Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter http://ezezine.com
Rob Brezsny's Astrology Newsletter
December 15, 2010
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"If you do not bring forth the genius within you, it will destroy you. If you
do bring forth the genius within you, it will free you."
—Jesus Christ, the Gnostic Gospel of Thomas
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See a pretty version of this newsletter:
http://bit.ly/hZyPpS
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Excerpted from *PRONOIA IS THE ANTIDOTE FOR PARANOIA*
available at Amazon: http://bit.ly/Pronoia
or Powells: http://bit.ly/PronoiaPowells
LET'S EXPOSE THE OBVIOUS MIRACLES, Part 5
The conventional wisdom seems to say that Americans are getting
dumber. One study reported that more people can name the characters in
The Simpsons TV show than know the rights guaranteed by the First
Amendment. Other surveys found that only 53 percent know how long it
takes the Earth to revolve around the sun, and 24 percent aren't sure
what country America gained its independence from.
Yet an article by Malcolm Gladwell in *The New Yorker*
(http://tinyurl.com/2e3kley) notes that Americans' IQ scores have been
steadily rising for a long time -- so much so that a person whose IQ placed
her in the top ten percent of the population in 1920 would be in the
bottom third today. One possible explanation: Our "growing stupidity"
may better be described as a difficulty keeping up with the ever-growing
mass of facts, whereas we are actually becoming better at solving
problems.
Gladwell cites the book *Everything Bad Is Good for You.* Its author,
Steven Johnson, argues that pop culture is increasingly expanding our
intelligence about social relationships and stretching our ability to sort out
complex moral dilemmas. TV shows in the 1970s, like Starsky and Hutch
and Dallas, had linear, easy-to-_follow story lines with simple characters
who behaved in predictable ways.
More recent shows, like Lost, The Sopranos, and Battlestar Galactica
weave together a number of convoluted narrative threads that require
rapt attention and even repeated viewings in order to understand.
Characters often wrestle with contradictory motivations that complicate
their behavior as they deal with ambiguous dilemmas for which there are
no clearly right solutions. Viewers who take in shows like this are in effect
attending brain gyms.
Referencing Johnson, Gladwell says modern video games have an equally
salubrious effect on the thinking power of those who play them. Unlike
the original models that first became available in the 1980s, the new
games are way beyond being mere tests of pattern recognition and motor
skills.
"Players are required to manage a dizzying array of information and
options," Gladwell writes. "The game presents the player with a series of
puzzles, and you can't succeed at the game simply by solving the puzzles
one at a time. You have to craft a longer-term strategy, in order to juggle
and coordinate competing interests."
Gladwell acknowledges that knowing objective information about the way
the world works is very important, and that we may be less adept at that
than were previous generations. In our defense, the amount of
information we have to keep track of verges on being infinite. "On an
average weekday," wrote Saul Bellow, "*The New York Times* contains
more information than any contemporary of Shakespeare's would have
acquired in a lifetime."
So maybe there's a 22-year-old computer programmer out there who
thinks that France was the country America freed itself from in 1776, but
on the other hand has achieved mastery over both the 53,000-word
guide to the "Grand Auto Theft III" video game and the game itself.
In any case, problem-solving is an equally essential measure of intelligence
as knowing objective information, and there is evidence that we're
growing smarter at that . . . .
TO READ THE REST OF THIS ESSAY, go here:
http://bit.ly/ObviousMiracle5
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READ PART 1 OF THE SERIES "Let's Expose the Obvious Miracles":
http://bit.ly/ObviousMiracle1
PART 2: http://bit.ly/ObviousMiracle2
PART 3: http://bit.ly/ObviousMiracle3
PART 4: http://bit.ly/ObviousMiracle4
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MORE PRONOIA RESOURCES:
OUTBREAK OF IRRATIONAL GENEROSITY
40 of the richest US families pledge to donate at least half their money to
charity.
http://tinyurl.com/2a9xpra
ERUPTION OF CRAZY PHILANTHROPY
Rich Germans demand higher taxes
http://tinyurl.com/ylhu9rf
EXPLOSION OF UNEXPECTED SANITY
Billionaire Warren Buffett: "I Should Be Paying A Lot More In Taxes"
http://tinyurl.com/22shd6p
(Note: I endorse these because I like them. They are not advertisements,
and I get no kickbacks.)
Please tell me your own personal nominations for PRONOIA RESOURCES.
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FREE WILL ASTROLOGY
Week beginning December 16
Copyright 2010 by Rob Brezsny
http://FreeWillAstrology.com
Grammar key: Asterisks equal *italics*
SAGITTARIUS (Nov. 22-Dec. 21): My favorite news source, The Onion,
reported on a proposed law that would prohibit marriage between any two
people who don't actually love each other (Onion.com/LoveLaw). Couples
whose unions are rooted in mutual antipathy or indifference are of course
protesting the plan, insisting that they have as much of a right to wed as
those who care for each other deeply and treat each other tenderly.
Whether or not this proposal becomes a formal part of the legal system,
Sagittarius, I urge you to embrace it. In fact, I'll go so far as to ask you
not to do *anything at all* unless you are at least somewhat motivated by
love. The coming months will be a time when your success will depend on
your ability to rise to new heights of compassion, romance, eros,
tenderness, empathy, and affection.
CAPRICORN (Dec. 22-Jan. 19): Let's imagine we're fifth-century monks
living in the land that today is known as the south of France. And let's say
we decide we're going to build a chapel in a place that has long been a
pagan shrine dedicated to the moon goddess Selene. Shouldn't we
consider the possibility that our new house of worship may be imbued
with the vibes of the previous sanctuary? Won't our own spiritual
aspirations be colored by those of the people who for hundreds of years
poured forth their devotions? Now shift your attention to the present
day, and apply our little thought experiment to what's going on in your
life. Tune in to the influences that may be conditioning the new thing
you'd like to create.
AQUARIUS (Jan. 20-Feb. 18): I would like to steal your angst, Aquarius. I
fantasize about sneaking into your room tonight, plucking your
nightmares right out of the heavy air, and spiriting them away. I imagine
sidling up to you on a crowded street and pickpocketing your bitterness
and frustration -- maybe even pilfering your doubts, too. I wouldn't keep
any of these ill-gotten goods for myself, of course. I wouldn't try to profit
from them in any way. Instead, I would donate them to the yawning
abyss, offer them up to the stormy ocean, or feed them to a bonfire on a
primal beach. P.S. Even though I can't personally accomplish these things,
there is now a force loose in your life that can. Are you willing to be
robbed of things you don't need?
PISCES (Feb. 19-March 20): In 2011, I bet that memory won't play as big
a role in your life as it has up until now. I don't mean to say that you will
neglect or forget about the past. Rather, I expect that you will be less
hemmed in by the consequences of what happened way back when. You'll
be able to work around and maybe even transcend the limitations that the
old days and the old ways used to impose on you. Your free will? It will be
freer than maybe it has ever been. Your creative powers will override the
inertia of how things have always been done.
ARIES (March 21-April 19): I vividly remember seeing singer Diamanda
Galas in concert. Though classically trained, she didn't confine herself to
mellifluous melodies and elegant tones. She was a whirlwind of elemental
sound, veering from animalistic bellows to otherworldly chants to operatic
glossolalia. It was all very entertaining, and often enjoyable. The skill with
which she shaped the sound as it escaped her body was prodigious. My
companion and I agreed that "she made your ears convulse and your eyes
writhe and your skin prickle -- but in a good way." How would you feel
about inviting some similar experiences into your life, Aries? The
astrological omens suggest this would be an excellent time to seek the
rowdy healing that only disciplined wildness can provide.
TAURUS (April 20-May 20): Here's a haiku-like poem by Cor van den
Heuvel: "the little girl / hangs all the ornaments / on the nearest branch."
My comment: It's cute that the girl crams all the decorations onto one
small section of the tree, and maybe her parents will keep them that way.
But I recommend that you take a different approach as you work to
beautify and enliven your environment. Spread out your offerings;
distribute your blessings equally; make sure that everything in need of
invigoration gets what it requires.
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LISTEN TO AN EXPANDED AUDIO HOROSCOPE
In addition to the horoscopes you're reading here, I create more in-depth
audio horoscopes for your inspiration. Find out more at
http://RealAstrology.com.
The audio horoscopes are also available by phone at 1-877-873-4888 or
1-900-950-7700.
"I don't much believe in astrology. But that doesn't seem to get in the
way of me deriving a whole lot of benefits from your expanded audio
horoscopes."
- A. Arrosto, Indianapolis
"You have an amazing aptitude for cutting through the lies I tell myself.
Thanks for the gentle shocks."
- T. Preneris, Toronto
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GEMINI (May 21-June 20): This is a good time to go in search of any
secrets you've been hiding from yourself. I suggest you also try to track
down the "missing links" that aren't really missing but rather are
neglected. My advice is similar for the supposedly "lost treasure" you're
wondering about: Clues about its whereabouts are lying around in full view
for anyone who is innocent enough to see them. P.S. Being uncomplicated
isn't normally your strong suit, but this is one of those rare times when
you'll have an aptitude for it.
CANCER (June 21-July 22): In the TV comedy series "Arrested
Development," Buster Bluth was an adult character who was a bit over-
attached to his mother. It seemed to have to do with the fact that he
lingered in her womb for 11 months before agreeing to be born. The
obstetrician claimed "there were claw marks on her uterus." I want to be
sure you don't make a comparable misstep in the coming weeks,
Cancerian. It really is time for you to come out and play. Ready or not,
leave your protective sanctuary and leap into the jangly, enchanting
tumult.
LEO (July 23-Aug. 22): I have imaginary friends who help me. And yes,
they sometimes even give me ideas for your horoscopes. Are you OK with
that? Among the many other perks my secret buddies provide, they show
me where my cell phone and car keys are when I've misplaced them -- a
prime sign of their practical value. What's your current status in regards
to imaginary friends, Leo? Do you even have any? This would be an
excellent time to seek them out and put them to work. In fact, I
encourage you to do anything that might attract the input of
undiscovered allies, behind-the-scenes collaborators, mysterious guidance,
and divine assistance.
VIRGO (Aug. 23-Sept. 22): Might there be a message for you in the mist
on the window? Can you find a clue to the next phase of your destiny by
scanning a newspaper that the wind blows against your leg as you're
walking? Be alert for the undertones, Virgo. Tune in to the subtexts. Scan
the peripheries for the future as it reveals itself a little early. You never
know when the hidden world might be trying to slip you a tip. You should
be alert for the deeper storylines weaving themselves just below the level
where the supposedly main plot is unfolding.
LIBRA (Sept. 23-Oct. 22): A musician who records under the name of
Shamantis took Justin Bieber's silly pop tune "U Smile," and slowed it
down 800 percent. The new work was a 35-minute-long epic masterpiece
of ambient electronica that *The New York Times* praised as "ghostly"
and "oceanic." More than two million people tuned in to hear it on the
Internet. Might there be a comparable transformation in your future,
Libra? From an astrological perspective, it's prime time for you to
transform a pedestrian exercise into a transcendent excursion, or a trivial
diversion into an elegant inspiration, or a meaningless entertainment into
a sublime learning opportunity.
SCORPIO (Oct. 23-Nov. 21): More than a few wildlife films use deception
to fool the audiences into thinking they're watching animals in the wild. So
says Chris Palmer, a producer of many such films. "One classic trick
involves hiding jellybeans in carcasses," he told *New Scientist.* "If you
see a bear feeding on a dead elk in a film, you can be pretty sure that the
bear was hired from a game farm and is looking for sweets hidden in the
carcass by the film-makers." I suspect you will encounter a metaphorically
comparable ruse or switcheroo sometime soon, Scorpio. It'll be your job
to be an enforcer of authenticity. Be on the lookout for the jellybeans.
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HOMEWORK: What do you foresee happening in the world in 2011? What
do you predict for your own life? Write Truthrooster@gmail.com.
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WANT TO GET YOUR CHART DONE?
I'm not doing personal charts, but I highly recommend my astrological
colleague, RO LOUGHRAN. Her approach closely matches my own. In our
many discussions about astrology over the years, we've had a major
influence on each other's work.
Ro utilizes a blend of well-trained intuition, emotional warmth, and a high
degree of technical proficiency in horoscope interpretation; she is skilled
at exploring the mysteries of your life's purpose and nurturing your
connection with your own inner wisdom.
Ro is based in California, but can do phone consultations and otherwise
work with you regardless of geographic boundaries.
Ro's website is at
http://YourSoulJourney.com
She can also be reached at roloughran@comcast.net
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Contents of the Free Will Astrology Newsletter are Copyright
2010 Rob Brezsny
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