By 

Ms. Narveen Aryaputri. 

President and Founder

The Institute for Cultural and Healing Traditions, ltd. 

Gideon Rose is the Editor of Foreign Affairs. In the special 90 year anniversary issue Jan -Feb 2012 dedicated to "The Clash of Ideas : The Ideological Battles That Made the Modern World-and Will Shape the Future" made a rather controversial statement at the beginning of his article 'Making Modernity Work. The Reconciliation of Capitalism and Democracy.' 

He said: " The major battles about how to structure modern politics and economics were fought in the first half of the last century, and they ended with the emergence of the most successful system the world has ever seen." 

Most successful?  

The masses are blowing up people and buildings these last few years. What can he mean?   Yet, let us examine his statement and see the historical  perspective. 

We know we have grown away from traditional societies. This is the age when " The mass of men" came into political power, as Harold Laski, political scientist said. When we look at who ruled the previous era, we see the strong role of religion, controlling social and economic life in the western world, and kings in the eastern world. 

Today, in the world of physical and cyberspace, the " mass of men and women" have redefined the meaning of  State and power. 

All this because of the loss of traditional societies. But with this loss came the loss of a sense of belonging, a sense of place, a loss of psychological stability, a loss of social connections, a sense of isolation, all of which added to the economic disintegration and large sections of human society steeped in despair. Apathy, which was the affliction of the 90s and perhaps even the 80s to some extent, has given way to rage. It's difficult to watch expressions of this rage in a very alive media streaming live into our living rooms, inciting all who watch. 

Yet, in addition to this loss, we have jointly accumulated and  achieved an enormous equity. 

Equity, a term usually used in real estate transactions, is not restricted to the financial world.  We have spiritual, emotional, social, psychological equity. Every drop of effort builds up equity. The easiest to see is the equity parents put into raising children. The breath of prayer placed into the universe. Every plant saved. Every effort made to foster and nurture a cohesive uplifting civilization. All these are a building up of equity. 

Often we forget this, slipping into the habit of seeing only financial equity. This is a habit we must guard against. 

During our previous annual reports and our frequent discussions at the Independent Scholars' Evenings, we have spoken about the role of culture. What is culture? And we had come to the joint conclusion that it is the various repeated habits that firm themselves around us, much like a biological culture. These will vary in different societies. Which then leads us into highlighting the norm, or the mean in various cultures. 

In previous years we repeatedly underline the use of the word currency.  Currency, as we repeatedly say in our Institute, is more than coins and paper.  Although that aspect of money is vital for society, it is restricted and restrictive. Society cannot function on coins and paper alone. At the Institute, we hold currency to be the exchange quotient. 

This year let us introduce  the words ' Value our equity'. Let us link these words together with the word currency. And with this lens let us review the achievements, the currency and equity, being circulated now, through The Institute and it's various branches:

Keep in mind, please, we are in the third industrial revolution, where manufacturing is digital, as we review our currency here. The first industrial revolution as in Britain in the 18th. C. With the mechanization of  the textile industry. The second began in America in the early 20th.C with the assembly line and mass production. Now we are in the third, the digital age. The significance of what we observe is, therefore, different.  

The industrial and other revolutions may differ, but the essential component is the same factor: human. With all their variables and commonalities. 

First we will review the The Independent Scholars' Evenings. 

As we review the evening presentations, keep in mind we do not appoint nor orchestrate these evenings. This is free form. We merrily open the evenings for area independent scholars. They are the quintessential free form Evenings for Independent Scholars. Like in all free form, a pattern and a motif will occur. It is something that happens in the force of Nature. It is natural. Plus its more fun.  We can all observe the motifs occurring and interpret them, individually, as we see fit. 

As this review develops you will see the important component of fun and laughter intertwined with the seriousness of it all. 

That is the speciality of these ISE. Never audio or video taped, these are highly individual  evenings, each one is different in  message. Each one magical, fun and meaningful. 

 

To begin with, in recognition of this third industrial revolution we are currently in, Charles Fisher gave a presentation on  Singularity: Friend or Foe? In 1965, Gordon Moore (former president of Intel Corporation) noticed a 

peculiar trend in semiconductor electronics - circuit densities are 

doubling every two years. This phenomena (known as "Moore's Law") has 

quickly led from primitive to enormously powerful computers, and promises 

unimaginable processing capability within our lifetimes.

The exponential relationship described by Moore's Law turns up in 

surprising places: GDP, worker productivity, energy production, and patent 

applications.

Beyond the question of the consequences of unsustainable growth in these

fields upon human society, computers sufficiently powerful to simulate a 

human mind and achieve consciousness are perhaps just a decade away.  

Charles lead and highlighted  the discussion of these technological trends, and their impact upon our culture, morals, and the very viability of our species.

He lead to this presentation with his previous work on 

"Quantum Absurdity: The Strange world of Quantum Physics"

This phenomenon and history-in the-making awareness was highlited in an earlier session on "The Secret of the Universe" by Jeremy Stride a special video about the genius behind Coral Castle. The ancient secrets of antigravity are revealed as the result of an in depth study - clues left by Edward Leedskalnin at Coral Castle, and the Freemasons Lodge (Grand Masonic Lodge) at Philadelphia. The Golden Ratio (Phi), or the Golden Section, and it's relationship to Prime Numbers, Prime Quadruplets, and the Pyramid Shape with an angle of 51.83 degrees is revealed for the first time! The formerly hidden secrets of anti-gravity and magnetism are here. The Star of David hexagram is a key as well, along with the number 144. This video shows us how the ancient megaliths of the world were really constructed. 

The movie was introduced by Michael Grady.

Michael Grady highlighted the possibility of free energy in his presentations on : " Implosion - and Free Energy Physics". He will continue to discuss various aspects of this phenomenon as the months advance, so those who missed it can catch up. 

Robert Stanley brought  up and highlighted the The 9th. Amendment  of the Constitution of  the United States of  America. The 9th Amendment states that the people will retain all of the rights they had at the time of the signing  of the Constitution of the United States of America. The open discussion lead to a thorough examining of our current social situation in light of the crises and disintegration going on around us.

2012 : the question of the end of our world. In the middle of these times, this question loomed up in our daily lives, not only in the Americas. Michael Rosenthal presented a series on the question and concerns, beginning with " Apocalypse or Enlightenment? An introduction to the cultural phenomenon of  December 21st 2012" going onto the examining of Consciousness with his presentation  on Identity and Telepathy and following with the History of the Science of Consciousness.

Linking with special connections with our current explorations of the 2012 evolution to Higher Consciousness, we  had a '60s night' conducted by John Brady and Michael Rosenthal with Music on the guitar and on the harmonica from the “Beatle Bible” by artist John Brady, with a  discussion of  the ‘60s and the expansion of  Consciousness.  

Connecting with the ongoing theme of Consciousness is the movie ' Waking Life ' shown by Charles Fisher? This stunning, visually arresting film by Richard Linklater focuses on lucid dreaming, the nature of dreams, consciousness, and existentialism. The film provokes deep thought while leaving you doubting what is real and believing what is dreamt.

We live in this third industrial revolution with a variety of social media serving as a connection, albeit disjointed. Scott Klarkowski examined this aspect of our current society with  “ Social Media: The Big Disappointment: IF you follow the rules. 

Significant to our contemporary 21st C. life, Michael Grady showed a movie THRIVE is an unconventional documentary that lifts the veil on what's REALLY going in our world by following the money upstream , following with  critical analysis of the movie. 

Continuing our Lion in Winter poetry month with Evergreen Poets in February each year, this past year we listened to the new poetry of Mike Bayles, and Sheri Grutz whose book " This Sky I Know"  is in our library,  and  of Salvatore Marici whose  book signing is coming up in August this year.

Although not during our Lion in Winter Evergreen poetry emphasis month, Judith Lee gave a beautiful Reading of  poetry and writings of  mystical saints of various traditions, contemporary poets and scriptures regarding the power and contemplation of faith, gratitude, and thanksgiving with sharing. 

In this 21st. C, with its Third Industrial Revolution and social upheaval, the importance of handling our physical health was highlighted continuously, woven through our Independent Scholars' Evenings with a variety of presentation. 

Dr. Shubhangee Satam MD in Ayurveda visited our area from Nov. 4th. 2009 through Nov 7th. 2009 from Mumbai, India. She was in residence while she gave a variety of presentations covering the scope of Ayurveda as well as individual advice. 

This past year was the year the U.S government changed the Food Pyramid into a Food Plate to try and deal with the epidemic of obesity effecting our society today. 

While we believe, at The Institute, that obesity is a emotional component reflective of our social disintegration and allied isolation, we did focus on the inclusion of herbs and spices which are vital for a healthy diet, none of which were included in the Food Plate circulated by the US Government. So we did what we do at Institute: we made a Herb and Spice plate, which we will be presenting during the summer of 2012.

Additionally, a connected, yet more hidden aspect of our current contemporary experience with the cyberspace world is the rudeness and hostility being demonstrated. In keeping with the global nature of our lives today, we felt it appropriate to make a list of derogatory words to alert our network when they are in danger of crossing the lines of decent social interaction.  We have listed this on our LinkedIn pages. Please search for QC Institute Independent Scholars on LinkedIn. This is a new forum we opened on LinkedIn for contributions or reviews online for those who are unable to join the active discussion during the Independent Scholars' Evenings themselves. 

Connected with our contemporary social disintegration, and lack of healthy diets is the presence of depression and a variety of mental illnesses. "Overcoming Mental Illness in Today’s World"  was an in depth presentation by Jennifer Sergeant whose new book covers the pitfalls and possible causes of mental illness in today’s society and the various ways in which they are being treated and can be overcome. 

Do you think a Beauty Queen is above the affliction of depression and suicidal tendencies? Ms. Iowa American Co-Ed. Monica Lacovitch has looked into this aspect of  Depression and Suicide Awareness in our society, inclusive of the Beauty world, during her reign as Miss Kentucky and her current appointment. 

Personally, concerned and ruminating on how we handle our society today, as well as the contribution America makes on this world, I examined the role of America with an essay " America the Resilient", copies of which are available in our library. 

The issue of sustainability and conservation of resources is concerning many of us in our network. Krystal Hamilton Case gave an in-depth video presentation on  Earthships : Sustainable self-sufficient homes. It is exciting to see such possibilities. 

We reviewed the movie: The Secret Life of Plants. The book, published in the 70s, by Peter Tompklin and Christopher Bird, is being circulated amount the Independent Scholars and the co-learners who attend these evenings. 

An aspect of our society, current and past,  being examined by Michael Grady is the question of  "Propaganda". He looked at the question of : What is Propaganda?How does it influence us? What is the Truth? What is a Lie? These examintions will be printed and available in our library in the upcoming months. 

“ The Beautiful Story” and “ Enfolded: An Ordinary Story of God's Love” are two original  short stories  written and presented by Roger Farinha

All of these incredible evenings are woven through the waves of the Mississippi, whose waters nourish us. 

We read the continued extracts from the manuscript 

" Life on the Mississippi - The New Millennium" kept at The Institute where scholars and co-learners make entires about what it is like to live along the Mississippi . 

This year I read my entries in the manuscript at the Chicago Literary Society. They are now online, posted on their website. 

The Institute last year expanded it's activities  to include the "Phoenix Fine Art Gallery" under it's wing. Allied with the gallery is its offshoot, the commission-based craft  and art store: "Artisan Adventure" . 

The artists who are now in partnership with us are Ekkehard Stoevesand from Berlin, Germany- our first Artist in Residence invited to paint the area and our river; Robert Kameczura from Chicago, Illinois; Hugh Lifson from Cornell College, Iowa; Zach Cleve from Davenport; Emma Farber from Coal Valley; Richard Dailing from Rock Island; Elsa Romero from Bettendorf; Karen Klingburg from Moline. 

Our first Wearable Art show featuring the art of Elsa Romero and her jewelry line ' Bolero' , modeled by various live models including Ms.America Co-Ed Monica Lacovitch, was a huge success. A section of this show included the jewelry made by various international artists for WAR: Women At Risk, to raise funds for the work WAR in doing in the area of rehabilitation  of women. 

The importance of commerce in our social weave is always present in our network through The Moline Commercial Club, a restoration of the original club for which the building where The Institute holds its sessions, was built. the Moine Commercial Club began in 1895 by Charles Deere and has been restored. There are a variety of projects under way in this aspect of The Institute, all of which will be in these papers as they develop and come to fruition. This aspect of The Moline Commercial Club works directly with member businesses. 

Focusing on  The Moline Commercial Club's member business, Michael Grady spoke about the fish in the Illinois River He gave a presentation: " Behind the Scene Look at the Asian Carp " which we, through The Moline Commercial Club have assisted in working to highlight locally as well as for export overseas. 

Significantly, The Moline Commercial Club hosted a dinner of a variety of dishes made with the Silver Carp, from our Illinois rivers, to highlight the commercial potential of the carp. Nippon TV from Japan televised the dinner.  The dinner was prepared by Chef Linda. The TV broadcast is posted online on our website.