In the Mist: a Postscript

'Whoever controls the media, controls the mind' - Jim Morrison

'The smart way to keep people passive and obedient is to strictly limit the spectrum of acceptable opinion, but allow a very lively debate within that spectrum' - Naom Chomsky

'All propaganda has to be popular and has to accommodate itself to the comprehension of the least intelligent of those whom it seeks to reach' - Adolf Hitler

Pay heed, dear friends, pay heed.......

  

Keeping Them In The Mist: Gorillas and Humans

                  Humans and gorillas in the DRC

A few weeks ago I received a letter from Henry Chiruza. He is Programme Manager of the Gorilla Organisation in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC). It was a circular, not personal correspondence, but I keep in touch for my own reasons. 'Dear Friends' the letter began. 'This year was the worst I have experienced at the Gorilla Organisation. Last November we faced war just 15 km away from Goma. Rebels started to fight with government troops. We didn't know if we would need to cross the border to become refugees. Bombs were falling on our heads. I was about to give up. I saw my kids. They had so many questions. What is there to look forward to? Will we go to school today Daddy?.......We have no idea where or when a bomb is going to go off....' And so it goes on.

An estimated five million people have died as a result of the ongoing conflicts in the DRC (this figure includes casualties from war-related poverty and disease), making it the biggest bloodbath on the planet since WW11 (the figure has recently been challenged, and revised down to a mere three million people - which makes it OK , I suppose).

The African carnage in the Heart of Darkness - you just don't hear about it.

In contrast, there's Syria. Over the past year, the populations of the west have been subjected to a constant barrage of 'news' and images from the country, living rooms saturated with pictures of children and babies with blood dripping down their faces, limbs missing, and the rest. Horrific stuff. Until recently, day after day of bombings, chemical weapons, displaced mums and children. Reporters and journalists flown in from all over the world to bear gruesome witness. Meanwhile, in the African Heart of Darkness, all is quiet. So what is going on?

Should anyone still require persuading that 'news' is not an objective appraisal of the international state of affairs dished out by some all-seeing and benevolent media guru, then this example should make it crystal clear. And if it is not an objective appraisal, then what is it? Well, it is in large part propaganda; we could call it 'mind control', an attempt to shape public opinion. It has already been decided which issues should concern you. What opinions you should hold. What you should fear, and who the goodies and baddies are. A child in pain in Syria (or Egypt, Iraq, wherever things need to happen on the current political chessboard) has more political currency than in the DRC. So roll her out.

A very simple yet effective exercise when presented with any item of 'news' by the mainstream media is to ask yourself the question 'Why am I being told this?' Or, conversely, should you stumble upon something of apparent import that you knew nothing about 'Why am I not being told this?' It's a method that works a treat.

The strategy is especially significant when a story is relayed into your home day after day after tedious day. Syria, Egypt, the Arab Spring is one such example from recent times. Another is the so-called 'phone-hacking scandal'. While I'm sure that the Murdoch Empire is full of not-particularly nice people, it seems obvious that there is a sub-text to the way that the story ended up full-frontal on BBC's 'Newsnight' for weeks on end. This involves state interference (read 'control') in the media. 'You naughty boys and girls in the media can't be trusted to look after yourselves, so we're going to have to bring in Big Daddy State to ensure you behave.' Which the BBC, in its coital relationship with Big Daddy State, will be only too happy to help chivvy along.

In similar vein is one of David Cameron's many caring and compassionate masterstrokes: protecting our dear uncorrupted children through internet filters on pornography. This is fuelled by trying to befuddle the population into mixing adult porn, child porn, and paedophilia into the same poison chalice. Do we really believe that Uncle Dave cares what little Billy in his Huddersfield bedroom is watching on his tablet? Of course not. The subplots involve quietly filtering material other then pornography, trying to remove 'esoteric' websites from the easily-accessed public domain, for example. And, further, acclimatising the public to the idea that complete freedom of the internet no longer exists. Sowing the concept which, in time, becomes the default setting for the unaware human being. 1984 unravels quietly, surreptitiously, in our modern times.

For those who would control us, the internet has become a real headache. It is increasingly difficult to lie or pull the wool over everybody's eyes; the puppets of domination look more and more pathetic and foolish. Making it difficult to access certain sites and info is one ruse to help maintain control over that unruly mob known as humanity. Another is to invoke the thought police on various forums etc. One such example is Reddit where, I learned recently, they have banned comments written by 'global warming deniers'. This is the trendy, lefty, liberal form of free speech. Dangerous people. The Golden Age of the internet is, I fear, at an end. However, it may be that too many people's eyes have been opened for a complete turning of the tide to be possible.

In the face of all these efforts to deceive and pervert the human species, the question remains: what do we do? How to respond? It's a conundrum that I have grappled with for forty years now. In the early 1970s I wrote an article entitled 'The demonstration or Zen?' in which I concluded that neither political action nor purely personal enlightenment do the business. In response to my observation that 'people are getting killed all over the place' I commented 'The thing is: is it worth trying to stop them getting killed? If you don't try, you feel bad and apathetic; if you do try, you're wasting your time and you know it.'

Two small incidents in my own life have served to concentrate my mind on this issue. Both involve windfarms (yes, I know they haven't turned up on this blog for a while.....). Back in early spring I was invited to help set up an anti-windfarm political party in Highland Scotland. The idea was to  provide candidates in selected constituencies, targeted the big windfarm boys like Salmond and Ewing. I dutifully attended the inaugural meeting, and met some good people. Yet I knew before I entered the door what my personal decision would be. You can't stop turbines like that: things don't really work that way. It's not how the Control System does stuff. To repeat what I said way back: you're wasting your time and you know it.

The second incident occurred just last week. Walking along the high street, I noticed a little stall with a couple of guys collecting signatures for a letter. I recognised one of them from five years ago, when the shameful Lochluichart windfarm project was being promoted. Yes indeed, they were back with the same old game: signatures in favour of some Highland windfarm proposal. These people are predators pure and simple, playing upon the fears of young mothers: 'You don't want the lights going out for your kids, do you? You don't want them to inherit a world of climatic disasters, do you? Be a responsible parent: sign on the dotted line, then.' One of the archons - sorry, men - approached me about his bloody letter. 'I completely disagree with you' I blurted. 'You're not saving the planet. it's all nonsense and all total crap.' I believe I then said something that I shall not include here. Invited by the windfarm ideologue to be civil, I retorted 'I don't want to be civil' then walked away.

I have reflected on these incidents, particularly the latter. I am not in the habit of speaking to total strangers in that way. What was going on? There is a profound truth hidden therein. As the Buddhist story says, you find the jewel in the middle of the dungheap. These windfarm guys are ideological zealots, compared to which a meeting of rabid Jehovah's Witnesses is a picnic. Most significantly, their views - their being - is totally embedded in what Neil Kramer refers to as the Construct. Put briefly and simply, life demonstrates two aspects: reality, embodied in personal authenticity; and the artificial, the constructed, designed to confine and control us. The mainstream media, as discussed above, is a major expression of the Construct. The lesson from my windfarm-related encounters is that it is not possible to work within the confines of the Construct, whether it be through the political system or arguing the point with some windfarm people. The Construct provides the framework, the points of reference - that's part of how it works. Anything outside that is either taboo or ridiculed. It is not possible within this context to talk the real issues surrounding windfarms: destroying the power of the land, something our ancestors knew about intimately; power spots and sacred places; the suppression of free energy knowledge; disempowerment of the individual.

So, as a start, I propose that disengaging from the Construct is a great step on the way forward. This is why immersion in the mainstream media is fatal. Someone else is creating the narrative for you, and that person ain't very nice. You can't do it and be authentic, simple as that. I have little patience for anyone thinking otherwise nowadays, the evidence is all around. Whatever we do or don't do, at least do it from our authentic self. Listen to our heart and our instinct above all. Listen carefully, then act. That's all.

'The demonstration or Zen?' 'Dealing with the Construct.' Work in progress...............



                                

Neil Kramer on Alchemy Radio

http://alchemyradio.podomatic.com/entry/2013-10-01T04_16_12-07_00

Neil Kramer pops up regularly on Pale Green Vortex. Here is a link to a recent interview of his, which is a good intro to his work, containing as it does a clear exposition of some of his foundational ideas. Plus, of course, one or two interesting notions.

Detox, Detox

www.thenaturalrecoveryplan.com/articles/Oil-pulling-therapy.html

I have discussed elsewhere migraines (or, rather, my migraines - it's all about me....). The other debilitating health condition to have affected me over recent years is sinus problems. While less severe than migraines, they have nevertheless impacted significantly upon my everyday life. In the mornings, especially, the dull, energy-sapping pressure behind the eyes has been at times commonplace. With the accompanying discomfort of queasy feelings in the intestines, I have often headed into the day feeling like a member of the walking wounded.

For the past four or five years, my sinuses have become so sensitive that almost anything could set off problems. Cold, heat (especially dry artificial heat), wind; stress, fatigue, too much exercise, not enough exercise; alcohol, insufficient fluid intake; time in front of a computer or television screen; too much reading, writing, or brain work. I found myself trying to walk an almost impossible tightrope of lifestyle balance.

Problems might especially flare up in the late hours of the night/early hours of the morning, and I have gone through periods when I have viewed going to bed with apprehension. I would go to sleep feeling clear, but wake at four in the morning with that familiar sensation of something bashing against my eyeballs, the grunchy feeling in the stomach, and knowing that I would just have to sit it out. Nothing seemed to help: high pillows, low pillows, no pillows; feet up, feet down. In fact, nothing helped my sinuses much in general. 'Natural remedies' such as nasal sea-water spray, steam baths, a variety of plant oils to sniff or vaporise, could calm things down when symptoms were mild, but were completely ineffective in the face of a full-on sinus blast. The conventional G.P.'s armoury of medicines often doesn't agree with my body nowadays. A corticosteroid spray like Beconase is frequently prescribed. For a while this drug would clear up the sinus symptoms, but in a way that just doesn't feel right. If I paid attention to my nasal cavities, they would be crying 'No, no, no: don't do this to us, please.' Then the sinusitis would return anyway. I don't fancy spending the rest of my life sticking corticosteroids up my nostrils, so the Beconase is languishing in the bathroom cupboard, past its use-by date.

I have recently discovered something that really helps. Your local G.P. won't tell you about it, but there's nothing I can do about that. It's called oil-pulling/oil-swishing therapy. It's a method of everyday detox, consisting mainly of swilling edible oil around your mouth for 15 - 20 minutes once or twice a day. It's been part of Ayurvedic practice for ages, and is aimed at improving oral health - and health in general - by the removal of toxic material through the vehicle of the oil.

I am not going to write much about it here - info is readily available on the internet. But the article linked to above on Alison Adams's website is a god starting point. And check out Dr. Bruce Fife - Dr. Coconut, as he is sometimes called. Some people recommend particular oils - not surprisingly, Dr. Fife goes for coconut oil - but any, it seems, will do. Personally, I like cold-pressed olive oil and local cold-pressed rapeseed oil.

If you decide to give oil-pulling a go, you should read up on 'healing crisis' as well ('Am I dying or getting better?'). From my side, I have been swishing oil for three months now, and the effects have been brilliant; perversely, it's become one of my favourite moments in the day. Sinus problems haven't completely gone away, but my sinuses are in better shape than for several years, with a lot of the pressure removed. The oil pulling seems also to have taken some 'heavy psychic energy' out of my system. I intend to continue with the technique, and look forward to seeing if any other changes in health come about. Happy detoxing, everyone....

Photo: themiddlepath.com



         

Authoritarians and Libertarians

redicecreations.com/radio/2013/10/RIR-131004.php

A very interesting discussion, looking at some Pale Green Vortex-type topics from a fresh viewpoint. Well worth an hour of our precious human life, I'd say (or two hours, if you are a Red Ice member).

Sunny Isle

The Isle Of Skye,with its mountain range of the Cuillins, lies off the coast of western Scotland, and has the reputation for being a rainy, windy, misty place. These photos from a mountain walk last week illustrate that it is not always the case.

Migraines, Moons, and Mountains

                On Migraine Mountain

I wrote about my personal experience of migraines in a post on October 26th, 2010, 'The Bad Trip: Migraine'. Since then, I have continued to undergo their intermittent pain, albeit less frequently (I actually went for four months without an attack), and with generally less severity. When they have arrived, the migraines have tended to go on for a long time, however.

Migraines are, I conclude, little understood by the medical orthodoxy. This is evidenced by the large number of bewildered sufferers whose tortures can be readily accessed online, plus the equally bewildering profusion of causal theories and proposed palliatives and remedies that haunt the relevant websites. For me, there is, with little doubt, a supernatural element to the phenomenon. I once tracked the timing of my attacks against the phases of the moon. I discovered that the migraines have a strong tendency to cluster around the time of the full moon, to a degree that is statistically almost impossible to occur randomly. I also read on one website (which I unfortunately did not make a note of) that migraines typically occur thirteen times a year. This information was relayed without comment - but thirteen, annual cycles of the moon: any connection, maybe??? Some people find the apogee and perigee of the moon (respectively its furthest and closest proximity to the Earth) to be significant factors in the timing of their migraines.

The other bane of my physical life is chronic sinus problems. I may write more about this at some future time, but it started about five years ago. Since it is a condition that is focused around the same areas of the body and its energy systems as migraine - the brow/temple region and the intestines - it is reasonable to consider that both migraine and sinusitis manifest a similar problem. At this point, however, you leave the mainstream medical profession well and truly behind......

A few weeks ago I set off from home with the intention of climbing a fairly large mountain in western Scotland. I awoke to that familiar pressure around the brow and behind the eyes which is characteristic of sinus disturbance. Such a common experience was insufficient to cause me any real concern, however. It was only when I was on the coach and well on my way that the pain began to intensify and to migrate to the right side of my head. Accompanying this was a growing nausea, and it began to dawn on me that this was not simply sinusitis, but impending migraine.

It is one of the nightmares of a migraine person: to be stuck on some form of transport far from home with excruciating pains in the head and the uncontrollable urge to vomit viciously all over everybody and everything. Being stranded while in the throes of a migraine is one of the worst things around. What was I going to do? I could ask the driver to let me off at the next stop and somehow make my way home. I could ask him to take me on further than my intended destination, to at least a village where I might be able to find some respite. As it was, I decided to breathe deeply, try to relax, and continue with my original plan.

I stumbled off the bus in the middle of nowhere. To the east runs a long loch, and to the west the road snakes down a glen cut like a gash into the hills. Lines of steep-sided mountains stretch north and southwards as far as the eye can see. I was standing outside the only habitation for miles - literally - a lonely hotel with a solitary petrol pump. In my enfeebled condition, the mountain I originally intended to climb had taken on Himalayan proportions. Out of the question. Yet I felt strangely happy to be among the mountains with a skull about to split and intestines threatening to evacuate across the peat and heather. I would not go to the big mountain, but instead opt for a small mountain close at hand. I could take my time, walk as much or as little as I wished, and generally follow my fancy.

Am Bathach is the name of the little mountain, the one normally reserved for a half day out. I began to climb, very slowly, stopping for long and frequent rests, surveying the gradually unfolding landscape from a large variety of rocky vantage points. Halfway up the southern brow of Am Bathach I succumbed to some deep retching, following which I felt slightly better. Continuing with this stop - start routine, I eventually reached the summit ridge, where I was confronted by its three peaks. Normally, they present themselves as mere protuberances on the ridge, but on this day they manifested as enormous walls of mountain to be climbed. I lay down to rest in the silence of the middle peak. Suddenly I was jarred into wakefulness by a racket above me. A bird of prey - my rudimentary knowledge of wildlife suggests it was a buzzard - was hovering close to the ground,  but was being harassed by three noisy crows, which followed closely in its wake as it swooped then hung in the air, apparently trying to get close to the ground. The persistence of the crows paid off, and the buzzard eventually swung off across the valley and into the distance. The drama over, I closed my eyes again and drifted into sleep.

The descent off the far end of Am Bathach is slightly steep, over heather and slippery peat. As I was coming down, it occurred to me that, despite my physical frailty, I did not feel the slightest bit worried or intimidated. In fact I had felt fully confident during the entire little adventure. I knew myself  - my abilities and limitations - and had made appropriate decisions for the day. I had never been be-migrained in the hills before, but I was very much at home here. I respected the mountains, and they lent their support to me. My  own love of the wild would be reciprocated, provided I acted appropriately and with common sense. Going to the mountains was what I did.

I arrived back outside the hotel with an hour to spare. I could have taken refuge inside. Instead, I lay down on a rock, closed my eyes again, and felt the caress of the wind on my face. It had been a mild migraine by my standards, allowing me the unique opportunity to spend a day of ill-health outdoors among the mountains. I felt curiously satisfied.