On this day in 1964, Congress approved the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, effectively entering the U.S. into a conflict that still affects us to this day. This resolution, brought about by the questionable Gulf of Tonkin Incident (also referred to as the USS Maddox incident), gave President Johnson the legal justification for sending U.S. troops to Vietnam, under the guise of assisting a country under the treat of communist aggression.
“The resolution marked the beginning of an expanded military role for the United States in the Cold War battlefields of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. By 1964, America’s ally, South Vietnam, was in serious danger of falling to a communist insurgency. The insurgents, aided by communist North Vietnam, controlled large areas of South Vietnam and no amount of U.S. military aid and training seemed able to save the southern regime. During the presidencies of Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, hundreds-and then thousands-of U.S. military advisers had been sent to South Vietnam to train that nation’s military forces. In addition, hundreds of millions of dollars in military and economic assistance had been given to South Vietnam. The administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson made the decision that only direct U.S. military intervention in the conflict could turn the tide. However, Johnson was campaigning in the presidential election of 1964 as the “responsible” candidate who would not send American troops to fight and die in Asia. In early August, a series of events occurred that allowed Johnson to appear statesmanlike while simultaneously expanding the U.S. role in Vietnam. On August 2, North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked an American destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin. Johnson responded by sending in another destroyer. On August 4, the two destroyers reported that they were under attack. This time, Johnson authorized retaliatory air attacks against North Vietnam. He also asked Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This resolution declared, “The United States regards as vital to its national interest and to world peace the maintenance of international peace and security in Southeast Asia.” It also gave Johnson the right to “take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.” The House passed the resolution by a unanimous vote. The vote in the Senate was 88 to 2. Johnson’s popularity soared in response to his “restrained” handling of the crisis. The Johnson administration went on to use the resolution as a pretext to begin heavy bombing of North Vietnam in early 1965 and to introduce U.S. combat troops in March 1965. Thus began a nearly eight-year war in which over 58,000 U.S. troops died. In a wider sense, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution can be considered America’s Cold War policy toward all of Southeast Asia at the time. The resolution was also another example of the American government’s less than candid discussion of “national security” matters during the Cold War. Unspoken during the Congressional debate over the resolution was the fact that the commanders of the U.S. destroyers could not state with absolute accuracy that their ships had actually been attacked on the night of August 4, nor was any mention made of the fact that the U.S. destroyers had been assisting South Vietnamese commandos in their attacks on North Vietnamese military installations. By the late 1960s, the tangle of government deceptions and lies began to unravel as public confidence in both Johnson and the American military effort in Vietnam began to erode.”
[My father was in college from 1963 to 1967 and was in the ROTC. I was born at the beginning of his senior year. He came very, very close to going to Vietnam as a 2LT. He became more and more disturbed by reports and stories of what was actually happening over there. The young men that had graduated before him and entered combat…weren’t coming home. Many of the officers that he had started out with during his early years with the ROTC…weren’t coming back. The ones that did manage to return spoke of a “war without direction or purpose” and horrible “death traps”. My father had a crisis of faith, in a way. As a 2LT in the Army, he would have been an officer that could, potentially, send other young men under him to their deaths. If friends were telling him that the purpose of the war was not completely understood, how could he, in good conscience, participate. He took his concerns to his ROTC CO. That conversation devolved into a shouting match, complete with threats. My father resigned his ‘impending’ commission, despite the protestation of an older officer, stating that “Men like you, we need. We need the common sense approach and conscience you display. You would be a voice of reason and strength that could steady the others.” He would hear none of it. He turned in his uniforms, graduated…and never looked back. My father is still alive, today, because of his decision not to participate. He was never sent a draft card. ~Vic
Addendum: My father passed away on August 25, 2022]
On this day in 1964, Congress approved the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution, effectively entering the U.S. into a conflict that still affects us to this day. This resolution, brought about by the questionable Gulf of Tonkin Incident (also referred to as the USS Maddox incident), gave President Johnson the legal justification for sending U.S. troops to Vietnam, under the guise of assisting a country under the treat of communist aggression.
“The resolution marked the beginning of an expanded military role for the United States in the Cold War battlefields of Vietnam, Laos and Cambodia. By 1964, America’s ally, South Vietnam, was in serious danger of falling to a communist insurgency. The insurgents, aided by communist North Vietnam, controlled large areas of South Vietnam and no amount of U.S. military aid and training seemed able to save the southern regime. During the presidencies of Dwight D. Eisenhower and John F. Kennedy, hundreds-and then thousands-of U.S. military advisers had been sent to South Vietnam to train that nation’s military forces. In addition, hundreds of millions of dollars in military and economic assistance had been given to South Vietnam. The administration of President Lyndon B. Johnson made the decision that only direct U.S. military intervention in the conflict could turn the tide. However, Johnson was campaigning in the presidential election of 1964 as the “responsible” candidate who would not send American troops to fight and die in Asia. In early August, a series of events occurred that allowed Johnson to appear statesmanlike while simultaneously expanding the U.S. role in Vietnam. On August 2, North Vietnamese torpedo boats attacked an American destroyer in the Gulf of Tonkin. Johnson responded by sending in another destroyer. On August 4, the two destroyers reported that they were under attack. This time, Johnson authorized retaliatory air attacks against North Vietnam. He also asked Congress to pass the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution. This resolution declared, “The United States regards as vital to its national interest and to world peace the maintenance of international peace and security in Southeast Asia.” It also gave Johnson the right to “take all necessary measures to repel any armed attack against the forces of the United States and to prevent further aggression.” The House passed the resolution by a unanimous vote. The vote in the Senate was 88 to 2. Johnson’s popularity soared in response to his “restrained” handling of the crisis. The Johnson administration went on to use the resolution as a pretext to begin heavy bombing of North Vietnam in early 1965 and to introduce U.S. combat troops in March 1965. Thus began a nearly eight-year war in which over 58,000 U.S. troops died. In a wider sense, the Gulf of Tonkin Resolution can be considered America’s Cold War policy toward all of Southeast Asia at the time. The resolution was also another example of the American government’s less than candid discussion of “national security” matters during the Cold War. Unspoken during the Congressional debate over the resolution was the fact that the commanders of the U.S. destroyers could not state with absolute accuracy that their ships had actually been attacked on the night of August 4, nor was any mention made of the fact that the U.S. destroyers had been assisting South Vietnamese commandos in their attacks on North Vietnamese military installations. By the late 1960s, the tangle of government deceptions and lies began to unravel as public confidence in both Johnson and the American military effort in Vietnam began to erode.”
[My father was in college from 1963 to 1967 and was in the ROTC. I was born at the beginning of his senior year. He came very, very close to going to Vietnam as a 2LT. He became more and more disturbed by reports and stories of what was actually happening over there. The young men that had graduated before him and entered combat…weren’t coming home. Many of the officers that he had started out with during his early years with the ROTC…weren’t coming back. The ones that did manage to return spoke of a “war without direction or purpose” and horrible “death traps”. My father had a crisis of faith, in a way. As a 2LT in the Army, he would have been an Officer that could, potentially, send other young men under him to their deaths. If friends were telling him that the purpose of the war was not completely understood, how could he, in good conscience, participate. He took his concerns to his ROTC CO. That conversation devolved into a shouting match, complete with threats. My father resigned his ‘impending’ commission, despite the protestation of an older officer, stating that “Men like you, we need. We need the common sense approach and conscience you display. You would be a voice of reason and strength that could steady the others.” He would hear none of it. He turned in his uniforms, graduated…and never looked back. My father is still alive, today, because of his decision not to participate. He was never sent a draft card. ~Victoria]
It’s Flick Friday. The number one movie 40 years ago, today, is…Grease! I was 11 years old when it was released. I was such an Olivia Newton-John fan. I begged my mom to buy me the album soundtrack. I nearly wore it out. I still have it to this day. And, I remember those shoes… I was headed to seventh grade that year and ALL the girls had to have a pair of the Candies that ‘Sandy’ made famous. Can you imagine a bunch of tween girls in the late 70s trying to change classes, going up and down stairs…in ‘Sandy’s Candies’? Oh, my…
I STILL love this movie. What wonderful memories… ~Vic
During a visit to America, Australian Sandy meets Danny Zuko at the beach and falls in love. She is heartbroken when summer ends [as] she has to return home and their last kiss on the beach is a very emotional one. But, fate lends a hand — her parents decide to stay in America and she finds herself attending the same school as Danny.
Photo Credit: jewelwpg.com
But, Danny at school is different from Danny at the beach. He is the leader of the T-Birds, a black leather-clad gang and has a reputation to keep up. He can’t be seen to fall in love with just one chick! Sandy is upset and seeks solace with some new friends she has made – a girls’ club called The Pink Ladies. But, her prim and proper virginal ways do not fit in and she soon finds herself almost alone. A change must be made. Does she attempt to get her man by turning him into a jock? Or must she get rid of her “Sandra Dee” image?
“”GREASE,” the film version of the still-running Broadway musical show, is not really the 1950’s teen-age movie musical it thinks it is but, a contemporary fantasy about a 1950’s teen-age musical—a larger, funnier, wittier and more imaginative-than-Hollywood movie with a life that is all its own. Somewhat in the manner of “Close Encounters of the Third Kind,” which recalls the science-fiction films of the 50’s in a manner more elegant, and more benign, than anything that was ever made then, “Grease” is a multimillion-dollar evocation of the B-picture quickies that Sam Katzman used to turn out in the 50’s […].
Photo Credit: pinterest.com
The gang at old Rydell High, which is the universe of “Grease,” is unlike any high school class you’ve ever seen except in the movies. For one thing, they’re all rather long in the tooth to be playing kids who’d hang around malt shops. For another, they are loaded with the kind of talent and exuberance you don’t often find very far from a musical stage.
Olivia Newton-John, the recording star in her American film debut, is simultaneously very funny and utterly charming as the film’s ingénue […]. She possesses true screen presence as well as a sweet, sure singing voice […]. John Travolta […], a not-so-malevolent gang-leader, is better than he was in “Saturday Night Fever.” I’m still not sure if he’s a great actor but, he’s a fine performer with the kind of energy and humor that are brought to life by the musical numbers.
It’s to the director’s credit that the musical numbers slip in and out of reality mostly with hugely comic effect. Let me emphasize, then, that “Grease” stands outside the traditions it mimics. Its sensibility is not tied to the past but, to a free-wheeling, well informed, high-spirited present.”
Trivia Bits:
♦ Rizzo’s hickeys were real. Stockard Channing said in an interview that Jeff Conaway insisted on applying them himself.
♦ “Hopelessly Devoted to You” was written and recorded after the movie had wrapped.
Photo Credit: express.co.uk
♦ Elvis Presley turned down the role of The Guardian Angel in the ‘Beauty School Drop-Out’ scene.
♦ Due to a zipper breaking, Olivia Newton-John had to be sewn into the trousers she wears in the last sequence (the carnival at Rydell).
♦ Jeff Conaway was so infatuated with Olivia Newton-John, he was tongue-tied whenever she was around. He later married Olivia’s sister, Rona Newton-John.
♦ Danny’s blue windbreaker at the beginning of the film was intended as a nod to Rebel Without a Cause.
♦ Jamie Donnelly had prematurely grey hair, which she dyed black to play Jan. Her hair grew really quickly, so her roots had to be coloured in daily with a black crayon.
♦ Rydell High is a reference to teen idol Bobby Rydell who had a million selling hit with “Swingin’ School” in 1960.
♦ The “blonde pineapple” line was improvised by Barry Pearl.
♦ Olivia Newton-John insisted on a screen test for the role of Sandy. She was concerned that she didn’t have the acting skills and would look too old to be a high school student. The part was originally meant for Susan Dey, who turned it down on her manager’s advice.
July 20 has three celebrations. The most notable of the three is National Moon Day, commemorating Apollo 11 and the 1969 moon walk. Everyone knows about that one.
But, today is also National Pennsylvania Day, a recognition of the second state to join the Union. Known as the ‘Keystone State’, Pennsylvania also served as a temporary Capitol for the U.S….Philadelphia, the site of the signing of The Declaration of Independence and The U.S. Constitution. It is the home of the Original Philly Cheesesteak, the Original Banana Split, Hershey’s Chocolate, Marshmallow Peeps and Twizzlers. It is also the home of the largest concentration of U.S. ‘Pennsylvania Dutch’ Amish.
Image Credit: National Day Calendar
Notable Pennsylvanians:
Daniel Boone – Frontiersman (November 2, 1734 – September 26, 1820)
Elizabeth Griscom ‘Betsy’ Ross – Flag Maker (January 1, 1752 – January 30, 1836)
James Buchanan – 15th U.S. President (April 23, 1791 – March 4, 1861)
Louisa May Alcott – Author (November 29, 1832 – March 6, 1888)
Elizabeth Cochrane Seaman [Nellie Bly] – Journalist (May 4, 1864 – January 27, 1922) [NOTE: Wikipedia reflects May 5]
Lee Iacocca – Auto Executive [Ford & Chrysler] (October 15, 1924)
Arnold Palmer – Golfer (September 10, 1929 – September 25, 2016)
Reginald Reggie Jackson – Baseball Player (May 18, 1946)
July 12th is another very busy ‘National Day’ with five celebrations. Simplicity Day is observed on the birthday of Henry David Thoreau. He was born on this day in 1817. As a philosopher, he believed in living a simple life:
“In proportion as he simplifies his life, the laws of the universe will appear less complex and solitude will not be solitude, nor poverty poverty, nor weakness weakness.”
He was a world-renowned author, historian, abolitionist, tax resister (my hero!), a surveyor, criticized over-development, preferred the natural ways and transcendentalism and, was a friend of and mentored by, Ralph Waldo Emerson. Born nearly 100 years prior to Alan Watts, the two could have been contemporary peers.
In our overly busy lives, steeped in political battles, materialism, social media madness and the struggle to survive, slowing down, disengaging and walking in nature can be a refreshing break. De-cluttering and simplifying one’s life can, ultimately, bring peace and balance.
Seventy-one years ago, today, something happened in Roswell, New Mexico. The Roswell Daily Record printed the story of the crash of a flying saucer on a ranch roughly 30 miles outside of Roswell proper. The Sacramento Bee picked up the story and printed statements from the Roswell Army Air Field.
Over the years, I’ve seen documentaries and read accounts of the initial debris field pieces that were retrieved from the owner of the land. I’ve seen the interviewees on camera and read their statements. I also know that there was a concerted effort by our military to keep what they found out of any more newspapers and, to quickly change the narrative to the weather balloon story.
I’ve actually been to Roswell, NM, spending the night in a local motel just for the complete experience in September of 2002. It’s cattle ranch territory and it smells that way especially in the morning. I’ve been to the Roswell UFO Museum. It is really quite fascinating to walk through it. Some of it is tongue-in-cheek but, there is a lot of information despite the government’s desire to make it “a joke”. A local waitress in a diner, where my *then* husband and I went for breakfast, said that the whole thing was a blessing and a curse. It brought in tourism dollars but, it was also a sore point for some of the older residents whom, at that time, still remembered the events when they happened. As she poured our coffee, she leaned over and told us that there were many locals that swore it was a craft…information passed quietly from neighbor to neighbor, family descendant to family descendant, much like Native American verbal history, handed down through time. Frankly, I never believed the official story. There were too many questions left unanswered and too many things that didn’t add up. Plus, our government lies to us all the time. Why should this be any different.
[…] these were a race we have come to call The Greys. The Greys originate on a star system many galaxies distant from us. […] their own name for themselves does not translate into anything pronounceable by the human voice box. These beings have been observing Earth for many centuries […] The Greys behave a little like human teenagers in that they have a certain level of knowledge but, cannot quite put it into context. The first real contact we had with these beings was with the Roswell crash in New Mexico in 1948 [sic]. This was an event where a Grey ship malfunctioned and crashed into the desert near the town of Roswell. As with just about anything that happens in America, the military took control. The crash provided them with an alien ship and three survivors. The Greys were reluctant to become involved in human affairs but, the American military had three of their beings. So began a relationship […] The American military looking for ‘advanced’ technology to give them global military advantage and, in return, the Greys received free access to the genetic material available on Earth.
[Note: Chris Thomas is many things but, not the best typist. His books have a few typos.]
Their home galaxy is too far distant for us to have a name for it. This race is responsible for some of the human and animal abductions that have taken place on Earth in the past 40 years. As they were causing some disruption to human plans, they have, effectively, been banned from our solar system since 2000. This race has been working with the American miliary since the Roswell crash in 1947 and has given over a great deal of its technology in exchange for permission to carry out some animal experimentation and medical examinations of people.
During the Second World War, a great many ‘unidentified’ flying craft were observed as the skies were watched with far more zeal than was previously necessary. Several of these craft were shot down but, because it was war time and it was known that Hitler was developing many innovative weapons, it was assumed that crashed UFOs were Nazi in origin. During the war, the American military began to experiment with many forms of weapons and energy devices and, in particular, energy devices that would help shield ships or aircraft from the newly developed enemy radar. […] the technology was kept for later experiments which the American military began in the late 1940s. In 1948 [sic], the experiments began in a region of New Mexico, although this time, the machinery was land based […] They ran experiments for three days and each day at least one UFO fell out of the sky, the most famous one being the crash at Roswell. There is so much disinformation spread about this race that the only way of finding out any form of truth is to look to the Akashic. In exchange for new ‘alien’ technology, the American military ‘granted’ the Greys permission to abduct and study human physiology. Since 2000, the Greys have been asked not to travel to our solar system, a request with which they have generally been happy to comply.
Their first real contact with Earth was the Roswell crash […] The military have mainly been interested in Grey technology which the military mainly use for psychic attack purposes. The Greys are very interested in human physiology and are responsible for some human and animal abductions. Please note: the vast majority of human and animal abductions, and mutilations, have been carried out by the military.
Still believe our government? Still believe our military? If you are unsure of what the Akashic is, that will be for another post. ~Vic
I snapped these yesterday evening. I was stunned at how clear and brilliant this rainbow was. The companion rainbow above is harder to see. It is a shame that my cell phone cannot truly capture what I see. The beauty is breathtaking. It’s summertime and we’re getting the hot weather storms in the afternoons. I heard the thunder as the system rolled in and the sunlight dimmed. I didn’t really think much about it. I just happened to step outside to our recyclables bin and…wow. I ran back inside and grabbed my phone. I wandered up and down the street trying to get good shots. Damn power lines. *sigh*
The 1st of July is a very busy day of celebration for the nation, leading up to Independence Day. It’s National Postal Worker Day, established in 1997 by a Seattle area carrier. I have two high school classmates that are postmen. They both really enjoy it. It can be a tough job, though.
If you are thinking “Neither rain nor sleet nor snow…” or something along those lines, the U.S. Post Office doesn’t have an “official” motto, really. There seems to be a bit of confusion from a modified translation of Herodotus’ quote regarding the courier service of the Persian Empire:
There is nothing in the world which travels faster than the Persian couriers. The whole idea is a Persian invention, and works like this: riders are stationed along the road, equal in number to the number of days the journey takes – a man and a horse for each day. Nothing stops these couriers from covering their allotted stage in the quickest possible time – neither snow, rain, heat, nor darkness. The first, at the end of his stage, passes the dispatch to the second, the second to the third, and so on along the line, as in the Greek torch-race which is held in honour of Hephaestus.
Image Credit: the-pa-in-connection.blogspot.com
It’s also U.S. Postage Stamp Day…naturally. The very first postage stamp was issued on July 1, 1847 but, no one seems to know who created the National Day for it. Lost to history, I suppose.
They have a National Day for nearly everything. Some of them are very tongue-in-cheek, if not down-right ridiculous. Did you know there is a Ding-a-Ling Day? Yeah. I didn’t either. Apparently, it’s for dialing up friends, not pointing out stupid people. Who knew.
I wander around and take pictures of everything. I see so much I want to capture. My Samsung stupidphone gets a lot of use. I would really like to get a genuine camera but, I can’t decide what to get and cost is an issue. Expensive cameras don’t have payment plans like, say, a stupidphone.
So, anyway, enjoy National Camera Day…or, what is left of it. Take pix of your family. Take pix of your friends. Take pix of nature. Let your imagination wander. There is always something in a photograph that surprises.
The United States, acting under the auspices of the United Nations, quickly sprang to the defense of South Korea and fought a bloody and frustrating war for the next three years. Korea, a former Japanese possession, had been divided into zones of occupation following World War II. U.S. forces accepted the surrender of Japanese forces in southern Korea, while Soviet forces did the same in northern Korea. Like in Germany, however, the “temporary” division soon became permanent. The Soviets assisted in the establishment of a communist regime in North Korea, while the United States became the main source of financial and military support for South Korea. On June 25, 1950, North Korean forces surprised the South Korean army (and the small U.S. force stationed in the country), and quickly headed toward the capital city of Seoul. The United States responded by pushing a resolution through the U.N.’s Security Council calling for military assistance to South Korea. (Russia was not present to veto the action as it was boycotting the Security Council at the time.) With this resolution in hand, President Harry S. Truman rapidly dispatched U.S. land, air, and sea forces to Korea to engage in what he termed a “police action.” The American intervention turned the tide, and U.S. and South Korean forces marched into North Korea. This action, however, prompted the massive intervention of communist Chinese forces in late 1950. The war in Korea subsequently bogged down into a bloody stalemate. In 1953, the United States and North Korea signed a cease-fire that ended the conflict. The cease-fire agreement also resulted in the continued division of North and South Korea at just about the same geographical point as before the conflict. The Korean War was the first “hot” war of the Cold War. Over 55,000 American troops were killed in the conflict. Korea was the first “limited war,” one in which the U.S. aim was not the complete and total defeat of the enemy, but rather the “limited” goal of protecting South Korea. For the U.S. government, such an approach was the only rational option in order to avoid a third world war and to keep from stretching finite American resources too thinly around the globe. It proved to be a frustrating experience for the American people, who were used to the kind of total victory that had been achieved in World War II. The public found the concept of limited war difficult to understand or support and the Korean War never really gained popular support.
The Summer Solstice for the Northern Hemisphere was, officially, at 6:07am EDT. It is the longest day of the year. It was a fine day for small tasks, discussing work with my boss, playing with Oliver, taking a walk with a close friend, waiting for rain that never showed up, enjoying a ginger ale while reading and being thankful that I managed to avoid the evening news. 🙄
Ollie the 18lbs orange Hemingway (I have thumbs!)
I covet peace and quiet. I covet calm. I see so little of it on a television. I try to keep it on a soothing music channel so I can function.
I was fortunate enough while walking to catch a clear glimpse of our waxing gibbous Moon, 61% illumination, before the clouds moved in for the non-existent rain. I neglected to get a shot of it. I normally chase good renderings of full moons, which is a task with a smartphone. Nothing really matches the rich textures of a camera with real film. I feel the same way about LPs/records. Digital will never capture the tones and depth of analog recordings. And, I’m showing my age. Heh.
From My Personal Collection
It was in the low 90s. That is just too high for June to suit me. Had to wait until 6:00pm to wander out. I do love the local Riverwalk.
Local Deer
I understand that there was a gathering at Stonehenge. I would have loved to have been there.
I have been gone for quite a while. I started this blog five years ago this month. A lot of what I posted, I took down as my attitudes about certain things have changed, drastically. I am definitely not the same person I was five years ago. That is a good thing.
Since June 2013, I’ve gone through four jobs. Finding good employment is not as easy as it was when I got out of school in the middle 80s. Those jobs just don’t exist anymore. So, I work PT and do the best I can. I am hopeful for the future…mine and everyone else’s.
Today will be the New Moon, as I am typing this past midnight. I will be putting forth my wishes and desires for this Moon. We certainly live in interesting times.
Humanity is now experiencing the birth pangs of a global social transformation the likes of which have never experienced in recorded history. Never in the history of human life on this planet has there been such a grave and serious threat of the planet that we live on becoming uninhabitable because of the actions of one species that has asserted its dominance. Nearly everyone feels that something big is happening, although the reasons being proclaimed for this are as numerous as the stars, thanks to peoples’ various belief systems, subjective perceptions and current levels of knowledge and information about what is going on.
We are now in a completely new phase of evolution, a fundamental evolution of consciousness, that will change everything. This is an intentional evolution, based upon the shifting of our consciousness out of the ego’s domain and into the unity-oriented domain. Oneness among all peoples, regardless of how similar or different they may be to our own selves, will be key to this transition. By uniting together as one species, one family, we can not only ensure that we survive but, also that we thrive and transcend the lower realms of consciousness so that we can have a world that is finally filled with peace, love, and happiness (and not just filled with empty rhetoric). Not doing so will seal our fate in experiencing the most soul-crushing of dystopias imaginable.
There is thankfully an emerging worldview arising out of the ashes of the old order and it can be seen as a sign of immense hope for the immediate future. In order for our long-term future to be a bright one we must become unified in seeing this emerging unity-oriented worldview as being the key to a future we can all be proud of.
Do we want possible future explorers of our solar system to come upon our planet, find our artifacts and discover how foolish we were in our planetary and species’ self-destruction, becoming a footnote in the history annals of sentient races that brought about their own demise because of a lack of understanding about the interconnectedness of everything? Will we be looked upon as being an “intelligent” species that could have avoided imploding in on itself if it only discarded its self-destructive positions of awareness? Let’s not become a footnote in a book of failed evolutionary experiments and become something that we can be proud of.
Let’s not forget how many similarities we have. Think about all the social conditioning from the point of birth to the time of death. Look at all the beliefs we amass that divide us as a species and notice how these are not necessarily representative of reality but were learned behaviors that further perpetuated the destructive cycles in human behavior that we see today.
There is a continuously increasing number of people that are realizing the importance of an intentional shift in the collective consciousness of humanity. They feel within themselves that they have a critical role to play in this shift if they wish to see it occur. These people see that the entire socioeconomic system has to be changed. When they look around and see the egoistic expression of greed manifest itself through the haves taking more and more from the have-nots. They see that 13.7 billion years of cosmic evolution did not intend to end here with the current sad state of affairs.
The psychological addiction of consuming and acquiring, manifested through materialism seems to be increasingly infecting more minds in a shorter amount of time. We are at a dangerous position in our evolution where the old ego-dominated mentality is fighting desperately to maintain its current level of power because they are far too invested in the current order to give it all up and make the evolutionary quantum leap into a new humanity.
Trailblazing Towards a New Humanity
There is an increasing amount of individuals who are taking the human race by the hand towards the unity-oriented vision of humanity that is the answer to the current problems we face (since it is aligned with the nature of our environment). These people dedicate their lives to this cause because they believe so deeply in it and have such an immense love for our human family and, naturally, to the rest of life on our planet that is losing up to 100,000 species to extinction every year. The individuals can be called intentional “evolutionaries” since they are making it a life goal for helping humanity make the shift and transition to the new unifying of humanity that embodies the mind-states of peace, love and compassion above all else.
They will not allow these things to turn into cliches as has happened in the past but, will live them and become the literal expression of these higher levels of consciousness for the benefit of themselves and of everyone/everything else. As Pierre Teilhard de Chardin once said, “There is an almost sensual longing for communion with others who have a larger vision. The immense fulfillment of the friendships between those engaged in furthering the evolution of consciousness has a quality almost impossible to describe.”
How true this is since the feelings being expressed by these intentional evolutionaries are as genuine and good-natured as can be. There is no ego formulating a hidden agenda or any attempt at subversion in order to get something for themselves. No, they recognize that they have a critical role to play in the consciousness shift that is occurring. They know that if this consciousness evolution is to continue to fulfill its potential, it now must be deliberate and, they feel with the whole of their hearts that it is their responsibility and destiny to ensure this happens.
Unity and diversity need not been separate. It’s possible to be united in the expression of higher mind states such as compassion, joy, love and peace while keeping the attributes which make each one of us special and, unique. Cooperation on a global level is possible and, in fact, necessary if we are to make the transition to a new humanity. It seems as if it’s something a child would understand but, unfortunately, the actions of some (particularly world leaders in government and industry) demonstrate that this elementary concept is not grasped by the aging remnants of the old world order. War, famine and environmental destruction would be a thing of the past if only the peoples of the world cooperated with each other to bring about such a world. Today, with various crises extending far beyond any one country’s borders, there is a very real possibility for global unity and cooperation to finally become a reality.
If the human response to crises such as the ones following Hurricane Katrina, the earthquake in Haiti and the revolutions against tyranny around the world tell us anything, it’s that we can put our differences aside, and unify, to cooperative with each other in order to create positive change. Do not become depressed about the state of affairs currently on our planet. There is a massive awakening occurring with a realization that it is now or never. We need to shape up or we’re shipping out of this world with no possibility of coming back anytime soon.
Become an intentional evolutionary and take advantage of every opportunity that may arise in order to promote the creation of a fundamental consciousness shift that is global in size and scope. Make it a part of your life’s purpose to help in creating a critical mass of consciously evolved individuals that will stop the destructive nature of the current socioeconomic order. Our very future and survival depends on it!
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***Paul Lenda is a conscious evolution guide, author of “The Creation of a Consciousness Shift” and co-founder of www.shift.is, a social community of intentional evolutionaries focused on anchoring in the new paradigm and, assisting the positive transformation of humanity. With the drive to be aware of and, experience the wider horizon of reality, Paul has developed an extensive background in the spiritual and trans-formative elements of life…one that is both knowledge and experienced-based. Paul has spoken at various shows, events and locations, including the United Nations and My Spirit Radio and, has had his articles published in magazines and journals around the world.***
I’ve done everything I can – and then some – to exit “stage left” out of this dense reality. I bet many of you feel the same way. How much more do we need to endure? How much longer do we have to wait? It’s the same thing over and over again – like “Ground Hog Day”. The circumstances in your life and on this planet repeat themselves and, don’t seem to change – or they do change but, not for the better. Nothing seems to be working to alleviate this condition. Yet, we’re told otherwise by the all-knowing discarnate voices of channeled messages and so-called spiritual leaders. They say that portals of light are opening everywhere and that the dark forces are leaving the planet by the droves.
Where? How? Which planet are we talking about?
In the meantime, we’re in a perpetual “waiting room” – hoping for news about an outcome. The outcome is the fate of humanity – our fate. We’ve done everything that we feel is necessary to prepare ourselves for a “homecoming” that doesn’t quite come together. We’ve been given dates, time frames and more dates and, we see these come and go – along with the seasons and our favorite holidays. Many sources, like so-called spiritual teachers and channeled messengers, have given lame reasons as to why we haven’t witnessed a transformation, an ascension, a major “shift”. We’re told the dates have been moved or that we’ve jumped timelines and other such delusional explanations – that many are buying into and not questioning.
In the meantime, we wait and hang on. We live life one day at a time and the only thing that allows us to wake up in the morning is the hope that soon we’re out of here – that soon we’ll wake up to the view of a sun birthing from the horizon of a new Earth.
The reality, though, is that some of us are barely surviving or just getting by. We’re struggling. Some of us try to stay optimistic by keeping up with information that contains promises of an “event” that will unfold shortly. This possibility gives us some relief – but the relief is mental. It quiets our mind. What we don’t know is that nothing is really happening behind the scenes. There is no rescue planned, no outside source intervening, no special thing that will, all of a sudden, grant us entrance into a fifth-dimensional Earth.
The problem lies in the lies. We’ve been duped, again! We’ve been preconditioned to think it’s an “external” event – that something outside of ourselves will happen to get us to a realm that is free from strife, free from grief, absent of despair and disappointment. Perhaps something off-world is coming and will get this “whole enchilada” back on track or we’ll go to sleep one night and wake up in a totally different reality – the one that we see when we do our visualizations.
Photo Credit: arikopel.wordpress.com
So, we wait… and wait… and wait – millennia after millennia, century after century, year after year. We get placated by pretty, flowery words and promises that state “the shift is only ten years away…” or “the ascension is only two years away…” These empty promises have us chasing a proverbial carrot that we can never grab – because it’s not meant to be grabbed.
We are in a perpetual hypnotic trance – a state created and perfected by “creatures” that have the ultimate formula on mass-marketing and mass hypnosis. It’s the astral version of Madison Avenue. It is meant to keep the masses, especially the Light Emissaries, in a perpetual stupor and, in a state of docility and dependence.
These masters of deception have studied us well and they know our hot buttons. They know the triggers that elicit certain behaviors and reactions in us. They use those, whom they’ve hand-selected, to deliver intentionally deceptive information. Because we’re so desperate to get answers that give us a reason to go on one more day, we embrace the lie as truth.
The truth is that we make the decision when this “shift” will occur. The shift is within us, not an outside event.
What are you doing to shift?
What are you doing to change things in your personal life and in the outside world?
If you haven’t been doing anything because you’ve been waiting for ‘something’ to happen, something that is external to you and out of your control, you’ll still be waiting twenty years from now for that “magical event” that will change things for you. How much time do you have left in embodiment? Some of us are at that point in our lives where there isn’t much time left. Our clock is winding down and we’ve pretty much wasted a lot of valuable time waiting for the “golden ticket” to Nirvana to arrive. Maybe we should have started walking twenty years ago. We would have been there by now!
Throughout history, others were waiting for that “magical event” as well and they all transitioned from this world without witnessing it – unless they chose to be that change. When this occurred, because the individual “got it” or understood what had to be done, they mastered themselves and found the key or the “golden ticket” out of this reality. The golden ticket was Self-Mastery. Those who mastered themselves in this manner were able to transcend the life-death cycle, all illusion, all limitations and the physics of this density.
I am certain that during their various embodiments in this realm, there was plenty of talk about an outside event or situation that would graduate everyone at the same time, without really much effort. It was the “grand-fathered-in” concept where everyone got to go through the eye of the needle just because they were a member of the human race. But, the few who have attained their liberation from this density have done so through deliberate effort, by correct thinking and by making correct choices. How many actually attain self-mastery? Not many.
Many want to be able to obtain that level of spiritual attainment as quickly as one would prepare instant coffee – not desiring to do the spiritual work necessary or take the time necessary. That would require connecting to the Prime Creator, approaching communion in a humble manner and in awe, like a little child. Apparently, this is too much work for many. Keeping our thoughts in check, our reactions in alignment to the Divine and taking right action is not something some of us are willing to undertake.
It is much easier to get the intel from pseudo-spirituals and their astral cohorts than to get the pristine uncorrupted guidance and truth from the One who created all knowledge to begin with. So the easy route, otherwise known as the path of “thinking our way to enlightenment” via disinformation brokers, who are more than happy to provide the golden nuggets of truisms mixed in with blatant lies, is the path of choice. The lies that have been fed to us have kept us from truly taking the appropriate steps necessary to earn our spiritual mastery. Instead of being empowered, we’ve become disempowered. The spiritual decadence of this New Age Era has provided a “smorgasbord” of different ideologies, beliefs, concepts and understandings that keep us arguing and divided – behavior that is not representative of someone with higher spiritual understandings or someone who holds the light. It’s the Dark Ages meets Atlantis – the Era of Deception!
In the meantime, the sinister forces gloat to watch us on a path of derailment. When we think we’re one more year away from a graduation, we regress into an enfolding darkness – the Great Void. This is the age of disillusion, the age of spiritual decadence, the epoch of spiritual arrogance and spiritual irresponsibility. It is the era of non-discernment and spiritual self-indulgence.
It is the time of flirting with dark forces that whisper words into our ears, words that mesmerize, words that are like spiritual opium. These have the power for negative creation because they disempower. They leave us only wanting our fix of feel-good messages and deliberate denial of the unprecedented conditions that we’re facing. We are being used to help create the demise of our civilization, of our morals and of our humanity by our inaction and lack of attention. We are giving our consent for the desecration of a pristine world and all its life-forms. When we say nothing and do nothing, this is giving the “go ahead”. We don’t understand that when we look away, this is a “conscious choice” which leads to a descension. This, of course, will not be pointed out by those who have designed the deception because they want to keep us as their prize possession within the matrix, or cage, that they’ve created for us!
History does repeat itself. Sometimes through irresponsibility and self-absorption, we’re plunged to even darker depths of human experience.
Not too long ago, Moses was throwing tablets at a people who decided to explore decadence instead of holiness. Today, the “people” are displaying spiritual arrogance and listening to discarnates giving messages that lead to self-service, apathy and indifference. Our behavior is indicative of what is displayed right at the end of a Great Cycle. It is the time of pseudo-enlightenment – the Era of Deception.
What does it take to wake up from the hypnosis and enter into true gnosis? Who wants to reclaim their power and Divine connection and, be warriors for radical change? This is the only way to experience “the Shift”, the Transformation – the Ascension.
Have I done everything I can to exit “stage left” out of this reality? No. I’m obviously still here and it takes more than just thinking I’ve done enough! The desire for Self-Mastery has to burn in me. I have to yearn for this connection with The Creator, desire to be “spiritually self-reliant” and be infused with Its Essence. Going to the “local priests” of the day doesn’t cut it!
It’s time to reclaim our Power and Authority. There are no more timelines or dates, no more events in the future. The time is now! Those who proclaim something is coming over the horizon which will transform everything magically without any effort or direct Connection to Creator…are deceiving you.
It’s time to wake up!
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About Ari Kopel:
Photo Credit: bbsradio.com
Ari Kopel graduated from the University of Miami in Psychology and Communications and, attended Columbia University in New York for postgraduate work in geology. Ari is also the creator of the website Transcending In Beauty that was designed to create awareness about the time frame of 2012 and beyond. Membership is growing daily, it has articles and videos posted that discuss the events on the planet that help shatter “The Matrix” and, it helps members become inoculated against fear.
As an author and speaker, Ari will be launching her book in the winter of 2015 and will begin a speaking tour, sharing tools of empowerment and protection for all those that are ready to go to that next level! If you’re interested in knowing when the book is launched or receiving newsletters or emails from Ari, please visit arikopel.wordpress.com and fill out the contact information form provided on her “About” page.***
[Note: This article was, obviously, posted almost four years ago but, it still applies to what is going on, today…sadly.]
Cosmic-Observation 