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To: alt.satanism,alt.magick.tyagi,talk.religion.misc,alt.religion.satanism
From: tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com (nocTifer)
Subject: Violence and the Satanic Bible (was Satanic Bible may be...)
Date: 25 Jan 1999 10:48:32 -0800

49990123 IIIom Kaos Day!

this is a very compelling issue to me: will CoSatanists and LaVeyans
admit that their literature is wolfish or downplay it to the sheep?  
if they are willing to admit it, then will they take responsibility 
for the Satanist who trespasses the social laws or abandon them as
somehow 'irresponsible' or 'evil'?

raven@solaria.sol.net (Raven):
# NEWS FLASH 19 Jan 1999:  Mere possession of _The Satanic Bible_ 
# may possibly be used against a defendant at sentencing, according 
# to this article in the Milwaukee Journal Sentinel:  "'Satanic 
# Bible' may figure in spree case".

#  "A book regarded as a classic text in Satanism could help determine 
#  the punishment of a Burlington teen if he is found guilty of 
#  plotting to shoot up his high school. // Authorities say there is 
#  no evidence that 'The Satanic Bible' led the boy and two other 
#  16-year-olds to plan a mass slaying....
#  the book, published by a California Satanist in 1969, was found 
#  in the possession of one of the teens after his arrest, lawyers 
#  involved in the case said. It is the type of evidence, they said, 
#  that could be presented to a judge who would sentence the youth, 
#  should he be found guilty of murder conspiracy or related 
#  charges. // Such material would provide 'insight into how the
#  person thinks and what kind of danger he might pose in the 
#  future,' said Robert Jambois, the district attorney in Kenosha 
#  County."

this sounds reasonable, given what was omitted from the quote of
the article. here are some parts that you left out (with my 
commentary):

[from  http://www.jsonline.com/news/Metro/99011935satanicbiblemayfigu.asp ]
   
$ 'Satanic Bible' may figure in spree case
$
$      By Tom Kertscher
$      of the Journal Sentinel staff
$      January 19, 1999

...
      
$    One of the boys who withdrew has said he and his friends were
$    "Goths," people who favor Gothic tastes and wear black clothes
$    and black nail polish. The boy acknowledged that some people
$    believed he and his friends were "devil worshippers," but he 
$    said they were merely questioning authority.

indications of teen Satanism.

    
$    While the so-called contract apparently contained no references
$    to violence, "The Satanic Bible" does.
$    
$    The theme of the book, written by self-described satanist Anton
$    Szandor LaVey, is "do what thou whilst," said Michael Prochniak,
$    an investigator at the Racine County Sheriff's Department.
$    "Basically, that means do what you want to do, don't have any
$    concern for what's moral or what's ethical, do what you want to
$    do.

this investigator apparently hasn't done his homework well
enough, since LaVey never comes out as far as the Thelemic
Law of 'do what thou wilt', but instead, in his various texts,
supports 'do unto others according to what they do unto you'
(an eye for an eye, etc., what he calls 'Lex Talionis' or the
'Law of the Jungle').

    
$    "If you kill somebody," Prochniak continued, "it'll make your
$    magic more powerful. But (LaVey) doesn't say go out and kill
$    people."

this is an interesting assertion, as it does appear to be
accurate that LaVey glories in the notion of human sacrifice
(of adults), especially of people who 'ask for' their death.

    
$    Burlington police have said that during questioning, the three
$    suspects admitted planning the shooting partly to get revenge on
$    "cowboys" -- a group of Burlington High students who favor
$    western clothing -- because the cowboys continually picked on
$    them.
$    
$    "The Satanic Bible" advocates revenge.
$    
$    "Hate your enemies with a whole heart, and if a man smite you on
$    one cheek, SMASH him on the other," LaVey writes in one section
$    of the book. In another, he says: "When a person, by his
$    reprehensible behavior, practically cries out to be destroyed, it
$    is truly your moral obligation to indulge them their wish. The
$    person who takes every opportunity to 'pick on' others is often
$    mistakenly called 'sadistic.' In reality, this person is a
$    misdirected masochist who is working towards his own
$    destruction."

this is a very good case against LaVey's work as a text which in
any way advocates for the support of a social morality in the
ADULT world (he supports strongly a protection for children and
animals). 

one could say that this 'social morality' is merely a window-
dressing, a temporary fiction we would like to believe within
the confines of economic and religiopolitical stability which
will fall aside like a veil when it comes time to 'punish the
wicked or repulse the social enemy'.  that is, revenge is
acceptable, according to the culture from which this article
has been written, if it is carried out by authorized groups,
but not by individuals (criminals) or by unauthorized groups
(racketeers or conspiracists).

in this way LaVey's expression is indeed an indication of a
person's thinking and would seem to support the notion that
individual revenge, perhaps even vigilanteism, are provided
impetus and support by his publications.
    

$    Commenting on that case, a University of Houston professor told
$    an interviewer that "The Satanic Bible" is "one of the prime
$    sources of information (on Satanism) for a lot of kids."

this is interesting and sad, given the relatively poor showing
that LaVey provides as a writer/editor.

    
$    The book is used to train law enforcement officers in the occult,
$    Burlington Police Chief Ron Patla said....
$ ) Copyright 1999, Milwaukee Journal Sentinel. All rights reserved.

a VERY interesting claim. Patla probably meant that it was used
in the training, rather than that it is used TO train them.  it
is no handbook on the elements of occultism.

so Satanists (especially LaVeyan Satanists or CoSatanists) 
shouldn't be outraged if the general community finds that
possession of _The Satanic Bible_ may be indicative of vengeful 
tendencies in those who seem to believe its contents.

it is of course going too far to say that someone who has it
in their library necessarily believes everything it contains,
however, and disrespects the critical freedom of exposure that
may be allowed by any state restraining and protecting the 
individual.

blessed beast!
nocTifer

-- 
tyagi@houseofkaos.abyss.com (emailed replies may be posted); cc me replies;
http://www.abyss.com/tokus; http://www.luckymojo.com/mojocatSPELLS.html