I‘m back from the depths of flu-dom and ready to take on the world, or at least some of its most terrible and ridiculous aspects. I’m not quite at full strength yet, so posting may be a bit light for a few more days. But the flu is definitely on the way out. Thanks for your patience and support!
So does anyone want to discuss that picture up there at the top of the post? Everyone else is. Is Kellyanne Conway being weird and disrespectful to the oval office visitors, a delegation from historically black colleges and universities? Or is everybody being mean to her because OMG she was just trying to take a picture with her phone?
I’m going to go with “weird and disrespectful” but what do I know.
@Alan
Airmed would be the relevant deity. Her realm ia herbs and medicine.
“There seems to be plenty of ‘spiritual rebirth’ stuff, but we don’t seem to have a tradition of physical resurrection from death. The nearest I can think of is the Cauldron of Dyrnwch (sp?). ”
AFAICT most cultures look askance at that sort of thing. Hell, one of Baron Samedi’s duties is preventing physical ‘resurrection’.
Oh, there’s ghosts and returnees from thw otherworld in Celtic myth. Never as good guys though i don’t think.
Crom Cruach and Mannanan Mac Lir. The former’s near entirely forgotten though.
Where is that no-go zone we were promised?!
WATCH: Infowars sponsors a journalist’s trip to Malmö, Sweden, but he finds little evidence of a Muslim crime wave
http://www.salon.com/2017/02/28/watch-infowars-sponsored-journalists-trip-to-malmo-sweden-finds-little-evidence-of-muslim-crime-wave/
I haven’t watched the videos, but I’m sure they’re good.
@Alan:
I’m not certain I’d call myself a ‘fan’ so much as that was the first sort of thing that came to mind with the idea of specifically ‘Brit’ magic. Going back at least to Crowley, as you said, and almost certainly further. I’m not particularly a believer.
As for blogs, there’s also Eruditorium Press: Philip Sandifer there has been doing a long series called ‘Last War in Albion’, the core focus of which could be said to be the ‘occult war’ between Alan Moore and Grant Morrison. It goes through a lot of British (and American) comics history in the process, along with many, many digressions into William Blake and others. It’s actually somewhat occult on its own (in multiple senses), and makes for interesting reading. For example, one of his chapters about Alan Moore jumps around in time, pacing itself as a mirror of the Dr. Manhattan chapter of Watchmen.
On another hand, Terry Pratchett was rather more materialist in his attitudes (the idea of ‘this world is the only one we’ve got, let’s not muck it up’ seems to fuel a lot of his work) but still worked with that sort of magic in his stories, particularly with the witches. Deliberately setting things up to fit story patterns and tropes to use the known story to direct events was one of the things they did.
Of course, as Granny Weatherwax understood all too well, it’s a form of magic that can be dangerous to those who use it; after all, ‘pride goeth before a fall’ is one of the oldest and most powerful of stories…
@ dalillama
Yeah, there does seem to be a feeling in Western mythology that ‘crossing over’ is a one-way thing. I’m thinking of how many funerary customs are designed to ensure that (I like the head down burials so if you try to claw your way back you just go deeper).
Is bodily resurrection mainly an Near East thing? I can only think off hand of Egypt and Christianity that sees it as desirable.
I am not at all troubled by Conway based on this picture, but there are a host of other reasons. This picture isn’t the story; way too much is made these days of out-of-context still photos. Pictures don’t lie, but they almost never tell the whole story.
I think it’s much more of a story that Trump gathered these people in an attempt for outreach only to generate this awkward photo and an amazingly tone-deaf proclamation by DeVos about school choice.
As the Washington Post said, these are the scenarios that are kinda difficult to eff up. Invite people in, listen to their concerns, grab a photo, smiles all ’round.
I suppose that it is a blessing that Team Trump is so incompetent.
@Skiriki
That cranky cat, she is adorable.
I too felt pretty cranky when I was instructed to be ladylike. To me, “ladylike” equaled “prisoner.”
@ jenora
Uh oh, you might as well have said ‘free cake’. I know what I’ll be doing whilst pretending to work tomorrow. That does sound right up my street though.
ETA: did any Brits here read ‘Misty’ as a kid?
Did Rach concern troll here before? Or am I thinking of someone else? I feel like they were in one of the waves of concern trolls that have been showing up here from time to time since the election.
Anyway, I’m not particularly interested in debating whether or not David is a “real” feminist. As if there’s even one single definition of feminist.
@Rach
Just spit it out, will ya?
Spit what out?
@Rach
But of course, my b:
^That. I neither want nor need examples of things he’s written of which you don’t approve. I would, however, appreciate some clarification on what “it” is. What isn’t he getting? I mean, feminism, obviously. But, like, what about it doesn’t he get? See what I mean?
@Rach
Please enlighten us as to our inadequate feministness.
God, this place is like a cult
Is Rach MarineRachel, the old snipe troll?
EDIT: Calling us a “Cult” certainly checks out.
@Rach
Well that didn’t take long.
WHY WON’T WE BE RATIONAL
Feel free to not stick around if we offend you so much.
Yooo! They went there. And so quickly too ?
@Rach
But, seriously, what doesn’t David get about feminism?
@Alan
Nothing simpler. ‘Voodoo dolls’ are poppets. That tradition was never part of Yoruba or Carib practice, it entered via the Catholic parts. The name change is a matter of racialising things and portraying black people as superstitious savages.
The grave extent to which women are oppressed.
@ dalillama
Oh, that’s disappointingly prosaic. I was hoping it might be evidence of some Jungian collective consciousness thing, like some aspects of shamanism (although I’ve heard it suggested that’s just based on the shapes we see when we rub our eyes)
@Rach
Aight…
Oh shit, Rach has exposed our cult! Quick everybody, scatter to the designated safehouses! Our secret rituals and world domination plans must not be exposed to this very silly (yet incredibly concerned) person!
Wake up, sheeple!
Actually, Dracarys was giving me dirty looks as I was image searching “cat illuminati.” Have I accidentally gotten too close to the truth?
If you don’t hear from me again, assume that I’ve been smothered in my sleep by a furry cat butt.
I bet a picture of Dampnut surrounded by leaders of HBCUs will be trotted out every time he wants to ‘refute’ people pointing how racist he and his buddies are.
Also, Ms. Conway’s seating position looks uncomfy as hell.