September 2004

By the time these words find you the campaign season will be in full swing. The pendulum of popularity will swing in one direction only to be compelled and pulled in another direction by the forces that influence such things seemingly without their will. As the pendulum swings, perhaps more widely than it has in the past, it will move effortlessly through the kingdom of the flag-wavers, the domain of the zealots, the hierarchy of the solvent and insolvent, the field of inconsistencies, and the valley of the complainers. The pendulum has no influence over the events it oversees, it simply marks the moments as they pass, measuring them by degrees of influence. Its movement is similar to that of an eclipse, momentarily obscuring the light of the celestial body it transits, activating awareness in some and lack of awareness in others.

Long ago and in specific times there were other campaigns. Campaigns of war, campaigns of overcoming struggle, campaigns to conquer and liberate, campaigns for roads to riches, as well as campaigns for inventions and studies. All who read and otherwise participate in these words have taken part in many such campaigns. Even now you campaign to increase your knowledge, to learn the nature of your true self, to discover your purpose, and a variety of other motives unique to you.

I bring the campaign process to your attention now with a bit of levity as would accompany those who visit a circus, but with specific intent as well, because if you read between the lines you will discover that beyond information-gathering there is experience-getting at stake. If you have made campaign promises to yourself or to others, this would be a good time to decide if you are prepared to make good on them. Likewise, if you have decided to stand for yourself because another could never do it as well for you, this would be an ideal time to do so. As we begin, ask yourself what you stand for today and see if it will be the same tomorrow. Rather than faltering over past successes and failures, why not focus your vision on an ideal and follow it to see where it may lead.

The Kingdom of the Flag Wavers

A flag is only a piece of cloth. Often bearing an emblem, symbol or ornament, it signifies identity and affiliation. There are many types of flags, for instance, the world recognizes the flag of the International Red Cross as well as the white flag that indicates truce, surrender or other peaceful intent. Sometimes, however, a flag becomes one of convenience, such as when a ship or sailing vessel is registered under a flag (or country) that offers favorable regulations rather than any real connection with the ship's owners or business. Flags seem to carry a provocative power of their own. They inspire, move, stir and incite emotion.

The flag wavers are the dutiful citizens of the republic. Many are reincarnated Atlanteans, prominent citizens of a civilization that knew the best and cared little for the rest. These are not the technologically repentant souls who have returned to restore the balance of power. On the contrary, they are the displaced citizens of Rome, celebrating the return of power to the emperor, even though his robes bear the crimson stain of bloodshed that is not easily washed away. Resurrection and enlightenment do not necessarily go hand in hand, and these candidates for evolution and ascension are here to discover what they once before overlooked.

The flag wavers believe in centralized power. They believe it is the job of the less fortunate to serve the more fortunate, for if that were not the case, it would certainly have been the other way around. If flag waving were an art these people would be at the head of their class, for they will uphold their banner no matter how weighty, tattered, or blood-stained it becomes. They believe that those who stand beside their banner also stand beside their country. They believe in righteousness and truth, but what of those who stand elsewhere, is the rest of the world wrong?

The flag wavers are a fighting lot. They are descendants of warriors and are unafraid of the frontlines or the casualties of war. A good cause is worth fighting for, it is worth defending, or so they will tell you today, but their sons and daughters are not as certain, and the gods of war are not as strong as they once were. The flag wavers sing the battle hymn of the republic, they pray to God, praise Jesus in Heaven, and pay the taxes that grow the coffers of war, but is the rest of the world still wrong?

The world is not right or wrong, and the flag wavers are not without merit. The world is askew and at odds with itself, struggling to awaken from a dream that threatens to become a nightmare of repetition. Incapable of finding balance or unity, humanity worships boundaries, prejudices, and laws. The stars that number fifty may soon fall from the sky, finding little favor in heaven they belong to the kingdom of men. The stripes of color crimson now stain those numbered in white, unable to stand side by side much longer, they will fail the test of time.

As the pendulum passes over the kingdom of the flag wavers, it will uphold its glory once more. The flag will be raised in ceremony and heralded by all parties of the republic during the season of campaigns. Those you call the forefathers will watch and wait and listen. Those who call upon angels will fill the halls with faith, and those who cast their vote will do so on earth as they do in heaven. The earth must be united in voice, in resource, and intent. The desire must be decisive rather than divisive, for one vote less than a miracle will bring one less year of peace.

The prophecies that surround this time are many, but those recently born under the banner of integrity are still in their infancy. The power is still with the people, commend them and remind them that the end is not yet as near as they would like although it is in sight. Let your flags be one with mine, then, and may your colors be those of earth. May your flags fly over all the world united in one cause, unfurled in a symbol of peace and ensconced with the desire for love.

The Domain of the Zealots

If the zealots are in your corner so much the better, but if they are not, better still. A paradox of sorts is presented in these words, but that is what a zealot is, if nothing else. Zealots are very enthusiastic, particularly when they are rallied 'round a cause, but there tactics can be excessive and their words often hide a sword. Zealots are lobbyists, pundits and critics by nature. They are the voice of authority and the experts in their field, but whose microphone have they borrowed today, and which flag adorns their stage? Zealots love to be in the public eye, and your cause may very well become their forum of expression. Their voice is well-developed, but their individual ideas are not as strong. They find safety in numbers and are more comfortable when those numbers are accompanied by dollar signs in front of them. Zealots are modern day 'guns for hire' and to the highest bidder go the spoils.

The domain of the zealots is strewn with hidden land mines and a misstep in this arena can be fatal. The zealots cause the rise and fall of tides, ideas and men. They are conservators of idolatry, fanatically worshiping the rising tide while secretly preparing for a draught. Zealots preach to the already converted, perhaps better than most, they understand the path of least resistance, which coincidentally also leads to the halls of power.

The halls of power are lonely places where hunger, cunning and greed rule. They must be approached cautiously and with great care, as they have been known to consume even the bravest of men. In the wild it is best to hire a guide to accompany you by night, and in the domestically tame, but feral halls of power the company of a zealot is also highly recommended. Zealots are odds-making, claim-jumping veterans of war. They will tell you how it is because they once knew how it was. Zealots are campaign managers, publicists, and newsworthy folk. They can cite statistics, surveys and trends, as easily as the best recipes for apple pie and homegrown tomatoes.

Zealots are hired by the power behind the power. Campaign trails are notoriously fraught with dangerous pitfalls designed to trip up even the savviest candidate; therefore, those who wield the power behind the scenes also arm the zealots who would otherwise be toothless and weaponless. It is the zealot's job to make certain that their candidate is heard above the cacophonous, jarring, and often-unpleasant remarks of the opposition. Zealots arouse enthusiasm; they encourage people to make greater efforts than they otherwise would. They stimulate creativity and provoke rancor and resentment, but whose?

Zealots sell stereotypical products in the form of candidates for public office. There is little that is presented to you that was not well planned early on. What you see before you today was molded and shaped beforehand based upon which product you would be most likely to buy given certain parameters including economic trends and world events. Zealots are shape-shifters on the stage of public opinion. They are interested in your opinion as long as it supports their platform, which is most often based upon erroneous knowledge and irrational feelings. This puts you at a disadvantage given the fact that you believe you are creating your reality moment by moment.

Zealots are also beings much as yourselves who have ceased to listen to their own voice because they have become overly accustomed to having others speak for them. These very specific types of zealots listen to one radio station, watch one news channel, favor one newspaper over another, predominantly visit one website, read one editorial, condemn the choices of the less informed, and still insist they are free-agents for change. The pendulum will soon glide through the domain of the zealots evenly and without prejudice, can you do the same?

The Hierarchy of the Solvent and the Insolvent

The Hierarchy of the Solvent and the Insolvent was previously known as The Land of the 'Have's' and 'Have Not's,' but that was before election year rhetoric adopted their own version of a new and improved paradigm. Solvency means that you have enough money to cover both expenses and debts, but insolvency only relates to your ability to pay your debts. Someone who is insolvent is also bankrupt, but not legally so, because only a judge can declare or rule on this. What does all this have to do with campaigns and elections? It depends upon whether or not you can afford to shake the candidates' hand, because his and her handshake are for sale, along with their autographed photo, postcard and vote. Some say that a president cannot be bought at any price, but is that really true? Isn't anything for sale as long as the price is right? If you can't buy a president, can you buy a senator, a congressman, or a governor?

These questions may finally be answered by the time the ink is dry on the ballots and the choices that rest upon them find their way to you. The solvent and the affluent understand that their fortune, at least in part, rests in their ability to curry favor with politicians, campaigners, and forward movers. They know that an extended hand does not always await a handshake, sometimes it expects a donation, and the biggest donors get the best treatment followed by corporate executives, lawmakers, industry regulators, and others who willingly fork over cash in exchange for face time.

Access to power and public office has always been for sale, but as with all things, it was once more affordable than it is today. Donors know that when they have an issue or a concern an elected official will take their call; will the switchboard also put your call through? Those who are solvent and wish to remain so are paying close attention to one of the oldest and most favored political pastimes - courting influence and buying access. Those who are less than solvent or even insolvent will attend the same parties, luncheons, dinners and concerts as the solvent, but can their hopes be the same?

A common phrase says, "follow the money", but what if you cannot? What if the trail has gone cold? Those who think of themselves as insolvent because they have allowed themselves to be measured within the context of a scale that is no longer accurate must find a new measuring stick. The 'have's' own the world, but try as they might; they have not found a way to take it with them. That is one of the reasons these same beings continue to incarnate into different aspects within the same families. They have yet to understand the meaning of true abundance and prosperity. Wealth cannot teach this, but neither can poverty.

The hierarchy of the solvent and the insolvent offers many lessons. It is a bit like a university, offering undergraduate programs to some, and graduate and doctorate programs to others. The purpose of a hierarchy is not for one to learn his or her place within the scheme of things; it is to discover that the hierarchy was designed to be of benefit to all. Your government was designed with the same ideal, but it is succumbing under the pressure of its own weight. Unable to lift itself from the debacle it is mired in, and unwilling to admit its disastrous defeat at its own hands, it humiliates itself by receiving the handouts of those who now feed it. In the back alleys of its memories it still remembers how it once fed the hungry, long before it became addicted to its own gluttony.

The Field of Inconsistencies

The field of inconsistencies belongs to the Unknown Soldier. Who is the Unknown Soldier? No one knows for sure, but many claim to know him by name, and to have shaken his hand at some point if memory serves. Inconsistencies contradict one another, they go bump in the night and then appear in the morning paper. Inconsistencies are unpredictable and unreliable; they instigate conflict and cannot be counted upon to produce the same result more than once. The field of inconsistencies breaks rules, principles, traditions and expectations. It offers no common set of values and always stands for the variable in any equation.

The field of inconsistencies spreads its blanket-like impressions in all directions bringing doubt, fear and unease to those who depend upon the pat and the mundane. If you are a candidate for office, the field of inconsistencies will find you, and your past as well. It is no use hiding from it, for like a nexus, it will make the connections and links you have worked so hard to suppress. The field of inconsistencies is like the grim reaper to some and the new dawn to others. Only the swing of the pendulum can determine what this field will bring to your door.

The field of inconsistencies belongs to everyone. It is both the court of public approval and appeal. It is the domain of the restless as well as where questions that have no answers await another turn at bat. Underdogs who have little chance of beating the odds pray to the gods of inconsistencies, while they dig for even a small bone. On the other hand, those who are only slightly ahead of their opponent, scurry about the same field, retracing their steps in an effort to stay one step ahead of those who are determined to throw dirt before they throw in the towel.

The field of inconsistencies draws everyone in eventually, its gravitational field is much too strong for even the strongest of wills to resist. The media knows this place well, as its members vie against each other to be the first on the scene of the accident they helped cause. They will call an ambulance and help carry the stretcher, as long as they can photograph and interview the injured along the way. But do not count on them to administer the anesthesia; easing pain is not what brought them there to begin with.

How can you use this field to your advantage? Its unpredictability belongs to the realm of possibility. It is raw and chaotic, untamed and adventurous. It is the Wild West, energetically speaking, and a proving ground that cannot be contained or manipulated. It will test the mettle of those who seek to use it to their advantage, but it is an honest and level playing field. When you are uncertain as to a direction, whether it is a vote in an upcoming election or another anomaly of conscience, bring your concern to the field of inconsistencies. You may be met with a whirlwind of superfluous thoughts and ideas, but they will not disappoint you. They will stimulate the creative flow within you while becoming an astringent to the many voices that clamor for your attention. But a word of caution must accompany this invitation: If you vacillate, do not do so here. You can indeed have it both ways, but not here, because it is a field of inconsistent opposites rather than a complementary field of unity. If you seek a palace of quiet and luxurious unity, this is not the place for you.

The Valley of the Complainers

A complainer is someone who is unhappy about something and expresses this unhappiness habitually. It is a time-honored tradition that those who complain the loudest do the least, unless there is a campaign at stake, in which case complainers and complainants are in demand and hard at work. A complainant is a person or organization that takes action, usually legal, against another. These individuals are masters of statistics and can manage and manipulate their memory to serve up the complex as easily as the mundane in both argument and rebuttal. Every campaign needs complainers, because if there were none, the status quo would emerge as the victor and too few dollars would change hands. Campaigns stimulate pocketbooks as much as they do public policy, and it is the job of the complainers to churn the money so it will flow in the desired direction.

Complainers are experts in their field and they know just how to capitalize upon a misspoken word or misquoted statistic. There are many amateur complainers as well, and these can be found gathered around dinner tables, coffee houses and local pubs. Interestingly, it is the main job of the complainer to tell his or her rival that they have little or nothing to complain about. Why? Because that is exactly how they stimulate the litany of problems and complaints that have been lurking in the mind and under the skin of their opponent, waiting for an opportunity to escape and be heard. If a husband or a wife, for instance, tells their spouse that they have nothing to complain about, what effect does that have upon the moment?

It is the job of the complainer to make sure that all complaints are heard, regardless of their merit or validity. Complainers are easily incitable individuals and quick to raise their voice. After all, they reason they are speaking for those who do not or cannot. They believe it is their civic and moral responsibility to do so, and if a few dollars are exchanged in the process that may influence policy later one, so much the better. Complainers are not good or bad, they simply give voice to the static undercurrents within a given society or culture. Complainers do not create issues, or so they would remind you, but they do divide rather than unite. Complaints and complainers by and large resonate with the lower frequencies of the third dimension. It is not that other dimensions offer no cause to complain, for indeed they do, but they also offer satisfying solutions, adjustments, and answers.

How can you tell if you are in the company of a true complainer? Suggest a topic such as your job or your relationship, for instance. Tell your companion that you are feeling dissatisfied with your ability to communicate how you feel in these environments. Without asking for specific advice or guidance wait and see what their response is. Does it bring you peace? Does it incite you to take action in a direction you had not previously contemplated? Do you feel as though only change can make your situation better? Thank your companion for their response and see if the conversation concludes easily enough. If it does not, take care that you do not fall prey to the frequency of complaint, for it is more difficult to escape its gravitational pull than you might imagine.

Complaining doesn't solve anything, and it seems so useless even though most all of us do it. Do we just like to hear ourselves talk?

If one complains to someone who can do something about the complaint (including yourself) then the situation is solved. The difficulty with humanity is that it has become commonplace to complain for the sake of complaining, either because its complaint has not yet been solved or there is no conscious intent to resolve the problem. A complaint becomes an invisible address to spirit because it has been stuffed down into a lower frequency, ignored, or turned into stress.

If your complaints have good cause then so be it, do not dismiss them or sit idle with them. Give them volume, move them forward into the light so they can be acted upon rather than acted out. Most complaints have no remedies, because they are little more than unmanifested desires. An unaddressed or unresolved complaint belongs to the world of density, because shining light upon it immediately raises its vibration and increases the odds that a solution may be found.

How does the light and the dark figure into the equation of this campaign? Does the dark believe that it can pull off the same shenanigans and manipulations that have worked in the past? Isn't it true that throughout history from massive darkness eventually the light emerges?

Yes, that is exactly as it has been throughout history, but you are not living in history, you are living in an unprecedented moment of Now. There are only certain aspects of you that think in terms of time. These aspects of you are subject to repeat history, but others are not. You are not here to make history, but to design a future. If you cross one timeline or reality with another, you alter both pasts. If you continue to cross timelines you will eventually discard aspects of yourself that are only interested in past history. They will burn themselves up. It is safe to say that humanity has already crossed more than one timeline; therefore, the past no longer exists as it once did. If time were linear (as it is for some) you would have a past, a present and a future, and every time that you had a future thought you would also have a past one to balance or acknowledge the first. Difficult as it may be to imagine, you have no real past.

The Light and the Dark are two forces that only seem to be in opposition, that is the illusion, and you must learn to see beyond this. Both are purposeful and purposeless depending on where you stand. In this campaign the dark is battling light and the dark. How interesting is that, why would the dark battle itself? Because candidates that run unopposed rarely remain victors. The dark, as you call it, does not see the light as a true obstacle or an equal contender, so it is even willing to battle itself in order to maintain the illusion of supremacy. Remember that the dark does not think of itself as dark, and at the same time it has little interest in what you call the light. But even within the darkest corridors and the most closed circles there is dissension in the ranks. Some wish the dark would be darker while others wish it would be less dark (sinister). Others simply wish it would be more creative and less predictable than it is, finding less joy in the game than ever before. So the dark is waging a campaign against itself just to keep things interesting, and it is even prepared to vote against itself if necessary.

The dark (your word) is not at all interested in its past shenanigans; it is much more sophisticated now. It has seen that the light has spread and taken note that the dark has not. It learns, evolves and prepares for the next campaign very quickly. It now draws upon its resources differently. It will use its energy in more unique but invisible ways. This is a dark year, politically speaking, and who is on what side will be less than obvious. But remember, even a very dark, cold and heavy iron skillet placed upon a stove is given warmth and light by the small flame that endures underneath. When water touches a sponge the sponge absorbs it until it would seem that the water has disappeared altogether, but a sponge becomes saturated very quickly and the water soon gains its release. As light moves outward from Source it eventually encounters density and is initially absorbed by it, but is the light that fuels the dark, and if you forget this, you will become more confused and disappointed than ever.

But isn't it true what they say, that if you forget the past, you are condemned to repeat it?

Yes, that is what they say, but what do you say, perhaps that is more important.

Will enough of us emerge from the malaise of manipulation and collective amnesia that has so afflicted humanity?

There is no more effective or insidious tool than ignorance. Collective light is on the verge of awakening, and while light cannot be manipulated it can be deflected. It is important to stay the course and sturdy the vessel while or until life defines and reveals itself to you. For some this means sitting and waiting and waiting and sitting, and for others it means action, action, and action. Do not judge, do not compare, and do not write this year or event off as you have in the past. For instance, do not think this is yet another time that Spirit has let you down, or your guides have abandoned you, or your family has been unyielding, or your friends unsupportive, etc., because then it will take you that much longer to regain your balance and compose your next creative thought. It is good to dream, but it is equally good to be awake and creative. Know that all is well and have certainty in that which you are while you take refuge in what your soul offers to you.

It seems like you are telling us to get past the paradox of illusion so that we can create a reality beyond that which linear time has offered us thus far. Is that a little like getting out of our own way?

Yes, somewhat. But for the most part, when teachers such as my own beingness have suggested that you create your own reality it has amounted to little more than finger painting on the wall. This is not meant as a criticism, but as an observation. Reality has no precedent for you because timelines have been crossed and you have no real past to drawn upon. That is apparent. A new paradigm can have no past, but how is it created then? It must be inserted, encoded or awakened within you so as to replace what you believe about yourselves. That is what your DNA is doing now, but not as quickly as you would like. In the meantime, you are experiencing anomalies and disturbances in your morphogenetic fields, which affect your development and transition as a species.

Creating your own reality sounds very appealing and ideal. It sounds a little like something you might read in a travel brochure that promises experiences almost too good to be true. So you buy a one-way ticket to this paradise island nation, but then realize that you don't speak the language or understand the proper units of exchange. What will you do? Sit idle, hire a tour guide, teach yourself the language, or go home. That is what you are deciding now, and the programs and illusions of the past are of no use to you. The new paradigm is not simply about a new reality any more than it is a custom-designed vacation in paradise. It is about true discovery of selfhood. It is about true becoming. It is about wisdom descending within and expanding without.

Will the media play a significant role in this election?

No more or less than usual. The media is what it is and does what it does. Its purpose was once well defined, but that is no longer the case. It is the media's job to keep you informed via various forms of mass communication including television, radio, magazines, newspapers, and the Internet. It is not their job to control or to be controlled. The media does not belong to the dark or to the light. They are the gnats and the flies and the ants and the honeybees in the ointment. They compete for your vote of confidence as much as your local politicians do and offer more or less the same type of promises. The media has a left hand and a right hand, but these rarely work together because both bypass the heart in an effort to overwhelm and distort the other. This election year will be more mediagenic than ever before, it has been designed to be appealing and attractive to the media in an effort to gain the most favorable exposure possible. The candidacy wines and dines the media; they bait their hooks with expensive perks and watch the feeding frenzy begin. Can you find unbiased and untainted media coverage? It depends upon your ability to identify and distinguish what is fair, accurate, and balanced from what is not. It is not as easy as you may think given your own biases.

Will the voting system be tampered with in the upcoming presidential election?

It has already been manipulated. Specific centers within your brain are being impulsed to act with undue prejudice given particular influences and inducements. These correlate to specific target words, phrases, pictures and other stimuli known to illicit a precise response. This technique is not new, but has only recently been introduced to the mainstream populace. You are being conditioned to think, act and react in specific ways. This method is not unlike hypnosis, but its effects are longer lasting and less detectable. It is seamless, near transparent and quite effective.

Are you saying that the election results have already been determined?

No, not at all. I am saying that you are being influenced to behave in a certain manner in relation to the upcoming election. This should come as no surprise; you are unfairly influenced each and every day to respond in prejudiced and predisposed ways. The advertising industry makes certain that you act in subjective rather than objective ways. There is much at stake in any campaign, but perhaps even more so in this one. The human mind is not very clever, it can easily be subverted and then converted. It is very predictable, and that is exactly what the subliminal experts have staked their reputation on. This is why it is especially important to develop an awakened consciousness at this time. Intelligence alone is no match against subliminally altering mind techniques. They have been tested again and again and the results have been consistent and astoundingly successful.

I'm sorry, but I'm still having difficulty with this answer. I guess I want to believe that we are smarter than that . . . smarter than them. What can we do to change this?

You are smarter, but you are not wiser, at least not yet. And by the way, you are 'them'; at least a part of you is, which is the first step in solving this enigma. Again, this has very little to do with intelligence and everything to do with consciousness. Intelligence can be determined and extended by certain exercises familiar to the brain and its activities. Consciousness expands as one gradually escapes the confines of the linear mind. The mind is predictable; consciousness is not. The mind believes that it is separate; consciousness understands and seeks unity. By nature campaigns divide, they do not unite. They divide parties, people, platforms and policy by making you choose sides; they offer you this or that, not this and that.

As long as you remain in an 'us' against 'them' place within yourselves, you will manifest the same reality without, these are the laws that govern this world, this is what you are here to transcend. In order to change the current electoral process you must shift your reality, a simple change of mind will not do. It takes great courage to recognize that regardless which candidate wins the consciousness of the planet will continue to expand. Consciousness does not belong to the win/lose politics of one election; it belongs to the ever-expanding soul of humanity. That is why it is called unity consciousness.

I have already seen several trial balloons from the current administration regarding the possibility of postponing or even canceling the election if there is a terrorist attack before then. The media has also reported that government intelligence advisors have reason to believe that an attack may be imminent. How real are these fears and what is behind them?

If you were on a sports team and your best (or only) player was injured, you would hope that the game would be rained out or otherwise postponed. That is not usually possible in an election, unless of course, extraordinary circumstances prevail. What you have seen thus far is exactly what you have called it, a trial balloon designed to see how such a statement would be received. For the most part it was not taken seriously. After all, who would do such a thing; it seems almost unfathomable, does it not?

It is likely that there may be an attack scheduled to coincide with the upcoming election, but whether it is a true act of terrorism is yet to be seen. Remember that it is the supremacy behind the perceived authority that wields true power. It is not necessarily a postponement that they seek, rather it is the continuation of a program that has already been in effect, one that relies upon fear and a dependency upon protection from those in positions of authority. It is the government's job to govern, but it is the supremacy's job to rule. Be vigilant, aware and without fear and you will not be easily swayed.

I have teenage sons and daughters. I've heard rumors that the draft will be re-instated. How likely is that?

It is likely, but not timely. It makes for poor party politics, for who would wish to endorse it with a possible election on the line? It is still off in the distance a bit, although rumors will continue to circulate and even escalate. Elected officials will begin by endorsing educational reform while stressing the importance of community and civic responsibility. Young people (younger than you think) will be encouraged to take an active interest in the needs and affairs of their town or city. They may be asked, for instance, to volunteer their time and effort in areas that are experiencing shortages due to budget limitations such as the local library. Cutbacks may also see emergency response teams suffer, making emergency first-aid and CPR classes a school requirement. Seems harmless enough and even beneficial, yes?

Volunteer programs, especially those that offer school and college credit will become popular, which will create competition among students for the most desirable posts. Almost too soon the programs will become official. They will receive the endorsement of government administrators who will appoint someone to manage and expand the programs so that every student will have an opportunity to contribute to their community and to do their 'civic duty'. Eventually, and for reasons that will seem unclear at the time these programs will come under the direction of those who head civil defense under the auspices of homeland security.

Every city and most towns will have civil defense agencies and offices; these will coincidentally be located next to or near other recruiting facilities. Civil defense volunteers will be trained to help the armed forces, police, hospital personnel, and first responders in case of a local emergency or natural disaster, and/or in the event of a national emergency, such as a war. It will be postulated that civic defense agencies are no more than back-door recruiters for the armed forces. Public outcry will lead to legal debates and this will slow the process for a time. Those who argue in favor of the programs will restate the many opportunities to serve that do not involve military service, but if these positions are filled and already have extensive waiting lists, how else will the requirements be satisfied?

Please excuse the inappropriateness of this question, but I have heard rumors and prophecies regarding the current president. Some of these indicate that there may be an attempt to assassinate him. Is there any truth to this? I have also heard that he is afraid of ghosts, would you comment on that as well?

Your current president has heard these rumors as well and is monitoring them even more closely than you, as you might imagine. He is conceivably troubled and anxious by them, perhaps more so than other sitting presidents have been. Over and above the usual security detail accorded to such a noble position, additional precautions and measures are ordered each and every time he travels, especially abroad. He is not without enemies, but he is also not without friends, and these are in significant positions of power. There is a team of intelligence professionals specifically dedicated to rooting out all hoaxes and following-up on even the most casual threat or misguided innuendo.

As to the accuracy of the prophecies, it depends more upon whether he believes them than whether you do. He is capable of drawing the scent of fear to him or away from him. By striking contrast, he is also able to draw fear to the land he governs or away from it, a choice he contemplates daily. Within these words lies the answer to your question, at least partially so. The energetic odds of the prophecies surrounding this president rise and fall along with the odds of his reelection. Furthermore, the prophecy states that there will be an attempt on his life, it does not indicate whether or not it will be successful. Scholars such as those who study the Bible Code are searching for answers in all available resources, and upon his recent trip to the Vatican, a unique and specific request to view certain antiquated manuscripts was granted. For obvious reasons, he would not admit to being afraid of ghosts, but those within his inner circles would concede that he has expressed very little interest in the supernatural. There are areas within the White House that remain unvisited by him, although one could logically assume that his busy schedule may prevent this.

I hate to be the one to ask the last question, so I'll try to make it as broad as possible. What lesson can we take from all that is happening on the world stage that we could also apply to our own life? What can we do to make the world a better and safer place to live in?

The events of the forthcoming months will seem significant to some and ordinary to others. For a while it will be a time of sitting and waiting and waiting and sitting. It may be difficult to distinguish light from dark and at times they will seem as one, both purposeful and purposeless. Because all that is all, and All that is All is light, it will seem that darkness masquerades as light. As light touches and then density, it is at first absorbed by that density. When water touches a sponge, it is absorbed by that sponge and it would seem that the water has been consumed and is no longer, but it has only changed its form for a moment, or perhaps a moment longer.

During this time you will be distracted by campaigns of politics and campaigns for war. The distractions will be many and the campaigns that others put forth may be in conflict with your own, especially those of loved ones. It is a challenging time of shifting energies and realities, and it will be more important than ever not to write this time period off, as with indifference, for if you do, it will require more effort to regain the balance you do not sustain now. Draw upon resources that are deep within, those you have been saving for an emergency. Those who have not yet discovered who they are will follow anyone and anything that even resembles leadership, be it public or private. Resist the temptation and urges of others if they are not aligned with your truth. Be outspoken when necessary, reticent when need be. Stay the course.

Imagine (for real) that you are running for election and that the voters and constituents you depend upon are your friends, colleagues, family members, associates and enemies. It is very important that you make this as real as possible, so stake something important on it, like your spiritual evolvement or ascension. What campaign promises would you make to yourself and to others? What are you willing to stand for and risk your life for? Assuming that you are elected you will soon be inaugurated and asked to swear that you are prepared and willing to uphold the truth that you stand for. If asked to do so, would you? Would you ask more of others than you would ask of yourself? What could you accomplish in your first one-hundred days in office? Is it not well worth igniting the pilot in order to find out? With many words behind us, I take my leave and bid you do the same, broadening your perspectives and expanding your ideals as you do. May the sunrise welcome you, the horizon sustain you, and the sunset restore you.

Copyright © 2004 Pepper Lewis, The Peaceful Planet