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eNewsletter
Vol. 1, No. 4
To view the full story, click on the link below each item.
NEWS
Power, Profit & Politics
From the old Trilateral Commission to the Illuminati, there have been countless rumors of secret governments and conspiracies of the powerful. Even if you reject such stories as delusions of the paranoid, a recent article in Britain’s Guardian newspaper about the profits being reaped by an alliance of ex-government officials – including President Bush’s father – is certain to make even the most skeptical raise an eyebrow.
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Psychiatrist to the Apocalypse
Robert J. Lifton, a co-founder of the Center for Psychology & Social Change, has spent his career writing about the psychology of terror. From the brainwashing techniques of the Communist Chinese to the apocalyptic violence of Japan’s Aum Shinrikyo cult, Lifton has been, as the LA Times calls him in this profile, an “interpreter of organized evil.” So it was only natural that the man who, literally, wrote the book on “The New Global Terrorism,” would be drawn to NY in the wake of Sept. 11.
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The Beer That Made Lhasa Famous
It’s the stuff of a Saturday Night Live sketch. The Pabst Brewing Company recently launched an ad campaign in Tibet celebrating the “50th Anniversary of the Peaceful Liberation of Tibet.” The campaign kicked off with a billboard facing the Dalai Lama’s now-vacant palace. It was all the idea of Pabst’s local distributor, but some Tibetans, it seems, took exception to the idea of raising a cold one to the occupation that has taken 1.2 million Tibetan lives, destroyed 6,000 monasteries and pushed Tibetan culture to the brink of extinction.
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911 & BEYOND
Religion and the Politics of Extremism
In the wake of Sept. 11, Americans are refocusing on religion as never before. One survey found that 78 percent of those polled say religion’s influence in American life is growing. But is that necessarily a good thing? One writer warns that renewed religious passion could also unleash renewed political influence on the part of the religious right.
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Art Now: Beyond the Healing
9/11 has prompted individuals of every walk of life to reexamine the meaning of their work – no group more so than those who call themselves artists, whether their craft is the image, the sound or the word.
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HEALTH & SPIRIT
The Great Unlearning: Coping with Alzheimer’s
It is a psychological and physical challenge that far too many of us must face: The role of care-giver to a parent stricken with Alzheimer’s disease. But as one religious studies professor found, it can also be an opportunity for a “practical mysticism” which redefines the concept of “self” and is ripe with the latent potential for spiritual breakthrough on the part of both the dying and the care-giver.
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Spirit, Surrender & Islam
One of the translations of the word “Islam” is “surrender.” It signifies a surrender to the Divine – the heart of Sufi practice. At a time when the world is struggling to understand Islam, Sufism Journal offers insights into Islam's mystical subtext, a set of practices and beliefs that closely parallel the mystical branches of Christianity, Judaism and the philosophies of the East.
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On Animals & the Light
The Light. From the pages of the Bible to tales of near-death experience, the quest to reach the Light has been woven into the tapestry of human experience since the dawn of time. But what of the animal world? Visiting a Japanese deer park with a Tibetan lama, and later at an animal refuge in India, veterinarian and author Dr. Michael W. Fox witnessed the connection between the animal world and the Source of Light.
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Animal Empathy
Many of us reach for our dog or cat for comfort when there’s no human around. Are they sensing our distress or just want their bellies scratched? Researchers are coming to the conclusion that, like Bill Clinton, animals do feel our pain.
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BUSINESS
Business with a Conscience
Globalization may have become a dirty word in some circles, but a new UN organization is working to put big business’s international muscle to work for social change.
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Measuring Commitment
In an age of “socially-responsible” investors, many corporations are spending millions to demonstrate their commitment to the global environment. But it’s not always easy for would-be stockholders to judge whether claims made in press releases are anything more than a green smokescreen. Now a Harvard public health student has come up with a new way to measure corporate performance based on the company’s economic and environmental record.
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Corporate Terrorism?
While the vast majority of the world condemned the events of Sept. 11, precisely what defines terrorism is not always a matter of universal agreement. In the words of a much-quoted observation: One man’s terrorist is another man’s freedom fighter. And as Indian environmentalist Vandana Shive reminds us, one nation’s economic hero can be another’s environmental villain.
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The Scotchguard Papers
What did they know and when did they know it? A Bill Moyer’s special last year recounted the chemical industry’s cover-up of the risks some of its products posed to human health. Now 3M’s own documents have been posted to the Web, detailing the fact that even as Scotchguard was protecting fabrics around the world, it’s main ingredient was also turning up in the bloodstreams of birds, animals and children.
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THE COSMOS
Conversations with Deep Space
Some of the world’s leading code breakers are at work trying to decipher an alien message. But it wasn’t beamed from the Pleiades. This missive was created on earth. It’s part of a new generation of binary messages that will be beamed out into the Cosmos. But first, its authors want to make sure we can understand it. Meanwhile, they’re also developing a system to automatically decode any reply.
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The Earth at Night
As if we needed evidence of our impact on the planet, a new photo composite from NASA displays humanity’s footprint on the Earth at night.
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SUPPORT CHANGE – AND IMPROVE YOUR SELF
We are proud to offer Crossroads readers an extraordinary opportunity to attend Dr. Deepak Chopra's Seduction of Spirit seminar in Florida from February 24 thru March 2, 2002.
Dr. Chopra"s work has helped millions of people all over the world find inner peace, health, well being, and to discover their true path in life.
A $300 discount is being offered to Crossroads readers, plus a contribution will be made to the Center for Psychology & Social Change. This opportunity is not offered publicly.
Please go right to www.seducationofspirit.com/compassion or call 1-877-459-3860 to find out about this extraordinary seminar and to register at the special rate.
Visit our new re-vamped website, featuring a discussion area where you can interact with others interested in social change: www.centerchange.org
THE JOURNAL OF PSYCHOLOGY & SOCIAL CHANGE
The Center’s new online Journal features contributions from some of the leading experts in the fields of psychology, spirituality and social change. The latest articles include:
A Cross-Boundary Dialogue
by Mark Gerzon
"I have no choice but to be honest with myself – and with you – and admit that, no matter how hard we try, we are part of what is 'wrong' in the world today," says noted mediator Mark Gerzon. "Geography class is not the answer. CNN is not the answer. 'Dead or alive' rhetoric is not the answer. Jihad, or holy war, is not the answer. There is no answer except, as Rilke said long ago, to 'live the question.'"
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Shakespeare, Afghanistan & the Power of Equanimity
by Michael Blumenthal
The possession of power that goes unused, as Shakespeare knew all too well, is a far rarer event than, say, the possession of money that goes unspent.
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Intuitive Principles Put to the Test
by Jeffrey Mishlove, Ph.D.
Own own intuition may hold answers that can help determine how the events of Sept. 11 will shape the future of humanity," writes broadcaster and parapsychologist Dr. Jeffrey Mislove. "If we are to truly understand current events, we must go within ourselves -- deeper than the hubbub of politics and news reports, deeper even than our own emotions and thought patterns."
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Reintroducing the Soul
by Carlos Warter, M.D.
"9/11 gives us the opportunity to bring forth a new possibility for the nations of the earth," argues psychiatrist Dr. Carlos Warter. "More than a revolution, it must be an evolution in the way of being human, a global consciousness that lifts all nations, a consciousness that allows every person the chance to wake up to their own spiritual awareness of self and role on the planet."
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SEND CROSSROADS TO A FRIEND (OR YOURSELF):
To add, or delete, a name to our mailing list, please send your request to info@centerchange.org
About the Center for Psychology & Social Change
Founded in 1982 by Dr. John Mack of Harvard and Dr. Robert J. Lifton of Yale, the Center runs programs in a wide variety of areas, such as ecopsychology, alternative healing, psychospiritual counseling and extraordinary experience.
The thread that links the Center’s diverse work is the search for knowledge that expands our worldview and allows us to apply solutions that might otherwise lie outside the boundaries of our consciousness.
For more information, visit our Web site Click to read more or email info@centerchange.org.
To suggest items for future issues of Crossroads, please email the editor, Lawrence Pintak, at lpintak@centerchange.org.
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