It sucks to live in UK

[kevin]

Cutting down on human health, is what's wrong with it in this particular case. I don't get it, folks, anyone who practices anything is equipped to feel it...

Although I cannot speak for everyone, I can say that I do indeed feel uncomfortable under artificial lighting, especially fluorescent lighting. Only light by flame, sun, moon, and/or stars feels right.

 

Thanks for the post, Taomeow.

 

kevin

[sunshine]

Harry, I like our optimism.

They are not stupid and know exactly what they are doing. It's is all intentional to reach the desired outcome.

Barack Obama's 'Black Widow' : The Super Spy Computer

 

 

One thing I repeat in my position as a doctor with patients having life/emotioal etc. problems is a statement Bill Harris from centerpointe has made... and this one has followed me since I started the program years back...

 

it is similar to this:

 

"every new order on a higher level is preceded by chaos"

 

we will crash. For sure. If they do what they do this is going to happen... and this will be the best fundament for something much better (or at least different) to rise...

 

one day it will be hard for anyone to ignore what is running behind the curtains

 

we are not there yet

 

but we will be

 

maybe we won't be part of that happening

 

but we are heading towards it. That is evolution!

 

until then we can "only" work on ourselves

 

with all optimism one has to have in this world

 

and a lot of confidence

 

 

Harry

[Pietro]

Cutting down on human health, is what's wrong with it in this particular case. I don't get it, folks, anyone who practices anything is equipped to feel it... don't you feel what fluorescent light does to you?.. Well, one thing it does is, it causes gross vitamin A deficiency, because it pulsates in the on-off rhythm, fast enough for the average uncultivated eye not to notice, not fast enough for the brain not to notice. The brain gets this on-off, light-dark-lignt-dark signals from the retina under the fluorescent light continuously. What it does is activates the rodes, the cones, the rodes, the cones, the rodes, the cones in response to this nonstop on-off stimulus continuously. Every time it does, it needs to use a portion of rhodopsin, the pigment used by the retina for the light-dark switching process. This is synthesized with ample amounts of vitamin A. A few minutes under a fluorescent light bulb deplete an average dietary amount one has down to zero. With failing rhodopsin production in response to this kind of demand, next thing in the pipeline is all manner of "age-related" eye disorders. Except they aren't age-related at all. They are artificially manufactured in this manner.

 

To say nothing about what chronic vitamin A deficiency does to all other organs and systems that need it.

 

To say nothing about what this unphysiological frequency of on-off hypothalamus-pituitary-pineal involvement does to the normal electrical activity in the brain -- and to all the hormonal systems that depend on that axis for their proper production and function.

 

To say nothing about these hypnotic pulsations being CNS suppressors of the dumbing-down kind.

 

To say nothing about it all triggering epilepsy in the sensitive, ADD and migraines in the somewhat less sensitive, and all manner of intractable fatigue/low-energy goodies in the rest of us.

 

To say nothing about, as Smile asserted in the initial post with 100% accuracy, forget about cultivation under this light bulb. It's not cultivation, it's spiritual malnutrition, is all you're getting.

 

That's the tip of the iceberg of what's wrong with it, the topmost inch or two...

 

 

Very interesting Taomeaw, thanks.

If you could find back the study that showed how fluorescent light produces probles (like vitamin A depletion), we could use it to defend ourselves. For example for me I could use it next time someone comes to protest because I bring my own light in my office.

 

FOr me the best light I found was the fluorescent light bulb that gave a whole range solar light (I don't know how to describe it better, they are bluish in color). But I am looking forward for any REAL progress in this area.

 

Pietro

[Smile]

FOr me the best light I found was the fluorescent light bulb that gave a whole range solar light (I don't know how to describe it better, they are bluish in color).

They call them "Full spectrum Natural Light"... similar to this lights. I use incandescent full spectrum light bulbs from Verilux as they are the closest replication of natural sunlight.

[Smile]

To emphasize what I'm saying with the original post: Those in power don't care about you or your well being. If they did, there would be now stupid laws created like this one:

"Congress passed the Consumer Product Safety Improvement Act of 2008, or HR 4040, a retroactive rule mandating that all items sold for use by children under 12 must be tested by an independent party for lead and phthalates, which are chemicals used to make plastics more pliable.

All untested items, regardless of lead content, are to be declared "banned hazardous products.'' The CPSC has already determined the law applies to every children's item on shelves, not just to items made beginning Feb. 10."

Is Feb. 10 financial doomsday for thousands?

This basically can put any small company selling used kid's items (including books) out of business. Way to kill small business!!!

Now living in UK doesn't sound so bad...

Edited January 9, 2009 by Smile

[joeblast]

example 5,454,987,444,333 of why 99.9% of congress needs a pink slip.

[Taomeow]

Very interesting Taomeaw, thanks.

If you could find back the study that showed how fluorescent light produces probles (like vitamin A depletion), we could use it to defend ourselves. For example for me I could use it next time someone comes to protest because I bring my own light in my office.

 

FOr me the best light I found was the fluorescent light bulb that gave a whole range solar light (I don't know how to describe it better, they are bluish in color). But I am looking forward for any REAL progress in this area.

 

Pietro

It wasn't just one study that I saw -- there's tons... if you punch in "fluorescent and health" you'll see pages upon pages... about the stuff I was talking about but also about abnormal UV levels emitted by compact fluorescent bulbs, mercury from the same source, and on and on. Here's what I came across in relation to eye health problems alone (animal and human studies):

 

1. Chen, E. (1993). Inhibition of cytochrome oxidase and blue-light damage in rat retina. Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology, 231(7), 416-423.

2. Fedorovich, I. B., Zak, P. P., & Ostrovskii, M. A. (1994). Enhanced transmission of UV light by human eye lens in early childhood and age-related yellowing of the lens. Doklady Biological Sciences, 336(1), 204-206.

3. Ham, W. T., Jr. (1983). Ocular hazards of light sources: review of current knowledge. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 25(2), 101-103.

4. Ham, W. T., Jr., Ruffolo, J. J., Jr., Mueller, H. A., & Guerry, D., III. (1980). The nature of retinal radiation damage: dependence on wavelength, power level and exposure time; the quantitative dimensions of intense light damage as obtained from animal studies, Section II. Applied Research, 20, 1005-1111.

5. Hao, W., & Fong, H. K. (1996). Blue and ultraviolet light-absorbing opsin from the retinal pigment epithelium. Biochemistry, 35, 6251-6256.

6. Hightower, K. R. (1995). The role of the lens epithelium in development of UV cataract. Current Eye Research, 14, 71-78.

7. Pautler, E. L., Morita, M., & Beezley, D. (1989). Reversible and irreversible blue light damage to the isolated, mammalian pigment epithelium. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Retinal Degeneration (pp. 555-567). New York: Liss.

8. Rapp, L. M. & Smith, S. C. (1992). Morphologic comparisons between rhodopsin-mediated and short-wavelength classes of retinal light damage. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 33, 3367-3377.

9. Rozanowska, M., Wessels, J., Boulton, M., Burke, J. M., Rodgers, M. A., Truscott, T. G., & Sarna, T. (1998). Blue light-induced singlet oxygen generation by retinal lipofuscin in non-polar media. Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 24, 1107-1112.

10. Sliney, D. H. (1983). Biohazards of ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 25(3), 203-206.

11. Yegorova, E. V., Babizhayev, M. A., Ivanina, T. A., Zuyeva, M. V., & Ioshin, I. E. (1988). Spectral characteristics of intraocluar lenses and damage to the retina by visible light. Biophysics, 33(6), 1108-1114.

 

There's good books on the subject of light and its impact on health, on life itself and all its workings -- John Ott's are extraordinary, also check out Jacob Lieberman's... Ordinary visible light-darkness interplay is the primary signaling system for all life on earth, any interference, however seemingly minor, has far-reaching impact... John Ott bumped into this knowledge by accident, and then began studying the phenomena involved. It all began when he was doing time lapse photography for Disney's Cinderella, and he needed to grow a pumpkin... I won't reveal what happened, it's one of the most fascinating books I've ever read (but of course I don't remember the title, but I think it's easy to retrieve). Oh, and Lieberman's is "Light: Medicine of the Future" if I remember correctly.

[Taomeow]

Although I cannot speak for everyone, I can say that I do indeed feel uncomfortable under artificial lighting, especially fluorescent lighting. Only light by flame, sun, moon, and/or stars feels right.

 

Thanks for the post, Taomeow.

 

kevin

I may have over-generalized a bit, sorry... "anyone" and "anything" is a bit too sweeping... but anyway... of course, artificial light sucks compared to what tao has created, but fluorescent takes the cake in terms of sucking... for starters, everybody looks just a tiny bit dead in it... I wonder why?...

 

A yogi once told me that for any meditation on a flame, the ideal source is a ghee-burning oil lamp, due to a special mild, soothing, balancing vibrational frequency of this source. A candle of natural beeswax would be a second choice. A paraffin candle... forget it. Of course this might seem like unnecessary nit-picking, but it is empirically true for me -- the feel from the flame of burning ghee is "buttery," it soothes the soul and steadies the mind and takes you way deeper, way smoother. Holy cow!

 

Spirits and gods are said to be rather particular about the kind of flame they want to see... There's a whole branch of esoteric taoist sciences dealing with these preferences of theirs. E.g., if you want to see spirits, the otherwise invisible entities, with your own two eyes, certain substances must be added to the flame of your candle or oil lamp. These can get funky -- one I know of is powdered rhinoceros horn...

[Smile]

Edited January 10, 2009 by Smile

[Apech]

I may have over-generalized a bit, sorry... "anyone" and "anything" is a bit too sweeping... but anyway... of course, artificial light sucks compared to what tao has created, but fluorescent takes the cake in terms of sucking... for starters, everybody looks just a tiny bit dead in it... I wonder why?...

 

A yogi once told me that for any meditation on a flame, the ideal source is a ghee-burning oil lamp, due to a special mild, soothing, balancing vibrational frequency of this source. A candle of natural beeswax would be a second choice. A paraffin candle... forget it. Of course this might seem like unnecessary nit-picking, but it is empirically true for me -- the feel from the flame of burning ghee is "buttery," it soothes the soul and steadies the mind and takes you way deeper, way smoother. Holy cow!

 

Spirits and gods are said to be rather particular about the kind of flame they want to see... There's a whole branch of esoteric taoist sciences dealing with these preferences of theirs. E.g., if you want to see spirits, the otherwise invisible entities, with your own two eyes, certain substances must be added to the flame of your candle or oil lamp. These can get funky -- one I know of is powdered rhinoceros horn...

 

Taomeow and everyone,

 

I think I can see that forms of artificial light may have health risks and some are better than others but the problem I have is this. For the last three days I have been been involved with a group buying a new computer system and we have been listening to presentations from the various software firms. The new system will IMO be a good thing for people like me (who live in this area) cos it will help them provide services better and in a more sensitive way - for instance for people with disabilities and so on. So I support the idea but find that to do so I had to sit for many hours in an office lit by flourescent light. This morning I am going to teach English to some women from Sri Lanka and Iraq who have come to live in England. This again is in a room lit by artificail strip lighting. So if I want to do these things I have no choice.

 

I have always taken the view that the more meditation/cultivation I do the more adaptive and stronger I will become. This means I will be less affected by adverse environmental conditions. Less subject to the objective world. If I want to live in the modern urban environment then my spiritual work will help me do this. I can't and I'm not even sure if I want to just surround myself with butter lamps or whatever. Want to live quietly within society and not in an alternative. What you seem to be saying runs counter to this.

 

I say this with the greatest of respect and would be interested in your views.

 

Thanks.

Edited January 10, 2009 by apepch7

[Taomeow]

 

I have always taken the view that the more meditation/cultivation I do the more adaptive and stronger I will become. This means I will be less affected by adverse environmental conditions. Less subject to the objective world. If I want to live in the modern urban environment then my spiritual work will help me do this. I can't and I'm not even sure if I want to just surround myself with butter lamps or whatever. Want to live quietly within society and not in an alternative. What you seem to be saying runs counter to this.

 

I say this with the greatest of respect and would be interested in your views.

 

Thanks.

 

It's a view shared by my taiji teacher, so you have strong back-up here. He believes what you believe. I guess it's a matter of personal sturdiness... He has never been sick in his life, has been doing taiji for what looks like a minimum of eight hours daily for forty years, so he might not relate to the health concerns of mere mortals like me.

 

I know that cultivation has strengthened me in many ways, including physically, but I also know that I don't have the benefit of an unbreakable base line to have started from, far from it, and the other part of what has strengthened me was learning to be mindful of what weakens me, and trying to avoid it. I am not surrounded by butter lamps either, I'm not that prehistoric -- but I do what I can... just do what I can. Methinks it's a personal decision in every case, how much one "can" and how much one "needs" to do to stay on the safe side of the tracks. For me, cultivation without environmental awareness wouldn't have been enough. I can't sleep if the computer in the adjacent room isn't turned off. I can't use a cell phone. On the other hand, I haven't visited a doctor in fifteen years, except for an ER shipment after a car accident. We all have to choose our idiosyncratic health hazards... I know it's ridiculous to fret about the fluorescent bulbs while driving seventy mph over the speed limit... ...but health hazards deliberately designed as such I try to deliberately avoid, to the best of my ability. I don't do it in any on-a-mission fashion, don't get fanatical, purist, and so on... but head-in-the-sand obliviousness is not my chosen alternative either. As the song goes, whatever gets you through the night...

Edited January 10, 2009 by Taomeow

[三江源]

.

Edited March 11, 2015 by 三江源

[Apech]

It's a view shared by my taiji teacher, so you have strong back-up here. He believes what you believe. I guess it's a matter of personal sturdiness... He has never been sick in his life, has been doing taiji for what looks like a minimum of eight hours daily for forty years, so he might not relate to the health concerns of mere mortals like me.

 

I know that cultivation has strengthened me in many ways, including physically, but I also know that I don't have the benefit of an unbreakable base line to have started from, far from it, and the other part of what has strengthened me was learning to be mindful of what weakens me, and trying to avoid it. I am not surrounded by butter lamps either, I'm not that prehistoric -- but I do what I can... just do what I can. Methinks it's a personal decision in every case, how much one "can" and how much one "needs" to do to stay on the safe side of the tracks. For me, cultivation without environmental awareness wouldn't have been enough. I can't sleep if the computer in the adjacent room isn't turned off. I can't use a cell phone. On the other hand, I haven't visited a doctor in fifteen years, except for an ER shipment after a car accident. We all have to choose our idiosyncratic health hazards... I know it's ridiculous to fret about the fluorescent bulbs while driving seventy mph over the speed limit... ...but health hazards deliberately designed as such I try to deliberately avoid, to the best of my ability. I don't do it in any on-a-mission fashion, don't get fanatical, purist, and so on... but head-in-the-sand obliviousness is not my chosen alternative either. As the song goes, whatever gets you through the night...

 

 

Thanks for the reply Taomeow,

 

I think we are more in agreement than I thought. I don't claim anything like the level of strength your Taiji teacher has attained. I would say more that I use my meditative awareness as a kind of diagnostic. If I feel something is wrong I will try to adjust it and this may sometimes be environmental conditions. I realise many people are more sensitive than me but I see it as a balance between getting on with life and protecting your being from harm.

 

BTW you have destroyed my mental image of you in a cave surrounded by butter lamps! Shame

[Pietro]

It wasn't just one study that I saw -- there's tons... if you punch in "fluorescent and health" you'll see pages upon pages... about the stuff I was talking about but also about abnormal UV levels emitted by compact fluorescent bulbs, mercury from the same source, and on and on. Here's what I came across in relation to eye health problems alone (animal and human studies):

 

1. Chen, E. (1993). Inhibition of cytochrome oxidase and blue-light damage in rat retina. Graefe's Archive for Clinical and Experimental Ophthalmology, 231(7), 416-423.

2. Fedorovich, I. B., Zak, P. P., & Ostrovskii, M. A. (1994). Enhanced transmission of UV light by human eye lens in early childhood and age-related yellowing of the lens. Doklady Biological Sciences, 336(1), 204-206.

3. Ham, W. T., Jr. (1983). Ocular hazards of light sources: review of current knowledge. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 25(2), 101-103.

4. Ham, W. T., Jr., Ruffolo, J. J., Jr., Mueller, H. A., & Guerry, D., III. (1980). The nature of retinal radiation damage: dependence on wavelength, power level and exposure time; the quantitative dimensions of intense light damage as obtained from animal studies, Section II. Applied Research, 20, 1005-1111.

5. Hao, W., & Fong, H. K. (1996). Blue and ultraviolet light-absorbing opsin from the retinal pigment epithelium. Biochemistry, 35, 6251-6256.

6. Hightower, K. R. (1995). The role of the lens epithelium in development of UV cataract. Current Eye Research, 14, 71-78.

7. Pautler, E. L., Morita, M., & Beezley, D. (1989). Reversible and irreversible blue light damage to the isolated, mammalian pigment epithelium. Proceedings of the International Symposium on Retinal Degeneration (pp. 555-567). New York: Liss.

8. Rapp, L. M. & Smith, S. C. (1992). Morphologic comparisons between rhodopsin-mediated and short-wavelength classes of retinal light damage. Investigative Ophthalmology & Visual Science, 33, 3367-3377.

9. Rozanowska, M., Wessels, J., Boulton, M., Burke, J. M., Rodgers, M. A., Truscott, T. G., & Sarna, T. (1998). Blue light-induced singlet oxygen generation by retinal lipofuscin in non-polar media. Free Radical Biology and Medicine, 24, 1107-1112.

10. Sliney, D. H. (1983). Biohazards of ultraviolet, visible and infrared radiation. Journal of Occupational Medicine, 25(3), 203-206.

11. Yegorova, E. V., Babizhayev, M. A., Ivanina, T. A., Zuyeva, M. V., & Ioshin, I. E. (1988). Spectral characteristics of intraocluar lenses and damage to the retina by visible light. Biophysics, 33(6), 1108-1114.

 

There's good books on the subject of light and its impact on health, on life itself and all its workings -- John Ott's are extraordinary, also check out Jacob Lieberman's... Ordinary visible light-darkness interplay is the primary signaling system for all life on earth, any interference, however seemingly minor, has far-reaching impact... John Ott bumped into this knowledge by accident, and then began studying the phenomena involved. It all began when he was doing time lapse photography for Disney's Cinderella, and he needed to grow a pumpkin... I won't reveal what happened, it's one of the most fascinating books I've ever read (but of course I don't remember the title, but I think it's easy to retrieve). Oh, and Lieberman's is "Light: Medicine of the Future" if I remember correctly.

Wow. Thanks. I'll download and read them. I have just moved into a new office and all the lights are non bulbs.

Pietro

[kevin]

I have always taken the view that the more meditation/cultivation I do the more adaptive and stronger I will become. This means I will be less affected by adverse environmental conditions. Less subject to the objective world. If I want to live in the modern urban environment then my spiritual work will help me do this. I can't and I'm not even sure if I want to just surround myself with butter lamps or whatever. Want to live quietly within society and not in an alternative. What you seem to be saying runs counter to this.

 

I say this with the greatest of respect and would be interested in your views.

 

Thanks.

apepch7,

 

I appreciate your sincerity. I should mention that I grew up in a very rural environment. I can tolerate modern urban environments, and have lived in them, but they were always foreign to me, never like home... so it is difficult for me to see through the eyes of someone who wants to live among tall buildings, concrete, and the other structures and settings of a city (especially those cities with an extensive surveillance network).

 

To me, such an urban environment is bodily weakening, in that there is no/little fresh air, space is scarce, stress is generally greater, lifestyles are far removed from nature, etc.

 

As to light... I see an analogy, perhaps crude but maybe, hopefully... it'll make some sense:

 

air : lungs :: light : skin

 

I can feel the difference on my skin between sunlight and fluorescent light, almost like telling the difference between the fresh air of a forest and the smoggy air of a metropolis. It's a little more subtle, but still there.

 

Peace to you!

 

kevin

[Anabhogya-Carya]

apepch7,

 

 

 

To me, such an urban environment is bodily weakening, in that there is no/little fresh air, space is scarce, stress is generally greater, lifestyles are far removed from nature, etc.

 

As to light... I see an analogy, perhaps crude but maybe, hopefully... it'll make some sense:

 

air : lungs :: light : skin

 

I can feel the difference on my skin between sunlight and fluorescent light, almost like telling the difference between the fresh air of a forest and the smoggy air of a metropolis. It's a little more subtle, but still there.

 

Peace to you!

 

kevin

 

 

I agree completely. Fluorescent light ruins a space for me, I relish the time that they get turned off.

[Smile]

I updated my blog on this with some added videos and links: Electrical pollution from light bulbs

[kevin]

I updated my blog on this with some added videos and links: Electrical pollution from light bulbs

kudos on the blog entry.

[Unconditioned]

Actually, the last thing we need is yet more consumer goods containing mercury. Fillings, vaccines, canned tuna, thermometers & now bulbs? The total amount from billions of bulbs must be very substantial - which is only going to contaminate our environment even more.

 

WTH is wrong with these people? How can they fail to consider this when enacting such a state policy? I just got my fillings replaced for several G's...and to think they are now adding yet MORE mercury to our environment??? F'n A!

 

Anyhow, the US & UK are essentially the leading remnants of the Anglo Empire and headquarters for the NW0. So, people in these areas are kept heavily-sedated by mass propaganda and plenty of mind-numbing chemical additives.

 

I believe the reason is the difference in energy consumption to reduce greenhouse gas emmissions and in general conserve non-renewable fuel sources.

[Smile]

Motorist pulled over and quizzed... for LAUGHING at the wheel

[Apech]

Motorist pulled over and quizzed... for LAUGHING at the wheel

 

 

Smile,

 

You have to understand that's from the Daily Mail. This means a) its probably made up b ) if its not completely made up its exaggerated c) people who read the Daily Mail have had their brains removed at birth.

 

I don't want my country disparaged by this nonsense. Remember Magna Carta and a brave stand against fascist oppression. We also gave the world the Spice Girls and David Beckham and have the worlds gloomiest Prime Minister - there is much to be proud of.

 

A.

Edited March 5, 2009 by apepch7

[freeform]

.

Edited December 18, 2019 by freeform

[Smile]

Oh, ok, I will disregard any Daily Mail "news" stories.

[ThisLife]

Oh, ok, I will disregard any Daily Mail "news" stories.

 

Since you've given up on the Daily Mail you might consider slumming it intellectually for a while in the pages of The Sun. Here's a strikingly similar story they printed recently. Personally, I prefer the overall flavour of the Sun's journalism :

 

 

Yesterday an estate agent in Lancaster parked his brand new Porsche in front of the office to show it off to his colleagues. As he was getting out of the car, a truck came speeding along too close to the kerb and smashed off his door before speeding off.

 

More than a little distraught, the estate agent grabbed his mobile and called the police. Five minutes later, the police arrived.

 

Before the policeman had a chance to ask any questions, the estate agent started screaming hysterically:

 

"My Porsche, my beautiful silver Porsche is ruined, it'll simply never be the same again!"

 

After the estate agent had finally finished his rant, the policeman shook his head in disgust: "I can't believe how materialistic you bloody estate agents are. You lot are so focused on your possessions that you don't notice anything else in your life."

 

"How can you say such a thing at a time like this?", snapped the estate agent.

 

The policeman replied, "Didn't you realise that your right arm was torn off when the truck hit you?"

 

The estate agent looks down in absolute horror..........

 

"F***ING HELL!!!!!! he screams...

 

"WHERE'S MY ROLEX !! ????"

 

 

.

Edited March 6, 2009 by ThisLife

[Apech]

ThisLife,

 

That's proper reporting!