The Age of Transitions
Author and digital filmmaker Aaron Franz hosts this podcast about transhumanism, social manipulation, the occult, and much more.

AgeOfTranstiions.com has been hacked.

topics include: hacked websites, detachment, humility, Stone Cold Steve Austin

Direct download: 154_New_Years_Hackin_Eve.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:44pm EDT

Star Wars, Jedi Knights, and the Obscure History of Secret Societies, TRR#153

There are certainly many occult themes running throughout the Star Wars films. In this podcast Aaron focuses on the history of secret societies, and of civilization itself, and compares that to the fictional story of the Jedi Knights.

topics include: time, place, relativity, art, alchemy, secret societies, Freemasonry, mystery, history of human civilization, the Ancients, Ain Soph, the Being, the Force, magic, Han Solo, episode 7, The Force Awakens, government, Empire, dark side, Jedi, secrecy, Rebel Alliance, rebellion, Lucifer, Darth Vader, order, galaxy, Saturn, death, Slayers of Hiram Abiff, Jordan Maxwell, Atlantis, myth, mythology, light, Black Lodge, White Lodge, brotherhood, Jedediah, Luke, evangelist, bull, tetramorph, Ezekiel, Apocalypse, atonement, return to father, darkness, Dark Night of the Soul, death and rebirth, Christ, hero, solar hero, Porkins, initiation, master and protege, emperor, Mystery Tradition, networks, warring secret societies, fate, destiny

Direct download: 153_Star_Wars_Jedi_Knights_and_the_Obscure_History_Secret_Societies.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 5:41pm EDT

The Dark Side of the USPS and its Uncertain Future, TRR#152

Reflections on life as a City Carrier Assistant (CCA) working for the United States Postal Service. This and many more thoughts about the future of the USPS and of work in general are the focus of this podcast episode.

topics include: USPS, work, CCA, mail carrier, oath to Constitution, federal employee, sanctity of the mail, union, 1970 postal workers strike, NALC, manhood, office time, casing, sortation, stress, pressure, management, anxiety, Mr McFeely, no time to stop, federal, private corporations, privatization, Postal Reorganization Act, Kappel Commission, LBJ, Nixon, Board of Governors, public service, 2006 retirement funding crisis, US Treasury, military veterans, NSA, Negotiated Service Agreement, Sunday parcel delivery, Amazon Prime, Amazon, corporate control, Jeff Bezos, Washington Post, Bilderberg, fulfillment centers, drones, autonomous vehicles, robotization, downsizing human workforce, mail volume, cluster boxes, machines, conspiracy theory

Direct download: 152_The_Dark_Side_of_the_USPS_and_its_Uncertain_Future.mp3
Category:social commentary -- posted at: 1:47am EDT

John Adams, co-host of The Afternoon Commute, is the guest on this episode of Trans Resister Radio. Southern California, its history and its mysteries are the topic at hand. As a SoCal native John has a lot of good insight on this topic.

Topics include: California, Irvine, William Pereira, Orange County, agriculture, suburbia, city planning, planned communities, utopia, UC Irvine, dystopian films, brutalist architecture, strip malls, Joseph Eichler, Panorama City, Lakewood, McDonnell Douglas, war based economy, MIC, labor, commute, city, Mexican immigrants, drought, arid climate, weather modification, urban sprawl, Target Town, downtown LA, cooking, fast food, restaurant culture, cronuts, health food, Paul Bragg, aerobics, eastern mysticism, Manly P Hall, Crocker family, Alan Watts, Main Street, Orange, Garden Grove, Walmart, corporations, Long Beach, gangsta rap, cheap entertainment, Jordan Maxwell, cults, the Jesus Movement, Children of God, the Source, Sunset Strip, Annie Hall, Millard Sheets, Home Savings and Loan buildings, Masonic temples

Direct download: 151_John_Adams_Interview_California_Dreamin.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 12:57am EDT

Dave McGowan passed away on Nov 22, 2015. This podcast is a small tribute to his life and work.

Direct download: 150_Dave_McGowan_Tribute.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:06pm EDT

Aaron looks at the recent Paris terror attacks and gives his opinions on media reaction to it. Reactionary is a good word to describe both mainstream and alternative media these days. The Islamic State, or I.S.I.S., is also discussed in terms of its highly charged name. Rival internet group Anonymous may have anonymity, but I.S.I.S. has acronymity.

topics include: conspiracy culture, media, confusion, terror, memes, ideologies, wars, military, agendas, dialectic, taking sides, ISIS, fiction, television shows, predictive programming, no hard proof, memes, occult, Mother of the Mysteries, acronyms, fire and ice, Iraq, Al Sham, Syria, goddess, Nature, intangible, lack of proof, narratives, religion, crusade, anger, exploitation, Operation Iraqi Freedom, nation state, government, alchemy, Kali

Direct download: 149_Paris_Terror_Attacks.mp3
Category:social commentary -- posted at: 12:47pm EDT

The current working world has gone well beyond a rat race for most people. Hours worked and demands for results have only increased for individuals, and a corresponding increase in wages has not come. It seems we all will work ourselves into the ground at this rate, but what if a dramatic change is on the horizon? A sudden spike in unemployment due to automation and robotization is very likely. If such an event comes it could bring a serious economic upheaval and a crisis in the job market the likes of which has never been seen before. This may be dramatic enough to hasten in policies for Basic Income.

topics include: work, no leisure, stress, change, Larry Page, Google, 40 hour work week, machines, autonomous systems, robots, Time of Abundance, Ai, machine learning, Luddite, Ray Kurzweil, Singularity University, Silicon Valley, SRI, income, jobs, Basic Income, BIEN, government, policy, transhumanists, James Hughes, wage slaves, nanny state


The final installment of the Occult Themes in Popular Music series of podcasts has Aaron taking more listener suggestions. From the nonsensical babbling of Blondie to the deep poetry of the Moody Blues, there is a lot to talk about here.

topics include: Leonard Cohen, music industry, truth, lyrics, prophecy, rap, audience, secret societies, intitiation, death and rebirth rituals, darkness, night, light, spirit and matter

Direct download: 147_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_8_Listener_Suggestions.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 3:06pm EDT

Aaron continues to take suggestions from listeners for popular music with occult themes. Some major artists are discussed here, most notably Bob Dylan. Such a free-wheelin' guy doesn't seem to have any occult connections at first glance, but look again.

topics include: Isis, secret societies, Mystery Schools, initiation, death and rebirth, Sun symbolism, New Day, alchemy, creation myths, Void, male and female creative aspects, Typhon, Dark Night of the Soul, difficulty of physical existence, Eden, Fall of Adam, Eve, original sin, consciousness, communication, Truth, language, civilization, Aleister Crowley, elements, East

Direct download: 146_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_7_Listener_Suggestions.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 5:10pm EDT

On this installment of Trans Resister Radio Aaron takes suggestions from listeners. Different songs that may have occult lyrics were submitted in comments and emails, and here they are explored. More of your suggestions are to come in the next episode as well, so feel free to send more.

topics include: Dave McGowan, animation, Themes and Memes, Clutch, metal, conspiracy theory, Praetorian, Roman Empire, Greece, symbolism, Bangles, dreams, life, divine, reincarnation, Swans, light, truth, intelligence, Social Darwinism, solar power, genetics, Legend of the Guardians, Boyd Rice, Nazis, Christians, dark philosophy, Meshuggah, transhumanism, Marilyn Manson, Rainbow, solar hero, Muppets, magic, alchemy, mind over matter, visions

 

Direct download: 145_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_6_Listener_Suggestions.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 12:59am EDT

Continuing on the theme of 80s music Aaron talks about some of the popular rock anthems that were used in movies at the time. Inspirational Rock, or Melodic Rock as some call it, was a staple in cinema then. Looking at a few of these songs one can easily draw out formulaic lyrics, that not surprisingly point to occult messages. Later in the podcast the concept of alchemy as it relates to globalism and international politics is brought up with a couple of songs that are clear examples of this

topics include: Ray Kurzweil, synthesizers, futurism, transhumanism, Ai, 80s, Transformers, melodic rock, self improvement, mind over matter, Dark Night of the Soul, New Dawn, sun, fire, light, burning, heat, fever, Running Man, Rocky 4, Cold War, geopolitics, super powers, Bohemian philosophy, alchemy, space travel, Mother Earth, astrology, astronomy, Great Work, change, God, Mystery Tradition, secret societies, true religion

 


The nineteen eighties, a decade in which the alchemical process of social transformation was taken into overdrive. A definite sense that we were collectively going into the future was present, and the extreme materialism of the status quo was not enough to take us there. In order to be Forever Young the collective consciousness looked to the Indigo Children as way-showers of a radically different paradigm that continues to emerge and change to this very day.

topics include: materialism, disenchantment, collective consciousness, alchemy, Tears for Fears, Punk, New Wave, Lords of the New Church, angst, youth, children, destroy and rebuild, radical simplification, revolution, synth-driven rock, futurism, progressive rock, Alan Parsons Project, Isaac Asimov, darkness, New Order, Psychedelic Furs, apocalypse, time of troubles, Alphaville, diamonds, gold, sun, 80s films, androgyny, sexual ambiguity, Hair Metal

Direct download: 143_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_4_Sounds_of_the_80s.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 11:33am EDT

Initiation into the Mysteries is symbolized as entering into the Light. This theme is to be found in many popular songs. These and other Secret Messages are explored by Aaron in this podcast. 

topics include: demons, animal nature, zodiac, Hercules, hero character, sun, light, myth, initiation, alchemy, self improvement, Imagine Dragons, Ace of Base, knowledge, dream, waking up, Joe Jackson, Midnight Sun, darkness, mist, four elements, Arcade Fire, Orpheus, Freemasonry, revolution, The Who, Tommy, masses, religion, Christ, debunkers, Go Go's, silence, secret societies


Neil Foster speaks to Aaron Franz once again on Reality Bytes Radio. A wide range of topics are covered including occult themes in popular music, California, Carroll Quigley's Tragedy and Hope, and the dark side of the alternative media. Be sure to check out the show at RealityBytesRadio.com

Direct download: Reality_Bytes_with_Aaron_Franz__Aug._17th_2015.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 11:57pm EDT

The love song is a staple in the world of pop music. Whether any given song moves you to tears or makes you cry laughing you may be surprised to find out that there are some serious occult concepts being utilized. Who is it that these famous vocalists are singing to in the first place? What archetypes are employed in order to give their tunes universal appeal? What does it mean to fall in love? Romeo and Juliet is the most famous love story of the Western World, and it is a tragedy. This is a clue to the occult concept of Love.

 

topics include: love, duality, male and female, creative forces, Adam and Eve, creation myths, androgyny, Tarot, The Tower, Fall of Adam, Fall of Lucifer, spiritual, material, esoteric religion, first cause, Isis, Bruce Springsteen, tools, Freemasonry, Lost Word, Roy Orbison, Isis, night, day, toil, Bono, writer, Beyonce, diva, ego, goddess, angels, light, alchemy, Donna Lewis, primordial creation, time, Saturn, death, Earth before life appeared, mineral, plant, animal, sun, pop music, Air Supply, lyrics, meaning

Direct download: 141_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_2_Love_Songs.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 11:16pm EDT

Occult Themes in Popular Music, part 1 Introduction, TRR#140

This is the introductory episode of the new Trans Resister Radio podcast series. In this series Aaron will be looking at the occult and esoteric meanings that are hidden within all forms of popular music. Be sure to follow along by listening to the songs linked in the description at AgeofTransitions.com

topics include: music, sound, vibration, creation, motion, time, Saturn, life and death, the Word, order, Apollo, lyre, muses, Orpheus, lyrics, multiple meanings, subconscious, occult, esoteric, archetypes, universal appeal, revolution, fire, violence, alchemy, change, new normals, youth, rebellion, social change, identity

Direct download: 140_Occult_Themes_in_Popular_Music_part_1_Introduction.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 9:15pm EDT

Transformers: Age of Extinction is the fourth in the current series of Transformers films. On this podcast, Adam and Aaron try to understand if this is an anti-establishment film. That would be odd seeing as how previous films in the Transformers series were made in partnership with the United States Air Force.

Topics include: previous Transformers films, USAF, military collaboration, Michael Bay, Steven Spielberg, establishment vilified, CIA, Kelsey Grammer, transformium, nanotech, product placement, corruption, MIC, Steve Jobs, Ray Kurzweil, government and industry cooperation, technological development, terrorism, 3D films, trance state of consciousness, dream, subconscious, bad reviews, overload of action, Battleship, conspiracy, counterculture, how to make big changes, confusion, identification, China, Snowden, Mark Wahlberg, younger audience, revolutionary ideas, emotional response, relationships, overcompensation, engendering trust, dinobots, revisionist history, aliens, John Goodman, betrayal, inventors, sociopaths, hippies

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep10_Transformers_Age_of_Extinction_movie_review.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 3:32pm EDT

The Truth Movement/conspiracy culture points the finger at secret societies, calling them the enemy. However, the goal of "waking up" from the dream of our false reality is shared by both the Truth Movement and the secret societies. Is there anything more going on beyond the obvious irony of this situation?

topics include: dreams, waking up, occult, secret societies, Mystery Schools, conspiracy, sensationalism, bad research, reverse psychology, devil, emotion, alchemy, sublimation, initiates, candidates, truth, philosophic death, cults, Freemasonry, Gnostics, Rosicrucians, podcasts, spiritual ideals, Ain Soph, nothing, sexual alchemy, sexual magic, coitus preservatus, doctrine, perfection, transmutation, lucid dreaming, astral projection, mobile body awareness

Direct download: 139_Secret_Societies_and_the_Truth_Movement.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 4:22pm EDT


This is the last episode in the Alchemical Golden State of California podcast series. Take a trip out the I-15 to Zzyzx Road and relive the history of Curtis Springer's Zzyzx Mineral Springs. The Boulevard of Dreams is aptly named as the Golden California Dream itself has always been a desert mirage. 

topics include: Disneyland, alchemy, gold, ideals, reality, Irvine, toll roads, traffic, suburbs, sprawl, car chases, catharsis, Zzyzx Road, Curtis Springer, mineral springs, I 15, desert, Death Valley, Borax, Amargosa Opera House

Direct download: 138_The_Alchemical_Golden_State_of_California_part_4.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 12:54am EDT

The Alchemical Golden State of California series continues on Trans Resister Radio. Orange County takes center stage as Aaron talks about this bizarre land of fruits and nuts. From MMA fighters in HB to the gold-digging televangelist ministry of Robert Schuller, not even Walt Disney himself could have imagined this sort of New Gold Dream.

topics include: sprawl, large population in small area, Orange County, Republicans, far-right politics, materialism, Huntington Beach, white supremacy, appearance of wealth, plastic surgery, mania, children of privilege, MMA ultimate fighting, PCH, cycle bots, fashion, Crystal Cathedral, Robert Schuller, worst of religion, Disneyland, Abraham Lincoln, alchemy, Tomorrowland, virtue and vice, waking dreams, psychedelic, arrested development, Club 33, something out of nothing

Direct download: 137_The_Alchemical_Golden_State_of_California_part_3.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:49pm EDT

Aaron continues talking about some of the things that make California unique. In this episode he gets into some of his personal experiences and observations from living in Long Beach and Orange County. 

topics include: Freemasonry, alchemy, LA, Hollywood, film, Griffith Park Observatory, James Dean, Ahmanson, Philosophical Research Society, Manly P Hall, William Randolph Hearst, Hearst Castle, Esalen Institute, SLO, Monterey, Lawrence Livermore National Laboratory, MIC, LAX, Long Beach, downtown revitalization projects, TED, Rose Park, Rosicrucians, tortoise cult, oil, Port of Long Beach, Queen Mary, Spruce Goose, San Pedro, Sunken City, Asian American population, Hispanic community, Spanish, racial tension, churches, Orange County

Direct download: 136_The_Alchemical_Golden_State_of_California_part_2.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:43am EDT

California is a very important state. This podcast is the first in a series in which Aaron will talk about California's esoteric significance, history, industry, and many other things that make it unique. Going West in search of Gold exemplifies the multifold occult project that is the United States of America. All such projects end where the sun sets. Sunset Boulevard is a famous road in Los Angeles, but where exactly does it lead?

topics include: California, bear flag, Ursa Major, Callisto, alchemy, maritime navigation, exploration, colonization, Kali, goddess, Maryland, Mary, Mother, Krone, virgin, East, sun, birth of the sun, creation act, America, Washington DC, Virginia, chemical marriage, sunset, death, the Destroyer, Sunset Blvd, Pacific, water, West, 49ers, gold mining, prospecting, symbolic meaning, historical metaphor, red and gold, intellect, industry, film industry, waking dreams, mind, technology, Silicon Valley, Palo Alto, promise of future, computers, virtual worlds, Saturn, Kronos, Judaism, LA Jewish community, City of Angels, US Bank Tower, magic, Hollywood, Hollywood Babylon, Citadel outlet mall, Cherubim, William Mulholland, California Water Wars, desert, city building, Freemasonry, Mulholland Drive, stars, sky, thousand points of light

 

Direct download: 135_The_Alchemical_Golden_State_of_California_part_1_1.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 10:19pm EDT

The final episode of book notes on Tragedy and Hope. Aaron finishes up reading from his notes, and gives some added commentary on the book as a whole.

topics include: China, traditional society, agrarian reform, communism, anomie, Greek thought, MIC, ideological warfare, free energy, controlled conflict, liberalism, party politics, petty-bourgeois, Eastern Establishment, government-dependent corporations, old money, middle-class outlook, US education system, literature, Ernest Hemingway, Barry Goldwater, psychodynamics of family, private schools, doctors, irrational vs rational thought, sovereignty

Direct download: 134_Tragedy_and_Hope_book_notes_part_5.mp3
Category:book notes -- posted at: 12:29pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review The Brotherhood of the Bell, a made for TV film that is well known in alternative media. This podcast is in the same vain as the previous episode which was a review of Rosemary's Baby. The theme of secret society membership, and more specifically how to break from the cult and expose it, is explored here.

Topics include: secret societies, Skull and Bones, cults, discrediting whistleblowers, mystique, Freemasonry, burden of proof, emotional distress, psychology, bells, initiation ritual, hand symbolism, dependency on establishment, vanity, FBI, shield, government seals, ideals, daytime television, talk show, audience, extremists, conspiracy, diverting attention, George W Bush, John Kerry, homeless people, paying dues, alternative media, manipulation

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep9_Brotherhood_of_the_Bell-custom_podcasting_MP3.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 12:16pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the original 1968 version of Rosemary's Baby by infamous director Roman Polanski. At the least this film points out some very real aspects of cult behavior, but to what extent are the darker occult practices it portrays real?

Topics include: cults, 1960s, sexual revolution, witches coven, occult rituals, sex magic, Aleister Crowley, black magic, dreams, consciousness, confusion, psychology, fragility of human psyche, Roman Polanski, satanism

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep8_Rosemarys_Baby.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 12:13pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie The Machine. This is yet another film about artificial intelligence development, but is unique in that it portrays transhuman technologies being developed by the military. Do independent productions tell the truth while Hollywood deceives, or is there more to the story than that?

Topics include: recurring memes, similar films, military, Ai, artificial intelligence, human enhancement technologies, converging technologies, test on veterans, government testing, cold war with China, Hugo de Garis, Ben Goertzel, confusion, intelligence tactics, cognitive dissonance, counterintelligence, public affairs, purpose of the podcast, underground facility, recruitment, ambiguous love interest, family, father, mother, daughter, brain child, plot, background check, area 6, old woman, death and rebirth, mind uploading, machine consciousness, ritual, Vincent, Ava, ethics, corruption, archetypes, character development, transhumanism, killing machine, emotion, sun rise, new day, machine brought to life, Tron Legacy, Bladerunner, music, soundtrack, good overcoming evil, overthrowing the creator, creation coming into godhood, occult, speech, synthetic telepathy, communication, movies with parallel themes released simultaneously, alchemy, demographics, muses, changing values

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep7_The_Machine.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 12:09pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie Transcendence. Johnny Depp stars as a Kurzweil-like Ai researcher who is assassinated only to be given second life by uploading his consciousness into a machine. What seems to be an obvious Singularity sales pitch has a bit of a twist.

Topics include: Johnny Depp, Will Caster, Ai researcher, uploading consiousness into computer, quantum computing, TED, neo-luddites, RIFT, Ray Kurzweil, artificial intelligence, transhumanism, singularity, radical, dialectic, debate, bad reviews, sci-fi, Hugo de Garis, Max Waters, name meanings, magician, Castor and Pollux, mythology, gemini, Brightwood, ash, Evelyn, life giving, sunflower, DoD, government money, independent research, transhuman project, humanitarian goals, internet, underground base, solar panels, resurrection, Jesus, nanotechnology, superhuman strength, drones, hive mind, collective, retain individuality, playing to innate fears, use of established tropes, the Borg, military, FBI, shifting allegiances, digital consciousness, nanites, rebuild and upgrade, tragedy, reversal of antagonists, moral ambiguity, incite guilt in audience, nature, Aubrey de Grey, tech hippie, garden, apocalypse, water

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep6_Transcendence.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 12:04pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie Her. By far the best movie reviewed on this podcast to date, Her is a film that addresses many complex issues. This film is set in the near future, but is quite obviously a commentary on our current situation, specifically the relationship between humans and their machines.

topics include: Spike Jonze, occult symbolism, alchemy, reproduction, brain child, idea made manifest, spiritual journey, sexual energies, American Beauty, disenfranchised male, virility, Spirit boat, water, ship, multilayered meaning, 7 layers, religion, saviors, messianic complex, saving yourself, converging technologies, subconscious, secret life, intimacy, surrogate sex partner, avatars, real dolls, psychology, personality types, meaning of names, Samantha, Theodore, listener, gift, god, idolatry, man in love with his own creation, technology as a crutch, honesty, introspection, art of multiplication, escapism, fantasy

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep5_Her_part_2.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 12:02pm EDT

This is the fourth installment in a podcast series of book notes. Carroll Quigley's Tragedy and Hope is the book. Aaron Franz is your host as he reads from his notes and gives his commentary on this very important historical work. 

 

topics include: Cold War, cover wars, CIA, intelligence agencies, guerrilla warfare, US, Soviet Union, John Foster Dulles, neo-isolationists, Carroll Quigley, Atomic Bomb, Stalin, Mao Tse-Tung, China, Chiang Kai Shek, communism, National Security Act, National Security Council, MIC, NATO, McCarthyism, HUAC, secrecy, open source intelligence, counterintelligence, disinformation, confusion, tax exempt fortunes, Foundations, elite families, JP Morgan, control of academia, Ivy League, Wall Street, Carnegie, Whitney, Rockefeller, Vanderbilt, Mellon, Duke, DuPont, Ford, inheritance tax, control of federal government, infiltration of radical leftwing politics, New Republic magazine, Payne Whitney, Mike Straight, George Peabody, Lamont, Institute of Pacific Relations, IPR, New York, Far East studies, Lionel Curtis, Roundtable Group, Lord Milner, international banking fraternity, front organizations, Royal Institute of International Affairs, RIIA, Council on Foreign Relations, CFR, Versailles Peace Conference, London, Jerome Greene, General Motors, Eisenhower, USAF, Oppenheimer, secret police, great purges, collective farms, agro-towns, revolts, inefficiency of Soviet system, Khrushchev, Titoism, Stalinism, public corporations, Yugoslavia, Eastern Europe, de-Stalinization, Japan, Southeast Asia, Ho Chi Minh, corruption, Mossadegh, Iran, AIOC, oil cartel, Allen Dulles, military dictatorships, Zionism, Muslim Brotherhood, Egypt, Cuban Missile Crisis, Latin America, ideas, values, Brazil, birthrates, Arab culture, Guatemala, United Fruit, Bay of Pigs

Direct download: 133_Tragedy_and_Hope_book_notes_part_4.mp3
Category:book notes -- posted at: 12:59pm EDT

This is the third installment of book notes for Quigley's Tragedy and Hope. In this podcast series Aaron goes through his notes on this infamous history book. 

topics include: international banking, Rothschild, Paribas, Lille-Lyons Axis, France, Rockefeller, JP Morgan, FDR, economics, New Deal, deficit spending, national debt, pluralist economy, technocracy, Russia, China, Chiang Kai-Shek, communism, Britain, Round Table Group, RIIA, Spanish Civil War, propaganda, Germany, WWII, British appeasement to Germany, America, UN organizations set up before war's end, German slave labor, allied bombing of Germany, Office of Scientific Research and Development, Atom Bomb, cybernetics, Manhattan Project, General Leslie R Groves, no actual nuclear secrets, FBI, technological society, fall of democracy 

Direct download: 132_Tragedy_and_Hope_book_notes_part_3.mp3
Category:book notes -- posted at: 10:51pm EDT

Aaron continues his series of book notes on Quigley's Tragedy and Hope. The infamous Milner Group is mentioned here as well as more info on international banking.

topics include: history, British Empire, John Ruskin, Rothschild, Alfred Beit, De Beers, Cecil Rhodes, Roundtable Group, Milner Group, Africa, Gandhi, Lionel Curtis, occult religion, death and rebirth, India, China, farming, industrialization, revolutionary secret societies, Japan, Meiji oligarchy, Shintoism, the Genro, Council of Elder Statesmen, Russia, Triple Alliance, Triple Entente, Balfour Declaration, Lusitania, WWI, propaganda, Council of Ten, peace conferences, Versailles, international bankers, Germany, reparations, Bank of International Settlements, Montagu Norman, Benjamin Strong, Reconstruction Finance Corporation, Stalin, Five Year Plans, collectivism, reign of terror, Prussia, joint stock banks, I.G. Farben, financial and credit institutions

Direct download: 131_Tragedy_and_Hope_book_notes_part_2.mp3
Category:book notes -- posted at: 4:16pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie Her. By far the best movie reviewed on this podcast to date, Her is a film that addresses many complex issues. This film is set in the near future, but is quite obviously a commentary on our current situation, specifically the relationship between humans and their machines.

Topics include: human relationships with machines, artificial intelligence, Ai, AGI, computer products, human relationships, loneliness, disconnect, fragility of human condition, sexuality, search for genuine, philosophy, Scarlet Johansson, Joaquin Phoenix, emotional issues, identity, ascension, seasons, attachment, romantic relationships, self reflection, dependence on technology, virtual vs real, video games, alienation, cell phones, neurosis, communication, emotional intelligence, male and female, divine feminine, alchemical marriage, archetypes, symbolism, spirit, dating, Olivia Wilde, baggage, working on self, moving beyond your past, acknowledge faults, psyche, dysfunctional relationship, spirituality, transhumanism, materialism, inability to understand Ai motives, art direction, retro look, Alan Watts, upload consciousness to machine, Ray Kurzweil, transhuman agendas, idealism, evolution

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep5_Her_part_1.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 2:41pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie Now You See Me. This is a film about four stage magicians whose rise to prominence involves a mesmerizing bank robbery. Their act has everything to do with initiation into an elite secret society called The Eye. What sort of occult messages are hidden within this Hollywood blockbuster? Listen to Themes and Memes to find out.

Topics include: magic, stage magic, magicians, tarot cards, Las Vegas, 4 Horsemen, apocalypse, money, rob bank, free the slaves, occult, secret societies, the eye, initiation ritual, Morgan Freeman, Mark Ruffalo, sleight of hand, stage, altar to Dionysus, drama, Eyes Wide Shut, leap of faith, action film, genre, appeal to wide audience, change the world, alchemy, adepts, carousel, light, The Fool, wise man, detachment, double meanings, zodiac, misdirection, death and rebirth, ego, the destroyer, truth, charlatans, Eisenberg, wit, take from rich give to poor, New Orleans, Hurricane Katrina, justice, Freemasonry, benevolence, Paris, lock and key, reveal credits, Boaz Yakin, pseudonym, twin pillars, temple gate, water, symbolism, masculine and feminine, science tied to mystery tradition, hidden in plain sight, subtlety, allegory

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep4_Now_You_See_Me-custom_podcasting_MP3.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 2:36pm EDT

On this installment of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron review the movie Assault on Wall Street. In the film a man loses it all, and decides to exact revenge against the Wall Street based financial system that ruined his life. He gains his vengeance by going on a mass killing spree. Is this meant to be a radical revolutionary example for real people to emulate?

Topics include: Assault on Wall Street, movie, action, film, review, stock, insurance, mortgage bubble, character, archetype, every man, instincts, emotions, identification, real problems, poverty, financial crash, economics, depression, stock market, news clips, Bush, Obama, reality, Occupy Wall Street, violence, revolutionary rhetoric, patriot movement, banking system, police, corruption, justice, antihero, vigilante, morality, indiscriminate killing, mass shooting, Washington sniper, video game, frustration, end speech, Huxley Investments, CEO, Social Darwinism, greed, America, Rockefeller, conspiratorial view of history, capitalism, counterculture, mind control, evocative themes, catharsis, Guy Fawkes mask, Anonymous, strange scenes, demographics, mainstream, Purple Pill, revolution, intelligentsia, change, social collapse, Christianity, pastors speech, passive to aggressive, terrorism, suicide, terrible movie, triggers

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep3_Assault_on_Wall_Street.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 2:33pm EDT

This is the first episode of the new podcast series, Themes and Memes. Hosted by Aaron and Adam the podcast will consist mainly of movie reviews. Each episode will focus on uncovering the predictive programming elements of a certain movie. The movie being reviewed here is Elysium.

Topics include: Themes and Memes, first episode, movies, popular culture, films, culture, ideas, Elysium, review, future of humanity, transhumanism, predictive programming, turmoil, revolution, overpopulation, pollution, Los Angeles, language, climate change, perception, ruling elite, pentagram, steering wheel, hand symbolism, science fiction, space travel, medical science, life extension, biotech, genetics, Google, Silicon Valley, resource based economy, social stratification, hero, Matt Damon, slavery, 2154, Strat Trends document, crime, Jodie Foster, female authority, secretary of state, homeland security, protect children, robotic exoskeleton, DARPA, Kruger, Neill Blomkamp, District 9, bureaucrat, minion of system, betrayal, vaccinations, pills, pacification, THX 1138, robots, degradation, dehumanization, police state, unmanned drones, surveillance, director's statements, Carlyle, MIC, names, CHEMRAIL, chemtrails, decapitation, Greek mythology, symbolism, occult, esoteric, Elysian Fields, heaven, language, Rome, Latin, Greek, Spanish, educated elite, Medusa, serpents, knowledge, medicine, immortality, Kruger, raven, Apollo, surveillance, death, sun god, hero, radiation, Matt Damon, fire, sacrifice, solar power, savior, Leo astrological sign, courage, Max name, free the slaves, plot devices, Los Angeles, social stratification, Mexico and California, decapitation, rebirth, head, brain implant, skull, temple, crown chakra, cryptography, year 2030, dates, numerology, Pythagoras, math and science, intelligence, MRC, Rosicrucian, mercy, religion, benevolent dictators, actual present masked as future narrative

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep2_Elysium_Hour_2.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 2:26pm EDT

 

Carroll Quigley's massive historical tome, Tragedy and Hope, has been much quoted in the conspiracy/alternative research community. There is good reason for this as the occult world of international banking is presented in some detail in this book. In this new podcast series, Aaron reads from his notes on Tragedy and Hope.

 

 

 

 

topics include: GSG and Associates, San Pedro, Carroll Quigley, history, central banks, book quotes, macrohistory, Evolution of Civilizations, Great Britain, economics, bankers, Europe, Russia, Germany, Meyer Amschel Rothschild, JP Morgan, George Peabody and Company, dynastic bloodlines, private banks, eschatology, Turkey, Saxe-Coburg Gotha, Baghdad Railway Project, oil

Direct download: 130_Tragedy_and_Hope_book_notes_part_1.mp3
Category:book notes -- posted at: 1:00am EDT

Aaron shares a little of his personal history as he contemplates his own future, and talks about his experiences in the world of alternative research and media production. Sometimes it is worthwhile to take a long and winding path in order to go back to where you started.

topics include: art school, animation, 9/11, truth movement, conspiracy, pattern recognition, religion

Direct download: 129_Truth_Religion_and_Animation.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 1:09am EDT

Aaron does a quick podcast about autonomous robotic systems. Many jobs that are now performed by humans will be done by machines in the near future. So the question is what should we be doing about this now?

topics include: Ai, robotics, autonomous systems, self-driving cars, FIRST competition, DARPA Grand Challenge, academia, military, transportation, Silicon Valley

Direct download: 128_The_Present_and_Future_of_Autonomous_Systems.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:10pm EDT

Musician and author Sand Sheff comes on Trans Resister Radio to talk about his book Real is Good. Technology advances at an exponential rate as a great story unfolds. What is the key to understanding this story, and who exactly is the story-teller? These sorts of questions and more and explored in this interview.

Topics include: technology, society, spiritual experiences, mass mind manipulation, implantable technology, science fiction, transhumanism, Kurweil, Dmitry Itskof, Michio Kaku, Lewis Mumford, religion and science, belief systems, power structures, free will, Real is Good, What the Fire Said, storytelling, fire, light, centralization, mimicking nature, computer network, Singularity, Google, specialization, IT, language, net, web, Apple, the Law, robotic infrastructure, automated tyranny, mass production, the idea and the choice, spiritual revival movements, survival instinct, the Great Revulsion, cognitive dissonance, consciousness, Ai, Mt St Helens, Bill Gates, Microsoft, Bellevue WA, IBM

Direct download: 127_Sand_Sheff_interview_Real_is_Good.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 4:50pm EDT

Tom Secker comes back on Trans Resister Radio to have a discussion with Aaron about leaving YouTube. Both Tom and Aaron have decided to ditch their channels, and they list off a number of their reasons for doing so here.

 

 

 

 

Topics include: YouTube, Google, content creators, Vimeo, copyright infringement, flagged, 7/7 Crime and Prejudice, community guidelines, user interface, Google Plus, Facebook, Google Video, abusive relationship, CIA, social experimentation via internet, free market, regulation, corporate fascism, alternative video sharing websites, iTunes, music industry, ads, Deep Mining Corporation, The Age of Transitions, user generated content, selling private information, overvalued stock, intelligence value, dark alchemy, Youtube Exodus Project, view count, addiction, channel surfing, TV, sensationalism, transhumanism, human relationships, attention, alienation, comments, virtual reality, Ray Kurzweil, Ai

Direct download: 126_Tom_Secker_interview_Leaving_YouTube.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 12:09am EDT

 

JP Sears is the creator of the hilarious Ultra Spiritual Life series of videos on Youtube. A satire of the new age, these videos are more than just entertainment. They are also a form of therapy. In this interview JP explains that they offer him a chance to deal with some of the aspects of his own shadow-side.

Topics include: Youtube channel, emotional healing, Ultra Spiritual Life, satire, comedy, spiritual seekers, shadow, meditation, yoga, being too serious, disconnection from self, spirituality, dogma, sense of control, gray area, mystery, ego, sense of safety, sense of self, rebirth, journey, finding meaning, ayahuasca, addiction, Carl Jung, soul, feelings, Southern California, progressive shadow, futility of debate, vegetarianism, gluten, power of viewer, art, acceptance, external and internal world, perfection, creativity, higher purpose

Direct download: 125_JP_Sears_interview_Ultra_Spiritual_Life.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 4:22pm EDT

In this interview Pearse Redmond shares some of his research and thoughts on Scientology and cults in general. What is a destructive cult, and why would anyone join one in the first place? A better question might be: what pseudo-cults have I, myself been involved in, and to what extent? Human nature is ours, but it is also the Garden from which the guru attempts to pick Forbidden Fruit.

 

 

 

 

Topics include: cults, Scientology, Tom Cruise, Hollywood, Going Clear, destructive cults, religion, Sea Org, gurus, L Ron Hubbard, CIA, Unification Church, Moonies, Radio Free Asia, Operation Snow White, IRS, tax exempt, David Miscavige, SRI, saving the world, Peoples Temple, hypnotism, terrorism, brainwashing, blame the victim, superhuman powers, engrams, auditing, conception, abortion, Dianetics, occult, Alesiter Crowley, magic, celebrities, secret societies, pseudo-cults, Alcoholics Anonymous, groupthink, elections, children, instant acceptance, guilt, disconnection, illusion of no personal control, depression, internet, political cults, alt media, 9/11 truth, National Socialism, looking for answers, Libertarianism, Stephan Molyneux, DeFooing, shut out family, Gold Standard, absolutism, advertising, changing labels, branding, racism, exploitation

Direct download: 124_Pearse_Redmond_interview_Scientology_and_other_cults.mp3
Category:interview -- posted at: 12:18am EDT

What appeared to be a grassroots protest rallying against the dangers of artificial intelligence was no more than a marketing stunt. One designed to sell an online dating app of all things. The inability to understand abstract ideas has led us to a point where marketing holds tremendous sway over our lives.

topics include: Stop the Robots, SXSW, marketing, artificial intelligence, grassroots movements, Adam Mason, media, protests, politics, counter-intelligence, infiltration, admitting our faults, transhumanism, Ray Kurzweil, attention, ideas, images, alchemy, mystique, subjectivity vs objectivity, perception, rationalization, Four Arguments For the Elimination of Television, Jerry, Mander, seeing is believing, subconscious, mind, abstract concepts

Direct download: 123_Ai_Protest_Marketing_Scheme.mp3
Category:social commentary -- posted at: 1:25am EDT

Please note that Themes and Memes has a new dedicated feed and website. Be sure to check out tmpodcast.com and subscibe to the feed as future episodes will be posted there exclusively.

 

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep16_Jupiter_Ascending.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 1:34am EDT

Aaron gives some added points on past podcasts. The World Stage concept continues to be important in its relation to what is said here.

topics include: Carlisle PA, Carlisle Indian Industrial School, Jim Thorpe, Great Sioux War, Benjamin Franklin, David Lynch, Andy Kaufman, performance art, trickster spirit, nothing is real, transcendental meditation, cosmic consciousness, truth, relief, relaxation, religion, cults, Michael Richards, Laurel Canyon, Dennis Hopper, Laura Dern, Bruce Dern, films, Hollywood, Blue Velvet, Mulholland Drive.

Direct download: 122_Tying_up_loose_ends.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

This is a special roundtable discussion featuring Thomas Sheridan, Tom Secker, and Adam of Themes and Memes. Aaron Franz hosts, and the topic at hand is the rise of Race Politics in the alternative media. Why is it that alt media has taken such a dark turn, and what can the rest of us do about it?

topics include: racism, alternative, Truth Movement, psychology, frustration, psychic energy, Russell Brand, Adolf Hitler, National Socialism, midlife crisis, no resolution, masculine and feminine, dialectic, far right politics, Nazi Sympathy, revisionist history, personal values, obsession with disaster, sincerity, drug addiction, White Nationalism, division, mainstream recognition, self destruction, complexity, human nature, dogma, simple identity, reassessing self, need to belong, extended adolescence, The Greatest Story Never Told, emotive music, Hallmark commercial for Third Reich, Transformers score, WW2, narrative, Stalingrad, German people, Poland, distorted logic, truth documentaries, futurism, Nazi flying saucers, Nazi Bell, propaganda, Goebbels, taking allegory as literal, cults, ideals, synchronicity, Walpurgis Night, confronting history, ideological vacuum, idealizing the past, virility, doublethink, confusion, Nuremburg Racial Laws, play the victim, race politics, slavery, preserving culture, multiculturalism, cultural laws, authoritarian government, complexity, sectarianism, Downfall film


Everyone knows that David Lynch has a dark side, but what about his enlightened side? As it turns out this might just represent the darkest thing that Lynch has to offer. There is certainly more going on than is to be seen on the surface when it comes to transcendental meditation and its most famous proponent.

topics include: Berlin presentation, Invincible Germany, performance art, video, body language, David Wants to Fly, transcendental meditation, cult, spiritual concepts, baseless optimism, heavy unstressing, dissociation, depersonalization, derealization, Russell Brand, Ellen Degeneres, Jerry Seinfeld, Ringo Starr, Martin Scorsese, fact and fiction, ideas, esoteric, mystique, films, occult, lighting, dreams, sexual perversion, violence, altered states of consciousness, mind control, DID, dissociative identity disorder, Mulholland Drive, nihilism, audience, confusion, new age, magic

Direct download: 120_David_Lynch_the_cult_of_TM_and_mind_control.mp3
Category:social commentary -- posted at: 9:00am EDT

In this episode of Themes and Memes Adam and Aaron take a trip down memory lane as they talk about a number of films that they watched in their younger days. Many classics from the 80s and 90s are looked at in terms of predicitive programming and culture creation.

 

 

 

 

 

topics include: Short Circuit, MIC, occult, lightning, alchemy, gold, Terminator, Terminator 2, James Cameron, machines, transhumanism, Ai, film franchises, Aliens, Transformers, Optimus Prime, cartoons, trauma, arrested development, independent films, color, Top Gun, Navy, Tony Scott, suicide, homosexuality, Jurassic Park, genetic engineering, remakes, Total Recall, Judge Dredd, changing morality, Lion King, caste system, Social Darwinism, Disney, mind control, 1993, Jacques Ellul, propaganda, ideas as resources, subconscious

Direct download: Themes_and_Memes_ep_15_A_look_back_to_past_movies.mp3
Category:movie review -- posted at: 1:01pm EDT

Hang in there as Aaron preaches about exercise, because later he deals with the incredibly pressing issue of the 2015 Grammy Awards. People do tend to get worked up about such events, but what kind of performances nearly always go unnoticed?

 

 

 

 

topics include: cycling, exercise, weight training, making time, health, Grammy Awards, Kanye West, Beck, performers, stage, world stage, reality and fiction, subtlety, Andy Kaufman, theater of war, presidents, actors, speech writers, propaganda, perception

Direct download: 119_Veiled_Performance_Art_in_Pop_Culture.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:35pm EDT

The autobiography of Benjamin Franklin has always been steeped in controversy. Keeping this tradition alive here, Aaron examines some of the darker elements of this book. 

 

topics include: Benjamin Franklin, William Temple Franklin, printing, media, propaganda techniques, shaping pubic opinion, secret societies, Junto, American Indians, alcoholism, genocide, Pennsylvania, philosophy, science, Royal Society, Philadelphia Experiments

Direct download: 118_Benjamin_Franklins_Autobiography.mp3
Category:history -- posted at: 5:54pm EDT

Aaron suggests listening to one of the many interviews he's given lately. Internet radio shows and podcasts including Legalise Freedom, The Bridge with Kira, ClandesTime, The Ripple Effect, and Reality Bytes are the most recent. These shows are all either posted online now, or will be very soon. Check out the "Press" tab at ageoftransitions.com to listen to them.

Direct download: 117_Update_on_recent_interviews.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 11:19pm EDT

What begins as a reading from Carroll Quigley's Tragedy and Hope ends up as a critique of the alternative media at large. Society itself is in a state of tragic confusion, of anomie, but what about the alternative sphere? Should we not be offering some sort of solution to that great problem, instead of piling more refuse onto an already massive landfill of nonsense?

 

 

 

 

topics include: Carroll Quigley, Roundtable Group, Milner Group, Cecil Rhodes, Lord Milner, Ango-American Establishment, British colonization, anomie, confusion, loss of morality, addiction, sociology, alternative media, right wing, reactionary movements, masses, angry mob, occult, religion, Christianity, Bible, simplistic views, contradictions, Mystery Tradition, secret societies, occult knowledge

Direct download: 116_Anomie_in_an_Age_of_Transitions.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 5:49pm EDT

Drama, theater, and acting are rife with occult significance. The stage is actually considered an altar to Dionysus. With this in mind Aaron explores the macrocosmic example of the World Stage.

 

 

 

 

topics include: world stage, Mystery Tradition, ancient history, initiation rituals, drama, consciousness, Shakespeare, Rosicrucians, actors, story, Dionysus, Osiris, God of the Vine, the stage, altar, news, world events, war, players, propaganda.

Direct download: 115_The_World_Stage_a_brief_introduction.mp3
Category:esoterica -- posted at: 12:16am EDT

Aaron keeps things casual as he talks about various topics. The show ends up with an exploration of the idea of Enlightenment. A difficult thing to nail down, Enlightenment is certainly a real phenomenon. Where it actually takes an individual is never certain until that person takes action on their own.

 

 

 

 

topics include: American Civil War, hidden history, Sam Houston, divide and conquer, confusion, Enlightenment, epiphany, different interpretations, good and evil, fear of death, devaluing life

 

Direct download: 114_Enlightenment_Both_Good_and_Evil.mp3
Category:general -- posted at: 8:35pm EDT

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