Lorenz Reibling gives interview about real estate

by OrphanCrow 162 Replies latest watchtower scandals

• 

  OrphanCrow

  I posted a lot of material in my last post, and the Boston College video is especially long and dense.

  But, if you watch anything, do watch the 2013 REFIRE video. That is the creepiest video of them all - Reibling, an active and prominent JW, never once mentions Jehovah's Witnesses or the WTS in his talk to a roomful of white shirted white men, but he talks about the ideology of the organization in the video. I couldn't breathe when I was watching it and it took a long time for my heart to quit pounding.

  Shadow organization? Absolutely. Creepy as hell. Chilling.
• 

  Crazyguy

  You need to write a book list all your sources get it published, shop it around to get a movie deal, and push the info to the press.
• 

  Crazyguy

  Knorr pushed the blood doctrine in 1945 I'm wondering if there's away to see if her had any connections to these men from Germany?
• 

  OrphanCrow

  My goodness, Mr. JW Lorenz Reibling sure gets around...he was in Israel back in 2013 - I guess he was looking out for his investments in that country. I wonder if his 'risk management plan' for increasing the sense of urgency in real estate markets (he describes this in the 2013 video) has anything at all to do with the recent JW missionary push in Israel.
  

  Grapevine: Talking peace at the grassroots level

  ■ THERE WERE quite a number of prominent figures at the festive cocktail party hosted at Beit Hatfutsot by Edouard Cukierman, chairman of Cukierman Investment House and managing partner of the Catalyst Fund, to launch the annual Go4Europe conference.
  One of the conference’s keynote speakers was Baron David de Rothschild, chairman of the Rothschild Group, who specially came from France for the occasion. He didn’t make it to Israel in time for the cocktail party, but did come to grace the podium the following day.
  Coincidentally, one of the exhibitions at Beit Hatfutsot honors the memory and work of Jehezkiel David Kirszenbaum, whose patron was the baron’s mother, Alix de Rothschild.
  Rothschild was not the only conference participant to come from Europe for the conference.
  Others included: Maximo Buch, Valencia’s economy, industry, tourism and employment minister; David Hatchwell Altaras, vice president of the Federation of Spanish Jews, head of the Madrid Jewish community and CEO of Excem, which inter alia markets Israeli technology in Spain and South America; French film director and scriptwriter Elie Chouraqui; Pierre Lellouche, president of NATO’s Parliamentary Assembly; Dr. Christopher Proctor, CSO of British American Tobacco; Luc Muller, CEO of the German Otto Group; Dr. Florent Gros, head of Novartis Venture Funds; Prof. Lorenz Reibling, chairman of Taurus Investment Holdings; and Maurice Levy, CEO of Publicis, the giant Paris-headquartered multinational advertising and public relations firm.

  The Reibling brothers, Lorenz and Geunther, have had business dealings in North America for some time - they ran Taurus Construction back in the 90s. And they weren't all that honest about it, either.

  https://scholar.google.ca/scholar_case?case=7300288450507725103&q=reibling&hl=en&as_sdt=2006
  

  AFFIRMED. As to the civil theft judgment, there was evidence that appellant, Taurus Construction, Inc., used (for the benefit of another corporation) residual construction funds intended to be deposited in a "rent reserve" account to insure that investors received a guaranteed return on their investment.

  
  

  crazyguy: Knorr pushed the blood doctrine in 1945 I'm wondering if there's away to see if her had any connections to these men from Germany?

  Yup, it sure would be interesting to know who Knorr was meeting with when he made his trips to Germany after Rutherford died.

  He likely had those contacts already set up from the times he went there with Rutherford on business. Interestingly enough, Knorr and Franz were not the ones that Rutherford had named to be his successor - Hayden Covington was. Knorr and Franz shoved Convington out of the WTS power circle on the excuse that Convington wasn't one of the "anointed". Rather ironic, isn't it?

  Once Rutherford was out of the way, and Knorr had control, the plight of the JWs in the SS camps became much, much better. Henrich Himmler really liked the JWs - in fact, he had plans to use the JWs as a vanguard in conquered territories after the war - the JWs didn't bear arms and they had a compatible ideology to the Nazis. Himmler thought that the JWs would be excellent for controlling the people in the Thousand Year Reign of the Reich. Himmler really liked the JWs. A lot.

  https://en.wikiquote.org/wiki/Heinrich_Himmler
  

  Some information and observations of recent date have led me to draw up plans that I would like to bring to your attention. This concerns Jehovah’s Witnesses. . . . How are we going to govern and pacify Russia when . . . we will have conquered vast areas of its territory? . . . All forms of religion and the pacifist sects must be supported . . . , among all the others the beliefs of Jehovah’s Witnesses. It is well-known that the latter have characteristics incredibly positive for us: Apart from the fact that they refuse military service and anything to do with war . . . , they are incredibly reliable, do not drink, do not smoke; they are relentless workers and of rare honesty. For them the spoken word stands. These are ideal characteristics . . . , enviable qualities.

  And not only that - the JWs were extremely loyal - they would do anything that the WTS told them to - including dying for the bloody doctrine - they would give up their children to the Blood God. Just like the women who gave their children to Hitler, they would give their children to "Jehovah".

  There is an account in a book about the Lebensborn maternity homes that were established by Himmler - the book is Of Pure Blood (pg. 104) - that tells of a Lebensborn woman who converted to the JWs:

  …Frau S., for instance, who presented a son to the Fuhrer at Steinhoring in 1943, is now an active Jehovah’s Witness. "Then Hitler was my god," she told us. "Since then, I have found the only true God."

  Many SS officers and guards converted to the JWs during and after the war. Surprisingly enough, something else that happened after Rutherford died, was that the JWs in the camps in Germany were spread around in the general population, no longer kept in groups so much, and they encountered little resistance to their preaching efforts.

  Himmler had a vision that extended far beyond the end of the war.
  
  
• 

  Vidiot

  Holy f**k; I didn't know that.

  The way the WTS sells it, JWs were almost treated worse than Jews.

  x

  Getting back to the money trail thing, someone who knows Dogpatch should touch base with him and see what he thinks of all this.
• 

  OrphanCrow

  Back to the money trail and more about Reibling and his investment strategies and concerns.

  
  

  Taurus/ReiblingBros. was involved in the Assembly Square project in Boston. From a 2006 article:
  

  In the fall of 1999, Assembly Square Limited Partners (ASLP) faced two serious problems. They had bought the mall property with $300,000 in cash and a one-year, $18.5 million loan that was due in October. But they could not legally obtain as-of-right permits to build big box stores.

  And...who was ASLP? You guessed it...

  Taurus New England, ASLP’s majority partner, never seriously considered building anything other than a big-box-dominated project. This was not just because of Home Depot’s contractual constraints. Taurus had had enjoyed great success by buying failed projects, repackaging them, and selling them for a quick and substantial profit. The last thing they wanted was to execute an office-based master plan. Also, principal Lorenz Reibling was and remains deeply pessemistic about the Boston-area economy’s future demand for office space.

  So Taurus faced the challenge of obtaining permits to build a project to which most Somervillians then objected. They determined to meet that challenge by replacing erstwhile partner National Development with a politically connected developer.

  Environmental activist and unsuccessful congressional candidate John O’Connor was married to Carolyn Mugar, who with her brother David, was heir to many Star Market properties. The Mugars were major contributors to the Massachusetts Democratic Party, and Carolyn sat on the Conservation Law Foundation Board of Directors.

  Mr. O’Connor had persuaded his wife to create a development company that, starting with the supermarket properties, would showcase “green” development. They called it “Gravestar.” One of its first projects was the Porter Square strip mall, which drew mixed reviews from neighbors.

  O’Connor had become close with a political operative named Natasha Perez, whom he installed in a cottage on his and Ms. Mugar’s residential property. During the Spring, 1999 special election to replace Mayor Michael Capuano, Ms. Perez had also become quite close with candidate Joe Curtatone, when she served as his campaign field officer. She subsequently went to work for Gravestar, and at the same time, as Deputy Executive Director of the Massachusetts Democratic Party.

  Taurus calculated that Gravestar had the political juice that they needed. They brought Gravestar into ASLP, gave them a small equity position, and charged them with managing public relations and delivering the permits. Gravestar, in turn, charged Natasha Perez with leading this effort.

  This was the biggest opportunity that Gravestar had thus far encountered. Unfortunately, John O’Connor, beloved in the environmental community, had the bad judgment to die at the age of 44, before he could fully appreciate the environmental disaster that ASLP’s plans would create.

  Joe Curtatone was deeply impressed with Lorenz Reibling when Natasha Perez introduced them. This is understandable; Mr. Reibling is brilliant, charming, highly successful, and has an avuncular manner. Curtatone sought a personal relationship, taking Reibling’s family to see the tall ships when he was out of the country, and attempting to persuade Reibling to purchase the Prospect Hill house across the street from Joe’s sister’s home. They dined together regularly at Henrietta’s Kitchen in Harvard Square, discussing a variety of topics, including Joe’s political ambitions.

  I guess the rules for playing political games are different for the JWs who smell like money.

  *********

  A 2014 interview from Argentina, with Lorenz Reibling.

  Selected quotes from above link:

  Global Investment property: the look of an expert

  Lorenz Reibling, President of Taurus Investment Holdings, the international company that develops Argentina Austral Park, was interviewed by the online media of Germany's most important business. The following is an excerpt from the interview with his views on the opportunities and risks in real estate markets in different regions of the world

  Lorenz speaks about his client base:

  Düsseldorf . Reibling is the president and co-founder of Taurus Investment. The company, based in Boston, specializes in real estate investments for very wealthy and institutional clients. Handelsblatt-Online spoke with him about his exclusive clients; opportunities in the German real estate market; and prestigious project in Texas.

  Professor Reibling, many customers are very rich. Who would trust their money?
  Our customers must meet three main criteria. They must be able to invest the money in a long period of time; if necessary, they should be able to increase the amount they have invested; and must be willing to commit to our business model. Anyone with $ 500,000 available to have the opportunity to participate in a "test project" to see how things are going. What we really want to see is, however, a greater potential for liquid capital as the service offered to these customers takes a lot of time demands.

  How solvents should be your customers?
  We always advise clients to invest about 5 to 15 percent of their liquid capital with us. At five million - our entry-level standard- this would correspond to the liquid assets of over $ 30 million. Also, of course, we have significantly more wealthy clients, including some billionaires.

  Are they correct the lists of billionaires published in magazines?
  No. The information on the goods included in the lists is often exaggerated over which in excess default-. Our clients include, at least, two German billionaires who have invested millions of dollars. None of them appears on these lists.

  Do you sometimes refuse to take customers?
  Yes, it happens. Liquidity alone is not enough. For us it is important that the client understands exactly what we do. In the worst cases the customer may lose all our investments in real estate. Anyone who does not understand this, or is not able to think like an entrepreneur is in the wrong place if you come to us.

  The interview is lengthy, and wraps up with a discussion about global markets, and Lorenz tells why Taurus invests in certain countries:

  It [Taurus] also invests in countries which do not bet conservative investors. Argentina is experiencing a national crisis. Turkey has big political problems of India is not developing as many investors expected. Why did you choose these particular countries?
  There are countries that certainly would be just as interesting, such as Malaysia, Vietnam, Indonesia, Rwanda, Mozambique, and South Africa, to name a few. Ultimately, our business model is based on having a strong individual in a country. Our Director in Argentina is an Argentine first level; our man in Turkey is Turkish; our man in India is Indian.Without trust these people would not be able to win local investors or make deals . Ideally we want someone who has a good network at their disposal. When we have such an individual we can not enter the market.

  "Investments based on a Philosophy"

  Can you give us an example of how it works?

  In Turkey, for example, we have developed an office building and a shopping center to the tune of three million digits. Our man in Istanbul organized everything and got aboard Turkish investors. 70 percent of the money comes from Turkey, the rest worldwide.

  What is your assessment of southern Europe?
  We also look at the region, particularly Spain. We are convinced that the two criteria I mentioned earlier, demographics and labor market trends are not in favor of Spain. Although the demographic evolution of Spain is somewhat better than in Germany, the employment situation is much worse. We decided not to invest in Spain.

  Is the crisis in southern Europe will end soon?
  We believe that the countries of southern Europe still have difficult times ahead before they can regain a sound economic base. Without the funding from Germany not only Spain, but also Italy would be in a very tight corner. Where we want to invest, but now we can not because we are involved in the consolidation of our activities in India, is Africa.

  Many investors mainly associated Africa with poverty, lawlessness and corruption. What countries do you mean?
  Rwanda is a wonderful country. Mozambique is also interesting. However, in the case of a company that was founded 40 years ago and in an interim phase of 20 years has become an American enterprise, with added value and strong ... we must allow time for such things. Sometimes we get angry about missed opportunities, but despite this, we first want to focus on our projects in India and Turkey, and ensure they are successful. The most exciting project for me personally, is in Austin, Texas.

  That's where you are making a large housing development incorporating alternative energy sources.
  We bought plots of land during the crisis and we are very satisfied. We are developing additional 7,500 homes and 100,000 square meters of land for schools, parks and other facilities.
  The big attraction is a geothermal system that provides energy. The technology will be provided by Bosch and BASF. Austin is a thriving, young and liberal city. And we've been fortunate that a new road has been built nearby. We expect our investors to at least double its capital.

  Why, despite the "Energy Revolution" This type of geothermal energy projects in Germany do not work?
  If you could show me a piece of land to allow the construction of several thousand homes in a good location and infrastructure, we would in Germany too. This type of project has to reach a critical size of thousand homes to be profitable. The local government has major problems with this type of project.

  The German owners have been supporters of alternative energy sources for a long time.
  If you, as an individual, purchase a geothermal system, it does because of its philosophy. And so you forget the figures and do something good for the environment. The reason the project in Austin is so interesting is because it is gigantic. In total we have invested nearly one hundred million dollars to date; It is a responsibility that can only be assumed if economies of scale are appropriate.

  And...a few fun facts about Taurus Investments:

  TAURUS INVESTMENT - FACTS AND FIGURES

  Managed assets: Taurus Investment Holding currently manages real estate valued at three billion dollars.

  Customers : Customers Investment deTaurus consist mainly high net worth individuals. Many of them come from German-speaking countries, USA, Canada and Israel. In addition, institutional customers have also invested $ 350 million with Taurus.

  Offices: The company is headquartered in Boston, USA Taurus also has offices in London, Florida, Texas, Munich, Buenos Aires, Istanbul, Athens and Trivandrum (India). In total, Taurus operates in 16 markets worldwide. ( Editor's Note: In Argentina operates through Taurus Americas and its main project is the development and operation of the Southern Park) .

  Projects: The volume of projects Taurus is generally in the range of 10 to 100 million US dollars. Between 5 and 20 investors can participate in each project. The flagship project of the company is currently in Whisper Valley, located near Austin, Texas.

  
• 

  Vidiot

  OrphanCrow - "I wonder if his 'risk management plan' for increasing the sense of urgency in real estate markets has anything at all to do with the recent JW missionary push in Israel."

  I'm not a big believer in coincidence.
• 

  OrphanCrow

  Here is some information that I had uncovered back in 2010, 5 years ago, that is pertinent to this thread.

  It is clear that the WTS has JW friends that are heavily invested in realestate, construction/development, investments, and the bloodless market. To throw another monkey wrench onto the pile, the following information may prove interesting.

  In this old post of 2010, the link to the profile of Alexander McMillan (an Australian JW) no longer works. This is a new one: https://www.linkedin.com/pub/alexander-mcmillan/44/950/aa8 but some of the material that I copied back in 2010 is not on his updated profile.

  
  

  *****

  
  

  
  This is from a public professional profile of a fellow from Australia by the name of Alexander McMillan. (text color change is mine...)
  

  Summary of Expertise:
  Training and Documentation Consultant
  Alex is an experienced training consultant and Instructional Designer - a seasoned professional who focuses in on improving communication skills at all levels of the business environment.
  
  His training and consulting experience spans a variety of industries including: financial services, mining, transport, insurance, government, printing & publishing, IT, telecommunications, horticulture and healthcare.
  
  Areas of expertise and experience include the following:
  Needs analysis and writing of technical documentation, training manuals and
  Policy & Procedure manuals and Presenter's guides - diverse subject matter
  Flowcharting of processes & procedures. Analysis of business policies/processes.
  Train the Trainer programs on business communication and presentation
  

  
  This is listed in his past experience and past employers:
  

  • • Management Training at Teamwork Consulting
    • Instructional Design at Westpac Banking Corporation
    • Oracle writing at Sydney Airport Corporation

    • Training and Documentation at TACTICS Consulting Pty Ltd
    • Systems Training at Telstra
    • Technical Writing at Coles Myer Liquorland
    • Technical Writer at Allianz Insurance
    • Instructional Design at everis
    • Business Communication & Technical Writing at Watchtower Legal NY
    • Senior Technical Coordinator at Legal Department of Watchtower Society
      

  More details about his employment at the Watchtower Society:

  Business Communication & Technical Writing

  Watchtower Legal NY

  (Information Technology and Services industry)

  August 1998 — March 1999 (8 months)

  Senior Technical Coordinator

  Legal Department of Watchtower Society

  (Information Technology and Services industry)

  January 1987 — January 1992 (5 years 1 month)

  preparing documentation and conducting seminars on writing skills
  Design and write 32-page plain English brochure on Charitable Planning and its
  relationship to Government tax laws. Distributed throughout U.S.
  Coordination and production of seminar materials, PowerPoint presentation
  and Presenter's notes for Public Affairs Office for worldwide distribution; Technical Illustrators & Co. W.A.
  Public relations role: liaison between client and company
  Project management - coordinator of major documentation projects
  Writing, artwork and production of Occupational Health and Safety manuals, Operations and Maintenance Manuals. Site visits to mines
  Writing of corporate brochure and advertising materials
  Achievements: Documentation project management (team of four) for new
  CRA iron ore mine commissioning in the Pilbara region. Eighteen-month project.
  Analysis, writing and editing with a resultant comprehensive range
  of operating and procedure manuals for Channar Iron Ore mine

  
  
• 

  OrphanCrow

  Mr. McMillan's updated profile says that he worked for Rio Tinto for 3 months in 2011.

  Rio Tinto is a leading global mining and metals company.

  
  

  His profile from 2010 listed details about his duties when he was employed by the Watchtower Society. He did work for the WTS at the Channar Iron Ore Mine.

  Channar Ore Mine, if my memory serves me correctly, was owned by Rio Tinto and I think the iron ore projects in the Pilbara region were also owned by Rio Tinto.

  
  

  The WTS, in some way, is linked to and/or has interests in the mining industry.

  
  

  It might be that whoever has control of Old Chuck Russell's mining stocks has invested them wisely.
• 

  millie210

  Oh my OrphanCrow, this reads like a compelling sci fi novel.

  So chilling!

  I dont have time to watch the videos right now but I will!

  Thank you for doing all this work.