Your first subject

I am unsatisfied. I have so many ideas and no way to implement them. I believe I'm not the only one who feels like this...that's why I created this forum. I wanted to create a median for minds to unite under a number of causes and have their thoughts heard.

While the spread of information has grown, so has the spread of misinformation. Personally, I find it incredibly difficult to find a source of news with no political bias or flat-out misinformation. If anyone has news sources they consider credible and objective please feel free to share below.

Latest news from China has shown that they are considering making the greater region of the Tibetan Plateau a national park. I personally have mixed feelings about this decision by the government. While this would preserve what remains of the flora and fauna there, it would displace native Tibetan peoples even more so than the last 20 years. Give me your thoughts in the comments.

Part of what drove me to create this forum...was the injustice I see at home. The religion and followers of Islam are a touchy subject no matter where you are. I would like to embrace the free speech allowed in this forum to say that I do not believe Islam is the problem. I believe the men and women who use it and contort it to their own personal agendas are the real problem. Many people want to see Islam destroyed and its followers gone but this isn't the answer. Hiding behind computer screens and spewing hate speech will never unite anyone and keep the violence and ignorance flowing like a small stream to a roaring river.

After my talk on Islam, I want to clarify that this forum will be (on the most part) completely secular. Religion will be brought up on several occasions though. I only ask that everyone use an open mind and look at the facts rather than the conflict of personal belief. Thank you.

This message will be much more casual than most others here because I want to talk about something I love. Exploration. As small as walking down a street you've never walked, or as grandiose as exploring deep space. I love all of it. Sadly I've not yet been fortunate enough with my financial means to travel but its my goal to go when the opportunity presents itself. I believe travel is a key part of life and a key part of understanding the world around you. Its easy to study a culture but when you are there...everything changes. You see faces, hear names, know us. (By 'us' I'm referring to humanity. Not the ominous 'them' ) But the ability to know and care is a lesson worth learning.

I'm very happy to see that this forum might be welcoming some new people soon. As a part of this, I also feel some apprehension as well so I'd like to take a moment to welcome anyone new and open up our first question. What topics do YOU want to talk about? What lights your inner fire? Post below!

could we talk about new ways to help people?

For the first message of today, lets talk about help. Help is a word with many meanings. There are a ton of ways to help people. But that isn't what we are looking for. Here, we are looking for NEW ways of help. This may seem like a tough order but there is always ways to do this. Personally, I would go for something that helps everyone. Something we need and dont yet have. Tell me your thoughts below!

One of the most evil words that exists...and it's in every language! Every society that has ever existed used this word, and you may use it everyday. Its not a hate term or even a racial one. Its the word 'them.' It may seem like another mundane word, but its implications are bigger than you'd think. When we use the word 'them' we are implying a separation or difference. I like how the Dalai Llama tackled this subject in his speeches in New York. He described countries and their people as 'drawing invisible lines in the ground' and creating this term because of it. Therefore, for the sake of international thinking, 'them' is a banned word in this forum. ( It's almost the only one. I promise!)

While this forum is dedicated to progress and forward thinking as a whole, individuality is incredibly important. How do you act as an individual in this ever expanding world? Simply put, you do what you are passionate for. My passion is this forum and my never ending drive to make life better and promote higher thinking. Your Quest doesn't have to be as intensive though, it can be as simple as bird watching in your region or card collecting! Several stories about people in their personal Quests and how to start your own can be found in several books including one of my favorites, "The Happiness of Pursuit"

I know its been a bit since I've last posted. I'm entering finals week so its been pretty hectic here lately. After this week things should calm down and I will start posting more regularly and consistently. Thanks everybody.