#the first one i've shared several passages from on this blog

[heritageposts]

By Ilan Pappe, published 5th of November 2023.

On October 24, a statement by United Nations Secretary-General Antonio Guterres caused a sharp reaction by Israel. While addressing the UN Security Council, the UN chief said that while he condemned in the strongest terms the massacre committed by Hamas on October 7, he wished to remind the world that it did not take place in a vacuum. He explained that one cannot dissociate 56 years of occupation from our engagement with the tragedy that unfolded on that day. The Israeli government was quick to condemn the statement. Israeli officials demanded Guterres’s resignation, claiming that he supported Hamas and justified the massacre it carried out. The Israeli media also jumped on the bandwagon, asserting among other things that the UN chief “has demonstrated a stunning degree of moral bankruptcy”. This reaction suggests that a new type of allegation of anti-Semitism may now be on the table. Until October 7, Israel had pushed for the definition of anti-Semitism to be expanded to include criticism of the Israeli state and questioning the moral basis of Zionism. Now, contextualising and historicising what is going on could also trigger an accusation of anti-Semitism.

. . . article continues on Al Jazeera

#palestine #gaza #israel #ilan pappe #he's an israeli-born jewish historian and the author of 'the ethnic cleansing of palestine' and 'ten myths about israel' #the first one i've shared several passages from on this blog

[yasmeensh]

I know this is an art blog but my anthropology brain is taking over and I NEED TO TALK ABOUT THIS.

I was watching Gorilla videos, as I do every morning. Today’s video of the Shabani family in Higashiyama zoo showed an interesting interaction between Kiyomasa (a teenage male gorilla) and his mother, Nene. Here is the clip:

Nene wanted the tomato, but Kiyomasa ate it first. She kept staring at him... and then he patted her back. It's like he's telling her "alright ma. you'll get it next time"

Some people might find that as projecting human emotions, but hear me out...

I used to believe that I always projected human thoughts and emotions when I interpret animal behaviour in a certain way. But I've come to believe it's not the case. In one of my anthropology classes, there was a passage from a "Aesop's Anthropology" by John Hartigan about anthropocentric tendencies we have and that we think only humans are capable of thinking and feeling. So much so that when we see animals acting in a way that feels humanly familiar, it's not that we are projecting our human condition on them, but merely the fact that their behaviour is EXACTLY what we see.

Here is the passage:

It's only one sentence. I don't know if the author ever goes into this topic again, since this is from the introduction, and that's all we've read of it in class (we read several chapters from different books every week to get a variety of views). I'm really interested in reading more about it. I'll get the whole book one day...

Anyways, this sentence left such a profound effect on me. I made it the core of my seminar discussion the next class. Please share any thoughts, reflections, or insights you have on this topic! I'd love to hear!

#anthropology #primates #gorilla #cultural anthropology

[ellies-cycling-notes]

Day 12: Evitts Creek to Confluence, PA

Distance Covered: 66.56 miles

Total Time (including rests): 7:24 (7:27am-2:51pm)

Time spent riding: 5:29

Average Speed: 12.1 mph

Apples Eaten: 3 (fuji - 7.5/10, gala - 6.5/10, gala - 7.5/10)

Today's ride was a nice one (and rather short, too). Almost the entire ride was spent on the Great Allegheny Passage trail, a mostly flat rail trail that goes all the way to Pittsburgh. The roads are mostly light gravel/crushed limestone, but they're grainy enough that the ride isn't uncomfortable. The first 20 miles or so we're tiring and I felt rather lethargic, because they were slightly uphill. However, starting at around the 25 mile mark, it became a slight downhill, and stayed that way for the rest of the ride.

I stopped twice, once around 20 miles in, and a second time 25 miles later. During the second stop I had to fix a flat, and I grabbed lunch (a slice of pizza & 2 cheeseburgers) from a nearby gas station. Most of the ride was in the shade, making it so I never really got overheated. I arrived at the campsite rather early, but I just relaxed and did some fixes for a while before setting up my tent.

Also, as today is day 12, I have officially passed the halfway mark for this trip!

Notes from the Ride

Sleep issues - I woke up several times during the night, because I forgot to put earplugs in, and there were 2 large causes of noise disturbance. (1) the Evitts Creek campsite was right next to a train load-off station, and (2) the frogs in the nearby pond croaked very loudly.

Lunch was good - there was a small town gas station by my lunch stop, and I got lunch there at the recommendation of the lady at the trail information desk. At first, I bought a cheeseburger and slice of pizza, but the burger was really good and I was still hungry, so I got a second.

Another flat, luckily only a mile away from a bike station

Pavers - on part of the trail, I had to get off my bike and walk because there were trucks and machines paving over the trail. I say "paving", but I don't really know if that's what you call what they were doing: they were pouring down sand/dirt, and then rolling over it to pack it down.

"Morning" - I said the word "morning" today probably more than any other word, cause I said it to almost everyone I saw on the trail from when I started til it became afternoon

Other bikepackers - I was not the only bicyclist on the trail loaded up to be able to camp. I saw at least half-a-dozen other, though I'm pretty sure I was the youngest bikepacker I saw (not the youngest biker in general, though).

Power banks - I'm carrying 2 power banks on me to charge my phone. One is solar-powered, and I use it most of the time, and the other is a back-up. I started using the back-up yesterday, and I just realized it carries such a large amount of charge, I'm not even sure if I needed my solar power bank.

Design Notes

Short design notes today. This is because today's ride was heavily focused on just enjoying the scenery in the moment, so I didn't spend too much time thinking about things. Also, one of the topics I did think a lot about, Covencraft, is not one which I'm going to be discussing on this blog, because it's actually a project in development.

Time loop

I've been thinking about how player communication should work - I can think of several options:

No information sharing

Total information sharing

Only information sharing if in the same room (this would be much easier if the game was fully digital)

Information sharing able to be limited by events? For example, there's usually total information sharing, but there can be events that limit it to players in the same room as each other.

Example Events: I'm going to showcase a few examples of different possible events that can take place to show how the system might work.

Structure of an event: Event Name - Event Type - Event description

Chemical Spill - Round Event - Occurs in 1 or more rooms. In a room that it occurs in, a player may move in or out of that room but not through that room in a single turn. If a player ends their turn in this room, they take 1 damage. Can be cleaned up with janitorial items.

Meteor Warning - Round Event - notifies all players. In a few turns, if no player has done specific notes actions in the Navigation hub or Defense Control Room, an asteroid hits, which is a cause-and-effect event.

Time Lock - Time event - a random item in the current room becomes time-locked. It will not reset its position when a time loop occurs (this may cause more time paradoxes).

Escaped specimen - round event - a creature appears in a certain room. It can see into adjacent rooms. At the end of each room, it moves into an adjacent room, attempting to move away from players if it sees any. When it reaches certain rooms, it causes damage & temporal instability to occur in that room. There are ways to catch or kill it (undetermined as of yet).

That's all for today. Ride was good, food was good, etc. One flat, but that wasn't enough to put me down. Tomorrow's ride is supposed to be almost all downhill until I get to Pittsburgh, so I'm looking forward to that!

I'd like to possibly post more about what I do this evening, but there's no service at the campsite, and I'm currently eating dinner at a restaurant which is one of the only places with WiFi. Later! (I might or might not post pics tonight - I might just end up posting them all tomorrow)

Previous -- Next

[sohannabarberaesque]

Postcards from Snagglepuss

What Peter Potamus wouldn't give in tribute

"Snagglepuss ... Huckleberry Hound ... Hair Bear ... Square Bear ... Bubi Bear ..."

It was Peter Potamus, hosting our motley crew at his diver's cabin off the Florida Keys just past Islamorada one evening around sunset, with a wonderful campfire of sorts blazing near the beach. The sort of gatherings he's particularly fond of having evenings--but this time around, it's one tending to the mystical, with elements of the Polynesian even (as witness some tiki carvings in their luscious erotic glory).

"The reason I've called you here," Peter explained in his classic safari jacket-and-pith helmet getup, "is for the sake of some Very Special Recognition."

Huck was quick to whisper in my ear, "What sort of recognition exactly?", prompting moi to respond in like fashion, "You'll see."

"The recognition I speak of," Peter continued, "is in this Polynesian-inspired necklace of mother-of-pearl shell and a string of sharks' teeth. I happened to pick up several of these one time during one of my storied journeys into Polynesia Uncharted, which included the suggestion of the local chieftain that such necklaces should be given to especially close friends of yours who symbolise our most wonderful passion for the water in particular!"

(Whereupon So-So, Peter's trusted simian companion, on signal from Peter presented a collation of five such necklaces as above to Peter, and placed them on his right arm for eventual distribution ritual-like.)

"I certainly hope and trust," Peter remarked in preparing to award said necklaces, "that such will be worn with a sense of pride and wonderment ... and mindful that such are being given to you with a sense of awe and respect in the diving experience, and the fascination expected to be inherent as close friends of yours truly and the diving experiences which I happen to share with close friends, and then some!" After a short pause, and more as an aside: "Not to mention a fascination for the uncharted side of Polynesia!"

Thus, with the setting Florida Keys sun as backdrop and the campfire as reinforcement, Peter would fit these necklaces around our necks, followed by the traditional cheek rub known as the accolade, a show of passage for such an unlikely honour for such sharing his passion for diving in pure and natural way; yours truly was given the first such necklace, then Huckleberry, followed by the Hair Bears, who admittedly were humbled (as Hair Bear explained it later over lime-flavoured seltzer as much as conversation into the night).

"Admittedly, such doesn't quite confer any special privilege or honour," Peter remarked in explaining the necklace's significance, "but at least it looks cool and fascinating!"

"And you wonder if such will win over the girls when we go into the woods for mating season this summer," Square Bear coyly remarked as he fondled the necklace, prompting Hair Bear to suggest that such be left aside until the time comes, as it were.

Meanwhile--

"Heavens to the Polynesian gods of the dive!" remarked I.

Which Peter Potamus seconded by remarking, "Isn't that quite the sentiment?" Followed by quite the session of diving-related fantasies and stories stretching well past one in the morning, if you can believe it.

*************

@warnerbrosentertainment @iheartgod175 @jellystone-enjoyer @xdiver71 @joey-gatorman @archive-archives @thylordshipofbutts @princessgalaxy505 @themineralyoucrave @screamingtoosoftly @thebigdingle @warnerbros-blog1 @tallcharlie @restroom @theweekenddigest @warnerbrosent-blog

#hanna barbera #fanfiction #fanfic #postcards from the road #snagglepuss #on road trip #florida keys #peter potamus #hair bear bunch #polynesian fashion #polynesian necklace #shark's tooth necklace #honour #recognition #polynesian lore and legend #sunset ceremony #hannabarberaforever

[kyofsonder]

Happy WBW!! Are there any particular Rites of passage people in your world must go through? Where did they come from?

Several Worldbuilding Wednesdays later... on a Friday... I've finally managed to get to this ask. Thank you for asking this, and for patiently waiting for my response!

This is actually a tough question to answer, because several of my worlds have rites of passage that are important to their various cultures. I keep thinking I know which one to talk about, then feeling guilty for leaving the others behind.

That said, I was finally able to narrow it down by deciding that I should stick to the WIPs I've shared snippets of on this blog before. I ultimately chose Ryedenne, since it's been referenced in snippets from my novel WIP "A Place to Return" and is an important part of the overall plot of that story.

Like I usually do, I'll put the explanation itself under a cut just in case it gets too long.

On the main continent of Ryedenne, if not in the lands of its smaller neighbors, the main way to be recognized as an adult is to graduate from apprenticeship.

There is no public schooling system where kids go to learn general knowledge, just teachings from parents and any relevant experts in the towns and cities where kids grow up. They learn by whatever means they can, then travel (sometimes to the building next door, sometimes all the way across the continent) to a relevant Work Hall.

These Halls are sort of like guilds or unions, each one managing the officers, employees, and trainees of a given profession. There are Merchant Halls, Chef Halls, Construction Halls, Mage Halls, Farm Halls, etc and so on for almost any profession you can think of -- within the scope of a medieval-era-ish fantasy world. The main characters of APTR specifically travel and apply to the Mercenary Hall to be the closest thing Ryedenne has to "adventurers" or "heroes" and the plot follows their shared career closely.

The rite of passage itself involves several steps once you've made it to your Hall of choice. The first step is a qualification exam known as an apprenticeship test. It tests whatever basic knowledge you've acquired from your hometown, your intuition for the job itself, and your overall physical/mental capacity. It's generally rough, though some Halls take it easier on their applicants than others.

The second step is undergoing apprenticeship itself. This means living at the apprentice housing for your Hall while having the most vital skills for your job drilled into you during intense training and job shadowing. You do this for two weeks, as a sort of intense boot camp.

Then comes the part that people get sentimental about, the one that officially makes you an adult in the eyes of society. The second exam. This is known as the profession test. You're tested on everything you've learned, then assigned a real shift/gig/task according to your profession. If you pass the test and do well on your supervised/judged first assignment, then you are a full-fledged Hall employee and have passed from childhood to adulthood.

This is often celebrated by new adults getting as much alcohol as they can get their hands on and going out camping until they're so drunk that the letters they send back home are (usually to the pride and amusement of their families) illegible. Some opt out of the drinking part, or are prohibited from drinking if they're Crows*, but the night spent sleeping outdoors with fellow new adults is an important way to bring the rite of passage that is starting your career to a close.

It's closer to a graduation party than anything, and the whole apprenticeship process is less grandiose than other rites of passage on other worlds, but it's an important part of their culture and it affects the way both main characters see the world around them.

#writing #wbw #worldbuilding wednesday #sonder lore #sonder snippets #*crow: #a person who is susceptible to the Summer Curse #Summer Curse: #makes living things go into fits of empowered rage #crows are seen as extremely dangerous #the curse is generally only active in Summer #but nobody wants to risk a crow getting drunk #also #the main APTR characters #one of them is himself a crow #but he passes the Mercenary Hall tests anyway #so they do get to be adventurers #whether that's the best thing for them or not...

[alatismeni-theitsa]

Something I've noticed lately seeing Americans claim Greeks and ancient Greeks were black is that... they're not even getting American race theory right. "Black" is the blanket term used to describe African-Americans. Not Africans. African-Americans. Africans aren't Africans, they're Nigerian or Liberian or Ugandan or identify with... the actual place their from. Ancient Greeks cannot be "Black" because... America was still unfucked. I can't speak to the amount of Africans present in Greece, but the fact that a noticeable minority in Greece may have had dark skin does not by any means mean that they were Black, nor does it mean they identified with a nation in Afirca, nor does it mean that just because some marbles that may have been darker originally turned white from chemicals means it's white-washing. If a person in Greek legend was Black, going by these people's own logic, you would be able to tell. Do they think that some nation long forgotton colonized all of Black-Greece and turned them White? Where are the Black-Greek majority now?

Tldr: Americans don't even know the logistics of American racism.

https://modernes-griechenland.blogspot.com/2013/05/the-greek-heracles-was-black-man-and.html?m=1

This was the article linked in the post that sent that rant off, for some context 😅

_____________________ END OF ASK

Ah, yes, the good ol’ Afrocentrists... Using “race” wrong on top of that...

Nobody denies the existence of Africans in ancient Greece, let’s get this out of the way. This is not an argument about people from other nations existing in ancient Greece in general. They existed, we know and it’s totally great.

It’s about Afrocentrists being stupid and misinterpreting ancient Greek art and history to fit a certain agenda. (Much like the Nazis did, but the only difference was to prove we were true “Aryans” or something). They never explain how we got predominantly white xD

(And yes, Black people in Greece call most Greeks “whites”, unless the Greek they are reffering to doesn’t look like a Caucasian - yes, even the “tan” ones xD Even in the US Greeks are not recognized as part of a minority, just “White”. There is no separate box for “north mediterranean” or “Greek”.... Not even in Germany, where this writer is from, I suppose.)

The author of the article claims Herakles was Egyptian (which.... nope), he thinks the people who raised him were his biological parents, and then he writes “The Egyptians, of course were predominantly black people.” Predominantly??? I guess most Egyptians somehow turned Caucasian after a few centuries because of.... reasons. Afrocentrists never have a reason for predominantly Caucasian countries not being Black any more. I don’t know if they assume the Black people left, or were killed, or.... I really don’t know. WHO made Greeks “white” then?? WHO? 😂 and HOW???

He also says “The ancient Greeks' religion was copied from the ancient Ethiopians and Egyptians from whom they learned spiritual and religious teachings.” How was it “copied” if the Greeks were already Black? 😂 Shouldn’t he say something along the lines of “Greeks were African, so of course they shared culture with the Ethiopians and Egyptians” (who, in his mind, are also predominantly Black).

Also, the Aethiopia of the ancient Greeks is not the modern Ethiopia! My tongue will grow hair from the times I’ve said it! This guy really needs to study... I have my tag #Aethiopia, which has sources and explanations from people who don’t half ass their research. It’s like those people who have sources to “prove” the earth is flat, or the anti vaxxers who have their own sources, as well.

If you want to lose MANY braincells, read the following passage from the article:

“The ancient Greeks, ancestors of some of the present Greek peoples readily admitted that they were descendants of Ethiopians (native African black people of Ethiopia) and the Europeans of ancient times. The ancient Greeks, with pride tell the story of how Zeus (Cush, first Ethiopian Ruler ) and the prototype for the king of the Olympian gods, made love to the white-skinned IO, who gave birth to Epaphus, a mulatto male. This story which was one of many reveals the Greeks acknowledging their biracial heritage. In Sex And Race, Vol.1, J.A. Rogers has this to say, "As was said several scientists, among them Sergei, declare that the Europeans, especially those of the Meditteranean, are, strictly speaking, Eur- Africans. Thus we find anthropology supporting mythology". ”

HERE HE QUOTES A RACIST BOOK OF 1940, CALLED “Sex and Race, Volume 1: Negro-Caucasian Mixing in All Ages and All Lands” I easily guessed the time of publication of this book because it reeked of 1940 anti-Greek propaganda (to frame the Greek as the “other” and a threat) and with how it uses terms such as “Negro”.

This books (as well as most the other sources he mentions) doesn’t uplift Black people in any way, trust me! It sees Black people as already inferior and supports that the Greeks are inferior, too, because they have immediate Black/African heritage.

(I won’t comment on using the thrice debunked “source” “Black Athena” 😂)

I can’t debunk the whole article because there is no use and also because there is a fallacy (a historical, mythological AND a logical one) in every other sentence! 😂 This is just τραγελαφικό, I can’t describe it otherwise xD It seems this blog has multiple anti-Greek articles, presenting the worst of our country and how corrupted we are etc. Sooo I won’t give more of my time to this guy.

Browse my tags #afrocentrism and #hercules if you want to read more about this matter.

#answered #afrocentrism #greeks in the us