Here’s Who Will Pray at Trump’s Inauguration

According to Kate Shellnutt of Christianity Astray Today, three New Apostolic Reformation (NAR) wolves are going to play a significant role in Donald Trump’s Inauguration.  Who are the trio that masquerade as evangelicals? Pastrix Paula White, Samuel Rodriguez and Wayne T. Jackson. Shellnutt fills us in on the details:

Donald Trump has enlisted a larger, more diverse lineup of clergy than usual to pray him into office at his upcoming inauguration ceremony.

The group—bigger than any president’s since Ronald Reagan—reflects his politics, pragmatism, and personality. It includes evangelical leaders Franklin Graham and Samuel Rodriguez, as well as spiritual advisor Paula White, the Florida televangelist credited with his rumored recent Christian conversion, and a Detroit prosperity preacher, Wayne T. Jackson.

“Taken together, [Graham and White] have embodied Trump’s embrace of the twinned ideologies of Christian nationalism and capitalist Christianity,” Kevin Kruse, a history professor at Princeton University and author of One Nation Under God, told CT.

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Mysterious illness tied to marijuana use on the rise in states with legal weed

CBS News reports:

For more than two years, Lance Crowder was having severe abdominal pain and vomiting, and no local doctor could figure out why. Finally, an emergency room physician in Indianapolis had an idea.

“The first question he asked was if I was taking hot showers to find relief. When he asked me that question, I basically fell into tears because I knew he had an answer,” Crowder said.

The answer was cannabinoid hyperemesis syndrome, or CHS. It’s caused by heavy, long-term use of various forms of marijuana. For unclear reasons, the nausea and vomiting are relieved by hot showers or baths.

“They’ll often present to the emergency department three, four, five different times before we can sort this out,” said Dr. Kennon Heard, an emergency room physician in Aurora, Colorado.

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Conservative Attorney Jay Sekulow Supports Judge on Trump’s Supreme Court Shortlist Who Called Abortion ‘a Right’

According to Christian News:

Well-known attorney Jay Sekulow, who serves as chief counsel of the American Center for Law and Justice, which takes up cases for conservative, pro-life and pro-family causes, expressed his support on national television this week for two of the picks on President-elect Donald Trump’s Supreme Court shortlist—Judges Diane Sykes and Bill Pryor—stating that they have a “proven track record.”

However, others have voiced concern about the judges precisely because of their track record, which includes Sykes’ favorable Planned Parenthood ruling calling abortion “a right” and Pryor’s prosecution of “Ten Commandments Judge” Roy Moore. Reports state that both Sykes and Pryor are “top contenders” on Trump’s Supreme Court list.

Sekulow had been interviewed on Tuesday’s Fox & Friends regarding the more than 100 court vacancies Trump currently will have to fill as president, as well as whether he agrees that Trump should not compromise in his Supreme Court pick, but choose someone who is “hard right.”

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Carrie Fisher’s Death: ‘Wake-Up Call’ for Heart Screen Tests

According to Lynn Allison of NewsMax “heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women in the U.S. today.”  Here’s Allison’s advice:

“Star Wars” Actress Carrie Fisher’s death from a heart attack at age 60 should be a “wake-up call” about the threat of cardiovascular disease — particularly in women — and should prompt every American 55 and older to be screened for common factors that can flag risks.

That’s the view of Dr. Kevin Campbell, a leading cardiologist from North Carolina, who says many Americans miss the signs of heart disease that often precede a heart attack and other cardiovascular problems.

“One thing for sure — Carrie Fisher’s death should be a call to action for all women,” says Campbell, assistant professor at the University of North Carolina, Division of Cardiology.

“Know your risk factors, assess and modify your risk. This can be a way for all to increase awareness that heart disease is the No. 1 killer of women in the U.S. today. A yearly physical with doctors to assess her risk factors couple with a stress test or echocardiogram may have prevented her demise.”

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Netanyahu Spokesman: Beyond ‘Shadow of a Doubt’ US Intervened With UN Vote

NewsMax reports:

Israel is “deeply, deeply disappointed” by the actions concerning a United Nation Security Council resolution aimed at ending the nation’s West Bank settlements, and has information that shows “beyond a shadow of a doubt” the Obama administration was behind the action, a spokesman for Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu said Tuesday.

“Some of that information is sensitive, and so I can’t share it on live TV, but i have seen the information myself with my own eyes and I can tell you beyond a shadow of a doubt that that is exactly what happened,” spokesman David Keyes told MSNBC’s “Morning Joe.”

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Sex and marriage with robots: science fiction or new reality?

Ruth Holmes of Phys.org answers the question:

Sex with robots is “just around the corner”, an expert told a global conference in London this week featuring interactive sex toys and discussions on the ethics of relationships with humanoids.

“Sexbots” are a staple of science fiction—the idea of robots as sex partners is explored, for instance, in recent films and television series like “Ex-Machina” and “Westworld.”

But some specialists believe the first animated lovers made of metal, rubber and plastic, programmed to provide sexual bliss, will take a step into reality just months from now.

“Sex with robots is just around the corner, with the first sexbots coming… some time next year,” artificial intelligence expert David Levy told the International Congress on Love and Sex with Robots at Goldsmiths, University of London.

US California-based company Abyss Creations next year will start marketing sex robots that are billed as life-like, with the ability to talk and move like humans.

Ultimately, Levy said, people should entertain the thought of marriage with robots as early as 2050.

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Hallucinogenic plant ayahuasca gains foothold in US

According to Yahoo News:

Dominique was hooked on cocaine and smoked two packs of cigarettes a day until she stumbled onto ayahuasca, a hallucinogenic concoction that she says has changed her life.

The French-American woman, who lives in Los Angeles and did not want her real name used, is among thousands of people across the United States who are increasingly turning to the powerful psychedelic brew from the Amazon to overcome addiction, depression or psychological trauma.

The potion, prepared and consumed as part of a shamanic ritual, is especially gaining a following in Hollywood and Silicon Valley.

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Sex On the Silver Screen – Outsourcing Depravity

Many professing Christians sit through sex scenes in movies, on TV and elsewhere. But by doing so, are we asking unbelievers–those who act in those scenes–to behave in ways we would never tolerate among ourselves? Do we view sex scenes so we can enjoy entertainment we otherwise couldn’t enjoy?  Author, blogger and pastor, Tim Challies, addresses an important topic that those who say they’re followers of Jesus Christ may not have thought through.  He writes:

I once read a memoir by a man who, as a teen, had been a Shabbos goy. A Shabbos goy is a non-Jew who performs some of the Sabbath-day functions that that are forbidden to the devout. Traditionally, a Shabbos goy would extinguish candles and lights, or he would stoke up a fire on a cold Sabbath morning, all actions considered work by strict interpretations of Jewish law. But since those regulations pertain only to Jews, some would hire Gentiles as a means of circumventing the law. The primary task of this young man was to sit in an elevator and push the buttons. Pushing buttons involves closing an electrical circuit and this was considered a violation of the Sabbath within that community. They outsourced the work to him.

Christians quickly identify this as hypocrisy, an adherence to the letter of the law that violates the spirit of the law. It’s hard to find an ethical difference between actually pushing a button and hiring someone else to do it. And, in fact, many Jews see it this way as well and most communities have dropped the very notion of the Shabbos goy. However, I think some Christians may have picked it up, or something like it at least. Our concern is not Sabbath-day functions, though. Our concern is enjoying entertainment, and to enjoy entertainment we need to hire people who disregard the law. We let them violate the law so we can enjoy the benefits.

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American Psychiatric Association Expresses Opposition to Assisted Suicide for Mentally Ill

Christian News reports:

The American Psychiatric Association (APA) has released a formal position statement expressing opposition to assisted suicide in cases where the patient is not terminally ill.

According to reports, the statement was approved this month by the APA’s board of trustees after being passed last month by the general assembly.

“The American Psychiatric Association, in concert with the American Medical Association’s position on medical euthanasia, holds that a psychiatrist should not prescribe or administer any intervention to a non-terminally ill person for the purpose of causing death,” it states.

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Andy Stanley: Please Relent or Step Down from Pastoral Ministry

Seems Andy Stanley, pastor of Northpoint Church, is once again in hot water over another “foolish statement” he made.  In this piece over at Patheos, Grayson Gilbert takes Pastor Andy to task:

If anyone has not heard by this point, Andy Stanley, being infamous for making some foolish statements about the nature of the church and the scriptures, has done it yet again. Yet the interesting thing here for those paying close attention, is that the recent debacle over him making the claim that Christianity doesn’t hinge off of the biblical account of the virgin birth of Jesus Christ, is really just the outworking of his previous statements. Incidentally, it also mirrors the decent into liberalism and unbelief – more clearly, it is the preamble to that notable thundering of ol’ Harry Emerson Fosdick who asked, “Shall the Fundamentalists win?”

Fosdick stood on the mount of liberals, decrying the virgin birth, making exceptions to the inerrancy of the scriptures, and eventually came to deny the literal resurrection of Christ. His reason: fundamentalists were intolerant for making claims that such things could not be denied while one remains a Christian. Ultimately, he divided the secular and the sacred in expressing that science, reason, and modernism could not be harmonious with such historic doctrines. I’ll concede on the point that modernism and Christianity are not compatible; interestingly, one of these things has already faded away.

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The Day After Christmas

Clint Archer of The Cripplegate shares an amazing story that many people have never heard before that took place on The Western Front of World War I.  Archer tells of the unauthorized truce to commemorate the birth of the Prince of Peace.  He writes:

Christmas Truce 1914 by A.Z. Rainman

The Christmas truce of  Christmas Eve, 1914 was a wonderful parenthesis of respite in the animosity of what would become the bloodiest war in human history.

As reports have been collated of that mysterious peace that washed over the Western Front on that silent night, it seems it all started with well-wishing and spontaneous singing of Christmas hymns. The Germans offered their hearty a cappella rendition of Stillenacht from their muddy trenches. In good cheer, from the British side—and by some accounts even in some French trenches—hymns of praise to God resounded throughout the empty battlefields.

Captain Robert Patrick Miles of the King’s Shropshire Light Infantry division wrote in a letter that was published in the Daily Mail in January 1915:

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Obama Quietly Signs The ‘Countering Disinformation And Propaganda Act’ Into Law

Over at Zero Hedge,Tyler Durden reveals what was buried deep inside the provisions of the Defense Authorization Act. He writes:

 

Late on Friday, with the US population embracing the upcoming holidays and oblivious of most news emerging from the administration, Obama quietly signed into law the 2017 National Defense Authorization Act (NDAA) which authorizes $611 billion for the military in 2017.

In a statement, Obama said that:

Today, I have signed into law S. 2943, the “National Defense Authorization Act for Fiscal Year 2017.” This Act authorizes fiscal year 2017 appropriations principally for the Department of Defense and for Department of Energy national security programs, provides vital benefits for military personnel and their families, and includes authorities to facilitate ongoing operations around the globe. It continues many critical authorizations necessary to ensure that we are able to sustain our momentum in countering the threat posed by the Islamic State of Iraq and the Levant and to reassure our European allies, as well as many new authorizations that, among other things, provide the Departments of Defense and Energy more flexibility in countering cyber-attacks and our adversaries’ use of unmanned aerial vehicles.”

Much of the balance of Obama’s statement blamed the GOP for Guantanamo’s continued operation and warned that “unless the Congress changes course, it will be judged harshly by history,” Obama said. Obama also said Congress failed to use the bill to reduce wasteful overhead (like perhaps massive F-35 cost overruns?) or modernize military health care, which he said would exacerbate budget pressures facing the military in the years ahead.

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Kentucky Governor Declares 2017 ‘Year of the Bible,’ Supports Statewide Bible Reading Marathon

Christian News Network reports:

Kentucky Gov. Matt Bevin has issued a proclamation declaring 2017 the “Year of the Bible,” making it the second year that Bevin has issued such a decree.

He noted that several prominent figures throughout American history have lauded the importance of the Scriptures.

“President Harry S. Truman said, ‘The fundamental basis of this nation’s law was given to Moses on the Mount. The fundamental basis of our Bill of Rights comes from the teachings we get from Exodus and St. Matthew, from Isaiah and St. Paul,’” Bevin’s proclamation reads in part.

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Christmas: Christ in you

From Jim Stitzinger of The Cripplegate:

The concerts are over and candle-light services are nearly complete. No more caroling, food drives, corporate holiday parties and the sound of Salvation army bells are quickly fading. The world will soon say goodbye to “the holidays” and will soon pivot its attention to New Year’s and Super Bowls.

The world may soon have Christmas almost in it’s rear view mirror, but for Christ’s church the wonder and joy of Christmas never ends. Isaiah prophesied that a virgin will conceive and bear a Son whose name will be Immanuel, God with us. He came to earth that day, and remains with us in every day. The Creator of the universe stepped aside from the full display of His majestic glory and dove headlong into His creation.

The day Christ was born slipped by, uncelebrated throughout the world. It was not for lack of Instagram, satellite communication or weak cell phone coverage. It was not because the postal service lost His birth announcement or a webpage failed to update. Christ entered time and space as planned. The seclusion from the abusive prying eyes of the world kept King Herod from carrying out yet another satanic attempt to assassinate the Savior.

Beyond the safety of our Savior, the world did not see the eternal significance of the first Christmas for the same reason that it cannot understand Christmas today. “The god of this world has blinded the minds of the unbelieving so that they might not see the light of the gospel of the glory of Christ, who is the image of God” (2 Corinthians 4:4). Eyes that are blind to the truth can never see the glory of the Savior who was born.

The world cannot see Jesus, but the world can see Jesus in you.

Here are five windows through which those without hope are able to see Jesus in our lives:   View article →

Top 10 Best Christmas Songs of All Time

A few days ago we posted “Top 10 Worst Christmas Songs of All Time” and wrote:

The songs were picked by author and speaker Michelle Lesley.  Michelle includes videos so that visitors to her blog will know just how appalling some popular “Christmas” songs are.

So now Michelle presents her opinion of the 10 best Christmas songs and once again she includes videos:

Christmas songs. Everybody’s got a favorite or two, or ten! I’ve given you my list of the ten worst. Now, in no particular order (mostly), and according to nothing other than my own preferences, here are my nominations for the ten best Christmas songs ever.

(Note: I do not necessarily endorse all of the songwriters or performers listed below, the churches/organizations they represent, any other songs they may have written or performed, or their theology. If you decide to follow any of these people or groups, check out their theology first to make sure it’s biblical.)

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RC Sproul Jr. Was Driving Drunk With Two of His Underage Children, Drove Off Roadway, Struck Curb

Christian Post, a site we do not recommend, has the details of R.C. Sproul Jr.’s arrest for driving under the influence.  According to Leoardo Blair, when Sproul was arrested his blood-alcohol level was .15, nearly twice the legal limit. What happens when a person’s blood alcohol level is .15?

0.130.15 BAC: Gross motor impairment and lack of physical control. Blurred vision and major loss of balance. Euphoria is reduced and dysphoria* is beginning to appear. Judgment and perception are severely impaired.( * —Dysphoria: An emotional state of anxiety, depression, or unease.) 

.15 = This blood-alcohol level means the equivalent of 1/2 pint of whiskey is circulating in the blood stream. (Source)

Read our earlier posts here and here. Now to CP’s report:

With a blood alcohol content of 0.175, more than twice the legal limit for the state of Indiana, R.C. Sproul Jr., whose father Robert Charles Sproul founded Ligonier Ministries, was driving dangerously with not one but two of his underage children in his vehicle when he was arrested for a DUI last month.

A certified copy of the affidavit of probable cause against Sproul Jr. acquired by The Christian Post Thursday shows that at about 8:28 p.m. on Nov. 29, Allen County Police Officer Paul Heffner observed the former minister driving left of the center line, failed to maintain his lane, drove off the roadway, struck a curb and was weaving.

He was also driving at 30 mph for at least 2 miles with a flat tire on I-469.

When he was eventually stopped, the officer observed that he needed support to walk, he swayed, mumbled and had a moderate smell of alcohol on his breath. A chemical test later revealed his blood alcohol content as 0.175.

A CP report first revealed that Sproul Jr. was initially arrested in Indiana for driving under the influence with a minor in his vehicle just over a week before he resigned from Ligonier Ministries for “personal reasons.”

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Republicans accuse Dems of ‘hypocrisy’ after ‘bathroom bill’ repeal falls apart

Fox News reports:

North Carolina Republican leaders are blasting their Democratic colleagues after a supposedly bipartisan deal to repeal the state’s “bathroom bill” limiting LGBT protections collapsed Wednesday night, with every Senate Democrat balking in the end.

Both sides were pointing fingers in the aftermath of the unproductive special session, called specifically to consider repeal legislation for the law known as House Bill 2. The law omits gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender people from state anti-discrimination protections, bars local governments from passing broad non-discrimination ordinances covering them, and orders transgender people to use bathrooms and showers that align with their sex at birth.

“I’m disappointed that we have yet to remove the stain from the reputation of our great state that is around this country and around the world,” Democratic Gov.-elect Roy Cooper said.

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Gay ornament pulled from store after protest

According to Religion News Service:

Nativity scene with homosexual Josephs. Photo credit: The Sun

Jesus has two mommies. Or two daddies. Take your pick.

Actually, Jesus had two mommies and daddies in a pair of same-sex-themed Christmas ornaments for sale online until the designer withdrew them after a protest by a British Christian interest group.

Mark Thaler, a San Francisco-based artist and designer, was offering the ornaments via Zazzle.com, the online retailer of all things odd. They were round discs featuring figurines of either two Josephs or two Marys gazing at a baby Jesus in the manger.

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How to Read Your Way to Heaven?

Not possible says the editors of Berean Research.  Here’s why:

Advertising claims can be quite sensational, but I’ve never heard one quite like this. I came across this ad for a brand new book that promises instant access to heaven IF you’ll only read the book, titled, How to Read Your Way to Heaven – A Spiritual Reading Program for the Worst of Sinners, the Greatest of Saints, and Everyone in Between,

That’s quite a claim, considering Jesus says He is the only way to Heaven.

For it is by grace you have been saved through faith, and this not from yourselves; it is the gift of God, not by works, so that no one can boast. (Ephesians 2:8-9).

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Texas Megachurch Turns Christmas Production Into Circus—Literally

Dr. Ed Young, Sr., twice president of the SBC, recently held a circus in the church he pastors. Christian News Network has the story:

A megachurch in Texas recently turned its annual Christmas production in its worship center into a circus—literally, complete with a ringmaster, tricks and trapezes.

The Second Baptist Church of Texas, led by Dr. Ed Young, Sr., presented “Christmas Under the Big Top” at its Woodway campus from Friday to Tuesday, with tickets ranging from $10 to $25. The 90-minute drama centered on a storyline about a fictional effort to save a financially-struggling circus by putting on a Christmas show.

In addition to much singing and dancing, the program also featured a Stomp-like trash can drumming performance, and plenty of circus tricks, from juggling to acrobatics to Cyr wheel spinning. Styles of music varied from traditional to big band, to hip-hop and rock. A segment of the production also included a living nativity, and a brief message about life’s “distractions” from the meaning of Christmas was delivered near the conclusion.

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Top 10 Worst Christmas Songs of All Time

The songs were picked by author and speaker Michelle Lesley.  Michelle includes videos so that visitors to her blog will know just how appalling some popular “Christmas” songs are.

For me, part of the reason Christmas is the “most wonderful time of the year” is the music. There are the old favorites as well as some great new songs that have come out over the years. Unfortunately, there are some stinkers out there, too. Everybody has her own taste, so the songs that give you the Christmas crazies are probably different from the ones that get on my nerves, but, here, in no particular order, are my ten picks for the worst Christmas songs of all time.

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Hillsong’s Naked Cowboy is Back — Except Now it’s Naked Santa!

“This comes as no surprise since Hillsong is known for its debauchery and trashy performances,” says Jeff Maples of Pulpit & Pen.  He writes:

Earlier this year Pulpit & Pen brought you the story of Hillsong, NYC’s youth pastor, Diego Simila, who posed as the infamous “Naked Cowboy” at a Hillsong women’s conference. There were also other more than questionable appearances of debauched characters at various other Hillsong conferences during that time, including the sex pervert, Austin Powers, who showed up at the London conference. Hillsong received quite a bit of backlash for these lewd acts of moral degeneracy including from Montanist apologist and noted Hillsong defender, Michael Brown.

As if these salacious acts weren’t enough to turn any biblically-minded Christian away from the perversion of the Bride of Christ that is Hillsong, Diego Simila is back–posing once again in an obscene display of lasciviousness, as a nearly-naked Santa.

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Berlin Backlash Reveals ‘Mainstream’ Refugee Wakeup

LifeZette reports:

Following Monday’s Islamic terrorist attack in Berlin, Marine Le Pen, leader of France’s Front National, posed a simple question.

“How many massacres and deaths will be necessary for our governments to stop bringing a considerable number of migrants into our countries without borders, when we know that terrorist Islamists are involved?” she asked in an official statement.

It seems that in the wake of the horrific incident at a Berlin Christmas market, the governments of Europe may finally be, however reluctantly, willing to discuss the threat of militant Islam honestly.

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Christians Warn Upcoming ‘Shack’ Movie Depicting God as Woman Could ‘Far Outweigh’ Harm of Novel

Heather Clark of Christian News Network examines the heretical best-selling book “The Shack,” which has been made into a movie that will be released in March 2017. There’s little doubt that many professing Christians will flock to theaters to view the film. Clark writes:

Christian leaders who have issued warnings about William P. Young’s bestselling novel “The Shack,” which portrays God as a woman and espouses universalistic beliefs, state that if the scheduled national film release is faithful to the text of the book, its distribution could “far outweigh” the harm already done to souls through the printed page.

“If the film is a faithful portrayal of the events and the theology of the book, then every Christian should be gravely alarmed at the further advance of beliefs that smear the evangelical understanding of the truth of the Bible,” James B. DeYoung, author of “Burning Down the Shack: How the ‘Christian’ Bestseller is Deceiving Millions” and an acquaintence of Young, told Christian News Network.

As previously reported, “The Shack,” released in 2007, is stated to have sold approximately 20 million copies and has been translated into 39 languages. In 2013, Lionsgate Entertainment obtained the rights to turn the book into a film, which is now scheduled to be released in March 2017 and is currently being promoted nationwide.

“The Shack” tells the story of a man named Mackenzie “Mack” Phillips who faces a crisis while on a family vacation as his youngest daughter Missy is abducted and presumably killed in an abandoned shack. Years later, the grieving father receives a note from “Papa,” who tells Phillips that it has “been a while” and to meet up at the shack the following weekend.

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‘Gold Is Now Effectively Illegal’ In India – The Consequences Of Creating A Cashless Society

According to Tyler Durden of Zero Hedge, in India gold ownership will be limited to only small amounts of personal jewelry.  “There are clear signs that in a very convoluted way, possession of gold for investment purposes will be made illegal,” writes Durden. Here’s his report:

Jayant Bhandari warns “there are clear signs that in a very convoluted way, possession of gold for investment purposes will be made illegal” as he discusses India’s attempts to create a cashless society (and consequences of it) and why precious metals and geographical diversification are the most viable options investors around the world, not just India, should be taking.

“The situation is getting worse by the day… people are desperate”

Jayant provides the clearest explanation of where India is (and where it is going) in the brief interview with ProvenAndProbable.com’s Maurice Jackson

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