Episode 102 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS requests that you find a comfortable place to lay down/sit, and wear comfortable, loose fitting clothing. We are taking a time out from the stress of the world. Mars knows places, and is going to take you there...

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Episode 101 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS takes up where we left off last week, when we talked about how a STEM education was once made much more effective and successful combined with a Liberal Arts education, and can be, again. This week, we are creating a new school concept that would revolutionize society and get us back on a winning track that creates a much more curious, creative, compassionate and well-rounded society.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF serves this new school idea up with a twist: I will be reading a report from astrologer, Joel Andrew, concerning the momentous astrological event that has just occurred - Pluto has entered the sign of Aquarius. Joel explains what that means for us as individuals and as a collective. Of course, take this report any way you want to. At least be open minded and curious about it: the stars don't make things happen, but they can reflect what is already going on. I believe the changes this event offers lend themselves to this new way of schooling - which will consequently bring about hope for the populace.

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Episode 100 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS takes a close look at the history of our educational system. There was a short span of time when a student was fortunate enough to not only learn a trade or a profession, but had to take mandatory Liberal Arts classes. The first, of course, taught the student a specific career path and how to make money in it. The second taught the student how to think critically and inquisitively, with respect for differing opinions. Ancient Greek and Roman philosophers, as well as the U.S.'s Founding Fathers, believed that Liberal Arts created a free society. Not only did the new, agile student make a living and contribute to society in that way, the student also knew how to communicate with and conduct themselves appropriately with others at parties, dinners, churches, and out and about town - thus making them fully functioning, free citizens who found fulfillment and happiness. The construct of a STEM education VERSUS a Liberal Arts education is reductive and dangerous. We all need both.

Next week, we will create our own school and come up with curriculum that serves both STEM and Liberal Arts, and is just plain ol' common sense.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with an excerpt from, THE ONCE AND FUTURE KING, by T. H. White.

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Episode 99 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS explores the body's largest organ, the skin - aka, the integument. We will study the different strata and structures of the skin, and discover that it is - all at once - a communications system, an architectural structure, a military defensive system, a Streets & Sanitation unit, and a fashionista. We will also address the most common types of skin cancer, how it's treated, and how to prevent against it.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF ends with the poem, "To Health", by John Clare.

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Episode 98 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS reports the latest news concerning the almost Made-For-TV circus side show that is Alex Murdaugh's murder trial and his subsequent conviction of the double homicides of his wife and son. We will also take a look at the prominent family, who dominated the legal landscape of South Carolina for generations and had a voracious appetite for getting what they wanted...and getting away with what they wanted. They seemed to have even left quite a body count in its wake, culminating in that of their own loved ones. We will also construct a timeline of events of the night of the murders, for which Alex Murdaugh had claimed innocence. He now faces two life sentences for the murders.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes this episode with an excerpt from A TALE OF TWO CITIES, by Charles Dickens.

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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.

Episode 97 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS is the first, and I hope not last, Book Review episode. This show's featured books are a mix of new, classic, fiction, non-fiction, novels, epic poems, and meditations. The FIVE books are: 1) THE PLAGUE, by Albert Camus, 2) THE CREATIVE ACT: A WAY OF BEING, by Rick Rubin, 3) JOHANNES CABAL THE NECROMANCER, by Jonathan L. Howard, 4) A TALE OF TWO CITIES by Charles Dickens, and 5) THE INFERNO from DIVINE COMEDY by Dante Alighieri and translated by poet laureate, Robert Pinsky.

Please read books. Actual books that you can hold and smell. Physical books create time and space, allowing the reader to engage more. It is truly a human act that elevates the soul and exercises the brain.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with the poem, "Sensation", by Arthur Rimbaud.

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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.

Episode 96 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS studies a scientific theory that is both ancient and modern, the field of PSYCHONEUROIMMUNOLOGY. We will trace the subject back to its beginnings, engendered through the teachings of Socrates, Plato, and Aristotle. Researchers have picked up these ancient studies, once again, in the last couple of decades. We seem to be aware of the body-mind connection, but what is the mechanism that makes this possible? THE VAGUS NERVE. Not only can the vagus nerve tell us that we are well - which we've discussed in previous episodes - it can also tell us that we are sick. This will be thoroughly explained. We will go over ways of achieving higher vagal tone, in order to be at optimal health and wellness.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with a short, personal story on how I stopped myself from going into deep shock by activating my own vagus nerve.

To send correspondence, email [email protected]

To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.

Episode 95 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS takes a close look at the First Amendment of the US Constitution. We will address what it actually says, what it means, what it protects and does not protect, and how we apply it into our daily lives in an effective way and in a way that elevates society. Plato said that the law is "the ally of the city". So, why do we use it like a sledgehammer?

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with the short poem, "Justice", by Langston Hughes.

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To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.

Episode 94 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS launches with a quick news item, before getting on with the subject of the episode. The news item is concerning the Chinese high altitude balloon that has flown into US airspace. Is it a wayward weather balloon, like the Chinese claim? Or, is it a surveillance balloon sent deliberately, as the US reports?

The main subject: how to create a "living" vision board that is actually useful in helping you clarify and attain your goals, dreams, and intentions.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes today's program with a reading of the poem, "Success

(from The Ladder of St. Augustine)", by Henry Wadsworth Longfellow.

To send correspondence, email [email protected]

To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.

Episode 93 of MARS MESSINA PRESENTS speaks on the mysterious, powerful and dangerous Chicago Outfit, a branch of the Mafia in the United States. At the height of its powers, the Outfit was involved in such things as racketeering, gambling, rum running, and other illegal and legal activities. They are also suspected of being behind an assassination attempt on Fidel Castro, and the realized assassination of President John F. Kennedy - not to mention helping him win the presidency, in the first place.

A premiere face among the Mob and a charismatic and effective crime boss during the Mafia's heyday in Chicago was Sam Giancana. We will talk a bit about him.

BEDTIME STORIES FROM THE ACOUSTIC BOOKSHELF concludes with a short poem called, "Ave Caesar", by Robinson Jeffers.

To correspond with us, email [email protected]

To donate to this podcast, Venmo @mdm773. Thank you.