Scientology

[Plays With Life]

Above ^ - Official German warning documents on threats to democracy. 7 - Islamic Extremism. 8 - Scientology. 9 - Organized Crime.

I found it hilarious that Scientology is on par with Islamic extremism and organized crime, as a nationally-recognized serious threat.

On Operation Snow White, implemented by the Church during the 1970s: "This project included a series of infiltrations and thefts from 136 government agencies, foreign embassies and consulates, as well as private organizations critical of Scientology, carried out by Church members, in more than 30 countries; the single largest infiltration of the United States government in history with up to 5,000 covert agents."

If I start receiving bomb threats after posting this, I'll know who they're from.

Has anyone had any experience with the Church of Scientology? Good or bad?

[blossom]

Only the standard getting roped in to do their personality test, where a computer tells you what your problems are, and then they give you the book on dianetics and try and recruit you.

I chose to do the test, so I should have known better...but I was bored one day and thought "what the hell"

[spirit4711]

Seen Erin's blogpost? How I Accidentally Became a Scientology Fundraiser. Reactions on the blogpost here: How I Accidentally Became a Scientology Fundraiser (Blog)

I also once took that Oxford capacity test. They were pretty disappointed I was close to perfect .

No further personal experiences though.

[Plays With Life]

Erin's story was interesting!

I've also gone in and used their E-meter contraption, at a place in California. I even asked them about the rumour that L. Ron Hubbard started his "religion" on a bet with a writer friend. They didn't seem to know what I was talking about.

[blossom]

They all seem to be oblivious to the fact that L. Ron Hubbard was a science-FICTION writer!

[aggie]

God, yeah....remember *shudder* "battlefield earth" with travolta

my husband had an experience with them in california when he was younger before i met him.

felt lost and needed direction....felt like he escaped just in time!

we started getting phone calls...somehow the found him from a phone number that is probably 25 yrs old from n.y.....and wanted to give him updated info on the organization...the fact that they found him from n.y. phone number to california to florida this many years later...SCAREY!

[Plays With Life]

Apparently the Church even has (or had) an "Intelligence Bureau":

>The Guardian's Office functioned effectively as an Intelligence Bureau of the Church of Scientology, and planted members in key positions within federal government agencies, in order to obtain confidential material.

What a Church needs with an Intelligence Bureau, I don't know!

I wonder if the Vatican has one?

[rei]

no personal experience but i have seen one of their commercials which begins very inspiring, we can all rise above the obstacles type stuff. and at the end there's the plug for their group. i'm like wow, that's sad and a bit manipulative. wish i could explain it better but it's like trying to snatch up vulnerable people.

oh wait... they aren't the only group that does that...

[Brutha]

There two issues with Scientology.
One is about how members get treated and the second is about politics.

Scientology got his tax exemption in the US by battling the IRS by planting people who got confidential information and by targeting individuals directly.

That kind of behavior is challenging the rule of law and reason to combat such an organisation through political means to protect the monopoly of violence of the state.
At the moment Scientology however doesn't has enough power in Germany to do such things.

[Gene]

Originally Posted by Brutha

At the moment Scientology however doesn't has enough power in Germany to do such things.

Good for Germany! I am not a fan of L. Ron's creation.

[ar81]

I think I will create my own sect, called "Stupidology" to see what happens...

[Plays With Life]

Originally Posted by ar81

I think I will create my own sect, called "Stupidology" to see what happens...

Doctrines:
1) Stupidness is the highest good.
2) Use all means necessary to maintain stupidness in yourself and others.
...

[Gene]

Originally Posted by ar81

I think I will create my own sect, called "Stupidology" to see what happens...

And the movie Idiocracy could be your holy document.

[aggie]

yeah, but who will get the starring role: travolta or cruise...

[blossom]

There could be one story that talks of ä "Plague of Cruises" where little cruise-faced beings from another planet who all look alike attack earth and take over

[joelr]

Originally Posted by blossom

They all seem to be oblivious to the fact that L. Ron Hubbard was a science-FICTION writer!

You'd think before getting involved with a group like that people would at least GO TO WIKIPEDIA, or maybe GOOGLE KEYWORDS scientology and cult. Just take a little peek? Ya?

[blossom]

When you're lost and someone tells you they can help you find your way...people will leap before they look! That's how the Hare Krshna's got so many people...so many lost souls=new religion! Not that I have a problem with the krishna's...the ones I've met anyway were pretty decent, and hey any god that's blue is pretty cool in my books

[Mato Kinze]

I'm going for the Flying Spaghetti Monster myself.

May His noodly appendages bless you

[ar81]

Originally Posted by Plays With Life

Doctrines:
1) Stupidness is the highest good.
2) Use all means necessary to maintain stupidness in yourself and others.
...

Thou shall worship stupidity as a state of perfection.
Treat others with stupidity, and behave stupidly to achieve perfection.
Avoid the evil of unstupidness.
Condemn heretics who say something stupid about stupidity.

[Gene]

Originally Posted by joelr

You'd think before getting involved with a group like that people would at least GO TO WIKIPEDIA, or maybe GOOGLE KEYWORDS scientology and cult. Just take a little peek? Ya?

And yet, Scientology seems to work for some people. Some of the names I know are: Sky Dayton founder of Earthlink, John Travolta and Tom Cruise. I am sure there are countless others. Someone suggested to me once that it was not necessarily what a person believed in but rather they believed in something.

I still do not wish to join them!

[ar81]

My parents used to belong to several religions in their quest for truth.
I discovered that the message of love is the common element of all of them. Dogma is the rest. And I find the dogma of some religions particularly senseless.

[Gene]

Originally Posted by ar81

My parents used to belong to several religions in their quest for truth.
I discovered that the message of love is the common element of all of them. Dogma is the rest. And I find the dogma of some religions particularly senseless.

I agree with you, love is the common element of most if not all religions. When the dogma become so strong and ritualistic that it is forbidden to worship in any other form I believe the religion actually is harmful to the members.

I believe I can be at one with love without any specific buildings and leaders involved.

[JSB]

Scientology has a reputation for catering to their celebrity members, the idea being that high-profile celebrity Scientologists will inspire others to join. The Scientology experience of a Cruise or a Travolta is probably a lot different than the experience of the average member.

Whatever works for them is fine with me, but I find Scientology completely unappealing.

Originally Posted by Gene

And yet, Scientology seems to work for some people. Some of the names I know are: Sky Dayton founder of Earthlink, John Travolta and Tom Cruise. I am sure there are countless others. Someone suggested to me once that it was not necessarily what a person believed in but rather they believed in something.

I still do not wish to join them!

[Plays With Life]

Yes, I've heard that they keep their celebrity members sheltered from what goes on in the main org.

[aggie]

yeah, celebrities are on higher levels....cruise is like a grand pooba or something....and they do have different treatment than the average scientology grunt....it has a lot to do with money.

you hear things about sleep deprivation and boot camp type conditions while the doctrine is constantly boring into the mind....

from what i heard travolta explain one time....they believe that some power or god is within them that makes them succeed....i dunno....

i think the travolta and cruise marriages are shams....they have stepford wives...

i mean, i personally don't care what other people believe...but there is something definitely creepy about it.

i think cruise before he became more vocal about it....seem like the perfect nice, amiable gentleman in interviews...i sensed he was too tightly wound...never said much about scientology...then he started jumping on couches and chasing down matt lauer

travolta...this whole thing with his son's death, keeping it a secret about the autism because they consider it a mental illness that they don't believe in treating with medication.

jenna elfman and kristy alley...hmmmmm

[DaveM]

The idea that people are gods is so silly, if your a god why don't you even have power over your body, your mind not to mention death.

You can't blame Travolta for not telling people his son is autistic. Im Bipolar and I would not like it if my dad went around telling people that. I don't tell people that in real life.

I want to be judged based on who I am, bipolar is definitly a contributing factor to make me, me. If people hear that many judge me before they know me or it can change their view.

It isn't exactly the same thing as your going to notice it, but I still don't think Parents should go around telling people that their children has a condition. Than people think of his kid as the autistic child, when they should think of him by his real name. Who happens to be autistic.

[liamona]

Originally Posted by joelr

You'd think before getting involved with a group like that people would at least GO TO WIKIPEDIA, or maybe GOOGLE KEYWORDS scientology and cult. Just take a little peek? Ya?

There's a wiki page for former Scientologists.

One of them was Charles Manson—he took over 150 hours of courses, a lot of them while he was in prison—this was before the infamous killings.

[aggie]

i understand about keeping the autism private....but if you profess certain "medical" beliefs that could be detrimental to your own son....and go around saying scientology saved my life and my career...plus cruise going off on brook shields and matt lauer about psychology and related meds...(which he then apologized to shields for)....i just think it is a little hypocritical.

manson is a perfect example of the extreme of believing they are "god" within themselves.

i think in lesser cases...maybe travolta and cruise...who have had difficulties and then great success and wealth in life....maybe you get a little bit arrogant in believing that somehow this power you are led to believe you have within yourself makes you different and invincible and somehow protected from some of the things the average joe goes through. then your son dies....tragic...but an eyeopener i am sure.

travolta still stays true to scientology and would obviously never openly express any doubts about his son's treatment publically...and that is his business and he has to deal with it.

[joelr]

Originally Posted by liamona

There's a wiki page for former Scientologists.

One of them was Charles Manson—he took over 150 hours of courses, a lot of them while he was in prison—this was before the infamous killings.

Didn't know that.
I can't blame Scientology for the fact that a member turned into a nuthouse. Unless it was happening to members on some type of consistent basis.

So no one here is a Scientologist?

[ThoughtAddict]

They're a rather shady organization. They had a decent spat with Anonymous a while back, which was good entertainment. Anonymous made a number of accusations, many of which seemed to have merit in light of proven events like Operation Snow White...