ARTICLES
Jump
Start Your Holiday Shopping!
Meditations:
Soapbox of the President
Membership
Makes A Great Gift All Year!
The
Smallpox Conundrum
Connections
on KVNF December 26: Wheels of Life
Chew
On This! GMW Will Host Educational Food Workshop and Dinner
Reception
Mayonic
Science: The Art of Sacred Geometry from Ancient Lemuria
All
About Herbs: Demystifying Earth’s Gifts
Media
Watch Special Report
Member
Profiles: Alan Joel, Stephanie Yeh and The Esoteric School of
Shamanism and Magic
Jump Start Your Holiday Shopping!
Connections Release
Does your Holiday shopping routine include procrastination,
crowded stores, long lines and indecision? If so, the Whole
Life Network has a simple solution. Our first annual Holiday
Boutique, featuring an array of unique products and services -
from handmade artisan soaps to Feng Shui consultations - a
rare opportunity to renew friendships with fellow Whole Life
Network members, avoid long lines and select the perfect gifts
for everyone on your Holiday shopping list. And, Santa told us
that he will stop in before the Parade to talk to the
children.
So mark your calendar for Saturday, December 7 and join in
the merriment at 307 East Main (upstairs over the Classy
Closet). Look for the sandwich board sign on the sidewalk. The
Holiday Boutique will be open from 10 AM until the Parade of
Lights is concluded. Questions about this event may be
directed to Julia Marie 626-9758 or http://wholelifenet.org/newsletters/equanimous1@yahoo.com.
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Meditations: Soapbox of the President
By Larry Lemser
Wow, in December we are back to our familiar eight-page
format, what do you think of Connections now?
The Whole Life Network is extremely grateful to the writers
who have contributed to this issue and to others who have
committed to share their knowledge and experience with us all
in the months to come. Space does not permit me to list by
name all who are enlisted in this effort and to give them the
recognition that they deserve. However, when you are
influenced by a particular article or column, it would be
appropriate to communicate your gratitude to the author.
Heaven forbid, you might even write a "Letter to the Editor."
We assure you we will try to publish your submissions. Let us
know your reaction to articles, good or bad, http://wholelifenet.org/newsletters/WLNConnections@yahoo.com
While on the subject of articles, co-editors Marilynn
Huseby and Lane Mills say we can never have too many
contributors. If you have something on your mind, put your
thoughts on paper and submit it to us at the email address or
to PO Box 85, Montrose, Co. 81402. We can't guarantee it will
get into a specific issue, but chances are really good your
ideas will be published to all in our network. Want to write a
monthly column on your area of expertise? It doesn't take too
much effort (making the deadline is a TOP priority. Eds) and
it can be extremely rewarding. Contact Marilynn at
252-1040.
In addition to articles, your newsletter, Connections,
needs advertisers. An eight-page paper is much more expensive
than four. We have a revamped advertising rate sheet which
represents a great bargain. Your advertising message can reach
the most qualified prospects for your goods and services for
pennies per household. And that message stays on the coffee
table for a full month. Every member of The Whole Life Network
is an advertising salesperson for Connections. When we are
networking with our fellow beings, be an ambassador for your
Whole Life Network.
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Membership Makes A Great Gift All Year!
Hunting for a Christmas gift for a special person on your
list who has everything? Here's an idea: a gift that keeps on
giving for 12 months. Give a membership in The Whole Life
Network.
What could be easier?
Just fill out the membership application on Page 7, put a
check mark in the box "Christmas gift," and mail it back with
your remuneration. You won't have to spend hours driving to
the mall and fighting for a parking space. As a bonus, you can
claim your gift as a deduction on your Federal Income Tax
return.
When we receive notification of your gift of a membership
for a friend, relative, or neighbor, we will send the
recipient of your gift an original designed card announcing
your gift along with the most recent edition of
"Connections."
This holiday you can support your Whole Life Network, give
a gift that lasts all year, and get a tax deduction all in one
operation.
What are you waiting for?
Click
Here!
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The Smallpox Conundrum
By Julia Marie Gillett, R.C.S.T.
Fear about the spread of smallpox via a bio-terrorist plot
keeps popping out all over these days. The hysteria has sent
me to the research files to see for myself what the facts are
concerning this once virulent scourge against humanity. In
logging onto the website of the Centers for Disease Control I
found information which flatly contradicts much of what is
being reported by the mainstream media.
Myth #1 about this disease is that it is highly contagious
and that it spreads rapidly.
“Smallpox has a slow
transmission rate and is not highly contagious,” states Joel
Kuritsky, MD, director of the National Immunization Program
and Early Smallpox Response and Planning at the CDC. This,
coming straight from the horse’s mouth, has been completely
ignored by the media as far as I can tell.
Myth #2 is that a bio-terrorist could easily spread the
infection through casual contact.
Again, according to the
CDC, “Generally, direct and fairly prolonged face-to-face
contact is required to spread smallpox from one person to
another. Rarely, smallpox has been spread by virus carried in
the air in enclosed settings such as buildings, buses, and
trains.”
In Somalia, where the last natural case of smallpox
occurred in 1977, “only 8% of cases in Africa were contracted
by accidental contact” states Dr. Walter A. Orenstein,
Director of the National Immunization Program at the CDC.
The initial symptoms are so severe (high fever, nausea,
vomiting, headache, abdominal cramping) that the infected
person becomes bedridden and is not likely to be mixing with
the general public.
Furthermore, a person who has contracted the disease only
becomes contagious after the characteristic rash appears. The
long incubation period, while the infected person is ill, yet
still not contagious, would provide more than ample time to
consider treatment options.
Interestingly, mass vaccination in Third World countries
was discontinued because it simply did not work. Isolation,
combined with vaccination of close associates, proved to be
the combination that wiped out smallpox by 1980.
Myth #3 is that the death rate from smallpox is 30%.
I
have seen this statistic in almost every article I’ve read.
Dr. Sherri Tenpenny, an osteopath who attended the CDC’s
meeting last June for the Advisory Committee for Immunization
Practices, asked the committee why people die from smallpox
since it is just a skin disease and other organs are seldom
involved.
It was finally acknowledged during the meeting that the
cause of death from smallpox is not actually known.
Dr. Tenpenny says, “I find this to be extremely
frightening. If we knew why people died when they contract
smallpox, perhaps current medical technology could treat the
complications, making the death rate much lower. Considering
that the last known case of smallpox in the U.S. was in Texas
in 1949, continuing to report that smallpox has a 30% death
rate is similar to saying that all heart attacks are
fatal.
“Based on 1949 technology, that would be accurate
reporting. But in 2002, all heart attacks are NOT fatal.
Neither would smallpox have a mortality rate of 30%.”
Nothing I have seen in print has recommended the obvious,
which is to bolster our immune systems naturally and
continuously. Every human being encounters innumerable viruses
and “bugs of every description” daily. The first line of
defense against predatory diseases is a healthy immune
system.
Why do some of us catch viruses while others don’t, even
when in the same environment? The facts about smallpox stand
in direct opposition to what we are being led to believe. So
why the rush to vaccinate the general population when no one
is even infected?
(Julia Marie Gillett is a Registered CranioSacral
Therapist. Readers with questions may write to her
at:
P.O.Box 681 Ridgway CO 81432 or e-mail http://wholelifenet.org/newsletters/equanimous1@yahoo.com)
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Connections on KVNF December 26: Wheels of Life
By Joshua Hayward
Sometimes things work, and sometimes they don't. From the
perspective of the mind, there is just no figuring it out.
Sometimes circumstances lend themselves to solution, and
sometimes they don't. You scratch your head, you try harder,
and all you get is a headache and a few less hours sleep at
night.
If you can relate to these statements, then you just might
want to tune into the Whole Life Network's program,
'Connections, on KVNF radio this coming December 26th, on the
Midday Edition. This month's show, 'Wheels of Life,' will
explore the cyclic nature of life, and it will try to shed
some solstice light on the ephemeral nature of 'divine
timing.'
Join co-hosts Arlyn Macdonald and me, along with our
special guest Megan Grey Wolf, an extraordinary Medicine Woman
from Dove Creek recently moved to Montrose, for a stimulating
discussion about intuition, inner guidance, ritual, and
attunement to nature.
Be sure to tune in and stay connected.
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Chew On This! GMW Will Host Educational Food Workshop and
Dinner Reception
SAVORING FOOD WITH PLEASURE &
AWARENESS
Green Media Works Presents Educational Food
Workshop and Dinner Reception
December 16 & 17,
2002
GMW Release
Telluride, CO (November, 2002) It's true. Most Americans
don't know where their food comes from. They rarely consider
how it’s grown or by whom, how food is prepared, what it’s
doing to the environment or what produce is seasonal.
Americans are blessed with the convenience to buy any kind of
food, at any time of year, anywhere. We are truly disconnected
with the very food that we eat.
Most people don't realize that the ability to purchase
"everything, anytime, anywhere" comes at a high cost. This
cost is not just economic; from an ecological standpoint, food
processing is quickly destroying the planet. Wasted and
irreplaceable ground water and fossil fuel, eroded top soils,
polluted water and air, all are part of the globalization and
commercialization of our food.
These are just a few issues that will be discussed at the
workshop, Chew On This! Get To Know Your Food. Presented by
Green Media Works (GMW), this one-day program will be held on
Tuesday, December 17th at the historic Sheridan Opera House,
located in Telluride, CO.
Guest presenters include Ronnie Cummins, National Director
of Organic Consumers Organization; Dawn Thilmany, Associate
Professor at Colorado State University; La Donna Redmond,
activist and farmer in Chicago; Stan Frankenthaler,
chef/proprietor of Boston’s Salamander restaurant; and Gail
Feenstra, Food Systems Analyst at UC Davis.
We envision that this seminar will be so powerful and
filled with resourceful information that all who eat food (and
we all do), will view this event as a springboard to creating
tangible results. The seminar will include the opportunity for
new business relationships with farmers to sell their produce,
to create better distribution channels, to create support for
a local farmer’s market, and the possibility for a CSA
program.
One of our goals is to make food production relevant to
eaters. We want consumers to better understand the need to
protect the people and places that grow their food. We need to
begin to re-localize our food system. We need to begin to
support and purchase locally grown foods and eat a more
seasonal diet.
In addition, Green Media Works and Chefs Collaborative join
forces to organize and host The Sustainable Feast, an organic
and locally grown culinary experience. Why? Because the best
way to appreciate fresh, organically grown food is to taste
it.
Monday, December 16, 2002, at 6 p.m., some of the nation's
top chefs will gather at the Cosmopolitan restaurant located
in Telluride, to whip up the best locally grow, five-course
feast to hit this mountain town.
Both events are designed to raise awareness and provide
education, information and networking opportunities to promote
and support the production, consumption and distribution of
organic and locally grown produce in the Four Corners
area.
"We are not just targeting the food industry, but coming in
from all sides to include restaurant owners, chefs, farmers,
suppliers, retailers as well as the general public," says
M’Lissa Story, Director of Green Media Works. "We want to make
the connection between growers and consumers and encourage
people to become more conscious about eating locally grown,
fresh produce."
In hosting these events, we promote the critical importance
for a healthy food system, relationship with our food and the
need for sustainable agriculture.
Green Media Works is a grassroots, nonprofit organization
created to execute projects that will engage, inspire and
mobilize individuals, communities, and organizations. GMW’s
mission is to transform environmental awareness into
environmental activism. Our philosophy: Through education and
enlightenment, people and communities will begin to think
differently and change their attitudes and habits, ultimately
resulting in a healthier planet.
Tickets to the dinner are $75 per person and can be
purchased through the GMW office (970/728-8701) or by email:
info@greenmediaworks.org. All proceeds after hard costs will
go to producing the workshop.
For more information about this upcoming workshop and
registration, please contact Julie Homan, Projects
Coordinator, 970/728-8701. Or visit our web site, http://www.greenmediaworks.org/
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Mayonic Science: The Art of Sacred Geometry from Ancient
Lemuria
Part 1 in a Series of 3
by Ronald N. Quinn
In the summer of 1998, my wife, Bonnie, showed me an
article by Michael Borden, an architect and resident of Iowa.
This article told about his search to discover the secrets of
the ancient science of Vaastu and its applications of sacred
geometry to building and architecture. The end of his search
was Dr. V. Ganapati Sthapati of Tamil Nadu, South India. Dr.
V. Ganapati Sthapati is a most remarkable individual. He is a
traditional shilpi and sthapati (builders, sculptors,
architects and engineers), has been principle of a college for
27 years, a scientist, a researcher, and a prolific writer and
speaker. He has lectured and taught at more than 80 seminars
and conferences, world wide, to date.
When young Ganapati was 12 years of age, he had a most
remarkable dream in which a man named Mayan appeared to him.
Mayan took the young boy's hand and told him that he was
commissioned to revive the true and ancient science of Vaastu.
Mayan promised that he would be with him to assist him.
From this time, on, Ganapati devoted his entire life to
resurrecting the original principles of Vaastu as originally
founded and taught by Mayan, himself.
Mayan had been long relegated to the epics of mythology.
Recent records have now come into the hands of the South
Indian government and of Sthapati which were authored by
Mayan, himself. Linguists and translators have been unable to
understand these documents, except for Sthapati. For him it
was all as clear as day light. He spent a full decade pouring
over these documents; often most of the night, while still
performing his daily activities.
Mayan's science is a complete cosmology. All of universal
manifestation, inter-dimensionally is covered. The secrets
which return mankind to complete harmony with his environment,
with the universe, and with himself are revealed.
These ancient records reveal that Mayan was born about
15,000 plus years ago, in the now lost continent which
westerners have called, Lemuria.
I have spent nearly four years studying this science as
revealed by Mayan through Sthapati; including 4 1/2 months,
earlier this year, directly under Sthapati's guidance in his
office in Chennai.
For this series, I am going to reveal a portion of an
article titled, "THE CENTER OF ORIGINATOR". This article has
been translated and paraphrased by Dr. V. Ganapati Sthapati
from Mayan's original works in the Tamil language. This
particular article has also undergone some minor editing from
myself for my American audience.
The following is a revised excerpt from a 15,000 year old
record rediscovered and interpreted in recent years. This
record is the most complete scientific treatise of sacred
geometry ever discovered. This excerpt is a prelude or
cornerstone supplying the primal basis for the ancient science
of geometry and mathematics. The science contained herein is
both cosmic and timeless. *
THE CENTER OF ORIGINATOR:
We have already mentioned that the laboratory of the
process of creation is within the inner being of the
individual. To comprehend the unfolding drama of the origin of
universal beginnings, we invite the reader to journey deep
into the heart of the human center where the spirit of the
consciousness vibrates and acts from. This is the source of
all origination says Mayan. This is the space of the
action.
This inner being is an extraordinary place. Its quality and
its action without artifice, always spontaneous. This unforced
natural action emanating from the center of the consciousness
makes it possible for the resulting manifestations to be
untainted and pure. Hence the ability of the inner being can
be called spontaneously orderly, and inherently intelligent.
In fact, intelligence of the inner being is the only real
fact, while the cleverness of the brain is only a pale
distortion. This center of the being is the place where the
impact of all outer phenomena make their impression. This is
the space where the response to the outer world of reality is
born. This is the genetic center of change and of
metamorphosis. The outer impinges into the still inner
consciousness and sets the inner being into motion. The spirit
vibrates, spins around its own center and begins to activate
itself. Even in its stillness it is not frozen but filled with
the promise of its throbbing and hence that of the spirit can
be called the vibrant core of consciousness. Within its
aliveness and its ceaseless potential for action, is contained
a vigilant self awareness, a watchful sensitivity. All the
responses to itself and to reality are stored in this vibrant
center. This spirit or the receptacle of awareness becomes the
substratum from which the energy of the self are harnessed so
that the being could leap into action.
Mayan calls this spiritual center as Source (Moolam),
Center and Point of Consciousness. In its awareness of the
essence of reality the Moolam is constantly coming into touch
with its own fundamental nature. The Moolam absorbs and
integrates the awareness of the essence of all substances
within itself and this intelligent self awareness, becomes the
source of light. Hence the Moolam is capable of illumining
itself constantly.
The first state in the appearance of the external creation
of the individual being is the emergence of the luminous
intelligence. This ambience of light is made up of countless
particles of light which appear in the space of the Moolam
(Source).
In its desire to create a substantive representation of
itself on the outside, the Moolam impels itself into a spin.
Upon rotating the particles are thrown out all around the
center. It is from this action of discharging particles of
light from the luminous core that the Moolam anticipates the
end product of a manifested outer phenomenon. The very act of
anticipation of a final outcome and the effort put into
bringing this about are the reasons for the ultimate object to
be transformed into a reality from being figment of an inner
dream. What is the substance of the outer phenomenon? Its
nature and its substance are gathered from Moolam and are
products of its own being says Mayan. In other words, the
Moolam recreates itself on the outside, but why? The joy it
attains in its own existence is so intense that it constantly
replicates itself so that the joy may never come to an end.
The action of replication which makes use of volition and the
energy of light is the process of Time. The very act of
holding an idea of the ultimate product and striving towards
its attainment requires 'Time' says Mayan, and the concept of
a continuity and the birth of a now and a later, take place at
this point. Hence the Moolam which originally inhabited a
timeless, limitless space has now brought time and limits into
the picture. It follows that it also has to limit itself in a
manner which would contribute to the efficiency and order of
the ultimate product. The Moolam creates an order in its
energy discharge, and the control, it exercises on its
luminous particles is called 'Seelam' or intrinsic order.
(This is Time Form or Mayonic Order [The Cosmic Law of
Synchronistic Wave Form Patterns]). Without discipline this
energy would be needlessly wasted and the final product would
also prove to be disorderly or chaotic. (Note: The
understanding of musical composition will reflect the order
imposed upon all creativity. In this way harmony is achieved
or disharmony may be experienced.)
From the movement of the Moolam or Pinda Moolam, in orderly
rhythm, the beauty of art and the sweetness of language are
born. In a similar manner to the nature and action of the
individual Moolam the universe too acts from its own center
which may be called the Macro cosmic center or Anda Moolam.
This larger consciousness too feels and vibrates, impels its
inner being into action so that it too may perpetuate its
unending 'joy of awareness'. It is from this action of the
Anda Moolam that the five elements (plus three elements) are
born as also the whole of universal reality.
Starting with this all encompassing base, Mayan moves on to
build further on his theory, by according a grammar to all
creativity. This grammar or order is natural to the growth and
movement of life itself and hence inseparable from the
consonant co-existence of the macro and micro beings. Thus he
stretches this order from the very nature of existence to the
emergence of all the arts, the emergence of language, the
beginning of technology and so on. The birth of the atom, the
unified codes of solar systems and galaxies, the sixty four
strands of the human genetic code, these are all articulated
into a cosmic grammar of relativity and manifestation by
Mayan.
In a nutshell the theory can be stated thus: The inner
being of both universal and individual consciousness has the
inherent ability to become aware of itself and its
experiencing of the world of reality. This awareness is
intelligent and hence luminous. The luminosity of the inner
being can be harnessed and directed to create a tangible
evidence of its own inner savoring. The order brought into
play to control this luminous self energy is capable of being
fundamental to all outer action which is Time-based and hence
can be set out in a manner symbolized by time, light, and
sound waves. From this all creation can be set into
motion.
Now that the inner being has created an audible and visible
representation on the outside what does it really perceive and
hear? The paradox lies in the utter simplicity of the answer.
The Moolam is in love with its own inherent beauty and this
beauty it searches for on the outside and this perfection it
constantly creates, so that it may forever savor and enjoy
this ultimate beauty.
Let us now examine the individual particle of light that is
flung out from the Moolam when it begins its clockwise spin
around itself. Mayan says that each of these particles is a
cube of unit dimension when still but is subsequently rounded
off through the action of the momentum and energy; that is,
the movement has a resulting impact on the natural form and
shape of the original substance. Time is the reason for the
decadence of the inherent form of substances, that is, time
destroys and puts limits to the manifested form. Or, in other
words, that which proceeds from the Inner Source, also returns
in perfect order. But the un-manifested supreme substance is
incapable of being reduced and is called the eternal
substance. The destructible outer manifested form is the never
ending spin of life and death, the movement of casual nature.
(Note: Destruction is actually transmutation, re-birth,
ascension, or return to Source state.)
The original cube of the Moolam contains the pulsating
throbbing energy of potential light within it. This energy is
always vibrant and never frozen. To this primary particle he
gives the name of sitravai or the minute cell (in modern
terms, 'subtle atom'). The vibrant energy is fluttering to an
inherent rhythm not unlike the steady regular beat of the
heart. This ceaseless vibrancy he compares to an eternal dance
- the dance of all reality - the divine dance of the Light of
Creative Impulse. He calls the image of the eternal cosmic
substance 'the aesthetic vision of the primeval vibrant
particle of consciousness'.
The primary inner consciousness activates itself and
creates the visible and audible phenomena on the outside. In
answer to this question, 'What is the nature of the original
space from which the multiple reality of the universe is
created'?, He concludes that the Moolam which is the seat of
this creative unfolding is substance too, and so a participant
in the numerical progression emanating from its center. Space,
in fact, is a substance; consciousness is then known as the
primary substance or Vaastu, Porul.
End Part 1
*Translated and paraphrased from the original texts by Dr.
V.Ganapati Sthapati and edited by Ronald N. Quinn - June 18,
2002. All rights reserved. May only be copied and shared in
full and with this credit line included.
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All About Herbs: Demystifying Earth’s Gifts
by Alan Joel
In today’s ever-widening marketplace, we are taking potions
and pills with impunity, whereas in our recent past, this
would be as closely guarded as perhaps prescription drugs.
Items such as Ginseng, Echinacea and St. John’s Wort would
have been the luxury of the professional herbalist, but not in
today’s self-help world. Perhaps it could be useful to have
some consumer guidelines, as well as a layman’s Materia Medica
to improve our Dr. Mom’s skills at home-healing, which Edgar
Cayce, the “Sleeping Prophet” of Virginia Beach, heartily
encouraged.
A good starting place might be to define various classes of
dietary supplements, as the FDA and other knowledgeable bodies
like to call them. How about four general groupings:
Vitamin and Mineral Supplements
Herbal Supplements
Medicinal Foods
Super Foods
In future articles, we will discuss each category in more
detail and include many uses and tips for alternative healing
methods, but first let’s take a brief look at some
sub-headings for each. With vitamins and minerals it is very
important to distinguish between commercially synthesized
products and those that are extracted from natural substances,
such as vitamin C. Major testing was done on the effect of
vitamin C on colds and flus by a scientific testing service,
and then the results were aired on TV. They clearly
demonstrated by double-blind studies that the vitamin C
product used did not seem to have any positive effect on
anyone’s cold symptoms. However, they did not bother to tell
us was that they were using chemically made vitamin C rather
than that derived from rose hips or any other naturally
growing source of vitamin C. Any form of vitamin C produced
properly would also include all of the active enzymes and
co-factors (of which there are upwards of 50,000 in nature)
that actually make the product acceptable to our complex
systems and able to assist our immune system in healing.
With the category of herbs, it is best to divide the
kingdom of herbs into two major groupings: those that are
highly medicinal in function, and those that are more passive
in action. The first group is best used for relatively short
periods of time, and should closely match the pattern of the
illness, as the effectiveness depends on both the strength and
the interactions of the various herbs in combination to
produce highly specific results. Obviously, more knowledge and
care is needed for the proper and safe use of these, unless
they are watered down or generalized so much in formulas that
are safe but lack the desired punch. Herbs in the second group
can be more safely used every day over a long period of time,
and still be effective without doing harm. Items such as
Psyllium, which is often classified as a fiber even though it
is actually a demulcent, meaning that it “softens” and expands
or relaxes things inside of us, can be used daily, or perhaps
more effectively, nightly, and will continue to be effective
over the years.
The medicinal food kingdom, as any student of Macrobiotics
well knows, is best divided into Yin acting and Yang acting
foods in us, as well as those which create more of an Acidic
environment or an Alkaline environment in us. Certainly the
source condition of the foods is an issue as well: organic or
not. Then we will want to consider methods of preparation,
such as raw verses cooked, and so forth.
Finally there is the mystery category that we have called
“Super Foods,” which is still pretty new to most of us, and on
which much interest will be focused in times to come. Mostly
we are referring to Blue Green Algae. These foods are
certainly not new to this planet, since they seem to be the
very bottom of the food chain and the “mystery guest” that
hosted all other life-forms on our blue-green planet. There
are a number of ways to divide the various forms of algae:
both methods of growing and kinds of preparation should be
considered here. However, the division that is most important
is, “Can you live on it?” The highest quality of these super
foods will sustain life for indefinite periods of time, even
in very small amounts, making them well worth some
investigation.
So, Wow!! We have lots to look at, and yes, we will!! Over
the next many months, so long as we get favorable ratings from
you all, the readers, we will explore all of these areas in
depth. Our aim will be to de-mystify the use of many strange
and not-so-strange substances, so that we may more and more
happily enjoy the “riches” that Earth-Mother has provided, be
outrageously healthy, grow younger and ridiculously beautiful,
and have at the most, very scanty medical bills. SO BE IT!!
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Media Watch Special Report
January 2, 2003: Even More Important Than Election
Day?
by Gloria R. Lalumia
(Reprinted with Permission of BuzzFlash.com)
On Friday, 10/25, Bill Moyers NOW featured a report on the
Federal Communications Commission proposals to undo the last
bit of regulation governing media ownership. The public
hearing period ends Dec. 2 unless the various public interest
groups who are lobbying for a three- month extension prevail
[They did - the FCC extended the comment period to Jan. 2,
2003. Eds]
Moyers interviewed the ONE Democrat on the FCC, Michael
Copps, who warns that if the Commission decides to lift ALL
restrictions on ownership in a media market, there will be
"some profound democratic and social and political
considerations that we ignore only at our own tremendous
peril." Why? Because this decision will affect the rules
involving whether one company can own radio, TV, newspaper,
and cable outlets at one time in any city!
Moyers also reviewed the media coverage of this planned
change. While a few print publications have run stories,
Moyers could find NO TV coverage except for ONE report run by
ABC at 4:40 one morning!!!!
As Moyers states, the American people will not even know
that this change is being planned.
More information about
sending in your comments to the FCC is available at Moyers'
site at PBS: www.pbs.org/now/politics/fcc.html
This page is full of disturbing information about the
"merging of the media" and includes many links to important
reports and studies.
TRANSCRIPT of Bill Moyers NOW 10/25/02
BILL MOYERS: The FCC was established in
1934 to see that the nation's broadcasters served the public
interest - making sure the airwaves were used for more than
commercial purposes alone.
HISTORICAL TAPE: "The
item is adopted..."
MOYERS: Things have changed over the
years. Just listen to FCC Chairman Michael Powell:
FCC CHAIRMAN MICHAEL POWELL (FROM TAPE):
This is the most unique period in the history of the Federal
Communications Commission. Every single area that we have
regulatory oversight for is in the midst of its most profound
revolution ever."
MOYERS: That revolution has brought new
technologies, like the Internet, cable and satellite
television. But it has also brought on the greatest
concentration of media ownership in American history.
Now the FCC is considering dismantling the last rules that
would prevent even more consolidation. That's exactly what
media giants have been lobbying for...in the name of economic
efficiency.
SHAUN SHEEHAN, VICE PRESIDENT OF THE TRIBUNE
COMPANY: In Chicago, we have 650 people on the
editorial staff. In LA, in Los Angeles for the LA Times, it's
well over 1,000.
MOYERS: Shaun Sheehan is Vice President of
the Tribune Company, one of the country's largest broadcasters
and newspaper publishers. The Tribune is pushing for an end to
the rule that prevents a company from owning a newspaper and a
television station in the same market.
SHEEHAN: If you take that reportorial
talent and put it to use on television, Internet, what have
you, get the words out over multiple platforms, you better
serve your audience.
MICHAEL COPPS, FCC COMMISSIONER: If you
take this to its logical conclusion, you could end up with a
situation where one company owns the newspaper, the television
station, the radio station and the cable system.
MOYERS: Michael Copps is the lone Democrat
on the FCC.
COPPS: That may have some economic
efficiencies attached to it, but I daresay it also has some
profound democratic and social and political considerations
that we ignore only at our own tremendous peril.
MOYERS: But consolidation is the trend. In
1975 there were some 1,500 owners of full-power TV stations
and daily newspapers. By 2000, that number had dropped to
about 625.
And remember the Telecommunications Act of 1996? It led to
a wave of mergers. There are now 1,700 fewer owners of
commercial radio stations - a one-third decline. Today, just a
few players dominate. One conglomerate alone - Clear Channel -
owns more than 1,200 stations and controls 11 percent of the
market.
And by the way - that legislation was also supposed to
lower the rates you pay for your cable service. Instead, costs
have increased almost 30 percent. Why? Because the big
giveaway of '96 did not increase competition - it increased
monopoly. The nation's seven largest cable operators control
more than 75 percent of the market.
Yes, it's true: the typical cable consumer today receives
about 60 channels. But those so-called "choices" are
determined by a handful of corporate giants … companies like
Viacom, AOL-Time Warner, Disney, and News Corp.
But do we hear about all this from the mainstream media?
Hardly.
Of the major broadcasters, only ABC reported the FCC's
recent decision to review media ownership rules … and that
report was at 4:40 in the morning. While the big newspapers
did somewhat better, only the Los Angeles Times
mentioned that its corporate owner, the Tribune Company, was
actively lobbying for deregulation.
GENE KIMMELMAN, CONSUMERS UNION: Those
broadcasters and newspapers are whom we rely upon to tell that
story and allow the American people to have that public
debate. And they don't want to have that debate. They want a
deregulatory minded administration just to get out of their
way, eliminate ownership limitations, let them join
together.
And the American people unfortunately may find out about
this on the back end after its all happened.
MOYERS: And while the public's been left
unaware of what's happening, time is running out. The FCC has
set a December 2nd deadline for public comments on the
proposed changes [now, Jan. 2, 2003]. Commissioner Copps wants
more debate and more time for it:
COPPS: I think we need to go out across
the country and talk to all of the stakeholders in the great
American communications revolution of our time. And in point
of fact, every American is a stakeholder. [End of transcript
Eds]
ADDITIONAL INFORMATION: The Center for
Digital Democracy: http://www.democraticmedia.org/
©
2002, Gloria R. Lalumia
You may send your comments to:
Federal Communications
Commission
445 12th Street, SW
Washington, DC
20554
Also, visit http://www.fcc.gov/
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Member Profiles:
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