Author Archives
A whisper, then tingles, then 87 million YouTube views: Meet the star of ASMR – The Washington Post
The pretty blond woman is plucking at the bristles of a hairbrush with gold-manicured fingertips, tapping her nails softly against the wooden handle as she holds it close to a microphone. Bathed in soft lighting, she smiles knowingly into the video camera, as if sharing a secret.
“The tapping sounds remind me of the sound of the rain,” she breathes in a subtly accented whisper.
This is Maria, a 28-year-old Russian expat in suburban Maryland, starring in a YouTube video that has been viewed more than 7 million times. Hundreds of thousands of Maria’s devotees return again and again to listen to her hushed whispers as she assumes simulated roles — librarian, hairstylist, masseuse — and performs simple motions: folding towels, blowing smoke from an incense burner, flipping through the pages of a magazine.
It might sound like a bafflingly bizarre way to spend time on the Internet. But for Maria’s viewers, her voice and movements hold a certain magic: They can instill tranquillity, overcome insomnia — and induce a mysterious physical sensation known as autonomous sensory meridian response, or ASMR, wherein the body is flooded with waves of euphoric tingles.
“It’s like showers of sparkles,” says Maria, speaking as herself. “It’s like warm sand being poured all over you, trickling over your head and down into your shoulders. It’s like goosebumps on your brain.”
Continued:
via A whisper, then tingles, then 87 million YouTube views: Meet the star of ASMR – The Washington Post.
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UC6gLlIAnzg7eJ8VuXDCZ_vg
In this world of stress and chaos I wish my channel to be your secret island of relaxation and peace. I’m here to comfort you, to share my love and care with you, to make you feel relaxed and stress free through creative and soothing videos.Let me try and keep you company at hard times, let me calm you down and help you sleep on restless nights, let me be your friend and be a triggerer for your tingles (ASMR) or simply help you find beauty and peace in places you might have never thought of looking.
Presenting The $303 Trillion In Derivatives That US Taxpayers Are Now On The Hook For | Zero Hedge
Courtesy of the Cronybus(sic) last minute passage, government was provided a quid-pro-quo $1.1 trillion spending allowance with Wall Street’s blessing in exchange for assuring banks that taxpayers would be on the hook for yet another bailout, as a result of the swaps push-out provision, after incorporating explicit Citigroup language that allows financial institutions to trade certain financial derivatives from subsidiaries that are insured by the Federal Deposit Insurance Corp, explicitly putting taxpayers on the hook for losses caused by these contracts. Recall:
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Mindfulness – Anderson Cooper – CBS News – Wisdom 2.0
Anderson Cooper reports on what it’s like to try to achieve “mindfulness,” a self-awareness scientists say is very healthy, but rarely achieved in today’s world of digital distractions
Friends,
60 Minutes reached out to us last year about a program they wanted to do on Mindfulness in America. They attended the last Wisdom 2.0, and we later helped organize a small meditation retreat that the host of the show, Anderson Cooper, joined that was led by Jon and Will Kabat-Zinn.
Anderson and his team interviewed various people, from researchers to business leaders to sports psychologists, all with a focus on mindfulness.
We do not know what content they have chosen (or if it will be a positive representation of this field or a somewhat suspicious one) but we wanted to let you know that the program airs tonight Sunday, Dec. 14 at 7 p.m. ET/PT.
All signs are that they did a very thorough job preparing the piece.
You can watch it tonight and see a teaser here. They will have more footage on their website after the show.
Wishing you well,
Soren
▶ Remarks by Senator Warren on Citigroup and its bailout provision – YouTube
Published on Dec 12, 2014
Senator Elizabeth Warren spoke on the floor of the Senate on Dec. 12, 2014 about the provision that Citigroup added to the omnibus budget package.
Catherine Crump: The small and surprisingly dangerous detail the police track about you – TED Talk
Published on Dec 11, 2014
A very unsexy-sounding piece of technology could mean that the police know where you go, with whom, and when: the automatic license plate reader. These cameras are innocuously placed all across small-town America to catch known criminals, but as lawyer and TED Fellow Catherine Crump shows, the data they collect in aggregate could have disastrous consequences for everyone the world over.
via Catherine Crump: The small and surprisingly dangerous detail the police track about you – YouTube.
What the Torture Report Isn’t Telling You | Weapons of Mass Distraction – Abby Martin
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ai8lHVqKjDg
Published on Dec 11, 2014
Why is the corporate media turning torture into a debate? Abby Martin discusses the media’s reaction to the Senate torture report and why torture has suddenly turned into a partisan debate.
The Top 5 Things That Screw Over Americans in 2015 Spending Bill – Abby Martin
America in Decline. Prepare Yourself Accordingly – Stefan Molyneux interviews Gerald Celente
Published on Dec 9, 2014
Many economists have discussed the impending economic collapse of the United States for years – but why hasn’t it happened yet? Were they wrong – or is there something else going on? Stefan Molyneux and Gerald Celente discuss the dangers of the current economic system, who’s really running the show, the disastrous military blow-back and the impact of never-ending war on a worldwide stage.
Gerald Celente is the Publisher of the Trends Journal. For more information on Mr. Celente and Trends Journal go to: http://www.TrendsJournal.com
via America in Decline. Prepare Yourself Accordingly. – YouTube.
