I remember a story Joel Goldsmith told of a corrupt circus rolling into town in New York in the 1950's. The owner of the circus proclaimed to the media that there was no power in heaven or on earth that could stop the parade of performers from reaching New York City. Joel had just finished a class teaching students of meditation when he read of that proclamation. Joel knew of the owner's corruption, and went into meditation about it. He "heard" in the thundering silence of his meditational state the following words: " There is no power in heaven or on earth greater than I AM".
The circus was stopped in its tracks by bad weather, and, never made it to New York.
That is beautiful! Thank you for sharing this story. When I was a young woman working in community organizing, I worked with a beloved former priest named Clark Field. Clark was forever organizing outdoor events. The rest of us were always concerned forthe weather. Clark never was. I cannot remember a single instance of rain on one of his events! It was like he had a direct line to The Almighty and Mother Nature!
A parade for the war machine while the hungry go unfed. The empire cannot even blush anymore. If they wanted to honor sacrifice, they would start by ending the need for it. Tanks on the streets do not protect a nation’s soul. Feeding children does. Healing veterans does. But ah, the old gods of profit and power demand their spectacle. Let the rain wash some of this shame away.
Orion, when the nation betrays its own founding spirit, critique is not un-American. It is the most American act there is. The monks taught us: loyalty to empire is not loyalty to truth. I’ll take rain on tanks over silence in the face of hunger any day.
WTF does that mean. America didn't invent War. We stand for free will. Just because colonization influenced western humanity, doesn't mean to perpetuate it's existence. Mind your own business.
Orion, peace does not mean weakness. Feeding children does not dishonor soldiers. And questioning a parade for the arms dealers is not opposing the defense of liberty. The monks taught this too: when power wraps itself in flags, the wise ask who profits from the cloth. I’ll keep asking. You’re free to keep yelling.
Alex, we're on the same page and I appreciate your participation..
Peace through strength - has become "a metaphor gone mad". History meets with the present out-come of the results. But apparently those in "control" want another hit of the dopamine.
Orion, on that we do agree: peace through strength becomes dangerous when it turns into spectacle for profit and power. The monks say: true strength guards the weak, not the ego. Let’s both keep the eyes clear and the heart steady. No kings. No emperors. No parade for war.
I think many of us are aware that this shameful "parade" spectacle is all about stroking Trump's childish and immature ego and his constant need to reinforce his low self-esteem.
Ego, especially Trump's ego, is loud, weak, self-centered, arrogant, and puts on a false façade. Ego doesn’t accept truth, unless it was something that it was already convinced of. Ego is selfish and greedy and makes unwarranted and/or flat out false claims.
PS. I had a wonderful time at our No Kings rally in Beaumont, Texas today. Deep red territory, right? Well, the supporter-to-heckler ratio was on the order of 100 to 1. Influencers like you are helping bring the supporters out and helping some of the magaloonies see the light as to who genuine patriots are. Big Hug and Thank You!
“Let’s just hope that when all those tanks roll into town … there’s then a plan to roll them back out … My deepest fear is that there will not be … and this was all just a ruse to get them there” … Trump is a spoiled child … he doesn’t read … he makes mistake after mistake … and he doesn’t do his homework … He’s a disgrace to this Country and to the World !!!
We need a new vocabulary to speak of this venal display of excess and ego. We need greater personal political development so we are icy and strategic as much as possible as others in dictatorships have been. Or at least I do. I have a flaccid politics because I haven't had to fight dictatorships, i presumed a political process that allowed my voice at least to be heard and laws to be honored. We are New Deal/Bernie Elizabeth Democrats, long may our voices ring again. Your voice rings so clear for me. Thank you
I love this - “In honor of the incredible service and sacrifice of many generations of American military personnel, so many of whom have given their lives for this country, we are now establishing a special 250th Military Anniversary Fund. It will reward this generation of America’s military, plus every one in perpetuity, with the guarantee that no U.S. military veteran will ever be homeless, lack world-class healthcare, or world class training and workforce development. This special $25 million fund, which will be guided in its mission by a Board of Veterans, will reflect the gratitude this nation feels for our men and women in uniform.” - but this would be a new model for how our current government operates. I used to work in a call center at the VA and actually got in trouble at my yearly evaluation for being in "work mode" too long. That meant I wasn't available to take calls because I was helping a Veteran resolve the issue they were calling about. The VA - like all government agencies - are funded based on the number of people they serve, so if people get healthy and no longer need services, the agency's funding goes down. I also experienced this working in the HUD/VASH program helping homeless Veterans get into stable housing. It was a two year program providing case management to assist in this transition and we had people in the program for 4 - 5 years. When I began questioning that, the case managers began clearing their case loads and releasing people because they were in stable housing - which was a success in getting homeless Veterans off the streets, but instead of celebrating, we got dinged because our numbers went down and we lost funding. My experience was that the people who work in the VA are there to assist Veterans with the services they need to live healthy, productive and stable lives but the system itself - the model that is in operation is numbers driven and is funded based on the number of people being served, which means keeping people dependent and in survival mode.
I think it would also be great if we could "REDISTRIBUTE" the money everyone pays to Bezos and Zuckerberg in the form of Amazon and Amazon Prime Video and the Washington Post and get off of META platforms from which both of these men make BILLIONS of dollars each year (Zuck from his platform ads alone!) And give that money instead to Ukraine we'd be showing our support for democracy elsewhere.
Be safe and be smart on 6/14/25! Bring the peace in your heart you want for America! Your large peaceful presence will speak volumes! Don't give the Administrstion any excuses to act out on us!
Promise yourself that you will come up with something creative to serve the families of those who serve in our Armed Forces.
Do something public, something that will sustain them through the threats to their true purpose and the hardships they endure.
Apply all your creativity to this task.
How woukd the author of A Course in Miracles urge you to serve those who for a multitude of reasons choose to put themselves and their families In Harm's Way, sometimes to lose them for good? Take your mind off of the obscenity of the parade and put it on the bravery, the dignity and the integrity of those who will March.
Keep in mind that many of the men and women who will March in the military parade today will do so under duress.
They were educated and trained for their work by commanding officers who understood the true purpose for our American Military, and they know it is currently being used in an undignified and even unconstitutional way.
Some of them do not want to be in this parade. Some of them do, out of sincere patriotism, pride in their military work, and gratitude for their place in their military branch.
But plenty more do not. And they have no voice they can use to express their distress. Their families cannot speak out publicly without causing strain on their serving loved one's career.
We need to keep them in their families in our prayers and understand that their discipline, integrity and courage do not reflect the undiscipline, lack of integrity, and cowardice of the man who called them to march in front of the world today.
Just curious if you have any family serving. I do and you are so very wrong. We no longer have a conscripted army - it is a volunteer army - and God bless those who serve, willing to defend our great nation - even those who would denigrate them.
First of all, I have the greatest respect for the military. My father made sonar parts for warships and we lived with an easing driving distance of a NORAD command station in the Northeast. My first boyfriend was a USAF ATC.
I don't have family in the military right now but every person who serves in the military is a member of my American family.
I do have people in my contacts with a lot of military friends and family. Especially those in the Marine Corps say that the guys who are serving in Los Angeles right now are *not happy. NONE of these people want to be deployed to round up undocumented immigrants, occasionally catching actual American citizens in the mix.
And they definitely don't want to be deployed against other Americans.
We have a highly diversified military community these days.
I'm not a denigrator.
I'm a Defender.
Some of these men and WOMEN are the very best this country has to offer the world. I don't want to see them mistreated misused or wasted.
They volunteered to give all, and I personally think it's shameful the way the government sometimes misuses them when they are inactive downuty and mistreats them when they are discharged.
May the Hand of God and the Rains of Mother Nature be upon DC tomorrow and may Freedom reign across our nation! 💕
I remember a story Joel Goldsmith told of a corrupt circus rolling into town in New York in the 1950's. The owner of the circus proclaimed to the media that there was no power in heaven or on earth that could stop the parade of performers from reaching New York City. Joel had just finished a class teaching students of meditation when he read of that proclamation. Joel knew of the owner's corruption, and went into meditation about it. He "heard" in the thundering silence of his meditational state the following words: " There is no power in heaven or on earth greater than I AM".
The circus was stopped in its tracks by bad weather, and, never made it to New York.
I keep thinking of one tank breaking down or sinking into the asphalt. Stalling the parade.
It’s such a tasteless spectacle. I’m sure the military is aghast at having to be on display this way.
I picture the same thing.
That is beautiful! Thank you for sharing this story. When I was a young woman working in community organizing, I worked with a beloved former priest named Clark Field. Clark was forever organizing outdoor events. The rest of us were always concerned forthe weather. Clark never was. I cannot remember a single instance of rain on one of his events! It was like he had a direct line to The Almighty and Mother Nature!
A parade for the war machine while the hungry go unfed. The empire cannot even blush anymore. If they wanted to honor sacrifice, they would start by ending the need for it. Tanks on the streets do not protect a nation’s soul. Feeding children does. Healing veterans does. But ah, the old gods of profit and power demand their spectacle. Let the rain wash some of this shame away.
Instigator. This Substack is. Take a break and be a lot more America than Chinese.
lol Chinese??
Yep, have a wonderful trip.
Orion, when the nation betrays its own founding spirit, critique is not un-American. It is the most American act there is. The monks taught us: loyalty to empire is not loyalty to truth. I’ll take rain on tanks over silence in the face of hunger any day.
Beautiful!
Additionally, America isn't Swedish. Our military 🎖️ says: Don't mess with the best. You're going to get your ass kicked.
WTF does that mean. America didn't invent War. We stand for free will. Just because colonization influenced western humanity, doesn't mean to perpetuate it's existence. Mind your own business.
Orion, peace does not mean weakness. Feeding children does not dishonor soldiers. And questioning a parade for the arms dealers is not opposing the defense of liberty. The monks taught this too: when power wraps itself in flags, the wise ask who profits from the cloth. I’ll keep asking. You’re free to keep yelling.
Alex, we're on the same page and I appreciate your participation..
Peace through strength - has become "a metaphor gone mad". History meets with the present out-come of the results. But apparently those in "control" want another hit of the dopamine.
It's time to end them.
Orion, on that we do agree: peace through strength becomes dangerous when it turns into spectacle for profit and power. The monks say: true strength guards the weak, not the ego. Let’s both keep the eyes clear and the heart steady. No kings. No emperors. No parade for war.
Nothing sadder than having to throw your own party. Except having to hijack another celebration to do it so people show up.
Ha-ha! I ALWAYS have to plan and organize my own bday party. Hope I am not an awful person, too!
Wish wish Marianne was our President…the opposite of what we have
I think many of us are aware that this shameful "parade" spectacle is all about stroking Trump's childish and immature ego and his constant need to reinforce his low self-esteem.
Ego, especially Trump's ego, is loud, weak, self-centered, arrogant, and puts on a false façade. Ego doesn’t accept truth, unless it was something that it was already convinced of. Ego is selfish and greedy and makes unwarranted and/or flat out false claims.
Thank you, Marianne. ;-)
PS. I had a wonderful time at our No Kings rally in Beaumont, Texas today. Deep red territory, right? Well, the supporter-to-heckler ratio was on the order of 100 to 1. Influencers like you are helping bring the supporters out and helping some of the magaloonies see the light as to who genuine patriots are. Big Hug and Thank You!
Wow. Love this one
Oy!!!
“Let’s just hope that when all those tanks roll into town … there’s then a plan to roll them back out … My deepest fear is that there will not be … and this was all just a ruse to get them there” … Trump is a spoiled child … he doesn’t read … he makes mistake after mistake … and he doesn’t do his homework … He’s a disgrace to this Country and to the World !!!
💕🪷💕
We need a new vocabulary to speak of this venal display of excess and ego. We need greater personal political development so we are icy and strategic as much as possible as others in dictatorships have been. Or at least I do. I have a flaccid politics because I haven't had to fight dictatorships, i presumed a political process that allowed my voice at least to be heard and laws to be honored. We are New Deal/Bernie Elizabeth Democrats, long may our voices ring again. Your voice rings so clear for me. Thank you
I love this - “In honor of the incredible service and sacrifice of many generations of American military personnel, so many of whom have given their lives for this country, we are now establishing a special 250th Military Anniversary Fund. It will reward this generation of America’s military, plus every one in perpetuity, with the guarantee that no U.S. military veteran will ever be homeless, lack world-class healthcare, or world class training and workforce development. This special $25 million fund, which will be guided in its mission by a Board of Veterans, will reflect the gratitude this nation feels for our men and women in uniform.” - but this would be a new model for how our current government operates. I used to work in a call center at the VA and actually got in trouble at my yearly evaluation for being in "work mode" too long. That meant I wasn't available to take calls because I was helping a Veteran resolve the issue they were calling about. The VA - like all government agencies - are funded based on the number of people they serve, so if people get healthy and no longer need services, the agency's funding goes down. I also experienced this working in the HUD/VASH program helping homeless Veterans get into stable housing. It was a two year program providing case management to assist in this transition and we had people in the program for 4 - 5 years. When I began questioning that, the case managers began clearing their case loads and releasing people because they were in stable housing - which was a success in getting homeless Veterans off the streets, but instead of celebrating, we got dinged because our numbers went down and we lost funding. My experience was that the people who work in the VA are there to assist Veterans with the services they need to live healthy, productive and stable lives but the system itself - the model that is in operation is numbers driven and is funded based on the number of people being served, which means keeping people dependent and in survival mode.
The solution you proposed is exactly the type of creative solution needed. And thank you for sharing the words and testimony of this veteran
You had me laughing on that last line! 🤭
I loved that idea about a military fund.
I think it would also be great if we could "REDISTRIBUTE" the money everyone pays to Bezos and Zuckerberg in the form of Amazon and Amazon Prime Video and the Washington Post and get off of META platforms from which both of these men make BILLIONS of dollars each year (Zuck from his platform ads alone!) And give that money instead to Ukraine we'd be showing our support for democracy elsewhere.
Be safe and be smart on 6/14/25! Bring the peace in your heart you want for America! Your large peaceful presence will speak volumes! Don't give the Administrstion any excuses to act out on us!
Here's a a recommendation.
Promise yourself that you will come up with something creative to serve the families of those who serve in our Armed Forces.
Do something public, something that will sustain them through the threats to their true purpose and the hardships they endure.
Apply all your creativity to this task.
How woukd the author of A Course in Miracles urge you to serve those who for a multitude of reasons choose to put themselves and their families In Harm's Way, sometimes to lose them for good? Take your mind off of the obscenity of the parade and put it on the bravery, the dignity and the integrity of those who will March.
Then do something for those they love.
Keep in mind that many of the men and women who will March in the military parade today will do so under duress.
They were educated and trained for their work by commanding officers who understood the true purpose for our American Military, and they know it is currently being used in an undignified and even unconstitutional way.
Some of them do not want to be in this parade. Some of them do, out of sincere patriotism, pride in their military work, and gratitude for their place in their military branch.
But plenty more do not. And they have no voice they can use to express their distress. Their families cannot speak out publicly without causing strain on their serving loved one's career.
We need to keep them in their families in our prayers and understand that their discipline, integrity and courage do not reflect the undiscipline, lack of integrity, and cowardice of the man who called them to march in front of the world today.
Just curious if you have any family serving. I do and you are so very wrong. We no longer have a conscripted army - it is a volunteer army - and God bless those who serve, willing to defend our great nation - even those who would denigrate them.
First of all, I have the greatest respect for the military. My father made sonar parts for warships and we lived with an easing driving distance of a NORAD command station in the Northeast. My first boyfriend was a USAF ATC.
I don't have family in the military right now but every person who serves in the military is a member of my American family.
I do have people in my contacts with a lot of military friends and family. Especially those in the Marine Corps say that the guys who are serving in Los Angeles right now are *not happy. NONE of these people want to be deployed to round up undocumented immigrants, occasionally catching actual American citizens in the mix.
And they definitely don't want to be deployed against other Americans.
We have a highly diversified military community these days.
I'm not a denigrator.
I'm a Defender.
Some of these men and WOMEN are the very best this country has to offer the world. I don't want to see them mistreated misused or wasted.
They volunteered to give all, and I personally think it's shameful the way the government sometimes misuses them when they are inactive downuty and mistreats them when they are discharged.
*When they are on active duty
Voice to text, SIGH...