Superinjunction

 

So we all learned a new word today. Yes, that would be "superinjunction"... 

Sveriges framsida

 

Terrorsekten "Islamiska Statens" operative ledare är tydligen göteborgare. Ja, nästan i varje fall... 

Bodde i Göteborg: Pekas ut som IS nye ledare

Dödens fält

 

Jag undrar också över förklaringen. Är talibanerna en galen sekt (*ännu* galnare än vad vi trodde, och förhoppningarna på de här killarna var aldrig särskilt höga) som för tankarna till de röda khmererna? Eller är det en IQ-fråga? Fast de var tillräckligt smarta för att besegra USA:s allierade...  

Talibanerna trappar upp kriget mot kvinnorna

Svärje sätter ner foten, yao

 

Fy fan vad hårt. Men kan de inte fika åtminstone? Eller käka glass?

"Kommer inte prata med talibanerna"

From isolation to inclusion

 

The climate change conferences continue their downward spiral, now in Azerbaijan, a nation mostly known for its oil industry. They have natural gas, too. Since the Azeri regime is authoritarian, the number of radical leftist protesters should be minimal. 

The Taliban of Afghanistan participate at the conference as "observers". I suppose they could pitch their enormously large and untapped reserves of rare earth minerals as some kind of Green transition thing. Or they could just sell ice cream... 

Taliban participate in climate change conference

The Liz Cheney situation

 

I used to be a great fan of Michael Tracey in a previous life, but his constant gadfly contrarianism was visible even back then, and went haywire when Russia attacked Ukraine, Tracey becoming some kind of pseudo-Russian asset. Oh, and then there´s his World War II revisionism...

That being said, his comments on the recent fracas between Trump and Liz Cheney is interesting.

The first link goes to X and can be seen as a kind of introduction to the essay in the second link (to Substack). At least the Substack article should be visible for everyone.  

Michael Tracey on Trump-Cheney (from X)

Who agrees with Liz Cheney?

So if Tracey is right, both Trump and Harris are really neo-connish war hawks, with Liz Cheney switching her loyalty from the one to the other due to J6. Note the speculation that Harris might appoint Cheney to a position in her administration! 

Provokationen

Två av de misstänkta IS-terroristerna i Moskva har tydligen redan åtalats.

Åtalats?!

Det gick ovanligt snabbt, det där. 

Foreknowledge

 

Concerning the brutal terrorist attack in Moscow: sometimes the provocation is more transparent than usual. I think it´s obvious that the Putin administration had foreknowledge of the attack. 

If they ordered it, infiltrated the Islamic State to carry it out, or just waited and did nothing to stop a "real" IS operation, remains to be seen. Perhaps we´ll never know. 

But seriously: do we even need to?  

Queer as Taliban

 

This must be the strangest news item this year. I suppose we could call it queer as fuck! Is Andrew Anglin behind this, somehow?

Taliban shuts down "Queer.af" platform 

For insiders only?

 

I know, it´s the wrong Buddha, so hit me!

I recently read a somewhat obscure article on a topic I know next to nothing about, frankly mostly to kill some time. The subject under consideration is Bon or Bön, a Tibetan religion with strong similarities to Tibetan Buddhism. The article, "The Bonpo Traditions of Dzogchen" is written by Vajranatha, otherwise known as John Myrdhin Reynolds. I previously looked at some of his YouTube content and drew the conclusion that he is a Western convert to Bon and perhaps an apologist for this particular tradition. According to his website, however, Reynolds is initiated into a Tibetan Buddhist sect known as Nyingma, but he is clearly sympathetic to Bon and sees many similarities between the two groups. Since his article ends rather abruptly, I assume it could be the introduction to a book. Perhaps Vajranatha is an apologist for the Bon tradition, trying to pass off its legends as real history, or perhaps previous scholars of related topics were apologists for Tibetan Buddhism! Sorting *that* out presumably takes quite some time and reading...

Some Tibetan legends suggest that Buddhism didn´t come to the land of snow from India, but rather from Uddiyana, a mysterious land northwest of India. Most scholars identify it with the Swat valley in modern Pakistan. Reynolds believes that Uddiyana is a much broader region, encompassing Afghanistan. Bon also claims a non-Indian origin. Originally from "Tazik" in Central Asia, it later entered Uddiyana and Zhang-zhung. Reynolds believes that this could be based on real history. He identifies Zhang-zhung with an ancient kingdom in  western Tibet later conquered by the expanding Tibetan Empire. In Bon legends, the real buddha Tonpa Shenrab appeared in Central Asia 18,000 years ago and his message subsequently spread to Zhang-zhung, which plays an important part in the religion´s mythology. 

While Reynolds doesn´t take this absolutely at face value, he does believe that both Bon and early forms of Tibetan Buddhism (read: Nyingma) could have a Central Asian origin. Buddhism did spread to those regions. Reynolds holds that Buddhism must have syncretized heavily with other traditions, including Shaivism, Manicheanism and native shamanism, in these regions. It was "Tantric" and to a large extent non-monastic. Perhaps this process was somehow connected to the emergence of Mahayana at large. This "Central Asian" form of Buddhism then entered Tibet in the form of Nyingma and Bon. Note that Shiva´s holy mountain Kailash is situated in the territory of the former Zhang-zhung! That the esoteric aspects of Tibetan Buddhism, known as Vajrayana, are heavily indebted to Tantric Shaivism is current scholarly orthodoxy. 

The term "Bon" is somewhat confusing, having two or even three distinct meanings. It usually refers to Yungdrung Bon, the independent but Buddhist-looking Tibetan religion extolling Tonpa Shenrab as their chief revelator. However, it can also refer to the pre-Buddhist shamanistic religion of Tibet, which is demonized by Tibetan Buddhists but regarded as legitimate by Yungdrung Bon. Finally, there is something called New Bon, which seems to be a syncretic blend of Yungdrung Bon and Nyingma. For instance, New Bon venerates Padmasambhava, who is held in high regard by all Tibetan Buddhists and considered to be the founding master of the Nyingma sect. If I understand Reynolds correctly, both Yungdrung Bon and New Bon exist today.  

The author makes a valiant attempt to sort out the various "transmissions" and scriptures associated with Bon (presumably the Yungdrung version). One striking feature is that Bon regards shamanic practices as perfectly valid, albeit "exoteric". The shamanism is strongly dualist, with a sharp dichotomy between good and evil spirits, which I suppose raises questions about Zoroastrian or Manichean influences. The similarities between Bon and Nyingma are obvious. At their esoteric core, both traditions practice the mystical technique known as Dzogchen or the Great Perfection. Both also believe in "termas", hidden "treasure texts" which can be discovered by spiritual masters and in effect constitute a kind of new divine revelations. More direct means of communications such as visions are also accepted. The closeness of the two traditions is further shown by the fact that some masters "discovered" both Bon and Nyingma termas! The shamanic substratum to these traditions is interesting, since Hindu Tantrism for all we know might have a similar one. 

Bon practitioners have evidently been persecuted at various points in Tibetan history, but the current Dalai Lama has recognized Bon as a Tibetan religious school. According to Reynolds, this doesn´t mean that the Dalai Lama regards the Bon-pos as Buddhists, rather he sees them as "Insiders" (apparently a somewhat broader term) as opposed to "Outsiders" (all other religions). However, the article doesn´t really say that much about the current status of Bon. 

Still, perhaps a good introduction (albeit very in-house) to the scholarship of Vajranatha.  

Ensam hemma

 

Utan närmare kommentarer.  

Hur bra gick det egentligen för de ensamkommande?

Pity the nation

 

The United Nations reports that the Taliban have eradicated 95% of Afghanistan´s opium production. While this may sound good, Afghan peasants get much less from growing and selling wheat, the usual replacement crop. The economy might therefore collapse (if it hasn´t already done so). 

The UN expresses concern that the farmers might turn to manufacturing and/or smuggling other drugs instead, including "met" and fentanyl, the latter being particularly deadly.  

Opium production collapses in Afghanistan

Det är skillnad på terrorister och terrorister

 

Det här är tydligen en moderat kommunalpolitiker i Falköping. En hazara från Afghanistan. Som alltså stödjer Hamas´ barbariska terrorattack mot Israel. Det kommer att bli mycket sådant här framöver, misstänker jag. Det positiva är att psykopaterna tydligen inte kan hålla käften, och således avslöjar sig. Tror inte att de här personerna hänger kvar över nästa val. "What is happening is called self-defense, hun".

Slog mig förresten att hazara brukar vara shiiter. Som knappast skulle få plats i Hamas´ idealsamhälle. Hussaini hade aldrig kunnat bli ledamot av en kommunal nämnd på Gaza-remsan. Men att missbruka Sveriges gästfrihet går tydligen bra.

Faktum är att Husseini lajkar en pro-hazara-tweet som undrar varför talibansympatisörer tillåts bo i västländer! Så hon är inte främmande för, ska vi säga, selektiva utvisningar. Och ja, hon är pro-rysk också. Hur i allsin dar kan en sådan här person bli moderat kommunalpolitiker?! 

Men okej, det här är ingen hatblogg. Alltså slutar jag här. Zara Larsson och den för mig helt okända Zeynab Husseini får räcka som avskräckande exempel...   

Trump: Grayzone Communist?

 

Credit: No idea, the Babylon Bee???
Most absurd pic of Trumpo like ever!

An article from the site of Max Blumenthal´s Communist front group The Grayzone. The writer, Christian Parenti, argues that Donald Trump (perhaps despite himself) did more than any other US president to dismantle Amerikan global hegemony. 

Not sure what exact political conclusions Parenti draws from this, however, except that he presumably opposes any vote for the Democrats. The writer doesn´t outrightly say that the Deep State rigged the 2020 elections, but he certainly comes very close! 

Trump against Empire: Is that why they hate him?

Moving closer to reality

 

Previously posted on this blog on September 8, 2021

I wanted to write some kind of 9/11 retrospect, but it didn´t turn out very well, instead it became an extended and somewhat disjointed rant mostly about myself and various topics maybe only I personally give damn about, so instead of posting this on September 11, I´m just going to lay it out here for all it´s worth...

This Saturday, it´s 20 years since the 9/11 attacks on the United States, the most spectacular terrorist attacks ever. I´m 20 years older, and yet, in some strange way, it doesn´t feel like 20 years. Maybe 10 years at most. Perhaps not even that! I´m not sure why, but perhaps it has something to do with the fact that my "main activity" during a large number of these 20 years has been surfing, commenting, blogging and trolling on the World Wide Web. Very often on the same forums, year after year (such as Amazon and comrade ER´s blog). Perhaps I inadvertently got caught in some kind of time warp for two decades? Who knows? 

And yet, I *did* change my opinions, sometimes radically, during these 20 years. I think 9/11 itself was what made me draw the conclusion that maybe the radical leftism of my youth didn´t *quite* work in the new world reality, where Islamist terrorists were threatening the stability of the whole world, not to mention the lives of innocent Western civilians. I unhesitatingly supported the US attack on the Taliban and al-Qaeda in Afghanistan (a strong anti-Islamism had been part even of my most radical convictions). That being said, I never became a "decent leftist", hoping instead for great power cooperation against the Islamists. Great powers as in the US, the EU, Russia and China. I opposed the invasion of Iraq, realizing that very little good would come out of it. And today, 20 years later, a case could obviously be made that very little good came out of the Afghan expedition, either. Except, I suppose, some funny troll pics of Taliban eating halal ice cream!

Otherwise, I think three changes of opinion (or perhaps heart) have been particularly important during these 20 years. First, I realized that atheism and materialism are too simple. While I wouldn´t call myself "religious" or even "spiritual", I´m open to suggestions on these points. And while I would like to believe that my quasi-conversion was (of course) wholly rational and based on the best philosophical arguments, I think it was at bottom psychological. At the time, I really did consider consistent atheist-materialism á la Dawkins´ "The Blind Watchmaker" to make life and the universe meaningless and depressive (not to mention brutish, nasty and short). Perhaps today I would see things somehow differently, but I think it was this (purported) meaninglessness and amorality/immorality of the universe if you follow the atheist-materialist logic that made me cast it aside in favor of a kind of dualism, deism or process philosophy. It´s been quite the ride, reading up on every goddamned (pun intended) religious or spiritual system. I suppose I eventually settled on some kind of Buddhoid semi-Gnostic Neoplatonism, but that´s another story!

Second, I no longer believe in the so-called Western Idea of Progress. I mean, what progress? It´s become increasingly obvious that modern civilization (including its Western centerpiece) won´t and can´t last forever. It will die and disappear, just like its predecessors did. Yes, it did make life better or easier for many people (at least eventually), but that´s irrelevant. So is the fact that it was unique in many ways (yes, really). It will die and disappear anyway. The Western Idea of Progress is just another quasi-religious myth. Or call it religious, if you really don´t like religion. 

Third, I changed my mind on certain political issues, which I don´t wish to discuss here. Let´s just say that I´m no longer a "leftist" in the mainstream sense of that term...but then, it´s no longer obvious what on earth the mainstream sense *even is* these days, so perhaps I can be excused! Is it the bizarre "identity politics" of the "SJWs"? If so, I opposed it already during my most radical period, seeing it as (at best) a petit bourgeois distraction from the real class struggle (and often the real democratic struggles as well). 

But perhaps the real lesson of the past 20 years is that we really can´t mold or remold the world entirely in our image. There are no utopian solutions to our problems and predicaments, indeed no utopias at all. There are certainly no classless, stateless, borderless utopias. But neither are there any capitalist ones, be they neo-liberal or left-liberal. Nor can we go back to an imaginary past to make Nation or Empire-Nation "great again". The drive to remake the world was just another pipe dream, perhaps rooted in a specific form of evangelical Christianity (seriously, why *should* we convert the tribes of the New Guinea Highlands to Baptism or Lutheranism, I mean what´s up with that?) that subsequently became secularized. Instead of talking about "ideals" and "ideologies", perhaps we should start talking about material interests, find pragmatic solutions and realize that a certain subset of the population will always be irredeemable scum (that goes for *all* classes of the population, btw, not just the Lumpenproletariat). Who knows, maybe we can actually get better results if we base our politics, both domestic and foreign, on these more "cynical" and "realistic" premises, rather than on the anachronistic "ideals" of yesteryear...

Some will undoubtedly say that 9/11 killed my youthful dreams of a better future, but since *they* *really* believe, they will refuse to budge. To such people I can only say: if you want to bet on Antifa riots, unsafe vaccines, hard lockdowns, transgender teens, forever wars, rising crime, "climate anxiety therapy", social media censorship and (I suppose) gated communities for you and your rich White peers *for that it what really existing leftist politics have to offer these days*, go ahead and don´t let me stop you, but I have other agendas these days. 

Strictly speaking, 9/11 didn´t kill any dreams. It simply reminded us that we´re only human after all...  

En sann historia?

Är det här sant?

"Vi unga offrades för bedrägeriet `ensamkommande flyktingbarn´"

Uneven and combined development

 

Anarcho-capitalism, come and meet reality

Salvadoran president Bukele
together with Donald Trump

Digital currency was once seen as a tool to create a libertarian utopia. It was supposed to decentralize the world, or whatever. 

Did it? Of course not. 

Palladium magazine has the story of how Bitcoin was taken over by centralized state actors such as Russia or the peculiar administration currently governing El Salvador. Even the Taliban, of all people, have discovered Bitcoin. 

The cryptocurrency is being used to monitor and control the financial transactions of individual citizens, while strengthening the power of nationalist regimes and/or circumvent international sanctions. 

The next logical step is for governments to issue their very own digital currencies, thereby getting complete control of the citizens´ buying and selling... 

Enjoy the ride, LOL-bertarians! 

How Bitcoin strengthens the state

Entertainment Value Only

I´m sure this is some kind of teenage LARP, but come on! Note the name of the group: "Bewitch the Taliban". But sure, maybe witchcraft is the only thing that can save the DNC in the midterms, who knows...

Self-proclaimed witches want to talk some sense into Slavic War of God

The true Taliban Mindset

A very, very bizarre story. 

Taliban helps pregnant New Zealand reporter after her own government abandons her due to COVID restrictions