Author Archive for MojoeyPage 3 of 27

Youth pastor Jeremy Fulton sentenced

Pastor Jeremy Fulton, profiled here, was sentenced to 22 years in prison for sexually abusing 5 young girls from his church. Some of the victims were 10-years-old at the time of the abuse.

Fulton declined to speak at his sentencing Tuesday. Manhattan District Attorney Cyrus R. Vance Jr. said in a statement that Fulton "used his position of authority and respect as a member of the clergy to win the trust of parents and gain access to children for the purpose of sexually abusing these girls," who were 10 to 16 when abused.

Source: Ex-NYC youth minister gets 22 years in prison for sexually abusing girls

Fulton was the youth pastor at Mariners’ Temple Baptist Church. They’ve moved on. There is nothing linking Fulton to the church on the website. Move along sheple. There is nothing to see here.

Charges dropped against Rev. David Szatkowski

Rev. David Szatkowski was originally charged with sexual assault for allegedly groping a 15-year-old girl. This was a he said, she said case, so I did not post on this crime when it originally hit the press. The DA decided to drop the charges after further investigation and consultation with the alleged victim.

The victim alleged that the catholic priest grabbed her breast. Szatkowski denied the claim. the whole story seemed pretty thin at the time. I hope this is the end of it.

Pastor Matthias Anderson denied bail

Oceanside youth pastor Matthias Anderson, profiled here, was denied bail by Riverside County Superior Court Judge F. Paul Dickerson. Anderson is facing a 50 year sentence on 34 criminal sex charges. Judge Dickerson thought the Anderson was a flight risk since he’s facing a life sentence.

Libertarianism attracts nutballs like Jules Manson

jules-manson-wanna-be-teaster-killerJules Manson is a nutball. He threatened President Obama with an unbelievable comment on his Facebook page. The comments were racist, hateful, and violent.

Manson's comment that Obama and his "monkey children" should be killed had been removed from Facebook, officials said. But another Web site, Your Black Politics, posted a screenshot.

Read more: Facebook post threatens Obama

Manson backed away from his comments by claiming they were careless and emotionally driven. What? He just outed himself as racist nutball, and he uses he equivalent of a bad hair day as an of excuse. His excuse does not feel authentic, and I’m pretty sure the reason is that it is not authentic.

Manson claims to be a Libertarian. He was the last place finisher in a run for a Carson, California City council seat. City council races are non-partisan, so I am not sure why it was important that he proclaimed himself a Libertarian, unless it was to attach himself to a cause that will drive away voters. I can say this Proofmuch. He stood out as odd duck during his campaign. I know because I work in Carson and follow the politics there. I even know Jim Dear, the current mayor. The Manson campaign was a joke.

What I find troubling is how often embarrassing political troublemakers are Libertarians. We’ve had too many cases to enumerate, although my personal favorite is the spiting candidate Gary Copeland, a druid, who ran for governor with the backing of the state party. Manson is just the latest in a long line of fringe nutballs to rise from the ranks of registered Libertarians and self-destruct on the national stage.

Unfortunately, the Libertarian Party of California has no effective way of vetting political candidates. In fact, they beg anybody to register to run in any race, be it local, state, or even at the federal level. All one need do is pay the dues and sign the pledge. Say yes to their request, and they will help put anyone on the ballot. They pushed me hard to run in a national election a few years back, and I’m unelectable.

There is no evidence that Manson is endorsed by the Libertarian party. Nor is there evidence that he participated in the Libertarian political process, although, I’m betting that evidence will surface soon. He appears to be a self-proclaimed libertarian, except for the fact that he is registered as a Libertarian under the name Julio Manson.

I call on the Libertarian Party of California to expel member Julio 'Jules" Manson from the state party. I also ask that they issue a statement clearly stating that they do not support Manson’s position. It is the right. In fact, I’m mystified why the Kevin Takenaga has not done so already. Furthermore, I call on the Libertarian Party of California to fix their friggen website. It’s embarrassing.

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For the love of a dog

I got sick this week. A stomach virus put me down on Monday and Tuesday. My dog, a minpin named Thor, slept near my feet the whole time. When I was at my worst, on Tuesday at about noon, my dog nuzzled my beard and tried to comfort me. I woke up to his barking soon after. He wanted me to open the door so that he could exit out to the backyard. I let him out, but the barking did not stop. He kept coming back to the door and barking, and then he would walk into the yard and bark some more. Frustrated now, I moved to the door to see what small animal was annoying my dog. Thor was laying in a patch of sunlight in the grass. He was pawing at the turf and barking at me. He wanted me to come join him in the warmth of the sun. He was trying to take care of me. I love that dog.

The next day I noticed that Thor was sick. He was lethargic and did not respond to my voice. Plus, he had lost control of his bladder and had vomited in all manner of places. My dog was sick. My wife stayed home with him and took him to the vet on Wednesday. My son spend the night wrapped around a dog who just wanted to be warm. I’m continuing the job this morning. Thor is sleeping on my feet right now. I love that dog.

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The creeping Christian right

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The sad state of Christianity in Florida

I am a big fan of judging people by what they do. The same holds true for organizations, movements, and religions. Judge this: In the past week, four Florida pastors were arrested for sexually abusing minors. I can’t help but come to the conclusion that something is wrong down in Florida. Is this what Christian morality has come to? The wide scale abuse of children by the very men charged with teaching the faith?

The accused:

It is discussing. I’m waiting for national religious leaders to comment on the story. So far it has been silence.

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We are what we do

Our acts define us. That is one reason hypocrites piss me off so much. Take conservative Republican Gary Davis. He was a family-values politician until he was outed by his own stupidity. He spent taxpayer money at a gay sex shop. He is no different from the priests and pastors who abuse their power and occupy so much of my attention. Anyone who spends his professional life hurting the gay community through politics, is no different from a pastor who hurts his flock through infidelity, or worse. Wrapping yourself in the conservative movement comes with the whole Christian values mindset attached. Davis fought his own essence. He does not deserve to keep his job as mayor. He does not deserve our trust. What he does next will tell us much more about his character. If he is a principled man, he will resign and devote his life to the service of those he hurt. I’m betting he stays with the paycheck.

Dutch victims of Catholic clergy sexual abuse

I think we will find this pattern repeated in every country that has a Catholic presence.

Pastor David Nelson arrested

DavidNelsonPastor David Nelson was recorded admitting to playing strip poker with a 14-year-old boy, 30 years ago while working as a Jehovah’s Witness pastor at the Madison Park Congregation Church in Phoenix. James King does a good job describing the crime. Give it a read.

According to the report, in September of 1980, when he was 33-years-old, Nelson had the 14-year-old victim -- described as "a close family friend" -- over to his house on at least two occasions to play cards. Nelson's rules are different than, say, Vegas' -- the loser in his game is required to pull out his junk and show it to the winner.

I don’t often get reports of a Jehovah’s Witness pastor committing a sex crime. I consider it a special case whenever it occurs. The church will try to spin this, just watch the comments.

Youth pastor Jasmine Brown arrested

It’s ok… the 12-year-old boy wanted to be molested. Move along…

jasminebrownYouth pastor Jasmine Brown admitted to molesting a 12-yea-old boy. Brown is employed by the Family of God Christian Fellowship, where it is apparently ok to molest children if they ask for it…. Ok. maybe I’m exaggerating here, but seriously. What kind of adult thinks its ok to molest a child? What kind of youth pastor thinks It’s ok to molest a child? As a youth pastor Brown was supposed to protect his charges and teach them the moral code found in the bible. Did he ever read the bible? Oh wait, I should not go there as there is some crazy stuff in the Old Testament.

Brown is an amoral Christian hypocrite. But the church should shoulder part of the blame.

Brown doesn't deny the incidents occurred. When interviewed by police, Brown told detectives that the boy is the one who initiated the gropings by rubbing his butt against Brown's penis. Brown acknowledges he responded to the alleged advances by rubbing his penis against the boy's butt.

Then he masturbated and went to sleep, he tells cops.

Source: Jasmine Brown, Youth Minister, Admits to Molesting 12-Year-Old Boy at Church Camp

Apparently Brown and the child shared a bed on several nights while at summer camp. That fact that this can happen indicts the church and the summer camp. Parents beware, if the church allows some this egregious, I can only imagine what else can happen. With any luck, the stupidity of the people running the church and youth camp will result in a settlement the puts this church out of business. I hope co-pastor Mike Scott and Rick Furmanek are ready to find a new line of work, one that involves the responsible management of a business and the protection of its employees and customers.

There is no mention of the incident on the church website.

 

On the death of Christopher Hitchens

I never met Christopher Hitchens, yet I took his death personally. I’ve read all his books and most of his recently published articles. He’s been a intellectual partner for the last 15 years, although, the partnership was all one way. I respected him. He challenged my thinking, and through that pushed me to become a better person. Few other people have influenced me in this way; my wife, a mentor, a few friends, my grandfather, and the author Harlan Ellison, make the short list.

Hitchens fills my library. His words will continue to influence me until I join him in death. I will pass along what I’ve learned to my sons (and soon a grandson), friends, and readers. His ideas and influence will live on through thousands of other people just like me. What I will miss is his intellect, his wit, and his wisdom.

I had lunch with two Christians yesterday. Hitchens’ death came up. Their utter lack of compassion left me feeling empty. I realized later that the emptiness was already in my heart. RIP Christopher Hitchens.

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Pastor Tedd Butler pleaded guilty

TeddButlerPastor Tedd Butler, profiled here, pleaded guilty to charges that he molested a boy who was under the age of 13. He faces a light sentence on a conviction on a charge of fourth-degree criminal sexual conduct.

Butler told the court in Grand Rapids he touched the buttocks of a boy younger than 13 who had been attending Sunday school.

Touch a butt, go to prison.

Butler was the pastor at Gospel Light Baptist Church in Walker, which is near Grand Rapids.

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Would an atheist teacher steal the cash?

A recent poll asked the following three questions in response to this scenario. …if a fictional driver damaged a parked car and left the scene, then found a wallet and took the money, was the driver more likely…
  • a teacher
  • an atheist teacher
  • a rapist teacher
The results showed a predictable response. The atheist did it.
“People find atheists very suspect,” Shariff said. “They don’t fear God so we should distrust them; they do not have the same moral obligations of others. This is a common refrain against atheists. People fear them as a group.”
I’m not surprised, although I am disappointed in the possible answers. I would have gone with an obvious comparison.
  • a Christian
  • an atheists
  • A pastor convicted of child rape
I’m betting that atheists would still come in as the people most likely to commit the crime. The reason is simple. We are part of a different tribe. If you asked 100 atheists the same questions, the Christian would lose. Substitute Christian for Muslim and and atheist for Jew and a new class of people will be on the outs. You can’t win if you are not part of the tribe. We are the other team.
 
We already know that the morality question is baseless. Christians are as amoral as anyone else, and just as likely to commit petty little crimes. The only way I can see to address the situation is to dilute the importance of the Christian population. The more secular we become, the more this question becomes irrelevant. We fight back by spreading the truth.
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Why do people listen to Ann Coulter?

Ann Coulter’s latest rant is pure nutball craziness. When scientist discover the gay gene, liberals will abort gay babies.

In her upcoming appearance on Logo's "A List: Dallas," the conservative pundit told gay Republican cast member Taylor Garrett that it was in the lesbian, gay, bisexual and transgender (LGBT) community's best interests to be pro-life as "liberal yuppies" will start aborting their unborn gay children once scientists discover a gene for homosexuality.

Why do people listen to her screed? It’s pure crap. And when you think about it, Coulter has the story wrong. If we are ever able to determine a baby’s sexual orientation through a genetic test, it won’t be liberals lining up at abortion clinics. That much seems obvious, right?

We get dumber by degrees

Michele Bachmann weighed in recently on the important subject of high school proms. Specifically, she talked about girls asking boys to the prom. And her answer was… Bachmann won’t allow her girls to ask boys. I think I’m justified I’m calling Bachmann anti-feminist… and dumb.

Bachmann believes only boys can ask girls to the prom, which could raise questions in some voters' minds about various diplomatic dances every president is expected to perform.

Source: Bachmann: Girls Don't Ask Boys to Prom

Oh, and nobody asker her to the prom.

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