The Philalathes Society, a Masonic organization dedicated to research and dissemination of Masonic information, has invited recently expelled Past Grand Master Frank Haas of West Virginia to be the keynote speaker at their February 8, 2008 annual Feast and Forum in Alexandria, Virginia.M. W. Bro Haas was expelled (many say illegally) last month by current West Virginia Grand Master M. W. Bro. Charles Montgomery. (See Montgomery's edict confirming expulsion, courtesy of the blog Masonic Crusade.)
Meanwhile, Bro. Hodapp at Freemasons for Dummies has astutely noted that Bro. Haas' name has disappeared from the Grand Lodge of West Virginia's website's list of past grand masters. Bro. Haas' name has been tossed down the memory hole.
Image: If you don't know who it is, it would be doubleplus unwise to even ask.
Masons | Masonic Villains | West Virginia Freemasonry | Freemasonry | Grand Lodge of West Virginia | Burning Taper | BurningTaper.com
I find it intriguing that the individual in the picture would NOT be expelled from the G.O. Is this wrong, or not? Just want an answer to asimple question.
ReplyDeleteBrother Hodapp's article is very good on WVa Masonry, and tells a bit more of the picture. Of course, Bro. Hodapp has already been vilified as one of the 'Grand Lodge defenders' and attempts have been made to minimalize the value of his opinion on this website. Oh-I get it! As long as you 'fall in line' here, 'Big Brother' will love you! Anytime you disagree, you're speaking 'double non-plus'.
ReplyDeleteBro. A.A.:
ReplyDeleteI'm not the only one who has noticed, judging from private emails I've received lately... your comments have become increasingly erratic over the past several days. I don't even understand your question in your preceding post, and your comments in some of the other threads have recently been off-the-wall, at best.
I don't recall vilifying Bro. Hodapp on the Taper or elsewhere. Other than a cheap shot I made about the word "dummies" in the title of his book a couple of years ago, I've never said anything negative about him that I can recall. He and I have a warm, amicable Masonic relationship. We often "borrow" article ideas from each other for our blogs.
I and I alone choose what material is posted as articles to the Taper. You and countless others contribute via comments. Certainly some people have left comments criticizing Bro. Hodapp and others over the past couple of years. I don't often referee the comments; people say what they want to.
Please don't confuse comments posted here by others with the thoughts, opinions and attitudes of me, the publisher/editor/writer.
— W.S.
I did not know this article was about the G.O.?
ReplyDeleteI must have missed something.
I also did not see bro hodapp being villified in the article, again I missed that one too?
Bro AA, did we read the same article? I missed everything you posted about?
Must be my age....... My eyes must be bad...
and oh yeah, brother soebody, you owe me a dollar, see I told you Bro AA would be the first poster on BT's new article's!
Thanks for the dough bro AA, i enjoy winning bets!
Peace out
"Answer to a simple question"? What simple question? What question? Anagram, what the hell are you talking about?
ReplyDelete"Certainly some people have left comments criticizing Bro. Hodapp and others over the past couple of years."
ReplyDeleteThose comments were those to which I was referring. If you read what I said, I did NOT refer to you or the article (Hodapp's article, yes). It's just humorous that people rush to attack others except when those others happen to agree. They rush to the defense of a GL officer that's been expelled, but the week before he was expelled he is likely to be here vilified.
to Alcyon's big brother and light traveler:
Again, it's a simple question. Again, no one is responding. I'll post more, and you're welcome to keep the money.
The question once again, although I'm not expecting a respose:
If Big Brother joined the G.O. Lodge, could he be kicked out?
I doubt that MWBro. Haas would have been vilified here, if an examination was made of what he tried to accomplish as GM in October 2006.
ReplyDeleteAs for comments directed at me, I'm a shameless supporter of mainstream Masonry. I want the big buildings, the magazines, the books, some kind of recognition system to keep any nitwit who buys an apron and says he's a Mason from being equated with those who really are, the semblance of standards and practices administered by somebody in charge, and a nice retirement home when I'm done. I'm just crazy enough to think that the mainstream system is better than chaos, but I'm a big "order" kind of a guy. Those who think I'm a chump for siding with the mainstream establishment are free to do so. It doesn't cause me any sleepless nights.
Having said that, I'm also big on looking at the fraternity like I do a business plan. And if a business was run the way we allow certain Grand Lodges to, the stockholders would beat us to a pulp. I am truly not wanting to pick on West Virginia, but they keep insisting on heading for the nearest tar pit. Individual GLs around the country all have their deficiencies. But WVa takes the cake, and their leaders seem to wear isolation and their 1947 regulations like a badge of honor.
Unfortunately, until a succession of enough visionary GMs get elected all in a row, there is no way to change what they have. And right now, it looks like a race to see which will happen first – a change in the direction of their leadership, or the death of Masonry in Wild and Wonderful West Virginia.
As for Bro. A.A.s comments, I confess to being as stumped as the rest of you.
Brother Hodapp,
ReplyDeleteThank you for your statement. It is how I feel about regular Freemasonry too, and I am complete agreement. Apologies for causing confusion in the temple. ;,) I admire you greatly and agree with your statements here.
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ReplyDeleteIt's my bedroom. None of your business! ;,)
ReplyDeleteDo you have a poster of this Hodapp guy hanging in your bedroom too?
ReplyDeleteTHAT'S creepier than a back rub from Grandma.
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ReplyDeleteNo posters of Chris in my place and no I don't know him, no insult I hope Chris. I actually don't even have a copy of his book, but it looks good and I plan to get one some day. As far as the closet comment, the last time I came out of the closet I had a hat on. Weird...
ReplyDeleteEnough, enough, gentlemen, ENOUGH!!@!!!!!!!!
ReplyDeleteAA, you are articulate, create your own blog, WS is open minded and will create a link.
Objective, OMG, get a bucket and clean up the mud.
Men, Masions, ENOUGH, get hold of yourselves!!!!!! Are we not adults? Show us you we are above the primates!!!! SHAME, SHAME!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!
I wrote what I did because I was sick of reading this blog every day and hearing the endless pretentious nonsense. It's a reality check for the idiots who love to hear themselves talk.
ReplyDeleteSQ I agree with you. Maybe the message will get through this time.
Funny, I wrote what I did for exactly the same reason.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteThis comment has been removed by the author.
ReplyDeleteYo! Both of you. Enough. Go to your rooms.
ReplyDelete— W.S.
Found this interesting:
ReplyDelete"The common thread
amongst all the possibilities is intensity and passion, for good or
ill We will see, even within ourselves, the ardent commitment of a Martin Luther King's pursuit of a goal or goals, while we may also
see a tendency to create tension over petty irritations or issues
(something we must be mindful of and avoid!)."
Sound familiar? Read on:
"Pluto is approaching its first re-entry into the Sign of Capricorn since the
year 1762! Voltaire, Rousseau, and other `revolutionists' were
berating the power structure of the time (the "divine right of
kings"), just as currently there are efforts at agitating against and questioning our present power structure (e.g., its apparent
assumption of the primacy of commerce and profit over people and
their quality of life)."
Not relevant here, just thought people might enjoy and consider.
SQ, I think I will start a blog full of information on moving Freemasonry forward. Thank you for your wise advice.
More from same article (not mine):
ReplyDelete"Thankfully, the planet of good luck and usually healthy aspirations (Jupiter) tips the scales of this intense period
in the direction of being constructive and productive. However…Pluto is also the symbol of secrets, while Jupiter is its
clear opposite, being the planet of "transparency" and forthrightness. Reflected faithfully by this astro-signature, huge secrets have recently been revealed, e.g., that Iran hasn't been working on the bomb since '03, that the CIA has lied about suspicious destruction of video taped interrogation sessions just as the country
was grappling with the issue of torture in 2005, that there has been recalls of bad products resulting from the out-sourcing to maximize profit, etc., etc."
I love Big Brother. I love Big Brother. I love Big Brother.
ReplyDeleteI think it's an error to wait for 1984 when we are deeply entrenched in a Brave New World, where the populous is controlled by prescription drugs and over-consumerism. "Teach a man to fish, and you rule him for a day. Give a man a fish, and you own him for a lifetime'. It's not Big Brother that takes away our rights, it's complacency. As Jefferson said; “A society that will trade a little liberty for a little order will lose both, and deserve neither.”
ReplyDeleteCan anyone tell me (who actually knows) whether the Grand Orient of the U.S. has any connection of any kind, other than the name, with the Grand Orient of France?
ReplyDeleteAnother question: I visited the Masonic Crusade site that apparently prompted Bro. Haas' expulsion. The site referenced what it called the "Wheeling reforms," which apparently would have been changes to the WV Masonic Code. Does anyone know what they were?
ReplyDeleteYou can find a treasurechest of documents relating to this issue on the Masonic Crusade website.
ReplyDelete— W.S.
OK, I read it. Wow! I thought we were backward in Alabama. None of the proposals should have been the least bit controversial. It is clear that the current GM of WV is a complete retard.
ReplyDelete