Dear Reader: First, some unfinished business. Jerry Rife, the artist who graced our front cover on Vol. 122 #1 with a striking picture of an expanding brain in a pre-Columbian head, gave us information about it that we neglected to publish: "BRAINPOWER - Seventeenth-century French philosopher René Descartes' basic proposition ('I think, therefore I am') extolled reason as the foundation of philosophical inquiry. This illustration is a visual allegory of the idea that reason lies at the heart of human existence as we know it." Credits should read: "Mesoamerican mask from the Museum of Anthropology, Mexico City; Brain Model courtesy of Chaparral High School, El Cajon, California." Now to the usual overview of the issue. This issue continues our theme of self-reliance, emphasizing integrity. We begin with two articles paying tribute to R. Buckminster Fuller, a great original thinker. He was born July 12, 1895, and we commemorate the 100th anniversary of his birth. The FOCUS section deals with wellness in mind and body. Rather than exploring the wide range of alternative therapies, the section focuses on the mind - mood, attitude - and its function in restoring and/or maintaining body integrity. The lead article by Deepak Chopra is bound to elicit sharp criticism from our freethinking readers. It lists "ten old assumptions" (which he repudiates) and replaces them with ten new ones. I consider him totally and importantly wrong on #1 and #4. I plan in our next issue to treat this philosophical controversy at length in a review of the book The Self-Aware Universe: how consciousness creates the material world. This book by Amit Goswami, like Dr. Chopra, preaches that consciousness is primary. For now we merely note the disagreement. While we who stand by the primacy of existence do not believe that faith can literally move mountains, we are open to the idea that consciousness can alter physiological states - our own, or those of others with whom we are in direct contact and who are open to our suggestions. The articles by Hobson and Achterberg, et al. and Sharon Presley's review of Sahelian emphasize mind over matter but within a naturalistic framework. The same can perhaps be said about Remarkable Recovery, but our reviewer, Joseph Uphoff, has his doubts. My article covers a book by Larry Dossey that is more out on the fringe. As has been said elsewhere, take what wisdom you can find, and leave the rest behind. Our FORUM section has some diverse freethought. Ken Nahigian's article encourages us to be on guard when confronted with "eyewitness testimony of supernatural events." I provide a little satire on the rationale for group prayer in public schools, and I review Leaving the Fold by Marlene Winell, an excellent self-help book for people who have broken away from rigid religions. We pass on some news about a belated honor for Marie Curie, and Freeland Chew, whose excellent article on home schooling appeared in the last issue, provides us with more helpful information on this topic. The PARTHENON section, with its great columns, is rather miscellaneous, as you can expect when you put several independent minds in one place. Gerald Cirrincione gives us vivid thinking; Bill Edelen adds a personal account to our tribute to R. Buckminster Fuller; Alvin Bernstein hits a political issue that is hot now; Howard Blum tells us how the Internet can help us on matters of health; Robert Williscroft gives us a new twist on the old saw of free will; Bolder Landry tells us of Margaret Sanger and her heroic work which, frankly, is still incomplete; and Bill Holmes provides a principled and long-term view of some current headlines. The section ends with a small excerpt from an excellent Wired magazine article on Thomas Paine by Jon Katz. Check out the ACTION section for more on the tug-of-war between people who want to run other people's lives and people who want to run their own. Act if you find yourself moved to do so. And enjoy the issue. William B. Lindley, Associate Editor TRUTH SEEKER THE JOURNAL OF INDEPENDENT THOUGHT World's Oldest Freethought Publication · Since 1873 "Let The Truth Seeker be successful in disseminating light and truth and in dispelling the fogs of superstition, bigotry and error." – D. M. 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