Read the article at Wild Hunt:
http://www.wildhunt.org/2008/11/slandered-wiccan-denied-rehearing.html
For those of you haven’t read my paper on the custody issue yet, it’s in our literature section here at Crone Seraphim; it was written for my applied anthropology class several years ago.
BB,
Vivienne
On Nov 4 America shattered a barrier; the “whites only” sign on the Oval Office has finally been taken down. The problem is, there is still another sign out everywhere: “man and woman only.”
We see things as black or white, up or down, man or woman.
What if someone is both, or neither?
There are those among us that are known as transgendered, and I am one.
“Gender” is in the mind; “sex” is between the legs. I have a male body but associate myself with the female gender. I have problems, because I still do not have the rights that even gay people enjoy.
It is more accepted than ever to be openly gay; yet I cannot wear what I want to at work without risking getting fired — without any repercussions to the employer for doing so. My parents would rather I was gay than let me out of the house in a dress, because they fear I will be harassed or killed.
I wish I could say there were signs indicating that would not happen, but it’s quite the opposite. Every year, transgendered people are killed just for being who they are. Most are not remembered. This site went black today, Nov 20, to show our respect for our dead. Until everyone can have life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness, no matter who they are or who they identify with, I will stand for those that have no voice, or who have had their voices silenced.
-Magus-
This is not the time to talk about the relief we feel that our Constitution will be restored, or to demand that the criminals in this administration be brought to justice; it’s not the time to talk about solving the country’s current desperate problems, or even to dream about the future progress we can now make.
It’s time to reflect with awe and wonder at the momentousness of this event — an African American will be the 44th President of the United States of America.
This is a time to reflect on the elderly woman who collapsed into a chair in tears after casting her ballot, because she never thought she’d live to vote for a black man for President.
It’s about the 109 year old daughter of a slave (her father was emancipated when he was 12), who was granted the boon of living long enough to see a black man elected President.
It’s about the veterans of the civil rights movement of the 60s breaking down in tears, and young women falling to their knees, because they never thought they would see this happen in their lifetimes.
It’s about the hundreds of thousands of whites, blacks and Hispanics who were jumping up and down for joy, shrieking, and throwing themselves indiscriminately into each others arms in celebration.
It’s about the children who saw history made last night, and knowing that they, and we, now live in a completely different world.
Everything has changed for them. Everything has changed for all of us. And successive generations will grow up knowing that a black man can be President, because a black man IS president.
We can all breathe more freely now, every one of us, from every race, creed, and color. Thank God Almighty, free at last.
[Martin Luther King: I Have a Dream (full speech)]
BB,
Vivienne
Look Nov. 4 is now here, I have been sick of this election but now it is over, and all I have to say is go vote for a change. I’m talking about voting if you never have, voting as if your life change change by it, vote because you still have rights. There are no reasons not to, I am going and I plan on having my ds and zune with me as a preemptive strike for the hours wait (I have also set up a Twitter account: http://twitter.com/maguslod so you can enjoy my pain as well). So though I have always stayed way from saying who to vote for every year this time I am.
If you want your rights to matter, if you want the net to be free, if you understand we are on the wrong path, then vote for someone who is just too awesome. Barack Obama.
-Magus-
Hey everybody! I’m leaving tomorrow (Friday Oct. 24) for a week’s vacation (yay!!!!) without internet access (booo!!!!) so I will be out of touch for a while (I’ll be back Sunday night, Nov. 2).
To make up for that, I’ve posted three new articles this week at Article Base:
The Truth About Modern Day Vampires (an excerpt of the article I wrote for the Instant Magick October newsletter):
5 Things You Can Do to Change the Country and the World and
The History of Halloween – or – What is Samhain?
These are in addition to the other two articles I had up:
Sarah Palin’s Black Magic connections and How to Use Magick Spells to Positively Affect the Presidential Election – and Why You Should, for a grand total of 5 articles at Article Base!
Hopefully these will hold you til I get back, and make for enjoyable Halloween and pre-election reading.
Blessed Samhain and Happy Halloween, everyone! I’ll talk to you when I get back.
BB,
Vivienne
P.S., don’t forget, the free bonus material being offered at www.careandfeedingofspirits.com is going to expire soon, and I won’t be here to give you another reminder. The “Subtle Samhain Celebration” article and “The Patriot’s Spell Book” will both be removed by Nov. 5 at the latest, so order On the Care and Feeding of Spirits now and don’t miss out! I think you will find this book very useful and enjoyable reading for Samhain/Halloween.
P.P.S. DON’T FORGET TO VOTE!!!!
On September 19, 2008 I published an article at Article Base about Sarah Palin: “Palin’s Black Magic Connections.”
I’m used to the Christian Right coming after pagans, but when they become a threat to my Catholic mother I take it especially personally. Take a look at the article and let me know what you think in the comments section.
BB,
Vivienne
It was a normal morning in the court yard at my old high school; I was hanging with my friends before class as usual. I then said something…
“Death from above.”
My friends asked me what I meant.
“No, today I feel there will be death from above.”
They just let it off as Magus being, well, Magus. First period went by fine, and moved into the second.
An announcement came over the PA.
“A plane has just crashed into the World Trade Center. You can turn to channel 23 to see the news.”
Our teacher walked over and clicked on the TV, and we all saw the smoke as it bellowed from the first tower. We watched “live” as the second plane hit, and then found out about the Pentagon.
With that, I remembered the words I uttered only two hours before.
“Death from above.”
Classes continued on, and I moved to third period (my gifted class, holding just ten people, of which one was my girlfriend at the time, and two others were good friends of mine). While in class, we continued watching the news, wondering if we were going to get killed. Yes, that is what was going through our minds. No, we were not in Washington, nor New York, but across the street from a major theme park. No, not that one, the other one.
Well, things got better; we had to evacuate out to the fields that were around the school. Oh, it was not because of the terrorism. Rather it was a bomb they had found, which later turned out to be a coke can wrapped in tinfoil.
So, in the blazing sun, we were without information about what was going on. The deans, being the nice people that they were, were enforcing the rule of “no cell phones” by grabbing each one they saw out, which the students were using to contact their parents. I happened to have a cd player with
a radio, so I was yelling to everyone around me what was going on. Understand that, at the time, we had no idea what was happening; anywhere could be a target. That is what I was yelling to them. Left, right, up, down, everywhere was a target.
Finally, the day ended, and with that ending of the day soon came the end to our freedoms, with the passing of the Patriot Act.
Both sides are going to use this day to say how they are more patriotic then their opponent. How can they protect us from more terror while creating it?
In the end, the most patriotic people are the ones who have lost their lives for this great nation, and the world. So, how about we have a moment to remember them, and not tarnish their memories.
-Magus-
I’ve just added three new fixed price button listings to ebay:
A Vote for McCain is a Vote for Armageddon
- or -
If you Vote for McCain you Vote for the Apocalypse
(2 designs)
Designed by Magus Dethen
Exclusive to Persephone’s Haven
$2.99 each; up to 5 buttons ship for $1.99
Discounts available for multiple purchases - See other listings at Persephone’s Haven for sets of 2 for $5, and bulk orders of 10 or more for $1 each.
3″ diameter pin-back and magnet back buttons - please contact me to specify which design you want and whether you want pin-back or magnet-back
white and red lettering on a black and white background
“A Vote for McCain is a Vote for Armageddon”: a semi-transparent head and shoulder image of McCain is superimposed over a nuclear mushroom cloud, with the phrase overlaid in white and red lettering.
“If you Vote for McCain you Vote for the Apocalypse”: a semi-transparent head and shoulder image of McCain is superimposed over a painting of souls writhing in agony at the end of days.
Neither of these is an exaggeration:
The fate of the world literally hangs in the balance with this election. Warn as many people as you can with these buttons.
BB,
Vivienne D’Avalon
Yeah, yeah, I know it must have cost her a fortune, but it was worth it!
Paris Hilton responds to the unauthorized use of her image in John McCain’s attack ad against Barack Obama:
The original McCain celeb ad can be found here.
BB,
Vivienne D’Avalon
We wave flags and pin them on our lapel. We say that by being patriotic we are free, but it is the farthest from freedom.
We wear patriotism as a badge of freedom but it is not so. We are bound by it. A person who questions the shredding of the constitution by the “Patriot” Act, is said to be against freedom.
The freedom to speak has been silenced, because our phones are being tapped for “our protection.”
The freedom to bear arms has been shot, because you have become a criminal by owning a gun.
The freedom to check out books from Benjamin Franklin’s public library has been burned, because the librarian has to give up the list of books you have checked out.
The freedom to find out the truth for yourself on the web has been 403′ed, because one can no longer surf with anonymity.
The freedom to worship as you will has been exorcised, because wearing a symbol of your faith can get you killed.
The freedom to tell your government what you think of them has been quashed, because your name will end up on a list of “special interest.”
The freedom to think has been abolished, because to think is to question the government.
The freedom to question the government has been obliterated, because you will be called unpatriotic.
But to question, to think, to speak, to read, to learn, is the true freedom that America once offered, and being free is the only reason someone should be patriotic. Patriotism is not just waving flags, singing the national anthem, or blowing fireworks up. True patriotism is exercising your Constitutional rights and defending them in the face of tyranny.
A lot of people will say this today: “freedom isn’t free;” but right now it would be nice if we had some of these freedoms, for which so many have paid the highest price, back.
-Magus-
Over the weekend I posted a new paper to our literature section: “Are things worse in America now than ever before?”
Are things worse in America now than ever before? Barack Obama doesn’t think so. In his book, The Audacity of Hope (review coming soon) he comments that when he hears liberals complain because America is slipping dangerously toward fascism, and our Constitution is being shredded beyond all recognition, he reminds them of darker times our country has faced.
The paper contains my remarks thereon. Once you’ve read it, please add your comments to this post and let us know what you’re thinking. Are things worse in America now than ever before?
Barack Obama’s book is available here:
BB, and have a wonderful Independence Day weekend.
Vivienne
These words should be remembered not as dirty words that one shall not say on TV but words that must be remembered as words that represent free speech and that which the FCC has taken away. And as for the man that said them George Carlin, he is most likely yelling them in heaven if it is as stuffy as people seem to think it should be. Rest well old solider of freedom, rest well.
-Magus-
Vivienne D’Avalon // Jun 24, 2008 at 12:29 pm
For Penn and Teller’s take on profanity, look at their second season of Bullshit for a fabulous episode on same: .
For the “7 words you can’t say” sketch:
RIP, Mr. Carlin. We’ve come a long way since you were arrested (over and over again) for exercising your free speech and using those words in your act. Now people just get fined hundreds of thousands of dollars. I guess free speech isn’t free, after all. It’s very, very, expensive.
BB,
Vivienne
Rep. Dennis Kucinich has filed articles of impeachment with Congress and Robert Wexler has co-sponsored.
Though the argument against impeachment is that it is too late, millions of people across the United States feel that the principle of justice, the preservation of our Constitution, and the prevention of a nuclear war with Iran before November are more important than “political timing.” “Impeachment is necessary.” says Stephen Heller. “It is not a matter of politics, of right versus left, Democrat versus Republican. Rather, it is a matter of law. The current administration has repeatedly violated the Constitution and civil law. If there is no accountability for these violations, then why have a Constitution? Why have laws?” “Without impeachment hearings, the full spectrum of the crimes of the Bush administration may never be known,” notes Barbara Bowley, “and many of the incursions it has made on our democratic society will be hidden in the legal and bureaucratic structures they have developed….. [F]or the sake of the maintenance of our democracy, we must impeach this administration.” Richard Mathews points out that “[u]sing impeachment to get Bush out of office is not what is most important since he is going out anyway. I want to see him impeached even if it happens on his last day in office because we need to set a precedent that this abuse of power will never be considered acceptable.” Bush’s arrogance and hatred for our democracy must be punished. “It is unthinkable” says Tobi Dragert, “to have a president who calls the Constitution, the same one he sends our young men and women to kill and die for, ‘just a goddamned piece of paper.’” (emphases added).
Among the crimes of which Bush stands accused:
Article IX: Failing to Provide Troops With Body Armor and Vehicle Armor
Article X: Falsifying Accounts of US Troop Deaths and Injuries for Political Purposes
Article XIV: Misprision of a Felony, Misuse and Exposure of Classified Information And Obstruction of Justice in the Matter of Valerie Plame Wilson, Clandestine Agent of the Central Intelligence Agency
Article XV: Providing Immunity from Prosecution for Criminal Contractors in Iraq
Article XVII: Illegal Detention: Detaining Indefinitely And Without Charge Persons Both U.S. Citizens and Foreign Captives
Article XVIII: Torture: Secretly Authorizing, and Encouraging the Use of Torture Against Captives in Afghanistan, Iraq, and Other Places, as a Matter of Official Policy
Article XIX: Rendition: Kidnapping People and Taking Them Against Their Will to “Black Sites” Located in Other Nations, Including Nations Known to Practice Torture
Article XX: Imprisoning Children
Article XXIV: Spying on American Citizens, Without a Court-Ordered Warrant, in Violation of the Law and the Fourth Amendment
Article XXV: Directing Telecommunications Companies to Create an Illegal and Unconstitutional Database of the Private Telephone Numbers and Emails of American Citizens
Article XXVI: Announcing the Intent to Violate Laws with Signing Statements
Article XXVII: Failing to Comply with Congressional Subpoenas and Instructing Former Employees Not to Comply
Article XXVIII: Tampering with Free and Fair Elections, Corruption of the Administration of Justice
Article XXIX: Conspiracy to Violate the Voting Rights Act of 1965
and many others totaling 35 articles of impeachment, any one of which would be enough to impeach. The full text of all 35 articles can be found here. Call your congressman today to demand he or she supports Rep. Kucinich’s articles, or sign the petition in support found here.
As an additional note, according to Robert Wexler, on June 20th, 2008 at 10AM, Scott McClellan, author of and Former White House Press Secretary, has agreed to give sworn testimony as he has been called to do by Judiciary Committee Chairman Conyers.
There is hope for justice yet.
