Presenting
Alt.religion.scientology Week in Review

Volume 9, Issue 47 - November 26 2005


Critics on alt.religion.scientology

For those new to alt.religion.scientology, mostly critics of Scientology post to it.

"Barb" wrote

"... Well it is called 'alt.religion.scientology' as opposed to 'alt.religion.antiscientology' which would seem to be more appropriate and less confusing ...

On November 20, 2005 "Zinj" responded:

"That does beg a question though; why *isn't* there an 'official' Scientology usenet group? Even an 'unofficial' usenet group, run by proponents?

And that cuts to the core difficulty; Scientology *hates* discussion, and usenet is about discussion; pro, anti, for, against and irrelevant.

[...]"

Message-IDs: MPG.1de9ec731d14f71698971f@news.day.sbcglobal.net
437fcc0a$1@news2.lightlink.com


Thank you Southpark

On November 19, 2005 Andreas Heldal-Lund posted:

"400.000 extra hits per day in the last two days. Not too bad from Southpark:

http://www.xenu.net/"

Message-ID: 18vun153nlq51sik2o0uhnt381ke6jp17v@4ax.com


Cult pages

Scientologists web cult material about critics at "Religious Freedom Watch". One method of ranking is by number of pages. On November 19, 2005 Andreas Heldal-Lund posted he had reached seven pages.

"Page 7 is now up about me:

http://www.religiousfreedomwatch.org/extremists/lund/Lund07.html

More lies, but at least they must experience that what I do has some effect, since they bother to make this. :) And notice how they are too afraid to link to anything to document their claims. Behold, people might learn that cultists don't tell the truth!"

He also posted the full text of the pages, including

"If he is telling the truth what were the police doing there and why did he have his hands behind his back as did his fellow Heathens?"

--

Another portion of the cult page

"Besides never giving facts to support what he says, Heldal-Lund is a man who can't keep his promise. Scientologists have pointed out lies that he keeps spreading but, contrary to his invitation to contact him and get these corrected, he has refused to rectify them"

was disputed by "Andrew Robertson", who posted:

"Then the concerned Scientologists should post these alleged lies to a.r.s. and let group pressure force the Norwegian scoundrel to correct www.xenu.net.

I wrote to Andreas once pointing out an inaccuracy on his site and he thanked me and immediately corrected it. I'm sure if I'd been a Scientologist he would have done the same. ..."

--

"Lisa Ruby" posted an opinion.

"Scientology also puts up pages there on their own cult operatives so that everyone will think they are really against Scientology. ..."

This opinion was anonymously questioned as to specifics.

--

Concerning

http://www.religiousfreedomwatch.org/extremists/lund/Lund07.html

"Barbara Schwarz" wrote

"... I found no wrong word about you on that site."

--

Message-IDs: tavun1dkb1s4b3k8imebiiqneja3l3k80d@4ax.com
93qun1dsb2ilabjru1ujcbqucrmd4fkegq@4ax.com
437fed63@news2.lightlink.com
1132436627.045067.18130@g49g2000cwa.googlegroups.com
1132445343.967554.135870@g44g2000cwa.googlegroups.com


Petition Watch In Review

On November 19, 2005 Ted Mayett posted the November 2005 edition of the alt.religion.scientology Petition Watch In Review, which he said was posted once a month.

"November 2005 and we have 7 (seven) active online petitions designed to stop Scientology.

[...]

Here are petitions that you can sign:

The is the big one, the big petition. This was Created by Freedom Loving Americans, it had a link on Operation Clambake. This is a serious document. Currently it has 11,520 signatures. http://www.petitiononline.com/cofs1/petition.html

[...]"

Message-ID: qfavn1huvgg6ek96atmup12k4keif1vfag@4ax.com


Invitation to clambake

On November 19, 2005 Andreas Heldal-Lund posted an invitation.

"You are hereby invited to a PARTY to celebrate Operation Clambake's 10 year anniversary. The celebration will be held in Stavanger, Norway, the 11th of November 2006.

More information will follow in 2006. It will be an event to remember, make it your trip next year and experience the pure and unspoiled nature of Norway! ..."

Message-ID: 6fvun11p0fgdub75koobuhl8nn5ql4181n@4ax.com


Cult Holocaust Museum

From the New York Post:

"SCIENTOLOGISTS' NEW PSYCH-OUT MUSEUM

By PHILIP RECCHIA

November 20, 2005 -- Scientology is taking its fight against psychiatry to the streets - namely Sunset Boulevard.

The church will open a 'Psychiatry: Industry of Death' museum next month in L.A., complete with vintage instruments of torture, images of electroshock therapy and 'rare archival footage of psychiatry's brutal treatments.'

Created by the Citizens Commission on Human Rights - which was founded by the church in 1969 'to investigate and expose psychiatric violations of human rights' - the museum will also show new documentaries featuring 'dozens of medical doctors, attorneys [and] educators.'

Top church officials were in New York last week promoting the exhibit at the International Association of Scientologists' annual meeting.

'It was like stepping into a time warp,' one source, who attended the meeting, told The Post. 'All this horrific turn-of-the-century stuff that hardly exists anymore - patients convulsing from electroshock therapy, torture caps on people's head, Pavlov and his dogs.'

Before a clip from one 'educational' documentary was introduced, a church spokesman warned the audience that some images were 'too gruesome to show' with 'women and children' present, the source said.

According to Scientology, psychiatry is the root of all evil on the planet.

'The psychs [have] destroyed every great civilization to date and are hard at work on this one,' church founder L. Ron Hubbard wrote in 1982.

Tom Cruise entered into a high-profile battle with the profession this summer by declaring on the 'Today' show that 'psychiatry is a pseudo-science.'

[...]"

Message-IDs: 1132517432.400660.209120@o13g2000cwo.googlegroups.com
dcj1o1tt36qicrdi9ja6b8th25i34voclr@4ax.com


Scientologist convicted

On November 21, 2005 Mike Gormez posted that a Scientologist was sentenced to 25 years of jail, citing

http://www.hln.be/hln/cch/det/art_142357.html
http://www.hln.be/hln/cch/det/art_142378.html

The murder was to have occurred December 29, 2003.

Message-IDs: 3uctbbF10dtngU1@individual.net
3ucsltFvrve4U1@individual.net


Inside Scientology

"SUNDAY MIRROR INVESTIGATES: INSIDE TOM CRUISE CULT

Sunday Mirror - 20 November 2005

By Sharon Van Geuns

"FIVE hours a day in a steaming sauna for three weeks at a cost of just over £1,100...and my sullied soul will be purified.

At least that's what I am promised.

Welcome to religion, Scientology-style.

For one month I have been following in the footsteps of the controversial cult's most famous torchbearer - Tom Cruise - to discover just what Katie Holmes, his 26-year-old pregnant fiancee, is facing as one of the Church of Scientology's latest recruits.

I resolve to tell them I am pregnant too. Is it really true I would have to give birth in absolute silence? And what other strange rites - apart from the sauna purification programme - would I have to follow?

A High Court judge once dismissed the organisation as 'corrupt, sinister and dangerous' but I arrive at their London HQ in Tottenham Court Road prepared to be open-minded.

Over the course of the next few weeks I see and hear things that leave me feeling very uncomfortable.

I learn I should be silent in the presence of a sick child - even if an ambulance needs to be called. Instead of calling for help I would have to 'find a bit of paper' and write down any instructions to a passer-by.

I am also asked to pass Scientology material to a teacher friend, to get the cult's message across to schools.

And I discover at least one member of staff is sometimes paid as little as £10 a week. Like many others, my first encounter with the Church is outside one of their centres. As I make my way towards the building I am accosted in the street.

'Hi!' and suddenly a face is beaming up at me. 'Want a free stress test? All you need to do is answer a few questions and we can tell you exactly what areas in your life are stressing you out the most,' says the girl. 'Then we can tell you how to combat them.'

[...]

She instantly probes me about my life. 'What's the relationship like with your boyfriend? Your mother?' I feel uncomfortable, but strangely compelled to reveal some of my deepest secrets to a complete stranger.

Louise says my troubles will be eased by taking a number of courses on offer at the centre.

[...]

As I am new, I am sent for a practice session. I am not expecting to find myself face-to-face with a 3ft soft toy in the form of Winnie the Pooh.

The bear sits opposite me. Behind him sits Mike, who will answer on the bear's behalf. I address the bear and read from a card of instructions. 'Please locate an incident you feel comfortable facing,' I say to the bear, trying hard not to laugh. 'Well, there is this one time,' says the bear, or rather Mike. 'My pot of honey was stolen. It really upset me.'

'Very good,' I read, from the card. 'Go to the beginning of that incident and go through it and say what is happening as you go along.'

'OK,' says the bear. 'Well I was out walking...' And so it goes on. For half an hour. I am now apparently ready to listen and audit a 'real-life' person.

Louise calls me the next day and asks me to come in. At the centre I meet Ajay, who has big problems. With no professional training I talk to him about his strict Hindu background, and how he is struggling to accept that his virgin girlfriend dated men before him. I can't voice an opinion. Afterwards Ajay says he feels better for talking about it, but nothing has really been resolved. Edith, who had been supervising us, dismisses his concerns by telling him he simply needs more 'auditing'.

[...]

But by the end of the third week at the centre it is easy to see why Scientology is popular. I found a whole new set of friends who seemed to really care about me. If I am late or miss a session they call me. When my car window is smashed by vandals I get three phone calls within a couple of hours asking how I am.

I decide to take up an invite to the Church of Scientology's UK headquarters in East Grinstead, West Sussex. To my amazement, I find myself among 5,000 cheering and chanting followers in a sumptuously-decorated marquee.

I am even more amazed to see Tom Cruise himself has flown in, bringing a bemused-looking Katie with him. Another two celebrity Scientologists, John Travolta and his wife Kelly Preston, are there too, but I can't get anywhere near any of them because they are in the VIP section.

[...]"

[long link]

Message-ID: 4381d9af$0$18833$636a55ce@news.free.fr


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