After the disappointment with Myspace and its latest major changes which are disadvantageous for the most part - and being widely protested; I hope it will help! - I had to move especially the more artistic entries of my blog, especially all those from
He Who Wieldeth the Apocalypse, to be found in the previous couple of entries here now, and I finally decided to post an update about the recent developments today, much of which haven't been very positive, the changes of Myspace being only one of the takedowns.
My latest blog entry there was about our dear Benoit Mandelbrot who has departed in October,
http://www.myspace.com/serpentspine/blog/539964120As can be seen, the blog on Myspace no longer looks like mine - but generic since they removed any and all options to customize it so that, being an artistic and individualist person, I had to find myself a different place whose view can still be adapted to reflect my personality, and so I finally found my way back to this long neglected blog of mine.
Another development that has troubled me very much is what's going on in Holland. A reactionary, right-wing government has been elected there which harbors devastating plans: to ban all non-Dutch citizens from the coffee shops and thus from buying cannabis. Now it must be stated that the option to do this was never my sole reason to travel there - or rather, let me reformulate this sentence: to actually
do this was never my reason to travel there - but the
option to do it has been indeed of some relevance. The mere option made for a notion of tolerance and liberty.
Now, friends have advised me that there would still be options to obtain cannabis if I wished to - but I have to point out that this is
not the objective at all! Is it really just because I'm a true Satanist - a follower of the first and foremost rebel who rose up against tyranny - that my main objective is always to uphold the flag of freedom, and is it really so hard for others to see the necessity thereof?!
The matter is this that, being an American stranded in Germany such a long time ago, the one place in the world I really lost my heart to is Amsterdam, Holland's lovely capital with the many canals, charming old and oblique buildings, its windmills, its about 2000 bridges, and many more boats and bicycles than cars - the bicycle capital of the world! - where I always rent my own two wheels and cycle along, all day long...
It would absolutely break my heart and take the meaning out of my life to no longer travel there. But as a Satanist I have my personal set of ethics which would bar me from doing it any longer if they should really implement this unspeakable new law of discrimination! It would be plain wrong to give silent approval to this outrage by continuing to visit the Netherlands as if nothing had happened!
I've been taunted for my grief about this - obviously by people who lack the understanding - where is the world going?!
I've been shocked some time back when learning how brief a while ago it's been that, for instance, laws against homosexuality have been abolished - that was during my lifetime only, and I'm only in my twenties! We've come a long way, and the Netherlands were in fact the first nation to legalize gay marriage; yes, we've come a long way but we don't want to fall back now, do we?! I can't understand those who do not cry out as freedom is being cut back, and I won't be ridiculed by them once more!
Sure enough though, to those of you who live far away from Holland, or even overseas, it may seem of little relevance, but those who taunted me live right here in the country where I currently reside.
Here are two of the latest articles I found on this issue:
http://www.monstersandcritics.com/lifestyle/life/features/article_1604445.php/The-last-smoke-for-Amsterdam-s-hash-tourists("Neighboring countries such as
Germany in favor of the ban," sure... them Germans are bugging me anyway with their resistance to learn and/or use the English language and other reactionary attitudes such as on this one.)
http://www.rnw.nl/english/article/wave-violence-rocks-dutch-south...and if I may cite here the comment of an unknown fellow American with whom I perfectly agree:
"Drug violence is the direct result of prohibition laws. Fully legalize the production, transport and sale, and the gangs will starve. Why do you think there are no gang killings over alcohol?" - Absolutely!!! And apart from this I've known people whose health has been completely ruined by alcohol addiction which they were unable to overcome - which is not to suggest that alcohol should be banned instead but all I'm saying is, cannabis does
not ever do this to people so it's simply absurd that it's banned while alcohol is legal!!!
- And it should be added that during the alcohol prohibition in the United States in the early decades of the past century, alcohol was indeed in the hands of gangs, which proves the point made in the above comment!
On a similar note, but over in the States, I've lately found this site which I highly recommend:
Law Enforcement Against Prohibition!
And now on quite another note. In fact I've been taunted lately for even more than the above.
Living in the Rhineland region of Germany, I've been used to the winters being dark and cold, but much less cold than nearly all other regions of the country, and most notably largely snow-free which is crucial for me as a cyclist. The past winter of 2009/2010 however was by far the worst I've ever seen with weeks of snow and ice and thus road conditions that rendered cycling impossible - which is a disaster for me as I depend on it as my only means of transportation! When reduced to walking I can still reach the nearest stores to buy groceries which are little more than a mile away so I have no trouble getting food and supplies, alright, but getting to the gym where I also do my cleaning job is impossible without the bike. Workout wouldn't be an issue since I got equipment at home, too - but can't earn no money when unable to get to the gym!
The other thing is plain CABIN FEVER, a condition I'm extraordinarily prone to since I'm an outdoor person and not a domesticated victim of civilization - but where would you go when it's not only freezing outside but also 17 hours of darkness per day! I don't get it that certain people "advise" me to use the heating which is absolutely not an option since I have no money to waste at all - and that would for sure be a FORTUNE! - and absolutely superfluous, too; after all, it's 57°F in here and won't go much lower, that's certainly a temperature one can survive with, ain't it?! Especially if one is a warrior with the habit of hardening herself by barefoot sprints outside in the mornings, 3 to 4 times a week, wearing only shorts and a top. It was upper 20's this morning, I ran fast and took 7 minutes for the round which is, hm, about half a mile? It's staying subzero again these days but fortunately was milder over the weekend so that all the snow thawed away and I currently have smooth riding conditions everywhere (smooth but NOT slippery, mind ya!). Hoping it's gonna last.
So. The warrior doesn't need no heating like some silly wimp, the warrior needs a bicycle under her ass so she can get around her territory. When bicycle won't work then her ass ain't well, that's all...
In the meantime I've been trying to research a bit, among my other scientific interests, into possible causes for these recent freak winters here in Europe.
Shutdown of Thermohaline Circulation, from Wikipedia.If things should go south for good I might need to come up with an alternative means of transportation, preferably muscle-powered - but possibly with spiky tires and more than two wheels?
Like this - but with SPIKES!! ;)
Hyperbike.
