Why Can’t Christians Leave Other People Alone?
Just some Christian that comes waltzing in bothering pagans at a Pagan Pride who have done nothing to provoke this.
NowThisPolitics Shows Its Race Baiting
Recently, while on Facebook, I saw that NowThisPolitics had posted an article about the Syrian shooter who shot up King Sooper in Colorado. They didn’t mention anything in the headline about this guys ethnicity. However, I looked on their page and found that they had an article about the psycho incel who shot up those mostly Asian owned massage parlors and they didn’t fail to mention that he was white. Despite that I don’t personally recognize race, I don’t care if articles mention race. However, what I do take issue with is that there is no consistency. If you can mention in the headline that the Georgia shooter was white, you can mention that the Colorado shooter was Syrian. Period. This only proves that certain media outlets, like NowThisPolitics, are simply using tragedy to race bait for whatever reason. I think they need to be called out on it. So, if you’re ever looking for unbiased news, NowThisPolitics is not that news outlet. In fact, they’re without question biased.
More Gab-Insanity
So, I’m sure anyone who reads this is wondering why I’m doing this. This is basically a running documentation of the craziness that is currently festering on Gab.com. I don’t alter these in anyway unless it’s to censor out names of non-verified, private citizen accounts.
Andrew Torba is the CEO of Gab. As you can see, he seems to be hinting at religious violence against non-Christians. However, I should note that in the comments some Christians have voiced concerns about this image and even stated that this is being taken out of context by Torba. They’ve also raised concerns that this image might promote violence that isn’t needed nor wanted.
Then of course, you have 10 times more crazies showing up.
There’s more, worse garbage in the comments. But out of decency I won’t post them.
More Gab Insanity
Only one person I haven’t covered their name. Patrick Dollard a verified account, he’s a documentary filmmaker.
The Seedy Underbelly of the Extreme-Right: Gab.com
With all the issues arising from BigTech and their propensity to censor those from the Extreme Right, a few social media alternatives had arisen like garbage from the sea onto the beach. One of those still in operation is Gab.com. It has become an echo chamber of extreme right wing ideologies. It’s also becoming a breeding ground for racism and anti-Semitism. I have made a profile on there to keep watch of all the festering trash on there. Honestly, it’s getting bad there. I have seen so much racist and anti-Semitic remarks that, if not kept in check, will cause Gab.com trouble down the road. Below are some screen caps:
This one here is starting to become more common place as more extremist Christians flood Gab. There seems to be a militant Christian grouping going on here and there is a lot of animosity towards paganism in general.
What’s occurring on Gab.com is alarming because it is an echo chamber for the extreme Right. Although I believe in freedom of speech, I do believe there should be limitations on social media sites. We saw what happened on January 6th, social media, specifically Parler, was used a means of communication and planning by these extremist groups. I will encourage people concerned about the rising tide of extremism (and not just Right Extremism, but also Left Wing extremism as well) to join sites like this, keep quiet and observe. Follow what I’m doing and expose the craziness that is taking place on these sites. Document it.
New Zealand Mosque Attack
The terror attack on a mosque by some white supremacist numbskull sickens me to the core. These people were doing nothing wrong. All they were doing was worshipping their god in their way. Why commit this heinous act?
Much of the heathen community is concerned about the terrorists use of “Valhalla” as a means of stating his intended destination upon his death. I totally agree that his, and much of the white supremacist organizations out there, use of our sacred symbols is disgusting. Heathenry has no room for bigots and racists. However, my biggest concern is how callous the human race has become. This type of stuff should not be common place, but it’s becoming so at an alarming rate. Why? What has made humanity so callous and so narcissistic? Because let’s face the facts about this terrorist, he did this while live streaming via a GoPro and that my dear readers is a sign of narcissism. With the increase of social media and streaming technology, this has become possible to live stream such wanton disregard for human life. Should we ban such technology? No, of course not, but everyone should be asking this most important question: why have we human beings become so callous? This is indeed an uncomfortable question to ask, but it needs to be asked and answered. If we are expected to have a conversation on race, a conversation on guns and so forth, why are we not having a conversation for the root of everything that ails our modern society: human callousness?
I hope to the gods that the victims of this horrible act are comforted and are given justice. I hope that New Zealand is merciless in their doling out of the law against this terrorist. And I hope, from all this tragedy, we human beings can become less callous and start loving each other regardless of our so-called differences. We are 7 billion people living on Mother Gaia, none of us are going anywhere. Therefore, we need to learn how to cooperate and get along with each other or we are doomed as a species.
Racism
Being someone of South American descent, I was never raised under the auspice of race or racism. In fact, I was raised color blind. I know, the term “color blind” is now considered covert racism, which is absolute nonsense. My parents didn’t want me to recognize nor prejudge a person by the way they looked, but rather by their character. Throughout my childhood anyone darker than me I just saw it as that, just a tanned human being with no label other than their given name. The mind of a child is an amazing thing in life and the ability to accept people as they are is born into us. For example, my mother worked at an animal shelter whom had a co-worker that was black. Once in awhile, I would go with my mom and the black woman would bring her children as well. We’d have a good ol’ time just playing and being kids. Not once did I think of them as anything but fellow children. It wasn’t until high school that the idea of people being separated based on “race” (I use that term in quotations due to the fact that there is only one race, the human race) due to ones melanin content was actually a thing. To me, basing what “race” someone is based of the melanin content of ones flesh is ridiculous. It’s nothing more than evolutionary by-product that has ZERO bearing on who you are as a person. No one, by virtue of their abundance, or lack there of, of melanin make them superior nor inferior. The dream that Martin Luther King Jr. had was of a world where our differences no longer mattered. However, today we have begun to reverse our progress in “race” relations towards neo-segregationism where the idea of a “black only showing…” of a movie is something to be applauded. No, nothing that divides human beings is never a good idea. I’m sorry, but that isn’t progress, it’s regressive.
Throughout my adolescence my father, who is of Spanish (originating in the Canary Islands), Italian (both a mix of northern and southern Italian) and French, always made it a point to remind that due to our Italian and Spanish heritage that we have North African(Moors/Berbers) blood pumping through our veins. And from mothers side of the family we have English, Irish, Welsh, German, Dutch, Swedish and Native American blood. So, I’m not exactly pure anything, I’m a mutt. My mother made sure to remind me of that as well. We’re not pure anything. Having these ideas surrounding me growing up made any sense of pure anything really to me and became even more alien when you realize that in human history with the migration out of Africa of our early ancestors and the successive invasions by different groups of people, the idea of pure anything becomes ridiculous to even contemplate. Anyone who figures they’re pure anything, especially here in America, they obviously have no sense of human history. Also, keep in mind, if “race” truly mattered mutts like me wouldn’t exist. Since we do exist, that only means there’s no genetic difference between all of us human beings and the lie that racial supremacists have been fed is an absolute crock of shit. I do get pride in your ancestors and I think that’s great, but when we use our ancestors as a means of puffing up our delusional superiority, that’s when it becomes a problem.
So, why do we do this to ourselves, allow ourselves to be separated by petty and silly labels that truly have no meaning. We aggravate our lives with these lies of “race” even though science shows otherwise. If humanity is to have any future it needs to start deconstructing the lie of “race” and start realizing that there is one race, the Human Race. If a conquering alien civilization came to Earth, they wouldn’t see white vs. black, but rather all a bunch of humans that should be conquered and nothing more. The superiority of your “race” would mean nothing to an advanced and aggressive species. You can call me a covert racist, like I’m sure some might want or even a “race” traitor, none of that matters because I feel my convictions are right and once people start to get their fetishism over “race” we humans might actually make a decent species for once. You want change? That’s where it begins.
On the Issue of Gun Control
It has been awhile since I’ve blogged, but the issue of gun control is up on the chopping block once again. It’s irritating seeing Americans, whom never had to deal with a true dictatorship, trying to strip little by little their rights. The stories I’ve read and heard from my father about the desaparecidos or the disappeared are horrifying for the American psyche to even comprehend. Thank the gods for our Constitution, right? When was the last time any American has heard of anyone disappearing after a protest or even simply speaking your mind? Probably never. Sure, there are those individuals who threaten some form of violence, but by no means has our government “disappeared” people. If that were the case, you wouldn’t so many daring folks protest these days. You’d see fear reigning supreme, but we Americans do not fear authority. In fact, we throw bottles and rocks at them during “protests”. Hell, David Hogg, the newest darling of gun control, hung up on the White House! If that doesn’t show how free Americans are, I don’t know what will. It could be argued that an armed populace does indeed frighten the US government into a mild complacency of accepting mediocre power due to the 2nd Amendment. Sure, the government has tanks and airplanes at their disposal, but it also requires servicemen who are willing to bombard possibly their families, so there would probably be only a small contingent who would willingly attack fellow Americans. That number would most likely be small enough for civilians to defend themselves against. However, aside from that scenario, we forget about the partisan fighters who hadn’t tanks and airplanes who fought against the Nazis during WWII. There’s that scary word: we forget. We forget how history has shown us that an unarmed population is easily subjugated.
Here’s some food for thought: The Handmaids Tale I believe is a good and realistic POV that Leftists need to consider. A theocracy arises in the United States, what do you do? Do you roll over and allow it or do you resist it? You resist it of course and it would most likely be armed resistance since protesting and any form of free speech would most likely be suppressed. The Left fears the rise of a theocracy just as much as the Right fears the rise of state sponsored atheism. The fear of a Nazi/Fascist/Communist/Theocratic government arising is reason enough for people to be vigilant and armed. And never say it can’t happen here, because it can. Most democracies fall due to internal strife within the political body itself (much like Trumps revolving door of his Administration, his constant attacks towards the media and so on) before a tyrant takes advantage. It can and will happen here if we the People aren’t vigilant. Government is inherently evil and always hungering for power. It is a beast that can’t be satiated, but it can be subdued by a society that is armed not only in weapons but also in common sense.
The Right, you guys are losing your minds over this issue. I’ve seen the attacks on David Hogg, the bullying because he has a different than you. He’s a kid! Grow up! Stop calling him names, stop being a bully for no good reason other than your fear that he may be able to push the ban for the Armalite Rifle 15! Being abusive and not being constructive in your criticism does NOTHING for your position but make the Left, whom call you “ammo-sexuals” and other inane names, seem more level headed when they are not. They’re coming at this from an emotional POV much like you are. Either step up to the plate with civility or don’t bother. Same goes for the Left.
In conclusion, it becomes disheartening to see only one side being portrayed as the common sense approach while the other is ostracized as the lunatic fringe by the media. We know that our news outlets are filled with partisan hacks with no objectivity in their reporting. They refuse to report both sides simply for their ratings rake up which in turn pits American against American. We the People need to step up our game and stop being shills for the media and politicians. We allow ourselves to be used and abused by the elitists in power. Why? We still maintain this serf mentality that those above us have our best interests in mind when in fact they don’t. Both Democrats and Republicans have an agenda and it doesn’t include being fair to us. Their agenda, no matter how far apart they may seem to diverge, are in reality the same: power. Anyone who believes government is force for good obviously hasn’t read their history. Government is not something you trust. Government is something with which you remain vigilant towards. All Americans should be united in their vigilance, but instead they have successfully separated us over race, religion, socio-economic status, gender, sexual orientation, political ideology and so on. We are divided and we are conquered and we are to blame. We allowed this to happen, we volunteered to be separate but equal this time around. We stopped being Americans and started being ridiculous labels. And yet, we scoff at the idea of government ever oppressing us once we’re disarmed even though they have fulfilled one part of their agenda and that’s dividing us thoroughly. Sure some pro-Second Amendment/pro-gun control folks can be outright vapid in their arguments, but there are some who do have some valid points. We need to hear both sides, discuss civilly and without being self-righteous and check our higher than thou attitudes at the door. We need to save our society from the downward slide and it can start here with the gun issue. If we can’t do this civilly then Americans are lost as a people and as a nation. It’s up to ALL Americans and not just the younger or older generations, it’s up to ALL of us!
American Horror Story: Cult
Greetings fellow Americans! It’s been awhile since I’ve posted anything on here. So I’m here to review the first episode of AHS: Cult. I enjoyed last season immensely especially after the hum-drum Hotel season. However, this looks to be a crazy and wonderful season. Straight from the beginning, Ryan Murphy hits hard with the extremes of both sides of the political spectrum and how they reacted in regards to Trumps ascendancy to the Presidency. You see two Left leaning folks freak out. Ally (Sarah Paulson) breaks down as the news of the Trump win with a string expletives that I’m sure resounded within many election watchers. And also within the same scene, we see a Hillary supporter start bashing Jill Stein supporters. I’ve experienced this just recently, so the wounds are still fresh with Hillary supporters. The other Left leaning person is Winter (Billie Lourd) as she is watching the horror of the Trump win unfold, she comments on “What was wrong with CNN for not giving us a trigger warning before they announced the results?”. Finally we have alt-Right crazyman Kai (Evan Peters) having a figurative orgasm over the Trump win. In my humble opinion, these are great caricatures of the divisive environment our country is embroiled in and I think a dramatic look at these issues needs to occur. I commend Ryan Murphy for this season.
Now certain articles such as Rolling Stones article complains about the cartoon quality of the characters of this season. I think the cartoonish quality is quite on par with how the two extremes are these days. Both the Left and the Right have become circus clowns on a murderous spree against opposing ideas and free speech. Look at the recent spate of White Supremacists and ANTIFA clashes. These are the clowns that want to destroy freedom for the sake of their own agenda. These are the clowns parading as human beings when they are acting like the stereotype that is imposed upon them. So to have the characters in AHS: Cult as not human beings, but cartoons is not too far from the truth. I’m sure both sides will hate this season as it progresses because it provides a mirror onto their antics and their extremism, but seriously America needs this and they need it bad because our extremism is becoming our downfall. Our extremism is destroying the United States from within and if we don’t take a long, painful look at ourselves we’re going to become the next Nazi Germany/ Soviet Russia or worse Khmer Rouge Cambodia. You can’t simply act out on your extremist views without having someone provide your ugly reflection back into your face.
Rolling Stone ends their article with this, “The country is sick, yes, but not in the way Trump – or Cult – seems to believe it is.” It’s not simply a belief, but an observation made by those who aren’t entirely extreme. Extremists are the minority in this country, but they are receiving the most views on social media, in the news and everywhere else. Those of us who don’t abide by any specific political ideology, those of us in the center, and those of us who are simply apathetic aren’t represented proportionally. AHS: Cult is that representation of the views of those who aren’t extreme. It’s what we see on the news and on social media. So, if you’re offended by how AHS: Cult portrays your side of the aisle, ask Ryan Murphy to provide trigger warnings prior to each episode.
White Nationalists and Asatru
Being half-Hispanic and a proud Asatruar, this problem with white nationalists perverting our religion for their ridiculous racist nonsense needs to be taken on in every arena presented to us. Not only does it pervert our religion, but it spills over into the mainstream media that enjoys anything that will present an uptick in ratings. This is one of those things that generates hype and thus a negative image. It is up to us to fight this with all of our being in honor of our Gods.
My father comes from a small South American country and we have had our run ins with racists who wanted us out of their town. We stayed in said town and never left. Caving into fear only elevates those doing the attacking, whether physical or verbal, onto a faux horse of superiority. Thankfully, the attacks my family endured were verbal and lasted a few months. Once they realized we weren’t going anywhere they backed off. Unfortunately for others, this is not the case. We got lucky.
There is an unfortunate tie-in with Asatru that even I fell for: you had to be of Nordic blood. One day, many years ago, I made an oath to our Gods that if I discovered I had Nordic blood I would convert to the faith of Asatru. At the time I had followed a more eclectic pagan faith drawing from many faiths that included Buddhism (which Buddhism is still an aspect of my faith today). A few weeks passed by and my mother (who is of a Northern European heritage mixed with some distant Native American) was doing our family tree and we discovered that we had Swedish ancestors who came to America in the 1700’s. Since it was an oath made to the Gods, I honored my oath and have been Asatruar since then. Today, I cringe at such an oath, but when you make an oath to the Gods no matter how lame it may seem, you honor it. Unfortunately, at the time there weren’t many Asatru groups to choose from especially AFA being the main one to do research from. Now there’s TAC (The Asatru Community), which is a universalist Asatru group which has no racist dogma. It’s straight forward Asatru that is presented in a way that doesn’t dissuade you from practicing the religion or even being open about it.
However, you have things like white supremacists killing in the name of our religion that the media loves to run amok with. It’s a hard read, but you need to if you care about our faith and about the Gods. You can not cower in fear of what the words might say. How can we combat this ignorance? We must educate those who feel our religion is a bastion for racism that it is not a racist religion and it should not be judged as such because of the actions of the few who supposedly hold similar beliefs in the Gods. Perhaps by presenting a missive to each media outlet who reports these heinous actions, by those who supposedly follow our faith, we can attempt to posit our side of the story.
Racists are ignorant, that is a fact. Just think, if racists actually believed in the Gods, then they would know that in essence Thor is a “biracial” God since he is of Aesir and Jotnar blood. That’s why I don’t believe there is a modicum of faith in the Gods in concerns to racists. It’s all about politics and whenever a political agenda mixes with a religion it becomes a perverted form of that religion that lacks in any substance. It becomes a darkened shell with no soul. All you have to do is peruse through history to see this and even today with extremist Islam. It’s not about true faith, but rather about expanding a political agenda.
Our duty as Asatruar is to educate the public about our faith and allow them the opportunity to hear our side, our beliefs and present an example that Asatruar is for everyone and not just those of Nordic or Northern European blood. Odin isn’t called the All-Father for nothing and that is something each person needs to realize. We may be laughed at and ridiculed by many as a “racist religion” or as a “comic book religion”, but how we conduct ourselves as Asatruar and as human beings will start to erode away those ignorantly derived labels. We must never cower away from adversity, we must always confront it head on. That is the Asatru Way of Life.
Non-Aligned Politics 