666 In The Universal Product Code

[Blien]

I found this interesting commentary on the number 666. The website where the article was written (Rense.com): goes into a lot of detail about the number but then it had this comment at the end.. check it out!

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666 In The Universal Product Code

Is The UPC Code The Forerunner Of The "Mark of the Beast"?

Rev.13:16 And he causeth all, both small and great, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark in their right hand, or in their foreheads: 17 And that no man might buy or sell, save he that had the mark, or the name of the beast, or the number of his name. 18 Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man; and his number is Six hundred threescore and six.

<snip>

What does the inventor of the UPC barcode say about the number "666" in the UPC barcode?

The inventor of the UPC barcode is George J. Laurer. In 1971, while Mr. Laurer was an employee with IBM, he was assigned the task "to design the best code and symbol suitable for the grocery industry". In 1973, Mr. Laurer's UPC barcode entered the world, and the rest is history.

On Mr. Laurer's web site, he has a "Questions" page, where he answers various questions about the UPC barcode. On the "Questions" page, Mr. Laurer answers the "666" question, as follows:

Question #8

Rumor has it that the lines (left, middle, and right) that protrude below the U.P.C. code are the numbers 6,6,6... and that this is the international money code. I typed a code with all sixes and this seems to be true. At least they all resemble sixes. What's up with that?

Answer

Yes, they do RESEMBLE the code for a six. An even parity 6 is:

1 module wide black bar 1 module wide white space 1 module wide black bar 4 module wide white space. There is nothing sinister about this nor does it have anything to do with the Bible's "mark of the beast" (The New Testament, The Revelation, Chapter 13, paragraph 18). It is simply a coincidence like the fact that my first, middle, and last name all have 6 letters. There is no connection with an international money code either. (From Mr. Laurer's web site)

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Then as I continued reading, someone left this comment on the article...

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I'm writing this concerning the article at Rense.com on 666.

I quote from George J. Laurer, founder of the UPC (as above)

"There is nothing sinister about this nor does it have anything to do with the Bible's "mark of the beast" (The New Testament, The Revelation, Chapter 13, paragraph 18). It is simply a coincidence like the fact that my first, middle, and last name all have 6 letters. There is no connection with an international money code either."

Maybe that's why he thought it would be cool to have 6 represented in the 3 primary symbols

[Isaiah 6:8]

Yes and not only that, not every upc code has 666 in it. I have looked into it. hmm.. I just follow the One and let the rest follow.

[OneLight]

That theory has been around since the code first started ... nothing new.

[Blien]

It was new to me, I thought it was pretty interesting

[Believer1997]

http://www.snopes.com/business/alliance/barcode.asp

As Onelight said - this has been around for ages and it's not true.