I really don't want to bring down the wrath of anyone but....(watch me do it anway!)

When I was involved in Science Fiction publishing, The publishing arm of the COS was a client of mine. I came to be extremely close friends with a number of Scientologists, some of them highly placed. I even dated one fellow in The Church for a time. It was not a big deal that I was Catholic.

Over time, a few of these people left the Church and experienced virtually none of the lengendary harrassment described here. I'm sure there is some conflict between the CoS and ex-members, but from what I've seen up close and personal, it's a little hard to believe that they have Death Squads and so on. I did see one marriage break up over the wife's choice to leave but it was a marriage that would not have stayed intact even if she stayed. The Church-member husband wanted the marriage to survive and it was the ex-member that filed for divorce. Neither spouse was obviously hassled by anyone in the CoS.

I never met L. Ron Hubbard himself because by the time I came to the account, he was older and ill. I did however, have very close and deep friendships with people who knew him from his youth right on up through the writing of Dianetics and beyond. I've read a fair amount of the books that most people describe as Cult-ish and all I see is a synthesis of a large number of world faiths into what Hubbard thought of as a unified approach.

I've stayed at The Manor Hotel, taken a course or two at the Celebrity Center, even toured the Purification Run-Down facility and found nothing evil there. I've even had an E-meter reading that was interesting even if it wasn't all that helpful. I've gone to dozens of events at Author's Services (The agency that handles Hubbards Literary estate and that administers the Writers of The Future Contest) At no time was I ever lured into Scientology or even proselytized to. The only time they ever spoke to me directly about Scientology was when I asked questions of my friends. And when I did, they answered me honestly and gave me literature if I asked for it.

I'm not defending the tenents of their faith because I don't really buy them. I'm just saying that if Scientologists were the predatory and evil organziation they are made out to be, wouldn't I have been subjected to their alleged programming techniques?

I've met Issac Hayes at some of those events and John Travolta and some of the other celebs that are supposed to be controlled by the CoSW. They were all articulate and independent artists who seemed to me to be adults practising their right to worhsip as they please. As I said above, I know a number of former Church members as well and socialized with them as they were leaving. Perhaps they were exceptions, but they were not harrassed.

If I had any criticism of my friends who are in CoS it's only that they don't choose to see a difference between legitimate medications and "Poisonous" medications or drugs. of course, I could say the same about my friend who is a Christian Scientist.

Of course all of this is only my own experience. Still, I believe in terms of actual social contact with Church members, I've had more than most people. I just find it hard to believe that all the 'normal' scientologists I've met are the exception and not the rule. Every Church has it's screwier members and loose cannons. I'd guess Tom Cruise is one of their screwier members.

Heck, when I was growing up, my Mum dragged me around the lunatic fringe of Catholicism- healing masses, speaking in tongues, prophetic messages about the end of the world, Marion apparitions in Bayside Queens, and so on. If all anyone ever read about Catholicism were exposes on Audrey Santo's mother, The Sex Scandal, The Blue Army and their Sede-Vacantsists - they'd assume all Catholics were nutcases and "programmed" to believe weird stuff.

The one thing the Anti-Cult movement seems to assert over and over is that none of us can be trusted, even in adulthood, to decide for ourselves whatever we want to believe if it differs from what our parents, family or close friends believe. If we change our beliefs from those we were raised with, we were 'duped' or 'programmed.' The movement was begun by parents appalled at their adult childrens' choices. In some cases, their alarm was understandable. Sadly, the movement adopted questionable methods (Kidnapping AKA Deprogramming) and after some convictions, lost all credibility. I say sadly because I do believe that there are grifters out there masquerading as Gurus and it would have been nice for there to still be a place for troubled families to get help.

All you have to do is look at Rick Ross's Anti-Cult site to see what I mean. To Ross, anything that's not Christian and Protestant is a cult or a dangerous cult. He labels so many legitimate churches as cults you migth want to check to see if you too are a cult victim. unbeknownst to you!

The way I look at the US Constitution, you are free to worship as you please (or not worship) even if it freaks some people (and your parents) out.