."

No, we can't.

And what entitles Mr. Camping or his followers to say, in essence, that Jesus was wrong?

Here is something on which pretribulationists and prewrath believers can agree. No person knows the time of Jesus' coming. A pretrib teacher will assert that His coming for the saints is imminent - there are no precursors or warnings. A prewrath teacher will, on the other hand, state that the Rapture does not become imminent until the signs of the 6th seal are seen.

But neither man will be so foolish as to set a date and not only lead people astray, possibly damaging their faith, but subjecting every Christian who believes in the literal fulfillment of prophecy to ridicule.

Most seriously, this type of behavior is just one more inoculation - one more things to make unbelievers deaf to the message of Christ's return.

Good article from The (UK) Telegraph showing the dependency of Western nations in the area of mining "rare earth" minerals, where China has 95% of world output. This is a strategic issue of the first importance for the US military and the high-tech industries of the US, South Korea and Japan.

One of a number of South American countries to recognize Palestine. God said in Zechariah that He would make Jerusalem a burdensome stone.

We have come into the beginning of those days. Whether anyone (even Christians) wishes to acknowledge it, it may be that God will soon begin to judge the nations based on their respective stances concerning Israel and Jerusalem.

In response to criticism by the American organization Freedom House, Turkish Prime Minister Erdogan said the foreign press is contributing to a "defamation campaign" against Turkey.

As Turkey continues to Islamicize, we know a truly free press cannot be allowed and the press will instead be made to serve the Islamic goals of the ruling party.