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Posted byu/faery2stellar
4 days ago
Mike Smith, Senior Shambhala student and teacher sentenced

Just back from Mike Smith's sentencing hearing. Still shaking a bit; i have not integrated all that occurred there.

But between the last sentencing hearing in which Smith wanted to withdraw his plea (a request he subsequently withdrew) and today, a Smith family member called the DA. The DA was told Smith sexually abused another young girl, a family member starting when she was 8. She is now 17, still a minor. Smith followed a similar pattern that he did with the survivor in the case at court today.The family was incensed that Smith was attempting, in their mind, to not be accountable.

The judge, IMO was extremely careful. He made sure Smith understood the plea and was agreeing to it. The judge supported his reasoning, citing the evidence, including things Smith said to investigators that demonstrated Smith's dismissal of his own behavior and his lack of accountability.

He noted that the recent allegation (admitting it was an allegation) which followed Smiths treatment for sexual abusers (the treater deemed Smith a low risk to reoffend. hmmm, sociopathy anyone?) demonstrated Smith had not changed his behavior.

He always referred to Smith as Mr. Smith.And he sentenced him to 20 years followed by 5 years of mandatory probation. Ordered him to stay away from children.

The survivor, who left Colorado in part because of the blame she felt from the Shambhala Community and in part bc she was afraid she'd encounter Smith, read a statement by phone. It was powerful to hear her voice, trembling, explaining her path of both suffering and strength. Smith's mom closed her eyes during much of the statement and left the courtroom for a bit.

BTW, the judge noted the length of time it took for the victim to come forward is not surprising in any way. He said, I think something like, "I see it all the time."

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r/ShambhalaBuddhism
•Posted byu/BarefootZen
4 days ago
Better Late than Never?

I've been a member of my local Shambhala sangha since 2012. When the news emerged about the Sakyong in 2018, many left our center, many stayed and supported him, and I fell in the middle group: the ones who stayed with an understanding that we would see how the larger body of Shambhala handled things and then chart a course based on that.

But two years later, little has been done. With a pandemic still in full effect, I don't see anything changing in the near future. In the meantime, I've felt as if my spiritual practice has been in neutral. I don't want to take classes, attend talks, or even read teachings from Shambhala, but I've hung in there because I love the folks at my local sangha, and kept hoping we might vote to move in a direction away from Shambhala. I think I was naive.

So, I'm preparing to hit "send" on a "so long" letter to our director. I know this is ultimately my decision, and seeking advice from an internet site full of strangers is frivolous, However, I am curious as to the general consensus here. "Run as fast as you can/what took you so long?" VS. "Be patient/change can happen."

thanks for your thoughtful responses in advance.