WordWolf

Oh, people, if you only knew the sacrifices that were made, how hard the trustees relaxed for you, it would make you cry. They had to drag themselves to beautiful vacation spots and FORCE themselves to relax-all for you. They would have preferred day-trips locally, but for you, they endured packing, transit, unpacking, tourist traps, gourmet dining, and countless of mammon's attractions. Great as a slogan. Excellent as a rule of practice. And, naturally, ignored by lcm once he was done with "writing" this book. "Reprove", in this instance, means "scream at them because they displeased you." They spoke of the incident years later. vpw was a show-off that insisted that HIS usages of words was the SOLE correct one. If one wanted to be picky, 'create' might be dispensed with, but his insistence that the word "possess" was inappropriate for anything other than cases of demonic possession was silly and ignores how we got the term 'demonic possession' in the first place. The guy spoke of resources they were in command and authority over, and he said they 'possessed' them. vpw "corrected" him for using the term correctly. It's as smart as "correcting" someone for referring to someone stingy and miserly as acting "niggardly" because they don't like the term "nigger". But the 2 terms have NOTHING to do with each other. Objecting based on the sounds of words and whether you LIKE them is not a valid objection-to most people who communicate intelligently and have a standard, at any rate. HAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!! *begins playing violin music in the background* WHAT pressure? He was doing the work he SUPPOSEDLY loved, which we loved- studying and teaching the Bible! He was being paid HANDSOMELY for it! He set his own work-schedule and hours! He had EVERY luxury he wanted! He had a wife who loved him, and the respect and adoration of thousands, if not TENS of thousands! Anytime he wanted, he could have travelled-in style- anywhere in the US and had locals treat him like a visitor of state! WHAT pressure? The pressure to STOP sinning when no one was looking? The pressure to STOP feeding his vices of drink and tobacco? The pressure to conform to the image he manufactured for himself? The pressure to-just once- act like the man he knew himself to be? I say to this man, "F* you, AND the motorcycle you rode in on!!!!!" And didn't he live to regret THOSE words....

That was at least partly true. vpw had an interesting definition of "truth", there. Which means what, exactly? I disagree. It as a better book than most, since it wasn't just vpw and his xerox machine. Also, a hardness of attitude at hq? Who would have guessed? And one of the more outrageous claims from a man notorious for outrageous claims.lcm was competent, but strictly AVERAGE at hq. The one thing the trustees excelled at was these annual meetings in resorts. How hard they worked to enjoy themselves for us! And the stone of which that heart is constructed.

The concern NEVER was for the individual. As we saw, the individuals were DISPOSABLE. With MORE people, they're MORE disposable. As the next story illustrates. I focus better taking notes. Many people do. Many people do NOT. That's why many sitting of pfal, people were told "you don't have to take notes"-some people focus better NOT taking notes. If the concern was for the INDIVIDUAL, you'd know it was just as likely. Unforgiveable sin-not taking notes on vpw's utterances. He didn't handle this privately, "of course". The corps requirements never state notetaking for all teachings is REQUIRED. Therefore, vpw broke the committment he made with this man when he so casually kicked him out. He might well have been FULLY focusing and making sure he caught every word. But, the concern was NEVER for the individual- individuals were DISPOSABLE. He wants lcm to see this, and he makes lcm the errand-boy for this. This is going to be another drama. The guy, who, like most people, completed a normal number of things, was feeling miserable, having been callously discarded by a man he so respected. Of COURSE he FEELS like he never finished anything. However, knowing only that he was in the corps, we already know he completed 1) Foundational class 2) Intermediate class 3) Home studies 4) Advanced class Now, already, as the ministry is concerned, he's progressed nicely. He made it thru the Advanced class plus its requirements. Depending on his status, he may also have completed the wow program. This guy finished lots of stuff, but vpw made him feel lower than the grass. vpw, obviously, knows this is true for the same reasons you and I do... vpw covered his own error-the casual, tyrranical dismissal-and gave an excuse All that just so vpw doesn't have to admit that he himself doesn't know how to LEAD or MANAGE people- only tyrranize. The man can't admit he's wrong. BWAHAHAHAHA!!!! vpw warmed himself at many fires he did not build, and hid the names of the men he owed great debts to. He instructs lcm to follow his lead. lcm wasn't even to thank them privately-apparently, he just had to forget them.

Thanks guys, for picking up on Tesla. Tesla had substance and character, and was an absolute genius with electricity. I kept getting stuck on whether Edison was the Direct Current guy and Tesla was the Alternating Current guy, or vice versa. Edison DID invent the electric chair execution device- which used AC. He did this to try to connect AC with murder in the minds of the public. (Interesting try.) At advanced age, it appears Alzheimers or a similar problem overtook Nikola Tesla, so at THAT time he became somewhat obsessive-compulsive (in the "count your food" way.) Before that, he was very clear and focused. In fact, his illness only made him "hyper-focused". Of course, you can't blame him for lack of perfection due to illness. (vpw and lcm would, though. I suppose they'd say he eventually went "gooney-bird.")

As someone pointed out, that means vpw didn't spend as much time in Acts as he should have. And if it wasn't "chapter and verse", how did he really "know" it? He might just have been incorrect. Was it an "INVITATION" (thus optional) or a "REQUIREMENT" (thus compulsory)? Not a problem if it was an "INVITATION", but if it was, lcm should have known it would be expected of him specifically. A little public humiliation is standard operating procedure for vpw. (As it was later for lcm.) So much for "He handled it in private of course." Who wants to bet money vpw failed to set the example and write out HIS? Or, he got over himself. vpw, master of the name-drop.What did that concern have to do with Rufus Mosely? Lots of ministry people would have said the exact same thing! As if they split off from an established congregation because they wanted to do EVERYTHING their way and keep the loot and boink the females? If they did, they'd just be following in vpw's footsteps....

Hm. Very thought-provoking.

God forbid the leader should have to THINK.....lcm, apparently, is a stranger to "brainstorming"... That was a good idea. Why did they need this to be pointed out to them? And what happened to this with lcm in the 80s and 90s? As has already been pointed out, that wasn't "a door to witness", that was a lecherous older man, drunk with power, trying to impress a woman sitting next to him. What a shame. It would have been a HUGE improvement all around. That's not what the research team said the team was ABOUT... As was pointed out, vpw didn't teach by example. He would have told others to move the chairs. Plus, they needed him to explain that? Weren't they stringing the chairs already? Is this a part of "nobody knew anything unless vpw taught it to them"? He needed to be told that he had to be rested and at his best when teaching live? He had to be told to delegate some rather than try to micromanage everything? He must have learned to micromanage SOMEWHERE. Any guesses who taught him to do it?

People whose actual concerns are HEALTH and WELL-BEING will FIRSTaddress the most immediate, pressing DANGERS to health and well-being. If a chronic drinker and chain-smoker has the most comfortable sleeping area in the world, and gets 10 hours of uninterrupted sleep, and always eats from all 4 of the basic food groups, it's still expected he'd going to drop dead at a young age because the most PRESSING dangers to his life are still there, damaging organs and introducing carcinogens. Therefore, vpw was either a moron (which is possible) or the coach thing was for a DIFFERENT reason. Since he used the coach primarily to allow him his creature comforts (easy access to smokes and drinks) and to have a convient platform to rape women, I'd go so far as to say the coach thing wasn't about HEALTH at all. And that came from vpw and lcm. You can laugh now. Well, to start with, he claimed they left because they felt that they knew better, and thus that they had no LEGITIMATE reasons to leave, and only CARNAL reasons to leave. Those we've heard from who left seem to have had legitimate reasons when we've heard from them. Is it "demonstrating great love" to make up stories about people to trash their reputation when they leave? At least we know where lcm learned that trick....

Of course. He handled it privately. Unless he felt like handling it publicly, in which case you were humiliated in public. Of course. As we've seen from the same book, lots of times. He wasn't ready before getting on the flight?I was working on a teaching just because it was on my mind, and someone asked me the next day if I had a teaching ready. I was able to close that one up inside of five minutes, and I was not scheduled to teach ANYWHERE. If I'd been scheduled to, I would have been ready sooner. Why wasn't vpw just as ready for SCHEDULED ones? I mean, light tweaks on a flight are one thing, STARTING the thing is another.... George Mueller had NOTHING to do with twi. His attitude towards praying was VERY different from twi. twi acted like they could DEMAND from God. Mueller came boldly, but humbly with his requests. vpw wasn't fit to lace the shoelaces of George Mueller. Ironic, since much of the failure can be traced directly to HIM... Obviously, vpw is using some definition of "fail" I'm not familiar with. If Wesley's ministry FAILED, the number of people would have dwindled. A quick web search shows that a United Methodist set of conferences in South Africa (Wesleyan conferences) recently had a combined attendance of 425,513. That's greater than the total number of people who have ever taken pfal Foundational and wap Foundational put together- and that's counting many people TWICE. In 1970, the United Methodist Church in the US had a membership of 10,671,744. Dwindling membership numbers place them in 1995 as 9,105,046. Again, that's only the US. That's also more than TEN TIMES in excess of people who ever took any of twi's classes. That's something approaching 100 times the number of people GLOBALLY who've taken pfal. Then again, perhaps "fail" is meant to refer to moral standards and corruption. I STILL have not heard of scandals rocking the UMC. On the other hand, vpw-who made the statement- and lcm-who reported it- were chronic sinners better suited to selling drugs or pimping than to ministry. So, he must not have meant that kind of failure.

Oops. Oh, well, nothing major, right? vpw didn't "reprove" them since there's no Bible chapter and verse that requires one to say a goodbye. He was genuinely hurt. 100% true. Mainly because he didn't get his formal "salaam" before they left. Dr "always thought of his people" when they forgot to kiss his as-inine self-image. Interesting how they're "HIS PEOPLE" when they want him to do something, or when they are obeying him, but when they need urgent help, it's platitudes and bus rides home. Nothing but the quickest, cheapest solutions, for the disposable people known as "his people." Of course it was very emotional.It was STAGED to be emotional. He was right in the middle of the teaching, she's brought right up to the stage to him, he makes a compassionate gesture. (Of course, if she has a mental breakdown next month, it's off on a bus like the rest of them...) And it was a fantastic "photo op", and re-inforced her loyalty. And was a nice visible illustration. "Look how much he cares for his people!" Of course, we don't even know her name, because she really WASN'T a part of his life. When the photo-op was done, it's the bus and obscurity for you. You're being wished away into a cornfield. DUH. Unless what they need is expensive, in which case, base them on saving money or what you feel.... Most microphones WERE muffled behind cloth-a baffle placed over them!Whoever he was getting this information from was ill-informed, and, apparently, hadn't seen many microphones. I'm sure it was done a LOT in the secular world. You didn't notice, because you didn't see the microphone, BECAUSE IT WAS BEHIND THE TIE! Most speakers are more interested that you hear the CONTENT than in the props that put them onstage. What's so masterful or holy about someone tossing out a compliment? You'd think it was the first public usage of that phrase...

Well, Belle actually got the song. Plus, we heard from me already recently, so, if she'll be so kind..?

Interesting how he told THEM to do it, and he hadn't done it.In hindsight, the reasons are obvious. He rarely did his own work... It was vpw's idea, and lcm's work. Which is the business of the 2 people, who weren't even in a program at the time. Why? It was none of his business! So much for vpw claiming reprood is done in PRIVATE... Because we all know how long-term relationships can be repaired and revitalized by a third party spouting platitudes at the couple rather than, say, marriage counselling of some kind..... ...but that's so much more expensive than platitudes... And when it comes to marriage counselling, does anyone here think vpw is the kind of person you want to give you marriage counselling? It's like that tv show where Jennifer Lopez was giving a toast at a wedding. "And I'd like you to know, the key to a successful marriage is-- oh, who am I kidding?" (Yes, it was a comedy.)

*blink blink* I believe you may have something there.

karmicdebt has it! For those of you who saw the movie, the quote comes in the last 10 minutes. If you did NOT see the movie, when you do, you'll find yourself LAUGHING when it comes up, but I won't spoil the surprise by telling you WHY. I take it karmicdebt remembers it for that reason. (Or is really keen on this movie.)

"I Think I'm Turning Japanese" was the one hit from "the Vapors". If it's the right song, then Belle got it (see the previous post.)

I'm sure all the new people don't know about this....

I'm not done with how unconscionably callous this was. Here's what he said: ============ "Dr and LCM always fought for people to stay in the Corps. There was an incident of a guy in the Corps who all of a sudden went "gooney-bird". He started to babble and not make sense. LCM worked hard with the guy to help him but he was incoherent. Dr, when he met him, confronted him by asking- 'Son, how come you're letting your mind get all scrambled?' The guy answered unintelligibly and Dr told him that it would be best for him just to pack his bags and go home. The guy understood that. He left. LCM spent many hours and many long distance phone calls trying to make sure the guy had gotten home from his bus ride home safely. Not being able to verify his location, he was concerned. Dr told him to move on. There's nothing you can do, he'll show up at home soon enough. A week later the guy did show up at home." ====================== Now, this was not much different from an undiagnosed HEART problem in that it struck without warning and was biological. So, I rewrote this using a different example as follows, to shine another light on this.... ==== "Dr and LCM always fought for people to stay in the Corps. There was an incident of a guy in the Corps who all of a sudden collapsed. He started to gasp for breath, and seemed to pass out and come back, his heart hammering in his chest. LCM worked hard with the guy to help him but he wouldn't remain fully conscious. Dr, when he met him, confronted him by asking, 'Son, how come you're letting your heart race?' The guy murmured inaudibly and Dr told him it would be best for him just to pack his bags and go home. The guy understood that. He left. LCM spent many hours and many long-distance phone calls trying to make sure the guy had gotten home from his bus ride home safely. Not being able to verify his location, he was concerned. Dr told him to move on. 'There's nothing you can do, he'll show up at home soon enough. A week later, the guy did show up at home." ======= NOW can everyone see why I find this an outrage? Worse, it's hardly an isolated incident. The "my story" forum has other people who were shoved off grounds and on buses also, also barely functional. I don't know about the courts then, but if someone did this today, they could be charged with CRIMINAL NEGLIGENCE.

Except those who ran out of money, of course... lcm got his Bachelor's Degree in PSYCHOLOGY. He was unable to explain better than this what happened. "Gooney-bird" is not a phrase found in the DSM-III, which was THE standard in use at the time. Sounds to me that this guy had an undiagnosed psychiatric problem. His chemistry or neurology was out of order and was preventing him from functioning at that moment with an acute attack of SOMETHING. That's not something you can DECIDE TO CHANGE by trying-you need medication or surgery to address that (although therapy WITH medication or surgery works better than the medication or surgery ALONE). ANY psychology undergrad student should know that- let alone one who got his BACHELORS. Was this aphasic, or did it resemble a schizophrenicepisode? Was he using actual words but jumbling them, or unable to form the syllables for English words? Either way, this was NOTHING the guy could control. Why "CONFRONT" someone having an OBVIOUS psychiatric episode? That's as sensible as "CONFRONTING" someone for having a broken leg! Further, the guy is INCOHERENT- why are you asking him questions? He may not understand them-and you definitely can't understand his ANSWERS. DDUUUUUUUHHHH Yeah, that sure demonstrates the love of God's people. Guy has a psychiatric episode. He needs to go to a hospital and be seen and diagnosed. So, we're kicking him off grounds and out of the program. A man has just had an acute psychiatric attack!We don't know if it was a seizure, an aneurysm, a stroke! The man may be bleeding in his brain and ready to DIE as soon as the next seizure hits, any moment now! He needs an EMERGENCY ROOM visit, and a Dr needs to make that distinction! Once that's been determined, it does make sense to get him back to his family's care as quickly as possible. That means you arrange for his family to meet him at the airport, you put him and a volunteer on a plane, meet the family, and the volunteer turns around and comes home. You DIDN'T give him a REFUND on his corps fees, so the money can come from there. If you MUST be a cheapskate, then put him in the backseat of a car, and put 2 drivers to drive him home. They alternate driving so you can keep going faster, and the other guy sits in the back and keeps an eye on the guy and makes sure he doesn't have a seizure or something. A man's LIFE is at stake here. He is not DISPOSABLE!!!! Why NOT able to verify his location? Because they took a man who was suffering from a psychatric attack, has an obvious, undiagnosed problem, kicked him off grounds, "threw him in the water and told him to swim." ANYTHING could happen to him! They shoved him on a bus-and not on a 1-hour nonstop, either! MY GOD!He really WAS "DISPOSABLE!" He's off grounds, forget about him. A WEEK LATER? It doesn't take a full week to cross from Ohio to any point in the lower 48. NYC to Los Angeles can be done by bus in a week. NYC to hq is 12 hours continuous, figure TRIPLE that at the slowest possible trip. That's less than 2 days. Double THAT for anyplace in the lower 48, and that's 4 days. This man has been wandering around for at least 3 days minimum. That's because he had an acute psychiatric attack, and the response was to shove him on a bus and forget about him. What a HEARTLESS, CALLOUS, INHUMAN response to have. "Oh, eventually, he turned up home, so no harm done."

And yet, this is the conclusion that fits the FACTS. The followers were USED. Ignoring this or mislabelling it doesn't change this. Gee, I'd PREFER to view it that way too- but it was a polite fiction at best, and a lie from the pit of hq at worst. The FACTS keep interfering with my ability to view it the way they advertised it. The same is true of their paid commercial. Just because Bradshaw read it on the air didn't make THAT true, either...

Oh, let them try! Many of you tried to fix it from within before you saved your own necks and escaped! They need to become fully-persuaded that the organization is irreparably corrupted. They best way to do that is- let them try to fix it and see how far they DON'T get. Eventually, they'll understand, and get tired of the constant grab a parachute, and hit the silk.

If I were to conjecture, I'd say his liver was badly weakened by alcoholism, as was his immune system. When he exposed his liver and other body parts to a known cancer-causing agent over long periods of time (chain-smoking), his weak liver and weak immune system were sitting ducks. ==== This "believe to stay alive stuff" failed miserably because it's ERROR, and the "he got tired of fighting" was a non-answer used as a smoke-screen for the truth- "his vices killed him."

Geez, no pressure, huh! === Okay, how about this one.... "If his unpleasant wounding has in some way enlightened the rest of you as to the grim finish beneath the glossy veneer of criminal life, then his injuries carry with it an inherent nobility, and a supreme glory. We should all be so fortunate. You say 'poor Toby'? I say 'poor us'. "

Jetc57 contrasted vpw's paranoia about assassins with his self-destructive addictions to alcohol and tobacco.