Note of Ritual Caution:

[azurelunatic]

Recently was called to do a reading on a ritual that a friend of a friend was planning. Said friend of friend was planning to do a ritual to kick Bush out of office.

Um, hello? Does anybody see the ways that this could backfire? Please.

Do be sure to specify "Harm none" in ritual. Or, better, if one wants to remove Bush's potential to do harm, simply do the following rite: "I bind you, George W. Bush, from doing harm against others, or harm against yourself, whether by will or by accident."

By Working an act of potential violence against someone else, even if it is "only" social violence, one is opened up for ten times as much violence against one's self. By Working an injunction against harm at another, one binds one's self from doing harm as well.

Comments

[tiel.livejournal.com]

Good call.

[azurelunatic]

Thanks.

I just crossposted it to my sole pagan community.

[boojum.livejournal.com]

Is there also a "be careful what you wish for: you might get it" factor? The only example I can think of right now is having Bush removed from office because the whole Eastern Seaboard, including the White House, slides unexpectedly into the ocean, but I'm sure there are more reasonable events which fall into the same category.

[azurelunatic]

That's exactly what I mean.

...For example, for classic example, take me vs. Shawn in January of 1998. Having exhausted all other routes of getting into his pants, I made a wish (which, we all know, is just another way of doing a spell, if the mind is trained, and mine evidently was).

You were there for much of the screaming horror that ensued after I eventually did get into his pants (and the initial "Hey Joan, let's go on a walk" followed the wish on an extremely short order -- within the week, I'd guess, not having the journals to hand.) ...you know exactly what can go wrong with even as simple a something as that.

Let's see.

Bush removed from office by there physically being no more office, and no more Bush, anymore. Coup, natural disaster, unnatural disaster, riots, civil war, uncivil war.

Bush removed from office and in a position to do worse things.

Bush removed from office and replaced by a worse replacement.


I'm sure you can think of more.

[hookncrook.livejournal.com]

Great call, I have no idea why people think that grey magic won't backfire badly on you; especially when you try and do something with such vast social implications as toss a pres out of office.

[azurelunatic]

I've stopped thinking of anything other than pure self-communion with the Divine as 'white' magic.

[crisavec.livejournal.com]

Besides....it would be redundant.

Ever heard of Tecumsah's curse about presidents elected in a Zero year?

[azurelunatic]

No... do tell?

[crisavec.livejournal.com]

This (http://www.yowusa.com/Archive/September2000/13SEP00a/13sep00a.html) explains it.

But basicly any president elected in a year ending in zero either dies in office, the curse was supposedly cast in 1811 after the battle of Tippecanoe, and Tecumseh passed the msg

"Harrison will not win this year to be the Great Chief. But he may win next year. If he does...He will not finish his term. He will die in his office.' 'No president has ever died in office,' declared a visitor. 'But Harrison will die I tell you. And when he dies you will remember my brother Tecumseh's death. You think that I have lost my powers. I who caused the sun to darken and Red Men to give up firewater. But I tell you Harrison will die. And after him, every Great Chief chosen every 20 years thereafter will die. And when each one dies, let everyone remember the death of our people.'"


The ONLY president that survived was Regan, and he still had a serious attempt made on him

[azurelunatic]

Hmm.