{"id":486,"date":"2022-05-12T02:11:19","date_gmt":"2022-05-12T09:11:19","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/queersatanic.com\/?p=486"},"modified":"2022-05-12T02:11:19","modified_gmt":"2022-05-12T09:11:19","slug":"what-the-hell-is-the-satanic-temple-ep-5-the-satanic-temple-inc","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/qs.gehenna.ynh.fr\/?p=486","title":{"rendered":"What the hell is \u201cThe Satanic Temple\u201d?\u200a\u2014\u200aEp. 5: The Satanic Temple (Inc.)"},"content":{"rendered":"\n

The Satanic Temple has described itself in a variety of ways over the years, some of them contradictory.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

However, since 2019, it would be fair to say that the Temple most <\/em>commonly has described itself as a “famous IRS-recognized atheistic religious organization<\/a>“, and this is how TST wants people to think of them.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

What they’re referring to when they make this claim is not any of the other corporations in this “constellation of affiliate entities<\/a>” that we’ve covered so far, but just one in particular: The Satanic Temple (Inc.)<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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Let’s do a quick recap: In the beginning, March 2012, there was a New York-based, Spectacle Films Inc.<\/a> prank documentary project intended to follow in the style of “the Yes Men<\/a>” about a non-existent organization that worshipped a supernatural Satan while doing good works, e.g. cleaning up a highway. In time, this project evolved into something larger than a fake organization and without a fixed end-date, becoming atheistic and supposedly sincere along the way. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

In February 2014, one of the key figures in that documentary, Doug Misicko, registered the for-profit corporation “United Federation of Churches LLC<\/a>” in Massachusetts, but its doing-business-as name and most of its trademarks<\/a> were “The Satanic Temple”. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Now, still at this early point, the Temple took the stance that churches should not be tax-exempt.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"FB
March 27, 2014, Facebook post<\/a><\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"Petition
WhiteHouse.gov petition<\/a> created March 24, 2014.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This was similar to the older, unrelated organization the Church of Satan of Anton LaVey and its long-held public stance that churches should be taxed for income and property<\/a>.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Yet, a few months later in September 2014, Misicko registered Reason Alliance Ltd.<\/a>, a standard, non-religious 501(c)(3) nonprofit. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

This nonprofit grew to ultimately process hundreds of thousands of dollars annually in tax-exempt contributions, but that came with a downside: financial transparency.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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An organization that normally has $50,000 or more in gross receipts and that is required to file an exempt organization information return must file either Form 990PDF, Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax, or Form 990-EZPDF, Short Form Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax. …<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Small organizations – those whose annual gross receipts are normally less than the threshold- are not required to file an annual return, but may be required to file an annual electronic notice – e-Postcard.<\/p>\nIRS.gov: Exempt Organization Annual Filing Requirements Overview<\/a><\/cite><\/blockquote>\n\n\n\n

As discussed last time, it became obvious upon review of these documents that Reason Alliance Ltd. was at first explicitly then implicitly revealing it routed funds back to the for-profit by then owned by both Doug Misicko and Cevin Soling. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

(At this point it becomes necessary to point out that both men are rather fond of using pseudonyms, including on government documents. Misicko also uses “Doug Mesner” and “Lucien Greaves”, the latter itself being a trademark<\/a> of United Federation of Churches, LLC. Cevin Soling has also used “Calvin Soling<\/a>,” but more often uses “Malcolm Jarry” for TST-associated business.)<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Portion<\/a>
March 10, 2020<\/a>: under deposition, Doug Misicko admits having no set compensation and not keeping track of it.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This is something of a problem because, as other court depositions and evidence gathered in discovery have confirmed, “Reason Alliance \/ TST<\/a>” money was being used to compensate at least one of the owners, Misicko, as needed. Yet, this was being hidden by putting payments on Spectacle Films invoices as late as 2017<\/em>, or by first mixing it in the for-profit United Federation of Churches LLC general fund, which Misicko dipped into for rent, business expenses, or to “stay afloat<\/a>” as needed – albeit with no outside accountability, since the only officers of any of these corporations were Misicko, Soling, or their pseudonyms. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

The state of Arkansas described this as “a shell game<\/a>“. Later depositions would reveal that yes, the two men considered funds in one entity to be entirely fungible with the funds of another, regardless of any difference in tax status between the two.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Secretary<\/a>
Jan. 3, 2022: The Satanic Temple’s legal team claims that “The Satanic Temple” is a “constellation of affiliate entities<\/a>” rather than anything in particular.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It is in this context that the advent of “The Satanic Temple (Inc.)” must be placed, and why that little parentheses will be even more important later.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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As of 2022, when The Satanic Temple wants you to think of The Satanic Temple, they usually want you to think of “The Satanic Temple (Inc.).” That’s because it works out for them far better for you to imagine a nonprofit Satanic church<\/a>, than for you to imagine any of the other, similarly-named entities that Soling owns, that do business as a variation on “The Satanic Temple.”<\/p>\n\n\n\n

We have the aforementioned “United Federation of Churches LLC,” which is most egregious because its doing-business-as name is identical <\/em>to the name that the nonprofit church used when applying to the IRS.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Pursuant
April 6, 2020: Corporate disclosure statement<\/a> for United Federation of Churches LLC v. Johnson et al<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"IRS
IRS determination letter for “Satanic Temple<\/a>“, EIN: 82-3404757 | Salem, MA, United States<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It was not until after getting IRS recognition as a tax-exempt church in February 2019 that three months later “The Satanic Temple” updated its name to “The Satanic Temple, Inc.”<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"Massachusetts
Massachusetts Secretary of State Corporations Division Business Entity Summary<\/a> for The Satanic Temple, Inc., previously known as “The Satanic Temple”<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

This is why so many places, such as Amazon Smile, GuideStar, or the IRS itself refer to the nonprofit church as “The Satanic Temple”, full stop.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

Which is a neat trick, isn’t it?<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"\/
GuideStar profile<\/a> for The Satanic Temple, EIN: 82-3404757<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"\"\/
Amazon Smile charities list search for “The Satanic Temple”<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

These two entities\u2014a for-profit corporation and a nonprofit church\u2014share a name, owners, the same website, same physical address, are used interchangeably by the organization itself, and apparently even funding. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

One begins to think that the confusion is not just an unforeseen consequence of the way they sloppily set all this up but rather the very point of it. <\/p>\n\n\n\n

Just look at this page on their site, the only place that “United Federation of Churches LLC” seems to appear at all.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\u201cThe
Legal Trademark and Copyright notice page<\/a> for TheSatanicTemple.com<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

For the casual observer or supporter, it is thus extremely<\/em> easy to overlook the difference between donations to nonprofit church “The Satanic Temple Inc.” and merchandise purchased from for-profit business “The Satanic Temple,” because there is almost nothing on the site to suggest that there is a difference at all.<\/p>\n\n\n

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\"\"\/<\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n
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\"\"\/
The Satanic Temple, Inc. is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization. Your donation is tax-deductible in accordance with IRS rules and regulations. The Federal Tax ID is 82-3404757.<\/em><\/figcaption><\/figure>\n<\/div>\n\n\n

It is only the lack <\/em>of this little note that lets you know you’re buying from the for-profit, which includes mugs and T-shirts, but also membership cards.<\/p>\n\n\n\n

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people: "how could The Satanic Temple POSSIBLY plan to profit off promises (but other times, careful insinuations) that being a card-carrying Satanist allows you to circumvent state abortion laws?"

The Satanic Temple, profiting: pic.twitter.com\/NHTPD8PDtB<\/a><\/p>— QueerSatanic is on hiatus (@QueerSatanic) September 4, 2021<\/a><\/blockquote>