Scientology Critics'
Information

Scientology Criticism
Human Rights Abuses
Inside Scientology The Belief System
Scientology in Trouble What you can do
UK FocusUK Media Archive

Thanks to the BBC's "The Net" and "Newsnight", The Observer(twice!), New Scientist, CNN, The Times, the BBC World Service, the Daily Planet e-zine, Internet and Comms Today, Digitale Burgerbeweging Nederland and Hype Webzine for mentioning this page. Thanks to Meridian Television's "Cyber.cafe" for interviewing me and to the .net directory for reviewing this page and quoting from it extensively.

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The last major change to this site was on 7th November 1997. The UK Focus area is updated more frequently.

Why are there so many anti-Scientology Web pages?

The Internet is striking back against Scientology. The cult has been raiding the homes of its Internet opponents, including Dennis Erlich, Arnie Lerma, FACTNet and Zenon Panoussis. The cult is also responsible for the close of the Penet anonymous remailer in Finland and the raid on the XS4ALL Internet provider in the Netherlands.
In response, netizens are doing what Scientology fears most- spreading the information that the cult wants to suppress.

What is Scientology really about?

* Scientology is the pseudo-scientific belief system created by American writer L. Ron Hubbard. It has built up a huge multinational network of corporations, including the Office of Special Affairs -the world's largest private intelligence agency. Based in California, it has a presence in most major cities in the UK, as well as other countries.
* It recruits through its free personality tests, via the book "Dianetics" and via more subtle schemes such as management courses and drug rehabilitation centres. Initiates are presented with some scientific-sounding courses and principles to help them deal with life, but after years of commitment and tens of thousands of pounds, they may find themselves paying to have alien spirits exorcised from their body or signing a billion-year contract to save this "dying world". Critics of Scientology object mainly to the activities of the organisations, rather than the beliefs of individual members.
* Scientology's eventual aim is to seize control of media and government and so to run the world according to Hubbard's principles. Society's problems would then be solved by removing the "suppressive people" from society, by quarantining or extermination.
* Scientology was created by a science-fiction writer, and appropriately enough, its belief system includes a galactic empire and space aliens blowing each other up. The "OT3" document, which includes these claims, is only given to followers who have gone through sufficient indoctrination and given enough money or labour.
* The Scientology organisations do not want "raw meat" (that's you and I) to be told about the higher levels of the belief system, as Fishman's press release explains.
* Now read on for the stories and documents that they don't want you to read.

Popular Misconceptions about Scientology

* Is it just a harmless minority religion? No, it's a totalitarian cult.
* Does it have 8 million members? No, the real figure is much lower.
* They wouldn't dare do anything illegal, would they? Think again: the Scientology organisation has a proven history of criminal activity which includes burglary and wiretapping of government offices and has occurred as recently as 1996 (in Greece). It is the only criminally convicted church in Canada.
* Okay, so how nasty can they get? L Ron Hubbard described shooting someone in the head as "an enormously effective process for exteriorization, but its use is frowned upon by this society at this time."
*
Is Scientology rapidly expanding? The huge list of documented closures would suggest otherwise.
* Scientology is sometimes confused with Christian Science: they are in fact unrelated.

Useful Links:

* Timeline of Scientology's Harassment of Internet users in 1995.
* Rod Keller's review of the week summarises the latest revelations.
* Martin Hunt's Acronym FAQ explains the jargon used by scientologists and their critics.
* The pages you are reading now use a minimum of graphics, for the benefit of people with slow connections. If you like pictures, take a look at Scientologists in their uniforms, a tour of the Saint Hill headquarters or a picket in Tottenham Court Road. If you have a RealAudio player and don't mind a 2.8 Meg download, here are soundtracks from two British documentaries on Scientology, from 1995 and 1996.
* Information on Scientology celebrities and their influence in Hollywood from Tilman Hausherr.
* In fairness, here are are the links to the official sites for Dianetics and Scientology. I'm not expecting them to link to this page any time soon.

+ If you are new to the subject, read
THE WORST: the most scary facts about Scientology.


Books and Pamphlets in hypertext format: Jon Atack's The Total Freedom Trap is a very readable summary of the truth about Scientology, Dianetics and L. Ron Hubbard. Bob Penny's Social Control in Scientology describes how individuals are pressured to give up independent thought. Margery Wakefield's The Road to Xenu is a detailed and emotional narrative account of life in the cult. Other such books can be found on the Suppressive Bookshelf.


Thanks to the many contributors to alt.religion.scientology whose work I have used in this page. The newsgroup is still around, despite the "Church" management's plan to "handle" it.

The Dangers of Involvement with Scientology

* Danger to your mental health: Research carried out in 1982 suggests that Scientology's mind-control techniques are the most damaging of any major cult.
* Danger to your family relationships: an example of how the cult's "disconnection" policy breaks up families. The Bajaj family lost their son.
* Danger to your children's health and sanity: Dennis Erlich found out the hard way. Yolanda Howell told an equally disturbing story.
* Danger to your bank balance: The total cost to reach Scientology's upper levels can be in the hundreds of thousands. Just one level can cost $45,000. A UK price list has also been released.

Internal Documents seized by the FBI:

* Operation Freakout: Paulette Cooper wrote an expose of the cult. In response they attempted to frame her for bomb threats. They had a highly detailed plan which almost worked.
* Deception Training: The CoS has trained some of its people to lie convincingly in court.
* PC Files: Scientology auditing is used to extract personal confessions which are then used to blackmail defectors.
* Operation Bulldozer Leak: A sinister plan to infiltrate government and the media.
* Wins in 1970: more on the cult's "intelligence" activities.
* Many more such documents are kept by Jeff Lee


+ Huge losses in civil court, damning government reports and hostility from an increasingly informed public:- Scientology is in Trouble!


Abuse of the Legal System

* Steven Fishman gave a short affidavit about the attempts to manipulate judges and key witnesses. Allegedly they even infiltrated the office of the opposing attorney.
* Hon. James M. Ideman, a US District Judge, wrote this complaint about the scientologists' harassment.
* Ex-scientologist Gerald Armstrong describes abuse of the legal system.
* Scientology's war against judges: this "church" spends a remarkable amount of time and money in the courtroom.
* In 1995, Scientology had to make the largest libel payout in Canadian history. The court ruled that "Every aspect of this case demonstrates the very real and persistent malice of Scientology."
* The use of the courts to silence criticism is going on right now: read Maureen Garde's Web page for the latest.

Scientology Strikes the Internet

* Scientology is currently trying to clamp down on the open Internet discussion of its practices and beliefs. The tactics include raiding homes, illegal cancels of Usenet articles, use of private investigators to intimidate, covert operations to unmask anonymous opponents and more. Ron Newman maintains the definitive archive on this unique battle.
* Grady Ward and Keith Henson are now in court cases because of posts that they made to the alt.religion.scientology newsgroup. Ron Newman has the details.
* "Skeptic" magazine has its own summary of the battle in this article by Jim Lippard and Jeff Jacobsen.
* Stephen Marinick's article in Java Monthly gives an overview of why the Internet has made him active against the cult.
* Troutman gives his impressions from his time on alt.religion.scientology.
* If you're looking for the Scientology "secret scriptures" which have escaped to the 'net, you could try looking at Dave Touretsky's or Andreas Heldal-Lund's sites.


+ We can each do something to stop more lives being ruined by Scientology, whether by informing the public, lobbying the authorities or by peacefully picketing.


Contacts and other information sources

* Contact addresses for anti-cult groups.
* Books recommended by Scientology's critics
* Now read about the harassment tactics used against the authors of those books.
* When those tactics fail, the Co$ turn to stealing books and newspapers.


+ Commentary on Scientology's beliefs and doctrines can be found on the beliefs page.


Humour

* Check out my Helena Kobrin Pen Pal Page
* Scientologists are very serious in their dedication to "clearing the planet". Their critics, on the other hand, don't mind having a laugh. Marina Chong maintains the Joking and Degrading archive.

* Clam FAQ: Pope Charles' explanation of the clam jokes -elucidates L Ron Hubbard's views on the origin of humanity.
* Diapetics: Ira Wallach's hilarious parody from 1951.
* L Ron Hubbard writes to Usenet from his new base in Hell.
* More Classic Moments from alt.religion.scientology.
* Songs: a Gilbert and Sullivan take-off written for Helena Kobrin and Scientology version of Nine Inch Nails' Heresy. Many more such efforts are found on the A.R.S Song Page
* Read this if you're a raging pervert.
* Stephen Jones has this advice for David Miscavige
* Mark Allen tells us how to Make Religion Fast!
* Mike Beebe introduces the Church of Beeritology.
* Heber and his Body Raisins: how the head of the church made an idiot of himself on a radio phone-in.
* RTC Sues Reality!! Our reporter Daniel Davidson has the details.
* Damon Chetson explains what to do if the Church of Scientology raids your house.
* A Premiere Radio team bring us a radio advert for Scienetics
* Jeff Jacobsen tells us about the origin of the OT3 document.
* Which is the most useful self-help book, "Dianetics" or "Boy dates Girl"? Stephen Jones tests them out.
* Kwantem has written a song especially for alt.religion.scientology.
* Martin Poulter presents Three Religions: Take Your Pick!
* Ever notice that "Lafayette Ron Hubbard" is an anagram of "Fat, Bad, Unearthly Bore"
* Why did the Scientologist cross the road? -Chicken Engrams!


+ First-hand accounts give a taste of life Inside Scientology


On Cults in General...

* A Search for Answers: An essay by Dennis Erlich (a critic of whom the Co$ are particularly frightened) on the attraction and danger of cults.
* Fight Against Coercive Tactics: a real mine of information on Scientology and on psychological coercion.
* The American Family Foundation maintains an excellent list of pro- and anti-cult links.
* The Antidote to Cult Recruitment is to be aware.
* Research: A Short Review of Academic Research into Cults.
* Exploding the Myths: Some words of warning from a top UK cult expert.


Notice from the original author: As if it were not obvious, the articles archived at this site are meant only to reflect the opinions of their writers. These opinions are not necessarily shared by the author.

Permission to reproduce has not been sought for all the material at this site. Most of the articles here have been taken in good faith: I have assumed that those posting these documents to Usenet have acted within their rights. I have deliberately refrained from releasing material that I know to be the subject of legal disputes.

The original author of this page is Martin Poulter