A Satanist has a favorable view of Satan (whether seen as an actual being or just a symbol). Christians who believe in a Devil do NOT have a favorable view of Satan. Most Satanists, also, draw their ideas from a variety of sources, not just the Abrahamic religious, despite the obviously Abrahamic origin of the name/title "Satan."

Feminist Satanists do exist. Me, for example.

Here's another review of Elizabeth Dodd's book on converting Wiccans to Catholicism, in the Daily Mail:
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-1353517/C...

The relationship between Christianity and witchhunts has varied over time. In the 1800's and early 1900's, Christian missionaries more often than not discouraged any local propensities toward witchhunts. However, these days, the fastest-growing forms of Christianity are the Pentecostal, Charismatic, and new-Apostolic movements, which notoriously promote paranoia about demons, curses, etc. Hence TODAY's witchhunts are, to a large degree, inspired by a particular form of Christianity.

Even stupider, I suspect his advisors are afraid that wearing a turban would remind people of Osama Bin Laden. Only terrorists wear turbans, you see.... [SIGH!]

Indeed such invasion of privacy is thoroughly disgusting. I sure hope it can be challenged on Fourth Amendment Grounds, and/or that the airlines themselves will challenge it for the sake of their own economic interests.

Anyhow, I notice you have a link to InfoWars. While I happen to agree with Infowars's concerns on this particular issue -- as I think we all do -- I would be leery of using Infowars as a source on ANY topic whatsoever. Infowars is a prime promoter of grand conspiracy claims involving "the Illuminati," which are, to Pagans, occultists, and Satanists, what the Protocols of the Elders of Zion are to Jews.

As I just now said in a comment over on Peg's blog:

It is indeed silly for Wiccans to act as if the European witchhunts were Wicca's equivalent of the Holocaust -- as if the victims of the witchhunts were Wiccans.

However, there's another way that Wiccans could identify with the victims of witchhunts without being silly. Wiccans could, if they so chose, regard the self-label of "witch" as a statement of solidarity with all victims of witchhunts, regardless of the victim's religion. That way, they would be taking responsibility for their own choice of the word "witch" and turning that choice into a serious moral statement, instead of whining about persecution of their own alleged forebears.

Even so, of course, I agree with Peg that the focus should be on real-life witchhunts happening in today's world, rather than on obscure gourmet beer labels.

Allow me to point out that Pagans "pick and choose" too. For example, many ancient religions are known to have practiced human sacrifice. But, today, even among Pagan Reconstructionists, hardly anyone seriously wants to revive that hoary old tradition. "Picking and choosing" is essential to religious reform in ANY tradition.

I wasn't actually "interviewed," but, fortunately, a CBS reporter did make use of my press release. Below is the text of my press release, minus contact info and other preliminaries:

NYC SATANIST GROUP FOUNDER SAYS: CHRISTINE O'DONNELL NOT A SATANIST. Also, a 1997 column by Christine O'Donnell makes more claims involving "Satanism".

NEW YORK, NY, September 21, 2010 - The founder of a Satanist group in New York City does not believe that Christine O'Donnell was ever a Satanist of any kind. The Satanist, Diane Vera, has also found an online excerpt from a 1997 Washington Post column in which Christine O'Donnell insisted that the pentagram is always a Satanic symbol and claimed, based on an alleged experience at a rock festival, that Satanism was commonplace among young people in the 1990's.

On September 20, ABC and CBS reported that many Wiccans are offended by Christine O'Donnell's claim to have "dabbled into witchcraft" and "had a little midnight picnic on a satanic altar" on one of her first dates. Various Wiccans have said that the "witch" she allegedly dated was a Satanist and NOT a Wiccan. Diane Vera, the founder of NYC Satanists, Luciferians, Dark Pagans, and LHP Occultists, points out that it is unlikely the alleged "witch" was an actual Satanist either. Diane Vera said, "As far as I am aware, no serious practitioner of any variant of either Wicca or Satanism would have a picnic on one's altar."

Diane Vera has also found an online excerpt from Christine O'Donnell's 15 June 1997 Washington Post column, in which Christine O'Donnell made more Satanism-related claims, this time involving a D.C.-area rock festival she attended. Christine O'Donnell wrote, in 1997: "Walking through the crowd I also noticed more pentagrams than crosses around the teenage necks. 'Satanism is the religion of the '90s,' I was told. 'It means I worship nature,' responded one girl when I asked her what the pentagram meant to her. I explained that the pentagram is to Satan what the cross is to Christ. She didn't want to believe it."

In fact, the pentagram has had many different meanings. In today's world, since the 1960's, the point-down pentagram has often been used as a symbol of Satanism, whereas a point-up pentagram has een often used as a symbol of Wicca, a religion distinct from Satanism. But the pentagram, in both orientations, has had many other meanings throughout the ages too.

Diane Vera has said: "Clearly, Christian O'Donnell has a tendency to confuse Satanism with not only Wicca but also rock fan culture. Far from being a Satanist herself, she has bought into the fundie Christian mentality that sees 'Satanism' everywhere. So, there's no reason to take her word for it regarding an alleged 'Satanic altar.'"

ABOUT NYC SATANISTS, LUCIFERIANS, DARK PAGANS, AND LHP OCCULTISTS: Founded as a Meetup group in 2004 and holding regular open meetings since early 2008, NYC Satanists, Luciferians, Dark Pagans, and LHP Occultists is one of the very few Satanist groups that hold meetings open to the general public. It welcomes Satanists, Luciferians, etc. of all law-abiding kinds, including both atheistic symbolic Satanists (those who do not believe in Satan as an entity, but regard Satan as a symbol of independent thought, individuality, etc.) and theistic Satanists (those who do revere Satan as a deity). Diane Vera, the founder, has been a Satanist since 1991 and has an extensive website devoted to theistic Satanism.

###

The O'Donnell quote was taken from:
http://www.rightwingwatch.org/content/remembering...

In the following post on Talk To Action:

Ask Christine O'Donnell the Right Questions - Not if She is a Witch
by Rachel Tabachnick, Thu Sep 23, 2010 http://www.talk2action.org/story/2010/9/23/123327...

Rachel Tabachnick points out that the really important question we should be asking about Christine O'Donnell is whether she believes in "Satanic Ritual Abuse" mythology.