Hubby and I are watching a Great Courses series called "The Great Tours: England, Scotland, and Wales." It is probably a bit of a slog to those who live in those countries, but it is a particularly enjoyable experience to tour from our armchair. A tour that is not just lovely drone photos of famous structures and areas, but also includes a bit of history, architecture and personal experience from the teacher.
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| A Castle I took a photo of in Ireland back in 2014. |
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| A famous church in Ireland, photo taken in 2014. |
Democracies do not lend themselves to castles. Democratic religions do not lend themselves to preachers with jets and palatial homes or entire protected cities with secret bank accounts and an ability to live by a different set of rules than their worshipers.
Don't get me wrong. I do not denigrate the wealthy from enjoying their hard-earned wealth...I just want to make sure it was earned on their own backs, otherwise, I believe in a more socialized distribution of the wealth that is acquired.
Concur. Good post.
ReplyDeleteA powerful post! I recall visiting castles and cathedrals in Europe and, especially in the grand cathedrals, full of fabulous art and gold and jewel encrusted relics, thinking how this was all built on the backs of the poor and the pittance offerings of the pilgrims who came to worship these relics and receive blessings. And then there is the Vatican museum, with one of the most extensive and valuable collections of art in the world, treasures many of which really belong back with the cultures and countries that produced them. I couldn't help but feel I was looking at stolen treasure.
ReplyDeleteAll those people of the castles were cold, damp, and didn't have spoons much less antibiotics. If it all went back far enough, they didn't have forks. I'm happy being here now.
ReplyDeleteCold water in the face...I like the Public Television and BBC versions more. LOL
DeleteStatistics do not support your statement "Democrats don't lend themselves to castles."
ReplyDeleteAs for philanthropy, red/Republican areas tend to donate more than blue/Democrat areas.
A skewed view point where Republicans are the target is the norm.
Careful, Salty, I wrote Democracies...I am not talking about political parties here. I am talking about forms of government.
DeleteMy apology. I keyed in on "Our Presidents supporters," and fell into misunderstanding. Thank you for clearing that up
DeleteThanks. It is so easy to misread things these days.
DeleteThe castles weren’t great places to live but better than what the serfs had for sure!
ReplyDeleteWhew! This is one reason I don't like to get into politics on my blog. And you didn't even do that, but still, look at what happened. It's a difficult time in these United States. Loved the description of the castles! :-)
ReplyDeleteCastles are cold and damp and drafty, and i'm just glad i don't have to live in one.
ReplyDeleteI agree, if you're going to suffer for art, it should be for your own art, not someone else's. Should we boycott the castles and churches?
ReplyDeleteMany of these are now museums and publicly funded and those who do not know their history are doomed to repeat it.
DeleteThis sounds like just the kind of show I like to watch -- scenery, travel, history. I will look for it.
ReplyDeleteI have often thought along similar lines. Think of the slave labour that built those fine pyramids. Life was tough for almost everyone back then.
ReplyDeleteWe are guaranteed inalienable rights by our Constitution. Socialism is always a failure, historically, and takes away freedom. What difference is it if a king, nobleman, ruler, or government takes away our freedom? Perhaps millennials are drawn to socialist politicians because they are promised free this, free that....and appeal to their college debt and love of leisure. Andrea
ReplyDeletewe do tend to romanticise castles. cold they may have been but the residents also had the wealth to maintain warm clothes, large hearths, and tapestries to cover the stone walls. history will continue to repeat itself as history is but a litany of human nature.
ReplyDeleteOn going learning is good for us. We attend and lecture at the University of the Third Age. Its good you have found a source for learning.
ReplyDeleteWhat an interesting series to watch. Is it from your library? The castles of Europe were built by nearly-slave labor; I don't like seeing them fall apart. All that work for naught. And then there's the pyramids of Egypt, yikes.
ReplyDeleteThis sounds like a really interesting course! We like the Great Courses at our house, but I hadn’t seen this one offered. I’ll have to look for it.
ReplyDeleteYou have a point! Only rich folks can build castles here, n then they don't get to rule over the surrounding lands, or have to protect the townsfolk. Those do sound interesting though.
ReplyDeleteHistory is a funny old thing, it teaches us but what do we learn I wonder. If the leader, lord, king had not been around who would have brought things together such as warfare, land and wealth. I think socialist values are difficult to uphold occasionally. ;)
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