Morgan Blackledge > Recent Status Updates

A new mode of social contract must emerge—a mode of social contract not founded on egoity. There must now be an egoless mode of social contract—based on cooperation, tolerance, and universal participation and accountability. Such is the nature of the necessary global cooperative order.
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Last year I read Nuclear War: A Scenario, by Annie Jacobsen. It won my 2024 most totally awful, horrible, horrible, horrible, shit your pants and die, awful, awful nightmare book award. This year. That same vulnerable distinction will go to this fucking book. #holyfuck!

The common world of nowtime is mere insanity—Reality-madness. Everyone and everything is mad with “Everyman” now—mad with ego, mad with “Narcissus”. The last tyrant is everybody—everybody at war with everybody, to the death.

Now, everybody is “on the brink” with everybody else. It is everywhere like that. The “daily news” is that. Everyone’s daily life has become something like an insane sporting event—that is played to the death. The human world of nowtime is like colossal Reality-TV—a dreadful mini-series, a few weeks until death.

Damn. This book is lucid and SUPER accurate. Very helpful. VERY direct. Very clear. Great stuff,

I am RIVETED!

I had no idea this would be such a PAGE turner.

Oh man.

Loving this.

Hell yeah!

Im obsessed with this.

MAD page turner.

Can’t put it down.

Working my way through the text. Still feeling a profound connection to it. And struggling to understand the nature of the differences between this 1972 edition, which seems so simple, and humble and sincere. And the 2004 version, which is tremendously powerful, and in many ways more mature, but also strange, and ominously grandiose. The author was clearly a special kind of genius. But my uneasiness remains.

I read a much later 2004 edition of this.

I’m shocked by how different this 1972 version is.

It’s SO much more down to earth.

Plain spoken.

And infused with heart and humility.

I loved the 2004 version.

But (so far) I’m IN love with this one.

Just started this.

And so far it serves.

The text aims to deconstruct the problematic nature of exploitive Guru types from the broader lens of authoritarianism.

It feels more pertinent now (in the MAGA/ICE/DOGE era) than ever.

I’m reading it as a counter balance to other reading. I’m doing by controversial Guru Adi Da. But it seems to have MUCH bigger implications and use value.

Timely!

LOVE IT.

Nearing the end of this book.

I’m already kind of panicking.

It’s been so dang good.

I have NO idea what I can chase this one with.

I can’t imagine what wouldn’t feel like a let down in comparison.

I think I’m going to have to shift gears/genres/modes.

In other words.

This is a terminal read.

Astounding.

Utterly brilliant.

Life changing.

And also scary as hell.

By acknowledging his astounding genius, I am in no way condoning excuse his abuses.

And by acknowledging his abuses, I am absolutely not diminishing the

Well.

I’m reading disgraced gurus from the 1980’s lately.

Never thought I would give this time/energy.

But life has a way of doing that.

At least mine does.

Crazy conflicted feelings.

His madness and abuses are so completely awful.

And this book is so fucking good.

Very hard to square.

The fact that I somehow find myself reading this is laterally shocking. I was introduced to Adi Da about 15 years ago. I was very opposed to Guru culture at the time and I was instantly utterly repulsed. I recently began watching some of his early dharma talks on YouTube. And I have to admit. He’s compelling. I still find his abusive behavior and teaching methods to be ghoulish. But damn this dude can write.

Actually loving every page of this. So fun. Not for its literal “truth” value. But for its (a) comprehensiveness, (b) actual high quality level (as far as these things go? This is a really good one of these), and (c) just cuz 🥰

Oh. And one more thing. I am for sure reading his other shit. So think of all of that what you will.

But considering all of the above. It kind of RULES. And I’m grateful the author went so hard in the paint. Their confidence comes off as sort of cringe at times. But also kind of reassuring and normalizing too. And I’m basically here for it (with appropriate skeptical reservations).

You couldn’t do brain surgery based on the neuroscience in this book. But you could say the same about LOTS of books by therapists. And you may not be able to 100% make sense of (or navigate through) a kundalini experience based on the spiritual advice in this book. We can also say that about just about any of the traditional texts (to various degrees). It’s more of an autobiography/phenomenon/metaphysics.

Somewhat entertaining. Somewhat off putting. Strangely fun. Hard to put down (for some reason). If you’re seeking something 100% reliable and grounded in either traditional texts, or contemporary methods. This one is neither. It cherry picks from traditional sources, and neuroscience. Such that it’s hard to determine the real reliability or use value of the text. But it’s HELLA fun/interesting/entertaining.

This is FANTASTIC. The author (a) identifies the essential source material (Suttas) informing all of the various schools of Buddhism, (b) provides good English translations, and (c) minimal but useful commentary. Priceless!

Reading this with my Daughter. She started NYU in January. This is a required text for a culture in collision type humanities course she’s taking. We’re reading the text together, and we’re applying it to the Tempest of currant global political instability, and climate crisis.

Rereading this.

I never do this.

But this thing absolutely deserves it.

Jesus fukin’ OMG! This thing is. WOW.

I’m SO INTO THIS!

Just great.

Loving it.

Well.

Ken Wilber is REALLY opinionated.

And he is NOT SCARED to say some EXTREMELY OUTRAGEOUS shit.

He makes SO MANY HUGE truth claims.

With SO MUCH force of conviction.

That it is sort of impossible to critique his work.

Where would you start?

And who has the TIME/ENERGY to do that?

Given all that.

What exactly ever Ken Wilber’s work is.

And what ever exactly he does.

He’s kind of the GOAT.

My goodness. BARTHS is SO SASSY! I had NO idea!

I’m not going to say I’m “enjoying” this. But it is COMPLETELY INTERESTING. TOTALLY TIMELY. And COMPLETELY worth the PAIN & TEDIUM.

I’m in love with this book. Soooooo LIFE AFFIRMING AND NURTURING!!!!!! SO dang SMART and CREATIVE.
People have been recommending this to me for LITERALLY 30 years. Now I see why. Thanks to AA for the FINAL RECOMMENDATION 😃