The Lonely Js Club: James, Jackson & Johannah

[Churchhoney]

I sent it to TMZ. If the Duggars can sink low, I can sink low, too. 

[GeeGolly]

Anyone have a fake account? To go on their posts and ask them questions? Would love to see screenshots of their replies or their deletes of posts.

Maybe ask Derick about it. He might actually reply. Or ask Kelly Bates.

Edited September 16, 2019 by GeeGolly

[Churchhoney]

2 minutes ago, Temperance said:

Please send it to TMZ; they're great with this kind of stuff.  (Thanks for sending it to OK! and US.)

I was doing this as you posted! 

Great minds running in the same gutters here!

[crazy8s]

14 minutes ago, Churchhoney said:

Well, there are groups that track charities and rate them. But these guys wouldn't be tracked yet because they don't have non-profit status.....

I was wondering whether the IRS has a tip line of any kind to contact when it comes to people who are in the process of seeking nonprofit status. I'm going to poke around and see what I can find. 

10 minutes ago, Churchhoney said:

Well, there are groups that track charities and rate them. But these guys wouldn't be tracked yet because they don't have non-profit status.....

I was wondering whether the IRS has a tip line of any kind to contact when it comes to people who are in the process of seeking nonprofit status. I'm going to poke around and see what I can find. 

charity navigator is a big name - trying to find a contact to reportthis to them even though they do not have mediccorps listed on their site.

[crazy8s]

from charity navigator and how to report fraud https://blog.charitynavigator.org/2016/07/how-to-report-charity-fraud.html

not sure you can make a compliant since there 501 is "pending" someone claimed mediccorps is an LLC and people were suckers for giving

Edited September 16, 2019 by crazy8s

[GeeGolly]

On 9/5 and 9/6 a couple of online mags wrote about the Duggar/Bates/Bahamas, citing haters. When did we start posting about it?

I have a feeling it won't be long now.

[Sew Sumi]

1 minute ago, GeeGolly said:

On 9/5 and 9/6 a couple of online mags wrote about the Duggar/Bates/Bahamas, citing haters. When did we start posting about it?

I have a feeling it won't be long now.

I hope you're right!

[GeeGolly]

Poor Mr FB Poster is probably getting inundated with private messages from online magazines.

[GeeGolly]

The first post here was by @ginger90, on 9/3. It took the online mags two days to pick it up, if I'm correct in thinking they get much of their info from here.

Here's hoping they check in here on Mondays.

[JoanArc]

4 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

Poor Mr FB Poster is probably getting inundated with private messages from online magazines.

Despite his rating and racism, I hope he gets a small payday from a rag for details. I don't mind seeing crappy people profit of crappier people.

[Churchhoney]

6 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

Poor Mr FB Poster is probably getting inundated with private messages from online magazines.

He may not mind all that much. 

He sounded about as pissed and disgusted as we are.. 

[ginger90]

Not sure if I posted this previously. It’s a video from 5 days ago:

[GeeGolly]

1 hour ago, Mojitogirl said:

Laura Maisie was also with them in the Bahamas so, at some point, word must have gotten around that it was a good spot for missioncations. 

I have to comment on the rest when I’ve had time to digest it. 

ETA: Am I going crazy or did Laura Maisie delete her IG?  I saw it but now the whole account seems gone. I don’t follow her so I’m not blocked. Maybe they realize this is not looking good. 

https://www.instagram.com/masiespace/?hl=en

[galaxygirl76]

Just now, GeeGolly said:

https://www.instagram.com/masiespace/?hl=en

The link for donations goes to MediCorps Corps. Not the other ones.

[GeeGolly]

2 minutes ago, galaxygirl76 said:

The link for donations goes to MediCorps Corps. Not the other ones.

The one in Laura's bio goes to Medic Corps.

https://mediccorps.org/donate/

[galaxygirl76]

10 minutes ago, GeeGolly said:

The one in Laura's bio goes to Medic Corps.

https://mediccorps.org/donate/

That's what I said 😉

[jcbrown]

57 minutes ago, ginger90 said:

Not sure if I posted this previously. It’s a video from 5 days ago:

Reading his shirt... So they intend "Medic" to be an acronym with the C standing for "Corps." So the full name of their "charity" is Medical Evacuation Disaster Intervention Corps Corps? Seems about right.

[Zella]

Ugh this is even more disgusting than I imagined, though I already had a low bar for them.

You know what really gets me? Those badges are not automatically issued to Arkansas constables. If you are an Arkansas constable (and my brother is one), you have to pay out of pocket for a badge. My brother refused to get one, and most of the constables I know don't have one. 

Also, it looks like even the Bates boys had them? They don't even live in Arkansas and as far as I know would not have any lawful reason to possess those badges in the first place. (Never mind that an Arkansas constable has no fucking jurisdiction outside of their own goddamn township.)

[Ohiopirate02]

10 minutes ago, jcbrown said:

Reading his shirt... So they intend "Medic" to be an acronym with the C standing for "Corps." So the full name of their "charity" is Medical Evacuation Disaster Intervention Corps Corps? Seems about right.

I noticed that last week.  I now refer to them as Medi Corps Corps.  

[Sew Sumi]

Lawson is a rent-a-cop in his county (Anderson?) in TN. Not sure if Nathan is also volunteering, but he spends a lot of time in TX and AL (or MS, I forget offhand). If he has a badge, it's likely a fake. I wonder if the Howlers also walked around with badges; no doubt they too were armed.

[jcbrown]

7 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

I noticed that last week.  I now refer to them as Medi Corps Corps.  

Sorry if I missed you pointing that out.

[Ohiopirate02]

What I find most distasteful with the bees of the Medi Corps Corps guys open carrying in a foreign country where that is not 100% legal, is the fact that they took off the guns or untucked their shirts to hide them when posing for their Insta pictures.   They know it's a bad look to be packing heat when volunteering with disaster relief.  They want to pretend they are good Christians doing the lord's work and it probably worked for many people.  Got to present the best image to get the donations.

[Zella]

10 minutes ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

What I find most distasteful with the bees of the Medi Corps Corps guys open carrying in a foreign country where that is not 100% legal, is the fact that they took off the guns or untucked their shirts to hide them when posing for their Insta pictures.   They know it's a bad look to be packing heat when volunteering with disaster relief.  They want to pretend they are good Christians doing the lord's work and it probably worked for many people.  Got to present the best image to get the donations.

Yes, this really got me too! 

[doodlebug]

1 minute ago, Ohiopirate02 said:

What I find most distasteful with the bees of the Medi Corps Corps guys open carrying in a foreign country where that is not 100% legal, is the fact that they took off the guns or untucked their shirts to hide them when posing for their Insta pictures.   They know it's a bad look to be packing heat when volunteering with disaster relief.  They want to pretend they are good Christians doing the lord's work and it probably worked for many people.  Got to present the best image to get the donations.

Absolutely.  They've posted dozens of photos themselves over the past couple weeks and not a single one showed the guns and badges and handcuffs- because they knew it was wrong, knew they were not authorized to have those items let alone use them and wanted to be sure the leghumpers didn't find out that they were behaving like raging a**holes threatening people and taking over operations like the bullies that they are.  Might've cut back on donations, after all.  And, since they were apparently able to control the supply of fuel for planes down there and eat free food, those donations are going to be pure profit!  It's Jesus' will after all.

Anyone know how to search to see if Medic Corps Corps has LLC status in Arkansas?  I'm no business whiz, but, from what little I know, a charitable organization would not register as an LLC which is, essentially, a business for profit which is why it is set up as an LLC.

[Sew Sumi]

Lawson was pictured with his stupid badge about a week ago. I know we commented on it then, but not to any great extent, more along the lines that he looked like an idiot. I guess he put away his gun for that glamour shot.

[DangerousMinds]

4 hours ago, Churchhoney said:

\

I guess they wear their damn guns and "badges" when they go to countries with more than 1 percent non-white people. That's a horrifying image for supposed volunteer "helpers." 

And the fucking badges. 

And handcuffs! Truly disgusting and unbelievable.

[Future Cat Lady]

If they did carry handcuffs, what for? Did they intend to arrest anyone? They would have no rights to do so.

[Mojitogirl]

They flew in in the midst of the confusion of the immediate aftermath. I had posted an article how difficult it was for pilots to get clearance to fly in - they did it in shady ways.

They brought one woman who can’t be alone nor is supposed to speak to a man alone. She has to wear a skirt at all times. Jana’s pictures all are glamour shots too - you don’t, under any circumstance unload boxes or go out into a hurricane disaster zone in cute sandals. I believe all her pictures “working” were staged. She never looked flushed or sweaty (and the heat index over there is over 90 degrees. Bullshit she was working that much.

That room they were pictured in with the CFA was a huge clue they were bullshitting us. In a tropical place that is ravaged, any protected space with electricity and A/C is used as a command center. That place was clean and tidy - that is NOT what a command center with people coming in and out looks like and tells me that the guy from Facebook was telling the truth about them commandeering the space and excluding people. 

They brought the pregnant wife of one guy - to an area with Zika and based on their belief system, he was going to have to be with her all the time.  How did Laura get there - she has no discernible skills to be there and only skilled disaster recovery people should be there.  I reiterate - there are lines of people here in miami ready to leave to help but it’s not rebuilding time yet and the last thing they need is a bunch of good Samaritans needing attention.  How and why was she there?  All liars, flying around to sightsee and move some water bottles around.  

The badges have already been discussed. 

A couple of days ago, I was almost ready grudgingly to give them some credit. Almost. But I’m so pissed now. 

[GeeGolly]

Abby was probably flown in to be an accountability partner for Jana. They must not have thought through how to keep a brother at Jana's side and still be able to 'help', nor how it must have looked having Jana there with a bunch of guys. Laura must have come to be Abby's accountability partner on the plane. Plus, Jana must have needed help packing them all up to return home.

FYI, checked for 'news' stories online about the trip. Nothing as of 5am.

[ginger90]

No idea who is in this picture. No gloves, no hard hat, nothing.  Real? 

[kokapetl]

On 9/15/2019 at 3:59 AM, Ohiopirate02 said:

I will peek at their Instagram (still surprised I wasn't blocked for my comment a few days ago) and they definitely are trying to make people believe they are doing more than what they are.  I do think there is some PR person crafting their posts that is not a Duggar or Bates.  I think the pilots are assisting in relief efforts, but they are in no way running the show.  They have to be helping in some way or whoever is running the show would ask them to leave.  

There is a lot of leeway with how charities spend their money and still retain tax-exempt status.  The huge nonprofits like the Red Cross, United Way, Goodwill run with huge overheads that include six-figure salaries for their CEO.  This could be JB's next grift to set up his adult sons.  They could use donations to pay for salaries for the boys and this would be legal.  These Instagram posts and they way the Duggars and Lawson have gotten their names out there will help them get the tax-exempt status.  

Those charities generate billions of dollars and provide billions in charitable services. Salaries of hundreds of thousands of dollars to run organisations that large aren’t unusual. Too much work for a Duggar.  

[GeeGolly]

13 minutes ago, ginger90 said:

No idea who is in this picture. No gloves, no hard hat, nothing.  Real? 

Doing a structure search or a pilfering search? 

[Churchhoney]

10 hours ago, Future Cat Lady said:

If they did carry handcuffs, what for? Did they intend to arrest anyone? They would have no rights to do so.

To intimidate people into giving them anything they wanted, I assume. Just like with the guns and badges. The badges mean nothing outside their regular jurisdictions (and JD's basically means pretty much nothing in terms of enforcement authority even in his jurisdiction -- an Arkansas constable just carries out various chores for the courts and such....). But in a confusing situation where a bunch of strangers are all gathered together trying to cope with something difficult, people would probably give a certain respect to somebody with a badge, just in case. 

And I'd be surprised if they went through the process of getting permits for those guns, which are required in the Bahamas. .... The trip seemed fairly spur of the moment (no time to pack any food except chips and cookies, for example). And I expect the local authorities had their hands too full in the days leading up to and during that storm to expedite any firearms permitting for foreigners for no good reason. 

The guns, too, were for intimidation purposes, and they probably figured that the local police would be way too busy with other stuff to even notice a few "rescue" workers carrying non-permitted weapons. Everybody would figure that somebody else knew who those guys were. And they might figure that a bunch of "Christian" "Good Samaritans" wouldn't be blatantly breaking the law in a crisis situation. Ha. 

If the guy on Facebook is telling the truth -- and I expect he is, since somebody would catch him out if he wasn't -- they swaggered around "commandeering" stuff and telling other people what to do. And their little play-authority outfits were their means to do it. That and their entitled attitudes, I guess. They all truly do think they're way better than anybody else. Despite the fact that they're basically all just common unemployed grifters, sneaks and thieves. 

That kind of behavior just screams "JB" to me. So, once again...apples. right next to trunk. rotten tree.

Edited September 17, 2019 by Churchhoney

[Zella]

2 hours ago, Churchhoney said:

(and JD's basically means pretty much nothing in terms of enforcement authority even in his jurisdiction -- an Arkansas constable just carries out various chores for the courts and such....). 

Actually an Arkansas constable has a surprising amount of authority within their township. They are not even beholden to the sheriff and can, technically, arrest him and get away with it. The constable work I've seen conducted in Arkansas has absolutely nothing to do with carrying out court work and is often not coordinated with any official body.

People in rural areas can and do call their constables in place of contacting local law enforcement, including for domestic disputes, and a constable can pull you over for traffic violations and can arrest you, and you can't do a damn thing about it. Constables are actually investigated by state police instead of local law enforcement because of their position within the county. I would think since JD is not in a rural area, his constable work is actually pretty minimal since people would instead just be more likely to call law enforcement.

In any event, the relative power that constables have is one reason why, in my county, they don't ask people to consider being constables if they think it will go to their head and turn into a power trip for them. 

The fact that JD seems to get off on having that kind of authority is very worrying for someone in that position who has that amount of freedom and leeway. I'm actually trying to figure out how to report his actions and get him stripped of his constable powers, though that might be easier once a news outlet breaks this story. 

Edited September 17, 2019 by Zella

[Churchhoney]

22 minutes ago, Zella said:

Actually an Arkansas constable has a surprising amount of authority within their township. They are not even beholden to the sheriff and can, technically, arrest him and get away with it. The constable work I've seen conducted in Arkansas has absolutely nothing to do with carrying out court work and is often not coordinated with any official body.

People in rural areas can and do call their constables in place of contacting local law enforcement, including for domestic disputes, and a constable can pull you over for traffic violations and can arrest you, and you can't do a damn thing about it. Constables are actually investigated by state police instead of local law enforcement because of their position within the county. I would think since JD is not in a rural area, his constable work is actually pretty minimal since people would instead just be more likely to call law enforcement.

In any event, the relative power that constables have is one reason why, in my county, they don't ask people to consider being constables if they think it will go to their head and turn into a power trip for them. 

The fact that JD seems to get off on having that kind of authority is very worrying for someone in that position who has that amount of freedom and leeway. I'm actually trying to figure out how to report his actions and get him stripped of his constable powers, though that might be easier once a news outlet breaks this story. 

Wow, so they've got a very unusual amount of power for constables! In most states that isn't true at all, as I understand it. ... 

I wonder how they'd feel just about him walking around in a foreign country displaying his badge, and with the gun and handcuffs yet. Are Arkansas constables regularly armed? 

I mean, in a foreign country he's kind of impersonating an officer with authority since he doesn't have it there....Although I know some law enforcement people are likely to have the mindset that that's a good thing.....

They definitely shouldn't have let a Duggar into that position, based on what you said....But what I fear about the Arkansas authorities overall is that the Duggars may have way too much pull with just enough of them to make it hard to get any traction against any Duggar enterprise, no matter how questionable... (not that they don't have lots of detractors at home, too.... but a lot of times you only need a few fans in the right places....)

Edited September 17, 2019 by Churchhoney

[whydoiwatch]

I am (impatiently) waiting for this story to break out and hoping that finally this arrogant, ignorant clan lose  their show and income stream from their pseudo fame. Intimidation can now be added to their wheelhouse. Guns, badges and handcuffs - really?

To take advantage of the horrific situation in the Bahamas is beyond reprehensible. At one point, I thought maybe John David and Abbie were trying to follow a different path - HA. He must be a real ass.

[Natalie68]

15 hours ago, ginger90 said:

Not sure if I posted this previously. It’s a video from 5 days ago:

Well look at that.  They went to Kinko's or the fundy equivalent and got themselves some swag!  Totally legit now!

14 hours ago, Zella said:

Ugh this is even more disgusting than I imagined, though I already had a low bar for them.

You know what really gets me? Those badges are not automatically issued to Arkansas constables. If you are an Arkansas constable (and my brother is one), you have to pay out of pocket for a badge. My brother refused to get one, and most of the constables I know don't have one. 

Also, it looks like even the Bates boys had them? They don't even live in Arkansas and as far as I know would not have any lawful reason to possess those badges in the first place. (Never mind that an Arkansas constable has no fucking jurisdiction outside of their own goddamn township.)

Impersonating law enforcement is an actual crime.  Is a constable actually considered law enforcement?  Maybe your brother knows who to report this to locally?  I would assume this would not sit right with whoever is on charge.  Paints them with a scammer brush.

[doodlebug]

Found this on No Longer Quivering.  A trickle can become a flood very quickly...and I hope it does:

https://www.patheos.com/blogs/nolongerquivering/2019/09/duggars-behaving-badly-in-the-bahamas/

I would presume the regular news outlets, even those with tabloid-y reps like TMZ, are trying to find the original poster and get verification as to who he is and where he was before spreading the story.  I think he gave far too many details not to be legit and I am happy to wait while he is found and verified.

[Churchhoney]

16 minutes ago, whydoiwatch said:

I am (impatiently) waiting for this story to break out and hoping that finally this arrogant, ignorant clan lose  their show and income stream from their pseudo fame. Intimidation can now be added to their wheelhouse. Guns, badges and handcuffs - really?

To take advantage of the horrific situation in the Bahamas is beyond reprehensible. 

Me, too. 

Frankly, though, I have about zero hope of anything coming of this. Or of anything else they're likely to do going forward. 

They're making money for some TeeVee networks. What they've done is all borderline crap and likely prohibitively hard to pin any tangible harm on. They're very careful to skirt that edge. They come from a clan and a cult of longtime, practiced con men. 

And they're very loud very "righteous" "conservative Christians." Which as far as I can tell makes them virtually untouchable by most authorities, for fear of backlash. 

[Natalie68]

4 hours ago, GeeGolly said:

Doing a structure search or a pilfering search? 

Looking for shoes/clothes for the howlers?

[Zella]

59 minutes ago, Churchhoney said:

Wow, so they've got a very unusual amount of power for constables! In most states that isn't true at all, as I understand it. ... 

Arkansas constables do have an unusual degree of power--I think in that way Arkansas is still functioning as if it were in the 19th century. I seriously doubt any of JD's constituents view him as "their constable" and rely on him for anything since they live on the edge of a metro area with basically 1/2 a million people. If they call the police or sheriff, they will get a quick response, so there's no reason to call the constable instead of the police. 

However, constables still retain importance in rural counties like mine because if you call law enforcement, you can easily wait for an hour before they show up. GPS doesn't work on many of these roads, cell service is spotty--it's not unheard of for official paramedics or LE to get lost trying to respond to a call, not out of incompetence but just because they're out in the boonies.

So, who are you going to call--the constable who knows you and where you live and lives 10 minutes away himself or the sheriff's office, who has no idea who you are and could take an hour to get there? 

It's the same with other first responders. In our county, we have EMT-trained volunteers who are patched into the 911 system, and those guys get to accidents and medical emergencies way faster than the actual paramedics do. They're very good, too! They're also the only source of firefighting in any of these counties. I know that sounds terrifying, but really, the ones in my county are good guys who volunteer a lot of their spare time for this work and the training and they do good work. 

I remember calling 911 for my grandfather after a fall, and I had well-trained volunteer paramedics barreling through the door within 10-15 minutes. Fucking ambulance took 45 minutes to show up because they got lost. All the actual EMTs did was get him into the ambulance and take him to the ER. The volunteers are the ones who stabilized him and checked him out and calmed us down and waited with us for the ambulance. They literally just left whatever their real jobs were for a couple of hours to come over and help him and us, with no compensation. Honestly, probably should have just let them take him to the hospital. 

I say all of this just to give context for why constables still have a lot of power in Arkansas and why it's not necessarily a bad thing--as long as your constable isn't a fucking lunatic. 

Also, this is why this makes me so mad. I know why these volunteer first responders and constables can make a huge difference in their communities and that a lot of them are good guys who do a great service. JD meanwhile just sounds like a piece of shit on a power trip. 

Quote

Are Arkansas constables regularly armed? 

One thing to keep in mind is constables don't have regular shifts. They are literally on call 24-7, so being armed probably depends on the actual constable's decision and preferences. (The flip side is you may very well not get a call to act as a constable for months at a time.)

I was bewildered to see JD doing ride alongs with local authorities and talking about "shifts." I think that was a lot of bullshit on his end. I suppose it may have been part of training he undertook, but it still rubbed me the wrong way. I think he tries to pretend being a constable makes him something he is not.

So, I'd say whether or not they are armed depends on whether or not the constable has a concealed carry permit. Some of them are armed because, well, the dude is always armed, and others aren't because the guy doesn't carry. I know some of them will make a point of taking a weapon in response to certain calls that seem weird or dangerous. But that's also why you want someone level-headed and non-aggressive with good judgment in this position. 

Quote

I mean, in a foreign country he's kind of impersonating an officer with authority since he doesn't have it there

Exactly! Once a constable leaves his township--not even his county but his township within the county--he has no authority. 

Quote

They definitely shouldn't have let a Duggar into that position, based on what you said....But what I fear about the Arkansas authorities overall is that the Duggars may have way too much pull with just enough of them to make it hard to get any traction against any Duggar enterprise, no matter how questionable... (not that they don't have lots of detractors at home, too.... but a lot of times you only need a few fans in the right places....)

That's why I am waiting for this to hit mainstream media. I am not sure it would make a difference one way or another, depending on where their friends are, but I feel like it needs to be reported, and it will be easier to do so with actual news sources rather than someone's FB posts, though I think that guy on FB is 100% telling the truth. Someone who is that sort of a mad-dog loose cannon does NOT need all the authority and powers a constableship bestows in Arkansas. 

Edited September 17, 2019 by Zella

[Zella]

47 minutes ago, Natalie68 said:

Impersonating law enforcement is an actual crime.  Is a constable actually considered law enforcement?  Maybe your brother knows who to report this to locally?  I would assume this would not sit right with whoever is on charge.  Paints them with a scammer brush.

Arkansas constables are considered law enforcement--within their own jurisdiction. So, yeah, to me this seems like a case of impersonating law enforcement. Just because you're a constable in Washington County doesn't mean you could go the next county over in Arkansas and start trying to arrest people or pull them over for traffic violations. Ditto for going to other states and flashing your constable badge or going to another country and trying to pull that. 

I need to ask my brother. He's very low-key about the whole thing and rolls his eyes at people who buy the badges, so I have a feeling he will have some sort of meltdown when I tell him about what they pulled in the Bahamas.

I figured once I got some mainstream news articles I was going to contact Arkansas State Police (because that's who investigates constables), the Arkansas Constable Association, and the state's Secretary of State office (since constables are elected officials). 🙂 

Edited September 17, 2019 by Zella

[Churchhoney]

25 minutes ago, Zella said:

...That's why I am waiting for this to hit mainstream media. I am not sure it would make a difference one way or another, depending on where their friends are, but I feel like it needs to be reported, and it will be easier to do so with actual news sources rather than someone's FB posts, though I think that guy on FB is 100% telling the truth. Someone who is that sort of a mad-dog loose cannon does NOT need all the authority and powers a constableship bestows in Arkansas. 

Thanks for all this very illuminating information. And, yeah, I can see why this must feel especially acute in your situation......Things clearly have gone to JD's head...(and of course everything seems to go to the (non-Arkansas) Bates' guys' heads, based on their various photos...)

I also really really wonder whether they actually got permits to carry the guns in the Bahamas (where it's also a crime to carry any gun, including a fake weapon (or unloaded real one) ,if you're committing some kind of crime)......It's just hard for me to see them managing to get through any kind of permitting process so quickly....and I can't imagine they just randomly had permits to carry in the Bahamas before the storm.....

Also don't know whether any given law-enforcement official would care very much about their not getting the permits, if they didn't, either, though, so....

Edited September 17, 2019 by Churchhoney

[Zella]

Just now, Churchhoney said:

Thanks for all this very illuminating information. And, yeah, I can see why this must feel especially acute in your situation......Things clearly have gone to JD's head...(and of course everything seems to go to the (non-Arkansas) Bates' guys' heads, based on their various photos...)

I also really really wonder whether they actually got permits to carry the guns in the Bahamas (where it's also a crime to carry even a fake weapon (or unloaded real one) if you're committing some kind of crime)......It's just hard for me to see them managing to get through any kind of permitting process so quickly....and I can't imagine they just randomly had permits to carry in the Bahamas before the storm.....

Also don't know whether any given law-enforcement official would care very much about their not getting the permits, if they didn't, either, though, so....

You're welcome! 🙂

I don't believe for a minute any of these idiots had gun permits from the Bahamas. I think that's why they hid the weapons anytime they knew they were being photographed. Looks like the pics of them carrying were taken on the sly. 

[Natalie68]

3 hours ago, Churchhoney said:

To intimidate people into giving them anything they wanted, I assume. Just like with the guns and badges. The badges mean nothing outside their regular jurisdictions (and JD's basically means pretty much nothing in terms of enforcement authority even in his jurisdiction -- an Arkansas constable just carries out various chores for the courts and such....). But in a confusing situation where a bunch of strangers are all gathered together trying to cope with something difficult, people would probably give a certain respect to somebody with a badge, just in case. 

And I'd be surprised if they went through the process of getting permits for those guns, which are required in the Bahamas. .... The trip seemed fairly spur of the moment (no time to pack any food except chips and cookies, for example). And I expect the local authorities had their hands too full in the days leading up to and during that storm to expedite any firearms permitting for foreigners for no good reason. 

The guns, too, were for intimidation purposes, and they probably figured that the local police would be way too busy with other stuff to even notice a few "rescue" workers carrying non-permitted weapons. Everybody would figure that somebody else knew who those guys were. And they might figure that a bunch of "Christian" "Good Samaritans" wouldn't be blatantly breaking the law in a crisis situation. Ha. 

If the guy on Facebook is telling the truth -- and I expect he is, since somebody would catch him out if he wasn't -- they swaggered around "commandeering" stuff and telling other people what to do. And their little play-authority outfits were their means to do it. That and their entitled attitudes, I guess. They all truly do think they're way better than anybody else. Despite the fact that they're basically all just common unemployed grifters, sneaks and thieves. 

That kind of behavior just screams "JB" to me. So, once again...apples. right next to trunk. rotten tree.

With this crowd, if they had all the time in the world to prep, I still think they would have packed the same food.  They are stuck at age 10. 

Because nothing screams CHRISTIAN like a firearm, some handcuffs, and fake badges.

They DID learn at their fathers hip didn't they?!

[libgirl2]

55 minutes ago, Natalie68 said:

With this crowd, if they had all the time in the world to prep, I still think they would have packed the same food.  They are stuck at age 10. 

Because nothing screams CHRISTIAN like a firearm, some handcuffs, and fake badges.

They DID learn at their fathers hip didn't they?!

For some people that does scream Christian. Didn't you know Christ carried those items too? Well not a fire arm, but He would have! 

[jukie]

If I read this right, unless they had licenses/permits for them there guns, they broke the law in the Bahama's

https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/bahamas

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Gun Ownership and Possession

In the Bahamas, only licensed gun owners40 35 41 34 26 may lawfully acquire, possess or transfer a firearm or ammunition

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Genuine Reason Required for Firearm Possession

Applicants for a gun owner’s licence in the Bahamas are required to establish a genuine reason to possess a firearm35 34

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Minimum Age for Firearm Possession

The minimum age for gun ownership in the Bahamas is 18 years, or 14 years whilst under the supervision of a person over the age of 21 years42

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Gun Owner Background Checks

An applicant for a firearm licence in the Bahamas must pass a background check which considers criminal, mental health, addiction and other various43 35 34 44 records

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Reference Required for Firearm Licence

In the Bahamas, third party character references for each gun licence applicant are not required28

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Domestic Violence and Firearms

Where a past history, or apprehended likelihood of family violence exists, the law in the Bahamas does not stipulate28 that a gun licence should be denied or revoked

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Firearm Safety Training

In the Bahamas, an understanding of firearm safety and the law, tested in a theoretical and/or practical training course is not required28 for a firearm licence

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Gun Owner Licensing Period

In the Bahamas, gun owners must re-apply and re-qualify for their firearm licence every one year26 34 35

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Limit on Number of Guns

Licensed firearm owners in the Bahamas are permitted to possess only the nature and number of firearms specified in the valid firearms certificate35

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Limit on Quantity, Type of Ammunition

Licensed firearm owners in the Bahamas are permitted to possess only a quantity of ammunition authorised by the Licensing Authority40 35

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Carrying Guns

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Carrying Guns Openly in Public

In the Bahamas, carrying a firearm in plain view in a public place is allowed, subject to a valid permit41

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Carrying Hidden Handguns in Public

In the Bahamas, carrying a concealed firearm in a public place is allowed, subject to a valid permit41

[Churchhoney]

50 minutes ago, jukie said:

If I read this right, unless they had licenses/permits for them there guns, they broke the law in the Bahama's

https://www.gunpolicy.org/firearms/region/bahamas

Yeah, I agree.

I'm sure they broke laws if they didn't have the permits, based on a couple other documents that I read, too. 

And maybe they did get permits.

But the Bahamas police office is pretty damn fast if they could speed up permitting for these clowns at the very same time the officials there would have been trying to prepare for a devastating hurricane bearing down on them. I have a hard time seeing any bureaucracy, large or small, managing that. Because it simply could not have been a priority at a time when they surely had a bunch of really urgent priorities.

Plus, it seems from stuff I read that Bahamian authorities mostly deal with people bringing in (or trying to bring in) fishing-related weapons or guns to keep on their boats to fend off potential intruders when they're docked......I wonder what they would have made of a request from supposed "disaster rescue volunteers" (from a supposed aspiring non-profit that was created 30 seconds ago and doesn't have nonprofit status) who were flying in and -- if they told anything like the truth -- wanted to open-carry handguns around during  their rescue efforts. I expect that a request that suggested anything like that would have raised quite a few eyebrows and not just been waved through in three seconds.....

Edited September 17, 2019 by Churchhoney

[doodlebug]

Found this interesting bit in The New Yorker:

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The next day, I visited Nassau, which had become a staging area for delivering supplies and receiving evacuees. The small office of a private airport called Odyssey served as a gathering place for aid workers, service members, journalists, and wealthy busybodies whose efforts at charity at times took on the appearance of adventure tourism. Complaints had started to surface about sightseers in small airplanes clogging the runways in Nassau, of private-plane owners showing up with pallets of water and taking selfies. The Duggar family, whose nineteen children were the subject of a reality television show on T.L.C., had incorporated their visits to Marsh Harbour into their Instagram narratives. There was a little too much talk of packing sidearms and confronting looters, and about which billionaire had donated the use of his airplane. Not one person I met, in the Bahamas or in Florida, said the words “climate change.”

https://www.newyorker.com/news/dispatch/a-haphazard-recovery-in-the-bahamas

It is part of a longer article that covers 'adventure tourism' and talks about all the sightseers crowding the runways with small planes.

[GeeGolly]

Hmm, nothing yet. I really thought one of the online mags would at least to a fluffish piece with pictures of the guns and badges.

Maybe they're actually looking into writing a real story? One with actual facts about what could possibly be real crimes.