Well what's with that ominous music in the background? Honestly I think Tom Cruise gets more bashing than is warranted. I still don't know one thing about Scientology except that they are against psych drugs -- and man, I have the same passion they do that this stuff is really, really bad and harming a whole lot of people. If it's a crusade and a cult to believe this well then so be it -- show me the way. Frankly I think psychiatry and psychopharmacology have a lot more to answer for than the Scientologists and maybe I'll be hooted off the website for saying so but what's that saying about the mote in your eye? (Thank God for Google -- here it is): Thou hypocrite, first cast out the beam out of thine own eye; and then shalt thou see clearly to cast out the mote out of thy brother's eye.

I'm with you Sara. I actually looked into Scientology after I saw the Tom Cruise Matt Lauer exchange. It's not the religion for me for many reasons still, like you say, they are right about psychiatry and pharmacology. The ominous music is kind of weird though.

But... but... I thought you WERE Tom Cruise!!!!

Matt

I was just wondering if that ominous music was added by someone who wasn't sympathetic to TC or whether that was part of the original. It would be interesting to know.

Sara,
I'm with you too.

There are lots of people I can agree with about lots of different things. Just because I happen to think that psych drugs are bad doesn't mean I give Scientology any sort of pass on any account. We're talking about a group of people who believe in fascist, genocidal space aliens. While that may or may not be more or less silly than any other creation story or tale about how things came to be, it's still focusing on some big thing outside of ourselves that requires us to be navel-gazing asshats instead of trying to make things better in the world around us, right now, without giving some dude on a boat hundreds of thousands of dollars to "advance" in some arbitrary way.

Oh I love me some seekers and true believers but that is some slippery juju right there.

"I've canceled that in my area."

Rock on Tom.

As far as I know, Scientology has never apologized or admitted guilt in the death of Lisa McPherson, one of their members. She was clearly having a psychotic break when she died in their care. Because of her death, The Church of Scientology now makes members sign a waiver specifically against suing the Church over the Introspection Rundown.

Maybe TC can address this the next time he speaks?

I guess the "Introspection Rundown" is just one of the methods used by Scientology. Solitary? No speech? The person has to guess what it is that the supervisor will be happy with, in order to release the person - thus sending their mind in all directions, when they're already vulnerable? In the end one is willing to say anything, in order to escape? That's torture. I don't approve of that.

Scientology claims to know about the mind. If it did, it wouldn't use that method, which appears to be geared towards subordinating the individual to the "Church". If that's the approach, the individual is always seeking approval for their actions - they become an automaton.

Matt

You tell 'em Space Cadet Tommy!!! Put on your tinfoil hat. Eat your pudding. Chant XENU over and over until the flying saucer comes to pick you up.

All it takes is to learn about L.Ron Hubbard's life and you'll be ready to dismiss Scientology completely. It is a manipulative cult that imprisons individuals against their will.

The Secret Life of L. Ron Hubbard
http://video.google.com/videoplay?docid=529204584324100028

They have a program called Narcanon which claims to be a drug rehabilitation center. There are cases of parents sending their children off to Narcanon under the impression that it is Narcotics Anonymous, but it turns out to be a recruitment/brainwashing facility for impressionable teens.
http://www.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/Narconon/keyfacts.htm

Watching this video reminds me of the following quote:

“Once you believe that there is a final answer to human ills. If there is just a final answer then no sacrifice is too great for it. Even if you have to kill people for it. This is the one end, permanent, bliss, happiness, for mankind. Surely, worth it.

If you believe there is a single answer to the single question- The true answer, all other answers then being false- all these answers can be put together and harmonize with each other to create the perfect universe, then there isn’t temptation if you think you have it, to do awful things.”

-Isaiah Berlin

P.S. Hail Lord Xenu!

The Lisa McPherson case is a bad case because people were trying to mess with the evidence to get a conviction. She died of a migrating blood clot, and the cause of death was found to be accidental.

The coroner Joan Wood resigned over this.

see Wikipedia

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Joan_Wood

Penny: Where did you find mention of there being an intentional manipulation of the evidence?

Furthermore: Although problems exist with certain psychopharmacological drugs and psychological theory, as this blog reveals. I think that one should be in consultation with a doctor when dealing with blatant cases of psychosis. Lisa McPherson was taken from a hospital with proper care and instead kept in a room during something that Scientologists call "Introspection Rundown" http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Introspection_Rundown

Although there seems to be something fishy with the autopsy, it could be also argued that the reassessment of the cause of death was an attempt at having the charges against the church dropped.

The migrating blot clot doesn't seem to explain severe dehydration, malnutrition, and her "skin being covered with over a hundred insect bites, presumably by cockroaches."