Seattle Post-Intelligencer: AP - Washington, D.C.: Court upholds money laundering convictions

Seattle Post-Intelligencer: AP - Washington, D.C.: Court upholds money laundering convictions: "WASHINGTON -- The Supreme Court made it easier Tuesday for prosecutors to win money laundering convictions, ruling unanimously in a large religious scam case that the government does not have to prove 'overt acts' by defendants.
Justices upheld the convictions of two people accused of pocketing more than $1.2 million as part of a nationwide religious investment scheme.
David Whitfield and Haywood 'Don' Hall were convicted in Florida of conspiracy to commit money laundering.
They were leaders of the Greater Ministries International Church, which told people during roadshow meetings that God would double their money.
The church, which targeted Mennonite, Amish and Christian fundamentalist communities nationwide, took in hundreds of millions of dollars from . . .

Amish Teen Electrocuted By Downed Power Lines

Amish Teen Electrocuted By Downed Power Lines: "A 17-year-old Amish teenager was electrocuted trying to remove a power line that got tangled in his horse-drawn buggy's wheels, the Geauga County Sheriff's office said.
Samuel Barkman, of Mesopotamia Township, drove over a power line Tuesday that had sagged down within a foot of the road after separating from a nearby pole, authorities said.
The line got stuck in the wheels and stopped the buggy. Barkman got out and grabbed the 4,800-volt line in an attempt to ... "

Decatur Daily Democrat

Decatur Daily Democrat: "A trial in Adams Superior Court involving a man who owns a bus service that carries Amish children to their schools has been extended for 10 days so the opposing attorneys can submit arguments on whether the defendant is operating a business as a common carrier or as a contract carrier.


�n trial is Mark Lehmann of rural Berne, who was cited last October by an Indiana State Police trooper for . . . "

Behold the $55,000 PC | Tech News on ZDNet

Behold the $55,000 PC | Tech News on ZDNet: "The Redmond, Wash.-based start-up specializes in building high-end PCs into handcrafted furniture, everything from simple Amish and Shaker cabinets to ornate Louis XV creations.
'The trend is covering up and building in technology,' said John Wojewidka, a veteran of the custom PC business who started Truvia in response to growing demand for PCs that didn't look like PCs. 'People don't want the technology itself to be the centerpiece of their living environment.'
After several years of working with furniture makers and wood carvers on one-off projects, Wojewidka decided there was a need for a systematic approach to custom-made desks that carefully conceal a high-end PC. The movement has attracted interest from companies such as Microsoft that are looking to popularize PCs as living room objects. "

"Be not conformed" - Christian History

"Be not conformed" - Christian History: "'Be Not Conformed'
Why have American Anabaptists lived in protest against the modern world?
By John D. Roth


John Roth takes us into the world of Anabaptist nonconformity in his article below from our latest issue, 'Pilgrims and Exiles.'
The premise of 'Amish in the City,' a recent TV reality show, is simple. Ask a group of Amish youth to move into a Los Angeles 'party house' with some hip urban teenagers and watch what results from the ensuing cultural clash.
The Amish these days have become positively chic�fascinating cultural anomalies in a world obsessed with high-tech gadgetry, marketing hype, and the ever-shifting tastes of fashion. How is it possible that a group who has lived in the United States for nearly two centuries continues to practice a way of life that looks as if it came straight out of the 18th century? Moreover, why would people deliberately choose to dress so oddly or reject the conveniences of the modern world?
The Anabaptists, forerunners of such groups as the Mennonites, Amish, and Brethren, emerged out of the yeasty ferment of the Protestant Reformation. Along with most of the Reformers, these 'radicals' zealously promoted the principle of Sola Scriptura, and they rejected the authority of the pope and much of traditional Catholic theology. But the Anabaptists' radical interpretation of the New Testament quickly led Luther, Zwingli, and other early Reformation leaders to denounce the movement as a threat to the order of European society. The Anabaptists, for example, insisted that Christians could not swear oaths, or wield the sword, or serve as judges or magistrates. They emphasized a life of daily discipleship that included loving their enemies; and they envisioned the church as a voluntary community, separate from the "

The News-Herald - News - 01/06/2005 - Amish to be let out of jury duty

The News-Herald - News - 01/06/2005 - Amish to be let out of jury duty: "Law requiring judges to exempt them if they ask
is on Taft's desk


Members of the Amish religious sect who had grappled with the conflict between their beliefs and the call to jury duty don't have to worry any more...

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Under Ohio Senate Bill 71, which awaits the governor's approval, judges have to exempt Amish from serving on the jury if they request.

'It's their belief not to judge others,' said state Rep. Tim Grendell, R-Chester Township, who introduced the bill.

Grendell said the issue came up during his visits with members of the Amish community.

Jury duty is 'an impediment to their religious beliefs,' Grendell said.

Currently, it is up to individual judges whether to exempt the Amish from jury duty.

The proposed law wouldn't provide any leeway for judges and would require them to comply with an Amish person's request.

Without such a request, an Amish person would have to serve on a jury, according to Grendell.

There are about 40,000 Amish people in Ohio, including 1,850 Amish households in Geauga County.

David Byler, owner of Woodworking Shop in Middlefield, is pleased with the bill.

'But I have a problem with the bill,' Byler said. 'It was passed just for the Amish people.'

Byler said the bill should be applicable to everyone who doesn't want to sit on the jury because of his or her faith.

'This bill applies just for one group,' Byler said."

Amish bakery a suite for senses

Amish bakery a suite for senses: "CADOTT, WIS. -- Ben Miller walks into the kitchen with an armful of firewood.
The oven that's baking the chocolate cookies needs a little more heat. So Miller opens its side door and throws in a few pieces of kindling.
Nearby, two Amish women sit with bowls of cookie dough, taking the mixture in their hands and rolling small balls that are lined up carefully on baking trays awaiting the oven.
Tins of homemade rolls cool on racks not far from the stove, while loaves of freshly baked bread are creating a small bit of condensation in the bags they have recently been wrapped in.
The sights and smells inside Ben's Country Store & Bakery are music to one's senses.
Miller moved to the Cadott area in April and recently opened the bakery on the new family homestead about 4 miles north of town on Hwy. 27.
A furniture maker for the Woodshed in Augusta, Wis., by trade, Miller built a new wood shop that is pretty modern for a facility not employing electricity.
'We always had a store in mind,' said Miller, who once operated a bakery and bulk food store years ago when he lived outside Chariton, Iowa.
'Back then we'd bake and take our goods out on the road,' he said." . . .

Tragedy Connects Amish, `English' | theledger.com

Tragedy Connects Amish, `English' | theledger.com

FENNIMORE, Wis. -- When Amos and Mary Stoltzfus and their seven children moved to Wisconsin last summer from Kentucky, they expected changes in their family's life. Having followed other Amish into this southwestern corner of the state, Amos Stoltzfus was building a home and barn near this small town.

On Halloween, he and his pregnant wife and the children were riding south in their horse-drawn buggy when tragedy struck near the Cottonwood Supper Club. A pickup truck traveling in the same direction plowed into the buggy, killing Mary Stoltzfus, 36, and Ben, 12, the second-oldest child.

What has happened since has overwhelmed Stoltzfus and many in the community, both Amish and the "English," the name Amish use for outsiders. Area residents set up a fundraiser to help with medical bills expected to top $100,000.