Tag Archives: indigenous teaching

Psychology on Depression

The following was written by a psych professor at Leeds University.

Dr. Steven Taylor:

A few months ago a friend asked me for some advice about his father, who was suffering from depression. After finding out that his father spent most of his time indoors, watching television, I told my friend about ecotherapy, which investigates the therapeutic effects of contact with nature. As I informed my friend, there is a great deal of research showing that regular contact with nature — such as a daily walk in t

Continue reading Psychology on Depression

The coyote fur HBC Point blanket

I saw an incredible piece of finery at the toronto airport a few weeks ago. A vast fur blanket with the Hudsons Bay Company stripes in thick solid wool on the underside. It was so beautiful! So well made and magnificent. I felt deep within my own DNA a whiff of the life my bodies before me knew.  Of course I checked the price tag to see if maybe it was around twenty bucks, and would it fit carry on? Oh behold! The worn and weakened price tag said $2695.00

I just looked it up online here and then it got me thinking.

Thinking about those colours, and the story of what happened like, not too long ago. Smallpox.

Have you heard that story? It’s frickin horrible. The white man gave Hbc woolen point blankets intentionally infected with small pox to try to wipe out that population of indigenous families.  Families who just happened to be happily living there for ten thousand years. HOLY SHIT, right?

What does HBC have to say to the smallpox story? Here’s a reply from them. They say

“There is evidence from a letter of General Sir Jeffrey Amherst, commander of the British forces in North America in 1763.   The surviving letters between Amherst and a subordinate discuss trying this method of germ warfare against the aboriginals. However, there is no hard evidence that blah blah blah blah blah”

Basically that “No. Wasn’t us! Hbc didn’t do that. But there’s evidence of white generals planning that shit.” and if indigenous people say it happened, that’s enough for me to pretty much COMPLETELY believe what happened there.  Germ warfare. DEVISTATION

There’s no controversy there. It happened. But apparently there’s just enough “controversy” to keep The Bay shelves stocked with the iconic Hbc point blanket colours.   It seems to me that those colours represent an aspect of unnecessary cruel war tactics, no? The Bay has been selling those colours ever since! Should we  really be carrying on traditions that ARE INSANELY CRUEL?  Fox was given a gift of a really nice cotton knit sweater flying the unmistakable scheme. It’s a good warm sweater, but every time I look at it I feel shame of my ancestors.

I see these stripes every day. I warm my son with them. My intention for writing this was that maybe since I’m using it, it can start a conversation. The more awareness to that subject I can bring, the better for the general consensus to realize NEVER AGAIN does such cruelty ever have to be endured by anyone. I want it to symbolize instead the honoured memory of the suffering people.

I think we’re looking at an end to all war.
Capitalism is losing.
Logic, reason, and fairness is winning.

I’m going to go read about the history of this now and try to learn more so that I can bring some actual fact to any conversations that come outta this.

BC Pipelines explained

In a nutshell, this is what I understand.

  • Stupid humans have built an existence dependent on the finite resource of fossil fuels.
  • Even though existing technologies were developed along the way, they have been effectively oppressed through sabotage, collusion, conspiracy, and even murder.
  • The world’s almost completely run out of fossil fuels. Now we’re scraping the bottom of the barrel to get the last of it – literally.
  • The colonial “first world” state of Canada has the biggest supply of what’s left. It’s in Alberta, Canada’s Texas.
  • Alberta oil sands have to be washed before it can be used.
  • Idiotically, sending it to China in rickety tin cans is the only way to accomplish this at a profit.
  • It’s sent through a massive piping system across Alberta and out to BC’s coast where the tin cans get loaded.
  • We idiotically buy it back from China at full price as a finished product.
  • This process has proven to do major harm to the environment and communities.
  • Examples of extraction harm: Dries up watersheds. Poisons watersheds. Causes entire communities to deal with new cancers. Destroys ancient wildlife ecosystems. Etc.
  • In every instance, oil spills into the environment. Every time.
  • Given the size, limited turning radius, dodgy navigation area and construction quality of the tankers, a spill will certainly happen.
  • Television “programming” has out-rightly lied to those who still allow themselves to be subjected to it. The commercial showed terrain depicted in the left photo, while reality is depicted in the right photo:
  • Examples of spillage harm: loss of healthy ocean life, destruction of ecosystems, loss of pacific fisheries, loss of BC tourism.
  • The tax-paying residents of BC will have to foot the bill to clean the spills and repair the damage done.
  • It’s become obvious to many that fossil fuel use can be obsolete if only the greedy fuckers who stand to make BIG BUCKS would allow it’s obsolescence.
  • We need the rest of Earth’s fossil fuel supplies to create the renewable resource conversion technology to power generations to come.

Instead, all this damage is for huge profits for few, and continuing idiotic mass consumerism and pseudo-convenience.

That’s why this is such a big deal?

To benefit few rich families, global society is denied technology and systems that would replace refined fossil fuels entirely. Some argue that in order to manufacture all of this replacement technology to power the coming generations, we would need every drop of fossil fuel – of which we are now literally scraping the bottom of the barrel for. Instead of allowing such mainstream realization, the status quo remains hypnotized by television, being told everything is fine. Continue consumption. Drive to the dollar store. Buy those things you think you must own, but don’t really need at all.  “Everything is okay.” B.C. people are choked because a bitumen spill will probably one day ruin our pristine corner of Earth.

But isn’t this just another problem to add to the list?

The list that boils down *every time* to the very same root cause of every single discernible problem on Spaceship Earth?

The debt-based monetary global financial system.

This is what must be DONE AWAY with.

bucky

The replacement is already underway. Bitcoin is the future of our surviving planet.

In the meantime, we must remember to be kind, to vote with our dollars (and milliBits), to turn off the programming, to choose the least-consumption option (like local food) and to never be afraid to zoom out enough to recognize what all of our problems come from: the debt-based global currency paradigm operated by a few greedy assholes by their private greedy banking cartels. We must not fear each other. Don’t worry about what others think of you. Just do and say what is in your heart, without fear of judgement by those around you. At the same time, don’t judge others. We must remember to be kind.

Once the debt-based monetary global financial system is changed, EVERYTHING WILL CHANGE. We are the 99%!

Oh, and if anyone thinks Justin Trudeau will do shit about what I’m talking about, this is what he told me when I asked him:

Gaiam TV is taking it to the next level

A full-length episode of MindShift from GaiamTV hosted by Daniel Pinchbeck. Guests include Russell Brand and Eve Ensler.
Do yourself a favour, and watch this video. It’s a little longer than a sitcom, and is just as entertaining. Unlike a sitcom, it won’t rot your perception. Continue reading Gaiam TV is taking it to the next level

Ayahuasca, and freedom of the mind

In this “banned” TED talk (I assume that means it’s not searchable on ted.com), Graham Hancock explains what Ayahuasca is, how historically sacred natural plant substances have been used, why they’re kept from us by our controllers, and the mission of Amazonian Shaman to share the Spirit with The West.

Here is an article about using Ayahuasca to cure depression (from the by-donation organization we visited in 2012)
http://ayahuascasatsangha.org/08/ayahuasca-and-depression/