ndelphinus:

fckyeahitslauren:

spacemonkeyg78:

angstbotfic:

AKA why the electoral college has gotta go. 

though looking at the comments the folks who live in the red part think this is why the electoral college has got to stay. because they like getting 3.5 votes per capita. 

Tyranny of the few is a pretty sweet deal if you belong to the few.

The wild part is how those people view this as the equal version. Like their votes counting as more than other people’s votes is fair because if it wasn’t like that then they’d be in the minority.

Americans, particularly American conservatives, have a horrible habit of equating area with population. Yeah, if we ditched the electoral college a small section of the country would have more power. Because that’s where most of the country lives. Hate to break it to the rural folks in Nebraska, but they are not what the “real” face of America looks like. They’re not even average Americans. The average American lives within commuting distance of a medium to large city. We simply act like they’re average because they have power disproportionate to their actual numbers.

California is the most populous state in the country. We make up more than 10% of the US population, fully a third bigger than Texas which is the next most populous state. We are also the biggest contributors to the US economy and get back almost nothing of what we pay in federal taxes. But politicians get elected not by listening to us and our needs, but by actively dismissing us as those crazy hippies who don’t understand what “real” Americans are like. Instead they focus their efforts on Ohio and Michigan which have smaller populations than the LA urban area alone.

Now, I do think we need to care about rural populations. Everyone deserves to have their basic needs met and both parties have failed at helping with that for some time now. But your vote shouldn’t count for more than mine just because there’s more empty space around you.

Source: retrowar

hedendom:

Oskoreia

In Scandinavia, Oskoreia (also called Åsgårdsreia, Julereia or Odens Jakt in other regions) meaning “Asgard Riders” is the modern folk belief related to Christmas that traces its roots back to the Old Norse tradition commonly known as The Wild Hunt.

Oskoreia is a Yuletide tradition viewed as a phantasmagoria of dream-like images of hunters (usually led by Odin) and hunted engaging in battle, typically signalled by the howling of Odin’s wolves, always one louder and the other quieter. The group of riders may be alive or dead, real humans or deities, insignificant or noble, male or female and with many regional variations.
It is said to have foretold changing weather in many regions but it could also mean imminent war and unrest. According to some reports, the forest turned silent and only a whining sound along with dog/wolf barking could be heard.

The pursuit can span across the sky but it is said that the hunt may never get closer to the ground than an “ox can wear its yoke”. If caught in the path of Oskoreia it is believed that a person may be swept up into the mayhem and so a good strategy to keep safe is to jump to the ground, thus making oneself lower than the height of an ox’s yoke and allowing the hunt to pass above.

In some regions, folk wisdom advised that people should carry some iron/steel and some bread with them as they walked during the Yule season in case they might encounter Oskoreia. If one should find themselves face to face with Odin, then they should throw down the iron/steel in front of them to ward off trouble. Further, if the person should meet his wolves then they should throw the bread, which they will eat instead of the person.

Another tradition stemming from Oskoreia is the “Christmas goat walk” (”Gå julebukk” in Norwegian) in which masked and costumed people (now usually children) go from door-to-door, singing carols for rewards of sweets.

Artwork by HeySpace

Source: hedendom