After the election, when the media are clamoring for a concession speech, the democratic candidate steps to the microphone and says:
Some people think I can step up here and declare who is the next president. But I can't do that. No one can. No one person can declare, "He is the president". No one person can dictate, "I am the president".
No group of people can decide among themselves who will be the president: not a political party, not the supreme court, not the congress, and not a group of wealthy men. When something like that is attempted, it's called a coup d'etat. And that does not happen in America.
We are a democracy. The president is chosen by the people. The people vote, the votes are counted, and the person who gets the most votes is the president. It is not a matter of winning or losing. It is a matter of answering to the will of the people.
We are going to count all the votes.
We are going to count all the votes in Florida. If we find a discrepancy, we will count them again. If we find another discrepancy, we will count them again. We will keep counting until we have resolved all of the discrepancies and all of the irregularities.
We will count all of the votes in Ohio. We will count all of the votes in Texas. We will count all of the votes in America.
Some communities have used voting machines which cannot be verified. That is absurd. That is a voting irregularity. The results from these machines are invalid. The elections will be repeated in those communities using paper ballots. All of the votes will be counted.
This will take some time. It may take months. It may take years. I don't care if it takes four years. I don't care if it takes 10 years. I don't care if it takes 100 years. I don't care if it takes 1000 years.
We are not giving up on democracy in America.
We have had two stolen elections. We will not have a third.
Friday, October 14, 2005
Saturday, September 24, 2005
Keep the internet up
In post-oil America, after the crash, when we revert to a subsistence farming economy, the key thing is to keep the internet up. With the internet up, we'll be able to see regional shortages and surpluses. We'll be able to share farming techniques and low-tech solutions to energy, security, and other problems. And we'll be able to communicate and build a new democracy from the ground up. Without the internet, we would be plunged into darkness, and there would be much more fear, violence, and hardship.
As the government collapses on itself in a frenzy of "control". it will try to bring down the internet, via sabotage if necessary. Currently the largest telecom corporations control the infrastructure, and they will follow goverment dictates (or vice-versa).
So we need to start now. Sys admins! What do we need to do to organize and prepare?
As the government collapses on itself in a frenzy of "control". it will try to bring down the internet, via sabotage if necessary. Currently the largest telecom corporations control the infrastructure, and they will follow goverment dictates (or vice-versa).
So we need to start now. Sys admins! What do we need to do to organize and prepare?
The Watcher
The following is quoted from Chogyam Trungpa: Cutting Through Spiritual Materialism, page 73.
The whole point is that, if you have any idea of relationship - I am experiencing this, I am doing this - then "I" and "this" are very strong personalities, equally. Somehow there will be a conflict between "I" and "this". It is rather like saying that "this" is the mother and "I" the father. With two such polar extremes involved you are bound to give birth to something.
So the whole idea is to let "this" not be there, and then "I" will not be there. Or else, "I" is not there, therefore "this" is not there. It is not a matter of telling it to yourself, but of feeling it, a real experience. You must take away the watcher, the observer of the two extremes. Once the watcher is removed, then the whole structure falls apart. The dichotomy remains in existence only so long as there is an observer to keep the whole picture together.
You must remove the watcher and the very complicated bureaucracy he creates to insure that nothing is missed by central headquarters. Once we take away the watcher, there is a tremendous amount of space, because he and the bureaucracy take up so much room. If we eliminate the filter of "I" and "other", then the space becomes sharp and precise and intelligent. Space contains the tremendous precision of being able to work with the situations in it. One does not really need the "watcher" or "observer" at all.
When the watcher disappears, the notion of higher and lower levels does not apply, so there is no longer any inclination to struggle, attempting to get higher. Then you just are where you are.
You do not have to regard the watcher as a villian. Once you begin to understand that the purpose of meditation is not to get higher but to be present here, then the watcher is not efficient enough to perform that function, and it automatically falls away. The basic quality of the watcher is to try to be extremely efficient and active. But total awareness is something you already have, so ambitious or so called "efficient" attempts to be aware are self-defeating. As the watcher beings to realize that it is irrelevant, it falls away.
The whole point is that, if you have any idea of relationship - I am experiencing this, I am doing this - then "I" and "this" are very strong personalities, equally. Somehow there will be a conflict between "I" and "this". It is rather like saying that "this" is the mother and "I" the father. With two such polar extremes involved you are bound to give birth to something.
So the whole idea is to let "this" not be there, and then "I" will not be there. Or else, "I" is not there, therefore "this" is not there. It is not a matter of telling it to yourself, but of feeling it, a real experience. You must take away the watcher, the observer of the two extremes. Once the watcher is removed, then the whole structure falls apart. The dichotomy remains in existence only so long as there is an observer to keep the whole picture together.
You must remove the watcher and the very complicated bureaucracy he creates to insure that nothing is missed by central headquarters. Once we take away the watcher, there is a tremendous amount of space, because he and the bureaucracy take up so much room. If we eliminate the filter of "I" and "other", then the space becomes sharp and precise and intelligent. Space contains the tremendous precision of being able to work with the situations in it. One does not really need the "watcher" or "observer" at all.
When the watcher disappears, the notion of higher and lower levels does not apply, so there is no longer any inclination to struggle, attempting to get higher. Then you just are where you are.
You do not have to regard the watcher as a villian. Once you begin to understand that the purpose of meditation is not to get higher but to be present here, then the watcher is not efficient enough to perform that function, and it automatically falls away. The basic quality of the watcher is to try to be extremely efficient and active. But total awareness is something you already have, so ambitious or so called "efficient" attempts to be aware are self-defeating. As the watcher beings to realize that it is irrelevant, it falls away.
Why do they hold sway
I now see the business manager at the Ford dealership as the symbol of America, of the state of consciousness now ascendant in America. And I allowed him to hold sway. In the same way that I allow Dick Cheney to hold sway.
Alcoholic
I've had some experience with alcoholics. As long as he's practicing, he is unpredictably dangerous. He can be charming, witty, fun to be around. But he will turn on you. He will lie and steal and commit violence. He may not seem to remember it next time he sees you.
Promiscuity goes hand-in-hand with alcoholism. Some people say it's a symptom. I think it's more that both alcoholism and promiscuity are symptoms of a low self-esteem.
Promiscuity goes hand-in-hand with alcoholism. Some people say it's a symptom. I think it's more that both alcoholism and promiscuity are symptoms of a low self-esteem.
Pyramid Energy Flow
The energy in a pyramid usually flows from the top down. From CEO to managers to laborers. From pope to priest to laymen. The big pyramid is made up of many smaller pyramids, which in turn are built of many still smaller pyramids.
In my corporate consulting work, I had the opportunity to observe many different small pyramids: project teams and departments within a corporation. When a competent person heads a pyramid, the pyramid below him works well. Even though there are some lazy, evil, or bone-headed people in the group, the good hard-working people can carry them and push the overall effort into success. But when an incompetent person takes the top slot, the good hard-working people are thwarted by mismanagement, and the lazy evil people run amok and dominate the scene, and the overall effort fails.
But what if the energy in a pyramid were to run from the bottom up? Like in a truly representative democracy. What if the leader listens to his base and responds to them and acts in their best interests? Does this then prevent or minimize the damage caused by incompentents? Or is that the definition of an incompetent: one who stops the energy from flowing upward?
In my corporate consulting work, I had the opportunity to observe many different small pyramids: project teams and departments within a corporation. When a competent person heads a pyramid, the pyramid below him works well. Even though there are some lazy, evil, or bone-headed people in the group, the good hard-working people can carry them and push the overall effort into success. But when an incompetent person takes the top slot, the good hard-working people are thwarted by mismanagement, and the lazy evil people run amok and dominate the scene, and the overall effort fails.
But what if the energy in a pyramid were to run from the bottom up? Like in a truly representative democracy. What if the leader listens to his base and responds to them and acts in their best interests? Does this then prevent or minimize the damage caused by incompentents? Or is that the definition of an incompetent: one who stops the energy from flowing upward?
Pyramid
The pyramid is the symbol of civilization. It is a thought form that appeared in our consciousness at around 4000 BC, and ushured in civilization. Everything we create now takes the form of a pyramid. Businesses, goverment, religion - every organzation, takes on the hierarchical structure of the pyramid.
Evolution
The last step of evolution was in 4000 BC: the shift from hunter-gatherer to civilization. Why did that happen? How did that happen? Was it strictly due to the increase in population density? What other forces were involved? It these same forces are continuously applied, what will trigger the next jump? What will the next human look like?
Saturday, September 3, 2005
Processing = Addictive
Processing foods makes them more addictive. Consider the coca plant: a natural wonder planted here by the creator. Natives chew on the leaves to relive a toothache. But process it into cocaine and it becomes the most addictive substance we know of. Or consider the opium poppy: mildly addictive in it's natural form, but viciously addictive when processed into heroin. Foods are the same way, especially flour, sugar, and oils. We start with the potato - very healthy, not addictive - and end up with the potato chip: deadly and very addictive. The more processing, the mor addictive.
Thursday, September 1, 2005
Depression
9/11 led to a significant economic recession The New Orleans disaster is many times worse than 9/11. If the follow-on recession is proportional, we're in trouble.
Fear and greed
America has reached a very low level of consciousness. The looters in New Orleans are behaving no differently from our corporate, government, and religious leaders. Tight, constricted, grasping.
Saturday, August 27, 2005
News Distractions
Every event is another step in the continuing story of man's transformation. The corporate news media takes each event, pulls it out of the fabric of the continuing story, frames a new story, and presents it to us as a distraction. A disposable story to keep us entertained for a few days or weeks. And the story is given two sides, so that we are invited to argue about it - further distraction.
Rove's Irony of Truth
When Karl Rove said "Valerie Plame is a US secret agent", that was the first and only time he has every said something true. And he's going to hang for it. He will be in prison kicking himself: "Damn, so stupid of me, to accidentally tell the truth."
Alternate Reality
It's not that they lie. It's beyond truth and falsehood. They have constructed an alternate reality. It permeates our consciousness in the same way that the real reality does. It's all we read about in the media. It's all we hear from the politicians. It's all we talk about, because the issues and the debates are framed within this alternate reality.
Saturday, August 20, 2005
Playing into their hands
I think I just had a breakthrough. I've been harboring anger and hatred of people who voted for Bush. Now I'm starting to realize that when I do that, I'm playing into the hands of the corporatocracy. They are deliberately dividing us, setting us at one another's throats.
More Parties
The two-party system is not working. It reduces every issue to a two-sided argument. The pseudo-journalists include two quotes and they can pretend they've provided objectivity and balance. That gets us in the habit of black-and-white thinking, an ineffective mode of thought. It also creates two enemy camps. The corporatocracy does this purposely to set us against one another, dissipate our energy, and keep us distracted.
Friday, August 19, 2005
I lost 15 pounds in six months
From the time I left high school until my early forties I always weighed 150 lbs and wore a size 30-inch waist. Then at some point this blubber started gathering around my belt. I gradually crept up to a 32 and then a 34-inch waist, and up to 165 lbs.
Then at age 52, just six months ago, I got started on this new anti-corporate eating regimen. And the blubber just melted away. I've had to buy new pants, back down to 30 inches, and I'm back down to 150 lbs. Cool.
Then at age 52, just six months ago, I got started on this new anti-corporate eating regimen. And the blubber just melted away. I've had to buy new pants, back down to 30 inches, and I'm back down to 150 lbs. Cool.
Romantic Jailtime
Some persons embrace a romantic image of martyrdom for journalistic integrity, and mistakenly project that image onto Judith Miller. They separate two things: lousy reporting about WMD, and going to jail to protect a source. But these are not really two different things at all.
Rove to Journalist: Iraq has WMD.
Journalist to World: Iraq has WMD.
Rove to Journalist: Plame is a US secret agent.
Journalist to World: Plame is a US secret agent.
What's different about those two things? Nothing. (Except the first was false, and the second was true and a state secret.) Rove is NOT a journalistic source. He's a propaganda specialist and he's playing these pseudo-journalists like his own personal orchestra. Miller is NOT protecting a source. She's refusing to squeal on a co-conspirator.
Rove to Journalist: Iraq has WMD.
Journalist to World: Iraq has WMD.
Rove to Journalist: Plame is a US secret agent.
Journalist to World: Plame is a US secret agent.
What's different about those two things? Nothing. (Except the first was false, and the second was true and a state secret.) Rove is NOT a journalistic source. He's a propaganda specialist and he's playing these pseudo-journalists like his own personal orchestra. Miller is NOT protecting a source. She's refusing to squeal on a co-conspirator.
Thursday, August 18, 2005
Protecting a Source
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was the Bob the Bruiser.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was the bank president himself.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was me. I did it.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was me. And here's the money. Take half and spend it however you want.
You see. At some point it's no longer protecting a source. It's a criminal conspiracy.
Rove to Journalist: Plame is a US secret agent.
Journalist to world: Plame is a US secret agent.
Who really blew Plame's cover? They both did. It's criminal conspiracy.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was the bank president himself.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was me. I did it.
Source: I know who robbed the bank. It was me. And here's the money. Take half and spend it however you want.
You see. At some point it's no longer protecting a source. It's a criminal conspiracy.
Rove to Journalist: Plame is a US secret agent.
Journalist to world: Plame is a US secret agent.
Who really blew Plame's cover? They both did. It's criminal conspiracy.
Rove's Outing
Who came up with this term "outing" of a CIA agent? That sounds like spin to me, to make it sound less serious. We're not talking about sexual preferences or a family trip to the zoo.
He handed state secrets over to the enemy.
We need some more accurate descriptive words to use in the headlines of this story. Treason, betrayal, blown cover. Who's good with words?
He handed state secrets over to the enemy.
We need some more accurate descriptive words to use in the headlines of this story. Treason, betrayal, blown cover. Who's good with words?
Tuesday, August 16, 2005
Peace in the Middle East
Peace will come to the Middle East. Not because of a military victory or diplomatic breakthrough - it will just happen. One morning everyone will wake up and it will just be over. The goverments of the world will be just as surprised as you and me.
Remember when the Berlin wall came down a few years ago? Same thing. It's a change in consciousness.
And since we're all connected, and there is really only one consciousness, that means there is something I can do to promote peace in the Middle East. I can work on my own state of consciousness. I can eliminate fear and hatred from my own mind. I can drop age-old grudges and embrace my abusers. I can refuse to react to recurring fears.
Remember when the Berlin wall came down a few years ago? Same thing. It's a change in consciousness.
And since we're all connected, and there is really only one consciousness, that means there is something I can do to promote peace in the Middle East. I can work on my own state of consciousness. I can eliminate fear and hatred from my own mind. I can drop age-old grudges and embrace my abusers. I can refuse to react to recurring fears.
Showtime
That nervousness you feel is adrenaline. Your body is pumping itself up with chemicals, getting ready for the performance.
You have trained your whole life for this moment. Everything you eat and drink. All the exercise and every nap. Your education, the books you read, the conversations, the travel, the entertainment - it has all prepared you for this moment.
You thought you were the musician. No, you're the instrument. You've made yourself into the perfect instrument. The music exists. Now it's going to play itself through you.
Truth and beauty exist. Let them express themselves through you. Right now.
You have trained your whole life for this moment. Everything you eat and drink. All the exercise and every nap. Your education, the books you read, the conversations, the travel, the entertainment - it has all prepared you for this moment.
You thought you were the musician. No, you're the instrument. You've made yourself into the perfect instrument. The music exists. Now it's going to play itself through you.
Truth and beauty exist. Let them express themselves through you. Right now.
Saturday, August 13, 2005
Chicken Hawks
The architects of the Iraq War:
From Bush by numbers.
- George Bush, President
- Dick Cheney, Vice-President
- Donald Rumsfeld, Secretary of Defence
- Paul Wolfowitz, Assistant Secretary of Defence
- Richard Perle, Chairman of the Defence Policy Board
- Karl Rove, White House Chief of Staff
From Bush by numbers.
Don't Eat It
A hundred years ago the problem was to find something to eat. We devoted our lives to providing food for the family.
Today our society is so ridiculously rich, the problem now is to NOT eat. We are surrounded by addictive, sweet, good-tasting stuff, all the time. It has attractive packaging. It's backed by mountains of dollars worth of propaganda. It's right there within arm's reach. It's cheap. It's scientifically designed to be addictive. The challenge is to not eat it.
Today our society is so ridiculously rich, the problem now is to NOT eat. We are surrounded by addictive, sweet, good-tasting stuff, all the time. It has attractive packaging. It's backed by mountains of dollars worth of propaganda. It's right there within arm's reach. It's cheap. It's scientifically designed to be addictive. The challenge is to not eat it.
Young Sacrifices
I'm amazed that we send our young people out in the military. I mean, if I had a problem with the guy down at the hardware store, would I come home and ask my son to go beat him up for me?
Theft
Two men meet on the street: one big, one little. The big man pushes the little guy down onto the sidewalk, takes his wallet, and walks off. We consider that wrong.
Now two different men meet on the street: one smart, one stupid. The smart man engages the stupid man in a negotiation, empties his wallet, and walks off. We do NOT consider this wrong. In fact, the smart man will get his picture on the cover of Fortune magazine next week.
Now two different men meet on the street: one smart, one stupid. The smart man engages the stupid man in a negotiation, empties his wallet, and walks off. We do NOT consider this wrong. In fact, the smart man will get his picture on the cover of Fortune magazine next week.
Friday, August 12, 2005
Bush Voter
Whenever I see you, my mind conjurs up that image of the 14-year-old Iraqi boy with both arms blown off.
Who's Bad?
Osama Bin Laden is evil, isn't he. I often wonder which is worse: that he killed 3000 innocent civilians in the WTC, or that he sacrificed 19 of his boys to do it. Both are horrible to contemplate.
You and I have sacrificed 1800 boys to kill 23,000 innocent civilians in Iraq, so far.
You and I have sacrificed 1800 boys to kill 23,000 innocent civilians in Iraq, so far.
Thursday, August 11, 2005
Words
When we say a dude is bad, sick or twisted, that's actually a compliment.
When a politician uses the words democracy, freedom, globalization, free trade, christian, or moral values, he usually means exactly the opposite.
When a politician uses the words democracy, freedom, globalization, free trade, christian, or moral values, he usually means exactly the opposite.
Wednesday, August 10, 2005
Career Advice
Why did you come to this planet? Same reason I did: to evolve spiritually. That's why we're all here. Every time you make a small spiritual advance, that's a step forward for all humanity, because we're all connected.
So, what is your personal mission on this planet? What can you do to help? There's a million things that need to be done, right? So what can you do that no one else can do?
Once you find your mission, nothing else matters. The economy, what jobs are available, what market sectors are hot... none of that matters anymore.
So, what is your personal mission on this planet? What can you do to help? There's a million things that need to be done, right? So what can you do that no one else can do?
Once you find your mission, nothing else matters. The economy, what jobs are available, what market sectors are hot... none of that matters anymore.
Bush a Christian?
I've heard Christians claim they model their lives after Jesus of Nazareth. And George Bush claims to be a Christian. Let's compare.
Jesus lived in the Middle East.
George Bush lives as far away from the Middle East as he can get. He just messes in the Middle East.
Jesus kept no possessions beyond his sandals and robe. He wandered the countryside trusting God to provide.
The Bush family ranks among the wealthiest in the world and George sold out his own country to keep it that way.
Jesus taught love and tolerance.
Bush promotes fear and hatred and preaches revenge and violence and dominance.
Jesus lived in the Middle East.
George Bush lives as far away from the Middle East as he can get. He just messes in the Middle East.
Jesus kept no possessions beyond his sandals and robe. He wandered the countryside trusting God to provide.
The Bush family ranks among the wealthiest in the world and George sold out his own country to keep it that way.
Jesus taught love and tolerance.
Bush promotes fear and hatred and preaches revenge and violence and dominance.
Rumsfeld's NutraSweet
The Iraq War is not the first time Donald Rumsfeld has sacrificed your children for his own personal gain.
Every time your child takes a sip of Diet Coke, ka-ching, Donald Rumsfeld makes another few cents. He was CEO of Searle when they came up with Aspartame, the active ingredient in NutraSweet. The testing showed Aspartame harmful and the FDA refused to approve it. But Rumsfeld pulled some shenanigans with the FDA and got the approval rammed through.
Google rumsfeld aspertame for details.
Every time your child takes a sip of Diet Coke, ka-ching, Donald Rumsfeld makes another few cents. He was CEO of Searle when they came up with Aspartame, the active ingredient in NutraSweet. The testing showed Aspartame harmful and the FDA refused to approve it. But Rumsfeld pulled some shenanigans with the FDA and got the approval rammed through.
Google rumsfeld aspertame for details.
Bush voters
Why did you vote for George Bush? Because you wanted to kill, maim, and torture brown people.
Bug-like race
I've adopted a set of back-to-nature eating habits. I eat only foods that suffer minimal corporate manipulation. I each brown rice and wild rice but not white rice. No wheat. No flour of any kind. No sugar. Sea salt yes, table salt no. Buffalo and venison, but no beef or chicken. Wild caught fish only. Organic fruits and vegetables and nuts. Circle of life. Close to the earth.
But I don't see humankind coming along in this direction. Humanity seems to be developing into a bug-like race that can survive a trip to another planet, after we decimate this one. That's why we're learning to eat manufactured foods. Someday we'll have machines that make a sugary goo, and that's all we'll eat.
But I don't see humankind coming along in this direction. Humanity seems to be developing into a bug-like race that can survive a trip to another planet, after we decimate this one. That's why we're learning to eat manufactured foods. Someday we'll have machines that make a sugary goo, and that's all we'll eat.
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