Unemployment Benefits, Compassion and Racism

"Be kind whenever possible. It is always possible." - The Dalai Lama


In following the news today about congressional debates about extending unemployment benefits, I started looking at the comments posted by readers at the bottoms of the pages. I was pretty appalled at what I read. I have copied some of these quotes and will include them as I write my feelings about this debate:

"TWO YEARS of payments for doing absolutely nothing is "heartless"?? And these oh so generous Liberal Dems want to go for still MORE months of these "heartless" sit at home and collect $ "benefits."

How many YEARS of $ for nothing benefits do taxpayers have to fund before we show "heart"?" 

A couple years ago Newt Gingrich singled out an unemployed mechanic and used him as an example of those lazy, good-for-nothing unemployed people who are leeching the system. I happened to catch an interview with that same man and his family on the news later that day.

To the best of my memory, he had been a mechanic who had been laid off after working for a company for 20 years. He made about $22 an hour, and during that whole time he worked for that company he paid into unemployment insurance. He pointed out, in the interview, that he had a son who would soon be graduating from high school, and if he took an $8 an hour job, they would have to sell their house, cash in the investments they had that were intended for the son's college education, and so forth. He mentioned several times that he had been paying for over 20 years into unemployment insurance. His intention was to use this time to find a job that paid an equivalent amount to what he was being paid so that he would not have to upend his family and their lifestyle. He said that he felt guilty every day he did not work, but that as a skilled laborer, he felt he had a duty to find a job that utilized his skills rather than take a minimum wage job. The story ended on a happy note as he said he had just been hired for a new mechanic job at near his old wage. He expressed his gratitude for having unemployment insurance to fall back on while he searched for a job and saved his way of life.

"Most of us Republicans think it is heartless to give UI handouts to lazy, worthless, fat arses that refuse to work. Just because McDonalds or Walmart pays less than UI, that is no reason not to `man up' and take the job. The unemployed are killing this Country through their lack of a work ethic and laziness. Sitting home, eating candy, watching soaps is not what made America strong" (UI = unemployment insurance.)

Compassion is one of the highest of human attributes. Most faiths are rooted in this concept of compassion. Compassion is derived from the Latin words "comi" - together and "pati" - to suffer. This idea of together feeling sympathy for the suffering of others is a basic element in the functioning of the species. We are an interdependent animal, that require community, shared burden and compassion in order to successfully survive. Yet, we so often lack this and fight among ourselves.

 "ENOUGH with encouraging people to not work. Unemployment insurance lasts for 6 months. PERIOD! Anything more than 6 months is NOT insurance it's Welfare! Call it what it is."

I am so struck by the anger levied at those who are unable to find jobs by members of America's right wing. We have a divided country, and it seems to be divided along lines of compassion. I have a very difficult time understanding where these people who insist people give up their homes and dreams in order to work at minimum wage job come from. And I find it disturbing. What is more, is that many people who criticize the unemployed for being lazy out of one side of their mouths then claim to be religious out of the other side. They call for laws implementing religious doctrine while simultaneously negating the very basis of the religious doctrine through laws they wish to impose. They are calling for all the dogma and none of the heart and purpose of the religion.

"All major religious traditions carry basically the same message, that is love, compassion and forgiveness the important thing is they should be part of our daily lives." - Dalai Lama

This is a serious rift in our society. And while I have no doubt that these people feel compassion for their family members and maybe parishioners at their churches, I am unable to explain how they can generalize this to only a few members of society and not to all members. This 'every man for himself' attitude seems very childish.

Having my roots in the study of psychology, I am always searching for root patterns for the behavior of people. So why would around 50% of the people in the country feel that it is not their responsibility to help others, if they don't know them. Where does this isolationism come from?

"Some people are starting to turn unemployment into a lifestyle and that trend must be reversed. Demands must be put on people continuing to draw unemployment for more than 6 months. That might include mandated skills training, public work projects, etc. to continue receiving this benefit from the taxpayers, that's who has to pick up the bill after the 6 month period. And the longer one is on unemployment then the demands need to increase. This also should be applied to welfare!"

I have known many people who collect welfare and unemployment. Certainly through my job, I encounter many. I have definitely encountered those who sit at home and have found ways to 'milk the system.' But these are the exceptions and not the rule. Most people I know who have benefitted from such 'entitlements' are people to sick to work, or, as is more the case nowadays, who have lost their jobs due to companies being sold, closing or reorganizing. Without a single exception, everyone I have talked to who has been unemployed through such means have said that they would trade being unemployed for working in a second. They feel tremendous guilt and a longing to be giving to society rather than receiving.

"Have any of making those comments about UI BEEN on UI the past couple of years? Have you had to try and find a new job? I'm NOT lazy. I've worked since I was 14 years old. I'm 55 and lost my job to company cutbacks. I don't ask for much…I just want to be able to keep my home and eat. So, unless you've been there, keep your moronic comments to yourself."

There is some number of people that have been brainwashed by the drone of Rush Limbaugh and Fox News (incidentally, both Rush Limbaugh and Bill O'Reilly have been recipients of unemployment benefits...) who have a political agenda of supporting corporations and unseating Democrats at all cost. This can only account for a couple million, albeit very vocal, people. There is some element of the populous who are ignorant, but again, I don't believe this can account for the huge upsurgence of these sorts of people. There is an element of racial hatred, accounting for people who cannot stand having an African-American president, and who, consequently, have taken to heart the whole of the Republican dogma as a means of justifying this deep-rooted prejudice. Unfortunately, I think this accounts for a larger group of people than the others.

"Democrats should be more furious at themselves and their leader Barack Hussein Obama. It is His Failed Policies that have created this non-stop crisis of persistent high unemployment, a decimated housing market, wall street as volatile as a radioactive football and prospects for the future looking pretty bleak. It is Clear the Barack Hussein Obama, our first and last Muslim President needs to go. Time for Real Change in Washington, Change brought by Us (The People)."

So, the quote above points out another American illness - the fact that it is OK to hate Muslims, because they are all terrorists, whereas hating African Americans, overtly, is going too far, even for them. Thanks to the war on terror, we have an identified evil. Thanks, again, Newt Gingrich for renaming our war on terror as a war against Islam. (He did so in a documentary released a couple years ago.)

Is racism such a cancer that people are willing to sacrifice the welfare of many simply to unseat a powerful person who happens to have dark skin? I think the evidence is there. These strange untruths about Mr. Obama continue to run rampant, even after ample evidence has been given that he is not Muslim, that he is an American citizen (He was born in Hawaii, a full-fledged state. John McCain was born in Panama City - not the Canal Zone. He was, according to his birth certificate, born on foreign soil. Of course had he won the election, people would have been regarded as crazy for pouting this out - and certainly, it is widely known that his father was stationed in the Canal Zone, and that Mr. McCain deserve to be treated in every way and an American born citizen. It just goes to show how irrational bigotry is.)

Bigotry is that undesirable part of us that justifies offering compassion to those who are like you, while justifying hatred toward those who are different. That is why people can value their families and members of their churches, and so forth, while despising the neighbor who is Asian, the president, who is African American, all those in the world who are not Christian, people who collect unemployment, and so forth. They can blame the ills of the country on foreigners, especially those here illegally. They can blame the ills of the world on Muslims. Glenn Beck has identified the percentage of Muslims who are terrorists as 10% - and I would very much like to share with you Fareed Zakaria's excellent comment on this: CNN Zakaria. This Glenn Beck comment is both shaping and reflecting the world he lives in. It is a self-feeding machine of fanaticism and racism.

Ultimately, then, the question becomes, how do we develop and spread compassion? There is only one person who I believe can fully answer this, and he is the 14th Dalai Lama of Tibet. A little background - The Dalai Lama is the reincarnation of the aspect of Buddha that is associated with compassion. There is much literature available about the Dalai Lama lineage, how he is reincarnated and tested, and so forth. But let me allow him to complete this blog:

Compassion and the Individual

Tenzin Gyatso; The Fourteenth Dalai Lama


The purpose of life
 ONE GREAT QUESTION underlies our experience, whether we think about it consciously or not: What is the purpose of life?  I have considered this question and would like to share my thoughts in the hope that they may be of direct, practical benefit to those who read them.


I believe that the purpose of life is to be happy.  From the moment of birth, every human being wants happiness and does not want suffering.  Neither social conditioning nor education nor ideology affect this.  From the very core of our being, we simply desire contentment.  I don't know whether the universe, with its countless galaxies, stars and planets, has a deeper meaning or not, but at the very least, it is clear that we humans who live on this earth face the task of making a happy life for ourselves.  Therefore, it is important to discover what will bring about the greatest degree of happiness.


How to achieve happiness
For a start, it is possible to divide every kind of happiness and suffering into two main categories: mental and physical.  Of the two, it is the mind that exerts the greatest influence on most of us.  Unless we are either gravely ill or deprived of basic necessities, our physical condition plays a secondary role in life.  If the body is content, we virtually ignore it. The mind, however, registers every event, no matter how small. Hence we should devote our most serious efforts to bringing about mental peace.


From my own limited experience I have found that the greatest degree of inner tranquility comes from the development of love and compassion.


The more we care for the happiness of others, the greater our own sense of well-being becomes. Cultivating a close, warm-hearted feeling for others automatically puts the mind at ease. This helps remove whatever fears or insecurities we may have and gives us the strength to cope with any obstacles we encounter. It is the ultimate source of success in life.


As long as we live in this world we are bound to encounter problems. If, at such times, we lose hope and become discouraged, we diminish our ability to face difficulties. If, on the other hand, we remember that it is not just ourselves but every one who has to undergo suffering, this more realistic perspective will increase our determination and capacity to overcome troubles. Indeed, with this attitude, each new obstacle can be seen as yet another valuable opportunity to improve our mind!


Thus we can strive gradually to become more compassionate, that is we can develop both genuine sympathy for others' suffering and the will to help remove their pain. As a result, our own serenity and inner strength will increase.


Our need for love
Ultimately, the reason why love and compassion bring the greatest happiness is simply that our nature cherishes them above all else. The need for love lies at the very foundation of human existence. It results from the profound interdependence we all share with one another. However capable and skillful an individual may be, left alone, he or she will not survive. However vigorous and independent one may feel during the most prosperous periods of life, when one is sick or very young or very old, one must depend on the support of others.


Inter-dependence, of course, is a fundamental law of nature. Not only higher forms of life but also many of the smallest insects are social beings who, without any religion, law or education, survive by mutual cooperation based on an innate recognition of their interconnectedness. The most subtle level of material phenomena is also governed by interdependence. All phenomena from the planet we inhabit to the oceans, clouds, forests and flowers that surround us, arise in dependence upon subtle patterns of energy. Without their proper interaction, they dissolve and decay.


It is because our own human existence is so dependent on the help of others that our need for love lies at the very foundation of our existence. Therefore we need a genuine sense of responsibility and a sincere concern for the welfare of others.


We have to consider what we human beings really are. We are not like machine-made objects. If we are merely mechanical entities, then machines themselves could alleviate all of our sufferings and fulfill our needs.


However, since we are not solely material creatures, it is a mistake to place all our hopes for happiness on external development alone. Instead, we should consider our origins and nature to discover what we require.


Leaving aside the complex question of the creation and evolution of our universe, we can at least agree that each of us is the product of our own parents. In general, our conception took place not just in the context of sexual desire but from our parents' decision to have a child. Such decisions are founded on responsibility and altruism - the parents compassionate commitment to care of their child until it is able to take care of itself. Thus, from the very moment of our conception, our parents' love is directly in our creation.


Moreover, we are completely dependent upon our mothers' care from the earliest stages of our growth. According to some scientists, a pregnant woman's mental state, be it calm or agitated, has a direct physical effect on her unborn child.


The expression of love is also very important at the time of birth. Since the very first thing we do is suck milk from our mothers' breast, we naturally feel close to her, and she must feel love for us in order to feed us properly; if she feels anger or resentment her milk may not flow freely.


Then there is the critical period of brain development from the time of birth up to at least the age of three or four, during which time loving physical contact is the single most important factor for the normal growth of the child. If the child is not held, hugged, cuddled, or loved, its development will be impaired and its brain will not mature properly.


Since a child cannot survive without the care of others, love is its most important nourishment. The happiness of childhood, the allaying of the child's many fears and the healthy development of its self-confidence all depend directly upon love.


Nowadays, many children grow up in unhappy homes. If they do not receive proper affection, in later life they will rarely love their parents and, not infrequently, will find it hard to love others. This is very sad.


As children grow older and enter school, their need for support must be met by their teachers. If a teacher not only imparts academic education but also assumes responsibility for preparing students for life, his or her pupils will feel trust and respect and what has been taught will leave an indelible impression on their minds. On the other hand, subjects taught by a teacher who does not show true concern for his or her students' overall well-being will be regarded as temporary and not retained for long.


Similarly, if one is sick and being treated in hospital by a doctor who evinces a warm human feeling, one feels at ease and the doctors' desire to give the best possible care is itself curative, irrespective of the degree of his or her technical skill. On the other hand, if one's doctor lacks human feeling and displays an unfriendly expression, impatience or casual disregard, one will feel anxious, even if he or she is the most highly qualified doctor and the disease has been correctly diagnosed and the right medication prescribed. Inevitably, patients' feelings make a difference to the quality and completeness of their recovery.


Even when we engage in ordinary conversation in everyday life, if someone speaks with human feeling we enjoy listening, and respond accordingly; the whole conversation becomes interesting, however unimportant the topic may be. On the other hand, if a person speaks coldly or harshly, we feel uneasy and wish for a quick end to the interaction. From the least to the most important event, the affection and respect of others are vital for our happiness.


Recently I met a group of scientists in America who said that the rate of mental illness in their country was quite high-around twelve percent of the population. It became clear during our discussion that the main cause of depression was not a lack of material necessities but a deprivation of the affection of the others.


So, as you can see from everything I have written so far, one thing seems clear to me: whether or not we are consciously aware of it, from the day we are born, the need for human affection is in our very blood. Even if the affection comes from an animal or someone we would normally consider an enemy, both children and adults will naturally gravitate towards it.


I believe that no one is born free from the need for love. And this demonstrates that, although some modern schools of thought seek to do so, human beings cannot be defined as solely physical. No material object, however beautiful or valuable, can make us feel loved, because our deeper identity and true character lie in the subjective nature of the mind.


Developing compassion
Some of my friends have told me that, while love and compassion are marvelous and good, they are not really very relevant. Our world, they say, is not a place where such beliefs have much influence or power. They claim that anger and hatred are so much a part of human nature that humanity will always be dominated by them. I do not agree.


We humans have existed in our present form for about a hundred-thousand years. I believe that if during this time the human mind had been primarily controlled by anger and hatred, our overall population would have decreased. But today, despite all our wars, we find that the human population is greater than ever. This clearly indicates to me that love and compassion predominate in the world. And this is why unpleasant events are news, compassionate activities are so much part of daily life that they are taken for granted and, therefore, largely ignored.


So far I have been discussing mainly the mental benefits of compassion, but it contributes to good physical health as well, According to my personal experience, mental stability and physical well-being are directly related. Without question, anger and agitation make us more susceptible to illness. On the other hand, if the mind is tranquil and occupied with positive thoughts, the body will not easily fall prey to disease.


But of course it is also true that we all have an innate self-centeredness that inhibits our love for others. So, since we desire the true happiness that is brought about by only a calm mind, and since such peace of mind is brought about by only a compassionate attitude, how can we develop this? Obviously, it is not enough for us simply to think about how nice compassion is! We need to make a concerted effort to develop it; we must use all the events of our daily life to transform our thoughts and behavior.


First of all, we must be clear about what we mean by compassion. Many forms of compassionate feeling are mixed with desire and attachment. For instance, the love parents feel of their child is often strongly associated with their own emotional needs, so it is not fully compassionate. Again, in marriage, the love between husband and wife -  particularly at the beginning, when each partner still may not know the other's deeper character very well - depends more on attachment than genuine love. Our desire can be so strong that the person to whom we are attached appears to be good, when in fact he or she is very negative. In addition, we have a tendency to exaggerate small positive qualities. Thus when one partner's attitude changes, the other partner is often disappointed and his or her attitude changes too. This is an indication that love has been motivated more by personal need than by genuine care for the other individual.


True compassion is not just an emotional response but a firm commitment founded on reason. Therefore, a truly compassionate attitude towards others does not change even if they behave negatively.


Of course, developing this kind of compassion is not at all easy! As a start, let us consider the following facts:
Whether people are beautiful and friendly or unattractive and disruptive, ultimately they are human beings, just like oneself. Like oneself, they want happiness and do not want suffering. Furthermore, their right to overcome suffering and be happy is equal to one's own. Now, when you recognize that all beings are equal in both their desire for happiness and their right to obtain it, you automatically feel empathy and closeness for them. Through accustoming your mind to this sense of universal altruism, you develop a feeling of responsibility for others: the wish to help them actively overcome their problems. Nor is this wish selective; it applies equally to all. As long as they are human beings experiencing pleasure and pain just as you do, there is no logical basis to discriminate between them or to alter your concern for them if they behave negatively.


Let me emphasize that it is within your power, given patience and time, to develop this kind of compassion. Of course, our self-centeredness, our distinctive attachment to the feeling of an independent, self-existent �I�, works fundamentally to inhibit our compassion. Indeed, true compassion can be experienced only when this type of self- grasping is eliminated. But this does not mean that we cannot start and make progress now.


How can we start
We should begin by removing the greatest hindrances to compassion: anger and hatred. As we all know, these are extremely powerful emotions and they can overwhelm our entire mind. Nevertheless, they can be controlled. If, however, they are not, these negative emotions will plague us - with no extra effort on their part! - and impede our quest for the happiness of a loving mind.


So as a start, it is useful to investigate whether or not anger is of value. Sometimes, when we are discouraged by a difficult situation, anger does seem helpful, appearing to bring with it more energy, confidence and determination.


Here, though, we must examine our mental state carefully. While itis true that anger brings extra energy, if we explore the nature of this energy, we discover that it is blind: we cannot be sure whether its result will be positive or negative. This is because anger eclipses the best part of our brain: its rationality. So the energy of anger is almost always unreliable. It can cause an immense amount of destructive, unfortunate behavior. Moreover, if anger increases to the extreme, one becomes like a mad person, acting in ways that are as damaging to oneself as they are to others.


It is possible, however, to develop an equally forceful but far more controlled energy with which to handle difficult situations.


This controlled energy comes not only from a compassionate attitude, but also from reason and patience. These are the most powerful antidotes to anger. Unfortunately, many people misjudge these qualities as signs of weakness. I believe the opposite to be true: that they are the true signs of inner strength. Compassion is by nature gentle, peaceful and soft, but it is very powerful. It is those who easily lose their patience who are insecure and unstable. Thus, to me, the arousal of anger is a direct sign of weakness.


So, when a problem first arises, try to remain humble and maintain a sincere attitude and be concerned that the outcome is fair. Of course, others may try to take advantage of you, and if your remaining detached only encourages unjust aggression, adopt a strong stand, This, however, should be done with compassion, and if it is necessary to express your views and take strong countermeasures, do so without anger or ill-intent.
You should realize that even though your opponents appear to be harming you, in the end, their destructive activity will damage only themselves. In order to check your own selfish impulse to retaliate, you should recall your desire to practice compassion and assume responsibility for helping prevent the other person from suffering the consequences of his or her acts.


Thus, because the measures you employ have been calmly chosen, they will be more effective, more accurate and more forceful. Retaliation based on the blind energy of anger seldom hits the target.


Friends and enemies
I must emphasize again that merely thinking that compassion and reason and patience are good will not be enough to develop them. We must wait for difficulties to arise and then attempt to practice them.


And who creates such opportunities? Not our friends, of course, but our enemies. They are the ones who give us the most trouble, So if we truly wish to learn, we should consider enemies to be our best teacher!


For a person who cherishes compassion and love, the practice of tolerance is essential, and for that, an enemy is indispensable. So we should feel grateful to our enemies, for it is they who can best help us develop a tranquil mind! Also, itis often the case in both personal and public life, that with a change in circumstances, enemies become friends.


So anger and hatred are always harmful, and unless we train our minds and work to reduce their negative force, they will continue to disturb us and disrupt our attempts to develop a calm mind. Anger and hatred are our real enemies. These are the forces we most need to confront and defeat, not the temporary enemies who appear intermittently throughout life.


Of course, it is natural and right that we all want friends. I often joke that if you really want to be selfish, you should be very altruistic! You should take good care of others, be concerned for their welfare, help them, serve them, make more friends, make more smiles, The result? When you yourself need help, you find plenty of helpers! If, on the other hand, you neglect the happiness of others, in the long term you will be the loser. And is friendship produced through quarrels and anger, jealousy and intense competitiveness? I do not think so. Only affection brings us genuine close friends.


In today's materialistic society, if you have money and power, you seem to have many friends. But they are not friends of yours; they are the friends of your money and power. When you lose your wealth and influence, you will find it very difficult to track these people down.


The trouble is that when things in the world go well for us, we become confident that we can manage by ourselves and feel we do not need friends, but as our status and health decline, we quickly realize how wrong we were. That is the moment when we learn who is really helpful and who is completely useless. So to prepare for that moment, to make genuine friends who will help us when the need arises, we ourselves must cultivate altruism!
Though sometimes people laugh when I say it, I myself always want more friends. I love smiles. Because of this I have the problem of knowing how to make more friends and how to get more smiles, in particular, genuine smiles. For there are many kinds of smile, such as sarcastic, artificial or diplomatic smiles. Many smiles produce no feeling of satisfaction, and sometimes they can even create suspicion or fear, can't they? But a genuine smile really gives us a feeling of freshness and is, I believe, unique to human beings. If these are the smiles we want, then we ourselves must create the reasons for them to appear.


Compassion and the world
In conclusion, I would like briefly to expand my thoughts beyond the topic of this short piece and make a wider point: individual happiness can contribute in a profound and effective way to the overall improvement of our entire human community.


Because we all share an identical need for love, it is possible to feel that anybody we meet, in whatever circumstances, is a brother or sister. No matter how new the face or how different the dress and behavior, there is no significant division between us and other people. It is foolish to dwell on external differences, because our basic natures are the same.


Ultimately, humanity is one and this small planet is our only home, If we are to protect this home of ours, each of us needs to experience a vivid sense of universal altruism. It is only this feeling that can remove the self-centered motives that cause people to deceive and misuse one another.


If you have a sincere and open heart, you naturally feel self- worth and confidence, and there is no need to be fearful of others.


I believe that at every level of society - familial, tribal, national and international - the key to a happier and more successful world is the growth of compassion. We do not need to become religious, nor do we need to believe in an ideology. All that is necessary is for each of us to develop our good human qualities.


I try to treat whoever I meet as an old friend. This gives me a genuine feeling of happiness.  It is the practice of compassion. - Dalai Lama

War on Christmas?!?!

So, in this article, I openly voice my negative opinions about Christianity. Don't continue reading if this is going to be upsetting you. My criticisms are not of the teaching of Jesus, which are a very beautiful thing, but of more political Christianity an the rather awful things people have done while invoking the name of Jesus over quite a few centuries. My attempt is to separate things that humans do in the practice of Christianity from the things that Saints and Avatars do. I believe Jesus is one of the very greatest sages of all, but that some of what is done to worship him is violent and petty. There are many people who are like me, who grew up in childhood as Christians, but have walked away from that label because of some of the connotations that are implied. I know that most Christians are warm and loving people. My issue is not with these people, but the power that some dogmatic churches wield over them.

Back in the days when I had a TV, I remember watching a story on MSNBC about how FOX News had whipped people into a frenzy be declaring a "War on Christmas." It showed Bill O'Reilly, Scott Hannity, Glenn Beck and their other politicos railing about how people were purposely saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas" in yet another display of hatred toward Christians at a time of their most important holiday.

Now, I know that the show on MSNBC was in a 'war on FOX News,' so maybe they did not generate this whole thing, but they did, indeed fan the flames.

I remember several things coming to mind: First of all, wasn't Easter the most important Christian holiday? And second, what about all the other people who celebrate holidays around this time? Wasn't it also Hanukkah time, and Kwanzaa? And didn't the Christians place Christmas on the Winter Solstice to replace a number of major pagan holidays celebrated by those horrible Barbarians rather than celebrating Jesus' birthday in the summer, when he was actually born?

Apart from the very obvious connections between FOX News and corporate America, which profits in the millions as people frantically stress themselves out to buy presents for everyone - often putting themselves in even greater debt to get Uncle Fred another token he doesn't really need in order to diminish familial dysfunction, there are a number of other thoughts coming to mind as the whole "War on Christmas" thing reigns its ugly head once more.

Granted, my views of Christianity are very esoteric. I have enjoyed studying A Course in Miracles for many years, which interprets Christianity from a point of view very much like Buddhism, and I have been engrossed for a while in the commentaries of The New Testament by Paramahansa Yogananda which interpret the text from the point-of-view of Hinduism and Yoga.

These interpretations have brought about a renewed respect from Christianity, which, like many, I had lost respect for due to my feelings that much of the practice of Christianity was not in line with its teachings.

Christianity, as I understand it, boils down to the idea that God is Love, and that we should have love for all people and living things. This I believe and respect greatly. However, much of what is done in the name of Christianity, politically, seems to be not at all loving. Year after year, religious leaders are involved in tremendous scandals, stealing from and violating their parishioners; I am criticized for not believing in the 'one true religion;' remember The Crusades? The Inquisition? and so forth. There seems to be a disconnect between what Jesus said and what has been done by those who worship him. As Woody Allen said in "Hannah and her Sisters" - "If Jesus were to come back now and see what is being done in his name, he just would't be able to stop throwing up!"

The esoteric teachings I mentioned about have allowed me to separate my feelings about much of modern Christianity from its true roots, which are really a very marvelous thing. I have come to accept Jesus as a very enlightened master who has attempted to open up our hearts. As Buddha opened the mind, and Krishna showed the paths of yoga, so Jesus has shown the power of love.

I was reading a book on Christianity by Swami Kriyananda recently, and he made some excellent points:

Kriyananda pointed out that there is a difference between Christianity and Churchianity. Churchianity is religion based on the needs of administrators who have a need to control people and raise money, and so forth. He points out that the Saints in Christianity have widely been ridiculed, discredited and abused by the church during the time they are alive and in direct touch with God. Then, usually many years after they die, people petition the churches, based on material miracles to make them Saints, and then shrines are open to them and people can pray directly to them. But during the time they are incarnate, they are shunned from telling people of their direct experiences with the divine and teaching what is probably a very true understanding, in many cases, of Jesus' teachings. He further points out that churches have made attempts at every level to suppress science whose proofs undermine the churches claims. Most of the Eastern religions are very enthusiastic about looking at science, and have made no attempts to suppress or cover up scientific findings. It is very disturbing, in this day and age, for members of congress to be reading The Bible on the floor of the senate as their rebuttal to scientists sharing discoveries about climate change, as just one example. Many of the Eastern religions modify their interpretations of faith to match the science, rather that refute or modify the science to try to fit into narrow, dogmatic models.

Why cite a Hindu Swami? Most people don't realize that for many Hindus and Yogis, Jesus is considered one of the major deities. Often pictures of Jesus adorn Hindu homes.

Tessa Bledsoe, a former Carmelite monk (she prefers monk to nun) commented that Christianity became sick early on. This sickness came about during the time that the church was 'organized' around 400 AD, after being an illegal, mystical faith in the Roman Empire prior to the time they embraced it. They embraced it on their own terms, however, creating the notion of heaven and hell in order to control people (Pope John Paul II commented that this was true, saying that heaven and hell were not real places, but were simply states of mind, shortly before he died.) Over the centuries, Christian churches have become big, big, big business and have exerted extreme power over their own believers and those who choose not to believe.

So, summarizes my rift with popular Christianity. These are my personal problems with  Christianity and just to state why I have trouble calling myself a Christian. I do, however, fully respect the right of anyone to believe in any faith they choose, so long as that faith does not interfere with my right to believe in whatever faith I choose... but therein is some of the problem - a lot of Christians do not respect my freedom of religion.

Above is a commercial Rick Perry is running in Iowa. This reflects the attitude that I find offensive about Christianity. He makes derogatory remarks about gays in the military, brings up the whole idea that there is a war on Christmas, and promises, as president, to defend Christianity. He, like Michele Bachmann, has gained much mileage in the political arena from the whole notion that Christianity is under attack and that Christians are victims of such vial hatred. Furthermore, don't his remarks imply that if he is president, he will erase the line between religion and government?

The very first clause of the First Amendment to the Constitution is "Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof." Given this, the type of campaigning I see makes me nervous. I don't care about political candidates sharing their religious views, but using this in any way to campaign, or to belittle others is against my very core.

There are still millions of Americans who believe that Barack Obama is a Muslim, and being a Muslim necessarily makes him a terrorist. There are many who do not support Romney and Huntsman due only to the fact that they are Mormons. (I do not support Romney, either, but it is due to his political beliefs, and I could care less if he is a Mormon, or anything else...) There are many who support Perry and Bachmann purely because they are fundamentalist Christians. This is all Medieval thinking. It is also sad that much of this hatred and misunderstanding of Islam and Mormonism is perpetuated by people who think of themselves as Christians.

This is the light under which the "War on Christmas" was created.

The argument of the war on Christmas is that people are saying "Happy Holidays" instead of "Merry Christmas," because Liberals have made people so afraid to express what they really mean - which is to say that Liberals are anti-Christian. I believe that to be the subtext of this whole statement.

So, I have expressed my views of contemporary, dogmatic Christianity above, and I am also a Liberal. So, am I anti-Christian? No! Not in any way. I object to the external pressured of Christianity to force itself upon others. I object to the conceited contention that Christianity is the 'one, true religion.' I object to the historical taking of peoples' lives in the name of Christianity.  I also know that none of these things are even alluded to in the New Testament or gnostic gospels, which, as I have stated above, I have been studying, but from an esoteric standpoint.

I believe that there are many, many paths which a person can take. Many don't even involve a spiritual life. For those who chose a spiritual path, there are many - there is no one that is cut out for everyone. Even within Christianity, this is evident, as there are a multitude of Christian paths, from the very dogmatic, to the very liberal, and from the very fanatic to the casual. And I respect everyone's path. If it involves Christmas, then Merry Christmas!! I, personally, will choose to use the term "Happy Holidays," because I believe it honors all the many faiths that celebrate a holiday this time of year. I also mean it to honor those who have no faith and celebrate no holiday at all.

As far as a holiday, it is a good time of year to have one. After all, most people get a few days off of work, the years are changing, the shortest day is arriving, and soon the sun will be coming back, and this makes a lot of people happier. It is good to take time out to celebrate something at different times of the year, even if what you are celebrating is that you do not believe in anything and you have every right to that.

If you would like to say "Merry Christmas" to me, go right ahead. Then I know why this time of year is important to you, and I respect that. I probably will say "Happy Holidays" to you when I respond, and I would expect that you respect that in return.

The world is wonderful because of our differences. I love to talk to people of all faiths about why they believe the way they do. I have met many, many wonderful Christians, and it was from them that I learned many of the criticisms I made about Christianity - yes, there are many Christians who are critical of Christianity.

Whatever your beliefs, I wish you happy holidays. I don't say that to declare a war on anyone's beliefs, but, instead, to admire all peoples' beliefs.


And now to end with a little comic relief. Here is a parody of the Rick Perry Ad:

A Day of Gratefulness

Like many things coming out of history, the American holiday of Thanksgiving has roots in a deep wound:

The story is that in 1637, the Puritans who had come here to escape persecution surrounded a group of Pequots who had gathered for their Green Corn Festival during the night. The next day, they ordered the Native people to come out, and as people followed their order and came out, they were ruthlessly killed. Then the governor of the Massachusetts Bay Colony called for a Day of Thanksgiving to celebrate the slaughter of 700 innocents. And now we celebrate this holiday by gorging on food, watching people engage in violent football and then fighting over low priced consumer items the next day. Ah, bliss!

But as we enter a newer age, perhaps it is time to reassess some of these ancient and modern traditions.

1637 was a different age. One lineage of Hindu Astrology believes that this occurred during a dark time in history known as Kali Yuga. They believe that this is the far point on our planet's rotation around the universe and/or galaxy.  During this time energy is at its lowest, and people are prone to darker deeds. Some of the things that happened during Kali Yuga were The Crusades, The Inquisition, the slave trade, and so on.

While there are many who believe that Kali Yuga actually is still going on, and will be for the next 480,000 years, or so, Swami Sri Yukteswar reinterpreted the yugas, and, according to his calculations, we have moved on to the next phase, during which we are discovering that we are energy beings much more than physical beings. He calculated that this will continue to increase over the next 10,000 years, or so, at which time we will be at the zenith of our energy existence, close to the energy source of the galaxy and/or universe. Here we will realize that we are made almost entirely of energy. We will then drift again to the low-energy portion of our rotation.

In this context, it is east to see why so many of our traditions are rooted in such dark times. But rather than dwell on the evil roots, it is time to reframe these to some more positive times.

While in the Eastern traditions, the great Yogi Paramhansa Yogananda said “Every day should be a day of Thanksgiving for all the gifts of Life — for sunshine, water, and the luscious fruits and greens which we receive as indirect gifts from the Great Giver.”


Instead of Thanksgiving, gratefulness is what we should celebrate. While, as Yogananda said, we should do this every day, there are many for whom one day a year this would be a start. There is also something to be said about most of the citizens of a country celebrating something together. 


The traditions of our Thanksgiving involve getting together with family and friends, and that is a good  thing. However, the over-indulging represents taking and not giving. And, well, the whole 'Black Friday' scene is just ugly.


Gratefulness is something our society is very poor at. We spend a lot of time indulging our appetites, but very little time thanking ourselves, our families, friends, co-workers and so forth for all they give to us. As a society, we focus deeply on what is missing in our lives: we obsess over our shortcomings, lack of funds, feelings of sadness and anxiety and all the things that are not perfect in our lives. But what about the myriad of things that are perfect all around us? It is so seldom that we celebrate this yearly, let alone daily.


Many saintly people say that they begin their day with gratitude, and take time each day to give back to the world and to celebrate all that they have to be thankful for. Some of these saintly people are impoverished. Some of them have suffered from physical ailments, but these are people who see the world as opportunity and not, like so many, as a burden.


Once people begin to look in their lives for things for which to be grateful, they can see more and more things until the little things in our lives that cause depression or boredom or lack are insignificant. This shakes us loose from the past - the same way we need to shake Thanksgiving loose from its root in a dreadful day in November back in 1637.

Dona Nobis Pacem

My lovely wife, Stephanie's, logo for today's blog. To see her blog go to http://pharmdacu.blogspot.com.

Today is "Blog Blast for Peace" day. http://mimilenox.blogspot.com/. Bloggers all over the world are writing about the topic of peace to collectively influence peace on the planet. This is not just a crazy, hippie idea, as most activities involved with peace are labeled. There is actual, scientific evidence that whenever large numbers of people focus on one thing, there is an effect:

Researcher Dean Radin, from the Institute of Noetic Science (IONS) and others have had ongoing studies in which random generators are always operating all over the planet. Whenever something big happens that focuses the attention of large numbers of people, they check the random generators to see what is happening. On such dates as 9/11/2011, the reading of the O.J. Simpson verdict, and the like, they noted that there were strong anomalies in the randomness of the numbers that correlated exactly to the focus of attention during and after these events.

There is science to consciousness, so taking the day to focus people on writing about peace is a powerful idea. Thanks to Mimi for putting this out in the world.

I wanted to write, today, about internal and external peace, because I believe they go hand-in-hand.

I used to be an extremely chaotic person. I was excited by interpersonal drama, and created a lot of it. After an eight-year marriage filled with all sorts of excessive drama, that included being in revolutions, trying to survive in third-world countries, and the like, we realized that our attempt to bring such drama into our mundane lives back in the US was making us miserable, so we went our separate directions - both in search of greater drama and chaos. She went to other troubled parts of the globe, and I pursued my career working with troubled and often aggressive teenagers.

It was more chaos than I could handle, and I knew I needed to carve out a bit of peace in my world.

I set out to the most quiet place I had ever visited on the planet, which was the expansive desert of the Navajo Nation. This is the country's largest Indian Reservation, and occupies a vast portion of Arizona, and parts of Utah and New Mexico.

I very quickly established connections there with people who made it possible for me to stay in very remote areas of the territory, where I could go for many days, if not a week or more at a time with no human contact. Not only no human contact, but with very little evidence of humans, whatsoever, apart from the occasional airplane and deserted hogan.

I would sit in the desert, listening to the wind, for hour upon hour, day upon day, and after three or four weeks, I would have a feeling of peace.

For almost twenty years, I spent my summers in the desert. The amount of time it took to find peace decreased from weeks to days. Finally I could achieve a feeling of peace within a few hours of arriving. After that, I could actually develop a sense of inner peace just by thinking about the desert, when at home. And after many years, I could bring the sense of peace home with me.

I have a weird, and stressful job as a teacher of adolescents with severe emotional challenges. One year, I came back and remained calm at school for a whole week. Then a month, a quarter, a semester, and finally most of the year. My goal is still to get through the entire school year with a sense of peace all the time.

To help with my goal, the severity of the students I work with has increased from year to year: owing to budget cuts each year to provide services for people with mental illness, and reduction in insurance benefits, medicaid and so forth, the type of students I have in my classes these days are the type of students who would have been in long-term care in hospitals a few years ago.

My goal is to turn my workplace from a loud, intimidating place filled with anger into a monastery of sorts: A quiet place filled with joy and peace and that can be an environment for quiet contemplation.

As far fetched as this sounds, there are actually moments where it works.

I used to start all my classes telling kids to be quiet, and they just got louder, and then power-struggles would take place, and so on and so forth.

I now start my classes by sitting quietly in a chair in front of the class, and getting very quiet and centering myself. As I do this, the kids almost always go to their seats and start to get quiet themselves. After a few minutes of silence, I ask every student how they are and if there is anything I can do to help them that day. Some kids say it would help not to call on them. Some kids say they need a five-minute break. I usually try to grant them what they ask, if it is reasonable. Sometimes the whole class period can remain peaceful.

So I feel I have, at some level, developed an inner peace, and that this inner peace translates to an external peace, and this external peace translates to people beyond me... even people who are generally unable to have their own, internal peace.

I know that the idea of this blog day is about peace for the world. Can many people who are internally peaceful create world peace? I believe the answer is yes.

There is a theory about the spiritual balance of the planet: that a few 'avatars' - people who have achieved  god-like enlightenment, can balance millions of people who are absorbed in chaos, that more people who are highly, spiritually developed, balance thousands of people who are lost and misguided. I have actually read a theory that puts numbers to this. Maybe there is something to it.

One thing I believe about wars, which have to be the least peaceful things on the planet, is that many of these wars are motivated by greed. The rest are motivated by rigid thinking, such as 'my god is the correct god, and therefore I will kill you and your family for believing in the wrong god.'

These are both very easy problems for mass consciousness to overcome. The greed one is being addressed by world-wide protests, even as we speak. People all over the plant, tired of being taken advantage of by greedy people who want more and more, and therefore take from those who have very little, have cast off governments, and created huge movements, such as Occupy Wall Street. Each week, these protests get larger and larger. A world consciousness challenging the 20th century value of greed will surely bring about a change in time.

Through many of these same movements, people are also learning the value of diversity. As young and old, and people of many creeds, persuasions, and colors work together to overcome greed, they are bound to see in each other the value of their similarities as more important than their differences.

In many ways, these protests are more than just protests, they are Satsang. Satsang is a Hindu word that is about the coming together of people to discover the truth. It is also the coming together of Guru and student, which I am sure is happening in large scale in these huge gatherings.

I think the 'protest' part of it is almost just an excuse for the real work or removing people from their couches and televisions, (where much of the chaos and drama in our world begins...) and pitting them, face-to-face, together to discover each others' humanity.

People also are doing a lot of chanting together, which is a very primal way of building unity, and a very evolved spiritual practice.

Here is a video that exhibits some of what I am talking about as far as the coming together of internal and external peace and its influence on the masses. This is Dada Pranakrsnananda an Ananda Marga monk who was arrested on the Brooklyn Bridge during an early Occupy protest. His story is remarkable.

There is only one small shift that needs to occur for the Occupy movement to become a peace movement or more, which is that instead of connecting with the emotion of anger, which, in today's world, is our most accessible and easily shared emotions, we connect with our hearts to one another. It is actually a tiny and subtle shift, which, I believe, will be a natural outgrowth of the human bonds occurring in these movements. It is not a bond many people can create in their offices, or while engaged in media. It is only something that can happen when we meet in large numbers with a common goal of equality.

There are predictions that many millions of people might be contributing to this blog blast for peace today. That is a lot of minds singularly focused. Peace on any level is noble. We first need to think about it and talk about it, then attain it for ourselves and then spread it to the world. Thanks, Mimi for organizing this effort. Hopefully it will begin to manifest lasting peace in the hearts of all, and throughout our world.

The "Battle" for Good and Evil - Politics and Yoga - Not Really a Battle.

Politics is a microcosm for the "battle" for good and evil played out today. That is not that one party is good and another party is bad, as within each party, these value wars occur. It occurs at many levels in our world, it is just focused in the political world.

When I was studying psychology in college, I took two classes on psychopathology. One of the things I most remember was Dr. Cline pointing out that the psychological profiles of politicians and con-men are generally the same. While there are many very great people who have devoted their lives to politics; I would count among these Bernie Sanders, Bob Dole, Ron Paul (He's crazy as a loon, but is in politics because he is devoted to his beliefs, and I feel truly wants the best for the country), Barack Obama, Gabrielle Giffords and Raul Grijalva, among many others; but there are also numerous people who are called to politics by their desire to be powerful and exercise control over others. Need I remind anyone of how common it is for political figures to misuse their power in personal relationships (Anthony Weiner, David Vitter, John McCain, Bill Clinton, to name a few.)

And so this is an interesting forum within which the "battle" of good and evil takes place.

I would like to say, first of all, that I am not a person who sees religion as a struggle between good and evil, nor do I actually see the "battle" for good as a difficult one - nor even a battle, really (I'll address this later.) I do not believe in hell or the devil, or any type of eternal punishment. I believe good and evil are purely human traits, most often coming from misuse of power and from being obsessed with physical possessions. I actually see the root of it as the desire for power and control that looks like greed, hence my passion for the Occupy Wall Street Movement I have written about so often.

I think the finest example of evil in the political world, and perhaps the world in general, is Karl Rove.

Karl Rove is evil genius defined. He has an ability to scrutinize the law, and figure out exactly how to break the law in a way in which he will not get in trouble. Everyone knows he is breaking the law, yet he remains free to operate and continue manipulation because he has such a keep grasp of the legal loophole that he evades breaking the law by mere millimeters.

A little background on him:

Karl Rove's first foray into the world of politics occurred while he was in college. He broke into the office of Treasurer of Illinois candidate Alan Dixon, stole a pile of letterhead and printed up fliers inviting people to a beer party. He effectively discredited the Democrat, and allowed the Republican contender to easily win. After that, Rove worked as advisors to Republican candidates, helping them find legal loopholes and ways of manipulating the system to get them elected and to put forth their agenda.

Karl Rove became George W. Bush's advisor. During this time, he worked behind the scenes in Florida and Ohio to enact voter suppression. In Florida, a "scrub list" was created in which felons were removed from the registered voter roles. The suppression aspect of this was that people whose names were similar to the felons were also removed from the roles. People were not made aware of this until they arrived at the poles to vote, and were powerless to do anything, since voter registration had closed several weeks before. This reduced the black vote in key counties by about 3%. George W. Bush would likely have not become president if not for this suppression.

In Ohio that year, and in 2004, registered letters were sent to registered voters for them to confirm their addressed prior to the election. While this was fine for most people, those who were transient, homeless, or working multiple jobs and couldn't get their letters were removed from the roles. This allow Bush to win in Ohio in 2004, and that clinched the election for him once again.

Voter suppression continues to be a problem throughout the country. Simple things that result in removing poor, minority and other predominately Democratic voters not being able to vote allow Republican victories in close races. This year, there is much contention over having people present government-issued IDs in order to vote. This will eliminate a small percentage of people who do not have these documents - mostly people who use their twenty dollars to buy food instead of an ID - from voting. Notice that states that have this law are predominately Republican states - like Idaho, Arizona, Ohio, and so forth.

But back to Mr. Rove.

He was able to accomplish many other sinister deeds within the Bush White House. They pushed through legislation that repealed many of the regulations that had been put in place after the Great Depression, which helped their banker friends and eventually resulted in the collapse of the economy. They fired many people within the Justice Department, replacing them with aggressively right-wing lawyers and judges. The legal school most represented in the Justice Department today is Liberty University. This was formerly Oral Roberts University. They teach a curriculum of 'the ends justifies the means' and encourage people to use their positions in courts to push forth their religious views as a means of getting around the whole 'separation of church and state' stuff. Michele Bachman is a graduate of Liberty University.

They pushed through The Patriot Act, which allowed the NSA to spy on Americans. Under the guise of looking for terrorists, they listen to phone calls, read emails and so forth in order to collect any information on our citizens they feel may be important. I wonder how this could affect the outcome of elections?

After the Bush years, Karl Rove influenced the conservative members of the Supreme Court to uphold the stand that "money is speech." This eliminated control over money entering elections, allowing foreign money and unlimited corporate and PAC money to be given to candidates. Karl Rove's American Crossroads infused some $20 million into the 2010 election, mostly spent on TV ads supporting GOP candidates, ushering a vast number of radically conservative Tea Party candidates into elected offices throughout the country.

Rove also held a vision of using any means possible to get elected and then to push forth an agenda. The GOP funded attempts to destroy the American public school system has been evident, as radicalized candidates, supported by GOP PAC funds and conservative talk radio have been gaining footholds in school boards across the country, rendering them dysfunctional, and diverting public funds into private and charter schools - typically of a fundamentalist Christian nature. In my own school district right now, two men are lying to the public and accepting huge sums of money trying to get a quorum on the school board in order to do this very thing.

Then there is the other side.

Bernie Sanders is senator who has worked tirelessly to stand up for the rights of working people, the poor and the elderly. He gave a remarkable filibuster, lovingly named 'The Berniebuster,' last year, in which he spent some eight hours outlining the reasons if would be imprudent to not raise taxes on the rich and corporations. He has been a tremendous advocate for worker rights and protections, and has stood strong against cutting 'entitlements' for the poor, elderly and ill in the country. He is motivated by the utmost compassion in everything he does.

Similarly Barney Frank has devoted his tenure in congress to trying to make banks and corporations accountable to their investors and protecting consumers from fraud that is so unregulated these days. Like Bernie Sanders, he is a champion of compassion toward the American people.

Not to say that all Republicans are evil and Democrats are good, GOP lawmakers like Bob Dole and Ron Paul are honest, hard-workers who were/are more loyal to helping the American people than they are to their parties and those who finance their campaigns.

So, the lines are drawn and the battle is waged in Washington, throughout America, and on television.

Currently, the evils have been taking the upper hand: Fox News spreads lies and funds candidates. People claiming to be devoted to the living message of Jesus Christ, lie and cheat in order to push forth their agenda of being judgmental and eliminating the influence of non-Christians on our society. A war has been waged, based on lies, that allowed us to re-enact the crusades, sweeping Islam out of power, while, conveniently, also making it easier to procure oil, in key Arab countries. Anti-women agendas almost shut down the government. Non-Christians have been easily identified as terrorists, allowing their influence in the political arena to be marginalized.

I don't know, I just can't get over the irony of how un-Jesus-like these Christians in the GOP are. I kind of wish they would listen to their own phrase "What would Jesus do" rather than misuse the Bible to justify that God promised he would never again destroy the world. They say that therefore climate change is not real, and that it is OK to hire people to tamper with studies and otherwise lie and cheat to try to 'prove' that it does not exist, in the face of the fact that almost all climate scientists agree that there is climate change... and so forth.

But just when all seems lost, a quiet voice began to call out. It started as a few quiet voices in the world, complaining about greed and corruption and the abuse of rights. As of now, there are millions protesting throughout the world. Several dictators have been deposed and bigger changes coming as the people of the world have called for a change in our core values around power.

The twentieth century brought about perhaps the ugliest period of world history. During that century, we lost over a quarter billion people in wars that engulfed the entire planet. We saw the very worst of what humans can do to each other when vying for political power. We saw people become obsessed with money and other worldly goods, to the point that we now accept as routine people losing their lives in large numbers every day because someone wants their television, or their drugs, or their wives, or whatever.

Change is hard, and as millions in the world are changing their ways and seeing the value of simplicity, non-materialism, sharing wealth and humanity, many more push even harder for the comforts they might have to give up. It is a transitional state, and, I believe, the return of the good in the world.

I keep using the Occupy movement as a metaphor for so many things these days, and so I will return to it here:

Protesters throughout the world are being subjugated by the police, armies and political leaders. This is where this struggle is taking place. After all, why would people marching and camping around the country be seen as such a threat? A basic First Amendment right is the freedom of speech and to peaceably assemble. But we are pushing a button, and that is frightening those who have the most to lose. "When you got nothing, you got nothing to lose," sang Bob Dylan, a generation or two ago. This is true. Those who have prospered from this evil, which has been accepted as a social norm, are seeing their way of life under threat. How scary it must be to be identified as in a position where you are 1%, and 99% of the country want to take away your power and wealth! What will the world be like for them if we stop using banks and supporting corporations and corrupt politicians. And in their fury to break up the protests, they unwittingly increase support for the movement.

It will be fascinating to see what transpires over the next weeks and years as we seem poised for massive change, and redistribution of the world's power and wealth. But remember that as long as their are such things as power and wealth, there will also be evil and corruption.

So what of a world without power and greed.

As a novice yogi, I would just like to briefly address what I see happening on a more cosmic level:

We have a system of energy centers in the spine, know in India as the chakras. The progression of people, individually and collectively, rise up through the chakras from the lowest energy point to the highest.

The lowest chakra, the root chakra, has to do with basic survival and almost animal instincts. While some people still struggle with this, as a species, most of us have mastered this. The second chakra, located in the spine behind the genitals, has to do with material creation. This is where people deal with issues associated with greed or not being greedy. The third chakra, located opposite the solar plexus, has to do with power and conrol. The second and third are where people today most struggle. I believe power is a bigger issue than greed these days. I think a lot of what we see as greed is really just trying to amass power, but controlling peoples' money and goods is the easiest way to control people. This desire for control is also where judgmental religions, and all those other aspects discussed above occur.

Good news. Once we get through this, as many people are, the next chakra is the one opposite the heart, and as would be expected, this deals with love and compassion. This is also the transitional boundary between the lower, or material, world, and the upper, or spiritual world. The Heart is where these two mix nicely.

So, if you'll forgive the interjection of my spiritual beliefs here, this is why I currently feel so hopeful amid all the chaos of the day.

There is a lot of talk about 2012, and a lot of people freaking out about this, claiming it to be the end of the world and so forth (just as an aside, I believe that once a person predicts the end of the world, and it doesn't work out that way (Harold Camping) that you don't get another shot...but I digress...) I believe what 2012 does mark is the midpoint of the transition from being a species mostly guided by the third, (power and control) chakra to the fourth (heart, love and spirit) chakra. It won't be that everyone will suddenly change, but simply that the critical mass will shift around that time.

So I encourage everyone to keep up the pressure on all humans, politicians, family members, friends and acquaintances, to put aside their need to control others and to be accepting, I encourage you to show people how to see that, as the Dalai Lama says "People take different roads seeking fulfillment and happiness. Just because they're not on your road doesn't mean they are lost." Once we stop passing judgment on people, the shift will come quickly.

I have identified Karl Rove as 'an evil genius.' This is because he is misguided and has become so obsessed with manipulating and controlling others that he has no moral compass. He probably never had a moral compass to begin with, truth be told. He is one of many who are damaged people who have lost the ability to find happiness in the world, except through exercising power over others. This is not judgment. This is just the way it is for them. Judgment is emotional. I do not feel anger or contempt for Karl Rove or these children, but instead compassion. I hope that Karl Rove can find real happiness in the world. Then he will no longer have such a desire to hurt other people. I'm not even sure Karl Rove even cares about the agenda he is pushing forth on the country. It is just the game play of doing it. If the Democrats hired him to do for them what he has done for the Republicans, he would probably be just fine with that. He really is the victim in all this, and deserves our compassion. Once people stop feeling emotional about what he does, he will have no power. That is a difficult concept to understand, since we are, as a species, so indoctrinated into the victim mentality.

People who are standing up against oppression in the world have simply stopped seeing themselves as victims. They are moving beyond the power and control third chakra. And, as such, when they are subjected to rubber bullets and pepper spray, they just get their friends and come back for some more. It is really an amazing, evolutionary move! Those in power are using violence - a very overt means that used to be effective in controlling people. But even as they get more violent, those standing up to them multiply in number by the day. How confusing that must be to them!

So I encourage people who are protesting in the world, stay centered in your hearts. Don't attempt to control others. Never respond with violence. Do not pass judgment on those you stand against, and good will triumph.

So I lied a little bit in the title. I called this "The Battle for Good and Evil," because that is what we have come to know it as over these millenia.  The reality is that what we 'fight' for, we always get more of: The war against drugs created more drugs. The war against terror bred more terror, and so forth. So if we try to fight oppression, there will just be more. Einstein said that "no problem can be solved at the same level of consciousness that started it." From what I understand, Einstein was pretty smart, too!

The consciousness that started the mess involved scheming, fighting and maniplulating. So we must be careful not to use any of these strategies. Taking stands, being committed, working for and such things are what we need to do. Let them fight. The battle, then, is one-sided. They fight, we work for, and so on. Raise the level of consciousness, and it is easy to have whatever we want. And as what we want is more in line with universal values, they become less about desires. Desires are based on material wants. That is where the problem comes from. The outcome we would like to see is much less about desire of material good and power, and about high values: equality and justice.

#Occupy USA

I grew up in the Peace Movement. My parents weren't hippies in terms of having long hair and using drugs, but they were big supporters of world peace, and so some of my earliest days were spent riding in a backpack at peace gatherings in Oregon and Washington.

My sister and I protesting in Washington DC in the early 70s.

We stopped going to the peace rallies as much after there were some violent actions on part of demonstrators and police. In 1971 or '72 there was a big rally on the mall in Washington D.C. while we were visiting my grandparents. My aunt and uncle went, and may father took them into town. I really wanted to go, but due to the size and recent problems at rallies, they just didn't want to take a little boy, so my sister and I made signs and walked up and down the block. My sign was mounted on a gun-stock.

Anyway, after the 70s, Americans became very complacent. Things would happen, and some minor rallies would take place. Usually just a few 'freaks.' Everyone else stayed in the suburbs, watched TV and went about their business.

While people were watching TV and going about their business, corporations and the government took the lack of interest as permission to slowly erode peoples' rights. During the Bush administration, a war was waged based on false pretenses. I went to a little anti-war rally in Nederland, Colorado. There were about 15 demonstrators. 

That same administration was also starting to spy on our own citizens, and was torturing people in illegal prison camps in Cuba. A few people balked, but very few people seemed to really care.

The right wing has taken to busting unions, tearing apart school districts, diverting federal funding to religious organizations, illegally funding campaigns with foreign money, buying politicians, influencing the supreme court to say that corporations are people and money is speech, lowering taxes on the richest Americans and corporations, creating massive loopholes so that rich people really don't have to pay taxes at all, and so forth.

In the meantime, people were waking up in other parts of the world. People cast off their oppressive governments in Tunisia, Egypt and Lybia and are working on that is other countries around the world.

People started to wake up a little bit in the United States when Governor Scott Walker of Wisconsin set about stripping unions of their rights in secret, illegal meetings of Republican lawmakers. A prank caller, pretending to be David Koch, got him to show his hand. An occupation began of the capitol rotunda for many months, until recall elections changed the balance of power in that state.

Finally, the rest of the United States is starting to take notice. Two weeks ago, a leaderless group of citizens started an occupation of Wall Street. Several hundred, then several thousand people showed up to bring notice to the manipulation of the US citizenry by Wall Street bankers and others. Many of these banks had been bailed out by TARP money - billions of dollars given to banks to keep them afloat. The banks gladly accepted the money, and then refused to free up loans for small businesses and citizens. Within a year, these bankers were back to giving themselves millions of dollars in bonuses, and just doing business as they always had, taking care of themselves and their wealthy friends, and continuing to suck on the the teet of middle-class of America.

As Andy Borowitz put it, it is like a man who has been rescued from a burning building then turning around and kicking the fireman in the nuts.

The mainstream media refused to cover this protest, as their corporate owners saw this as a minor threat, and assumed that if they didn't show it on TV, people would just lose interest and go home - the way Americans typically do. I learned about the protest through my Canadian cousin, who posted a link on facebook pointing out to us Americans what was happening in our own country that we had not heard about!

Two weeks later, Occupy Wall Street has become an international movement.

I went down yesterday to join Occupy Denver. I had a number of interesting experiences, so I'll just tell you that story:

Feeling an urgency to participate in what I saw as the most important movement since the Vietnam war, I went to my local Occupy gathering place. Occupy Denver took place near the Capitol building.

I walked several miles to get there while my wife was volunteering for The Race for the Cure. When I got there, I saw a dozen or so people milling about. No one was on the capitol steps, where my email said the protest was happening.

A little disappointed, I sat down on a bench nearby and thought about my options. When I looked up, I saw my friend Tony walking over to me. He was coming to tell me that I looked like a friend of his, and I was just about to tell him he looked like a friend of mine.

He told me that the protesters were out marching around the city. The dozen or so people milling around were the actual 'occupiers,' and they had been there for 9 days, and intend to be there until at least January first.

He and I walked down and met them. Tony had been there all morning playing his drum. I'm still not sure why he was walking around by the out-of-the-way bench I was sitting on. Just something meant to happen, I guess.

I talked to several of the 'occupiers' - and realize these were extremely well educated, well spoken and well intentioned people. They were not just a bunch of radicals. They spoke from the heart about the issues they believed in.

The message of the day had become "We are the other 99%," meaning that the millionaires and billionaires being so well taken care of by our government constitute 1% of the population. We are the remaining 99% - the vast majority of all Americans.

The marchers came back after a short time and rallied on the capitol. The headcount, according to the 'occupiers' was nearly 600. The week before, a similar rally had brought out 50.

Then the protestors took off again to march around Denver.

The people occupying the street were extremely cautious about being courteous and following the rules, so that the police had no reason to move them along. They were constantly picking up litter, and making sure the sidewalk remained clear for people to pass.

After a couple hours, I needed to go back to meet my wife.

On the way back, I passed the protestors, who now seemed to have a police escort.

There was a story behind the police escort that I learned about later:

There is a pedestrian mall in Denver called The 16th Street Mall. It is a high-rent high-profile area for a lot of upscale stores, hotels and restaurants. A video on youtube showed the protestors approaching the mall, which was being blocked by the police. The protestors came upon them, and the initial cries went out "get your cameras out" "cameras out!" and hundreds of people started taking pictures of the police. After that, the chant changed to "The police are the 99%!" "The police are the 99%!" After a minute or so, one of the police officers gave the order to allow the protestors onto the mall.

Like I say, when I saw them, the police were leading the protest, blocking traffic and clearing the way.

Meanwhile, the occupation movement is gaining momentum.

In New York, some 500 people were arrested as they tried to cross the Brooklyn Bridge. News agency accounts say they were blocking traffic and not following directions. A number of non-news agency interviews with the protestors paint a story of being lead onto the bridge, as if the police were going to escort them across. Once in the middle of the bridge, they found themselves in an orange net and being arrested. This is on the heels of the macing and arrest incidents on Wall Street.

However, with this sort of movement, any violence directed toward the protestors benefits the protests. People today are blogging about the fact that many current and former members of the military are saying they are going to participate, along with union member and others also joining the movement. The military people say they will offer support as well as protection to the protestors.

This reminds me of the last big protest I was in, which was a small revolution in Moscow, USSR:

There had been a coup, and the government was attempting to establish marshall law. Tanks were in the streets, and soon surrounded the "Russian White House" where Boris Yeltsin was holed up, pointing their guns at the large tower. At some point, there was a dramatic shift. Yeltsin jumped up on one of the tanks, and the tanks turned their guns to face away from the Russian White House building. In the course of a few minutes, the army had moved from being aggressive toward this symbol of freedom, to protecting it from other military that may be meaning aggression. This also happened in Egypt. Is it happening here?

The military are the 99%, after all.

So, is this our Arab Spring? Is this the beginning of the shift to put the people once again in charge of the country instead of the wealthy, banks and corporations?

This is the biggest American movement of my adult life, and I am proud to be a part of it.

There are Occupy movements currently in almost every large, American city. You can be part of it. Even if it is an hour or so. Or maybe you want to be one of the occupiers, and live with a group of like-minded people.

And what if you are not like minded? What if you are one of the Tea Partiers who has followed the likes of Sarah Palin, or Michele Bachman. Maybe for you, it is worth talking to some of these protestors and see if they are really as bad and misguided as the right make them out to be. They are, after all, asking for less influence of money, fiscal responsibility and putting control of the government back into the hands of the citizens. If you are part of the other 99%, maybe they are representing your point-of-view more than you think. Perhaps you have been brainwashed by your TV. It is worth considering. And if you disagree with what we are standing for, we will support your right to believe whatever you wish. That is power by the people.