Yet, where Jesus and Co. had literary merit and artistic credentials to balance the inherent nonsense of it all, the Scientologists have only monotony for a shield. Glimmers of poetic merit don’t seem to burst forth from Dianetics. Despite many criticisms to be fired at the Bible -- a conflation of historical fact and literature, the foremost — nevertheless, the passages and tales deserve a respect, even if this respect is fired only by admiration for the prose or recognition of the subsequent gems of writing indebted to it. Recall the touching scene in Crime and Punishment where tortured Raskolnikov has righteous Sonia read him the fable of Lazarus; now imagine the latter fable were one involving giant Psychlos beating Johnny Goodboy about the balls, calling him ‘craphead’ and such like – doesn’t have quite the same effect, I think you’ll agree.
Best thing Scientology’s gifted us, as far as aesthetic and artistic worth is concerned, would be Tom Cruise jumping across Shanghai skyscrapers in Mission Impossible III. Although, in retrospect, that was pretty damn cool, perhaps there’s something in this Scientology malarkey after all.
Duke De Mondo
“Sufferin’ fuck,” says I, “I’m stressin’ something wicked over this stress test. Where the blazes is that bastard?”
Sir Fleming surveys the area, nudging me then, guiding my line of sight towards a fella with yellow palms stood grinning a fart’s width away. “I hear you’re Irish,” he says to me.
I nod.
“Dublin?”
“No. Up North.”
“Up North…” He looks at me like I just pissed a dozen emus. As if to say - there are other places? And people live in them?
“I was hopin’ I could perhaps get a stress test.”
He shrugs and says “Certainly” in an accent somewhere between New Jersey and the house at the end of our street.
Clamping the mits about the silver cylinders, observing his tinkering with the doohickey perched atween us -- tapping too-long fingers off the side, glaring at the needle, stroking the chin -- I find myself thinking of things I might be stressed about.
Family? No, as good a relationship with the kin as anyone could hope for.
Friends? I choose wisely…
The filth and the fumbling? Two times a week. Three if I’m bored. Seven if there’s a good update on YouPorn.
Money? I have next to none, but I don’t think it would be appropriate to say so in here. Like wanking beeswax o’er the Pope’s Sunday trousers. Like mounting the effigy by the altar for to shag a seraph in the ear. Like tickling a vicar’s willy mid-service. Like farting in the guru’s beard. Like-






Article comments
1 - Bennett
Great. Can't find the words to say more, as reading you two messes up my ability to form sentences. But just fucking great.
Thanks.
2 - Phillip Winn
Part two building on part one forthwith, eager anticipation is relieved. Some day perhaps we shall chat further on your keen and almost-unique take on world religions, Aarons, but until then I shall content myself with reading your tinkering in English.
Cheers!
3 - DukeDeMondo
Sir Bennett, thank you very much. I'm very glad you dug our ponderings.
Sir Winn - Thank you also, and that is a conversation i would very much enjoy of an evening.