MAY PEACE PREVAIL ON EARTH
December 16, 2002
Miscellaneous Subjects #167: Mixed Slew of Various News
Hello everyone
Some of the material you'll receive this week will blow your mind! No kidding!
Hopefully you'll have some time to check all this out... and pass it on.
Have a great day (or evening)!
Jean Hudon
Earth Rainbow Network Coordinator
http://www.EarthRainbowNetwork.com
This compilation is archived at http://www.EarthRainbowNetwork.com/Archives2002/MiscelSubjects167.htm
P.S. See also my latest Media Compilation #102: New Weapons of Terror Will Help Steal Iraqi's Oil, archived at http://www.EarthRainbowNetwork.com/Archives2002/MediaCompilation102.htm
"Of liberty I would say that, in the whole plenitude of its extent, it is unobstructed action according to our will. But rightful liberty is unobstructed action according to our will within limits drawn around us by the equal rights of others. I do not add 'within the limits of the law,' because law is often but the tyrant's will, and always so when it violates the right of an individual."
- Thomas Jefferson
CONTENTS
1. PETITION TO INSPECT US MILITARY BASES
2. Smallpox: Your Questions Answered
3. Revolution in Wisconsin School Could Sweep Nation
4. He's Humble in a Way That Only Godzilla Could Be
5. Campesinos Attack the Mexican Congress
6. G.A.OH, NO! + GREEN UNPLEASANT LAND + OH YEAH, CANADA
7. Palestine, Palestinians & International Law
8. Deep Winter
See also:
Gore Will Not Run for Presidency (Dec 16) http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&cid=578&u=/nm/20021215/ts_nm/politics_gore_announcement_dc_3
"Mitzna's the man" (Worth reading!)
http://yt.org/article.php?sid=922
Amram Mitzna, Israel's Labor Party candidate for the prime minister election in 2003 against Ariel Sharon, is currently running on a platform of unilateral withdrawal from much of the Occupied Territories. Marc Sirois explains who Mitzna is, and why he is calling for what now is considered a bold policy. An important read if you are hoping for peace in the Middle East.
Kissinger Pulls Out as Chief of Inquiry Into 9/11 Attacks (14 Dec - A SMALL VICTORY!)
http://story.news.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story&u=/nyt/20021214/ts_nyt/kissinger_pulls_out_as_chief_of_inquiry_into_9_11_attacks
Henry A. Kissinger informed President Bush that he could not serve as chairman of the Sept. 11 commission if it meant revealing the clients of his consulting firm. President Bush, who aides said was surprised by the decision, vowed to find a replacement quickly.
1.
From: "Joy Rae Freeman" <joy-2u@mindspring.com>
Date: 12 Dec 2002
PETITION TO INSPECT US MILITARY BASES
Require Weapons Inspections at US Secret Military Bases
From: http://www.thepetitionsite.com/takeaction/864351314
The US secret military threatens the stability and health of the entire planet. Americans can no longer gain access to these secret technologies and projects. We appeal to the UN Security Council to pass a resolution to require the US to open its secret military bases for inspection.
We, the undersigned, hereby appeal to the UN Security Council to pass a resolution to require the United States to open its secret military and research facilities for inspection.
Evidence has been mounting, from the world's leading viral scientists, chemical weapons experts, and former military officers at these facilities, that highly dangerous and experimental technologies and weapons are being developed at US secret bases, under the cloak of "National "Security."
The American people, including our representatives, can not gain access to these facilities, under threat of death (posted), and have no way of monitoring the threats to our security, health, and foreign relations. We can no longer trust our secret government agencies to tell us the truth.
If the UN Security Council does not intervene, and no action is taken to expose the deadly nuclear, biological, chemical, and energy weapons in various stages of deployment, then we believe the survival of humanity may be jeopardized.
The United States is not automatically the "good cowboy" simply because we have a pretty flag and a White House on our money, especially with secret elite societies having colonized our military and spy agencies for the past century, now having taken control of the Executive "Command in Chief."
We appeal to the international community to rise up with us and confront this military danger to our children and our future.
2.
From: http://www.time.com/time/nation/article/0,8599,399780,00.html
Smallpox: Your Questions Answered (Dec 13)
President Bush's plan to vaccinate high-risk Americans against the smallpox virus has many of us wondering what to expect. Last fall, anthrax occupied most of our bioterror nightmares. This year, our anxiety has refocused on an even more frightening biological threat, one that researchers once believed had been eliminated from the planet: Smallpox. Friday afternoon, President Bush announced that for the first time in 20 years, the U.S. will begin vaccinating members of the military and "first responders," including firefighters and emergency medical workers. What is smallpox, how dangerous is it - and should we all be vaccinated?
What is smallpox?
Smallpox is a serious, highly contagious infectious disease. There are two forms of smallpox: variola major, which is the most severe and common form, manifests as a widespread, distinctive rash and high fever; and variola minor, which is far less common and also less dangerous. Variola major generally kills about 30 percent of its victims. The virus can be spread by bodily contact or by coughing. CLIP
(...) What are the risks of the vaccine?
According to studies conducted in the 1960s, the vaccine will result in death for 1 or 2 people out of each million vaccinated. Between 15 and 52 of those million people will develop life-threatening reactions, including but not limited to high fever, rash and toxic reactions at the vaccination site. We are still using the vaccine developed in 1796; researchers are working on less risky ways to protect against smallpox, but for the time being this vaccination is the best line of defense we have.
Who should not receive the vaccination?
Because the vaccine is made up of the live smallpox virus, it can be extremely dangerous to people whose bodies are not capable of fighting off disease. As many as 60 million Americans with compromised immune systems will not receive the vaccine. People with AIDS, HIV, cancer, who have had organ transplants or a history of eczema could suffer extremely serious side effects from exposure to the virus, including death. Pregnant women and women who are breastfeeding should also not receive the vaccine. What if I was vaccinated against smallpox when I was a kid?
Am I still protected?
The vaccine is not believed to last more than 5 or 10 years, so if you were given a vaccination in 1965, you're no longer protected against the virus. There is good news for those who've previously been vaccinated: If you didn't experience an adverse reaction to the vaccine the first time, it's very unlikely you'll develop one this time around.
---
See also:
Americans Still Don't Understand Smallpox-Experts (Dec 14)
http://dailynews.yahoo.com/news?tmpl=story2&cid=570&ncid=753&e=1&u=/nm/20021 214/sc_nm/health_smallpox_public_dc
Saying they have no idea how many Americans will demand the smallpox vaccine, U.S. health officials said on Saturday that most people still do not understand just how risky the shot is. President George. W Bush on Friday rolled out a long-awaited plan for starting vaccinations against smallpox just in case of a biological attack, saying it would start with half a million troops and more than 400,000 doctors, nurses and health care workers likely to encounter any first victims. In a move that surprised many health experts, Bush also said the vaccine would be made available to anyone who really insisted on getting it. Health officials strongly discourage this, and said once people knew of the risks, they expected few to press for the vaccine. CLIP
SMALLPOX: The Smallpox Scenario
http://www.timecanada.com/story.adp?storyid=3&area=_toc
Fears that Iraq may possess the virus have lately come to a head. What the U.S. is planning (...) none of this proves Saddam does not have the smallpox virus-and there's some evidence he does. Eight of 69 Iraqi POWs screened during the Gulf War were immune to smallpox. Since the vaccine works for only four to five years, this suggests they had been inoculated relatively recently-perhaps as protection from their own biological weapons. There's more: U.N. inspectors who toured Iraq's illegal weapons sites in 1995 stumbled upon a freeze dryer candidly labeled smallpox.
Pentagon plans for smallpox outbreak (Dec 13) http://www.upi.com/print.cfm?StoryID=20021213-041745-9227r
Army to enforce smallpox quarantines!
Credo Mutwa on Children Vaccinated (11 Dec 2002) Sent by "Judith Iam" <judeiam@cwnet.com>
CREDO MUTWA - ZULU SHAMAN: "I noticed that school children in mission schools who had been vaccinated for smallpox or measles could not see spiritual entities at all. A flying saucer would fly through the sky at great speed and be seen by many men & women but the children who had been vaccinated would see nothing and I noticed this hundreds of times."
More at http://www.world-action.co.uk/vaccinate.html
YOU ARE AND BECOME WHAT YOU EAT!
3.
From: "Violette Ruffley" <wingsoflight@smnet.net>
Date: 9 Dec 2002
Subject: Revolution in Wisconsin School Could Sweep Nation
Problem High School Leads Nation in Behavior Turnaround
Testimonial for the Good News Network from Dr. Kevin Keough
I'm a clinical and police psychologist. A 13 year-old boy was depressed and suicidal as he entered my office. He cited TV news as proof that there was no point to living, "Everything is out of control, it's all bad news, people are killing each other, terrorism, corruption, kids being sex slaves." After I let him cry, I explained how TV news worked -- that it didn't accurately reflect reality -- and I showed him your Web site. He started to cheer up. He smiled and gave me a hug. Life was okay again. Your site is proof of good news in the universe. Thanks. (29 Nov 2002)
---
Good News of the Day, December 9, 2002
Revolution in Wisconsin School Could Sweep Nation
A revolution has turned around Central Alternative High School in Appleton, Wisconsin, and its 'problem kids', sent there from twelve area schools. Respect, achievement, and discipline prevail where once kids packed weapons, took drugs, and exhibited "terrible rudeness."
Before 1997 the teens ingested a slurry of behavior-altering chemicals that left them irritable, fidgety, and unable to concentrate. The culprit chemicals were not cocaine, speed, marijuana or heroin, but the industrial food additives found on grocers' shelves.
Thanks to the simple elimination of commonly lurking food dyes, chemical flavorings, and preservatives, and the introduction of fresh nutritional foods for breakfast and lunch, the school boasts five years of zero drop-outs, zero expulsions, zero drugs, zero weapons possession, and zero fighting on campus.
The startling success at Central Alternative High (CAHS) led the state of Wisconsin to grant funds for the printing and distribution of packets of information about Appleton's nutrition program to 500 of its alternative schools. Already, other area schools have dumped vending machines in favor of salad bars.
The Appleton revolution is part of a growing body of evidence that points to extensive chemical processing of children's foods as a leading culprit in the 20-year surge of cases of hyperactivity (A.D.D./A.D.H.D.), depression and obesity in America's children.
Consider the simple fact that synthetic food dyes which permeate kids' food today -- including even white marshmallows and toothpaste -- are synthesized from petroleum! Scientists have found that many people are sensitive to these petrol-based chemicals, which can trigger a wide number of behavior, learning, and health problems by interfering with electrical functioning of neurotransmitters and synapses of the brain.
After years of excusing erratic behavior with, 'Its just hormones,' or 'Middle-schoolers can't sit still,' the Appleton experiment uncovers a more insidious cause. Greg Bretthauer, Dean of Students at CAHS exclaims, "If they don't come doped up on bad food, by God, they have the chance to learn something!" Grades, test scores, and achievement are all up at CAHS. Responding to such growing evidence, the Los Angeles school district -- the nation's largest -- will eliminate soda vending machines from all of its buildings beginning January 1, 2003.
Since 1976, the nonprofit Feingold Association has achieved amazing results helping families whose children are diagnosed with hyperactive disorders using their diet free of synthetic colors and flavors, and the preservatives BHA, BHT and TBHQ.
To Learn About: "Building a Case for Nutrition Reform" read GNN's Full Coverage of the Appleton Revolution and its implications for education, crime and medicine.
Inspiration Point: "Kids this year are calmer, more rational. I had thought about retiring but I've decided I'm having too much fun." - Appleton science teacher, Dennis Abrahm
Spread this good news for our kids: Forward this to all the parents you know!
---
TO SUBSCRIBE to the Good News Line, simply send an empty e-mail (it must be sent from the address where you wish to receive messages) to subscribe@goodnewsnetwork.org
4.
Sent by "Mark Graffis" <mgraffis@vitelcom.net>
He's Humble in a Way That Only Godzilla Could Be
Published on December 12, 2002 by the Los Angeles Times
by Arianna Huffington
Remember how the Bush administration ambled unassumingly into office? "I hope I'm viewed as a humble person," the president said just before moving into the White House. And on his first day on the job, he counseled his senior staff members to "be an example of humility and decency and fairness."
Well, those days are long gone. Forget tiptoeing. Team Bush now stomps down the halls of power like Godzilla trampling the streets of Tokyo. When describing the administration at midterm, the words that come to mind are arrogant, cocky, galling and drunk with power. The prevailing motto seems to be: "Our way or the highway. If you don't like it, you can move to Canada." The latest example was the stunning appointment of cover-up cover boy Henry Kissinger to head the 9/11 commission. Was Bush deliberately trying to select the one person in the world least likely to get to the bottom of the foul-ups that preceded Sept. 11? Was Saudi Prince Bandar too busy reining in his wife's charitable impulses to take the job?
The only thing more ludicrous than naming Kissinger to head this inquiry would be picking somebody who thinks "pollution is a right" to head the Interior Department, or selecting a guy who made his name fighting the authority of the Securities and Exchange Commission as its chairman. Oh, wait a minute -- that's right, Bush already did both of those things too. In the last few months alone, the White House has shown its disdain for public opinion -- and indeed the public interest -- in an exceptionally wide variety of areas. Here are just a few of the more blood-boiling cases.
* On the environment: Not satisfied with just gutting the Clean Air Act, the White House chose to announce its polluter-friendly decision in the most dismissive, least accountable way possible, delivered not by the president or Environmental Protection Agency head Christie Whitman but by a low-level administrator, on a Friday afternoon leading into a holiday week and with no cameras allowed.
* On stealing from the poor to give to the rich: In an act of reverse Robin Hood effrontery, the president helped defray some of the cost of his nonstop campaigning with an accounting trick that allowed him to dip into the coffers of the Office of Family Assistance by piggy-backing campaign appearances onto trips ostensibly made to talk about welfare reform. That's right, money meant to assist poor families was used to help elect politicians who believe that, even with all the problems facing this country, cutting taxes for the rich should be job one. These, of course, are the same Scrooges who did nothing to stop the unemployment benefits of 800,000 workers from expiring during the holiday season. Ho, ho, ho, poor people!
* On sucking up to special interests: I guess that the back-channel passage of that tailor-made -- and White House-approved -- homeland security bill amendment protecting Eli Lilly, maker of the questionable vaccine preservative thimerosal, from billions in potential lawsuits just wasn't enough of an insult to democracy. To pour salt in that fresh wound the administration has asked a federal claims court to block public access to documents unearthed in more than 1,000 thimerosal-related lawsuits. Take that, suffering parents of autistic children!
* On political patronage: As the White House was moving to scale back pay increases for career federal employees it was also secretly doling out big-buck bonuses to political appointees -- a practice banned during the Clinton presidency because of abuses during the last Bush administration. Who was it again who was going to restore integrity to the White House?
* On fighting the war on terrorism: A majority of Americans have a negative view of Saudi Arabia. As well they should, given the desert kingdom's two-faced attitude, the money that ended up in the pockets of 9/11 hijackers, its telethons for suicide bombers, its refusal to let U.S. planes targeting the Taliban take off from Saudi soil and the not-insignificant fact that most of the 9/11 hijackers were Saudi. In spite of all this, the White House continues to treat the spoiled princes of the House of Saud as bosom brothers. In your eye, American people!
5.
Date: 13 Dec 2002
From: "John T. Linnell" <admin@aspartame.ca>
Subject: If it can happen in Mexico...
If it can happen in Mexico, it can certainly (and probably should) happen here!!!!
From: http://www.aztlan.net/campesinos.htm
Campesinos Attack the Mexican Congress
Tenochtitlan - December 11, 2002 - (ACN) Rivaling the crisis in Venezuela and Argentina, thousands of well organized campesinos (agricultural workers) stormed and broke into the Mexican Congress yesterday forcing many of the congressmen to run for their lives and attempt to climb over the security fence surrounding the Palacio Legislativo de San Lazaro. The campesinos are in extreme desperation because of the worsening conditions in the agricultural sectors of Mexico and the lack of forthcoming solutions by the legislature.
Hundreds of the campesinos were able to penetrate into the congressional building after first parking 6 tractors in the front entrance to the building, spreading smelly manure and throwing rotten vegetables against the walls. The group was accompanied by 4 pigs, two that had the names of President Vicente Fox and of Secretary of Foreign Relations Jorge C. Gutman. The campesinos were led by 14 jinetes (horseriders) carrying Mexican flags. Four of the horseriders along with scores of the campesinos broke the glass facade, entered the building and headed towards the auditorium where congress was in session. Despite promptings by the President of the Mexican Congress, Beatriz Paredes Rangel, to the legislators to remain calm, many panicked and ran to the back of the building where they desperately tried to climb over the fence.
A spokesperson of the campesinos said "Esto fue sólo una probadita" which translates into "This was just a little taste." A leader of the campesinos said that the problems in the farms are now more profound than an ordinary crisis. One yelled loudly, "¡ya estamos cansados de esperar soluciones que no llegan!" ("we are tired of waiting for solutions that never come!")
After the storming of the Mexican Congress, the campesinos, last night, divided themselves into groups and headed to form encampments in front of the headquarters of the Bancomer, Banamex, Banorte and Fovi banks.
Mexico could be headed for another full blown armed revolution. If it was not for immigration to the U.S. of many Mexican workers, the pressure on the economic and political system of Mexico, would have long ago caused a national explosion. Mexican workers in the US are now sending over 12 billion dollars a year of their wages to their families in Mexico.
Many Mexican analysts blame this situation on the economic globalization policies of the USA and its support by the Fox Administration. Also, many analysts point to the immense external debt that Mexico owes to the international money lenders. Argentina is now totally bankrupt because of its 30 billion external debt. The country can not even pay the yearly interest payments and the death of children of hunger is becoming more common. There are rumors in Mexico of an impending mass devaluation of the peso. This could be the spark for another Mexican revolution that would make the one in 1917 look like a Sunday picnic. Mexicans are not like the Argentines. The storming and temporary taker over of the Mexican Congress yesterday by "los campesinos" is proof of this.
6.
WEEKLY GRIST
05 Dec-11 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com
1. G.A.OH, NO!
In a victory for the Bush administration and a significant setback for congressional oversight of White House goings-on, a federal judge ruled Monday that the investigative arm of Congress does not have legal standing to sue Vice President Dick Cheney for refusing to turn over documents related to the development of the national energy policy. The ruling goes beyond the Cheney matter to state that the General Accounting Office, which investigates hundreds of government-affairs issues every year, has no right to bring almost any lawsuit -- an interpretation that could make it very difficult for the GAO to enforce requests for information from any federal agency. The White House hailed the decision as a turning point in what it called a generation of ever-increasing congressional encroachment into executive-branch territory, but critics said the ruling could dramatically weaken the GAO and render the president all but immune from oversight unless the opposition party controls Congress. The ruling is also a blow to environmentalists, and represents the second time in a week that courts have refused to grant access to the records of Cheney's National Energy Policy Development Group. Enviros and others believe that the vice president met almost exclusively with commercial interests in developing the nation's energy policy. The GAO has not yet decided whether it will appeal the ruling.
Washington Post, Neely Tucker, 10 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com/forward.pl?forward_id=769
CLIP
5. GREEN UNPLEASANT LAND
A record quantity of northern polar ice was lost this year, according to scientists who presented their findings at a conference of the American Geophysical Union held last weekend in San Francisco. Surface melt in Greenland, for example, was the highest in recorded history, and extended to previously unaffected altitudes. In total, there were about 265,000 square miles of melt on the Greenland ice sheet this year, more than double that of 10 years ago. Although the scientists acknowledged that natural variations could account for some of the accelerated melting, they noted that glacial and sea ice melt, disappearing permafrost, the northward creep of vegetation, and increased fresh-water runoff together make "a compelling case that something is going on," according to Larry Hinzman of the University of Alaska at Fairbanks. That "something" would be human influences on the atmosphere, including ozone depletion and global warming from greenhouse gas emissions. Changes in sea-ice levels have potentially dramatic implications for the global climate, because, while sea ice reflects 80 percent of solar radiation, melted sea ice -- water -- reflects just 20 percent, creating a positive feedback loop for further warming.
BBC News, Molly Bentley, 09 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com/forward.pl?forward_id=766
CLIP
9. OH YEAH, CANADA
Canada's House of Commons voted overwhelmingly in favor of ratifying the Kyoto Protocol on Tuesday, concluding months of rancorous debate and paving the way for a concerted international effort to curb emissions of climate-altering greenhouse gases. A triumphant Prime Minister Jean Chretien, who staked a fair bit of political capital on Kyoto, will sign Canada's official ratification by the end of the year. Though it had no legal impact, the House of Commons vote was an important symbolic gesture of support for the treaty in a country where Alberta provincial leaders and segments of the business community have vociferously opposed limits on greenhouse gas emissions. Also on Tuesday, on the other side of the globe, New Zealand ratified the protocol.
Toronto Globe and Mail, Steven Chase, 11 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com/forward.pl?forward_id=779
Las Vegas Sun, Associated Press, Tom Cohen, 11 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com/forward.pl?forward_id=780
CNN.com, Reuters, 10 Dec 2002
http://www.gristmagazine.com/forward.pl?forward_id=781
7.
From: "Boyle, Francis" <FBOYLE@LAW.UIUC.EDU>
Sent: Friday, December 13, 2002
PALESTINE, PALESTINIANS, AND INTERNATIONAL LAW
by Francis A. Boyle
Forthcoming in 2003
Clarity Press (claritypress@usa.net)
Over the past two decades, no non-Palestinian has had as much direct and personal experience in the struggle for Palestinian self-determination, human rights, and an independent state of their own as the author. Starting in 1987, he served as Legal Advisor to the Palestine Liberation Organization on the Palestinian Declaration of Independence of 15 November 1988 as well as on the ensuing Palestinian Peace Initiative. He then served as Legal Advisor to the Palestinian Delegation to the Middle East Peace Negotiations from 1991 to 1993. There, at the instructions of the Head of the Delegation, Dr. Haidar Abdul Shaffi, the author drafted the Palestinian Alternative to what later became the now defunct Oslo Agreement. In November of 2000, the author launched the Israeli Divestment/Disinvestment Campaign that now has branches on over 50 college campuses around the United States. This grassroots movement is taking off internationally. The author has written this book for all of those around the world who want to work for peace with justice for all peoples and states in the Middle East.
This book provides a comprehensive survey of the international legal principles related to the Palestinian struggle for self-determination: starting with the League of Nations awarding the Mandate for Palestine to Britain after the First World War; through the partition of the Palestine Mandate by the United Nations after the Second World War; to the Palestinian Declaration of an Independent State of their own in 1988; to the diplomatic recognition of the Palestinian State by about 130 other states; through the United Nations granting the State of Palestine all the rights of a U.N. Member State but the right to vote, etc. During the past two decades, the author has provided the Leadership of the Palestinian People with advice, counsel, and representation at all stages of this process. The scholarly analyses that he used to back up this critical work can be found in the pages of this book. Another chapter analyzes the hypocrisy and double-standards behind the Bush Jr. administration's bogus "war on international terrorism," with special reference to U.S. foreign policy towards the Middle East and the Muslim World after 11 September 2001.
The concluding chapter provides advice and guidance to the international grassroots Campaign for Israeli Divestment/Disinvestment, which were all inspired by the author's involvement in the original Divestment/Disinvestment Campaign against the former criminal apartheid regime in South Africa. Today the Republic of South Africa stands as a beacon of hope for oppressed peoples and states all over the world. The same can be true for Palestine and Israel. This book explains why and how that can be done.
Francis A. Boyle
Law Building 504 E. Pennsylvania Ave.
Champaign, IL 61820 USA
217-333-7954(voice)
217-244-1478(fax)
fboyle@law.uiuc.edu (personal comments only)
8.
Date: 10 Dec 2002
From: Susanne Garst <ycs@televar.com>
NOW is the perfect time to reflect on these musings....
DEEP WINTER
The deepest moment of the winter comes not in January or February, but in December when the night is longest and the day is shortest. This day and night is called the Winter Solstice. It is the mirror image of the Summer Solstice in June, when the day is longest and the night is shortest.
Winter Solstice is a very powerful time in the cycle of life and death, death and rebirth, disintegration and renewal that controls all Life on the Earth, including you. It is the time when motion ceases, and at the same moment, Life begins to stir again. Animals in hibernation and seeds in sleep beneath the snow will not move until the spring, but deep within them a process has completed itself. The contraction of energy that the long nights and cold days reflect reaches its limit, and a cycle reverses itself. From that moment forward, even though the winter remains to unfold as it must, the spring has been born, and the summer, and the harvests of the summer with it.
This dark and trying season is repeated in your life again and again. Each tragedy, loss, failure, and humiliation reaches its inmost movement, spends its energy, and from that long journey another begins a journey to warmth, light, and expansion. The season of celebration, of growth, of Life and of movement is repeated again in the same way. One season follows the other. The arrival of one signals the coming of the other. They do not exist apart.
These seasons of the year, and seasons of your life, come and go, complete themselves and give way to each other whether you are aware of the dynamic that controls them or not. If you are not, the seasons appear to have lives of their own and you forget they are each part of a cycle a cycle that you have encountered many times before and will encounter many times again. Your life is built on this cycle of seasons on the continual repetition of them. The arrival of winter, the coming of darkness and death, initiates the coming of light and life. This cycle controls the unfolding of your life and all within it.
When you are aware of this cycle, you can participate with it. You cannot stop the death that comes in the winter nor the life that comes with the summer, but you can determine in the winter what will be born in the summer. You can contribute your intelligence and will to the intelligence and movement of a dynamic larger than you. You can plant the seed that will sprout in the spring. You can lay the foundation for a different winter to come after the summer that has yet to arrive. You can only do this for yourself.
We are in deep winter. The nights are long and the days are short. The Earth grows cold and life retreats. Now is the time for you to awaken to your place in this cycle, and to use it consciously. What is darkest in your life? What loss or disappointment, fear or terror moves through you? What powerlessness haunts you? These are given to you for your benefit. They are brought to your awareness so that you can change them. They are your avenues to the clarity and love that you are waiting for. You cannot become fearless at your command, but you can determine how you will respond to your fear. You cannot become kind with one intention, but you can determine how you will respond to your own brutality, righteousness, and fear.
This is the power of the deep winter. It challenges you, confronts you, and shows you what you must change in yourself. It is a holy and precious season. It illuminates your holy and precious life. It is your potential beckoning to you, disguised as an adversary, a tragedy, or a disaster. Will the adversary, tragedy or disaster shape your experience, or will you shape your experience of it? Will your fears overwhelm you, or will they show you new and different ways to respond to them?
What new life is stirring in you this Deep Winter?
Love,
Gary Zukav
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