Dylan Charles, Editor
Waking Times

If you were 4 years old when 9/11 occurred in 2001, then you’re now old enough to enlist and fight in the war on terror. Recent geo-political events suggest that this conflict may endure for some generations to come, so, regretfully, your children may also get to participate. The war on terrorism is apparently part of our culture and part of our lives now.

“The towers are gone now, reduced to bloody rubble, along with all hopes for peace in our time, in the United States or any other country. Make no mistake about it: We are at war now — with somebody — and we will stay at war with that mysterious Enemy for the rest of our lives. It will be a Religious War, a sort of Christian Jihad, fueled by religious hatred and led by merciless fanatics on both sides. It will be guerilla warfare on a global scale, with no front lines and no identifiable enemy.” – Hunter S. Thompson

God said:

Your happiness is your own generosity to yourself. Your happiness comes from within you. The same is true of unhappiness. You are your own bearer of happiness, and so are you your own bearer of unhappiness. You are the hero, and you are the culprit. Don’t fault anyone, least of all yourself. Please do not harp on yourself.

If you fall off your horse, you are the one who fell. Now you are the one to pick yourself up. There is nothing to rue. There is no blame to accrue. Even if a firecracker went off and scared your horse, there is no one to blame. Remove the word blame from your vocabulary, and how quickly the world, as you see it, recedes and opens up to a vaster window. Be quick to embrace the finicky world.

The world, like an accusing teacher, may say: "WHO DID THIS?" And this may make you shudder.

Oh, the world may be accusing, yet there is no percentage in accusing.

Perhaps you looked away for a moment. Not a virtue, yet not a crime. No crime is perpetrated on you or another. All are innocent. Something comes up when it does. Don't keep accusations to you, nor cast them away onto another.

It is not for you to replay scenes from the past. Move on to the next scene. Erase the past. It has already gone past. What makes you think of wrongdoing? It is not to anyone's advantage to strew accounts of wrong-doing and make your vision small.

There may be times in your life when a situation is so challenging that everything will narrow down to one pinpoint with that experience as the sole focus.  The endless darkness of that moment will seem to go on forever; no light, no hope, no love.  My beloved, please remember that even in your darkest times The Universe is there, walking beside you and holding a beautifully bright light.  To be drawn from the darkness, all you have to do is turn your head and look at it. ~ Creator

https://thecreatorwritings.wordpress.com/2015/11/18/the-light-in-the-darkness/

Gary ‘Z’ McGee, Staff
Waking Times

“You can’t have a war on terrorism because that’s not an actual enemy, it’s an abstract. It’s like having a war on dandruff. That war will be eternal and pointless. It’s idiotic. That’s not a war, it’s a slogan. It’s a lie. It’s advertising... And we use it to sell soap, wars and presidential candidates in the same fashion.” –Gore Vidal

“”Support our troops” and “What about Hitler” aren’t invitations to actually discuss either subject. They’re magic words intended to shut down further discussion, because the “Team Violence” part of our brain reacts to criticism in the exact same way that Muslim extremists react to cartoons mocking Mohammed.” –David Wong

Violence begets terrorism. Terrorism begets war. War begets more terrorism. It really is that simple. But we just can’t seem to help ourselves. We’re a young and fallible species in an otherwise ancient and fine-tuned universe. All too often our animal reflexes kick in and we just want to kick some ass. Our inner-monkey wants to start throwing shit just because it’s upset. Without thinking, we holler “Bomb em’ all!” from the comfort of our La-Z-Boys. It’s too hard to think, so we go with the primitive and outdated default: fight or flight. But this is the immature, lizard part of our brain doing the talking, not the mature seat of consciousness that is trying to make the world a better place.

Emotionally intelligent people aren’t ruled by their thoughts; they are the master of them. Discover your emotional strength today with these 15 signs that you are emotionally intelligent.

1. You’re Fascinated by What Makes People Tick.

Emotionally intelligent people are fascinated by human behavior. They notice things like body language, dialect, and personal tics. Being a people-watcher helps them find clues about what makes each individual special.

2. You’re an Enthusiastic Leader Who Walks the Walk.

Emotionally intelligent people know it’s silly to talk the talk if they’re not willing to walk the walk. Instead of leading behind by delivering commands, they lead from the front by setting an example.

3. You’re Aware of Your Strengths and Weaknesses.