Oh My Gods.... I am a OPPRESSOR!

Sorry, but you know me, just cannot help the little snarky tib bits at times.

So, apparently Frog Hippy, aka Sapphoq, aka Spike, aka Spike Q Witch, aka Blue Space Goddess, aka HOP, aka Resistent Witches, aka......(I'm sure there are more but really that isn't what this post is about), has decided to police the police, oh wait, I meant, oppress the oppressors!!!!!!


Oh please, can you get over youself already?!?!?!

While I freely admit, AGAIN for those that missed it before, there are folk who occasionally go way over the line into trollish and bullying behavior, this girl and her buddy ERF, have decided they are going to be the saviors of pagan community.

Hey ya'll, sound familar?

Anyway, for a good giggle, check them out:

http://fluff-and-nonsense.blogspot.com/2007/02/toxic-bunnies-not-funny-bunnies-not.html

http://blue-space-goddess.blogspot.com/

http://radical.sapphoq.com/

http://www.resistant-witches.com/

http://witch-wars-report.blogspot.com/

http://elderravenfire.blogspot.com/2006/12/return-to-craft.html

http://theravensway.blogspot.com/2007_01_01_archive.html

http://www.freewebs.com/thewitchessummerland/

Okay that should be enough to get you all started.

Have fun.

The "Perils" of Blogging

Excellant new e-zine. I would heartily encourage all to support them.

http://www.rendingtheveil.com/


They've started a great new "corner" Veiled Issues Debate Corner, this issue is a debate

The two articles are "In Defense of Bunny Hunting" and the opposition "Perils of, and Alternatives to, Bunny Hunting"

Mind, I already got a little pissy, because apparently I'm not allowed to have a personal blog in which I write my personal (ok, sarcastic, snarky and often bitchy) comments about things/people/situations I run across on the Net.

But then I thought I'd been pretty clear and upfront about how I felt. If someone wants to publicly blog something that I find personally repungant, repulsive, idiotic, hilarious, absolutely moronic, well then I am going to say something. No one said you must read my commentary. No one said you must agree with me. Oh well, to each his or her own.

In the mean time, please do go read both articles. They are both fairly well written, and offer opposing views in a decent manner.

TTFN

ERFundamentalism

So I'm surfin the 'net, and what do I find, but a wonderfully satirical essay on Fundamentalism.

Yes, it was too good to pass up, and edit just a tad.

* ... you think a belief based on anything other than Silver Raving Fluff is an arbitrary whim.

* ... you sincerely believe that is best for them because supposedly Silver's revelations have deadened your perception of observational moral realities.

* ... most of what you think you know about the world outside your tradition, was found in books you bought from a capitalist publisher, because they treat your choice of dogma with favoritism.

* ... you think you know what Wicca teaches from reading Wicca for Dummies, because they obviously are so much smarter then Gardner.

* ... you think you understand Wiccan history just because you watch the Discovery Channel.

* ... you think you understand 20th century paganism by reading Paganism for Dummies.

* ... you think you know about all the contradictions in the bible by reading Silver Raven Fluff.

* ... since you accept pre-suppositions as if it were natural to all human beings, you assume that everybody else is thinking inside a box too, just the wrong box.

* ... since you only associate with people who substitute childlike suggestibility for critical thought, you think everybody else is suggestible to outside influences too, they just have the wrong influences.

* ... you think everybody really knows that your central tenets are right, and are just refusing to admit it because of arrogance and old age.

* ... you think this list should be about your doctrinal statement, and are surprised that it is about the mental methods by which you arrived at your conclusions.

Interesting

Interesting, over at the Druid's Blog, Daven has sited an interesting site. First I've heard of it, but it is nice to see that other's are concerned for the contradictory practices of certian folk online.

I'll admit it, a little outside validation can be a good thing.

Trolls

Another wonderfully informative website I've had bookmarked for quite some time. I'm not able to put it all here, but have put a few excerpts, please, please take the time to go peruse this site in its entirety. While I have not yet had the time to read through all of his pages, he has gone out of his way to provide quite a bit of information. I would add, that the author clearly states that profit his not his motive, hence his website. Please however show respect due him for his energy, dedication and hard work and be sure to make sure Eran gets all the credit for this amazing website.

Now, onto Trolls

http://esoterica.bichaunt.org/Trolls/index.html

From Chapter Four: Describing Trolls:

"

But in fact, for whatever reason – childhood abuse issues, societal failings, substance addictions, inherited predispositions, or simple, downright orneriness – there are a collection of personality traits which lead some people to fall into destructive patterns.

Very often the person involved is unaware of these traits within him- or herself. The destructive tendencies are frequently unconscious. As far as the person may be aware, only the best of motives are involved, and no harm is ever intended. Yet harm and devastation still seem to follow everywhere in the person's wake.

Does a tornado "intend" to destroy people's lives? Did rats in Medieval times "intend" to be hosts for plague-carrying fleas? Probably not – at least, not in the sense we normally mean the word intend. Troublemakers are often no more self-aware than are tornadoes or rats, and often have no fuller an understanding of why they are so frequently surrounded by pain and misery. But whether they "intend" destruction or not, it still happens."

Now from Chapter Five: Trollish Attributes:

"One or two bad days, every now and then, does not a troll make. Nor does the absence of several troll-traits necessarily mean the person is really just a hamster (or even a wise and productive Covener!) What you’re looking for in a person is a pattern. If someone reveals several of these traits, and shows them consistently – or if the person shows only three or four, but shows them to excess – then you’re dealing with a troll."

A few Trollish traits:

"

• Echoes and Re-runs. Has this person frequently been involved in arguments and destructive conflicts? Are problems frequent, and always someone else’s fault?


• Blindness. Does the person seem to have an inability or unwillingness to consider other viewpoints? Does he or she have to win every argument?
• Unnamed “Others”. Are “others” always to blame for this person’s problems? Do “others” always agree with this person’s concern? Does the person carry tales told to him or her by “others”? Is this person always vague about just exactly who these “others” are?
• Gotcha. Does the person seem to find joy in pointing out other people’s errors or slips, mistakes and goofs, faults and bad habits? Does the person seem to imply these mean he or she is smarter or better suited to be a leader than is the one who goofed? Does the person sometimes ask questions he or she already knows the answers to, just to see if you know?
• Liar. Is the person often caught in outright lies? Are there excuses and slick explanations always at the ready? Excuses can get pretty imaginative. One notorious liar repeatedly claimed to have misunderstood the conversations in question, and invented the condition of “aural dyslexia” to “explain” those very frequent false statements.
• Aggression. Does the person use various forms of intimidation, or passive-aggressive techniques, to get what he or she wants?
• Sore Losers / Bad Winners. In arguments or disagreements – or in games and leisure activities – does the person react well to resolutions? What kind of impression does the person give about past conflicts? Is there excessive gloating when the person wins, or harping and whining he or she loses? Are personal disagreements often depicted in terms of winning and losing, rather than as attempts to resolve differences? Does a loss provoke retaliation?

Use some common sense in applying this checklist, because no one’s perfect, and everyone has bad days. But don’t make excuses either. If someone shows several of these features, and shows them consistently, you have a troll on your hands."

Pagan Bullies and Narcissistic Vampires

I forgot I had the link. I actually really support everything this woman has done. I also can understand who in some cases bullies are born. But first I need to talk about what brought all of this on. ERF, on his latest website, had a shoutbox. Someone thought it would be funny to post some really nasty, racist, ugly comments and use ERF's name. Now this person is not in the group dotbunnyhunt that has ERF so angry and paranoid. Not that it matters, ERF believes they are. Apparently the person has stepped forward and claimed responsibility for what they did. I can only hope that ERF believes their apology, and understand that dotbunnyhunt, while serious about watching him for copyright infringement, and teaching teens without parental consent, would not do something like this.

So from me personally to ERF, I apologise, if there was a way I could have stopped this person I would have. While I still believe you go way over the line, I do not believe you are an Elder, nor do you have the right to call yourself one, this person was wrong. I am truly sorry you had to be subjected to this. I would ask however, that you remember using Bonwits name to spam Daven's website. How do you think Bonwits felt that you had done so? There is a lesson in this for all of us. Yes, I do include myself in that statement.

From: http://www.geocities.com/pagan_bullies/who_they_are.htm

A bully is a person who:

• refuses to acknowledge or accept responsibility for their behaviour and its consequences
• is primarily concerned with their own pleasure
• wants power over others, and is willing to use and abuse other people to get what they want.
• is consistent with whatever type of abuse they specialize in - it occurs every time you see them, and not just when they are in a bad mood
• is unwilling to recognize that there could be better ways of behaving. Bullying is obsessive and compulsive; they have to have someone to bully and appear to be unable to survive without a current target.

Now, this is interesting because of late several folk I know, including myself have been branded as bullies. So, I needed to go look for myself, am I really a bully?

Based on what I've found, no, I don't believe I qualify, though I can see how one might think so. I can see though that some of the tactics used in the quest to get ERF to accept responisiblity for his words, deeds and behavior are bullying. That disturbs me, and I need to reflect more on that.

Part of the reason I removed myself to this blog is because I felt that the people I was watching and commenting on were actually trolls. (more on trolls in a later blog). But after more research I'm finding that while the one person I've been watching and commenting on the most, ERF, may very well be a troll, he also has serious mental health issues. Namely, Narcissistic Personality disorder.

An interesting article on Narcissistic Personality Disorder:

http://www.halcyon.com/jmashmun/npd/traits.html

"The most telling thing that narcissists do is contradict themselves. They will do this virtually in the same sentence, without even stopping to take a breath. It can be trivial (e.g., about what they want for lunch) or it can be serious (e.g., about whether or not they love you). When you ask them which one they mean, they'll deny ever saying the first one, though it may literally have been only seconds since they said it -- really, how could you think they'd ever have said that? You need to have your head examined! They will contradict FACTS. They will lie to you about things that you did together. They will misquote you to yourself. If you disagree with them, they'll say you're lying, making stuff up, or are crazy." (sound like anyone we know?)

THE SMARTEST, MOST TALENTED, ALL-AROUND BEST PERSON IN THE WORLD TEST:

THE NARCISSISTIC VAMPIRE CHECKLIST

True or false? Score one point for each true answer.

1. THIS PERSON HAS ACHIEVED MORE THAN MOST PEOPLE HIS OR HER AGE.

2. THIS PERSON IS FIRMLY CONVINCED THAT HE OR SHE IS BETTER, SMARTER, OR MORE TALENTED THAN OTHER PEOPLE.

3. THIS PERSON LOVES COMPETITION, BUT IS A POOR LOSER.

4. THIS PERSON HAS FANTASIES OF DOING SOMETHING GREAT OR BEING FAMOUS, AND OFTEN EXPECTS TO BE TREATED AS IF THESE FANTASIES HAD ALREADY COME TRUE.

5. THIS PERSON HAS VERY LITTLE INTEREST IN WHAT OTHER PEOPLE ARE THINKING OR FEELING, UNLESS HE OR SHE WANTS SOMETHING FROM THEM.

6. THIS PERSON IS A NAME DROPPER.

7. TO THIS PERSON IT IS VERY IMPORTANT TO LIVE IN THE RIGHT PLACE AND ASSOCIATE WITH THE RIGHT PEOPLE.

8. THIS PERSON TAKES ADVANTAGE OF OTHER PEOPLE TO ACHIEVE HIS OR HER OWN GOALS.

9. THIS PERSON USUALLY MANAGES TO BE IN A CATEGORY BY HIM OR HERSELF.

10. THIS PERSON OFTEN FEELS PUT UPON WHEN ASKED TO TAKE CARE OF HIS OR HER RESPONSIBILITIES TO FAMILY, FRIENDS, OR WORK GROUP.

11. THIS PERSON REGULARLY DISREGARDS RULES OR EXPECTS THEM TO BE CHANGED BECAUSE HE OR SHE IS IN SOME WAY SPECIAL.

12. THIS PERSON BECOMES IRRITATED WHEN OTHER PEOPLE DON'T AUTOMATICALLY DO WHAT HE OR SHE WANTS THEM TO DO, EVEN WHEN THEY HAVE A GOOD REASON FOR NOT COMPLYING.

13. THIS PERSON REVIEWS SPORTS, ART, AND LITERATURE BY TELLING YOU WHAT HE OR SHE WOULD HAVE DONE INSTEAD.

14. THIS PERSON THINKS MOST CRITICISMS OF HIM OR HER ARE MOTIVATED BY JEALOUSY.

15. THIS PERSON REGARDS ANYTHING SHORT OF WORSHIP TO BE REJECTION.

16. THIS PERSON SUFFERS FROM A CONGENITAL INABILITY TO RECOGNIZE HIS OR HER OWN MISTAKES. ON THE RARE OCCASIONS THAT THIS PERSON DOES RECOGNIZE A MISTAKE, EVEN THE SLIGHTEST ERROR CAN PRECIPITATE A MAJOR DEPRESSION.

17. THIS PERSON OFTEN EXPLAINS WHY PEOPLE WHO ARE BETTER KNOWN THAN HE OR SHE IS ARE NOT REALLY ALL THAT GREAT.

18. THIS PERSON OFTEN COMPLAINS OF BEING MISTREATED OR MISUNDERSTOOD.

19. PEOPLE EITHER LOVE OR HATE THIS PERSON.

20. DESPITE THIS PERSON'S OVERLY HIGH OPINION OF HIM OR HERSELF, HE OR SHE IS REALLY QUITE INTELLIGENT AND TALENTED.

Scoring: Five or more true answers qualifies the person as a Narcissistic Emotional Vampire, though not necessarily for a diagnosis of Narcissistic Personality. If the person scores higher than ten, and is not a member of the royal family, be careful that you aren't mistaken for one of the servants.

and

NEXT STOP, THE TWILIGHT ZONE: THE PARANOID EMOTIONAL VAMPIRE CHECKLIST

True or false? Score one point for each true answer.

1. THIS PERSON IS OVERLY SUSPICIOUS.

2. THIS PERSON HAS VERY FEW CLOSE FRIENDS.

3. THIS PERSON CAN MAKE A BIG DEAL OUT OF NOTHING.

4. THIS PERSON TENDS TO SEE MANY SITUATIONS AS STRUGGLES BETWEEN GOOD AND EVIL.

5. THIS PERSON NEVER SEEMS TO LET GO OF A HURT OR MISTREATMENT.

6. THIS PERSON SELDOM TAKES WHAT HE OR SHE IS TOLD AT FACE VALUE.

7. THIS PERSON WILL CUT PEOPLE OUT OF HIS OR HER LIFE FOR TINY SLIGHTS.

8. THIS PERSON IS ABLE TO DETECT DECEPTION IN ONE OR TWO PARTS PER BILLION, AND SOMETIMES SEES IT WHEN IT ISN'T THERE AT ALL.

9. THIS PERSON DEMANDS ABSOLUTE LOYALTY IN THOUGHT AND DEED.

10. THIS PERSON IS FIERCELY PROTECTIVE OF HIS OR HER FAMILY. (OR ONE OR TWO CLOSE FRIENDS)

11. THIS PERSON SEES CONNECTIONS AMONG THINGS THAT MOST PEOPLE WOULD CONSIDER UNRELATED.

12. THIS PERSON SEES LITTLE MISTAKES, SUCH AS LACK OF PUNCTUALITY OR FORGETTING INSTRUCTIONS, AS INDICATIONS OF DISLOYALTY OR DISRESPECT.

13. THIS PERSON TELLS PEOPLE WHAT OTHERS ONLY SAY BEHIND THEIR BACKS.

14. THIS PERSON MAY HAVE A GOOD SENSE OF HUMOR, BUT CANNOT SEEM TO LAUGH AT HIM OR HERSELF.

15. WHAT WILL MAKE THIS PERSON ANGRY SEEMS COMPLETELY UNPREDICTABLE.

16. THIS PERSON SEES HIM OR HERSELF AS A VICTIM OF MULTIPLE DISCRIMINATIONS.

17. THIS PERSON BELIEVES TRUST IS SOMETHING THAT HAS TO BE EARNED.

18. THIS PERSON HAS TAKEN ILL CONSIDERED ACTIONS “ON PRINCIPLE”.

19. THIS PERSON OFTEN TALKS ABOUT SUING PEOPLE TO REDRESS WRONGS.

20. THIS PERSON QUESTIONS PEOPLE TO DETERMINE THEIR LOYALTY AND FIDELITY.

21. THIS PERSON COLLECTS LITTLE DETAILS THAT SEEM TO PROVE HIS OR HER PET THEORIES.

22. THIS PERSON BELIEVES IN THE LITERAL INTERPRETATION OF THE BIBLE OR OTHER RELIGIOUS TEXT.

23. THIS PERSON BELIEVES IN UFO’S, ASTROLOGY, PSYCHIC PHENOMENA OR OTHER CONCEPTS THAT MOST PEOPLE CONSIDER TO BE ON THE FRINGE OF CREDIBILITY.

24. THIS PERSON OPENLY ADVOCATES CRUEL AND UNUSUAL PUNISHMENT FOR CERTAIN CLASSES OF PEOPLE. (e.g. THEY SHOULD TAKE ALL THE BIGOTS AND . . .)

25. THOUGH I WON'T ALWAYS ADMIT IT, THIS PERSON IS SOMETIMES EMBARRASSINGLY CORRECT IN HIS OR HER ASSESSMENT OF ME.

Scoring: Five or more true answers qualifies the person as a Paranoid Emotional Vampire, though not necessarily for a diagnosis of Paranoid Personality. With twelve or more true answers, watch out for Imperial storm-troopers.

For more follow the link, it's a fantastic web site.
http://www.albernstein.com/id59.htm