Before you comment on this thread please watch “Transcendent Man”? .  It is available on Netflix Canada, so it should be on Netflix USA.  It can also likely be watched directly on their website , but I cannot confirm this since it is blocked in Canada.  At times this documentary can be a little egom...

Why dividend stock ETFs are not recommended by PP? In Canada, we have dividend tax credit, which is great for taxable accounts. Thanks so much! The dividend tax credit in Canada is a great deal.  However, I have noticed that in general Canadian dividend paying stocks are usually over-priced, since ...

Actually now that I think of it, my favourite musician, Matthew Good , suffers from a bipolar disorder.  It took a long time before he was properly diagnosed and we were very close to losing him: The following summer, Good planned to spend several months in Europe to write a book. However, just a fe...

The Nobel prize winner John Forbes Nash Jr is a modern day example of someone who made some worthwhile contributions despite being mad: http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/John_Forbes_Nash,_Jr. Stone, Very true.  I have no idea what you must have gone through, and I am glad you are back to normal.  But I ...

To me, this just begs the question of why the collective unconscious exists in the first place, and why we are connected to it. If indeed something like the collective unconscious exists, doesn't it possibly imply a deep connection between humans and the larger cosmos? I suppose it is possible that...

While we're all thinking outside the box here, have any of you heard of astrotheology , a field that theorizes that most religions have their origins in astronomy? In The Power of Myth series, Joseph Campbell goes a little into the similarities between myths and religions throughout all cultures.  ...

Although most of these people don't come right out and say it, what they seem to believe is that if Jesus wasn't the Son of God, and if he didn't die on a cross and rise again, then it's no use even discussing his revolutionary teachings--because they would be meaningless. When it comes to rational...

Joesph Campbell is wonderful.  If Christopher Langan has the highest IQ in America, then Joe Campbell must have had the highest spiritual IQ in America.  I recently discovered and watched (twice) the entire 6 hour interview Joe did with Bill Moyer called The Power of Myth (edit: removed link, not su...

It sounds like some of you here might really be interested in taking a look at the Cognitive-Theoretic Model of the Universe (CTMU) , a theory developed by high-IQ celebrity-of-sorts Christopher Langan . WOW! Smartest man in America, can bench 500lbs, and won $250,000 on 1 vs 100...that's so not fa...

Ultimately, isn't the existence of God a matter of definition?  It seems like if we defined God as the first cause, then it would be hard to argue that there wasn't a God, since we know that any observed effect must have had some cause, right?  OTOH, if we define God more narrowly and in more anthr...

There have been studies completed recently that show psilocybin could be used as an anti-depressant.  The news story below is entitled "Magic mushroom trips point to new depression drugs": http://www.reuters.com/article/2012/01/23/us-magic-mushroom-idUSTRE80M2C620120123 The brains of peopl...

Reub, taking a news fast might be a good idea for you.  Especially from right-wing biased news.  If you're not worried about Iranian EMPs, they'll just make you worried about some other event that is not likely to happen. To help keep things light I thought I'd include the thoughts of legendary Bil...

This looks pretty neat, I'll check it out.  It's kinda funny because I have started reading some of Carl Sagan's work, so this should blend nicely with that.

MediumTex wrote: I love it!!! How on earth could a discussion of early Christianity being a "mushroom cult" possibly be dry and academic? This idea would give a whole new meaning to the term "mission trip". professors and scholars seeking to justify tenure and prove their braini...

Gosso, I saw a TV program about the St Thomas Christians is India. Apparently when the Portuguese first arrived and told the Indians that they had come to spread Christianity; the Indians introduced the Portuguese to the St Thomas Christians who had been established in India by St Thomas who had ac...

MediumTex, have you reviewed any of the non-canonical gospels that were discovered in 1945 at Nag Hammadi in Egypt?  One of the most important and complete texts found was the Gospel of Thomas.  I think the Jesus portrayed in this Gospel would match very well with your image of him.  All the superna...

I think hardcore atheists have just as bad a reputation as religious fundamentalist, at least the out spoken atheists.  And as proof I turn to South Park, where they describe how Richard Dawkins comes off as "bitchy". (Warning: Contains a few f-bombs) http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8rB0TaZ...

I also find CGL.C a bit expensive @ .56 when you can buy IGT and hold for 25 basis points. Again you can slash your costs in half which is what Harry advocates in keeping costs down. Hmmm, that's interesting that IGT costs only 0.25%, did they recently lower the MER?  I was under the impression tha...

Hey Bluedog, I have been running a Canadian PP for about eight months now.  Here is what I do: Cash (25%): - 50% of my cash is in short term Canadian government bonds (2-3 years)                  - 50% in CIBC savings account, which is great for the liquidity (make sure you have less than $100,000 b...

Count me in!!

Just want to thank MT, craigr and all the forum members for the great information that is gathered here.

I'll do what I can to help chip in from time to time.