consciouslifenews--2020-07-02--One-Third of the World’s Population Exposed to Harmful Household Air Pollution

Between 2.4 and 3.3 billion people in the world do not have access to clean cooking fuels and the technologies required to avoid being exposed to harmful air pollution in their homes while cooking .
This exposure contributes directly to illness and death from many non-communicable diseases including cancer , stroke , and heart disease , as well as pneumonia .
And the situation is not improving .
Since 2013 , a multi-agency initiative led by the World Bank has charted the course needed to achieve universal energy access , improve energy efficiency worldwide , and double the use of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Global Tracking Framework Report , it is now titled The Energy Progress Report and is a collaboration between the world ’ s five custodian agencies : the World Bank , the World Health Organisation ( WHO ) , the UN Statistics Division ( UNSD ) , the International Renewable Energy Agency ( IRENA ) , and the International Energy Agency ( IEA ) .
Each year progress is reviewed and analyzed against a baseline of 2010 .
In the 2020 report , the fourth with the Energy Progress title , progress for energy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 2017 for energy efficiency and renewable energy .
These topics are all related to climate change and have resulted in the increased development of net-zero energy buildings worldwide .
In keeping with the mission of the five custodian agencies , the 2020 edition of Tracking SDG 7 : The Energy Progress Report , World Bank , Washington DC , analyses how close ( or far ) we are globally to attaining universal access to sustainable , affordable , and reliable “ modern ” energy by 2030 .
As mentioned above , primary issues @ @ @ @ @ @ @ clean fuels and technologies for cooking , renewable energy , and energy efficiency .
Ultimately , the 2020 report finds that , so far , the efforts to achieve Goal 7 of the global Sustainable Development Goals ( SDG ) , fall short of the scale required to reach 2030 targets , and the margin of failure is large .
The data utilized to prepare the report was prepared before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged , but the authors highlight how an unforeseen global disaster of this magnitude can impact multiple societies and economies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ energy progress and the desperately needed transition to reliable and efficient renewable energy , as well as desperately needed progress towards SDG 7 .
Recent findings by several researchers in different countries around the world reveal that poor air quality caused by burning fossil fuels , including coal , is associated with deaths related to COVID-19 .
A respiratory disease that is airborne , the coronavirus poses a particular risk for those with cancer , diabetes , chronic respiratory diseases , and various cardiovascular conditions .
Researchers warn that the link between higher @ @ @ @ @ @ @ due to the fact that many of those who are exposed to air pollution ( inside or outside the home or working environment ) already have health issues .
Apart from improving peoples ’ access to clean cooking and heating fuels and improving energy efficiency globally , engineers currently have an important role to play ensuring that ventilation systems are optimized in buildings and air purification is improved to minimize the risks of coronavirus infection .
Household air pollution is directly linked to the lack of clean cooking fuels .
About a third @ @ @ @ @ @ @ affected and these people are forced to rely on traditional cooking fuels including coal , kerosene , and unprocessed biomass , including wood , much of which comes from forests that are not sustainable .
According to the latest SDG 7 2020 report , even though the percentage of those with access to clean cooking solutions globally increased from 56 % in 2010 to 63 % in 2018 , this number has stayed much the same since then due to ever-increasing population growth .
Increases of at least 3 % will be needed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ 100 % target is to be realized .
Between 2010 and 2018 , the percentage points expanded by 0.8 % per year , and they have slowed steadily ever since , indicating that the SDG clean cooking solution goals are unfortunately not going to be reached .
The countries worst affected are in sub-Saharan Africa , while the most significant improvements have been in Asia .
Rural areas are also harder hit , with 83 % of available clean fuels available in urban areas and unprocessed biomass being most common in rural areas @ @ @ @ @ @ @ occurred since 2010 that should be noted , particularly in low- and middle-income countries : • The use of gas has become more widespread than unprocessed biomass .
This includes LPG , biogas , and natural gas .
• Generally , in rural areas unprocessed biomass is the norm , though it has reduced slightly .
• The use of electricity for cooking in urban areas has increased .
• Across the board , the use of gas has increased and the use of unprocessed biomass has decreased , the use of coal @ @ @ @ @ @ @ use of electricity has increased .
The use of charcoal , which is minimal , has remained much the same .
The progress towards clean fuels for cooking is slow and causing considerable concern worldwide .
The figures presented in the Tracking SDG 7 2020 report indicate that nearly a third of the global population will continue to be exposed to harmful household air pollution .
• Electric and alcohol stoves design to use renewable energy Ambitious strategies combined with targeted political commitment and increased investment worldwide are key to possible solutions .
@ @ @ @ @ @ @ more comprehensive data to be able to monitor and assess impacts more reliably .
WHO has a household energy database for 170 countries that is regularly updated .
Even though surveys are not conducted regularly , they do show worldwide trends in the use of the fuels mentioned in the bulleted list above .
The data also helps to determine the use of clean fuels as well as those that pollute the air .
The exact model used is detailed in the report .
The data also plays a vital role in terms @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in all areas of interest .
Ultimately , the conclusions reached and reported on show that while clean cooking is largely overlooked on the international political agenda , there will be dramatic consequences for the health of human beings , particularly women and children , and for the environment .
Note : Tracking SDG 7 : The Energy Progress Report 2020 is available in its entirety under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 IGO license .
( CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO ) https : //creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/igo/ Michael Tobias is the founder and principal of Nearby @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Company in America .
He leads a team of more than 30 mechanical , electrical , plumbing , and fire protection engineers from the company headquarters in New York City , and has led numerous projects in New York , New Jersey , Chicago , Pennsylvania , Connecticut , Florida , Maryland , and California , as well as Singapore and Malaysia .
He specializes in sustainable building technology and is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council .

By Michael Tobias
Between 2.4 and 3.3 billion people in the world do not have access to clean cooking fuels and the technologies required to avoid being exposed to harmful air pollution in their homes while cooking. This exposure contributes directly to illness and death from many non-communicable diseases including cancer, stroke, and heart disease, as well as pneumonia. And the situation is not improving.
Since 2013, a multi-agency initiative led by the World Bank has charted the course needed to achieve universal energy access, improve energy efficiency worldwide, and double the use of renewable energy. Originally presented as the Global Tracking Framework Report, it is now titled The Energy Progress Report and is a collaboration between the world’s five custodian agencies: the World Bank, the World Health Organisation (WHO), the UN Statistics Division (UNSD), the International Renewable Energy Agency (IRENA), and the International Energy Agency (IEA). Each year progress is reviewed and analyzed against a baseline of 2010. In the 2020 report, the fourth with the Energy Progress title, progress for energy access is reviewed to 2018 and to 2017 for energy efficiency and renewable energy.
These topics are all related to climate change and have resulted in the increased development of net-zero energy buildings worldwide.
Tracking SDG 7 2020 & COVID-19
In keeping with the mission of the five custodian agencies, the 2020 edition of Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report, World Bank, Washington DC, analyses how close (or far) we are globally to attaining universal access to sustainable, affordable, and reliable “modern” energy by 2030.
As mentioned above, primary issues considered are access to electricity and to clean fuels and technologies for cooking, renewable energy, and energy efficiency.
Ultimately, the 2020 report finds that, so far, the efforts to achieve Goal 7 of the global Sustainable Development Goals (SDG), fall short of the scale required to reach 2030 targets, and the margin of failure is large.
The data utilized to prepare the report was prepared before the COVID-19 pandemic emerged, but the authors highlight how an unforeseen global disaster of this magnitude can impact multiple societies and economies at every possible level. This includes energy progress and the desperately needed transition to reliable and efficient renewable energy, as well as desperately needed progress towards SDG 7.
Recent findings by several researchers in different countries around the world reveal that poor air quality caused by burning fossil fuels, including coal, is associated with deaths related to COVID-19. A respiratory disease that is airborne, the coronavirus poses a particular risk for those with cancer, diabetes, chronic respiratory diseases, and various cardiovascular conditions.
Researchers warn that the link between higher COVID-19 death rates and air pollution is due to the fact that many of those who are exposed to air pollution (inside or outside the home or working environment) already have health issues.
Apart from improving peoples’ access to clean cooking and heating fuels and improving energy efficiency globally, engineers currently have an important role to play ensuring that ventilation systems are optimized in buildings and air purification is improved to minimize the risks of coronavirus infection.
Household Air Pollution and Sustainable Development Goals for 2030
Household air pollution is directly linked to the lack of clean cooking fuels. About a third of the world’s population is affected and these people are forced to rely on traditional cooking fuels including coal, kerosene, and unprocessed biomass, including wood, much of which comes from forests that are not sustainable.
According to the latest SDG 7 2020 report, even though the percentage of those with access to clean cooking solutions globally increased from 56% in 2010 to 63% in 2018, this number has stayed much the same since then due to ever-increasing population growth. Increases of at least 3% will be needed from now until 2030 if the universal 100% target is to be realized. Between 2010 and 2018, the percentage points expanded by 0.8% per year, and they have slowed steadily ever since, indicating that the SDG clean cooking solution goals are unfortunately not going to be reached.
The countries worst affected are in sub-Saharan Africa, while the most significant improvements have been in Asia.
Rural areas are also harder hit, with 83% of available clean fuels available in urban areas and unprocessed biomass being most common in rural areas. But there are changes that have occurred since 2010 that should be noted, particularly in low- and middle-income countries:
The use of gas has become more widespread than unprocessed biomass. This includes LPG, biogas, and natural gas.
has become more widespread than unprocessed biomass. This includes LPG, biogas, and natural gas. Generally, in rural areas unprocessed biomass is the norm, though it has reduced slightly.
is the norm, though it has reduced slightly. The use of electricity for cooking in urban areas has increased.
for cooking in urban areas has increased. Across the board, the use of gas has increased and the use of unprocessed biomass has decreased, the use of coal and kerosene has reduced, and the use of electricity has increased. The use of charcoal, which is minimal, has remained much the same.
The progress towards clean fuels for cooking is slow and causing considerable concern worldwide. The figures presented in the Tracking SDG 7 2020 report indicate that nearly a third of the global population will continue to be exposed to harmful household air pollution.
Suggested solutions include the innovative deployment of:
Natural and liquefied petroleum gas (LPG)
Improved biomass stoves for cooking
Electric and alcohol stoves design to use renewable energy
The Importance of Data
Ambitious strategies combined with targeted political commitment and increased investment worldwide are key to possible solutions. But it is also essential to accumulate more comprehensive data to be able to monitor and assess impacts more reliably.
WHO has a household energy database for 170 countries that is regularly updated. Even though surveys are not conducted regularly, they do show worldwide trends in the use of the fuels mentioned in the bulleted list above. The data also helps to determine the use of clean fuels as well as those that pollute the air. The exact model used is detailed in the report.
The data also plays a vital role in terms of policy recommendations required to overcome shortfalls in all areas of interest.
Ultimately, the conclusions reached and reported on show that while clean cooking is largely overlooked on the international political agenda, there will be dramatic consequences for the health of human beings, particularly women and children, and for the environment.
Note: Tracking SDG 7: The Energy Progress Report 2020 is available in its entirety under the Creative Commons Attribution-NonCommercial 3.0 IGO license. (CC BY-NC 3.0 IGO) https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by-nc/3.0/igo/
About the Author
Michael Tobias is the founder and principal of Nearby Engineers and New York Engineers, an Inc 5000 Fastest Growing Company in America. He leads a team of more than 30 mechanical, electrical, plumbing, and fire protection engineers from the company headquarters in New York City, and has led numerous projects in New York, New Jersey, Chicago, Pennsylvania, Connecticut, Florida, Maryland, and California, as well as Singapore and Malaysia. He specializes in sustainable building technology and is a member of the U.S. Green Building Council.


consciouslifenews--2020-07-02--Morning Inspiration: It’s Time For You To Just Do It (Motivational Video)

Many times we make plans about what we want to do in life without actually making it come to pass @ @ @ @ @ goals is to take consistent action .
Once you get tasks done over a period @ @ @ @ @ will see your goals realized .
“ If you want to become somebody , do @ @ @ @ @ to go and finish for yourself , do it .
If you want to become @ @ @ @ @ .
I hear too much talk in these United States .
Everybody can talk a @ @ @ @ @ people in America who can do it.
” Take time today to produce actions towards @ @ @ @ @ `` featured , accomplishing goals , featured , How to achieve goals , How to @ @ @ @ @ consistent action

Source: Mulligan Brothers MOTIVATION
Many times we make plans about what we want to do in life without actually making it come to pass. The way to accomplish goals is to take consistent action. Once you get tasks done over a period of time, then you will see your goals realized.
“If you want to become somebody, do it. If you want to go and finish for yourself, do it. If you want to become financially independent, do it. I hear too much talk in these United States. Everybody can talk a good game. We need people in America who can do it.”
Take time today to produce actions towards a result.
Watch and be motivated today!!


consciouslifenews--2020-07-02--What You Should Know Before Buying Windows

When choosing new windows , you may have many doubts and often feel confused as to what to consider when choosing them .
The purchase of windows is an important decision both during the construction and renovation of the house .
That is why it is worth spending some time comparing manufacturers ' offers .
By checking the individual parameters of the windows , you will be sure that you have made the right choice .
If you need more , you can visit Advanced Glazing Windows .
What do you need to know about profiles ?
If you decide @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pay special attention to the profile class .
Such windows have a great weight so that they are durable and their proper stiffness is very important .
It is the profiles that maintain the glass and are responsible for the thermal insulation and acoustics of the entire window .
Profile classes can be marked with symbols A , B or C. The highest class A means that the walls of the profiles are at least 3 mm thick .
This class ensures windows durability and stability .
The joinery in the lower classes @ @ @ @ @ @ @ will cause the windows to cease to be sealed , and when it rains , water will get into your house .
When choosing windows , you should also pay attention to the number of chambers in the profile .
In the market , there are windows with profiles with four , five and even seven chambers .
Usually , the more chambers , the warmer the window will be .
However , it is worth remembering that the insulation parameters are not only affected by the number of chambers .
The materials @ @ @ @ @ @ @ are important in maintaining the distance between the glass panes and filling the inter-pane spaces .
In modern energy-saving windows , the spacer is made of stainless steel .
This material does not conduct heat as much as metal , so more heat will remain in your home , keeping your house warm .
The space between the panes should be filled with inert gas , e.g .
argon , which reduces the escape of energy .
Are the windows resistant to weather conditions ?
You can check it using three parameters : @ @ @ @ @ @ @ permeability .
The tightness of the windows largely depends on their resistance to wind load .
It informs us about how the woodwork will bend under the influence of wind .
The stiffer it is , the better it will resist wind gusts .
Wind resistance classes are ranked in ascending order on a scale from A1 to C5 .
The lowest permitted class for windows is B2 .
Thanks to the water resistance class , you will find out how much wind loads will allow water to get in through the window @ @ @ @ @ @ @ marked with symbols from 1A to 9A .
Air permeability is also an important issue .
This parameter will show how close the window is , i.e .
how much air will let in .
Joinery tightness classes have been ordered from 1 – the lowest class , to 4 – the highest class .

When choosing new windows, you may have many doubts and often feel confused as to what to consider when choosing them. The purchase of windows is an important decision both during the construction and renovation of the house. That is why it is worth spending some time comparing manufacturers' offers. By checking the individual parameters of the windows, you will be sure that you have made the right choice. If you need more help to buy windows , you can visit Advanced Glazing Windows.
What do you need to know about profiles?
If you decide to use large glazing, you should pay special attention to the profile class. Such windows have a great weight so that they are durable and their proper stiffness is very important. It is the profiles that maintain the glass and are responsible for the thermal insulation and acoustics of the entire window.
Profile classes can be marked with symbols A, B or C. The highest class A means that the walls of the profiles are at least 3 mm thick. This class ensures windows durability and stability. The joinery in the lower classes may become deformed over time. This will cause the windows to cease to be sealed, and when it rains, water will get into your house.
When choosing windows, you should also pay attention to the number of chambers in the profile. In the market, there are windows with profiles with four, five and even seven chambers.
Usually, the more chambers, the warmer the window will be. However, it is worth remembering that the insulation parameters are not only affected by the number of chambers. The materials from which the spacer frame was made are important in maintaining the distance between the glass panes and filling the inter-pane spaces. Your sash windows in Hastings should be installed by a professional to make sure that everything is installed correctly.
In modern energy-saving windows, the spacer is made of stainless steel. This material does not conduct heat as much as metal, so more heat will remain in your home, keeping your house warm. The space between the panes should be filled with inert gas, e.g. argon, which reduces the escape of energy.
Are the windows resistant to weather conditions?
You can check it using three parameters: wind load resistance, water-resistance and air permeability.
The tightness of the windows largely depends on their resistance to wind load. It informs us about how the woodwork will bend under the influence of wind. The stiffer it is, the better it will resist wind gusts. Wind resistance classes are ranked in ascending order on a scale from A1 to C5. The lowest permitted class for PVC windows is B2.
Thanks to the water resistance class, you will find out how much wind loads will allow water to get in through the window when it rains. These parameters are marked with symbols from 1A to 9A.
Air permeability is also an important issue. This parameter will show how close the window is, i.e. how much air will let in. Joinery tightness classes have been ordered from 1 – the lowest class, to 4 – the highest class.


consciouslifenews--2020-07-02--5 Reasons To Use Kratom For Pain Management

Kratom is one of the most popularly used natural remedies .
It has potent effects , and people have been using it for ages to treat and alleviate symptoms of various conditions .
One of the most common use includes using kratom for pain management .
Why use kratom specifically to treat pain ?
What makes it an excellent treatment option for pain management ?
These are just some of the questions you probably seek answers to .
To help you out , we decided to answer them for you .
Here are the five reasons to use kratom for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ kratom established itself as a powerful remedy used in pain management .
The herb , kratom , is derived from several active compounds .
Among these compounds , alkaloids are the most active ones , and mitragynine is one of the alkaloids found in kratom .
When ingested , this alkaloid , in particular , exhibits a strong analgesic activity .
It can help you with pain management .
The good thing about it is that it works efficiently for both acute and chronic pain .
But it is more often seen as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ pain after an injury , surgery , or due to other ailments .
We are not basing this claim on the effects of mitragynine on consumer testimonials .
A study identifies mitragynine as a strong alkaloid with analgesic activity in animals .
The results are consistent with mitragynine effects in humans .
The alkaloid is found in higher concentrations in kratom products derived from kratom leaves .
7-hydroxy Mitragynine Is There As Well The analgesic properties of kratom don ’ t end with mitragynine .
This popular product contains one more alkaloid- 7-hydroxy @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of mitragynine .
What does this mean ?
Kratom comes with alkaloids that have postponed effects and alkaloids with immediate effects .
In fact , after taking kratom , you can experience immediate pain relief .
7-hydroxy mitragynine is the substance we have to thank for this effect .
Nature made sure to deliver a perfect ratio of mitragynine and 7-hydroxy mitragynine in kratom .
Mitragyna Speciosa , the herb kratom is derived from , contains mitragynine in higher concentration than 7-hydroxy mitragynine .
Even though the concentration of 7-hydroxy mitragynine is lower @ @ @ @ @ @ @ until our bodies metabolize mitragynine , which then takes the primary analgesic role .
Kratom is Available At Trusted Sources Over the past three decades , kratom slowly became one of the most popular natural remedies for pain management .
Today , it is a lucrative market .
When there is a lot of money involved , companies want to make sure to attract more customers .
This is why they hire independent laboratories to test the products for purity and safety .
Today , you can easily shop for kratom products for @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to go through a friend of a friend .
There are plenty of trusted sellers like Bulk Kratom Now who offer pure organic kratom products for your needs .
Another reason why you should use kratom for pain management is – it ’ s safe to use .
There are many people worldwide using kratom daily .
You should know that all kratom products that come from reputed brands and through trustworthy shops are natural .
Kratom is extracted from a herb , and it contains no artificial compounds .
You can easily @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have to do is look at the product ’ s ingredients label .
Also , kratom is not a product that appeared out of nowhere and entered the market a few days ago .
It has been used for ages as a powerful remedy in the traditional medicine of the Far East .
People used to chew its leaves to relieve pain in muscles and joints .
They also used to put the leaves on wounds as a local anesthetic .
The effects of different doses have been a subject of numerous studies @ @ @ @ @ @ @ optimal daily dosage advice , you will avoid side-effects and be able to enjoy kratom benefits hassle-free .
When you are looking for a natural substitute for your synthetic over the counter drug for pain management , you have to make sure you are getting the right stuff .
Kratom has analgesic properties .
This might have been a bold claim 40 years ago .
Today , there are hundreds of studies that dissected kratom ’ s chemical makeup and its effect on animals and humans .
It contains two powerful alkaloids , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ strong analgesic properties , which can even reduce chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain .
Given all facts , kratom is definitely a go-to natural product that you can use for pain management .
There is plenty of evidence that kratom has strong analgesic properties .
More importantly , it is safe to use as long as you stick to the daily recommended doses .
Disclaimer : Content from the ConsciousLifeNews.com website and blog is not intended to be used for medical advice , diagnosis or treatment .
The information provided on this website is intended @ @ @ @ @ @ @ intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice .
As health and nutrition research continuously evolves , we do not guarantee the accuracy , completeness , or timeliness of any information presented on this website .

Kratom is one of the most popularly used natural remedies. It has potent effects, and people have been using it for ages to treat and alleviate symptoms of various conditions. One of the most common use includes using kratom for pain management.
Why use kratom specifically to treat pain? What makes it an excellent treatment option for pain management? These are just some of the questions you probably seek answers to. To help you out, we decided to answer them for you. Here are the five reasons to use kratom for pain management.
It Contains Mitragynine
There is a reason kratom established itself as a powerful remedy used in pain management. The herb, kratom, is derived from several active compounds. Among these compounds, alkaloids are the most active ones, and mitragynine is one of the alkaloids found in kratom. When ingested, this alkaloid, in particular, exhibits a strong analgesic activity.
It can help you with pain management. The good thing about it is that it works efficiently for both acute and chronic pain. But it is more often seen as a substance used by people experiencing chronic pain after an injury, surgery, or due to other ailments.
We are not basing this claim on the effects of mitragynine on consumer testimonials. A study identifies mitragynine as a strong alkaloid with analgesic activity in animals. The results are consistent with mitragynine effects in humans. The alkaloid is found in higher concentrations in kratom products derived from kratom leaves.
7-hydroxy Mitragynine Is There As Well
The analgesic properties of kratom don’t end with mitragynine. This popular product contains one more alkaloid- 7-hydroxy mitragynine, which is an active metabolite of mitragynine. What does this mean?
Kratom comes with alkaloids that have postponed effects and alkaloids with immediate effects. In fact, after taking kratom, you can experience immediate pain relief.
7-hydroxy mitragynine is the substance we have to thank for this effect. Nature made sure to deliver a perfect ratio of mitragynine and 7-hydroxy mitragynine in kratom. Mitragyna Speciosa, the herb kratom is derived from, contains mitragynine in higher concentration than 7-hydroxy mitragynine.
Even though the concentration of 7-hydroxy mitragynine is lower, it still delivers a pain-relieving effect until our bodies metabolize mitragynine, which then takes the primary analgesic role.
Kratom is Available At Trusted Sources
Over the past three decades, kratom slowly became one of the most popular natural remedies for pain management. Today, it is a lucrative market. When there is a lot of money involved, companies want to make sure to attract more customers. This is why they hire independent laboratories to test the products for purity and safety.
Today, you can easily shop for kratom products for pain management. There is no need to go through a friend of a friend. There are plenty of trusted sellers like Bulk Kratom Now who offer pure organic kratom products for your needs.
It’s Safe to Use
Another reason why you should use kratom for pain management is – it’s safe to use. There are many people worldwide using kratom daily. You should know that all kratom products that come from reputed brands and through trustworthy shops are natural. Kratom is extracted from a herb, and it contains no artificial compounds. You can easily check this. The only thing you have to do is look at the product’s ingredients label.
Also, kratom is not a product that appeared out of nowhere and entered the market a few days ago. It has been used for ages as a powerful remedy in the traditional medicine of the Far East. People used to chew its leaves to relieve pain in muscles and joints. They also used to put the leaves on wounds as a local anesthetic.
The effects of different doses have been a subject of numerous studies. If you follow through the most optimal daily dosage advice, you will avoid side-effects and be able to enjoy kratom benefits hassle-free.
It’s a Scientifically Proven Analgesic
When you are looking for a natural substitute for your synthetic over the counter drug for pain management, you have to make sure you are getting the right stuff. Kratom has analgesic properties. This might have been a bold claim 40 years ago.
Today, there are hundreds of studies that dissected kratom’s chemical makeup and its effect on animals and humans. It contains two powerful alkaloids, mitragynine, and 7-hydroxy mitragynine, with strong analgesic properties, which can even reduce chemotherapy-induced neuropathic pain.
Given all facts, kratom is definitely a go-to natural product that you can use for pain management. There is plenty of evidence that kratom has strong analgesic properties. More importantly, it is safe to use as long as you stick to the daily recommended doses.
Disclaimer: Content from the ConsciousLifeNews.com website and blog is not intended to be used for medical advice, diagnosis or treatment. The information provided on this website is intended for general consumer understanding and is NOT intended to be a substitute for professional medical advice. As health and nutrition research continuously evolves, we do not guarantee the accuracy, completeness, or timeliness of any information presented on this website.


consciouslifenews--2020-07-03--Doctors In India Rediscover Coconut Oil’s 4000 Year History In Natural Medicine – Including Destroyi

Doctors In India Rediscover Coconut Oil’s 4000 Year History In Natural Medicine – Including Destroying Viruses

The July 2020 issue of the Journal of The Association of Physicians in India has just published an article titled : Coconut Oil and Immunity : What do we really know about it so far ?
The lead author of the study is Dr. Shashank Joshi , Dean of the Indian College of Physicians ; Consultant Endocrinologist , Lilavati Hospital & Research Centre , and Bhatia Hospital , Mumbai , Maharashtra .
It is refreshing to see Indian physicians turn their attention to Ayurvedic natural medicine and its 4000-year history of recognizing as a powerful natural medicine .
Ayurvedic health @ @ @ @ @ @ @ industry by several thousand years in India .
The poor people of India have for far too long been the human lab rats for Western drugs and vaccines and is a key country where Bill Gates has promoted and developed new vaccines as part of his population control agenda .
From the Abstract of the study : Coconut oil as health oil was recognized in Ayurvedic medicine almost 4000 years ago .
The same health effects were also attributed to the mother ’ s milk in ancient literature .
Modern research has now @ @ @ @ @ @ @ natural health products – their lipid content .
The medium chain fatty acids and monoglycerides found primarily in coconut oil have miraculous healing power which act as natural antibiotic and also help modulate immunity .
The information discussed in this review explains that coconut oil , either topically applied or ingested , gets broken down to release Lauric Acid and Monolaurin – known anti-microbial agents .
The studies reported in literature are discussed to evaluate the antiviral , antibacterial and antifungal benefits of coconut oil .
Not only does coconut oil metabolites have @ @ @ @ @ @ @ have been shown not to cause resistance organisms to appear .
The anti-microbial mechanistic action also helps activate the anti-inflammatory nature of the immune response in human body .
In vitro , animal , and human studies support the potential of coconut oil as effective and safe immune-nutritive active .
New and exciting health and industrial uses of coconut oil and its derivative are possible .
Never before in recent times has the recognition of the positive health effects of coconut oil been stronger .
And never before in the history of man @ @ @ @ @ @ @ need and efficacy of natural products known for their safety proposition .
Immunity has been a buzzword in the current scenario and the demand for modulating immunity with natural means has been so unprecedented and so ubiquitous .
Coconut oil and its value added forms can contribute to a more vigorous and healthy future .
Coconut oil has a long history of fighting viral infections effectively , and while a vaccine was never developed for HIV , studies on coconut oil found it effective for HIV/AIDS over 20 years ago .
Seeing physicians @ @ @ @ @ @ @ medicine roots is very positive .
If they can band together and fight against the global pharmaceutical cartel operated through the World Health Organization , they will have a better chance at resisting the New World Order which wants to reduce the world ’ s population , especially in India .
The USDA Nutritional Guidelines have Demonized Coconut Oil for 50 Years in Spite of Positive Research and Long History Here in the U.S. , I was the first one to import a Virgin Coconut Oil edible oil into the U.S. from the @ @ @ @ @ @ @ national suppliers were even selling coconut oil as a dietary oil at the time , and they were both highly refined , mass-produced coconut oils .
You could not find coconut oil in stores at all unless you were visiting an ethnic neighborhood grocery shop from India or the Philippines .
The reason is that since the 1970s , official USDA nutritional advice is that coconut oil is unhealthy , due to the fact that it is mostly saturated fat , wrongly claimed to cause high cholesterol and heart disease .
This dogma @ @ @ @ @ @ @ literature over the years , but it remains an official USDA policy until today .
Our peer-reviewed research section at CoconutOil.com is still probably the best collection of scientific studies on coconut oil anywhere today .
Back in the early 2000s when Internet searches were still un-censored , we were able to educate Americans on the truth regarding coconut oil and all of its wonderful health benefits .
In 2005 the FDA issued a warning letter against us stating that we were selling “ unapproved drugs ” due to our links to peer-reviewed @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Coconut Oil had changed their lives .
As a result , we had to take down all of our research and customer testimonials from the website where we were selling coconut oil and put it up on a separate website ( which today is CoconutOil.com ) completely separate from our business where we sold coconut oil .
By that time we had probably spent well over $ 1 million dollars in advertising over the course of several years educating American consumers on the lies about saturated fats , and the truth about coconut @ @ @ @ @ @ @ into almost any grocery store and now find coconut oil , although it is still demonized by the USDA , the American Heart Association , and many other Big Pharma aligned government bodies and associations .
The reason why the U.S. Government and Big Pharma will never change their views on coconut oil , is because to admit that the lipid theory of heart disease is wrong , is to admit to harming and killing millions of Americans over the years by artificially lowering their cholesterol with statin drugs , the biggest income @ @ @ @ @ @ @ .
Of course today , all the money is in vaccines , as most of the blockbuster drugs , including cholesterol-lowering statin drugs , have long since lost their patents and can be purchased as cheap generics .
The industry needs fresh new drugs and medical products to maintain their control over humanity , and the most recent example is what they did to Hydroxychloroquine , which resulted in untold deaths of many people , in order to protect Dr. Fauci ’ s new drug , Remdesivir , which has a price of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ at CoconutOil.com .
Virgin Coconut Oil : How it has changed people ’ s lives and how it can change yours !
Brian Shilavy is the Editor of Health Impact News where this article first appeared .
Tags : `` featured , Ayurvedic medicine , Ayurvedic natural medicine , benefits of coconut oil , Coconut Oil , Coconut Oil and Immunity , coconut oil in natural medicine , featured , health benefits of coconut oil

By Brian Shilavy | Natural Blaze
The July 2020 issue of the Journal of The Association of Physicians in India has just published an article titled:
The lead author of the study is Dr. Shashank Joshi, Dean of the Indian College of Physicians; Consultant Endocrinologist, Lilavati Hospital & Research Centre, and Bhatia Hospital, Mumbai, Maharashtra.
It is refreshing to see Indian physicians turn their attention to Ayurvedic natural medicine and its 4000-year history of recognizing coconut oil as a powerful natural medicine.
Ayurvedic health predates modern Western medicine and the pharmaceutical industry by several thousand years in India. The poor people of India have for far too long been the human lab rats for Western drugs and vaccines and is a key country where Bill Gates has promoted and developed new vaccines as part of his population control agenda.
From the Abstract of the study:
Coconut oil as health oil was recognized in Ayurvedic medicine almost 4000 years ago. The same health effects were also attributed to the mother’s milk in ancient literature. Modern research has now found a common link between these two natural health products – their lipid content. The medium chain fatty acids and monoglycerides found primarily in coconut oil have miraculous healing power which act as natural antibiotic and also help modulate immunity. The information discussed in this review explains that coconut oil, either topically applied or ingested, gets broken down to release Lauric Acid and Monolaurin – known anti-microbial agents. The studies reported in literature are discussed to evaluate the antiviral, antibacterial and antifungal benefits of coconut oil. Not only does coconut oil metabolites have antimicrobial activity but also these remarkable derivatives have been shown not to cause resistance organisms to appear. The anti-microbial mechanistic action also helps activate the anti-inflammatory nature of the immune response in human body. In vitro, animal, and human studies support the potential of coconut oil as effective and safe immune-nutritive active. New and exciting health and industrial uses of coconut oil and its derivative are possible. Never before in recent times has the recognition of the positive health effects of coconut oil been stronger. And never before in the history of man is it so important to emphasize both need and efficacy of natural products known for their safety proposition. Immunity has been a buzzword in the current scenario and the demand for modulating immunity with natural means has been so unprecedented and so ubiquitous. Coconut oil and its value added forms can contribute to a more vigorous and healthy future.
Coconut oil has a long history of fighting viral infections effectively, and while a vaccine was never developed for HIV, studies on coconut oil found it effective for HIV/AIDS over 20 years ago.
From the study:
The first clinical trial using coconut oil (45 mL daily) and monolaurin (95% purity, 800 mg daily) against HIV-AIDS was conducted in the Philippines. This study involved 15 HIV patients, aged 22 to 38 years, 5 males and 10 females, for 6 months. There was only one fatality and 11 of the patients showed higher CD4 and CD8 counts after 6 months. In another study, HIV subjects with CD4+ T lymphocyte counts less than 200 cells/microliter were divided into a VCO group (45 mL daily) and control group (no VCO). After 6 weeks, the VCO group showed significantly higher average CD4+ T lymphocyte counts versus control.
Seeing physicians in India return to their Ayurvedic natural medicine roots is very positive. If they can band together and fight against the global pharmaceutical cartel operated through the World Health Organization, they will have a better chance at resisting the New World Order which wants to reduce the world’s population, especially in India.
The USDA Nutritional Guidelines have Demonized Coconut Oil for 50 Years in Spite of Positive Research and Long History
Here in the U.S., I was the first one to import a Virgin Coconut Oil edible oil into the U.S. from the Philippines back in 2001. Only two national suppliers were even selling coconut oil as a dietary oil at the time, and they were both highly refined, mass-produced coconut oils.
You could not find coconut oil in stores at all unless you were visiting an ethnic neighborhood grocery shop from India or the Philippines.
The reason is that since the 1970s, official USDA nutritional advice is that coconut oil is unhealthy, due to the fact that it is mostly saturated fat, wrongly claimed to cause high cholesterol and heart disease.
This dogma has been thoroughly debunked in the scientific literature over the years, but it remains an official USDA policy until today.
Our peer-reviewed research section at CoconutOil.com is still probably the best collection of scientific studies on coconut oil anywhere today.
Back in the early 2000s when Internet searches were still un-censored, we were able to educate Americans on the truth regarding coconut oil and all of its wonderful health benefits.
In 2005 the FDA issued a warning letter against us stating that we were selling “unapproved drugs” due to our links to peer-reviewed literature and customer testimonials on how Virgin Coconut Oil had changed their lives.
As a result, we had to take down all of our research and customer testimonials from the website where we were selling coconut oil and put it up on a separate website (which today is CoconutOil.com) completely separate from our business where we sold coconut oil.
By that time we had probably spent well over $1 million dollars in advertising over the course of several years educating American consumers on the lies about saturated fats, and the truth about coconut oil.
Today, one can walk into almost any grocery store and now find coconut oil, although it is still demonized by the USDA, the American Heart Association, and many other Big Pharma aligned government bodies and associations.
The reason why the U.S. Government and Big Pharma will never change their views on coconut oil, is because to admit that the lipid theory of heart disease is wrong, is to admit to harming and killing millions of Americans over the years by artificially lowering their cholesterol with statin drugs, the biggest income producer for the pharmaceutical industry all time.
Of course today, all the money is in vaccines, as most of the blockbuster drugs, including cholesterol-lowering statin drugs, have long since lost their patents and can be purchased as cheap generics.
The industry needs fresh new drugs and medical products to maintain their control over humanity, and the most recent example is what they did to Hydroxychloroquine, which resulted in untold deaths of many people, in order to protect Dr. Fauci’s new drug, Remdesivir, which has a price of $3,120.00.
Comment on this article at CoconutOil.com.
Virgin Coconut Oil:
How it has changed people’s lives and how it can change yours!
Includes 85 recipes – Free shipping available!
Brian Shilavy is the Editor of Health Impact News where this article first appeared.


consciouslifenews--2020-07-03--The Science Of Plant Intelligence Takes Root

For centuries , Western philosophy has viewed animals and plants as unthinking automatons .
The famous 17th scientist and philosopher , Rene Descartes , maintained that non-human organisms can not reason or feel pain ; they are robotic machines that purely act on impulse.1 While science has recently proven that animals are intelligent creatures , capable of logical thinking and emotional experience , the notion that plants possess a similar kind of intelligence is largely disregarded by the scientific community .
It is assumed that because plants do not possess a brain , they have no conscious experience .
Goethe @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plants constitute an intelligent life-form , develop symbiotic relationships with other organisms , and can respond to complex changes in the environment .
While the scientific community explains the intelligence of plant behavior in terms of electrical and chemical responses to sensory stimuli , others believe that plants could provide valuable insight into other forms of consciousness .
One of the most famous scientists to observe plant intelligence was the English naturalist , geologist , and biologist , Charles Darwin.2 While Darwin is most prominently known for the theory of evolution , he @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plants and made a valuable contribution to the botanical sciences .
Unlike many of his contemporaries , Darwin maintained that plants are not unthinking automatons but highly complex and receptive organisms .
In one of his last works , The Power of Movement in Plants , published in 1880 , Darwin suggests that the root of the plant operates in a similar way to the neural networks found in lower animals , receiving information about the external environment and communicating it to other areas of its structure , writing : Unfortunately , Darwin @ @ @ @ @ @ @ scientists of the time , particularly the eminent plant physiologist Julius Sachs .
He labeled Darwin an amateur scientist who performed careless experiments and acquired misleading results .
However , in-depth analysis of plants is beginning to reveal they possess highly developed neural systems and even utilize the same neurotransmitters we do .
While it is easy to dismiss these findings as pseudoscience , more and more scientists are recognizing that plants exhibit brain like-functions and make sentient decisions .
In 2009 , researchers Dieter Volkmann , Stefano Mancuso , Peter W Barlow @ @ @ @ @ @ @ article in the journal entitled “ The ‘ root-brain ’ hypothesis of Charles and Francis Darwin ” in which they examined Darwin ’ s root hypothesis and whether current scientific literature supports his theory .
Based on a complex analysis of scientific data , they concluded that “ recent advances in chemical ecology reveal the astonishing complexity of higher plants as exemplified by the battery of volatile substances which they produce and sense in order to share information with other organisms about their physiological state.
” 4 According to the paper , plants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , even secrete signaling exudates that “ mediate kin recognition.
” Moreover , plants are “ capable of a type of plant-specific cognition , suggesting that communicative and identity recognition systems are used , as they are in animal and human societies , to improve the fitness of plants and so further their evolution.
” Darwin ’ s theories were ridiculed at the time he was writing , but now more open-minded scientists are discovering that plants may possess some form of conscious awareness , a discovery that would have pleased Darwin immensely @ @ @ @ @ @ @ to have undertaken research into plant intelligence is Monica Gagliano , associate professor at the University of Western Australia .
In 2014 , she conducted a series of experiments using plants to work out whether plants ‘ memorize ’ changes in their environment .
In order to test her hypothesis , she placed the plants in pots and then loaded each one onto a specially designed plant-dropping device .
Each plant was dropped from a height of six inches , sixty times in a row at five-second intervals .
The plants would fall @ @ @ @ @ @ @ from bouncing , with the drop quick enough to cause the plants to curl up their leaves .
Since the plants were not harmed in any way , Gagliano wondered whether they would eventually realize the drop did not signify an external danger .
After a short amount of time , she found that “ some individuals did not close their leaves when fully dropped.
” The plants realized that falling from six inches would not cause them any harm and no longer curled their leaves .
Members of the scientific community were @ @ @ @ @ @ @ suggesting the plants merely became exhausted .
Gagliano disproved this theory by taking a group of plants and placing them in a shaker in order to deplete them of energy .
She found that the plants still curled their leaves , indicating they only became unguarded when dropped from a height to which they had become accustomed.5 Gagliano ’ s research has significant implications in terms of how we see plants .
The fact that they respond differently to situations that present no harm to those that do , implies plants recall sensory @ @ @ @ @ @ @ them .
While there is much uncertainty as to how plants recall this information , Gagliano believes it could be representative of a distributed intelligence operating entirely different from the mammalian brain .
This corresponds with Rupert Sheldrake ’ s ‘ morphic resonance ’ hypothesis that memories are not stored in the brain but in a universal informational field .
We should imagine the brain to be like a television set which tunes into different programs we watch , rather than a memory hard-drive .
From this perspective , the brain has limited @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stored somewhere else in some sort of ‘ quantum database ’ .
As Sheldrake points out , it has been proven that animals have memories that are engendered in other members of their species , and past experience is passed onto future generations .
For example , in the United States , cows learned about cattle grids and now farmers simply paint lines on the road to trick them from crossing .
They seem to know what a cattle grid is even if they never have seen one before .
Examples like this @ @ @ @ @ @ @ neurological phenomenon but exist in other forms ; this may explain why plants are able to memorize information without possessing a physical brain structure.6 The notion that plants operate within a wider intelligence network is supported by recent experiments in plant communication .
In a study conducted by Dr. Velemir Ninkovic and his associate researchers at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences , a soft brush was applied to corn seedlings , a stimulus that could represent different external stresses , such as new plants encroaching on their territory or an animal trying @ @ @ @ @ @ @ then placed in the same soil as the recently touched plants to see whether it impacted their growth .
The scientists discovered that the fresh seedlings responded by growing more leaves and fewer roots than the plants that had grown under unmodified conditions .
This suggested that the corn seedlings were exposed to the chemical signals of the recently touched plants in the soil and therefore were preparing themselves against future stresses more effectively.7 In order to establish whether the plants were able to distinguish between the soil occupied by touched and untouched @ @ @ @ @ @ @ the option of which medium they preferred growing in .
When placed near both types of soil , the roots had a preference for the growing solution that contained the untouched plants .
These findings suggest that plants are able to communicate with each other even when they are not simultaneously present .
This challenges the view that plants can not exchange information in the way animals do and utilize complex communication networks to protect the interests of the group species .
While science has historically depicted plants as inanimate and mechanical , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ ‘ social ’ intelligence that supports the continuation of their survival .
The belief that plants constitute an intelligent life form is commonplace in shamanic cultures , particularly those found in South America .
As Michael Winkelman , Associate Professor at Arizona State University states , “ the self-identifications with the broader universe , particularly personification of the sentient cosmos which is a hallmark of ecopsychology , is a fundamental aspect of shamanism.
” Religious ceremonies , practiced for hundreds of years in these cultures , often involve the consumption of entheogenic plants @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of consciousness .
During these ceremonies , the shaman assumes the role of a spiritual guide to direct the experience through chanting , drumming , singing and other psycho-dramatic practices .
The plants are believed to hold sacred properties , with the potential to provide the participant with profound insights .
Many people who have ingested Ayahuasca , an entheogenic brew made from the vine in South America , report telepathic communication with plants , animals , and people during the experience ; the natural world becomes personified as an animated fractal intelligence @ @ @ @ @ @ @ evolving .
Many also say the experience had a long-lasting impact on their connection with animals , people , and nature , helping them solve their existential issues more effectively.8 In this sense , recent experiments into plant intelligence prove what shamanistic cultures have known all along – that plants are intelligent , sensitive , and sentient life-forms.9 By observing their behavior , we can learn more about the natural world and the complexity of all living things .
Although modern science provided us with tremendous technological innovation and development , the reductionist @ @ @ @ @ @ @ mechanical ’ in their nature , rather than a dynamic expression of intelligence and consciousness , has disconnected us from our environment and thus ourselves .
As the independent scholar , author , teacher , and speaker on sacred plant medicine , Stephen Buhner , states : There are significant social , philosophical , and religious implications for plant intelligence .
It challenges the anthropocentric and monotheistic view that humans are the only species with a mind and a soul – we are not the most important entity in the universe but part @ @ @ @ @ @ @ There is great value in recognizing nature ’ s extraordinary intelligence as we find ourselves on the brink of social , economic , and environmental collapse .
For decades , the capitalist economic model has depended on resources provided by non-human life forms in order to meet the needs of consumers .
Perceiving plants as sentient life forms , rather than a mere resource for our consumerist habits , may prompt us to formulate new ways of living in harmony with the natural world .
By expanding our view of how consciousness expresses @ @ @ @ @ @ @ of the ecological world and possibly halt the current path of environmental destruction .
Buhner notes : Plant intelligence also forces us to reconsider the nature of consciousness .
Mainstream science currently posits the idea that consciousness is an epiphenomenon of the brain ( it is generated by the brain ) .
When we die , the brain ceases to operate , and consciousness switches off .
In this reductionist perspective , plants and animals possess a very limited consciousness since their brains are not as neurologically complex .
But the fact of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ not understand the mystery of consciousness and the process by which neural pathways , which are non-conscious , become self-aware as a complex web of connections in the brain .
If plants have the ability to recall sensory information , socially communicate with each other , and respond to complex changes in the environment , we are forced to rethink our current models of consciousness .
It may be the case that the human brain constitutes a very specific expression of consciousness , and intelligence manifests across a broad spectrum of life with @ @ @ @ @ @ @ awareness which modern science does not currently understand .
To conclude , there is increasing evidence suggesting plants are an intelligent life-form .
Recent scientific experiments indicate that plants are able to retain sensory information , respond to complex changes in their environment , and even communicate with one another via complex biological networks .
While we have yet to fully understand how plant intelligence works , these experiments challenge the orthodox scientific view that plants are non-sentient , and intelligence only emerges via neural pathways in the brain .
More free-thinking scientists @ @ @ @ @ @ @ plants possess brain-like functions and can make intelligent decisions , an idea accepted by shamanic societies for millennia .
There are significant philosophical implications for plant intelligence .
Not only does it challenge reductionist explanations for consciousness but forces us to consider our treatment of the planet and agro-capitalism ’ s ongoing large-scale commodification of the plant kingdom .
As we teeter on the brink of environmental collapse , and traditional social , economic and political models become increasingly redundant and outmoded , it is critical we start perceiving nature and plants in @ @ @ @ @ @ @ depletable , capitalist resource .
Jack Fox-Williams graduated with a BA Hons degree in Philosophy and History from Goldsmiths University , London , in 2014 .
Since then he has worked as a freelance writer in Cornwall , England , focusing on philosophy , hermeticism , and alternative science .
He is currently working on a book about the relationship between the history of science and the occult .
He can be contacted via email at jfoxwilliams @ yahoo.co.uk .
2 .
See by Stephen Harrod Buhner ( Bear & Co , 2014 @ @ @ @ @ @ @ Power of Movements in Plants , John Murray , 1880 4 .
F. Bulska , S. Mancuso , et al.
, The ‘ root-brain ’ hypothesis of Charles and Francis Darwin , 2009 ; Dec ; 4 ( 12 ) : 1121-1127 5 .
M. Gagliano , et al.
, Experience teaches plants to learn faster and forget slower in environments where it matters , , 5 January 2014 ; DOI : 10.1007/s00442-013-2873-7 6 .
R. Nissen , Memory is not in your head , animalnav.org/memory-not-in-your-head/ 7 .
J. Gabbatiss , Plants use @ @ @ @ @ @ @ stressed , , 2 May 2018 9 .
J. Kounen , Advice for Encounters with Scary Serpents and Talking Plants During Ayahuasca Visions , kahpi.net/scary-serpents-talking-plants-ayahuasca-visions/ If you appreciate this article , please consider a digital subscription to New Dawn .
The above article appeared in **This article was originally featured at New Dawn and is reposted here with permission .
**

By Jack Fox-Williams | New Dawn
For centuries, Western philosophy has viewed animals and plants as unthinking automatons. The famous 17th scientist and philosopher, Rene Descartes, maintained that non-human organisms cannot reason or feel pain; they are robotic machines that purely act on impulse.1
While science has recently proven that animals are intelligent creatures, capable of logical thinking and emotional experience, the notion that plants possess a similar kind of intelligence is largely disregarded by the scientific community. It is assumed that because plants do not possess a brain, they have no conscious experience.
Goethe and other thinkers through history observed that plants constitute an intelligent life-form, develop symbiotic relationships with other organisms, and can respond to complex changes in the environment. While the scientific community explains the intelligence of plant behavior in terms of electrical and chemical responses to sensory stimuli, others believe that plants could provide valuable insight into other forms of consciousness.
One of the most famous scientists to observe plant intelligence was the English naturalist, geologist, and biologist, Charles Darwin.2 While Darwin is most prominently known for the theory of evolution, he was deeply fascinated by the behavior of plants and made a valuable contribution to the botanical sciences. Unlike many of his contemporaries, Darwin maintained that plants are not unthinking automatons but highly complex and receptive organisms. In one of his last works, The Power of Movement in Plants, published in 1880, Darwin suggests that the root of the plant operates in a similar way to the neural networks found in lower animals, receiving information about the external environment and communicating it to other areas of its structure, writing:
“It is hardly an exaggeration to say that the tip of the radicle thus endowed (with sensitivity) and having the power of directing the movements of the adjoining parts, acts like the brain of one of the lower animals; the brain being seated within the anterior end of the body, receiving impressions from the sense-organs and directing the several movements.”3
Unfortunately, Darwin’s observations were rejected by leading scientists of the time, particularly the eminent plant physiologist Julius Sachs. He labeled Darwin an amateur scientist who performed careless experiments and acquired misleading results. However, in-depth analysis of plants is beginning to reveal they possess highly developed neural systems and even utilize the same neurotransmitters we do.
Modern Science & Plant Intelligence
While it is easy to dismiss these findings as pseudoscience, more and more scientists are recognizing that plants exhibit brain like-functions and make sentient decisions. In 2009, researchers Dieter Volkmann, Stefano Mancuso, Peter W Barlow, and Frantisek Baluska, published an article in the journal Plant Signal Behaviour entitled “The ‘root-brain’ hypothesis of Charles and Francis Darwin” in which they examined Darwin’s root hypothesis and whether current scientific literature supports his theory.
Based on a complex analysis of scientific data, they concluded that “recent advances in chemical ecology reveal the astonishing complexity of higher plants as exemplified by the battery of volatile substances which they produce and sense in order to share information with other organisms about their physiological state.”4 According to the paper, plants can recognize self from non-self and roots, even secrete signaling exudates that “mediate kin recognition.” Moreover, plants are “capable of a type of plant-specific cognition, suggesting that communicative and identity recognition systems are used, as they are in animal and human societies, to improve the fitness of plants and so further their evolution.”
Darwin’s theories were ridiculed at the time he was writing, but now more open-minded scientists are discovering that plants may possess some form of conscious awareness, a discovery that would have pleased Darwin immensely.
One of the most interesting scientists to have undertaken research into plant intelligence is Monica Gagliano, associate professor at the University of Western Australia. In 2014, she conducted a series of experiments using Mimosa Pudicas plants to work out whether plants ‘ memorize’ changes in their environment.
In order to test her hypothesis, she placed the plants in pots and then loaded each one onto a specially designed plant-dropping device. Each plant was dropped from a height of six inches, sixty times in a row at five-second intervals. The plants would fall onto a soft foam to prevent them from bouncing, with the drop quick enough to cause the plants to curl up their leaves. Since the plants were not harmed in any way, Gagliano wondered whether they would eventually realize the drop did not signify an external danger. After a short amount of time, she found that “some individuals did not close their leaves when fully dropped.”The plants realized that falling from six inches would not cause them any harm and no longer curled their leaves.
Members of the scientific community were cynical of Gagliano’s findings, suggesting the plants merely became exhausted. Gagliano disproved this theory by taking a group of plants and placing them in a shaker in order to deplete them of energy. She found that the plants still curled their leaves, indicating they only became unguarded when dropped from a height to which they had become accustomed.5
Gagliano’s research has significant implications in terms of how we see plants. The fact that they respond differently to situations that present no harm to those that do, implies plants recall sensory information and ‘memorize’ changes around them. While there is much uncertainty as to how plants recall this information, Gagliano believes it could be representative of a distributed intelligence operating entirely different from the mammalian brain.
This corresponds with Rupert Sheldrake’s ‘morphic resonance’ hypothesis that memories are not stored in the brain but in a universal informational field. We should imagine the brain to be like a television set which tunes into different programs we watch, rather than a memory hard-drive. From this perspective, the brain has limited memory. Most of the information is stored somewhere else in some sort of ‘quantum database’. As Sheldrake points out, it has been proven that animals have memories that are engendered in other members of their species, and past experience is passed onto future generations. For example, in the United States, cows learned about cattle grids and now farmers simply paint lines on the road to trick them from crossing. They seem to know what a cattle grid is even if they never have seen one before. Examples like this suggest memory may not be an entirely neurological phenomenon but exist in other forms; this may explain why plants are able to memorize information without possessing a physical brain structure.6
The notion that plants operate within a wider intelligence network is supported by recent experiments in plant communication. In a study conducted by Dr. Velemir Ninkovic and his associate researchers at the Swedish University of Agricultural Sciences, a soft brush was applied to corn seedlings, a stimulus that could represent different external stresses, such as new plants encroaching on their territory or an animal trying to eat it. New seedlings were then placed in the same soil as the recently touched plants to see whether it impacted their growth. The scientists discovered that the fresh seedlings responded by growing more leaves and fewer roots than the plants that had grown under unmodified conditions. This suggested that the corn seedlings were exposed to the chemical signals of the recently touched plants in the soil and therefore were preparing themselves against future stresses more effectively.7
In order to establish whether the plants were able to distinguish between the soil occupied by touched and untouched plants, the scientists offered corn seedlings the option of which medium they preferred growing in. When placed near both types of soil, the roots had a preference for the growing solution that contained the untouched plants. These findings suggest that plants are able to communicate with each other even when they are not simultaneously present. This challenges the view that plants cannot exchange information in the way animals do and utilize complex communication networks to protect the interests of the group species. While science has historically depicted plants as inanimate and mechanical, in reality, plants possess a profound ‘social’ intelligence that supports the continuation of their survival.
Plant Sentience in Shamanic Cultures
The belief that plants constitute an intelligent life form is commonplace in shamanic cultures, particularly those found in South America. As Michael Winkelman, Associate Professor at Arizona State University states, “the self-identifications with the broader universe, particularly personification of the sentient cosmos which is a hallmark of ecopsychology, is a fundamental aspect of shamanism.”
Religious ceremonies, practiced for hundreds of years in these cultures, often involve the consumption of entheogenic plants to access alternative realities and altered states of consciousness. During these ceremonies, the shaman assumes the role of a spiritual guide to direct the experience through chanting, drumming, singing and other psycho-dramatic practices. The plants are believed to hold sacred properties, with the potential to provide the participant with profound insights.
Many people who have ingested Ayahuasca, an entheogenic brew made from the Banisteriopsis caapi vine in South America, report telepathic communication with plants, animals, and people during the experience; the natural world becomes personified as an animated fractal intelligence that is constantly adapting, changing and evolving. Many also say the experience had a long-lasting impact on their connection with animals, people, and nature, helping them solve their existential issues more effectively.8
In this sense, recent experiments into plant intelligence prove what shamanistic cultures have known all along – that plants are intelligent, sensitive, and sentient life-forms.9 By observing their behavior, we can learn more about the natural world and the complexity of all living things. Although modern science provided us with tremendous technological innovation and development, the reductionist belief that animals and plants are ‘mechanical’ in their nature, rather than a dynamic expression of intelligence and consciousness, has disconnected us from our environment and thus ourselves. As the independent scholar, author, teacher, and speaker on sacred plant medicine, Stephen Buhner, states:
“All people, and I mean all, know that the earth and everything in it is alive. Four-year-old children naturally know this. They have to be forcefully taught that the world is dead. Ancient and indigenous cultures never killed that sensibility but rather developed it. They were interwoven into the life web of the planet, not separate from it. But it was not only indigenous cultures but all ancient cultures that knew this, no matter how they developed… The thing that we call science has taken the long way around. And, they are now getting back to where we started long ago, aware that all of nature is alive, intelligent and aware. That we are merely one part of a very large living scenario.”10 (See my interview with Stephen Buhner in this issue.)
A Challenge to Outmoded Paradigms & Thinking
There are significant social, philosophical, and religious implications for plant intelligence. It challenges the anthropocentric and monotheistic view that humans are the only species with a mind and a soul – we are not the most important entity in the universe but part of an interconnected web of life. There is great value in recognizing nature’s extraordinary intelligence as we find ourselves on the brink of social, economic, and environmental collapse. For decades, the capitalist economic model has depended on resources provided by non-human life forms in order to meet the needs of consumers. Perceiving plants as sentient life forms, rather than a mere resource for our consumerist habits, may prompt us to formulate new ways of living in harmony with the natural world. By expanding our view of how consciousness expresses, we can better appreciate the complexity of the ecological world and possibly halt the current path of environmental destruction. Buhner notes:
“The older, reductive, mechanistic paradigm that looked at the earth as a ball of non-sentient resources, we do with as we please, has reached its limits. It is destroying the ability of most life forms to endure, and the eco-systems of the planet. Younger and less mentally restrictive scientists in every field are finding that the world around us is far different than the picture that reductionists have created and taught us to believe. All life is intelligent, none of it is mechanical, and you cannot use the ecosystems of the planet as resources for unlimited extraction.”11
Plant intelligence also forces us to reconsider the nature of consciousness. Mainstream science currently posits the idea that consciousness is an epiphenomenon of the brain (it is generated by the brain). When we die, the brain ceases to operate, and consciousness switches off. In this reductionist perspective, plants and animals possess a very limited consciousness since their brains are not as neurologically complex. But the fact of the matter stands that modern science does not understand the mystery of consciousness and the process by which neural pathways, which are non-conscious, become self-aware as a complex web of connections in the brain. If plants have the ability to recall sensory information, socially communicate with each other, and respond to complex changes in the environment, we are forced to rethink our current models of consciousness. It may be the case that the human brain constitutes a very specific expression of consciousness, and intelligence manifests across a broad spectrum of life with plants possessing their own unique form of awareness which modern science does not currently understand.
To conclude, there is increasing evidence suggesting plants are an intelligent life-form. Recent scientific experiments indicate that plants are able to retain sensory information, respond to complex changes in their environment, and even communicate with one another via complex biological networks. While we have yet to fully understand how plant intelligence works, these experiments challenge the orthodox scientific view that plants are non-sentient, and intelligence only emerges via neural pathways in the brain.
More free-thinking scientists and researchers are beginning to prove that plants possess brain-like functions and can make intelligent decisions, an idea accepted by shamanic societies for millennia.
There are significant philosophical implications for plant intelligence. Not only does it challenge reductionist explanations for consciousness but forces us to consider our treatment of the planet and agro-capitalism’s ongoing large-scale commodification of the plant kingdom.
As we teeter on the brink of environmental collapse, and traditional social, economic and political models become increasingly redundant and outmoded, it is critical we start perceiving nature and plants in a different light, rather than a depletable, capitalist resource.
An interview with Stephen Harrod Buhner accompanies this article and can be read inside the same issue of New Dawn.
Further reading: Stephen Harrod Buhner’s books, Secret Teachings of Plants: The Intelligence of the Heart in the Direct Perception of Nature and Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm.
About the Author
Jack Fox-Williams graduated with a BA Hons degree in Philosophy and History from Goldsmiths University, London, in 2014. Since then he has worked as a freelance writer in Cornwall, England, focusing on philosophy, hermeticism, and alternative science. He is currently working on a book about the relationship between the history of science and the occult. He can be contacted via email at jfoxwilliams@yahoo.co.uk.
Footnotes
1. The Philosophical Works of Descartes, Cambridge University Press, 1969
2. See Plant Intelligence and the Imaginal Realm by Stephen Harrod Buhner (Bear & Co, 2014)
3. Charles Darwin, The Power of Movements in Plants, John Murray, 1880
4. F. Bulska, S. Mancuso, et al., The ‘root-brain’ hypothesis of Charles and Francis Darwin, Plant Signal Behaviour, 2009; Dec; 4(12): 1121-1127
5. M. Gagliano, et al., Experience teaches plants to learn faster and forget slower in environments where it matters, Oecologia, 5 January 2014; DOI: 10.1007/s00442-013-2873-7
6. R. Nissen, Memory is not in your head, animalnav.org/memory-not-in-your-head/
7. J. Gabbatiss, Plants use underground communication to learn when neighbors are stressed, The Independent, 2 May 2018
8. M. Winkelman, Shamanism and Psychedelics: A biogenetic structuralist paradigm of ecopsychology, European Journal of Ecopsychology
9. J. Kounen, Advice for Encounters with Scary Serpents and Talking Plants During Ayahuasca Visions, kahpi.net/scary-serpents-talking-plants-ayahuasca-visions/
10. Interview conducted with Stephen Buhner, 16 July 2019
11. Ibid.
If you appreciate this article, please consider a digital subscription to New Dawn.
The above article appeared in New Dawn 176 (Sept-Oct 2019)
**This article was originally featured at New Dawn and is reposted here with permission.**


consciouslifenews--2020-07-03--Ancient Engineering Wonders: This 1,200-Year-Old Temple Was Carved out of Solid Rock

Many archaeological discoveries and ancient monuments that survived to the present day suggest that our ancestors were far more advanced than we think .
Massive and sometimes “ impossible ” structures make us wonder how the ancient people built something like these thousands of years ago , without the sophisticated construction equipment we have today .
One such structure is the majestic which was carved out of a single rock 1,200 years ago .
Located in the Maharashtra state in western India , it ’ s definitely one of the most impressive ancient Hindu temples .
It ’ s a @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an area that extends over more than two kilometers ( 1,2 miles ) and includes a total of 34 monasteries and temples .
The Kailasa temple is 164 feet deep , 109 feet wide , and 98 feet high , which makes it one of the largest monolithic structures in the world .
It is oriented towards Mount Kailash , which is the home of the god Shiva , according to Hindu beliefs .
The temple is full of remarkable details and is decorated with the traditional Hindu architectural elements , such as @ @ @ @ @ @ @ in Hindu culture ) , erotic male and female figures , scenes from the Ramayana , the Mahabharata and the adventures of Krishna .
The huge monolithic pillars in the courtyard , which are flanking the entrance on both sides , are particularly striking .
It is estimated that about 400,000 tons of rocks were scooped out to build this amazing monolithic structure .
The walls were carved with extreme precision from top-down , with a vertical excavation method .
No surprise that this challenging task took centuries of human labor to complete @ @ @ @ @ @ @ temple was completed in the 8th century , during the reign of King Krishna I of the Rashtrakuta dynasty .
It is also thought that the earliest carvings were made back in 300 BC .
K. Dhavalikar , a retired Professor of Archaeology and the Director of the Deccan College Post-Graduate Research Institute in Pune , India , wrote a book based on the results of his research in the Ellora Caves .
According to him , “ all these shrines and the Kailasa were not excavated at the same time , but @ @ @ @ @ @ @ M. K. Dhavalikar , 2003 , p. 44 ) .
Despite all the research efforts , the archaeologists are clueless as to who built the temple and for what purpose .
The only certain thing is that the builders of the Kailasa temple had truly remarkable skills since they managed to create such a huge monolithic structure using just a few hand tools like hammers , chisels , and picks .
There are still many questions that remain unanswered about the origin and builders of the temple .
Some people even argue that @ @ @ @ @ @ @ alien technologies .
You can learn more about this theory in the video below : Tags : `` featured , ancient engineering , ancient engineering wonders , ancient Hindu temples , ancient monuments , ancient world , archaeological discoveries , Ellora Caves , featured , impressive structures of the ancient world , Kailasa temple , monolithic structures , Mount Kailash , the majestic Kailasa temple

By Anna Lemind | Creative Commons | TheMindUnleashed.com
Many archaeological discoveries and ancient monuments that survived to the present day suggest that our ancestors were far more advanced than we think. Massive and sometimes “impossible” structures make us wonder how the ancient people built something like these thousands of years ago, without the sophisticated construction equipment we have today. One such structure is the majestic Kailasa temple, which was carved out of a single rock 1,200 years ago.
Located in the Maharashtra state in western India, it’s definitely one of the most impressive ancient Hindu temples. It’s a part of the famous Ellora Caves, an area that extends over more than two kilometers (1,2 miles) and includes a total of 34 monasteries and temples.
The Kailasa temple is 164 feet deep, 109 feet wide, and 98 feet high, which makes it one of the largest monolithic structures in the world. It is oriented towards Mount Kailash, which is the home of the god Shiva, according to Hindu beliefs.
The temple is full of remarkable details and is decorated with the traditional Hindu architectural elements, such as elephants, lions and makaras (sea-creatures in Hindu culture), erotic male and female figures, scenes from the Ramayana, the Mahabharata and the adventures of Krishna.
The huge monolithic pillars in the courtyard, which are flanking the entrance on both sides, are particularly striking.
It is estimated that about 400,000 tons of rocks were scooped out to build this amazing monolithic structure. The walls were carved with extreme precision from top-down, with a vertical excavation method. No surprise that this challenging task took centuries of human labor to complete.
Most archaeologists believe that the Kailasa temple was completed in the 8th century, during the reign of King Krishna I of the Rashtrakuta dynasty. It is also thought that the earliest carvings were made back in 300 BC.
K. Dhavalikar, a retired Professor of Archaeology and the Director of the Deccan College Post-Graduate Research Institute in Pune, India, wrote a book based on the results of his research in the Ellora Caves. According to him, “all these shrines and the Kailasa were not excavated at the same time, but belong to different periods.” (“Ellora”, M. K. Dhavalikar, 2003, p. 44).
Despite all the research efforts, the archaeologists are clueless as to who built the temple and for what purpose. The only certain thing is that the builders of the Kailasa temple had truly remarkable skills since they managed to create such a huge monolithic structure using just a few hand tools like hammers, chisels, and picks.
There are still many questions that remain unanswered about the origin and builders of the temple. Some people even argue that it was built with the use of alien technologies. You can learn more about this theory in the video below:


consciouslifenews--2020-07-03--Is the Nation Opening Its Soul?

Is the Nation Opening Its Soul?

Topple a few statues , remove some iconic names from American institutions .
.
.
and the ghosts of the past start to escape from history , filling the present moment .
It ’ s called awareness .
Too much awareness can feel like chaos .
Not surprisingly , a lot of people would prefer to stick with the old historical narrative , the one that ’ s so tried and true : This is the land of the free , the home of the brave , the birthplace of democracy .
God bless America !
( And forget about @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , packed prisons , nukes , endless war , etc . )
The question of the moment is whether this narrative is gone for good .
Are we merely in the process of making some superficial adjustments or has the national soul truly torn itself open ?
Will we stop short —once again—of creating a society of compassionate equality ?
Will , we eventually ( as soon as possible ) retreat to another narrative of American exceptionalism and .
.
.
uh , white power ?
Or are we in the process of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ an optimist .
The ghosts of the past that are returning to the present moment could be the harbingers of unimaginable change .
Even the changes that seem trivial—rebranding Aunt Jemima pancake mix , for instance—have roots that go deep into the national identity and its sources of power .
Consider , for instance , the downfall of Woodrow Wilson , former U.S. president who was also president of Princeton University for eight years .
Announcing that Wilson ’ s name would be removed from Princeton ’ s public policy school , current @ @ @ @ @ @ @ BBC News : “ Wilson ’ s racism was significant and consequential even by the standards of his own time.
” Wow , that ’ s no small deal , considering how low the standards for racial stupidity were in the early 20th century .
Nonetheless , he explained , Wilson—whose legacy includes barring black students from attending Princeton , who was a friend of the Ku Klux Klan—was revered by Princeton for over a century “ not because of , but without regard to or perhaps even in ignorance of , his @ @ @ @ @ @ @ , “ is part of an America that has too often disregarded , ignored , or excused racism , allowing the persistence of systems that discriminate against black people.
” So America ’ s racist ignorance is over ?
Examples keep pouring in .
Not only are statues of Confederate generals finally coming down , but Christopher Columbus — colonialist conqueror extraordinaire — apparently has also had his day , with his statues coming down all over the place .
And a particularly racist statue of Theodore Roosevelt , depicting the conquering hero @ @ @ @ @ @ @ man and a Native American walk humbly beside ( and behind ) him , will be removed from in front of the American Museum of Natural History in New York .
And latter-day colonialist John Wayne , king of the Hollywood cowboys and icon of America ’ s conquest of the Wild West , is in trouble in Orange County , Calif. , where Democratic political leaders are calling for the renaming of John Wayne Airport , thanks to the “ resurfacing ” of a 1971 Playboy interview , in which he said @ @ @ @ @ @ @ until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility .
I don ’ t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.
” A fascinating irony about these words is the way they bounce back to the speaker , whose ignorance of and indifference to his country ’ s horrific history of racism indicates he was not “ educated to a point of responsibility.
” And then there are the brand names that are suddenly gone , so to speak , with the wind .
These include @ @ @ @ @ @ @ back to 1893 , whose initial model , a woman named Nancy Green , was a former slave .
Other brands with stereotypical symbols that are on their way out include Uncle Ben ’ s rice , Eskimo pies , Cream of Wheat , and Mrs. Butterworth ’ s Syrup .
“ Retiring these products is not ‘ political correctness , ’ ” Katha Pollitt writes at The Nation , “ it is the removal of a profound racial insult from our grocery stores and kitchen tables.
” And , oh yeah , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ that 1939 movie of antebellum nostalgia has been taken off HBO for the time being .
Its return will include “ a discussion of its historical context , ” according to a network spokesperson .
And the reality TV show “ Cops ” is gone after 32 seasons , depriving Americans of the chance to watch the law-and-order game in progress from the comfort of their sofas .
At a deeper level , police accountability is no longer a matter turned over to the police unions .
Derek Chauvin , the killer of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ second-degree murder , as have the other officers present at the scene of his death .
Police departments in California , Texas , Nevada , and Washington , D.C. have banned the police use of chokeholds .
And the movement to defund militarized police forces , diverting the money to other means of establishing social order , is gaining a political foothold , not only in Minneapolis ( ground zero ) but New York City .
All of which will hardly matter at all if the changes stop here .
The undoing of @ @ @ @ @ @ @ a simple matter of making reforms or righting a few wrongs .
The above changes only matter if they indicate a national rebeginning .
As a social theorist and author Joe Feagin put it in a Truthout interview : “ .
.
.
in their individual and collective protests and revolts against racial oppression African Americans have long pressed for—indeed , arguably invented—the authentic liberty-and-justice-for-all values that have gradually become more central to this country .
The white male ‘ founders ’ version of ‘ liberty and justice ’ values were inauthentic , @ @ @ @ @ @ @ for ( propertied ) white men.
” What matters about the present moment is that change seems to be coming from multiple directions , both outside and within the corridors of political and economic power , as our ignorance shatters and we wake up .

Topple a few statues, remove some iconic names from American institutions . . . and the ghosts of the past start to escape from history, filling the present moment. It’s called awareness.
Too much awareness can feel like chaos. Not surprisingly, a lot of people would prefer to stick with the old historical narrative, the one that’s so tried and true: This is the land of the free, the home of the brave, the birthplace of democracy. God bless America! (And forget about slavery, Native American genocide, racism, packed prisons, nukes, endless war, etc.)
The question of the moment is whether this narrative is gone for good. Are we merely in the process of making some superficial adjustments or has the national soul truly torn itself open? Will we stop short —once again—of creating a society of compassionate equality? Will, we eventually (as soon as possible) retreat to another narrative of American exceptionalism and . . . uh, white power? Or are we in the process of real change?
I confess to being an optimist. The ghosts of the past that are returning to the present moment could be the harbingers of unimaginable change. Even the changes that seem trivial—rebranding Aunt Jemima pancake mix, for instance—have roots that go deep into the national identity and its sources of power.
Consider, for instance, the downfall of Woodrow Wilson, former U.S. president who was also president of Princeton University for eight years. Announcing that Wilson’s name would be removed from Princeton’s public policy school, current president Christopher Eisgruber said, according to BBC News: “Wilson’s racism was significant and consequential even by the standards of his own time.”
Wow, that’s no small deal, considering how low the standards for racial stupidity were in the early 20th century. Nonetheless, he explained, Wilson—whose legacy includes barring black students from attending Princeton, who was a friend of the Ku Klux Klan—was revered by Princeton for over a century “not because of, but without regard to or perhaps even in ignorance of, his racism.”
Princeton, he went on, “is part of an America that has too often disregarded, ignored, or excused racism, allowing the persistence of systems that discriminate against black people.”
So America’s racist ignorance is over? Examples keep pouring in. Not only are statues of Confederate generals finally coming down, but Christopher Columbus — colonialist conqueror extraordinaire — apparently has also had his day, with his statues coming down all over the place. And a particularly racist statue of Theodore Roosevelt, depicting the conquering hero grandly astride his horse as a black man and a Native American walk humbly beside (and behind) him, will be removed from in front of the American Museum of Natural History in New York.
And latter-day colonialist John Wayne, king of the Hollywood cowboys and icon of America’s conquest of the Wild West, is in trouble in Orange County, Calif., where Democratic political leaders are calling for the renaming of John Wayne Airport, thanks to the “resurfacing” of a 1971 Playboy interview, in which he said: “I believe in white supremacy until the blacks are educated to a point of responsibility. I don’t believe in giving authority and positions of leadership and judgment to irresponsible people.”
A fascinating irony about these words is the way they bounce back to the speaker, whose ignorance of and indifference to his country’s horrific history of racism indicates he was not “educated to a point of responsibility.”
And then there are the brand names that are suddenly gone, so to speak, with the wind. These include Aunt Jemima, a product that dates back to 1893, whose initial model, a woman named Nancy Green, was a former slave. Other brands with stereotypical symbols that are on their way out include Uncle Ben’s rice, Eskimo pies, Cream of Wheat, and Mrs. Butterworth’s Syrup. “Retiring these products is not ‘political correctness,’” Katha Pollitt writes at The Nation, “it is the removal of a profound racial insult from our grocery stores and kitchen tables.”
And, oh yeah, speaking of Gone with the Wind, that 1939 movie of antebellum nostalgia has been taken off HBO for the time being. Its return will include “a discussion of its historical context,” according to a network spokesperson. And the reality TV show “Cops” is gone after 32 seasons, depriving Americans of the chance to watch the law-and-order game in progress from the comfort of their sofas.
At a deeper level, police accountability is no longer a matter turned over to the police unions. Derek Chauvin, the killer of George Floyd, has been charged with second-degree murder, as have the other officers present at the scene of his death. Police departments in California, Texas, Nevada, and Washington, D.C. have banned the police use of chokeholds. And the movement to defund militarized police forces, diverting the money to other means of establishing social order, is gaining a political foothold, not only in Minneapolis (ground zero) but New York City.
All of which will hardly matter at all if the changes stop here. The undoing of American racism—of its racist infrastructure—isn’t a simple matter of making reforms or righting a few wrongs. The above changes only matter if they indicate a national rebeginning.
As a social theorist and author Joe Feagin put it in a Truthout interview: “. . . in their individual and collective protests and revolts against racial oppression African Americans have long pressed for—indeed, arguably invented—the authentic liberty-and-justice-for-all values that have gradually become more central to this country. The white male ‘founders’ version of ‘liberty and justice’ values were inauthentic, as they actually had in mind freedom for (propertied) white men.”
What matters about the present moment is that change seems to be coming from multiple directions, both outside and within the corridors of political and economic power, as our ignorance shatters and we wake up.