“When plunder becomes a way of life for a group of men, they create for themselves in the course of time, a legal system that authorizes it, and a moral code that glorifies it.” – Political economist Frederic Bastiat, The Law (1850)

As some of you may already know, Disinformation is helping to raise funds for Danny Schechter's latest film, Plunder: The Crime of Our Time — if you can contribute please go to KickStarter's Plunder page.

Here's a message from Danny below, thanks for your support.

— Ralph Bernardo, Disinformation

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I am an old-fashioned “follow-the-money” journalist. As I'm writing this, most economists have learned to downplay fear and panic and up-play the “resilience” of the market. It's a belief that all we need is confidence and then, all will be right with the world. Sadly, journalism has gone along with this charade by first denying the crisis and then avoiding investigating its architects and beneficiaries.

Three years ago, by choosing to be an “investigative” journalist, I made the film In Debt We Trust, with the idea in mind that I was examining “America before the Bubble bursts” (the subtitle of that film). My hope was I could transcend any political, partisan quibbles over the issue by warning of a credit crisis that would hurt people regardless of their politics. My effort was to examine how our economy had been restructured away from one that “makes things” into a service culture where credit card companies and mortgage firms finance our lifestyles—even when we can not afford them.

I did discover and illustrate in this film how subprime loans were ensnaring poor people, resulting in displacement and massive foreclosures. I even turned my continuing concern into a book called Plunder: Investigating Our Economic Calamity. In this, I warned of greater trouble ahead. The book came out in 2008, a week before Lehman Brothers went bankrupt.

After the so-called [stuff] hit the fan, what really tormented me was how poorly and superficially these issues were being covered by the mainstream media. Today more people, myself included, can confidently argue that Big Media was complicit in the crisis—by not reporting on what was really going on, and more so, taking billions in advertising revenues from dodgy lenders and greedy credit-card companies. The media was, without question, part of the problem.

And lately, the greatest media insult to inquiry came from Time magazine, by honoring Federal Reserve Chairman Ben Bernanke as 2009's “Man of the Year”—not for bringing the crisis to an end but for ensuring it didn’t get as bad as it might have been. Never mind Bernanke's refusal to act on the subprime, or rather “subcrime,” crisis when he had the chance to.

As I continued to re-examine my own view of this crisis, I asked myself and others informed on the subject—how could this happen?!? I began looking at the possibility that it was really a crime story, not just a business problem.

Not too long after I took this approach, “Ponzi King” Bernie Madoff surfaced as a bona-fide, white-collar criminal running a $65 billion-dollar scam. Madoff’s crimes started decades before our current global financial crisis, but his admission that “I knew what I was doing was wrong, indeed criminal” helped to foster my belief that this was crime, and not some “natural” economic event.

It was at this point I had enough conviction to start working on a documentary titled Plunder: The Crime Of Our Time—to make the case that our media and even our legal system are both ignoring. My approach is not to go after “bad men,” but a rotten system of fraudulent mortgages that first ripped off homeowners and then were bundled, securitized and resold with false values to banks and financial institutions. In the end, this gigantic complicated mess was insured by companies like AIG for the sole reason that they could be leveraged and borrowed against (in other words, to make tons of money).

This whole Three-Card Monte game ended up costing trillions of dollars to hundreds of millions of Americans who had no say in how this corrupt system really worked. Vanity Fair editor Graydon Carter aptly charged: “Never before have so few done so much to so many.” This is why I describe my current documentary as the “Crime of Our Time.”

My partners at GlobalVision and I have almost finished the film, and I'm very thrilled that The Disinformation Company is going to release Plunder in stores and online in April 2009. But before that can happens I need your help...

Plunder desperately needs a sound mix, color correction, the creation of DVD extras and authoring, all of which costs real money. The Disinformation Company is kicking in some of the funds, but with $3,000 more, we will be able to deliver the project, as we'd like to, for release.

If the guilty parties on Wall Street and in Washington are to be brought to justice and serve jail time, we must put maximum pressure on lawmakers, regulators, and attorney generals while the paper trail of evidence is still hot.

The recession may have been artificially-shortened and sweetened by the stimulus package, but thousands of people are still losing their jobs and their homes as a result of the fraudulent bailout, every day.

Please join me in pushing for a JAILOUT, not another bailout, for these criminals.

With as little as $20 you can really make a difference. Depending on your pledge I’ll give you anything from a free DVD of the finished film, to lunch with me on Wall Street (where I will gladly share my experience of making this film).

Thank you for your support,

Danny Schechter News Dissector, Mediachannel.org

So we are giving away copies of Jim Marrs' latest book, The Sisterhood of the Rose, (while supplies last!) to folks who tweet the following on Friday, December 18th:

And yes, the more you tweet this, the greater your chance is of receiving a free book.

For more information about The Sisterhood, please check out the companion website, www.SisterhoodoftheRose.org, and read this special message from the author.

Here's a trailer we made the book:



Jim Marrs will be doing some radio interviews where he'll discuss his new book, we'll definitely keep you posted. He'll be on Coast to Coast AM on Saturday, December 19th. In the meantime, the first FIVE chapters are available on Scribd for your reading pleasure. Enjoy!

For this Friday, December 11th we'd like to share the joy of Marty Beckerman, who was recently praised by talking head extraordinaire Andrew Sullivan for no less feat than, thinking.

So we're going to give away copies of Marty Beckerman's Dumbocracy: Adventures with the Loony Left, the Rabid Right, and Other American Idiots to 25 people (or more) who tweet the following on Friday, December 11th:

DUMBOCRACY author @martybeckerman is the greatest writer in the history of literature?!? @disinfo #martybeckerman http://bit.ly/8QZ6N3

Just to know what you're getting into, below is an excerpt of  Dumbocracy. The more you tweet the above phrase this Friday actually will increase your chance of mindmelding with Marty Beckerman himself.

So spread the joy of Marty over Twitter on Friday, we will be watching...



Still not convinced? Check out MartyBeckerman.com and Marty's musings on the Daily Beast.

Here at Disinformation we're big fans of StumbleUpon as a great way to find interesting content across the web. We have a profile at disinfo.stumbleupon.com and encourage disinfo.com visitors to join our "Stumble ring" to give the thumbs up on what stories you enjoy.



If you are a Firefox user, there's a great StumbleUpon Add-on that makes using StumbleUpon a cinch.

Hope you see more of you there, and please keep commenting on the stories on disinformation. All of us here at Disinformation really do enjoy the vigorous debates and the diversity of opinion that we always hope to attract. If you haven't tried out DISQUS it's a great tool for tracking your comments and conversations across various websites.

Thanks for visiting disinfo.com,

— Ralph Bernardo, Managing Editor, Disinformation

We invite you to head over to Justin.tv today from 2 to 3 PM (EST) for a chat with Disinformation founder Gary Baddeley about our documentary 2012: Science or Superstition and all things 2012:

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disinformation® Newsletter: Death of Money Edition edited by Ralph Bernardo Share disinformation by forwarding this email to a friend: Sign up right here for weekly Disinformation News! Get a free audio book courtesy of the Disinformation Podcasts, go to audiblepodcast.com/disinformation.

This Week in History: On August, 24, 1967 a group of hippies led by Abbie Hoffman, temporarily disrupt trading on the floor of the New York Stock Exchange by throwing dollar bills from the viewing gallery. The action caused a cease in trading as the brokers scramble to grab up the one-dollar bills.

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This episode features an interview with author and media wizard Douglas Rushkoff. We discuss his new book, Life Inc.: How the World Became a Corporation and How to Take It Back, his work as a media correspondent with the groundbreaking PBS series Frontline, and his long time interest in counterculture. Also available on iTunes! Brand NEW Disinformation Podcast T-shirts NOW available!

Enjoy the Top NEW 20 Stories posted to disinfo.com over the last 12 days. Need the latest disinfo.com updates? Follow us on Twitter!

Douglas Rushkoff: The Web's Dirtiest Site Posted by BattyMcDougall


Rare 'Star Wars' Images Posted by disinfogreg


How Is America Going To End? Four Theories from the World's Leading Futurologists... Posted by ralph


Bush's Shocking Biblical Prophecy Emerges: God Wants to 'Erase' Mid-East Enemies Posted by davidagillespie


Britain To Put CCTV Cameras Inside Private Homes Posted by ulysseslazarus


Operation Midnight Climax: The CIA, Hookers, And LSD Posted by JacobSloan


Blackwater Founder Implicated in Murder Posted by mcthorogood


Detroit's Feral Houses Posted by disinfogreg


Scientists Find Source Of Earth's Hum Posted by JacobSloan


The Great American Bubble Machine Posted by DrLechter


Advertisers Deserting Fox News' Glenn Beck Posted by majestic


Is Genius I.Q. Linked to Psychosis and Schizophrenia? Posted by moezilla


An End to Movements Posted by BattyMcDougall


Conservatives Go Mad Over White House 'Snitch Line' Posted by majestic


'Sewer Monster' Is Real. (Real Gross) Posted by disinfogreg


Manson's Lasting Legacy: 'Live Freaky, Die Freaky' Posted by majestic


Peanuts: Skinhead Culture and Me Posted by ulysseslazarus


Marty Beckerman Spermboarded (Video) Posted by majestic


The 'Family Guy' Abortion Episode Posted by bluemana


Jesse Ventura Hosts 'Conspiracy Theory' Posted by majestic

Read the first three chapters of The Sisterhood of the Rose, the new book from Jim Marrs, on Scribd!
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Late in World War II, Adolf Hitler is about to achieve his greatest victory: the capture of Solomon's Treasure, the world's most sacred treasure trove, representing both gold and precious gems as well as ancient knowledge. Can Giselle Tchaikovsky, a young American woman who achieved fame as a teenage ballet dancer in the 1930s, stop Hitler's dream of world conquest? Can the secret Sisterhood she creates do anything against the Nazi juggernaut of men and machines? The first novel from Jim Marrs follows his New York Times bestseller The Rise of the Fourth Reich. He uses his factual research into the Nazis' fascination with the occult and their search for iconic treasures as a basis for the novel.

More chapters of The Sisterhood of the Rose to be found in the Scribd Store. In stores November 2009, get your copy today on Amazon!


Find these great disinformation® documentaries available (right over your computer) via iTunes:

NEW from disinformation® books: Read the first three chapters of Jim Marrs' upcoming novel The Sisterhood of the Rose on Scribd!

Late in World War II, Adolf Hitler is about to achieve his greatest victory: the capture of Solomon's Treasure, the world's most sacred treasure trove, representing both gold and precious gems as well as ancient knowledge. He believes it will guarantee his dream of a thousand-year Reich. Can Giselle Tchaikovsky, a young American woman who achieved fame as a teenage ballet dancer in the 1930s, stop Hitler's dream of world conquest? Can the secret Sisterhood she creates do anything against the Nazi juggernaut of men and machines? Will the Sisterhood bring about a resurgence of the feminine goddess aspect of humanity in time to spare the world this madman's holocaust?

The first novel from Marrs, this book follows his New York Times bestseller The Rise of the Fourth Reich. He uses his factual research into the Nazis' fascination with the occult and their search for iconic treasures as a basis for the novel. Read the first three chapters of Jim Marrs' new book The Sisterhood of the Rose for FREE on Scribd! Then find more chapters in the Scribd Store. In stores November 2009, pre-order a copy today on Amazon!

This episode features an interview with occult author and Rock and Roll Hall of Fame member Gary Lachman. Ray and Joe discuss the history of the Western occult tradition and how it became a major influence on the counterculture of the '60s.Turn off your mind, this week on Disinformation: The Podcast. Always available at www.disinfo.com/podcasts.

Get a free audio book on us! Go to audiblepodcast.com/disinformation.

Disinformation: The Podcast is hosted by Raymond Wiley and Joe McFall.

Brilliant thoughts, comments, or a story suggestion? Go to www.disinfo.com.

Digg Link is HERE!




Before iTunes, there was "free" music on Napster. Find out how that impacts what you'll find on iTunes today...

Don't Just Watch, RIP! This Film: What would it mean if, ten years ago this month, we did not have the ability to share files freely online? The whole idea of sharing viral videos through a site like YouTube would be completely gone. Forget about sharing photos with your family and friends on Flickr, and even those ever-present LOLcats (this is perhaps a mixed blessing).

Would we be listening to music over the Internet on such sites as Pandora, or downloading songs without having to buy the whole album from a virtual "record store" like iTunes? Simply stated, the Internet is the most effective way human beings have ever devised to share their ideas.

The question of how easy — or not — it is for us to share our music, photos, videos, all our creative works or any media — is the focus of Brett Gaylor's definitive documentary of the digital age: RIP! A Remix Manifesto.


SEE the trailer on YouTube and FIND RIP! the way you'd like to WATCH IT. Available as:




Support open culture! Proceeds from this film help contribute to the Open Source Cinema Project.


Brilliant thoughts, comments, or a story suggestion? Go to www.disinfo.com.

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disinformation® Newsletter: Stones Edition edited by Ralph Bernardo Share disinformation by telling to a friend: Sign up right here for weekly Disinformation News! Get a free audio book courtesy of the Disinformation Podcasts, go to audiblepodcast.com/disinformation.

This Weekend in History: The Stonewall riots were a series of spontaneous, violent demonstrations against a police raid that took place in the early morning hours of June 28, 1969 at the Stonewall Inn, in the Greenwich Village neighborhood of New York City. They are cited as a defining moment in American history, marking the start of the gay rights movement in the U.S. and around the world.

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There are about 1,000 stone circles in the British Isles. If you include other megalithic monuments such as stone rows, long barrows, cairns, cists, standing stones and others, the number runs to tens of thousands. Yet most people can only name one: Stonehenge. More than two years in the making, this documentary takes you from the tip of Cornwall to the Scottish Isles on an unforgettable journey through the landscape of our ancient past. On a scale never attempted before, two and a quarter hours of stunning photography reveals a landscape filled with enigma, mystery and more than a few surprises.

Enjoy the Top NEW 20 Stories posted to disinfo.com over the last 12 days. Need the latest disinfo.com updates? Follow us on Twitter!

1. Iranian Elections: The 'Stolen Elections' Hoax Posted by DrLechter


2. 45 Famous Last Meals Posted by disinfogreg


3. The Coming Insurrection Starts In Union Square NYC Posted by majestic


4. Orthodox Church To Unveil Ark of the Covenant? Posted by majestic


5. Japanese Pair Arrested in Italy with U.S. Bonds Worth $134 Billion Posted by ralph


6. Neo-Nazis Are in the Army Now Posted by ralph


7. 'Young Con' Rappers On Fox Posted by JacobSloan


8. Scientology Secrets & Scandals Exposed By High Level Defectors Posted by majestic


9. When DuPont Almost Overthrew the Government Posted by Join_Or_DIE


10. Old-Fashioned Medical Advertising: Cocaine, Alcohol, Heroin, Amphetamines Posted by JacobSloan


11. Jesus, Now Appearing on Your Cat's Butt Posted by disinfogreg


12. Photoshopped Rallies In Iran Posted by JacobSloan


13. Huge Pre-Stonehenge Complex Found Via 'Crop Circles' Posted by majestic


14. Blurred Out: 51 Things You Aren't Allowed to See on Google Maps Posted by ralph


15. World Attention For Jointing-Smoking Speech-Giving Student Posted by JacobSloan


16. Woman Must Pay Record Companies $2 Million For File Sharing Posted by JacobSloan


17. Orwell's '1984': Sixty Years Later Posted by ralph


18. North Korea May Fire Missile At U.S. On Independence Day Posted by majestic


19. Stephen Colbert Discusses Bohemian Grove Posted by ralph


20. Rock Music and the Occult Posted by ralph

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Satanic rockers in Iran, Scientology's European woes, and DARPA's psychic soldiers of the future, and more on our podcast of Disinformation World News — also available on iTunes. Brand NEW Disinformation Podcast T-shirts NOW available! Disinformation Interview: Meet the EyeBorg Rob Spence!

Find these great disinformation® documentaries available (right over your computer) via iTunes:

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The disinformation® original feature documentary 2012: Science Or Superstition and many other films are available on DVD at the Disinformation Store. Use Coupon Code 2012 during checkout to receive a 20.12% discount with your total Disinformation order (applies to all Disinfo books and DVDs).


More Ways To Connect with Disinformation:

Find us on MySpace and read the Disinfo MySpace Blog.

Join the Disinformation Facebook Group and Facebook Fan Page.

Disinfo Chat is Back! Find old friends in our Disinformation meebo room.

Latest Disinformation catalog available here.

Add us to your Technorati favorites.

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Brilliant thoughts, comments, or a story suggestion? Go to www.disinfo.com.

To celebrate the theatrical opening of RIP! A Remix Manifesto in New York (92Y Tribeca on June 19th and the Cinema Village on June 22nd) we want to put YOU up on the big screen! it's simple, here's how, go to www.opensourcecinema.org/remixnyc.

Before:




Remixed:




RSVP for RIP! NYC screenings here and here.


Find a RIP! Screening Near You: www.ripremix.com/screenings


For those of you you can't make a screening, RIP! is available in many forms:





OR Pay Your Own Price at


OR AVAILABLE ON DVD June 30th on Amazon and everywhere DVDs are sold.


Support open culture! Proceeds from this film help contribute to the Open Source Cinema Project.


Here's the trailer:




Help spread the word on this important and intriguing film!

— Ralph Bernardo, Disinformation (www.disinfo.com)


FIND MORE DISINFORMATION:

Newsletter   Podcast     Twitter     Facebook Group

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disinformation® Newsletter: Fear and Loathing Edition edited by Ralph Bernardo Share disinformation by telling a friend: Sign up right here for weekly Disinformation News! Get a free audio book courtesy of The Disinformation Podcasts, go to audiblepodcast.com/disinformation.

My brother need not be idealized or enlarged in death beyond what he was in life, to be remembered simply as a good and decent man, who saw wrong and tried to right it, saw suffering and tried to heal it, saw war and tried to stop it. — Senator Edward M. Kennedy

Today's Moment in History: The assassination of Senator Robert F. Kennedy took place shortly after midnight on June 5, 1968 in Los Angeles, California. Kennedy was killed during celebrations of his successful campaign in the Californian primary elections while seeking the Democratic presidential nomination.

The perpetrator was 24-year-old Sirhan Sirhan, who remains incarcerated for this crime as of 2009. The shooting was recorded on audio tape by a freelance newspaper reporter, while the aftermath was captured on film. His death prompted the protection of presidential candidates by the United States Secret Service. Hubert Humphrey went on to win the Democratic nomination for the presidency, but ultimately lost the election to Richard Nixon.

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Satanic rockers in Iran, Scientology's European woes, and DARPA's psychic soldiers of the future, this week on our podcast of Disinformation World News — also available on iTunes. Brand NEW Disinformation Podcast T-shirts NOW available! Disinformation Interview: Meet the EyeBorg Rob Spence!

Enjoy the Top NEW 20 Stories posted to disinfo.com over the last 12 days. Need the latest disinfo.com updates? Follow us on Twitter!

1. Brazilian Household-Object Drug Concoctions Posted by JacobSloan


2. Fear and Loathing: The Board Game Posted by ralph


3. 2010 Olympic Torch Looks Like A Joint Posted by JacobSloan


4. Red Bull Cola's Secret Ingredient: Cocaine! Posted by majestic


5. Gef, The Talking Mongoose Posted by kultra


6. Boy Chosen By Dalai Lama Turns Back on Buddhist Order Posted by disinfogreg


7. Note to U.S. Drug War: Netherlands to Close Prisons for Lack of Criminals Posted by EasyRider


8. Get Ready Humanity, Because Space Is a Freak Show Posted by ralph


9. BART Police: Resist and We Will Kill You Posted by hypnos1


10. The 10 Most Revealing Psychological Experiments Posted by HAL9000


11. Marijuana At The Tipping Point Posted by majestic


12. The Science Of Voodoo: When Mind Attacks Body Posted by davidagillespie


13. Milk is a Gateway Drug to Bourbon Posted by EasyRider


14. Bilderberg Fears Losing Control In Chaos-Plagued World Posted by majestic


15. Around 100 'Blood-Drinking' Satan-Worshippers Arrested In Iran Posted by davidagillespie


16. U.S. Doctors' Association Calls for Moratorium on GMO Foods Posted by god


17. Chernobyl Fallout Could Drive Evolution of 'Space Plants' Posted by SpaceNeedle


18. Tweets of Hate: The Crazy Right Twitters About the Assassination of Dr Tiller Posted by majestic


19. Busted, Pentagon: Why The Photos Probably Do Show Detainees Sodomized and Raped Posted by phunkychic666


20. The Coming Superbrain Posted by majestic

Find these great disinformation® documentaries available (right over your computer) via iTunes:

Currently watching: Standing With Stones: A Journey Through Megalithic Britain Release date: 2009-05-19

A Disinformation Special Bulletin — Beyond 2012: Practical Tools for Your Transformation

And Now For Something (Completely) Different: A Special Message from Our Friends at Evolver...

With massive changes happening on every level — to the environment, the financial system, our bodies and immune systems, our consciousness, even our intimate relationships — where can you find the tools and techniques to prepare yourself, your family and your loved ones through the coming years?

We're excited to announce the Evolver teleseminar series, “Beyond 2012: Practical Tools for Your Transformation.” Please join us and explore concrete ways to make transformation real in our daily lives.

This teleseminar intensive is about how to take clear, practical steps to address the huge changes in food, consciousness, community, economy, health and intimacy that are taking place today. Evolver is the new social network for online collaboration and off-line activation, where you discover and share the new tools, ideas and projects that improve your life and change the world.

This series is devoted not just to understanding change, but to practical ways of making change — in how you eat, drink, love, build community, participate or not in global economic winds, cultivate self and community survive-and-thrive practices. We've assembled an extraordinary group of leading thinkers and practitioners for this series — from bestselling authors to inspirational teachers to groundbreaking community organizers — to be interviewed by Daniel Pinchbeck, author of 2012: The Return of Quetzalcoatl.

Among the topics covered, you will learn:

– How to live richly and abundantly in the face of (perceived) scarcity.

– How to find and build community that nurtures your gifts and returns you to what it means to be human in connection with others and with the web of life on this planet.

– How to thrive without dependence on corporations, atrophied institutions and governments.

– How to catalyze and utilize collective intelligence.

– How to create food where none existed and other secrets of urban farming.

– How to create new, thriving models of community.

– How to launch empowering microcurrencies.

– How to help lead the way out of our time of failed relationships and stunted sexual liberation, which causes confusion, failed marriages, private misery, wasting our precious emotional and psychic resources.

– Secrets of how to communicate with anyone — from a place of empathy, mutual empowerment and inspiration.

– It all starts on June 4th. Please go here to meet the teachers and learn more about this exciting event

Cheers,

Daniel, Ken, Adam, and the Evolver Team

Countdown to The Disinformation World Tour: A Disinformation Special Bulletin edited by Ralph Bernardo

I think we have gone through, and are going through the final stages of a very dark age, but I also see glimmers of hope everywhere I look. I see people who are no longer willing to have their thoughts and consciousness controlled, and controlled by others. Who seek direct spiritual contact ... I see everywhere around me those seeking to bypass that monolithic block ... and make their own contacts and their own connections.

— Graham Hancock, from the disinformation® original feature film 2012: Science Or Superstition

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The Disinformation Podcast crew invades the UK! (and Amsterdam : ) Visit the tour mini-site for full details, or add yourself to the attendees list on Facebook! Facebook event listings: Occulture, Oxford, London, Stroud, Brighton, Amsterdam. Also find event listings (and be made aware of future dates) by joining our Worldwide Meetup Group.

First Disinformation World Tour stop: UK film premiere of 2012: Science Or Superstition at Occulture Festival 2009:

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May 23, 2009 — the original esoteric festival is back! Join helmsman Gary Lachman at the magical happening of 2009 ... with 2 superb London arts venues hosting the daytime 'Solar' and evening 'Lunar' events. Occulture 2009 brings you 11 hours of international speakers, performers and artists over 3 stages, plus art installations, film festival and a packed occult bazaar.

Interested in hosting a 2012 screening? Contact us at dvd@disinfo.com. 2012 is available on Amazon and iTunes.

Help spread some disinformation: Tell a friend: Sign up right here for weekly Disinformation News!

Get a free audio book courtesy of The Disinformation Podcast, go to audiblepodcast.com/disinformation.

About the Disinformation Newsletter: The Disinformation Newsletter is an opt-in newsletter from www.disinfo.com. General questions, comments, brilliant thoughts? Let us know here.