Robert Bonomo on how 9-11 Truthers defeated Hillary |336|

I don't know a lot about Warren Buffet, but I know a little bit about money and 1%s. I think you have it all wrong. I'd speculate that Buffet drives a Chevy and eats at ordinary restaurants because he realizes the limitations of money for bringing satisfaction/happiness/contentment. Appears to me that doing business has become an expression of his Buffet-ness rather than an hoarding exercise.
Perhaps. I think that's the rosy view of it. It would be nice to believe he truly is a good guy. Still, that kind of money, and he tirelessly works for more? If money cannot make him happy, they why even in his old age, does he commit his life to the pursuit of it?
Why doesn't he retire and pursue the real treasures in life? But hey, I don't know the guy, and I said I was doing armchair psychology (which means it does need to be taken with a large grain of salt), but by his actions, that is what I see.
 
We have moved beyond the pale on the Buffett (et al 1%'ers) are failing in some way.

The picture of the starving child is a particular cheap shot. Where do you draw the line on who should be doing what for their fellow man? Is it Buffett's $74b? Is it the high net worth family in your town of $50m? Upper middle class folks with $800k in their 401(k)? Middle class upgrading their flat screen?

"Tirelessly working for more" is generally considered a positive trait. People do this in all sorts of life vocations. Makes a lot of them happy. Who are we to dictate which pursuits are pure while others tainted? Maybe Buffett's working for his fellow man in his own way if he, indeed, lives frugally. After all he's going to end up donating as much raw wealth to charity as any human in history at this stage.

Painting the ultra wealthy as money hoarders, selfish, elite, etc is simply stereotyping. That's rarely productive.
 
The picture of the starving child is a particular cheap shot.
Not really. Just the truth. Fact: if the Elites truly cared about solving world hunger, it could be done tomorrow. Truth: they don't care.

Btw, I never said "all 1%'ers". That is you putting words in my mouth. I know there have been some (let's be honest, very few) that have literally given away most of their fortunes. And I'm not even saying they have to. This isn't some simple black and white argument that you are framing it to be. Not all wealthy people are bad, not all poor people are good. I don't buy into false dichotomies. There is the potential for good and bad in everyone.

However, it has been scientifically shown that those with lower incomes actually give more, percentage-wise, than the wealthy. It has also been shown that extreme wealth does indeed cause a certain level of "out-of-touch" thinking.
https://www.google.com/amp/www.theatlantic.com/amp/article/309254/?client=safari
Of the 50 largest individual gifts to public charities in 2012, 34 went to educational institutions, the vast majority of them colleges and universities, like Harvard, Columbia, and Berkeley, that cater to the nation’s and the world’s elite. Museums and arts organizations such as the Metropolitan Museum of Art received nine of these major gifts, with the remaining donations spread among medical facilities and fashionable charities like the Central Park Conservancy. Not a single one of them went to a social-service organization or to a charity that principally serves the poor and the dispossessed. More gifts in this group went to elite prep schools (one, to the Hackley School in Tarrytown, New York) than to any of our nation’s largest social-service organizations, including United Way, the Salvation Army, and Feeding America (which got, among them, zero).

But our charity system is also fundamentally regressive, and works in favor of the institutions of the elite. The pity is, most people still likely believe that, as Michael Bloomberg once said, “there’s a connection between being generous and being successful.” There is a connection, but probably not the one we have supposed.


And yes, I did consider the idea that Warren Buffet just enjoys his work. Sure. Why not? Like I said, I don't know the guy and was merely speculating. Funny how you bring out the claws to defend him so vociferously. Guess I hit a nerve.

Forgive me if I take into consideration the history of the worlds elite and damage, yes damage, they consistently inflict on the masses. With money comes power. Power that is all too often used against the "99%'ers", if you will, not for. You seriously need to do some research on this. I don't hate the Elites, and I don't automatically assume they are all self-serving jerks. But I will always be vigilantly skeptical of those who hold enormous wealth, and the power that comes with it. If you knew anything about history, you would be too.

I don't buy into the idea that anyone is inherently worth more or is inherently better because they've found a clever way of collecting more digital (or analog, but less so these days) credits than everyone else. Nor do I see those who live in poverty as automatic pinnacles of godliness. Again, good and bad in both, but money (and always the power that goes with it) allows one who is bad to do bad on a much larger scale than a bad person without the wealth, and power that comes with it.

Hillary Clinton knows this well. I think she enjoys the lifestyle the money affords, but it's never been her end game. It's all about power for her, and I think she knows that money is power. She's leveraged that idea like a boss, I'll give her that. Like many psychopaths, she's very intelligent and should never be underestimated.
 
Last edited:
As an aside: did it ever occur to anyone that HRC's involvement with Epstein and his "Lolita Express" and "Lolita Island" was for blackmail? She could have been witness to many in power in compromising positions. I suspect this could be the source of Epsteins wealth (total speculation on my part here). Again, she is highly intelligent and quite savvy. I think this may also be part of the reason why even the FBI and the AG won't touch her with a twenty foot poll.
 
May be I don't belong here, but watching your videos, Alex, what stunned me the most is how casually the administration dealt with the missing 8 trillion dollars from the Pentagon budget rather than the trail of the money to the towers. At the inquest there where jokes and laughs about a missing sum of money, more than enough to have abolished world poverty over night. I also tried to figure out the logic behind flying a couple of planes in the WTC in order to start a war. Didn't they start the war because of weapons of mass destruction? That was so simple. I know, people are evil, greedy and bent on hiding their crimes but are they intelligent enough to design such complex conspiracies and take care of all the potential loose ends?

The other thing I am finding hard to swallow is the climate change skepticism. Some people say there is no absolute proof in science, only in Mathematics. However, natural temperature fluctuations happen very gradually. It never in Earth's history happened like this. This graph points to the fact that our change is sudden and man-made:

http://www.sciencealert.com/why-4-5...il&utm_term=0_fe5632fb09-ca6b2cb2ce-365532921

But we do not have to rely on hearsay, statistics, data to know that our pollution levels are unprecedented and our recklessness harmful. Whether we find a technological cure to counteract our environmental savagery is questionable. We don't have to be scientists we only have to be sane, normal people to read that we are wrong, doing what we are doing. Forget about defending the climate change deniers and lets just look at our ravaged planet and the many species we lose on a daily basis. Trumps new administration is just beginning to make it worse, exclusively for financial gain because in twenty years these old men running the country will be dead, sod our children and grand children. Do we still need data?

The idea that the Trump presidency is ultimately a positive thing because it heralds change needs to have a reality check. I am totally stunned that people have brushed under the carpet the fact that the Trump administration blatantly represents big money and everything that is wrong with it. Why is this ignored? Why does nobody bat an eyelid that Trump's appointed staff are high ranking executives of the fossil energy industries, people with big money interests, the appointment of Scott Pruitt for the environmental office (like putting an arsonist in charge of firefighting).

My comment comes from me being German, a country where only 4% of the population think that Trump is OK. For good reason because everything that is happening right now in the USA happened to us eighty years ago. Without wanting to make this thread more political than it is I would like to share what I am seeing and I very much hope that the strength and integrity of the majority of American people raised on a powerful cultural heritage and vision, will prove me wrong. Hitler too created change, by creating jobs first. He came to power because of a referendum by the people. He surrounded himself with devoted yes people. German democracy fell apart in stages. In the US at first people will feel good because they have jobs, the supermarket shelves are full and there is great entertainment. What more can anybody want?

OK here is what is possible to happen next. There will be protests (like pipelines) because most people have a sense for justice, but as we have seen opposition can be dealt with on the quiet, by gaining control of the media bought by big money. Protesters can be blacklisted without them even noticing. It happened before during McCarthy. With a supreme judge like this more prisons can be built. Where to put millions of illegal immigrants? Temporary camps spring to mind which can be built cheaply with their beautiful facilities like base ball grounds advertised openly. What's wrong with that. (Hitler was open about his facilities too.) Sadly, with all those protests prisons will become full. Where to put the overflow and the thousands awaiting trial? Sounds familiar?

I am receiving clear images, like protests across America, hard crackdowns, Obama arrested during a protest rally and many others, people afraid to speak out. Many have guns in their homes. Recruitment of "Braunshirts" from the far right becomes an option, help at hand to crack down on dissidents and restore American values. A cultural revolution perhaps, like in China. At the end we will have war, the domestic scene has gone too hot. What better way to unite the country? But of course it would have been much worse with Hilllary, what am I thinking?
 
Last edited:
May be I don't belong here, but watching your videos, Alex, what stunned me the most is how casually the administration dealt with the missing 8 trillion dollars from the Pentagon budget rather than the trail of the money to the towers. At the inquest there where jokes and laughs about a missing sum of money, more than enough to have abolished world poverty over night. I also tried to figure out the logic behind flying a couple of planes in the WTC in order to start a war. Didn't they start the war because of weapons of mass destruction? That was so simple. I know, people are evil, greedy and bent on hiding their crimes but are they intelligent enough to design such complex conspiracies and take care of all the potential loose ends?

The other thing I am finding hard to swallow is the climate change skepticism. Some people say there is no absolute proof in science, only in Mathematics. However, natural temperature fluctuations happen very gradually.

Some natural climate changes occur slowly but not all.

http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterfe...larmists-global-cooling-is-here/#2972732269bb
Those ocean temperature cycles, and the continued recovery from the Little Ice Age, are primarily why global temperatures rose from 1915 until 1945, when CO2 emissions were much lower than in recent years. The change to a cold ocean temperature cycle, primarily the PDO, is the main reason that global temperatures declined from 1945 until the late 1970s, despite the soaring CO2 emissions during that time from the postwar industrialization spreading across the globe.

The 20 to 30 year ocean temperature cycles turned back to warm from the late 1970s until the late 1990s, which is the primary reason that global temperatures warmed during this period. But that warming ended 15 years ago, and global temperatures have stopped increasing since then, if not actually cooled, even though global CO2 emissions have soared over this period.​

It never in Earth's history happened like this. This graph points to the fact that our change is sudden and man-made:

http://www.sciencealert.com/why-4-5...il&utm_term=0_fe5632fb09-ca6b2cb2ce-365532921

But we do not have to rely on hearsay, statistics, data to know that our pollution levels are unprecedented and our recklessness harmful. Whether we find a technological cure to counteract our environmental savagery is questionable. We don't have to be scientists we only have to be sane, normal people to read that we are wrong, doing what we are doing.
There is a much bigger problem in our society today than anything you have outlined in your post. That problem is that many people have come to think that people who disagree with them are evil or stupid. This phenomenon is actually a large part of why Trump won. Every scientific controversy shows that the best interpretation of the facts is a matter of opinion. Demonizing people who you disagree with is more likely to result in a holocaust than promising jobs (see below)

http://www.frontpagemag.com/point/1...emands-death-penalty-global-daniel-greenfield
PROGRESSIVE PROFESSOR DEMANDS DEATH PENALTY FOR GLOBAL WARMING SKEPTICS

Forget about defending the climate change deniers and lets just look at our ravaged planet and the many species we lose on a daily basis. Trumps new administration is just beginning to make it worse, exclusively for financial gain because in twenty years these old men running the country will be dead, sod our children and grand children. Do we still need data?



http://www.forbes.com/sites/peterfe...larmists-global-cooling-is-here/#699e4e1d69bb
The world added roughly 100 billion tonnes of carbon to the atmosphere between 2000 and 2010. That is about a quarter of all the CO2 put there by humanity since 1750.” Yet, still no warming during that time. That is because the CO2 greenhouse effect is weak and marginal compared to natural causes of global temperature changes.

The idea that the Trump presidency is ultimately a positive thing because it heralds change needs to have a reality check. I am totally stunned that people have brushed under the carpet the fact that the Trump administration blatantly represents big money and everything that is wrong with it. Why is this ignored? Why does nobody bat an eyelid that Trump's appointed staff are high ranking executives of the fossil energy industries, people with big money interests, the appointment of Scott Pruitt for the environmental office (like putting an arsonist in charge of firefighting).

The argument is that in order to fight the establishment you need insiders who know how it works.


My comment comes from me being German, a country where only 4% of the population think that Trump is OK. For good reason because everything that is happening right now in the USA happened to us eighty years ago. Without wanting to make this thread more political than it is I would like to share what I am seeing and I very much hope that the strength and integrity of the majority of American people raised on a powerful cultural heritage and vision, will prove me wrong. Hitler too created change, by creating jobs first. He came to power because of a referendum by the people.
Yes, and that referendum occurred in 1934 after Hitler and already written Mein Kampf in 1925/1926 where he explained his political ideology and plans for the future. Trump's "Art of the Deal" is somewhat different than Mein Kampf.
He surrounded himself with devoted yes people. German democracy fell apart in stages. In the US at first people will feel good because they have jobs, the supermarket shelves are full and there is great entertainment. What more can anybody want?

Are you saying that if a politician promises to create jobs, wins an election, and appoints people to his cabinet who support his policies, that signals the imminent onset of a dictatorship and holocaust? I don't think such a correlation is supported by the historical facts. I think that if you elect someone who has already published his evil plans for his country, it is more likely that you will get a genocidal dictator than if you merely elect someone who promises jobs.

OK here is what is possible to happen next. There will be protests (like pipelines) because most people have a sense for justice, but as we have seen opposition can be dealt with on the quiet, by gaining control of the media bought by big money. Protesters can be blacklisted without them even noticing. It happened before during McCarthy. With a supreme judge like this more prisons can be built. Where to put millions of illegal immigrants? Temporary camps spring to mind which can be built cheaply with their beautiful facilities like base ball grounds advertised openly. What's wrong with that. (Hitler was open about his facilities too.) Sadly, with all those protests prisons will become full. Where to put the overflow and the thousands awaiting trial? Sounds familiar?

I am receiving clear images, like protests across America, hard crackdowns, Obama arrested during a protest rally and many others, people afraid to speak out. Many have guns in their homes. Recruitment of "Braunshirts" from the far right becomes an option, help at hand to crack down on dissidents and restore American values. A cultural revolution perhaps, like in China. At the end we will have war, the domestic scene has gone too hot. What better way to unite the country? But of course it would have been much worse with Hilllary, what am I thinking?

Is this a definite prediction? When will it happen?

Jonathan Haidt: The moral roots of liberals and conservatives

The Forum: The Moral Psychology of Political Polarization: Many Causes and a Few Possible Responses
 
Last edited:
Well argued, Jim Smith.

We live in an age of intellectual sophistication with unlimited access to information. This makes it possible that any belief, no matter how extreme, can be substantiated with fact and quotations. I am not saying that your points are not sound, not at all. But when working in a psychiatric unit I was dealing with paranoid patients who had quite an absurd interpretation of reality. When homing in more closely, seeing it more from their viewpoint, whilst largely excluding mine which I considered to be fact, his world began to make a lot more sense. The problem was he was still locked up in a world of his own and a secure unit. We have plenty of beliefs flying around, some based on science fact, others on science fiction, some on religious myths. As long as our identification is glued firmly to our belief, no matter how much support we picked from the infinite variety of sources on offer, we still only end up with a belief and an opinion.

This is basically my argument, but my hope is that we will reach a point which will compell us to reach much deeper, probably when the certainty of our fragile mental constructs starts falling appart under its own weight.

No matter what will happen after Trump and our fragile planet we live in, my hope is that we will instinctively tell right from wrong. That compassion and spiritual clarity will supply the impuls for our action. That we will overcome our identification with our cherriehed beliefs and experience the bigger reality, that we enter the sound superstructure which unites us. Or as you so beautifully put at the bottom of your response:

"The first gulp from the glass of science makes you an atheist, but at the bottom of the glass God is waiting for you." Let me paraphrase it. "With the first gulp from the glass of information you quench the thirst of your belief, but when the glass is empty all you are left with is the reality of the empty glass."
 
But of course it would have been much worse with Hilllary, what am I thinking?

Hi Jurgen

Your sarcasm seems to imply obvious stupidity for those that were not Hillary supporters, the same with those who smell a rat with the 9/11 attacks and Trumps victory heralding change. Are we to listen to you because you have many years of meditating experience, because you see visions of Obama being arrested? You may be thinking that I'm saying this because I have a chip on my shoulder because I am not able to see visions, or have not meditated for decades. Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. You are just another of the many 'sources of information' that we are able to seek guidance from. Would you agree that you are in fact one of the extremes that you talk about?:

This makes it possible that any belief, no matter how extreme, can be substantiated with fact and quotations.

In fact, I am inclined to 'believe' everything you say in your books, (I've bought and read them all) and Tom Campbell too. But my mindset is exactly what Tom encourages, open minded scepticism, until I experience things for myself, nothing is for real! As frustrating as it must be for you, your own experience must remain just that - your own. As much as I'm a fan of both Tom and yourself, I have my own thoughts about your ideas, some I'm happy to be associated with, some not so much.

So where does that leave people like me? I like to think that all of us are equal, people that do or don't meditate, 'good' or 'bad', Muslim or Christian, Jew or Arab, we are all doing the best that we can. My 'vibes' are sometimes weak or there is nothing there, but sometimes I feel very strongly, in my gut. Not intellect, my intuition! One of these was Hillary Clinton.

I watched her in videos, I listened to what she said, I had a feeling. The same feeling that you seem to be encouraging here:

No matter what will happen after Trump and our fragile planet we live in, my hope is that we will instinctively tell right from wrong.

Would you encourage us to vote for a human being that laughed manically when she said about the brutal murder of Saddam Hussein "We came, we saw, he died!!!" She was also a blind follower of Israel's Zionists, she said that she would enforce a no fly zone over Aleppo, she would be strongly anti-Russia etc. Who is to say that the dreadful battle for Aleppo would not still be raging if she was to be inaugurated tomorrow? Or are you able to judge what is best for Syria and Iraq, like all the US Presidents seem to be able to?

Or Obama, crying crocodile tears in between mentioning himself seventy-five times during his recent speech. Just being able to accept the Nobel peace prize without a hint of irony, while bombing the shit out of countries by 'drone'. Allowing the protestors at the pipeline to be shot and injured while saying nothing? My lefty friends all seem blind to this, or at least happy to overlook these weaknesses, as long as he and Michelle smile sweetly for the cameras.

And Trump, good ole Trump. We in the uk have been obsessed by his victory, yelling 'how did it happen'? I agree, I wouldn't trust him as far as I could throw him, but is he that different from the others? Is he 'worse' than people like Obama and Bush and Clinton who are very happy to bomb countries many miles away, killing foreigners of no little consequence for the sake of what? Maybe it's the threat of him suddenly kicking off ww3 that people are afraid of, who knows?

So I'll stand by my choices, or non-choices, such as they are, stupid or not. Being British they might appear to be none of my business. I wouldn't agree. The US has made itself everybody's business in my opinion.

I am much more inclined to put my money on the 'love message' that is so vividly described by many NDErs, it's plain and simple. Not wrapped in language that I find hard to understand, or with years of meditating which is surely bound to affect things. Only yesterday I was listening to Rick Archer saying that many long term meditators supported Trump. What are we to make of that? I think that we get the leaders we deserve, whether that's the US or UK. So for me, it is fitting that our leaders are insane, both Trump and May, and most of the others. Until we start to prioritise differently and choose Love over fear, I think we should just accept what we have and make the best of it, rather than whinging and complaining! ;)
 
Last edited:
Hi Jurgen

Your sarcasm seems to imply obvious stupidity for those that were not Hillary supporters, the same with those who smell a rat with the 9/11 attacks and Trumps victory heralding change. Are we to listen to you because you have many years of meditating experience, because you see visions of Obama being arrested? You may be thinking that I'm saying this because I have a chip on my shoulder because I am not able to see visions, or have not meditated for decades. Maybe I have, maybe I haven't. You are just another of the many 'sources of information' that we are able to seek guidance from. Would you agree that you are in fact one of the extremes that you talk about?:

No no, I don't imply stupidity, just putting a dampener to the euphoria of the alternative to evil Hillary. I have no idea if Clinton is any better, don't care. And NO, don't listen to me either! The point I am trying to make is that people are addicted to surrender to a leader and once they warmed to their leader as an alternative for change he gets embalmed with heroic attributes and added to the camp to fight the enemy, which, as has been said here is everybody who does not share my opinion, in this case its Hillary or Obama or anybody who does not see the heroic attributes of our chosen leader, and what he propagates, like the Climate change hoax . All is forgiving, other attributes we have despised before are overlooked, like the association with big money corporation ("its good because we need somebody who knows it from the inside to fight it" - I heard), Exon no problem, misogyny, racism - why not if he gets the job done. We no longer shiver because change we can see and touch will come from the outside via our leader.

Personally I am quite positive. I do wake up occasionally looking for a bucket when I realize what is taking place and how far we all are removed from the reality of Being. My positive is that I feel the time may be ripe for a new global consensus, that truth cannot be found by rummaging through scientific data, people's opinions or news stories, simply because whatever we will find turns out to be substandard, is susceptible to be bent or dismissed by whatever prejudicial belief. Beliefs which make up our identity in the absence of the realization of who we are at our core. Because we have now become so vulnerable to the uncertainty and the unreliability of scientific studies and mass of unfiltered information flooding the media and internet that we feel forced to take up position to be defended at all cost, to safeguard our identity. There is us and there is the outside enemy. Our sense of self is threatened more than ever. We are still looking. The first place to look is on the outside. A person, a belief, a party, a flag, a conspiracy or somebody or something we can blame or put our trust in, not realizing that by doing so we have already separated ourselves from the truth.

The truth of course has no words, no agenda, no policy, no outline plan - it simply is, right in front of our noses which doesn't even need an intellect to be processed only the quiet awareness of appreciation, of gratitude, of compassion, this is how it is perceived and realized, without fuss, and you don't have to spend years in meditation just focus awareness on this and clarity will manifest. So you say "I stand by my choices". What are they? Is it what you have learned to believe? What others have been saying, including myself?

No, we ought to move on from this lazy attitude and do the work ourselves. Our planet is becoming smaller. Sea levels are rising, the earth is getting warmer, people are dying, species are disappearing, whether it's man-made or not. One way or another we must take action and take responsibility not attribute blame and sit on our hands. Or, as Scott Pruitt, newly appointed by Trump to the environment office, recently said on a BBC program, "All we have to do is wait for fifty years, then we will find out who is right and who is wrong." Great, lets all go down this route. I won't be around then, but my grand children will be. Lets not take any action and let our choices deliver our futures.
 
Last edited:
So you say "I stand by my choices". What are they? Is it what you have learned to believe? What others have been saying, including myself?

In the case of a leader my choice is to not choose from any of them on offer, my instinct is that something about 9/11 stinks. What can I do about any of it? Nothing really. Does it bother me? No, not really. My ego might love to watch the drama, but that is mainly as a result of my own circumstances. I can't work, so I have a relatively lonely existence, with my wife and daughter being the only people I really interact with in person for weeks on end.

Which leads me to my bigger point. Isn't this life on earth doing what it's meant to be doing? Why should it get much better than it already is? If it's a school, like Tom Campbell says, it is okay as is. There are so many opportunities for spiritual growth on earth as it is now, why should we (unknowingly) improve it if that would in reality decrease its value as a place of learning. My own circumstances are a typical example of this, which is the reason I mentioned them. I can't think of anyone who isn't immersed in the realities of life, be they harsh or seemingly otherwise to us.

Seems to me that as nasty as it may appear, this reality is making me a 'better person'. Not because you or anyone else is telling me to, but rather it is through lessons I've learned and continue to learn while I'm here, I've learned a lot through being a member of this forum. Though it has its ups and downs, it has taught me to be more tolerant of different ideas, many people have very varied opinions on things, and for the most part, people are very tolerant of others.

I think that being an example to others is key. It's not easy, it's really not f'ing easy!

So I think that enlightenment can come from many directions, seems to me that even 'The Donald' is doing a job for us, as predicted by myself and others. Maybe showing us how we shouldn't be doing things? Maybe we will see value in some of what he does. But we won't if we're not even prepared to look for it! The negative energy that has been thrown his way! As I often say, there's good and bad in everything. In the big picture, some will get their A-levels and go on to uni, others will be put back a year, yet others will keep coming back, year after year, as teachers as well as students. All you have to do is show that consciousness doesn't 'die'. Everything else is a bonus that will follow. What do you reckon Jurgen?
 
Which leads me to my bigger point. Isn't this life on earth doing what it's meant to be doing? Why should it get much better than it already is? If it's a school, like Tom Campbell says, it is okay as is. There are so many opportunities for spiritual growth on earth as it is now, why should we (unknowingly) improve it if that would in reality decrease its value as a place of learning. My own circumstances are a typical example of this, which is the reason I mentioned them. I can't think of anyone who isn't immersed in the realities of life, be they harsh or seemingly otherwise to us.

Seems to me that as nasty as it may appear, this reality is making me a 'better person'. Not because you or anyone else is telling me to, but rather it is through lessons I've learned and continue to learn while I'm here, I've learned a lot through being a member of this forum. Though it has its ups and downs, it has taught me to be more tolerant of different ideas, many people have very varied opinions on things, and for the most part, people are very tolerant of others.

I think that being an example to others is key. It's not easy, it's really not f'ing easy!

So I think that enlightenment can come from many directions, seems to me that even 'The Donald' is doing a job for us, as predicted by myself and others. Maybe showing us how we shouldn't be doing things? Maybe we will see value in some of what he does. But we won't if we're not even prepared to look for it! The negative energy that has been thrown his way! As I often say, there's good and bad in everything. In the big picture, some will get their A-levels and go on to uni, others will be put back a year, yet others will keep coming back, year after year, as teachers as well as students. All you have to do is show that consciousness doesn't 'die'. Everything else is a bonus that will follow. What do you reckon Jurgen?

God post. That's about it in a nutshell, but in addition it is also an individual choice and there is no prescription. I would say when Hitler came into power there was apathy, weakness and reliance on authority. What we did back then caused untold suffering, a costly way to usher in changes, which indeed happened at an alarming price. We don't need to repeat history. I would also say our reality requires more compassion, more acceptance, more tolerance not less, without being weak on evil. We need more consideration for our fellow humans, other species (according to the latest BBC news Primates are facing extinction now), environment etc not less and hopefully also some charity as well. My instinct is that the tone Trump set was all wrong. It made a lot of negative attitudes we thought were on the way out more legitimate, more acceptable not less. This is the problem I am having with the enthusiasm for the new leadership. It conjures up visions I hope will not come to pass.

We are part of the world we live in. Some people have enough on their plate in order to engage actively and yet the key thing is compassion, agape love or whatever you want to call it. These powerful aspects can also be practiced in stillness on a personal level. It seems we have moved a step back from this. It is up to the individual how they respond to their inner call. Some may wish to be president, great if they have these attributes among other leadership ones, not so great for the rest of us if they don't. I personally feel I need to engage, including being politically active, contribute where I can, in action as well as word.
 
As an aside: did it ever occur to anyone that HRC's involvement with Epstein and his "Lolita Express" and "Lolita Island" was for blackmail? She could have been witness to many in power in compromising positions. I suspect this could be the source of Epsteins wealth (total speculation on my part here). Again, she is highly intelligent and quite savvy. I think this may also be part of the reason why even the FBI and the AG won't touch her with a twenty foot poll.
I've come to a similar conclusion -- it's all about blackmail! but it becomes a hall of mirrors in terms of who's blackmailing who. and consider this... if you were compromised in this way, to what lengths would you go to protect yourself from this information being made public?
 
May be I don't belong here, but watching your videos, Alex, what stunned me the most is how casually the administration dealt with the missing 8 trillion dollars from the Pentagon budget rather than the trail of the money to the towers. At the inquest there where jokes and laughs about a missing sum of money, more than enough to have abolished world poverty over night. I also tried to figure out the logic behind flying a couple of planes in the WTC in order to start a war. Didn't they start the war because of weapons of mass destruction? That was so simple. I know, people are evil, greedy and bent on hiding their crimes but are they intelligent enough to design such complex conspiracies and take care of all the potential loose ends?
Hi Jurgen... thx for honestly pursueing this information. There's a lot of unpack from yr posts... millions of pages have been written about this. the big takeaway is that the story they have told us is false... and they know it. the rest is details :)

re global warming, it's too big of topic to cover here, but I'll reveal my bottom line -- we need to separate policy decisions from the scientific data.
 
And yes, I did consider the idea that Warren Buffet just enjoys his work. Sure. Why not? Like I said, I don't know the guy and was merely speculating. Funny how you bring out the claws to defend him so vociferously. Guess I hit a nerve.
My apologies if it was just speculation. I interpreted your words a bit more definitively in tone. What you've shared in this thread indicates, to me at least, someone with pretty strong views on people of wealth.

I don't know Buffett either nor did you hit any nerve (does that actually happen?). I just found it odd to use him as an example of damaging Elites, or abuse of power. By all accounts Buffett has seemed to be a pretty straight up guy who's enjoyed great success and has committed to giving as much raw capital to charitable causes as anyone in history. Again, the difficulty with stereotyping anyone to a group. Right?
 
Trump said to plan to cut NEA, NEH, NPR and PBS. Literate Americans: oh well, it was fun while it lasted.

As far as I know this is not confirmed officially so any discussion is hypothetical but I'll comment anyway...

http://thehill.com/policy/finance/314991-trump-team-prepares-dramatic-cuts
Staffers for the Trump transition team have been meeting with career staff at the White House ahead of Friday’s presidential inauguration to outline their plans for shrinking the federal bureaucracy, The Hill has learned.
...
"The Corporation for Public Broadcasting would be privatized, while the National Endowment for the Arts and National Endowment for the Humanities would be eliminated entirely.
...
The proposed cuts hew closely to a blueprint published last year by the conservative Heritage Foundation, a think tank that has helped staff the Trump transition."​

Here is how the Heratige Foundation justifies cutting the NEA (April 29, 1997)
http://www.heritage.org/research/re...good-reasons-to-eliminate-funding-for-the-nea

Maybe you are forgetting where the money comes from? It isn't the government's money. It is people's money and the government makes them pay at the point of a gun.

Why should some Americans extort money from the others who don't want to pay?

I stopped listening to NPR and watching PBS years ago because they were pushing a political agenda I disagreed with. I also objected to Science Friday, Nova, and Cosmos, which push the unscientific materialist naturalist world view.

When you write "Literate Americans", you are insulting people with different opinions implying they are illiterate. Some of them might be reading this. For example ME. Should I reply by insulting you? The polarization in this country is the biggest problem we face, it has a lot to do with why Trump won the primary. He fights back and many people were tired of being called "bitter clingers", racists, and "deplorables" and being generally despised by the opposition party and the news media, and they felt that someone who would fight back is what was needed. Some would even be pleased to return the compliment by depriving them of Masterpiece Theater. Things are not going to improve until people recognize what the problem is. If you don't like Trump, you should be trying to help people to come together in mutual understanding not making the problem worse by insulting people when you don't even know who they are.

CPB is being privatized, there are charities that support the arts. Those who like them can send them money.

Let us know how much you are paying once the gun is no longer pointing at you.
 
Last edited:
When you write "Literate Americans", you are insulting people with different opinions implying they are illiterate. Some of them might be reading this. For example ME. Should I reply by insulting you? The polarization in this country is the biggest problem we face, it has a lot to do with why Trump won the primary. He fights back and many people were tired of being called "bitter clingers", racists, and "deplorables" and being generally despised by the opposition party and the news media, and they felt that someone who would fight back is what was needed. Some would even be pleased to return the compliment by depriving them of Masterpiece Theater. Things are not going to improve until people recognize what the problem is. If you don't like Trump, you should be trying to help people to come together in mutual understanding not making the problem worse by insulting people when you don't even know who they are.
Surprisingly few people see the bigger picture emerging or have a sense of clarity.

Jim Smith pointed out the root problem of our culture. Trump has now become our collective figurehead for divisiveness. What we are faced with is a split country with many sides and no respect for each other. Even people considering themselves "spiritual" don't realize the core aspect of being and their greater context which is rooted in oneness. Now we have a divided nation, with guns on both sides. A society with dis-empowered minorities, the black population barely better off than after the abolishment of slavery. Trump has already declared new wars instead of calling for unity of ALL people. If you declare war (on abortion, drugs, crime etc) without looking at the root causes, you are bound to take prisoners and America has the biggest prison population in the world already. Rather than harnessing the people of a marginalized and vilified section of immigrant population as an economic force, the leadership is criminalizing it and as a result creating more resentment, hatred and division.

Lets just look to China for a quick contrast (although I don't see China as an ideal which has bags full of issues) but at least everyone is working together achieving miracles, seeing the greater good. For example, China is demolishing hundred coal power stations, Trump is building them, poison the country, createing more opposition not only among his people but opposition to other nations who have finally reached a consensus. China's sophisticated technology puts massive buildings up within a matter of weeks, accommodation tens of thousands, who then go to work on incredible infrastructure projects. Trump is likely to house them in prison camps in order to make good on his pledge to round up immigrants and send them to nowhere. Trump represents our collective ideal of egoic individualism, which we have chosen, recklessly striving for the top without considering the greater tribe, where the weak fall by the wayside, forgotten and left behind. Trump has mentioned it to get votes but he has not made the connections, he sees a picture but no root causes. He is just as confused as the rest of us and all we are doing is hoping for the best. I am sure he is too, hoping because nobody has a clear vision or a grasp of the core aspect of reality. Instead of Vision we have Division now and no solidarity. In his inauguration Trump made no mention of reaching out towards his opposers. His words are empty rethoric without content. It is the attribute of the ego and the representing egomaniac not to have wisdom, which he has amply demonstrated with his campaign rhetoric of discrimination and misogyny. He shows no respect to anybody. Instead of reaching out to nations he proclaimed a new Nationalism. We hear his words and sentences but they have no relation to each other and are devoid of substance, a big confused ego leading a nation. A very sad day for America and all one hears is people hoping for the best and change will truly come, but the way I see it not in the way it is hoped for. Trumps ego has reached a greater dimension. Now it encompasses America. "America first, to hell with the rest."

What we are witnessing is democracy failing. Even Socrates pointed out this inherent danger of democracy reaching this point. We are at the point of reversal, even in Europe the signs are there. While divided America will go down as a failed democracy, be ready for big changes, China will take over the lead and it is much better prepared, dispite all their shortcomings their traditions are still somewhat rooted in Confucius and Taoism, although they have been struggling during the Cultural revolution, their people are working together and not against each other. They still have corruption, but on small community level they are more democratic than we are. Their police force is unarmed and seen as part of the community. In America they are armed to the teeth and ready for war, prepared for the worst.

What is to be done? Seeing what unites us not what divides us. Respecting our differences. Nurturing our compassion. Taking care of the place we live in including our planet and its life forms. Seeing reality for what it is not what we think it might be and getting lost in ideas, beliefs and conspiracies. Shall I go on? I don't need to because all we need to do individually is to look at the stillness surrounding us, stripped of our interpretation. Here we find love and clarity and the power for transformation.
article-0-0012A3DB00000258-49_468x322.jpg
 
Last edited:
Basically what the American people have just done is electing a powerful Ego representing their own. The problem with the egomanic persona is they are so wrapped up in their own dialogue that they are full of contradictions and fuzziness. Like opposing the cartels yet hiring their CEOs, showing concern for the "people" yet at the same time discriminating against them. The egoic personality is full of contradiction and mental laziness, full of rhetoric but without substance, their fuzziness compensated for by boisterousness and showmanship. There can be no wisdom in a self entangled ego. It operates like a filter shielding it from the higher self.

There is little compassion because there is no link to the source of it. Egomanics make great dictators. Yet, fortunately, Trump may not have the wit and the intelligence to be a great dictator. All he can do is rely on his staff, be happy that he fulfilled his ego ambition to become the "most powerful ego in the world" and hope for the best. Almost everybody in the world right now is only just hoping for the best as well. We are all as confused as our new leader and whilst sitting on the edge of a precipice we hope for the best.

Just to put the record straight, Hillary is also an egomanic, perhaps more intelligent :)
 
In his inauguration Trump made no mention of reaching out towards his opposers. His words are empty rethoric without content. It is the attribute of the ego and the representing egomaniac not to have wisdom, which he has amply demonstrated with his campaign rhetoric of discrimination and misogyny. He shows no respect to anybody.

But is Trump that different from all the others? Take Obama for example. Throughout his eight years in office, he has talked the talk, but has hardly delivered in reality. Accepting the Nobel peace prize, I think reveals a lot about him. He appeared to do none of the obvious things which might reveal him as different to others. It is all about his foreign policy. He ripped Libya apart, he grew the stealth drone programme, he funded and armed the people that were allegedly on 'our' side in Syria when many others reported that they were Isis or AlQaeda, he locked up whistleblowers etc etc. Yet many people joined him when he cried crocodile tears in his ego-filled final speech, filling Facebook with posts saying how 'amazing' he was. He was far from amazing! He played the game like they all do.

I don't doubt that he is a pleasant enough individual on the face of it, but if I'm to compare him to the ideal, say Jesus or Buddha, even the Dalai Lama, how would he fare? At least Trump is being his type of honest when he pours scorn on his now fellow politicians.What use are nice words when they have no heart behind them? How many innocent Libyans or Syrians cried when they see Obama leave office?
Until there are real changes within the minds of our leaders, and more importantly, our own minds. Nothing much will change.

Our own reaction to Trumps election, with very little self-reflection, is a huge mirror which we don't want to, or are incapable of seeing. We are too busy being selfish in the West, to see that all that we have done is bring it upon ourselves. Until we start looking honestly and with empathy at our own behaviour, we should expect more if the same.

I don't see this improvement happening any time soon. Unless there is a real spiritual change in consciousness which somehow makes itself apparent, or yet another 'Great' War which changes the survivors consciousness, I don't otherwise see it happening. What would be really tragic, is that if that Great War was to come, the vast majority of people would not believe it was happening until too late.

What is to be done? Seeing what unites us not what divides us. Respecting our differences. Nurturing our compassion. Taking care of the place we live in including our planet and its life forms. Seeing reality for what it is not what we think it might be and getting lost in ideas, beliefs and conspiracies. Shall I go on? I don't need to because all we need to do individually is to look at the stillness surrounding us, stripped of our interpretation. Here we find love and clarity and the power for transformation.

Anyway, all my blabbing is just adding to the nonsense. What can we do to improve things?

I don't see the problem in highlighting 'beliefs and conspiracies' with reality, reality for many are these things. Trump being President is reality, it's not a conspiracy. Our compassion won't change until something happens to change it.

Well, I see the problem Jurgen, but I don't see how telling us to 'look at the stillness surrounding us, stripped of our interpretation' will do the job? Are you saying that we can change simply by being aware of the situation? I'm guessing that most people are unable to see what this means. Are you saying that limiting our reality to the present moment, to learn to live in that way will be capable of changing our.... 'being'? I don't know about others, but I'm willing to try to learn exactly what you mean. This is a genuine question with good intent. What exactly do you hope to achieve by your latest posts in this thread? I'm struggling to understand but willing to learn.

Is it just enough, as Eckhart Tolle says, to "Take one conscious breath." (My whole post could have been condensed to this one question.)

Interestingly, one of my very short lucid dreams came after reading 'Multidimensional Man' shortly before going to sleep. I was maybe immersed in that dreamy reality for a while, which brought it closer to me somehow, which thinned my personal veil enough to enable the lucid dream. Maybe this is somehow similar? :eek:

It must be so frustrating! Knowing so much stuff but not being able to share fully.
 
Back
Top