The video game Left Behind: Eternal Forces, which generated more news than it did sales in the past decade, was recently back in the news.

A federal court found in favor of the Securities Exchange Commission in its litigation with executives of Left Behind Games -- the company, best known for a controversial video game based on the Left Behind series of novels by Christian Right leader Tim LaHaye and Jerry B. Jenkins. The SEC said that the execs engaged in stock fraud to prop up their financially struggling company.  The SEC fined company founder Troy Lyndon and CEO Ronald Zaucha millions of dollars each and permanently banned from trading in penny stocks.

A few years ago, Talk to Action led the way in breaking the news and extending the analysis of the video game based on Tim LaHaye's Left Behind series of novels. Set in New York, members of a Christian militia called the Tribulation Force, comprising people who had been "left behind" after the Rapture, battle it out in the streets of New York City against the forces of the Anti-Christ, who, as in the novels, is the Secretary General of the United Nations.

The plan was to market the game, Left Behind: Eternal Forces, to and through evangelical churches during the 2006 Christmas shopping season. Then on Christmas morning, the glowing faces of children gathered 'round the tree would be handed a game to prepare them for a religious war.  It was bad enough that the game taught children the ideology of end-times religious war, but for many the devil was in the gruesome details. Indeed, the game turned on a feature that was best described as "convert or be killed."  

Now Left Behind Games apparently hopes to revive sales of the game. But first they have to revise history, and their first score was the the business magazine Quartz -- as well as the News Editor of Salon.com who quoted from the Quartz story:

Almost immediately, game reviewers, the media and various religiously-affiliated non profits declared that the game rewarded players for killing characters who did not convert to Christianity. While widely reported, this turned out to not be true.

In fact, it was not only true, but was a critical aspect of the game. It was reported by Talk to Action and others at the time, although Quartz found one gamer, writing three years later who disagreed. End of story?

Let's set the record straight.

If you thought it was beginning to be safe for your children to listen to talk radio, you might need to learn about Dr. Larry Bates.  A self described expert on the economy, investments and the stock market, Bates has gathered a binge following.  His recent book, The New Economic Disorder, is making its rounds through Christian radio, television, and internet posts.  Bates provides the lovely prospect to his readers and listeners that he nation is heading for economic disaster.  He has teamed up with Larry Pratt of Gunowners of America to prepare the country for the certain downfall in the nation that is just around the corner and will make the Great Depression mild by comparison.  Those who promote the prospect of a waning Religious Right might do well to check out Larry.

The Feb. 6, 2010 Hal Lindsey Report had its usual hard right slant to current events.  It is quickly noted that Lindsey is not a friend of the current administration in the nation.  He has a long history of attacking President Obama and often complains that the President has a secret agenda to harm the Christian faith.

In David Brog's book, STANDING WITH ISRAEL, he deals with the charges leveled by many that ministers like Jon Hagee and Pat Robertson have a history of anti-Semitic theories.  Brog does admit that early on Dispensationalists did often use anti-Semitic authors and viewpoints in many of their publications. He includes the fact that the PROTOCOLS was often woven into the fabric of yarns that these types spun.  pg. 205

San Antonio TV preacher John Hagee is an ex- college football player with two earned PHDs.  The physique of a football player is long gone as well as the early marriage and divorce.  Hagee, whose church teaches men to throw up their demons in a brown paper bag, started out with 25 members.  In 2 years the church had a 1,600 seat auditorium.  In 1987 Southern Baptist and fellow Texan W.A. Criswell surprised many in the country when he led an anointing service for Hagee in the dedication of  the new church.  Criswell's blessing on John was peculiar being Hagee is a pentecostal.  The connection with pastors like Criswell can be explained by secular political movements.  Hagee is chummy with Texas Governor Perry on a personal level.  He was close to candidate John McCain until people began to read up on some of Hagee's theories.  Hagee believes we ought to strike Iran now with nuclear weapons and blames the Rothschild families in Europe for world problems.

[Editors note: As indicated in his John Hagee Ministries bio and on bookjackets of his recent books, Hagee has three honorary doctorates, not earned doctorates. The three honorary degrees are from Oral Roberts University, Netanya Academic College in Israel, and Canada Christian College.]

Christian Reconstruction founder R. J. Rushdoony wrote in his book, THY KINGDOM COME, saying the great beast spoken of in the book of Revelation is government.  Though Rushdoony did not share eschatological views with religious right kinsman Tim LaHaye, he did share a common attitude toward government.  LaHaye's writing, much like modern end of times spokesman Jack Van Impe, lace their seminars and books with theories about secret organizations at work to take the world to Satan.  You can check out my review listed in Wikipedia about Pat Robertson's catch all conspiracy book ONE WORLD ORDER.  Rushdoony said the Christian view of history was that of conspiracy.

Having recently read Matt Taibbi's book about John Hagee's church, I was startled to read of what passes for phophetic language.  The conspiracy theory about Al Gore working secretly with global warming folks to take over the Unites States stayed with me.  I was reminded of other religious right conspiracy theories that have brought with them "amens".

Rolling Stone author Matt Taibbi has just published a new book called GREAT DERANGEMENT.  Since Jeremiah Wright occupied so much media attention some were shouting that people needed to look at McCain's spiritual connections. A media conspriacy was suggested.  Thus Taibbi was dispatched to San Antonio, Texas to go under cover pretending to be an interested member of John Hagee's mega church.  The cover of the book claims the author is the funniest angry writer around.  We might also ad profane.  Taibbi takes on the conpiracy theories of Left Behind writers as well as the strange theories regarding the 911 catastrophe which links up President Bush and Dick Cheney with secret plots to deceive the nation. The writer says, "The 9/11 'Truth' and Christian end timer phenomena are both basically crude parodies of the same old left/right canned media Holy War."  pg. 265  Matt believes that both these groups adhere to a beleief that a militant against-them exists and the only folks to be trusted are their own.  A view point I have often witnessed among the religious right that holds you cannot trust the media or any writer outside their own ranks. Thus they reinforce their own phobias.

In what was billed as a conference for Houston pastors, the topic of how minister's freedoms were being assaulted was addressed by Tim LaHaye.  The specifics of this meeting have been posted earlier. In short, these pastors felt as if Barry Lynn of Americans United for Separation of Church and State had picked on pastor Riggle.  Riggle, an Oral Roberts U. grad had allowed his name and the church where he was pastor to be highlighted in an endorsement for a political candidate to take Tom DeLay's place in Congress. The web site is wrong claiming that a Liberty U. law professor would take up the topic.  Tim showed up along with Kelly Schackleford.

The producers of Left Behind: Eternal Forces thought they were going to make a big score last Christmas -- with a new video game based on Tim LaHaye's best-selling Left Behind series of novels. It didn't work out that way. Talk to Action's Jonathan Hutson exposed that the game peddled an ideology of 'convert or be killed' to children and promoted, even rehearsed end-times religious warfare.  Christian, Jewish and Muslim groups, among others, agreed; denounced the game and variously encouraged the producers of the game to with draw it; stores not to stock it; and consumers not to purchase it. The controversy generated international media coverage. The game did poorly; got terrible reviews, even from gamers who were not concerned about the content. The company's stock tanked and it appeared that that was the last we would hear from them.

Then, researchers for the Military Religious Freedom Foundation learned that an evangelical Christian group operating under the auspices of the Pentagon was going to disseminate the controversial apocalyptic game to American troops in Iraq. Max Blumenthal exposed their plans in The Nation last week. This week, ABC News asked the Pentagon about it:

Plans by a Christian group to send an evangelical video game to U.S. troops in Iraq were abruptly halted yesterday by the Department of Defense after ABC News inquired about the program.

Operation Start Up (OSU) Tour, an evangelical entertainment troupe that actively proselytizes among soldiers, will not be sending the "apocryphal" video game in care packages as planned, according to the department.

"Left Behind: Eternal Forces" was inspired by about the battle of Armageddon, in which believers of Jesus Christ fight the Antichrist.

Following massive losses, Left Behind Games has embarked on an executive purge:

Officials from controversial Christian game developer Left Behind Games (Left Behind: Eternal Forces) have announced that senior management at the company have accepted the resignation of senior vice president Jeffrey S. Frichner, with CEO Troy Lyndon also demanding the resignation of the company's other three board members.

Two new co-chairs have been installed: Michael A. Knox and Leslie N. Bocskor.