This is WAY WAY Bigger Than Just Sum SEX

A Repost from GirlwithEmail

This Eddie Long situation is waaaay bigger than these sexual coercion charges. Reviewing his speech ('cause that certainly wasn't a sermon) yesterday, I could see that his movement and his behavior, his tone and his message indicated a deep level of fear. And that fear has as much to do with the sex charges as it does some possible blackmail scheme.

Here are some things that I picked up on:

1. Long said more than once during his speech that "I never said I was a perfect man." Obviously, that indicates that he knew there would be some new revelations coming out, and he was trying to forewarn his followers. Some of what has yet to be revealed is not related to these sex charges, but it will be damning all the same.
2. If Eddie Long declared his innocence using that specific language, he would have put himself in a very, very bad situation. He knows that whoever put his business on Front Street knows ALL of his dirt -- sex-related, legal, ethical, etc.
3. When he compared himself to David and said he hasn't thrown any of his stones yet, that was a warning shot not to the plaintiffs or attorney BJ Berstein, but to whoever is the mastermind of this whole operation. Here's the deal: this his cat is being set up. (And for the record: no, I do not believe he's totally innocent of these charges.) I don't know who it is, but Eddie Long has gone against the grain over some powerful entity. Could it be a political group? A secret society of "The Children" maybe lead by one sparkly, twirly gospel diva with his own show on BET? (just kidding...kinda). Maybe it's the clique of prosperity preachers he's been running with. I don't know. But it's someone, something that Eddie Long pissed off by not doing something he was expected to do, or by doing something he was not supposed to do. He didn't stay on script, he didn't follow the rules of the game, and somebody's mad as hell and they're not going to take it anymore. And Eddie knows this. But he also knows who is leading this campaign, and he has dirt on them, too. So when he starts singing like a canary about some of the backdoor shadiness others around him may have been party to, he's throwing his stones.
4. Watching his tense body language in the pulpit on Sunday, and the weary look on his face, These sex charges are the least of his worries. He knew this was coming. He knows that the information that has yet to be made public will ruin his entire empire once it gets out. He wouldn't have time to take it to court. He knows that once his congregation learns the whole truth -- all the shady deals, all the questionable connections, all the scheming to fleece his flock, all that he's said and done including and beyond the questionable activity with the young men -- even his most faithful followers will leave him. And he is scared to death. He wasn't kidding when he said he's in the fight of his life.
5. Many were speculating about Eddie Long's wife Vanessa, whether she'd stand by him. I had even heard rumors that she had left him. But she knows the depth of the trouble her husband is in. Wives tend to know when their husbands are unfaithful; it's women's intuition. Vanessa Long very well knew her husband has been spending lots of time with these young men. She knows what's going on. Her reassuring calmness towards her husband, and her visible support let his "blackmailers" know that whatever is going on, she's there with him.
6. While all the evidence outlined in the lawsuits are very compelling, I find it a little strange that there is too much similarity in the accounts. (Now let me stop here and state, I don't doubt for one minute that Long didn't have dalliances or at least attempt to engage in some activity with these young men. I believe those young men were victimized on several different levels.) I think they were given careful counsel on what to say to BJ Bernstein.
7. What I find most interesting about all of this are the pics of Eddie Long and some young men that turned up on HipHopBlog.com seem to reveal a lot. He totally did not look comfortable posing for the camera. I think he knew at the time that these pics would come back to haunt him, as he had no choice but to let them be taken.

Please don't get me wrong; I don't think Eddie Long is completely innocent. I don't think he's operating under any sort of anointing. He came to my church a couple of times, and I thought his message was nothing but foolishness. After about an hour of "watch this" and some inaudible mumbling and gesturing, I had about lost it. People were falling out and screaming as if he was preaching a major word. I think Eddie Long's nothing more than a gimmicky preacher...if he trots out a snappy slogan, cool graphics and a silly dance move (the Cross-Up?  Whatever.), he thinks he's doing something.

Whatever happened to rightly-dividing the Word? You don't need gimmicks and foolishness to do that. In my opinion, Eddie Long is in ministry not because of a calling, but because it's a career option. Now he got caught up in the power and influence that came with the career choice, and he got tangled up in some mess that he now can't get himself out of. He knows his career is on the line; he could give a hoot about his ministry. His career is about to be over; his corporation could very well crumble right before his very eyes.

And with the yet-to-be-revealed charges (it's going to be BIG, on epic proportions), he could lose his reputation, and everything that he's acquired during his season of prosperity.