Masonicleaks.com
https://web.archive.org/web/20110511034604/http://masonicleaks.com/2011/02/case-stude-cronyism-inequity-maxwell-doug-simmons/
A Case Study of Contemporary Masonic Cronyism and Inequity
Sunday, February 27th, 2011
The article below was posted on a Masonic website in 2004, by Arkansas Mason Maxwell D. �Doug� Simmons, a Past Master of Blocher Lodge No. 247, in Booneville.
Headed for Disaster!Simmons hosted the Masonic website on which the article above appeared, but he shuttered it as his rise in the Grand Lodge of Arkansas began. It�s a matter of speculation whether his condescending attitude, and his opinion that Masons exist only to serve their Grand Lodges, was a factor in his many subsequent Grand Lodge appointments. In recent years, Simmons has served on almost all of the politically motivated trial committees appointed by the Grand Lodge of Arkansas. As an example, he was one of five members of the Grand Lodge trial committee that convicted and suspended every officer of Sebastian Lodge No. 706 in Ft. Smith (as reported in the first Masonic leak published on this site), then immediately thereafter, he was appointed special Grand Lodge �overseer� for the convicted brothers� lodge!Thread started on: Jul 27th, 2004, 09:06am
During the past few years, I have witnessed some of the most asinine, un-thinking, cruel-minded petulant children masquerading as FreeMasons in every Lodge I have visited, and every Grand Lodge Communication I have attended in Arkansas.
This Fraternity of Free and Accepted Masons of Arkansas has degenerated into a social club lacking even the simplest rules of good conduct. Not many of the members I see are following the tenets of Friendship, Morality, or Brotherly Love. There is little old-fashioned courtesy or respect displayed in most Masonic communications I have witnessed or taken part in.
In reading recent email messages circulating among some of our Brothers, concerning the death of our Grand Master and the assumption of his duties by the Deputy Grand Master, I was ashamed of the lack of character displayed by nearly all of the participants in those messages. I have not seen such vicious back-biting, back-stabbing, and even outright lies from friends, acquaintances or neighbors, and it is particularly shameful to see it coming from those who pretend to be correct and upright men and Masons.
The sad fact is � we have done this to ourselves! We have failed to live up to our own standards, and we have failed to honor our several obligations, sworn to in good faith, in the presence of God.
Through negligence, apathy, fear of dwindling membership, and lack of desire to participate in the decisions of our Lodges, we have neglected our duty to properly investigate prospective candidates or petitioners for affiliation who wish to join our Lodges. We have allowed individuals of low character and morality to permeate our Fraternity and they have undermined the integrity of this institution.
We have lost our focus; we have lost our character; we have lost our morality. And worse, this has gone on for so long the damage may be irreparable. It may now be so in-grained in our Fraternity that it can�t be corrected.
Focus: We have forgotten that our Lodges exist to promote the Fatherhood of God and the Brotherhood of Man. Our duty includes charity � to our Brothers and to our communities. We have allowed our Lodges to conduct fund-raising activities to pay their bills! We�re supposed to be givers of charity, not takers. Is it right or proper to ask our friends and neighbors for money to pay our operating expenses, instead of raising our dues to cover the costs?
Over the years, our Lodges have become �coffee clubs� populated mostly by old men who have little interest in the current world or its current affairs. We prefer to live in the past, and yearn for the �good old days.� We moan about our declining membership but we refuse to face the problem: we have nothing to offer the young men in our communities. I don�t know any young men who would want to join a group of old cronies who have no real interest in today�s world, and don�t even have the courtesy to provide a meaningful Masonic education to those who would join. A few of us (less than 10% of our Lodge membership) gather at our Lodges once or twice a month, plod through our ritual with almost total indifference, pay a few bills, and then go drink coffee and join in the gossip.
We have forgotten that Lodges exist in this State only by Charter of the Grand Lodge. Our charters are issued by that body, and can be removed by that body. The Grand Lodge does not exist to �serve� our Lodges; we are ruled and governed by the constitution and by-laws of that body. The Grand Lodge owes us nothing but the right to operate, and then only in accordance with the rules and regulations established by the Grand Lodge officers and Delegates. Our Grand Lodge is the guardian of the Landmarks of Ancient, Free and Accepted Masons, and we are not allowed to promulgate rules, laws, or regulations that are not in compliance with those Landmarks.
Character: We made a number of promises when we were initiated into this Fraternity, and we are failing to honor those promises � all of them! We criticize and nit-pick everything the Grand Lodge officers do and say� we petulantly refuse to do anything those officers suggest� we constantly accuse them of various
plots and schemes that will eventually bring this institution to ruin, without ever wondering why they might want to do that.
When we asked the Grand Lodge to look into the possibility of an �umbrella� insurance plan, a questionnaire was sent to all Secretaries to gather the necessary information required by various insurance providers in order to provide quotes. This generated an outcry that the Grand Lodge was taking an inventory in preparation for shutting down and taking over various Lodges!
When our Deputy Grand Master announced that he was going to honor the election and installation of the Grand Master after his death, and act as the Presiding Officer (as provided by our Constitution and By- Laws), the DGM was accused of trying to steal two years as Grand Master! And it gets worse: The Deputy Grand Master, Presiding has been the target of vicious character assassination attacks; he has been the subject of cruel, personal attacks on his motives, business affairs, personal affairs, and even his competence.
At our last Annual Communication, the main topic of conversation among the Delegates was childish, spoiled-brat complaints about the lack of coffee and doughnuts, and some of those spoiled brats were heard to comment that because there were no doughnuts or coffee, they were not going to vote for the per capita dues increase!
Morality: We no longer live by the standards of morality we swore years ago to uphold. Adultery is an accepted fact among our Brothers unless we get singled out for special condemnation by those with axes to grind; We don�t offer much help to our wives, widows or orphans; We don�t look for men of good character, or those who possess a higher standard of morality than others around them� we just look for more members.
Every year at our Grand Lodge Communications we are faced with attempts to lower our standards for the sole purpose of increasing membership.
We begrudge almost every dollar donated to charities or worthy causes, and criticize the Grand Lodge officers for picking the �wrong� charities.
All this from men who call themselves Masons! I don�t wear my Masonic ring any more � I�m ashamed to be associated with a group of selfish, un-caring, petulant children.
Due to lack of interest from anyone this site was designed for � other than my few notes, nobody has posted much of anything here � I�m shutting down this Board on August 15th until this Fraternity comes to its senses and returns to its honorable principles established so long ago� if it�s possible.
I have a deepening dread that it�s too late for redemption, and I�m afraid Freemasonry will disappear in Arkansas within the next 5 � 10 years.
Doug Simmons
Simmons later served as one of five members of a Grand Lodge trial committee that convicted and expelled five Past Masters of various Arkansas lodges, including retired US Marine veteran Otis D. Burtcher, who was convicted in absentia after he suffered a heart attack at his Masonic trial and was rushed away in an ambulance to undergo emergency surgery (see: last week�s Masonic leak).
As unbelievable as it seems, after that and similar displays of �morality and brotherly love,� Simmons was presented the Grand Lodge of Arkansas� highest Masonic award, the �Medal of Honor, Category #1? for �distinguished service to the fraternity!� His state�s Grand Master Ronnie Hedge, Deputy Grand Master Gene Warren, and Grand Secretary James Weatherall, traveled more than 200 miles to personally present the award (see: http://blocher.westark.net/trboard.htm ).
Despite his Grand Lodge�s prohibition against electronic Masonic communication, adopted in February 2010, Simmons has continued posting public commentary like the following on �The Burning Taper� blog: Arkansas Grand Lodge resignations confirmed. Furthermore, he apparently created, copyrighted, and maintains his current lodge website, while many other Arkansas lodges have been forced to dismantle or drastically alter their similar sites (see: Blocher Lodge No. 247 , Sebastian Lodge No. 706 ).
Even though Simmons has indisputably and repeatedly violated his state�s Masonic by-laws, as well as his own Master Mason�s obligation in numerous ways, the only action taken as a result, has been to heap additional honors and awards upon him.
It appears that Simmons has successfully ascended to a level in Arkansas Masonry that�s exempt from the rules and regulations applying to ordinary Masons, who otherwise meet upon the level of equality, and act by the plumb of rectitude.
Please, review all reference materials and evidence:
Review the archived Grand Lodge of Arkansas website as seen in 2008
Review previous article discussing Simmon�s involvement to expel a brother who had a heart attack during the trial
Attachments
Tags: Arkansas, Arkansas Grand Lodge, Arkansas Masonry, Bill Jones, Blocher Lodge No, body, Bro Burtcher, Brotherly Love, Charles Baker, coffee, Constitution, cronyism, deputy grand master, Deputy Grand Master Gene Warren, Doug Simmons, expulsion, free and accepted masons, friends acquaintances, Gene Warren, good conduct, Grand, Grand Lodge, Grand Lodge Communication, Grand Lodge Trial Commission, Grand Lodge Trial Committee, Grand Master, Grand Secretary James Weatherall, heart attack, information, lodge leadership, Lodges, masonic, masonic website, masonry, maxwell, Medal of Honor, membership, morality, outright lies, presence of god, prospective candidates, Ronnie Hedge, Sebastian Lodge, Sebastian Lodge No, suspensions, today, Trial Commission, Trial Committee, Worshipful Master
Further Reading:
Fellowship - Freemasonry Public Relations & 'Administration'
