The Anatomy of Bigotry: Religious Mafia Protection Rackets
by pinkagendist
So there we go, it’s all out in the open now. And there’s nothing like a bit of sunlight and fresh air to remove that terrible stench from Astroturf. I say out in the open, but let’s keep going, because I don’t think it’s quite out in the open enough.
First let’s examine what happened. A religious posse formed, led by the wife of a pastor at a sect/cult called Grace Church Seattle. This group of self-styled crusaders had encounters on the internet to put forward their message: They’re against gay marriage. More so, they’re against homosexuality, but they mask that stance hiding behind the gay marriage issue. In communicating their propaganda they engaged in omitting, hiding, lying and deceiving. One pretended he wasn’t religious at all. Others pretended they didn’t know each other and just ‘happened to agree’ with the same forms of bigotry. Their intent was to fraudulently create the impression of an organic grassroots movement (with no hidden agenda).
I should clarify that this was by no means any great feat of investigative work on my behalf. All it took was a tiny bit of research for me to realize that all these independent opinionators of ethics and morality just happened to be sending their messages out from the same geolocation. On some occasions, from the same IP. I put that together with my previous knowledge of how these hate groups operate, and the rest is history.
It’s interesting that these people/groups feel all this dissimulation is a necessary part of their tactics. That speaks for itself. Websites with hidden registrars, no mention of their sects, a whole range of deceptive tactics- all in the name of their ethics, I suppose.
Make no mistake, this is the classic schema of a mafia protection racket. Whilst goons broke shop windows in the still of the night, only to offer protection to shop owners the next morning. These henchman foster and foment an environment where minorities are dehumanized, excluded and persecuted. This demonization is what feeds them and pays their mortgages. The leaders of these groups are opportunists, the more fear and hate they rally, the more money they make at the end of each month.
I have much more to say on the matter of these deceptive and disgusting practices. But I’m double booked today. We just finished a lunch, and we’re also invited to dinner this evening, so it’ll have to wait until tomorrow.
Meanwhile I leave you with this amusing document from the sect in question. Note how in the first item one has to submit to never disagreeing with doctrine. Which is why, my friends, their activities are the sham of an authoritarian regime. In North Korea, everyone also thinks the dear leader is total fabulousity.
About time you published this after you promised it today. I see Mr Non-Sociable is having a heavy day then with his busy diary of events?
The covenant: regular financial giving? There’s a surprise. There’s a lot about discipline in there isn’t there? I wonder if they are into BDSM? Especially as that isn’t on the list of forbidden fruits. Quite fires the imagination thinking about it. With the exception of one sin though, ok maybe two, I could almost be accepted to Walk That Path in Holiness.
Interesting that they all hail from Seattle, whereas if you look at those of us who have wasted the odd five minutes (in my case) and far more time for a lot more people, our geolocations are well diverse. Gib, Spain, UK, South Africa, America – off the top of my head. We’re hardly the local atheist sect who know each other.
Nor, most importantly, do we seek to impose our views on other people. Although it would be very nice if everyone accepted all my views. But I don’t go around campaigning to restrict people’s rights if they eat meat or they are sexist or they are homophobic (which the posse undoubtedly is).
I read a few more of those fairytale blogs and was quite depressed. On the other hand I read about people who had been through the corrupt (in terms of education) ACE programme and had decided to chuck it for the lying fiction it all is.
Buen provecho.
I had no choice on the social thing. Mike’s sister who lives in Estepona comes for lunch once a month- which is odd as they can’t stand each other. And dinner is partly business 🙂
Have you tried Pura Tapa in Torreguadiaro? They have a number of vegetarian options and the prices are amazing. Most tapas are around 3 euros. And three tapas are enough for a meal.
Violet told me about this “incident” the other day. Classic.
Fun, no? 🙂
Hell yeah. I just left this comment on her article:
An honest question: Do you seriously think your particular god will punish two people for loving each other, but celebrate you hating people you’ve never met?
Are you sure she believes in god? 🙂 I’ve always been quite certain that no Pope who believed in god could actually become a Pope. She may be a run of the mill snake-oil sales-woman.
True. It is a business, after all.
“It’s interesting that these people/groups feel all this dissimulation is a necessary part of their tactics.”
They learned it from their esteemed leader “The Apostle Paul”
Romans 3:7
7 Someone might argue, “If my falsehood enhances God’s truthfulness and so increases his glory, why am I still condemned as a sinner?”
If I’m not mistaken that’s officially part of Jesuit doctrine 🙂
No doubt ! It’s actually a “Lite Version of the Inquisition”
Then it was “Convert or Die” Now it’s “Convert or be Ostracised”
to exclude or banish (a person) from a particular group, society, etc
“My Obligation to Grace Church as a Member” – my goodness, what a seriously scary thing that is. I’m rather behind in catching up on the background to this & yesterdays interesting posting, but I hope to delve deeper over the weekend – it is, as always, fascinating.
They come by it honestly.
In most of the early church father’s writings the central themes were 1.) you cannot obtain salvation outside of the church 2.) obey your Bishop as you would Christ
And yes it is very scary ! 🙂
Frightening indeed, but all too common. The witches of salem affair was started by exactly the same tactics- as was the Rwandan genocide.
It cites Hebrews 13:17: Obey your leaders and submit to them, for they are keeping watch over your souls and will give an account. Let them do this with joy and not with sighing—for that would be harmful to you.
Just, no.
The rule that made me laugh the most was the bit where cheerfulness was enforced. After all, you would have to really put in an effort to be happy with all the rules on hating you have to follow…. 😀
I think they mean that when you stone a woman, you’ve got to do it with a smile 😀
I really, truly do believe in live and let live, but this….requires a brain transplant with lye soap. 😦
[…] more you look through their website and juxtapose that on Mrs. Faust’s now exposed scam, and Mr. Faust’s reaction to those events, the more one thing becomes clear: their […]
Wow. I’d never belong to a group (any group) that requires me to sign away my natural right to question.
Well, I actually did join a group like that once: it’s called the military. Never again!
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