Recovery Cult, follow up
jeffd
names that I know of, Building a Solid Foundation, Power of Prayer
Foundation, and Building a Better Life Foundation. These seem to be
frauds, variations on a pyramid scam. They want to recruit as many
people as possible to solicit as many donations as possible.
It all seems to have originated in Oakland, but now one of their
addresses is in San Jose. The reason for all the names and all the
addresses and that most of the donations solicitors don't seem to know
what the others are doing is that it is a pyramid. There are always
layers of plausible deniability for the top leaders.
Pyramid scams are always cults first. It all derives from
Pentecostalism. So most of the members really believe there is
nothing wrong with it. The cult demands total submission to the group
consciousness, referred to by the name "Jesus Christ".
Mainline Protestantism continues to dwindle, but Pentecostals can
start churches and television networks and they grow geometrically.
They have organizations like Church Growth Inc. and Vision360 which
provide the technologies to do this.
This Recovery pyramid seems to have emerged as a spin off of Teen
Challenge USA. This group is not really a pyramid scam, but it is a
cult. Its is written about on Rick Ross. Leaders shout Bible versus
at people and throw Bibles at them.
The premise of it all is that its a treatment program for alcoholics
and drug addicts. This is what originally set me off about it. They
promote the idea common in Recovery and Evangelical circles that
addicts use because they are sinful, rebellious against God, and so
they have some special need to submit and make lists of faults and
make amends.
I know that this is not true. People who have been treated with
dignity and respect and given the chance to develop and apply their
abilities are not likely to become substance addicts.
But because so many have not been treated with dignity and respect,
and because even less have been given the chance to develop and apply
their abilities, we have lots and lots of addicts. We also have cults
which prey upon them and replace one addiction with another, often
know as "Getting Saved".
So I started talking to their solicitors, for a total of 8 now.
Number 6 was the quintessential con artist. Number 7 had a cardboard
box he had flattened out and written on as his sign. He didn't even
know the name of the group he was working for. The second night I
talked to him I let him try to recruit me, to work that night. He
said he had another donations box in his duffel bag. He said I needed
to call the boss and that I should ask for 50%. I asked him if the
cut is negotiable. He said yes it is. I also asked him if he or the
boss held the key to padlocks on the boxes. He said he did. He also
wasn't giving people receipts.
I had been talking with Police that afternoon because I couldn't sleep
after my first meeting with this #7. They were trying to blow me
off. But this second time they did not. They routed #7, a girl with
Teen Challenge USA, and someone from the Salvation Army. They all
were in violation of the city permit ordinance.
I've since been waiting for city offices to open. I talked with the
permit office today. She was shocked. None of this stuff has permits
except that Teen Challenge might. I explained that Teen Challenge is
well established, but it still is a cult. Collecting money for a
treatment program when it is a cult is still fraud. But the others
are 100% fraud.
She set me up to talk with the Police Sergeant in the days ahead.
I'll be writing to the other cities and to the State AG, and to the
IRS.
follow up information will be posted here, so keep checking this.
Subscribe if you like.
http://recovery-scams-n-cults.blogspot.com/
Observers have said that a big factor in drawing persons to Jim Jones
and his People's Temple is just the simple fact that here in the US we
lack universal health care access.
I think that factors in drawing people to pyramid scams,
Pentecostalism, and other types of cults today are the lack of health
care access, jobs but limited career opportunities, and our defunded
public education system.
Jeff
Chaka Khan, Stanley Clarke, Herbie Hancock
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=9urd9Mc5kOg