Watched the documentary on Scientology

[DvlDog4WVU]

Holy ****. Those people are a special kind of batshit. The amount of wealth the organization is amassing is astounding though, in excess of $3 billion in assets.

Please forego the ham n egger response of trying to draw comparisons between their beliefs and Christians. The more appropriate correlation would be that of the Branch Davidians or Jonestown. I could easily see this going that way, the foundation was laid in the remarks of the IAS Convention the year LRH died.

I guess if they don't take down the mark someone else will. Might as well be them.
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[dave]

Who doesnt want to ride in a spaceship?

 

[PriddyBoy]

I intend to watch that. Does the documentary lay out any kind of organizational structure. I'd be interested in who pulls the purse strings in that operation? Heirs?

 

[mule_eer]

I did a fair amount of reading about that organization a few years ago - good series written by a reporter in Florida I believe. I want to see Going Clear. It sounds pretty good. I'm amazed by the power they wield over their members. The whole SeaOrg thing and how some folks will turn their kids over to that is frightening. It is a cult of the first order.

 

[DvlDog4WVU]

Yea, it's pretty in-depth. They had a bunch of big ranking people within the inner organization quit and they are the ones speaking out. It's more about the workings and agenda than it is about the dogma.

It talks a little about the dogma, but what's the point to focus on that? Regardless of if it is science fiction, is it really any more or less believable than the stories in the other holy books? Not really.
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[WhiteTailEER]

I watched it also.

Definitely a special kind of crazy.

As many of the people said, in the very early stages it probably sounds pretty decent. However, the entire structure is built around having to pay more and more to reach different stages of "spiritual enlightenment". You would think that having a financial obligation as part of it would open people's eyes, but apparently not.

But then you get to the upper levels, and the whole Xenu thing and everything else and it's pretty crazy.

It's really amazing that anybody would follow LRH in the first place. He cut his teeth as a science fiction writer in the first place, and then obviously seems to have some mental issues. (although the documentary clearly wanted to paint him in this light, in reality he's probably very charismatic somehow otherwise this would have never started)

It's absolutely a cult though. It's amazing how it was ever classified as a religion. I think the takeaway from these cults is how many people are searching for any kind of answer and literally anything to follow. It's a bit frightening to be honest.

 

[DvlDog4WVU]

Re: I watched it also.

I'll freely admit that accepting my own mortality when I was faced with it in combat and further acknowledging how little of role I truly play in it was probably the most freeing and enlightening thing to ever happen to me. I'm so much more at peace with myself than I ever was. It was only by acknowledging my lack of control in the process in which I truly took control of my life.

 

[WhiteTailEER]

I'm not going to equate the experiences

but the end result is essentially the same.

1) I was diagnosed with genetic kidney disease that's incurable. (there's still dialysis/transplant, but that's not a guaranteed solution) Definitely not on par with combat, but it essentially led me to the same place. I reassessed and made some changes, and while it may not always be reflected here (I do get too reactionary on here at times) it changed my views and allowed me to take control of my life. Essentially all I can do is monitor function and eventually start dialysis and get on a transplant list, and then it's a roll of the dice if I find a donor or not. My function is between 25% and 30% now and all of that starts at 20%.

2) This was much more temporary. I was diving with sharks (no cage) off the coast of NC, there was some nervousness (first, there's sharks, second, I was 120 feet below the surface). Then another diver grabbed the tail of a shark (about 8-10' long) and this huge fish was gone in a flash. Incredibly impressive. I realized if they wanted me there was absolutely nothing I could do about it which was actually calming.

I am not comparing either of those 2 experiences with combat. One, there's no equivalency anyway, and two, because of that it would be incredibly insulting to you and I'd never do that. Just relating how I know where you're coming from because I've had different paths to essentially the same place.

 

[DvlDog4WVU]

Re: I'm not going to equate the experiences

Of course those comparisons are valid as triggers and moreover, appropriate. It really doesn't matter how you get somewhere, what matters is what you do when you're there.