G'day, hello, howdy, hi, zdravstvujtye (some of my work colleagues are Russian, including an absolutely invaluable administrator who has recently taken maternity leave - may she and young one and family be blest), guten tag (where I have connection owing to a recent past life), sveiki, czesc (I have friends, not just colleagues, at work who are Polish), bonjour (colleagues at a former workplace were French, and we practised and tried to extend my woeful and limited range of this language), selamat pagi (one of the best junior engineers I ever worked with was Malaysian, and she taught me a few words), annyeonghaseyo, pryvit, bitaem, como vai (a friend of mine a few years ago, although not Brazilian, had Portuguese ancestry), ¡Hola (a former work colleague and friend, a VERY talented artist - with a Mexican sensibility to her artwork, particularly around the Day of the Dead - used to teach me Mexican Spanish), Selamat pagi, ni hao (ah, my work trips to Asia, and the many wonderful, wonderful people I have met there - and some excellent work colleagues and friends here, as well), bongiorno (my current home city of Melbourne has lots of Greeks and Italians, who have made our culture far richer - and made us coffee snobs :) ), hoschakal, hejsan, ciao, jo napolt kivanu, chào bà, chào ông, yiassou (from the city which has, I understand, the largest collection of Greek people outside of Greece), ceau, salam wa aleikum, sawas dee ka, dia duit, hoi, hei, namaste, marhaba, dobry den.
- some good comments about Samhain here (while we're about to celebrate Beltane here in the Southern Hemisphere) – and society: http://wildhunt.org/2014/10/column-island-of-the-forgotten-dead.html;
- and a few good comments about society here, although I disagree with some comments – specifically, I think the connotation of the Greek origin of the word idiot needs to be applied to those who do not work for the wellbeing of those outside their immediate circle of friends and family: http://wildhunt.org/2014/10/column-the-citizen-and-the-idiot.html, with this being a more precise Wikipedia link than that quoted in the article, and the Online Etymological Dictionary also confirming the Greek origins here;
- I’ve written previously that I didn’t sign up to FaceBook (FB) because I objected to signing that I had provided true and correct personal details. Part of that is related to name, but also, part of that is stuff around the fact that I do not consider FB has any right to have all my personal details (address, date of birth, etc). That is enough for someone to commit identity theft, and I know NOTHING of any precautions FB has taken against that happening - nor what they would do to make sure I am not so much as inconvenienced should one of their employees “go rogue” and misuse such information. Now, I have come across someone else pointing some of this out - http://silverravenwolf.wordpress.com/2014/10/23/facebook-enacts-witch-hunt-by-author-silver-ravenwolf/, which I found from http://wildhunt.org/2014/10/pagan-community-notes-maetreum-of-cybele-pantheon-activist-conference-brian-dragon-silver-ravenwolf-and-more.html. I do still have reservations about FB being “essential” - although there is NO question that it should be safe, and, as its policies have been shown to have woeful inconsistency and ineffectiveness (see here, here, here and here, for instance - and here for an overview of criticisms of FB), anything FB claims is necessary to ensure they “do their job” is, in my view, questionable. Furthermore, what if FB hadn’t taken off because people exercised their right to go without FB? Would that have led to something that was better sooner, rather than allowing years of abuse and other problems (see here, for instance, and the aforementioned overview) before users started rebelling now? I agree with Silver Ravenwolf that times have changed, and that is part of the argument for FB changing - so is FB’s problematic history. But, spiritually speaking, all those who signed up, including stating that the details were true and correct and factual, have missed out on an opportunity to do something spiritually “good”;
- Defining the Divine – Gods, Spirits, Powers, etc;
- http://www.patheos.com/blogs/awordtothewitch/2014/10/20/talking-to-my-ancestors-at-samhain-religion-in-a-crisis/#ixzz3HM28RWuj; and
- an upcoming on-line conference: http://pantheonfoundation.org/pantheon-foundation-announces-pagan-activism-conference-online-2014/.
And from the world of news reports:
- more on the evils of Da’ish (aka ISIL): http://www.theage.com.au/world/islamic-state-prisoners-endured-torture-and-false-hope-freed-cellmates-say-20141026-11bz55.html;
- an argument against trade agreements: http://www.theage.com.au/national/australians-may-pay-more-for-medicines-under-trade-deal-20141016-1175a2.html;
- an entirely unsurprising warning to my nation from Indonesia about our navy’s incursions under the idiotic policies of Prime Minister Tony Abbott’s government: http://www.theage.com.au/federal-politics/political-news/joko-widodos-blunt-warning-to-prime-minister-tony-abbott-20141017-117l9i.html;
- some common sense about the English language: http://www.theage.com.au/comment/lets-relax-the-rules-of-grammar-and-enjoy-language-20141016-116ubu.html;
- some common sense about the current ideological extremist ranting against public debt – and I am using the Greek origin sense of idiot, meaning someone who does not work for the common good: http://www.theage.com.au/comment/how-to-save-the-worlds-most-liveable-city-20141017-117jx5.html;
- an interesting story about Australia’s political history, referring back to a major event in the mid 70s: http://www.theage.com.au/entertainment/books/what-margaret-said-the-true-story-behind-gough-whitlams-dismissal-20141022-119d5p.html;
- some common sense on economic matters – a view, incidentally, I have been trying to advocate for for many years: http://www.theage.com.au/business/comment-and-analysis/reformer-gough-whitlam-oversaw-economic-chaos-but-it-was-not-all-of-labors-making-20141024-11b1kp.html;
- a useful article about why some people don’t know they’re pregnant – some of which I knew anyway (pregnancy period pads cater for a heavier flow than most other pads): http://www.smh.com.au/national/health/why-it-is-possible-to-not-know-youre-pregnant-until-the-baby-arrives-20141022-119u3i.html;
- hmm … maybe this is good: http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-culture/introducing-the-womansplainer-the-paid-service-for-sexist-guys-20141022-3imgd.html;
- an article worth thinking about: http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/why-its-okay-to-critique-other-womens-choices-20141022-11a1sk.html;
- diabetes can be like some of this as well: http://www.essentialbaby.com.au/wellbeing/mind-and-body/the-yucky-illness-that-took-over-my-life-20141024-3iscp.html#utm_source=FD&utm_medium=lifeandstylepuff&utm_campaign=ibd;
- http://www.theage.com.au/business/comment-and-analysis/running-out-red-tape-is-a-growth-industry-20141029-11dq2t.html;
- I agree with the concerns in this: http://www.theage.com.au/executive-style/fitness/on-your-bike/texting-drivers-a-cyclists-worst-fear-20141029-11dgit.html;
- this article also misses the lesbian phenomenon known as ‘screamers’ where (lesbian) women go to isolated places and scream to get deeper, huskier voices (seriously):, so the workplace that writes these articles clearly suffers from heteronormativity: http://www.dailylife.com.au/news-and-views/dl-opinion/the-most-common-complaints-about-the-female-voice-20141029-3j4uw.html;
- Now, I disagree with this post on a number of matters. Firstly, it is not the duty of people who are unrelated to a child and who have not given properly informed consent to be part of that child’s raising. Yes, the children need to learn how to socialise, but not at the expense of others who have a right to peaceful enjoyment of a café if they chose it. Also, my experience is that many parents are so used to the noise their children make, or perhaps so exhausted, that they are NOT ready to instantly take action to stop their children misbehaving – although I think that the author of this article, and her circle of friends and acquaintances, clearly are, and should be commended for that. Finally, as there are women who either choose to be child free, meaning an establishment not being child friendly is NOT an attack on women, or are unable to have children - to whom this article is probably going rub their faces in that wound, so well done on attacking other women. In fact, making that statement is also an attack on those women who choose to be child free. Having said that, the other people described in this, in my view, reactive article (and my comments are reactive, too; I trust you picked that up, Dear Reader :) ) ARE problems to enjoying a café: http://www.dailylife.com.au/life-and-love/parenting-and-families/the-real-reason-no-kids-policies-are-so-absurd-20141027-11cbwu.html. Now, after reading that, for some further perspectives, perhaps read http://www.theage.com.au/lifestyle/citykat/do-women-stop-men-from-parenting-20141030-11ebci.html (which I also have issues with – particularly the heteronormativity of the article), and http://www.dailylife.com.au/dl-people/woman-in-catcall-video-is-now-getting-rape-threats-20141030-3j6cp.html. Also, remember that being a parent is YOUR choice, not others, and you have no more right to inflict it on others than others do who want to, say, be an artist (there is another set of perspectives there, Dear Reader).
[2]
Please see here and my post "The
Death of Wikipedia" for the
reasons I now recommend caution when using Wikipedia. I'm also exploring use of
h2g2, although that doesn't appear to be as
extensive (h2g2 is intended - rather
engagingly - to be the Earth edition of "The Hitchhiker's Guide to
the Galaxy").
Love, light, hugs and blessings
Gnwmythr,
Wéofodthegn
(pronounced "new-MYTH-ear"; ... aka Bellatrix
Lux? … Morinehtar?
… Would-be drýicgan
... )
My "blogiography" (list of all posts and guide as to how to best use this site) is here, and my glossary/index is here.
I started this blog to cover karmic regression-rescue (see here and here), and it grew ... See here for my group mind project, here and here for my "Pagans for Peace" project (and join me at 9 PM on Sunday, wherever you are, to meditate for peace), and here for my bindrune kit-bag. I also strongly recommend learning how to flame, ground and shield, do alternate nostril breathing, work with colour, and see also here and be flexible.
- Gnwmythr's Stropping Strap: Occam's Razor only works if the simplest solution is actually recognised as being the simplest, rather than the one that best fits one's bigotries being labelled 'simplest'.
- Our entire life experience, with all the many wondrous and varied people, places and events in it, is too small a sample for statistical reliability about Life.
- May the world of commerce and business be recognised to be a servant, not a master, of the lives of people.
- Being accustomed to interacting via certain rules makes those rules neither right nor universal.
- Like fire to the physical, emotions to the soul make a good servant, and a bad master.
- The means shape the end.
- As words can kill, the right to freedom of speech comes with a DUTY to be as well-informed, objective and balanced as you can be.
- My favourite action movie of all time is "Gandhi", although I've recently come across "Invictus" and might put that one in to that category. However, I loathe the stereotypical action movie - and, for similar reasons, I loathe many dramas, which are often emotionally violent, more so in some cases than many war films.
- All of the above - and this blog - could be wrong, or subject to context, perspective, or state of spiritual evolution ...
Human dignity is the inherently cumulative holistic combination of human rights, wellbeing and potential, and all actions or interaction which promote, realise or facilitate same. The converse also applies: whatever degrades, diminishes or robs humans of dignity, is inherently undignified.
The “purpose” of spiritual evolution is not the attainment of “spiritual perfection” - not in the sense of not having to evolve further, at any rate, since there is no such thing. We need to evolve in order to grow - but we can take rest breaks (hopefully well earned :) ) along the way. No, the “purpose” of evolution is, rather, to perfect our ability to learn, and thus grow.
Jesus loves you. Odin wants you to grow up.
Gnwmythr
The “purpose” of spiritual evolution is not the attainment of “spiritual perfection” - not in the sense of not having to evolve further, at any rate, since there is no such thing. We need to evolve in order to grow - but we can take rest breaks (hopefully well earned :) ) along the way. No, the “purpose” of evolution is, rather, to perfect our ability to learn, and thus grow.
Gnwmythr
Jesus loves you. Odin wants you to grow up.
We make our decisions. And then our decisions turn around and make us.
F.W. Boreham
Females, get over 'cute'. Get competent. Get trained. Get capable. Get over 'cute'. And those of you who are called Patty and Debby and Suzy, get over that. Because we use those names to infantalise females – we keep females in their 'little girl' state by the names we use for them. Get over it. If you want to be taken seriously, get serious.
Jane Elliott
The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good [people] to do nothing.
(based on
writing by) Edmund Burke
We didn't inherit the Earth from our ancestors, we only borrowed it from our children
Antoine De Saint-Exupéry
True compassion is more than flinging a coin to a beggar; it is not haphazard and superficial. It comes to see that an edifice which produces beggars needs restructuring.
Martin Luther King, Jr.
There are risks and costs to a program of
action. But they are far less than the long-range risks and costs of
comfortable inaction.
John F. Kennedy
Tags: about me, Beltane, children, discrimination, economy, gender, heteronormativity, history, illness, politics, Samhain, sexism, social media, society, violence, war, xenophobia,
First published: Frysdagr, 31st October, 2014 (Beltane)
Last edited (excluding fixing typo's and other minor matters): Sunday, 31st October, 2014 (Beltane)
