ethnic group from Southern Africa
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5 episodes with zulus
5 episodes with zulus
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2 episodes with zulus
2 episodes with zulus
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3 episodes with zulus
3 episodes with zulus
La batalla de Rorke's Drift, en enero de 1879, fue un enfrentamiento menor pero convenientemente magnificado por los británicos para paliar, en cierta medida, la humillante derrota que sufrieron unas horas antes en Isandlwana, durante los primeros compases de la Guerra Anglo-Zulú. Para hablar con detalle de este hecho histórico, de la situación estratégica y del conflicto en general, Franjo entrevistará a Javier Veramendi, director de Historia Contemporánea de la editorial Desperta Ferro. Esta escaramuza de Rorke's Drift, que a pesar de la escala no dejaba de ser una hazaña militar, está muy bien representada en una de las mejores películas bélicas realizadas hasta la fecha: Zulú, estrenada en 1964. Para hacer una reseña extensa y detallada de la película, tenemos a Albert Galdor, Eligio R. Montero, David G. Relloso y Javier Veramendi. Y para analizar el juego Zulus on the Ramparts de Victory Point Games, una de las mejores simulaciones que existen sobre esta batalla, contaremos con David G. Relloso y con Franjo, quienes harán, cómo no, el necesario homenaje a Alan Emrich, el fundador y alma mater de Victory Point Games, fallecido recientemente. Partes: 00:00:00 Presentación 00:55:00 Reseña de la película Zulú, primera parte 02:37:00 Reseña de la película Zulú, segunda parte 03:56:00 Primera parte histórica 05:10:00 Segunda parte histórica 06:15:30 Análisis del juego 07:37:00 Conclusiones Tal y como se indica al final del episodio, los audios de terceros se incluyen bajo los acuerdos de ivoox con la SGAE.
Send me a messageAlmost wiped out by the Zulus, Losing half their men charging Sikh cannon with bayonets, Surrendered twice, captured twice, losing their colours...Were the 24th Regiment of Foot the unluckiest regiment in the British army?You decide, as we explore their heroic, bloody and forgotten charge ta the battle of Chillianwala in 1849.Support my show by becoming a PatronMy other episodes about the British - Sikh Wars:133 The Battle of Mudki - Opening battle of the 1st war137 Ferozeshah141 Battle of Aliwal143 Sobraon - the Indian Waterloo?151 Ramnagar - the opening battle of the 2nd Anglo Sikh WarFurther episodes about the 24th Regiment in the Anglo Zulu War:104 The Battle of Isandlwana107 Saving the colours at IsandlwanaSupport the show
Beginning in 1815, under Shaka Zulu, the Zulus began a campaign of conquest that would subsume so many other groups that today, the Zulu are South Africa's largest ethnic population, numbering at least six-million. Ethnomusicologist Louise Meintjes, author of Sounds of Africa! Making Music Zulu in a South African Studio writes that the Zulu reputation for courage and style has given them "empowering significance as a defiant, self possessed, royal, and artful African people." This program will trace the rise of Zulu musical identity. We'll hear from Umzansi Zulu Dancers; Lahlumlenze, guitar picking maskanda stars Phuzekhemisi, Bhekumuzi, and top seller, Shwi No Mthekala, as well as mbaqanga stars, Isigqi Sesimanje and others. This is a story of musical innovation and virtuosity: how local musicians absorbed American fingerstyle guitar, Afrikaans concertina, the marching bass drum of the British imperialists, the backing vocals of soft soul, and made from these new elements thoroughly "Zulu" sounds. Banning Eyre. (originally aired 2007) APWW #530
Prabhupāda, from the simple instructions of Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī, he went above and beyond the call of duty. This is a term we heard in the military. Every soldier wants to go above and beyond the call of duty. How did Prabhupāda go above and beyond the call of duty? He had his books, not only in English, but he ordered them, and to some degree, during his lifetime, had them translated into all the major languages of the world. That supersedes the instruction of Bhakti Siddhānta Sarasvatī. He did more than English language—French, German, Russian, Spanish, and recently in South Africa, we are printing books of Prabhupāda in the Zulu language, Zulu unkulunkulu. I met the leader of the Zulu people, Chief Goodwill, a powerful man. I think there are 35 to 40 million Zulus in South Africa and KwaZulu-Natal. I had the opportunity to meet him. We had a discussion. He said, 'Maraj, Maraj.' He was a good Christian. 'Maraj, what do you call God in your language and your śāstra? What do you call God?' I said, 'Well, God has many names according to His attributes, His pastimes, His qualities. But the principal name of God, according to Jīva Gosvāmī, the original name of God is Kṛṣṇa.' He said, 'Oh, very nice, Kṛeeshna.' I said, 'Goodwill, what do you call God in the Zulu language?' He went, 'Ah, we call unkulunkulu.' I said, 'What does it mean?' He said, 'It means that person who has the most cows.' (excerpt from the talk) ------------------------------------------------------------ To connect with His Grace Vaiśeṣika Dāsa, please visit https://www.fanthespark.com/next-steps/ask-vaisesika-dasa/ ------------------------------------------------------------ Add to your wisdom literature collection: https://www.bbtacademic.com/books/ (USA only) https://thefourquestionsbook.com/ ------------------------------------------------------------ Join us live on Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/FanTheSpark/ Podcasts: https://podcasts.apple.com/us/podcast/sound-bhakti/id1132423868 For the latest videos, subscribe https://www.youtube.com/@FanTheSpark For the latest in SoundCloud: https://soundcloud.com/fan-the-spark ------------------------------------------------------------ #vaisesikaprabhu #vaisesikadasa #vaisesikaprabhulectures #spirituality #bhaktiyoga #krishna #spiritualpurposeoflife #krishnaspirituality #spiritualusachannel #whybhaktiisimportant #whyspiritualityisimportant #vaisesika #spiritualconnection #thepowerofspiritualstudy #selfrealization #spirituallectures #spiritualstudy #spiritualexperience #spiritualpurposeoflife #spiritualquestions #spiritualquestionsanswered #trendingspiritualtopics #fanthespark #spiritualpowerofmeditation #spiritualgrowthlessons #secretsofspirituality #spiritualteachersonyoutube #spiritualhabits #spiritualclarity #bhagavadgita #srimadbhagavatam #spiritualbeings #kttvg #keepthetranscendentalvibrationgoing #spiritualpurpose
By the 1830s, the Zulu kingdom was consolidating its power as the strongest African polity in the south-east, but was under growing pressure from British traders and hunters on the coast, and descendants of the early Dutch settlers at the Cape – the Boers. In 1837, the vanguard of the Boers' Great Trek migration reached the borders of Zulu territory, causing alarm. When the Boer leader Piet Retief and his followers were massacred in cold blood, war broke out. Although the initial Boer counter-attacks were defeated by the Zulus, in December 1838 a new Trekker offensive resulted in a nation- defining clash between Boer and Zulu at the battle of Blood River. Today's guest is Ian Knight, author of “Blood River 1838: The Zulu–Boer War and the Great Trek.” We explore the 1836 Boer/Ndebele conflict, the imbalance in technique and weaponry, the reasons why the British settlers allied themselves with the Boer Trekkers, and why the war was a key turning point in the use of traditional Zulu military techniques. This work also reveals that a Boer victory at Blood River was by no means a foregone conclusion.See omnystudio.com/listener for privacy information.
CMFI Annual prayer and fasting crusade - KOUME2024. The burden and our heart cry to God is for the revival of the people of CMFI worldwide.
Order Glenn’s memoir, LATE ADMISSIONS: CONFESSIONS OF A BLACK CONSERVATIVE. Available here or wherever you get your books: https://wwnorton.com/books/9780393881349 0:00 Rajiv's report from the FIRE conference 3:11 Roland Fryer's keynote address 13:26 Ta-Nehisi Coates's humanist universalism 17:25 “Tolstoy is the Tolstoy of the Zulus” 18:50 Rajiv's reading of Coates's stand on “apartheid” 31:55 The gap […]
Send me a messageThe story of Ernest Grandier, the only European prisoner of war taken by the Zulus during the Anglo-Zulu War 1879.But was his tale one of heroism or just a tall story?Become a PatronSupport the show
Lord Chelmsford, looking to redeem himself from his failed first invasion, crosses into Zululand in force for a second attempt. Pressure on Chelmsford mounts as Field Marshal Garnet Wolseley races to South Africa to assume full command. Cetshwayo sues for peace but assembles his army for one last showdown at the capital city of UlundiJoin Chris and Jason as they conclude their look at the rise and fall of the Zulu nation.Follow us on our Facebook page or on X (formerly Twitter)You can reach out to us by email: fromheretohistory@gmail.comOnce again, here is a possible reading list on the Zulus and the Anglo-Zulu War:The Washing of the Spears by Donald MorrisAnatomy of the Zulu Army by Ian KnightThe Zulus at War by Adrian Greaves & Xolani MkhizeBrave Men's Blood by Ian KnightIn the Shadow of Isandlwana by John LabandWho's Who in the Zulu War Vols I & II by Adrian Greaves and Ian KnightThis article by DP O'Connor is an interesting take on Sir Bartle FrereRunning the Gauntlet by George MossopSend us a Text Message.
During the annihilation of the British Army by the Zulus at the Battle of Isandlwana in 1879 two British officers. Lt's Melvill and Coghill made a desperate escape, trying to carry the Queen's Colour to safety.But were they really heroes trying to save the colour, or were they merely trying to save their skins?Get my newsletterSupport the Show.
On the 22nd January 1879 in South Africa, the British suffered the greatest defeat ever inflicted upon them by a native African army - when a force of 1,500 was annihilated by the Zulus during the Anglo-Zulu war.Get in touch and get my weekly newsletter:Click hereChelmsford was quick to lay the blame for the defeat at Isandlwana on anyone but himself.Equally it could not be the fault of the redecorated infantry.So rather than Pullene being held to account for spreading his troops out too thinly 3 myths were planted as to who was to blame.NNC collapsed at crucial momentDurnford didn't take commandCommisariat delayed ammo supply but quibbling and screwdrivers.Not only do these myths obscure Chelmsford culpability in dividing his force and Pulleine's decision to spread his line too thinly and not create any entrenched positions.It ignores something more important.That they British had been out manoeuvred and out fought by an enemy with spears and shields.The Zulus had successfully fooled Chelmsford into dividing their force. They had moved 25,000 undetected to the north. They then delivered a horns of the buffalo attack over a 4 mile front and despite one of the horns going behind the mountain they had timed the devastating attack perfectly.Finally, despite the withering fire laid down by the experienced British redcoats, the Zulu warriors had held their nerve and pressed home their attack, inspired by the Chief Biyela.Support the Show.
I want to introduce you to Jann Weeratunga from South Africa who is our guest on this episode. Jann was born and grew up in Lundon. After working as a highway maintenance engineer for 10 years she moved to Sri Lanka where she married and lived for several years. Her husband passed away after they were married for four and a half years, but Jann continued to work and live there until she got the moving urge and ended up living in South Africa. Jann has always had a deep interest in the para-Olympics. In 2012, while watching the closing ceremony of the London Paralympic Games, Jann was deeply moved by Sir Philip Craven's speech which included The tale of a young boy reading a book and recognizing a man with an eye patch, a hook for a hand, a parrot on his shoulder, and a wooden leg as an Olympian. This imagery sparked a transformative idea within her. Anyone recognize the man as a pirate? Jann did and began to write what is now a series of 10 children's books about Polly the Parrot or Pirate. Jann will tell us Polly's story and how this bird helped to create the Piralympics. This series is all about pirates, all of whom have disabilities and who compete in the “piralympics”. To date, Jann has written over 40 books for children, some poetry and even books for adults. As she says, writing is a muscle that needs to be developed and exercised daily. This conversation to me is certainly quite inspirational and insightful for all. I hope you enjoy it. About the Guest: Jann Weeratunga is an author who firmly believes in the importance of representation and diversity, particularly for the 15% of the population who are often overlooked— the disabled community. In 2012, while watching the closing ceremony of the London Paralympic Games, Jann was deeply moved by Sir Philip Craven's speech. The tale of a young boy reading a book and recognizing a man with an eye patch, a hook for a hand, a parrot on his shoulder, and a wooden leg as an Olympian sparked a transformative idea within her. This powerful moment gave birth to the unique concept and content of the Polly's Piralympics Series (Paralympics for Pirates). Through these books, Jann tackles important themes like disabilities, bullying, and cheating. However, plagued by self-doubt, Jann's journey faced a roadblock until 2016, when a friend who pushed her to take a leap of faith, reminding her that she would never know unless she published her work. This encouragement marked the beginning of her real journey as an author and Polly's Piralympics was launched in South Africa. Jann's flagship series, Polly's Piralympics, has garnered tremendous success and continues to thrive, with the tenth book currently in the works. In March 2018, she established the Schools Reading Road Show, a non-profit organization aimed at enhancing literacy among primary school students in South Africa. Alongside her fellow authors, she embarked on a mission to visit schools in various regions, sharing inspiring stories, delivering motivational talks on important topics like "anti-bullying" and "it's okay to be different," and encouraging young learners to explore their own storytelling abilities. Beyond her writing, Jann founded the Schools Reading Road Show, an organization that promotes literacy and encourages young learners to embrace diversity. She has visited schools, delivered motivational talks, and empowered children to tell their own stories. Jann's impactful work extends to addressing conferences, conducting workshops, and participating in panels, all aimed at emphasizing the importance of representation and inclusivity. She continues to write Best Seller stories for children, while exploring different creative avenues for adults under her pen name, JE Gallery. Her works have received several awards and nominations across Africa. Recognized for her invaluable contributions to the literary landscape, Jann has spoken at the prestigious Embrace Head Teachers Conference in 2018 and 2019. She has also conducted workshops on the significance of reading for young adult pupils, participated in panels at esteemed events such as the JBBF (Jozi Books and Blogs Festival), South African Children's Book Fair, and Kingsmead Book Fair. In 2020 on the eve of Lockdown, she organised and ran the Bennies Book Fayre for Children. The largest Children's Book fair for children in South Africa. To Date in 2023 she has attended the Zintzomi Storytelling Book Fair and The Johannesburg Festival of Women Writers. Even amidst the challenges posed by the Covid-19 pandemic, Jann found solace in her writing during the period of isolation. This time allowed her to focus on her craft, resulting in the release of her latest series, Patch's Pirate Pals. The first two books in the series, "Bluebird's New Ship" and "Redhair's Snot Cannonballs," achieved the remarkable feat of becoming Amazon Best Sellers in June and July 2022. ** ** Ways to connect with Jann: https://www.facebook.com/JannWeeratunga www.linkedin.com/in/jann-weeratunga-4aa852137 https://www.amazon.com/stores/Jann-Weeratunga/author/B07RPGCF61 About the Host: Michael Hingson is a New York Times best-selling author, international lecturer, and Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe. Michael, blind since birth, survived the 9/11 attacks with the help of his guide dog Roselle. This story is the subject of his best-selling book, Thunder Dog. Michael gives over 100 presentations around the world each year speaking to influential groups such as Exxon Mobile, AT&T, Federal Express, Scripps College, Rutgers University, Children's Hospital, and the American Red Cross just to name a few. He is Ambassador for the National Braille Literacy Campaign for the National Federation of the Blind and also serves as Ambassador for the American Humane Association's 2012 Hero Dog Awards. https://michaelhingson.com https://www.facebook.com/michael.hingson.author.speaker/ https://twitter.com/mhingson https://www.youtube.com/user/mhingson https://www.linkedin.com/in/michaelhingson/ accessiBe Links https://accessibe.com/ https://www.youtube.com/c/accessiBe https://www.linkedin.com/company/accessibe/mycompany/ https://www.facebook.com/accessibe/ Thanks for listening! Thanks so much for listening to our podcast! If you enjoyed this episode and think that others could benefit from listening, please share it using the social media buttons on this page. Do you have some feedback or questions about this episode? Leave a comment in the section below! Subscribe to the podcast If you would like to get automatic updates of new podcast episodes, you can subscribe to the podcast on Apple Podcasts or Stitcher. You can also subscribe in your favorite podcast app. Leave us an Apple Podcasts review Ratings and reviews from our listeners are extremely valuable to us and greatly appreciated. They help our podcast rank higher on Apple Podcasts, which exposes our show to more awesome listeners like you. If you have a minute, please leave an honest review on Apple Podcasts. Transcription Notes: Michael Hingson ** 00:00 Access Cast and accessiBe Initiative presents Unstoppable Mindset. The podcast where inclusion, diversity and the unexpected meet. Hi, I'm Michael Hingson, Chief Vision Officer for accessiBe and the author of the number one New York Times bestselling book, Thunder dog, the story of a blind man, his guide dog and the triumph of trust. Thanks for joining me on my podcast as we explore our own blinding fears of inclusion unacceptance and our resistance to change. We will discover the idea that no matter the situation, or the people we encounter, our own fears, and prejudices often are our strongest barriers to moving forward. The unstoppable mindset podcast is sponsored by accessiBe, that's a c c e s s i capital B e. Visit www.accessibe.com to learn how you can make your website accessible for persons with disabilities. And to help make the internet fully inclusive by the year 2025. Glad you dropped by we're happy to meet you and to have you here with us. Michael Hingson ** 01:21 Well, hi, thanks for listening here on unstoppable mindset. We're inclusion diversity in the unexpected meet. Today, we get to travel to South Africa to talk with Jann Weeratunga. I hope I pronounced that reasonably right. And absolutely perfectly. Oh, great. I like to I like to try. Jann is an author. She's created a series around what she calls the piralympics. And we're going to talk about that. But she has a lot of other things to bring into the discussion as well. So I think we're going to have a lot of fun today. So Jann, welcome to unstoppable mindset. We're really glad you're here with us. Jann Weeratunga ** 02:05 Thank you, Michael. We're really glad to join you. Michael Hingson ** 02:07 Well, why don't we start at I love to do with kind of learning a little bit about the earlier Jann growing up and all that sort of stuff. Jann Weeratunga ** 02:16 Okay. I was born in London. I grew up in London, schooled in London. I eventually got married and moved out to Sri Lanka, hence my very peculiar surname. And I was out there for about 10 years, my husband passed away. And from there, I moved into the Middle East. I taught for a year there and then came over to South Africa, and I've been here for 17 years now. Michael Hingson ** 02:49 Wow. What? What made you decide to go to South Africa? Well, Jann Weeratunga ** 02:55 I was hoping it seemed like a good idea at the time. Yeah, there you go. Yeah, it was after the tsunami I had. I'd spent two years working on the east coast of Sri Lanka, I set up my own NGO. And I met people from all over the world. And on one occasion, we'd actually been down the coast this way and driving back and the army stopped us and sort of said, Did you know that there's a tsunami warning? Why are you driving around and of course, where we had been, it had just been water and monkeys and us and that was about it. And in the car, there was myself, British, a friend who was from South Africa and another friend who was from Australia, and another friend who was from America. And it dawned on us, literally, as we were explaining who we were and where we were from, that we were four ladies from four different countries from four different continents. So yeah, it was it was a very different sort of thing. And from there I I made friends with them. And then one of them sort of said, Look, you know, would you like to come and visit South Africa? You know, I've I'm just finishing off here and my time is in Sri Lanka is finishing would you like to come visit? So I thought, Okay, why not? I've never been South Africa. And that's what brought me here. Michael Hingson ** 04:28 Pretty, pretty interesting scenario all the way around on but you never thought that was going to happen. Did you Jann Weeratunga ** 04:36 know I didn't. But, you know, life has a habit of sort of just taking you where it wants to. So yeah, it Michael Hingson ** 04:44 was good. So we're in South Africa, are you? Jann Weeratunga ** 04:48 I'm actually in Johannesburg. So yeah, so inland about 1000 kilometers from the in gold country as they call it. eaglet and So yeah, I live up in Johannesburg. Michael Hingson ** 05:03 So you, you have definitely moved around in the world. Have you been to America before? Jann Weeratunga ** 05:10 I actually haven't. I sort of came out of Britain and turned left instead of turning right. And I never got to the States or Canada is actually one country I would love to go to. It's on my bucket list, along with Iceland and a few others. But yeah, I sort of got as far as as far east as Sri Lanka and as far as South and South Africa. So you know, all the bits in between there? Michael Hingson ** 05:39 Well, I hope you do get to come to America. It's a it's a large country. fairly large physically, but certainly a lot of different cultures and different kinds of ways of life, depending on what state you're in, and, and so on everything from relatively new in California, which became a state in 1850, compared to some of the other states like Massachusetts, in the other colonies much earlier. And I love to travel around America to see the various different kinds of pupils, the different cultures that have all assimilated into this one really great country, which is, which is a lot of fun to do. And it's really enjoyable to to see the different states and everyone's a little bit different. Jann Weeratunga ** 06:25 Okay, okay. Yeah, no, it's very big. I sort of looked at Washington State and thought that was a place I'd really like to go to, because it looks very green, and lots and lots of trees. So, you know, I'd like to travel around America if I get the opportunity. So you never know, hey, hey, Michael Hingson ** 06:42 you never know. Well, I'm actually going to be in Washington State next month. So it'll be it'll be kind of find I've been there before and love going up to Washington. I love California as well. But I've enjoyed going to all 50 states now and just found a lot of wonderful stuff to see and do in all of those various states. So I can't complain a bit. I find it to be rich and, and exciting. But I've been to a number of countries. I have not been to England, I've been to Ireland, and I've been to New Zealand. And of course, I've been to Canada, and to the Netherlands. And in Japan and Korea, but I haven't really been to South Africa. I'd love to come and speak there some time. If the opportunity ever arises. I think it would be fun to do. And I've been to Israel. I went to Israel in August because I was there to be with accessibly for a week. And so again, I love going to a variety of different countries and experiencing and getting the chance to be a part of other cultures. So it's great. Well, so you went to college in England? Jann Weeratunga ** 07:57 I sort of Yeah, I was a bit of a dropout. Yeah, it some. I passed with straight A's. My first two years and then I just decided, I don't know, I don't know what I decided. But I got a job. And I moved up very, very quickly, and I got paid way too much money. So I just decided that I wasn't going to go back to college. Michael Hingson ** 08:24 What was your job? Jann Weeratunga ** 08:27 I was actually a highway maintenance engineer. I actually built roads. Michael Hingson ** 08:31 Wow. That's an interesting and different job. No, you enjoyed it. Jann Weeratunga ** 08:39 I did actually it was your same thing. Two days on the trot, which was lovely. And I like sort of variation. I don't like sort of being stuck in an office. That's not really me. So yeah, I really I actually did, I really enjoyed it. And I worked with a great bunch of people. All men, I was the only woman I was the first woman into the department. So that was a little challenging to begin with. But they got used to me and yeah, and then eventually I left there to get married and go out to Sri Lanka. Michael Hingson ** 09:13 So how long did you have that job? 10 years. Wow. So you you obviously did enjoy it? Jann Weeratunga ** 09:20 Yeah, no, it was good. Michael Hingson ** 09:22 So what do you do as a highway maintenance engineer? Jann Weeratunga ** 09:25 Well, you basically dig up the road and relay it in in sort of very much layman's terms. I actually was responsible for a section of the a 40 which is the sort of London to Oxford road. I was responsible for a section of that. And yeah, just making sure that everything on it was working well. It was supposed to it was kept clean. The lights were on. The Galley pots were cleaned out, there were no potholes. At one point we even managed to put a new footbridge across it which was They're different. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 10:02 that's definitely a different thing to do. But certainly I can understand why that would be part of your job. Yeah, yeah. Then what took you to Sri Lanka. Jann Weeratunga ** 10:14 Um, my best friend from school was actually Sri Lankan. And we'd gone there when I was when I literally just finished my A levels. And we went out there for a trip. She came over to Ireland to see what Ireland was like. And I went over to Sri Lanka with her, you know, the parents thought it was good, sort of cultural exchanges for us. And I really liked the country. And then sort of 1010 odd years later, I hadn't taken any holiday, I still run a scout troop. So every weekend that I had free and my suppose it holidays, whereas he spent scouting. And I just I got to the point, I was very, very tired. And I needed a break. And her dad actually said, Well, why don't you go back to Sri Lanka? You know, lots of people out there still. You kept in touch go out there. And I did. And then I met my husband and six months of chewing and froing. And eventually, we he popped the question, and we got married, and I moved out there. Michael Hingson ** 11:21 I'm assuming your parents were okay with that. Jann Weeratunga ** 11:24 The Not really. She was the other side of the world as far as they were. Yeah. And it was way too far away. But he made sure that every year I actually went back to the UK for, you know, I actually chose your Christmas. Because that's a very family orientated time for us. And unfortunately, he passed away after we'd been married about four and a half years. But I continue to stay out there for another six. The tsunami hit during that time. I also worked as the club secretary for what was at the time, the only the third golf course in the country rated in the top 10 in Southeast Asia, which was the Victoria golf club sat on struggling. So for Duncan golf union, which is actually where I was in 911. Yeah, I was actually at a golf meeting. And somebody said, Excuse me, I think you should all come and see the television. And we watched the plane. The second plane hit. So yeah, it's for those ones. We know exactly where you were in what you were doing. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 12:41 most, most people do. Most people do remember that. And I've heard so many fascinating and interesting stories about where people were or why they ended up not being in the tower that day, although they were scheduled to be and even up on higher floors. It is one of those amazing things and there's so many different stories. And a lot of people have stories to tell about it, which is pretty interesting. Jann Weeratunga ** 13:08 Yeah. So the world stop moments a little bit like, I suppose, the shooting of JFK and, and of course, COVID More recently, you know, I think everybody knows where they were and what they were doing during COVID. Yeah, yeah, Michael Hingson ** 13:26 we stayed home. My wife had rheumatoid arthritis. And so her immune system was suppressed and she took medication for it that helped the pain, but it did keep the immune system down. So we chose without any qualms at all to stay home, and basically locked down. We were blessed. We could could get things brought in through things like GrubHub and other things like that. And I did my shopping or an our shopping through a service called Instacart. That would bring things and it worked out really well. And we live very close to a country club here in Spring Valley lake in Victorville. And we joined a social members of the club. And although they didn't deliver food, they had food available that you could go down and get, but we were friends with the general manager. And he said, anytime you want food, just call him we'll bring it and they were. So we were we were blessed. That Jann Weeratunga ** 14:21 sounds really, really good. It's actually something it changed shopping, and how we shop in South Africa. Prior to COVID, everybody used to just go to the supermarket or go to the shops. And we didn't have any delivery services. It didn't exist in South Africa. And it's actually created a whole industry of young men on motorbikes that deliver and I know in the UK, they had deliveries, but it sort of, after about a year it fizzled out and people got back to going shopping, you know, whereas here It is carried on, and people still get their shopping delivered from the local supermarket with these little guys. It's good dude outside your house. And there they are. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 15:11 we have their word delivery services prior to prior to COVID. But it certainly did pick up a lot in COVID. And after COVID. And you're right, it's changed a lot of things. And we can view that as a positive thing or not. But I think overall, people are starting to discover, even with working that there's no need to be in the office five days a week, eight or more hours a day that it's healthier, to let people do some work at home, and do some of their work outside of the office. Jann Weeratunga ** 15:49 Absolutely, absolutely. But I must admit, I think I saw more dogs being walked around my blog than I had ever seen. People tend not to take the dogs out too much. Yeah. They were very, very big plots, and the dogs run around on those. But of course, that was the only excuse we had initially to actually be able to leave our properties. So all the dogs had their little walkies on a regular basis every day. So that was quite interesting as well. Michael Hingson ** 16:18 I've been to places in Europe and also talk to to other people who live there. And I guess it was fairly common, even well before COVID, to walk dogs and even see dogs go into stores or restaurants and so on. And it was a common thing. But the difference between there and here and correct me if I'm wrong. But the difference is that most all of those dogs were well behaved and they were controlled by their people. Michael Hingson ** 16:51 Generally, yes, generally. And Michael Hingson ** 16:54 unfortunately, here, people just think they should be able to take their dogs, whether they're well behaved or not. And all too often, we see that dogs are not as well behaved as they should be. That creates a problem for those of us who use dogs like guide, like I use our my guide dog Alamo as a guide dog who's trained. And then they tried to put restrictions and has put some restrictions on us, because of those other people that they wouldn't really just deal with them appropriately. So it is it is a challenge. Yeah, Jann Weeratunga ** 17:25 no, I know, from obviously the UK and Ireland, because my mum's from Ireland, that, you know, taking the dogs out for a walk is commonplace. I mean, dad would always take the dog for a walk around the block at night, just you know, before we went to bed. And it was my brother and my job to sort of walk the dog down to the park and give them a good run during the day. So I think you know, so walking dogs, it was it was it was good, actually, because it's a good form of exercise as well. And, you know, I mean, I would often sort of pop the dog into the car, drive up to the forest and go for a walk for two to three hours, you know, and then come back with a very tired dog. So yeah, well, that's Michael Hingson ** 18:07 that's a good thing. Yeah. And sometimes attire, Jann, but but still, that's probably. Jann Weeratunga ** 18:14 Yeah, I wasn't bad. In those days. It was bit younger. But the Yeah. Well, I Michael Hingson ** 18:20 know one of the things about you is that you, you write you're an author, when did you start writing? Jann Weeratunga ** 18:25 I think I've always had an interest in poetry, and sort of wrote little details here and that sort of thing. But it was more or less when I came to South Africa, we owned a restaurant down in Nisa, which is on the coast, in very beautiful part of the country is just above the sort of Jitsi, karma, forest area. And I actually lived in a wooden cabin in the forest, where I didn't spend much time there because I actually spent sort of like, six and a half days at the restaurant running it. But when I had spare time, I would actually just sort of sit on the deck. And just let my mind wander. And I started with the poetry. And then I started writing in seriously children's stories in 2012, which was the start of the Paralympics. Michael Hingson ** 19:27 So love to hear more about that. What got you started doing that? And well, let me ask first, did you publish any of your poetry? Jann Weeratunga ** 19:38 Would you believe I actually only published my poetry last year? And that was because some friends had basically seen some of the poems and sort of said, Why haven't you published the and I think it's the difference between being judged by your peers and being judged by children. So so most of them My writing is actually for children. But my poetry is obviously for adults. And funnily enough, I actually took a couple of books with me, I went back to the UK in May to see my family. And I took a couple of books, and gave them as gifts to friends. And they actually sort of said, well, would you read a couple of poems for us, and so I read a couple of them, and they were in tears. And I didn't think my poetry would have that much of an effect on people. So it was quite an eye opener for me. The other adult work I've done is I actually write adult short stories, dark stories, unfortunately. I know a couple of other authors that do the same. They write poetry, children's books, and dark, short stories. And I think it's a release from writing children's stuff all the time is to write sort of the dark adult stuff. But I've actually not that I'm not public, I've got two books ready to go. They've been sitting there for a couple of years. And, and yeah, and there's just a block there that the Michael Hingson ** 21:10 public, are they going to be dark? Jann Weeratunga ** 21:14 They are dark, all the short stories are very dark. And yes, but they're there. I mean, one of one of them is actually a monologue, for example of a character who has schizophrenia. And so they're obviously talking to themselves. And they're on a plane. They I say they because it was it's one person is on a plane, and the quieter voice of the two has actually arranged to be euthanized in Switzerland, which is legal. Without the other one, knowing what the other side of the venue knowing. And it's this, this monologue, and that's all it is, is this conversation the whole way through the story. And a few people that have read it have been, I think, quite shocked, because it's not the sort of usual happy clappy stuff that I wrote for kids. Yeah. And they were saying, Okay, well, when is it publishing? Have you got any more? And can we read it? So sorry about that thing? I can't stop that. Michael Hingson ** 22:26 Look at JK Rowling. You know, she wrote the Harry Potter series, and now she's writing the Cormoran Strike series. And I don't know that I would say they're, they're darker, although I think the last Harry Potter book that she wrote was, was darker than the others. But she clearly throughout both series is a mystery writer. Because in one real sense, Harry Potter is all about mystery is being a mystery. Just the various things that go through it. Jann Weeratunga ** 22:58 Yeah, I think the interesting thing with her work is the fact that it sort of it crossed genres. Yeah. And it was the first of all really strong, young adult series that came out really strong. And I think it defined it defined that that genre completely, you know, all those that don't know, young adult is basically stories that don't contain sex, or explicit violence as in blood, guts and gore type of thing. So So, and it's actually turned out to be a very popular genre, because a lot of people, they don't necessarily want that. But they want a good story, they will, you know, they don't want to read children's stories. They want to read adult stories, but they don't want that side of it. So it's quite interesting how it's developed. Michael Hingson ** 23:58 Well, I will say any number of adults like them, too. I would love to, I would love to see more Harry Potter books. But there is a new series that's written by an American about one of his sons, James Potter, and five books have come out in that series, and they're pretty good. And again, there's some good mysteries in them. Well, so what got you started writing children's books and the pirate Olympics and so on. I'd love to hear that story. Jann Weeratunga ** 24:30 Okay, I have always loved watching the Paralympics more than the Olympics. Right from a very young child. I was glued to the TV for the Paralympics. And 12 was the London Olympics, which I personally feel changed people's views towards disabilities in general. I think was a big leap forward for the disabled community at that particular point. But for me personally, it was, so Philip Craven, who's paraplegic himself was giving the closing speech. And he was chatting away and sort of saying, you know, there was this mother with her son, and they were reading a book. And in the book, there was a character and he had a patch over one eye, a hook for a hand, and a wooden leg. And the mother turned around and she said to the boy, my boy, who's this? And he said, Well, he's got one eye, one arm, one leg, he must be a Paralympian. And it was like one of those light bulb moments you get you know, you you don't think they exist. But it but actually it really did exist for me. And I suddenly thought, hang on a minute. Because he was talking about the pirates in Treasure Island. I thought pirates, Paralympics. Hang on a minute. There's something here. So I googled, and I Googled, and there was nothing, nobody had written anything. There was no parallel drawn between pirates and Paralympics. So I started. I spoke to a friend and they and I said, Well, there's nothing out there. Why is nobody written this story, you know? And they said, Well, why don't you write that story? So I did. And then I sat on it. Again, I think fear of failure as much as anything else fear of judgment. Being a bit dyslexic, it's sort of, I got really knocked by my English teacher at school. And so I lacked the confidence to actually pump in a publicize something. So or publish something. So I sat on it until 2016. And of course, the Olympics was round again. And the Paralympics were around again. And I found her and said, Come on your book. Enough now it's got to go out. And so I did I put the first one out and it was very well received and I had a couple of very very young readers that read it me young eight year old turned around to me and said, is Polly real? A Poly is a parrot that was born with one I stolen from her nest in Africa, ends up in Scotland where she's rescued by Captain hiker pirate and she learns to become a pirate. And and so I turned around, and it's a little bit like those sort of questions about you know, is Father Christmas or Santa Claus real. And you never burst a child's bubble. You never ever, in my, that's my rules. You never destroy childhood. You allow a child to be a child for as long as they need to be. And so I chatted to him and I said, How many parents are there in the world? And he said, Ah, auntie, there must be millions. I said yes, because over here they everyday call everybody Auntie's. If you go into a school, they'll call you and your listing they call your auntie, or uncle. And then I said, and do you think any of them are called Polly? He sat down for a moment, he said, I reckon there must be I said, Well, there you go. You've answered your own question, haven't you? So that was how Polly was created. And Polly creates the the Paralympics and they get up to all sorts of things, but they like made me realize Hang on. I mean, I need to actually do a little bit of a backstory here as to the story about Polly is the first one I wrote was just all about the sort of the actual games themselves you know, there's a master chef competition and there's a walk the plank and this time, the rigging gymnastics and what have you. And then I wrote the backstory, which was how they discovered the prosthetics. So my parents have blades and racing wheelchairs and prosthetic hands. And yeah, they they get up to all sorts of antics and lots of fun. So Michael Hingson ** 29:26 you do you publish your own books, or do you have a publisher? Jann Weeratunga ** 29:33 For these this set, I published my own books. I had a publisher for a book I wrote. I actually headed up during lockdown. I had it up nosology called locked down behind the mask. So I had a publisher that because for me, when everybody was wearing masks, it reminded me of when I lived in the Middle East and the burqa, and all you would see is the lady's eyes. So I had a publisher for that one. But otherwise I self published. So they all went up on Amazon. I'm on the 10th. One at the moment. The Halloween Paralympics is finished, but that won't be out until next year. So there'll be two others come out before that one, so, but there's seven on Amazon at the moment. Michael Hingson ** 30:27 So you'll have a ghost pack, you'll have a ghost pirate. Jann Weeratunga ** 30:31 There is a ghost pirates. Yes, they actually meet, they meet Captain Blackbeard and his ghostly crew. And they have to fight their way off his ship with the map, which is the map that takes them to the treasure, which, of course treasure is in the eye of the beholder. And that is their prosthetics. Michael Hingson ** 30:50 That sounds like fun. Have you? Have you made sure that or have you done anything to make sure that the books are accessible? Like for blind people to be able to read? Are they? Are they put out in an accessible form like that at all? Do you know? At Jann Weeratunga ** 31:09 the moment? No. I did have a gentleman that was with the Braille organization in Australia that wanted to actually have them, I suppose you call it translated it into Braille? And unfortunately, he never came back to me. So at the moment, no, I don't I don't have them on audio, audio is very expensive to do. And when I have so many books, because I'm actually up, I think I've been I've got over 40 children's books. So you know, when you're sort of producing a lot of books, it's sort of keeping up with them. And when you don't have a publisher, you have to do everything yourself. So you have to pay for the illustrations, you have to pay for the editing, you have to pay for the proofreading that cover everything that goes into a book, and it's quite costly. So the additional cost of an audiobook is not not something I've yet been able to manage. But I'm still hopeful. So yeah, I'll see what happens with that. Michael Hingson ** 32:19 You might explore something like in this country, there's the National Library Service for Michael Hingson ** 32:27 blinding and well print handicapped, essentially, Vegas, originally National Library Service of the blind, physically handicapped, but it goes beyond that. Anyway, they oftentimes will take books that they think people will read or that are popular, and they will produce them. And the reason they will do that is that they are protected under copyright law. So they are only available for people who have some sort of print disability. But still, that's a pretty good circulation. And what prompted me to ask the question was that I would think that people with disabilities could benefit from what you have to say as much as others do. Jann Weeratunga ** 33:13 Yeah, I mean, for me, it's especially children. I went into a school here, recall, and they have, it's very, it's a mixed school. So they have children with physical disabilities. Unfortunately, not blind children simply because the layout of the school is too dangerous for the kids to be able to navigate. But juggle, there was one young girl, for example, had a prosthetic leg. And I remember going in, and I gave a number of books into the school, and I did a whole day chatting to the kids about disabilities. Because I believe very much about educating young people. And I think, I mean, chatting to you, for me is a real privilege. Because I think very often, by the time we're adults, we're too embarrassed or nervous to ask questions. And because we don't ask questions, we tend to avoid talking to somebody with a disability. And the children don't have that same barrier. You know, that they don't see color. They don't see disability. When I describe it a little bit like you know, being inside the box looking out as opposed to adults who are outside the box looking in. And I very much believe that if we can have young people able bodied as well as disabled reading books were characters have disabilities and I mean, as you my books are a complete flip in in many ways. So the norm because most of my characters have disabilities As Of course, they're pirates. So they've got something missing or they're blind, or they're deaf or whatever. So I've probably got about 80% of my characters that are actually disabled. Whereas most books may be, you might get 10% If you're lucky. So for me, it's important because young people, then able bodied and disabled can can read these books. And this particular young young lady I was talking to you about, I was invited back to the school about six weeks later. And she saw me across the car at the car park, and she came for flying over. And she flow her arms around me. And she said, auntie, auntie, thank you for writing that book for me. And I had this most enormous lump in my throat, that seems to be there for five minutes, I'm sure it was just only there for maybe five or 10 seconds before I could get, you know, regain my composure, because it had meant so much for her to be able to identify with other characters in the book, you know. So I think it's very important that these stories are available to young people, as I say, both able bodied and disabled, because I think it gives an understanding, I think it gives an empathy and an education to both. Michael Hingson ** 36:29 You not only does it I absolutely agree it, it does. And that's again, one of the reasons I asked about audio or more another accessible version, I would, would think that Michael Hingson ** 36:47 some people may shoot me for it. But with AI today, the so called artificial intelligence and the number of voices that are out there, that there ought to be some ways to convert the books relatively easily by comparison to even five years ago to audio, and then publish them. And Jann Weeratunga ** 37:09 I did actually purchase a program that I can't remember the name of it now, because I'm not techie minded, but I was advised that that was the best fit at the time. But it's it sounds so mechanical. Yeah. It still didn't, it didn't flow and the emphasis wasn't on the words. Right, what I felt the emphasis should be if you know what I mean. So I do, I have actually recorded I'm very lucky, I do some work with a local school here, I actually scribe for for some of the boys. And they allow me to use their music rooms, which are all sort of, you know, soundproof. So I've actually recorded some myself, I've got one of the books is actually up on YouTube. That's the first of the poly books, and it's up in four sections. But the whole book is actually actually up there. And that's how Polly became a pirate. So I have actually sort of started this myself. And I've done it sort of through the YouTube roots. But yeah, there have Michael Hingson ** 38:18 been so many great strides in voice technology. And so on that that even in six months, it might be a lot better. I don't know, I've seen some some discussions where I think there might be some some good voice, artificial voice things that are a lot better. But certainly if you can do it, that would make a lot more sense to do by any standard. Jann Weeratunga ** 38:44 Yeah, yeah. Let's say and I quite enjoy reading my own stories as well to two kids. So it's, it's something I enjoy doing as well. Michael Hingson ** 38:54 There are now some programs that can take your voice and create unlimited vocabulary speech. If it has enough of your voice to learn from how do we find your books? While you're one book on YouTube? Let me ask that. Jann Weeratunga ** 39:14 Row. I think basically, you just go January Tonga, YouTube, and it will come up. Okay. How Polycom virus Yeah, I think I Michael Hingson ** 39:23 look for it. I have to go look for it. I want to read about Polly Jann Weeratunga ** 39:29 Okey doke. Good. So Michael Hingson ** 39:31 is writing kind of full time job for you? Or do you have other work that you do to help income or what? Jann Weeratunga ** 39:38 No writing is my full time job. That is what I do. I love writing for kids. It's a real I think it's a passion. You know, you either love it or you just don't go near it. And prior to COVID I used to be in schools two, three times a week. I was always is in a school somewhere up here. I even did a tour down on the Eastern Cape and took a couple of other authors with me. So, yeah, it's, it's become literally full time. And at the moment I'm putting out a book roughly one book a month? Well, I Michael Hingson ** 40:19 think I think it's really important that your books, get out there and get visible. And so since it is your full time job, I'm assuming that you do write every day. Jann Weeratunga ** 40:33 I pretty well write five days a week, I tried to just have a bit of time off at the weekends, sort of family time, but Monday to Friday. The house is quiet by six o'clock, everybody else's. So I actually sit then, and I write usually to that too. And then whatever sort of household bits and pieces need to be sorted out or shopping or whatever, whatever gets done in the afternoon, so but yeah, I put a good six hours in and it's a bit like people that do physical exercise, you know, you build up your muscles, and is a sort of, I believe it's like building up your mental muscles. You know, the more you write. I mean, I picked up, Polly, I haven't written Polly for quite a long time actually. I wrote a younger series, because a lot of people came to me and said, can't Can't you write a pirate series for younger children as well. So I had the patches pirate pals. And for a year, we literally put out a book a month, or 12 books out there on that series No, like on? Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 41:44 Are those books, oh, Jann Weeratunga ** 41:46 they're all short little 32, page eight by 10 inches by 10. But those ones, I've actually left the illustrations to be colored in by the kids because I feel, especially with boys, they tend to be a bit more than sort of reluctant readers and you hear coloring in it sort of attaches them to the book, and they gain a bit more of an interest in the book. And from that you gain an interest in the words and the story, etc, etc. So that whole series was like that. I've just produced one from my niece. She's three in two weeks time. And she actually was my my illustrating editor, he saw the pictures and either like them or didn't, which was quite interesting. So my poor illustrator had to redo a couple. And I'd given her a toy dinosaur Bronwyn, the dinosaur. And my sister said to me at one point, you can't see anything except purple because Bronwyn eating the phone. And that was because I've sent the picture of Bronwyn, for my niece to approve. And so she was actually using the dinosaur to kiss the phone to those he liked it. So yeah. So but that one's a mixture of color, color and drawing. And so there is a color picture. And an opposite is the same picture just as an outline. And the kids can either use the same colors or their own imaginations. And I believe very much in that as well. I think it's very important that young people use their imaginations, you know, things have changed from from when we were children. You know, when we were kids, we would play outside, we would, you know, almost have fights with brothers or sisters or mock fights or, you know, we played cowboys and Indians or whatever it was we were doing, we do it. And we maybe would watch television for an hour in the evening, sort of Monday, Tuesday, Wednesday and Friday. Weekends was always sports. So that was dad's time type of thing. But today, it's changed. And we didn't have computers, we didn't have smart telephones, we didn't have any of those things. You know, we used to sit there and do this huge Jigsaw which was four foot by four foot square, on our dining room table, you know, every evening was in pieces in type of thing. But today, it's changed. And I think young kids are in a way missing out and missing out on the opportunity to expand their imaginations because so much is spoon fed to them. So much as you know, Google is wonderful. I fall down the rabbit hole with Google all the time when I'm researching my books. And some of the stuff I come I find is just absolutely mind blowing. But it gives you everything. And I think with young people, if they're given too much, they don't use their imaginations that so that's one of the reasons why I like to. I've, I've created I've actually created two journals. which a guided journal is for very young children to start journaling, you know, so it sort of helps them guide them through. And that's actually part of the practice part ELS series, which is really aimed at sort of four to seven year olds, they're very young ones, maybe up to nine, depending on, you know, ability levels. But it's getting them to use their imagination, to write their story, their poem, draw their drawing, or coloring with the colors that they want to use. And if they want to give somebody green hair, that's fine. They know what color hair is. But let them use their imagination. Let them be creative. Michael Hingson ** 45:42 We don't do nearly enough of that. And I absolutely agree with you. The the problem with so much television is that everything is just for store, everything is there, there's no imagination. It didn't used to be that way. Even in television, of course, early in televisions era, there was, it was an issue where you had both television and radio. And so people were were used to helping individuals use their imagination. But the longer television has gone on, the more we just put everything out there and there's nothing left for a person's imagination. I collect old radio shows as a hobby, and I love listening to old shows, because they still make you use your imagination. And even now, there are new series. And again, people have to use their imagination and fill in a lot of blanks that are deliberately left and can't be there because there are no pictures to look at. So you've got to do it. And I think television should do more of that. Jann Weeratunga ** 46:52 Yeah. And books as well. I mean, I think books are wonderful. You know, when I go into in schools, and I open the book, and I say to the children, right, what am I doing? And I'm literally I'm standing there and I'm opening a book, okay? And they say you're opening a book? And I say, Yes, but what else am I doing? And they look puzzled. And I said, I'm opening up the pages to your imagination. And then what is imagination? What is it? And I remember one youngster gave a wonderful definition that it's like dreaming, but your eyes are open. But the story is in your head, and you can see it like a film, attitude. And I thought that is exactly it. Because I know, when I write my books, when I'm writing about Polly, especially Polly, Polly has a very she's very special. Polly and my parents are very special. They, that's my comfortable place. Whenever I go back to Holly. And I can see her, I can hear she's almost talking in my ear. When I'm writing her. It's a weird sort of relationship that I think a writer has with their characters. But she's so real for me. It's almost like she's speaking. And I'm just using my hands to write the words if that makes any sense. Yeah. So it's, it's wonderful. From my point of view, because I can just let my imagination go all over the place, you know. And then when you actually are reading the story, and you watch the kids faces, it is so special. Because you can see, they can see it in their heads. They can take their imagination, they can see the pictures, like a little film, you know? Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 49:05 Well and and that's the way imagination should be now, here's a question does skip and where Polly ended up does Polly have a Scottish accent? Sort of Jann Weeratunga ** 49:17 weird actually. And he definitely has a Scottish accent. And all of his crew do. He has a cruiser quite there's nine crews and they each have quite definitive accent so the the Caribbean Jamaican crew has very Caribbean the turbaned Indians very much the cowboy Americans very much with an American lil. So each each crew I've actually given their own voice, which is important because it also brings diversity for the kids to understand the world is quite a big place that we live in. So we've got tattooed Maori And we've got Scandinavians, we've got Scots, we've got Zulus, we've got Greek goddesses, we, you know, we've got the the Japanese ninjas, you know, there's all these different crews that are very different. But they all belong to the fellowship of pirates, right? Michael Hingson ** 50:21 That's really the issue, isn't it? Jann Weeratunga ** 50:24 Yeah. Yeah. You know, what am I realize we're actually all the same, we all want the same things. Michael Hingson ** 50:31 One of the things that I talked about, on the podcast, I'm not going to spend a lot of time on it today, because people hear it enough. But you talked about able bodied and disabled people, I work to try to get people to understand that disability doesn't mean and I know you're saying somewhat the same thing. disability does not mean a lack of ability. Disability is a characteristic. And I would submit that everyone has a disability, everyone in the world. And for most of you, as I tell people, it's like dependents, you know, when the lights go out, and you don't have an iPhone, or a smartphone of any sort, or a flashlight nearby, you're in a world of hurt, because you can't see what you're doing. So I submit that we need to get away from making a distinction between so called Able bodied and persons with disabilities, because everyone has one. And what we really need to do is to recognize that disability is a characteristic, and it manifests itself in different ways. Yeah, Jann Weeratunga ** 51:32 yeah. 100% 100%. I mean, it's even down to one, you might disagree with me on this. But if all you've ever wanted to do is ride a bicycle, and you have no sense of balance, and you cannot ride a bicycle, you are effectively disabled. You are disabled from being able to ride a bicycle. Now, people argument they know that that's not really a proper disability. Sure, Michael Hingson ** 52:03 it is. It's a it's a characteristic. Jann Weeratunga ** 52:06 Exactly. Exactly. And I think that's, I think you and I are very much on the same page for this. And I know we had a little chat for a few months about that back end. Back Michael Hingson ** 52:17 in the day. Yeah, it's been a while. Jann Weeratunga ** 52:21 Yeah, we touched on it. But But But I agree 100% I think we all have a disability. But one of the things I do say is disability does not mean inability, correct. Michael Hingson ** 52:33 It does not mean a lack of ability, it just means you have something. Jann Weeratunga ** 52:39 Yes. And I think each each gift is different. And it makes us see the world in a different way. So for example, because I have dyslexia, I have to work a little bit harder. With my writing. There's nothing wrong with my grammar, there's nothing wrong with the my my word order, or the words I use, until I try and type them and then very often they can come out backwards, or I mean to this day, if I type the word, the, I can guarantee guarantee 90% of the time, it comes out HTTP II. Okay, and that's, and my fingers know what they should be doing. To this date, they know what they should be doing. But Michael Hingson ** 53:29 they know what you want them to do, but they have their mind of their own. Jann Weeratunga ** 53:33 They do return. So bit of what I'm trying to say there is that, you know, disability, if you if you look at the figures as such, they say that between 20 and 25% of the world is disabled. Those are the disabilities that can be measured. The other 75% they also have disabilities, they just don't admit to it. Right, exactly right. And now the stigmas that are attached to disability. And again, that's why inside the box looking out outside the box looking in, which starts for me with children, because if you are a child inside the box with others use you just as I said earlier, kids don't see disability, they're just friends, right? They all get on with each other. And if somebody can't do something, they'll help them or if they won't help them, they'll believe them or whatever. But the kids will learn to stand up for themselves. And they will get through that Michael Hingson ** 54:30 until adults until adults get in the way. Jann Weeratunga ** 54:33 And so the adults get in the way Exactly. But But what I'm saying is when that group of children become adults, and that's where we haven't got that that's why I believe we haven't got to yet. We're getting there but it's not got there yet. When that group of children become adults, because they've grown up with a whole range of people, different races, different colors, different abilities. It's just normal, it's what's around them. Whereas at the moment, we're having to constantly play catch up. And we're having to put into companies and businesses, the the structures for people with disabilities to be able to go to work. Michael Hingson ** 55:23 As long as those, Jann Weeratunga ** 55:25 it will just automatically be there. Because those are going to be the new bosses, Michael Hingson ** 55:30 as long as they don't forget. As long as they don't forget. Jann Weeratunga ** 55:35 But that's if we don't interfere. Right. Michael Hingson ** 55:41 So when is Polly going to be in a movie? Jann Weeratunga ** 55:46 Oh, my goodness, the big question. Yes, I've actually finally sorted out my pitch. And that's taken a long time. And I've actually a gentleman called Steve Longley. He has been my fairy godfather. He produced Hacksaw Ridge, which is a slightly different type of movie to what we're probably going to be. But he's been a real mentor. And that's why I'm giving you a little bit of a shout out to him, because he doesn't have to help me. He doesn't know me from a bar. So I introduced myself on LinkedIn to him one day, which is, of course, how I met met Sheldon and through Sheldon, you. And he, he's given me so much confidence. So my pictures ready. I'm helping a friend launch their book tomorrow, which has taken up most of the last two weeks. And once that's done, I'm actually going to be going out to producers and directors to see if I will hook somebody that will actually produce it. Because to me, it's important. And I think whether it becomes a TV series or a movie, I don't mind, it probably lends itself more to animation, simply because so many of the characters have disabilities. And I think the insurance for that, in real life would would go through the roof on a movie set? I don't know, but I think so. But it leads me on also to something again, that we touched on before. And that was basically when we were talking about actors, disabled actors. And at the moment most most actors sort of literally have a wheel on reel off for a walk on walk off part. There are no real central characters based around disability or very, very few very emerge now. There's one or two sort of characters that are, you know, building up or what have you. But one of the things I've been advocating for is, why can't disabled actors do voiceovers and dubbing there's nothing stopping them to do those doing those things. We need Michael Hingson ** 57:56 to we need to talk offline about some of that because there's an organization called Radio enthusiast of Puget Sound and a whole group of people who are blind. And the president of that organization also is the lead in a radio Well, internet radio stations called yesterday usa.net. And there's a red network in a blue network, like there is on a piece on NBC in the golden days of radio. And there actually is some work being done to try to create some programs to encourage blind people to go into doing more audio type stuff. So we should talk about that offline. Jann Weeratunga ** 58:39 I think so. I think so. Yeah. Michael Hingson ** 58:43 Speaking of Washington, that's what we're going to do next month is go up and do for radio show recreations. And I and some other blind people and non blind people are all going to be parts of the show. Now Jann Weeratunga ** 58:54 that's so cool. It's so cool. I've got a friend here, Lois. And she's just done an art exhibition. And I found it. It was a concept that I found quite difficult to get my mind around, obviously. You know, how can somebody who's blind do an art exhibition, but she's actually working with a group of people down in Cape Town, a group of blind students found in Cape Town, and some have maybe 10% site up to they have just a little bit but not very much, you know, and they're doing amazing, amazing work and I and I think just bringing more of this it needs to be funded, it needs to be supported. I mean, South Africa there's no funding for anything. We don't have electricity most of the time internet sometimes and water when they feel like it. But, but but, you know, in Western countries where there is a little bit more money, I think these things need to be fun. Need more supported a lot more than they are? And I suppose, unless we started up and start shouting, it won't happen. And so that's one of the reasons why I want to see my pirates and poly made into either a film or set of films or a TV series. Again, because it's something that everybody can enjoy. Maybe Michael Hingson ** 1:00:23 well, Todd, what can I do? Sorry? Maybe we also want to explore making it into an audio series. Hmm, Jann Weeratunga ** 1:00:34 I think so. I think so. Yeah, definitely. Michael Hingson ** 1:00:37 How do we increase the conversation around disabilities and get people? I know, you've talked about one way as children grow up, but what else can we do as adults to break through some of those barriers and get the conversation? more a part of the mainstream? Jann Weeratunga ** 1:00:59 Oh, gosh. Well, I think number one, we have to identify the problems. And I think the main problems are and I'm going to talk about disability disabled and able bodied, if you will, just sort of entertain me on that. The more able bodied, shall we say? folk out there feel awkward talking to people with disabilities, they will shun away from speaking to somebody with a disability, they will avoid going to help somebody with a disability. And I think it's just such a stigma. And it's not the disabled person. I don't think it's the individual. It's just the whole sphere of disabilities. And I, I've watched LinkedIn recently, and there's a lot more out there and a lot more stories coming out. And I think I think that's a really good thing. And I think things like I know, the Paralympics does focus on the physical, and the Disabilities is a lot more than that. I mean, people in wheelchairs are only 8% of those with disabilities. Yeah, what is the symbol that we use for the disabled? It's, it's a word character in a wheelchair. Right. Yeah. You know, so. And I know there is a movement towards possibly changing that. I don't know how why is that is, in the sense that I understand why, but at least is recognized as a symbol for disabled. You know, there's pros and cons around everything. Yeah. And I think I think we just have to talk more, I think there needs to be, I think, all right, I think people are frightened. It's like when I first spoke with Lois, because I think she was the first blind person I spoke with. And I said, Louis, can I ask you a question? Should you ask me anything? But I thought I had actually say, may I ask you the question? Because I felt awkward. I didn't want to cause offence. I didn't want to be rude. I didn't want to say something that will upset. And I think that's part of it. With a lot of people. And we have to get over it. We have and I think that's what Sheldon did that for me. Actually, he was wonderful. We had an hour long chit chat. And I was chatting to him about how to use some of the analytics in LinkedIn and stuff as well, you know, stuff he had, and been able to do, and what have you. And it was so nice, because I felt so much more comfortable at the end of the conversation than obviously, I had at the start of the conversation. And I think just the more able bodied people, a person is, they just need to get over it. They just need to start talking to people. But it's our and it's hard. And that's why I go back to kids because I think, you know, to a degree we have to start with young people and educate them and bring them through the system. But then what do we do with all of us old is sitting at the top end. Michael Hingson ** 1:04:20 But the awkwardness is more of a learned behavior than anything else. We we don't like to think that just because someone is different than us. They're necessarily at the same level we are. And we we grow up learning that which is in part why I said I hoped that children today don't forget as they grow up, because it's a learned behavior. And you're right. It's great to start with children, and the more children get to be involved in the conversation and carry on the conversation. and don't have the fear, the better it is, oh, Jann Weeratunga ** 1:05:03 well, I'll give you an example on something. My niece, as I mentioned earlier is going to be three. One of the things my sister did with her, when for about six months on, she taught her how to sign. Now my niece isn't there. But there's a movement in the UK to teach babies to sign. Because they can sign I'm hungry, I'm full. I would like more. And, you know, I mean, there's obviously a lot more signs than those, I've just taken three, the very basic ones, they can do that six to eight months before they can speak up. So they can communicate on a level to express themselves, which also reduces frustration, and anger. And I'm actually trying to learn there's a guy called the Deaf chef on Instagram, and I'm following him. And every day, he comes out with a new sign. And I've been trying to learn some of those number one, so I can keep up with my knees and get better at styling than I am. But also, sign language actually just became 12 official language in South Africa. And I went to a restaurant one day, and there was a lady there. And I asked her a question, and then she sort of put her hand to it yet and said, you know, yeah, basically, you know, was was telling me she was deaf. So I wrote it down, because I couldn't sign. But the only thing I had looked say was, thank you. So at the end of the conversation, I actually just gave the sign of Thank you. And her face just lit up. It was the only thing I knew how to do. But have it made her day. You know? And and I just think that we we need to all make more of an effort, I suppose. And I think things like, Why can't say why can't we have sign language in schools? You know, over here, we have 11 languages, and they're all taught in school. So why can't we have some language taught and useful? The more we communicate, the more we talk to each other. The more I think barriers will come down. And we've got to get over this stigma of disability. And again, it's that word, isn't it? disability? Michael Hingson ** 1:07:25 And only YouTube anytime we need to learn it doesn't mean Yeah, because it's not a lack of ability. Jann Weeratunga ** 1:07:30 Exactly. Michael Hingson ** 1:07:33 If people want to reach out to you and learn more about you, how do they do that? Jann Weeratunga ** 1:07:38 Okay, so they can they can email me. And I've actually, I think I've given you some of my links. Yeah, Michael Hingson ** 1:07:48 we'll go ahead and spell out email if you want to or whatever. Go ahead and say it here as well, please. Okay, Jann Weeratunga ** 1:07:54 what is quite a complicated kind of fortunately, but it's, it's, well, I'll give you my easy one. I've got one which is Jann Weeratunga, which is? No, maybe that's not the easier one. I think they'll probably is. It's J a n S Jans, Pics P i C S. SA for South africa@gmail.com. Jan's pics SA for South Africa, Michael Hingson ** 1:08:21 at Gmail. com. That's pretty easy. Great. Well, I want to thank you for being here. And we will be putting the book covers and all the other things up in the cover notes. And I hope people will reach out this has clearly been fun and fascinating. And I want to continue our discussions later offline. We got to do some
Many VC winners have struggled to cope with their sudden fame and our hero today is one of them. He rose through the ranks to command one of the most famous units of the South African Frontier. He earned a VC fighting the Zulus, served with distinction against the Basothos and then mysteriously disappeared. Today's story is about an incredible man - but one who remains an enigma. A special thanks to my friend Cam Simpson who researched and co-wrote this epsiode. His books can be found here - https://amzn.to/3TmTXGt If you are interested in the Zulu War, then please sign up for my mailing list to receive my free book on the subject: https://redcoathistory.com/newsletter/ You may also wish to get early access to my videos, without ads. Therefore you can join my Patreon page https://www.patreon.com/RedcoatHistory
The battle of Hlobane was the third (& final) defeat the British suffered during the Zulu War in 1879.Get in touch and also get my weekly newsletterOver 90 white and 100 African troops were killed in a defeat that could have ended in complete disaster.Once more the Zulus proved they were worthy adversaries.Having said that, the battle of Hlobane was a disaster of the British own making.Poor scouting by the commander, Sir Evelyn Wood, meant that Colonel Redvers Buller was effectively attacking the Zulus mountain stronghold blind.That poor scouting also failed to spot a Zulu army numbering over 20,000 approaching the British.In many respects, the defeat could have been a lot worse.5 Victoria Crosses were awarded for acts of bravery during a terryfinig restreat off the mountain down a 150 foot steep rock face.The battle of hlobane was the third victory for the Zulus in this war.It was also to be their last.Support the show
Pete Bengry is an internationally acclaimed professional percussionist, specialising in shamanism, sound healing, music production and one-to-one consultations. He is a member of the UK band ‘Cornershop' who achieved a number one hit with the song ‘Brimful of Asha' in 1996. His percussive training began at the age of five years, when he trusted his natural awareness towards percussive rhythms and sound healing. He was lucky enough to travel to Africa at the age of ten years and witnessed the Zulus drum, sing and dance. Being so moved by their presence, he received a drum, which influenced his passion into the practice of shamanism.With a deep focus on the inner core of the essential human being, 'Being in Beauty' provides trainings in shamanism, and the transformative effects within sound healing. Plus musical production, compositions for both practitioners and clients, one-to-one healing sessions and person centred consultations to enhance your healing presence or personal practice.For more information please visit: www.beinginbeauty.comDo you enjoy listening to these podcasts?You might like to support their ongoing journey, by contributing £5 per month and be part of our community. Middle Earth Medicine has a platform for ongoing connections, support and wellbeing. It can be found here… https://middleearthmedicine.com/membership-account/membership-checkoutYou could be supporting our podcast and appreciating what it offers.AND you could also attend gatherings with like minded people, view videos and blogs of the soul-purpose journey. There would be opportunity to share thoughts on the subject of each podcasts message if you wish toIf you are willing, please go to this link https://middleearthmedicine.com/membership-account/membership-checkout and make your contribution today.Thank you so much for your continued support. Website: www.middleearthmedicine.com.Email: caroline@middleearthmedicine.com Thank you for listening to this podcast, let's spread the word together to support the embodiment of soul, to reclaim our spirituality and to remember a broken innocence, a reclaiming of soul and our life force. Gratitude to you all https://plus.acast.com/s/how-to-find-our-soul-purpose. Hosted on Acast. See acast.com/privacy for more information.
The Zulu nation as we remember it was forged in a world of upheaval under the leadership of the intelligent, dynamic, and ruthless king Shaka Kasenzangakhona. Shaped by the tumultuous events known as the Mfecane, Shaka imposed and maintained a new order on his world by the force of his will, his innovative military tactics, and his brutal efficiency. After he was brought down by the assassin's spears, he was followed on the Zulu throne in succession by two half brothers. Their reigns would collide in what many Zulus today remember as the moment the nation's soul began to break.Join us in this episode for a fascinating journey through the reigns of these three Zulu kings.Don't forget to like and subscribe! And leave us a review if you feel so inclined.You can follow our Facebook page to keep in touch and comment on the episode. We posted a selected reading list with part 1 of this series but here it is again for convenience: The Washing of the Spears by Donald MorrisAnatomy of the Zulu Army by Ian KnightThe Zulus at War by Adrian Greaves & Xolani MkhizeBrave Men's Blood by Ian KnightIn the Shadow of Isandlwana by John Laband
How did a cow-obsessed pastoralists go from 1500 people to a fighting force that could defeat the British Empire? Who were the Zulus, why were they called the Black Spartans and why were they so into cow poetry? Follow us at @ctdeapod on Facebook and Twitter. Or leave a donation at ctdeapod.com.
We took a holiday hiatus but we're back with the first in a 3-part series on the most dominant tribal nation in 18th-century South Africa: The Zulus. In this episode, we range from their Bantu origins to the emergence of Shaka and his military innovations. We will briefly meet The Boers as they race across the frontier from Cape Town on a collision course with the Zulus, then settle down to a tour of Zulu war rituals and tactics.Give our page a like on Facebook If you're interested in further reading on the topic, here are some great suggestions. It is far from an exhaustive list but we think any of them are a good place to start. The Washing of the Spears by Donald MorrisAnatomy of the Zulu Army by Ian KnightThe Zulus at War by Adrian Greaves & Xolani MkhizeBrave Men's Blood by Ian KnightIn the Shadow of Isandlwana by John Laband
Why did India lose the first Test vs South Africa so badly? Are Newcastle wasting their progress from last season under the new ownership? Is Erik ten Hag the right man for Man United after the INEOS takeover? MKT addresses the mailbag for the last time in 2023. Join the Fantasy Premier League game. Link below. MKT France 24 WC Final · Fantasy League · MKT Instagram · The MKT Show Linktree · The MKT Show website
Peter Meyer is in conversation with Jay Humphries, your host. Together they delve into Peter's past and discover how he has been able to turn his dreams into reality. How setting objectives, taking steps to achieve these, surrounding yourself well truly helps you achieve your life goals. But also keeping track of the things you have done in your life and the things you still want to do. To learn that disappointments, should strengthen you, not weaken you. This is a conversation that will remind you about the experiences in your life and how they have shaped you, and it will make you value every little step in your life journey. About our guest:Peter Meyer grew up on an incredible Safari Reserve running wild with Zulus and wild animals, set up by his father James (Jimmy) Meyer. At the age of 10 he moved to boarding school in the UK and there excelled at sports being a 1st Team player of all sports and a record breaking swimmer. He then entered the world of hotels, studied at Les Roches University in Switzerland, and worked for Hilton, Rosewood Hotels and Resorts, JA Hotels and YTL Hotels. In 2014, at the age of 30 Peter sadly lost his father to cancer. Struggling to focus on the Hotel world he found himself presented with an opportunity in Acting and Modelling. He worked his way up in 2 years to acting in feature films including Hollywood productions alongside A-Lists Actors such as Brad Pitt & Marion Cotillard in Allied, Liam Neeson in The Commuter and The Transformers , The Last Knight all as an extra. He had his first lead-role playing Lee Reynolds in Guide to Get Lucky in 2015. Some of his Modeling has been with brands such as Hugo Boss, Ralph Lauren, GANT & Tommy Hilfiger.He wrote and produced The Boy From the Wild, a documentary about his idyllic childhood nurtured by an inspirational father who taught him to believe that everything is possible. >> Get the book on Amazon. Peter is now owner and founder of The Meyer Studios, an Award Winning stunning large open-plan Penthouse Photography Studio in Clapham, London. He has been featured in Surrey Magazine, in RTechRound, in Esquire, and more. Related Episodes:"Wholistic leadership" with Chris MumfordFollow us on Instagram: @hocosoconversation and Linkedin: HoCoSo Conversation
Shaka Zulu (c. 1787–1828) was the most powerful king in southern Africa during the pre-colonial period. He forged a polity that would become the largest in the region through the ruthless use of his reorganised and loyal army. Initially regarded as an upstart, Shaka managed to impose himself as a regional ruler. Invaded by a powerful neighbouring tribe, he organised the collective defence of the Zulus and other tribes, reorganising the militia and drawing on indigenous traditions, without any European influences. He then turned to crushing the surrounding chiefdoms with the utmost brutality, leaving a trail of massacres and destruction in his wake. Operating with only 5,000 to 10,000 warriors at any given time, Shaka – like Napoleon – prevailed not through the introduction of new technologies, but through innovative ways of training and employing his army. Professor John Laband is the world-leading expert on Zulu history. A graduate of the University of Natal and Cambridge, he is Professor Emeritus of History at Wilfrid Laurier University, Canada. He joins Beatrice and Paul for this episode.
Last episode we ended with Hendrick Potgieter and Sarel Cilliers riding to try and find a route to Delagoa Bay, and meeting up with Louis Trichardt. If you remember, Potgieter had warned his followers camped the Sand Rivier not to cross the Vaal River into Mzilikazi's territory, or they'd be attacked. We'll come back to what happened when a small group decided to ignore his orders in a moment. Some explanation is required about what the difference is between a trekboer, and a Voortrekker. The drosters, or raiders, had preceded the Voortrekkers, and in many ways, they had scarred the landscape and warped the perception of folks who dressed in trousers and carried muskets. The frontiers mixed race groups that had pushed out of the Cape starting early in the 18th Century, more than one hundred years before the Voortrekkers, had ploughed into the people's of inner southern Africa, and these same people were to become the agterryers of the Boers in the future. The Voortrekker Exodus was one of many early 19th Century treks out of the Cape by indigenous South Africans. There was a northern boundary and the Kora, Koranna, Griqua, basters and other mixed groups expanded this boundary, speaking an early form of Afrikaans, simplified Dutch, indigenised if you like. The Zulus and Ndebele, and others, who were going to face the new threat on the veld, did not have the long history of fighting the Dutch and the English and did not really understand how to avoid suicidal full frontal suicidal attacks on entrenched positions — they were machismo to the max — believing that a kind of furious sprint towards the enemy would overcome everything. The Boers had another system which was perfected on the open plains of southern Africa. They would ride out to within range of a large group of warriors, an ibutho, and fire on them while keeping a sharp eye out for possible outflanking manoeuvres. The warriors would persist in a massed frontal attack, and the Boers would ride in retreat in two ranks. The first would dismount, fire, remount and retire behind the next line of men who would repeat the action. They would load as they rode, some could do this in less than 20 seconds, or they would hand their rifles to their baster agterryers who would hand them their second musket, increasing the volume of fire. They would draw the enemy into the range of the rest of the Boers inside the laager, and these would open lay down a deadly fusillade, usually stalling the enemy's assault and demoralising the attackers. Sensing victory, the an assault force inside the laager would ride out, routing the enemy. The Voortrekkers departed from these eastern and north eastern locales in more cohesive groups, bound by religion. The differences that emerged the factions, were group based on the leadership of individuals, whereas the trekboers of earlier times had been far more isolated, small nuclear families roaming the vastnesses, the Karoo, the scrublands, the men often taking Khoi and Khoisan mistresses or wives. The earlier frontiersmen were like hillbillies facing off against each other sometimes — squabbling with neighbours. The new moral code that imbued the Voortrekker way demanded conformity, it knitted the Groups together, and there would be no compromise or adaption of the Khoe or Xhosa way of life that had characterised earlier trekkers. Meanwhile, carnage.
950,000 years ago a family of five walked along the beach and left their prints behind. Now, we can view that poignant portrait etched in time — fossils of footprints on the beach — and think of our own families and what memory we might leave in our wake. For award-winning historian Simon Sebag Montefiore, these familiar footprints serve as an inspiration for his latest research in world history — one that is genuinely global, spans all eras and all continents and focuses on the family ties that connect every one of us. In his book The World, Montefiore chronicles the world's great dynasties across human history through palace intrigues, love affairs, and family lives, linking grand themes of war, migration, plague, religion, and technology to the families at the heart of the human drama. These families are diverse and span across space and time. Montefiore tells the stories of the Caesars, Medicis and Incas, Ottomans and Mughals, Bonapartes, Habsburgs and Zulus, Rothschilds, Rockefellers and Krupps, Churchills, Kennedys, Castros, Nehrus, Pahlavis and Kenyattas, Saudis, Kims and Assads. He ties in modern names such as Indira Gandhi, Margaret Thatcher, Barack Obama, Vladimir Putin, and Volodymyr Zelensky. These powerful families represent the story of humanity, with bloody succession battles, treacherous conspiracies, and shocking megalomania alongside flourishing culture, moving romances, and enlightened benevolence. Montefiore's work encourages us to pause and consider our own footprints — and how they might connect to narratives of the future. Simon Sebag Montefiore is a historian of Russia and the Middle East whose books are published in more than forty languages. Catherine the Great and Potemkin was shortlisted for the Samuel Johnson Prize for Non-Fiction. Stalin: The Court of the Red Tsar won the History Book of the Year Prize at the British Book Awards, and Young Stalin won the Los Angeles Times Book Prize for Biography, the Costa Biography Award, and le Grande Prix de la biographie politique. He received his Ph.D. from Cambridge, and he is a Fellow of the Royal Society of Literature. He lives in London. The World The Elliott Bay Book Company
This week, new releases from Garbage, Ghost, Man On Man and The Hives. Comedy from Bill Burr, plus faves from REM, Smashing Pumpkins, Body Count and The Zulus. Also new solo music from Dave Herlihy of O+! Roll up a couple for The Duane Strain. Rock. Mock. Dance. Laugh.
OUTLINE of today's show with TIMECODESNorfolk Southern CEO called to testify after ANOTHER derailment, then mere hours before his testimony, ANOTHER derailment 2:42 FBI Director admits buying geolocation from phone companies to spy without a warrant. Why is media surprised? 6:49 Musk building a "utopian company town" just outside Austin. Oxymoron? 14:13 British government says the 1964 movie "Zulu" with Michael Caine is extremist. The most decorated regiment in history where a bridge building crew of 150 were attacked by 4,000 Zulus. For once they're right — extreme courage, extreme discipline, extreme training. But today's Zulu tribe has something to say about it that doesn't fit the current narrative… 20:18 Movie theaters are disappearing…prices inflated, number of screens shrinks, and content stinks 28:37 New Christian movie with Kelsey Grammar, "Jesus Revolution", has earned more money than 4 Oscar nominated films — COMBINED 29:32 Why are vinyl LP's outselling CD's now? 32:46 Disney's RACIST obsessions and historical ignorance of "Song of the South" caused it to get rid of the "Splash Mountain" ride and now their theme song "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" will be purged from the park and parade. "My, oh my…" 44:57 LA Times is BEYOND PARODY: says white drivers are polluting the air people of color breathe — and they're serious! 54:29 Colin Kaepernick's "Peter Pan" problem. Now he accuses his white adoptive parents of being racist 1:06:11 Lawmaker condemns Christian parents adopting Indian children of "genocide" 1:10:34 Marxists understand how powerful "soft power", do we? 1:15:21 BLM holds seminars to get teachers to be subversive and turn kids into radicals from kindergarten 1:20:21 College enrollments is falling fast as people realize how most degrees are a waste of time and money 1:24:35 Texas Tech coach fired for sharing a Bible verse that student characterized as "racist". 1:27:15 From Mask Mandate to Mask Ban: Biggest FlipFlop Yet. Vienna goes from mask mandates to mask bans overnight. NYC takes off the masks as they've created a crime wave 1:33:27 EXPOSED: The cynical lies and crimes of UK's lockdown politicians are exposed when the ghostwriter Matt Hancock hired to make him a lockdown hero makes his encrypted text messages with other politicians public 1:47:33 INTERVIEW Will the Fed Crash the Economy in 2 Weeks? Gerald Celente, TrendsJournal.com. As Fed chair signals more big interest rates, what is the likelihood it will escalate DragFlation. Looking back at the COVID WAR and the people who lied us into it like Matt Hancock in the UK. Now we're seeing mainstream narrative lying about gold prices as central banks stock up.Find out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here:SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation through Mail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Money is only what YOU hold: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver
OUTLINE of today's show with TIMECODESNorfolk Southern CEO called to testify after ANOTHER derailment, then mere hours before his testimony, ANOTHER derailment 2:42 FBI Director admits buying geolocation from phone companies to spy without a warrant. Why is media surprised? 6:49 Musk building a "utopian company town" just outside Austin. Oxymoron? 14:13 British government says the 1964 movie "Zulu" with Michael Caine is extremist. The most decorated regiment in history where a bridge building crew of 150 were attacked by 4,000 Zulus. For once they're right — extreme courage, extreme discipline, extreme training. But today's Zulu tribe has something to say about it that doesn't fit the current narrative… 20:18 Movie theaters are disappearing…prices inflated, number of screens shrinks, and content stinks 28:37 New Christian movie with Kelsey Grammar, "Jesus Revolution", has earned more money than 4 Oscar nominated films — COMBINED 29:32 Why are vinyl LP's outselling CD's now? 32:46 Disney's RACIST obsessions and historical ignorance of "Song of the South" caused it to get rid of the "Splash Mountain" ride and now their theme song "Zip-A-Dee-Doo-Dah" will be purged from the park and parade. "My, oh my…" 44:57 LA Times is BEYOND PARODY: says white drivers are polluting the air people of color breathe — and they're serious! 54:29 Colin Kaepernick's "Peter Pan" problem. Now he accuses his white adoptive parents of being racist 1:06:11 Lawmaker condemns Christian parents adopting Indian children of "genocide" 1:10:34 Marxists understand how powerful "soft power", do we? 1:15:21 BLM holds seminars to get teachers to be subversive and turn kids into radicals from kindergarten 1:20:21 College enrollments is falling fast as people realize how most degrees are a waste of time and money 1:24:35 Texas Tech coach fired for sharing a Bible verse that student characterized as "racist". 1:27:15 From Mask Mandate to Mask Ban: Biggest FlipFlop Yet. Vienna goes from mask mandates to mask bans overnight. NYC takes off the masks as they've created a crime wave 1:33:27 EXPOSED: The cynical lies and crimes of UK's lockdown politicians are exposed when the ghostwriter Matt Hancock hired to make him a lockdown hero makes his encrypted text messages with other politicians public 1:47:33 INTERVIEW Will the Fed Crash the Economy in 2 Weeks? Gerald Celente, TrendsJournal.com. As Fed chair signals more big interest rates, what is the likelihood it will escalate DragFlation. Looking back at the COVID WAR and the people who lied us into it like Matt Hancock in the UK. Now we're seeing mainstream narrative lying about gold prices as central banks stock up.Find out more about the show and where you can watch it at TheDavidKnightShow.com If you would like to support the show and our family please consider subscribing monthly here:SubscribeStar https://www.subscribestar.com/the-david-knight-showOr you can send a donation through Mail: David Knight POB 994 Kodak, TN 37764Zelle: @DavidKnightShow@protonmail.comCash App at: $davidknightshowBTC to: bc1qkuec29hkuye4xse9unh7nptvu3y9qmv24vanh7Money is only what YOU hold: Go to DavidKnight.gold for great deals on physical gold/silver
The purpose of this meditation is to fully activate your Merkabah. I have mentioned the Merkabah in several meditations. This is a shorter version that you can use daily to fully acitvate your Merkabah This whole meditation is dedicated to completely activating your aura, moving into your heart and awakening your Merkabah. This is truly a game changer and may be the most important meditation that you do. If you have been on Earth and did not recently come from somewhere else, your Mer-Ka-Ba has been dormant for 13,000 years. So it has been a very long time since your body has sensed this experience. This breathing practice will reestablish the living Mer-Ka-Ba around your body. The practice functions much like a spinning wheel that has to be spun every so often to keep it spinning. In a Mer-Ka-Ba, however, eventually the repeated spinning begins to take on a life of its own, and at one point in the practice, the spinning will continue indefinitely. But it takes time. The human being is surrounded by numerous geometric fields of energy that are electromagnetic in nature within this dimension. The Mer-Ka-Ba extends into all possible dimensions, and in each dimension uses the laws of that dimension to manifest. Hundreds of other possibilities exist around the body. the star-tetrahedral field that is the first geometric field off the surface of the body, sometimes referred to as the “opening” to the Mer-Ka-Ba. “Mer-Ka-Ba” has the same meaning in several languages. In Zulu it is pronounced just like in English. The spiritual leader of the Zulus, Credo Mutwa, says his people arrived here from space on a Mer-Ka-Ba. In Hebrew it is Mer-Ka-Vah, and means both the throne of God and a chariot, a vehicle that carries the human body and spirit from one place to another. In Egyptian, the word “Mer-Ka-Ba” is actually three words: Mer is a special kind of light, a counterrotating field of light; Ka means spirit, at least here on Earth it has the connotation of the human spirit; and Ba means “the interpretation of the Reality,” which here on Earth usually means the human body. When you add these words together, my understanding of Mer-Ka-Ba is “a counterrotating field of light that will interact and translate the spirit and the body from one world into another,” though it is really much, much more. It is the creation pattern itself through which all that exists has originated. You know this. It's nothing really new to you. You just forgot for a moment in time. You have used the Mer-Ka-Ba a zillion times as your lives have unfolded throughout the creation of space/time/dimension. And you will remember again just as you need it. This meditation will activate it correctly and change your life.#merkaba #merkabah #drunvalomelchezidek #lawofattraction #guidedmeditation #newearth #starseed #wanderer #galacticfederation Buy My Art - Unique Sigil Magic and Energy Activation Through Flow Art and Voyages Through Space and Imagination. https://www.newearth.art/ BUY MY BOOK! https://www.amazon.com/Reality-Revolution-Mind-Blowing-Movement-Hack/dp/154450618X/ Listen to my book on audible https://www.audible.com/pd/The-Reality-Revolution-Audiobook/B087LV1R5V The New Earth Activation trainings - Immerse yourself in 12 hours of content focused on the new earth with channeling, meditations, advanced training and access to the new earth https://realityrevolutioncon.com/newearth Alternate Universe Reality Activation get full access to new meditations, new lectures, recordings from the reality con and the 90 day AURA meditation schedulehttps://realityrevolutionlive.com/aura45338118 Like us on Facebook https://www.facebook.com/The-Reality-Revolution-Podcast-Hosted-By-Brian-Scott-102555575116999 Join our Facebook group The Reality Revolution https://www.facebook.com/groups/523814491927119 Contact us at media@advancedsuccessinstitute.com For coaching – https://www.advancedsuccessinstitute.com For all episodes of the Reality Revolution – https://www.therealityrevolution.com Subscribe to my Youtube channel https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCOgXHr5S3oF0qetPfqxJfSw Music By MettaverseSolsticeInner Worldsthe shiftskyward ➤ Listen on Soundcloud: http://bit.ly/2KjGlLI➤ Follow them on Instagram: http://bit.ly/2JW8BU2➤ Join them on Facebook: http://bit.ly/2G1j7G6➤ Subscribe to their channel here: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCyvjffON2NoUvX5q_TgvVkw Guided Meditations https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo_BfNnb5vLcwouInskcEhqL All My Neville Goddard Videos In One Playlist - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo8kBZsJpp3xvkRwhbXuhg0M All my videos about Dr. Joseph Murphy - https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo_OtBhXg2s85UuZBT-OihF_ New Earth Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo9SaAwarTV5B4L4l1zDT_gi Visualization Playlist: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PLKv1KCSKwOo_dx-M73FZa4anVsj4k4Ilr
Did you know that while the British army was battling the Zulus, another force of Cape soldiers was fighting in a nearby region against the BaPhuti people of southern Lesotho? It was a complicated, drawn out conflict against a skilled and dedicated opponent. In today's episode, I am joined once more by Cam Simpson to learn all about this little-known war in a remote part of southern Africa. To find out more about Cam and his books, you can visit his Amazon author page here. For a free copy of my book on the Anglo-Zulu war of 1879 you can also sign up for my mailing list via this link.
On this episode, we are joined by The Legendary Rich Gilbert. Rich has had quite a career starting with his early days in the incredible Boston band Human Sexual Response, followed by the equally popular Zulus. Since then Rich has played with a who's who in music including Frank Black, Tanya Donelly, Wanda Jackson, Eileen Rose etc. We cover a lot of this in our talk and more. Enjoy! Music Milquetoast & Co "Cigarette Burns(Theme music) Human Sexual Response "What Does Sex Mean To Me" The Legendary Rich Gilbert "#1 Hit Record" Recorded remotely on Zoom. This episode was supported by Baby Loves Loves Tacos(Pittsburgh PA), Joe's Albums(Worcester/Northampton MA), and Light Street Media(Denver CO) Please support us on Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/twistedrico Keep The Rock N Roll Alive. #RichGilbert #BlowingSmokewithTwistedRico Contact: twistedrico@gmail.com --- Support this podcast: https://anchor.fm/blowingsmoketr/support
Toby the performing seal could fire a gun
This week, the debut of two more brand new tracks from Iggy Pop's new release, Plus, FNX's D-Tension has a new song out, we'll give that a spin. There's a four song set of original demos, plus The Supersuckers, Stevie Ray Vaughan, The Zulus, Snoop and much more! Roll up a couple and turn on the smoking lamp. Rock. Mock. Dance. Laugh.
Off The Path - Reisepodcast über Reisen, Abenteuer, Backpacking und mehr…
Auf der Suche nach einem großen Abenteuer, der authenthischen Kulturerfahrung, bewegenden Begegnungen und der ursprünglichen Natur begab sich Cem Özulus auf eine Reise durch beide Amerikas, angefangen in Rio de Janeiro, Brasilien. Von dort startete er mit nichts weiter als einem Klapprad und dem Drang nach Spontanität. Sein Ziel ist Kanada und auf dem Weg dorthin passiert das meiste ungeplant und vieles auch unerwartet. Im Amazonas nahm Cem an einer Ayahuasca-Zeremonie teil Im zweiten Teil unseres Podcasts mit Cem Özulus erfährst du wie die Reise schließlich nach den aufregenden Wochen in Rio de Janeiro weiterging. Cem erzählt dir, welche spannenden Orte er im Süden Amerikas noch entdeckte und wie er bei einer Dschungeltour durch den Amazonas seinen unfreiwilligen Survival-Moment hatte. Weiter ging es für ihn dann nach Kolumbien, wo er fast ein Haus kaufte, und nach Abenteuern in den Ländern Mittelamerikas erzählt er noch von seinen Erlebnissen in Kuba, die für den nächsten Kulturschock sorgten. Abschließend erfährst du dann, wie er es durch Mexico und die USA bis nach Jasper schaffte, wo für ihn ein Schlüsselmoment wartete. Hier erfährst du alles zu Cems Radreise durch Amerika: [07:40] Hitler hat in Brasilien weitergelebt? [15:05] Auf dem Frachtschiff den Amazonas entlang und Dschungeltour mit Ayahuasca-Zeremonie [29:58] Kolumbien und ein gescheiterter Grundstückskauf [45:20] Ausgeraubt und verfolgt in Kolumbien [49:49] Durch Mittelamerika [55:10] Abstecher nach Kuba [01:06:33] Der Abbruch der Reise und die Wiederaufnahme [01:13:20] Von L.A. mit dem Van Richtung Kanada [01:17:10] Mit dem Rad durch Kanada nach Jasper Shownotes: Hier gehts zum Blog Cem Özulus: individualstory.com Cem Özulus auf Instagram: @the_individual_story Das Buch zur Reise: Fahrtwind Werde außerdem Mitglied in unserem Reiseclub bei Patreon! Unterstütze uns monatlich mit einem kleinen Beitrag und erhalte so exklusive Inhalte zu jeder Folge und höre zudem ohne Werbung. Bitte hinterlasse eine Rezension des Off The Path Podcasts auf Spotify oder iTunes. Bewertungen auf iTunes oder Spotify sind super hilfreich für das Ranking der Show und sind für uns die beste Bezahlung für die ganze Arbeit, die in die Show investiert wird
Off The Path - Reisepodcast über Reisen, Abenteuer, Backpacking und mehr…
Auf der Suche nach einem großen Abenteuer, der authenthischen Kulturerfahrung, bewegenden Begegnungen und der ursprünglichen Natur begab sich Cem Özulus auf eine Reise durch beide Amerikas, angefangen in Rio de Janeiro, Brasilien. Von dort startete er mit nichts weiter als einem Klapprad und dem Drang nach Spontanität. Sein Ziel ist Kanada und auf dem Weg dorthin passiert das meiste ungeplant und vieles auch unerwartet. In Rio de Janeiro startete das Abenteuer auf dem Klapprad In dieser Podcastfolge erzählt er davon, wie alles seinen Anfang nahm, welche Hindernisse es zu überwinden gab, welche spannenden Abenteuer auf ihn warteten und wie diese beeindurckende Radreise durch Amerika ihn schließlich nachhaltig beeindruckte. Im ersten Teil erfährst du wie eindrücklich Cem Rio de Janeiro erlebte, wie schwierig es dort war an ein Fahrrad zu kommen und welche Grenzerfahrungen er direkt am Anfang seiner Reise in der brasilianischen Stadt machte. Hier erfährst du alles zu Cems Radreise durch Amerika: [04:35] Die Idee zur Reise [10:40] Die Vorbereitung auf die Reise und wie man in Rio an ein Klapprad kommt [23:24] Erste Grenzerfahrungen im freizügigen Rio [35:00] Zwischen Leben und Tod in Rio de Janeiro [45:45] Der Start der Fahrradreise Richtung Norden [55:00] Eine brenzlige Situation Shownotes: Hier gehts zum Blog Cem Özulus: individualstory.com Cem Özulus auf Instagram: @the_individual_story Das Buch zur Reise: Fahrtwind
When this week's guest, singer/songwriter Elizabeth McCullough (Alpha Cat), heard the song 'Hoover Dam' by the band Sugar, she broke her 3-song rule (making sure an album has at least 3 good songs before purchasing it) and ran out and bought their 1992 debut 'Copper Blue'. She was not disappointed. The record by Bob Mould's new band, released five years after the dissolution of his previous band - beloved punk titans Hüsker Dü - is an emotionally visceral, sonically fierce collection of songs that sound as fresh today as when they first appeared. Stone. Cold. Classic. Songs featured in this episode: If I Can't Change Your Mind - Tre Dabney/The Salt Flats/The Decemberists; Venus Smile, Orbit - Alpha Cat; Friend, You've Got To Fall, Celebrated Summer - Hüsker Dü; See A Little Light - Bob Mould; Never Again - Zulus; The Act We Act, A Good Idea - Sugar; Debaser - Pixies; Changes, Helpless - Sugar; Hoover Dam - Bob Mould (Live, acoustic); Hoover Dam, The Slim - Sugar; Glad To Be Gay - Tom Robinson Band; If I Can't Change Your Mind, Fortune Teller - Sugar; Come In Alone - My Bloody Valentine; In Bloom - Nirvana; Slick, Man On The Moon - Sugar; Wichita - Alpha Cat; If I Can't Change Your Mind - The Decemberists (Live acoustic, A.V. Club)
I greet you in Jesus' precious name. It is Monday morning, the 31st of October, 2022, and this is your friend, Angus Buchan, with a thought for today.“For He is coming, for He is coming to judge the earth.He shall judge the world with righteousness,And the peoples with His truth.”Psalm 96:13And then we go to the last book of the Bible, Revelation 19 and I am reading from verse 11:“Now I saw heaven opened, and behold, a white horse. And He who sat on him was called Faithful and True, and in righteousness He judges and makes war.” It goes on to say in verse 16:“And He has on His robe and on His thigh a name written:KING OF KINGS AND LORD OF LORDS..” Oh, what a day that will be! I have had the privilege of meeting two earthly kings. One, the King of the Zulus and another, the King of the Swazis. We know that there is another king in Great Britain who has just been inaugurated, in fact, just a couple of days ago, there was a coronation in South Africa with a new King of the Zulus. There is a lot of protocol involved when you meet a king. I remember being given explicit instructions on how to treat and to greet a king. The King of the Zulus, they say, “Bayete Nkosi. Wena indlovu” which means, “We greet you, oh King. You are the elephant.” Because we know, in Africa, the King of the Jungle is not the lion - it is actually the elephant... There is a lot of protocol. You never, ever turn your back on a king. You walk in, greet him very humbly and then you retreat, never turning around. But I want to speak to you today about the King of Kings - He is coming! He is the King of all the earth, the heavens, the planets and the galaxies. He is the Word! He is returning soon, not riding a donkey this time but riding on a war-horse, on a majestic horse. All the armies of Heaven will follow Him on white horses. Folks, we need to be ready for the King of Kings and the Lord of Lords. Until that day, the greatest day that the world has ever seen, we need to be prepared. Just like you prepare when you go to a wedding or a grand occasion. Prepare your heart, your mind and prepare your life because when He comes again, He is coming as the Judge and not as the Saviour. We need to be ready to welcome Him and then everything will be put right.Until then keep your eyes fixed on the clouds because He may be coming today. Jesus bless you and have a wonderful day.Goodbye.
The great Historian John Laband joins me today to give us an overview of the conflict that raged between Zulu and Boer from 1837 to 1840. It is the subject of his recent book that can be purchased directly from helion.co.uk. Use the code ZULUKING20 at check out for a 20% discount code. Most listeners will have heard of the Zulus and the Boers - two groups of people that Britain has gone to war with over the centuries. But did you know that those nations also fought one another in a brutal fight for control of great swathes of South Africa that culminated in the famous battle of Blood river? A battle previously covered on this channel. The conflict began when Boers began migrating from British rule in the Cape and moving north to settle new lands. It was a time known as the Great trek. But these Dutch speaking farmers and hunters in their wagons didn't find empty space they found a land filled with proud indigenous people. Let's hear the full story.
At least 12 people have been killed after al-Shabab militants stormed a hotel in the Somali capital, Mogadishu, on Friday night. Police said attackers detonated two explosives outside the hotel before entering the building and opening fire. Also in the programme: Russian leader Vladimir Putin has said UN officials will be granted permission to visit and inspect the Zaporizhzhia nuclear complex; South Africa's Zulus have a new king - but not all of them accept the monarch; and we mark the 40 years of the Compact Disc. (Photo: Unidentified attackers seize control of hotel in Mogadishu. Credit: Reuters.)
New releases this week from The Zulus, Mush, Art D'Echo, Megadeth, and an interesting cover from Wet Leg. Plus The Duane Strain heads south. Roll up a couple and turn on the smoking lamp. Rock. Mock. Dance. Laugh.
By the 1810s, Zwide had built a powerful centralized kingdom and reinforced this power using his extensive family. He also formed feared amabutho such as the amaPhela, the abaHlakabezi, and isiKwitshi and the amaNkaiya. Most of these were around before Shaka became king of the Zulus, and the Ndwandwe were so large that they split into semi-autonomous sections such as the Nxumalo, the Manqele and the Phiseni. At first, Zwide concentrated has raids to the north, around modern day Iswatini. The Ndwande attacked Sobhuza of the Dlamini-Swazi north of the Phongolo River many times, but the 1815 attack was characterized by extreme violence. Sobhuza was forced to flee along with his umuzi and his people were almost destroyed. The description of the ill will makes little sense because Zwide had married off one of his daughters to Sobhuza. The Dlamini were already facing raids from the east, from closer to Delagoa Bay. The Ndwandwe were regarded as bandits and destabilized that part of southern Africa, then turned their attention further South. Zwide attacked the Khumalo people living between the Mkhuze and White Mfolozi rivers and eventually, Donda of the Khumalo was killed by Zwide. The year 1815 is seen as highly significant because it was then that Matiwane of the Ngwane was driven out of what he'd thought was a well-defended area between the Bivane River and Upper Mfolozi. Matiwane relaxed after some years of building his power base, including concluding an alliance with the Hlubi and then the Mthethwa. Out of the blue, Zwide dispatched his men and they fell upon the amaNgwane, driving them out of their homes. This moment is regarded as the first of many destabilizing events between the Thukela and the Ponghola that led to a movement of people across the country – the sub-continent, and migration epic oral storytelling. It's called the Mfecane.
By the 1810s, Zwide had built a powerful centralized kingdom and reinforced this power using his extensive family. He also formed feared amabutho such as the amaPhela, the abaHlakabezi, and isiKwitshi and the amaNkaiya. Most of these were around before Shaka became king of the Zulus, and the Ndwandwe were so large that they split into semi-autonomous sections such as the Nxumalo, the Manqele and the Phiseni. At first, Zwide concentrated has raids to the north, around modern day Iswatini. The Ndwande attacked Sobhuza of the Dlamini-Swazi north of the Phongolo River many times, but the 1815 attack was characterized by extreme violence. Sobhuza was forced to flee along with his umuzi and his people were almost destroyed. The description of the ill will makes little sense because Zwide had married off one of his daughters to Sobhuza. The Dlamini were already facing raids from the east, from closer to Delagoa Bay. The Ndwandwe were regarded as bandits and destabilized that part of southern Africa, then turned their attention further South. Zwide attacked the Khumalo people living between the Mkhuze and White Mfolozi rivers and eventually, Donda of the Khumalo was killed by Zwide. The year 1815 is seen as highly significant because it was then that Matiwane of the Ngwane was driven out of what he'd thought was a well-defended area between the Bivane River and Upper Mfolozi. Matiwane relaxed after some years of building his power base, including concluding an alliance with the Hlubi and then the Mthethwa. Out of the blue, Zwide dispatched his men and they fell upon the amaNgwane, driving them out of their homes. This moment is regarded as the first of many destabilizing events between the Thukela and the Ponghola that led to a movement of people across the country – the sub-continent, and migration epic oral storytelling. It's called the Mfecane.
This is episode 69 and we're hunting the origins of Shaka. Throughout the area north of the Thukela River the main medium of exchange in terms of goods was no longer cattle by 1810 – it was beads. These glass objects manufactured in Europe had flowed through southern Africa starting in the first days of contact between Europe and Africa – way back in 1480s. More than 300 years later, these beads could be found in every corner of the continent. And one of those corners was Zululand. By the time of Shaka's rise, starting in the second decade of the 19th Century, beads had become one the main medium of exchange paticularly when a man acquired a wife – lobolo, in conjunction with cattle. But beads were not the only trade item, things like copper and iron were mined locally and traded as well, while the people along the coast were expert at salvaging these metals from the numerous ship wrecks that dotted the Indian Ocean sands from north of Mozambique to Cape. Metals were directly linked to status. As you've heard in our earliest podcasts, African people were using iron and copper as ornaments – and the metals were worn by warriors as a sign of bravery. So trade with Europeans was therefore directly associated with the stratification of society from the earliest days with the most important members owning the most copper and brass, gold and even iron. However, there was not enough trade with Delagoa Bay to say with certainty that trade in these kinds of products alone drove the amaNdwandwe and the amaMthethwa, then the AmaZulu, to rise as powerful centralized kingdoms. Major trading emanated from Delagoa Bay, and the Dutch took advantage of this. Ivory was the main product, not slaves, with beads exchanged in return. Gold dust was also traded from far in the interior. Tsonga traders from around Delagoa Bay pitched up as far south as the Mfolozi River. Some made it 1500km into the interior!
This is episode 69 and we're hunting the origins of Shaka. Throughout the area north of the Thukela River the main medium of exchange in terms of goods was no longer cattle by 1810 – it was beads. These glass objects manufactured in Europe had flowed through southern Africa starting in the first days of contact between Europe and Africa – way back in 1480s. More than 300 years later, these beads could be found in every corner of the continent. And one of those corners was Zululand. By the time of Shaka's rise, starting in the second decade of the 19th Century, beads had become one the main medium of exchange paticularly when a man acquired a wife – lobolo, in conjunction with cattle. But beads were not the only trade item, things like copper and iron were mined locally and traded as well, while the people along the coast were expert at salvaging these metals from the numerous ship wrecks that dotted the Indian Ocean sands from north of Mozambique to Cape. Metals were directly linked to status. As you've heard in our earliest podcasts, African people were using iron and copper as ornaments – and the metals were worn by warriors as a sign of bravery. So trade with Europeans was therefore directly associated with the stratification of society from the earliest days with the most important members owning the most copper and brass, gold and even iron. However, there was not enough trade with Delagoa Bay to say with certainty that trade in these kinds of products alone drove the amaNdwandwe and the amaMthethwa, then the AmaZulu, to rise as powerful centralized kingdoms. Major trading emanated from Delagoa Bay, and the Dutch took advantage of this. Ivory was the main product, not slaves, with beads exchanged in return. Gold dust was also traded from far in the interior. Tsonga traders from around Delagoa Bay pitched up as far south as the Mfolozi River. Some made it 1500km into the interior!
Many people today say they are unaffiliated, or don't have a religion. They are against organized religion, and distrust historic institutions or hierarchies, so they feel that they have no religion. But everyone has a religion. There may not be weekly meetings that are attended at traditional brick and mortar churches or mosques or synagogues or ashrams or hermitages or monasteries, but there are worship services that outperform traditional liturgies and there are pilgrimages that would rival the Canterbury Tales. People will drive across the country to see Mickey Mouse, or wait outside bookstores for the next Harry Potter book. They will meet up for costume and role playing parties where the fantasy is accepted as reality. They will sleep outside on concrete to get the next iPhone. They will fly ten thousand miles to hear the keynote speech from the Apple CEO. The sports pilgrimages that men make to football stadiums is spoken of with hallowed tones, as if to stand where Joe Montana or Joe Namath or Joe Theisman once threw a hail mary pass is a more highly regarded holy ground than where Gabriel said the actual words “Hail Mary, full of grace” to the Blessed Virgin Mary herself. As a non-believer, when I reviewed my worldview, I realized I'd found a similar replacement for what I'd had before in traditional religion, with curious parallels. A trick of the mind happens when we abandon our idea of religion. When we declare that we have “no religion,” we have already replaced our concept of religion with something different, but the parts are all there. To sum up the modern view that I held - my worldview that I felt had removed all religion - it went something like this: The universe was formed from a massive explosion of pre-existing matter, and gradually over time we evolved from single-celled organisms into fully sentient beings, assembled from far flung star parts and activated by solar power. Whether any pre-existing power or intelligence existed is unknown and unimportant. The creator acted as a clockmaker or artist, and he crafted 100 types of atoms and various physical laws to govern the universe, finely tuning key variables like gravity to keep the dance of atoms and chemistry valid throughout the ages. The laws governing the behavior of matter and energy cannot be broken; the creator cannot or chooses not to poke his finger into the game to disrupt nature and produce miracles. We inhabit a speck on a speck, known as the planet earth, which may be one of many habitable planets in the universe. Pursuit of knowledge and progress is the way, as knowledge is leading us toward a promised land of equality and plenty for all. Against the forces of superstition and ignorance, progress moved forward. From the first living organism, our earliest ancestor, until today, the accretion of knowledge is leading to higher life forms. This progress creates stepping stones of knowledge toward when we will be fulfilled in our understanding by advances in science, engineering, and technology. The rapid leap forward we are experiencing today should have, could have, and would have happened much sooner, but free thought was kept imprisoned by religious institutions until the age of the Enlightenment dawned on the dark ages. Embattled by its enemies, science has finally been unshackled to reveal the truth of the universe. We were only kept from this future by the backwardness of traditional culture, childish superstition, patriarchy, powerful institutions, and primitive tribal structures. In the near future, planetary death will occur through climate change unless we repent of our wasteful ways and adopt a purely rational, scientific view. Through green energy we will be saved. The day is near when we will be able to transfer our conscious mind into a digital immortality. One day we will escape death, shake off our bodies, and have limitless knowledge and pure freedom. Finally, in the distant future, the solar system will collapse, the sun will swallow the earth, and the universe will consume itself into a singular dense spot of matter, and explode once again to restart the cycle. This modern view has it all. By “all” I mean this worldview contains everything that constitutes a religion. I was taking part in a modern religion that has all the trappings of any religion that has ever existed. This modern religion also has its own vocabulary and language and revelations and sacrifices. The priests of this religion even have uniforms or vestments called lab coats and, in the software world, hooded sweatshirts. There are monks and priests in today's secular religion as much as there ever were in Islam, Buddhism, or Christianity. Not only that, but this “Scientism” has the key elements that form a creed: a beginning, an ending, a progression, a hero, a villain, and an apocalypse. I realize the word Scientism sounds strange, but what else could it be called? The only thing missing from it is God. But then it is we ourselves that take his place, so it certainly does have a god, but it's just an evolved ape who wears clothing and stares at screens all day. This realization was an unexpected discovery to me, but so obvious once examined and dissected. We cannot live without some kind of religion. Everyone walking this earth has a religion, whether he or she knows it or not. Consider how people will wait outside for three days for a Harry Potter or Star Wars movie, or will camp out all night on Black Friday for a sale. Consider just how devout members of the Democratic or Republican parties can be, how they will spend hours a day trumpeting the good of their own party while calling out the evil of the opposition. Monks could hardly show such dedication in a cloistered desert hermitage. Fashion and musicians and car companies and cosmetics and guns and pornography have their constant followers, ever faithful in defense. The willingness to defend these modern things makes traditional religious defenders and apologists appear to lack zeal in comparison. While I pretended not to have a faith, I most certainly did have a religion. We are wired for it, and if it's not Christianity or Islam or Buddhism, a religion will surface in something else, like money or health or technology or Harry Potter or socialism. Science, Post-Modernism, and Socialism are religions in disguise. The body itself can become a kind of religion. Literally, millions of devout gym members are attending their worship services on treadmills and leg press machines right now. Everyone is living according to some kind of ultimate faith, whether they admit it or not. As someone who once found that science and religion could not co-exist, I now reject that division. In fact, I find it to be the opposite, as faith and reason are both needed if wisdom is to be found. I've mentioned this several times, but faith and reason are the two wings that make us fly. A bird with one wing cannot leave the ground. To find meaning and purpose in this life we need both reason and faith. The imaginary battle of faith vs. science that has been heated and hammered into a modern worldview is pure invention, but children are being steered to believe that invention. Those driving us in this direction have a clear agenda, and they don't know it, but it's an agenda that will backfire. This way forward will backfire, because a worldview that lacks an ultimate meaning results in a lifetime of trying to fit square pegs into the God-shaped hole in the heart. There is another blowback that is coming, but this one is for those who guide children away from God, as words directly from Jesus stated plainly: “Things that cause sin will inevitably occur, but woe to the person through whom they occur. It would be better for him if a millstone were put around his neck and he be thrown into the sea than for him to cause one of these little ones to sin.” Note: this blowback is coming for those with and without faith. The first commandment of Jesus was to love God, thus the very first sin, the worst sin, is to reject God. American culture has fully adopted rejection of God, and I fell for this bait, hook, line, and sinker, for about fifteen years. Unfortunately, there is a blaring warning about this for our souls from Jesus, as teaching children to reject God or causing them to lose faith is called out specifically as a guaranteed path to hell. Turning away from God violates the first rule - not just the Old Testament rules - but of the two commandments of Jesus. The first sin in Genesis was a rejection of God, hence the name original sin. Funny how things all tie together in this strange book. This theme of “turning away” and “turning back” is a story arc, a loop, a core truth, a central point of it all. And of course, the point of the entire body of scripture and church and worship and faith is to remember to have humility before God. I don't think I know a single person who doesn't believe that “humility before God” sounds like a bad idea, and that includes atheists and scientists and rednecks and hippies. Most of the atheists I know say they don't believe in God, but scratching the surface a bit you come to realize that they mostly hate arrogance in religious people and, therefore, they hate God, as if God were some sidekick of a certain person, or group of people. This is an example of throwing out the baby Jesus with the bathwater. It can be a newsflash to some people that Jesus himself also hated religious hypocrites, which may shock people because they realize that they are not that far from God after all. That's the joke on us moderns who mock traditional religion and “organized” religion: we think we've shrugged off religion, like it was a dirty shirt, because we are now too smart, too busy, and too enlightened. But turns out that we had another shirt on underneath, with the same brand name, titled: religion. We run from one religion right into the arms of another religion. Why? Because we have no choice. We must. Our hearts require it. We cannot help it or hide from it. If we get rid of our Rosary we'll go find crystals and horoscopes. If we discard daily reading the Gospels, we'll do daily readings on politics or sports or technology. We want meaning. We need reasons for belief, and we need a sense of right and wrong, and like it or not, the built-in urge for religion surfaces in every person in all ages. This feature of human experience cannot be stifled, or not for long, and even when stifled it's still peeking out though we may be unaware. “God and country” provided the old banners that gave people meaning, and all of history has shown how those can be abused and twisted into cruel and unusual manifestations of evil. God, country, and even family are being replaced with a variety of distractions today, but this will not last long. A time of plenty and peace leads to diversion and distraction. The period of relative peace held now will fade, and along with it, so will these new religions. The new religions revolve around the individual. The old standards, with all their flaws, provided a sense of purpose and meaning in people's lives. The book of Genesis did not take shape by accident. It is the result of thousands upon thousands of generations of understanding how human life and society stay together. The story begins with God, then leads to a family, and finally that family forms a nation. Literalists miss this because they are not looking for it. This order matters, because as soon as we attempt to ignore God, we begin to destroy the family, and as the family goes, so goes any nation. The 20th century smashed the notion of national pride as always being a good thing, as disorder and death can drape itself under a flag. The nations of Germany, China, and the Soviet Union all tossed out God as the first casualty and followed that attempted murder with millions of actual murders of human beings. Today it's less fashionable to have national pride, but if you doubt that national pride still exists, you don't need to look for a redneck with a jacked up pickup on the gravel roads of America. Watch the opening of any World Cup soccer game, when the national anthem rings out for each team. Look at the faces of the players, eyes wet with tears, their cheeks and foreheads steeled like flint for the coming match, their arms linked in solidarity with teammates and somehow even the crowd. The bond of nationhood cements the people through the playing of the song. The crowd sings at the top of their lungs to give strength to the men on the pitch, like soldiers set to fight a 90 minute war by sport, as proxies for the hordes of citizens at home; to win glory for the symbol of their common flag; to bring honor to that shared patch of dirt that the nation calls its home, where all its dreams and feats and failures and hopes and history, good or bad, has tied them together. That nationalism and tribalism is very much still there, just as our sense of religion may appear hidden but is ever-present. National pride must be checked by the higher power of the divine, but whenever the policy of “God first” slips, nationalism becomes a brutal god, and so now we are rightfully wary of leaders who promise the moon and stars. Even family pride must be checked by the divine, or the same problem arises. Further yet, even when “God first” is replaced with “religion first” then the religion itself becomes a God, and God gets shoved to the side. This can happen with Catholics or Muslims or Jews. Anything replacing God marks the end of truth and results in guaranteed chaos, because there is no ultimate truth or justice. Nationalism is good, in the right dosage. Individualism is good, when kept beneath the Creator. Religion is good, when humility before God remains the focus. In other words, all of these things are good, when ordered correctly and not in themselves the ultimate goal. Religion is best when it does not wield state power, but rather acts as the moral compass of state power. This is why the arguments for religious freedom, from Tertullian and Justin Martyr to Thomas Jefferson and Dignitatus Humanae, remain critical for future generations, perhaps even more today than when those writers first shared their ideas. Any attempts at coercion of faith upon people will fail miserably, and cannot avoid devolving into a horrifying totalitarianism. This applies to nationalism, individualism, or religion. If this sounds like exaggeration, you need look back no further than 100 years at the many dictatorships and attempts to crush all forms of dissent. And again coercion has re-appeared, with its current manifestation in America taking up the banner of individualism as the ultimate good. The saying, “Those who don't know history are doomed to repeat it,” is not true. We will repeat history whether we know history or not. Today, politics and career often take a front seat over God, family, and flag, as we attempt to provide meaning through votes and jobs, and at our peril ignore the crusty old dangerous ways of nationalism and organized religion. The idea today is that we must smash the old. “Smash the patriarchy” is as meaningless a phrase as “Support the troops” or “Defund the police” but all of these work as slogans because of their vague intention and unfocused aim. All three of these slogans pretend to preach virtue, but only make the speaker feel superior for selecting a side. What we have today is a situation of personal feeling as truth, which means that we clamor for a stamp of approval for whatever is we want to do, and in doing so we deem our desires themselves to be good and just. Why? Because we want them. Whatever we want is right. At the end of the book of Judges, the final line matches our times today: “In those days there was no king; every man did what was right in his own eyes.” That is where we sit today, and history will play out what the old civilizations and peoples found out the hard way, from thousands of years of mistaken pathways through war and peace and seasons of change. In the book of Wisdom chapter two might have been written today, in our age of rising atheism and indifference, as the sacred writer uses the voice of the culture of the self to describe its beliefs. There is nothing new under the sun. The author of Wisdom states plainly what those without faith in God seek: to craft a world to satisfy delights and to never stop partaking of those delights, right up to the last day, since if there is no afterlife, judgement, or resurrection, then what else is there but food, drink, entertainment, and “fun”? Virtue is for suckers. For by mere chance were we born, and hereafter we shall be as though we had not been; Because the breath in our nostrils is smoke, and reason a spark from the beating of our hearts, And when this is quenched, our body will be ashes and our spirit will be poured abroad like empty air….Come, therefore, let us enjoy the good things that are here, and make use of creation with youthful zest. Let us have our fill of costly wine and perfumes, and let no springtime blossom pass us by…But let our strength be our norm of righteousness; for weakness proves itself useless. (Wisdom 2) This is summing up the “will to power” three thousand years before any German tackled it. All of this chapter of Wisdom sounds familiar today. We have middle-aged men gulping testosterone pills and protein shakes, worshipping the god of youth, with the enemy being old age. Marriages are sacrificed for pornography every day, as the sacred desires of our fickle minds must be satisfied. Technology is a god that promises to solve all of our problems, even though it actually created the problems that it now needs to solve (see: Climate Change, the threat of Nuclear War, Cyber attack, mega-earthquake from fracking, Coronavirus). Consumerism presses forward with the latest fads, gadgets, vehicles, and fashions to occupy our wants and desires. Rampant self-indulgence runs riot as “to each his own” plays out in real time before our eyes. Sin is seen as only that which could harm another, which is the masterstroke of our egos to allow us to keep us clinging to the seven deadlies because they only harm ourselves, and even self-harm is denied, as the addictions cut so deep that even senior men cannot give up habits that should have died as they passed adolescence into adulthood. At least the Greeks gave names to the gods. We pretend there is no god while we live out full lives worshipping them. Hephaestus, Zeus, Athena, Apollo, Dionysus, Aphrodite, Eros. I challenge you to watch TV ads and see if you can tell exactly which god is calling for worship in each commercial. There may be a good opportunity for a board game or Bingo cards for finding which Greek god is being dialed in each advertisement. This religion of “science” is not the only modern replacement for religion around, it's just one of the better and most complete candidates because it has a full cosmology. By definition it cannot extend into matters of faith and morality, but for many followers it does. The role of science is to observe and explain the natural world, but when it extends past that it becomes philosophy and often bleeds into religion. Our modern cosmology and understanding of the universe looks back on that of the book of Genesis with a sneer, but a thousand years from now it's just as likely that our understanding will look equally silly. Our concepts of black holes and quantum physics and string theory could sound as ludicrous as the “firmament” that held the waters above and below the earth. It's even possible that the firmament theory of Genesis will seem more wise, should the next round of cosmological definition be something completely strange to us moderns. But in either case, the structure of the universe that we “know” at different points in history tells us nothing about faith or morals, and advances in telescopes and computing cannot mine truth any better than the old thinkers and storytellers. Plato and Paul and Confucius and Buddha and Shakespeare and Dante have deeper insights into truth than all the scientists in history, even if they had never heard of calculus or chemistry. Science makes for a good religion because it can explain so many things, make sense of our world, and provide an answer for all questions. Ever since Voltaire's lifelong relentless attack on religion made headway, legions of science apologists stand at the ready to take up arms in defense of Nature to act as a check against the slightest whiff of religious fanaticism. It has become every bit as religious as religion, as can be seen in the long crusade of ink and letters from Voltaire to Karl Marx to Sigmund Freud to John Dewey. The claim is that we are creatures caught up in a cosmic accident, where knowledge can only be ascertained by the scientific method. Only what is observable, repeatable, and testable is real. Consciousness is merely a result of evolution. Our morality and stories are but guardians and guides for our own self-preservation, learned through a cruel history of pain and suffering. Art, literature, and religion are side-effects of overactive imaginations of weak and primitive tribes that invented magic, superstition, God, gods, and goddesses for psychological and sociological survival. This modern god of science has a scapegoat for blame, for redemption, for justification, just like the old religions. A religion must have an enemy, as all gods promise approval, cheerleading, and ultimately righteousness, which means someone else must lose. Christianity has the devil, The Fall, and Original Sin. There has to be a loser, an opponent; you cannot be a freedom fighter today without an oppressor. You cannot be freed without overcoming a master. For the modern gods, the enemy is still there if you look for it. The other political party must be wrong. The ravages of age and deterioration is to blame. Diet, sugar, fat, and high-fructose corn syrup are to blame. The anti-intellectuals are to blame. The hillbillies are to blame. The immigrants are to blame. The rich are to blame. Those on welfare are to blame. The capitalists are guilty, squeezing blood from the workers. No, the flip-side, the communists are causing the problem by killing all motivation. There is a hero and a villain. My favorite quote about the grand left-right argument of economics is from John Kenneth Galbraith who said, “In capitalism, man oppresses man. In communism, it's just the opposite.” While that is funny, it's also a true statement. But it's also worth noting that one of those ideologies has proven repeatedly to embrace wholesale slaughter of humans much more readily than the other, and I don't even have to mention which one for you to know the answer, and it is the same one that inherently denies God as one of its core tenets.And then there's the most popular villain of all: the Christians. Science fundamentalists tend to take aim most pointedly at Christians, and often Muslims, too, but in this cultural moment it is the Christians. Never mind that fact that modern science would not exist without Christianity, or that most of the great breakthroughs were made by God-fearing people. Let's set aside those minor names, like Mendel, Galileo, Kepler, Pascal, Boyle, Newton, Faraday, Mendel, Pasteur, Kelvin, and Einstein. Ignore those thinkers for a moment. Because there is some truth to the accusation of blame, of course, as many readily point at the Spanish Inquisition and behavior of “Christian” explorers in the New World that followed on Columbus' heels. Yes, Europe has horrific segments of history, as religions can be abused and twisted. For instance, read the letters of St. Bartolome de las Casas to hear about what Spanish wealth-seekers were doing to natives in the Caribbean, some under the banner of their supposed faith. It is revolting. Were it not for de las Casas writing in the 1520s to alert about the horrors of the Spanish running amok in the New World, the Church would not have written Sublimus Deus in 1537 condemning all enslavement and re-asserting the fact that natives are created in the image and likeness of God. And even then, could a letter from the Pope suddenly halt the evil of men running wild who want nothing more than gold, violence, and sex? No. But it does make me wonder how much longer and how much worse this state of butchery would have continued if no one like Bartolome de las Casas had been present to witness and report on the evils, because he was one of the few voices crying out from the literal wilderness of the New World. Unfortunately, this is not an isolated event in human history restricted to Europeans, as you can read stories of the gulags in Russia or the lengthy list of massacres in China or find numerous accounts of similar gruesome events coming from the Ottomans or Romans or Zulus or Mayans or Incas or Hawaiians or First Nations or literally any culture that ever existed, try as we might today to gloss over the shared flaw in our hearts, which has always been with humans wherever we have lived. Thanks to the 20th century, when nationalism and socialism reigned, Europeans lead in all body count statistical categories for brutality and inhumanity, but to assume that only one continent of people is capable of atrocity is to ignore reality and all of history. We want to plug our ears and close our eyes, but to pretend that one group of people has this flaw while other human groups do not carry this same disease is to bury our heads in the sands of a version of history that would be more aptly called fantasy.One undeniable fact is that as we gain knowledge and mastery over science and technology, we become increasingly deadly, as each invention increases the death toll, from the longbow, to the broadsword, to the stirrup for riding horses, to the musket, to the cannon, to mustard gas, to the atom bomb, to the inter-contintental-ballistic-missile, to biological weaponry, to whatever unexpected coming attack will slay our modern energy grids and supply chains and water supplies. The reason why is that with each advance, the greed of opportunity is seized by people. The question is always, “How can we make money or benefit from this new knowledge,” and rarely “Should we be doing this at all?” I have seen this firsthand in product meetings where the ability to do something is adopted, such as spy on shoppers, or install keystroke logging software, and the uneasy question usually arises about ethics from mousy engineers, but is quickly knocked down by an executive or manager who wants a good fiscal quarter. To observe this human tendency to exploit others does not require a war to observe. We are all seeking to find an advantage using whatever tool is available, just as a younger sister learns to cry tearfully to thwart a bullying older brother, because she learns it can summon a father or mother to arrest the bully. If the younger sister had a taser that proved more effective, they would just use that. Christians never needed any extra assistance from its own followers to earn the hatred of its enemies. No, they are hated even when they are preaching the Good News with humble hearts and mercy in mind. But rest assured, any atrocity or horror committed under the banner of professed Christians never came from Jesus Christ, the founder of the faith. Anyone who says it does, doesn't understand Jesus, and needs to start again on Matthew 1, verse 1 and proceed to John 21, verse 25. The evils people do in Jesus' name have never come from Jesus. This is something quickly forgotten. Whether or not those who acted in God's name as a wolf in sheep's clothing were true believers does not even matter, because the bloodstain remains. The wound of scandal brought by someone professing faith remains for a long time. The lion is supposed to lay down with the lamb, not eat it, no matter how delicious the lamb. The believer is supposed to give unto Caesar, not become Caesar. Christians in error have become the example held up in pop culture. Many TV shows today have the villain as a Christian. It's easy to see who the villain of American society is by watching movies or reading books from a specific year, as once the Soviets held all the roles of villains, then it was middle-eastern Muslims, and today it's almost entirely Christians. Yet Jesus still remains risen up, glorified, and no matter what evil men carry out, he himself can never be sullied. This is why Christianity can be stood up time after time, after every apparent deathblow. It rises again with Jesus himself. Because of the high standard set by Jesus, we can never live up to it, not fully, and often not even minimally. For this reason the sex abuse of children by Catholic clergy hurts all the worse, because Jesus' Church on earth is meant to be the keeper of the light of faith, and “the gates of hell shall not prevail against it,” yet for all the truth, beauty and goodness that the faithful see in our Church, in its essence and meaning, its buildings, its art, its Catechism, in the history, the mysteries of the Holy Mass, in the Sacraments, in the Rosary, in the Real Presence of the Eucharist, it hurts terribly when the attack comes from the Church itself, when trust has been eroded from the inside. Still the beauty of all those parts can never be destroyed or diminished, no matter how far fallen followers have gone in the ruination of their own souls. Betrayed trust among non-Christians brings bruises, but among the faithful, from inside, the betrayal gives a nearly fatal wound. The saying, “There is no honor among thieves” is meant to be intended for non-Christians, which is why the sex abuse scandal provides endless firepower for powerful guns aimed at the Catholic Church. For the billion people who have known and trusted good priests, this was especially painful, sometimes too hard for words, to the point that excuses were made, and sometimes even excuses for the excuses for the behavior, when there is no excuse that can be allowed. The pain of the victims supersedes all guilt and shame. But it was not God that committed the crimes, nor the Church, but corrupt men who abused their power and violated every precept of the faith and caused immeasurable scandal. For the many that would like to see the Church wither and die, thinking that this event will surely be the final death of Christianity, they will be sorely disappointed. Scandal has rocked the Church for 2,000 years and each of those looked like the last punch, but the Church will never die because it cannot die. I'm not claiming this to be arrogant. I'm not writing this to be rude. I'm saying it because it is a fact. In every age, Jesus somehow gathers a people to his Church.Every generation of humans rediscovers the power of the same man from Nazareth, over and over, again and again, because nothing comes close to its power, nothing touches the completeness of the life of Jesus, and nothing overcomes the resurrection once you come to believe it. Clearly, I have no right to speak for anything regarding the Church. I have no status. I'm not even a very good Catholic. I should probably just shut up and not share my opinion on these topics. But I know what I've found, and it's something quite different and far more meaningful and powerful than what my old religion of science could offer. This is a public episode. 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For our 200th episode, Boston guitar legend Rich Gilbert (Human Sexual Response, The Zulus, Frank Black & The Catholics) joins us to discuss a record that stoked his lifelong passion for creating music without boundaries: 'On The Corner' by Miles Davis. It's also the return of Barry Stock to the guest co-host chair, making sure Rich had someone intelligent to talk jazz with. Dig it! Songs featured in this episode: Never Again - Zulus; Big River, After The Fire Is Gone - The Silver Threads; The Night Rider - Jimmie Rivers & Vance Terry; Bitches Brew - Miles Davis; Spray - Can; Albatross - Public Image Ltd.; On The Corner, New York Girl, Nefertiti, Mtume, Thinkin' One Thing and Doin' Another, Vote For Miles, Black Satin, One and One, Helen Butte, Mr. Freedom X - Miles Davis; Pound - Human Sexual Response; Peaches - Justin Bieber; The Girl From Ipanema - Stan Getz & Joao Gilberto; Who Needs the Peace Corps - The Mothers of Invention; Poptones - Public Image Ltd.; Bullet - Frank Black & The Catholics; The Chicken Exit - The Legendary Rich Gilbert
Shaka Zulu wanted power. He wanted an empire. If he had to wage total war to do so, so be it. Join us next week for our EPIC study of the fascinating Zulu tribe of South Africa.
We are back with our next exciting adventure! We talk about many things including what is new in the news and what hobbies we have been doing. There is talk about the next Zero Dark Thirty Kickstarter, Oriskany Jim's next Battlegroup game taking place in the Pacific as well as an upcoming game involving Zulus! Grab your brush or cuppa and let's hit it!
My father's twilight years in a retirement village in South Africa were spent in quiet solitude reading and reminiscing on the lessons of a long life lived. He died last year three months prior to his 90thbirthday. Especially during my teenage years, we had a difficult relationship. I perceived him as weak with our mother making all the decisions pertaining to important family and other matters. It was embarrassing when he would at times interrupt a conversation with a completely unrelated topic. I could not understand why he was the complete opposite to his five opinionated and charismatic younger brothers who each in their way had been very successful. They ran profitable businesses, and farms and the youngest was the headmaster of a school. The veil of silence It seemed as if my father lived a life separate from the world around him behind a thick veil of silence. Unsurprisingly my two brothers and I tried numerous methods, especially provocation to break through that veil. In his frustration, he would try to discipline us by referring to the all-powerful family figurehead. “What do you think grandfather would say?” That worked. We did not want to get in grandpa's bad books. We spent most of our school vacations and weekends on the grandparent's farm. Some of those happiest childhood memories were the swims in the crystal clear waters of the Pongola River in rural South Africa, milking cows by hand, listening to the stories of the Zulus around a fireplace, and riding through the African veld on horseback. A family secret revealed Only much later in life my uncle and godfather, his life slowly ebbing away from cancer, took me aside with the words: “I think you need to know a few things about your father to understand why he is the way he is.” The family secret was finally revealed
"May God us keep From Single vision & Newtons sleep." -William Blake "When a man has seen a [linear perspective] picture for the first time, his book education has begun." -Robert Laws (1851–1934) "My main argument was that a photograph could not be looked at for a long time. Have you noticed that? You can't look at most photos for more than, say, thirty seconds. It has nothing to do with the subject matter. I first noticed this with erotic photographs, trying to find them lively: you can't. Life is precisely what they don't have—or rather, time, lived time. All you can do with most ordinary photographs is stare at them—they stare back, blankly—and presently your concentration begins to fade. They stare you down. I mean, photography is all right if you don't mind looking at the world from the point of view of a paralyzed cyclops—for a split second. But that's not what it's like to live in the world, or to convey the experience of living in the world." -David Hockney "The anguish of the third dimension is given its first verbal manifestation in poetic history in King Lear. Shakespeare seems to have missed due recognition for having in King Lear made the first, and so far as I know, the only piece of verbal three dimensional perspective in any literature. It is not again until Milton's Paradise Lost (II, 11. 1 -5) that a fixed visual point of view is deliberately provided for the reader...The arbitrary selection of a single static position creates a pictorial space with vanishing point. This space can be filled in bit by bit, and is quite different from non-pictorial space in which each thing simply resonates or modulates its own space in visually two-dimensional form. Now the unique piece of three-dimensional verbal art which appears in King Lear is in Act IV, scene vi. Edgar is at pains to persuade the blinded Gloucester to believe the illusion that they are at the edge of a steep cliff: 'Edgar. . . . Hark, do you hear the sea? Gloucester. No, truly. Edgar. Why then, your other senses grow imperfect By your eyes' anguish... . Come on, sir; here's the place. Stand still. How fearful And dizzy 'tis to cast one's eyes so low!' ...Far from being a normal mode of human vision, three dimensional perspective is a conventionally acquired mode of seeing, as much acquired as is the means of recognizing the letters of the alphabet, or of following chronological narrative. That it was an acquired illusion Shakespeare helps us to see by his comments on the other senses in relation to sight. Gloucester is ripe for illusion because he has suddenly lost his sight. His power of visualization is now quite separate from his other senses. And it is the sense of sight in deliberate isolation from the other senses that confers on man the illusion of the third dimension, as Shakespeare makes explicit here. There is also the need to fix the gaze: 'Come on, sir; here's the place. Stand still. How fearful And dizzy 'tis to cast one's eyes so low! The crows and choughs that wing the midway air Show scarce so gross as beetles. Halfway down Hangs one that gathers sampire—dreadful trade! Methinks he seems no bigger than his head. The fishermen that walk upon the beach, Appear like mice; and yond tall anchoring bark, Diminish'd to her cock; her cock, a buoy Almost too small for sight. The murmuring surge, That on th' unnumb'red idle pebbles chafes, Cannot be heard so high. I'll look no more, Lest my brain turn, and the deficient sight Topple down headlong.' -Marshall Mcluhan, Gutenberg Galaxy Sources: https://old.reddit.com/r/DilettanteryPodcast/comments/nvsg5u/122_the_four_dimensions_of_reality_and_the_two/?
On this episode of the Irish History Show, we looked at Ireland's involvement in the Anglo - Zulu War of 1879. We looked at British involvement in South Africa from their formal annexation of the Cape Town Colony in 1806; British immigration into the region throughout the 19th century; The complicated relationship between the British and the mainly Dutch colonists, the Boers; The rise of the Zulu nation to become the predominant native ethnic group in the east of what is now South Africa; Zulu society and their military prowess; The local British administration provoking a war with the Zulus so as to neutralise the power of Zululand; The war itself; Reactions to the war in Ireland, and the role of Irish people during the war. John Dorney's article on Ireland and the Anglo - Zulu War is available here https://www.theirishstory.com/2021/02/15/ireland-and-the-anglo-zulu-war-1879/#.YFXUGp37TIU Intro / Outro music “Sliabh” from Aislinn. Licensed under creative commons from the free music archive.
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