Sunday, April 20, 2008

Scientolgy and The Right To Choose

FMS posted a comment responding to my post A Complaint about my blog . Here is his comment: Comment from FMS

My answer got very long, so I decided it was best to post it to a new article. So here it is.

Hey FMS,

As you can see, I did post your comment. Thank you for the acknowledgment of all my hard work on this blog. I appreciate it. I think the reason you find few Scientologists talking about the things you mention are that most of those things are untrue and most Scientologists haven't even heard of them, so they don't know what to say in response to questions about them. Personally I got totally sick of reading lies and BS on the Internet about Scientology, so I decided to counter the crap with this blog and by taking the time to research where the lies came from and what the truth was about those lies.

Let me address the points I think you brought up:

First let me say that several of the things you list (the acronyms, etc.) are not Scientology terms. They are things made up by anti-religious extremists.

Having gotten that out of the way, let me comment on your complaint about the nomenclature we use in Scientology. When you encounter new phenomena, things no one has ever described before, you need to name them. You can't call something a "thingy" or use an existing word for something that is not the same thing. For example, if everything that makes up an atom were called a sub-atom, it would cause tremendous confusion. An example in Scientology is the use of the term "thetan" instead of "soul". "Thetan" has similarities, but the differences in the concept are enough that using "soul" would cause confusion so a new term was created.

Scientology doesn't really have a lot of new terms compared with other fields. I'm a computer professional and there are a thousand times as many new terms and acronyms in that field than in Scientology. So I don't think your complaint about new terms is valid.

I don't quite know what to make of your comment about "Join the army of the blind people!" Are you proposing that we as humankind no longer strive to discover more about the universe and about ourselves? If that's your viewpoint then you are entitled to have it but personally I'm all for progress and discovering more.

I also don't know what to make of your comment "Sure we don't have THE answers for the big question in live, but at least where honest about our own blindness." While it is important to know what you know and recognize what you don't know, I again must ask: Don't you want to know the answers? Aren't you interested in checking out possible answers to the big questions? For thousands of years mankind has looked upon the search for answers to the big questions as something sacred and has revered the philosopher and the searcher. If that's not your thing and you'd rather things remain as they are then fine. You are entitled to your own beliefs.

As to the fiction writing of L. Ron Hubbard, which you describe as "penny pocket sci-fi". Firstly, I like Science Fiction, it's what I grew up reading. The majority of the most popular movies of all time are Sci-Fi and/or Fantasy. Science Fiction and Fantasy is also the genre of fiction that contains the most social commentary and philosophy. So I guess your disparaging comment is part of the Luddite philosophy you seem to be preaching. (If I'm misinterpreting your "join the blind" comment then please tell me.)

Now to address the fact that L. Ron Hubbard wrote fiction as well as philosophy: If you look at the great philosophers of this world you will notice that the best of them were very gifted and talented people who didn't confine themselves to one field. Voltaire is a great example: He wrote poetry, prose, plays, and histories to get across his philosophy. Did the writing of Candide as a story detract from its philosophical content? I think not. He also paved the way for Science Fiction, particularly in his work Micromegas. And what about Plato? His Socratic dialogues, including the "Republic" which is possibly his most famous work, are fictitious conversations of Socrates, yet they communicate Plato's philosophy very clearly.

I would guess that you have never read any of L. Ron Hubbard's work, whether fiction or philosophical because if there is one thing about Ron that is indisputable, it is that he was a great writer. I've given links to some of his philosophical articles below.

My final comment to you, FMS, is this: What I do with my life and what I choose to believe are my choices and I have the right to make those choices (See the Universal Declaration of Human Rights) . I extend the same right to you and I will do everything in my power to make sure every person on this planet has the same right. I would appreciate it if you would extend that right to me and my fellow Scientologists too.

Some articles by L. Ron Hubbard:
- Personal Integrity
- My Philosophy
- The Discoveries of Dianetics
- The True Story Of Scientology
- Religious Influence in Society
- Dianetics, Scientology & Beyond

Books by L. Ron Hubbard:
- The Basic Books of Dianetics and Scientology
- Scientology: A New Slant on Life (a great beginning book)

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