Dear Friend of Planet Waves:
Tonight's letter focuses on the spiritual mission of Planet Waves. We've been doing this a while, and have come to recognize the role that we play in the world. Yesterday's letter focused on the services Planet Waves provides to healers. Sunday's letter focused on the general mission of Planet Waves.
In the course of my short lifetime, I've watched and felt the world grow colder. Resentment for the weak and the disadvantaged, and putting down the poor and struggling, have been spreading virulently since the early 1980s. That's when, as far as I can tell, the notion of American liberty became a doctrine of greed and aggression.
The stripping away of medical benefits and social services benefits, war veterans whose needs are ignored, increasing taxes on low-income people, mass incarceration of people of color, and the rapid and intentional erosion of women's reproductive rights, are more than we should have to bear as a society and as individuals.
We're also witnessing the mass deportation of undocumented people, arrest and incarceration of people when they report to routine immigration court appearances, and on and on.
Unless we intervene, things will only get worse.
Perhaps it's my Pisces soul, though the warmth and relative safety of my four walls feels pretty thin when I think of the people who are out in the cold, whether for lack of shelter, some profound need, or for want of love and companionship. Many would say I should just take care of myself, though that's the whole point. That's the issue. I for one have a different purpose on Earth.
In the recent New York Times article, I said that my intended reader of the Daily News horoscope is a human being on the D train or a person on the way to work. I'm writing for the person on en route to an important job interview who needs encouragement. I'm writing for the person dealing with a difficult family matter, who needs one sane thought to focus their own mind. I’m writing for the person who cannot afford therapy or would not think of going.
Planet Waves, the online service, has a different intended audience. When I write or broadcast, I'm thinking of the person who is searching the internet late at night, scared and alone, looking for some point of contact with humanity. I am reaching out to the person who is struggling for their sanity. I am speaking to someone who is grieving.
I'm writing to the person wearing a winter coat in their cold trailer, whose only lifeline is their internet connection. I'm writing for a homeless person sitting in a library who might find encouragement in one idea, and run with it. I am writing for the person who is struggling to get through the day.
With those people in mind, with their existence addressed, we have something we can all benefit from and enjoy. To some extent, every person goes through phases where they feel alienated and alone. If we remember that place inside us all, we can then move to a place of healing.
The internet is a cold environment. There was a modicum of sanity in the early days, in the 1990s, though as it's been commercialized, and as larger and larger websites have come to dominate the environment, that warmth has largely been drained. Though it's natural for me, this is one of the reasons why we strive for a balanced, moderated tone in all that we create: traumatized people are reading, along with all of those who are feeling pretty good that day.
There's also a polarizing effect characteristic of any astral-level environment, which includes an extreme 'us and them' mentality. This has come to include the intentional creation of disinformation, designed specifically to manipulate and frighten people.
Into this chaos, we broadcast what we do. We make many features available to people who wander in from the cold. In terms of Planet Waves' necessity to function as a business, I have always walked a fine line between "free" content and "paid" content. We don't use the usual kinds of psychological levers to manipulate people into paying. We don't lie to our readers, or make promises we cannot keep.
Therefore, our business model is based on ethics, in a time in history when that's not such a good bet.
Please help us with our mission. By becoming a subscriber, or reviving your subscription, you help us provide a beacon of warmth, of faith and of humanity. In the process, you'll gain access to one of the most innovative and helpful astrology services ever published.
On the turning away
From the pale and downtrodden
And the words they say
Which we won't understand
"Don't accept that what's happening
Is just a case of others' suffering
Or you'll find that you're joining in
The turning away"
-- David Gilmour, Anthony Moore
Here are your subscription options.
Thank you for participating in Planet Waves.
With love,
PS -- We have a longstanding policy not to turn anyone away for lack of funds. I know this is not very capitalist; and if I had investors or shareholders besides myself, they would not like it much, but that's the deal. If you need help, call us at (845) 481-5616 and Ellen or Amy will be happy to help you. It may take a day or two to get back to you, though often we pick right up.
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