Anyone know about Whiskey Stick dancing?

[lklawson]

I deal with a lot of "Celtic Reconstructionists" on a regular basis(mostly in the world of paganism), that choose to favour romantic ideas over actual contemporary Irish culture....with this subject being one thing glamorised as a national Irish art.

Unsurprising.

This is a common thread to the human condition and I've seen it in both the modern and the historic context.

Look at the "Druidic" revival of the Victorian/Edwardian era associated with Stonehenge. It was (is) based on not much more than wishful thinking and romantic ideas which have since been given a different light by historians.

Modern Western culture is not unaffected by any means. Look at the romanticization of (in America) The Alamo, the Bowie Knife, Rapier (via "Zoro" and "The Three Musketeers"), etc.

Modern Western Martial Arts is rife with the phenomenon, especially "Knightly" arts, and has to compete with LARP, D&D, and the like. On the positive side, however, organizations such as the SCA have managed to (recently anyhow) combine a bit of romantic fantasy with an opportunity for honest scholarship and is frequently a launching point for deeper study in WMA.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk

[lklawson]

My wife honestly took one look at the title, "Whiskey Stick Dancing", along with pics like these...


...
and just rolled her eyes.

I don't believe that Mr. Doyle has any connection with Mr. Hurley beyond a mutual interest.

Now fair play to Mr. Doyle if is family tradition is legit, no disrespect there, but even taken straight from wikipedia.....
[I]"In modern usage, the shillelagh is recognised (particularly in an Irish-American context) as a symbol of Irishness"
"the shillelagh eventually became a symbol of stereotypical violent Irish behavior, and has thus become nearly a tabooed topic of discussion for some Irish people"
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Shillelagh_%28club%29

I've watched the Irish Martial Arts related pages evolve on Wiki. Let's just say that certain "personalities" have been highly involved in their development and that not everyone attempting to edit/revise, by a long shot, agreed with what some of those evolutions were. But, as is the rule with wiki, the person/group with more time, patience, and persistence will see their message enshrined while the opposing faction(s) will eventually throw up their hands in frustration and walk away from it.

Wiki has reliability issues. Always has.

Peace favor your sword,
Kirk