Augustus O’Connor (a nom de guerre) is an emerging writer that has produced an explosive literary nonfiction narrative of transcendental truths powerful enough to radically alter the perceptions of certain widely-accepted health care regimens and therapeutic paradigms involved in the treatment of chemical dependency. His work attempts to deshroud the mystery surrounding such high-profile deaths of the likes of Robin Williams, Philip Seymour Hoffman, Heath Ledger and many unknown others while altering society’s heavily-caricatured perceptions of rather complex realities of souls endlessly tortured by fruitless pursuits of the ever-elusive spiritual embrace.
Augustus’ lengthy and privileged residency in Minneapolis, MN has been punctuated by several stays in Boston, MA where he received a B.A. in History from Boston College and then worked for a commercial bank and, later, an investment bank. During college, Augustus had a brief tenure as a reviewer of progressive music and published at least one piece in his student newspaper, The Heights. With a Master’s of Business Administration degree in Finance in hand, he now provides for his family through active participation in various financial markets. At the same time, he’s a veteran of serving as Chairman of the Jesuit Partnership Council of the Twin Cities, of serving as Coordinator of the Ignatian Spirituality Project – a missionary program for economically disenfranchised addicts-in-recovery residing in various Catholic Charities-sponsored facilities, and of embracing a multitude of New Moon and Inipi ceremonies guided by a local Lakota medicine man. An urban minimalist, Augustus currently follows the spiritual direction of a lifelong practitioner of Buddhism.
This philosophical expose is fraught with violence, sex, drugs, and rock-n-roll, however subtle the references. It reveals the underside of an institution that has gone to great lengths to establish and perpetuate an untarnished public image of limitless benevolence and humanitarian effort while adversely impacting millions of people across the globe for an extended period of time. Until now, the audibility of the miserable screams of these marginalized victims has been limited in accessibility to a range of frequency utilized by only certain members of a rogue species. It’s time that the general population be informed of the perverse and pervasive injustice behind this archaic practice.
In June of 2009, Augustus, an aspiring but naive and involuntarily non-conforming Capitalist, was unexpectedly rushed to treatment for chemical addiction after being found unconscious through habitual overdose in pursuit of the ultimate indulgence while in the throes of being chopped-down by the human brutality behind the Dot-Com Bust and ensuing Financial Crisis. He survives his near-death experience only to find during convalescence that the same malicious forces dominate the treatment field too. In the following few months, he was introduced to an unfamiliar, perplexing, and dangerous realm most notably dominated by adherents to the principles of the Society of Alcoholics Anonymous. Shortly after entering this parallel universe, Augustus entirely exhausted his financial resources and became unburdened of essentially all of his material possessions. After a series of baffling, threatening, and otherwise disturbing incidents, he was compelled to chronicle his experience with this particular organization and affiliates in order that the truth be brought to the light for the betterment of society. His account essentially documents an ongoing struggle between various related entities, both institutional and individual, that utilize condescension, intimidation, torment, and confinement in their quest for dominance over access to channels of personal resurrection commanded through divine intervention. Furthermore, this piece exposes an institution inundated with predators preying upon vulnerable souls while espousing the virtues of a system surreptitiously predicated on mandated, repetitious failure followed by extended periods of involuntary servitude.
This concise summary sufficiently describes the endeavor and its result—The Show Must Go On—a completed literary nonfiction manuscript of roughly 64,000 words. It serves as a logical extension to the everpresent fascination surrounding the drug-fueled perspectives of the likes of William S. Burroughs, Hunter Thompson, and Keith Richards. It also serves as a first-person confirmation of the published conclusions of Dr. Lance Dodes. This relatively dark and unexplored space might be considered this category’s next frontier.
Note to Prospective Purchaser: This book is designed for viewing on a device no smaller than a laptop computer. Viewing it on a handheld device will fail to allow conveyance of essential qualities and inherent meaning. If you do not intend to find an appropriate environment in which to engage your mind for at least a few minutes, this exercise is not for you.