Hah, I love Cracked

[sabotabby]

Things have been a bit hectic lately, so I have not been lighting a menorah or anything (what's the point when you don't get home until your bedtime?). But I have been remiss in not wishing my fellow Hebes a happy Hanukkah.

Also this article is win. Especially:

Yeah, on Hannukah we feed our children chocolate money. I have no idea why. None. But I agree, it's a bad idea for overcoming stereotypes. A really bad idea. Like the worst idea ever. Well, not ever. Baptized baby blood cookies would be worse.

Well I don't know what you eat at your parties, but...

In related news, I had to explain to my kids about BCE/BC and CE/AD. I have no idea why, at age 17-18, they do not know about this, but it must make the study of ancient history really damned confusing.

Comments

[thebigbadbutch.livejournal.com]

You think they study ancient history?

[thebigbadbutch.livejournal.com]

I'm not trying to be a jerk. I went to a similarly shitty school and no one explained that stuff to me. I also never studied ancient history so I never needed to know it.

[sabotabby]

We had a Greek and Roman Mythology unit every bloody year in elementary school, at least. We also had an elective Ancient History course in high school, which I took only because the teacher was an ex-Mennonite former member of the Waffle and kids wanted to take his courses even if they were about something we didn't particularly care about.

[thebigbadbutch.livejournal.com]

Yeah I had a Greek/Roman Mythology unit in 7th grade literature but that had very little to do with history. Pretty much anything I know about Greece or Rome I was inspired to look up after watching Xena: Warrior Princess lol

[chickenfeet2003.livejournal.com]

My housemaster would no doubt have argued that someone who didn't know the difference between AD and BC (this being before BCE/CE) ought to be flogged to death then beheaded, if not thrown from the Tarpeian Rock. I can't really imagine what school would have been like without having to translate screeds of Virgil on sight (not to mention being able to parse the verse structure) and endless lessons about the Punic Wars.

[sabotabby]

Well you had a Proper Education and all. I did not have to translate Virgil.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

Ah, that's where my education went wrong. Despite having to translate Virgil, we never had to do so on sight, without first having read the same bits in English, and we never got far in pasrsing verse structure, so when I got to university I was out of my depth alongside all those public schoolboys and schoolgirls who had learned to write poetry in Latin when they were eight.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

When I was at Cambridge, a tutor told us that students who didn't do their Latin translation "should be castrated." When I didn't laugh politely as the other students did, he stared at me in silence for a while then sneered, "don't worry - it can't happen to YOU!"
They were still freaked out at having to allow "girls" to study there at that time (13 years ago...)...

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Wow. So advanced and yet so backwards.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

I think Classics tutors were worse than those of other subjects perhaps, as many seemed to be the awkward, stiff academic stereotype and not living much in the real world... it was better when I switched to philosophy. Hopefully it is a bit better now as they have more female students now (only a third when I was there) so will be used to it more. It was quite a culture shock, though for me - like being trapped in the fifties but with more chocolate and less style!

1066 and all that

[marnanel.livejournal.com]

"The first date in English History is 55 BC (for the other date see Chapter 11, William the Conqueror), in which year Julius Caesar (the memorable Roman Emperor) landed, like all other successful invaders of these islands, at Thanet…

Julius Caesar was therefore compelled to invade Britain again the following year (54 BC, not 56, owing to the peculiar Roman method of counting)…

* Which came first, A.D. or B.C.? (Be careful.)

* Has it never occurred to you that the Romans counted backwards? (Be honest.)"

Re: 1066 and all that

[sabotabby]

* Has it never occurred to you that the Romans counted backwards? (Be honest.)"

...maybe a bit.

Re: 1066 and all that

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

(Be careful.)

Even a hint! Precious!

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

I remember once being told about BCE and CE, but I don't remember what about them, apart from them being about a "common era" of something. Eh? But we didn't do history at my school. We did a subject called Nothistory instead, which meant learning about Descartes and black holes and the structure of the mediaeval universe.

[sabotabby]

It's one of those things that you either learn very early, like from children's telly, or pick up along the way. I'd expect a kid to know about them by 12th grade. Especially the Christians, FFS. Of course, they also think the Earth is 6000 years old.

[yes-justice.livejournal.com]

Of course, they also think the Earth is 6000 years old.

Oh, please tell me you are kidding.

[sabotabby]

...no.

[bike4fish.livejournal.com]

For a goyish kid, one of the best things about Christmas was the Hannukah geld.

[sabotabby]

No, it's good, I don't deny it. But it's a bit weird when you think about it.

[dendritejungle.livejournal.com]

AHAHA I admit, the Hannukah gelt thing as enforcing stereotypes had never occurred to me. BUT IT TOTALLY DOES. *tries to hide laughing as coughing* Which is terrible, of course.

Seriously though, I have been pleasantly surprised over the last year how awesome Cracked actually is. They've had a number of thought-provoking articles.

[revolution-grrl.livejournal.com]

Keep the Han in Hanukkah! Love it! Baptized baby blood cookies frankly don't sound all that great. I have a hard enough time with blood pudding and at least that's a savory dish. Blood in a sweet dish seems unimaginable.

[hopita.livejournal.com]

I was approached by a Lubavitcher lady tonight at Barnes & Noble. Transcript of our conversation:

HER: Can I ask you a question?
ME: Sure.
HER: Are you Jewish?
ME: Yes.
HER: Do you need a menorah?
ME: No.
HER: Have you lit the menorah?
ME: Not tonight.
HER: Do you need candles?
ME: No.
HER: Oh, well can I give you [some religious tract -- I forget what it was called]?
ME: No.
HER: How about [something featuring the word "Moshiach"]?
ME: No.
HER: A [some other piece of religious dreck], then?
ME: No.
HER: Oh, well, OK.

[hopita.livejournal.com]

Updated because I left out one of the strangest parts:

When she approached me, I was standing by the "Teen Paranormal Romance" section. My mind boggles at the fact that 1.) There is such a thing as the "Teen Paranormal Romance" section, and 2.) That's where the Lubavitcher ladies troll for converts.


Hmmm.... I think maybe this deserves to be a post in my own journal.

[pofflewomp.livejournal.com]

hee hee!