T-Bond Short Round Trip

Per Independent suggestions, today we rung the cash register as we completed our first round trip in our short of 30-year T-Bonds using the TBT 2x Short ETF. Let's review the trade and think about what comes next.

Thank You, Illuminati

Let us take time to give praise and thanks to some of the worst criminals of our era -- a super-wealthy oligarchy of elitists who strive to further concentrate wealth and political power in their hands with the help of their three stooges: governments, the banking cartel and mass media. This tiny elite has excelled in legalized counterfeiting while the overwhelming majority of the population works to earn an honest living.

Thousands of 28 lb bars of 24-carat gold stored in the Bank of England's massive underground vault

Readers might cut and paste these thank-you letters and send them off to their respective New World Order proponents.

Infallibility Verdict

Infallibility Artifice debunked the bogus idea that Universal House of Justice (UHJ) statements are infallible, based on official Baha'i sources and the simple model shown below. After weeks of deliberation in the court of public discussion including comments by readers of that report, it appears that a verdict is in with an apparent victory for the interests of the Baha'i Faith and its institutions. This article adds some common sense to the logic based on official sources in the previous report to further support this verdict and victory.

Infallibility Artifice

According to official Baha'i sources, certain inputs to, and the design of, The Universal House of Justice (UHJ) may possess an attribute of infallibility, which does not necessarily extend to UHJ outputs. This working hypothesis is based on a simple "black box" model shown in the figure and a brief literature survey.The major result is that individuals, without any authority based on Baha'i scripture, may have wrongly described UHJ outputs -- its writings and actions -- as infallible, which can be an unnecessary source of confusion and distortion of the unique attributes of the Baha'i administration, to the detriment of the Baha'i world community.

Start U.S. T-Bond Shorts

Since our last market update, where we pointed out that the U.S. has already defaulted on its sovereign debt obligations, such as 30-year T-Bonds, markets have traded in a range, generally moving side-ways. Nonetheless, Independent has managed to get readers into these positions with timing such that not a single "under-water" day has occurred on a NY closing basis, which is an unusual feat, to say the least.

Today's headline is that the time has arrived to start building a short position in U.S. T-Bonds. Thus, as of tomorrow morning, when the reader may act on this new position, there are four positions to consider -- gold, SDS (short S&P500 stocks), FAZ (short big bank stocks) and TBT (short U.S. T-Bonds).

There Is No Panic

Independent reported "...the strongest hands are accumulating gold... The biggest players have been identifying and acquiring deeply undervalued assets for several hundred years... They are accumulating the universal currency..." and "...take bailout and rescue money from the public for their own enrichment (banks use your money to buy gold)..."

Story Updates

Time for fun follow-up on some hot Independent stories.

In Search of Ruhi May 3, 2010

...the work of the Ruhi Institute has gained ... some sort of endorsement or approval by the Baha'i Administration as claimed by Mr. Anonymous...

"Mr. Anonymous" is the person who wrote statements on Ruhi web pages without identifying him/herself, such as "The Ruhi Institute curriculum has been adopted by the Baha'i World Centre..." Independent could not find any collaboration of that sort of official endorsement, until the 2010 Ridvan letter from The Universal House of Justice (UHJ) which refers to "Ruhi Institute" at least three times.

Purge Cover-up

A recent major schism, probably the largest ever in the 166 year history of the Baha'i Faith, has received scant attention from scholars, journalists and Baha'i authorities alike. This massive historic division of Baha'is happened mostly during two decades (1985-2005) including the "Peak Fundamentalism" period (1993-1999) and featured a purge to remove perceived undesirables or potential competitors to extremist usurpers seeking control of the Baha'i community. Confusion may remain in the aftermath of this historic purge. The present report considers (1) the apparent paucity of typical post-crisis remedial activities in the context of (2) a continuing purge cover-up which would tend to delay post-traumatic healing.

The Khan Trial

Forecasts of events in the Baha'i community were followed up with a pilot study -- "Fundamentalism Bubble Burst" -- with the perhaps surprising results of "Peak Fundamentalism" from 1993-1999, followed by a "Collapse of Fundamentalism", starting with The Universal House of Justice (UHJ) election in 2000. A social scientist may not have the opportunity to test a hypothesis in the real world. However, after the April 20, 2010, publication of the pilot study and the April 26, 2010, "Peak Fundamentalism" article, within days, Dr. Peter Khan was to give a speech to the U.S. Baha'i convention which may have launched a dramatic real-world test of the fundamentalism collapse hypothesis.

On Being Shunned

Weeks, months and years pass, with no contact, no word from loved ones. There is family news they should know, but no way to tell them. Are they happy or are they sad, and why? Are they healthy or sick? As their parent, I wonder where they are, so I might make a picture to see them in my imagination. These loved ones are my kidnapped children, Grace J Keene and James R Keene, now 26 and 22 years old respectively. [Full names Grace Josephine Keene and James Rogers Keene.]

Gaming the Baha'i Writings

Gaming the Baha'i writings may be broadly defined as selection or suppression of particular passages by one or more persons who deem such action will achieve certain goals. Hypothesis: Gaming the Baha'i writings has been and will continue to be a normal and acceptable feature of the development of the Baha'i world community both by individuals and by its institutions. Some concrete examples of gaming the Baha'i writings will be briefly considered.

U.S. Has Already Defaulted

The U.S. Treasury has already defaulted although many believe the opposite -- that the U.S. will be the last to default after a series of sovereign defaults by Greece and other European countries. This contrarian idea and some interesting facts about the world's primary currency -- gold -- will be presented. But first, let's see how much money Independent has put in your pocket, regarding suggested positions.

Dollar Good As Gold

Which country in the world might be first to convert from fiat currency to a gold or silver universal currency standard? Is this feasible? What are the implications? This story is presented in three parts: a gold standard proposal, transition from fiat to gold-backed money and consequences.

The Baha'i Bank

The Baha'i world community needs its own international financial institution -- the Baha'i Bank. When? As soon as possible. Where? At the Baha'i world headquarters in Haifa, Israel, with at least six continental branches. Who? The Universal House of Justice (UHJ), the top-most administrative body of the Baha'i religion, should establish the Baha'i Bank, as one of its top-most priorities. Why? To preserve, protect and increase the wealth of the Baha'i community. What? Let us begin to define the concept, design and rationale for the Baha'i Bank.

Beware Cash For Gold

Updated: Oct 17, 2011
Cash-for-gold can be a profitable, but risky business for Baha'is and others. However, if one has unwanted and/or broken jewelry for sale, cash-for-gold services are probably the worst alternative, perhaps paying only about 50 percent or less of gold melt weight. In contrast, a reputable refinery may pay 95 percent of gold melt weight. Indeed, most cash-for-gold outfits do not operate their own refinery and in fact send their scrap gold to such a refinery, which most owners of scrap gold can do themselves directly.

Market Meditation

Time to see how much money Independent has made for its readers so far. Call it a market meditation, since the Baha'i writings teach that prayer and meditation are partly an evaluation process -- including self-evaluation. Let us look at how the Independent did on the gold, FAZ and SDS positions discussed and look at pending ideas like gold and silver mining stocks and shorting 30-year U.S. Treasury bonds using TBT.

Suspend Elections Now

"Suspend elections now" may be the outgoing order awaiting a "send" mouse click on computers at the Rothschild-led cabal headquarters. What other choice do they have?

She's Got Legs

L.A. Mayor Dismisses Warning That Arizona Could Cut Off Power Over Boycott by Judson Berger FOXNews.com

Los Angeles Mayor Antonio Villaraigosa on Wednesday defiantly rejected a warning by a top Arizona utilities official that the state could cut off power to Los Angeles should the city proceed with its boycott of all things Arizona.

Yes, folks, Arizona's got legs, and she knows how to use them. A story is said to have "legs" when it keeps going and going like the EverReady battery Rabbit.

Misleading Title

The illuminist elite oligarchy has its three stooges -- the US government, the liberal mass-media and its bankster cartel, working to discredit those promoting individual freedom, including free speech and free economic activity. These puppet stooges continue to implement corporate fascism (government take-over of economic activity), to flood the public with deceptive propaganda (e.g., media labelling illegal aliens as "immigrants") and to take bailout and rescue money from the public for their own enrichment (banks use your money to buy gold) respectively.

Meanwhile, liberal-conservative labels have become inverted in the political realm. The liberals and far-left are now the reactionary fascists and the conservatives more closely represent freedom fighters. In the Baha'i realm, this label inversion aligns so-called liberal Baha'is with conservative or libertarian values, as they are known in the political jargon.

Live Chat On-Line

Independent has set up a live world-wide chat server for Baha'is and friends. You may download the chat client X-Press here and talk your head off 24/7. This service may provide a more instant means to discuss anything on your minds than forum posts provide. The author will keep an eye on this unmoderated live chat, in case anybody wants to chat with me. Here are some X-Press faqs.

Palabra Publications, Inc

Ruhi and Ruhi Institute are both brands owned by Palabra Publications, Inc, a non-profit corporation registered in the state of Florida, USA. Thus, Palabra would seem to have the right to charge a fee or royalty for everybody, including Baha'i individuals and institutions, using those brands, for as long into the future as Palabra owns these brands.

Collapse of Fundamentalism

The rise and fall of fundamentalism in the Baha'i community, over a few brief decades, is an experience that may galvanize that community, and none too soon, for severe testing in its immediate future. Broad brush strokes of this episode paint a few fundamentalists attempting a failed coup d'etat, an equally small group of English-speaking intellectuals forming a resistance movement which achieved some success in thwarting a "foreign occupation" of the Baha'i community and perhaps most important at present, the need to mop up remaining residual effects which might burden the Baha'i community presently or in coming tests.

The Power of a Baha'i

Baha'is may over-estimate the influence and power of their appointed officials -- Counsellors, Auxiliary Board Members, etc, when, in fact, these appointees cannot do much more than talk and facilitate communications. In contrast, any Baha'i, with a little initiative, can exert practically unlimited influence for good, deriving enormous executive authority from elected Baha'i institutions. Two keys -- the example of 'Abdu'l-Baha and the need for executives -- will be discussed.

Slavery Has Never Been This Good

US Stocks Surge At Open After EU Agrees To Bailout Wall Street Journal by Kristina Peterson
NEW YORK (Dow Jones)--US stocks surged as the market opened Monday, with stocks leaping back into the black for the year after the European Union agreed to a nearly $1 trillion package to help stabilize a ...

Readers here were naturally praying all weekend about what to do with their hard earned wages. Fret no more; the bankster elite is always there to help ... themselves.

Rolling in Cash

After market action today, readers here may be rolling in cash and be partying all night. For those owning stocks in brokerage accounts or 401Ks, etc, especially major ones as in the Dow Jones Industrial Average (DJIA) or S&P500, you were stopped out today, and will sleep tonight with all cash in your accounts.

Are Baha'is Wimps?

Watching news from the U.S.A. at some distance from Puerto Rico (1972-1989) and from the Commonwealth of Dominica (1993-present), sorry to say, Americans seemed to have become helpless wimps. However, recent news including the Tea Party activities, has caused me to wonder if Americans may have some guts, some back-bone after all. A recent comment by Baquia in the Peak Fundamentalism article now raises the question: Are Baha'is wimps? Baquia wrote, with a full description here:

In Search of Ruhi

The Ruhi Institute may rival the Baha'i Internet Agency (BIC) when it comes to apparent secrecy among self-styled, so-called organizations which purport to be part of, or somehow related to, the Administration of the Baha'i Faith. Click the Ruhi Institute link above and it is like entering a deserted building -- there is nobody there which, alas, is rather creepy, just like at the BIC site. Empty. "Hello, anybody home?" Silence. No "About Us" page. No names. No addresses. No phone numbers. And worst of all, no accountability.

Betting Against Big Banks

FAZ is an ETF (Exchange Traded Fund) that rises when bank stocks decrease in price. If its indexed big bank stocks rise or fall by three percent, FAZ is designed to do the inverse with 3x leverage. That is, it will fall or rise by nine percent respectively.

Proclamation 1,2,3

Master the News presented the kernel of a method to conduct proclamation of the Baha'i message. Inspired by the example of 'Abdu'l-Baha, known as the Master, it has been used by the author with tangible, concrete success. The method is so simple even I can understand it and will now be disclosed.

WARNING: if you read further and disclose this secret to others, I cannot be held responsible for what all those new Baha'i members might wind up doing.

Master the News

UNITED STATES
Immigration Advocates Rally for Change New York Times Protesters gathered around the country on Saturday, including in Washington, criticizing an Arizona immigration law and calling for a federal overhaul...

Peak Fundamentalism

Percent Maximum Fundamentalism & TRB Posts
A recent pilot study attempted to quantify a fundamentalism construct in Universal House of Justice (UHJ) membership over time (1963-2010). The present chart adds the peak in talk.relgion.bahai (TRB) posts in 2004, about twelve years after peak fundamentalism.

Rebels in Baha'i Internet Agency?

For six years, in an apparent rebellion, the Baha'i Internet Agency (BIA) has promoted free expression and the death of censorship in a series of widely disseminated position papers. Meanwhile, as recently as December, 2009, a SourceWatch article completely misses this milestone development. The Sherlock Holmes' method in Silver Blaze, a short story by Sir Arthur Conan Doyle, will be used to investigate the mystery of this disparity.

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 9

CONSEQUENCES OF ACCEPTANCE OF GOD'S STANDARD As each phase of society chooses the alternative embodying justice set forth by God as outlined above, the general consequence is the gradual unfoldment of the world civilization of peace and justice envisioned by Baha'u'llah and includes the following features:

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 5

JUSTICE FOR MEN AND WOMEN

It has been the male half of the human race that has mostly run society throughout history. Although mankind has evolved as much as it has, this may be more in spite of, rather than because of, the fact that men and not women have traditionally occupied most of the key powerful positions in society... 'Abdu'l-Baha has remarked:

Fundamentalism Bubble Burst

This pilot study plots a Universal House of Justice (UHJ) member fundamentalism index across UHJ elections, 1963-2010, showing a dramatic fundamentalism bubble peaked in 1993, decreased steadily in the subsequent four elections, and fell off a cliff in 2010.

Conspiracy Demand Exceeds Supply

Breaking News: New Attack on Baha'i Faith by Canadian Alternate News Publisher
Conspiracy theorists are becoming desperate, and publishers, too. Consider Illuminati Plan Third Temple in Jerusalem, April 16, 2010, by Max Bryant, who begins with the following text juxtaposed next to large pictures of the Wilmette, Illinois, Baha'i Temple and the Shrine of the Bab in Haifa, Israel:

Universal Currency is Now

The one and only universal currency is gold. It has been for thousands of years, it is at present, and will be for the foreseeable future. Much Baha'i literature may give the misleading impression that an international currency is a goal for the future. With this universal currency is now breaking news, profound implications for the welfare of individual Baha'is and Baha'i institutions are discussed.

Google Search Trends for "Bahai"

The recent Baha'is: Forecasts I article here featured data available on the internet in its methodology and the need to study trends as a basis for successful forecasting. What might be learned from Google's marvelous search trend service? Interesting and somewhat unexpected findings are presented and discussed.

Moojan Momen: Free Speech Psych-Op Hero?

“Marginality and Apostasy in the Baha’i Community”, by Dr. Moojan Momen, in Religion, may have been a sort of psych-op to promote a need for increased freedom of speech and tolerance for intellectual diversity in the Baha'i community.

This thesis is approximately the 180 degree opposite of the blunder theory which emerges from the quite extensive writings directly stimulated by the publication of Momen's paper. These writings have almost universally criticized Momen's paper, and by implication, Momen himself, from about every conceivable angle -- unscholarly, poorly researched, illogical, factual mistakes, misrepresentation of named persons, falsification of history, unfair, as if Momen was a foolish shill for authoritarian elements in the Baha'i Administration, intent on persecuting certain Baha'is. Instead, the full and final true story might be that Moojan Momen is a hero for all Baha'is acting to promote individual freedom. How did I get here?

Is the Baha'i Community in Crisis?

This essay presents a speculative parallel between two contenders in "the great race to a new world order".

Americans Perceive "Crisis" A recent Democracy Corps poll reports that more than 90 percent of American voters think that the deficit is a crisis or major problem:

Voters are deeply concerned about the deficit. Three-quarters report that they discuss it with their friends or family a lot or some and more than nine in 10 voters call the deficit either a crisis or a major problem, rivaling the concern over the current employment situation.

"Are there any similar polls of Baha'is?" and other questions began flashing in my frontal cortex.

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 4

Part 4 of this series applies the justice model, presented in parts 1 and 2, to the economy. Any time I reread something I wrote, even if it is only yesterday, invariably I think of edits to improve or polish the text. However, since this "...Balance of Justice..." material was rather widely distributed in the U.S. Baha'i community some 40 years ago, for this series of posts, I'm merely transcribing it, for the record. Of course, the quotes from the Baha'i writings remain highly pertinent today.

JUSTICE FOR THE RICH AND POOR

Great extremes of wealth and poverty, expressed in such arrangements as slavery, feudalism, aristocracies, caste and monopoly on capital, have characterized societies throughout history and are detrimental, according to Baha'u'llah, to both the rich and the poor. He describes one aspect of the liability of excessive wealth:

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 3

Part 3 of this series, written in about 1970, applies the justice model, presented in parts 1 and 2, to religion.

JUSTICE FOR CLERGYMAN AND CONGREGATION

Although this may be contrary to the conventional belief of many, Baha'u'llah declares that one of the greatest injustices burdening mankind is a religious system which no longer promotes the growth of the individual and society toward its full destiny:

What "oppression" is greater than that which hath been recounted? What "oppression" is more grievous than that a soul seeking the truth, and wishing to attain unto the knowledge of God, should know not where to go for it and from whom to seek it? ...by "oppression" is meant the want of capacity to acquire spiritual knowledge and apprehend the Word of God. By it is meant that when the Day-star of Truth hath set, and the mirrors that reflect His light have departed, mankind will become afflicted with "oppression" and hardship, knowing not whither to turn for guidance. (BC,31-2)

Financial Crisis Talk at Baha'i UN Office

A Baha'i International Community news report will be edited with my comments inserted followed by my response. Given the highly qualified speaker, Dr. Augusto Lopez-Claros, a major question is whether or not key decision makers at the Baha'i UN Office received "the real story" behind closed doors, or just this watered-down treatment which is mostly the same propaganda handed out by so-called main-stream media for a gullible public.

"Going out of business" Gold Sale

Many "too big to fail" banks have acted to suppress gold and silver prices, creating what is, in effect, a limited-time gold and silver sale. Now may be the time to "back up the truck" and load up with gold and silver bars and coins at "fire sale" prices. This is one of those "good guys win in the end" stories.

We all know what a "limited-time sale" is -- one where you can get fantastic bargains only for a limited time. How much time? Not much, since your "sugar daddies" making dirt cheap gold and silver available to you may vaporize at virtually any time before our eyes. This is why we call it the "going out of business" sale of a life-time.

Who is your sugar daddy?

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 2

This is part of a "condensed" text written by the author first distributed in the 1970's, in lectures and classes at Baha'i conferences and schools.

JUSTICE IN THE CONDITION OF HUMANITY TODAY

According to the process of divine justice, the cumulative progress of mankind up to our time is generally the consequence of acceptance by men of the guidelines laid down by God's Great Educators in the past, such as Moses, Jesus, and Muhammad. Similarly, the consequences of man's denial of the divine standard proclaimed by Baha'u'llah a century ago are the following features of the current sickness of humanity:

1. Suffering and Self-Punishment

The promised day is come, the day when tormenting trials will have surged above your heads, and beneath your feet, saying: "Taste ye what your hands have wrought!" (PDC,1)

They are themselves the victims of what their own hearts have devised, and yet they perceive it not. (BWF,132)

How the balance of justice is being set: Part 1

This is part of a "condensed" text written by the author first distributed in the 1970's.

WHAT IS JUSTICE?

Justice as set forth in the Baha'i revelation is key to understanding the meaning of complex and confusing events in the world and to seeing how they are part of a process by which mankind is evolving from its present turmoil to a unified world civilization. People often think of justice only in limited even though appropriate contexts such as in the treatment of deviants from society. However, the major emphasis of Baha'u'llah, the founder of the Baha'i Faith, was justice as a principle to govern and organize society itself, God's judgment of society, not just a court's judgment of a criminal. In its most general definition, then, justice describes the ongoing interaction between God and man, an interaction which has three components: God's standard, man's alternatives, and the consequences of these alternatives.

Baha'is: Forecasts I

This is Part I of an anticipated series of posts trying to forecast future trends and events which may impact Baha'is. Who are Baha'is? Literally, the word Baha'i means follower of Baha'u'llah. For our purposes, the Baha'is are those who say they are Baha'i. Most Baha'is, including the author, are members of the Baha'i Faith, a world-wide community. The much smaller remainder consists of individuals and smaller "splinter" groups, many of which have one or more points of disagreement with the Baha'i majority.

Similar to investors in the financial markets or clinicians examining patients, systematic and appropriate evaluation of performance is required to make informed forecasts. For investors, this is known as "fundamental and technical analysis" of various asset classes such as stocks, bonds and commodities. For physicians, it is the patient history and physical and mental status exams. The present rather informal methodology is partly based on available internet content on the Baha'is.

Gold is Money

Gold and silver are money. Do you have any of this money? Might be a good idea to have some of this real money in this period of historic economic upheaval. This applies to everyone including Baha'i community members and institutions.

Perhaps you are like me and have spent years in intellectual pursuits without any regard or knowledge of what money is, in fact, and how the economy actually works. Thus, in "Further Reading" to the right, there are several sites -- such as GoldSeek, Market Oracle and DollarCollapse, where you can start to get educated. We don't want to live through what may be economic suffering and travail of biblical proportions in complete ignorance, now do we?

Moojan Momen's "Marginality and Apostasy..." Article

Moojan Momen's "Marginality and Apostasy in the Baha'i Community" Article in the journal Religion has received lots of attention, including the delightful response of Alison Marshall here.

Much has been written about this controversial article, and if I may, here are some points that I have not seen covered.

1. In this commentary, Religion is depicted as a prestigious academic publication. But I wonder. Is it peer-reviewed? For a time, I served on the editorial board of the Journal for the Scientific Study of Religion, in which I had previously published a social psychology research paper. I've also done peer review for Brain Research, Archives of Neurology and others. Now, if Religion is peer-reviewed, I tend to think that the review was insufficient in this case. Why?

Let's find some gold and/or truth

I've been a member of the Baha'i Faith since 1963 and the title of this humble blog is one of its corner-stone teachings. I have many interests including finance/economics -- such as trading the commodity and other markets, computing -- as the author of the HotBasic compiler, entertainment producing, and of course the development of the world-wide "Baha'i movement", so to speak. My predominant work activity has been as a researcher and medical school professor teaching Neuroscience. Enough said. Let's get going.

Oh, lest I forget: buy gold/silver and take physical possession...ASAP.