https://simanaitissays.com/2026/06/17/europes-last-pagans-part-1/Simanaitis Saysen2026-06-17T13:05:00+00:00EUROPE’S LAST PAGANS PART 1"Fighting Monks" Diarmaid MacCulloch "London Review of Books", "Fighting Monks" (MacCulloch review of "Silence of the Gods" and The Black Cross", "Silence of the Gods: The Untold History of Europe's Last Pagan Peoples" Francis Young, "The Black Cross: A History of the Baltic Crusades" Aleksander Pluslowski, the Baltic region last to convert to Christianity, Baltic region (snake keeping; forest worship), "creolisation" indigenous people's incorporation of original religions into Christian conversion, Asclepius Greek god of healing (associated with snakes), Lithuanian god of merchants: Markopollus, Latvians retained Mother of Tobacco into the 19th century, Russian Mordovia's Nikulappazhttps://simanaitissays.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/lede-1.jpg?w=150https://simanaitissays.com/2026/06/16/tales-of-a-ladys-hat-and-another-ladys-handwriting/Simanaitis Saysen2026-06-16T13:05:00+00:00TALES OF A LADY’S HAT AND ANOTHER LADY’S HANDWRITING"Grass on the National Mall Is Vandalized With '86 47' Stains" Neil Vigdor "The New York Times", Andy Borowitz "Facebook" posting (86 47 on National Mall), political satire beats cage fighting, "Impeach Nixon" scrawled in yellow snow joke "Mother Jones"https://simanaitissays.com/wp-content/uploads/2026/06/11xp-grass-lqcf-superjumbo.jpg.webp?w=150