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Archive for July, 2024

In the News (#1459)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 31, 2024| Leave a Comment »

The government has such loose standards that they let people weaponize them.  –  J.D. Lott

Torture Chamber (Chamber of Horrors)

The State tortures thousands of people for crossing an imaginary line:

For years, federal investigators…immigrants, and advocates have called for ICE to shutter the Winn [Migrant Torture] Center…[due to rampant] abuse, mismanagement, and inhumane conditions, [yet] in May, the Biden administration temporarily extended the facility’s contract…and..ICE will likely extend it again for five more years…During…a…protest [in January the prison sent in a goon squad]…dressed in black riot gear…who…began deploying canisters of pepper spray without warning…[while yelling] “Shut up motherfuckers!” [at] the[ir victims]…then [swarm]ed through…[the dungeon, pepper-]spraying detainees in the face…they…then exited the [scene of their crime], locked the doors and windows, and cut power and water.  For three hours or so, the immigrants…were denied medical care, aside from a few individuals who had [been beaten unconscious by the thug gang]…

A Broker in Pillage (#1373)

These evil schemes need to be completely shut down as unconstitutional:

Detroit police can no longer s[teal] cars through civil asset forfeiture unless they can show that the car was used for trafficking drugs…the Michigan Supreme Court ruled…that…it is not enough to merely claim that a car was near a suspected drug crime or that a passenger possessed drugs for personal use…The ruling is the second recent court decision limiting the asset forfeiture powers of Wayne County, which encompasses Detroit, and the second one specifically involving [Stephanie] Wilson’s Saturn Ion…[which cops stole] in 2019 because she gave rides to her daughter’s father to or from a residence [cops had pointed at while oinking “]drug activity[“, but]…Wilson was never cited, arrested, or charged with a crime…Wayne County s[tole] over 2,600 vehicles  between 2017 and 2019 and raked in over $1.2 million in [ransom] revenues…

You Were Warned (#1383)

Politicians no longer care about whether their new diktats are Constitutional:

Senate Majority Leader Chuck Schumer…[is about to] force a vote…on…KOSA…a[n internet-censorship bill which invents]…a “duty of care” for a huge swath of digital companies…to protect minors from exposure to anything that [politicians decide is a]…”harm”…The only way to “prevent and mitigate” services from contributing to these [politically-designated “]harms[“] is for companies to either drastically censor every user’s speech or to block minors from using [thei]r service, which means checking IDs for everyone.  Even if used in the most neutral and narrow of ways possible, the potential disruption of free speech and anonymity online is cataclysmic.  And…the political appointees at the Federal Trade Commission…will wind up…[using] KOSA to further specific political agendas—including crusades against abortion, LGBTQ rights, second-amendment rights, sex worker rights, big businesses, language that progressives deem disrespectful, and sexuality broadly…

Unsafe for Human Consumption (#1388)

Cops won’t drop this fantasy until “news” media stop obediently parroting it:

A…[whiny-baby cop in] Southport [Indiana had a panic attack while harassing a motorist]…Tony Wilson…[was root]ing [through his victim’s] car…[and saw] a dollar bill [with traces of white powder]…he [fantasized] was fentanyl…he [was so terrified he pissed himself]…and [then fainted]…his bosses [used the non-event as an excuse for swaggering and oinking out a lot of hysterical self-aggrandizing nonsense]…

Without Let or Hindrance (#1392)

Calling “child protection” on people is merely a quieter form of “swatting”:

J.D. Lott…his wife Britney…[and] their eight kids…[were] three years into a cross-country, home-schooling, Instagram-documented road trip in a bus they refashioned into an RV…wh[en]…online trolls…[decided] to weaponize child protective services…a group, FundieSnarkUncensored, that makes fun of people it believes are Christian Fundamentalists…had been…armchair diagnosing…the[ir] healthy newborn [Boone, claiming he] had “severe sunburn,” “was lethargic,” and had “jaundice”…they used a…video the Lotts had posted from their Florida campground stay to geolocate the[m]…then…called the local Florida DCF office and repeated, verbatim, the accusations…the [agency] decided t[o destroy their lives and]…threatened to issue a nationwide order to [abduct all of their] kids…Lott called the Family Freedom Project…a Texas nonprofit that helps families wrongly accused of abuse by child services…the FFP…found a…[lawyer and] a…[non-government] doctor…to have [a] child welfare evaluation…As soon as the Lotts pulled into the parking lot, a cop car pulled in behind them, lights flashing…the [doctor] took a look at baby Boone and determined that he did not have jaundice, severe sunburn, or lethargy.  The other seven children were examined and found to be in good health as well.  The doctor informed the family that the cops would not be [abduct]ing the kids…But when the state threatens to take away your kids, it’s not exactly no harm, no foul, sorry for the inconvenience.  The experience still gives some of the kids nightmares…

Pyrrhic Victory (#1447)

Everyone abused by cops using this error-prone surveillance system needs to sue:

In 2020, Robert Williams was wrongfully arrested after facial recognition software incorrectly identified him as the person responsible for a 2018 shoplifting spree.  Detroit, Michigan, police jailed Williams for more than 30 hours—even after it became clear that he was not responsible…Williams ultimately sued.  Last month, the case was settled, with Williams set to receive a $300,000 payout for his wrongful arrest…Donald Bussa, [the pig] who conducted the investigation, relied almost exclusively on the facial recognition software, not even looking into Williams’ whereabouts at the time of the crime…or interviewing [store] employees who were [actually present]…After Williams was arrested…he was held for hours before being interviewed…[and] once he was…the case against him quickly unraveled…[but] even after police [admitt]ed they had the wrong person, Williams still wasn’t released for another eight hours.  It took nearly two weeks for the charges against him to be dropped…

To Molest and Rape (#1457)

“Lewd and lascivious conduct” sounds so much nicer than “raping a 10-year-old”:

A [typical and representative] Vermont [cop named Todd Chisholm] has been [let off with a mere] 30 days in prison a[fter making a sweetheart] plea [deal] in which he pleaded guilty to lewd and lascivious conduct…[after repeatedly raping his girlfriend’s 10-year-old daughter starting] in…2003…Chisholm…[also has] 6 years of probation…[but] if [he hadn’t been a cop], Chisholm could have been facing life in prison…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Diary #735

Posted in Diary, Favorites, tagged , , on July 30, 2024| 1 Comment »

I’ve loved The Muppet Show since it first premiered in 1976, so when it became available on DVD in the Oughts, I bought each season as it came out.  Then when season 4 was announced I put it on my Amazon wishlist and waited.  And waited.  And waited.  And surprise surprise, it never came out, probably because Disney now owns the show, and they have a long history of simply stopping series in the middle if they don’t feel like they made enough money on the previous seasons.  It’s absolutely true that shows which predate the home video revolution of the mid-’80s are often delayed due to having to re-negotiate the music rights, but that delay is rarely more than a few years.  And once “streaming” became a thing, I knew I could kiss any chance of an official release of the 4th and 5th seasons goodbye.  I’ve periodically tried to find bootleg sets online because I’ve had excellent luck with bootlegs of other hard-to-find shows, but nope; it seemed I was destined to never see them again.  Then one of my generous gentlemen (who happens to be an IT guy) sent me the video in Sunday’s Links column, and in the process of thanking him I told him of my love for the show, and asked that if he ever saw the bootlegs available he would grab them for me.  He responded by asking me to take a picture of the back of my DVD player, and a couple of weeks later what should arrive in my mailbox but the last two seasons on DVD!  He had located them online, stored them in MP4 format, and saved them to DVDs for me!  The picture was to be sure my machine could play the MP4s, and it can!  So now I’m rather childishly excited about watching them, and as soon as Grace and I finish the dinnertime series we’re currently watching we’re going to start the Muppets from season 1.  And I wanted to let my gent know how very happy I am about that.

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Back Issue #133

Posted in Miscellaneous, tagged on July 29, 2024| Leave a Comment »

The sacred whore may have largely ceased to exist in the mundane world of matter, but she still exists in the human unconscious.
–  “Magdalene’s Day”

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Links #734

Posted in Current Events, Links, Miscellaneous, Music, Obituary, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , on July 28, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Given the…lack of viewer response, we weren’t sure the signal was even getting out of the building.  –  Bob Newhart

Since I liked the last video of a TV superhero performing “Orange Colored Sky” that he sent me, the same gentleman sent me this one.  The links above it were provided by Mike Siegel, IncarcerNation, Radley Balko, Anarres Ansible, and Nun Ya, in that order.

From the Archives

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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In the News (#1458)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 27, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Journalism is not a crime.  –  Adam Rose

Crime Against Society (#1179)

Louisiana isn’t the only state that chooses to punish sex workers in this deranged fashion:

I have three degrees, and two jobs where they don’t matter…[becau]se of…the restrictions of parole and the sex offender registry.  I earned my degrees in prison.  I was arrested at 19 while doing survival sex work, and prosecutors used my trans identity and the fact that I was using drugs…to escalate the charges.  I spent 13 years in…[Georgia prisons] before my release in 2023.  The irony is that now, I think back on sex work as something that represents financial stability…the very last thing I want is to…risk…being sent back.  Sex work would certainly be a violation of my parole.  But so would not being able to keep up with the hundreds of dollars per month it costs to be on the registry, on top of the usual expenses like rent and medical debt…So there’s a Catch-22.  In order to not break the law, I need income that’s sufficiently above minimum wage and that doesn’t involve background checks or 1,000-foot distance restrictions.  But the options that fit that description are not legal…

Top Cop (#1191)

This sex-worker hating psychopath may soon have the power she so desperately craves:

President Joe Biden dropped out of the 2024 presidential race…and [threw]…his “full support and endorsement” behind Vice President Kamala Harris becoming the party’s new nominee…Kamala Harris the horrible campaigner and Kamala Harris the cop can be easy to forget if you’re only considering…her [unremarkable] tenure as vice president…[whose] most distinguishing feature has been a series of bizarre but benign word salads…But…one major thread in Harris’ career…has been flip-flopping on issues to suit the…moment…le[aving] a long-term impression of her as [a] rudderless…phony…if Harris becomes the party’s nominee, the rush to anoint her a saint…is going to kick into overdrive quickly, both because of her identity and out of desperation to avoid Trump getting elected again.  But…her worst tendencies…include…using the state to crack down on problems…better solved through nonpunitive approaches…using moral panics around sex in self-serving ways…acting cavalierly toward the Constitution, defending dirty prosecutors, and finding new ways for the government to poke into people’s lives…

Micromanagement (#1260)

New Jersey cops already abuse the DNA its newborn residents are compelled by law to surrender:

Mandatory genomic sequencing of all newborns…sounds like something out of a dystopian sci-fi story.  But it could become a reality in New Jersey, where [bureaucrat]s are considering adding [it] to the state’s mandatory newborn testing regime…”What we’re talking about is information…that could allow the state…to…monitor and surveil them and their families for the rest of their lives,” [said] Dillon Reisman…[of] ACLU…New Jersey…parents are…told that the testing is mandatory.  They are not told that…the state holds on to these blood samples for 23 years, putting no legal restrictions on how they can be used…[by cops or bureaucrats].  Some states were found to be selling the blood samples to researchers, or turning [it] over to the Pentagon‘s DNA registry.  Now, New Jersey parents are seeking a court order requiring the state to return or destroy the blood samples…or to get informed consent from parents to hold on to it…

The Scarlet Letter (#1397)

I’m sure there are other federal laws which could be used against other state “prostitution” laws:

The Tennessee government has agreed to begin scrubbing its sex offender registry of dozens of people who were convicted of prostitution while having HIV…for more than three decades, Tennessee’s “aggravated prostitution” laws have made prostitution [while]…HIV-positive [a felony, but] Tennessee [actually made it even worse] in 2010 by reclassifying prostitution with HIV as a “violent sexual offense” with a lifetime registration as a sex offender — even if protection is used.  At least 83 people are believed to be on Tennessee’s sex offender registry solely because of these laws, with most living in the Memphis area, where [disguised pigs] and p[igs in suits] most often [employed] the statute [to ruin lives]…the Tennessee attorney general’s office…said in an email statement it would “continue to defend Tennessee’s prohibition on aggravated prostitution”…

Torture Chamber (#1428)

If those confined there can’t come and go as they please, it isn’t a “shelter”, “housing”, or “school”; it is a prison:

Employees of the largest [contractor jailing] unaccompanied migrant [minors] in the U.S. repeatedly sexually abused and harassed [minors] in their care for at least eight years…[committ]ing a s[adly-typical] litany of offenses…as the company amassed billions of dollars in government contracts.  Southwest Key Programs Inc. employees, including supervisors, raped, [molest]ed or solicited sex and nude images of [adolescents and even some] children beginning in 2015 and p[roba]bly earlier…At least two employees have been indicted on criminal charges…since 2020…Southwest Key’s vast network of [concentration camps] across three states…have room for more than 6,300 [people]…

Stalkers in Blue (#1442)

Cops are nothing more than state-sponsored terrorists:

In March of 2021, I published a 15 part series detailing the history of deputy gangs inside of the Los Angeles County Sheriff’s Department…[this] attracted the attention of dozens of department personnel, and triggered direct surveillance by the sheriff’s department…in October of 2021…I requested electronic records of any communications made by LASD that contained my name.  The department denied my initial request, which prompted me to sue…after nearly two years, LASD opted to settle the matter and turn over the records.  More than 50 members of the sheriff’s department sent more than 800 pages of emails about me in the course of just 7 months.  Since [my] reporting…I have received numerous personal threats of death and rape.  Other threats have been directed at my family and loved ones…via direct message on social media, email, and anonymous texts.  I have been pulled over…[and] have seen p[igmobi]les stationed outside of my house…

To Molest and Rape (#1457)

They’re trying to pretend this one isn’t typical and representative by calling him “part-time” and saying he was “attempting to complete his certification”:

A [typical and representative Alabama cop] was fired and arrested after being [caught molesting kids.  His name is] Joshua Dane Wells…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Small Mercies

Posted in Perception, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 26, 2024| 2 Comments »

I will always be grateful to QAnon cranks for making “sex trafficking” rhetoric unpalatable to anyone outside of the MAGA cult, thus causing the moral panic to implode.  Oh, we still have to put up with “sex trafficking” being used as an excuse for evil and tyranny, but at least we no longer need endure endless racist memes of black men’s hands over white girls’ mouths; parades of taped-mouth morons walking around or standing on lawns; or creepy fetishists demanding people draw red Xs on their hands, dye their hair blue, make paper airplanes, or wave origami birds in strange women’s faces.  It’s like the Drug War: still being used as excuse for State violence, but no more fried egg commercials or “classes” where cops encourage kids to rat their parents out to the Gestapo.  Still, I’d much rather see the yellow press furiously backpedaling from a hysteria they eagerly promoted for two decades, describing it with words like “unfounded” and “right-wing conspiracy theory”, than breathlessly espousing pure idiocy such as “4% of all US adolescents are ‘sex slaves’“, “It’s possible for a woman to be raped by 100 men a day without the neighbors noticing“, “300,000 13-year-olds vanish every year without the news being able to name even one“, “Women are so incompetent, they are unable to book hotel rooms or travel“, “Only a tiny minority of men pay for sex, yet it’s enough to sustain one of the world’s largest criminal industries“, and even “34 – 7 = 13“.

Thank Heaven for small mercies.

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Bikini Throwback Thursday

Posted in Miscellaneous, Perception, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , on July 25, 2024| Leave a Comment »

The greatest defect of any democracy lies in the tendency of a certain segment of the population to cooperate with the agents of oppression.  –  “Bootlickers”

The existence of a movie featuring “lurid tall tales” about sex work does no more to prove them than the existence of The Wizard of Oz proves the existence of flying monkeys and talking scarecrows.
–  “A Tale That Grew in the Telling (#329)”

The common yokel considers my job degrading, but I’m not the one getting paid to lie about violent thugs so the public stays asleep while a vast police state is constructed around them.  –  “Lipstick on a Pig“

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In the News (#1457)

Posted in Current Events, Miscellaneous, News, Tyranny, tagged , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , , on July 24, 2024| Leave a Comment »

[Libraries are at risk from] anybody wanting to make a quick buck.  –  Cindy Erickson

Schadenfreude

It’s heartening to see so many rescue industry profiteers exposed as the sociopaths they are:

An ex-[cop] who [pretend]s to save children from human traffickers has[, like all rescue industry profiteers,] faked stories to raise money for his charity…Adam Whittington, founder of Project Rescue Children (PRC) [lies that] he has helped more than 700 children in countries including Uganda, Kenya and The Gambia.  But…these children have never been trafficked, and…[most of the] funds raised – sometimes with the help of celebrity supporters – have [gone into his own pockets rather than to] children in need…Whittington…has misled donors in a variety of ways – including by raising funds for a baby supposedly rescued from people traffickers, who has actually been with her mother all along.  The mother, who lives in poverty, says she and her daughter have never received any money from PRC…a [“]rescue centre[“]…fundraising drive [ended with]…less than half of the money…sent to PRC’s Ugandan partner organisation, Make a Child Smile…the rest…[was] “eaten by Adam Whittington and PRC”…

If Men Were Angels

This will continue until fools stop teaching children unquestioning obedience to “authority”:

A[n Ohio preacher named]…Michael Ronald Goble…[has been arrested and charged with molesting a child under] 13…in November, 2021…more charges are likely forthcoming…and [cops believe there are] more victims…not yet…identified…

The Puritan Recrudescence (#1422)

Pornhub has repeatedly taken the principled stand of refusing to spy on its users for the State:

Aylo began blocking access to Pornhub [for] Nebraska [residents without VPNs, due to]…the state’s new age verification law…As it had already done in Texas, Kentucky, Arkansas, Mississippi, Montana, North Carolina, Virginia and Utah, Aylo replaced its landing page for Nebraska IP addresses with an SFW video in which Cherie DeVille explains the reasons for the content restriction…

The Punitive Mindset (#1428) 

Next, the practice of preventing prisoners from receiving mail and books needs to be banned:

…”The Federal Communications Commission [has] voted to end exorbitant phone and video call rates that have burdened incarcerated people and their families for decades…The new call rates will be $0.06 per minute for prisons and large jails, $0.07 for medium jails, $0.09 for small jails, and $0.12 for very small jails, and as low as $0.11/minute for video calls—with a requirement that per-minute rates be offered…the cost of a 15-minute phone call will drop to $0.90 from as much as $11.35 in large jails and, in small jails, to $1.35 from $12.10″…In January 2023, President Joe Biden signed…a…law…clarif[ying] the FCC’s authority to regulate the rates of in-state calls from prisons…

Thought Control (#1441)

That anyone thinks this is OK demonstrates that the urge to censor is a mental illness:

…in response to a new Idaho law that took effect July 1, the [Donnelly Public] Library is transitioning to adults-only…library staff won’t let kids in unless a parent is present with them at all times, a parent signs paperwork allowing their child to enter only for programming, or a parent waives their [“]rights[“] under the new law and lets their child check out materials without a parent present…House Bill 710…requires Idaho public and school libraries to move materials [politicians have pointed at while belching “]harmful to children[“], or face [nuisance] lawsuits…Libraries across Idaho are reworking policies to comply with the…[deliberately-]vague [law,]…but many are waiting to see if there’d be a formal challenge to books in their collections…small and rural libraries…[many of them] one-room…do…not have enough room to separate the material…[and so can only protect themselves from harassment by barring legal minors from] coming into the library…So where will the children go if they can’t go inside the building?  In the two teepees outside where there are no books…

To Molest and Rape (#1452)

Cops should not be allowed anywhere near legal minors:

…a [Mississippi cop named]…Rodney Jernigan was arrested on July 15 [for statutory rape of a 13-year-old girl.  His bosses used the occasion to swagger, brag, and belch out copaganda]…

Torture Chamber (#1454)

I’m sure they didn’t actually ignore her; they almost certainly yelled “Stop faking!” at her several times a day:

A [human being locked in a cage at the filthy] Rikers Island d[ungeon] has died after jail staff “repeatedly ignored” her requests for medical help, culminating in a medical episode severe enough to land her in a hospital…Charizma Jones…died [July 14th while]…awaiting prosecution [for defending herself from a violent screw]…in April…prosecutors consented to her release…without bail on July 10, after she was hospitalized, [but by then it was too late]…Jones…[was] the fourth [person to die in New York City dungeons]…in 2024…Nine people died [there] in 2023, 19 in 2022 and 16 in 2021…

 

I find paywalls distasteful, and so many people find this blog valuable as a resource I just can’t bring myself to install one.  Furthermore, I find ad delivery services (whose content I have no say over) even more distasteful.  But as I’m now semi-retired from sex work, I can’t self-sponsor this blog by myself any longer.  So if you value my writing enough that you would pay to see it if it were paywalled, please consider subscribing; there are four different levels to fit all budgets.  Or if that doesn’t work for you, please consider showing your generosity with a one-time donation; you can Paypal to maggiemcneill@earthlink.net or else email me at the same address to make other arrangements.  Thanks so much!

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Diary #734

Posted in Diary, tagged , , on July 23, 2024| 1 Comment »

It always makes me smile when I walk down to the mailbox and find an Amazon box addressed to me when I know I haven’t ordered anything, because that means somebody has been thinking of me!  Last week I received three such packages as 14th-anniversary gifts:  A Study in Emerald from Geekdownrange, Devoted to Death from Steve Kempson, and a Blackmore’s Night album from Antonio Lorusso; at least, I think that’s who sent what, because I kept the slips but they don’t say the name of the item with the name of the sender!  And surprise surprise, Amazon was no help in sorting it out.  So if I got y’all wrong, please let me know!  But it doesn’t really matter, because I appreciate all my presents and never put anything on my wishlist that I don’t actually want!

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Magdalene’s Day 2024

Posted in Holidays, tagged , on July 22, 2024| Leave a Comment »

Every year on her feast day, I honor St. Mary Magdalene; even though the Church does not officially recognize her as the patron of whores, she certainly is in the public imagination.  And if beliefs have power, that recognition of sacred whoredom in the minds of millions has far more metaphysical and philosophical weight than any official Church designation.

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