BJ's EWTBCD Guest Season - A Poem from my friend Ryan

Ryan is a bit of a legendary writer in my mind...at the moment he's a student of history, of several kinds, and one of the most lucid, kind and clever leftie political people I know.  Many a question I have become confused about and have asked him, to have the crap cut through in about 3 sentences, and the way made clear.  He's good like that.  It's possible that should he ever go to the dark side, he would be a magnificent cult leader, such is his versatility with words, argument, and reason!  Thankfully, I've rarely met anyone more wedded or certain of a good principled way to do things - everything, in life.  All wrapped up in a nice beardy package.  (I am not a fan of beards as a general rule; I feel the longer and bushier they get, the more unreasonable the wearer tends to be....he is the exception to the rule.  His beard is not impinging on his brain at all.  Strange.  Also suits him.  Stranger.)

I'm aware this is a very odd intro to this small blog bit.  I quite adore Ryan, and asked him to write a big political blog bit...but he is so busy with the many political and studying things he is doing (those PhD's don't do themselves), that he has contributed me a smaller post...But still good.  One of the things Ryan does is to further the poetic styles of old, in this case, in the style of the foryrdislag of Eddic poetry.

Sail On Song of sea grows Soaring wind calls Lines are leaping Lofting skyward Docks creak dully Detach and drift Gulls cry grandly Go now lightly Roar on rising Ride now onward Wind hair whipping Wild waters Salty spraying Smooth face glide on Ocean deepens On it pulses Eyes peer ever Endless spaces What there wonders Wise and fools all Stretching sea calls Swelling boundless Freely fly those Fleet on the sea   Just a quick end note: Ryan is an Asatruar, a modern follower of the Norse, Scandinavian and Germanic Gods.  They have one of the strongest moral codes I have ever read, and I admire it much.  My own eclectic approach has not found its moral precepts bettered, anywhere I have read.  There's an annoying and damaging history of this particular set of stories and myths being hijacked by fascists and general right wing racist supremacist nutters.  Ryan (and I) have no truck with that bullshit in any way shape or form.  Its cultural ransacking for lazy minded violent fools.  One of the groups Ryan is involved in  (and helped set up) on facebook specifcally combats this kind of racist appropriation of stories - especially these stories, so filled with honour.  Just wanted to say my bit to let anyone out there know that Asatru and those following it are not a homogenous bunch of racists - as the loud appropriating minority would have the media and anyone who reads without further research, beleive.