Doobl is a hoax - confirmation

[lederhosen]

So after my recent post I got more and more suspicious about Doobl - the timeline seemed a little too rushed, some of the entries were a little too glib, and a couple of my friends had also voiced suspicions - and I went poking around.

On Doobl's site, 'Jess Hanley' says: "I'm the youth minister for Farmers Branch Fellowship of Christ, a non-denominational church in Texas... Brother Jackson and five other folks started the FBFC in 1982, and we've been growing ever since.".

On Googling, I couldn't find any Farmer's Branch Fellowship of Christ or any relevant FBFC, but there is a Farmer's Branch Church of Christ, and at first glance their website sounds like Hanley's description. I didn't see the word 'non-denominational' but it certainly has that feel, one of those reach-out-and-include-you sort of churches. However... their history page says they were founded way back in 1905 and had built a fellowship room in 1969.

Hanley says: "I kind of talked to Brother Jackson last night and voiced my concerns and well now I'm not the youth minister for FBFC... for now Brother Jevne is taking over my spot"

FBCC does indeed have a youth ministry. Its webpage even lists two youth ministers, neither of whom are named either 'Jevne' or 'Jess Hanley'. I emailed them, and got this reply:

"WOW! I'm the third youth minister this church has ever hired and Ryan is the fourth. The first guy was named Chad and the second Tom. This guy NEVER worked at this church. I'll see if I can find another church in town. Thanks for passing this on."

According to the City of Farmer's Branch website, the population of Farmer's Branch is "over 24,000". So if Hanley's church really exists, it has zero web presence, zero presence in directories, and such low visibility - despite 'growing ever since 1982' - that a minister in a church of almost-identical name and similar religious outlook in the same neck of the woods has no idea it exists.

(quizzicalsphinx also notes a lack of corroborating evidence in the Texas death registry.)

Ah well. I'm annoyed at myself for giving this hoax the benefit of the doubt at first, but I figure I made amends by giving the guys at FBCC a heads-up. And knowing it's a hoax turns it from a macabre tragedy into just another bored asshole on the Internet, which is probably for the best.

Comments

[cavalaxis]

I dunno about "bored asshole". Something in there is hurting.

The older I get, the less likely I am to judge such things (pranks not meant to harm anyone) harshly. Hell, even malicious pranks. As much as I might want to despise a person, I can't help but wonder how they got to that point. What choices did they make? How did they end up in that headspace?

It's kind of a personal, "there but for the grace of god go I" thing.

[lederhosen.livejournal.com]

I wouldn't be terribly surprised if the tales of woe are based partly on something that actually happened to 'Hanley', but I can't count this as harmless. I'm not sure what the appropriate way is for a kid to be exposed to the idea of rape, but I'm pretty sure this isn't it. And I think the real Farmer's Branch Church of Christ would be entitled to claim hostile intent here; the similarity in name is close enough to cause confusion, and I rather doubt it's coincidental.

Yeah, there may very well be a reason why the culprit is embittered, and I'm not in a position to judge them as a person, but this particular act certainly strikes me as assholery.

[cavalaxis]

Yeah, you're probably right. And I don't dispute that it's in horrible taste.

Maybe he doesn't realize how damaging it actually is, both to the church and to his own image. Then again, maybe he does and doesn't care.

I just find it sad that someone who clearly has *some* talent wastes it on a pointless bit of assholery.

[bunny-hugger.livejournal.com]

I don't think it takes much talent to draw some disembodied heads in static poses.

[cavalaxis]

If you're using postits and a bic pen, maybe not. If you're using a graphics program, and crafting an actual web comic with some well-placed tactical bombshells, not to mention a whole hoax that sucked in more than a few people, clearly there is some talent there.

He's probably more self-sufficient than, say, Paris Hilton.

Just because he's an ass doesn't mean he's a complete moron.

[bunny-hugger.livejournal.com]

Actually, I'd say using a graphics program makes it require even less work, since you can just cut and paste the same damn images over and over.

It might have managed to be a convincing hoax if he'd had the patience to play it out over a longer period of time.