Books like Satan Speaks!

I really, really enjoyed this collection of essays and musings by Anton Szandor LaVey, founder of the Church of Satan and what is called "modern Satanism." First point: Let me say that while I am a Satanist, it is no longer of the LaVeyan variety, as it was during my teenage years. The experiences I've had in my life have brought me 'round full circle, to the point where I now identify as a spiritual Satanist (but, to avoid confusion and jargon, let's just stick with one word: Satanist). Which brings me to my second point: I would have given this five stars if I had agreed with everything LaVey says here, but I don't. For instance, his belief that "people who spell magic with a 'k' . . . aren't." While clever, it simply isn't true. Rather, those who spell it with a 'k' don't use it solely for the purpose of psychodrama like the LaVeyans. I also don't agree with the bits where LaVey states how he is against abortion - but then, you have to remember, this was written by a man born in 1930. And I don't agree with his quasi-fascistic attempts to try and validate eugenics.Apart from that, I think the rest of the book is excellent. This is my second time reading it - third if you count the time when I merely skimmed through it, selecting a few choice parts to read. Some of the essays here are brilliant, others funny, and others inspiring. I can't tell you how many times I finished reading one of these, paused and put the book down, and said to myself, "That's so true," or "I feel this way, too." Whatever opinion I hold of the current Church of Satan (it isn't a positive one), I've always respected LaVey as a philosopher ahead of his time, a real devil's advocate, and a clever businessman.One of my favorite parts was when LaVey wrote on how society now rewards incompetence instead of hard work; nepotism instead of reliability and intellect; and how stupid or otherwise inconsequential people exploit that system to their benefit. LaVey says here: "A fine display of competence can be affected while still maintaining one's ineptitude. Marvels of technology have provided awesome means by which a dolt may appear gifted." Was LaVey looking into a crystal ball as he wrote this?But my absolute favorite part was one that rings true so loudly in this day and age: his chapter on the popularization of false victimhood. Just like self-immolating monks who kill themselves rather than change anything, rioters who destroy their own neighborhoods, or Christian martyrs, LaVey explains how the cult of the victim persists - and grows - today. "There will always be professional victims," he says. "The entire concept of Christianity is a victim cult. To be Christ-like is to be victimized and concurrently righteous."In many ways that chapter is a foretelling of what we see today, where the people with the loudest voices are those without any special talent or noteworthiness, who, in an ironic reversal, bully those who refuse to acknowledge their status as perpetually-oppressed victim. You know what I'm talking about. Spoiled people with iPads and cars and college degrees, talking about "triggering" and "safe spaces" and other horseshit. LaVey saw the shit coming before it hit the fan, but now that it has, I'd suggest reading this essay for some advice on how to avoid swallowing it.As LaVey concluded, " . . . and the malcontent and the ugly were to become the official victims from which the scam of oppression would emerge and flourish." And so it has. It started with Christianity, but it didn't end there. Everyone's got a cross to bear, and each one is lit up like a neon sign, bearing the words, "PAY ATTENTION TO ME! I WANT TO FEEL IMPORTANT!"This is a huge part of why I enjoyed this book. It comes across not only as an assortment of thoughts and philosophic musings from a Satanic thinker, but also as a veritable how-to for the modern age. How to be a devilish charmer, how to rise above mediocrity and insignificance, how to spot the "God of the assholes" when he rears his ugly white-bearded head. Satan Speaks! is something that is just as eye- and mind-opening as other works, like The Satanic Bible, and even moreso than works like The Satanic Scriptures. Great stuff.