This
website was originally
uploaded on another
server under a pseudonym. Here is why:
1. Salman Rushdie
Although I think that the Satanic
Verses
indulge in unneeded ridicule of a particular religion, the Islamic fatwa
to kill him on sight points out that some people cannot be satisfied to
simply refute a position with which they disagree. They must silence
opposition
so that others may not be exposed either. Writing under the cloak of
anonymity
allowed a degree of candor essential for the subject matter.
2. 'Who are you to say?'
An experiment was conducted
wherein scholarly
writings were submitted to academic journals in two formats. In the
first,
the materials were sent via prestigious institutions by
well-credentialed
authors. The same materials were then sent by unknown authors from
humble
institutions. The criticism was far greater for the 'humble'
submissions
than the 'prestigious' ones. It is hoped that the ideas presented here
will be evaluated solely on their merit. The internet enables
self-publishing
to be within reasonable consideration. Consequently, a writer doesn't
have
to go begging the publishers of 'popular' books to consider this sort
of
material.
3. Santa Claus never came
to my house.
Our parents instead told us the
Santa Claus was
a legend that other parents told their children as truth. In time, we
learned
about a man who came to be known as St. Nicholas of 4th century Patara,
Lycia (now Turkey). He eventually attained the status of high-ranking
Christian
clergy. We were told that after his death, he became the patron saint
of
children and that a legend developed over the centuries which sprang
from
his secretly giving gifts to a poor man who was considering abandoning
his three daughters.
This
eventually led to a
tradition of secretly
giving gifts on the Eve of St. Nicholas in early December. This
practice
was later integrated with the celebration of Christmas. Santa Claus was
an Americanization of the Dutch Sinter Klaas. It became commercialized
in the form that we recognize today during the nineteenth century.
Much of what is familiar
to us as the traditions
associated with Christmas, [the tree, the wreaths, singing carols,
anything
festive] was appropriated from the old Druid winter solstice
celebration
of Yule. It is characterized by the rebirth of their antlered
conception
of the male aspect of Deity, [Herne or Cernunos] who is worshipped on a
solar cycle. Although the Celtic worship of Gods in this form predates
the earliest conception of Abrahamist deity [i.e. Yahweh] by tens of
thousands
of years, his deer antlers were replaced with goat horns and defamed as
being the Christian Devil. I recommend Margot Adler's Drawing
Down the Moon for a more detailed historical analysis.
We
were told [some of] this
in a manner that a
small child could understand and were encouraged to find out more on
our
own. What does this have to do with adopting a nom de plume?
Well,
at about the age of eight, one of my buddies was telling me how excited
he was about Santa coming down his chimney (which his apartment didn't
have) and bringing him presents. I didn't share the information that I
was told on this subject to everyone, but I decided to do him a favor
and
let him in on the real deal. Needless to say, I was shocked at his
reaction.
He didn't want to hear anything about how his parents were liars." I
never
said that," I protested," they just think that it would be more fun to
believe that presents come from Santa instead of them." It was no use.
He could no more conceive of my childish zeal for the truth than could
I his childish dependency upon fantasy.
While
still at single-digit
age, a painful process
of realization began. Some people are terrified of the responsibility
that
comes with independent thought. They
would rather take comfort in leaving it to others to provide guidance
-- even if based upon myth, logic, insight, fantasy, greed, power-lust,
etc. Such people would typically react to any suggestion of questioning
the leaders and their edicts as a threat.
There
is no delight taken in
telling people that
there is no Tooth Fairy and that their mamas were lying to them all
along.
The fact is, ‘ignorance is bliss’ is worse than untrue. We live by
means
of our minds. Our ignorance is leading us down the gilded path of
decline
and decay. Of course it would be easier to just 'go along to get along'
and follow the crowd. That cannot be done. No matter what the cost, it
is personally essential to find out why things are the way they are and
to offer suggestions for improvement. Some people are leaders, some are
followers. A few others are observing such folly, shaking their heads.
Appreciation
and personal
understanding are not expected. Hopefully, while blundering along
looking for answers, a good
idea might develop from time to time. Or, perhaps while pursuing an
erroneous
line of thought, a reader might be stimulated to find the right answer.
As long as the answer is brought forth, that is what is important.
There are a number of
people
who have a great
sense of foreboding about the future. Certainly the direction that our
civilization is taking is untenable. This body of work and that of
others
on these matters will hopefully serve to be a catalyst to change our
direction
to one oriented toward life. Otherwise, it will serve as a part of our
epitaph.
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