The last couple of days have been cold, rainy, and generally overcast here in the city of San Francisco.

I live in the Russian Hill area, up a bit from North Beach.

I've been able to spend some time out. Cold, rainy, wet, windy.

But it's gorgeous.  Everything simply gets so - real, so alive.  The mind disappears into the glory of the elements, with the wind whipping away the remnants of the mind, until there is only an awareness pregnant with the wind blowing, cold and wet on my face.

It's simply glorious.

I may be late to the party - but here is the current Integral University page.

I love the "Center" subjects on the right (assuming this will move to left on final) - this is somewhat similar to the subjects that I have on the left, except the list is much more complete, practical, and in-the-world, in a sense.

Criminology as a separate subject?  Beautiful.
Politics - I knew this would be there...
Psychiatry and Pschology - addressing the drug revolution over the last 15 years...
And both Finance and Subtle Energies!  How's that for a combination! (Who will be the enterprising soul who specializes in Finance and Subtle Energy Counselor - that will be the ticket!)

Since at least a couple of people who are part of Integral University read this particular blog - when do I get my tester account?

After all, this is one of the things I get paid over $35 an hour to do, hey I'm offering my part-time testing services for free.

What is the bug tracking system? Are you using CVS to track versions, ofr Sourcesafe, or something else? 

What parts of the platform itself, is open-source, so that people like me can help make "all bugs shallow"?

From what I can tell at Integral Naked, there have been quite a  number of good design decisions regarding content.

For one, the length of the video and audio segments - online people will start to lose track and be distracted over 40 minutes, and the audio segments are kept inside of that range.

From what I can tell, most everything is coming from a css file, so again, good coding principles. 

I personally don't like the design of the forum, but that is simply a personal taste.

I want a login!

I'm pretty sure everyone who wants one, has one, but for anyone out there who wants a gmail account, and DOESN'T have one, let me know.  You can email me from the upper right "contact me", above comments.

Quick streamed meditation, narrated by Thich Nhat Hanh

Just saw this future history post in The Manifest E-Zine.

OMFG - this is some righteous sh*t.  Now that's what I'm talkin about!

Some of the pleasures -

N.E.S.T - New Earth Systematized Transformatron.

Not only a physical space incorporating self-sustaining edible gardens, hydrogen fuel cells, and a brownwater waste system, unlike most "communes" of its kind, it features an award-winning business model: it doubles as a reality TV show, where NEST's more charismatic members interact in real time using the latest in environmentally-friendly and personal growth-oriented products and services. Think Big BrotherFriends as sponsored by Horizon Organics and Dharma Crafts and you're halfway there. The 2009 Fall Season starts off with NEST co-founder Marcopolis Greenstem failing to clean the composting toilet due to excessive meditating in the middle of a terrorist attack, whereupon a general meeting called to discuss Greenstem devolves into a paintball fight with guns named after Great Sufis of the 20th century. Wicked.


Also this:

. The Japanese Ken Wilber
Move over "Einstein of Consciousness", in 2009 there will be a new hip knowledge machine on the scene, one Takenobu Igarashi, son of the great graphic designer of the same name, who will take Integral Methodological Pluralism to a whole new level with the help of genetic enhancements, ultra-fast internet access, and a severed brain which allows him to read and process two books at once (one for each eye). And no "theory and practice of everything" would be complete without pushing the frontiers of what is acceptable: what KW did to help bring Eastern mysticism into serious academic and scientific discussion, Igarashi will do for the studies of exobiology (aliens, dude, aliens) and parapolitics. And, as the Japanese are wont to do, he will take it to all new ridiculous extremes, so much so that his massive 3000-page magnum opus Holarchical Development of the Cluster God Spark-Lifter will be adapted to become the world's first #1 game show where Japanese families of four battle each other by break dancing through the well-stocked libraries of Pacific Rim Central University in search of the lost texts not incorporated by Igarashis's massive, 3-dimensional theory. And don't even ASK about the footnotes....

I don't see many good riff's on combinations of mysticism and cyberpunk anymore - not since The Invisibles, at least.

As much as I love Ken Wilber, sometimes you want a little less Apollo archetype and a little more Dionysus archetype, you know what I mean?

As a meta-commentary -

It's funny to view the tracks of my mind in this instance, and how much of it is programmed to - the rebellious mystic, the cool zen kids ethos.  I would bet that a lot of this ethos that I appreciate is some weird growing up combination of faux "rebel" movies, combined with video games and anime...

Blogiating - "the act of going on and on in a weblog post, commenting with prose great and small, with either triumphalism or misplaced arrogance, on a topic you really know nothing about..."  A spin off of bloviating

Or also, "opinions are like "*ssholes.  Everybody's got one". 

But I put mine up on a weblog...

As can be seen by other posts today, I'm in a bit of a "is this the right room for an argument?" mood. 

So, building on a post by Goethea, I'd like to relate my experiences attempting to argue against simple atheism, by really bright people.


Clearly, like Goethea, I'm not partial to either side.  Creationism is very shallow, and very political/stupid, while atheism, once you have had any type of spiritual experience, is similar.

There was a thread on Matthew Yglesias's blog, where I attempted to engage "liberal atheists", with the views I hold regarding spiritual evolution (I'm the JC poster in the comments).  I came at it from a somewhat softer position than what I believe because I wanted the dialogue.

Here's my first comment.

Here's a good response.

The basic gist of the response is to resort to Occam's Razor - i.e. if you are going to postulate beyong the evidence of our senses, you may as well postulate anything - an underlying intelligence, a great green glob, a giant purple unicorn, etc.

This is really the cruz of the issue, I think. 

Ken Wilber responds to this by, basically,  pointing to other modes of empirical research, as accepted by other disciplines outside of science -

"Surely there is a broader science that attempts to understand not just rocks and weasels but humans and minds? Well, in fact, we do acknowledge these types of broader sciences, sciences that are not rooted merely in the exterior, physical, sensorimotor world, but have something to do with interior states and qualitative research methodologies. We call these broader sciences the "human sciences"

From the research methodology of the human sciences, then, we can search the empirical literature of the practices of mystics, past and present, and like Piaget for early development, formulate the higher structures of the "mystical" brain. 

I think though, that this isn't necessarilly a convincing argument for the Occam's Razor atheist comeback, but only a partial one.   The point is still that these are only pointers to "structures of the brain". 

At this point the options then, seem to me, to be one of the following - accept that there are "structures in the brain" that give rise to mystical experiences, but that don't really mean anything to the world as is. 

The aethist then would point out that so many mystical experiences are "different", that one would need to believe in an infinity of gods. 

Or, you can accept that these experiences ARE indicative of  the underlying structure of the world, but mixed with personal and social patterns of interpretation. 

All the experiences of energy, spirit, heart, that I have, clearly put me in the second camp.

But politically, perspectivally, I'd really like for a more integrated liberal view to be LOUD and acceptable in media/political circles.  It's a travesty that the "chattering classes" see God talk as only available to the right.

What is a decent counter-argument to the Occam's Razor logic of the smart liberal, decent athiest?

Okay, now does the statement, from this post, seem right to you?

here's a mind fuck for us: clinical research has shown that at the age of 21, you basically stop developing. that is to say your center of gravity, your World-view, the lens through which you experience and interpret all experiences- that solidifies and development stops. until you're about to die, you don't develop anymore, UNLESS you have a meditation practice. that's worth repeating: unless a person has a daily contemplative practice, clinical research shows THEY WILL NOT DEVELOP THROUGH STAGES after about the age of 21. that means if you're an arrested adolescent at the age of 21, and you don't have a practice, then you (and all your friends and family) can look forward to a long life enjoying your remedial needs. this ain't a religious thing, it ain't a buddhist thing, this is simple, emperical data from clinical research: if you don't meditate, you don't fucking DEVELOP after the age of 21.


Now, it seems like there is some perspective needed here.  What personal qualities can develop?  What qualities can't develop?  There are FAR too many assumptions in this paragraph.

For myself, I'm infinitely less stupid than I was in my 20's.  (I'm still infinitely stupid, but a lesser order of infinities, as it were...)

Now I'm not necessarily the best case, because I do meditate, however - if we continue with the TRANSLATION-INNOVATION metaphor, as applied to the individual, then this post might make sense, but I'd still like to see the cites.

But if we are dealing with "individual translation"  in the world - dealing with people better, LEARNING to move forward in various ways - both personally, professionally, etc - the possibilities of learning, growing, being, on this level, are very high. 

I think blanket statements like that could possibily contribute to an abandonment of growth, that actually CAN happen, on a translation level - even if this doesn't engage higher levels of consciousness.  

"Well, shoot - science shows that I stay the same unless I meditate - guess there's no point going to that AA meeting and dealing with my alcohol... - also, guess I'm not going to learn any more IT skills... "


That's a bit of an unfair example, it could be argued that's a strawman - but most of what we deal with in this world IS translation, so clarity is needed.  A lot of learning happens by simply SHOWING UP and being present, paying attention to what is being presented.

I also would think this type of blanket statement would strike at the heart of the notion of adult learning as well.  (Robert Kagan, what would you say?)

Okay, so maybe I'm not completely refuting Stuart Davis's post - if the innovation vs. translation distinction is kept in mind - but it is important to point out the adult learning that continues to happen,in several wonderful and multi-varied ways,  for those who put themselves in the situation to learn (those who show up).

UPDATE:  I didn't make it clear, but this paragraph was one small part of a much larger post - and really, I'm only criticizing this one single part.  But the title would be so much more ho-hum if the title was "A small part of Stuart Davis's post needs to be more clear." 

It just doesn't have the same ring.

Building on the Time Happiness post by coolmel,  there is another Time article that is interesting/has set me off - Meet the Twixters.

In a way, this is an updated sociological take that is similar to a GenX sociological take, about 12 years ago, that was published by Time - and umpteen other magazines, of course, but I remember the Time article, because if there is anything that I am, it's a (reformed?) member of  the slacker GenX generation.  (Hear me roar?)  Since matured, at least a bit.

But the article points up a lot of the economic issues that are endemic to "maturing" in the current world context. 

Basically, the "We" and the "Its" social segment of the world, in the U.S. at least, has shifted.  Lots more bright intelligent, socially aware people who delay/can't/won't "mature" on the IT's and We" segment.  I have been floored by the number of times I have met - for example - an employee of Border's, or a Starbuck's Coffee employee, etc, whom was bright, literate, possessor of a Master's, spiritual, etc.  (And, by the way, there wasn't a happiness in this particular field of employment, and especially the financial compensation - it's just what had happened.)

And now, there are numbers to back this up.  While causation is difficult - which factors are social, for example? - it is definitely the case that economically, it is getting harder and harder for new entrants into the work world. 

I don't believe there is a lot out there from the integral perspective, addressing this (although I will be eager to be proved wrong). Now there's a lot of job blogs out there - yet a lot of them tend to be of the rah-rah variety, or selling themselves.  For example, I've been looking for job blogs to link to - Monster blogs are decent, as are a couple of others, but nothing yet that is updated regularly, and comes from a slightly higher perspective. (And if I have to hear about "Networking events" again, I'll swear off entirely...)

Add to this, that there is a shift to creative and meaningful work, rather than a job - as typified by Tami Simon, and many many others, it makes this conversation more perplexing, from the sociological perspective.

One of the grating experiences I remember from being a poor struggling (but of a decent intelligence) 20 something year old (and not too far removed from this now) is the explosion of things to experiment with - expos, groups, etc - but the lack of funds to do so. 

In my (bloviating/blogiating) opinion, this disconnect runs through so much of the AQAL, integral, "new age", some (but not all) of the self-help movements. 

The economic, financial, and professional fundamentals, both personal and system-wide, need to be addressed more head-on in our movement networks.

UPDATE:  As I get home, I get a link to The Manifest E-Zine, and specifically a link to this article.  Pretty much encapsulates what I'm talking about - and like the editor, I'm a part of the problem, not a part of the solution.

The subtle presence…
How can it be described?

This palpable fullness, beating, pulsing, dancing in the air.
I can sit, just watching, and go deeper. 

The leaves, the air, the grass, pulses, in and out – breathes, in and out. Other dimensions reveal themselves, by simply sitting.  Alight in a feathery ocean of energy.

This quiet silence-awe, alert and awake to the internal and the external, until there is no difference.

Sometime over the next couple of weekends, I'm going to be rearranging some of the links to this site.  I've been finding more and more stuff I should link to.

For now though, I'll give a preview to a couple.

Integral World Government, which also has the following link page.

I got the above link from Integral Visioning Wiki.  Big thanks and Michael Dubois for putting this up.  (I'm assuming he did it).

I've always been a big fan of wiki's - between the main wiki and google, you can pretty much find anything.  I'll be adding stuff to this particular online dictionary.

It would be great if there might be enough "co-interests", that from an information perspective, at least, a lot of these online resources can become co-joined.  After all, why have multiple duplication, when the number of people that are interested in integral theory (and for me, integral practice and community, ultimately) is small?

Signed up as a beta-tester for Integral University. 

Since this one (of many) things I do at the e-learning company I work at, this should be fun, and, hopefully I should be able to contribute.

One of the things that ought to be interesting is the implementation of feedback - for example, I'm not sure wether they are looking to have a Likert scale mode of evaluations - as well as six month follow-ups, depending on the type of information being presented.

I'm also wondering whether the "teaching offerings" will be encapsulated with any of the standards in the E-Learning industry (for example SCORM).  It would do wonders for re-licensing of various assets or components of assets, and make it easy to integrate content with other systems, when it comes time for that.  As well as keeping information packaged in an xml wrapper that can be published to other formats, either now, or easily in the future.

From what I can tell, a lot of the content may be generated by Flash technology, which has a mode to publish in SCORM.

It will also be interesting for me to see the platform.  I'm assuming there may be a prodigious use of  Macromedia Breeze, or some similar type of product, but the costs may be too prohibitive for that.

But we'll see!

I'm excited that this is happening - for me, it's a merging of what I do (elearning and training technology) and what I love (integral thought, practice, etc.)

The world is always burning - it's important to remember this, despite all the technological progress and the deeper and deeper understanding of the world that we discover, in every  avenue of existence.

When we have death squads under consideration, and tsunamis killing 156,000 people in four hours, with worse to come,  the truth of dukkha hits you like a freight train.

Who will save your soul? 


An arrow gathering speed, a bullet shot from a gun, a man dying of thirst, my desire for enlightenment consumes me, devours me, wakes me up in the night by grabbing me by the throat.  Always, always at attention, focused, present, I become that wish I seek.  Will the sadhana and satoris I find support me in the final hours?  In the frailest of times, in the direst of circumstances, will understanding be undone?  Will I mistake contentedness for contemplation, arrogance for acceptance, laziness for light? 

Boy do I agree with this. Actually, given the all various lines and levels to be in "care of", according to Ken Wilber, at some point, you have to come to realize you really can't take care of them all. I'm going to go ahead and link to, and fully reprint, this page from One Taste.   more »

Just getting back, I haven't commented on tsunami relief.  For myself, I find myself moved to give to various organizations.

I spent time in Madras in the early 90's, and particularly spent some time on the coast there, and made acquaintances there, so I am pulled to contribute in that direction. 

As an aside, one of the things I looked at when I was in Washington DC, were the various War Memorials.  While at the Vietnam Memorial, I simply couldn't get my head around the fact that twice as many people died in the that 4 hour window of the tsunami, then the number of americans that died in the Vietnam War.  The loss is truly unfathomable. 

At any rate, here is a link for organizations to donate to:
 
Donations listings.
 
If I am missing some invaluable links, please let me know, and I will add them asap. 

For a couple of years now, I've been reading blogs, and finally started one some months ago. 

One hope I have for Integral blogs, and other people's integral practices in general, is to use these tools to enhance virtual communities, and evaluations of various TYPES of practices, thoughts, etc..

A perfect example of this is the site Daily Kos.

Daily Kos is a perfect site to emulate for integrals, in many ways, as this site has hundreds of users, commentors, which bring the "news of the day", not only for national political news, but also for regional issues (various specialized posting authors).

One of the services I use from both Yahoo and Amazon, is their review service.  In the Yahoo case, it is for movies.   At Amazon, of course, it is for books. 

In the spirit of  The Wisdom of Crowds, I deeply value various reviewers, for their insight, their perspectives, and ultimately, their thumbs up/down. 

So, in keeping with this, check out local yahoo.  Now you can "review" your local meditation chapter!  Or your local gym, or your local diet practice, etc. 

Here's an example:

The keyword search is "meditation" for San Francisco, and these are the results. 

Notice that there aren't many reviews yet.  (Also notice that the Shambala Center doesn't let you review.  What's up with that??  Are they SCARED?  )

I'll attempt to post more on this in the future, as I think this is a very valuable discriminative function that anyone who is connected to the internet can perform.  I want to hear about the Shambala Center!  Is it good?  Is it bad?  What's the feedback?

People have tried to do this on a individual basis (thanks Sarlo), but the tools that are now available are just so much more powerful, and more important easy. 

So, this is the second time I have asked any readers here strongly for something.  The first was for KISI.  This time, please propagate information to all people you know (and they'll two friends, and they'll tell two friends, and so on, and so on..) about local yahoo.  Start rating and describing both teachers, practices and organizations.  (Also, if someone knows the same type of functionality on a "universal" level, let me know.)

Who are some incredible teachers?  Why?  What is an incredible practice?  Who's a teacher that you should "stay the hell away from?".

Let's get these party (reviews and descriptions) started, right? Let's get this party started QUICKLY - right?

Is New York the city to end all cities or what?

For the "pleasures of civilization" I can't think of a better place to go than New York.

We managed to be about a ten minute walk from Times Square, and spent New Year's day, trolling around Times Square.  Busy busy busy, that particular day!  Living in San Francisco, it can be just as busy around Union Square, but it is for very brief periods. 

Because we were limited in time, we only got to see Manhattan in the few days we were there. 

Like the Jefferson Memorial, I was pleasantly impressed and moved by the Statue of Liberty memorial.  I had thought I would be like "that's nice - ok, what's next?", but really, the Statue of Liberty is a structure of inspiring beauty.  Not only is the statue itself wonderful, but the view of all the areas of New York from there, are amazing as well. 

I have lots of pictures.  If anyone's curious, let me know, I'll post some! 

More to come...

Hello,

I have been away from the internet for awhile - have taken a two week vacation, which until today, meant limited access to the internet, so I haven't posted anything. 

I ended up going to both Washington DC and New York on my vacation - this was my first trip to the East Coast. 

I did all the typical tourists things - didn't have time for much more. 

A few highlights:

Washington DC - so much to see in the museums.  I particularly liked the Freer Gallery, with it's collection of Asian art from various periods. 

On the other end of the spectrum, I really liked the Wright Brothers exhibit, which gives a great sense of the "myth" of early 20th century america.  Smart, dedicated, intrepid adventurers and explorers, changing the nation and the world, just in time for the 20th century. 

President's Row -

We managed to walk through all of President's Row (Circle? Square?).  The Jefferson and Lincoln Memorial, the Washington Monument (closed for construction though, so only saw from the fence). the Roosevelt Memorial.  Of course, as part of this walking, took in the WWII, Korean, and Vietnam memorial.

I was continually impressed by the level of discourse of our more famous presidents.  Buffered about by the talking heads society that exists on tv today, it was quite a pleasant shock to see "in the flesh" as it were, some of the brilliant speeches by our presidents. 

Jefferson in the Declaration of Independence, on religious freedom:

" Almighty God hath created the mind free…All attempts to influence it by temporal punishments or burthens…are a departure from the plan of the Holy Author of our religion…No man shall be compelled to frequent or support any religious worship or ministry or shall otherwise suffer on account of his religious opinions or belief, but all men shall be free to profess and by argument to maintain, their opinions in matters of religion. I know but one code of morality for men whether acting singly or collectively."

I can't think of a better way of speaking about protecting diversity of religious practice. 

There's quite a lot more here.  I may post later on this.