Here's something actually more politically significant than FAIL-WHALE 2012

[Cain]

Reverend Sun Myung Moon, founder of the Unification Church, business magnate, funder of anti-Communist causes around the world and knower of the locations of many corpses with tales to tell, has finally died.

http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/world-asia-19459604

Self-styled messiah Sun Myung Moon, whose Unification Church became famous for marrying thousands of people in a single ceremony, has died, aged 92.

Moon set up the Church, whose members are often called Moonies, in the 1950s in the South Korean capital, Seoul.

He claimed to have millions of members, many in the US, but was accused of brainwashing and profiteering.

Moon was also a fervent anti-Communist and set up newspapers and media businesses around the world.

Not so much of an anti-Communist to not invest heavily in China and own one of North Korea's two automative manufacturing and sales companies, but of course don't expect the media to dwell on that contradiction.

Especially since that media includes UPI....owned by the Unification Church. 

Also that the Unifcation Church was a front for the KCIA, the powerful Korean intelligence agency that made and deposed Presidents before democracy in the South, and was used to exert influence over US politics, will not get much mention.  Even less likely will it be mentioned that the KCIA itself was run from Langley for most of its existence.

Nor will Moon's prominent role in Iran-Contra draw much attention, because Iran-Contra never happened.

Perhaps some of the media will mention Moon was the financier behind Jerry Falwell, and that Falwell had been a vicious critic of the man, until he bailed him out, and that after that, Falwell never said a word against him.

But they will probably not mention how he funded George Bush (the elder's) campaign. 

Moon's illicit dealings with the Japanese underworld, and in particular the fascist-gangster Ryoichi Sasakawa, will most certainly be ignored.  As will the fact his top lieutenant was in Boliva after the CIA-backed, Klaus Barbie-supported Cocaine Coup, and that Moon's organization was subsequently discovered to have funded the coup to the tune of $4 million.

And I could go on and on.  But what would be the point?  Everyone knows people with real political power are selected in fair, free and anonymous elections every four years, and the only networks of power are both institutional and officially sanctioned.  Moon was neither, and so will be remembered as nothing more than a rich religious crank, a Korean, 20th century Tom Cruise, rather than the dangerously influential and connected figure, financier and organizer he was in reality.

[Salty]

He was pretty old, will his leaving create a vacuum? Or was his time for direct control already passed before he died?

[Cain]

I haven't a clue.  That's the other aspect of the whole thing - is there a designated heir who will run the political, religious and business operation together?  Or have leaders been chosen within particular fields?  Will this lead to factional infighting?  What of his family?

It's sad that these questions have be asked, because it's not too far off the kind of thing a medieval peasant would be wondering about when his liege-lord died.

[Roly Poly Oly-Garch]

Such an incredibly creepy....creep.

That much juice and pretty much all amassed using religious pretext. We really haven't come all that far over the past 10,000 years or so, have we?

[Placid Dingo]

Never knew about this guy.

[Mesozoic Mister Nigel]

It's an interesting question, because in most cases, when a charismatic leader dies their organization soon collapses. The exceptions are when the organization has become so institutionalized that it functions as a complete organism even without the existence of charismatic leader.

[Phox]

Definitely worth keeping a eye on, yeah.

[The Wizard Joseph]

There's a real Con Caine. Some folks deal with it, some make deals with it. You know how it is. 

I think there will be a lot of secretive fighting over succession and eventually an "ideological" split or fracture, Neo-Unification, True Unification, Reformed Unification, Etceteros-Unification.  The whole Messiah gig seems to historically ALWAYS result in this. 

I heard about this listening to NPR on my radio during a break at work today.  Sounded like a confidant, his wife I think, had come out after his demise about his truly dieific cocaine and other abuses.  The process of discrediting and marginalization has already begun.  Should be quite the show!  I don't know that there is a Heaven, but some days I really hope there's a well populated Hell.

[Verbal Mike]

Cain, are there any other individuals that come to mind, individuals of similar calibre who are still, or recently were, alive?

[LMNO]

Reminded me a little bit of The Family, with the whole "political influence disguised as spirituality" thing.