New School, Old School, Self-Education

Despite all scientific advancements in archeoforensics, academic standards in many places have a lot of catching up to do. Of course the organisational costs of adapting new approaches to new information are bound to be excessive for most; and given how anyone can sell their ideas on the internet these days, is no less prone to a great deal of interpretation. Thus, anyone aspiring to educate themselves, is apt to find it arduous enough searching out the source material before even being able to determine whether it is reliable or not. More often than not, this is also marred by the person's own precepts induced by popular hearsay and fanciful fashion trends. Unfortunately this is much of what paganism has been suffering since the days of Aleister Crowley; namely that any academic lack of evidence is an invitation to rearrange the pieces so that the picture fits the frame of their notions, rather than realize that they don't have the actual picture at all. The victims are usually ethno-cultures with anything others might eclectically perceive as enigmatic; some mystical grail of occult knowledge, promising the finder unimaginable psychic powers. If that were the case, then one is more apt to find it within their own familiar heritage than anyone else's, if they'd only take the time and providence to explore it. Mind you, being the contrary species that we are, sometimes we have to go afar to realize the meaning of “coming home”.

On the other hand, there is no limit to the convenient excuses to justify misinformation. Take for instance that all-time favourite: “Science can't explain everything”, well news flash, that is not the object of science. Science is the study of nature's mechanisms for solutions to whatever contentious problems that make survival or the understanding of it a right pain in the ass. It does not justify the invention of plastic chakra pyramids or running an electric current through an epoxy full of exotic industrial waste, let alone eating garlic to ward off heart disease when you drink like a viking. These are items more likely to inspire dreams of trendy market loopholes and palacial manors in the sun until somebody sues you for fraud, or even worse, criminal negligence.

I don't know who came up with the foolish notion that science was meant to be some sterile realm of industrialized non-belief and academic absolutes. That sounds more like a socialist dogma than anything creatively enlightening. Whether we call what motivates us divine or natural is actually quite relative, provided that it has a healthy respect for the natural mechanisms that we are no less dependent on as anything else in the continuum of existence. As for those want to put faith in some cosmic puppet master for the delusion of being the chosen, don't even try me. I think that crap is just a cop-out from any real sense of personal responsibility no matter what the promises of salvation.

Something Wicked This Way Comes...

Well now, it looks like that old phantom of the UK witch wars is rearing it's ugly head again. Yes, I know exactly who you are and your associations in Falkirk. How could I not tell from that same old tail-riding carrot onna schtick? Nothing like awakening that old probiscus sense of imminent prebordom...and just in case you haven't noticed, I've been watching every move of your spies ever since that jerk alert. Yes, I saw them perusing the associated sites listing for my private forum. Don't try to deny it, that's why these sites have a convenient little device called a traffic feed. Of course, in the meantime, you'll notice it's all up and disappeared, heh. What amazes me is how you lot still think you can psychobabble me into such utter bullshit. I know all about your hidden political agenda to undermine anything heathen with your little new age PC bombs. Save the trying to make cultural identity look nationalistic when I've seen how you treat foreigners who don't conform to your trend. So who died and made you god? Read my lips; like which part of fuck off did you not understand? I mean, seriously, get a life, get therapy.

Q is not anybody's Fool

I do not base my friendships on the "like-minded" or those who wish to push their credo on me for whatever forms of "social acceptability". I prefer people who don't lie to themselves, rather, say what they mean and mean what they say, and especially know how to respect that 18 inch intimate zone. I grew up in a cold war world full of deceptions and psychological entrapments, where knowing your enemies among those who proposed to be your friends was a matter of life or death. While I have never known my brain damaged mother to be sound of mind, my machiavellian father was of no help either. Neither of them had much time for us other than beat their war propaganda distorted schisms into us to no avail. We were merely there to fit the 2.3 children standard of social acceptability in those days; for them to acquire all the domestic conveniences the goverment had on offer for their services. The old "children should be seen and not heard" regime, put on display whenever social acceptability required it while packing up the troubles in the old kit bag to smile, smile, smile. Yeah right, I was stuck in the political grey zone between east and west, two families divided. One fleeing the underbelly of profligate nobility, the other fleeing oppressive socialist regimes. Stuck in a no-zone of such insurmountable contradictions you soon learn how to read between the lies. It's not like people were simply out to exploit and betray you, it was much deeper than that. These were people who had become mere shadows of their former selves through denial of their own self-betrayal for the promises of an ideal world- always looking to shift the blame on the non-players. Any trace of remorse was completely buried under that dense facade of mutually assured self-righteousness. A strange belief in some god-sent cosmic messenger gonna make it all better for them. I'm not going to name it Christianity, because that's only one of its guises, rather, comes in all kinds of ideological gestalts and not necessarily always religious or political. So don't come onto me with that idyllic what you think I should be. It's not like I haven't heard that line before. When I snap at you it's because I see you're trying to pull a sneaky. Don't kid yourself, I'm not at all swayed by overt flattery, positivity NLP, peer worshipping sycophantic come ons or any kind of psychobabble; nor will I submit to threats of emotional blackmail, social rejection or the ugly rumour gallery for that matter. I'm not lobbying for an entourage or trying to "shine above all the rest" but if you are going to use my information, either keep it under my name- or do the logical thing; like start your own discussion from your own perspective, or even your own group. Thank you.

Alemannic Half-Timber Construction

Half-timbering is a skeleton method of construction in which the load-bearing framework is made of wood. The supporting framework consists of vertical, horizontal and slanting construction elements. The intervening sections are filled with clay wattling, rough rendering or with rubble or bricks. The horizontal bearers are known as sole plates and head plates, the vertical supports are known as uprights, shafts or posts, depending on size. In order to stabilise this framework, slanted braces or struts are inserted. This is the principle of the half-timbered house.

Overleaf half-timbering was common in south-west Germany until the beginning of the 16th century. This term refers to the practice of having uprights and struts cut in so deeply that they lie above each other on the same level on the facade. This method of construction is popularly referred to as "Alemannic". It was prohibited in Wuerttemberg by ducal building regulations in 1568 but continued to be used for some time afterwards, particularly for roof constructions.

In contrast the more recent method of construction is popularly referred to as "Frankish" half-timbering, although this is found not only in south but in central Germany. The mortice and tenon technique used here made the wooden skeleton more flexible on the whole. A tenon was cut out of the cut surface of the pieces of wood to be joined and this was then inserted like a wedge into the incision in the next piece of wood. This construction method emerged in around 1500, at the same time as the Renaissance taste was beginning to demand more ornate decorative elements.

Whereas the "Alemannic" half-timbered house is noted for its statically open construction, the so-called Frankish half-timbered style is characterised by the playfulness of its ornamentation. St. Andrew's crosses, andirons, rosettes, rhombuses and carving on uprights and posts as well as ornamental intarsia work were elements of this rich repertoire of forms which reached its peak at around 1600.

By the middle of the 18th century, the half-timbered house with its emphasis on visibility was going out of fashion. Those who could afford it built stone houses or plastered their half-timbered houses. An ordinance by Duke Carl Eugen in the year 1744 on the facing of buildings was intended to reduce the risk of fires. As a result the previously rich figural ornamentation gave way to simpler constructions with V and K struts.

The visible half-timbering of houses was rediscovered as an aesthetic and reasonably cheap method of building in the 19th century. At first it was used for buildings along railway lines and for public and industrial architecture. In the historicist period at the end of the 19th century, a deliberate effort was made to imitate the ornamentation of the Renaissance and Baroque period, although individual elements were also often introduced.

In this image you can see how the wattle is built up between the beams. This provides a hold for the loam or clay used to fill the compartments.

Just in case you missed it...

Despite all claims to fame as a published writer of pagan books, it does not constitute the right to manipulate public discussion forums with secret demands to have anyone who questions your approach conveniently banned. It is you who chose to delineate any healthy debate into a battlefront of "either you're for me or against me", to patronize the skeptical with that old parent-to-child gestalt ploy. Why shouldn't all that double-talking arrogance piss anyone off who can see it as plain as the nose on your face? That is where you are mistaken Mister Guru of the one and only "hereditary witchcraft". What you fail to see, is not so much the question of authenticity, rather, the seediness of your proselytizing behaviour. Face it, all that lamenting about venomous negativity just can't disguise how much you deliberate it for want of worship as a martyr. Still you persist in sending your muppets to badger us with these convenient demonizations. Save the persecution complex and branding of heretics, you're starting to sound like some kind of televangelist from hell.  Do yourself a favour preacher and STFU, we're a critical learning site not some church to shepherd the gospel according to you or anyone else. Rest assured we are quite capable of our own responsible judgment no matter how much smoke and mirrors. Anyone who tries that shit on us shouldn't wonder why the bus is leaving town without them. You or anybody, that is final.