Happy Columbus Day!


Posted On: Monday - October 12th 2020 7:08AM MST
In Topics: 
  Political Correctness  History  Holiday from Stupidity

HAPPY COLUMBUS DAY!



I don't care what the schools do (actually, a little bit, which I'll report on later), the Feral Gov't, the universities, and anyone else. Over here at Peak Stupidity, Columbus day is celebrated ... though one time it was a bit belatedly. It has been since this blog started in late November of '16, so here are posts from 2017 (the belated one), 2018, and 2019.

I also note that 2 of my go-to sites have posts in celebration, VDare here, as usual from writer James Fulford, and surprisingly Ron Unz or his software put this nice Jared Taylor post on top. Excellent!

Let the PC people do their thing (up to the point of trashing statues, I know, they've been there, done that ...) I’ve this to say, though, about the hard-core political types who have trashed the holiday and the accomplishments of Captain Columbus for 3 decades running:

It’s one thing to dispute that the man was a nice guy, that he treated the natives well, or that he did everything for unselfish reasons. It’s another to simply try to stomp out any history of the amazing accomplishment of that 1st voyage 528 years ago. It was 5 weeks across the Ocean Blue with the biggest vessel, the Santa Maria. being a boat of estimated 150 tonne (metric ton) displacement, a hull length of a little over 60 ft, and a beam of 18 ft powered solely by sail and with celestial and dead (deduced) reckoning for navigation.*

Shoot, most people today wouldn’t be comfortable setting foot on a modern fiberglass boat this size with GPS, auto-tiller, auto-trimming sails, and even GretaThunberg as their Captain Courageous for a trip across the Ocean Green. (“Green” for Greta – anyone remember Greta?)

That is not to mention the unfathomable beneficial impact that Columbus’ and subsequent European explorers had on the future of the Americas. To leave the Western Hemisphere as lands full of mostly violent savages would have been a sin.

I believe that most of the people who fight politically against the Columbus Day holiday are losers who have never read ANY books about the man with any political view. They are too stupid to actually read books. Otherwise, we could discuss it, calmly, right here, bitches!




* Along with the science (that I don't DO understand [/Elton John]) of navigation that Peak Stupidity discussed in Eclipses and the Galilean Moons of Jupiter in the Age of Exploration , with a Part 2, there is a great story about Captain Columbus saving himself and his crew while stranded in Jamaica on his 4th (final) voyage that involves science for the win! See Eclipses in History: Learn some science – it may save your ass some day.

Comments:
Mr. Anon
Thursday - October 15th 2020 12:51AM MST
PS @Moderator:

Yes, Francisco Pizzaro was another bad-ass.

The Conquistadores were the Walter Whites of the 16th century.

You can condemn them for their callousness, rapaciousness and greed.

But you have to admire them for their cleverness and their shear, unmitigated gall.

What happened to Spaniards? There hasn't been one like that since Franco.
Mr. Anon
Thursday - October 15th 2020 12:45AM MST
PS @Adam Smith

And a good morning to you, Mr. Smith

>Napoleon was a fag...

>https://assets.puzzlefactory.pl/puzzle/213/314/original.jpg

To paraphrase another french monarch:

Paris is worth a gown.

Moderator
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 9:27AM MST
PS: I looked at your link, Adam. Now, put me down for some of THAT art. At 18 karats, it's less likely to corrode, when I avail myself of this throne after a Thai meal.
Adam Smith
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 7:44AM MST
PS: ☮

https://evejewelry.wordpress.com/2016/10/15/guggenheims-golden-throne/

Moderator
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 7:20AM MST
PS: No, no, no, wait. I calculated things using 600 lb. of gold (just grabbed that number) rather than the 180 lb that I had just stated. It's only just under $3 million.

Sorry about the error.
Moderator
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 6:38AM MST
PS: Using $1,900 per troy oz (remember, a troy oz is bigger - 14 of them to a lb,), close to the spot price just now, and 62.5% (15karat/24/karat) I get just barely under $10 million for that throne. That's a lot of money for a toilet, ... wait, oh, other kind of throne.

OK, but after the IRS gets involved (wait, who TF told the IRS?!!) then you're down to, what 5 million bucks best. I wonder who's using that throne now, if it hasn't been melted down?
Adam Smith
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 6:19AM MST
PS: Good morning Mr. Moderator...

https://www.calculateme.com/precious-metals/gold/weight/600-pounds

http://www.topdogscrapgold.co.uk/article/whatever-happened-15carat-gold


Moderator
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 5:50AM MST
PS: Mr. Anon, I kind of like Francisco Pizarro's style, I mean, if you're gonna be a Conquistador to begin with. He's the guy who got the Incas to bring in all the gold and sliver of the kingdom as ransom for God/King Atahualpa. His men got the money, then PIzarro killed the King anyway, for the hell of it.

The gold and silver were distributed among the men, with I suppose some fee for Spain and all. Mr. Pizarro, being in charge, got much more than the average soldier, approximately 600 lb. of the gold. That doesn't count the dead king's throne, said to be about 180 lb of gold. However, it was only 15 karat, so ... "this is cough, bullshit, cough, cough ..."
Adam Smith
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 5:10AM MST
PS: Good morning Mr. Anon...

Napoleon was a fag...

https://assets.puzzlefactory.pl/puzzle/213/314/original.jpg

Sunday, November 8 is National Cappuccino Day


Mr. Anon
Wednesday - October 14th 2020 12:12AM MST
PS I propose eliminating the celebration of Columbus Day on October 12th.

And replacing it with "Cortez Day" on November 8th, the day in 1519 that Cortez and his men entered Tenochtitlan, capital of the Aztec empire.

Cortez had to have had the biggest pair of just about any man in history. Whether you like him or hate him, you have to admire him as one of the bravest men who ever lived, and one of the greatest conquerors of all time. Compared to Cortez, Napoleon was a fag.
Adam Smith
Monday - October 12th 2020 10:30PM MST
PS: Top of the evening Mr. MBlanc, Mr. Hail, Mr. Alarmist and Mr. Moderator... Good evening to you all...

I hope this message finds you all fat and happy...
And well rested... With smiles upon your faces and contentment in your hearts...

I agree Mr. Moderator... Sometimes you just can't beat a paper copy book in your hand... Soft cover, hard cover... It's nice to have a real book to read and to curl up and fall asleep with...

But sometimes a digicopy is nice too...
I read them on my tablet...

"Yes, history is complex, but we sometimes tend to think things were so uncomplicated back then, probably from our time learning it at a young age, when the books had to make things plain and simple."

This is one of those "things" we could talk about for a good long time...

As the church and the "government" know...
It's important to "get 'em young"... (So to speak)...

Impressionable minds and such...

It's most unfortunate and detrimental, that much of what is taught as "history" is really more like mythology and/or propaganda....

Real history is fascinating...
But some of it is complicated...

Some historical figures should not be introduced to children...

And even those who should, should not be introduced as mythological like figures... We should not tell lies to children... Or anyone else...

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bDAunP8T5C0





Moderator
Monday - October 12th 2020 3:33PM MST
PS: Yeah, I almost forgot about LORAN, Alarmist. For boating, that was probably just as good as GPS, but the new gadgets can also do all sorts of other calculations with the position data.

I would love to shoot the stars. That is my kind of thing. However, I tend to get seasick fairly easily.

I have been known to "sail" to Santa Catalina Island from the big Los Angeles marina on a 2-man rubber raft with a 9 hp Mercury. We came back the same day on someone's 40 or so foot power boat and that's when I got seasick. (I mean, it was just ONE GLASS of some kind of brandy, is all!)

Yeah, the big container ships were scary.

That must have been something to make that voyage across the Atlantic.. Not many people under, what 70 y/o, have ever made a voyage like that in even one of those old huge ocean liners. I do know that some cruise lines are going all the way across too, or at least were before the Kung Flu.
The Alarmist
Monday - October 12th 2020 2:27PM MST
PS

Happy Columbus Day indeed.

They call it Dead Reckoning because if you reckon wrong, you are dead.

Closest I came to what Columbus did was to join the crew of a 13 meter sailboat from Portugal to the US. They had LORAN-C and modern charts, but they were happy to have another person to pull watch who could also shoot the stars if need arose, and I was happy to save on the airfare. Aside from unexpected storms, the biggest worry was freighters in the night, the sea-monsters of our day.
Moderator
Monday - October 12th 2020 2:19PM MST
PS: Mr. Smith, I figured you'd help out in some way, so thanks for that e-book link. (BTW, there is that display problem that Bill H had/has, at least in my browser, as the link is long. However if I do the apple copy function I still get it all, even the part I can't read.)

I will still likely wait for the paper book, though, but we'll see.

Yes, history is complex, but we sometimes tend to think things were so uncomplicated back then, probably from our time learning it at a young age, when the books had to make things plain and simple.
MBlanc46
Monday - October 12th 2020 11:48AM MST
PS Hail: Would be happy to see more of your comments on the Caldwell book here.
MBlanc46
Monday - October 12th 2020 11:45AM MST
PS Yes! Thank you Signore Colombo and all you other intrepid European explorers. We wouldn’t here without you. I had the opportunity to visit what is billed as Columbus’s tomb in the Cathedral of Sevilla in 1976. We still have Columbus Blvd in Chicago, although for how much longer is anyone’s guess.
Adam Smith
Monday - October 12th 2020 11:12AM MST
PS: Good afternoon Mr. Hail, Mr. Moderator...

http://www.mediafire.com/file/zhkv5m3p763v2r2/The_Age_of_Entitlement_by_Christopher_Caldwell.epub/file

Happy Columbus Day!

I once bought a painting at an art auction that depicted Columbus enslaving the Arawak. His men were all chanting "We are not greedy for gold." I forget the name of the artist, but fortunately for the value of the painting the man had passed. It was an odd piece of folk art with some wild colors and glitter. Columbus looked fabulous. I paid $20 and resold it for about $350 a short while later.

An interesting thing about history is it's complexity...

President Franklin Delano Roosevelt designated Columbus Day (then celebrated October 12) a national holiday in 1934.

Happy October 12th!

https://www.biography.com/news/christopher-columbus-heritage-nationality

https://dwhauthor.wordpress.com/2018/10/08/columbus-indians-and-the-guanches/

Perhaps Columbus should not have written passages like this in his diary...

"They do not bear arms, and do not know them, for I showed them a sword, they took it by the edge and cut themselves out of ignorance. They have no iron. Their spears are made of cane. They would make fine servants. With fifty men we could subjugate them all and make them do whatever we want."

Perhaps he should not have brought Bartolomé de las Casas with him on his third journey.

Today's articles on unz look interesting. I don't have time to read them now, but I look forward to doing so later.

I'm glad history is not boring...

I hope you all have a great day...


Moderator
Monday - October 12th 2020 10:15AM MST
PS: Thank you very much for the review of "The Age of Entitlement", Mr. Hail.. If you don't mind, I can just put it verbatim as a short post, but I could also wait till I read it. That will be soon, as per your recommendation, it is on the way from the 'brary.

Oh, as Kung Flu info, I found out one can GET books/videos where I live but just not go INTO the library. We're gonna see how that works shortly.
Moderator
Monday - October 12th 2020 10:13AM MST
PS: Mr. Hail, I read more comment under Jared Taylor's post on unz. Some of the guys that aren't just rabid anti-Westerners have some decent points that still are against the holiday - one is that, this guy was much of a Conquistador than a founder of civilization in the New World. I might add this on, but my thinking is that this holiday SURE AS HELL won't be replaced by Virginia Dare Day anytime before the reset or revolution!

Let's keep with it to show some defiance. The guy was no Thomas Jefferson, but what he did was still one hell of a feat. As per other commenters under that Taylor post, how 'bout the Erikson crowd out of Norway/Iceland/what-have-you? SURE, but let's get that Leif Erikson Day implemented before we let them push Columbus into history. (Yeah, like Leif Erikson would ever happen either!)
Hail
Monday - October 12th 2020 8:28AM MST
PS - "I believe that most of the people who fight politically against the Columbus Day holiday are losers who have never read ANY books about the man with any political view. They are too stupid to actually read books."

Speaking of holidays, books, and fighting politically for or against certain holidays:

There is a section on MLK Day in the excellent book I finally was able to read recently, Christopher Caldwell's THE AGE OF ENTITLEMENT.

I don't think Columbus (Day) comes up in AGE OF ENTITLEMENT, but the entire thrust of the book makes clear the context in which "Columbus Day Bad, MLK Day Good" arises as a natural, and seemingly unstoppable, phenomenon in our time.

The overwhelming popular opposition to MLK Day in the 1980s (as a mandated, iron federal holiday in part seen to replace various other early-year state holidays like Robert E. Lee's birthday and separate holidays for Lincoln and Washington's birthdays, now Presidents Day) faded in the 1990s, replaced by the 2010s with a seemingly-similar-but-reverse-image opposition to Columbus Day.

Of course Anti-Columbus-Day'ism has always seemed contrived, as the comments of this blog post make clear. It's always seemed a little silly, in a word, though with left-wing movs destroying statues and cities tearing down the rest, it seems much less silly in 2020.

The big difference between the two anti-holiday movements seems to me to be that the anti-Columbus-Day'ism of our time is an elite status-marker or maybe at times a High-Low Coalition affair, whereas opposition to MLK Day in its time was solidly of the Middle (Middle America). MLK holiday was on the ballot and roundly defeated multiple times, an opposition now forgotten. By ca. 2000, it was a quasi mandatory conservative position to worship at the altar of Dr. King and worship the MLK Holiday. How fast that changed!

________

Anyway, a little more on Caldwell's book that people reading this here at Peak Stupidity may find of value:

The premise of the book is (ostensibly) that the 1964 Civil Rights Act triggered the birth of a defacto new Constitution. This conceptualization is novel but has clear precedent in Steve Sailer's Zeroth Amendment line. There are also strains of Paul Craig Roberts' 1990s concept of the New Feudalism based on race and gender and various other statuses (and in which White, able-bodied, Christian, heterosexual male as the officially disprivileged class).

The scope of the book is really reflections on the fifty years between the 1960s and 2010s in essay form, a book reviewer's take on the mid-1960s to late-2010s period, and often on the same themes as Charles Murray's "Coming Apart" but much less technical. Age of Entitlement is united loosely around certain themes and loosely chronologically.

It is a fantastic book and an easy read; I raced through its 275 pages and feel the need to read it again and comment on it at more length, but I supposed that is what I am doing right here.

As a long time Steve Sailer reader, I recognize a lot of Sailer material in the book, enough to make me assume Caldwell is probably a Sailer reader. He never cites Sailer nor does he use direct Sailerisms, but any longtime Sailer reader will recognize the ideas. He does cite Brimelow and Sam Francis and others.

Caldwell also synthesizes it all in a better way than Sailer ever has in one place.

Put another way, THE AGE OF ENTITLEMENT is the book Steve Sailer WOULD write if he had the discipline to sit out the daily-news-cycle blogging/tweeting for a long period, say in a remote cabin without Internet access; if he had the discipline to hammer away at a book including heavy revisions to keep it slim, lean/mean, focused. Caldwell is great, and the style and tone of ENTITLEMENT is great, but I think I still prefer Sailer because he is braver; Caldwell is a mainstream-conservative figure and goes further than anyone I have ever seen. Well done.

The Caldwell book was published, I think, in February of this year (in the very early stages of the Corona-Panic cycle; it deserves much more attention; bad luck with timing). Anyone who reads Peak Stupidity or Steve Sailer would be well advised to make the necessary arrangements to get a hold of this book.
Hail
Monday - October 12th 2020 7:48AM MST
PS

I noticed Columbus Day being referred to in the following terms, or close to it, in several places this year:

"In observance of the federal holiday, ..."

No reference to Columbus.

The easy comparison would be to MLK Day: Would any institution or individual refused to say the name of that holiday and only refer to it as "the January 15 federal holiday"?
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