Greetings Mr. Koenig! I have been perusing your web page and have found it quite intriguing and helpful in my ongoing research into the life and times of the OTO and the magickal scene in general. I am myself a historian by profession and a ceremonial magickian by calling. For my work, involvement in orders and groups has never been anything other than a tool or implement of the rite of Initiation which is life, MY life! So my interests have never extended into the political arena or the intrigue arena beyond its direct involvement, as it has at times, of myself. I have been a member of the OTO since 1988 but have practiced magick virtually to the exclusion of all else since 1972. During my time in the OTO I became quite close to some of those whose names occur within your documents. Most of these have subsequently become somewhat other than friends and I am currently rather estranged from the Order, although I suffered no expulsion. My work has taken me in somewhat different directions, as I now work with the IOT and have delved rather extensively into the writings of Kenneth Grant, Linda Falorio, Nema, and others. In fact, it was through the suggestion of these last two good ladies that I undertook to write to Mr. Staley.
And now to the point of my letter to you. My interest in researching the history of the OTO and understanding more of the exoteric workings of the system is of recent vintage, so I am much out of the loop of knowing the players and operatives within related groups. I have never really participated in the public magickal scene beyond my involvement with the OTO. I am wondering, is your web page of a purely historical nature? Are you yourself alligned with the Typhonian OTO, and if so, in what capacity? Are you a public representative of the Typhonian OTO? Also, having read the Staley articles, I wonder, does the Typhonian OTO seek only for recognition and the right to publish and operate magickal bodies here in the US under its own name, or is there a larger and more pervasive agenda? I am sensitive to the fact that many of these questions may be none of my business as an unknown inquirer, but I am quite intrigued by these developments and assure you that I maintain a purely freelance position in the world of events. I thank you for your response in advance and sincerely appreciate any light you may be able to throw upon my queries.
