Barack Obama always believed he could. The motto that the throngs of people at his rallies would chant was, “Yes! We Can!” There’s no question that back on the day he decided to take a run at this election campaign, he may not have had all the abilities he needed to succeed. But as Ghandi said in the quote above, “But when I believe I can, then I acquire the ability to do it, even if I did not have the ability in the beginning.” President-Elect Obama has acquired all the ability he needed.

Last night we saw the possibility of a future built on the belief that we could. We knew there would be obstacles along the way — and we knew there would be even greater obstacles for the days ahead. Most importantly, we also saw the truth for the first time in many years.

Last night we saw the multitudes cheering around the world. We saw the faces of people wet with the tears of joy and hope. This morning I looked at photos from around the world of cheering people and shots of newspaper headlines from country after country expressing their faith in the hope of our country. We’re seeing the same sort of connectedness between countries we saw right after 9/11.

Last night we saw the end of an era of bitterness, deception, hatred, and greed. As we looked at this ending, we also the beginning of a new era.

As I watched President-Elect Barack Obama give his acceptance speech I saw a crowd of over 250,000 people rapt with attention to his every word. I saw people who knew we had won this long fight for the Presidency, but I also saw people who seemed to understand there was work to be done by every one of us to make our hopes and dreams a reality.

Here’s a link to the speech in case you didn’t get a chance to see it. I like this version because it covers all the participation of the two families — the Obama’s and the Biden’s. (It’s about a half-hour, so be prepared!)

Obama’s Acceptance Speech

The other thing I noticed last night, and this morning, is the lack of any feeling of gloat by our President-Elect. Yes, there was obvious joy, but there was also a seriousness about him. I felt he knew how great a burden he was facing. Another aspect of this great man was also evident. After facing almost two years of sometimes brutal attacks on his character, his race, and his family, there was evidence of the soul of the man and how he believes. It showed in his placidity and humility at this moment of great triumph.

Throughout his campaign, Barack Obama gave us an unfiltered look at his intelligence and his grace. These aspects of who he is were seen as elitist by some and arrogant by others. My hope is that those who saw him in this way will come to learn in the coming years about his dreams of hope and freedom for us all and be willing to help him make these dreams a reality.

Now is the time for all of us to understand how we are all connected. In many of the past articles in this blog I’ve talked about the fact of how our hopes and dreams are not so different from those of our neighbors. We’ve been in an environment based on fear and greed for these past eight years which has led us to yearn for new, truthful leadership. This election proves my point. While there are still some who favor the old regime, by far, the greater majority of the people in the United States, and in the world, are not buying it any longer.

We saw the excellence and professionalism of the way Barack Obama and his team managed this campaign. Can there be any doubt as to how he will govern? He led us all to this victory — we have all won. We won our country back from the brink of disaster. Now it’s up to us help our new leader preserve our earth and our nation. It’s up to us to help President Obama bring the United States back into the fold of world leadership.

Can we return to the days when we were respected by the world? Can we become the nation working for peace and hope for all beings? Can we do the work necessary to help our new President turn our way of thinking away from being fearful into focusing on hope and peace?

==============================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — .

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
==================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion, Barack Obama[/tags]

Today I would like to occupy a little more of your time than usual. I have a few words to pass along about why this is “The Really BIG Picture” of today’s title — and then give you some, what I believe are, interesting things to watch and listen to.

First about today’s quote — Do you recognize it? They are certainly profound words, aren’t they? These words were agreed upon by 56 people on July 4, 1776. Here we are, 232 years later, and it makes me sad to see how many people who live in, and who are citizens of this great country, have forgotten, or have chosen to ignore, this basic principal.

I wrote about how prejudice is still running rampant in this country in my last article in this blog. Today, we’re just a few days away from one of the most important elections this country has ever seen. And still, there are people who feel that the ideals upon which this country was founded — that all of us are created equal — there are people to whom this just doesn’t seem to matter.

I’m not going to go on one of my big rants today about the terrible things being said by Americans about other Americans. Instead, I’m going to ask you to do four things. One — If you’re registered to vote in this election, BE SURE TO VOTE!

The second thing I’m asking of you is to watch this video. It features the person I support for the Presidency of the USA, Barack Obama. This is the speech he delivered on Monday, October 27, 2008, in Canton, Ohio. It’s being called “The Closing Argument“. I feel this speech makes the choice in this election starkly clear. I looked for some excerpts that were shorter, but the couple I found didn’t do the speech justice. As usual, I’ve included a link in case the video doesn’t play for some reason.

The Closing Argument

The third thing I’d like you to do is read this blog post by Barack Obama’s wife, Michelle Obama. This was a post she wrote on the same day that her husband gave the above speech. She wrote it for the Blogher community. It will only take a couple of minutes to read, but it will give you a clear idea of who this person is and why she would also be a good role model for parents and spouses in our country.

Here’s the link to it:

Michelle Obama’s Blog Post

Or — if you’d rather read it here, I’ve included the text for you:

by Michelle Obama

The leaves are turning, the air is crisper, and my girls are completely wrapped up in their preparations for Halloween. Yep, it’s definitely fall.

Malia and Sasha spent hours this weekend putting the finishing touches on their costumes. Then they paraded around with their friends at the Halloween party we hosted on Saturday night. Malia was what she calls an “evil fairy,” and Sasha was (I can hardly believe I’m writing this) a corpse bride. They were both aiming for terrifying, but as Barack put it, they really are just too cute to be scary.

In a few days, we’ll go trick-or-treating. And then, just a few days later, it’s Election Day.

After 21 long months, the big day is almost here.

This campaign has been such an incredible experience for me and for our family. I’ve learned so much. And I don’t just mean how to travel to five states in two days, or where to find places for kid-friendly fun anywhere in America on a moment’s notice. (Though, believe me, these are extremely useful skills.)

I’ve learned that there is so much more that unites us as Americans than divides us—no matter what our differences may be. I’ve seen neighbors pitching in when the folks around them need a hand—without being asked, and sometimes without even being noticed. Strangers seeing each other struggle, and standing up to say, “I don’t know you, but I want to help.”

This is exactly what Barack has been talking about for years. The fundamental values and experiences that bring us together… regardless of our race, our political party, our socioeconomic status, our age or our gender… all the threads that connect our lives and our futures. Because the truth is, we are in this together. We will rise and fall together. And the only way that we’ll build a better future for our kids is by coming together and working together for change.

As Barack always says, We don’t live in red states or blue states… we live in the United States. And during the past 21 months, as I’ve traveled around this beautiful country, I’ve seen the truth of his words again and again.

Now, with just one week to go until Election Day, I’d like share with you one of my favorite memories from the campaign trail, for you to get a sense of the extraordinary strength and kindness I’ve seen on my travels.

Throughout this campaign, I’ve hosted round table discussions with women—both to introduce myself and our family to the American people, and to hear the questions and concerns of folks all over this country. A few months ago, I was in Kansas City, Missouri, meeting with a group of local women, when one woman started talking about her son.

He had some developmental problems, and his pediatrician urged her to give him as much enrichment as she could. But she didn’t make enough money to afford daycare. So instead of spending his days playing with other children in a lively environment, this little boy was spending his days sitting in a relative’s living room, waiting for his mom to finish work.

This mother was heartsick over how to give her son a better quality of life during these crucial formative years.

Another woman was participating in the discussion that day: a nun named Sister Berta, who runs a nonprofit agency that cares for low-income children while their mothers are at work. And after we finished our discussion that day, Sister Berta quietly went over to the woman, and offered her son a spot at her center—for just $10 a week.

It almost seemed like a miracle. Right when that woman was brave enough to tell her story, there was someone listening who could help her. And two people who didn’t know each other before that morning found their lives on a different path after we left.

I think about that moment all the time. Because that right there—that sense of cooperation, that unity—that is why Barack is in this race. Because he believes so deeply in our ability to come together in times like these—times of crisis—to overcome any challenges that we face.

It’s going to take all of us working together to build a better future. And we have to start now. This election gives all of us the opportunity to change our world. So please, make the most of this moment. Educate yourself, and your friends and family, about the issues at stake in this election. And please, no matter who you vote for, make sure you vote.

I know we can do this. I’ve met so many strong and compassionate folks on the campaign trail. Folks like Sister Berta, who knows that we rise and fall together—and who can’t stand by if the situation demands that she step up.

My family is committed to this campaign because of people like her, and people like you.
So I’ll be carrying so many stories in my heart during these final days, wherever I go—whether I’m on the campaign trail, or collecting candy from our terrified neighbors, as I go door-to-door with our ghoulish girls.

*****************************************
Finally today, with only four days until the election, I’d like you to watch this short video. It concerns the first thing I asked of you — and that was to be sure you vote. There has never been an election this important to every single one of us, not only here in the USA, but also throughout the world. This video came into my life just yesterday from a new friend of mine I met in the http://www.beta.intent.com ning group, Jim Aycock. He and a couple of film maker buddies of his, George Smith and Michael Mills, put this video together which features a song written by Jim called, “We the People“. Jim gives tons of credit to his wife, Cindy, for being the driving force behind the making of this wonderful video.

Please watch it and enjoy it — and then get out and vote. And be sure those you know do the same. Again, I’ve included a link in case the video doesn’t play for any reason.

We the People Video

==========================================================
Be sure to vote. Be sure to check your registration before you vote by contacting your local voter registration office. If somehow your registration is being purged, you will know by checking first. Do it now, so you won’t be pressed for time just before election day. If you can, vote early to avoid long lines at the polls. And my last bit of advice — tell everyone you know to do the same.
===========================================================

Thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.
=================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — .

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion, Barack Obama[/tags]

I don’t know where to start today. Yesterday I began writing this blog article about five different times. I scrapped every one of them. Today is my normal day to post an article here, so I’m back at the drawing board to try again. I keep thinking I’d better get off my soapbox with all the “rants” about politics and corruption, and get back to writing more uplifting articles about being better human beings. Since I also write another blog about Buddhist Belief (http://www.buddhistbelief.com) I thought perhaps writing how a Buddhist would feel about all the crazy politics might be something I could write and not feel the need to toss it in the recycling bin. Who knows — here we go for another try ….

I don’t even come close to having any idea what Buddha, or Jesus, or any other of the spiritual avatars we’ve come to know would say about the things going on in our USA political arena. I do know what Buddha taught about the dangers of greed, hatred and ignorance. The Buddha called those the three poisons. Those three aspects of human nature we’re seeing displayed so prominently in this Presidential election cycle are the three primary thieves of our happiness. Greed grabs our desires — hatred plays on our fears and insecurities and convinces us to find blame in everyone other than ourselves — and ignorance clouds our minds so we lose sight of the visions we seek.

Greed is what brought the economy of the world to its knees. Greed has a slew of relatives like jealousy, ambition, addiction, pride, grasping and clinging. All of which lead us into being dissatisfied with our lives. We find ourselves frustrated, irritated, annoyed and even depressed by the way our life is playing out. When we’re being greedy we don’t tend to be generous. It makes us want what we want when we want it and we don’t give a hoot how we get it.

Hate seems to be playing a role this year as well. It is one of the most destructive things we can carry within us. If you look at prejudice against people of different races — or people with differing religious practices — or people with different sexual preferences — or people with opposing political beliefs — it’s all still prejudice and prejudice is embodied in hatred. Whenever we’re caught in the web of believing only our way of being or thinking is the right way — and attacking anyone who says anything opposed to what we believe as being wrong — we then create a concept of someone being the enemy and worthy of such attack. I see much of this kind of behavior in the way we’re being bombarded with nasty mailings and vile robo-phone calls.

One of the principles taught by Buddha was things like hatred, ignorance and greed are the very things causing us to be dissatisfied and unhappy. One of the reasons why we suffer so much is our belief that we are all separate from each other. We really do foolishly believe we can hurt someone else without hurting ourselves. We have this desire to always feel we’re more important than the other guy. This kind of thinking only destroys everything around it — including ourselves. It even has drastic effects on our health — both physical and mental. Prejudice makes us quick to judge or find fault, it closes our heart and shuts down our sensitivity. I read something or heard this somewhere (probably on the Internet) about a family where the word “hate” was not allowed to be spoken in their home. Why not try that in your homes? Just don’t let the word be spoken. It will make a difference.

When you’re thinking about pointing your finger in accusation at the other guy, just remember, there are three or four fingers pointing right back at you.
*****************************************
Just one more bone to pick and then I’ll get out of here and stop ranting.

I’m sure by now most of you have heard about the Republican National Committee giving Sarah Palin some extra spending money for clothes, hair, and make-up for herself and her family. I don’t know if the figures I heard are true or not, but it was apparently in the six-figures somewhere. Fortunately, I didn’t make any campaign contributions to the Republican party, so I truly don’t have a bone to pick about how they use their money.

But, this comment is not about clothing — I don’t know a thing about fashion. So, ladies, don’t send me letters about picking on someone’s need for style. This is about the issues. It’s just the concept of how we choose people to lead our country. Is this about how they feel about our health care or national security or the economy? Nope! It’s about what they’re wearing or how they tie their tie. This last comment is about the economy and how the candidates feel about it and what their basic understanding is about how we should be using our dollars.

This little video clip I want to show you took place this past July, so I presume that both Barack and Michelle have purchased some new clothes since then. I haven’t heard about them using campaign funds for it, though. My guess is they have enough money of their own to buy a good suit of clothes. I do believe their basic values are rooted deeply in the way they feel about how you and I may have to dig deep to get something nice to wear. Here’s what I mean …

The Obama family sat down for an interview with Maria Menounos of “Access Hollywood.” One of the topics discussed was the Obamas’ style icon status, which amused the family because, as Michelle points out in the interview, Barack is wearing pants he’s had for 10 years, and says that his belt and shoes are pretty shabby, too (“I hate to shop,” he explains). Michelle also reveals that the sundress she’s wearing is from the Gap: “Fortunately they make pretty stuff at all price ranges…[Barack] will be happy to know that this is, like, a $30 dress.” Her husband then high-fives her and daughter Sasha screams out “Mommy buys everything from Gap!”

Here’s a video of that interview…. (Use the link if it doesn’t play for you for some reason) …

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=1vkWRIcezc0

=============================================

I don’t know what the next week will bring, so I can’t guarantee we’ll get back to the “other topics” we used to write about. At some point, I know we will. There just aren’t any promises for the immediate future.

And .. Thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.

=======================================================
My advice to everyone is this. Be sure to vote. Be sure to check your registration before you vote by contacting your local voter registration office. If somehow your registration is being purged, you will know by checking first. Do it now, so you won’t be pressed for time just before election day. If you can, vote early to avoid long lines at the polls. And my last bit of advice — tell everyone you know to do the same.
====================================================
And .. Thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
=================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Yes, that is the same quote I used in the last article. It still applies. As I say in the title to today’s article, the political campaign here in the USA isn’t funny. It’s darn serious. There for awhile, the late-night talk-show hosts were having a lot of fun with some of the antics being used by both political parties. Lately, they’ve been making fun of the Republican Vice-Presidential nominee, Sarah Palin. I don’t like it. The humor has gone out of it. It’s reached the point where we need to look at some of the recent antics and inject a bit of realism into the Big Picture.

First, let’s look into the way the Republican campaign has been riling people up by the way it uses Obama’s name, putting the emphasis on his middle name, Hussein, and invoking some sort of connection between his name and terrorism. This has even reached the point where people at the Republican rallies are concluding that Barack Obama is a terrorist himself. A woman recently, stated she wouldn’t vote for him because he was an Arab. This just isn’t funny.

Last February, conservative talk show host Bill Cunningham, no doubt wanting to play up the Obama-as-foreign-terrorist angle, repeated Barack Obama’s middle name three times prior to an interview with John McCain. When McCain was informed, he released a statement saying that it was inappropriate to invoke Obama’s middle name. “I absolutely repudiate such comments,” McCain said. “It will never happen again.” Of course it happened again, most recently when a Florida sheriff introduced Governor Palin at a rally. Palin’s campaign spokesperson, Tracey Schmitt, later called the sheriff’s use of Obama’s middle name an “inappropriate rhetoric.”

What bothers me, in addition to the fact of the dangers of riling up the potential for extreme reactions, is the fact that we still pander to the elements of racism. Why should the use of Obama’s full name even be a fear-inducer? When are we going to stand up and defend the use of Obama’s full name? When will we be able to show that the use of any name, regardless of race or origin, is free to be used without fear of abusive reaction? Can you see why I feel it’s not funny anymore?

Where did we get this idea that a person who has a name that is from Arabic origin cannot be a true American? It wasn’t that long ago that the anti-Semites sent the same message to Jews. Irish, Italian, Polish and other immigrants, as well as African-Americans, all have a history of being penalized for their names. If we truly believe that it is the content of a person’s character that should be judged, and not their skin color or ethnic origins, then we should stand up to such belief. We should welcome the use of his full name, Barack Hussein Obama. It’s not something we should be ashamed of. We should be proud to be supporting such an impressive member of the human race. We should be proud of the fact that Obama is such an outstanding American.

I live in an area of Ohio that still carries many of the old feelings about race. I was doing a “Visibility” event recently (where groups of people gather at busy intersections and hold signs supporting their candidate), and was amazed at how many people shouted terrible, racist words out of their car windows at us. I know racism still exists. I also know there are people still hoping there will never be a cure for this. However, those of us who don’t believe in it should never allow ourselves to be shamed into silence. It’s not funny anymore.
===================
On to another issue that is also not funny and is being blown all out of proportion by the main stream media and the politicians. This is about ACORN. The Republicans are stating that some of ACORN’s canvassers were turning in voter registration applications with fake names and information in order to meet their daily quotas. As a result, the media and the GOP are screaming “voter fraud”.

Did some lazy ACORN canvassers turn in a bunch of fake registrations with names like Mickey Mouse and the entire Dallas Cowboys starting lineup in order to pick up a few dollars without doing the work? It looks like that did happen. This prompted the political machine to turn up the volume on the phrase “voter fraud”.

Why are they doing this?

If Obama wins in November, they will be able to scream, “He won because of “voter fraud”. They are laying the groundwork now so they can cry foul after the election. It is true, that some of the ACORN canvassers may have been a few bricks short of a load. Did some of them turn in bogus voter registrations like the one for Mickey Mouse? I wouldn’t be surprised if they did. Is that registration fraud? If it’s proven, it sure is. And the people who did it should be appropriately punished.

Is is voter fraud? No, it is not.

The only way this becomes voter fraud is if Mickey Mouse shows up at the polls on election day and tries to vote. My state of Ohio is one of those being accused of voter fraud. All I can say is if a bunch of Mickey Mice show up and are successful in casting a vote, then I’ll agree there has been voter fraud.

Anyone who registers a voter, including ACORN, has to turn all the registrations into the board of elections, even the ones that look bogus. They have to — it’s the law. ACORN starts the verification process by attempting to call the individual names on the application. If they’re not successful in this attempt at verification, they flag the form and send it on as required by law. In Ohio, the Board of Elections also has to verify the registrations are valid. They do this by sending out a verification form to the address shown on the registration application. If the card bounces back, the registration is not processed. Even if a fake registration somehow does make it through the verification process, the fake person still has to show up at the polls to vote and identify themselves. If the person doesn’t exist, how can they show up to vote?

I don’t see where the voter fraud exists if no vote is ever cast.

The big picture here is how the ACORN myth allows the Republicans to do more arbitrary purging of the voter rolls based on so-called “anomalies” in the voter registration databases. Richard L Hasen, author of the Election Law Blog and a distinguished law professor at Loyola Law School in Los Angeles recently wrote, “Careless purging–driven by unsubstantiated fears about voter fraud–can lead to many eligible voters being incorrectly removed from the rolls.” Already, here in Ohio, the Republican Party is pushing for more purging and they found a federal judge who agreed, citing ACORN’s activities.

All this ballyhoo is about those newly registered voters and who they might vote for.

It isn’t funny anymore.

My advice to everyone is this. Be sure to vote. Be sure to check your registration before you vote by contacting your local voter registration office. If somehow your registration is being purged, you will know by checking first. Do it now, so you won’t be pressed for time just before election day. If you can, vote early to avoid long lines at the polls. And my last bit of advice — tell everyone you know to do the same.

And .. Thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
=================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

As I sat down to write today’s article for this blog, I looked back on some of those I’ve been writing over the past few months. I noticed quite a contrast in what I was using for the topics. I seemed to have gravitated from articles about peace and self-improvement, to articles about meditation and the advantages of having that practice in your daily life, to articles growing into a succession of rants about the politics of the world.

My first inclination was to return to articles of a more peaceful nature today. However, as I began to write in that vein, I found my mind constantly going back to Tuesday night’s debate between John McCain and Barack Obama. So, instead of bringing this blog back to its origins, I may have a rant or two left in me. I have a need to talk about the politics in the USA, even though I’m beginning to feel a lot like the cat in the picture for today and can’t wait for it to be over.

I have already voted in this election (I did the absentee ballot) because I know I won’t be changing my mind in the next few weeks. Nor, do I feel that writing this article will change the minds of any of my readers. That’s not my purpose. Rather, I’m writing this primarily because of the fact that I returned from a war many years ago. It was the Korean War, and I don’t know if they knew there was such a thing as PTSD back then, but they should have. Many lives, including mine, would be different today if they had known and knew how to treat it.

After the debate was over, I felt I had a handle on the strategy of John McCain. I’m summarizing it this way, “My friends, trust me. I don’t want to say how I’m going to fix everything, but you have to trust me — I know how. Don’t worry, it won’t be hard.”

I wanted to hear details, but all I heard was what he felt Obama did or didn’t do, not what he, McCain would do about most of the issues brought up. He did, however, say that he would put a spending freeze on all entitlements if he were to become president. I would like to have heard more specifically what he meant by that. As a veteran, my thoughts go to the entitlements concerning our veterans. I know that he said that Veteran’s Affairs would not be included in his freeze. However, if you look at McCain’s record on Veteran’s affairs, there might be some need for concern. Let’s use his own words and “look at the walk, not the talk”.

1. McCain has repeatedly voted against increases in Medical assistance for veterans.

A. He voted against a 1.5 Billion dollar increase in veterans medical services for the 2007 Veterans Affairs Fiscal Budget. (Obama voted for it)

B. In May 2006, McCain voted against a 20 billion dollar expansion of veterans’ medical facilities. At that time, Veterans facilities claimed that they were facing an emergency situation in regards to their capacity to treat and provide services for the more than 30,000 wounded soldiers returning from Iraq and Afghanistan, as well as for all of the other veterans who need care from previous service in the U.S. Military. (Obama voted for it.)

C. In 2006, McCain was one of only thirteen Senators to vote against a 430 million dollar expansion of outpatient services for veterans. (Obama Voted for it.)

D. March 2004, McCain voted against a 1.8 billion dollar reserve for veterans’ health care that was to be paid for entirely by closing tax loopholes. (Obama was not in the Senate at that time.)

I sure would hate to think that John McCain would continue to work against programs like these if he were to become president. We have troops coming home from Iraq and Afghan conflicts every day. More than 20 percent of them suffer from PTSD. An additional 19 percent of them suffer from Traumatic Brain Injury. Folks, we’re talking about 330,000 U.S. troops. If these great people don’t get the treatment they deserve, the list of possible ailments they’ll have to live with just gets started with severe depression, loss of motor skills, debilitating rage, outbursts, drug and alcohol abuse, and homelessness. Many of them will subject themselves to abusive situations, and and/or will abuse their family members. For those that do not commit suicide or become homeless most will likely be unable to hold down jobs, much less jobs that provide health coverage. All this doesn’t include the question of whether they’ll have enough money to pursue education to help them find jobs. This is made more profound in an economic environment like we have today.

These returning troops who have worked so hard for a cause that was doubtful to begin with, need the support of our government. They have sacrificed tremendously for our country. Working against these entitlements might be defensible if there was some other way to get health care other than the VA system. However, since McCain’s policy proposals on health care for regular civilians is poor, what does this mean for our returning soldiers?

2. Last September McCain voted against a bill sponsored by Senator Jim Web to give soldiers time to rest between combat deployments in hopes of reducing the number of suicides and severity of PTSD cases. (Obama voted for this.)

In the first year of the surge campaign, which required longer deployments and shorter turn around time for troops going from one combat mission to another, 2,100 U.S. Army soldiers attempted suicide. According to the U.S. Army, in 2007, five soldiers attempted suicide each day. Before the Iraq war began there were roughly 50 Army suicides a year. That number has increased dramatically. To be specific, lethal suicides have more than doubled between 2001 and 2007. When Bush increased deployment and tour length for the actual combat operations in Iraq and Afghanistan there was a 66 percent jump in suicides in the first year. Over half of those who successfully killed themselves were National Guard or Reserve troops, most of whom were sent into combat in violation of their service contracts.

McCain and Obama do not simply disagree on the details of policy-making. McCain is so staunchly in favor of deregulation and free market solutions as an ideology that he will not even support health care and education benefits for American soldiers who risk their lives to fight bravely in a war they know virtually no one supports.

One last thing for this post — whenever the subject of troop support comes up in the campaigns, John McCain always says that “the troops know where I stand.”

Well, yes they do. The Disabled Veterans of America gave McCain one of their lowest possible ratings and gave Obama a rating over 80 percent on the question of supporting veterans. The problem is that the rest of America does not know how the troops feel.

McCain has reminded us all time and time again that he will not pull out of Iraq because he is concerned about troop morale and the idea of winning. Unfortunately he has sold U.S. soldiers down the river for symbolic ‘spending cuts’ while continuing to support tax cuts for the rich, loopholes for big business, and expanding — not resolving — the war in Iraq. Ask yourself what soldiers would prefer: Coming home victors from a hundred year occupation or returning home to find adequate health care and education benefits?

As I said at the top of this article, my purpose is not to attempt to sway anyone in the way they will vote in this election. I’m writing as someone who cares deeply about the health and well-being of the wonderful, brave young people who are making it home from the terribleness of war. When you know what war can do to a person — when you understand, on a personal level, what seeing the result of violence on human beings can do to a person — when you come to realize that those sights you’ve seen will never be erased from your memory –then you have to speak out.

I don’t know what the next week will bring, so I can’t guarantee we’ll get back to the “other topics” we used to write about. At some point, I know we will. There just aren’t any promises for the immediate future.

And .. Thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
=================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================
In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Yes, Janet, I feel the same way!

We are all fully aware by now that our Congress is working on a plan to give $700 Billion dollars the rich, New York financial institutions who have been riding their enormous greed on the backs of the citizens of this country — until Wall Street finally fell off into a ditch they couldn’t dig their way out of.

Now, we get to listen to the cries of woe — and the threats made by our administration about how dire this will be for all of us. We hear the pleading to move this forward immediately so that we can avoid a panic. They want those of us in the middle-class of America to stand idly by while we get ripped off for another $700 billion of our hard-earned dollars. This gets even more disturbing when you stop to realize that our administration wanted, initially, to just hand this amount of money over with no controls whatsoever.

Fortunately, thanks to the ability of being able to quickly contact our people in Congress, we were able to, at least, get some controls and guarantees worked into this plan. However, no matter what plan the Congress finally approves, it will still result in a horrendous burden on the taxpayers of this country, who, for the most part, had nothing to do with the mess to begin with. And in all likelihood, the House and Senate will pass a modified version of the $700 billion handout this week which will, once again, enable the fat cat Wall Street financiers.

The likely result, according to Nobel economist Joseph Stiglitz: “The unemployment rate will still increase, growth will remain anemic, house prices will continue to fall, the number of houses in foreclosure will continue to rise, credit will be harder to get, states and localities will remain in a fiscal crisis, and there will be cutbacks in basic public services. …. Our living standards in the future will be lower than they otherwise would have been. “

As we’ve been talking about regularly here in this blog, the “Big Picture” is the result of the way we have been mislead. Just like the run-up to the war in Iraq and the passage of the Patriot Act, the media are compounding the problem rather than helping it. The TV, radio, newspapers and the Internet are feeding us only what they want us to hear.

We are getting virtually no hard economic analysis about what the so-called bailout will achieve or what the range of options truly are.

I read one commentator who thought maybe the administration should have called this a “loan ” instead of a “bailout“. All of us are familiar with loans. From the richest to the poorest of Americans we understand the principals of borrowing money. For the privilege of getting someone else’s money, we have to promise to pay it back with interest. Further, we usually have to offer collateral to the lender. When a marginal business loan is accepted, it also comes with terms such as limitations on company expenditures. Banks aren’t in business to lose money. We, the taxpayers, are the lender here! We are the ones making the loan. Yet Wall Street and their pawn, the Congress, continue to insist on conditions almost guaranteed to cause American taxpayers a monstrous financial loss.

I know, by the time I post this in the morning, the Senate will have voted and the House will be about to vote on Friday. I don’t know what the outcome will be — whatever it is it won’t be enough, and, as usual, all of us won’t be privy to the details thanks to the usual series of half-truths and misleading statements doled out by the media.

Oh, speaking of the media, did you notice how well informed you were about the defense authorization bill passed by the House of Representatives on Wednesday, September 24, right in the middle of the fight over the $700 Billion bailout package? They slipped that one right past us in the amount of $612 billion for 2009. Not a murmur of public protest — not any press coverage at all — (well, to be fair, the New York Times had it buried in another story) — nothing!

Did you know about it?

Here’s what’s in that bill … $68.6 billion to pursue wars in Iraq and Afghanistan, which is only a down payment on the full yearly cost of these wars. Also, 3.9 percent increase for military personnel (that’s the only good part about this bill) — another $5 billion in pork-barrel projects not even requested by the administration or the Secretary of Defense. It also fully funds the Pentagon’s request for a radar site in the Czech Republic, a harebrained scheme sure to infuriate the Russians. This bill passed the House by a vote of 392-39 and will certainly fly through the Senate.

Not one word about it to you. You’re about to cough up $700 billion for Wall Street not even knowing that you just spewed out another $612 billion for your children and grandchildren to pay back to China or wherever they go and borrow the money — that’s if anyone will even loan us money today. And, if they do agree to loan us, the interest rate will be a killer!

Here’s another quote from Janet Ritz that I completely agree with, and which ties in with the other quote at the start of this article:

“I want a grown-up government. I want representatives who take responsibility for their actions, even if it means losing their seat. And I want the finger-pointing and projection to stop (John McCain).

If I hadn’t been voting Obama before (which I was), I would be voting for him after this.”

Folks, I know. This blog has veered way off the course for which it was intended. It wasn’t that long ago I was writing about meditation. I do meditate every day — and these days it’s become a vital practice. I know some of you may be disappointed by my on-going rant about how I feel we’re being treated by our government, the media, and big-money. I sincerely hope we’ll be able to get back on track before too much longer.

In the meantime — thanks for hanging in here with me. I appreciate it.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
=================================================
Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================

In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, Bailout, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Depending on whether you live in a co-called “swing-state” or not, you may, or may not, have received this terrible DVD being sent out by The Clarion Fund. (The Clarion Fund is an organization working to get Republicans voted into office. So, even though this mailing doesn’t purport to be from the Republican Party, that party has not come out with a statement of censure denouncing this action by The Clarion Fund, either. I sent the copy of the DVD that was mailed to me to the Republican Headquarters in Dayton, Ohio this morning.)

Here’s the story …

Over the past week, thousands of copies of Obsession: Radical Islam’s War Against the West — the hate/fear-mongering, anti-Muslim documentary are being distributed by the millions in swing states via DVDs inserted in major newspapers and through the U.S. mail — were also distributed by regular mail here in Ohio. I got mine two days ago. The timing of the DVD distribution corresponded to the anniversary of the 9/11 attacks.

This past Friday, September 26, 2008, a “chemical irritant” was sprayed through a window of the Islamic Society of Greater Dayton, where 300 people were gathered for a Ramadan prayer service. The room that the chemical was sprayed into was the room where babies and children were being kept while their mothers were engaged in prayers. This, apparently, is what the scare tactic political campaigning of John McCain’s supporters has led to — so-called Americans perpetrating a terrorist attack against innocent children on American soil.

I read this story in the Dayton Daily News, one of the many newspapers who distributed the DVD via an insert in the paper delivered to their subscribers. As I read the news article about this vicious attack, I couldn’t help but notice the “matter of fact” manner the reporter related the information. I know, it was “just a news story” — but this was the same paper that sent this awful DVD out to it’s readers, calling it “just an ad”. I understand the papers were paid to distribute the DVD.

Could it be that the DVD was the catalyst for someone making the decision to commit such an awful act of violence against innocent people? Is it more than a coincidence that these two events happened so closely in time?

As I did more research about this act happening here in my own community, I came upon an article written by Chris Rodda, a Huffpost blogger, where she relates an email she received from a friend of the mother of two children who were in that room being gassed. Here’s a copy of that email, written the day after the attack occurred, she quoted with permission.

The presidential campaign edition of this terrible Obsession DVD was produced and being distributed by the Clarion Fund, and carries the endorsement of the chair of the counter-terrorism department of the U.S. Naval War College, using the name and authority of an official U.S. military institution not only to validate an attack on the religion of Islam, but to influence a political campaign.

This is one of the most appalling things I’ve ever seen happen in a political campaign. I feel strongly, that the McCain campaign, and John McCain himself, have a moral obligation to publicly censure the Clarion Fund; to denounce the inflammatory, anti-Muslim message of Obsession: and to do everything in his power, and the power of his campaign, to stop any further campaign activities by his supporters that have the potential to incite violence.

This is exactly the kind of terrorism that both parties here in the USA claim to be fighting against.

Please help me to circulate this blog to the people you know. We need to see information like this get into the hands, eyes, and ears of more people, so they can see what we’re up against, and hopefully, find ways to stop this sort of thing from ever happening again. As I’ve said so often in these articles, the media won’t do it, so it’s up to us. I did a search this morning and only found links to the story in the local Dayton paper.

It makes me wonder, how widely would a story like this be known if it happened at a school or a Christian church? I have a feeling the content of this blog post wouldn’t be news to you, as I’ll bet this is!

I should also put in my disclaimer here. I am not a Muslim, but obviously, I do not support any act of violence against any nation, people , or religion. I promote peace.
==============================================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================

First — to all my loyal readers — an explanation! It’s been eleven days since I last wrote an article for this blog. What happened was that on Sunday, September 14, 2008, my area of Ohio got hit by a “Perfect Storm” that took out our electric power until the 19th. There are still nearly 40,000 people without power. (For more details about the storm, please email me and I’ll send you more information.) It has taken me until this morning to get back to posting another article.

My plan as I ended the last article was to write about the collapse of global and environmental systems around the world. However, it looks like the financial collapse, or crisis, or whatever name you decide to give it, has moved into the forefront.

I’ve done some research about it over the past couple of days and have some information to pass along to you. This will be a long post, but I hope you’ll take the time to read it. It’s quite educational — and disturbing.

What is the Big Picture that has led to the financial collapse here in the USA? I learned it has to do primarily with “The Giant Pool of Money“. What does our housing crisis have to do with the turmoil on Wall Street? Why did banks make huge mortgage loans to thousands of people with little or no employment or other sources of income? Using various sources of information, I found that much can be explained by looking at the “Giant Pool of Money” and how it got too hungry for its own good.

How does the collapse of the huge Wall Street firms and Federal Housing companies tie into the family that had to lose their home to foreclosure? What made the banking system feel they could just forget all the basic rules of sound banking? I was in the banking business for over 25 years and I’m still scratching my bald head. The bankers aren’t the only ones to blame — the borrowers played a role as well. Everyone was involved in imprudent lending practices.

It all starts with the “Giant Pool of Money” I mentioned above. Most people don’t think about it but there’s this huge pool of money out there, which is basically all the money the world is saving. Insurance companies saving for a catastrophe, pension funds saving money for retirement, the central bank of England saving for whatever central banks save for — all the world’s savings. And the total in this Giant Pool is about 70 trillion dollars! All the money spent and earned in every country on earth in a year is LESS than 70 trillion.

Where did all this money come from? All sorts of poor countries got very rich selling us stuff like TVs, computers and oil. You know who they are — China, India, Abu Dhabi, Saudi Arabia, etc. They made a lot of money and banked it. China, for example, has over a trillion dollars in its central bank, and they needed places to invest it. The problem was they were running out of good places to make those investments.

So, they looked at Wall Street and found residential mortgages. Hmmm, not bad — 7 to 9 percent returns. Cool! Except, the “Giant Pool” guys don’t want to mess with the individual people and their mortgages. So, Wall Street to the rescue! They go to the bankers and ask them to bundle up a bunch of individual mortgages and sell them to Wall Street. Wall Street takes those bundles and sells shares in them (Mortgage-backed Securities) to the “Giant Pool” guys — and those guys love them!

The Giant Pool guys developed an insatiable thirst for these securities. They wanted more and more of them (I think it’s called GREED!) The Wall Street guys were running out of mortgages, so they encouraged the bankers to accept riskier loans. Bankers began to break the rules and people who had no business getting loans were now getting them. All people had to do was lie to the banker and get the loan. Bankers weren’t asking for proof — they just made the loans and sold them to Wall Street – who sold them to the Giant Pool. Loans were getting riskier and riskier, but it didn’t bother anyone because housing prices were on the rise. The asset had a higher value than the risk. Still cool!

In late 2006, strange things started to happen. Housing prices were still increasing — loans were still being made to people who shouldn’t get them — but incomes began to level off. More and more jobs were leaving the USA and going to other countries. Layoffs were on the increase. People began to default on their loans. Housing prices began to drop. More and more people were getting out from under their mortgages, either by defaulting or selling. More homes came on the market with fewer buyers to purchase them, which drove prices lower and lower.

So, in an effort to keep the “money-ball” rolling, the smaller banks started borrowing money from the bigger banks so they could keep buying loans to sell to Wall Street. However, Wall Street began to see potential trouble and stopped buying the shares in mortgages. The little bankers are now sitting on bad mortgages they can’t sell, and also huge loans of their own they can’t pay back, and some of them have to shut their doors. Everyone in this chain of greed is in the same boat. The paper they were buying and selling is of little value. The borrowing done to fill their greed is unable to be paid back. The house of cards begins to crumble.

All the bankers who lied to people — all the people who lied to bankers — they all end up losing. All those mortgage-backed securities are worth less than half their value — some of them are worth nothing. The “Giant Pool of Money” invested in these securities is now worth less than half of what it was originally. The other half is gone — forever. Now the guys at the “Giant Pool” won’t touch anything that isn’t 100% safe. That need for complete safety has trickled down throughout the world markets so the ability for anyone to borrow money, business, government, or individual has dried up world-wide.

Everything is just kind of crappy. And not just in housing or banking but for the economy as a whole. It’s barely growing — it might even be losing ground. There aren’t a lot of new businesses or new jobs. Unemployment keeps creeping up. We’re just sort of stuck, in neutral, for a while.

The sad note on which I end this very long post is that now our President wants us, the taxpayers of this country, the people who have already been hurt by the greed of the big banks, big governments, and big corporations, to shoulder the burden and pay for a bailout with our own tax dollars. The ultimate slap in the face. The Bush administration is trying to ram this through in only 72 hours by claiming there will be dire consequences if we don’t pass the bailout exactly as written.

Once again they’re using fear to scare Congress and the American people into submission.

That’s the “Big Picture” of our financial crisis.

I hope you’ll call your Washington people and tell them to say “NO!” — to find another way.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
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On a softer note after this rant …

There’s something else I’d like to pass along to you. I’ve been a member of the Spiritual Cinema Circle for several years. This membership has been a wonderful pleasure. Each month I get a DVD with a full-length feature film and 3 shorter films, and they’re mine to keep and share with family and friends.

This month it stars Michael Douglas as he digs for love and buried treasure in the feature film, King of California.

Yes, from our friends at Spiritual Cinema Circle, comes King of California, a quirky, fascinating, and original movie starring Academy Award® winning actor Michael Douglas. Douglas plays Charlie, whom we meet as he is released from a mental institution, although it’s not quite clear whether he is “cured.” Waiting for Charlie at home is his teenage daughter, Miranda, played by the gifted young actress, Evan Rachel Wood. Any hopes Miranda has for a return to normalcy, however, are immediately dashed as Charlie enlists her in a hunt for Spanish treasure. The Don Quixote-like quest results in a dig beneath the local Costco. The loving, confrontational, and extremely complex father-daughter relationship between Charlie and Miranda is tested and strengthened throughout the film, culminating in a surprise ending.

Also, we have: Monsoon (Short Film): Beautifully shot in Mumbai, India, this film asks how we can honor and respect our loved ones’ wishes, even if they are contrary to our own.

And …Tocar Y Luchar (Short Film): An incredible story in a time when turning a country around seems almost impossible — here’s proof that it’s not.

Plus … Detour (Short Film): In this intriguing short film, Julia intends to leave the traffic jam of her life behind until she meets a strange character who gives her a new perspective.

Receive King of California and the 3 great short films free (plus nominal shipping fee), by visiting Spiritual Cinema Circle at this link:

Spiritual Cinema Circle Free Trial

– be sure to do this before October10.

Here are some video clips so you can get a glimpse of what’s being offered:

Enjoy the films,

I know I sure do — they’re a bright spot in every month.

Start your Free Trial Today By Clicking Here:

Spiritual Cinema Circle Free Trial

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Always remember this wonderful quote from Buddha ….

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Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
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[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Today’s post will probably get me in a whole lot of trouble. I hope it doesn’t, but there’s a good chance it will. This is being written on the morning of the seventh anniversary of the disaster that is now called by two numbers — 9/11. To this day I still honor and weep for those who lost so much as a result of the horror that was perpetrated on this country by the terrorists known as Al Qaeda. The act committed on 9-11-01 by those terrorists was an act of outright murder of over 3,000 innocent people.

What’s going to get me into trouble with this post is my take on what our country has done about 9/11. We have become a country so focused on fighting terrorism that we’ve brought ourselves to the brink of disaster. In my honest opinion, we messed up. Sure, because of 9/11 there were new precautions needed, and we instituted them. There were new barriers needed, and we put them in place. Those are all good things and they were necessary. What bothers me is that 9/11 made us forget about the values our country was founded on. Thanks to poor information, whether it came from the Pentagon or it came from the White House, the information was such that we made some very serious mistakes. Those mistakes have cost us dearly. Our mistakes have put our country completely out of balance, not only here at home, but in the world as well.

Throughout these past several articles focusing on the Big Picture, I’ve been ranting about how our political and corporate leaders have been feeding us the rhetoric of the worst of what we are and can be. We’ve been fed the message of fear over and over again. We’ve not only convinced ourselves that we’re brutal and greedy, we’ve convinced the rest of the world as well. We’ve also convinced the world that we’re not very smart.

It’s not that we didn’t have enemies on 9-11-01, we did. We still have them today and we’ll still have them on 9-12-08. What we did do is we created a new enemy that day — ourselves. We allowed ourselves to be convinced that we had to resort to a new way of thinking about the world. We allowed our leaders to destroy our global brand — “Where anything is possible for anybody!” We’ve allowed ourselves to be convinced that we need to live with a motto of fear, rather than hope.

I say, “No More!”

We need to cease listening to the old stories. We need to take back our country. We need to be telling the world the story of who we truly are — of what the Big Picture really is.

We’re into the final throes of what could be the most important election cycle this country has ever known. It’s about whether we’re a 9/11 country or a 9/12 country. Whether we’re a country that operates from a place of fear or a place of hope. We need to reunite ourselves around the common purpose I’ve been discussing in these articles, rather than what we’re doing now, which is to unite ourselves around a common enemy.

Our common purpose needs to be as it always was — we are a giving and loving people who have the same hopes, dreams and desires as the majority of people in the world. We need to keep our common purpose in mind as we make decisions about who our next leaders should be. Do we want leaders who will continue to focus on fear, greed, violence and distortions as our purpose, or do we want leaders who will be focused on who we are and what we stand for in the world.

Fear or hope?

Thankfully, you still have the choice in our country. For me, I’m going to choose hope because I believe the other choice will lead to a disaster from which we won’t be able to recover. I believe choosing hope will give us a country led by leaders who will look forward, rather than backward. My hope is that those of you reading this blog will look forward with me and pass these message forward to your contacts and ask them to do the same.

A friend of mine who lives in the United Kingdom passed along an article about how the rest of the world feels about our coming election. It’s in the BBC news of September 10, 2008, and the title of the article is, “Obama Win Preferred in World Poll”. Yes, outside our own country the people of the rest of the world favor the candidate of hope by a four-to-one margin.

Isn’t that interesting?

Do your part and help to spread the word.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
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I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
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In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
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[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, hope, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]

Last time I wrote about how our leaders are so busy spending billions of dollars we don’t have, on wars we shouldn’t be fighting, they’re too busy to attempt to figure out how to keep gasoline prices from going through the roof, or to wonder what to do about all the American people who are losing their homes because of foreclosures. Our corporate and political leaders don’t seem to be worrying as much as they should about these critical problems in our economy and in our world. In fact, at the recent Republican Party convention, the nominees made it clear that this campaign for the presidency of the United States of America is not going to be about the issues, it’s going to be about personalities. (That’s a quote!)

I asked how can we change this?

Here are few ideas of how I think this can be done.

I think we need to be telling the world a new story about the Big Picture — about what we’re like at our best, rather than demonstrating the worst of what we are and can be. This isn’t rocket science, folks. It plain common sense. If our media, and our leaders do the job they’re doing today of convincing us and the world that we’re brutal, greedy beings and we have good reason to be that way, and this is all for the betterment of us, then we achieve the objective of perfecting our capacity for greed and violence and letting the world know that we believe it.

What a shame!

Instead of demonstrating to the world, and to each and every one of us, that we’re the epitome of greed and violence, we should be working to fill the minds of the world with our new story. We need to tell the world, through our media, through our actions, and every other possible method at our disposal, that our true nature is to be giving and caring. We need to convince the world through our actions and words that we are a loving people, who have the same dreams and desires of everyone else.

When you stop to think about it for a moment, you’ll realize that it wouldn’t be such a new story after all. It’s been the story told by many of our world leaders. A couple thousand years ago a guy by the name of Jesus got famous for telling this story to the multitudes. So did people like Gandhi and Martin Luther King, Jr. These guys were telling this story of who we truly are and they managed to build some amazingly powerful social movements. I know, it didn’t turn out so great for any of these folks I mentioned, but the movements they created live on today. People still want to hear the true story of the big picture.

Why do I think it’s so possible to turn things around in today’s world? I think it’s because this is the exact right time to make this happen. We have the means at our disposal. We have the desire to hear the new story — we all want the same things. We want good health care, we want a clean environment, we want world peace, we want to be able to educate our selves and our children, we want an end to discrimination, we want social change. These desires are the same the world over. We truly do want, in our heart of hearts, to break this cycle of domination that exists today.

We have the means at our disposal to counteract the pressure our corporations and our political leaders are putting on the mainstream media. We now have the Internet and a way to hold global communication.

I’m doing a small part by writing this blog. People do read this, and I encourage every one of you to pass it along. Copy it and post it on your own blogs — just tell people where you found it. Email the link to the blog to your friends. If you’re an Internet Marketer and you do Social Bookmarking, then give these posts some of your love. This is how we begin to tell the story of the big picture. We pass it on!

People all over the world are reading these articles every week, people from all different cultures and levels of society. It’s the viral aspect of this kind of communication that causes the story to grow and merge into global conversations. Sure, the naysayers are using these tools as well. However, more and more of us are telling the new story.

Do your part and help to spread the word.

There’s more to come next week. Come back and help us to continue this important conversation. Invite your friends. We need many more people to be listening and sharing.
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I’d love to hear your comments on this. At the very end of this post (after the commercials and the tags) you should see a place where you can leave your comment. It will be a link that says “No Comments” — or “Comments”. Let me hear from you. Thanks.
==============================================
I meditate every day to help keep me sane in this crazy world we live in. Those glimpses we get of peace, love, acceptance and happiness when we’re meditating will soon grow into more than glimpses if we keep practicing. Keep those feelings alive. A meditation can be as simple as one, deep, conscious breath. When something happens in one of your moments to cause you to suffer, just stop and take one of those breaths and remember, “This too shall pass!” Another thing that is wonderful, especially at certain times of the year, is to have a fresh flower where you work. Just stop from time-to-time and look at it — don’t label it — don’t judge it — just be with it for a couple of moments. It really does work. I’m looking at mine as I write this.

=======================================

Namaste!

I share these words for you in closing — remember these words …

You are special — and you are loved. You are the greatest gift you can be.

Shanti … (A sanscrit word meaning, “Let there be Peace. Peace, beautiful Peace. Peace within, Peace without. Peace in this world. Peace for all beings.”)

~~~ Ron
http://www.theleaderinside.com
http://www.wecould2.com
http://www.buddhistbelief.com

P.S. Remember, that if you have one of the “readers” — like My Yahoo, My MSN, or the Google Reader, or any of the others, you can get our blog sent to you automatically whenever I post to it. Just click one of the buttons over on the left side to add it to your reader.
================================================================

In my meditation I often use what I believe is a powerful aide to deep meditation. It’s the The Holosync Solution. I knew that meditation was a vital element to nurturing my soul — to opening myself to the universe — and this tool has allowed me to achieve and receive the benefits of deep, long-term meditation — and to achieve it much more quickly. If you’re having trouble “getting meditation to work for you” – then the The Holosync Solution is what you’re looking for.

Regular, daily meditation can give you …

(1) Increased intelligence and creativity.
(2) Lower stress levels — and with that — increased ability to handle whatever the world tosses your way.
(3) New levels of self-awareness and inner peace.
(4) The healing of emotional issues at the deepest levels.
(5) It is the proven path to finding the peace, love and compassion within all of us –

— it’s definitely worth taking the time for this powerful practice every day.

With a One-Year 100% Iron-Clad Guarantee, you can now do so with no risk whatsoever — just click any of the links that say … The Holosync Solution

— The Holosync Solution
================================================================

====================================================================
[tags]peace, inner self, inner peace, Buddhist Belief, Buddhism, Buddhist, The Secret, Law of Attraction, dreams, spiritual energy, action, value, inner balance, enlightenment, destiny, manifestation, meditation, patience, gratitude, tolerance, acceptance, body balance, life cycle, beginnings, endings, positive thinking, ego, silence, consciousness, staying grounded, cycle of life, new story, Big Picture, Mother Earth, sustainability, compassion[/tags]