Cultic Studies Review, Vol. 3, Nos. 2 &3, 2004, Page 170
many Iraqi prisoners were tortured while in American custody, perhaps because the jailers
were told that doing so was necessary to keep us safe from terrorists. (Paul Campos,
Capitol Hill Blue, Internet. 6/30/04)
Polygamy
Editorial Approval, But Not with Minors
―Plural marriage is a deeply rooted belief in a number of religions around the globe ...As
such, we can support those who wish to pursue the sanctity of multiple marriages among
consenting adults as a form of religious expression. ..
―It has been argued that the simple belief in polygamy creates an environment of forced
marriages and the sexual abuse of children. But there are forced marriages in a number of
current-day cultures, including places where polygamy is condemned, and children are
abused sexually in many cultures. These societal ills are not the result of polygamy.
―There are, to be sure, instances of abuse and fraud involved in the polygamist world, as in
the so-called straight culture. But that is an entirely different issue. Welfare fraud and the
sexual abuse of children are acts that should be prosecuted to their maximum, regardless of
whether they involve plural marriage.
―There are many religious beliefs in this world that are beyond the comprehension of the
mainstream population, polygamy among them. It‘s time to think out of the box, as they
say, and realize that as long as there is no fraud, no harm to children, and that what is
taking place is with the agreement of consenting adults, who are we to disallow it?‖ (The
Spectrum, So. Utah, Internet, 7/7/04)
Psychological Warfare
Loud Music Tactic in Iraq
A U.S. Army psychological warfare operations team is using loud rock music and insults
shouted in Arabic at very high volume on the streets of Fallujah, Iraq, to make hostile
gunmen nervous and anxious to come out of hiding and fight. The army used similar tactics
to flush Manuel Noriega in Panama and in an attempt to end the standoff with the Branch
Davidians, in Waco. The sound effects also include babies crying, men screaming, cats
screeching, and dogs barking. Nothing seemed to work. (Jason Keyser AP, Internet,
4/19/04)
Remnant Fellowship Church/Weigh Down Workshop
Group’s Teachings Investigated in Murder Case
Representatives of the Weigh Down Workshop of the Remnant Fellowship Church, and
the founder of both organizations, Gwen Shamblin, are being questioned in Franklin, TN,
about possible connections between the church‘s teachings and the murder of an 8-year-old
in Cobb County, GA.
It is alleged that a church couple, Joseph and Sonya Smith, beat their ―demon possessed‖
son Josef so severely that his brain swelled and bruises covered much of his body. Police
say the parents sometimes locked the boy in a closet and made him pray to a picture of
Jesus.
The boy‘s father told authorities he disciplined Josef — described by his parents as a ―wild‖
problem child — by hitting him with a two– or three-foot-long, whip-like glue stick. They
allegedly sometimes ordered an older boy to hold the child during the beatings. His mother
said Joseph had received ―several whippings,‖ normally given in series, ten at a time,
according to a December 2003 Atlanta Journal Constitution story.
many Iraqi prisoners were tortured while in American custody, perhaps because the jailers
were told that doing so was necessary to keep us safe from terrorists. (Paul Campos,
Capitol Hill Blue, Internet. 6/30/04)
Polygamy
Editorial Approval, But Not with Minors
―Plural marriage is a deeply rooted belief in a number of religions around the globe ...As
such, we can support those who wish to pursue the sanctity of multiple marriages among
consenting adults as a form of religious expression. ..
―It has been argued that the simple belief in polygamy creates an environment of forced
marriages and the sexual abuse of children. But there are forced marriages in a number of
current-day cultures, including places where polygamy is condemned, and children are
abused sexually in many cultures. These societal ills are not the result of polygamy.
―There are, to be sure, instances of abuse and fraud involved in the polygamist world, as in
the so-called straight culture. But that is an entirely different issue. Welfare fraud and the
sexual abuse of children are acts that should be prosecuted to their maximum, regardless of
whether they involve plural marriage.
―There are many religious beliefs in this world that are beyond the comprehension of the
mainstream population, polygamy among them. It‘s time to think out of the box, as they
say, and realize that as long as there is no fraud, no harm to children, and that what is
taking place is with the agreement of consenting adults, who are we to disallow it?‖ (The
Spectrum, So. Utah, Internet, 7/7/04)
Psychological Warfare
Loud Music Tactic in Iraq
A U.S. Army psychological warfare operations team is using loud rock music and insults
shouted in Arabic at very high volume on the streets of Fallujah, Iraq, to make hostile
gunmen nervous and anxious to come out of hiding and fight. The army used similar tactics
to flush Manuel Noriega in Panama and in an attempt to end the standoff with the Branch
Davidians, in Waco. The sound effects also include babies crying, men screaming, cats
screeching, and dogs barking. Nothing seemed to work. (Jason Keyser AP, Internet,
4/19/04)
Remnant Fellowship Church/Weigh Down Workshop
Group’s Teachings Investigated in Murder Case
Representatives of the Weigh Down Workshop of the Remnant Fellowship Church, and
the founder of both organizations, Gwen Shamblin, are being questioned in Franklin, TN,
about possible connections between the church‘s teachings and the murder of an 8-year-old
in Cobb County, GA.
It is alleged that a church couple, Joseph and Sonya Smith, beat their ―demon possessed‖
son Josef so severely that his brain swelled and bruises covered much of his body. Police
say the parents sometimes locked the boy in a closet and made him pray to a picture of
Jesus.
The boy‘s father told authorities he disciplined Josef — described by his parents as a ―wild‖
problem child — by hitting him with a two– or three-foot-long, whip-like glue stick. They
allegedly sometimes ordered an older boy to hold the child during the beatings. His mother
said Joseph had received ―several whippings,‖ normally given in series, ten at a time,
according to a December 2003 Atlanta Journal Constitution story.
