There are forces and groups amongst us that often escape the limelight… until it is too late. Cults come in many shapes and forms and often have their tentacles in various sections of life, without anyone knowing what precisely is happening.

Most ages have had apocalyptic preachers, or the hopes of a “new age”. From the Renaissance to Nostradamus’ 1999, today, the world continues to be enthralled by end of times prophecies. For “newagers”, this apocalypse is 2012, the end of the Mayan calendar; for the Christian Right, it is self-evident that our present society is that depicted in the biblical book of Revelations.

9/11 provided the excuse to launch the “war on terror”, against a largely unidentifiable enemy, “Al Qaeda”, resulting in a period of intense instability in the Middle East and the world at large. It may appear to be “just” another war for oil, but at the fringes, it is clear that some have framed this “war” within apocalyptical settings; the reign of terror, after all, is linked with “the Beast” and what to make of Iran being labelled the “axis of evil”?

False flag operations are covert operations conducted by governments, corporations, or other organisations, which are designed to appear as if they are being carried out by other entities. False flag operations are not limited to war and counter-insurgency operations, and have been used in peace-time – or to create a pretext for war. 9/11 is seen by some as one false flag operation.

Change. It is both desired and feared. For governments, it always needs careful management. From communism in the early 20th century, via the 1960s social revolution in the West, to the end of communism in the 1990s, “paradigm shifts” are radical shifts in society – and the mindset of mankind. Today, the question remains: is change upon us? Who is working on this? What are the social dynamics and theoretical models?

Control the media, control the world. But books also enlighten – and can cause revolutions, quite literally, or sometimes of the mind. Here is the best of essential reading, that will set your mind free – or pointing in other directions.

We live in a Big Brother Society. Alarm systems are self-imposed prison systems; we are constantly monitored via CCTV; every aspect of our life is registered, from payments via phonecall logs, or internet-usage and email-traces. “Traceability” is the key to modern society. Is it a blessing, or is being constantly on the radar the easiest methodology of governments to track and control its citizens, turning them into robots, or prisoners of their own making?

After the dogma that the Earth was the centre of the universe, the world has a new dogma: global warming. This modern "green myth" is used for political, economical and religious advantages, so much so that science has been transformed into a religious movement, using religion and the media to drive home and sustain what seems to become the biggest myth of the early 21st century.