Y2K Countdown

Y2K Countdown To Chaos

By Andre M. Eggelletion, D.D.

Theme: Inner Journey, Part 5

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See Related Articles: REVELATION & END TIME PROPHECIES

Introduction

On the evening of February 27, 1933, Han Floter, a philosophy student at the University of Berlin, was walking home after a long day of study. His route took him past the Reichstag building and as he passed the darkened structure he heard the sound of glass breaking above. Turning aside to see the commotion, he saw a man with a lighted torch standing on the first floor balcony. Floter then ran until he contacted a policeman who then sounded the alarm as the German Reichstag building was engulfed in flames.

Arrested at the scene was Marinus Van Der Lubbe, a Dutch communist. However, it never has been proven whether or not Van Der Lubbe was a lone arsonist or a patsy in a Nazi conspiracy to set up the perfect opportunity to overthrow the government. A subsequent arrest of all known communists began by Herman Goring, President of the Reichstag. Hitler quickly persuaded German President Paul Von Hindenberg to issue a decree for the protection of people and state. Historian Jackson Speilvogel has observed that this "provided the foundation for the creation of a police state" as it suspended civil liberties and allowed that the "Reich central government could take over supreme power in any federal state that was unwilling or unable to restore public safety and order." The next month, Hitler’s infamous enabling act was instituted, and the era of the brutal Nazi dictatorship began.

The Reichstag fire, like the Kennedy Assassination, clearly illustrates how a crisis, real or contrived, can be used by a government as a pretext for expanding its authority. Looming on the horizon at present is another crisis which could result in the same type of coupe d’ taunt to the significant detriment of liberty.

That crisis, a computer glitch known as the "Millennium Bug" or "Y2K" (short for Year 2000), is the inability of many computer systems to recognize the change from the year 1999 to 2000. Most prevalent in older mainframe computers and also found in many personal computers and embedded chips, this seemingly insignificant glitch threatens to disrupt or shut down most of the world’s computers.

If this were to happen the consequences would be dire. Civilization as we know it would be changed, drastically. Virtually every area of our lives--our banking, utilities, transportation, the stock market, food, telecommunications and mail, education; government, insurance, the military and our home PC--would be severely crippled or utterly destroyed.

Will these horrific events come to pass? According to the majority of experts in the above mentioned and related fields, IT WILL. What can we do about it? What does this mean spiritually? We will discuss these and other questions in this report as we examine Y2K Countdown to Chaos.

WHAT IS Y2K?

Definition: Y2K is an acronym for Year 2000 AD

The Computer Problem

On January 1, 2000, many computer software programs and embedded microchips, programmed to identify the year by its last two digits, will think it is 1900, causing date-driven computations to fail and computer-reliant systems to malfunction or shut down. In fact, current systems that perform post-2000 forecasting on transactions have already begun to experience failures. If these "year 2000" or "Y2K" problems are not remedied, the disruptions that result could range from delays in airplane flights to interruptions of phone service to business bankruptcies to power failures, to global recession and civil unrest. Computer scientists and engineers offer no silver bullet for solving the Y2K problem. In fact, they are the first to admit that we have neither sufficient time nor enough personnel to identify, assess, repair, replace, or "work around" the billions of lines of defective code and date-sensitive microchips prior to January 1, 2000. In October 1998, expert testimony by the Gartner Group (to the U.S. Senate Special Committee on the Year 2000 Technology Problem) and oversight findings by the House Subcommittee on Government Management, Information & Technology have lent credence to this view. As the House report states: "It is now clear that a large number of Federal computer systems simply will not be prepared for January 1, 2000. At the same time, the utilities industry, the financial services industry, the telecommunications industry, vital modes of transportation, and other indispensable industrial sectors are all at risk."

Y2K IMPACT ON BANKING

Banking Stability

The author John K. Galbraith in his book The Age of Uncertainty said: "Money is a singular thing. It ranks with love as man’s greatest source of anxiety. Over all history it has oppressed nearly all people in one of two ways: either it has been abundant and very unreliable, or reliable and very scarce."

This author has astutely pointed out money’s instability in a nutshell. As the scriptures have said: "lay not up for yourselves treasures upon earth, where moth and rust doth corrupt, where thieves break through and steal: But lay up for yourselves treasures in heaven, where neither moth nor rust doth corrupt, where thieves do not break through and steal (Matt. 6:19-20)." "A horse is a vain thing for safety: neither shall he deliver any by his great strength (Psa.. 33:17)."

The long held trust in the nations banking and financial institutions by most Baby Boomers should by now be shaken because of the realization of Y2K vulnerabilities. Nothing is safe. Your bank account, credit cards, stocks, bonds and mutual funds are all at risk of being lost or inaccessible because of Y2K computer failures. Examples of possible problems follow.

	Incorrect statements with erroneous information about deposits, withdrawals, transfers and balances.
	An inability to withdraw money on to credit deposits and payments properly.
	An inability to provide loans, mortgages, letters of credit, and other financial instruments.
	An inability to support normal banking operations via ATM machines, thereby requiring depositors to deal with human tellers, sadly many of them will be stressed out and unpleasant.

In the fall of 1997, USA TODAY reported the following: "Experts: Banking not ready for Year 2000 computer glitches." The potential computer crisis starting January 1, 2000, could cause consumers to lose faith in the security of their banks and the financial markets, several experts told a hearing of the Senate Banking Subcommittee on financial services and technology. Because of this growing apprehension over the stability of the nations financial institutions, experts have forecast (not that it would take one) a panic run on the banks in the last quarter of 1999. And they warn that if this were to happen….if only 1.4% of all Americans suddenly took their money out of the bank, then all of the nations banks would close. This would be due to the policy of Fractional Reserve Banking.

Fractional Reserve Banking is practiced by Federally Chartered banks (i.e. those that belong to the Federal Reserve Banking System). They are required to maintain only 10% of their deposits in reserve to provide money for your withdrawals when you want it.

Consider a task as apparently simple as clearing a check. Because of the immense complexity of computer interface and communication between banks, compounded by the sheer volume of transactions and the magnitude of money involved, (with the daily volume of clearing activity, including public and private payment systems, is more than 2 trillion in payments and electronic securities transactions), the probability of major problems of Y2K glitches in the system is extremely high. This would present a major obstacle between banks and the Federal Reserve, and hamper the Feds contingency plans of assisting the nations banking institutions because of the inability to monitor electronically.

Contingency Plans Of The Federal Reserve

The Federal Reserve intends to act as the lender of last resort to the nation’s Banking institutions. In October of 1987, when the stock market crashed, the Fed was there to provide the cash needed to return stability to the market. The Fed can create money to provide unlimited liquidity and has declared itself as the protector of the nation’s banking payment systems.

Fed Governor Edward W. Kelly, Jr. outlined lending contingency plans in an address to the U.S. Senate on July 30, 1997, as follows:

"We already have arrangements in place to assist financial institutions in the event they are unable to access their own systems. For example, we are able to provide financial institutions with access to Federal Reserve computer terminals on a limited basis for the processing of critical funds transfers. This contingency arrangement has proven highly effective when used from time to time by depositor institutions experiencing major hardware/software outages or that have had their operations disrupted due to natural disasters such as the Los Angeles earthquake, hurricane Hugo in the Carolinas, and Hurricane Andrew in South Florida. In these cases we worked closely with financial institutions to ensure that adequate supplies of cash were available to the community and also arranged for our operations to function virtually without interruptions for 24 hours a day during the crisis period. We feel the experience gained from such crises will prove very helpful in the event of similar problems triggered by century date change."

I personally view the Fed’s contingency plans with an eye of skepticism and concern. History has recorded substantial evidence to indicate that the Federal Reserve (a privately owned corporation for profit) created the stock market crash of 1929 and the ensuing Great Depression, for the purpose of economic exploitation of the American people. You can bet Federal Reserve Bank will come out of Y2K smelling like roses.

The FDIC Contingency

Established by the Banking Act of 1933 after the 1929 stock market crash, the Federal Deposit Insurance Corporation (FDIC) was designed to restore faith in the banking system, regulate the federally insured savings banks, the bank insurance fund, and the Savings Association Insurance Fund (SAIF).

Because the FDIC operates on the same Fractional Reserve System as the banks themselves, it would be impossible for it to bailout more than a handful of banks and would become impotent in the face of bank failures on the scale of what happened between the crash of 1929, and the new deal in the early 1930’s.

Bank Failures During The Great Depression

In 1929, 659 banks failed, a fair number after the crash. In 1930, 1352 went under and 1931, 2294 folded, most of which were small non-Fed member banks of the old compromise. As rumors spread and the lines formed, no bank was safe. By the end of 1933 nearly half of the nation’s banks had disappeared. On March 6, 1933, as a last-ditch of effort to save the banks, President Franklin D. Roosevelt declared a national banking holiday and closed all banks

Your Personal Contingency

Make sure that the company handling your 401K or IRA/Keogh nest egg Retirement funds are Y2K compliant. These funds are not federally insured and you probably won’t get your money back if these management firms fail.

A few days or a week-long Y2K downtime scenario is the absolute minimum. Therefore learn a lesson from squirrels, store up some nuts, it may be a long winter.

Investigate transferring your investments into precious metals. Some experts predict a buying surge on silver in late 1999 based on Warren Buffet’s purchase of 129,700,000 ounces of silver. If this were to happen the price of silver could triple and early investors stand to make a fortune.

In the event of a long-term crisis (a few months to a few years): simplify your life, pare down your debt and financial obligations, re-evaluate the real importance of material possessions in your life.

Lastly and most importantly, remember: this great change is coming, as it must. It serves as a physical reflect of the change that must occur within the consciousness of man, from carnal mindedness to spiritual mindedness. As the Apostle Paul said: "and be not conformed to this world; but be ye transformed by the renewing of your mind, that ye may prove what is that good and acceptable and perfect will of Elohim (Rom. 12:2)."

Y2K IMPACT ON JOBS

Unemployment Rate

The growth rate of returns on stocks has been increasing over the last 70 years. In 1928 the average annual return was 7%; since 1940, 8%; since 1950, 9%; since 1960 and 1970, 9%; since 1980 and 1990 returns have risen 12% annually. From 1995 the average return has been over 20%. This is a boom period, reflecting our extremely low unemployment rate (approx. 5%) and boom periods don’t last forever.

Y2K problems threaten our tight labor market in this current economic boom. As such, high unemployment can cause severe social discontent. Our grandparents and parents still remember the marches and strikes during the Great Depression when unemployment peaked near 25%.

If wages were lost for only a few days as a result of Y2K problems, we all could cope. If wages were lost for a few months, many people would be forced to try and get unemployment or find a new job. But if wages were lost for a few years, wide spread civil unrest and crime would terrorize society. Woe unto the dwellers of our major cities. Martial law would be inevitable.

Because of lost tax-revenue and increased government spending on unemployment, welfare, and other benefits, the government deficit would increase proportionally to the length and level of unemployment.

Impact On GDP (Gross Domestic Product)

GDP is a measurement of all output produced in the U.S. It is a common measure of economic output.

As unemployment increases, demand for products decreases and manufacturers cut production. This depresses the economy and decreases the GDP.

Production cuts in October of 1996, by General Motors in Canada led to production cuts in GM’s U.S. plants because of losses in revenue from the lack of those auto parts produced in Canada needed to get cars to consumers. This type of ripple effect threatens to disrupt the GDP because of Y2K computer problems in non-millennium complaint business associations. Thus, even though you may be Y2K compliant, you may suffer because of non-Y2K compliance of a business associate.

If the lights go out and phones don’t work, you could also find yourself unemployed, even if your company and your associates companies are millennium proof. If this happens to you, then your distributors, subcontractors, wholesalers, and independent sales agents are stuck also.

Those most vulnerable are Wallstreet firms, banks, insurance companies, and other business giants. Those least vulnerable are small businesses like pizza parlors, and hopefully barbershops…..

Your Personal Contingency

If your job shuts down for only a few days, relax and enjoy the time off.

If your job shuts down for one month, you must have a month’s living expenses available. Warning: Don’t depend on credit cards because if the financial institutions are affected by Y2K, then chances are that ATM machines and banks won’t be open and consequently most stores will not honor credit cards. So act now and set aside some cash.

If your job shuts down for a year or more, you’d better have plans to find work as a software specialist. It is quite likely those jobs will be in demand. Also, chances are that your company will not be alone in such long-term layoffs, therefore, employment competition will be fierce.

It is also possible and highly probable that certain careers or professions will vanish altogether. At the beginning of his second term in office, President Clinton said:

"Approximately 70% of all Americans born during the time of this administration will be employed in fields during the 21st Century that haven’t been invented yet."

Jim Taylor and Watts Walker offer the following advice in their book, The 500 Year Delta:

"How do you plan for the inevitability of disaster? By taking the blinders off. By seeing the world as it is. By counting on the certainty of uncertainty."

The Spiritual Significance

The loss of job and career clearly typifies how the Messiah abolished the age of works and the Law of Moses and ushered in a new order. During the time of The Law of Moses, the way in which Yahweh was truly to be worshipped did not yet exist in men’s hearts and minds, for they were yet still carnal, and therefore they had carnal ordinances or laws. But the time would come when Yahshua would transform men’s hearts and minds so that he could be worshipped in Spirit and Truth. This would happen on the Day of Pentecost, closing out the Post-Diluvian Age and works, opening the Present Kingdom Age and faith. Jer. 31:31-34, John 4:20-24.

The predicted losses in the GDP typifies the change in one's words, actions and deeds as he enters The Kingdom on Earth, within his consciousness. For our words, actions and deeds are the GDP of our souls. The ways of the old man are shed (Gal. 5:17-21) and the ways of the new man begin to be manifested (Gal. 5:22-26).

AFFECTS ON UTILITIES

Anatomy of U.S. Utility Power Grids

In the U.S. there are 6,000 electrical generating units, each having its own system of computers to regulate the amount of electricity generated by hydroelectric dams, oil burning generators, or nuclear generators. There are also some 500,000 miles of bulk transmission lines, 12,000 major substations, and vast numbers of lower voltage transformers. All linked together to form a power grid. This entire grid is controlled regionally by more than 100 separate control centers that work together to ensure electricity for the whole county. These control centers also have computers, which are subject to Y2K glitches.

Now with new and improved redundancy and fail-safe mechanisms, it is possible, but improbable, for a single problem in this massive and highly intricate network to ripple through the system having catastrophic effects.

The Nuclear Regulatory Commission

The function of the NRC is to ensure the safe operation of the nations nuclear power generators.

Those power plants whose electrical generators are fueled by coal, gas and/or oil do not possess the kind of life-threatening potential of a nuclear-fueled electrical generator malfunctioning because of Y2K glitches.

The NRC senior consultant, Dick Mills, was quoted as saying:

"There has never been a widespread month long blackout in more than 100 years of experience. I think the statement also implies that the less than perfect history, makes Y2K extrapolations more plausible. Actually, just the opposite is true. It would serve the public better to point out that it is the system which has never failed and thus which remains largely untested and that is most vulnerable to a complete collapse. The more frequently a system fails, the more real life experiences we have about how they fail and the consequences of failure. The non-technical reader reading a non-technical description of the ripple effect and descriptions of the power system, might reasonably come away with the impression that the systems are fragile. In other words, they might believe that everything has to work right, or else it blacks out. The reality is just the opposite. Steam power-generating plants are enormously complex; the power system itself is complex and dependent on all these power plants. The power system has operated for more than 100 years, and all during that time there has never been an instant when there were not thousands of malfunctioning or aberrant devices participating. It is also probably true, that there has never been an instant some isolated customer wasn’t inadvertently without power. There has never been a case, hurricanes, and tornadoes not withstanding, of a national blackout lasting much more than 24 hours. That knowledge puts quite a different light on things."

Utility Billing Problems

Even if the nations power grid is totally Y2K compliant, the probability of billing problems is extremely high.

Electricity, oil, gas, and water are delivered to customers IF they pay their bills in a timely fashion. Unfortunately, our paychecks are dependent on the working operation of business and banking systems computers, which are highly vulnerable to Y2K glitches. Not to mention a faulty utility company computer could send you a million-dollar utility bill or even delete you from their database thereby thinking you don’t even exist.

Contingency

If the power is off for only a day or so, then the same measures taken during hurricane or blizzard power outages should see you through. Candles, flashlights, battery powered radio, canned food, fruits, water, etc…

If the power is off for a month or so, it is most likely due to problems associated with billing. Therefore, save hard copies of payment receipts and be prepared to deal with a teller in person or over the phone.

Spiritual Significance

The anatomy and physiology of the nations power grid correlates beautifully with the 3-fold pattern of the tabernacle and the operation of the Holy Spirit within man by the pattern.

Most Holy Place Power Plant NRC Spirit

In the Most Holy Place is the power plant with the NRC regulating its function likened unto the Spirit of Yahweh and the Divine law regulating the soul of man.

Holy Place Substations Transformers Soul

In the Holy Place is the substations which receive power from the power plants for distribution to various transformers throughout the region for usage. This is likened unto the mind receiving the will of Yahweh for transformation to various manifestations.

Court Round About User Body

Manifestations

Words, Actions, Deeds

In the Court Round About is the user, which receives electricity from substations to power the users’ devices. This is likened unto words, actions, and deeds which are the manifestations of the contents of the mind.

Thus, the materialization of electricity in our homes and businesses, from the ultimate source which is the power plant is likened to the materialization of words, actions and deeds, or anything in the physical realm, from pure spirit. Any disruption in the flow of power through the power grid because of non-Y2K compliance, is likened to disruption within the soul because of non-compliance with the new covenant.

AFFECTS ON TRANSPORTATION

Automobiles

Millions of cars on the road contain multiple microprocessor embedded chips which may cause problems ranging from incorrect fuel calibrations in the carburetors (a potential fire hazard) to unnecessary or premature service and factory recalls. Other problems may be:

	the inability to buy fuel, oil and other supplies due to Y2K shut down of auto service business.
	the malfunction of many traffic lights, bridges, tunnels, electronic toll collections, etc.

Trains, Buses and Planes

In the case of trains, the computers that control routes could misroute or schedule a collision of two trains on the same track.

In the case of buses, all of the problems associated with cars could affect buses. As well, there could be some scheduling foul-ups.

In the case of airplanes, like buses and trains, there are fewer of them than cars, they carry more passengers, and they operate on a scheduled basis. They are far more complex and require more computers to operate; as many as 500 computers on a single passenger jet. Currently, it is unknown whether or not these onboard computers are Y2K compliant. "Have a good flight".

The FAA (Federal Aviation Administration) is the government’s authority that defines, develops, and coordinates the air traffic control systems in the U.S. Although their software is not Y2K compliant, still they are to be commended for their policy of high visibility and openness about its Y2K compliance progress. The Y2K effort is decentralized within the FAA. Their Integrated Product Team for Information Technology Acquisition (AIT-400) has been designated as the focal point for Y2K within the FAA. Their role includes disseminating information to FAA lines of business, participating on the interagency Y2K committee, and gathering status information for FAA management, the Department of Transportation, and to respond to Congressional inquiries.

In the area of aircraft maintenance and repair, those computers that schedule routine maintenance, as established by the FAA, are non-Y2K compliant. It is interesting to note that many plane crashes over the last 50 years were the result of poor maintenance of aircraft.

In the areas of scheduling airline personnel and passenger reservation, there is non-Y2K compliance in many computer systems handling these areas. This could prompt over working of flight crews, potentially placing the lives of passengers in danger. Overbooking of flights could also occur, drastically increasing the likelihood of dealing with irate people.

In the area of GPS (global positioning system) Guidance systems, the Y2K rollover problem occurs six months earlier - specifically, on August 22, 1999. The problem involves Navy installed GPS Satellites and their navigational data for ships, planes and missiles, both military and commercial. The GPS satellites record time-of-day with remarkably accurate atomic clocks. The time is recorded in terms of seconds, minutes, hours, days, and weeks since the inception of the system on January 5, 1980. Unfortunately the computer week number memory is only 12 Bits long, which means it will roll over after 1024 weeks of operation. This will occur on August 22, 1999. It also should prove to be an important indicator of how similar computer systems will handle Y2K rollovers. I will make sure that I do not use GPS as my sole means of navigation on August 22, 1999 as I race my boat across the Florida Everglades.

Fall-Back Advice

Avoid scheduling a plane trip for the month of January 2000.

Plan ahead for back-up travel arrangements. Hopefully one or more modes of transportation will be in operation.

Don’t rule out walking or riding a bicycle if you live in Florida or other more temperate areas of the country. If your doctor approves it, these basic modes of transportation have great health benefits.

If public transportation is down for a year or more, you should move to an area where public transportation is less critical.

Spiritual Significance

The non-compliant microprocessor embedded computer chips in cars typifies a non-compliant consciousness to the will of Yahweh (Rom. 8:6-7). As these non-compliant chips must be corrected or replaced before the year 2,000, in like manner, so must a transformation in the hearts of mankind take place, before we can receive the new covenant (Rom. 12:2, 13:1-2).

PLANES, TRAINS, BUSES, and SHIPS are all vehicles of mass transportation, moving people from one destination to another. They typify the world’s religious institutions, spiritual vehicles of mass transportation, that are supposed to transport a man’s soul from darkness to light or ignorance to illumination, concerning a profound knowledge of his creator. However, just as the Y2K non-compliance problems will render physical methods of mass transportation impotent, in like manner, non-compliance to the law of the spirit, in terms of the doctrine (embedded chip) of these mighty religious institutions, makes them impotent in the Present Kingdom Age of Grace. They do greatly err, trying to live according to the Laws of Moses and not the Law of the Spirit. Failure is their only outcome. (Rev. 18:17-18, 1 Tim. 1:19, Psa. 107:23-27, Num. 24:23-24).

The failure of GPS guidance systems because of non-Y2K compliance, typifies how that in the Present Kingdom Age of Grace, man should trust in Yahshua within his heart and mind, and not a physical priesthood (Deut. 18:15, Prov. 3:5, Matt. 4:18-21, 1 John 2:6).

AFFECTS ON TELEPHONES AND MAIL

The Iron Triangle

Telecommunication, banking and the power grid forms an inseparable or "Iron Triangle", and is vital to the functioning of our modern civilization.

If any component of the iron triangle fails, the other two parts will collapse, and society itself will follow.

Obviously, as we have discussed with banking and the power grid, telecommunications is vulnerable to Y2K associated problems.

Telephones

The loss of social usage of telephones is bearable for a while. But the use of telephones in the business world is indispensable. Wallstreet to the Internet would be severely crippled if Y2K glitches disrupted the nation’s phones.

There are three areas of concern:

	the Network Switches
	the Private Branch Exchange (PBX),
	the financial/administrative systems within the "Carrier" companies.

Network Switches are devices that connect your phone to someone else’ phone when you make a call.

Until the 1960’s these switches consisted of massive electronic relays, with little or no software based intelligence. Until Bell labs began introducing the faster, smaller, cheaper, more energy efficient and more sophisticated electronic switching system 1 (ESS-1); combined with the computer systems of carriers, AT&T, SPRINT, MCI, GTE, etc., services such as call forwarding, caller ID, and a variety of others, didn’t exist 25 years ago. The switches also record start and end times of all phone calls, that makes them both date and time sensitive.

A recent article in a British computer newspaper highlighted the switch problem:

"Telecom users and operators fear a collapse of the global network unless there is an international effort to coordinate millennium bug fixes. The chairman of the Telecom Managers Association has slammed the Dept. of Trade and Industry for not responding to its three letters asking for help to tackle the Y2K problem in the telecom industry."

One of the most important types of telecommunication switches is the PBX System. It controls internal telecommunications in many medium to large companies as well as government agencies. Approximately half of the mid to large sized phone companies and nearly all of the smaller phone companies, which sprung up after deregulation, have not upgraded their technology on a regular basis. Although most of the switch manufacturers have offered Y2K compliant switches since the mid 90’s. Still it is likely many phone companies, especially the smaller companies, will procrastinate in upgrading their systems because of the cost of the upgrades and sheer ignorance. If they have not upgraded all of the necessary software and hardware to accommodate these new Y2K compliant switches by 1999, they may find it too late.

In terms of the Financial/Administrative Systems within telephone companies and the Switching system vendors, their computer systems, handling billing record-keeping, scheduling or repairs and installations, as well as internal marketing, administration and financial aspects of their companies, are all vulnerable to Y2K glitches. There are approximately 500 million lines of code to be analyzed, per company. There is not enough time.

Mail and Associated Carriers

The UPS strike of 1997 illustrated how much our economy depends on their operation. Approximately 7% of the nation’s GDP or Gross Domestic Product move through UPS, which holds 63% of the market share (and 80% of ground shipments), while Federal Express has 13% and the U.S. Postal Service has 4%. If a similar disruption occurs because of Y2K problems, the impact would be immediate and very noticeable. There would probably be:

	Lost, stranded or misrouted packages
	Billing, marketing and other business application foul-ups.

Best Advice

Ship early and pray. There are no silver bullet answers.

Prepare to save enough money for one or two months living expenses if your job depends on shipping or telecommunications to do business.

Don’t panic too much, a rash of 2- or 3-day failures across the country is expected. Shut downs of a month or longer is not highly probable, but they are possible.

Spiritual Significance

The "Iron Triangle" or the unity of telecommunications, banking, and power grid, typifies the unity of the spirit (1 John 5:7).

The 3 areas of greatest concern by the pattern of the tabernacle are:

Most Holy Place "Financial/Administrative" Abstract

Spirit Law

In the Most Holy Place is the Financial /Administrative system which controls and coordinates the entire power grid. Just as the Divine Law in the Ark of the Covenant (the heart & mind) controls and coordinates the soul.

Holy Place "Network Switches" Intermediate

Heart & Mind

In the Holy Place are the Network switches, which acts as an intermediary within the communications network on an overall scale. This typifies how the mind or soul is an intermediary within the communications network between the Holy Spirit or Divine Law and man’s words, actions and deeds.

Court Round About "PBX Systems" Concrete

Words, Actions, Deeds

The PBX system in the Court Round About, controls internal communications within large offices and is vulnerable to Y2K failure even if administrations and network switches are on-line. This typifies how our large office, spiritually man’s body, through which words, actions and deeds are made manifest, can be off-line with righteousness by not being properly connected with the Law of the Spirit.

The nation’s economic growth and prosperity is vitally dependent upon the movement of commodities through the mail and associated carriers. Just as the spiritual growth and prosperity of the soul is vitally dependent on the movement of spiritual commodities from the Holy Spirit to the consciousness of man. This requires man to be in grace or Holy Spirit compliant (Luke 18:9-14).

Y2K DISRUPTION ON FOOD

Delivery of Food

Food delivery is dependent on shipping. Obviously the shipping of food is vulnerable to the same problems as the shipping of any other commodities. The susceptibility of the transportation and the business structure of the food industry and their support systems (billing, banking, fueling, scheduling, etc.) are all computer dependent and therefore vulnerable to Y2K associated problems.

The vast network of ships, planes, trains and trucks - all synchronized to deliver food items, in the right amount and fresh are vulnerable to the ripple effects of Y2K. This will be more of a problem for urban centers than rural areas where much of the food comes from family gardens, hunting, and fishing.

Crime rates in the major cities will increase if there is a food shortage because of Y2K problems.

Advice

Store up as much food and water as possible now. Shortages and subsequent price increases are likely. If you’re out of work because of Y2K problems you could be in trouble trying to buy food without money.

Treat this like you would handle storing up food for a blizzard; dried and canned foods that do not require cooking and a minimum amount of water to prepare are best.

You may not have gas or electricity so grilled freshly caught fish and game might be necessary. Learn how to fish and or hunt. We all hope that this will not come down to living off the land so to speak because many of us live in cities where the only game is an occasional, however repulsive, but if prepared properly, tasty rat, cat or dog.

Grow your own vegetables. They are just as easy as growing a house plant. Many vegetables can be grown indoors or in a small yard plot.

Once you have grown and harvested your own vegetables, you will need to preserve them either through drying or canning in mason jars. There are many books to show you how if you don’t already know.

If you feel that growing your own food, raising chickens, rabbits or killing game isn’t feasible, search the Internet now for companies which sell survival food packages and purchase one now.

Spiritual Significance

Man’s hearts must be transformed in order to receive food (fruit of the spirit) from the Holy Spirit within (Rom. 12:2, 1 Cor. 2:14, Dan. 12:4-9, Ex. 19:10-11).

Y2K AFFECTS ON THE MILITARY

What’s At Stake

The Department of Defense is the most heavily computerized government agency in America. It is totally dependent on computers.

Globally, a failure in the military computers could upset the delicate balance of power and world peace, giving the advantage to those countries that is less dependent upon high technology. China, for example, would find itself in a position of military superiority over the rest of the world. Given the current state of the U.S. government’s relationship with China, these prospects propose a fearful proposition.

Our ability to suppress terrorism is computer driven as well, and could be compromised by Y2K glitches.

Institutionally, Y2K threatens the confidence of military personnel. Many of the weapons used by the military are computer controlled. I don’t know about you., but if I were in a combat situation, I would want full confidence in my weapons.

Many of the missiles in the U.S. military arsenal are guided by GPS and are therefore vulnerable to error, as we have discussed earlier (See affects on transportation, p. 25).

Problems in Achieving Compliance

At its current rate of progress, the Department of Defense won’t finish repairing its mission critical applications until 2012.

It is difficult to inventory all the computer code and locate the documentation when you have a system as massive and interconnected with other agencies as the Department of Defense. Therefore personnel and payroll systems, logistics and transportation systems as well as weapons systems could all be off line when we need them most.

Many defense programs are written in obsolete computer languages such as COBOL, CS-1, CMS-2, Jovial, Neliac, and ADA. The outdated computer languages are not supported by current Y2K fix it tools. In fact, not many programmers understand these languages today.

Perhaps the biggest problem of all is the extensive use of embedded chips in weapons, planes, tanks, ships and the innumerable amount of electronic devices. Many manufacturers of these chips no longer make them because further advancements in weapons systems taking precedence in their plants. Therefore, older weapons systems in the military arsenal will either have to be replaced or redesigned. Either way, the military hardware manufacturers stand to do a booming business re-outfitting the military in the new millennium, all at taxpayer’s expense.

And like every other government agency, the military is highly dependent on the private sector for support. Utilities, financial institutions, transportation, and telecommunications are all susceptible to Y2K problems and are vital to military operations.

Further Assessments

The military has been criticized by many in Congress for mis-prioritising their Y2K compliance efforts in favor of sinking billions into the B-1 Bomber project.

Amazingly the military does not plan to put its Y2K compliance systems into service until November 1999, leaving only one month to test and make last minute repairs to the systems. Either they just don’t get it or insider kickbacks on defense contracts are the priority agenda.

As of February 10, 1997, only 302 computer systems were compliant, 7,000 were not. As a result the Army postponed all new enhancements to nonessential computer systems.

On August 1, 1997, the DOD’s global command and control system failed when, as a test, the date was rolled over to the year 2,000.

On August 15, 1997, the OMB (Office of Management and Budget) reported that only 43% of DOD’s 2,593 mission critical systems were in the assessment phase.

On September 13, 1997, Science News reported that the DOD’s Defense Logistics Agency had accidentally removed ninety thousand items from inventory in a Y2K related failure. Correcting the problem took four hundred hours.

Spiritual Significance

Spiritually, our defense from subjection to principles of negativity depends on spiritual reprogramming or rebirth. (1 John 5:4, John 3:3, Gal. 5:16-25, 1 Pet. 4:1-4).

Procrastination has brought the military to a point where there is not enough time to become Y2K compliant. We must not make the same mistake spiritually. As John the Baptist urged Israel to repent before it was too late (Matt. 3:1-6). And as Paul admonished the Corinthians concerning giving themselves to the ministry without procrastination, (2 Cor. 8:10-15), Israel also, at the time of their exodus, had to become "wilderness compliant" by obedience to the ordinances of the Passover.

EMBEDDED SYSTEMS

What is an Embedded System?

An embedded system is a small "micro-computer" that is literally embedded within some larger piece of equipment.

An embedded system provides the intelligence associated with "process control" and "data acquisition" within various equipment like VCR’s, radar, missiles, microwave ovens, musical equipment, TV’s, etc.

Twenty years ago, specialized computer systems were very expensive and not in widespread use. Over the last ten years, computer chips have become smaller, cheaper, more sophisticated, and much more widespread in use. With some 25 billion microprocessors in use on New Year’s Eve 1999, Y2K failures could have devastating implications. Many of which will be mission critical and life threatening.

The vast quantities of these chips in such widespread use make it impossible to find and train enough programmers to repair or replace them all. The latter being the most likely solution because, in most cases, information is burned into these embedded chips and cannot be changed. Some machines themselves will have to be discarded, like digital watches and maybe VCR’s because buying a new one may be cheaper than repairing, especially if the manufacturer never planned for replacements.

Simply replacing consumer products that operate on non-compliant embedded systems are a viable alternative. However, the expensive, sophisticated industrial embedded systems can’t be scrapped. Such as in the case of stalled elevators all over the country, repair is the only option, which could take 6 months or longer.

Spiritual Significance

Like an embedded chip, we have the divine law embedded within our consciousness, which the Law of Moses only typifies.

It is our perception of that law which needs reforming so that we no longer view it as Israel viewed the Law of Moses in the Post-Diluvian Age, but from a new perspective, which is spiritual, in order to be Present Kingdom Age compliant. (Jer. 31:31-34, John 4:21-24, Gal. 3:1-29).

YOUR HOME PC

Types of Users

Approximately half of America’s households have personal computers (PC’s). Most of these home users use their PC’s to write letters, prepare children’s homework, play games, or surf the net. However, there are many people who use a PC, at home or on the job, as a serious business tool, indispensable in value, equally as important as an automobile. For these users, a Y2K shutdown could be devastating.

Types of PC’s

There are hundreds of different types of PC’s in the marketplace, but the vast majority falls into two categories:

• Intel-based computers with DOS or windows operating systems.

• Apple Macintosh computers with the Mac OS operating system.

First Area of Vulnerability

The first area of vulnerability is in the PC’s hardware and firmware, especially the part that keeps track of time.

This clock can be accessed via the computers Basic Input-Output System (BIOS).

Y2K compliance is not found in most older IBM computers built prior to 1996. On the other hand, Macintosh computers do not have a rollover problem with their clocks.

To test your system, simply backup all information in your computer, then move the clock ahead to December 31, 1999 at 11:59 pm and wait to see what happens.

Second Area of Vulnerability

Even if the hardware and BIOS are compliant, the operating system may inject its own Y2K errors.

Operating systems older than Microsoft Windows 95, Windows NT, and Apple’s Mac OS are non-compliant and will rollover on New Year’s day to read January 1, 1980. All current operating systems are fully Y2K compliant.

You should upgrade your system now. If you do not upgrade, the manufacturer will consider it your problem not theirs. It will be like complaining to Ford Motor Company that you’re upset that they don’t stock parts for your Model-T.

Third Area of Vulnerability

The third area of vulnerability is in program applications. Even if your BIOS, hardware, or operating systems are compliant, you could experience problems because of program applications; word processor, home banking systems, web browsers, spreadsheet programs, etc., may be date sensitive and could trigger Y2K problems.

Chances are that 80% of the activity on your computer involves 20% of the application programs. It is likely to be your word processor, home finance system, the e-mail program and a few popular games that give you problems and should be checked in advance for Y2K glitches.

Some of the programs found to be non-compliant are:

	Quicken v. 3 running on MS-DOS v.6
	Microsoft Access
	Fox Pro
	Visual Basic
	CA Clipper
	Borland Delphi
	Guata SQL Base
	Oracle

Fix-its and workarounds are available as freeware. The easiest way to get these solutions is from the vendor’s Internet site (e.g., Microsoft’s Year 2000 "Frequently Asked Questions" page at http://www.microsoft.com/cio/articles/year 2000fag.htm or call the vendor’s service department for help.

The Fourth Area of Vulnerability

The fourth area of vulnerability lies in application programs written by end-users.

Problems associated with the hardware, BIOS, operating system and standard applications from vendors like IBM and Microsoft are identifiable and manageable. But special applications, created by end users on Excel, Lotus, Fox Pro, etc., by the long-departed programmers, are like mines left on the battlefield after a war for businesses using PC’s, any one stepping on one will have a terminal experience.

If you experience this type of Y2K problem, no one is going to be sympathetic about "your" problems. Fortunately, very few people use such applications. However, if you do, check them now.

Advice

The sooner Y2K problems in your PC are diagnosed and corrected the better shape you will be in. Fix its may take a while.

If in doubt, backup everything now and continue until Y2K.

If you’ve lost the original copies of your program on floppy disk or CD ROM, get replacements now while things are relatively calm. If you have the originals, guard them carefully.

Spiritual Significance

The one area in the Y2K impending crisis that we can do something about now is bringing our personal computers to Y2K compliance ahead of time. This typifies the Apostle Peter’s admonishment to be humble, sober, and vigilant (1 Pet. 5:4-9). We must humble ourselves and take heed to the admonishments of the experts in Y2K forecasts, as well as, being sober and vigilant concerning all matter related to Y2K if we want to avoid injury.

HIDDEN AGENDA

Psychological Preparation

Most of us have had the experience of trying to discover the "hidden picture" within another picture on a 3D poster or in similar forms of art. Usually you are shown a landscape with trees, brush, flowers, and other bits of nature. The caption usually reads: "concealed somewhere in this picture is an F-15 Fighter Jet. Can you find it?" We look and study the picture intensely until we see the "real picture." After identifying it, the picture stands out like a sore thumb. We then marvel at how the artist could paint a picture in such a way to very cleverly hide the real picture within.

Those individuals who understand the monumental problems that Y2K will bring are aware of the fact that the picture painters of the mass media are deliberately and artfully creating landscapes, which hide the true hidden picture. This is being done for reasons that are obvious and perhaps not so obvious as well. The obvious reasons are as follows:

	They do not want to create a panic.
	The government does not want a run on the banks.
	They want to ward off hoarding of currency.
	Merchants want to maintain the social and civil order necessary for the perpetuation of commerce.

As mentioned there are reasons that are not so obvious. Remember, President Franklin D. Roosevelt once said,

"In politics, nothing happens by accident. If it happens, you can bet it was planned that way".

If you have read this outline, you should understand that the political economic and even psychological and spiritual implications of Y2K computer problems are monumentally historic and boldly effectual to our society. Nothing will be the same after Y2K. The vast majority of our civilization will be injured in some way or another while a small group of self-perpetuating conspiratorial elitists, whose members are drawn from the highest level of government, banking, education, the mass media and more, will prosper enormously. In other words, somebody’s gonna win and somebody’s gonna lose.

The Beneficiaries

The military industrial complex or the military’s hardware manufacturers stand to make billions of dollars replacing Y2K malfunctioning hardware for our armed forces. Could this be the reason why there have been so much apathy and slothfulness on behalf of the military in preparing for Y2K? There are millions of people in this country, which have studied the Kennedy assassination and concluded that our President was killed because of his opposition to a war in Southeast Asia. This war produced billions of dollars in profits for the military industrial complex and enormous kickbacks to those government and military officials who were insider proponents of the war.

The manufacturers of computers and related products will also profit billions. Because we have been programmed by the mass media to practically ignore the Y2K crisis and view anyone who cries "conspiracy, conspiracy" as a nut, we will not make the necessary upgrades to our computers on time. As a result, getting back on line will be even more expensive. In many cases, entire new systems will be required, both on the consumer and industrial level.

Lastly, but not lease, and perhaps even most of all…The most substantial beneficiary will be the Federal Reserve Bank. Y2K related problems in the economy, due to bank failures and related issues, will drive the national debt to an all time high. This will require that the Federal Reserve loan billions of dollars at crushing interest rates to the nation banks and the Federal Government.

Thereby the Federal Reserve (a privately owned corporation for profit) will make unimaginable profits off of our misery, as it has attempted to do and done throughout the nation’s history, under the guise of various central banks.

* Thomas Jefferson warned the American people about such national debts. He wrote: "To preserve our independence we must not let our leaders load us with perpetual debt. We must make our election between economy and liberty, or profusion and servitude. It is incumbent on every generation to pay its own debts as it goes - a principle which, if acted upon, would save one half of the wars of the world".

Keep in mind, it was the printing and issuance of colonial script currency by the colonies, which eliminated dependence on the Bank of England, that led to the Revolutionary War. Andrew Jackson as President of the U.S. fought the federally chartered Second Bank of the United States. He later claimed that it was responsible for the assassination attempt made against him in 1835.

* President Abraham Lincoln wrote that a "money power" was at work in the Civil War and that it assisted in the passage of the The National Banking Act of 1863. This bill created a national bank with the ability to create money and loan it, at interest, to the United States government. It was this same "power" that was involved in his assassination in 1865. Lincoln refused to borrow from the central bank in his effort to finance the Union campaign in the Civil War. Instead he decided to print his own currency called green backs. One can easily see how this would upset the war profiteers in the central bank.

In December of 1913, President Woodrow Wilson signed the Federal Reserve Act, establishing another privately owned central bank. The Federal Reserve itself publishes a paperback textbook entitled, The Federal Reserve System, Purposes and Functions, that is used in colleges to explain its activities:

"as an efficient monetary mechanism which is indispensable to the nation. Its function is to foster and print a flow of money and credit that will facilitate orderly economic growth, a stable dollar, and long-run balance in our international payments."

The intelligent question to ask the Fed is: since its creation has America had orderly growth? On the contrary, soon after its creation, the Federal Reserve contracted or tightened the nations money supply so much that the country was thrust into the Great Depression. Also since such time we have not had a stable dollar or a long-run balance in our international payments. So why has the Federal Reserve been allowed to continue?

Perhaps to reap win-falls in profits by thrusting America deeper in to debt because of Fed inspired depressions and Y2K problems. Could this be the gateway to a cashless society that so many economists are warning about? Could this be the perfect opportunity for these money-changing megalomaniacs to siege deeper control of our economy for their own profit and exploitation? Could Y2K be another Reichstag Fire? You’re damned right!!!

CONCLUSION

In the final analysis, many of us, particularly those of us who are Baby Boomers have never really had to face a widespread social crisis.

Famine and pestilence are not a part of our first hand experiences. Inductive reasoning tells us that the sun will rise tomorrow simply because it rose today as it always has. This same kind of reasoning will tell us that a computer bug cannot possibly devastate our society, the most technologically advanced civilization in recorded history. So we give in to apathy and indifference. Yourdon and Yourdon in their book, Time Bomb 2000, said it like this:

"What most people will do, in the final analysis, is nothing. After all, the prospect of moderate, serious, or devastating collapse of the nation’s socio-economic system is too awful for many people to accept. And the actions that would be required to protect oneself from such a disaster would require too much of a sacrifice for most people to accept in advance."

Hopefully, this report on the Y2K computer crisis will enlighten all those who have read it. As well, I would that it inspire people to take Y2K seriously and employ the use of deductive reasoning and examine what the experts are saying. If this is done, I believe a person’s natural reaction would be, at the least, one of concern. We, in this society, have demonstrated good prudence in taking out insurance policies on everything and everyone that we value. Well, preparing for Y2K is like taking out an insurance policy: Hope for the best, but plan for the worst. The book of Proverbs 23:3, tell us "a prudent man sees danger and takes refuge, but the simple keep going and suffer for it". Those business organizations and government agencies that finally began to pay attention to the Y2K problem in 1996 and 1997 had to conclude that they simply cannot fix all of their software in time. Those that still have not even begun to assess the problem by now will find themselves still doing so after the year 2000.

After they have assessed the situation and find out where their non-compliance problems lay, they will be buried in the long, expensive and frustrating problems of correcting their "cyber-maladies" and testing them. Hopefully, they will emerge in harmony with the new status quo, and continue to operate successfully. Some are undoubtedly planning to profit on the misfortune of many that are not prepared.

This whole Y2K issue clearly images a greater spiritual dilemma facing all mankind. Rom. 1:19-20. That is the fact that our souls are in need of reprogramming to the extent that we are spiritually compliant with the will of the creator in righteousness. We must hear the voice of the Holy Spirit, speaking from within, and become compliant. Y2K is coming and there is no stopping it. Sadly, it will bring devastation to many, just as non-compliance with the Holy Spirit will also bring devastation to many. And many religious institutions of the world are making billions off of the spiritual ignorance, which is spawned by not hearing and obeying the still small voice within us, rather, the dogma of carnal ordinances and the vain constitutional retoric of Mystery Babylon. Batten down the hatches and may Yahshua bless you with peace and understanding.

BIBLIOGRAPHY

The King James Version Bible

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