Screen writer and producer Paul Haggis (Million Dollar Baby, Quantum of Solace, The Next Three Days) is sitting on a book that, when published, promises to blow yet another lid off the corporate religiosity fraud known as Scientology. Joining a long list of ex-members who have disavowed the cult as well as a slowly growing list of "celebrities" who have discovered they have better things to do, Haggis' initial dust-up with the social invention of science-fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard began with the issue of Proposition 8 because the "Church" of Scientology joined with the Latter Day Saints in saying that gay people are weird and ought to be illegal or something.
It has always been strange to me why the cult's backing of Prop H8 was such a surprise. One only has to read Scientology "scripture" to see where homosexuality is officially considered an aberration the "church" can actually help you get out of if you shell out enough money. But, oh wait, you would have had to shell out some money to actually READ that "scripture" or else you wouldn't know that - sorry. I wasn't thinking.
Here's a part of the story published in the LA Times this week...
Director Paul Haggis has already been the worst kind of publicity for the Church of Scientology, penning this letter in August 2009 in which he resigned from the group over its support of Proposition 8.
Now he could become more than just a thorn in the church's side. According to this Gawker report, the Oscar winner is shopping a book with New Yorker writer Lawrence Wright about his experience with Scientology –- an experience that he says included, among other things, his wife cutting off contact with her parents at the order of church officials.
Or you can get the whole thing here.
I think because the people just looking for the lulz may have been taking an extended break from working against the cult of Scientology folks have a tendency to think the storm has subsided for our money-grubbing Hubbard space cadets. But they'd be wrong.
We STILL run this.
Learn more about Scientology here at Why We Protest. It ain't over til it's over.
10 comments:
it still surprises me how that church got as big as it did.
Scientology followed the same trajectory as the Boomers. Lots of LSD in the 60's opened people's minds to consider all kinds of stupid shit, then people who believed stupid shit made a lot of money. Voila.
i gave the scientology guys an opportunity to make thier pitch with me. i think i told you about it.
and after it was over, i still wasnt sure what they were trying to teach me. 'have a happier life' just wasnt a destination to me.
everybody else, islam, jews,etc... where trying to help me get to heaven. i understood that kind of destination. the salvation of my soul idea.
I liked what his son said, that it's a religion of egos. Makes total sense to me.
(Bad quote, probably, but that was the gist, if not a direct quote.)
GAH.
Xenu - LOL!
Dear Xenu,
I don't have any money. Please don't tell anyone I'm gay.
Dear RW,
I once saw an informercial about Scientology and bought the little kit they were selling. I read some of it and thought, "Oh hell no" but I never realized what a deep-seated cult it is until I started reading you and did some research of my own. Thanks for keeping your finger pointed at them and mocking them at every turn.
After dinner last night, we were talking with my sister and her husband about the new Scientology commercial that has been running during prime-time. And we found out that they knew nothing about the origins of the "religion" or really anything about it all. So the rest of the night was spent watching videos and reading about all the wacky/dangerous stuff going on using Gia's iPad. They had no idea about any of this stuff at all. We even pulled up some of your older posts about it.
I approve this message!
Once or twice I've had a few moments to watch these guys in action in front of their storefront in downtown Seattle. They have the art of picking people out of the crowd to talk to, dominating them with their body language, and making it very difficult to walk away down cold. I have no difficulty imagining the level of control that they can exert on susceptible individuals once they get their hooks in.
I don't know much about this thing they call Scientology, but I am in NYC and the Scientology headquarters is right next to our hotel. The neon sign on the building is enormous.
Yesterday, I was walking by and I looked inside the lobby. Not really paying attention to where I was I almost walked into it. It looked just like a Borders book store....with only Scientology books.
Candy - if you happen to see folks with Vendetta masks picketing across the stree, blow them a kiss. Those are the good guys.
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