Wikipedia:Reference desk/Archives/Humanities/2014 February 14

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February 14

Railway jurisdiction

If I murder a hobo on an American portion of the CN Railway (or take his shoes, or slander him or whatever), which country's law am I breaking? The CN article says it uses a shell called the Grand Trunk Railway for legal purposes, but doesn't elaborate and is backed by a dead link. Can I seek asylum on the tracks (until a train comes) if I besmirch the hobo on clearly American soil? Not looking to cause trouble, just curious. InedibleHulk (talk) 23:01, 13 February 2014 (UTC)

If you in the U.S., you're subject to the jurisdictions of the U.S. and the state you are in. That a foreign corporation owns some plot of land has no bearing on that. Those who kill someone at a Honda auto plant or a Bayer chemical plant in the U.S. would not be subject to Japanese or German law. --Jayron32 00:20, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

That's what I figured, but thought there might be an exception for a contiguous stretch of land like this. Probably about the same penalty for hobo-roughing in both places, anyhow. InedibleHulk (talk) 01:30, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Sovereignty has sometimes been transferred for a railroad, see Vennbahn, so the question wasn't crazy. —Tamfang (talk) 01:44, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Mental wounds not healing, driving me insane... InedibleHulk (talk) 16:26, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Railways may have their own police authorities: railroad police but they don't have their own laws. Rmhermen (talk) 19:17, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Name of the Female Athlete in the Pink Costume Here

Does anyone know what the name of the female athlete in the pink costume here is?: http://www.jpost.com/Arts-and-Culture/Entertainment/Internet-Gold-The-Shoshi-Games-2014-341398 I am talking about the female whose photo is the first one in this article (near the top of this article). Thank you very much. 137.164.79.11 (talk) 00:44, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Aliona Savchenko won the 2011 European Figure Skating Championships. It was supposedly in pairs with a partner twice as big but I only see her. PrimeHunter (talk) 17:43, 18 February 2014 (UTC)

[Hideous costume alert] Aliona Savchenko apparently. Clarityfiend (talk) 01:35, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

There is a good reason for the costume; they regularly perform to The Pink Panther Theme.--Shantavira|^{feed me} 10:07, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Can someone circle the woman in question ? She blends in so well with the background, I can't quite make her out. :-) StuRat (talk) 17:08, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Try Google earth;
she can be seen from space.  ~E:71.20.250.51 (talk) 18:32, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

There's only one good reason for this costume's continued existence: making Justin Bieber wear it every time he does something stupid. Clarityfiend (talk) 19:33, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Valentine's Day

What do practicing Christians (specifically the Catholic and Orthodox traditions) do on Valentine's Day? How do people observe it as a religious festival, not as a cultural holiday? The Wikipedia article says it's a feast, so is there usually a big banquet for St. Valentine? How many feasts do Catholics and Orthodox Christians traditionally observe throughout the whole year? What are the foods presented on the feast table? What type of ritual sacrifices do they make on the altar in their homes or in their churches? Sacrificing an innocent little lamb for God to atone for their sins? 140.254.227.141 (talk) 15:27, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Valentine's Day is not really observed as a religious festival. It's observed by married couples and people in long-term relationships, who buy each other cards, gifts and flowers at over-inflated prices and thereby make single people feel even more fed up than they do the other 364 days of the year. --Viennese Waltz 15:30, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Except maybe for singles who happen to own flower shops or card shops. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 16:16, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

But the Wikipedia article on Valentine's Day reports that Saudi Arabia has the religous police which views it as a "Christian holiday", thereby forbidding Muslims to observe it. 140.254.227.141 (talk) 15:36, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Saudi Arabia has a religious police that murdered 15 girls by preventing them from escaping a burning building because they weren't wearing the right dress. Saudi Arabia's policies don't demonstrate anything aside from the lunacy of their religion. --Bowlhover (talk) 16:00, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Also, this Catholic source suggests the Catholic version actually coincides with the generic cultural Western version. Therefore, it is a Christian feast day. 140.254.227.141 (talk) 15:40, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Note that 'feast day' does not imply that there's a 'feast' in the sense of a large meal; keep in mind that every day of the year is a feast day for one or more saints. Also, animal sacrifice is not practiced in Christianity (nor is it in Judaism today). The only sacrifice that may be offered on Valentine's day is the sacrifice of the Mass in Roman Catholicism and which consists of bread an wine supposedly transformed into the body of Jesus. However, this has nothing to do with Valentine's day as such, as Mass may be celebrated on any day of the year. - Lindert (talk) 15:46, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Can I suggest that if you don't want to use the technical term "transubstantiated", that you instead use the broader but accurate word "changed"? "Transformed" is exactly the wrong word, and nobody anywhere believes that the bread and wine transform during the Mass/Divine Liturgy. It sounds more fancy than "change", but it is less accurate. Orthodox, Catholic, and many other groups are generally agreed that "change" accurately describes what they believe happens. 86.139.158.74 (talk) 16:28, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

It's an important point of Christian theology that the life and death of Jesus takes away any further need for an animal sacrifice. This is the meaning of references to Jesus as 'the Lamb of God' - a one-time sacrifice (however interpreted) given by God, that is sufficient for all time. Christians don't generally have altars in their homes (although I've been in Christian - specifically Anglo-Catholic - homes that did have small altars) - the ritual focus of the religion is in communal worship, for which the believers go to church. Of course, some churches are in homes, for a variety of reasons. But as St Valentine's Day is not a 'red letter day', it doesn't take the place of any other activity that Christians might be doing that day. If they go to church that day (eg because it is a Sunday), there might be a commemoration of St Valentine, but there need not be. If they don't go to church, they may remember St Valentine in their prayers, but they need not. That doesn't mean that the modern secular 'Valentine's Day' doesn't have Christian roots - of course it does - but the observations are almost entirely secular; it's not the churches who are selling cards with hearts on. AlexTiefling (talk) 16:50, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Despite only being nominally Catholic, fate has cast the old stone altar from my town's church through my grandfather's funeral home and into my garage. Rather than lambs or incense, it holds a tarp, a birdcage and two mysterious cardboard boxes this Valentine's Day, as it traditionally does year-round. As far as I know, no animals were ever slaughtered on it (though cats sometimes poo on it, after eating small animals). InedibleHulk (talk) 18:07, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Might as well link Saint Valentine. Marco polo (talk) 19:17, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

• Saint Valentine's day is meant to co-opt the fertility-associated feast and ritual girl-chasing of Lupercalia and other related pagan holidays. μηδείς (talk) 19:19, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Maybe, but scholars seem to have great difficulty tracing back any substantive continuity before Chaucer... AnonMoos (talk) 05:29, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

To the person asking this question, may I inquire as to where you impressions of Catholicism come from? I don't mean to suggest you have any ill intentions when asking, but the impressions you have are pretty far from the reality of Catholic life, so I'm curious as to the source of those impressions. If you'd rather not elaborate, that's fine, too. Either way I'm happy to answer your questions as best I can. Mingmingla (talk) 20:17, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

He might be getting part of Valentine's mixed up with Easter. ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:08, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Any why not? The stores now sell hot cross buns from late December right through till March/April. Christmas parties start in October. Why not a three-month-long holiday for our national day. -- Jack of Oz ^{[pleasantries]} 22:37, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

I've seen Christmas displays show up as early as September or even August. The longer the party, the more the "greenery". ←Baseball Bugs ^{What's up, Doc?} carrots→ 22:45, 14 February 2014 (UTC)

Today (February 14, 2014) is the "Memorial of Saints Cyril, Monk, and Methodius, Bishop", according to the United States Conference of Catholic Bishops. [1] —Nelson Ricardo (talk) 00:55, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Indeed. St. Valentine is one of a large number of traditional saints whose historicity is under serious question. The cult of these saints has been de-emphasized by the Catholic church, in favor of saints whose lives are actually verified and documented. So Saint Valentine's Day is not even a Catholic holiday anymore (i.e. Valentine's name would not be mentioned in a mass celebrated that day). --Xuxl (talk) 09:51, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

He's still on the list for the Church of England; "14 [February] Valentine, Martyr at Rome, c.269",[2] but as a "commemoration" rather than a "Principal Holy Day" or even a "Lesser Festival". According to our article, there isn't a single church in England dedicated to Valentine, which suggests that he's never had much of a following here, even before the Reformation. Alansplodge (talk) 10:19, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Jehovah's Witnesses do not observe Valentine's Day, according to what they have published at http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/1101989235?q=valentine%27s+day&p=par.

—Wavelength (talk) 16:14, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Not surprising, as they do not celebrate anything — not Christmas, not Easter, not birthdays, etc. (Jehovah's_Witnesses#Separateness) —Nelson Ricardo (talk) 20:37, 15 February 2014 (UTC)

Their annual commemoration of what some people call the Christian Passover is discussed at http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2013925 and http://wol.jw.org/en/wol/d/r1/lp-e/2013926.

—Wavelength (talk) 02:43, 17 February 2014 (UTC)