287. Witch Trials

A male, green ugly witch. At this time of the year? In this economy? Why is this so rare an apparition? In this multi-page essay I will explain why this fascinating phenomenon… just kidding it’s patriarchy. 

Not all witches that were hanged or burned were female, and in some locations there were even more men than women accused of witchcraft. There’s some interesting stories around male witches.  However, women were considered the weaker sex and more prone to being manipulated by demons in most of the literature, including the Malleus Maleficarum. And with the centuries, the witch became synonymous with female. I’m still astounded men were able to convince women of this. In my many decades of life, I’ve found that men are consistently more prone to manipulation and vice than women. It was the longest con on earth, convincing the world that the opposite was true. 

How can we walk around, knowing that we robbed women of their strength and power for millennia, and that we went to insane lengths to do so? The whole witch craze is unimaginable to me. 500 years ago we were allowed to kill women for something that at best was nothing, at worst was simple creativity and self-expression. Many times the women who were considered a burden on society were targeted. The crone became a hag and the hunting of the hag became a sport that spanned continents. Knowing that this is true, why do we still allow ourselves to be told to fear or hate whole categories of humans? Worse yet, why do we listen sometimes?  

I believe in law and order, and if sufficient evidence is there for an individual, let there be consequences galore. But we should question accusations englobing anything larger than the individual. And I do mean we. I am trying to accept MAGA idiots lately. Not all of the easily swayed bumpkins want me and other immigrants out of this country of mine. But some do, and when I know of their intentions, then I can absolutely cast them out of my life. The rest are walking on thin ice, specially when they do nothing when DACA is abruptly cancelled or a Muslim ban is attempted. I’m taking baby steps trying to not rope all of MAGA into a stupid, racist mass of misanthropes and so can you. But honestly, many either suck or lead unexamined lives. But not all, some may be really concerned about the price of their precious eggs. For now that’s all I can concede.