On 27th June 2005 I wrote my very first post on this blog. Today was the 1st anniversary.

Apologies for writing this entry in the evening of this day, but I only just remembered that it was today.

Since I started writing this blog I've transferred a whole bunch of posts from my previous website journals, which is why the Archives go back to 1998, just in case you were wondering.

Thank you to all those of you who have been with me throughout the years, and thank you to those of you who have only just come along in the past year. It's been a pleasure having you along for the ride. I hope it's enjoyable enough for you to hang around for a few more years yet.

Cheers.

*raises a glass of wine to you*

When I decided to move away from political commentary on this blog, I cut out a great part of what this blog has been about. Most of the content has been based on what's frustrated me about global (US) politics. It's been interesting for me to move away from that, and to focus more on other things in my life. It's been quite rewarding, in a way. It's like my mind is somewhat clearer, thinking more about personal growth than about what frustrates me.

I think that focusing on what frustrates you holds you back from achieving happiness and fulfilment in life.

But as a result of the political commentary being halted, I understand it's been relatively slow on this blog, with less posts being made. I don't know if that will improve (although I hope it will), or if it will remain the same as it is right now (a few posts written once a week). I do know that this blog isn't going to die. I've been writing online about my life for over 7 years now. I am absolutely convinced it's not going to end. I expect it will end, of course, but that is going to be only when I die.

One way or another, as blogging technology develops, I'm going to be there, writing about my life and the things I learn and want to help others learn.

This past week has been interesting for me, in terms of online gaming with Eve Online. My enjoyment with the corporation I was part of in the game ended when the CEO of it decided to leave for his own reasons. My enjoyment was focused around the relationship I had developed with him, and so I decided I'd leave the corporation as well, and have my character follow his.

Over the week, however, I've felt more aligned with the idea of starting my own corporation, and placing my own brand on the game. Instead of working for someone else and promoting their way of doing things, I'll create my own corporation and promote my way of doing things.

I know it's going to be a good one, I just have to work out what it's going to be about, and what kind of philosophy I want it to present. I've had 5 years of experience running my own fleet with Star Trek roleplaying, creating an administrative structure and delegating responsibility to enthusiastic players, while having a background story and management style that moves everything forward in a way that's enjoyable and rewarding to everyone involved. I like the idea of doing it again with this game.

I think it doesn't matter what I do in life, I have to end up controlling things in some way. I hate handing over control of my destiny to someone else. I think that's obvious in everything I do, no matter what it is.

The funny thing about our mind and our life is that we spend so much energy thinking about and talking about the things we don't like. As a result, all that's on our mind is what we don't like, and what we don't want.

The universe always gives us what is most on our mind, so if all you think about is what you don't want, then that's all you're going to continue getting.

You need to think of what you DO want. You need to FEEL what you want. You need to imagine and feel the experiences of HAVING what you want. When that's all that's on your mind, that's all you'll be getting.

That is the secret to a rewarding life.

If you want a fulfilling relationship, you have to have that relationship in your mind. You have to see the pleasurable experiences in your imagination, and you need to feel those experiences as well. It's very important that you feel it as well as see it in your mind. It's only when you have a grasp of the visualising and the feelings, that you'll begin to have it in your life.

I can't emphasise this enough. It actually works.

When you think about it, you already know it works. You already make it work for you, but you're making it work against you rather than for you.

Let's look at the concept of being single. Most single people want so much to NOT be single. They want so much to not be single that they think they're doing everything they can to bring a wonderful partner into their lives. But in reality, the only reason they're looking is because they don't want to be lonely. They want to find someone to share their life with because they have no one to share it with.

All that's on the mind of most single people is how lonely they are. They're often telling themselves they'll never find anyone like 'so and so', or that they'll never find anyone worthwhile, or that all men suck, or all women suck, or that they're not worthy of finding someone nice, or yadda yadda yadda...

You know what goes on in a single person's mind if you've been single. It's usually negative. It's usually about what you don't have, and why you don't have it.

When all that's on your mind is what you don't have, or what you're unhappy about, or what you want to change, then those are the strongest thoughts in your consciousness. Whatever is on your mind is what becomes real for you in your life.

If you don't believe the universe follows a 'law of attraction', and you instead believe that reality is based on your actions in this world, then think about this. Your actions are based on your thoughts coming first. You think it, then you act it. If your thoughts are mostly about what you lack, then your actions are going to allow the lack to continue.

If your thoughts are instead mostly about what you want, then your actions are going to lead you in the direction of getting what you want.

Have a look at these two thought processes, and decide for yourself which one will end up with you achieving more in your life.

Thought 1

I hate my job so much. It sucks. All they get me to do is this boring crap that has no meaning. I can't wait until I go home. I wish I had another job. This mind-numbing, tedious work is so soul destroying. I'm sick of it. I need to do something different. But if I leave this job, I don't know if I'll get what I want. 'Better the devil you know,' as they say. At least I know this devil. If I leave, I could be out of work for a long time, unable to find a good job. At least this pays the bills. And there's always the chance that something better will come alone. Man, I so hate this job. I can't wait until I go home, and then I can forget about it... Oh great, they've given me more crap work to do. I wish they'd rot in hell. And this work can rot in hell with them. I hate my life. This sucks. Great, another 4 hours and 26 minutes before I can go home...

Thought 2

I'm not being challenged by this job. It's not utilising my skills as much as I'd like. Which skills would I like to utilise more? Well, I know I have a passion about understanding people more, and helping develop better relationships. So how can I change my role from a technical role to a relationship management role? Well, if I offer to help improve relationships between my company and the clients they service, that could work. And I'll let my manager know I'm more interested in relationship management than the technical stuff I'm doing. I love helping improve the service and relationships, it's so fulfilling! Oh wow, look at that, they're giving me the opportunity to work more with client relationship management. Hey, where did that come from? I've just been invited to join a services improvement team, which is going to let me do more of that. Oh, and they want me to do some relationship management courses! Wow, this is just fantastic.

What you give out to the universe is what the universe will give back to you, whether it's your thoughts leading your actions (or lack of action), or whether it's the energy of the universe reflecting to you what you're giving out.

If you put out that you hate something, and yet that's all you can see, then that's all the universe will give you. Because that's all it sees for you as well. It goes only on what's in your mind, and your feelings.

But if you put out that you want to improve something, and you can see the things you want to improve and how you can improve them, and you can feel the emotions of doing those things that you want to do, then that's all the universe will see for you. And that's what it will give you.

This is the secret to a rewarding life.

'Thought 2' (above) is based on my own personal experience of what happened to me during the past 6 months. I know it works, because it works for me. It can work for you too. Just let the universe act on the thoughts in your head. Choose the right thoughts.

Have you ever wondered why psychics haven't been able to guess specific things about you, and only seem to pick up some things and not others? How easy is it to disregard a psychic for being a fraud if they don't tell you the simplest things about you, or if what they tell you doesn't come true?

Psychics use a 'sixth sense', also called extrasensory perception, or ESP. Various forms of ESP include clairvoyance (clear vision), clairaudience (clear sounds), telepathy and many others. The sixth sense allows a person to pick up non-physical perceptions which aren't picked up by the 5 physical senses (touch, taste, sight, hearing, and smell).

Here's the interesting thing. How often does your vision work perfectly for you? How often can you see clearly what's far in the distance? How often can you tell what you're hearing? How often can you identify what you're tasting?

All of your senses are able to pick up only what comes within their range of sensory perception. Touch obviously has a very close range, while hearing's range is a bit further. Sight only allows you to see what's in your line of sight, and not what's hidden from you. Smell allows you to determine if something is pleasant or disgusting, and sometimes you can tell exactly what it is.

It's the same with the sixth sense. Its perception goes beyond the limit of your physical senses, and yet, just like your normal senses, it's not perfect. It only has a range of perception as well, and it doesn't get everything right.

Wouldn't it be silly of you to give up trying to see just because you can't see around corners? Or give up trying to hear if something is too far away to be heard properly? So why would you want to give up developing your sixth sense, just because it doesn't always work?

Years of experience with our senses help us to filter out the 'noise', the things that don't mean anything. In a crowded room we can pick out specific voices. We learn what different smells and tastes mean. As we grow, we are taught and learn how to use our senses more effectively. It's a pity few of us are taught how to use our sixth sense as well, to filter out the 'noise' and pick up what's important to us.

A baby has difficulty making sense of all the perceptions that it has. Most people remain 'psychic babies' as they mature. There's too much that happens in the mind for them to make sense of, and they've received no training to filter out the noise, so they disregard it. It just gets put into the category of 'useless imagination'. The sixth sense is still there, it just needs development to make use of it.

Psychics are those who have developed their sixth sense, but they're not perfect. Nor should perfection be expected from them, just like we don't expect anyone to have perfection in any of their other senses. As we develop our own sixth sense, we shouldn't expect perfection either. It takes time to develop anything meaningful.

Right now you're probably wondering how you can develop your sixth sense.

Just like you develop anything else in your life, you can read books on the subject, talk to people who already do it, learn from them and from practicing it yourself.

Intuition is a major part of your sixth sense. It's the ability to take note of your environment and the factors within it, including the extrasensory perception of reality, and trust that what you feel is going to be best for you. Learning to trust your intuition comes with experience, with developing it and seeing the results of using it effectively.

But don't expect perfection. Just expect a sixth sense, one that will serve you as well as the other 5, if you let it. It will help you make better choices about what's important in your life. It will help you be where you want to be, and help you achieve the things that you desire.

On the evening of June 10th we had our engagement party. Most of the people we invited turned up, so that was a bonus! I think everyone had a great time; Deidre and I certainly did. Thank you to all those who came and who provided us with gifts. Very much appreciated. (Personal thank you's arriving soon!)

Over 100 photos were taken. Please enjoy the 'best of'...

After watching The Secret last weekend, and pondering on it this week, and writing articles, reading articles about the Law of Attraction as well as success thinking, I've been aware that there's been a lot of changes in my life. Just this past week.

But I think most of them have happened today.

This morning I realised that I had been very foolish in limiting myself to 'equal exchange opportunities'. These were those things that I would do for others, with the idea of getting something in return. An equal energy exchange.

But doing that is limiting! It's because I've been giving things with the idea of getting something in return. I haven't been giving a lot, because I haven't been expecting equal returns. And as a result of giving little, I've been getting little.

That's what I realised this morning. In order to receive so much more from the universe itself, I need to give more without any expectation of return.

To open the barriers to moving forward, and to let go of things I've been holding onto, I've apologised to a couple people today. The first apology was to someone who I had borrowed some books from 10 years ago, and never gave them back. I knew the books were important to them, but I had been slack - procrastinating - and failed to honour them by returning the books. I sent an email to them this afternoon apologising, and asking for their forgiveness.

I also sent an email to an 'ex friend', who decided a couple weeks ago that they didn't want to be my friend any more. At the time I felt completely indignant about their attitude, which resulted from me asking them to buy me a drink in exchange for taking photos of their event, which they asked me to do. I felt that them buying me a drink in exchange for a night's worth of photography was an 'energy exchange' that would satisfy both of us. However, it was their opinion that I wasn't giving enough, and always wanted something in return. This was true, but they decided it meant I wasn't worth having as a friend any more. I felt they were the one at fault at this, feeling that they just wanted to take whatever I gave, so I decided I didn't need them as a friend either.

However, today has been enlightening. I've realised that in order to receive more from the universe, I need to give more to the universe. I also needed to mend the broken energy between me and those who had been friends. I don't expect anything in return, I just needed to do it.

I'm also going to start giving more, not with the expectation of any return from those I give to, but to allow more prosperity and fulfilment into my life. I'll give just for the sake of giving.

This is what I've learned today. I think it's been building up over the past week.

The Law of Attraction is powerful.

Do you think God would have any thoughts of what s/he lacks? Do you think s/he'd be negative about his existence? Do you think s/he'd worry about the problems of the universe? Thinking like God helps you think without boundaries.

If you pretended to think like God, what would you think? What would you do? What would you say? How would you act in your relationships with others? How would you act at work? How would you behave in society if you thought like God?

The biggest question you're probably asking is: how do I THINK like God?

You pretend you ARE God. Just pretend. That's all.

If you were God, what would you do, think or say to others?

Start pretending, and start doing it.

There's a lot of stuff about the Law of Attraction and how it works, but there's not a lot on how to make it work for YOU. You don't need to know how electricity works in order to turn on the light; you just need to know that flicking the switch will result in the light going on. I hope that this article will do that for you too, where a switch is flicked and you see the light.

Unlike the light switch, however, the process of flicking your own switch to attract your desires into your life can be slightly more complicated. While this process involves understanding WHY it works, there's no need to understand HOW it works, as the 'how' is literally up to the universe.

When you decide to do something, the first thing that happens is that a thought comes into your head. You might think that you want to go for a coffee at your local Starbucks. What happens in your mind is that you see the experience in your head. You can see the people that will be there, hear the sounds, feel yourself sitting in the seat, and enjoying the taste of the coffee that you drink while reading a book you wanted to catch up on. You are living that experience in your mind!

The next thing that happens is that you'll head out of your house, jump into your car (or go for a walk) and end up at Starbucks. When you get there you'll buy yourself a coffee, sit down and enjoy it, while looking at the people around you or read that book.

What just happened? The thoughts and feelings in your mind became a reality! What happens in your mind is the precursor to those things happening in your life.

Now, you can create on purpose or you can let it be created for you by default. Most people let their reality be created by default, because they don't put any effort or control into it. They're on 'auto pilot', letting reality be whatever it wants to be, because they believe they have no control over it.

When you create by default you avoid understanding how the power of your mind determines your reality. In the example above, you've used your mind to create a reality where you went to Starbucks and enjoyed a coffee and read a book. You could have instead created a reality where you stayed home and read the book there.

Your experiences begin as imagination, before they become real.

When you consider that your life is a result of your IMAGINED experiences, by failing to take responsibility for your thoughts and imagination, you also fail to take responsibility for your life. This is how you create by default.

To create on purpose involves making good choices about the kind of life you want. This is achieved by making those choices in your MIND first. You'll need to understand the power that your thoughts have on how your reality is determined, and then you can purposefully create the experiences in your mind that you want in your life.

You can CHOOSE the experiences that you want to have.

As you see them in your mind, you also have to FEEL yourself experiencing them. You have to imagine what those experiences are going to be. The emotions, the pleasures, the wind rushing through your hair, and the feelings of enjoyment that you would have with those experiences.

When you can hold these things in your mind, these visions and feelings, then your life will move forward in a way that will make those experiences real.

That's how you make the Law of Attraction work for you, by creating on purpose - choosing the experiences in your mind to bring them into your life.

To see how it works, you need to look at what you're attracting to yourself right now. If you can only see hardship, suffering, anxiety, fear, anger, etc, then that's all that you're going to experience. When you are afraid of something, you'll see more of it in your life than if you weren't. It's because you're looking for it, and by looking for it, you're creating it.

This happens with everything that's on your mind. So to have different experiences, you just need to have different thoughts. That's all!

It's that simple. There's nothing else you need to do!

• Visualise it.
• Feel it.
• Let it come to you.

Just like how you already do it with everything that's been happening in your life so far.  The only difference is that before, you didn't know that what's on your mind is what's coming into your life. 

I have a friend who has wanted to move forward in hi s career doing something that he's good at. However, he's unsure about what he really has a passion for. He knows that what he's good at isn't what he's passionate about. As a result of holding onto the thoughts in his mind of continuing to do what he's good at, even though he doesn't really enjoy it, his life has moved forward in a way that gives him the opportunity to do more of what he's good at. The only problem is that he can see he's going to hate it!

What's happened is that the universe has provided for him what he's been asking for. The only thing is, he's asking for the wrong things. He's not asking the universe to provide what he really wants, because he doesn't know what he really wants. So the universe is simply providing him what is on his mind.

This is the same for you. You're getting what's on your mind. Change your mind, and your focus, and your imaginations, and the universe, one way or another, will give you what's on your mind.

Let me know how it works for you.  I'd love to read your comments about what you're attracting into your life by changing what you're thinking.  Share with us your successes.

I saw a current affairs story the other day that presented information that about 75% of information you read about on the news is actually 'advertising'. Someone is advertising their agenda in some way, and so they present information that's then believed to be news. There's another name for this.

Propoganda.

I was just discussing with Lee about the previous post on US foreign policy interventions around the world, and I said, "most people aren't interested in 'researching' information, so all they have to go on is what current media tells them." This is very true.

When all the public has to go on is what's told to them via the media, then that's all they know. And if 75% of what's told to them is a lie, then the world that they think they know is simply the world that someone wants them to think it is.

Do your damned research. If something inspires you to be outraged, research it. Find out the truth. Find out what's really going on out there. Find out what they don't want you to know, because really, if they wanted you to know it, they'd be telling it to you. There's a reason why they're lying to you.

Find that reason. Don't put up with the crap that they tell you.

Is the news real or fictional? That's really up to you to find out, but you owe it to yourself to find the truth, especially if you're sitting there watching the news and thinking it's true. It's not. So look for the truth. Don't accept reality until it's been verified through all the sources you can find.

Or, of course, you can just sit there and continue believing what they want you to believe.

Here's something for you to consider. Al Zarqawi has, by all measures, been the most elusive of terrorists. He didn't exist, according to some sources, and his only existence was in the propoganda crap that the US presented to justify their invasion of Iraq. Now they're presenting Al Zarqawi as being dead, thanks to great intel and a 500lb bomb.

The man who didn't exist and couldn't be found has now been obliterated due to a huge bomb. Apparently they confirm his death through DNA matching. Where'd they get the DNA from in order to match it? How convenient is it that the man who couldn't be found has now been killed. It's like saying, "The monster of children's nightmares that hides under the bed is dead. We bombed him. We have DNA matching that confirms. So there."

To me, it's another continued propoganda exercise to further the 'war on terror', to 'prove' that the efforts are working and the enemies are being killled. Now they're talking about a second in command who will take his place. Another 'boogeyman' to frighten the stupid into continued support on this ludicrous war on terror.

Read the book, 1984. You'll see this has happened before, in someone's imagination. See the movie, Wag The Dog. You'll see this has happened before, in someone's movie.

Don't believe anything you see. Think about where it's coming from and who it benefits. Discover your own truth, instead of the truth that they feed you.

(This post was requested by Lee.)

One can only wonder what the world would be like today, if it wasn't for the US sticking their noses into everyone else's business. You can read all the annoying details of US intervention here. This is the condensed version.

Assassinations, military coups, civil wars, or invasions. These are the actions of America around the world over the past 60 years. Don't tell me the world is a better place because of the US. The world would be amazingly better off without US intervention, since many of their intervention has been to remove democratic and stable leaders who were against the US...

China, 1945-49
Italy, 1947-48
Greece, 1947-49
Philippines, 1945-53
South Korea, 1945-53
Albania, 1949-53
Germany, 1950s
Iran, 1953
Guatemala, 1953-1990s
Middle East, 1956-58
Indonesia, 1957-58
British Guiana/Guyana, 1953-64
Vietnam, 1950-73
Cambodia, 1955-73
The Congo/Zaire, 1960-65
Brazil, 1961-64
Dominican Republic, 1963-66
Cuba, 1959 to present
Indonesia, 1965
Chile, 1964-73
Greece, 1964-74
East Timor, 1975 to present
Nicaragua, 1978-89
Grenada, 1979-84
Libya, 1981-89
Panama, 1989
Iraq, 1990s
Afghanistan, 1979-92
El Salvador, 1980-92
Haiti, 1987-94
Yugoslavia, 1999

Back here in 2003, I talked about how I realised I was in alignment with the concept of what it is to be a 'warrior sage'.

The warrior sage may be defined as a spiritual philosopher that brings meaning, peace and unity to the chaotic separateness of life. This wise one was known as a healer as well as a warrior and one who had quested through the mountains and the valleys of the earth. Being ever the spiritual truth-seeker, he/she focused on a life pilgrimage that embraced the experiential knowledge and wisdom of the unknown as well as the unity of creation.

I'd forgotten about it, but it's become obvious to me today that it's not something I can easily walk away from. I may forget the title, but the philosophy and the experiences are always going to be with me. As time goes by, I'll only become a stronger warrior sage, with that strength being the spirituality and the philosophy that is with me all the time.

The warrior sage has nothing to prove to anyone. He lives his own life, not for others, but for what is true for himself. He doesn't care what people think of him, and he doesn't do things to please them.

The following are what I've found on the internet to describe a warrior sage, and which I feel I relate to. Please feel free to discuss.

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The sage consists of paradoxes that would mortify most people, but do not seem to bother him at all. The sage:

- is detached, yet compassionate;
- enjoys life, yet does not cling to it;
- is a perfectionist, yet indifferent to success or failure;
- is a man of honour, yet avoids reaping honour;
- ignores ethics and morals, but lives a life of the highest moral order;
- does not strive, yet achieves;
- knows the answers, but prefers to remain silent;
- has the innocence of a child, but incredible inner strength.

These paradoxes are in harmony in the sage, the same way nature itself seems to be a harmonious blend of paradoxes. This makes it difficult to describe the sage in conventional terms and categories. In fact, in most societies the sage's qualities would be seen as negative, even harmful.

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He feels at home in nature - in deep forests or on misty mountains - away from the artificial and the contrived. When moving in artificial corporate environments, the sage is true to his natural impulses, and even though he does not feel at home in a milieu of envy and greed, he remains if not untouched, then at least unstained by the destructive negative emotions around him.

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Calmness in victory. Tranquility in defeat. Serenity when confronted by the inevitability of suffering. The sage does not rely on externals to provide him with spiritual strength, for he knows: dependence on external factors - such as status, wealth, popularity, hedonism, success, knowledge and relationships - is the reason why modern man crumples so easily in the face of defeat, failure or loss.

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The sage is a loner. He avoids unnecessary contact with people. He does not feel at home with small talk. He abhors gossip. He avoids talking too much. Most people would probably find his company dull. Not that he would mind, for he is indifferent to his own popularity.

He moves in society without being immersed in it. He stands aloof from the conceptually fashionable. He does not become part of socially acceptable prejudices. He refuses to participate in the pretentious verbal exhibition of the latest in intellectual chic.

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The sage does not have the Western intellectual's desperate belief in the liberating power of knowledge. Knowledge, he instinctively knows, is just another form of bondage, just another commodity with which to parade one's superiority. It is just another means to control and to manipulate. As such, it is a form of power that has nothing to do with the bliss that comes when living in harmony with the Universe. Therefore the sage would rather sit in the shade of a beautiful tree, sipping wine in blissful union with his surroundings, than waste time in the hectic pursuit of knowledge that ultimately leads to greater bondage.

[That's why I don't study!]

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The sage understands that it is mostly futile to argue about imponderables. He realizes that our concepts of God are imperfect images created by our own minds. He would not argue about whether God exists or not. He knows that you cannot understand the incomprehensible and prove the unprovable. He accepts that man is partially blind, in particular to spiritual dimensions, and that arguing rarely increases man's ability to see more clearly.

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The sage is often not taken serious by "men of the world". Somebody who cares so little about material wealth could only be judged as inferior and foolish by a world intoxicated by material possession. Someone so untouched by hierarchical structures could only be a failure in the "age of the manager," which measures success by one's ability to manipulate and to rule. Someone who is honest and open can only be an imbecile to a world obsessed with devious manipulation and power.

Not for the sage the compulsive preoccupation with several problems simultaneously. He does not fret about his future strategies while frantically trying to deal with his immediate problems. He does not use his cellular phone while simultaneously eating and negotiating with someone across the table. Unlike your ambitious managerial type, he does one thing at a time, and enjoys doing it. He eats when he eats, sleeps when he sleeps, and enjoys company for the sake of company. He lives now and now only, for he knows the past is past and the future mere fiction.

He will only take upon him as much as he can handle without losing his compassion. He knows that being too busy inevitably leads to spiritual starvation and distress, and the loss of meaning to life.

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The sage avoids "managing" other people's lives, for he knows the world is a spiritual thing that should not be controlled or interfered with. He tries to restrict his own influence on others. He will rather suffer loss than manipulate others to reach his aims. Freedom to him has spiritual implications: it is to avoid any form of interference or manipulation. He therefore rejects the basic tenets of power. He prefers to be seen as a loser if success entails tampering with the lives and fates of others.

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The sage is honest in his relationships, never calculating. He does not flatter. He would treat his "superiors" with the same honesty than he would deal with his "colleagues" or "subordinates." He does not cringe when threatened, nor laugh ingratiatingly at the boss's jokes. He has no hidden self-promotional agendas. Responding to his natural impulses, he would spontaneously do what is virtuous, and instinctively avoid the false and the mean. He would participate in an organization and obey orders as far as they are of benefit to sentient beings, but he would go no further, no matter what it might cost him in terms of career, promotion or prestige. His incorruptibility is remarkable, for it springs from the inner strength of a person who has diminished his own ego to a degree where he has become independent of the judgement of society. He is essentially, genuinely anarchic: he is master of himself, and he will not be controlled by any system of power.

What the upwardly mobile person would find unforgivable in the sage is his lack of ambition. The sage avoids a life brimming over with goals and objectives, which he finds a hindrance rather than a help. He realizes that some goals might be essential for survival, and some might even be useful to make life pleasant. Most goals, however, do not give meaning to life. In fact, striving with great effort to reach numerous goals often destroys compassion as one becomes insensitive to the needs of others.

The sage instinctively avoids becoming too busy, which he sees as the worst form of laziness. Mostly, being too busy is nothing but the effort to sidestep the issues that really matter in your life. No matter how lofty or altruistic your goals might seem to be, being too busy is often a form of egomania, regularly accompanied by a martyr complex, in which the protagonist overtly or subtly displays how much he is "sacrificing" himself and "suffering" for "others" or for "the company" or some "worthy cause". Instead of giving meaning to your life, hyperactivity can create delusions which alienate you from your own self and increase your confusion.

Being too busy is like running fast without knowing where you are going. The sage refuses to run blindly in any direction. He moves at leisure with his eyes wide open, sensitive to the needs of living beings around him. Like the Good Samaritan, he will have enough time to help his fellow traveller lying, helpless, next to the road.

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By almost any Western standard, the sage qualifies as irreligious. Stale ritual has little meaning to him. Even if liturgy should be filled with emotion, the sage remains aloof and suspicious of it. Emotions come and go, and religions that depend on something so volatile as emotions usually forsake their followers when they need comfort most.

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The sage shuns competition, for it nurtures egotism, fosters brutality and justifies humiliation. The triumphant pose of the strutting victor is a sign of spiritual bankruptcy to the sage. The demonstratively humble acceptance of the prize, with the losers looking on in awe, is the pinnacle of vanity, and might corrupt even the purest of hearts.

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The sage has the tolerance of someone who knows his ideas are less important than his own well-being. He lives with the constant awareness that his convictions are not as precious as the well-being of others.

He has the patience of someone who knows his insights are limited and subject to continuous change.

He has the humility of someone who realizes what really matter are mostly beyond the grasp of mind and language.

Creating discord to defend your own limited vision is absurd to the sage who believes that harmony is the essence of meaningful life.

Therefore the sage does not take sides in intellectual pursuits.

He does not wear the colours of any sect or party.

He does not wave flags patriotically in the wind.

He does not sing anthems with tear-filled eyes.

He refuses to "die for his country".

He refuses to kill for some nationalistic cause, or in patriotic fervour, or to satisfy the greed of his rulers, or because he has fallen for some propaganda.

He is a true warrior. He would rather be declared a traitor than betray himself. He has conquered himself and therefore cannot be conquered.

http://www.globalresearch.ca/index.php?context=viewArticle&code=UTH20060604&articleId=2574

1. The Internet Clampdown
2. "The Long War"
3. The USA PATRIOT Act
4. Prison Camps
5. Touchscreen Voting Machines
6. Signing Statements
7. Warrantless Wiretapping
8. Free Speech Zones
9. High-ranking Whistleblowers
10. The CIA Shakeup

More details by following the link.

If there's one thing I seem to have a knack for, it's pressing people's buttons. I often find topics or comments which cause an emotional reaction in whoever I'm talking to, and then I try to find a reason for their reaction.

I do it not for the excitement of finding buttons to press, but for the purpose of finding a reason for the emotional reaction and pointing it out to them. If they're the slightest bit interested in learning about themselves and growing beyond those things that frustrate them (which are often reflected by emotional barriers of some kind) they'll see it for what it is, and understand that it's telling them a little bit more about themselves. If they're not interested, of course, then they won't bother looking at what they can learn from their emotions and the conversation. And that's ok too.

Most of our emotional reactions, our trigger points, are because our beliefs are being challenged. We might believe in something being a particular way, and we might even have valid justifications for our beliefs. But when someone challenges those beliefs and somehow points out that those beliefs might actually be incorrect, then we often feel challenged. As a result, we feel defensive. We feel that we must fight to hold onto our cherished beliefs, because our beliefs are all we have, and so we react by arguing about it, trying to prove the other person wrong and create validity in our beliefs.

Sometimes we react with violence when we think that words are not enough to make ourselves right. We are forced to keep the other person quiet, one way or another, in order to hold onto our beliefs.

A person willing to grow, willing to look at who they are and change what they don't like, will look at their trigger points as valuable signposts showing their weaknesses. The things that press buttons inside of them are reflections of inner issues that need to be looked at in order for them to grow beyond them.

Happiness comes as a result of having less issues to deal with in our minds, so the more we acknowledge and deal with those things that cause reactions in us, the happier we're going to end up being.

In my quest at helping people, 'pressing buttons' is something that seems to come naturally to me. Unfortunately, if a person isn't interested in dealing with their issues, and instead of trying to work past it they prefer keeping it, it can prevent any further dialogue or constructive attempts to move forward. Some people prefer keeping their issues so much that they'll decide that those issues are worth more than the relationships they have.

The problem with that however, is that the issues remain, while the only changes are pushing away those that care the most.

I tell myself every day that I 'follow the path of Love, Light and Truth'. The way I see it is that these things are of the utmost importance in everything I do. I must be truthful, with love and light in my heart. It's my duty to myself and those I care about. Many people don't want to hear the truth though. They prefer the truth be 'candied over' with politeness and political correctness. The truth only shows them the things they don't want to accept, so they avoid it, deny it, or remove it from their life.

Being truthful to those I care about has, on occasion, ended up with me in hot water, as they get upset or offended about either the honesty I express to them, or about the buttons that I press in them.

I actually don't want to change this part of myself though. I see a lot of value, and receive a lot of positive feedback, when I engage in 'button pressing' should it arise in deep conversations. People grow as a result of becoming aware of their emotional trigger points, and as they become aware of barriers to their growth. This helps them grow, and everyone feels great as a result.

I know that a big lesson for me in relation to this is learning to understand when I shouldn't move forward with the 'button pressing'. To change how I say things so that people become more reflective about themselves, rather than more defensive. It's what I need to learn. But pressing buttons is gonna stay.

If anyone is offended, angered or upset about what I do, it's ultimately a reflection of their own issues about what is being discussed. I can't let that stop me from continuing the path I'm on, of wanting to help people grow. I can only hope that those who recognise I care about them, will accept that, rather than think I'm purposefully trying to piss them off, which is not what it's about at all.

So how many 'pressure points' do you have? Do you have anyone in your life who presses your buttons? Instead of thinking about how 'evil' they are, instead look at what it is that really gets you hopping mad, and see if there's something there that you can work through. If you can see solutions to those issues, it's only going to help you be less mad in future.

You can test your own humility here. I took the test, and my results are:

Your score = 85

What does your score mean?

You are the humblest of the humble. According to your test results, you don't have an arrogant bone in your body. Maybe you just don't give a fig whether you impress others, or simply don't feel the need to toot your own horn. Hopefully, though, you really do like yourself! A lack of self-confidence can lead to all kinds of problems like depression, unhappy relationships and a fear of going after the things we really want. If you do have a high self-esteem but just prefer keeping that knowledge to yourself, good for you! Being humble is certainly more attractive than being cocky and full of yourself. The bottom line, which you seem to recognize, is: the way you feel about who you are is more important than what anyone else thinks.

I'm sure you've heard the stories about 666 being the number of 'the beast', of the antichrist, or of the devil.  There's stories that 6th of June, 2006, is when the antichrist makes his presence known, and it's the 'end of the world'. 

Today is the 6th day of the 6th month in 2006.  Right now, for me, in New Zealand.  In America, it's still the 5th, and will be for quite a lot of hours yet.  The 6th hasn't happened.

The question I have is....

If the end of the world happens here, which is the 5th in America, then that defeats the 'prophecy'.  But if it happens on the 6th in America, then it'll be the 7th here, again thus defeating the 'prophecy'. 

So which side of the world is it going to end?  And does that mean only half the world will end on the 6th, in whichever timezone?

These are questions that haunt me, my friends.

But really, the absolute truth is this: Hundreds of thousands of people died yesterday of accidents, murders, nature or natural causes.  Every day, the world ends for someone.  Will the world end for you tomorrow?

I don't think it's a sign of Satan arising.  I just think it's the natural order of things. 

Deidre and I watched the documentary called The Secret on Saturday night. It's about the Law of Attraction.

The Law of Attraction is a universal law, which you might also know as 'like attracts like'. Whatever is on your mind is what becomes a reality in your life. As was said in the show, "Thoughts... become... things..." The trick is to think of things you want, instead of the things you don't want.

Most people, however, focus on those things they don't want. You know what I'm talking about. They want more money to get out of debt, 'cause all they can think of is the debt they're in. They want a new car, because all they can think about is how horrible their current car is. They want a new job, because they hate their current job.

But the more they FEEL the things they don't want, the more they KEEP what they don't want. And they get more of it!

Why is that?

It's because the universe is giving you those things you are passionate about. Even the things you don't like create passion in you, and the more energy you put into the things you don't want, the more the universe will give it to you. It thinks that the more passionate you are about something, the more you want it.

When you are passionate about those things you want, rather than those things you don't want, and when you can FEEL them, that's when the universe will give it to you.

That's the secret to life, and that's what The Secret is about. It's about the Law of Attraction, about understanding how it works, and how to make it work for you.

I realised over the past couple of days that I already practice the Law of Attraction, but I never knew it. But I also realised that I haven't been practicing it to the full extent of what's possible. I've always got what I wanted, when I really wanted it, I just didn't know I was using the Law of Attraction, and I didn't realise I could have gotten so much more.

At work, I've always gotten items like laptops and PDA's. This is because I've researched what I wanted, I looked at pictures, I visualised owning it, I felt the experience of owning it, and I worked on getting it from work in a way that would benefit both myself and them. Eventually, everything I've wanted has come to me.

It's the same as life. Know what you want, see it, feel it, believe it will be yours, and you will eventually get it in your life. The trick is to see it in your mind, feel the experience of having it, and believing that it will come to you.

1. See it.
2. Feel it!
3. Receive it.

Many professional athletes practice this already. They practice their sport in their minds. They see and feel it, and see and feel their success. They see and feel it so strongly that by the time they get out there to actually do it, it's easy for them to win the event because they've already seen themselves winning it! They believe it so strongly that the universe gives them what they want.

The universe will always give you what you ask for. You have to be clear with what you ask for though. If, in your mind, you see and feel only negative things around you, then that's what you will continue to experience. If all you see is debt, that's all you'll have. If all you see is pain and hardship, then that's all you'll get. If all you see is being single, then you'll always be single. If all you feel is anger for things around you, then that's all you'll continue to experience.

So Deidre and I have started a new path of visualising things, feeling them, and attracting them. We're going to be practicing this every day: visualising, feeling, seeing, and experiencing. We WILL attract to us those things that we really want.

That is the secret.

As part of what I realised this weekend, I've understood even further that my political commentary on this blog only helps to create more of what frustrates me. The more I focus on global injustice, the more I only promote global injustice. In order to change things in the world, I have to focus on what I want, rather than what I don't want. So if I want justice, or peace, then I need to focus on justice and peace, rather than on those things which reflect what I don't want.

So look at your life. Look at what makes you sad, angry, frustrated and unhappy, and realise that's what you're focusing on. Look at what you really want in life, and focus on those things. See them and feel them in your mind, and eventually you will see and feel them in your life.

That is the secret.

I'm going to be doing more of that.

Today we bought a new fridge and washing machine. It's what we've wanted for a long time, so today we got what we wanted. We haven't paid a cent for it. Not yet, anyway. ;-) But we're going to attract more money to us, in one way or another, so that what we've got today on credit will be covered by new income in the future. Even under current circumstances, if we didn't get any new income, we can see no problems occurring. We're not getting more debt. We're getting more things that we want and need, and attracting more prosperity into our lives.

You can do the same. Focus on what you want. See it, feel, it, live it. It will be yours.

The anti-terrorism budgets handed out by the Department of Homeland Security were cut by 40% because the city faxed their application instead of emailing it. So to punish NYC for their administrative error, their budget was cut by 40%. The faxed form was fine, nothing was wrong with it. Apparently, if they had sent it by email, they would have got 100% of their budget. But they were bad children, and so they must be punished by reducing the budget and letting terrorists have an easier time of attacking the city.

And I'm sure that the decision to reduce the budgets given to NYC and Washington DC - which also had its budget cut - weren't influenced at all by the fact that they're Democratic strongholds.

And I'm sure that the budget increases to other areas, as a result of the cuts in NYC and DC, had nothing to do with the upcoming elections, even though the areas that received budget increases are held by Republicans in danger of losing their seats. No, that anti-terrorism budget would have nothing to do with political desperation, I'm sure.

Because we all know that the US government is not corrupt, and has only the best interests of the people and the country at heart.