A Kentucky theme park to be built around a full-scale replica of Noah’s Ark may sink unless investors purchase about $29 million in unrated municipal bonds by Feb. 6.
The northern Kentucky city of Williamstown in December issued taxable debt for affiliates of Answers in Genesis, a Christian nonprofit, data compiled by Bloomberg show.
Even though $26.5 million of securities have been sold, the project needs to sell at least $55 million in total to avoid triggering a redemption of all the bonds, Ken Ham, the nonprofit’s president, said in an e-mail to supporters yesterday. Without the proceeds, construction funding will fall short, he said.
“We still need those Ark supporters who weren’t able to purchase the Ark bonds at closing to prayerfully consider participating in a secondary bond delivery at the level they had indicated to us,” Ham said. “Will you please step out in faith with us?”
Proceeds are intended to help build a 510-foot (155.4-meter, or 300 cubit) wooden ship, the centerpiece of a planned biblical theme park called Ark Encounter. The project has drawn comparisons to tourist attractions from Alabama to Nebraska that have defaulted, and comes with the added risk of legal challenges because its religious theme may violate the Constitution. The Washington-based group Americans United for Separation of Church and State said it is monitoring the project.
Oh yeah, THERE'S a good investment for ya.
Industrial-development bonds are considered the riskiest municipal debt because they account for the largest proportion of defaults in the $3.7 trillion municipal market. Williamstown issued the bonds without a rating, making the prospect of repayment even less clear.
And that explains why they are reaching out to believers. Because no skeptic would give these guys a dime.
Nor should they, after all the entire story of Noah's Ark is clearly a complete fabrication.
In my opinion religion is simply a tool to help identify the most obvious targets to scam. At least that is how it has been used for thousands of years.
I'd be curious to see what kind of house (mansion?) Ken Ham lives in.
ReplyDelete“In my opinion religion is simply a tool to help identify the most obvious targets to scam. At least that is how it has been used for thousands of years.”
ReplyDeleteTrue. It sorts the easily-led away from the independent thinkers. Sheep and goats, as they liked to say back then. Ham will simply keep the idiots’ money, if he can.
Pretty painting, but how did Noah get his hands on jaguars? I might believe the lions, but those are jaguars not leopards.
They'll blame the failure on Libruls and Satan. But mostly on Obama.
ReplyDeleteSounds like a smoking hole in the ground would be a better investment than this joke that Ham is scamming. The investment is so promising that they didn't even bother to get a rating. That makes them worse than REAL junk bonds that actually have a prayer of being paid at maturity.
Why are there six sheep/goats in the picture? I thought it was two of each kind.
ReplyDeleteArchie Butt
It depends on what the meaning of kind is. What does your bible say?
DeleteSheep and goats are very popular companions for the fundies AND the baggers, in general. Ducks, too, also.
DeleteSorry fundy's, there is only so much change that can go to SarahPAC, Chik Fil A and a Duck Dynasty AR15. Good luck on pulling 26 MILLION out of butt cushions around the world.
ReplyDeleteSorry, Ham, all I can think of is the old Cosby routine:
ReplyDelete(Voopah, voopah, voopah) "This is the Lord, Noah." "Riiight." "What's a cubit?" and so on.
So is there a Monkey Queen Wing for sale?? When this paper weight falls off it’s stilts, one can only hope that The Monkey Queen is standing DIRECTLY beneath it’s path to destruction…
ReplyDeleteA fool and his money are easily separated. I sincerely hope this plan ... sinks.
ReplyDeleteI say let him build it. Once folks look at a "real" replica of the ark it will be clear how little would actually fit in it.
ReplyDeleteAmazing how these religious people are always pleading for more money. If they want to be following the bible, where does it say that people like Franklin Graham, Pat Robertson, Hucklebee and others need private jets, or at least more $$$ than ordinary people? All these grifters live well beyond regular people's means. Graham goes overseas to dispense his "charity" when there are people in THIS country who are in need. If this Noah scam works, will Noah's wife Joan of Arc be there also, too? Lots of religious know nothings believe this little factoid!!
ReplyDeleteThe first time I read that, just a couple of weeks ago, I LOL, then sent it to everyone I could. Included was that other little factoid that Sodom and Gomorrah were a married couple. (Most likely, a same sex couple.)
DeleteLet's start a campaign to move this Noah's Ark project to some vacant wilderness near Safari Lake.
ReplyDeleteCollect signatures, put the local Wasilly and Mad Zoo politicians and mega church pastors on the hook to say whether they support the idea or not.
What would Captain Zero do? Dave Parker can get started with the press releases, Sarah can Facebook it. C4P and Bracy will support it for sure.
Oh GOOD idea! Then we can see how long it takes them to throw Sarah overboard for being too stupid to know how to sweep up crap. She's so good at dispensing it, right? She should be good at sweeping it up! NOT!
DeleteSerious idea actually!
DeleteNoah's Ark in Sarah's Alaska. A monument to monumental idiocy. What's not to like about this idea?
Put the christian taliban, the evolution deniers and the home skoolers on the spot to either back this idiocy or to not back it and say why not.
Call it, heads they lose, tails they lose.
The sad fact is: this "museum" was funded with a lot of Kentucky taxpayer dollars. It was assumed the tourist business would more than offset the state monies used. I have read where it is planned when this "museum" crashes and burns speculators will be able to buy it up for pennies on the dollar and then redevelop it to a more commercial use after all the groundwork was paid for.
ReplyDeleteThere was a furor last summer when they installed "ziplines for Jesus" to lure more people to this hoax.... http://www.wlwt.com/news/local-news/news-northern-kentucky/creation-museums-zip-line-course-opens/-/13608792/20643884/-/ohp9rn/-/index.html
You can't make this stuff up....
This is Kin-Fucky at its best!
DeleteYee Haw!
Idiots.
Ken Hamm is ignoring the obvious. If his God wanted this ark project to succeed, He would have made it happen.
ReplyDeletehow much timber will this fiasco use up.
ReplyDeletein case they hadnt noticed, the FORESTS across
this country havent Grown Back in 100years of
logging them to dirt. scrub is the only crap to root
and take over what were our large forests in the US.
dont use our trees for this stupid shit.
You know they will only use materials made in China! That's the American way.
DeleteTEXASMEL
I wonder if Noah took aboard any cockroaches, fleas, leeches, chiggers, ticks, and lice.
ReplyDeleteHe must have, since they all survived The Great Deluge.
You think he's have been a little more selective.
Did he remember to take along some dinosaurs?
I hate chiggers and fire ants. Damn you Noah.
DeleteBut it's really Obama's fault they can grift the rest of the $25M+. Because free speech and shit.
Benghazi!!!!