May 17, 2011:
After spending $2,000 on rescuing my niece from the streets after her PCOG parents abandoned her, she no longer talks to us, unless the topic of conversation is about money. I believe PCOG intimated her parents, threatening them with âdisfellowship,â unless they stopped their daughter from telling us about PCOG. Perhaps PCOG read her story posted on this website.
As far as I know, my niece is back âdatingâ the younger, classmate boy referenced in my first story. Side note: According to my niece, her PCOG mother accused this non-cult member boy of statutory rape, confronting him in the hallway of her daughterâs public high school. My niece is actually almost a year older than him.
Instead of accepting our offer to enroll her in a private preparatory school so she could pursue her stated dream of entering medicine, my niece has returned to her home State to waste her life with this bum, boy classmate, who has entered on his Myspace profile for âOccupationâ — ânever!â â Under âBooks,â he says, âDonât read much either.â Under âBlurbs,â he writes: âIâm spontaneous, Iâm a pacifist, Iâm a hippie, I wonât lie, I wonât judge, and I canât hold a grudge.â We had given my niece several hundred dollars when she left us. She said she needed this money to pay the nice family she was staying with, only to find out she was staying somewhere else, I believe with this bum.
From what I understand, they are planning on marrying. If she marries, sheâll follow in her motherâs footsteps, who, as a WWCOG member, ran away from home at 18 in the 70s and married a cult member, who told my father he was âwielding the sword to cut the family tiesâ, when announcing my sister was living with him and his loser parents. Years later, he was convicted of fleecing money from the elderly by creating a bogus desalination company in CA. Sound like HWA? He managed to swindle money from a famous actor. It is said he committed suicide by jumping off a cliff near Las Vegas before he had to serve his jail term. Even though they were WWCOG cult members, my sister and this creep divorced. He committed adultery.
The terrible legacy of WWCOG, HWA, PCOG continues to destroy lives and futures unless members, former members, and non-members take an active role in exposing the fraud. It is a moral obligation to judge evil people such as Herbert Armstrong, who committed incest while claiming to be chosen by God to prepare everyone for the âSecond Comingâ while reaching into the pockets of the vulnerable to take their money so he and his friends could live lavishly and continued to pursue their piggish ways. It is imperative to judge such evil. The risks are too great not to. If Herbert Armstrong, WWCOG splits, PCOG and all their supporters had their way, theyâd end civilization.
-Keith Ace.
Much more in a day, or two.
Side Note:
When I asked one of the current Luzerne County, PA judicial candidates (who is doing quite well in terms of electorate support and who is a neighbor) for help regarding protecting my minor-aged niece after her parents abandoned her because she no longer wanted to be part of what’s largely considered a dangerous “religious” cult of which her parents are members, he said he would get back to me about finding a family law attorney versed in the subject. I asked him if I could meet him in his office professionally, willing to pay of course for his time to discuss her situation. He said something to the effect that if he sees me around the neighborhood, or if we’re both outside at the same time, he might condescend to talk to me about her case. Not only did he never call me back like he’d promised with the name of a lawyer(s) versed in this situation (he obviously wasn’t knowledgeable despite his stated “broad legal experience”), he has never contacted me about her desperate predicament. He’s been too busy pursuing political opportunism, glad-handing, delivering scripted campaign speeches, attending cocktail parties, and air brushing his campaign posters.
Without having proper legal assistance, my niece had little choice but to leave the state, and return to the abusive situation, her future ruined. We explained to the judicial candidate that she had wanted to finished high school and pursue a career in medicine while she stayed with us, that we were trying to enroll her in a college preparatory school with a pre-med program, and that her parents had abandoned her to the streets in another part of the country because PCOG considers the medical field “evil.” To say that he was absolutely no help whatsoever is a gross understatement. Even more disturbing, I detected a less than sympathetic response to her dangerous crisis on a humanitarian level, as proved by his lack of action and follow-up.
This judicial candidate will probably be elected due to anomalies in the current Luzerne County judicial election cycle, (There are six openings), which allow dangerously incompetent lawyers such as himself to serve as judges to the detriment of minors, in this case.
Let’s see if there’s another judicial candidate who might reply to this blog, and offer some assistance. If so, that candidate’s qualifications as a “people’s judge,” but more importantly, as a sympathetic human being, will be apparent, and not need doctoring up with air brushed posters and canned TV political ads.
Thanks Ace for telling your concerns here. I hope others are ready and willing to fight for you. How about that politicians name and address?
James,
Thanks for asking. You’re taking a pro-active stance. That’s a good thing.
I would like to know more about how you’re planning on using this politician’s name and address before divulging this information. I would like to be part of whatever effort you might plan in terms of contacting him regarding his lack of response to my niece’s issue. I believe the most effective way of dealing with such politicians is to contact him as an organization with clout, and teeth that bite hard.
I’d like to form a non-profit, or perhaps a for-profit, to enhance the efforts you’ve made on your website in exposing the moral crimes of phoney religions such as WWCOG/PCOG. The proposed organization must lobby politicians to enact a Bill that identifies, regulates and prosecutes money fronts disguised as “religions.” The European Union lists several such cults, and monitors their activities, I believe.
Members of my proposed organization must be capable of voicing opinions, believing only moral weakinglings shy away from judging others. Judging others, including dead monsters who committed incest while claiming to be chosen by God to prepare everyone for a “second coming” while swindling money from the vulnerable, is a mandate of being able to consider oneself as a human who walks on two legs instead of crawling on four.
For those who “live and let live,” you won’t turn into a pumpkin if you judge certain people like corrupt HWA and anyone who supports his formula schematic for stealing money from the vulnerable under the disguise of religion. This is your obligation, as much as it is for victims of priest molestation to contact legal authorities, and warn the public at large. Condemn such individuals. Don’t wallow in sentimentality and nostalgia over bygone days wasted at unaccredditted Ambassador College in Big Sandy, TX. The Dark Ages ended centuries ago.
To kick things off, how about posting an advertisment on your website asking for those of courage and moral strength to send me a check for five dollars. I’ll pass the money on to my niece for the same amount, and tell her that the money is “seed money” to start an organization formed to break the backs of creeps (HWA devotees) who may have ruined her future. Perhaps this will restore her faith in the human race so she can begin to make serious efforts to repair. This may have a snow balling effect, as her example might help others heal, not by words parrotted from some “holy book,” but by the hearts of the brave and compassionate. I will send you the money order receipt, and I’ll prove that the money was used for a good purpose, not bad, unlike the Armstrongs.
I will write a press release, and send it to newspapers announcing the forming of such an organization and the reason why, and note that the organization has already received donation(s). Let’s get the policitian’s on our side. We should all gather somewhere to assemble our organization and strategy. I have a few places in mind, and many suggestions to offer. I’m looking forward to working with you.
“Iâd like to form a non-profit, or perhaps a for-profit, to enhance the efforts youâve made on your website”
One of my co-editors mentioned this about a year ago. I may still consider doing so. As far as giving you niece money, she is a kid. They can’t handle money, especially if they never earned it by hard work.
Lets see how much support we can garner up for this. If more is to be said regarding a charity, use my email address for this. I had thought that Andie might be interested in such a move also. Time will tell.
What really is needed is laws that apply towards honesty and integrity within religious organizations. If they are collecting money for specific issues, those issues should be spelled out so that a child can understand. The fear factor is what allows them to prosper unchecked from reality.
“I would like to know more about how youâre planning on using this politicianâs name and address before divulging this information.”
Easy. He has a blog no doubt. Start there. Hold him accountable for his promises. Put pressure on him through mass emails. He either tells you to fu*#k off or he starts writing letters and making phone calls on your behalf.
You can now post without sighing in.
Glad top see this no need to sign in. It was a pain to always seem to have to sign in to comment. Great improvement.
You will not get help from politicians. I had that experience. They are pleasant and apparently want to be helful, but they have an agenda. My experience was with a “Christian” politician. I’m glad he didn’t get the public office he was seeking. He would have been terrible.
I doubt that using the Painful Truth as a conduit is going to be effective. Certainly, relying on an Armstrongist CoG is going to be less than helpful, since they originated the problems in the first place.
If Child Protective Services isn’t involved, about the only assistance is going to be in some religiously affiliated community outreach program. In Tacoma, the Tacoma Rescue Mission is well managed and effective. Though it is doubtful, there may be a similar organization in an appropriate venue.
My wife used to work for Catholic Community Services. They do an effective job to provide needs for the community. In Tacoma, they have various services, including providing shelter for the homeless. I know Joe Stortini who used to be the Pierce County Executive and he was headed an organization which provided housing for the homeless, I believe as a part of the Catholic Community Services organization. I believe that CPS is probably best equipped to handle this matter. Lutherans also have similar programs. I would steer clear of SDA: They have resources, but it comes with a price — an agenda. The CoG7 would help if they could, but they are very much resource constrained, though they do provide medical and dental help to the poor.
The irony here is that people like the Catholics might actually be helpful for a situation which was created by the PCOG. I would like to see the Catholics take on the PCoG, but I doubt that they would even bother. It would be like an elephant stepping on an ant.
I certainly do wish that the ACoGs would repent. They don’t seem to realize how evil they look to the rest of the world.
The Painful Truth website could be useful conduit if the website would post my comment of yesterday. It was hastily written, and perhaps needs editing, but the core of the comment is sound.
I want to form some sort of organization to lobby the public at large for support, yes financial support, to judge and condemn money fronts, such as PCOG, and all HWA-related cults. The European Union identifies and monitors such cults, restricts their activities, and prosecutes when necessary. That’s why countries such as Switzerland and Germany are beautiful, well-run, and the average person is much better off than the average American.
Personal experience related down-to-earth to a broad audience is more effective in motivating focus on shutting down HWA money fronts than long biblical lectures and political correctness, which pussy-foots around the issue. Everyone is afraid to pass judgement, even on criminals, thus the decline in morality in our society.
I intend to seed my idea by making my own website, asking for the smallest donations, some of which may be passed on to my niece as long as she joins the effort, and then write a “press release,” and distribute to the newspapers, explaining the reasons for my effort. There’s no such thing as live and let live when it comes to HWA.
And yes, Catholics have contributed much to society. It wouldn’t surprise me if they could be of some help. In my part of the country, they do a lot of jobs HWA devotees would never do, like dig coal from mines miles below the earth so those like HWA, who despise their religion, could sit in their warm living rooms spreading hatred for the “others,” such as these coal miners.
Keith,
Money collected by registered charities cannot just be doled out to family members. There is a lot too the running of a charity. The first place to start is with a lawyer who can guide you through the ins and outs.
James,
Thank you for clarifying about the realities of what can and can’t be done, and for posting my stories. This is a start. I’ve had absolutely no luck with lawyers or Child Protective Services. What do you plan on doing with this politician’s name and address you requested? I’m planning on writing an editorial. I post comments at the end of newspaper articles where ever appropriate, (Often, newpapers shy away from posting website addresses or email addresses. I’ll try to reference your website in such postings and see what happens. With my posting below, I just wanted to make sure the information was published this first go around. Next time, I’ll include your website as a reference, and see what happens).
In today’s local newspaper, an article appeared regarding the “end of the world,” which of course didn’t happen yesterday: http://www.timesleader.com/news/Apocalypse_Saturday__Skeptics_judge_Judgment_Day_05-22-2011.html
Here is my post they published:
“Called it for what it is – a money front that perverts religion for the profit of a few by capitalizing on the fears and vulnerabilities of naive people incapable of thinking for themselves. The late Herbert Armstrong, founder of the defunct World Wide Church of God (now operating as splinter groups such as the Philadelphia Church of God based in Oklahoma) predicted the end of the world in the seventies. He died in ’84 a divorced, disgraced, exposed fraud (60 Minutes aired an investigation of financial profiteering). The courts award his ex-wife, who was less than half his age, half his $5 million assets when testimony revealed he’d committed incest (reported in the May 17, 1984 Associated Press news story published in Tulsa World newspaper). Conduct a Google search on “Herbert Armstrong.” He claimed to have been chosen by God to prepare everyone for the “Second Coming.” He owned three homes, one on CA’s Gold Coast, another in Mount Pocono, PA, and he rabbitted about in a private jet from money he milked from the incredulous, reducing them to humiliating poverty so he and his pals could live lavishly and like pigs. He preached against hording wealth while requiring followers to give 10 to 30 percent of their income to himself and his cult. He broke apart families and weakened society. Such cults continue to thrive.
The European Union regulates such cults, monitors and restricts their activities. Thus why many north European countries offer a better quality of life, are well run, are true democracies, with the average person being far better off than the average American, and are not in trillions of dollars of debt.
Unfortunately, we have a legal system, (and at least one judicial
candidate running for a spot on the Luzerne County Court of Common Pleas), which refuses to address the growing problem of dangerous cults right in our back yards. That’s because our lawyers’ and politicians’ focus is on lining their own pockets with taxpayer’s money. They operate using the same methods as dangerous cults. They ignore and distanced themselves from challenging and controversial issues, which may or may not impact their election, or somehow affect their client base. They’re too tired and gorged from stuffing themselves with pasta and drinking alcohol at the Westmoreland Club, stroking their egos, to tackle problems important to protecting the integrity of our families and society. No wonder the country is in trillion dollars of debt, and unable to stand up to the Chinese, the financiers of this debt, who unfairly devalue their currency so they can buy what’s left of the world’s natural resources, particularly in African, and South America, right in our back yard.”
You came across quite forceful in your opinion piece. People need to be warned about these groups. Well done good and faithful servant to mankind!
In the end it takes a lot more to get through to these people. They have to have skin in the game like you and I do.
Public opinion as to the recent Harold Camping horse and pony show, reveals disgust among the people of this country. The problem is, how do you hold responsible the various religious groups that pull this kind of crap? The constitution of the United States and the freedom to practice religion as one sees fit is at issue here.
Try this. Write the politicians a pen and paper letter (both political party’s) and see what you get as to a response. Then post them online.
Now does anyone else have a suggestion or two?
Great Idea. I will write to the politicians in the key states of OK, and OR. What do you think about writing to the Anti-Defamation League? HWA and WWCOG give Jewish history a bad name. Might ultimately cause Anti-Semetism. Perhaps the Anti-Defamation League could come out with an official statement denouncing various cults as falsely and dangerously mis-interpreting the bible and Jewish history to exploit people, and frankly, spread hatred. I’ve already discussed this idea with a Washington-based Jewish lawyer. He likes the idea.
If you checked with a lawyer then go for it. Gather as much material both current and historically to make your case. Make damn sure you know what you are doing before making the leap!
James,
I need to find out specifically what the European Union is doing to create their “watch lists” of dangerous cults, and exactly how they monitor. Would like to share this specific information with you. If you wouldn’t mind considering publishing these details on your website, that would be great.
Try this for starters:
http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Cults_and_governments
And this to learn more:
http://www.rickross.com/
I love your spirit, Keith. I don’t know how much can be done about the situation in this country where religion has to be left pretty much alone constitutionally, but we can at least get some facts out to a few.
Incidentally, have someone skilled in spelling and grammar edit what you write. Some people would tend to discount what you say because they are hypercritical of such things as spelling and grammar nuances.
Hi Allen,
Thanks for your support. Most people have no clue about just how dangerous and damaging religion used as a weapon to steal money from people is. My goal is exposing the facts to the many in both fiction and non-fiction format. Sometimes a greater truth can be told via fiction. I’m currently working on publishing a book covering this theme. More about this later.
I wrote this blog on the fly, as I’m extremely busy trying to wrap up my 450-page fiction project. I have two NYC literary agents interested in reading my manuscript, so the bulk of my energy and focus has been on crafting the mss the best it can be. Will keep you posted. Thanks again
One of the problems you face is evil layered on evil, layered on more evil.
I’ve taken time studying law in my hiatus from the PT dialogue, and even argued a case on seatbelt law recently before the judge. The judge con firmed what was pretty much common knowledge. Even though I defeated his arguments on constitutionality, rather than throw me in jail for contempt, he admitted to me that constitutional rights now come second to the compelling intereast of the state.
From your descriptions above regarding your local judge, his interests will not be your constitutional rights, nor can they be. As my judge told me, “stare decisis” has overtaken constitutional decision-making, and he is bound to make his decisions based on what he is told to do by the state.
If you can find a lawyer with the cajones to challenge the system, including the judge, you’ve found a rare jewel.