This Tuesday last, a council meeting was had in the council chambers of Newport Beach, Ca. Several students from Newport Harbor High School stood up and spoke before the council members to voice their concern and conscious affliction with what is going on off the coast of Orange County. There was no question that more education and public outreach was/is needed.
Urgency on the matter of pollution comes from the slow, yet progressive, overuse of natural resources. Not to mention, the change in chemical composition of this planet. We now live in a time, meaning right now as you're reading this, that the slow settle of elements this planet has formed is now being redistributed at a pace that is faster than the normal adaptive behavior that animals on this planet can convert from/to. Homo sapiens (for whom most of the current redistribution is generated from) are the only species known to this planet that currently is at a level of intelligence to understand and alter it's behavioral patterns to avoid accelerating collapses of interrelated ecosystems found throughout different areas of the globe.
Weather patterns are (/have been) formed as a mode of transportation for the distribution of nutrients and other essential additives. We are changing this pattern.
With higher levels of consciousness comes enhanced sensations which the spirit experiences. These experiences will influence the collective argument from which a decision would be based on.
...what influences your decisions?
29 May 2008
09 May 2008
UN halts Burma aid after seizure (Cyclone Nargis)
The World Food Programme has halted aid shipments to Burma after two plane-loads of food were impounded on arrival by the military authorities.
How incredible is this.
Here's something to know about the country-Several human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science have reported on human rights abuses by the military government. They have claimed that there is no independent judiciary in Burma. The military government restricts Internet access through software-based censorship that limits the material citizens can access on-line. Forced labor, human trafficking, and child labor are common.
Basically the country is run by a rogue military regime. So corrupt as to not allow their citizens some of the most fundamental of human rights. All the food that has been sent as of 5/9/2008 is sitting in a warehouse rotting as the Burmese (Myanmar) people starve and freeze to death. The military is hesitant to allow anyone in their backyard, hence the resistance to allow any foreigners in.
For more info go here and here.
How incredible is this.
Here's something to know about the country-Several human rights organizations, including Human Rights Watch and Amnesty International, and the American Association for the Advancement of Science have reported on human rights abuses by the military government. They have claimed that there is no independent judiciary in Burma. The military government restricts Internet access through software-based censorship that limits the material citizens can access on-line. Forced labor, human trafficking, and child labor are common.
Basically the country is run by a rogue military regime. So corrupt as to not allow their citizens some of the most fundamental of human rights. All the food that has been sent as of 5/9/2008 is sitting in a warehouse rotting as the Burmese (Myanmar) people starve and freeze to death. The military is hesitant to allow anyone in their backyard, hence the resistance to allow any foreigners in.
For more info go here and here.
05 May 2008
Dylan and a bottle of Chianti
What to talk about? ...problems going on in the world...troubles at every turn...things going to shit. Where do we draw the line? That all illusive line between what's right for the world and what's right for our world, my world. How is it that we actually separate this? The "I" from the "we". I saw this video on TED talks where a woman had to experience and witness her own stroke to understand the meaning of our existence. If you're of the faint hearted or one of those individuals who can't bear dealing with reality then please turn away as this might be a bit too much for you. All the bullshit that we pour into our lives in order to feel special or unique works directly against that that truly makes us special. It's not about our accomplishments. It's not about wealth or material accumulation. It's not about status. It's about the everyday grind and practice and discipline of showing our naked selves to each other. Naked in the sense of allowing our spirit to transcend this physical, material body that we attach so much artificial and synthetic meaning to. Why do we do this?
Why do we allow our ego to be in the driver's seat? The only place our ego belongs to is in those moments where we make an ass of ourselves and can laugh about it. But instead we play this game as if there's actually a prize or trophy to be won. What happens after every championship game? You look towards improving the next season! There is no end! I am the beginning AND the end. I am the end AND the beginning.
We live in the present because it's the only space for truth. The past and the future are always up for interpretation from multiple upon multiple points of views. What we do while in the presence of others is what gives us the opportunity to show what we're made of. And what we're made of is from the same material that brought all of us into existence.
Why do we allow our ego to be in the driver's seat? The only place our ego belongs to is in those moments where we make an ass of ourselves and can laugh about it. But instead we play this game as if there's actually a prize or trophy to be won. What happens after every championship game? You look towards improving the next season! There is no end! I am the beginning AND the end. I am the end AND the beginning.
We live in the present because it's the only space for truth. The past and the future are always up for interpretation from multiple upon multiple points of views. What we do while in the presence of others is what gives us the opportunity to show what we're made of. And what we're made of is from the same material that brought all of us into existence.
02 May 2008
Prepping for Zero Waste
Tomorrow I will be attending a conference in Los Angeles to network with those working on getting the city to Zero Waste. This is no small project as what is needed is a major overhaul of infrastructure. Much like LA's traffic this needs strong planning and smart numbers running to make it happen. Part of the solution is composting and getting Waste Management facilities to upgrade their operations. Everyone can get into composting right now if they wish as there are several inexpensive ways of doing this at home. Here and here are some examples of turning a significant portion of your garbage into food for your garden.
Nature's autonomous maintenance of itself is one that we should be taking more time to understand. Of course what happens is quite different as what we humans tend to do is take systems that already work and try to reinvent the wheel so to speak. In other words, what we're currently doing is destroying (quite literally) thousands and thousands of template systems found in nature in order to put in its place one of our own. Due to our limited scope of time, mainly referencing the few thousand years that humans have been around as opposed to the billions that earth has, we are basically challenging the earth in a battle for who can design the better system. We feel that our way of living in our economic world must somehow indicate what the status quo on earth should be. What's good for humans is good for everything else.
It would seem that all we're doing is rearranging the chemical compositions of the earth. Earth has put everything in its place, from the crude oil in the ground to the water in the oceans to the trees in the forest, and has done a pretty good job of getting everything to sort of work together. This working together includes the many different lifeforms that inhabit this planet as well. Insert humans. Our perception is, cut down that tree so I have something to write on. Drill that oil out so I have somewhere to go. Rearrange the molecular structure of many chemicals so I have something to carry my water in. The central theme to this is us...and only us.
There are a few people in life who do understand the system we are apart of. What we see out in the streets however is very much different as our connection to the big picture is becoming less and less. We've disconnected ourselves in exchange for an enclosed world that we desire because of the television we wish to watch. Or the music we wish to listen to. Or the video games we wish to enjoy.
We now make more of a connection with our physical bodies from man-made created chemical compositions than that of what our own bodies are made of. That's the disconnect. We have more in common with the tree outside that your neighbor's dog keeps peeing on than the object made from plastic from which you are reading this text. Basically what we're doing is a very inefficient job of trying to "make this world a better place". There's no need. It's doing just fine on its own without our two cents.
Having said that let's look at what we can do to get reconnected. First, take a deep breath. Get your body in tune with your soul and penetrate that until you touch upon spirit. The part of you that is timeless. That part of you that has nothing to say because everything you see, hear, taste, smell, and feel says it for you. Once you've rested on that then look around you. Recognize the other living organisms that are doing the same thing you are, namely...living, being. Now take this opportunity to see what you can do to clean up the mess that you have created.
Nature's autonomous maintenance of itself is one that we should be taking more time to understand. Of course what happens is quite different as what we humans tend to do is take systems that already work and try to reinvent the wheel so to speak. In other words, what we're currently doing is destroying (quite literally) thousands and thousands of template systems found in nature in order to put in its place one of our own. Due to our limited scope of time, mainly referencing the few thousand years that humans have been around as opposed to the billions that earth has, we are basically challenging the earth in a battle for who can design the better system. We feel that our way of living in our economic world must somehow indicate what the status quo on earth should be. What's good for humans is good for everything else.
It would seem that all we're doing is rearranging the chemical compositions of the earth. Earth has put everything in its place, from the crude oil in the ground to the water in the oceans to the trees in the forest, and has done a pretty good job of getting everything to sort of work together. This working together includes the many different lifeforms that inhabit this planet as well. Insert humans. Our perception is, cut down that tree so I have something to write on. Drill that oil out so I have somewhere to go. Rearrange the molecular structure of many chemicals so I have something to carry my water in. The central theme to this is us...and only us.
There are a few people in life who do understand the system we are apart of. What we see out in the streets however is very much different as our connection to the big picture is becoming less and less. We've disconnected ourselves in exchange for an enclosed world that we desire because of the television we wish to watch. Or the music we wish to listen to. Or the video games we wish to enjoy.
We now make more of a connection with our physical bodies from man-made created chemical compositions than that of what our own bodies are made of. That's the disconnect. We have more in common with the tree outside that your neighbor's dog keeps peeing on than the object made from plastic from which you are reading this text. Basically what we're doing is a very inefficient job of trying to "make this world a better place". There's no need. It's doing just fine on its own without our two cents.
Having said that let's look at what we can do to get reconnected. First, take a deep breath. Get your body in tune with your soul and penetrate that until you touch upon spirit. The part of you that is timeless. That part of you that has nothing to say because everything you see, hear, taste, smell, and feel says it for you. Once you've rested on that then look around you. Recognize the other living organisms that are doing the same thing you are, namely...living, being. Now take this opportunity to see what you can do to clean up the mess that you have created.
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