talkmagic.co.uk

Bleeding crackers...

http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/world/africa/8119201.stm

That's just horrible, I can't believe that something like that can go on in the world and for the authorities to just stand by and watch.

Shocked*

Just look at the things that come out of India the most advanced third world Country I have ever seen.

In industrial and city centers you see tolerant and rational methodologies. You go to their rural area's and you young woman being stoned to death for talking to a boy.

All that can be said is that Education is the answer to tragic ignorance.

I'm sure there are a few here in our "enlightened" society who would be happy for this to occur in the UK! Remember the satanic abuse scandal in the early 90's? Media fuelled hysteria over absolutely nothing more than lies fed by the fundies. All believed by the police, social services and the public. Are we really much better than those in the story? It doesn't take much to regress and that's the really scary thing.

Suddenly I feel bad about performing 'Burn Witch Burn'

Yeah, don't think me and my ouija board will be touring Africa any time soon!

We need to be aware that the mystical and magical is a common occurence in more primitive places, We may dismiss this belief in our so-called modern culture. But do remember everytime you perform that what you do has roots deeper and older than you can imagine.

Roughly a dozen years or so back Illusionist Kirby Vanbirch opened his show in Branson... a strong family oriented hillbilly town known for giving yesteryear stars a retirement income... so to speak. Actually, there is more stage footage in that little town than in all of Las Vegas... at least back then that was the case.

Kirby opened his show with a Gregorian chant... that's right, the Gregorian CHRISTIAN Monks...

The good southerners and god fearing rednecks of the region damn near tarred & feathered the boy for his Satanic Chants and set pieces not to mention the fact that he was obviously in cahoots with the devil because he could turn girl's into wild beasts and a myriad of other things. One of the funnier (to me at least) phobias expressed by these "educated" American Citizens centered on the King Tut Transposition routine featured in the show... a prop Kirby had purchased from Doug Henning that Doug had actually performed on Tv. But as we all know anything Egyptian is tied to the Free Masons and thus, part of the devil's plan to usurp the world as his own.

My point being that stupid, superstitious people can be found anywhere as can the deliberate fear manipulation of religious leaders, which more than anything else, is what happened in the case of these Witch MURDERS and the harassment legit entertainers experience the world over by those that choose to buy into the fantasy and the phobia.

... then again, there are those that will swear that David Copperfield really can fly and he zooms around the showroom over the heads of the audience while making a 747 vanish...
... swear to god!

Craig Browning wrote:... then again, there are those that will swear that David Copperfield really can fly and he zooms around the showroom over the heads of the audience while making a 747 vanish...
... swear to god!

Well duh! Everyone knows you can't vanish a 747. The wings wouldn't fit into a to**it. But, the flying across the stage. Now, that HAS to be the real thing.

Wishmaster wrote:

Craig Browning wrote:... then again, there are those that will swear that David Copperfield really can fly and he zooms around the showroom over the heads of the audience while making a 747 vanish...
... swear to god!

Well duh! Everyone knows you can't vanish a 747. The wings wouldn't fit into a to**it.

That's why he uses a Vernet TT.

Ha! Shows what you know!

Nowhere near as serious as witch-hunts and murders, there's still irrational religious paranoia on these shores.

Take, for example, the recurring hoo-ha over Harry Potter.

Banned in UK schools. And there's another one here.

Now correct me if I'm wrong... but JK Rowling has done something truly miraculous (even magical) in making hefty books more appealing than TV and computer games. So would these 'moral' campaigners rather their children didn't read? Or saw books only as annoying and boring things they make you read in the classroom?

More extreme, this article shocked me way back in 2004, and continues to make me nauseus every time I think of it. Thankfully, it's not on these shores, but there's not a big leap between our bigots and theirs.

pcwells wrote:Nowhere near as serious as witch-hunts and murders, there's still irrational religious paranoia on these shores.

Take, for example, the recurring hoo-ha over Harry Potter.

Banned in UK schools. And there's another one here.

Now correct me if I'm wrong... but JK Rowling has done something truly miraculous (even magical) in making hefty books more appealing than TV and computer games. So would these 'moral' campaigners rather their children didn't read? Or saw books only as annoying and boring things they make you read in the classroom?

More extreme, this article shocked me way back in 2004, and continues to make me nauseus every time I think of it. Thankfully, it's not on these shores, but there's not a big leap between our bigots and theirs.

JK Rowling has done much to get kids (and adults) reading books again and that's a good thing.

I respect anyone with religious beliefs. However, I resent anyone with said beliefs expecting others to live by them through coercion and extremist behaviour (as you linked to above) rather than through example, tolerance and dialogue!

The irony is that if these people spent as much time studying their own religion as they do villifying others, they'd perhaps realise that the role model they allege to follow spent his whole short life drumming it into his followers how bad extremism and intolerance is. Sad, but true. What was it he said about casting the first stone?

I have no time for hypocrisy or fundamentalism.

Agree with it or not, there are many places on this earth where the communities believe in witchcraft, black magic, whatever you want to call it. Whilst I don't condone the practice of lynching and burning, I do understand the train of thought behind it. It's like a religion, after all. And haven't people throughout history been killed in the name of whatever deity they happen to worship? Oh, hang on. Wars are still being fought in the name of religion and people are still being killed in the name of [insert name of deity here]. I realise these people are not being murdered for religious reasons, but it amounts to the same thing.

Yeah, I understand the thought as well... It's difficult to see this happen, while we are far more developed. These stories are really tragical, but I'm afraid that the authorities won't act soon.