Atheist "denominations" explained (video)

Matt Baker (Useful Charts, 2/23/24); Religion for Breakfast; Pat Macpherson, Dhr. Seven (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Atheist "denominations" explained

Is there freedom from religion in America?

(UsefulCharts) Feb. 23, 2024: There are no "denominations" of any religion or nonreligion other than Christians, who have over 200 in the U.S. alone, with many more sects and offshoots ("splitters"). But for the purposes here, the term is being used to signify schools and groups in general. So there are the Humanist Atheists and the megachurch of the Scientist Atheists, Nontheists (aka some Buddhists) and Anti-Theists (Secularists but not Satanists, who all believe in God or else what's the point of opposing and following the prophesized Antichrist?), Materialist Atheists and Nihilist Atheists (who believe we exist by chance and will all cease to exist and enter oblivion at death), those darn Snarky Standup Comedian Atheists and the lowly Spiritual Atheists who don't believe in God because they heard the XTC song "Dear God" and really liked it. 

• Types of Atheists: • Types of Atheists (Psychology of Atheism)...
• Download Matt Baker's full doctoral thesis so his Ph.D. will have been worth something: wrap.warwick.ac.uk/76588
• Sponsor: sign up for a 14-day FREE trial of MyHeritage now: UsefulChartsFeb24

CREDITS: Chart and narration by Matt Baker. Guest narration by @ReligionForBreakfast Animation by Syawish Rehman. Audio editing by Ali Shahwaiz Theme music: "Lord of the Land" by Kevin MacLeod and licensed under Creative Commons Attribution license 4.0. Available from incompetech.com.

• Go Jewish: Kill for Zionist-Israel: Israeli militants heading into Gaza's Rafah City to steal more land and continue war crime of ethnic cleansing in their genocide, Warlord Netanyahu tells CBS Joe Biden is behind us, so who can be against us?

Abby speaks to average Israelis about Arabs

Abby Martin, 10/1/17; Ashley Wells, Sheldon S., Seth Auberon (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly

Empire Files: Israelis speak candidly to Abby Martin about Palestinians

(TeleSUR English) On the streets of Jerusalem, Abby Martin interviews Jewish Israeli citizens from all walks of life. In several candid interviews, disturbing comments reveal commonly-held views about Palestinians and Arabs and their future in the region. Israeli-born human rights activist and anti-Zionist Ronnie Barkan explains why these attitudes dominate Israeli society.

TeleSUR (TV channel) is funded in whole or in part by multiple Latin American governments, according to Wikipedia. FOLLOW: @EmpireFiles, @AbbyMartin, @telesurenglish, facebook.com/TheEmpireFiles

We need a "Malcolm X Day," too (video)

Malcolm X in Los Angeles May 5, 1962 "Who taught you to hate yourself?"

(spowertube) Full speech: Malcolm X on Jesus Christ, asking: Who taught you to hate yourself? Malcolm X was one of the greatest leaders in history.

Malcolm X founded the Organization of Afro-American Unity to fight for the civil rights of Black Americans. He had the gift of articulating his messages in such a way that he could grab a crowd's attention from the first minute of the speech to the last.

In this speech from 1962, Malcolm X talks about Jesus. He tells how Jesus would be on the side of Black Americans if he were alive. Jesus always came to the defense of the most oppressed.

Who was Malcolm X?

(TRT World) Feb. 21, 2020. American revolutionary and preacher Malcolm X lived and died for Black liberation. This is the extraordinary transformation of a man who became a hero for generations. (TRT is a Turkish public broadcast service).

#MalcolmX #MalcolmShabbaz #BlackMuslims

COMMENTS

(Elijah Arredondo) It’s honestly disgusting that the [American] school system has never told me about this man. Being a white dude, the only way I really found out about Malcolm was through hip hop and this video. What a joke.

(Sir Charles Glover) What a brilliant man

(Ritah Andy) The Most misunderstood man in History... Portrayed as the "devil," and yet he was far from that. He's very iconic.

If you're not careful, they'll have you hating.

Malcolm X also talks about police brutality in the Black community in1962. This teaching covers an interesting subject that is the lesson about who taught us to hate ourselves? When we hate what is in ourselves, we will hate also what is in our brothers and sisters.

When we start loving ourselves, we will start loving our fellows. In this way Malcolm X teaches how it's possible to strengthen each member of the Black community and not let it be divided by anything.

White/Latino rock-rappers mention Malcolm

Korn is a nu metal band from Bakersfield/OC that dabbled in drugs and rap, or one could say more than dabbled. They came up with a nice song that never really caught on called "Wicked" with the Deftones' vocalist Chino Moreno from the Life is Peachy album. It gives a nice shoutout to the importance of the legend of Malcolm X in the popular imagination.

LYRICS: "Wicked" (Korn)

Yo, Chuck, we got running mixes in the headphones

Haha!

Wicked!

Haha

[Verse 1: Chino Moreno, Jonathan Davis, and both]

One, two, three, and I come with the wicked style (style)

You know that I'm from the wicked crew

You act like you knew

But I got everybody jumping to the voodoo

Yeah, you, you can kick it wicked rhymes, picket signs

While me and the mob gotta trunk full of nines

Drop, and I'll slay ya

Play, play thug-made, ah from the heya

Ready to buck, buck, buck

But it's a must to duck, duck, duck

Before I bust ya

Looking for the one that did it

You want my vote, no you're never gonna get it

‘Cause I'm the one with the fat, mad skills

And I won't choke like the Buffalo Bills

Sittin' at the pad just chillin'

Larry Parker just got two million

Oh what a f*ckin' feelin'

That n*gga done past me the peel

And I'll slam dunk ya like Shaquille O'Neal

Like it, work it, baby I'll rock that test tube baby

Kick it, ‘cause I get…

[Chorus: Jonathan Davis and Chino Moreno]

Wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But now I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire (wicked!)

[Bridge: Chino Moreno]

Ooh, aah

Sh*t

Skoo-ba-coo-ze-zah-heh

[Verse 2: Chino Moreno, Jonathan Davis, and both]

Don't say nothin', just listen

Got me a plan to break Tyson outta prison

You come my way, ya get served

Still got a deuce that'll bunny hop the curb

Nappy head, nappy chest

Nappy chin, never seen with a happy grin

Gotta fat frown ‘cause I'm down

So take a look around

All you see is big black boots

Step in, use my steel toe as a weapon

And it's awfully quiet, they want to label this n*gga

Do with the sticker, but that's nasty

‘Cause I gotta body count like Ice-T

From here to New York

I get them skins, and I ain't talking about pork

You're sly, ya pig, dig, listen from the flow from a so-fro'd Caucasian

Ah, who didn't know I was as funky as Wilson Picket, but you talkin'

[Chorus: Jonathan Davis and Chino Moreno]

Wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But now I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire

[Bridge: Chino Moreno and Jonathan Davis]

Ooh!

Something' here with this sh*t off

Yeah

The f*ck out my case, come on

[Verse 3: Chino Moreno with Jonathan Davis]

People wanna know how come

I got a gat, and I'm sitting at the window like Malcolm

Ready to bring that noise

Kinda trigger-happy like the Geto Boys

April 29th was power to the people

Ya'll might just see a sequel

‘Cause police got equal pay

A horse is a pig that don't fly straight!

I'm doin' Darryl Gates, but is Willie Williams

Down with the Pilgrims?

I'm through with the picket signs

So I think the job is dead, get out ‘cause I get…

[Chorus: Jonathan Davis, Chino Moreno, and both]

Wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But know I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But now I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire (wicked!)

[Bridge: Chino Moreno]

Fuzz

Boo-boo

Hahaha

Say!

[Chorus: Jonathan Davis]

'Cause I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But know I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire

'Cause I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

'Cause I'm wicked! I told them not to keep on their fire

But know I'm in your face, so you'll keep on your fire (wicked!)

Democide: US gov't killed 10K of us (video)

That time the U.S. government intentionally poisoned and killed over 10,000 U.S. citizens

(Today I Found Out) Sept. 7, 2022. #Sponsored: Check out Squarespace (squarespace.com/BRAINFOOD) for 10% off on first purchase. This video is #sponsored by Squarespace. Love the content? Check out Simon Whistler's other YouTube Channels: Biographics, Geographics, Warographics, MegaProjects, SideProjects, Into The Shadows, TopTenz, Highlight History, Business Blaze, Casual Criminalist, Decoding the Unknown. → Some favorites. → Subscribe for new videos every day

Sound of Music sing-along, Hollywood (9/17)

(Hollywood Bowl) Saturday, Sept. 17, 2022, 5:30 pm gate opens for pre-show and costume contest 7:30 pm film.  Here are a few of our favorite things: The Bowl on a summer night, singing songs with friends old and new, and the Hollywood Hills coming alive with the sound of music! Join the Von Trapps and fellow music fans for this Bowl tradition, and don a clever costume for the pre-show contest with hilarious host Melissa Peterman at this rare special screening of the Oscar®-winning film.

(Steve Fazzio) The Hollywood Bowl Sound of Music Sing-along (Summer 2017 Travel Vlog). This clip is from a night at the Hollywood Bowl.

(Rodgers & Hammerstein) "Do-Re-Mi" from The Sound of Music (1965) What if Rodgers and Hammerstein’s The Sound of Music made it back to the big screen? This winner of five Academy Awards®, including Best Picture, is a true-life story about German NAZIs. Julie Andrews lights up the screen as Maria, a spirited young Austrian woman who leaves the inhibiting Catholic convent to become a governess for Captain von Trapp’s (Christopher Plummer) seven unruly children. Her charm and songs soon win the hearts of the spoiled children living under their harsh, Hitler-like father's rule. But when Nazi Germany unites with Austria, Maria is forced to attempt a daring escape with her new family. Don’t miss this incredible opportunity to see the classic film on the big screen and to sing along like protesters at a Nuremberg trial. Connect with RODGERS & HAMMERSTEIN here: rnh.com/TheSoundOfMusic

ZEN: How to "do" Zazen (BMZC)

Beginner's Mind Zen Center (beginnersmindzencenter.org); Eds., Wisdom Quarterly

​How to do Zazen​

“To study Buddhism is to study the self;

to study the self is to forget the self.”

- Dogen

​How to Sit

What Bodhidharma knew we shall know (ACZC)

Zazen (sitting  Zenmeditation) instructions are available for everyone upon request. Please contact BMZC for details.

To "do" meditation [if such a thing can be "done"] is to set aside time to be the real us. Meditation without any goal helps us see that who we consider our “selves” may not be who we truly are.

All things change.

But the self of our thoughts and feelings cannot always accept change. So we suffer.

Meditation helps us experience things as they really are and ourselves as we are. Through meditation, we can forget the self and free up space to care for others in the world. The 14th Dalai Lama has said that the point of Buddhism is to become kind. We become more joyful as well.

​How to Begin

​If we want to try sitting by ourselves, we find a place at home where we can sit without being disturbed or distracted. Don’t sit in a very light or very dark room. Pull the shades or close the blinds or leave on a light. Turn off the phone. Light incense if it pleases.

Soto Zen Buddhists generally sit facing the wall. This form began with Bodhidharma, the founder of Zen Buddhism. We can sit on a chair, on a cushion, or any substitute (such as a small bench made for this purpose). Even a folded blanket works.

• If one sits on a chair, sit straight up on the chair.
• If one sits on cushions, sit with ankles crossed, under, or to one side.
• If it is possible, we can also sit in half lotus or full lotus position.
• If one is sick or dizzy, we can meditate lying down.

Rest the left hand on the right hand so that thumbs touch lightly above the fingers, forming an oval shape. (This is called a mudra). Let the hands rest comfortably against the lower area of the abdomen about three inches below the navel.

​How to Breathe

We sit upright to breathe fully. Our shoulders should be directly over our hips. Our ears should line up with our shoulders.

Keep the mouth closed and pull the chin in slightly. Look down at a 30-to-45-degree angle. Let the eyes partially close, without focusing on anything.

Relax the neck. Imagine a line running from the bottom of the spine to the top of the head – and on up to the ceiling.

Now inhale deeply through the nose. Breathe all the way in through the nose. Then exhale naturally — slowly and completely — through the nose. Our inhale will take slightly less time than than our exhale. If breathing seems too shallow, put a slight weight on it. As the exhale ends, one will naturally inhale.

Count the breaths. Near the end of the exhale, say silently “one.” Repeat this. When reaching “ten,” start over again with “one.” But if one loses track (which is easy to do), that's fine: Just begin again with “one.” Whether we ever reach “ten” or not is unimportant.

​What to Think About

​Thoughts and physical sensations may pull at our attention. Don’t focus on them. Don’t try to get rid of them. “Let thoughts come in and go out,” Suzuki Roshi would say. Just “don’t serve them tea.”

We are solely with our body and mind. It may be our first awareness of body and mind completely together.

​When to Sit

​Any time is a good time for sitting.

Some like to sit in the morning just after rising, or just after getting back from work, or just before going to bed. These are easy times for one to schedule.

The important thing is to decide when to sit. Then stick to it. We mostly belong to our habits. If we don’t make a commitment to meditate a certain number of days a week at the same time (or times), we are much less likely to continue.

​How Long to Sit

​Starting with five minutes is fine. Eventually we may get up to 30 or 40 minutes. This is the amount one would be sitting if one sat with a group. At first, just sit for the length of time determined. Set a kitchen-timer or something similar to know when the period is over.

​Sitting with a Group

Meditating alone is fine. However, sometimes it is better to sit with others. When obstacles appear, it is oftentimes harder to continue regular meditation when we are sitting alone.

It is good to have the help of others when meditating. It is helpful to be able to observe someone who has been sitting for some time. It is important to have people who can answer our questions about Buddhism and encourage us. The example of peers will greatly help us with our practice.

The people we choose to practice with becomes our sangha (spiritual community). Our sangha helps us keep going when things become discouraging.

Find a group near enough to attend at least once a week.

If we are very fortunate, we will find a group with an experienced meditation teacher.

We may have a choice of different groups with different styles of meditation. It is not unusual for someone to study several schools of Buddhism (Theravada, Vajrayana, Mahayana, Pure Land, Esoteric, Mantrayana, Tantra, etc.) before settling on a group that feels comfortable.

No matter where one sits or how one sits, all are always welcome at Beginner’s Mind Zen Center. More

• Fridays PM Zazen (Meditation), Friday, September 9, 2022, 7:30 PM | Meetup

COMEDY: Jimmy Dore on the debates

JimmyDoreComedy.com; Editors, Wisdom Quarterly

Citizen Jimmy (amazon.com/gp/product...)

Already the star of his own half-hour Comedy Central special and a writer-performer for the Off Broadway hit The Marijuana-logues, comedian Jimmy Dore is best described by critics as a "Bad-assed 'Bill Maher' with a boulder-sized chip on his shoulder." Jimmy Dore now takes on the U.S. government and easily misled citizens in his hilarious new one-hour Comedy Central Special CITIZEN JIMMY. He's not a partisan, he's a citizen. Citizen Jimmy. Listen to him weekly on Pacifica Free Speech Radio (archive.kpfk.org), Fridays at 5:00 PM (PST) at 90.7 FM, L.A.

Symptoms of the "Chemtrail Flu" (video)

Keith K., Seth Auberon, Pfc. Sandoval (eds.), Wisdom Quarterly; Dr. Edward Group, InfoWars (The Alex Jones Channel, April 7, 2016); Jello Biafra/Dead Kennedys, "Government Flu"

Alex Jones is a tool and fear monger, we know. But some guests on his show have much to say, divulge, reveal, and blow the whistle on. Jones is unreliable. Some guests, like Dr. Group, are very credible. Think before you jump. The mind, like a parachute, only works when open.

Is the Chemtrail Flu real?

Dr. Ed Group (Dr. Edward F. Group III, DC, NP, DACBN, DCBCN, DABFM, globalhealingcenter.com) exposes the mysterious illness that is popping up late in the flu season across the US.

• Fake "flu vaccinations," which by Big Pharma's own admission never prepares citizens for the flu this season (but only weakens us for whatever flu strain actually comes, guaranteed NOT to be the strain the vaccination was cultured from, but still as profitable to distribute to all children, elderly citizens, and healthy folk with campaigns based on fear), must weaken our immune systems and set us up for illnesses of all kinds.

(Dead Kennedys) "Government Flu" Very intelligent old school punk rock song from San Francisco
 
Shut up, my government would never lie to me!

(CinemaLibre) Vaxxed: From Cover-Up to Catastrophe. DIRECTOR: Andrew Wakefield. CAST: Del Matthew Bigtree, Mark F. Blaxill, Michaela Blaxill. Dr. Hooker enlists the help of Dr. Andrew Wakefield, a British gastroenterologist falsely accused of starting the anti-vax movement when he first reported in 1998 that the MMR vaccine may cause autism. In his ongoing effort to advocate for children’s health, Dr. Wakefield directs this documentary examining the evidence behind an appalling cover-up committed by the US government agency charged with protecting the health of American citizens. See: vaxxedthemovie.com.

• VIDEO: I'm a doctor, I now know the truth about vaccines

A portion of the right wing and libertarians are spreading the word about the "liberty movement," reaching millions to reach millions more. A free live video feed link (infowars.com/show) exists with twitter (twitter.com/RealAlexJones) and Facebook (facebook.com/AlexanderEme...), G+ (plus.google.com/+infowars), Web: infowars.com, prisonplanet.com, infowars.net.

Karma: Entire village wins lottery, minus one

CC Liu, Dharmacharis Seven and Ashley Wells, Wisdom Quarterly; NY Times via Yahoo!

Karma works (itself out) in mysterious ways. Those who act together sometimes even experience the results together. Why does anyone win the lottery?

It is not because s/he buys a lottery ticket. If that were a sufficient reason, every buyer would have won. Nor is it the number of tickets one buys. If that were the reason, those who buy more tickets would win with greater frequency (twice as often for every doubling of number of extra tickets).

Now, even if one were to win by chance alone, one would not be able to hold onto the winnings for very long. One would revert to the previous state because there was no karma to sustain the new elevated state. Merit (profitable karma or deeds willed, engaged in, and accumulated) is the real reason behind winning.

• Making "merit" in Buddhism
  

Good things do not always happen to "good people" because such individuals were not always "good." We opportunistically inherit the results of past deeds from a countless number of lives when deeds good and ill were done.



Moreover, what are "good things"? Winning the lottery is not boon because human life is short. Had that merit come to fruition in a longer lived plane of existence, it would have benefited the recipient much more than a mansion or yacht in old age on this plane.

When we judge who is or is not "good," what anyone deserves, or when karmic results would be most beneficial to receive, we completely go astray.

We are in no position to judge. Impersonal karma knows (and much of its "choice" depends on what we are doing NOW). What position are we in?

We are in a position to be greedy, to complain (gripe), and to condemn ourselves and others when we should be happy for everyone and happy for ourselves knowing that the merit we accumulate (sow) now is sure to follow us into the future looking for an opportunities to ripen.

Here is one case of a village that must have planted beneficial seeds in the past, minus the one interloping resident who got left out. He on some level knew not to buy a ticket.

• The same collective karma idea came up very controversially when Hollywood celebrity Buddhist and Dalai Lama fan Sharon Stone blamed the Chinese government's treatment of Tibetans for the massive China quake. That is not how karma works. If it worked that mechanically or clearly, no one would doubt the pervasive power of karma.
  

Spanish village wins lottery, minus one resident
Back in December, the tiny Spanish village of Sodeto collectively won a major stake in the annual $950 million Spanish national lottery. Today, the village of farmers and construction workers is enjoying a minimum payout of $130,000 per resident.

And yet for all of the new wealth making its way around Sodeto, one villager came away empty-handed. Costis Mitsotakis, a Greek filmmaker who moved to the village for a woman, is the only resident of Sodeto who did not purchase a ticket. Mitsotakis says he is no longer with the woman and now lives in a barn he is restoring just outside the village:

Mr. Mitsotakis said it would have been nice to win. But he has benefited nonetheless. He had been trying to sell some land without much success. The day after the lottery a neighbor called to say he would buy it. The next day another neighbor called. But Mr. Mitsotakis refused to get into a bidding war. "This is a small village," he said. "You don't want bad feelings." More

• VIDEO: Swedish divers find UFO under Baltic Sea

LA City Council: "Corporations are NOT people"

LA City Council votes against corporations

Occupy Los Angeles wins in the City Council: Far right Republicans say citizens do not matter if they try to interfere with their “right” to make money. Why? “Corporations have rights, and money is speech” (Citizens United).

LA City Council unanimously agreed that corporations are NOT people, so they are not entitled to the same constitutional protections.

If supported by the mayor, the city would be on record in support of federal legislation that would ensure that corporations are not entitled to the same rights as people, particularly when it comes to spending money to influence elections.

It also proposed language for a constitutional amendment declaring that money is not a form of speech and affirming the right of the federal government to regulate corporations.

Sylvia Moore with Move to Amend, which has the broad mission of opposing laws they say prevent the American people from governing themselves, said: “Corporations have taken over our society. They’re deciding what we eat, how people educate their children, and whether or not we have health care.”

The resolution cites Supreme Court Justice Hugo Black's 1938 opinion on the subject, “I don’t believe the word ‘person’ in the 14th Amendment includes corporations.”

Woman dragged in bank then arrested (video)

Wisdom Quarterly, AboveTopSecret, MSNBC, Inc.

It is not enough not to protest. The secret police (undercover agents infiltrating peaceful movements) will drag you into the bank then arrest you for protesting in the bank.

It sounds Orwellian. It sounds impossible. It happened recently at CitiBank, Inc.

A plainclothes policeman dragged a woman into a bank protest to arrest her as an occupier of the bank. What was she doing? Was she trying to help the "occupiers" inside the bank get media attention or legal help? That will not be tolerated in Bush/Cheney/Obama's America! No, actually, she was a Citibank customer trying to close her account.

Corporate crime is organized, the best organized crime there is.

Close Your Account, Go to Jail
AboveTopSecret.com FORUM (edited)
I can not believe what I have witnessed in this video. Will they be showing this on the mainstream news?

People went in to close their Citibank accounts. But instead they were locked in the bank and arrested. Citibank claims they entered the bank as a large mob screaming and chanting. However, things appear to be very quiet and civilized until the police show up.

There is a female Citibank customer still outside trying to get her account closed. She is talking to a few of them from outside the glass when an undercover cop grabs her and with the help of a banker and police with clubs forcefully drags her in the bank. A man who tries to help her gets dragged in, too.

The Koch Brothers love what corporations are capable of.

She screams and clearly looks distressed, not understanding why she is being manhandled. The police HELP drag her into the bank! Then everyone starts yelling "this is wrong," "shame," "you are disgusting!" I found it highly disturbing.

Police are the Troublemakers at Peaceful Protests


Citibank knows he [yes "he," Mr. Citibank is a "corporate person" with more rights than you or I] can do whatever he wants under the present system.

He is an organized criminal, more umbrella than person, for criminals wearing suits. And the people's police are little better. Citibank supports its local police the way Wall Street donated to have the Occupy Wall Street movement kept as far from Wall St. as possible. More

Forget the People, Power to the Banks!

Lying: How much can we avoid in a day?

How much lying can we avoid if we practice "right speech"?
Pujitha Kuruwita (Anderson South Carolina Independent Mail)
My 4-year-old wouldn’t come to me to comb her hair. After calling her several times I told her “Oh, look at that red bird eating berries.” Of course, there was no bird and no berries. She quickly ran to me, keen on looking at the bird. “Where’s the bird ....?” she looked around. “Oh, it flew away. It would come back soon if I comb your hair quickly,” I said.

She was silent for a moment. After a while she said, “Oh, look! There’s a butterfly on that flower.” Again, there was no butterfly and no flower. “What color is the butterfly?” I asked. “It’s red,” she said. I stood in silence, bewildered. She lied to me! In my haste to distract her I taught her to lie. And that is not good.

Being a Buddhist, I am conscious of false speech and its consequences. But most of us do tell lies in everyday life. Sometimes it’s only to get away from an awkward situation, which would mean no harm to anyone. But sometimes lying would really be harmful to someone. We should always stop to think, Is it good for our well being as well as that of others? More>>

Buzz on lie detectors is all a lie, NSA says
Jeff Stein (Washington Post)
The National Security Agency wants job applicants to know that its polygraph test is nothing to sweat. The eavesdropping and code-breaking organization has produced a 10-minute video designed to soothe applicants' anxiety over the notoriously grim experience. "The Truth About the Polygraph" (publicly available on the Defense Security Service's training Web site) opens with various applicants -- or actors playing them, it's not clear -- describing everything bad they had heard about the test, the implication being that none of it is true. More>>

• Berkeley’s Uncommon Common Experience
  I’ve been teaching an early summer graduate course in Corporate and Professional Ethics. As in all my courses, one of its goals is to help students make the link between theory and practice -- particularly important in this case because ethics is by definition “applied.” So I draw heavily on real cases and situations. They give students practice in identifying ethical issues and ethics failure...
• The Buddhist Church of Oakland: Rebuilding community after Japanese-American internment

YouTube has used the CitizenTube name a few times in the past, tracking certain major news stories (i.e., Iran election protests). But why limit it to only extraordinary situations? YouTube today announced that CitizenTube will be seeing a hefty expansion this summer. Working with the University of California at Berkeley's Graduate School of Journalism, YouTube is looking to turn CitizenTube into a curated stream of news videos from all kinds of sources. More>>

Sex in China: Swingers' Case Tests Limits

BEIJING – They were members of a modern-day swingers' club in China, where people met online and then gathered in homes or hotels for group sex parties involving dozens of men and women. Last month, Ma Yaohai, a 53-year-old college professor and 21 others went on trial in the southeastern city of Nanjing.

They are accused of "group licentiousness" — the first time anyone has been charged under a 1997 law in a case that has snagged huge public interest with its titillating details. But aside from rampant curiosity in the swinger lifestyle, the uproar also has touched off a deeper debate about sexual freedom in a nation that is trying to reshape its own modern morality.

Ma said his decision to join the swingers was voluntary. "Marriage is like water. You have to drink it. Swinging is like a cup of wine. You can drink it if you like. If you don't like it, don't drink it," he said in interviews with Chinese media. More>>

• VIDEO: Oxytocin, the love-bonding, sex hormone
• Valedictorian proposes to boyfriend during graduation
• Thai protesters take on army with crude weapons
• Thailand govt: No talks until protesters clear out

Zen'sational photographs

Yin and Yang, crouching tiger versus hidden dragon (919510)

Zensational is about love for this beautiful world with its incredible nature and wonderful people, the daily joys of urban and rural life, art and architecture, nature and the environment. That includes all that's around us, simplicity in our midst and our innermost spirituality, not only Zen but all faiths, philosophies, and worldviews. Join to celebrate the planet's multiculturalism and diversity. Upload up to two photographs a day.

• New candidate (Sathyanram on Flickr)

"Escape from Suburbia" (Movie)

The film "Escape from Suburbia" is a wake up call that challenges the illusion of never ending growth. It examines alternatives for a more sustainable society in the 21st century and beyond.

.

Suburbia with all its promises became the American Dream -- a lifestyle predicated on the dwindling availability of cheap and abundant resources like oil. Escape introduces three engaging characters in a small town who move us from the realm of theory to the real world.

.

There is an emerging movement of citizens' groups confronting our addiction to finite resources. With vision and courage, it is pointing the way to what we can do on our own little island.

• Escape from Suburbia (director Gregory Greene, USA 2007, 95 mins.)
• LINK