Paul certainly has the gift of gab, and I'm sure there are those out there who keep track of this stuff. I would love to have an extensive list of the programmers who lease time, especially Christian theocratic leaders, but also money-guys like Rev. Dollar, etc. The Crouches have been producing their own version of "Code" and "Left Behind" films, including a recent series featuring Michael York as the anti-christ. What are they up to now? I don't have the stomach to monitor the broadcasts anymore (which remind one of the CSPAN house coverage, with blowhards at the mic and occaisional pans to an empty hall, but with music), so I welcome your insights!

by joelp on Thu Jun 15, 2006 at 08:13:20 PM EST

I recommend Dom Stasi's excellent essay, Moral Victory: Religious Exploitation, and the New American Creed

This is a brief excerpt from a longer piece that is well worth anyone's time.

Firmly ensconced in HBO's fledgling engineering department, and with our early successes a matter of technical record, I suddenly found myself being invited to speak at seminars on how to do this TV from space thing.
[...]
But it was a tutorial for TV execs in the deep South that would remain an event apart from all the others. Though I was a speaker, I was still new to the entertainment business, so I knew no one in attendance. But my talk had gone well, the college teaching experience was paying off, so there would be no problem finding eager dinner companions among so large an audience.

Descending the podium, I had noticed but a single empty chair in the entire room. Taking it, I found myself at a table of strangely egalitarian folk. They were gentle in manner. They welcomed me expansively. They introduced themselves. To my delight, they spoke less of arcane technology than they did of their fellow man and their responsibilities toward humanity that such technology could help them fulfill.

I listened, interested, noting that they all had that sort of deliberate not quite real Dixie accent that I'd learned to recognize in actors when playing Southern characters before the camera. But why here? Their names - remarkable in retrospect, but hardly noteworthy at the time - were Jimmy Swaggart, Paul Crouch, Jim and Tammy Faye Bakker, Pat Robertson, Robert Tilton, and a guy named Billy Batts. I was present, I know now, at American Televangelism's Big Bang, or if you prefer, its Genesis. Big league Fundamentalist Christian TV Evangelism was born at that table that day.
[...]
Another dinner companion that fateful night was Paul Crouch. Like Robertson and Jesus, Crouch, the televangelist, and story telling founder of Trinity Broadcast Network (TBN), started out with virtually nothing. Using a rented studio in southern California and a set made from his living room furniture and shower curtain, Crouch went on the air from Burbank. He claims that later, in 1975 to be exact, he was visited by God one night. God projected a map of the United States on Paul's ceiling, and told him about satellite technology. God went on to tell Paul Crouch how the satellite (No, not the moon. God forgot to put batteries in that satellite. We're talking modern here.) would allow him to broadcast to all those cities all across America.

Thanks to God's little slide show on Paul Crouch's ceiling, Paul would have no further need of his living room sofa and shower curtain as a set. In fact, today he sits upon a golden throne in a velvet-curtained studio, all of it generously funded by the $126,000,000.00 in annual donations from his faithful viewers in satellite television land. I often wonder why Paul Crouch came to that seminar at all. Why listen to dopes like me babble on when God Himself had already told Paul about satellite television? Funny how Crouch never mentioned his nocturnal visit from God. It would have been great dinner conversation. Because, except for that smelly guy I always see at the corner of Hollywood and Vine, I've never met anyone who's been visited by God.
[...]
Bush's style appeals to what the TV ministers call their "Value Voters." So, let the exit polls be damned, the Evangelicals carried the day for their poster boy. If they didn't, they at least gave the Republican crooks who own this president a plausible vehicle to which they might attribute the otherwise inexplicable vote counts in this year's national election. They have changed our country into something its founders never intended it to be, a virtual theocracy, and they did it through abuse of the very system first designed to prevent it.

by moiv on Thu Jun 15, 2006 at 09:18:13 PM EST

It's worth reinforcing the point that TBN is building a massive stockpile of liquid assest. They currently have over $400 million in cash, short-term, and long-term financial instruments, and are raking in an annual profit that's over $70 million per year (on an annual revenue of less than $200 million).

No other charity I know of operates in this manner, and it begs the question "why are they doing it?".  It's not as though they are taking their foot off the gas with their fund raising.  Recent newsletters are still urging their "faithful" to dig a little deeper and still complaining that only a small portion of their viewers give them any money at all.

Of course, with their board of directors stuffed with close friends and relatives, the chances of any real financial accountability are nil and as far as I can find out, they have yet to give any reason for their amassing of liquid assets on this scale.

by tacitus on Fri Jun 16, 2006 at 03:06:07 PM EST

I don't know about the pink wigged one.  She is both funny and pathetic (shrewd?)

In 2004 I was having a business lunch in a restaurant in Newport Beach.  In comes Paul with a small entourage and sits in the table next to ours.

His "bling" included a tacky diamond studded Rolex and gold rings.  He ordered Crystal champagne (this  is lunch!) and acted as if he was some sort of royalty.

I wonder what "god" this is a man of.

by Shockwave on Mon Jun 19, 2006 at 11:55:52 AM EST

In Loving Memory Of Bonnie Parker, I'm writing this in regards to the letter written to Kenneth and Gloria Copeland located at http://sis359.blogspot.com/ I wrote the letter with hopes of someone passing it along to the Copelands. Comments the letter has brought is overwhelming. My heart goes out to all who has suffered any type of a loss regarding Prosperity Gospel. Several times over the past few years, I felt that there was not anything I could do, or say that would make any difference in the way people see Prosperity Gospel. I was battling, and still am, a multimillion dollar organization for answers, I had never felt so alone. Now after receiving hundreds of supportive emails, I feel I have a army beside us. Some have requested a more detailed accounting of the last few months mom was with us, the following is merely a forth of the story. Our thanks go out to you all. No words could describe just how I felt at that moment. I promised her she would not be left alone, yet here we was in the hospital emergency room lobby, and she was somewhere behind the locked double doors alone. Hour after hour passed , a nurse finally appeared motioning for us to follow her. Seeing the pain in her blue eyes assured me this was no dream, this was it, the moment she knew would come someday but hoped never would. The nurse carefully pulled moms gown back revealing a sight that would be with me the rest of my life. I could hear the doctor asking questions directed to me and my father such as "When did she have a Mastectomy", and "How long has she been this way?". My father replied" She hasn't had any surgery" this answer brought looks of disbelief from the doctor and nurses surrounding us. I realized then exactly they were thinking, they actually thought we denied her medical attention. Their expressions were convicting us without any reasonable doubt. Her left breast was completely eaten away, leaving only a large whole where it used to be. Reality had hit me all at once, our fears were confirmed she was not going to be with us much longer, and we were being blamed for the condition she was in. Mom would not let us bath her even toward the end, she had led us to believe it was due to the weight loss, she didn't want us seeing her frail body. Truth was she didn't want us to see her chest. We were escorted back out to the lobby so they could resume their evaluation. Result of each test came back just as we had expected, It was to late nothing medically could be done. The following day's brought more criticism from the hospital staff, finally I had endured all I could, it was time they knew the truth. I know it was hard to believe we knew nothing about the cancer that had consumed almost her entire body, but that was the truth. And they were going to hear me out no matter how long it would take. I felt most to blame, I was her daughter, I should have seen this coming. But my father, they was not going to direct this blame towards him any longer. Come shift change I walked down to the nurses station where one group were leaving and the other arriving. Asking for a moment of their time, proved easier than I thought. As they began to move closer, I began to take them back in time where I believed it all began. Starting with her right eye in which she had lost the ability to open. This was the first sign something was wrong. Mom insisting day after day it was merely a sinus infection and nothing more. The mention of a doctor was unacceptable, she made that clear. Her eye would remain this way a few day's then become normal again. Twice more her eye would fail her before closing permanently, refusing medical attention each time. As time passed she began loosing weight rapidly, eating very little, and staying in bed mostly all day. We were fighting a loosing battle and there was no end in sight. She was dieing and there was nothing we could do. Why was she doing this to herself and us? The time came she could no longer stay alone, someone had to be there at her side at all times. My dad worked most every day so mom was with me most all the time. Each day she became weaker. I bought a baby monitor and put by her bed and mine so I could hear her during the night. I dreaded the night for I didn't know what the morning would bring. I had to get up before my children because if she had passed on I wanted to be the one to find her not them. The fear of her dieing and us not having a clue of what from, or why, was the reality we faced each day. My concern had evolved into anger, she was refusing medical attention and putting us though a living hell, why? There was nothing legally we could do, but watch her die. Once we could legally step in and force her to get in the ambulance waiting outside my door, she was probably only hours away from death. Still refusing and begging not be taken they loaded her in and drove away. I believe she knew she wouldn't return, deep down we all knew. But there was always that single ray of hope, and no one was going to put that out. We had spent the last few months surrounded by uncertainty, fear, and anger, maybe now at least we would know physically what was wrong. But why she made that fatal decision to refuse any type of medical help was still a mystery. In my eyes she committed suicide, I was going to have to live with that horrible fact. Nothing made since, would it ever? There was not a dry eye in that nurses station that evening after I concluded my memories of the last few months, but in their eyes we were no longer guilty of neglect. Once all the test results were back and we were faced with the fact there was nothing the hospital could do we had at make a decision regarding where to take her to live out what little time she had left. I could not take her back home with me, my kids had been through enough. Southern Oaks nursing home was only five miles from my house, the following two moths this would become our home. The staff took us in as if we were family. We owe the last few months of mom's life to the staff of Southern Oaks, we will forever be grateful to them all. Mom from this point on had her good day's and bad. October 19, 2004 she was finally called home. All day her blood pressure had continued to fall, her breathing had became labored, and she was totally unresponsive. Around ten o'clock that night dad told me to go home for a while, I didn't want to but he and my husband insisted. She passed away a few minutes after I left. For the rest of the story simply type , Kenneth Copeland, Bonnie Parker in your search engine. Thank you, The Family of Bonnie Parker

by kbeach on Wed Dec 19, 2007 at 02:55:59 PM EST

In Loving Memory Of Bonnie Parker, I'm writing this in regards to the letter written to Kenneth and Gloria Copeland located at http://sis359.blogspot.com/ I wrote the letter with hopes of someone passing it along to the Copelands. Comments the letter has brought is overwhelming. My heart goes out to all who has suffered any type of a loss regarding Prosperity Gospel. Several times over the past few years, I felt that there was not anything I could do, or say that would make any difference in the way people see Prosperity Gospel. I was battling, and still am, a multimillion dollar organization for answers, I had never felt so alone. Now after receiving hundreds of supportive emails, I feel I have a army beside us. Some have requested a more detailed accounting of the last few months mom was with us, the following is merely a forth of the story. Our thanks go out to you all. No words could describe just how I felt at that moment. I promised her she would not be left alone, yet here we was in the hospital emergency room lobby, and she was somewhere behind the locked double doors alone. Hour after hour passed , a nurse finally appeared motioning for us to follow her. Seeing the pain in her blue eyes assured me this was no dream, this was it, the moment she knew would come someday but hoped never would. The nurse carefully pulled moms gown back revealing a sight that would be with me the rest of my life. I could hear the doctor asking questions directed to me and my father such as "When did she have a Mastectomy", and "How long has she been this way?". My father replied" She hasn't had any surgery" this answer brought looks of disbelief from the doctor and nurses surrounding us. I realized then exactly they were thinking, they actually thought we denied her medical attention. Their expressions were convicting us without any reasonable doubt. Her left breast was completely eaten away, leaving only a large whole where it used to be. Reality had hit me all at once, our fears were confirmed she was not going to be with us much longer, and we were being blamed for the condition she was in. Mom would not let us bath her even toward the end, she had led us to believe it was due to the weight loss, she didn't want us seeing her frail body. Truth was she didn't want us to see her chest. We were escorted back out to the lobby so they could resume their evaluation. Result of each test came back just as we had expected, It was to late nothing medically could be done. The following day's brought more criticism from the hospital staff, finally I had endured all I could, it was time they knew the truth. I know it was hard to believe we knew nothing about the cancer that had consumed almost her entire body, but that was the truth. And they were going to hear me out no matter how long it would take. I felt most to blame, I was her daughter, I should have seen this coming. But my father, they was not going to direct this blame towards him any longer. Come shift change I walked down to the nurses station where one group were leaving and the other arriving. Asking for a moment of their time, proved easier than I thought. As they began to move closer, I began to take them back in time where I believed it all began. Starting with her right eye in which she had lost the ability to open. This was the first sign something was wrong. Mom insisting day after day it was merely a sinus infection and nothing more. The mention of a doctor was unacceptable, she made that clear. Her eye would remain this way a few day's then become normal again. Twice more her eye would fail her before closing permanently, refusing medical attention each time. As time passed she began loosing weight rapidly, eating very little, and staying in bed mostly all day. We were fighting a loosing battle and there was no end in sight. She was dieing and there was nothing we could do. Why was she doing this to herself and us? The time came she could no longer stay alone, someone had to be there at her side at all times. My dad worked most every day so mom was with me most all the time. Each day she became weaker. I bought a baby monitor and put by her bed and mine so I could hear her during the night. I dreaded the night for I didn't know what the morning would bring. I had to get up before my children because if she had passed on I wanted to be the one to find her not them. The fear of her dieing and us not having a clue of what from, or why, was the reality we faced each day. My concern had evolved into anger, she was refusing medical attention and putting us though a living hell, why? There was nothing legally we could do, but watch her die. Once we could legally step in and force her to get in the ambulance waiting outside my door, she was probably only hours away from death. Still refusing and begging not be taken they loaded her in and drove away. I believe she knew she wouldn't return, deep down we all knew. But there was always that single ray of hope, and no one was going to put that out. We had spent the last few months surrounded by uncertainty, fear, and anger, maybe now at least we would know physically what was wrong. But why she made that fatal decision to refuse any type of medical help was still a mystery. In my eyes she committed suicide, I was going to have to live with that horrible fact. Nothing made since, would it ever? There was not a dry eye in that nurses station that evening after I concluded my memories of the last few months, but in their eyes we were no longer guilty of neglect. Once all the test results were back and we were faced with the fact there was nothing the hospital could do we had at make a decision regarding where to take her to live out what little time she had left. I could not take her back home with me, my kids had been through enough. Southern Oaks nursing home was only five miles from my house, the following two moths this would become our home. The staff took us in as if we were family. We owe the last few months of mom's life to the staff of Southern Oaks, we will forever be grateful to them all. Mom from this point on had her good day's and bad. October 19, 2004 she was finally called home. All day her blood pressure had continued to fall, her breathing had became labored, and she was totally unresponsive. Around ten o'clock that night dad told me to go home for a while, I didn't want to but he and my husband insisted. She passed away a few minutes after I left. For the rest of the story simply type , Kenneth Copeland, Bonnie Parker in your search engine. Thank you, The Family of Bonnie Parker

by kbeach on Wed Dec 19, 2007 at 03:04:57 PM EST