Uhhh… nope. I imagine the boys of the tribe have spent years psyching themselves up for these rituals, but here – watch an ordinary Australian white bloke give it a try:
Wait, this article is not about Mitt Romney being filled with bullet ants? But why not?
Obligatory Frank Herbert’s Bene Gesserit Creed reference, gom jabbar, etc. reference
I must not fear.
Fear is the mind-killer.
Fear is the little-death that brings total obliteration.
I will face my fear.
I will permit it to pass over me and through me.
And when it has gone past I will turn the inner eye to see its path.
Where the fear has gone there will be nothing.
Only I will remain.
Edit: oh hey, would you look at that, Frauenfelder beat me to the reference…
The worst pain known to man? I guess no one ever tried a condom filled with these ants yet.
The bullet ant glove ritual has been sort of done and re-done, from nature shows, to those so called (entertainment) survivalist shows, pseudo nature shows (Wildboyz). This ritual is no joke, these ants can potentially cause a person’s body to go into shock from the severity of the pain.
One look at the pic and it felt like the the bones in my hand were trying to run away.
Edit: It would make an awesome Halloween Trick! (May god have mercy on your soul)
I’d be pretty cool with not being a man in this tribe. Manhood just isn’t for us all! Good luck with the man thing, I hope it works out for you, but I am not going to be doing that. Maybe we could work out something with a nice hot sauce or something? Perhaps a brief jumping-in, or some kind of ritualized disfigurement? I’d be down for one of those, but this unending-pain-by-ant-glove thing isn’t really my speed.
I will just say that the social construct of forcing one to undergo this (repeatedly!) or, in effect, be ostracized from the polity, is a cruel and stupid form of child abuse.
Actually, it’s about ethics in game journalism.
Wow, we humans are some pretty sick puppies, not only for creating a ritual like this, but also because somebody endured this as part of their job, and finally because i/we watched it for entertainment.
Sick sick sick
I think I’d rather read a passage from a holy book in a language I don’t really speak, in front of a group of co-religionists, who will then proclaim that now I am a man.
Where do human rights orgs stand on this?
If this was done to girls in Iran there would be outrage, but we see tribes as “cute” so we just laugh at it.
They are abusing children. It’s not a curiosity.
Cultural relativism is such a drag. It’s not wrong, it’s just different!
…all I know is that if I ever move into that tribe’s neighborhood, I’m homeschooling.
Again . . . where is the fucking article?
Didn’t you watch the National Geographic video? You know, at the link…which has already been explained to you in another thread?
Speaking of which, I see the Honey Boo Boo TV series has come to a depressingly predictable end.
Interesting to go back and look at some of the comments posted on the BB stories from a couple of years ago.
I can’t and won’t condemn this. This isn’t my culture or belief system to comment on. These kids are raised in a raw environment knowing that pain is part of everyday life. Their fathers grandfathers and elder brothers all have done this and if they want to join those ranks they will too. In my culture I spent 12 years being confined with other kids my own age having to endure people explain things to me that often made no sense and would have no real value in my life. After having done the 12 expected years I chose to endure 7 more years of a similar ritual. At the end nobody called me a man or even said I had proven myself.
From birth these jungle kids are educating in survival, in providing for oneself, in protecting loved ones. What they do makes sense to them and how they mark their passages is their choice not mine.
I’ve had kidney stones and most days deal with chronic pain. I’m not saying that I’d sign up for “The Glove,” but I can’t say that it’s a bad idea.
Pain sucks. It can be dangerous. And it can change you, harm you. But stepping up, putting your hands in the gloves year after year speaks to a high degree of commitment.
And here’s an idea that may clear up our voting rights problem in the country: no IDs, but everyone has to put on the gloves before they vote. That might balance out things a bit. I suspect that the rich and comfortable may not be as committed to voting with that standing between them and the booth.
