Showing posts with label Affected Individuals. Show all posts
Showing posts with label Affected Individuals. Show all posts
Tuesday, October 28, 2008
Letting the LGAT out of the Bag
Letting the LGAT out of the Bag - This December 16, 2004 post from blogger gus van horn may be a few years old, but it is still left me touched, moved and inspired.
Sunday, October 05, 2008
Skeptik is wise.
Even the guy’s username is wise. It is healthy to be a skeptik - it is wise to question and probe and educate oneself about these controversial types of Large Group Awareness Training organizations and companies.
Friday, October 03, 2008
What are the criteria of a ‘cult’ ?
What are the criteria of a ‘cult‘ ?
A relatively new YouTube user, bradbavarde, compares a description from Webster’s Dictionary to his opinion of certain characteristics of a Large Group Awareness Training organization. Take a moment to watch this video about bradbavarde’s commentary on these criteria, and decide for yourself:
Here are some additional resources discussing ‘cult’ criteria:
What is a Destructive Cult? - FACTnet
Criteria for Determining If a Group is a Destructive Cult - Cult Awareness and Information Center
Dr. Robert Jay Lifton’s Criteria for Thought Reform - ex-cult Resource Center
Defining a Cult - The Ross Institute Internet Archive for the Study of Destructive Cults, Controversial Groups and Movements
Cults 101: Checklist of Cult Characteristics - International Cultic Studies Association
What are the Characteristics of a Religious Cult? - The Prem Rawat Talk Forum
And once again, a more humorous but also disturbing take on how to start a “Mind Control Cult”:
As always, you are encouraged to watch the above videos, read the information provided at the links, research more and educate yourselves - and decide for yourself.
Thursday, September 04, 2008
Concerns raised around the blogosphere
Here are some posts you may find enlightening, I know I did.
(Click on the bolded dates for the posts)
Iron Raptor looks like he’s at least using the Internet to do some preliminary research which is a very good thing. Take a look at this post from August 30, 2008.
Skeptik is wise, this post is from August 10, 2008.
Lady Nyo posts in this August 10, 2008 piece how she is “losing friends to a particular cult” and my heart goes out to her.
Though this blog is called Rambling Content, the concerns raised don’t seem rambling at all. Check out this post from August 8, 2008.
Cult News always has great stuff, very well researched, here is a disturbing piece from August 5, 2008.
Marmalade has some interesting points to consider here in this post about New Age from July 21, 2008.
The Macho Response has lots of good stuff as usual, here is a gem from July 17, 2008.
This July 4, 2008 post from the Complicity blog has lots and lots of valuable links and resources.
Wednesday, September 03, 2008
Jedi mind f__k ?
Johan is wise.
Read his wise words in this post from his blog, Aventures d’un métis:A day in the life of a half-breed - specifically this wise blog post from August 27, 2008.
Johan is wise.
Wednesday, June 04, 2008
Controversial development training cited in religious discrimination lawsuits
Friday, May 23, 2008Sources
cc-a-2.5
A controversial development training course called "Landmark Forum" is cited in religious discrimination lawsuits in United States federal courts in New York and Washington, D.C. The seminars are run by a San Francisco, California-based for-profit training company called Landmark Education. The company evolved from Erhard Seminars Training "est", and has faced criticism regarding its techniques and its use of unpaid labor. The sperm bank and surrogacy company Los Angeles-based Growing Generations is named as a defendant in the New York lawsuit, and the Democratic political action committee Twenty-First Century Democrats is a defendant in the Washington, D.C. case.
In separate lawsuits filed in the United States District Court for the Southern District of New York in Manhattan, New York, and in the United States District Court for the District of Columbia in Washington, D.C., former employees are suing their employers for monetary damages and claiming religious discrimination after their employers allegedly mandated that they attend courses at Landmark Education.
In the US$3 million federal lawsuit filed in New York, Scott Glasgow is suing his former employer Growing Generations and its CEO Stuart Miller. Growing Generations maintains sperm banks and also arranges surrogacy for gay couples who wish to have children. The company has offices in New York and Los Angeles, and has done business with celebrities including actor B. D. Wong of Law & Order: SVU.
Glasgow was marketing director of Growing Generations, and claims he was fired in June 2007 after refusing to continue attending Landmark Education seminars. Glasgow is also suing for sexual harassment, and claims Miller came on to him in September 2006. He made approximately $100,000 per year as the company's marketing director, and was the company's only employee based out of New York City. The company's main offices are in Los Angeles.
"I was shocked when I was fired. It took me months to right myself. I want them to stop imposing Landmark on the employees, and I want an apology," said Glasgow in a statement in The Village Voice. Brent Pelton, one of Glasgow's attorneys, stated that: "The Landmark philosophy is deeply ingrained in the culture of the company". Glasgow said that the Landmark Education training courses were "opposite" to his Christian beliefs. According to Glasgow he was questioned by Miller in May 2007 after he walked out of a Landmark Education course, and was fired shortly thereafter. "We stand by the allegations contained in the complaint and we look forward to proving them at trial," said Pelton in a statement to ABC News.
Ian Wallace, an attorney who represents Growing Generations, claimed that Glasgow wasn't fired but walked away from his position. "Growing Generations and Mr. Miller are very confident that these claims will be dismissed ultimately, and there's no factual basis for them whatsoever," said Wallace in a statement to The Village Voice. Lawyers representing Growing Generations and Stuart Miller declined comment to The New York Post, and did not immediately return a message from ABC News.
In Glasgow's complaint, entered into federal court record on April 18, he asserts that Landmark Education constitutes a "religion", and "perceived their philosophy as a form of religion that contradicted his own personal beliefs". He states that when he was promoted to Director of Marketing, he asked Miller if he could stop attending the Landmark sessions but was told that they were mandatory for all of the company's executives and that Landmark is "very much the language of the company." Glasgow said his performance at the company was assessed based on how he was "touching, moving and inspiring" others, a phrase from the Landmark philosophy, as opposed to his business accomplishments at the company. The complaint claims that the actions of Miller and Growing Generations violated Federal, New York State and New York City civil rights laws.
The lawsuit filed in federal court in Washington, D.C. deals with a separate plaintiff and company, but the plaintiff in the suit also claims that religious discrimination took place for allegedly being mandated to attend Landmark Education courses. Kenneth Goldman is suing the United States Democratic political action committee Twenty-First Century Democrats (also 21st Century Democrats) and its former executive director Kelly Young. Goldman was formerly the communications director of 21st Century Democrats.
According to Goldman's complaint, three employees of 21st Century Democrats were fired after refusing to attend the Landmark Forum course. The complaint asserts that Landmark Education has "religious characteristics and theological implications" which influenced the mission of 21st Century Democrats and the way the organization conducted business. Goldman's complaint states that in addition to himself, a training director and field director were also fired after they made it clear they would not attend the Landmark Forum.
Goldman says executive director Young infused Landmark Education jargon terms into staff meetings such as "create possibilities", "create a new context", and "enroll in possibilities". He also claims that Young "urged" staff members to participate in Landmark Education events outside of the workplace, drove employees to and from Landmark functions, and used funds from 21st Century Democrats to pay for employees to attend those functions. Goldman's complaint asserts that he was discriminated against in violation of the District of Columbia Human Rights Act.
In a statement in The Washington Times, the executive director of 21st Century Democrats, Mark Lotwis, called the lawsuit "frivolous" and said: "we're going to defend our organization's integrity". Landmark Education spokeswoman Deborah Beroset said that the Landmark Forum "is in no way religious in nature and any claim to the contrary is simply absurd," and stated: "While we are not a party to this lawsuit and have no firsthand knowledge of it, we can only assume that we are being used as a legal and political football to further the plaintiff"s own financial interests."
The New York lawsuit was filed April 14, and is still in early filing stages. A conference with the federal court judge in the case has been scheduled for June 17. The Washington, D.C. suit began in November 2007, and entered mediation this past March. As of April 15 the parties in the case were due back to court on July 11 to update the court on the mediation process.
Landmark Education is descended from Erhard Seminars Training, also called "est", which was founded by Werner Erhard. est began in 1971, and Erhard's company Werner Erhard and Associates repackaged the course as "The Forum" in 1985. Associates of Erhard bought the license to his "technology" and incorporated Landmark Education in California in 1991.
This is not the first time employees have sued claiming mandatory attendance at "Forum" workshops violated their civil rights. In a lawsuit filed in December 1988 in the United States District Court for the Northern District of Georgia, eight employees of DeKalb Farmers Market in Decatur, Georgia sued their employer claiming their religious freedom and civil rights were violated when they were allegedly coerced into attending "Forum" training sessions. "Many of these training programs, particularly at large corporations, claim to be purely psychological, aimed at improving productivity and morale and loyalty. But in fact they are religious," said University of Denver religious studies professor Carl Raschke in a statement to The Wall Street Journal.
The DeKalb Farmers Market employees were represented by lawyers for the American Civil Liberties Union. Consulting Technologies Inc., an affiliate of Transformational Technologies Inc., was named as a party in the lawsuit. Transformational Technologies was founded by Werner Erhard, and was not named as a party in the suit. The "Forum" course that the employees claimed they were mandated to attend was developed by Werner Erhard and Associates. Employees said that they were fired or pressured to quit after they objected to the Forum courses.
The workers claimed that the Forum course contradicted with their religious beliefs. The plaintiffs in the suit included adherents of varying religious backgrounds, including Christianity and Hinduism. "The sessions put people into a hibernating state. They ask for total loyalty. It's like brainwashing," said Dong Shik Kim, one of the plaintiffs in the case. The plaintiffs said they lost their jobs after objecting to a "new age quasi-religious cult" which they said was developed by Werner Erhard.
The DeKalb Farmers Market denied the allegations, and an attorney for the company Edward D. Buckley III told The Wall Street Journal that employees were encouraged, not coerced, to attend the training sessions. According to The Wall Street Journal, The Forum said it would not sanction workers being coerced to attend its training sessions.
The parties in the DeKalb Farmers Market religious discrimination case came to a settlement in May 1989, and the case was dismissed with prejudice in June. The terms of the out-of-court settlement were not made public, but the employees' attorney Amy Totenberg told The Wall Street Journal that the case "has made employers come to grips with the legitimate boundaries of employee training".
According to Title VII of the Civil Rights Act of 1964, employers must "reasonably accommodate" their employees' religious beliefs unless this creates "undue hardship". In September 1988, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission issued a policy-guidance notice which stated that New Age courses should be handled under Title VII of the Act. According to the Commission, employers must provide "reasonable accommodation" if an employee challenges a training course, unless this causes "undue hardship" for the company.
In October 2006, Landmark Education took legal action against Google, YouTube, the Internet Archive and a website owner in Queensland, Australia in attempts to remove criticism of its products from the Internet. The company sought a subpoena under the Digital Millennium Copyright Act in an attempt to discover the identity of an anonymous critic who uploaded a 2004 French documentary of the Landmark Forum to the Internet. "Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous" (Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus) was produced by Pièces à Conviction, a French investigative journalism news program. The Electronic Frontier Foundation represented the anonymous critic and the Internet Archive, and Landmark withdrew its subpoena in November 2006 in exchange for a promise from the anonymous critic not to repost the video.
Landmark Education itself has come under scrutiny for its controversial labor practices. The company has been investigated by the United States Department of Labor in separate investigations originating out of California, Colorado, and Texas. Investigations focused on the heavy reliance of unpaid labor in the company's workforce, which Landmark Education calls "assistants" and deems volunteers.
An investigation by the U.S. Dept. Labor based out of Colorado found that activities performed by Landmark Education's "assistants" include: "office, clerical, telephone solicitation and enrollment, as well as greeting customers, setting up chairs, handling microphones during the seminars and making coffee. Additionally, a number of volunteers actually teach the courses and provide testimonials during and after the courses." The Colorado investigation's 1996 report found that "No records are kept of any hours worked by any employees." According to a 1998 article in Metro Silicon Valley: "In the end the Department of Labor dropped the issue, leaving Landmark trumpeting about its volunteers' choice in the matter." Metro Silicon Valley reported that Landmark Education at the time employed 451 paid staff, and also utilized the services of 7,500 volunteers.
After an investigation into Landmark Education's labor practices by the U.S. Dept. Labor's offices out of California, the company was deemed to have overtime violations. According to the Department of Labor's 2004 report on the investigation, back wages of $187,569.01 were found due to 45 employees. An investigation by the U.S. Dept. Labor in Texas which concluded in 2005 stated: "Minimum wage violation found. Volunteers (Assistants) are not paid any wages for hours worked while performing the major duties of the firm. The assistants set up rooms, call registrants, collect fees, keep stats of classroom data/participants, file, they also are answering phones, training and leading seminars."
The Texas investigation also discovered an overtime violation. Landmark Education agreed to pay back wages for the overtime violation, but did not comply with the overtime violation found by the U.S. Dept. Labor for the "assistants". Landmark Education denied that the "assistants" are employees, though the Department of Labor report concluded: "Interviews reveal that the employees are taking payments, registering clients, billing, training, recruiting, setting up locations, cleaning, and other duties that would have to be performed by staff if the assistants did not perform them."
According to the 2004 investigative report by Pièces à Conviction in the "Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous" program, Landmark Education was investigated by the French government in 1995. In the "Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous" program volunteers were filmed through a hidden camera and shown performing duties for Landmark Education in France including manning phones, recruitment and financial work for the company, and one volunteer was shown cleaning a toilet.
Le Nouvel Observateur reported that after "Voyage au pays des nouveaux gourous" aired in France, labor inspectors investigated Landmark Education's use of unpaid volunteers. According to Le Nouvel Observateur, one month after the labor investigation took place the French branch of the company had disbanded. A former "Introduction Leader" to the Landmark Forum, Lars Bergwik, has recently posted a series of videos to YouTube critical of the company and its practices. Bergwik appeared on a 2004 investigative journalism program on Sweden's Channel 4, Kalla Fakta (Cold Facts). According to Bergwik, after the Kalla Fakta program on Landmark Education aired, "Landmark left Sweden".
Related news
Sources
- "Lawsuit Claims Sex Harassment, Cultish Behavior". ABC News, May 23, 2008
- "Sperm bank employee claims harassment". United Press International, May 22, 2008
- Kati Cornell "Bondage Boss Is A Bad Seed: Suit". New York Post, May 22, 2008
- Graham Rayman "Suit Against Sperm-Bank Firm Claims Sexual Harassment and Cult-Like Behavior". Village Voice, May 20, 2008
- Lars Bergwik "Landmark Education Lars Bergwik part 1". YouTube, May 6, 2008
- Jim McElhatton "Democratic PAC faces lawsuit for employee 'religious events'". The Washington Times, November 27, 2007
- David Wachtel (attorney for plaintiff) "Kenneth Goldman v. Twenty-First Century Democrats". United States District Court for the District of Columbia, November 19, 2007
- Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Dept. Labor (Texas) "Compliance Action Report - Landmark Education". United States Department of Labor, June 26, 2007
- Marie Lemonnier "With the gurus wearing neckties: 395 euros for three days". Le Nouvel Observateur, May 19, 2005
- Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Dept. Labor (California) "Narrative Report (FLSA) - Landmark Education". United States Department of Labor, December 8, 2004
- Traci Hukill "The est of Friends: Werner Erhard's protégés and siblings carry the torch for a '90s incarnation of the '70s 'training' that some of us just didn't get". Metro Silicon Valley, July 9, 1998
- Wage and Hour Division, U.S. Dept. Labor (Colorado) "Compliance Action Report - Landmark Education". United States Department of Labor, May 4, 1996
- Margaret Singer "Intruding into the Workplace". Cults in Our Midst, 1995
- "'New Age' Training Suit Against Market Settled Out of Court". The Wall Street Journal, May 31, 1989
- George White (Los Angeles Times) "Employees strike back against 'human potential seminars'". Times Union, March 25, 1989
- Martha Brannigan "Employers' 'New Age' Training Programs Lead to Lawsuits Over Workers' Rights". The Wall Street Journal, January 9, 1989
- Martha Brannigan "Training Course Sparks U.S. Suit By Market Workers". The Wall Street Journal, December 8, 1988
cc-a-2.5
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
Former ‘Landmark Forum’ Introduction Leader speaks out
Lars Bergwik was an “Introduction Leader” to the Landmark Forum course at Landmark Education. He is now speaking out publicly against Landmark Education in video posts on YouTube.
I think his videos speak best for themselves so I will just say go watch them. If you don’t have much time, just watch the first one.
Here are his videos about Landmark (there are seven so far):
Landmark Education Lars Bergwik part 1
Landmark Education Lars Bergwik Video part 2
Landmark Education - Lars Bergwik on Randy McNamara - FL
Landmark Education - Lars talks part one
Landmark Education - Lars talks part two
Landmark education -Lars talks part three
Landmark Eduction - Lars talks part four
Some links:
Discussion thread about it at Cult Education Forum
Discussion thread about it at alt.fan.landmark
Blog post at The Macho Response: Go, Lars, Go!!!
Saturday, October 06, 2007
Mankind Project or Dancing Naked With Other Men While Beating Cooked Chickens
The controversial group known as Mankind Project and also known as New Warrior Training Adventure has gotten some interesting online exposure lately.
A little background - Mark Roggeman, an exit-counselor for individuals trapped in cults, writes at the Haven Ministries site : "MKP [Mankind Project] history comes through a long line of Human Potential Movements that began in the 1960’s." Roggeman cites Mind Dynamics, and the book The Pit: A Group Encounter Defiled for some background on the Human Potential Movement. He goes on to cite some controversial groups that influenced this movement as well as Mankind Project, such as Lifespring, Werner Erhard, Erhard Seminars Training (Roggeman puts it that this group has "transformed itself into the Landmark Forum."), Justin Sterling and Sterling Institute of Relationship. More at Roggeman's article, aptly titled The Mankind Project. Also check out Roggeman's article, Oh Man, What Kind of Project Is This?
If you really want to learn a whole lot more about some of the more interesting and somewhat controversial practices of the group, check out this long discussion thread at the Cult Education Forum. As of last check, the message board thread is over 52 pages long !
Oh, and the satirical poke, humorous take for the title of this post? Yeah, that wasn't just something the writer of this post made up - according to the Houston Press, men do really dance naked while beating cooked chickens at some of these Mankind Project events !
But the truth is not funny, and not satirical, unfortunately. For more on this, read the sad, sad story, of Michael Scinto.
Recent articles on Mankind Project :
Ronnie Earle, Travis Co. (TX) DA, Dances Naked With Other Men While Beating Cooked Chickens, Red State
Cover Story: The ManKind Project, Houston Press, October 4, 2007
Naked Men: The ManKind Project and Michael Scinto, Houston Press, October 4, 2007 - "The organization was supposed to make him a better man. Instead, his parents say, it made him a dead one."
For more background and resources :
The Mankind Project, article at Haven Ministries site, written by Mark Roggeman - "Mark Roggeman has been involved in outreach to those affected by cults and other high demand groups for a period of thirty years."
Mankind Project / New Warrior Training Adventure, information and archived articles, at the Rick A. Ross Institute for the Study of Destructive Cults, Controversial Groups and Movements
Oh Man, What Kind of Project Is This?", by Mark Roggeman, Midwest Outreach 12 (1), Pages 8-10.
Discussion groups and message boards :
Discussion thread on Mankind Project, Cult Education Forum, begun with the emotional plea: "Anyone with any information regarding this group, please I beg you to post it here. It is horrifying what these men and women go through. Any feedback is appreciated."
ex_mkp · ex_mkp-Freedom from ManKind Project cult, Yahoo! Group, mentioned in the Houston Press article, Naked Men: The ManKind Project and Michael Scinto - "This group is for help and support of men and their families who have had problems with the ManKind Project or NWTA New Warrior Training Adventure "
A little background - Mark Roggeman, an exit-counselor for individuals trapped in cults, writes at the Haven Ministries site : "MKP [Mankind Project] history comes through a long line of Human Potential Movements that began in the 1960’s." Roggeman cites Mind Dynamics, and the book The Pit: A Group Encounter Defiled for some background on the Human Potential Movement. He goes on to cite some controversial groups that influenced this movement as well as Mankind Project, such as Lifespring, Werner Erhard, Erhard Seminars Training (Roggeman puts it that this group has "transformed itself into the Landmark Forum."), Justin Sterling and Sterling Institute of Relationship. More at Roggeman's article, aptly titled The Mankind Project. Also check out Roggeman's article, Oh Man, What Kind of Project Is This?
If you really want to learn a whole lot more about some of the more interesting and somewhat controversial practices of the group, check out this long discussion thread at the Cult Education Forum. As of last check, the message board thread is over 52 pages long !
Oh, and the satirical poke, humorous take for the title of this post? Yeah, that wasn't just something the writer of this post made up - according to the Houston Press, men do really dance naked while beating cooked chickens at some of these Mankind Project events !
But the truth is not funny, and not satirical, unfortunately. For more on this, read the sad, sad story, of Michael Scinto.
Recent articles on Mankind Project :
Ronnie Earle, Travis Co. (TX) DA, Dances Naked With Other Men While Beating Cooked Chickens, Red State
Cover Story: The ManKind Project, Houston Press, October 4, 2007
Naked Men: The ManKind Project and Michael Scinto, Houston Press, October 4, 2007 - "The organization was supposed to make him a better man. Instead, his parents say, it made him a dead one."
For more background and resources :
The Mankind Project, article at Haven Ministries site, written by Mark Roggeman - "Mark Roggeman has been involved in outreach to those affected by cults and other high demand groups for a period of thirty years."
Mankind Project / New Warrior Training Adventure, information and archived articles, at the Rick A. Ross Institute for the Study of Destructive Cults, Controversial Groups and Movements
Oh Man, What Kind of Project Is This?", by Mark Roggeman, Midwest Outreach 12 (1), Pages 8-10.
Discussion groups and message boards :
Discussion thread on Mankind Project, Cult Education Forum, begun with the emotional plea: "Anyone with any information regarding this group, please I beg you to post it here. It is horrifying what these men and women go through. Any feedback is appreciated."
ex_mkp · ex_mkp-Freedom from ManKind Project cult, Yahoo! Group, mentioned in the Houston Press article, Naked Men: The ManKind Project and Michael Scinto - "This group is for help and support of men and their families who have had problems with the ManKind Project or NWTA New Warrior Training Adventure "
Saturday, September 08, 2007
The Death of Stephen Burns
Stephen Burns was thirteen when he was stabbed to death by his mother, obstetrician Donna Marie Anderson, on February 24, 2002. There were several warning signs leading up to the death of Stephen Burns, which pointed out that Donna Marie Anderson was not mentally well.
According to an article in the Pioneer Press, 'Not woman we knew' :
"She recently had enrolled in a series of self-awareness sessions through Landmark Education Corp. , a self-improvement program based in San Francisco. Anderson participated in multiple sessions, but Landmark asked her not to participate anymore after employee Josh Watters overheard a conversation among participants in Landmark's Edina office.'They had just said that she had expressed that the medical community in Minneapolis is being run by the Mafia and that she had to get out of the state.' "
Cult News elaborates on the history of other incidents related to criminal acts by other individuals who had previously been involved in the Landmark Forum training, in the article: Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education. This article discusses incidents of psychosis reported after Werner Erhard's est Training, and cites The New York Times article Reports of Psychosis After Erhard Course.
The details involving the events leading up to the death of Stephen Burns are described in the article cited above, 'Not woman we knew', and more information can also be found at the following articles. Feel free to read at your leisure to learn more background on this tragedy :
Cult News, Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education, June 21, 2006
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Mom sentenced for fatally stabbing son, July 6, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, 37 years for mom who killed son, July 6, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, Slain boy's mother saw him as angel, March 10, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Psych review ordered of mother who killed son, March 6, 2002
The Stanford Daily, Former resident charged in stabbing, March 6, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Slain Burlingame boy called bright and giving, March 4, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Woman accused of killing son pleads guilty in court, March 2, 2002
Pioneer Press, 'Not woman we knew', March 1, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, Mom accused of killing son demands to speak to press, February 28, 2002
According to an article in the Pioneer Press, 'Not woman we knew' :
"She recently had enrolled in a series of self-awareness sessions through Landmark Education Corp. , a self-improvement program based in San Francisco. Anderson participated in multiple sessions, but Landmark asked her not to participate anymore after employee Josh Watters overheard a conversation among participants in Landmark's Edina office.'They had just said that she had expressed that the medical community in Minneapolis is being run by the Mafia and that she had to get out of the state.' "
Cult News elaborates on the history of other incidents related to criminal acts by other individuals who had previously been involved in the Landmark Forum training, in the article: Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education. This article discusses incidents of psychosis reported after Werner Erhard's est Training, and cites The New York Times article Reports of Psychosis After Erhard Course.
The details involving the events leading up to the death of Stephen Burns are described in the article cited above, 'Not woman we knew', and more information can also be found at the following articles. Feel free to read at your leisure to learn more background on this tragedy :
Cult News, Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education, June 21, 2006
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Mom sentenced for fatally stabbing son, July 6, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, 37 years for mom who killed son, July 6, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, Slain boy's mother saw him as angel, March 10, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Psych review ordered of mother who killed son, March 6, 2002
The Stanford Daily, Former resident charged in stabbing, March 6, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Slain Burlingame boy called bright and giving, March 4, 2002
The Berkeley Daily Planet, Woman accused of killing son pleads guilty in court, March 2, 2002
Pioneer Press, 'Not woman we knew', March 1, 2002
San Francisco Chronicle, Mom accused of killing son demands to speak to press, February 28, 2002
Tuesday, August 14, 2007
The Death of Jack Slee
Died during an est Training :
James "Jack" Slee died on August 14, 1983, while standing on the stage of the Park Plaza Hotel's Grand Ballroom in New Haven, Connecticut. When the first responders arrived in the form of the New Haven fire rescue squad, the firefighters were initially prevented from entering the ballroom to treat Slee.
A $5 million lawsuit filed by Slee's family in 1984 was decided by a federal Jury in Connecticut, in October 1992. Though the jury did find Werner Erhard and his company had been negligent and caused Jack Slee severe emotional distress, they ruled that the est training did not "proximately cause" Slee's death. (Pressman 210)
Earlier, in November 1983, the Connecticut State Medical Examiner's office cited emotional stress as a factor in Slee's death: "Mr. Slee collapsed in a situation in which high emotional stress could be expected. Such emotional stress may have neural and hormonal effects which are deleterious to cardiac rhythm.." (Pressman 208)
Additional resources:
James Slee article on Answers.com
The death of Jack Slee, est participant, August 14, 1983 - excerpted from Steven Pressman's book: Outrageous Betrayal, The Dark Journey of Werner Erhard from est to Exile. See also more excerpts from the book Outrageous Betrayal: Enlightenment in Two Weekends - The est Training, and A Door to Door Mind Salesman.
Slee v. Erhard 7 F.3d 220 (1993) - United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
Google News Archives search, newspaper articles (1984 - 1991)
See also archived news articles:
The Chronicle Telegram, September 23, 1984, Elyria, Ohio
The Daily Intelligencer, September 23, 1984, Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Syracuse Herald-Journal, September 24, 1984, Syracuse, New York
The Capital, September 24, 1984, Annapolis, Maryland
"PHHT! GURU OF EST CULT VANISHES EX-USED-CAR SALESMAN, REVILED AND IDOLIZED, LEAVES LENGTHY TRAIL OF QUESTIONS, LAWSUITS", Rocky Mountain News, May 9, 1991
"New Age guru dogged by worldly troubles Est founder Werner Erhard unfound, leaving trail of innuendo and accusations", April 28, 1991, Elizabeth Fernandez, Dallas Morning News
James "Jack" Slee died on August 14, 1983, while standing on the stage of the Park Plaza Hotel's Grand Ballroom in New Haven, Connecticut. When the first responders arrived in the form of the New Haven fire rescue squad, the firefighters were initially prevented from entering the ballroom to treat Slee.
A $5 million lawsuit filed by Slee's family in 1984 was decided by a federal Jury in Connecticut, in October 1992. Though the jury did find Werner Erhard and his company had been negligent and caused Jack Slee severe emotional distress, they ruled that the est training did not "proximately cause" Slee's death. (Pressman 210)
Earlier, in November 1983, the Connecticut State Medical Examiner's office cited emotional stress as a factor in Slee's death: "Mr. Slee collapsed in a situation in which high emotional stress could be expected. Such emotional stress may have neural and hormonal effects which are deleterious to cardiac rhythm.." (Pressman 208)
Additional resources:
James Slee article on Answers.com
The death of Jack Slee, est participant, August 14, 1983 - excerpted from Steven Pressman's book: Outrageous Betrayal, The Dark Journey of Werner Erhard from est to Exile. See also more excerpts from the book Outrageous Betrayal: Enlightenment in Two Weekends - The est Training, and A Door to Door Mind Salesman.
Slee v. Erhard 7 F.3d 220 (1993) - United States Court of Appeals, Second Circuit.
Google News Archives search, newspaper articles (1984 - 1991)
See also archived news articles:
The Chronicle Telegram, September 23, 1984, Elyria, Ohio
The Daily Intelligencer, September 23, 1984, Doylestown, Pennsylvania
Syracuse Herald-Journal, September 24, 1984, Syracuse, New York
The Capital, September 24, 1984, Annapolis, Maryland
"PHHT! GURU OF EST CULT VANISHES EX-USED-CAR SALESMAN, REVILED AND IDOLIZED, LEAVES LENGTHY TRAIL OF QUESTIONS, LAWSUITS", Rocky Mountain News, May 9, 1991
"New Age guru dogged by worldly troubles Est founder Werner Erhard unfound, leaving trail of innuendo and accusations", April 28, 1991, Elizabeth Fernandez, Dallas Morning News
Thursday, August 09, 2007
"The Secret" - David Schirmer exposed
This is an investigation into one of the individuals that appeared on the motivational DVD, "The Secret." The investigation was done by Australia's Channel Nine on the program A Current Affair, with correspondent Ben Fordham, and so far appears in three segments.
Note: Previous post on related topic in blog post entitled "The Secret... Cult?"
Part One - "The Secret Exposed", May 28, 2007:
Part Two - "The Secret Con", June 1, 2007:
Part Three - The Secret's David Schirmer Under Investigation:
More news coverage:
"Trading Secrets", July 14, 2007, PerthNow, The Sunday Times
"In another development, the only Australian motivational speaker to feature in The Secret, investment guru David Schirmer, is under investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. It follows a report by A Current Affair, which raised serious questions over his business dealings and discovered a long line of unpaid and disgruntled investors."
Other related sites:
"The Truth About David Schirmer" - Some informative pieces, from July 2007
Get Rich Quack: David Schirmer of The Secret - Get Rich Slowly
Note: Previous post on related topic in blog post entitled "The Secret... Cult?"
Part One - "The Secret Exposed", May 28, 2007:
Part Two - "The Secret Con", June 1, 2007:
Part Three - The Secret's David Schirmer Under Investigation:
More news coverage:
"Trading Secrets", July 14, 2007, PerthNow, The Sunday Times
"In another development, the only Australian motivational speaker to feature in The Secret, investment guru David Schirmer, is under investigation by the Australian Securities and Investments Commission. It follows a report by A Current Affair, which raised serious questions over his business dealings and discovered a long line of unpaid and disgruntled investors."
Other related sites:
"The Truth About David Schirmer" - Some informative pieces, from July 2007
Get Rich Quack: David Schirmer of The Secret - Get Rich Slowly
Monday, August 06, 2007
"brain washing in a godless big business cult"
Note: That is the original title by the Youtube video blogger, "sablechicken". It is a most interesting and touching, moving, and inspiring video.
It will be most interesting to see how Youtube will affect exposing controversial groups, movements, and dangerous large group awareness training programs - as it becomes easier and more prevalent for individuals to post their experiences and thoughts online in a video format.
It will be most interesting to see how Youtube will affect exposing controversial groups, movements, and dangerous large group awareness training programs - as it becomes easier and more prevalent for individuals to post their experiences and thoughts online in a video format.
Friday, February 23, 2007
The Darren Mack Case
A special called "The Darren Mack Case", will air tomorrow, February 24th, on CBS, on the program 48 Hours.
Here is some more relevant information on the case:
Former Landmark leader wanted for murder surrenders to FBI - Cult News
Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education - Cult News
Reno man called kin after judge was shot: He's wanted in wife's slaying, sought for questioning on jurist - San Francisco Chronicle
"48 Hours"The Darren Mack Case (2007) - IMDB
Here is some more relevant information on the case:
Former Landmark leader wanted for murder surrenders to FBI - Cult News
Alleged murderer and sniper linked to Landmark Education - Cult News
Reno man called kin after judge was shot: He's wanted in wife's slaying, sought for questioning on jurist - San Francisco Chronicle
"48 Hours"The Darren Mack Case (2007) - IMDB
Friday, February 09, 2007
The Death of Robert Jenkins
Some interesting links and news coverage relating to the death of Robert Jenkins. Read them yourself and draw your own conclusions..
Slain man's mom suing accused : "She's also suing a company that she says contributed to the alleged killer's insanity. " - Tulsa World
Woman sues alleged killer, company on behalf of son's estate - KSWO, Lawton, Oklahoma
Same story coverage, at KFDA, Amarillo, Texas , and at KTEN, Ada, Oklahoma.
Mother of slain mailman sues alleged killer, company - Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise, Oklahoma
Suit targets firm in postal killing - Tulsa World
Landmark Education defendant in wrongful death lawsuit - CultNews
More information and legal documents also available at the Landmark Education litigation archive, hosted at the Rick Ross Institute
Some of these documents include the previous Third Amended Petition (also as PDF) in the case, as well as the plaintiff's Response to Landmark's Motion to Dismiss, and their Response to Landmark's Motion Interlocutory.
Slain man's mom suing accused : "She's also suing a company that she says contributed to the alleged killer's insanity. " - Tulsa World
Woman sues alleged killer, company on behalf of son's estate - KSWO, Lawton, Oklahoma
Same story coverage, at KFDA, Amarillo, Texas , and at KTEN, Ada, Oklahoma.
Mother of slain mailman sues alleged killer, company - Bartlesville Examiner Enterprise, Oklahoma
Suit targets firm in postal killing - Tulsa World
Landmark Education defendant in wrongful death lawsuit - CultNews
More information and legal documents also available at the Landmark Education litigation archive, hosted at the Rick Ross Institute
Some of these documents include the previous Third Amended Petition (also as PDF) in the case, as well as the plaintiff's Response to Landmark's Motion to Dismiss, and their Response to Landmark's Motion Interlocutory.
Wednesday, December 06, 2006
Counting the cost from all sides
I was reading through the message boards on the Rick Ross website and I came across a couple of intriguing posts regarding PSI Seminars.
Both of them are posted below and it is eerie how they echo the same story, but told from different sides. I have checked and the two women involved are actually relating different, but very similar experiences.
I thought by posting them it would be a touching and painful example of what LGATs can cost people, including those directly affected and those indirectly affected.
The first post:
Hi, I have read all the posts here on PSI and I would like to add what happened to me. I had a friend, a very good friend, recommend PSI to me about three years ago. I attended the basic class and immediately felt invigorated. I noticed a change in my attitude towards my husband and family. Looking back on it I was a bitch. Nothing was good enough and I wanted more from my relationships then was reasonable. I tried to get my husband to sign up for the basic on the third day of class. He refused after he asked me to describe what they do there; I told him that he would have to experience it for himself, which I see is a common statement in most of these posts. I was angry at him for not wanting to support me in my need to have him attend. Later I came to understand why. The facilitor told all of us that PSI is a tool to a happier life and everyone in your life will not understand what you have gone through until they attend also. I remember the slogan “resistance is persistence.” If the people who love you don’t attend the seminars they are holding you back, so you need to leave them behind.
At the end of the basic I signed up for PSI 7 at a cost of $3000.00 dollars. I took the money from our joint account. My husband was obviously upset with this but I didn’t care. I felt this change/experience was worth the cost and the grief it cost me with him. He put his foot down and said enough is enough.
I went to the ranch and participated in the pole, the wall, the ledge, the barn dance and wore the clothing that was selected by my PSI buddy. Clothing that I felt uncomfortable wearing in even a private setting. I looked into the eyes of several men, strangers to me up to then, and felt like they actually wanted to have a relationship with me, beyond the physical. I felt they had seen the real person underneath. I came home gushing like I had the time of my life. My husband was angry as I left without a word of warning to him or my family. He had even called the police to report me missing. I even signed up for the Leadership Seminar for $3600.00 dollars and charged it to my credit card. My husband blew up at me, asking me if I had lost my mind.
I told him upon my return that if he loved me he would find the time and money to attend the training. I told him that it would save our marriage. Looking back on it our marriage was on its fifth year and we were both happy. We were both looking forward to our lives together and starting a family. And more importantly he was my best friend. He suggested marriage counseling and we set up an appointment.
After speaking to the therapist I felt like she was ganging up on me so I refused to go back. Three weeks after returning from PSI7 I left my husband and filed for divorce. I gave up the man I had married, the one who protected me from harm. The man who told me he loved me more than anyone in his life. I gave up my husband, my best friend, for my own self interests when I should have known better.
I was out on my own and loving the attention I got from my PSI brothers and sisters. The support for my move, or shift, was almost overwhelming. I felt that the people in my group were the only ones who could understand; they were the only ones who would love and support me; my husband and family were strangers to me now even though I had their love and support for my entire life. I would communicate with my PSI group on a yahoo group site, but the communication was short lived as they started having their own problems. The group stopped talking and the messages died out after a few short months. In the meantime I quit my job and started looking for something better.
While waiting for the divorce to go through I stayed with my best friend, but the relationship was strained as my husband and her husband were also friends. Her husband started watching me and would inform his wife that under no circumstance would she be going to PSI. I tried to get her to go to PSI. I tried so hard to convince her that this was the right decision for me but she continued to tell me that I should tried to work things out with my husband. I saw this as being unsupportive, moved out and dropped that friendship. We were friends for 10 years. I had learned one thing from PSI and that was not to do what people expected me to do. I moved in with my mom and this was more than she could take. She asked me to leave after two months. I was staffing the basic and playing PLD and trying to get others to enroll for the basic. I failed to see that I was on a course of self destruction and I was still looking for a job.
In the meantime the divorce was finalized, the house was sold and after taking a loss on the property I moved into an apartment until I could save some money. I bought a house a few months after the divorce. I bought the house for more then I could effort and I didn’t care. I also bought a new car and later had that repossessed because I couldn’t afford both the car and the house. I felt that this was my reality and everything would be alright.
After a time I decided that I needed to find another man in my life. I see references to that “number 10 relationship.” This was what I was looking for. I attempted liaisons with several men and could not find one that could understand why I had this attitude towards life. I wanted more and I wanted it immediately, but the world was not cooperating with my reality. I turned to an internet dating service and started looking for the “perfect” relationship and after meeting a few men I found the one I was looking for. He wined and dined me, told me that I was perfect for him. I thought I had found that number 10 relationship. I took this relationship for what I thought it was, LOVE. I was so involved with the relationship with this man that I decided immediately to move in with him when he asked me. We had only dated three months. I sold my house and moved in with him. The little money I had earned from the sale went into a joint account and he spent it on one of his new toys. I failed to pay attention that this man, my number 10 relationship, had just divorced his second wife a few short months before I met him on the internet. He had four small kids from his first marriage and I became a baby sitter when he wanted to go out with the boys on weekends and drink half his salary.
It was about 2 years after PSI7 he asked me to marry him. We were married and a few weeks afterward he quit his job and had me put him and his four kids on my health insurance. He stayed at home and would expect me to wait on him and his kids hand and foot when I got home from work. It was a few short months later when realizations started to hit home. I was asking myself what the hell I was doing with this man and his kids. He was treating me like I was nothing more than a maid. This was my number 10 relationship?
I realize now that I am the failure. Not as a PSI graduate, but as a human being and as a woman and a wife. I was duped into believing that PSI was the answer to everything wrong in my life. I threw away my first husband, a man I loved for a relationship with 78 strangers. People who said they loved me, not because of who I was, but because of what they had made us. The relationship with these people did not last. My first husband suffered the most as he tried several times to get me to see reason after I left. I threw away my friends as they refused to see my point of view when in actuality I should have seen theirs. My point of view was more important. My family disowned me after my outbursts towards them when they refused to listen to my new found views on life.
It is now too late to go back and fix the wrongs I did, and I have tried. My ex-husband refuses to talk or even see me, and I can’t really blame him. I left him without any explanation. I didn’t even shed a tear over the loss of our marriage, he once said I ripped the heart from his chest and didn’t even think enough on our relationship to take the time to smash it. And he was right, that is exactly what I did.
Now I am in a broken marriage to another fool who takes me for granted, treats me like I am his slave, and I have no where to go, no one to turn to, and this is what I wanted in life? Even the friend who introduced me to PSI dumped her marriage and is pretty much in the same boat I’m in. And I hate her for getting me involved in this.
I was a stupid, arrogant, self centered fool. I agree, PSI does give you the tools, the tools to destroy your life. It destroyed my life with a good man and earned me the likes of the “Al Bundy” personality I’m with now. I am ashamed of what I did. I am ashamed of what I have become and I would not recommend PSI for anyone.
Sorry for the long post.
The second post:
Hi everyone, thanks for letting me join. I started doing research on PSI a few weeks ago as I have a major problem with my husband. First I have not attended PSI nor have I taken any Large Group Awareness Training Programs, therefore I have no idea what they do there except what I have learned on the board and other sites. My husband has also not attended PSI.
My husband and I have been married for about 2 years this past October and were dating a year before that. The relationship is very good except for the fact that his first wife attended PSI7 a few weeks before she left him about five years ago. (This was my first marriage and his second.) Unfortunately my husband still runs in the same circle of friends as his ex-wife. The rumors run rampant, people think she is out of her mind and naturally they go to him and tell him what’s going on in her life.
My husband has started coming home these past few months with the rumors that are currently going around about his ex. A few months ago, after several failed relationships, she started dating guys from an internet dating service, apparently met a man who has been married twice before and has some children from one of those marriages (not sure which). This new guy it seems is not the nicest person. Lately it seems she has made some drastic changes to her life style. I would have said it appears that she is suffering from a midlife crisis but after reading this material I can see she might still be under the influence of PSI. I would add that I do not know if she is still attending the seminars.
When she left my husband a few years ago she immediately purchased a new house and car, neither of which she could afford. The house was lost to a foreclosure and the car repossessed several months later. Several times she has called my husband asking him for money and because money was tight he gave her what she could so as to not damage their credit rating. He found out later she was buying more of these seminars and it had placed him in a hole financially as well. After being gone for six months she filed for a divorce leaving him with most of her bills.
Now when I met my husband I was taken with the shy, but confident person he was. He was a kind and caring man who loves his family and friends. He would give you the clothes off his back and is always ready to lend a hand to a friend. He has a heart of gold and I love him for the person he is. During our dating relationship I thought he was haunted by something in his past as there was always something distant about him. I fell in love with the man and I initiated a relationship with him after he had been divorced for two years. But I now believe that my husband still loves his ex-wife, and it is hard for him to gain some distance from his relationship with her. According to him he was unaware what PSI was about at the time she was initially going to it as she was very level headed when they were dating and later married. She always had a sharp sense of herself and took care of things like most of us do in the course of our lives. After taking PSI she returned with a new found attitude and started spending money like it was water. She spent their savings and charging the seminars to their credit cards, which left him in debt to the amount of $30,000 dollars. Guess who had to pay when she left and divorced him?
So for the past few weeks my husband comes home and seems to be depressed. Last week he told me the reason that he is having problems with all this and that is why he is sometimes preoccupied; he is worried about his ex-wife. He told me that he considered her the ‘true love’ of his life and continues to love her in a spiritual sense. He says he loves me, but is still haunted by his feelings for her. He said he sometime thinks of her when he sees something or someone that reminds him of her and is sadden when he thinks of the loss of his marriage. He said he is reminded of the good times and thinks that his marriage to her could have been saved if she had stayed away from PSI. These memories cause him to become depressed and more so lately when hearing the rumors about the damage she is doing to her life.
Now I have tried to understand why he feels this way and that’s why I am checking out these websites. I am afraid that I am going to lose him because of this. After reading the material here I am scared to death. I can’t see how someone can throw their marriage away after attending these seminars, but after reading several examples here I understand that she is too far gone to help. I also see why my husband has these feelings. I feel that this has scarred him more deeply than he lets on and I feel so bad for him. There was nothing he could have done to save his marriage and yet he stills feels responsible. How do I get him to understand this is not his fault, that it was her responsibility? I have tried to make him see what this group did to her but he still feels that he is supposed to take care of her. He even broke down and cried, cried so much I thought he was having a nervous break down.
I don’t want to tell him that this is putting our marriage in trouble for fear it will cause him to go into a deeper depression, and I don’t want it to be the end of my marriage, but it seems he is more concerned with her then he is for me. I am very scared for him as he has come to be very depressed about all this and it seems to be getting worse. I don’t know how much more I can take. For that matter I don’t know how much more he can take.
Anyone have any suggestions?
Interesting Links
Psi Seminars Search - Rip-off Report.com
Psi Seminars / Psi World - FACTNet Message Board
The Awareness Page - Data and historical information on Psi Seminars origins
Both of them are posted below and it is eerie how they echo the same story, but told from different sides. I have checked and the two women involved are actually relating different, but very similar experiences.
I thought by posting them it would be a touching and painful example of what LGATs can cost people, including those directly affected and those indirectly affected.
The first post:
Hi, I have read all the posts here on PSI and I would like to add what happened to me. I had a friend, a very good friend, recommend PSI to me about three years ago. I attended the basic class and immediately felt invigorated. I noticed a change in my attitude towards my husband and family. Looking back on it I was a bitch. Nothing was good enough and I wanted more from my relationships then was reasonable. I tried to get my husband to sign up for the basic on the third day of class. He refused after he asked me to describe what they do there; I told him that he would have to experience it for himself, which I see is a common statement in most of these posts. I was angry at him for not wanting to support me in my need to have him attend. Later I came to understand why. The facilitor told all of us that PSI is a tool to a happier life and everyone in your life will not understand what you have gone through until they attend also. I remember the slogan “resistance is persistence.” If the people who love you don’t attend the seminars they are holding you back, so you need to leave them behind.
At the end of the basic I signed up for PSI 7 at a cost of $3000.00 dollars. I took the money from our joint account. My husband was obviously upset with this but I didn’t care. I felt this change/experience was worth the cost and the grief it cost me with him. He put his foot down and said enough is enough.
I went to the ranch and participated in the pole, the wall, the ledge, the barn dance and wore the clothing that was selected by my PSI buddy. Clothing that I felt uncomfortable wearing in even a private setting. I looked into the eyes of several men, strangers to me up to then, and felt like they actually wanted to have a relationship with me, beyond the physical. I felt they had seen the real person underneath. I came home gushing like I had the time of my life. My husband was angry as I left without a word of warning to him or my family. He had even called the police to report me missing. I even signed up for the Leadership Seminar for $3600.00 dollars and charged it to my credit card. My husband blew up at me, asking me if I had lost my mind.
I told him upon my return that if he loved me he would find the time and money to attend the training. I told him that it would save our marriage. Looking back on it our marriage was on its fifth year and we were both happy. We were both looking forward to our lives together and starting a family. And more importantly he was my best friend. He suggested marriage counseling and we set up an appointment.
After speaking to the therapist I felt like she was ganging up on me so I refused to go back. Three weeks after returning from PSI7 I left my husband and filed for divorce. I gave up the man I had married, the one who protected me from harm. The man who told me he loved me more than anyone in his life. I gave up my husband, my best friend, for my own self interests when I should have known better.
I was out on my own and loving the attention I got from my PSI brothers and sisters. The support for my move, or shift, was almost overwhelming. I felt that the people in my group were the only ones who could understand; they were the only ones who would love and support me; my husband and family were strangers to me now even though I had their love and support for my entire life. I would communicate with my PSI group on a yahoo group site, but the communication was short lived as they started having their own problems. The group stopped talking and the messages died out after a few short months. In the meantime I quit my job and started looking for something better.
While waiting for the divorce to go through I stayed with my best friend, but the relationship was strained as my husband and her husband were also friends. Her husband started watching me and would inform his wife that under no circumstance would she be going to PSI. I tried to get her to go to PSI. I tried so hard to convince her that this was the right decision for me but she continued to tell me that I should tried to work things out with my husband. I saw this as being unsupportive, moved out and dropped that friendship. We were friends for 10 years. I had learned one thing from PSI and that was not to do what people expected me to do. I moved in with my mom and this was more than she could take. She asked me to leave after two months. I was staffing the basic and playing PLD and trying to get others to enroll for the basic. I failed to see that I was on a course of self destruction and I was still looking for a job.
In the meantime the divorce was finalized, the house was sold and after taking a loss on the property I moved into an apartment until I could save some money. I bought a house a few months after the divorce. I bought the house for more then I could effort and I didn’t care. I also bought a new car and later had that repossessed because I couldn’t afford both the car and the house. I felt that this was my reality and everything would be alright.
After a time I decided that I needed to find another man in my life. I see references to that “number 10 relationship.” This was what I was looking for. I attempted liaisons with several men and could not find one that could understand why I had this attitude towards life. I wanted more and I wanted it immediately, but the world was not cooperating with my reality. I turned to an internet dating service and started looking for the “perfect” relationship and after meeting a few men I found the one I was looking for. He wined and dined me, told me that I was perfect for him. I thought I had found that number 10 relationship. I took this relationship for what I thought it was, LOVE. I was so involved with the relationship with this man that I decided immediately to move in with him when he asked me. We had only dated three months. I sold my house and moved in with him. The little money I had earned from the sale went into a joint account and he spent it on one of his new toys. I failed to pay attention that this man, my number 10 relationship, had just divorced his second wife a few short months before I met him on the internet. He had four small kids from his first marriage and I became a baby sitter when he wanted to go out with the boys on weekends and drink half his salary.
It was about 2 years after PSI7 he asked me to marry him. We were married and a few weeks afterward he quit his job and had me put him and his four kids on my health insurance. He stayed at home and would expect me to wait on him and his kids hand and foot when I got home from work. It was a few short months later when realizations started to hit home. I was asking myself what the hell I was doing with this man and his kids. He was treating me like I was nothing more than a maid. This was my number 10 relationship?
I realize now that I am the failure. Not as a PSI graduate, but as a human being and as a woman and a wife. I was duped into believing that PSI was the answer to everything wrong in my life. I threw away my first husband, a man I loved for a relationship with 78 strangers. People who said they loved me, not because of who I was, but because of what they had made us. The relationship with these people did not last. My first husband suffered the most as he tried several times to get me to see reason after I left. I threw away my friends as they refused to see my point of view when in actuality I should have seen theirs. My point of view was more important. My family disowned me after my outbursts towards them when they refused to listen to my new found views on life.
It is now too late to go back and fix the wrongs I did, and I have tried. My ex-husband refuses to talk or even see me, and I can’t really blame him. I left him without any explanation. I didn’t even shed a tear over the loss of our marriage, he once said I ripped the heart from his chest and didn’t even think enough on our relationship to take the time to smash it. And he was right, that is exactly what I did.
Now I am in a broken marriage to another fool who takes me for granted, treats me like I am his slave, and I have no where to go, no one to turn to, and this is what I wanted in life? Even the friend who introduced me to PSI dumped her marriage and is pretty much in the same boat I’m in. And I hate her for getting me involved in this.
I was a stupid, arrogant, self centered fool. I agree, PSI does give you the tools, the tools to destroy your life. It destroyed my life with a good man and earned me the likes of the “Al Bundy” personality I’m with now. I am ashamed of what I did. I am ashamed of what I have become and I would not recommend PSI for anyone.
Sorry for the long post.
The second post:
Hi everyone, thanks for letting me join. I started doing research on PSI a few weeks ago as I have a major problem with my husband. First I have not attended PSI nor have I taken any Large Group Awareness Training Programs, therefore I have no idea what they do there except what I have learned on the board and other sites. My husband has also not attended PSI.
My husband and I have been married for about 2 years this past October and were dating a year before that. The relationship is very good except for the fact that his first wife attended PSI7 a few weeks before she left him about five years ago. (This was my first marriage and his second.) Unfortunately my husband still runs in the same circle of friends as his ex-wife. The rumors run rampant, people think she is out of her mind and naturally they go to him and tell him what’s going on in her life.
My husband has started coming home these past few months with the rumors that are currently going around about his ex. A few months ago, after several failed relationships, she started dating guys from an internet dating service, apparently met a man who has been married twice before and has some children from one of those marriages (not sure which). This new guy it seems is not the nicest person. Lately it seems she has made some drastic changes to her life style. I would have said it appears that she is suffering from a midlife crisis but after reading this material I can see she might still be under the influence of PSI. I would add that I do not know if she is still attending the seminars.
When she left my husband a few years ago she immediately purchased a new house and car, neither of which she could afford. The house was lost to a foreclosure and the car repossessed several months later. Several times she has called my husband asking him for money and because money was tight he gave her what she could so as to not damage their credit rating. He found out later she was buying more of these seminars and it had placed him in a hole financially as well. After being gone for six months she filed for a divorce leaving him with most of her bills.
Now when I met my husband I was taken with the shy, but confident person he was. He was a kind and caring man who loves his family and friends. He would give you the clothes off his back and is always ready to lend a hand to a friend. He has a heart of gold and I love him for the person he is. During our dating relationship I thought he was haunted by something in his past as there was always something distant about him. I fell in love with the man and I initiated a relationship with him after he had been divorced for two years. But I now believe that my husband still loves his ex-wife, and it is hard for him to gain some distance from his relationship with her. According to him he was unaware what PSI was about at the time she was initially going to it as she was very level headed when they were dating and later married. She always had a sharp sense of herself and took care of things like most of us do in the course of our lives. After taking PSI she returned with a new found attitude and started spending money like it was water. She spent their savings and charging the seminars to their credit cards, which left him in debt to the amount of $30,000 dollars. Guess who had to pay when she left and divorced him?
So for the past few weeks my husband comes home and seems to be depressed. Last week he told me the reason that he is having problems with all this and that is why he is sometimes preoccupied; he is worried about his ex-wife. He told me that he considered her the ‘true love’ of his life and continues to love her in a spiritual sense. He says he loves me, but is still haunted by his feelings for her. He said he sometime thinks of her when he sees something or someone that reminds him of her and is sadden when he thinks of the loss of his marriage. He said he is reminded of the good times and thinks that his marriage to her could have been saved if she had stayed away from PSI. These memories cause him to become depressed and more so lately when hearing the rumors about the damage she is doing to her life.
Now I have tried to understand why he feels this way and that’s why I am checking out these websites. I am afraid that I am going to lose him because of this. After reading the material here I am scared to death. I can’t see how someone can throw their marriage away after attending these seminars, but after reading several examples here I understand that she is too far gone to help. I also see why my husband has these feelings. I feel that this has scarred him more deeply than he lets on and I feel so bad for him. There was nothing he could have done to save his marriage and yet he stills feels responsible. How do I get him to understand this is not his fault, that it was her responsibility? I have tried to make him see what this group did to her but he still feels that he is supposed to take care of her. He even broke down and cried, cried so much I thought he was having a nervous break down.
I don’t want to tell him that this is putting our marriage in trouble for fear it will cause him to go into a deeper depression, and I don’t want it to be the end of my marriage, but it seems he is more concerned with her then he is for me. I am very scared for him as he has come to be very depressed about all this and it seems to be getting worse. I don’t know how much more I can take. For that matter I don’t know how much more he can take.
Anyone have any suggestions?
Interesting Links
Psi Seminars Search - Rip-off Report.com
Psi Seminars / Psi World - FACTNet Message Board
The Awareness Page - Data and historical information on Psi Seminars origins
Friday, December 01, 2006
Self-Help Group Backs Off Attack on Internet Critic
November 30, 2006 - Press Release - Electronic Frontier Foundation
Self-Help Group Backs Off Attack on Internet Critic
Landmark Forum Withdraws Subpoena for Identity of Anonymous Poster
San Francisco - A controversial self-help group has backed off its attack on an Internet critic after the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) intervened in the case.
Landmark Education, known for its Landmark Forum motivational workshops, served a subpoena for the identity of an anonymous user of Google Video last month, claiming that a French documentary posted by the user infringed Landmark's copyrights. The piece, entitled "Voyage Au Pays Des Nouveaux Gourous" (Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus), is highly critical of Landmark and included hidden camera footage from inside a French Landmark Forum event along with panel discussions about the group. The piece had also been posted with English subtitles on popular U.S. video sites YouTube and the Internet Archive.
In a settlement reached Tuesday, Landmark agreed to withdraw the subpoena to Google and end its quest to pierce the anonymity of the video's poster. Landmark has also withdrawn its subpoena to the Internet Archive. EFF represents both the anonymous critic and the Internet Archive.
"We're glad that Landmark withdrew its subpoenas, and our client's right to speak anonymously was preserved," said EFF Staff Attorney Kurt Opsahl. "Hopefully Landmark has learned its lesson and will cease its campaign to stifle criticism by misusing the DMCA."
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) allows a content owner to issue a subpoena for the identity of an alleged infringer without first filing an actual lawsuit. The provision can be used to intimidate Internet users who wish to remain anonymous online. As part of the settlement, Landmark released any and all claims it may have had against the anonymous poster, and the poster agreed not to re-post the video. The video is currently available online from other sources, including the Australian Cult Awareness & Information Centre, and bit-torrent.
"Landmark's legal threats took an emotional toll," said the anonymous poster, known as "John Doe" in the settlement. "When I found out that my identity might be revealed based on a bogus copyright claim, I was really worried that Landmark might try to retaliate against me."
The settlement is part of EFF's ongoing campaign to protect the right of anonymous speakers on the Internet. Earlier this year, EFF helped to preserve the anonymity of online embroidery fans critical of an industry group, and also protected the identities of users of an online message board discussing Oklahoma public schools.
Contacts:
Corynne McSherry
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
corynne@eff.org
Kurt Opsahl
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
kurt@eff.org
More Information:
Letter confirming the subpoena withdrawal
For the full settlement agreement
For more on Landmark's subpoena campaign
For the video
Media Coverage:
Landmark Education stumbles stupidly to hollow settlement
Cult News
Landmark Education wants to make French news report a “forbidden video” on the Net
Cult News
Why did Landmark Education leave France?
Cult News
Landmark Drops Copyright Infringement Subpoenas On Google And Anonymous Critic
InformationWeek
Google faces legal challenges over video service
Reuters
See also the Related Prior Posts section in the post:
Self-Help Group Backs Off Attack on Internet Critic
Landmark Forum Withdraws Subpoena for Identity of Anonymous Poster
San Francisco - A controversial self-help group has backed off its attack on an Internet critic after the Electronic Frontier Foundation (EFF) intervened in the case.
Landmark Education, known for its Landmark Forum motivational workshops, served a subpoena for the identity of an anonymous user of Google Video last month, claiming that a French documentary posted by the user infringed Landmark's copyrights. The piece, entitled "Voyage Au Pays Des Nouveaux Gourous" (Voyage to the Land of the New Gurus), is highly critical of Landmark and included hidden camera footage from inside a French Landmark Forum event along with panel discussions about the group. The piece had also been posted with English subtitles on popular U.S. video sites YouTube and the Internet Archive.
In a settlement reached Tuesday, Landmark agreed to withdraw the subpoena to Google and end its quest to pierce the anonymity of the video's poster. Landmark has also withdrawn its subpoena to the Internet Archive. EFF represents both the anonymous critic and the Internet Archive.
"We're glad that Landmark withdrew its subpoenas, and our client's right to speak anonymously was preserved," said EFF Staff Attorney Kurt Opsahl. "Hopefully Landmark has learned its lesson and will cease its campaign to stifle criticism by misusing the DMCA."
The Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA) allows a content owner to issue a subpoena for the identity of an alleged infringer without first filing an actual lawsuit. The provision can be used to intimidate Internet users who wish to remain anonymous online. As part of the settlement, Landmark released any and all claims it may have had against the anonymous poster, and the poster agreed not to re-post the video. The video is currently available online from other sources, including the Australian Cult Awareness & Information Centre, and bit-torrent.
"Landmark's legal threats took an emotional toll," said the anonymous poster, known as "John Doe" in the settlement. "When I found out that my identity might be revealed based on a bogus copyright claim, I was really worried that Landmark might try to retaliate against me."
The settlement is part of EFF's ongoing campaign to protect the right of anonymous speakers on the Internet. Earlier this year, EFF helped to preserve the anonymity of online embroidery fans critical of an industry group, and also protected the identities of users of an online message board discussing Oklahoma public schools.
Contacts:
Corynne McSherry
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
corynne@eff.org
Kurt Opsahl
Staff Attorney
Electronic Frontier Foundation
kurt@eff.org
More Information:
Letter confirming the subpoena withdrawal
For the full settlement agreement
For more on Landmark's subpoena campaign
For the video
Media Coverage:
Landmark Education stumbles stupidly to hollow settlement
Cult News
Landmark Education wants to make French news report a “forbidden video” on the Net
Cult News
Why did Landmark Education leave France?
Cult News
Landmark Drops Copyright Infringement Subpoenas On Google And Anonymous Critic
InformationWeek
Google faces legal challenges over video service
Reuters
See also the Related Prior Posts section in the post:
Thursday, November 30, 2006
Missing - James Brian Rowe
The bulk of the text for this post was taken from a recent blog entry by James' sister on his MySpace Page. This is how they introduced the story at Project Jason - Voice for the Missing, in an October 11, 2005 post entitled "A "Landmark" Decision" :
Laura Hebert is certain that she lost her brother, James Rowe, when he decided to attend a personal development seminar called “The Landmark Forum”. He’s been missing since July of 2004, after having gone to the seminar. In her own words, Laura tells us the story.
This is the text of the recent blog post by James Brian Rowe's sister :
I am glad Landmark Education is receiving attention for their questionable tactics. My brother would be here today if it wasn't for his attending a Landmark Forum two years ago. Read on...
James Rowe attended a Landmark Forum July 24-25th in Denver, Colorado. He was living in Crestone, CO at the time. He called my mother and me after the forum and sounded very strangely on the phone. He was first and foremost a believer of Landmark and all they stand for. He told me that he found "the answer" and urged me to attend a forum myself. He started laughing and told me that we create our own reality, and said, "do you know what this means?!". He then started crying and said he felt so connected to me. I immediately became suspect of the seminar he attended and asked him more about it. I told him to call me soon, to be in touch, because I was worried. This was the last time I heard my brother's voice. He disappeared July 30th, days later.
According to James' friends, they noticed a marked change in his demeanor after the forum. He had very strange behavior. He shaved his shoulder length hair and took out all of his jewelry (he has gauged ear disks and piercings). He abandoned his vehicle 20 miles outside of Crestone, with his camping and hiking gear inside, and hitch-hiked back to town. He asked a friend for a ride to the trailhead so he could go for a hike to clear his mind. His friend obliged. James showed up in his friend's backyard later that day, barefoot and confused. He said he was having a hard time telling reality from illusion. His friend asked him if he was okay, James said "no". He then walked into the woods. This was July 30th, the day of his disappearance.
A missing person's report was filed with local police, and the woods surrounding Crestone were searched via air and land. No trace was found. There were unconfirmed sitings in nearby towns shortly after his disappearance, it seems he (thankfully) left the woods. The next time he was supposedly seen was the day before Thanksgiving, in 2005. He was seen at a truckstop in Hainesville Georgia. We are fairly certain this was a true siting.
My family is extremely angry at Landmark Education. We received a call from one of the higher ups after James' disappearance, and he had no explanation for James' behavior, which was obviously related to the forum he attended. We feel strongly that James disappeared due to a mental breakdown he suffered because of the Landmark Forum.
For More Information:
"10/11/05 A "Landmark" Decision"
The post mentioned above from Project Jason - Voice for the Missing
"Landmark Education- the reason James is missing"
The blog post quoted above from James Brian Rowe's sister, at the James Brian Rowe MySpace page, as originally posted at the Cult Education Forum message boards.
Help Find James Rowe
The main website for information on how to help find James Rowe.
See also the Related Prior Posts section in the post Second EFF Interview on Landmark Education.
Laura Hebert is certain that she lost her brother, James Rowe, when he decided to attend a personal development seminar called “The Landmark Forum”. He’s been missing since July of 2004, after having gone to the seminar. In her own words, Laura tells us the story.
This is the text of the recent blog post by James Brian Rowe's sister :
I am glad Landmark Education is receiving attention for their questionable tactics. My brother would be here today if it wasn't for his attending a Landmark Forum two years ago. Read on...
James Rowe attended a Landmark Forum July 24-25th in Denver, Colorado. He was living in Crestone, CO at the time. He called my mother and me after the forum and sounded very strangely on the phone. He was first and foremost a believer of Landmark and all they stand for. He told me that he found "the answer" and urged me to attend a forum myself. He started laughing and told me that we create our own reality, and said, "do you know what this means?!". He then started crying and said he felt so connected to me. I immediately became suspect of the seminar he attended and asked him more about it. I told him to call me soon, to be in touch, because I was worried. This was the last time I heard my brother's voice. He disappeared July 30th, days later.
According to James' friends, they noticed a marked change in his demeanor after the forum. He had very strange behavior. He shaved his shoulder length hair and took out all of his jewelry (he has gauged ear disks and piercings). He abandoned his vehicle 20 miles outside of Crestone, with his camping and hiking gear inside, and hitch-hiked back to town. He asked a friend for a ride to the trailhead so he could go for a hike to clear his mind. His friend obliged. James showed up in his friend's backyard later that day, barefoot and confused. He said he was having a hard time telling reality from illusion. His friend asked him if he was okay, James said "no". He then walked into the woods. This was July 30th, the day of his disappearance.
A missing person's report was filed with local police, and the woods surrounding Crestone were searched via air and land. No trace was found. There were unconfirmed sitings in nearby towns shortly after his disappearance, it seems he (thankfully) left the woods. The next time he was supposedly seen was the day before Thanksgiving, in 2005. He was seen at a truckstop in Hainesville Georgia. We are fairly certain this was a true siting.
My family is extremely angry at Landmark Education. We received a call from one of the higher ups after James' disappearance, and he had no explanation for James' behavior, which was obviously related to the forum he attended. We feel strongly that James disappeared due to a mental breakdown he suffered because of the Landmark Forum.
For More Information:
"10/11/05 A "Landmark" Decision"
The post mentioned above from Project Jason - Voice for the Missing
"Landmark Education- the reason James is missing"
The blog post quoted above from James Brian Rowe's sister, at the James Brian Rowe MySpace page, as originally posted at the Cult Education Forum message boards.
Help Find James Rowe
The main website for information on how to help find James Rowe.
See also the Related Prior Posts section in the post Second EFF Interview on Landmark Education.
Thursday, November 23, 2006
Protecting Children from LGATs
United States Representative George Miller introduced House Resolution 1738, the "End Institutionalized Abuse Against Children Act", on April 20th, 2005. The legislation seeks to regulate facilities in the United States and abroad, that service families and "treat" children and teenagers.
Related Links
Write Your Representative
To find and write your local United States Representative on the issue.
The Real News
Related news regarding teenagers.
Sign the Petition
Petition for the passage of the End Institutionalized Abuse Against Children Act of 2005.
Petition to Close Provo Canyon School
A school with teen "treatment programs" that has been sanctioned with injunctions by Federal District Court and been found guilty of controversial treatment of children by other courts.
Stress fear in $700 child forum
WA children as young as eight who attend "life-changing" coaching sessions by a controversial US company could have difficulty with their schoolwork afterwards, according to experts.
The Sunday Times, Australia, June 11, 2006 - by Peta Hellard
Unregulated Residential Treatment Facilities Exploit Children and Families,
Say Mental Health Experts and Advocates; Urge GAO Inquiry, Passage of Legislation
U.S. Newswire
Related Links
Write Your Representative
To find and write your local United States Representative on the issue.
The Real News
Related news regarding teenagers.
Sign the Petition
Petition for the passage of the End Institutionalized Abuse Against Children Act of 2005.
Petition to Close Provo Canyon School
A school with teen "treatment programs" that has been sanctioned with injunctions by Federal District Court and been found guilty of controversial treatment of children by other courts.
Stress fear in $700 child forum
WA children as young as eight who attend "life-changing" coaching sessions by a controversial US company could have difficulty with their schoolwork afterwards, according to experts.
The Sunday Times, Australia, June 11, 2006 - by Peta Hellard
Unregulated Residential Treatment Facilities Exploit Children and Families,
Say Mental Health Experts and Advocates; Urge GAO Inquiry, Passage of Legislation
U.S. Newswire
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