Greetings from The Publisher . . . That's us at www.lifeconnectionmag.com, help wanted & Earth Friendly & not

As the world continues to change, so do we. Our first version of The Light Connection (TLC) on the Web is now up thanks to Ann Diener, who in addition to her other businesses has been writing, editing, doing billing and receivables part time at TLC . In her “spare time” she managed to put us online. Thanks Ann.

There's more to add, but rather than wait until it was perfect, we wanted to take this step and get the articles and classifieds up. What's missing for now is the calendar and Resource Directory. We're looking at the best way to do those sections now. It's obviously something that will be tweaked continuously until . . . , well, something that will probably be tweaked continuously. We debated a bit about the name. The“lightconnection.com” and “.org” addresses have been gone for many years. I think the “us” is supposed to stand for the U.S. , but secretly it really means us, so we liked that and we went with that. We did have www.LightConnectionOnLine.com, but that's being changed. It was just too long. Try that, if you can't connect at the “.us” address. Both will work eventually. It's amazing how long all this takes.

We know a lot of you have told us that you send copies to friends in other areas, so let them know about our online version. Visit www.lifeconnectionmag.com, tell us what you think, and please pass it along.

Help Wanted

Another change, one we regret, is that it looks like Mary will be moving to Los Angeles . We're still hoping she won't, but her partner Russell has been interviewing there. We'd love to have him find something in this area and keep Mary here, but there seems to be more opportunities there. So we need to find someone to keep track of all the details Mary has been handling so well. If you are interested or know someone who is, please send us an e-mail or fax saying something about yourself. The daily hours have some flexibility, but we also have certain times of the month when we are very busy and need someone here. The duties involve some computer work and answering the phones. A great memory helps make up for my challenges.

Being at the center of things and knowing about the great variety of activities that go on in San Diego and beyond has always been fun, as well as educational. That variety and the great people we get to meet and talk to are a couple of the things that have kept me interested through the years. And now with the Internet we have new designs that we'll reveal as we go. That whole arena is very exciting and full of new possibilities. One thing that hasn't changed is the great job done by EarthWorks and all the volunteers at the EarthFaire in Balboa Park . Kudos and thanks to all involved. And thanks to those of you who came up and said “hello” to us. It's always fun meeting our readers and seeing friends.

Earth Friendly

While the climate for earth-friendly energy in Washington DC is not so friendly these days, there has been some positive developments. In contrast to the continued focus on fossil fuel in Washington , and the gridlock there over expanding the use of alternative energies, the State governors met and have agreed on another direction. For the first time the governors of the Western and Eastern States have agreed on “strongly endorsing” and setting energy efficiency goals. They also set a goal of increasing energy production using wind, solar, biomass and other forms of renewable energy to 15% of current energy demands. This is a goal energy experts call “ambitious, but achievable.” We need good news these days. While the Administration insists that the economy is getting better, economist James K. Galbraith (in the LA Times on April 26) points out that economies generally do in war time, short-term that is. One indication that the economy is not improving is the declining number of jobs, but the system really measures how well companies are doing, not workers. Chinese workers yes, American no.

The job situation may change soon because there is talk about bringing back the draft. Those of us who remember Vietnam know that this will bring an equal and opposite reaction on college campuses and elsewhere. The RAND Corporation recently calculated that we need 400,000 soldiers in Iraq , about twice what we have now. Many of those there now have been there, come home and gone back again. It's unfair to continue to put all the burden and stress on the same troops—and families. The 15,000 security guards/independent contractors who are there making $2000 a day can't continue either without complicating our interactions with the Iraqis and keeping war costs high. Something has to change.

The SD Union showed an interesting perspective April 25, when they interviewed former Marine four-star general Anthony Zinni. He questions our tactics in much the same way that Vietnam was questioned, saying we need to win “the hearts and minds” of the people there—and that we aren't. He's not the only military man challenging our strategy. His view that this is a civil war between extremist and moderate Muslims, and that our actions help extremists and hurt moderates, was well-explained. History has shown us that war time also dramatically increases the national debt and inflation. Galbraith points out that we already import more that we export, and wartime will increase that trend as our production resources go towards the war effort instead of satisfying our real and vital needs. The British once had a large foreign owned debt, took an unpopular stand with their debtor countries, and then had their markers called in. Their economy crashed. No longer a world power, they exported nannies. The world is obviously not behind us on Iraq . Our version of fighting terrorism doesn't have a lot of support. While the perception is that military force and control works, this can be true only if we are totally self-sufficient monetarily—and no one else cares what we do. That's all it takes. That's a fantasy, isn't it? We're not alone.

Our present path is called “patriotic” by its proponents. But is it if the end result is that we find ourselves like the British?

What if a debtor nation, such as China , demands to be paid for the goods they now sell here— they call in their markers—who do we begin to export? Who wants to be the new super power? This war and the economy can't be separated. We have choices and consequences. More depressing than the idea of losing our status as number one superpower in the world is the manipulation. There are regular reports on the Internet that WMDs were moved to the Middle East by the US months ago. And in late April, that they were being moved closer to the combat areas. Any day now they might even be “found.” While the manipulation of our perception of the war is sad, it reflects some positives. The fact that so many are aware of it shows that it's harder to keep secrets in our time of rapid and worldwide communication. Others say there are other reasons. It's the growing awareness, the energy shifts that we are going through on the planet. A shift moving us from the power that controls and forces, to one that doesn't feel threatened by differences and allows them.

It's an individual awakening, more powerful when joined with others, but not requiring the agreement of others to give it validity or value.

Either way, the world is moving with eyes open as never before, we hope toward a future that works for more than just the self-chosen few. There are choices. Who do we want to be, and what kind of world do we want to live in?

Have a great month,

Steve Hays

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