How Gratitude Can Bring You Transcendence

I often discuss the value of gratitude with my peer group, and for good reason. The practice of cultivating gratitude regularly has helped to enhance peace of mind for many. Personally, gratitude has helped me to acknowledge the subtle pleasures in life, and gives me a brighter perspective on what otherwise could be considered mundane routines. Emotionally speaking, gratitude has been known to bring a sense of clarity, joy and deep appreciation for life. Many of the wisdom traditions recommend applying gratitude, as do modern-day psychologists.

While seeking to improve one’s material life can be healthy, too much emphasis being placed on the things we are lacking can lead to dissatisfaction, resentment and often jealousy of our peers. In an often precarious world dominated by consumerism and individualism, it is increasingly important to recognise how an attitude of gratitude can be incredibly beneficial to our emotional health.

Furthermore, sincere gratitude can ignite those golden and unexpected moments of transcendence. There are all sorts of transcending moments we can reflect upon and appreciate. Perhaps it was reading a beautiful piece of poetry, listening to a wonderful piece of music or being transfixed by a breathtaking sunrise. Such experiences can activate moments of reverence in our hearts and mind.

As a Brit, I have come to respect that our friends across the pond dedicate one day a year (a national holiday) to being thankful and appreciating the good. Although I was aware of Thanksgiving in my childhood, I first experienced the American holiday in November 2005 in Los Angeles. My friends and I decided to go to a local restaurant to celebrate the occasion. The weather was warm and mild, and there was calm in the South Bay. The Thanksgiving celebrations were very low key and mellow, but you could certainly feel a collective appreciation for the present moment.

It was the US President, JF Kennedy, who said, “As we express our gratitude, we must never forget that the highest appreciation is not to utter words, but to live by them.” When we are regularly acknowledging the things we appreciate, by expressing our gratitude through our actions, we often expand our lives and the lives of others. It is important to point out, however, that we may not always “feel” grateful, but we can certainly learn to “act” grateful. In other words, we can make a decision that we are going to gradually develop a steady attitude that is motivated by appreciation and thankfulness, irrespective of the vicissitudes of everyday living.

Here are three tools to amplify an attitude of gratitude:

1) According to Melanie Greenberg Ph.D. writing regularly in a gratitude journal helps us to focus on the good things in our lives and can gradually change our mindset. “If you want to gain a health benefit from gratitude, you may need to persist with the diaries for two or three months. This practice takes only 5 or 10 minutes a day, but when done cumulatively, seems to reorient your mental compass towards focusing on the positive.”

2) Ask someone to join you regularly with respect to reflecting on the things you both appreciate. There is something very powerful about the act of two or three people regularly outreaching and sharing thankfulness. You may hear something being said that deepens your own appreciation.

3) Put some time aside to sit quietly and think about all of the good things in your life. You may find visualisation quite helpful. Sometimes seeing the good you have in your mind can shield you from unkind beliefs about yourself. After all, the more you focus on what you have, the more likely you are to feel peaceful. After you have visualised the gifts in your life, take action and begin to see how you can be of service to others (in a way that feels right for you).

Christopher Dines’ new book, The Kindness Habit: Transforming our Relationship to Addictive Behaviours co-authored with Dr. Barbara Mariposa is out now.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/how-gratitude-can-bring-you-transcendence_uk_5a11e43ae4b0e6450602ec32

#AM_Equality Tipsheet: November 20, 2017

TODAY IS TRANSGENDER DAY OF REMEMBRANCE — WE HONOR LIVES LOST AS EPIDEMIC OF VIOLENCE TARGETING TRANSGENDER PEOPLE WORSENS: 2017 has been the deadliest year on record for transgender people, according to a new report by HRC and the Trans People of Color Coalition (TPOCC). A Time to Act: Fatal Violence Against Transgender People in America in 2017 documents the heartbreaking reality of the often deadly violence faced by  transgender people and explores factors that have made this year the deadliest on record. “The epidemic of violence against transgender people is an urgent crisis that demands the nation’s immediate attention,” said HRC President Chad Griffin (@ChadHGriffin). “The unique and tragic stories featured in this report reflect the obstacles that many transgender Americans — especially trans women of color — face in their daily lives. It is crucial that we know these stories in order to combat the transphobia, misogyny and racism fueling this violence so that we can end this epidemic before it takes any more lives.” Transgender Day of Remembrance also comes amidst reports of a surge in hate-based violence and harassment that began during Donald Trump’s campaign, and continues under the Trump-Pence administration. More from HRC, Mother Jones, The Daily Beast and The Associated Press.

• Find an event honoring Transgender Day of Remembrance here.

Today is Transgender Day of Remembrance, a time to reflect on those we have lost & recommit to ending the epidemic of anti-trans violence. #TDOR t.co/laAyFRKiXk pic.twitter.com/NPm19vSWi8

— HumanRightsCampaign (@HRC) November 20, 2017

ALABAMA U.S. SENATE CANDIDATE DOUG JONES RECEIVES MAJOR ENDORSEMENT:  A powerful front-page editorial online and in the Sunday editions of three major Alabama newspapers urged voters in the December 12 special U.S. Senate race to “Stand For Decency And Reject Roy Moore.” The editorial from the Alabama Media Group , which publishes The Birmingham News, The Huntsville Times, the Mobile Press-Register, and AL.com, endorsed Jones as the “only candidate worthy of representing Alabama.” It continued:  “What is disqualifying is the conduct of Roy Moore against women and children. It was disqualifying for his party leaders. It was disqualifying for Alabama’s senior senator. And it should be disqualifying for his state party.” HRC has also endorsed Jones.  #NoMoore from Al.com.

• At a recent Moore rally, the anti-LGBTQ candidate’s supporters made horrifyingly bigoted statements about the the “LGBT mafia” and “homosexualist gay terrorism.” More from The Associated Press.
• The Reverend Dr. William Barber (@RevDrBarber), writes about the “The Unbearable Hypocrisy of Roy Moore’s Christian Rhetoric,” in a piece for NBC.

“This isn’t Christianity, it’s an extreme form of Republican religionism. It is the religion of racism and lies, not the religion of redemption and love.” – @RevDrBarber t.co/pJuTHpaZBh

— NBC BLK (@NBCBLK) November 19, 2017

MONDAY MUST WATCH — DEVOTED COUPLES ASK EACH OTHER QUESTIONS MEANT TO BRING STRANGERS TOGETHER: And the results are beautiful. In this moving video from The New York Times’ Samantha Stark (@starksamantha) and Bonnie Wertheim (@bmwertheim), three couples ask each other questions designed by psychologists intended to bring strangers closer together. More from NYT.

DANICA ROEM ATTENDS THE AMERICAN MUSIC AWARDS AS A GUEST OF DEMI LOVATO: “She’s really able to give a lot of voice to people who need a champion, who need someone to basically publicly say on a national stage what it is that they’re feeling,” Roem said on the red carpet, referring to Lovato. “My campaign, I talked a lot about the idea of making Virginia a more inclusive commonwealth. So no matter what you look like, where you come from, how you worship or who you love, you are welcome, celebrated and respected in Virginia because of who you are, not despite it.” More from People and The Washington Post.

I’ll always stand for inclusion & against bullying. Demi Lovato’s performance tonight made it clear that’s where she stands too. Thank you for the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity @ddlovato.
PWC folks: I’ll be back bright & early Monday to talk education policy. See you soon! #NoH8 t.co/6BJzz5xhNp

— Danica Roem (@pwcdanica) November 20, 2017

SIXTY-TWO PERCENT OF SMALL BUSINESS OWNERS AGREE: Businesses should not have a license to discriminate against LGBTQ people. More from Forbes.

OREGON TRANS TEEN SUES AFTER SCHOOL REFUSES HIM ACCESS TO BOYS’ FACILITIES: The Dallas, Ore., School District refused to allow Elliot Yoder to use the boy’s restrooms and locker rooms. More from The Oregonian.

MUNICIPALITIES IN FLORIDA LEADING IN PROTECTING YOUTH FROM DANGEROUS SO-CALLED “CONVERSION THERAPY”: While Florida does not have a statewide ban on the dangerous and debunked practice, municipalities across the state are stepping up and passing local laws to protect youth. More from The Daily Beast.

OKLAHOMA LGBTQ CENTER DAMAGED IN SHOOTING: Four panels of Freedom Oklahoma’s glass walls were shattered, but, thankfully, no one was harmed. Police are investigating the incident, as well as threatening phone calls the center received two months ago. More from NewNowNext.

NEW YORK LAUNCHES SUICIDE PREVENTION TASK FORCE: It was created after Governor Andrew Cuomo mentioned the need in his State of the State address, and will focus on combatting suicide in communities including teens, veterans and LGBTQ people. More from The (Albany) Times Union.

HORRIFYING — MAN THROWS ACID AT LGBTQ ADVOCATES IN MOSCOW: The advocates were leaving a conference on LGBTQ families. More from NewNowNext.

LESSONS IN LEADERSHIP — JUSTIN TRUDEAU TO OFFER HISTORIC APOLOGY FOR ANTI-LGBTQ PERSECUTION: On November 28, the Canadian prime minister will offer a formal apology for LGBTQ people who were persecuted or discharged from the military in the past. More from The Globe and Mail.

TURKISH GOVERNOR BANS LGBTQ EVENTS: HRC is outraged by news out of Turkey that the governor of Ankara, the capital city, has announced an indefinite ban all LGBTQ film screenings, panels and exhibitions and other public events. This ban must be lifted immediately. More from The New York Post.

• The first victim of the ban — a German LGBTQ film festival. The governor issued a statement saying the festival “could incite grudges and enmity toward a part of society.” More from the BBC.

READING RAINBOW

Refinery29 interviews non-binary people about their identities and experiences; HRC gives tips for navigating LGBTQ conversations over the holidays; Culturemap Dallas photographs the 36th annual Black Tie Dinner in Dallas; Entertainment Weekly gives a first look at Ryan Murphy’s groundbreaking new series Pose;

Have news? Send us your news and tips at [email protected]. Click here to subscribe to #AM_Equality and follow @HRC for all the latest news. Thanks for reading!

www.hrc.org/blog/am-equality-tipsheet-november-20-2017?utm_source=rss&utm_medium=rss-feed

How This Trans Woman Became an ‘Accidental Activist’

Kathy Huff saw injustice and refused to let it stand.

www.advocate.com/commentary/2017/11/20/how-trans-woman-became-accidental-activist

Pink’s Acrobatic ‘Beautiful Trauma’ Ballet on the Side of the JW Marriott is a Must-See AMAs Moment: WATCH

Pink had a high-flying night at the American Music Awards on Sunday night where she performed her track “Beautiful Trauma” in an acrobatic ballet on the side of the JW Marriott hotel.

ALSO: Demi Lovato Brings Transgender Virginia Lawmaker Danica Roem to ‘American Music Awards’ – WATCH

The performance, in which the singer and her dancers were suspended from ropes, created the gorgeous illusion when viewed from below that they were dancing, weightless, on some sort of futuristic grid.

Watch:

It came a few numbers after a stunning opening rendition of “Everybody Hurts” by Pink and Kelly Clarkson in honor of first responders.

Watch:

Later, Clarkson showed off her pipes with her new single “Love So Soft” coupled with “Miss Independent”.

Watch:

The post Pink’s Acrobatic ‘Beautiful Trauma’ Ballet on the Side of the JW Marriott is a Must-See AMAs Moment: WATCH appeared first on Towleroad.

Pink’s Acrobatic ‘Beautiful Trauma’ Ballet on the Side of the JW Marriott is a Must-See AMAs Moment: WATCH

Pink Blasts ‘Negative Nancys’ Over Her Reaction To Christina Aguilera’s AMAs Whitney Houston Tribute

Pink has defended her reaction to Christina Aguilera’s American Music Awards performance, after she was caught on camera appearing to look less than impressed.

Fans were quick to point out – and share many memes – of the moment Pink was spotted with a furrowed brow and what looked like a perplexed look on her face, as Christina paid a musical tribute to the late Whitney Houston.

But despite her pained look, Pink has insisted she was actually “in awe” of Christina’s talent.

She tweeted: “Christina fucking killed it tonight for one of our favorite singers ever. This about Whitney, and I am in awe of Christina’s talent. Show the clip were I’m in tears, you negative Nancy’s [sic].”

But those “negative Nancys” weren’t buying it on Twitter…

Earlier Pink kicked off Sunday night’s star studded ceremony, duetting with with Kelly Clarkson on R.E.M’s 1992 classic, ‘Everybody Hurts’.

She followed it up with a gravity-defying performance of her new single ‘Beautiful Trauma’, which saw her spinning around in mid-air on the side of a building.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/pink-christina-aguilera-amas-performance-whitney-houston-twitter-response_uk_5a12c539e4b0dd63b1ab81ed

21 Photos of Very Cold Yet Very Hot Men

www.advocate.com/photography/2017/11/20/21-photos-very-cold-yet-very-hot-men

Anti-Terror Crackdown Sees 300,000 Online Items Removed
More than 300,000 online videos, web pages and posts have been taken down after they were flagged up to internet companies by a specialist UK anti-terror team.

New figures obtained by the Press Association reveal the national police unit reached the milestone in recent weeks.

However, the rate of removals prompted by its work has slowed as firms step up their own efforts.

The Counter Terrorism Internet Referral Unit (CTIRU) works with hundreds of organisations to remove content including propaganda and recruitment videos, images of executions and speeches calling for racial or religious violence.

Statistics released following a Freedom of Information request show that, as of last month, 299,121 pieces of material had been cleared at the instigation of the unit since its launch in 2010.

Officers confirmed that the number of removals has since passed the 300,000 mark.

From the start of January to the end of August this year, 43,151 pieces of content were removed at the request of the CTIRU.

This was down by nearly half on the tally of 83,784 recorded in the equivalent period of 2016.

Detective Chief Superintendent Clarke Jarrett, of the Metropolitan Police’s counter-terrorism command, said: “The 300,000 milestone is positive.

“It’s 300,000 pieces of material not there to radicalise or harm people. That 300,000 isn’t a representation of what’s out there. There’s still plenty of content out there.”

He acknowledged that removals instigated by the CTIRU have slowed.

“I think that’s a success story because we’ve now got the industry into a place where they are doing more,” he said. “They are removing more themselves which means our removals are less, but I think that’s a really positive position.

“Although we talk about 300,000, the global total is probably much more than it’s ever been because the big companies are really working much harder to remove stuff.”

Officers working on the unit trawl the web looking for material as well as investigating referrals from the public.

After carrying out assessments, they contact internet providers to request the removal of harmful items. More than 300 firms around the world have taken down material following requests from the CTIRU.

The bulk of the unit’s activity deals with Islamist-related content, but it is referring more far-right material.

The CTIRU was the first unit of its type in the world and UK police are keen for other countries to consider adopting the model.

Jarrett said: “There are languages that we haven’t got the capacity to look into. If other countries can be doing this work and working with the social media companies we can see there will be more removals.”

Concerns over online material have intensified after Britain was hit by five attacks this year. Jarrett said: “We are seeing more investigations and more attack planning than ever.”

In recent months, a number of companies have detailed the steps they are taking to clamp down on terrorist content.

From January to June, Twitter removed just under 300,000 accounts for terror-related violations. The microblogging site highlighted how the bulk of suspensions are the result of its internal efforts using “proprietary tools” – with less than 1% stemming from Government requests.

YouTube has introduced “machine learning” to help identify extremist and terror-related material, with more than 80% of videos taken down now removed from the site before they are flagged by a person.

Facebook has revealed it is using artificial intelligence to keep terrorist content off the site.

Firms have come under sustained pressure over the issue.

The head of MI5 has said technology companies have an “ethical responsibility” to help confront the unprecedented threat, while Britain and France are exploring plans that could see platforms face fines if their efforts are not up to scratch.

Security Minister Ben Wallace said: “We are clear that the internet cannot be used as a safe space for terrorists or those that mean us harm.

“These new figures show what can be achieved when internet companies, police and government work together. But clearly there is still a lot of damaging and dangerous material out there.

“We have made it clear to firms that they need to go further and faster in removing terrorist and illegal content from their websites and ultimately prevent it from being uploaded in the first place.”

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/internet-firms-take-down-300000-items_uk_5a129db5e4b0e97dffee3fbd

Lena Dunham Apologises For Defending ‘Girls’ Writer Murray Miller After Rape Accusation
Lena Dunham has issued an apology on Twitter, after drawing criticism for defending a ‘Girls’ writer who was accused of rape.

Last week, ‘Passengers’ actress Aurora Perrineau accused Murray Miller of raping her in 2012, when she was 17, a claim he has “categorically and vehemently” denied.

On Saturday (18 November), Lena and her fellow ‘Girls’ showrunner Jenni Konner issued a joint statement defending Miller, who they’ve known for “half a decade”.

“Our insider knowledge of Murray’s situation makes us confident that sadly this accusation is one of the 3% of assault cases that are misreported every year,” they wrote. “We stand by Murray and this is all we’ll be saying about this issue.”

Following an online backlash, Lena has now tweeted an apology for the statement.

It reads: “As feminists, we live and die by our politics, and believing women is the first choice we make every single day when we wake up.

“Therefore I never thought I would issue a statement publicly supporting someone accused of sexual assault, but I naively believed it was important to share my perspective on my friend’s situation as it has transpired behind the scenes over the last few months.

“I now understand that it was absolutely the wrong time to come forward with such a statement and I am so sorry … We regret this decision with every fiber of our being.

“Every woman who comes forward deserves to be heard, fully and completely, and our relationship to the accused should not be part of the calculation anyone makes when examining her case. Every person and every feminist should be required to hear her. Under patriarchy, ‘I believe you’ is essential.

“Until we are all believed, none of us will be believed. We apologise to any women who have been disappointed.”

This is not the first time Lena has had to apologise after making an ill-judged public statement and 2016 saw her issue a statement via Instagram after making comments about Odell Beckham Jr in her Lenny newsletter.

Three months later, in December, Lena said sorry again after an episode of her podcast included a flippant comment about “wishing” she’d had an abortion.

www.huffingtonpost.co.uk/entry/lena-dunham-girls-writer-rape-apology_uk_5a1293cbe4b0dd63b1ab466e

Imagine Dragons Wears GLAAD’s & Pin and Shouts Out LGBTQ Youth in Acceptance Speech for Favorite Pop/Rock Group at the American Music Awards

www.glaad.org/blog/imagine-dragons-wears-glaad%E2%80%99s-pin-and-shouts-out-lgbtq-youth-acceptance-speech-favorite-poprock