I had a dream about an organization called the Anti-Antichrist World League (AAWL).

Fifteen years ago a retired senior level CIA administrator named John Strawn wrote a paper called “Asymmetrical Leveraging: The Fall of Empires”. In the paper he advanced the theory that world governments are now simply hosts for powerful groups that advance their geopolitical aims by using religious extremists and ultra right conservatives as puppets. Strawn’s first axiom was simple: “money equals power”. The Master Groups realized long ago that money is the only real power in this globally connected world, and that they could control world governments by influencing the actions of their puppets. Because governments are not responsible for the puppets (and many times don’t know they exist) they are powerless to stop them. Strawn’s second axiom was: “To find out who gains... follow the money”.

“Push the hot buttons of religious intolerance on one side and nationalism on the other (preferably at the same time), mix in a little indignation and voilà!, you’ve got the makings of an international crisis.”, Strawn wrote. He argued that crisis of the kind that destabilize a government is the goal of Master Groups. “When the dust settles, it is the Master Groups, with their ability to mobilize vast logistical and monetary resources, that swoop down to feast on the bones of the wrecked state.”, he wrote. Master Groups do not need to collect taxes, provide for public services, govern, or concern themselves with alleviating the human suffering they cause. They do not need to pay for large armies or fixed bases of operation. Their host countries must provide for all that. The Master Groups have learned to constantly enrich themselves by manufacturing cycles of violence, then servicing the needs of afflicted host countries.

The use of relatively few resources to effect changes in much larger geopolitical systems is the “asymmetrical” part. The “leveraging” occurs when factions inside a host nation (or region) are manipulated to attack other puppets outside the borders of their host country. Strawn argued that was an important component of successful asymmetrical leveraging. Attacking outside the host country borders forces two or more host countries into participation because they are forced to protect what they perceive as their national interests. Such threatened interests may be ideals, physical assets, or groups of people valued by the host countries.

Many intelligence operatives around the world seriously read John Strawn’s paper. Mid-level Intelligence administrators began to communicate with each other across agency divides. While no spy agency could penetrate the Master Groups by themselves, they could, by working together, begin to see the Master Groups general contours. They discovered that most of the Master Groups were inspired by an apocalyptical worldview. Both fundamentalist Islamic and Christian theologies are cynically exploited into an Antichrist, apocalyptic scenario that serves both; Muslems looking for Jihad against infidels and Christians earnestly wishing to hasten the return of Jesus Christ. While Master Groups do not possess religious beliefs, they nonetheless use religion the way starships in science fiction use antimatter. So, the AAWL is so named as a rejoinder to what it perceives as its greatest common foe.

The Master Groups are difficult to identify because they are often loose associations of powerful individuals operating in business and government. Sometimes they are corporations or entire industries. The AAWL is, thus limited in what it can do to combat the power of the Master Groups or their puppets. It mostly operates as an extra-channel resource for hapless governments. Even though many spy agencies worldwide can operate with some level of impunity, the Master Groups have no legal, ethical, moral, or financial restrictions.

I read the “Asymmetrical Leveraging: The Fall of Empires” paper and spent time carefully examining how Master Groups operate. Stay tuned!

I had a dream that the elections were over and within two months, large gated communities sprang up around the country. Each one had an enormous wrought iron gate that had the words "Work Makes You Free" printed over the top, facing outward.

There were well manicured yards in front of all the houses. Each house was white, and there was almost no variety in their design, except that some were much larger than others around them. Each house had two flags flying on either side of the front door: an American flag on the left and the Christian flag on the right. On top of each door was nailed a King James Bible. On the doorsteps were printed instructions on how to pledge allegiance to the American Flag, the Christian Flag, and the Bible; in that order. The pledges needed to be completed before one could enter a residence.

The streets were named for large American corporations. They were cleaned every night with the sweat and tears of union workers. In the center of each community was a very large, tall building that looked like a curious architectural blend of a tabernacle and a bank. Floor-to-ceiling windows reflected the sun. Gleaming Alabaster panels were arranged in alternating rows with wood from Redwood trees.

I entered the tabernacle and saw strange statues in a rotunda that lined the walls. There was a man holding an assault rifle in one hand and a Bible in the other. The rifle was pointed at the head of an effigy of Uncle Sam, who wore a sign reading “... to pay the Debts and provide for the common Defense and general Welfare of the United States”. Another statue was of a young pregnant woman kneeling in front of a man. Her face was cupped in one of his hands, while the other was pointing angrily at her belly. These statues were just a few among a great number.

At that point a man came to me and asked if I needed help. He wore a pin on his suit that read “Man is not free unless government is limited.” I asked him what the statues were for. He told me they depicted scenes from the “Great Struggles”. I asked him what struggles he was referring to. Exasperated, he turned to me and said “Well. Of course, the three great struggles of freeing corporations from government control, the struggle to eliminate taxes on those whom God has blessed with wealth and prosperity, and the holy mandate to codify Christian morals into our laws.” “Would you like a tour of our facility?”, he asked. I told him that I would greatly appreciate that.

After some time the guide took me up in an elevator. We stepped out to a balcony on the top floor high above the ground. From that vantage point I could see that the gated community was actually a compound surrounded by a vast number of poorly maintained buildings connected by crowded streets. In contrast to the well-ordered streets and sparsely populated gated community, the areas outside were chaotic and desperate. I asked my guide who the sign at the gates (“Work Makes You Free”) was intended for. “Oh, it's for them, on the outside”, he said,“We, in here, have attained our freedom by various means of acquiring wealth”. “So, you don't work?”, I asked. “God, no!”, he answered. “We make them do all the work. They look through the gates at our beautiful houses. We let them believe they can have what we have someday. That provides them with the incentive to continue believing, in spite of the fact that we've taken all the means from them.”

“What means?”, I asked. “Well we took from them or severely limited, access to affordable medical care, ability to litigate against corporations, public education, access to capital for entrepreneurs, access to higher education, expanded democracy through greater access to voting, regulation of corporations, support for organized labor, government advocacy on behalf of consumers, and guarantees of equality through civil rights... among other things.” I looked, genuinely surprised at my guide and asked “How did all this happen?”

“It was simple, really.”, he said. “You see, using the power of media and super PAC money we manipulated them into not voting in their best interests. We divided and conquered by having them identify with hot-button emotional issues (we called them 'God, Guns, and Gays'), instead of the larger, more important ones. We scared them with threats of taxes, looming deficits, and a hidden socialist agenda.”, he said. Then, turning to face me, my guide said, “We stay in power because we vote, and make certain they are so confused that they do not vote.”