************************************************************** * * * CYBERSPACE * * A biweekly column on net culture appearing * * in the Toronto Sunday Sun * * * * Copyright 1999 Karl Mamer * * Free for online distribution * * All Rights Reserved * * Direct comments and questions to: * * <kamamer@yahoo.com> * * * ************************************************************** The net's original homesteaders, hackers, have a low tolerance for fields of inquiry that can't be pulled apart, quantified, and summarized in a FAQ. Where ever hackers find a belief structure that brazenly defies rational thought, they're quick to parody it. Politics, UFOology, and even Martha Stewart (see www.cris.com/~akiyama/martha.html) are all fodder for online parody. No other human endeavor, however, gets lampooned more on the net than old-time religion. Go to Yahoo! under society_and_culture/religion/humor/parody_religions/ and you'll find dozens of web pages ranging from the Cult of the Squirrel to the Church of Buscemi. Mother Superior to all of them is the Church of the SubGenius (see the church's online mission at www.subgenius.com). The Church began in Texas in 1981 but rapidly spread to hackers, artists, and disillusioned university students all over the world through the net, books, and mail order. The Church of the SubGenius's main attraction is its ever growing canon of writings that parody the more improbable elements of Christianity, consumer culture, UFOology, and Elvis worship. Adherents are urged to acquire a substance known as "slack." The more slack you have, the easier your access is to great sums of money, good food, and desirable mates. Followers are asked to emulate the life of J.R. "Bob" Dobbs, a crafty, pipe-smoking salesman. The faithful will be taken skyward on "X-Day" (July 5, 1998) by UFOs piloted by yetis. The Church of the SubGenius is itself a scion of an older parody faith called Discordianism (see www.cs.cmu.edu/~tilt/principia/), a creation of the /Illuminatus!/ trilogy authors Robert Shea and Robert Anton Wilson. As the name implies, Discordian faithful worship the goddess of Discord, Eris. What the Church of the SubGenius is to Christianity and pop culture, Discordianism is to conspiracy theories and Gnosticism. A large number of Dobbsmen and Discordians also follow Neutopianism. The main web site at genesis.tiac.net/neutopia greets you with "Dear Earthlings, I am Doctress Neutopia." and initially it seem like another parody religion until your wheezing modem manages to fully download the picture of Doctress Neutopia (aka Libby Hubbard) standing arm-in-arm with President Bill Clinton. This is /not/ a woman to be trifled with. It's hard to say how many people actually believe in Doctress Neutopia's theories that Gaia worship, eco- feminism, and free love can transform the world but she does have a large number of mostly male followers on alt.society.neutopia. There are some mighty fine looking eco-feminists and that they might be into free love has a certain appeal to males who spend most of their time in front of computers. Neutopianism is not without its negative aspects: no driving around really fast, no barbecues, and you probably have to read Susan Faludi's /Backlash/ before getting invited to the parties the eco-feminists attend. As is the custom with most developing religions, a group of men got together and spun off a more guy friendly version. In this case, Monster Truck Neutopianism was created to meld a Gaianian world view that does not conflict with the desire for a fully paved Earth. Read all about it at www.primenet.com/~lathrop/monster.html.