Salt City Sinner

 A story set in an unimaginably distant future. Psychedelic exploration of one’s inner landscape. Religion. Politics – and political religion. Prophecy, genetics, and nigh-unlimited untapped human potential: what in the hell, exactly, is going on in Dune ? I’m glad you asked! I am a self-described Dune fanatic. Having watched the newest film adaptation, I am awed and overjoyed at the vision that Dennis Villeneuve’s film presents, and I think I can help explain what casual viewers may have missed and why people ought to see the film and/or read the books.

  Mondo’s house was a half-hour drive away. I’d brave the Oklahoma summer heat and make my way through Tulsa’s crumbling downtown and across the Arkansas River. On my first trip there, I tagged along with a trio of small-time criminals and county jail losers, Okies with bad teeth and oil-burning pill habits. That’s where Mondo came in.

  The strongest point in favor of reading  Icebreaker , the first novel in the Interloper trilogy by Steven William Hannah , is also a warning. I started reading, and ten pages became 50. Within 60 pages, I knew I had to purchase the other two books in the trilogy. The book is wonderfully written. Hannah’s prose is rich and evocative, and his writing paints a wildly well-imagined universe full of complex characters. Icebreaker is a ceaselessly compelling journey, one which encompasses both simple survival and a deeper comprehension of Hannah’s larger world.

  Can a Satanist bend their knee to a despot? That’s a silly question; Satanists  can  do any and everything they want (within the laws of humanity and of nature). Instead, let’s start with a definition and then pose a better question. Let’s call Satanism a  murkily-defined  set of  highly individualistic ,  antinomian , and (small L) libertarian ethical beliefs and philosophical-spiritual paths that wander in the general direction of  rebellion against so-called “divine authority.”  Should a pilgrim seeking such progress suborn their will and wit to that of a monarch, guru, or despot, secular or religious?