Scientology Protest Site

[BooBerry]

So at work I saw a piece of paper on the ground, business card sized. It had L. Ron Hubbard's pic on it and a quote and this website.

www.youfoundthecard.com

Some crazy stuff, especially since I know Vegas has it's own Church Of Sci here. Thoughts on any of this?

www.whyaretheydead.net

[King_ov_Hell]

Scientology is a cult for wackos.

[JerkyPuck]

Scientology is weird to me....but I'm not gonna protest someone's right to be weird.

[BooBerry]

I wouldn't classify brainwashing and ruining someone's sense of self-worth and dependency as weird. I'd call that infringement of human rights.

[JerkyPuck]

Yeah, so would I, but I figure if you're dumb enough to be led into something like that, then it's kinda your own fault. Everyone knows Scientology is cultist. If you open yourself up to it, and you get sucked in, you should face that consequence. Personally, I hate Scientology. I think it's a horrible religion. I think they are all nutjobs. But they read the books, they decide to give it a go, and thy get brainwashed. Maybe they shouldn't have been so stupid.

[BooBerry]

I don't agree with that in any way. This world sucks so bad without religion that it's completely understandable that people would throw every bit of hope they have into something that promises them answers.

Not to mention some people were born into this. They know nothing else. Add in those who have been ostracized by the rest of society and you have a thriving cult made of members who have been accepted probably for the first time in their life.

What you say is kind of like, women who stay in abusive relationships deserve to get hit and raped because they should know better.

[Wax Zombie]

http://i5.photobucket.com/albums/y191/goredemon20/11r80om.jpg

March 15th you all better have a cake for L. Ron Hubbard.

[BooBerry]

Those need to be the [IMG] codes.

[Luris Blear]

I've been keeping up on Project Chanology. If nothing else, it's kind of a interesting after spending the 90s (as in all of them, not only after shitty Keanu Reeves movies) reading cyberpunk fiction.

Not sure I can choose one cause over the other, but it's interesting to watch from this perspective.

[FreddyKruger316]

I don't know why Scientologists are considered anymore weird or brainwashed then people who follow other organized religions. Personally, I consider anyone who follows organized religion to be brainwashed, it doesn't matter what religion it is. Just because religions like Christianity and Judaism have been around longer and more followers doesn't mean the things talked about in the bible are any less weird then what Scientology talks about.

[BooBerry]

It's not what they believe in, it's how they go about achieving their goals. If you want to believe a cat is Jesus reincarnated, that's cool by me, but when you break people down and make them more or less slaves, then there's a bigger issue there.

[WarBeast]

I wouldn't classify brainwashing and ruining someone's sense of self-worth and dependency as weird. I'd call that infringement of human rights.

I would call it religion in general...

[WarBeast]

It's not what they believe in, it's how they go about achieving their goals. If you want to believe a cat is Jesus reincarnated, that's cool by me, but when you break people down and make them more or less slaves, then there's a bigger issue there.

There are plenty of religions that do just as heinous of shit as the Scientologists do...

Religion fills all sorts of needs for people... different people, different needs... but all for a price...

Religion in its earliest forms in the dawn of history, was primarily used to explain shit that primitive man didn't understand, and to get people to behave in a like manner (ie adhere to a common moral framework)... Strangely enough, it's pretty much used for the same thing today, albeit in a bloated beaurocratic way.

Throughout history, though, there has been one agenda that all religions have in common and it is their main agenda... and what is this main agenda, you may ask?

To bring peace and enlightenment to mankind?

Nope.

To heal the sick and ease suffering?

You'd like to think so.. but nope.

No, the main agenda for every religion is to perpetuate and proliferate itself until it is the ONLY religion... to grow and consume (or convert, if you prefer) every single person into one obedient mass that does not question its doctrines or motives.

Religion is all about mind-control.. the second that someone opens themselves to the teachings of a religion, they become prey for that religion. Seeds are sewn the person's mind and heavily fertilized (with bullshit) and since most people who open themselves to a religion are full of need, they find it easy to let those seeds grow into full-blown faith.

Others have no choice at all... it saddens me to see children raised from birth to believe in a singular religious belief, because they had no chance to see the world except from one skewed viewpoint. They are told that they have free will, but free will is evil, so the child never had a choice to begin with.

Which brings me to faith... ah faith... The absolute greatest invention in the art of manipulation ever created. Faith tells people that they must believe without evidence, without question... just have faith. It truly boggles my mind that so many people buy into the concept of faith... if you question, you don't have faith, and if you don't have faith, you are damned... so don't you dare question the idiocies of your religion or you will be lacking faith and it's straight to hell for you!

What kind of rational being could fall for that, unless they are brainwashed?

[BooBerry]

There are plenty of religions that do just as heinous of shit as the Scientologists do...


...What kind of rational being could fall for that, unless they are brainwashed?...

True, but that's still no reason to say "Oh well, they chose it and they need to see the consequences of their decision."

And what I'm pointing out or trying to, has nothing to do with religion. Nothing at all. Part of the protests are because CoSci has allegedly infiltrated the govt. and IRS and blackmailed them and all kinds of similar things, but I could really care less about that part.

I'm saying that no-one deserves to be treated as a lesser being by someone else. And it might just be the way I was raised, but if those people who are "letting" themselves be controlled and worked like slaves can't help themselves, then I will gladly step in to see what's what and try to get them out.

And yea, same does go for other religions doing these things, but then again Las Vegas doesn't have a private-Mormon owned, walled in community. We do have a Sci church though.

[JerkyPuck]

I do see what you mean. And yes, there are people born into it and they are certainly the victims. As for those who choose it...I still say you're a sucker if you jump into a religion that is widely known as a cult. Now, I don't know if I am jumping the gun here...but are ALL Scientologists this extreme???

[BooBerry]

Yes! :D

Well obviously not, considering just about every cult or religion has members who leave because they know something is going on. But from what I understand the Sci religion is run by a high council type who sends out people they have trained to open and staff new churches, ect, so it's hard for one church not to be more lenient (sp?) than another.

PS- It's not widely known as a cult. It's widely known as a religion and a lot of folks don't even know what it is.

[JerkyPuck]

Yeah, I see....I kinda feel retarded commenting on it because I am ignorant about the religion itself. I don't really know anyone who is a scientologist....Just seems so straaaange to me. A high council and all. Fuckin weirdos dude.

[BooBerry]

Yeah. I'm still reading up on it. It's a lot to take in because of the jargen they use. Auditing means some guy questions you and you answer truthfully to help you discover yourself. Their little "fair play" rule says anyone who opposes the church can be sued and harrassed until they leave the church alone or stop their protesting activites. Some crazy stuff.

[Ebonsun]

Scientology / dianetics is low grade psychotherapy using a low grade lie detector. It does get results. At the beginning, people can indeed improve their wellbeing.

It is NOT a religion. Hubbard had the whole thing declared a religion so that they could not be fucked with by the government - or, more importantly, taxed.

Where it 'begins' to get evil is when you can't pay for the next auditing course (therapy sessions). (Scientology is EXPENSIVE!) They will extort the money from you. Or put you to work at one of their orgs, promising to give you auditing for free (but rarely do). They also encourage you to 'disconnect' (their word) from anyone who suggests you're wasting your money. What they would like is for you to 'disconnect' from anyone who isn't a Scientologist. (Thus begins the culty brainwashy shit). They refer to the non-scientologist world as the "Wog World". (Much like the Muggles from Harry Potter). And they refer to anyone who questions Scientology as SP's (Suppressive Persons).

Boiled down, it's a somewhat effective self improvement technique (at low levels), but who's organization is designed to extort every cent you have from you. And I do mean extort.

Hubbard created this thing to make money for himself. As he got older - and progressivly more paranoid (perhaps clinicly insane) - he began to shape the scheme into a facist vindictive cult which was brutal to its members, and aggressively ruthless with anyone who attacked it. Like most dictatorships, it started fairly benign then turned absolutly corrupt. Now that he's dead, it's worse.

[Ebonsun]

If interested in reading more about this scary organization, check out this site too:

Operation Clambake @
http://www.xenu.net/index.html

[WarBeast]

Ebo, I swear I read somewhere that part of the reason Hubbard created Scientology was that he bet a friend that he could invent a religion and people would buy into it... ever heard that before?

[Ebonsun]

Ebo, I swear I read somewhere that part of the reason Hubbard created Scientology was that he bet a friend that he could invent a religion and people would buy into it... ever heard that before?

I've never heard of him betting anyone, but he certainly said that in order to really make money, one just has to start a religion. He was said that often to his contemporaries - and various quotes to that effect exist. I'll try to track one down. (See edit below.)

He's a fascinating subject, that guy. Quite motivated, and fairly brilliant. Just used his talents for very selfish purposes. And in the end, went pretty much nuts.

Edit: From Wiki (who's article is damned good, btw)

"There have been numerous accounts from Hubbard's fellow science-fiction authors and researchers, notably Harlan Ellison, Neison Himmel, Sam Merwin, Sam Moskowitz, Theodore Sturgeon, Lloyd Arthur Eshbach, and Lyle Stuart,[183] of Hubbard stating on various occasions that the way to get rich was to start a religion.[204] This is referenced, among other places, in a May 1980 Reader's Digest article, which quotes Hubbard, "If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion"

[dead breed]

It's a club for rich/odd people imo

[BooBerry]

I think I remember reading something about them going after celebs because they have a lot of money and the power to spread and influence people who look up to them.

As for only accepting rich folks, they'll take anyone in, but unless you can pay the price you can't move up in their order/heiarchy or whatever they call it.

[Joker]

The bastards dont have Kirk Cameron!He's still with the good guys.

[BooBerry]

... Or is he...?

[Darkgod]

Thats too funny

[choptop2]

I think I remember reading something about them going after celebs because they have a lot of money and the power to spread and influence people who look up to them.

As for only accepting rich folks, they'll take anyone in, but unless you can pay the price you can't move up in their order/heiarchy or whatever they call it.

It's endorsement. Nike pays Michael Jordan millions of dollars to wear Nike shoes. Kids pay hundreds of dollars to be like Mike.

As for not being able to pay, there's ways around it. You can trade labor for auditing sessions( Yep indentured servants still exist), recruit friends and family and you'll get a commission if they stay with the church.