John Barbours World Guest, Christopher Hedges June 01, 2015
Writer/Journalist

CHRIS HEDGES spent nearly two decades as a foreign correspondent in Central America, the Middle East, Africa and the Balkans. He has reported from more than 50 countries and has worked for The Christian Science Monitor, National Public Radio, The Dallas Morning News and The New York Times, for which he was a foreign correspondent for 15 years.

Hedges was part of the team of reporters at The New York Times awarded a Pulitzer Prize in 2002 for the paper's coverage of global terrorism. He also received the Amnesty International Global Award for Human Rights Journalism in 2002. The Los Angeles Press Club honored Hedges' original columns in Truthdig by naming the author the Online Journalist of the Year in 2009, and granted him the Best Online Column award in 2010 for his Truthdig essay "One Day We'll All Be Terrorists."

Hedges is a senior fellow at The Nation Institute in New York City and has taught at Columbia University, New York University and Princeton University. He currently teaches inmates at a correctional facility in New Jersey.

Hedges began his career reporting the war in El Salvador. Following six years in Latin America, he took time off to study Arabic and then went to Jerusalem and later Cairo. He spent seven years in the Middle East, most of them as the bureau chief there for The New York Times. He left the Middle East in 1995 for Sarajevo to cover the war in Bosnia and later reported the war in Kosovo. Afterward, he joined the Times' investigative team and was based in Paris to cover al-Qaida. He left the Times after being issued a formal reprimand for denouncing the Bush administration's invasion of Iraq.

He has written nine books, including "Empire of Illusion: The End of Literacy and the Triumph of Spectacle" (2009), "I Don't Believe in Atheists" (2008) and the best-selling "American Fascists: The Christian Right and the War on America" (2008). His book "War Is a Force That Gives Us Meaning" (2003) was a finalist for the National Book Critics Circle Award for Nonfiction. His latest book is "Death of the Liberal Class" (2010)

Hedges holds a B.A. in English literature from Colgate University and a Master of Divinity degree from Harvard University. He was awarded an honorary doctorate from Starr King School for the Ministry in Berkeley, Calif. Hedges speaks Arabic, French and Spanish and knows ancient Greek and Latin. In addition to writing a weekly original column for Truthdig, he has written for Harper's Magazine, The New Statesman, The New York Review of Books, Adbusters, Granta, Foreign Affairs and other publications.

Unspeakable

by Chris Hedges, David Talbot (With)

Hedges here speaks up about the most pressing issues that currently face our nation. He tackles the rise of a fascist right in support of Donald Trump, which advocates xenophobia and violence in a push for American totalitarianism. He rails against the posturing of inclusivity from establishment elites on both sides of the aisle, who post-Occupy-Wall-Street continue to advocate for policies that make America uninhabitable for all but the ultra-rich and, as lackeys for corporate interests, continue to expand income inequality in all directions. He tears into the contemporary glamorization of the military and the unchecked, unchallenged hawkishness that defines contemporary American foreign policy. Moreover, he shows his support for contemporary revolts against this twisted order—such as Black Lives Matter—that represent Americans refusing to take the destruction of their country lying down. And that’s just the start.

He possesses a clear understanding of the challenges that lie before us, and has proven to be ahead of the curve time and again. All of which is to say, Chris Hedges is unafraid to say what is necessary and true—and has always been. If we are to combat the intellectual and moral decay that have come to grip American life, we must listen to him and the urgent message he brings in this book.

 

Shadow Politics Guest, Robert White May 31, 2015
Director of Community Outreach at the Office of the Attorney General of the District of Columbia.

Robert White an attorney with extensive experience at the local and federal levels is the Director of Community Outreach at the Office of the Attorney General of the District of Columbia. Mr. White leads OAG’s newly expanded efforts in connecting with civic, community, neighborhood and labor leaders and responding to the concerns of residents and stakeholders. Mr. White, who worked for Attorney General Racine’s transition team and recently ran for an at-large seat on the DC Council also served for five years as counsel to Congresswoman Eleanor Holmes Norton. He has also served as a law clerk for the Maryland District Court for Montgomery County and for Webster, Fredrickson, Correia & Puth. Mr. White serves as President of the Brightwood Park Citizens Association and as a board member for WINNERS Lacrosse, an organization that uses the sport of lacrosse to teach life skills to boys and girls across the District and the metropolitan area. A Ward 4 resident, he earned his bachelor’s degree from St. Mary’s College of Maryland and his J.D. from American University’s Washington College of Law.

The War Report on Public Education Guest, Dr Lori Latrice Martin May 31, 2015
Associate Professor at Louisiana State University, Author, Education Activist

Dr. Lori Latrice Martin is Associate Professor of Sociology and African and African American Studies at Louisiana State University. Dr. Martin's newest book is 'Big Box Schools: Race, Education, and the Danger of the Wal-Martization of Public Schools in America (Race and Education in the Twenty-First Century'.

The American public school system is at a crossroad. One pathway is decorated with signs and institutions that will lead public education towards a destination of collective obligation, accountability, and responsibility that is student-centered, community-based, and driven by educators and parents working in the best interest of students, families, communities, and the broader society. The other pathway is littered with pamphlets, flyers, and electronic billboards falsely advertising the merits of school “choice.” The direction American public schools appear to have taken over the past few decades is increasingly dotted with charter schools operated by for-profit multinational corporations, and themed public schools. Increasingly, efforts to reform public education in America resemble the business model made popular by the founder of Wal-Mart, Sam Walton.

'Big Box Schools: Race, Education, and the Danger of the Wal-Martization of Public Schools in America' examines the dangers of the Wal-Martization of American public schools and highlights efforts to challenge policies and practices which place greater emphasis on profits than on pupils.

Reviews of her book:

"Dr. Lori Martin's brilliantly researched book, Big Box Schools: Race, Education, and the Danger of the Wal-Martization of Public Schools in America, is going to blow the cover off the 'close ranks' rationale for defending Obama Administration education policy among scholars in Black Studies, as well as all education scholars who have the courage to listen. It eloquently describes the severe price for replacing schools which were community institutions with 'pop-up schools' (Dr. Martin's brilliant term) run by fly-by-night staffs beholden to corporate interests rather than the students and families they claim to serve." (Mark Naison, Fordham University)

"Dr. Martin makes the troubled history of education policy in this country accessible to a variety of disciplines. She talks candidly about racism in education and the United States’ long-standing tradition of marginalizing students, teachers, and families of color. The case studies are a wakeup call to push back against those who profit from so-called ‘education reform.’ She is asking us to stand up and fight against those who purchase a seat in policy and practice decisions when they have no expertise to offer. After reading this book, I am prepared to stand up and fight." (Joshua S. Smith, Loyola University Maryland)



 

Cosmic LOVE Guest, Tat Erick Gonzalez May 30, 2015
Mayan Wisdom Keeper

Within the traditional indigenous circles and within the native people of the Maya, Tat Erick is called an Aj Q’ij and a KamalBey (spiritual teacher). His entire life has been walking between the worlds, the physical/mental with the spiritual/elemental. And with this lifelong experience, he has become aware of the supernatural beings that hold and co-create cosmic natural elemental forces. In the ceremonies, he has received their blessings and their manifestations, so that it becomes more than a human ceremony experience, but a true dimensional spiritual experience. 

This incredible journey has guided him to create sacred spiritual sanctuaries north of Mt Shasta in Northern CA and Lake Atitlan, Guatemala- places of profound beauty, learning and healing. He is also the Founder and Spiritual Leader of Earth Peoples United, a non-profit organization dedicated to connecting people with the natural and spiritual worlds.

With a foundation in oral tradition, Tat Erick shares with a global community via tele-class teachings and lectures at universities, schools, international gatherings and conferences. His wisdom and teachings have also been featured in various documentaries, magazines, journals and books.

Guest, David Rivinus May 30, 2015
Teacher of DREAMS

David Rivinus began studying dreams while working with children at a mental health clinic in the late 1960s. During that time, he attended seminars offered by Gestalt therapists who were also dream experts. This led to him developing his own simple, effective method of dream interpretation. While doing his research, he was struck by how “dreamlike” the unusual events of waking life can be. His understanding that one can analyze and interpret these waking life events, reaching the same kinds of profound, helpful insights that one gains from nighttime dreams, revolutionized his approach to dreams and their purpose in our lives. Since then, he has taught dream classes on three continents and in four languages, highlighting both nighttime and “waking” dreams. In 2012, he was a presenter at the annual conference of the International Association for the Study of Dreams. He participates in online dream-related blogs, teaches dream classes via Skype and conference calls, and regularly facilitates a local dream seminar in his home town of Portland, Oregon. He wrote the book "Always Dreaming--Gaining Insights from the Metaphors of our Sleeping and Waking Lives" to document his findings.

Temple of Health Radio Show Guest, Garnet Schulhauser May 30, 2015
Retired Lawyer and Author

Garnet Schulhauser is a retired lawyer who lives near Victoria, on Vancouver Island, with his wife, Cathy, and little dog, Abby. He grew up on a small farm in Saskatchewan and moved to Calgary, Canada, after law school where he practiced corporate law for over thirty years with two blue-chip law firms. After retiring from his law firm in 2008, he began his new career as an author and his first book, Dancing on a Stamp, was published in 2012. Since the release of his first book, Garnet has been active with book signing tours and speaking engagements and has been a frequent guest on radio talk shows. When he is not writing or connecting with his followers, Garnet enjoys golfing, nature walks in the forest with Abby, and family gatherings with his sons, Blake and Colin, and their partners, Lauren and Bergis, and granddaughter Kymera.

In Dancing on a Stamp, Garnet recounts how his life changed dramatically one day in 2007 (while still practicing law) when he was confronted on the street by a homeless man named Albert (who was actually a wise spirit in disguise—an emissary from the spirit world). This seemingly chance encounter launched a provocative dialogue with Albert who disclosed startling new truths about all of life’s big questions, including our true nature as eternal souls, the cycle of reincarnation on Earth, and how we create our own reality through free-will choices. He wrote Dancing on a Stamp at Albert’s request so that these revelations would be available to everyone.

Garnet’s second book, Dancing Forever with Spirit, describes his most recent adventures with Albert who appeared in his bedroom room one night to guide him on a series of out-of-body adventures to explore the wonders of the Universe, including the Akashic Records, distant planets with fascinating life forms, and a human civilization that made the shift to the New Earth. Albert’s goal was to encourage humans to stop their abuse of Mother Earth and all of her inhabitants by casting aside their negative emotions and in favor of love and compassion.

It has been quite a ride! Ever since I met my spirit guide, Albert, disguised as a homeless man, that fateful day in 2007, my life has never been the same. I went from being a buttoned-down, straight-laced corporate lawyer to an author who has published four books (including this one) about my dialogue and subsequent astral travels with Albert. 

Once I decided to come out of the spiritual closet there was no turning back, and I have no regrets whatsoever. I have lost a few friends along the way (some of whom likely think I am suffering from an early onset of dementia), but I have gained many new friends who have encouraged me to continue writing about the revelations from Albert and the other wise souls I have met during my travels.

This book is a sequel to my first three books, Dancing on a Stamp, Dancing Forever with Spirit, and Dance of Heavenly Bliss, as it chronicles my most recent astral adventures with Albert. As with the first three books, Albert had a carefully-planned agenda all mapped out—designed to teach me (and all of humankind) a lesson or to provide us with a nugget of wisdom to help us understand who we are and why we are having a human journey on this planet.

Conscious Thought with Leo Guest, Robert OLeary May 27, 2015
Bio Acoustic Sound Health Practitioner, Attorney,Martial arts, Editor

RoMaYa Sound Health and Beaty 

Bio Acoustic Sond Health

BioAcoustics is the medicine of the future.

Robert O'Leary, BA (UMASS@Amherst-Class of '89), JD (WNEC School of Law-Class of '92), BioAcoustic Research Associate & Soundhealth Practitioner (BARA - Institute of BioAcoustic Biology - July, 2011), has had an abiding interest in alternative health since the early 1970's when he was inspired, by an American Lung Association commercial at school, to go home & convince his parents to quit 15 years of smoking. They did, & then the family adopted more holistic & healthy life-style choices which benefitted their lives.

Thereafter, Robert became an attorney, earned advanced martial arts belt levels [in Kajukenbo (the Emperado Method) & American Kempo under Grandmaster Kalaii Kano Griffin & some of his Instructors], became a singer/songwriter performer [releasing 3 regional CD's with his brothers, Paul & Seanunder the group name, Future Now], & his greatest & proudest achievement -becoming a Father. Robert brought this background to a new field - BioAcoustic Soundhealth [a/k/a "Vocal Profiling" & "BioAcoustic Biology"] - for which he became a practitioner in July, 2011, through Albany, OH's Institute of BioAcoustic Biology. This alternative modality, called an "Integrative Medicine " by the NIH, is relatively new to New England. It works by analyzing voice recordings in order to get information, about a client's state of health, to provide them with information & tones which will support their body's ability to self-heal & beautify. Robert is proud to have the opportunity to bring the knowledge & benefits of this modality to individuals & businesses in the New England States; through the opening of his office, RoMaYa Sound Health & Beauty, in East Longmeadow, Massachusetts.

Since November, 2014, Robert has been 1 of the editors and writers at consciouslifenews.com Robert O'Leary & his family wish you nothing but the best in health & beauty.

The People Speak Guest, Joseph Farrell May 26, 2015
doctorate in patristics and author