This demands a continuous alteration of the past, made possible by the system of thought which really embraces all the rest, and which is known in Newspeak as DOUBLETHINK.
The alteration of the past is necessary for two reasons, one of which is subsidiary and, so to speak, precautionary. The subsidiary reason is that the Party member, like the proletarian, tolerates present-day conditions partly because he has no standards of comparison … This day-to-day falsification of the past, carried out by the Ministry of Truth, is as necessary to the stability of the regime as the work of repression and espionage carried out by the Ministry of Love.
The mutability of the past is the central tenet of Ingsoc. Past events, it is argued, have no objective existence, but survive only in written records and in human memories. The past is whatever the records and the memories agree upon. And since the Party is in full control of all records and in equally full control of the minds of its members, it follows that the past is whatever the Party chooses to make it. It also follows that though the past is alterable, it never has been altered in any specific instance. For when it has been recreated in whatever shape is needed at the moment, then this new version IS the past, and no different past can ever have existed … It is also necessary to REMEMBER that events happened in the desired manner. And if it is necessary to rearrange one’s memories or to tamper with written records, then it is necessary to FORGET that one has done so. The trick of doing this can be learned like any other mental technique. It is learned by the majority of Party members, and certainly by all who are intelligent as well as orthodox. In Oldspeak it is called, quite frankly, “reality control”. In Newspeak it is called DOUBLETHINK.
George Orwell, Nineteen Eighty-Four, 1949.
May 4, 2021
QotD: DOUBLETHINK
April 26, 2021
QotD: Maple-flavoured schadenfreude
William Watson, “Smug Canada probably wouldn’t let in a caravan of migrants either”, Financial Post, 2018-10-26.
March 14, 2021
QotD: “Logomachia” – the use of language as a culture war weapon
One of the left’s key weapons is what the philosopher Jean-Marie Benoist called “logomachia”, or language warfare. They invent all these words and use it to shape the ideaspace in their favor. It should be obvious to anyone who doesn’t have brainworms — at this point it is even obvious to many normies — that in contemporary American discourse a word like “racism” has as much connection to phenomena in the real world as “Trotskyite” had in Russia under Stalin. So if someone says “You’re a racist!” and you respond “I’m not a racist because X and Y and Z” you have already lost because you have implicitly conceded that there is this thing out there called “racism” which is really big and bad and scary, and one that your enemies get to define for you. And it doesn’t matter that your X or Y or Z may be absolutely correct. You still lose by dignifying the accusation e.g. (“I am not part of the Trotskyite conspiracy!”). The entire thing is transparently preposterous and should be responded to appropriately, with laughter and derision.
And let’s face it, we are so eager to say “I’m not a racist!” because we’re afraid of what will happen to us if we don’t. And people can smell fear, and it’s unattractive. Be not afraid!
Niccolo Soldo, “The Zürich Interviews – Pascal-Emmanuel Gobry: Unrepentant Baguette Merchant”, Fisted by Foucault, 2020-12-02.
March 6, 2021
History-Makers: Sappho
Overly Sarcastic Productions
Published 5 Mar 2021It’s no use, dear algorithm, I cannot research, for Sappho has crushed me with longing for lost poetry!
SOURCES & Further Reading: Sappho: fragments by Jonathan Goldberg, “Girl, Interrupted: Who Was Sappho?” for The New Yorker by Daniel Mendelsohn (https://www.newyorker.com/magazine/20…), “Sappho” from The Poetry Foundation (https://www.poetryfoundation.org/poet…)
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February 27, 2021
Q&A: Shooting the $ɦ!☦ with InRangeTV
Atun-Shei Films
Published 26 Feb 2021See the rest of our conversation over on Karl’s channel ► https://youtu.be/3sgc0BckrB8
Atun-Shei and InRange finally got together for a chat! In this video we answer questions from our generous patrons, discussing New Orleans culture, Creole food, the gunfight at the OK Corral, urban life in the ancient world, Confederate monuments, historical justifications for slavery, Louisiana Voodoo, Cajun French, Ron Maxwell movies, and the importance of compassion and empathy.
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February 21, 2021
“House Of The Rising Sun” 1270 A.D (cover in Old French 800-1400 A.D) Bardcore
the_miracle_aligner
Published 9 Jul 20201270 A.D was a bad year to be in Tunisia, nobody won 😢
Also, take me back to when the French used trilled R’s 😂Original song by @The Animals: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4-43l…
Apologies to all the French-speaking folk out there 😅 This was a really hard one and I know it’s not perfect but please let me know what you think ❤❤❤
Consider supporting the channel, I know what I do ain’t much but its honest work ❤: https://www.patreon.com/the_miracle_a…
Wanna follow me?
https://twitter.com/KholeJa
https://www.instagram.com/the_miracle…Big thanks to Ser @Graywyck now pls go check out his channel XD
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCRBC…As always, big thanks to @ABAlphaBeta for all the help with the translations and training,
Please go check out his channel, its a treat for historical enthusiast XD
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCoDe…Also while making this video, a friend of mine introduced me to a cover of the original song done by a French artist Johnny Hallyday called “Le Penitencier.” Its a damn nice cover too, (THANKS EMMAAA) Here’s the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=F3wqO…
I have been procrastinating a lot after going on a break weeks ago but I’m back folks. Currently working on upgrading my hardware, I will be getting a better mic and also a camera as I want to start posting videos soon. Want nothing but the best for all you lovely folk. Thank you as always ya’ll kind folk for all the love and support. Let’s make Bardcore last a 1000 years yeah?
Also, Here be the lyrics. Courtesy of AB
Il y a une meson en Orleans
Qui se sousnomme le Soleil levant
Et ele fu la ruine de maint garsilleurs
Dont fui aussi partant …Ma mere estoit une taillieuse
Qui cousit mes braies de lin
Mon pere lui estoit un joueur et
D’Orleans un citadinE les seules choses qu’un joueur requiert
Sont une male et une botte
E le seul moment de repos pour lui
Est saül au fond d’un potO, mere, di le aus anfaz
De ne pas feire com moi
Pechiez tout au lonc de vos tristes vies
La ou le Soleil feict loyBien, j’ai un pié sur le pavement
L’autre est sur le char
Sui de retorn a Orleans
Ou l’air-mesme est une bare#TheAnimals #HouseOfTheRisingSun #Bardcore #OldFrench #Medieval
February 12, 2021
QotD: Repartee
Daniel Hannan, Twitter, 2020-11-06.
January 21, 2021
“A horse with no name” cover in Latin (BARDCORE) Original song by America
the_miracle_aligner
Published 20 Oct 2020“Oh no Consul White, the Parthians found us!”
&
Oh, Crassus you doink. You, I don’t care about but why did you have to drag Publius down with you 😢 NEVER FORGET MAY 6th 53 B.COriginal by @America – Topic: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=oIYgs…
BIG shoutout to @Canticles Please go check out his covers NOWWW!!!
https://www.youtube.com/user/theyoung…Another BIIIG shoutout to @Juan Necessarium PLEASE go and support his work too yao
https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCQ8O…Wanna follow me?
https://open.spotify.com/artist/4y9XM…
https://twitter.com/KholeJa
https://www.instagram.com/the_miracle…Source of the BG: https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Publius…
This was a really fun one to do. As always thank you so much for all the support people. I am edging closer and closer to 100K subs 🙂 Got my special coming, it’ll be a pleasant surprise. Leave a like if ya liked it, and if you haven’t subscribed yet, please consider doing so 🙂
Take care my lovelies and until we meet again.
Consider supporting the channel, I know what I do ain’t much but its honest work ❤: https://www.patreon.com/the_miracle_a…
Here be the lyrics, all credits goes to Juan
In prima itineris parte
Omnia vitae intuebar.
Erant plantae, aves, saxa et res
Arena, colles et orbes.
Primum quod vidi musca bombans fuit
Et caelum sine ulla nube.
Calor magnus et tellus sicca
Sed aer soni plenus erat.Eremum transii vectus sine nomine equo
Mihi placuit pluviam nullam pati.
In eremo, tuum nomen recordaris,
Nam nemo adest quin te ullo modo vexet.Post duos dies sub eremi sole (DUos DIes)
Pellis mea iam rubebat,
Post tres dies in gaudio illius loci, (loCI)
Antiqui fluminis alveum vidi.
Et quod narrabat de flumine antea vivo
Me maximopere contristavit. (maxiMOpere CONtrisTAvit)Eremum transii vectus sine nomine equo,
Mihi placuit pluviam nullam pati.
In eremo, tuum nomen recordaris,
Nam nemo adest quin te ullo modo vexet.Post novem dies, equum liberavi,
Cum eremus mare factus sit.
Erant plantae, aves, saxa et res,
Arena, colles et orbes.
Sub mari enim vita certe floret
Sed id eremus videtur supra.
Sub urbibus cor terra factum iacet,
Sed homines amorem nullum dabunt.Eremum transii vectus sine nomine equo
Mihi placuit pluviam nullam pati.
In eremo, tuum nomen recordaris,
Nam nemo adest quin te ullo modo vexet.#America #Latin #Bardcore
January 18, 2021
QotD: Francis Bacon on what we now call “Confirmation Bias”
“The human understanding when it has once adopted an opinion (either as being the received opinion or as being agreeable to itself) draws all things else to support and agree with it” wrote Francis Bacon in his 1620 Novum Organum, one of the major early works of the European Enlightenment and Scientific Revolution. Today, we call this confirmation bias. We don’t form opinions based on the evidence — we often shape the evidence to suit our opinions. We attribute importance to facts which back our preferred theory and dismiss as unimportant those which do not. “It is the peculiar and perpetual error of the human intellect to be more moved and excited by affirmatives than by negatives; whereas it ought properly to hold itself indifferently disposed towards both alike,” Bacon added. We continue to cling to ideas which have been discredited, a phenomenon called belief perseverance. Or worse, our faith in discredited ideas becomes even stronger when we are presented with contrary evidence — the backfire effect. Or we focus on successes and ignore failures, a phenomenon called survivorship bias. Bacon reminds us of the story of Diagoras of Melos, who was shown a picture of those who had escaped shipwreck after making vows to the gods hanging in a temple. Diagoras asked where he could find a picture of those who made vows to the gods but drowned anyway.
Bacon wrote that humans are afflicted with “idols of the mind,” and he identified four. The first are idols of the tribe, flaws in thinking common to all people that come from human nature itself. Second are idols of the cave, or den. All of us, Bacon argued, have a cave in our mind where the light of reason is dimmed, and this cave varies from person to person depending on his or her character, experiences, and environment. Third are idols of the marketplace, associated with the exchange of ideas. As language can never be perfectly precise, it’s possible for falsehoods to develop and spread as a concept as explained by one person to another. Finally come idols of the theatre, ideas which have been presented to us and taken root so deeply and firmly they’ve become hard to remove. In Bacon’s time, this was the philosophy of Aristotle, which had become so fundamental to Western thought that even parts of it which could easily be disproven remained unchallenged for centuries. To manage the effect of the idols, Bacon proposed “radical induction” — the forerunner to the modern scientific method.
Adam Wakeling, “George Orwell and the Struggle against Inevitable Bias”, Quillette, 2020-08-08.
January 3, 2021
QotD: Literary stasis in the Byzantine empire
Sean Gabb, “The Mediaeval Roman Empire: An Unlikely Emergence and Survival”, SeanGabb.co.uk, 2018-09-14.
December 15, 2020
QotD: TedX
sanctimoniousubiquitous Ted Talks programme, is more inclusive than official Ted because they have added a random letter ‘X’ into the word. On an unrelated note, TedX London have decided to start using the totally real and not at all just made-up word “Womxn” when they talk about members of the female persuasion, chapettes, fillies, gels, y’know, charming, delightful, non-men – them. They told anormal personbigot on Twitter who asked why they were using the word “womxn”: “No, that’s not a typo: ‘womxn’ is a spelling of ‘women’ that’s more inclusive and progressive. The term sheds light on the prejudice, discrimination, and institutional barriers womxn have faced, and explicitly includes non-cisgender women.” But are TedX really the inclusive group they claim to be? Trans Media Watch, a pro-trans lobby group told the BBC it would never use the word Womxn: “because we feel it’s important for people to recognise that trans women are women. Trans women aren’t a special, separate category.” So it turns out “women” is the most inclusive term after all. If TedX London hasn’t been cancelled by the end of the week then Twitter’s not what it was.David Scullion, “UN-Believable”, The Critic, 2020-09-09.
December 11, 2020
“Politically correct language … seemed like a nice, polite, and Canadian sort of thing to do”
Meaghie Champion discusses politically correct language in The Line:
Source: https://www.deviantart.com/blamethe1st/art/Statist-And-Anarchist-063-Political-Correctness-589944623
I grew up in the 1970s and ’80s. I have never lived in a world without what we now call “political correctness” — typically understood to mean using a kind of stilted and artificial language in order to atone for the disadvantages and slights suffered by marginalized groups and avoid inflicting new ones. Politically correct language required more effort to communicate, but it seemed like that effort was worth it to not offend people. It seemed like a nice, polite, and Canadian sort of thing to do.
I went along with political correctness out of a sincere desire to be accommodating to disadvantaged and dis-enfranchised groups. This became especially true after I learned about the “Sapir Whorf theory of psycho neurolinguistics.” The theory suggests that language shapes our perception of reality; that by altering the way we talk, we can shift the way we think — and, thus, collectively, we can shape reality itself. From this, it seemed logical to “de-gender” language or stop using stereotypes. It seemed like a small ask. Maybe I personally couldn’t solve big problems that concerned me as a good liberal … i.e. things like poverty or world hunger, but I could be nice in how I expressed myself and try to use language that everybody was using to be equitable and more fair.
What I didn’t understand, then, was that this precedent set a trap in which many good, well-intentioned liberals are finding themselves stuck. It’s no longer about ameliorating past sins: there is a project afoot to re-make the English language. The purpose of this project is to re-engineer how people think about certain subjects like gender, sex, and race, while skipping the necessary prerequisites of persuasion and logic. Conservative positions are declared off limits, even bigoted, simply by shaping the way we are allowed to talk about them.
Right now, even as I type this, there is a veritable army of academics hard at work on what they call “de-colonizing” and “de-gendering” language at many universities and colleges. There are tens of thousands of activists and academics in universities and online organizing and pushing for ever-changing rules to be enforced as it relates to the English language. It’s a multi-million-dollar industry in academia and woke corporatism. And it’s already starting to spill over into government regulations and enforcement.
I love the English language. I have been a voracious reader since childhood. I thrill at well-spoken and written prose and poetry. A finely turned witticism or fantastic mot juste can break my heart with its perfection. Further, I’m First Nations, and that love of the English language has also carried me into a love of the study of my tribal cradle tongue “Hul’qumi’num.” Shouldn’t I, as a First Nations person, be in favour of de-colonizing the English language? No. No, I do not think so. I have little patience or regard for any effort that makes language a less workable and functional tool of human endeavour. I identify strongly as a writer, and I take this assault upon the tool with which I conduct my craft very personally.
November 20, 2020
Quebec makes Canada’s politics really weird
J.J. McCullough
Published 2 Mar 2019Hypocrisies and blind spots stemming from the role played by French Canadians and the French language in Canada’s politics.
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November 14, 2020
“… we all know that Wrong Opinions Are No Longer Allowed On The Internet”
Jen Gerson has some Wrong Opinions that she shared On The Internet, so Dr. Bradley Mitchelmore, BSc. (Pharm), ACPR, PharmD, RPh has has taken it upon himself to try to get her cancelled:
Firstly, to explain how this little gem fell into my lap, some context is required. While I was avoiding the interminably dull task of invoicing our fine writers of The Line the other day, I threw out a position that some might find controversial.
That is, I find the trend towards identifying women by terms like “birthing people,” “menstruators,” “front-hole possessors” and “uterus bearers,” to be both reductive and offensive. I have no objection to finding more inclusive language for circumstances in which we want to acknowledge trans and non-binary people (ie; a phrase like “pregnant people” seems clunky, but inoffensive to me); but to date, all of this new language reduces the class of “women” to either a biological function or a bodily part.
Pregnancy is a particularly sensitive topic for a lot of women because, for most of us, the process is terrifying. To go through childbirth is the most profound loss of bodily autonomy imaginable and many women I know struggle with the after effects of feeling as if we’ve been treated like interchangeable breeding sows by some doctors and nurses. If a doctor started calling me a “birther” or a “uterus-bearer” while stretching my cervix apart knuckles-deep with two fingers, my response would not be welcoming.
I also don’t think it’s a coincidence that linguistic shifts that re-frame an entire biological sex class as “breeders” only ever seems to target one sex. Very few well-intentioned and committed activists are waging war online over the definition of “men.”
A lot of this is misogyny gilded in progressive language. And very few women want to stand up to the misogyny on the “pro-woman” team, nor suffer the consequences of pissing that team off. So most stay silent until they see a tweet like the one above, at which point they flood my DMs with private statements of support and relief. I’m happy to serve as a psychological outlet in that regard, but I’ll show you in a moment why they’re so afraid to say what they think.
Anyway, this is all just my opinion. I’m not married to it. If the trend comes around to allowing us to call all “male-bodied” people “dicks,” I might reconsider the position entirely. But we all know that Wrong Opinions Are No Longer Allowed On The Internet and therefore a doctor jumped in with one of the most delightfully fatuous replies I’ve ever received.
November 7, 2020
History Summarized: Wales
Overly Sarcastic Productions
Published 6 Nove 2020Wale, Wale, Wale(s), what have we here? I’ll tell you! A look at the oft-forgotten history of Britain’s secret third country Wales, where the population is about 50% bards just by sheer cultural osmosis.
SOURCES & Further Reading: A Concise History of Wales by Jenkins, A History of Wales by Davies
This video was edited by Sophia Ricciardi AKA “Indigo”. https://www.sophiakricci.com/
Our content is intended for teenage audiences and up.
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