What's the deal with Scientology?

[DaN K. StAnLeY]

I just saw some people protesting a church of Scientology when I was in Austin today. Anyone know whats up with these protesters? I saw websites like xenutv.net or xenutv.com on the signs but haven't had time to check them out yet. I'm going to go read up on it a little, but I was wondering if anyone had any info on this or any opinions?

[David Wong]

You don't spend much time on the internet, do you?

[Whack01]

There's a thread over at operation clambake in the opinion & debate section explaining things. You'll probably have to do a search for 'anonymous' in thread title to find it though.

[Big Les]

There are countless threads here on the subject of Scientology, including a spate of recent ones about the latest round of activism. Do some searches, see what you think. Or simply Google away.

Here's a start for you;

http://wikileaks.org/wiki/Category:Scientology

http://www.operating-thetan.com/

^other members might like to check out the second link - it's Lawrence Brennan's affidavit. He was well up there in the various Guardian's Offices and confirms all that's already known about Hubbard setting Co$ up as a religion purely to evade tax and criticism.

[MattusMaximus]

Check out http://www.enturbulation.org for more information about the protests.

For more general info on the Cult of $cientology, go to www.xenu.net (http://www.xenu.net)

Knowledge is Free.

[DaN K. StAnLeY]

WTHeck!! I thought Scientology "dianetics" was a self-help/intro to Philosophy type book from reading it. There was no talk of this Xenu fellow...LOL, sorry I don't mean to laugh. I was looking into the site xenutv.com and apparently a guy named Mark Bunker was saying that YouTube shut down his site mysteriously. He seemed to think it was because of scientology. The reason I bring that up is because a little after that I got on Youtube to check out some ANON vid's and sure enough what ad did I see advertised HUGE on the side of the screen? Yeop, you guessed it. It was an big ole Scientology Channel advertisement.....Hmmm think I'll Take this to the Conspiracy forum. If it hasn't been exhausted on there too.

[Complexity]

Scientology is an evil dangerous cult.

[NeilC]

Is it really much more of a cult than say Islam?

Enforced rituals, praying 5x a day, giving away a % of your money, mullahs seem to operate as "charismatic leaders" in some mosques, in some countries if you try to leave Islam you die.

[MattusMaximus]

Is it really much more of a cult than say Islam?

Enforced rituals, praying 5x a day, giving away a % of your money, mullahs seem to operate as "charismatic leaders" in some mosques, in some countries if you try to leave Islam you die.


Q: What's the difference between a cult and a full-fledged religion?

A: About 100 years.

[Gazpacho]

Is it really much more of a cult than say Islam?

Enforced rituals, praying 5x a day, giving away a % of your money, mullahs seem to operate as "charismatic leaders" in some mosques, in some countries if you try to leave Islam you die.
With regard to the strains of Islam you describe (which are not all of them) perhaps it is not. But this thread is about Scientology, and not about Islam.

[Moochie]

Scientology is an evil dangerous cult.

And they can't cure acne, either.


M.

[Moochie]

$cientology doesn't have mullahs, but it does have mullers -- these functionaries mull over how much you're worth, fiscally speaking.


M.

[Kilgore Trout]

Here is a link (http://xenutv.wordpress.com/2008/04/21/jason-beghe-interview/) to the Jason Beghe interview with Mark "Wise Beard Man" Bunker that was removed from YouTube now hosted on Bunker's wordpress blog. And here it is (http://www.youtube.com/user/JasonBeghe) under Beghe's own YouTube account.

[Kilgore Trout]

^other members might like to check out the second link - it's Lawrence Brennan's affidavit. He was well up there in the various Guardian's Offices and confirms all that's already known about Hubbard setting Co$ up as a religion purely to evade tax and criticism.

He also wants it pointed out that he's happy and isn't going to commit suicide. And if he does end up dead, he wants them to investigate Miscavige.

I wonder if the Anonymous protests had anything to do with the timing of this (and, say, Jason Beghe.. In Beghe's interview he mentions visiting xenu.net and then contacting them for an interview.. But was there maybe a news clip about the protests that planted a bug in his ear?)

[Gazpacho]

(I sent this to Dan as a PM but there's something I forgot to mention, and it's useful to other people too.)

The story of Xenu is widely known to the public (although not to Scientologists, and those Scientologists who know are required to deny it). But if you want to know more about Scientology doctrines, there's the Fishman depositionhttp://i.ixnp.com/images/v3.29.1/t.gif (http://video.google.com/videosearch?q=fishman+deposition). It will take you some time to watch all seven parts, but every minute is worth it if you want to know about Scientology.

Note that Fishman's remarks about Christ (he sometimes refers to Xenu as Christ) are specific to him, and are not part of Scientology doctrine generally.

[fredcarr]

My church has recently revamped our two main websites:

www.scientology.org (http://www.scientology.org) and www.dianetics.org (http://www.dianetics.org)

These do a fairly good job of covering our basic beliefs. (As well as can be expected from a website.) The Dianetics site has an option to get the first few chapters of the Dianetics book which covers a lot of the fundamentals of that subject. I particularly recommend the synopsis for the quickest overview.

To really get an understanding of the basics of Scientology and Dianetics would take reading approx. 15 books and listening to a couple hundred hour long lectures by the founder. Or...you could read what others think about the subject:)

[MattusMaximus]

My church has recently revamped our two main websites:


And don't forget to read this (http://xenu.net/archive/leaflet/xenuleaf.htm) while you're at it :)



To really get an understanding of the basics of Scientology and Dianetics would take reading approx. 15 books and listening to a couple hundred hour long lectures by the founder.


And how much, exactly, does that cost?

I ask because your Church has a habit of... how shall I say... overcharging people. I mean, come on, asking people to pay thousands of dollars for an E-meter (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/E-meter)? The thing is essentially an ohm-meter, which costs about $20 at any Radio Shack.

[Gord_in_Toronto]

My church has recently revamped our two main websites:

www.scientology.org (http://www.scientology.org) and www.dianetics.org (http://www.dianetics.org)

These do a fairly good job of covering our basic beliefs. (As well as can be expected from a website.) The Dianetics site has an option to get the first few chapters of the Dianetics book which covers a lot of the fundamentals of that subject. I particularly recommend the synopsis for the quickest overview.

To really get an understanding of the basics of Scientology and Dianetics would take reading approx. 15 books and listening to a couple hundred hour long lectures by the founder. Or...you could read what others think about the subject:)

Fred my old cheese. I have asked you many times on this forum to show us a "Clear" who has the abilities that ELRon claimed "Clears" have. Come on, just show us one. :D

Otherwise I can only conclude that the guy in the funny uniform is the lying fraud I think he is. :boggled:

[Finnegan]

I've found it revealing that the 'protests' against scientology only began when a (very comical) video was removed from the internet. Only then, it seemed, did the crimes of this preposterous church become relevant.

Activism where Scientology is concerned feels...too easy...

"Advanced followers of Scientology believe an alien ruler called Xenu brought his people to Earth 75m years ago, gathered them round a volcano and obliterated them with a series of nuclear blasts; their displaced souls are responsible for many of mankind's ills.

This is hilariously implausible and richly deserving of open derision, unlike, say, the belief that a man who got nailed to a couple of planks more than 2,000 years ago is your best friend and saviour."
- Charlie Brooker (http://www.guardian.co.uk/commentisfree/story/0,,1957931,00.html)

[JWideman]

Ask Lisa McPherson.

[Finnegan]

The Orthodox Church should be destroyed, ask Maricica Irina Cornici.

Essentially, what separates Scientology from other belief systems?

[Complexity]

My church has recently revamped our two main websites...


Your 'church' is an evil cult.

For factual information about Scientology, visit

Operation Clambake

at

www.xenu.net (http://www.xenu.net)

To help destroy Scientology, which is an evil cult,
join anonymous

boycott celebrities who are members of this evil cult

learn to think critically

mock this evil cult

[Eskarina]

Or...you could read what others think about the subject:)

But isn't that like, you know, verbal tech (http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Secrets/verbal-tech.html)?

[Big Les]

Finnegan, people have been engaged in activism against the Co$ for many years, in real life and online. This is the second internet "war" against it. The same critics, and more, are there, as well as this new driving force of enraged nerds. :)

The Orthodox Church should be destroyed, ask Maricica Irina Cornici.

Essentially, what separates Scientology from other belief systems?

The belief system is not the focus of the current movement - the ongoing corruption and abuses of the "Church" are. These are well documented. The denying of mental healthcare being one.

However, from a sceptical PoV the church makes many more unverifiable claims of the sort that we here tend to be against (as harmful in some way), than do progressive religions. The replacement of said mental healthcare with pseudoscience being the partner example to the one above.

More importantly, they charge directly for doing so. For everything, in fact. A great deal of money - $300,000 to get near Tom Cruises' level.

Finally, unlike most other religions, which I tend to assume were started with a degree of sincerity, we know for a fact that Hubbard converted his "science" of mental health into a religion purely for tax purposes, and as a way to evade criticism. Which takes me back to the idea of protesting the organisation, not the belief system, since by this point there are thousands of people who believe it as sincerely as any other alternative religion.

That's by no means the all of it, but hopefully you see why it attracts arguably special attention.

[Kilgore Trout]

To really get an understanding of the basics of Scientology and Dianetics would take reading approx. 15 books and listening to a couple hundred hour long lectures by the founder. Or...you could read what others think about the subject:)

That is absolutely absurd and you know it. Even if it were free, and we all know it isn't, are you really trying to say one needs to invest that much time and effort just for a basic understanding? Why are you lying to us, Fred?

And to think, not long ago you said we only needed to read a book or two. I did read them, I had no misunderstoods, and I found the whole works to be a bunch of absolute nonsense.

[Moochie]

What are your crimes? Nyuk nyuk nyuk :D


M.

[Civilized Worm]

To really get an understanding of the basics of Scientology and Dianetics would take reading approx. 15 books and listening to a couple hundred hour long lectures by the founder. Or...you could read what others think about the subject:)


To understand the BASICS? It astounds me that anyone would be prepared to waste that much time.