Robert Anton Wilson dies

Mycroft · 14th January 2007, 03:55 PM

Quote:

Robert Anton Wilson, author of 'The Illuminatus! Trilogy,' dies at 74

CAPITOLA — Robert Anton Wilson, a 1960s counterculture icon and co-author of the cult classic "The Illuminatus! Trilogy," a science-fiction series about a secret global society, has died. He was 74.

Wilson died peacefully of natural causes at his home Thursday in Capitola, his daughter Christina Pearson said Saturday.

Post-polio syndrome had severely weakened Wilson's legs, leading to a fall seven months ago that left him bedridden until his death, Pearson said.

Wilson was a celebrated author of 35 novels, screenplays and philosophical tomes, all of which question the basic premises of reality. They covered subjects such as extrasensory perception, mental telepathy, metaphysics, paranormal experiences, conspiracy theory, sex, drugs and what he called quantum psychology.

http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/arc...es/02local.htm

I read most of his works decades ago, a very entertaining and thought-provoking author. He will be missed.

FarmallMTA · 14th January 2007, 04:06 PM

Who gives a ***** about some has-been half-baked hippie? Myrtle Jolene Wilson, of Argonville, AZ died too. She leaves grieving relatives, sad cats, and she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church.

And I hear she made a mean dope-free brownie! Mourn away.

DanishDynamite · 14th January 2007, 04:13 PM

Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo?

fuelair · 14th January 2007, 04:26 PM

Originally Posted by DanishDynamite

Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo?

Or, he was perfectly happy

living off the ignorance of woo-woos.

DanishDynamite · 14th January 2007, 04:34 PM

Originally Posted by fuelair

Or, he was perfectly happy

living off the ignorance of woo-woos.

Same thing?

FarmallMTA · 14th January 2007, 04:40 PM

Originally Posted by DanishDynamite

Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo?

I've been laying low hoping somebody would tip me off, but I can't stand it any more. What's a woo-woo? Where I live, it's a reference to *ahem* a certain gender's *ahem* anatomical feature *ahem.* But it couldn't possibly be what you erudite, learned, above-the-waist oriented folks are referring to. Could it?

DanishDynamite · 14th January 2007, 04:57 PM

Originally Posted by FarmallMTA

I've been laying low hoping somebody would tip me off, but I can't stand it any more. What's a woo-woo? Where I live, it's a reference to *ahem* a certain gender's *ahem* anatomical feature *ahem.* But it couldn't possible be what you erudite, learned, above-the-waist oriented folks are referring to. Could it?

Woo-woo

FarmallMTA · 14th January 2007, 05:07 PM

Originally Posted by DanishDynamite

Woo-woo

Oh. Like me still hoping every Christmas that there'll be a pony under the tree for me. Gotcha.

But I STILL say it could happen.

Thanks Dynomite!

fuelair · 14th January 2007, 05:16 PM

Originally Posted by FarmallMTA

Oh. Like me still hoping every Christmas that there'll be a pony under the tree for me. Gotcha.

But I STILL say it could happen.

Thanks Dynomite!

It is, on occasion, used as an acronym for waster of oxygen. But never by us

!

Mycroft · 14th January 2007, 09:59 PM

Originally Posted by DanishDynamite

Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo?

He wrote fiction on those topics.

From wikipedia:

Quote:

His writing, which often shows a sense of humor and optimism, is described by him as an "attempt to break down conditioned associations--to look at the world in a new way, with many models recognized as models (maps) and no one model elevated to the Truth."[1] And: "My goal is to try to get people into a state of generalized agnosticism, not agnosticism about God alone, but agnosticism about everything."[2]

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Anton_Wilson

He wrote uproariously funny yarns about people who faced a little bit of truth mixed with a little bit of bullsiht and a little bit of coincidence ended up believing in worldwide conspiracies spanning hundreds of years yet managing to influence very little except to encourage a small group of people to experiment with psychoactive drugs and some advanced sexual practices. He may well have been a woo, but what I took away from his writings was a better understanding of how people come to believe what they believe and how the most absurd beliefs can be founded on the thinnest of evidence.

Then again, I mostly ignored the drug parts of his writings.

JamesDillon · 14th January 2007, 10:02 PM

I tried to get through the Illuminatus! books a few years ago, but got quickly lost and bored and gave up. I think you'd need to consume a fair amount of drugs before any of it would make sense.

Mycroft · 15th January 2007, 08:56 AM

Originally Posted by JamesDillon

I tried to get through the Illuminatus! books a few years ago, but got quickly lost and bored and gave up. I think you'd need to consume a fair amount of drugs before any of it would make sense.

The Schroedinger's Cat trilogy and RAW's other solo projects are a lot easier to read.

pipelineaudio · 15th January 2007, 09:01 AM

Originally Posted by FarmallMTA

Who gives a ***** about some has-been half-baked hippie? Myrtle Jolene Wilson, of Argonville, AZ died too. She leaves grieving relatives, sad cats, and she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church.

And I hear she made a mean dope-free brownie! Mourn away.

Anytime an AZ citizen dies is a horrendous tragedy, but where the hell is argonville???

FarmallMTA · 15th January 2007, 09:09 AM

Originally Posted by pipelineaudio

Anytime an AZ citizen dies is a horrendous tragedy, but where the hell is argonville???

I kind of made up the part about Myrtle Jolene Wilson. And I sort of pulled Argonville, AZ out of my unsunny place. Okay, okay: the grieving relatives are slightly bogus as are the sad cats. But, knowing her type, it's NOT totally farfetched that she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church. Wherever that is.

What I MEANT was, mourn away that her brownies are dope-free.

negativ · 15th January 2007, 11:15 AM

I enjoyed "Schroedinger's Cat", "Quantum Psychology", and "Prometheus Rising".

He was definitely a funny and thought-provoking guy, though I can appreciate that a lot of people aren't able (or willing) to perform the mental gymnastics necessary to get the joke or take the point.

To each their own, etc.

luchog · 16th January 2007, 05:50 PM

Originally Posted by Mycroft

He wrote uproariously funny yarns about people who faced a little bit of truth mixed with a little bit of bullsiht and a little bit of coincidence ended up believing in worldwide conspiracies spanning hundreds of years yet managing to influence very little except to encourage a small group of people to experiment with psychoactive drugs and some advanced sexual practices. He may well have been a woo, but what I took away from his writings was a better understanding of how people come to believe what they believe and how the most absurd beliefs can be founded on the thinnest of evidence.

I encountered Illuminatus! while still fairly young, and credit it with being a major reason I'm such a nutjob. Probably my favorite bit of stream-of-consciousness and non-linear narrative.

Quote:

Then again, I mostly ignored the drug parts of his writings.

Yeah, I preferred the drugs themselves.

LostAngeles · 16th January 2007, 05:59 PM

That's a pity. Illuminatus! was a fun book once you could get into it. I'd only read The Schroedinger's Cat Trilogy also.

14th January 2007, 03:55 PM	#1
Mycroft High Priest of Ed Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 16,118	Robert Anton Wilson dies Quote: Robert Anton Wilson, author of 'The Illuminatus! Trilogy,' dies at 74 CAPITOLA — Robert Anton Wilson, a 1960s counterculture icon and co-author of the cult classic "The Illuminatus! Trilogy," a science-fiction series about a secret global society, has died. He was 74. Wilson died peacefully of natural causes at his home Thursday in Capitola, his daughter Christina Pearson said Saturday. Post-polio syndrome had severely weakened Wilson's legs, leading to a fall seven months ago that left him bedridden until his death, Pearson said. Wilson was a celebrated author of 35 novels, screenplays and philosophical tomes, all of which question the basic premises of reality. They covered subjects such as extrasensory perception, mental telepathy, metaphysics, paranormal experiences, conspiracy theory, sex, drugs and what he called quantum psychology. http://www.santacruzsentinel.com/arc...es/02local.htm I read most of his works decades ago, a very entertaining and thought-provoking author. He will be missed.
	__________________ Surely Israel is the party to blame? -a_unique_person I do have Mycroft on ignore, he is pretty much the Matt Giwer of your side. -a_unique_person Palestinian Refugees

14th January 2007, 04:06 PM	#2
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Who gives a ***** about some has-been half-baked hippie? Myrtle Jolene Wilson, of Argonville, AZ died too. She leaves grieving relatives, sad cats, and she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church. And I hear she made a mean dope-free brownie! Mourn away.
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Last edited by FarmallMTA; 14th January 2007 at 04:06 PM. Reason: it keeps fcking up my profanity!*

14th January 2007, 04:26 PM	#4
fuelair Cythraul Enfys Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 28,961	Originally Posted by DanishDynamite Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo? Or, he was perfectly happy living off the ignorance of woo-woos.
fuelair Cythraul Enfys Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 28,961

14th January 2007, 04:40 PM	#6
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Okay, you got me! Originally Posted by DanishDynamite Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo? I've been laying low hoping somebody would tip me off, but I can't stand it any more. What's a woo-woo? Where I live, it's a reference to ahem a certain gender's ahem anatomical feature ahem. But it couldn't possibly be what you erudite, learned, above-the-waist oriented folks are referring to. Could it?
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Last edited by FarmallMTA; 14th January 2007 at 05:11 PM. Reason: oh, nothing, really. Just a contextual typo the spell checker missed.

14th January 2007, 05:07 PM	#8
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Originally Posted by DanishDynamite Woo-woo Oh. Like me still hoping every Christmas that there'll be a pony under the tree for me. Gotcha. But I STILL say it could happen. Thanks Dynomite!
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744

14th January 2007, 04:13 PM	#3
DanishDynamite Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: In the cold Posts: 10,802	Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo?

14th January 2007, 04:34 PM	#5
DanishDynamite Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: In the cold Posts: 10,802	Originally Posted by fuelair Or, he was perfectly happy living off the ignorance of woo-woos. Same thing?

14th January 2007, 04:57 PM	#7
DanishDynamite Penultimate Amazing Join Date: Aug 2001 Location: In the cold Posts: 10,802	Originally Posted by FarmallMTA I've been laying low hoping somebody would tip me off, but I can't stand it any more. What's a woo-woo? Where I live, it's a reference to ahem a certain gender's ahem anatomical feature ahem. But it couldn't possible be what you erudite, learned, above-the-waist oriented folks are referring to. Could it? Woo-woo

14th January 2007, 05:16 PM	#9
fuelair Cythraul Enfys Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 28,961	Originally Posted by FarmallMTA Oh. Like me still hoping every Christmas that there'll be a pony under the tree for me. Gotcha. But I STILL say it could happen. Thanks Dynomite! It is, on occasion, used as an acronym for waster of oxygen. But never by us !
fuelair Cythraul Enfys Join Date: May 2006 Posts: 28,961

14th January 2007, 09:59 PM	#10
Mycroft High Priest of Ed Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 16,118	Originally Posted by DanishDynamite Never heard of him/her. From your excerpt, he was apparently a woo-woo? He wrote fiction on those topics. From wikipedia: Quote: His writing, which often shows a sense of humor and optimism, is described by him as an "attempt to break down conditioned associations--to look at the world in a new way, with many models recognized as models (maps) and no one model elevated to the Truth."[1] And: "My goal is to try to get people into a state of generalized agnosticism, not agnosticism about God alone, but agnosticism about everything."[2] http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Robert_Anton_Wilson He wrote uproariously funny yarns about people who faced a little bit of truth mixed with a little bit of bullsiht and a little bit of coincidence ended up believing in worldwide conspiracies spanning hundreds of years yet managing to influence very little except to encourage a small group of people to experiment with psychoactive drugs and some advanced sexual practices. He may well have been a woo, but what I took away from his writings was a better understanding of how people come to believe what they believe and how the most absurd beliefs can be founded on the thinnest of evidence. Then again, I mostly ignored the drug parts of his writings.
	__________________ Surely Israel is the party to blame? -a_unique_person I do have Mycroft on ignore, he is pretty much the Matt Giwer of your side. -a_unique_person Palestinian Refugees

14th January 2007, 10:02 PM	#11
JamesDillon Master Poster Join Date: Jan 2006 Location: Berkeley, CA Posts: 2,631	I tried to get through the Illuminatus! books a few years ago, but got quickly lost and bored and gave up. I think you'd need to consume a fair amount of drugs before any of it would make sense.
	__________________ "To read the bible without horror, we must undo every thing that is tender, sympathising, and benevolent in the heart of man." --Thomas Paine, The Age of Reason

15th January 2007, 08:56 AM	#12
Mycroft High Priest of Ed Join Date: Sep 2003 Posts: 16,118	Originally Posted by JamesDillon I tried to get through the Illuminatus! books a few years ago, but got quickly lost and bored and gave up. I think you'd need to consume a fair amount of drugs before any of it would make sense. The Schroedinger's Cat trilogy and RAW's other solo projects are a lot easier to read.
	__________________ Surely Israel is the party to blame? -a_unique_person I do have Mycroft on ignore, he is pretty much the Matt Giwer of your side. -a_unique_person Palestinian Refugees

15th January 2007, 09:01 AM	#13
pipelineaudio Illuminator Join Date: Feb 2006 Location: Wickenburg, AZ Posts: 3,670	Originally Posted by FarmallMTA Who gives a ***** about some has-been half-baked hippie? Myrtle Jolene Wilson, of Argonville, AZ died too. She leaves grieving relatives, sad cats, and she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church. And I hear she made a mean dope-free brownie! Mourn away. Anytime an AZ citizen dies is a horrendous tragedy, but where the hell is argonville???
	__________________ Can someone give me a better name for SLAG FAIRY?

15th January 2007, 09:09 AM	#14
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744	Well, to be perfectly honest.... Originally Posted by pipelineaudio Anytime an AZ citizen dies is a horrendous tragedy, but where the hell is argonville??? I kind of made up the part about Myrtle Jolene Wilson. And I sort of pulled Argonville, AZ out of my unsunny place. Okay, okay: the grieving relatives are slightly bogus as are the sad cats. But, knowing her type, it's NOT totally farfetched that she still owed 3 months back dues for refreshments for the Susanna Wesley Ladies Sunday School Class at Westbury United Methodist Church. Wherever that is. What I MEANT was, mourn away that her brownies are dope-free.
FarmallMTA Muse Join Date: Jan 2007 Posts: 744

15th January 2007, 11:15 AM	#15
negativ Graduate Poster Join Date: Nov 2005 Location: the land of make-believe Posts: 1,905	I enjoyed "Schroedinger's Cat", "Quantum Psychology", and "Prometheus Rising". He was definitely a funny and thought-provoking guy, though I can appreciate that a lot of people aren't able (or willing) to perform the mental gymnastics necessary to get the joke or take the point. To each their own, etc.

16th January 2007, 05:50 PM	#16
luchog Neo-Post-Retro-Revivalist Join Date: Aug 2005 Location: The Emerald City Posts: 7,958	Originally Posted by Mycroft He wrote uproariously funny yarns about people who faced a little bit of truth mixed with a little bit of bullsiht and a little bit of coincidence ended up believing in worldwide conspiracies spanning hundreds of years yet managing to influence very little except to encourage a small group of people to experiment with psychoactive drugs and some advanced sexual practices. He may well have been a woo, but what I took away from his writings was a better understanding of how people come to believe what they believe and how the most absurd beliefs can be founded on the thinnest of evidence. I encountered Illuminatus! while still fairly young, and credit it with being a major reason I'm such a nutjob. Probably my favorite bit of stream-of-consciousness and non-linear narrative. Quote: Then again, I mostly ignored the drug parts of his writings. Yeah, I preferred the drugs themselves.
	__________________ "All opinions are not equal. Some are a very great deal more robust, sophisticated and well supported in logic and argument than others." -- Douglas Adams "The absence of evidence might indeed not be evidence of absence, but it's a pretty good start." -- PhantomWolf "Let's see the buggers figure that one out." - John Lennon

16th January 2007, 05:59 PM	#17
LostAngeles Anti-WM Jihadist Join Date: May 2004 Location: Having a cup of tea. Posts: 10,159	That's a pity. Illuminatus! was a fun book once you could get into it. I'd only read The Schroedinger's Cat Trilogy also.
	__________________ "There is also a likelihood that the settlement will fall between two biomes, potentially hazardous if the player expects a peaceful oceanside meadow, without realizing the ocean is full of amphibious zombie whales." - Dwarf Fortress Wik