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Saturday March 13, 2010

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  • Darryl on Separation of Powers The Bliar Government thinks that the Doctrine of Seperation of powers means they have seperate laws that relate to them and ... more
  • Darryl on Flying Foxes and little girls Not until one of these magistrates or politicians families are personally affected will scum like Fetalaiga ever see a ... more
  • Liberator on Flying Foxes and little girls In the eyes of Sandra Kanck, former leaderor the former Democrats, a spider is not more, or less, important than a human ... more
  • Brian on Smith Blog - Our Right to Feel Safe Change one word in the sentences . Maximum to MINIMUM I will be there on Wednesday more
  • angry on Flying Foxes and little girls This is the SICK and PERVERTED laws you get from FANATICAL greenies. Human being to them are seen as simply PARASITES on the ... more
  • Shez on Halal certification It doesn't say it, but those are the guidelines required for something to be labelled Halal or "permissible". :-) more
  • angry on Halal certification "Shez", for your edification the word "halal" is NOT mentioned in the Bible ANYWHERE! FAIL! more
  • angry on Halal certification "Shez"... Given your rabid and fanatical support for this, please remember that you are free to emmigrate to a muslim ... more
  • angry on Flying Foxes and little girls This SO TYPICAL of the Leftist ideology of anna BLIER'S government! She and her government are on the nose and well and ... more
  • Ray on Halal certification Halal signifies that a product or object etc is permissible as per Islamic law. Therefore bananas,apples etc are edible ... more
  • JohnE on Racists in our midst I amazed to see indians taking over all the 'menial' work (no disrespect to that type of work intended). Every trolley boy ... more
  • JohnE on Flying Foxes and little girls Absolutely disgusting. Simply not good enough. If the law is NOT acceptable, we the people, have the power to change it. I ... more
  • Shez on Flying Foxes and little girls I wouldn't wish bad on anyone, but maybe if one of these judges that give out these so called punishments are victims of a ... more
  • Shez on Halal certification Halal in the Bible... FROM THE BIBLE: Deuteronomy 14:3-10. Do not eat any detestable thing. These are the animals you may ... more
  • David T on Tony Abbott does a Turnbull Tony, we need a strong opposition not a fickle oppostion. Please don't give the government any more ammunition as this will ... more
  • Albert on Flying Foxes and little girls These laws prove once again that the environmental movement is not about taking action to protect human life and future ... more
  • angry on ETS Police SUBJECT: 'Execute' Skeptics! Shock Call To Action: 'At what point do we jail or execute global warming deniers' -- ... more
  • unimpressed on Flying Foxes and little girls Fetalaiga's 18 month ban from driving just shows the level of stupidity of both the law makers and the magistrates that ... more
  • Lynne on Flying Foxes and little girls The only thing in Queensland that is better protected than these disease riddled flying vermin are bureaucrats. When are ... more
  • LEONARD on Separation of Powers The Doctrine of the Separation of Powers has become simply a joke. It purpose is to separate the Legislature, the Executive ... more

The Exclusive Brethren

Posted by: Michael Smith | 22 October, 2008 - 12:15 PM
one dollar

I've never encountered anything like the Exclusive Brethren.

On Monday evening I interviewed Michael Bachelard, the author of "Behind The Exclusive Brethren". We spoke about the $17.8 million in government funding that The Exclusive Brethren's schools receive.

The next day the Exclusive Brethren's PR company phoned me from Sydney and asked for the right of reply - so yesterday I spoke with David Stuart who represents the Exclusive Brethren's schools.

David Stuart confirmed that the Exclusive Brethren receive something like $16 to $17.8 million a year in government funding for the organisations schools and that there are about 2,300 children at the Brethren's schools around the country.

That's about $8,000 per child that you the taxpayer is funding.

I've been flooded with notes and calls from people with concerns about this group. Prime Minister Kevin Rudd has called The Exclusive Brethren an extremist cult. The ALP's website still carries a statement about the Brethren which refers to them as a shadowy ultra-right wing sect, an extremist shadowy group which breaks up families and doesn't believe in normal things like using computers and voting and a range of other frightening statements.

The Australian Electoral Commission has investigated two complaints against the Brethren relating to electioneering and campaign funding - you can read the results here and here

In essence the AEC and the Australian Federal Police found no evidence of impropriety against the Brethren. The Brethren spokesman David Stuart yesterday told me that the Brethren has never made any donation to any political party in Australia - the AEC investigation says that's technically correct although a business closely associated with Brethren interests has made substantial donations.

My main question out of all of this is why is the Federal Government funding an organisation that it calls a shadowy extremist group? Why are your taxes paying for what the Prime Minister calls an extremist cult's schools? I'll be putting those questions to Julia Gillard the Education Minister when next we speak but I'd love your views.

Blog comments Your Say

  • Which Sterling School did you work for?

    Ms. Marcus Monday 8 February, 2010 - 3:44 AM

  • I am a member of the EB and If any of you have got any sense you'd listern to austen he's by far the most accurate. My advice to all of you would be to get your facts right before you comment.

    Jon Thursday 4 February, 2010 - 7:02 AM

  • I have no objection to holding ones beliefs unless they affect adversely others in the community. All fundamentalist sects tend to isolate them selves in a different form of reality to the rest of us. This can cause problems when a sect member interacts with others outside the sect.

    My aunt Carmen was a happy young 20 year old Australian when she was murdered by her fiance Maurice Brewer who was brought up in the Brethren. I do not blame him, I blame the sect for creating unrealistic expectations in their young.

    Nothing has changed they are still a closed sect. It is only a matter of time before it occurs again. I feel they are therefore dangerous.

    Barry Walters Wednesday 3 February, 2010 - 11:27 PM

  • my only comment is;

    they appeared very strange in that they supposedly do not use equipment that has a computer functionality within or radio waves between

    they would not use fax machines because that has computer in it however they would ask and visit us so they could make use of our fax machine (our fax was in a business nearby to theirs) that is instead of buying their own

    they would however; own and use a telephone; I dont know how they think the telephone call gets connected to the other end without computer functionality in between plus a telephone call sometimes makes use of radio waves

    john Sunday 17 January, 2010 - 5:54 PM

  • how do you become a exclusive brethren

    alex Thursday 14 January, 2010 - 6:07 PM

  • Austen - 23.12.09

    I note with interest that you state your occupation as being a teacher; If this is the case I certainly hope that Spelling and Grammar are not taught in your classes.

    Phil of Springwood Thursday 24 December, 2009 - 12:30 PM

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