Last week there was a flurry of news stories about the death of WABC (New York) news reporter George Weber at the hands of 16-year-old John Katehis of Elmhurst, Queens.
I'm very sorry to hear about this. I feel bad for the families of both. Also, of course, I'm concerned about possible repercussions for gays and for BDSM people, and, even more so, the possible repercussions for Satanists and various religious minorities that have been popularly confused with Satanists.
According to various news reports, Weber paid Katelis for "violent sex," having contacted him via an ad on Craigslist. For whatever reason, the scene got out of hand, and Katelis ended up stabbing Weber. Katelis claims to have freaked out when Weber got out a knife first. The cops don't believe his story because of the large number of stab wounds. Katelis admits that both he and Weber were on drugs, and blames the drugs for his alleged freak out.
On some GLBT sites, such as Tips Q, there are articles about how the religious right wing is using this tragedy to vilify gays in general. Alas, when members of unpopular minority groups commit crimes, they are too often seen as reflecting on the group as a whole, whereas, when other people commit similar crimes, they're seen as just aberrations.
Some though not all news stories brought out a "Satanism" angle. The New York Post and WPIX said he was a fan of Anton LaVey. The New York Post article even mentioned the Church of Satan, yet also called Katehis a "Satan worshipper" - a bit of a contradiction, because the CoS emphatically does not believe in "worship" of anything but oneself. We were not given enough details to determine what kind of Satanism Katehis actually believed in, if any.
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2 comments:
Diane:
I saw this news story a few days ago, and while it made me very sad to hear it, I was also enraged to hear the talk of 'satanism'. It reminded me of the satanic panic, where rumors were spread and the truth was ignored in favor of sensationalism.
Welcome back, by the way :-)
From: nocTifer (noctifer@satanservice.org)
hello Diane,
I am nagasiva yronwode, aka boboroshi aka noctifer and i want to invite you to exchange email with me briefly concerning the HISS http://groups.yahoo.com/infernal-horde/ which Venus Satanas (the other full Member) and i would like you to join if you would be so kind. I think you might find it interesting, as we already admire what you do and think you completely qualify as an independent Satanist.
we do not allow posting by any but full members and full members must be invited and be 'out' independent Satanists with an interest in instructing the world about Satanity, as i have called it (the variety of Satanisms you have accurately reflected as having something positive to do with Satan). Associates are allowed to join to read but little more, and all of these are independent Satanists who have agreed to a Terms of Service with an ethical standard and an attestation that they have no violating criminal record or affiliation with exploitative groups.
would you consider joining us? I think the private forum may be something you would enjoy, and its instructional platform and relative, protected quietness may be something that you would find useful.
in any case i would love to hear from you and would appreciate a response one way or another. thank you for your time and consistent presence.
nocTifer@satanservice.org
nocTifer of the HISS
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