John C. Turmel

John C. Turmel is a perennial candidate for election in Canada, and holds the Guinness world record for losing the largest number of elections — 59 as of March 17, 2005. He is also known as The Engineer, The Gambler, and The Banking System Engineer.

Related Topics:
Perennial candidate - Election - Canada - Guinness world record - March 17 - 2005

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Turmel believes in the social credit theory of monetary reform. He has also campaigned for the legalization of gambling, the adoption of ?Local Employment Trading Systems? (LETS) which are barter arrangements, and for the legalization of marijuana use for medicinal purposes. He has participated in several protests outside of Canada's major banking institutions, accusing current bank policies of promoting poverty and starvation in the third world.

Related Topics:
Social credit - Monetary reform - Local Employment Trading Systems - Barter - Marijuana use for medicinal purposes - Banking - Third world

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Turmel, who lists his occupation as "professional gambler", was active in the Social Credit Party of Canada and the Social Credit Party of Ontario in the 1970s and 1980s, and founded the Christian Credit Party in the 1980s, and he Abolitionist Party of Canada in the 1990s. He often wears a white construction helmet when campaigning, and calls himself "the Engineer". The colour of his helmet does not only refer to the white construction helmets worn by engineers and architects on construction sites, but also to the beret blancs (white berets), the nickname of the Pilgrims of Saint Michael, a radical monetarist faction within the Quebec social credit movement.

Related Topics:
Gambler - Social Credit Party of Canada - Social Credit Party of Ontario - 1970s - 1980s - Christian Credit Party - Abolitionist Party of Canada - 1990s - Pilgrims of Saint Michael - Monetarist - Quebec social credit movement

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Turmel's grandfather, Adelard Turmel, supported the Social Credit Party of Canada from its inception in 1935, and he passed on a belief in social credit monetary theories to his descendants.

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Turmel often calls himself a follower of Jesus of Nazareth, although his beliefs are fairly distinct from mainstream Christianity. He frequently refers to Jesus as a radical debt reformer, and as evidence often quotes the line, "Forgive us our debts as we forgive our debtors", from the Lord's Prayer. (This line is usually translated as "Forgive us our trespasses" or "Forgive us our sins", which Turmel regards as a distortion of its proper meaning. He has often expressed the belief that Jesus died to bring salvation for mankind in this world, rather than in an afterlife.)

Related Topics:
Jesus of Nazareth - Christianity - Lord's Prayer - Afterlife

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He has composed several poems outlining his beliefs, all of which are written in doggerel verse. The following example is typical:

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:Debt Cancellation," "Tobin tax," they're splashing in the pool,

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:The problem's in the money pumphouse. "Interest" the tool.

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:The vast solution takes all errant money-pumps in hand,

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:It's not a half-vast splashing in the money pool that's planned.http://www.cyberclass.net/turmel/praybill.htm|1

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