#the other aspect of the 'fighting' union was 'believes in the transformative power of the working class'

[captainjonnitkessler]

Saw a comic today that was like "a GOOD union trusts its membership to always act in their own best interest and to always fight capitalism, unlike those bootlicking liberal unions who believe in things like "reform" and "politics"

I can't even trust my union's membership to show up to work sober, man. Half of them are currently salivating over the concept of the supreme court gutting OSHA. I don't think they're going to go for a revolutionary overthrow of capitalism and I don't think I'd trust them with it if they did

[tossawary]

Needing something to play in the background during the day, I have started watching Transformers G1 and have now finished the first season. It is very funny to visit the original after getting most of my information through Fandom Osmosis and passing acquaintanceship with more recent Transformers media. I decided to start at the beginning (terrible decision, I know, I will not be changing it) because I have like 40+ hours per week that need background sound and I like studying adaptational choices over time, so I intend to progress through a bunch of Transformers shows in chronological order.

It's kind of like Star Trek: TOS (Star Trek is better) in that I find parts of it very charming, there are plenty of aspects that are even compelling in their potential, but it's also... bad. A lot of it is Very Bad, sometimes in a very funny way and sometimes in a way that is just Not Good and even Problematic. I cannot possibly recommend it.

The animation quality is understandably very low due to the context of its creation (television show from the 80s made to sell toys). I like a few of the Cybertron background paintings, but it still takes me a second to tell a lot of the characters apart, partially because there is a revolving door for supporting characters. The writing quality is even worse. The physics is all over the place. The powers and abilities are completely arbitrary. None of the science works. No one can decide what body parts the Cybertronians actually have. There is way more mind control in this show than I ever expected there to be. This is apparently an alternate universe where the Earth has various types of energy crystals. The Idiot Ball trope is flying all over the place like dodgeballs and the characters are repeatedly hitting themselves with it constantly. Some of the accents are quite silly, yeah, but it still doesn't justify how some people type them out in fanfiction.

And yet I am still mildly entertained, probably because I am already partial to both animation and space opera with robots. And I recognize enough of the characters to find these early versions of them very funny. And some parts of this extended toy commercial were very clearly Done With Love.

Megatron and Starscream are like two halves of a whole idiot. The Decepticons are incapable of not betraying each other for more than a few episodes. Except for Soundwave, who is the MVP of the Decepticons, and yet also does nothing to stop any of the drama. Both sides can just Make New Guys at any time apparently and the Dinobots should unionize. I think Optimus Prime essentially "ok boomer"ed Megatron in the second episode and it was justified. I can't believe that Shockwave didn't just straight up stage a coup or otherwise move on in 4 million years, like, man, DUMP HIS ASS already. Bumblebee has apparently always been Very Smol and Just A Little Guy. Because this is a kids show, all these giant robots are constantly calling the Mortal Enemies They Want Dead "dweebs" and "nerds" and "twerps" and it's Very Funny. And I'm just going to assume that Sparkplug is a nickname and not an adult human man's legal name.

Also, I know the reason that the human kids are in the show is so that the show can go, "Look! This could be you! Being friends with all your favorite giant robots!" But it very much comes off as the Autobots having no real context for Spike's age or squishiness, probably because their own newborns are already able to fight. And Carly's introduction involving renting scuba gear and breaking into the Decepticon base makes her look (and I mean this with bewildered affection) fucking nuts, girl.

[torgawl]

can we talk about sukuna and rika and why the king and queen of curses having a dispute is also narratively fitting? if sukuna is an heian era sorcerer with an antipathy and disregard of human emotions and the weak's will to live, blind to love and unable to comprehend the value of relationships with others then rika, as his counterpart, works especially well. rika is just a kid, or was just a kid. an innocent young girl who ended up dying tragically and saw herself transform into a vengeful spirit after being cursed by love. not only does she represent the weak (remember when sukuna's slaughter of women and children was implied?), she represents love itself. with her feelings lingering after death, she clinged onto her existence with the sole wish of protecting yuuta. it counteracts so well with sukuna's selfish will to kill time before his final breathe, which he admitted to be his will and motivation.

before i move on to my next idea, which let me preface by saying that it might be a little out there and dives into theory territory, i'm going to contextualise it with some information on the symbolism of "king and queen" that might help understand why this thought may make - at least some - sense.

in alchemy the king usually appears in conjunction with the queen, representing the sun-and-moon duality. in accordance with the theory of sulfur and mercury, which together, after alchemist purification, form the philosopher’s stone (also called the elixir of life, associated with rejuvenation and immortality), usually represented by the crowned hermetic androgyne (the union of the complementary male and female, achieving perfection or completion in the human state). according to jung, the king and queen also signify the spiritual conjunction that takes place when the process of individuation is complete, with the harmonious union of the unconscious and consciousness. jungian psychology has subjected the alchemistic tradition to extensive analysis and views the king less as an image of paternal authority and more as an archetype of higher insight and wisdom.

with that in mind, i think it's easy to understand where i'm headed but i want to add something else. remember jjk 0? geto's plan at the time was to obtain rika so he could use her power and move forward with his plan to annihilate all no-sorcerers. he believed her to be the key to achieve his goal and was willing to risk his own life for it. furthermore, the story is highly based on buddhist concepts and one of the core aspects of jujutsu kaisen is the cycles of suffering the characters are subjected to. in buddhism the goal is to become free of the samsara (continuous cycle of life, death and rebirth), eliminate suffering and achieve nirvana (enlightment). this ties withe the name of the series as kaisen is comprised of the kanji 'kai', meaning cycle, and 'sen', meaning battle, which combined with jujutsu (which means magic/sorcery but contains the word curse) describe the story as an endless battle of curses. and in a sense, the story also repeats itself, between generations and storyline-wise with the events circling back to how it all began. yuuta managed to land a fatal strike on geto once again, but now rika is pointed to be in a direct confrontation with sukuna as the queen of curses. now that i went through all the context needed to understand this, is it possible rika is once again in danger of being taken away? the idea of achieving a state of perfection with the unity between king and queen is quite intriguing. sukuna finally addressing yuuji as a worthy rival because of his unshakable resolve and unbreakable soul, is almost directly implying yuuji to be the one with whom sukuna has his last battle. an ultimate power-up (or the equivalent to), would be veyy cathartic before a final fight where yuuji would have the opportunity to finally go all out and have his well awaited and deserved protagonism (in my eyes, at least).

[thecosmicangel]

new moon messages 🌑🔮✨ 9/14-9/15

Fire signs Edition

✨♌️⭐️♐️⭐️♈️✨

⭐️Perfect balance of action and receptivity, reaching success through power strength and endurance.

⭐️Perfect timing, embody the principles of change and movement.

⭐️Find your rhythm to achieve victory in your life. Keep your eye on the prize don’t allow distractions to come between you and your target.

⭐️Be willing to fight the battles that are necessary and find in yourself endurance to ride catalytic change and triumph over all obstacles.

⭐️No one in life ever said life was going to be easy , obstacles are presented to you so that you may overcome them.

⭐️Believe in yourself because if you don’t believe in yourself no one else will.

⭐️Confidence comes to those who have succeeded in conquering adversity.

⭐️Any test that comes your way is here to teach you to receive rather than to give.

⭐️Worry is a wasted emotion, it gives you the illusion of control; It keeps you limited; worrying destroys the hope, faith, and excitement.

⭐️Remember that you are what you think and you have the power to create positive thoughts which produce positive outcomes.

⭐️What unnecessary worrying are you carrying around with you mow?

⭐️A beautiful relationship will soon develop.

⭐️Unions, love offers and marriage.

⭐️You cannot help but attract love when you have love in your heart.

⭐️If you are already in a relationship the relationship will deepened provided you are always open with each other and receptive to one another’s needs. Always express any insecurity you have with your partner and you will find that your relationship strengthen.

⭐️The people in our lives are drawn to us and are here for a reason. When someone comes in your life you must see what is not resolved or whole in the person and understand the lessons he or she brings home to you.

⭐️You draw others to you like magnets in order to learn various aspects of yourself.

⭐️Whoever shows up in your life you both have chosen to incarnate with together to help each other learn lessons.

⭐️Once a lesson is learned don’t be surprised if that person fades away. People are in your life for a reason, a season or a lifetime.

⭐️Your determination, commitment and perseverance is about to pay off and all you have worked towards will soon manifest.

⭐️Soon you will celebrate your achievements , you will find yourself shining brightly and as such attract much admiration and attention from others.

⭐️Receiving attention and recognition.

⭐️Traveling , taking a vacation physically or mentally.

⭐️Be grateful for new experiences and what you have experienced in the past.

⭐️You are a beacon of hope & great inspiration for others who cross your path.

⭐️Remember that a miracle is always possible no matter what situation you find yourself in.

⭐️This is a time to be joyful and celebrate and appreciate all that you have achieved to date. Take time to give thanks for all your experience even the setbacks.

⭐️Something wonderful and magical is about to emerge as a result of a recent contact or experience that seemed rather meaningless at the time.

⭐️You deserve to be and have all that your heart truly desires, your life is on the verge of a wondrous transformation.

⭐️You are being encouraged to walk away from a current situation which is causing you conflict in your life. Walking away from this situation is not a sign of weakness but rather of strength. There is nothing to prove or gain by fighting in this situation. By detaching from this situation new possibilities and opportunities open up for you.

⭐️It is wonderful to indulge in the things we love every once in a while everything is fine in good measure just don’t overdo it.

⭐️Remember excess of anything leads to some form of inbalance. Don’t beat yourself up when you do indulge in things you love just be mindful. Don’t deny yourself just keep it balanced.

⭐️You are learning the value of peace and quiet and joy of being still. One can never be truly connected to source when the mind is engaged with unneeded chatter. Who or what is interrupting this solitude?

⭐️Time to reconcile past hurts and perceived injustices.

⭐️Create harmony around you physically with order and calm trust the voice of your higher self to create an environment in which you can truly be in tune with your soul.

⭐️New creative ideas, new ventures and a fresh new start.

⭐️Good advice from a wise person.

⭐️Great good fortune.

⭐️Temporary problems.

⭐️Accept valid criticism.

⭐️Pregnancy, fertility, womb issues/ pregnancy news.

⭐��Motherhood.

Signs / synchronicities: Athena, Mary Magdalene, Capricorn, cancer, moon, Venus, hammock, sunrise, shark, owl, four leaf clover, clouds , cup, November

[crossxskulled]

Will of Rebellion.

I want to dip upon this aspect a bit more as a generalized deep dive when it comes to the Persona users 'Potential'. There's always a distinct theme for each part of the series I notice when it comes to this. From my proper look over of P5, I'd like to propose that the shape this potential takes is 'To cast off all shackles', this alone taking a very broad definition. Potential within this field denies all forces that attempts to control them.

It's why within this particular vein of Persona users, there's a brand of unity in how the bond is shown. You never really see a Shadow self from this generation of users due the merge amidst their awakening. When each 'Contract' is established, they undergo a process that creates synchronization, melding with the shadow in a way forsakes the normal duality of conscious/unconscious. They need to reach a height of spiritual/mental state to step upon a 'trigger', becoming a force that rebels becomes perfectly fitting for this. It's often why you see the shadow become a mask, and soon, how the entire outfit becomes an additional form to signify the success of the union.

This is why the prime breeding ground for these transformations takes place in realms of over-saturated desire, so potent in fact that in normal cases, it threatens to bring a film over reality itself. (Better known as Palaces) Palaces by nature are realms that hold their own unique danger, constantly exerting an influence to turn anything into a part of the structure itself, either as a servant or other twisted variants. While the Will of Rebellion have diverts these effects entirely, I believe anyone who awakened the Potential have vastly increased resistance, just a more conscious awareness of what these collective worlds/Mementos attempt to do..

Akin to any other awakening, this creates both advantages and drawbacks. One particular you can note is how this generation of Persona wielders have some really violent tendencies. From how I HC it, this new connection with the user's shadow draws upon darker, more animalistic natures in tandem with their regular resolve in all that both sides learned, giving them both the mental fortitude to better endure sickening places they'd have to explore. A constant battle to retain control at this point becomes highly pivotal.

A failsafe of sorts is generated to assist with this, better known as the chains you constantly find constraining their Personas. Its an inhibitor for their potential on one hand, but also a defensive mechanism as demonstrated by examples Akechi made.

The biggest risk to this deep dive is ultimately losing yourself. An easy price to power remains and can be taken, but it forsakes consciousness in order to become an unbridled, maddened mass of power. While the chains can be removed at a point, it's only after undergoing rigorous growth through trials. This price could be reflective of Persona 3's cast having their Persona fight against them if the situation was displayed. Except, due to this melded state with their shadows, they'd instead find themselves melting away in that loss of control.

The Phantom Thieves as a force I see are drawn upon 'Chaos' on the Order/Chaos dichotomy. Gaining this ability to rob away desires through this rebellious will is stripping away assets of humanity from their targets, no matter how deplorable. In order to combat an unfair game, they've developed a skill which no shadow can fight against.

As for how vast the heights of this will can become? The God of Control manipulated all of Mementos/The Collective Unconscious to 'forget the Phantom Thieves', ultimately bringing them into a state beyond death, they simply never existed at all. It only gained this power after fusing to it as the Holy Grail. Yet, they each managed not only to regain their identity through their showdown with the malevolent god, they've ultimately managed reclaim their existence and go beyond, tearing away the power the false god seized and transforming that might into it's curtain call.

[mevekagvain]

Chapter 121 - I hope none of the birds affected by the sleeping gas died from falling from a height, especially if they fell on concrete. I don't think the gas itself would affect the birds but it also very well might since they can't handle as much due to being much smaller animals or from not being able to handle the chemicals used.

Chapter 122 - Shark's expressions are so hideous 🤢

- At least Raizel knows how to be nice by sharing food lmao. Frankenstein beaming like a proud father of a 2-year-old who's doing that is definitely not praxis though.

Chapter 124 - Shark being astounded that nobles care about innocents is amusing. I suppose that aside from the Elders, the Union members think nobles consider other species to be inferior or like cockroaches or toys.

- Although I do find Frankenstein plotting to teach Seira cooking so she can cook for Raizel when he can't extremely funny, I do also find it somewhat disturbing. He's essentially making a teen girl do child labour. Yes she and Regis are imposing on him and I do think they should be doing some manner of chores, but making her cook lavish meals? I also know she's doing it willingly but it still makes me cringe since something being one's choice doesn't negate it being bad. And yes technically she's 'of age' since she's 217, whatever that means since she's still obviously a teen compared to Raizel who actually is an adult going to school with children (which is a whole other can of worms), but aside from her position as clan leader she's very obviously not viewed as an adult by most.

Chapter 125 - On one hand I'd love to get a front row seat to the internal drama within the DA-5 lile M-21 but otoh I don't want to die a painful death or get beaten up.

- So like obviously Seira knows that Raizel and Frankenstein aren't ordinary humans unlike Regis but it is hilarious to think she just told the truth to two men she thinks are frail innocent humans.

Chapter 127 - You'd really think that the Union would be investing more into memory altering drugs but nah. The only ones they have will also fuck your brain up. Really not a good idea when most of your agents/experiments obviously have been administered aforementioned drugs. If it was only used sparingly on civilians I'd get it but it's quite widespread so...

Chapter 128 - As much as Frankenstein complains about the mess the kids make, he enjoys having them over as much as Raizel does. Soft hearted bastard.

Chapter 130 - The girls bandaging M-21 up even as Regis fights has them being smarter than like 90% of other characters in media. They're the real reason he didn't hit the dust immediately smh.

Chapter 132 - I still think the coming of age ceremony has a 50% chance of actually being them ingesting drugs that are the equivalent of stat boosting items in games but also ya know, real world drugs that fuck you up. The other 50% is just them getting much stronger after they turn 200 because their bodies are just like that and it truly is purely ceremonial and a fun tradition like children's day or girl's day or birthdays rather than something that actually affects them.

- Lol Kranz, Regis won't be leaving a corpse if he dies. Purebloods are just special like that. Can you imagine if they did see a pureblood dying? They'd regret killing them so bad.

Chapter 133 - Raizel commanding Frankenstein to stop his experiments is definitely something, like bro maybe he was figuring out electrolysis, not like you know what he was doing. Plus it's not like Frankenstein listened completely. Man has a lab under his house and it wasn't built after Raizel woke. I guess he only stopped modification experiements on others and only did checkups on himself but didn't stop experimenting for other stuff like idk, better fertiliser.

- Kinda amazing Takeo didn't get stabbed in the heart.

Chapter 137 - I know it's just because Gejutel likely explained the lord's powers to him but the idea that Regis knows what a blood field is because Raskreia does demonstrations to entertain little kids is making me giggle.

Chapter 140 - So the Union only came upon Frankenstein's research 540 years ago... that's only 40 years before Raskreia became lord. Interesting.

- Ah yes... the classic joke of Tao not teaching Takeo korean properly. It's also very amusing envisioning Tao teaching the DA-5 members korean.

- ARIS ARIS ARIS. God she looks adorbs. Also I love her referring to DA-5 as 'my children' and 'my babies'. Aris >>> all other scientists. Amd hi Yuri :)

Chapter 141 - Yuri listening to Aris insulting Crombel repeatedly,,, he probably enjoys every aspect of it from knowing she's not aware he's his underling to being able to hear someone insult Crombel.

- Once again union members don't know jack shit. They think werewolves are extinct while Maduke and Lunark are literally Elders 😭🤡😭

- Werewolves having a small population never made sense to me even with the whole thing about them not having mind control and thus keeping away from humans secretly since even civilians are stronger than humans on average but like why tf would wolves have such a low reproduction rate? And that's why I hc that 90% of them are just homosexual.

Chapter 142 - D doesn't consume your lifeforce bro. That's just the drugs causing heavy strain on the body, etc etc. The rest of your explanation was fine but talking about lifeforce or vitality makes no sense.

- We all know Yuri's smart but the fact that he tries to get Frankenstein as a subject by scouting him first is very clever. It's believable too since Frankenstein is supposed to be quite handsome.

Chapter 144 - Well we don't know of Crombel microchips his Assassination Squad but Aris canonically microchips her experiments 🤣

Chapter 147 - Okay but this panel... she's hot. I'd let her dissect me <3

- If this was some other media I'd talk about the symbolism of the attack looking like a rapier and go on for a paragraph but this is Noblesse so it's obviously just a coincidence lmao.

- "A living robot" so like... a cyborg.

Chapter 148 - Yuri getting pissed at being attacked and retaliating but pretending it was him being loyal to Aris... Love it. Also he must be really confused as to who tf Frankenstein is since as one of Crombel's most important lackeys he'd definitely know about such a powerful experiment under him if they existed and thus unlike Aris knows that he's not been sent by Crombel.

Chapter 149 - Yup def confused, especially when he realises Frankenstein's power is like Crombel's.

Chapter 150 - Girlboss,,, also it's been years and I'm still wondering... why is her outfit like that? Neon genesis evangelion girlboss does have a ring to it though.

- Ah yes, Taivra time.

Chapter 151 - Okay yeah I feel so bad for Takeo but also Aris is so good at manipulating him and and and iwi. The fact that she can cry on command though... impressive.

- "From the beginning you were an only child. That's why I got you to experiment on." Okay cool time to ignore that again for my own amusement of having all of noblesse's named modified human women be related to Takeo.

- Okay I'm obsessed with strawberry milk myself but strawberries do not taste anywhere near that good. Not even the sweet ones.

Chapter 153 - Yeah no I don't agree that Takeo losing his will to live is an insult to your comrades M-21. You could have said all that in a gentler way. Just because Takeo was luckier than you experiment wise doesn't mean you get to be so rude.

Chapter 154 - M-21 misleading Tao and Takeo to thinking he's being experimented on and then turning around to laugh at them when they find out it's just ramyeon... mood.

- I really do wonder what 12th Elder's military medals are for.

Sidenotes - Hammer being smart <3 I honestly didn't remember that part of him and I'm glad he's not given purely negative traits. He's the only reason Shark lived past 2 chapters tbh.

- Truly, D is one of the worst letters of the alphabet to have named the drugs DA-5 uses. The other bad choice would be P. On the opposite end of the spectrum, T would have been a great choice for the irony. Not that it matters since the inspiration for the drug from name to physical transformation is obviously 🍆

- Nobles being so nonchalant about murder is kinda fucked up like yeah they suck but you can't just kill them??? Lukedonia my beloved your justice system sucks. I do hc they can't just do this in Lukedonia though or to other nobles even if outside of Lukedonia, it's just that the jurisdiction of nobles doesn't apply outside of Lukedonia and they do on some level think of themselves as a superior species so they're fine with just... killing people.

- Aris obsessing over handsome men as experiments and treating them like toys but ignoring women altogether? Not experimenting on women? Gaslight gatekeep girlboss,,, a feministe of our own,,, perhaps even a... lesbienne. But yeah I just love how she acts and I love her and how she interacts with Yuri. And yeah he's cool too.

- Tbh aside from how short the skirts are and the white blazers, the Ye Ran uniform really reminds me of my own school's uniform. The colours are exactly the same. We just didn't have blazers since it was a forever summer tropical country, only jumpers for if it got too cold in the air conditioned rooms. And for some people who grow up in tropical countries... 25°C can be too cold.

[venusiandivination]

What area of your life needs improvement? Another pick a card!

Pile 1 (left) to Pile 4 (right)

Choose your pile and then scroll down to your choice to figure out what it is that you need to focus on!

Pile 1

Judgement and The Fool - You are going through an awakening right now that offers the promise of a new beginning. Judgement is typically about a higher calling - translating literally to the last judgement. The Fool is all about new beginnings. Together, I feel that you’re under the scrutiny of a spiritual eye. You are being called to reach your absolute true potential. The Lovers and The Devil - two opposite cards. Polarities. The Lovers on one hand, offering a soul mate connection, true happiness, a union blessed by angels. The Devil on the other hand, about addiction, being bound to one another but not happy, something destined to be cursed by a higher power. I feel that you have a decision to make correlating specifically to your calling. You are being asked to let go of something from your past, or be bound by it. All of these cards are major arcana, which leads me to believe that this decision is a big one. It is important to how your life will be from here on out. Your oracle advice is, “Your dreams need a practical plan,” and, “Don’t let your past hold you back.” Do not be afraid to let go of things that do not serve you, and set goals so that you can stay on the right track!

Pile 2

The Sun and Death - There is a transformation that needs to happen within you with the Death card, all about transition and changes. The Sun is the most positive card in the deck, all about abundance and true happiness. With these together, I feel that you’re happy to make the change, or that you are unsure you want to because things are going so well. I feel like you know exactly what it is that’s transforming because it’s already presented itself to you. Some of you are seeing this change right in front of you and are elated with the possibility, but I get the feeling that most of you are unsure about it because you are afraid that you don’t have what it takes to really transform. Queen of Wands, the Magician, Four of Wands - The Queen here is all about your confidence level. Some of you are already embodying her, seeing this change in front of you and knowing you have what it takes. Others are worried but take this as advice! The Magician is about having the tools to make it happen - he’s a master of his trade and confident in his abilities. The Four of Wands is all about celebration and community. These are amazing cards to receive together, all about confidence and what lies on the other side of this transformation! Nothing but good vibes are coming out of this spread for you. Do not be worried or scared, for what is presenting itself to you is your path! Your advice oracle cards are, “Balance spirituality and practicality,” and, “Be bold and make the first move.” I can’t stress enough how positive this is, what are you even waiting for?!

Pile 3

Eight of Swords and Six of Pentacles - I feel like there is an area of your life where you are feeling stuck and I’m inclined to believe that it has to do with money or career. Eight of Swords is about being blindfolded and stuck, and it appeared here twice. Six of Pentacles is about generosity, or having something that others want/need. Eight of Swords and Five of Pentacles - on the other hand, Five of Pentacles is about financial loss. Perhaps you have lost a job recently, or bills just seem to build up and there’s no end in sight. Or, not taken so literally, the Five of Pentacles can mean feeling abandoned and left out in the cold. I feel that your message here is to remember, the person in the Eight of Swords is typically blinded, however, they have the ability to take the blindfold off and see more clearly. Take a step back and really look at the situation. You are trying to make a transition from the Five - abandoned, in depths of bad luck - to the Six - with the ability to be generous and give out what you have. Whatever area of your life that you are feeling abandoned and left out in the cold is where you need to focus your energy. Your advice oracle is, “Confidence is your key to success.” No matter what brings you down in life, you have the ability to face it head on with confidence. Fake it til you make it - even if you are not in the best place right now doesn’t mean that you can’t pretend you are!

Pile 4

Five of Wands and Page of Pentacles - The five of Wands is about conflict. Page of Pentacles can be an offer coming in, but I’m inclined to look at the Page aspect more than the Pentacles because you have two. Your oracle at the end of this leads me to believe that this conflict is within you rather than an outside force, but we’ll talk more about that- Ten of Swords and Page of Swords - so all together I feel the energy of needing to focus on the conflict in your life. Perhaps there’s an ending that really needs to happen. With the Ten of Swords, it’s going to be a painful ending. This won’t be easy, but with two Pages I see an offer coming in once you finally let this go. I am seeing either a situation involving another person where the fighting has just become too much, or - with two Swords cards - a mental turmoil that is holding you back. Put a stop to it once and for all. It is absolutely not serving you to continue to entertain these actions. Your advice oracle is, “Surrender to the Divine.” I’m getting a feeling of trying to fight something that is working it’s way into your life. Your advice is asking you to let go. Nothing good can come from trying to fight off what you’re meant for. You may be aware of an offer already that has come in, but you may be weighing the option as something you don’t really want. These cards are telling you to stop fighting it. While it will be difficult, there is a grand plan for you and you need to stay on track!

[sciencespies]

The True Story of Min Matheson, the Labor Leader Who Fought the Mob at the Polls

https://sciencespies.com/history/the-true-story-of-min-matheson-the-labor-leader-who-fought-the-mob-at-the-polls/

The True Story of Min Matheson, the Labor Leader Who Fought the Mob at the Polls

Labor leader Min Lurye Matheson made her name facing down the mob. She arrived in northeastern Pennsylvania in 1944, dispatched by the International Ladies Garment Workers Union, or ILGWU, to organize the hard-pressed garment workers of the Wyoming Valley anthracite coal region. Here, in towns with deep mob roots such as Pittston, she soon observed first-hand “the system,” an election day practice in which women signed the polling roster but had their husbands cast their votes—all under the watchful eye of authorities controlled by Russell Bufalino, the gangster depicted in Martin Scorsese’s 2019 film The Irishman.

The “system” had long gone unchallenged, but Matheson saw it as the underlying barrier to her fight to secure worker rights. To confront the corruption, she selected a polling site at the heart of Bufalino’s territory, sending a Pittston woman named Carmella Salatino to the polls on election day. Salatino refused to sign the election roster unless she could cast her own vote privately, with her husband standing by in support outside the booth. With Matheson’s encouragement, the Salatinos stood their ground for hours against the pressure of Bufalino’s “poll-watchers.” They ultimately backed down, but they had made a crucial first step toward change, and it would not be long before Matheson and the women workers of Pittston overcame voter suppression in the town. Later, through efforts like 1958’s Dress Strike, ILGWU members asserted the union’s control over Pennsylvania’s garment industry, and mob-controlled businesses diminished in power.

Matheson’s career with the ILGWU extended from the 1940s to the 1960s, and she frequently combated organized crime interests in the region’s notoriously corrupt towns, alternately fighting against and negotiating with gangsters. Matheson learned the dangers of fighting the mob through personal experience; one of her brothers, Will Lurye, was murdered while trying to organize a mobbed-up firm in New York’s Garment District. Yet she was an idealist, and while she has become best known for facing off against the mob, Matheson’s primary importance to the labor movement lies in the inspiration she gave to workers she led, and the way she changed attitudes among working-class women of Pittston like Carmella Salatino—turning them into a powerful political force in the region and a respected civic presence. Her gutsy leadership style and unwavering fight for the ideals of organized labor brought a transformative vision of union power to an unlikely corner of America where tradition held sway, and women seldom got a voice.

Matheson, second from left, with family, at the district attorney’s office after the investigation of her brother Will Lurye’s murder by the mob. Matheson faced off against gangsters throughout her long career as a union organizer.

(Courtesy of the Queens Public Library Archives)

In the early 20th century, Northeast Pennsylvania was a region of small, often isolated townships that had been populated by waves of immigrants who had come to work in the coal mines. For decades the mines had thrived, but by the mid-1940s the coal industry was flagging, leaving families mired in long-term unemployment. Non-union garment factories emerged as an economic lifeline for a desperate workforce of miners’ wives and daughters, who worked long hours under poor conditions, with no recourse and no representation. The workers’ poverty created rich opportunities for garment contractors from New York, some with familial mob ties, who flocked to Pennsylvania for competitive advantage where they could undercut the industry’s wage rates and evade union oversight. This environment, plus very low overhead for entry, presented an opening for mobsters to extend their operations beyond New York and to secure a legitimate front for other illegal activities. The ILGWU sought to stabilize this volatile industry through the enforcement of uniform compensation and working conditions, and it sent Matheson to organize these “runaway” shops.

Matheson was a born organizer who knew she needed to earn trust to organize garment workers, and that she would need to demonstrate the value of the union to their lives, and not just their livelihoods. To unionize would require courage and defiance from many of these women; attitudes in Northeast Pennsylvania were provincial and patriarchal. “The men had no jobs,” said Dorothy Ney, who worked with Matheson as an organizer. “They were out hanging around Main Street while the women worked.” But though the women were the breadwinners, they were still seen primarily as the caretakers of their households, and their male family members were not always tolerant of their union involvement. Union women who followed Matheson’s lead were subject to demeaning and vulgar verbal attacks, as well as physical threat. In the early days of Matheson’s tenure, husbands and fathers often yanked women right out of the picket lines, and hauled them back home. Organizing these workers required upending long-term patterns of subjugation that reached into the civic, economic, and familial aspects of a woman’s life.

These women’s political realities bore little resemblance to the ideals of American democracy that Matheson upheld, and showed why targeting voting abuses became one of her first efforts. For Matheson, one’s right to vote was an underlying principle of social democratic unionism—an ideal that emphasized workers’ political and economic rights. Whether recruiting workers to the union cause or dressing down a made member of the mob challenging her at the picket-line, she often delivered what she called “her little lecture on democracy.” In it, she held that the electoral process was an essential precursor to establishing democracy in all aspects of a working person’s life. “Having the right to vote doesn’t make it democratic,” she insisted, telling women they also had to exercise that right, and to push for justice at work. “If you don’t have a labor union or you don’t have an organization to represent you on the job, you’re really being denied your rights, your democratic rights.”

The Pittston voting gambit was a crucial first step that put the community and the local mob leadership on notice, and demonstrated Matheson’s fearlessness and solidarity with the rank-and-file. An outsider from Chicago, Matheson grew up in a fiercely progressive household with a union activist father who had his own violent encounters with thugs and racketeers. All seven Lurye children attended Socialist Sunday School, and young Min often joined her father at union rallies. Her parents frequently sheltered radicals in their home, including Emma Goldman. Matheson’s mother became adept at deflecting police searches during the inevitable raids on their home. “Dad wouldn’t work at anything, I don’t care what it was, without getting others who were also doing the same thing together,” Matheson later recalled.

It was an active, politically engaged climate, and Matheson developed a deep commitment to social justice during her youth. She became a zealous member of the Young Workers’ Communist League, where she met her life partner Bill Matheson—though the Mathesons both broke with the Communist Party when they saw Soviet interests superceding the interests of the American workers they organized. That, and her brother’s murder, distilled her shrewd assessment of ideologues and authority, and galvanized her personal sense of justice.

Matheson’s direct experience with personal loss in the fight for labor was highly relatable to the women of the coal region. Oral histories from the women who organized with Min show that they felt her deep commitment to their cause, and they treasured their hard-won status. Many recalled their time in the union as life-changing, and imbued with purpose. They never wanted to go back to the days of “no representation, no protections,” and they often spoke of Matheson’s courage and loyalty. “If we didn’t have somebody like Min Matheson with us, I believe we would have given up because she was so strong and she was down there with us,” Minnie Caputo, who joined Matheson’s organizing team and helped fight the mob in Pittston, told an interviewer. “We knew when we were in a shop how she fought for every girl and you weren’t gonna give all that up. It would be foolish for us after she fought so hard.”

And they refused to go backward. The ILGWU’s Northeast District grew from 404 members in 1944 to 11,000 by the late 1950s, with more than 250 union factories. As representatives of their shops, a growing number of elected chairladies and secretaries flocked to the union’s monthly meetings. “They loved to hear Min talk,” Ney said. “Whatever she believed in, they believed in.” And Matheson’s ILGWU, with Bill Matheson as director of education, cultivated active political and civic engagement. Union members took on leadership roles on the shop floor, joined school boards, and participated in local Democratic Party politics. In 1957, Pittston’s mayor instituted a “Garment Workers’ Day” to recognize their contributions to the community.

Matheson’s leadership transformed oppressed garment workers into constructive members of society, with status and dignity. The ILGWU Northeast District’s educational and recreational programs supported local charity drives and created a union newsletter and a radio program, which—typically written by Bill—were notable for their candor, humor, and accessibility. Matheson launched a mobile healthcare unit that traveled throughout the region to serve the needs of the union’s more remote members—the first of its kind. And, to enhance the public perception of the union and provide a creative outlet for members, the Mathesons formed a highly popular chorus, which performed to audiences in venues throughout the area. These activities were guided by principles of community engagement and empowerment—Matheson understood that her members would gain good standing in the community by becoming a visible and vocal presence invested in contributing to the common good.

After Matheson’s retirement, she lived on a meager union pension and sought to rejoin the ILGWU to organize part-time, hoping to help train a new generation of union activists. The ILGWU did not accept the idea, however, and Matheson died in 1992. Now, in 2020, only about 8 percent of the private sector workforce in the U.S. is represented by organized labor and the vast majority of workers lack the union-won protections Matheson championed. Matheson observed this diminishment in the ILGWU as early as 1988. “I feel that a union has to be constantly on its toes and force conditions to see that the employers live up to their agreement, and the girls have pride in their organization. Otherwise the whole concept of unionism just withers and dies, and I wouldn’t want to see that,” she reflected in a 1983 interview.

The impact of the long neglect and decline of union power is seen today in the challenges faced by workers, and front-line workers in particular, during the Covid-19 crisis. Decades of complacency toward worker protections are on full view, suggesting that Min Matheson’s empowering message has resonance in the fight to reclaim the rights she and her members fought so hard to achieve.

Catherine Rios is an associate professor of humanities and communications at Penn State Harrisburg. David Witwer is a professor of history and American studies at Penn State Harrisburg. They are the coauthors of Murder in the Garment District: The Grip of Organized Crime and the Decline of Labor in the United States. Learn more at their website.

#History

[psyentifically-minded]

Ptah: Ptah (depicted top left) was a luna God said to be the husband of Bastet or Sekhmet and was thus father of Nefertem and Maahes. Ptah was depicted as a green-skinned pharoah with a crescent and full moon on his head, standing on the symbol for Ma’at and holding a staff crossed with a scepter/ankh and the djed pillar of Osiris, he is also sometimes pictured with a crook and flail. Ptah was often described as self-creating and sometimes credited with creating the universe he also God of craftsmen, metallurgy, sculptors, ship builders and carpenters suggesting that he may be related to Egyptian builder cults. Ptah was also known to be part of a trinity with Osiris and Sobek and was identified with the Apis bull and acted as a herald of Ra. Ptah was also the foundation of Ma’at that the scales rested upon.

Qadesh: Qadesh was a Semitic Goddess sometimes worshiped in ancient Egypt.

Qebehsenuef: Qebehsenuef was a God with the head of a hawk and was one of the four sons of Horus. Qebehsenuef was therefore depicted on canopic jars and was the one in which the Intestines were stored, he was said to be protected by Selket. Qebehsenuef was said to represent the West and was one of the four rudders of heaven or four pillars of Shu.

Ra: Ra (depicted top and central) was the main solar God of Egypt particularly associated with the noon sun. Ra was said to have fathered Shu and Tefnut in some myths and in others he was born from the unfurling of the lotus in the primordial waters of creation. Ra is said to have created Hathor, Sekhmet and Bastet who are all also his consorts and daughters and ultimately one Goddess identified as the “Eye of Ra”. Ra took many forms and was merged with many deities including: Amun, Horus, Atum and Khepri he also had a female counterpart making him an androdgynous being she was known as Raet-Tawy. Ra literally represented the sun and was depicted as the sun, when merged with other deities they were depicted with the sun disc on their heads. Ra was said to travel in two boats across the sky (Nut) these were Mandjet in the morning and Mesektet in the evening. When Ra was upon Mandjet he took the form of a ram and was accompanied by the deities Sia, Hu and Heka. In the evenings Ra was accompanied by other deities such as Seth. Ra was said to battle each night with the serpent God of chaos Apophis and was said to be swallowed and sent to the underworld each night to become one with Osiris and was then reborn victorious in the mornings as Horus - the sun on the horizon (Horus-Risen).

Raet-Tawy: Raet-Tawy was the female aspect of the sun God Ra and may have come to influence later Goddesses such as Hathor.

Rem: Rem (depicted top right) was known as the “tears of Ra” and was a fish God said to fertilize the land with his weeping which then provided vegetation, amphibians and reptiles. Rem was a male counterpart to Hatmehit a fish Goddess known as the “Eye of Ra” this pair may have influenced the star sign of Pisces as they are known to be the two fish protecting the sun Gods boat.

Renenutet: Renenutet was a cobra-headed Goddess often depicted as an aspect of Ma’at with the feather of truth on her head she was said to give the Ren (name) at birth and was mother of Nehebkau who bound the Ba (soul) to the Ka (vital spark). Renenutet was the consort of the Gods Sobek and Geb and was closely associated with both Wadjet and the Nile.

Renpet: Renpet was the Egyptian representation of the year and was the Goddess of time, a kind of zeitgeist known as the “mistress of eternity”.

Satis: Satis was the Goddess of the flooded Nile. Satis was an early war, hunting and fertility deity who was seen as the mother of the Goddess Anuket and a protector of Southern Egypt. One of Satis’s titles was “she who runs like an arrow”, which is thought to refer to the river current and as such her symbols became the arrow and running river. Satis was pictured as a woman wearing the conical crown with gazelle or antelope horns or as an antelope - a fast moving creature that lived along the Niles banks. Satis was often depicted with a bow and arrows however she may also be depicted with an ankh symbolising the life giving powers of the Nile. Satis acted as a fertility Goddess who graunted the wishes of those who sought out love. Satis is also described as offering jars of purifying water. Satis would later be described as a consort of Khnum. Satis is also one of the Goddesses refered to as the “Eye of Ra”.

Sekhmet: Sekhmet (depicted second row and left) is the lioness-headed Goddess of war and wife of Ptah, she was said to be born from the fiery gaze of Ra gaining her title “Eye of Ra” and eventually became Bastet and Hathor. Sekhmet is also described as mother of Nerfertem and Maahes. Sekhmet was a Goddess of fire and vengeance and was known as “arbiter of the divine justice of the Goddess Ma’at”. Sekhmet also held the titles “one before whom evil trembles”, “lady of slaughter”, “mistress of dread” and “lady of the flame”, in these respects she can be seen as an ambivalent force both a protective Goddess against demons and as a force of evil herself. Sekhmet had a close association with blood and was only ever dressed in red likewise she was once sent to end humanity by utilising her powers as eye of Ra only to be tricked into drinking alcahol which pacified her and transformed her into Bastet this story influenced the worship of Sekhmet with rituals involving wine and associating her with the flood Nile when it coloured red with clay and silt. Sekhmet was often depicted with a sun disc and Uraeus on her head while holding a scepter and ankh.

Selket: Selket (depicted second row and central) was a scorpion Goddess sometimes depicted as a scorpion with a womans head, chest and arms and at other times as a woman with a scorpion on her head holding a scepter and ankh. Selket was the Goddess of poison, venom and venomous creatures as well as medicine and was invoked to cure those who were suffering as a result of such things, she was also a fertility Goddess associated with nature and magic. Selket was associated with protection from venomous creatures and thus also from demons and particularly Apophis who she guarded once he was captured and bound. Since venomous bites could lead to death Selket was said to be protector of the dead also and was a consort of Horus and the mother of the four sons of Horus who protected the organs of the dead. Selket was made up of other scorpion Goddesses such as Hedetet and ultimately became synonymous with Isis.

Sheshat: Sheshat or Seshat (depicted second row and right) was a Goddess of scribes and messurment who was acredited with discovering writting and was also a Goddess of architecture, astronomy, astrology, building, mathematics, surveying and cannabis. As a Goddess of architecture and messurements Sheshat likely relates to early Egyptian builder cults. Sheshat is usually depicted holding a palm stem, bearing notches to denote the recording of the passage of time, especially for keeping track of the allotment of time for the life of the pharoah. Sheshat was also depicted holding other tools and often holding the knotted cords that were stretched to survey land and structures. Sheshat is frequently shown dressed in a cheetah or leopard hide - a symbol of funerary priests, the pattern on this hide was thought to represent the stars, being a symbol of eternity and association with the night sky and indicating the need to messure celestial objects and their movements in the workings of astrology. As the divine messurer and scribe, Sheshat was believed to appear to assist the pharoah in both these practices. Sheshat was said to assist the pharoah in the “stretching the cord” ritual, a ritual related to laying out the foundations of temples and other important structures in order to determine and assure the sacred alignments and precision of dimensions of the building. The use of hemp ropes for messurement meant that Sheshat was important in surveying the land after the annual floods to reestablish boundary lines. Sheshat’s priestesses were trained in mathmatics and knowledge related to meassurement and often oversaw the work of the builder cults and slaves used in the building process. Sheshat was also depicted with a seven pointed cannabis leaf on her head this is because of the hemp ropes created for meassurement but also relates to ritual uses of the cannabis plant for example a line in the coffin texts reads “Sheshat opens the doors to heaven for you”. Sheshat was thought to be the daughter and consort of Thoth and an aspect of the Goddess Ma’at, this is drawn from the fact that Ma’at as a set of balance scales is a system of messurement requiring calibration, Sheshat is often depicted near the scales of Ma’at as a plum level or as the Merkhet - a cord and plum-level tool used in ancient Egyptian astrology.

Seth: Seth was born of the union of Nut and Geb and was a brother of Osiris, Isis and Nephthys. Nephthys was the consort of Seth but had the child Anubis with Osiris causing a bitter rivalry between Seth and Osiris and it was Seth who cut Osiris into thirteen pieces and scattered them. Seth represented the barren deserts of the red lands of upper Egypt and was said to be infertile after Horus destroyed his testicles in revenge for Seth scratching out Horus’s left eye. Horus and Seth were said to engage in many competitions for the throne of Egypt with Horus ultimately being the victor. Seth was the God of darkness, chaos, the desert, storms, violence and foreigners he was depicted as a man with the head of an unknown animal known as the “Set”/“Seth” animal however in later works he is depicted as a donkey. Seth as a God of darkness showing the period where the sun went below the horizon at sun-set but accompanied Ra on his solar boat to help fight the chaos God Apophis. Seth was often depicted holding a scepter and ankh.

Shay: Shay was the Egyptian deification of fate not usually assigned a gender and sometimes androdgynous appearing both male and female. Shay has a variety of consorts including Mesnet, Renenutet and Ren. As the deity of fate, it was said that Shay determined the span of each mans life and was present at the judgement of the soul of the deceased in Duat. Shay was sometimes represented as a serpent with the head of a pig.

Shezmu: Shezmu was a demonic God of the underworld sometimes hawk-headed and at other times lion-headed, he was said to wear human skulls as a belt and was a God of execution, oils, perfumes and wines in particular he was said to give red wine to the virtuous dead and to slaughter the unholy dead by forcing them into a wine press to turn their blood into wine, he was connected to Sekhmet from this association but as a God of perfumes and oils he is also connected to Nefertem who was given a similar connotation from the plesant smell of the Egyptian sacred water lily. As a deity of oils Shezmu was closely linked to the embalming process.

Shu: Shu (depicted third row and left) was the God of the air and consort of his sister Tefnut, the pair were both born of Atum and Iusaaset and spawned the sky Goddess Nut and earth God Geb between them. Shu was charged by Ra to uphold the sky Goddess Nut from her brother Geb forbidding the two from further union after the birth of Osiris, Isis, Seth and Nephthys, in this role as the air upholding the sky Shu became associated with a ladder of ascension or ladder to heaven which would parallel in later Kabbalistic symbologies where the tree of life is refered to as “Jacobs Ladder” alongside other mystical ladders in other traditions with the same meaning of ascension thus Shu was titled “he who rises/raises up”, this is further explained since Shu also embodies the feather of truth of weighing scales of Ma’at which granted ascension to any soul whos Ib (heart) weighed equal or less than the feather. Shu was often depicted upholding the sky or with an ankh and scepter and was seen as a duality in the world because he caused the seperation between Nut and Geb.

Sia: Sia was the deification of intellect snd commandment and was part of the trinity of magical deities including his brothers Heka and Hu. Sia was said to accompany Ra alongside Heka and Hu during his day voyage across the sky and was himself a deity of wisdom. The triplets Sia, Heka and Hu were said to be created by Atum from some accounts from the blood of his circumcision or castration (though the later often refers to sacred marriage in occult terminology).

Sobek: Sobek (depicted third row and central) was a military deity who presided over the Nile and its dangerous creatures such as crocodiles or hippopotamuses. Sobek was often depicted with the head of a crocodile or as a crocodile and wore a duel-plummed headress with sun-disc and duel-Uraeus, he was often shown holding a scepter and ankh. Sobek was also a fertility deity and his name means “to impregnate”. Sobek was the son of Khenemu or Seth with his mother being Neith, Sobek was also said to be the consort of Renenutet. Sobek was likely a solar deity at times merged with both Horus and Ra. Sobek was a fierce deity associated with social crimes such as robery and perversions, he was also a deity associated with healing and funerary rites. Sobek was worshiped at crocodilopolis in the form of sacred crocodiles kept in large pools they were interpreted as oracles and were mummified once they died.

Sokar: Sokar was usually depicted as a mummified hawk and sometimes as a mound from which the head of a hawk appeared. Sokar was said to open the tombs and was a guardian of the dead. Sokar was part of a trinity of Gods alongside Osiris and Ptah forming Ptah-Sokar-Osiris. Due to his connection with Ptah, Sokar was also seen as a God of craftsmen and possibly related to ancient builder cults. Sokar was also depicted standing on the back of a serpent with his wings outstretched in an emblem thought to denote resurrection.

Sopdet: Sopdet is the Goddess of the star Sirius which is the brightest star in the night sky, it also forms part of Orions belt with three other stars that in Egyptian times were thought to be Osiris, Isis and Horus, the pyramids of Giza were aligned with them. Sirius rises in the sky at around the same time that the Nile flooded each year this caused Sopdet to be associated with the fertility that the flooded Nile brings as well as with other deities of the Nile. Sopdet was depicted as a woman holding an ankh with a five-pointed star on her head.

Ta-Bitijet: A scorpion Goddess and aspect of Selket who bore the four sons of Horus from her union with Horus. Ta-Bitijet is the “lady of the menstrual blood” as it was written that when Horus penetrated her hymen the blood that flowed forth was a cure for all poisons, this is likely a metaphore for the ritual use of menstrual blood for healing and in sacred marriage rituals.

Tatenen: Tatenen was the personification of the Benben land that rose from the abyss when Atum created it. Tatenen was androdgynous and seen as a protector of nature. Tatenen was seen as the personification of Egypt and as an aspect of Geb. Tatenen wielded a magic mace that was shaped to venerate the hawk or falcon called the “great white of the earth creator” it was used in battles against the chaos God Apophis and may relate to the earlier Sumerian mace Sharur. Tatenen eventually became synonymous with Ptah as the one who had set up the djed pillars of stability in the land of Egypt. Tatenen was also a God of vegetation and fertility and was often depicted as seated with green skin and a pharoahs beard with either a crown or rams horns and a sun disc or with two serpents on his head.

Taweret: Taweret (depicted third row and right) was a protective Goddess of childbirth and fertility shown as a bipedal hippopotamus with cat-like claws, large pregnant belly and human breasts. Taweret was identified as a hippopotamus because the female hippopotamus is so protective of its young. Taweret is sometimes a consort of Seth because the Male hippopotamus was considered a symbol of chaos. Taweret was the main Goddess among a group of Goddesses identified as hippopotamuses who were all likewise deities of childbirth and fertility. Taweret was closely associated with ritual knives and wands made of hippopotamus ivory that were used in magic formulas designed to aid the process of childbirth (possibly early caesereans or for cutting umbilical cords). Taweret was closely associated with the Nile and was said to purify its waters she was also said to purify the dead in their passage through the afterlife making her a Goddess of rejuvenation. Taweret is closely linked to the Goddess Hathor and is often seen as an aspect of her. As a dangerous animal the association between the hippopotamus and Taweret could include the death of children during child birth as well as being used as a powerful image thought to ward off evil spirits that might harm children.

Tayet: Tayet was a Goddess of purification and protection said to weave the bandages used in mummification this connected her to all the funeral deities as well as deities of fate making her a lesser aspect of the Goddess Neith.

Tefnut: Tefnut is the Goddess of rain and moisture and is sister and consort of the air God Shu, she was born of the union of Atum and Iusaaset and went on to spawn the sky Goddess Nut and earth God Geb. Tefnut is often depicted as a lioness-headed Goddess wearing a long wig with a solar disc on her head, she is usually shown seated on a throne holding a scepter, she is sometimes depicted as an androdgynous image that bares the head of both Tefnut and Shu as one being in reference to Hieros Gamos.

Thoth: Thoth (as depicted bottom) was shown to have the head of an ibis or babboon and was a male God of the moon and scribes he was sometimes the consort of Sheshat or Ma’at. Thoth held a position on the boat of the sun God Ra. Thoth was also a God of sciences, alchemy and magic as well as philosophy, religion and wisdom. Thoth was closely associated with the judgement of the dead where he records the judgement of Ma’at against the dead soul. Thoth was often depicted with a crescent moon on his head and a full moon above it, at other times he was depicted with a crown. Thoth also served as a mediating power between good and evil insuring fair judgement between the two. Thoth was said to have produced the calculations for the establishment of the heavens and their celestial bodies and was also said to have directed their movements linking him with astrology.

Unut: An early Egyptian Goddess in the form of a snake whose name means “swiftness” she was also depicted with the lower half of a serpent, the body of a woman and the head of a hare. Unut was associated with moon deities but her specific role is unknown.

Wadjet: Wadjet whose name means “green one” was depicted as a cobra ascending from the third eye of Ra and is closely associated with the Uraeus. Wadjet was also depicted as a two-headed snake-woman, as a snake around the sun-disc and as a woman with a single snake head. Wadjet in the form of the Uraeus is also sometimes depicted crawling up a papyrus staff in a symbol related to the later Greek wand of Aesclepius and Caduceus. Wadjet may also be an Egyptian version of the Ouroboros and potentially signified time. Wadjet likely represents an Egyptian kundalini/serpent energy mystery. Wadjet was the protector of Ra and in some myths was the great serpent which forms the milkyway galaxy and in this role she was closely associated with Hathor, she would later also be co-absorbed into the mythologies of Bastet.

Wepwawet: A war God seen to be the brother or son of Anubis and also like Anubis being represented by either a jackal or wolf, Wepwawet was also a God of hunting and was commonly pictured on the standards of Egyptian soldiers and on the thrones of pharoahs. Wepwawet in the form of the wolf was also depicted on the front of the boat of the sun God, Ra where he acted as a scout seeking out paths gaining him the title “opener of ways” which is also a title of the Goddess Neith who is associated with both Anubis and Wepwawet from her position as a funeral deity, since Wepwawet was the scout of the boat of Ra he was seen as a psychopomp guiding the souls of the dead.

Werethekau: The deification of supernatural powers and thus her name means “great of magic” or “great enchantress”. Werethekau was a Goddess of protection whose image appears on funeral items particularly ivory weapons ment to allow the dead to protect themselves and to assist women in child birth which makes her a greater aspect of Taweret. Werethekau was seen to be the Goddess of the twin crowns of unified Egypt snd as such was represented as serpent or lion headed linking her to Wadjet and Sekhmet respectively likely in reference to the great power of the third eye of Ra to create or destroy. Werethekau is an epitath often bestowed upon Isis and her previous forms such as Mut, Neith, Iusaaset and Hathor.

[nadziejastar]

Does Axel’s tear drop marks have connections to The Eye of Horus?

I’m glad you asked that. I definitely think that there is a connection, since the Recusant’s Sigil is directly inspired by Egyptian symbolism. I think it’s the same as the situation of Lea and Isa. Them being best friends was thought up after KH2, when the idea for KH3 and the 7 Guardians of Light was created. 

Saïx already had moon symbolism, and Axel had the element of fire. And coincidentally the sun is associated with fire, and the moon with femininity. So, they were able to come up with Lea and Isa as Sun and Moon lovers based off of that. I think Axel’s teardrops are the same. The design wasn’t directly based off of that concept. But I think the writers added in that meaning later, since it fits so well. I’ll explain why:

Lea and Isa: Osiris and Isis

“A fragmentary passage”, meaning bits and pieces of something whole.

Isis is the feminine archetype for creation, the goddess of fertility and motherhood, healing, and magic. She represents our feminine aspects - creation, rebirth, ascension, intuition, psychic abilities, higher chakras, higher frequency vibrations, love and compassion. She is the Yin energy, the mother nurturer, the High Priestess, the essence of the feminine energy, which is part of us all. She is regularly portrayed as the selfless, giving, mother, wife, and protectress, who places other’s interests and well-being ahead of her own.

Isis was the sister and wife of the god Osiris. The name ‘Osiris’ is interpreted as ‘powerful’ or ‘mighty’. He was also known as The Lord of Love, King of the Living, and Eternal Lord. Isis and her twin brother/husband Osiris were deeply in love. It is said that they were in love with each other even in the womb. Osiris was a kind and just ruler, but his jealous brother Set coveted his throne. Osiris was murdered by his resentful brother, who dismembered him and scattered the parts of his body throughout Egypt.

Xehanort: “X”… A most ancient letter. Some say “kye,” but the meaning is the same. Death… A letter that spells endings.

Isis was distraught when she found her husband was missing and went searching for him all through Egypt. When she found him, Osiris was dead, but Isis knew she could bring him back to life. She retrieves and joins the fragmented pieces of Osiris, then briefly brings him back to life by use of magic. This spell gives her time to become pregnant by Osiris before he again dies. Osiris revived but could no longer rule among the living because he was incomplete; he would have to descend to the underworld and reign there as Lord of the Dead.

Axel: “But don’t waste your time. We Nobodies can never hope to be somebodies.”

Osiris is the god of the afterlife, the underworld, and rebirth in ancient Egyptian religion. He was the all-merciful, forgiving, and just judge of the dead who oversaw one’s life on earth and in the afterlife. He is associated with the mythical Bennu bird. The Bennu is the inspiration for the Greek Phoenix, who rises to life from the ashes.The name of the Phoenix in Egyptian is ‘Bennu’. The ancient Egyptians believed that the Bennu exploded from the heart of Orisis. 

They believed this bird to be sacred and that it arose regularly to renew Egypt.  The Bennu was one of the most important religious symbols in the mythology of ancient Egypt, symbolizing resurrection and the rising sun. This was because the sun was thought to spend the night in the underworld, and was subsequently “reborn” every morning. The Bennu Bird was believed to represent the soul of Ra, the Supreme Sun God. Ra was typically represented as a sun-disk, or as a falcon-headed man wearing a red sun-disk on his head.

Xemnas: “The strength of the human heart is vast. Soon, though…we will have gained power over it! Never again will it…have power over us.”

The crook and flail were symbols of the pharaoh, the ruling monarch in ancient Egypt, throughout history. They were originally the attributes of the deity Osiris that became insignia of royal authority. The shepherd’s crook stood for kingship and the flail for the fertility of the land. The Kings of Egypt were associated with Osiris in death – as Osiris rose from the dead, so they would be in union with him, and inherit eternal life through a process of imitative magic.

The “X” is also used in ancient Egypt as a symbol of the dead. It was used in pyramids and temples, where Pharaohs are buried with their arms and legs crossed. As the crook and flail was the symbol of Osiris, ruler of the dead and the underworld, this was done in devotion to him, in hopes of gaining eternal life after death. As ruler of the dead, Osiris was also sometimes called “king of the living”. Ancient Egyptians considered the blessed dead “the living ones”.

Ansem: “So many are still waiting for their new beginning, their birth by sleep. Even me…and even you.”

Isis later gives birth to Horus. Isis, fearing what Set might do to her son, hid Horus among the swamps of Egypt until he was grown. At that point, Horus emerged as a mighty warrior and battled Set for control of the world. Horus successfully defeated Set, avenging Osiris and becoming the new king of Egypt. The chaos Set had unleashed on the world was conquered by Horus, who restored order, and then ruled with his mother.

Since Horus was born after Osiris’ resurrection, Horus became thought of as a representation of new beginnings. He came to represent “a promise by the gods to take care of suffering humanity,” since he had himself suffered as a child and knew how it felt to be fragile and surrounded by dangers.  

Axel: “Well, I think you can be inseparable even if you’re apart. It’s like, if you feel really close to each other. If you’re best friends.”

Horus, in the ancient Egyptian religion, is a god in the form of a falcon. His right eye was associated with the sun, representing power and quintessence. His left eye was the moon, representing healing. The eye symbol represents the marking around the eye of the falcon, including the “teardrop” marking sometimes found below the eye. Sometimes Horus is shown as a winged sun disk.  

A quiet and cool-headed youth. Though he does come out of his shell when talking to his best friend Lea, toward others he is distant and untalkative.

The Eye of Horus is the Egyptian equivalent of the 6th chakra, often known as the “Mind’s Eye”. Its location at the front of the head is between the eyebrows, where the pineal gland is located. Exactly where Isa’s scar is. This is commonly denoted with a dot, eye or mark on the forehead of deities or enlightened beings, such as Shiva, the Buddha or any number of yogis. This symbol is called the “Third Eye” or “Eye of Wisdom”.

Best friends with Isa. Very outgoing by nature, he wishes to remain in the memories of others forever.

The Third Eye is represented by the color indigo, a combination of blue and red. This is because it activates when the two main energy channels, Ida and Pingala, unite at the brow. Ida and Pingala are symbolized by the sun and moon, and their colors are red and blue. Pingala is the male energy. Its name means “tawny” in Sanskrit. Tawny is “of an orange-brown or yellowish-brown color.” I found it interesting that Lea is wearing a combination of orange, yellow, and brown in BBS.

Xigbar: “If people see with their hearts, Saïx, then you’re even blinder than the rest of us.”

With this eye functioning, we can enter a different dimension and see things which are invisible to the physical eye, but visible to the subtle eye. When we look at a person, we look at the person’s soul, at the spirit. Not at physical body through physical eyes. The movement through this eye transforms into a new world, a subtle world. We start seeing things we have never seen.

The Third Eye is a symbol of enlightenment. Through it we access the higher, Divine Planes, the White Light, which filters downwards into our Chakras. But if we don’t stimulate the pineal gland and are too entrenched in the Ego, it calcifies and closes up, shutting the door to the higher Planes and Divine energy. The process of Spiritual Rebirth is also a process of re-activating and attuning the Mind’s Eye and the pineal gland.

“Their hurting will be mended when you return to end it.”

It was believed by the Greeks and Romans that an evil heart could get to the eye. Their belief in the powerful effects of the eyes and optics, created the myth that the energy-producing power of the eye had the ability to cast evil spells with just a glance. Because the ancients believed the evil eye could be counteracted with a ‘good eye’, myths about Horus arose.

When Set and Horus were fighting for the throne after Osiris’s death, Set gouged out Horus’s left eye, representing the moon. This became a mythical explanation of the lunar phases. It was later healed by the god Thoth. The figure of the restored eye (the wedjat eye) became a powerful amulet. Hence, the eye of Horus was often used to symbolise sacrifice, healing, restoration, and protection.

[agirlinhell]

* This verse was created by myself and @cazalobo and as such, this is a private verse, but if you want your muse to participate in this verse, please feel free to contact either or both of us!

-The Cree-Diaz tribe were once two separate packs, most likely originating from indigenous magical practices later intermixing with the foreigners, with the Cree Pack controlling much of southern and southeastern America, including the Caribbean, and the Diaz pack controlling much of Mexico and South America, but with the recent union of the two packs under Sean Diaz and Clementine Maria Jasmine Cree upon the threat of being hunted down by foreign threats such as the police, they became one whole tribe. Their influence extends from as far north as Atlanta, Georgia and as far south as Brazil, South America, thus making them one of the most powerful tribes in the Americas.

-Clementine is a part-time College Student while working at a bar called The New Frontier as a songstress in her human life at age nineteen.

-The shapeshifting aspect is due to genetics, meaning one must be born a shapeshifter.

-The change or the first transformation usually happens in pre-adolescence though some individuals have been known to transform at later times. After their first transformation, the shifter in the Cree-Diaz tribe gets the following tattoo, usually on the arm:

-The shapeshifters of the tribe in their wolf form possess great speed, in excess of one hundred miles per hour, which allows them to outrun motor vehicles like cars and motorcycles.

-Even in their human forms, shape-shifters are easily faster and have greater endurance than regular humans. While in human form, their strength is near-superhuman, in their wolf form, not only are they much larger than normal wolves, they are also supernaturally stronger.

-In their human forms, they live, “normal” lives in a modern society, they’re just very tightknit as a group. Once you’re in the tribe, you’re in it for life and betrayal of the family is considered as incredibly risky business.

-Shapeshifters have a very high temperature allows them to withstand very cold weather and makes it difficult for them to become overheated.

-They can heal and regenerate very fast and completely, though they are not immortal.

-They can see, hear and smell things from miles away, their sense of sight is known to be ten times better than the average human, and twice as good as the average bird of prey's, and the alphas can communicate with other animals.

-In their wolf forms, shapeshifters show the general behavior of wolves, though they retain their human intelligence, memories and character personality, up to and including showing their human eye color. Pack members are also telepathically linked with each other, enhancing their coordination during hunts and fights but allowing little or no privacy at any time.

-The Alpha Male and Alpha Female are able to communicate telepathically after performing a ritual together, and can control what thoughts they share, while the subordinates don’t possess this ability. They can willingly choose to share a thought, even from a distance, and can willingly close themselves off, something they can't do with their subordinates. The dominants can force the other pack members to obey their orders against their will, as can the betas, though they can't command their alphas. Once an alpha gives orders to members of the pack, their orders are obeyed blindly. The pack members cannot directly disobey commands even if they are in disagreement. This ability, however, is limited to members of their own pack. 

                                                             RANKS

Although much bigger and much smarter than average wolves, the tribe has adopted the primitive wolf lifestyle, even in a modern society. They live and work as a team and tend to be very close knit. It's highly unlikely males will be accepted by the alpha male. Sons may also find themselves evicted when they are mature too, or as tradition spoke of, but this practice is considered taboo nowadays, due to the setting being present in a modern day and age.

The alphas represent the most dominant rank in the wolf pack, and so are held in the highest esteem by the other members of the unit. Along with sole breeding ( or according to tradition at least ), the alphas are responsible for control and leadership of the pack, including establishing pack territory, leading hunts, and accepting or rejecting outside wolves. The loss of an alpha can spell complete dissolution for the entire tribe. Because of this, the alphas always eat first, and are always awarded the biggest and best portions of the kill. Lower-ranking individuals showing disrespect to the alpha will be punished, or sometimes banished from the tribe. Due to the alphas’ vital importance to the viability of the pack, their safety is a first priority, and so the majority of enforcement falls to the next-in-command: the betas.

Alpha Female: Females were traditionally almost always the alphas in a shapeshifter pack (however strange that may seem). This was because the females could lead better hunts and battles and, on the whole, were a lot more strategic than the males, but nowadays, they’re moreso equals alongside the Alpha Male. She is the biggest of the females and nowadays her duty is to watch over the tribe and make sure the pups are safe in times of great danger, and can accept or reject outside wolves. She will be guarded ferociously by the dominant male. She, like the alpha male, rules over each and every one of the pack, and each newcomer must gain her and the alpha male’s acceptance before the group begins to accept them into the tribe.

Alpha Male: Traditionally the Alpha Female’s mate and father to all her pups, but nowadays, this doesn’t necessarily have to be the case; they can easily be friends or family members, but the tradition is still expected to be upheld. The Alpha Male is the strongest and the biggest of the pack. His job is to control the pack when the Alpha Female is having pups or is otherwise busy, and he also leads the hunts and the battles. He is expected to breed with mateless females should they desire pups and mark territories, and should another attempt to claim his position, he must fight to defend it. Like the Alpha Female, he is also capable of accepting or rejecting outside wolves. He rules over every male in the pack, and, at times, will be dominant over the Alpha Female if it is to protect her. When a new male takes lead, it is up to him whether or not the pups are killed or spared. He also will have to deal with the mothers and whether or not they put up a fight. He could easily be chased from the tribe by the females of the pack, even the subordinate males and omega if they feel he is unfit for the role. However, due to the modern day and age, this practice is disbanded as the killing of pups are considered immoral.

Beta Male & Female: Usually mates, but this is not necessary. These are the ones which the Alphas trust to take care of the tribe in their absence. The Betas are usually quite strong and powerful and they fight by the Alpha’s side in battle - this rank is won by earning the trust of the alphas. They are often the wolves which will first confront a newcomer or potential threat. The betas serve both as enforcement and second-in-command, often taking over control while the alphas are away or preoccupied with breeding ( or as tradition recalls ). Should anything happen to an alpha, a beta is next in line. As such, these wolves are also highly respected within the tribe, and receive the next choicest portion of the kill. The betas are believed to be the most trusted and most bonded companions of the alpha pair, acting as “generals” in the tribe.

Gammas: These are the average members of the pack. All other wolves in the group are considered subordinates, though they serve important roles in the pack dynamic. The mid-ranking wolves fall between the betas and the lowest rank, the omega. These wolves often serve as babysitters to the pups when the alphas and betas are away, and may fill the roles of watchers, scouts, teachers, hunters, or protectors, depending on what is needed at the time.

Fledges: These are the offspring of the pack and future members. The pups must have a mother and father ( or two maternal / paternal figures that is more accepted in modern day society ) that belonged to the pack, unless if they’re recruited strays and orphans, and whatever may become of these pups in that scenario are entirely up to the alphas.

Omegas:  Omegas are the lowest ranking members of the group, usually consisting of one individual of either sex. A member would usually move down to this category after doing something wrong or something the Alphas or pack do not agree with. Although this is all true, the omegas are still very important to the pack as they act like a decoy or, so to speak, a clown when the pack is fighting an enemy. This works because the Omega would usually try to play with the enemy while the other members of the pack get ready to attack, unknown to the annoyed enemy. These wolves would usually eat last and would stay in this category until the Alphas feel the accused has re-earned the packs trust. Life as an omega can be difficult, eating last and taking the brunt of aggression from the rest of the pack. These individuals may choose to leave the group in search of a higher ranking position or to breed, and can be replaced as ranks are shuffled overtime. Older omegas are often allowed to retire, rescinding their position and being looked after by the pack. Alleviating aggression is the omegas principle role, and this is often done through initiating play as a way to burn off excess negative energy. As a result, long-time omegas often bear the scars of their submissive position. However, due to the modern day and age, it is a very debatable topic in the tribe about whether or not to remove the position.

Apostates: Individuals who are no longer among the tribe. They may be former members exiled or killed for betraying the pack or the alphas, the wounded, the sick, those too weak to fight and need to be taken care of or they have injuries that need to be tended to, traitors, the banished, the deceased, renegades, members who disappeared mysteriously and cannot be found, individuals taken by enemy groups, escaped captives, or simply those who have left the group.

                                                    Punishments

Murder: If you murder a member of the pack or an accepted pup then this will cause in instant banishment or even death.

Dominance: If you do not accept that the Alphas are the most dominant in the pack and you try to knock them off their place with no arranged fight or audience then this will cause in you being moved down to the Omega position.

Betrayal: If you betray the pack or the Alphas or betray the secret that the pack are all shapeshifters, this will cause in either banishment or being placed in the Omega position, or even death.

Crossbreeding: This is when a member of the pack allows themselves to be mated with an outside shapeshifter that does not belong to the tribe. The pups will be killed and the accused will be moved down to the Omega position, according to tradition, but in the modern day and age, it’s a hot topic of debate.

Lust: If a member of the pack mates with another member of the pack without informing one of the Alphas this will cause in the accused being pushed down to the Omega position for a while and possibly the pups death, according to tradition, but in the modern day and age, it’s a hot topic of debate.

Abandonment: If a member of the pack abandons the tribe, especially a pup, then that member is no longer welcome on their lands and will most likely be chased out or even killed.

Antisocialism: This is when a member of the tribe refuses to work or speak with the other pack members. Although this might not seem very serious, one antisocial wolf could result in the whole pack’s downfall if not dealt with quickly enough. The accused will be taken somewhere private with the Alpha to be spoken to. But if that does not work and the wolf in question still refuses to work as a team this could result in being placed in the Omega position until some sense is knocked into them or even be banished.

                                                           ▬▬▬ ♥ ▬▬▬

THE TRIBE

Clementine Maria Jasmine Cree - Alpha Female || @agirlinhell​

Sean Diaz - Alpha Male || @cazalobo​

Betas: N/A thus far unless if someone wants to interact in this verse.

Gammas: N/A thus far - all NPC’s thus far unless if someone wants to interact in this verse.

Violet Louis Aasim Ruby Omar Rosie Mitch Marlon Brody Minerva Sophie James Charlie Duck Gabriel Garcia Mariana Garcia Justin Therissa Jasper Erin Joey Maddie Lamar Alex Dewey Trey Stephanie Lyla Park Eric Adam Barnes Ellery Winchell Brody Holloway Chris Eriksen Charles Eriksen Cassidy Finn Penny Hannah Jacob Ingrid Anders

Fledges: N/A thus far - all NPC’s thus far unless if someone wants to interact in this verse.

Alvin Jr. Tennessee Willy Daniel Diaz

Omegas: N/A thus far - all NPC’s thus far unless if someone wants to interact in this verse.

[ill-will-editions]

THE YELLOW VESTS IN SAINT-NAZAIRE: “WE’RE RELEARNING HOW TO BUILD TOGETHER”

Reportback on the Second Assembly of Assemblies in Saint-Nazaire (April 5, 6, 7, 2019)

(Originally published in Lundimatin #188, April 23, 2019)

Last month, April 5, 6 and 7, the second “Assembly of Assemblies” of the Yellow Vests was held in Saint-Nazaire, after the first one in Commercy in January. The following article is a partial reportback on these meetings, offering an enthusiastic, albeit ambivalent, assessment. When “limits” and “disappointments” are mentioned, the author considers them despite everything as being part of a longer-term process: “democracy must be conceived as a painful learning process.” However, according to echoes reaching us from other sources, it would seem to be the forms of democracy themselves that are at least in part responsible for making those few days painful: obsession with voting, exacerbated formalism, massive presence of veteran activists, etc. While we think it is vital for the Yellow Vests movement to be able to organize nationally beyond virtual channels (Facebook, Telegram, etc.), it seems a bit sad that this process, in many ways, insists on using the same codes of the democracy that we are familiar with: elected representatives who vote on texts and get bogged down in conflicts that no one understands. Why not simply take advantage of moments like these to talk about different local situations, forge a sharper perspective on the state of the movement and its different parts, and even, perhaps, coordinate a few pertinent actions?  —Lundimatin

***

In late January, an initiative by some follks in the small town of Commercy in eastern France sketched out a basis for structuring the Yellow Vests. The idea was simple: to coordinate a gathering of delegates from local groups all over France, with the idea of working out a horizontal structure for the movement that would apply the principles of direct democracy. A wild gamble, and a response to skeptics.

Two months later at the second "Assembly of Assemblies" in Saint-Nazaire, the roundabouts seem to have taken up the idea, as nearly 250 delegations made the trip to speak on behalf of local groups in the debates. It signals a success for the Saint-Nazaire organizers, but also a logistical challenge. One after another, potential venues for the meeting replied with rejections. No matter! The organizers hit back with wild inspiration: why not hold the event at the Maison du Peuple (the “People’s House”), where popular assemblies have been held every night for months? Why not rip up the ground floor of the old sub-prefecture, knock down the walls and see if it works? As the organizers are well aware, the institution of the People’s House is a powerful symbol, one that has already captured yellow imaginations pretty much everywhere in France. There’s something dreamy about occupying an old seat of power (a sub-prefecture) on a whim and transforming it into a place of life and organization. To use it to host an assembly of assemblies, making it the capital of yellow dissent for a weekend, only sweetens the dish.  One power chases another.

Still, the context has changed. Two months have passed since Commercy. Along the way, that determination so common at the start of a struggle has had to come to terms, first, with fatigue, and then with doubts. The litany of “prefecture journalists,” combined with the banality of judicial and police violence, have worked tirelessly to undermine the struggle. For those who refuse to give up, Saint-Nazaire bears the vague promise of a new maneuver, a new front.

 “It’s going to be complicated;” “We’re going to experiment;” “Not everything will be perfect.”

Given the delegates’ impatience, the local organizers proceed cautiously. The magnitude of the task is immense, and the three days of discussion won’t be enough. Plenary sessions alternate with thematic working groups. Beneath the large tents and kiosks that line the building, the crowd divides and subdivides until it reaches a reasonable size. In a hurry, the most motivated among them push through the beating rain to move from one group to another. It’s a well-designed formula, leading otherwise strangers to relax and get to know one another. A new feature of this second meeting is that groups are able to propose their own topics for discussion: “Municipalism” for Commercy, a “Charter of the Yellow Vests” put forward by Montpellier, or “People’s House” from Saint-Nazaire, etc.

These small discussion groups place the emphasis on lived experience. The violence of the repression is countered with the relief of learning that one is not alone. Everyone narrates their actions, astonishing the person sitting next to them with their audacity or creativity. Blocking the economy, recreating local ties, producing for all, taking back the roundabouts, imagining a different way to organize life, targeting certain businesses, pressuring the authorities, developing popular education, fighting against bad housing, attacking the symbols of the disaster: everyone is pushing their emergency, hoping to win support.

Local experiences are mixed up in an immense melting pot of revolt and desire. Pages are covered in ink, meetings planned. Folks learn about practices they had no clue existed: blocked Airbus factories in the southwest; occupied tollbooths, liberating toll roads for several weeks on end; alternative “citizens’ markets” feature local, often organic, goods and services each week; etc. As one miffed delegate put it: “How did I not know? It’s weird that nobody talked about it. Shit.” The idea of a large platform for information is brought up again, to no longer depend on anyone. Of the 70 accreditations granted, a good portion of the red media badges adorn yellow vests: many Facebook Page editors, autonomous media crews and independent journalists and documentary teams are present. Criticism has turned into action: people telling their own stories, taking back control of their words, freeing themselves from all delegation. 

It’s in these smaller group that the pulse of the movement can be taken. More so than in Commercy, determination is on display and there’s nobody left who doubts the process. Four months of struggle have gone by and transformed even the most recalcitrant. There’s nothing left to do but get organized. Get organized, to believe again. The idea of a more thorough coordination is discussed at great length. An idea that wins support: remobilize, then attack simultaneously pretty much everywhere. The calendar promises its share of opportunities: April 20, May 1, the European Union elections, not to mention the G7 in Biarritz late August and the 2020 municipal elections.

But when all the delegates gather in the plenary assembly, the atmosphere is different. Here, they’re experimenting with the most complex, utopian aspects of direct democracy, and in Saint-Nazaire there are a lot more people present than in Commercy, maybe even too many. The first cracks begin to show in the assembly. The folks with the microphone try to be reassuring despite the time that flies by at full speed. Managing to agree on enough points to put out a call by Sunday evening appears complicated, but nobody wants to give up on it.

The first draft of a joint text is finally submitted to the assembly on Sunday around noon. Disappointing. A certain number of agreements from the working groups seem to have been left out. Some decry a scam, others commiserate in frustration. In fact, the text itself was intended to be minimal to get enough votes to pass, even if it means disappointing the more ambitious delegates. Other, more focused, thematic and concrete texts are proposed simultaneously that win votes more easily and are passed. Each issue has a different text addressing it: the European elections, repression and the cancellation of jail time, citizen assemblies and convergences with environmental struggles, etc. For the first time in three days, the rain stops — the sun gives smokers hope again.

Although the afternoon is well underway, the dream of a call from Saint-Nazaire still seems far off. Some refuse to give up on it, as a limited number of amendments are agreed upon. Do political prisoners need to be discussed? What about amnesty, or the annulment of sentences? A last-minute amendment is adopted without really any debate: the goal of exiting from capitalism. The text is adopted by a very large majority. Once more, the delegates’ voices can be heard rising in the main hall, “We are here, we are here…” But this time is different. Hundreds of sub-prefecture squatters vibrate with yellow fever. The call isn’t perfect, but it’s a symbol and it’s done, honor intact. A stubborn joy is palpable.

The consensus, however, lasts only as long as the chant. The last-minute amendment on capitalism doesn’t go over well: “a disgusting stab in the back,” according to one delegate. Poorly chosen words, too connoted, too divisive, not sufficiently representative of the yellow vests in their diversity. Others castigate the assembly for not formally putting concrete directions and strategic proposals into writing. In vain: the text has been voted upon, it’s final. But the memory of the consensus achieved in Commercy fades away.

This weekend of April 6, 7 and 8 was historic, but for those who placed their hopes in it, it served above all as a reminder: democracy must be conceived as a painful learning process. This is what the Saint-Nazaire team recalls a few days later in a message addressed to participants:

“Just like in Commercy, we can make these three days into something foundational, especially in the lessons to be learned, in the mistakes not to make again. This real democracy that we’re building and inventing happens in real time, in all its complexity, and over time, in all its lengthiness — not in the quickness of the time of those we’re fighting against. We only have four months of experience but what a long way we’ve come in such a short time!”

 Despite the disappointments, a plan is set in place for another Assembly of Assemblies in early June. Two groups have already offered to host and direct this third gathering, which promises to be decisive.  

[Edited 5.13.2019]

[brujabanter]

taino masterpost!

taino masterpost

so i made a post a whiiiiile ago trying to signal boost taino/hoodoo blogs. more to connect with my ancestral practices. and i’ve gotten a few messages that asked me what i found and in talking with some of y’all, i’ve decided to make a masterpost of the information that i’ve found. maybe we can all compile our posts together and learn! so here goes!

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the information below i got from this website: study & taino

most of the information, you have to unlock by subscribing to the website and i can’t afford to do that yet, so yeah...if any of y’all would like to unlock it and spread the information around, that’d be great. and before y’all say “that’s plagiarizing” or “just subscribe”, i’d like to remind you...this is my ancestral right. my ancestors knew this. the only reason i don’t is because colonization happened to my people and we lost a lot of information and my family did not pick up the practices. this is my culture. i ain’t plagiarizing shit. thank u, next.

---

Taino Gods and Goddesses

The Taino word for 'gods' were zemi. These zemi were the various gods, goddesses, spirits, and ancestors they worshiped. Zemi was also the name given to the wooden or stone effigies of these gods. These gods and goddesses are still being researched today, and only little bits of information have been confirmed, but there are several gods that we do have a decent amount of information about.

Many of the Taino gods are still being uncovered, but we do know about a handful of major deities.

Atabey: Considered the most supreme of the gods, the goddess Atabey is important because she is the mother of gods and the initial creator. In fact, she even gave birth to herself, making her one of the more powerful of creation gods in mythic study. She was also the goddess of music, fertility, and beauty. She was depicted as a frog-like figure who is, more often than not, in the birthing position, to symbolize her importance as mother of all.

Guabancex: Goddess of storms and the destruction they bring, Guabancex actually has a lasting legacy in English culture. She was often accompanied by two twin entities who announced her arrival: thunder and wind. Together with them, they created the juracan, a word the Spanish settlers would later translate to huracan, which is more well-known to us as a hurricane. Due to the violent and destructive aftermath of hurricanes, Guabancex was often portrayed as having a very volatile temper.

Yocahu: Yocahu is the leading god of the Taino people. He is the son of Atabey and god of the sea. However, like most gods who lead a people, Yocahu lives in the sky to keep watch over the Taino people. He is also considered a god of fertility as well, and was associated with the Taino's main crop, the root known as cassava. Farmers would bury statues of Yocahu to bless their fields in the hopes of assuring good crops.

Some minor gods and goddesses helped fill out the pantheon.

Baibrama was an assistant god to Yocahu who helped with the planting of cassava. He was also a healing god who would cure people of poisoning from cassava.

Boinayel and Márohu were the twin gods of the gentle rains to grow healthy crops.

Finally, there was Maketaori Guayaba, the god of the underworld.

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wikipedia’s information on taino culture: taino wiki

some, if not all, of this information is from the wiki that i just took out as important to me:

Taíno spirituality centered on the worship of zemís. A zemí is a spirit or ancestor. The major Taíno Zemis are Yúcahu and Atabey. Yúcahu, which means spirit of cassava, was the Zemi of cassava – the Taínos' main crop – and the sea. Atabey, mother of Yúcahu, was the zemi of the moon, fresh waters and fertility.

The minor Taíno zemis related to the growing of cassava, the process of life, creation and death. Baibrama was a minor zemi worshiped for his assistance in growing cassava and curing people from its poisonous juice. Boinayel and his twin brother Márohu were the zemis of rain and fair weather, respectively. Guabancex was the non-nurturing aspect of the zemi Atabey who had control over natural disasters. Juracán is often identified as the zemi of storms but the word simply means hurricane in the Taíno language. Guabancex had two assistants: Guataubá, a messenger who created hurricane winds, and Coatrisquie who created floodwaters.

Maquetaurie Guayaba or Maketaori Guayaba was the zemi of Coaybay or Coabey, the land of the dead. Opiyelguabirán', a dog-shaped zemi, watched over the dead. Deminán Caracaracol, a male cultural hero from which the Taíno believed themselves to be descended, was worshipped as a zemí. Macocael was a cultural hero worshipped as a zemi, who had failed to guard the mountain from which human beings arose. He was punished by being turned into stone, or a bird, a frog, or a reptile, depending on interpretation of the myth.

Zemí was also the name the people gave to their physical representations of the Zemis, whether objects or drawings. They were made in many forms and materials and have been found in a variety of settings. The majority of zemís were crafted from wood but stone, bone, shell, pottery, and cotton were also used. Zemí petroglyphs were carved on rocks in streams, ball courts, and on stalagmites in caves. Cemí pictographs were found on secular objects such as pottery, and on tattoos. Yucahú, the zemi of cassava, was represented with a three-pointed zemí, which could be found in conucos to increase the yield of cassava. Wood and stone zemís have been found in caves in Hispaniola and Jamaica. Cemís are sometimes represented by toads, turtles, fishes, snakes, and various abstract and human-like faces.

Some zemís are accompanied by a small table or tray, which is believed to be a receptacle for hallucinogenic snuff called cohoba, prepared from the beans of a species of Piptadenia tree. These trays have been found with ornately carved snuff tubes. Before certain ceremonies, Taínos would purify themselves, either by inducing vomiting with a swallowing stick or by fasting. After communal bread was served, first to the zemí, then to the cacique, and then to the common people, the people would sing the village epic to the accompaniment of maraca and other instruments.

One Taíno oral tradition explains that the Sun and Moon come out of caves. Another story tells of people who once lived in caves and only came out at night, because it was believed that the Sun would transform them. The Taíno believed they were descended from the union of Deminán Caracaracol and a female turtle. The origin of the oceans is described in the story of a huge flood, which occurred when a father murdered his son (who was about to murder the father). The father put the son's bones into a gourd or calabash. When the bones turned into fish, the gourd broke, and all the water of the world came pouring out.

Taínos believed that Jupias, the souls of the dead, would go to Coaybay, the underworld, and there they rest by day. At night they would assume the form of bats and eat the guava fruit.

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Women

Taíno society was based on a matrilineal system, meaning that descent was traced through the mother and that women lived together with other women and their children apart from the men. Because of this Taíno women seem to have had a lot of control over their lives, their co-villagers and their bodies. Since they lived separately from men, they were able to decide when they wanted to involve in sexual contact. This is in part what shaped the views of conquistadors who came in contact with Taíno culture. They reportedly perceived women as "macho women" who had strong control over the men.

Most historical evidence suggests that, although unclear, it seems that Taíno gender roles were non exclusive to most of the activities done in their community.

Taíno women played an important role in intercultural interaction between Spaniards and the Taíno people. When Taíno men were fighting intervention from other groups, women were left back home turning into the primary food producers or ritual specialists. Women seem to have participated in all levels of the Taíno political hierarchy, they went up to occupy roles as high up as being caciques. This meant that Taíno women could potentially give permission to other Taíno men and women to take on important tasks and that they could too make important choices for the village. There is evidence that suggests that the women who were wealthier among the tribe collected crafted goods that they would then use for trade or as gifts.

Despite women being seemingly independent in Taíno society, coming into the era of contact Spaniards took Taíno women as an exchange item, putting them in a non-autonomous position. Dr. Chanca, a physician who traveled with Christopher Columbus, reported in a letter that Spaniards took as many women as they possibly could and kept them as concubines. Some sources report that, despite women being free and powerful before the contact era, they became the first commodities up for Spaniards to trade, or often steal. This marked the beginning of a lifetime of theft and abuse of Taíno women.

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taino - english words and meanings: https://tainopride.webs.com/tainoenglishglossary.htm

taino people names: http://www.taino-tribe.org/teist-h1.htm

taino words: http://www.taino-tribe.org/tedict.html

some more taino words: http://www.native-languages.org/taino_words.htm

more taino information with some bonus links to books about taino culture: http://www.topuertorico.org/reference/taino.shtml

a beautiful taino calling song that always gets stuck in my head! https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=w7Lv4377mpI

that’s all i got so far y’all! if you feel like adding more, please do! let’s all learn together about our culture and our rightful magick!

[askalibertarianus]

The Why Not Of Democratic Socialism

Kris Morgan 9/6/2018

Democratic Socialism is a phrase that has been popularized by Vermont Senator and former Presidential Candidate Bernie Sanders. The word ‘socialism’ sets off red flags in the minds of Libertarians and Conservatives alike. This is understandable given the body count of the 20th century that traces back to socialist countries. Nevertheless, supporters of the ideology claim that those opposed are merely associating their form of socialism with that of totalitarian dictatorships. Whether we agree with this statement or not, one thing is for certain; Democratic Socialism is gaining in popularity and if we are going to successfully push back against that tide, we should not engage in hyperbole. The Democratic Socialists of America webpagehas two major tasks for the visitor to explore. It behooves us to listen to their message and highlight where we disagree and offer alternatives.

Number one on the to-do list is providing medicare for all. The text reads “In the capitalist system, you have to pay to get care or go without, and under a democratic socialist system, we would collectively provide care as a society.” It would be great to reach a point where everyone has access to quality healthcare. However, there are two major points worthy of examination.

First, the present medicare program is due to go bankrupt by 2026, despite the fact that it does not cover all citizens. A piece in the LA Times noted “The report from program trustees says Medicare will become insolvent in 2026 — three years earlier than previously forecast. Its giant trust fund for inpatient care won’t be able to fully cover projected medical bills starting at that point.” The Democratic Socialists would likely develop a financial plan designed to resolve this issue. However, we must keep in mind that no government program is ever presented as if it will be poorly managed and leave us bankrupt. Yet here we are, over $21tril in debt; not because of a single party or even a single office, but because of the system as a whole.

Second, though libertarians recognize and sympathize with the current state of medical services, we identify the problem as being government interventionism in the first place. Mises.org has a great piece showing step-by-step how the United States has empowered and enriched private entities at the expense of the people, resulting in higher costs and fewer services. Our solution is to end the practices that lead to the current state of affairs to begin with. We want to trust communities and markets with the ability to solve problems. Contrary to the popular belief that we have a do-nothing answer, we would remove artificial barriers so individuals can make investments and increase efficiency of current services. Models that don’t result in greater output than input end in bankruptcy, whereas political failures continue until change is advantageous for those in power, regardless of the damage they cause.

Next on their list of objectives is stronger unions. Notwithstanding the lack in details, their ideas still warrant attention. Not surprising, capitalism itself is made the target.

“Capitalism pits us against each other and workplaces are fundamentally authoritarian unless workers can self-organize and build collective power. This is why people build unions, and why employers undermine them. It is also why the capitalists as a class constantly work to undermine unions and promote narratives about unions that frame them as unnecessary, undemocratic or ineffective. We are forming a national project to fight back and build power in the economy, since outside of Wall Street, workplaces are the place where the owning class extract resources from the working class.”

Yes, under capitalism there is competition. The nature of this competition is largely peaceful, with workers determined to prove themselves more valuable than each other, and entrepreneurs working on meeting demand most efficiently. While it can be argued this is less than perfect, it is much more preferable than competing for power over each other. In free markets the goal is to trade one’s economic efforts for material gain. In socialism, the goal is to pander to, or seize, power and force everyone to do what we want. Talk about pitting us against each other!

Libertarians are not anti-union per se. Our objections only arise where force is being used. Rules which make it illegal for an employer to end associations with those wanting to form unions go against individual liberty. Freedom in these decisions would make it possible for workers and employers to weigh their options and do what is in their best interest. If a skill is valuable and rare enough, those who have it have a bargaining chip. Industry leaders would understand that negotiating is in their best interest under those circumstances. Economic problems persist where skills are not scarce, but law restricts entrepreneurs from opting out of negotiations. Demand for such labor diminishes under artificially higher costs, and lower-level employees assume added responsibilities, or technology fills in the gap. Opportunities for unskilled workers to gain experience, skills, and knowledge fade.

These Democratic Socialist stepping stones are just a launching pad to encompass key aspects of life. In their view, eventually everything would be transformed from spontaneous order to a centrally-planned, democratic decision making process. In their words, “Democratic socialists believe that both the economy and society should be run democratically—to meet public needs, not to make profits for a few. To achieve a more just society, many structures of our government and economy must be radically transformed through greater economic and social democracy so that ordinary Americans can participate in the many decisions that affect our lives.”

Trade by itself is here to meet public needs. In markets, our highest order needs and wants are expressed in the pricing system. Consumers willing to buy products at high prices signal producers to direct more resources towards said goods, and the result is lower prices and a supply and demand reaching as close to equilibrium as conditions would allow.

Who determines if the public’s needs are being met in Democratic Socialism? Or, in the existential sense, how do we determine what exactly the public needs to begin with? Life is infinitely complex and peoples’ wants and needs are in a constant state of change. Running everything in a democratic manner would never allow for the flexibility needed to match these conditions, not to mention whatever the politics involved would look like. The only way to adapt to is to untie our hands and let us react to changes. A handful of us cannot possibly know what all of us need, and if they did, the bureaucratic process of democracy is far too slow to adjust.

Whatever the intentions are of democratic socialists, the course of action they have chosen will not make the world a better place. Our economy is already riddled with trade cycles, endless deficits, regulations, wars, etc, we don’t need more. The move to provide medicare for everyone is a step in the wrong direction. In bad times, just as in good times, the real solution is increased capital investment to make labor more productive and directed to meet real demand. This only occurs under conditions of freedom. The government’s job is simple; get out of the way and deal with people who infringe on private property rights. Stop running deficits, eliminate tariffs, allow interest rates to reflect economic realities, and stop inflating bubbles.

The task of taking purposeful economic action is on the people. For example, if more medical services are really what we want, then new models should be constructed and invested in privately, so that in the event the planners are wrong, they fail as they should. Under conditions where entrepreneurs hit their mark, they have a solvent system in play and get to remain. In spite of popular opinion, no form of socialism is synonymous with sharing, it’s about institutionalized theft.. Scarce resources are not something we should want politicized under any circumstances. Political decision-making is precisely what got us to where we are today, and we should not be entertaining the notion of expanding it.

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[patriotsnet]

What National Policies Did Republicans Pursue During The Civil War

New Post has been published on https://www.patriotsnet.com/what-national-policies-did-republicans-pursue-during-the-civil-war/

What National Policies Did Republicans Pursue During The Civil War

Path Dependency And Counterfactuals

To explain the failure of Reconstruction, I process trace different causal narratives, using both path dependence and counterfactuals in my analysis. As Andrew Bennett and Colin Elman argue, case studies can be valuable for understanding path dependence, as they enable detailed analysis of historical events in ways that are suitable for rare cases and allow for the study of interaction effects, feedback loops, equifinality, and sequencing. If path dependency is in effect, later events, such as the spread of violence, are highly sensitive to previous decisions; solutions that might have worked at the initial stage are less viable over time.

Counterfactuals help scholars assess causal hypotheses by making claims about events that did not actually occur. They are valuable when large-N or even comparative casework is difficult. Counterfactuals are particularly useful when the number of observations of a particular case is low and multiple variables are in play. It is difficult to make definitive claims from counterfactual analysis, however, even when there is a strong understanding of all the potential causal mechanisms in the system. Consequently, my findings are suggestive, not conclusive, particularly when applied to other cases.

Eisenhower Goldwater And Nixon: 19521974

Dwight D. EisenhowerRichard Nixon

In , Dwight D. Eisenhower, an internationalist allied with the Dewey wing, was drafted as a GOP candidate by a small group of Republicans led by Henry Cabot Lodge, Jr. in order that he challenge Taft on foreign policy issues. The two men were not far apart on domestic issues. Eisenhower’s victory broke a twenty-year Democratic lock on the White House. Eisenhower did not try to roll back the New Deal, but he did expand the Social Security system and built the Interstate Highway System.

After 1945, the isolationists in the conservative wing opposed the United Nations and were half-hearted in opposition to the expansion of Cold War containment of communism around the world. A garrison state to fight communism, they believed, would mean regimentation and government controls at home. Eisenhower defeated Taft in 1952 on foreign policy issues.

Eisenhower was an exception to most Presidents in that he usually let Vice President Richard Nixon handle party affairs . Nixon was narrowly defeated by John F. Kennedy in the 1960 United States presidential election, weakening his moderate wing of the party.

Strength of parties in 1977 Party 29 0

Barry GoldwaterAmerican conservative

Nixon defeated both Hubert Humphrey and George C. Wallace in . When the Democratic left took over their party in 1972, Nixon won reelection by carrying 49 states.

Richard Nixon

African American Population Distribution 1890

African American population distribution and migration patterns can be traced using maps published in the statistical atlases prepared by the U. S. Census Bureau for each decennial census from 1870 to 1920. The atlas for the 1890 census includes this map showing the percentage of colored to the total population for each county. Although the heaviest concentrations are overwhelmingly in Maryland, Virginia, and the southeastern states, there appear to be emerging concentrations in the northern urban areas , southern Ohio, central Missouri, eastern Kansas, and scattered areas in the West , reflecting migration patterns that began during Reconstruction.

Pietistic Republicans Versus Liturgical Democrats: 18901896

Voting behavior by religion, Northern U.S. late 19th century % Dem 90 10

From 1860 to 1912, the Republicans took advantage of the association of the Democrats with “Rum, Romanism, and Rebellion. Rum stood for the liquor interests and the tavernkeepers, in contrast to the GOP, which had a strong dry element. “Romanism” meant Roman Catholics, especially Irish Americans, who ran the Democratic Party in every big city and whom the Republicans denounced for political corruption. “Rebellion” stood for the Democrats of the , who tried to break the Union in 1861; and the Democrats in the North, called “, who sympathized with them.

Demographic trends aided the Democrats, as the German and Irish Catholic immigrants were Democrats and outnumbered the English and Scandinavian Republicans. During the 1880s and 1890s, the Republicans struggled against the Democrats’ efforts, winning several close elections and losing two to Grover Cleveland .

Religious lines were sharply drawn. Methodists, Congregationalists, Presbyterians, Scandinavian Lutherans and other in the North were tightly linked to the GOP. In sharp contrast, liturgical groups, especially the Catholics, Episcopalians and German Lutherans, looked to the Democratic Party for protection from pietistic moralism, especially prohibition. Both parties cut across the class structure, with the Democrats more bottom-heavy.

Violence And Military Rule

Violence was common throughout Reconstruction. White supremacist groups such as the Klan emerged throughout the South and, through the use and threat of force, intimidated or prevented Black people from voting and paved the way for Democrats opposed to Black equality to gain power.

At its founding in Tennessee after the war, the KKK was initially dedicated as much to amusement as to violence. By 1867, the movement spread and had grown more unified, and for several years, Confederate war hero Lt. Gen. Nathan Bedford Forrest became its commander in Tennessee. Even with Forrest’s leadership, the KKK is best thought of as a like-minded collection of local groups that initiated most of their violence without informing state or even county Klan leaders. Existing like-minded local groups also took its name, though, in some cases, they preserved their original ones, such as the Red Shirts, the Knights of the White Camelia in Louisiana, the Native Sons of the South, or the Knights of the Rising Sun in Texas. Their primary purpose was political change, not murder. As with most terrorism, the psychological effect of their violence was great. The Ku Klux terror colored nearly every aspect of Southern life and politics, often far beyond the immediate range of terrorist activity, argued one historian.

View Large

The Trump Era: 20162020

Presidency of Donald TrumpDonald Trump

Businessman Donald Trump won the 2016 Republican primaries, representing a dramatic policy shift from traditional conservatism to an aggressively populist ideology with overtones of cultural identity politics. Numerous high-profile Republicans, including past presidential nominees like Mitt Romney, announced their opposition to Trump; some even did so after he received the GOP nomination. Much of the Republican opposition to Trump stemmed from concerns that his disdain for political correctness, his support from the , his virulent criticism of the mainstream news media, and his expressions of approval for political violence would result in the GOP losing the presidential election and lead to significant GOP losses in other races. In one of the largest upsets in American political history, Trump went on to defeat Hillary Clinton in the 2016 presidential election.

In addition to electing Donald Trump as president, Republicans maintained a majority in the , in the , and amongst state governors in the 2016 elections. The Republican Party was slated to control 69 of 99 state legislative chambers in 2017 and at least 33 governorships . The party took total control of the government in 25 states following the 2016 elections; this was the most states it had controlled since 1952.

In 2017 Donald Trump promised to use protective tariffs as a weapon to restore greatness to the economy.

Fighting The New Deal Coalition: 19321980

Historian George H. Nash argues:

Unlike the “moderate,” internationalist, largely eastern bloc of Republicans who accepted some of the “Roosevelt Revolution” and the essential premises of President Truman’s foreign policy, the Republican Right at heart was counterrevolutionary. Anticollectivist, anti-Communist, anti-New Deal, passionately committed to limited government, free market economics, and congressional prerogatives, the G.O.P. conservatives were obliged from the start to wage a constant two-front war: against liberal Democrats from without and “me-too” Republicans from within.

The Old Right emerged in opposition to the New Deal of Franklin D. Roosevelt. Hoff says that “moderate Republicans and leftover Republican Progressives like Hoover composed the bulk of the Old Right by 1940, with a sprinkling of former members of the Farmer-Labor party, Non-Partisan League, and even a few midwestern prairie Socialists.

Republican Party Platform Of 1960

Preamble

The United States is living in an age of profoundest revolution. The lives of men and of nations are undergoing such transformations as history has rarely recorded. The birth of new nations, the impact of new machines, the threat of new weapons, the stirring of new ideas, the ascent into a new dimension of the universe- everywhere the accent falls on the new.

At such a time of world upheaval, great perils match great opportunitiesand hopes, as well as fears, rise in all areas of human life. Such a force as nuclear power symbolizes the greatness of the choice before the United States and mankind. The energy of the atom could bring devastation to humanity. Or it could be made to serve men’s hopes for peace and progressto make for all peoples a more healthy and secure and prosperous life than man has ever known.

One fact darkens the reasonable hopes of free men: the growing vigor and thrust of Communist imperialism. Everywhere across the earth, this force challenges us to prove our strength and wisdom, our capacity for sacrifice, our faith in ourselves and in our institutions.

Free men look to us for leadership and support, which we dedicate ourselves to give out of the abundance of our national strength.

Foreign Policy

The pre-eminence of this Republic requires of us a vigorous, resolute foreign policyinflexible against every tyrannical encroachment, and mighty in its advance toward our own affirmative goals.

National Defense

Economic Growth and Business

Labor

Lessons For The Global Economy

Lincoln would have well understood the challenges facing many modern emerging nations, particularly large and diverse ones such as China, Russia, India, Brazil, and Indonesia. Of course, the context is different. Today, the forces of economic disruption are generally external rather than internal. The source of turmoil is the rapid expansion of international commerce, finance, communications, and transportation, which is inexorably drawing industrialized and emerging nations together into one large global economy.

Now, as then, we also hear charges of worker exploitation, this time because multinationals have established manufacturing facilities in low-wage countries. And, in another echo of Lincolns time, there are calls for protectionist measures. These come not only from companies and workers in industrialized countries, who must compete with lower-priced goods from emerging economies, but also from companies and workers in emerging economies, who must compete against the industrialized economies more technologically advanced products.

One could benefit by looking to Lincoln and the Republican Congress that came to power with him after the election of 1860. Emerging economies today are unlikely to replicate their policies per se. But much can be learned from the principles that informed those policies:

Emphasize the good of the national economy over regional interests.

Tailor your policies to your own national situation.

Reaction To The Attack On Fort Sumter

With the attack on Fort Sumter on April 12, 1861, followed by President Abraham Lincoln‘s April 15 call for 75,000 volunteers to put the seceded states back into line, public sentiment turned dramatically against the Union.

Historian Daniel Crofts thus reports:

Unionists of all descriptions, both those who became Confederates and those who did not, considered the proclamation calling for seventy-five thousand troops “disastrous.” Having consulted personally with Lincoln in March, Congressman Horace Maynard, the unconditional Unionist and future Republican from East Tennessee, felt assured that the administration would pursue a peaceful policy. Soon after April 15, a dismayed Maynard reported that “the President’s extraordinary proclamation” had unleashed “a tornado of excitement that seems likely to sweep us all away.” Men who had “heretofore been cool, firm and Union loving” had become “perfectly wild” and were “aroused to a frenzy of passion.” For what purpose, they asked, could such an army be wanted “but to invade, overrun and subjugate the Southern states.” The growing war spirit in the North further convinced southerners that they would have to “fight for our hearthstones and the security of home.” 

Black Exodus To Kansas

During Reconstruction freed slaves began to leave the South. One such group, originally from Kentucky, established the community of Nicodemus in 1877 in Graham County on the high, arid plains of northwestern Kansas. However, because of several crop failures and resentment from the county’s white settlers, all but a few homesteaders abandoned their claims. A rising population of 500 in 1880 had declined to less than 200 by 1910.

A page of photographs and a township map from a 1906 county land ownership atlas provide evidence that some of these black migrants still owned land in and around this small village. Their impressive determination in an area with few good natural resou rces has resulted in the only surviving all-black community in Kansas.

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Standard Atlas of Graham Co. Kansas, Including a Plat Book of the Villages, Cities, and Townships. Index of families in Nicodemus. Chicago: A. Ogle, 1906. Geography and Map Division, Library of Congress

Bookmark this item: //www.loc.gov/exhibits/african-american-odyssey/reconstruction.html#obj3

Grant And The Government Debt

In the first two years of Ulysses S. Grants presidency, Treasury Secretary George Boutwell helped reduce federal expenditures to $292 million in 1871, which was down from $322 million in 1869. The cost of collecting taxes fell to 3.11 percent in 1871. Grant reduced the number of employees working in the government from 6,052 on March 1, 1869, to 3,804 on December 1, 1871. He also increased tax revenues by $108 million from 1869 to 1872. During his first administration, the national debt fell from $2.5 billion to $2.2 billion. The United States had debt prior to the Civil War, but it increased sharply during the war. One reason for the increase of debt was the selling of bonds to citizens to pay for the war efforts.

On May 19, 1869, Grant protected the wages of those working for the U.S. government. In 1868, a law had been passed that reduced the government working day to eight hours. However, much of the law was later repealed in order to allow day wages to also be reduced. To protect workers, Grant signed an executive order that, no reduction shall be made in the wages regardless of the reduction in hours for the government day workers.

Regional State And Local Politics

The Republicans welcomed the Progressive Era at the state and local level. The first important reform mayor was of , who was elected Governor of Michigan in 1896. In New York City, the Republicans joined nonpartisan reformers to battle Tammany Hall and elected Seth Low . Golden Rule Jones was first elected mayor of as a Republican in 1897, but was reelected as an independent when his party refused to renominate him. Many Republican civic leaders, following the example of Mark Hanna, were active in the National Civic Federation, which promoted urban reforms and sought to avoid wasteful strikes. North Carolina journalist William Garrott Brown tried to convince upscale white southerners of the wisdom of a strong early white Republican Party. He warned that a one party solid South system would negate democracy, encourage corruption, because the lack of prestige of the national level. Roosevelt was following his advice. However, in 1912, incumbent president Taft needed black Republican support in the South to defeat Roosevelt at the 1912 Republican national convention. Brown’s campaign came to nothing, and he finally supported Woodrow Wilson in 1912.

An African American Institution Of Higher Learningwilberforce University

A group of Ohioans, including four African American men, established Wilberforce University near Xenia, Ohio, in 1856, and named it after the famous British abolitionist, William Wilberforce. When the school failed to meet its financial obligations, leaders of the African Methodist Episcopal Church purchased it in 1863.

The articles of association of Wilberforce University, dated July 10, 1863, state that its purpose was to promote education, religion and morality amongst the colored race. Even though the university was established by and for people of color, the articles stipulated that no one should be excluded from the benefits of said institution as officers, faculty, or pupils on account of merely race or color.

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Economic And Governance Collapse In The South

When Reconstruction began, the South was economically devastated. One-fifth of white Southerners of military age, the core of the labor force, had died in the war, and even more had been wounded. Machinery and work animals also had been lost in the war. In addition, emancipation raised the question of who would harvest the crops, which in the past had depended on slave labor. By 1868, however, the plantation economy had begun to stabilize, and the planter class again began to prosper, but many poorer white Southerners faced competition from Black labor.

As dire as the economic situation was for the old order, it was even worse for the newly freed Black population. Slavery, with its rape, brutality, and family separations, had shattered much of the community’s social capital, and land, animals, and equipment were all in the hands of white Southerners. In response, Congress created the federal Bureau of Refugees, Freedmen, and Abandoned Lands to protect the rights of the formerly enslaved, administer justice, and help them negotiate labor contracts and lease lands.

Yet, the racial power imbalance was profound. White Southerners conspired to prevent the formerly enslaved from buying land or starting businesses. In addition, Democratic newspapers had far more circulation and influence than the new pro-Republican ones , and they dispensed a steady stream of vitriol against the Radicals, at times even publicizing orders for groups such as the KKK. Freedmen’s

Dwight D Eisenhower: Domestic Affairs

Although there were dangerous moments in the Cold War during the 1950s, people often remember the Eisenhower years as “happy days,” a time when Americans did not have to worry about depression or war, as they had in the 1930s and 1940s, or difficult and divisive issues, as they did in the 1960s. Instead, Americans spent their time enjoying the benefits of a booming economy. Millions of families got their first television and their second car and enjoyed new pastimes like hula hoops or transistor radios. Young people went to drive-in movies or malt shops, often wearing the latest fashionspegged pants for men, poodle skirts for women.

he Eisenhower years were not so simple or carefree

Modern Republicanism

As President, Eisenhower thought that government should provide some additional benefits to the American people. He signed legislation that expanded Social Security, increased the minimum wage, and created the Department of Health, Education and Welfare. He also supported government construction of low-income housing but favored more limited spending than had Truman.

Prosperity and Poverty

Even though poverty was widespread, poor people got little attention during the 1950s. It was easier to celebrate the abundance of a booming consumer economy. People who had lived through the Great Depression of the 1930s emphasized the economic security of the 1950s. It was not until the 1960s that affluent Americans rediscovered the poverty amid the prosperity.

Eisenhower and McCarthy

Republicans Dominate The 1920s

Roaring Twenties

The party controlled the presidency throughout the 1920s, running on a platform of opposition to the League of Nations, support for high tariffs, and promotion of business interests. Voters gave the GOP credit for the prosperity and Warren G. Harding, Calvin Coolidge and Herbert Hoover were resoundingly elected by landslides in , and . The breakaway efforts of Senator Robert M. La Follette in 1924 failed to stop a landslide for Coolidge and his movement fell apart. The Teapot Dome Scandal threatened to hurt the party, but Harding died and Coolidge blamed everything on him as the opposition splintered in 1924.

Those Racist Dixiecrats Create Mainstream Republican Policy

But their ideas formed modern GOPs core platform.

In a campaign ad, Democrat-turned-Republican Jesse Helms said racial quotas prevented white people from getting jobs. The lie of racial quotas persists in the GOPs rejection of affirmative action. Racial quotas are illegal.

Take the idea of special interests. Heres Helms view, as a Republican:

Are civil rights only for Negroes? While women in Washington who have been raped and mugged on the streets in broad daylight have experienced the most revolting sort of violation of their civil rights. The hundreds of others who have had their purses snatched by Negro hoodlums may understandably insist that their right to walk the street unmolested was violated. Television commentary, 1963, quoted in The Charlotte Observer.

But you would think that Ted Cruz would have a clearer understanding of the connections between the Dixiecrats and the Republican Party.

He loves Jesse Helms.

Looking to do your part? One way to get involved is to read the Indivisible Guide, which is written by former congressional staffers and is loaded with best practices for making Congress listen. Or follow this publication, connect with us on , and join us on Facebook.

Teaching The Newly Freed Population

Sea-island School, No. 1,St. Helena Island. Established in April 1862.Education among the Freedmen, ca. 1866-70. Broadside. Page 2. Rare Book and Special Collections Division, Library of Congress. Reproduction Number: LC-USZ62-107754

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The New Deal Era: 19321939

After Roosevelt took office in 1933, New Deal legislation sailed through Congress at lightning speed. In the 1934 midterm elections, ten Republican senators went down to defeat, leaving them with only 25 against 71 Democrats. The House of Representatives was also split in a similar ratio. The “Second New Deal” was heavily criticized by the Republicans in Congress, who likened it to class warfare and . The volume of legislation, as well as the inability of the Republicans to block it, soon made the opposition to Roosevelt develop into bitterness and sometimes hatred for “that man in the White House. Former President Hoover became a leading orator crusading against the New Deal, hoping unrealistically to be nominated again for president.

Most major newspaper publishers favored Republican moderate Alf Landon for president. In the nation’s 15 largest cities the newspapers that editorially endorsed Landon represented 70% of the circulation. Roosevelt won 69% of the actual voters in those cities by ignoring the press and using the radio to reach voters directly.

Roosevelt carried 46 of the 48 states thanks to traditional Democrats along with newly energized labor unions, city machines and the Works Progress Administration. The realignment creating the Fifth Party System was firmly in place. Since 1928, the GOP had lost 178 House seats, 40 Senate seats and 19 governorships, though it retained a mere 89 seats in the House and 16 in the Senate.

Boutwell And The Treasury

George S. Boutwell: George S. Boutwell served as secretary of the Treasury under Ulysses S. Grant.

Following in line with the Republican Party national platform of 1868, Secretary Boutwell advocated that the national debt must be reduced and the United States return to a gold specie economy. Boutwell believed that the stabilization of the currency and the reduction of the national debt was more important than risking a depression by withdrawing greenbacks from the economy.

On his own, with neither the knowledge of President Grant nor other Cabinet members, Boutwell controversially began to release gold from the Treasury and sell government bonds in order to reduce the supply of greenbacks in the economy. As secretary, he opposed a rapid lowering of taxes and favored using surplus revenues to make a large reduction of the national debt. In 1870, Congress, at his recommendation, passed an act providing for the funding of the national debt and authorizing the selling of certain bonds, but not authorizing an increase of the debt.

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“The Minority Right-wing Leadership goes on the Offensive

The opposition between the KPD’s tendencies would revolve around the basic problem which was not resolved by the first congress: the position to be taken on the trade union question—but the battle lines would not be firmly drawn until the struggles were over. In effect, in early May of 1919 the Rote Fahne (organ of the Berlin central committee) was still directing the members of the KPD to participate in the reconstruction of the General Union of Miners. The central committee also helped form an Agricultural Workers Union and a Railroad Workers Union. Both would collapse after the failure of the strike called by the central committee. Despite its unfortunate experiences, the central committee, into whose leadership Levi was reluctantly co-opted in April, supported working with “what already exists”: the trade unions dominated by the SPD. The failure of the proletarian movement irremediably blocked any possibility that the former Spartacists would move towards the left, although some of them were open to the ideas of the left.

[...]

Levi, a lawyer by profession, had met Lenin in Switzerland during the war and had collaborated with the Zimmerwald left, moving closer to bolshevism, particularly in regard to the need for another party besides social democracy. He contributed to bringing about closer relations between Spartacus and the IKD. He situated himself at the point where bolshevism and Spartacism intersected. Once he was co-opted into the KPD leadership, he announced a new “centralist” line which was soon destined to lead to the exclusion of the leftist currents. From his contacts with the Bolsheviks he would retain only the idea of a strong party: what basically attracted him to Leninism was what the latter preserved of social democracy, and not those aspects which went beyond social democracy. He considered the left to be responsible for the defeats and denounced “verbal radicalism”: “to be a communist does not mean using the most radical phrases, but having the clearest vision of social reality at every moment”—precisely the kind of false opposition in whose name the Bolsheviks extirpated the leftist tendencies in Russia. The left responded immediately: the Hamburg Kommunistische Arbeiter-Zeitung published an article on The Roots of Dictatorship.[1] The new centralizing measures were due to the fact that many KPD members came from the USPD (the Spartacists). The party must be “the means provided to the masses for their own intervention”. Levi had applied, to the KPD, principles imported from the USPD, “an organization where the leaders rule the masses”.

[...]

The Heidelberg Congress

Availing itself of the method employed by the SPD right wing and center against the left prior to the war, the central committee lumped the members of the opposition together with the syndicalists: it would prove, however, that it knew perfectly well how to distinguish between them.[2] The central committee wanted to transform the debate into a struggle between Marxism and anarchosyndicalism. With this purpose in mind it quoted articles which had appeared in the leftist press. Since the left allowed all the currents of the real movement to express themselves in its press, it was hardly difficult to find articles which confused syndicalism with unionism in its columns: in the series entitled “A Contribution to the Debate on the Trade Union Question”, for example, which appeared in the Hamburg Kommunistische Arbeiter-Zeitung. Attending just to its texts and even to the minutiae of its texts, the central committee’s position might seem more rigorous and more Marxist than that of its opponents: this, at least, was how the Italian Left chose to assess the German Left. Reducing the German Left tendencies to a variety of revolutionary syndicalism post festum (cf. Chapter 17) contributes nothing new. The Italian Left’s study of the debates within the KPD provides endless proofs of textual fetishism, and shows a preference for Levi’s “principles” instead of the sometimes confused revolutionary positions of the opposition.[3]

During the summer the left factions of northern Germany had reached a clear conception of the new organizational form and had explained it with sufficient clarity to cause unionism to be attacked by The Syndicalist, the organ of the revolutionary syndicalists. The left was able to direct its counterattack at the root of the question. But Levi precipitated a split by unexpectedly distributing a text at the congress entitled “Principle Theses on the Fundamentals of Communist Tactics”.[4] The central committee claimed that the conditions of clandestinity justified the fact that this document had not previously been published and distributed for discussion within the party. But the text ended as follows: “Those members of the KPD who do not share these views concerning the nature, the organization and the activity of the party, or those who have opposed them orally or in writing, must be excluded from the party.” This text was, in addition, quite clever in that its first consequence was a split within the left, between the majority (Hamburg) and a minority (Bremen, with Frölich and Becker). The weight of the decentralizing tendencies within the left led Bremen to remain within the KPD,[5] all the more so as it seemed to find leftist aspects in the KPD. Within the KPD, it would be “the only communist current within the German section of the Third International. With its 8,000 members in Bremen and its daily newspaper, Der Kommunist, the Bremerlinke ... would only have a limited influence”.[6]

Indeed, that portion of Levi’s theses dedicated to electoral and trade union tactics was ambiguous in the highest degree and could be used to justify rightist and leftist methods at the same time, depending upon the situation. This will contribute to a better understanding of Bremen’s break with the left.

“The KPD cannot reject, in principle, any political means which contribute to the preparation for these great struggles. But these elections, considered merely as a preparatory means, must be subordinated to the revolutionary struggle, and the application of such means can be abandoned in utterly extraordinary political situations; when revolutionary actions have begun and move towards the decisive phase, then the application of parliamentary methods becomes obsolete or provisionally superfluous.”

Ultimately, the KPD program would not go beyond this expression of the problem. Among German communist theoreticians, only Rühle would analyze the issue by maintaining that the phase of the proletariat’s participation in parliamentary activity had utterly come to an end, and justified abstentionism in both the revolutionary period as well as the period of reaction.

The central committee’s “Theses” defined the trade union question in the following manner: “The task of the political party consists in assuring to the proletariat the free utilization of economic means, even, should it be necessary, at the cost of the destruction of the trade union form and the creation of new forms of organization.” The text’s tone was decidedly revolutionary and anti-unionist, and articulated an ideology of the “vanguard”.

“The idea that the party should abandon its leadership role in revolutionary actions, in favor of factory organizations [a meaningless sort of discussion, since the German party, while it was revolutionary, never “led” anything—N.B.] and that the party should limit itself to propaganda, is counterrevolutionary because it seeks to replace the clear vision of the workers vanguard with the chaotic power of the masses in a state of flux.”

The KAPD would also have a vanguardist perspective. But in its case the vanguard was not the group of people who were thought to have the most advanced consciousness, of those who possessed the clearest “perspective” on the issues, but all of those people who dedicated themselves to initiating, before anyone else did, the fight against society: they would thus set an example for the rest of the working class.

The “Theses” contained an idea which was seldom expressed during this era: “The conception according to which one can create mass movements by means of a particular form of organization, and consequently that the revolution is a matter of the form of organization, is rejected as a relapse into bourgeois utopia.”[7]

Only those who understood the true social and political nature of the authors could reject this text: they would consequently also know what the Levist leadership had done (and would yet do) (return to parliamentarism, work in the trade unions, fusion with the USPD) independently of what it first stated in accordance with the circumstances. It was this fraction of the left which rejected the “Theses” with 18 votes against 31 votes. On the fourth day of the congress, 25 delegates (the 18 plus 7 others with consultative votes) were excluded. These delegates represented the regions of Berlin (including, at that time, the Rote Fahne, the party’s mouthpiece), Hamburg (which would not join the Frölich-Becker tendency), Hanover, Essen, Dresden and Magdeburg.

After this first purge, there was still an internal opposition, since the abstentionist tendencies had remained in the party, believing that their position was justified by the theses they had just adopted. In regard to the trade union question, the central committee was forced to reach an accommodation with the representatives from Rhineland-Westphalia who did not want to hear anything about a return to the trade unions. In November 1919, the Ruhr sections of the KPD were still in favor of collaboration with the AAU, which might have prevented the infiltration of syndicalists into the region’s unions. But the KPD leadership opposed this proposal.[8]

Many have argued that the preparations for the First Congress of the KPD were rushed in order to deny its “representative” character. In any case, Heidelberg could barely achieve a slim majority in favor of parliamentary and trade union action: the last thesis on exclusion was adopted with 29 votes against 20. The opposition was still strong at that time. At the Third Congress (February 1920), “the majority of the districts of Northern Germany, including Berlin, had joined the opposition; the total number of party members was officially registered as 106,000 at Heidelberg, even though it could not have been so many, having been reduced by almost one-half”.[9] The theses approved at Heidelberg, according to Eberlein, generated strong opposition when they were publicized in the various party locals. In the summer of 1919, the KPD dissolved its organization in the army, the League of Red Soldiers, which had become a focal point of the opposition. But many combat organizations (KO) continued their activities after they were officially dissolved. Eberlein states that the majority of the operatives of the armed groups were later incorporated into the KAPD. Other exclusions would be necessary and the Third Congress would implement them.

The KPD and KPD (Opposition)

Between October 1919 and March 1920, the proletariat was still reeling from the effects of its defeat. The left honed its perspective, as did the right, represented by Levi, and above all by Radek. Radek had played an important role in Russia in the struggle against the left Socialist Revolutionaries and anarchists, which had caused him to lose his radical ideas and metamorphose into a convinced “anti-spontaneist”. Commissioned by the Bolshevik government, he returned to Germany at the end of 1918, and intervened in favor of the Spartacus-IKD fusion. After February 12, 1919, he spent one year in prison: however, while in prison he carried out a considerable amount of activity on two levels. On the one hand, he was the first to re-establish diplomatic relations between Russia and Germany, receiving numerous visits while in prison from various political and military figures.[10] He then became convinced that the German revolution was provisionally terminated and that the Soviet Union had to be consolidated through traditional diplomatic means. In addition, and this aspect of his activities was obviously connected to his diplomatic efforts, he supported Levi’s positions and pressed for the exclusion of the leftists. His work A Contribution to Communist Tactics, published by the central committee, was the ideological expression of the KPD’s tactics. The role of the party was analyzed in this pamphlet in totally Bolshevik terms: dictatorship of the so-called “conscious” elements over the rest of the class, which was conceived as a mass of labor power incapable of raising itself to a level of consciousness sufficient to carry out the revolution. To assume this role, the party must purge itself of all impure elements, and first of all, of all those who deny the revolutionary validity of the Leninist concept. Without explicitly saying so, Levi and Radek were equally guided by the idea of fusion with the USPD, which had several hundred thousand members, while the KPD had approximately 50,000 after its split: this was one more reason to exclude the left. The party had to return to “revolutionary parliamentarism” and to “entrism” in the trade unions, particularly since the membership of the latter had grown by 600% from November 1918 to December 1920: trade union membership had almost become compulsory with the institutionalization of the Arbeitsgemeinschaft (cf. the KAPD program).

Criticism came from many different leftist publications: Die Aktion, the Hamburg Kommunistische Arbeiter-Zeitung, the Bremen and Dresden Der Kommunist, etc... It was a very diverse movement. Some subversive artists (generally expressionists) contributed to Die Aktion: this was the source for the accusations of dilletantism and estheticism directed by the CI’s polemicists against the German Left. Some of these artists had a long history of opposition to the conservatism of the official workers movement. C. Einstein (a close associate of Pfempfert, the editor of Die Aktion), an enemy of rationalism and, in art, “classicism”, wrote in 1914: “A union of rationalists will never change anything; it would do nothing but bring about a little more order. The social democracy, the military academies and the public schools are perfectly identical.”[11] The revolutionary reflux would cause them to return to art, in one form or another.

In the meantime, they became acquainted with the texts of Pannekoek, especially World Revolution and Communist Tactics, published in Der Kommunist of Bremen in December 1919.[12] Another one of Pannekoek’s articles, published in the same journal, was entitled The New Blanquism.[13] This is how Pannekoek characterized the ultra-centralizing conceptions established as principles by the KPD central committee, for whom a political minority “gathering together the conscious proletarians” seizes and holds political power, identifying this process with the conquest of power by the proletariat. This is what happened in Russia: the party was justified there by the enormous mass of the peasantry, a significant part of which aspired to private property, to capitalism rather than to socialism. The preservation of a proletarian dictatorship therefore requires, in Russia, an enormous effort, and hence the appearance of a dictatorship of one part of the class over the class itself. In the conditions prevailing in the highly-developed capitalism of Western Europe, however, the revolution can only be the spontaneous uprising of the working masses. This is why the proletariat must overcome its bourgeois “culture”: this task cannot be accomplished by a leadership clique, however conscious it may be, but only through the maturation of social contradictions (for which theoretical works comprise a precondition and a basic element).