IF there are before current copyright restrictions.

Here is an example -

Selected Works of Plotinus. On the center right, there is a download button - and away you go!

For the "spiritual historian", as it were - either Buddhist, Hindu, Esoteric Christian, etc - I assume that more and more books will become available.  I looked for some Aurobindo in the Free Library, but didn't find it.

The trick for finding the early stuff, is to choose "Full View books" as a search option, and then include free library, as well as what you are searching for. 

Referred by this post from Google Blogoscoped.

Still continuing my obsession with YouTube and music.  A few gems:

Full Jam Concert at Rockpalast.  One hour and sixteen minutes!!

Wilco playing I Am Trying To Break Your Heart - at the Ottowa Bluesfest. Recent.

Amy more good downloads of Wilco appreciated.

Flogging Molly - Seven Deadly Sins

Sex Pistols - God Save The Queen

Okay, this has a punk influence, except for the Wilco...

What do ya think?

A good post from Per.

Also note, his blog has changed. He is blogging from absentofi.blogspot.com.

Here is the link.

I particularly like the section on relationships - I often wonder what others think are the best books on relationships.

Funny enough, there isn't a category on careers.  Something like What Color Is Your Parachute or The Pathfinder.

How many of these books listed have you read? 

My current favorite fantasy author George R.R. Martin - author of many good books, currently the series Song of Ice and Fire - has a blogpost on freedom.  A choice quote:

What is "freedom," anyway? We could debate that for hundreds of posts, I'm sure, and maybe we will. The way I see it, however, it has got to mean more than just being able to choose between a Republican and a Democrat every few years. I want all the rights and freedoms guaranteed me in the Bill of Rights, certainly... including the one protecting me against unreasonable searches and seizures that we have abrogated in the name of safety and airport "security." But the Bill of Rights should not be the end of it. The right to privacy may have been invented by the Supreme Court rather than the Founding Fathers, you can argue that as you will, but however it came about, it's a pretty nifty right and I'd like to hang on to it. I want the right to do stupid, hazardous, self-destructive stuff as well; to drink absinthe, smoke pot, smoke tobacco, drive my car without the seatbelt, bungee jump off bridges, watch porn, order my eggs sunny-side up and my hamburgers rare, have unprotected sex, drink unpasteurized milk. I have only done a few of those things, actually (I will leave it to you to figure out which ones), and most I would never consider -- but I SHOULD have the right to do all of them. The choice should be mine, not yours, and not the government's. Giving individuals a CHOICE in how we live is our lives is the essence of freedom, I think.

And shouldn't ordinary law-abiding people have the basic, fundamental right not to be treated like goddamned criminals everywhere they go?

The post also compares and contrasts how, starting in the eighties, we began to be what I call "over-regulated".  More regulations for everything, more checks, etc, etc.  

It's a shame really - was brought home to me, really,when hanging out with a neighbors kids, and being told of the "curfew" law, for people under 18.

"Curfew law?  What's a curfew law?".  Some information here.

I certainly did not grow up with a curfew law - nor with any clothing requirements (read:  uniform) for junior or high school.

What do people think?  Is the post referred overstating the case?

Looks like Pluto is going to be voted out of the "planet" category.  This means we will only have eight "classical planets".

Which actually pisses me off, because I was really stoked about the possible new planet called Xena being added to the list of nine.  How cool would Xena as a planet have been?  (Of course, the moon of Xena would HAVE to be named Gabrielle.)


And there will be a new category called "dwarf planets".  Which is where I guess Xena will fit.

It should be interesting to read the reinterpretations of all those astrologists?  Will nine planets still be in the birth chart?  Will this be reduced to eight planets?

Will the transits of Pluto still have the same "power", or will the power of Pluto be, er, "dwarfed?".

Also, now that there will be other "dwarf planets" in the solar system.  Will these other dwarf planets be included in the effect of a birth charts and transits?  What will all the new dwarf planets "mean"?  If Xena is transiting, does that mean I will meet a kick-ass chick who yodels?

That is the problem with lack of verifiability.  When things change, suddenly a whole new rap has to be developed, whole cloth.

One of the Great Mysteries of Life, is the matter of HOW and WHY people change their behavior. 

Solving this particular mystery - or at least creating the most favorable environment - personally, and then when available, socially - is an implicit requirement of any Integral Transformative Practice.

So - what causes change? 

Let's take a quick look at one particular "master" of self-change, Steve Pavlina.

Steve Pavlina's articles rely quite a lot on the theory, or metaphor, that Tranformation is based on the Personal Will - what I think is useful tol call the Green Lantern theory of change.

A few of Steve Pavlina's articles:

How To Become An Early Riser

What is taken from the article is the assumption that one simply *just* changes your behavior.


Here's a modified quote about Green Lantern, to show what I mean:

As you may know, the Green Lantern Corps is a sort of interstellar peacekeeping force set up by the Guardians of Oa to maintain the peace and defend justice. It recruits members from all sorts of different species and equips them with the most powerful weapon in the universe, the power ring.

The ring is a bit goofy. Basically, it lets its bearer generate streams of green energy that can take on all kinds of shapes. The important point is that, when fully charged what the ring can do is limited only by the stipulation that it create green stuff and by the user's combination of will and imagination. Consequently, the main criterion for becoming a Green Lantern is that you need to be a person capable of "overcoming fear" which allows you to unleash the ring's full capacities.

Now, this seems to apply very well to the notion of the DOER of transformative change. Want to get strong?  Work out! 
Want to lose weight?  Eat healthy!
Want to get free?  Meditate!
Want X job?  Do Y!

In some sense, this X factor of will - some combination of self-discipline, motivation, and an understanding of one's own daily rhythms, and what works for you - is present in all self-improvement work. 

And when that will FAILS - as the studies show it inevitable does, for the majority of people, in various degrees - who is to blame, but your "lack of will?"

There is a problem with setup of course - mainly that it IS a setup, psychologically, without a deeper appreciation of the embeddedness of:

Weight of personal patterns
Embedded nature of social, functional, and logistical entanglements with society.
Personal psychological history, and those effects.

These effects above are why it is a good idea to have the small group dynamic - or even the motivated buddy dynamic - to engage in change, and self-improvement.

Interesting extension, regarding Gmail and a Getting Things Done application interface.

I've installed this, and it's a pretty good use of labels in gmail.  Also, very seamless install, using Firefox.

Federal court finds warrantless eavesdropping unconstitutional.

Good news - although of course this will be challenged all the way up to the Supreme Court.

As far as issues, there is actually a pretty big question here, regarding the current United States political situation, how to separate three separate movements -

The liberal tradition and movement
The conservative tradition and movement
The authoritarian tradition and movement

Matthew Dallman has stated that the conservative tradition is an ongoing, lively tradition, full of ideas.

I think Matthew has a point - however, it is hard to see, given the current full and near total capture of the conservative movement by the authoritarian movement.  As encapsulated by the Bush as King, unlimited executive power, theory.

Maybe at sometime there will be a successful disentangling of the authoritarian movement from a conservative tradition, but it will have to wait on another group of Republicans.

This ranking of colleges by Washington Monthly magazine is interesting. 

Particularly the measurements of success:

And so, to put The Washington Monthly College Rankings together, we started with a different assumption about what constitutes the "best" schools. We asked ourselves: What are reasonable indicators of how much a school is benefiting the country? We came up with three: how well it performs as an engine of social mobility (ideally helping the poor to get rich rather than the very rich to get very, very rich), how well it does in fostering scientific and humanistic research, and how well it promotes an ethic of service to country. We then devised a way to measure and quantify these criteria.

This type of broad-based methodology and evaluations, are similar to how one evaluations the different areas of an individuals life. 

I've been incredibly remiss in not mentioning the Social Anxiety Blog that has been going, with quite a lot of "integral" bloggers, that I've been reading for awhile - in fact, some of the best!

(I was reminded of this by Umguy)

So here is the Anxious Living site -  and here are a couple of good posts -

A post on self-help in general.

A post to an online assessment - this also leads to a number of other assessments you can take.

I took this assessment pointed to - and I don't seem to suffer from that this social phobia, at least according to the assessment.  Though I have tremendous sympathy, as I also have an extremely shy side to me.

I think there is something to the fact that a lot of people are intellectual, shy, and a bit introverted, and ONLINE when it comes to those interested in Ken Wilber's works.

In the past, I have mainly been shy around women I'd like to ask out on a date, and then in social situations where I feel out of place.  (Of course, in social situations where I feel comfortable, TRY shutting me up!)

The site engages other universal questions - the nature of self-improvement, the nature of change, the nature of acceptance, versus self-growth and self-improvement.   So give it a look.

Graham has been posting a lot of good articles later, and this one on hypnosis and communication is also good.

Points -

Communicate to produce an outcome for the listener.

My addition to that would be a communication isn't about YOU, it's about the other person - even though the CONTENT of the communication is about what you want to communicate - the communication itself is about the other person (or room full of people, depending on the case).

As far as NLP itself - which I assume Graham is going to expand on - NLP seems to have more research successes behind it, in terms of behaviour change, than others.  A good "track record", so to speak. 

But for myself, I've experimented with NLP - gone over a period of time to two different therapists (30 sessions between the two) - and I personally was completely unreceptive.  My whole being rebelled, for whatever reason - still don't know why.

From Mind Hacks:

So much pscyhology being only a province of "self-improvement, mental healing, and psychological health".  Now psychologists can assist in torture - oh happy days!

Note:  I'm clearly and purposely being "biased' in reporting this, and doing so for a reason - if you are interested, please make sure to read the links that the post has.

Saw this at Graham's place. 

If real - and it is a question, because it is possible that his feet are being held up a rope, as the video doesn't capture that - it shows that this is where "integral fitness", can go.  More into a Qigong mode of practice, engaging the energetic body, as well as the phyical body.

The offical blog post here.

Here is the link.

Covers some of the same ground I've covered, with links for more details.

From Yahoo Health:

The main points -

Don't eat less than 1000 calories
Eat every 4 to 5 hours
Make breakfast a priority
Protein with every meal
Aerobic exercise 4 to 5 times per week
Strength training 2 to 3 days per week

I like this type of advice - simple, and to the point. 

Especially as the focus is ON metabolism, as this is overlooked by a lot of people. 

As you get older the natural metabolism CHANGES - and changes greatly.  Slows down, and it can be quite unexpected.  I went from eating, drinking, scarfing, pretty much anything I wanted - and staying skinny.  And I had (have) quite a sweet tooth, but it didn't affect my weight.  And then over the course of six months, at 31 - I put on 15 pounds.  And now, I go back and forth, battling that extra 15 pounds, depending on how my eating habits hold up (or don't).

Getting the metabolism up, in a healthy, simple way, has been one of the best ways to automatically fight weight gain.

Information here.

I'm not sure how much this lawsuit is based on a particular way of doing something - perhaps some code issues - or just a METHOD. 

Like Amazon's one-click patent - these type of patents are a travesty.  It's like patenting a walking path, getting from A to B.  As long as the code is not reused - (a lot of learning technology is based upon open specifications - look at IMS - so this type of patent is incredibly damaging to competition, in what is essentially a smaller enterprise market.

Now - how does this effect Integral?  Well, for one, there has been something launched at Integral Institute, called the Integral University.  While of course low on the totem pole - the broadness of the patents could conceivably put ANY online learning system in the crosshairs.

Here is the post from Ken Wilber's site.

I feel bad for Ken, but also, quite a bizarre type of accident - usually when there is that type of swelling, there is significant physical trauma.  I'm surprised Ken hasn't been checked out by a physician yet.

(Lastly - even in this state, Ken still has a sixpack - how does he manage that?)

Saw this from Mind Hacks.  

According to the list, alcohol is much more dangerous than, say LSD.

Here and here for more information.

This is worth paying attention to. 

From Bill.

Hey there,

Been awhile since I've posted.  Some updates -

1.  I've been obsessively trying out various web 2.0 applications, in the area of group projects, reviews, and wiki's - looking for the right combination of:

a. Groups interaction
b. Group task-tracking
c. Reviews - (both for projects, practices, books, etc)
d. Peer-to-peer.

That are also do it yourself.

So far, I haven't found the perfect combination. 

My views on Integral Practice have shifted over the last year and a half, from documenting the theory and practice of various practices, to seeing these practices DOCUMENTED, in realtime and online, in a group of mutually supportive advocates. 

Thus the search for web 2.0 software to fit this.   (If anyone would find it interesting to have my experiences with these applications documented here, let me know - but if that interest doesn't exist, no need to clutter the site.)

What this brings me back to, is what I would call "Skillful Mean Peer to Peer". 

Anyone reading my site here, has seen this ideal displayed for the last year or so.  The problem is getting that goal into practice.   Much harder than the idea!