This may be just a rant but I am so tired of our elected officials spending most of their energy on playing politics and little time addressing major US problems. I am equally upset with the elite media and their self absorption. I think they should also be focused on major US problems. The problems (as I see them) are:

- The clash between Islam and the "West".
- The "invasion" from Mexico.
- The twin deficits (debt and trade).
- Energy.
- Entitlement programs.
- Changes in the society that are causing widespread changes including differences in birthrates in different population groups.

:sad:

I agree. You know every generation believes that somehow the era in which they grew up in was somehow better than the era in which they grow closer to the end of their lives than to their birth. I find that I feel that way also. I just see a whole lot of changes, some of which are absolutely great and were needed, e.g., civil rights, allowing women to break free of stereotypic rolls, the ability to talk freely about subjects which were taboo when I was growing up, technological and scientific advances. All of this and more is better in this era.

But somehow, somewhere, our values and our priorities got really screwed up. Even basic level morality seems to have been lost in the murky notion that it is somehow right and good to apply the relativistic laws of physics to EVERYTHING---a notion which ACIM calls "a law of chaos." We are asked to believe that worship of Satan (the ego) is just as religious an activity as worship of God. It is an era in which society excuses and justifies the same level of hatred for the Jews in Muslims that Hitler showed. We argue and shake with hatred against a President listening in on terrorist calls as a violation of freedom but have few arguments against a culture whose mores and religions puts women at a worthiness level slightly less than dogs. This is an era that holds Big Government dearer than the idea of making God Big in our lives. Ideologically, people are more divided than they have been in hundreds of years.

What does the bible say about this era? Perilous times? Yeah, I'd say so. The collective consciousness is in the midst of a brain fart if you ask me. No wonder there is a cosmic speedup. We clearly need one.

Being upset is a choice for you to make. So is being happy.

The account we have of the one called "Jesus" (though he probably didn't speak Latin, and might not have recognized his name in that form) is one where he clearly challenged the practices and beliefs of many. Yet we have no record of his leading a political movement, though the potential for such leadership concerned the rulers of his day. The Course explains that his concern was beyond the level of political interaction.

His concern was the showing of a way to transcend the limits inherent in the society and beliefs of those he knew. How? By showing that even death had no meaning for him, and demonstrating that he was beyond their limits.

I agree. This was a political rant. The Course is not so much concerned about the details of the dream but on leading us out of it.