"Dear Elf On the Shelf Haters: Get Over It!

HERE'S AN OPEN LETTER TO ELF ON THE SHELF HATERS. YES, PEOPLE TAKE IT TOO FAR, BUT THIS CAN STILL BE A SIMPLE PLEASURE OF THE SEASON, IF YOU DIAL IT BACK.

  

BUZZ — DECEMBER 6, 2016

Dear Elf on the Shelf haters,

I feel you. I really do. The Pinterest perfection spamming every social network with Elf on the Shelf ideas annoys me too. Oh, your Elf took a poop and it looks like a Hershey’s kiss?! How clever. But, if you can ignore those who take it too far for a minute, there is magic in that cheap, creepy elf.

It’s the same thought process we must use with the teen pop stars. When Bieber was big, I actually wrote a defense of his music. “Justin Bieber doesn’t suck!,” I proclaimed. Just because the hardcore, passionate fans are in our face and skew the headlines, is it fair to dismiss the kid’s obvious talent?

“The instant and life-involving obsession pre-teen girls are bound to attach to anything they are interested in becomes an instant lead weight against credibility,” I wrote. “It’s like making a deal with the devil, you can have all the success of your dreams, but first you need to sell your (credible) soul.”

And so it is with the Elf on the Shelf. The rising tide of popularity it has created has brought the inevitable backlash.

I get it. It’s become too much. People are taking it too seriously. The oversharing of your friends has risen to such a cacophonous crescendo that you can no longer thumb scroll through your feed without seeing those creepy vacant eyes staring back at you through the screen, daring to tell Santa that you don’t believe.

Why do we do it? Why do we concoct all these crazy mythologies for our kids? From little green footprints on toilet seats, to hidden chocolate eggs, to swapping out missing teeth, why has parenting risen to David Copperfield levels of illusion-making?

Because we like it when our kids believe. We love nurturing that naive faith in the impossible. We like it when a 5- and 7-year-old will debate over dinner how Santa can get inside houses with no chimneys. We like it when our kids start to question just a little bit and ask for video evidence of the magic that happens in our house. We like it when, after staying up all night editing that magic, they believe once again.

There are those who go a little crazy with Elf on the Shelf and, frankly, they’re ruining it for the rest of us. The over-achievers set the bar high, the kids talk at school, and well .. suddenly my boys want to know why our Elf, George, doesn’t bake cookies and string lights in our house. George just sits there.

Could parents putting the Elf on the Shelf in silly situations be a coping mechanism? A way to help them believe they can still have grown-up fun surrounded by childish magic? Could Elves hitting on Barbie, swinging from tequila bottles, or playing poker with the stuffies be like the inside jokes in Shrek and other Disney Movies? Just a little something to keep parents interested in the silliness of childhood?

Perhaps. And yes, it’s a little much, but just as with Bieber, Miley, and One Direction, we can’t dismiss something because the fans are annoying. It’s okay to appreciate the Elf on the Shelf for our own simple reasons.

“As adults we don’t need to make Christmas magic for kids, we just need to not (mess) it up with our crazy,” Lyz Lens tweeted this week. And it’s true.

I, too, wish those who were so eager to share their cleverness would dial it back a bit. But that’s the world we live in. The Instagramming of meals, the tweeting of random thoughts, the Facebooking of freakish Elf behaviour.

Despite that, I look forward to every morning in December as the boys scurry around the house searching for our elf, George. Sleep stuck in their eyes, blankies dragging at their feet, hair standing on static end, they rush around trying to find this magical piece of plastic and felt. And when his hiding place is uncovered, they cheer “I found George!” and high five each other before running to tell their parents of their successful hunting expedition.

And, for a few seconds, the terrible news of the day fades away, the crankiness at the lack of sleep drains, and I smile too. Magic. Belief. Wonder. The impossible has become possible. And everything in the world is perfect. It doesn’t need to be complicated. Our elf never gets too wild, I don’t post daily pictures of what he does. He just moves around, sits on assorted shelves, and brings us immeasurable joy.

So get over it, Elf on the Shelf haters. This little guy is a wonderful addition to the magic of the season, and he’s not going anywhere.

Why Donald Trump Scares You So Much—and Why It Matters @alternet

Why Donald Trump Scares You So Much—and Why It Matters @alternet

A Contemplative Message on the Present Chaos - from the Arcturian Group

This is an excellent offering from the Arcturian Group.  In my humble opinion, it is to be read thoughtfully and absorbed into our essence.

NOVEMBER 6, 2016 Dear ones, in these times of chaos and confusion, many are beginning to experience a sense of hopelessness because they see no peace or signs of Light, only violence and suffering. Let go of any concepts you may still hold regarding how energetic change must appear for you are indeed witnessing the actions of Light as each bit of previously hidden information rises to the surface. The dark underbelly of world beliefs based in a ruthless quest for money and power are being exposed as the Light of an evolving world consciousness shines into the shadowy corners. Be not discouraged, for the creations of old energy must seen for what they are--concepts, opinions, and false beliefs. It is imperative for those who accept without question everything said by those in positions of authority, to understand that much of what they have heretofore accepted as truth, is not. Many leaders have tried to fulfill the promises they made to the public but have been thwarted by rich and powerful forces working through fear, threats, and demands in order to achieve some personal agenda. Other so called "leaders" simply consider their position a means to personal power and control. These are the very corners the Light is shining into. Dear citizens of the USA, meditate for election guidance. Let intuition be your guide as you take time to review every candidate no matter how insignificant is the the post they seek. Do this before going into the voting booth so you are prepared when you get there. Choose the candidate that most closely resonates with truth, honesty and love. Do not look to commercials and hype to give you this information for you will not find it there, it must come from within. Ask your Higher self and Guides to help you with discernment as you review the qualifications of each candidate. We wish to speak of peace, not third dimensional concepts of peace but the higher sense of Peace, which only manifests from a consciousness of oneness. Many are seeking to achieve peace with self, others, and nations but because they do it within a belief system based in duality and separation, they are only able to bring about a peace that reflects this--a peace capable of manifesting its opposite at any time. Mankind attempts to wear the medallion of duality with its good side facing out, but at some point the medallion will flip because that is the nature of duality regardless of how much effort is put forth to keep the good side showing. The energy that formed much of the third dimensional belief system is dissolving, rendering many commonly accepted and long held beliefs, invalid. Society in general is quickly changing as more and more awaken. Old concepts of peace no longer resonate as they once did and are being re-evaluated, especially as many young and very evolved souls come of age. Those who insist upon perpetuating the old and financially lucrative ways of "pretend peace" are beginning to find less and less support. Many have begun to realize that actions utilizing the lives of others as necessary for peace, have simply been power struggles based in personal quests for more power and possessions--land, people, power, oil, gold, etc. Peace between individuals as well, is often nothing more than an attempt to bend another's will to one's own in the belief that non-resistance from another is peace. True peace cannot be forced whether it be between nations or individuals. Peace is a natural expression of the realization of Oneness, an attained state of consciousness that knows all living things to be individual but formed in and of the ONE. This does not mean that everyone must think the same way or never have an opinion for there is and always will be individuality. Each day more people including those in the military, are recognizing the futility of killing, maiming, and violence in the name of peace. A new and higher sense of peace is being born but it is accompanied by birth pangs of rebellion. This is what you are witnessing at this time. As the Light of truth continues to expand within world consciousness, peace without arms and violence must manifest, for only True Peace is the reality. Every awakened soul contributes world Light through their holding to truth within regardless of what is appearing in the outer scene. The energies of truth must flow, and not be kept just for oneself. Just as fruit must be picked in order for more to come the next year, so must awareness and Light flow outward making room for more to come. The times of permanently retreating to a cave for one's own experiences of Light are finished. The key is; "In the world, but not of it". There is a popular saying about what would happen if each person of many were to light a small candle--imagine the brilliance. Now imagine each truth that unfolds to you as being that small candle. Violence, war, rebellions, and hatred would soon be depleted of the energy needed to sustain, maintain, and manifest them. Since true Peace is eternally held in place by Divine Law it will eventually manifest, but can only do this when consensus consciousness provides the substance from which it is formed--energies of unconditional love and Oneness. What you are witnessing in the world are pictures that reflect the energies of a world still living out from duality and separation. Always remember that pictures no matter how disturbing, have no law to sustain or maintain them, and are held in place only by belief and can thus be dissolved in a second of realization. Know that every terrorist is a Divine being in spite of the fact that he/she may be many lifetimes from knowing that for themselves. Every realization of truth becomes your candle adding Light to world consciousness in spite of events taking place still requiring a degree of control and action. Today's message is to illuminate the difference between what society has come to accept as peace and methods necessary to attain it, versus True Peace. Predictions that speak of the end of the world are obsolete and no longer relevant because mankind has shifted the energy. Predictions can only access the energy of the moment and have only the power mankind gives them. You are in charge, dear ones. You hold within yourselves the real Power should you choose to acknowledge who and what you really are. Peace must come into expression not through arms and force, but as an activity of the still small voice within each heart flowing and nourishing a tired and hungry world. This is the work, and you are ready, dear Lightworkers. We are the Arcturian Group 11/6/16 Donations are welcomed

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Watch Michelle Obama make a case against Trump like no one else can! – CREDO Blog

Watch Michelle Obama make a case against Trump like no one else can – CREDO Blog

How Narcissism Hurts Us All

How Narcissism Hurts Us All: What exactly is it? And yes, Trump is a classic case.

EXCLUSIVE REPORT: HILLARY CLINTON HAS PARKINSON'S DISEASE, DOCTOR CONFIRMS

BREAKING: DR. TED NOEL REACTS TO 'PNEUMONIA' CLAIMS FROM CRIPPLED HILLAR...

"I" by Steve Beckow

The person, the “I” of everyday consciousness, has two phases: The one who acts (participant) and the one who watches (observer).

The “I” moves back and forth between these two phases, seamlessly, never noticing.

When we draw back and consider, we’re in the observer phase. When we get up and do anything, we’re in the actor phase.

Whether actor or observer, it’s still me. But what usually happens is we remain unaware of being in the one or the other position. Consciousness has not expanded to the point where it takes in both actor and observer. Therefore we remain unaware of working in two modalities.

When the “I” of everyday consciousness acts, it does so by drawing upon its will. Its will is the spiritual capacity to move energy, to exert itself, to engage the machinery of action and propel the “I” of everyday consciousness into it. It’s as if we’re riding a bull. That bull is the will. Once told where to go and given a whack, the will (or bull) carries us the rest of the way.

So often, in the Third-Dimensional world, we used our wills to manipulate and control each other. Those are things we’re now probably going to have to unlearn, unless we want to suffer. We have to relearn instead to allow each other freedom of will or free will. It’s a universal law that we’ve been violating for millennia.  We’re going to have to retrain and exercise our will muscle generally but in beneficial causes and directions.

Turning from actor to observer, when the “I” of everyday, Third-Dimensional consciousnessobserves, it usually labels and judges, evaluates and decides.  Its viewpoint is separative and it creates a lot of kicking and screaming. That also has to go. It’s like an anchor that will weigh us down.

When I labeled and judged, promoted and demeaned, my life was dull. If I tasted a minute of transformative love a year, in a spiritual experience, I felt myself lucky.

Now, things are different. Having tasted what Jesus recently called “real love” for months at a time, I see all the unwholesome actions of the actor and observer phases of me and say to myself, I don’t want to be a part of that any more.

I want nothing else than love in my life. Having drunk natural-spring water, I want nothing else now.

Let the reward of every action be love. Open my heart permanently and wash away my identity in a tsunami of love.

All the rest I see as fruitless.

How many people have I asked if they’ve experienced transformative love and they say, “Oh, yes,” and it’s clear they haven’t.

Anyone who’s experienced it loses their mind to it. Anyone who has melts into it just by reflecting on the experience of it.  It dissolves issues, conditioning, and worldly desires.  It sweeps problems aside and provides the only answer to every predicament: itself

Is Donald Trump Crazy?

Is Donald Trump Crazy?: Donald Trump continues to lead the polls of Republican candidates for President. The real estate tycoon has been propelled to the forefront of the election campaign and into a sea of controversy because of his seemingly rash and callous statements about...

An Open Letter to Ivanka Trump from Michael Moore: 'Your Dad Is Not Well'

It's time for an intervention.

By Michael Moore / AlterNet

August 10, 2016

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430 COMMENTS

Photo Credit: (L) David Shankbone; (R) a katz / Shutterstock.com; Composition by AlterNet

Dear Ivanka:

I’m writing to you because your dad is not well.

Every day he continues his spiral downward—and after his call for gun owners to commit acts of violence against Mrs. Clinton, it is clear he needs help, serious help. His comments and behavior have become more and more bizarre and detached from reality. He is in need of an intervention. And I believe only you can conduct it.

He trusts you. He believes in you. Although I don’t know you personally, you seem to be a very smart and together woman. I think he will listen to you. He must because he is now not simply a danger to himself, he has put the next president of the United States in harm's way. He has encouraged and given permission to the unhinged and the deranged to essentially assassinate Hillary Clinton. Her life is now in worse danger than it already was—and should anything happen, that will not only be on his head but also on those closest to him if they stand by and do nothing.

I say this with the utmost kindness, care and concern for you, and I know you will do the right thing. Bring him in, off the road, away from the crowds. Now. Tonight.

And when you do, here is what a good friend of mine, a former counselor and social worker, Jeff Gibbs, suggests that you say to him:

Dad, we need to have a chat.  Are you feeling okay? Do you have a minute? Please sit down. Because this isn’t going to be easy. No, I am not pregnant. No, what is going on is… is… I am really, really worried about my father. About you.

Dad, I owe everything to you. You’ve built an empire, a brand and a business for the ages. You have taken care of me, inspired me and, through your example, have made me who I am: a self-confident, honest-to-a-flaw, woman.

But Dad, I am deeply worried. You haven’t been yourself lately. The father I know is not a hater, not someone who encourages violence. Dad, you used to be A LIBERAL. You raised me as a liberal! The Clintons were your friends—Chelsea is one of my best friends! And now you’re joking that Hillary should be assassinated? Really?

Dad, I hate to say this, but you’re making me scared, you’re making my friends scared, and you’re scaring the whole country.

Dad… Dad, sit down! They’ll wait. I am not finished. Don’t get angry. Try to listen.

Yes, I know they love it, the crowd goes wild. But not for YOU. They don’t love YOU. They love the show that you put on. But people who hunger for red meat will turn on you in a minute. No, they don’t love you. I love you. I will always love you. And I see you hurting yourself—and you’re hurting ME, Dad.

Don’t get upset! You’re still the handsomest billionaire I know. I will always love you. Melania will always love you. Vladimir will always love you… OK, maybe that wasn’t funny. But you get my point. This running for president thing is destroying the dad I have known and loved. And honestly, you and I both know you didn’t really want this job to begin with! You just wanted to make a point. OK, well, POINT MADE! You did it! Now, let’s stop and get some help.

I am asking you, right now, to give it up. To leave the race. Let that nice man from Indiana run things. Your place in history is secure. You need to withdraw. Move on, for your sake, for the country’s sake, for my sake.

The man who raised me was the man who, for no charge, built a huge ice rink in Central Park for all the people to use! You struck deals with some of the biggest assholes on the planet in finance and politics and yet remained friends, mostly. You built a family that loves you. I want that dad back! And I worry that, if you don’t stop now, neither you nor the country will ever recover.

There, there, Dad, it’s okay, let it out. Let it out, because I know beneath that gruff, tough, handsome exterior is a little boy who just never got enough love. And that little boy needs some time to find himself again.

Let’s you and I walk out there right now. The cameras are all set up and waiting. You can make up whatever excuse you want. You can blame whomever you want. You’re good at that! I just know this can’t go on, and you know it, too.

Take my hand, let’s end this. And by tomorrow you and I will be sipping martinis on our yacht in the Hamptons with Chelsea and the friends we still have left. I love you, Dad. Let’s do this. That’s right, take my hand, here we go…

Ivanka, I have faith in you that you can do this. I know I’ve called your dad crazy before, but I was speaking politically, not clinically. This has gone beyond crazy. The entire nation—in fact, the entire world—needs you to step forward and do the courageous thing history will praise you for: the loving act of a brilliant daughter who also loved her beleaguered country enough to say her father wasn’t well and needed help.

Thank you, Ivanka.

Yours,
Michael Moore

Michael Moore is an Academy Award-winning filmmaker and bestselling author.

A thought..... Paul Backus

Here in the spiritual realms, which truly reside within each one of you, the excitement mounts as the Love enveloping all on the planet permeates each and every heart.

Love is. There is nowhere that Love is not. The truth of that, the Reality of that, can no longer be denied because the veil which separates you from Reality is disintegrating allowing Love to shine brightly upon you all. Do not resist It or turn away, because It is what each and every one of you has spent lifetimes seeking.

If you are tempted to turn away from or resist the brilliant Light of Love that is enveloping you, it is due to your false or invalid sense that you are not good enough, that you are too great a sinner, and that you are therefore unwelcome in the Presence of God. Nothing could be further from the Truth.

God’s divine children, all the life forms, all forms of conscious awareness that He has created – however seemingly insignificant they may appear to be to your human intelligence that is lost and confused within the illusion – are infinitely and eternally loved, unconditionally. There are no exceptions because Love is All That Exists and, is therefore, constantly and lovingly embracing Itself in every moment, and that is You.

Love unceasingly loves all of God’s divine Creation unconditionally, if It ever even paused, life would cease. It never could or would and so your eternal existence is divinely assured, and this is no “limited manufacturer’s warranty” that expires just when you need it most!

Exceptions are of the illusion, the tiny space in which you play your ongoing games of separation. It is a dream state that you built to make your games appear Real, but they only appear Real because of the extremely limiting conditions you built into it so that the Light of God’s Love would be hidden from you.

Without that Light all seems dark and threatening, and you have become so accustomed to the dark that you have learnt to live within it embracing the safety that it seems to offer you within the severely limited field of vision it allows. Anything appearing out of this darkness terrifies you – other opinions, perceptions, races, religious beliefs, political affiliations, etc., etc.

Even though the Light of divine Love approaches very gently, it nevertheless shows you frightening shadowy stuff that was previously hidden deep within you by the darkness. As the veil disintegrates and the Light intensifies all that stuff will dissolve with it. There is nothing to fear! The Love that embraces you in every moment of your eternal existence is flowing into your hearts and waking you out of the terrifying dream that has hidden Reality from you for so long.

When you awaken you will be able to see forever, nothing will remain hidden from you, and you will recognize Love as It truly is – magnificently brilliant, amazingly joyful, totally captivating, fulfilling all your desires. Only you will also realize that you have no desires because Love infinitely satisfies you, leaving nowhere for dissatisfaction to arise.

Reality is your eternal divine home. You have never left it, not even for an instant, it just seems that you are separated from your divine Source because you chose to experience existence in an enormously limited state of awareness, of consciousness, your present dream state. Conflict is unreal and yet it seems to surround and engulf you.

The illusory environment you collectively built in which to play is a very, very strange environment, and it is time for you to wake up and release your ferocious hold on it, allowing it to disintegrate completely.

Reality is eternal bliss, whereas the illusion is a state of chaos and confusion that encourages you to believe that you are all separate beings competing endlessly for limited resources without which you cannot survive. And that belief causes constant anxiety, with fear hovering in the background, leading inevitably to distrust, betrayal, and conflict, the “every man for himself” syndrome, the fight-or-flight-response, which is very damaging and destructive.

Opening your hearts to allow Love to fill them dissipates that anxiety, strengthens your energy fields – the infinitely powerful force field that is Love – and leads you to associate with and engage with others who are similarly open-hearted. Like attracts like! That is how you are changing the world and assisting one another to wake and release your collective grip on the illusion. It is the extreme tightness of that grip that so stresses you and intensifies your anxiety deactivating your ability to trust others.

There are none among you who have not had your trust betrayed. Betrayal of trust is a response to fear, fear that is deeply buried and denied and then projected on to others making them appear untrustworthy. And, of course, within the illusion there are many with deeply buried fear hidden beneath a false appearance of confidence who betray trust whenever it seems that they will benefit from doing so – this is frequently demonstrated very clearly in many areas of human endeavor.

Underneath that betrayal is an overwhelming felt need for acceptance and love. Betrayal is just an intense and painful feedback loop calling out desperately for love, that feeds on itself and that can only be broken by Love.

As we in the spiritual realms keep on reminding you, “the only solution to problems and issues is Love.” When you operate from a state of Love, your natural state, the only state that exists, life flows far more smoothly for you. You cannot force another to behave lovingly, Love does not force, but by behaving lovingly yourselves your energy fields soften the fear-infused energy fields of others thus assisting them to find the Love that dwells within them.

No one is without Love, your very existence depends utterly on Love, and Love responds lovingly to Love. When you love another you awaken the Love already within them, and then joy arises as does the courage to trust.

So today’s message, briefly stated, is: Love one another, trust one another, and delight in the amazing results that follow! Humanity is waking up!

What Bernie Sanders Gave to America Today – theindependentthinker2016

An unforgettable piece about Bernie Sanders.....

What Bernie Sanders Gave to America Today – theindependentthinker2016

TRANSFORMATION 2016

Madelaine,

I am writing you today to express my deep pride in the movement – the political revolution – you and I have created together over the last 15 months. When we began this historic campaign, we were considered fringe players by the political, economic and media establishment. Well, we proved them wrong.

We showed that the American people support a bold, progressive agenda that takes on the billionaire class, that fights for racial, social, economic and environmental justice and that seeks to create a government that works for all of us and not just the big campaign donors.

We mobilized over 13 million voters across the country. We won 23 Democratic primary and caucus contests. We had literally hundreds of thousands of volunteers across the country. And we showed – in a way that can change politics in America forever – that you can run a competitive national grassroots campaign without begging millionaires and billionaires for campaign contributions.

Most importantly, we elevated the critical issues facing our country – issues the establishment has pushed under the rug for too long. We focused attention on the grotesque level of income and wealth inequality in this country and the importance of breaking up the large banks who brought our economy to the brink of collapse. We exposed our horrendous trade policies, our broken criminal justice system, and our people's lack of access to affordable health care and higher education. We fought aggressively to address the crisis of climate change, the need for real comprehensive immigration reform, the importance of developing a foreign policy that values diplomacy over war, and so much more.

We have shown throughout this election that these are issues that are important to voters and that progressive solutions energize people in the fight for real change. What we have accomplished so far is historic – but our work is far from over.

This movement of ours – this political revolution – must continue. We cannot let all of the momentum we have achieved in the fight to transform America be lost. We will never stop fighting for what is right.

It is true that in terms of winning the Democratic nomination, we did come up short. But this election was never about me or any candidate. It was about the powerful coming together of millions of people to take their country back from the billionaire class. That was the strength of our campaign and it will be the strength of our movement going forward in the months and years ahead.

In the coming weeks, I will be announcing the creation of successor organizations to carry on the struggle that we have been a part of these past 15 months. I hope you will continue to be involved in fighting to transform America. Our goal will be to advance the progressive agenda that we believe in and to elect like-minded candidates at the federal, state and local levels who are committed to accomplishing our goals.

In terms of the presidential election this November, there is no doubt that the election of Donald Trump as president would be a devastating blow to all that we are fighting for. His openly bigoted and pro-billionaire campaign could precipitate the same decades-long rightward shift in American politics that happened after the election of Ronald Reagan in 1980. That rightward shift after Reagan’s election infected not just politics as a whole but led to the ascendancy of the corporatist wing of the Democratic Party – an era from which we are still recovering.

I cannot in good conscience let that happen.

To have all of the work we have done in elevating our progressive ideals be dashed away by a complete Republican takeover of Washington – a takeover headed by a candidate that demonizes Latinos, Muslims, women, African Americans, veterans, and others – would be unthinkable.

Today, I endorsed Hillary Clinton to be our next president. I know that some of you will be disappointed with that decision. But I believe that, at this moment, our country, our values, and our common vision for a transformed America, are best served by the defeat of Donald Trump and the election of Hillary Clinton.

You should know that in the weeks since the last primary, both campaigns have worked together in good faith to bridge some of the policy issues that divided us during the election. Did we come to agreement on everything? Of course not. But we made important steps forward.

Hillary Clinton released a debt free college plan that we developed together which now includes free tuition at public colleges and universities for working families. This was a major part of our campaign’s agenda and a proposal that, if enacted into law, would revolutionize higher education in this country.

Secretary Clinton has also publicly committed to massive investments in health care for communities across this country that will increase primary care, including mental health care, dental care, and low-cost prescription drug access for an additional 25 million people. Importantly, she has also endorsed the enactment of a so-called public option to allow everyone in this country to participate in a public insurance program. This idea was killed by the insurance industry during consideration of President Obama’s health care program.

During the Democratic platform proceedings in St. Louis and Orlando, we were victorious in including amendments to make it a clear priority of the Democratic Party to fight for a $15 an hour federal minimum wage, expand Social Security, abolish the death penalty, put a price on carbon, establish a path toward the legalization of marijuana, enact major criminal justice reforms, pass comprehensive immigration reform, end for-profit prisons and detention facilities, break up too-big-to-fail banks and create a 21st century Glass-Steagall Act, close loopholes that allow big companies to avoid taxes by stashing their cash in offshore tax havens and use that revenue to rebuild America, approve the most expansive agenda ever for protecting Native American rights and so much more.

All of these progressive policies were at the heart of our campaign. The truth is our movement is responsible for the most progressive Democratic platform in the history of our country. All of that is the direct result of the work that our members of the platform committee did in the meetings and that you have been doing over the last 15 months.

But none of these initiatives will happen if we do not elect a Democratic president in November. None! In fact, we will go backward. We must elect the Democratic nominee in November and progressive Democrats up and down the ballot so that we ensure that these policy commitments can advance.

It is extremely important that we keep our movement together, that we hold public officials accountable and that we elect progressive candidates to office at the federal, state, and local level who will stand with us.

As part of that effort, we still have a tremendous amount of work left to do in the Democratic Rules Committee that will be meeting in the coming weeks. We have to enact the kinds of reforms to the Democratic Party and to the electoral process that will provide us the tools to elect progressive candidates, to allow new voices and new energy into the Party, and to break up the excessive power that the economic and political elites in the Party currently have. As with our fights on the platform committee, that will only be possible if we stand together.

You should know that I intend to be actively campaigning throughout this election season to elect candidates who will stand by our agenda. I hope to see many of you at events from coast to coast.

In conclusion, I again want to express my pride in what we have accomplished together over the last year. But so much more must be done to make our vision a reality. Now more than ever our country needs our movement – our political revolution. As you have throughout this historic campaign, I ask for your ongoing support as we continue through the fall and beyond.

On a personal note, I cannot say with words how appreciative Jane and I are of the kindness, dedication and love we experienced from so many people across the country. We are deeply touched by it and will never, ever forget it.

Please let me know that you will stand with me to defeat Donald Trump, and to elect candidates who will stand by our agenda as part of the future of our political revolution. Add your name now.

Forever committed, forever fighting, forever forward,

Bernie Sanders

Decline in Childhood Play Related to Rising Anxiety and Depression in Children, Adolescents

Decline in Childhood Play Related to Rising Anxiety and Depression in Children, Adolescents

Breakdown of Society / Information for alienated children, parents and grandparents/article by Laura L. Carstenson

A recent Time magazine article by Laura L. Carstenson might be of interest to alienated parents and grandparents.  It is now obvious to sociologists and psychologists, said Carstenson, that today’s baby boomers “are less likely to participate in community or religious organizations than were their counterparts 20 years ago.  They are less likely to be married.  They talk with their neighbors less frequently.  And it doesn’t stop with participation in communities and neighborhoods: boomers report fewer meaningful interactions with their spouses and partners than did previous generations, and they report weaker ties to family and friends.”

 

What we’re experiencing, in other words, is a cultural phenomenon in which baby boomers, the generation of late-middle-aged adults who were born in the aftermath of World War Two, are less integrally tied to their parents and society than those of us who were born before the great war.  This can be read as a weakening of all societal ties, or perhaps even a complete refusal of that particular generation of people to be intimately related to and responsible for fellow human beings.

 

Suppose this is a trend, and that the children of baby boomers, those born after 1970, are even less inclined to be obligated to or related to the generations that went before them.

 

While this possibility is disconcerting to imagine, it may help to explain why many of our alienated children have renounced all responsibility to and for the parents who brought them into the world and spent years nurturing them.  Our very culture appears to be shifting into a new mode, one in which some of our children now disown all relationships to us and can casually reject us without feeling any sense of regret or failure.  They simply refuse to accept any moral responsibility toward those who gave them life and sheltered them through their early years, as if their relationship to those forebears is a mere accident of time and matter which they can disregard with full impunity.  They have forsaken all the old guidelines about love and family and responsibility, leaving them free to live as they please, without any obligation to those who cared and sacrificed so much for them.

 

It’s a frightening thought, but what we are witnessing is, in some measure at least, the breakdown of society as we have always known and understood it, where people honored their fathers and mothers and continued all their lives to acknowledge an indebtedness to them.

 

What, if any, are the conclusions we can draw from this enormous change in the younger generations’ sense of meaningful ties to the society that produced them?

 

For one thing, our own disrespectful sons and daughters are not at all unique in their rejection of us; they are merely doing what an increasing number of sons and daughters are now doing when they separate from their original families with the intention of becoming fully independent of them.

 

Unless something happens to reverse this tendency, the dissolution of the family will only worsen as time goes by.

 

By the end of the present century, all human existence on this planet will be vastly different from the way it has always been in the past.  We may well be entering a historical phase in which family relationships as we have known them will be completely abandoned in favor of a rootless, unrelated society in which everybody is independent of everybody else, even parents, children, and siblings.

 

All I can say about this is God help us, for we are on the path to the eventual and complete destruction of the very feelings and understandings which from the dawn of time have made human life beautiful and meaningful. 

 

 

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