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In a series this week, CNN shows the struggle against human trafficking through the eyes of the investigators at Mossos d'Esquadra, the police agency for the Catalonia region of Spain.
They wear football jerseys, T-shirts, jeans and sneakers. They look like ordinary customers having a beer at the corner pub but that ability to blend in is also key to their role in the fight against human trafficking.
They are the men and women of an elite human trafficking unit in Spain's Catalonia region and they have to get key players in criminal gangs to trust them.
The region is a hot spot for traffickers. Barcelona - its biggest city and one of Europe's marquee tourist destinations - provides a cloak for traffickers who bring victims in on tourist visas.
Large-scale criminal organizations from Eastern Europe, Africa and China are setting up shop - bringing people into Spain under the guise of giving them jobs, then keeping their passports and forcing them to work in nightmarish conditions, either in prostitution or labor exploitation. (Read more about Spain's hot spot for human trafficking)
It has kept the Mossos d'Esquadra undercover unit, which is formally called the Central Unit Against Trafficking of Human Beings, very busy.
Sub-Inspector Xavier Cortes helped form the unit in 2007, and he says taking on the massive criminal organizations is a complex mission.
"Research techniques are different than a regular criminal investigation, such as the solving of a robbery," says Cortes, the ranking officer in the unit who doesn't work undercover and is comfortable with CNN revealing his identity.
"To investigate criminal organizations, what one cannot do is solve the crime. You have to locate and dismantle the organization... You get to know who the members are, how they live, how they interact, and how the organization is organized. Where the money comes from and where it goes - all this from many, many hours of analysis and operative work."
Another challenge, Cortes says, is infiltrating the groups to learn more about them.
"Considering in the vast majority of cases, the criminal organizations doing the trafficking of people that operate in Catalonia are organizations from foreign countries, it is almost impossible to get agents to infiltrate them."
That's where the use of informants comes in handy. The unit's biggest bust - a Chinese forced labor case involving 80 alleged sweatshops - came from two men who were fed up with their working environment and decided to come forward. One had been stabbed in the hand as he tried to collect evidence.
What started with a complaint by two men ended in a case so vast, it took three years to unravel the massive, tangled web of exploitation, and is only now going before the Spanish courts.
"We went to the location of the shops they told us that there were assets, confirmed the existence of these workshops and from here we began an entire series of steps that would lead us to see if, as stated, there were links between all these workshops," Cortes explains.
The process was complicated. Eighty workshops, all allegedly tied to each other in some way.
The human trafficking unit needed to find out who was managing which workshop, and what was really going on inside. They began surveillance, first taping outside the workshops.
"So that we could see what was the pace of activity - how many hours workers were inside or if they could leave or not leave the workshops," Cortes said.
Undercover agents were sent inside posing as clients looking for cheap labor. They say they found some workers wearing next to nothing while they sewed clothes - the conditions inside the factories unbearably hot.
After several months of evidence-gathering, a judge was satisfied the unit had enough to move in and free the victims.
In Mossos d'Esquadra's biggest-ever simultaneous raid, 900 officers moved on the 80 workshops.
The conditions they found were shocking. Mattresses leaned against walls, ready for the few hours workers were allowed to sleep before returning to work. Some beds were hidden behind bookcases. In the worst cases, the workers ate, slept, worked, and sometimes used the bathroom - all in the same room.
Cortes said the operation freed 450 victims.
"One of the most important things we could get was that out of the 450 people freed as local workers, about 40 percent of them told us, by declaration, they were subject to the payment of a debt and that debt had a condition that forced them to work in these workshops," he said.
Yet freeing the victims wasn't the end to this case.
Cortes and his team then had to prove how all of the workshops were linked - who was paying the bills, who was directly responsible for violating the human rights of the workers. And who was at the top of the whole organization.
Cortes explained the complicated process. "We could see that the head of this workshop was at the time the owner of the van utilized by four workshops to carry their clothes. But at the same time, the policyholder of that vehicle was responsible for this other workshop, and in the same way that workshop was responsible for paying the water of three workshops over in another area of the town."
After three years of research and evidence-gathering, 150 people were arrested in all. The case is now in the trial phase, and everyone accused has pleaded not guilty.
As vast as the Chinese forced labor operation was, there are even more egregious cases for the human trafficking unit.
Prostitution is the Catalonia region's biggest problem, and it's led to some of the unit's most depressing cases.
Cortes says he has seen women seven months pregnant, forced to stand and prostitute themselves for 10 to 12 hours on the side of the road with no access to sanitation.
The worse case Cortes has ever seen involved a girl found near death on the street. Investigators learned she'd been held in a room for two years, and had contracted hepatitis from constant, unprotected sex.
Her discovery led to the bust of an Albanian prostitution ring but it's the victims that drive Cortes and his undercover team.
They work all hours, sacrifice their home lives, and doggedly pursue evidence in long-running investigations.
It's a dedication that bonds the men and women together as they handle some of the toughest cases in organized crime.
With the traffickers quick to change their methods after each bust, the undercover officers have many more cases ahead of them, blending in, winning trust and securing convictions.
"Dear GOD."
God is also involved in trafficking counteroffensive and already established a Paypal account to finance the operations.. After all, he has to feed his angel army and provide them with occasional vetted prostitutes to satisfy their heavenly urges. Those willing to fork over some funds (In-God-we-Trust approved tender only, please) can pay at: firstname.lastname@example.com
Ecclesiastes 5:2
Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
Barry: Has the God established HQ in stratosphere or in ionosphere? Does he use wireless connection to communicate with his/her minions on Earth? Finally, what system of propulsion do his angels use? Valid scientific explanation would help, otherwise you should wake up from your drunken religious stupor.
At least they have a job!!! There are alot of people without jobs. Killing and robbing
@Boheme – Asking for positive proof when you can't even provide your own for your beliefs? Pretty sad, not to mention hypocritcal.
@Ryan , when you'll understand why you dismiss other gods then you'll understand why I dismiss your god.
so you think by mocking God and His angels , this will place you in a better position in hell?
How about donating your money to an actual cause that will do something other than pray for the problem and order a bunch of altar boys to be shipped to the back rooms for "forgiveness"
Barry, I agree with you. Ecc. is a great book!! & only if people would read it. Anyone thats proclaims anathema against God is an antiChrist. anyone who curses the Holy Spirit will NEVER be forgiven. since God, the Son, and the Holy Spirit is One, I would be terrified to announce anything against them. But hey, Christ died for even these fools.
god need a home it should be in your heart
he does have a home in my heart . its sad that he doesnt in yours.
Just curious, but do use just any topic what-so-ever to inspire your anti God rants? Talk about non sequitors.
What manufacturer were they producing clothes for? There should be accountability for the brands that employ slave labor.
I wondered the same thing. What is with these journalists? I feel like every time I read an article on CNN I'm left with unanswered questions that seem pretty crucial to the story.
The Third Commandment : "You shall not take the name of the LORD your God in vain, for the LORD will not hold him guiltless who takes His name in vain." (Exodus chapter 20)
Lord is a title, not a name.
Actually your whole quote is a big misinterpretation. It is a ban of breaking an oath and has nothing to do with talking about God in a disrespectful way.
Oh lard, its the god squad. Take anything you want. But please don't molest anyone.
"Dear God" is right...Dear God why do I have to see comments from your crazy bible pushers. Religion is old news..lets move on to much more sophisticated methods of running the new world. Jesus was here 2000 yrs ago...what has God done since?? (even if he did that). People were easily entertained back then. You put today's magician in front of that crowd and they will be preaching in his name. If I were to take any scrap of technology we have now and bring it back to that era, well they would be saying "Jesus who???". They would see me as a God. People are gullible.
This world is made up of energy, and that energy is what is powerful. When you praise god and feel his presence you are not feeling him, you are feeling positive energy. You become happy and inspired and that creates a positive feeling that will make anyone feel enlightened. The teachings of the bible have a place in this world. Not one to be brought door to door, but one to be used as a guide along with all the other teaching that show us what a good human we can be. Believe in what you want, as long as you are a good person in the end. But, plastering these psycho postings on an article that has nothing to do with religion only so other can read your writing is not being a good person.
I am a national born servant of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.I was raised in a Catholic School from the age of five, to the age of fourteen.That was nine of the best years of my life.My dear mother,whom I credit with the logical decision to keep us safe could not have been more accurate in placing her trust in the finest peaple that i ever had the privaledge to look up to.Tears of joy and sorrow roll from my eyes when I recall participating (with a child's innocent anticipation and hope for the continuation of that safety and joy.)The sorrow comes from having to reallize that there is something else that walks amonge us.
I am a national born servant of the UNITED STATES OF AMERICA.I was raised in a Catholic School from the age of five, to the age of fourteen.That was nine of the best years of my life.My dear mother,whom I credit with the logical decision to keep us safe, could not have been more accurate in placing her trust in the finest peaple that i ever had the privaledge to look up to.Tears of joy and sorrow roll from my eyes when I recall participating (with a child's innocent anticipation and hope for the continuation of that safety and joy.)The sorrow comes from having to reallize that there is something else that walks amonge us.
Amen. And do not forget that there are little winged green men residing under the Capitol that conspire with Obama to take over the ol' US.
The LIVING GOD is my protecter. And from my LIVING GOD,I Antonio Velasquez Jr.; recieve optical accuity in the form of accurate perception. Indeed,greater is the LIFE FORCE,that is in me than that,which is in the world.
Just so you know I wipe my bottom with the free bible that is provided in some hotels whenever I stay in one. Just to spite retards like yourself.
They print these stinky propaganda pieces on substandard paper, I hope they at least make good substitute for toilet paper. Too bad they are not small enough, it would be a pleasure to flush one down a toilet for each hotel stay.
I prefer to take the good ol' King James - role it up - and use it please obese prostitutes. Usually gets me a free backdoor go ;Q
Let us gather,for the time nears when the moment will be at hand for those with an ear to hear.
...And this HOLY PLACE,the very lot in which WE STAND,shall be preserved.
dear god i thought this was 21 centuary guess i was wrong
dear god i thought this was the 21 CENTUARY guess i was wrong
Figures, someone that believes in an invisible voyeur in the sky can't even spell.
dear god
? Only idiots comment here? Good for the officers! True heroes. Modern noble warriors for justice.
Welcome to the group
justice? ... what's justice..
Human Trafficking is a global issue. Thousand of young girls and boys are sold into modern-day slavery. Watch this documentary "Sold" It features Pramila, an 18 year old girl who was trafficked from Nepal to a brothel in Pune ; Afsana, a 16 year old who was trafficked from her village in Bangladesh into forced domestic servitude in Kolkata; and Zakir who was just 11 when he was trafficked by his aunt into a zari factory. Their stories are told alongside those of other people from the trafficking chain including a middleman who preyed on young women in Mumbai before selling them brothels, a zari factory owner who has witnessed trafficking and exploitation and an inspirational trafficking survivors, Sarita who works as a border guard looking out for potential victims and traffickers. Sold provides a compelling look into this dark, inhuman, and exploitative world and shows how each one of us can help to prevent modern-day slavery.
You may watch this documentary on Culture Unplugged
watch what they do in the US.
In China they pay low wages. But in Europe they use forced slave labour with no pay!! I don't hear the calls for a boycott of European goods. Where are all the hypocrites??
because white is right. Everything else is wrong. Blame China and make Europe feel better
ILLEGAL slave labor, all countries have it unfortunately, from the US to China. So get off your high horse...
I agree with you 100%, this is a global issue!
There's a difference between the two examples you talk about: the low wages in China are legal there, the no wages in Europe are illegal there. Do you really think there aren't places in China operating illegally and also providing no wages for their "workers" (better call them slaves)? The boycott should be to all providing unethical work conditions, this includes the low wage places in China, as well as the no wage places throughout the world!
Like your comment
How many laborOrs dide the freEe again.... CNN needs to stert spell checking this is the second time in two days I find typos...
Maybe you and CNN can split the cost since you can't spell either. START. not stert
Ooh burn! Hahaha
Maybe they should check the Italian garment districts.
It seems that the Catalan police finally cease to be the local police of Catalonia, to become the national police of Catalonia.
ex victims of any type of manner, I am with you, in that as much as you try to explain to anyone the hardship you've been through it will never be enough, and whoever is listening, will never be able to understand you in full. it is up to us to make the best in life. let us move on forward let us leave behind all our pass, let's expect for the best ahead of us.
This is the job of china.exporting labor.destroying the economy of europe.look every where made in china.many european country is in trouble now,observed.
really, not only blame china, see what the international company doing, they pay the lowest salary and get profit, also it explains why american customers can enjoy such low price of commodities. america is the benefited.
Nike is a brand that has been identified as exploiting cheap labor in asia manfacturing factories. Makes for huge profits at the expense of poor people without a voice.
Pensicoles are Spainiards that moved to Mexico and mated with Mexicans in the beginings of immigration and some how they also wound up in Brazil right, very loosely something like that, right?
the love of money is the root of all evil. jesus is coming soon lets get ready.
Roni: That sounds like stuff I used to think about in college way back in 1999 in AZ. Been there done that.
Enslaving people should bring life in prison without possibility of parole. Someone capable of this is capable of anything!
Sorry world, the "evil" USA got rid of slavery after the civil war in the 1800s. Time for the rest of the world to catch up with the best and most advanced country ever created by man, the USA. We really need to seal our borders now, to keep you morons out. Please stop coming...we have enough people here now! And when Germany gets rowdy again, feel free to call on us to save your asses.
You do realize that there is also illegal slavery in the US of A happening right now? Just because we made it illegal doesn't make it suddenly cease to exist.
And heck, it's illegal in Spain too. Good on those brave officers for freeing those poor victims.
It is terrible that we still have this issue so prevalent in society, today. Somewhere I read that human slavery may still be the biggest problem facing society, today.
Stop looking for reasons to separate us. We must all agree slavery is terrible and horrific. reading and viewing the viedo posted above allows us to understand this mentality still exists in present day which is deplorable and sad.
More time needs to be spent closing down all the U.S sweatshops, minimum wage work facilities that keep so many in poverty.
I hope and pray for extinction of all slaves all over the world. This is a huge problem, especially for children.
Black markets thrive when demand far outstrips supply. That's why Al Capone become a hero and drinking booze was an expensive hobby (that could also get you jailed) back in the prohibition era. Then when prohibition was repealed, supply went through the roof and the Mob exited the bootleg liquor market. It wasn't worth it to them anymore because booze was relatively cheap and could be found at the nearest corner store. So they went into different markets where, once again, demand far exceeded supply: drugs and prostitution.
Prostitution has been around since the beginning of civilization and probably long before that. In some ancient cultures, prostitutes worked in a temple with the gods and their work (soothing and calming men's carnal passions) was considered sacred and beneficial to society. In our society, we shame (post their pictures) and jail prostitutes.
The irony in all of this is that these "heroes" that are going out, trying to rescue these girls and break up these rings is that they are enforcing laws that are creating the crime in the first place. Because of a "prohibition" on selling a particular unit of value (your sexuality - with consent), a huge black market exists, worldwide to meet the demand. Why there should be such a demand is a separate issue, but there is, has and probably always will be huge demand for this kind of sex. Criminalizing this kind of free trade only creates the gangs and problems this story outlines. They have to go to the extremes of kidnapping, raping and tricking women, then holding them hostage, all in an effort to meet demand and profit. If prostitution were legal everywhere (and not stigmatized as something immoral), then supply would go way up and there would be almost no incentive for this kind of activity because the profit potential just wouldn't be there...too many women would be choosing this profession and working independently of a pimp.
But in our religious, backward-thinking society, we'll keep praising these "heroes" for supporting a system that creates the problem it simultaneously condemns.
It amazes me what kind of man would patronize something this wicked. Anyone found with one of these girls or women are the ones that should be locked up for life!!!!
Lock these human traffickers up and subject them to the same harsh, cruel and inhumane conditions to which they subjected their victims.
Hey Boheme:
Do not be quick with your mouth, do not be hasty in your heart to utter anything before God. God is in heaven and you are on earth, so let your words be few.
Ecclesiastes 5:2
Dear poor ignorant liberals:
On Monday you cry about how illegal immigrants should be able to come here illegally "to work". On Thursday you cry about how human trafficking is sooo horrible. You can't have it both ways, you idiots! Illegal immigration BREEDS human trafficking!!! Gawd, no wonder conservatives think you're such morons!!!
Reading about this organized crime has given me some great ideas for setting up my own network to get more people over here to the USA to work. Thanks!
I believe someone said 'do not be quick with your mouth'.....wouldn't it be the keyboard?? I'm confused, can't we all just get along, cripes!
its showed in movie " biutiful" played by Javier Bardem..u guys have to watch this movie..then no shock reading this news...china people go everywhere risking their life n live illegally too..i hate this sometimes..and their prostitute come to jakarta every weekend, but one i hate is 2-3 years ago they did demo and protest in Jakarta " stop buying kidney from China" whats matter selling n buying Kidney? feel like i want do protest to them..stop being bitches in our country, dont take markets of local prostitute 🙂
Walmart will have to look now for another low cost supplier.
Yeah, I know. We can expect prices to rise at all the big stores, like Walmart, Kmart, Meijer, Target, and even the mom and pop shops in my area (they sell mostly Chinese junk mixed with about 5% authentic, local crafts).
Don't blame Walmart. You the People are what made Walmart the most powerful organization on Earth. You vote with your dollars. Don't like the way Walmart opeates? Don't shop there.
You know, there's a MORAL to this story. These sorts of issues DON'T HAPPEN to individuals who DON'T cross borders ILLEGALLY. If you're in a country LEGALLY, taking your passport DOESN'T MATTER, because you just walk down to the proper government department and request a new one.
Someone in the country illegally could do that too...but it's difficult when you are kept in a room, beaten, raped and under armed guard 24/7 while you service dozens of men.
Unfortunately, untrue. This happens even to people in their own countries. There are American born people forced into slave labor and slave prostitution as well as people in other countries, born in those countries who who entered another country legally only to be forced into slave labor. Too bad things aren't so simple as you think they are.
I am always amazed when I read these comments. Some people hide behind, "well, it is everywhere." when talking about labor trafficking. Is that supposed to be some kind of excuse or I guess we should just say, Oh well, it is everywhere, in every nation. Or how lucky they are to be "working." I mean what? the average labor and sex trafficking victim have about a 3 to 7 years on the outside shelf life before they are dead. Woohoo, lucky them. Should your friends and family be so lucky, right? Just because some idiotic practice of enslaving and victimizing happens in every civilized nation, does not make it right.
What are you going to Do about it?
And then there are those with this whole "legalize prostitution angle." So, you are saying that legalizing prostitution would clear up all of the sex trafficking victims who in many places have an average age of 14, and children as young as 4 have been rescued. Interesting, you should check out the legal brothels in Greece. You will find many of these captive girls in their legal operations. Many of them are rescued on a constant basis by the less corrupt police there.
And then, I get people with, well it is their culture. As if a society's sacred culture is the excuse to everything. You know, we once had a society that sacrificed children by putting the babies in the arms of bronze idols that had huge fires stoked inside and underneath them. The babes would sizzle for a second and they would press a lever to dump them in the flames. Obviously there are limits to cultural excuses. All I ask is if you back up that little line you just drew in your head from child murder, to child rape.
When you fight this and see the statistics become reality and you are just overwhelmed by the lack of resources and the horror of what is really happening, you just might sing another tune. Evil people have been able to justify most every wrong they have done in history. Men have a natural mandate to be protectors. I invite you to be protectors again.
The Defender Foundation fights Human Trafficking both in the U.S. and abroad. It distinguishes itself by being one of the only anti-human trafficking organizations to train and field Teams to get the victims. (Shield Teams- mostly ex-military and ex-law enforcement) By doing this, they are not the most popular organization fighting Human Trafficking out there. It is easy to get behind a charity that has bake sales and walks for shelters, but people that get their hands dirty by confronting Russian mafia and other organized crime syndicates, not so much.
At this time, no one is paid in The Defender Foundation. Every last person is a Volunteer.
We seriously don't care if you do something about Human Trafficking on your own, do it with a government organization or another group, just Do something.
Your arguments are simple-minded. Yes, some legal brothels (e.g. Greece) might "purchase" these trafficked girls, but that only strengthens my original argument. Organized gangs have plenty of supply because they control it because supply is "illegal" in most places, so a black market takes its place. If prostitution were legal everywhere, these gangs would not control supply and legal brothels would not have the option of buying supply from them. Also, where prostitution is fully legal and protected, most prostitutes work independently through the internet, not in a brothel with a pimp or madam running their lives.
Open your mind...and THINK
I found the above post a lot more thoughtful than yours. I think it is simplistic to think that if we legalize prostitution this problem of trafficking will go away. It won't. It will still exist. I'm not saying I'm opposed to someone who chooses, with sound mind, to be a legal prostitute. Fine, not my business, but there is so much corruption around this issue and that isn't going to vanish. The people who make their living off these sex slaves are going to continue to make their living doing things illegal, I'm sure. I wish more men who hire prostitutes would consider whether the person they are hiring is actually forced to do this or not. I don't know if there is a good solution but I don't think legalizing it can be the only thing done. That alone would not work to end this.
Think with more analysis and you will understand that I wasn't suggesting that legalizing prostitution will make the world a crime-free utopia. I was describing how making prostitution ILLEGAL only exasperates the trafficking problems, concentrating supply into the hands of dangerous gangs which makes them wealthy, powerful and influential (because the street-level scumbags always answer to someone higher up the chain with social connections you'd be ashamed to even contemplate). You really have no idea what you are talking about. They who control supply control the game...similarly why do you think monopolies are legally targeted and prosecuted in legitimate business?
There are many people in some parts of the world who would cut your throat for a cigarette. There is no problem in finding people at all levels willing to take risks with the possibility of making a lot of fast money. Even with these falsely-touted "successes" these kinds of prosecutions (and possible convictions) only account for a minuscule fraction of black market activity. There are dozens of new guys lined up to take the place of every foot soldier who's imprisoned.
Society will never prosecute this problem away. Sometimes, society is forced to choose "the lesser of two evils," so honestly ask yourself whether or not criminalizing prostitution ultimately helps or hurts each particular party (i.e. women v. gangs who control supply).
Truthfully I am not sure if you are trying to play the Devil's Advocate part or the Devil part.
Let us cut through all of your justifications for legalizing prostitution for a second and focus on right here, right now. The Porn industry has legal sex for money for actors on screen, right now. Fact is, we know amateur porn and other aspects are now involving trafficking victims. Child pornography is a huge problem. In fact, if the child is victimized, (raped) then killed on screen (snuff films) these copies go for hundreds of dollars more than straight child porn. So, we have an industry in the sex industry that is legal and yet illegal parts of it are flourishing....why.
Simply put, there is a demand for it. And this demand is fueled primarily by men. Men, who through whatever disassociation or justification, want more than what is legal.
And since we are also dealing in the now. Now, there are women, and girls, even girls who are toddlers captive. Even you, as an advocate for legalizing prostitution, are you pro-child prostitution or child rape?
Now, I am not holier than though. I myself have done things I am horribly ashamed of. Things that when I stopped any justification, and accepted full responsibility for my actions, I could see how wrong I was. I talk about this openly in the hopes that if I wake up even one man, and stop even one person from victimizing someone, it will be worth it.
We have seen the younger the victim, the more profit they generate. The reason why brothels, all over the planet are dipping into trafficking victims is simple, profit margins. They own them, no retirement, benefits, cuts of the profit, etc. If you own five girls, you could be an off the books millionaire.
You asked me to open my mind, which reminds me about that little maxim that says minds are like parachutes, they work best when open. As someone with some experience in that area, I will tell you a parachute doesn't work worth a damn when it has a gigantic load of crap in it.
And I have been accused of simplistic arguments. True, but I stand by them. Child rape is wrong. Holding women and children against their will is wrong.
And no matter your vision for some future legalized prostitution utopia, as it stands right now, by participating in the sex industry, you are supporting both directly and indirectly the victimization of children and their rape. My Teams look at it rather simplistically, we will not be a part of that. If their is a victim we can rescue, we will do it. We will not live our lives as normal while their are captives being victimized by this. The men in our Teams accept that their is no justification for child rape.
While you free your mind, we will work on freeing the captives.
The fact that you made an ad hominem attack to portray me as a "devil" betrays your own religious biases. Why can't you just come out and say you object to porn and prostitution on religious grounds instead of doing the predictable thing in making specious arguments to link legal porn with child trafficking (I guess you've never been to San Fernando Valley's porn industry, which makes most legal porn and has young women pounding their doors to cash in). Now you're suggesting that anyone who enjoys legal porn or advocates decriminalizing prostitution is a child rapist in disguise. That's a great way to keep a mature and honest dialogue going isn't it? Or a cynical way to vilify anyone who advocates a different solution from you and turn it into a partisan issue that's a straw man argument right from the start. People who enjoy legal porn and people who patronize prostitutes are overwhelmingly against child porn, child rape, human trafficking or anything of the sort. The demand for these things is proportionally very, very, very small. For the record, kids who are raped and filmed are victimized by their own relatives in most cases. There is simply not enough demand for child porn or child prostitutes to encourage the Mafia to produce, traffic and distribute such "commodities". Even most criminals draw the line with abusing children. If you don't believe that, go to any prison and ask the inmates...and find out what type of offenders are segregated from the rest of the population for their own safety.
The child porn floating around and child prostitution is mostly between perverts who find each other through the internet and are abusing their own kids. In places like South-East Asia, whole families are involved with sex tourism of their own kids, but that's not what I was talking about at all. By raising this boogey-man and trying to equate my arguments with child porn, child rape and child trafficking, you can attempt to effectively shut down the whole discussion. Truly, you don't want a real debate of the issues. You have religious convictions driving your activities. Good for you. But the rest of us can think and debate on logical grounds.
I will reiterate my point again for the benefit of any readers who are not completely ignorant, biased or closed-minded.
Why can't the Mafia make millions of dollars from the sale of illegally manufactured alcohol as they did in the past? Because the sale and consumption of alcohol is now legal. Supply is cheap, plentiful and easy to find. There is no more incentive for criminal scumbags to control and profit from a supply of alcohol simply because they can't control it...for one reason and one reason only: it's legal, so the legal market can meet the demand (which was always there).
If there is a strong demand for something...ANYTHING...and the legal markets can't meet that demand for any reason, then black markets will emerge. This is most common for things which are not legal to trade on the open market.
If you legalize prostitution, supply will meet demand using normal, easily tracked mechanisms. Things will equalize. Taxes can be harvested from both parties to the trade (and that tax revenue will be significant). Sex workers can be much better protected in terms of both safety and health; and most importantly, it will not be possible for criminal gangs to profit from sex trafficking anymore for the simple reason that they will no longer have a market to sell their "supply" to. Women will work independently and be regulated and licensed. Just as already, some services like RS2000 will verify the identity of a john, and keep track of their "conduct" to inform and protect the escorts who only take appointments this way; in the future there could be other services to verify that a particular sex worker is entirely free and independent of any coercive "third party," which will empower both the sex workers and their customers who wouldn't want to support a sex worker not working of their own free will.
There are intelligent ways to deal with this issue. Criminalizing it, although politically and "morally" expedient, ultimately hurts women and helps criminal gangs make huge profits from their virtual monopoly of supply. Even if you think prostitution is morally repulsive, legalizing and regulating it will ultimately dismantle a very dangerous and violent black market which primarily harms women. If you think you can prosecute and imprison this problem away, then you are a hopeless fool. Even if you made all of the existing players disappear, they would eventually be replaced by new ones in order to fill the demand vacuum.
Given the two choices, any rationally-thinking person is led to only one logical conclusion: legalize it!
I used the term devil's advocate in its proper context. As in someone arguing an opposing point just for the sake of argument or maybe not as a true believer in their stated position but to advance discourse and thought processes. If that is not your position, I did that little clever play on words there. Had nothing to do with my personal faith. And on that note, just because a person has a spiritual belief, does not render his point baseless, as you would seem to suggest.
You see, I am not an export on the porn industry in San Fernando Valley. Are you?
But I am very familiar with the porn industry run out of Miami and controlled to the nth degree by Russian Organized Crime.
You say all of these great consenting adults and participants and porn employees are against child porn and victimization? Great, show me their organization fighting it. Talk is cheap my friend.
And now, even saying that your solution of legalizing prostitution made it safe for the girls and then they only had willing participants. As 80% of human trafficking victims are women, and around 70% are used in the sex industry and out of those 70%, their average age is 14...and falling. How would this legalization affect them?
As the case by their average age, the problem is more than a few closet pervs on the internet somewhere. We have people smuggling 12 year olds over the border from mexico to be sold here in the States.
At what point do you say enough, okay, something should be done about that?
There are simply some things that you cannot legalize to make go away. Child rape is one of them. Now, you keep talking about legalizing prostitution to make this go away. Do you advocate child prostitution to make it go away.
Where are you drawing your line?
And if your line is somewhere behind not condoning child rape and captivity...
What are you going to Do about it?
I may be going out on a limb here, but I'm going to guess that you are a former prostitute who has now found Jesus Christ. Am I right? There's no shame in that, but lay your cards on the table. I think you are more motivated by a need to inflict punishment on the people who may have harmed and took advantage of you than you are in doing what's best to protect women as a whole.
You are confusing two entirely separate issues and trying to fuse them together to support your arguments. I already said that most people who enjoy legal porn or who might engage in legal or illegal prostitution are against child porn, child rape or child trafficking. If they want to do something more proactive to stop any of that, great. No arguments here. No one on this board has advocated or defended anything even remotely related to child abuse of any kind.
I didn't even intend to focus on legal porn, because it's legal and the vast majority of women engaged in it are not trafficked slaves, but eager young women cashing in on your youth and sexual talents.
I came to argue that at worst, legalizing prostitution (not of children, of legal-aged, consenting adults) is the lesser of two evils, even if prostitution disgusts you when you consider that keeping it illegal only concentrates supply into the hands of the Mafia and inflames the very problems you are trying to fight against. In short, criminalizing prostitution harms women MUCH MORE than legalizing it. In fact, legalizing it would be helpful to women in the ways I've already outline and will not reiterate here.
And from a religious standpoint, assuming you are Christian, it would be helpful to note that in the Bible, it was the religious people who criminalized prostitution and wanted to stone Mary Magdeline to death for prostituting herself with a married man. Jesus saved her life by uttering the words that you and all other religious people should say as they look into the mirror, "Let he who is without sin cast the first stone."
You have some interesting hypothesis.
I think you have it backwards though. I am not a former victim or a former prostitute.
I am someone who's legal internet porn addiction, led to breaking down barrier after barrier till it led to the destruction of my marriage and my family. So yes, in that respect, I have personal ties.
I suggest you read the several non-religious studies out there (John Hopkins, etc.) that show how porn escalates and breaks down barriers to get the same affect, just like a drug. How some men even become essentially impotent to physical sexual relationships because they can't get the same extreme visual stimuli.
Now, as I have worked extensively to stop Human trafficking and work with many different agencies and know of the many criminal ties to the porn industry, yes, I do believe that by supporting one, you support the other.
It took like 10 seconds of research on your example of the San Fernando Valley Porn Industry as a sterling example of girls beating down the door, to find the three major syndicate families behind the establishing of it. And the subsequent arrest over the years of different major crime figures involved.
And yes, you actually are correct about a few things, I am a Christian. I also know that Christ loves each and every one of those girls, and we have helped establish programs also for the broken wreck of prostitutes we find that need help and want out, not just the trafficking victims. No matter what any of them have had happen to them, they are respected and valued highly.
I myself have zero victim interaction. I have female staff members and counselors for that. We also involve Federal Victim Services agencies when appropriate. In the case of trafficking victims, law enforcement and when appropriate, DCF is notified as soon as we take the call or confirmed the victim. The security teams I train are there to protect the all female contact team and the victim, but even the security team has no direct victim interaction. We are their to protect the victim, at all cost.
I am a sinner, so I cannot cast stones. I have known shame to my very bones and carry that with me every day. But I publicly talk about it and when I speak in public, I reveal all of my past sins, with no hiding of anything, because if my public shame can make even one man hold himself accountable for his actions, and be a man again, and maybe even prevent some future victimization,...it will have been worth it.
Saying all of this, I have a lot to do in this fight, and I believe I have spent enough time on this discourse. We are on opposite sides of the fence it appears. And iIwill leave it at that.
As for who I am? I have been threatened by different groups of organized crime and motorcycle gangs. I have faced off with dragons and seek to rescue those in need. I am former military, roughly the size of a small mountain, have served my country and done many things. I have traveled to far places, I once lost my honor and seek never to do so again. My greatest loves are my greatest losses. My God is my strength, His son my Redeemer. And I would rather die than quit.
That is who I am.
It's unfortunate that your psychological issues led to using porn as a drug, driven to more extremes, which had such destructive impacts on your personal life. Whatever you may think, I am not mocking you for that. I'm guessing that there were other issues in your marriage besides porn which contributed also.
It's a common, but unfortunate mistake that people whose lives have spiralled out of control seem to think that their sources of misery (as they identify them) have universal effects on life outcomes. I completely disagree with your assertion that watching mild porn escalates into a desire for harder and more violent or taboo subject matter. For some people that's true, just as for some people marijuana use leads to harder drugs, but statistically that's not the case. Most people who use illicit drugs on a regular basis are casual and harmless pot smokers, not rabid heroin addicts or meth heads who are breaking into people's homes to support their habit.
On that note, I seem to notice your shift of focus toward (legal) porn. Probably because you believe it to be the cause of your own downfall. I think most people who indulge in watching porn do so as a vehicle to relieve some sexual tension and nothing more. Maybe some of those people are married...and were it not for porn, they would seek other outlets (like the next door neighbor's wife, perhaps...or the housemaid). Porn is still a fairly lucrative business, so it doesn't surprise me that organized crime might have their hand in SOME of it. Because of the religious vilification of porn in general, there's still a social stigma attached to porn and so a nice "respectable" girl would feel embarrassed to openly tell people she wanted to perform in a porn movie to help finance her college education. Because there is such a demand for porn, and because there's already a cross-flow of supply between the legal, though barely regulated porn industry and illegal prostitution, it doesn't surprise me that Mafia elements who run prostitution rings will feed some of their better girls to the porn industry (so they can collect her fee). This only strengthens my argument for legalizing prostitution. Take supply out of their hands entirely, just as the end of Prohibition shut down the Mafia's bootleg operations. They have a supply of girls directly because prostitution is illegal.
As for girls who get into the sex trade in general, some are smart, independent girls who are on top of their game and know exactly what they're doing and other girls are train wrecks. If you are a drug addict because your father raped and beat you and you left home at 16, and became a stripper, then a prostitute, then a porn star, etc. I can see how someone naive would think her lifestyle caused all her problems instead of recognizing that she embraced a certain lifestyle BECAUSE of her problems. Drug addicts need fast, easy money...lots of it...every day. Many, many people in the prison system were doing things to support their drug habits. So, should we say that robbing or burgling someone causes drug addiction and a destroyed life? Or is it the other way around?
The kind of legalized prostitution I was arguing for does not include the meth-addicted street walkers who have unprotected sex with anyone who has a $10 bill in their hand...I was talking about a highly controlled, regulated and taxed system whose primary focus was in protecting the health and safety of sane, sober, informed, healthy women who wanted to barter their sexuality of their own free will for their own profit. It can be done, it should be done (for the reasons I've already argued) and it WILL be done eventually. Sooner or later.
As for the legal porn industry...they are in a tail spin already and may not survive as an industry, legal or not, Mafia-influenced or not. There is such a profusion of amateur porn from regular citizens who flood free access YouTube-style porn sites with their videos that it will be harder and harder to convince anyone to pay for something that can be freely and easily accessed. This phenomenon also supports my argument that increasing supply weakens the control of criminal enterprises who make huge profits from a monopoly control of some forbidden commodity. They count on guys like you to help keep things illegal, so they can maintain control of the game.
Someday, if you can ever realize that most people who indulge in legal porn are not addicts destroying their lives or their marriages/families (though some do, like yourself), and not all prostitutes are trafficked slaves or miserable drug addicts, and that there's nothing intrinsically immoral about exchanging one unit of value for another, so long as both parties are willing, then maybe you will come to realize that legalizing prostitution, while not a perfect solution, is the more compassionate choice in protecting women. Until then, yes, as you say, we will remain on the opposite sides of the fence.
It seems that you are trying to justify your actions.....
The only reason I would think for you to say that there's no problem with the porn industry is because you watch it yourself. You have no knowledge other that what you watch but it is all just an act. All your info is based on assumption. You have no argument here just stfu and die.
I find it most disgusting that you would type up and add posing as a PSA on a discussion board about this serious of an issue. As one with extensive experience in the Christian culture and mind set, who has had a change of heart, I know how logical the argument sounds that porn is so addictive to everyone, when the more probable cause is you have a high tolerance for more and more exotic sex and your marriage ended because your "lady" wasn't giving you what you ever really wanted, which you only decide that when you were exposed to more and more of what was available. This isn't a slippery slope or a dark abyss drawing us ever closer to eternal damnation, its just about taking an honest journey through our individual needs, wants, and desires. I know that when you get "saved" your supposed to have a immediate awakening and clam and feeling caused by a great wonderful dopamine flood, that's in the brain. The more we judge the more people will want to keep secret, and we will do most anything to protect our secrets. I'm not saying we just slap a pedophile on the back as he/she darts off in pursuit of a little boy/girl, but rather when this person first had this sort of thought or "urge" they were to just blurt it out and chat it out to maybe just realize it was a fleeting thought and there was nothing to it. Then you don't obsess, deciding on more and more details of what the situation would be like, planning it right down to the crack pipe hidden in a bible.... Then you do it and guess what, you so over thought what could have been, that when you get it there is no dopemine flood, because reality falls so short of your expectations. I wish people would be better educated about the basics of how the human body works, instead of 2000 year old books of philosophy.
Ok so I'll admit I do kind of relish playing devil's advocate, but when you don't believe in a devil, do I just become an advocate? You seem to draw the line at killing children as an absolute that no living person can "defend". Well I'm sorry to say that when any society grows to a certain point, it finds ways to ennoble dying for said society. Families of those who are gone are filled with pride of the sacrifice, and are treated with the honor and respect deserved for them from any society which benefited from their loss. Regardless if the benefit was increased "security" "stability" or "favor" in reality or just the guaranteed psychological benefit of hope and positive thinking. Now I'm sorry must be because smoking marijuana eradicates short-term memory, but am I talking about every American soldier over in Iraq and Afghanistan, or about ancient South American cultures whose views and inputs were not ever pontificated during the writing of the Bible?
I am so saddened by society today, we are so very arrogant. We claim to be the most advanced society/nation ever to be on earth. By what metric? GDP? HDI? Christian Majority? Past military victories? Love? Acceptance? Free Thought? Oppression? Freedom? Charity? Family? Or possibly could we be distracted by the equivalent of jingling keys to be directed around by those who seem to think that he/she who amasses the most in life, some how changes the fact that in the end we all die, and one life is so insignificant of a fraction of every human life ever lived, which in itself is so insignificant of a fraction of every life, be it single cell organisms, or plant, or fish, or bird, or any animal. It is because of this insignificance of the real value of one life, that it is the definitive characteristic of humanity to protect each and every life. We all have a purpose, supply is equal to demand at all points on that demand curve, we just need to understand that free market principals even apply to this market of purpose.
Just back off, stop trying to control everyone. Most importantly all of our children. I know that what you know is safe and you only want the best for your children, but don't you want to let your child find what is best for their individualism. Let's see where the human species can go with so many people exploring so many ways to live life.
The whole world should look at how Sweden deals with prostitution wherein it's illegal to buy sex but not illegal to sell it.
This makes every woman (or man) a potential undercover agent. I heard that this idea is quite successful in markedly diminishing prostitution.
No, it merely shifts blame and keeps the transaction (transaction=selling AND buying) illegal and illicit. This only drives the transactions further underground. There may be statistics which support the idea that demand has decreased from the EXISTING models/sources of trade (I'm not sure if guys used to pick up girls off the street or whatever). Regardless, you can be sure these same guys are in the market, as are the women and they are always looking and finding new and creative ways to connect with each other and make a trade. It's pure economics from time immemorial and you will NEVER stop it no matter what you try. Even in societies like Iran where a woman can be STONED TO DEATH or Afghanistan where the Taliban-controlled territories will CUT A WOMAN'S HEAD OFF WITH A KNIFE for prostitution does not stop or decrease their activity one bit. Criminalizing this type to trade only hurts the women you are trying to protect. Legalize it, regulate it and support it, encouraging the women to be free agents, not working in a brothel or with a pimp...registered and licensed like many other professions and subject to frequent health tests...and you will see these problems go away.
Trafficking issues differ greatly country to country. It isn't just a matter of making things legal or illegal. Sweden has decreased prostitution and trafficking with this law. If you are open minded as you claim you should look at all possible solutions. This is one thing that does help.
You are incredibly naive if you think Sweden (to appease its own political conservatives) has decreased prostitution, much less trafficking by doing nothing at all in terms of changing the equation that a sex-for-money transaction was, and still is, illegal in Sweden. Clever and politically self-serving legislative weasel-wording to simply shift the blame from prostitute to john does nothing to change the overall criminality of the transaction. All Sweden has succeeded in doing has been to drive the same activity further underground into new channels of distribution. Because activity probably has decreased using the older mechanisms of trade, they can call press conferences, show statistics, win political brownie points and get the conservatives off their backs. But if you really think this has ended prostitution and trafficking in Sweden, or even slowed it down you are the perfect koolaid-drinking political tool they want you to be.
Stop immediately believing what the "official" information channels of society are telling you and do some of your own investigations if you really care about this issue. But chances are, you really don't care. You just want to feel self-righteous and pat yourself on the back that supporting the popular, "morally right" solution of prosecution and imprisonment is the best solution, which protects women and makes a difference. Guess what? It really doesn't.
It is NOT naive to think that prostitution has decreased in Sweden since the new laws were passed. The same happened in Norway when they passed the laws. Everyone who lives in a major Scandinavian city can testify to that, and the police say the same thing. So laws that makes buying sex illegal (bit not selling it) seems to work beyond expectations in Sweden and Norway.
It took three years to gather enough evidence to just prosecute. That doesn't guarantee conviction. CNN Please do a follow up story when it goes to trial.
On another note: do you know where everything you buy is made?
You know what I dont understand? why CNN would post this publicly if they are going undercover... cnn is basically just telling the traffikers what is happening and how to avoid it.. goodjob cnn you love to just give away information that could get ppl killed.. woohoo for you!
@alanbersin @DHSjournal This is...How...you get to the Core,of the problem.
Ahhh, the garment and fashion industry thrive on the backs of trafficked workers. Just like companies being held liable and prosecuted for hiring illegals the fashion industry should be made to be responsible and aware about from whom they purchase their finished garments. They too, whether wittingly or unwittingly, support the global trafficking of those less fortunate human beings.
next time you spend the babies food money on some street weed or other durgs..your now part of the problem. Justify it all you want. Your money is dirty and funds these thugs and their agendas.
On Monday the crying libs whine about how illegal immigration is such a goood thing, then on Thursday those little crying libs whine about human traficking... stupid libs!!! illegal immigration ENABLES human traficking!!! can't have it both ways dumb@sses
I thought Spain was mostly Muslim. Are the terrorists trying to raise money by human trafficking?
You thought Spain was mainly muslim? FFS, what kind of imbecile are you?
we have to many model of slavery in world one of them is going my country many parents sell their vary young daugther to old men on account of poverty but our major problem is when the our government ( iranian regime) has been informed never have any reaction at all becouse they believe this trade is legitimate in eslamic regulation. and that helpless girl will be taught how to satisfy their husbend in sexul arousal if she doest do she will be inflamed in hell by God afterlife
Thank you for your testimony. You are the perfect reply to Defender's assertion that legal porn and legalized (adult) prostitution somehow causes or supports child porn, child trafficking and child rape. Whereas, your testimony supports my assertion that child prostitution and child rape is mostly perpetrated by family members...and you report that it's also justified on religious grounds! Wow!
I rest my case.
When will we as a society understand that our voracious appetite for "cheap labor" is what enables circumstances such as these. Our landfills are full of crap we purchase at Walmart and other dollar stores because it is cheaper to replace it than fix it. We need to start paying for quality and investing in skilled labor to not only create merchandise but maintain it. I live for the day where I can purchase a pair of boots made here in the states that last the whole season and if and when they need repair I can actually take it to the cobbler.
Just to reminde u america is a piece of shit and it likes making everyone look bad when really its own people hate it
i like America...
America is the last good guy on earth, though morally deteriorating. Planet Earth anticipates the Divine Judgment upon this evil mankind.
America has caused a lot of death and destruction throughout the world believing just that. Clean up your own damn house before you come to "liberate" the rest of us. We don't need you anyway.
America is not the last good guy on earth and the CNN so called Freedom Project is a joke. Alimony is slavery in the United States of America today. The 13th Amendment clearly states "Neither slavery nor involuntary servitude, except as a punishment for crime whereof the party shall have been duly convicted, shall exist within the United States, or any place subject to their jurisdiction." Alimony clearly violates this amendment but is allowed for the same reason slavery is allowed in other parts of the world. It is allowed because it generates so much free revenue. If the media and everyone turns a blind eye to this fact, then the blood is on everyones hands. If the blood is on everyone's hands, then the blood is on no one's hands.
Who gives these monsters the right to sell other people? People are not property! They have stolen another human being and abused and raped or imprisoned them. This should be considered kidnapping and rape or false imprisonment. Trafficking does not carry enough of a sentence. These traffickers need to get at least a life sentence!
grim reaper you're the worst of the kind. How can you possibly say something like that? You're the worst of the kind. You're no different from the bastards who fuel trafficking.
slave labor and human sex slaves is dustructive ultimately to mankind. And it is one of many things mankind is Destroying the planet with and esp the FAMILY.
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I think we all need to stop fighting about the rights the wrong, the miss spelling nd the incorrect grammar. We need to focus on the fact these people are cracking down on human trafficking nd maybe America Does too. We may not know it but it maybe worse here and we don't see it cause everyone is to busy fighting about pointless things and not focusing on keeping themselves, their families, and others around them safe.
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Want to learn how an international slavery syndicate is brought down? See what undercover police work requires, and what it can accomplish? Here you go: CNN is reporting on a three-year long human trafficking case in the Catalonia region of Spain that tells you about all of that. Due to diligent, covert police work, hundreds of Chinese immigrants illegally brought to Spain will no longer be forced to spend their l 1 ives in fetid, cramped sweatshops.
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I found this article very interesting...please read!
Do you remember the blockbuster hit film The Matrix that was released in 1999? You may not know this, but it has deep spiritual implications concerning the times we are living in and Bible prophecy.
It tells a story of how these "agents" are trying to turn us into machines. We are closer then ever before for this to become a reality when they cause us to receive an implantable microchip in our body during a time when physical money will be no more.
You may have seen on NBC news concerning the implantable RFID microchip that some people are getting put in their hand to make purchases, but did you know this microchip matches perfectly with prophecy in the Bible?
"He (the false prophet who deceives many by his miracles) causes all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and slave, to receive a mark on their right hand or on their foreheads, and that no one may buy or sell except one who has the mark or the name of the beast, or the number of his name...
You also may have heard of the legendary number "666" that people have been speculating for possibly thousands of years on what it actually means. This article shares something I haven't seen before, and I don't think there could be any better explanation for what it means to calculate 666. This is no hoax. Very fascinating stuff!
...Here is wisdom. Let him who has understanding calculate the number of the beast, for it is the number of a man: His number is 666" (Revelation 13:16-18 NKJV).
To see all the details showing why the Bible foretold of all these things, check out this article!
Article: https://biblewoke.com/rfid-mark-of-the-beast-666-revealed
GOD is sending out His end time warning:
"Then a third angel followed them, saying with a loud voice, 'If anyone worships the beast and his image, and receives his mark on his forehead or on his hand, he himself shall also drink of the wine of the wrath of God, which is poured out full strength into the cup of His indignation. He shall be tormented with fire and brimstone in the presence of the holy angels and in the presence of the Lamb. And the smoke of their torment ascends forever and ever; and they have no rest day or night, who worship the beast and his image, and whoever receives the mark of his name'" (Revelation 14:9-11).
In the Islamic religion they have man called the Mahdi who is known as their messiah of whom they are waiting to take the stage. There are many testimonies from people online who believe this man will be Barack Obama who is to be the biblical Antichrist based off dreams they have received. I myself have had strange dreams about him like no other person. So much so that I decided to share this information.
He came on stage claiming to be a Christian with no affiliation to the Muslim faith...
"In our lives, Michelle and I have been strengthened by our Christian faith. But there have been times where my faith has been questioned - by people who don't know me - or they've said that I adhere to a different religion, as if that were somehow a bad thing," – Barack Obama
...but was later revealed by his own family members that he indeed is a devout Muslim.
So what's in the name? The meaning of someones name can say a lot about a person. God throughout history has given names to people that have a specific meaning tied to their lives. How about the name Barack Obama? Let us take a look at what may be hiding beneath the surface...
"And He (Jesus) said to them (His disciples), 'I saw Satan fall like lightning from heaven'" (Luke 10:18).
In the Hebrew language we can uncover the meaning behind the name Barack Obama.
Barack, also transliterated as Baraq, in Hebrew is: lightning
baraq – Biblical definition:
From Strongs H1299; lightning; by analogy a gleam; concretely a flashing sword: – bright, glitter (-ing, sword), lightning. (Strongs Hebrew word H1300 baraq baw-rawk')
Barak 'O'bamah, The use of bamah is used to refer to the "heights" of Heaven.
bamah – Biblical definition:
From an unused root (meaning to be high); an elevation: – height, high place, wave. (Strongs Hebrew word H1116 bamah baw-maw')
The day following the election of Barack Obama (11/04/08), the winning pick 3 lotto numbers in Illinois (Obama's home state) for 11/5/08 were 666.
Obama was a U.S. senator for Illinois, and his zip code was 60606.
Seek Jesus while He may be found...repent, confess and forsake your sins and trust in the savior! Jesus says we must be born again by His Holy Spirit to enter the kingdom of God...God bless!
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text:
animation shows a side view of an area where a river flows
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subset: commoncrawl


text:
IRS Commissioner Douglas Shulman is retiring this month, but in a farewell address of sorts, he spoke before an AICPA gathering listing his and the IRS' achievements during the past few years, but also gave some ideas of what the future may hold.
The Commissioner listed these as his main achievements:
- Creating breakthrough strategies to combat international tax evasion;
- Transforming the IRS relationship with corporate taxpayers;
- Transforming the IRS' core technology;
- Rethinking and reimagining the IRS' relationship with paid tax return preparers;
- Leveraging data analytics for continuous improvement;
- Driving efficiency and taxpayer service improvements; and
- Positioning the IRS workforce to make sure that they are prepared for tomorrow's challenges.
He then discussed the following, and what he felt should be future IRS focus and priorities:
A fundamental shift to a more global economy has created a real set of compliance challenges for the IRS. On the individual front, the IRS has made putting a big dent in offshore tax evasion a major priority.
During the past five years, the IRS has significantly increased resources to focus on offshore tax evasion, and the results have been substantial. They upped the ante in a meaningful way with their work with Swiss financial institutions, where for the first time in history, a bank secrecy jurisdiction turned over thousands of names and account numbers.
The IRS has also transformed its relationship with corporate taxpayers…many of whom operate in a global environment. One of the assumptions built into the dynamic was the so-called "adversarial relationship" between the IRS and taxpayers. This was one of those "givens"…the relationship would never change.
The Commissioner noted that the historic framework for the nation's tax laws is a system of voluntary compliance. Our tax system is set up so that taxpayers fill out their own returns. Therefore it is the taxpayer, not the IRS, who possesses all the information relevant to tax liability. The IRS then uses information reported by the taxpayer to make judgments about issues to pursue, and returns to audit. Inherent in this system is the basic assumption that the taxpayer will be forthcoming and the government does not need to be an "adversary" in most situations.
The IRS now has a suite of different strategies, tools and programs that it has been applying during the past few years to transform this once unproductive relationship with corporate taxpayers. The tools include:
- The CAP program, where the IRS works with corporate taxpayers to resolve all issues before a tax return is filed, so that when the taxpayer files a return, there is certainty
- Fast track appeals process, where the IRS moves the administrative appeals process into an audit to try to resolve issues when they arise—rather than taking the issue through an appeals process after an audit is completed
- The industry issue resolution program where the IRS produces guidance to taxpayers, mostly in the form of safe harbors, so they need not worry about later controversy.
The IRS also asked taxpayers to be more transparent by disclosing their uncertain tax positions, which they book as reserves on their financial statements. The end game is a more productive relationship, Shulman said, which allows the IRS to focus on corporate taxpayers and issues that pose the greatest compliance risk—and not spend time on taxpayers who pose a lesser risk of non-compliance.
The strategic priorities also focused on critical foundational operations and infrastructure, without which the IRS could not fulfill its mission. One of our most critical goals was modernizing the aging technology, with one critical program in particular: the core customer account database.
Shulman said it "is enormously gratifying" that the IRS successfully migrated from a weekly processing cycle to daily processing this year. This was a multi-year, "incredibly complex undertaking" that went to the heart of systems that process trillions of dollars in tax revenue.
The payoffs from this change, Shulman argued, are quicker refunds for taxpayers, up-to-date information at the fingertips of customer account representatives, and a platform for more real-time analytics and compliance. It is already benefiting taxpayers this year, he said, and will produce major benefits for the nation's tax system.
Working With Paid Return Preparers
The next key long-term priority, Shulman said, is an initiative that the IRS started more than three years ago to look at how the IRS interacts with paid tax return preparers.
In essence, the IRS shifted from a retail to a wholesale approach, shifting resources from dealing with taxpayers one-by-one to dealing with the intermediaries who deal with hundreds or thousands of taxpayers at a time.
Given the importance of paid return preparers to the integrity of the tax system, the IRS feels it is well into the process of ensuring a basic competency level for tax return preparers and focusing enforcement efforts on rooting out unscrupulous preparers. The IRS has registered over 850,000 return preparers and has begun administering a new competency test for any preparer who is not a CPA, attorney or enrolled agent. These individuals also have to complete 15 hours of continuing education each year using IRS-approved providers.
Once the majority of preparers are registered and have taken the test, the IRS will launch a public database so taxpayers can ensure that they are using a registered tax return preparer.
Data Analytics to Improve Ops
The next major priority that the Commissioner mentioned is leveraging data analytics in order to continually improve operations.
He noted that the IRS has built a team with analytical expertise, and connected them with business units to continually improve operations. They are working on multiple fronts, and the results have been impressive.
Using better data on return preparers that the IRS has gained, the agency ran a pilot program applying advanced data analytics to link tax returns that showed potentially serious compliance issues to the individuals who prepared them. The IRS identified a number of preparers with apparently inaccurate returns and, depending on the type and severity of the issue, is applying different types of compliance tools.
Based on risk scoring, preparers with problematic returns received one of three treatments: due diligence visits, outbound phone calls or letters with monitoring.
This new test-and-learn methodology is one part of a greater trend of success that the IRS is having in implementing new filters to detect fraudulent returns and new processes for handling returns. It is now an organization, Shulman said, that is proficient at designing pilots to test new ways of doing business.
The IRS has also improved, he said, in moving more quickly to use data to focus its compliance efforts. This is a key part of an overall strategy that the IRS is pursuing to move the tax system to be more real-time oriented. In addition to making internal IRS operations more real time, the agency has opened a dialog with the practitioner community about how to engage practitioners and taxpayers in more real-time issue resolution.
Budget Savings; the Fiscal Crisis and Obamacare
The Commissioner noted that, starting with fiscal year 2009 and running through the budget of next year, the IRS will achieve nearly $1 billion in budget savings and efficiencies.
The IRS is now recognized as a highly efficient and effective institution to carry out important and high profile government initiatives, Shulman said. Its portfolio of duties was greatly expanded during the economic crisis when the IRS was called upon to help revive the economy. For example, about one-third of the Recovery Act, or approximately $300 billion, ran through the tax system and the IRS.
The IRS has recently been asked to play a major role in implementing and executing the tax provisions of the Affordable Care Act (aka, Obamacare). For instance, Shulman noted it is working closely with the state and federal health insurance exchanges to provide hundreds of billions of dollars in tax credits through the exchanges to help people afford health insurance.
The Commissioner finally mentioned that it is also his desire that Congress keep a keen eye on tax legislation that adds to complexity, and is difficult for taxpayers to comprehend and for the IRS to administer.
For additional coverage of this issue and similar ones, we invite you to sign up with AdvisorOne's Summit Business Media partner, National Underwriter Advanced Markets, for a free trial.
You may also be interested in signing up for a free trial with another Summit Business Media partner, Tax Facts Online.


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Hi-Tek Balancing is proud to offer vibration analysis and portable balancing services for Worcester, MA and the surrounding area. Portable balancing is just one of the many services we offer for the equipment that you just can't pack up and ship out. It's important to maintain each piece of your equipment so you can enjoy a streamlined workplace. Our Worcester, MA portable balancing technology is top of the line equipment that detects imbalance and helps us figure out how to fix the problem.
Examples of equipment that may need portable balancing, in Worcester, MA or anywhere else, are power plants, utilities, mills and other manufacturing facilities. All types of rotating machinery need to be balanced and checked regularly, including blowers, fans, generators, and much more. If you aren't sure if you have equipment that needs to be checked out, just give us a call to stay on the safe side. We'll be more than happy to explain whether or not you need our Worcester, MA portable balancing services.
We offer complete portable balancing services for Worcester, MA at the customers' facilities for those hard-to-service systems and components including:
- Roof-top mounted machinery
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Our field service technicians and Worcester, MA portable balancing, testing, and analysis equipment, including Commtest vBSeriesR vibration analyzers, are ready to travel just about anywhere to service virtually any rotating component and system, including:
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For your next portable balancing project in Worcester, MA, production run, vibration problem, service or repair need, or customized balancing system, send your request to us online, or call 978-840-9781


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Farmington officer fatally shoots man at home
Officer was responding to domestic violence call
Farmington police said an officer fatally shot a man while responding to a domestic violence call at a home.
Sgt. Joshua Laino said an officer arriving at the home Tuesday night shot Daniel Rey when he confronted the officer while armed with what Laino described as a "large edged weapon."
According to Laino, Rey's stepdaughter, Teresa Salazar, had told a police dispatcher that Rey had thrown a small child from a bed, was striking a female and breaking things.
"They didn't have to kill him," Salazar said.
Salazar watched as the officer shot Rey.
"I was standing right there, and they shot him, and the blood splattered all over me," Salazar said.
Rey had been arguing with Salazar's mother. Salazar said she was scared.
"I just freaked out last night, and I didn't know what to do, so I just got on the phone with the cops," Salazar said.
Investigators said the Farmington officer arrived alone and heard a commotion inside the trailer that he went to check out.
"They asked him to put the weapon down," Salazar said. "He didn't put the weapon down, and they just shot him."
Police said Rey was holding a large knife, but it's not clear what made the officer shoot him multiple times.
"His 3-year-old son (saw) him dead on the floor," Salazar said.
The scene was one Salazar said may live with her forever.
"He was a very good man. He never hurt neither one of us ever. He always took care of us," Salazar said.
New Mexico State Police are investigating the shooting, and the Farmington police officer involved in the shooting has been placed on paid leave under department policy.
Police said Rey did not appear to have a violent criminal record.


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GHOP students 2007-2008/Michael Casha
From Joomla! Documentation
< GHOP students 2007-2008(Redirected from GHOP students/Michael Casha)
A little bit about yourself and your interests
I've had a keen interest in the IT area since a very young age, and have been developing websites since about 7, using XAMPP on my localhost machine.From there I found Joomla, and after learning a little more about it I became very keen in developing sites and would certainly say Joomla is a very big interest of mine now, and hopefully in the future.
Why you decided to join the contest and why you choose Joomla!
I decided to join the contest because I really needed something to kick start my contributions towards Joomla. Whilst I've always been interested in it, I haven't ever really known exactly how everything worked. The reason I chose Joomla! In particular is because not only do I know a lot about it, I found that Joomla have the best community of assistants and overall quality.
Some thoughts on your experience in GHOP
Absolutely wonderful is all I can say. Having an opportunity to get involved in major projects with people there if you need it is very reassuring!
Ideas on how we might make this better in the future.
More promotion possibly, and a faster review system is all I can suggest. And of course, more projects :) I can't believe how many people contributed to this!


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Andrew List
- Career Highlights
- Commissions include En Closures ballet score for Rebecca Rice Dance and Blast for the Civic Symphony of Boston
- "Magical Dreamscape" performed by the Metamorphosen Chamber Orchestra and "Millennial Interlude for 14 Instruments" performed by North South Consonance
- "Violin Concerto" recorded by Prague Radio Symphony, with Eva Szekely, violin solo (Albany Records)
- List and Friends, a four-concert series of chamber music and commissions of new works, sponsored by Amsterdams Fonds voor de Kunst and the American Embassy (The Netherlands)
- Composer-in-Residence with Amsterdam, The Netherlands
- Private lessons with Richard Danielpour, Samuel Headrick, Nicolas Maw, and Bernard Rands
- Education
- B.A., New England Conservatory
- M.A., New England Conservatory
- D.M.A., Boston University
In Their Own Words
"Music is an aural tradition. I encourage my students to listen carefully and develop their own reactions to, and ideas about, the music we listen to."
"It's important to study music from the past because it guides and inspires. When I share a great piece of music with my students, it often strikes them in a very profound way, even though they can't always articulate it right away. There's something about it that they feel from the heart, but it is also connected to the mind. When I watch students as they listen, it's almost like opening a new chapter of a book."
"By gaining a solid grounding in the fundamentals of music, you gain a springboard to articulate your creative ideas, because composing is about experimentation and having fun with the material. I've encouraged many students to get the courage to tap into their own creativity."
"I believe that the inner ear is just as much an instrument as the external ear. In a way, it's the stronger instrument, since the inner ear is connected with your intuition. And composing music is about being open to your own intuition. It's when you don't think 'complicated' that the purest ideas come through. When a student gets to that point, and comes up with something fresh and original, it's very exciting to see. It's very creative and very beautiful, and that makes it all worthwhile to me."


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Regional Planning
Our goal: Concentrate growth inside existing cities.
SPUR's regional planning agenda:
• Focus housing growth in existing communities.
• Add new jobs in transit-accessible employment centers.
• Retrofit suburban office parks to increase density.
• Strengthen our regional agencies.
• Explore tax sharing.
Read more from SPUR's Agenda for Change
White Paper
Improving Regional Planning in the Bay Area
Many attempts have been made to foster better collaboration between the Association of Bay Area Governments and the Metropolitan Transportation Commission. A proposal to establish a merged planning department has again opened up the discussion about the future of regional planning in the Bay Area. SPUR recommends studying a full merger of the two agencies.Read More
Strengthening the Bay Area's Regional Governance
The Bay Area economy has rebounded from the recession, but major regional challenges threaten our continued prosperity. SPUR makes the case that some of the biggest threats to the Bay Area's long-term economic competitiveness are best addressed through better regional governance.Read More
Advocacy Letter
SPUR's Comments on Plan Bay Area
Plan Bay Area is an important step forward in comprehensive regional planning in the Bay Area. Our comments on the plan address the gap between our vision of a more concentrated region and the tools available to achieve it.Read More
Ongoing Initiative
The Future of Work
In the last three decades, employment has spread from city centers to car-centric, low-density office parks. How can we move more jobs to places served by transit? SPUR looks at how to make this shift while strengthening innovation, job growth and the prosperity of the Bay Area.Read More
The Urbanist
The Northern California Megaregion
Northern California, home to 14 million people, is expected to add at least 10 million people by 2050. How we plan for and accommodate that growth is the defining question for urban planning in Northern California today.Read More
SPUR Report
Beyond the Tracks
California cities anticipating the rewards of new high-speed rail stations may fail to reap the full economic and environmental benefits without key land-use planning. SPUR identifies strategies that will contribute to the success of high-speed rail and help realize the full potential of this multi-billion-dollar system.Read More


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BATON ROUGE LSU's Mark Batzer, along with research associate Jerilyn Walker and assistant professor Miriam Konkel, have published research determining that modern-day orangutans are host to ancient jumping genes called Alu, which are more than 16 million years old. The study was done in collaboration with the Zoological Society of San Diego and the Institute of Systems Biology in Seattle and is featured in the new open access journal Mobile DNA.
These tiny pieces of mobile DNA are able to copy themselves using a method similar to retroviruses. They can be thought of as molecular fossils, as a shared Alu element sequence and location within the genome indicates a common ancestor. But, because this is an inexact process, a segment of "host" DNA is duplicated at the Alu insertion sites and these footprints, known as target site duplications, can be used to identify Alu insertions.
"However, it has long been recognized that only a small fraction of these elements retain the ability to mobilize new copies as 'drivers,' while most are inactive," said Batzer, Boyd Professor and Dr. Mary Lou Applewhite Distinguished Professor of Biological Sciences. "In humans, telling the difference has proven quite difficult, mainly because the human genome is filled with plenty of relatively young Alu insertions, all with slight differences while at the same time lacking easily identifiable features characteristic for Alu propagation. This makes it hard to find their 'parent' or 'source Alu' from potentially hundreds of candidates that look similar."
In contrast to humans and other studied primates, recent activity of Alu elements in the orangutan has been very slow, with only a handful of recent events by comparison. This itself is very unique and was a highlighted feature of the Batzer Lab's previous Nature publication focusing on the Orangutan Genome. Read more at http://www.lsu.edu/ur/ocur/lsunews/MediaCenter/News/2011/01/item24139.html.
"In the current study, we were able to discover the likely source Alu, or founder, of some of the very recent Alu insertions unique to the orangutan. This is significant for many reasons," said Walker. "First, this study represents only the second study that identified a driver Alu element. In addition, this driver is more than 16 million years old!"
Analysis of DNA sequences has found over a million Alu elements within each primate genome, many of which are species specific: 5,000 are unique to humans, while 2,300 others are exclusive to chimpanzees. In contrast, the orangutan lineage (Sumatran and Bornean orangutans) only has 250 specific Alu. Even though the Alu discovered in this study is old enough to be shared in human, chimpanzee, gorilla and orangutan genomes, its primary "jumping" has been in orangutans.
"Furthermore, this ancient 'backseat driver' created several daughter elements over the course of several millions years and a relatively young daughter element (found only in Sumatran orangutans and absent from Bornean orangutans) also appears to mobilize and has created offspring Alu copies of itself," said Konkel. This is promising new evidence that Alu propagation may be 'waking up' in orangutans.
The identification of an Alu element with the ability to mobilize itself contributes to the understanding of the evolution of Alu elements and their impact on primate genomes. Moreover, the features of this Alu element can be used to search for other source elements in different species including humans, which could lead to advances in our understanding of just how dynamic our genome really is.
|Contact: Ashley Berthelot
Louisiana State University


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Once again, the UFC will offer preliminary card matchups for free viewing via Facebook.
MMAjunkie.com (www.mmajunkie.com) has confirmed that in addition to the previously announced pay-per-view and Spike TV broadcast plans, three fights from this weekend's "UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage" event will stream live on the social-networking site.
UFC brass hasn't made an official announcement, but UFC 135 now serves as the 11th consecutive event in which the organization has made an entire lineup available for live viewing.
The streak began with April's historic "UFC 129: St-Pierre vs. Shields" event.
Featuring a light-heavyweight title fight between current champion Jon Jones and former champ Quinton "Rampage" Jackson, "UFC 135: Jones vs. Rampage" takes place Sept. 24 at Denver's Pepsi Center.
The evening's five-bout main card airs live on pay-per-view, and a two bout "UFC Prelims" special airs on Spike TV.
Ricardo Romero vs. James Te Huna, Cole Escovedo vs. Takeya Mizugaki and Junior Assuncao vs. Eddie Yagin will be featured on the Facebook stream.
To access the preliminary card stream, viewers must visit the UFC's official Facebook profile (www.facebook.com/ufc) and push the "Like" button for the page.
The UFC first began to stream select fights live on Facebook at this past January's "UFC Fight Night 23: UFC Fight for the Troops 2" event.
Facebook is the world's most popular social-networking site and one of the most visited websites in existence.
The latest card for UFC 135 includes:
MAIN CARD (Pay-per-view)
- Champ Jon Jones vs. Quinton "Rampage" Jackson (for light-heavyweight title)
- Matt Hughes vs. Josh Koscheck
- Rob Broughton vs. Travis Browne
- Nate Diaz vs. Takanori Gomi
- Mark Hunt vs. Ben Rothwell
PRELIMINARY CARD (Spike TV)
- Aaron Riley vs. Tony Ferguson
- Tim Boetsch vs. Nick Ring
PRELIMINARY CARD (Facebook)
- Ricardo Romero vs. James Te Huna
- Cole Escovedo vs. Takeya Mizugaki
- Junior Assuncao vs. Eddie Yagin
For the latest on UFC 135, stay tuned to the UFC Rumors section of the site.
(Pictured: Ricardo Romero)


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"In Canada in 1991, ten-year-old Marie and her mother invite a guest into their home: a young woman called Ai-Ming, who has fled China in the aftermath of the Tiananmen Square protests.
Ai-Ming tells Marie the story of her family in Revolutionary China – from the crowded teahouses in the first days of Chairman Mao's ascent to the Shanghai Conservatory in the 1960s and the events leading to the Beijing demonstrations of 1989. It is a story of revolutionary idealism, music, and silence, in which three musicians – the shy and brilliant composer Sparrow, the violin prodigy Zhuli, and the enigmatic pianist Kai – struggle during China's relentless Cultural Revolution to remain loyal to one another and to the music they have devoted their lives to. Forced to re-imagine their artistic and private selves, their fates reverberate through the years, with deep and lasting consequences for Ai-Ming – and for Marie."
Winner of the Giller Prize and Governor General's Literary Award for Fiction and nominated for the Man Booker, this is no doubt an important literary novel but I found it hard to get into and kept losing the thread. There are a lot of characters with multiple names and time shifting to add to the confusion. I soldiered on and found the second half better, but I know a lot of people who have given up on this novel before the first 100 pages were finished and that is a shame. Some editing of the first half might have helped and I think I would have benefited from a family tree chart and character list (which are actually available on Wikipedia). Parts of it were beautifully written, and there are interesting aspects, but even though I tried, I found it hard to connect to the characters. What did come through loud and clear in this book, was the controlling feature of Chinese government and politics in this time period. The author did powerfully use music as a passionate and poignant counterpoint to strict cultural and political ideologies. Telling Chinese history is tricky and often dangerous business. Thien courageously tackles this, but the book falls into the unfortunately common trap of being a noteworthy literary novel that is not readable enough for a wide audience.
For a more literary review of this book, please go the Globe and Mail or The Guardian. Both are excellent resources.