Page 9 of 59

I am wrong.

Geir Isene 46 Comments

It’s important to heed one’s own advice. And in light of recent exchanges on this blog, I am inspired to review where I am wrong, where I could do with some correcting, and where I have potential for improvement.

I-am-wrong-590x326

I wrote this in an exchange: “…in order to become better in any area, a person must admit to being wrong. When I coach people and help people improve in an area, they first realise they are wrong in that area before they can improve. No admitting to being wrong equals no gain.“. It goes hand-in-glove with me “helping people fail“.

Passing on an opportunity to improve is folly. I am thankful for the opportunity to see my errors and for this opportunity to express them. Because without seeing and expressing it, my chances for improvement is blunted if not halted. Here goes:

  • I bog down to perfecting details when I lose strong interests in important games in life.
  • I find it hard to get started on new directions in life. Instead I keep polishing what is already quite perfect.
  • I get too emotionally engaged in discussions where I am certain I am right. That’s when I become an asshole. It can turn out quite counter-productive as it can drive another to be even more insisting on being right.
  • In an effort to assert my own rightness in a discussion, I can forget to really listen to and understand the other person.
  • In an effort to assert my own rightness in a discussion, I can forget to compliment the other person for valuable input.
  • I can get blinded by the contents of a discussion and often disregard the form of the discussion.
  • I tend to focus on logic and disregard factors that are often more important, such as pure art, crazy initiatives and “batshit” as Katageek would call it.
  • While my journey to OT 8 in Scientology has given me huge improvements in harmony, resilience and ability to “letting go”, these very gains has also deprived my life of some excitement and zest. I am trying to figure out how to improve the sense of adventure and lose some of that calm harmony. Anyone willing to trade?

I am sure I have forgotten important points in the list above. But heck, I am a work in progress and I can always add more points later.

I have had many changes in viewpoints in the past years. Thanks to many contributors on this blog, my viewpoints on Scientology, philosophy and life in general has markedly evolved. I am on a quest to evolve further, and I welcome your input as to how I can best improve on the above points.

BTW; This is my post #500 on this blog. Perhaps it will mark an improved Geir 🙂

You are turning away from The Truth! Are you crazy?

Geir Isene 137 Comments

As a Scientologist starts to wake up to the reality that the Church of Scientology is a real world Truman Show, other Scientologists will warn him that he will be doomed as he turns his back to the One True Path.

As an independent Scientologist starts to wake up to the reality that Scientology cannot deliver on its promises, other independents will tell him how dark his future will be as he turns away from The Truth.

I have heard warnings like “you will get cancer and die”, “your eternity will be lost” and “you will die alone in the dark”. And all because Scientology is the only salvation for Mankind, the only real hope in the whole wide universe since the dawn of time. And this is precisely why you will become lost and depressed and have your life wrecked.

And for some, this prophecy will come true. Many Scientologists do experience their world falling apart when they leave their church. Many independent Scientologists do feel depressed as they start to doubt their beliefs in Scientology. Lives do get wrecked. But is it because they turn away from the truth?

No.

And here is why: Scientologists experience the same withdrawal symptoms as people departing from other cults. Be it the Jehovah’s Witnesses, Moonies (Unification Church), Mormonism, Nation of Islam, KKK, Raëlians or any other strong belief system. Similar warnings are issued and similar experiences are recounted. Each one could conclude that the reason a former member is having a hard time after leaving their faith is because they have deviated from the Only True Path – or gone “off-purpose” as Scientologists would say.

apostasy

So if it isn’t the turning away from truth that does the damage, what is it? It’s the loss of hope, of purpose. Even if the hope was false and the purpose was fake, unfulfilled or plain crazy.

Something to keep in mind if you harbour a doubt.

How does a Scientologist dodge a bullet?

Geir Isene 40 Comments

A Scientologist, a true believer, lives in continual cognitive dissonance. When faced with a dangerous question challenging their beliefs, they resort to all kinds of mental and debate tricks to avoid having their belief bubble bursted.

neo

Our resident Ninja, Katageek summed it all up in a nice algorithm:

  1. Change the subject, write a bunch and pretend you answered the question and IGNORE THE DANGEROUS QUESTION.
  2. If that doesn’t work, blame the fault on the questioner in a loving attitude and help him/her find the mistake they have made that doesn’t let them see “the truth” AND IGNORE THE DANGEROUS QUESTION.
  3. If that doesn’t work, blame the questioner in a HARSH condescending attitude for moral or logical flaws and IGNORE THE DANGEROUS QUESTION.
  4. If that doesn’t work, re-define the terms so that the question no longer has any bite AND USE THAT REFRAMING TO IGNORE THE DANGEROUS QUESTION.
  5. If that doesn’t work, FACE THE DANGEROUS QUESTION but minimize it as unimportant in the big picture (EXAMPLE: “LRH wasn’t perfect but his tech is workable”).
  6. If that doesn’t work, keep bouncing between these options and never acknowledge the question or its actual ramifications.
  7. When the period is over, go warm up to a source that confirms the core beliefs and let the damage bar on your brain’s screen recharge, and then return to the conversation and START ALL OVER.
  8. If EVER you have to face a dangerous question AND what it actually means regarding a sacred belief, always return to your “wins” about how it worked for you. Nobody can touch that.
  9. Be unconscious that your belief stays the same and that you shift criteria based on what group or person is saying that either supports or detracts from the core belief. EXAMPLE: When talking with hard core believers, you believe some facts as literal, but when talking with critics or liberal believers ONE CHANGES BELIEFS TEMPORARILY TO PROTECT THE CORE BELIEFS AND NOT REMEMBER THAT YOU FLIP-FLOPPED.

When basic science goes topsy-turvy

Geir Isene 43 Comments

I have nothing against homeopath. I haven’t researched it enough to form an opinion on the subject. So that is not why I am pulling up this video.

It is because it is an excellent example of basic science, basic arithmetic and basic logic failing on so many levels. Yet the message is presented in a way that it actually convinces people. It resembles many presentations I have attended in Scientology where concepts are convincingly presented to people that are already indoctrinated to swallow the bait – hook, line and sinker.

It’s called confirmation bias, “the tendency to search for, interpret, favor, and recall information in a way that confirms one’s beliefs or hypotheses, while giving disproportionately less consideration to alternative possibilities.”

When you are sold on one almost true concept, the next slightly less true concept becomes easier to swallow. And down a slippery slope one goes until one are ready to accept that 1=0 like in this video:

Just for fun, how many errors can you find in this video?

Scientology: The Borg of ideologies

Geir Isene 311 Comments

Here are some quotes from L. Ron Hubbard about Scientology:

“When somebody enrolls, consider he or she has joined up for the duration of the universe — never permit an “open-minded” approach… If they enrolled, they’re aboard, and if they’re aboard they’re here on the same terms as the rest of us — win or die in the attempt. Never let them be half minded about being Scientologists.”

“We’re not playing some minor game in Scientology. It isn’t cute or something to do for lack of something better. The whole agonized future of this planet, every Man, Woman and Child on it, and your own destiny for the next endless trillions of years depend on what you do here and now with and in Scientology.”

“Scientology is the only workable system man has. It has already taken people toward higher IQ, better lives and all that. No other system has. So realize that it has no competitor.”

“We’re playing for blood, the stake is EARTH.”

“In all the broad Universe there is no other hope for Man than ourselves.”

“If attacked on some vulnerable point by anyone or anything or any organization, always find or manufacture enough threat against them to cause them to sue for peace.”

“There is no more ethical group on this planet than ourselves.”

Scientology insists on being the Only True Way. Scientologists buy into this and are convinced that Scientology is Right and that other paths are Wrong. Scientologists becomes adamant on defending Scientology regardless of opposing facts. It is the opposite of Science. When a Scientologist starts admitting Scientology is wrong in some area, he has started to move away from being a Scientologist.

Scientology is a self-perpetuating ideology insisting it is right. It is The Borg of ideologies.

The Borg

The Borg

“You are an imperfect being, created by an imperfect being.”

“We only wish to raise quality of life for all species.”

“You will be assimilated. Resistance is futile.”

John Cleese on responsibility for own emotions

Geir Isene 15 Comments

The remarkable John Cleese is spot on again:

Transcript:

I’m offended every day. For example, the British newspapers every day offend me with their laziness, their nastiness, and their inaccuracy, but I’m not going to expect someone to stop that happening; I just simply speak out about it. Sometimes when people are offended they want — you can just come in and say, “Right, stop that.” to whoever it is offending them. And, of course, as a former chairman of the BBC one said, “There are some people who I would wish to offend.” And I think there’s truth in that too. So the idea that you have to be protected from any kind of uncomfortable emotion is what I absolutely do not subscribe to. And a fellow who I helped write two books about psychology and psychiatry was a renowned psychiatrist in London called Robin Skynner said something very interesting to me. He said, “If people can’t control their own emotions, then they have to start trying to control other people’s behavior.” And when you’re around super-sensitive people, you cannot relax and be spontaneous because you have no idea what’s going to upset them next. And that’s why I’ve been warned recently don’t to go to most university campuses because the political correctness has been taken from being a good idea, which is let’s not be mean in particular to people who are not able to look after themselves very well — that’s a good idea — to the point where any kind of criticism or any individual or group could be labeled cruel.

And the whole point about humor, the whole point about comedy, and believe you me I thought about this, is that all comedy is critical. Even if you make a very inclusive joke like how would you make God laugh? Answer: Tell him your plans. Now that’s about the human condition; it’s not excluding anyone. It’s saying we all have all these plans, which probably won’t come and isn’t it funny how we still believe they’re going to happen. So that’s a very inclusive joke. It’s still critical. All humor is critical. If you start to say, “We mustn’t; we mustn’t criticize or offend them,” then humor is gone. With humor goes a sense of proportion. And then as far as I’m concerned, you’re living in 1984.

A question about responsibility

Geir Isene 31 Comments

What could be the consequences of shifting responsibility for something oneself has done over to something or someone else?

Please share your answers and views 🙂

2015-06-29 21.48.10

Update 2016-02-04: With the good comments received on this, I have one conclusion that is relevant to the Scientology Bubble:

There may be many factors why we see so many OTs in the Church of Scientology that remains so blind, get into trouble in life and generally does not have any marked positive impact on society. But I propose that one significant reason is that from OT 3 and up, OTs are indoctrinated into the belief that what is wrong with them is not of their own doing. It is the doing of “entities” (spirits) attached to their bodies and messing up their lives. I firmly believe that one is responsible for one’s own thoughts and emotions and that life will gradually slide into the ditch when one habitually shifts responsibility for one’s own thoughts and emotions over to someone else. Especially when those someone elses are figments of a “guru’s” imagination. I believe Hubbard was a pussy that didn’t take responsibility for his own life and tried to get his congregation to agree that his troubles were not his own. Much like Miscavige.