thelerner

'liked' the above only because its so well written.

Perhaps we need a button which denotes even higher praise? like OUTSTANDING ?? For particularly great posts sometimes I'll

Yes, no, no yes. Simple research, fair trade prices are 10% higher then normal prices (& there is a floor, but prices are way above it). Prices fluctuate, so even 10% can be 20% lower then last year. Higher prices aren't going to end slavery. Because prices have gone up and there's still a slavery problem. Colonial this.. colonial that.. doesn't matter in solving the problem, unless you've got a time machine and small army. Its not a matter of cocoa prices, its a matter of putting teeth into the law outlawing slavery. "The child said her parents are expecting her to bring back money. That says absolutely nothing about what her parents know or what their intentions are. You are making all sorts of wrong assumptions about her parents based on projecting your own limited cultural assumptions." I don't think 'they secretly knew', I assume they suspected (sweatshop, slavery or prostitution) was strong possibility. I make my assumptions because I've read up a bit on Africa, latest book, The Boy who Captured the Wind. It paints some frightening pictures of hunger in Africa. It also presents the people there as smart and know whats going on. Seems hugely naive to send away a 12 year old and assume she'll get a job and be fine. I could be wrong, but what the hell kind of job did they expect a 12 year old girl to get from strangers? People know better. As far as mandating higher cocoa prices: If you think giving more money to slavers will make them nicer better people, then go send them a check. I'd rather send them to jail and take away there farms. Its easier to lock away the bad guys then fight against supply and demand, ie people/companies paying for commodities what the going market rate is. Try to make artificial pricing rules, and people will get around them. In the long run it doesn't work. I am blaming parents, I'm blaming the farmers who are slavers even more. I'm also blaming the police who look the other way. I am blaming the government who's not doing something about this. I would punish the farmers. I would pay the police more to carry out the law. I would fire (or put sanctions on) the government who are not enforcing anti-slavery laws. You're so focused on colonialism that you don't seem to blame the true culprits. Why not go after the slavers? The farmers, the procurers. Your head is so lost in a history lessons you can't see the evil in plain view or the true solution to it. You're so focused on Cargill as the enemy that you don't evil in front of your face. The farmers doing actual enslaving (and there procurers). Big mistake. Raising the price of cocoa 10%, fine.. but understand it'll fluctuate like any farm commodity and the fluctuations haven't meant a damn thing about slavery.

its not youtube, but I spent last weekend watching all 13 episodes of Daredevil on Netflix. Surprisingly good. And to watch hourly episodes one after the other with no commercials was great; in an incredibly time wasting way. I like The Flash too, but because its cable Daredevil has less constraints, Daredevil's world is darker and grittier. To fit into a tight schedule Flashes problems and solutions (except for the reverse flash which has been admirably done and avoided easy quick cliches) seem more maudlin and contrived. Which was also a problem with Smallville.

I find you very naive. You think the parents sent out a 12 year old (interviewers thought she was younger) w/ nothing and thought she'd be just fine, get a good job. Naive on several fronts. The parents probably weren't stupid. They knew there was a good chance she'd wind up in a very bad place but in a land where there's starvation and too many mouths to feed, shit happens. You're also naive if you think raising the amount paid for cocoa will stop slavery. If farmers are slavers, earning 30 cents more a pound won't automatically make them sing kumbaya and release the kids. All it does it does is put more money in there pocket. I blame all the parties involved, not just Cargill. You're giving a free pass to the parents who sent out there 12 year old who thinks she can't come back unless she has money, yeah I do blame them. I blame the farmers, who should give a wage to there workers and freedom to come and go. I blame the local police who look the other way. I blame the government that's not putting teeth into regulation and policing that would stop this. You also put way to much trust in pieces of paper. That fair trade or some letters on a certificate in a mass market with 100's of sellers means everythings honky dory. I don't. The best solution is arrests and confiscation. Having police or military go farm to farm and arrest those with slaves and confiscate the land. And keep doing that til its ended. Throw a tax on cocoa exports to fund it. That's the best solution. You do some research but its not holistic. You miss important questions. How much does Cargill pay and how much would it pay under fair trade; Would raising it stop the slavery? It might not. I know government policing would. There are social and economic issues ranging from starvation to custom that need to be addressed. It is complicated and it is solvable. In my opinion getting the government to put teeth into its own laws, close down and arrest farmers who use slave labor. If the farms can't grow cocoa economically they should either grow something else or turn into something productive. I'm a better researcher then you because I look at more variables and try to see the problem and solution holistically. I think my eyes are open, yours are just slits focused on Cargill. Speaking of Cargill (and to piss off Innersound) let me add this link: http://www.cargill.com/corporate-responsibility/responsible-supply-chains/cocoa/index.jsp From the site: ..We believe that when confronting these problems, it is essential to target poverty, which is often the root cause of labor issues. As farmer incomes rise through our training and community support programs described above, cocoa farmers are more likely to keep their children in school and out of the field. Our farmer training programs include raising awareness of child labor issues. We are working with the International Cocoa Initiative (ICI) to implement best practices, which have been proven to help farmers identify tasks that may harm children. Our training is based on the codes of conduct of UTZ Certified and the Rainforest Alliance, which include explicit prohibitions on child labor based on International Labour Organization (ILO) conventions. These allow children only to help their parents outside of school time for a limited number of hours; stipulate that children must not undertake work that jeopardizes their health or safety; and specify that children must always be accompanied by an adult relative. We have a dedicated team on the ground in Côte d’Ivoire to ensure consistent implementation of our child labor policies, coordinate our approach across all our activities and programs, and liaise with other stakeholders. All our employees in Côte d’Ivoire are being trained by ICI to help them understand the issues and identify children who may be at risk, and we work with our certified farmer cooperatives to build similar awareness. If we are alerted to any child at risk, we communicate with cooperative management and regional government officials, so they can investigate and take any necessary actions. In addition to our own efforts, we support the efforts of ICI, ILO, and WCF to help combat child labor.

I like it. Let me know when you're playing near Chicago; probably not soon, but one day. & I'll sweeten the deal with a free beer or two for you and the band

I got around to watching your 45 minute video and it interviews a girl who is rescued from a going on a bus to a plantation and in the interview the girl says she's was promised money, further if she doesn't come back with money her parents will be very angry with her. I'm assuming her story is common. You kinda quick gloss over it and spend pages on Cargill, but to me the fact that such 'slavery' is somewhat sanctioned by her parents, ie they're sending out a 12 year old to a plantation. Odds are they know the risks. To me its damnably complicated. The parents willing to send there young children away and law looking the other way.. this points to social and economic issues that have to be studied and involved in solving this problem. Cause I suspect even if Cargill goes away the fundamental problem here will remain. Also my studying shows that you exaggerate the problem. Its horrendous enough without it.

As an old man I go to bed, wake up and go to pee, go back to bed, wake up again, wonder where the hell I am, go to pee again, back to bed then as a baby wake up, wonder where the hell I am; pee.. nothing much has changed.. Clearly when we die, we shed our stuff. No need for cars, clothes and life time of accumulation. Perhaps in truth even our memories are just more stuff; to be left behind and its an aspect of our awareness that goes on.

Towards the OP, are you really asking if Science isn't the religion of our time. That we've set up men in white coats as authorities over us, believing them blindly? In our age angels have turned into aliens and miracles into quantum events..

I'm no role model here. But.. a section on spiritually cleaning out the pantries and keeping them 'pure' ie don't introduce junk food back into them. A section on spiritual cooking, keeping it simple and natural, would be good; some easy raw recipes. The path to effortlessness begins with discipline. Keeping ones diet simple and repetitive until it becomes a habit and lifestyle. Only then should you open up to greater choices. Until correct habits are set, choice is the enemy. <this actually comes from Tim Ferris who lost alot of weight and said the secret was eating the exact same thing (healthy, slow carb) every day for a month>

Fantastic. It shows how much work it takes. Maybe 20% miracle and 80% hard work on both your parts. Having a student w/ disability or not work for 2 hours shows a master teacher. Last question, I like squats and often use kettlebells with them. What is a superbrain yoga squat?

Good. Nice philosophy, though a bit preachy at times. I liked how the story and pictures of old Longears came together, particularly the one showing him meditating by the Buddha statue.

While I'm not a penisologist, I do own one and I don't think your second reasoning is on target. The plunger affect happens whether an (erect) penis is circumcised or not ie same shape. Plus I don't think the ancients were sophisticated enough to make a connection between a foreskin and more efficient rape. (ie by removing the babies foreskin in 25 years when the kid is raping, he'll have a 30% greater chance of the woman not having someone else's baby if she's recently had sex with someone else) That's too far a reach and it wouldn't work; same plunger style regardless of foreskin. (Circumcision does keep the weiner cleaner and offers a little protection against veneral disease) My guess is its origin was to differentiate from other tribes. Radical move, other tribes have tattoo's, we're even tougher.. we cut off our own foreskins, try topping that you other bronze age tribes.. one theory at least.

Just throwing this out.. I'd prefer keeping it The Pit or Wasteland or the like. I'm worry the Chaos name will attract more attention and pride in comments sent into it. Songstan's right in that words have power and I wouldn't want to lose The Pit's main function to tell members that comments are getting out of line.

That looks really good. The book lays out a complete cosmology based on the DDC. Nice.

Yeah, good luck with that.. i grok they'll have to absorb your essence through memories and your writings.

I get.. make laws too strict and you'll end up cutting yourself. Thus following the themes of subtle persuasion and fewer laws.

Not cheap, but in my day it included live teaching sessions over Skype which were invaluable. Thus I mention KAP http://www.kundaliniawakeningprocess.com/

Implications.. hmnn, cut off your ear and you die in a few seconds of massive system failure. kidding. Such points may be stimulative, but there are so many points, on each finger and toe and throughout the body that I don't think a hole or two would stop flows. Especially on someone who's done some energy training work. Still, it'd be interesting to see if masters have found out otherwise.

This was experimented with for awhile. I think it failed because in many cases the Pit is a polite way to say you've gone too far and/or broken forum rules/etiquette. People who had threads thrown into the pit started them there and it became a flame war hotspot that the forum tries to avoid. <add The WWW subforum here gives the OP author more control over the direction of there thread.

Hah, I made a bet that eye of storm would connect Hopi's and chemtrails to a Jewish Israeli conspiracy (or throw it into the mix somehow). Eye of Storm, you may be a whacked out conspiracy theorist living a life of fear and paranoia, but you're consistent. <edited out the rest of it> A better question is: Do you believe the contrails you see mean the Hopi Prophecy is coming to pass? Are you making any changes to your life because of it? Are you considering talking to a Hopi in hopes he will help in hampering the horrible annihiliation?

Heck, go to the trouble of writing someone.. i may as well make up my own alchemical version . and poor reviews wouldn't bother me because I can always agree, It is Lao Sy

Is there a particularly alchemical translation anyone can recommend? or particular example from the verses.

I'd also add that contrails, the white lines produced by high alttitude jets have been around for over 50 years. Is there a time line in the Hopi prophecy. ie after 20 years of webs or 50 years, 100 years? I also wonder if members of the Hopi tribe actually believe this, at least your interpretation of it. There's a tendency to hijack other cultures end of the world stories without getting much feedback from the actual source. I'm thinking Mayan 2012. Also, why would we believe it, if we don't believe in any other Hopi theology? Is there a list of Hopi prophecies that are firmly dated then checked? edit> I love looking up at the sky. At the age of 50, I've always seen contrails (I'm not far from O'Hare). I assume older pilots would be pretty familiar with them too. You can look up contrail photos and find old photos of them there- http://contrailscience.com/contrail-photos-through-history/ You have scroll down to see the old ones. I wonder if you can find pilots weighing in on this issue. They're the ones most intimately aware of the sky and planes.

Seems like a valid subject to me. It'd be nice to understand it better. (if it can go beyond the 'you all know nothing' phase) I wonder if its widely thought in China that other cultures are misreading the DDC. Many translations were done by the Chinese. Some are way more out there then others. They run the gamut from practical to mystical, a few alchemical. People find a translation that rings true with them and get great benefit from it. Its a good book. Saoshun can you give an example how its misread?