From my latest article at Lorehaven Amazon ‘Rings of Power’ Promos Threaten to Burn Middle-Earth in the Fires of Industry: The Lord of the Rings is an important cultural artifact. Like most cultural artifacts and symbols, it emerged from a specific context. Understanding the historical settings and influences of cultural byproducts often brings richness and clarity to [...]
Literary criticism tends to follow the spirit of its age. This is nowhere more evident than in the genre of horror. More recent literary interpretations of seminal works of horror like Frankenstein, Dracula, and Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde have leaned into critical theory and postmodern deconstruction, giving way to interpretive excess and reductive textual [...]
What Changes to Abbie Richards’ Popular “Conspiracy Chart” Tell Us about Disinfo/Conspiracy Research
Abbie Richards’ “Conspiracy Chart” became popular in 2020. I featured it in my lengthy piece on conspiracy theories. The chart serves as a barometer, not just of contemporary conspiracy theories, but of the intentions and ideologies of disinfo researchers in general. Richards’ recent update of the chart (see below) is illustrative of the evolving beliefs [...]
I used to be part of a writers group called “Edgy Christian Fiction.” At the time (early 2010’s), Christian fiction writers often debated pushing the content envelop of the stories we told. Whereas most Christian fiction was synonymous with “clean” and “family friendly” fare, some artists and authors aspired to address more mature thematic elements [...]
This week we learned that a close family friend killed himself. Sadly, this is not a new experience for myself and my family. We’ve had two very close friends previously commit suicide. While the emotional terrain along this road is familiar, the pain is always uniquely its own. The psychological effects to those left in [...]
The Survival Prepper movement has gone from fringe to mainstream thanks, in no small part, to the COVID-19 virus. Before the pandemic, most responsible citizens aspired to be disaster-prepared. The problem was, we just never followed through. That is until a (plausibly) leaked lab virus created a global panic, leading to death, governmental over-reaction, mass [...]
Back in early 2015, I interviewed Jason Wisdom. We’d connected rather randomly on Facebook. Having a musical background and an interest in apologetics, Jason posted a lot on the intersections of Christian music and faith. We seemed to share an interest in the role of the Christian artist in proximity to the local church. Well, [...]
Like many of you, 2021 has been a memorable, if not crazy, year for the Durans. For those of you who know us, or just follow me on social media, here’s a brief update on some of what’s been happening with our family. Perhaps the most significant event of 2021 for us was that Lisa [...]
The global pandemic has resulted in many unforeseen consequences, some of which we may not fully understand for decades. But perhaps one of the most interesting has been the increased interest in the occult. Shortly after the 2020 pandemic lockdowns, some noticed that interest in occultism had begun to boom. Social media platforms were seeing [...]
The horror genre has long been a vehicle for social and moral commentary. The Atomic Age spawned many cautionary tales about the potential dangers of nuclear weapons, whether they be mutational anomalies or apocalyptic futures. It’s widely accepted that Jack Finney’s 1954 novel The Body Snatchers and its 1956 film adaptation are direct allegories to the 50’s Moral [...]
