Keystone XL - Stop the Pipeline

Friends, Right now we are in the middle of the last public comment period for Keystone XL -- one of the very last steps before President Obama makes his decision on the pipeline, and the final opportunity to give your input (in an official way). This is one of those things where numbers really count, and a flood of comments would show the President that there’s a huge risk, politically and scientifically, to approving the pipeline. The last time the State Department was accepting comments, we submitted over 1 million as a movement. I think we can top that this time around -- click here to submit your comment against the pipeline: act.350.org/letter/kxl-feis/ Here are the three major messages we need to be getting across to President Obama right now: First, he has all the evidence he needs to stop the pipeline. It’s simple: building an 830,000 barrel-per-day pipeline of the world’s dirtiest oil will have an impact on the climate. No amount of spin can change the underlying economic reality that Keystone XL will allow big oil to dig up, refine and burn more tar sands than they could with any other available options. We take the President at his word when he said that he would reject the pipeline if it has a significant impact on the climate, and now the evidence is in: it does. Second, any effort to build the pipeline would be deeply compromised by big oil’s corruption of the process. ERM, one of the main contractors behind the State Department’s report, is a dues paying member of the American Petroleum Institute, big oil’s main lobbying group, and counts TransCanada as one of their clients. This is like the fox guarding the henhouse, only it’s our climate that needs defending. Third, we can either have Keystone XL, or a safe and livable climate -- ‘all of the above’ is not an option. We are past the point of building fossil fuel infrastructure and hoping for the best -- Keystone XL isn’t compatible with even the President’s weak climate goals. After 6 years of supporting more fossil fuel projects while saying he’s committed to climate science, President Obama needs to finally decide if he wants to be a climate champion, or be remembered as the pipeline president. This is the last chance to formally comment on the pipeline before it goes to the President’s desk for a decision. We’ll keep making ourselves heard in many other ways too -- but I think sending a strong message in this forum is critical to showing the President that the science is serious, and that we’re serious too. Here’s where to go to submit: act.350.org/letter/kxl-feis/ Let’s send this message loud and clear, May

Tonight - Free the Mind - Ryder Film Showing

Wednesday, Feb 12 at 7:00 pm at the Back Door (21+) Can you rewire your brain just by taking a breath . . . ? The Ryder Film Series is hosting four screenings of Free The Mind, a documentary exploring how Dr. Richard Davidson uses meditation practices of Tibetan Monks to help children with anxiety and ADHD, as well as war veterans suffering from PTSD. Can Professor Richard Davidson make a difference? Can he free these people from their troubled existences and help them lead ordinary lives? The new film, Free the Mind, follows three test subjects – one school-aged boy and two veterans of the wars in Iraq and Afghanistan – on a daring journey into the deepest recesses of the human mind. We are hoping you could help spread the word about Free the Mind by forwarding this email to anyone who might be interested. We would also like to offer 4 complimentary tickets to the film. Learn more about Free The Mind at www.TheRyder.com

HEALING CRANE Newsletter Back In Publication

Dear HEALING Crane Reader, Thank you for visiting this blog. The HEALING Crane Newsletter is again being published! You can read the current edition at http://www.indianahholistichealth.net/newsletter.htm or from the Indiana Holistic Health Network sit click on the Newsletter button.

In this issue you will find: What is Naturopathy? Scarlett Winters THE IMPORTANCE AND PRACTICE OF BREATH AWARENESS IN HOLISTIC WELL-BEING - Lisa Renee Wilson In The Garden Inspirational Arts All Hail Hungary: Country Bravely Destroys All Monsanto GMO Corn - AGAIN Battling India's Monsanto Protection Act, Farmers Demand End to GMO Animal Wellbeing Cabbage - food, medicine, fermentation Environment SUNDAY MARKET Workshops, Classes, Talks When Things Go Wrong - Carol Bridges Medicinal Marujuana In the News Reiki Healing and Mental Health How Many Earths I Create My Positive Day September Celebrations, October Celebrations Traditional and New Banned Books Hospital Treats Internet Addiction Hope for Locked-in Syndrone We appreciate your interest, and look forward to sharing future issues with you. HEALING Crane Newsletter for the Indiana Holistic Health Network - http://www.indianaholistichealth.htm Join the mailing list.

Depak Chopras Commence Speech at Hartwick College 2013

Greetings All, May you enjoy this and be well in mind, body and spirit. Deepak's commencement address to: President Margaret Drugovich, Trustees of Hartwick College, Guests, Parents and Students of the 2013 Graduating Class at Hartwick College Today, as you celebrate this major milestone in your life and commence a new stage of your life journey, I ask you to reflect on the gift of life itself. And life, in essence, is nothing but awareness. Furthermore, human life, considered the pinnacle of biological evolution, is not just awareness, but self-awareness. Amongst creatures on this planet, we human beings are not only aware; we have the capacity to be aware that we are aware, to be conscious of our consciousness. In that self-awareness lies our potential and power to direct our own future evolution and the future evolution of civilization. Biological evolution has been summed up in the phrase of "survival of the fittest," but with overpopulation and overconsumption of resources, the future belongs to "survival of the wisest." It is imperative for the future of humanity that wisdom becomes the new criterion for sustainable life on this planet. And wisdom is that knowledge that nurtures life in all its dimensions - not only for us, but also for the generations that follow us. Today's age is frequently referred to as the Information Age. The hallmarks of this age are the gifts of science and technology that have created the miracles of molecular medicine, real-time imaging of cellular function, instant accessibility of global knowledge, and social networks. Yet despite this emerging global brain, paradoxically we are beset with the same scourges of war and terrorism, radical poverty in 50% of the world's population, irreversible climate change, along with deepening social and economic injustice! Furthermore, humanity suffers from massive malnutrition in which half the world suffers from hunger and the other half from obesity, leading to inflammatory disorders, increasing the risk of chronic illnesses including many types of cancer and cardiovascular diseases while the hungry die from compromised immune function and infectious diseases. The information revolution has not led to the wisdom needed to solve our world crisis in health and well-being. If ever humanity had the power of mass self-extinction on planet earth, it is today. And if it happens, it will be because we allowed our emotional and spiritual evolution to be outpaced by the evolution of our science and technology. Nuclear proliferation, biological warfare, eco-destruction, the extinction of species and the poisoning of our atmosphere, our rivers and waters and the very food that sustains our life and all life loom before us as imminent threats. But just as in other critical phases of transformation, while there is disaster looming on one hand, there is on the other hand the potential to create a radical reorganization into something much greater than was conceived of before. Today, I ask you my young friends, you who are the future hope of humanity, you who are the future leaders of the world; today, I ask you what Mahatma Gandhi once asked, "Can you be the change you want to see in the world?" In fact, there can be no social or world transformation unless there is your own inner transformation. Today, I ask you to face a fundamental truth. Today, I ask you to consider that there is no "you" that is separate from the world. The gift of life, your own self-consciousness, is your key to inner transformation and wisdom, and that in turn is how you will transform the world. Today, I ask you to acknowledge that you are the world and that your transformation of consciousness will be the future of the world. This self-transformation is the wisdom for our planet's survival. As I enter the autumn of my life and you the springtime of yours, I want to leave you with seven skills in self-awareness that I have learned and that I hope will serve you well no matter what profession you choose, or where your life and destiny take you as a future leader of humanity. Skill # 1: Become the best listener you can be. Learn to listen with the instruments of the body, the feelings of the heart, the logic of the mind and the stillness of your soul. As you listen deeply, reflect on the following questions: What am I observing? What am I feeling? What is the need of the moment? What is the best way to fulfill this need? Skill # 2: Bond emotionally with friends, family, professional colleagues and those you interact with daily. Understand that each of us is part of a web of relationships that is nurtured through love, kindness, compassion, empathy and joy. Emotional bonds create effective teamwork where nothing is impossible because you have a shared vision for service, contribution and success and because you complement each other's talents and strengths. Skill # 3: Expand your awareness by knowing that all human beings have a hierarchy of needs that start with survival and safety and progressively expand through stages that include love and belonging, true self esteem, success as in the progressive realization of worthy goals, creative expression, higher consciousness and self-actualization. As you expand your awareness, learn to harness your spiritual gifts that come in the form of the powers of intention, intuition, creativity, imagination & conscious choice making. Skill # 4: Remember the importance of action. Learn to be action oriented and know that there is no power higher than love in action. Remember that love without action is meaningless and action without love is irrelevant. Skill # 5: Assume responsibility for your own well being in all its various facets. Your well being encompasses every aspect of your life - your career, your social interactions, your personal relationships, your community and your financial success. Take time to rest and play, to be with your family and friends, to exercise and nourish your body with healthy food. Skill # 6: Empower yourself with true self-esteem. Learn to be independent of the good and bad opinion of others. Recognize the power of presence. Do not allow yourself to be distracted. Know your life purpose and the contribution you want to make to society. Skill # 7: Know your true self. Your true self is not your self-image that is dependent on the labels you and others have given yourself. Your true self is the innermost core of your being that is beyond all labels, definitions and limitations. All the wisdom traditions tell us that the human spirit is a field of infinite possibilities, a field of infinite creativity, love, compassion, joy and profound equanimity. Know you can only give to the world that which you possess in that innermost core of your being. Remember that you will create peace only when you are peaceful and create a loving world only when you have learned to love. I entreat you to not lose your idealism with the passage of years. That idealism is connected to your knowingness of the good that can be created and the power to manifest it. In you lies the potential for a more peaceful, just, sustainable, healthier and happier world. Remember that the goal of all other goals is to be happy. I am reminded today of an assignment that John Lennon was given by his elementary school teacher when he was seven years old. He and his classmates were asked to write a short description of who they wanted to be when they grew up. John Lennon wrote down that he wanted to be "always happy." When his teacher complained that John did not understand the assignment, John's mother told him to tell the teacher that he did not understand life. But what do we really know about happiness? Recently there has been a lot of research on the dynamics of happiness. Most people think that if they are successful in achieving their goals or have good relationships or if they are healthy, they will be happy. In fact it is the other way around. If you are a happy person you are likely to have healthy habits, and nurturing relationships and great success in life. Social scientists describe what they describe as the Happiness formula: H=S+C+V H stands for happiness S stands for set point in the brain C stands for conditions of living V stands for voluntary choices "S" stands for the set point in the brain and refers to our mechanisms of perception. We all have a semi-fixed place on the happiness spectrum based on our outlook on life. Happier people see the opportunities, whereas unhappy people see problems. The set point for happiness can be upregulated, or shifted toward greater happiness, through self-reflection on limiting beliefs. The set point determines 50% of our happiness experience on a daily basis. The ‘C' in the formula is for conditions of living and refers mainly to material success and personal wealth. It determines about 12% of your daily happiness experience. If you win the lottery, you will be extremely happy for a few months, but after one year, you will return to your set point. Voluntary choices represent choices that we make on a daily basis. Choices for personal pleasure bring transient happiness, while selfless choices bring inner fulfillment through purpose and meaning, e.g. by making other people happy, meaningful relationships bring more permanent happiness. So to be happy, it's fine to have material comforts around you, but that will only account for 12% of your happiness. To really be happy you need to expand awareness and overcome your self-limiting beliefs and then choose selfless actions, or ways to be of service to others. This leads to true and lasting happiness and wisdom. Finally today, more than any other day, remember to be grateful. Gratitude opens the door to abundant consciousness. Express your gratitude today particularly to your parents, teachers and fellow students, all who have helped bring you to this threshold of life. You are now ready to embark on the hero's journey, the hero's quest. Good luck and God speed.

Herbal Remedies Banned in EU, Herbal Medicines Licensed, Some Banned

Well, you may already have heard the unfortunate news about changes concerning the the use of Traditional Medicinals as referenced in the two articles which follow.
In the early '90's I wrote a poem about the CODEX meetings in Europe with some folks from the US who were and had been working for decades to create seed and plant laws around the thriving herbal health business and global food business.

I think it unfortunate that Monsanto has been able to continue to spread Genetically modified organisms through our food system and are allowed the continued associated degradation to the soil from toxic chemical compounds and use of all substances that have only a job of killing.

In the 1980's I read a report stating that of all the food varieties cataloged by the USDA at the turn of the century, at the time of that writing, less than 3% remained, and of that seed stock left, more than 85% were in tomato seed.

These numbers still shock me when as I think of the thousands of generations and lives that were responsible for providing us with so much that we could ever take it for granted and let the safe food and herbal medicinals fall away from us by the seemingly intentional destruction and undermining of essential sustainable resources.




The Government allowed access to some unlicensed manufactured herbal
medicines via a statutory register



Patients have lost access to hundreds of herbal medicines today, after European regulations came into force.

Sales of all herbal remedies, except for a small number of popular products for 'mild' illness such as echinacea for colds and St John's Wort for depression have been banned.

For the first time traditional products must be licensed or prescribed by a registered herbal practitioner.


Both herbal remedy practitioners and manufacturers fear they could be forced out of business as a result.

Some of the most commonly used products were saved after the Health Secretary Andrew Lansley approved a plan for the Health Professions Council to establish a register of practitioners supplying unlicensed herbal medicines.

However, many remedies were lost as it was only open to those who could afford the licensing process which costs between £80,000 to £120,000.

At least 50 herbs, including horny goat weed (so-called natural Viagra), hawthorn berry, used for angina pain, and wild yam will no longer be stocked in health food shops, says the British Herbal Medicine Association.

The 2004 EU directive demands that a traditional herbal medicinal product must be shown to have been in use for 30 years in the EU – or at 15 years in the EU and 15 years elsewhere – for it to be licensed.

The UK drug safety watchdog, the Medicines and Healthcare Products Agency, has issued more than a dozen alerts in the past two years, including a warning last month over a contaminated weight loss pill called Herbal Flos Lonicerae (Herbal Xenicol) due to concerns over possible side-effects.

Mr Lansley, in a written statement, said the Government wanted to ensure continuing access to unlicensed herbal medicines via a statutory register for practitioners ‘to meet individual patient needs’.

Acupuncture falls outside the EU directive and so remains unaffected.

Prince Charles, a long-standing supporter of complementary therapies, has voiced his support for formal regulation of herbal practitioners.

Up til now the industry has been covered by the 1968 Medicines Act. This was drawn up when only a small number of herbal remedies were available.

But recent studies show that at least six million Britons have used a herbal medicine in the past two years.

Professor George Lewith, professor of health research at Southampton University, said: ‘Evidence for the efficacy of herbal medicines is growing; they may offer cheap, safe and effective approaches for many common complaints.’

http://www.whatsonxiamen.com/ent2873.htm


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~Sunday, May 1st, 2011


Herbal remedies banned as new EU rules take
effect

Manufacturers and herbal practitioners say strict guidelines aimed at improving safety could force them out of business

Robin McKie
The Observer, Sunday 1 May 2011

New EU rules came into force at the weekend banning hundreds of herbal remedies. The laws are aimed at protecting consumers from potentially damaging "traditional" medicines.

Under the directive, herbal medicines will now have to be registered. Products must meet safety, quality and manufacturing standards, and come with information outlining possible side-effects.

Herbal practitioners and manufacturers say they fear the new rules could force them out of business.

Research conducted for the Medicines and Healthcare Products Regulatory Agency (MHRA) in 2009 showed that 26% of adults in the UK had taken a herbal medicine in the last two years, mostly bought over the counter in health food shops and pharmacies. Commonly used ingredients already registered include echinacea, which is used against colds, St John's wort, used for depression and anxiety, and valerian, which is claimed to ease insomnia.

The agency said it hoped to promote a more cautious approach to the use of herbal medicines after a study found that 58% of respondents believed these products were safe because they are "natural". In fact, herbal remedies can have harmful side-effects. St John's Wort can stop the contraceptive pill working, while ginkgo and ginseng are known to interfere with the blood-thinning drug warfarin. And in February the MHRA issued a warning about the herbal weight loss product Herbal Flos Lonicerae (Herbal Xenicol) Natural Weight Loss Formula, after tests showed it contained more than twice the prescribed dose of a banned substance.

To date, the industry has been covered by the 1968 Medicines Act, drawn up when only a handful of herbal remedies were available and the number of herbal practitioners was very small.

From now, manufacturers will have to prove their products have been made to strict standards and contain a consistent and clearly marked dose. Remedies already on sale will be allowed to stay on the shelves until their expiry date. The agency said there had been 211 applications for approval of herbal remedies so far, with 105 granted and the rest still under consideration. Approved remedies will come with a logo marked THR.

Gaurdian - http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2011/may/01/new-eu-rules-on-herbal-remedies

Spring Swap Meet! Bloomington, Indiana - Earth Day

'Spring Swap Meet!

PLEASE SPREAD FAR AND WIDE!' on Transition Bloomington, IN!

Please spread this far and wide. Bring your stuff 5-7 pm April 22, and then come back in the morning to get other stuff . . . there's so much stuff in this world, recycle! and connect!

Spring Swap Meet! PLEASE SPREAD FAR AND WIDE! Time: April 23, 2011 from 8am to 12pm
Location: Atrium at Showers, in conjunction with the Farmer's Market
Organized By: Ann Renee Kreilkamp and Rhonda Baird

Event Description:
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
April 11, 2011
Contact: Ann Kreilkamp
arkcrone@gmail.com
812.334.1987

COMMUNITY EXCHANGE HOSTS EARTH DAY SWAP AT FARMERS MARKET

Find a new way to “reduce, reuse, and recycle” items at the first Community Exchange Spring Swap to be held April 23 at the Showers Building between 9 am and 12 noon. Community members are invited to finish up their spring cleaning by donating good, serviceable and “desirable” items at the Showers Building on Friday night between 5 and 7 pm. Donators will be given a special pass to get into shopping an hour early.

“This is a really fun way to promote re-use of good items others no longer need, to build community, and to educate people about different ways to live an abundant life,” said Rhonda Baird, one of the project members.

Besides the give and take of the swap, visitors will have an opportunity to learn about time banks and sign up for the Bloomington Community Exchange (a local exchange and trading system that lets people offer goods and services to their community without using paper currency).

The swap organizers will not be able to accept intimate apparel, chemicals, paint, or old electronics such as televisions or monitors.

For more information, contact Ann Kreilkamp, arkcrone@gmail.com or 812.334.1987

Testing Cleaning Products

Some of you have known for years, others are just now becoming aware of the increasing numbers of allergies to environmental chemicals, artificial fragrances, artificial colorant, genetically modified foods, etc. The on-line Merriam-webster defines artificial as humanly contrived, often after a natural model. The key seems to be artificial, though sometimes the boundaries are blurred. As I have gotten older, I find that I need to be more diligent as to what chemicals I allow myself to be exposed to. In observing our young and when I consider the epidemic rise in allergies in respiratory diseases across the board, I ponder the question of, "When will we as consumers say enough to all of the fake stuff polluting our lives?".

Someone asked Earth Talk® From the Editors of E/The Environmental Magazine about the chemicals in household cleaners. Following is their response.



Credit: Digital Vision, courtesy Thinkstock

The government only requires companies to list "chemicals of known concern" on their labels. And the operative word is "known," because the government has no idea whether most of the chemicals used in everyday cleaning products are safe because it doesn't test them, and it doesn't require manufacturers to test them either.


Dear EarthTalk: Why don't cleaning products have to list their ingredients, and are these products tested for what they might do to your health? -- Patricia Greenville, Bethel, CT

Since cleaning products aren't food, beverages or drugs meant to be ingested, they aren't regulated, per se, by the U.S. Food and Drug Administration. However, makers are required by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) to list ingredients that are active disinfectants or potentially harmful. Otherwise, they usually keep their other ingredients secret, presumably so competitors can't copy their formulas.

But consumer advocate Sloan Barnett, author of Green Goes with Everything, doesn't give manufacturers the benefit of that doubt. "Call me suspicious, but I honestly don't think it's because the recipe is top secret," she says. "If it was, there wouldn't be so many competing products with identical ingredients." Barnett thinks manufacturers don't want to scare off consumers by disclosing how many potentially harmful chemicals are flying under the EPA's radar in their products.

"The government only requires companies to list 'chemicals of known concern' on their labels. The key word here is 'known'," she says. "The fact is that the government has no idea whether most of the chemicals used in everyday cleaning products are safe because it doesn't test them, and it doesn't require manufacturers to test them either."

She adds that the EPA, under the terms of 1976's Toxic Substances Control Act, "can't require chemical companies to prove the safety of their products unless the agency itself can show that the product poses a health risk-which the EPA does not have the resources to do since, according to one estimate, it receives some two thousand new applications for approval every year." She cites a recent study by the non-profit Environmental Working Group, which found that the EPA approved most applications within three weeks even though more than half provided no information on toxicity whatsoever.

Regardless, consumers should be familiar with what warning labels are on cleaning products. "All household cleaners that contain known hazardous chemicals must carry a warning label that spells out potential risks, along with precautionary steps and first-aid instructions," reports Consumer Reports' Greener Choices website.

Some manufacturers are beginning to be more transparent about their ingredients. The Clorox Company, for example, one of the largest manufacturers of cleaning products, now publishes full lists of the ingredients for all of its brands on its corporate responsibility website, CloroxCSR.com. Many praise Clorox for doing so; others argue that, whether or not ingredients are disclosed, the company-like many others-is still in the business of making products that pose health and environmental hazards.

Generally speaking, if you're looking for safer alternatives, browse the cleaning products sections of natural foods markets such as Whole Foods, which are populated with lesser-known but more green-friendly brands. For do-it-yourselfers, the Greener Choices website also lists recipes for eco- and health-friendly homemade household cleaners using ingredients like baking soda, borax, lemon juice and vinegar.

CONTACTS: Greener Choices, www.greenerchoices.org; Clorox, www.cloroxcsr.com.
EarthTalk® is written and edited by Roddy Scheer and Doug Moss and is a registered trademark of E - The Environmental Magazine ( www.emagazine.com). Send questions to: earthtalk@emagazine.com. Subscribe: www.emagazine.com/subscribe. Free Trial Issue: www.emagazine.com/trial.