“Cutting,” “abrasive,” “sarcastic,” offensive” … These are just some of the words used to describe the Freethinker magazine, which was launched in Britain in 1881 and has continued publishing without a break ever since. But it was the word “blasphemous,” dropped from the lips of a hostile judge, that that got its founder and first editor G. W. Foote into serious trouble. As a result mainly of irreligious cartoons published in the Christmas, 1882, edition, the judge declared the issue “blasphemous” and Foote was sentenced to 12 months’ imprisonment with hard labour. [...] The Freethinker has had that attitude since 1881. Founder George William Foote set out the purpose of the magazine in the very first issue: “The Freethinker is an anti-Christian organ, and must therefore be chiefly aggressive. It will wage relentless war against superstition in general, and against Christian superstition in particular. It will do its best to employ the resources of Science, Scholarship, Philosophy and Ethics against the claims of the Bible as a Divine Revelation; and it will not scruple to employ for the same purpose any weapons of ridicule or sarcasm that may be borrowed from the armoury of Common Sense.”

It is with great pride that I announce I have an article in the May 2012 issue of the Freethinker, titled ‘Drawing a Veil Over Child Abuse in Orthodox Jewish Communities.’  I am also a frequent commenter at the Freethinker website.

This Portland, Oregon bookstore is not accessible to the general public.

Go ahead and install video cameras all over downtown. Make them accessible on smartphones and computers via wifi by everyone. There could be no better tool for the average citizen to keep tabs on corruption and incompetence among city employees. Streaming video of day-to-day life would be a valuable service to shut-ins. Terrible, strange and wonderful sights would be seen. All of downtown would be a free global broadcast studio for protesters, publishers and advertisers. Just possibly small incivilities would decrease if people knew they were being watched. And the police would get what they want, too.

This wouldn’t come free, and might be abused, and would do away with privacy on a scale usually not seen outside of military prisons. For these reasons, I can’t say this is definitely a better idea. But the idea of ubiquitous cameras for all, not just police, is worth considering.

This basalt rock is more than 3.75 billion years old (the Earth is 4.52 billion years old). It was brought to Earth by the Apollo 17 mission. From the ‘Driven to Explore’ exhibit seen here and here. One of a small number of moon rocks that the public can touch.

And now, let’s begin… The Easter Challenge!

from OVO 16 AntiChrist (January 2006)

Volume One is Raoul Vaneigem Selected Works 1962-1979

$1.99 for the Kindle at amazon.com

Selections from the works of Raoul Vaneigem (1934 – present). Basic Banalities (1962), Some Theoretical Topics That Need To Be Dealt With Without Academic Debate or Idle Speculation (1966), The Revolution of Everyday Life (1967), Contributions to The Revolutionary Struggle, Intended To Be Discussed, Corrected, And Principally, Put Into Practice Without Delay (1974) and The Book of Pleasures (1979).

The Way of Men answers the question: “What is Masculinity?”

When someone tells a man to be a man, they mean that there is a way to be a man. A man is not just a thing to be – it is also a way to be, a path to follow and a way to walk.

The so-called experts give the answers that suit their masters. They tell just-so stories to protect their ideology, their religion, their way of life. They look to women for a nod of approval before speaking. They give socially acceptable answers and half-truths. If what they have to say resonates with men, it is only because they manage to hint at the real answer. The real answer is that The Way of Men is The Way of The Gang.

Manliness  – being good at being a man  – isn’t about impressing women. That’s a side effect of manliness. Manliness isn’t about being a good man. There are plenty of bad guys  – real jerks – who are manlier than you are, and you know it.

Manliness is about demonstrating to other men that you have what it takes to survive tough times. Manliness is about our primal nature. It’s about what men have always needed from each other if they wanted to win struggles against nature, and against other men.

People are talking about “the end of men,” “the decline of males,” and the so-called “crisis of masculinity.” There are many diagnoses for the troubles men face today, but the chattering class is short on solutions. They refuse to deal honestly with the differences between men and women, and fail to entertain the possibility that their vision of the future offers little of value to average males.

The “crisis of masculinity” is really a timeless push-and-pull between masculinity and civilization. The world has changed more than men have, and the security and luxury of modernity have put us conflict with our own natures. The path back to honor for men may lead through a new dark age.

The Way of Men is NOW AVAILABLE for Kindle through Amazon.com.

It’s about 40, 00 words – a quick read and the rough equivalent of a 100-page book. YES, The Way of Men will be available for purchase IN PRINT in about a month (Late April/Early May).

From the Acknowledgements: “My Vulcan friend Trevor Blake and I have been trading ideas about manliness over drinks and cigars for years, and his pages of notes provided much food for thought.”

South East Lincoln, Sherman and Grant. Lone Fir Cemetery.

See Portland Memorials for thousands of memorials in downtown Portland, Oregon USA.

Music: Aeolian Piano Roll – “Phantom Patrol” (1903)

Buttons from the 1980s, 1990s, 2000s.  Bands, comic books, cults, politics, mysteries.

Lownsdale Park, First Presbyterian Church and the South Park Blocks all contain memorials to the Civil War (1861–1865). First of a series.

See Portland Memorials for thousands of memorials in downtown Portland, Oregon USA.

Music: Aeolian Piano Roll – “Phantom Patrol” (1903)