How Much Garlic Can You Eat?

[Carrera]

We tried to have a discussion on the topic on ancient history but it was finally closed down. The problem was that the posters somehow felt constrained to "set matters straight" about themselves prior to posting on the topic. We were getting stuff such as, "Personally as a hetero male I think that....", "I'm not gay but I think the Greeks blah, blah, blah,"
So, the lady in charge decided all of this could be offensive to any of the gay posters who were maybe being made to feel they had something to be ashamed of.
Then I recall once doing Plato's symposium in a tutorial. There was this huge black guy who had been reading the text beforehand and found the whole thing hugely amusing. As we went in, he kept winking and grinning and elbowing the rest of us. Then, when I read it myself I was kind of shocked too.
It was a totally different culture, of course. It's also important to remember that this same bonding you describe took place between women. Sapho had her own small band of young female students and, to this day, women from all countries visit the island of Lesbos.
In closing, I still think the best advice Fred C ever got was that idea about locking himself in a hotel room with some nymphomaniacs.
And the funniest comment I ever heard was in relation to the poor guy who was accused of being a transvestite because his signature had an image of a woman's high heeled shoes.
There are folks with vivid imaginations on this forum.

Spartan boys were kept hungry so that they had to steal. They were severely punished if caught, the idea being that they leaned to be stealthy and good at night fighting. The boys were also required to have boy-friends, the rationale behind this was that they they would fight all the harder if the person next to them was a lover.
The Greeks did have a lot of ways to encourage male "bonding" and a lot of reasons for justifying it, but the bottom line was that they just went in for that sort of thing.

Not that there's anything wrong with it, of course.

 

[jhuskey]

"Some select females are another matter."

"To make them (Spartan females) brave, Lycurgus ordered that occasionally the girls had to dance and sing naked in front of all the young men. Therefore the girls were ashamed to be fat or weak, and they were happy to display their beauty to such an appreciative audience". (Lycurgus)

"Spartan dances were famous for their vitality. In one particularly athletic version, women had to jump up and drum their buttocks with their heels as many times as possible. It was incredibly difficult, but most importantly for the ancients, it revealed a large amount of naked thigh. This is probably where Spartan girls earned their nickname: 'thigh-flashers.'

As part of their state education, the thigh-flashers would go down to the banks of the Eurotas river for what one poet described as the 'nichta di ambrosias' – the ambrosial nights. The poet goes on to evoke scenes of ritual ecstatic dances and choral contests – the girls singing to each other of limb-loosening desire, tossing their long hair, being ridden like horses and exhausted by love.
http://www.channel4.com/history/microsites/H/history/n-s/spartans2.html

The Spartans were also expected to be dedicated(pretty much indentured) to the cental rule and were devoid of culture such as art and literature. They were very much into the concept of the survival of the fittest and cruel to those that did not live up to their standards.
Much to be admired ,I imagine, but would have been looked down upon by a liberal welfare type society.
Besides they are all dead, only Elvis lives forever.

 

[Carrera]

I suppose Sparta had something in common with Israel. Sparta's survival depended upon military superiority against far greater numbers of enemies. Let's remember Sparta played a key role in the defeat of the Persian armies (modern Iran) and, had it not been for Sparta, western civilization and democracy might never have materialised.
These were tough times and the Greeks were a small people. It was only by a stroke of good fortune all the Greeks could get their act together and drive out the Persians who arrived in massive numbers.
Hey, perhaps Fred C could become a Spartan warrior?

The Spartans were also expected to be dedicated(pretty much indentured) to the cental rule and were devoid of culture such as art and literature. They were very much into the concept of the survival of the fittest and cruel to those that did not live up to their standards.
Much to be admired ,I imagine, but would have been looked down upon by a liberal welfare type society.
Besides they are all dead, only Elvis lives forever.

 

[Dondare]

Hey, perhaps Fred C could become a Spartan warrior?

He's certainly feisty enough. But don't forget that the pen, and presumably it's modern day equivalent, is mightier than the sword.

 

[FredC]

I suppose Sparta had something in common with Israel. Sparta's survival depended upon military superiority against far greater numbers of enemies. Let's remember Sparta played a key role in the defeat of the Persian armies (modern Iran) and, had it not been for Sparta, western civilization and democracy might never have materialised.
These were tough times and the Greeks were a small people. It was only by a stroke of good fortune all the Greeks could get their act together and drive out the Persians who arrived in massive numbers.
Hey, perhaps Fred C could become a Spartan warrior?

I never came across Greek Pro riders in my day, and there aren't any today in the Pro Peloton. Maybe they all died of AIDS. Bumboys the lot of them.

 

[FredC]

I suppose Sparta had something in common with Israel. Sparta's survival depended upon military superiority against far greater numbers of enemies. Let's remember Sparta played a key role in the defeat of the Persian armies (modern Iran) and, had it not been for Sparta, western civilization and democracy might never have materialised.
These were tough times and the Greeks were a small people. It was only by a stroke of good fortune all the Greeks could get their act together and drive out the Persians who arrived in massive numbers.
Hey, perhaps Fred C could become a Spartan warrior?

Why don't you read up on Orla Guerins account of Bethlehem Palestinians on bbc.co.uk published today. I think she's a good journalist who has covered both sides for the last five years.

 

[stevebaby]

I just bought fresh garlic tonight......And as the old Greek guy taught me, garlic keeps it up. And I know several old greek guys who still can get it up for their girlfriends in their 70's...... Garlic is to be kept in the open air. It sounds as if you has food poisoning.

How do you know if the old greek guys are telling the truth?
Did it work for you?

 

[stevebaby]

Garlic.... What an interesting subject. I think it a wonderful thing. I cook with it all the time. I watched this old greek man, who at the age of 70 used to tell me that he did his wife in the morning and his girlfriend in the afternoon..... Everyday. I asked his secret..Garlic. I was living with his daughter at the time and she was a chef and she prepared everything she made for me with garlic.... She used to tell me that "women are naturally attracted to men with garlic on their breath."
I had this 56 year old buddy who used to sit around and complain about his ailments. He complained that his prostrate trouble lead to his inability to get it up.....He said he hadn't had a lady because of it for three years... Last year over the holidays he had a few days off and so he ate at my place for 3 days. Lots of garlic......
The next day he went to work and I got a call that afternoon ..... He said it came up rock hard while he was sitting at his desk and he was forced to stay sitted at his desk for a while..... I am 100% convinced it works.
Here's a way to do garlic. I also eat an occasional peppercuinni or olives.... So when the jar is half empty, I cut up bite size garlic and put them in the brine. Then I take one daily......
Garlic is the secret of the gods.

What interesting conversations you have with your male friends.

 

[Dondare]

Garlic.... What an interesting subject. I think it a wonderful thing.
Garlic is the secret of the gods.

Except for when it makes you ill with vomiting and diarrhea for two days.

 

[Carrera]

There's always 2 sides to every argument and no real right and wrong.
I don't know a great deal about the Palestinian/Israeli dispute and even less about the IRA.
What I do know in a rough sense is there are rights and wrongs on both sides.
On the one hand, you have the Palestinians who were displaced by the Israeli military and suffered humiliation and sometimes torture at the hands of an occupying army.
On the other hand, you have the mitigating circumstances of WW2. That is, millions of Jews were gassed and murdered by the Nazi regime after having already endured persecutions throughout Europe. So, I guess they chose to occupy their promised land by force and form a secure state for the future.
If you look at the events through the eyes of a Palestinian, you'll probably take that side. If you look at it through the eyes of a Jew, then you'll sympathise with Israel's situation.
By rights, the 2 sides ought to make some kind of compromise. However, this is difficult for Israelis so long as there are so many extremists who really yearn to see the State of Israel totally dismantled.
It makes you wonder if they themselves would still take that view had their ancestors died in a concentration camp in Poland and no homeland to flee to. It also seems unfair when you consider the U.K. is still occupying Gibralter and the Falkland Island with far less historical justification yet there is no censure.
So, don't get me wrong. I don't approve of the way the Palestinians have been treated as a whole but I try to see things from the Israeli side.
All in all, it would be better if both sides could give ground.

Why don't you read up on Orla Guerins account of Bethlehem Palestinians on bbc.co.uk published today. I think she's a good journalist who has covered both sides for the last five years.

 

[Carrera]

I'm still not over it yet. Plus I found out I'm working tonight as there is nobody else. One thing's for sure I won't be cycling for some days to come.

Except for when it makes you ill with vomiting and diarrhea for two days.

 

[jhuskey]

I recall a story of an old Greek gentleman that was having a few inadequacy problems. A older friend of his told him he should eat garlic because it worked for him and he had three ladies he kept serviced at the nursing home.
He rushed down to the maket running red lights and driving on the sidewalk just to get there fast.
He took all the garlic and placed it in his cart. When he arrived at the checkout lane a very pretty,very young lady looked at his purchase and remarked," what are you going to do with all that garlic"?.
"I am going to eat it". He said. "Isn't it kind of hard eating all that garlic"? She asked?
"Damn does everybody know about this stuff,but me"?

 

[Dondare]

I'm still not over it yet. Plus I found out I'm working tonight as there is nobody else. One thing's for sure I won't be cycling for some days to come.

Don't you cycle to work?

 

[Dondare]

How do you know if the old greek guys are telling the truth?
Did it work for you?

Fred would have it that it isn't young girls that the ancient Greek guys are interested in.
It's a wonder that they haven't all died out.

 

[Dondare]

I never came across Greek Pro riders in my day, and there aren't any today in the Pro Peloton. Maybe they all died of AIDS. Bumboys the lot of them.

That's obviously the problem. They all insist on riding without saddles so the UCI won't let them compete.

 

[Don Shipp]

There's always 2 sides to every argument and no real right and wrong.

Yes, there is.

 

[Carrera]

Maybe Fred is the reincarnation of a Spartan hoplite? As has been noted, he may be short of stature but he's certainly bellicose.
Just a thought, though. I take all this Spartan philosophy very seriously. I believe in this whole idea of survival of the fittest. When you consider that during the average life span, you may face illness, war, broken relationships, homelessness or other misfortunes. So, it makes sense to make yourself as physically fit and psychologically strong as you can be so you don't go down the proverbial plughole.
Cycling of course, fits in with this very well. You ride your bike in order to develop your full fitness potential and this should give you an advantage over others who are couch potatoes. It should hopefully make you healthy enough to combat risks of heart disease, blood pressure or obesity e.t.c.
Later you hopefully learn to apply some of this discipline to your career ambitions or studies.
When you fall off your bike, you hopefully dust yourself down and get back on again.

Fred would have it that it isn't young girls that the ancient Greek guys are interested in.
It's a wonder that they haven't all died out.

 

[FredC]

Yes, there is.

No, there isn't.

 

[jhuskey]

No, there isn't.

Maybe you are both wrong. Ironic!

 

[Don Shipp]

No, there isn't.

Some things are wrong regardless of who's doing it or why.
Murder, for instance.