In all of the coverage of the 10th anniversary of 9-11, the media has not included coverage of why Osama bin Laden chose the date to launch his attack. Since historical dates are very symbolic to Muslims, it is worth recounting the reason why September 11th is a date that had been bitterly observed for 318 years.

The story began in the Muslim siege of Vienna, Austria. There were actually two sieges of Vienna during the Middle Ages. The first took place in 1529 when the armies of Christendom stemmed the westward advance of Islam – for a time. Meanwhile, the eastward advance of Islam had been halted when the Muslim hordes were driven out of Spain and back to North Africa by Ferdinand and Isabella only 37 years prior – the same year they commissioned Columbus’ famous voyage.

After the defeat in Vienna, Islam’s most famous Sultan, Suleiman the Magnificent furthered Mohammad’s mandate that Islam subjugate the world to Allah. He went on to conquer sections of Austria and Hungary, but many historians consider Vienna his Waterloo.

One hundred fifty three years later, the second Battle of Vienna was Islam’s last gasp.

In addition to being motivated by revenge, the Turks lusted for Vienna due to its strategic dom inance in the overland trade routes between the Mediterannean and Germany as well as the Danube water route to the Black Sea, deep in the heart of the Ottoman Empire.

The Ottomans exploited the Counter-Reformation fervor of Leopold I, the Holy Roman Emperor who persecuted Hungarian and Austrian Protestants. The Ottomans provided munitions that helped foment open rebellion against Leopold. Then, under the guise of sending military assistance in support of their revolt, the Ottoman Sultan, Mehmet IV declared war on August 6, 1682 and sent his general, Kara Mustafa Pasha to launch the attack.

That winter, Emperor Leopold concluded a treaty with King Jan Sobiestki of Poland, a pact that would bring aid to both Krakow and Vienna in the event either were attacked by the Turks.

The attack on Vienna began on July 14, 1683, and marked the turning point in a struggle between the Ottoman Empire and the predominantly Christian nations of western Europe. Leopold had fled the city and left a skeleton garrison of 11,000 soldiers and about 5,000 citizen-volunteers to defend the city against the siege. They were no match for Kara Mustafa’s 140,000 troops, but the Turks decided to starve out the city rather than risk a frontal assault.

Using the same tactics they had employed in the century before, the Turks resorted to bombardment to batter the city walls and tunneling beneath them to plant explosive charges. The Viennese resistance continued to repair the gaps, but by September, they were desperate and prepared for a last-ditch defense within the city.

On September 11th, the armies of Islam looked as formidable as they had since they had spewed forth from Mecca 1,000 years earlier with Mohammad’s words ringing in their ears, “… slay the idolaters wherever you find them. Arrest them, besiege them, and lie in ambush everywhere for them (Qur’an 9:5, The Verse of the Sword).”

It was to be their last day to enjoy dominance over western civilization. Late that evening, 81,000 of King Sobiestki’s Polish troops and their German allies lined a hill north of the city.

The next morning, a final Turkish assault was to be launched against the city. A powerful charge had been placed beneath the city walls that would provide a breach sufficient enough for the Turkish forces to swarm into, and subdue the city. The Austrians had dug their own counter-tunnels and found the Turkish mine in time to defuse it.

Before dawn, the Turks descended upon the city flying their crescent flags in anticipation of the explosion that would never come. As they tried to force their way into the city, the Polish infantry attacked their right flank. After hours of softening the Turkish army with his infantry, King Sobieski led what still ranks as the greatest cavalry attack in history. 20,000 heavily-armed men charged down the hills into the valley surrounding the city. The attack was led by Sobieski himself, leading 2,000 Winged Polish Hussars into the right flank. It is said that wind whistling through the Hussar’s artificial wings would unnerve their enemies and their horses.

The garrison within the city celebrated their redemption as the Polish cavalry decimated the Turkish lines. When the Turks turned to meet the assault, the city gates were thrown open and the garrison attacked the Turks from behind. The battle was over in three hours.

The Pope hailed King Sobieski as the “Savior of Vienna and Western European civilization.” A statue commemorating him still stands in Vienna.

On September 11, 2001, radicals within Islam launched what was to be the Third Jihad against western civilization. There’s no doubt Osama bin Laden picked that date due to its historical significance. Clearly, Islam was laying claim to what was ripped from its grasp 318 years before.

I am proud that our sons are serving in our armed forces. In keeping with their Polish heritage, they are doing their part to preserve western civilization.

Since we have a couple of chefs in our family I thought it interesting to inlcude a few culinary legends that are related to the Battle of Vienna:
• One legend is that the croissant was invented in Vienna, either in 1683 or in the earlier siege in 1529, to celebrate the defeat of the Turkish siege of the city, as a reference to the crescents on the Turkish flags. This is supported by the fact that croissants in French Language are referred to as Viennoiserie and the French popular belief that Vienna born Marie Antoinette introduced the pastry to France in 1770.
• Another legend from Vienna, made the first bagel as being a gift to King Jan Sobieski to commemorate the King’s victory over the Turks that year. The baked-good was fashioned in the form of a stirrup, to commemorate the victorious charge by the Polish cavalry. The truth of this legend is more uncertain, as there is a reference in 1610 to a similar-sounding bread, which may or may not have been the bagel.
• After the battle, the Austrians discovered many bags of coffee in the abandoned Turkish encampment. Using this captured stock, Franciszek Jerzy Kulczycki opened the third coffeehouse in Europe and the first in Vienna, where according to legend Kulczycki himself or Marco d’Aviano, the Capuchin friar and confidant of Leopold I, Holy Roman Emperor, added milk and honey to sweeten the bitter coffee, therefore inventing Capuccino.

Due to recent events in Japan I am in the process of revising my sequel, The X Syndrome. As with my first novel, The Y Factor, there are many scenes set in that wonderful country and I feel it is appropriate to integrate references to recent events into the text.

My wife and I were scheduled to visit Japan this past month, but the earthquake, tsunami and nuclear threat forestalled our trip. We had planned to visit our son and his wife who have been stationed near Tokyo for over a year.

In response to the calamity, our son has flown numerous humanitarian relief missions to Japan’s beleaguered citizens. Now that the Navy’s role is being diminished, he’s had a couple of days to rest – the first in nearly a month. He’s finally been able to share some of the heart-wrenching events and has told us of the stoic resilience and humble gratitude evidenced by the Japanese people. This picture was taken from his helicopter as he delivered warm clothing, food and water into the heart of the devastation:

This drawing of Navy relief efforts was made by a child who includes tears of gratitude on the faces of her people as they run toward the helicopter for supplies:

On the eve of yet another significant quake this week, I had begun researching the seeming increase in earthquakes in recent years. I compiled a database from the National Ocean and Atmospheric Administration and was startled at the ominous trend I observed in the data. I summarized two sets of statistics: Total earthquakes and those of magnitude 7.0 and greater. The 7.0 level seemed appropriate as it was the magnitude of the earthquake that leveled Port-Au-Prince fifteen months ago. As was true in Haiti, a quake of that magnitude usually wreaks widespread death and destruction in most under-developed countries.

Here is my analysis:

One could assume that comprehensive data from the 11th through the 15th centuries is questionable due to inconsistent record keeping. As might be anticipated, an observable increase seems to coincide with the advent of offset printing and the concomitant record-retention. One could also question the accuracy of magnitude estimates prior to the adoption of an international scale. In spite of these cautions, there is no question that seismic activity has been increasing exponentially over the most recent centuries and alarmingly so since the beginning of the 20th century. During the ten year span ending with March, 2011, there have been 616 significant seismic events worldwide. This is more than any decade in recorded history. There were 99 events of magnitude 7.0 or greater, which is only exceeded in three prior decades.

From a practical standpoint, the average days between major earthquakes seems like an important metric to be aware of. I finished the above analysis on Wednesday evening and realized that Japan’s 9.0 quake and tsunami had occurred 27 seven days prior. Based upon the average, it seemed that we could expect another quake within the next week.

Ominously, Japan experienced another significant event the following morning. My son told us that he’d just finished another grueling-20 hour flight schedule and was asleep when the tremor awakened him by shaking his whole house.

I thought it would be instructive to view the level of seismic activity in a video timeline. In the following clip I plotted the NOAA data in a series of graphs, then transitioned through them, one decade at a time. The horizontal yellow line is the demarcation of the 7.0 magnitude quakes.

The video clearly demonstrates the alarming increase in both frequency and intensity of seismic events over the past 111 years. The final graphic shows all quakes in the past 10 years (If you receive this posting via email, you will have to visit the blog to view the video):

I have researched the internet and have not found a scientific hypothesis for the exponential rise in earthquake activity. I suspect it won’t be long before a theory of human-induced global warming will be put forth as a plausible explanation. Or perhaps we can blame it on the policies of the Bush administration, which makes as much sense as blaming him for the storm intensity of Katrina as some did.

I would like to propose that this phenomenon was predicted long ago. Near the end of his earthly ministry, Jesus had this encounter with his disciples, as recorded in Matthew 24:3-8:

As Jesus was sitting on the Mount of Olives, the disciples came to him privately. “Tell us,” they said, “…what will be the sign of your coming and of the end of the age?”

Jesus answered: “Watch out that no one deceives you. For many will come in my name, claiming, ‘I am the Messiah,’ and will deceive many. You will hear of wars and rumors of wars, but see to it that you are not alarmed. Such things must happen, but the end is still to come. Nation will rise against nation, and kingdom against kingdom. There will be famines and earthquakes in various places. All these are the beginning of birth pains.

Paul continued this theme in Romans 8:20-22, where he ascribes anthropomorphic qualities to creation itself:

For the creation was subjected to frustration, not by its own choice, but by the will of the one who subjected it, in hope  that the creation itself will be liberated from its bondage to decay…  We know that the whole creation has been groaning as in the pains of childbirth right up to the present time.

Ranking among the most memorable events in my life was being present for the delivery of my three children. During labor, one of my assigned duties was to watch the fetal monitor because it would indicate an impending contraction – even before my wife could detect it. The idea was that she could better prepare herself if I were diligent in alerting her to the imminent spasm. I can attest that she endured the contraction much better when I performed as expected. Unfortunately, there were times when I was distracted with my camera and failed to sound the alarm. She paid dearly – and so did I…

I believe the fetal monitor is a haunting allegory for the earthquake data I’ve been researching. As in the delivery room, I would be remiss if I didn’t draw attention to the alarming seisimic trend – to say nothing of the increased frequency of wars and rumors of wars. Perhaps the warning will help some to prepare themselves; to understand the signs of the times and place their trust in the Lord. Isaiah 32:3-4 seems fitting in this context:

Then the eyes of those who see will no longer be closed, and the ears of those who hear will listen. The fearful heart will know and understand.

There are many who justifiably ask how a loving God can allow such human misery that inevitably accompanies these events. The answer to that is way beyond the scope of my posting, but I don’t take it lightly. If that question troubles the reader, I encourage you to temporarily set it aside and address it as a secondary – but no less important – question later.  The first question I would encourage you to ask is how could Jesus predict these events (and many others) so accurately? And what implication does that have for you?

If you would like to discuss these questions on a more personal level, feel free to email me: liam@y-factor.net .

Liam Roberts

Previous blog entries you may find interesting:

The New Dark Ages: A Long Eurabian Night
Hand-Wringing Diplomacy: Mideast Peace is an Impossible Goal
Islam: What the West Needs to Know
A Woman’s Place in Islam
Islamic Law Requires Breast Feeding of Male Co-workers
What is the Qur’an? Archaeological Find Invalidates Islam’s Holy Book
Madrassah Schools: Why They Pose a Threat to Western Civilization
Violence in the Bible: 1st Response to a Muslim
Validity of Scripture: 2nd Response Presents The Bible as Superior to the Qur’an
The Historic Alliance of Christianity and Science
DNA and the Flood: The Biblical Account is Written in Our Genetic Code
Jihad.com: Islamofascists Are Recruiting Via the Internet
A Brief History of Islam
Submission: The Movie That Led a Muslim to Assassinate Theo Van Gogh
Honoring America’s Fallen Warriors
Profile of A Reluctant Hero: Why Christians Should Defend Themselves
The Enlightenment of Atheism

The Signing of the Declaration

Fifty-six courageous men signed their names to the Declaration of Independence on August 2, 1776.  In honor of America’s 234th birthday, I recommend this excellent article, which provides a glimpse into the cost of our liberty:

Their Lives, Their Fortunes, and Their Sacred Honor
by
James J. Drummey

Caesar Rodney was weary when he reached his plantation near Dover on the night of July 1, 1776. An outspoken advocate of American Independence, Rodney was exhausted from many months of battling Delaware’s Tories while building up and drilling the colony’s militia. The 47-year-old son of a plantation owner, he was the first elected to the colonial legislature in 1761, and sent to the First and Second Continental Congresses. Caesar Rodney was also afflicted with a painful and unsightly facial cancer. So terribly was he ravaged by the disease that he wore a green silk scarf over part of his face, and was described by one colleague as “an animated skeleton, with a bandaged head.”

Tonight there was to be no rest for this weary patriot. An urgent message from his colleague, Thomas McKean, now demanded his presence in Philadelphia “at the earliest possible moment.” McKean and George Read, the other two representatives from Delaware, were split on the issue of independence and Rodney’s vote was needed if Delaware were to join the United States of America.

But Philadelphia was 80 miles away and a torrential rainstorm was swamping the region between the two cities. Exhausted and wracked by cancer, Rodney set out after dusk and rode all night through the pouring rain and the crashing thunder, stopping only long enough to change horses. As he raced through the stormy darkness, it must have occurred to Caesar Rodney that a political storm was rising out of Philadelphia that would change the course of history. It was a storm which had been building for more than a decade as the British Parliament and King George III imposed one oppressive measure after another on the Colonies, increasing their taxes and decreasing their freedoms.

THE GRIEVANCES

The passage of the Stamp Act in 1765 had infuriated many wealthy and influential colonists, and was responsible for beginning the storm that settled over that historic assembly in Philadelphia in July of 1776. These Americans had become angry not so much at the amount of the taxes exacted as at the realization that this was only the opening move in a program of confiscatory taxation. If Parliament “may take from me one shilling in the pound,” argued Richard Henry Lee of Virginia, “what security have I for the other nineteen?”

Although the Stamp Act was subsequently repealed, it had been followed by the Townshend Acts and the Writs of Assistance in 1767, the Boston Massacre in 1770, increasing interference in colonial governments, the Boston Port Bill in 1774, and other “injuries and usurpations, all having, in direct object, the establishment of an absolute tyranny over these states.”

The tyrannical actions of the Crown were quickly followed by measured and sometimes violent reactions from the colonists. They had held a Stamp Act Congress in New York during September of 1765, and that same year formed the Sons of Liberty, which one observer called “a mob of gentlemen.” Committees of Correspondence were organized in 1772 to exchange information among the Colonies and mold public opinion in the developing struggle. And Continental Congresses were convened at Philadelphia in 1774 to deal with Britain’s passage of the Intolerable Acts, and in 1775 shortly after the Battles of Lexington and Concord.

The Second Continental Congress had constituted itself a Provincial Government and had begun making preparations for war with Britain, including the creation of a Continental Army under the command of George Washington. But even as late as January 6, 1776, the Congress adopted a resolution stating that the Colonies “had no design to set up as an independent nation.” Many men of influence were opposed to independence, preferring a return to the relationship of a dozen years earlier.

In January, however, a sensational pamphlet appeared in Philadelphia. It stirred more revolutionary fervor than anything that had been written to that time. Entitled Common Sense, the 25,000-word tract by Thomas Paine challenged British authority over the Colonies and bluntly stated that “the period of debate is closed. Arms, as a last resort, must decide the contest.”

In the months that followed, impassioned speeches were delivered from New Hampshire to Georgia, and the tension became almost unbearable. Then, on June 7th, Richard Henry Lee put this resolution before the Congress:

RESOLVED, That these United Colonies are, and of right ought to be, free and independent States, that they are absolved from all allegiance to the British Crown, and that all political connection between them and the State of Great Britain is, and ought to be, totally dissolved.

After several days of heated debate, final action on Lee’s resolution was deferred until July 1st, and men on both sides of the issue used the intervening weeks to lobby for their own position. On July 1st, the Colonies, balloting according to a majority of each delegation, approved the Lee resolution by a vote of 9-2, with South Carolina and Pennsylvania opposed, Delaware deadlocked, and New York abstaining. Unanimity was essential, so Edward Rutledge of South Carolina moved that a final vote be postponed until the following day.

Thus had the stage been set as Caesar Rodney galloped up Chestnut Street to the State House in Philadelphia on the morning of July 2nd. He was enthusiastically greeted by Thomas McKean and escorted into the Brick Building where some 50 to 60 men were about to decide the fate of a continent.

There was no debate or discussion. The time had come to vote again on Richard Henry Lee’s resolution. New England was unanimously for independence. New York still abstained, but New Jersey and Pennsylvania voted in the affirmative. The Pennsylvania delegation had been 4-3 against independence, but Robert Morris and John Dickinson deliberately stayed away from the State House during the balloting, allowing Pennsylvania, under the unit rule, to support independence despite instructions by which the two men felt themselves personally bound.

Delaware was called next by Charles Thomson, the Clerk of Congress, and Caesar Rodney, in a tired but clear voice, responded: “As I believe the voice of my constituents and of all of the sensible and honest men is in favor of independence, and my own judgement concurs with them, I vote for independence.” Rodney knew very well that, now unable to go to England for treatment of his terrible cancer, he would die a horrible death.

There were no negative votes among the five southernmost colonies — South Carolina went along for the sake of unity — and when the roll had been completed 12 colonies had voted in favor of separation from Britain, and only New York had abstained. A monumental decision had been made, and now it would have to be implemented.

DECLARING THEMSELVES The man chosen formally to declare the reasons for independence was Thomas Jefferson, a 33-year-old lawyer and plantation owner from Virginia. A member of the five-man drafting committee created immediately after the Lee resolution was introduced, Jefferson had proposed that John Adams of Massachusetts undertake the actual writing of the statement, but Adams declined. He said that the task should fall to his rival Jefferson on three counts: “Reason first, you are a Virginian, and Virginia ought to appear at the head of this business. Reason second, I am obnoxious, suspected, and unpopular; you are very much otherwise. Reason third, you can write ten times better than I can.”

“Well,” said Jefferson, “if you are decided, I will do as well as I can.”

That he did his job well is obvious to anyone who has read the Declaration of Independence, particularly his statement of the self-evident truths that “all men are created equal; that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable rights; that among these are life, liberty, and the pursuit of happiness. That, to secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed.”

On July 3rd, Jefferson’s draft of the Declaration was submitted to the delegates from the 13 Colonies, and he suffered the pain of all authors at the hands of editors — in this case, half a hundred of them. The debate continued into the Fourth of July and, in Jefferson’s own words, “seemed as though it would run on interminably. The weather was oppressively warm and the room occupied by the delegates was hard by a livery stable…. The horse-flies swarmed thick and fierce, alighting on the legs of the members and biting hard through their thin silk stockings. Handkerchief in hand they lashed at the hungry pests to no avail.”

The revisions were completed on the evening of July 4th; the document was adopted without dissent; and the Declaration of Independence was ordered proclaimed throughout the United States. Only John Hancock signed the Declaration that day, and a formal signing by all the delegates was scheduled for August 2nd.

In the days that followed, copies of the Declaration of Independence were posted throughout the 13 states and read in public places. General Washington ordered that the document be read to each Army brigade on July 9th, and he reported afterwards to Congress on “the expressions and behavior of officers and men testifying their warmest approbation of it.” Parades and demonstrations, patriotic observances and celebrations were held across the states. Exuberant citizens of Bowling Green, New York, hauled down a large equestrian statue of George III and carried it to the Connecticut home of General Oliver Wolcott, a delegate to Congress. Wolcott’s wife and children, and other ladies of the town, melted down the statue into 42,088 bullets for the American Army.

Meanwhile, the New York State Convention had finally voted to allow its delegates to approve the Declaration. On July 15th, New York became the 13th colony to affirm independence.

Two weeks later, August 2, 1776, the Congress met again at the State House in Philadelphia to formalize with their signatures what they had adopted a month before. Not all those who had voted for independence on July 2nd were present in August. Some had left Congress; others were away and had to sign later; and several new delegates had since been elected.

THE SIGNERS OF THE DECLARATION

Whatever their status that August, the 56 men who eventually signed the Declaration of Independence were under no illusions. They knew they were committing an act of high treason against the Crown and that the penalty for doing so was death by hanging. They understood quite clearly that they were indeed pledging “to each other our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor.”

William Ellery of Rhode Island deliberately moved close to the signing table “to see how they all looked as they signed what might be their death warrants.” He said that “undaunted resolution was displayed in every countenance.”

John Hancock of Massachusetts, the president of the Congress, had been the first to sign. “There!” he had said after writing his name in large, bold letters. “His Majesty can now read my name without spectacles, and can now double his reward of 500 pounds for my head. That is my defiance.”

Hancock is also reported to have said that “we must be unanimous. There must be no pulling different ways; we must all hang together.” To which the witty Benjamin Franklin of Pennsylvania reportedly replied: “Yes, we must all hang together, or most assuredly we shall all hang separately.”

Stephen Hopkins of Rhode Island, the second-oldest signer, was afflicted with palsy. “My hand trembles,” he said as he handed the quill to William Ellery, “but my heart does not.” And Charles Carroll, a new delegate from Maryland and one of the wealthiest men in America, replied as he was asked by Hancock if he would sign: “Most willingly.” When he had backed away from the table, one delegate whispered, “There go a few millions!”

And so it went through the rest of the states, with George Walton of Georgia the last to affix his name to the historic document that day. Even George Read of Delaware, who had voted against the Declaration on July 2nd, signed it; as did Robert Morris of Pennsylvania, who had stayed away from the session rather than vote no as he was formally instructed to do.

It took only a few minutes to complete the signing, and it was agreed not to make the signatures public for six months to give the signers and their families as much time as possible to secure themselves against certain reprisals. Despite this precaution, it is probable that the British Government and its Tory allies knew the names of every signer long before they were released to the public.

MEN OF CHARACTER

These 56 men who spoke for some two and a half million American freemen were a spectacular group of individuals. That such men were present at the moment of America’s birth strongly suggests that the same Divine Providence they invoked in the Declaration of Independence had indeed planned it that way.

The signers were public-spirited and patriotic citizens who had for years been important participants in the affairs of their local communities and governments. Ranging in age from 26 (Edward Rutledge) to 70 (Benjamin Franklin), they were for the most part materially well-off in colonial society. Eleven delegates were prosperous merchants, nine were wealthy farmers or landowners, and 24 were lawyers or judges. The Colonies’ most respected doctors, educators and clergymen were numbered among their ranks.

Here were the elite of the eighteenth century America, but few were elitist. They were moral men, mostly religious, and all men of integrity who had been welded together in a common purpose. They had a great deal to lose — life, liberty and property — but they were convinced that the cause was worth the risk. That risk was not only substantial, it was imminent. On the day of the signing, the British fleet — an armada of dozens of ships with 42,000 sailors and soldiers — was waiting off the coast to crush these patriots and make an example of them. Behind that fleet was all the wealth and power of the British Empire.

Arrayed against such might was a Continental Army of 10,000 men, and a handful of poorly equipped and badly trained militia in the several states. Few with a knowledge of history would have predicted anything but disaster and ruin for those gathered in Philadelphia during the first week of August in 1776.

In point of fact, disaster and ruin was the lot of many of the signers. Nine died of wounds or hardships during the war. Five were jailed and brutally treated. One lost all 13 of his children. The wives, sons, and daughters of others were killed, imprisoned, harassed or deprived of all material possessions. Seventeen signers lost everything they owned, and all of them were hunted as traitors, with most separated from their homes and families.

But none of the signers ever betrayed his pledged word. There were no defectors. No one changed his mind. Lives and fortunes were lost, but their sacred honor was never sacrificed. Half continued to serve their country after the war — several as President, many as Members of Congress, governors, and state legislators — and a number of them later played a role in drawing up the Constitution of the United States.

TRAGEDY AND TRIUMPH

The first signer to die, in 1777, was John Morton of Pennsylvania, a former Crown officer who had been sent to Philadelphia to oppose independence. Once persuaded otherwise, however, Morton signed the Declaration and stood by his decision, though he was ostracized by his family and friends, many of whom were Tories. That reaction deeply hurt Morton, particularly when he was ignored even after he fell gravely ill early in 1777. On his deathbed, John Morton sent these final words to those who had rejected him: “Tell them that they will live to see the hour when they shall acknowledge it [the signing] to have been the most glorious service that I ever rendered to my country.”

The New York signers — William Floyd, Phillip Livingston, Francis Lewis, and Lewis Morris — were particularly vulnerable to British retaliation. The ink was hardly dry on the Declaration of Independence when General William Howe landed 25,000 British soldiers on New York’s Long Island. They inflicted nearly 20 percent casualties on the Continental Army in a battle on August 27th. Washington ordered his forces to withdraw and the Redcoats laid waste to most of the countryside, destroying in the process the homes and lands of the four who had signed for New York.

The wife of William Floyd escaped with her children by boat across Long Island Sound into Connecticut. She died in 1781 without ever again seeing her home.

Phillip Livingston lost two homes and much of his business property, but was able to sell some of his remaining holdings to help maintain the credit of the United States. He died in 1778 while separated from his family by the war.

Francis Lewis was away when the British ransacked his home, so they seized his wife, treated her brutally, and threw her into prison under foul conditions. Her health broke during captivity and Mrs. Lewis died shortly after being released in a 1778 prisoner exchange.

The other New York signer, Lewis Morris, lost his magnificent estate, “Morrisania,” which was ransacked and burned. He lived in poverty for years before he was able to restore his property. Yet he so conducted himself that Benjamin Rush of Pennsylvania said of Morris that “every attachment of his heart yielded to his love of his country.”

Great hardships and suffering were also inflicted upon three signers from neighboring New Jersey. John Hart, at the insistence of his dying wife, finally left her bedside to flee as a party of Hessians approached his farm. He was hunted by soldiers and dogs and was forced to hide in the woods and caves of the Sourland Mountains during icy December weather. When he was at last able to return to his home, John Hart found that his wife had died and his 13 children were scattered throughout the countryside or in captivity. His own health began to deteriorate and he was dead by the third anniversary of the signing of the Declaration.

Richard Stockton was betrayed by a loyalist and seized by the British, who subjected him to frequent beatings and starvation. When he was finally freed in a prisoner exchange, Stockton was an invalid who died a short time later at the age of 51.

Abraham Clark, the New Jersey signer who was known as the “Poor Man’s Counsellor,” had two sons — both Army officers — who were captured and accorded barbarous treatment on the hellship Jersey. The British offered freedom for his boys if he would abandon the American cause, but Abraham Clark refused. When other members of Congress heard of the plight of the Clark sons, they ordered George Washington to take a British prisoner, preferably an officer, and starve him to death in a dark hole. The mere communication of that congressional order to General Howe was enough to end the persecution of the Clark brothers and they survived their imprisonment.

During the siege of Yorktown in 1781, the British Forces were under heavy attack from some 16,000 American troops, 3,000 Virginia militia, and the French fleet. The militia commander was signer Thomas Nelson Jr., who noticed that the artillery gunners were shelling everything in the vicinity except his own stately brick mansion, which was being used as British headquarters. “Why do you spare my house?” Nelson demanded of the gunners. “Sir, out of respect to you,” an artilleryman replied. “Give me the cannon,” Nelson shouted. The next round from the gun went through the mansion, killing the British officers inside and destroying the Nelson home.

Thomas Nelson Jr., who died in poverty after paying off his wartime debts “like an honest man,” said he was only honoring a pledge he had made six years before. “I am a merchant of Yorktown, but I am a Virginian first,” he declared in the House of Burgesses. “Let my trade perish. I call to God to witness that if any British troops are landed in the County of York, of which I am Lieutenant, I will wait no orders, but will summon the militia and drive the invaders into the sea!”

Joseph Hewes of North Carolina was a Quaker with a long pacifist heritage. For many months he sided with those in Congress who were opposed to independence. After much soul- searching, Hewes decided that his belief in liberty outweighed his pacifist convictions, and he joined those urging separation from England. During the war he devoted a superhuman effort to outfitting the Continental Navy, an activity which alienated him from his fellow Quakers. “My country is entitled to my services, and I shall not shrink from the cause, even though it should cost me my life,” he declared. Joseph Hewes died in 1779, literally from overwork, a lonely man separated by principle from his Quaker friends and family.

During the British assault on South Carolina in 1780, three of that state’s signers — Thomas Heyward Jr., Arthur Middleton, and Edward Rutledge — distinguished themselves in the defense of Charleston. All three were captured, refused a British offer of amnesty if they would repudiate the American cause, and were shipped to the Crown stockade at St. Augustine, Florida. Heyward defied the guards by writing new words to “God Save the King” and teaching the other prisoners to sing “God Save the States” to the old tune. The three South Carolinians were given their freedom in a prisoner exchange late in 1781. Thomas Heyward returned to find that his wife had died in hardship during his imprisonment.

Such was the caliber of the men who signed the Declaration of Independence, the men who risked their lives, their fortunes, and their sacred honor to establish the American Republic and to guarantee our rights to life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness.

“These are the times that try men’s souls,” Thomas Paine wrote in Common Sense. “The summer soldier and the sunshine patriot will, in this crisis, shrink from the service of his country; but he that stands it now deserves the thanks of man and woman. Tyranny, like Hell, is not easily conquered; yet we have this consolation with us, that the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.”

We, too, live in times that try men’s souls. Like the Founding Fathers, we find the right to life and liberty threatened in our own country. We are burdened by an oppressive government that “has erected a multitude of new offices and sent hither swarms of officers to harass our people and eat out their substance,” a government that has left us exposed and vulnerable to a foreign enemy bent upon our destruction.

And we have our own “summer soldiers and sunshine patriots” who shrink from the service of our country. But we also have many more courageous and dedicated men and women — some in the Congress, others in the state legislatures, still more in the cities and towns among people of all walks of life — who will not submit to tyranny, who are now vigorously defending our rights and fighting for less government, more responsibility, and, with God’s help, a better world. This too is a time for patriots. And it is time to remember that “the harder the conflict, the more glorious the triumph.”

This essay was taken from “The New American” (Volume 4, Number 14, July 4, 1988). It originally appeared in “The Review Of The News” (July 5, 1978), a fore-runner to “The New American”.

Such were the stories and sacrifices of the American Revolution. They were not wildeyed rabble-rousing ruffians. They were soft-spoken men of means and education. They had security, but they valued liberty more. Standing tall, straight, and unwavering, they pledged: “For the support of this declaration, with a firm reliance on the protection of the Divine Province, we mutually pledge to each other, our lives, our fortunes, and our sacred honor”.

Memorable words from the poem by Emma Lazarus, immortalized on the Statue of Liberty.

Words that have special meaning for Armenian immigrant George Magar Mardikian, who first gazed upon Liberty on his birthday.

George escaped the then-worst genocide in history, only to be surpassed by the Nazi extermination of the Jews in WWII. This was the extermination of the Armenian Christians by the Muslim government of Turkey in the final throes of the Caliphate-led Ottoman Empire. Estimates of the slaughter surpass the million mark.

George nearly starved to death in a Turkish prison camp after his father was killed. He later fled to America where he first experienced what it means to breathe free. His story is the epitome of the countless immigrants who have come here to build a better life – and to offer their special giftedness to their adopted country.

George recently became a naturalized citizen of the United States after a lifetime of faithful service to our country, a highlight of which was earning a Presidential Medal of Freedom for his service during WWII.

Following George’s swearing in, he uttered these poignant and inspiring words that each of us should heed: ”You who have been born in America, I wish I could make you understand what it is like not to be an American – not to have been an American all your life-and then suddenly with the words of a man in flowing robes [the judge who issued the oath of citizenship] to be one, for that moment and forever after. One moment you belong with your fathers to a million dead yesterdays – the next you belong with America to a million unborn tomorrows. [emphasis mine]”

Read more about the human tragedy of the Armenian genocide in the first-person account of Grigoris Balakian. His newly-released book is entitled Armenian Golgotha.

The above information about George Mardikian comes from a World Magazine article.

Blessings,
Liam

Previous blog entries you may find interesting:

The New Dark Ages: A Long Eurabian Night
Hand-Wringing Diplomacy: Mideast Peace is an Impossible Goal
Islam: What the West Needs to Know
A Woman’s Place in Islam
Islamic Law Requires Breast Feeding of Male Co-workers
What is the Qur’an? Archaeological Find Invalidates Islam’s Holy Book
Madrassah Schools: Why They Pose a Threat to Western Civilization
Violence in the Bible: 1st Response to a Muslim
Validity of Scripture: 2nd Response Presents The Bible as Superior to the Qur’an
The Historic Alliance of Christianity and Science
DNA and the Flood: The Biblical Account is Written in Our Genetic Code
Jihad.com: Islamofascists Are Recruiting Via the Internet
A Brief History of Islam
Submission: The Movie That Led a Muslim to Assassinate Theo Van Gogh
Honoring America’s Fallen Warriors
Profile of A Reluctant Hero: Why Christians Should Defend Themselves
The Enlightenment of Atheism

This post is in response to many of my readers who have enjoyed The Y Factor and have offered to help promote it. I’ve included several ideas below. I would greatly appreciate any effort you may extend in this regard. The second section is regarding a recent “blog tour” of The Y Factor.

What You Can Do

In the traditional publishing environment, sales activity in the first weeks following the release of a book are critical to a book going “viral.” It also improves the chances that mainstream Christian magazines will publish a review of the book and encourages bookstores to keep a book on their shelves.

If a book doesn’t make an impact in the first 90 days, bookstores will return it to make room for new releases. With this in mind, there are several requests that I would make of anyone who enjoyed The Y Factor and has a few minutes to spare…

1. Pray! Sales of books in the Christian niche are sluggish, especially Christian Fiction.

2. According to the Six Degrees of Separation principle, many of you may know an influential person. I will be more than happy to autograph a copy of The Y Factor and mail it directly to them. Or, I can ship it to you if you want to personally present it.  Keep in mind that these people are innundated with requests and may resent the intrusion on their time. I’ll let you be the judge of the strength of your relationship and whether you feel comfortable endorsing The Y Factor. Email me with the specifics of your request. Please include your name (your email address may not give me a clue) and mailing address, the name of the individual and their mailing address, if needed. Finally, let me know what benefit you think will be gained by getting a copy of The Y Factor to this individual. Send your email to liam@y-factor.net.

3. Check your local Christian bookstore and see if they are carrying The Y Factor. If not, ask them to do so – and to display it with in the New Release section. BTW – stores like Barnes & Noble and Borders won’t stock this book, but will ship it freight-free to their stores for pick-up.

4. Encourage others to read the book and consider buying a copy for them. Amazon is selling copies below $11.00.

5. Send personal emails encouraging your contacts to purchase a copy of the book.

6. Use your social network sites to spread interest in the book. Here’s how:

• If you have a Facebook account, click here to join The Y Factor group. Post a comment on the Wall about the book, and invite others to join the Group.
• Click the Share button below and select your preferred social network, then type a message that will appear on your Wall.
• 

7. Go to either or both of these online sites and post a review of the book. With Amazon, you need to establish/login to your account. With the Christian Book site, you have to enter your info, but you don’t have to create an account:

• Amazon
• Christian Book

9. Go to this YouTube site and post a comment about the video trailer and/or book. You will need to log onto YouTube post a comment.

Endorsements for The Y Factor

An Amazon “Top 500 Reviewer” posted a very favorable review a couple of weeks ago:

“The Y Factor” had me hooked before the end of the first page. The book is a combination of suspense, mystery, and intrigue. The adventure is built on an intense plot that includes computer and genetics technology, scientific data, military tactics, al Qaeda assassins, and detailed information on the Muslim religion, culture and history.

Motivated by hatred and violence the Muslim Brotherhood is in a battle for religious and racial supremacy and a quest for power and world domination. Renowned scientist Ahmed Alomari is working in an effort to trace their DNA to the beginning of human history and to uncover the Y factor.

Sinister plot twists of murder and mayhem, terrorists and government agents take young computer analyst Eric Colburn and his geneticist girlfriend Alana McKinsey to cities around the world including: Atlanta, Georgia; Delhi, India; Tokyo, Japan; Cairo, Egypt; and Karachi, Pakistan. The plot is filled with an adrenaline rush that continues page after exciting page of conflict, resolution, and more conflict.

Liam Robert is a fresh new voice in the techno thriller genre destined to become a best selling author. His fresh plot ideas are relevant, his descriptions realistic, and his characters believable. His own absorption with genetics, and appreciation for the National Geographic’s Genographic Project have provided him with unusual insight and additional research into tracing DNA back into Israel’s history.

“The Y Factor” will be a favorite for fans who enjoy the thriller suspense genre. Readers specifically drawn to novels which incorporate the role of Biblical prophecy and current events will find Liam’s writing intriguing and enlightening.

The Y Factor was highlighted in a “Blog Tour” on July 16th.

This involved fourteen Christian Book Reviewers, some of whom posted reviews on their blogs.  I’ve summarized all their reviews here.

Here’s the best of the reviews:

The Y Factor by Liam Roberts is a fast-paced page-turner. The story of college friends who take the disappearance of one of their own seriously enough to stage a two-person manhunt is terrific – and thought-provoking – entertainment. This absolutely thrilling book is intelligently written and will bring the reader to a new level of thought. It seems authentically Mediterranean in flavor with injected phrases and words. You want to see these characters succeed. I was on the edge of my seat rooting for them.The scientific story is detailed with such logical plausibilities that plug right into scripture. This novel alone is so convincingly written that it could almost be used on its own to convince people that science and faith can blend! I haven’t finished the book, yet, but it is well worth the effort to savor. Once you get into the rhythm of the story and embrace the logic, the pages do move quickly. I can completely understand why Liam Roberts is compared with author Tom Clancy – He is that good – and that intelligent – of a writer!

Here’s the format used by all of the blog postings:

It is time for a FIRST Wild Card Tour book review! If you wish to join the FIRST blog alliance, just click the button. We are a group of reviewers who tour Christian books. A Wild Card post includes a brief bio of the author and a full chapter from each book toured. The reason it is called a FIRST Wild Card Tour is that you never know if the book will be fiction, non~fiction, for young, or for old…or for somewhere in between! Enjoy your free peek into the book!

Today’s Wild Card author is:
Liam Roberts

and the book:

The Y Factor

Realms (June 20, 2009)

ABOUT THE AUTHOR:

Liam Roberts’ fascination with genetics—particularly the Genographic Project sponsored by The National Geographic Society and the idea that the story of Noah’s flood might be recorded in our DNA—combined with an interest in Islamic terrorism, provide the impetus for this debut novel. Roberts has a popular blog where he writes on topics surrounding Christianity and Islam in America. He has been married for thirty-three years to his wife, Marsha, and they have been blessed with three incredible children.

Product Details:

List Price: $13.99
Paperback: 329 pages
Publisher: Realms (June 20, 2009)
Language: English
ISBN-10: 1599796236
ISBN-13: 978-1599796239

And Now…The 1st chapter of THE Y FACTOR:




ONE

Tuesday, June 14, 2005

7 Jumādā ‘l-Ūlā, 1426 AH

Atlanta, Georgia

Eric Colburn stared at the subject line in disbelief:
“IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO ME . . . ” How did this e-mail from Hamdi get in the junk folder? As he double-clicked the entry, he noticed the date. He couldn’t believe he’d overlooked it for a month, and he chided himself for not checking his junk folder more regularly.

From: Hamdi Tantawi

Sent: Tue 5/13/2005 1:02 PM

To: Eric Colburn

Cc:

Subject: IF ANYTHING HAPPENS TO ME . . .

Eric:

I mailed you a DVD yesterday. It is important that you watch it . . .

Eric remembered receiving a DVD from Hamdi, but he had set it aside. Where did I put it? He rummaged through his desk drawers but came up empty. It wasn’t in his CD rack or in his desktop in-basket. Then he remembered laying it on his entertainment center so he could watch it with Alana. He ran to the living room and rifled through the DVDs. No luck. Craning his head forward, he saw the edge of a DVD case in the dim shadows between the stereo equipment and the wall. He leaned forward, stretching his arm and probing with his fingertips until he pinched the case between two fingers. As he gently guided it upward, it caught in the wiring and dropped further into the recess.

Ignoring the precaution of unplugging something, he slid the stack of equipment forward, extracted the case, and held it up to the light. “Mapping Human Genetics.” No wonder he’d forgotten about it. He’d assumed Hamdi was still trying to convince him that macroevolution was a superior theory to intelligent design.

Eric slipped the DVD into the player. A lecturer began a presentation with a superimposed title bar, identifying the speaker as Steve Olson. “The DNA codebook for our species consists of literally billions of nucleotide bonds–these are the rungs on the ladder discussed in the last tutorial–and the whole thing is made up of only four different molecules. The elegance is in its simplicity! Here’s an analogy that will put the design into perspective.”

Eric sighed. He wanted to understand all this, especially since Alana loved it so much, but it could be so boring.

The lecture continued. “Imagine that you place a one-inch black cube in an empty field. Suddenly the cube begins to make copies of itself. Two, four, eight, sixteen. The proliferating cubes begin to form structures–enclosures, arches, walls, tubes. Some of the tubes turn into wires, pipes, structural steel, wooden studs. Sheets of cubes become wallboard and wood paneling, carpet and plate-glass windows. The wires begin to differentiate, connecting themselves into parallel but independent networks of immense complexity. Cranes are erected that are not part of the structure but are necessary to deliver the flow of materials throughout the complex entity. These cranes are then disassembled when their task is completed. Eventually, a one-hundred-story skyscraper stands in the field. It is unique from all others that have ever been assembled.”

Why did Hamdi make a big deal out of this? And what did he mean by “If anything happens to me”?

“That’s basically the process a fertilized cell undergoes, beginning with the moment of conception. How did that cube know how to make a skyscraper? How does a cell know how to make a human? Biologists used to think that the cellular proteins carried the instructions. But now proteins look more like pieces of brick and stone–useless without a building plan and mason. The instructions for how to build an organism must be written in a cell’s DNA, but no one has figured out exactly how to read the complex message.”

What is the point of all this? Eric lifted the remote but restrained himself.

“Each one of you started as a single cell. Billions of nucleotides were stored in the DNA that identifies you as unique from all humans who have ever lived. In one nucleus. In one cell. At the moment of conception. I call it the bar code of life.”

Eric’s patience finally wore thin. He pressed the fast-forward button, hoping something would look obvious. If not, he’d have to rewind and suffer through the lecture in order to figure out what Hamdi meant. Ten minutes into the lecture, the screen distorted into a series of horizontal bands, then rolled vertically. Eric hit the play button as the image slowly morphed into Hamdi sitting in front of a bare concrete wall in a dimly lit room.

Hamdi’s appearance was alarming. He sat with slumped shoulders, his sunken cheeks lean and hungry. The poor lighting accentuated the haunted look of his eyes, clouding them in deep shadow, a stark contrast to the gleaming beads of sweat on his forehead.

Eric rewound the segment to be sure he didn’t miss anything important.

Hamdi cleared his throat and reached forward, his hand disappearing at the edge of the screen. The image jerked, coming to rest at a slight angle with Hamdi’s head and shoulders in the lower-right portion of the screen. Hamdi began whispering, his voice too low to be heard.

Eric adjusted the volume and leaned forward, huddling with the monitor as if it were a coconspirator.

“Sorry for the intrigue, Eric. I had to anticipate this might be intercepted. I inserted the lecture so it would be dismissed as merely an educational DVD. But I know you well enough that I’m sure you will find this.

“Things have not gone well here, Eric. Cairo is not the same as when I left twelve years ago. I do not hear laughter any longer. Children no longer play outdoors with the same abandon.” Hamdi shook his head slowly, and then his stare intensified. “At first, I enjoyed my work in the Genographic Project, but soon I began to feel out of place there too. My co-workers are very devout, but they express extreme views. Most of them despise America and have been suspicious of me because of the time I spent there. I now realize that I will never earn their trust.

“Eric, bizarre things are happening in the lab, and there is no one to confide in. I brought my concerns to the lab director, but he rebuked me for being an informer. Then my co-workers began to utter threats. I tried to ignore them, but they have recently become more strident. I believe I have been followed and am starting to fear for my safety.

“I do not want to be melodramatic, but I wanted you to know what is happening in case anything happens to me. I have recorded my observations in my lab book and will read them to you in another DVD, when I am able to be alone in the lab–hopefully tomorrow. Perhaps you can help me get the information to our headquarters in Atlanta.

“Please give my regards to Alana–” Hamdi paused as his voice betrayed him. Eric detected a glimmer in the shadows and looked closer. Hamdi was crying.

“I wish I had not graduated early. I would give anything to be there and graduating with the two of–” A loud noise startled Hamdi and drowned out his comment. A look of fear swept over his features as he once again reached for the camera. “I must go now! Watch for the next DVD, and promise me you will get it to my headquarters!” The image faded to black.

Eric sat in stunned silence. He pressed the stop button and dropped the remote. “I promise, Hamdi,” he whispered to the darkened screen. Eric returned to his computer, where a quick check confirmed there had been no further messages from Hamdi. He typed out a quick reply and apologized for not having written sooner. He ended the e-mail by assuring Hamdi he would personally intercede with Hamdi’s employer but was concerned that he hadn’t yet received the second DVD Hamdi had promised.

Before shutting down his laptop, Eric needed to find the employer’s address. A Google search responded to his query before he could lift his finger from the enter key:

Your Genetic Journey – The Genographic Project – The

National Geographic Society

A 5-year study by the National Geographic Society, IBM, geneticist Dr. Miles Larson, and the Saud Family Foundation to compile a genetic atlas. Project . . .

www.nationalgeographic.com/genographic – 34k -
Cached – Similar pages

Participate Globe of Human History
Your Genetic Journey Public Participation Kit
Atlas of Human Journey Genetics Overview

Eric had known the National Geographic Society was behind the project but was interested that IBM was also involved, since it was one of the firms he was pursuing. The Saud Foundation was meaningless, but Miles Larson was a name Eric recognized from somewhere. He sat back in his chair and clicked the various links below the introductory description. In a few minutes, he learned quite a bit about the firm Hamdi worked for. The headquarters of the Genographic Project were on the outskirts of Atlanta, not far from where he lived.

Another e-mail arrived. The subject noted “Delivery Failure.” With a sinking feeling, Eric opened the e-mail.

Your message has encountered delivery problems to the following recipient(s):

hamditantawi@gmail.com

Delivery failed

Error Code: 550; hamditantawi@gmail.com; User account is unknown

No recipients were successfully delivered to.

Eric stood in front of the massive Genographic Project headquarters, steeling himself for the expected confrontation. To bolster his courage, he flipped his cell open and called Alana at her summer job.

“This is Alana McKinsey.”

“We need to meet,” Eric blurted.

“Hi to you too!”

“I’m sorry. I have a lot on my mind. Have you had lunch yet?” Eric asked.

“No. Being the new girl means I get the worst time slot for lunch. I can’t go for another hour and a half.”

“That’s perfect. I have something I need to talk to you about,” Eric said.

“Sounds ominous. How about the sub shop down the street?”

“I’ll be there.”

Eric couldn’t get Hamdi off his mind. There’s no way Hamdi would cancel his e-mail account without sending out a new one to his friends. The ominous tone of the DVD had been alarming, and Eric had resolved what he needed to do. He had to tell Alana about this but wasn’t sure how it would be received.

If only Hamdi had not rushed to graduate early. He’d doubled up for a couple of semesters and got his degree from Georgia Tech a semester ahead of Eric and Alana. Then the job with the Genographic Project gave him the chance to return to his home country. When Hamdi left during the Christmas break, Eric was still fumbling for direction. He hadn’t had a clue what he would do after graduation, except he hoped it would involve Alana. As things stood right now, Alana was scheduled to begin the graduate program at Harvard in a couple of months. As unappealing as the idea of moving to Boston was, it seemed to be his only choice to be near her.

Suddenly, he’d decided to change direction and struggled with the best way to tell her.

He was certain she wouldn’t alter her plans without the assurance provided by a ring, but he wasn’t ready to produce such assurance. We’re just starting our careers, he told himself. There’s plenty of time to figure out our future.

Eric strode down the street to the sandwich shop and scanned the small seating area. Alana was in a booth by the window and glanced up as he approached. She beamed, her opaline green eyes flashing recognition. His breath caught, and he savored the moment. He was distracted by an alluring silhouette accentuated by the light that backlit her sheer blouse. His eyes dropped for the briefest flicker, and then he composed himself.

“Hi,” he said as he bent to kiss her. “You know, you take my breath away.” Alana blushed, her complexion infused in a warm roselike glow. Characteristically, she deftly turned the subject from herself.

“So, what did you want to tell me?” she asked. “I have to be back in forty-five minutes.”

“Sorry I’m late. Things took an unexpected turn.” Eric paused. “Alana, I have bad news.”

Alana looked at him warily. “OK . . . ”

“I think Hamdi’s disappeared.” Eric quickly told Alana about Hamdi’s cryptic message, the DVD he’d overlooked, and the rejected e-mail to Hamdi.

Tears filled Alana’s eyes. “Oh, Eric! I can’t believe this. What could have happened to him? Who can we report this to?”

“I don’t know what could have happened, but I’m going to find out.”

“How?”

“I took a job with Hamdi’s company.”

Alana stared at him with a dumbfounded expression. “You lost me. What do you mean you took a job?”

“My first impulse was to go to the police, but that wouldn’t work. Hamdi’s out of the country. The State Department can’t help because he isn’t a U.S. citizen. So I drove to the company headquarters, thinking I would barge in and raise the red flag. But then I realized–I don’t have any evidence that anything has happened to Hamdi. And I started wondering how seriously they would take his unemployed former roommate.

“When I approached the guard desk at the headquarters, they asked me what I wanted. For a minute, I was speechless, trying to conjure up a believable story. I glanced down at the desk and noticed a brochure announcing job openings. The first one listed was in the IT department. Then the idea came to me. If I could get a job with the company, I might be able to get to the bottom of it.”

“Eric–that’s pretty impulsive,” Alana said.

“I know it seems that way, but there were so many coincidences that it seemed like the right thing to do.”

“What do you mean?”

“First, they were looking for someone with an IT degree, and my specialty fit their requirements exactly. Then, I just happened to have my résumé folder in my backpack with my transcript and letters of recommendation. It’s like a path was laid out in front of me. The next thing I knew, I was sailing through the interview, and they offered me the job–pending a background check.”

“What do you hope to accomplish by that?”

“I don’t know, but I figured they would blow me off if I rushed in there to tell them my friend is missing. Besides, something happened right before the interview that convinced me this is the right approach to take.”

“What?”

“A lady in the HR department was making sure I’d filled everything out correctly before my interview. She noticed that I’d made an entry in the spot where they ask if you know anyone currently employed by the NGS. She looked up and told me I should erase Hamdi’s name. I asked her why, and she said that he’d been a big disappointment–that he’d abandoned his job a month ago.”

“So, how did that convince you to go to work for them?”

“Don’t you see? If they thought Hamdi quit his job, they couldn’t care less whether something happened to him. And I’d sound like a conspiracy nut if I pressed the issue. This way, I might have a chance to figure out what happened and maybe even clear his name.”

“Well, that’s all well and good, but what about Boston? I thought you wanted to be near me.”

“I do!” he said. “I can’t tell you how much I want that. But I had another idea.” Eric passed a brochure to her. “Here’s the job listing sheet I picked up. The job right below the IT listing is for a research assistant to the director of the whole project–a job that’s a perfect fit for you.”

“I don’t think so, Eric,” Alana said, shaking her head for emphasis.

“Alana, don’t dismiss the idea until you hear me out.” He reached out and clasped her hands in his. “Alana, you’re the best thing that’s ever happened to me. I want the chance to take us to the next level, and working together will let us see what that means.”

“You don’t know what you’re asking of me, Eric.”

“You’re right; I don’t know. But what I do know is that you are the most intelligent and talented woman I’ve ever known.” He squeezed her hands tighter. “And you are the loveliest woman I’ve ever known.” He held up a finger to silence the anticipated protest. “It’s no secret that I’ve played the field, but I don’t want that anymore, Alana. I want you.”

They sat holding hands for quite a few minutes. He couldn’t tear himself away from her penetrating stare, nor did he want to.

“Are you really willing to do that for me, Eric?”

“Yes.” He desperately hoped his sincerity was convincing. He couldn’t bear the thought of being separated from her.

“You don’t know how much I’ve wanted to hear that. It changes so much.”

His hopes buoyed. “Alana, all I’m asking is that you at least interview for the job. I recommended you to the HR department, and they were impressed with your credentials. I remember how excited you were for Hamdi when he got his job, and I think you were just a little envious of his chance to pursue genetic research, weren’t you?”

Alana shrugged her shoulders. “Just a little.”

“Well, this is a chance to get in on the ground floor of an exciting research project. And they don’t come any more prestigious than the National Geographic Society. Besides, with that caliber of real-world training, you could always go to Harvard later. They’d still jump at the chance to have you.”

Alana hung her head, and her long golden hair swept forward, partially obscuring her face. She gently pulled her hand from his grasp and with a graceful motion tucked her hair behind her ear. It was a simple gesture but one of his favorites. He loved the tilt of her wrist, the long slender fingers.

Eric sat in the car and eyed the front door of the Genographic Project headquarters nervously. He glanced at his watch. The music on the radio began to grate on his nerves, so he reached out and stabbed the power button. What’s taking her so long?

This had been the most incredible day in his life. He woke up unemployed, received a devastating e-mail from his best friend, landed an awesome job, and had just about convinced his girlfriend to abandon her academic dream in favor of a relationship with him. A day for the record books.

Alana had agreed to the employment interview, and now she’d been inside for over two hours. He didn’t know if it was a good sign or not.

The front door opened, and Eric sat up in anticipation. False alarm. A couple of young women exited and walked toward the parking lot, deep in conversation.

He reclined his seat and thought again about Hamdi. If only he could find his friend. Hamdi had left some of his things at the apartment, but there was no clue that would help Eric find Hamdi’s family. How difficult would it be to locate the right Tantawi family? How would he get past the language barrier? He had no idea where to start, but somehow he knew this job with the Genographic Project was key.

The passenger door opened abruptly, startling him. Alana dropped into the passenger seat. “Sorry to scare you, big guy.”

“I wasn’t scared, just startled to see such a beautiful woman trying to pick me up.” He leaned over and kissed her. “So, how did it go?”

“You didn’t tell me that Dr. Larson would be my boss.”

“I confess I couldn’t quite remember where I’d heard the name,” he said.

“Are you kidding me? Hamdi used to talk about him. He’s one of the chief scientists in the Human Genome Project.”

“Sounds impressive.”

“Impressive? They completely mapped the human DNA in ten years and finished years before they were expected to!”

“What d’ya know about that?” Eric tried to conjure up enthusiasm, but he wasn’t sure what she was talking about. “So did they offer you the job?”

“Of course they did,” she said with mock arrogance.

He searched her face anxiously but could not read her expression. “And what did you say?”

Alana shook her head slowly. “I told him I need a few days to think about it.”

The most gracious review is repeated here:

*****An Intriguing Technological and Scientific Thriller, August 12, 2009,
by Richard R. Blake

“The Y Factor” had me hooked before the end of the first page. The book is a combination of suspense, mystery, and intrigue. The adventure is built on an intense plot that includes computer and genetics technology, scientific data, military tactics, al Qaeda assassins, and detailed information on the Muslim religion, culture and history.

Motivated by hatred and violence the Muslim Brotherhood is in a battle for religious and racial supremacy and a quest for power and world domination. Renowned scientist Ahmed Alomari is working in an effort to trace their DNA to the beginning of human history and to uncover the Y factor.

Sinister plot twists of murder and mayhem, terrorists and government agents take young computer analyst Eric Colburn and his geneticist girlfriend Alana McKinsey to cities around the world including: Atlanta, Georgia; Delhi, India; Tokyo, Japan; Cairo, Egypt; and Karachi, Pakistan. The plot is filled with an adrenaline rush that continues page after exciting page of conflict, resolution, and more conflict.

Liam Robert is a fresh new voice in the techno thriller genre destined to become a best selling author. His fresh plot ideas are relevant, his descriptions realistic, and his characters believable. His own absorption with genetics, and appreciation for the National Geographic’s Genographic Project have provided him with unusual insight and additional research into tracing DNA back into Israel’s history.

“The Y Factor” will be a favorite for fans who enjoy the thriller suspense genre. Readers specifically drawn to novels which incorporate the role of Biblical prophecy and current events will find Liam’s writing intriguing and enlightening.

The Y Factor rewrite has come to fruition and will be available on July 7th. I want to thank all of you who have prayed for me in this effort. You have been a great source of encouragement.

The marketing efforts have already begun. The Y Factor has been featured in full color ads in the following:

Christian Retailing, the authoritative marketing magazine in Christian publishing included this ad in a recent issue:

Strang Communications’ Spring Catalog included this listing:

The July, 2009 issue of Charisma magazine includes two items. This ad appears on page 48:

In the same issue, Charisma’s “Buzz” section includes a new fiction section: