Tag: culture
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The Strange Legacy of the Weird Fascination with the Occult in the 60s and 70s
Has the occult conquered the American imagination? If so, how? And who is responsible for it?
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The Origins of Political Correctness
We call it “Political Correctness.” The name originated as something of a joke, literally in a comic strip, and we tend still to think of it as only half-serious. In fact, it’s deadly serious.
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How Rock and Roll Found Satan — And Why That Was a Good Thing
from io9.com: Peter Bebergal’s Season of the Witch: How the Occult Saved Rock and Roll is a must-read for anyone who prefers their music loud, riff-driven, and loaded with lyrics about Satan, wizards, and mystical quests. Bebergal, an academic by day (he studied at Harvard’s Divinity School) and metal head by both day and night, is…
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Islamic Culture and the Medical Arts
from www.nlm.nih.gov: In the field of materia medica and its applications, Islamic writers surpassed their earlier models, primarily because their broader geographic horizons brought them into contact with drugs unknown to earlier peoples, such as camphor, musk, sal ammoniac, and senna. In later Arabic works, medicinals were used that came from as far afield as…
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Robin Williams and the Happiness Industry
from GregPalast.com: I can’t help feeling that Robin Williams was a victim of his industry: the happiness industry. Williams was typecast for those parts with manic, unstoppable joy. Listen up, Aladdin! Williams’ genie said, You’re not suffering from poverty–what you need is a positive attitude! You know, put on a happy face! Let a smile be…
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Ancient Ksour of Ouadane, Chinguetti, Tichitt and Oualata
from UNESCO: The ancient ksour are medieval towns with an outstanding example of the type of architectural ensembles illustrating seven centuries of human history. They contain an original and decorative stone architecture, and present a typical model of habitat of Saharan ksour, particularly well integrated to the environment. Their urban fabric is dense and closely-packed;…