ralis

I have sent several emails inquiring as to one DVD in particular and so far no response. Are they just slow in answering?

The magma is at present around 10 kilometers deep and any eruption is most likely not imminent. Every model I have seen, states that at least 2/3's of the U.S. would be effected immediately. Caldera's of this magnitude have the potential of producing another mass extinction. http://news.nationalgeographic.com/news/2011/01/110119-yellowstone-park-supervolcano-eruption-magma-science/

Sifu Garry, How many DVD's of 'Burning Palm' will eventually be available? Levels?

edit

Joe Bonamassa needs no description. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pnqTINa-VBg

Buddy Guy. Hard blues guitar! http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=NdeNoTDQ3ZQ

edit

That brings back memories.

What are the correct political choices for anyone calling themselves a Taoist? I believe the choices are either one of selfish interest or the realization that all of us are not separate beings apart from each other and what we do has profound effects on others, as well as the biosphere. Just wanted to start this discussion and will write more later.

You are not a fundamentalist?

This can only happen in Republican Tea Bagger land. Loch Ness monster is real according to anti-evolution teachings in private Christian schools. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2012/06/25/louisiana-students-loch-ness-monster-disprove-evolution_n_1624643.html http://www.tes.co.uk/article.aspx?storycode=6019140 Evangelical course that treats Nessie as fact endorsed by government agency Exams for an Evangelical Christian curriculum in which pupils have been taught that the Loch Ness monster disproves evolution and racial segregation is beneficial have been ruled equivalent to international A- levels by a UK government agency. The National Recognition Information Centre (Naric), which guides universities and employers on the validity of different qualifications, has judged the International Certificate of Christian Education (ICCE) officially comparable to qualifications offered by the Cambridge International exam board. Hundreds of teenagers at around 50 private Christian schools in Britain study for the certificates, as well as several home-educated students. The courses are based around the Accelerated Christian Education (ACE) programme, which originated in Texas in the 1970s. Pupils study a range of subjects, including science and English, but spend half their studies learning from Bible-influenced US textbooks, often in isolation from each other, Jonny Scaramanga, a music lecturer who attended an ACE school in Bath as a child, said he was astonished the courses were judged comparable to international A-levels and O-levels. In a complaint to Naric, he provided examples of the material taught on the courses. These included claims in its science and history textbooks that: the Loch Ness monster, which “appears to be a plesiosaur” from photographs, helps to disprove evolution; apartheid was beneficial to South Africa; reasons include the claim that segregated schools “made it possible for each group to maintain and pass on their culture and heritage to their children”; “unquestionable proofs” and “unarguable evidences” existed for creationism. Mr Scaramanga said: “Those who challenge the explanations given in the materials are described as ‘godless’, ‘anti-biblical’, and ‘foolish’. There needs to be greater public awareness of what these schools tell students.” The evangelical content of ACE courses taught in Britain and the US have attracted criticism over the past decade. The scientist Professor Richard Dawkins visited a London school which used the curriculum in 2006. He said he was appalled to learn that pupils were taught that Noah’s Ark was real and that Aids victims were sinners. But Naric, which is funded by the Department for Business, Innovation and Skills, nevertheless carried out a “benchmarking exercise” on the ICCE last summer. It ruled that the course’s general certificate, which involves two to three years of study, should be compared to Cambridge International’s O-level at grades C to E; the intermediate certificate to the international O-level at grades A to B; and the advanced certificate to an international A-level. In a statement on the decision in August 2008, Naric said: “The ICCE are delighted by the results of the project and we feel that this work also helps improve awareness and understanding of such international qualifications.” Tim Buttress, Naric’s spokesman, told The TES that the agency’s role was to guide universities and employers on the “rigour” of qualifications, but investigating curriculum content was outside its remit. “It’s like comparing an engineering degree at Luton University and Sheffield Hallam - the degrees are at the same level, but the content may be different,” he said. However, Brenda Lewis, ICCE chief executive officer in the UK, said tNaric had examined the content. “We were taken aback by how thorough they were,” she said. British teachers found ACE textbooks useful, she said, but sometimes pointed out comments they regarded as unreasonable to pupils. Mrs Lewis had not noticed the Loch Ness monster claims, which she suggested may have been a “slip at the typewriter”, adding that the science curriculum had helped a student to gain a place to study natural sciences at Oxford University. She also said she had never seen the apartheid claims, but stressed that British teachers would strongly challenge them. Creationist creed Are dinosaurs alive today? Scientists are becoming more convinced of their existence. Have you heard of the ‘Loch Ness Monster’ in Scotland? ‘Nessie,’ for short has been recorded on sonar from a small submarine, described by eyewitnesses, and photographed by others. Nessie appears to be a plesiosaur. Could a fish have developed into a dinosaur? As astonishing as it may seem, many evolutionists theorize that fish evolved into amphibians and amphibians into reptiles. This gradual change from fish to reptiles has no scientific basis. No transitional fossils have been or ever will be discovered because God created each type of fish, amphibian, and reptile as separate, unique animals. Any similarities that exist among them are due to the fact that one Master Craftsmen fashioned them all.” Extract from Biology 1099, Accelerated Christian Education Inc. (1995).

Tea Party extraordinaire Joe the plumber demonstrates why he is one of the lead spokespersons for the Tea Bagger movement. Why do people follow such stupid and naive idiots! http://www.democraticunderground.com/1014148688

I see you missed my point. Let's take for e.g., the most powerful fascist institution in the last 2000 yrs. The Catholic Church which is ruled by so called divine mandate from the pope, creates so called divine laws for the sheeple to follow. These so called laws which are said to be divinely inspired, are not absolute, and are arbitrary so as the power structure of the church remains intact. Arbitrary in that the so called laws are at the whim of a dictator (pope) and have no relationship to the natural world. Breaking divinely inspired laws are coupled with severe forms of punishment such as hell and purgatory. I can think of myriad examples but all forms of spiritually based belief system crowd control are lies!

That way of thinking can be an exercise in futility. Belief systems (BS) are inaccurate maps of reality and impede direct experience. Religion and spirituality are only concerned with belief systems, arbitrary rules and other forms of crowd control. Moreover, belief systems are based on provisional faith and the wish to quantify an absolute isness of identity. I would highly recommend reading Robert Anton Wilsons; http://www.amazon.com/Quantum-Psychology-Brain-Software-Programs/dp/1561840718 The entire book was written without the verb 'is'. http://www.amazon.com/Science-Sanity-Introduction-Non-Aristotelian-Semantics/dp/0937298018/ref=sr_1_5?s=books&ie=UTF8&qid=1339598904&sr=1-5&keywords=korzybski General semantics teaches that language can be expanded from a rigid yes/no worldview to out of the box expansive visual thinking.

All spiritual systems and religions are based solely on 'belief systems', which are impediments to what is real. Believing in a belief system is all you get.

Immortal, This is what you have been looking for. The 'I Am Sanctuary of St. Germain' the immortal. As you can see on the Google map of the sanctuary, it's building and fence are all white. Very fitting for the 'Great White Brotherhood', don't you think? For massive amounts of money that the sanctuary charges, you to are guaranteed immortality. Here are just a few examples of ones that have achieved immortality just before dying. I just love that youthful glow! https://maps.google.com/maps?hl=en&client=firefox-a&channel=np&q=i+am+sanctuary+santa+fe&ie=UTF-8 http://users.on.net/~thefirstbruce/Ballards/index.html

What you are talking about is not spiritual evolution. There is no evolution in the labyrinth which is a prison. Humans fail to recognize the very nature of the confines of the cage and therefor very few escape or see beyond the boundaries of their confinement. The only greater understanding is one of better familiarity with the cage! The 'Great White Brotherhood' has obvious overtones of white supremacy.

The Tea Party right wing Republicans are absolutely obsessed with money and more money!!! Ebenezer Scrooge is their resident deity. I always thought Taoists and Buddhists were working on shedding attachments from impermanent objects.

The Tao is about the observation and study of nature and our relationship with. Tea Party followers are not concerned with nature but are in opposition to it. The Tea Party advocates condone the destruction of the environment by corporations at any cost. Pollution, destruction of forests, more carbon being emitted into the biosphere, are some of the parasitic functions of this Ayn Rand based objectivist insanity. A new plague of Social Darwinism! I have yet to see the Tea Party advocating for eliminating the following; TSA, Homeland Security, Patriot Act etc. When I say Tea Party, I am referring to all right wing groups!

Do Tea Party persons consider what the implications are of a smaller government? Most likely not. Smaller government leads to more power being concentrated in the hands of fewer government officials. The Tea Bagger wet dream is to privatize more government services to predatory corporations that are only accountable to themselves. Neofeudalism and neoliberalism are the only outcomes of such a single minded ideology. I doubt any Taoist would advocate the fusion of government and predatory corporations.

LZ lived in a different time and culture and is it appropriate to apply his writings to the present? What some may view as a government nanny state is a response to real human need. Social programs such as the 'The Great Society' program started by Linden Johnson was an attempt to solve the problem of abject poverty in extremely depressed areas in the U.S. I grew up bordering what was classified as Appalachia in the 60's and the poverty was horrific. I have traveled in the backwoods of Louisiana and Mississippi where poverty is a way of life. Very little educational opportunities and certainly no or very little business environment where a decent living can be earned. The problem is usually compounded by extremely low wages.

You are advocating free learning on the internet? What you will have are poorly educated persons with virtually no critical thinking skills due to the fact that their assumptions will be largely unchallenged. No different than Christian home schooling with an emphasis on a 6,000 year old earth. Further, an internet education offers no direct face to face interaction with one's peers. A real education is not necessarily about finding a job but is in regards to being challenged by one's peers and professors.

The ability to cooperate and compromise is a trait not found in the Tea Party right wing Republican ideology. These so called principles upheld by this group are rigid identities which are based on the Manichean struggle between good and evil. George Bush is the best contemporary example of such a rigid personality. If this group ever compromised on any one thing, then their tribal group identity would be lost forever. An in depth study of biology would reveal that inter-species and intraspecies cooperation is how life has survived in this biosphere.