Ray Manzarek Death

The Doors' keyboardist Ray Manzarek has died at age 74, leaving Doors fans to mourn the death of Manzarek, whose keyboards defined the sound of one of L.A.'s all-time greatest rock bands.

Ray Manzarek's cause of death was complications from bile duct cancer, according to doctors who pronounced the rock star dead in Germany.

Out of the four legendary Doors band members, two now remain as Ray Manzarek joins Jim Morrison in Rock and Roll Heaven.

"I was deeply saddened to hear about the passing of my friend," cried Doors guitarist Robby Krieger.  "Ray was a huge part of my life and I will always miss him."

Raymond Daniel Manczarek Jr. was born on February 12, 1939 in Chicago.  After earning a university degree in economics, young Ray headed west to Los Angeles, California.

While studying cinematography at UCLA in the early 1960s, Ray Manzarek became friends with classmate Jim Morrison before the two founded the rock band The Doors at Venice Beach.

After adding band members Robbie Krieger and John Densmore, the quartet began playing clubs on the Sunset Strip.  Shortly afterward, international rock superstardom followed on Elektra Records.

Manzarek and Morrison were L.A.'s counterpart to Lennon and McCartney, but with a subliminally-heavy psychological edge that was light years beyond groovy.

The Doors' classic hit songs include "Break On Through," "Light My Fire," "The Crystal Ship," "When the Music's Over," "People Are Strange," "Love Me Two Times," "Moonlight Drive," "The Unknown Soldier," "Hello, I Love You," "Love Street," "Touch Me," "Wild Child," "Roadhouse Blues," "Love Her Madly," "L.A. Woman," "Riders on the Storm," "The Changeling," "People Are Strange," "Not to Touch the Earth," "Gloria," "Waiting for the Sun" and "Ghost Song" among many others.

After the shocking, young death of best friend Jim Morrison in the 1970s, Ray Manzarek did not rest on his laurels of music industry success.

Rather, he invested in rock's next generation, producing the UK's Echo & The Bunnymen and L.A.'s edgy punk band, X.

Manzarek had a golden ear for distinctive sounds that rocked, sold millions, and defined generations.

Ray was a refined artiste in a world of pop stars and a level-headed friend to many L.A. musicians.

The legendary rock band Manzarek co-founded in '65 was celebrated, awarded and inducted repeatedly, but The Doors would not have formed without him, nor would the surreal "Doors Sound" have ever been heard.

The late Ray Manzarek is survived by wife Dorothy Manzarek, brothers Rick Manzarek and James Manzarek, son Pablo Manzarek, three grandchildren, and countless friends and fans who mourn the death of a kind and creative genius.

Ray Manzarek 1939-2013

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Adam Kokesh Drug Plant Video

During the arrest of libertarian activist Adam Kokesh, an unidentified man was caught on video planting something on Kokesh as police arrested the California native during his Philadelphia speech.

Two federal corrections insiders in Philly have anonymously stated that "Kokesh may now be charged with drug possession."

The man in plain clothes (black T-shirt) who planted the object inside the waist of Adam Kokesh's trousers clearly pretended to be arrested along side him.

Once the man successfully planted evidence on Kokesh's person, law enforcement officers took their hands off him.  The sloppy setup can be seen on video below.

Others who were arrested with Adam Kokesh were cited and released, but Kokesh remains incarcerated in a federal detention center.

Could this happen to you in today's America?

Read about the Adam Kokesh arrest and watch the incriminating video below with your own eyes.

Adam Kokesh Drug Plant Video

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Adam Kokesh Arrested at Speech

Radio host and liberty activist Adam Kokesh was arrested in Philadelphia and taken into federal custody in handcuffs as hundreds of protesters began shouting at police.

U.S. Marine veteran Adam Kokesh was seized at a speaking engagement during which he publicly criticized government policy.

The native Californian from the Bay Area has been charged with "resisting arrest" and "refusal to submit to processing" at the federal detention center in the City of Brotherly Love.

Many are anxious to know what charge he was being arrested for before he allegedly resisted.  After being tackled by an officer, Adam Kokesh held one hand in the air and the other hand around his microphone.

Coincidentally, Kokesh and supporters had recently planned a peaceful Open Carry firearms march on Washington, DC to take place this July 4th.  Many who see a connection are calling Adam Kokesh a political prisoner of the federal government.

On the Adam Kokesh Facebook page, his staff is updating status.  Watch the shocking Adam Kokesh Drug Plant video, then watch the interview below.

The following video is said to be Adam Kokesh's last interview before his arrest.  It is intriguing, informative and most fascinating.

Adam Kokesh Interview (Full)

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Yahoo! Buys Tumblr

Yahoo! CEO Marissa Mayer is rolling the dice with a billion-dollar acquisition of the blogging platform Tumblr, which was founded by David Karp.

The Yahoo!-Tumblr $1.1 billion cash deal secures four years of hands-on service from David Karp, 26, a high school dropout-turned technology entrepreneur.

Stanford University alumnus Marissa Mayer is a former Google executive, so memories of Google's acquisition of Blogger a decade ago are popping up all over the blogosphere.

Many of Tumblr's 117 million users are upset by the Yahoo! buyout and are threatening to leave.  The same sentiment erupted back in the day when "Blogspot" became a Google web property.

Google has done just fine with Blogger, but will Yahoo! have the same success with Tumblr?  Yes, if Marissa Mayer and the Yahoo! team does something really unique with Tumblr that no one else has done.

Tumblr founder David Karp has always hated ads, and his blogging platform's users generally feel the same way.  Reportedly, Yahoo! has no immediate plans to junk-up Tumblr blogs with an ad overdose.

Many Tumblr users are afraid their blogging experience will turn into a data mining nightmare under the Yahoo! umbrella, fearful that the Silicon Valley corporation will simply sell their thoughts and online behavior to marketers and government agencies.

The hard truth is that Tumblr must somehow turn enough profit to justify a billion-dollar investment, so many await further comments from the Yahoo! CEO on the issue of ads and other revenue sources.

Yahoo! still has tons of visitors and it makes a profit, but the Sunnyvale, California corporation wants to engage with today's young mobile web surfers and social media addicts --- and make money doing it.

Yahoo! must clean up the adult trash that litters an otherwise cool Tumblr platform and blogger community.  After that, the company must show it's young demographic target audience that it's not grandpa's web portal to the past.

Yahoo! shareholders are extending faith in Marissa Mayer's leadership, confident in the rapturous resurrection of the hip company that use to be the Internet's happiest hangout, courtesy of Jerry Yang and David Filo.

Those were the days, man.

The Yahoo! board of directors approved the Tumblr acquisition ahead of what promises to be an exciting week for Tumblr and Yahoo!.

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Christianity in California

California Christianity is far beyond anything anywhere because California Christians have been around the spiritual block so many times.

Most of the world does not know the state of California officially became the megachurch capitol of the world in 2009.  Why not?

Because California is Sodom and Gomorrah on a self-destructive path to hell, according to many around the world --- especially to a great number of religious congregations across America.

To fully understand exactly where California is at spiritually is to experience California life over a period of decades while simultaneously attempting to live a spiritually devout life.

In California society, that is no easy task --- especially if one lives in one of the many urban centers across the Golden State.

In addition to being one of planet Earth's biggest economic entities, California is a world leader in entertainment, agriculture, music, science, aeronautics, computer technology, media, fame, wealth, divorce, suicide, cults, drugs, gangs and serial killers.

A land conquered and developed into an international trade economy by Roman Catholic priests on orders from the Pope at the Vatican, California grew in complex diversity as the population swelled toward 40 million.

California is the famous home of the Crystal Cathedral, the Worldwide Church of Satan, Saddleback Church, the Temple of Set, Scientology, the Rosicrucians, the Trinity Broadcasting Network (TBN), Bohemian Grove, the adult fim industry, "It Is Written," Theosophy, the gay rights movement, the hippie movement, Reagan conservatism and progressive liberalism.

Most of humanity will tell you, however, that California is most famous for Hollywood, the place where pulpit-pounding preachers nationwide often cast blame for the world's evils.

Said to be Satan's corporate headquarters, Hollywood started out as a haven for Christian churches and the sale of alcohol was illegal.

Everyone knows what the Hollywood Sign looks like, but cameras seldom pan to the left and show the lighted Hollywood Cross, which has shared the same mountaintop view with its neighbor for many decades.

Hollywood was where Billy Graham had his questions answered regarding the Bible's infallibility, which led to his launching of Billy Graham Crusades in California.

One of Christianity's greatest women, Hollywood resident Henrietta Mears, authored the international best-seller, What the Bible is All About.

The First Presbyterian Church of Hollywood was pastored by prolific Christian author Lloyd John Ogilvie, who served as Chaplain of the United States Senate from 1995 to 2003.

Rest assured, there are more than ten righteous souls living in Hollywood.

California contains every race, language, faith, philosophy and lifestyle, as well as every form of temptation conceived in the mind of man.

A land with more billionaires than any other, the Golden State aggressively promotes personal improvement and advancement, as well as financial success and worldwide fame.

California has been called the zenith of human existence.  It has also been called a hotbed of sin and the highway to hell, as many around the world wait for The Big One to cast California into the Pacific Ocean.

A state overflowing with disasters, shockers and stunning success, California itself is the ultimate celebrity and the earth's largest field of wheat and tares.

Christians who have spiritually survived California's endlessly spinning wheel of fortune and confusion have grown as flexible and strong as a 20-story palm tree in L.A. smog.

Californians of unshakable faith in Jesus Christ have experienced the seduction of a synthetic Garden of Eden that promises immortality in a technological paradise of plenty.

These particular California Christians have overcome THE SELF in a land of narcissism and discovered who they really are --- spiritual beings having the physical experience, not merely physical beings having a spiritual experience.

They are intimately aware that eternity has no ending, but that it also has no beginning.  Eternity is now.

West Coast Christians are not what they seem.  Take a closer look, dude.  Much closer.

We are not what you see.

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California's Coolest Surfing Museums

Surfing and California are synonymous.

Perfect waves, hanging ten, surfer girls, suntans, surfboards, bikinis and beach blondes are total California coastal stereotypes.

The surf music of the Ventures, Jan and Dean, the Beach Boys, the Surfaris, Dick Dale and the Surf Punks plays on.

California surfing museums showcase the history, the legends and the world-famous culture of surfing in the Golden State.  Both locals and tourists enjoy these surfing shrines as hip and reverent tributes to the world of babes, baggies and boards.

The California Surf Museum is way down in Oceanside.

Further north is the International Surfing Museum in Huntington Beach.

Up past The Rincon, is the Santa Barbara Surfing Museum.

Up north, past Big Sur, is the Santa Cruz Surfing Museum.

These are the four coolest surf museums in California, and all you dudes and dudettes will have a total blast.

When my brother and I were kids on the beach, we lived on waves and sand.  Everyone was always waxing down old surfboards and saving for new ones.  Boogie-boarding and body surfing were daily rituals and the bonfire beach parties were legendary.

What a life, man.  What fantastic memories.

If you're living in the high desert, the forest, the mountains or the snow, you may not get what all the buzz is about.  Make the drive, check out these killer California surf museums, and see why surfing is hotter than ever.

Then grab a surfboard and get on those waves, bro.

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