Live & Learn - Juneteenth

The American president recently announced that he was going to hold his first rally after Covid-19 hit. The rally was announced to be held in Tulsa, Oklahoma, on June 19^th.

June 19^th is known as Juneteenth Day and celebrated as Freedom Day, Jubilee Day, and Cel-Liberation Day because, on that day in1865, the Emancipation Proclamation (whereby all previous slaves were freed) was read to newly freed African Americans in Texas.

The problem is that Tulsa is most widely known for the 1921 Tulsa race massacre, (url to Wikipedia article) were 39 confirmed (75–300 estimated by a 2001 commission) were killed and more than 800 were injured.

Some people see the choice of date in combination with the place as a deliberate provocation.
---

I had never heard of Juneteenth before and now I also understand the uproar about choosing Tulsa.

To Gnussa - A Swedish Variety

As this blog's intrepid ethnologist and reporter from the regions around the Arctic Circle I will today share a report on a relatively modern phenomenon in Swedish dancing. I only heard of it myself last week.

Wikipedia informs us (translated to English by yours truly):
"To gnussa is a variation of or addition to the couples dance Foxtrot. When dancing the foxtrot most couples do this with their heads next to each other, eyes straight ahead, cheek to cheek. To "gnussa" the couple instead support their foreheads lightly against each other. As their feet move the couple roll their foreheads smoothly against each other. The couple always look in the same direction and always in the direction in which they are moving. If the couple has a big difference in height the shorter partner can instead support their forehead against the taller partners lips or chin.

To gnussa probably originated in the area around Sundsvall, Sweden, and arose early in the 1990s. From there it spread to the rest of Sweden, with growing popularity."

Let's let Jonathan and Lisa demonstrate the moves for you.

New Favicon - The Green Carnation

Before we got the Internet and all the hookup apps, gay men with faulty or spurious gaydar - much like myself - tried coming up with various clear but subtle and innocuous ways of identifying one another in the vast ocean of stunningly handsome heterosexual men.

Ever since Blogger started allowing "favicons" (a.k.a. website icon or bookmark icon) I have availed myself of it as a means of identifying this blog as gay operated. I have used various LGBT symbols to do this, first the λ-sign, then I moved on to the pink triangle. 

When I started looking for a new favicon I came across an account about Oscar Wilde, the biggest and butchest poofter of us all.

It is said that he and his group of friends in the Victorian England of the 1890's wore a green carnation as an emblem.

It would seem - judging from a Wikipedia article on LGBT-symbols - that in doing so the group picked up a previous tradition among homosexuals in ancient Rome.

The Summer of 2015, Part 1: The Implosion

"Implosion is a process in which objects are destroyed by collapsing (or being squeezed in) on themselves. The opposite of explosion, implosion concentrates matter and energy. True implosion usually involves a difference between internal (lower) and external (higher) pressure, or inward and outward forces, that is so large that the structure collapses inward into itself. An example of implosion is a submarine being crushed from the outside by the hydrostatic pressure of the surrounding water. Also, it is helpful to note that due to the processes that cause an implosion, the object reacts from the inside out." From Wikipedia: Implosion (mechanical process).

To be continued.

Shooting the Messenger (Edit 2015-07-19)

Wikipedia has an article on "Shooting the messenger" that starts like this:

"Shooting the messenger" or "killing the messenger" is a metaphoric phrase used to describe the act of lashing out at the (blameless) bearer of bad news.  

Until the advent of modern telecommunications, messages were usually delivered by a human envoy. For example, in a war, the messenger was sent from the enemy camp. An easily provoked combatant receiving such an overture could more easily vent anger (or otherwise retaliate) on the deliverer of the unpopular message than on its author.

"Attacking the messenger" is a subdivision of the ad hominem logical fallacy.

(...)

"A modern version of attacking the messenger can be perceived when someone blames the media for presenting bad news about a favored cause, person, organization, etc. The fact remains that "shooting the messenger may be a time-honored emotional response to unwelcome news, but it is not a very effective method of remaining well-informed."

Getting rid of the messenger may be a tactical move, but danger found in nondisclosure may result in either hostile responses or negative feedback from others. "People learn very quickly where this is the case, and will studiously avoid giving any negative feedback; thus the 'Emperor" continues with the self-delusion....Obviously this is not a recipe for success." 

---

My - former? (Edit 2015-07-19: Hiro and I have chatted and come to the conclusion that we are still friends even if we have differing positions in this case. I was extremely gladdened.) - friend Hiroku Kamachi, the recently appointed new IT-Director of Gay Archipelago, shows an interesting aspect of the phrase in a post on his blog today entitled "The Mind of Hiro: Pearls From Swine".

For easier reading, click the snips to enlarge.

---

You should know Hiroku, that whatever may happen now or in the future, I will always be grateful to you for the empathy and support you have shown me in the past. 

Although everything seems so self evident and natural to you, you could at least try to accept or admit that it wasn't so for everyone concerned. The fact that they - and I - perceive a problem where you don't see one, doesn't make us inherently bad, malicious, foolish or even - to use your word - "swine". Name calling and other verbal abuse ("Bitchy Old Queen", "The Old Boy's Club" and "The Old Guard") is usually quite counterproductive for a successful dialog - if that is what one wants. 

Repost (2015): Remember Stonewall

This is essentially a re-post of a post I have run the last few years, with some minor changes. We must remember our history and the giants whose shoulders we are standing on!

 

Let us always be proud and thankful to the trannies who finally had enough of the harassment and fought back 46 years ago on June 28, 1969, at the Stonewall Inn. We owe you, guys and girls!

Read more on Wikipedia Stonewall riots.

Before Stonewall

• a person with homosexual inclinations was considered to be mentally ill, 
• a person taking part in homosexual sexual activity was considered to be a criminal, 
• a person suspected of being homosexual could be abused or harassed without risk of penalty - except in the most extreme cases, 
• a homosexual parent was considered unfit to take care of his/her own children, 
• Civil unions or same-sex marriages were unthinkable. etc., etc. 

All of us should always remember the gratitude we owe the trannies.

----
We must also remember that many of our sisters and brothers worldwide still on a daily basis live with the very real risk of

• being murdered, incarcerated, hospitalized, abused, raped and harassed
• losing custody of their children 
• losing their employment 

simply for being homosexual.

And the Wall Came Tumbling Down

For those of you who are too young to remember and those of you who may have forgotten, this is the introductory paragraph of Wikipedia's article on the Berlin Wall.

"The Berlin Wall was a barrier that existed between 1961 and 1989 inclusively, constructed by the German Democratic Republic (GDR, East Germany) starting on 13 August 1961, that completely cut off  West Berlin from surrounding East Germany and from East Berlin until it was opened in 1989. The barrier included guard towers placed along large concrete walls, which circumscribed a wide area (later known as the "death strip") that contained anti-vehicle trenches, "fakir beds" and other defenses. The Eastern Bloc claimed that the wall was erected to protect its population from fascist elements conspiring to prevent the "will of the people" in building a socialist state in East Germany. In practice, the Wall served to prevent the massive emigration and defection that marked East Germany and the communist Eastern Bloc during the post-World War II period."

The date on which the Berlin Wall fell is considered to have been November 9, 1989.

It's only 25 years ago, but it feels like more than a lifetime has passed. I remember the day well. After having lived in the Diaspora in Central Sweden for a few horrible years, I had recently returned down south, to my native town again, and followed the news closely and was filled with great joy at what was transpiring.

So much changed after the fall of the Wall, the cold war ended and the world felt like a better and safer place with great hopes for the future. For a while.

Now tension seems to be building up again, aided by the Russian president Vladimir "Little Father" Putin's desire to restore Russia to it's former glory as a world power.

Picture of the Day - 206

"SAUDADE" by Gustav von Rosenheim

If you wish to see more of Gustav's photography, please visit his Flickr photostream here.

Saudade (European Portuguese: [sɐwˈðaðɨ], Brazilian Portuguese: [sawˈdadi] or [sawˈdadʒi], Galician: [sawˈðaðe]; plural saudades) is a Portuguese or Galician word that has no direct translation in English. It describes a deep emotional state of nostalgic or profound melancholic longing for an absent something or someone that one loves. Moreover, it often carries a repressed knowledge that the object of longing may never return. A stronger form of saudade may be felt towards people and things whose whereabouts are unknown, such as a lost lover, or a family member who has gone missing, moved away, separated, or died. (Wikipedia)

The Russians Are Here - Again!

Throughout the centuries my country, Sweden, has - due to it's precarious geopolitical position - had an eternally suspicious attitude towards our immense neighbor to the east.

This situation was aggravated after Sweden lost it's position as one of the major powers in Europe in the 18th century and especially after the Swedish-Russian war ended in 1809, with Sweden proper losing a third of the realm (Finland) to Russia.

King Charles XII (1682-1718) pointing to
the East to tell us from where the enemy
will come.

Depending on who the rulers in Russia have been the situation has been better or worse, but the suspicion has always been there. Whenever we think of the risk of war or aggression, we look to the East.

Since the cold war the official defense policy of Sweden can be summed up in the phrase "non-alignment in peace aiming at neutrality in war".

That policy has served us well for half a century, but it seems to be losing support as we see the Russians, under the present president Vladimir "Little Father" Putin, becoming increasingly aggressive and militant towards it's neighbors.

During the 50's, 60's, 70's and 80's Sweden has had it's territorial borders violated repeatedly by Soviet Union/Russian submarines or or other submersibles.

Once one of them even ran aground in the archipelago of Karlskrona in the south of Sweden and created an international incident.

The "Whiskey on the rocks"-incident. 

"Soviet submarine S-363 was a Soviet Navy Whiskey-class submarine of the Baltic Fleet, which became famous under the designation U 137 when it ran aground on October 27, 1981 on the south coast of Sweden, approximately 10 km from Karlskrona, one of the larger Swedish naval bases. U137 was the unofficial Swedish name for the vessel, as the Soviets considered names of most of their submarines to be classified at the time and did not disclose them. The ensuing international incident is often referred to as the Whiskey on the rocks incident." Wikipedia

At this very moment a search is yet again going on, this time in the Stockholm archipelago, for what is suspected to be another Russian submersible.
---

I am sad to admit that, like many other Swedes, I am increasingly leaning towards a change of our present defense policy and I am starting to believe in the necessity for us to apply for membership in NATO in the immediate future.

Matthew Shepard In Memoriam

Matthew Wayne "Matt" Shepard (December 1, 1976 – October 12, 1998) was an American student at the University of Wyoming who was beaten, tortured and left to die near Laramie, Wyoming on the night of October 6, 1998, and died six days later at Poudre Valley Hospital in Fort Collins, Colorado, on October 12, from severe head injuries.

On the night of October 6, 1998, Shepard met Aaron McKinney (then 22), and Russell Henderson (then 21), at the Fireside Lounge in Laramie, Wyoming. It was decided that McKinney and Henderson would give Shepard a ride home. McKinney and Henderson subsequently drove the car to a remote, rural area, and proceeded to rob, pistol-whip, and torture Shepard, tie him to a fence, and leave him to die. According to their court testimony, McKinney and Henderson discovered Shepard's address and intended to steal from his home, as well. Still tied to the fence, Shepard, who was in a coma, was discovered 18 hours later by Aaron Kreifels, a cyclist who initially mistook Shepard for a scarecrow.

The parents of Matthew Shepard talk about the painful memories of their son's death following a vicious gay bashing in October, 1998. He died October 12, 1998.

Judy and Dennis Shepard have become tireless fighters against hate crime. They also reveal why they decided not to pursue the death penalty for the men who murdered their son.

(Sources: Wikipedia & YouTube)

Paradise Lost in SecondLife - The Follow Up

I promised you a follow up of my last post about Paradise Lost with pictures from the event.

This was the first time I had activated the Restrained Love feature in SecondLife and I am happy I did, although I was a bit hesitant about it. I didn't like the thought of anyone playing around with my avatar without being able to control it, but - as I told myself - I could always turn it off if I got offended.

Paradise Lost is an epic poem in blank verse by the 17th-century English poet John Milton (1608–1674). The first version, published in 1667, consisted of ten books with over ten thousand lines of verse. It is considered by critics to be Milton's major work, and helped solidify his reputation as one of the greatest English poets of his time.

The poem concerns the Biblical story of the Fall of Man: the temptation of Adam and Eve by the fallen angel Satan and their expulsion from the Garden of Eden.

(Wikipedia: Paradise Lost)

The original story has been adapted to SecondLife by the Basilique Performing Arts Company and set to the music of Mozart's Requiem. The director used some of the amazing attributes available in SecondLife to enhance the show and to include the spectators participation.

Lucifer is cast out of heaven and descends to earth

God the Father creates Adam and then Eve and places them in the Garden of Eden

The fall of Man as Eve consorts with the snake

Original sin, Adam and Eve fornicate

Adam and Eve are cast out from the Garden of Eden by God the Father

Mankind suffers

God the Father orders Abraham to build an arc and then sends the deluge

The Son of God is born

The Son of God on the road to Calvary to redeem the sins of Mankind

 

This was a thoroughly enjoyable experience, one of my top ten in SecondLife ever!