We like to think of ourselves, our friends, and our families as pretty decent people. We may not be saints, but we are basically good, fairly honest, relatively kind, and mostly trustworthy. One of the central themes of The Character Gap is that we are badly mistaken in thinking this way. In recent years, hundreds of psychological studies have been done which tell a rather different story. We have serious character flaws that prevent us from being good people, many of which we do not even recognize in ourselves. Does this mean that instead we are wretched people, vicious, cruel or hateful? Christian Miller does not argue that this is necessarily the case either. Instead, the more we put our characters to the test, the more we see that we are a mixed bag. On the one hand, most of us as bystanders will do nothing as someone cries out for help. Even worse, under pressure from authority figures we might kill innocent people. Yet it is also true that there will be many times when we selflessly come to the aid of a complete stranger, or don't lie, steal, or cheat even if we could get away with it. As we embark on this journey of putting our characters to the test, some of the main questions will include: What is good character? Why should we bother working to develop a good character? What does the research in psychology suggest about how good (or bad) our characters really are? What secular strategies for improving our characters show a lot of promise? What religious, and specifically Christian, strategies for improving our characters show a lot of promise? In The Character Gap Miller shows not only how mixed our characters tend to be, but also how we can try to bridge the gap between who we are and the virtuous people we should strive to become.

#1 Best Seller in Trivia & Fun Facts, Questions & Answers, Curiosities & Wonders, and Cults & Demonism Think You Know About Sexual Customs Around Our World? Have Fun and Enjoy Some Surprises!This book is a humorous glimpse of a wide range of stereotype-busting sexual, relationship and romantic mores around the world. It is fun, interesting, and eye-opening! For example, places where women control the mating game, set marriage rules, and marry one another for political power. The fact that it's all true also makes it fascinating. Take a romp through a rollicking worldwide tour with LOL views of extraordinary sexual customs. It will astound and regale you. At the same time, it proves sex is like happiness - universally sought but subjectively enjoyed.

In Baseball: The Golden Age, Harold Seymour and Dorothy Seymour Mills explore the glorious era when the game truly captured the American imagination, with such legendary figures as Babe Ruth and Ty Cobb in the spotlight.
Beginning with the formation of the two major leagues in 1903, when baseball officially entered its "golden age" of popularity, the authors examine the changes in the organization of professional baseball--from an unwieldy three-man commission to the strong one-man rule of Judge Kenesaw Mountain Landis. They depicts how the play on the field shifted from the low-scoring, pitcher-dominated game of the "dead ball" era before World War I to the higher scoring of the 1920's "lively ball" era, with emphasis on home runs, best exemplified by the exploits of Babe Ruth.
Note: On August 2, 2010, Oxford University Press made public that it would credit Dorothy Seymour Mills as co-author of the three baseball histories previously "authored" solely by her late husband, Harold Seymour. The Seymours collaborated on Baseball: The Early Years (1960), Baseball: The GoldenAge (1971) and Baseball: The People's Game (1991).

The cattle mutilation phenomenon is an ongoing mystery that has endured for almost 50 years. What have we learned, if anything, from the countless reports filed? Who or what is behind the death and disfigurement of livestock reported as mutilated around the globe? Are black helicopters or UFOs related to the cattle mutilation phenomenon as many witnesses have claimed? This book addresses these questions in depth and, also, offers an objective look at the history of our venerated relationship with cattle, the first domesticated livestock.

Now available in paperback, Harold Seymour and Dorothy Seymour Mills' Baseball: The Early Years recounts the true story of how baseball came into being and how it developed into a highly organized business and social institution.
The Early Years, traces the growth of baseball from the time of the first recorded ball game at Valley Forge during the revolution until the formation of the two present-day major leagues in 1903. By investigating previously unknown sources, the book uncovers the real story of how baseball evolved from a gentleman's amateur sport of "well-bred play followed by well-laden banquet tables" into a professional sport where big leagues operate under their own laws. Offering countless anecdotes and a wealth of new information, the authors explode many cherished myths, including the one which claims that Abner Doubleday "invented" baseball in 1839. They describe the influence of baseball on American business, manners, morals, social institutions, and even show business, as well as depicting the types of men who became the first professional ball players, club owners, and managers, including Spalding, McGraw, Comiskey, and Connie Mack.
Note: On August 2, 2010, Oxford University Press made public that it would credit Dorothy Seymour Mills as co-author of the three baseball histories previously "authored" solely by her late husband, Harold Seymour. The Seymours collaborated on Baseball: The Early Years (1960), Baseball: The GoldenAge (1971) and Baseball: The People's Game (1991).

"The Invisible Government" by Dan Smoot sold more than one million copies as a self-published title in 1962. Many people are unaware that Smoot's book serves as the basis for most modern conspiracies theories about "One World Order," the Council on Foreign Relations (a real organization), the Trilateral Commission, and the Bilderburgers. Outlining Cold War-era international power-broking efforts, little-revealed government decisions and transactions, "The Invisible Government" provides food for thought -- at the least, a moment's pause for those who wonder if their votes make a difference on election day, or if their lives and futures are decided in advance for them by men whose allegiance is to their own international profit-making and power-broking, rather than the sovereignty and freedom of the United States of America.

This richly illustrated volume will take readers on a marvellous journey into the unknown. From Bigfoot to the Bermuda Triangle, aliens to yetis, dowsing to the "Da Vinci Code", telepathy to "Crossing Over", "Time" will separate truth from rumour and fact from fantasy: The book includes new scientific reports from worlds we are only beginning to understand, including new findings on twins and telepathy; mind and body studies, and the surprising power of prayer.

The public enjoys considering questions like, did aliens visit ancient civilizations? Could Jesus have fathered a dynasty? Did people of the ancient world visit the Americas centuries before Columbus? Such wonderings have spawned countless books, movies and television series, but very often missing is any actual evidence behind the claims. According to many writers and TV hosts, evidence for ancient astronauts or early transatlantic voyages can be found in ancient texts. But too often sources remain obscure and some writers have altered or fabricated texts to make their case for extraterrestrials and lost civilizations. This book examines more than 130 primary sources texts used to make the case for Atlantis, aliens, fallen angels, the Great Flood, giants, transatlantic voyagers, ancient high technology and many other mysteries. The texts covered reach as far back as ancient Egypt and come from cultures as diverse as Greece, Mexico and China. English translations are presented with explanatory notes showing how these texts have been used and abused to make entertaining claims about prehistory.

Fully illustrated thoughout with photos and diagrams, this book examines ancient sites in South America and reveals evidence that they were made by a far older culture than originally thought. It reveals evidence that the technology used could only have been 'power' tools.

Virus is NOT the cause Definition of AIDS is Worthless Treatment is Poison "Anyone interested in AIDS must read this book." Laurence E. Badgley, M.D Author of Healing AIDS Naturally Investigative reporter Jon Rappoport uncovers the shocking truth about AIDS: Thousands are dying needlessly as the medical world and media pull off the biggest scandal of our time - all for the love of power and money. AIDS INC: takes you on a sizzling behind-the-scenes tour of laboratories, newsrooms and even the White House to expose the real killers behind the disease. It's the most explosive, myth-shattering book you'll read this year. Book Size: 216x140

This is the story of one of the most enduring conspiracy theories in British politics, an intrigue that still has resonance almost a century later: the Zinoviev Letter of 1924. Almost certainly a forgery, no original has ever been traced, and even if genuine it was probably Soviet 'fake news'. Despite this, the Letter still haunts British politics nearly a century after it was written; it was the subject of major Whitehall investigations in the 1960s and 1990s, and cropped up in the media as recently as during the Referendum campaign and the 2017 general election. The Letter, encouraging the British proletariat to greater revolutionary fervour, was apparently sent by Grigori Zinoviev, head of the Bolshevik propaganda organization, to the British Communist Party in September 1924. Sent to London through British Secret Intelligence Service channels, it arrived during the general election campaign and was leaked to the press. The Letter's publication by the Daily Mail on 25 October 1924 just before the General Election humiliated the first ever British Labour government, headed by Ramsay MacDonald, when its political opponents used it to create a 'Red Scare' in the media. Labour blamed the Letter for its defeat, insisting there had been a right-wing Establishment conspiracy, and many in the Labour Party have never forgotten it. The Zinoviev Letter has long been a symbol of political dirty tricks and what we would now call 'fake news'. But it is also a gripping historical detective story of spies and secrets, fraud and forgery, international subversion and the nascent global conflict between communism and capitalism.

Cover-ups and mysteries, are they just a mix of wishful thinking and fantasy that grips the attention of millions of people: was JFK assassinated? Were the moon landings faked? Do secret societies such as the Illuminati control the world? Did Shakespeare write all of those incredible plays? Is global warming a hoax? Why did the all-powerful Mayans decline so rapidly? Is Area 51 really the site of an alien landing? All these and more are explored in this fascinating new book, a visual feast of mystery and imagination.

The definitive word on the subject from the dean of urban legend studies.

We all know those stories that are too bizarre to be true—roasted babies, vanishing hitchhikers, scuba divers in trees—but have you heard about the ice man or the bullet baby? This comprehensive and compellingly readable reference work will answer all your urban legend questions, offering alphabetical entries on every aspect of the subject, including descriptions of hundreds of individual legends and their variations, legend themes, and scholarly approaches to the genre. Other entries discuss the relationship of urban legends to literature, film, comic books, music, and many other areas of popular culture. A Booklist Editors' Choice 2001 Reference Book. 60 b/w illustrations.

"Unlike most encyclopedias, this one may be read cover to cover."—Choice

"Compiled by the foremost authority on this form of contemporary folklore....Superb."—Library Journal

The History of Extraterrestrial Contact in Ancient Greece. Erich von Daniken's last book changed the way generations have looked at mythology, ancient history, and the possibility of advanced beings from other worlds visiting earth. Now he tackles the history of Greece and again challenges our beliefs about how our civilization arose. Using archaeological research and evidence from the writings of Plato and Aristotle, he suggests tha the Greek 'myths' were, in fact a reality and that the Greek gods were actually extraterrestrials.

In this provocative collaboration from two Egyptology outsiders, Robert M. Schoch, Ph.D., and Robert Bauval combine their decades of research to show how the Sphinx is thousands of years older than the conventional Egyptological timeline and was built by a long forgotten pre-Pharaonic civilization. They examine the known history of the Sphinx, contrasting what Egyptologists claim with prominent historical accounts and new research, including updates to Schoch's geological water weathering research and reanalysis of seismic studies. Building on Bauval's Orion Correlation Theory, they investigate the archaeoastronomical alignments of the monuments of the Giza Plateau and reveal how the pyramids and Sphinx were built to align with the constellations of Orion and Leo. Analyzing the evidence for a significantly older construction phase at Giza and the restoration and recarving of the Sphinx during the Old Kingdom era, they assert that the Sphinx was first built by an advanced pre-Pharaonic civilization that existed circa 12,000 years ago on the Giza Plateau, contemporaneous with the sophisticated Goebekli Tepe complex.

This work was originally published by the independent Bible Society of New York. This edition is an updated version with a new introduction by Paul Tice. The Bible is commonly referred to by many of us as "the good book." But do we really know what's in it when we so freely give it that title? It is a work which certainly has its good points, but why do we insist on glossing over and ignoring the things that would be considered bad or embarrassing? Lots of strange things happened in the Bible. If they made the Bible into a movie (in its entirety) it would be rated X. Would you want your kids to go see it? Read this book and then decide. We do not recommend this book to those under 18 because, even though it is the Bible, we might in fact be accused of selling pornography It's unlikely that your local minister would use many of these passages in his sermons. If you're the kind of person who sees movies for the action scenes and always likes things happening then don't bore yourself with the rest of the Bible - just read this one. All the boring stuff was taken out. Just kick back and enjoy all the sex, bloodshed and murder you can stand - it's all in here and it's all yours for just a few measley bucks. Sure, it's embarrassing for a minister or the church itself to be confronted with these realities. There is good and bad in all of us, and the Bible is no exception. For those who take the Bible literally and wish to follow its example, we can only tell you that what is found within many of its pages docs not add up to a profound moral code. Look at the Spanish Inquisition and the Crusades, as two examples, and you will find they were not following a profound moral code at the time, butused the Bible as their guidepost in all of their brutal decisions. This book exposes many of the Bible's most shocking passages -- things you never imagined the "holy book" would contain. If you have read this back cover without being too offended, then chances are you will be intrigu

Since 1933, when a completely drugged and trial-conditioned human wreck confessed to having started the Reichstag fire in Berlin, Dr Joost A M Meerloo has studied the methods by which systematic mental pressure brings people to abject submission, and by which totalitarians imprint their subjective "truth" on their victims' minds. The first two and one-half years of World War II, Dr Meerloo spent under the pressure of Nazi-occupied Holland, witnessing at first-hand the Nazi methods of mental torture .on more than one occasion. During this time he was able to use his psychiatric and psychoanalytic knowledge to treat some of the victims. Then, after personal experiences with enforced interrogation, he escaped from a Nazi prison and certain death to England, where he was able, as Chief of the Psychological Department of the Netherlands Forces, to observe and study coercive methods officially. In this capacity he had to investigate not only traitors and collaborators, but also those members of the Resistance who had gone through the utmost of mental pressure. Later, as High Commissioner for Welfare, he came in closer contact with those who had gone through physical and mental torture. After the war, he came to the United States, where his war experiences would not permit him to concentrate solely on his psychiatric practice, but compelled him to go beyond purely medical aspects to the social aspects of the problem. As more and more cases of thought control, brainwashing, and mental coercion were disclosed -- Cardinal Mindszenty, Colonel Schwable, Robert Vogeler, and others -- his interest grew. It was Dr. Meerloo who coined the word menticide, the killing of the spirit, for this peculiar crime. His knowledge of these totalitarian procedures has been officially acknowledged; he served as an expert witness in the case of Colonel Schwable, the Marine Corps officer who, after months of subjection to physical and mental torture following his capture in Korea, was made to confess to having taken part in germ warfare. It is Dr Meerloo's position that through pressure on the weak points in men's makeup, totalitarian methods can turn anyone into a "traitor". And in this book he goes far beyond the direct military implications of mental torture to describing how our own culture unobtrusively shows symptoms of pressurising people's minds. He presents a systematic analysis of the methods of brainwashing and mental torture and coercion, and shows how totalitarian strategy, with its use of mass psychology, leads to systematised "rape of the mind". He describes the new age of cold war with its mental terror, verbocracy, and semantic fog, the use of fear as a tool of mass submission and the problem of treason and loyalty, so loaded with dangerous confusion. The book is written for the interested layman, not only for experts and scientists.

The gap between theoretical ideas and messy reality, as seen in Neal Stephenson, Adam Smith, and Star Trek. We depend on-we believe in-algorithms to help us get a ride, choose which book to buy, execute a mathematical proof. It's as if we think of code as a magic spell, an incantation to reveal what we need to know and even what we want. Humans have always believed that certain invocations-the marriage vow, the shaman's curse-do not merely describe the world but make it. Computation casts a cultural shadow that is shaped by this long tradition of magical thinking. In this book, Ed Finn considers how the algorithm-in practical terms, "a method for solving a problem"-has its roots not only in mathematical logic but also in cybernetics, philosophy, and magical thinking. Finn argues that the algorithm deploys concepts from the idealized space of computation in a messy reality, with unpredictable and sometimes fascinating results. Drawing on sources that range from Neal Stephenson's Snow Crash to Diderot's Encyclopedie, from Adam Smith to the Star Trek computer, Finn explores the gap between theoretical ideas and pragmatic instructions. He examines the development of intelligent assistants like Siri, the rise of algorithmic aesthetics at Netflix, Ian Bogost's satiric Facebook game Cow Clicker, and the revolutionary economics of Bitcoin. He describes Google's goal of anticipating our questions, Uber's cartoon maps and black box accounting, and what Facebook tells us about programmable value, among other things. If we want to understand the gap between abstraction and messy reality, Finn argues, we need to build a model of "algorithmic reading" and scholarship that attends to process, spearheading a new experimental humanities.

In this work the author reveals the nature and existence of the hidden powers at work behind the Nazi organization, which he believes, is but the outward though appropriate, manifestation of satanist and diabolic agencies which employ it for their own malignant purposes. Satanic element in Naziism; Satanic power in old Germany; Witchcraft, satanism and the Vehmgerichte; Satanic power in modern Germany; Nazi pagan doctrine and church; Nazism and satanism.

Investigative journalist David Gardner turns his uncompromising gaze on the many conspiracy theories connected with the COVID pandemic. With first-hand reporting and detailed investigations into the people who originated these COVID theories - some of them plausible, some driven by an agenda, and some plainly mad - he answers the questions that everyone has been asking for nearly two years since the pandemic began, and left us doubting our leaders as never before. When COVID-19 struck early in 2020, first in China and inexorably through the rest of the world, it quickly became the subject of the most virulent outbreak of conspiracy theories we have ever seen. The pandemic quickly became an infodemic. The President of the United States championed bleach as a cure, the Chinese government blamed the Americans, and the American government blamed the Chinese - a Cold War over a cold virus. David Icke said that COVID does not exist. People blamed 5G phone networks, genetically modified crops, Bill Gates, Corona beer, aliens, bats and pangolins . . . Yet these theorists are not all the obsessive cultists and paranoid mavericks with whom the conspiracy-theory label is often associated. They are your parents, your next-door neighbour, your boss at work. The question marks over the origins of COVID-19, the dangers of the virus. The world has been changed for ever by the events of the past two years. It is crucial that history offers an accurate account of what happened. This book will play a key role in revealing what - and what not - to believe.

The first full-scale sociological survey of the assimilation of minorities in America, this classic work presents significant conclusions about the problems of prejudice and discrimination in America and offers positive suggestions for the achievement of a healthy balance among societal, subgroup, and individual needs.