Tag: culture

I am Okay with Ok

Okay Hand Gesture

A common hand gesture that a 4chan trolling campaign claimed in 2017 had been appropriated as a symbol meaning "white power." Used by many on the right--not just extremists--for the purpose of trolling liberals, the symbol eventually came to be used by actual white supremacists as well. Caution must be used in evaluating instances of this symbol's use.

...[usage dates] to at least as early as 17th century Great Britain, it most commonly signals understanding, consent, approval or well-being. Since the early 1800s, the gesture increasingly became associated with the word “okay” and its abbreviation “ok.” The gesture is also important in the Hindu and Buddhist worlds, as well as in yoga, where it is known as mudra or "vitarka mudra", a symbol of inner perfection. The "okay" hand gesture also forms part of the basis for a number of words or concepts in American Sign Language. It appears in many other contexts as well.

You're an idiot if you believe the fake news that the OK emoji and hand symbol is a sign of fascism and white supremacy. An utter idiot. 👌

Okay Hand Gesture

A common hand gesture that a 4chan trolling campaign claimed in 2017 had been appropriated as a symbol meaning "white power." Used by many on the right--not just extremists--for the purpose of trolling liberals, the symbol eventually came to be used by actual white supremacists as well. Caution must be used in evaluating instances of this symbol's use.

...[usage dates] to at least as early as 17th century Great Britain, it most commonly signals understanding, consent, approval or well-being. Since the early 1800s, the gesture increasingly became associated with the word “okay” and its abbreviation “ok.” The gesture is also important in the Hindu and Buddhist worlds, as well as in yoga, where it is known as mudra or "vitarka mudra", a symbol of inner perfection. The "okay" hand gesture also forms part of the basis for a number of words or concepts in American Sign Language. It appears in many other contexts as well.

You're an idiot if you believe the fake news that the OK emoji and hand symbol is a sign of fascism and white supremacy. An utter idiot. 👌

In Search of a Shared National Narrative

In Search of a Shared National Narrative

We've seen these factional clusters deepen, harden, and separate, leading in turn to anger, misunderstanding, and hostility. Meanwhile, trust in institutions—government, business, the media, and higher education—continues to erode. Cultural warfare further splits our society, exposing fundamental differences about our views of justice and human nature. Unable to agree on first principles, we cannot agree on what it means to be American. As a result, we share few of the touchstones that, in the past, contributed to our national mythology. For instance, talk of the Thanksgiving holiday or Puritans now spawns debate over genocide of Native Americans. Talk of the Founding Fathers spurs reminders of the slave system they protected. Even the national anthem causes division in sports. As we disregard or dismantle these symbols and pastimes, thereby altering our national narrative, can we replace them with stories and rites to unite our various groups and maintain meaning in our American experiment?

The USA. A nation which can't acknowledge and forgive itself for it's past. It descends into factionalism.

Re-Discovering Your Family

Re-Discovering Your Family (Facebook)

As anyone can see, the vast majority of names on this list are still commonplace in St Vincent and the Grenadines today.

The information is in a format which would enable Vincentians whose surname appears on the list to be able to search forward from 1829 to the present, hopefully, in order to discover, a little bit of their family history and the role their family may have played in the progression of the nation. For most individuals they will quickly become frustrated by this undertaking in that the place to do this type of research is the Registry in Kingstown.

As the historian Anatol Leopold Scott has pointed out -

Unfortunately, there you will be confronted with mostly insurmountable roadblocks in terms of incomplete or unavailable information or a demonstration of lack of interested service by many so­called civil servants

As anyone can see, the vast majority of names on this list are still commonplace in St Vincent and the Grenadines today.

The information is in a format which would enable Vincentians whose surname appears on the list to be able to search forward from 1829 to the present, hopefully, in order to discover, a little bit of their family history and the role their family may have played in the progression of the nation. For most individuals, they will quickly become frustrated by this undertaking in that the place to do this type of research is the Registry in Kingstown.

As the historian, Anatol Leopold Scott has pointed out -

Unfortunately, there you will be confronted with mostly insurmountable roadblocks in terms of incomplete or unavailable information or a demonstration of lack of interested service by many so­called civil servants

I traced some my family ancestry, at least the maternal ancestry that settled in the Grenadines, back to coastal sections of Scotland and France. It took several years of cross-comparing family records of every aunt, uncle, great uncle, great aunt, cosine and second cousin that I could find to cooperate in the project. I never once considered the St. Vincent Registry because I did not know it existed until just last week. When (if?) I have the opportunity to return to St. Vincent in the near future I will certainly give the Registry a try. I am interested in the following family names (particularly McLaren):