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More from @dissidentwest

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

May 8

Prior to the Hart Cellar Act of 1965 white people made up 90 percent of the country.

It's currently below 60 percent and trending down fast.

So what happened?

A 🧵on how the Hart Cellar Act was used to facilitate the racial demographic replacement of the white population.

Also known as the Immigration and Nationality act of 1965.

Immigration in the US was fundamentally changed by the Hart Cellar act abolishing the Nation Origins Quota System that was established in the 20's and heavily favored immigrants from Western Europe.

The former immigration policy granted visas based on the proportionality of each nationality of the U.S. population in 1890.

This was to keep the culture and ethos of the country aligned by only allowing groups of a common origin that were capable of sharing a nation together.

Read 12 tweets

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

Sep 8, 2024

Plato, perhaps the greatest philosopher the world has ever seen is famous for his many sage quotes.

We have much to learn from his immortalized words of wisdom that are still relevant to the modern world.

A thread 🧵

“One of the penalties for refusing to participate in politics is that you end up being governed by your inferiors.”

“According to Greek mythology, humans were originally created with four arms, four legs and a head with two faces. Fearing their power, Zeus split them into two separate parts, condemning them to spend their lives in search of their other halves.”

From "The Symposium"

Read 18 tweets

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

Sep 4, 2024

Phoenician Civilization: Masters of Seafaring and Language

Aside from Rome and Ancient Greece no other civilization from antiquity has contributed more to Western civilization.

Let's dive into how they were able to dominate the Mediterranean for so long.

A 🧵

Have you ever wondered how a small, coastal people could have such an outsized impact on the course of history?

Today, we’re going to dive into the story of the Phoenicians. A civilization that may not be as well known as the Greeks or the Romans, but whose influence ripples through time, shaping the world in ways that most of us never stop to consider.

These ancient mariners, traders, and cultural transmitters were the connective tissue of the ancient Mediterranean. And yet, their story is one that often gets lost in the shadows of the larger, more dominant empires that surrounded them.

But make no mistake, the Phoenicians were no mere bystanders in the great dramas of the ancient world. They were active participants, and in many ways, they were the catalysts for some of the most significant developments in Western civilization.

From their ingenious creation of the alphabet that Latin and ancient Greek were derived from to their pioneering exploration of the seas, the Phoenicians were the unsung heroes who laid the groundwork for much of what we now take for granted. Let's embark on a journey to explore the fascinating history and culture of the Phoenicians, a people whose legacy is as vast as the oceans they once sailed.

Read 9 tweets

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

Aug 30, 2024

Scotland is home to some of the most iconic castles in the world.

A 🧵 celebrating some of it's most prized medieval architecture.

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Edinburgh Castle

A historic fortress that has stood on Castle Rock in Scotland’s capital for centuries, with human occupation of the site dating back to at least the Iron Age.

Built in 1103 by King David I.

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Castle Campbell

A medieval fortress located near the town of Dollar in Clackmannanshire, Scotland.

Built in the late 15th century, it was originally known as Castle Gloom before renamed by the powerful Campbell family, who used it as a strategic stronghold.

3/10

Read 10 tweets

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

Aug 29, 2024

The Mythical Foundation of Rome

Ever wonder how the greatest empire the world has ever seen came to be?

A deep dive into Rome's founding myth. A🧵

Rome, one of the greatest civilizations in history, traces its origins to a tale that blends myth and reality in ways that continue to captivate imaginations.

The legend is not merely a fantastical account of the city's birth but a narrative deeply embedded in the Roman psyche, offering insights into the values, beliefs, and aspirations of the early Romans.

This story, rich with divine intervention, fraternal conflict, and the eventual rise of a great city, has endured through the centuries, shaping the identity of Rome and its people.

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The Divine and Mortal Origins of Romulus and Remus

The legend of Romulus and Remus begins with their mother, Rhea Silvia, the daughter of Numitor, the rightful king of Alba Longa. Numitor's reign was usurped by his brother Amulius, who, in a bid to secure his power, murdered Numitor's sons and forced Rhea Silvia to become a Vestal Virgin.

As a priestess of Vesta, the goddess of the hearth, Rhea Silvia was bound to a life of celibacy, sworn to serve the goddess for thirty years.

The Vestal Virgins were highly revered in Roman society, entrusted with maintaining the sacred fire of Vesta, which symbolized the security and stability of Rome. However, despite her sacred vows, Rhea Silvia was fated to become the mother of Rome's founders.

According to the myth, the god Mars, the deity of war, became enamored with Rhea Silvia and visited her in her sleep. Their union resulted in the birth of twin sons, Romulus and Remus. The idea that Rome's founders were fathered by Mars imbued the city with a sense of divine favor and martial prowess.

For the Romans, the notion that their city was established by descendants of a god served as a powerful legitimizing force, reinforcing the belief that Rome was destined for greatness.

2/11

The Abandonment and Rescue of the Twin Brothers

Amulius, fearing the threat posed by his grandnephews, ordered that the twins be drowned in the Tiber River. However, fate had other plans. The basket carrying the infants floated safely down the river and came to rest at the base of the Palatine Hill.

There, they were discovered by a she-wolf, who, in a remarkable display of maternal instinct, suckled the infants and kept them alive. This image of the she-wolf nurturing Romulus and Remus has become one of the most enduring symbols of Rome, representing both the city's origins and its resilience.

The twins were soon found by a shepherd named Faustulus, who took them in and raised them as his own. Under his care, Romulus and Remus grew into strong and capable young men, unaware of their true heritage.

Their upbringing among shepherds and common folk instilled in them a connection to the land and the people, traits that would later define their leadership.

3/11

Read 11 tweets

Dissident West

@dissidentwest

Aug 27, 2024

History of the Written Word

A 🧵 about the origin of written language.

Writing, one of humanity's most enduring technologies, has shaped our history, culture, and understanding of the world. Here we will delve into the origins and evolution of writing, starting from its inception in ancient Sumer, to its spread across different civilizations, and finally to the development of the alphabet, a tool still in use by most Western cultures today.

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To understand the origins of writing, we must travel back to ancient Sumer, located in the southern part of modern-day Iraq. Sumer was home to the world’s first real cities; large, complex urban centers with tens of thousands of inhabitants. These cities were not merely large villages but city-states, each with its own governance, economy, and culture. The city-states of Sumer were unified by the worship of specific gods, and the temples dedicated to these gods played a central role in both the religious and economic life of the cities.

As the cities grew, so did the temples, which were not just places of worship but also served as vast warehouses. These temple complexes stored the wealth of the city, including grain, livestock, and other valuable goods. In prosperous times, donations and gifts flooded into the temples, and in lean times, these resources were redistributed to the people. This system of resource management required meticulous record-keeping, which laid the foundation for the development of writing.
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Record-Keeping in the Temples

In these Sumerian temples, we find the earliest examples of writing. As goods were brought into the temple, scribes made marks on clay tablets to keep track of what was stored. These early records were simple tally marks, but they soon evolved into something more complex.

To differentiate between the various goods being recorded, scribes began to draw pictures alongside the tally marks. For example, a stalk of grain might be drawn next to the tallies to indicate that the tallies referred to grain. Over time, these drawings became more abstract as scribes sought quicker and more efficient ways to record information. This shift from pictorial representations to abstract symbols marks a significant development in the history of writing.

The next major leap came when scribes realized that these symbols could represent not only objects but also the words for those objects. For instance, the symbol for "cow" began to represent not just the animal but also the word "cow" itself. This transformation from pictograms (which are direct representations of objects) to logograms (which represent words or morphemes) was a crucial step in the evolution of writing.

3/14

Read 14 tweets

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