What is up with this?

Anyone know anything about Scientology? I have never paid much attention to it because it was labeled a religion. I have also read some negative articles ( http://www-2.cs.cmu.edu/~dst/StudyTech/ ) about it. So what is your take on it?

Tom Cruise: Scientology Helped Me


NEW YORK (AP) - Tom Cruise said he learned to overcome his learning disability through Scientology.

``When I was about 7, I had been labeled dyslexic,'' he told People magazine for its July 21 issue. ``I'd try to concentrate on what I was reading, then I'd get to the end of the page and have very little memory of anything I'd read. I would go blank, feel anxious, nervous, bored, frustrated, dumb.''

After ``Top Gun'' came out in 1986, Cruise became a Scientologist and discovered the ``Study Technology'' the religion's founder, L. Ron Hubbard, developed in the 1960s.

``I realized I could absolutely learn anything that I wanted to learn,'' Cruise said.

Now the 41-year-old actor is a founding board member of the Hollywood Education and Literacy Project, a nonprofit group that uses Hubbard's teaching techniques in a secular setting.

``I don't want people to go through what I went through,'' Cruise said. ``I want kids to have the ability to read, to write, to understand what people are saying to them, to be able to solve life's problems.''



07/11/03 08:28

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Original Article can be found here: http://channels.netscape.com/ns/celebrity/story.jsp?idq=/ff/story/0001%2F20030711%2F082864650.htm&sc=1402

Yeah i learnt quite a bit about scientology in religion class back in the day. L Ron Huberd set it up i think. And their headquarters in Florida somewhere are huge buildings with hi tech equiptment and gold and silver everywhere. They besically tell you that you have huge problems in your life and you have to give them money to learn how to sort them out. They even hypnotise you and in many cases take charge of your account. Tom cruise and John Travolta have given millions along with other celebrities. The film battlefiled earth is actually about the history of scientology...starring John Travolta

l. ron hubbard is a science fiction author. he decided to start a religion based on his ideas. you do the math

chris

He does the math.... and makes a lot! Yeah I heard most of Hollywood was into L Ron at some point. Guess its the "club" for celebrities.... don't know anything about it though....

did anyone read the book "battlefield earth". aside from being written by a nut who thought it was true, it was a good book. movie doesnt do it justice, at all.

So basically you become a movie star, then a target because you have money etc... and L. Ron H. was smart enough to fool them into giving him their money. Guess that makes him a genius then.


My religion: my intuition!

it is like a club for rich people, but lots of normal people belong too. everything in the religion costs money and normal people with normal (or below normal) incomes end up throwing away tons of money (more than they can afford) over the years.

they used to be famous for 'getting even with' outspoken critics (ruining careers, lives, families) - but that may no longer be true.

*hides under the bed*

Well, nevertheless I am an atheist so I would never get involved in something like that, nor anything labeled religion. However, I am interested in reading about this so called "study technology". I have to know a little about everything. I want to know what all the hype is about. I remember reading a book on radical feminism just so I would know what I disagreed with. On the way I discovered a few things, but for the most part I discovered that I am no rad fem. And, Mary Daly is a tad on the unrealistic side. :p

I think it's about right to say that L Ron was one of the most successful businessmen in the world.

Certainly appears to be true. Perhaps I should learn his techniques.....lol