Ten years of RAWIllumination

Writing on my Chromebook as Neko, my Siamese, keeps me company. 

[I had not even noticed that today marks the 10-year anniversary of RAWIllumination.net, my blog devoted to Robert Anton Wilson and also Robert Shea. Eric Wagner, evidently more observant than I am, noticed the anniversary and wrote the following piece. (That very first posting from me on June 10, 2010, has a comment Eric posted.) Thank you, Eric, and thank you everyone who has befriended me or posted a comment or participated in some fashion. -- The Management.]

By Eric Wagner
Special guest blogger

On June 10, 2010, the blog RAWIllumination.net manifested from the mind of Tom Jackson. New posts have appeared almost every day for the last decade. He has done original research, interviewing Robert Anton Wilson’s editors and many other people. Tom writes very well, and he has brought his journalistic professionalism to a field which all to often features ego, sloppy writing, and contentiousness.

That lack of contentiousness seems a key feature of this indispensable blog. Most fan spaces fall victim to factionalism and name calling. RAWIllumination has practically none of this.

Tom has provided a space for reading groups of Bob’s books as well as related texts like Nabokov’s Pale Fire and Kerman’s The Beethoven Quartets. The rich discussions in these groups have enriched my life, as have all the other, widely varied, posts and comments at RAWIllumination.

Tom has built a community with frequent comments by some very interesting people. I have checked out the blog almost every day since it began. I think I missed a few due to family hospitalizations, but checking back in always brought me comfort and relief.

I have felt a void in my life since Bob’s passing in 2007. This blog and this community have helped to fill that void. Thank you, Tom.