[Vision2020] St. John Wenders

[Ralph Nielsen]

Let us not forget what a saintly man John Wenders was. Although he  
was only on half-time appointment as a professor at the University of  
Idaho, he made a deal with then President Richard Gibb for full-time  
retirement benefits. All this from a government school at the  
taxpayers' expense.

Ralph Nielsen


> Date: Tue, 3 Aug 1999 21:42:05 -0700
> To: letters at lmtribune.com
> From: Ralph Nielsen <nielsen at uidaho.edu>
> Subject: Religion of Wenders
>
> The article in Turnabout (Sunday, Aug. 1) "Majority spends money of  
> all on immoral pool" by John Wenders, should have appeared on  
> Saturday's Religion page. Like most other profit-seeking prophets  
> in the market-place of wishful thinking, the Rev. Dr. Wenders  
> pretends that he is saving us from sin--the sin of taxation for the  
> common good of our fellow citizens. Taxing the citizens of Moscow  
> for a public swimming pool is immoral, he says. Besides, swimming  
> is not all that good for young people anyway, at least not for his  
> sonny boy, whose daddy happens to be wealthy enough to send him to  
> a private academic summer program.
>
> Religion thrives on persecution, real or imaginary. Thus our latter- 
> day St. John has also been ridiculed for preaching that if we will  
> only believe in what he says, we will all be saved. Saved from the  
> hell of taxation for the good of others besides ourselves.
>
> Another hallmark of organized religion is the hypocrisy of many of  
> its preachers. According to the  prophet Wenders, tax subsidies for  
> public swimming pools are immoral. But churches pay not a penny of  
> taxes while they enjoy public services paid for by all taxpayers.   
> Are they not immoral, too? And aren't subsidies and tax write-offs  
> for large corporations also sinful?
>
> Let me quote from the gospel according to St. Wenders: "That is  
> redistribution, pure and simple, something that is antithetical to  
> every ethical standard." So when will Wenders, our new anointed  
> one, drive the evil money redistributors from his father's house?  
> Don't hold your breath, folks. I have a feeling that his  
> predecessor will show up first.
>
>