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From: hutch@shark.UUCP (Stephen Hutchison)
Newsgroups: net.books
Subject: Re: SCIENCE: GOOD, BAD, AND BOGUS by Martin Gardner
Message-ID: <250@shark.UUCP>
Date: Sun, 29-Jan-84 17:02:34 EST
Article-I.D.: shark.250
Posted: Sun Jan 29 17:02:34 1984
Date-Received: Fri, 3-Feb-84 02:42:42 EST
References: <851@ihuxr.UUCP>, <4872@umcp-cs.UUCP>
Organization: Tektronix, Wilsonville OR.
Lines: 27

(This follows up a discussion by Rene at umcp-cs of a followup by Lew Mammel
on an earlier topic, were Rene asks why Lew's condemnation of the Nova
program for failing to point out the Scientologist connections of some of
the participants in some of its segments)

It is important to note the number of Scientologists involved precisely
because of their affiliations to that particular organisation.

The Church of Scientology is on the face of it a scam, using spurious
techniques and equipment to delude its followers into believing that
a scientific method is being appled to the solution of their problems.

Obviously some of the persons involved have no knowledge of the fakery
involved in the expensive process of "getting clear" and such persons
are not deliberately practicing chicanery.

The point of all this is, that if ESP phenomena are really a result of
their religious practices (and don't bother to call it anything else)
then members of other religions, or persons who do not wish to become
involved in a religious practice, will be better advised to look for
a different approach.

A further point is that the history of fakery coming from that organisation
renders all assertions coming from it as immediately more questionable
than they were otherwise.

Hutch