History: An account, mostly false, of events, mostly unimportant, which are brought about by rulers, mostly knaves, and soldiers, mostly fools. —Ambrose Bierce (1842–1913?) Bierce was a writer and a journalist. His lyrical and almost mystical short story, An Occurrence at Owl Creek Bridge, has been filmed several times and is highly respected. For a long time he wrote a newspaper column that ran cynical social commentary. The column was titled The Devil's Dictionary, and many compilations have been published with that name, often ending up incorrectly in the occult section of bookstores. Personally, I prefer his cynical and humorous view to the better known (but just as cynical)

Let's have a Saturday night date! You can pick me up at 9:00 p.m. Central Time at THIS ADDRESS. You can hear and talk with me from anywhere in the world tomorrow night, August 21 at 9:00 p.m. Central on the Pagans Tonight webcast. Pagans Tonight is the world’s leading nightly Pagan show bringing you news, information, entertainment and ideas from across the world, physically, virtually, and spiritually. The show is an ensemble show led by Ed Hubbard & Traci Wood with regulars Don Lewis, Mayann and Zaracon. Guests and regular listeners call in to comment and share ideas and experiences at 1-347-308-8222. Go to THIS LINK to listen. I’ll be talking about the new third edition

I read an interesting blog post by Leigh-Ann Anderson called Choosing a Magickal Name. It give some interesting ideas on how to choose a magickal name, but it doesn't approach the topic historically. Magickal Names in the Past Anciently, there's no evidence that people used magickal names. While this may be because magickal and mundane lives were one and the same, I'm more inclined to believe that they simply weren't needed. The need for a magickal name developed as the military might of the Christian Church expanded. If you were caught doing magick, you could be imprisoned, tortured, or killed…but not before you revealed the names of your "co-conspirators." So people would take on

This is my 144th posting to this blog. You can read it for free. On Saturday, August 21, 9:00 p.m. Central Time, I'll be on the Pagans Tonight webcast. You can listen for free. On Thursday, September 2, 8:00 p.m. Eastern Time, I'll be on the combined webcast of Black Cat Lounge & Stirring the Cauldron. You can listen for free. On Sunday, September 11, I'll be at the San Diego Pagan Pride event, and will give a workshop. You can attend for free and hear my workshop for free (although please consider bringing a non-perishable food item as a donation). On Sunday, September 26, I'll be at the Los Angeles and Orange Country Pagan Pride event, and will give a workshop. You can