Jack:  Good day my friends.

All:  Hello Jack.

Jim:  Good morning Jack and we bid you welcome in the love and light of Mother/Father God.

Jack:  Thank you very much. As always it is my pleasure to be here.  It is an interesting time in politics right now.  I am hoping today to keep our discussion a little lighter in tone than it has been recently.  For I think I have spoken too much on the importance of the upcoming election process.  It is without question a dangerous time for the American people. Because of this I would like to address today’s comments, after answering any questions that you have, to the positive energy of the American spirit and its importance right now on the world stage. 

Jim:  Ok.  I hate to get into politics but there are a couple of questions.

Jack:  Absolutely.  And again Jim, as I learned last week, I stated my intention for our discussion today early on so that I do not fall into my usual temptation to become side tracked.  I am of course happy to answer any questions that you have.

Jim:  First the wonderful news that we have had with the rescue of the people in Columbia which was startling to the world and a phenomenal thing that took place.  The media is really blowing it up, like they should do. My concern is the remaining hostages, but I will get into that later.  The one thing that bothers me about the media at this time is the issue that they are blowing way out of line; the comments of Wesley Clark, which I whole heartedly agree with. Just because you get mugged and survive a mugging does not make you fit to become a sheriff.

Jack:  Wonderful analogy my friend. 

Jim:  What he said, I had to agree with. It doesn’t make it for sure that McCain is the leader. Most people should understand that the president makes his decision as you did, at the Bay of Pigs, based on the information from many sources and if those sources are not true, decisions can backfire.         

Jack:  As it has happened with our current involvement in Iraq.  Mr. Bush, in addition to his desire to accomplish that which his father could not, by unseating Saddam Hussein, was led down a path by his advisors that were contrary to his best interest and to the best interest of this nation.  But I agree whole heartedly with your statement.

Jim:  The other issue that the media is blowing out of proportion is what Obama has said about bringing the troops home in a reasonable manner.  They are now, both right and the left, chastising him for not taking a stance. But to me he said, given the information, once I am in office things can change.

Jack:  Exactly my friends and this is part of the political paradigm, to confuse the American people into reacting emotionally rather than with conscious thought.  If I were among you today and I was to walk into your home with the intention of bringing you a gift that, based upon the knowledge that I had, was to have been blue in color and when I appear at your door step and you open your door I discover that you have since, the last information that I obtained, changed your color scheme to orange. I must rethink my initial decision to give you something that is blue.  The words of Mr. Obama are no different. Once he is made aware of the circumstances that exist come January of 2009, any reasonable person would understand that he would have to reevaluate his decision.  This does not for any measure indicate that he has changed his philosophy about our involvement in this conflict. It only says that once he has visited Iraq, once he has come into office and is allowed free access to the knowledge that he presently is not able to receive, he reserves the right to make some changes to his plans.  What no one realizes is that his intention initially in speaking those words and that which he did not say for the purpose of bringing false hope to the men and women in service to this nation and their families, what Mr. Obama did not speak is that it would be his hope to shorten the time from 16 months to a year or less.

Jim:  And that would be commendable.  The vast majority of people do not realize that with the change of president whether it is McCain or Obama but particularly in Obama’s case the whole friction, the whole energy of the Middle East could change overnight. 

Jack:  Without question.

Jim:  Right now Bush rattles his sword against Iran and Iran rattles two swords because they don’t have a nuclear weapon yet.  So then the sword is rattled again here and we get this sword rattling. But if we had someone like Obama come in and say,” you know what I am going to take this sword off for a while I am going to lay it down”, then things could change throughout the Middle East.  That is the way I see it.

Jack:  This is true in part Jim and again I don’t want to take a long trip down this shadowy road but there is world wide movement within the power brokers to control the Middle East as you all know. The United States is indeed a part of this but they do not hold this position by themselves.  Indeed the energy of the conflicts in the Middle East can turn on a dime.  The events in Pakistan at this time are clear cut evidence of how very volatile this situation is.  It is also right now serving the Bush interest and Cheney interest to continue to rattle those sabers as you so aptly put it, for in doing so they are single handedly manipulating the speculation as to oil prices, for in any conflict between Iran and Israel the first thing that will take place will take place in the Straight of Hormuz   effectively shutting off the transport of oil in the Middle East.  This is as great a threat to the world today as the possession by the United States of its nuclear weaponry.  So it is to the Bush interest to continue to drive up the cost of oil, to continue to vilify many of the nations in the Middle East so that his nest, when he leaves office, is well feathered.  It is without question that the position of the United States as a world power will truly hinge upon the next election for reasons that we have discussed before.  The great difference will be that the world will welcome compassionate leadership in this nation which it has not had for some time.  Much conflict will be defused if Senator Obama is elected into office. If Senator McCain becomes leader of this nation, the United States will in essence, be viewed as the greatest terrorist nation in the world.  It is quite an interesting dichotomy of positions. 

Jim:  Ok.  That’s as far as I want to take it today. We will go on to a lighter note.

Jack:  Indeed, and before we do move on, I will regress for just a moment Jim, about General Clark’s comments that were meant with the truest spirit.  The American people in this election season are looking for ways to go backwards.  There was nothing that Wesley Clark stated that in any way cast dispersions upon the patriotism of John McCain. 

Jim:  Absolutely not.

Jack:  It is only those in the McCain camp who saw this as a way to make everyone think that to discredit Mr. McCain’s opponent.  Unless and until the American people choose to be more intuitive and to understand the issues for more than just the sound bites that they receive in the daily news things will not change much.  There are wonderful opportunities to read more in-depth coverage even in the main stream media both in newspapers and on the computers of today.  We have sources of knowledge and understanding that we couldn’t have dreamed of at the time that I was in office.  The American people, no matter what their walk of life, owe it to themselves to become informed and not to react to the campaign machines of either candidate.  And while you know I have many positive things to say about Senator Obama, those who surround him in his bid for office, do not necessarily have any cleaner hands than those who surround Senator McCain.  The difference between the two is that Senator Obama, when challenged with a misconception will address it immediately.  He will address it calmly and he will address it with integrity.  If the American people gain nothing else from this process, they should look to that kind of responsiveness, for God forbid that Mr. McCain exceeds to the highest office in this land and chooses to forget or misstate his opinions from day to day as he has demonstrated his ability and willingness to do on the campaign trail.  Mr. McCain will speak volumes on an issue and a short time later denies the comments. When the comments are shown to him he will say that the point was taken out of context. Yet it was clear that they were not.  Mr. McCain is patriotic on his own terms but he is not a man of integrity and I don’t think there is much more that you can say about the issue. 

Jim:  Ok and again to a lighter note.

Jack:  Indeed.

Jim:  As I said in the beginning, the wonderful thing that happened in Columbia was a marvelous thing to behold and watching the tapes last night that the Columbian government released. The actual footage of the shock that the hostages went through. When they went into the helicopter and all of a sudden their wrist bands were being cut off, that they were free.  It was phenomenal to see the expression on their faces, of joy.  My concern is what now is going to happen to the estimated 400 that they hold?

Jack:  And having tipped the hand so to speak in this incredible rescue, one of two things will have to take place, because that kind of covert operation will not be allowed to succeed a second time.  Therefore it is important for the Columbian government to come to the table to discuss this issue and for immediate negotiations to take place.  Whether this will take place is questionable for a small period of time, the dust must settle from this.  Know full well at this time that there has been retaliation against those prisoners that are still held as a result of this rescue. 

Jim:  I wouldn’t doubt that they are going to make an example of some of them and possibly an example of some of their militia.

Jack:  Absolutely my friend.  What’s interesting on a larger scope is how positive a covert operation can be.  We’ve spent many hours over the years discussing negative implications of covert activity.  This is precisely the use of covert operations that the CIA was created to accomplish.  Instead, over the years and again it boils down to power and greed of course this ability and focus has been shifted in terms of ways to grab power. There are political prisoners in many, many, many nations around the world. What I find of great interest is now that the rights of the prisoners in Guantanamo have been clearly stated by the Supreme Court, suddenly now there is this great discussion. Well maybe we should close it.  Ok, my question would be if we have reasons to detain these individuals, will their challenge to their status be found worthy of their detainment or will we find that we have simply gone on a political witch hunt.  In either event a great light is shining on the process.  We can not ever in this nation condone the kind of hostage taking that we have seen as to American citizens in foreign lands. But in many cases that is precisely what we have done by arresting people as potential enemy combatants and holding them indefinitely without due process.  We are a nation that believes in our system, our system of justice, our system of truth, and our doctrines of fair treatments for all.  Because of the events of the current administration and their actions we have stepped away from that fundamental value that is America. It is to the joy of many that the light has finally been shown to expose this for what it is.  The American people have no desire under any circumstances to wrongfully detain any person simply because their thoughts differ from their own.  The American people have no desire to see families torn asunder by the ravages of war in any part of the world.  This is the nation that, left to its own devises, chooses to reach out a hand to help out the unfortunate, to heal the sick, to feed the hungry, and to clothe the naked, not only here but in other parts of the world as well.  It is not the American people who have changed the perception of what the United States stands for. And it is without question a time for the American people, as they came together on the 4th of July, to celebrate their patriotism and their loyalty to this great land. And for them to realize the importance of standing up for those beliefs in all walks of life.  The road ahead my friend is not going to be an easy road. It will be bumpy at best. It will be tragic for some.  Many, as has been stated by others, will simply choose to leave the physical form altogether. Many will suffer greatly, but many will arise from this troubled time with great strength and great leadership roles and each of you present in this room today are those kinds of people.  We have wonderful potential in this nation.  The American people in order to reclaim their birth right will need to suffer through the challenges that are to come.  The American people will need to feel the sting of their apathy.  I know my friends you are fond of saying that everything happens for a reason. These circumstances are no less than that.  The ability for this nation to have clear sailing, if you will, to all that the American dream has stood for, has been in their grasp all along, but through their apathy, through their unwillingness to accept responsibility for their own thoughts and actions, they have allowed those with ulterior motives to reach a point of extreme control.  This higher anarchy is poised for a great fall and not unlike Humpty Dumpty it will not be put back together again as it has in the past.  So what better time for the American people to focus on that which it is that makes them proud to be an American. Let them focus on what is right with this nation’s path and build upon that.  The travesty of that which has taken place following Hurricane Katrina is a beautiful illustration of what I speak of, for in the areas where the American people have stepped up to provide assistance, huge strides have been made because it was man reaching out to man.  When it was left for government agencies they have gone nowhere with their efforts and in some cases have created greater problems.  The American people are deserving of their birth right as Americans but only if they are willing to be accountable for what being an American truly means.  That means personal responsibly for being active in those communities around this great nation. And what greater time to allow this to shine than at a time where the economy is in precisely the shape that it is today.  There are places in this nation today where neighborhoods have rallied to keep a neighbor’s home from going into foreclosure.  There are neighborhoods today that are establishing carpools to drive the citizens to medical appointments, to get the children to that which they need to attend.  There are great, great pockets of energy in this nation and I would challenge the American media to spend equally as much time focusing on these positive events in the face of these challenges as they do upon the challenges themselves.  Help the American people that while, yes, this nation has fallen and skinned its collective knees they have the ability to help each other up to a position of strength.  God blesses America. Every day the American people must live in integrity. 

Jim:  I agree 100%. We have gone too far into the negative.  Everything, as much information that I get from CNN, I don’t see much positive stuff, yet there has been a couple of glimpses that have happened on American Heroes. I think they can dedicate a couple hours to things like that, and bring the American peoples’ spirits up to say we are still here as the people, we can still do this as a collective energy.  But it doesn’t seem like anybody wants to step up to the plate and answer that call.

Jack:  Yet, Jim, people are stepping up to the plate. It’s taking a grassroots movement to do so, but start paying close attention.  NBC Nightly News always closes with a positive story about the American people.  Local news casts are focusing at least sometime each day on the positive things that are taking place in the community.  I would challenge this effort to continue to grow, for in so doing the American people will be empowered to withstand these troubled times.  Few today were alive to experience the difficult times that this nation faced during World War I even during World War II. They have forgotten if they did know, they have forgotten the collective effort of the American people and the sacrifices that were made to make this nation successful.  We are no less able to do so today and it is my hope that this nation and its people coming through these challenging weeks and months ahead will, once and for all, truly understand that is it necessary to teach each generation how very powerful the American spirit really is so that this is not a lesson that needs to be relearned. Because each time that you have to revisit the problems in history they are always intensified. 

Jim:  Yes.  I would like to see the American media take up the challenge that you put up three years ago about putting out one hour a week of good news, not 60 seconds every other day or every day but a challenge of one hour a week of continuous good positive things that are not only happening here but world wide and I am going to do what I can, I am going to see if I can get that done at least locally.

Jack:  Without question my friend for each of you who owns a television, who owns a radio, and who owns a computer have unfettered access to not only receive the news but to make your opinions known.  I would urge you Jim to start a petition drive via the computer and circulate it among your friends and encourage them to circulate it among their friends. Do a letter writing campaign that is based on a forwarded email rather than a petition if it serves your purposes better. Because, if you start bombarding the media outlets with this kind of feedback coming from the people who are the recipients of the news, in time they will begin to listen.  The media unfortunately has learned the wrong lesson. They have learned that violence, bloodshed, and trouble sells.  We need to change that method.  

Jim:  And another way of changing that message would be to hit the sponsors in the pocketbook.  When you start approaching huge corporations and say we’re going to start a campaign to boycott your products until we start seeing some positive energy, some positive thoughts that you help pay for on the media. That also makes the newspapers and television stations listen. 

Jack:   Another alternative to that Jim, is, again, rather than focusing the energy on what they are doing wrong how about an outreach to the advertisers and the sponsors in your community and encourage them as sponsors to speak to their desire to sponsor something positive.  Do not penalize them for making a living. For this is going to fall on deaf ears. Yet, if you can encourage them to give equal time to the positive things and their image can then become synonymous with good news, does that not overall help their business to thrive.

Jim:  Yes that is basically more along the lines of what I was thinking. I didn’t word it exactly that way.  It’s getting the sponsors to understand that we need some positive energy out here and by putting their name out there and saying there’s one that does.  There’s a small add by Fulton Homes talking about becoming a volunteer which is ok but if they would put that even further and say this is what this volunteer is doing, this is what this volunteer has done or this is the positive energy that is going on here in Phoenix, in Maricopa County, in Arizona it would be even stronger. 

Jack:  Absolutely.  It is also not unlike the insurance company that has done the ad campaign of people reaching out and helping other people who had absolutely nothing to do with the product but a lot to do with setting the tone of what the company stood for.

Jim:  Absolutely. 

Jack:  The local grocery, the Bashas stores that have sponsored this effort for the Peanut Butter and Jelly for the Boys and Girls Clubs of America is wonderful and is something that the people of Phoenix are responding too.  There’s much, much good that is taking place my friends.

Jim:  But nobody wants to talk about it.

Jack:  People talk about it but people are so overwhelmed with what is negative in their awareness and negative energy does pull down ones way of thinking.  Think about the days when you are heavy of spirit and you walk out the door. Do you even look up to see the sun in the sky?  Do you focus on the new flower that has come forth overnight in your garden?  Do you see the dew on the grass?  When you are feeling negative about your circumstances all of that beauty and wonder surrounds you, yet you don’t look at it.  Think about that, you must choose to focus on the good news and it will become contagious.  The next time you speak to someone do not complain about the price of gas. Speak of some positive event that has taken place and you will find that people’s perception and perspective will begin to shift and it will become contagious beyond your wildest dreams. And I would challenge each one of you present in this room today to go into this coming week with the intention to speak only about good news.  Take a week and do not repeat one bit of negative news. You may still remain informed on any level that you wish but only speak of that which is positive to the American spirit. 

Jim:  Alright.

Jack:  And I will join you again next week to discuss this experiment.

Jim:  Alright that sounds wonderful.  I whole heartedly agree that we need this.

Jack:  And watch how you feel, watch how the people around you react.  With that said my friends I think that it is time that I stand aside today and let you get on with your days for I know you all have important things ahead even if it is just relaxing and enjoying your families. 

Jim:  And enjoying the heat.

Jack:  Indeed for as hot as it is are you not very grateful that you can come into your home and find cool air and ice water and refrigerator full of food that is nourishing to your body.

Jim:  Yes very much so.

Jack:  So let’s focus on that and simply minimize the amount of time you spend in the heat and don’t talk about it. 

Jim:  That would be good.  That would be cool.

Jack:  Literally my friend very literally.

Jim:  Yes.  Thank you for being here and we know that wherever you go the blessings of Mother/Father God journey with you. 

Jack:  Thank you my friend and know that those of us who are where I am are aware of all your efforts and we thank you for all that you do.  God bless America.