Author Archives: gmcdavid

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About gmcdavid

Retired IT professional with a wide range of interests. Married. Three sons, two with autistic-spectrum disorders and the third being transgender with Ehlers-Danlos syndrome. From Chicago but now living in the Twin Cities metro, Minnesota. Episcopalian. Carleton College (BA 1972, physics) and Stanford University (MS 1974, Applied Physics; MS 1976 Statistics).

Whose Birthday?

From Whose Christmas Is It Anyway?

….during the last years of paganism, the cult of Sol remained so popular that the Church Fathers could only neutralize its celebration on the [traditional] winter solstice of December 25th by setting the birthday of Christ on that very same day. In other words, they snatched the day and, sooner rather than later, Christ trumped Sol.

This view is now almost universally accepted; but is it true?

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A note on reenacting history

(From smuzikant)

Military History or Living History?

I don’t pretend to be a blacksmith I am one. We’re not pretending to bake bread we’re actually doing it. That’s not something you can say for the average martial persona which, by their very nature have inherent limitations. When was the last time Viking re-enactors actually stole, killed, and brought back plunder? They can’t. It’s the commoner portrayal that gets to actually live the life of our ancestors and that is not only fulfilling but keenly interests the public.