In barely 200 years, Western culture morphed from one shaped by religious organizations to one shaped by the state. Then, in a matter of decades, we became a culture shaped by corporations - most notoriously, a culture shaped by the multinational oil companies and the defense and armaments firms that President Dwight D. Eisenhower targeted in his January 17, 1961 Farewell Speech, when he warned us of the the rise of the 'military-industrial complex.'
In a contemporary warning delivered at the Omega Institute, controversial author, John Perkins ("Confessions of an Economic Hitman"), a one-time economist for the strategic-consulting company Chas. T. Main, a firm with alleged ties to the U.S. National Security Agency, warns that "these are deeply revolutionary times," when all of us will have to play a part in reclaiming our lost culture.
"This is a time that requires incredible courage on our part," Perkins notes. Are we willing, he asks with all the fervor of a convert, to take courage and "stand up to a system that we know we can deeply improve upon?"
"Being fearless, at this point," he observes, "requires tremendous courage and the recognition that there is something much greater than 'my' immediate needs and 'my' immediate life, and that looks at the whole integrated planet and its future."
Perkins' "Dream Change" organization is dedicated to shifting consciousness and promoting sustainable lifestyles for the individual and global community. He has deep roots in Ecuador, having served in the Amazon with the Peace Corps. before entering upon a truncated career as a consultant to U.S.-based multinational corporations.
Below, Perkins talks about the holistic worldview of native Ecuadoran tribal life, and the Amer-Indian "Prophecy of the Eagle and the Condor."
Excellent post, thank you.
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