Free Masons

[Grave_n_idle]

Why would you want to join a group that apparently considers you inferior anyway? (And yes, Scolo, that was a joke and not a serious accusation of bigotry on the part of you or any other mason.)

My grandfather was a mason, and I know one guy who is (well, one that I know of. I suppose that I might know others and the subject just hasn't come up). He enjoys it, so that's cool, but I can't really be bothered to join and I'm not eligible anyway, though if I ever have some burning desire to I'll just lie and say I've become a deist. Assuming, of course, that nothing has happened in the meantime to actually change my mind about religion.

It's not so much that I want to be a Mason, it's the fact that - if I did, I can't... simply because of my beliefs.

My father-in-law was a Mason. Around here, that's a real big kick up the ladder - it's how you get money, even how you get credit, etc.

[L3 Communications]

Lots of my uncles are free masons.

Nothing particularly fancy about it, really.

[West Failure]

from what I watched on the History Channel if you place the 6 pointed star symbol on the unfinneshed pyramid it points to 5 words: A,S,N,O,and M. if you flip these words around you get MASON.

But why would you place a 6 pointed star on the pyramid - why not a heptagon or some other random polygon or a duck for that matter?

Anyway it is clearly an anagram of No Mas and is aimed at Mexicans - telling them not to stand for any more shit from the US.

[Blouman Empire]

Requirements? Pretty easy.
1) Be male.
2) Believe in some sort of supreme being or higher power.

Absolute requirements may vary from Grand Lodge to Grand Lodge.

I suppose it must one of the members (he had some title for his lodge the name escapes me now and had titles in some of the orders he was in) also said I must be of good character, presumably without a criminal record.

[Scolopendra]

My father-in-law was a Mason. Around here, that's a real big kick up the ladder - it's how you get money, even how you get credit, etc.

That's unfortunate. It's not supposed to work that way. :/

I suppose it must one of the members (he had some title for his lodge the name escapes me now and had titles in some of the orders he was in) also said I must be of good character, presumably without a criminal record.

That's a pretty common requirement used as a vetting process, although I've not heard of it being limited to certain officers. Usually the good word of any Mason is enough to start the process.

[Hanibar]

from what I watched on the History Channel if you place the 6 pointed star symbol on the unfinneshed pyramid it points to 5 words: A,S,N,O,and M. if you flip these words around you get MASON.

But why would you place a 6 pointed star on the pyramid - why not a heptagon or some other random polygon or a duck for that matter?

Anyway it is clearly an anagram of No Mas and is aimed at Mexicans - telling them not to stand for any more shit from the US.

because the original free masons used stars alot, that was washington's coat of arms, if I remember correctly...

[Free Outer Eugenia]

from what I watched on the History Channel if you place the 6 pointed star symbol on the unfinneshed pyramid it points to 5 words: A,S,N,O,and M. if you flip these words around you get MASON.

Dude- those snobbish assholes were way too proud of their posh classical educations to insert an English cipher into the great seal. If it were intentional, it would have been Latin or Greek. It would have also not been something stupid or obvious like 'mason.' The whole ass end of the seal is chock full of masonic symbolism as it is.

[Scolopendra]

No, an English cipher is definitely good enough for them. I've already brought up the whole Ancient Arabic Order etc. etc. etc. anagram, which was certainly intentional.

[Buffett and Colbert]

Do you guys believe in the Free Masons and do you guys believe that the founding fathers of America were in a satanic cult? I ='ve just watched this on the History channel about this and they have found like a burial ground full of dead corpses under Benjamin Franklin's house and they said some of the founding fathers were in secret "orgy" clubs...

I watched most of it thinking it was going to be fairly interesting but I found that documentary hightly disappointing. OBVIOUSLY they would have indulged in sex with the French and joined such clubs such as the Hellfire Club. Hello! They are human. And it was a common practice for scientists to pay gravediggers to bring them corpses for them to study. So again, boring. At around there, I got too dissinterested to continue with the program so I flipped the channel to a documentary about free speech in America.

[Free Outer Eugenia]

:palm:

No, an English cipher is definitely good enough for them. I've already brought up the whole Ancient Arabic Order etc. etc. etc. anagram, which was certainly intentional.

Point taken. But the inanity of a cipher that spells out "MASON" hidden in a jumble of masonic symbolism seems a little redundant. It would be like hiding the word 'christian' in a pile of crucifixes, wouldn't it?

[West Failure]

from what I watched on the History Channel if you place the 6 pointed star symbol on the unfinneshed pyramid it points to 5 words: A,S,N,O,and M. if you flip these words around you get MASON.

But why would you place a 6 pointed star on the pyramid - why not a heptagon or some other random polygon or a duck for that matter?

Anyway it is clearly an anagram of No Mas and is aimed at Mexicans - telling them not to stand for any more shit from the US.

because the original free masons used stars alot, that was washington's coat of arms, if I remember correctly...

Then why not five pointed stars because that is what is on Washington's coat of arms?

[Hanibar]

Then why not five pointed stars because that is what is on Washington's coat of arms?[/quote]

they used the 6 pointed-star for something I can't really remember, it's been a while since i've seen the show.

[West Failure]

they used the 6 pointed-star for something I can't really remember, it's been a while since i've seen the show.

Sounds to me like a complete load of bullshit made up to suck in some gullible conspiracy theorists.

[Scolopendra]

Point taken. But the inanity of a cipher that spells out "MASON" hidden in a jumble of masonic symbolism seems a little redundant. It would be like hiding the word 'christian' in a pile of crucifixes, wouldn't it?

You're assuming that whoever designed the reverse of the $1 had any interest in being subtle. Like I said earlier, it's more like a "we were here" tag combined with elements of a "how many can you find?" puzzle. It's not exactly unusual for artists to hide symbols and meanings and tips-of-the-hat to varying degrees of subtlety just to see how many they can fit in.

While normally I'd agree it's just a coincidence, the fact that it does match a geometric puzzle would tend to make the coincidence extremely unlikely. It probably is a cipher for MASON, but that doesn't mean there's any sort of ill portent in it. Just because conspiracy theorists want to see it as an ill portent doesn't mean that the cipher itself isn't there, it just doesn't mean what they think it does. Rather than "muahahaha we own you" it's just more "yeah, we were here, and you found Waldo!"

So yeah, it is like hiding the word "Christian" in a pile of crucifixes--but that's probably 90% of the point.

EDIT: One thing I can say for certain is that some places I've read that, instead of using a six-pointed star, if you use the Masonic square and compass insignia it points out the letters. That's patently false as the square has an internal angle of 90° by definition, not 60° like an equilateral triangle, and there's no standard for the internal angle of the compass ("whatever looks nice" is the general definition). The cipher, however, only works with equilateral triangles that make a Star of David or, alternately, a hexagon circumscribing (using the term loosely) the same.

[Heaven Hieghts]

My grandfather and my uncle were both masons.

And yes I do believe that america could have been founded by a secret organization.

[Scolopendra]

And yes I do believe that america could have been founded by a secret organization.

All rebellions tend to have an "operate in secret" phase at the beginning, making them secret organizations.

[Free Outer Eugenia]

A successful revolutionary movement must have both open and clandestine elements, yes.

[Daynor]

Do you guys believe in the Free Masons

There is a masonic lodge in every major city and most small ones. I'm a DeMolay, which is a jr. version of the free masons. YES THEY EXIST lol.

and do you guys believe that the founding fathers of America were in a satanic cult?

If your asking if we are a satanic cult, then no. Our entire point is freedom, it required secrecy back in the 1600's and 1700's or the king would kill a revolutionary minded person. Now we are secretive out of tradition. (I'm not as secretive or "private" as we should say)

I ='ve just watched this on the History channel about this and they have found like a burial ground full of dead corpses under Benjamin Franklin's house and they said some of the founding fathers were in secret "orgy" clubs...

Wrong.

We arn't satanic, we arn't even religous. The only religious requirement is to be monotheistic, most are christians, but there are some muslims and other religions. The only point to being "private" anymore is tradition. You can easily access just about every secret however, they are all over the internet, lol.

[Heaven Hieghts]

And yes I do believe that america could have been founded by a secret organization.

All rebellions tend to have an "operate in secret" phase at the beginning, making them secret organizations.

But thats not it, if my sourses are correct Free Masonry originated in Europe, not because of a rebellion.

[Free Outer Eugenia]

OMG MASONS CONTROL NATIONSTATES

[Daynor]

And yes I do believe that america could have been founded by a secret organization.

All rebellions tend to have an "operate in secret" phase at the beginning, making them secret organizations.

But thats not it, if my sourses are correct Free Masonry originated in Europe, not because of a rebellion.

But because of the enlightenment ideals that lead to the American Revolution. Freedom, Democracy, Human Rights, ect. Our values arn't that extreme anymore, but in the 1600's and 1700's they were.

[Vaarshire]

I'm a DeMolay, which is a jr. version of the free masons.

ZOMG YOUTH CULT!11one. Just kidding. I am also a DeMolay.

My uncle and grandfather are Masons, and my step-grandfather was a Mason but is no longer active due to health reasons. 'Cuz, y'know, like many Masons, he's old.

While there are many towns across the country, and perhaps the world, where the local Masonic lodge holds a good deal of influence, in the 21st century, the Freemasons are pretty much a bunch of old people* who meet in special clubhouses, recite lines/do ritual stuff and do community service work every once in a while. Which is a good thing.

*This is, of course, a massive generalization.

[Grave_n_idle]

Our entire point is freedom... The only religious requirement is to be monotheistic,

Our entire point is freedom - except for Atheists.

[Jiraua]

I oppose any and all rivals of the Illuminati. FNORD!

[Scolopendra]

Our entire point is freedom - except for Atheists.

No, atheists just can't join. Except in Co-Masonry, where they can.

I oppose any and all rivals of the Illuminati.

I'm just going to assume this is said tongue-in-cheek and not mark you down for annihilation by our hot hail machines.