And it came to pass…

It was to be expected when self-proclaimed prophet TB Joshua’s House of Cards came tumbling down, he would use all means possible to evade responsibility. In September last year when a guesthouse under construction on his Synagogue Church of All Nations (Scoan) property collapsed killing over 100 people, he claimed that it was caused by a terror attack.

This week Coroner Oyetade Komolaf found that the church was culpable due to criminal negligence, and should be prosecuted.

TB Joshua off course rejected this finding, still hanging onto the ludicrous assertion that the incident was due to sabotage. But never mind Joshua’s refusal to accept liability. It is well within character for a charlatan to avoid accountability. It was to be expected. And so it came to pass.

But what about his followers and the family of those tragically killed in this titanic abuse of trust? Would they denounce him and call for his head?

Off course not! They are believers. And so it came to pass that they would rationalize this tragedy using every foul excuse in religious doctrine. Here are some of the more absurd:

One woman said the coroner’s ruling was “nonsense” concocted by “earthly experts” who know nothing about spiritual matters. The church could not be blamed for “work of the devil.” She went on to state that she does not believe in “scientific findings for spiritual matters”.

Another said the investigation was “devilish”. Yet another invoked the devil, accusing him/her/it for wanting to destroy his bishop.

The worst has to be the statement from a church spokesman who told AFP that it was “unfortunate” that the coroner ignored submissions that “having building approval is not [a] panacea for building collapse”. WTF? How insane is that?

Now that the coroner has made a finding, will TB Joshua actually be prosecuted?

That to my mind is unlikely. He is well-connected politically in Nigeria. It’s no secret how corrupt their politicians are. And he has been rather busy visiting family of the victims, palming off blood money and currying favor.

And it shall come to pass that justice will not be served.

Prophet Joshua’s Highrise for Profit

T B Joshua is called The Prophet and Man of God. But only by the desperate, the credulous and those who stand to benefit from his massive fraud scheme.

The organization Joshua heads know as Synagogue Church of All Nations (Scoan), can not be regarded as anything but a very lucrative racket that preys on the questionable beliefs of ordinary people. And it’s based in Nigeria which is arguably synonymous with fraud.

Last week a guesthouse on the Scoan property collapsed, killing over 100 worshippers, 84 of whom were South Africans. It is alleged that the building collapsed because additional floors were being added without reinforcing the foundations. The allegation appears to be credible especially since, Joshua has gone to great lengths to claim that the building was sabotaged by his enemies. This week his television network took out a full-page advertisement in a Lagos daily newspaper asking for an investigation that would “bring to book all those involved in the obvious terror attack (on) the church aimed at not only embarrassing and discrediting prophet T.B. Joshua… but the entire nation of Nigeria.”

The fraudster prophet claimed that a plane flying overhead had something to do with the collapse, with some reports stating that Joshua specifically mentioned Boko Haram, an Islamist organization that is terrorizing certain parts of Nigeria, being involved. He even released a CCTV surveillance video which supposedly shows planes flying at low altitude over the building around the time of the collapse.

A fellow skeptic pointed out last week that the Lagos airport is just a few kilometers away from the church complex, which seems to indicate that airplane activity over the building would be quite normal. This makes a mockery of the claim that an aircraft caused the building to collapse, since it is becoming clear after rescue operations, that the addition of floors to the structure was not done in the prescribed manner. Further, it is unlikely that the savages known as Boko Haram could have access to aircraft, being well-known as a guerilla “army” more adept at slaughtering innocent civilians around the jungles on terra firma.

What is disconcerting is the absolute lack of outrage from the Nigerian government. T B Joshua it would appear is well-connected. It would not be surprising is the announced investigation clears him of all responsibility. It would be yet another blight (in an amazingly long list) on religion if he is not found culpable, not to mention an insult to those who lost their lives in this tragedy.

On the not-worth-talking-about scale

A 5.5 magnitude earthquake struck South Africa today around lunch time. Originating in Orkney in the North West Province, the tremors were felt in large parts of the country and even in neighbouring Botswana and Mozambique.

I felt it in my office while on a conference call and just looked up at the ceiling. I’ll bet many others looked up at the ceiling too. Probably a normal reaction, that. It’s being reported as one of the biggest to hit South Africa. Seems there wasn’t too much damage, except for the unlucky guy who died after a wall apparently collapsed on him.

Up here on the Reef, we live directly above working mines and tremors from mining activity is quite normal. Sometimes in the dead of night, I can swear I hear the locomotives running deep underground in the mine tunnels. But this was a real quake, albeit not much worth talking about when compared to the recent disaster in China.

In other not worth talking about news, I discovered today that there’s a random dude from South Africa who’s following my blog. What’s not worth talking about though is his blog which spews the kind of bigotry I rant about here on my own blog. Seems he’s a homophobic, patriarchal, anti-feminist, religious ANC supporter.

Not sure I want his kind following my blog. Get thee gone bigot.

And finally, it’s being reported that the ANC Women’s League (ANCWL) is losing its relevancy. That to me is not entirely correct. Presided over by Angie Motshekga, this woeful organization lost its relevancy a long time ago. They were merely going through the motions of being constituted, whereas all they were doing was supporting the puerile ambitions of power-hungry ANC men, and furthering the patriarchal agenda.

It is widely said that Motshekga single-handedly destroyed South Africa’s education system. Perhaps a bit of an exaggeration, but she most certainly played a huge role in dumbing it down, and still does. And her feats of maladministration in the Education Ministry are now legendary.

The cremation of the ANCWL will not come soon enough, and hopefully we won’t have to suffer the presence of Angie in Education much longer too.

This time it’s for real, and you can bet your ticket to heaven on it…

Image via Wikipedia

So May 21, the day of the Rapture passed us by with only a small volcano eruption in Iceland to show for it. There was off course the more tragic tornado ripping through Joplin, Missouri in the USA a day later, but even the most optimistic Rapture devotee will find that to be a rather abysmal display of the Christian god’s wrath, as predicted by the now infamous Harold Camping.

I think by now most people who predicted that the Rapture would not happen are smugly making fun of Harold Camping and his credulous supporters – and rightly so. They are collectively responsible for spreading an ideology that undoubtedly is going to have severe repercussions for a lot of people; mostly those who fell for it. But it did provide hours of fun for the rest of us and for that we’re awfully thankful.

Considering that it’s not the first time he’s done something like this, it’s no wonder that so many people are not only calling Camping a fraudster and demanding that he reimburse those who donated money to him, but some are actually demanding that he be prosecuted criminally as well.

It must therefore come as something of a shock with Camping now claiming that the world will actually be ending on October 21, 2011. But an even bigger shock is that many of his followers who were naive enough to believe him the first two times, are actually going to believe him yet again. I don’t know whether to despise them even more, or take pity on them.

Perhaps its best to just let them continue thinking that the Rapture did indeed occur on May 21, and that the Christian god, finding nobody who qualified for ascension into his version of Heaven this time, have given them all a reprieve until October 21, when he will return to exact real vengeance and perhaps cause a few more volcanos to erupt, even extinct ones.

Somehow, I expect Camping to still have many delusional followers even after this, even if he’s found criminally liable in the interim.

Turning Japanese

It’s just amazing and truly inspiring how the Japanese have maintained their demeanour and poise in the face of the massive tragedy they are currently facing in earthquake, tsunami and nuclear disaster-ravaged Japan.

I’m trying to imagine South Africans maintaining that level of decorum and all I visualize is people running around like headless chickens, looting, behaving selfishly; the government authorities clueless and unresponsive.

In tribute to these remarkable men, women and children, I dedicate the song Turning Japanese by Liz Phair. It was originally recorded by the Vapors, but I’m partial to this cover by Liz.

The world would surely be a better place if everyone turned Japanese…

Turning Japanese

I’ve got your picture
Of me and you
You wrote “I love you”
I love you too
I sit there staring and there’s nothing else to do
Oh it’s in color
Your hair is brown
Your eyes are hazel
And soft as clouds
I often kiss you when there’s no one else around
I’ve got your picture, I’ve got your picture
I’d like a million of them all ’round my cell
I asked the doctor to take your picture
So I can look at you from inside as well
You’ve got me turning up and turning down and turning in and
     turning ’round
I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
I’ve got your picture, I’ve got your picture
I’d like a million of them all ’round my cell
I want the doctor to take your picture
So I can look at you from inside as well
You’ve got me turning up and turning down and turning in and
I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
No sex, no drugs, no wine, no women
No fun, no sin, no you, no wonder it’s dark
Everyone around me is a total stranger
Everyone avoids me like a psyched lone ranger
Everyone
That’s why I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
I’m turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so
     (think so think so think so)
Turning Japanese I think I’m turning Japanese I really think so

Disaster free? Not quite!

With the heart-wrenching images of the aftermath of the massive earthquake to hit Japan streaming in on every possible medium, I’m comforted that South Africa is not situated on or near any major geological fault lines that would make us also susceptible to these types of disasters.

But we do have our own fault lines in the form of a long line of crazy asshole politicians hell-bent on destroying the country. Yes, you guessed right! The ANC are the only major disaster South Africa has to worry about.

Fortunately it is a man-made one; one which can be mitigated, perhaps even without the destruction associated with disasters.

Just what the Haitians need right now…talking bibles and quack medicine!!!

You’ve got to hand it to religious do-gooder’s. While Relief Organizations are scrambling to get food, water and medical supplies into earthquake-ravaged Haiti, a US-based Christian group known as Faith Comes By Hearing is pulling out all stops to send a batch of solar-powered audio bibles, instead.

Known as the Proclaimer, the device is apparently capable of broadcasting sermons in Haitian Creole, for up to 15 hours on a single charge. Presumably it’s designed to keep your mind off food for 15 hours while you listen to sermons droning on incessantly about how grateful you should be to be alive, and how you need to submit unquestioningly to god’s love and mercy. Well, done FCBH, you guys are making great strides……………..at proselytizing to vulnerable minds.

On a related note, actor John Travolta used his own private jet to fly in food supplies, doctors and…. Scientology Ministers, to Haiti last week. It’s still unclear why the doctors went along, as the Scientology Ministers are reputed to practice a process of healing called “assist” which is administered through “touching.” While other celebrities chose to direct donations through regular Relief Organizations, John and his cultish Scientologist friends chose to be more ostentatious in their efforts.

I guess it never hurts to use any and every opportunity to market your particular brand of mind control.

Remember, good people, there is no need to clog up the Haitian runways with your private jets, or jam the airwaves with messages of false hope; support the Relief efforts in Haiti using accredited organizations such as The American Red Cross, Oxfam or Doctors Without Borders.

And the sickness continues…

In my last post, I wrote about the level of sickness that makes certain Christians marvel at the power of a god who can prevent a cross-shaped block of concrete from destruction in an earthquake, but is somehow powerless to stop the death of flesh-and-blood human beings.

I’ve recently received a follow-up e-mail about the Haitian earthquake which just proves that these people are so ensconced in their religious fantasy world, that they are incapable of seeing how insensitive these mails are to the victims of that disaster. The despicable contents of the mail should leave all clear-thinking people infuriated:

Lord, I just want to say THANK YOU, because this morning  I woke up and knew where my children were. Because this morning my home was still standing, because this morning  I am not crying because my husband, my child, my brother or sister needs to be buried out from underneath a pile of concrete, because this morning I was able to drink a glass of water, because this morning I was able to turn on the light, because this morning I was able to take a shower, because this morning I was not planning a funeral,  but most of all I thank  you this morning because I still have life and a voice to cry  out for the people of Haiti. Lord I cry out to you, the one that makes the impossible, possible, the one that turns darkness in to light, I cry out that you give those mothers strength, that  you give them peace that surpasses all understanding, that  you may open the streets so that help can come, that you may provide doctors, nurses, food, water, and all that they need in a blink of an eye. For all those that have  lost family members, give them peace, give them hope, give them courage to continue to go on! Protect the children and shield them with your power.
I pray all this in the name of Jesus!!!

To all my friends please continue to forward this so that we can pray together for the people in Haiti .
We here are truly blessed!!!!!

Surely you would have to be brain-dead to not question how it is possible for the “one who makes the impossible, possible,” to somehow lack the power to prevent this catastrophic orgy of death and destruction. Surely the average person can see how grossly insensitive it would be for an all-powerful entity to now “open the streets so that help can come” to those, said entity abandoned to the fury of mother nature.

What kind of piss-poor belief system makes a person actually think that prayer can magically provide “doctors, nurses, food, water” and even “in a blink of an eye?”

How is it possible for people to have so little self-respect, and an utter sense of worthlessness, by spending their lives grovelling on their knees, in dumb-struck awe of a sick ideology?

There are some truly sick Christians out there…

As the death toll from the horrific earthquake that devastated Haiti last week rises above 100 000 people, Relief Agencies and Charities together with ordinary people are busy rallying to bring sorely needed aid to the survivors. And while some Christians such as Pat Robertson make crass statements about how the Haitians deserved it, others have found sordid ways to use it to strengthen their misguided religious conviction.

An example is the one-liner e-mail I received earlier today from a Christian cousin. With Haiti in the subject line, the contents allude to a photograph being  attached or embedded, but in the obvious glee with which it was sent out, he seems to have forgotten to attach it:

After the horrific earthquake, the cross is still standing .....not even a crack....!

My first reaction was one of utter disgust. Later, I attempted to find the source of this mail on-line, and eventually came across what was obviously the missing photograph, which was originally posted here.

Off course there is no way of knowing if the photograph is actually from Haiti after the destruction caused by the earthquake (except if you actually bother to go over there to check for yourself), but that is besides the point. The problem is that the e-mail conveys a message that these Christians care more about a symbol of their religion, than the thousands who lost their lives, and the survivors who have lost everything else.

So, being a sarcastic bastard myself, I could not resist replying as follows:

Wonderful, isn’t it? 100 000 people dead (killed?), but a disgusting symbol of torture stands untouched. Your god has a remarkable sense of humor, doesn’t he? So what’s he got planned for next month? A volcano eruption maybe? Hurricanes are cool too!!! Boy what fun he’ll have, watching all those sinners flying about in the wind? Who knows, maybe this time he’ll leave an entire church or temple still standing untouched. Yeah, can’t wait for his next “loving” act!!!

Off course, there are a lot of good Christian people out there who do not need crude reassurances to sustain their belief. Most likely you would find a good number of these people very involved in the relief effort already. For those not yet involved, and other kind people, contributions to the humanitarian effort in Haiti can be made to Oxfam America.