Posted on 03/14/2010 9:13:38 AM PDT by Colofornian
we’re as shocked at the conservative LDS pervert’s actions as we are at the harassment that Polanski is receiving from conservatives with no compassion.
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“the harassment that Polanski is receiving from conservatives with no compassion.”
Say ah WHHHHHHHHAAAAAAAAAAATTTT ??????????????
Garn was her sunday school teacher when she was 9 years old. In Utah/Mormon society, being members in the same ward mean the guy was her neighbor, a trusted member of the community that she would see practically every day. When she was 15 (probably earlier), he "hired" her to work at his company. (What kind of work is a 15 year old qualified to do?).
As her employer (and active member of her church), he drove her 40 miles to Salt Lake, bought some booze, and took her to a "hot-tub-by-the-hour" joint. (And how did a good ol' church boy from Syracuse know where to find the gay's hot tub establishment?)
Later, Garn used his wife, son, and church authorities to attempt to coerce this woman.
The dude's a pedophile and pervert. He'd targeted her for sex for years.
actually yesterday on a similar thread people were making excuses.
“It was a different time”. 1985? Was not THAT long ago...
He was her employer and ex-LDS Sunday School teacher. He knew her family. He knew her age. Her knew the level of "trustworthiness" she would place in him. (And betrayed it)
His post-facto "accomplices" include the Deseret News, which has sat on this story for 8 years and Lds, Inc., which not only owns the News, but pays the stipends the bishops rec'd; they insured the victim was eventually ex-communicated but that the perp's reputation remained in order; and then when the head Lds "prophet" was alerted via a 7-page letter from the victim of 2008, did anything change? See: LDS Church says local leaders handled claims against Garn
LDS congregation bishops receine no “stipends.” Zero; nada.
You are right; I should have used the past tense "paid" instead of present-tense "pays." At the time that bishops began to handle the supposed Garn repentance issue (Cheryl Maher says it was 1993), my understanding is that Lds bishops were still being paid a 10% "stipend" from tithing funds. ["Changes in stipends for bishops and general authorities. (Bishops once received a 10% stipend from tithing funds, but are now purely volunteer.)" Source: History of The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints]
Maher pinpointing 1993 time frame with Garn & his Lds bishop: "In 1993, Kevin Garn went into repent for what he'd done ... I wasn't notified, I wasn't checked on, like, 'Are you OK?' that kind of thing. There's no communication. 'This man has admitted what he's done, we want to help you, are you OK with what happened in your past?' [My experience] was 'Good luck to you, thank you, we'll check into it.' That makes me angry." Woman: Garn lying about 'no contact' in hot tub when she was 15
Regarding this creep Garn, it would appear that statute of limitations laws would leave him legally untouchable in just about every state in the Country, even if his actions went beyond what he now admits to.
Here's what I said in an Oct. 23, 2008 FR thread -- and I stick to it: LDS Bishops are indeed lay folks who receive no salary. But as of 15 years ago, I knew of a bishop who received $40,000 (in 1993 $) as a "stipend" for expenses. Now don't get me wrong, bishops indeed incur expenses for which they need to be reimbursed. But I would betcha, were you to have surveyed Protestant pastors and Roman Catholic priests in 1993, if they were incurring personally reimbursed expenses at a rate of $40,000 per year, and you would find the bulk of them were not. Steep stipends = a partial salary.
And, as I just cited the previous source, $40,000 would not be unreasonable if that was 10% of the local tithing funds. Now, yes, that practice has been changed; but it was more recent than you are giving it credit.
Re: the victim...possibly, but none of us have a handle of what their relationship was -- and you've already reduced it to just one hot tub encounter...and several of the articles say it was more than that:
First of all, KSL.com (owned by the Mormon church) already says their hot-tubbing occurred more than once: Maher said Saturday she and Garn were in a hot tub together twice -- once in late 1984 after she had just turned 15 and again a few months later in 1985. She declined to say if the pair were nude both times or to provide any other specifics of the hot tubbing episodes. "I'm sure the resignation was really difficult for him, but it needed to happen," Maher said. "This is a secret that devastated my life and my family's life." Source: House majority leader Kevin Garn resigns
Now why would somebody conclude that even a couple of hot tub encounters "devastated my life and my family's life"??? Hold that question for a moment...and then look at another Cheryl Maher comment:
"Let's just say this. He really loves to massage," Maher told City Weekly when asked for details of the contact in the hot tub. Maher, though, talks less about how that particular encounter traumatized her and more about the emotional relationship she had with Garn. "I was in love with him," she said. Source: Woman: Garn lying about 'no contact' in hot tub when she was 15
She was love in him, she says. She looked up to him as her Lds Sunday School teacher; as the guy who trusted her as an employee at age 14 or 13. And, as she implies, the guy who took her to lunch; took her shopping:
"In the church, people feel they can trust everybody," said Maher, who was excommunicated a few years ago for an extra-marital affair. "You're supposed to be safe with the priesthood holder, or whoever you're with. And I think my Mom and Dad felt that way. 'He's taking her out to lunch. Oh, he's taken her shopping. She's taken care of.' They had no idea. That was the trust in the church and I think that needs to be looked at." Source: Woman: Garn lying about 'no contact' in hot tub when she was 15
So, to get back to that "why" question: if he did all these things; and if the relationship turned sexual, then here's a trusted spiritual leader who is in effect "training" a 15 yo to engage in behavior (sex outside of marriage) which if she replicates while married could devastate her...
...family life (the Lds church ex-communicated her for having an affair) Source: CityWeekly article cited above
...which could further lead to ex-communication [and did]
And we know the Lds leadership pattern. The general authorities are business leaders who serve on each others' business boards. Same with the rest of the Lds hierarchy. Do you think they like to take action vs. a "...wealthy business owner, who has interests in everything from banks to hotels..."???? See quote source at: Garn's bombshell blows away lawmakers
Perhaps a bit of sarcasm intended. The sad thing about today’s liberals is that it’s difficult to parody their positions because they go to extremes so much better than a sane person would imagine.
When I was a youngster of 24 I lived in Las Vegas one summer driving a truck for a construction company. I went to the North Las Vegas ward where the Bishop was evidently encouraging folks to give cash for their tithing. Of course most of the fast offerings were also in cash.
They caught him and sent him kicking horse turds down the road. And he was oh, so sanctimonious.
Point is, I believe they all take a little something when they can get away with it.
I must say when I was the Branch President in Hjorring Denmark nobody paid any tithing to speak of. Maybe a couple hundred Kroner. Can’t get rich that way brother.
HOT TUB TIME MACHINE ping!
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