Making Noise

Today,

Find Rhythm

Poetry

Lately

The beginning , the middle, the end
an easy guideline yet
hard to follow.
Water down the dripping of time
water down the intensity still snares
a crash.
We ride along and coast
hard times equating merry ones
into an irremovable energy of
fate, free will or more?
An entanglement ensues
past and present;
time intervening into each other
for what?
This quickly glimpsed notion of security,
an outreach of love
to be shared
to be grown upon
and spread.

- Monique Hrabak

Websites

The Innocence Project

Too many are being incarcerated and put to death because of prejudice and faulty evidence. Educate yourself, help end this cycle now!

The West Memphis Three

DNA evidence could prove that three boys, now men, did not commit the crimes with which they have been charged. One is on death row, two are serving life sentences.

Zeitgeist Source Book

I wanted to alert you to my latest effort - I hope you enjoy it, and please feel free to pass it around.

In collaboration with Peter Joseph, creator of the "ZEITGEIST" series of films, I have composed a 105-page free ebook for your edification with many new sources backing up the first/religion part of the first ZG movie.

In fact, this brand-new document includes a bibliography with over 150 sources, nearly 350 citations, and some 80 illustrations! The sources are largely primary sources and the writings of credentialed authorities in relevant fields.

You can read about the source book and download your free copy here:

Enjoy!

- From Acharya S/D.M. Murdock

Articles

Oil Debate Spills Into Academe

Within three days of the BP oil spill, Joe Griffit was out in the Gulf of Mexico taking water samples to begin assessing the damage. As an assistant professor of coastal sciences at the University of Southern Mississippi, Griffit says he’s been eager to assist in the restoration efforts taking shape in the region. So when lawyers representing BP came to Griffit with an offer -- help us assess the damage and find a way to restore what’s been destroyed -- Griffit says the option was “initially very attractive” to him and some of his colleagues.

- Submitted by Tim Miller

Big Brother

Is Wal-Mart trying out products embedded with RFID tracking chips? Keep your eyes open... all three of them.

Events

Black Wave: The Legacy of the Exxon Valdez


A film about the impact of the Exxon Valdez oil spill will be shown Aug. 5 in downtown Pensacola. Directed by Robert Cornellier, "Black Wave, the Legacy of the Exxon Valdez" examines the impact of the millions of gallons of crude oil spilled near Cordova, Alaska, in 1989. The Alaskan Exxon Valdez spill was the largest environmental catastrophe in North America until it was eclipsed by the April 20 Deepwater Horizon spill. The free show is set for 7 p.m. Aug. 5 at Sluggo’s, a vegan restaurant at 101 S. Jefferson St. in downtown Pensacola.


Quotations

All tremble at punishment.
Life is dear to all.
Put yourself in the place of others;
kill none nor have another killed.

- Unknown, taken from Buddhist text

Calls to Action

They don't ALL own Casino's.

No more broken promises - Make a pledge to remember Native Americans.
No American Indian elder should live in isolation. No American Indian Child should go hungry. Generation after generation has broken this promise. Please join me in ending the cycle. No more broken promises - Make a pledge to remember Native Americans.


-Kirk

Art

Three in Evolution

-Eric St. Pierre


A Personal Note

Make sure to "like" us on Facebook.

We need contributors to keep this cooperative thing going. If you have a blog, poetry, art, find an interesting article or website, LET US KNOW!

All material is maintained and written by Eric St. Pierre unless it is otherwise notated. Feel free to use as you see fit as long as the integrity of the piece is not manipulated.



-Eric St. Pierre

7/26/10

You'll soon notice that this issue looks different than those in the past. It looks truncated, rushed, and well, just not as pretty. The reason for this is that because of other social and economic obligations, I have not been able to dedicate any time to our newsletter/blog. I am sending this one out, undeveloped and unprepared, because I feel the information contained within is important. Look out for The Prison Book Project, an art and music benefit show for Open Books hosted by The Postscript Society at Dolce Vita in October.

Apologies,

Eric

From Jill

I have to tell you that Q's friend from Chicago, Orron Kenyatta, is coming down this Tuesday to perform at End of The Line and he's supposedly a big deal. One of his spoken word poems has been adapted to a play and the season is already sold out... and we're
getting a $3000 performance for free, so please (pretty please) spread the word to get him an audience.

Okay, I'll be in touch soon,

Thanks again,

Jill


From Burt

I have out together many links about what is going on with BP and the oil spill. I hope this puts a better perspective on what people on the gulf coast are facing. I have sent some of the links out already but for this i put everything together, hopefully, in a manner that gets the point across without putting too much to sift through and at the same time getting it out to everyone we can, so please forward. Thanks for everyone's help with the links and info, I couldn't have done it without you.


Clean up just for show


BP contractors cover up oil spill with sand (with Video)


First Amendment Has been Suspended


History of BP Includes Role in 1953 Iran Coup After Nationalization of Oil


BP CEO Sells 1/3 of his shares weeks before 4/20/10. Pays off mansion

BP buys search engine results


Goldman Sachs Sell Stock Prior to 4/20/10 and shorts


http://www.huffingtonpost.com/andy-borowitz/goldman-sachs-reveals-it_b_558774.html


BP Was Battling Gulf Well as Early as February


The Video BP & Big Oil Doesn't Want You to See


Quote: I can confirm the military is looking to abandon the Pensacola region as a consequence of the oil disaster.

Military families are pulling out, and the military is not renewing contracts, and ending future ones.

I have several confirmed inside sources in Pensacola.
End quote.

Trusted Source.


From Eric

The feds seem intent upon MURDERING SHERRY JACKSON. She details how the feds denied her medical care in prison and right now she IS IN THE PROCESS OF DYING. Sherry was one of the stars of Aaron Russo's America: Freedom to Fascism. She was the former IRS agent who cried out, "SHOW ME THE LAW!"

Kirby Dick's provocative documentary investigates the secretive and inconsistent process by which the Motion Picture Association of America rates films, revealing the organization's underhanded efforts to control culture. Dick questions whether certain studios get preferential treatment and exposes the discrepancies in how the MPAA views sex and violence. Interviewees include John Waters, Darren Aronofsky, Maria Bello, Atom Egoyan and more.

Scientists and atheists do something that many believers find repellent: we shatter their perception of their relationship to the universe. And understandably, they don't like that.

Royal Raymond Rife (May 16, 1888 – August 5, 1971) was an American inventor and early exponent of high-magnification time-lapse cine-micrography. He claimed that using a specially designed optical microscope, only five of which were ever constructed, he could observe a number of viruses which he thought were causal factors in several diseases, most notably cancer. Rife also claimed that a "beam ray" device could destroy or weaken the pathogens by inducing destructive resonances in their constituent chemicals. Rife's claims could not be independently replicated, and active scientific interest in the devices had dissipated by the 1950s.

As most reading this already know, The Zeitgeist Movement is a sustainability advocacy organization which is fundamentally built upon/inspired by the social ideas of Jacque Fresco of The Venus Project. It isn’t the scope of this article to run down the vast and rather complex tenets of The Movement. However, I would like to give a basic overview here.


At death a person abandons
what one construes as mine.
Realizing this, the wise
shouldn't incline
to be devoted to mine.

Understanding Meaning

Today,

Understand

Understanding Victor Frankl’s Ultimate Meaning and Religion

Viktor Frankl, while standing in the tradition of humanism and existentialism with Fromm, Allport, and Maslow, contrasts the psychoanalytic theory of Sigmund Freud and the individualistic theory of Alfred Adler. Freud suggests that the basic motivational factor for a human being is the “will to pleasure,” Adler suggests it is the “will to power,” and Frankl suggests it is the “will to meaning” and is manifested in the “spiritual” dimensions, which is what is most unique about the self.

In his idea of a meaningful life, or how to become meaningful, Frankl outlines three main chances to achieve such a life: 1) by doing a deed or creating a work, 2) by experiencing something (nature or culture) or someone whom we love, or 3) by changing an attitude to create meaning in the midst of a situation that causes suffering. His theory sees man struggling for the most meaningful life possible or instead being frustrated in his very “will to meaning” by being disappointed and by seeing there is no place for meaning and thus simply floundering in his search.

In going one step beyond simply being as a human being, the religious person strives for an ultimate meaning. There is a new dimension that religious personalities enter by striving for something that may be experienced and perceived in terms of an ultimate meaning. This person is not satisfied with finding a meaningful task to complete, but also includes the awareness of a task giver, which is divinity.

While the “will to meaning” seems to be an extremely common motivational factor for human beings, I do not know if I agree that it is an intrinsic motivational factor of all human beings. I must agree with Freud in his idea of a “will to pleasure.” That is, pleasure is the primary motivating human factor when discussing motivation beyond survivalism, and this is even true in religion. Many religions provide a comfort or a crutch for human beings in a world that is full of half truths, contradictions and is difficult to understand. All of these religions claim to provide meaning, but ultimately they provide a pleasure of sorts – the comfort and satisfaction of an indoctrinated “ultimate meaning” that holds no intrinsic value. So, really, a “will to meaning” is in fact a “will to pleasure.”

- Gina St. Pierre

Websites

Are You Addicted to Oil?

Dr. Warren is a psychologist with 20 years experience helping individuals conquer addiction and deal with its lasting repercussions. The calamitous oil spill in the Gulf brings into sharp relief America’s addiction to dirty fuels. She draws parallels between our collective behavior in regards to oil and addictions that may be more familiar to us, such as smoking, drinking, drug use or gambling.

Take the test!

Articles

Acupuncture Stimulates release of Natural Painkillers

A recent study in Nature Neuroscience from the University of Rochester suggests a physiological explanation of how acupuncture relieves pain. Needles inserted in mice increased levels of the naturally occurring (and pain relieving) chemical adenosine by 24-fold in surrounding tissue.

Events

I would like to invite you all out to visit this product of community at the University of West Florida. We have a host of different veggies and are growing this garden without chemical pesticides or fertilizers.

*We are always at the Garden on Fridays at 10am. Please let me know if you are interested and I will add you to the garden club contact list.

Location: Parking lot SP2, 9 mile rd. is in the far right corner intersecting with campus drive.

- From the Progressive Student Alliance

Free Art Lessons for Foster Kids

Dolce Vita is holding an art party on Saturday, June 26th from 6pm to 3am. There is a $5 cover and a silent auction. There will be beer and wine. The proceeds go to Art Reshaping Tomorrow, a program that gives free art lessons to foster kids. Dolce Vita is located at 309 Rues street in downtown Pensacola behind Ever'man natural food store.

Quotations

"Some recluses and brahmins, so called,

Are deeply attached to their own views;

People who only see one side of things

Engage in quarrels and disputes."

- Unknown (taken from Buddhist texts)

"Whatever you can do, or dream you can, begin it. Boldness has genius, power, and magic in it. Begin it now."

-Goethe

"At the end of every attempt to objectify our subjective lives, is elusive anxiety about the fact that reality is completely empty...and Free*"

-J. Reid

Calls to Action

Dear Friend,

The media conglomerate Discovery Communications used to be known for their earth-friendly offerings. But they've just paid millions to Sarah Palin to host a "nature" show, despite her decidedly anti-environmental stance: She vocally advocates for habitat-destroying oil drilling, she denies global warming is a human-caused threat, and she spearheaded a brutal wolf-slaughter program as governor of Alaska.

It's one thing if Fox News gives Sarah Palin a platform. But when Discovery Communications -- home to the Discovery Channel, the "Planet Earth" series, the Science Channel, Animal Planet, and TreeHugger.com -- gives a show to Sarah Palin, it undercuts everything the Discovery brand has come to represent.

Anti-environmentalism has no place in the Discovery Communications lineup. Join me in demanding that the company cancel "Sarah Palin's Alaska" before it airs. Just click on the link to send your message.

-Kirk

The second Hands Across the Sand event is happening Saturday, June 26th, only this time it is a nationwide event. Last time the focus was to help stop the petro-chemical companies from drilling in our State waters, as close as 3 miles off shore. This time the event goes further in helping to bring awareness to the root issue: our deadly addiction to fossil fuels. Thank you to Margaret Biggs who is helping to organize, and Mary Gutierrez who is trying very hard to work out some public transportation options for us. So far the best that can be done in Escambia County is for us to all meet at the Park and Ride (near the civic center) and car pool. We will meet at 10:15 a.m. No seat should go unfilled. We will then meet at Pensacola Pier at 11am, hold hands from 12 to 12:15 to show solidarity on our support for renewable energy and public transportation. Perhaps someone wants to organize a meeting place in Santa Rosa County for car pooling also? Okaloosa? Walton?

-PSA

Art

By Aaron Ridgeway

A Personal Note

The Post Script Society publication is maintained and compiled by Eric St. Pierre unless otherwise notated. This issue of the Post Script Society was edited by Gina St. Pierre , many thanks are due to her. If you would like to contribute to our publication please respond to this email.

Evolution

Today,
Evolve


[The purpose of this blog] is NOT to attempt to stratify "people of faith" with "people of fact," but to highlight the harm in rejecting new information that conflicts with belief.

There is A TON of proof that would suggest that evolution is correct. It is not just another "belief," it is supported on all sides by many fields of science outside of biology. While some people claim there are errors in Charles Darwin's theory, let us also remember that 150 years ago people were oblivious to genetics and archaeology and geology were nowhere near what they are today. As something primarily based on observation after 150 years it has stood up to all kinds of testing as discovery after discovery has done nothing but strengthen this theory.

Let me also clarify [what constitutes as a theory]. The term "theory," in the realm of science, does not mean what it does in colloquial language.


When we say "the theory of evolution," we mean "theory" as in: A set of statements or principles devised to explain a group of facts or phenomena, especially one that has been repeatedly tested or is widely accepted and can be used to make predictions about natural phenomena.

Let's also remember what Einstein said about testing within the realm of the scientific method: "No amount of experimentation can ever prove me right; a single experiment can prove me wrong."

This means that all it would take to prove Darwin wrong once and for all is the discovery of a fossilized rabbit from the Devonian era. Assuming that the Earth was created in 6 days along with all it's inhabitants simultaneously this should happen, right? But it doesn't. We only find fossils of aquatic animals in a time that predates land animals from 416 to 359.2 million years ago.


So while we should be humble as to what really is universally correct, we can surely appreciate the merit of something that has withstood a century and a half of scientific breakthroughs only to come out stronger than ever. To say that it is "just another theory, what makes it different to the creationism theory?" is a naive statement to make and suggests ignorance on behalf of a person who has chosen to reject the evidence from many years of testing based on feedback from the real world.

Now about that infamous "missing link," It's not missing. There are many discovered fossils of the intermediates between what we call "apes" and the modern man. Remember that contradictory to the creationist argument, evolution doesn't assert that we evolved from monkeys or apes as we know them today, instead it states that we and modern apes share a common ancestor albeit more like an ape than us but different rates of change occur under different circumstances. The problem with these fossils is that as soon as we find something to plug the hole that the deniers of evolution are so quick to point out, we are now faced with 2 holes, one on either side of the intermediate to which need their own intermediates and so on.

Of the plethora of distinguishable ape-man fossils in existence there are two genera worth mentioning. Australopithecus and Homo. The latter is the genus to which we as a species belong (homo sapiens). The homo genus is believed to be descended from the Australopithecus so once again we would expect to find intermediates between them. Sure enough, we do. The two genera are littered with species that are classifications of characteristics attributed to the fossils found from different time periods. Listed in chronological order, here are some examples of these species:

Australopithecus afarensis, which lived 4 to 2.7 million years ago and walked upright.
Australopithecus africanus, 3 to 2 million years ago and similar to A. afarensis. (both are likely candidates for the ancestors of the homo genus).
Australopithecus robustus, 2.3 to 1 million years ago. Similar to A. afarensis but had a thicker skull.
Homo habilis, 2.5 to 1.5 million years ago. Remains have been found near stone tools hence the name (handy man).
Homo erectus, 2 ma. to around 500'000 years ago. Believed to have been the first Homo species to migrate and the first to use fire.
Homo heidelburgensis, 500 to 200'000 years ago. (this group is thought to be ancestral to the now extinct Neanderthal and modern Homo sapiens)
Homo neanderthalensis, 200'000 to 30'000 years ago. From Europe and Western Asia and are believed to have lived side by side with modern Homo Sapiens.
Homo sapiens, 130'000 to the present day. The first were known as Cro-Magnons and were more muscular than us but with smaller brains. They used elaborate tools and left many cave paintings.

Hypothetically, we would imagine that if we had a lifelike replica of a mother and a daughter at the same approximate age for every generation standing next to each other, we could walk down a long line of daughter, mother, grandmother, great grandmother... and see the obvious resemblance in characteristics, but how long do we have to walk down this line until we are looking at a completely different species altogether? It would be something like watching a person grow. You wouldn't notice them growing day to day but the same person at 30 years of age is nothing like they were at 3. And in the same way we classify a child, adolescent, and adult, so do we classify species. A person doesn't just morph from an adolescent to an adult at the stroke of midnight on a given date and in the same way neither does an organism give birth to an organism of a totally different species.

This is a common problem among paleoanthropologists today because now that we have a list of species within a list of genera it is becoming harder and harder to classify a fossil as belonging to one species or another and there are examples of fossils that are classified as different species by different paleoanthropologists with different opinions. So where is the missing link now?

My point in all this is that understanding this concept leads to the realization that we are all related. To our cousins the chimpanzees or to a fish or a flower at some point in time we have shared a common ancestor and then branched off to go our separate ways and meet each other again in the present day in the cumulative form of our experiences through natural selection. Every organism is it's own unique "species" that varies only slightly from it's predecessor. The only reason we have to name them different things and separate them into categories is so that our limited minds can keep track of things and pass them on through conversation.

This is truly a powerful realization to come to because only now can we have a relationship with nature and all that is around us. We have evolved alongside others and established crucial relationships that are vital for our survival and well being. We know that without plants and animals we're dead. We recognize that our well being is only as good as the well being of every living thing in our environment and it is in our best interest to protect it from harm in any way shape or form. Only now can we acknowledge our symbiosis with nature and understand the reasoning behind it.

This leads me to my initial point that there is no reason for anyone to deny this reality for the sake of outdated beliefs that contradict the idea that we have evolved. This can only lead to a misconception that we are separate and disconnected from nature. We are able to pursue activities that may benefit us at the the expense of our environment or others around us because we cannot comprehend the detrimental effects that go beyond our own egotistical lifetime. To go on thinking that we are superior to everything with god given rights to exist on the highest terrestrial rung of the ladder of life will ultimately bring about our own destruction.


- Josh "JellyMeat" (edits in brackets by Eric St. Pierre)

Quotations

“Do more than belong: participate. Do more than care: help. Do more than believe: practice. Do more than be fair: be kind. Do more than forgive: forget. Do more than dream: work.”

-William Arthur Ward

"As a mother would risk her life
to protect her child, her only child,
even so should one cultivate a limitless heart
with regard to all beings"

- Unknown, taken from Buddhist text

"I think I'm dumb...or maybe just happy. I think I'm just happy."

- Kurt Cobain

Art

"I Dream of Gina" By Eric St. Pierre.

Poetry

None for this issue. If you would like to contribute to the next issue, please reply to this email.

Articles

The CIA Admits Plans to Manipulate Public

This is what has been admitted. Imagine what has not.

Websites

New Earth Warriors

From the man that inspired the book that inspired the movie "Men Who Stare at Goats" is a website dedicated to teaching the world about the valuable benefits of peaceful conflict resolution and spiritual development.

Spirals Over Australia

12 pictures and a video of a spiral "ufo" over Australia yesterday, June 5th, 2010! Just like the Norway Spiral except this time it moved all over the sky and many cities. The video, news article, and pictures are in the link below. (video is the 13th "picture" in the series on the website)

Scores of people from across the country [Australia] have been stunned to see what appears to be an unidentified flying object flying across the sky.

Ninemsn readers from South Australia, NSW, Queenland and Victoria have sent in photos of a mysterious object that spiralled across the night sky at around 5:45am this morning.

It was described as a swirling light that moved from east to west across the sky for several minutes just before sunrise.

-from Burt Antone

Events

None to report.

Action Alerts

Hi,
The occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan are making us poor. Right now, America spends $159 billion on contingency operations for the occupations of Afghanistan and Iraq. That's enough money to eliminate taxes for everyone who makes under $35,000 a year, while cutting the deficit.
Progressive hero, Congressman Alan Grayson, is once again leading the charge to put an end to this disastrous spending. I signed the petition to support 'The War is Making You Poor' Act, an act that would cut waste, fraud and abuse in the disastrous occupations of Iraq and Afghanistan.
Join me and sign the petitin at http://www.thewarismakingyoupoor.com/
Do it now.

-Kirk

Other Links of Interest

BlackFridayFatality
James' Book

A Personal Note

We need another editor. Gina can't do it all by herself! If you would like to volunteer your skills and time, reply.

The Post Script Society publication is maintained and compiled by Eric St. Pierre unless otherwise notated. This issue of the Post Script Society was edited by Gina St. Pierre , many thanks are due to her. If you would like to to contribute to our publication please leave a comment.

Becoming Water

Today
Become Fluid


Beliefs are better used as devices of progression as opposed to fixed world views. So, it's not the belief but the system that maintains the idea that beliefs should be static that needs to be addressed. Beliefs should be flexible and breakable as newer information is assimilated. I try, and often fail, to live my life as a testament to this (BE the change we want to see in the world, not FIGHT for change).

All institutions that are considered static, fixed, unwavering, or otherwise hostile or indifferent to new information, are bad regardless if the institution was established in the East or West. That is not to say that some institutions are void of great wisdom and lifestyle methods. It is important to note that great wisdom and lifestyle methods can, and should, come about without the use of static institutions.

-Eric St. Pierre


Quotations

"A nation is a society united by a delusion about its ancestry and by common hatred of its neighbours."

-William Ralph Inge

"I am not an Athenian or a Greek, but a citizen of the world."

-Diogenes

"I have no country to fight for; my country is the earth, and I am a citizen of the world."

-Eugene V. Debs

"Nationalism is an infantile disease. It is the measles of mankind."

-Albert Einstein

"Everyone is asked their opinion about every detail in order to prevent them from having one about the totality"

- Raoul Vaneigem

Art

Introducing Aaron Ridgeway to the Postscript Society.


Poetry


and he fancied himself an artist
made of masculine prance and quiet sputters
as if smoke ring talent where a trait to be admired.
by the works of others before he,
by the tear and thickness of artists hands,
those lines river snaked through canyons of depth
and his was atop those mountainsides, carving the faces of great men.
how’s a smoke ring volcano, boy?
how’s the lament of the Virginian’s eyes?
that brow so subtle in statement,
as if to speak:
“an artist tells no lies.”



- Eric St. Pierre


Articles

A Prison System for You and Me to Live In

A New York police officer fed up with the corrupt nature of the law enforcement system decided to take matters into his own hands and make audio recordings of police officials. What was revealed in those tapes exposes law enforcement big wigs as liars and manipulators. The tapes show how the crime rate was manipulated to receive more funding from the federal government and how crime victims were harassed and told to keep quiet about their experience.

Political Rhetoric Delays Wind Energy

"Opinion" gets in the way of another solution. Thanks to Gina St. Pierre for finding this article.

Yogi Self Deprivation

Explore the limits of the body and mind. Thanks to Steven Walker for submitting this article.

Websites

The Orion Project

From the website:
"Imagine a world where every home and village has its own clean source of electrical energy, free from the cost of fossil fuels, nuclear power or a centralized electric grid.
Imagine every means of transportation running off of clean power plants, using no source of fuel and creating no pollution.
Imagine the developing world blossoming with these new technologies and the equatorial rain forests protected from slash and burn subsistence farming and logging.
Imagine all inter-city transportation above the ground and the millions of acres paved over with highways freed for productive agriculture and recreation.
Imagine all manufacturing being clean-fuel sourced, using no-cost or low-cost energy.
Imagine the possibility of 100% recycling because the energy cost of transporting recycled materials, processing them and scrubbing pollution out of the air and water approaches zero."

Thanks to Burt Antone for finding the site.

Action Alerts

None to report.

Other Links of Interest

Eric's Shirts
James' Book


A Personal Note

The Post Script Society publication is maintained and compiled by Eric St. Pierre unless otherwise notated. This issue of the Post Script Society was edited by Gina St. Pierre, many thanks are due to her. If you would like to to contribute to our publication, please send an email to thepostscriptsociety@gmail.com.

Consumption and the Looking Glass Self: The Illusion of Need and Identity

Consumption and the Looking Glass Self:

The Illusion of Need and Identity


All nations are consumption based societies. Most activities from leisure to labor are formatted around cyclical consumption. In these modern days, citizens acquire material possessions to let others know how they wish to be perceived. Thus, the looking glass self is manipulated in an unnatural or manufactured way. Prior to the eighteenth century, consumption was an indicator of true status and social structure; sumptuary laws where enforced as a way to limit luxury and extravagance as a means to keep classes of people stratified (Encyclopedia of Sociology volume 1). In modern times, Americans can consume as much as one’s dollar value allows, making the possibilities of alienation from others and separation from the Self essentially endless. Workers around the world now produce commodities in exchange for wages so that they may buy things that they did not make by means of their own effort (Encyclopedia of Sociology volume 1). Also, workers tend to receive a wage that is unequal in value to what they produce (Encyclopedia of Sociology volume 1). These facts separate humanity from the natural world. Due to the power of advertising and the relentless pursuit of monetary gain, the consumer is led, unknowingly, from their natural being by engaging in cyclical and conspicuous consumption. The following paragraphs will explain some of the detrimental aspects of consumer culture and its effects on the looking glass self. Though society’s current illusions may seem daunting, it is important to evaluate future considerations, such as the resource based economy proposed by inventor, artist, and social designer Jacque Fresco (http://www.thevenusproject.com/).

The illusion of need is a major problem facing modern culture. Some products that would have been considered luxuries fifty years ago are now considered needs. For example, modern people generally connect food to social order instead of caloric intake or other requirements (Encyclopedia of Sociology volume 1). So, if a person wants to impress a potential partner, one no longer wants to provide high end expensive food on a first date; it is socially demanded by our alpha-male centric society.

Our world is dominated with advertisements of vapid, morbidly thin fashion models. From one season to another, fashion trends surge and ebb. What causes these rapid shifts in trends? Certainly, a matter of three months, or a season - is not a substantial amount of time for sustainable improvements in clothing to come from nothing. Yet, over $250 billion is spent on fashion each year in the United States of America (http://www.grabstats.com/). Clearly, what we have is an industry built upon the insecurities of consumers, women in particular. And like all institutional industry, the fashion industry’s sole purpose is to keep itself alive, thus the insistence upon the cyclical consumption of new fashion is disguised as a need.

Our illusion of the need to stand out in the crowd or to be above others denies us the natural state of human of connectivity. "[O]ur ability to ‘want’, to ‘desire’ and to ‘long for’, and especially our ability to experience such emotions repeatedly, actually underpins the economy of human togetherness" (Zygmunt, Consuming Life page 26). In other words, our manufactured desires that are advertised as needs have become paramount and are blinding us from the reality of human interconnectedness. This natural reality of interconnectedness is an enemy to the advertising industry that spends one-hundred forty billion USD annually (http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2005-06-19-cannes-box_x.htm) to convince Americans that they need to purchase their products in order to achieve a high social standing.

Conspicuous and cyclical consumption mask the true intentions of our looking glass self, where as actual projected value is replaced by vain, materialistic endeavors. Although we as a culture go out of our way to “shop to impress,” studies have shown that those of us that who pursue happiness through the acquisition of products are less liked by our peers than those of us who pursue happiness via social experiences (http://www.sciencedaily.com/.). So, what is it that drives consumption? Studies have shown that advertising may be more powerful than our culture ever intended. We use to turn to religion and philosophy to answer the big questions like “Who are we?” and “Why are we here?” but now, growing trends indicate that the advertising and capitalist market industries are answering those questions for us. A lifestyle is no longer something that we consciously choose; instead, we “buy” the lifestyle (“Shopology”, 2001). The advertising arm has reached into the churches too; Americans tithe one-hundred three billion dollars a year to places of worship (http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/charity/2008-10-07-charity-faith_N.htm). Here, instead of the consumption of products, we have the consumption of a clear conscious.

When the consumer is unable to purchase into what they are led to believe by the advertising and capitalist market is a needed lifestyle, people tend to resort to a coping mechanism that psychologists call “compensatory consumption.” That is, “A term coined to describe the phenomenon whereby individuals who feel frustrated in achieving personal goals may compensate for this through their consumption BEHAVIOUR. It applies particularly to individuals with low incomes/occupational mobility.” (The Westburn Dictionary of Marketing, 1998) This feeds into the cyclical consumption machine, further manipulating the looking glass self by means of hiding depression caused by consumption, with more consumption. This helps to fuel the medical industry. The public is overmedicated and subdued by antidepressants (associatedcontent.com/article/256677/americans_are_being_overmedicated_the.html). From 1999 to 2000, the total money spent on antidepressants in America rose by twenty-one percent to ten million (healingdaily.com). So, market capitalism and the advertising industry fools consumers into believing in an unattainable standard of living and are there to sell them medications when they become depressed over the illusion. To say that there is money to be made from depression is an understatement.

What we see is a clear practice; to keep cyclical consumption, market capitalism’s fuel, rolling, the advertising industry must push arbitrary products from the want category into the need category. Again, this separates the consumer from reality and makes it impossible for the looking glass aspect of the self to be fully realized.

Another detrimental issue the consumer faces is the illusion of identity. When speaking of the illusion of identity in relationship to consumption, one question is of particular importance: How are consumers expected to reflect their true nature via the looking glass self if the consumer does not realize that their true self is no longer represented in their actions? “Anthropology continually shows that in order to consume, people must make sense of needs, relationships and objects, and establish complex collective meanings and rituals that knit all three together.” (Encyclopedia of Sociology volume 1) Therefore in order for the market to strive, wants must be disguised as needs, product relationships must be established firmly and early in the consumer’s life, and collective cultural rituals must revolve around consumption.

“It is currently estimated that a child sees more than forty-thousand television commercials a year.” (Report of the APA task force on advertising and children) “The primary purpose of all television advertising is to influence the attitudes and subsequent behavior of viewers” (Report of the APA task force on advertising and children). Children below the ages off seven and eight lack the cognitive ability to apply considerations such as intent and bias to what they view. Advertising specialists, being versed in psychology, take advantage of this fact. The effect of advertising on children usually goes beyond the altering of attitudes and subsequent behavior; it may have a more lasting effect. Advertising can affect the child’s perception of what is nutritious and may cause child/parent conflict should a parent attempt to deny the child of the advertised item. Distorted nutritional information can lead to childhood obesity, diabetes, and a lifetime of health and cognitive problems. Child/parent conflict can lead to lasting miscommunication and even child abuse and neglect.

A sizable part of an individual’s identity is her or his relationship to their cultural traditions. Few cultural American traditions have endured untouched by the long reaching arm of consumerism. All major religious celebrations involve gift giving and receiving. On average, around thirty-seven billion dollars are spent on Christmas gifts per year (US Census). All holidays built around relationships, i.e. Mother’s Day and Valentines Day- have entire industries dedicated to making the consumer feel obligated to purchase goods. Again, in the form of gift giving, we see that the advertising industry and the capitalist market have their hands in three areas of life that give us our identity: religious, philosophical, and familial affairs associated with cultural traditions and rituals. Given this, a second practice is clear: market capitalism, the advertising industry, and materialism join forces, so to speak, to manipulate traditions that give a people identity and definition.

When presented with this discouraging realization one may feel helpless and desperate. One possible solution to these problems of consumption is an economy and philosophy developed and advocated for over the last forty years by a man named Jacque Fresco. Mr. Fresco is a ninety-four futurist, inventor, artist, and social engineer whose lifework has been assimilated into a social design paradigm that he holistically and creatively calls The Venus Project. The Venus Project is headquartered in Venus, Florida. Jacque Fresco and his long time partner, Roxanne Meadows, dedicate every day of their life to researching sustainable and clean technologies. Their only income is the modest income generated by sales of Mr. Fresco’s books and by tours that they give once or twice a month to those that who wish to learn more about his life’s work. They are currently on a world tour lecture circuit speaking to the general public about the benefits and values of a resource based economy.

The goal of the Venus Project is to assist the world in a transition, by means of massive social therapy, from our current monetary based economy to a resource based economy or RBE. Jacque Fresco envisions a world beyond politics, poverty, and war; where the world’s solutions are arrived at using the scientific method. In an RBE the world’s resources would be the understood inheritance of all the world’s inhabitants. Nothing is bought or sold, because there is no gain from such acts. The delusive value of modern society’s fiat money would be replaced with true value; the value of human thought and effort. Mr. Fresco envisions a world where humans are free of borders and wage slavery. In his resource based economy, there would be no reason for any advertising, much less deceptive advertising aimed at children. This would help to free children from the trappings of positive reinforcement through advertising and offer ample room for them to grow into happy, healthy, productive non-consumers. Stripped of the intent of monetary gain, our cultural traditions will become what they were originally intended to be, meaningful and fulfilling without the expectations of gift giving and receiving. Without the market system telling us what is fashionably desirable and what is not, we can concentrate our skills on making cloths that serve a more function based purpose. Consumption has no spirit. Consumption consumes because it is empty. Emptiness keeps the monetary market machine rolling. In a resource based economy, sustainability and the intelligent application of technology via a system, or scientific, method is valued over the acquisition of material possession and monetary gain. For when our purses are full, what is left of our spirit?

A resourced based economy, as expressed within the values and ideals of the Venus Project, allows for all levels of Abraham Maslow’s hierarchy of needs to be met without a price tag. This frees people to achieve higher states of being and realizations of interconnectedness. Without the illusions of need and identity to manipulate our perception of ourselves, the looking glass self is left naked and pure.

Works Cited
http://www.associatedcontent.com/article/256677/americans_are_being_overmedicated_the.html
http://www.census.gov/retail/
Encyclopedia of Sociology, vol. 1, page 139, hard copy
Encyclopedia of Sociology, vol. 1, page 140, hard copy
Encyclopedia of Sociology, vol. 1, page 143, hard copy
http://www.grabstats.com/statcategorymain.asp?StatCatID=12
http://www.healingdaily.com/conditions/health-spending.htm
Report of the APA task force on advertising and children, FEB 20, 2004 page 2
http://www.sciencedaily.com/releases/2010/04/100414130832.htm
http://www.usatoday.com/news/nation/charity/2008-10-07-charity-faith_N.html
http://www.usatoday.com/money/advertising/adtrack/2005-06-19-cannes-box_x.htm
http://www.thevenusproject.com/
Zygmunt, Consuming Life page 26, hard copy

Written by Eric St. Pierre
Edited by Gina St. Pierre and James Blackburn III

Allowing it to Happen

Today,

Allow it to happen

Art by James Blackburn

Spirituality, stripped of religion, is the urge to connect with something that is often referred to as a higher power. Once you take the -isms out, that urge is what you're left with. I don't personally refer to the sense of connectivity as a higher power because that suggests that it is something that is separate from us. I don't believe in a deity that dictates morality. The reason for this is that what is considered moral has fluctuated over time and has never been the same all over the world. The one thing that every human - and indeed every living thing - has in common is the drive to survive. Our ethics and morality and thus or spirituality should be based on this drive. It has been shown time after time that cooperation supports life while competition destroys it. This cooperation, or connection, is my form of spirituality because it can be measured. Pondering the abstract - things that cannot be measured - is fun and intellectually stimulating but in the end it doesn't add up to the tangible. I am more so concerned with "Now that we're here, what do we do?", rather than "How did we get here?"

-Eric St. Pierre

Websites

WolframAlpha

WolframAlpha's goal is to take all the world's information, make it all easily assessable to everyone in the world, and make it testable and computable by everyone in the world. While this tool is, for the time being, strictly mathematical in nature, it is the basis of Jacque Fresco's Venus Project. With WolframAlpha we have the beginnings of a holistic system that utilizes the scientific method to arrive at solutions and decisions. In the future, a system like this would allow anyone to test hypotheses on better social systems and structural organization in general. In the Venus Project, if the result is a better way to do things, then that new way is adopted. The "better" way to do things is not voted on, but instead scientifically tested to determine it's worth. This is an example of what can be done.

Equality Trust

Income inequality leads to poor physical and mental health, drug abuse, lower levels of education, imprisonment, and other undesirable social fallacies. This is true in human and nonhuman primate societies. Here is the proof.

HydroCopia

Organic, automated farming. This is a glimpse into the future of food with a focus on health and abundance.

Articles

A Life Without Fear

Read about Isabelle, the child who is unable to fear. Our society views this as a disorder - and it very well may be - but imagine if we all had this "disorder." Is this child sick, or has she evolved?

Draw Muhammed Day

May 20th is Draw Muhammed Day. The purpose is to water down the pool of targets that Islamists have their jihads set on. It's just an image, get over it. If we can't laugh at ourselves how can we ever make this world a better place? Oh, and here's a link to images of Muhammad from Medieval Times (no, not the restaurant)- thanks to Steve Walker for the link.

Quotes

"States are not moral agents, people are, and can impose moral standards on powerful institutions."

-Noam Chomsky

"For one who mindfully develop

Boundless loving-kindnessSeeing the destruction of clinging,

The fetters are worn away."

- Itivuttaka 1.27

Action Alerts

Friends,

For now, I am not aware of any volunteers organized to help clean Pensacola nor Navarre Beaches or wildlife. BP has said they are not accepting any volunteer help. Anyone wanting to help with oil slick clean-up in Orange Beach should contact captain_lori@yahoo.com . More info below. This morning I received word that two more leaks have been discovered, and an estimated five-times more oil is escaping than previously thought (more than 275,000 gallons per day). Remember to contact your local, state and federal representatives, and tell them we don’t want drilling off our coasts.

Thanks,

Tim Miller

Other Links of Interest

Eric's Art

James' Book
The Post Script Society Face Book Page

A Personal Note The Post Script Society publication is maintained and compiled by Eric St. Pierre unless otherwise notated. This issue of the Post Script Society was edited by Gina St. Pierre and James Blackburn, many thanks are due to them. If you would like to to contribute to our publication, please respond to blog. To reseive email updates from The Postscript Society, send an email to thepostscriptsociety@gmail.com