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QUOTE: Maybe you remember Marianne Williamson warning about a “dark psychic force” and claiming that while Donald Trump had harnessed fear for political purposes, she was going to harness love. (wrote J. Geraghty, Feb. 1, 2023).

USA has its Presidential election going on right now, with the final voting in Nov. 2024. I have followed Marianne Williamson's campaign for leader of this country since late 2018. After five years study, and evidence from voters coming in this last month in the "Primaries" (New Hampshire, S. Carolina, Nevada) is is clear that the voters (Democratic ones) do not buy that a Williamson presidency of a "politics of love" is what the country needs. Marianne just announced yesterday officially she is dropping out of the race because of her big defeats and that Joe Biden (incumbent president) is slated to sweep the country and win the nomination for Democratic Leader for the Nov. election. 

There's another book to write here, as my first book in 2021 on her campaign and her intellectual biography is a good summary of this leader and what happens to them when they go into the arena of 'the big boys' on the political landscape of America. It ain't pretty. The second book I'll write will be based on my research of the 2024 campaign and what happens after yesterday; that is, where will Williamson and her followers go as a cultural phenomenon of such major defeat of love. Of course, Williamson and many of her followers would claim there is no defeat, no ending of this politics of love, and that it is only a beginning, etc. There is much new agey philospophy to be spilled out as that is always part of her campaign and her charismatic motivational leadership. She has over 40 years of practicing this kind of rhetoric. She's good at it. However, the dice have been cast and I would trust that a lot of good critical reflection go into the learning from the critiques and wounds and mistakes made running a LOVE Campaign in today's world. 

If you want to hear her final 2 min. speech declaring her ending of running for leadership of the Democratic Party, go to: https://mariannewilliamson.substack.com/p/much-to-be-grateful-for?r=3zkfe&utm_campaign=post&utm_medium=web

According to a Politico article by Britanny Gibson today: 

"Williamson has not said whether she will seek another run for office. But she will return to the literary world with a new book set to be released in May. Williamson delayed the publication of The Mystic Jesus: The Mind of Love last fall, when the book’s announcement attracted accusations that the campaign was a “grift” to promote the book." 

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In Summary:  [go to my in depth talk with Layman Pascal on the MW Phenemenon and Love vs. Fear https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a9FE5ObwcEs]

I am aware of a growing critique myself, that Williamson always knew she wouldn't lose anything in this campaigning 2018-2024 because she is a 'preacher' with a message campaign. And the presidential platform is a great stage of a lot of free promo space to share her spirituality and politics of love. I suppose that is nothing wrong itself. I suppose it is a good case of how that goes over for the public however--another message, another non-intended consequence of a good venture with perhaps more nasty consequences still yet to unfold.

That said, MW has left us with a good website Marianne 2024 that she will keep up she said, for those who want to borrow political ideas from it for the future. A noble gesture. And, to be sure, all evidence shows me that Marianne will never run in politics again. 

 For an excellent debate of two powerful women thinkers: Marianne Williamson and former Senator Nina Turner go at it on stage: 

As you may know, Marianne Williamson has long been one of my research interests, and most recently she is potentially going to jump into the 2024 Presidential election. I'll keep you posted. There are many resources on the Internet you can search out for more information. But, let it be said, once again, she is the only political leader today, or perhaps ever, who has brought the Love vs. Fear philosophy of motivation into the political leadership domain--and, she has done this systematically, and it determines her ethical positioning and her course towards a "politics of love." As a Fearlessness Movement member, myself, and as a fearologist and fear educator, there is great optimism in this move on her part to take worldclass leadership on--because that is an incredibly difficult and challenging role. I ask FM ning members to consider giving her a listen at least, and if so moved, to really support her in her rise in politics--for, it will affect the world, not just the USA. 

For a good short explanation of a theory that explains brain functioning and dopamine release process and regulation of that ...

go to https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9Zd9qvJUr-o

Dr. Anna Lembke, psychiatrist who also points out the social-cultural habit problem of "too much pleasure" available and digested today in the postmodern world--it is literally making us more and more anxious-depressed and dysphoric and suffering more physical pain. Our brain system didn't evolve with so much access to pleasurable thoughts, substances and behaviors. Now, I would add the problem of "Love" (especially in contrast to Fear)--and, how I am quite sure that Fearlessness IS a much healthier pursuit and path that does not get caught in trying to always get to the "Love" side. Lembke, at least physiologically, speaks to this and the vicious cycling of "always searching for love" --and, it creates huge problems on the other side (via, what Lembke calls "opponent process reaction").

Note, "Fearlessness" gets us beyond this opponent process reaction triggering mechanism (at least theoretically) because it gets us beyond the binary-seeking of pleasure over pain or equally in parallel the love over fear (e.g., positive over negative). "Fearlessness" paradigm unhooks us (albeit, slowly often) from the binary obsession and problems of opponent process reaction in the brain-emotional system. 

[Breaking News, morning Jan. 10, 2020; Marianne Williamson withdraws from campaign; not to my surprise but a bit of disappointment -RMF]

As many of you may know, my work since 1989 (In Search of Fearlessness Project) has engaged seriously and critically the discourses throughout the world on the relationship of the meta-motivations of Love vs. Fear (and/or Love and Fear). And, now I am writing a book on US presidential (Democratic party) candidate [1] Marianne Williamson, 67 year old veteran of the transformational field of psychology, spirituality and politics--what some would call a radical cultural transformation phenomenon. She's a leader in this area and is having global impacts. How big or how little is still out for the jury to decide. I wish to make a case study of this. 

Lots to discuss here on the FM ning. Recently (Jan. 7, 2020) she has posted the most overt political messaging on the Love vs. Fear dynamic I have ever seen by a person in politics specifically in my life time. So, I am reproducing her message here (skip to the latter 1/2 of this letter for the real punch!)-- as she sent it out to her followers via her current campaign newsletter: 

[Marianne 2020 Nwsl. Jan. 7/20

[NOTE: for more of my views on Love and Fear, e.g., see video "Marianne Williamson 3: Love & Fear" https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=XJzLb6ALHPg

END NOTE

1. I am currently in process of signing a contract with a New York book publisher, with the current title of the book "The Marianne Williamson Presidential Phenomenon: Documenting Cultural (R)Evolution in a Dangerous Time" 

US Presidential hopeful (candidate) is the last person you'd expect to be fearmongering. But her recent promo ad video (58 seconds) gives indicators of her decline in awareness and her political tactics of using old fear-based discourses to "win" over her followers and gain more followers for the upcoming primaries.... not good. See my latest video on this problem: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Satev8F7K14

Note: There is a substantial discussion (Comments) on this video as well, worth checking out and joining in. 

My Easter Message:

In a certain way, young people today are asking society "We" (adults) a big question: and, I think it goes something like this... (above image)... or, in another way, "If you really love us as you say you do, why do you bring so much threat, trauma and fear into our lives?" Adults are being held accountable to answer... (analogously, a variation on this underlying implicit question: Why do you continue to maintain a "coping culture" over a "healing culture"?)...

This image is centered on an activist "peace" button I found a few years ago, and I began doing some art work with it in an community co-housing group in Courteney, BC. This is my latest art image I made with the button modified in this digital piece, using African art image (excerpt) behind and through it. I like the sense of a wheel of time or clock moving along...a sense of the future imposing and questioning the present and past...also I shaped the rectangle button into more an hour glass timer form...with the Western button image and question--a dilemma that is truly coming to the fore in today's society, as you'll see in some of my latest blogs as I am giving some space on the FM ning for youth.

Youth are feeling "terror" deep below the surface, if not on the surface, about their ever diminishing futurity. If we as adults/society ignore this... we'll only add to the nightmare they and all of us are going into...

The dilemma of this question on the button will not go away. I think it is an excellent stimulus for further dialogues and responses and I look forward to anyone on the FM ning writing and responding to this. Is it a fair moral question? Is it stated in the best way? What other ways could it be stated that may be also useful or interesting? 

Anyone who has followed my work since 1989 knows that the issue of Love vs. Fear and how we are to manage our societies best, is always in my thought and theorizing--a great philosophical dilemma, I think worth more attention than we usually give it. 

Not too long back I posted a Photo of The Great Turning: From Empire to Earth Community book cover, by David C. Korten (2005). I am re-reading this again, after many years having left it and not followed through with patience and depth of investigation that this book is well worth.

I won't write a lot about the ideas in this book here, other than to give a few highlights of why I think it is one of the most important books for the 21st century, as a guide for both the critical diagnosis of the "truth" we as a species have to face (sooner the better) and as a prescription for a way out of the mess we have got ourselves into on this planet. Sure, there are lots of these kinds of books, and I've been reading them since in my early 20s. Korten's is unique amongst the Eco-type and Community-type books. And, it is unique because it includes (in an important but still inadequate way) two of my fav. theories of liberation:

(a) he gives due credit to the Love vs. Fear worldview problem and how we have to make a choice to get beyond the fear-based worldview or what he describes so well as "Empire Culture" (a cultural consciousness that is based on domination, violence and the fear cycle) and move toward the "Earth Community" (a cultural consciousness based on partnership, nonviolence, and a trust cycle of care and love)

(b) he relates this Love vs. Fear worldview problem to the work of developmental theory (using Robert Kegan's analysis primarily) whereby he positions the Empire Consciousness as 2nd Order Consciousness, along a spectrum of five potential Orders of Consciousness (at least) that human can access (this is very similar to Ken Wilber's integral philosophy and theory of which I have studied, and, it is also the very spectrum of what I label as fear management systems)

That's the 'taster' for you if you want a good read, and/or if you have read Korten's work, then we could have a good discussion. I highly recommend this work, at least this 2005 book which I believe is profound because I know of no other activist writer of the Eco and Community type who is using these two theoretical frames above, and my guess is those who read an even like Korten's work do not understand or pick-up on it. I could be wrong, but I'm pretty sure I'm not. These two theories will, if we choose to pay attention to them and bring them into practice, really can transform the planet, and, it will do it in small developmental steps, for the most part. As Korten and I and Wilber know, you don't get to the higher levels of consciousness just because you choose to identify with them (which the map of the 5 Orders of Consciousness does help). It's a long tough soul's journey out of the 'Fear' Matrix (i.e., Empire Consciousness).

Oh, the other thing that so impressed me as the end of the book was his citing Vandana Shiva, a great wise woman scholar from India, environmental activist and leader of the community-based movements to "save natural seeds" and not let corporations control the seeds of the world. He cites Shiva saying that "When I'm feeling discouraged by the seeming inadequacy of my efforts, I find comfort in the wisdom of Vandana Shiva, whom I mentioned earlier as a partner in the initial framing of this book." (p. 357). Wow! That is so impressive to me that he got guidance for the book from her. That's a bonus. White old men, like Korten, rarely listen that carefully to the guidance of women never mind a woman from color from India. And, then, to end the book he quotes Shiva in a great passage that I read to my friends Greg and Kate last night just before New Years arrived. Korten is founder and editor of Yes!: Positive Futures magazine and an important leader himself, but here he is citing Shiva (from an interview in that magazine back in 2003). Shiva remarks on her fearlessness practice as so important in doing activist and liberation work around the world for some 50 years or so... I share it with you for the New Year and to inspire 2017 to start in a 'good' way, a 'good' spirit for all:

Vandana Shiva: "Well, it's always a mystery, because you don't know why you [sometimes] get depleted or recharged. But, this much I know. I do not allow myself to be overcome by hopelessness, no matter how tough the situation. I believe that if you just do your little bit without thinking of the bigness of what you stand against, if you turn to the enlargement of your own capacities, just that in itself creates new potential. And I've learned from the Bhagavad Gita [in Hinduism] and other teachings of our [Indian] culture to detach myself from the results of what I do, because those are not in my hands. The context is not in your control, but your commitment is yours to make, and you can make the deepest commitment with a total detachment about where it will take you. You want it to lead to a better world, and you shape your actions and take full responsibility for them, but then you have detachment. And that combination of deep passion and deep attachment allows me always to take on the next challenge because I don't cripple myself, I don't tie myself in knots. I function like a free being [not one in the 'Fear' Matrix]. I think getting that freedom [from fear] is a social duty because I think we owe it to each other not to burden each other with prescription and demands. I think what we owe each other is a celebration of life and to replace fear and hopelessness with [the gift of] fearlessness and joy." [1]

End Note

Shiva, V. (interviewed by van Gelder, S.) (2003). Earth Democracy. Yes!: A Journal of Positive Futures, Winter. Retrieved from http://www.yesmagazine.org/article.asp?ID=570