So I suggest that instead of being a jackass like Nabby - check it out for yourself and see what you think. There are some excerpts available through Google Books that include part of Buck in the Dome's story. -------------------------------------------- On Thu, 4/24/14, lengli...@cox.net <lengli...@cox.net> wrote:
Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] New Book on Meditating Fairfield, Iowa To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Date: Thursday, April 24, 2014, 3:48 PM Well, the people who complained obviously thought it was critical, while you, who are exceedingly critical, thought it was excellent. It seems a reasonable assumption to assume that it was critical in the eyes of the people who were complaining... ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <mjackson74@...> wrote : what makes you think the book is critical? Read it yourself and see what it is. -------------------------------------------- On Thu, 4/24/14, LEnglish5@... <LEnglish5@...> wrote: Subject: Re: [FairfieldLife] New Book on Meditating Fairfield, Iowa To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Date: Thursday, April 24, 2014, 1:40 PM Whatever we agree with is always "excellent." The question of whether or not he should have learned TM is an interesting one though. What you are implying is that he would have lost his "objectivity" by going through the TM course. Are you really afraid of that or are you afraid that he would realize that certain criticisms of TM aren't valid? There are plenty of criticisms that remain valid whether or not you learn TM, of course. L ---In FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com, <mjackson74@...> wrote : I have heard the same complaint and in fact in the beginning of the book, Mr. Weber says he was taken to task by the meditators for not doing TM as he did his research - but for my money, he did the right thing to remain objective - I haven't finished reading it, but so far its excellent. -------------------------------------------- On Thu, 4/24/14, dhamiltony2k5@... <dhamiltony2k5@...> wrote: Subject: [FairfieldLife] New Book on Meditating Fairfield, Iowa To: FairfieldLife@yahoogroups.com Date: Thursday, April 24, 2014, 1:06 PM Geoff, are you a meditator? Nice review. I read another reviewer that says of the new book that while heavily footnoted the book and the author suffers from the lack of back-stories and too much objectivity as a straight journalist. However, I am glad a real and professional journalist came along to the story now while so many interviews could be collected from the first, or eye-witness generation. There have been other authors and academics show up looking to write their story of it in their way. By contrast with them I have been wont-ing for a real journalist to show up for a long time. Joseph Weber appears is that journalist. It [meditating Fairfield, Iowa] is a fabulous story in human nature. The scholarly world is just waking up to it. This new book will help bring more qualified people to it and other books will likely follow too. We've been in Fairfield as a meditating community for over 40 years and that community is not going to leave anytime soon. The story is not over, -Buck in the Dome The Fairfield Meditating Community: “We are a group of people who have come together and created a community for a transcendentally important common purpose, which of course is to practice the Transcendental Meditation program and the TM-Sidhi program together as a group, for the sake of bringing coherence to national and world consciousness based on balancing labor and leisure to meditate while working together for the benefit of the community. Our Super-Radiance meditating community includes families of all the TM-Meditators and TM-Sidhas in the Fairfield, Vedic City and Jefferson County area.” geoff.gilpin writes: Hi, everyone. Michael Jackson already mentioned my blog (thanks, Michael!), but I thought I's stop in with a personal invitation. I hope you'll all pay a visit to Reason and Magic, "Where Skeptics and Believers Find Common Ground, at geoffgilpin.com. Discussion topics include psychedelic science and culture, drug policy, and skeptical mysticism. There's even some stuff about the TM movement, including my review of Joseph Weber's new book "Transcendental Meditation in America: How a New Age Movement Remade a Small Town in Iowa."