

An article I updated, written in 2014.
https://conservativeweasel.blogspot.com/2020/11/mon-16th-november-2020-current-affairs.html
Salem Witch hunt and Ergot poisoning
The disease of wheat that can lead to effects similar to LSD is caused by the fungus Claviceps purpurea, which results in a condition known as ergotism. Ergotism arises from consuming grains contaminated with ergot, which contains alkaloids like lysergic acid, the precursor to LSD.
A theory doing the rounds regarding the Salem Witch trials is that a substantial role was played by ergot poisoning. The LSD like effects of the mould found in uncooked affected wheat has been said to have substantially explained other events too, like when a French Village went mad shortly after WW2 after a popular bakery distributed some affected wheat. The theory is attractive to the writer because it positions Arthur Miller's The Crucible as a polemic which was more propaganda than reality. Although the late unlamented Senator Joseph McCarthy went about his witch hunt the wrong way, he had investigated communists, many of them, while it is arguable that none of the women accused at Salem was really a witch. But sometimes witch hunts take on a life of their own.
So, consider Miller’s account of the Crucible. Jealousy within a farmstead led to accusations of witchcraft. A specialist is brought in and in a series of errors and compromise, people are hanged. This was said to be similar to the late unlamented Joseph McCarthy’s communist trials.
The reality is more telling.
An account of witchcraft was reported and a judge was summoned. Affected people had been dancing in the forest together. In 1478, the Spanish Inquisition had begun, initially into backsliding of Muslim or Jewish converts to Christianity. People like Christopher Columbus escaped their murderous practice. A practice of witch burning began to take shape in Europe and the colonies. Today, we are confident that witchcraft was not real. In Salem, in 1692, a mere fifty years after George Spencer was executed for fathering piglets, mere accusations were not enough to execute someone.
The tests employed by inquisition were not perfect. Witnesses were required. Facts had to be established. In the Connecticut case of Spencer, an injustice occurred after piglets were born resembling Spencer. He was promised clemency if he confessed. He confessed. Then he was told God would forgive him after he was executed. He recanted his confession. The existence of the piglets were considered witnesses, and the Sow was put to the sword. Modern science assures us that George had not fathered the piglets, but the tests applied did not, and Spencer was not liked.
In Salem, there were tests too. One test had a dog drinking the urine of one of the girls affected. The dog was affected too and began biting rocks and snarling and had to be put down. It is doubtful, but not certain to modern scientists the dog had caught COVID. But, the testimony of affected females with the dog test was damning. Rather than the judges wanting to kill, as Miller writes, the judges had no choice.
Miller got his Salem account wrong. But was he wrong about McCarthy? It is worth noting that McCarthy did identify communists. Maybe Nixon’s prosecution was better, but McCarthy was also aiming at politicising the trials, and we now know significant Democrat figures of the day were ensnared. Again, Miller was wrong to suggest modern communists did not exist and only by chasing modern ‘witches’ were people unfairly found guilty.
One explanation for Salem and a few other witch trials is ergot poisoning. The behaviour of the dog suggests something similar. The kidneys would not have filtered it out and the dog would have been affected by it.
So how do schools present these topics today? Are students aware of these details? Or is Miller’s presentation of a world where Democrats are unfairly called out by Republicans, jealous of their popularity, more prevalent?
But what of the French Village, post WW2? It may have been affected wheat in poorly baked bread. Or, it may have been an experiment by a Paperclip CIA scientist into the effects of LSD in an unsanctified experiment that went wrong. And, maybe, that scientist suicided soon after. But, that is a story for another time.
https://x.com/ddball67/status/1864184592338755940?ref_src=twsrc%5Etfw%7Ctwcamp%5Etweetembed%7Ctwterm%5E1864184592338755940%7Ctwgr%5E022938824713db2eb1c29300967c3338fbe0ed3d%7Ctwcon%5Es1_c10&ref_url=https%3A%2F%2Fpublish.twitter.com%2F%3Furl%3Dhttps%3A%2F%2Ftwitter.com%2Fddball67%2Fstatus%2F1864184592338755940
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells swing and jingle bells ring
Snowin' and blowin' up bushels of fun
Now the jingle hop has begun
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bells chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell rock
Jingle bell, jingle bell, jingle bell rock
Jingle bell chime in jingle bell time
Dancin' and prancin' in Jingle Bell Square
In the frosty air
What a bright time, it's the right time
To rock the night away
Jingle bell time is a swell time
To go glidin' in a one-horse sleigh
Giddy-up jingle horse, pick up your feet
Jingle around the clock
Mix and a-mingle in the jinglin' feet
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle bell
That's the jingle...
David Daniel Ball calls himself the Conservative Voice.
I'm a teacher with three decades experience teaching math to high school kids.I also work with first graders and kids in between first grade and high school. I know the legends of why Hypatia's dad is remembered through his contribution to Math theory. And I know the legend of why followers of Godel had thought he had disproved God's existence.
I'm not a preacher, but I am a Christian who has written over 28 books all of which include some reference to my faith. Twelve blog books on world history and current affairs, detailing world events , births and marriages on each day of the year, organised by month. Twelve books on the background to and history of Bible Quotes. One Bible quote per day for a year. An intro to a science fiction series I'm planning, post apocalyptic cyber punk. An autobiography with short story collections.
I'm known in Australia for my failure as a whistleblower over the negligence death of a school boy. ...
A worship song spreading the good news for illegal citizens too. Illegal citizens should go home. Their places assured for when they go home to Him. The best way forward is to face your troubles. Do you agree? Write your comments on this song. I read them all.
Citizen of Heaven [Verse 1] I am illegal, but my citizenship’s in heaven, Paid twenty thousand to be smuggled, chasing freedom. Many died on the journey, no refund for the pain, Smugglers threaten me and my family, trapped in chains. [Pre-Chorus] I wanted freedom but paid for chains, I was wrong to come illegally, my heart in shame. [Chorus] But now I go home, a citizen of heaven, Jesus made me a child of God, forgiven. My Savior’s calling, His love has set me free, I’m bound for glory, my home’s eternity. [Verse 2] I paid awful people, they lied to me with greed, Promised hope but left me broken, with nothing I need. In the dark, I cried out, thought I’d lost...
Part of my series of worship songs from daily bible quotes. Has the Father healed you your relationship with your parents? You are free to comment, I read them.
Below is a worship song inspired by Luke 11:13 ("If you then, though you are evil, know how to give good gifts to your children, how much more will your Father in heaven give the Holy Spirit to those who ask him!" ) in the style of Bethel Music or Hillsong, incorporating the themes and phrases you provided. The song is structured with verses, a chorus, and a bridge, aiming for an emotive, heartfelt, and worshipful tone with a focus on God’s love, redemption, and the Father’s heart.
Song Title: Father, You Found Me
[Verse 1] My dad never liked me, I carried the shame, I had to prove myself, but I lost the game. I failed, he died, left wounds in my soul, I still talk to my father, but I’m never whole.
[Pre-Chorus] I never knew him, how could I see? How can I know God, when ...
How do you feel about the surgical strike? Was it wrong for Israel to protect her people from nuclear annihilation? I read all comments on my work.
• Recent tensions escalated after Iran launched a missile attack on Israel on October 1, 2024, prompting Israel's retaliatory Operation Rising Lion.
• The ballad follows the Israeli folk tradition of the Horah, a circle dance with roots in Eastern European Jewish culture, adapted since 1924 in Israel.
• Lyrics begin with "Oh, Rising Lion, from the desert's heart you roar," honoring the operation's code name and Israel's resolve.
• Next verse sings, "Mossad spies danced through shadows, with drones in silent flight," reflecting the covert agents and embedded technology.
• Chorus rises, "Hand in hand we turn, under moonlit skies of might, Rising Lion guards our land tonight," echoing the communal spirit of the Horah.
• Third verse adds, "Natanz fell to precision strikes, a ...