Arthur Balfour (1848–1930) was the Prime Minister of the United Kingdom from 1902–1905. He was the UK's Foreign Secretary from 1916–1919. Arthur Balfour He is perhaps best known for the Balfour Doctrine of 1917, which stated that the British government believed the Jews should have a national homeland in the Middle East. That doctrine resulted in the birth of the state of Israel in 1948. But that's not what I wanted to talk about… You see, I happen to really like a quote he made. Chances are we've all heard the saying, "History repeats itself." Balfour disagreed. He said: History does not repeat itself. Historians repeat each other. This

Many years ago, when I was living in Minnesota, I appeared on a local radio talk show. The host was Ms. Barbara Carlson, former wife of then Governor Arne Carlson. Why was I on the show? Well, in the major media, there are generally only two times they want to talk with someone involved with magick, occultism, Witchcraft, etc: when there is a crime that is supposedly related to the occult, and the week or so before Halloween. This was just before Halloween. She asked me what magick was. I explained that it was something natural, a way of having a desired effect on your future. I also told her that the image of waving a wand and making the door open on its own was a fantasy, not the

There is an interesting blog post on Patheos where P. Sufenas Virius Lupus shares his ideas about reincarnation and past lives. He contends that some Pagans believe in reincarnation and others don't. Either way, he says he doesn't "hear a lot of discussion about reincarnation in Pagan circles these days." He adds that the reason for this is that "past life experiences are profoundly personal. In general, they often have great relevance for those who are involved with them, but not much for others." [Emphasis in original.] Lupus points out that it's not possible to practice reincarnation, and concludes that it is, therefore, a matter of belief. This is unusual because, he says, "We often

Preston Sturgis was one of the top screenwriters and directors in Hollywood's history. His Sullivan's Travels manages to be wildly humorous, inventive, and touching while dealing with serious social issues. His mother, Mary Estelle Dempsey, married a traveling salesman, but moved to Paris to be a singer when Preston was just 3. She moved back to the U.S. and married a wealthy stockbroker named Solomon Sturgis (her previous marriage had been annulled). Sturgis adopted her son in 1902. Mary Stugis' father was Dominick d'Este Dempsey. She took that middle name and to occultists became known as Mary d'Este, Mary Desti, or Mary d'Este Sturgis. She also became a lover of Aleister Crowley