*Ø* Blogmanac December 31 | Happy New Year!

All about New Year customs and folklore



All over the world, people love to make a noise on the last midnight of the year. Church bells ring out in England (fitted with muffles until midnight, then allowed their full voice), and in Thailand the temple bells peal at midnight as people call out Kwam Suk Pee Mai (Happy New Year!).

An old Icelandic custom has it that if the pantry window is left open on New Year’s Eve, the pantry drift (a frost which is fine-grained and sweet to the taste), will come in and, when gathered and saved in a pot marked with a cross, will bring prosperity to the home. Icelanders used to believe that elves moved house on this night, and could be coerced into giving treasure to those who intercepted them at crossroads. 

The People of Nigeria allowed their Ndok ceremony, held biennially in December, to merge with Western New Year customs, as Ndok was a rite of renewal. Only the men engage in Ndok, which sees, as everywhere on New Year’s Eve, much noisy, rowdy behaviour and, as in Iceland, people meeting at crossroads which are believed to be places of assembly for spirits. 

In Russia, Grandfather Frost (D’yed Moroz), who looks suspiciously like Santa Claus, and his assistant the Snow Maiden (Snegourka), will pay a New Year’s visit to children, bringing with them gifts. In Greece, however, children will have left out sweets, cakes and drink for St Basil, another Santa-like character, for it is his feast day. They’ll even put a log in the fireplace so he can step easily down the chimney. In Armenia on December 31, goodies are lowered down the chimney on a rope.

New Year’s revelling, however, has been most shaped by the otherwise generally sensible Scots, who really know how to kick up their heels to say “good riddance!” to the Old year and “welcome!” to the new. The singing of Auld Lang Syne, is, of course as Scotch as whisky, and was recorded from the oral tradition by the Scottish national poet, Robbie Burns. Now, all over the world, people mouth the words like football players pretending the national anthem before a game. Despite its difficult words, it is one of the world’s best known songs. 

The Scots call this season the “daft days” or Hogmanay, a word which might derive from practically anything if you listen to the experts, such as the Greek for 'holy month' and the French for 'man is born'. While some New Year’s customs go back to ancient Europe and even the Middle East – we know, for example, that 4,000 years ago the Babylonians made New Year’s resolutions – the Scots put their stamp on it, for they always thought it was a bigger deal than Christmas. They have yet to convince the rest of the world, however, to indulge in the Hogmanay sport of “first-footing”, in which it is thought to be good luck if the first person over one’s threshold in the New Year comes in the front door, is male, without eye trouble, not splay- or flat-footed, fair haired, carrying a lump of coal and a bottle of Scotch, and leaves by the back door. (In 1966, 19-year-old first-footer Alex Cleghorn was walking on Govan Rd, Glasgow with his two brothers, when suddenly he disappeared and was not seen again. Daft days indeed!) On the Greek island of Carpathos it is a white dog they have to rush inside at the stroke of midnight.

Australians, with their keen sense of culture and modernity, tend not to bother with the lumps of coal, white dogs, elves and crossroads, tending instead to get blithering drunk (like the wassailers of old England, the door-to-door drinkers whose name came from the cry Wass hael!, which approximates to Cheers!) and to pretend to have an ab-fab time ...


This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

Have a great night, everyone, and bright blessings for 2004. Thanks for coming through 2003, and a big thankyou and hugs to the rest of the Blogmanac team!! Lots of work and commitment.

*Ø* Blogmanac December 30, 1916 | Live hard, die hard

1916 Grigory Rasputin (January 10, 1869 - December 16, 1916 (OS)), mystic and favourite of the wife of Russia's last tsar, was murdered by a group of conservatives who wished to rid the Russian court of his malignant influence. He was served poisoned wine and cakes of which he partook, beaten, castrated, had his penis flung across the room and was subsequently shot several times and thrown into a frozen river before he expired ... (Read on)

The mystery of the ‘mad monk’s’ bishop

Rasputin's roger, or a sea cucumber?

The name Rasputin in Russian does not mean ‘licentious’, as is often claimed. However there is very similar Russian adjective, ‘rasputnii’ which does in fact mean ‘licentious’, and for whatever reasons, Rasputin’s name will always be associated with sexual libertinism. The folklore of his genitalia, which is probably no more than folklore, is one reason for this.

According to Rasputin’s daughter, Maria, her father’s penis was 13 inches long when erect. So perhaps his profound influence at the Russian imperial court was more than spiritual. How Ms Rasputin came to have this information is not known, though some say she acquired that very organ as a keepsake after his death.

It has been alleged that Grigori frequented St Petersburg’s bathhouses and was seen entering, with both aristocrats and prostitutes, these places of sex, magic and superstition, where he performed rituals in which he attempted to exorcise the demons of lechery by literally beating them out of women. Afterwards he would have intercourse with them. We all know the value of “kiss and make up”.

One society woman, Olga Lokhtina, was so affected by the charismatic peasant that she thought he was Christ and she the Virgin Mary; she even left her rich husband and children for him. On one occasion, it is said, Rasputin was observed violently beating her while she held on to his schlong, shouting, “I am your ewe, and you are Christ.”

It is widely believed that on the night of Rasputin’s murder (December 16 by the Julian calendar that was still used in Russia at the time, but December 30 according to the Gregorian calendar), the great member was severed from his body and flung across the scene of the crime: the dining room in the basement of the palace of Prince Felix Yussupov, one of his murderers. Stories differ as to whether the emasculation of the Tsarina’s favourite took place before or after his death.

His maid was said to have found Rasputin’s thing while cleaning up the apartment, after the murder. Then, in Paris during the 1920s, a cult of Russian émigré women worshipped an object that they believed to be the organ in question. Or, so it is said. Some say that the relic adored by these cult followers was kept in a wooden casket, but bits were broken off and given to disciples. The story goes that Marie Rasputin, on discovering the wee-wee cult, expressed her disapproval in strong terms and took possession of whatever it was they were worshipping.

After a middling career as a circus performer in Europe, South America and the US, the ‘mad monk’s’ daughter died in California in 1977, aged 78 (she is buried in Rosedale Memorial Park, Los Angeles), having failed in her ambition of changing, by means of a book she had written, the popular view of her father as a stereotypical weirdo – no small task even for a good writer. (Actually, we should note here that he was not actually a monk, but a starets, or religious pilgrim.)

The legend goes further, that antique dealer Michael Augustine, of Davenport, a small ocean-side community north of Santa Cruz, California, came into possession of Rasputin’s roger. In 1994 at a storage locker sale he'd bought as a job lot, he found the effects of a certain Dr Roberta Ripple, deceased, former president of the Santa Monica Writers Club. Dr Ripple’s possessions included three type-written manuscripts by Marie Rasputin – a hagiography of her father, My Father Rasputin, (ghosted by Roberta Ripple) a novel (My Boots Are Narrow), and a short article entitled ‘Wreck of An Empire’.

But there was more – in its own velvet pouch, a black, wizened object (eeeyewww!) was found resembling the uncircumcised helmet (glans) of a penis. An accompanying note identified it as Rasputin's john thomas and stated that Marie Rasputin had been given it by Rasputin's maid and former lover, who claimed she'd been present at his dismemberment.

A manuscript by Marie – and the wizened object – were sold to a person or persons unknown at Bonham's London auction house (“Auctioneers & Valuers Since 1793”) on March 10, 1994, for the scarcely princely sum of £350. The missing member was last seen, held aloft, at a press conference at the auction house ... (Read on)

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click December 30 when you're there.

By any measure of comparison, my December 30 was better than that experienced by billions of people in the world.

However, may I mention the two hours it took me to put together the second-hand water-bed I got for Christmas (used to be Baz le Tuff's), and the three hours I've spent since then cleaning up the flood caused by my trying to rush-start an 18-hour-late Almanac and then losing track of the time while toilet-reading about the Chase family haunted vaults in Barbados?

My mind only went to Barbados for about fifteen minutes but as God found during the first week, you can wet a lot of stuff in a quarter of an hour.

Back to the Almanac. I should have started the next one already LOL

Thank you.

*Ø* Blogmanac | New push to help quake survivors

"Relief teams in southern Iran are concentrating on caring for those made homeless by last week's earthquake, as hopes fade of finding more survivors.
The bodies of 28,000 victims have been recovered - but more are thought to be buried under the rubble, many of them in the ancient mud-brick city of Bam.

"With some rescuers pulling out, aid workers are now highlighting the plight of exposed survivors.

"The six Gulf Cooperation Council states have promised $400m for reconstruction.

"Aid workers say they are concentrating on providing shelter, food and heaters to the tens of thousands of survivors facing long, cold nights in the open.

"A United Nations official warned that even a common cold could prove fatal to them ..."
Source BBC


We can stay informed and donate to help the tens of thousands of bereaved survivors at UNICEF.


Iran Appeal at Islamic Aid

*Ø* Blogmanac | Welcome to the new America

Coffee, Tea or Handcuffs?
An Australian journalist gets a taste of Department of Homeland Security hospitality
by Steven Mikulan

"Sue Smethurst enjoys traveling. 'It’s one of the things about my job that I absolutely love,' says the 30-year-old Australian, who works as an associate editor for the women’s magazine New Idea. She doesn’t even mind flying. 'It’s one of the great pleasures of the world to be able to turn off your cell phone and be where no one can annoy you.'

"But when her Qantas flight from Melbourne, Australia, touched down at LAX around 8 a.m. on Friday, November 14, Smethurst found herself nightmarishly annoyed — by the Department of Homeland Security (DHS). Smethurst was supposed to continue to New York and on Monday interview singer Olivia Newton-John. Smethurst had honeymooned in Manhattan last year and was looking forward to a long, free weekend 'having a good walk through Central Park, getting a decent bowl of chicken soup and going Christmas shopping — all those gorgeous New York things.' Better still, her six-hour layover in L.A. would allow her to have lunch with her American literary agent.

“'I had a room booked at the Airport Hilton, where I was going to leave my bags, shower and get a cup of coffee.'

"But first she had to clear LAX’s immigration check-in, which she reached after 20 minutes in line. An officer from the DHS’s newly minted Customs and Border Protection (CBP) bureau studied the traveler’s declaration form Smethurst had filled out on the plane.

“'Oh, you’re a journalist,' he noted. 'What are you here for?'

“'I’m interviewing Olivia Newton-John,' Smethurst replied.

“'That’s nice,' the official said, impressed. 'What’s the article about?'

“'Breast cancer.'

"When Smethurst tells me this, she pauses and adds, 'I thought that last question was a little odd, but figured everything’s different now in America and it was fine.' What she didn’t know was that her assignment and travel plans, along with the chicken soup and stroll through Central Park, had been terminated the moment she confirmed she was a journalist. Fourteen hours later, she was escorted by three armed guards onto the 11 p.m. Qantas flight home.


“'I want to say right off that I adore America and love Americans,' Smethurst says. Still, she remains perplexed and emotionally bruised by what followed in Terminal Four. The CBP agent who read Smethurst’s traveler’s questionnaire took her to a secondary inspection area 30 feet away and told her to wait, then left for half an hour. He returned with additional uniformed staff who, professionally and pleasantly enough, asked more questions.

"What sort of stories did she write? What kind of magazine was New Idea? Where was it published? What was its circulation? Does it print politically sensitive articles? When would her interview appear? Who would be reading it?

“'I laughed,' Smethurst recalls, 'because we’re a cross between Good Housekeeping and People magazine. The most political thing we’d likely print was Laura Bush’s horoscope.'

"The polite interrogation continued. Who was her father? His occupation? Her mother’s maiden name and occupation? What were their dates of birth, where did they live?

"The agents gravely nodded at Smethurst’s replies and left once more, promising to return. When they came back half an hour later, one of the officers offered Smethurst a cup of airport coffee.

“'I thought at that stage something was quite wrong,' Smethurst says, 'so I asked the man with the coffee if there was some problem.'

“'I will tell you when there’s a problem,' he abruptly snapped, according to Smethurst. Then he pointed to a nearby sign:

"Your Silence Is Appreciated ...

Read on at LA Weekly

Thanks Lynn Perry for sending me this.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Oh, why can't we see! That...

Love Sees No Color

Love sees no color, no race, no religion
We are the same as the rays from the sun
Love sees no color, no race, no religion
Only through love can we live as one.

When I look into your eyes I see hope, and future
Realizing what we have inside.
Hearts of love, hearts of light, hearts of new beginnings
Eager to find the answers we are seeking

Why does it take one man to end it all?
Oh, why can't we see!
Why does it take much more to stop the fall?
When on only takes love to be free.

Let’s light a candle for the joining of our union
One for the fate of all mankind
One for love, one for thanks, all that we are given
Celebrating life and love we are finding.

The words to the song “Love Sees No Color” came one night to singer/songwriter Nassiri, a gentle, soft-spoken man who has truly been enlightened.

The song title alone expresses a simple, yet powerful, recipe for peace. It’s a message that Nassiri is advocating with his accompanying music video filmed in the natural setting of the Red Rock Canyon National Conservation Area with kids representing different nationalities from all over the world.

Believing that it is children who can lead the movement for world peace, armed with meaningful words and uplifting music, Nassiri has embarked on a self-funded mission. Proceeds from the song and video eloquently sharing his hope for the future are being submitted as a donation to UNICEF to aid children who are victims of war and poverty.

The words to the chorus hold a mesmerizing message that should be emblazoned on the walls of the United Nations.

Love sees no color, no race, no religion
We are the same as the rays from the sun
Love sees no color, no race, no religion
Only through love can we live as one
Nassiri, the song’s author, is one of the chosen few in life who is actually following his destiny. His music career began only five years ago, after decades of success in the retail and wholesale clothing industry. He started living his dream of musically spreading love and understanding after studying global religions and the timeless wisdom of history’s great teachers. The result of his intense pursuit has been inner peace and a universal consciousness that he now shares through his philosophical lyrical prose.

Read further for origins and future

*Ø* Blogmanac | A "Fireside Chat" of Sorts

William Rivers Pitt is one of the brightest stars in our progressive league of voices standing up to the powers that be with facts and figures and knowledge they can't dispute. His writing and editing for truthout.org is a mainstay of the movement to inform and motivate Americans to save our country. His dynamism in live appearances can be enjoyed on CSPAN from time to time and now a taste of his impact can be felt in nightly audio presentations online.


'Truthout.org Overview' Evening Audio with William Rivers Pitt

"We hope you will join us every night for this webcast as we examine, in depth and right here, the news of the day.

"We do truthout for three reasons: Far too often, the mainstream television news media act as little more than commercial advertisers for their parent companies. This is not journalism, and we desperately need journalism in this day and age. We also do truthout because the mainstream print media, while retaining great credibility, requires an enormous amount of time to sift through properly. Our editors, who read between 10 and 30 newspapers a day, do that for you.

"Finally, the English philosopher John Locke said,

'It is one thing to show a man that he is in error,
and another to put him in possession of truth.'

"Tonight, tomorrow, and for as long as we are able, truthout.org will be in the business of putting you in possession of the truth.

"The truthout overview will be available Monday through Friday each evening. We look forward to you joining us in this endeavor."


BOOKMARK!

*Ø* Blogmanac | NOW IT IS REVEALED

Revealed: how MI6 sold the Iraq war
By Nicholas Rufford

12/28/03: (The Times) THE Secret Intelligence Service has run an operation to gain public support for sanctions and the use of military force in Iraq. The government yesterday confirmed that MI6 had organised Operation Mass Appeal, a campaign to plant stories in the media about Saddam Hussein’s weapons of mass destruction.

The revelation will create embarrassing questions for Tony Blair in the run-up to the publication of the report by Lord Hutton into the circumstances surrounding the death of Dr David Kelly, the government weapons expert.

A senior official admitted that MI6 had been at the heart of a campaign launched in the late 1990s to spread information about Saddam’s development of nerve agents and other weapons, but denied that it had planted misinformation. “There were things about Saddam’s regime and his weapons that the public needed to know,” said the official.

The admission followed claims by Scott Ritter, who led 14 inspection missions in Iraq, that MI6 had recruited him in 1997 to help with the propaganda effort. He described meetings where the senior officer and at least two other MI6 staff had discussed ways to manipulate intelligence material.

“The aim was to convince the public that Iraq was a far greater threat than it actually was,” Ritter said last week.

He said there was evidence that MI6 continued to use similar propaganda tactics up to the invasion of Iraq earlier this year. “Stories ran in the media about secret underground facilities in Iraq and ongoing programmes (to produce weapons of mass destruction),” said Ritter. “They were sourced to western intelligence and all of them were garbage.”

Kelly, himself a former United Nations weapons inspector and colleague of Ritter, might also have been used by MI6 to pass information to the media. “Kelly was a known and government-approved conduit with the media,” said Ritter.

Hutton’s report is expected to deliver a verdict next month on whether intelligence was misused in order to promote the case for going to war. Hutton heard evidence that Kelly was authorised by the Foreign Office to speak to journalists on Iraq. Kelly was in close touch with the “Rockingham cell”, a group of weapons experts that received MI6 intelligence.

Blair justified his backing for sanctions and for the invasion of Iraq on the grounds that intelligence reports showed Saddam was working to acquire chemical, biological and nuclear weapons. The use of MI6 as a “back channel” for promoting the government’s policies on Iraq was never discovered during the Hutton inquiry and is likely to cause considerable disquiet among MPs.

Full Text


Related Stories

In case you missed it: Blair's secret weapon: Investigation: A covert project, set up by the UK government, 'cherry-picked' intelligence to fit the hidden agenda of justifying war with Iraq

In case you missed it: Scott Ritter Proved Right! MI6 ran 'dubious' Iraq campaign: "I was approached by MI6 to provide that data, I met with the Mass Appeal operatives both in New York and London on several occasions. This data was provided and this data did find its way into the international media.

Bremer 'rejects' Blair WMD claims: The US official running Iraq appears to have contradicted Tony Blair's claim Saddam Hussein had laboratories for developing weapons of mass destruction.

[This is the information that needs to get to people who won't hear it by mainstream media. This is the information that will give more credence to those who voted "NO!" on the Iraq war for Republican voters in the presidential election. Please help everyone learn about this. We know the mainstream and the White House won't tattle on themselves! -v]

*Ø* Blogmanac | FOR WHAT IT'S WORTH -- Actions to Take to Make a Difference

WE DON'T GET MAD! WE GET ORGANIZED!

Dear Veralynne of ACT (A-Changin' Times),

The Republicans are determined to end this year with a bang. In a flurry of last minute behind-the-scenes legislation they have successfully kept Democratic Members out of crucial negotiations. While the Republicans dismantle Medicare, continue funding corporate boondoggles with defense funds, and break down the walls of civil rights and civil liberties, no dissenting voices are allowed to be heard.

This isn’t just politics as usual. What they have done is unprecedented: they are making sure progressive voices go unheard. They are making lawmaking a “Republicans-only” operation.

Does this sound like democracy to you? It sure doesn’t to me.

I hope you will join me, and make 2004 a new year for politics— and a year for renewal of democracy in America, by supporting America Coming Together (ACT).

Getting mad simply isn’t enough. To win back the White House and elect progressive candidates all across the country, we must do a better job of identifying and mobilizing supporters. That’s why some of the leading progressive organizers in America have come together to advance a bold and far-reaching Action Plan to turn out millions of progressive voters.

Together, we will reach out to millions of Americans— I mean really reach out— face-to-face, door-to-door, neighbor-to-neighbor contacts that will give you and your neighbors the opportunity to be heard on the issues that matter to you the most. And that’s what America Coming Together (ACT) is all about: getting people back into the polling places and back into our government.

And when those voters march to the polls, they will defeat George W. Bush and his extremist allies from the school boards to the House and Senate.

Let me be clear, we are in for the fight of our lives, and it won’t be cheap. Our Action Plan will cost $94 million to carry out. We’ve already raised $45 million and, to keep our efforts on track, we must raise $5 million more by December 31st.

I hope that I can count on you to help us meet that goal with a gift of $50, $75, $100 or the most generous gift that you can afford. Please take the first step in getting America back on the right track by supporting America Coming Together.

The rewards of victory will be well worth the time, effort, and money we invest.

The Republican operatives aren’t waiting to start the campaign, and we can’t either. We urgently need your support now to keep our efforts on track, so please help us meet our December 31st goal.

Sincerely,

Ellen Malcolm
President,
America Coming Together

Please help us reach our goal by sharing this message with your friends and family.


===0===0===0===

From Leo:

"Revolution is not something fixed in ideology, nor is it something
fashioned to a particular decade. It is a perpetual process embedded
in the human spirit." -- Abbie Hoffman

*Ø* Blogmanac | The New Republicans

NY Times editorial turns up the heat on the GOP

"The Republican Party has been in charge of the national agenda for almost three years now — Democratic majorities in Congress don't crimp George W. Bush's style the way they did for his father or Ronald Reagan when they were in office. We have thus had an unobstructed view of what the 21st-century version of the party looks like. It's very clear this is not the father's G.O.P ...

"Late-20th-century Republicanism was an uneasy alliance of social conservatives — who were comfortable with government intervention in citizens' lives when it came to morality issues — and libertarians who wanted as little interference as possible. That balancing act ended on 9/11. Since then, the Justice Department has enlarged the intrusive powers of government by, among other things, authorizing "sneak and peek" searches of private homes and suspending traditional civil liberties for certain defendants ...

"The administration is determined to deliver on corporate America's goal of cutting overtime pay for white-collar workers. At the same time, it has been tepid in asserting greater federal vigilance over the developing scandal of workplace safety.

"Republicans have always enjoyed their reputation as the champions of business. The difference now is that they no longer couple their business-friendly attitudes with tight-fistedness. Discretionary spending has jumped 27 percent in the last two years; budget hawks complain Congressional pork is up more than 40 percent. Some of that money has gone to buy the allegiance of wavering party members in the closely divided House and Senate, but much of it is directly tied to the demands of big business. Agriculture subsidies to corporate farms have swollen to new heights, while energy policy has been reduced to a miserable grab bag of special benefits for the oil, gas and coal companies ...

"This, it appears, is what compassionate conservatism really means. The conservative part is a stern and sometimes intrusive government to regulate the citizenry, but with a hands-off attitude toward business. The compassionate end involves some large federal programs combined with unending sympathy for the demands of special interests. If only it all added up.

New York Times Editorial, December 28, 2003

*Ø* Blogmanac | Bush's man rejects Blair weapon claim

Luke Harding, The Observer
December 28

"Tony Blair was at the centre of an embarrassing row last night after the most senior US official in Baghdad bluntly rejected the Prime Minister's assertion that secret weapons laboratories had been discovered in Iraq.

"In a Christmas message to British troops, Blair claimed there was 'massive evidence of a huge system of clandestine laboratories'. The Iraq Survey Group (ISG) had unearthed compelling evidence that showed Saddam Hussein had attempted to 'conceal weapons', the Prime Minister said. But in an interview yesterday, Paul Bremer, the Bush administration's top official in Baghdad, flatly dismissed the claim as untrue -- without realising its source was Blair.

"It was, he suggested, a 'red herring', probably put about by someone opposed to military action in Iraq who wanted to undermine the coalition.

"'I don't know where those words come from but that is not what [ISG chief] David Kay has said,' he told ITV1's Jonathan Dimbleby programme. 'It sounds like a bit of a red herring to me.'"

Full text

* Ø * Ø * Ø *

Short calls on Blair to resign

BBC:

"Clare Short has called on Tony Blair to resign because she says he deceived the British people over the Iraq war. She accused the prime minister of risking his own legacy because of an obsession with 'his place in history'. She predicted he would not lead Labour into the next election and urged him to resign for the honour of Britain.

"Ms Short was international development secretary before the Iraq war but left the cabinet afterwards in protest ...

"Her criticisms were echoed by Labour left-winger Diane Abbott, who told the same programme Mr Blair has risked backbench rebellions by making loyal MPs feel like 'pillocks' over the Iraq war."

Full text

*Ø* Blogmanac December 28, 1879 | Unluckiest day of the year (Childermas)

1879 The Tay Rail Bridge disaster, Dundee, Scotland during a fierce gale. A section of the bridge collapsed, wrecking a train which was running over its single track. 75 passengers on the 7.15 Edinburgh to Dundee train were killed, including the son-in-law of the bridge’s designer, Thomas Bouch. Engineers quickly determined that the metal used in the bridge's design was of poor quality, and modern structural analysis of the bridge also shows its design was not sufficient to resist the strong winds commonplace in the Tay estuary.

The Victorian poet William Topaz McGonagall (1825 - September 29, 1902) – whose work has been distinguished as, "The worst poetry ever written, in any language, at any time" – commemorated this event in his poem 'The Tay Bridge Disaster'.


It must have been an awful sight,
To witness in the dusky moonlight,
While the Storm Fiend did laugh, and angry did bray,
Along the Railway Bridge of the Silv'ry Tay,
Oh! ill-fated Bridge of the Silv'ry Tay,
I must now conclude my lay
By telling the world fearlessly without the least dismay,
That your central girders would not have given way,
At least many sensible men do say,
Had they been supported on each side with buttresses,
At least many sensible men confesses,
For the stronger we our houses do build,
The less chance we have of being killed.
William Topaz McGonagall, often claimed to be the world’s ‘best bad poet’, 'The Tay Bridge Disaster' (1879)

Read also about Childermas (Feast day of the Holy Innocents killed by King Herod) – and the slaughter of the innocents in 2003.

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today – said to be the unluckiest day of the year – in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac December 28 | Oops yesterday

Funny, ain't it. I mean, that's life. "At great expense to the management" I managed to get the Almanac ezine out every day, plus the Book of Days, and post something about the day here, all through the Silly Season as well as my own moving house. Sleep was a luxury.

Then, yesterday, when I had all the time in the world, and although I did the ezine and the December 27 page at the BoD, I didn't post a gollygosh thing here about the folklore and history of December 27. Strange. I think I went into collapse mode after all the madness of the last fortnight.

Anyway, about yesterday's folklore:

My true love sent to me
Two turtle doves
And a partridge in a pear tree.

I've been getting the bizarrest Chrissie prezzies.

Also on December 27, a bit of 18-Rabbit news:

631 CE A Naranjo captive in a Caracol (in the Cayo District of the nation of Belize) war underwent some grisly sacrificial rite under the auspices of a Calakmul (Campeche, Mexico) lord, resulting in the capture of Waxaklahun U-Bah-Chan, or 18-Rabbit (pictured), the Mayan snake divinity of Naranjo (ancient city of the Maya civilization in the Peten department of Guatemala, about 10 km west of the border with Belize).


There's plenty of interesting stuff at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, for December 27. I hope you enjoy.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Balloonists set new solar target

By Carolyn Fry

"Record-breaking aviators Brian Jones and Bertrand Piccard hope to harness the Sun's power to fly round the world. The pair gained worldwide recognition in 1999 when they became the first to circumnavigate the globe in a balloon.

"Now they plan to repeat the journey in a solar-powered aeroplane which will have to use batteries to fly at night. A feasibility study has confirmed the viability of the Solar Impulse project and experts are now preparing to design the craft for launch some time in 2006 ...

"It will not carry any fossil fuels on board and so will offer completely pollution-free transport. 'The great thing about this project is that it allows us to be a force for good from the beginning,' says Jones."

Read the whole story at BBC News

*Ø* Blogmanac | STOP! DON'T SCROLL ON BY!

About.com's 2003 Political Dot-Comedy Award Nominees Announced

[Madeleine Kane, a true comic talent and a good friend of ours, deserves your vote! Below, her note. -v]

"I'm very pleased to report that I'm a nominee in two categories in this year's About.com Political Dot-Comedy Awards competition. My MadKane.com political humor as a whole is nominated in the Best Parodies (Overall Achievement) category and my Dubya's Dayly Diary is a nominee in the Best Bush Humor category. So if you have time, I'd really appreciate your voting for me in one or both categories here. Thanks!

"And even if you're not in a voting mood, I'll bet you enjoy visiting the terrific nominees in categories including Best Web Cartoons, Best Satirical News, Most Entertaining Left-Wing News & Commentary, Most Entertaining Right-Wing News & Commentary, Best Print Comic Strip, and Best Late-Night TV Comedy. You may even find some new (to you) humor sites to help you survive 2004.

"FYI very few blogs are nominated. This Modern World (Tom Tomorrow) in the comic strip category is a notable exception."

[P.S. Vote early and vote often! -v]

*Ø* Blogmanac | Mad Cow Linked To Al-Qowda

Ridge Raises Alert Level to 'Well Done'
"Secretary of Homeland Security Tom Ridge revealed today that the U.S. had 'credible evidence' linking the recent mad cow disease scare in Washington State to a little known terror group called al-Qowda.

"'Little is known about al-Qowda, but we do know this: they hate America, and they really hate America's cows,' Mr. Ridge said at a press briefing this afternoon.

"While details about al-Qowda's leadership remain sketchy at best, Mr. Ridge said that the leader of the terror group may have had what he termed 'a bad experience with an American steak sandwich, possibly at Arby's.'

"In light of increased chatter from sources linked to al-Qowda, Ridge announced that the Homeland Security Department was raising the nation's beef-alert level from pink, or 'rare,' to brown, or 'well done.'

"Moments after Mr. Ridge's speech, over twenty thousand suspicious hamburgers were detained by the CIA and held for questioning.

"In an effort to clarify the heightened beef-alert level, Mr. Ridge said that Americans should 'go about their business and consume all the beef they normally do,' but that they should be 'careful not to enjoy it.'

"In other news, Mr. Ridge announced that the Borowitz Report has been nominated for
two 2003 Political Dot-Comedy awards."

Source: The Borowitz Report

*Ø* Blogmanac December 26 | And a partridge in a pear tree

The first day of Christmas: the 12 Days of Christmas begin, through to Jan 6




Partridge control (funny and worth a listen)

“Another witching time is the period of twelve days between Christmas and Epiphany. Hence in some parts of Silesia the people burn pine-resin all night long between Christmas and the New Year in order that the pungent smoke may drive witches and evil spirits far away from house and homestead ..."

Wrenning Day, old England
Some customs, quaint though they might be, are best when they have faded from practice. It was long a custom in England to find a wren and stone it to death in commemoration of the stoning of St Stephen.The bird was imprisoned in a lantern or wren house, paraded through the village then killed by the ‘doluns’ or wren boys. In some places Wrenning Day took place on Christmas Eve, and in others, Christmas Day, but it was commonly today, St Stephen’s Day ...


This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Christmas flash mobs


Santarchy celebrates ten years of Yule mobbing.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Non-military uses for NASA


"NASA -- A new window to the universe has opened with today's release of the first dazzling images from NASA's newly named Spitzer Space Telescope, formerly known as the Space Infrared Telescope Facility ..."
Source

*Ø* Blogmanac | Stuff


Some interesting holiday reading for me has been Twilight of the Neocons:

" ... the signs that the neocons are on the losing end of the battle have become fairly evident in recent weeks:

"The administration has welcomed Libya back into the community of "civilized" nations, on terms that can only help solidify Col. Ghadafi's dictatorial regime. The deal is about as textbook a case of realpolitik as you will find outside the archives of the Kissinger NSC.

"Jim Baker has returned to the diplomatic circuit, with the speculation being that his assignment is to liquidate not only Iraq's debt but also the neocon illusion of remaking the Middle East into the Community of Israel-Recognizing Nations.

"The rumor mill also has uber-neocon Paul Wolfowitz departing the Pentagon in February. Can Doug Feith -- the other half of the necon Laural & Hardy act, be far behind?

"Bush rolled out the red carpet -- with a 19-gun salute no less -- for Chinese prime minister Wen Jiabao, then explicitly warned Taiwan not to ditch its allegiance to the increasingly fictional notion of "one China." So doing, he completely ignored the howls of protest from neocon punditry that he was selling Taiwanese democracy down the river.

"The public sniping at the administration by said punditry has become distinctly more direct, with both Newt Gringrich and Bill Kristol harshly criticizing the White House -- if not yet the president who lives and sometimes even works there ..."

* Ø * Ø * Ø *

Also Judges: Pentagon cannot force military to take anthrax shots and Anthrax Vaccine Questioned: Defense Department’s Vaccine Untested for Long-Term Safety.

All this and more I found at a blog that's new to me: Sisyphus Shrugged. It not only has a playful and ironic name I wish I'd thought of, it's a lively and thought-provoking blog, or appears so on my first visit.

*Ø* Blogmanac December 25, 1914 | Silent Night, Holy Night

One of the most heart-warming true Christmas tales I've heard

1914 Just after midnight on Christmas morning, the majority of German troops engaged in WWI ceased firing guns and artillery, and commenced to sing Christmas carols. Crossing the No man's land, they traded gifts with the enemy forces that faced them. An estimated two-thirds of the British/German front line held local ceasefires. And the top military brass were not happy about it at all, making sure it never happened again.

At certain points along the Eastern and Western fronts, the soldiers of Russia, France, and Britain even heard brass bands joining the Germans in their joyous singing. The British responded in places with carols of their own. Those German soldiers who understood and could speak English called across greetings to 'Tommy' (the popular name for the British private); similar greetings were shouted over to "Fritz".

At the first light of dawn, many of the German soldiers emerged from their trenches and approach the Allied lines across no man's land, calling out "Merry Christmas" in their enemies' native tongues. At first the Allied soldiers suspected it to be a trick, but soon climbed out of their trenches and shook hands with the German soldiers. The men exchanged presents of cigarettes and plum puddings and sang carols and songs; the Christmas Truce lasted a few days.

Meanwhile, Scots and Huns were fraternizing in the most genuine possible manner. Every sort of souvenir was exchanged, addresses given and received, photos of families shown etc. One of our fellow offered a German a cigarette; the German said, "Virginian?" Our fellow said, "Aye, straight-cut." The German said, "No thanks, I only smoke Turkish!"
Captain Sir Edward Hulse, Bart., 2nd Scots Guards

The Germans, whose nation had originated the tradition of bringing Christmas trees into their houses and decorating them (introduced into England by Queen Victoria's Consort, Prince Albert) brought Christmas trees into their trenches and dugouts in various places, and had decorated some parts of their parapet.

We got into conversation with the Germans who were anxious to arrange an Armistice during Xmas. A scout named F. Murker went out and met a German Patrol and was given a glass of whisky and some cigars, and a message was sent back saying that if we didn't fire at them they would not fire at us.Edward Hulse, a 25-year old lieutenant in the Scots Guards, writing in his battalion's war history

The truce was fully publicised from the moment news of it reached home. Throughout January 1915 numerous local and national newspapers in Britain printed letter after letter from soldiers who took part; in addition they ran eye-catching headlines ("Extraordinary Unofficial Armistice", "British, Indians and Germans shake hands"), and even printed photographs of the Britons and Germans in No Man's Land. Germany also gave the event press publicity, though on a smaller scale and for a shorter period of time.

Reaction to the Christmas Truce from various sources came in numerous forms. The Allied governments and military high command reacted with indignation ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

Thanks Baz le Tuff for putting me onto this story at breakfast yesterday.

*Ø* Blogmanac | And on Earth Peace, Good Will Toward All Men!

From Lisa:


WELCOME TO AMERIKA


A picture is worth a thousand words, folks...

MERRY F***ING CHRISTMAS TO US!

For those who are unfamiliar with military equipment, that is a surface-to-air missile launcher...

...with the Washington Monument in the background.

Yes, ladies and gentlemen, we have heavy artillery on the National Mall. Just like the Soviets in Red Square, and the Chinese in Tiananmen Square, our alleged citizen gathering place is now a de facto military installation. What swell company to be in. NOT!

I could be wrong, but I haven't heard of such measures being taken at arguably higher-profile tourist attractions around the world, such as the Eiffel Tower, the Pyramids, the ancient ruins in Greece, etc.

Does anyone REALLY think there is going to be an air attack on the Mall?! If these weapons are legitimately needed for protection, why aren't they stationed at the real targets — the White House and the Capitol, for example?

Would it clash with the White House Christmas decorations? or take up too much room on the Capitol steps?

Or does the choice of placement send a message to the dissenters who have in the past used, and would in the future use, the Mall to exercise their right (for now, anyway) of free speech?

HMM.....


On a related note: no wonder the feds oppose DC statehood... it would invoke posse comitatus!


SOURCE

*Ø* Blogmanac | 'Ghost' caught on palace camera

Security guards spotted a figure in period dress

"Security film at Hampton Court Palace has captured a ghostly image.

"CCTV cameras picked up the vision at the 16th Century Surrey palace, which has a reputation for being haunted.

"Security guards spotted that fire doors kept opening in an exhibition area, and on one occasion checked the footage and saw a figure in period dress.

"'I thought someone was having a laugh but our costumed guides don't own a costume like that. It is actually quite unnerving,' said warder James Faukes.

"'It was incredibly spooky because the face just didn't look human,' he said.

"State apartment warder Ian Franklin added: 'Someone who appears to be in a full cloak walks forward, brings one door in, another door in and then closes it behind them ...'
Source: BBC

*Ø* Blogmanac | Don't let Australia send refugees back to torture and death

Howard: Where is your Christian Christmas spirit?



The Australian Government, led by arch-conservative John "Little Johnny" Howard, has notoriously waged a campaign against refugees for some years. The "Liberal" Party's grimy political landscape is littered with such monstrosities as the SIEVX disaster in which 353 asylum seekers drowned at sea (while Howard's mob did nothing to aid them), and the shipping of many desperate boat people asylum seekers to the tiny bankrupt Pacific island, Nauru, which Howard is paying millions to so as to keep these coloured problems away from Australia's mostly uncaring citizens.

In a stroke of breathtaking hypocrisy, while the Oz government travel advisories tell Ozzies that Afghanistan is too dangerous to travel to, that same regime is saying that Afghanistan is safe enough (for tinted people) to return to. And Australia is fully geared up to send refugees back home to the possible torture and execution from which they have fled.

Meanwhile, some 40 imprisoned men, women and children in the Nauruan hell-holes have quite understandably gone on a hunger strike. Blogmanac readers might remember a few months again when asylum seekers at Woomera, a concentration camp deep within the hot desert of mainland Australia, sewed their lips shut in a s8imilar hunger-strike protest. At the time, Howard's mob, and much of the media, represented this obvious act of deperation as "manipulation". The same is happening again.

I confess a personal interest in such matters. For 12 years I filled out application forms for Aghan women and their children at risk of persecution in Afghanistan. Women living in Pakistan and Iran in dreadful conditions, who were unable to return to their beloved Afghanistan, earlier because of the Communists, and later because of the Taliban. I know firsthand the treatment that men, women and children can receive at the hands of warlords and religious/political bastards in that benighted country. To ship back to Afghanistan any person who is in fear of their life is a crime against humanity, and the Blogmanac urges its readers to stay aware of the subject. Stay tuned as we will not be letting this issue go, as Howard would wish.

* Ø * Ø * Ø *

"The Head of Medical Services on Nauru, Doctor Kieran Keke, says so far the Australian Government has ignored his pleas for more assistance, and he warns that if the hunger strike escalates there's a risk someone will die."
Source

Nauru hunger striker 'could die'
December 24, 2003

"A DOCTOR treating hunger strikers on Nauru has warned an asylum seeker could die because of mounting pressure on the island's hospital.

"Hospital medical services head Dr Kieran Keke accused the Australian government of being reluctant to provide the medical support needed as the number of hunger strikers in immigration detention on Nauru swelled to 40 ..."
Source

UN Association demands action on Nauru refugees
Amnesty International (Australia) on refugees
Rural Australians for Refugees

* Ø * Ø * Ø *

Shame Little Johnny at church on Xmas Day
"For anyone who isn't dealing with Christmas family stuff tomorrow, may like to support the hunger strikers on Nauru with a little protest.

"John Howard worships at St Giles Anglican Church at Greenwich in Sydney.

"A silent protest with banners such as "No room at the inn again or 'Christian Charity?', 'Do unto others' would hopefully make him a little uncomfortable.

"Anyone up for the challenge?"
Source: Sydney Indymedia

*Ø* Blogmanac | Clinton was a Halliburton man too

"In a deal cut in June 2000 under President Clinton, the New York Post reports, Halliburton won 11 Navy contracts worth $110 million to build jails at Guantanamo Bay, a base in Kuwait, a ferry terminal on Vieques, an air station in Spain, a breakwater in the Azores and facilities slammed by a typhoon on Guam.

"Though the company is known for its strong backing of Republican candidates, Halliburton contributed over $140,000 to Democrats from 1992-2000, according to the Center for Responsive Politics."

Source

*Ø* Blogmanac | Lenny Bruce Pardoned 37 Years After Death

"Lenny Bruce, the potty-mouthed wit who turned stand-up comedy into social commentary, was posthumously pardoned yesterday by Gov. George E. Pataki, 39 years after being convicted of obscenity for using bad words in a Greenwich Village nightclub act.

"The governor said the posthumous pardon — the first in the state's history — was 'a declaration of New York's commitment to upholding the First Amendment.' ...

"Being dead, Mr. Bruce is not expected to reap any immediate benefit from the pardon ..."
Source

Over the course of four years, Lenny bruce was arrested nine times and prosecuted six times for obscenity violations.
The Trials of Lenny Bruce pardon campaign

*Ø* Blogmanac | The P.U. - Litzer Prizes for 2003

Norman Solomon, AlterNet

"The P.U.- litzer Prizes were established more than a decade ago to give recognition to the stinkiest media performances of the year.

"As usual, I have conferred with Jeff Cohen, founder of the media watch group FAIR, to sift through the large volume of entries. In view of the many deserving competitors, we regret that only a few can win a P.U.- litzer."

Read the 12th annual P.U.- litzer Prizes, for the foulest media performances of 2003

Norman Solomon is co-author of "Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn't Tell You."

*Ø* Blogmanac | Yep, Right on Time!

From iddybud's blog:



Howard Dean was absoutely preposterous and well out of the mainstream when he said the nation "hasn't been made any safer" since we've caught Saddam Hussein...
Oh, by the way, there's a slim chance that you might be blown to smithereens
later this week...
Oh, but don't let that stop you from getting on the plane to visit Grandma...
Buh-bye! Don't worry!
Have a good time!


* Ø * Ø * Ø *

WELL, IF THIS JUST DON'T BEAT ALL!

Australia won't match US terrorist alert
By Tom Allard and agencies (Australia)
December 23, 2003

Australia will not increase its terrorism alert level, the Federal Government said yesterday. The assurance came despite a US warning that fresh intelligence indicated attacks were being planned on its territory that could rival or surpass those of September 11, 2001.

The warning from the US Homeland Secretary, Tom Ridge -- and the accompanying lifting of the US terrorism alert to "orange", the second highest level -- comes in the wake of fresh alerts in much of Europe and Indonesia.

While the Department of Foreign Affairs has advised Australians travelling to the US and other countries to be alert to terrorist attacks, the same caution does not apply to holidaymakers in Australia.

"The reports that we've had from America indicate the threat relates to American cities and not to any other country apart from America," the Justice Minister, Chris Ellison, said.

"We've had no specific information which would cause an increase in our threat level. It remains at medium and we believe the measures we have taken are appropriate."

US federal officials said on Sunday fresh intelligence reports suggested al-Qaeda was planning multiple catastrophic terrorist attacks in the US.

Previously, Bush Administration officials said they would only lift the terrorism alert to code orange in the most unusual circumstances.

The new intelligence indicates al-Qaeda operatives are taking advantage of lower security on commercial or cargo flights from overseas to US airports, officials said.

They said they had no specific information on where or when an attack might be planned.

Senator Ellison said much of the concern arose from a tape *apparently* recorded by a senior al-Qaeda figure. It was being analysed by the CIA, he said. [Emphasis added. -v]

Raising the alert level to orange leads to stronger security procedures across the US to protect government buildings, critical infrastructure such as nuclear plants and railways, harbours and shopping malls.

Police were out in force at airports across the US on Sunday.


Australian news source


* Ø * Ø * Ø *

Daschle Letter to Ashcroft: Classified Leaks Continue

Monday 22 December 2003

The Honorable John Ashcroft
Attorney General, U.S. Department of Justice
950 Pennsylvania Ave, NW
Washington, DC 20530

Dear Mr. Attorney General:

On September 29, 2003, we wrote to you and to the President requesting the appointment of a special counsel to investigate the unauthorized disclosure of the identity of an undercover CIA officer. You rejected this request, stating that the Department of Justice would initiate a criminal investigation of this matter instead. However, based on what we have seen to date, it is far from clear that the Administration and your department are truly committed to taking the steps necessary to apprehend the person or persons responsible for this grave national security breach.

More than five months have passed since the first press report disclosed the name of the CIA officer and more than two months since your investigation was initiated. The press reports that you are receiving detailed briefings on the status of this case from the Justice Department employees conducting the investigation. Given your refusal to name a special prosecutor and the fact that you are a political appointee of the President, receiving briefings on an investigation of officials of this Administration creates, at a minimum, the appearance of a conflict of interest.

Read full text of letter

*Ø* Blogmanac December 23 | The Secret of the Unhewn Stone

December 23 is the only blank day of the Celtic tree calendar, and the only day in the year not ruled by a tree and its corresponding Ogham letter. Its name denotes the quality of potential in all things.

The unhewn stone has significance outside the Celtic neopagan tradition. The Freemasons refer in their secret rites to the unhewn stone, the stone that has not been cut by iron. The Biblical Hebrew patriarch and predecessor of Solomon, Enoch, is an important Masonic character ...

The Stone of Scone: A famous rough-hewn stone
A famous rough-hewn stone from the British Isles is the Stone of Destiny, also known as the Stone of Scone, and the Coronation Stone. It is a block of sandstone historically kept at the now-ruined abbey in Scone, near Perth, Scotland. It is also known as Jacob's Pillow and as the Tanist Stone.

In Celtic mythology, the Lia Fail was a magical stone brought to Ireland by the Tuatha de Danaan. When the rightful King of Ireland put his feet on it, the stone was said to roar in joy. This is believed to be the origin of the Stone of Destiny ...

* Ø * Ø * Ø *

Festivus, the holiday for the rest-of-us

Read all about the sacred holiday of Festivus, invented by George Costanza's father, many Christmases ago (and listen to the audio) ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Little Johnny's little policies wreak havoc

Howard's Failed Health Policies Increase HIV- AIDS

"After World AIDS Day on December 1st unfortunately all Australia has to report is that the Howard regime's lack of understanding of the issues, and economic bungling, have lead to increasing levels of HIV-AIDS and hepatitis C.

"This outcome has been achieved by an ideological destruction of the successful Harm Minimisation Strategies being replaced with the failing Zero Tolerance debacle as part of the Howard Regime's War on Drugs.

"Now Australia is reaping a harvest of increased disease from the destructive misplacement of funds towards law enforcement, at the expense of medical help for syringe using drug addicts, and a lack of community awareness of HIV-AIDS.

"It is years since the Federal Government has run a campaign fighting the threat of AIDS to the Australian population and Commercial Television is sidelined with shows about how to increase a tear-away housing price bubble by buying more real estate at inflated prices.

"Time is well and truly up for a concerted attempt by the Howard Regime to take off its blinkers and see the destruction that its failing health policies are perpetrating on this country.

"It would appear that the good reputation Australia once had in reducing HIV-AIDS has been squandered by the Howard Regime and it is about time that it got its act together on this issue."
Source: Sydney Inymedia

Take a break in Neverland (requires Flash)

*Ø* Blogmanac December 22, 1550 | Burial of Richard Plantagenet, alleged son of Richard III

Richard Plantagenet was a poor working man, but perhaps he was the son of a king.

In about 1545, Sir Thomas Moyle began to have built on his estate, a mansion later named Eastwell House. Sir Thomas was surprised to observe that one of the bricklayers, whenever he had a break, would have his nose firmly planted in a particular book. No matter how the nobleman tried to discover the title of the book that held the tradesman's interest, he could not. Soon, he discovered that the book was written in Latin.

When he asked the bricklayer how he came to be able to read in a classical language, Sir Thomas Moyle was told this tale by the man ...

Read on

*Ø* Blogmanac December 22 | Happy solstice, happy Yule, to all our readers!



Yule 2003

Yule is one of the eight solar holidays or sabbats of Neopaganism. It is celebrated on the winter solstice, in the Northern Hemisphere circa December 21 and in the Southern Hemisphere circa June 21. The name is of Germanic origin; it is also called Midwinter.

The holiday is, with Beltane and Samhain, one of the most popular among Neopagans. In some traditions, it commemorates the death of the Holly King (symbolizing the old year and the shortened sun) at the hands of his son and successor, the Oak King (the new year and the new sun that begins to grow). In other traditions, it is seen as the birthday of the new sun god.

A traditional ritual is a vigil from dusk to dawn, the longest night of the year, to make sure that the sun will rise again.

Yule is a revival of a Germanic festival that was Christianized as Christmas; indeed, many traditional trappings of Christmas, such as the Yule Log, holly, and the Christmas tree are derived from pre-Christian Yule celebrations. In the Scandinavian countries, Jul is the word for Christmas.

Among the sabbats, Yule is preceded by Samhain and followed by Imbolc ..

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Actions to Take to Make a Difference

Remind us: Why Did the U.S. Government Invade and Destabilize Iraq?

The action is threefold but simple. The action is imperative.

The action is embedded within this flash animation.

Please watch, act, and pass it on.

Thank you.

And thank you, InformationClearinghouse.info.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Early Inspiration

["Early inspiration" has two meanings here. This article is intended to inspire us early in the presidential campaign and the subject of the article is responsible for much of my own early political inspiration. I can vouch for the validity of the biographical and personality information herein. -v]


A Story to Light the World
by Stephen Dinan
RadicalSpirit.org

Imagine for a moment that you are the writer of a story, a story designed to inspire the hearts and minds of the world. It is to be an epic story with all the necessary ingredients: humble beginnings, a fall from grace, hopelessness, unsuspected twists, and triumph over impossible odds. The point of this story is to show that we are bigger than we think we are. We are not bound by class or appearance or money. We are limited only by our willingness to become an instrument for something larger. A mission. A calling. A destiny.

Let's say this story is addressed to a nation that has become a prisoner of its own successes and is beginning to exhibit all the signs of aging empire: corruption, belligerence, rule by an elite, cronyism, manipulation of the public trust, and self-indulgence. This country has forgotten its principles, its ideals, its very reason for existence. It's lost touch with its mission. Instead of an oasis of idealism, its government and leadership have become a secretive citadel of greed. Its citizens no longer carry the torch of truth. They carry the credit card of the consumer.

Continue for the full, wonderful story

*Ø* Blogmanac | Hussein Was Held by Kurds Before U.S. Capture, AFP Reports


"Dec. 21 (Bloomberg) -- Saddam Hussein was captured by U.S. troops only after being held prisoner by Kurdish forces, who had had drugged and abandoned him, Agence France-Presse reported, citing a Sunday Express newspaper report ..."
Source

Good photo op, though.

*Ø* Blogmanac December 21, 2012 | End of time?

2012 Timewave Zero? The Mayan calendar ends today.

More at this page in the Scriptorium.

Terence McKenna (November 16, 1946 - April 3, 2000), theoretician of consciousness, was the originator of the timewave zero theory, which claims time to be a fractal wave of increasing novelty, which ends in 2012 ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there. (There are lots of links.)

*Ø* Blogmanac December 20 | Modresnach

Modresnach – The Mothers’ Night
This is a Germanic/Scandinavian and Anglo-Saxon annual commemoration, an Odinist Midwinter festival held approximately on this date, many echoes of which can still be found in our Christmas traditions. It was believed that dreams on this night foretold events of the year to come. Traditionally, pine or other evergreen trees are decorated tonight to represent the tree of life. The decorated evergreen tree symbolises the Tree of Life, or Yggdrasil (World Tree). In Norse Mythology, Yggdrasil was a gigantic ash tree, thought to hold all of the different worlds: such as Asgard, Midgard, Utgard and Hel. Like Jesus on the Cross (often called ‘the Tree’ in the Christian tradition), Odin suffered on Yggdrasil.

The star at the top of the Modresnach tree represents the pole star of the Star God or Goddess ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

Read about the origins and folklore of the festive season at the Wilson's Almanac Christmas page.

[Christmas tree fingerprint art here]

*Ø* Blogmanac December 20, 1192 | Capture of the Lionheart

1192 Richard I of England (Lionheart) was captured in Vienna by Duke Leopold – whom he had publicly insulted in the course of his crusade – and was handed over as a prisoner to the Emperor Henry VI.

Richard I (September 8, 1157 - April 6, 1199) was King of England from 1189 to 1199. He was often referred to as Richard the Lionheart, Coeur de Lion and Oc et No by the French, and Melek-Ric by the Saracens (his name in Arabic used to frighten children: "King Rick will get you if you don't watch out!").

Blondel, a legend
Richard’s imprisonment gave rise to the legend of Blondel. Blondel (de Nesle, late 12th century) was a French poet and musician, a trouvère (later troubadour). He is most well known for the legend, first seen in the Récits d'un ménestrel de Reims (1260s), that after Richard I of England was captured and held for ransom in 1192 Blondel searched for him in Germany and Austria. The story relates that Blondel went from castle to castle singing a particular song (possibly "L'amours dont sui espris"), the imprisoned Ricahrd would reply with the second verse after Blondel sung the first – thus identifying were Richard was imprisoned and then Blondel would (depending on the source) either aid the king's escape or report his position back to England.

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac December 19, 1940 | Phil Ochs, troubled troubador

1940 Phil Ochs (December 19, 1940 - April 9, 1976), American protest singer of the early 1960s, perhaps best known for his songs ‘Power and Glory’, ‘There But for Fortune’, ‘Changes’, ‘When I'm Gone’, and ‘I Ain't Marching Anymore’. Ochs was a passionate vocalist who wrote poignant lyrics about war, civil rights, labor struggles and other topics.

Intensely disappointed by his lack of commercial success, however, and haunted by other personal demons – namely alcoholism, writer's block and depression – Phil Ochs hanged himself in 1976. His songs have been covered by Joan Baez, Billy Bragg, Ani DiFranco, John Wesley Harding and They Might Be Giants among many others ...

This is just a snippet of today's stories. Read all about today in folklore, historical oddities, inspiration and alternatives at the Wilson's Almanac Book of Days, every day. Click today's date when you're there.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Are the polls wrong about Kucinich?

HAPPY HOLIDAYS!


There's a meme floating around "out there" that 'no one can beat Bush because none of the candidates contrasts him enough on the major issues.' Every right-wing talking head parrots this "party line" from the mainstream media. The mainstream media and the pundits are knocking themselves out to prevent the people from learning that there IS a candidate who contrasts Bush on the major issues. Which candidate evokes a "Who is THAT?" from most people when they hear his name? See how well the propaganda machine works? All we are saying is give this man's platform a chance. Whoever you're favoring, compare their record and their plan to Dennis'.


ARE THE POLLS WRONG ABOUT KUCINICH?

That's the headline of an article at Utne.com that shows that the www.kucinich.us website is the second most read presidential campaign site, and which presents other reasons to believe Kucinich's low ranking in some polls is misleading. Here's the article.


WHAT ARE PRIMARIES FOR?

The Democratic caucuses and primaries are the time to support the candidate who has the best chance of defeating George W. Bush. Clearly, that candidate is Dennis Kucinich. The primaries are not the time for supporting the candidate who you think has the best chance of winning the primaries. That's exactly as useful as staying home. Why is Dennis the one to beat Bush?

1. Dennis' platform fits his record. He opposes the "PATRIOT Act" now, and is the only candidate who voted against it. He opposes the war now, and is the only candidate who voted against it or who opposed it from the start. And he is the only one who will bring our troops home in 90 days.

2. Dennis cannot be attacked for planning to cut services or raise taxes because he is the one candidate with the guts to cut the bloated Pentagon budget and end the occupation of Iraq. He makes proposals and explains how he will pay for them. And his tax plan is laid out in detail.

3. Dennis and most Americans want single-payer universal health coverage. President Bush and most other candidates want to keep the HMOs and private insurance companies in charge.

4. Dennis is the only candidate with a plan to end NAFTA and withdraw from the WTO, replacing these corporate trade agreements with fair bilateral trade based on workers' rights, human rights, and the environment. The other candidates side with the current President in wanting to maintain NAFTA and the WTO.

5. Dennis has a history of attracting swing voters and "Reagan Democrats" in winning elections against better-funded Republican opponents, it is Dennis Kucinich. He has repeatedly defeated entrenched incumbents. He beat a Republican incumbent for mayor in 1977, for state senator in 1994 (overcoming the national right-wing tide) and for Congress in 1996.

6. Dennis' Congressional district includes the suburb of Parma, Ohio, described as "one of the original homes of the Reagan Democrats." An Ohio daily calls it a "conservative Democratic district," which he carried by 74% in 2002. Being a success there may be a better predictor of national success than holding statewide office in a liberal stronghold like Vermont or Massachusetts.

7. Dennis, unlike some other candidates, opposes the death penalty, will end the war on drugs, supports the Kyoto treaty, will take us to 20 percent renewable energy by 2010, and will back no justice who will not uphold Roe v. Wade.

8. Dennis attracts third party voters and Ralph Nader supporters.

9. Ohio has 20 electoral votes. It is the state that is key to national victory; only two candidates in the 20th century have won the presidency without carrying Ohio.


Dennis sets the media straight. Continue reading . . .

Brilliant Column in Des Moines Register

Post your comments on Kucinich Site

Come to Iowa and New Hampshire

*Ø* Blogmanac | BREAKING NEWS


9/11 Chair Says White House Could Have Stopped Attacks


It has been two years and three months since America absorbed the horrific attacks of September 11. A fight has been waged since then to determine the facts behind that terrible day: How did it happen? Why was it not stopped? The Bush administration has fought the official investigations into these attacks every step of the way, going so far as to nominate master secret-keeper Henry Kissinger to chair the investigation. They failed in this nomination, and wound up with former New Jersey Governor and fellow Republican Thomas Kean. Today, Kean has fired an incredible broad-side across the bow of the White House, stating bluntly that the attacks of September 11 could have and should have been stopped, and that blame for this failure rests squarely on the shoulders of the Bush administration.

-- William Rivers Pitt


Go to article

*Ø* Blogmanac December 17 - 23 | Saturnalia & the origins of Xmas

Four major Roman festivals were held in December, including Saturnalia which celebrated the returning Sun-god.

Saturnalia (from the god Saturn) was the name the Romans gave to their holiday marking the Winter Solstice. Saturn was a Roman cognate of the Greek god Chronos (Time). He devoured all his children except Jupiter (air), Neptune (water), and Pluto (the underworld, or grave). These time cannot consume. He carries a sickle, like the Grim Reaper. The reign of Saturn was celebrated by the poets as a 'golden age'. According to the old alchemists and astrologers Saturn typified lead, and was a very evil planet to be born under. He was the god of seedtime and harvest and his symbol was a scythe, and he was finally banished from his throne by his son Jupiter."

Saturnalia was celebrated for seven days beginning on December 17. It honoured the corn-god Saturn and his consort, Ops, the goddess of plenty. Normal activities were suspended during this time period. Slaves and masters were temporarily on and equal footing, and the theme was goodwill to all. (The Roman masters were civilised enough to not kill their slaves afterwards, as seems to be the custom with such holidays in more primitive cultures.)

During this wild week, public business was suspended, the law courts and schools were closed and no criminals were punished, no wars were fought nor any business conducted. People spent much time gambling and feasting, and roles were reversed with masters waiting on their servants. Slaves wore their masters robes, and the patricians, wearing fantastic costumes, roamed the streets with their slaves ...

This is just a snippet from the December 17 page (I'm running late, sorry – see immediately below) of the Book of Days. There are also ideas on how to celebrate your own Saturnalia. Let your kids be parents for a day; they can discipline you, but they'll also have to feed you. Enjoy!

More folklore and origins of Christmas

*Ø* Blogmanac | Me back, me beard

That was a close shave
It seems like I've been gone for weeks and I have to relearn how to use the computer. Over the past few days I've been moving house, and then there was a couple of days waiting for the telephone company to bloody well show up. And in between, a day in which I thought my modem had packed it in, but it was just a faulty plug.

But I'm back by the skin of my face. Terribly disorganised, but I've opened and even unpacked lots of boxes. I've found a few basics, like Esmeralda, my computer, and one Bic razor. I'd like to say that after four days without shaving I had a beard like Saddam Hussein, but that would be a lie. Jeezuz, that guy can grow a beard. All that hair in nine months? I know a lot of people will be sad if he gets shot before they extract some of his hormones for research.

I'm way behind in my work, and also pretty tired from moving to beautiful downtown Repton, NSW, Australia. Lots of stuff to carry in heat and humidity. Please bear with me for a couple of days while I try to catch up. Thanks, folks. And thank you, Blogmanac team members, for holding the fort so well during my wanderings.

*Ø* Blogmanac | Something to Think About

I've been listening to the mainstream talking heads blather on since Sunday about the victory Dubya has accomplished by unearthing Saddam--literally. They've pinned all sorts of heavy effects on this event, from ending the resistance in Iraq to giving the democratic candidates for the presidency nothing to compete against Bush with, to improving the economy and suddenly making us feel safer on America's shores! Sickening!

First of all, I'm not comfortable with the timing and method of revealing the finding of Saddam to the world. Something in my gut tells me they've had him for a while and chose this moment to reveal to us the drug-addled, cowed old man, already over-interrogated, for political -- election-related -- impact. I believe it's more for American approval points than to quell resistance attacks on troops, sad to say. Deadly attacks on troops have, in fact, increased because the Iraqis now feel that they don't need the U.S. to protect them from Saddam.

Anyway, I think the important thing to remember is that these events being touted as some sort of victory or achievement are meaningless in the face of the true damage to America, its image, its values and its respect in the world. And, at least with respect to our corporate presence in Iraq, hear Paul Krugman tell it:


Patriots and Profits
By Paul Krugman
New York Times

Tuesday 16 December 2003

Last week there were major news stories about possible profiteering by Halliburton and other American contractors in Iraq. These stories have, inevitably and appropriately, been pushed temporarily into the background by the news of Saddam's capture. But the questions remain. In fact, the more you look into this issue, the more you worry that we have entered a new era of excess for the military-industrial complex.

The story about Halliburton's strangely expensive gasoline imports into Iraq gets curiouser and curiouser. High-priced gasoline was purchased from a supplier whose name is unfamiliar to industry experts, but that appears to be run by a prominent Kuwaiti family (no doubt still grateful for the 1991 liberation). U.S. Army Corps of Engineers documents seen by The Wall Street Journal refer to "political pressures" from Kuwait's government and the U.S. embassy in Kuwait to deal only with that firm. I wonder where that trail leads.

Meanwhile, NBC News has obtained Pentagon inspection reports of unsanitary conditions at mess halls run by Halliburton in Iraq: "Blood all over the floors of refrigerators, dirty pans, dirty grills, dirty salad bars, rotting meat and vegetables." An October report complains that Halliburton had promised to fix the problem but didn't.

And more detail has been emerging about Bechtel's much-touted school repairs. Again, a Pentagon report found "horrible" work: dangerous debris left in playground areas, sloppy paint jobs and broken toilets.

Are these isolated bad examples, or part of a pattern? It's impossible to be sure without a broad, scrupulously independent investigation. Yet such an inquiry is hard to imagine in the current political environment — which is precisely why one can't help suspecting the worst.

Let's be clear: worries about profiteering aren't a left-right issue. Conservatives have long warned that regulatory agencies tend to be "captured" by the industries they regulate; the same must be true of agencies that hand out contracts. Halliburton, Bechtel and other major contractors in Iraq have invested heavily in political influence, not just through campaign contributions, but by enriching people they believe might be helpful. Dick Cheney is part of a long if not exactly proud tradition: Brown & Root, which later became the Halliburton subsidiary doing those dubious deals in Iraq, profited handsomely from its early support of a young politician named Lyndon Johnson.

So is there any reason to think that things are worse now? Yes.

The biggest curb on profiteering in government contracts is the threat of exposure: sunshine is the best disinfectant. Yet it's hard to think of a time when U.S. government dealings have been less subject to scrutiny.

First of all, we have one-party rule — and it's a highly disciplined, follow-your-orders party. There are members of Congress eager and willing to take on the profiteers, but they don't have the power to issue subpoenas. [Emphasis added. -v]

And getting information without subpoena power has become much harder because, as a new report in U.S. News & World Report puts it, the Bush administration has "dropped a shroud of secrecy across many critical operations of the federal government." Since 9/11, the administration has invoked national security to justify this secrecy, but it actually began the day President Bush took office. [Emphasis added. -v]

To top it all off, after 9/11 the U.S. media — which eagerly played up the merest hint of scandal during the Clinton years — became highly protective of the majesty of the office. As the stories I've cited indicate, they have become more searching lately. But even now, compare British and U.S. coverage of the Neil Bush saga.

The point is that we've had an environment in which officials inclined to do favors for their business friends, and contractors inclined to pad their bills or do shoddy work, didn't have to worry much about being exposed. Human nature being what it is, then, the odds are that the troubling stories that have come to light aren't isolated examples.

Some Americans still seem to feel that even suggesting the possibility of profiteering is somehow unpatriotic. They should learn the story of Harry Truman, a congressman who rose to prominence during World War II by leading a campaign against profiteering. Truman believed, correctly, that he was serving his country.

On the strength of that record, Franklin Roosevelt chose Truman as his vice president. George Bush, of course, chose Dick Cheney.

SOURCE


Related Stories:

In Iraq, The Slaughter Goes On

Many More Americans Dead, Wounded in Iraq

Halliburton Continues Extended Payday in Iraq

Anti-war MPs Give Blair No Respite Over WMD Hunt

Kabul is Hit by 2 Rockets

James Ridgeway | You Got Him? Get Out!