GENESIS... THE ORIGIN OF HUMANKIND - PART 1

CREDIT for Biblical Quotes: DEVOTIONS - THE OLD TESTAMENT ONLINE


"God said, ‘Let the waters under the sky be gathered together into one place, and let the dry land appear.’ And it was so. God called the dry land Earth, and the waters that were gathered together he called Seas. And God saw that it was good. Then God said, ‘Let the earth put forth vegetation: plants yielding seed, and fruit trees of every kind on earth that bear fruit with the seed in it.’ And it was so. The earth brought forth vegetation: plants yielding seed of every kind, and trees of every kind bearing fruit with the seed in it. And God saw that it was good." 


Welcome, to Genesis... 


The beginning of humankind.


I was raised going to church every Sunday, in the Protestant religion, known as "Zion Covenant". I spent 3 years in SHS going every Friday to religious classes, to graduate what was called "Confirmation". At the end of that time, I was to join the church. I didn't. Neither did my sister. Everyone else did.


The Old Testament of the Bible always fascinated me. It's the New Testament I have issues with. During the 14th century the Catholic Church convened a meeting, a meeting that for now I could care less about, but it was a meeting that changed the world, a meeting where women were deemed subservient to men and a link to Satan, a meeting where what books of the Bible were deemed ADMISSIBLE. Several Books of the Bible were omitted then by the CHURCH. The Jewish Apocrypha, for one. The fact is, man, literally, decided what their Bible would be... and until the 20th century, women had little to say about it.


I find all that hard to understand, but easy to accept. I accept it because people evolved, and our history of how we evolved is what made us who we as a world are today. 


History is something to look back on, and question, but it can't be changed. It can only be built upon.


I'm not writing here to remind us we live in troubling times. That is nothing new.


I am here to tell our story of Genesis... 


Because it appears... we disagree on The Truth. And I believe, I understand the truth. 


In the beginning... there had to be a first human being that became "self-aware", and the Old Testament tells it was a woman named Eve.


Eve, and Adam, and All of humankind was cursed that day. Not because God wanted it, but rather, because, becoming self-aware, is a curse. "Ignorance is bliss", it goes without saying. But I said it. Because there are many that take bliss in ignorance... shelter in their religion, shelter in their politics, shelter in their own beliefs. 


The most common form of shelter is called dichotomy, the belief that there is "right and wrong", "black or white", "truth or lies". The fact is the world is gray and full of color. 


In the following posts, it's my hope to bring some color and gray into your life. Yet, I know, for many, your minds are made up. You know the truth. 


Yes, you know the truth...


As do I.


Apple anyone?

BEDBUGS AND THE REV. TERRY JONES - ON "BURN THE QURAN"

Reverend Terry Jones of the  Dove Outreach Center, Gainesville, FL.... considered a Church of Christ... is Pastor of the small Christian congregation... has been in the news of late vowing to burn the Islamic Bible, the Quran... the church is noted as condemning Islam as a satanic religion, which just happens to be the practice and the religion of millions of Muslim people. It also happens to be the alleged religion of the terrorists who killed a couple thousand people on Sept. 11, 2001, obliterating the Twin Towers in NYC, and hijacking two other airplanes, one which hit the Pentagon, the other that was heroically crashed in a field in PA when passengers overtook the terrorists.

Well, Rev. Jones believes Islam is evil. That building a mosque near "Ground Zero" in NYC is reason enough to burn a Holy Book of Islam. In protest.

On NPR tonight I heard he has spoke with God, and decided not to burn the Quran. But in the same report it was stated he decided God spoke to him because an Imam Muhammad Musri agreed to not build the mosque near Ground Zero as originally planned.

So who is Rev. Jones dealing with here? God or his own personal voices? Conflicting news suggests that the pastor is now changed his mind and is again planning on burning the Quran in protest because the mosque deal may be off. Odd, as God, if he truly spoke to the pastor would have told him all this.

Maybe the pastor doesn't hear too good... but all I know is, this is a great example of why I don't associate with organized religion.

I'm honesty not an atheist, but rather more of a Druid. I believe in God, but my God is All... all religions, all beliefs, all that is, was and will ever be.

As I've said before, my one moral is "don't hurt others". By burning the Quran, Rev. Jones is hurting the faith and the spirit of Muslims worldwide. It is fueling a fire that apparently the Christian pastor believes is just and approved by his god. All for the sake of a mosque that Muslims wish to build near, but not on Ground Zero.

The Rev. Jones apparently believes Muslims are akin to bedbugs... a pest to destroy. Fact is, it's mosquitoes that carry disease, not bedbugs. Maybe to those of the Christian faith, those who "Trust in God", Islam is a pest, but they are not the devil that Rev. Jones would believe they are.

I would like to ask Rev. Jones how many Muslims died in the destruction of the World Trade Center, destroyed by a pack of mosquitoes claiming to be the angels of Islam? It's a mistake of media worldwide that only Americans died in the destruction. Fact is, people of all faiths died.

Not one mention of that fact have I ever seen or read in any media reports... but that's the truth. Human beings of all kinds perished. The world was hurt... not just Americans!

Rev. Jones... you want to incite WW3, in America you have that right. I really could care less if I have to go to work on Monday if WW3 breaks out if you burn the Quran. But think about it! Is it the GOD talking to you or your own voices you call god? Because seriously... what happened on Sept. 11, 2001 was not the Muslims attacking us, but a radical group of extremists. If nothing else, God has given you the gift of making that message clear to the world, because I really don't think most people understand that. On the other hand, if your goal is to claim God doesn't want the mosque build near Ground Zero, then to me, you are nothing but a misguided, eccentric man that could very well light the fuse to WW3.

As President Obama said quite clearly, America is a Country that tolerates and welcomes religious freedom. Not that an atheist could ever become president, but then, it wasn't long ago that it was not deemed possible that a man "of color" could become president.

So what will it be? WW3 or religious tolerance??? Personally, I'd prefer a cannabis dispensary be built near ground Zero, since cannabis users tend to be peaceful, but I doubt I'll get my wish.

Talk to your god again, and maybe actually listen this time! You call yourself a Christian?  I have my doubts!

JUSTICE FOR JESSICA - BUTTS FAMILY MURDERS - PART 2

Edited Sept. 06, 2010

I'm not here to write the story about the murder of three people, the Butts family. That's already been done, told by journalist Sonny Long, who followed the Butt's Family murders almost from the beginning. Without his commitment, the murders most likely would never have come to the level it is today, which is that the long-time suspect, Kevin Hailey, pleaded guilty to strangling Gerri Faye Butts, the single mother of two children. I understand Mr. Long is finishing up a book on the the Butt's family.

Sonny Long provided everything one could possibly want in sleuthing a crime, a heinous crime that took the innocent lives of three persons - Gerri Faye, Jessica and Mackenzie Butts.

*******

Sonny Long, put this WEBSITE together, and this  timeline of events, beginning with the following:

Place - Atlanta, Texas (approx 20 miles from Texarkana)Population - 6,400
Cass County

Police department - - 21 employees - - 16 police officers 

Gerri Faye Butts, 29, and her daughters, Jessica, 11, and MacKenzie, 3.

Gerri worked for minimum wage at Stanco, a safety glove manufacturer. She lived in a trailer with her 2 daughters. They had different fathers, neither father was in the picture.

Gerri Faye had been arrested for selling marijuana in 1985. 21 people were caught in that "bust" - - only 2 didn't do time - - one was Gerri Faye.

Is it possible she made a deal to stay out of jail? Did she have any enemies from that time? 

The Butts had received "scary" phone calls shortly before the murders. One said that they would all be dead in eight days. One of Jessica's friends at school was supposed to be in a skit the next week, but she hurt herself and on January 24th asked Jessica to take her place. Jessica said she better not agree to do that, she might be dead by then. This information came from a counselor at Jessica's school. 

Reading though Sonny Long's comprehensive reporting on the murders, one finds that the alleged suspect, Kevin Hailey, wasn't the only suspect. 

*******

"OTHER SUSPECTS"; credit: Sonny Long::

"Bret Lawless was thought to be a suspect from early on, but he had an alibi (Lanette Butts) and passed a lie detector test. More than one person interviewed said that there was a "dispute" between Lawless and Gerri Faye over some land he wanted the family to sell. Gerri Faye was reportedly the lone holdout.

Bret was named by Atlanta Police as a possible suspect in Hailey's probable cause hearing, and Kevin's mother called him the killer on the Ma ury Povich Show."

***

Still, Kevin Hailey remained what most considered the prime suspect. He lived in the same neighborhood and the family, and although he didn't drive, (had lost his license or some such thing), during his recent trial, and previous ones, the defense argued he was home, and couldn't have traveled to the Butt's family home. Obviously the prosecution argued he lived in the same neighborhood - he could have walked! 

But why would Kevin Hailey, former boyfriend and friend to the Butt's family, murder them all? And what happened during the ensuing investigation with so much evidence available?

*******

During the Winter of 2004, I was assisting Brianna Maitland's family in there effort to find her. As fate would have it they asked me to work with a criminal profiler out of Texas. I call him Sam as he wishes anonymity. While we spoke mostly about Brianna Maitland, I discovered "Sam" had been involved the the Butt's family murders. What follows are some excerpts from e-mails we exchanged. It provide a unique perspective on really happens during an investigation. 

Thu, Aug 27, 2009

SAM: I was involved in the very begining when the murders occuredm chief scott was over the investigation the first time we arrested hailey. Then the same ones who attacked me had chief scott ran off. That left no who was willing to push the case. I took it upon myself after 10 years to start pushing the case again. That's when they came after me.

Fri, Aug 28, 2009


SAM: I lived in Texarkana and I was a criminal investigator for the army at
the time. Worked part time (weekends) for the Atlanta Texas Police Dept.
Chief Scott was a retired Dallas Homicide Investigator and a good
friend. He wasn't run out of town but they pressured him so much he quit
the Chiefs job and got completely out of police work. He lived about 6
to 8 miles outside of Atlanta and still does. He had a series of strokes
and is partially paralyzed now.
All the other officers were afraid to do anything because they were
scared they would lose their job and they would have if they pushed the
case. I didn't make my living with the City of Atlanta and since I was
involved with the case from the beginning I decided to push it.
In 1992 I was in my early thirties gun hoe and full of piss and vinegar.
The day the Butts bodies were discovered was Monday morning around 0800.
I was in a dentist chair having a root canal when I heard about it. By
the time I made it down there they had removed the bodies. I did not see
the bodies but I possess a crime scene video tape if it still works?
I studied all the crime scene photos, autopsy reports, evidence and
helped in the investigation. I also helped develop some of the evidence.
Chief Scott told me everything and I had access to the complete case
file. I'll be really surprised if I'm not called to testify over some of
the evidence. I hope I can stay out of it but will see. BobKat when I was
30 years old nobody came on my turf (beat) and murdered children and got
away with it.
NOBODY !!!!!!

Sat, Aug 29, 2009

Motive butts? Kevin owed geri money and wouldn't pay her. She told some of her friends she was going to get in his face. I guess she did.

*******

I'll leave you with the following description of the scene where Jessica was found murdered in her bedroom; Warning, contains graphic descriptions of violence.

Jessica, from the following: "TIMELINE 1992", credit: Sonny Long

"11 year old Jessica was found on the bed. She was wearing a t-shirt, her panties had been removed and she had been sexually assaulted. Later it would come out that she was killed first - - the sexual assault came after her death - -she had been injured but had not bled. Apparently there was a tear in the vagina but the hymen itself was intact.


One source told me that three pubic hairs were found at that scene. Two on the sheets - and one was on her toe - - a bit of mud was on her toe (had the killer carried it in? Stepped on her toe, perhaps? Her feet were on the floor, her buttocks at the end of
the bed.) The pubic hairs were checked and it was reported that they belonged to Kevin Hailey. Again, could they have been there from weeks before? Another source said what was found on her toe was a HAIR MASS, like from the tub drain.


Enter the egg - - there was an egg casing on one of the hairs -- the egg of a crab. The egg was photographed and studied and the experts say it was in day 7 or 8 of a 10 day incubation period.


When Kevin Hailey was questioned 4 days after the murder - -he was suffering with a new outbreak of crabs.


There was no semen or DNA found on her body or the sheets."

***

"Justice for Jessica" is about evidence and facts. How can those be diminished? The evidence found on Jessica, even DNA available on the phone cord used to strangle her, is or should be more than enough to bring justice to Jessica's brutal murder. And the drowning of a baby.

You decide for yourself, if justice was served? Myself, I think not. 

I may be back with more. 

JUSTICE FOR JESSICA - BUTTS FAMILY MURDERS - Atlanta TX, January 27th, 1992; PART 1

Last edited, Aug. 31, 2010

Jessica Butts, age 12, raped and murdered. Atlanta TX, 1992.

Along with her mother, Gerri, 29, who was strangled, and baby Mackenzie, age 3, drowned in the bathtub.

Maybe you've read I was an advocate for Brianna Maitland, of VT, who disappeared March 19, 2004... but prior to that I learned of the Butts family, and their triple murder. Their case is what got me revved up to volunteer to help not only the Maitlands, but Maura Murray too, who disappeared Feb. 09, 2004, in Woodsville, NH, who also is still missing.

On the one hand, with the Butts family, there are the brutal, tragic multiple murders of 3 innocent people. On the other hand, the shocking disappearance of a person with the shadow of foul-play hanging for what seems like eternity over what happened and where are they.

The Butts family murders are tragic in another way too, in that the suspect, Kevin Hailey, has been the primary suspect all along... from the beginning, and the evidence in the case, more than an investigator could ever want. Yet, nearly 20 years after the fact, the case is, in my opinion, still  locked and located, not in a prison cell, but rather, a political  nightmare - the makings of a good mystery novel perhaps, except, when considering the victims, it's a sham!

I am not law enforcement... but I have connections. And quite by coincidence, in helping the Maitland family, I was asked to work with a criminal profiler from Texas who offered his assistance to the Maitlands. I call him Sam, at his request, but it turns out, ironically, he was a detective at the time of the Butts family murders, working with the Texarkana  PD, who initially investigated the murder of the Butts family.

Small world!

This link is to the original website setup by investigative reporter, Sonny Long, who can be credited for keeping the murders active: Butts Family, by Sonny Long, and his personal link here: Sonny Long

I recently wrote him, as I did years past, but haven't received a response yet.

According to this link, Kevin-is-pleading-guilty-to-murder; the prime suspect admitted to strangling the mother Gerri Butts... a "plea agreement" in which it appears he doesn't have to admit being involved in the deaths of Jessica or Mackenzie.

What kind of bull-crap is that!!!?

As you'll see... it all came down to the power of the district attorney, and a family connection he had to the suspect.

All of which my ace in the hole verified via e-mail to me.

Jessica told her classmates she was going to die, and she did. She was strangled with a telephone cord, and raped. There was at least one pubic hair found on her body, as well as a louse egg ( crabs, for the innocent). Kevin's palm print was found on the bathtub, where baby Mackenzie was drowned.

Think I'm mad... you're damn right!!!

Many years, it's my opinion, the District Attorney responsible for bring justice to this case, stuffed it in a box... called Don't open!, and being related to the suspect, it's not surprising. Here is the family photo:

More to come...