Dec 27, 2008

INDEPENDENT MEDIA by Steve Anderson Whether you are concerned with issues pertaining to health, the economy or the environment, the current democratic deficit in media limits opportunities for social change. If open public discussion is the oxygen of social change and progress; undemocratic media systems suffocate that oxygen. As Nicholas Johnson, a...

Dec 27, 2008

NUTRISPEAK by Vesanto Melina Are you planning any festive gatherings that will include food? Beyond the traditional fare, do you wonder how to nourish the range of dietary choices among your circle of friends and family? Does your group include vegetarians, vegans, raw foods enthusiasts or someone whose health concerns require that they eat healthier food...

Dec 27, 2008

ON THE GARDEN PATH by Carolyn Herriot I never thought I’d see the day when one man could make such an enormous difference to the planet. We have just begun a new era of politics where, out of necessity, the people will now drive the agenda. The most powerful nation in the world – the one that contributes most to climate change and war – now...

Dec 27, 2008

THE POWER OF NOW by Eckhart Tolle Would you choose unhappiness? If you did not choose it, how did it arise? What is its purpose? Who is keeping it alive? You say that you are conscious of your unhappy feelings, but the truth is that you are identi€ed with them and keep the process alive through compulsive thinking. All that is unconscious. If you were...

Dec 26, 2008

UNIVERSE WITHIN by Gwen Randall-Young “The single, biggest problem in communication is the illusion that it has taken place. – George Bernard Shaw By the age of two, most humans are learning how to talk. However, some people can go a lifetime without ever learning to really communicate. Communication is one of the biggest problems between...

Dec 26, 2008

FILMS WORTH WATCHING by Robert Alstead Intellectual property rights is one of the most vexing issues of the digital era. People on different sides of the planet exchange music, software, images, TV shows and even entire movies over the internet. Traditional media companies are terrified; the old business model has been predicated on big media being able to...

Dec 26, 2008

EARTHFUTURE by Guy Dauncey We live in exciting times. We don’t need to pray for the day when real change will start rolling. It’s rolling now so don’t pass this one up! Things may seem sleepy in Canada, but don’t kid yourself. Just because the government in Ottawa is stuck in the 1950s, it doesn’t mean the rest of us have to...

SCIENCE MATTERS by David Suzuki with Faisal Moola Energy underpins everything we do. Human societies have become increasingly complex, requiring ever larger-scale sources of continuous energy. Now, energy fuels not only our activities, but our economies as well. If we don’t choose our energy sources wisely, we can do more harm than good. Non-renewable...

  Truce not war Thank you very much for the article about the events that took place on December 24, 1914 [Remembering war, Geoff Olson, November 2008]. It’s a very beautiful and inspirational piece and the question of where to mark events like December 24, 1914, on the calendar is so important. I think many more people are asking this question these...

Dec 26, 2008

by Geoff Olson Many of us consider philosophy to be a specialized field of study, with little real-world application. Yet we’re all philosophers of one kind or another. We all have our own ideas about love, freedom and the meaning of life – or its non-meaning. These ideas, though not always articulated, often guide our lives to a surprising...

Dec 26, 2008

by Heather Wardle   In a small corner of a district hospital in Tibet, 12-year-old Datso sat crying. She was blind from bilateral cataracts, the clouding of the eye’s natural lens. Datso’s short life had been miserable and lonely. “I am blind and don’t deserve any friends,” she sobbed. “I am not capable of doing...

WRITING ON THE WALL by Joseph Roberts Welcome to the December issue of Common Ground. In this last month of 2008, we look to 2009 with renewed hope for the change that we believe will come. The great news is that we don’t have to worry about Sarah Pallin ruling the empire to the south, given that Barack Obama seized the day. Like many others, I cried...

Dec 26, 2008

by John M. Darch For more than three decades, I have been involved with numerous natural resource projects in North America, Africa and Asia, meeting many interesting (and sometimes unsavoury) people. None, however, compare with the intriguing and friendly Thais. Like most Western entrepreneurs in Thailand, I was mostly involved with the established business...