“Casualties”

Not too long ago, I was playing Battlefield 6 (and I haven’t had time for even one game in weeks… super busy). Someone on my squad jokingly asked why we play war games for FUN. lol

We laughed and still played the game, but it’s still a legitimate question.

My first thoughts were of American Gladiator the tv show, Gladiator (the movie), ancient wars, God sparing Cain, other religious texts that from some perspectives look like it facilitates war(s) on the behalf of “chosen” people, but that’s neither here nor there. It was just an influx of thoughts and questions. I was wondering about the nuance of what “entertainment” really is, and how you can notice that many other animals also find time to entertain themselves when they’re not working/hunting/gathering for food or tending to their young, or their wounds, etc. Animal caregivers understand this.

Then I started wondering about The Crusades… 1096, right? (and this was all happening while simultaneously in the first minute of an online multiplayer conquest game lol… crazy). My mind even gave the Assassin’s Creed game an honorable mention… lol… maybe I’ll have more on that later.

Meanwhile there’s real war happening in Ukraine, Iran/Strait of Hormuz, and Gaza in 2026 (Anno Domini or Common Era?… a conversation for another time). How’s that for a “privilege” convo, right?

It got me thinking, though… while there’s no lack of people that gawk at popular figures and current events online and formulate whatever rumors and conspiracies they can come up with, I figured I’d take a deeper dive into The Crusades because I just felt a spectral “nudge” after watching a video of someone talking about chess.

Something about The Crusades always made me feel uneasy since I was a child first learning about it, so I’m going to look deeper into it to find out why. Maybe I’ll learn something useful that can help myself and others…

That also reminds me of the papal bull thing. That was CRAZY work. lol

(🕰️ 11:03)