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Whiskey Rebellion Camp Newsletter (BBS Edition) Sun in Aries * Moon in Libra * Issue One (Hard Copy Issue Seven) Spring Equinox 1992ev (Happy Thelemic New Year!) The "hard copy" edition of _Whiskey Rebellion Camp Newsletter_ is available by subscription for $2.00 per year (four issues). Send check or money order payable to CASH to Whiskey Rebellion Camp O.T.O., 8 Market Square #131, Pittsburgh PA 15222. Opinions expressed in this publication are those of the authors and not necessarily those of Whiskey Rebellion Camp nor of Ordo Templi Orientis. DO WHAT THOU WILT SHALL BE THE WHOLE OF THE LAW The Whiskey Rebellion: How We Got Our Name by Frater Nanivartante 777 II? Master, Whiskey Rebellion Camp As I often receive comments from out-of-towners (not to mention locals unfamiliar with the area's history) regarding our "interesting" name, I thought it would be most appropriate to begin observing our second birthday by explaining how we got it. It was the early 1790's. George Washington had just begun his first term as president, and the newly-formed constitutional government was broke. Like most governments, they came to the brilliant conclusion that they should tax something, and they decided that whiskey would be a suitable commodity. Well, that's what they thought. Southwest Pennsylvania's dirtpoor farmers, short on money but rich in corn and other fermentable grains, used whiskey in place of money. They also found that whiskey was easier to ship down the Ohio river than the grain from which they made it. But they still had no money to pay the tax, and the government would not take their whiskey as payment. So with the spirit of the War for Independence fresh in their memories, the farmers banded together to let the federal government know that they were not about to tolerate from their fellow Americans what they revolted against from Great Britain. Needless to say, the government had other ideas, and at the urging of Alexander Hamilton, President Washington led a militia of men from four states to southwest Pennsylvania and suppressed what is known today as the Whiskey Rebellion. When I came to Pittsburgh from Los Angeles, where I had first joined Ordo Templi Orientis, I contacted O.T.O. Grand Lodge and received permission to start an O.T.O. body in this area. This new body would require a name, and while names from Egyptian mythology or the life and works of Aleister Crowley are fine, I remembered those local forefathers who, despite having lived over one and a half centuries before Crowley summarized their human rights in Liber 77, had indeed embraced its principles and were willing to give their lives to prove it. We at Whiskey Rebellion Camp believe that such people, whether or not they call themselves Thelemites, still live today. News! First, we must bid "93!" and farewell to Frater Tom I?, who has returned to his native Virginia. During his association with us, he was one of the first members of Magick 101, a frequent attender, and in his last days with us, he was our most gracious host. (Note that we no longer have a place to meet. Anyone wishing to volunteer their house or apartment may contact Frater Nanivartante, and you will be most greatly appreciated.) Frater Tom will now face the singular challenge of founding an O.T.O. camp of his own in Pat Robertson's backyard. Watch your back, Care Frater, and we will certainly miss you. If you're wondering where our feature "O.T.O. Publications Received This Quarter" went, we dropped it because we simply have no space for it in our new format. Besides, The Magical Link, the official O.T.O. newsletter, does that now (although we did it first!). Perhaps when we can afford the additional space, we will restore it, but until then, we will simply thank our friends at Thelema Lodge, Pyramid Lodge, RPSTOVAL Oasis, and Khensu Ra Oasis for sending us copies of their fine publications. Our Temple Furniture Fund now has $40.00. We have raised this by selling natal charts at $5.00 apiece. If you would like to contribute $5.00 in return for your chart, please send us your name, the date, place, and time of your birth (specify standard or daylight time if you were born between April and October), along with a self-addressed stamped business envelope (one stamp per chart ordered). If you want more than three charts, make it a 9"x12" envelope. You will then receive a four-page report consisting of your chart and three pages of thumbnail-sketch interpretations (state anti-fortunetelling laws prohibit us from doing more), including your midpoints and midpoint conjunctions. Please note that unless you specify otherwise, we will use the Sidereal Zodiac and Campanus houses, as our experience has shown this system to be more reliable than the usual Tropical-Placidus approach. We must also report that the police have dropped their investiga- tion of the shooting attempt at Frater Rabbi-Magos, who now resides in eastern West Virginia. As the suspect has disappeared, and presumably gone into hiding, there is little for them to go on at this time. And if you think that was a strange story, get this: Frater Nanivartante has received an invitation from radio evangelist and witch hunter Bob Larson to be a guest on his show, "Talkback with Bob Larson". That was in January, and at this time we are awaiting written confirmation of this invitation. It seems Mr. Larson does not know that O.T.O.'s official newsletter is _The Magical Link_ (he believes it to be another publication), but that should come as no surprise. Anyone who reads the entry on Thelema in Larson's New Book of Cults will immediate discover that Larson doesn't know very much about A?A?, O.T.O., or Aleister Crowley. Look it up under "Crowleyism" (sic). Project Witch Hunt Watch WPCB-TV 40 again proves to be a vital barometer for the activities of the neo-witch hunt movement. For the last several weeks they've been showing "Pagan Invasion", a series of misinformative, ludicrous, and perhaps libelous videos that are little more than recycled material from those wonderful people at Jeremiah Films. Every video shown so far includes footage from videos which were previously released and are still for sale from Jeremiah Films. Hostess Caryl Matrisciana and her co-host, the Rev. Charles "Chuck" Smith, take cheap shots not only at wiccans and other occultists -- er, "satanists" -- they have slimed Hindus, Mormons, Sikhs, Freemasons, and evolution (which must be false, as Charles Darwin was a Freemason). For example, the episode on "mind control" dwelt mostly on Bhagwan Shree Rajneesh, with an occasional mention of Adolf Hitler and Jim Jones (with no mention of their Christian backgrounds, of course), but no mention at all of the Church of Scientolgy, easily the nastiest group to ever be called a mind- controlling cult, or its founder, the late L. Ron Hubbard. Perhaps that's because Hubbard's ancestors were from Europe while the Bhagwan's forebearers weren't. After a while one begins to wonder if Ms. Matrisciana had a bad experience with Hindus when she was growing up in India. Evangelical eschatologist and author Hal Lindsey endorses them, and that alone should tell you something about "Pagan Invasion". And as if that weren't enough, during a January episode of Trinity Broadcasting's "A Call to Action", host Jay Sekulow repeated that old tired garbage equating paganism with satanism. One of his guests shed some light on this and said that the difference is that witches are willing to suffice with animal sacrifices while satanists will go on to sacrifice humans. Naturally, they gave no source to back up this claim, which they made with all seriousness. Book Reviews _The Equinox of the Gods_ (Aleister Crowley; New Falcon). It's out, the production was excellent, and it's affordable. A must have for anyone who reads and studies Liber AL vel Legis (like you). Run right out to your favorite occult bookstore and get it now; you can always resume reading this newsletter later. _In Pursuit of Satan: The Police and the Occult_ (Robert D. Hicks; Prometheus Press). First class antidote to all the nonsense we write about in "Project Witch Hunt Watch". A good book to refer people to when you write letters to editors and station managers about anti-occult hysteria. Author Hicks, by the way, is a policeman, and a very objective one, and as he has access to the many "occult crime seminars" which the general public cannot attend, he has heard some claims that make the information relayed in our Project Witch Hunt Watch series seem rational. _Horary Astrology_ (Anthony Louis; Llewellyn). Another reviewer has described Llewellyn as a company that caters to occult beginners, but this book from astrologer Anthony Louis is not one of them. One should have some familiarity with astrology and its principles before trying horary astrology (answering a question by casting a horoscope for the time and place where the question was asked, such as "Where did I leave my car keys?"). However, this book is great for those new to horary. However, as a siderealist, I wish Louis had cited some proof for his claim that Cyril Fagan, the founder of western sidereal astrology, "based his novel ideas...on a mistranslation..." of the Babylonian astrology texts. After all, when I converted Louis' chart regarding the 1988 New York City mayoral election to the sidereal zodiac, the forecast was the same, albeit for different reasons. Also, keep in mind the correspondences between the planets, the houses, and human consciousness: the horary chart may tell you more about why the querant asked the question! Finally, please remember that astrology is primarily for helping us find our True Wills and not our car keys. _Archetypes on the Tree of Life: The Tarot as Pathwork_ (Madonna Compton; Llewellyn). I have a little trouble with authors who call A.E. Waite the best scholar of his day, or who use his deck as illustrations for any reason other than historical information. Waite's writings and his Tarot are full of blinds -- some say to maintain Golden Dawn secrecy oaths, others say to cover his ignorance. Ms. Compton would have done well to have chosen on of the many better decks available, and her publisher, Llewellyn, markets some of them. However, the text and exercises are fine, but note that Ms. Compton subscribes to the traditional pre- Thelemic assignments for the letters heh and tzaddi. The Complete Book of Amulets & Talismans (Migene Gonzalez-Wippler; Llewellyn). I have a sneaking suspicion that a truly complete book on this subject would be much thicker, but it seems to be an excellent general introduction to the histories and meanings of magical objects and symbols from many ages and cultures: the cross, the triskelion, the Zodiacal signs, and even the much-maligned swastika (now how do you suppose THAT happend?). Ms. Golenz- Wippler is most qualified; and expert in both Qabala and Santeria, with degrees in psychology and anthropology. Calendar April 8-10 -- 88th anniversary of Aleister Crowley's reception of Liber AL vel Legis, The Book of the Law. June 1 -- Deadline for submissions to Whiskey Rebellion Camp Newsletter. June 21 -- Summer Solstice. Remember that the annual Summerhawk festival is held in western New York state in mid-August. Keep this in mind when making your summer vacation plans. LOVE IS THE LAW, LOVE UNDER WILL