[In the Hobby Lobby case] technically, the defendants… are the objects themselves, yielding an incredible case name: The United States of America v. Approximately Four Hundred Fifty (450) Ancient Cuneiform Tablets; and Approximately Three Thousand (3,000) Ancient-Clay Bullae.
This is actually a common naming convention for cases. United States v. One Package of Japanese Pessaries is an actual Supreme Court case, for example.
They’re called in rem cases and as far as I’m concerned every single one of them is a gem name-wise. I’ve personally always been fond of United States v. Approximately 64,695 Pounds of Shark Fins, though United States v. One Tyrannosaurus Bataar Skeleton is pretty great too.
So on Wednesday, the CEO of Hobby Lobby was busted by the DOJ for stealing millions of dollars worth of artifacts from Iraq. For some shocking reason, even though he stole hundreds of items illegally, he only has to pay a fine!
I’m also just going to throw this out there: the connection hasn’t been made yet but ISIS receives an enormous amount of funding by selling these items. So… Hobby Lobby might have been inadvertently funding ISIS. The things you know…
It doesn’t change the underlying wrong doing, but it adds an extra weird twist in which a “Christian” for-profit company probably smuggled looted antiquities that they were warned were probably looted and decided it didn’t matter if they were paying money directly or indirectly to ISIS and other terror groups because it was important that they have these items for their soon-to-open passion project in building a money-making shrine a Bible museum.
Now, in general, the Bible, like many religious texts, has had a huge impact on history and there are plenty of non-religious people who devote their lives to studying parts or all of the text or its impact. The idea of a private Bible museum isn’t inherently stranger or more worrisome than lots of other museums out there.
That said, this museum is inherently being built with a Christian focus (again, this isn’t necessarily a worrisome thing. It’s a private organization and they can push whatever message they want), but part of the goals of the Museum are to build a high school Bible curriculum. They want this to be made for “markets around the world” and it’s currently being developed with teams in the US and Israel. They boast that it’s already being piloted in public and “at risk” schools in the US.
So, to summarize, you have a private, for-profit company knowingly funneling money into questionable hands (at best) or terrorist groups (at worst), abetting the looting of priceless artifacts from countries that have been pillaged by western powers for decades, for the purpose of building a museum with the goal to increase knowledge and engagement with Christian ideas and the Bible both inside and outside the walls of the museum itself.
What would Jesus do? Idk, man, but “Fund some terrorists and illegally acquire to help fill the shelves at a new museum with $500 million in assets to help show off how great Christianity is while supporting a Presidential candidate (now President) who is actively against helping those who are harmed by western interference and terrorism in those countries” doesn’t seem like the clear translation of directions like “cast off all your possessions and follow me” or “care for your sick, your orphans, your widows, and aliens, because whatever you do to the least of these you do to me.”
Arts and crafts retail giant Hobby Lobby has gotten itself into the middle of another massive controversy — and this time, it appears unlikely they can rely on a friendly Supreme Court to bail them out.
According to a statement on the Department of Justice’s website, acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Bridget Rohde and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have reached a settlement with Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. for illegally purchasing over 5,500 Iraqi artifacts for $1.6 million.
The artifacts were likely looted from archaeological sites or museums in Iraq during the chaos of the country’s 14 years of U.S. occupation and civil war, and shipped to the U.S. with falsified labels designating them as tile “samples.”
A massive black market in stolen archaeological and historical items has spawned in the wake of the United States’ 2003 overthrow of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s government.
Baghdad’s National Museum of Iraq was looted as U.S. troops failed to secure key locations throughout the city.
More recently, the Islamic State have likely sold a fortune in looted antiquities amid its years-long rampage throughout Iraq and Syria, raising troubling questions about who looted the cuneiforms in the first place. Read more (7/6/17)
So there’s a possibility that someone from Hobby Lobby directly funded the Islamic State by purchasing these stolen artifacts.
If you were fine with Hobby Lobby controlling what goes in and comes out of the vaginas of their employees and continued to shop there, at least stop shopping there now, or else you might be funding terrorism.
And if it seemed a bit weird that a company like that would even be in the market for Iraqi artifacts, the official explanation isn’t that reassuring either:
According to the New York Times, Hobby Lobby’s president, Steve Green, said the collection of artifacts from the biblical-era Fertile Crescent was “consistent with the company’s mission and passion for the Bible,” but added the company was “new to the world of acquiring these items, and did not fully appreciate the complexities of the acquisitions process.”
Wait what how does hobby lobby control what goes in/out of their employees vaginas!? What is going on with this store!? Some body please link me or something.
Arts and crafts retail giant Hobby Lobby has gotten itself into the middle of another massive controversy — and this time, it appears unlikely they can rely on a friendly Supreme Court to bail them out.
According to a statement on the Department of Justice’s website, acting U.S. Attorney for the Eastern District of New York Bridget Rohde and Immigration and Customs Enforcement officials have reached a settlement with Hobby Lobby Stores, Inc. for illegally purchasing over 5,500 Iraqi artifacts for $1.6 million.
The artifacts were likely looted from archaeological sites or museums in Iraq during the chaos of the country’s 14 years of U.S. occupation and civil war, and shipped to the U.S. with falsified labels designating them as tile “samples.”
A massive black market in stolen archaeological and historical items has spawned in the wake of the United States’ 2003 overthrow of Iraqi dictator Saddam Hussein’s government.
Baghdad’s National Museum of Iraq was looted as U.S. troops failed to secure key locations throughout the city.
More recently, the Islamic State have likely sold a fortune in looted antiquities amid its years-long rampage throughout Iraq and Syria, raising troubling questions about who looted the cuneiforms in the first place. Read more (7/6/17)
So there’s a possibility that someone from Hobby Lobby directly funded the Islamic State by purchasing these stolen artifacts.
If you were fine with Hobby Lobby controlling what goes in and comes out of the vaginas of their employees and continued to shop there, at least stop shopping there now, or else you might be funding terrorism.
And if it seemed a bit weird that a company like that would even be in the market for Iraqi artifacts, the official explanation isn’t that reassuring either:
According to the New York Times, Hobby Lobby’s president, Steve Green, said the collection of artifacts from the biblical-era Fertile Crescent was “consistent with the company’s mission and passion for the Bible,” but added the company was “new to the world of acquiring these items, and did not fully appreciate the complexities of the acquisitions process.”
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