FLASHBACK FRIDAY – CANNIBAL TREEHOUSE
August 1977. High in the mountains above the source of the April River, a tributary of the Sepik in Papua New Guinea, I had a First Contact with an undiscovered tribe calling themselves the Wali-ali-fo. They ate “man long pig,” cooked human meat and lived in thatch dwelling built up in trees. Here I am in one with my Sepik guide Peter who got me here.
Peter translated a description of their practice: “When a man dies, we take a pig to his wife and exchange it for the body of the man. We take the body out into the forest and…cook ‘im eat ‘im. We do this so the man will continue to live in the bodies of his friends.”
Not something we’ll do but something we can understand, yes? These are people we could laugh and joke with, tell stories with, enjoy being with. A very different culture, but human all the same. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #148 Photo ©Jack Wheeler)
THE RESEMBLANCE
HALF-FULL REPORT 10/21/22
One of the favorites from their 1967 Sgt. Pepper’s Lonely Hearts Club Band album, Getting Better is the theme of this week’s HFR… at last.
We’ve got 18 days to go before America’s Do or Die Day of Nov 8 – and while there still may be many a slip ‘twixt cup and lip, it’s looking good for the good guys, while those on the Dark Side of the Force are sliding into ever deeper gloom. Yes, for every day this week, it’s getting better all the time.
BIRTHPLACE OF A GODDESS
This is the Rock of Aphrodite – where Greek mythology says the Goddess of Love was born fully formed from the sea-foam surging around it – and makes Cyprus the Island of Love. It is south of Paphos on the island’s west coast.
Adjacent is the Temple Sanctuary of Aphrodite, where pilgrims came from every Greek city and kingdom for 2,000 years to worship her. The ancient Greeks prayed to Aphrodite more than any of their other gods, for she was the apotheosis of love, desire, and fertility or having children. Which explains why today couples travel from all over the world to get married here.
Folks have been living in Cyprus for a really long time. So long that they were the first people in the world to domesticate cats over 9,000 years ago. A Neolithic village has been unearthed called Choirokoitia that’s surprisingly sophisticated for being 8,000 years old. In Roman times, after Jesus rose Lazarus from the dead, he went to Cyprus -- there is a beautiful church, the Agios Lazaros, built over his tomb.
The Painted Churches of Troodos are adorned with magnificent medieval art. The ruins of a Crusaders’ fortress inspired the fairy tale castle of Walt Disney’s Snow White. I hope Cyprus’ inspirational history will inspire you to explore it someday. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #101 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SKYE’S LINKS 10/20/22
Narrative Control vs. Reality
This week on Skye's Links, we look at the many cases where false narratives are being pushed hard to manipulate us,
We start with the radically left AMA and move on to issues in politics, society, freedom of speech, environment, energy, and investments.
The bad guys have that old will to power and expect complete obedience to the narrative. However, the Constitution, economic laws, and the Majesty of the Earth as a Testament to its Creator continue to foil those that would be our masters.
Come on over to Skye's Links. It's been a tough week for the propagandists.
PENA PALACE
Built as the summer residence of the Portuguese Royal family almost 200 years ago, Pena Palace stands atop the highest hill of the Sintra mountains with stunning views of the Atlantic Ocean far below.
Today a museum showpiece and World Heritage Site, it is one of the most spectacular castles in all Europe. I am here with your fellow TTPers completing another marvelous exploration of the wondrous land of Portugal. We’ll be here again next Spring - hope you’ll be with us. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #231 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
TRANSGENDERISM, THE LEFT’S OFFENSIVE AGAINST WESTERN CIVILIZATION
Who among us could have guessed a few years back that today gender ideology would be the clearest, most divisive matter of contention separating the American left from the right? To those reasonably grounded in reality, the notion that gender is fluid, that a Supreme Court Justice would be unable to define the word “woman,” that men can give birth, and that children can and should be mutilated if they are confused about their own gender identity is not only sheer lunacy, it is barbaric.
But the left’s commitment to those ideas is total; it’s the hill on which they are willing to die. Those who disagree with them are vilified as transphobic, haters or terrorists. Trans activists may well be the least tolerant “community” in the country.
Recently, a young trans girl/boy posted a video of what five years of testosterone have done to her; she regrets her transition. The comments posted below her video are vicious. There are probably hundreds of similar regret videos but there are many more videos that promote gender transitions, even for the very young. Planned Parenthood promotes cross sex transition and has become a giant of the industry.
Matt Walsh, who made the film that asks “What is a Woman,” began taking the film to college campuses this past week, and shockingly, is filling auditoriums. But the events draw angry protesters, some of them Antifa, who scream and chant their profanities in their attempt to disrupt the screenings. They have not been successful.
RUSSIA IS GIVING A MASTER CLASS ON HOW NOT TO FIGHT A WAR
Vladimir Putin’s war in Ukraine will be studied for centuries by military historians — as a master class in how not to fight. His latest tactic — bombing Ukrainian cities — is yet another desperate and despicable gambit that is likely to backfire.
THE WORLD’S MOST BEAUTIFUL BOOKSTORE
This is the Livraria Lello bookstore in Porto, Portugal where I am right now. Built in 1906, its Neo-Gothic/Art Noveau architecture and design make it the world’s most beautiful place to buy books. Not only was J.K. Rowling inspired to write her Harry Potter books here, but she based the dramatic staircase at Hogwarts on the work of art staircase at “The Lello” that you see above. Porto oozes with such beauty, charm, and entrancement. You deserve to experience it for yourself. (Glimpses of Our Breathtaking World #230 photo ©Jack Wheeler)
SHELLACKING TIME FOR DEMS, AND OBAMA SUDDENLY PLAYS MR. MODERATE
With Democrats facing a "shellacking" in November, President Obama is out and about, campaigning for Democrats, in various ways.
He made some headlines with this:
Former President Barack Obama thinks Democrats can be a bit of a "buzzkill," too easily offended over accidental slights and the complicated scenarios of modern life, he said in a podcast interview late last week.
"How does politics even — how is it even relevant to the things that I care most deeply about? My family, my kids, work that gives me satisfaction, having fun, not being a buzzkill, right?" Obama said in an interview with "Pod Save America."
"And sometimes Democrats are, right? You know, sometimes, people just want to not feel as if they are walking on eggshells. And they want some acknowledgment that life is messy and that all of us at any given moment can say things the wrong way, make mistakes."
Obama is publicly addressing a concern voiced by Democratic strategists privately for quite some time now — that the liberal base of the party is so focused on "wokeness" and the possibility of offending certain interest groups that they lose the broader thread of speaking to what voters actually care about.
That's a little rich, coming from him. The wokester culture era was ushered in on his watch, and it's spiraled downhill since then.