ZERO

 

Well, balloons are full of air - i.e. "nothing" - so in many ways this is the perfect symbol of what we know as the ZERO ....

Zeroes are not worth much when you need something and have to find money for it on your empty bank account, but GOSH, how interesting as an idea.

"Zero's origins most likely date back to the “fertile crescent” of ancient Mesopotamia. Sumerian scribes used spaces to denote absences in number columns as early as 4,000 years ago, but the first recorded use of a zero-like symbol dates to sometime around the third century B.C. in ancient Babylon." (History)

According to tradition it appeared in Europe as late as approximately 1200, also introducing the "comma" of numbers which has its own mystique.  

When somebody asks you "is this (empty!!!) number even or odd one finds out just how strange it is. How is it even possible that it entered the series of numbers: 1 - 2 - 3 - and so on or 0 - 1 - 2 - 3, etc. when it in itself is empty? It may be tempting to denounce it as some kind of "non-number", but that would ruin the picture of how to do mathematics as well as a lot of other things in the modern world .... 

 

https://www.history.com/news/who-invented-the-zero 

https://greenwoodhigh.edu.in/discovery-of-zero/

 

https://www.britannica.com/dictionary/zero 

 

 

https://www.britannica.com/science/zero-mathematics

https://www.cbc.ca/radio/ideas/zero-number-series-ideas-cbc-1.6977700 

 

https://www.popsci.com/science/crows-can-count/?utm_term=pscene052324

 

Britannica

 

Wikipedia 

Trump And The STRATEGY of Bankruptcies

One of the most note-worthy events of the 2016-election was sort of forgotten or brushed aside because it wasn't understood by people who are not experts in fraudulent economics. It's likely that that goes for most of the Trump voters both then and now, but not for Hillary Clinton who actually asked her opponent about his many bankruptcies:

 

“You’ve taken business bankruptcies six times.”
–Hillary Clinton

“On occasion – four times – we used certain laws that are there.”

–Donald Trump

 

Well, following the law usually is a good thing, but exploiting it is not, and that's what Donald Trump did several times .... He is what we in Danish call a "konkursrytter", but his repeated practice doesn't - as far as I can see - have a just as expressive term in English. Well, never mind, let's call him a "Phoenix with a very ruffled plumage" as that is what he is, and has been for years. 

It's well known that his father gave him $400 million and he spent a lot of money on business adventures that led to bankruptcies: The Taj Mahal declared bankruptcy in 1991, the Trump Plaza and the Trump Castle in 1992. However, instead of liquidate the debt his lenders restructured it which made it possible for Trump to put his casino holdings into a new company which (lo and behold!!!!!), went bankrupt in 2004. And, as was to be expected, the company that emerged from that bankruptcy-restructuring declared bankruptcy in 2009. The 6th bankruptcy was the Plaza Hotel, which went bankrupt by 1992 after being bought in 1988. 

All of this smacks of "Illegal phoenix activity which occurs when a new company, for little or no value, continues the business of an existing company that has been liquidated or otherwise abandoned to avoid paying outstanding debts, which can include taxes, creditors and employee entitlements."

I think Hillary recognized this pattern, but unfortunately she didn't pursue it more than she did even though it looks like blatant economic fraud: "This illegal practice usually happens when company directors abandon the company or transfer the business of an existing company to a new company without paying true or market value, leaving debts with the old company. Once the assets have been transferred, the old company is placed in liquidation or abandoned. If the liquidator is appointed, there are no assets to recover, which means creditors cannot be paid."

Abusing this system that robs other people of their money must have been a lark for someone like Don the Con: "Once the assets are transferred to a new company, the directors continue to operate the business. This gives the new business an unfair advantage when competing for work, because they have less debt and lower operating costs. Illegal phoenix activity directly impacts sub-contractors, creditors and employees as they are left unpaid and out of pocket. It also indirectly impacts the broader community because the company avoids having to pay tax, while at the same time Government often has to subsidise outstanding employee entitlements of liquidated companies."

Sadly enough illegal phoenix activity costs employees a lot in unpaid entitlements. Also it costs the Government around $1,660 million in unpaid taxes ....

 

https://www.washingtonpost.com/politics/2016/live-updates/general-election/real-time-fact-checking-and-analysis-of-the-first-presidential-debate/fact-check-has-trump-declared-bankruptcy-four-or-six-times/ 

 

https://www.abi.org/feed-item/examining-donald-trump%E2%80%99s-chapter-11-bankruptcies 

 

https://asic.gov.au/for-business/small-business/closing-a-small-business/illegal-phoenix-activity/ 

 

Wikipedia

 

Related links

• Where to report illegal phoenix activity
• ASIC action on illegal phoenix activity
• Resigning or removing a company director
  

 

 

Identifying With One's Genitals

 

 

The myths of Women and cats, BIG cats, go far back, here it is the ancient goddess, Cybele who sits enthroned with her lions

The cult of the penis/phallos in some old religions is something very strange and contradictory as it (often) includes an eradication of the functioning of the organ. For instance one of the most interesting and intriguing Magna Maters (and there are several!) of ancient times, Cybele, had a eunich lover, Attis, whom she - testicles or not - loved dearly. Not only did she have this eunich lover, but her priests also were eunichs which indicates that to worship this high ranking goddess one had to give up one's maleness .... 

When one thinks of the orgies that are part of the worship of her it gets quite weird: WHAT were all these eunichs doing to please the goddess??? Male gods, like e.g. Allah, promises their followers endless sexual exploits with virgins, but Cybele prefers eunichs for her orgies. That gives rise to thoughts about some of the symbolic implications of the genitals. 

John Wayne Gacy (1942-1994), the "Killer clown", seems to have been obsessed with the male member. Not only did he rape, torture and murder at least 33 young men, but in prison he drew several drawings, some of the male member. OK, there is a nude woman, but still, it's the penis and its presumed drive that seems to have first priority. It sort of encompasses everything that goes on in the head of the man who is depicted in the drawing. 

Men worshipping male genitals obviously identify with their penis in a manner women don't with their vagina, but some may be as obsessed with their breasts as e.g. John Wayne Gacy were with the male genitals. That, for instance, goes with our old friend, Cybele, who were depicted as "many-breasted". And, as we know, female genitals are not excluded to what is kept secret under a woman's skirt, jeans or whatever: Woman not only has sex and gives birth, but she is also nurturing. Her role is so much bigger than the male's, but I suspect that men identify more with their sexual appendage than women do with their genitals.

In a badge an enormous phallus is the "stepping ground" of what, presumably, is a woman who is pushing a wheelbarrow, loaded with penises. It's from 1375-1450 CE, but how is it to be interpreted? Is it an (aggressive, man-hating???) woman who has cut of a bunch of phalli and now is fleeing with her loot or someone who in one way or another is a worshipper of men and/or male sexuality???? As I think the figure resembles a man more than a woman I suspect that this is in reality a male who, like e.g. John Wayne Gacy, is out to worship what he sees as the symbol of himself.

Who were the worshippers of the vagina figures, known as "Sheela Na Gig", from the Middle Ages that are to be found throughout most of Europe? And what was the purpose of them? It's weird that there hasn't been much about them in the old annals. Theories are that they were meant to ward of evil spirits as they are often positioned over doors or windows that might give them access. However, that doesn't really explain HOW that would work: Were those evil spirits in awe of the female and her magic genitals or were they disgusted by the way they were displayed? As the figures are not "Vagina Dentata" and the face of them don't look scary I doubt they were meant to frighten off demons or the like.

As of today there still aren't any definite interpretation of these figures. Which to me looks like a proof that we don't know as much about the beliefs and religions of the past as we ought to know .... 

 

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Vagina_dentata

 

https://ftltimes.com/2024/03/27/man-ejaculates-on-woman-shopping-with-daughter-at-miami-gardens-walmart/ 

 

https://www.webmd.com/women/anatomy-function-care-conditions-clitoris 

 

https://www.jstor.org/stable/3024834 

 

https://www.academia.edu/16882536/Phallic_Worship_In_Ancient_Religions 

 

https://www.gaudiumivfcentre.com/blog/sperm-cramps-its-causes-symptoms-diagnosis-and-prevention/ 

 

https://www.telegraph.co.uk/men/thinking-man/why-does-everyone-find-it-funny-when-men-almost-lose-their-genit/ 

 

https://www.vice.com/en/article/mbqjap/witches-allegedly-stole-penises-and-kept-them-as-pets-in-the-middle-ages 

 

https://reference.medscape.com/viewarticle/850957?ecd=mkm_ret_231109_mscpmrk-OUS_DisReferences_etid6033000&uac=437619CJ&impID=6033000 

 

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/998128?ecd=mkm_ret_231115_mscpmrk-OUS_ICYMI_etid6056215&uac=437619CJ&impID=6056215 

 

https://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-13426743/Jealous-wife-jailed-five-years-slicing-husbands-penis.html?ito=social-reddit 

 

https://newatlas.com/medical/male-birth-control-stk333/ 

 

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/investigational-male-contraceptive-suppresses-sperm-rapidly-2024a1000acp?ecd=mkm_ret_240616_mscpmrk-OUS_ExcNews_etid6589618&uac=437619CJ&impID=6589618 

 

https://www.medscape.com/viewarticle/investigational-male-contraceptive-suppresses-sperm-rapidly-2024a1000acp?ecd=mkm_ret_240616_mscpmrk-OUS_ExcNews_etid6589618&uac=437619CJ&impID=6589618

https://www.snopes.com/fact-check/male-drone-bee-dying/

https://www.wafb.com/2024/08/01/la-becomes-first-legalize-surgical-castration-child-rapists/

 

https://www.dailystar.co.uk/news/world-news/creep-claims-setting-firework-tied-33681441 

 

https://journals.sagepub.com/doi/full/10.1177/10778012241279816 

 

https://www.genderedspecies.com/ 

 

https://www.theoi.com/Phrygios/Attis.html 

 

Wikipedia

 

 

And "It Came True ...."

 

I know of several people who, at some time of their life, went to see an astrologer, a fortune teller or a psychic medium. Maybe something like that is not in these years, but when it was it was quite common to ask about someone's zodiac sign, to discuss their horoscope, etc., etc.. Also some may have went by the popular horoscopes of magazines for advice about what to do, although they were not personal: A zodiac sign would be set out to cover the fortune of everyone who was born within a specific month which of course turns it into nonsense. Still, I know of some who might tell their friends that they can't lunch, meet, get out of bed, go to the dentist or whatever on a specific day, (e.g. the 11th of October 2024!), because they read a horoscope in a magazine that told them to "keep it low" on that day. 

Maybe they also had a discussion with "The Spirit of the Ouija Board" which actually may be great fun if one doesn't take it as genuine information about the future ....

Presumably, all of these divinations "come from above": Good or bad, one's fate is a birthday gift which outline rules for one which must be obeyed to please those godly powers which are assumed to control the fate of humans and animals. All the divinations are seen as means to steer out of trouble whenever that's possible by warning people of "getting out of bed or whatever" on these dangerous days.

One of the most famous fortune teller was the physician Michel de Nostradamus who was born in France in 1503. His first prophecies, which were in the form of quatrains, are from 1547 and he had them published in a book, "Centuries" (1555). As some of his prophecies seemed to come true he gained fame in his own life time. Being a renowned fortune teller he gained access to the court of the French king Henry II and his queen, Catherine de Medici. Even today many refer to him and his predictions as trustworthy: He is supposed to have predicted World War II, the 9/11-attack and much more. As his prophecies are that vague that they have to be interpreted I don't find them all that valuable, but he has many fans, even today.
 

When the friend and diviner of Alexandra, the last Zarina of Russia, Grigorij Rasputin, said that if a member of the Romanov family murdered him all of them would be dead within a couple of years it looked like a prediction that came true: He was murdered, and so was the entire Romanov family. However, first and foremost what he said must be seen as a warning and (perhaps) nothing but that. Actually, that is the problem with most of these divinations, predictions, etc. which "come true": There are no proofs that they are anything but happy coincidences. 

Many people see the Biblical prophecies, especially about Jesus, as proofs that God spoke to humankind through "holy men and women", i.e. his "prophets". I think that kind of prophecies may be seen as part of all religions and, again, what is true and what is a "happy coincidence"?

 

https://www.blueletterbible.org/study/misc/perkins_chart.cfm

 

https://www.churchofjesuschrist.org/comeuntochrist/believe/bible/bible-prophesies

https://economictimes.indiatimes.com/news/international/us/four-prophecies-have-already-come-true-in-2024-says-living-nostradamus/articleshow/113356393.cms?from=mdr

https://www.jw.org/en/library/books/The-Bible-Gods-Word-or-Mans/Prophecies-That-Came-True/

Wikipedia

AMAZON being WEIRD???????????????

 

Recently I published five ebooks with Amazon and I felt good about it. However, after some WEIRD experiences I'm thinking of deleting my account, never as much as visiting Amazon again. Why??? Well, I know that these years authors are facing difficulties in the publishing world, and one should be on the look-out when it comes to whom one trusts with one's works. As it is, I've lost much of my trust in Amazon over something other authors also may have experienced WITHOUT KNOWING IT ....

When I visit my publishing page on Amazon (https://www.amazon.com/s?k=else+cederborg&i=digital-text&crid=3486ZV5RBVHE4&sprefix=%2Cdigital-text%2C146&ref=nav_signin) on the computer I'm using right now it looks like this:

All of my books are published within KDP, and NONE of them are KUs (: Kindle Unlimited). That is at it should be as that is what I chose. However, when I visit my page on another one of my computers this page - all by itself - turns into what is or looks like KU: The book prices change, some even diving to 0:

When I tried to check out my settings for KU, I found a note that my account doesn't have that. Then WHY are my books - which HAVE NEVER BEEN KU - presented as if that's what they are?????

I don't have KU, don't want it, but my books look as if that's what I have AS SEEN ON MY SPARE COMPUTER, NOT ON THE ONE WHICH IS MY MAIN COMPUTER. Weird, as weird can be, but part of the riddle is the fact that on my spare computer I'm not logged into my Amazon account. When I did just that the page changed, like by magic, into what to me is the NORMAL PAGE, i.e. NO KU.

Some might say, never mind, it's only for three months, and you have your own ISBN Number so you'll be OK. No, I shall NOT be OK, because what I see when I'm not logged in is what people visiting my page, i.e. guests and/or customers, see is the KU-page with the very, very low prices. I never set out to earn a lot of money, but I never intended to "sell books for nothing" ....

So, what is Amazon up to?????????????????? I tried to get access to what is called "Support", but was very disappointed as the individual I told of my problem didn't do anything to solve it ....

 

CATTELENA: Black Spinster In Tudor England

 

 

I admit that I was quite surprised to learn about the 16 Africans living in the small village of Almondsbury close to Bristol in England. How did they get there?  One of them was Cattelena who seems to be the best known of this group of Africans. She left possessions which secured her name through the inventory of them after she died in 1625. It's obvious that she wasn't poor in the go-hungry-sense of the word: 

"She is described as ‘Cattelena, a negra deceased of Almonsbury in the county of Gloucester, single woman & in the diocese of Bristol’. Her inventory includes cooking utensils, clothes, bedding, tablecloth, and a candlestick. However, Cattelena’s most prized possession was a cow."

As pet names were common for cows one may wonder why Cattelena's cow didn't have a name. After all, it must have been the source of sustenance for her, as it gave her milk and butter. Also she may have sold dairy products in the village. The worth of this cow has been made up to be: "Catellena’s cow was worth £3 10 shillings, £460.32 in today’s money. In 1625, the year Cattelena died, this would have also bought you 10 stones of wool, a quarter of wheat, and was the equivalent of 70 days of skilled labour." 

To be the owner of a cow may have been the way Cattelena survived as a citizen in a small village because, without making her "rich", it must have kept her free of grave money troubles. It seems that she was a well-to-do spinster who happened to be black, but that leads to a question: How did she - and the other 15-16 black citizens - end up in England????

Being a spinster wasn't that unusual, as c. 30% of the English adult female population is supposed to have been single. What was special about someone like Cattelena was that she, single as she was, lived in her own home, although she may not have been the owner, but rented it. Not more than 5% of single women below the age of 45 were head of their households which she seems to have been. 

By the way, the total of the possessions listed on Cattelena's inventory came to £6 9s 6d (: £851.59). As she presumably wasn't toiling as a servant, but simply lived off her cow she did quite well ....

 

https://schoolhistory.co.uk/early-modern/cattelena-of-almondsbury/ 

 

https://www.futurelearn.com/info/courses/black-tudors/0/steps/224781 

 

Wikipedia

 

 

 

 

Whatever Made The Toad Hop?

 

 

 

Whatever made the toad hop?
He wasn’t tickled or spun like a top
Why did he make such long strides
When nothing threatened his toad-hides?

Maybe he sang to annoy me
I shouted as loud as I could: Stop, let it be!
But no, he did not stop his infamous noise
Well, that was his own choice

A singing and quacking toad is at danger
The stork wants his lunch without anger
He grabbed Mr. Toad to swallow him in one gulp!
Poor Mr. Toad cried out but nobody stopped the stork

Down he went in the throat of the stork
Even down into his stomach, singing all along
Poor, poor Toad bore no vengence or regrets
He just sang and danced as down he went

 

CopyRight  © Else Cederborg