Deposition: Financial Guru Dave Ramsey Pulled Out a Gun During Staff Meeting

Dave Ramsey, best known for his faith-based financial advice (that includes wildly misunderstanding poverty), isn’t a fan of getting mocked online. Nothing weird about that.

But in a 2014 Daily Beast piece highlighting Ramsey’s obsession with silencing his critics, there was an anecdote that seemed out of place even for him:

The seeming paranoia of Ramsey’s outburst in the May 12 staff meeting startled some Lampo employees, but many said they had come to expect explosive behavior from the boss. “This is the guy who once pulled a loaded pistol out of a gift bag to teach us a lesson about gossip,” said one former employee. “It was bizarre, even for Ramsey.”

The employee who said that wasn’t identified. However, it was recently confirmed thanks to a lawsuit involving Ramsey suing another one of his critics.

In that lawsuit, Ramsey is going after another one of his critics, real estate agent Kevin Paffrath. It led to a deposition of Jack Boone Galloway Jr., who worked for Ramsey’s company for nearly two decades.

During the questioning, Galloway was asked if there was any truth to the anecdote about the pistol. Despite an objection from the lawyer representing Ramsey’s company, Galloway was allowed to answer the question: “Yes.”

We’re used to seeing crazy stunts from Christian celebrities to the point where you have to wonder if they’re all in some unspoken competition to outdo each other. But a man who pulls out a weapon, even if as a joke, to speak with employees about something that upsets him, isn’t someone with good judgment. He can’t be trusted to manage an office; why would anyone taking his advice on managing their money?

Still, knowing how evangelical Christians operate, Ramsey will likely do damage control by issuing a half-hearted apology that says he’s working on his anger issues, and that he’s putting his faith in God, and he’ll inevitably be forgiven and booking speaking engagements with church groups before long.

(via Nashville Scene)