New Blog #1

New blog:

Writings

Another Book Cover from Jeff

By the same author - this actually might be the same book.

Nairamdal

“Where is your son serving in the army?” we asked.

“My son Ulzii is an officer in Baishint. You may perhaps know him,” replied Damba and showed us a photograph taken from the wooden box. The photo had the image of a Russian and a Mongolian soldier.

“Which of them is your son?” we asked jokingly.

“They are both my sons,” Doulma said, “the Russian and the Mongolian alike. This Russian fought alongside my son at Khalkhiin Gol* and he carried my son when he was wounded on the battlefield. Now my son Ulzii constantly corresponds with this Russian boy.”

The old man kept silent as if thinking, and looking at the photograph he exclaimed sadly: “These photos are a wonder! The image remains forever. It was a sad pity that photographs were not taken when we were on the battlefield.”

The old man’s face shone with joy when we asked him, “Did you ever go to war?”

“A Russian officer gave me this sword,” said he, showing a sword. “He was one of those brave comrades who was fighting for the freedom and happiness of our Mongolians. I think he is now fighting the German fascists...

“After hunting marmots for my family, I joined the people’s partisans with the only horse I had then.

“Since then the Mongolian nation has been changing before my eyes. Our life is improving as the nation is moving forward. Now I own about twenty horses, thirty cows and a hundred sheep...”


*Khalkhiin Gol – in 1939, imperialist Japan waged a war against Mongolia and was defeated


--Ts.Damdinsuren, “They Are Both My Sons,” 1943, translated by Ch.Burenbayar

Jon loaned me this book and it's pretty good

“He visited my class, we set some poetry readings up for him, and we set up his Free University meeting room and place. I think the title of the class we said he would teach was Tantric Yoga—no it was Telepathic Communication. His class was a tremendous success, though not because of his lecturing on telepathy. The first night he was supposed to teach it, we walked with him to the student union building. The room was on the first floor and was packed with people sitting quietly, intently, as though waiting for Jim Jones to pass the Kool-Aid. Either it was that or something else, something false, levy picked up on, and he simply walked on by the door and out the side. I thought for a moment of going in and telling them it was another no-show, but what the hell. We all walked over to the 602 Club and then thought no more about it, until Ann Krooth told me that levy’s class was one of the most successful in all the Free University. People there assumed he was trying to reach them telepathically, and many of them heard him, as they sat there, meditating in the classroom. That class went on for several months after levy had returned to Cleveland—months after levy was no longer alive.”

--Morris Edelson in “Portrait of a Young Man Trying to Eat the Sun (the life, legend, & mysterious death of d. a. levy)” by Mike Golden, first published in BEET magazine in 1994, collected in The Outlaw Bible of American Essays

Happy Valentines Two Days Ago!

Tell me, dearest, what is love?
'Tis a lightning from above;
'Tis an arrow, 'tis a fire,
'Tis a boy they call Desire.
'Tis a grave
Gapes to have
Those poor fools that long to prove.

Tell me more, are women true?
Yes, some are, and some as you.
Some are willing, some are strange,
Since you men first taught to change.
And till troth
Be in both,
All shall love, to love anew.

Tell me more yet, can they grieve?
Yes, and sicken sore, but live:
And be wise, and delay,
When you men are as wise as they.
Then I see,
Faith will be,
Never till they both believe.

--John Fletcher, 1613?

Old Children's Book Cover from Jeff

Thirty-two marks of the Buddha

The Buddha had blue eyes.

Lakkhana Mahapurisa 32 -- The 32 Signs of a Great Man

Ungern

A post on Baron Ungern at Way To Russia:

"But gone are the days when you could take a capital city with a ragtag army of soldiers and mercenaries. In 1921, however, Baron Roman Ungern von Sternberg, known as the Bloody Baron, did just that when he captured Ulan Bataar in one of the strangest incidents of the Russian Civil War...

"By surrounding the city and burning a huge number of camp fires he created the illusion of commanding a large army. The Chinese withdrew and the Bloody Baron entered the city and installed himself as dictator...

"Then, after some similar, short-lived shenanigans in Buryatia, he was finally captured and executed in Novisibirsk.

"In spite of his atrocities von Sternberg is often seen as a liberator by Mongolians and was declared a Mahakala incarnation by the 13th Dalai Lama. His incredible story has for some reason mostly gone untold. However, producer Alexander Proshkin did announce plans to make a film about the Bloody Baron in the near future."

It might be noted that much of the Baron's bloody reputation might have been attributable to his underlings.

It might also be noted that the shrewd Bogd Khan invited Ungern to Mongolia to help him get rid of the Chinese, and the Khan was successful. And that later, the Bogd Khan invited the Reds to Mongolia to help him get rid of Ungern, and the Khan was again successful.

On a Darkling Plain

Ah, love, let us be true
To one another! for the world, which seems
To lie before us like a land of dreams,
So various, so beautiful, so new,
Hath really neither joy, nor love, nor light,
Nor certitude, nor peace, nor help for pain;
And we are here as on a darkling plain
Swept with confused alarms of struggle and flight,
Where ignorant armies clash by night.


excerpt from "Dover Beach," 1867
by Matthew Arnold, 1822-1888, English

Leafy Sea Dragon

The leafy sea dragon of Australia.

Coat of Arms of Nunavut

The Coat of Arms of the Territory of Nunavut features a caribou and a narwhal as its supporters.

test

http://www.dailykos.com/story/2007/12/19/10756/422?detail=f

"Sumo falls to a Mongol invasion"

"Thirty-four Mongolians compete regularly in Japan's national, indigenous sport. One of them, Asashoryu, has dominated the ring since being promoted in 2003 to the highest rank of Grand Champion. Currently the only wrestler at that level, he could soon be joined by a Bulgarian, the strongest of the 14 or so East Europeans who have also broken into the sport.

"Since the 1960s there have always been a few foreigners in Sumo. Several Hawaiians made it to the top, an achievement that means adopting Japanese nationality, dress and behaviour...

"But conservative Japanese are dismayed at the recent involvement of so many outsiders. More than a sport, Sumo, with its ancient history, is steeped in the rituals of the Shinto religion that the Japanese believe only they can fully comprehend...

"And foreigners do not always behave with the necessary decorum. The Mongolian Grand Champion has been disqualified for hair-pulling and has refused to take Japanese nationality.

"The Sumo authorities, however, appreciate the excitement and ticket sales that foreign wrestlers generate."

-The First Post

Chinese Elves, Dwarves, and Wizards Conquering the World

There are as many World of Warcraft accounts in China alone – 3.5 million – as there are in all the countries of Europe, the U.S., and Canada combined.

Playfuls.com: World of Warcraft - 8 Million and Counting

Swimming in Severodvinsk

Typhoon Class Nuclear Strategy Submarine

You Are Going To Die Needlessly

More from the profound Nick Bostrom:

The Fable of the Dragon-Tyrant

"Searching for a cure for aging is not just a nice thing that we should perhaps one day get around to. It is an urgent, screaming moral imperative... If we get the cure in 25 years rather than in 24 years, a population greater than that of Canada will die as a result. In this matter, time equals life, at a rate of approximately 70 lives per minute."

Pimp Boots

Courtesy of Dave's Long Box.

Springboots

Jump high, run fast.

The Epicurean Paradox

"God either wants to eliminate bad things and cannot, or can but does not want to, or neither wishes to nor can, or both wants to and can. If he wants to and cannot, he is weak -- and this does not apply to god. If he can but does not want to, then he is spiteful -- which is equally foreign to god's nature. If he neither wants to nor can, he is both weak and spiteful and so not a god. If he wants to and can, which is the only thing fitting for a god, where then do bad things come from? Or why does he not eliminate them?"

--Epicurus, 341-270 BCE, Greek, in The Epicurus Reader, translated and edited by Brad Inwood and Lloyd P. Gerson

Inner Mongolia - Han vs. Mongol

review by Celia Lowe of Beyond Great Walls: Environment, Identity, and Development on the Chinese Grasslands of Inner Mongolia by Dee Mack Williams:

"Although Williams does not dispute the degraded state of the land, he does contest both Chinese and Western authoritative interpretations of its meanings and causes. The author brings together culture, politics, history, and nature at international, national, and local scales to compare Mongol herders' sensibilities with those of Han and Western scientists...

"Mongol marginalization is at the heart of grassland disputes...

"Discourses of science help mask Han-Mongol antagonisms, and Williams demonstrates that Mongol notions are often accurate where scientists' theories fail...

"Whereas the research station praises its Han scientists, saying 'heart blood has become sweet dew, the desert has become an oasis,' herders restate this verse as 'an oasis has become a desert under the management of the research station'...

"One great joy in this book is Williams's ability to narrate the life stories of Mongol herders. Beyond Great Walls is a pleasure to read..."

-American Ethnologist

Ulaanbaatar Buddha from Altaa

2006 summer

Get a loan on your ger

"Many banks prefer clients who can pledge rock-solid 'immovables' -- brick-and-mortar homes, for example -- as collateral which the bank can claim when borrowers do not repay their loans. But what if the immovable is, in fact, move-able? What if it is made of wool and wood, and could be picked up and carted off in the middle of the night by a debtor on the run?

"XacBank’s experience is proof of the micro-finance credo that poor people make the most reliable borrowers..."

-European Bank for Reconstruction and Development

hny

Happy new year, and all that.

Jack Weatherford: Great Law of Genghis Khan in Iraq

Los Angeles Times, 2006 December 29

“In his final televised speech to the Iraqi people in 2003, Saddam Hussein denounced the invading Americans as ‘the Mongols of this age,’ a reference to the last time infidels had conquered his country, in 1258. But the comparison isn't very apt — unlike the Mongols, the Americans don't have the organizational genius of Genghis Khan...

“The legal justification for the Mongol invasion of Iraq derived from the reluctance of the caliph of Baghdad to control the Shiite Cult of the Assassins, whom the Mongols accused of attempting to kill their khan.

“The Assassins operated from a series of fortified mountain camps spread from contemporary Afghanistan to Iraq, and the Baghdad invasion did not begin until the Mongols had eradicated the threat from the Assassins and destroyed their fortresses...

“The Mongols took no prisoners and allowed no torture, but they executed swiftly and efficiently, including the soldiers of the defeated army who, they believed, would be a constant source of future problems if allowed to live. The first several months of a Mongol invasion were bloody, but once the takeover ended, the bloodshed ended.

“By contrast, the American military campaign was quick, with comparatively few Iraqi (or coalition) casualties, but the bloodshed has continued for years...

“And while the violence continues, the U.S. can't come close to establishing a government that rivals what the Mongols achieved...

“They fiercely enforced religious freedom, which created an essentially secular state... They lowered taxes for merchants and eliminated them for religious, medical and educational professionals. They educated women along with men...

“Fundamentalist Muslims look back at Mongol secularism as a scourge. But, although U.S. rule in Iraq has produced a constant flow of refugees, particularly religious minorities, out of the country, under Mongol rule Christian, Muslim, Jewish and even Buddhist immigrants poured into the newly conquered Iraq to live under the Great Law of Genghis Khan...

“By the time of the U.S.-led invasion of Iraq, the political achievements of the Mongols had been forgotten, and only the destructive fury of their wars was remembered.”

-Jack Weatherford

Who's your daddy?

Ulemj’s birthday

This post has moved to Adventuria - Travels of Radigan Neuhalfen.

Zaya’s dance thing

On Sunday, went to Zaya’s holiday production at her tsetserleg (an abridgement of “khuukhdiin tsetserleg,” which is literally: “child garden”; used as “kindergarten,” which is literally: “child garden”).

Poor little kids, being forced to sing and dance for old people’s amusement.

Ulaanbaatar

This post has moved to Adventuria - Travels of Radigan Neuhalfen.

Holiday Greetings from Yuki

-Yuki

Holiday Greetings from Radigan

-Radigan

Holiday Greetings from Ulemj

Merry Christmas in 350+ languages

-Ulemj

Holiday Greetings from Tsetsegee

"I wish to everyone a Merry Christmas and a new 2007 year.

"Also, I wish you all success, good health, luck in coming new year!"

-Tsetsegee

Holiday Greetings from Luvsan

"May your New Year of 2007 be filled with Joy and Happiness. Hope you succeed in everything you do throughout the new year."

-Luvsan

See Sunny Afghanistan

Advice for travelling in Afghanistan from a U.S. soldier.

Seriously, advice for travelling in Afghanistan from U.S. soldier Jonathan Miller, who "has a passion for travel." 21 years old.

"If nothing else, you must come see this country for its amazing terrain features...

"Since there are no beaches, you won’t have to pack your bathing suit...

"Stay away from the Afghanistan and Pakistan border on the East side of the country or you might find yourself in the middle of a firefight...

"Pack light and don’t bring too many valuable belongings...

"Before you come you should also do some research on suicide bombers (what they wear, how they act, etc)."

The Travel Junkie - Untamed Travel for the Young and the Restless

Mongolia, China, and Chinggis Khaan in *The Economist*

"Battle for Mongolia's soul

"On the 800th anniversary of his empire's birth, China and Mongolia both claim Genghis Khan as their own"

The Economist, Dec 19th 2006

"The Mongolian government has already suffered the downsides of economic nationalism. By law, all gold output is supposed to be sold to the Bank of Mongolia, the central bank. This year the amount sold has fallen by half even though production has continued to rise, says the central bank's former governor, Ochirbat Chuluunbat. He blames a windfall tax that has encouraged small producers to sell gold on the black market rather than to the bank. Most black-market gold is smuggled across the 4,677km border with China...

"For all Mongolia's nationalism, the government remains acutely aware of the dangers of upsetting its powerful southern neighbour. Officials studiously avoid criticism of China, which provides vital port facilities for Mongolia's exports...

"In order to avoid falling under the sway of either Russia or, particularly, China, Mongolia pursues what it calls a 'third neighbour' policy. This involves remaining on good terms with its giant neighbours but also reaching out to countries such as America and Japan (Mongolia's biggest aid donor). America has been delighted by Mongolia's support for its military operations in Iraq, including the dispatch of some 200 support troops. This is the first time Mongolian troops have been stationed in Iraq since Genghis's grandson, Hulagu, conquered Baghdad...

"A Mongolian general, given warning by an American counterpart of the dangers of operating in Baghdad, is said to have quipped: 'I know. We've been here before.'"

Widely Misunderstood

Born down in a dead man's town
The first kick I took was when I hit the ground
You end up like a dog that's been beat too much
Once you spend half your life just covering up

Got in a little hometown jam
So they put a rifle in my hand
Sent me off to a foreign land
To go and kill the yellow man

Come back home to the refinery
Hiring man said, "Son, if it was up to me"
Went down to see my V.A. man
He said, "Son, don't you understand?"

I had a brother at Khe Sahn
Fighting off the Viet Cong
They're still there, but he's all gone

He had a woman he loved in Saigon
I got a picture of him in her arms

Down in the shadow of the penitentiary
Out by the gas fires of the refinery
I'm ten years burning down this road
Ain't got nowhere to run, ain't got nowhere to go

Born in the U.S.A.
I was born in the U.S.A.
Born in the U.S.A.
I'm a long gone daddy in the U.S.A.

-Bruce Springsteen, "Born in the U.S.A."

Declaration against the War

"I am making this statement as an act of wilful defiance of military authority, because I believe that the War is being deliberately prolonged by those who have the power to end it. I am a soldier, convinced that I am acting on behalf of soldiers. I believe that this War, on which I entered as a war of defence and liberation, has now become a war of aggression and conquest. I believe that the purpose for which I and my fellow soldiers entered upon this war should have been so clearly stated as to have made it impossible to change them, and that, had this been done, the objects which actuated us would now be attainable by negotiation. I have seen and endured the sufferings of the troops, and I can no longer be a party to prolong these sufferings for ends which I believe to be evil and unjust. I am not protesting against the conduct of the war, but against the political errors and insincerities for which the fighting men are being sacrificed. On behalf of those who are suffering now I make this protest against the deception which is being practised on them; also I believe that I may help to destroy the callous complacency with which the majority of those at home regard the contrivance of agonies which they do not, and which they have not sufficient imagination to realize.

"Siegfried L. Sassoon...July 1917"

Typewriters and Shotguns

And yet, I thought there would be more.

Wikipedia: Writers who committed suicide

Fear This

Ready for some irony?

Get ready.

Hippopotomonstrosesquippedaliophobia – The fear of long words.