mandag den 31. marts 2025

Women And Piracy

 

Mary Reade, female pirate (died 1721)


According to verified history, several female pirates who roamed the seas, killing and robbing sailors, noblemen and even kings at will were more cruel than their male colleges. However, they were also considered very adept at what they were doing, dressed up in male attire not to be hampered by women's clothes. 


 Anne Bonny, female pirate (disappeared 1720)

 

The majority of pirates have been men, but still, at one time there seems to have been around 100 female pirates, some in command of entire pirate fleets. Others occupied secondary roles, being the home providers of male pirates. They sold the loot obtained by other pirates, male or female, and provided escape possibilities for them. Some of the pirates had obtained protection from royal patrons like e.g. Elizabeth I of England who had what's called "Sea Dogs" as part of the fleet defending her country. Pirates they were, but some gained fame and a higher social standing that way. 


Francis Drake (1591) 

Some of the most notorious "Sea Dogs" were: Francis Drake, Humphrey Gilbert, John Hawkins, Walter Raleigh, Richard Hawkins, Richard Grenville, Martin Frobisher, John Davis.


Two men fighting? No, Mary Read killing a male opponent

One of the main reasons why female pirates dressed like men was that rules prohibited women on male pirate ships, as they were seen as the natural targets for lustful males. However, the female pirates made their own rules when the crew was all female as e.g. with the mythical pirate princess, Alvilda. She was made out to be a Swedish Viking princess who fled a marriage with the Danish king/prince Alf, whom she for some obscure reason resented: Obscure for being a 90% fairy tale or legend, and not a historical fact. Anyway, according to this legend they fell in love after fighting each other - and the rest is a romantic fairy tale of the pirate princess becoming the Queen of Denmark ....



https://prints.rmg.co.uk/products/alvilda-one-of-the-first-female-pirates-d3854-6?srsltid=AfmBOopnGn5Pr8d1TuqVvTZLpgmLHipK2TX4TE98alqEdnQcb5yQJghA

 

https://www.discoveryuk.com/mysteries/awilda-tale-of-a-pirate-queen/

 

Wikipedia

 

søndag den 30. marts 2025

"Choices" from "The Woman Who Killed Her Guardian Angel"


Last year I published several ebooks on Amazon KDP. One of them was "The Woman Who Killed Her Guardian Angel". However, when it became obvious that Amazon is part of the disgusting 2025-scheme of what is called "the oligarchs of America" I decided to unpublish all my new ebooks. By now, there are only some of my previously published books by other publishers on Amazon.

This short story, "Choices" is from the unpublished collection of short stories on Amazon-KDP, ”The Woman Who Killed Her Guardian Angel”

When Abby woke up in the morning the very first thing she thought of was the telly shows she had seen the previous night: “Kings of Destiny” which was right after another one of her absolute favorites, “Get A Million For Fun”. 

Not yet having had her wake-me-up-cup-of-coffee her head was positively spinning with what she had seen before going to bed. As not much on this earth was of greater interest to her than her favorite telly shows it was quite annoying that she, as she grew older, had developed a habit of falling asleep when watching television. WHAT had happened to the royal court of King Canute? She wasn’t sure and it annoyed her.

The drama held her tight so she decided to phone her younger sister, Vera, hoping that she had seen the shows and might tell her what had happened. She knew full well that most likely her sister had spent her evening watching election programs with that black woman, who was always grinning like a deranged demon. However, maybe she was in luck, and Vera for once had skipped the election program for the excessive drama of Canute, Ahab as well as the adorable princess Bettinia. The suspense had multiplied when the princess had fallen in love with that sinister and much too swarthy Ahab who, she felt sure, was out to commit treason. Maybe he was even planning to murder the rightful king, Canute. When thinking of these royal intrigues her heart skipped a beat or two with anxiety, but still, she loved it! 

Actually, sometimes she even forgot to eat to watch it! Also she had some grave concerns about the heroine of the “Get A Million For Fun”, the lovely and stylish, but not quite young, Ms Zenia: Did she win that million or was she cheated out of it by that less than pretty and even somewhat mannish Ms Margareth who obviously enough didn’t know the first things about make-up and fashion?

Also, she had the most annoying habit of grinning at all times, even without anything to grin about, just like that black woman who was on television day in, day out: Absolutely NOT very ladylike to say the least ….

Not to know the outcome of that, in her opinion, very important competition about a million was annoying beyond belief, and she was adamant to find out as soon as possible! In the meantime, she would send that lovely and stylish Ms Zenia some potent thoughts and prayers!

When she sat down to her coffee she turned on the telly, full of expectations to see something about these ongoing telly-dramas. She got very annoyed when she found out that it was all about that black woman, who was always laughing too much, the election and some confusing stuff about “tariffs”, the rights of women as well as the prospects of something called “2025”.

While sipping her delicious coffee she sent her younger sister, Vera, the very first one of the numerous emails she had become accustomed to post on a daily basis: “Do you know what happened to Ms Zenia yesterday, and what about Princess Bettinia. Did she find out that that awful, treasonable – as well as rather swarthy - Ahab is double-crossing her and the rightful king of the realm?”

As these fictive dramas held her in such a tight grip, she decided also to phone her sister, after having mailed her, but not receiving a reply. She really hoped that Vera had seen the shows, all the time fully aware that she most likely hadn’t chosen the intrigues of the fictive royalty and maybe just as fictive millions over the ongoing election.



- Well, at least I shall give it a try, Abby thought, and anyway, not so long ago, it did hold a certain interest to Vera too. Because of the election - and that black, grinning woman - she just forgot about it for a while.

- One week from now, she thought, heaving a sigh of relief, everything will be back to normal.

At least that was what she hoped, as she missed the daily discussions of the shows with her sister. Also, she missed seeing her at their favorite cafe, “The Bullfrog”, which served the very best coffee she had ever tasted. It was a place for young people, but she loved to go there.

Yes, back to the good life as it used to be and no more silly stuff about that black woman and her annoying way of grinning at all times! (As if she had anything to grin about!!!)
However, Abby had some slight misgivings about phoning her sister, as she sensed that she wasn’t too happy about being called to the phone these days. Normally she too loved their phone conversations, but obviously not right now as all she was thinking about seemed to be that black woman.

- Silly! Abby thought, and WHY would she keep focusing on her?

After thinking the matter over once more, she decided to phone her sister, but first she sent her a second email which also was ignored. That surprised her, and she waited a little longer before she sent her one more. Three emails and still no reply??!!!!!! That was alarming and not  at all like Vera.

- Strange, she thought, getting a bit nervous that something was amiss with her kid sister.

Normally Vera was very fast in answering the phone, so after having written one more email – making it four in all!!! - and it also was ignored, she phoned her, although that was not her preference, as she preferred emails: “I’m DEAF,” she always said, “remember, DEAF and OLD! You should respect that and write!”

Yeah, yeah, and blind as well as lame and lopsided,” Vera said, teasing her. 

However, this time there was no room for teasings as Vera seemed totally fixated on other and, to her, much more urgent subjects. 

“Did you see that guy with the eyeliner and the Indian wife? Earlier on, he has said something awful and very, very distasteful about a couch. Really disgusting! I do hope you’ve voted to keep those guys out!”

Abby, who was proud of having voted early to “help that poor President who was abused by everybody”, had no idea what she was talking about. That’s why she just repeated her question: “Did Ms Zenia win that million or didn’t she, and what about Princess Bettinia?”

Why are you always talking about some silly television show?” Vera yelled, exasperated. “Don’t you understand that there is much more at stake at this very moment? Just think of what is going to happen with that 2025-project.”

Oh that? It will blow over. That kind of things always does, don’t worry about something that silly. It’s just for publicity to make us realize that the Pres is thinking of our best.”

As was to be expected that comment was the set-off to one of their more and more heated debates about topics that weren’t of any genuine interest to Abby, but which she felt obliged to discuss because that was what her sister wanted.

Why do you always talk of that kind of things?” she said, quite annoyed. “The Pres will make it right again when he is seated.”

“”Seated” where??!!!” Vera yelled, in a very angry voice. “Is he being arrested and going to court, at long last getting the chair for all his crimes?”

Abby got all that angry at such a disrespectful comment about the President that she slammed the receiver of her old, beloved rotary dial phone down on the table.

A few moments later her cell phone – which she hated!!! – rang.

Believing that it was Vera out to apologize she did answer it, but was surprised to hear a foreign voice, which she didn’t recognize, talking about the election and that black woman. Only because of her upbringing stressing the importance of always being polite to everyone she didn’t slam that phone down too.

Who is this?” she asked.

My name is Ahmed Zanzibar, “We want to give you the opportunity of supporting the just cause of ….”

Before he got to finish the sentence, she filled in: “…. Oh, yes, something has to be done about that black woman ….”

Eh’,” he said, a bit confused, but not for long as he soon regained his composure. “Well, yes, she is ….”

“…. in need of ….”

She once more filled in. “All that laughing and not being nice to the Pres, it’s absolutely intolerable!!!”

Well, yes, eh’ ….” he said. “But – as you may know – fighting something like that . is quite expensive, right?”

He hurriedly gave her directions for “supporting the good cause”, and she felt triumphant to be able to do something for the just fight of Mr. - or was it Dr Zanzibar??? - against President-hating scums of the election like that black, grinning woman. A few hours later she had forgotten all about this incident as the lovely and stylish Ms Zenia did win the million from the mannish Ms Margareth.

- Wonderful! She thought. That should teach that ugly and grinning Margareth-creature a lesson!!!!


https://boobytrapec.blogspot.com/2023/09/jezebel-classic-stereotype-of-bad-woman.html


lørdag den 29. marts 2025

Miracles


 OK, miracles are part of religions of all kinds. Actually, they are seen as "evidence" of a certain religion. The Resurrection of Jesus was considered the ultimate proof that he was what he was supposed to be, as dead people normally don't leave their grave, walking on their own feet. However, it wasn't proved the way we of modern times want to see proofs to be believable: DNA, fingerprints, videos, etc., etc. It doesn't count as "proofs", but only as "rumors".

The life force of Yahweh made humans (and animals) alive, and that was in itself proclaimed to be a miracle and thus another "proof" of the religion so many people believed in. However, how could a "miracle" - no matter what - be a "proof" of a religion? Does a religion even need something like "miracles" to be seen as valid? In my opinion, it sort of turns the religion into some kind of a "show".

This looks like a miraculously moment in the life of a human being, but it's not in itself a "miracle". Those who chose Yahweh over e.g. Baal did so, not to experience a moment like this one, but to find a bully who would be a strong bulwark against the hardships of a normal human life. People expected their god to have special insights that somehow would save the ordinary man or woman in a miraculous manner. This connection between the everyday life of humans and the Celestial world became believable to them when it was sprinkled with a little miracle-dust, no matter how weird those "miracles" were. 


https://www.learnreligions.com/miracles-of-jesus-700158 

 

Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

fredag den 28. marts 2025

Controlling What Needs To Be Controlled

The word "control" is many-facetted, as it takes meaning from the circumstances. One may control oneself or someone else, which is something quite different. To lose control over oneself may be a special kind of accident that brings whole strings of misfortune. 

"Half"? I would say "most of" the problems of e.g. this nosy guy. What is he doing, and why can't he control himself when he acts this stupid? This behavior has sent several serial murderers or rapists behind bars. That's good for the society, which needs to take control over criminals to make the wheels of its inborn machinery working, but it's devastating for the individual who may/may not have really bad notions. Even so, it's not smart, and he/she would do him-/herself a favor stopping that kind of a stupid behavior.


Queen Margrethe II of Denmark talking about how her paternal grandfather, King Christian X, had to sign the declaration of votes for women in 1915: He did not like the idea, but had to do what was decided by the Danish Cabinet. Yup, the control really had shifted from the king to the people, and that's how it should be.


All over the world, women fought to gain the right to vote, i.e. to get control over important parts of the political system forming their destiny. That should be a forever-right, but we see how it is still being assailed by misogynistic politicians like e.g. Don the Con and his callous ways of setting Roe out of order. The political control even includes minimizing the impact of e.g. female scientists: "Who controls the past controls the future; who controls the present controls the past." (George Orwell) 



To obliterate history, and thus FALSIFYING it, is a grave assault on the general truth that serves as one of the glues that keeps our society together and workable. It's a no-no that should never be turned into a yes-yes. The same goes for FREE SPEECH, which is of the utmost importance, something that should never be assailed by someone who wants the control of other people. Free Speech is taken for granted as something "natural" by too many. Actually, it stems from the Athenian Democracy, 6th or 5th century BC, and it has been lost over and over up through history. It's worth fighting for as it's what gives us one of the means of controlling our destiny.


https://www.ktvu.com/news/trump-threatens-free-speech-college-campuses-arrest-agitators

 

Wikipedia


onsdag den 26. marts 2025

Dolls In Love And Politics

 

Those who see the photo of this girl may notice that she doesn't exactly look vivacious, full of spunk or just happy. On the contrary, she is looking demure and sort of grumpy. Why, when she is a doll and not a live person? After all, the designer might have made her look radiant, happy and adventurous, but no, he/she chose to make her look unhappy and not all there, so to speak. 

Well, that might be a kind of comment on her "job": She is a sex-doll, set to represent an age-group when real, live girls and boys her age are forbidden goods. Maybe the designer wanted to stress that fact by making her look less than welcoming?

We have just experienced a scandal in Denmark: A Danish politician has been caught with under-age-porn and a child sex doll. Is that as bad as being caught with a live under-age-child? I should say "Naaahhh", but it comes close as it indicates what this man is dreaming of and thus may plan to do.


Well, love does form special codes, and this is one of the strangest ones I've seen. Does the child love Hitler the man or Hitler the doll? I assume, neither of them, but some grown-up found it "funny" to furnish the innocent one with a love-image of the ultimate cruelty and inhumanity, and she fell for it as she loves dolls of all kinds. 

Who might this flag-waving superhero be? Well, he is Barack Obama, who else could it be in a time period when the world is smarting from the ideas of his political opposite in presidential reign, tRump??? 

As it is, there are tRump-dolls, but I doubt they will have much love appeal for anyone but himself. 
 



tirsdag den 25. marts 2025

Queen Victoria, The Avenger And Scandalmonger

The young queen Victoria wasn't plain, but neither was she pretty. Had she not been The Queen she would probably not have been the dream object of some lovesick English citizens, as she might very well have been passed over as an insignificant woman. However, when she escaped from the strict rules of her mother, The Duchess of Kent, and her attendant/lover, Sir John Conroy, to become The Queen (1837) instead of the bullied dumpling she was before that event she still held a severe grudge against the people who had helped them in their efforts to keep her within the so-called "Kensington System" which she loathed.

The Duchess of Kent and a very young Victoria

The pair of them took an interest in every nook of the life of the young girl, which makes it understandable that the first thing she asked for when she was told that now she was The Queen was to be alone: No more sleeping in the room of her mother, and no more obedience to Sir John Conroy whom she detested. Presumably The Queen didn't forget or forgive easily, but the target she chose for her revenge wasn't her mother, but one of her ladies-in-waiting: Lady Flora Elizabeth Rawdon-Hastings (1806-1839). 

Having been a helper of The Duchess of Kent and her associate, Sir John Conroy, Lady Flora may have seemed to be the perfect target for a revenge, and Victoria chose her weapons with great care. She let it be known that she found it strange that an unmarried woman like Lady Flora had such a big underbelly as she did. Thus implying that Lady Flora had forgotten the rules of unmarried women as to chastity and that she must be pregnant, she succeeded in implying that the close friend/lover of her mother may have seduced her. Poor Lady Flora at first refused to have a medical inspection, but only for a while, as the suspicions that were instituted by none less than The Queen herself were considered very grave in nature: She had to give in to undergo an examination.


And what was the conclusion of this humiliating examination? Well, there was no baby, no clandestine affair with the detested associate/lover of The Duchess of Kent, but a tumor of the liver that killed Lady Flora in 1839. At that time, Queen Victoria had lost her popularity with her otherwise loving and supporting people because they sided with the poor, sick Lady Flora.

As to The Queen, she regained her popularity after marrying her cousin, Prince Albert - who was the nephew of her mother - and giving birth to 9 children even though she didn't like being pregnant. I wonder whether she sometimes thought of Lady Flora and her non-existing "pregnancy" or whether she chose to forget all about it. Maybe she even read the poetry of Lady Flora?


https://www.youngqueenvictoria.co.uk/queenvictoriarevivalthe-lady-flora-hastings-scandal

 

https://www.britannica.com/biography/Lady-Flora-Hastings 

 

Wikipedia

 


søndag den 23. marts 2025

When Diagnostics Go WRONG

 

X-rays, blood samples, and the likes are what it takes to form an educated opinion on someone's health. At least it feels safer than what looks too much as guesses and nothing but that. Still, there may be misjudgments, leading to wrong diagnostics, which may end up killing or maiming the patient. 


Also, one should take into consideration that some diagnoses leave a stigma that may follow the patient for years, describing him or her as "weird", "untrustworthy" or downright "treacherous". Something that I take most often is very unfair, as it's very likely that it stems from bad communications: After all, doctor's language isn't the same as the language of the ordinary nonmedically trained patient. 

As it is, I think that it often is much safer to keep to private descriptions of one's more or less "exotic" symptoms than accepting a maybe non-valid diagnosis. The problem is that not being a doctor, one doesn't know for sure that a diagnosis is erroneous, and that one, looking for the right one, may end up in what's called "doctor shopping": One starts out on a very brave Odyssey to find what one believes is "the right diagnosis" - which there still isn't any guarantee that it is ....

OK, now there is what looks like a 99% safe diagnosis, so off we go to find a cure: The patient doesn't like being ill and thus dependent on his/her family or the social system, and the doctor hates not to be the one who heals the wound, sets the physical system right or whatever. A cure is needed and as we don't believe in magic we can't resort to the medicine of former times. We need science, but the science of today may not be the science of tomorrow! To know what that means, I just have to think of what was done to Queen Anne or Henry VIII of England: Not much of it comes short of what we might call torture - useless torture at that, as it didn't cure any of them, and they suffered for years.

As we are not meant to live forever, The Grim Reaper needs what might be called a "safe way" to pay us a visit. Most of us don't like to think about that day, but we KNOW that, sooner or later, it will happen. That being said, I start thinking about illnesses and cures: I would not accept all kind of cures to treat all kind of illnesses. Actually, I consider some of those cures beneath me, just as I do with some actions like e.g. murdering someone to get body parts, a fetus, etc. from them. However, I'm aware that some people have done - or are planning to do - just that, which is one of the backsides of the advances of modern medicine.  


https://clarkmitchell.com/medical-malpractice-erroneous-diagnosis-treatment/ 

 

https://www.ncbi.nlm.nih.gov/books/NBK499956/ 

 

In Danish: https://www.sundhed.dk/borger/patienthaandbogen/sundhedsoplysning/medicininformationer/den-fejlbarlige-medicin/proever-og-test-er-ikke-perfekte/ 

 

In Danish: https://patientsikkerhed.dk/ny-rapport-om-fejldiagnoser-risiko-stoerst-ved-brud-og-kraeft/ 

 

Wikipedia 


torsdag den 20. marts 2025

The Myth of the Alpha Male

 

Here we see one of the general "Alpha male attitudes". It's very physical in its symbolism: Chin up, chest out, trying to give the impression of being bigger and taller than other men, also straight back and arms "making handles" at the waist. It's obvious that these two guys were showing off as best they could, especially the one to the left: Benito Mussolini. However, it was the shorter one - and he really was very short! - to the right who held the reins, so to speak: The Italian King Victor Emanuel III who played a decisive role in bringing Mussolini to power (1922) as well as removing him (1943). The German friend and associate of Mussolini, Adolf Hitler, positively abhorred this king for being very short as well as down-right ugly. Still, king he was, which gave him a sort of alpha-birth-right, decided by history and politics.

Before the 1990s the terms Alpha and Beta were primarily used in animal ethology, maybe especially in apes. After the publication of Frans de Waal's book "Chimpanzee Politics: Power And Sex Among Apes" (1982) some parallel to humans and human societies became more and more popular. The term "Alpha" attained a kind of cult status when being used about humans, especially men: Everybody from ordinary, but more or less brutal social climbers to all men out to gain power wanted to be called "Alpha men", and those who didn't behave like driven by a wish for power were seen as "Beta men". The purpose of a man wanting to become an "Alpha" would be that he might have more chances of getting sex, but still, it's no guarantee that that would happen. One thing is sure, men took to the idea of "Alpha" and "Beta", not only in animal societies, but also in those of humans.

However, humans are more closely related to the Bonobo, than e.g. the Chimpanzee which should make us proud as they seem smarter and more social. For instance, they know to read the facial expression and behavior of humans. They, who don't live in Patriarchies, but in Matriarchies, have been found capable of altruism, compassion, kindness, patience, and sensitivity. As to "the leader of the pack" it most commonly is a couple of old matriarchs which one might call Alpha females, but it's a more or less meaningless term in this context. Actually, it is not useful to describe what's going on in a human society with terms like "Alpha" and "Beta", but some men, like e.g. Andrew Tate, clings to it as an important part of their identity. I fail to see anything "Alpha" in a man who, like Andrew Tate, resorts to sex trafficking and various sexual crimes to "prove" his masculinity. Chinless and probably lacking other male characteristics, he doesn't strike one as Alpha in any way.

Self-identified "Alpha males" like for instance Andrew Tate get very vulnerable when criticized for not being or looking what they themselves proclaim they are. Criticism is seen as an attack on their very personality, even though it's a construct like e.g. in Mussolini who strutted around, pretending to be some kind of Superman which he clearly wasn't.

 

https://www.calm.com/blog/alpha-male

 

https://greatergood.berkeley.edu/article/item/the_myth_of_the_alpha_male 

 

https://www.discovermagazine.com/planet-earth/the-science-of-alpha-males-in-animal-species 

 

Wikipedia


onsdag den 19. marts 2025

He Fought With Joan d'Arc, But May Have Been A Sadistic Murderer of Children

 

Handsome as well as rich and of a noble family of great repute, so why was Gilles de Rais (c. 1404-1440) arrested and executed in 1440? Well, he was tortured, and confessed - not surprisingly - to the horrendous crimes, he was accused of, one of them murdering children. Was he guilty, as claimed, or was he innocent? When one learns that he fought side by side with another executed victim of these rough ages, it's difficult not to suspect foul play: The illustrious Joan of Arc. 


Joan of Arc (1412-1431)  

One of the "crimes" of Joan was that she wore men's clothes, at least sometimes. As both she and Gilles de Rais were active soldiers in the Hundred Years' War, fighting and killing their adversaries, that choice in clothing seems quite rational, but it was part of the accusations against her.


As to Gilles de Rais then he had become the Baron of Retz as a child. Later he became Marshall of France. Both his large inheritances from his parents as well as the dowry from his very wealthy wife made him so rich and powerful that one would have expected him to be untouchable, but no. Somehow that fact may even have made him a special target for the accusations that lead to his death. At least, it's well known that his family wanted to curb his spending a lot of money, e.g. on artists, when returning to his estates after the war. They made the king, then he was made to forbid that he sold his lands. That means that there were strong forces against him at the time when he allegedly started his murder sprees. 

Many children did disappear, and it was obvious that they might very well be abducted by some evil minded individual, but whom? Why would a rich nobleman like Gilles be interested in kidnapping children? Well, in the aftermath of the war he became more and more interested in the occult. He befriended a shady monk by the name of Prelati who was assumed to know a lot about sorcery, the summoning of demons and the like. All of it was of great interest to the war veteran and that didn't go unnoticed by his contemporaries. 

He, the rich nobleman, was accused of torturing and murdering children, and he was sentenced to death after a trial that counted loads of testimonies from more or less trustworthy witnesses. Even today there has been disputes about the validity of the accusations: Did he, or didn't he, do it? I don't think it's possible to know for sure, but the trial and the sentence secured his presumed status of being the world's first serial murderer.

He was executed by hanging, but also he was tortured by a fire being lit and burning beneath his feet. 

 

Wikipedia

 

Britannica

 

https://criminalminds.fandom.com/wiki/Gilles_de_Rais