Monthly Archives: March 2011

Bishops criticize popular book about God

Not to worry, Sister Elizabeth A. Johnson, all you need to do is agree to pay a hefty sum of your  royalties to your local Catholic church’s archdiocese, and their pyramid of “monetary sponges,” will be more than happy to introduce your book to Catholic schools and universities across the globe. You see, it’s all about money… TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press

NEW YORK (AP) — A committee of American Roman Catholic bishops says a popular book about God shouldn’t be used in Catholic schools and university because it doesn’t uphold church doctrine.

The book is “Quest for the Living God: Mapping Frontiers in the Theology of God” by Sister Elizabeth A. Johnson, a theologian at New York’s Fordham University.

The committee on doctrine said in a statement Wednesday that Sister Johnson used “standards from outside the faith … to revise in a radical fashion the conception of God.”

The author said in a statement that the committee had misinterpreted her book. She said she tried “to present new insights about God arising from people living out their Catholic faith in different cultures.”

Ex-Sarkozy aide lashes out at debate on Islam

Maybe I’m missing something here, but what’s wrong with reaffirming France’s secular traditions? We’re talking about France, not some hard-line, conservative Islamic nation. At some point we have to STOP rooting for the “underdog,” especially when the “underdog” is the Muslim-machine.  Would Iran, Iraq, Pakistan or Afghanistan give a shit about French history or tradition? NO, they wouldn’t! So why do the French need to be sympathetic to Muslims, because the French are more civilized? That’s not a valid reason. TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press

PARIS (AP) — French President Nicolas Sarkozy’s ousted adviser on diversity called the president’s conservative party the “plague of Muslims” amid a growing furor over its plans to debate Islam’s role in France.

Even Prime Minister Francois Fillon, a prominent member of the governing UMP party, is distancing himself from its debate next week on secularism and religion in France. Fillon said Thursday he won’t take part.

Many of the debate’s critics fear it could lead to the stigmatization of French Muslims. Its backers say it is needed to reaffirm France’s secular traditions and address evolutions in French society — such as a growing demand for mosques and Islamic butchers — in a country with western Europe’s largest Muslim population.

Sarkozy fired his diversity adviser Abderrahmane Dahmane last month after Dahmane criticized the debate.

In an interview Thursday, Dahmane told The Associated Press that he wants to rally Muslims against the UMP and its leader, Jean-Francois Cope, in charge of the debate.

“We are going to engage the whole (Muslim) community against Jean-Francois Cope and against his party. Cope’s UMP is the plague of Muslims,” he said.

Dahmane is a controversial figure of Algerian descent who has called on French Muslims to wear a green star Tuesday in a sign of protest, similar to the yellow star that Jews were forced to wear under Nazi occupation.

Jobless claims fall, labor market tone better

More BS from our government! They continue telling us lies in the hopes that our gullible masses will believe them, which unfortunately they more than likely will.

Our government simply wants people to go out and charge up their credit cards and buy houses they can barely afford so their criminal friends, CEOs and major stockholders in banks and other lending institutions, can load up on cash. This is cash which somehow miraculously finds its way into the pockets and pocketbooks of politicians; while also having a “funny way” of being transferred into votes.

Isn’t it ironic that our federal government bailed out banks and other large corporations such as General Motors by throwing billions of dollars at them, yet this same government taxes people on unemployment? Is this not criminal? What ever happened to a government “of the people, for the people”?

The reason unemployment claims have dropped is because our “wonderful” government is cutting back on unemployment benefits; NOT because people are finding jobs!!! Now we’re simply going to have people who are still unemployed but with no unemployment compensation… Brilliant! TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Reuters

WASHINGTON (Reuters) – New U.S. claims for unemployment benefits fell last week, a government report showed on Thursday, further evidence a material improvement in the labor market was under way.

Initial claims for state unemployment benefits slipped 6,000 to a seasonally adjusted 388,000 the Labor Department said. The government revised weekly claims data back to 2006 to take into account new seasonal factors.

The claims data falls outside the survey period for the government’s closely watched employment report for March, which is scheduled for release on Friday.

Nonfarm payrolls are expected to have increased a solid 190,000 after rising 192,000 in February, according to a Reuters survey, with the unemployment rate seen holding steady at a near two-year low of 8.9 percent.

The labor market is strengthening even though economic growth slowed somewhat early in the year, held back by bad weather and rising energy prices, after a fairly brisk pace in the fourth quarter.

Payrolls processing firm ADP Employer Services said on Wednesday private employers added 201,000 jobs in March.

U.S. stock index futures were little changed after the data, while government bond prices added to gains. The U.S. dollar fell against the euro.

Economists polled by Reuters had forecast claims edging down to 380,000. The prior week’s figure was revised up to 394,000 from the previously reported 382,000.

The four-week moving average of unemployment claims — a better measure of underlying trends – rose 3,250 to 394,250.

A Labor Department official said there was nothing unusual in the claims data. Claims have now held beneath the 400,000 level that is generally associated with steady job growth for three weeks in a row, with the four-week average below that mark for the fifth straight week.

The number of people still receiving benefits under regular state programs after an initial week of aid dropped 51,000 to 3.71 million in the week ended March 19, the lowest level since October 2008.

Economists had expected so-called continuing claims to fall to 3.70 million from a previously reported 3.72 million.

The number of people on emergency unemployment benefits dropped 38,838 to 3.59 million in the week ended March 12, the latest week for which data is available. A total of 8.77 million people were claiming unemployment benefits during that period under all programs.

AP Interview: Hilton says she’s the ‘original’

Paris Hilton claims to have met all her professional goals… I didn’t know that becoming a bimbo was a professional goal? I suppose women’s values are changing (for some). TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press

By ISAAC GARRIDO, Associated Press Isaac Garrido, Associated Press Wed Mar 30, 6:37 am ET

MEXICO CITY – Paris Hilton, the woman who perfected the art of being famous for being famous, says she has met all of her professional goals.

The heiress-turned-TV star, who was in Mexico on Tuesday to promote a new line of shoes, says she doesn’t fear being overshadowed by Kim Kardashian or any other reality show rival with her own fragrance, B-movies, sex tape and autobiography, all by age 30.

“There’s so many people out there who try to imitate what I do but I am the original,” Hilton said in an interview with The Associated Press. “There is nothing like me.”

The socialite, who started her career as a model and has tried her hand in movies, fashion and singing, is currently shooting her latest reality TV show, “The World According to Paris,” which will debut this spring on the Oxygen cable channel.

“The show’s everything about my life, showing the business woman”, Hilton said.

Before the media reported on Kardashian’s every move, Hilton was the favorite celebutante of the tabloids, which covered every party she went to, every man she dated and every brush she had with the law.

Hilton angrily dismissed questions about whether her life is superficial.

“I thought we were talking about the shoes,” she said.

Her shoe collection is the latest addition to a lucrative empire that lends her name to 17 lines of products from handbags and fragrances to clothing.

“I have done everything that I wanted to do and I feel very blessed that I have been very successful on every area,” Hilton, wearing a long beige, sleeveless dress in her Mexico City hotel suite.

“So it’s very exciting. There is nothing else to do,” she said as her aides occasionally touched up her hair and makeup.

“I think that I have the best style and I know fashion,” she added. “The girls all love my style. When they buy my products they can be like me.”

Her sense of fulfillment doesn’t mean she’s about to retire. Hilton said she hopes the next phase of her business career will be in real estate, with her own chain of hotels, restaurants and nightclubs, a fitting path for the hotel heiress.

At a news conference in Mexico City later, she matched a ruffled blouse and dramatic oversized sun hat with a pair of Champaign heels, one of her new creations. Some of the other pairs lined a table next to her.

Organizers initially refused to translate when a reporter asked if she had demanded the Swarovski crystal water bottle at her side. But when journalists pressed for an answer, Hilton quickly said she would be happy to reply.

“I didn’t order the water, I think someone sent it as a present,” she said. “I’m not a diva, I am not like that. I can drink water out of any bottle.”

List of founders of religious traditions

My goodness, that’s an awfully large number of religious traditions. I wonder which of these is the one true faith? TGO

Refer to information below. Source: Wikipedia

Ancient (before AD 500)

Name Religious tradition founded Date
Naram-Sin of Akkad first known ruler to impose an imperial cult 22nd century BC (short chronology)
Ur-Nammu built the Ziggurat of Ur to Nanna 21st century BC (short chronology)
Abraham Blood-right of inheritance for Judaism, Christianity, Islam, and more recently Baha’i approx. 2000 – 1800 BC
Akhenaten Atenism 14th century BC (conventional Egyptian chronology)
Moses Judaism approx. 12 century BC
Various Rishis composed the hymns of the Rigveda foundational to historical Vedic religion second half of 2nd millennium BC
Solomon Israelite king who built the first Temple in Jerusalem to the God of Israel. 10th century BC (For Solomon’s historicity, see Tel Dan Stele)
Parshva The penultimate (23rd) Tirthankara in Jainism 9th c. BC
Zoroaster composed the gathas foundational to Zoroastrianism c. 11th to 9th c. BC
Numa Pompilius Roman king who codified and organized the Roman religion 717 BC – 673 BC
Laozi Taoism 7th c. BC
Nebuchadnezzar II built the Etemenanki, established Marduk as the patron deity of Babylon 6th c. BC
Mahavira The final Tirthankara in Jainism 6th c. BC
Siddhārtha Gautama Buddhism ca. 5th c. BC
Confucius Confucianism 551 BC – 479 BC
Pythagoras Pythagoreanism fl. 520 BC
Mozi Mohism 470 BC – 390 BC
Ezra established Second Temple Judaism fl. 459 BC
Leucippus Atomism fl.440 BC
Plato Platonic realism 427 BC – 347 BC
Epicurus Epicureanism fl. 307 BC
Zeno of Citium Stoicism 333 BC – 264 BC
Patanjali Raja Yoga 2nd century BC
St. John the Baptist Mandeanism; Proto Founder of Christianity ca. 6 – 5BC – ca. 27 AD
Jesus of Nazareth Christianity ca. 5 – 4BC – ca. 30 AD,
Paul of Tarsus and Simon Peter Pauline Christianity, Roman Catholic succession 1st century
James the Just Jewish Christianity 1st century
Judah haNasi Talmudic Rabbinical Judaism 2nd century AD
Nagarjuna Madhyamaka 150–250
Plotinus Neoplatonism 205–270
Marcion of Sinope Marcionism 110–160
Mani Manichaeism 210–276
Arius Arianism 250–336
Pelagius Pelagianism 354–430
Nestorius Nestorianism 386–451
Eutyches Monophysitism 380–456

Medieval to Early Modern (500–1800 AD)

Name Religious tradition founded Date
Mazdak Mazdakism 520s
Bodhidharma Zen 6th century
Muhammad Islam early 7th century
Songtsän Gampo Tibetan Buddhism 7th century
Padmasambhava Nyingma 8th century
Han Yu Neo-Confucianism 8th or 9th century
Adi Shankara Advaita Vedanta 9th century
Kūkai Shingon 9th century
Michael I Cerularius Eastern Orthodoxy 11th century
Ad-Darazi Druze 11th century
Basava Lingayatism 12th century
Madhvacharya Dvaita 1238–1317
Sant Mat (group of saints) Bhakti movement 13th to 15th centuries
En no Ozunu Shugendō 634 – 706
John Wyclif Lollardry 1320s – 1384
Jan Hus Hussitism 1372–1415
Ramananda Sant Mat Vaishnavism 15th century
Srimanta Sankardeva Mahapuruxiya Dharma 1449–1568
Guru Nanak Dev Sikhism 1469–1539
Baba Sri Chand Udasi 1494–1629
Vallabha Acharya Shuddhadvaita 1479–1531
Martin Luther Lutheranism and Protestantism in general. 1483–1546
Chaitanya Mahaprabhu Gaudiya Vaishnavism, Achintya Bheda Abheda 1486–1534
Henry VIII of England Anglicanism 1491–1547
Conrad Grebel Swiss Brethren, Anabaptism 1498–1526
John Calvin Calvinism 1509–1564
Michael Servetus Unitarianism 1511? – 1553
John Knox Presbyterianism 1510–1572
Akbar the Great Din-i-Ilahi 1542–1605
John Smyth Baptist 1570–1612
Avvakum
 Russian Orthodox Old Believers 1620–1682
George Fox Religious Society of Friends 1624–1691
Philipp Jakob Spener Pietism 1635–1705
Baal Shem Tov Hasidic Judaism 1698–1760
John Wesley Methodism 1703–1791
Muhammad ibn Abd al Wahhab Wahhabi 1703–1792
Ann Lee Shakers 1736–1784

New religious movements (post-1800)

Name Religious tradition founded Life of founder
Raja Ram Mohan Roy Brahmo Samaj 1772–1833
Ghanshyam Pande Swaminarayan 1781–1830
Nakayama Miki Tenrikyo 1798–1887
Johann Joseph Ignaz von Döllinger Old Catholics 1799–1890
Phineas Parkhurst Quimby New Thought 1802–1866
Allan Kardec Spiritism 1804–1869
Joseph Smith, Jr. Mormonism, also known as the Latter Day Saint movement 1805–1844
John Thomas Christadelphians 1805-1871
Jamgon Kongtrul Rime movement 1813–1899
Hong Xiuquan Taiping Christianity 1814-1864
Bahá’u'lláh Bahá’í Faith 1817–1892
Báb Bábí Faith, predecessor of Bahá’í Faith 1819–1850
James Springer White Seventh-day Adventist Church 1821–1881
Mary Baker Eddy Christian Science 1821–1910
Rabbi Alfred G. Moses Jewish Science
Vallalar Samarasa Sutha Sanmarga Sangam 1823–1874
Swami Dayananda Saraswati Arya Samaj 1824–1883
Ellen G. White Seventh-day Adventist Church 1827–1915
Madame Blavatsky Theosophy 1831–1891
Ayya Vaikundar Ayyavazhi 1833–1851
Mirza Ghulam Ahmad Ahmadiyya 1835–1908
Guido von List Armanism (Germanic mysticism) 1848–1919
Charles Taze Russell Jehovah’s Witnesses 1852–1916
Rudolf Steiner Anthroposophy 1861–1925
Swami Vivekananda Ramakrishna Mission 1863–1902
William Irvine Two by Twos and Cooneyites 1863–1947
Sri Aurobindo Integral yoga 1872–1950
Mason Remey Orthodox Baha’i Faith 1874 – 1974
Aleister Crowley Thelema 1875–1947
Charles Fox Parham Pentecostalism 1873–1929
“Father Divine“ International Peace Mission movement ca. 1876–1965
Ngô Văn Chiêu Cao Dai 1878–1926
Guy Ballard I AM 1878–1939
Frank Buchman Oxford Group/Moral Re-Armament 1878–1961
Rabbi Mordecai Kaplan Reconstructionist Judaism 1881–1983
Gerald Gardner Wicca 1884–1964
Felix Y. Manalo Iglesia Ni Cristo (Church of Christ) 1886–1963
Frank Bruce Robinson Psychiana 1886–1948
Noble Drew Ali Moorish Science Temple 1886–1929
Marcus Garvey Rastafari movement 1887–1940
Ernest Holmes Religious Science 1887–1960
H.H. Sadguru Sadafaldeo Ji Maharaj Vihangam Yoga 1888–1902
Aimee Semple McPherson Foursquare Church 1890–1944
Zélio Fernandino de Moraes Umbanda 1891–1975
Ida B. Robinson Mount Sinai Holy Church of America 1891–1946
Wallace Fard Muhammad Nation of Islam 1891 – (disappeared 1934)
Paramahansa Yogananda Self-Realization Fellowship 1893–1952
A. C. Bhaktivedanta Swami Prabhupada International Society for Krishna Consciousness 1896–1977
Swami Muktananda Siddha Yoga 1908–1982
Ikuro Teshima Makuya 1910–1973
L. Ron Hubbard Church of Scientology 1911–1986
Kim Il-sung Juche 1912–1994
Maharishi Mahesh Yogi Transcendental Meditation 1917–2008
Samael Aun Weor Universal Christian Gnostic Movement 1917–1977
Mark L. Prophet The Summit Lighthouse 1918–1973
Huynh Phu So Hoa Hao Buddhism 1919–1947
Yong (Sun) Myung Moon Unification Church 1920 –
Prabhat Ranjan Sarkar Ananda Marga 1921–1990
Clarence 13X The Nation of Gods and Earths 1922–1969
Mestre Gabriel União do Vegetal 1922–1971
Nirmala Srivastava Sahaja Yoga 1923–2011
Sveinbjörn Beinteinsson Ásatrú 1924–1993
Sathya Sai Baba Sathya Sai Organization 1926 –
Anton Szandor LaVey Church of Satan 1930–1997
Rajneesh Chandra Mohan[23] Osho movement 1931–1990
Mark Prophet; Elizabeth Clare (Wolf) Prophet Church Universal and Triumphant 1918-1973 1939–2009
Franklin Jones Adidam 1939–2008
Claude Vorilhon Raëlism 1946 –
Li Hongzhi Falun Gong 1951 –
Bodhisatva Dr. B. R. Ambedkar Revival of Buddhism 1956
Ravi Shankar Art of Living Foundation 1956 –
Vissarion Church of the Last Testament 1961 –
Tamara Siuda Kemetic Orthodoxy 1969 –

Death toll hits 57 in Iraqi hostage siege

These religious Muslim freaks are worse than wild beasts. In the meantime, Muslims here in the United States continue crying out that they’re being discriminated against. This is like members of the Mafia, who are not hit-men or in any way violent, complaining they’re being discriminated against simply for belonging to the Mob. Duh?

The sad part is that the United States government is sucking up to these people. Yet, what can one expect, really? We live in this ever-more politically correct environment where it has become almost a crime to call a spade a spade. And needless to say the spineless politicians will never denounce religious groups for fear of being persecuted and more importantly, losing votes.

This world has become one BIG hypocrisy. TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press

Photography: Reuters

By LARA JAKES, Associated Press Lara Jakes, Associated Press

BAGHDAD – The death toll for a grisly hostage situation at a government building in northern Iraq continued to rise Wednesday as grieving families buried the victims and Iraqi officials questioned how it could have happened.

Gunmen wearing explosives belts under military uniforms charged into the provincial council building in Tikrit, north of Baghdad, Tuesday afternoon, shooting hostages execution-style, and spraying bullets and grenades throughout the building during the five-hour standoff.

Dr. Raied Ibrahim, the health director for Salahuddin province where the attack took place, said 57 people have so far been counted dead and 98 wounded.

Funeral processions on Wednesday crisscrossed the nearby city of Samarra, where officials said many of the victims lived, while those from Tikrit, 80 miles (130 kilometers) north of Baghdad, had mostly already been buried.

Prime Minister Nouri al-Maliki said he would launch an investigation into how the government compound could so easily be overrun by insurgents.

“Such crimes will not deter our people and security forces from chasing and eliminating them,” al-Maliki said. “The criminals who planned and carried out this crime will not escape punishment.”

The U.S. Embassy in Baghdad called the siege a “horrific act.”

“This attack demonstrates yet again that violent extremists are determined to undermine the stability, sovereignty, and self-reliance of a democratic Iraq,” the Embassy said in a statement.

No group yet has claimed responsibility for the strike. But Iraqi officials were quick to blame al-Qaida in Iraq for the slaughter, noting that execution-style killings and suicide bombers are hallmarks of the extremist group.

Private sector adds 201,000 jobs

Yeah right! And for those of you who believe that 200,000-plus private-sector jobs were added in just one month, I’ve got some swampland in the Florida Everglades I’d like to sell you; at a good price.

I suppose the Federal government pays these firms to come out with “news” about the ever-improving job market/economy thinking if people hear something often enough they’ll believe it. I for one am not buying it. TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Reuters

By Leah Schnurr Leah Schnurr

NEW YORK (Reuters) – The U.S. labor market showed signs of further recovery in March, as private employers added jobs and planned layoffs fell, according to data released on Wednesday.

U.S. private employers added 201,000 jobs in March, according to the ADP Employer Services report. The figure was largely in line with expectations for a gain of 203,000 jobs. The report is jointly developed with Macroeconomic Advisers LLC.

February’s figure was revised down to 208,000 from 217,000.

“Basically the number was very much in line with expectations and shows that the labor recovery continues at a reasonable pace,” said David Katz, chief investment officer at Matrix Asset Advisors in New York.

“It looks like the U.S. economic recovery continues, and the improving labor market should be a buffer against weak areas like real estate.”

The ADP figures come ahead of the government’s much more comprehensive labor market report on Friday, which includes both public and private sector employment.

That report is expected to show the economy created about 190,000 jobs in March based on a Reuters poll of analysts, while private payrolls are forecast to rise by 200,000.

A separate report on Wednesday showed the number of planned layoffs at U.S. firms fell in March after spiking up the month before. Employers announced 41,528 planned job cuts this month, down 18 percent from the 50,702 cuts announced in February, according to the report from consultants Challenger, Gray & Christmas, Inc.

Overall, 130,749 job cuts were announced in the first three months of the year, marking the lowest rate of downsizing since 1995.

The highest level of job reductions this year has been seen in the government sector, the report noted. Losses are expected to grow as cash-strapped state and local governments deal with budget problems.

U.S. Treasury prices rose modestly immediately after the ADP data and the U.S. dollar trimmed gains against the euro and yen, while U.S. stock index futures remained higher.

Economists often refer to the ADP report to fine-tune their expectations for the government monthly payrolls numbers, though it is not always accurate in predicting the outcome.

The slow recovery in the jobs market has been one of the biggest hurdles to a sustainable economic recovery, but recent data has raised optimism that improvement in employment is strengthening.

Housing, however, has remained outside of the broader recovery. The Mortgage Bankers Association on Wednesday reported that applications for U.S. home mortgages tumbled last week as higher interest rates sapped demand for loan refinancing.

(Reporting by Leah Schnurr, additional reporting by Ryan Vlastelica and Edith Honan; Editing by Leslie Adler)

APNewsBreak: Church elder moves to replace Jeffs

I believe that religions, all religions, are founded on faith (belief without evidence) and superstition. Anyone who has read the Bible and/or Koran with an open mind can attest to this, as these so-called “holy books” contain about as much truth as the Looney Tunes cartoons, with characters such as Bugs, Bunny, Elmer Fudd, Sylvester the Cat, Tweetie Bird, etc. Yet nevertheless, the world’s three main monotheistic religions, Christianity, Islam and Judaism, have at least withstood the test of time and are part of the “fabric” of societies across the globe; for better or for worse (albeit mostly worse) in my opinion.

Then we have what I consider to be three of the most popular religious cults in the United States, whose followers are not simply ignorant, but complete idiots. These are Mormons, Jehovah’s Witnesses and Scientologists. It is difficult for me to discern which of the adherents of these cults are the bigger morons as all three groups are comprised of needy individuals with a low IQ, and all possess a complete lack of reason and common sense; except for their leaders of course, who are raking in truckloads of money.

I’ve read most of the Bible, a good deal of the Koran and much of the gibberish distributed by Jehovah’s Witnesses. But I must admit I’ve never even looked at the Book of Mormon or Dianetics. I suppose (maybe incorrectly so) that the Book of Mormon simply borrows from the Bible and Koran, while adding from the imagination of Joseph Smith Jr.; its founder. Dianetics was written by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, which basically says all one needs to know about the validity of this quackery.

Anyway, I digress. This article deals exclusively with the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints, which is also a corporation, a business, as all religions are. To the members of this church, as well as all others, I will make this public service announcement: OPEN YOUR MINDS and CLOSE YOUR POCKETBOOKS. TGO

Refer to story below. Source: Associated Press

By JENNIFER DOBNER Jennifer Dobner Mon Mar 28, 10:31 pm ET

SALT LAKE CITY – Jailed polygamous sect leader Warren Jeffs may no longer have control of his southern Utah-based church after a senior leader on Monday moved to replace him.

William E. Jessop filed papers with the Utah Department of Commerce to take over as president of the corporation that is the Fundamentalist Church of Jesus Christ of Latter Day Saints.

Jessop, who served as bishop of the twin FLDS border towns of Hildale, Utah, and Colorado City, Ariz., said Monday his rise to the presidency is not an attempt to take over the church, but rather the fulfillment of an earlier directive from Jeffs.

“It is an attempt to preserve … the church,” Jessop, 41, said in an interview with The Associated Press.

It remained unclear whether Jeffs would immediately lose all power in the church or share it with Jessop, at least for now.

Jeffs has not filed papers with the state indicating he had plans to resign. However, he would not have to formally step down as the church’s president for Jessop to be installed, Commerce Department spokeswoman Jennifer Bolton said Monday.

An attempt to reach Jeffs at the Texas jail where is being held was unsuccessful Monday, and a telephone call to his criminal attorney was not immediately returned. A message left for Rod Parker, a Salt Lake City attorney who represents the church in civil matters, also wasn’t returned.

Jeffs, 55, was convicted in Utah in 2007 on two felony counts of rape as an accomplice and was ordered to serve life sentences, but the convictions were later overturned.

Earlier that year, while jailed and awaiting trial, Jeffs tried to cede authority of the church — both as president and spiritual leader — to Jessop in a series of recorded telephone calls to followers and to Jessop, himself.

“I know of your ordination, that you are the key holder, and I have sent a note with my signature so that there is no question,” Jeffs told Jessop in a Jan. 24, 2007, telephone call from a Utah jail.

The tapes and a DVD of the conversations were released by the court as part of Jeffs’ trial.

Jessop did not respond to the offer at the time, and Jeffs publicly remained spiritual head and president of the church. Other church members speculated the calls from Jeffs were merely a test of their faith.

Four days later, Jeffs attempted suicide by trying to hang himself in the jail.

Then in December 2007, after his Utah conviction, Jeffs resigned as president of the church corporation, believing he could no longer run its day-to-day business from behind bars. But he remained the group’s spiritual leader.

Jeffs was later moved to a jail in Texas, where he is awaiting trial on bigamy and aggravated sexual assault charges. Last month, he retook control of the church following the abrupt resignation of his replacement, who was forced out of the church.

Jessop said he is only stepping forward now because he believes he can help provide the church with the leadership it needs while Jeffs is incarcerated.

“We take things at Heavenly Father’s pace,” said Jessop, who listed a Colorado address on the Commerce Department paperwork.

Jessop’s assertion of leadership is largely unprecedented, and it wasn’t immediately clear whether the move would fracture or unite the 10,000-strong church with members in Arizona, British Columbia, Colorado, South Dakota, Texas and Utah.

Asked if he is now considered the church’s prophet and spiritual leader, Jessop said that will be up to individual church members. In the past, the church president has also been considered its prophet.

Meanwhile, a trial for Jeffs is set for later this year in Texas, where prosecutors allege he had sex with two girls, one under age 14 and one under age 17. A court has entered not guilty pleas on Jeffs’ behalf.

Canadian authorities also are investigating allegations that in 2005 Jeffs married two 12-year-old sect girls who were brought from a church enclave in British Columbia to the U.S. It’s not clear whether those girls are the same victims whose relationships with Jeffs are the basis for the Texas charges.

Jeffs assumed the role as FLDS prophet and president in September 2002 following the death of his father, Rulon Jeffs, who suffered a series of strokes.

His rise to power has been questioned by former church members who say there was no succession plan in place when the elder Jeffs died because he had preached that the second coming of Jesus Christ was imminent, and therefore no one would need to lead the church in the future.

The FLDS practices polygamy in marriages arranged through church leaders. Historically some unions have involved underage girls, although following a 2008 raid on the church’s Eldorado, Texas ranch, a church spokesman said the faith had halted the practice.

The faith’s religious roots are tied to the early teachings of Joseph Smith who founded the mainstream Mormon church. Smith’s church abandoned the practice of plural marriage in 1890 as a condition of Utah’s push for statehood and excommunicates members found practicing it.

The new tax havens

GhostRider rides again and brings you this:

American companies are finding new overseas tax havens to legally protect some of their profits. Funny ’cause these companies still bitch and moan about having to pay for workers health care. What happened to give and take? Oh, they can take all right! I tell ya, American Capitalism, or more accurately, American Corporate Capitalism has become a monster of a system that in my unusually pessimistic opinion will not be reigned in. But wait, as I watched this segment I thought… It’s not these companies’ fault, they are in business to make money, so that means if their management, the CEOs, succeed and are smart for making moves like a Cisco working out of Ireland, then more power to them.

It all becomes clear. It’s the company that’s called The United States of America that is not being run successfully. Of course it isn’t, how can we expect the largest and most powerful company in all of the known Universe to be run as effectively as, let’s say even a Walt Disney World, when, really, a moron like Sara Palin is considered as a possible CEO of USA in 2012.

But then again, that might change. Our country’s management team right now is not made up of the smartest graduates in the country much less the smartest business graduates, for God’s sake, you don’t even need a degree to be a politician. So let’s see… 535 in Congress, our company’s “headquarters,” and let’s add to that the 50 governors that are running our company’s “50 departments.” Lets’ not even throw in the couple of thousand mayors running all of the little offices that makes up the 50 departments, which make up our company. What do we have? A company that’s being run, managed, by a team of about 600, for arguments sake, lets call them MORONS  – Hey, in any business out there that is losing the absolutely absurd amount that this one is, there is not one chance in hell that this management team would not be considered morons.

So, thinking about Sara Palin as CEO for this bunch is consistent, but all seriousness aside… How the hell can we change the structure of our organization, and make no mistake about it, without a complete reorganization of how this company is run? What we are seeing right now is only the first of many consequential waves of destruction to come. Consequential waves like the banking and home foreclosure nightmare, the unemployment rate, the losses incurred by Enron, et al,.The Wisconsin enslavement of its teachers, the Alabama mugging of retired city workers. All this can be a just the beginning.

The only way it can be changed is if we restructure the whole “management” part – somehow, we are going to have to add amendments to the constitution of morons not qualifying for elected posts. We have to take a look at the fortune 500 companies as models. As a matter of fact, just let’s look at the top 3. Do their CEOs have 4, 5, 6-year degrees? Are they in business, law, finance?

Hey, enough of my gibberish, just watch this segment and it will all make sense, although I think we might be screwed:  http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7360932n&tag=mg;mostpopvideo

Till another time in space…

Cheerios

http://ghostriderandfriends.wordpress.com/ghostrider-friends-come-to-life/

Prichard’s pension crisis may come to you

Compliments of GhostRider:

Technically, especially in the realm of probable statistics in our own remaining life span, not all our present problems may be solved. Hey, I know that politicians are trying to figure out how to handle the popular but costly retirement program known as Social Security. Add Medicare and Medicaid, and combined, these three programs consume about 40 percent of the federal budget. Lets say that there is no solution to SS and our government decides to commit an out-right crime like the one committed in September of 2009 in Prichard, Alabama, when something was done that pension experts say they have never seen before: they stopped sending monthly pension checks to its 150 retired workers, breaking a state law requiring the payment of its promised retirement benefits in full. That’s a freakin’  crime. Period. The citizens were scammed and at the end of the day, it’s no different from one of these internet scams from Nigeria. If our governments, whether city, state, or federal, is going to resort to this, then the government should do the slightly more honorable act and say to each citizen, “Here you go, a check for all the money we deducted from you for pension use – good luck.” BTW… those retired workers in Alabama still haven’t gotten a check since 9/09 and 15 retirees have died since then. The politicians are doing a hell of a strong-arm “Mob” number on this country and most of us are either in “denial” about it, too stupid to grasp the situation, or too content – right now – to freakin’ care. All the current people protests popping up around the world in different nations are no coincidence. We the people, are becoming more frustrated with whoever or whatever – right here it happens to be a snowball that started rolling two hundred years ago and has become one hell of a snowball – and it’s repressing us. It is time that we Americans join our brotherhood, our sisterhood, of humanity around the world, and do our part to clean our own house.

So, Mr. Great One, your rants on religion are well and good, and you now have enlightened the world as to the nonsense of a God’s existence, so, move on, focus on who and what, may just be raping and killing us, 10 to 15 years from now. Not a Muslim, not a Jew. The one that is taking our homes away from us right now. Our government; corporate capitalism.

Watch this CBS News Special for the low down: http://www.cbsnews.com/video/watch/?id=7357162n&tag=related;photovideo

Till next time, Cheerios….

GhostRider