Visionary author Duane Elgin discussed how our universe is uniquely alive and how this paradigm can help us work toward a sustainable future. The concept of a living universe has been shared by many spiritual traditions and now there is scientific evidence for it, he said. He outlined a number of attributes that support the idea of an alive universe:

• It is unified rather than fragmented.
• Energy (such as Zero Point) flows through it.
• It is a dynamic system, regenerated moment by moment.
• It has sentience.

Elgin believes that a vast intelligence created this universe and other universes. Cosmologically, there are infinite dimensions, and we are just on the ground floor of evolution, with our three or four dimensions, he commented.

Yet, humanity is at a crossroads, a perfect storm of catastrophic events may greet us in the 2020s, he warned. Climate change will lead to crop failure and famine, which in turn will create civic breakdown, and further, we're running out of resources like water and oil, he noted. "I think we've got a decade to plant seeds, to be good farmers for a new possibility of the future. So this is the time to be creative and give our great gifts to the world," he said.

Fair Tax Act

First hour guest, economist Wayne Jett spoke out in support of the Fair Tax Act, which currently has 55 sponsors or co-sponsors in Congress. According to the plan, people would pay no taxes on their income, but instead pay a national retail sales tax for purchases. This system would be a fair and reliable replacement for the current tax system which is unwieldy and burdensome, he said.

Tea Party Protests

Thousands of protesters turned out for the nationwide 'Tax Day Tea Party.' Some 760 events were held across the country to express displeasure with the tax process and government spending. Check out this round-up from USA Today.

Bumper Music

Bumper music from Wednesday April 15, 2009