Eric Arnow

syrian society shattered by years of sanctions and war

The Horror and Tragedy of Syria: Yet Another Episode in a Century of Western Imperialism

  The Horror and Tragedy of Syria: Yet Another Episode in a Century of Western Imperialism Sykes Picot 2.0? A Century of Treachery and Betrayal   How Did Syria, After Resisting Western Backed Terrorists Since 2011, Suddenly Collapse? I myself was shocked that Russia and Iran had not alerted Syrian President Al-Assad about a buildup of forces to take him down. It’s paradoxical, to say the least, that Erdogan, Putin’s ‘friend’, who shot down a Russian jet and went groveling back to apologize, then killed the Russian ambassador in Istanbul, then mediated a truce between Ukraine and Russia, promising not …

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Where Are We Going?

Where Are We Going in the New Trump Era, Post NATO Acts of War?   It’s about two weeks after the election of Donald Trump in a resounding victory over the Biden/Harris regime. In an earlier post on Substack, I noted that, in retrospect, his win is not surprising. The Democrats have betrayed their base over and over and over again, beginning at least with the 1944 coup against Henry Wallace, who advocated cooperation with the Soviet Union. But ‘The Real Owners’, as the comedic prophet, George Carlin called them, or in later times, The Deep State, the entrenched bureaucracy, …

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seduced and abandoned, a ruined Ukraine

The Tragedy of Ukraine: Seduced, Used, Abused, and Abandoned.

How the West Seduced, Used, Abused and Abandoned Ukraine The situation in Ukraine first came to my attention in late 2013. As I noted in previous posts, a website maintained by Andre Raefsky an ethnic Russian who grew up in the West, The Saker, noted social turmoil in Ukraine. Things went from bad to worse, with a recorded phone call surfacing of US State Department official, Victoria Nuland, caught planning whom she wanted to replace the democratically elected President Victor Yanukovych. She was caught on camera bragging about spending $5 billion to ‘promote democracy’ in Ukraine, by empowering far right …

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In the summer of 2022, I stayed at a Yoga Resort. It was run by Israelis on one of Thailand paradisical islands. People from many countries were there. It’s Vegan, so I guess that means that people there are more enlightened than non vegans. Anyway, one young Israel and I got into a bit of discussion. I maintained that we must know Truth. He asserted that he did not want to know the Truth, because the truth is painful. He preferred blissful ignorance. Except that he doesn’t understand that ignorance leads to unreality, and Reality always bats last. So here …

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A Pilgrimage to Chinese Zen Temples

My Pilgrimage to Chinese Zen Temples–Paying My Respects to the Zen Masters Who Made Zen Staying at Tong Bo Yan Si (translation: Monk’s Copper Bowl Temple)   An Old Zen Saying is that Kuan Yin, or Bodhisattva Avalokiteshvara has 1000 Arms ( to help the afflicted)Here’s an example of such an image I’ve written about previous stays at temples in China, and had returned in March 2013, for a two month stay at Tong Bo Yan Si. While there, the traditional Buddha’s Birthday celebration took place. Entrance to the Dharma Hall at Tong Bo Yan Si   Here is a …

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Nato wants to negotiate with Russia

NATO Wants to Negotiate with Russia–10 Big Reasons Why Russia Won’t

      Duplicity in Negotiations: Nato Wants to Negotiate with Russia, but why?   The US/UK/Nato and their monkey’s paw Ukraine were sure that they would bring Russia to its knees by taking a hard line and refusing numerous Russian pleas for negotiation. Now, their plans are blowing up in their faces, and instead of Russia’s economy and war effort collapsing it’s theirs that is collapsing. NATO wants to negotiate with Russia. But should Russia trust its Russia hating adversaries’ new found request to negotiate? The Collective West After Decades of Backstabbing, Now Wants Negotiations with Russia Since the …

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10 Tips on Zen Practice in Daily Life

  Introduction—Can Zen Practice Help Us in ‘the Last 500 Years’? In today’s tumultuous world, many people are asking if we are facing ‘the End Times’. Not only do people in the Christian world wondering about this, but even in Buddhism, there is a view that we are in ‘the Last 500 Years’ after the life of the Buddha, who lived 2500 years ago. Despite our fears and the many obstacles that the media and social pressures inflict on us, Zen practice says that we should “Do Good, Don’t Do Evil, and Purify Your Mind”. Regardless of what the time …

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Zen practice in zen Buddhism teaches how to work out your own salvation

Zen Buddhism for the New and Curious

Zen Buddhism for the New and Curious   While I spend a lot of time on geopolitics, I see the world through the lens of my experience as a Zen Buddhist practitioner, going back 50 years. I am of the opinion, that both our own personal and interpersonal problems can improve with meditation practice, I think it can also help in the world situation. Can you imagine what would happen (yeah, not likely but still) if world leaders sat down and meditated on what they’re doing, calming down and letting go of their inflated egos? Every time we calm our …

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A scene from one of many damned wars

From 1968 to 2024, It’s NOT the “Politics of Joy, It’s the Damned Wars!”

It’s the Damned Wars, that the Politicians Keep Paying for. Senator Lindsay Graham says the US should attack Iran’s energy resources. He forgets that Iran could block the flow of oil out of the Persia Gulf, sending the world economy into collapse. We no longer have adults with any kind of wisdom sitting in positions of power in Washington, DC. We’ve got emotional children and that’s exactly what Lindsey Graham is he’s he’s a child he’s old enough to know better but certainly …. I guess wants to embrace ignorance as his mantle —-Larry Johnson, former CIA officer and intelligence …

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War--soldiers dropping from planes with parachutes

War Is On Our Side

We’re Headed Like Lemmings Towards War The past couple of days, I’ve been in contact with two dear friends of mine, one going back 20 years, another goinng back over 50 years. The topic is about the upcoming election, and since all three of us come from an anti Vietnam war background, we share a lot in common. So with the apparent ascendancy of Kamala Harris, a mistress of San Francisco ‘queen maker’, Willie Brown paving the way to her career to State office and and now Vice President and heir apparent, the question comes up whether to vote for …

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