Archive

Archive for January, 2012

Thought-Provoking Documentaries: Vox Populi, Methods of Manipulation

January 30th, 2012 No comments

COTO Report and Megan ‘Verb’ Kargher are pleased to present Vox Populi, Methods of Manipulation. It has become increasingly evident that large portions of the planet are descending at an alarming speed into Orwellian police states. What is the New World Order and what are their plans for mankind? How can we stop the corruption now? Join me as I travel in search of what is really going on in the world in which we live. Featuring interviews with David Icke, Max Igan, Freeman, Jordan Maxwell, Dr. George Rhodes, Ben Stewart and Charlie Veitch.

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Quotes of Wisdom: H.L. Mencken

January 30th, 2012 No comments

“The most dangerous man, to any government, is the man who is able to think things out for himself without regard to the prevailing superstitions and taboos. Almost inevitably he comes to the conclusion that the government he lives under is dishonest, insane and intolerable, and so, if he is romantic, he tries to change it. And even if he is not romantic personally he is apt to spread discontent among those who are.”

~ H.L. Mencken

Wisdom Books: Discourses of Epictetus

January 24th, 2012 No comments

Epictetus, a Greek stoic and freed slave, ran a thriving philosophy school in Nicropolis in the early second century AD. His animated discussions were celebrated for their rhetorical wizardry and were written down by Arrian, his most famous pupil. Together with the Enchiridion, a manual of his main ideas, and the fragments collected here, The Discourses argue that happiness lies in learning to perceive exactly what is in our power to change and what is not, and in embracing our fate to live in harmony with god and nature. In this personal, practical guide to the ethics of stoicism and moral self-improvement, Epictetus tackles questions of freedom and imprisonment, illness and fear, family, friendship and love, and leaves an intriguing document of daily life in the classical world.

Epictetus (c. 55–135 AD) was a teacher and Greco-Roman philosopher. Originally a slave from Hierapolis in Anatolia (modern Turkey), he was owned for a time by a prominent freedman at the court of the emperor Nero. After gaining his freedom he moved to Nicopolis on the Adriatic coast of Greece and opened a school of philosophy there. His informal lectures (the Discourses) were transcribed and published by his student Arrian, who also composed a digest of Epictetus’ teaching known as the Manual (or Enchiridion).

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Technology and Information Overload – The Purveyors of Ignorance and Superfluity

January 19th, 2012 5 comments

Information Overload

What can be said about information overload?  With the advent of the media and technology, especially in regards the television, the computer and invention of the Internet, we have unlimited access to information and knowledge more than at anytime in human history.

We are continuously bombarded daily with superfluous information no matter how useless or irrelevant it is to ourselves and our everyday lives.

We can now download information literally anytime and anywhere with the use of the currently popular Smartphones, iPads and various choices of Tablet computers.

However, the following article ‘Is the Internet the Fulfillment of Biblical Prophecy?’ reminds us of the fact that despite possessing vast amounts of information at our fingertips, it has inexplicably contributed towards obscuring our consciousness, paralysing our pursuits for self-knowledge and wisdom, and distracting us from attaining the true and beneficial knowledge that would broaden our perspective concerning world affairs.

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Thought-Provoking Documentaries: Krishnamurti – The Real Revolution

January 16th, 2012 No comments

Jiddu Krishnamurti is regarded globally as one of the greatest thinkers and religious teachers of all time. He did not expound any philosophy or religion, but rather talked of the things that concern all of us in our everyday lives, of the problems of living in modern society with its violence and corruption, of the individual’s search for security and happiness, and the need for mankind to free itself from inner burdens of fear, anger, hurt, and sorrow. He explained with great precision the subtle workings of the human mind, and pointed to the need for bringing to our daily life a deeply meditative and spiritual quality.

Krishnamurti belonged to no religious organization, sect or country, nor did he subscribe to any school of political or ideological thought. On the contrary, he maintained that these are the very factors that divide human beings and bring about conflict and war. He reminded his listeners again and again that we are all human beings first and not Hindus, Muslims or Christians, that we are like the rest of humanity and are not different from one another.

This 30-minute documentary is the first from an original series of eight made for television in 1966. They were the earliest sound-films of Krishnamurti speaking to audiences.

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Knowledge Reform: Best of 2011

January 12th, 2012 No comments

Happy New Year one and all!  Yes, I know it’s a bit late but I’ll say it anyway.  Hopefully you all had a good Pagan (or whatever you want to call Christmas) break and are now fully reinvigorated for the year ahead.

But don’t leave 2011 just yet, as I have decided to put together this recap of what I consider to be the best posts of last year on Knowledge Reform – one for every month.

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