Guest guest Posted July 4, 2005 Report Share Posted July 4, 2005 Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just read about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds worth reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA Public Libary these days. Here is part of a reader review from Amazon.com: "In this book, a product of Reich's active struggle against Hitler, Reich traces the links between sexual repression, patriarchal society, and conservative and right wing ideology. He explains how patriarchy attempts to create the neurotic mental health that dominates modern capitalist society to use it to reign over working people. He shows the etiology of religion as a pathological outgrowth of patriarchy, and how conservative "family values" are decisive to conservatism. Reich, who built a real movement in Germany for sexual freedom and women's rights, is adamant about how fighters for human freedom and socialism cannot simply dismiss issues of women's rights and sexual freedom, but must embrace them if they are to have a chance to defeat fascists among women and youth. He explains that attempts to compete with fascists about who is the best defender of "family values" only strengthens conservatism among working men, working women, and farmers who could be won for the struggle. He cites the sad tactics of the German Communist and Social Democratic parties who tried to outdo Hitler in the fight for "family values' while shrinking away from campaigns for abortion rights, equal pay for equal work, and sexual freedom of the youth, that Reich used to win them away from the Nazis. There is so much rich thought here about the nature of ideology, family life, and psychology in modern society...this [is] a book matched by few others in its disection of capitalist ideology, social pathology, and the potential to struggle for a better world. You must read this book!" Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 4, 2005 Report Share Posted July 4, 2005 Yes, Wilhelm Reich (who re-discovered Prana all by himself). Definitely worth reading (and so are his other books). Mary Ann wrote: > Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just read > about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the > Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds worth > reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA > Public Libary these days. > > Here is part of a reader review from Amazon.com: > > "In this book, a product of Reich's active struggle against Hitler, > Reich traces the links between sexual repression, patriarchal > society, and conservative and right wing ideology. He explains how > patriarchy attempts to create the neurotic mental health that > dominates modern capitalist society to use it to reign over working > people. He shows the etiology of religion as a pathological > outgrowth of patriarchy, and how conservative "family values" are > decisive to conservatism. > > Reich, who built a real movement in Germany for sexual freedom and > women's rights, is adamant about how fighters for human freedom and > socialism cannot simply dismiss issues of women's rights and sexual > freedom, but must embrace them if they are to have a chance to > defeat fascists among women and youth. He explains that attempts to > compete with fascists about who is the best defender of "family > values" only strengthens conservatism among working men, working > women, and farmers who could be won for the struggle. He cites the > sad tactics of the German Communist and Social Democratic parties > who tried to outdo Hitler in the fight for "family values' while > shrinking away from campaigns for abortion rights, equal pay for > equal work, and sexual freedom of the youth, that Reich used to win > them away from the Nazis. > > There is so much rich thought here about the nature of ideology, > family life, and psychology in modern society...this [is] a book > matched by few others in its disection of capitalist ideology, > social pathology, and the potential to struggle for a better world. > You must read this book!" > > > > > ------ > > > * Visit your group " > <>" on the web. > > * > > <?subject=Un> > > * Terms of > Service <>. > > > ------ > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 5, 2005 Report Share Posted July 5, 2005 hm... I have and ebook of this! , Mouse <uri@o...> wrote: > Yes, Wilhelm Reich (who re-discovered Prana all by himself). Definitely > worth reading (and so are his other books). > > Mary Ann wrote: > > > Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just read > > about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the > > Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds worth > > reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA > > Public Libary these days. > > > > Here is part of a reader review from Amazon.com: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 5, 2005 Report Share Posted July 5, 2005 I saw there was an e-book available on amazon.com. I also read that the book is only 126 pages long or thereabouts; that's short and should make it easier to complete. I am glad to know other SS members know the book. Recently I have had a bad spell of getting books out from the library only to find I don't have the wherewithal to make it through them. They sound good, but haven't been worth wading through for various reasons. , "Adwaith Menon" <menonar> wrote: > hm... I have and ebook of this! > > > > , Mouse <uri@o...> wrote: > > Yes, Wilhelm Reich (who re-discovered Prana all by himself). > Definitely > > worth reading (and so are his other books). > > > > Mary Ann wrote: > > > > > Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just > read > > > about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the > > > Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds > worth > > > reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA > > > Public Libary these days. > > > > > > Here is part of a reader review from Amazon.com: Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 6, 2005 Report Share Posted July 6, 2005 Mary Ann <buttercookie61 Mon, 04 Jul 2005 20:04:39 -0000 The Mass Psychology of Fascism ""Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just read about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds worth reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA Public Libary these days. """ I absolutely adore Wilhelm Reich and couldn't possibly reccommend reading his work enough, but he can be a little difficult to get through and assimilate at times because of his vocabulary and need to invent new nomenclature to correspond with his theories. He had done a lot of good work on energy healing using these devices called orgone accumulators. I've never used one, (you can't build them in a city) but I have heard they are very effective and also can accelerate and increase plant growth using naturally present energy. He fled Germany to escape fascist opprseion and the US ordered his books to be destroyed along with all his inventions and he died rather tragically in prison. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 6, 2005 Report Share Posted July 6, 2005 Thanks for your comments. I first heard of Wilhelm Reich through poet/musical artist Patti Smith in her song "Birdland" which was about Peter Reich, Wilhelm's son, waiting in a field for his father to come back after death. I guess his father told him he would. It's his work with orgones that got him banned (from what I've read online) b/c he was said to have gone insane at that point. There is also a song called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using the machine together). I remember reading that in the 1950s they were burying glow in the dark items fearing radiation or whatever caused that effect. Kate Bush has a video of the song and it's great. Her work is pretty amazing, though I haven't tuned into anything recent that she's done. Apparently "Mass Psychology" occurred prior to the orgone work but never received its due attention in the US because of the discrediting of Reich once the orgone work began. I am definitely going to get the book from the library and see what I make of it. I have read some of the other stuff about orgones, but it didn't really resonate for me at that time (high school). I got more out of the songs mentioned above. , swastik108@a... wrote: > > > > Mary Ann <buttercookie61> > > Mon, 04 Jul 2005 20:04:39 -0000 > The Mass Psychology of Fascism > > > ""Is anyone here familiar with this book by Wilhelm Reich? I just read > about it in Riane Eisler's Sacred Pleasure - Sex, Myth, and the > Politics of the Body - New Paths to Power and Love. It sounds worth > reading; it had initially been banned in the US but it's at the LA > Public Libary these days. """ > > I absolutely adore Wilhelm Reich and couldn't possibly reccommend reading his work enough, but he can be a little difficult to get through and > assimilate at times because of his vocabulary and need to invent new nomenclature to correspond with his theories. He had done a lot of good work > on energy healing using these devices called orgone accumulators. I've never used one, (you can't build them in a city) but I have heard they are > very effective and also can accelerate and increase plant growth using naturally present energy. He fled Germany to escape fascist opprseion and the US > ordered his books to be destroyed along with all his inventions and he died rather tragically in prison. > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 Wow, I had no idea that this was the reference in that song. Very interesting! I'll second you that Kate's work is, at it's best, nothing short of brilliant. I don't think she's released any significant new work in the last 12-15 years, so you're probably pretty up to date. DB , "Mary Ann" <buttercookie61> wrote: There is also a song > called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He > had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it > worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using > the machine together). [...] Kate Bush has a video of the song > and it's great. Her work is pretty amazing, though I haven't tuned > into anything recent that she's done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 Wow, I had no idea that this was the reference in that song. Very interesting! I'll second you that Kate's work is, at it's best, nothing short of brilliant. I don't think she's released any significant new work in the last 12-15 years, so you're probably pretty up to date. DB , "Mary Ann" <buttercookie61> wrote: There is also a song > called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He > had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it > worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using > the machine together). [...] Kate Bush has a video of the song > and it's great. Her work is pretty amazing, though I haven't tuned > into anything recent that she's done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 On Jul 7, 2005, at 10:32 AM, devi_bhakta wrote: > Wow, I had no idea that this was the reference in that song. Very > interesting! I'll second you that Kate's work is, at it's best, > nothing short of brilliant. I don't think she's released any > significant new work in the last 12-15 years, so you're probably > pretty up to date. > It's actually based on the biography by Peter Reich _The Book of Dreams_ which is *excellent*. Kate actually has called his old research laboratory here in Maine (which is now a museum) to research the song. She is afraid of flying otherwise she would have visited. In response to the person who mentioned the cloudbuster, it actually does work--to my own amazement. I have stayed in Reich's old home at Organon (his estate in the western Maine mountains). Man, could I tell some stories.... One of the more interesting things I have seem was Reich had this room which could concentrate prana in called "the Orgone Room". He kept some high-strength multi-layer orgone accumulators inside this already highly prana-charged environment. If you have ever seen the early or recent space photographs of the earth in orbit, the atmosphere has a bluish glow to it (and the sky is blue as well). Reich believed this was due to prana (or "orgone" as he called it). Anyway, in this one experiment, they concentrated prana into a vacuum tube and then "excited" it. I saw the old 16 mm footage. It glowed the same bright blue of the earth seen in orbit or what is often seen in meditation. They have repeatedly demonstrated this experiment, so it is a legitimate phenomenon. Also see: http://www.orgonelab.org/ -Vaj. Maine, USA Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 Hi DB: Yes, here are the words which I just pilfered from the internet (http://www.lyricslyricsandlyrics.com) for anyone who is interested. They actually give me chills! Kate has a video compilation of The Whole Story which has the video for this song on it. You might be able to rent it at a local video store if you haven't seen it before. The whole thing is worthwhile, of course. There's a great song about the aborigines of Australia called The Dreaming - fantastic, political, poetic - and another one called Experiment IV about the government trying to create a sound that will kill. And another great song called This Woman's Work. Anyway, here's Cloudbusting! "I still dream of Orgonon. I wake up crying. You're making rain, And you're just in reach, When you and sleep escape me. You're like my yo-yo That glowed in the dark. What made it special Made it dangerous, So I bury it And forget. But every time it rains, You're here in my head, Like the sun coming out Ooh, I just know that something good is gonna happen. And I don't know when, But just saying it could even make it happen. On top of the world, Looking over the edge, You could see them coming. You looked too small In their big, black car, To be a threat to the men in power. I hid my yo-yo In the garden. I can't hide you >From the government. Oh, God, Daddy I won't forget, 'Cause every time it rains, You're here in my head, Like the sun coming out Ooh, I just know that something good is gonna to happen. And I don't know when, But just saying it could even make it happen. And every time it rains, You're here in my head, Like the sun coming out Like your son's coming out, Ooh, I just know that something good is going to happen. And I don't know when, But just saying it could even make it happen. Ooh, just saying it could even make it happen. We've been cloudbusting daddy Your sun's coming out. Your son's coming out." , "devi_bhakta" <devi_bhakta> wrote: > Wow, I had no idea that this was the reference in that song. Very > interesting! I'll second you that Kate's work is, at it's best, > nothing short of brilliant. I don't think she's released any > significant new work in the last 12-15 years, so you're probably > pretty up to date. > > DB > > , "Mary Ann" > <buttercookie61> wrote: > > There is also a song > > called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He > > had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it > > worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using > > the machine together). [...] Kate Bush has a video of the song > > and it's great. Her work is pretty amazing, though I haven't tuned > > into anything recent that she's done. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 Mary Ann <buttercookie61 Wed, 06 Jul 2005 15:44:58 -0000 Re: The Mass Psychology of Fascism ""Thanks for your comments. It's his work with orgones that got him banned (from what I've read online) b/c he was said to have gone insane at that point." I have read that he became a bit unravelled and paranoid, but if the FBI was spying on me constantly and buzzing my workplace with planes....well I think anyone could start to lose it! Honestly, it makes his work seem all the more credible to me. If he was trying to do something great for humanity and help people without taking lots of money, then I believe some greedy types may be inclined to stop it! """There is also a song called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using the machine together)."" I have heard from numerous credible people that they do indeed work and it could be dangerous to have people affecting weather patterns with cheap technology. Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 7, 2005 Report Share Posted July 7, 2005 Interesting. Are you saying that the gov't didn't want Reich interfering with weather patterns? I thought it was more along the lines of the way they seed clouds, which I don't know if that works either, but whatever the reasoning is behind it, I thought that was what Reich was working on. Just making clouds burst into rain, probably to stop drought. Of course, creating clouds would be helpful for that, too. Here is a link to recent Kate Bush news for anyone interested: http://www.katebushnews.com/katenews.htm#2 , swastik108@a... wrote: > > > > Mary Ann <buttercookie61> > > Wed, 06 Jul 2005 15:44:58 -0000 > Re: The Mass Psychology of Fascism > > > ""Thanks for your comments. > > It's his work with > orgones that got him banned (from what I've read online) b/c he > was said to have gone insane at that point." > I have read that he became a bit unravelled and paranoid, but if the FBI was spying on me > constantly and buzzing my workplace with planes....well I think anyone could start to lose it! > Honestly, it makes his work seem all the more credible to me. If he was trying to do something great for humanity > and help people without taking lots of money, then I believe some greedy types may be inclined to stop it! > """There is also a song > called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He > had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it > worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using > the machine together)."" > I have heard from numerous credible people that they do indeed work and it could be dangerous to have people > affecting weather patterns with cheap technology. > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
Guest guest Posted July 11, 2005 Report Share Posted July 11, 2005 Mary Ann <buttercookie61 Fri, 08 Jul 2005 00:47:03 -0000 Re: The Mass Psychology of Fascism Interesting. Are you saying that the gov't didn't want Reich interfering with weather patterns? I thought it was more along the lines of the way they seed clouds, which I don't know if that works either, but whatever the reasoning is behind it, I thought that was what Reich was working on. Just making clouds burst into rain, probably to stop drought. Of course, creating clouds would be helpful for that, too. I'm no Reich expert, but I have tried my best to understand him at least somewhat.... It seems he had t this interesting notion that human beings had an inherent energy called orgone (prana) which essentially was life energy. He went far afield from the realm of psychology in all this, he eventually came to see the earth itself as having an orgone field and the individual person being aligned with the earth in this way. Deserts and baren wastelands then are area depleted of orgone, or bio-energy. I believe the cloudbusters could be used to bring life back to these areas. He had a lot of issues with industries polluting the envirnment for this reason also and he was very concerned about how we are using nuclear power. The dangerous side of his accumulators is that they attract energy including all the negative power that we have created. So, you can't build them in a city or anywhere within a few miles of a nuclear power site otherwise the charge you draw will be coming from this and instead of healing you, it will make you sick. Here is a link to recent Kate Bush news for anyone interested: http://www.katebushnews.com/katenews.htm#2 , swastik108@a... wrote: > > > > Mary Ann <buttercookie61> > > Wed, 06 Jul 2005 15:44:58 -0000 > Re: The Mass Psychology of Fascism > > > ""Thanks for your comments. > > It's his work with > orgones that got him banned (from what I've read online) b/c he > was said to have gone insane at that point." > I have read that he became a bit unravelled and paranoid, but if the FBI was spying on me > constantly and buzzing my workplace with planes....well I think anyone could start to lose it! > Honestly, it makes his work seem all the more credible to me. If he was trying to do something great for humanity > and help people without taking lots of money, then I believe some greedy types may be inclined to stop it! > """There is also a song > called "Cloudbusting" by Kate Bush about him and his son. He > had constructed a machine to make clouds rain (I don't think it > worked, but that's what the song is about, he and his son using > the machine together)."" > I have heard from numerous credible people that they do indeed work and it could be dangerous to have people > affecting weather patterns with cheap technology. > > > > Quote Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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