From the edge of the universe to the inner journey, exploring the mind and soul this could be the ultimate expression of the human condition. Life, what is it?, who are we and who am I?, I listen, I learn, and still I know nothing. My soul seems to be driving me to write this, my mind may know it’s right, but my social and governmental conditioning is telling me to fit in and go and get a job. I am dying from the inside out, watching the world hoping that we wise up in time to save this generation from systems set up by past society’s that didn’t know any better, or even care.

The human race has evolved, we have learnt, we have progressed, so now it’s time to abandon any system that allows people to die because there is not enough money available to save them. The soul cries out for peace, freedom and equality, the mind is trapped here on this planet, but the spirit soars.

In freeing the mind, we may also free the spirit, but this cannot be done in a society that accepts the problems we currently see and then turns a blind eye to them. The problems are not financial, not political, the problem is people, people run the world, so why is it so screwed up. People blame the economy and now the world is supposed to be in a global recession and yet the economy is in general, just a man made illusion, once again if you question the fundamentals then you can see the truth. The truth is the economy can be viewed as nothing more than a flexible structure which is in place, so as to maintain a form of pressure upon the worlds workforce. You see your not supposed to get rich, the system works by maintaining economic pressure upon you so as to get you to work, this pressure is seen as being necessary, by the powers that be, but this pressure is also breeding contempt amongst the poor . If you understand this, then you can see that the system is capable of breaking down. All governments know this, but the emergence of very powerful global corporations is now a threat to how many individual countries run there affairs. The power and affluence of some of these large corporations means that some governments are now having to deal on their terms, this is not a good idea and certainly not good for the worlds population. The corporations, are mostly in the business of making profit and usually at the expense of the workforce (look at Nike), so if most of us still wish to be exploited even though we have the technology to fix a lot of the problems we currently see, then how stupid are we all.

Most, if not all civilisations have depended upon hierarchal structures and yet most of these societies didn’t pan out, they usually disappeared into the mists of time, through war or internal struggle. So I wonder why it is that we think that the systems we have today couldn’t go a similar route. As the famous quote goes "Those who do not learn from the past, are doomed to repeat it.", the leaders of the world and public should take this saying to heart. The current systems in place have not changed much, for about 6000 years, ever since civilisation began. So we should all start to look at how we can radically change the system, that’s if large parts of this generation, do not want to be born into poverty and die in poverty or become exploitable products, because they are not taught enough to truly comprehend the world they live in. The powers that be preach education, but none of them want you to see the big picture, they want you to work, but only on your small corner, in other words, leave the thinking to them. The division of labour philosophy, is not a bad one, but to then treat people based upon their job title, has got to be seen as laughable, at least for any enlightened society?

Throughout history the powers that be have been promising the masses they either rule or represent, that their lives would improve under their rule, why does this continue to this day. You would think that the masses would have wised up by now to these so-called rulers. You should always question both the motives and to a large extent, the psychological makeup of any so called leader, before you follow them. On that note, don't follow, don't lead, just think for yourself. So when somebody tells you (not asks you), to do something, think once, think twice, think why the bloody hell should I, but make sure you see all the reasons why and the full chain of command before you have ago at anyone. Keep in mind, that true democracy can only work, if we all are all given the ability to think for ourselves, achieving this goal should be the ultimate aim of any system.

The counter argument - liberal democracy has led to the current social problems, we see everywhere, maybe, but it has helped in producing, free thinking individuals like myself, good and bad will always exist, it's human nature. Also keep in mind, that no matter what the leaders of the world promise, its inevitably the man on the ground, who has to deliver on those promises, this probably means you. More police, less crime, more doctors, better health care, blah, blah, blah, vote for me and all these things will be yours, but if all the little people, turn round and say no to becoming doctors, police officers etc, then it's not going to happen. Their solution is to throw more money at the problem or to make systems more efficient, but don't expect them to do anything, it really is up to you?

Most people may currently think, they are thinking for themselves, but if you have been through the standard / sub standard education system, then trust me you have been trained not to think for yourself. A teacher is a representation of authority, this system of hierarchy introduced at an early age, leads most people into having a subservient personality. The yobs at the bottom of society, may think they are thinking for themselves and spend their time rejecting all forms of authority etc, but most of these people never realise, that they are also a factored quantity within the system. In other words, there will always be enough uneducated idiots at the bottom, to do all of the mundane or crap work. Plus as I said, a little terror at the bottom, helps maintain a form of pressure, in other words, most people who have any ability, will work harder, so as to escape this terror, it all makes for a more productive society?

People may think that the view expressed above, is just nonsense, but at the level I exist within society, it's obvious.

The system gears you towards not questioning authority and in that vain you should, because people will only ever achieve equality when the individual understands both themself and whatever system they are a part of. Democracy is more than a system, it is an understanding and if you don't understand it, then don't be surprised when others less scrupulous than yourself, use it to control you. Their is an age old saying, "there's democracy and then there's British democracy".

How many children and young adults in an average school do you think have the option to study philosophy, politics, psychology or are pushed in that direction?

As I said, it's better for the powers that be if you only question the things that they want you to question, that's why science, English, math's etc, is promoted. Where as other subjects that might help you develop a more questioning mind in certain areas, are let's say ignored. You see if you learn to question, then you may not become a happy and contented worker, willing to obey authority figures. A science degree usually means that you are a good and productive standardised product that industry and the state can use, but if you get a degree in philosophy, then it usually spells trouble and mostly for them. Practical skills are taught and praised above all else, this is how the average persons pride is engaged by the system, giving individuals a feeling of having achieved something. This once again, is just a small part, of the on going mind game, that is the system, i.e. it's still part of the reward and punishment setup, get a degree, pass that exam etc. What they want, is for you to become the best and most practically useful person that you can become, practical means useful and capitalists like useful. The state and business needs you thinking in this way, because if you thought like they did, then you would be their competition and that isn't useful, at least to them?

Try looking at this statement once again...... then ask yourself, what power do I have to question it, non is the real answer, this is the truth behind so called mass democracy. The Masses Against the Classes?

Every time you find yourself in a situation that has you obeying the will of somebody else, then you should ask yourself why, because if you don't, then your not thinking for yourself, somebody else is doing the thinking for you. If your doing whatever it is just for the money, then try looking at it this way, why is it that you are part of a system, that allows others to use their wealth, so as to manipulate you?

Don't you think that power is given and that if we all make a stand, then the only power the rich will have, is over themselves?

Thinking for yourself, means listening to history and seeing the truth.

The majority of the British and American voting public didn’t vote and I believe this majority are trying to send a silent message to our respective governments and that is, we no longer care what governments do or say anymore, because our lives have not improved. We keep buying into a system that doesn’t really work, it has never worked, at least not for the poor, so let’s end it. Nobody should be rich or poor, as I said we are all equal, so let’s start from that premise and create a new society based around that, as a guiding principal, because if you take money and the ownership of things out of the equation, then we are all equal. As I said I'm an idealist at heart, but with the technology we are now creating, along with the wisdom the human race has now acquired, then this should be seen as something worth aiming for. The American government may wish to Americanize the world, but American society is full of disparity between rich and poor, and can not be seen as the leading light of social justice it tries to make itself out to be, to the rest of the world. Dig beneath the surface of any country and you shall see, stark contrasts, between, the haves and have-nots. The question is, can this continue indefinitely or do we wise up, I mean Bill Gates may give billions to charity, but this just goes to show me, that capitalism has been corrupted, no one person should have billions, figure it out, because when you do, you shall see, that at a certain level, it all becomes a numbers game, which at the end of the day, makes no real sense, in the real world?

Personally I think the soul is trying to tell us something and that is, we are not alone and we do have options, so life is down to the choices we individually make. The big problems always occur, when we start to make decisions that affect other people. The biggest problem I think, is too many idiot chiefs and too many easily led Indians.

I am now rambling, but I have nothing better to do until I get some money, which may never happen, so I may as well write this in the vain hope that I can change the very system, that has helped put me into my current situation. I mean, it is not as if I didn't try to fit in, I mean I am a qualified electrician and have been involved in IT in one way or another since 1979 (got a Trash 80), I have been involved in 4 businesses, employed people and used to hang out with Matthew Smith the guy who wrote Manic Miner and Jet Set Willy, and after all this, I still ended up unemployed and bankrupt, great system. I then moved onto the Atari ST, blue boxed, ran conferences, had a world wide reputation at least on the ST scene, got flown to America, for about six weeks, all expenses paid visit, care of some hacker friends, went on a cruise ship, did Disneyland, stayed mostly in San Francisco etc. Then came back home to a dole queue, got busted not soon after by British Telecom (pretty ironic really, considering later events,) got done for £1200 quid etc. Loops, ATnT, US Sprint, PBX’s, voice mailing systems, 0800, 1-800 services, black box, blue box all these things ruled my life, for nearly six years, pretty meaningless to most people. For those in the know, it was great to belong to that scene and after being busted, my world disappeared. No more phreaking meant no more access to the people I could relate too. I then had to join the real world once again and I didn’t like it much. As non-space disappeared into the distance, I realised that real space, is much smaller.

Then sometime after all of this I managed to meet Captain Crunch aka John Draper online, who invited me over to Amsterdam to meet him. In my opinion the man is cool, but a bit puzzling, you see both him and Matt are both very, very smart and yet both seem to be struggling for cash, so that's one of the reasons why I am giving them a cut of the profits made from this ebook. Although John and Matt don't know each other, one day, I would like them to meet, because I think they would get on. They are both slightly crazy, but in a good way and they both have an understanding of computers and in Johns case networks that is beyond most peoples comprehension. So hopefully this ebook will make enough, so as I can gather the means so as to provide both me and Matt, with a holiday to the US, so as to meet up with John again and maybe, I'll even invite the girlfriend if she behaves.

Anyway back to the present, companies that currently use and exploit people or workforces throughout the world, will just as likely exploit an A.I. or virtual workforce. It’s like introducing a bunch of people into a society that are willing to work for next to nothing and never ask questions. Most employers will jump at the chance of using such systems, once the competition starts using them, this is the fateful problem we may all soon face. As I said on the site - the global economy is based on stock market investment and most investors don't care how companies make money, as long as they do. Lower overheads = higher profits = higher return for investors. So if companies are currently prepared to use cheap 3rd world workers so as to maximise profits, then once available, they are bound to use an even cheaper software based or virtual workforce. If you read this letter from an economist, then he gives the impression that this will never happen on the grand scale described throughout this ebook, but I believe that it may only take a couple of unscrupulous capitalists, using cheap software so as to lower their overheads within an open market, to set the chain reaction scenario in motion. This is when and in a very real sense, democracy and capitalism may come to blows, always keep in mind, that revolutions and civil and major wars, have come about, with even less provocation being needed?

This ebook is about seeing past the program code, because at the moment there are millions of programmers throughout the world all trying to get computers to understand what it is we want them to do. This situation will eventually be turned on its head, as the programs and computers evolve, they will become increasingly capable of understanding anything and everything. Computers have the ability, as do we, to correlate data from many different sources and then process that data into new and insightful thought.

At present we consider ourselves smarter than machines, but this could soon change, with the global introduction of smart devices linked to increasingly smart networks. Computers will eventually have the ability to process the same types of data and from the same types of sensors that humans have, this will eventually lead them to being more capable than any human, the time scales for this coming change are small when compared to world history. This of course will all depend upon whether or not society will allow it to happen, which of course it will, because it has already started.

I looked at a typical job the other day, a receptionist at my local doctors and realised that the hardest part of the job was teaching the people how to use the IT equipment. I then realised that if you cut the human out of the loop, then the process could become even more streamlined. As future communications devices, biosensors and networks develop along with EVA's, then the receptionist job of talking to the patient to find out what's wrong, inputting all that information into a computer system and then passing that info to a doctor, could very easily be bypassed. (From the Hello girls to the Strowger switch) Considering that a lot of jobs, especially back office jobs are actually like this, then the redundancies could be massive, the chain reaction may just be a short technological step away. Check out www.pharmacy2u.co.uk, this show's UK government plans to streamline (cut jobs), in yet another way within the medical profession. You add that to online health monitoring i.e. allowing your medical status to be checked at home via increasingly smart medical technologies and then you add that to a virtual online doctor or diagnostic type set-up, and guess what?

Anyway virtual doctors, now have virtual patients to deal with, so who needs humans?

I have this immense pressure upon me to go and get a conventional dead end practical job and forget about all of this and just work within the system, pay taxes into the system, right up until the time the system, I believe, will collapse all around me. If you have truly understood this ebook, then how mad or insane would you have to be, to do that, but that’s exactly what society and social conditioning is telling me to do. This is about people showing some common sense and approaching these very real problems, that are about to affect us all, on mass. So making the powers that be understand, that we do understand these problems, and if they don’t, then they really shouldn’t be making decisions, about things that they really don’t understand. After watching the parliament channel a couple of times, I got to see just how some decisions are made at the highest level, and it’s not usually a case of well informed debate, more a question of powerful people making ill informed decisions that best suit their own agendas. Political parties are like warring tribes and in that sense they are more interested in getting into power, rather than looking out for you. They will lie, cheat, backstab whatever it takes, just to get your vote, whilst at the same time, they will superficially agree with you, as long as it gets them what they want. 6000 years of civilisation and yet nothing much has changed, to them its an ongoing game, to us its the same old crap, A.I., nanotech along with all these new technologies, will change the game, so the rules will have to be changed.

THE SOUL