Websites

FWOTW: Truth4Teens.org

242 Comments

Today’s pick is chocked full of fundy nuttiness from the very first page…and it only gets better from there. The advertisement to “contact me” about “boarding school” for your rebellious teen girl, the articles about “voices in your head” and “hip hop” are just too good to be missed.

I don’t know who Steven Blankenship is personally but if his website is any measure, he seems like one seriously disturbed fundy dude.

Thanks to Rob for passing this one along.

242 thoughts on “FWOTW: Truth4Teens.org”

  3. No way I’d send my kid to a place that has “Need Help with a Rebellious Daughter?” and “Pleasures of Sin” links on the same page.

    1. Holy sh.., Sherlock! That’s one hell of a pulpit!

      Oh noes!!1! Do I see an electric guitar headstock behind the pulpit???? 😯 😈

      1. What’s on the pulpit? Offering plates? Spitoons? Ash trays?
        And why is there a Bible facing the pews?

        2. How about “circa 30” (date of the Resurrection)?
          Nope; doesn’t matter.
          The date of publication of the first King James Version was the date when the world began.

        3. Spittoons lol. Grandpa had a spittoon…my brother was constantly knocking it over by accident…so grodi!

      3. That’s probably a bass, it a long with an organ are the only ordained, sanctified electric instruments.

      4. Having a Bible facing the congregation is a very old tradition; I don’t think there is inherently anything evil in that (for goodness’ sake, we seem to be seeing evil in anything any fundamentalist does).

        I wish I could see the web site, but it’s blocked as suspicious by the servers when I am today.

        1. Just because someone’s pointing out a flaw in a certain fundamentalist, it doesn’t mean that they’re doing so wrongfully. In this particular case, the Man o’ Gawd has a big red banner that says “1611” hung around the Bible. This reeks of Bibliolatry, and we’re rightfully going to point it out.

        2. He could well be worshipping the KJV; as I wrote earlier, I cannot see the web site.

          But just because he has a Bible facing the congregation (which is all I could gather from what was written) does not mean or imply that.

    2. If that setup doesn’t scream “we worship the KJ 1611 Bible,” I don’t know what does.

      1. I had to stop reading….I could just FEEL the intelligence being sucked right out of me….

    2. That made me laugh with how inaccurate it was. The truth about Harry Potter is that it is a…wait for it…story! Completely made up! Just like Lord the Rings and The Chronicles of Narnia.

      1. But Lord of the Rings and Chronicles of Narnia are amazing! They were both written by Christians!!!

        Nevermind that Tolkien wasn’t a Christian and no IFB would associate with Lewis if they knew his beliefs. This doesn’t keep him from being quoted and loved by IFBs everywhere!!! 😀

        3. J.K. Rowling is a member of the Church of Scotland. I have never understood why fundies are all for Lewis and Tolkien but dislike Rowling. All three authors would be considered liberal by fundies. Maybe they don’t like her because she’s female, and a very financially successful one at that.

        4. I think it is the content of the book, not so much the writer that has people concerned. I’m not an expert, but in the CS Lewis books, the heroes don’t “do” magic; the magic is part of the story, but they are not heroes because of it, and magic isn’t considered honorable for humans to learn. As I understand it, in Harry Potter, he is special because of the magic. That may be simplistic.

          I have noticed, too, that fundamentalists tend to be wary of anything that is popular, and that may have something to do with it also.

          For what it’s worth, I know IFBs who cry against CS Lewis (I do know that I don’t agree with him in some key areas, but I enjoy reading his books).

        5. Sorry, I already know (thanks to Jack Chick) that all fantasy writers are Heathens. Please don’t confuse me with facts.

        6. From my recollection, Lewis wrote about a lion, a witch, and a wardrobe. Evidently, somebody “did” magic.

          Nevermind that magic, in the Potterverse, is a clever metaphor for ability, nature, science, and technology.

    4. Khnum? the Divine Potter who fashions children on his wheel and places them in their mothers’ wombs, according to ancient Egyptian religion? I thought this guy was Christian.

  7. This is interesting. On the page is a video of his son saying verses. Most of the verses are verses that promote the tenets of fundamentalism (Antichrist, Drinking etc…) I feel sorry for the kid.

  8. I personally could not bring myself to read beyond “choose you this day: Harry Potter, or the Holy Potter.” COME ON!!!!!!!!!!!!

    1. It was the misspell a line down, “Harry Porter,” that had me thinking of an especially hirsute bellhop.

      And apparently Rowling is a “treacher,” which we all know is short for TREACHEROUS cuz that’s what she is

  9. After reading the hip hop page, something tells me this nut job misses the good old days of segregation.

    1. “The true origin of Hip Hop can be traced back as far as Africa.” Danger, Will Robinson, Danger!

        2. Athanasius is my all time favorite theologian. De Incarnation de Verbi Dei should be required reading for all.

    2. and the top two pics of hip-hop artists are … eminem and vanilla ice? seriously?

      1. I read the whole page about how the Black man is his own god/religion and then I scrolled down to see two whiteys as his pictorial examples. Awesome!

  10. Ha ha ha! The Jelly bracelets! I remember these growing up. Believe me, I don’t ever remember them having any other connotation….especially not what this guy was thinking.

    “In the 1980’s Madonna made popular “jelly bracelets”. These were to promote her wicked, perverted lifestyle. Now in 2005, they are making a come back!”

    “These bendable pieces, made of rubber come in at least six colors, each color of which has a sexual activity associated with the color. These activities engaged in involve sexual intimacies from hugging to conduct reserved strictly for married couples, and all kinds of GROSS IMMORAL CONDUCT in-between.”

    1. Wow, I’m just amazed. He thinks the wiggles are gay, and is an expert in sword holding too….

      “How about Captain Feather Sword?? Is he a swashbuckler?? Well, parents, check out how he holds and runs with this “feather” sword. A swashbuckler would run with it either clutched to his chest or extended over his head to do battle. Not this pervert! He has a different insinuation in mind.”

      1. So violence is WRONG if Harry Potter characters get involved in it, but violence is DESIRED in a pirate character on a kids’ show? (How does Patch the Pirate handle his sword?)

      2. What about a multi-cultural multi-colored Jelly Belly? They must be pure evil.

        2. This was supposed to be below Les’s post. I guess I still owe George this months “protection” payment.

    2. So, if colored arm bands are evil, then I guess that colored gumballs are also. I have seen grown men gamble quarters over the gumball machine. I would stick to “Ole Fashioned” pink gum, but then my manhood would be in question.

      What does he teach in his school?

  11. OK – under his criticism of Harry Potter, he writes, “As the book series progresses, even the ‘good’ kids exhibit increased violence, hatred, and anger” but under his link on “HATE”, he writes, “Hatred is a family value.”

    Here he continues: “One-Worlders tell us that we are not to Hate. That Hate is bad. We are told that Hate is unhealthy. We are told that we are to Love, Love, Love. Love every thing; Love every body; Love every lifestyle; blah, blah, blah.”

    😯

    1. You’ve got to admit it takes guts to publish a paean to hate. Especially to a presumed audience of professing Christians. No excuses, rationalizations, or coded language here; just a straightforward statement that hate is good and holy.

      The man may not have all his marbles, but at least he has the courage of his convictions.

    2. He also appears to classify a scene that in some ways mirrors Jesus’ sacrifice on the cross as an act of suicide that should not in any way be glorified.

      He doesn’t directly identify the scene, but that’s the only death in the series I can think of that would qualify for mis-classification as suicide.

      He also decries an acceptance of physical death that I’ve often heard in my Sunday School class after the death of an elderly member.

      And he claims the series supports things that happen in the books that have more words explaining why they’re wrong in the books than the Bible uses to explain why David shouldn’t have engineered Uriah’s death.

      I think I honestly have more issues with his stance on Harry Potter as a Christian than I do as a fan of the series.

      1. His comment on decapitation was my favorite. Nearly-Headless Nick I’m assuming??

      2. That threw me too. I cannot think of anywhere in the books where a character commits suicide. Most of the deaths are characters dying for what they believe is right.

        I grew up with a very fundy idea toward Harry Potter. However, once I got married, I decided to read the books and see the movies, in order to make my own decision. (My mom wouldn’t even allow the books in the house, despite the fact I was 25.) I can now say Harry Potter is in my top 5 favorite book series. 🙂 I would be ok with my kids reading them, when they get old enough to discern things for themselves.

    3. Because, you know, there’s totally not anything in the Bible about loving god, loving your neighbor, or loving your enemy, but there’s a whole lot about what we should be hating…

      1. I also noticed the snide reference to Nearly Headless Nick. Nick is hilarious – one of my early favourite characters, when I first started getting into the series. Mostly I think the guy needs a sense of humour.

        And Megaforte, I am thinking of the same sacrifice that you’re thinking of – the one in Book 7, that DOES parallel Harry Potter (My father even noticed it when he and I saw movie 7B together, and that was his first introduction to Harry Potter). Jon Krakauer writes in _Under the Banner of Heaven_ that fundamentalism / extremism is unable to recognize metaphorical language. This guy is interpreting HP very, very literally; it’s a common problem. 😕

      1. My 11 year old loved the Wiggles. Where does he get off calling them Sodomites? A the Captain Feather sword thing is messed up, what does he want a real sword – after he bashes violence.

    3. Also Sesame Street.

      Check out the bottom of the page: if something is popular, he thinks “God is no where near it”.

      I’m thinking back to the WWJD bracelet craze and logic is failing me.

  13. Under Hip Hop, who is the guy in the sparkly red, white, and blue outfit? That picture looks like it’s from the 1980s. I don’t think the wannabe gangsta teens are emulating that guy.

    1. Are we surprised by this?? 🙄 Clearly this guy is waaaaaay behind the times on every aspect of life. Makes me nauseous….

    3. Oh, I’m so sorry that you never got to experience Vanilla Ice! Where would my childhood be without it? I mean I wasn’t allowed to listen to it, but my aunt played it in her car and I sat in the back of her vehicle, my little tummy in knots because I was 1. disobeying my parents 2. admittedly enjoying myself. 😀
      Enjoy.
      http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=rog8ou-ZepE

      1. Vanilla Ice is The Man. For those of you who aren’t aware, he also flips houses and has a show called, “The Vanilla Ice Project” that runs on diy Network. His renovation jobs are impressive and he is a very likable fellow, demonstrating patience and a amiable laid back attitude. I have trouble visualizing him as a purveyor of evil as he stains an entertainment center, replaces bathroom fixtures and trains his intern on priming crown molding. Ice, Ice Baby! 😎

  14. They lost me with the Child Abuse mantra in the lower Right hand corner. Train up a Child.

    Then thre is the email me for information concerning a Christian Boarding School that will teach Christ, Character, Consecration, Commitment.
    Also know as an Independent, Fundamental, 1611 KJV only, unaccountable, Behavorial modification, concentration camp. Even if there is no physical abuse the mental abuse will be in the criminal realm.
    Because the god these people serve requires that behavior be modified, and that they are cleaned up enough to be saved. With enough brainwashing and behavorial modification you can “train” people to act according to any behavior set you choose. See: Classical Conditioning http://www.learning-theories.com/classical-conditioning-pavlov.html

    1. Very good. I know I’ve said it before, but sometimes I get on SFL for a chuckle and a snarky comment or two, but sometimes I just feel overwhelming sorrow for those caught in this false religion – and sometimes some anger for the way they tie up heavy burdens and lay them on others backs, cranking out double-hell-children like a 1984 pharisee factory.

      1. As my husband says….honey, your mom and dad basically just F-ed you and then sent you out into the world….

        1. Is this the website for the rebellious daughter home? Just looking through it is scary… Things like, even when the daughter is on leave to visit her family, she’s not allowed to leave the state, no phone calls to her family until after 30 days of being enrolled, no phone calls from non-parent/guardians, ect.

          An excerpt from the Our Program page:

          “Your Daughter may only be showing signs of Rebellion, disrespect, and resentment, but please consider 1 Samuel 15:23, “For rebellion is as the sin of witchcraft, and stubbornness is as iniquity and idolatry…” The girls who come to MGGA range from mild problems within their families, to radical out bursts of anger, rebellion, cutting, piercing, bitterness, lying, thieving, runaways, out of control, etc.

          What ever the level of rebellion and stubbornness, the Staff here at MGGA are equipped to deal with and care for your Daughter. We truly see the precious gem that once was in your Daughter and can be there again!!THERE IS HOPE!The precious young lady you remember can be a reality again! We will help you gather the fragments of her life and your life too! THERE IS HOPE!”

          This website gives me the chills… Probably where I would have ended up if my parents had been able to catch me after I ran away… 🙁 😕

  15. My filter blocks this site under the “Pornography” category. Hmmmmmmm . . . not sure if I’m upset I can’t read this wackiness for myself or glad to not waste my time.

    1. What’s funny is that the company classifies this as pornography. Neal Boortz often calls some information “Pornography for the mind.” Perhaps this is a prime example.

  16. i LOVE the .gifs at the bottom of the ‘Voices in your head’ page. Please dar-ell, make them a fixture on this web page.

  17. I’m sure I’ve met this dude before! He used to frequent our Fundy church. My parents threatened to send me to a school similar to his once. 👿

    I don’t even want to think what his “behavior modification facility” is like. A close friend of mine went to one run by the IFB….what a nightmare. 👿

  18. The voices in my head have spoken. They told me to flee this website. I think I’ll listen. I have heard enough “proven science” in Fundystan to last me the rest of my physical life. He probably thinks women have one rib more than men, too.

    1. One rib more!
      Wow, I haven’t heard that one since I was a kid (back during the Hundred Years War, more or less).

      1. I doubt our ages are that different. One day we need to compare “facts”. This fact is minor compared to some other “science” I heard.
        My kids had heard this from a now ex-youth pastor. The kind who likes and shares Kool-aid. They learned a lot of fact-checking skills after listening to him.

  19. Fomr the Satanism page:

    – Satan represents kindness to those who deserve it, instead of love wasted on ingrates.

    – Satanism is actually a very self-centered religion.

    Replace the Satan/Satanism references with The IFB and you would still have true statements.

    1. Don, that is a bit harsh….yet, there is some truth to it. But in all fairness, it’s not just limited to IFB. We all exhibit that behavior at some point in our lives whether IFB or not.

  20. “Preaching God’s Perfect Word to Meet the Spiritual Needs of Young People” — because what teens really need to know is that there might be a tiny demon skull-head in their brain.

  21. This guy’s name is really familiar. I feel like he spoke at a youth camp or we met him on the deputation rounds…something. I remember my dad talking about him. Is he from the midwest?

    1. I’m sure I’ve heard him preach before. I think he’s in AL or somewhere close. I know he travels through the southern region because we had him come through many of the churches I was affiliated with.

  22. I cannot access the site either. Work has it on a filter and calls it “pornography”. I suppose that’s fitting…

  23. Any one want to create a fictional rebellious daughter just to see what kind of suggestions you get using a dummy email of course?

    1. I thought about doing that. I have enough emails I use for online names/spam….

        4. Especially this part of his school’s overview:

          “The Girls will learn how to cook, clean, sew and importance of being a Young Lady, and future Wife and Mother.”

          Cause education or a life outside of marriage or being a mother are unnecessary…

  24. The thing I appreciated most about the hip hop article was the picture of Vanilla Ice.

  25. Is anyone going to e-mail this guy about the “Christian” boarding school? Notice that the name isn’t listed. I’m betting it’s because it’s a place like Hephzibah house that has tons of negative media floating around about it.

    2. Hephzibah House was a constant threat from my stepmom. It didn’t really scare me, mostly because I knew my dad would never let her send me away, but also because I had no idea what went on at places like that until fairly recently.

      Looking at the page for this particular school, it appears that there’s no minimum age: “At this time, we are able to receive girls any age….up to 18 years old.” 😯 That is really disturbing.

  26. Say what? “Need help with a rebellious daughter?” What about rebellious sons? Such blatant sexism! When I saw this my stomach felt as if I’d eaten something sour. 👿

    2. I think the “rebellious daughters” are more what they feel like they can handle. Rebellious sons hit back.

    3. Rebellious sons are easy. Just take them to the gates of the city where the elders will stone them to death. Daughters are harder. They have to be kept in salable condition. 🙁

      1. My parents tried that. I caught the stones and threw them back. They were so busy trying to rebuild the glass village that I walked away.

    4. That’s because independent thinking only equals “rebellion” if you’re a girl. Boys are supposed to grow to be strong individuals. Girls are supposed to submit unconditionally and any questioning or asserting of individuality must be a “rebellious spirit.” It’s gross. Just gross.

  27. About marijuana, he says, “Genesis 2:29 says that He gave us every herb for “meat”; that is for us eat, not smoke, or sniff, or snort, etc.”

    So it’s OK to eat marijuana, but not to smoke or sniff it (I don’t think snorting it is even possible).
    Brownies, anyone? :mrgreen:

    1. haha. . .every idiot knows that eating marijuana is more effective than smoking it, anyway.

      1. Hey, you can make some really rightous oatmeal-raisin cookies with a special herbal boost. The oatmeal keeps you from tasting the grit.

  28. On their page “Pleasure in Sin”–(After you read our tract and get saved): “Find an Independent Baptist Church, show them this tract and tell them you were Gloriously Saved by Jesus and need their help.”
    Yes, you need all the help you can get, and your local fundy MoG is just the one you need.

  29. I just looked at my MRI from a few years ago, and in different pictures I see Francis from the Russell Hoban children’s books, Brother from the Berenstain Bears, Predator (the alien, not the drone), and Cassandra, the last “pure” human.
    I expect that we all see what we want to see.

    1. I am pretty sure if you looked at mine all you would find is a picture of a cupcake or something like that.

  31. Wow! On his sex page, he sure does go on about how girls should be careful with their purity. He only mentions the boys once. Why is it that the women always get the brunt of the sexual lectures?

    1. Because it is up to the GIRLS to draw the boundaries and maintain them. The boys don’t have the ability to control that because of how fearfully and wonderfully they have been made and all. Girls have to be very careful not to tempt or seduce a boy even unintentionally because the responsibility lies within their modestly clad and bound bosom to keep all males everywhere pure of thought attitude and action. Amen. 🙄

      1. I am so heartily sick and tired of the fundy ideas regarding men and women and sex that I feel sick every time I hear that stuff. Women have to worry about modesty because the man can’t be blamed for his urges. Men don’t have to worry about modesty because women have no sexual urges.

        In marriage the woman has to give in to the man. He never has to give into her because she has no sexual urges. But she’s to understand his sexual urges and give into them because if she doesn’t, some other woman will.

        A man doesn’t have to worry as much about his wife straying because she has no sexual urges. If she’s a good woman she will only think of pleasing hubby and children. She’ll never consider her own needs.

        Uggghhhhhh!!!!! 👿

        1. Somebody may have forgotten to tell my wife that. Not to share TMI, but let’s just say I’m not frequently the initiator…

        2. These guys just skip right over the Song of Songs/Song of Solomon, don’t they?
          Seriously, just a couple days ago I happened to see some of the verses out of context, on their own, and dang, that female character is, ah, healthily interested.

        3. Having been trained from birth to be some preacher-boy’s brood mare and cleaning service, seeing this idea promoted onto other non-suspecting teens is ridiculous! I was fortunate to actually learn to think for myself, but this stuff will seriously mess some of these kids up for life. I hope this man has a very limited platform, for the sake of young IFB women everywhere.

    3. Well, you know, boys can’t get pregnant, thus you can’t prove they’re not a virgin, thus their marriage-market value cannot be undermined….

  32. I told my husband that his preaching photos make him look like an angry proctologist.

    This made my morning, especially with the demon MRI. 😆

  33. I haven’t looked at the website. All I can think of is that he posts “The truth about…” and then he prints lies. And God loves liars, right?

  34. As a nurse, the MRI pisses me off. In all the years in ER, we never sent any one for an MRI if they heard voices in their head.

    1. If you didn’t use an MRI, how could you find the little heads inside their brains? ❓ 😐

      1. That got me too. General “it’s validated”, no specifics mentioned at all. Although I really can’t think of how he’d produce proof for something like this anyway. Reminds me of IFBs who say, “(fill in the blank) is WRONG! The Bible says so!” And when you ask them to show you where, almost all of them have to point back to something their pastor said, and not something in the Bible at all.

  35. Wow, I looked up the area code for his phone and 250 is for most of the province of British Columbia. GREAT, this guy is Canadian…. just when I thought I was away from this nuttiness, but at least I’m 700 miles east.

    Since when is Vanilla Ice someone we want to be like? I do know that after his stint at music, he went on to be a very accomplished motocross racer and did very well. That is not an easy sport to be good at.

    The MRI image made me laugh. I’ve seen toast, eggs and clouds that have looked like the Virgin Mary. I’m also considering getting a toaster that makes toast that says KTM. 😈

    1. He’s Canadian? How sad. But I’m glad he’s way out there in BC and not in Ontario. There are fundies enough here. Like the one at the former church. 🙄

    2. My brother gave me a stamp that prints pictures of the Blessed Virgin Mary on pieces of toast.

      It felt a little sacriligious, but if it’s OK to eat Jesus as bread, I guess it’s OK to eat Mary as toast.

  36. I have a question about the sex page.

    Given that he believes physical contact between men and women automatically leads to urges, even something as minor as hand to hand contact…

    Just who baptizes women in his church?

    1. ” … physical contact automatically leads to urges …”

      I wish somebody had told me that before I held my friend’s baby. 😯

    2. If they want to, they could baptize by pouring or sprinkling, and no touching would be required. Oh, they’re probably Baptists, so only by dunking.

  37. I’m wracking my brain trying to think of what’s wrong with doing what you want as long as you don’t hurt others (from the Wicca page). Isn’t that pretty much what Christians believe: “Do unto others as you’d have done to you”? I’m missing something here …

    I’m also wigged out by the comments that men are supposed to “rule over” women. Yeesh.

    1. Somebody needs to snopes that. Like schizophrenics need any more ignorant stereotypes to fight against … 🙁

    2. Does this guy even realize what a magnetic resonating image is? He should just tattoo “idiot” on his forhead in 250pt red font.

  39. “You could be involved in Satanism and not even know it.”

    Well, dang. I’d best just repent of even the things I haven’t done just to cover all the bases. Shoot.

    Though….I *do* like Harry Potter…. 😯

    1. Also…we’re going with “drugs are evil because the root word means “sorcery.” Okay…so, do IFBers not take OTC pain meds? Or the medicines their doctors give them? Cough Syrups? Pepto? Nothin’? I mean, I can see how the whole “apothecary” thing would have seemed like sorcery way back in the day, but seriously, folks…get real….

    2. That does bring back some memories. One of the ways my IFB school controlled us is constantly telling us that we are doing bad things and don’t know it. So we were always scared, editing every move we made, because we didn’t want to get in trouble.

      The BIG one we heard almost every week was that we thought we were saved and really we weren’t.

  41. This guy is so racist, the only rapper photos he would post were…2 white guys!!!

    1. Its a muggle occupation, generally unknown amongst the wizarding community.

      1. I miss Arthur Treacher’s. The food was really good for fast food. Of course, it has been almost 40 years……….

  44. “When unmarried couples touch, IT WILL LEAD TO FORNICATION!”
    …..really…? So I guess when Isaac kissed Rebekah that means they had sex that night but the BIble forgets to mention that…also…does that mean I had sex with like half of BJU…? I’m so confused.

    1. It means I’ve fornicated with my former pastor — a lot. I used to shake his hand every Sunday. And by shake his hand, I mean … *wiggles eyebrows seductively*

      Yeah, no, I just shook his hand. No fornicating, thank goodness.

    2. MJR, if your answer to your second question is “yes,” I’d love to hear about it some time. 😉

    1. I notice that his data on early hominid fossils only cover those discovered by 1912 or so. He is arguing about human evolution with no awareness at all of the past 100 years of work in the area.

  46. I saw his photos of “street preaching” which apparently means holding signs on a sidewalk and yelling through a megaphone at passing cars, which usually have windows rolled up and both AC and radio on. And if cars are going by at 45 mph, all those words on those signs would be very hard to read.

  47. Girls home website, mgga.us When I Googled it, the first listing was as a “behavior modification program”!

  48. “How do you when youth are under the influence of Hip Hop?” His 4 “signs” are signs I’ve also seen Fundys use to identify teens who listen to rock music, teens who watch Hollywood movies, etc. It’s really narrow-minded that if a teen dresses/acts a certain way, these kind of people peg them as “rebellious”, “evil”, “Satanic”, etc.

    2. I noticed that both tight clothing and loose clothing are warning signs. So, teens, make sure your clothes are like Goldilocks’ porridge: Juuuuuust right.

      1. I love how he includes “strange hairstyles” under Markings. I’ve seen stranger hairstyles on some IFB biddies than I’ve seen on teens.

  50. No one should send their daughters there, until brother Steve gets his honorary doctorate!

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