Holy Shit! Charlie Manson has an environmental charity in California!

While checking out some of the links on the groovy blog, Blazing Cat Fur, I came across an item about Charlie Manson being newly engaged to a 25 year old woman. The iconic Manson is a fascinating and instructive case of the weirdness that has permeated popular culture in many ways over the last few decades. People make fun of monstrous characters, but even within the scope of the modern zeitgeist, Manson remains unique.

Like many other demented killers who claim a higher purpose, Manson was an ideologue. He was responsible for the vicious, senseless murders of innocent people and yet he is one of the few such killers that we can simultaneously invoke either or both as a joke and an embodiment of evil. Yes, we can make Hitler jokes, but it's often considered to be of such bad taste that you know someone is going to be seriously offended. Che Guevara was a sociopathic murderer, but unlike Manson, admiring the Cuban totalitarian still has a great deal of cachet among, and is taken seriously by, legions of the pathologically stupid. 

But Manson, for a long time, has almost universally transcended the realm of the taboo into comedy.

One of the funniest things ever done on TV was The Ben Stiller Show's parody of Lassie, replacing the famous, devoted Collie with the infamous, depraved psychopath.

So after reading the article through Blazing Cat Fur and the links associated with it, I decided to investigate (i.e. goof around on the Internet)  a bit further, since it's grim, cold and wet outside, and I'm fueled up on some delicious Bloody Marys (which, to my credit, I make extremely well).

During that inquiry, imagine my surprise to learn that Charlie Manson has become an environmentalist guru!

Manson`s acolytes, in his name and in tribute to him, have an environmental non-profit set up in California called ATWA (Air-Trees-Water-Animals).

While a bit startled at that thought, still, the physical idea of Manson as an environmentalist had a strangely familiar look.

One of these guys is a narcissistic cult leader
and the other is Charlie Manson

I guess after a while, all these environmental guru/cult leaders start to look alike.

According to the ATWA website, "Charlie noticed that each time he got out of jail, the natural part of the world would be more and more degraded to make room for so-called human progress..."

Like David Suzuki, Manson has been outspoken about the perils of Global Warming. I suppose one way to make sure those awful humans don't infringe on the environment too much is to have your followers slaughter them.

Manson evidently still has a lot of groupies, some of whom maintain his facebook fan page, which has over 11,000 followers. (Update - That Manson facebook fan page has since been removed, but he has a closed group of admirers who number over 1600.)

Weirder still, it turns out contributions to Charlie Manson`s legal trust are tax deductible.

If you donate $25 ($35 outside of the USA), they'll even send you a print of a drawing by Manson called Dragon.

DRAGON by the noted contemporary artist and murdering mental-case, Charlie Manson

Speaking of idiotic use of taxes, it's actually a lot better than most of the stuff that has received Canada Council grants for far more than 100 times that amount. I'd be tempted to get one, except for the problem that even as a joke, knowing I've helped out Charlie Manson would be a bit more than even I can stomach.