Kavanaugh has been hexed - he needs to step down

As much as I'd like to see Kavanaugh spend the rest of his days slipping on banana peels or something, these kooks can't have it both ways. If the witch is claiming some kind of power and she is applying that power to do harm to another person then that's assault, right?

I'm struggling for an analogy, but something like shooting at someone with an unloaded gun might work. Whether she knows the gun is empty or she doesn't, she still gets in trouble.


The kinds of workings discussed in this thread don't generally rise to that level. Though the news writer described Melissa Madara's spell as a "hexing" it was probably not a curse of the "may your gall bladder fall out..." variety. "May you suffer the rightful repercussions of your misdeeds..." is more in vogue.

Here's an example of a different rite, from before the confirmation, which was part of the public political magic that was being promoted to prevent it. The main purposes of it appear to be:

1. Assure that Kavanaugh is punished for his crimes against women.

You are powerless over any woman you have abused
Your foul deeds have bound you
To their consequences
And as the elements expose
What lies hidden beneath the soil
So you wicked behavior
Shall be exposed to all


2. Prevent Kavanaugh from harming women in the future.

Say:

I bind you, Brett Michael Kavanaugh
I bind your groping, grasping hands
I bind your leering eyes
I bind your lying mouth


When the paper doll is completely wrapped, tie a knot, binding it to the candle.

Say:

I bind your genitals, that they may fail to bring you pleasure at another’s expense

With the pin or nail, pierce the paper doll’s genital area, embedding the pin or nail in the candle.


3. Prevent Kavanaugh from being confirmed as a Supreme Court Justice.

Say, with increasing intensity:
...
In the name of all women harmed by men
In the name of truth
In the name of Justice
You are bound!
You shall never sit on the highest court!


Blow out the black candle, visualizing Kavanaugh fading away into the dust of history. Feel the joy you will experience when he fails to become appointed to the Supreme Court.


4. Support the claimed victims by sending "love and healing energy" to them.

Now hold your hands out to the white candle. Imagine your heart glowing in your chest, then send that love and healing energy through your arms and out of your palms to the candle. Send that love to Christine Blasey Ford, Deborah Ramirez, Julie Swetnick, and all women harmed by men, saying:

May you be healed
May you be protected
May your truth prevail


Overall it's not very assault-like, except for part 2 if you pay attention to the obvious symbolism of the ritual action rather than just the words of the incantation.

However, that very inconsistency is one of many ways the ritual is very poorly designed. It's all over the map; there are at least those four distinct "intentions" when focusing of intention is supposed to be the key to the whole thing. And there's that inconsistent symbolism I mentioned earlier.

For instance, the start of the ritual invokes Venus by inscribing her symbol on the white candle. This was most likely chosen because the ancient symbol of Venus is used as a symbol of feminism by modern Americans. But Venus isn't the goddess of feminism, she's the goddess of Getting It On, and in mythology has never been one to let issues of prudence, propriety, or even consent get in the way.

In other words, not the best choice of deity to invoke, for the binding (or stabbing!) of a supposed horn dog's genitals. (Possible Venusian backlash: the caster becomes irresistibly attracted to an obviously unsuitable prospect, or to a succession of them.)

Speaking of backlash, consider the ritual's final words: "By the swift sword of Justice, so mote it be". Invoking the supernatural powers of Justice, in case Venus doesn't get the job done.

Now, imagine if a supernatural power of Justice actually existed, what it might look like. You might, for example, visualize it as a grim-faced angel carrying a flaming sword. (The people doing the casting will have visualized it in that or a similar way.) Not, in this case, a blindfolded person carrying a set of scales, so as to make a wise and unbiased judgment. A swift sword was asked for instead.

Now suppose that supernatural power goes off to put that metaphorical weapon to use, only to find that not all the charges against the accused are quite true, so the accused doesn't actually deserve the full measure of retribution called for. Do you imagine it saying, "oh well, false alarm," and going away? Probably not. So, there's another risk of backlash.
 
No - from my own research and experience as a neopagan. I was pretty deep into the community - almost considered doing the Great Rite at one point.
I know where you are coming from. I once had the opportunity to do Grace Wright. Woulda shoulda coulda. Sigh.
 
As much as I'd like to see Kavanaugh spend the rest of his days slipping on banana peels or something, these kooks can't have it both ways. If the witch is claiming some kind of power and she is applying that power to do harm to another person then that's assault, right?

I'm struggling for an analogy, but something like shooting at someone with an unloaded gun might work. Whether she knows the gun is empty or she doesn't, she still gets in trouble.


Many years ago, I saw someone on Usenet (which tells you how long ago) claim that they could use magic to assassinate the President and get away with it, because there were no laws recognizing and regulating magic. I suspect that they were trying to use the same theory behind designer drugs. "The law doesn't specifically say that xyz is illegal, despite its similarity to zyx, so it isn't actually illegal."
 
Actual quote from the too much time on her hands witch:

"In the name of Alka Seltzer™ and the American Binding Company LLC, may Judge Fred Kavanaugh get indigestion at all SCOTUS pizza parties. And also lose his writing implements regularly. I bind...wait, ****, his name is Brett! May Brett Kavanaugh get...that thing I said. I mean those things. Crap! Nevermind. I'll do it next time."
 
You think this is assault?!


If he believes that he is actually causing harm to people or interfering with their freedom then ethically yes it's assault. He is saved from criminal prosecution only because his belief is wrong. But his ethical wrongdoing remains.

Same with these witches. If they believe their spells are real, then they must believe they are harming Kavanaugh or interfering with his freedom. This is ethically wrong, and they are culpable for intending these effects and working to bring them about. They are saved from prosecution because their beliefs are mistaken. But ethically this does not excuse their intent or their actions.
 
You think this is assault?!
Ha! Well if he believed that what he was doing would result in the claimed effect on his victims then, yes?

Hence my question about the witch. If she really thinks she's a witch and has the power to harm Kavanaugh then that should be assault. If she knows that she doesn't have that power then she should just shut up. Right?
 
Ha! Well if he believed that what he was doing would result in the claimed effect on his victims then, yes?

Hence my question about the witch. If she really thinks she's a witch and has the power to harm Kavanaugh then that should be assault. If she knows that she doesn't have that power then she should just shut up. Right?

I'm not sure it should be assault. We generally try to connect intent and action with a plausible mechanism for achieving the result, before we unleash the persecution of the state on someone.

Even when a person threatens your life through mundane means - a gun, for example - we don't call the cops on the crazy guy standing on the street corner menacing passerby with a finger-gun.

Our society doesn't really believe in witchcraft as a mechanism for affecting physical reality, so it doesn't really make sense to prosecute a hex-witch for any real crime, no matter how harmful her curse purports to be.

We can, however, arrange a kind of catch-22 for the witch. If she claims to believe in the reality of her curses, then we can censure her for the admittedly horrible things she's trying to do to people. There is a heavy ethical burden that comes with believing you're cursing people for real. Perhaps our society suffers when we let such believers casually lay down the burden they should be carrying.

On the other hand, if she claims to not believe, then this raises several interesting points of inquiry that should spice up future conversations with the witch.
 
There's a rather important difference between assault and delusion!
Somebody who believes he's Napoleon isn't Napoleon, not even if he's trying to attack Russia with voodoo.
I don't know if she has the power to harm Kavanaugh or not, but if she does, then that power doesn't have anything to do with her imaginary witchcraft!
It theprestige's example, he may be ethically wrong, but he definitely isn't doing wrong. He's primarily hurting his own mind.
Are delusions unethical? I think that the only important point is that they are delusions.
 
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There's a rather important difference between assault and delusion!
Somebody who believes he's Napoleon isn't Napoleon, not even if he's trying to attack Russia with voodoo.
I don't know if she has the power to harm Kavanaugh or not, but if she does, then that power doesn't have anything to do with her imaginary witchcraft!
It theprestige's example, he may be ethically wrong, but he definitely isn't doing wrong. He's primarily hurting his own mind.
Are delusions unethical? I think that the only important point is that they are delusions.

You beat me to it. Witchcraft, finger guns and "crush your head" are failures of education and critical thinking (at best), or mental health care. Anyone who thinks this is assault should try going to their bank for an advance on the money that a fortune teller assured them they will come into.
 

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