Topic: WE'RE STUFFED!!!

[erik]

How cool is this sentence:

American and Syrian warplanes screamed over the Syrian city of Raqqa in separate raids this week, ostensibly against the same target, the Islamic State militants in control there.

It is taken from here.

[Michael]

I'll try to simplify this for those who just want the guts of it.

Oil prices are falling, drastically. Why is less of a question except in that time is running out for oil to be such a powerful weapon, for all producers. But currently it is the new world weapon.

Riyadh (the Saudis) are refusing to cut production, thus allowing the price to fall through the floor. It is estimated they will act only when it reaches $US60 a barrel. Just consider this, the break-even price of oil, where income covers costs:
Saudi, $98; Yemen, $US160; Algeria, $US132; Iran, $131; Iraq, $US111, Russia, $105. The US? somewhere between $42 and $70, depending on who you speak to.

Why is Riyadh doing this? Basically it is an attack on the economic viability of marginal oil producing countries, for good Sunni reasons:

Islamic State: if the price of oil falls sufficiently they will not find a black market for their cut-priced production, worth the trouble to do business.
Iran: for supporting (Shia) Assad in Syria and Shia Iraq.
Russia: for supporting (Shia) Assad and Iran.
Iran and Iraq: for the potential of them combining to challenge Riyadh as an oil producing price-influencing cartel.
US: for a list of botch-ups in the Middle East - undermining the US producers by making their profitability marginal.

But the US is not entirely unhappy, due to the affect on Moscow and Tehran. The US is finding its new found approaching oil sufficiency status is not only providing a powerful weapon to bring other countries to heel, but also freeing it from being at the mercy of the Middle East, and thus Israel. Only to be replaced by China and India, who continue to rely on influence and stability in the Middle East. This puts the US in an extremely powerful position, sufficient to warrant the environmental cost of all that fracking across the country. Not only has oil become the primary weapon of US Foreign Policy, but it is fuelling the reinvigoration of the US economy - just remember, historical economic booms are based on cheap energy and labour.

Although Riyadh has ample reserves to weather the strategy, it is not entirely free from vulnerability. It paid out billions recently to placate its people from joining the Arab Spring, and could well run a deficit this year.

But the rise of alternative energy sources, due to the pressure from global warming, is turning the old oil empires into dinosaurs. The old dinosaurs never did go extinct, they just evolved into today's pretty little birds. People forget, most of the dinosaurs had feathers.

[Michael]

Who do you think that might be? Consider all the names you have heard off in relation to Lebanon, Syria, Yemen, Iraq, Iran, USA, Britain...

I bet you haven't heard of the one man who is down there on the ground holding the whole thing together for the Shia world. The man whom all affiliated forces follow to the letter of his word. You see, outside that sphere, we are concerned about good guys and bad guys, but they are only interested in an ancient battle between Sunni and Shia. They don't see a dictator in Assad, they see the Shia in Syria fighting for their lives against a Sunni rebellion. I admit, it wasn't like that at the start, but it certainly is now.

And don't forget the final focus: Israel.

The man of whom I speak is called Qassem Suleimani. Head of the Iranian Quads Force - the elite military and intelligence force of Iran. He and the Iranians have been in Iraq from the first invasion by the USA, and especially since the first major victory by Islamic State. It is he in person who is the final defender of the Iraqi state, not the USA. They all, right across the Middle East, look upon him as their saviour or the arch enemy.

And he is such an avuncular looking chap:

[erik]

At times, Gen. Soleimani has communicated directly with American military planners. In early 2008, Gen. Soleimani passed a message to then-commander of U.S. forces in Iraq, Gen. David Petraeus, via Iraqi politician Ahmad Chalabi. "General Petraeus, you should know that I, Qasem Soleimani, control the policy for Iran with respect to Iraq, Lebanon, Gaza and Afghanistan," he said, according to an official familiar with the incident.
...
In the months following the Sept. 11, 2001, terror attacks on the U.S., he emerged as a surprising U.S. ally, says Hossein Mousavian, a Princeton University-based researcher who served on Iran's Supreme National Security Council with Gen. Soleimani at that time. Gen. Soleimani was among those on the council who advocated cooperating with the U.S. to topple the Taliban. Iranian and American diplomats held regular meetings to devise ways to bring now-President Hamid Karzai to power, according to diplomats from both countries.
...
"Qasem is a very pragmatic commander," said Mr. Mousavian, who fell out with Iranian President Mahmoud Ahmadinejad following the diplomat's role as an Iranian nuclear negotiator in the early 2000s. "He's willing to cooperate with the West if it serves Iran's interests."

Well-informed article on Soleimani: http://www.wsj.com/articles/SB10001424052702303816504577305742884577460

[Nichi]

http://news.yahoo.com/flight-indonesia-singapore-loses-contact-media-033855222.html

http://abcnews.go.com/International/sea-search-begins-missing-airasia-jet/story?id=27856490

[Michael]

It is disingenuous to aspire to being a seer, and not ask this question about the human world. It is the context through which we travel, in our life. Diversion is the name of the game for all sapiens on this planet today. We have been distracted. From the big questions, from the small yet potent questions, from our soul's nourishment. As an old Indian saying goes: "Feed your soul before you feed your body."

Cliches abound, but it is inquiry we seek. We are witnessing an extraordinary shift in humanities path - why and how?

Lets start with only one small matter: the perception of the future. Who would build for the next thousand years like many civilisations before us, including the British during their extended empire? In the end, we are speaking of our collective grasp of eternity. Who do you know who makes their decisions based on their purchase of eternity? What I see is the outsourcing of eternity - the market, or future generations, will resolve as required. Is this cowardice?

[Nichi]

The outsourcing of eternity.....

Is it really eternity which is being outsourced, or some sham-eternity?

[erik]

The outsourcing of eternity.....

Is it really eternity which is being outsourced, or some sham-eternity?

Which eternity exists for you? The real one? A sham?
Once the human endeavour loses the soul-part, who or what is to deal with eternity?

[erik]

What I see is the outsourcing of eternity - the market, or future generations, will resolve as required. Is this cowardice?

Could it be aging? Tiredness? Lack of wilingness to stand on the line over and again?
Safety. Security. Control. Comfort. The older you are, the better it feels to have them.
Hence comes the thought: "We'll deal with eternity once we're dead...or later."

Western world is aging and going through a golden autumn of welfare in depleting world.

[Nichi]

Which eternity exists for you? The real one? A sham?

Actually, I was trying to understand what M meant. In my mind, 'eternity' couldn't be outsourced. Though one could perhaps convince another to look in a false direction. But it's all moot until I grasp what M means by outsourcing eternity.

[erik]

Actually, I was trying to understand what M meant. In my mind, 'eternity' couldn't be outsourced. Though one could perhaps convince another to look in a false direction. But it's all moot until I grasp what M means by outsourcing eternity.

I suggested that if the soul-part of humanity is not or is only little involved in daily activities of what we consider "life", the eternity is beyond our reach.
If our society does not do it, then who is - if anybody/anything at all?
In soulless world there is no eternity.
For a person who does not engage his/her soul there's no eternity - perhaps, only a thought or wish of it.

[Michael]

I will elaborate a little, but really I am asking why we have in the media, such a dearth of insight into the situations that confront humanity?

There was a time not so long ago, and long long ago, when individuals and cultures built with supreme confidence in future time. I am talking about material building here, but the same applies to spiritual building. Capitalism has evolved into an insanely short term obsession, yet it was not always thus. In the not so distant past, wealthy individuals and societies invested in schools, hospitals, museums, libraries, universities, parks, public spaces, and essential infrastructure that continues to shape and serve our existence today. They believed in their place and it's future. Some could point to the history of New York in this regard, but just look at the immense effort Britain and the Moguls invested in India. You can look at almost every country to see a history of material development that aspired to shape the future in a sustained, generous and effective way. Of course, there were also the destroyers - we always have them. But that projection of personal and communal effort into a confidence of the future, seems to have largely disappeared. Across the globe, the wealthy don't care about the future, and they don't care about their 'place'. They seek rewards fast and invest for immediate returns then move on. Nations are doing the same - everything is cheaper and shabbier than ever before. Humanity has lost confidence in the future.

This affects the spiritual impulse more than anything. I search the people I meet or the media in vein for anyone who sees their life as a preparation for eternity. It's all immediate payoff. For some reason, humanity has lost it's concept of eternity, and the future is left to those who have to deal with it. This is what I mean by outsourcing eternity - someone else can pick up the cost of that, but not me. That is an illusion, both for the individual spirit and the species evolution. We have outsourced eternity to the illusion of tomorrow and our children, and we are happy to become distracted by the present.

I am also critical of those spiritual leaders who have imbalanced the teachings on the present. But that is another segue.

[erik]

I will elaborate a little, but really I am asking why we have in the media, such a dearth of insight into the situations that confront humanity?

There was a time not so long ago, and long long ago, when individuals and cultures built with supreme confidence in future time. I am talking about material building here, but the same applies to spiritual building. Capitalism has evolved into an insanely short term obsession, yet it was not always thus. In the not so distant past, wealthy individuals and societies invested in schools, hospitals, museums, libraries, universities, parks, public spaces, and essential infrastructure that continues to shape and serve our existence today. They believed in their place and it's future. Some could point to the history of New York in this regard, but just look at the immense effort Britain and the Moguls invested in India. You can look at almost every country to see a history of material development that aspired to shape the future in a sustained, generous and effective way. Of course, there were also the destroyers - we always have them. But that projection of personal and communal effort into a confidence of the future, seems to have largely disappeared. Across the globe, the wealthy don't care about the future, and they don't care about their 'place'. They seek rewards fast and invest for immediate returns then move on. Nations are doing the same - everything is cheaper and shabbier than ever before. Humanity has lost confidence in the future.

This affects the spiritual impulse more than anything. I search the people I meet or the media in vein for anyone who sees their life as a preparation for eternity. It's all immediate payoff. For some reason, humanity has lost it's concept of eternity, and the future is left to those who have to deal with it. This is what I mean by outsourcing eternity - someone else can pick up the cost of that, but not me. That is an illusion, both for the individual spirit and the species evolution. We have outsourced eternity to the illusion of tomorrow and our children, and we are happy to become distracted by the present.

I am also critical of those spiritual leaders who have imbalanced the teachings on the present. But that is another segue.

That's how old people behave - they feel their horizon is right in front of them. Their time is in short supply.

Just try to bring them something valuable as a birthday gift! "Why do you spend so much on me? I do not need that any more. I do not have that much time left so as to enjoy it fully..." etc.

I'd guess most people sense the approaching change, but they refuse resolutely to look into its eyes.

[Taimyr]

It's been the same way from the beginning of human history, people are not interested of spiritual evolution, Spirit or God. Evene not the good and balanced people. Maybe it wasn't even meant to be that the whole humanity became spiritual, maybe most are just what make the environment for a few to grow and find God/Spirit in this jungle.

[Jahn]

It's been the same way from the beginning of human history, people are not interested of spiritual evolution, Spirit or God. Evene not the good and balanced people. Maybe it wasn't even meant to be that the whole humanity became spiritual, maybe most are just what make the environment for a few to grow and find God/Spirit in this jungle.

I am quite sure that You are wrong when saying that" people are not interested of spiritual evolution, Spirit or God". if you address the man on the street - that might be right. But what do you know about the Indians in Amazonas? The Queros (Incas) in Peru - or me - am I not belonging to the People?