The Zeitgeist Moving Forward

Time to move forward from an illusion called money to love..
from one human living the moneyless life...
Suelo says in his blog...
I've been totally without cents since Autumn of 2000 (except for a couple months in 2001). I don't use or accept money or conscious barter - don't take food stamps or other government dole. My philosophy is to use only what is freely given or discarded & what is already present & already running (whether or not I existed). I don't see money as evil or good: how can illusion be evil or good? But I don't see heroin or meth as evil or good, either. Which is more addictive & debilitating, money or meth? Attachment to illusion makes you illusion, makes you not real. Attachment to illusion is called idolatry, called addiction. I simply got tired of acknowledging as real this most common world-wide belief called money! I simply got tired of being unreal. Money is one of those intriguing things that seems real & functional because 2 or more people believe it is real & functional!

The enormity and the being!

a teaching in itself of what can be done...
maybe...this jogs the memoir of only being a small speck!
in a great wide, ever-expanding vastness...
a taste of the enormity!!!

La-eets!

Beauty...Fall!

A time for change...or a change of times?

What is Nuclear Energy!

Global Military Expenditure Global military expenditure in a year is $1.204 trillion (1204 000 000 000). In a month this means $ 100 billion Every week this means $ 25 billion Every day this means $ 3,6 billion Every hour this means $ 149 million Every minute this means $ 6,2 million Every second this means $ 103 340 This means over one hundred thousand dollars spent every second, all year around on weapons and militaries and wars! What could you do to make the world a better place if you had a hundred thousand dollars to spend?
-You could offer 15 000 girls in poor countries education, food, health care and clean water for one year.1
-You could adopt 30 million hectare of rain forest to protect it from exploitation and devastation.2
-You could offer 3000 families access to clean water for o whole year and save them from life threatening diseases.3
All this and far more could be done – just with the amount of money spent in one second by the world’s governments on their militaries. Just imagine what you could do with all the money spent on weapons and wars in an hour or a day or a week or a month or even a year. Save the world, basically.

Thanks to http://www.slmk.org/larom/ENG/Dokument/Economy/ECONOMY%20ADVANCED.pdf



Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty [NPT]

The Treaty on the Non-Proliferation of Nuclear Weapons, also referred to as the Nuclear Non-Proliferation Treaty (NPT), obligates the five acknowledged nuclear-weapon states (the United States, Russian Federation, United Kingdom, France, and China) not to transfer nuclear weapons, other nuclear explosive devices, or their technology to any non-nuclear-weapon state. Non-nuclear-weapon States Parties undertake not to acquire or produce nuclear weapons or nuclear explosive devices.

source: http://www.fas.org/nuke/control/npt/

So, What do you think about Nuclear weapons? Do you think they are a means of Security or Threat? Is it worth spending so much money on them, when we have so many hungry people in this world? Do you think the world should get rid of them or use it positively as an energy source?
When it comes to the word "NUCLEAR ENERGY"...more than half of the people in this living world are not even aware of its existence.All they know about Nuclear energy is the information given to them through the media. For many, the word would trigger the trauma Japan had to endure (and still does) after 1945 and for some it might just be an issue that they need not even deal with, in this lifetime or in the lifetimes to come. Some are safe as far as the phrase 'ignorance is bliss' goes. And yet for a majority of people who live in abject poverty and are deprived of every invention of the so-called developed world, this issue will remain alien.
So, even before asking the question as to whether it is a threat or security, we should ask ourselves one question! Do all the people in this world know what it exactly is? Well, that is a separate issue altogether.
But let us consider that most of the people in this world are actually aware of the 'Nuclear Energy' concept. Do they have any say? They simply segregate themselves from the governments who in turn take their own decisions when it comes to things like this. How involved is the common citizen in these matters? That is the question we have to raise here? THE COMMON CITIZEN. Once this person feels responsible and asks questions and involves himself/herself, then we can think about security or threat factors.
But, one thing is for sure. Even the smallest of things has its advantages and disadvantages. You can either do something constructive or destructive with the small safety pin and it is applicable to all the things (big and small and medium) that man has ever invented for himself. So, when used in the right way, we can get its maximum benefits and when our evil gets the better of us, we use the same thing for destructive purposes. Instead of wasting our potential to find out destructive ways, we can use the Nuclear Energy to help make this world a better place to live.
But what happens to the solution for Nuclear waste disposal? Well, it is time we used our potential to find a way. We have gotten ourselves into it and we should be able to find a way out. WE WILL!
The first step is to increase the general awareness of the common Citizen in each country and bringing together like minded individuals for a noble cause. Let us first try to equally distribute food, water, medical services and most of all, knowledge - in this planet!
The rest, will fall in their right places!
It is a fact that nuclear energy greatly paved way as an alternate resource to fossil fuels and coal. At the same time it should be clearly borne in mind that a true solution for disposal of nuclear wastes has not yet been found out and it is going to be the biggest challenge for all the countries in the forth coming years. Again nuclear energy is a very costly affair for the third world countries.
When Science went deep into the matter and elctricity was found out, it was fully realized that the usage has its own dangers. But we started using it along with all its dangers. Science went deeper to discover Nuclear energy and it is millions of times more dangerous than electricity. But still we use it. With all the fast running and mechanized world it appears that man is forced to live within innumerable dangers when calling this world as a modern world becomes questionable. By the same time Nuclear energy contains more politics than the utility. All the countries are into a wild race to achieve a title as 'super power' only based on nuclear power. It is time to provide a rigorous definition for a super power in view of the exact direction of progress of the human civilization.

The Story of Stuff !!

Patch Adams on fun and friendship...

Patch talks about a hospital that includes alternative medicine, and he includes homeopathy and acupuncture. Here is text from his essay:

Vision for a Free Hospital Based on Fun and Friendship

by Patch Adams

I entered medical school in 1967 to use medicine as a vehicle for social change. I used my free time to study the history of health care delivery around the world and to look at contemporary models with the idea of creating a medical model that would address all the problems of the way care is delivered. I didn't intend to create a model that would be the answer to the problems; but to model creative problem solving, and to spark each medical facility to design their own ideal rather than succumb to the garbage of managed care, or a resignation to the impossibility of humanistic care. Beginning in the climate of the political "war on poverty," I felt confident that a free hospital to serve the poorest state, West Virginia, would find easy funding and that we would be built in four years. I smile writing this as we enter our 33rd year without having broken ground on the hospital. However, we have asked our architect to go to finished drawings so that we can begin building as soon as we have funding in hand. None of the journey has gone as I imagined and the vision is so much deeper, more comprehensive and far-reaching as a consequence of such deliberate progress.

The original vision had all the principles we have maintained all these years. There would be no charge for the care. Barter was also not an option. In fact, we wanted to eliminate the idea of debt in the medical interaction as a way to begin recreating human community. We didn't want people to think they owed something; we wanted them to think...for more click here.

TIME-BOUND?

A whole new set of responsibilities to take care of...
where have we been so long..time doesn't exist anymore? or does it?
Is the passing of time connected to the restlessness and the fire that is building up within?
Or is time just an illusion to add to the already existing chaos?

Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute

Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute is committed to increasing citizen involvement in decisions that affect our region's environment through community organizing and education.
Mission Statement
The mission of the Palouse-Clearwater Environmental Institute (PCEI) is to increase citizen involvement in decisions that affect our region’s environment. Through community organizing and education, PCEI assists members of our communities in making environmentally sound and economically viable decisions that promote a sustainable future.

Primary Goals

• To promote the ecological health and social welfare of the Palouse-Clearwater region.
• To actively participate in the conservation, preservation, and restoration of environmentally sensitive lands, natural areas, and unique ecosystems.
• To provide forums for the free exchange of views in matters of concern to the public.
• To inform and educate the public on issues of importance to the sustainable future of the Palouse-Clearwater region thus promoting a well-informed, active and concerned citizenry.

Watershed Programs
Environmental Education Programs
Community Food Programs
Transportation Options
Alternative Energy
..more..

CROSS CULTURAL SOLUTIONS

Ever thought about volunteering across the globe?? Well, here is your chance!

Cross-Cultural Solutions is widely known as the leading organization in the field of international volunteering.

Our volunteer programs are unique in every way. Our global infrastructure supports over 4,000 international volunteers each year and over 250 sustainable community initiatives. More than 250 CCS in-country-staff members are working year-round, ensuring that you are volunteering with a project that interests you and contributing directly to the goals of each community. No other short-term international volunteer program has such a global presence and community-centered approach toward volunteering abroad.

For more details please visit the site at http://www.crossculturalsolutions.org/

GLOBAL YOUTH ACTION NETWORK

The Global Youth Action Network (GYAN) is 501c3, not-for-profit organization, launched in 1996 and registered in the state of New York, USA. GYAN has regional teams in Sao Paulo, Brazil, Durban, South Africa, Beirut, Lebanon, and Manila, Philippines. Natonal Chapters are registered in Mexico City, Accra, Ghana, Paris, France, and a growing number of other countries. GYAN is affiliated to the United Nations Department of Public Information and holds Special Consultative Status with the United Nations Economic & Social Council (ECOSOC).

GYAN is a youth-led organization that unites the efforts of young people working to improve our world. The Network connects many thousands of organizations in over 190 countries and a growing membership is now helping to shape the future direction of GYAN..

Creative Stimulation Workshop, Chennai,India

The Creativity Stimulation Workshop was organized as a part of 'Science Empowerment Program' by Suyam Charitable Trust and PRM Trust, for a healthy interaction with our younger generation. This workshop was conducted under Seva Talent organized by CIOSA, on the
occasion of Seva Mela 2008 at Valluvarkottam, Nungambakkam, Chennai on 15/03/2008 and 16/03/2008. More than 900 students from various schools and colleges in and around Chennai, participated at the event. There was a main introductory event through PowerPoint presentations and short documentary films to provide the children a brief world view. There were seven main events in which thirteen types of competitions were held. The motivation behind the theme has been to impart with seriousness, sensitivity and also to give a direction for their thought process. This was also intended to give an understanding about scientific thought and also social responsibility.
please check out the complete detailed report with photographs from http://suyamprojects.blogspot.com/2008_03_01_archive.html
Posted by Muthuram.

Evil Mad Scientists at work!!

Evil Mad Scientist Laboratories- Making the World a better place, One evil mad scientist at a time!



for more details on the evil mad scientist projects..pls visit..
http://www.evilmadscientist.com/
http://evilmadscience.com/
http://www.becausewecan.org/

what kind of feeling is this?

what kind of feeling is this?
am i feeling lonely..amidst all this love in the universe?
when all begins for me and ends in me?
every flower blooms for me..
and every time my earth moves with life..
i ought to be overwhelmed at the immense perseverance it endures..
but here i am..feeling lonely?
no...no..i need to come out of this..and accept the life that is given to me!

TIBETAN UPRISING...for PEACE!

Dear Friend,

The time has come for me to go to Tibet again. Last time when I went to Tibet in 1997 - after my graduation - I was arrested by the Chinese authorities, beaten up, interrogated, starved and finally thrown out of Tibet after keeping me in their jails for three months in Lhasa and Ngari. I walked to Tibet, on my own, alone, across the Himalayan Mountains from the Ladakh. Eleven years later, I am walking to Tibet again; this time too, without permission. I am returning home; why should I bother about papers from Chinese colonial regime who have not only occupied Tibet, but also is running a military rule there; making our people in Tibet live in tyranny and brutal suppression day after day, everyday for fifty years.

The Year 2008 is a huge opportunity for the Tibet movement to present the injustices the Tibetans have been subjected to, when China is going to attract international media attention. I am taking part in the return march from Dharamsala to Tibet, that is being organized as a part of the "Tibetan People's Uprising Movement", a united effort put together by five major Tibetan NGOs: Tibetan Youth Congress, Tibetan Women’s Association, Gu-Chu-Sum Movement of Tibet (an association of former political prisoners), National Democratic Party of Tibet and Students for a Free Tibet, India.

The march will start on 10 March 2008, from Dharamsala, the capital of Tibetan exiles and will pass through Delhi and then head towards Tibet. Walking for six months, we might reach the Tibet border around the time China opens the Beijing 2008 Olympics (August 14-25). Presently it’s too early to approximate at which border point we would be crossing; Tibet and India share a border that runs 4,075 Km along the length of the Himalayas. We might choose any point, or even multiple points. We’ll see the situation. I know there had been similar attempts in the past, but this is 2008, and I have seen the organizers working extra hard with strategic planning, taking care of every minute detail, and the best thing is that we have all the NGOs working unitedly for the common goal. This unity is our strength! I do not know where we would end up, that’s why I am giving away the little collection of books (my only possession in life) to a library at is being setup in McLeod Ganj, Dharamsala. My friends: Lobsang and Nyingje (who served in the Indian army as part of the Tibetan battalion) are also giving away their personal belongings; committing themselves for the march. Of course the Indian police will do their duty; the Chinese army at the Tibet border would be overtly enthusiastic. Since we are leading a peaceful march, with absolute commitment to non-violence, I do not think anyone - either from Indian authority or Chinese - would impose themselves on us.

Inspired by Gandhi’s Salt March, even if they did try to stop us, we are not stopping. For how many days can they jail us for just walking peacefully? And why should the Indian government stop Tibetan refugees voluntarily returning home on foot? In the past I have climbed buildings to shout for freedom, thrown myself at the Chinese embassy gate in New Delhi, spent months in jails, got beaten up police, fought court cases, but I never lost the dignity of the struggle: my believe in Non-violence.

The March to Tibet will be non-violent; it is a sadhana, a spiritual tribute to the truth and justice that we are fighting for. This is our Long March to freedom. And on our journey home, we will cook and camp in tents on the roadside, there will be the marchers and the support marchers, the kitchen team, logistics, media and the medical team. There will be dancing and singing, and theatre and film shows on the road as we take this long journey home. Dear friend,Here is an opportunity to join a historic non-violent freedom struggle, a people’s effort to win freedom for a country that remains subjugated even in 2008.

I request you to join us, support us in whatever ways possible. We need people to know about it, so spread the word. You can walk with us, as we walk for six months, maybe you can join us for a day along the path, even one hour, or for a week, months as a supporter. Schools, colleges and even whole town can walk with us.

We need volunteers, media people, writers, photographers, bloggers can help us. We need nurses, cooks, technicians and your prayers. Ever since the march was announced on 4th January 2008, Tibetans have been talking about it; it’s a major discussion in the refugee camps. Recently the organizers launched the entry form. And I heard people are slowly getting themselves registered. You too can register your volunteer online.

For more information please visit: http://www.tibetanuprising.org/ For enquiries email the coordinators: Lobsang yeshi <lobsangyeshi2006@hotmail.com> or sherab woser <sherabwoeser@yahoo.com> Join us.

Tenzin Tsundue

Dharamsala

Hello from the OBLIVION!

Hello my counterparts...i know it has been such a long time since i've been in touch...but the gap was just in the physical world...i have been thinking so much about all of you during the entire trip to the other side of our Earth...India...so it would be apt if i said "you were there with me"!

how can i explain what i experienced? language has its boundaries but the heart does not...so, i will try to patiently bring each and every experience to you...

My faith that humanity will organize itself to save the WHOLE is still going strong...after i met my other PARTS...

hmmm....where do i start?

i keep getting images of the Earth breathing and living and awakening each of us to our purpose...the peace it gives me within..that i am not alone..

one more thing that i have realized from all of these experiences is that human has to become a human after all...he cannot turn into anything else...it is time our energies get organized to revive our WHOLE...!

wow...it is so good to be back my comrades! i love you all...

Novelist ISABEL ALLENDE - TED TALK...

As a novelist and memoirist, Isabel Allende writes of passionate lives, including her own. Born into a Chilean family with political ties, she went into exile in the United States in the 1970s -- an event that, she believes, created her as a writer. Her voice blends sweeping narrative with touches of magical realism; her stories are romantic, in the very best sense of the word. Her novels include The House of the Spirits, Eva Luna and The Stories of Eva Luna, and her latest, Ines of My Soul and La Suma de los Dias (The Sum of Our Days). And don't forget her adventure trilogy for young readers -- City of the Beasts, Kingdom of the Golden Dragon and Forest of the Pygmies.
As a memoirist, she has written about her vision of her lost Chile, in My Invented Country, and movingly tells the story of her life to her own daughter, in Paula. Her book Aphrodite: A Memoir of the Senses memorably linked two sections of the bookstore that don't see much crossover: Erotica and Cookbooks. Just as vital is her community work: The Isabel Allende Foundation works with nonprofits in the SF Bay Area and Chile to empower and protect women and girls -- understanding that empowering women is the only true route to social and economic justice.

In one of the most beloved talks from TED2007, novelist Isabel Allende talks about writing, women, passion, feminism. She tells the stories of powerful women she has known, some larger-than-life (listen for a beauty tip from Sophia Loren), and some simply living with grace, dignity and ingenuity in a world that, in too many ways, still treats women unjustly.

Republic of Lakota = Lakota Oyate

I got this email from a friend recently...I am just sharing it with you all...
Less than a month has gone by since some Lakota people announced their re-assertion of sovereignity as either Lakota Oyate http://www.lakotaoyate.net/index.html or the Republic
of Lakotah http://www.republicoflakotah.com/. Everything I read about the situation looks like it could use a stiff infusion of intentional communication and social design. Is anyone following this or interested, and does anyone see this as a festering opportunity for us to roll up our sleeves and do something revolutionary?
the email ends here.
What do you think about this my dear friends...i had no idea this was going on within the U.S...and how many such individual movements are going on around us that we have no idea about..??
Let us keep our eyes open to the world around us instead of confining ourselves to the system that surrounds us...the internet is the new social consciousness and it is time we 'see' the world as it is...and not what it appears to be..!
But personally on this topic of countries wanting to separate from each other, I feel there should come a day when all of them want to unite as a single EARTH...it should not be 'us' and 'them'...but a complete "WE"!!!

OPEN CONTENT ALLIANCE-Libraries going open!

Imagine a world where each human can have access to information from books, no matter where on earth he or she is! Open Content Alliance is striving to get the books from libraries in universities, online, for each of us to access...the abundant information that would be possible will enable us to view the world with endless possibilities...and alternatives...
This would also unite a lot of elements which are disjointed from each other..in this world..in the current system!
A new consciousness would evolve bringing us together and giving meaning to the yet unrealized phrase - WE ARE ALL CONNECTED!!!

What is the Open Content Alliance?

The Open Content Alliance (OCA) represents the collaborative efforts of a group of cultural, technology, nonprofit, and governmental organizations from around the world that will help build a permanent archive of multilingual digitized text and multimedia content. Content in the OCA archive will be accessible soon through this website and through Yahoo!

The OCA will encourage the greatest possible degree of access to and reuse of collections in the archive, while respecting the content owners and contributors. Contributors to the OCA must agree to the principles set forth in the Call for Participation.

Building a Digital Archive of Global Content for Universal Access.
For further details please visit: http://www.opencontentalliance.org/
http://www.openlibrary.org/details/oca_test_004
This movie was commissioned by Internet Archive for the 2007 Open Content Alliance meeting held on October 17, 2007. click here for the movie

HOLE-IN-THE-WALL Project - A new way to learn!

A typical Learning station

"Knowledge which is acquired under compulsion has no hold on the mind. Therefore do not use compulsion, but let early education be rather a sort of amusement." - Plato.

The driving force behind Hole-in-the-Wall is the the concept of Minimally Invasive Education which is truly path breaking. That children could learn on their own, was something not many people would have imagined and that too in such a cost effective manner with benefits like improved group dynamics, better in-class behavior etc.
Minimally Invasive Education is defined as a pedagogic method that uses the learning environment to generate an adequate level of motivation to induce learning in groups of children, with minimal, or no, intervention by a teacher.

Nothing is more powerful than an idea whose time has come.

Hole-in-the-Wall is one such idea, which offers the world a surprisingly fresh perspective on the learning process. Breaking the traditional confines of a school, Hole-in-The-Wall Education Limited (HiWEL) takes the Learning Station to the playground, employs a unique collaborative learning approach and encourages children to explore, learn and just enjoy!

As a concept, Hole-in-the-Wall has multiple dimensions and a potential which is virtually limitless. What it offers someone depends on the perspective one is looking from.

For experts, like Nicholas Negroponte of MIT, Hole-in-the-Wall is a ‘Shared Blackboard’ which children in underprivileged communities can collectively own and access, to express themselves, to learn, to explore together, and at some stage to even brainstorm and come up with exciting ideas.

For villagers, it is more like a village Well, where children assemble to draw knowledge and, in the process, engage in meaningful conversation and immersive learning activities that broaden their horizons.

And finally for children, it is an extension of their playground where they can play together, teach each other new things, and more importantly, just be themselves.

for more information please click here.
http://www.hole-in-the-wall.com/education-challenge.html
Courtesy:HOLE-IN-THE-WALL
Picture Courtesy: Holeinthewall.com

What do you think the children learn from a place like this?? Have any of you actually seen one? please do let us know your experience, if you have come across one hole-in-the-wall computer.
Here is one article by Dan Simmons from the BBC news who writes about the project.
Something new has arrived at this slum on the outskirts of Delhi and it is exciting the locals.Most people at Vivekananda Camp had never touched or used a computer. Then three came along at once. for more click here