#Texas church loans

[texascommercial]

Building for Success: The Ins and Outs of Commercial Construction Loans

Businesses need commercial construction loans to create new facilities and expand existing ones. These loans give the money needed to establish commercial structures, such as shops, offices, warehouses, and more.

Loans for Commercial Construction: An Overview

Loans specifically created for enterprises looking to develop new commercial structures or remodel existing ones are known as commercial construction loans. These loans, which often have short terms, offer finance for the project's building period. Businesses typically convert the loan into a permanent mortgage once the work is finished.

Commercial construction loans are more complicated and paper-intensive than residential building loans. Lenders will evaluate the borrower's creditworthiness, financial history, and project viability. They will also need a thorough building plan with estimated costs and completion dates.

Types of loans for commercial construction

Businesses have a variety of commercial construction financing options to pick from:

Ground-Up Construction Credit: Companies looking to develop a brand-new commercial building from the ground up are eligible for this type of credit. It includes the price of the land, building supplies, and labor.

Loans for renovation and construction are available to companies looking to update an existing commercial structure. It covers all remodeling expenses, such as brand-new flooring, paint, and fixtures.

Businesses looking to buy and refurbish an existing commercial facility might apply for bridge construction financing. It offers money for both the building's acquisition and rehabilitation.

How to Be Eligible for Loans for Commercial Construction

A solid financial history and creditworthiness are requirements for firms to be approved for Texas church loans. The construction project's viability and profitability must also be shown.

Lenders will want a comprehensive construction plan including cost projections, schedules for development, and estimated returns on investment. To secure the loan, they will also need collateral, such as the property or the structure.

Final Reflections

For firms looking to develop or remodel commercial buildings, commercial construction loans are crucial. They contribute the money needed to finish the project's construction phase. However, to be eligible for these loans, enterprises must fulfill particular standards. To improve your chances of receiving approval for a commercial construction loan, you must collaborate with a reliable lender and have a thorough building plan.

[gaykarstaagforever]

Wild West World is the shortest-lived theme park, at a month and 4 days.

Apparently starting a theme park in Kansas in the middle of a mud pit is not a good idea.

Good to know the American legal system is such that you can go to jail repeatedly for being a conman who steals millions from hundreds, and when you got caught you abandoned your family and fled to South America and then Canada (where you stole even more money), and the Justice Department STILL lets you out every presidential election to just do it again.

Also, apparently, convictions for securities fraud and running Ponzi schemes doesn't disqualify you immediately from getting tens of millions of dollars in loans and investments from banks and international private equity firms. Good to know.

This guy also basically started a church specifically to grift money from people. ...Who were well-aware of his past, but gave him $800,000 anyway.

Any time this idiot is confronted about any of this, he yells that he is a cowboy and ya'll don't understand. Which is a weird thing for the son from a rich family, who has spent most of his life traveling to countries with weak financial laws to do business with stolen money, to claim. But apparently the Government accepts this as a legal defense regardless, if you are wearing a cowboy hat at the time.

After he got out of jail the last time, he moved to Texas and convinced a rich family to give him money to run an alpaca farm. That he markets through his own children.

I guess I just don't understand cowboys. Or America.

...Or, you know, this is the sort of shit that happens when your country values your male whiteness over how many laws you've broken this week.

If this doesn't piss you off, I don't know what will.

[rjzimmerman]

Excerpt from this story from DeSmog Blog:

With its unparalleled purchasing power and exacting demands, fast food has long shaped agricultural systems in the United States, Europe, and China. But as major American fast food brands, like KFC, expand into so-called “frontier markets,” taxpayer-funded development banks have made their global expansion possible by underwriting the factory farms that supply them with chicken, a DeSmog investigation has found. 

In all, the investigation identified five factory-scale poultry companies in as many countries that have received financial support from the International Finance Corporation (IFC, the private-sector lending arm of the World Bank Group), the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development (EBRD), or both since 2003, and that supply chicken to KFC. A sixth company has benefited from IFC advisory services but has not received financing. 

A review of press accounts, financial disclosures, and the companies’ websites shows this support aided these firms’ KFC-linked operations in up to 13 countries in Asia, Africa, and Europe. 

In Kazakhstan, both banks helped a Soviet-era poultry factory become a KFC supplier. In 2011, the IFC lent poultry company Ust-Kamenogorsk Poultry (UKPF) invested $2 million in refurbishing housing for chickens, among other projects. In 2016, the EBRD made a $20 million equity investment in the company’s parent, Aitas, to finance the construction of a new facility to raise and process poultry. In 2018, two years after announcing the financing deal, UKPF revealed it had become a supplier to KFC in Kazakhstan. The EBRD sold its stake in the company in 2019. 

In South Africa, the IFC helped one KFC supplier bolster its operations across the region. In 2013, the bank loaned Country Bird Holdings $25 million to expand existing operations in South Africa, Botswana, and Zambia. Country Bird supplies KFC in all three countries, as well as Mozambique and Zimbabwe. Three years later, in 2016, Country Bird also became KFC’s sole franchisee in Zambia.

In Jordan, the EBRD’s technical support and a 2015 loan worth up to $21 million helped poultry company Al Jazeera Agricultural Company upgrade its facilities and expand its retail presence. Al Jazeera claims to produce half the country’s restaurant-sold chicken. It includes the local franchisees of KFC and Texas Chicken (known by its original name, Church’s Chicken, in the U.S.) as clients. 

With this Global North-financed fast-food expansion comes a host of environmental, social, and health concerns in regions often unprepared to field them.

“It’s so clear that these investments are not consistent with any coherent notion of sustainable development,” Kari Hamerschlag, deputy director for the food and agriculture program at Friends of the Earth US, told DeSmog. 

Providing Financial Security for Fast Food Suppliers 

Both the IFC and the EBRD are financed primarily by the governments of developed countries for the benefit of developing countries. The IFC was founded in 1956 under the umbrella of the World Bank Group to stimulate developing economies by lending directly to businesses. Founded in 1991, the EBRD was formed to support Eastern Europe’s transition to a market economy. Since then, it has extended its geographic reach to include other regions. 

Development banks often finance companies and projects in regions that more risk-averse commercial banks tend to avoid. The idea is to help grow a company’s operations and lower the risk for private sector investors. 

Both of these development banks’ investments cover a range of sectors, including manufacturing, education, agribusiness, energy, and tourism. Because large agro-processors, such as poultry companies, can transform bushel upon bushel of local crops into more valuable products, like meat, they make especially attractive clients. 

The world’s largest restaurant company, U.S.-based Yum! Brands, owns KFC, and calls the fried chicken powerhouse, which oversees more than 30,000 locations across the globe, a “major growth engine.” 

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 12.29

1170 – Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, is assassinated inside Canterbury Cathedral by followers of King Henry II; he subsequently becomes a saint and martyr in the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church. 1503 – The Battle of Garigliano was fought between a Spanish army under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba and a French army commanded by Ludovico II, Marquess of Saluzzo. 1607 – According to John Smith, Pocahontas, daughter of Powhatan leader Wahunsenacawh, successfully pleads for his life after tribal leaders attempt to execute him. 1778 – American Revolutionary War: Three thousand British soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Campbell capture Savannah, Georgia. 1812 – USS Constitution, under the command of Captain William Bainbridge, captures HMS Java off the coast of Brazil after a three-hour battle. 1835 – The Treaty of New Echota is signed, ceding all the lands of the Cherokee east of the Mississippi River to the United States. 1845 – The United States annexes the Republic of Texas and admits it as the 28th state. 1860 – The launch of HMS Warrior, with her combination of screw propeller, iron hull and iron armour, renders all previous warships obsolete. 1874 – The military coup of Gen. Martinez Campos in Sagunto ends the failed First Spanish Republic and the monarchy is restored as Prince Alfonso is proclaimed King of Spain. 1876 – The Ashtabula River railroad disaster occurs, leaving 64 injured and 92 dead at Ashtabula, Ohio. 1890 – On Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, 300 Lakota are killed by the United States 7th Cavalry Regiment. 1911 – Mongolia gains independence from the Qing dynasty, enthroning 8th Jebtsundamba Khutughtu as Khagan of Mongolia. 1913 – Cecil B. DeMille starts filming Hollywood's first feature film, The Squaw Man. 1930 – Sir Muhammad Iqbal's presidential address in Allahabad introduces the two-nation theory and outlines a vision for the creation of Pakistan. 1934 – Japan renounces the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 and the London Naval Treaty of 1930. 1937 – The Irish Free State is replaced by a new state called Ireland with the adoption of a new constitution. 1940 – In the Second Great Fire of London, the Luftwaffe fire-bombs London, England, killing almost 200 civilians during World War II. 1972 – Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar) crashes in the Florida Everglades on approach to Miami International Airport, Florida, killing 101 of the 176 people on board. 1975 – A bomb explodes at LaGuardia Airport in New York City, killing 11 people and injuring more than 75. 1989 – Czech writer, philosopher and dissident Václav Havel is elected the first post-communist President of Czechoslovakia. 1989 – The Nikkei 225 for the Tokyo Stock Exchange hits its all-time intra-day high of 38,957.44 and closing high at 38,915.87, serving as the apex of the Japanese asset price bubble. 1992 – Fernando Collor de Mello, president of Brazil, tries to resign amidst corruption charges, but is then impeached. 1994 – Turkish Airlines Flight 278 (a Boeing 737-400) crashes on approach to Van Ferit Melen Airport in Van, Turkey, killing 57 of the 76 people on board. 1996 – Guatemala and leaders of Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity sign a peace accord ending a 36-year civil war. 1998 – Leaders of the Khmer Rouge apologize for the Cambodian genocide that claimed over one million lives. 2003 – The last known speaker of Akkala Sami dies, rendering the language extinct. 2006 – The UK settles its Anglo-American loan, post-WWII loan debt. 2013 – A suicide bomb attack at the Volgograd-1 railway station in the southern Russian city of Volgograd kills at least 18 people and wounds 40 others. 2013 – Seven-time Formula One champion Michael Schumacher suffers a massive head injury while skiing in the French Alps. 2020 – A large explosion at the airport in the southern Yemeni city of Aden kills at least 22 people and wounds 50.

[pyrookami]

My Possession

When I first bought the new house, I was ecstatic. It was a dream house in a beautiful location for an unbelievably low price. Its didn’t take long to learn why. The incidents started small, little items not being where I left them, a flash of a shadow out the corner of my eye. After two months, that is when the actual horrors started. I wasn’t raised particularly religious and had no previous superstitions to speak of but the third time I was physically dragged from bed by an unseen attacker and thrown against the doorframe, well I think anyone would turn to the church for help. Now for the moment I was single with no children, but I had invested my life savings into this house, as cheap as it was it was still a house. I had intended on living a good portion of my life here.

The first place I turned was the catholic church as id seen they were most likely to know what to do to rid my home of whatever was there. Three visits by the local father, the first I was startled by the house being filled with an eerie distorted laughter that the father didn’t acknowledge as he read his scriptures from room to room. Upon exiting I could see how shaken he truly was.

“This entity is powerful, but the good news is it is only one entity, after two more cleansings we will rid you of this unholy entity.”

With that he handed me a rosary of silver and a bundle of sage with the instructions.

“Light the sage before bed and walk throughout the house until the smoke has been in every room. Make sure you always keep the rosary on your person for protection.”

I will be honest, I delayed going home as long as I feasibly could that night. I feared what would happen if everything being done had no effect, or if it made things worse, what would I do? What could I do? My engineering job paid well enough but most of those checks went to paying off my student loans. My savings were in the house, I had to weather whatever was going on. Finally, around eleven pm I could put it off no longer, I had to sleep and had work in the morning. As I stepped from the surprisingly cold Texas summer night into my house, I didn’t notice anything at first. Then as I sighed in relief, I saw my breath fog in the air in front of my face. It was below freezing inside. I checked the thermostat, and it was set to a reasonable seventy-two degrees Fahrenheit, still the thermometer was reading twenty-nine degrees Fahrenheit. I fumbled with numb hands for the sage and upon lighting it with my zippo the temperature nearly instantly rose to a more reasonable level. With another sigh of relief, I did as instructed and wafted the sage smoke into every room in the house. Then with the rosary around my neck went to bed at peace for the first time in a while.

BURNING! I awake to a searing pain on my chest only to open my eyes and see my panting breathe fogging the again freezing air. On reflex, I grab for the rosary only to find a metal puddle cold but pooled on my chest the chain has fallen onto the sheets and covers leaving burn marks, yet all are as cold as the air. Something in me, likely my inner child, says it cant hurt me if I pretend to sleep. So, I close my eyes tight knowing rationally it wont stop this thing from tormenting me. But, desperate, I try anything before I feel the familiar grip on my ankle and am slung physically across the room.

In the morning I wake in bed and at first, I hope it was just a dream, but then the pain hits. This was so much worse than before. My arm feels broken getting out of bed there is a cross shaped burn raw in the center of my chest with smaller bead sized burns forming when the rosary had rested on my chest and neck. Looking in the mirror I get dressed and headed straight to the ER. The bruising looked almost as if I had been attacked by a gang with baseball bats. But that wasn’t what scared me most. No, what scared me was on my mirror written in what looked like blood was my name.

Three fractures, one of my ribs, one of my radius, and one of my humorous. Sadly, I had to explain my injuries to the police who were under the impression I may have been mugged. They laughed at my statement. A call to the church and the father from before was meeting me at the house this time with an entourage. Well, I have learned something today. Apparently for a full cleansing of a house of a demonic presence the catholic church believes in safety in numbers. How many priests does it take to clear one single house of one single demon? According to the Texas cardinal, who was not there just for your information, twelve. They told me to rent a hotel for the night and tomorrow it would be safe to return. Needless to say, I was skeptical.

I must say, even though this whole ordeal has only been going on for two months and the worst of it has only been happening for about a week, I don’t remember the last time I slept so well. Five stars to that small cheap hotel for a quiet restful night’s sleep. Got a call from the priest. He believes their latest cleansing was successful as they spent the last eight and a half hours throwing everything they know at the entity. Around six am it stopped all phenomena and the priest says I should be safe from now on.

I went from the best sleep I can remember to the worst, all one day apart. It started peaceful enough, I’m pretty sure it was to lull me into relaxing. Then as soon as I lay down to sleep. BAM! The full haunting experience! Objects being thrown? Check! Apparitions appearing and disappearing? Also check! Creepy laughter with no source? Fucking check! Having blood writing appear on my walls and ceiling? Yep, also there! Oh, lets not forget the classic now of being bodily picked up and throw around like a child’s rag doll. Nope cant forget about that. When dawn broke that’s when everything finally stopped. I immediately left the house. You may be wondering why I didn’t during the night? I tried believe me whatever this thing is it knows it cant leave the house and has done everything in its considerable powers to keep me contained while it can. Once just once I thought I could get outside just as my foot was over the threshold of the open front door I was pulled back in by my neck. Im now wearing a cast and neck brace.

The Catholics visited again. This time the fat ass cardinal came down himself. Not that it did any good, he took one look at the house turned to me and simply said.

“Move out!”

Then they all left me most looking apologetic some not even able to look me in the eye. Well screw them there are other options…Aren’t there?

Rented the hotel room for the week, if this isn’t solved in a week, I may end up moving back in with my ma in Tennessee, while I try and sell this cursed house. Oh, right I’ve had it confirmed this house has a curse on it that anytime someone attempts to make their home in it a demon from hell will torment them. Apparently, someone wanted this house so bad they didn’t mind torturing people thirty years after they died. Had a psychic come and that’s the story I’ve been given. Yeah, you can laugh at me all you want for believing him but I’m at my wits end for this. The psychic wasn’t much help anyway his advice was to demolish the house since it’s the structure itself that is cursed not the land. Not very helpful.

I have contacted a specialist, yes there are demon exorcising specialists…Apparently. He’s coming from Georgia, but I’m assured he can help, and he claims hell do it for just his travel expenses. The catholic church charged me more than that and I personally believe they made the thing mad and thus made the possession worse. I’m to pick the specialist up from the airport in the morning. Here’s hoping I’ve spent my last night in a hotel rather than a house.

Well picking up a demon exorcising specialist is entertaining to say the least, I was being stared at with everything from fear to hilarity standing there with my cardboard sign. Still don’t understand why the man couldn’t give me his last name over the phone but making me have a sign reading.

“Devil trouble, please help!”

I feel I’m being made a fool of. When he approached, he seemed…normal. He was dressed in black slacks had a semi nice black tie and jacket over a white dress shirt. The only strange things were his hat, an obviously home-made deal, and his luggage a single carry-on bag that looked to me like an instrument case. When I asked if he had any checked luggage he simply smiled and shook his head before gesturing me to lead the way. In the car, he said almost nothing aside from what to call him and for me to describe exactly what has occurred in my case of the possession.

“Call me Junior, please tell me what y’all have experience with the entity. Has it given a name?”

At my description Junior simply pursed his lips as the rest of his face remained stoic and calm. That was all he said in the almost hour drive from the Houston airport to my small slice of suburban hell. Upon arrival at my haunted house, he insisted on my leading the way in. I think he was testing my story which if he was the entity accommodated admirably with a shriek of my name the moment we stepped inside and a bout of creepy laughter just for good measure. Without a word junior set his case of the floor and took off his hat and handed it to me. With a look and a motion, he bade me step back to the door which slammed closed before I could make my exit. With a sigh he turned to the rest of the house and introduced himself with the strangest challenge for the supernatural id ever heard.

“Well son since you want him here that’s fine. My names johnny, and I have a challenge for you if you win you can bring back something to your boss he wants back desperately if I win you will return to hell from where you came and never darken the world of gods chosen ever again. Is that acceptable?”

Before my eyes the shadows of the house darkened and collected until a being stood before Johnny? Junior? It stood no less than eight feet tall with arms so long they dragged the ground legs that looked like an animals like a cow or goats. And a head so unnaturally misshapen it hurt to look at. As the monstrosity revealed itself johnny knelt to open his luggage. I was right it was a simple instrument case but what he pulled out was no simple instrument. Its gleamed golden even in the dim light. Johnny spoke quietly as he held the instrument. A violin? He began to do something with the stick that accompanied the violin. Somehow the entity semed to shrink a little as johnny spoke.

“Quite a while ago my daddy won this in a contest against the devil himself. The bet then was a soul for the golden fiddle. I have been training with a fiddle since I was knee high to a grasshopper just so when it was my turn to show up the hellish fools that would harm those of the lords people, I would be more than up to the task.”

Before my eyes as the first notes of the fiddle played the demon shriveled and vanished. It appears the demon wasn’t going to risk anything on a bet against a family that had bested his infernal lord. Then and there I swore to myself this young mans story needed to be heard.

“im not sure I introduced my self properly…johnny? My name is Charlie daniels and I would love to hear the story behind that golden fiddle.”

With a laugh the young man replied.

“Johnny was my old man. But sure I’ll tell. One day, the devil went down to Georgia.”

[ultraheydudemestuff]

Shiloh Baptist Church

5500 Scovill Ave.

Cleveland, OH

A view of the Shiloh Baptist Church is a historic church at 5500 Scoville Avenue in Cleveland, Ohio, listed on the National Register of Historic Places. The Shiloh Baptist Church building was originally used as a synagogue and was known as Temple B'nai Jeshurun. Shiloh Baptist Church is the oldest congregation of black Baptists in Cleveland and second only to ST. John’s African Methodist Episcopal (AME) Church as Cleveland's oldest black church. The nucleus of the early membership consisted of a group of recent African American migrants from the South who worshipped at the First Baptist Church and regularly gathered at a small grocery store owned by Michael Gregory at 245 Erie (East 9th) Street. Alarmed by the growing number of black worshippers, some of the white members of the First Baptist Church sought to prevent any more blacks from joining the congregation. Their proposal was contested by John Malvin, leader of Cleveland's black community, and some of the white members, leading to a compromise for the formation of a Mission church for black Baptists.

In August 1849, the First Baptist Church formed the mission in a converted storage barn on Brownell (East 14th) Street and appointed J. Weeks to serve as a pro-tem minister. The membership initially consisted of the Gregory group along with other black members of the First Baptist. The mission gained official recognition as a Baptist denominational church, Shiloh Baptist Church, in August 1850. William Pennington Brown, a native of West Virginia ordained by the First Baptist Church, was appointed the first minister of Shiloh in August 1851. Under his leadership, the membership surpassed fifty and the church moved to larger quarters on Central Avenue near Perry (East 22nd) Street. L. E. White succeeded Brown, serving at Shiloh from 1863 to 1865. He oversaw the organization of the church's first Sunday School and Baptist Young People's Union. During the term of I. V. Bryant (1867-85), Shiloh acquired property on Sterling (East 30th) Street near Scovill Avenue, which the congregation fashioned into a commodious church.

Riley Wilson, who succeeded Bryant in 1885, organized the church's first Board of Deacons and Trustees, but internal differences resulted in his resignation in 1893. Over half of the congregation left Shiloh at Wilson's urging, forming the nucleus of the Antioch Baptist Church. Under the leadership of Rev. D. E. Dandridge (1895-1903), the Shiloh church secured a loan from John D. Rockefeller to erect a brick and stone edifice in place of its frame building. The new church building contained a large auditorium, a lecture room, and a water-powered pipe organ. Dandridge, however, followed in the footsteps of his predecessor, leaving Shiloh to form the Mt. Haven Baptist Church after internal dissension arose. Unable to pay the mortgage on its building, Shiloh closed its doors in 1903 and the congregation temporarily gathered at the home of Deacon Watson on East 31st Street.

Boston J. Prince of Texas was dispatched to Cleveland in late 1903 by the Ohio State Baptist Convention to reconstitute Shiloh and, after two years of litigation, the church regained its property. Following the departure of Prince in 1907, Edward H. Smith of Kentucky came to Shiloh. He secured the cancellation of a $3,000 mortgage owed by the church and modernized the physical plant of the church by installing heating and electrical systems. Smith, however, resigned in 1916 following the resurgence of internal discord in the congregation. Charles Fishback of Kansas led a growing church of some 1,500 members during World War I and inaugurated a fundraising campaign for a new church building, raising $29,000 before his untimely death in 1921. Prince returned to lead the congregation in 1921. He continued the fundraising drive and purchased the former B’nai Jeshurun synagogue at East 55th Street and Scovill Avenue for $110,000 in 1923. The Temple B'nai Jeshurun structure had been built in 1905-1906 and was designed by Harry Cone, architect.

Shiloh relocated to its new quarters in 1925 following the Grand March to the synagogue from the old church building. Internal disagreements led Rev. Prince to resign his post at Shiloh in 1926 and establish the Messiah Baptist Church with his followers. Alexander L. Boone of Texas came to Shiloh in 1927. He proceeded to pay off the mortgage on its large building, expanded the church services and facilities, and acquired a pipe organ for $12,000. Alas, Boone passed away in 1947 after serving the congregation for twenty years. A. Henson Jarmon, who served as the interim minister for a year, was selected to lead Shiloh in 1948. He founded the Shiloh Herald, a quarterly magazine for and about the church, organized the Shiloh Credit Union in 1960, and initiated major renovations, including the construction of a new baptistery. Like many of his predecessors, however, Jarmon resigned from Shiloh due to internal conflicts and formed the Fellowship Baptist Church in 1962.

In 1963, Alfred M. Waller, Sr. became the minister of Shiloh Baptist Church and he served the congregation for 27 years. During his tenure, Waller renovated and upgraded the physical plant of the church sanctuary, rearranged the choir stands, and installed murals. In addition to encouraging students to pursue higher education, the church formed a food bank, launched fellowship groups, and welcomed more than a thousand new members to the congregation. During the Hough Riots of 1966, the church even purchased a home for a displaced family. It was added to the National Register of Historic Places on December 17, 1982. William F. Crockett, the church's youth preacher, served as the interim pastor for a year following the retirement of Rev. Waller in 1991.

Jewell D. Jones, Sr., who served as minister from 1992 to 2005, initiated the Educational Enhancement Initiative in partnership with the neighboring East Technical High School that drastically improved the school's attendance rate. He also organized basketball and drill teams, resurrected the Boy Scout Ministry, and launched new outreach programs, such as the Health Ministry and Young Men on the Move Ministry. In an effort to attract younger worshippers to Shiloh, church members took to the streets, canvassing Central Avenue and talking with young people. The church also sponsored the Walk Thru the Bible seminar for adults and children. The church building has been designated a Cleveland Landmark by the City of Cleveland Landmarks Commission. In 2004, the church underwent a $1.2 million renovation under the direction of architect Michael Benjamin. The Cleveland Chapter of the American Institute of Architects honored the renovation of Shiloh Baptist Church with a historic preservation award in 2006.

In 2009, Cory C. Jenkins became minister, at which point the congregation numbered about 300 members. He served through 2016. Andrew Edwards served as Interim minister from 2017 through 2018, and Thomas Gilmore served as Interim minister from 2019 through May 2020. In August 2020, Shiloh called the Lisa M Goods to serve as its Senior minister, thereby making her the first woman to serve in that capacity. Continuing practices that it established in the 20th century, the outreach activities of Shiloh Baptist Church by the early decades of the 21st century included partnering with the American Red Cross, the National Marrow Donor Program, and others to sponsor a health fair and working with Greater Cleveland Congregations, Youth for Christ, the Ohio State University Gardening Program, and the Greater Cleveland Food Bank.

[howwelldoyouknowyourmoon]

MAGA Church Plans to Raffle a Trump AR-15 at Second Amendment Rally They consider the assault weapon to be an instrument of divine justice.

In July, former President Donald Trump was nearly assassinated by a 20-year-old man wielding an AR-15-style rifle. That near miss hasn’t stopped the Rod of Iron Ministries from holding a raffle this coming weekend for a special Trump-branded AR-15 at its fifth annual “Freedom Festival.”

Billed as the “largest open carry rally in America,” the festival draws attendees to celebrate the Second Amendment and hear from headliners that will include former Trump national security adviser Michael Flynn, radio host Sebastian Gorka, former US Rep. Allen West, former Trump ICE Director Tom Homan, and Pizzagate conspiracy theorist Jack Posobiec. Anyone who registers early for the free tickets can enter the raffle to win the Trump gun.

The Rod of Iron Ministries was founded by Hyung Jin “Sean” Moon as a militant breakaway from the Unification Church founded by his father, the late Sun Myung Moon. [NOT a] graduate of Harvard Divinity School [see below], Pastor Sean Moon’s sermons and social media videos espouse a particular End Times theology that predicts a future overthrow of the American government. He believes the AR-15 is an instrument of God’s divine justice—the “rod of iron” invoked in Revelation 2:27.

Moon often wears a crown of bullets, carries a gold-plated assault weapon, and rides a Harley in a helmet with a creepy skeleton facemask. (Moon also seems to have musical aspirations: He raps under the name King Bullethead and will also perform at this weekend’s Freedom Fest.)

With the help of a $5 million loan from their father, Moon’s brother Justin founded the Kahr Firearms Group in 1995. It started off manufacturing mostly small arms designed to tap into the growing market for American-made concealed weapons as states began to relax their gun laws. It has since expanded, and now Kahr is a sponsor of “Freedom Fest,” which will be held at its TommyGun warehouse in Greeley, Pennsylvania.

Both Moons have cultivated significant MAGA ties, including with the Trump brothers, Eric and Don Jr. Kahr Firearms now offers several Trump-themed weapons, and the company’s products are frequently promoted in Don Jr.’s weapons-themed outdoor magazine, Field Ethos. When the firearms company opened its TommyGun warehouse in 2016, Eric Trump gave a speech.

Given Sean Moon’s obsession with the downfall of the current American government, it’s no surprise that he was involved in the “Stop the Steal” movement to overturn the results of the 2020 presidential election. He was at the US Capitol on January 6, and while he didn’t go in, he was close enough to get tear-gassed.

Read more

_________________________________

Hyung-jin Sean Moon did not graduate from Harvard College

Hyung-jin Sean Moon went to Fairfield University but did not graduate. He completed his first three years there with an undeclared major, then took the last couple of credits at the open enrollment (100% acceptance rate) Harvard Extension School to complete an undergraduate degree of A.L.B. Note: The A.L.B. degree is NOT a B.A. degree. They are entirely different. Bachelor of Liberal Arts (ALB) degree (artium liberalium baccalaureus). Claiming to have an undergraduate B.A. degree from Harvard College which has a 5.9% acceptance rate when you really have an A.L.B. degree from Harvard Extension School which has a 100% acceptance rate, is outright fraud.

Gun Church That Worships With AR-15s Bought a 40-Acre Compound in Texas for Its ‘Patriots’

Hyung Jin Moon admits his father had sex with six Marys

Kook Jin Moon and Hyung Jin Moon plan to “Arrest and Execute” their mother, Hak Ja Han, leader of the FFWPU

[dankusner]

Nelson Bunker Hunt

This May 2, 1980 file photo, shows multi-millionaire brothers Hunt, W. Herbert Hunt, left, and Nelson Bunker Hunt.(The Associated Press / AP)

Oil magnate Herbert Hunt, brother of Lamar, dies at 95

Oil wildcatter W. Herbert Hunt, a scion of the Hunt Oil dynasty who left a massive business and philanthropic footprint in Dallas and Texas, has died at the age of 95.

Hunt became one of the world’s most prominent oil barons and investors throughout his seven-decade career, following his father’s lead along with brothers — Nelson Bunker Hunt and Lamar Hunt — to form Petro-Hunt, growing rich on fossil fuel work in East Texas and later as property developers.

Hunt, born on March 6, 1929, died April 9.

Hunt followed his father H.L. into the oil drilling and speculation business after finishing a Bachelor of Science degree in geology at Washington and Lee University, joining the family business that would create several billionaires and business titans.

Forbes estimated W. Herbert’s Hunt’s net worth at $5.3 billion in 2024, mostly from his ownership in the Petro-Hunt company, which had major oil patch holdings and operations in Texas, Oklahoma and North Dakota.

Hunt used his fortune in oil to grow the footprint well outside of the energy industry into land purchases, including major developments that have shaped cities such as Richardson, Plano, Forney, Fate and more with major residential and industrial projects.

Hunt and his brothers Nelson Bunker and Lamar nearly went broke in the early 1980s after an attempt to corner the silver market with several billion dollars in holdings after a run-up in the commodity in previous years.

At one point, they reportedly held more than one-third of the private silver holdings in the world, worth $4.5 billion.

But after borrowing millions to finance the bet, the price dropped more than 50%, leading to a $1.7 billion loss.

They were saved by a loan, but the bad investment was a major hit to the Hunt family’s fortunes, forcing the brothers to declare bankruptcy in 1988.

The Hunts made it through the incident and rebuilt their fortune in the fields of oil, real estate and finance.

Hunt’s family is one of the most successful oil dynasties in the country, and H.L. Hunt’s 15 children became major players across several fields.

Herbert Hunt’s oldest sister is Margaret Hunt Hill, namesake of the iconic bridge in Dallas.

Another sister, Caroline Rose Hunt, is the founder of the Rosewood Hotels & Resorts company.

His half-brother Ray Lee Hunt is another energy industry billionaire in Dallas, and his half-sister Swanee was a U.S. Ambassador to Austria.

Herbert Hunt’s nephew, Clark Hunt, is the owner and chairman of the NFL’s Kansas City Chiefs and the family owns and has developed thousands of acres of residential and industrial property throughout North Texas.

Lamar, Herbert’s brother and Clark’s father, was one of the pioneers of professional football in the United States and founder of the American Football League, which later merged with the NFL to form the modern sports league.

Herbert Hunt is survived by his wife Nancy and children Doug, Barbara Hunt Crow, Libby Allred, Bruce and David.

A service is planned for 3 p.m. April 23 at the Highland Park Presbyterian Church.

HUNT, William Herbert

William Herbert Hunt of Dallas, Texas went to be with his Lord and Savior on April 9, 2024, at the age of 95.

Herbert was born to H.L. Hunt and Lyda Bunker Hunt on March 6, 1929, in El Dorado, Arkansas.

His family moved to Tyler, Texas when he was ayear old and then to Dallas when he was nine.

Herbert attended Dallas Country Day School, Stonewall Jackson Elementary, and J. L. Long Middle School before, as he put it, "being shipped off" to The Hill School in Pottstown, Pennsylvania.

After graduation from The Hill School, he attended Washington and Lee University where he earned a Bachelor of Science degree in Geology.

While at Washington and Lee, Herbert met Nancy Jane Broaddus on a blind date.

They married the first Saturday after Nancy's 21st birthday and celebrated more than 72 years of love and devotion together.

Herbert joined the family oil business and had an accomplished career in oil and gas exploration and the oil service industry.

He was involved with numerous discoveries and field developments aroundthe globe.

Herbert served in a number of industry organizations.

He was a member of the American Association of Petroleum Geologists since 1953, receiving their Pioneer Award.

He was President of the Dallas Wildcat Committee in 1965-66 and served as President of the Dallas Petroleum Club in 1970.

He served on the Board of Directors of the American Petroleum Institute (API), as Past President of the International Association of Drilling Contractors and as Chairman of the National Ocean Industries Association.

Herbert was the last surviving original inductee of the All-American Wildcatters, and he lived by the AAW creed "My Word is My Bond".

He was an Advisory Board Member of the Maguire Energy Institute at SMU and served on the board at SMU's Institute for the Study of Earth and Man (ISEM).

Another of Herbert's endeavors was real estate development.

He was active in the development of various properties in Richardson, Plano, Forney, Fate, Lavon, and Royse City.

He also developed a number of properties in Scottsdale, Arizona and Orange County, California.

Herbert's non-industry involvement included serving on the Executive Board of the Boy Scouts of America Circle Ten Council, where he was President from 1984-86.

He received various awards for distinguished service to youth.

He served on the Presbyterian Hospital Building Corporation from 1985-1990 and served many years on the Board of Wadley Blood Bank (now part of Carter Blood Care).

Herbert was a longtime member of Highland Park Presbyterian Church, where he served as aDeacon and Elder.

He and Nancy taught Sunday school for many years.

While Herbert's industry and business achievements are legendary and his civic involvement and philanthropy vast, he was most proud and took great joy in the family he and Nancy raised together.

Herbert is survived by his wife Nancy, children Doug (Margaret), Barbara Hunt Crow, Libby Allred (Al), Bruce (Leeanne), and David (Libby), grandchildren Taylor Hunt (Elizabeth), Casey Hunt (Morgan), Nathan Crow (Itzel), Marshall Hunt (Brittany), Hunt Allred (Brittny), Austin Hunt (Chelsea), Davin Hunt (Anne Lindsey), Megan Carter (Joel), Margaret Crow Casselbrant (Magnus), Nancy Collins (William), Carter Hunt (Michelle), DanielCrow, Bailey Hunt (Jordan), Dallas Hunt, Elizabeth Hunt, Sharon Hunt, and thirty-five great-grandchildren.

He is also survived by sister-inlaw Caroline Lewis Hunt, as well as half-siblings Ray Lee Hunt (Nancy Ann), June Hunt, Helen Lakelly Hunt (Harville Hendrix), andSwaneeGrace Hunt.

Herbert is preceded in death by his parents, his sisters Caroline Rose Hunt and Margaret Hunt Hill, and brothers Hassie, Nelson Bunker, andLamar Hunt.

A Celebration of Herbert's Life will be held at Highland Park Presbyterian Church on Tuesday April 23rd at 3:00 pm with Pastor Jay Lee officiating.

[sutrala]

(CHRISTIAN POST) -- Thanks to their faithful giving, an emotional Joel Osteen announced to members of his megachurch in Houston, Texas, that they have finally paid off a $100 million loan from Bank of America they had been servicing for some 20 years. “My big announcement...

[msclaritea]

Meet Tim Dunn & Farris Wilks—two billionaires from West Texas.

They bought Paxton’s acquittal for $3 million. Now they’re pushing a private school voucher scam.

Their ultimate goal is even more ambitious: transforming Texas into an authoritarian, Christian Nationalist state.

Dunn & Wilks are oil and gas oligarchs.

They’re also both Christian pastors.

These two billionaire-pastors are spending their fortune enacting an extreme Christian nationalist worldview in the second-largest state in the country.

And no one is talking about it.

Dunn & Wilks have bought the top politicians in Texas with $100+ million in contributions.

And it’s not just politicians. They fund a sprawling network of PACs, think tanks, and media outlets.

Every right-wing policy that's come out of Texas lately goes back to them.

When they’re not buying politicians, Dunn & Wilks both preach at far-right churches.

They push a theology of power, control, and domination — not universal love.

Now their toxic theology is becoming law in Texas.

Just this week, a Dunn & Wilks operative espoused the racist Great Replacement Theory.

She followed it up with a claim that white people are being “genocided.”

This is the Dunn & Wilks worldview.

How significant is their influence?

Every Republican State Senator and over half of Republican House members in Texas have taken money from Dunn & Wilks.

For some Republicans, nearly HALF of their total campaign contributions are from these two billionaires.

And our statewide officials are in their pockets too.

Greg Abbott takes free trips on Wilks' private plane.

Dan Patrick acquitted Ken Paxton after taking $3 million from the Dunn & Wilks PAC fighting the impeachment.

Pro-Paxton group gives $3 million to impeachment trial judge Dan PatrickDefend Texas Liberty was the lieutenant governor’s largest benefactor in late June, providing a $1 million donation and $2 million loan to his campaign.https://www.texastribune.org/2023/07/18/ken-paxton-impeachment-dan-patrick/

Dunn & Wilks have zero tolerance for opposition.

Their PAC—Defend Texas Liberty—recruits far-right candidates to primary Republicans who don't do their bidding.

It's a win-win: they beat the moderate incumbent or force them to take extreme positions.

Dunn & Wilks also control influential legal, policy, & advocacy organizations.

One of those orgs argued in court that pharmacies shouldn't sell birth control.

The lawyer who argued that case later became a federal judge.

He banned the abortion pill.

How a Right-wing Law Firm Shaped the Judge Who Will Rule on the Abortion Pill

Matthew Kacsmaryk cut his teeth at First Liberty Institute, a “religious liberty” law firm with Texas roots—and a growing national reach.https://www.texasmonthly.com/news-politics/first-liberty-abortion-pill-lawsuit/

And they've even created their own right-wing media bubble.

Dunn & Wilks fund Texas Scorecard, the top far-right publication.

Wilks owns the Daily Wire and bankrolls PragerU, a right-wing "education" platform they’re trying to force into our schools.

Texas fracking billionaire brothers fuel rightwing media with millions of dollarsFarris and Dan Wilks’ deep pockets fund climate denialism education, conservative politicians and pro-fossil fuel projectshttps://www.theguardian.com/us-news/2023/sep/05/texas-fracking-billionaire-brothers-prageru-daily-wire

Now they’re taking on their most ambitious project: replacing public schools with Christian schools.

Abbott just called a special session to pass Dunn & Wilks’ voucher scam.

Republican Sen Bob Deuell said: “They want to destroy the public school system”

http://houstonchronicle.com/opinion/editorials/article/dunn-wilks-paxton-texas-theocracy-democracy-18380689.php

Dunn & Wilks are executing their plan to dismantle public education:

✔️Fund manufactured controversies to discredit public schools

✔️Pass private school voucher scam to defund public schools

✔️Close public schools and shift our entire system to private, Christian education

Comments from Twitter

There’s been a lot of bad news out of Texas lately.

Paxton’s acquittal, private school vouchers, no-exceptions abortion bans, CRT hysteria, weakened gun laws, Christian nationalism…

It’s all connected to a couple billionaire mega-donors.

Texas is too big and too great to be sold to the highest bidder.

We cannot let two billionaires turn our beloved state into a Christofascist theocracy.

Two billionaire mega-donors bought Ken Paxton’s acquittal. Now those same billionaires are funding the effort to privatize our public schools with a voucher scam. Follow the money. 🧵 #txlege #tribfest23 

Just weeks before he presided over the Paxton impeachment trial in the Texas Senate, Lt. Governor Dan Patrick received a $3 million dollar check. It came from Paxton’s two billionaire benefactors: Tim Dunn and Farris Wilks. texastribune.org/2023/07/18/ken…

Follow @ThreadReaderApp to mention us!

From a Twitter thread mention us with a keyword "unroll"

These billionaires bought Ken Paxton's acquittal. According to the Republican Speaker of the Texas House: "The fix was in from the start." beaumontenterprise.com/opinions/colum…

Greg Abbott's voucher scam would divert taxpayer dollars out of public schools and into private schools. But private schools aren't accountable to taxpayers—no transparency, no oversight, no standards. Watch how they struggle to answer my basic questions about accountability… 

“You said you don’t want to take the STAAR test. Public schools don’t want to take the STAAR test either. But they have to because there are strings attached to public money.” 

Practice here first or read more on our help page!

“Could a child be denied admission because of behavior problems? Could a child be denied admission because of academic performance? Could a child be denied admission because they’re not a cultural fit?” 

Texas Republicans are trying to force public schools to display the Ten Commandments in every classroom. I told the bill author: “This bill is not only un-constitutional and un-American, it’s deeply un-Christian.” #txlege 

The bill author says she’s a champion of “parental rights.” So I asked her if state-sponsored religious indoctrination violates the rights of parents. This was her response. 

Would you be comfortable with adding language to receive parental consent from all the students and parents in the classroom before putting it up?” 

In high school, I played Danny Zuko in our production of Grease! Today the House passed a school finance package that includes my bill funding fine arts education. This is the first time in Texas history we’re dedicating funding specifically for the arts in our schools! #txlege

I filed a bill to create a fine arts allotment in our school finance formula. Currently, schools struggle to come up with $ for the arts—relying on booster clubs and private donations. Today Rep. Ken King added the language from my bill to his school finance package (HB 100)!!

If the Texas Senate passes this bill, school districts will receive per-student funding SPECIFICALLY for fine arts. This means hundreds of millions of dollars in new funding for music, dance, art, and theater programs! It’s a game changer.

Billionaire mega-donors are trying to destroy Texas public schools with a private voucher scam. They say it’s what parents want. But thousands of parents just showed up at the Texas Capitol to defend our schools. These PTA moms have a message: Come and Take It. #txlege

Texans love our public schools. Public schools are enshrined in our Texas Constitution, and there’s nothing more Texan than Friday night lights. That’s why voucher scammers are spending millions of dollars to demonize our schools…

These billionaire mega-donors have a simple strategy: 1) Demonize, then 2) Dismantle public education. They've paid politicians to attack our teachers, our librarians, and even our students. Now they're paying politicians to defund and close our schools with a voucher scam.

When I was a public school teacher, I struggled to make ends meet. 40% of Texas teachers work a second job. Thousands are leaving the profession to find work that can pay the bills. Today I’m introducing legislation to give every teacher in Texas a $15,000 pay raise. 

We can do this. Texas has a $47 billion budget surplus. That’s billion with a b! We can give every teacher a $15,000 raise, give all support staff a 25% raise, and still have more than HALF the surplus left over.

Hoarding this surplus while teachers and students are suffering is immoral. But it’s also bad business. You don’t stick your money under a mattress—you put it to work by making smart investments. And the smartest investment we can make is in the next generation.

I wouldn't be at all surprised if the entire Republican Party were in on creating a huge, stinking distraction in Congress just so Greg Abbott could shaft the state of Texas.

[dertaglichedan]

WASHINGTON (AP) — Much of the theft was brazen, even simple.

Fraudsters used the Social Security numbers of dead people and federal prisoners to get unemployment checks. Cheaters collected those benefits in multiple states. And federal loan applicants weren’t cross-checked against a Treasury Department database that would have raised red flags about sketchy borrowers.

Criminals and gangs grabbed the money. But so did a U.S. soldier in Georgia, the pastors of a defunct church in Texas, a former state lawmaker in Missouri and a roofing contractor in Montana.

All of it led to the greatest grift in U.S. history, with thieves plundering billions of dollars in federal COVID-19 relief aid intended to combat the worst pandemic in a century and to stabilize an economy in free fall.

[c-40]

A-T-3 133 Butthole Surfers - Bar-B-Q Brecht

Before Dinosaur Jr. Lou Barlow and J. Mascis had been in the hardcore band Deep Wound, Lou on guitar and J. on Drums. Deep Wound's self-titled EP comes out in 1983 but it wasn't until 2006 and the Almost Complete compilation that you could easily get your hands on this material in the UK. I love Dinosaur Jr. but I've never picked up the Deep Wound records, check out the 1983 EP here https://youtu.be/5rPO3hJw814

Something easier to find was...

Butthole Surfers debut EP put the ass back into Texas. Dead Kennedy's Jello Biafra was instrumental in the early career of Butthole Surfers (Hüsker Dü also, who I wrote about yesterday) and getting them onto record. Primarily a live band the Buttholes put on gigs that are written about as performance art, with projected films and onstage antics equal to the music, an inverse of stadium rock shows by bands they idolise. Haynes and Leary shy away from talking about the band in interviews, there are a lot of made up stories, but according to a reliable source (wikipedia) the debut EP began as a promise from Biafra (who ran Alternative Tentacles for DK's,) if the Buttholes could get someone to loan them studio time Alternative Tentacles would reimburse the studio when the EP was done. The Buttholes got Bob O'Neill, a studio owner in San Antonio, Texas to agree to provide the band with the time they needed to make the EP, the studio's engineer Joe Pugliese helping with production

"Sometimes it’s hard for me to even think of our music as music . . . It has been more of a platform to express ourselves, even though we don’t know what we are trying to express. I was pretty mad at the world for a while." - Paul Leary, guitar and occasional lead vocals

The result is chaotic, confrontational and adolescent (the record labels says it plays at 69 RPM). Bar-B-Q Pope begins like a Blue Öyster Cult record then has it's mood ruined by Leary squawking like a rooster, the effect is a kind of dissonance Brecht might even have approved of. The song is political, there's a saying "It’s the bigots prerogative to not use language seriously" here that is being flipped on its head to intentionally upset conservatives. Here 'the pope' is the catholic church, which stands in for all organised religion. In 1981 label mates Dead Kennedy's released In God We Trust, Inc which presents conservative christian political organisations, including think tanks, astroturf organisations, and lobby groups as criminal enterprises, a racket... today we might call it a grift. Check out Moral Majority on the In God We Trust, Inc EP, the difference between Moral Majority and Bar-B-Q Pope is Jello Biafra is holding up a black mirror and trying to use reason and argument where the Buttholes don't bother. The Butthole Surfers debut EP is sometimes called Brown Reason to Live. If this is the intended title or not is ambiguous and a whole book has been written about what 'brown' might mean (Merdre! as Ubu Roi would say) - Ween flew with the whole 'brown' thing, didn't they? - it's a tactic the tories are employing right now as they stir up hate against desperate people fleeing harm to find refuge in the UK. Facts, truth, reason get in the way of the tories objective. Braverman and Robert Jenrick have as much respect for meaning as they do the law when it gets in the way

Something that punk and hip hop share is cartoon violence intended to provoke pearl clutching conservative christians and liberals who are disgusted by cartoon violence more than they are people in rich countries living in poverty. It's argued just by being called Butthole Surfers the band will never sell out (I was saddened when Crazy Penis changed their name to Crazy P) but this underestimates the porousness of capitalism. I like this quote 'Haynes was asked whether, if given the chance to do it all over again, he would rewind the clock and make his career trajectory somewhat smoother by giving the band a more palatable moniker. "Yes," he replied, "I would name the band: I’m Going to Shit in Your Mother’s Vagina."'

Does this shake folk out of their stupor, probably not. Does it radicalise the youth, not enough

Butthole Surfers debut EP reached 21 on the UK indie singles chart. I found it around 1990/91, Piouhgd comes out on Rough Trade in 1991

[commercialloanoftexas]

Working on a Bad Credit Business Loan

If you want a business loan but have a low credit score, bad credit commercial loans could be able to assist you to get the money you require. 

Every business requires money to operate, and at some point, you may need to use loans to supplement your cash flow. Sadly, you might not have the excellent credit necessary to get approved for a loan from a bank with good conditions and cheap interest rates. It might be difficult to get a business loan accepted if you have poor credit. A decent to outstanding credit score and a long history of appropriately managing debt repayment is often required by lenders. 

Poor credit; any lending product intended for business owners with bad credit is a business loan. They have more lenient qualifying standards and lower credit score requirements. Bad credit business loans include higher interest rates and costs since the lender is taking on more risk by extending credit to you, and they could also need greater guarantees that you won't fail on the loan.

For candidates with poor credit, there are several different kinds of business loans available. They consist of:

A term loan

Microloans

Guaranteed loans

Billing factoring

Finance for invoices

finance for equipment

Business cash advances

Loans for working capital

How a business loan for poor credit operates

A negative credit business loan or Texas church loans provides cash that must be returned over time and with interest, just like any other small company loan. Some loans offer a line of credit or a lump sum payment. 

Even while some banks and credit unions provide negative credit business loans, internet lenders offer them more frequently. 

Loans for businesses with weak credit might take longer to fund. You might be able to get cash for a negative credit loan quickly, in some circumstances in as little as 24 to 72 hours after gaining approval, depending on the lender and their underwriting standards. 

Bad credit commercial loans have an APR that might reach 35 percent or more. Yet not all loans for small businesses include interest charges. Some impose a fee in its place. You might need to offer company collateral to receive the lowest rates on a bad credit business loan.

[contemplatingoutlander]

They’re saying aloud what they once whispered behind closed doors. Back in 2016, when he was a Republican congressman but not yet House speaker, Kevin McCarthy said in a private meeting with GOP leaders, “There’s two people, I think, Putin pays: [Representative Dana] Rohrabacher and Trump … swear to God.” (Rohrabacher, once dubbed “Putin’s favorite congressman,” lost his seat in 2018.)

McCarthy, confronted with the leaked audio in 2017, claimed it was a joke. But anyone paying attention to how Russian intelligence services run influence operations—which I do, as a former CIA officer—knows it is anything but. It raises a legitimate, and deadly serious, question: Have Russian operatives paid any Republican officials?

Consider the news last week that authorities in several European countries had uncovered a vast corruption network, in which European politicians were paid to spread anti-Ukraine and pro-Russia propaganda. The network...was orchestrated by pro-Russia Ukrainian oligarch Viktor Medvedchuk. Politicians from Germany, France, Poland, Belgium, the Netherlands, and Hungary were allegedly paid directly with cash or through cryptocurrency exchanges. [...] It is naïve to think the same pattern does not exist in the United States, given the ample evidence of coordinated pro-Russian talking points from several Republican politicians. Just this week, Marjorie Taylor Greene spoke to Steve Bannon about Ukraine’s persecution of Christians, which is a Kremlin talking point aimed at boosting the pro-Moscow wing of Ukraine’s Orthodox Church. The U.S. should be spending money on the border with Mexico, not on Ukraine aid? That’s a Kremlin talking point. Russia invaded Ukraine to defend itself against an expanding NATO? That’s a Kremlin talking point. Call for a cease-fire, and give Russia Crimea and eastern Ukraine? That’s a Kremlin talking point.

While we cannot say for sure if any Republican officials are on the Russian payroll in ways similar to their European counterparts, we can be sure that they’ve been approached. As the director of national intelligence wrote in 2021, Russian intelligence operatives and their proxies “sought to use prominent US persons and media conduits to launder their narratives to US officials and audiences. These Russian proxies met with and provided materials to Trump administration-linked US persons to advocate for formal investigations; hired a US firm to petition US officials; and attempted to make contact with several senior US officials. They also made contact with established US media figures.”

As for payments, we’ve seen a disturbing pattern. In 2017, Andrew Intrater donated $250,000 to Trump’s inauguration fund and, a few months later, donated $35,000 to Trump’s reelection campaign. Intrater is a cousin of Viktor Vekselberg, a Russian oligarch who was sanctioned by the U.S. in 2018 for his connections to Putin. We know that oligarchs play an integral role in funding Russian influence operations. One oligarch revealed to special counsel Robert Mueller that Putin held quarterly meetings with his oligarchs to discuss strategic spending.

In 2018, a Texas-based firm donated money to House Speaker Mike Johnson. That firm is 88 percent owned by three Russians. And last week, we learned that Trump Media received loans from a Russian bank to help the company stay afloat before it went public and at a time when no U.S. bank would lend to Trump.

Any donations that might have been made through anonymous LLCs to PACs—perhaps with attached quid pro quos—are likely to remain opaque, due to the Supreme Court’s Citizens United decision. [...]  Among the entities promoted by the Voice of Europe propaganda network was Hungary’s Center for Fundamental Rights, which “considers preserving national identity, sovereignty, and Judeo-Christian social traditions as its primary mission.” CFR is funded by the government of Viktor Orbán and has twice organized a conference in Budapest for the Conservative Political Action Committee, which helps shape policy on the American right. The Heritage Foundation—which has spearheaded Project 2025, the authoritarian blueprint for a future Republican administration—has become increasingly cozy with Hungary, and even hosted Orbán privately last month. It is quite possible, perhaps even likely, that some people who are on the Russian payroll were at the Heritage event, their role to influence and build support for pro-Russian policies.

[emphasis added]

The short answer is yes. So is the long answer.

[brookstonalmanac]

Events 12.29

1170 – Thomas Becket, Archbishop of Canterbury, is assassinated inside Canterbury Cathedral by followers of King Henry II; he subsequently becomes a saint and martyr in the Anglican Communion and the Catholic Church. 1503 – The Battle of Garigliano was fought between a Spanish army under Gonzalo Fernández de Córdoba and a French army commanded by Ludovico II, Marquess of Saluzzo. 1607 – According to John Smith, Pocahontas, daughter of Powhatan leader Wahunsenacawh, successfully pleads for his life after tribal leaders attempt to execute him. 1778 – American Revolutionary War: Three thousand British soldiers under the command of Lieutenant Colonel Archibald Campbell capture Savannah, Georgia. 1812 – USS Constitution, under the command of Captain William Bainbridge, captures HMS Java off the coast of Brazil after a three-hour battle. 1835 – The Treaty of New Echota is signed, ceding all the lands of the Cherokee east of the Mississippi River to the United States. 1845 – The United States annexes the Republic of Texas. 1860 – The launch of HMS Warrior, with her combination of screw propeller, iron hull and iron armour, renders all previous warships obsolete. 1874 – The military coup of Gen. Martinez Campos in Sagunto ends the failed First Spanish Republic and the monarchy is restored as Prince Alfonso is proclaimed King of Spain. 1876 – The Ashtabula River railroad disaster occurs, leaving 64 injured and 92 dead at Ashtabula, Ohio. 1890 – On Pine Ridge Indian Reservation, 300 Lakota are killed by the United States 7th Cavalry Regiment. 1911 – Mongolia gains independence from the Qing dynasty, enthroning 8th Jebtsundamba Khutughtu as Khagan of Mongolia. 1913 – Cecil B. DeMille starts filming Hollywood's first feature film, The Squaw Man. 1930 – Sir Muhammad Iqbal's presidential address in Allahabad introduces the two-nation theory and outlines a vision for the creation of Pakistan. 1934 – Japan renounces the Washington Naval Treaty of 1922 and the London Naval Treaty of 1930. 1937 – The Irish Free State is replaced by a new state called Ireland with the adoption of a new constitution. 1940 – In the Second Great Fire of London, the Luftwaffe fire-bombs London, England, killing almost 200 civilians during World War II. 1972 – Eastern Air Lines Flight 401 (a Lockheed L-1011 TriStar) crashes in the Florida Everglades on approach to Miami International Airport, Florida, killing 101 of the 176 people on board. 1975 – A bomb explodes at LaGuardia Airport in New York City, killing 11 people and injuring more than 75. 1989 – Czech writer, philosopher and dissident Václav Havel is elected the first post-communist President of Czechoslovakia. 1989 – The Nikkei 225 for the Tokyo Stock Exchange hits its all-time intra-day high of 38,957.44 and closing high at 38,915.87, serving as the apex of the Japanese asset price bubble. 1992 – Fernando Collor de Mello, president of Brazil, tries to resign amidst corruption charges, but is then impeached. 1994 – Turkish Airlines Flight 278 (a Boeing 737-400) crashes on approach to Van Ferit Melen Airport in Van, Turkey, killing 57 of the 76 people on board. 1996 – Guatemala and leaders of Guatemalan National Revolutionary Unity sign a peace accord ending a 36-year civil war. 1998 – Leaders of the Khmer Rouge apologize for the Cambodian genocide that claimed over one million lives. 2003 – The last known speaker of Akkala Sami dies, rendering the language extinct. 2006 – The UK settles its Anglo-American loan, post-WWII loan debt. 2012 – A Tupolev Tu-204 airliner crashes in a ditch between the airport fence and the M3 highway after overshooting a runway at Vnukovo International Airport in Moscow, Russia, killing five people and leaving three others critically injured. 2013 – A suicide bomb attack at the Volgograd-1 railway station in the southern Russian city of Volgograd kills at least 18 people and wounds 40 others. 2013 – Seven-time Formula One champion Michael Schumacher suffers a massive head injury while skiing in the French Alps. 2020 – A large explosion at the airport in the southern Yemeni city of Aden kills at least 22 people and wounds 50. 2020 – A magnitude 6.4 earthquake hits near the town of Petrinja in Sisak-Moslavina County, Croatia, killing 7 people.

[correctsuccess]

Joel Osteen's Lakewood Church received $4.4M COVID-19 loan Multimillionaire televangelist Joel Osteen’s Lakewood Church in Texas netted $4.Four million in bailouts by means of the federal COVID-19 relief program, data present. The Houston megachurch, the most important within the nation with 52,000 weekly congregants, obtained the forgivable Paycheck Safety Program mortgage in late July, the Houston Business Journal reported Sunday. T... #44m #church #churches #coronavirus #correct_success #covid19 #credit #credit_cards #credit_score #joel #joel_osteen #lakewood #loan #loans #news #osteens #received #texas