Posts Tagged ‘new world order’

Have you noticed how every incident of national importance that has a whiff of conspiracy about it is linked to the Illuminati?

In recent times, the secret society has even been linked to actor Robin William’s tragic death (International Business Times, Aug. 18), to Katy Perry seeking to join the society (RollingStone, Aug. 2) to electric-pop trio London Grammar denying they are members of the society (The Independent, Aug. 7) and the list goes on…

Author Dan Brown’s 2003 mega bestseller The Da Vinci Code introduced many in the mainstream to the Illuminati, even though a thousand and one NWO theories had referred to this mysterious group well before the novel ever hit bookstore shelves.

Bestseller introduced many to the Illuminati.

But like the novel, the infamous Illuminati secret society is a mixture of fact and fiction. And probably more fiction than fact.

We investigate the Illuminati in our book THE ORPHAN CONSPIRACIES: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy. Here’s an excerpt:

The (true) Illuminati story begins in Europe with historical records showing the Order of the Illuminati was founded by German professor Adam Weishaupt, in Bavaria, in 1776. The underground organization was a type of breakaway group that separated from European Freemasonry, with most of the founding members being recruited from German Masonic Lodges. In 1785, the order was destroyed from within by agent provocateurs working for the Bavarian Government, which feared secret societies could eventually overthrow the ruling Bavarian Monarchy.

Unfortunately, that’s where the facts and historical evidence surrounding the Illuminati end. Virtually every other supposed piece of Illuminati evidence that conspiracy buffs put forward is debatable at best and pure fantasy at worst.

In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, there were many prominent figures who surmised that the Illuminati may have somehow survived and masterminded key historical events, including the French Revolution.

But again, there’s no evidence of this.

However, those rumors are nothing compared to more recent rumors, which reflect fear and paranoia.

Between the First and Second World Wars, as fascism advanced, various rampant anti-Semitics said the Illuminati served elite Jewish bankers who, they claimed, were dividing Europe to gain financial control and create a Jewish type of NWO. It’s possible some of these Illuminati theories aided in creating a furtive and fertile environment for the likes of the Nazi Party to assume power so easily.

In the early 21st Century, Illuminati folklore has blossomed, perhaps off the back of The Da Vinci Code, or maybe it has more to do with increases in mental illness cases!

The supposed mind control program Project Monarch, which we covered in chapter 2, is closely tied in with modern Illuminati theories. If you Google phrases like mind controlled celebrities or Hollywood stars and the music industry, you’ll find countless conspiracy theories referring to the Illuminati and its numerous “Monarch slaves”.

Music stars in particular are said to be Monarch victims, and common names bandied about include Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus and Rihanna. What’s more, they all supposedly use Illuminati symbolism in their music videos.

None of the Tinfoil Hatters ever seem to consider that these ancient Illuminati symbols could have simply been hijacked by modern and infinitely less powerful groups. This is what Dan Brown seems to be getting at in his Robert Langdon novel Angel’s & Demons, when he writes, “It means that when organized philosophies like the Illuminati go out of existence, their symbols remain… available for adoption by other groups. It’s called transference. It’s very common in symbology. The Nazis took the swastika from the Hindus, the Christians adopted the cruciform from the Egyptians”.

Furthermore, any death of an A-List celebrity is always claimed to be Illuminati-orchestrated, according to conspiracy extremists. For example, on February 2, 2014, the day Academy Award-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman tragically died, YouTube was awash with hastily compiled videos featuring titles such as “Philip Seymour Hoffman Murdered by Illuminati” and “PHILLIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN…ILLUMINATI SACRIFICE?”

Philip Seymour Hoffman's primary photo

Philip Seymour Hoffman…linked in death.

None of those who promote such theories ever seem to question whether the Illuminati still exists. Nor do their followers, it seems. Again, the last confirmation of the Illuminati’s existence was in 1785. Something tells us if they still were around, there would have been at least one verification of their presence in the more than two centuries that have since elapsed.

Nor do these conspiracy theorists ever seem to acknowledge there’s not a shred of evidence to prove Project Monarch exists. Instead, Monarch gets lumped in with the highly documented CIA mind control program MK-Ultra. This is rather deceitful to say the least.

Some celebrities, including Jay-Z, Kim Kardashian and Howard Stern, have fought back against the keyboard warriors who make such videos or write such blogs, by issuing media statements and publicly denying they are members of the Illuminati.

Jay-Z's primary photo Kim Kardashian's primary photo

Jay-Z and Kim Kardashian…fighting back.

Unfortunately, when such high profile names defend themselves like this, it only seems to add fuel to the Illuminati fire.

Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/

Not all is as it seems.

The Illuminati debate continues in our new Goodreads group. Everyone invited! For those interested, go to: https://www.goodreads.com/group/show/142309-the-orphan-conspiracies-discussion-group

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Almost every conspiracy theory in recent years at least references the New World Order (NWO) in some way.

There are various versions of the NWO Theory, depending on who is telling it and what their agenda may be – if they have an agenda, which they usually do! However, in the simplest of terms, the theory suggests the global elite are subtly directing our civilization toward a totalitarian one world government.

This is apparently being orchestrated by leading politicians, including heads of state, who are implementing policies to allow for a one world government that will eventually replace sovereign nation-states. Once a reality, such a governing body so empowered would naturally set laws that reflect the global elite’s core philosophies.

Methods used by the global elite to action this NWO plan are said to embrace many of the subjects covered so far in this book, including media propaganda, central banking and engineering wars with false flag attacks.

It all sounds possible – at least within the context of this book – right?

The only problem is, NWO conspiracy theories are often trumpeted by those who are more than a few pennies short of a pound and have trouble distinguishing fantasy from reality.

Those commonly peddling one world government ideas include anti-Semites blaming Jewish people for every problem under the sun, religious zealots who believe the NWO will bring about apocalyptic scenarios, UFO gurus warning an alien invasion is imminent, and indeed all those other conspiracy extremists who together form our beloved Tinfoil Hat Network.

So, all this talk of a NWO is a bunch of BS then. Right?

Um…maybe. Or maybe not.

 

“The only salvation for civilization lies in the creation of a world government” –Albert Einstein

 

Money talks

If any group had the authority to direct the planet towards a NWO, it would be the world’s financial elite.

Many independent researchers have said the bulk of the world’s money supply is in the hands of less than 1000 families. Yep you read that right: the bulk of the world’s money supply is in the hands of less than 1000 families.

These families would include the Rockefellers, the British Royals, the Marcos and Bush clans as well as other elite dynasties mentioned in this book.Their fortunes consist of Old World money, invisible money and blood money.

In a similar vein, David Rothkopf’s 2008 book, Superclass: The Global Power Elite and the World They Are Making, states that the world is governed by a group of 6000 elite individuals.

Product Details

And according to Oxfam’s 2014 economic briefing, the wealth of the top 1% in the world amounts to US$110 trillion. That’s 65 times the total wealth of the bottom half of the world’s population.

 

“Marcia Wilson was a good example of Omega’s core strategy for creating a New World Order. It involved placing their people, or moles, in positions of power within the CIA, the NSA, the Pentagon, the White House and global organizations like the UN, the IMF and the World Bank. This enabled Omega to pull some of the strings of these organizations and to direct American, and world politics, to an extent.” The Ninth Orphan

 

Another staggering statistic from Oxfam’s briefing was that, collectively, the financial worth of the world’s 85 wealthiest people approximately equals that of the poorer half of the world’s total population. In other words, and get this – the richest 85 individuals have as much wealth as the 3.5 billion or so people who make up 50% of the world’s population and who are categorized as the poorest on the planet!

What if those 85 Rich Listers got together – assuming they or their representatives haven’t already – and agreed on certain things? Things like lobbying for a one world currency, for example, or anything else that fits their definition of a better world? With their financial clout and inherent power, would they not be capable of creating a New World Order of sorts?

 

Kentbridge continued, “There are different types of New World Order scenarios. One would be a world government ruled by a totalitarian regime like the Nazis were working toward. That would obviously be destructive. Another scenario would be one in which a fairer world is created. That’s what we are aiming for. We can unite everybody worldwide and create everlasting peace.” The Orphan Factory

 

In The Orphan Trilogy, we refer to two secret organizations, the Omega Agency and the Nexus Foundation, whom we describe as having ambitions to create a NWO on their terms. Omega and Nexus are inspired by shadow organizations rumored to exist in today’s world – shadowy, real-world organizations, which according to conspiracy theorists are hell-bent on achieving a NWO.

But beyond works of fiction, is there any truth behind this conspiracy theory?

We got no idea. Why ask us? We have no answers, remember? We’re merely dramatists posing a number of questions, but we can theorize of course. (You may have noticed by now we tend to specialize in that).

 

A NWO by increments

There is a theory that suggests the NWO will be achieved in stages.

Firstly, blocks of countries such as the African Union, the European Union and the proposed North American Union between the US, Canada and Mexico combine.

Proudly waving…flags of the EU.

Secondly, before you know it, global organizations pop up all over the show, including the World Bank, the United Nations and the International Monetary Fund – their presence and power magnifying with each passing day.

Thirdly, and last of all, a one world government is formed. Then, apparently, it’s too late to do anything about it and the global elite have won, according to conspiracy theorists.

Imagine waking up to headlines announcing that your nation’s government has relinquished the reigns of power to a one world government. Hells bells!

The global elite may have completed steps one and two (above), but step three, the formation of a one world government, has so far eluded them.

So, if this is a game of soccer, it’s currently 2-0 to the global elite, according to you-know-who. However, it ain’t game over yet.

 

The dollar bill conspiracy theory

Above…CommonsenseConspiracy.com’s take on this theory.

Probably the most high profile and best known reference to the NWO, in America at least, is the much-touted US One Dollar Bill Theory. As many a proud member of the Tinfoil Hat Network will tell anyone who is half-listening to them, written on the US dollar bill is a Latin Phrase that translates as New World Order.

We even heard a well-known conspiracy theory radio show host tell his audience, “As everybody knows, it’s a fact that the words New World Order are written in Latin on the dollar bill.”

Apparently, many American school kids accept this as fact as well.

The only problem is the Latin phrase novus ordo seclorum, which has been on the reverse side of the Great Seal of the United States since 1782, and on the reverse of the dollar bill since 1935, doesn’t translate to New World Order; it actually translates to New Order of the Ages.

Instead of a New World Order and toppling of nation-states, New Order of the Ages is commonly acknowledged by experts as being a reference to a new era of the United States of America, suggesting the nation will go from strength to strength. This appears to directly contradict the NWO claim, as nations are supposed to get weaker not stronger in the build-up to a one world government.

However, conspiracy theorists, especially the Tinfoil Hatter extremists, continue to claim that the direct Latin translation is just a smokescreen and the dollar bill does in fact allude to a coming NWO.

It seems the word mistranslation isn’t part of the vocab of the Tinfoil Hat Network’s members.

 

Kentbridge passionately believed that Omega – or the Light, as Naylor sometimes referred to the agency – was America’s, and the world’s, only hope of ever unifying. And unification was the only solution for he was also aware that while the public was dividing and conquering itself by focusing on banal, media-driven conflicts such as Neoconservatives versus Liberals, democracy versus terrorism and the West versus the rest, destructive covert outfits were slowly but surely growing stronger. The special agent also understood how groups like Nexus fostered and benefited from the climate of fear perpetuated in television broadcasts and newspaper headlines. As long as Americans were consumed by fear of evildoers, whether these be communists, terrorists, religious extremists or any other potential enemy, he knew they would never realize the greatest enemy of all was operating within within the West, within America, within their own Government.The Orphan Factory

 

Puppet masters pulling strings again

As we’ve revealed in earlier chapters, most if not all of the world’s senior leaders have pledged allegiance to at least one elitist organization such as the Bilderberg Group, Bohemian Grove, Freemasons or the Council on Foreign Relations. The NWO concept is interrelated with these secret handshakes and closeted meetings.

Remember those invisible puppet masters we referred to in chapter 3? And the little known founding members of those organizations we name above? And the people who are rumored to be manipulating the higher profile members of those same organizations?

Well, if a NWO exists, those puppet masters would likely be the orchestrators of it. They would be the ones quietly but diligently setting up the beginnings of aone world government.

In 2001, one of the founders of the Bilderberg Group and likely puppet master Denis Healey said: “To say we were striving for a one-world government is exaggerated, but not wholly unfair. Those of us in Bilderberg felt we couldn’t go on forever fighting one another for nothing and killing people and rendering millions homeless. So we felt that a single community throughout the world would be a good thing.”

 

As they watched and listened to the recorded speech, the orphans noted something which the vast majority of political commentators, and certainly the public at large, had never picked up on. That something was that President Bush subtly mentioned the phrase New World Order several times throughout his speech.The Orphan Factory

 

Bush’s New World Order speech

NWO came to some prominence in 1990 when President George H. W. Bush said in a speech to Congress, “Now, we can see a new world coming into view. A world in which there is the very real prospect of a new world order”.

Conspiracy theorists claimed this was the President announcing – albeit in code – the elite were one step closer to creating a one world government that would dominate the planet and eliminate all dissenters, starting with the Iraqi people.

 

“It is not my intention to doubt that the doctrine of the Illuminati and the principles of Jacobinism had not spread in the United States. On the contrary, no one is more satisfied of this fact than I am”. –George Washington

 

Illuminati

Author Dan Brown’s 2003 mega bestseller The Da Vinci Code introduced many in the mainstream to the Illuminati, even though a thousand and one NWO theories had referred to this mysterious group well before the novel ever hit bookstore shelves.

But like the novel, the infamous Illuminati secret society is a mixture of fact and fiction. And probably more fiction than fact.

The (true) Illuminati story begins in Europe with historical records showing the Order of the Illuminati was founded by German professor Adam Weishaupt, in Bavaria, in 1776. The underground organization was a type of breakaway group that separated from European Freemasonry, with most of the founding members being recruited from German Masonic Lodges. In 1785, the order was destroyed from within by agent provocateurs working for the Bavarian Government, which feared secret societies could eventually overthrow the ruling Bavarian Monarchy.

Unfortunately, that’s where the facts and historical evidence surrounding the Illuminati end. Virtually every other supposed piece of Illuminati evidence that conspiracy buffs put forward is debatable at best and pure fantasy at worst.

In the late 1700’s and early 1800’s, there were many prominent figures who surmised that the Illuminati may have somehow survived and masterminded key historical events, including the French Revolution.

But again, there’s no evidence of this.

However, those rumors are nothing compared to more recent rumors, which reflect fear and paranoia.

Between the First and Second World Wars, as fascism advanced, various rampant anti-Semitics said the Illuminati served elite Jewish bankers who, they claimed, were dividing Europe to gain financial control and create a Jewish type of NWO. It’s possible some of these Illuminati theories aided in creating a furtive and fertile environment for the likes of the Nazi Party to assume power so easily.

In the early 21st Century, Illuminati folklore has blossomed, perhaps off the back of The Da Vinci Code, or maybe it has more to do with increases in mental illness cases!

The supposed mind control program Project Monarch, which we covered in chapter 2, is closely tied in with modern Illuminati theories. If you Google phrases like mind controlled celebrities or Hollywood stars and the music industry, you’ll find countless conspiracy theories referring to the Illuminati and its numerous “Monarch slaves”.

Music stars in particular are said to be Monarch victims, and common names bandied about include Beyoncé, Lady Gaga, Nicki Minaj, Britney Spears, Katy Perry, Miley Cyrus and Rihanna. What’s more, they all supposedly use Illuminati symbolism in their music videos.

None of the Tinfoil Hatters ever seem to consider that these ancient Illuminati symbols could have simply been hijacked by modern and infinitely less powerful groups. This is what Dan Brown seems to be getting at in his Robert Langdon novel Angel’s & Demons, when he writes, “It means that when organized philosophies like the Illuminati go out of existence, their symbols remain… available for adoption by other groups. It’s called transference. It’s very common in symbology. The Nazis took the swastika from the Hindus, the Christians adopted the cruciform from the Egyptians”.

Furthermore, any death of an A-List celebrity is always claimed to be Illuminati-orchestrated, according to conspiracy extremists. For example, on February 2, 2014, the day Academy Award-winning actor Philip Seymour Hoffman tragically died, YouTube was awash with hastily compiled videos featuring titles such as “Philip Seymour Hoffman Murdered by Illuminati” and “PHILLIP SEYMOUR HOFFMAN…ILLUMINATI SACRIFICE?”

Philip Seymour Hoffman's primary photo

Philip Seymour Hoffman.

None of those who promote such theories ever seem to question whether the Illuminati still exists. Nor do their followers, it seems. Again, the last confirmation of the Illuminati’s existence was in 1785. Something tells us if they still were around, there would have been at least one verification of their presence in the more than two centuries that have since elapsed.

Nor do these conspiracy theorists ever seem to acknowledge there’s not a shred of evidence to prove Project Monarch exists. Instead, Monarch gets lumped in with the highly documented CIA mind control program MK-Ultra. This is rather deceitful to say the least.

Some celebrities, including Jay-Z, Kim Kardashian and Howard Stern, have fought back against the keyboard warriors who make such videos or write such blogs, by issuing media statements and publicly denying they are members of the Illuminati.

Jay-Z's primary photo  Kim Kardashian's primary photo 

Jay-Z and Kim Kardashian…fighting back.

Unfortunately, when such high profile names defend themselves like this, it only seems to add fuel to the Illuminati fire.

 

“For more than a century ideological extremists at either end of the political spectrum have seized upon well-publicized incidents such as my encounter with Castro to attack the Rockefeller family for the inordinate influence they claim we wield over American political and economic institutions. Some even believe we are part of a secret cabal working against the best interests of the United States, characterizing my family and me as internationalists and of conspiring with others around the world to build a more integrated global political and economic structure—one world, if you will. If that’s the charge, I stand guilty, and I am proud of it.” –David Rockefeller from his 2002 autobiography Memoirs.

 

So where does all that leave us when it comes to deciding whether or not a New World Order exists?

Dunno. (Surely by now you realize we don’t have any answers to offer)!

If you really want our opinion – and we are not quite sure why on earth you would – we’d have to say there does seem to be a NWO, or the beginnings of one at least, but it’s probably in a different form than most conspiracy theorists imagine. (And we use the word imagine advisedly). Ever the optimists, we’d like to think it’s in a form that will facilitate sharing of nations’ resources, elimination of wars and poverty, and promotion of peace and cooperation worldwide.

But maybe – quite possibly in fact – there is no NWO in the making and maybe there never was. In which case, we’ll keep this note to ourselves handy and read it every time we sit in front of our keyboards: Remove our tinfoil hats before we write anything.

 

Read more in The Orphan Conspiracies: 29 Conspiracy Theories from The Orphan Trilogy – available now via Amazon at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Conspiracies-Conspiracy-Theories-ebook/dp/B00J4MPFT6/

A book that’s for the common people.

 

Happy reading! –James & Lance

 

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Our coming-of-age spy thriller, The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2), is available to Kindle users at the reduced price of 99c via Amazon.com and Amazon.UK until Feb. 17th PST.

4.6 Star average review rating

This top rated thriller is the prequel to The Ninth Orphan, book one in The Orphan Trilogy. It’s an epic, atmospheric story that begins with twenty-three genetically superior orphans being groomed to become elite spies in Chicago’s Pedemont Orphanage and concludes with a political assassination deep in the Amazon jungle. Embark on another frenetic journey with Nine, the ninth-born orphan, as he goes on the run across America.

Here’s a brief synopsis:

In the late 1970’s, in Chicago, Illinois, the secretive Omega Agency initiates the Pedemont Project – a radical experiment utilizing genetic engineering technologies – to create twenty-three orphan babies with the plan to turn them into the world’s most effective assassins.

One of the prodigies will rebel: meet Number Nine, an orphan with a mind of his own.

In 1998, when Nine reaches adulthood and graduates with honors from the Pedemont Orphanage, he is already an adept of the deadly espionage arts. Ordered by his Omega masters to assassinate a survivor of the Jonestown tragedy in Guyana’s Amazon rainforest, Nine is forced to draw upon all of his advanced training just to stay alive.

After 38 reviews, The Orphan Factory maintains its 4.6 Star average review rating on Amazon.

Here’s a sample of Amazon reviewers’ comments:

I loved getting to know more about Nine and his early years, his rivalry with 17 and interaction with other orphans, his self discovery and his ability to survive in a dangerous and deadly world. I am now looking forward to reading the third and final novel in this thrilling trilogy. –Pat O’Meara

Fast paced and never boring. I was drawn into the plot almost right from the beginning. –S.C.M. Hartstra-van Kan

Action and drama prevail in this exciting story. –Sheri A. Wilkinson

This novel explains how the orphans were produced and why and how they were trained…An awesome read. –“Westerntarheel”

A very well written, multifaceted book that is a joy to read. The authors have taken a genre which has been attacked from many angles and woven a modern, distinctive adventure. I am now going to re-read The Ninth Orphan.  –S.J. Hailey

An exceptional read, well written with just the right amount of explosive excitement that makes you sit up and take notice. Looking forward to the first and last in the trilogy which gives me the excuse to read the second one once again. –D. Catterall

The authors remind you The Orphan Factory is available now through to February 17th PST at the sharply discounted price of 99c. It’s available via Kindle at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

 

Happy reading! –Lance & James

 

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As America – or President Obama at least – seems intent on attacking Syria, I’m reminded of a quote from The Orphan Factory, book two in our conspiracy thriller series, The Orphan Trilogy. In it, Omega Agency Special Agent Tommy Kentbridge asks a young Nine, the ninth-born orphan, “Why else do you think we are permanently at war in various regions all over the world?”

Perhaps the question would be better directed at Obama?

President Barack Obama

Obama soon to announce a new offensive?

Kentbridge, who is Nine’s mentor and the closest thing to a father figure the lad will ever know, also asks, “And why is it the citizens of this country, one of the richest on earth, get poorer each year?”

Good questions – even if we, the writers, say so ourselves!

Here’s some more from The Orphan Factory:

Special Agent Kentbridge had long-since realized America was not the unified country most people thought it was. Due to his position, he was aware of the extremely fragmented, corrupt and sick state of the nation. He also knew that sickness was entirely due to the conflicting agendas of the various shadow organizations that had infiltrated most Government departments and agencies. Within each power group – be it Congress or the Military-Industrial Complex – there were huge divisions as each of the secret factions strived to be top dog.

The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2), is available via Amazon as a Kindle ebook via: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

 

Happy reading!Lance & James

 

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This week’s review of our coming-of-age spy thriller The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2) in Chicago web publication Gapers Block has thrown the spotlight on Chicago.

Chicago, the ‘City of the big shoulders’ as hometown poet-made-good Carl Sandburg once called it, is home to the twenty-three orphans who are raised in Chicago’s Pedemont Orphanage. It’s not just any orphanage. It’s home to genetically-engineered orphans who are raised to become the deadliest intelligence operatives the world has ever seen. Their purpose? To help the clandestine Omega Agency achieve its dream of establishing a New World Order.

     

If reader response is anything to go by, Chicago-ites seem to resonate with The Orphan Factory. Not surprising given their hometown figures so prominently in this novel.

The novel’s prologue sets the scene. Have a read and enjoy…

 

Prologue

An old vagrant hummed tunelessly to himself as he warmed his bony hands over a fire he’d lit minutes earlier in a drum long since blackened by perhaps a hundred such fires. Certainly more fires than he, or any of his street cronies, could remember. He stopped humming when, across a busy thoroughfare, a gravel-voiced busker began reciting poetry.

“Stormy, husky, brawling,” the busker rumbled. “City of the big shoulders.” He was reciting verse from the works of hometown poet-made-good, Carl Sandburg. The poem was appropriately titled Chicago. “Come and show me another city with lifted head singing so proud to be alive and coarse and strong and cunning.” The busker, a long-haired Vietnam veteran whose only concession to his military past was his VSM service medal which he still wore with pride, looked directly at the old vagrant opposite.

The vagrant imagined the busker smiled at him, though he couldn’t be sure in the fading early evening light. Even so, he flashed a toothless grin in the other’s direction.

Soon, the old man was joined by half a dozen street pals. All homeless like him, they appeared like disheveled ghosts out of the shadows, attracted partly by the warmth of the fire and partly by the busker. They listened intently to the poet’s words that flowed effortlessly from the busker’s mouth. Words that painted images so vivid in their minds it was as if the men were watching a kaleidoscope of their own youth.  

“Under the smoke, dust all over his mouth, laughing with white teeth,” the busker continued. “Under the terrible burden of destiny laughing as a young man laughs.”

Several passersby paused to listen, but none bothered to drop a donation into the hat that lay at the busker’s feet. Finally, as the busker finished his recital, a business executive threw a quarter into the hat without breaking stride. Encouraged, the busker launched into another Sandberg poem.

Listening to the busker delivering further verses about his beloved Windy City, the old vagrant couldn’t help but note the irony: there wasn’t a breath of wind on this still Chicago evening.

The vagrant’s parents had always assured him the city’s misleading nickname had nothing to do with the weather. His mother had insisted the Windy City label came from the longwinded speeches given by the city’s Nineteenth Century politicians, while his father claimed the moniker had been mischievously bestowed by competitive New Yorkers in their attempt to win the World Trade Fair of 1893.

To add to the contradictions, even though it was February, it was an unusually mild winter’s evening. The vagrants gathered around the fire warming their hands did so more out of habit than necessity on this occasion.

Chicago’s streets were busy and the mood downtown was fairly upbeat. President Jimmy Carter was due to visit the city and greater Illinois the following day. Word had spread: the President would be here soon, and come hell or high water he was going to receive a right, royal Illinois welcome.

As Chicagoans went about their business, hurrying home after a long day at the office or heading out to sample the city’s nightlife, none were remotely aware of the sinister, Nazi-like experiment taking place virtually under their noses.

Despite the experiment’s seventy five million dollar price tag, only a select few knew about it. Those in the know did not include the city’s Mayor or any state politicians; at Federal level, not even the President knew about it.

The experiment was taking place in a laboratory in the concealed basement of a renovated warehouse just off North Michigan Avenue. Seven pregnant women were in various stages of labor in the lab that served as a makeshift maternity hospital.

Like some Orwellian nightmare, the women were giving birth in clockwork-like fashion, almost in unison.

Small teams comprised of doctors and white-coated geneticists assisted the women. A specialist induced latecomers. In the lab’s far corner, two suited men looked on expectantly.

The numerous personnel in attendance were all in the employ of the Omega Agency, a recently formed and highly secretive outfit which would one day become the world’s most powerful shadow organization.

Supervising the eerie experiment was Omega’s own Doctor Frankenstein – better known as Doctor Pedemont, the brilliant biomedical scientist responsible for the radical science behind it. Over the past few years, with the help of his team of geneticists, Doctor Pedemont had painstakingly selected the fetus’ genes from thousands of sperm donations combined with the genes of his female subjects. The donations had come from another medical experiment referred to as the Genius Sperm Bank.

The motivation behind the Genius Sperm Bank, which had been initiated over a decade earlier, was to advance the breeding of super-intelligent people. The bank was stocked full of semen donations solicited from many of the world’s most intelligent men.

Benefiting from the efforts of some of Omega’s elite operatives, Doctor Pedemont had unlawfully obtained hundreds of samples from the Genius Sperm Bank. Then, taking the best of the sperm donations, he’d artificially inseminated the very women who were now in the process of giving birth. This meant each child that was about to be born effectively had one mother and numerous fathers.

The legalities of the entire operation were of no concern to Omega. Although still in its formative stages, the agency was already above the law.

A tense Doctor Pedemont and three geneticists fussed over the first mother-to-be, a young redheaded woman, as she entered the final stages of labor. The two suits observing from afar waited anxiously as the geneticists used advanced scientific equipment to monitor the birth.

The redhead gave birth to female twins. They arrived six minutes apart. Doctor Pedemont picked up the first twin. After removing the umbilical cord, he placed the newborn baby on a set of scales. “Number Five,” he announced. “Born 7.43 pm. Weight seven pounds, thirteen ounces.”

One of the geneticists recorded the doctor’s findings in a file labeled Number Five. Sadly, this would be the closest the girl would ever have to a real name.

Doctor Pedemont gave the baby to another geneticist then grabbed her newborn sister and weighed her. “Number Six. Born 7.49 pm. Weight seven pounds, one ounce.”

The advent of twins was no accident, of course. Their arrival had been planned for, like everything else that occurred within the Omega Agency.

The next baby was born minutes later to an African-American woman. It was a boy who was clearly of African descent. However, he had a much lighter skin tone than his mother, indicating most or all of the sperm donations inseminated into the woman were taken from Caucasian men.

“Number Seven,” Doctor Pedemont announced. “Born 7.56 pm. Weighs exactly five pounds. A few weeks prem, but is perfectly healthy.”

Because Number Seven was a premature birth, one of the geneticists immediately placed him in an incubator. Number Eight, who was born quarter of an hour later, was a healthy girl of Oriental descent.

When Number Nine was born, the mother, a beautiful dark-haired woman with striking green eyes, reached out to Doctor Pedemont to indicate she wished to hold the boy she had just birthed. The doctor looked around enquiringly at the two mysterious suits who remained in the corner. After discussing it between themselves, the older of the two nodded.

Doctor Pedemont looked back at the newborn’s mother cautiously. “You know you’ll never see him again, Annette?”

Annette nodded forlornly. She fully understood the ramifications of her agreement with the Omega Agency. Doctor Pedemont reluctantly placed Number Nine in Annette’s arms. The baby boy reached out and placed his tiny hand on the ruby that hung from a silver necklace she wore.

“Sebastian,” Annette whispered tearfully as she looked into her son’s eyes. “I name you Sebastian, after my father.”

Anxious to avoid further bonding between mother and son, Doctor Pedemont took Number Nine from Annette and handed him to one of the geneticists who, without ceremony, jabbed a needle into the boy. Predictably, Nine started screaming. His mother looked on resignedly.

Later that night, two more boys and another girl were born. Like Number Nine, all three were Caucasian.

As Number Twelve, the last of the newborns, was weighed, the two suits approached a relieved Doctor Pedemont. They looked more relaxed now. The older of the two, a short, stocky, dapper individual with heavily pock-marked skin, reached for the doctor’s hand and shook it firmly. This was Andrew Naylor, the Omega Agency’s hard-nosed director who was known for his foul temper as well as for his lazy eye, which never quite managed to focus on whomever he was addressing at the time.

“Congratulations, doctor,” Naylor mumbled without even a hint of a smile.

“Thank you,” a beaming Doctor Pedemont responded, taking care to avoid eye contact with Naylor as he found the other’s lazy eye highly disconcerting.

Naylor’s companion, Special Agent Tommy Kentbridge, patted the doctor on the back in congratulatory fashion. “Well done,” Kentbridge said. Tall and ruggedly handsome – physically the polar opposite of Naylor – the special agent was one of Omega’s young stars. As a field operative, he had the sort of record most agents twice his age would be proud of. Although only in his early twenties, Kentbridge had been assigned to manage the products of this agency experiment. Like it or not, he would be the nearest to a father any of them would have.

It was a long-term experiment and no-one knew exactly what the outcome would be. The experiment was known in Omega circles as The Pedemont Project

 

The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2) is available via Amazon as a Kindle ebook: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

For more info about The Orphan Trilogy (The Ninth Orphan / The Orphan Factory / The Orphan Uprising), go to: http://www.youtube.com/user/SterlingGateBooks

 

Happy reading! –Lance

 

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In this week’s edition of Chicago web publication Gapers Block, Book Club reviewer Kathryn Pulkrabek says:

Reading, writing, and espionage? It’s back to school for 23 genetically-altered orphans being trained as cold-hearted assassins as part of the shadowy Omega Agency’s Pedemont project in The Orphan Factory by James Morcan and Lance Morcan.

Beginning in a Chicago warehouse in the 1970s, this prequel to the Morcans’ The Ninth Orphan recounts the origins of Number Nine, the spy who will eventually rebel against Omega and live life on the run. The inclusion of actual events (such as the Jonestown massacre and Bill Clinton’s presidential election) lends authenticity to the story, while the ease in which they are manipulated by Omega shows that seeing is not necessarily believing– an eerily relevant lesson in our media-saturated world.

The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2) is available via Amazon as a Kindle ebook at: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

It’s one of several young adult novels reviewed in Gapers Block’s Book Club this week. To view them all go to: http://gapersblock.com/bookclub/2013/08/20/in_the_the_book_of/

 

Happy reading! –Lance

 

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Book two in The Orphan Trilogy is a prequel to The Ninth Orphan. It’s an epic, atmospheric story that begins with 23 genetically superior orphans being groomed to become elite spies in Chicago’s Pedemont Orphanage and concludes with a political assassination deep in the Amazon jungle.

With an average review rating of 4.7 out of 5 Stars on Amazon, The Orphan Factory is a coming-of-age spy thriller that sets a frenetic pace. Join Nine, the ninth-born orphan, as he flees his Omega Agency masters and goes on the run across America.

As Amazon review site My Scribe World says, “Buckle up for another wild ride in The Orphan Trilogy.”

Here’s an excerpt from The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2):

The special agent reached into his pocket and pulled out a color photograph, which he handed to the orphan. Nine could tell by its faded color it was old. It was a portrait photo of a dark-haired, green-eyed woman. Nine instinctively knew the woman was his mother, and not just because she was wearing the same ruby necklace Kentbridge had given him a few months earlier and which he now wore around his neck. 

“Sebastian,” Kentbridge whispered.

After a moment, Nine tore his eyes away from the woman in the photograph and looked into his mentor’s eyes.

“Sebastian,” Kentbridge repeated, a little louder this time. “That’s your real name. Your mother named you that when you were born.”

Nine suspected Kentbridge was playing mind games with him. He’d expected that as he was aware Omega’s strategy for dealing with any form of internal dissension was to either terminate the subject or else reprogram them. Given he was still alive – and knowing they’d already invested too much in him to kill him – reprogramming him was the only option. Even so, the information he was being given about his past was so arresting he found it impossible to ignore. “Wish I’d never been born,” he cursed absentmindedly as he studied his mother’s image once more.

“You weren’t born,” Kentbridge reminded him. “You were created. There’s a difference.”

Nine thought on that, but no witty reply came to him.

 

“Your life has a purpose, Sebastian,” the special agent continued. “You should be grateful for that, believe me, because most ordinary citizens just drift through life with zero direction.” Kentbridge nodded toward the fishermen beneath the bridge and council workers enjoying a morning tea break beyond them, indicating he considered them ordinary citizens.

Having had a taste of the world beyond the orphanage and Omega, Nine didn’t agree. However, he remained silent.

“I want you to know I take full responsibility for what happened.” Kentbridge said. “I’m not angry at you. I was at the time, but now in the cold light of day I can see what motivated you to bust out of here.”

Nine noticed his master was talking to him for the first time ever like an adult. He didn’t know whether that was part of the reprogramming or whether his bid for freedom had earned him some respect. Whatever the case, gone was the patronizing tone Kentbridge had always used when talking to him and the other orphans.

About time!

Nine gave Kentbridge his full attention.

“I take total responsibility, Sebastian, because in hindsight I can see my mistake. I never told you or the other orphans the purpose of the Omega Agency. Or what we are fighting for.”

What we are fighting for? Nine thought that was obvious. World domination to line the pockets of Naylor and his cronies. 

“It’s not about greed,” Kentbridge said as if reading the orphan’s mind. “We are the resistance. The last bastion of hope for freedom.”

“Then who are the bad guys?” Nine retorted with more than a hint of sarcasm.

“The fascists. They took over this country straight after World War Two. Kennedy was the last president who knew anything about this. All those who followed him have been in kept the dark.”

Kentbridge was certain all of the US presidents since JFK had been puppets. The lack of any real decision-making power presidents had was reflected in a long-running joke within the agency: One could place a monkey in the White House Oval Office and everything would run just fine.

Nine looked skeptical.

“I’m serious,” Kentbridge insisted. “Why else do you think we are permanently at war in various regions all over the world? And why is it the citizens of this country, one of the richest on earth, get poorer each year?”

The special agent had long-since realized America was not the unified country most people thought it was. Due to his position, he was aware of the extremely fragmented, corrupt and sick state of the nation. He also knew that sickness was entirely due to the conflicting agendas of the various shadow organizations that had infiltrated most Government departments and agencies. Within each power group – be it Congress or the Military-Industrial Complex – there were huge divisions as each of the secret factions strived to be top dog. 

Kentbridge explained all this to Nine.

The orphan thought about the Nexus Foundation, and wondered where it fitted in. As long as he could remember, Omega had been fighting or at least competing with Nexus, and he’d always wondered why. Now that Kentbridge was being so open, he decided to ask. “And what about Nexus?”

“Nexus has taken advantage of the malaise that has beset this once great nation. When the Constitution was still respected and followed to the letter, an outfit like Nexus could never have gotten off the ground and there’d be no need for an agency like Omega. Nexus sees us as a threat to its ends and is determined to destroy us, you see.”

Again, Nine wasn’t convinced, and his expression reflected that.

“Think about it, if Omega stood for anything but liberty and the greater good, why would any well-meaning, patriotic group try to prevent us from achieving our goals? I mean, there’s a whole raft of destructive agencies out there Nexus could target. Why pick on us?”

Nine had to admit it was a good question.

 

To order The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2), or view the Amazon reviews, go to: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

For more about this and other Morcan novels go to: http://www.youtube.com/user/SterlingGateBooks

 

Happy reading! – Lance & James

 

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Average Amazon reviewer rating: 4.7 Stars

In The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2) Nine, the ninth-born orphan, is mentored by Tommy Kentbridge, a father figure and special agent with the shadowy Omega Agency.

Here’s an excerpt from The Orphan Factory. In it, Kentbridge tries to convince a young Nine that America’s, and the world’s, very future depends on the establishment of a New World Order…

“It’s not about greed,” Kentbridge said as if reading the orphan’s mind. “We are the resistance. The last bastion of hope for freedom.”

“Then who are the bad guys?” Nine retorted with more than a hint of sarcasm.

“The fascists. They took over this country straight after World War Two. Kennedy was the last president who knew anything about this. All those who followed him have been in kept the dark.”

Kentbridge was certain all of the US presidents since JFK had been puppets. The lack of any real decision-making power presidents had was reflected in a long-running joke within the agency: One could place a monkey in the White House Oval Office and everything would run just fine.

Nine looked skeptical.

“I’m serious,” Kentbridge insisted. “Why else do you think we are permanently at war in various regions all over the world? And why is it the citizens of this country, one of the richest on earth, get poorer each year?”

The special agent had long-since realized America was not the unified country most people thought it was. Due to his position, he was aware of the extremely fragmented, corrupt and sick state of the nation. He also knew that sickness was entirely due to the conflicting agendas of the various shadow organizations that had infiltrated most Government departments and agencies. Within each power group – be it Congress or the Military-Industrial Complex – there were huge divisions as each of the secret factions strived to be top dog.

Kentbridge explained all this to Nine.

The orphan thought about the Nexus Foundation, and wondered where it fitted in. As long as he could remember, Omega had been fighting or at least competing with Nexus, and he’d always wondered why. Now that Kentbridge was being so open, he decided to ask. “And what about Nexus?”

“Nexus has taken advantage of the malaise that has beset this once great nation. When the Constitution was still respected and followed to the letter, an outfit like Nexus could never have gotten off the ground and there’d be no need for an agency like Omega. Nexus sees us as a threat to its ends and is determined to destroy us, you see.”

Again, Nine wasn’t convinced, and his expression reflected that.

“Think about it, if Omega stood for anything but liberty and the greater good, why would any well-meaning, patriotic group try to prevent us from achieving our goals? I mean, there’s a whole raft of destructive agencies out there Nexus could target. Why pick on us?”

Nine had to admit it was a good question.

Kentbridge continued, “It’s because we stand for something legitimate.”

Although the special agent was making some convincing points, Nine still assumed he was lying to him. This has all got to be an attempt to brainwash me to accept Omega’s dark agenda. But he wasn’t entirely correct.

Kentbridge passionately believed that Omega – or the Light, as Naylor sometimes referred to the agency – was America’s, and the world’s, only hope of ever unifying. And unification was the only solution for he was also aware that while the public was dividing and conquering itself by focusing on banal, media-driven conflicts such as Neoconservatives versus Liberals, democracy versus terrorism and the West versus the rest, destructive covert outfits were slowly but surely growing stronger.

The special agent also understood how groups like Nexus fostered and benefited from the climate of fear perpetuated in television broadcasts and newspaper headlines. As long as Americans were consumed by fear of evildoers, whether these be communists, terrorists, religious extremists or any other potential enemy, he knew they would never realize the greatest enemy of all was operating within – within the West, within America, within their own Government.

“Trust me, Sebastian,” Kentbridge said as he stared out across the river. “We are the resistance fighting for the vision of America’s founding fathers.” He suddenly smiled at the orphan. “Why else do you think I made you guys study the Constitution inside out?”

Again, Nine had no answer. Looking at his mother in the photo he still held, he knew he had a lot to think about…

“So Omega is designing a New World Order?” Nine asked as he and Kentbridge waited for traffic lights to change so they could cross a busy street in downtown Chicago. They’d traveled to the city straight from Little Calumet River as the special agent had wanted to spend more time with Nine and make more of an impression on his young mind.

“Yes, but it’s not like it sounds,” Kentbridge said.

The lights changed and the pair crossed the street with other pedestrians.

Kentbridge continued, “There are different types of New World Order scenarios. One would be a world government ruled by a totalitarian regime like the Nazis were working toward. That would obviously be destructive. Another scenario would be one in which a fairer world is created. That’s what we are aiming for. We can unite everybody worldwide and create everlasting peace.”

Nine noticed they were approaching a familiar fountain in a public square. It was very close to where he’d fled from Kentbridge during his escape from the city. The special agent gave no sign that he remembered that escapade.

“Countries, religions, racial disharmony,” Kentbridge continued. “These are the things that have messed up our planet.”

“But surely countries represent different values and belief systems? Can there ever be a single government that unites all these different groups?”

“The only salvation for civilization lies in the creation of a world government,” Kentbridge retorted. “Do you know who said that?”

Nine shook his head, indicating he didn’t.

“Albert Einstein. He warned us decades ago that unless we eventually eradicate countries, new world wars will be inevitable. And before that, centuries earlier, Alexander the Great believed the same thing and was on a mission to conquer and unite the whole world.”

“But if the average citizen knew about our organization, they’d say we are evil, destructive, traitors, elitist and–”

“Correct,” Kentbridge interjected. “But then the average American doesn’t know about the threats this country is under and how their freedoms are being thwarted.”

“Well, if Omega really stands for all things good, what about the killings?” Nine lowered his voice. He knew such topics were not for others’ ears. “I mean, you’ve made it clear we are being trained to kill. Like assassins.” The last word was whispered.

“By all means necessary is our motto,” Kentbridge said ominously. “Small evils are needed in order to fulfill the grand plan of world peace and unification.”

Nine thought about everything his master was telling him. It was a lot to take in. “So what are we orphans then? Mere pawns in Omega’s New World Order agenda?”

“You kids are being molded for greatness. Like members of the Royal Family. They have incredible wealth and opportunities to shape the world, but they also are born into roles they must play out for the sake of tradition. From childhood on they must suffer, and they can never be like others, like ordinary people. You orphans are the same, but I promise you the pay-off for all these struggles will be worth it when you get older. You will do amazing things, Sebastian.”

 

The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2) is coming-of-age spy thriller – an epic, atmospheric story that begins with 23 genetically superior orphans being groomed to become elite spies in Chicago’s Pedemont Orphanage and concludes with a political assassination deep in the Amazon jungle.

This top rated book is available via kindle. Here’s the Amazon link: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

 

Happy reading!  –Lance

 

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Amazon reviewer Lynelle Clark describes our coming-of-age spy thriller, The Orphan Factory (The Orphan Trilogy, #2), as “a wonderful continuous of book one” in her 5-star review just posted.

In her review, Lynelle says The Orphan Factory has a ‘well developed plot line with crafty skilled twists to keep you at the edge of your seat”.

Here’s Lynelle’s review for The Orphan Factory:

In Book 2 many questions are answered. Here we are better acquainted with Nine, Seventeen and Tommy Kentridge, the main characters of Book 1 and we learn more about the Omega agency and their quest to a New World Order with the help of 23 created Orphans.

Each uniquely formed for their skills and abilities to become great field operatives or assassins. Clinical and greedy the orphans were formed and prepared for the task. They were seen as science projects and investments and the normal childhood pains were not allowed.

From drugs, to sleep learning, to speed reading (I would have loved to have this ability myself LOL), to fighting martial arts and resuming the identities of others with even greater skill, these children were equipped with one thing in mind and that was to further the members with their dreams of power and more money they could count. Using every thing the authorities have to their disposal.

Nine, our main character rebelled and cleverly escaped. Searching for his independence and freedom. His journey takes us over the states borders to California where he meet up with a girl he was infatuated with. But Helen did not accept him for who he was and at the end this youngster learned early on not to trust any
one.

Meeting interesting characters during this time period of two weeks the story was well written and entertaining. The plans he made to get to California told you why Nine was the best, already a (threat) at the age of twelve.

I loved the way that the authors used the current news of the day to strengthen the plot line, making it more believable and interesting, creating more conspiracy theories. Bill Clinton’s rise to the presidency and how the Agency use it to further their cause. Using the Jonestown Cult story to bring down an ex-operative. All perfectly timed within the story.

The hatred and jealousy that consumed Seventeen from the start and leads her to almost succeed in killing Nine.

I must admit that I became fond of Nine, his strong character superbly developed so that you could be part of his world and his experiences.

Drawn into the secretive world of DNA faltering, power and greed and the extend people in authority would go to acquire even more. Excellent read for all who loves a good spy thriller and I can recommend it for Young Adults as well.

Well developed plot line with crafty skilled twists to keep you at the edge of your seat.

This review can also be viewed at: http://www.amazon.com/The-Orphan-Factory-Trilogy-ebook/product-reviews/B008M9WWKW/ref=cm_cr_dp_synop?ie=UTF8&showViewpoints=0&sortBy=bySubmissionDateDescending#R28UP9TF9S4UUW

Lynelle’s literary blog site is well worth visiting also – at:  lynelleclarkaspiredwriter.blogspot.com/

Happy reading!Lance

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The Orphan Uprising (The Orphan Trilogy, #3)

The Orphan Uprising, our long-awaited third book in The Orphan Trilogy, has just been published on Amazon courtesy of Sterling Gate Books.

In this climactic sequel, the story resumes five years after book one, The Ninth Orphan, ends. It’s an action-packed finale in the life story of Nine, the ninth-born orphan and product of a shadowy organization intent on establishing a New World Order.

The Amazon kindle link for this thriller is: http://www.amazon.com/dp/B00BFC66DM/

The Amazon links to books one and two in the series follow:

The Ninth Orphan (book #1):

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B0056I4FKC

The Orphan Factory (book #2):

http://www.amazon.com/dp/B008M9WWKW/

For more about the international thriller series known as The Orphan Trilogy, go to: http://www.youtube.com/user/SterlingGateBooks

 

Happy reading! -Lance & James

 

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