Soliciting Opinions

[e***@aol.com]

Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?

Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

Or heard about the accusations of plagiarism and the many illustrated examples?

I would like to ask some people whom I don't know about what do they think about such things. To see if it really matters to them, or is not a big deal.

Following is part of a quote from a poster on the group where I came from.

"On the comment about the people not aware of any of this, they are NOT my concern or responsibility, if they need to find out, then they can do so very easily, by simply searching. No one is required to hand them the information, Not Eckankar, not Harold Klemp, not anyone. There is no law making finding out any of these things illegal either! Everyone has the freedom to look. But your reference to those that don't know happens to be an assumption, which is another way of saying an unconfirmed opinion. Demanding that it is fact repeatedly will NEVER make it true! Despite THAT fact, I have no problem with you believing that 100%. Have at it! But stop proselytizing about it! Other people's opinions are THEIRS to choose with, not yours."

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.religion.eckankar/080LKL9LmrI

That was a response to the following words by me (responding about sources of plagiarism).

"And the other people? your friends who read the posts here? Old news to all of them too?

How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is not old news to you, but not to them."

(Typo. Should read: "How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is old news to you, but not to them?")

So I'm trying to get opinions (if anybody wants to give some) to see what they might be from people who are not aware of any of this.

Generally speaking, I've been involved with research and discussions about plagiarisms and crediting information to so-called ancient masters - One being Rebazar Tarzs, a Tibetan, said to be over 500 years old. As a part of the discussion one person suggested that all this proves is plagiarism, but not that the masters are fictional. (Something also suggested a number of times was the idea that people already know about this and it's no big deal to them.)

My question the other day was "How about the people not aware about any of this?"

So I picked a Google Group at random (this is the second one) and decided to solicit opinions about this subject (since the 1st group did not comment yet); of a religion whose books suggested certain information came from masters, when it now appears evident a lot of the information can be found in library books too.

If anybody would care to reply at the alt.religion.eckankar newsgroup just go here.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/alt.religion.eckankar

And if anybody wants to seriously research the examples of plagiarism that I am referring to, one way to do this is search that newsgroup's archives for keyword 41391720.

Example:

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/alt.religion.eckankar/41391720

***

P.S. Apologies for entering this group at random, but I wanted to do an experiment and see what other people might think. If anybody has time and would like to offer a sincere opinion, please do.

[e***@aol.com]

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.
Or heard about the accusations of plagiarism and the many illustrated examples?
I would like to ask some people whom I don't know about what do they think about such things. To see if it really matters to them, or is not a big deal.
Following is part of a quote from a poster on the group where I came from.
"On the comment about the people not aware of any of this, they are NOT my concern or responsibility, if they need to find out, then they can do so very easily, by simply searching. No one is required to hand them the information, Not Eckankar, not Harold Klemp, not anyone. There is no law making finding out any of these things illegal either! Everyone has the freedom to look. But your reference to those that don't know happens to be an assumption, which is another way of saying an unconfirmed opinion. Demanding that it is fact repeatedly will NEVER make it true! Despite THAT fact, I have no problem with you believing that 100%. Have at it! But stop proselytizing about it! Other people's opinions are THEIRS to choose with, not yours."
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.religion.eckankar/080LKL9LmrI
That was a response to the following words by me (responding about sources of plagiarism).
"And the other people? your friends who read the posts here? Old news to all of them too?
How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is not old news to you, but not to them."
(Typo. Should read: "How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is old news to you, but not to them?")
So I'm trying to get opinions (if anybody wants to give some) to see what they might be from people who are not aware of any of this.
Generally speaking, I've been involved with research and discussions about plagiarisms and crediting information to so-called ancient masters - One being Rebazar Tarzs, a Tibetan, said to be over 500 years old. As a part of the discussion one person suggested that all this proves is plagiarism, but not that the masters are fictional. (Something also suggested a number of times was the idea that people already know about this and it's no big deal to them.)
My question the other day was "How about the people not aware about any of this?"
So I picked a Google Group at random (this is the second one) and decided to solicit opinions about this subject (since the 1st group did not comment yet); of a religion whose books suggested certain information came from masters, when it now appears evident a lot of the information can be found in library books too.
If anybody would care to reply at the alt.religion.eckankar newsgroup just go here.
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/alt.religion.eckankar
And if anybody wants to seriously research the examples of plagiarism that I am referring to, one way to do this is search that newsgroup's archives for keyword 41391720.
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/alt.religion.eckankar/41391720
***
P.S. Apologies for entering this group at random, but I wanted to do an experiment and see what other people might think. If anybody has time and would like to offer a sincere opinion, please do.

But a tiny example.

https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/alt.religion.eckankar/41391720/alt.religion.eckankar/UNvwRqEHBlc/h2fcSAo7yG4J

[John Ritson]

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient
masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.
Or heard about the accusations of plagiarism and the many illustrated examples?
I would like to ask some people whom I don't know about what do they think about
such things. To see if it really matters to them, or is not a big deal.
Following is part of a quote from a poster on the group where I came from.
"On the comment about the people not aware of any of this, they are NOT my
concern or responsibility, if they need to find out, then they can do so very
easily, by simply searching. No one is required to hand them the information,
Not Eckankar, not Harold Klemp, not anyone. There is no law making finding out
any of these things illegal either! Everyone has the freedom to look. But your
reference to those that don't know happens to be an assumption, which is another
way of saying an unconfirmed opinion. Demanding that it is fact repeatedly will
NEVER make it true! Despite THAT fact, I have no problem with you believing that
100%. Have at it! But stop proselytizing about it! Other people's opinions are
THEIRS to choose with, not yours."
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.religion.eckankar/080LKL9LmrI
That was a response to the following words by me (responding about sources of plagiarism).
"And the other people? your friends who read the posts here? Old news to all of them too?
How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is not old news to
you, but not to them."
(Typo. Should read: "How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it
is old news to you, but not to them?")
So I'm trying to get opinions (if anybody wants to give some) to see what they
might be from people who are not aware of any of this.
Generally speaking, I've been involved with research and discussions about
plagiarisms and crediting information to so-called ancient masters - One being
Rebazar Tarzs, a Tibetan, said to be over 500 years old. As a part of the
discussion one person suggested that all this proves is plagiarism, but not that
the masters are fictional. (Something also suggested a number of times was the
idea that people already know about this and it's no big deal to them.)
My question the other day was "How about the people not aware about any of this?"

My understanding is that the founder of Eckankar, Paul Twitchell,
originally claimed to have been taught by a real but obscure Indian
'master' called Kirpal Singh.
After Twitchell had gained a critical mass of followers, he ditched
Kirpal Singh, and rewrote his works to claim instead that his 'master'
was Rebazar Tarzs, a character who appears nowhere outside Eckankar
writings.

[e***@aol.com]

Post by John Ritson

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient
masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.
Or heard about the accusations of plagiarism and the many illustrated examples?
I would like to ask some people whom I don't know about what do they think about
such things. To see if it really matters to them, or is not a big deal.
Following is part of a quote from a poster on the group where I came from.
"On the comment about the people not aware of any of this, they are NOT my
concern or responsibility, if they need to find out, then they can do so very
easily, by simply searching. No one is required to hand them the information,
Not Eckankar, not Harold Klemp, not anyone. There is no law making finding out
any of these things illegal either! Everyone has the freedom to look. But your
reference to those that don't know happens to be an assumption, which is another
way of saying an unconfirmed opinion. Demanding that it is fact repeatedly will
NEVER make it true! Despite THAT fact, I have no problem with you believing that
100%. Have at it! But stop proselytizing about it! Other people's opinions are
THEIRS to choose with, not yours."
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.religion.eckankar/080LKL9LmrI
That was a response to the following words by me (responding about sources of
plagiarism).
"And the other people? your friends who read the posts here? Old news to all of them too?
How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is not old news to
you, but not to them."
(Typo. Should read: "How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it
is old news to you, but not to them?")
So I'm trying to get opinions (if anybody wants to give some) to see what they
might be from people who are not aware of any of this.
Generally speaking, I've been involved with research and discussions about
plagiarisms and crediting information to so-called ancient masters - One being
Rebazar Tarzs, a Tibetan, said to be over 500 years old. As a part of the
discussion one person suggested that all this proves is plagiarism, but not that
the masters are fictional. (Something also suggested a number of times was the
idea that people already know about this and it's no big deal to them.)
My question the other day was "How about the people not aware about any of this?"

My understanding is that the founder of Eckankar, Paul Twitchell,
originally claimed to have been taught by a real but obscure Indian
'master' called Kirpal Singh.
After Twitchell had gained a critical mass of followers, he ditched
Kirpal Singh, and rewrote his works to claim instead that his 'master'
was Rebazar Tarzs, a character who appears nowhere outside Eckankar
writings.
--
John Ritson

Besides examples of the name Kirpal Singh evidently changing to Rebazar Tarzs, there are numerous other people and authors whom Rebazar Tarzs appears to speak the same as, or plagiarize.

However, a counter argument exists that the plagiarisms prove only plagiarism and do not invalidate Eckankar masters like Rebazar Tarzs from being 'real".

[John Ritson]

Post by e***@aol.com
Besides examples of the name Kirpal Singh evidently changing to Rebazar Tarzs,
there are numerous other people and authors whom Rebazar Tarzs appears to speak
the same as, or plagiarize.
However, a counter argument exists that the plagiarisms prove only plagiarism
and do not invalidate Eckankar masters like Rebazar Tarzs from being 'real".

The trouble is that plagiarism is lying - about the source of the texts
- and being caught lying is generally considered bad form for a
religious 'master'.
Apologists may try and dismiss lying as 'pious falsehood' committed in
pursuit of some greater good, but it destroys credibility.
"You lied to us then, why should we believe you now?"

[m***@gmail.com]

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Post by e***@aol.com
Or heard about the accusations of plagiarism and the many illustrated examples?
I would like to ask some people whom I don't know about what do they think about such things. To see if it really matters to them, or is not a big deal.
Following is part of a quote from a poster on the group where I came from.
"On the comment about the people not aware of any of this, they are NOT my concern or responsibility, if they need to find out, then they can do so very easily, by simply searching. No one is required to hand them the information, Not Eckankar, not Harold Klemp, not anyone. There is no law making finding out any of these things illegal either! Everyone has the freedom to look. But your reference to those that don't know happens to be an assumption, which is another way of saying an unconfirmed opinion. Demanding that it is fact repeatedly will NEVER make it true! Despite THAT fact, I have no problem with you believing that 100%. Have at it! But stop proselytizing about it! Other people's opinions are THEIRS to choose with, not yours."
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!topic/alt.religion.eckankar/080LKL9LmrI
That was a response to the following words by me (responding about sources of plagiarism).
"And the other people? your friends who read the posts here? Old news to all of them too?
How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is not old news to you, but not to them."
(Typo. Should read: "How about the people not aware about any of this? Maybe it is old news to you, but not to them?")
So I'm trying to get opinions (if anybody wants to give some) to see what they might be from people who are not aware of any of this.
Generally speaking, I've been involved with research and discussions about plagiarisms and crediting information to so-called ancient masters - One being Rebazar Tarzs, a Tibetan, said to be over 500 years old. As a part of the discussion one person suggested that all this proves is plagiarism, but not that the masters are fictional. (Something also suggested a number of times was the idea that people already know about this and it's no big deal to them.)
My question the other day was "How about the people not aware about any of this?"
So I picked a Google Group at random (this is the second one) and decided to solicit opinions about this subject (since the 1st group did not comment yet); of a religion whose books suggested certain information came from masters, when it now appears evident a lot of the information can be found in library books too.
If anybody would care to reply at the alt.religion.eckankar newsgroup just go here.
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!forum/alt.religion.eckankar
And if anybody wants to seriously research the examples of plagiarism that I am referring to, one way to do this is search that newsgroup's archives for keyword 41391720.
https://groups.google.com/forum/#!searchin/alt.religion.eckankar/41391720
***
P.S. Apologies for entering this group at random, but I wanted to do an experiment and see what other people might think. If anybody has time and would like to offer a sincere opinion, please do.

[Bob Casanova]

On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics

Or you could ask a televangelist...

[george152]

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

[Bob Casanova]

On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

[BruceS]

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

[Bob Casanova]

On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:37:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

True, but that's effectively true of all non-profits; try to
get info on the CEO of United Way.

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

I suspect that greed and lust for power, while certainly
factors in some, weren't for all. Guatama, for example.

[BruceS]

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:37:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

True, but that's effectively true of all non-profits; try to
get info on the CEO of United Way.

I don't know about *all* non-profits, but yes, United Way is a scam to
enrich a few at the expense of many. I've worked for employers who had
UW campaigns, and there was an implication that "generous" employees
were seen as better, possibly getting better raises & promotions.

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

I suspect that greed and lust for power, while certainly
factors in some, weren't for all. Guatama, for example.

I had to look that one up. "Gautama", a variant of Buddhism? You're
right though; different religions were created for different reasons,
not all of them as selfish and cynical as some.

[Bob Casanova]

On Sun, 28 Jun 2015 16:07:45 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:37:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

True, but that's effectively true of all non-profits; try to
get info on the CEO of United Way.

I don't know about *all* non-profits, but yes, United Way is a scam to
enrich a few at the expense of many. I've worked for employers who had
UW campaigns, and there was an implication that "generous" employees
were seen as better, possibly getting better raises & promotions.

I stopped contributing when I learned, after quite a bit of
effort (they didn't want to talk about it) that there were 7
organizations to which donations were "guaranteed" by UW,
and that if enough people designated their donations to go
to others that those "guarantees" couldn't be met UW would
simply ignore the designations without notice. And they
adamantly refused to disclose their salary structure.

The American Red Cross was another one; when I was stationed
in Beaufort SC I talked with some who were stationed at Canp
Lejeune; when they were helping fight a forest fire the ARC
showed up and *sold* them coffee and donuts.

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

I suspect that greed and lust for power, while certainly
factors in some, weren't for all. Guatama, for example.

I had to look that one up. "Gautama", a variant of Buddhism? You're
right though; different religions were created for different reasons,
not all of them as selfish and cynical as some.

Gautama...

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha

was the founder of Buddhism, not a "variant". Sorry about
the typo in his name. Or should that be "hte typo"? ;-)

[BruceS]

Post by Bob Casanova
On Sun, 28 Jun 2015 16:07:45 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:37:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

True, but that's effectively true of all non-profits; try to
get info on the CEO of United Way.

I don't know about *all* non-profits, but yes, United Way is a scam to
enrich a few at the expense of many. I've worked for employers who had
UW campaigns, and there was an implication that "generous" employees
were seen as better, possibly getting better raises & promotions.

I stopped contributing when I learned, after quite a bit of
effort (they didn't want to talk about it) that there were 7
organizations to which donations were "guaranteed" by UW,
and that if enough people designated their donations to go
to others that those "guarantees" couldn't be met UW would
simply ignore the designations without notice. And they
adamantly refused to disclose their salary structure.
The American Red Cross was another one; when I was stationed
in Beaufort SC I talked with some who were stationed at Canp
Lejeune; when they were helping fight a forest fire the ARC
showed up and *sold* them coffee and donuts.

LOL, seriously? How thoughtful and charitable of them! I knew a guy
who *hated* the Red Cross because they had some role in presenting the
Nazi concentration camps as nice, comfortable places, and he was one of
the GIs at the gates when they were liberated.

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

I suspect that greed and lust for power, while certainly
factors in some, weren't for all. Guatama, for example.

I had to look that one up. "Gautama", a variant of Buddhism? You're
right though; different religions were created for different reasons,
not all of them as selfish and cynical as some.

Gautama...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha
was the founder of Buddhism, not a "variant". Sorry about
the typo in his name. Or should that be "hte typo"? ;-)

Ah, I thought there were a bunch of variants of Buddhism, and that was
just one of them. I'm not very familiar with it (not a lot of interest
in religion), but I had the impression there were a bunch of different
Buddhas even.

[Bob Casanova]

On Mon, 29 Jun 2015 13:36:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Sun, 28 Jun 2015 16:07:45 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 15:37:11 -0600, the following appeared

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
On Fri, 26 Jun 2015 08:40:50 +1200, the following appeared

Post by george152

Post by Bob Casanova
On Wed, 24 Jun 2015 11:03:10 -0700 (PDT), the following

Post by m***@gmail.com

Post by e***@aol.com
Recently I wrote something with regard to plagiarized texts credited to ancient masters belonging to the religion called Eckankar?
Has anybody here heard of Eckankar? It's a non-profit religion.

A non-profit religion???? LOL... What would a profit religion look like?

Something like this?
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Dianetics
Or you could ask a televangelist...

I don't know if it's the case for them all, but some of them hide their
profits and pose as non-profit organizations. The "church" can own all
the property, leaving the leader(s) on-paper paupers but in control of
all the wealth.

True, but that's effectively true of all non-profits; try to
get info on the CEO of United Way.

I don't know about *all* non-profits, but yes, United Way is a scam to
enrich a few at the expense of many. I've worked for employers who had
UW campaigns, and there was an implication that "generous" employees
were seen as better, possibly getting better raises & promotions.

I stopped contributing when I learned, after quite a bit of
effort (they didn't want to talk about it) that there were 7
organizations to which donations were "guaranteed" by UW,
and that if enough people designated their donations to go
to others that those "guarantees" couldn't be met UW would
simply ignore the designations without notice. And they
adamantly refused to disclose their salary structure.
The American Red Cross was another one; when I was stationed
in Beaufort SC I talked with some who were stationed at Canp

Aargghhhh. "Camp"

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova
Lejeune; when they were helping fight a forest fire the ARC
showed up and *sold* them coffee and donuts.

LOL, seriously? How thoughtful and charitable of them!

That was my take on it, too.

Post by BruceS
I knew a guy
who *hated* the Red Cross because they had some role in presenting the
Nazi concentration camps as nice, comfortable places, and he was one of
the GIs at the gates when they were liberated.

To be fair, they were probably fooled by a "Potemkin
village" type of setup:

https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Potemkin_village

Usually fairly easy to do when the perpetrators can control
access...

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by BruceS

Post by Bob Casanova

Post by george152
There I was thinking that religions were started by "prophets' for profit

Other than Dianetics, which was allegedly the result of a
bet...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Bar_bet (note the comment
beginning "It is widely believed...")

Bet or not, I'm not buying into a religion unless a *much* better sci-fi
writer invents it.

Post by Bob Casanova
...I have no idea what fostered the beginnings of any
religion, although my comment about televangelists applies
to many of the current crop.

Greed, lust for power, and what's that condition common among
schizophrenics where they see patterns?

I suspect that greed and lust for power, while certainly
factors in some, weren't for all. Guatama, for example.

I had to look that one up. "Gautama", a variant of Buddhism? You're
right though; different religions were created for different reasons,
not all of them as selfish and cynical as some.

Gautama...
https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Gautama_Buddha
was the founder of Buddhism, not a "variant". Sorry about
the typo in his name. Or should that be "hte typo"? ;-)

Ah, I thought there were a bunch of variants of Buddhism, and that was
just one of them. I'm not very familiar with it (not a lot of interest
in religion), but I had the impression there were a bunch of different
Buddhas even.

AFAIK there are multiple "schools" of Buddhism with minor
differences, but all acknowledge only one Buddha, sort of
analogous to the various Christian or Islamic sects. The
distinction seems to be that the Buddhists, unlike the
Christians and Islamics, never fought civil wars over the
differences.