h2g2 The Hitchhiker's Guide to the Galaxy: Earth Edition

Okay, I'll get in on the quotation bit and do it just like warner, without explication. Next two posts, because they'll be yikesed for foreign language (even though one is in English)

Einhver áræddi þó að spyrja hann að, á hvern hann tryði, en hann sagðist trúa á "trunt, trunt og tröllin í fjöllunum" og hvarf síðan.

-- Þjóðsagnasafnið Rauðskinna

Ne sorga, snotor guma; selre bið æghwæm
þæt he his freond wrece, þonne he fela murne

-- Beowulf

Well, that certainly helped the discussion along, didn't it?

>>Hitler, who started the Second World War and virtually declared
war on the whole world, was known as the 'Fuhrer,' meaning 'leader, guide, commander.'<<

warner, I know I said I'd leave you to your delusions, but in this case you are simply and irrefutably incorrect.

Many historians have described the 7 Years War as the first 'world war' because it involved troops and armies from 5 of the continents (6 if you count Oceania as the continent, rather than just Australia) and there were naval battles in every ocean, including the Southern/Antarctic.

The Napoleonic Wars could similarly be described as a world war because of the global nature of the empires of France, Britain and the Netherlands. While the most of the empires in Latin America and the USA had been dismantled between the 7 Years War and the Napoleonic Wars, there were significant battles in the Caribbean and Canada.

To everyone except the Germans and Americans the term 'First World War' was applied retroactively. Us Brits called it the Great War, the French considered it as the latest of their frequent wars with Prussia/Germany, the Russians started off considering it another expansionist war by Prussia/Germany and ended up calling it a capitalist, imperialist war.

The Japanese used it as an opportunity to take more territory off the Chinese and in the Pacific, the Arabs called it a war of independence, the Balkans saw it as another of their wars against the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires and the Austro-Hungarian and Ottoman Empires saw it as a way to put down their rebellious peripheries once and for all.

The Spanish, Portuguese, Swiss and Nordics ignored it altogether, as did most of Latin America. Only the Brits, Germans, Americans and, to a lesser degree, the French considered it to be a global war.

The global war between mid-1930s and the mid-1940s was recognised as a global war by most, but not all. The Russians called it their 'Great Patriotic War' and again, Latin America and the Iberians more-or-less ignored it (Brazil was the only nation to offer material support), Tibet - one of the largest countries on Earth, played absolutely no part. However, saying that Hitler started it is a remarkably Euro-centric view, as is believing it started in 1939.

The Chinese would say that the Europeans were johnny-come-latelys to a war they'd been fighting against the Japanese for most of the 20th century, the Albanians and Ethiopians might say the war was started by Mussolini, the Finns lay the blame on the Soviets after their Winter War. Hirohito, Stalin and Mussolini all described themselves as Great Leader. Hitler, on the other hand, never did.

You also ignore some of the less successful attempts. Genghis Khan and his successors had a pretty good try at conquering the whole of the known world. He didn't know about the Americas or Australia, but then neither did the authors of the Qu'ran. The Cold War could be described as a world war, as could the current struggle against Islamic extremism.

My point is that there have been either 7 world wars or none, or anywhere in between, depending on who you ask. Your book of stories offers no insight into any of them and contains no prophecies.

winternights


You really *do* need professional help!!!

HonestIago, great post. Thanks.

>>The Chinese would say that the Europeans were johnny-come-latelys to a war they'd been fighting against the Japanese for most of the 20th century, the Albanians and Ethiopians might say the war was started by Mussolini, the Finns lay the blame on the Soviets after their Winter War. Hirohito, Stalin and Mussolini all described themselves as Great Leader. Hitler, on the other hand, never did.

Hobsbawm says that WWI and WWII - which were basically the same conflict and didn't quiet down much in between - are best viewed as a series of loosely-related national conflicts.

Hiya Tumsup! Did I miss replying to this?

In the New Testament, there are stories like the one of the wedding at canaan where Jesus' mother went to him when the host had run out of wine. She beseeched him to help, resulting in his first (I think) public miracle, changing water into wine.

I'm overjoyed to see that my recent posts quoting inspirational texts have not yet been yikesed.

Now I'll offer something a little more scientific. Information from evangelical christian pollsters:

'to the chagrin of evangelical pollsters and leaders, Christians–for the most part–don’t act any differently than atheists. And, in fact, in some categories (divorce rates and racism), evangelicals act worst.'

http://williamlobdell.com/archives/530

What do your quotes mean anhaga?

I'm sure the meaning will be clear to those to whom the Holy Spirit gives the gift of interpretation.

seriously, they don't really mean much since they are completely out of context, just like all those bits of 'scripture' that are being tossed around.

but, if I must


the first one, to paraphrase, 'they asked him again in what he believed and he said "Trunt, Trunt and the trolls in the fell" and he was never seen again.'

and the second, 'Don't be sad, wise man. It is always better to avenge a friend than to mourn him over much.'

So, there you have it: Trolls are real and vengeance is honourable.

anhaga, how do you get that trolls are real from that?

First of all, the scriptures are not even in Jacobean English, god's only language, or in Arabic, god's only language, and were spoken by someone who didn't have Magically Infallible Heartknowlege(TM)

the Troll one is in Icelandic, a far more magically infallible tongue than any old patois of the Levant. After all, Icelandic is the golden language of the Vikings, and the Vikings are nothing other than those divine people, s.

Ow , what’s that! Jesus, oh dear was that blaspheming. Did I hear you right” First of all, the scriptures are not even in Jacobean English”.
Years of toil and the manuscripts I have written and hidden in locals fields in hope to give fresh enlightenment are transparent by there own inaccuracy and that parchment was not cheap

Oo. Nice subject line change

Got a couple of harnesses a while back, and plan to train the to pull a small cart

Although, looking at the blowing snow outside right now, I'm in no great hurry..

~~~

anhaga, I recall reading a weird short story about trolls in the New Yorker that had that 'Trunt, trunt' line in it

>> parchment was not cheap<< Indeed!

So the monks would take the knowledge of the ancients, scrape it off the parchment and replace it with religious drivel.

the trunt story is a traditional folk tale. If I may paraphrase:

Two guys went up to the foot of a glacier one day to collect edible moss. As they slept that evening one noticed the other get up and leave the tent and start to run toward the glacier. Following, the non-somnambulist noticed a troll woman sitting on the glacier beaconing to the sleeper, and she grabbed him when he got close and ran off with her captive.

The next year a few people were in the area and noticed the missing man and they spoke to him asking in what he believed. The man said 'Jesus Christ' and ran away.

Another year later some people in the area came across the man and asked him again what he believed but the man remained silent.

In the third year the man was asked again what he believed and he responded 'Trunt, Trunt and the trolls in the fells' and he was never seen again.

I find it a wonderfully evocative story which hints, among other things, at the immensely deep sea of religious ideas that flows beneath and around the provincial thing we call Christianity.

http://www.dailymail.co.uk/sciencetech/article-1159632/Otzi-prehistoric-iceman-goes-online-allowing-users-virtually-tour-body.html

>>Two guys went up to the foot of a glacier one day to collect edible moss. As they slept that evening one noticed the other get up and leave the tent and start to run toward the glacier.<<

It's all true! He even had the moss in his boots when they found him. Magically preserved I might add.