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Question:

RABbits: Fighting the good fight for the modded community, the DinGo needs your help! The other night I walked from my friend’s apartment to one of the school’s dormitories to catch a security escort home as it was like 35 degrees and 5 in the morning. I was wearing shorts and freezing my ass off. There is this old cantankerous security gaurd who works the late shift, and never misses a beat to point out how horrible he thinks I looks, how abnormal I am, and how relieved he’ll be when I shape up my act. I can usually only smile and grin, because besides me he also has a habit of picking on the nice little hippie kids who haven’t worn shoes in  years and walk around barefoot all the time. Anyhow, we get to talking about the usual stuff, because the Vans are usually late because all the drivers slack off that late at night. and he starts going on about tongue piercings and oral sex. He somehow didn’t know that a piercing ACTUALLY(whoa!) HEALS and thought that everyone was in constant pain all the time. I had a good inward laugh at that. But then he started going on and on about that 20/20 segment, and mentioned Essie’s Split tongue. He was like "you ever see one of those? She had her tongue split like a lizard has, ya know?" And I replied that I had and thought it was amazing and beautiful, to which he responded "that is fucking wrong. She’s a freak is what she is. Someone should lock her up before she continues doing that to herself. It’s not normal!". the little defensive buzzer went off in my head and I shot back with "what is Normal? Can you acurately give me a non biased non personal definition of what being normal constututes? ". old man: "uh..normal is something that doesn’t differ someone from other people" Me: "like how?" old man: " Like a retard. or someone stuck in a wheelchair.  or a gay man. That’s not normal". Me: "Are you saying it’s wrong for people like that to exist!!?" (one of my best friends had under developed legs and is wheelchair bound, and another has down syndrome. I’m Bi) old man: "Yes. that’s not normal. it’s WRONG and it shouldn’t exist". me: "So what your saying is that everyone should look the same and be fashioned from the same mould, and they should all be cookie cutter look alikes? Difference makes the world go round. It’s what makes things interesting." I put forward: "Well what if an indian woman were to come into this place right now with a nostril piercing, or a new zealander with tattoos on their face? would you go up to them and ask her if it hurt, or say to the new zealander "what do your parents say about that thing on your face?" old man: "well, see, that’s different" Me: "how so?" old man: "It’s a cultural thing" And then he started going into the "See, that kind stuff was mainly seen in africa and only done by other blacks(he’s african american BTW), and it was only an african thing." Me: "wait just a second, are you honestly trying to tell me that Africa is the only place to have any physical modification and adornment?" Old Man: "yes. it was mainly my African ancestors(I’m NOT making this up. i had to cover my smile by pretending to cough) in that did this sort of thing." "What about India? or china? or the pacific islands? or south america? or the native peoples of America? or the natives of Alaska? Are you going to sit there and try and tell me that they didn’t have any decorative practices, ritauls, and the like" I responded increduously. "oh sure, they may have had SOME things, but it wasn’t very big and mainly an african thing". he said. Me:"Well, I hate to burst your bubble, but there’s enough documentation on primitive cultures to prove that you don’t know what the fuck you’re talking about and you are completely talking out of your ass." old man:"No, No, it was mostly in Africa." At that moment the security van arrived and I had to go, but I kept talking as I headed for the door saying "I don’t know why you think it’s only an african thing." and he says "Well, when you come back you show me your proof, because I DON’t Believe you!!" "are you sure?" I said "yep. you show me your proof" he said. And before I closed the door i heard him say something like "we’ll see what that crazy honky has" to the other gaurd,(who ignored him as he tried to pass out on the couch) or something like that. I just smiled and waved and went home. now I’m here the next day typing this. this is basically me asking you guys for help. Anything you can offer is appreciated. I have the BME, the mayans and the aztecs, and the modern Prim. book angle covered, but I need more. Anything you can offer up would be swell. booklists too. nothing fancy, just some infor I can cut and paste into microsoft word. I expect all the circus freaks and performers to chip in as well. thanks in advance.^_^ -DinGo ps: for similar argumant see BME/News segment in funmail 12(I think) near the bottom where someone called BME a racists white hegemonic site, or some such BS. — "It’s all about Pork Chops and Applesauce" http://www.geocities.com/SoHo/Suite/5710/ Before you buy.

Response:

> this is basically me asking you guys for help. Anything you can offer is > appreciated. I have the BME, the mayans and the aztecs, and the modern > Prim. book angle covered, but I need more. Anything you can offer up > would be swell. booklists too. nothing fancy, just some infor I can cut > and paste into microsoft word. I expect all the circus freaks and > performers to chip in as well. > thanks in advance.^_^

i just did a nice little informative speech today on body modification and i got a lot of my information from encyclopedia britanica. also, the discovery channel online has a whole section now called "the human canvas" and there is an art atlas on there in which you can click on sections of the world and find out about the modifications indigenous to that region.  its a lot of help.  though the site seems to be down right now. — Julia. icq: 2167303 Instant messenger: VitaJules http://www.geocities.com/TimesSquare/Cauldron/1688/ "i cannot name this.  i cannot explain this. and i really don’t want to.  just call me shameless." -ani

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http://hamp.hampshire.edu/~tawF95/bodmodpap.html Try this for starters…It’s a paper done by a student, but it makes some good reference points and concentrates on Amazon cultures…mainly women.  Hope it helps!

Response:

>RABbits: >Fighting the good fight for the modded community, the DinGo needs your >help!

you might be able to find some info or other sources here…. http://tattoos.com/jane/steve/toc.htm R.Knox…..aka RevPhule light travels faster than sound,  isn’t that why some people appear bright until you hear them speak?

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There’s a book published by Hardy Marks (methinks) called "Marks of Civilization" It’s from a UCLA sympoium on tattoo/scarification, includes dates each culture practiced said arts. acidbaby www.acidbaby.com

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