Inside your heart, you're dead....

Nosferatu by the Cyanide Valentine

Whoso boasteth himself of a false gift is like
clouds and wind without rain.
-Proverbs 25:14

1972
The People's Temple Church moved
from Mendocino County, California
to San Francisco
Led by their pastor, Jim Jones.

He welcomed all to his church
and they came in large numbers.

He told them to see god in him.
He performed miracles.

"Take your glasses off."
"Look at my face."
"Does that feel better?"
"I can see..."

In 1977, under intense scrutiny
the People's Temple relocated to Guyana
setting up a Utopian society
called Jonestown.

Jones continued preaching
and tightening his hold on his followers.
Relatives of some Jonestown residence
demanded an investigation.

Inside your heart, you're dead.

In November 1978,
A US Senator visited Jonestown
with a news crew.
Some residents told the news crew
that they wanted to leave Jonestown.

They packed up.
They tried to board a plane.
They were gunned down.

Jones convinced the remaining members
to drink poison
lest their children be made into slaves
by the CIA.

909 PEOPLE

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[Shangori]

Forgive me, if I'm wrong, but eventho his followers were people who followed a man without questioning, without reason and/of logic, I thought jim jones himself was an (open) atheist. He used the gullibility of the religious to get money to advance his own extreme communistic ideas

Not that this makes the part that religion plays in the death of these people any less. Just saying: monsters exist with and without religion

[eddygoombah]

@Shangori wow, if that's true, he's an even bigger asshole than I thought he was. At first I thought it was a "No True Scotsman" argument. But Wikipedia says "By spring 1976, Jones openly admitted even to outsiders that he was an atheist." However, people close to him reported saying that he stopped believing in a loving God and that he was very much a christian. Regardless, the guy was evil.

[TheViciousSquare]

What amazes me is that people's fear of enslavement can drive them to enslave themselves. They feared the CIA but didn't fear a man who told them to drink poison. The promise of heaven is a wet blanket over the fires of thought.

[d0ck47]

Survival of the fit?

[richo61]

@SmartmanChris Some may have done it "willingly" but there were men armed with automatic rifles making certain they were willing.

The message was clear - drink "willingly" or be shot.

[richo61]

The power of Faith.

[ApolloWasReal]

Actually, it was a US Representative, Leo Ryan of California 11th district, not a US Senator, who was killed during his visit to Jonestown. Minor detail.

[SoEFleX]

And still ppl ask me every day why I fight religion............

[TheDevoutCaffeinist]

I, too, just found you through the Living Dinosaur...

[MrShannonite]

just got introduced to you by the Living Dinosaur. I'm looking forward to watching your back catalog of stuff :)

[SmartmanChris]

I read a book titled "Influence Science and Practice" by Robert Cialdini that discusses how Jones could possibly exert such phychological hold over his followers that would cause them to willingly drink poison and kill themselves.

[thereforeithought]

Religion is a natural home for psychos. Simple.

[lordshipmayhem]

@eddygoombah "Jesus Christ".

[Plausiblesarge]

@eddygoombah His name is AJ Miller, and so far there isn't that much info about him other than some reports on A current Affair (which is a biased, useless, horrible news program) and christian websites complaining about how he is not the messiah.

What we do know however, is that he leads an apocalyptic cult called Divine Truth. Currently, he owns a secluded property and is living with about 40 followers there. I just hope nothing violent ever occurs there