They say good things come in threes, so today we come to you with two recent contributions our own beloved David Herod made to the amazing MAN’S WORLD Magazine; so brace yourself for a T-level boost and an accompanying dose of high-octane anxiety over what comes next for dissident culture!
Enjoy!
It happened by accident while I was reading something online. A small circular toggle popped up from the right side of the screen, triggering a gamer instinct honed over hundreds of hours, driving me to click it with pinpoint accuracy and thereby open a submission page. That queasy moment of deliberation (familiar to all aspiring writers) settling before hitting “submit”.
All of that to say, it’s my great pleasure to share two recent pieces of mine which MAN’S WORLD Magazine’s noble editor, the one and only Raw Egg Nationalist (REN), was generous enough to feature.
First up is “Monsters in Mason Jars”, included in the magazine’s newly released twelfth issue and already familiar to longtime Tooky’s readers under the title “I Have No Life, and I Must LARP”. Inspired by the brilliant Michael Lindsey essay “A Living Religion”, it discusses the practical implications of the naturalist theory of religious origin for citizens of post-industrial society — asking if we’re even capable of genuine religion the same way our ancestors were. I promise it’s not as dry as that sounds, I even spill my guts a bit at the end.
Download it free here! You’ll find “Monsters in Mason Jars” on page 52.
I highly recommend at least skimming through Issue 12 to admire the unimpeachable graphic design and hilarious fake advertisements. Two of my favorite reads in this issue are “An Actual Defense of Anonymity” by REN himself (pg. 156), and “The Case of The Persian Princess” (pg. 216) by Stone Age Herbalist.
Second up is a never before published piece, now out as part of MAN’S WORLD Magazine’s Culture War series. It’s a response to an article series by Passage Prize award winning Aeneas Tacticus Minor, in it I summarize his arguments but you can read both Part 1 and Part 2 of his series for full context on what I felt was effectively an argument in favor of “self doxxing” towards an unproductive end.
I hope it changes some minds, but if nothing else I am immensely grateful to be platformed to share a contrasting viewpoint on what I believe to be a very important the discussion that will hopefully continue.
One caveat that did not fit into my wordcount (mostly to maintain the article’s focus) is that I am not at all opposed to in-person meetups, only those with bald political agitation as a goal. There are several social and/or parallel society oriented projects which I have been keeping a keen and approving eye on and warrant their own separate discussion.
But in the meantime I’ve promised to give REN’s inbox a break from my constant spamming (at least for a month or two), but I would strongly encourage you to read, support, and submit to MAN’S WORLD Magazine. As a reader the professionalism on display is truly wonderful to see, and as a writer you’ll be hard pressed to find a more diligent, encouraging, and broadminded editorial board.
Very much agree. REN and the scene that you're pushing into is going to turn out some great things in the future, especially since they're going print version now thanks to Passage Prize.