BRADRICK! Divorce Part 3: Now With Remarriage?

[hoipolloi]

2 hours ago, AnnaSofia said:

I still believe the reason VFI/VFM folded soooo quickly was financial shenanigans known to those behind the scenes, namely Jim Leninger, who provided enough of the funds (and therefor held enough of the power) to ultimately call the shots, even though he was far less known to the public than Dougie's other associates.

Don't forget that Scott Brown was on that board too, at least up through 2011. 

Here are a number of screenshots from the 2011 IRS 990 for VFM that show some key information, including the BOD:

Spoiler

 

 

ETA: IOW, there was quite the cash flow for a period of time and from available information, it seems as though the walls between VFI & VFM were very porous.

[nokidsmom]

On 4/15/2018 at 1:21 PM, starfish said:

I so wish we had some inside scoop on the Botkinettes. I'd dearly love to know what they are truly thinking about the revelations of the past few years, not to mention their aversion to marriage. 

I would like to know what they think as well.   Especially how they, the self-proclaimed "relationship experts", clearly have not gotten very far themselves.  

[AnnaSofia]

Back in the glory days, the Botkinettes were writing books, making documentaries, giving webinars, speaking at conferences , etc. Sure, it was all exaggerated to look far more grandiose than it actually was, but they were still producing content for the family business.

Now that's all gone, and I'm wondering what they even do all day. There's T-Rex Arms, but the whole bloody family seems wrapped up in that, how busy can it really keep all of them?

[Hane]

@hoipolloi and @AnnaSofia, when VF folded, I too thought the main reason was crooked financial shenanigans (even though DPIARBT’s sexual misconduct did not come as a surprise). 

As I wrote in a Bohemian Rhapsody song parody about it, “Papa, gotta fix this mess/So let’s blame it on somebody in a dress.”

[ophelia]

2 hours ago, AnnaSofia said:

Now that's all gone, and I'm wondering what they even do all day. There's T-Rex Arms, but the whole bloody family seems wrapped up in that, how busy can it really keep all of them?

The Botkninette's are pretty sure helping their sister-in-laws a lot with their kids and the rest of their time is spend worshipping their dad. What a sad life.

[Quinquagenarian]

17 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

ETA: IOW, there was quite the cash flow for a period of time and from available information, it seems as though the walls between VFI & VFM were very porous.

Thank you for this sunshine @hoipolloi .  It is good to periodically re-remind folks of the absolute fleecing that operation was. Half a million dollars in travel expenses surely included Shirley Temple and her entourage.  With no mortgage and everything paid for by the "ministry" all that has been stated here about he M.O. of this family to feel entitled (and to have little to no work ethic) is also much appreciated.

On ‎4‎/‎16‎/‎2018 at 1:43 AM, acheronbeach said:

This.  My parents would be embarrassed at their child publicly begging, particularly for "traveling to sing to and talk to veterans" money that could be alternatively spent directly helping veterans.  It really gives insight into Beall's and the daughters' mindset that they think this is not only acceptable, but promote it publicly.  I'm sure Beall, Liberty, and Attention-Seeking Evangeline all think they're doing something fabulous and helpful for "The Veterans".  They're not.  They have no education or skills to set them apart from the average person, so they come across as parasitic grifters.  

Thank you @acheronbeach  One of the best summaries/observations of their whole warped and ultimately self-deceiving existence. Thank you for rightly reminding us of how self-centered and vain the "work" is.  Other than running in races, the girls are rarely ever doing physical work/laboring. And per their earlier existence, there is nary a word of spiritual motivation for their "work."  Seems they are simply living out the 2.0 version of the Liberty, Jubilee, Faith dolls lives.  Had VF continued (and maybe they already got to this point I didn't keep up) I'm sure those dolls would have had Earlier 20th Century/"World War II" era clothes to buy.

The question is though, would there have been a Flo or Lourdes doll?

[Howl]

I suspect there is enough work at the T Rex Arms office and factory  to keep everyone very busy.  Somebody has to mind the shop while Mr. Appendix Carry is out shooting thousands of rounds of ammunition, progressively tightening his thigh strap as close to his crotch as possible, and posting obnoxious crap on social media.  I suspect T Rex Arms is making bank to keep the entire Botkin life raft afloat, because the Western Conservatory of the Arts (!)  and Sciences (?) can't be bringing in very much these days and the Botkins are not job-type™ people.  That said, if everyone has a house on the Botkin property, they are buying in bulk, gardening and what not, it's likely pretty cheap living. 

[Marian the Librarian]

3 minutes ago, Howl said:

I suspect there is enough work at the T Rex Arms office and factory  to keep everyone very busy.  Somebody has to mind the shop while Mr. Appendix Carry is out shooting thousands of rounds of ammunition, progressively tightening his thigh strap as close to his crotch as possible, and posting obnoxious crap on social media.  I suspect T Rex Arms is making bank to keep the entire Botkin life raft afloat, because the Western Conservatory of the Arts (!)  and Sciences (?) can't be bringing in very much these days and the Botkins are not job-type™ people.  That said, if everyone has a house on the Botkin property, they are buying in bulk, gardening and what not, it's likely pretty cheap living. 

Add in all that free child care provided by botkinspinsters.com - now you're talkin' SoMuchMore.

"Mr. Appendix Carry is out shooting thousands of rounds of ammunition, progressively tightening his thigh strap as close to his crotch as possible" = 

[AnnaSofia]

1 hour ago, Howl said:

I suspect there is enough work at the T Rex Arms office and factory  to keep everyone very busy.  Somebody has to mind the shop while Mr. Appendix Carry is out shooting thousands of rounds of ammunition, progressively tightening his thigh strap as close to his crotch as possible, and posting obnoxious crap on social media.  I suspect T Rex Arms is making bank to keep the entire Botkin life raft afloat, because the Western Conservatory of the Arts (!)  and Sciences (?) can't be bringing in very much these days and the Botkins are not job-type™ people.  That said, if everyone has a house on the Botkin property, they are buying in bulk, gardening and what not, it's likely pretty cheap living. 

I have to wonder how they all feel about making a living off their baby brother's idea. I don't give Lucas much credit, but I do believe he's the one who got the family into the firearm accessory biz, at least initially. Obviously, the ladies of the family were always expected to take a backseat to their brothers ambitions, but for the menfolk, that's gotta be a punch in the ego, no? Isaac's taken a pretty steep dive from being a future Prime Minister of New Zealand

As for childcare, are the Botkinettes really the kind of sisters-in-law who help out with the kids? They always struck me as pulling a power trip over their brothers wives. Under all the "There's a new Botkin girl!" bs there was a not-at-all-subtle undercurrent of "He was MY BROTHER before he was your husband, and don't forget it, bitch!" I realize babysitting is one of the services maiden aunts are suppose to provide in a patriarchal society, but the BotkinSpinsters have always been oddly immune to such expectations.

[Howl]

3 minutes ago, AnnaSofia said:

but the BotkinSpinsters have always been oddly immune to such expectations.

Bingo!  Plus, they have to keep a lot in reserve as fluffers for the Duck Biologist's every ego need! Hair cuts, ego fluffing, toe nail trimming, editing Geoff's weighty pronouncements, more ego fluffing, general fetching, and so forth. 

[Palimpsest]

19 hours ago, hoipolloi said:

ETA: IOW, there was quite the cash flow for a period of time and from available information, it seems as though the walls between VFI & VFM were very porous.

That takes me back!  Very porous, and an obvious conflict of interest.

Without going back and reviewing all the old threads, this is what sticks in my mind:

• Doug was reputedly "bad with money" (good at spending it, bad at managing it) both as top dog at VFM and at VFI.  VFI was apparently going under from bad management when the Lourdes story broke.  The fire sale didn't last long.
• The very fishy sale of Jonathan Park from VFI to VFM at a hugely inflated price a couple of years earlier.  When they folded VFM Jonathan Park sold for peanuts.
• Doug's frequent annual "bonuses" paid by VFM.
• The huge VFM slush fund for travel and expenses.
• Doug's big rent free house, with baptismal swimming pool was owned by Leininger, not by VFM.

IMO, Jim Leininger was definitely very active behind the scenes, in financing VFM in the first place, in chucking more money at it for the film festivals, and in financing that vanity project movie written by his daughter.  He was probably instrumental in getting Doug out.  When they were liquidating VFM, the office address was one of Leininger's buildings.  Also Leininger apparently knew the Torres family well and may have been inclined to take their word over Doug's.  The reports of Daddy and Andrew Torres chasing Dougie down the road at gunpoint may have been the final straw for Jim L.

[Howl]

I find Jim Leininger a fascinating character, and not in a good way.  He's astoundingly wealthy, unrepentantly ultra conservative and has a lot of backroom influence in the teavangelical politics of my state  --  big in supporting school vouchers, for example.  He also has his finger in a lot of pies nationally (Patrick Henry College, etc.) and is active in philanthropy, giving away many, many millions of dollars. 

Supporting Doug and the various VF iterations was probably chump change. 

[hoipolloi]

41 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

The very fishy sale of Jonathan Park from VFI to VFM at a hugely inflated price a couple of years earlier.  When they folded VFM Jonathan Park sold for peanuts.

The return from which I pulled those screenshots is the one documenting the "purchase" of Jonathan Park from VFI, which must have happened in tax year 2010 for VFM.

Here are a couple more screenshots "documenting" that bullshit:

 

Spoiler

 

[Palimpsest]

Leininger has been known to chuck money at rather dubious projects.  As @Howl says, chump change compared to the millions he has given away. 

I've always wondered whether Jim Leininger bought Shrader's wingless plane for him.  That 15K that suddenly miraculously appeared to buy the plane Shrader didn't know how to fly.  I have no proof at all  - but Shrader does have a nebulous connection to VF.  Once in country, the Hazardous Journey to Zambia asked for additional funds to be funneled through Shrader's IGMB clearing house.   Apparently seeing the sights was much more expensive than they anticipated.

I do miss the Hazardous Journeys.

[hoipolloi]

James Leininger -- a wealthy cockroach scuttling away from sunshine anytime his doings come to light. 

 

[smittykins]

2 hours ago, Palimpsest said:

I do miss the Hazardous Journeys.

We never did get the Greece pics, did we?

[neurogirl]

@Quinquagenarian I’m sorry...did the VF movement have dolls based on the Phillip daughters?!?!

[Palimpsest]

23 minutes ago, smittykins said:

We never did get the Greece pics, did we?

You made me go and look because I could have sworn I remembered some.  Apparently we found a few here.  http://meghanbphotography.blogspot.sg/2013/10/travels-corinth.html?m=1

There are other links in the thread - Caution: some of them seem to be Hazardous today because I got a dangerous site warning on one.  Apparently they never posted official ones because the cat was out of the bag.

 

 

[Howl]

20 minutes ago, Palimpsest said:

Apparently we found a few here.  http://meghanbphotography.blogspot.sg/2013/10/travels-corinth.html?m=1

Doug and at least one other guy in one of those pics are wearing suit jackets....Doug's,  of course, appears to white linen. 

[DomWackTroll]

By the time of the trip to Greece, didn't Joe Morecraft already know about Doug's "issue"? I could swear I remember an insider telling us that Joe had to go to Greece and play along with this charade, knowing it was going to blow up when they returned home. And that Becky was so upset, she wouldn't even go along. Does anyone else remember that, or am I wrong? Was Becky in Greece, too? 

[hoipolloi]

20 minutes ago, DomWackTroll said:

Does anyone else remember that, or am I wrong? Was Becky in Greece, too? 

You are correct and what's more you commented  on a blog photo from the Greek tour in which they both appeared. The blog has since, predictably, gone private.

Quote

 

Look at Joe and Becky Morecraft, upper right with Becky wearing a white hat and Joe a blue shirt. Their backs are turned to Doug. Joe looks utterly defeated and Becky's going into fierce bitch mode on her electronic device.

htford3.blogspot.com/2013/09/philippi-greece_28.html

 

 

[DomWackTroll]

33 minutes ago, hoipolloi said:

You are correct and what's more you commented  on a blog photo from the Greek tour in which they both appeared. The blog has since, predictably, gone private.

Ah, so they were both there. I remembered there being a photo, but I thought it was just Joe. Thank you!

[hoipolloi]

3 minutes ago, DomWackTroll said:

I remembered there being a photo, but I thought it was just Joe

That's who I remember from the available photos.

He just looked ill in all of them, hardly someone in a condition to go touring through the Greek Isles. 

 

[FilleMondaine]

47 minutes ago, hoipolloi said:

You are correct and what's more you commented  on a blog photo from the Greek tour in which they both appeared. The blog has since, predictably, gone private.

 

You are incredible! All this research is so neat. I've been following the Botkin girls (Do they still like being called 'girls'?) for many many years, and like another commenter above, I'm dying to know what they are doing, now that everything had gone silent. Thanks for all the inside-scoop, everyone!

[AnnaSofia]

2 hours ago, neurogirl said:

@Quinquagenarian I’m sorry...did the VF movement have dolls based on the Phillip daughters?!?!

Yup

They were American Girl knockoffs, 'cause AG was promoting "abortion and lesbianism"  and Doug's flock clearly needed a godly alternative :eyeroll

Quote

“America’s leading doll providers have declared war on biblical femininity. Whether it’s Barbie’s sassy ‘B who U wanna B’ campaign, Bratz’ call for girls to ‘strut their stuff,’ or American Girl’s recent support of Girls, Inc. — an organization that openly promotes abortion and lesbianism to young girls — the elite doll lines have sullied the innocence of our daughters by glorifying perversity,”

“Yet even as others frown on biblical femininity, minimize motherhood, and belittle the beauty of being a true woman of God, we dare to chart a different path through our doll line.” 

“We dare to believe that the biblical vision for girlhood is a glorious vision. It is a vision so bright and so wonderful that it must be boldly proclaimed.”

They were the same size as the American Girl dolls, had themed costumes, books with the character's backstory, etc. The main doll was Liberty, after the oldest daughter, then there was a Jubilee (poor Jube was retired early at some point), then Evangeline and Fidelis, both presumably named after Faith Evangeline, plus an African American doll named Abigail.

They went through a couple of different design changes, some pics here: http://dollation.com/dollipedia/brand/beautiful-girlhood-collection