Gaia: The Integral Pod tag:gaia.com,2008,:Gaia http://groups.gaia.com/ii/discussions/feeds/pod/7035 en-us 20 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:29:18 GMT Gaia: The Integral Pod Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-513927 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 20:29:18 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#513927 <p> <em>edit...</em><br /><em>Full&nbsp;Martenson report </em><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/copenhagen-agreement-economic-growth-you-cant-have-both/33022?#comment-62238" target="_blank"><em>WHY COPENHAGEN IS A FAILURE</em></a><em> now available without enrollment.</em><br /><br />Correction:<br /><em>Most</em> of the <em>full</em> report <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/copenhagen-agreement-economic-growth-you-cant-have-both/33022?#comment-62238" target="_blank"><em>WHY COPENHAGEN IS A FAILURE</em></a><em>&nbsp;</em>is in a new Martenson Report: <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/copenhagen-agreement-economic-growth-you-cant-have-both/33022?#comment-62238" target="_blank">Copenhagen &amp; Economic Growth - You Can&#39;t Have Both</a><br />Thursday, December 24, 2009, 2:31 pm, by cmartenson<br /><br />LOVE </p> Meditating on Community Pain http://singerseeker.gaia.com Nicole tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-513916 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 19:48:16 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/513916 <p> <span></span>&nbsp;Inviting you to my blog to think together with me about hurts and issues within the Gaia Community - with much love<br /><br /><span></span><a href="http://singerseeker.gaia.com/blog/2009/12/fun-times-in-gaia-moderating---meditations-on-community-pain">Meditations on community pain</a><a href="http://singerseeker.gaia.com/blog/2009/12/fun-times-in-gaia-moderating---meditations-on-community-pain"></a><br />Nicole </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-513894 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 17:28:45 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#513894 <p> Full&nbsp;Martenson report <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/copenhagen-agreement-economic-growth-you-cant-have-both/33022?#comment-62238" target="_blank">WHY COPENHAGEN IS A FAILURE</a> now available without enrollment.<br /><br />Merry Christmas </p> Re: Developmental Research http://voyager.gaia.com Albert tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-513785 Fri, 25 Dec 2009 08:54:20 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/484561#513785 <p> Hi Justin,<br /><br />maybe you want to post your request at London Integral Circle Yahoo List. I am a member of it and could do it for you. If you like.<br /><br />Here is another link which might be helpful:<br /><br /><a href="http://www.integral-studies.org/about" target="_blank">Institute for Integral Studies</a><br />And Markus Molz from Germany wrote something about higher education in current issue of Integral Review:<br />. <br /><br />Markus Molz from Germany has written a 75 p piece for current issue of Integral Review. His dissertation he is finalizing now should be interesting for us. <br /><br /><a href="http://integral-review.org/documents/Molz,%20Toward%20Integral%20Higher%20Education,%20Vol.%205,%20No.%202.pdf" target="_blank">&nbsp;Toward Integral Higher Education Study Programs in the European Higher Education Area: A Programmatic and Strategic View</a><strong><strong><br /><br />Markus Molz </strong><em>is trained as an educational and organizational psychologist and studies integral<br /><br />and transdisciplinary approaches across streams since 1989. He was co-founder of two start-up<br /><br />companies, freelance consultant for NGOs, and researcher in several international research<br /><br />projects. Since 1995 Markus is teaching transdisciplinary courses on intercultural relations, new<br /><br />learning technologies and educational quality development to international student groups at<br /><br />various higher education institutions. Currently, he serves as an assistant researcher in<br /><br />educational sciences at the multilingual and interdisciplinary University of Luxembourg<br /><br />(</em>www.uni.lu<em>) to finalize his PhD dissertation &quot;Beyond fragmentation: Toward an integral<br /><br />pluralism in sociocultural research.&quot; Markus is co-founder and board member of the Institute<br /><br />for Integral Studies (www.integral-studies.org) and organizes the international symposium<br /><br />&quot;Research across boundaries – advances in theory-building&quot; in 2010</em>.<br /><br />E-mail: markus.molz@....</strong><br /><strong></strong>&nbsp;<br /><strong>Best, </strong><br /><strong></strong>&nbsp;<br /><strong>Albert</strong> </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512986 Tue, 22 Dec 2009 18:25:52 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#512986 <p> More to&nbsp;consider concerning this topic:<br /><a href="http://wattsupwiththat.com/2009/12/19/wikibullies-at-work-the-national-post-exposes-broad-trust-issues-over-wikipedia-climate-information/" title="Read Wikibullies at work. The National Post exposes broad trust issues over Wikipedia climate&nbsp;information" target="_blank">Wikibullies at work. The National Post exposes broad trust issues over Wikipedia climate&nbsp;information</a><br /><br />and...THE MARTENSON REPORT:<br /><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/martensonreport/why-copenhagen-failure" target="_blank">Why Copenhagen Is A Failure</a>&nbsp;<br />Saturday, December 19, 2009, 2:58 am, by <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/user/4" title="View user profile." target="_blank">cmartenson</a><br />(this is a sample of the full report...available to enrolled CM members.)<br />Chris Martenson&nbsp;clarifies the double bind.&nbsp;Here is a quote from the report:<br /><br /><em>...We need more jobs, we are told; we need economic growth, we need more people consuming more things.&nbsp; Growth is the ever-constant word on politicians&#39; lips. &nbsp;Official actions amounting to tens of trillions of dollars speak to the fact that this is, in fact, our number-one global priority.<br /></em><br /><em>But the consensus coming out of Copenhagen is that carbon emissions have to be reduced by a vast amount over the next few decades.&nbsp;These two ideas are mutually exclusive.&nbsp; You can&#39;t have both. ...<br /></em><br />~ <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/user/4" title="View user profile." target="_blank">cmartenson</a>&nbsp;<a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/martensonreport/why-copenhagen-failure" target="_blank">Why Copenhagen Is A Failure</a>&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;<br />&nbsp;<br />LOVE<br />&nbsp; </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512544 Mon, 21 Dec 2009 15:43:28 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#512544 <p> Namaste<br /><br />Tely, nice to hear from you.&nbsp;<a href="http://www.timebanks.org/" target="_blank">http://www.timebanks.org/</a>&nbsp;looks excellent! Thanks. :)<br /><br />Here is another article link that is predicting a&nbsp;FOOD<strong> crisis in 2010</strong>:<br /><a href="http://www.marketskeptics.com/2009/12/2010-food-crisis-for-dummies.html" target="_blank">*****2010 Food Crisis for Dummies*****</a>&nbsp;<br />by<em> </em><a target="_blank"><em>Eric deCarbonnel</em></a> Thursday, December 17, 2009<br /><br />Get informed. Get the word out!<br /><br />LOVE </p> Cosmogenesis: a video on the creative impulse of evolution... http://shamansun.gaia.com shaman sun tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512356 Sun, 20 Dec 2009 22:36:27 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/512356 <p> Hey folks, this is somewhat of a shameless plug, but I&#39;m not sure where else to share it...It&#39;s a video I just made and posted on my channel concerning the evolution of life, consciousness, and the underlying spirit...<br /><br /><a href="http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a3wDu7NcP0I" target="_blank">Cosmogenesis.</a><br /><br />Rate, comment, critique...all are welcome! Feedback is much appreciated.<br /><br />-Jer </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://tely.gaia.com Tely tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512293 Sun, 20 Dec 2009 18:21:24 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#512293 <p> Related to this, have you heard of Time Banks?&nbsp; For every hour you spend doing something for someone in your community, you earn one Time Dollar. Then you have a Time Dollar to spend on having someone do something for you.&nbsp; Check out <a href="http://www.timebanks.org/" target="_blank">http://www.timebanks.org/</a>.&nbsp; I found a local Time Bank, and I&#39;m going to join -- it just sounds like such a great idea. </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512266 Sun, 20 Dec 2009 16:12:35 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#512266 <p> Namaste<br /><br />Your welcome, Julie.<br /><br />I just came across this yesterday. I just watched it again because I wanted to re-check the unemployment numbers...here it is at<strong>(1:40 to 1:53)...</strong>with over 20%<em>unemployment.</em> And starting here at<strong> (2:20-2:50)....</strong><em>many people who worked in the public sector, <u>lost their jobs in a massive privatization program</u>...the government made millions...unemployment is now at 15%.</em><br /><br />Real unemployment numbers in many&nbsp;U.S. cities are 15-20%...and the Copenhagen Treaty is a <strong>global government privatization program.</strong><br /><br />more later...<br /><br />LOVE<br /><br />Betsy </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://julieaerwin.gaia.com Juliee tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512203 Sun, 20 Dec 2009 13:19:03 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#512203 <p> Thanks for this Betsy, this system incorporates elements of the system described by Charles Eisenstein. It&#39;s interesting to see a real-time example.<br /><br />Julie </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512065 Sat, 19 Dec 2009 20:28:32 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#512065 <p> <strong><em></em></strong>&nbsp;<br /><strong><em>Argentina: Surviving without money</em></strong><br />quote(16:07):<br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br /><em>Money can&nbsp;cancel out debt,</em><br /><em>social currency is used for exchanging.</em><br /><em><strong></strong></em>&nbsp;<br /></blockquote> </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-512052 Sat, 19 Dec 2009 18:37:01 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#512052 <p> Another example of...Do what I say, not what I Do: </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-511732 Fri, 18 Dec 2009 16:16:13 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#511732 <p> Namaste<br /><br />OM, your response clarifies the situation, thank you. &nbsp;<br /><br />This <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/happy-birthday-crash-course/30078" target="_blank">blog </a>quote further sums up my thoughts(not written by me):<br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px">As I&#39;ve pondered this over the past year, it occurs to me that if we want to have any hope of wrestling humanity back to living within the carrying capacity of the earth without traveling a very dark road, we are going to need a social movement.<br />And not just any movement, but a mammoth grassroots effort that has the full weight of our wisdom and spirit behind it .<br />We will need to redefine our sense of prosperity into what I call &quot;<strong>True Prosperity</strong>&quot; - a place where we are living with less stuff, but more happiness and satisfaction.&nbsp; We&#39;ll need to change our priorities, our economic model (sorry, debt-based money; you lose), what we value, and even the stories we tell ourselves.<br />But to do any of this, we need a vision, along with the words and messages necessary to convey it, or nobody will agree to follow along.&nbsp; I intend to bring what leadership I can to this effort and to reach out and offer my skills to whomever is already heading in the right direction.<br />At the very core, I hold a belief that the future can only be great if we are ready to pursue truly non-status-quo-solutions and if we are willing to release those that don’t work or no longer serve us.<br />I&nbsp;see a future of opportunity and relative abundance if, and only if, we elevate the position of &#39;careful steward&#39; above all others. ~Chris Martenson<br /><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/happy-birthday-crash-course/30078" target="_blank">http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/happy-birthday-crash-course/30078</a></blockquote><br /><br />also:&nbsp; &nbsp;<br /><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/forum/hey-american-neighbours-just-so-you-dont-feel-alone-weve-got-gs-issues-too-eh/32755" target="_blank">Hey, American Neighbours! Just so you don&#39;t feel alone, we&#39;ve got GS issues ,too, eh!</a>&nbsp;<br /><br />listening to Foo Fighters -&nbsp;<a href="http://www.foofighters.com/us/videos" target="_blank">WHEELS </a>&nbsp;&nbsp;<br /><br />LOVE </p> Calif. School Team's Success Linked to Snoop Dogg http://eugene.gaia.com Eugene tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-511721 Fri, 18 Dec 2009 15:30:10 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/511721 <p> <a href="http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/12/18/us/AP-US-Snoop-Football.html?_r=1" target="_blank">http://www.nytimes.com/aponline/2009/12/18/us/AP-US-Snoop-Football.html?_r=1</a><br />LOS ANGELES (AP) -- Football has long been the athletic stepchild at inner-city Crenshaw High School. Trophy cases are crammed with basketball awards. Gym walls are lined with hoops championship flags.<br />But the football team is undefeated this season and headed for the California state championship bowl game this weekend, and the coach attributes part of the success to an unlikely off-field source: rapper <a href="http://topics.nytimes.com/top/reference/timestopics/people/s/snoop_dogg/index.html?inline=nyt-per" title="More articles about Snoop Dogg." target="_blank">Snoop Dogg</a>.<br />Nine of this year&#39;s Crenshaw High School Cougars went through the 5-year-old Snoop Youth Football League, representing the first crop of varsity players to cut their teeth in the program. The league has produced standouts at other schools, but none has more players or a better record than Crenshaw.<br />The league has made Snoop Dogg, whose real name is Calvin Broadus, a savior of sorts for football in an impoverished area of Los Angeles where gangs roam many of the streets.<br />&#39;&#39;It is more of an advantage to have kids who played in the Snoop Dogg league,&#39;&#39; coach Robert Garrett said. &#39;&#39;They also have the experience, the fundamentals and the attitude that guys who started from scratch don&#39;t have.&#39;&#39;<br />Broadus&#39; reputation for raunchy lyrics and run-ins with the law brought some initial apprehension from the mostly single mothers who wanted to enroll their sons.<br />&#39;&#39;It was kind of hard to separate Snoop Dogg the entertainer from Snoop Dogg the coach, the father,&#39;&#39; league Commissioner Haamid Wadood said.<br />But the league soon caught on, especially when fathers with criminal records learned they could coach, unlike most other youth sports. Broadus, himself a former gang member, has several convictions for drugs and weapons offenses, and if the league didn&#39;t allow ex-cons, there wouldn&#39;t be enough coaches.<br />&#39;&#39;When you look at the demographics of the area, this is the reality of the situation,&#39;&#39; Wadood said. &#39;&#39;We don&#39;t condone any of that, but we look at the nature of the offense, how recent it was.&#39;&#39;<br />Sex offenders and domestic violence convicts, for instance, are banned from the sidelines.<br />The coaching exception has also reconnected boys with their dads, or at least with positive male role models in neighborhoods where fathers are often behind bars or otherwise absent.<br />The dads, many of them members of the rival Bloods and Crips, must agree to leave their gang disputes away from the field.<br />&#39;&#39;This is kind of like a peace treaty,&#39;&#39; Wadood said. &#39;&#39;Everybody wants something better for their kids.&#39;&#39;<br />Broadus, 38, launched the league in 2005 with $1 million of his own money after noticing that much of urban Los Angeles had no football for boys ages 5 to 13. He&#39;s since invested about $300,000, Wadood said. The league now has 2,500 kids enrolled.<br />Broadus, who was promoting his new album &#39;&#39;Malice in Wonderland&#39;&#39; this week, would not comment.<br />The camaraderie that developed from playing together in the Snoop league has made the Crenshaw team a more cohesive, confident unit on and off the field. In a steamroller season, the Cougars have earned a 14-0 record, nabbing the Los Angeles city title.<br />&#39;&#39;It&#39;s like a big family,&#39;&#39; said running back De&#39;Anthony Thomas, a junior who sports a big gold and diamond cross pendant around his neck and who got his nickname &#39;&#39;Black Mamba&#39;&#39; in the Snoop league because of his speedy agility similar to the dangerous African snake.<br />It also helps team members fend off peer pressure to join gangs.<br />&#39;&#39;It keeps me out of trouble, from hanging in places I shouldn&#39;t be,&#39;&#39; said wide receiver Geno Hall, a senior with diamond stud earrings. &#39;&#39;It&#39;s helped me to grow mentally.&#39;&#39;<br />While Broadus&#39; larger-than-life figure was not the motivation for the kids to play football, his personal involvement boosts the self-esteem of boys who often receive little attention at home. The rapper attends games and allows his bodyguards to let players approach him freely.<br />Those intangibles, said coach Garrett, are invaluable for inner-city youth. The burly coach sees his job as much about taking a troubled team member home for food or clothing as it is about football. He lectures about keeping up grades and has imposed a rule requiring neckties, dress shirts and trousers on Fridays during season to get players out of the &#39;&#39;hood culture.&#39;&#39;<br />The success of Crenshaw and the Snoop league is capturing widespread attention. College recruiters have already approached players such as Thomas and Hall, and the league is fielding calls from cities such as Dallas and Pittsburgh that want to replicate the Snoop model.<br />In the short term, though, all eyes are on Saturday&#39;s championship game against Concord De La Salle, to be televised statewide from the 27,000-seat Home Depot Center in nearby Carson.<br />For Crenshaw, where almost 40 percent of students drop out and about 70 percent of students receive free or cheaper lunches, excitement is high.<br />Students have held fundraisers to buy tickets for families who cannot afford them and provide bus transportation to the game. News crews have trooped across campus to film the team, but players are working to stay focused.<br />&#39;&#39;I just get down on the field and play football,&#39;&#39; Thomas said. &#39;&#39;I&#39;m blocking all that out.&#39;&#39; </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://ADLIAC.gaia.com 1Vector3 tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-510936 Tue, 15 Dec 2009 19:42:09 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#510936 <p> Thank you for this and other news we don&#39;t get elsewhere, jacinda.<br /><br />Re this from a bunch of posts back:<br /><span><strong><em>&nbsp;I have also seen other perspectives seeing money, or any medium, as&nbsp;a completely&nbsp;failed system.</em></strong></span><br /><span><br /></span><br /><span>I guess it depends on what you regard as money and what you regard as &quot;its system.&quot; Money as a medium of exchange is the only means I know of to lift a group out of extremely limited quality of life if exchanges are limited to direct barter. Money has evolved in many groups because it is a method of indirect barter, and exceedingly useful. As such, it is to me totally natural and benign. But bank-issued credit-money, fiat money, Federal Reserve system, government-controlled money system, that&#39;s a whole nother ball game.</span><br /><span><br /></span><br /><span>Irmeli, I appreciated your Integral view of the situation at various Levels of worldview !</span><br /><span><br /></span><br /><span>Blessings, OM</span> </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-510887 Tue, 15 Dec 2009 16:39:13 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#510887 <p> Sunday, December 13. 2009<br /><span>Posted by <a href="http://market-ticker.org/authors/2-Karl-Denninger" target="_blank">Karl Denninger</a></span> <span>in <a href="http://market-ticker.org/categories/1-Politics" target="_blank">Politics</a></span> <span>at <a href="http://market-ticker.org/archives/1723-The-Consequences-Of-The-Big-Lie.html" target="_blank">15:27</a> </span><span></span><br /><br /><a href="http://market-ticker.org/archives/1723-The-Consequences-Of-The-Big-Lie.html" target="_blank">The Consequences Of &quot;The Big Lie&quot;</a><br /><br /><br />and more on big business:<br /><span><br /><a href="http://www.pbs.org/nbr/headlines/US_Seed_Giant/index.html" target="_blank">AP INVESTIGATION: Monsanto seed biz role revealed</a> <br /><span>Monday, December 14, 2009, 8:27 AM EST</span><br /><span>By CHRISTOPHER LEONARD | AP Agribusiness Writer</span><br /><span>The Associated Press</span><br /></span><span></span>&nbsp;<br /><span>quote:</span><br /><span>...</span><br /><span>...</span><br /><span><br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br />&quot;We now believe that Monsanto has control over as much as 90 percent of (seed genetics). This level of control is almost unbelievable,&quot; said Neil Harl, agricultural economist at Iowa State University who has studied the seed industry for decades. &quot;The upshot of that is that it&#39;s tightening Monsanto&#39;s control, and makes it possible for them to increase their prices long term. And we&#39;ve seen this happening the last five years, and the end is not in sight.&quot;<br />At issue is how much power one company can have over seeds, the foundation of the world&#39;s food supply. Without stiff competition, Monsanto could raise its seed prices at will, which in turn could raise the cost of everything from animal feed to wheat bread and cookies. ...<br /></blockquote></span><br /><span></span>&nbsp; </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-510500 Mon, 14 Dec 2009 15:58:49 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#510500 <p> <a href="http://www.chinadaily.com.cn/china/2009-12/10/content_9151129.htm" target="_blank">Population control called key to deal</a><br />By Li Xing (China Daily)<br />Updated: 2009-12-10 07:37<br />article intro:<br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br />COPENHAGEN: Population and climate change are intertwined but the population issue has remained a blind spot when countries discuss ways to mitigate climate change and slow down global warming, according to Zhao Baige, vice-minister of National Population and Family Planning Commission of China (NPFPC) .<br />&quot;Dealing with climate change is not simply an issue of CO2 emission reduction but a comprehensive challenge involving political, economic, social, cultural and ecological issues, and the population concern fits right into the picture,&quot; said Zhao, who is a member of the Chinese government delegation.<br />Many studies link population growth with emissions and the effect of climate change. ...<br />(this is the connection to the last few posts)<br /><br /><br /></blockquote><br />...this is not a drill...this is happening. We cannot ignore where this is leading.&nbsp;&nbsp; </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-509923 Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:40:45 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#509923 <p> <a href="http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1615936,00.html" target="_blank">Why Forced Abortions Persist in China</a><br />By <span><a href="http://www.time.com/time/letters/email_letter.html" target="_blank">Simon Elegant</a> </span><span>Monday, Apr. 30, 2007</span> <br /><br /><br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br />Harrowing details have emerged in recent news reports of alleged forced abortions in China&#39;s impoverished Guangxi province. Earlier this month as many as 61 pregnant women were injected with an abortive drug after being dragged to local hospitals, according to media accounts. Human rights activists say actions allegedly carried out by family planning officials there are unlikely to be isolated. Along with forced sterilization and other coercive methods of birth control, forced abortion continues to be practiced occasionally by officials in remote parts of China despite its having been banned by the central government in Beijing. <br /><br />Read more: <a href="http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1615936,00.html#ixzz0ZUe6coVd" target="_blank">http://www.time.com/time/world/article/0,8599,1615936,00.html#ixzz0ZUe6coVd</a><br /><br /><span><strong><a href="http://www.usatoday.com/news/world/2006-06-14-death-van_x.htm" target="_blank">China makes ultimate punishment mobile</a></strong></span><br /><span>Updated 6/15/2006 5:06 PM ET</span><br /><span></span>&nbsp;<br /><span>...</span><br />The country that executed more than four times as many convicts as the rest of the world combined last year is slowly phasing out public executions by firing squad in favor of lethal injections. Unlike the United States and Singapore, the only two other countries where death is administered by injection, China metes out capital punishment from specially equipped &quot;death vans&quot; that shuttle from town to town. &nbsp;<br /><br />Makers of the death vans say the vehicles and injections are a civilized alternative to the firing squad, ending the life of the condemned more quickly, clinically and safely. The switch from gunshots to injections is a sign that China &quot;promotes human rights now,&quot; says Kang Zhongwen, who designed the Jinguan Automobile death van in which &quot;Devil&quot; Zhang took his final ride. ...&nbsp;<br /></blockquote><br />The rest of this article is even more shocking than the quote. :( </p> Re: Climate Change http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-509913 Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:18:59 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/509215#509913 <p> <strong><a href="http://www.lifesitenews.com/ldn/2009/dec/09121010.html" target="_blank">Prominent Canadian Journalist Calls for Imposed Planetary One-Child Policy</a></strong><br />By John-Henry Westen<br /><br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br />TORONTO, December 9, 2009 (<a href="http://www.lifesitenews.com/" target="_blank">LifeSiteNews.com</a>) - In <a href="http://network.nationalpost.com/np/blogs/francis/archive/2009/12/07/the-inconvenient-truth-overpopulation.aspx" target="_blank">a column </a>published yesterday in one of the major Canadian national newspapers, <u><strong>Diane Francis, the Editor-at-Large of the National Post, has called for a globally enforced one-child policy taken after the example of China.</strong></u>&nbsp; &quot;A planetary law, such as China&#39;s one-child policy, is the only way to reverse the disastrous global birthrate currently of one million births every four days,&quot; writes Francis. ...<br /><br /></blockquote><br />*underlining and bold emphasis added to quote* </p> Re: BIG NEWS: The Dollar Bubble http://yogadharma.gaia.com jacinda tag:gaia.com,2009:Gaia-509906 Sat, 12 Dec 2009 16:06:36 GMT http://groups.gaia.com/ii/conversations/view/503995#509906 <p> <a></a><br /><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/blog/dark-night-debt-limit-be-increased/32625" target="_blank">In the dark of night - Debt Limit to be Increased </a><br />Saturday, December 12, 2009, 9:22 am, by <a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/user/4" title="View user profile." target="_blank">cmartenson</a>&nbsp;(blog):<br /><br /><br /><blockquote dir="ltr" style="MARGIN-RIGHT: 0px"><br /><br />It&#39;s time to face facts. Washington DC is out of control. &nbsp; Spending is breaking all records, the deficit is climbing higher and higher, and the general populace is voicing graver doubts about the deficit and mounting debts even as politicians drag the country even deeper into a financial pit. ...<br /><a href="http://www.chrismartenson.com/user/4" title="View user profile." target="_blank">cmartenson</a>&nbsp;(blog)</blockquote> </p>