Re: Not "catching the wind " , or, what ARE we discussing?

From: Brian M. Scott
Message: 56797
Date: 2008-04-05

At 10:29:14 AM on Saturday, April 5, 2008, tgpedersen wrote:

> --- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "jouppe" <jouppe@...>
> wrote:

>> --- In cybalist@yahoogroups.com, "Brian M. Scott"
>> <BMScott@> wrote:

>>> At 11:11:59 AM on Thursday, April 3, 2008, tgpedersen
>>> wrote:

>>> [...]

>>>> The usual explanation for 'cat' in Germanic and Celtic
>>>> is that it is a loan from Latin; but if it is so, then

>>>> 1) why does Freya have a cat-drawn chariot
>>>> http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Freyja

>>>> qoute: '"People of many races visited this burning.
>>>> First is to be told of Odin, how Frigg and the
>>>> Valkyries went with him, and his ravens; but Freyr
>>>> drove in his chariot with the boar called Gold-Mane, or
>>>> Fearful-Tusk, and Heimdallr rode the horse called
>>>> Gold-Top, and Freyja drove in her chariot drawn by
>>>> cats..." (Gylfaginning (49))"'; why this if they only
>>>> knew the cat from the Romans; this doesn't look like a
>>>> late accretion?

>>> It strikes me as a detail that could have been added or
>>> modified at just about any point. I also note that while
>>> Freyr has Gullinbursti/Slíðrugtanni, Heimdallr has
>>> Gulltoppr, Þórr has Tanngnióstr and Tanngrisnir, and
>>> Óðinn has Sleipnir, Freyia just has anonymous cats.

>> It strikes me that there would have been plenty of time
>> for the innovation to enter the Icelandic litterature.
>> The sagas supposedly also contain elements modelled on
>> christian tales. The oldest elements of the sagas can
>> hardly be proven much older than mid first century.

> Two of our tenured members are struck by insights which
> prevent them from going down a path which might jeopardize
> their jobs.

This is too silly for words. My academic position is in
mathematics: no one at the university cares what I think
about linguistics, history, mythology, etc. And as you say,
I'm tenured: my job would not be in jeopardy even if I held
your views and worked in a field to which they were
relevant. (My scholarly reputation might be, but not my
job.) Moreover, I'm getting close to retirement anyway.

By the way, 'It strikes me as a detail that could have been
added or modified at just about any point' has nothing to do
with insights; it is synonymous with 'It seems to me to be a
detail that could have been added or modified at just about
any point'. And it does. It simply has very little
evidentiary value in any direction, and to suppose otherwise
is wishful thinking.

Brian