Ham

I have actually heard them screaming, from almost all the way of the other side of the country, heh heh.

Now Galen, that may be going a bit too far, heh heh.

Good grief. It took me ten minutes of staring at the thing before I got it, heh heh.

Igotout- I don't know what kind of income that Galen makes- but. In the early years, at least one year I can remember, we were dirt poor enough that with the earned income credit thing we actually got far more money in a refund than we put in, legally. Some people might say "whoo hoo, a goldmine" but it was hardly that, heh heh.

Yep. I'll give you a moment of silence.. sometimes that's what people need instead of a stupid "just get over it" Go in peace, my friend..

Heh heh heh. Didn't do any justice to the tights he wore either.

Jim, good point. That's one thing I keep telling myself, never again.. It sure was one learning experience, but I think most paid way too much for the lesson. Alas, we all- or at least me- were what my other ex-navy friend calls "young and dumb". That still doesn't give the bast***s the right to manipulate and take advantage, it obligated them to love. Cripe- I would've given them the moon if I could have. Couldn't have found anybody more loyal. I find myself practically painted in a corner here, and they are sitting on a pile of dough- more than they will ever need- a product of MY labor. And others, many others. Oh well.. "Results not guaranteed" I guess. And somehow I am just supposed to live and let live, forgive and forget, and let them go on their merry way, pulling off the same crap.. I have every logical reason to be bitter- even if it was just the money. But I'm not. I'm just concerned- especially for anybody contemplating committing their life and all to that trash heap.

Well Galen, I can't argue with one of the experts, heh heh. But I can understand Signal's opinion, and perhaps feelings about the situation- those jerk-o**s have no business hiding behind the tax exempt status for a dummy non-profit corporation, while the rest of us yokels pay merrily away, well, at least most of us, anyway, heh heh. At least that's what I am reading in between the lines.

Johnny, I actually agree- I would HOPE that he would come to his senses and repent- but I'm not holding my breath for it, any more than waiting for some kind of apology to come out of headquarters for the rough treatment they put God's people through. Silence speaks volumes to me. They STILL think they can dance with devils and still be white as snow- Loy included. They think they did no wrong, and continue the devilishness to this day. I don't know, if I personally knew a good side to him, perhaps I'd feel different about it. The only side I knew of him was the public persona he put on, and some of the more private rants- which got worse and worse. And the devilish doctrine and practice he introduced. Add to that the crap he put my sisters through, while maintaining he was the finest thing since canned tuna. Maybe its just me, but I can't hold any better opinion for the jackass than contempt. Maybe you see some good in the guy that I don't- I can accept that. I wouldn't argue with you- just for me, I would need a real good reason to change my mind. Some real concrete evidence that he made some changes. The more I find out about this character, the more I feel betrayed. "Out of his ever-lovin mind" is a mild accusation.. at least in my opinion. The SOB COULD have just done the right thing- but that's just wishful thinking for me. Sure would have made things a lot easier, but the damage is already done.

And if that was not enough, what about this: The man thought he was Hugh Hefner, for crying out loud, heh heh.

If this isn't enough proof, I don't think you can satisfy anybody: Proof Positive

Good grief. I hope that is not the kind of legacy I'll leave behind..

Not to derail too much but.. When old Rose finally kicks der bucket, I wonder if we will start seeing postings about former followers under her rule dancing and singing in the streets, "ding dong the witch is dead, the witch is dead, the wicked witch" heh heh. Well.. one thing is true, when the wicked perish, there is a shout of joy.. It may take a little while- some take quite a while to wake up and see what kind of wickedness they were really dealing with.

Yep. Weasels all the way to the end, heh heh. Maybe more like packrats, hiding their wealth in a tax-exempt hole. "We were all told or understood that if you leave TWI you would die" That WAS the way I understood it. A threat on our lives, subtly and sometimes not so subtly implied. People who did die, however accidently or otherwise, were held up as a prime example of what happens if you don't keep your lips glued on their "royal" rears properly, or give enough money- no question. More often than not it was about the money. "See, God didn't spit in his/her direction.." Thanks for contributing Signals.. don't run off too fast!

That may be the crux of da whole deal. Who empowered the SOB? Who "groomed" him for the position? Wasn't me, at least directly- my abs may have supported the bast**d, but I didn't choose him. "Moggy see, moggy do.." One thing you could say, he did end up being just like his "daddy", without the refinements. Take VP's arrogance, plagiarism, sexual habits and stuff them in a package more defined as a social orangatan, and what do you get.. I think the role was made just for him. For me, its hard to imagine he was at one time somebody's baby. He must have had some element of cuteness, they didn't take him back to the baby store for an exchange, heh heh. Whether he was cute once or not could be debatable, but the words of one of the former limb guys here really say it all, "we have been following a mad man".

Bramble, I knew of such a family in our area, and they were- believe it or not- Corps. Oodles of kids, and it was obvious the husbands income couldn't come anywhere near what they needed. From his kind of work, they likely could not even cover the rent in the kind of house they were in. And I don't think they were living the miracle of the loaves either. I think this is sometimes the vey's dirty little secret.. for the select few. "how to live on a shoestring"- ha. Makes me wonder if they are still "in". You'd think a lot of long term staffers would be just too plain worn out to try to start over again, new job, possible training, new career- maybe this is da vey's "retirement" package, just go live on public assistance somewhere.. My opinion, if they aren't going to use the money for what it was donated for, the honest thing would be to either give it back, or give it to an organization that would use it for the intended purpose. I know, I know. The odds of it happening would be about as good as elephants learning ballet.. heh heh.

Johnny, just letting you know I'm not ignoring you here. Don't have any sound advice for you, but I'm praying for you and family, that's all I can do.

Makes sense Groucho. We are dealing with da Vey's definition of terms- if you define "bitterness" as "dissatisfied with the stinking treatment we got in da vey", and I think that is the case here, they can pull out four or five bible verses and tell us how sinful we are. Bitterness? I don't think the guy has even seen it.

That really says it all, heh heh heh.

Outandabout, that describes me fairly well too. I loved PFAL, fellowships and stuff- gave my life for it. Always refused to advance in a way that would tie up nights and/or weekends. Always made myself available for da group.. and after a while, apparently even that was not enough. Didn't even CONSIDER going back to school.. I am still discovering the many ways I was robbed, but at least it is getting to be less and less intense all the time. I am no longer furious, perhaps because I am doing something about the situation, now only a little "disgruntled", heh heh. But I still probably won't be able to retire, unless I accidently hit the big time or something. That kind of bothers me, but things could be worse. With issues like this, I don't think you ever really get over it. Like it or not, I think this stinking life comes with a few tears. It seems those who say "just get over it" most vocally often are those sitting comfy on the top of some offshoot or something. Their needs are met- maybe they just don't understand. Even from a biblical perspective, the idea that God is somehow gonna wave a magic wand and take away all our pain is ludicrous- at least until paradise is restored. Despite all the crap, I think I'm fairly peaceful, most of the time.

That is a very good point. But the past often does come back up- though it may not hurt as much as it once did. It seems those who say "just get over it" or "it wasn't such a big deal, it was a long time ago" when the past does come up, are almost automatically guaranteed to get the opposite kind of reaction than what they wanted. I don't wallow in the past, or in the fact I supported a blood sucking bunch of idiots with my hard earned pay, but it seems you never get over it, completely- at least for me. Just looks like a bad bad dream, long long ago.. but it still is there, and it WAS a big deal. Pain can be a good thing- at least I won't do SOME things again, heh heh.

But before I derail my own thread too much.. I still think anger, or even bitterness, at least initially, is an appropriate response to the kind of nonsense we were subjected to. These are just some bare facts- certain numbskulls in rural Ohio are sitting on a nest of OUR abs and efforts, and we will very likely never see it used for the purpose that it was given. Those are just the facts. Eventually, you're gonna have some feelings about that.. and its OK to get mad.

Signals, what I said, I meant perhaps not that it is not worth the effort, but I feel like that is not my fight, at least at this time. Gotta choose your battles carefully.

I can almost see George A*r rolling his eyes about now.. maybe even me too. I kind of have the impression that the P**ler suit or ramifications is not what's going to do them in- its gonna be something internal, something they couldn't have guessed in a million years. Won't know what hit em. Who knows, maybe I'm nuts. Heh heh. Maybe its just wishful thinking, who knows..

Sorry for my lack of manners. Welcome, Signals.