New Thinkin • Apr 2, 2025 David Jaher is author of The Witch of Lime Street: Seance, Seduction, and Houdini in the Spirit World. Here he describes an episode in American history in which Scientific American magazine held a contest that pitted the great escape artist, Harry Houdini, against the provocative Spiritualist medium and Boston socialite, Margery Crandon. These two individuals were among the most famous in the western world during the 1920s. A number of psychical researchers were involved in the investigation of Mrs. Crandon’s mediumship. This case, in part, inspired J. B. Rhine to develop scientific parapsychology in a new direction. New Thinking Allowed host, Jeffrey Mishlove, PhD, is author of The Roots of Consciousness, Psi Development Systems, and The PK Man. Between 1986 and 2002 he hosted and co-produced the original Thinking Allowed public television series. He is the recipient of the only doctoral diploma in “parapsychology” ever awarded by an accredited university (University of California, Berkeley, 1980). He is also the Grand Prize winner of the 2021 Bigelow Institute essay competition regarding the best evidence for survival of human consciousness after permanent bodily death. He is Co-Director of Parapsychology Education at the California Institute for Human Science. (Recorded on March 19, 2019)

Hank Moody July 28, 2015 Vince Vaughn’s Frank imparts some wisdom on a bereaved son. Stellar writing from Nic Pizzolatto.

“Sometimes, a thing happens, splits your life. There’s a before and after. I got like five of them at this point. And this is your first. But if you use it right, the bad thing, you use it right, and it makes you better. Stronger. It gives you something most people don’t have. Bad as this is, wrong as it is… this hurt… it can make you a better man. That’s what pain does. It shows you what was on the inside. And inside of you is pure gold. And I know that. Your father knew that, too. Pure, solid gold. That’s what you got.”

–Vince Vaughn as Frank Semyon in Season 2 of True Detective

nndmtube Sep 10, 2012 In The Alchemical Dream, a film produced by Sacred Mysteries and directed by Sheldon Rochlin, visionary author and counterculture luminary Terence McKenna relates some of the curious history of European alchemy, and the attempted creation of a religious utopia based on alchemical principles. Dressed as the famed Hermetic magician John Dee, McKenna strolls wistfully through the crumbling ruins and sweeping castle vistas of Eastern Europe discussing the lost secrets of alchemy. He gives us a tour of the last remaining alchemical laboratory in Heidelberg, and tells a fascinating story of political intrigue and bohemian experimentation in the 16th century.

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

For the movement system created by Carlos Castaneda, see Tensegrity (Castaneda).

Stereo image
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Animation A similar structure but with four compression members.

Tensegrity, tensional integrity or floating compression is a structural principle based on a system of isolated components under compression inside a network of continuous tension, and arranged in such a way that the compressed members (usually bars or struts) do not touch each other while the prestressed tensioned members (usually cables or tendons) delineate the system spatially.^[1]

Tensegrity structures are found in both nature and human-made objects: in the human body, the bones are held in compression while the connective tissues are held in tension, and the same principles have been applied to furniture and architectural design and beyond.

The term was coined by Buckminster Fuller in the 1960s as a portmanteau of “tensional integrity”.^[2]

Core concept

Tensegrity is characterized by several foundational principles that define its unique properties:

1. Continuous tension: Fundamental to tensegrity, the tension elements—typically cables or tendons—form a continuous network that encases the entire structure. This allows for the even distribution of mechanical stresses and maintains the structural form, contributing to the overall stability and flexibility of the system.
2. Discontinuous compression: The compression components, such as struts or rods, are distinct in that they do not make direct contact with each other but are instead suspended within the tension network. This eliminates the need for rigid connections, enhancing the structural efficiency and resilience of the system.
3. Pre-stressed: A key aspect of tensegrity structures is their pre-stressed state, in which tension elements are tightened during the assembly process. Pre-stressing contributes significantly to the structural stiffness and stability, ensuring that all elements are either in tension or compression at all times.
4. Self-equilibration: Tensegrity structures are self-equilibrating and so automatically distribute internal stresses across the structure. This allows them to adapt to varying loads without losing structural integrity.
5. Minimalism and efficiency: Tensegrity systems employ a minimalist design philosophy, utilizing the minimum amount of materials to achieve maximum structural strength.
6. Scalability and modularity: The design principles of tensegrity allow for scalability and modular construction. Tensegrity structures to be easily adapted or expanded in size and complexity according to specific requirements.

Because of these patterns, no structural member experiences a bending moment and there are no shear stresses within the system. This can produce exceptionally strong and rigid structures for their mass and for the cross section of the components.

These principles collectively enable tensegrity structures to achieve a balance of strength, resilience, and flexibility, making the concept widely applicable across disciplines including architecture, robotics, and biomechanics.

Early example

A conceptual building block of tensegrity is seen in the 1951 Skylon. Six cables, three at each end, hold the tower in position. The three cables connected to the bottom “define” its location. The other three cables are simply keeping it vertical.

A three-rod tensegrity structure (shown above in a spinning drawing of a T3-Prism) builds on this simpler structure: the ends of each green rod look like the top and bottom of the Skylon. As long as the angle between any two cables is smaller than 180°, the position of the rod is well defined. While three cables are the minimum required for stability, additional cables can be attached to each node for aesthetic purposes and for redundancy. For example, Kenneth Snelson‘s Needle Tower uses a repeated pattern built using nodes that are connected to 5 cables each.

Eleanor Heartney points out visual transparency as an important aesthetic quality of these structures.^[3] Korkmaz et al. has argued that lightweight tensegrity structures are suitable for adaptive architecture.^[4][5]

Applications

Architecture

Tensegrities saw increased application in architecture beginning in the 1960s, when Maciej Gintowt and Maciej Krasiński designed Spodek arena complex (in Katowice, Poland), as one of the first major structures to employ the principle of tensegrity. The roof uses an inclined surface held in check by a system of cables holding up its circumference. Tensegrity principles were also used in David Geiger‘s Seoul Olympic Gymnastics Arena (for the 1988 Summer Olympics), and the Georgia Dome (for the 1996 Summer Olympics). Tropicana Field, home of the Tampa Bay Rays major league baseball team, also has a dome roof supported by a large tensegrity structure.

On 4 October 2009, the Kurilpa Bridge opened across the Brisbane River in Queensland, Australia. A multiple-mast, cable-stay structure based on the principles of tensegrity, it is currently the world’s largest tensegrity bridge.

Robotics

Since the early 2000s, tensegrities have also attracted the interest of roboticists due to their potential to design lightweight and resilient robots. Numerous researches have investigated tensegrity rovers,^[6] bio-mimicking robots,^[7][8][9] and modular soft robots.^[10] The most famous tensegrity robot is the Super Ball Bot,^[11] a rover for space exploration using a 6-bar tensegrity structure, currently under developments at NASA Ames.

Anatomy

Biotensegrity, a term coined by Stephen Levin, is an extended theoretical application of tensegrity principles to biological structures.^[12] Biological structures such as muscles, bones, fascia, ligaments and tendons, or rigid and elastic cell membranes, are made strong by the unison of tensioned and compressed parts. The musculoskeletal system consists of a continuous network of muscles and connective tissues,^[13] while the bones provide discontinuous compressive support, whilst the nervous system maintains tension in vivo through electrical stimulus. Levin claims that the human spine, is also a tensegrity structure although there is no support for this theory from a structural perspective.^[14]

Biochemistry

Donald E. Ingber has developed a theory of tensegrity to describe numerous phenomena observed in molecular biology.^[15] For instance, the expressed shapes of cells, whether it be their reactions to applied pressure, interactions with substrates, etc., all can be mathematically modelled by representing the cell’s cytoskeleton as a tensegrity. Furthermore, geometric patterns found throughout nature (the helix of DNA, the geodesic dome of a volvox, Buckminsterfullerene, and more) may also be understood based on applying the principles of tensegrity to the spontaneous self-assembly of compounds, proteins,^[16] and even organs. This view is supported by how the tension-compression interactions of tensegrity minimize material needed to maintain stability and achieve structural resiliency, although the comparison with inert materials within a biological framework has no widely accepted premise within physiological science.^[17] Therefore, natural selection pressures would likely favor biological systems organized in a tensegrity manner.

As Ingber explains:

The tension-bearing members in these structures – whether Fuller’s domes or Snelson’s sculptures – map out the shortest paths between adjacent members (and are therefore, by definition, arranged geodesically). Tensional forces naturally transmit themselves over the shortest distance between two points, so the members of a tensegrity structure are precisely positioned to best withstand stress. For this reason, tensegrity structures offer a maximum amount of strength.^[15]

In embryology, Richard Gordon proposed that embryonic differentiation waves are propagated by an ‘organelle of differentiation’^[18] where the cytoskeleton is assembled in a bistable tensegrity structure at the apical end of cells called the ‘cell state splitter’.^[19]

Origins and art history

The origins of tensegrity are not universally agreed upon.^[21] Many traditional structures, such as skin-on-frame kayaks and shōji, use tension and compression elements in a similar fashion.

Russian artist Viatcheslav Koleichuk claimed that the idea of tensegrity was invented first by Kārlis Johansons (in Russian as German as Karl Ioganson) (lv), a Soviet avant-garde artist of Latvian descent, who contributed some works to the main exhibition of Russian constructivism in 1921.^[22] Koleichuk’s claim was backed up by Maria Gough for one of the works at the 1921 constructivist exhibition.^[23] Snelson has acknowledged the constructivists as an influence for his work (query?).^[24] French engineer David Georges Emmerich has also noted how Kārlis Johansons’s work (and industrial design ideas) seemed to foresee tensegrity concepts.^[25]

In fact, some scientific paper proves this fact, showing the images of the first Simplex structures (made with 3 bars and 9 tendons) developed by Ioganson.^[26]

In 1948, artist Kenneth Snelson produced his innovative “X-Piece” after artistic explorations at Black Mountain College (where Buckminster Fuller was lecturing) and elsewhere. Some years later, the term “tensegrity” was coined by Fuller, who is best known for his geodesic domes. Throughout his career, Fuller had experimented with incorporating tensile components in his work, such as in the framing of his dymaxion houses.^[27]

Snelson’s 1948 innovation spurred Fuller to immediately commission a mast from Snelson. In 1949, Fuller developed a tensegrity-icosahedron based on the technology, and he and his students quickly developed further structures and applied the technology to building domes. After a hiatus, Snelson also went on to produce a plethora of sculptures based on tensegrity concepts. His main body of work began in 1959 when a pivotal exhibition at the Museum of Modern Art took place. At the MOMA exhibition, Fuller had shown the mast and some of his other work.^[28] At this exhibition, Snelson, after a discussion with Fuller and the exhibition organizers regarding credit for the mast, also displayed some work in a vitrine.^[29]

Snelson’s best-known piece is his 26.5-meter-high (87-foot) Needle Tower of 1968.^[30]

More at: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Tensegrity#:~:text=Tensegrity%2C%20tensional%20integrity%20or%20floating,other%20while%20the%20prestressed%20tensioned

(Image from planetpailly.com)

AI Overview

Learn more

Tulpamancy is the practice of training the imagination to cultivate friendly dialogues with invisible companions, or “tulpas,” which are considered to be sentient and relatively independent thought-forms. 

Here’s a more detailed explanation:

• Origin:The concept of “tulpa” originates in Tibetan Buddhism, referring to a materialized being or thought-form created through spiritual practice and intense concentration. 
• Modern Interpretation:Modern practitioners, who call themselves “tulpamancers,” use the term to describe a type of willed imaginary friend that they consider to be sentient and relatively independent. 
• Psychological Focus:Modern tulpamancy is predominantly viewed as a psychological rather than a paranormal concept. 
• Training the Imagination:The practice involves rigorous training of the imagination to create and interact with these thought-forms. 
• Autonomous Agency:Tulpas are understood to share the mind and body of the person who created them, but to have their own autonomous free will and agency. 
• Online Community:Tulpamancy has gained some online attention as a subculture, with people sharing their experiences and methods. 
• Not a Mental Illness:There is no evidence to suggest that tulpamancy is related to the development of psychopathology. 

Vieo: https://cdnapisec.kaltura.com/p/381832/sp/38183200/embedIframeJs/uiconf_id/31832371/partner_id/381832?iframeembed=true&playerId=js-kaltura-media-1-inrmxnbk&entry_id=1_inrmxnbk&flashvars[streamerType]=auto

Generative AI is experimental.

Some on the far right are adopting xenophobic, racist ideas about what’s causing climate change.

BY ADRYAN CORCIONE

APRIL 30, 2020 (teenvogue.com)

All products are independently selected by our editors. If you buy something, we may earn an affiliate commission.

This article is part of In Session: The Teen Vogue Lesson Plan. Find the full lesson plan here.

Republicans in the United States have a long, treacherous history of climate science denial. That’s changing among younger generations of conservatives, who are more likely to see the climate crisis as a threat to our collective future. But some on the far right are adopting xenophobic, racist ideas about what’s causing climate change — ideas that are rooted in eco-fascism.

Fascism can be defined in many different ways, but typically, the oppressive ideology has characteristics rooted in white identity and violence against marginalized people, such as Black and Brown people, immigrants, and those in the LGBTQ+ community. Vice describes eco-fascism as an ideology “which blames the demise of the environment on overpopulation, immigration, and over-industrialization, problems that followers think could be partly remedied through the mass murder of refugees in Western countries.”

TRENDING NOWGQ Men of the Year 2024: Red Carpet Livestream

Teen Vogue talked to two experts — anti-racism educator and climate activist Hilary Moore and iconic progressive author Naomi Klein — to help you identify eco-fascist myths and how to call them out.

“Very often, if you have somebody on the far right become an environmentalist, [their ideology] slots itself into a hypernationalist, white supremacist worldview, so it fuels the calls to harden borders at the softer end, [and] at the harder end, it can express itself through the idea that climate change is a divine purging,” Klein, author of The Shock Doctrine and This Changes Everything, told Teen Vogue. “[Eco-fascism] argues [climate change] is God’s will, that there are too many people anyway, so there’s going to be a great purge and perhaps that’s all for the best. It’s environmentalism through genocide.”

While it’s true human consumption harms the environment, eco-fascists place the blame exclusively on the marginalized. Because consumerism produces massive amounts of garbage, eco-fascists incorrectly blame poor people (of color) for using plastic bags and other cheap, disposable products — often without pointing to the damage done by major polluting corporations, like those in the fossil fuel industry. The young man accused of killing 22 people in El Paso, Texas, last summer included eco-fascist ideas in his manifesto, revealing that his targeting of a Walmart frequented by Mexican immigrants wasn’t a coincidence. The young man accused of carrying out a horrific mass shooting at a mosque in Christchurch, New Zealand, last spring allegedly shared similar beliefs.

“If you look at where there continues to be the highest levels of population growth, it’s the poorest parts of the world with the lowest carbon footprints,” Klein added. “But when [that conversation] immediately moves the discussion to overpopulation, we’re changing the subject from unsustainable overconsumption by the rich to the procreation habits of the poor, and that’s a very political decision.”

Eco-fascism is not exclusive to the right. Eco-fascist myths have appeared in the narratives around the COVID-19 pandemic. Klein explained that the messaging behind viral videos of wild animals reentering environments — such as doctored videos of dolphins swimming in Venetian canals — can lead to a dangerous narrative insinuating “humans are the virus,” setting a tone of genocidal language.

“This is time to be really vigilant about any idea that this pandemic is weeding out people who needed to be weeded out anyway,” added Klein. “These are fascist logistics.”

It’s worth noting that Black and Latinx Americans, immigrants, and low-income communities in general have been hit the hardest by this pandemic.

In her forthcoming book, Burning Earth, Changing Europe: How the Racist Right Exploits the Climate Crisis and What We Can Do About It, Moore illustrates how the ways we talk about climate change can inadvertently support racist, right-wing arguments.

“If we aren’t skillful in how we talk about the environment and what our demands are, we can be either ineffective or support racism and racist ideologies,” she told Teen Vogue. “If we get really muddy and murky with how we talk about [the climate], then it makes it really difficult to have engaged, informed, and principled discussions.”

Moore’s book explains how environmental protection measures can be weaponized against Indigenous people, using conservation as a tool to displace (and ultimately erase) tribes from their native land. This specific anti-Indigenous violence — alongside colonizers’ pillaging of Native land and resources — fueled the genocide of Indigenous people that allowed for the creation of the modern United States. We also see this dynamic today in pipeline resistance movements, such as among the Wet’suwet’en tribe in British Columbia and the Sioux tribe in Standing Rock, North Dakota.

“If there are calls for clean water, or even protecting an animal in a habitat, often there might be a clue with how racist groups describe what the harm is to that environment,” Moore emphasized. “Who is causing the harm? How are they talked about? Is it an oppressed group? Is it a racialized group or ethinic group that is being characterized as the harm or the cause?”

Additionally, Moore encouraged teens to identify eco-fascist arguments by asking what solutions are being proposed to combat climate change.

“Does it include excluding people or pushing people out, or more military, or more policing, or more surveillance?” she asked. “Does it involve closing borders and denying people the ability to flee to safety or stay in their homes?”

Asked for advice on how teens can fight eco-fascism, Moore named the value of political education, particularly the importance of “calling things what they are” to those who they’re in community with or have a relationship with. (It’s important to note that she discouraged teens from arguing with literal fascists, but instead stressed the value of community in building political consciousness.)

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“Have a real, honest conversation,” she said. “Stay in connection while you figure some politics out. Let’s keep our people close. We know in this political moment, we need each other, so let’s practice needing each other.”

Once we can identify eco-fascism, we can not only start to understand what’s really causing climate change, but also move toward practical, effective solutions that include all of our communities. To expand off the proposed Green New Deal, for example, Indigenous activists and organizers have proposed the Red Deal, which takes a more radical approach to climate justice, calling to divest from fossil fuel consumption, center Indigenous people, abolish incarceration, and label public lands as stolen lands.

“If humans are the virus, then pandemic is the cure,” Klein said. “I think capitalism is the virus. We humans are still here.”

(Astrobutterfly.com)

What a month March was! April 2025 picks up where the deep Pisces waters left off, with both Mercury and Venus going direct in the sign, followed by a rare Saturn-North Node conjunction at nearly the same degree.

Everything is happening between 25-27° of Pisces – forming a very tight stellium at the very end of the zodiac belt!

Something is brewing, shrouded in Piscean mist. But you can bet that beyond the haze, things are getting real. Saturn will make sure that whatever emerges is rooted in karmic truth.

But let’s take a look at the most important transits of the month:

April 3rd, 2025 – Mercury Conjunct North Node

On April 3rd, 2025, Mercury retrograde conjuncts the North Node at 27° Pisces. 

Pay attention to any messages rising from the unconscious. Dreams, flashes of intuition, sudden memories – these are not random – they made their way to your consciousness for a reason. They carry an important message for you.

April 7th, 2025 – Mercury Goes Direct

On April 7th, 2025, Mercury goes direct at 26° Pisces. This station is SUPER interesting because Mercury is conjunct Venus, the North Node, AND Saturn! Talk about big revelations.

Mercury – now direct – has all the information it needs. The puzzle is coming together. There’s a new vision emerging from the fog – one that is grounded, purposeful, and aligned with your soul’s growth.

April 7th, 2025 – Venus Conjunct Saturn

But wait, there’s more to the Pisces saga. On April 7th, 2025, Venus is conjunct Saturn at 25° Pisces. 

Venus is still retrograde – but she’s now ready to make soul-aligned vows. Venus now knows that in order to build a better tomorrow, she needs to make that commitment first. 

The commitment comes first – not the other way around. 

April 12th, 2025 – Sun Conjunct Chiron 

On April 12th, 2025, the Sun is conjunct Chiron at 22° Aries. Sun conjunct Chiron is that time of the year when the Sun (our core consciousness) meets our inner teacher (Chiron).

Chiron’s role is to guide us toward the highest version of the Self – beyond ego, beyond the illusion of separation. 

And the way Chiron works its magic is rarely comfortable. Our ego might get a bit bruised. Sun conjunct Chiron is a transit when old wounds of abandonment and insignificance resurface. 

But if we dig deeper, we’ll find that these triggers hold the keys to healing and self-acceptance. And this newfound wholeness, in turn, will help us unlock our greatest potential.

April 12th, 2025 – Venus Goes Direct

On April 12th, 2025, Venus goes direct at 24° Pisces. What a heroine’s journey this has been!

Venus has taken us to the depths of the underworld (or more thematic for Pisces, the bottom of the ocean) to help us rediscover what really matters to us. 

To see beyond false desires, beyond instant gratification, beyond what we think we want, and reconnect with what we really want. Now we know, and we’re ready to move to the next level (Venus conjunct Saturn).

April 12th, 2025 – Full Moon In Libra

On April 12th, 2025, we have a Full Moon at 23° Libra. The Full Moon is tightly opposite Chiron (at 23° Aries), square Mars (at 27° Cancer), and trine Jupiter (at 17° Gemini).

The Full Moon in Libra brings to light early wounds of abandonment (Chiron) and the walls and defense mechanisms we might have built as a form of self-protection (Mars in Cancer).

Perhaps in the process we’ve become the man or lady in the tower, guarding our hearts, sabotaging our relationships, rejecting others before they can reject us first. 

But there is hope (Jupiter in Gemini). If we open up a little, if we show our vulnerabilities, we can create real connections. 

April 16th, 2025 – Mercury Enters Aries

On April 16th, 2025, Mercury enters Aries. 

This is not the usual bold, headstrong Mercury we typically associate with Aries. Why? Because soon after the ingress, Mercury conjuncts Neptune at 0° Aries. 

Mercury still has that Aries drive and confidence, however this time it is animated by a higher inspiration; it doesn’t come across as blunt or impulsive, but visionary.

What’s very interesting about this ingress is that this is the second time Mercury meets Neptune. 

The first time the 2 met was a few weeks ago, at 29°59’ Pisces – the very last degree of the zodiac – and now they meet again at 0° Aries, the very first degree of the zodiac. 

Does this feel like divine orchestration? Surely is. After meeting to close a chapter, Mercury and Neptune now come together to start a new one. This is significant!

Pay attention to any inspirations, ideas, longings, or opportunities that come your way. This might be much bigger than you think – not necessarily right away, but down the line.

April 18th, 2025 – Mars Enters Leo

On April 18th, 2025, Mars leaves Cancer and enters Leo. 

It feels like Mars has spent an eternity in Cancer, pushing us to confront our defense mechanisms – those subtle, sometimes insidious ways we protect ourselves when our sense of security is threatened. 

We may have found ourselves retreating into our shells, lashing out, or – a Mars in Cancer classic – resorting to passive-aggressive tactics to manage the emotional ebb and flow of Cancer’s watery terrain, which – let’s be honest – isn’t always easy to navigate in a clear, direct way.

But now we’ve learned a thing or two about navigating our emotions – about honoring them in a way that feels authentic.

Now it’s time for a new Mars chapter. And Mars in Leo is a totally different one. In Leo, Mars is ready to roll! 

Perhaps not right away – it still has to clear an intense opposition to Pluto over the next 10 days or so – but eventually Mars in Leo will bring us the energy, drive, and courage to help us pursue what matters. 

April 19th, 2025 – Sun Enters Taurus

On April 19th, 2025, the Sun enters Taurus. Happy birthday to all the Tauruses out there! 

Taurus season is that time of the year when we slow down and reconnect with the beauty of nature. In the Northern Hemisphere, the flowers are blooming and the earth feels alive again. In the Southern Hemisphere, the crisp air and changing leaves remind us to savor the richness of the present moment. 

No matter where you are, this is a time to ground yourself and enjoy the beauty that surrounds us.

April 21st, 2025 – Saturn Conjunct North Node

On April 21st, 2025, Saturn is conjunct the North Node at 26° Pisces. 

This is the highlight transit of the month – and one of the most important of the year – for the simple reason that it happens rather rarely, about once a decade. 

So when these 2 karmic forces meet, it’s quite a big deal. Even more so now, since the Saturn-North Node conjunction is also tied into the larger Pisces stellium – so this one will feel deeply personal and fated. 

A dedicated report about the Saturn-North Node conjunction will follow closer to the date.

April 27th, 2025 – New Moon In Taurus

On April 27th, 2025, we have a New Moon at 7° Taurus. 

This is an intense New Moon because it squares the Mars-Pluto opposition (3-4° Leo/Aquarius). This marks the culmination of the Mars-Pluto opposition transit – the peak of a series of 3 exact oppositions over the past months. 

The New Moon signals a new beginning. The foundations of our life (Taurus) will be tested. The question is – are these foundations a real, authentic expression of who we truly are? 

Because if not, then it’s time for change. And much better to do it willingly – because what needs to happen will happen regardless. As Jung famously said, “what is not made conscious will be experienced as fate.”

Something you’ve been resisting – perhaps because it felt safe, or because it was too uncomfortable to question – is now up for renewal. Chances are, given the prolonged Mars-Pluto tension in recent months, there’s at least a part of you that knows that something needs to change. 

But this New Moon doesn’t have to feel like the Tower card in Tarot. We can use the tremendous force of Mars and Pluto to make the necessary changes deliberately. It will take courage – but on the other side is major relief and forward momentum.

P.S. If you think the astrology of April is intense… wait until May. That’s when Saturn joins Neptune in Aries, sealing the deal on a major energetic shift. A dedicated report will be released closer to that date.

• By John Ferrannini, Assistant Editor
• Thursday, March 27, 2025 (ebar.com)

Authors Ezra Klein, left, and Derek Thompson talked about their new book, “Abundance” in San Francisco March 26 with Manny Yekutiel, right. Photo: John Ferrannini

Some Democrats grappling with a leaderless party in the wilderness after last fall’s election defeats have turned to two journalists who see a reformation in the party’s mindset about delivering material abundance as the way forward.

The two writers – Ezra Klein of the New York Times and Derek Thompson of the Atlantic – were interviewed as part of their book tour at San Francisco’s Sydney Goldstein Theater March 26 by Manny Yekutiel, the gay proprietor of Manny’s civic event space and cafe, as well as the executive director of the Civic Joy Fund. They will host another event in the same venue Thursday (March 27).

Klein and Thompson, who are both straight, are the authors of “Abundance,” which came out March 18. During the discussion, Yekutiel asked the pair how they’d define the term, and their argument, if they were talking to someone drinking at The Page, a bar on Divisadero Street.

“You know how shit feels kind of broken?” Thompson answered. “Government should make shit work.”

He continued, “One thing this book is trying to do is organize politics on a new axis of abundance versus scarcity, slow versus fast. … Abundance is not a list, but a lens.”

To that end, Thompson argued that political paradigm shifts in American history, such as the New Deal Coalition of the 1930s and the rise of neoliberalism in the 1970s and 1980s, happened in response to internal economic crises, such as the Great Depression in the former case, and stagflation in the latter.

In the present moment, Americans are dealing with scarcity in a post-industrial economy. The two authors argue that politicians of both parties – Republican President Donald Trump, for example, with his support for tariffs, and some Democrats, with their opposition to housing construction and what the authors characterize as an excessive devotion to procedure and bureaucracy – have made this worse, and that the key to victory going forward is to make life more affordable by growing the economy.

Giving an example of how government processes can make government ineffectual, Klein discussed $42 billion in the 2021 infrastructure law that was set aside for broadband connections in rural America. In the end, nobody got broadband internet installed, and now Elon Musk’s Starlink might get some of the money, the Times reported.

“Despite lofty promises, the Biden-Harris administration’s broadband agenda left many Americans behind,” House Committee on Energy and Commerce chairpersons Brett Guthrie (R-Kentucky) and Richard Hudson (R-North Carolina) stated in a news release before a March 5 hearing on the topic. “The Broadband Equity, Access, and Deployment Program was saddled with unnecessary red tape to appease the left wing of the Democratic Party, without a single inch of fiber actually being laid.”

The reason, Klein argued, was that there were so many federal preliminary requirements to receive the money that no smaller level of government satisfied all of them by the time of the 2024 election. These included rules requiring public comment on map proposals; that states ensure providers had hired local, union workers; and that states had planned for climate change.

There was also a vaguely-termed requirement that “high-quality broadband services are available to all middle-class families … at reasonable prices.”

“It sucks, and for two reasons,” Klein said, “You didn’t get broadband … and, two, that did not happen in time to keep a fascist [Trump] out of the White House.”

Though they mostly avoided specific reforms they’d like to see, Klein, a former San Franciscan, made a few suggestions.

“We all know CEQA is used as a tool of mass blackmail,” he said, referring to the California Environmental Quality Act. Last month, gay state Senator Scott Wiener (D-San Francisco) introduced Senate Bill 607 to make changes to CEQA, which is more extensive than similar laws in other states, in an attempt to streamline housing and other infrastructure projects.

“For California to succeed as a state, we need to build an abundance of housing, child care centers, transportation, clean energy, and all the things that make life better and more affordable for people,” Wiener stated in a news release, explicitly nodding to the abundance terminology. “CEQA provides communities with important safeguards against projects like fossil fuel plants and warehouses that have caused real harm. But too often it has also been abused as a tool to block and delay projects for reasons that have nothing to do with environmental protections. That includes projects that are absolutely essential to protecting our environment like clean energy, urban housing, and public transportation.”

Klein, who said he was also interviewed on Governor Gavin Newsom’s podcast this week, said he raised the issue of CEQA abuses with the Golden State’s leader.

Asked Yekutiel: “Did you tell him that?”

Answered Klein: “Yes.”

Asked Yekutiel: “What did he say?”

Answered Klein, to laughter from the audience: “He agreed!”

Thompson argued more access to housing is an issue of individual freedom, as much as the other, earlier political paradigm shifts in the Roosevelt and Reagan eras were couched in the language of freedom, abundance-minded Democrats should argue that, “The anxiety of rent and mortgage … that’s about freedom, too,” Thompson said.

Klein agreed, saying that while he chose to leave the City by the Bay of his own accord, “Too many people are getting run out of town because they can’t afford to be here. Can’t save the human soul, that’s for the priests; but, we can build more homes.”

Klein also had advice for the city’s new mayor, Daniel Lurie, who defeated incumbent London Breed in last November’s election, as well as a Board of Supervisors with four new members this year.

“If I were Mayor Lurie and the Board of Supervisors, there are a couple things that need to be laser-focused on – obviously housing, housing the homeless, public disorder, making the kinds of disorder you see illegal again, and generally making the city affordable,” Klein said. “All these are gonna be hard. … [But] San Francisco is in an emergency. The fact some emergencies are fast and some are slow doesn’t mean one is greater than another.”

Those priorities line up with the stated goals of Lurie and his staff, as well as gay Board of Supervisors President Rafael Mandelman, who as the Bay Area Reporter previously reported said the city should prioritize “safety, cleanliness, and an economic climate in which people try to pursue their dreams” at an Alice B. Toklas LGBTQ Democratic Club event last month. Mandelman also referenced Klein’s thinking at that event.

Ultimately, Thompson said, the writers hope someone with political skill can galvanize their ideas into a movement, the way former President Ronald Reagan did with neoliberal economists, or that former President Franklin D. Roosevelt did with Keynesian economics. One person Klein referenced as someone who had signed on to the abundance mindset is gay Colorado Governor Jared Polis.

As the B.A.R. previously reported Democrats are still grappling with the ultimate failure of their yearslong efforts to keep Trump, who incited an insurrection against the government in 2021 and has expressed admiration for authoritarian leaders, out of Washington – this time losing every swing state and even the popular vote.

Yekutiel said at the event that, “It has felt like we don’t have an answer,” but that, “This is the first book that called to me, that this could be our answer.”

LGBTQ Agenda is an online column that appears weekly. Got a tip on queer news? Contact John Ferrannini at j.ferrannini@ebar.com

The Onion • Oct 2, 2015 Subscribe to The Onion on YouTube: http://bit.ly/xzrBUA A new study from Harvard University found that men who wear Mötley Crüe denim jackets on a regular basis showed staggering levels of testosterone and sexual prowess.

The Six of Cups One of the truly wonderful things about being alive is that it allows us access to a wealth of different emotions – of course, we sometimes wish it didn’t, particularly when we are hurting – yet this hugely flexible resource of response is one of our most valuable treasures.The Lord of Pleasure is about learning how to enter into pleasure with an open heart which is ready to receive, and freely allow the passage of emotion through it. Too often, we fail to enter the moment, and instead, stand on the threshold of life. This card challenges us to cross that threshold, and flow with the river of love which is always available to us.So on a day ruled by the Lord of Pleasure, we have to consider what pleasures us (and don’t shy away from your own sexuality!!). Today, you need to make a point of taking the time to give yourself up to pleasure, however you define it. (In my mind’s eye, I see certain of our company reaching eagerly for the chocolate bar whilst repeating, like a mantra, the words “Oh thankyou Jan… thankyou Jan…” ;-)And there’s a little exercise I’d like you to take time out to do as well. Sit down comfortably, and relax. Pay special attention to opening out your chest area. Now concentrate on your breathing… feel it flowing in and out of your body… feel it cool, and refreshing. Now each time you draw in breath, draw in love as well… Connect with the all-embracing, infinite, unconditional love that flows through life in each and every day… and enjoy!!! Affirmation: “I become part of the endless river of life and love.”

(Angelpaths.com)