Mind Control Techniques – The Art & Science Of Passive Coercion

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There are many mind control techniques that are based on specific actions or language patterns. These are popular, because they are easy to try out. Examples of active coercion techniques are putting somebody in a hypnotic trance, using “yes bridges”, pattern interrupts, and so on. It is kind of “talking someone into something”.

However, there is another kind of mind control technique that can be just as effective when it comes to manipulating other people: passive coercion.

Passive coercion doesn’t require you actually doing something – rather, it is about setting up an environment through which your target will have to pass through – and the simple act of passing through this environment will influence his or her behavior.

This might sound rather strange, but it is actually a quite common experience. In fact – whenever you walk into a large shopping mall, you experience it first hand.

The art and science of passive coercion is a multi-billion dollar business. There isn’t a single modern shopping mall in the world that has not been designed with the help of passive coercion specialists. If you want to experience passive coercion in an even more sophisticated environment, visit a Las Vegas casino.

The reason why passive coercion is so effective is partly because it is invisible – we are not aware that this particular environment is very specifically designed to make us perform certain actions, think certain thoughts.

Shopping malls – as well as casinos – have surveillance cameras everywhere. Our usual understanding is that this is simply for security purposes – but these materials are carefully and meticulously analyzed by highly specialized psychologists whose aim is to better understand, and alter consumer behavior. They do this with the help of scent, sounds and light. They create an architecture that influences you to spend more time – and money – in the shopping mall. Even the flooring is designed to create the wished for effect – not just the colors, but also the softness or hardness of the floor has a subtle, but nonetheless very measurable effect on our behavior.

Of course, when you want to influence somebody to do something, you can not spend hundreds of thousands of dollar creating an coercive environment – but being aware of the fact that the environment can either increase or decrease the effectiveness of your persuasive attempts is worthwhile knowledge in and of itself. Because you can thus choose to meet in an environment that will boost your persuasive position.

How to Remember What You Learn in a Martial Arts Class

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In the end, your goal will be to have developed a natural reaction in combat. But in order for

us to reach this level of response, we must first train repetitively in the skills we learn early

on – to go from short term, to long term memory. For the sake of this exercise, please do the following:

Imagine your shoe being stretched into two pieces and then these pieces are thrown at a martial artist who drops into the splits to avoid the shoes.

In the duration of one class, an instructor may teach as many as 10 new techniques,

some even more. If we are to practice these newly learned skills (outside of class) and

return so we can grow – we must remember the techniques taught in the first place.

The process we use for learning a technique works as follows:

1. Learn the technique

2. Mentally review the technique

3. Practice the technique

The first step is usually in class under the instructor’s guidance, while the other two are

usually performed within the period AFTER training until the time you are back in class. In

order to properly review up to 10 techniques, we need to remember what it was that we

learned. The average student remembers about only 2-5 out of 10 techniques by the next

day or often only about 20% (80% of new information is usually lost within 24-48 hours).

After a few more days you may only remember 1-3. Using a simple memory technique you will be able to remember exactly what techniques were taught.

However, the goal here is not just to memorize techniques – but to also get them into our heads so that we can mentally review them wherever we are. This will aid in getting the information to sink in and truly put us on the fast track for developing a new skill.

Since our goal is to master the martial arts, we want to take time to apply all of our best strategies for getting information from the short term memory into the long term memory. In this example we want to apply Mnemonics. A mnemonic (pronounced (NEW – Monic) is a memory aid.

Let’s say that we need to remember 10 techniques. Just as you would take traditional notes and make a list of ten items, you will need to do the same in your mind. Only instead of writing things down on paper you will be writing them down (or storing them) on what I call the Mental Notebook. In a notebook, you have lines reserved for placing information. The Mental Notebook offers the same thing – only in your head. It offers a place to put each of the 10 techniques and or bits of information that you learn. We call these places or areas reserved for information MENTAL PEGS or HANGERS. They are the lines on your mental notebook.

There are many metaphors to explain how the mind works – I will skip the how and why’s and

get straight to the techniques. If you need to know why this works or more on how, then

refer to my other articles on Memory.

So, what will be our Mental Notebook, what will be the peg, hanger or hooks that we can LINK

each technique to? Well, any 10 items that are in your long term memory will work as a good peg or hanger. Remember, the Mental Notepad is a place to store information – each place needs to have a specific hanger, peg, or hook. This peg, hook or hanger can be anything that you can PICTURE and have stored in your long term memory. We will use the Rhyme List for the purpose of learning how to memorize.

Okay – so we need a list of 10 mental images (pegs) from our long term memory (something we already know) for our mental notebook. Unless you have an image for number one, you won’t really have a good association. You would be left with rote memory and boring repetitions that “this is technique number one.” So we will use the Rhyme List to create our numbers and give the images to associate with. Okay, take a minute to memorize the list below:

Rhyme List:

  1. One is Gun
  2. Two is Shoe
  3. Three is Tree
  4. Four is Door
  5. Five is Hive
  6. Six is Sticks
  7. Seven is Heaven
  8. Eight is Skate
  9. Nine is Wine
  10. Ten is Hen

Since we are focusing on learning 10 techniques, we also want to know what technique was associated to what number. For example what was the first, second, and third technique or lesson taught. To do this, we also need to make sure our peg is associated with a number. This may all sound a little confusing at first, but hang in there and follow through – before you know it, you will catch on to what is happening.

We use the rhyme list because it is pretty easy to remember what number goes with what image. If you think of 1 – you only need to think of what rhymes with one and you will think of gun. Then we associate gun to our technique and before you know it, 1 = technique.

Review the list above a few times until you memorize the image associated with each number. Once you do, review the list and get a very CLEAR image of each item. For example, what type of gun is it – handgun, shotgun, lasergun, squirtgun etc. Then try to make this gun unique by asking what color your gun is, how does it feel, taste, or smell (the more unique, the more memorable) and ask yourself what the gun is made out of. A gun made out of cheese is more memorable than an actual image of a real gun.

The normal is easily forgotten, this is the same in life as it is in memory – remember that.

Maybe you want to memorize (in order) the structure of a good martial arts class. So for example: look at the following list:

  1. Warm Up
  2. Stretch
  3. Stances
  4. Rolls
  5. Falls
  6. Strikes
  7. Kicks
  8. Body Movement
  9. Self-Defense
  10. Burn Out

This is how it works. Your instructor asks you (or your mental coach) “What is the technique

for number 2?” Your immediate mental response would be to think “2 is shoe.” Once you have

Shoe in your mind, you need to remember the associations you made with Shoe and the Technique – in this case it would be Stretch. To remember that 2=Stretch you use a key-image (much like a key-word that triggers a piece of knowledge) which would be the image of something stretching. So, you simply associate an image of something stretching with a shoe.

You can imagine your shoe being stretched into two pieces and then these pieces are thrown at a martial artist who drops into the splits to avoid the shoes. Now go through the steps:

1. You think of 2 and what rhymes with two

2. You should think of Shoe and then you say to yourself “What happened to the Shoe?”

3. Oh yes, it was stretched into 2 pieces and then thrown at a person who used the splits…

In order to make this work, you need to use your imagination. Memorizing your techniques in this fashion will help you to enhance your overall mental abilities and drastically decrease the learning process.

Let’s try another one. Think of 3 which should give you tree. Now imagine your unique tree doing stances. Imagine the tree as a person doing horse stance, power stance, cat stance etc.

Now ask yourself what was the technique for number 3? Your mind should follow this patter:

3 = Tree = Stance or Stances

If you forget what is associated to a number or to an image that is associated to a number – it means you do not have enough mental glue to make the memory stick. So, simply go back to your visualization and add more glue by being more specific about your images. Really hear the tree crackle as it drops into the horse stance, see bark falling off as it moves from stance to stance. Picture images that are exaggerated, include senses, and action.

With practice, you will begin to pick up a new skill that can be very useful for memorizing new information. And YES, this mental notebook can be used over and over again. Your brain is powerful enough to simply wipe away the old information and place new information onto your pegs.

This information on memory is just the tip of the iceberg. There are many more advanced

skills and if you find this information interesting, then you might be interested in learning more about what you can do.

When I teach memory courses some of the participants state that it seems to use up energy and time to do or use a memory system. This the natural course of learning. At first, it might seem more challenging. It only becomes easy once you learn the skills and start applying them.

Good luck in Training.

Bang Your Head – The Rise and Fall of Heavy Metal – Review

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Bang Your Head: The Rise and Fall of Heavy Metal, David Konow, Three Rivers Press, 2002.

I always have been fascinated with both music and history and a book about the history of a particular music is just like killing two birds with one stone. I have read a few books about the history of heavy metal and Bang Your Head is the least elevating one. Of course it was a fun read, but all Rock n Roll books are fun to read. The only thing that made me bought this book is the fact that I have yet to find a book about the rise and fall of the 80’s Cock Rock scene, and this book, although not as comprehensive and thorough as I hoped it should be, contained some murky information about the craze, the 80’s world wide fad, which helped launch MTV to a gainful and profitable broadcast.

Towering hairs and cans of hair sprays, fishnets and spandex, groupies and backstage passes and the unforgettable Power Ballads and yes, the bands. Bands in the likes of Motley Crue, Guns N Roses, Quiet Riot and Poison took the world by storm. It made its way to the Malaysian shores and before you know it, Search, Wings, Lefthanded and May, just to name a few, became Sunset strip’s little ambassadors.

The book is 496 page thick and the front cover depicts the dullest book cover I have ever seen. Being a person who normally judges a book by its cover (literally), it would have been better if the publisher opted to coat the front cover black and print the title somewhere in the middle white, I would have bought the book right there and then. The cover was sort of a cut and pastes assemble, with xerox quality coloration that I believe for the purpose of going after the old school fanzine feel.

The story telling was light; it gave a good bird’s eye view of the cock rock scene back in the early 80’s; the book was a fun read nonetheless but it could have been better though. Besides the lack of depth, the book was also in short of photos. You do not write a book about Rock N Roll, describe the glorious vista of the legendary Sunset Strip, illustrate hundreds of crazy ass bands and have just a couple of photos in it!

5 More Golden Rules of Mystery Shopping

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This is part two of a report on the Golden Rules of Mystery Shopping.

The second five golden rules of mystery shopping are:

– Do not try to remember

– Post the report on time

– Keep receipts

– Log the shop

– Thank the scheduler

Do not try to remember: One big mistake that new mystery shoppers make is to try to remember. They believe they can remember the entire mystery shop until they get home to upload it to the provider. This is doomed to fail. If you forget a clerk’s name or timing the entire mystery shop is ruined.

I personally use a memory system which helps, but even then I process it to my cell phone or note pad as soon as I can (bathroom of establishment, my car etc.)

Post the report in time: One of the saddest things is to do a full mystery shop with all the details and a great commentary and then turn it in to the provider too late to be used. That becomes costly to you and to the mystery shop provider.

Log the shop: Not to be mercenary but this is a business and how do you know if you get paid for all of your shops if you do not keep a log or record of everything you do. Sounds like a no brainer but you might be surprised how many people do not log everything and try to leave it to their memory.

I contract out to about one hundred companies and there is no way that I could ever remember what shops I am owed (and amount of payment and merchandise cost and my gasoline mileage etc).

Thank your scheduler: Email your scheduler after each mystery shop alerting them that you have finished the shop within times and that you have posted the report to them. Also thank them for assigning the mystery shop to you and state that you will be glad to work with them again. It makes the scheduler feel good and you might be surprised how much good will that spreads for you. Schedulers are people and like to work with people that are nice to them.

How to Get Rid of Crows

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I. Different Types of Crows

Crows are large passerine birds that comprise the genus Corvus in the family Corvidae. Here are the more common crows found in North America.

* The American Crow (Corvus brachyrhynchos) is a large passerine bird species of the family Corvidae. It is a common bird found throughout much of North America. In the interior of the continent south of the Arctic, is it simply called a crow, as no other such birds live there on any regular basis.

* The Fish Crow (Corvus ossifragus) is a typical crow in appearance that is associated with wetland habitats. This bird species is superficially similar to the American crow, but is smaller (36-41 cm in length) and has a more silky smooth plumage by comparison.

The differences are often only really apparent between the two species when they’re side by side or by their calls. The bill is usually somewhat slimmer than the American crow, but again, this may not help much when there is no other bird for comparison.

* The Common Raven (Corvus corax), also known as the Northern Raven, is a large, all-black passerine bird in the crow family.

II. Crows as Pests

Not only do crows feed on recently cast seed in rural areas, but they also gather nightly, starting with groups of a half dozen, which then unite to form a group of twenty to thirty and so on until the flock is quite large and noisy. It is their habit to return to the same place each night.

Machinery of various kinds, such as miniature windmills or horse rattles that are put in motion by the wind are often employed to frighten crows; however, all of these devices soon become familiar to the birds, so they quickly cease to be of any use whatever.

III. Basic Crow Control

* The Scarecrow: The most effectual method of banishing crows from a cornfield, as far as experience goes, is to combine scarecrows with the frequent use of the shotgun. Nothing strikes terror in these sagacious animals more than the sight of a fowling-piece and the explosion of gun powder, which they have known so often to be fatal to their race. But of course, if you want, you can leave the gun behind. The scarecrow is a device, traditionally a human figure dressed in old clothes or a mannequin that is used to discourage crows from disturbing crops (hence the name).

Modern scarecrows seldom take a human shape. On California farmland, highly reflective aluminum PET film ribbons are tied to the plants to create shimmers from the sun. Another approach is automatic noise guns powered with propane gas.

The scarecrow method is a motion-sensing sprinkler and is a great method for getting rid of crows. The crow can’t possibly get hurt, and other critters such as squirrels, raccoons, deer, dogs and cats, are also repelled. It could also be fun to try fireworks, strobe lights, sirens, horns, music or right-wing talk radio.

* Perch Repellents: Crows are difficult birds to get rid of because they are persistent pests and their populations in urban areas are usually quite numerous. If you live in a rural area, crow control is quite simple: scare them or shoot them. If you live in an urban area, the chance of being arrested after shooting a gun outdoors is high.

Your first line of urban defense against crows is the mechanical perch repellent – those sharp wires and needles that you see on the ledges and roofs of many state institutions.

* Bird Repellents: There are a ton of bird repellent chemicals and devices on the market today. You can’t type bird control into a search engine without an entire result page filled with bird control device manufacturers’ home pages.

Nevertheless, one of the most trusted brands in the bird repellent market is Bird-X. Bird-X’s policy is to provide non-lethal, non-harmful, environmentally safe and ecologically sound products, or so they say. Check it out for yourself to confirm these claims. In addition, Bird-X regularly receives referrals from the Audubon Society and the Animal Damage Control division of the USDA. You can’t go wrong with an endorsement from the Audubon Society.

History of the Iconic Irish Band U2

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Hailing from Dublin, Ireland, the members of U2 came together in 1976 while they were still attending high school.

Most mainstream fans probably don’t know the band went through several name changes in its infancy, having originally been called “The Larry Mullen Band” (for less than a day) then immediately changing to “Feedback” due to the coolness factor this technical term brought them. They later changed the name again in March 1977, choosing to go with “The Hype” as their band’s new call sign. They finally settled on the name “U2” a full year later because of its ambiguous nature and that it was a name that didn’t sound as bad as all the other options they could think of.

Although originally having very little proficiency in music, they were able to sign on to Island Records for the release of their debut album, Boy. They became a class-act by the mid-1980s, with smash hit albums like “The Joshua Tree”, “Live Aid”, and the totally unforgettable success, “Rattle and Hum”.

Originally influenced by punk rockers like The Jam, The Clash, and The Sex Pistols, U2 went through a series of major changes throughout its lifetime. Their 1981 “October” album contained blatant spiritual overtones, while their “War” album, released in 1983, demonstrated their anti-war sentiment and deep commitment to pacifism, especially through its politically controversial “Sunday Bloody Sunday” song. It was this album’s first single, “New Year’s Day” that became the band’s first hit outside of Ireland and the United Kingdom.

Yet it was their 1984 album release, “The Unforgettable Fire” that marked the band’s most significant shift in direction. Unlike previous albums, this album was notable ambient and abstract, making a complete departure from their previous punk rock style. This change was mostly due to the band’s fear of becoming too generic and lost in the sea of mainstream, commercial drivel that was so common at the time.

July of 1985 saw another major milestone in the band’s career, when its members participated in the Live Aid concert for Ethiopian famine relief at Wembley Stadium. It was this concert that showed their main vocalist, Bono, was capable of making personal connections with the crowd, as demonstrated by his ability to embrace and dance with fans during live performances.

Not about to stop with musical experimentation, U2 began to explore American blues, folk and even gospel music with their next album, “The Joshua Tree”. Released in March 1987, this album tried to give the band a sense of tradition as it explored what it really is like to be American. October of the following year saw the release of their documentary, “Rattle and Hum”.

Although highly praised by Rolling Stone magazine as possibly the best band of the 1980s, U2 remained successful through the 1990s and equally to present day. Having been named one of eight “Artists of the Decade” by Rolling Stone in 2009, this served as a positive momentum for the bands 360° Tour, which began in June 2009 and is scheduled to continue in Europe through the year and in North America in 2011.

The Garden of Eden and the Four Keys For Dominating the Market Place

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I spent years trying to study the world monopolists and stupendously rich men to find out the secrets for dominating the marketplace. Then one day, I heard Dr Myles Munroe preach on Genesis 1:28 and I was blown away by the obvious ‘secrets’ for marketplace dominance in that one singular verse. I was stunned when I finally realized that God had actually given the recipes for dominating the marketplace to Adam and Eve all the way back in the garden of Eden!.

In Genesis 1:28 we saw the secrets clearly revealed when God said to the newly created Adam and Eve: “be fruitful and multiply and fill the earth and subdue it and have dominion over every living thing that moves on the earth”. A careful reading of Genesis 1:28 actually contained the recipes for achieving dominance and monopoly in any business enterprise.

After identifying the surprisingly simple steps, I checked every monopolist and market dominator’s practices against them and found out that they hold true in every industry or calling. Every successful business man who ever achieved total dominance in their market followed these four steps. These four Keys are very simple to understand from the passage. Get these four Keys and you will open the door to marketplace dominance in any industry!

#1:THE FRUITFULNESS KEY- The first commandment of God to Adam and Eve was that they should be FRUITFUL. This is the genesis to marketplace dominance. You must have an original idea. You must create something new (fruitfulness is products coming out of the hard ground to the surface!). You cannot just be a copycat. You must have a definite niche and a fresh approach or new application of a product, idea or thinking. Microsoft. Apple.CNN. Walmart. Pastor Adeboye of RCCG. Kodak. AMAZON. GOOGLE. Ford, UPS etc were all innovators of new ideas or new approach to what is already in place. Look at any industry’s leader. They were fruitful in a way the market cannot deny. They were FRUITFUL in an original way. They were productive in an innovative fashion. Everything starts and ends with an original idea. ‘Fruitfulness’ is the first key to marketplace dominance. The question we should all take time to answer in prayer and fasting is: What is my ‘fruitfulness’? What original idea has God given me? What new approach can I introduce to a crowded market? This is the first key. Without this key, the Kingdompreneur is destined for a life of mediocrity or mere sufficiency. Abundance cannot happen without ‘fruitfulness’

#2 THE MULTIPLICATION KEY- God then told them to MULTIPLY. Multiplication involves replication and mass production of an idea. It involves creating a system that allows the idea to move from one prototype to many copies for consumption. It involves thinking beyond the local or immediate use. It involves the idea being duplicated in different offices, locations and mediums. Until you learn to multiple your ‘fruit’ or idea, you can never dominate the market place. This is the 2nd step to achieving market place dominance. A look at the champions in every industry will confirm this astounding fact. Pastor Adeboye found a way to MULTIPLY the evangelism and church planting ‘fruit’ by creating the Model Parish system that transformed the RCCG church from less than 100 parishes when he became G.O to over 30,000 parishes with more than 12 million followers in less 20 years. Bill Gates took the market away from IBM by finding better ways to multiply operating system. Ford took the automobile industry to another level and ascended to dominance by mass producing automobiles that everybody can buy. Google revolutionized the advertizing industry with its pay-per-click search engine that makes internet advertising accessible by any computer in the world. Amazon took over the book store by globalizing the bookstore and making books available for purchase by everybody all over the world at the same time. You cannot be a dominator or a monopoly until you find a way to mass produce the ‘fruit’.

#3 THE REPLENISHMENT KEY- God directed then that after Adam and Eve has achieved fruitfulness and figured out how to multiply, the next step is to REPLISH. Replenishment involves distribution of the multiplied fruits to the final consumer. To become a dominant force, you must strive to control the system of distribution. A multiplied product is useless. Many great ideas never achieve their potential because the originators could not master and control the source of distribution for the ‘fruits’, product or idea. This is the third inescapable Key for market place dominance for any business person. This key explains why an industry like Nollywood (Nigeria’s much vaunted movie industry) has not yet achieved the world wide breakthrough its potential demands. We have mastered the ‘fruitfulness’ part (we pioneered and mastered theater of low budget films on cheap video cameras. This was so innovative that even Hollywood and bollywood sent people to study the phenomenon. I know because I met some of this stunned investigators from the U.S). We have also mastered the ‘multiplication’ part. You can generally do mass production of any quantity in Nigeria now with less than 30 days delivery time. However, we are non-starters in the area of REPLISHMENT. The distribution system in Nigeria is still largely limited to 3 or 4 major markets in 3 cities, controlled by a few people who have no clue or who have chosen to ignore the new world realities and imperative paradigm for worldwide distribution of content which include theater releases, merchandizing, per-per-view, internet streaming, stores, rentals. Walmart, without producing anything, became the world’s leader by solving the distribution problem in the retail industry. They invested heavily in massive stores located in little towns and villages and then held producers to ransom with their pricing strategy. General Motors and Ford are losing the fight to Honda and Toyota in the market place because while the Japanese companies were busy finding more and more distribution markets in Africa, Asia, Europe, Australia and even in the U.S with cheaper cars and faster turnarounds, American companies are trapped in their own provincial thinking, rising costs of labor compared to other countries, corporate gluttony and debt which continues to hamper their multiplication and replenishment efforts.

#4. THE SUBJUGATION KEY- The final commandment God gave them for achieving dominance was to subdue the earth. This involves a corporate strategy and alliances that subdues the competitors in the marketplace makes your organization indispensable or a force to be reckoned with in its industry. Even with anti-trust laws in the U.S, Microsoft continues to be the superpower in micro computer software by systematically swallowing up upstarts and disrupting their source of multiplication or replenishment. Bill Gates understood the power of subduing the competition. After dealing with fruitfulness, Multiplication and replenishment key, Gates spent years to cultivate the final key. For years Bill Gates insisted that only his own operating system could be carried on computers that want it. Because of the multiplication and replenishment capabilities of Microsoft, the other companies had no choice. Same strategy, Walmart spent years honing its replenishment skills before utilizing the final key to marketplace monopoly in undercutting every other store in the retail business.

Indeed The ‘rich getting richer and the poor getting poorer’ is actually a biblical statement! The first three keys are absolutely essential before you can apply the fourth key of subduing the marketplace. Once the market is subdued, Dominance becomes automatic. Of course getting to the fourth key is a long way for most of us at this time but we can certainly start working on the first key. We all need that fresh idea and that cutting edge ‘fruitfulness that will launch us on the road to dominion in the marketplace.

The MAGPRO Marauder Report

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Yes. The Marauder is the new kid on the Precharged Pneumatic [PCP] Airgun block that can’t be punked. After being in the Airgun world for 35 years and establishing a business in the shooting sports industry over the past 6 plus years, I’ve developed an appetite for product quality, fair value and manufacturer integrity.

I received my .22 Benjamin Marauder mid July 2009. There are as many posts out there as you would care to read from owners communicating a range of personal experiences. After reading a number of these posts you’ll realize that the reports are so closely consistent that they appear redundant.

The consistent reports about the Marauder certainly underpins the base-line performance that you can expect should you choose to become a Marauder owner. My report will confirm many of the performance qualities you may have read about and include original observations to add to the ongoing Marauder experience.

I agree with many of the favorable reports about the Marauder, such as:

o From the initial opening of the box to getting acquainted with the Marauder you feel like you

got more than you paid for. Not something we feel often these days.

o Finish is classy and exudes visible quality.

o Stealth like quiet report. Really!

o Full Power shots per fill can be 35 – 45 and even more depending on your personal tune setting.

o The ability to personally adjust the full range of tuning components of a PCP is a feature that the Marauder has and it appeals to an audience with a wide-range of experience levels.

o The choked barrel makes this rifle very accurate and probably a better shooter than many of its owners.

o The trigger is perceptibly friendly and match level adjustable to boot.

Here are some of my personal observations:

Rotary Magazine

During the new owner “getting acquainted” period, when you’re not very familiar with the Marauder’s handling techniques; a user error, not a product malfunction, may cause an accidental loading of more than one pellet into the breech. This can happen when not pulling the bolt back until it cocks. Then allowing the bolt to slide forward under spring pressure, which results in pushing a pellet partially or fully into the breech. The natural thing to do when you discover that the gun is not cocked is to try cocking it again. When you pull the bolt back the second time it frees the rotary magazine to index to the next pellet, which gets pushed behind the existing breeched pellet when you close the bolt again.

Solution 1 – Point the muzzle in a safe direction and use a suitable backstop. Now fire the rifle thereby clearing the multiple pellets in the breech. This should not be a problem if you have 800psi (never tried less pressure) or higher in your on-board reservoir.

Solution 2 – fully depressurize your rifle using the degassing tool method (see owner’s manual). Then follow the procedure for removing a jammed pellet. Remember, you’ll be removing more than one pellet at the same time, which will cause increased bore-to-pellet friction. Take your time and be careful not to use a rod that will damage the rifling.

New Marauder users may also find themselves expending effort to dislodge what seems to be a “stuck” magazine. Truly the magazine extracts flawlessly when used correctly and you won’t have this problem once you become more familiar with the operation of and relationship between the bolt and rotary magazine. A common culprit for a “stuck” rotary magazine is that the bolt pin may be partly in the magazine. Simply pull the bolt back to the rear most position and the magazine can be removed. (Always fire the rifle in a safe direction to clear any breeched pellet.)

Another culprit is a partially inserted pellet. Closing the bolt completely, thereby pushing the pellet fully into the breech, and then pulling and holding the bolt back to the rear most position will free the magazine for removal. (Always fire the rifle in a safe direction to clear any breeched pellet.) Most owners may never experience these problems, but if you do, know that it’s not the rotary magazine.

Protecting the Shroud

This caution applies to most PCPs and is meant to be helpful in avoiding unintentional user damage to the matte finish of the shroud. There is potential for surface damage to the shrouded barrel area above the fill probe. The quick disconnect fitting can scrape/scratch the bottom of the shrouded barrel when connecting and disconnecting to the fill probe. This can be solved by installing shrink wrap tubing or wrapping electrical or other durable tape around the quick disconnect fitting component parts (note: ensure that your shrink wrap tubing or tape does not interfere with the quick disconnect moving parts). If nothing else, at least place a barrier (e.g. cloth, gun sock, etc.) over the section of the barrel that may be bumped by the quick disconnect hardware. Over time, you’ll be glad to have practiced careful handling during pressurizing.

One of My Optimal Tune Settings

One hundred Marauders can be manufactured and among them will be some level of uniqueness in performance characteristics. So, using my settings may not produce the same results in your rifle. You must take the time to experiment with your rifle to achieve the performance that you desire. Here are the settings I use to achieve a satisfactory basic field distance (BFD): Hammer Tension 6, Hammer Stroke 4 and Velocity Adjustment 2.5. (The owner’s manual explains the adjustment parameters for the various tuning components). This setting produces an average 915 feet per second [FPS] with 14.3gn Crosman Premiers (CP’s) amounting to just over 26 foot-pounds of energy [FPE]….. I get over 30 full power shots with this setting. When using Dynamic 14.5gn PCP2’s with the same setting I get 940 FPS resulting in 28 FPE.

Trajectory Report and Long Range Shooting

The Marauder performs exceptionally during long-range field shooting conditions. The Marauder can’t be punked by many well established PCP’s carrying a price tag ranging 2 – 3 times as much.

Mount a quality mil dot scope and enjoy the process of charting long-range hold-under / hold-over data.

Once you’ve done this for your pellet(s) of choice the data will immediately become invaluable. You’ll shoot with absolute confidence at ranges out to 75 yards and beyond. My furthest distance shot string was during a 15mph left to right wind at 108 yards producing a 4″ group. It was no question that the gun was out shooting me. I’ll be shooting at this distance again under better conditions. In addition to shooting groups at 108yds, I also performed one of my low-tech penetration test using a soup can (soda cans are too thin). Every shot entered and exited the can, then embedded in the tree backstop. At 108yds the CP 14.3gn pellet is traveling at 421 FPS and retains 6 FPE. My currently chosen maximum effective field range is 70 yards. At 70 yards the 14.3gn CPs are traveling at 549 fps, delivering 9.5 fpe at the point of impact (POI) and my point of aim [POA] to POI is between right on to ¾ inch.

Crosman Customer Service

I have had the pleasure and, on some occasions, the displeasure of working with a number of customer service teams in the shooting sports industry. My contact with the Crosman Customer Service staff has been one of the most satisfying, respectful and responsive customer care experiences that I have had in any service industry. Crosman respectfully listened to my concerns, answered my questions and checked in with me to ensure that I was satisfied with their resolutions. I am still floored when I think about the time I received a check-in call from a Crosman representative who I knew was home sick for the day. Janet’s colleagues were very helpful during her absence. However, it was important for Janet to know that I was a satisfied customer, even though she was not in the office that day. Crosman treated me like a valued customer. Kudos to Crosman Corporation for excellence in customer care.

I’m presently placing the Marauder through additional testing (e.g. hunting, silhouette, different pellets, charting more tune settings and more…). Certainly, an important measure is the Marauder’s reliability over time. Unfortunately, my time machine is under-going a five-year maintenance service. Therefore, the Marauder has to be time tested the old fashion way.

The Benjamin Marauder lives up to its claims and is quickly establishing a respectful place in the quality PCP family of adult precision air rifles.

If you have found the MAGPRO Marauder Report helpful and would like me to test and review your Airgun industry products, I welcome the opportunity to work with your business.

Let the Healing Power of Gospel Music In

On: By: admin

Not everybody in the world subscribes to the same idea of God. Even Christians themselves have sometimes differing beliefs on the same God they worship. But one thing that never fails to bring people together from different religious beliefs is music. Gospel music is known for moving its listeners, regardless of their belief systems. So what is the secret healing power of gospel music that it manages to unite people from all over?  

First, here’s a bit of history on modern day. Gospel music was originally called “negro spirituals” during its initial phase of development. American slavers brought scores of Africans to the US to work as laborers, particularly in the South area. As the slave trade flourished, the demand and need for more African laborers increased as well. One method the slavers utilized in keeping the enslaved Africans in check was through the use of religion wherein slaves were required to attend worship service with their masters. The newly converted slaves then started to adapt the normally somber church hymns for themselves by incorporating their native African music into the hymn. It was inevitable that they would do so, considering the Africans considered their tribal music as a means to connect to the sacred.

Most of the music produced that time focused on overcoming adversities and obstacles in life through God. To a believer, the healing power of  music lies in the reinforcement of the idea that God is looking out for them and all will be well.  But if you take out the religious context of gospel music, to a non-believer, the lyrics could also talk of simple emotional uplifting and transcending the obstacles. Gospel music is a potent carrier of not just religious ideas but political ideology as well. There are some who believe that the African slaves back then secretly communicated their messages for one another via gospel songs.

An evidence of the healing power of music is the rise of the African-American culture in the US amidst the hardships and trials they had to face before and after they were emancipated. Gospel music was continuously propagated among the slaves because of their situation; with nobody to turn to at their time of need, they could only rely on God and themselves, and they achieved this seemingly elusive connection with the spiritual through gospel music. Psychologically speaking, this would also make sense since verbal affirmation plays a key role in helping a person define the goals he is pursuing.

The healing power of music tells people that they can overcome the trials life throws at them. This idea, more than anything else, was a running theme in gospel music especially for the enslaved African-Americans. Ideas are a very powerful thing because once it is planted in the minds of people and the moment it takes root, it can be very hard to disregard its influence on the person. People face obstacles everyday and overcoming these obstacles is a task everyone knows all too well, regardless of their religious beliefs.

The Economy Is Not The Stock Market

On: By: admin

Several days ago, the Commerce Department reported that May’s factory orders had increased by a 2.9 percent. This was well covered by ‘the press’, as it was to be a positive influence on ‘the market’ (yes, the quotes are intentional…..you’ll see why). The enthusiasm was understandable – the $394 billion in orders of manufactured goods is the highest level seen since the current calculation method was adopted. Although being skeptical can be wise, the figure was (and is) a clue that the economy is on a solid footing. However, too many times there’s a disconnect between what ‘should’ be the result of a piece of economic data, and what actually occurs. The economy isn’t the market. Investors can’t buy shares in factory orders……they can only buy (or sell) stocks. Regardless of how strong or weak the economy is, one only makes money by buying low and selling high. So with that, we put together a study of some of the economic indicators that are treated as if they affect stocks, but really may not.

Gross Domestic Product

The chart below plots a monthly S&P 500 against a quarterly Gross Domestic Product growth figure. Keep in mind that we’re comparing apples to oranges, at least to a small degree. The S&P index should generally go higher, while the GDP percentage growth rate should stay somewhere in between 0 and 5 percent. In other words, the two won’t move in tandem. What we’re trying to illustrate is the connection between good and bad economic data, and the stock market.

Take a look at the chart first, then read our thoughts immediately below that. By the way, the raw GDP figures are represented by the thin blue line. It’s a little erratic, so to smooth it out, we’ve applied a 4 period (one year) moving average of the quarterly GDP figure – that’s the red line.

S&P 500 (monthly) versus Gross Domestic Product change (quarterly) [http://www.bluegrassportfolio.com/images/070705spvsgdp.gif]

Generally speaking, the GDP figure was a pretty lousy tool, if you were using it to forecast stock market growth. In area 1, we see a major economic contraction in the early 90’s. We saw the S&P 500 pull back by about 50 points during that period, although the dip actually occurred before the GDP news was released. Interestingly, that ‘horrible’ GDP figure led to a full market recovery, and then another 50 point rally before the uptrend was even tested. In area 2, a GDP that topped 6 percent in late 1999/early 2000 was going to usher in the new era of stock gains, right? Wrong! Stocks got crushed a few days later….and kept getting crushed for more than a year. In area 3, the fallout from the bear market meant a negative growth rate by the end of 2001. That could persist for years, right? Wrong again. The market hit a bottom just after that, and we’re well off the lows that occurred in the shadow of that economic contraction.

The point is, just because the media says something doesn’t make it true. It might matter for a few minutes, which is great for short-term trades. But it would be inaccurate to say that it even matters in terms of days, and it certainly can’t matter for long-term charts. If anything, the GDP figure could be used as a contrarian indicator…..at least when it hits its extremes. This is why more and more folks are abandoning traditional logic when it comes to their portfolios. Paying attention solely to charts is not without its flaws, but technical analysis would have gotten you out of the market in early 2000, and back into the market in 2003. The ultimate economic indicator (GDP) would have been well behind the market trend in most cases.

Unemployment

Let’s look at another well covered economic indicator……unemployment. This data is released monthly, instead of quarterly. But like the GDP data, it’s a percentage that will fluctuate (between 3 and 8). Again, we’re not going to look for the market to mirror the unemployment figure. We just want to see if there’s a correlation between employment and the stock market. Like above, the S&P 500 appears above, while the unemployment rate is in blue. Take a look, then read below for our thoughts here.

S&P 500 (monthly) versus Unemployment rate (monthly) [http://www.bluegrassportfolio.com/images/070705spvsunemp.gif]

See anything familiar? Employment was at it strongest in area 2, right before stocks nose-dived. Employment was at its recent worst in area 3, right as the market ended the bear market. I highlighted a high and low unemployment range in area 1, only because neither seemed to affect the market during that period. Like the GDP figure, unemployment data is almost better suited to be a contrarian indicator. There is one thing worth mentioning, though, that is evident with this chart. While the unemployment rates at the ‘extreme’ ends of spectrum was often a sign of a reversals, there is a nice correlation between the direction of the unemployment line and the direction of the market. The two typically move in opposite directions, regardless of what the current unemployment level is. In that sense, logic has at least a small role.

Bottom Line

Maybe you’re wondering why all the chatter about economic data in the first place. The answer is, simply to highlight the reality that the economy isn’t the market. Too many investors assume there’s a certain cause-and-effect relationship between one and the other. There’s a relationship, but it’s usually not the one that seems most reasonable. Hopefully the graphs above have helped make that point. That’s why we focus so much on charts, and are increasingly hesitant to incorporate economic data in the traditional way. Just something to think about the next time you’re tempted to respond to economic news.