From: davidb@caen.engin.umich.edu (David Bonnell)
Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology
Subject: Re: What's so Scientific here?
Message-ID: <z9d_k3+@engin.umich.edu>
Date: 7 Nov 91 19:20:20 GMT
References: <1991Nov6.213823.1249@usl.edu>
Organization: The University of Michigan, Ann Arbor
Lines: 27

In article <1991Nov6.213823.1249@usl.edu>, das9674@usl.edu (Stephenson Daniel A) writes:
> I know Scientologist 'know' Scientology works,....but what makes it all so
> 'Scientific'??I thought religions were by definition non-scientific. Just saying
> "oooh, it works, it's true, it must be 'science'" doesn't cut it.
> 
> I once has a talk with a Scientologist associate of mine - he sounded *quite*
> like a quack. Like statement like "Well, matter is energy and _thought_ is 
> energy therefore thought has mass and NEGATIVE thoughts have MORE mass than
> POSITIVE thoughts, and the E-METER read the masses of these thoughts,...so it
> can be determined how much NEGATIVE thought have,....". Things like this.
> Really hokey. And to think -I actually respected this guy in scientific matters
> beforehand! Whew!!
> 
> So where's the science? Love potions and hair tonics?!
> 
> -Dan

What is the definition of science?  In the Webster's New World Dictionary
Second College Edition definition number two says:

systematized knowledge derived from observation, study, and experimentation
carried on in order to determine the nature or principles of what is being
studied.

If anyone has knowledge of that form then it is a science. If you study
the mind and you came up with some systematized knowledge that worked 
everytime you might call it Scientology.  Read Dianetics.