Chiropractor: From Committed to Contemptuous

28 Feb 2001

How did I go from being a committed, gung-ho public scientologist to a ranting, disaffected critic of the cult?

For ten years, I was a die-hard scientologist. I used the management tech in my business (which was effective in the short-term, but in the long-term it was a cancer-Hard sell tactics, high pressure "stat push," staff ethics handlings-what a joke; I am very fortunate that I was never sued by former employees for some of the abusive LRH policy that I applied to them.) I received auditing up to the level of Clear. I received training: Pro TRs, KTL (a joke), LOC (a personal disaster), student hat, etc.

I was in the org at every opportunity.

Then I did the L's at Flag. This was the final nail in the coffin of my financial life. Within a year and a half of doing "the most powerful rundowns in all of scientology" I was completely washed-up financially. I lost my house, my equipment, my excellent credit rating and my business.

In order to deal with all our bills, I joined a multi-level marketing company. The main guy promoting the deal also happened to have invented a memory improvement program. As a result of this connection, by wife and I were pulled out of the courseroom and told that we needed to disconnect. We were also routed to ethics for disseminating the MLM to other public in the org. It was a nutrition company for god's sake. All of this lead to a comm ev and my wife and I getting declared as enemies of the church!

The strange part of all this is that I was still a scientology loyalist. I still had dreams of progressing up the Bridge. Of donating untold sums to the IAS in the future. I thought that there was something about my case that was making my life a calamity. My wife and I would always do our goals every year. Right at the top was "get out of debt" and right behind that was "Go up the bridge."

Looking back I can see how insane it all was.

Let me tell you about the thing that caused me to make the decision to look at scientology from a different point of view.

I was riding to dinner with a friend who also used to be a scientologist. He told me about a website called "veritas." He said that the church was actually owned and directed by non-scientologist attorneys!

Believe it or not, I told him that I wasn't interested in hearing anything about that. I didn't even want to SEE information that MIGHT try to challenge my belief system! Even after the debacle in our personal lives!

Then I had a conversation with another friend who used to be heavy into scientology. In our discussion, I said, "You know, it's funny, the less involved I am in scientology, the more successful my life and my business seems to become!" It just slipped out. I was scared for a few minutes thinking to myself, "I hope I don't get written up for saying this." What a fucking joke, here I was, 37 years old and worried about being written up!

This is when I called my other friend and said, "Okay, send me the data on the church, I want to check it out."

I read through his bad copies of the veritas website. I saw enough to actually do a search and see the site for myself.

I read it in utter disbelief. I saw court documents with church officials describing the corporate structure. THE CHURCH WAS OWNED AND DIRECTED BY NON-SCIENTOLOGIST LAWYERS!!!!

At this point I approached my wife, Tera. I told her she should look at some info on the web about the church. She said, "I am not interested in looking at that bullshit, they are all SPs." I decided to leave her alone.

You know, there was a time in our lives when we were so brainwashed that if my wife had turned on the church, I would have divorced her immediately! She would have done the same. And with no thought of the impact this would have had on our three children. WE WERE MONSTERS.

I read on. I saw documentation, which stated that the books and tapes were being altered.

I checked this out for myself. I took an old version of the book Dianetics 55 and a newer (improved?) edition. It took 5 paragraphs and three minutes to find 5 alterations, some grammatical, others in meaning.

I really can't describe the rage that began at that moment. I felt betrayed. I felt that gut wrenching pain that comes when you realize you've been played for a fool. They had lied to me. They had perpetrated a fraud on me, my wife, my children and all of my friends.

Worse, they had me so convinced of their scheme that I was trying to sell others on the idea!

I again approached my wife. I preempted my discussion like this, "Honey, I love you. I know that I am risking our marriage by coming to you with this, but I have to ask you to see something." That "something" was the alterations in the books.

She looked at Dianetics 55 for 5 minutes. Then she looked at me and said, "That's it, we're out." FUCK THE BASTARDS!

Since that day, just 4 or 5 months ago, we have made it our personal business to convince others that this fraud must die. If they were stealing people's money, that would just be a crime. THIS cult is stealing people's entire lives, their fortunes, and their future! It can only be likened in magnitude to SPIRITUAL HOLOCAUST!

As dedicated as we were to the church, we are now even more committed to seeing that this group is stopped from perpetuating the lies and deceit that it spins out to the members of my profession. Who knows how many lives have been ruined by this fiendish, evil organization?

I will work tirelessly to spread the truth about scientology to the chiropractic profession and do my part to prevent this FRAUD from being committed against my colleagues and their families.