I worked in the alternative health industry for a long time, and I definitely watched some people lose it during the pandemic. Sayer Ji comes to mind but not on your list - did some crazy live videos with his wife where he was just ranting seriously messed up messaging about how covid had come to help transform our DNA and that some people would die and that was part of our evolution as a species. Here is some hippy guy with a beard espousing some wierd cleansing of the population Nazi messaging - and people ate it up. One of the big tricks in this field is when you get kicked off social media or banned from Amazon Videos, you use it as proof that your message is starting to hit home and the machine is trying to crush you.
I read an article in Wired a long time ago that really made sense to me about the human brains inability to handle unfairness. This is the survival mechanism that lets people pick up and keep going after a tsunami kills everyone they love - your brain simply says 'do not process - too unfair'. It is this mechanism that has driven people to create gods and governments - the big trustworthy dieties on whom we can blame the deeply unfair, and also who are supposed to handle it for us.
I think that this ultimately though is to blame on the same thing you blame most things on - capitalism. Ultimately, there are tons of amazing alternative therapies. Let's pretend we had a culture that paid us all a reasonable living wage. Healers could then make their potions, and share them with those who needed them, and all would be beautiful. When your ability to live and feed your family is based on your ability to sell that potion, at some point almost everyone becomes a snake oil salesman - selling their solutions beyond the reach of where they are really needed, and making up applications that aren't the core of what the product really solves just to sell to broader markets.
Zach Bush is a clear one here - you can buy humic acid and volvic minterals on Amazon for $8 a gallon or something. Or from Zach Bush for $50 for a couple ounces in a bottle. In my opinion healthcare should, at its core, be about helping people. No matter how good your solution is - and pharmaceuticals play the same game - the second you are price gouging people for it you are just a capitalist pawn in my opinion, and no longer have any relationship to a healer of any type.
It is a hard one as I too spend a lot of my life in the deep realms of woo - I don't believe that there are actual hard scientific answers to some questions, and I certainly think dismissing it all and calling that science is also - not science. A good scientist, a real scientist would know that, until they can prove that my soul is not greater than my body, and that my energy won't continue in the web of consciousness after my death, that all we have is hypothesis - because they can't prove that consciousness is simply a chemical act either. The great scientists accept that much of live is a mystery - you may seek proofs, you may try to strengthen hypothesis, but believing that you know the answer when you have been unable to actually prove it is a distinctly unscientific perspective.
I actually think that the answers for us lie in pursuing the distinctly unbelievable and impossible with a healthy dose of scientific skepticism.
These people (relatively speaking) are no significant dangers to anyone, compared to those who are actually in charge and in control. I have lots of time for the kind of crazies you mention , even when they carry suspicion to the level of paranoia. In my opinion suspicion is an irreplaceable bulwark against real World powers, especially with the rising of technocracy, "truth" media networks in collision with elite corporate compromised governmental overlords, cancel culture etc. Seriously even if we disparage holistic medicines as "potions" "snake oil" etc. their purveyors are no competition monetarily or in their harm to humanity as big Pharma in many people's minds. For the former motivation is toward creating health and secondarily making money while big Pharma puts profits first.
I'm not saying that I think alternative health loonies are the biggest problem. And to be very clear, I maintain an edible forest farm and my wife makes skincare out of all the herbs that grow here. Nettle, Neem, Noni, Ylang Ylang - powerful plants every one of them. I'm not saying that alternative remedies are useless by any means, just saying that the industry as a whole has gone a bit mad. I think that has happened across the board, though - I have a good friend in the coaching industry, and I think the same thing is happening. Really just a society in collapse, and many people are losing their grip on what is positive, effective, and good.
Big Pharma and Big Wellness are both playing this game. The problem is people can't seem to avoid developing a fundamentalist mind set about it.
There's a long list of negatives with Big Pharma. The entire complex should be torn down and replaced with something less rapacious At the same time, it is not so thoroughly "evil" that it's teamed up with govts to depopulate the planet.
That part of the 'yoga industrial wellness complex' body of thinking (feeling) is far from harmless.
I love the cleverness of "Yoga Industrial Wellness Complex" Any harm they do is relative and insignificant even though it has been exaggerated to good effect by the authors. Personally I think in the right dosage this craziness is therapeutic for society and nothing that needs treatment. Like yourself I doubt there has been any plan to depopulate the planet,. But I have observed 1) an opportunistic enthusiasm for profiting from it 2) an opportunistic enthusiasm for using the pandemic to create a great societal "RESET" which includes rolling out systems of greater population control. The same way the war in Ukraine is a wonderful opportunity to try out various weapon systems against another World power. So its not hard to assume that these people don't have much of a moral compass ... thinking almost exclusively statistically and monetarily. Everything and everyone is above all a digitized commodity. The current scientific /technological paradigm of referring to humans as "meat machines' doesn't create much public confidence amongst "backward" soul believing people like new agers and Christian fundamentalists. Naturally those with the highest level of education must see new agers etc. as superstitious fools that must be shamed for their" own good", "safety" and to save the union .lol.
Just out of curiosity, what feature of the Great Reset do you find most alarming? I can think of one but other than that, it sounds okay to me. "You will own nothing and you will be happy," sounds like housing will be subsidized and people will rent or 'buy' into affordable co-ops, and walk to work, as in the 15 minute city.
Jul 10, 2023·edited Jul 10, 2023Liked by Daniel Pinchbeck
Well, that does sounds like a cozy plan. It is not the plan or vision that disturbs me so much as whose plan it is, their motivations, their view of humanity (ignorant , meat machines) and the power over the masses the vision requires to be made manifest. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. The reset we have so far lived through facilitated a massive redistribution of wealth to the 1%. The War in Ukraine isn't making me rich. Nor is our flirting with World War three making me sleep more soundly at night. If the better World is coming thanks to our wise leaders ... I'm waiting. Please share what it is about our Great Reset that you like so far.
The recent increase in wealth disparity is disturbing, to put it mildly. And yes, the effect of the pandemic was great for oligarchs. Agree with you. I just don't see the pandemic as being an intentional plan tracing back to the WEF.
The war in Ukraine looks like a proxy war, a new Iraq. Biden might be the most dangerous president we've ever had. His recent decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine is shameless, cruel. And he has put the planet closer to the precipice of nuclear war.
I agree with you, just don't know what the war has to do with a Great Reset. Seems like business as usual, for the U.S.
My fear of the Great Reset is more about Schwab's swooning over the beauty of AI and quantum computing with appreciation of some of the downsides, but all through a techno-Utopian point of view.
Increased surveillance capabilities in the wrong hands could harden fascism in nations with increasingly stressed populations. And what nations aren't stressed now?
I think the Great Reset, traced back to Schwab and WEF make sense in terms of addressing climate change, which is the most extreme risk we are facing right now. Also, think one of the proposals was for UBI, which would help bump up incomes and maybe buffer the effects of job loss.
Price inflation in housing isn't part of a Reset. It's because hedge funds are buying up residential real estate and trying to extract as much yield as they can. This could be stopped in its tracks by govt regulatory agencies. Schwab and the WEF seem to be aware of these dynamics and wants govts to interfere, imo. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Enforcing anti-trust law, laws against racketeering, laws against price gouging and price fixing, during crises, like housing crisis. We need more govt of that kind, rather than less. If you can find statements made by WEF and Schwab that endorse reducing the proper role of govt, in this regard, I will change my mind.
I'm not naive, but I do I see typical crony capitalism in reaction mode, with elements of conspiracy, where many see pure conspiracy.
Except for when their paranoia leads to beliefs and actions like misogyny and antisemitism, which I see and hear on a bunch of New Age, or alt YouTube videos. And of course then amplified in the comments. It’s at this point I question the teachings of the teacher — Do I really want to be absorbing information, even if the information and tools seem novel or useful, if the teacher holds (and spouts) beliefs that I have determined are dangerous? (This is subjective I suppose. But misogyny and antisemitism are real breakers for me.) The first time I became aware of this conflict for me was with David Icke. And then many more after him.
Of course misogyny and antisemitism are sad and reprehensible beliefs that could lead to negative actions. I personally disengaged from groups that went down this path even though there were aspects I liked about them; like John Lash. Hate and blame are toxic wherever they arise including the hatred and blaming of these people in my opinion. Hatred and blame are soul erosive. Not only do they lead down the road of exaggeration toward fear and paranoia but they shut down engagement, dialogue, consensus, and the necessary resolution possible in a Hegelian dialectic. Do we want to absorb tools and information from what we perceive as tainted sources? Only in my opinion if we have good boundaries and the ability to sort the useful from the not useful. Though too often a single flaw or mistake in someone is used to cancel them entirely. Like the politically weaponized syllogism I heard someone apply to Obama during his administration; Obama is a liar , therefore everything he says is a lie. Shutting down or discrediting sources of information can be a political tool to get people to reduce their sources of information to only "approved sources" . I think this is a self-serving tool of power. It is predicated on the belief that people are babies/fools who are easily led and who lack the ability to think and discriminate. Which though true to a certain extent , who is it that made this so via an education system that excludes critical thinking and general semantics in favor or memorization, conformity and regurgitation? Regarding David Icke I don't embrace everything he spouts but I do find him a refreshingly defiant voice. Reptilians in charge. I hope not. But we are completely in the "national security" darkness still regarding the true contact and information our government has and has had with extraterrestrials etc. Seems like some disclosure is in the offing and that it could freak out portions of the population. Can we handle the truth ? Its clear governments think we can't... which unconsciously magnifies feels of distrust and being lied too. :)
I appreciate your willingness to take this book on, Daniel, given that some of their criticism hits close to home. I haven't read it yet, but I listen to their podcast regularly, and it sounds like the book mirrors the podcast's strengths and blindspots. Much of my work and worldview overlaps with esoteric traditions and practices. I find that the podcast, at it's best, serves as an 'inoculation' against the seductive but incoherent (and often covertly predatory) messages and practices in the field. At it's worst, the podcast comes across as reductive, patronizing, and self-serving. I'm all for calling out predatory 'influencers' and 'thought-leaders' (which they do quite effectively) but if you're someone who's been victimized by the field (e.g. seduced into a cult, given up life savings as an offering to G-d, purchased snake oil at high cost, gaslighting after abuse, etc) listening to conspirituality might only serve to shame you more without honoring the parts of you longing to escape the dominant cultural paradigm that also causes tremendous harm
I also listen to their podcast and feel the same. Parts are very well researched and informative, others are snide takedowns. For example when Charles Eisenstein came on in good faith then they had a snarky chat afterwards about why everything he'd said was wrong. But they were polite to his face of course. They just seem to typify the smug coastal liberal that, with some justification, the Trump fan finds so condescending. But they can't seem to see it. They do provide a service in taking down the likes of Teal Swan though.
I listened to the Conspirituality podcast early on in the pandemic and had also recently discovered Charles Eisenstein. I also thought their takedown of him was unfair. I think Daniel nails it when he says they’ve gone too far to the other side by only believing in reductive materialism.
I listened to that as well, and while I probably agree more with their perspective than Charles's, I found their behavior to be so smarmy and cowardly that I never listened to them again. Sincere disagreement is healthy, but what they were doing was deeply uncool.
Jul 10, 2023·edited Jul 10, 2023Liked by Daniel Pinchbeck
The free adult human being learns most by making mistakes. There is no shame in that. Mostly we are driven by legitimate longings that arise from fundamental goodness.
This book sounds sad and completely hypocritical. Of course that doesn't discount whatever nuggets might be in there but overall it seems pretty silly.
I so appreciate this analysis. I’m so often disheartened that we can’t hold the ambiguity of the middle where several things can be true at once, as opposed to these extreme corners of rigidity.
We are in need of applying Hegel's dialectic. Which has been prevented from operating by 1) disrespect for differences of opinion 2) short-circuiting the possibility of consensus by destroying the possibility of dialogue. 3) keeping the shouting loud so no one is able to listen deeply. I have found some hope on the horizon in the example of maturity and integrity RFK jr. is setting.
Hi Daniel, can you please give some sources for Zach Bush and Joe Dispenza regarding QAnon etc.? I have a friend who's into them and she says she's never seen any political utterances from those two.
here is some of what they write about Bush: "“In the case of Zach Bush, an ignorance of COVID research and clinical practice combined with a cruel but alluring religious flare to make him a conspirituality celebrity.
On May 19, 2020, Bush went viral on Del Bigtree’s anti-vax podcast The HighWire. Bush regaled the audience of over 170,000 followers with his life story of learning, and then doubting, evidence-based medicine. He described a path that took him from volunteering in a birthing center in the Philippines to med school, and then on to specializing in internal medicine and hospice care, and then private boutique nutritional services. He told Bigtree that COVID-19 is an environmental, not an epidemiological, problem.”
...
"“Bush cloaks his anti-vax and COVID-minimization attitudes behind plausible concerns about the human microbiome—the bacteriological milieu of gut and skin health. He argues that we humans have been weeding ourselves to death, externally and internally, depleting the biodiversity of our soils and bodies with pesticides and antibiotics, to the point at which robust immunity and holistic resilience are beyond our reach. He’s also clear about climate danger—a topic typically missing from conspirituality discourse. Among our cast so far, Bush rocks the most holistic, internationally minded, and ecologically concerned look.
A key subtext of Zach Bush’s COVID-19 content—coming from a doctor who never worked on the pandemic front lines—is that COVID researchers and health care workers are ignorant in a religious sense. He implies that the pandemic is revealing the spiritual illiteracy of conventional medicine while unmasking the toxicity of our environment. “There’s something poetic about that,” he stated in another interview, adding that social distancing and vaccines will make the pandemic worse because they won’t address the underlying spiritual wounds.” "
I haven't studied Zach Bush very much... I get an instinctive strange vibe... yet I do agree with the importance of the microbiome, which he emphasizes. Remski points out that he comes from a line of preachers... perhaps that is what puts me off, the Christian tone. Remski's critique of Bush is not as strong as many other critiques in the book. Remski characterizes Bush as a "lifestyle entrepreneur," and a doctor who wants to be a preacher. He notes, "Conspiratorialists don't manage endless crises, they offer spiritual promises."
Jul 10, 2023·edited Jul 10, 2023Liked by Daniel Pinchbeck
I haven't read the book. And I take for granted that there is a mixture of light and shadow in the Wellness community, like all domains of human activity. But these are the types of people who told us during Covid to 'follow the science' even while our scientific institutions had obviously been corrupted by political interests. The official narrative dramatically exaggerated the dangers of Covid, especially for younger, healthy people and dramatically downplayed the evidence of adverse effects of the vaccines. It denied the potential role of preventative remedies, dismissed the concept of natural immunity, and suppressed early treatment options like monoclonal antibodies, all to serve a political goal of having everyone take the vaccines. When that wasn't enough, they used bribes and mandates to force people to take it.
And anyone who had questions about this unprecedented, nonsensical process was aggressively painted as a conspiracy theorist and suspected of being a far-right Trump-loving deplorable.
I don't know the exact position of the authors on Covid. But I do know that Lissa Rankin referenced their work as support for her public denouncement of Charles Eisenstein (while using her platform to shame the 'willfully unvaccinated'). The politically-naive liberal apostles of scientific rationality were THE biggest cheerleaders for the greatest abuse of governmental power in our lifetimes.
On the big issue of our day, they got it wrong. On the big issue of our day, they were agents of a great, great evil. And yet they purport to position themselves as the moral arbiters of the healing community. They can go fuck themselves as far as I'm concerned.
The wellness practitioners who fall under the auspices of a licensing college provide a less sensationalized and highly regulated "norm" that still holds a lot of viability and offers relief for people suffering from various conditions. That said, I understand where the authors and podcasters of Conspirituality are coming from because I saw it happening too. After all, I lived in Sedona, Arizona (New Age capital of the world - LOL) and I currently live in a similarly bent population on a small island where every second person is a yoga teacher or practitioner.
Still, I don't appreciate the authors' blatant take-down and apparent naiveté on specific subjects and people who have fallen into their pit of opinionated attacks.
I was genuinely astonished at some of my "New Agey" friends and acquaintances who flipped to the QAnon angles. I thought they'd lost their minds too.
Much of what we have encountered over the past decade reeks of intelligence agency manipulation, and that requires a clear view of how and why the DoD, for example, took control of the pandemic narrative. It's not a conspiracy. It's how they operate. Observe the use of certain words and language styles, primarily via media coordination and repetitive headlines across countries that have collective interests, such as the Five Eyes:
Keep the conversation going. The dialogue in this thread is outstanding, and I remain curious and engaged. Thank you, Daniel, for the openness and perspective and willingness to engage on areas that hurt a bit for those of us who are Steiner fans, among other topics.
Hi Susan, there are a lot of links to long books here but I am not sure how they relate to the topic at hand? Where do you see unwarranted attacks etc? Can you be specific of where they have made actual errors, in your view?
Thanks Daniel, you must have been reading my mind because I woke up last night thinking, "wow, that was a long list of links and I probably need to clarify how that relates to the topic at hand."
In a nutshell, I am concerned that some of the commonly used terms that have been "inserted" repeatedly (i.e. "anti-vax," "conspiracy," "misinformation"), may have affected the decisions being made by the authors of Conspirituality and others thinking along similar lines. As I noted though, I don't disagree with their first-hand experiences and observations. I believe a lot of the crazy thinking over the past decade has been driven by the "formula" that millions of people have now learned in regard to upselling their products through a website and online courses. It's happened in the equestrian industry too, much to my frustration and that of many old-time trainers.
In the media, there is a mash-up of left/right and it is evolving so quickly that it has become difficult to discern whether or not people are being influenced by something like paid editorials (very common in mainstream media) or if they are cross-referencing information outside of that which is being fed to the public. Of course, many journalists are now researching and writing on alternative platforms, and it is impossible to keep up with it all. I find some of the common memes utterly insulting and dismissive given the plethora of papers and hardcore backdoor censorship that has now been uncovered (I'm okay with Taibbi and Shellenberger so far) and I think Russell Brand is actually doing a good job of finding balance amid the ever-increasing gap between those who claim left or right. It is an agency tactic to use specific programming language to divide and conquer. I can only speculate about an endgame, but to even contemplate it, you need so step back from politically driven rhetoric and use caution when dismissing information that is hitting the public eye. But, I'm pretty sure you know all of this. You're also able to articulate it much better than I can.
I got a good laugh out of an MSNBC article that appeared recently... apparently exercising (and the pandemic-induced home exercise programs in particular) are now considered "far-right." So, that's it! Haha! I'm done!
Loved your fair analysis. I have been a part of the health and wellness community since the 2000s and have always marveled at the flow of cutting-edge information from the fringe to the mainstream via many expos, conferences, and trade shows. The information I gathered from tried-and-true practitioners was completely beneficial to building a sense of caring for my “temple.” But I was also always clear that anyone striving to make themselves a place in society by being a public expert has to some degree commit out loud to their own strong theories more than they might privately. And so all information—and sales pitches, especially—was taken with a grain of salt, and my own underlying belief that I can maintain my health and wholeness without continuously, endlessly purchasing supplements, programs, or subscriptions. And in the meantime, I’ve watched many people who were, to me, progressive underground health heroes turn into loose canons and/or purveyors of insecurity, creating businesses based on seeding their audiences with the idea that they have shocking information that places them and their followers ahead of the curve. I watch who lives healthfully without much grandeur about it. I take in what helps me think critically and make discerning choices, and leave the rest. I watch the reductive materialist and the consprititualists, and feel content that I belong to neither end of the spectrum.
I appreciate your open mindedness about this book because I would personally not give it the time of day for a number of reasons. In my opinion the authors pathologically disparage the people and the reasons for this political shift while missing the aptness and cultural usefulness of these “conspiracy”theories. Also I am adverse to the author’s rationalism, materialism and apparent ill will in their over reaching attempt to cancel new agers by equating them with eugenics and naziism. Yuck ! This makes me consider the direction of their thought as primarily reactionary and "counter revolutionary"and in service to the status quo. During the pandemic I noticed an ironic failure of rationalism. I watched many people do the right thing (imo) for the wrong even crazy reasons and others do the stupid thing for excellent reasons ( according to the moment) My point is that the crazies are an important bulwark against totalitarian conformism, governmental coercion and political correctness. Some people need be able to say no for no good or defensible reason.Besides these voices are no threat to anyone but those in power who have far greater control over the cultural narrative. Many people are fed up. They see how the standard narrative is sneakily manipulative, heavily spun and full of lies of omission. This is why one of RFK's main campaign promises is to stop lying to us .
Of course even great humans are creatures of their time and can make mistakes. Steiner never pretended to be perfect or the last word on anything though so few have been so right about so many things.
Daniel, I think you could write a more reasoned and nuanced book-length analysis of the "consciousness industrial complex," as I've been referring to it for years. A real "follow the money" deep-dive into the space as it has become since the 70s (through the 80s/90s "new age" take), the 2012 pivot point, and our current era (in alignment with the "4th Turning" which turns completely in the 2025/27 window, which is kind of the next "2012." There are obvious themes of lack of critical thinking across the mass of the culture, but a focus on spirituality that sells (to the people who can afford to buy it) with a pretty detached perspective towards those outside that circle of support. I'm part of it and okay with that to a certain extent because good messages and practices are getting out there; but also think that it could afford having it's shadow pieces revealed... particularly how themes of service to the whole or activism are studiously avoided in our marketing in favor of themes around "self care," manifesting an ideal life, pursuing dreams, create the world through resonance (which is deeply embraced by many privileged and arguably entitled constituents. Happy to connect up for a call sometime and heartstorm a draft of the outline. You have a really unique way of writing from both a disengaged impartial observer's voice, but somehow also from within the subject you're reviewing. That couldn't be more true for this space, since you've experienced a great deal of attention from the industry as well. Not to take anyone down, per se, but to expose where "spiritual" culture is as captured by late stage capitalism as any of the other parts. It's important to name the thing to be able to transform and transition from the thing.
Strange that Charles Eisenstein is included in that group. Unless I'm missing something. Strange to reflect on the time we organized a conversation between you, Charles, and Marianne... now Marianne's running for the D nom and Charles is supporting RFK Jr. (she wasn't going for endearing in that call, hehe).
Jul 13, 2023·edited Jul 13, 2023Liked by Daniel Pinchbeck
Feels like a lot to unravel and untangle; this series teases an important book-length project. More rigorous. The entire consciousness space really needs an enema. Something that pulls all the pieces out and highlights what's important and meets legitimate spiritual needs. I often reflect on Joseph Campbell's observation that we're inheritors of a terminal moraine of mythic and various narrative forms; and we're meant to make something out of it all. Some creations are elegant and serve people well, while others... not so much.
Vent away! I used to follow a few of these types on twitter, because I initially liked their rational, logical approach. But as well as all of the issues you bring up, I'll add that the cerebral narcissism evident in the comments seemed like a game of 'cleverness one-up-manship.' And that kind of gets to the heart of the matter. Criticism should come from a place of humility.
But yeah, they are a useful tool when you discount for all of your qualifiers, Daniel.
Jul 10, 2023·edited Jul 10, 2023Liked by Daniel Pinchbeck
"One of our problems is that we humans cannot live without acting; we have to act. Moreover, we have to act on the basis of what we know, and what we know is incomplete.....And so the question of how to act in ignorance is paramout"
Life is A Miracle
Wendall Berry
This is the problem with the zealous arrogance often attached to rationalists like say the so called "comedian" Ricky Gervais :)
Oddly enough, in their supposedly good-faith attempts to defuse the culture wars, the Conspirituality gang are really doing nothing but throwing fuel on the fire. I’ve listened to a few episodes of their show and understood their motivation and approach clear as day: they are grifters, trying to make a mill by calling out grifters.
In the process they are really doing a lot more harm than good. AFAIK they propose no real alternative structures for movements, progress, or societal evolution.
Just more blue church, decline and fall type thinking. From my personal experience and extensive reading and research, magic is real, mass media and culture is not our friend, and many of the supposedly debunked wellness modalities change lives for the better every day.
I agree with much of your criticism. I was following their work for a while, because I think they make some good points, but I think they seem more motivated by personal resentment than an earnest desire to understand why certain problems in the wellness community exist. I was hoping for something more sophisticated than alternative medicine = fascism = bad. It’s very black and white thinking and will unfortunately only add more fuel to the fire to polarization on these issues. I feel badly though, because I am pretty sure unhealed trauma from abusive experiences in the spiritual world, is what is fueling some of the black and white thinking from at least one of the authors. Thanks for separating out their good arguments from their reactionary stuff to offer a more grounded analysis!
I worked in the alternative health industry for a long time, and I definitely watched some people lose it during the pandemic. Sayer Ji comes to mind but not on your list - did some crazy live videos with his wife where he was just ranting seriously messed up messaging about how covid had come to help transform our DNA and that some people would die and that was part of our evolution as a species. Here is some hippy guy with a beard espousing some wierd cleansing of the population Nazi messaging - and people ate it up. One of the big tricks in this field is when you get kicked off social media or banned from Amazon Videos, you use it as proof that your message is starting to hit home and the machine is trying to crush you.
I read an article in Wired a long time ago that really made sense to me about the human brains inability to handle unfairness. This is the survival mechanism that lets people pick up and keep going after a tsunami kills everyone they love - your brain simply says 'do not process - too unfair'. It is this mechanism that has driven people to create gods and governments - the big trustworthy dieties on whom we can blame the deeply unfair, and also who are supposed to handle it for us.
I think that this ultimately though is to blame on the same thing you blame most things on - capitalism. Ultimately, there are tons of amazing alternative therapies. Let's pretend we had a culture that paid us all a reasonable living wage. Healers could then make their potions, and share them with those who needed them, and all would be beautiful. When your ability to live and feed your family is based on your ability to sell that potion, at some point almost everyone becomes a snake oil salesman - selling their solutions beyond the reach of where they are really needed, and making up applications that aren't the core of what the product really solves just to sell to broader markets.
Zach Bush is a clear one here - you can buy humic acid and volvic minterals on Amazon for $8 a gallon or something. Or from Zach Bush for $50 for a couple ounces in a bottle. In my opinion healthcare should, at its core, be about helping people. No matter how good your solution is - and pharmaceuticals play the same game - the second you are price gouging people for it you are just a capitalist pawn in my opinion, and no longer have any relationship to a healer of any type.
It is a hard one as I too spend a lot of my life in the deep realms of woo - I don't believe that there are actual hard scientific answers to some questions, and I certainly think dismissing it all and calling that science is also - not science. A good scientist, a real scientist would know that, until they can prove that my soul is not greater than my body, and that my energy won't continue in the web of consciousness after my death, that all we have is hypothesis - because they can't prove that consciousness is simply a chemical act either. The great scientists accept that much of live is a mystery - you may seek proofs, you may try to strengthen hypothesis, but believing that you know the answer when you have been unable to actually prove it is a distinctly unscientific perspective.
I actually think that the answers for us lie in pursuing the distinctly unbelievable and impossible with a healthy dose of scientific skepticism.
Beautifully expressed. Thank you.
Beautiful. You are so right.
These people (relatively speaking) are no significant dangers to anyone, compared to those who are actually in charge and in control. I have lots of time for the kind of crazies you mention , even when they carry suspicion to the level of paranoia. In my opinion suspicion is an irreplaceable bulwark against real World powers, especially with the rising of technocracy, "truth" media networks in collision with elite corporate compromised governmental overlords, cancel culture etc. Seriously even if we disparage holistic medicines as "potions" "snake oil" etc. their purveyors are no competition monetarily or in their harm to humanity as big Pharma in many people's minds. For the former motivation is toward creating health and secondarily making money while big Pharma puts profits first.
I'm not saying that I think alternative health loonies are the biggest problem. And to be very clear, I maintain an edible forest farm and my wife makes skincare out of all the herbs that grow here. Nettle, Neem, Noni, Ylang Ylang - powerful plants every one of them. I'm not saying that alternative remedies are useless by any means, just saying that the industry as a whole has gone a bit mad. I think that has happened across the board, though - I have a good friend in the coaching industry, and I think the same thing is happening. Really just a society in collapse, and many people are losing their grip on what is positive, effective, and good.
Big Pharma and Big Wellness are both playing this game. The problem is people can't seem to avoid developing a fundamentalist mind set about it.
There's a long list of negatives with Big Pharma. The entire complex should be torn down and replaced with something less rapacious At the same time, it is not so thoroughly "evil" that it's teamed up with govts to depopulate the planet.
That part of the 'yoga industrial wellness complex' body of thinking (feeling) is far from harmless.
I love the cleverness of "Yoga Industrial Wellness Complex" Any harm they do is relative and insignificant even though it has been exaggerated to good effect by the authors. Personally I think in the right dosage this craziness is therapeutic for society and nothing that needs treatment. Like yourself I doubt there has been any plan to depopulate the planet,. But I have observed 1) an opportunistic enthusiasm for profiting from it 2) an opportunistic enthusiasm for using the pandemic to create a great societal "RESET" which includes rolling out systems of greater population control. The same way the war in Ukraine is a wonderful opportunity to try out various weapon systems against another World power. So its not hard to assume that these people don't have much of a moral compass ... thinking almost exclusively statistically and monetarily. Everything and everyone is above all a digitized commodity. The current scientific /technological paradigm of referring to humans as "meat machines' doesn't create much public confidence amongst "backward" soul believing people like new agers and Christian fundamentalists. Naturally those with the highest level of education must see new agers etc. as superstitious fools that must be shamed for their" own good", "safety" and to save the union .lol.
Just out of curiosity, what feature of the Great Reset do you find most alarming? I can think of one but other than that, it sounds okay to me. "You will own nothing and you will be happy," sounds like housing will be subsidized and people will rent or 'buy' into affordable co-ops, and walk to work, as in the 15 minute city.
Well, that does sounds like a cozy plan. It is not the plan or vision that disturbs me so much as whose plan it is, their motivations, their view of humanity (ignorant , meat machines) and the power over the masses the vision requires to be made manifest. Absolute power corrupts absolutely. The reset we have so far lived through facilitated a massive redistribution of wealth to the 1%. The War in Ukraine isn't making me rich. Nor is our flirting with World War three making me sleep more soundly at night. If the better World is coming thanks to our wise leaders ... I'm waiting. Please share what it is about our Great Reset that you like so far.
good points KG!
The recent increase in wealth disparity is disturbing, to put it mildly. And yes, the effect of the pandemic was great for oligarchs. Agree with you. I just don't see the pandemic as being an intentional plan tracing back to the WEF.
The war in Ukraine looks like a proxy war, a new Iraq. Biden might be the most dangerous president we've ever had. His recent decision to send cluster bombs to Ukraine is shameless, cruel. And he has put the planet closer to the precipice of nuclear war.
I agree with you, just don't know what the war has to do with a Great Reset. Seems like business as usual, for the U.S.
My fear of the Great Reset is more about Schwab's swooning over the beauty of AI and quantum computing with appreciation of some of the downsides, but all through a techno-Utopian point of view.
Increased surveillance capabilities in the wrong hands could harden fascism in nations with increasingly stressed populations. And what nations aren't stressed now?
I think the Great Reset, traced back to Schwab and WEF make sense in terms of addressing climate change, which is the most extreme risk we are facing right now. Also, think one of the proposals was for UBI, which would help bump up incomes and maybe buffer the effects of job loss.
Price inflation in housing isn't part of a Reset. It's because hedge funds are buying up residential real estate and trying to extract as much yield as they can. This could be stopped in its tracks by govt regulatory agencies. Schwab and the WEF seem to be aware of these dynamics and wants govts to interfere, imo. Correct me if I'm wrong.
Enforcing anti-trust law, laws against racketeering, laws against price gouging and price fixing, during crises, like housing crisis. We need more govt of that kind, rather than less. If you can find statements made by WEF and Schwab that endorse reducing the proper role of govt, in this regard, I will change my mind.
I'm not naive, but I do I see typical crony capitalism in reaction mode, with elements of conspiracy, where many see pure conspiracy.
Except for when their paranoia leads to beliefs and actions like misogyny and antisemitism, which I see and hear on a bunch of New Age, or alt YouTube videos. And of course then amplified in the comments. It’s at this point I question the teachings of the teacher — Do I really want to be absorbing information, even if the information and tools seem novel or useful, if the teacher holds (and spouts) beliefs that I have determined are dangerous? (This is subjective I suppose. But misogyny and antisemitism are real breakers for me.) The first time I became aware of this conflict for me was with David Icke. And then many more after him.
Of course misogyny and antisemitism are sad and reprehensible beliefs that could lead to negative actions. I personally disengaged from groups that went down this path even though there were aspects I liked about them; like John Lash. Hate and blame are toxic wherever they arise including the hatred and blaming of these people in my opinion. Hatred and blame are soul erosive. Not only do they lead down the road of exaggeration toward fear and paranoia but they shut down engagement, dialogue, consensus, and the necessary resolution possible in a Hegelian dialectic. Do we want to absorb tools and information from what we perceive as tainted sources? Only in my opinion if we have good boundaries and the ability to sort the useful from the not useful. Though too often a single flaw or mistake in someone is used to cancel them entirely. Like the politically weaponized syllogism I heard someone apply to Obama during his administration; Obama is a liar , therefore everything he says is a lie. Shutting down or discrediting sources of information can be a political tool to get people to reduce their sources of information to only "approved sources" . I think this is a self-serving tool of power. It is predicated on the belief that people are babies/fools who are easily led and who lack the ability to think and discriminate. Which though true to a certain extent , who is it that made this so via an education system that excludes critical thinking and general semantics in favor or memorization, conformity and regurgitation? Regarding David Icke I don't embrace everything he spouts but I do find him a refreshingly defiant voice. Reptilians in charge. I hope not. But we are completely in the "national security" darkness still regarding the true contact and information our government has and has had with extraterrestrials etc. Seems like some disclosure is in the offing and that it could freak out portions of the population. Can we handle the truth ? Its clear governments think we can't... which unconsciously magnifies feels of distrust and being lied too. :)
I appreciate your willingness to take this book on, Daniel, given that some of their criticism hits close to home. I haven't read it yet, but I listen to their podcast regularly, and it sounds like the book mirrors the podcast's strengths and blindspots. Much of my work and worldview overlaps with esoteric traditions and practices. I find that the podcast, at it's best, serves as an 'inoculation' against the seductive but incoherent (and often covertly predatory) messages and practices in the field. At it's worst, the podcast comes across as reductive, patronizing, and self-serving. I'm all for calling out predatory 'influencers' and 'thought-leaders' (which they do quite effectively) but if you're someone who's been victimized by the field (e.g. seduced into a cult, given up life savings as an offering to G-d, purchased snake oil at high cost, gaslighting after abuse, etc) listening to conspirituality might only serve to shame you more without honoring the parts of you longing to escape the dominant cultural paradigm that also causes tremendous harm
I also listen to their podcast and feel the same. Parts are very well researched and informative, others are snide takedowns. For example when Charles Eisenstein came on in good faith then they had a snarky chat afterwards about why everything he'd said was wrong. But they were polite to his face of course. They just seem to typify the smug coastal liberal that, with some justification, the Trump fan finds so condescending. But they can't seem to see it. They do provide a service in taking down the likes of Teal Swan though.
I listened to the Conspirituality podcast early on in the pandemic and had also recently discovered Charles Eisenstein. I also thought their takedown of him was unfair. I think Daniel nails it when he says they’ve gone too far to the other side by only believing in reductive materialism.
I agree these guys are as mean spirited, as righteous as the comedian Ricky Gervais.
I listened to that as well, and while I probably agree more with their perspective than Charles's, I found their behavior to be so smarmy and cowardly that I never listened to them again. Sincere disagreement is healthy, but what they were doing was deeply uncool.
I nearly turned them off for good too but I decided it's good to have multiple perspectives so I do occasionally still listen.
Ooh never heard of this podcast before today, but now I’m def going to listen to the Teal Swan episodes. Thanks for this!
The free adult human being learns most by making mistakes. There is no shame in that. Mostly we are driven by legitimate longings that arise from fundamental goodness.
This book sounds sad and completely hypocritical. Of course that doesn't discount whatever nuggets might be in there but overall it seems pretty silly.
I so appreciate this analysis. I’m so often disheartened that we can’t hold the ambiguity of the middle where several things can be true at once, as opposed to these extreme corners of rigidity.
We are in need of applying Hegel's dialectic. Which has been prevented from operating by 1) disrespect for differences of opinion 2) short-circuiting the possibility of consensus by destroying the possibility of dialogue. 3) keeping the shouting loud so no one is able to listen deeply. I have found some hope on the horizon in the example of maturity and integrity RFK jr. is setting.
Hi Daniel, can you please give some sources for Zach Bush and Joe Dispenza regarding QAnon etc.? I have a friend who's into them and she says she's never seen any political utterances from those two.
I don't think they were parroting QANON exactly... I will unpack the Conspirituality critiques of them later. I wrote about DiSpenza some months back... https://danielpinchbeck.substack.com/p/waiting-for-the-miracle
here is some of what they write about Bush: "“In the case of Zach Bush, an ignorance of COVID research and clinical practice combined with a cruel but alluring religious flare to make him a conspirituality celebrity.
On May 19, 2020, Bush went viral on Del Bigtree’s anti-vax podcast The HighWire. Bush regaled the audience of over 170,000 followers with his life story of learning, and then doubting, evidence-based medicine. He described a path that took him from volunteering in a birthing center in the Philippines to med school, and then on to specializing in internal medicine and hospice care, and then private boutique nutritional services. He told Bigtree that COVID-19 is an environmental, not an epidemiological, problem.”
...
"“Bush cloaks his anti-vax and COVID-minimization attitudes behind plausible concerns about the human microbiome—the bacteriological milieu of gut and skin health. He argues that we humans have been weeding ourselves to death, externally and internally, depleting the biodiversity of our soils and bodies with pesticides and antibiotics, to the point at which robust immunity and holistic resilience are beyond our reach. He’s also clear about climate danger—a topic typically missing from conspirituality discourse. Among our cast so far, Bush rocks the most holistic, internationally minded, and ecologically concerned look.
A key subtext of Zach Bush’s COVID-19 content—coming from a doctor who never worked on the pandemic front lines—is that COVID researchers and health care workers are ignorant in a religious sense. He implies that the pandemic is revealing the spiritual illiteracy of conventional medicine while unmasking the toxicity of our environment. “There’s something poetic about that,” he stated in another interview, adding that social distancing and vaccines will make the pandemic worse because they won’t address the underlying spiritual wounds.” "
I haven't studied Zach Bush very much... I get an instinctive strange vibe... yet I do agree with the importance of the microbiome, which he emphasizes. Remski points out that he comes from a line of preachers... perhaps that is what puts me off, the Christian tone. Remski's critique of Bush is not as strong as many other critiques in the book. Remski characterizes Bush as a "lifestyle entrepreneur," and a doctor who wants to be a preacher. He notes, "Conspiratorialists don't manage endless crises, they offer spiritual promises."
I haven't read the book. And I take for granted that there is a mixture of light and shadow in the Wellness community, like all domains of human activity. But these are the types of people who told us during Covid to 'follow the science' even while our scientific institutions had obviously been corrupted by political interests. The official narrative dramatically exaggerated the dangers of Covid, especially for younger, healthy people and dramatically downplayed the evidence of adverse effects of the vaccines. It denied the potential role of preventative remedies, dismissed the concept of natural immunity, and suppressed early treatment options like monoclonal antibodies, all to serve a political goal of having everyone take the vaccines. When that wasn't enough, they used bribes and mandates to force people to take it.
And anyone who had questions about this unprecedented, nonsensical process was aggressively painted as a conspiracy theorist and suspected of being a far-right Trump-loving deplorable.
I don't know the exact position of the authors on Covid. But I do know that Lissa Rankin referenced their work as support for her public denouncement of Charles Eisenstein (while using her platform to shame the 'willfully unvaccinated'). The politically-naive liberal apostles of scientific rationality were THE biggest cheerleaders for the greatest abuse of governmental power in our lifetimes.
On the big issue of our day, they got it wrong. On the big issue of our day, they were agents of a great, great evil. And yet they purport to position themselves as the moral arbiters of the healing community. They can go fuck themselves as far as I'm concerned.
Hi David, I am not sure it is as simple as that... I don't see black and white at this point, just a lot of shades of grey.
The wellness practitioners who fall under the auspices of a licensing college provide a less sensationalized and highly regulated "norm" that still holds a lot of viability and offers relief for people suffering from various conditions. That said, I understand where the authors and podcasters of Conspirituality are coming from because I saw it happening too. After all, I lived in Sedona, Arizona (New Age capital of the world - LOL) and I currently live in a similarly bent population on a small island where every second person is a yoga teacher or practitioner.
Still, I don't appreciate the authors' blatant take-down and apparent naiveté on specific subjects and people who have fallen into their pit of opinionated attacks.
I was genuinely astonished at some of my "New Agey" friends and acquaintances who flipped to the QAnon angles. I thought they'd lost their minds too.
Much of what we have encountered over the past decade reeks of intelligence agency manipulation, and that requires a clear view of how and why the DoD, for example, took control of the pandemic narrative. It's not a conspiracy. It's how they operate. Observe the use of certain words and language styles, primarily via media coordination and repetitive headlines across countries that have collective interests, such as the Five Eyes:
https://www.dni.gov/index.php/ncsc-how-we-work/217-about/organization/icig-pages/2660-icig-fiorc
and the Trusted News Initiative:
https://cbc.radio-canada.ca/en/media-centre/trusted-news-initiative-plan-disinformation-coronavirus
(CBC/Radio-Canada announced its participation in the Trusted News Initiative in September 2019.)
I recommend Ken DeGraffenreid's book, The Cox Report, or any of the other suggested reading on the IWP website: https://www.iwp.edu/faculty/kenneth-degraffenreid/
Also, Mark M. Lowenthal's book: https://us.sagepub.com/en-us/nam/intelligence/book268258#description
I attended some lectures by Mr. DeGraffenreid and others at the IWP in 2000.
I am still learning about the authors of Conspirituality, but I looked at their Facebook page, particularly the reviews. Interesting, to say the least: https://www.facebook.com/conspiritualitypodcast/reviews
Keep the conversation going. The dialogue in this thread is outstanding, and I remain curious and engaged. Thank you, Daniel, for the openness and perspective and willingness to engage on areas that hurt a bit for those of us who are Steiner fans, among other topics.
Hi Susan, there are a lot of links to long books here but I am not sure how they relate to the topic at hand? Where do you see unwarranted attacks etc? Can you be specific of where they have made actual errors, in your view?
Thanks Daniel, you must have been reading my mind because I woke up last night thinking, "wow, that was a long list of links and I probably need to clarify how that relates to the topic at hand."
In a nutshell, I am concerned that some of the commonly used terms that have been "inserted" repeatedly (i.e. "anti-vax," "conspiracy," "misinformation"), may have affected the decisions being made by the authors of Conspirituality and others thinking along similar lines. As I noted though, I don't disagree with their first-hand experiences and observations. I believe a lot of the crazy thinking over the past decade has been driven by the "formula" that millions of people have now learned in regard to upselling their products through a website and online courses. It's happened in the equestrian industry too, much to my frustration and that of many old-time trainers.
In the media, there is a mash-up of left/right and it is evolving so quickly that it has become difficult to discern whether or not people are being influenced by something like paid editorials (very common in mainstream media) or if they are cross-referencing information outside of that which is being fed to the public. Of course, many journalists are now researching and writing on alternative platforms, and it is impossible to keep up with it all. I find some of the common memes utterly insulting and dismissive given the plethora of papers and hardcore backdoor censorship that has now been uncovered (I'm okay with Taibbi and Shellenberger so far) and I think Russell Brand is actually doing a good job of finding balance amid the ever-increasing gap between those who claim left or right. It is an agency tactic to use specific programming language to divide and conquer. I can only speculate about an endgame, but to even contemplate it, you need so step back from politically driven rhetoric and use caution when dismissing information that is hitting the public eye. But, I'm pretty sure you know all of this. You're also able to articulate it much better than I can.
I got a good laugh out of an MSNBC article that appeared recently... apparently exercising (and the pandemic-induced home exercise programs in particular) are now considered "far-right." So, that's it! Haha! I'm done!
Loved your fair analysis. I have been a part of the health and wellness community since the 2000s and have always marveled at the flow of cutting-edge information from the fringe to the mainstream via many expos, conferences, and trade shows. The information I gathered from tried-and-true practitioners was completely beneficial to building a sense of caring for my “temple.” But I was also always clear that anyone striving to make themselves a place in society by being a public expert has to some degree commit out loud to their own strong theories more than they might privately. And so all information—and sales pitches, especially—was taken with a grain of salt, and my own underlying belief that I can maintain my health and wholeness without continuously, endlessly purchasing supplements, programs, or subscriptions. And in the meantime, I’ve watched many people who were, to me, progressive underground health heroes turn into loose canons and/or purveyors of insecurity, creating businesses based on seeding their audiences with the idea that they have shocking information that places them and their followers ahead of the curve. I watch who lives healthfully without much grandeur about it. I take in what helps me think critically and make discerning choices, and leave the rest. I watch the reductive materialist and the consprititualists, and feel content that I belong to neither end of the spectrum.
Here are some pertinent quotes about reason and rationality from Rudolf Steiner lectures on the World of the Senses.
“In regard to reality, our thinking is utterly incompetent, it is inconclusive and no judge of what is actually true. “
“Thinking can be correct but still not true”.
“Therefore a proof gained by means of thinking will never accord in any way with reality”
"Our relationship with thinking must not make thinking the judge of things but to allow it to be an instrument through which things speak to us.
Steiner was fabulous.
I appreciate your open mindedness about this book because I would personally not give it the time of day for a number of reasons. In my opinion the authors pathologically disparage the people and the reasons for this political shift while missing the aptness and cultural usefulness of these “conspiracy”theories. Also I am adverse to the author’s rationalism, materialism and apparent ill will in their over reaching attempt to cancel new agers by equating them with eugenics and naziism. Yuck ! This makes me consider the direction of their thought as primarily reactionary and "counter revolutionary"and in service to the status quo. During the pandemic I noticed an ironic failure of rationalism. I watched many people do the right thing (imo) for the wrong even crazy reasons and others do the stupid thing for excellent reasons ( according to the moment) My point is that the crazies are an important bulwark against totalitarian conformism, governmental coercion and political correctness. Some people need be able to say no for no good or defensible reason.Besides these voices are no threat to anyone but those in power who have far greater control over the cultural narrative. Many people are fed up. They see how the standard narrative is sneakily manipulative, heavily spun and full of lies of omission. This is why one of RFK's main campaign promises is to stop lying to us .
I recommend this short pdf which repudiates the idea that Steiner was a racist or a fascist - https://static.goetheanum.co/assets/medias/Anthroposophy-and-Racism.pdf
Of course even great humans are creatures of their time and can make mistakes. Steiner never pretended to be perfect or the last word on anything though so few have been so right about so many things.
Daniel, I think you could write a more reasoned and nuanced book-length analysis of the "consciousness industrial complex," as I've been referring to it for years. A real "follow the money" deep-dive into the space as it has become since the 70s (through the 80s/90s "new age" take), the 2012 pivot point, and our current era (in alignment with the "4th Turning" which turns completely in the 2025/27 window, which is kind of the next "2012." There are obvious themes of lack of critical thinking across the mass of the culture, but a focus on spirituality that sells (to the people who can afford to buy it) with a pretty detached perspective towards those outside that circle of support. I'm part of it and okay with that to a certain extent because good messages and practices are getting out there; but also think that it could afford having it's shadow pieces revealed... particularly how themes of service to the whole or activism are studiously avoided in our marketing in favor of themes around "self care," manifesting an ideal life, pursuing dreams, create the world through resonance (which is deeply embraced by many privileged and arguably entitled constituents. Happy to connect up for a call sometime and heartstorm a draft of the outline. You have a really unique way of writing from both a disengaged impartial observer's voice, but somehow also from within the subject you're reviewing. That couldn't be more true for this space, since you've experienced a great deal of attention from the industry as well. Not to take anyone down, per se, but to expose where "spiritual" culture is as captured by late stage capitalism as any of the other parts. It's important to name the thing to be able to transform and transition from the thing.
Strange that Charles Eisenstein is included in that group. Unless I'm missing something. Strange to reflect on the time we organized a conversation between you, Charles, and Marianne... now Marianne's running for the D nom and Charles is supporting RFK Jr. (she wasn't going for endearing in that call, hehe).
I think both RFK Jr and Charles have become extremely problematic.
Feels like a lot to unravel and untangle; this series teases an important book-length project. More rigorous. The entire consciousness space really needs an enema. Something that pulls all the pieces out and highlights what's important and meets legitimate spiritual needs. I often reflect on Joseph Campbell's observation that we're inheritors of a terminal moraine of mythic and various narrative forms; and we're meant to make something out of it all. Some creations are elegant and serve people well, while others... not so much.
thanks, yes... definitely requires serious untangling!
Vent away! I used to follow a few of these types on twitter, because I initially liked their rational, logical approach. But as well as all of the issues you bring up, I'll add that the cerebral narcissism evident in the comments seemed like a game of 'cleverness one-up-manship.' And that kind of gets to the heart of the matter. Criticism should come from a place of humility.
But yeah, they are a useful tool when you discount for all of your qualifiers, Daniel.
I liked your book Quatzecoatyl, btw!
"One of our problems is that we humans cannot live without acting; we have to act. Moreover, we have to act on the basis of what we know, and what we know is incomplete.....And so the question of how to act in ignorance is paramout"
Life is A Miracle
Wendall Berry
This is the problem with the zealous arrogance often attached to rationalists like say the so called "comedian" Ricky Gervais :)
Oddly enough, in their supposedly good-faith attempts to defuse the culture wars, the Conspirituality gang are really doing nothing but throwing fuel on the fire. I’ve listened to a few episodes of their show and understood their motivation and approach clear as day: they are grifters, trying to make a mill by calling out grifters.
In the process they are really doing a lot more harm than good. AFAIK they propose no real alternative structures for movements, progress, or societal evolution.
Just more blue church, decline and fall type thinking. From my personal experience and extensive reading and research, magic is real, mass media and culture is not our friend, and many of the supposedly debunked wellness modalities change lives for the better every day.
I agree with much of your criticism. I was following their work for a while, because I think they make some good points, but I think they seem more motivated by personal resentment than an earnest desire to understand why certain problems in the wellness community exist. I was hoping for something more sophisticated than alternative medicine = fascism = bad. It’s very black and white thinking and will unfortunately only add more fuel to the fire to polarization on these issues. I feel badly though, because I am pretty sure unhealed trauma from abusive experiences in the spiritual world, is what is fueling some of the black and white thinking from at least one of the authors. Thanks for separating out their good arguments from their reactionary stuff to offer a more grounded analysis!