"Who is the number one promoter of New Age philosophy in the world today? Is it Eckhart Tolle? Rhonda Byrne? Dan Brown? Marianne Willimason? Nope. The numero uno New Age evangelist is by far Oprah Winfrey. When Oprah says jump, people ask, ‘how high?'
Unquestionably, Oprah Winfrey is the most influential woman in the world today. The television show host, author, publisher, actress, philanthropist, and media personality is a multi-millionaire, and when she speaks, people - especially her legions of dedicated female followers - consider her utterances to be almost divine revelation.
Just when you think you've seen it all another story comes along and surprises you. This week it is a casting agent from Wingnut, on The Hobbit set, who has been placed directly in the PC firing line.
Apparently a British woman, Naz Humphreys, was rejected because her skin was too dark due to her Pakistani heritage. According to a video the casting agency specified that "we are looking for light-skinned people. I'm not trying to be - whatever. It's just the brief. You've got to look like a hobbit".
Of all the indignation! How dare they require someone striving for the role of a Hobbit to look like the creatures created by JRR Tolkien in his book in 1937. In fact, surely it is specified that a male be cast in the role of Bilbo. But wouldn't that set off all sorts of PC alarms. After all that is a very sexist limitation.
Victoria’s state election on Saturday has stemmed a slide to the left and the socially engineering Greens party. While it is not a decisive win for a more conservative nation, it does spell a time where a “progressive” parliament will be subdued.
Despite the voter backlash that saw the Greens increase their vote by the smallest of margins since the last Victorian election their leader, Bob Brown, is putting on a brave face. He insists that Melbourne is becoming more progressive regardless of the overwhelming swing to the Ted Baillieu run Coalition. In fact, at some stage we are informed that we should expect the Greens to win seats outright without having to rely on either of the large party’s preferences.
Perhaps the most amusing excuse of Brown’s press statement was his attack on the Victorian Coalition. "If it is a hung parliament, moral authority will be diminished because the Liberals didn't preference the Greens," Brown claimed. So it is the Baillieu government that has acted with moral reprehensibility? Don’t get me wrong, I am no fan of the Liberal leader but this really is the pot calling the kettle black. Bob Brown is living in a sinful lifestyle; he is the leader of a party that promotes population control, social engineering, environmental supremacy and he is schooling someone else on “moral authority”? Greens policy includes pro-abortion, pro-euthanasia and the legalisation of same-sex marriage and injection rooms. They are the last party who can say anything about morality.
It looks like over 340 people have been killed when a stampede broke out in Phnom Penh while Cambodia was celebrating its Water Festival. It seems that mass panic and overcrowding led to this horrific event. Please pray for those affected in this tragedy.
Latif Masih was shot dead by two Muslim extremists on Nov 19th after he was accused of ‘blasphemy’ under Pakistani law. While it is likely that such accusations were false the two militants took it into their own hands to end Masih’s life.
Compass Direct also reports that four members of a Christian family were killed by a large group of Muslims. We should be challenged to pray for those Christians facing persecution and their tormentors.
On the Youth Central website that the Victorian Government has set up there is a page dedicated to advice about having sex. Unfortunately the advice is, at the very least, dangerous. As O'Brien points out this whole page is about "managing sex once it's happening".
At one point the page announces that "sex is a physical way to express love and affection for someone. Being in a sexual relationship can be very rewarding and enjoyable". While this comment certainly doesn't ring true no alternative is presented. If, for instance, one does not want to get an STI then one is advised to use a condom. However, a much better option would be abstinence. Condoms are nowhere near as safe as the Government stipulates. The only thing that grows with virginity is patience. Despite this advice the statistics show that almost 10% of teenagers practicing in sex do not use any sort of protection at all.
