Effect Measure

Missouri’s nickname is the “The Show Me State.” If you live anywhere near the state capital in Jefferson City, it isn’t too late to be shown an exhibit in the Capitol Rotunda on “The Industry of Death.” Today and tomorrow.

In it you will learn:

Twenty-five percent of psychiatrists sexually abuse their patients. Psychiatrists deliberately kill about 10,000 people a year – sounds about right. And for the big surprise, psychiatrists were responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks – guilty by association, at least, since psychiatrists are responsible for the existence of terrorists and suicide bombers. (The Columbia Tribune)

All this and more, courtesy of The Church of Scientology. Because it is a Church, you know. The IRS has granted it tax-exempt status, although most other countries are so unenlightened they consider it a lucrative business and tax the living shit out of it (that’s big revenue). Fortunately the US is a God-fearing land where the right of any superstition to pick your pockets is jealously guarded. And since Missouri Governor Matt Blunt has mercilessly cut mental health services (not enough tax revenues, I guess), there seems to be no conflict with state policy.

The Columbia Tribune’s columnist Scott Christianson is clearly outraged by this exhibit, but makes the point that in Missouri any organization can schedule an exhibit in the Capitol Rotunda. It’s a free speech issue. We can’t quarrel with the principle.

We do wonder, though, if someone wanted to have an atheist exhibit, how difficult would it be to schedule? Maybe our suspicions are groundless. Perhaps the godless exhibit in the State Capitol all the time in Missouri.

Show me.

Comments

#1 Lea
January 11, 2007

Oh good, politics were starting to wear on me. Now we can switch to religion, another heavily debated issue that no one ever has a solution for.
What’s that saying? If you’re not part of the solution you’re part of the problem.
While blogs are certainly enlightening in revealing the mindset of those posting, it’s not useful in changing the present state of affairs in a large enough degree to be beneficial to anyone.
The world is a small place now with the use of computers. My dearest friend says, “technology will bury mankind”, and I am in agreeement. Many minds are weak and will lap up the available information like a dog in the desert, never once considering that it’s just one opinion or that they have a right to Clearly Think It Through before assuming it might or might not be true.

To be honest, there is very little truth in this world. It’s just a bunch of worms crawling around in the dust that want to think there is.
#2 Greg
January 11, 2007

Worms have no problems with truth.
#3 Lea
January 11, 2007

Interesting you would pick up on that Greg and distort it. Next!
#4 caia
January 11, 2007

Lea � if blogging is so utterly insignificant (and often, it may be so), then what significance do you believe commenting on a blog has?
#5 caia
January 11, 2007

To return to the topic from Lea’s blogistential crisis…

although most other countries are so unenlightened they consider it a lucrative business and tax the living shit out of it (that’s big revenue)

Last I heard, in Germany Scientology is outlawed outright, because they consider it a cult. They’re a bit touchy, the Germans, about brainwashing cults, on account of the Nazis.
#6 Stogoe
January 11, 2007

I have a solution for religion. People should stop beliving in magic, and we should tax the living shit out of pick-pocket superstitions.
#7 Lea
January 11, 2007

caia: blogistential crisis, interesting. You could be right, I forgot to use my hormone cream this morning.
You tell me what blogs are good for: venting? resolving inner issues? dissolving fate kharma? enlightening the public? creating illusion? promoting intellectual superiority? stroking the ego? somebody to talk to? somebody to listen? just plain fun? … .

A small excerpt from wikipedia: Scientology is a body of teachings and related techniques developed by American science fiction author L. Ron Hubbard. It began in 1952 as a self-help philosophy, an outgrowth of his earlier self-help system, Dianetics, and later described itself as a new religion. It claims to offer “an exact methodology” to help humans achieve awareness of their spiritual existence across many lifetimes and, simultaneously, to become more effective in the physical world.
The Church says that Scientology is concerned with “the study and handling of the spirit in relationship to itself, others and all of life.”
#8 caia
January 11, 2007

Considering the lengths the Church of Scientology has gone to to quash criticism of its pyramid scheme, I’m not at all suprised Wikipedia has some neutral things to say about it. Even Wikipedia shows that Germany considers Scientology a threat on par with Islamic extremism and organized crime.

But I’m not about to convert to Scientology, nor is anyone else here I suspect, so leaving aside the larger character of the institution, the exhibit Revere describes is spreading factually incorrect information in the guise of religion. It takes some serious mental sleight of hand to convince oneself or others that God put dinosaur bones in the ground to test our faith. To suggest that there are 10,000 murders by psychiatrists every year, now, is even more baldly ludicrous.
#9 M. Randolph Kruger
January 11, 2007

On the other hand even as deeply religious as I am, I keep an open mind. Scientology is nothing more than a Jim and Tammy Faye scam, or Oral Robers “I am going to die if I dont get one million dollars” pay me so your soul is clean.

Revere is right. No atheists in fox holes, but bullshit does exist in assholes….

Didja like that one Tom?
#10 Lea
January 11, 2007

O.K., the hormone cream must have kicked in, I’m feeling better now.

Scientology started out as a good thing, it’s the creatures that got ahold of it and turned it into what it is today, a fraking mess. Same applies with religions, good intentions in the beginning, sour grapes at the end.
Religion is nothing more than watered down politics.
#11 Greg
January 11, 2007

It is not often that I see such a thorough vindication of my (implied) point.
#12 nobody
January 11, 2007

I don’t care how you label it, Scientology hurts people. I know because I was a critic & activist against them in the infamous War between Scientology & the Internet until they sent their operatives, hired thugs & PIs to hunt me down & silence me, breaking many laws in the process. I was a target of their Fair Game policy, where enemies can be “tricked, sued, lied to or destroyed.”

The teachings of Scientology are a fraud & the practice of it is dangerous to your mental health, your relationships, your savings & in the saddest cases, your life.
#13 g2
January 12, 2007

I just sent email to the writer of that story. It begins, “Can you explain to me the difference between the Scientology exhibit in the Capitol Rotunda, and the fact that US Park Service workers at the Grand Canyon are now prohibited from discussing the geological age of the Canyon in order to avoid offending Christian fundamentalists?”

And it ends, “By the way, if you want a really good scare, do a Google search under the terms “Dominionism” or “Christian Reconstructionism.”"

Scientology is a dangerous cult, but hardly as dangerous as the heretical sect of Christianity that presently dominates certain parts of mainstream politics in America.

I’m a firm believer in freedom of (and freedom from) religion. Consenting adults are free to believe what they choose. Whether or not they get a flock of teenage virgins as part of the deal is their business. When they get to starting wars and crashing ecosystems, that’s all of our business.
#14 Jon Singleton
January 12, 2007

Howdy Nobody,

“Scientology hurts people…” — I must say, given my personal experiences with Smallville’s (Perth, West Australia) version of “scientology”, I would have to agree with that broad assessment. The health aspects of scientology — a psychoactive-chemical-free based psychoneuroimmunology — are to be lauded… But, I aint got a darned clue what “Detox Niacin” has got to do with “religious beliefs” per se!?!

Oh, back in 1997, I was living in a cute inner city house. A nearby car dealership was operating in an illegal fashion and existence in that home had become impossible due to business-created noise-pollution. I tried to get local authorities to listen, but I was a lone gay male unconnected with local churches… In other words, I raised my questioning head from out of the proverbial sand and became “fair game” for a bit of public Australian queer bashing — a “Perth poster boy” for what happens if you aint connected with the Perth-born members of an inbred religious community!

Shortly after my being ignored by local gov agencies re: illegal business activities, the WA police fucked me over and I had a minor nervous breakdown — I was enacting behaviors commensurate with PTSD. A pack of neo-nazi homophobic medico animals got their hands on my mind and body and “raped me” for their pleasure — I again stress, Perth, Smallville, WA, is an inbred bigoted environment!

Anyway, my childhood gay male closeted friend, Erwin Swasbrook, who works at West Australia’s Department for Planning and Infrastructure @ http://www.dpi.wa.gov.au/, wanted (in the late 90s) the back lane paved behind his inner city house. Oh, as a Perth Scientologist working for the government, he got what he wanted as fast as a sparrow fart… When I was released from a psych institution (one week after being involuntarily incarcerated and drugged), I was again ignored by the Perth City Council re: the illegal business behavior from the nearby car dealership…

In 1986, Erwin loaned me the Mission Earth series of books from Mr Hubbard — I actually found them a “fun read”, but had no idea he saw them as “religious”: I have wondered why Erwin, an intelligent dude, wastes his time with a homophobic church which sees hetero human animals as genetically “superior”!?!
#15 G in INdiana
January 12, 2007

At my daughter’s high school none of the teachers accept anything from wikipedia as a source for any papers on any topic. They know that while some of the articles contained are legitimate, they also know a lot of them are written by advocates or detractors of whatever topic they are writing about.
You can take this to the bank… if one word disparaging scientology appears in wikipedia it is immediately withdrawn and relegated to the ash can.
#16 Library Lady
January 12, 2007

Dear All,
Be sure to watch carefully the sources you use for your information. I believe that anyone can alter an Wikipedia entry. Even if the original entry is accurate and unbiased, I THINK (I could be wrong about this) that the entry can be edited by others. G in Indiana is correct in the statement “if one word …”, because of the ability of anyone to edit anything. Wikipedia information is easily trashed and should be approached in that context.
Love,
Library Lady
#17 crfullmoon
January 12, 2007

Too bad the US isn’t against cults that brainwash.
#18 revere
January 12, 2007

LL: I am not so negative about Wikipedia. Its technical entries are quite accurate for the most part. Mistakes are corrected because it can be edited and the amount of misinformation is less than the newspaper and most texts (which quickly go out of date). Several studies have attested to the comparable accuracy of Wikipedia compared to Britannica, say. Librarians hate it, I know, but I consider that your problem, not Wikipedia’s.
#19 Judy
January 12, 2007

crfullmoon: If the US was against cults that brainwash, there would be no politicians, hence no president.
#20 tan06
January 12, 2007

In the ninetees I was treating some students who had been caught in a brainwashing sektarian cult. I studied a lot of professional literature on the subject and also all I could find about it in the media (so old fashioned written paper books as well). It went as far as cases existing from about 1600 aC.
As far as I know, Scientology is not using induced psychotrauma (locking up days in a cupboard, lifethreatening procedures like starving, killing relatives, letting the victims kill ones they are attached to etc.) to get the brainwashing work done.
Like we do see in several relgions Scientology first lowers the threshold by arguing (semi scientific) in books like Hubbard has written. When they have welcomed the person the process continues by stepswise asking more and more investments in effort, time and money until the victim is firmly attached to the Movement. The interesting aspect in Scientology for me is that they get the persons to exercise hallucinating purple dots on the door of their sleeping room and more like this. That’s where IMO the border between mental health and insanity is crossed.
#21 nobody
January 13, 2007

As far as I know, Scientology is not using induced psychotrauma (locking up days in a cupboard, lifethreatening procedures like starving, killing relatives, letting the victims kill ones they are attached to etc.) to get the brainwashing work done.

The bulk of their control is instilled through a complex series of procedures that in the extreme cases can include several of the means listed above. For one of the most extreme case histories see the horrifying story of Lisa McPherson, a Scientologist who was driven mad, medically neglected & ultimately starved to death while in the care of her Scientology handlers. If you don’t break down crying while reading her story, I’d have to question your humanity & sense of connection to your fellow man. I’ll say it again – Scientology hurts people.