Tuesday, March 14, 2006

 

Kent Hovind: "Nor am I doing anything illegal"

Like death and taxes, there are certain things you can count on in this life. Reliable touchstones that, in a moment of crisis, you can reach out to for reassurance. A bedrock that provides secure footing in a world that sometimes seem tilted off its axis.

Increasingly, one of things that you can rely on -- perhaps even set your watch by -- is the daily revelation that another member of the moral values crowd has been caught playing fast and loose with the truth, the law, or with someone else's money, or...

Today's revelation, from an article in the York Dispatch, by Kristina Kauffman says that creationist speaker, Kent Hovind, who is scheduled to hold a seminar at a Dover area school soon, may not have all the facts at his command.

Apparently, having now been burned to the tune of $1 million dollars, the folks up around Dover have begun to "critically analyse" the statements of the religious right just a little more closely.

In fact, according to Kauffman, it's not just facts that trouble Hovind:

Hovind is perhaps best known as the builder of the Pensacola, Fla., Dinosaur Adventure Land, an anti-evolution mini-theme park he built in his back yard in 2001.

But officials in Escambia County claim Hovind never filed the proper zoning-permit requests for his theme park and have charged him with failure to observe county zoning regulations.

Hovind unsuccessfully filed for bankruptcy in 1996; a judge found that he filed false tax schedules, made a "bad-faith" court filing and lied about his income in order to evade paying income tax.

In 2004, the Internal Revenue Service raided Hovind's home, asserting that he evaded taxes and doesn't have the proper business licenses or tax exemptions for his ministry and the theme park.

Hovind denies that he broke any law, including the zoning rules, and said he doesn't know why charges have been filed against him.

"You'd have to ask them (government officials) that," he said. "I think it's ridiculous. I think everyone should obey the law, including the government. They're the ones breaking the law, not me."

He said the raid on his home and ministry was "harassment."

"I'm not being charged with anything, nor am I doing anything illegal."


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