yeah... RIGHT...

[anotheranon]

So, the Middle Ages never happened due to the "Phantom Time Hypothesis", put forth at this link. To be fair, Illig isn't suggesting that ALL of the Middle ages were falsified, just the ~300 years between 614 and 911. This could be due to a clerical error, or, more excitingly, a conspiracy theory on the part of the Catholic Church.

This has got to be one of the larger piles of shit I think I've ever heard! I'd put forth more spirited venting about truly insane revisionism, but to be honest I'm tired to the point of stupid and just can't cough up the words. I know several of y'all are medeivalists/historians of various stripes - what say you? Have you even heard of this - it was news to me until a co-worker told me about it today.

Comments

[quasigeostrophy.livejournal.com]

I want to see his explanation for how and when Islam was founded then, given Muhammad lived during the "gap" time period.

Give that crowd some new tinfoil hats. Sheesh.

[wcg.livejournal.com]

I just read some of that article to pagawne who then turned to me and said, "I want some of whatever they're smoking."

[wcg.livejournal.com]

Muhammad is obviously a fable!

[nminusone.livejournal.com]

I think enough different cultures have been counting time in their own ways for long enough that one of them would have said, to the people affected by this supposed error, "Um, dudes, your math is off." That's always the hard part with a conspiracy: getting *everyone* in line. That's why I gagged when Anakin agreed with Palpatine's suggestion that *all* the Jedi except for Anakin were in on the plot to overthrow the Senate. I can just see the signs taped up around the Jedi temple: "Conspiracy Plan Meeting in the Great Hall at 4pm, punch and snacks provided, attendance is *mandatory*. p.s. Nobody tell Anakin!"

[semmie17.livejournal.com]

I love all the comments on the article's page, but they forget one Great Big Obvious Thing: Linguistics.

It takes time for people to develop new languages, and linguists have a rough calender as to adjectival and verb development (especially the subjunctive and "to be" or existential verbs) in Indo-European language roots, although noun replacement takes less time. Granted, sometimes there is a Great Vowel Shift, but even so it takes several centuries for that vowel upshift or downshift to make it out of the indigenous area. Thus, the time difference for the linguistic drifts of Continental languages between, oh, say, 600 and 1000 AD can't be hacked apart by some supposed calendar error.

*sigh*

[shemhazai.livejournal.com]

Dude. This guy is SUCH the high middle ages bigot. "Charlemagne was a myth"...are new conspiracies really getting so hard to find these days that he needs to go back a thousand years to get one?

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

Yep, that's another problem that's going to require elaborate rationalization. I guess this guy's views don't have much traction, or radical clerics would have called out a fatwa on his ass by now :P

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

The thing with Palpatine/Anakin worked because, frankly, Anakin wasn't the sharpest knife in the drawer. Medieval historians, on the other hand, tend to be quite clever, and aren't going to be sucked in by this.

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

Well pointed out, another of many dramatic gaps in Illig's theory. I have to wonder what his motive is for putting this idea forth - attention? It sure as hell isn't for academic cred...

[anotheranon.livejournal.com]

But of course! This guy lacks creativity enough to invent his own conspiracy, so now he's trying to pin his need for flakiness on some alleged "typos" from 1000 years ago :P

Would LOVE to see what the Medieval Congress makes of this guy...