Satansplain

Here's a collage of screenshots I made from TST's 2014 IndieGoGo fundraiser, which raised $20k to erect a statue at the Oklahoma Capitol, to compete with a 10 Commandments monument. Though the ACLU had already successfully gotten rid of the monument by then anyway. And of course, the statue was never erected.

But hey, $1000+ donators got official TST membership *and* a coffee mug! And if you travel to their building, you can get a photo with the statue...for an additional price.

Remember, the people who donated to this, believed they were fighting against the scam of organized religion. Let that sink in.

It always amused me that of all places "under God" could have been inserted, the Knights of Columbus (the ones mostly responsible for pushing the insertion in 1954) decided to insert it between "one nation" and "indivisble".

Nothing missing. Looks good to me!

Satansplain #067 — Church of Satan: Cosmic Joy Buzzer (1975, 1976) - Church of Satan Satanism talk and commentary with Magister Bill M.

Satansplain #067​ - Church of Satan: Cosmic Joy Buzzer (1975, 1976)

Satansplain explores writings from Anton LaVey from 1975 and 1976, debunking some of the parroted myths about this time period.

Satansplain #067 - Church of Satan: Cosmic Joy Buzzer (1975, 1976) Satansplain #067 - Church of Satan: Cosmic Joy Buzzer (1975, 1976) Satansplain explores writings from Anton LaVey from 1975 and 1976, debunking some of the i...

Happy July 4th...*and* Throwback Thursday, with this 2023 episode.

Satansplain #043 - Satanism is Americanism In a 1971 letter, Anton LaVey declared "Satanism is Americanism". Hear the full meaning of this, as Magister Bill celebrates July 4th and answers some listen...

Somebody shared to me a post about the Necronomicon, and my first thought was this exchange between Edith & Archie Bunker.

"Ain't this mysterious?" From "All in the Family", S06 E05.

Satansplain #066 - 1966, The Black Flame, Get a Life!

The number 66 may not be 666, but it does prompt us to take a look at the year 1966, with the book "We Are Satanists" offering much insight into the foundation of the Church of Satan. We'll also hear Anton LaVey's later message to the scavengers and detractors of what he established ("Get a life!"), and the meaning of "the black flame".

Satansplain #066 - 1966, The Black Flame, Get a Life! The number 66 may not be 666, but it does prompt us to take a look at the year 1966, with the book "We Are Satanists" offering much insight into the foundati...

Pseudo-Satanists: "The COS is bad, because they gatekeep!"
Also pseudo-Satanists: "You're not a real Satanist if you choose to eat this brand of chicken sandwich."

It's terribly ironic that masses of people believe George Carlin said "Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers" (or similar wordings), when in fact he didn't.

“Never underestimate the power of stupid people in large numbers.” — georgecarlin.net George Carlin had plenty of material on the topic of human stupidity. However, this quote doesn’t show up on any of his albums, books, or HBO specials. On top of that, the quote does appear in other writings that existed before he really started writing about the topic.

Here's a little rant I posted in the comments on a FB group:

It's amusing how many accusations we keep hearing are exact opposites of other ones we keep hearing:

One day it's, "Anton LaVey was a racist N**i!", the other day it's, "Anton LaVey was a Zionist Jew!" When the COS isn't being called "left-wing librtards" for Satanme having pride flag medalions, we're being called "right-wing MAGAs" for some of us owning guns. If we're not being dismissed as "libertarian moderates", it's as "authoritarians". Somebody will whine the COS is "not evolving with the times", while somebody else says we're "not staying true to LaVey".

The only real consistency is that the complainer desperately wants us to be something we're not. Either because they want a quick excuse to dismiss us via association, or they're upset we're not catering to their fantasies.

There are a number of fake quotations out there attributed to Anton LaVey. Here's my written summary of one I debunked recently:

Anton LaVey: Faked Quotes and Misquotes - Church of Satan Herein are some of the more ridiculous meme's shared online about the Church of Satan and its hierarchy, debunked with quotes and sources.

Satansplain #065 - Satanism vs. Humanism - Church of Satan A look at Satanism and humanism, their similarities and more importantly their differences.

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Satansplain #065 - Satanism vs. Humanism

A look at Satanism and humanism, their similarities and more importantly their differences. Though to do that, we'll have to first unpack some bigger topics, such as what makes a religion a religion in the first place. Also, some listener mail about Satanists and social media, as well as Satanic baptisms.

Satansplain #065 - Satanism vs. Humanism A look at Satanism and humanism, their similarities and more importantly their differences. Though to do that, we'll have to first unpack some bigger topics,...

I've been blasting the new Black Sabbath box set ("Anno Domini 1989-1995") and found this story in the liner notes, which I found amusing.

. So far, this second guy has been at it for 2 weeks. I wonder if he'll beat the other conspiracy theorist's record, though.

Thanks, Facebook. But I don't think watering my laptop or burying it will help the page.

Satansplain #064 - The Good Old Days

Were the "Good ol' days" really all that "good"? We'll explore Anton LaVey's essay on the topic (spoiler: the answer is, "No!"), and a related college commencement speech from 2024 on the irrationality of claiming collective victim status, paying homage to George Carlin.

Satansplain #064 - The "Good Old Days" Were the "Good ol' days" really all that "good"? We'll explore Anton LaVey's essay on the topic (spoiler: the answer is, "No!"), and a related college commen...

The topic of Satanism + politics is something I've addressed on the show before (e.g., episode #5). But as the topic recently came up elsewhere in a group, here was my reply.

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To me, it seems pretty simple:

1) Satanism is a religion that serves the self, not the collective
2) Satanists span all sorts of ages, family sizes, marital statuses, occupations, sexual orientations, economic classes, ethnicities, lifestyles, etc.
3) Therefore, when Satanists decide what politics (if any) are in their own shamelessly selfish best interest, the answers will vary.

A Satanist who is a middle-aged farmer in the midwest is not necessarily going to have the same priorities as a Satanist who is gay 19 year-old college student in a major city. Duh.

This is the biggest reason why trying to push for something politically and collectively in the name of "Satanism" makes no sense. When short-sighted idiots say, "Oh, the Church of Satan should go and protest [whatever]", this just means, "I want to see Satanists spend their time and money to entertain me." Otherwise, what are they expecting the Church of Satan to do? Call up our members and say, "Cancel your plans for this weekend, pick up a picket sign, and go to this event?" Yeah, good luck trying to dictate a Satanist's schedule.

On top of all that, publicly standing in solidarity as "Satanists" (read: the bad guys) for a particular politician or cause will not help, to say the least. One would have to be painfully myopic and stupid to not understand this. And believe it or not, you can actually select and support causes as an individual, without doing so loudly in the name of your demographic.

Satansplain #005 - Satanism and Politics Satanism and politics: a topic that real Satanists have had to explain many times, yet bears repeating! Also, Bill replies to some listener mail. (Images cou...

Why is Ricky Gervais hailed as some genius for regurgitating cliche "New Atheist" mantras from 20 years ago? Which were already in atheism books 20 years before that?