Lost in translation
The message could be interpreted in Swedish, as well as Czech, to give two relevant messages:
Czech: Miluju Tě Ségra - I love you sister.
Swedish: Jag älskar att segra - I love to win.
link: https://twitter.com/oioiiooixiii/status/414153219057532928
Weaponised Homosexuality
Some years ago, I noticed the diverging trends between the West's and Russia's views on the topic of homosexuality, but it was the contrast in messages between the Pope and Russian Patriarch in July 2013 that really got me interested. There's a lot here about comments and actions by the Catholic and Orthodox Churches, but this is necessary, as the Orthodox Church continues to entangle itself more and more into the running of Russian state affairs. The Catholic Pope plays an important role for the West also.* These are just some scraps of information (in chronological order) that I can recall from over the years, a decent Google search will uncover far more. I may add to these as time goes on.
* The role of a Catholic Pope in all this should not be under estimated. The Pope can act as a leveraging tool for the West over Russia. A previous example is Pope John Paul II. Like the extraordinary events regarding the inauguration of Pope Francis after Benedict's resignation, the choice of a Polish Pope also came as a surprise, as he the first non-Italian Pope elected in over 500 years. Even more interestingly, in every biography of Pope John Paul II, you will see listed as his first achievement, his instrumental involvement in the abolishment of Communism in his home country of Poland, which paved the way for the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union.
see also: http://oioiiooixiii.blogspot.com/2014/01/sochi-olympics-conspiracy-theory.html
--- UPDATES ---
 | 20 April 2005 The Russian Orthodox Church has received a valuable present from the Vatican - the new Pope German Joseph Ratzinger or, as his new name goes, Benedict XVI, is the most conservative cardinal. The new pontiff condemns divorces, marriages between homosexuals, cloning and so on. The Russian Orthodox Church shares all these positions. http://en.ria.ru/world/2http://sputniknews.com/art_living/20160212/1034672002/kirill-francis-meeting.html0050420/39711408.html |
8 July 2010 Bergoglio accuses same-sex marriage bill of 'being Satan's work to destroy God's plan' Bergoglio [Pope Francis] accused the bill of being more than just "a simple legislative instrument" and said it was "a move by the devil, looking to confuse and deceive all children of God." |  |
13 July 2010 Argentina Senate to Vote on Gay Marriage The war of words continued on Tuesday as church leaders staged large protests around the country against the proposed law. On Sunday, Cardinal Jorge Bergoglio [Pope Francis], the archbishop of Buenos Aires, had declared it a “destructive attack on God’s plan.” http://www.nytimes.com/2010/07/14/world/americas/14argentina.html |  |
| 21 October 2010 European Council for Human Rights rules against Russia in Moscow Gay Rights case The case concerned the complaints by a Russian gay-rights activist (Никола́й Алексе́ев / Nikolay Alexeyev) about a repeated rejection by the Moscow authorities of his requests to organise gay-pride parades.http://humanrightseurope.blogspot.com/2010/10/echr-rules-on-moscow-gay-rights-case.html |  |
 | 30 October 2010 Rally against gay parades held in Moscow The rally was organized by a number of Orthodox organizations and began with a prayer. Many people carried icons and signs reading "We do not need gay parades!", "A gay parade will never be held in Moscow", and others.http://en.ria.ru/society/20101030/161148984.html |
 | 12 March 2012Church Official Urges Nationwide 'Gay Propaganda' LawA new law in Russia's second city, St. Petersburg, that imposes fines for spreading "gay propaganda" among minors should be implemented nationwide, an Orthodox Church official said on Monday, a day after the legislation was signed by the city's governor.http://en.ria.ru/society/20120312/172114388.html |
 | 13 April 2012Russia Rejects G8 Attempts to Single out HomosexualsRussia has disassociated itself from words in a G8 statement that singled out homosexuals as a separate group whose rights need to be protected, Russian Deputy Foreign Minister Sergei Ryabkov said on Friday.“We have repeatedly said that the Russian Federation condemns any forms and manifestations of discrimination on any grounds. We proceed from the assumption that a ban on discrimination in international legal acts on human rights is general and relates to all people without exception,” Ryabkov told journalists. http://en.ria.ru/society/20120413/172789854.html |
21 May 2012 Newsweek magazine declares Barack Obama to be "The First Gay President". |  |
13 March 2013Habemus Papam! Cardinal Bergolio Elected Pope FrancisArgentinian Cardinal Jorge Mario Bergoglio, S.J., the first Jesuit pope in history, was elected to the papacy, taking the name of Pope Francis. [this came after the surprise resignation of "ultra conservative" Pope Benedict XVI (28.02.2013), the first such resignation since 1415. The resignation of Pope Gregory XII took place for political reasons, to end the "Western Schism". Benedict XVI claims he was not pressured, and stepped down due to being of "advanced age".]http://www.news.va/en/news/habemus-papam-cardinal-bergolio-elected-pope |  |
 | 22 July 2013 Russian government and the church successfully cooperate in various aspects of civil life - Putin.According to the President, the Russian Orthodox Church and the government are now cooperating in more than one aspect, including the cultivation of moral values and supporting families. |
 | 22 July 2013 Gay marriage is sign of the of apocalypse - Patriarch Kirill"This is a very dangerous sign of the apocalypse ... It means people are choosing a path of self-destruction," Patriarch Kirill told churchgoers on Moscow's Red Square.http://voiceofrussia.com/news/2013_07_22/Gay-marriage-is-sign-of-the-of-apocalypse-Patriarch-Kirill-8698/ |
29 July 2013Pope Francis Discusses Gay Catholics: 'Who Am I To Judge?'Gay people should be integrated into society instead of ostracized, Pope Francis told journalists after his weeklong trip to Brazil. Answering a question about reports of homosexuals in the clergy, the pope answered, "If someone is gay and he searches for the Lord and has good will, who am I to judge?" [slick talk, as this stance is no different to any other Pope, who let's it up to God to do the judging. It's also quite contrary to his homophobic remarks pre-Popedom.]http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/07/29/206622682/pope-francis-discusses-gay-catholics-who-am-i-to-judge |  |
07 August 2013Stephen Fry to IOC: Putin treats gays just like Hitler treated JewsPopular British entertainer, Stephen Fry, caused much debate, from every-side, when he suggested that the Russian law forbidding the "propagation of non-traditional sexual relations to minors" is identical to the inhuman treatment and murdering of Jews during the Holocaust. Fry demanded that "An absolute ban on the Russian Winter Olympics of 2014 in Sochi is simply essential,".http://www.globalpost.com/dispatches/globalpost-blogs/world-at-play/putin-gays-hitler-jews-olympic-ban-stephen-fry |  |
18 December 2013Obama states that he will not attend Olympic Games at Sochi - sends gay athletes in his place.President Barack Obama sent Russia a clear message about its treatment of gays and lesbians with who he is -- and isn't -- sending to represent the United States at the Sochi Olympics. For the first time since 2000, however, the U.S. will not send a president, former president, first lady or vice president to the Games.http://espn.go.com/olympics/story/_/id/10154712/president-barack-obama-selects-gay-athletes-sochi-delegation |  |
16 December 2013Gay Rights mag names Pope Francis 'Person of the Year' despite same-sex marriage stanceThe December issue of The Advocate features Pope Francis with a “NO H8” message photoshopped on his right cheek. Next to his photo is a quote from the pope’s interview with reporters in July, while en route from Brazil to Rome.http://www.breitbart.com/Big-Journalism/2013/12/16/Pope-Francis-Same-Sex-Marriage-Opponent-Named-Person-of-the-Year-By-Gay-Rights-Mag |  |
23 December 2013 TIME magazine declares Pope Francis their "Person of the Year"."The first non-European pope in 1,200 years..." “If a homosexual person is of good will and is in search of God, I am no one to judge.” [TIME define their "Person of the Year" as not a championing (this is always explained when defending their awarding of Hitler as "Man of the Year"). It is doubly interesting to note their choice of the Pope over Edward Snowden.]http://poy.time.com/2013/12/11/person-of-the-year-pope-francis-the-peoples-pope/ |  |
* The role of a Catholic Pope in all this should not be under estimated. The Pope can act as a leveraging tool for the West over Russia. A previous example is Pope John Paul II. Like the extraordinary events regarding the inauguration of Pope Francis after Benedict's resignation, the choice of a Polish Pope also came as a surprise, as he the first non-Italian Pope elected in over 500 years. Even more interestingly, in every biography of Pope John Paul II, you will see listed as his first achievement, his instrumental involvement in the abolishment of Communism in his home country of Poland, which paved the way for the eventual dissolution of the Soviet Union.
see also: http://oioiiooixiii.blogspot.com/2014/01/sochi-olympics-conspiracy-theory.html
--- UPDATES ---
 | 12 January 2016 "Patriarch Kirill and Pope Francis come together for a historic meeting in the Cuban capital, the first time that the leaders of the Roman Catholic and Orthodox churches have met in nearly 1,000 years." http://sputniknews.com/art_living/20160212/1034672002/kirill-francis-meeting.html |
PNB's Nutcracker: The ever increasing athleticism of ballet
I had never felt inclined to watch an entire version of the Nutcracker ballet, until last December, when I happened upon a Pacific Northwest Ballet GIF animation on tumblr, and decided to source a copy of PNB's 1986 movie version, choreographed and designed by Kent Stowell and Maurice Sendak. And what a wonderful production it is. The Peacock divertissement alone, as danced by Maia Rosal, made it worth watching.
Leah Merchant's arabesque in the GIF of the modern version is stunning. One must comment however, that it does lose the context of the move representing a bird preening it's tail feathers. It is now a show piece, offering the dancer a chance to show off her technical prowess. That's not meant as a criticism by any means, but as an observation of the increasing athleticism of ballet.
I once had a blog post sketched out, which documented the increasing heights of leg extensions and the evolution of the arabesque through the centuries, and ended in a humerous envisioning of what obtuse angles the leg would take in the not too distant future.
notes:
http://oioiiooixiii.tumblr.com/post/69584518064
http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0091658/
http://www.pnb.org/Artists/Corps/LeahMerchant.aspx
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