Imagine

2007-05-10T08:48:00.001-07:00

Changing Location Weblog!!!

2007-05-09T19:44:00.000-07:00

Please note that my weblog will now reside at my website. The below posts will be moved there as well.

Please visit at:

www.tristanluke.com/wordpress/

See you there!

2007-04-29T19:54:00.000-07:00

"There's only one institution in the world today more powerful than American government, and that is American civil society."

Arundhati Roy

2007-04-24T07:39:00.000-07:00

As a follow up, I watched (listened to, actually) Don Imus's apology at Youtube , and it seemed sincere.

It occurs to me though, that his comment must have been only slightly above the level of hurtful things people say everyday, and I hope the incident draws people's attention to this.

Goodbye

2007-04-13T17:25:00.000-07:00

Venom spewers and hate mongers sometimes appear to flourish, but only because they are a voice for the hateful and venomous. Their fuel is high octane, but it burns them up.

I admire the imaginative, the thoughtful and kind, the truly rebellious who can imagine something better for their world and act on it.

I express my sincere respect and admiration for the beautiful women of the Rutgers women's basketball team.

Dr. Phil

2007-04-11T19:52:00.000-07:00

Do you watch Dr. Phil?

I find the whole thing worrisome. Not the show so much, but the residual effect of listening to it in my car, which is the onset of a realization: quite a few people must be watching this.

Dr. Phil comes to me via FM, from a station in Albany, NY, I believe. I don't know which one, but I know they have Ellen DeGeneres on after him, and I like Ellen. I'm not against this kind of thing; I'm really not. I also like Oprah, for example.

My concerns about the good doctor:

I guess my first concern is that I have not yet heard Dr. Phil say one positive or encouraging thing and sound genuine. Not one. It sounds to me (and to be fair I have probably only heard four or five hours of his work), as if Dr. Phil's people go out and find guests convenient for him to talk down to and objectify.

Clearly, his producers have little trouble finding the right kind of people in the right kind of circumstances on which he can perform this little trick. But that proves very little, and it amounts to a pretty empty meal to serve up to the masses who tune in.

If you happen to catch Dr. Phil, notice how he does it. You can almost hear music cue up, a tiny pause after the guest says something and then whack- the patronizing zinger. This gets applause from the audience, ego gratification for him, a cheap fix for the viewer... voila. A neat little package deal.

But that's not hard to achieve when it's your turf, your show, your context, your audience primed for your program, and your producers bringing in the guests who are in a vulnerable position from the start. It doesn't impress me much when a man in this position speaks from ego and condescends to people. It just doesn't. It's a cheap trick. Any marginally competent human being could do it.

I am left to wonder if people really feel good about themselves after watching. I have walked away several times now with a greater respect for the guests than for the host.

The forty-one year old marrying an eighteen year old girl. The teenage addict. The friend of a deceased celebrity drug addict who didn't step in soon enough to rescue her. They all sounded more genuine to me than the man up there grilling them.

From what I have heard, our friend Phil usually finds an opportunity to deliver some sort of grandstanding platitude, the kind of cheap wisdom you find hanging in someone's kitchen after they've been through AA. He leaves me with doubt, though, as to whether he has the insight, intuitive feel, or compassion needed to actually help these people or inspire them to make changes in their lives. I don't know that he helps his audience either, or anyone else, except his network and investors.

If you watch Dr. Phil, please don't feel dissed by what I've written above. It could well be that I am missing something, and I would rather be wrong about this than right. Who knows, maybe I will turn on the radio tomorrow while I'm out running errands, and the man will impress me with his acumen and his sincerity. This is my hope.

I want to believe in you Dr. Phil; I believe you are a good man at heart. I am looking for your very best.

You see, Dr. Phil, I am going to do the thing for you that you fail to do for your guests:

Create something beautiful. Show us that you can inspire and lead by example. Your guests are vulnerable; don't go for the kill! That's pathetic. Speak from your heart, from generosity and compassion, not from ego.

Demonstrate your understanding of this absolute, unshakeable truth:

You can try to motivate people by talking down to and insulting them, or you can try to motivate people by believing in them. You always get better results when you treat people as if you believe in them. Always. No exceptions.

And Dr. Phil, I believe you can do it.

For the rest of us, my suggestion is that we shine the light of our attention on those who can imagine something better for this world, who see the beauty and potential in humanity, not look for the worst and exploit it for cash. You could do either with the same guests and the same audience. It all depends on your perspective and where your heart is.

If you've watched Dr. Phil in the past, allow me to suggest a man named Dr. Wayne Dyer. Dr. Dyer is an insightful, thoughtful man, and his words truly resonate. His perspective is informed by sources as deep as they are varied: from the Bhagavad Gita, to Ralph Waldo Emerson, to Rwandan genocide survivor Immaculee Ilibagiza. If you do not know these, don't worry. The ideas are universal and timeless. They will ring true for you, I promise.

This would be a great antidote to the toxic spectacle we dealt with above. You just might find yourself feeling hopeful afterwards.

Tristan L. Sullivan

www.tristanluke.com

2007-04-08T13:28:00.000-07:00

Choose wisely.

2007-04-07T18:23:00.000-07:00

Do you like science? I find it fascinating. I love it. I'm attracted to scientists, too. Especially if they look like Debi Mazar in The Insider. No, she didn't play a scientist, but she could have.

But what's going on? It is my perception that throughout history, scientists tended to have a kind of humility and wonder at the laws of nature and the natural world. They had to prevail against the tyranny of monarchs, the vanity of their patrons, and more than anything of course, religion. It was a scientist who first suggested the earth revolved around the sun (heliocentric), rather than the other way around, and he suffered for it.

But this is a techno age, and the whole thing has been reversed. Scientists have begun to see things as revolving around them again.

Actually, I don't think it really is the hard core scientists that are the problem, at least not the brilliant ones. Some of these whom I have admired and follow as best I can have been: Candace Pert, Edward Witten, Fred Allan Wolf, Carl Sagan, Stephen Hawking, John Hagelin.

I think the problem is more the hangers on of scientists: the people who have a background in science for their work, but don't really practice it or conduct research and haven't since they graduated.

There is a debate, well not much of a one really but there is a debate raging at this YouTube video

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CxanQCuXvhk

If the video is no longer available, just know that basically, self-help guru James Arthur Ray, one of the stars of the popular new film The Secret, defends his ideas and methods against Psychology Professor John Norcross's attack.

Now, one of the things Norcross states, and what lots of people down below in the text comments are contending, is that Mr. Ray's claims are not scientifically valid. James Arthur Ray explains how the teachings of the above mentioned movie, and those of his own website and program, have resulted in major turnarounds in people's lives. He cites a specific case and gives a woman's name.

When prompted by the host to respond, Mr. Norcross actually follows this with, "Well of course, but we don't know that's causal..." and, "Cases are not science. We need randomized, clinical trials..."

Good Lord, what an idiot.

In this realm, there can really only be anecdotal evidence. This is not a fault of Mr. Ray's methodology. We're talking about actual people and their lives here; and if after applying Mr. Ray's methods this lady greatly improved her life, then wouldn't there be too many variables to apply the kind of controlled clinical study Mr. Norcross refers to? If it is possible, would it be necessary?

If the woman Mr Ray speaks of went from taking twelve medications a day to none, got back to doing meaningful work and is clearly doing much better; if someone actually did double their income, or find the relationship they wanted, et cetera, then, my friends... that is it.

That's the idea. These are the things that all people want in their lives. Science is here to help with that, not the other way around. If a form of spirituality, or the study of certain ideas about universal laws i.e. The Secret works for people, well then... it works.

In my opinion, science is meant to aid our lives, to enhance our lives, it is not in itself the end.

If Mr. Ray gets the kinds of results he claims and his system is working, this is in no way diminished by the inability to force it into some prefabricated scientific mold.

Watching this video, I was reminded of Woody Allen's suggestion that we not listen to what our teachers say, but instead, see what they look like.

Which of these two men has more fire, more vitality, more life in him? I am not referring to Mr. Norcross's "looks"; he looks fine. But folks, he just doesn't look interesting. There is something pallid and lifeless about him, and that is telling us something.

In my experience, the world always responds to our expectations of it. It could be that whichever we decide is true, Mr. Norcross's position or Mr. Ray's, we will find out we were right.

www.tristanluke.com

Intro

2007-04-07T16:33:00.000-07:00

Hi! My name is Tristan L. Sullivan. Please feel free to visit me at www.tristanluke.com I am grateful for the opportunity to share my thoughts with the world.