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December 1, 1975 Dear Richard, I feel it is necessary for me to
respond to your letter of November 30, 1975, because in my opinion several
distortions of Truth have been presented which I believe might better be
brought to light. I do not know whether or not you intend to create false
impressions, nevertheless this seems to happen with alarming regularity, and
dealing with you on a rational basis can be quite difficult as a result. While I did state several months ago
that I believed there were many persons who would object to your presence in
Stelle, I have since taken great pains to make clear that even members who
might most be expected to resist your re-involvement have stated to me that
they would welcome your participation once again, provided you could show
your intention and ability to contribute positively here. It was to afford
you some way in which to demonstrate this intention and ability that I
believe Malcolm suggested you teach privately starting with a few
individuals. You and I discussed this idea, and, in response to your query as
to where you could hold such sessions, I suggested that you could rent the
Cullom Community Center just as any other individual might do. These were
individual statements to you by Malcolm and myself; at no time did the
trustees as a body suggest that you “hire a hall privately.. .and perhaps
half the membership might attend.” I did not favor your being taken on a tour
of Stelle last week, but my reservation had nothing to do with a “large
proportion of participants” objecting, rather it found its basis in what I
perceive to be the necessity of upholding decisions made by our only judicial
body. I am presently involved in writing a revision to our by-laws to include
a formal definition of expulsion and a procedure for re-application by
expelled members. Meanwhile, the channels of communication have been left
wide open to you as an expelled member. Although you fear rejection by The
Stelle Group, I have personally encouraged you to take whatever steps you
deem appropriate in correcting your standing with the group. The trustees, in
fact, expressed to you that there is a real need for firm philosophical
direction in the group and questioned how you, as the first Emissary, could
leave under such circumstances. If some members, upon rational analysis, have
doubts as to the verity of your mission, then the burden of proof is on you. Personally, I do not believe that your
credibility could really have been damaged had your own words and actions
rung true; a man who accuses another unjustly ends up condemning himself once
the truth is known. I must say that your own careless tendency to mix your
own perceptions with communications from the Brotherhoods (to wit: your
implication at one time that the Brotherhoods had told you there would be
10,000 people in Stelle by 1975; your statement to Jennifer and I that Japan
was supposed to sink during the summer of 1973), your willingness to use
unethical tactics in business (to wit: your having used an assumed name to
secure our first order at Stelle Woodworking Company to hide the fact that
you were undercutting another supplier; your statements to me when I
questioned the wisdom of operating in excess of $150,000 in debt that you
“didn’t care if the creditors were screaming, the Nation of God would be
built”; etc.), and your very questionable manipulative techniques which were
brought to light in the trial of April, 1974....all of these things have been
responsible for your having lost credibility. Amazingly enough, I do
still believe in your role, in Stelle’s purpose, and in the Great Plan of the
Brotherhoods (though, for the life of me, I can’t say why); most of the
active members of The Stelle Group, I am sure, feel the same. I do not feel the trial in April, 1974
was conducted fairly, because cross-examination was not allowed and you were
not allowed sufficient time to prepare your case, yet you had these factors
in your control. ...you did not have to agree to the terms of the trial which
were suggested by the former trustees. The panel of seven was emotionally
stirred by the presentation, but this too could have been countered by Truth.
I have to say that I believe you probably did deserve such treatment,
otherwise it would not have happened: “I’m pointing out to you that your environment
is the result of your own thinking and actions. You, and you alone, are
responsible for everything you enjoy and suffer in this life.” Dr. ‘White, The
Ultimate Frontier, p. 120 “You see, Richard, whenever a person
doesn’t enjoy the approval of his group, he should look within himself
to seek the answer to his problem.” Dr. White, The Ultimate Frontier,
p. 29 I did not support the trustees in their
decision to expell you, but for you to say there is “no effective way I will
be allowed to repair it” is to deny personal responsibility. Lest you interpret my frank statements
here as a personal attack (as has also happened in the past; you even thought
I was going to blackmail you once), I want to say that I personally feel a
great deal of pure affection for you and warm gratitude for all you have made
possible here in Stelle. My statements arise out of frustration with what I
perceive to be a performance on your part which is not in keeping with your
real ability. If you have Truth to present, please present it clearly and
without distortion. Stop beating around the bush complaining that you have
been cheated of your credibility; members of The Stelle Group are ready to
embrace Truth, but not sorry excuses for your own lack of willingness to get
down to business. As a friend of mine is fond of saying,
“We have to remember that the same man who wrote the 23rd Psalm (Akhnaton)
caused the death of his loyal soldier during his next lifetime. I should like
Dick to be involved here, because I want to listen to the 23rd Psalm, but I
don’t want him in a position of power, because I don’t want to be sent to die
in the front lines.” Many people here do not trust you with power, and they
feel this way based on bitter experience ‘(to wit: your insistance on the design
of Factory 1601 despite professional objections to its inefficiency, which
still plagues us; your having assigned the construction of several homes and
a factory during a six week period in late 1972, even though we had no funds
with which to pay wages; your insistance on impossible precision from one
individual (myself) and impossible productive efficiency from another (Jerry
Foreman), then pitting one against the other; your inferences that Ben Drell
in his accusations relative to your personal affairs was the victim of
interference by lower entities; your brutal treatment of Judith Tokle; etc.),
yet despite this experience these same individuals respect your ability as a
teacher and believe in your role in the Great Plan of the Brotherhoods. I personally
would not want you to be in an administrative position until such time as you
demonstrate more discrimination; it is my experience that you tend to confuse
administration of the affairs of The Stelle Group with your position of
authority in the Brotherhoods.. . .while you must act with authority in
defending the Philosophy and charting a course for. Stelle and the Nation of
God, it is also necessary to let the people decide whether or not they will
live by the Philosophy and follow the course you chart. I might again trust
you as a teacher in a school setting, but as a virtual dictator in a position
to control my life and destiny – never! I cannot understand why you feel
powerless to teach without carrying around the hatchet of authority; Truth is
your weapon, and that should be enough. If a school for Citizenship Training
were established in the community, only those individuals who submitted to
the discipline of the school and who demonstrated their application of the
principles could remain in the school. There is nothing preventing this type
of school from being established in Stelle (the trustees have even agreed to
set aside one-tenth of all tithes to The Stelle Group for this purpose), and
we are far from being at “total variance with the proven methods of the
Brotherhoods” in having established self-government in the community....,
good Lord, you recommended this course yourself! It is true that your absence here may make it easier for
those who moved to Wisconsin to return, but I do not believe it is valid for
you to say that your continued presence embarrasses the group because of
“calumnies... spread.. .to all the farmers in the area against me.” That is
paranoid; the simple fact is that word gets around, and I can’t see that it
makes much difference to the farmers whether you are here or not. You seem to
believe there are advantages in going to Texas; so be it, but this decision
cannot be based on any rejection of your teachings by The Stelle Group or its
trustees. Finally I would like to take minor
exception to your statement that “the trustees promised to keep me supplied
with monthly statements, etc.” You raised this as a problem at our meeting on
November 16th, and I privately communicated to you that I thought if you made
a formal request for specific information I thought the trustees would
probably honor it. No such request has been made, however, and the trustees
have not yet promised anything. The trustees discussed this again today after
your letter appeared and agreed that we will send (within reason, no birth
dates of members please) whatever information you feel is necessary to allow
you to effectively monitor the affairs of The Stelle Group as part of your
assigned responsibility from the Brotherhoods. Again, we await your formal request
detailing specifically which items you would like to receive. Personally, I regret that you have
decided to move to Texas, as I believe you could have been effective in your
capacity as emissary had you decided to stay. Even in your absence I would very
much be interested in seeing your interpretations of the ten Lemurian laws
prior to their balloting next March, particularly with regard to the ninth
Lemurian law since you have indicated you have been given some clarification
from the Brotherhoods in this area. I sincerely trust the Brotherhoods will
send a replacement in the near future to continue the important work of
Citizenship Training. My best wishes go with you in your travels and your
work. Sincerely, Walter
Cox cc:
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