Singularitarianism r/Singularitarianism – reddit

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Welcome to /r/Singularitarianism

A subreddit devoted to the social, political, and technological movement defined by the belief that deliberate action ought to be taken to ensure that an Intelligence Explosion benefits human civilization.

The theory of Singularitarianism is that our human species is an infant waiting to be born. An infant that is unaware of an outside world beyond the womb. The hope, purpose, and meaning in the creation of greater-than-human intelligence is our will to be born. The birth of humanity, the birth of the infant, is the evolution of the intelligence of our man and machine civilization.

Singularitarianism is a non-religious, decentralized futurist and transhumanist movement. Singularitarianism is faith in scientific skepticism and admiration for the biological phenomenon of human intelligence. From this biological intelligence comes the awe, responsibility, and capability of creating non-biological machine intelligence.

The Singularity places a horizon across humanity's understanding because we are still discovering the scientific nature of our own intelligence. Not until we understand and improve upon the biological heritage of our intelligence can we begin to understand the meaning of superintelligence. Ultimately, this reverence for universal forms of intelligence and sentience is our safeguard against mysticism, fanaticism, and ideology. Understanding and improving intelligence is simultaneously our greatest imperative and our guiding principle. This movement does not believe in God- but that simply man is a bridge and not an end- that instead we can become the Gods themselves. The human future(s) are infinite.

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Singularitarianism r/Singularitarianism - reddit

French Polynesia cuts ties with libertarian Seasteading …

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A South Pacific island nation is cutting ties with tech billionaires and libertarians.

In 2017, government officials in French Polynesia signed an agreement with the Seasteading Institute, a group founded by investor and entrepreneur Peter Thiel, that would give the libertarian group access to build a floating and politically autonomous city, called a seastead, off the coast.

Now the country's ruling political party says the agreement has expired.

The ruling Tapura Huiraatira party said in a Facebook post that the memorandum of understanding, a non-binding document that sealed the government's intent to work with the group, had a "deadline of validity" at the end of 2017. The agreement became void in January 2018.

"It's not a contract. This document does not bind the Country [sic] in any way. It has no legal value," the Facebook note said.

Facebook/tapura-huiraatira-officiel

In 2008, Thiel, a longtime tech industry fixture and a Trump transition team member, set out on a mission to develop a floating city that would run independently from existing nations. Thiel invested $1.7 million in The Seasteading Institute, but resigned from its board in 2011.

Thiel later said in an interview that engineering seasteads is "not quite feasible."

After the group's founding in 2008, some tech entrepreneurs in Silicon Valley chastised the idea, saying that the island paradises would be too wild, expensive, and elitist to generate real results.

But the seasteading concept began eventually gathering support from libertarians and people living outside the Silicon Valley bubble. A 2013 crowdfunding campaign raised over $27,000.

For years, the Seasteading Institute wanted to set up camp in international waters. Eventually, the group determined the costs of building hundreds of miles from a shoreline, away from an existing nation, were too extravagant. So the institute decided to team up with a host country.

French Polynesia fit the bill.

The island chain is located an eight-hour flight from Los Angeles. It has a fiber cable that runs underwater to Hawaii, providing the bandwidth that tech workers require.

Rising sea levels threaten French Polynesia's existence, which made a proposal to build new land appealing to the government.

An artist's rendering shows the plans for a seastead off the coast of Tahiti in French Polynesia. Blue Frontiers

In 2016, the Seasteading Institute sent a delegation to meet with French Polynesian officials. They drafted an informal agreement between the government and the Seasteading Institute.

But as the Seasteading Institute plotted its vision, locals from Tahiti the largest island in French Polynesia grew increasingly concerned about the prospect of "tech colonialism."

A documentary film crew followed the Seasteading Institute leadership at a conference in Tahiti last year. They found that locals weren't given much of a voice at these events. In the film, Alexandre Taliercio, a local radio and TV personality, describes the seastead project as a cross between "visionary genius" and "megalomania."

In a 2017 interview with The Guardian, Taliercio argued that rich Americans just want to skip out on paying taxes. "These millionaires have much more to gain than we do," he said.

The Seasteading Institute has not publicly addressed the sunken plans. Its website features a video about the French Polynesian "floating island" splashed across the front page.

Business Insider contacted the Seasteading Institute and did not immediately receive comment.

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Floating islands project in French Polynesia The …

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Who is Blue Frontiers?

Founded in 2017 by members of The Seasteading Institute and a former minister of French Polynesia, Blue Frontiers has a diverse team from around the world, working on developing floating islands in French Polynesia. It is now independently responsible for all aspects of the project.

Blue Frontiers aims to build an ecosystem of products and services to promote sea level rise resiliency, sustainable development, and societal innovation.

The project consists of constructing ecological floating platforms in a lagoon of French Polynesia that could offer a response to the challenges of rising sea levels and sustainable development.

These platforms would also provide a basis for homes, offices and infrastructure to encourage the formation of vibrant communities and explore new ways of living together.

At the same time, we want to promote innovation in digital and marine technologies by creating an attractive destination benefiting from its unique framework.

The Institute was in the process of evaluating potential host countries when it was invited by a Polynesian to consider French Polynesia, given the many strengths of the region:

The Polynesian government will fund neither the studies nor the completion of the project. No Polynesian tax dollars will fund Seasteads. No local investors will get tax exemptions either. The Institute estimates that the amount we are going to have to invest in Polynesia will be between 30 to 50 million USD for the pilot phase.

The floating island project will improve the traditional framework of special economic zones with provisions specifically designed to attract investors in French Polynesia. Because free zones already exist elsewhere, we need an innovative legislative framework and streamlined administrative procedures to attract partners and investors.

During our trip to French Polynesia in September 2016, we visited several promising sites. Detailed studies must now be undertaken, taking into account in particular the local residents, the seabed, the currents, and the profile of the wind and waves.

The images on our website come from ideas and studies done before we chose French Polynesia as our host country. Our architects will design floating islands that suit the specific environmental and aesthetic needs of the site we select.

The environment is a major concern of the project, and our architects are very sensitive to protecting it. Our islands are designed to have a negligible impact on the environment, use renewable energies and may even, according to some preliminary studies, lead to an improvement of the ecosystem under certain conditions. We plan to form partnerships for the monitoring of the seabed and to share knowledge about our progress.

The protocol signals the willingness of the government and the Institute to work together. In 2017, Blue Frontiers completed and submitted to the government environmental and economic studies. Following that, the government will develop an appropriate legislative framework for the project.

You can download the text of the protocol (english text at in the second part).

Our partners and companies attracted by this project will contribute to the diversification of the Polynesian economy and help retain local graduates who might otherwise look abroad for opportunities.

Significant investments in construction will spread to the local economy, and businesses and residents will maintain or increase employment with domestic suppliers and traders.

We hope to help place Polynesia at the center of international efforts to mitigate the effects of climate change, notably by developing the technologies needed to maintain populations threatened by rising sea levels in the Tuamotu and elsewhere.

Listen to Minister Jean Christophe Bouissou present the project and its benefits to TNTV:

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Floating islands project in French Polynesia The ...

Leisure & Corporate Travel Agents in … – WorldTravelService

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With eight agency locations throughout Washington DC, Maryland, and Virginia, WorldTravelService serves a number of large corporate clients throughout the Mid-Atlantic region, including Delaware, Pennsylvania, and West Virginia. As part of a worldwide system of affiliates and partners, we are able to leverage our economies of scale to provide our clientsboth corporate and leisurewith a wide range of benefits, discounts, amenities, and conveniences that they would not otherwise be able to access. We are also the largest independent, Veteran-owned agency in the Mid-Atlantic!

WorldTravelService uses the most sophisticated travel technology available to ensure complete accuracy, cost efficiency, and security. Our quality assurance programs, fare checks, and other tools are constantly running in order to give our clients the absolute best service. And since these tools are nothing without the right people to use them, we place utmost importance on hiring and retaining the most talented and dedicated professionals in the travel industry. Your complete satisfaction in every aspect of your experience with us is our highest goal.

Call us at 800-676-3796 to learn why thousands of companies and luxury travelers entrusts their travel plans to WorldTravelService, the mid-Atlantics leading full-service travel concierge to VIPs, business professionals, and serious travel connoisseurs.

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Leisure & Corporate Travel Agents in ... - WorldTravelService

The 5 Best Beaches In New York City CBS New York

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More: Getaway Guide To Coney Island

Everybodys heard of Coney Island. The most famous beach in New York trills and thrums with energy, even during winter. Here you can lay out, swim, ride a roller coaster, cheer the Brooklyn Cyclones, eat a hotdog at Nathans Famous, visit the citys main aquarium, go to a concert, or simply watch the parade of people moving up and down the boardwalk, seeing and being seen, as theyve done for decade after decade.

All the beaches in New York have sun, sand, and waves, but only Rockaway Beach, in Queens, has surfing. When you tire of hanging ten, follow the smells along the boardwalk to what just might be the citys best concession stands, including Rippers and Tacoway Beach,a new creation from the owners of the now shuttered Rockaway Taco. You can get there via car, subway or byferry.

We have Robert Moses to thank for this one. As parks commissioner, he widened several city beaches, and had Orchard Beach more or less built using sand from beaches in Queens and New Jersey, a project that cost $8 million. Upon opening in 1936, it was nicknamed the Riviera of New York, and 50,000 people arrived the first weekend. Many improvements in the late 1990s and 2000s including new playgrounds and facilities have restored this beach to its former glory.

Aside from being the only beach on this list to have partially inspired a Neil Simon play, Brighton Beach will make you think youve left Brooklyn and landed in Ukraine. Known as Little Odessa, Brighton Beach has restaurants and stores specializing in vodka, black bread, plump dumplings, and jams, among other delicacies. Unlike its next-door neighbor Coney Island, Brighton Beach tends to be quieter and to attract more locals. Say privet (hello in Russian) and dont be shy about making yourself at home.

Franklin D. Roosevelt Boardwalk and Beach might be named for an important 20th-Century figure, but the beach itself has been around for a long while. The Dutch hung out here in the 1660s, and in the late 1880s the area became a popular resort, complete with music halls and shooting galleries. FDRs Work Progress Administration gave it still another boost in the 1930s. In addition to playgrounds, bocce courts, and playing fields, today the beach has launching sites for canoes and kayaks, and 2.5 or so miles of pure sand.

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The 5 Best Beaches In New York City CBS New York

The Top 5 Best Beaches in the New York City Area : New …

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New York: city of the Empire State Building, Central Park, the Yankees, Wall Street, the West Village, and beaches? A sandy beach is not something that immediately comes to mind when you think of the Big Apple. This really is a shame, as the city boasts quite a lot of impressive beaches! And when it gets to the high eighties or even nineties (30-40 C for the Europeans) in the summer months, a nice swim in cool salty waters sounds pretty good!

Unfortunately, not everyone knows where to find these patches of sandy paradise. Tourists who come to the city in warmer seasons try to cool off with overprized ice cream or in overcrowded public pools, oblivious to the fact that wide sandy beaches await just a short air-conditioned subway ride away! Perhaps this is because the island of Manhattan has no seashores. To get to the beaches, you will have to leave the center of the universe and visit the other 4 boroughs of New York City: the Bronx, Brooklyn, Queens & Staten Island, or travel even further to the wide beaches of Long Island.

One Beach for Every Borough

Once you start looking into beaches in and around NYC, you will find that there are quite many to choose from! To avoid heated discussions in Midtown Manhattan subway stations, weve narrowed down the list for you to the 5 best beaches in and around the city. Weve selected one for each borough (except Manhattan) so no matter where you are in the city theres always a beach nearby! Access to all of the beaches in the NYC boroughs is free. Weve also included a beach in Long Island because its one of our personal favorites. All the beaches listed here have sections with lifeguards on duty daily from 10 am to 6 pm during beach season, which starts Memorial Day weekend. To find out more about water safety check out the official NYC Parks & Recreation website on beaches.

Without further ado: for those hot summer days and nights in the city that never sleeps, check out these beaches in New York to cool down!

1. Coney Island in Brooklyn

This iconic beach is probably the best-known among the beaches in New York City. Some New Yorkers say the beach, boardwalk and accompanying amusement park have seen their best days. Its true that the once popular resort destination fell into decay after the Second World War. In recent years, however, Coney Island has been revitalized: the boardwalk has been renovated, new showers and toilets have been installed and the 2.5 mile beach is once more clean and inviting. It also doesnt hurt that Coney Island is conveniently accessible by public transportation. A cheap subway ride from Midtown Manhattan takes less than an hour: you can catch the D, F, N or Q train to Coney Island/ Stillwell Avenue station, which is just two blocks away from the beach. Take a ride in the famous Cyclone Rollercoaster, have a hotdog at Nathans Famous, stroll along the boardwalk, relax on the beach and go for a swim! For more attractions and events, check out the Coney Island Fun Guide.

Just like in Manhattan, New York Habitat offers a wide variety of apartments in Brooklyn. Take this 2-bedroom apartment in Brooklyn for example, which is perfect for exploring this vibrant borough while being close to the beach. The rental has a private roof terrace with panoramic views, and is just about 5 blocks away from the F train which will take you right to Coney Island.

2. Rockaway Beach in Queens

Rockaway Beach has been named the largest urban beach in the United States. It is also the only beach in NYC that has a surfing area: there are two separate stretches on the beach reserved for surfing. In the summer the small waves are excellent for beginners, while experienced surfers frequent this beach during the height of hurricane season in the early autumn. The beach features swimming areas, a long boardwalk, food vendors, seven playgrounds, public beach bathrooms and of course plenty of sand to accommodate your beach towel! Rockaway Beach is also easily accessible by subway. Take the A train, or change to the S at picturesque Broad Channel, to Beach 90 Street for the surfer beach or to Beach 116 Street for the swimmers beach. Join the surfers, hip Brooklynites and local families at this versatile beach just a 1.5-hours scenic subway ride away from Midtown, Manhattan!

3. Orchard Beach in the Bronx

This manmade beach was once called the Riviera of New York City. It certainly boasts some attractive features: the crescent-shaped beach looks out over the Long Island Sound, while playgrounds and food vendors line the promenade. After an afternoon of sunbathing and swimming, our recommendation is to end the day at City Island which you will find at a walking distance from the beach. This picturesque island has a real small fishing town feel and is famous for its seafood restaurants. City Island Lobster House has amazing crab cakes, while the Original Crab Shanty Restaurant makes great seafood pasta. To get to Orchard Beach, take the 6 train all the way up to Pelham Bay Park, and then catch the Bx12 bus to Orchard Beach.

4. Great Kills Park in Staten Island

Staten Islands most famous beach is the Franklin D. Roosevelt beach, which has a boardwalk that stretches on for 2.5 miles. Lesser known is the Great Kills Park, which means the beaches here are less crowded and more private. The journey to Staten Island itself is already very scenic. First, you can take the 1, 4, 5 or R subway downtown to South Ferry Station in Lower Manhattan. Once there, you board the free ferry to Staten Island. The ferry makes its way down the New York Harbor past Liberty Island, offering amazing views of the Statue of Liberty and Manhattan skyline. Staten Island has its own railway, and you can conveniently pay with your MetroCard. Take the railway down to Bay Terrace, and youre almost there: just a 3 block walk to the east will get you to the Great Kills Park. If you walk south from here you will come across an idyllic marina filled with small boats. To the east of this marina is a peninsula with a small harbor and a lovely quiet beach area. Apart from bathrooms and showers there is not much else here on this side of the marina, so be sure to bring your own picnic basket!

If you fall in love with Staten Island and want more time to explore everything it has to offer, we have an amazing vacation mansion on the island where you can stay. The 4-bedroom mansion even has its own swimming pool, and the rental includes three days of complimentary limousine service to take you the beach in style!

5. Long Beach in Long Island

Long Beach really is a gem: the white sand is soft, the beach is clean, the water is invigorating, there are great waves for surfing and parking is free! Plus, the beach is easy to get to even if you dont have access to a car. The LIRR (Long Island Rail Road) takes you there in less than an hour from Penn Station in Midtown, Manhattan! The only downside is that the beach itself is not free: all beachgoers of age 13 and older have to buy a 12 dollar ticket to enter the beach at designated beach entrances (weekends only from May 16 June 17 & daily from June 23 September 3). If youre based in New York, we advise purchasing a LIRR Beach Getaway Package: at just $21 the package includes a round-trip train ride plus beach access. Watching the sun set over the Atlantic, youll feel miles away from bustling New York City.

It wouldnt feel right to talk about beaches in Long Island without at least mentioning Jones Beach, Fire Island and Cooper Beach. These three famous holiday spots are all a bit further out from New York City, but definitely deserve an honorable mention! Jones Beach was developed by Robert Moses and is widely regarded as one of the most beautiful parks in the New York City area. It has many great amenities such as a swimming pool and an amphitheater where concerts are held in the summer. Fire Island is home to a stunning lighthouse built in 1857, and features 26 miles of coastline as well as many quaint towns, such as Ocean Beach and Fire Island Pines. Finally, Cooper Beach in the village of Southampton was named the best beach in America in 2010. It offers views of the impressive mansions of the Hamptons, has a lovely pavilion and pristine white sand.

We hope youve enjoyed this overview of some of the best beaches in the New York City area. Of course there are many more beaches around that we didnt discuss here. Did we miss any of your favorites? Let us know in the comment section below!

Related apartment rental posts from New York Habitat:

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The Top 5 Best Beaches in the New York City Area : New ...

Cyberpunk Blog

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If you havent seen it yet, heres a link to a very insightful behind-the-scenes material showing all the details and nuances that went into making of the Cyberpunk 2077 debut teaser trailer.

Jan17

City lights, fog, strangers passing by Watch Mike Pondsmith, the creator of the pen-and-paper RPG Cyberpunk 2020 and learn about his inspirations for creating a dystopian metropolis of Night City.

Read more

Jan14

The long-awaited video for Cyberpunk 2077 has finally arrived! You can watch it here in all its glory.

Jan11

Two weeks ago we asked you to share with us your favourite CyberPunk dish.The response was excellent, and there were some succulently lengthy posts. Read more

Dec7

Here at CD Projekt Red we are inspired by many different types of games, not only cyberpunk games. And INSPIRED is the key word here. Taking one feature from game A, another from game B and yet another from game C doesnt mean that final product will be a game of A+B+C quality. There is actually a high chance that if the process of adapting features wasnt done carefully or mixed properly, then the final game will be a disaster the sum of a bunch of things that do not work well together. And no one want to end up with Cyberpunk game like that, right?

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Nov30

Continued here:

Cyberpunk Blog

Blockchain – The Daily Reckoning

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Dont look now, but things are starting to look up for Bitcoin again!

(You can be forgiven if you didnt realize that Bitcoin was NOT looking up just a week ago.)

You see, midway through December, Bitcoin lost nearly half of its value, falling from a peak near $20,000 to below $11,000 in less than a weeks time. Naturally, such a dramatic decline took a lot of the excitement out of the cryptocurrency market.

Incidentally, my little brother jokes that hes one of the only people in the world who has actually LOST money in Bitcoin, as he waited to get into the market until the day before Bitcoin hit its all-time high.

This past week, Bitcoin started moving higher again, and has recouped about half of its fateful December loss.

Given the number of questions weve received about Bitcoin and cryptocurrencies here at The Daily Edge, I wanted to cover some of the ways responsible investors can make money on cryptocurrencies or more accurately, on the blockchain technology behind the cryptocurrency action.

Lets take a look at whats going on!

A few weeks back, we asked for your feedback on what we cover here at The Daily Edge. The overwhelming majority of you mentioned that you would like to know more about Bitcoin and other cryptocurrencies.

More specifically, there were a lot of good questions about how blockchain (the technology behind Bitcoin) works, and how we as investors can make money from this technology.

You may already know that Im not a big fan of investing in Bitcoin. The currency is highly speculative and volatile, and at this point its unclear whether the currency will actually be worth anything in the long run.

(Yes, I know there are many of you who heartily disagree with me. And thats certainly okay. Suffice it to say that Im not opposed to people speculating on Bitcoin with extra cash that they dont need immediately. But I wouldnt bet money that you need on Bitcoin today.)

Blockchain technology, on the other hand is a very important tool that will change financial transactions forever.

If you want a detailed explanation of how blockchain works, I would highly recommend an article from blockgeeks.com which you can find here.

Basically, blockchain is a technology that keeps a set of secure online records that is spread across many different computers. This is important because no single location is responsible for the set of records.

You could compare blockchain to a giant Google Doc or Google Spreadsheet that many different people can access all at once. So when one change is made to the blockchain, everyone has access to that change at the same time.

Since blockchain records are spread across many locations, its nearly impossible to hack into the database. Thats because you would have to simultaneously hack into all of the computers to change the database of records. So blockchain has developed a reputation for being very immune to hacking or false information.

So why would many different computers take part in this grand network?

Well, the creator of blockchain created an incentive, giving a token or coin to computers on the network that solved complex mathematical puzzles. And that is what has become known as Bitcoin mining where new Bitcoins are created.

Since there are a limited number of Bitcoins, investors and traders are willing to exchange them for dollars or other currencies based on limited supply and market demand.

If youre like me, you find blockchain interesting

But until it helps me make money, its really just an intriguing novelty.

For serious investors (not just Bitcoin speculators), there are two primary ways that make sense for making money from Bitcoin.

First, I suggest looking at payment processing companies that are either already using Bitcoin, or are likely to start processing Bitcoin transactions in the future.

A couple of examples include PayPal Holdings Inc. (PYPL) and Square Inc. (SQ).

Payment processors that accept Bitcoin transactions will be able to collect fees from every transaction processed. And that means these companies will profit from Bitcoin regardless of which direction the price of Bitcoin trades.

Thats important because you want companies you invest in to generate reliable earnings, and not rely on price movements that are very hard to predict.

A second way of profiting from Bitcoin is to invest in semiconductor manufacturers.

Semiconductors are used by computers to process blockchain transactions and to mine new Bitcoin units. Demand for these processors has driven chip stocks sharply higher, and I expect this trend to continue in 2018.

Two examples of these stocks are Nvidia Corp. (NVDA) and Advanced Micro Devices (AMD). As the blockchain network of computers continue to grow, these companies will sell more chips, and generate higher profits.

Keep in mind, semiconductor stocks are also seeing strong demand from other technology areas such as artificial intelligence and self-driving cars. So semi stocks have a number of great reasons to keep moving higher this year.

Well have more to say about cryptocurrencies and blockchain in the weeks ahead. For now, lets take a look at the five things you need to know this morning

The Power Of Sport- North Korea has accepted the Souths offer to meet on Tuesday, January 9th in the demilitarized zone between the two countries. This comes just in time for next months Olympic Games that will take place less than 60 miles from the border in PyeongChang, South Korea. This will be the first formal gathering between the two nations since 2015. On the agenda is North Koreas participation in next months Games and the overall state of Korean relations.

Techs Biggest Week- Its that time of the year. All of the hottest names in technology are headed to Las Vegas to showcase their newest products and gadgets at the Consumer Electronics Show (CES). The event, which runs from January 9th through 12th, is the biggest event of its kind as representatives from every tech company you can imagine will be in attendance the list includes Amazon, Ford, Intel, Walmart Ecommerce and many, many more.

And as Daily Edge subscriber, youll have a firsthand look as your Managing Editor Davis Ruzicka will be in attendance! Stay tuned to these alerts in the coming days for interesting updates and the investment strategies that will accompany them.

Earning Season Kickoff- Volatility is back! (Well sort of). Fourth quarter earnings season begins this week with the earnings reports of some of The Daily Edges favorite companies. So over the next few weeks, expect to see some major moves in the stock market. On Wednesday, homebuilders KB Home (KBH) and Lennar Corp. (LEN) announce earnings. And on Friday its the banks turn with JP Morgan (JPM), Wells Fargo (WFC), Blackrock (BLK) and PNC Financial (PNC).

Yellen News- In Federal Reserve news, this week will give some key insights into the minds of Central Bankers. On Thursday, New York Fed President William Dudley is scheduled to give his thoughts on the direction of the economy in 2018. Currently, unemployment levels are hovering around historic lows but inflation is yet to pick up which has kept Yellen from raising rates faster. Well see if this changes on Friday when the U.S. Labor Department releases its consumer price index.

Another Case of Insider Trading?- Intel CEO Brian Krzanich is under scrutiny for his recent selling of personal Intel stock. On November 29th, Krzanich sold shares and exercised stock options worth $39 million netting him nearly $25 million. However, this was just weeks before the public was informed about a security flaw impacting the majority of Intel chips used worldwide (Intel has known about the vulnerability for months). Its now up to the SEC to decide if the information was material or not. According to the stock price, which fell almost 5% when the information went public, the information was in fact material.

Heres to growing and protecting your wealth!

Zach ScheidtEditor, The Daily EdgeTwitter FacebookEmail

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Blockchain - The Daily Reckoning

Bitcoin and Blockchain – Bloomberg

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When Bitcoin broke intopublic consciousnessin 2013, it couldnt have been sexier: a digital currency being used to buy everything from drugs to cupcakes. Then the excitement shifted to an aspect of Bitcoin that is a bit less sexy: public online ledgers. Blockchain the technology used for verifying and recording transactions thats at the heart of Bitcoin is seen as having the potential to reshape the global financial system and possibly other industries. Both Bitcoin and its blockchain are gaining imitators as well as adherents, along with plenty of critics, includingJamie Dimon, the chief executive officer of JPMorgan Chase & Co. Its recentwild price surge and fall has given ammunition to both.

The price of Bitcoin rocketed in 2017 before giving up much of those gains, as the debate raged on whether the cryptocurrency whose total value neared $300 billion in early December should be considered a legitimate financial asset. It got a huge boost when Cboe Global Markets Inc., started futures trading tied to the digital currency and CME Group Inc. andNasdaqInc., said they would follow suit. Futures trading will push Bitcoin closer to the mainstream by making it easier to trade without the hassles of owning it directly. Bitcoin began to look almost traditional compared with the new cryptocurrencies that raised more than $3.5 billion throughinitial coin offerings. Theirexplosive growth drew warnings from regulators around the globe even beforehackers stole almost $500 million worth of a digital token called NEM from a Japanese cryptocurrency exchange. The Bitcoin community came together (mostly) in November to reject a proposed software change that had threatened a split. Meanwhile, more than 100 banks are working within theR3 consortium,created to find ways to use blockchain as a decentralized ledger to track money transfers and other transactions. Australia's stock exchange plans to start using blockchain to process equity transactions.Blockchain is also being tested by retailers like Wal-Mart Stores Inc. forensuring foodsafety, as industries explore what advantages the technology might hold over traditional databases.

Virtual currencies arent new online fantasy games have long used them but the development of a secure digital currency without a central issuer rightly turned heads. Mysterious spikes and drops in the price of Bitcoin since its birth helped build an early reputation for the currency as a tool for selling drugs and laundering money. Its history also featured arrests for Ponzi schemes. Theperson or peoplewho created the Bitcoin system under the pseudonym Satoshi Nakamoto solved a problem central to any currency preventing counterfeiting and did it without relying on a governments authority. The softwarealso solved one specific hurdle for digital money how to stop users from spending the same unit of currency twice. The breakthroughideawas blockchain, a publicly visible, anonymous online ledger that records every single Bitcoin transaction. Its maintained by a network of miners whose computers perform the calculations that validate each transaction, preventing double-spending. They earn a reward of newly issued Bitcoin. The pace of creation is limited, and no more than21 millionwill ever be issued.

Since Bitcoin first boomed, theres been no shortage of critics to call its rise abubbleand to argue that the currency has no intrinsic value. In September, Dimon called Bitcoin a fraud.But a month later his chief financial officer followed rivals at Goldman Sachs Group Inc. and Citigroup Inc. in expressing openness to working with cryptocurrencies.Entrepreneurs in the field say that focusing on the price of Bitcoin is missing the point its value is as proof of concept for a new kind of payment system not reliant on third parties like governments, big banks or credit-card companies. Others say blockchain advocates are hyping what amounts to no more than a new kind of database. Proponents of ether, the second most commonly used digital currency, respond that the etherium blockchaindoes far more than let Bitcoin users send value from one person to another. Its advocates think it could be a universally accessible machine for running businesses, as the technology allows people to do more complex actions in a shared and decentralized manner.

First published Oct. 3, 2013

To contact the writers of this QuickTake: Olga Kharif in Portland at okharif@bloomberg.net Matthew Leising in Los Angeles at mleising@bloomberg.net

To contact the editor responsible for this QuickTake: John O'Neil at joneil18@bloomberg.net

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Bitcoin and Blockchain - Bloomberg

Blockchain Wallet on the App Store – itunes.apple.com

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The #1 most popular cryptocurrency wallet for those looking to transform the financial system right from their pocket. Join millions of Blockchain wallet users in over 140 countries today!

Send, receive, and exchange Bitcoin, Ethereum, & Bitcoin Cash instantly with anyone in the world. Securely buy and sell bitcoin alongside your already safely stored cryptocurrency. Sign in to your existing crypto wallet or create a new one for free.

Benefits of using Blockchain to be your own bank:

1. Remove the Middleman- Exchange between bitcoin, ether, & bitcoin cash- Send bitcoin, ether, & bitcoin cash instantly with anyone in the world- Request cryptocurrencies with ease anytime, anywhere

2. Sit In The Drivers Seat- Seamlessly buy and sell bitcoin- Always know the cryptocurrency market price- Manage your accounts and view transaction details

3. Stay on the Safe Side - Remain in control with exclusive access to your digital wallet- Set 4-digit-pin or biometrically authenticate with face or Touch ID- Keep the bad guys out with advanced Two-Step Authentication- Feel safe knowing world-class researchers are conducting regular security audits

More Blockchain digital currency wallet features: Simplified backup and recovery with a 12 word backup phrase Server-side entropy for optimal anonymity 20+ fiat currency options 25+ languages Dynamic fees Paper Wallet import Spending from watch-only addresses Hierarchical deterministic address architecture TOR blocking Open source platform QR Code Support

Cryptocurrencies are digital assets that can be transferred between digital wallets. Transactions are recorded on a public ledger ensuring no change can be made without network consensus.

Bitcoin is the first ever cryptocurrency and is used like other assets in exchange for goods and services. Unlike traditional currencies and assets, bitcoin is easily portable, divisible, and irreversible. Bitcoin increases system efficiency and enables the provision of financial services at a drastically lower cost, giving users more power and freedom.

Bitcoin Cash is a form of peer-to-peer electronic cash that was created after a fork of the Bitcoin block chain in August 2017. Bitcoin Cash, or BCH, has since grown to be one of the top cryptocurrencies, along with bitcoin and ether.

Ethereum is a decentralized platform for sharing immutable information across the globe. Ether is a decentralized digital currency, also known as ETH. In addition to being a tradeable cryptocurrency, ether powers the Ethereum network by paying for transaction fees and computational services. Ether is paving the way for a more intelligent financial platform.

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The 8 Stages of Conscious Evolution – Waking Times

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Stephen Parato, ContributorWaking Times

Have you ever wondered About what level of consciousness youre truly at?

Not in terms of it being a contest, or to say youre better/worse than other people, but as a kind of inner GPS that simply tells you where you are.

As humans, we tend to have very distorted and biased perspectives, especially when it comes to ourselves.

Its really easy to go on a yoga retreat and think youve transcended stress forever, or think youre enlightened after reading a few spiritual books.

This is why its crucial to have references that tell it like it is and objectively reflect where youre at.

I recently came across what can be described as a map of consciousness. Its a research paper by Justin Faerman entitled Mapping the Evolution of Consciousness: A Holistic Framework for Psychospiritual Development.

This paper describes, in plain English, eight stages of consciousness. And its not abstract or woo-woo. Its straightforward, simple to understand and backed by a lot of research.

Here are the stages outlined in the paper

Note: The first 2 stages are considered lower consciousness, while stages 3-8 are considered higher consciousness. This is not a judgment of being better or worse, but simply a means of classification.

Stage 1 is categorized by patterns of externalization and an overall victim mentality. The dominant emotions are fear, disdain and hopelessness. There is also a belief that life cannot be trusted.

In this stage, blame is placed on other individuals, society, government, nature, disease, etc. and other elements believed to be outside of ones conscious control and influence.

The motivating forces of stage 1 are safety and security.

Dominant Belief Structures:Life is not safe; I am not safe

Mantra for Evolution:God does not play dice with the universe. Albert Einstein

In this second stage, individuals realize that they have some degree of control. Yet this control is often motivated by fear and survival.

For example, war is an extension of this stage of consciousness. The enemy is perceived as a threat, and because of this, people believe they are morally justified to kill, eliminate or repress that enemy.

We also see various reflections of this stage of consciousness in our collective world. Look at how most people treat the environment and interpersonal relationships. Or consider the dominant mentality of politics and business.

This level of awareness is cut off from the following deeper understanding: Life is not a random series of events over which control must be exerted, but a deeper reflection of the internal psychodynamics of a persons own mind and consciousness.

Dominant Belief Structures:I must make it so; What I cannot control will destroy me.

Mantra for Evolution:If you bring forth what is within you, then that which is within you will be your salvation. If you do not bring forth what is within you, then that which is within you will destroy you. Gnostic Gospels

In this stage, the individual begins to understand the direct connection between their own perceptions, beliefs and emotional state and the conditions of their life, relationships, experiences and reality as a whole.

This level of consciousness is represented by a fundamental shift, from disempowerment to empowerment.

In order to fully complete this stage, an individual must undergo a deep transformational process that includes the purging of all perceptual distortions (limiting beliefs) and the healing/release of all emotional wounds and traumas. The emergence of consciousness into later stages is observed in direct proportion to the evolution of an individual through this process of deep inner healing and transformational work.

Dominant Belief Structures:I am in control; I am creative

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Mindfulness, Eye movement desensitization and reprocessing therapy, Emotional freedom techniques, Neuro-linguistic programming, Trauma release exercises, Psychotherapy, Hooponopono, Introspection

Mantra for Evolution:Who looks outside, dreams; who looks inside, awakens. Carl Jung

In this stage, we see the evolution of the self into the beginnings of deep joy and peace.

As the resistance to perceived undesirable circumstances in life falls away and one begins to understand that there is an intelligent flow operating in every moment guiding the evolution of consciousness on both an individual and collective level through what could be dualistically termed positive and negative experiences.

The individual realizes here that even in great suffering, there is great wisdom and potential for expansion and evolution and that nothing is out of place, ever has been or ever will be.

Dominant Belief Structures:I am loved; I am supported

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Seeing everything as perfect, Surrender, Acceptance, Letting Go, Embracing Flow and Effortlessness, Meditation

Mantra For Evolution:Life will give you whatever experience is most helpful for the evolution of your consciousness. How do you know this is the experience you need? Because this is the experience you are having at the moment. Eckhart Tolle

At this stage of consciousness, the individual begins to understand and observe that the Universe is evolving itself through them.

The individual begins to realize that all perceived suffering or negative events are either:a) Created or called into their reality by aspects of their own consciousness in an effort to be resolved and transcended as part of their individual evolution and as part of the larger collective evolution orb) Exist due to their conscious or unconscious resistance to what is unfolding, which is essentially a resistance of oneself.

Individuals in stage 5 live more through their intuition, as intuition becomes clearer and clearer as one moves up the stages.

Dominant Belief Structures:I am safe; Everything is perfect

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Intuitive Development, Kinesiology

Mantra For Evolution:Everything in the universe is within you. Ask all from yourself. Rumi

At this stage of awareness, the individual begins to understand that reality does not exist independent of consciousness, and therefore consciousness, or awareness if you prefer, is the causative factor of the universe and all that existsthat consciousness is creating all reality.

Individuals in this stage experience a profound sense of unity and oneness with everything.

When an individual fully enters and embodies this stage of awareness, their simple presence itself becomes a transformative experience for others. Individuals in this stage often become teachers or leaders, dedicate their lives to service of others or seek solitude to spend time in introspection, although they may also choose to live very normal and inconspicuous lives.

Dominant Belief Structures:I am one; I am whole

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Service, Contemplation, Meditation

Mantras For Evolution:You are an aperture through which the universe is looking at and exploring itself. Alan Watts

Stop acting so small. You are the Universe in ecstatic motion. Rumi

Individuals at this stage of growth begin to transcend the physicality within which we are proverbially trapped until we reach this point.

Here individuals begin to harness conscious control over this process by directing their awareness in such a way (through belief, emotion, thought, visualization, the manipulation of energy, intent, accessing transpersonal aspects of the self and likely other mechanisms not yet discovered) as to be able to make use of these higher order quantum-transpersonal abilities of the self.

Individuals at this stage perceive and know themselves to be limitless and are in various sub-stages of actualizing that reality beyond a simple intellectual understanding.

As individuals move more deeply into this stage they proportionally complete lower stages which leads to an embodied confidence, power and knowingness, which is palpable to most all who they come into contact with.

Dominant Belief Structures:I am infinite/limitless; Anything is possible

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Esoterics, Visualization, Kabbalah, Sound/Vibration/Mantra, Qi/Nei Gong, Kriya Yoga

Mantra for Evolution:Reality is merely an illusion, albeit a very persistent one. Albert Einstein

Individuals at this stage tap into phenomena like:

Those who have near death experiences as well as users of psychedelic drugs or plant medicines (ayahuasca, DMT, LSD, mushrooms, etc.) are often able to have highly embodied first-hand experiences of this state of awareness pre-development into this stage, giving them a proverbial taste of this reality without necessarily having done the psychospiritual foundational work necessary to experience this stage organically and therefore they often lack a deeper understanding of the larger framework of what is happening along with the ability to maintain it beyond a transitory phenomenon, still nonetheless forever changed by the experience.

As an individual becomes more grounded in the later phases of stage eightwhich encompass this dimensional awarenessand simultaneously completes their evolution through lower stages, one would theoretically achieve complete enlightenment or non-dual self-realization.

Dominant Belief Structures:Everything is energy; I am awareness; Reality is an illusion

Useful Psycho-Spiritual Practices:Energy healing, Esoterics, Visualization, Kabbalah, Qi/Nei Gong, Kriya Yoga, Meditation, Visualization, Remote Viewing, Astral Projection, Telekinesis

Mantra for Evolution:We are not human beings having a spiritual experience. We are spiritual beings having a human experience. Pierre Teilhard de Chardin

Although this model ends at stage 8, this doesnt imply that no further stages exist and that somehow stage 8 is the pinnacle of conscious evolution. However, any claims as to what happens beyond stage 8 at this time are simply conjecture.

At this point, you probably have a pretty good idea of where youre at.

When the descriptions are objectively laid out, it forces you to be honest with yourself.

Its also helpful to accept where youre at right now, while continuously learning and growing. Dont resist where you are right now or beat yourself up, neither of those serve your highest interest. Choose love, gratitude and compassion in each moment and you cant go wrong.

Heres another important point: youre not limited to one stage! Chances are that youre dipping into different stages on a daily basis. But it should be fairly apparent as to what stage youre grounded in at this point in your life.

For me, Im pretty grounded in stage 5, though I often fluctuate between stages 3 and 6. Ive tasted stages 7 and 8, yet these experiences have been few and fleeting. Sometimes Ill even find myself in stage 1 or 2, and thats okay. Its all a part of the human experience.

This framework is beautiful because it allows you to effectively calibrate where you are. It naturally creates self-awareness. Awareness is the first step toward any change, and transformative in and of itself.

I encourage you to read the full paper, which you can download for free here:Mapping the Evolution of Consciousness: A Holistic Framework for Psychospiritual Development

Which stage are you in at this point of your journey? Is this framework helpful for you?

Leave a comment below.

Much love to you on your path.

Stephen Parato (akaStevieP) is a holistic health & wellness advocate, philosopher, writer, and positivity connoisseur. He is also the founder ofFeelin Good, Feelin Great. Website link:http://www.feelingoodfeelingreat.comFacebook link:https://www.facebook.com/FeelinGoodFeelinGreatTwitter link:https://twitter.com/SteviePThatsMe

This article (The 8 Stages of Conscious Evolution) was originally created and published by Stephen Parato of Feeling Good, Feeling Great, and is re-posted here with permission.

The 8 Stages of Conscious Evolution was last modified: May 31st, 2017 by WakingTimes

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My Medicine – WebMD – Better information. Better health.

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WebMD My Medicine Help

Q: What is an interaction?

A: Mixing certain medicines together may cause a bad reaction. This is called an interaction. For example, one medicine may cause side effects that create problems with other medicines. Or one medicine may make another medicine stronger or weaker.

Q: How do you classify the seriousness of an interaction?

A: The following classification is used:

Contraindicated: Never use this combination of drugs because of high risk for dangerous interaction

Serious: Potential for serious interaction; regular monitoring by your doctor required or alternate medication may be needed

Significant: Potential for significant interaction (monitoring by your doctor is likely required)

Mild: Interaction is unlikely, minor, or nonsignificant

Q: What should I do if my medications show interactions?

A: Call your doctor or pharmacist if you are concerned about an interaction. Do not stop taking any prescribed medication without your doctor's approval. Sometimes the risk of not taking the medication outweighs the risk or the interaction.

Q: Why can't I enter my medication?

A: There may be medications, especially otc or supplements, that have not been adequately studied for interactions. If we do not have interaction information for a certain medication it can't be saved in My Medicine.

Q: Do you cover all FDA warnings?

A: WebMD will alert users to the most important FDA warnings and alerts affecting consumers such as recalls, label changes and investigations. Not all FDA actions are included. Go to the FDA for a comprehensive list of warnings.

Q: Can I be alerted by email if there is an FDA warning or alert?

A: Yes. If you are signed in to WebMD.com and using My Medicine you can sign up to receive email alerts when you add a medicine. To unsubscribe click here.

Q: Can I add medicines for family members?

A: Yes. Click the arrow next to your picture to add drug profiles for family or loved ones.

Q: Can I access My Medicine from my mobile phone?

A: Yes. Sign in to the WebMD Mobile App. Your saved medicine can be found under "Saved."

Q: Why are there already medicines saved when this my first time using this tool?

A: If you have previously saved a medication on WebMD, for example, in the WebMD Mobile App, these may display in My Medicine.

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TMS Delivery | Freight Transportation Services, Trucking …

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Do Psychedelics Carry A Heart Risk? – The Third Wave

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Microdosing is an exciting new prospect for the psychedelic community; what better way to incorporate the healing and mind-expanding benefits of psychedelics into our everyday lives? But with any change in lifestyle comes risk and psychedelics are relatively poorly understood in terms of what they do to our bodies. Although it appears that relatively infrequent, even large doses of psychedelics dont do much harm to healthy individuals, we dont have any evidence that regular microdosing is safe. There are reports of people microdosing for many months in succession, with no ill effects aside from tiredness but there is always the chance that with longer term microdosing regimens, unwanted physiological side effects could start building up.

One thing thats of some concern is the risk of heart disease. MDMA has been the centre of attention in this respect various studies have shown that there is alink between regular, high-dose MDMA use and heart defects. Although the conclusion of this research is that the occasional dose of MDMA will not harm you, it has potential implications for long-term psychedelic use, including microdosing.

MDMAs harmful effects on the heart are due to itsactivation of the 5-HT2B receptor. This receptor is present all over the heart, andconvincing evidence suggeststhat the long-term activation of this receptor leads to the formation of valvular strands, which can lead to Valvular Heart Disease (VHD) in extreme cases.

Again cases of VHD are only found in people who use MDMA very frequently (several times a week) and at high doses. The question we want to answer is: do the classic psychedelics (LSD and psilocybin) that we microdose with also activate the 5-HT2B receptor on our hearts, and is there a risk of VHD with long-term microdosing?

LSD and psilocybin work by mimicking the effect of our natural neurotransmitter, serotonin. Therefore both these psychedelics activate a wide range of serotonin receptors, including the 5-HT2B receptor. The real question is, are these psychedelics activating the 5-HT2B receptor enough to cause damage to the heart?

Unfortunately, we dont have an answer to that question. We know that LSD and psilocybinbind strongly to the 5-HT2B receptor, but we dont know how comparable this is to the way that MDMA (and other cardiotoxic molecules) binds to 5-HT2B. So right now, there is no way of knowing for sure if there is any risk.

We can, however, make some educated speculation.

We can look at a previous study of a compound that definitely causes heart damage through the 5-HT2B receptor: fenfluramine. This was a weight-loss drug that was withdrawn in the 90s after a small percentage of people developed heart disease after using it.

Studies found that fenfluramine roughly doubled the risk of developing VHD after a 90-day treatment course, at a dose of around 30mg/day (Sachdev et al, 2002). Fenfluramine has an affinity (Ki) for the 5-HT2B receptor of around 30nM (Rothman & Baumann, 2009).

LSD has a similar affinity for the 5-HT2B receptor as fenfluramine, a Ki of around 30nM (Passie et al, 2008). A typical microdosing regimen involves taking much less LSD than 30mg/day (actually the equivalent of3ug/day, several thousand times less than fenfluramine).

The comparison to fenfluramine isnt great its quitepossible that a daily dose of fenfluramine (rather than a dose every three days when microdosing) affects the 5-HT2B receptor differently. Additionally,we dont know to what extent LSD is activatingthe 5-HT2B receptors of the heart in comparison to fenfluramine. However, it seems reasonable to assume that microdosing has nowhere near the heart risk associated with fenfluramine.

Although there have been no long-term studies of the risk of microdosing in humans,one studygave 10ug/kg of psilocin to ratsevery otherday for several weeks.The findings of this study are unconvincing, to put it mildly, and it doesnt really tell us anything about the heart risks of microdosing.

Overall, we dont yet know anything for sure. Microdosing needs tobe studied in more detail and looking at the scarce evidence we have, its hard to draw any conclusions about the relative safety of microdosing.

While we believe that short-term microdosing is relatively safe, what remains to be seen is whether long-term microdosing regimens (i.e. for many months or even years) have a potential to damage the heart. This is why we advise to microdose for no longer than 90 days, and spread out your microdosing regimens throughout the year. If you have a pre-existing heart condition, it is especially important to avoid extended periods of microdosing.

We think that the potential heart risk of psychedelics actually highlights the need for their legalization. Without legalization, people will probably continue taking psychedelics without considering the risks, and as the popularity of microdosing increases, we might see more negative side effects.

But if psychedelics are legalized, we couldsee companies vying to produce psychedelic analogues that have beneficial psychological effects, without being damaging to our bodies in long-term use. Imaginea psychedelic designed specifically for microdosing; one that boosts our creativity and awareness, but doesnt damage our heart or other tissues.

The answer could be a psychedelic that only becomes active when it crosses into the brain; or a psychedelic that does not activate the 5-HT2B receptor in the heart. Perhaps we could even co-administer psychedelics with drugs that totally block the 5-HT2B receptor. To develop these ideal drugs, we first need legalisation, and for policymakers to accept that psychedelics will never leave our culture.

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Childfree or Childless: Does Terminology Really Matter?

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I am childless but thats not the adjective Id use to describe myself. Theres no question that not having children is a big part of my identity. However, I like to think Im more than just that. And, for starters, I like to view myself as childfree as opposed to childless. You, on the other hand, may prefer the reverse. But, well get into more detail about that later. At this very moment, do you think our choice of descriptors change anything? Whether you go by childfree or childless: does terminology really matter?

When I was doing research for a piece on the stigma of mental health, I learned about the power of labels. Think of how often we use crazy as a way to describe someones behavior. It seems harmless enough but if we use that word to describe someone who has a mental health disorder, it quickly becomes an insult.

I also learned that taking control of a word can draw the power out of it and, as a result, you become the one in charge. The word is rather useless without a mouth to harness it.

For example, someone you know may have been diagnosed with bipolar disorder. Therefore, he or she is bipolar, right? I would have said that at one point in time but, no. That person is so much more than their diagnosis. That personhasbipolar disorder; he/sheis notthe disorder. The way a person refers to their diagnosisand how we refer to others diagnosescan make a difference.

What am I getting at here? Well, you could apply the same thinking to childlessness. No, Im not insinuating childlessness is a disease, disorder, or disability. Nevertheless, how we utilize it can make a difference. I assume this is how the term childfree was born.

Barren: an archaic term for a woman who cannot have children. You can see why a word denoting a woman as unfruitful is no longer used today. These days, a woman unable to conceive may be referred to as infertile. From a technical standpoint, though, the word isnt much different. The words could be interchangeable, however, the connotation is vastly differentas it should.

Reclaiming words and redefining ourselves as women can be a powerful experience. To my knowledge, I am able to conceive but, as you well know, I choose not to. So, for me, childless is my archaic term and childfree is my reclamation.

As all of us are, I was born childless. I grew up childless and I got married childless. Eventually, I started thinking about having kidswhile childless. When my husband and I made the decision to forego having kids, I stopped being childless and I became childfree.

I changed. I made an active decision instead of a passive oneand it wasnt an easy one. When I discovered the term childfree, I knew thats what I was. I wasnt continuing on in childlessness, no, I had redefined myself. Why not add a literal definition to my new self?

Not everyone likes the term childfree.Meghan Daum, author of Selfish, Shallow and Self-Absorbed, doesnt refer to herself as childfreeand thats totally fine. Some men and women dont like to consider themselves as childfree because they dont view their lives as being free of children. Many are dedicated aunts, uncles, teachers, social workers, etc. and they like having kids in their lives in a capacity other than having their own. This is true for me, too.

For over six years, I worked as a preschool teacher. I love kidsespecially toddlers. I like holding babies and when my niece and nephew were young, I was enamored by them. You could say I dont lead a life free of children either. Yet, I will always consider myself childfree simply because I made a conscious choice not to have children.

Even those who are childless due to infertility can definite themselves as childfree if desired. These incredible people still made the choice to, in many cases, stop fertility treatments or other means of having kids. That sounds like childfreeby circumstance andchoiceto me!

Terminology matters but, in this case, it doesnt dictate which words you can and cannot use. Instead, itsyour choice ofterminology that matters. How you think of yourself, how you portray yourself to the world, and how you feel comfortable identifying your stance on kids is what matters. And, maybe it goes without saying, but never forget that you are so much more than this one word.

Sometimes I forget that Im not just childfree. Im a writer (still getting used to this idea), a woman, a wife, a dog-mom, a best friend, and a million other things on any given day.

Do you think how you define your life without kids really matters? Do you prefer childless or childfree?

Id love to hear from you! Comment below!

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Childfree or Childless: Does Terminology Really Matter?

Cyborg – TV Tropes

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John Connor: Holy shit! You're really real! I mean, you're like a machine underneath, right? But sort of alive outside?

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Footage and descriptions by other characters imply that the Daleks are most likely somewhere between Mechas and cyborgs. The creature proper could exist outside the mechanical shell, but is very small and weak and must be augmented by the mechanical components. In their introduction, Ian Chesterton was able to "drive" a Dalek shell after discarding the creature. The expanded universe indicates that the Dalek creatures are so biologically degenerate that they have no functional digestive system, no vocal cords and even have difficulty breathing on their own; being implanted in their casings is vital for them to survive for any great length of time, and their nervous and circulatory systems are tied directly into the casing's systems. The Dalek voice is harsh and grating because it is entirely artificial.

The "New Paradigm" Daleks introduced in Victory of the Daleks have an organic eye visible at the end of their eyestalks. Apparently this is the eye of the internal creature, with its optic nerve extruded down a metal pipe.

** The fish-people in The Underwater Menace, humans fitted with 'plastic gills' and artificial eyes that allow them to see better underwater.

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"... [And then] Kyne granted Perrif another symbol, a diamond soaked red with the blood of elves, [whose] facets could [un-sector and form] into a man whose every angle could cut her jailers and a name: PELIN-EL [which is] "The Star-Made Knight" [and he] was arrayed in armor [from the future time]."

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Kathryn: That's terrifying.

Ennesby: It's awesome! It makes you meat-sacks a lot more like me.

Kathryn: That's what I just said.

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Euthanasia – Learn | American Life League

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When we talk about euthanasia, what exactly do we mean? Today, we usually hear about euthanasia in the health care context. For our purposes, euthanasia amounts to doing, or not doing, something to intentionally bring about a patients death. Because theres so much confusion surrounding the term, lets make sure we understand what euthanasia is not.

It is not euthanasia to administer medication needed to control painthats called good medical care. It is not euthanasia to stop treatment that is gravely burdensome to a patientthats called letting the patient exercise the moral option to refuse extraordinary medical means. It is not euthanasia to stop tube-feeding a patient whose diseased or injured body can no longer assimilate food and waterthats called simply accepting death.

In these circumstances, pain control, refusing extraordinary means, and stopping feeding may all allow death. Butand this is crucial to our understandingunlike euthanasia, their purpose and intent is not to bring about death.

Actually, euthanasia could be called a form of suicide, assisted suicide, or even murder, depending on the patients level of involvement and consent. To define euthanasia this way, though, seems to diminish its threat. After all, arent there laws or, at the very least, strong social taboos against suicide, assisted suicide, and murder?

Unfortunately, when it comes to the sick and disabled, this is no longer entirely true. And, the rationale and cultural forces behind the movement that brought this about threaten even more to tear down the legal and social barriers to killing.

Most of us know about Jack Kevorkian and his efforts to help ailing people commit suicide. Many of us may not realize, though, that Kevorkians maverick image masks a serious crusade that is building on emerging legal and cultural trends. Our society is poised to accept euthanasia on demandand worse. What we dont know about that could kill us.

In sum, it is vitally important to understand that everyones most basic rightthe right to lifeis in jeopardy when our law and collective morality no longer view all persons as equally worthy of life, solely on the basis of our common humanity. Not only is it the right thing to do, it is also in our own best interests to protect and cherish weak and vulnerable members of our human family.

In order to do that, we must educate ourselves and others about the growing threat of euthanasia, vigorously oppose its legalization, and pray for the wisdom and compassion to properly comfort, care for and dissuade those considering suicide.

The information on euthanasia is a PowerPoint Presentation (2007) prepared for American Life League by Julie Grimstad, Executive Director of Life is Worth Living, Inc.

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Tor Browser – Whonix

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Tor Browser [2] is a fork of the Mozilla Firefox web browser. It is developed by The Tor Project and optimized and designed for Tor, anonymity and security. Many users will have browsed with Firefox and be familiar with the user interface that resembles those found in other popular, modern browsers. [3]

Users are encouraged to read this entire wiki entry so Tor Browser is used effectively and safely on the Whonix platform. Advanced users may also be interested in the Tor Browser Adversary Model.

If browsers other than Tor Browser are used in Whonix, the user's IP address and Domain Name Service (DNS) requests [4] are still protected. However, users do not profit from Tor Browser's protocol level cleanup in this scenario. Features like proxy obedience, state separation, network isolation, anonymity set preservation and a host of others are simply unsupported by other browsers.

In stark contrast to regular browsers, Tor Browser is optimized for anonymity and has a plethora of privacy-enhancing patches and add-ons. [5] With Tor Browser, the user "blends in" and shares the Fingerprint of nearly three million other users, which is advantageous for privacy.

It is important to understand the difference between HTTP and HTTPS: [6]

HTTPS advantages include: [7]

In the context of Tor Browser, this means users should prefer HTTPS instead of HTTP so communication is encrypted while browsing the Internet. While traffic is encrypted throughout the Tor network, the exit relay (third of three servers) can see traffic sent into Tor if it is plain HTTP. If HTTPS is used, the exit relay will only know the destination address. [9]

As an example, the screenshot below is how the browser looks when visiting the Whonix website. [10]

Figure: A Secure Connection to http://www.whonix.org

Take notice of the small area on the left-hand side of the address bar. Indicators of an encrypted connection are http://www.whonix.org is highlighted with a padlock and "Secure Connection" in green writing, and the URL begins with https:// instead of http://.

The following figures from EFF provide an overview of HTTP / HTTPS connections with and without Tor, and what information is visible to various third parties. The descriptors are as follows: [11]

Figure: Tor and HTTPS

Figure: Tor and No HTTPS

Figure: No Tor and HTTPS

Figure: No Tor and No HTTPS

Whenever possible, users are encouraged to stay within the Tor network for communications and web browsing via available .onion addresses. These services are commonly referred to as onion services (formerly "hidden services"), even when their location is publicly known. [12]

URLs ending in the .onion extension provide a superior level of security and privacy, since the user's connection forms a completely end-to-end encrypted tunnel that uses a random rendezvous point within the Tor network (HTTPS is not required). These connections also incorporate perfect forward secrecy (PFS). PFS means the compromise of long-term keys does not compromise past session keys. As a consequence, past encrypted communications and sessions cannot be retrieved and decrypted if long-term secrets keys or passwords are compromised in the future by adversaries. [13]

Other primary benefits of onion services include: [14]

Users who want to learn more about how onion services work should read the technical description.

HTTPS Everywhere is a Firefox extension shipped in Tor Browser and produced as a collaboration between The Tor Project and the Electronic Frontier Foundation. It helps to encrypt user communications with a number of major sites.

Many sites on the Internet offer some limited support for encryption over HTTPS, but make it difficult to use. For instance, sites may default to unencrypted HTTP or fill encrypted pages with links that return to the unencrypted version of site. The HTTPS Everywhere extension addresses these problems by rewriting all site requests to HTTPS.

To learn more about HTTPS Everywhere, visit:

NoScript is a free, open source extension that comes bundled with Tor Browser and other Mozilla-based web browsers. NoScript can provide significant protection for users, depending on its configuration: [19]

NoScript protects against cross-site scripting, which otherwise enables attackers to inject malicious client-side scripts into web pages being viewed, bypassing the same-origin policy. The same-origin policy refers to web browsers usually only allowing scripts in the first web page to access data in a second web page if they have the same origin (URL scheme, hostname and port number).

Anti-clickjacking is also available to protect against hidden or disguised user interface elements masquerading as trusted web page buttons, links and so on (this is disabled by default in Tor Browser). Clickjacking can maliciously activate microphones or webcams, or trick users into interacting with hidden elements to steal important financial, personal or other data.

In the stock Tor Browser configuration, JavaScript is enabled by default for greater usability. The Tor Project FAQ provides a summary of the reasoning for this decision: [20]

The take-home message is disabling all JavaScript with white-list based, pre-emptive script-blocking may better protect against vulnerabilities (many attacks are based on scripting), [21] but it reduces usability on many sites and acts as a fingerprinting mechanism based on the select sites where it is enabled. [22] On the other hand, allowing JavaScript by default increases usability and the risk of exploitation, but the user also has a fingerprint more in common with the larger pool of users. [23] [24]

Developers are unaware of any JavaScript vulnerabilities that could compromise Whonix anonymity. That said, users should refrain from changing NoScript settings in Tor Browser, unless they are aware of the potential impacts. Users can enable/disable JavaScript, Java and/or plugin execution by left-clicking on the NoScript status bar icon, or via the the contextual menu. [25] Permissions can be selected either temporarily or on a permanent basis. "Temporarily allow" will only enable scripts for that site until the browser session is closed, or until permission is manually revoked.

For further information, refer to the NoScript website and features overview, or the Torbutton design document.

As Tor Browser is based on Firefox, any browser add-on that is compatible with Firefox can also be installed in Tor Browser. In this context, add-ons is the collective name for extensions, themes and plugins: [26]

[27]

The Tor Project explicitly warns against using non-default add-ons with Tor Browser: [28]

....

Recommendations

The problem with non-default add-ons is they are often non-free software, and can lead to linkability to the same pseudonym. Moreover, they worsen fingerprinting and open up attack vectors in the form of remote exploits.

This advice holds true even though Whonix is configured to prevent these applications (along with malware) from leaking the user's real external IP address, even if they are misconfigured (see Features). Users should first consider the various alternatives to plugins, such as HTML5 or online media converters. [29]

If this advice is to be disregarded, first read Browser Plugins before proceeding.

Tor alone is not enough to protect your anonymity and privacy while browsing the Internet. All modern web browsers support JavaScript, Adobe Flash, cookies and other features which are capable of defeating the anonymity [30] provided by the Tor network.

In Tor Browser, these features are handled from inside the browser, because it is a modified (patched) version of Firefox and it contains an extension called Torbutton:

Users are also encouraged to learn more about fingerprinting and data collection techniques. Advanced users who are interested in a detailed description of the Torbutton design and the functions described below can learn more here.

The "New Identity" menu option sends the protocol command "signal newnym" to Tor's ControlPort. This clears the browser state, closes tabs, and obtains a fresh Tor circuit for future requests. [32]

Sometimes Tor only replaces the middle relay while using the same Tor exit relay. This is by design and the Tor default. Further, "signal newnym" does not interfere with long-lived connections like an IRC connection.

New Identity is not yet perfect and there are open bugs; this is not a Whonix-specific issue. [33]For greater security, it is better to completely close Tor Browser and restart it. In Qubes-Whonix, the safest option is using a Whonix-Workstation Qubes/DisposableVM and closing it and recreating a new one after critical activities.

This is how to use the New Identity feature in Torbutton.

Click Torbutton -> Click "New Identity"

Please read New Identity and Tor circuits and the New Identity design to learn more about this option and its limitations.

The "New Tor Circuit for this Site" Torbutton feature causes a new circuit to be created for the current Tor Browser tab, including other open tabs or windows from the same website. [34]

If it is really necessary to separate contextual identities, it is always safer to close and then restart Tor Browser.

Potential use cases for this feature include: [35]

To use it:

Click Torbutton -> Click "New Tor Circuit for this Site"

Advanced users who want to learn more about this function should refer to the New Tor Circuit design entry.

Tor Browser includes a Security Slider that lets the user disable certain web features that can be used to compromise security and anonymity. Currently there are three levels: "Safest", "Safer" and "Standard". Users have to make a trade-off between security, usability and privacy. At the higher levels the slider will prevent some sites from working properly. [36]

To use this feature:

Click Torbutton -> Click "Security Settings..." -> Select desired security level

To learn more about the exact effect of each setting level, users should refer to the Security Slider design entry.

Torbutton will notify the user if a Tor Browser update is available. See Tor Browser Internal Updater for further information and screenshots of this process. Note that there are multiple methods of updating Tor Browser. To use the Torbutton menu option:

Click Torbutton -> Click "Check for Tor Browser Update..."

Users who are interested in why Torbutton's "Open Networking Settings" and "Tor Circuit View" features have been disabled in Whonix can learn more here.

Start Tor Browser.

If you are using Qubes-Whonix.

Qubes Start Menu -> Whonix-Workstation AppVM (commonly called anon-whonix) -> Tor Browser

If you are using Non-Qubes-Whonix.

Start Menu -> Tor Browser

To start Tor Browser from the command line or in debugging mode, please press Expand on the right.

Open a terminal.

If you are using Qubes-Whonix, complete the following steps.

Qubes App Launcher (blue/grey "Q") -> Whonix-Workstation AppVM (commonly named anon-whonix) -> Konsole

If you are using a graphical Whonix-Workstation, complete the following steps.

Start Menu -> Applications -> System -> Konsole

The user has two options. To start Tor Browser "normally" from the terminal. [37]

Or to generate debugging output if problems are experienced with Tor Browser (also see Debugging).

Change into the Tor Browser folder.

cd ~/.tb/tor-browser/Browser

Start Tor Browser in debugging mode.

./start-tor-browser --debug

Note: Tor Browser can also be started manually without the --debug argument.

If Tor Browser successfully launches and connects to the Tor network, check.torproject.org should show the following message.

Figure: Successful Tor Browser Connection

Whonix protects against these threats outlined below, such as files that inadvertently or maliciously attempt to reveal the real IP address of the user, or third-party, external applications that can leak information outside of Tor. However, users should always engage in best safety practices.

Do not Open Documents Downloaded via Tor while Online

The Tor Project explicitly warns users not to open documents handled by external applications, since in the normal case they may contain Internet resources that may be downloaded outside of Tor by the application that opens them. [38]

This warning is not strictly relevant to Whonix users since all traffic is forced over the Whonix-Gateway and the IP address will not be leaked. Despite this fact, for greater safety users should open files such as PDFs and word processing documents in offline VMs.

Malicious files or links to files pose a greater threat; potential compromise of the user's system. Therefore users should heed the Whonix advice to not open random links or files in the Whonix-Workstation. Instead, in Qubes-Whonix it is preferable to sanitize the PDF or open the file or link in a DisposableVM. Non-Qubes-Whonix users should only open the file in a separate, offline Whonix-Workstation.

Do not Torrent over Tor

See File Sharing.

Users often mistakenly believe that a secure, green padlock and a https:// URL makes any download from that particular website secure. This is not the case. The website might be redirecting to http.

In fact, the user may be vulnerable to an attempted SSLstrip attack if a link is pasted or typed into the address bar without the https:// component (e.g. torproject.org instead of https://torproject.org). [39]

In this instance, the user cannot actually confirm if the file is being downloaded over https://. Potentially, a SSLstrip attack might have made the download take place over plain http. The reason is the user cannot see a padlock; it just appears empty.

To avoid the risk of an SSLstrip attack or similar threats, users should always explicitly type or paste https:// in the URL / address bar. The SSL certificate button or padlock will not appear in this instance, but that is nothing to be concerned about. Unfortunately, few users follow this sage advice; instead most mistakenly believe pasting or typing http://www.torproject.org into the address bar is safe.

For even greater safety, where possible download files from onion services (.onion addresses). Greater security is provided by onion service downloads, since: the connection is encrypted end-to-end (with PFS), targeting of individuals is difficult, and adversaries cannot easily determine where the user is connecting to or from.

Also, if files are already available in repositories, then users should prefer mechanisms which simplify and automate software upgrades and installations (like apt-get functions), rather than download Internet resources. Avoid installing unsigned software and be sure to always verify key fingerprints and digital signatures of signed software from the Internet, before importing keys or completing installations.

Finally, consider using multiple Whonix-Workstations when downloading and installing additional software, to better compartmentalize user activities and minimize the threat of misbehaving applications.

For users who regularly download Internet files, Tor Browser's default download folder is inconvenient. For example, if the user downloaded the sample image below using Tor Browser, by default the download path is /home/user/.tb/tor-browser/Browser/Downloads. It is time-consuming to navigate to this folder so far down the directory tree.

More:

Tor Browser - Whonix

Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential | A Cosmic Vision …

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We are pleased to announce that Human Purpose and Transhuman Potentialis the winner of the Montaigne Medal (Eric Hoffer Book Awards)for most thought-provoking book of 2015.

Ted Chu also won the prestigious Gold Award from IndieFAB, for Best Philosophy Book of 2014

Ted Chu brings an astonishing breadth of philosophical, religious, and technological reflection to bear on the most important questions we could ask.

Ted Chu is a pioneering visionary whose futurist concern deserves close attention.

In my opinion Teds book is absolutely profound in the way it draws upon a dazzling variety of philosophical and scientific resources in order to place humanity within a cosmic evolutionary perspective . . . it is a one-of-a-kind book within my transhumanist library. Nikola Danalyov, Singularity Weblog

Today we face the imminent possibility of transcending our biological form, of becomingor creatingentirely new lifeforms that will overcome our all-too-human limitations. In Human Purpose and Transhuman Potential, Chu makes the provocative claim that the human race is not only an end in itself, but may also be a means to a higher endand that our true purpose is to give rise to our evolutionary successors. Here are key tenets of Chus book.

In this wide-ranging philosophic work, Ted Chu re-examines the question of human purpose in light of the transhuman potentials that science and technology have now placed within our reach.

Dr. Chu argues that we need a deeper understanding of our place in the universe in order to navigate the daunting choices ahead of us that arise from advances in biotechnology, AI, robotics, and nanotechnology. Toward that end, he surveys human wisdom both East and West, traces humanitys long evolutionary trajectory, and breaks new ground in evolutionary theory.

Chu makes us fully aware of the many risks ahead, but offers an original cosmic vision that provides the courage and the perspective we will need to explore the potentials of our posthuman future.Ted Chus elegantly written and well-researched book has, for me at least, the same status as Ray Kurzweils The Singularity Is Near. Even critics of his Cosmic Vision will find Chus book required reading.

Formerly the chief economist at General Motors, Ted Chu was also chief economist for Abu Dhabi Investment Authority, one of the worlds largest sovereign wealth funds. He is currently professor of economics at New York University at Abu Dhabi. During his 25 years as a business economist, Dr. Chu also held positions as macroeconomist for the World Bank and Arthur D. Little. For the last 15 years, his second career has been conducting independent research on the philosophical question of humanitys place in the universe, building on his lifelong interest in the frontiers of evolutionary progress. As part of these research efforts, he founded the nonprofit CoBe (Cosmic Being) Institute in Michigan and serves as a senior scholar at ChangCe, a Beijing-based independent think tank. Born and raised in China, Chu graduated from Fudan University in Shanghai, and earned his PhD in economics at Georgetown University.

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American Nihilist Underground Society: Nihilism, Nihilists …

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Social Media Finalized The Death Of The InternetJune 2, 2017A few years ago a working farm opened up near me. These are farms that are open to the public, but show you how that exotic class of human beings known as "farmers" actually make food and survive without Amazon Prime accounts.The farm came about because a farmer allowed school groups to witness the slaughter, breeding and care of animals. Then they wanted to see how the potatoes were planted. Now tours of the fields were added, including a visit to the manure pile, where tourists could genuflect and debase themselves in order to assert humility, which always pleases the crowd.Soon the tours became more valuable than the farm output.They came from the cities -- doctors, plumbers, lawyers, carpenters, architects -- looking for a way to school their children in a way of life that had passed into history, hoping to bestow "authenticity" to a life defined by conformity, products, political correctness and public relations. They wanted an escape from the transactional life of the city, and an insight instead into what life is like when results in reality matter more than what other people think.In this way, the needs of the herd overwhelmed the realistic nature of original human behavior. The farm became a stage, and soon a gift shop appeared, and then there were videos and public image adjustments. Reality was forgotten and replaced by the human, as happens with every homo sapiens endeavor when it is about to fail.Humans love posturing and pretending. For them, to act like a farmer is to be the real thing because that is what people in their social group react to. They have no concern for being accurate, only for having other people nod and acknowledge them as having achieved another milestone on the path to greatness.Social media is the same thing. No one can tell you are a dog on the internet; via social media, however, you can be whatever you want. Ignore that failed marriage, day job in a cubicle, and personal ineptitude. On the social media internet, you are whatever you can project.Starting in 2007, the internet permanently shifted to the mobile device consumer audience, which means that it plunged far below the 120 IQ point minimum required by the old internet. Before Eternal September, the internet was limited to those who had demonstrated competence. After that, the herd began coming in.With the rise of Google and Facebook, the herd dominated the internet. This merely showed to us the need for hierarchy and aristocracy: if left up to the Crowd, every human venture degenerates to the lowest common denominator, and whatever makes it exceptional is lost.Social media is democracy with no standards: whatever herd shows up, and whatever majority emerges from the midst of it, takes the day. It is the equivalent of the audience for a circus or tent revival deciding our future, and in the case of social media, they choose our path by excluding anything that is not popular.Following that pattern, social media selects lies over truth. It prefers what most people want to believe is true over what is real according to the best minds we have. It is the triumph of the herd in denying reality so that each member of the herd may pretend to be a king, hero, genius, artist or inventor.On the other hand, this means the rise of an underground within the internet: the sites that cannot be found by Google, will not show up in your news feed, and will be censored by Facebook, Twitter, Reddit, Tumblr, Pinterest and Instagram. The is the underground internet, and it is rising as the utility of the public internet plummets since it is now designed for and populated with the same people who watched a lot of daytime TV in the 1980s, like the poor, old, housewives, cube McJob slaves, mentally ill, physically broke, neurotic, intoxicated and lonely.class="post">Ten Types Of Modern FoolJune 4, 2017When you live in a dying time, the most common response is to into denial, which consists of ignoring the actual problem and finding some way to distract oneself instead. For example, heroin addicts routinely insist that their problem is too much clutter around the house, a speck in the face of the larger problem of heroin addiction that looms over them like an unseen predatory god.With complex problems, craftier and cannier evasions commence. That is: people find proxies for dealing with the problem, or substitutes, excuses, rationalizations and justifications. These are symbolic problems that they either can conquer or will persist whether conquered or not, making them the safest enemy (one against whom the knight cannot fail or prevail). Null proxies like this consist of 90% of the activity of a democratic state or troupe of monkeys in the wild.You will find the following non-answers to be happilly promoted by humans from every race, caste, sex, class, religion, political alignment and sexual orientation. We all know our civilization has fallen and we are living in a vile and evil time, and that the solution is to give up our arrogance which insists we have the lottery of being able to do pretty much whatever we want but also having to suffer others doing the same.These null proxies are used by people who will proclaim them as "the solution" and then, like a monkey who has found a bone, will use that answer to beat on all the other monkeys to force them into submission to the will of the original monkey. Any time you hear someone speaking in this way, you may be dealing with an idiot -- not always -- but you are certainly dealing with someone who has lied to themselves at such a fundamental level that they will never tell the truth again:

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American Nihilist Underground Society: Nihilism, Nihilists ...