Anyone watch the Dateline story on televangelist Benny Hinn?

[madison2000]

This guy is a real piece of work. Raises millions and spends a lot of it on a lavish lifestyle, proclaims miracle healings that can't be proved.... why do people fall for this?!

[Bouncy Ball]

1. And he's not the only one, either.

[JohnKleeb]

2. course not

many of those fundies we see like robertson and falwell are worth millions.

[madison2000]

3. from little old ladies living on Social Security and watching TV all day

[joeybee12]

15. How right you are...it's sad, but elderly people--especially homebound--

start looking for some hope and consolation. Also, the thought process gets a little cross-wired at that age.

[Goathead]

25. Exactly! We used to watch this TV channel in Hawaii

We called it the "shut-in" channel, we only watched it for an hour, it was the only station that showed "Hawaii-5-O" reruns. It was an all Christian network and it was targeting shut-ins and the elderly. They used to have commercials for metal-detectors on there that would tell you how you could "make your fortune and lose weight doing it" with the metal detector. We used to shake our heads thinking of all the people duped by this station, really sad.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

12. Old Tammy Faye saw Falwell for who he really was

she said that he offered them a helping hand when their big scandal was breaking, and then he turned them in and gathered up all the loot (not that I am in anyway excusing Jim Baker, but with pals like that...)

Recently he reminds me of that Star Wars Character...who's the one who sits in his big pile of fat and eats rodents?

[RevCheesehead]

18. Jabba the Hutt

Did you mean Falwell, or Benny Hinn? Cause I'd have to go with Falwell on this one.

[tinfoilinfor2005]

20. Oh Falwell for sure.

Haven't seen Benny. Used to eat at his restaurants, though. Nuts about Japanese food. (just kidden)

[RevCheesehead]

21. LOL

When I left my last church in NC, the conference sent them a Korean pastor named "Benny Hahn." I laughed for days on that one (they weren't known for being welcoming at that church). Kinda felt sorry for the pastor, though.

[name not needed]

4. A guy named Benny with a bad haircut ripping people off

Sounds more like a used car salesman in Jersey City

[JohnKleeb]

5. hahahahah :)

[JVS]

6. Yeah, but when it comes to bilking the poor of their money to live large

Nobody beats the boys at the Vatican

[Crunchy Frog]

7. People have been falling for it for decades.

Big time for as long as broadcasting has existed. But in fact, religious charletans bilking people out of their money have probably been with as for as long as organized religion has.

I don't see anything particularly new or shocking in this particular case.

[Dookus]

8. decades?

Try a few millennia.

[Crunchy Frog]

9. Try reading my entire post.

:)

[Deja Q]

10. Well, if people will fall for *, they'll fall for anything.

And I speaketh of the world right now. Last I heard, the journalist situation isn't making Italy change its mind about the US and Iraq war.

[wildmanj]

11. raises millions

a fool and his/her money soon part

[democrat in Tallahassee]

13. I saw him one time at a restaurant in Orlando. Greasy was the only

word I could think of. ruined my lunch, too.

[Zing Zing Zingbah]

16. Someone told me he used to preach at a church in Orlando

at some big ass called Faith World.

[steve2470]

14. He used to live near Orlando. He is a .....con man. nt

[xray s]

17. Bush and Greenspan have looted $1.8bn in Soc Sec funds

Enron screwed people in California out of billions and laughed about it.

Lets face it, Americans aren't too bright. Dress a scam up in the American flag, free enterprise and religion and you have a license to steal.

And the funny thing is, no one even cares.

[deadparrot]

19. My brother and I spent an entire evening watching him

on some fundie TV channel.It was simultaneously hilarious and depressing.

[madison2000]

22. I always thought he was the least offensive of the lot

until learning that he has a 10 million dollar "parsonage" and stays in luxury hotel rooms that cost 9000$ a night.

[Historic NY]

23. Amazing wasn't it, God told him not to talk to Dateline...........

humm where have we heard this God talking thing before. For a not-for-profit they sure take in a whole lot of loot.

[johnnie]

24. I didn't see it, but I saw the commercials for it

It pisses me off that they only go after these kind of con men. Why don't they do a story on Falwell or Robertson or any of the "top" evangelists? I'm sure they all do the same shit.