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corboy
Finally, Anticult noted that many recruiters for these groups EXPLOIT our usual politeness. These persons are using sophisticated covert sales techniques and they cannot be silenced by a simple refusal, because THEY DO NOT RESPECT OUR BOUNDARIES.
They treat the word 'No' as a signal to 'Keep Pushing'
The only way to deal with these sharky recruiters is not listen, and if necessary slam the door or talk restraining orders.
The saddest thing of all is that this cultic crap erodes the social contract.
This is absolutely true with the sg(i). With some of the more persistent and whacked out members, I learned that you do indeed have to be very graphic in your refusals and strong in your push back. Once they know what kind of person they are dealing with, they will leave you alone. Problem is, politeness and considerateness are only seen as weaknesses and aggressively exploited. Most people naturally fall into the latter category and it doesn't help (in this situation).
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The Anticult
SGI gets people to work for free.
Many other sects do the same.
They do indeed and this goes along the same lines of some of my regrets with my wasted time in the organization. And the more time you give them, the more mental abuse, mind games and power trips you will get exposed to.
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Nichijew
Good question Hitch. I deal with my SGI ordeal by fighting them tooth and nail so no one has to experience what I experienced and so no one need encounter men such as they. In a sense, many of us were complicit and we too brought many people down. Fighting the Soka Gakkai, for me, is also an act of repentence. I also have another agenda, to promote what I believe is a better way because it is faithful to the teachings, teachers. and myself. My SGI memories are fading, as if it were another person who believed and participated.
Nichijew
Thank you for your honest and sincere response. In that spirit, I'd like to share with you some of my honest thoughts on some of the things you mentioned:
Complicity - I never subscribed to all the aggressive shakubuku nonsense. My non-buddhist friends always knew about my religion and we would sometimes compare/share philosophies. We never tried to convert each other, because we respected our differences and remained friends regardless. At one point, I was pushed into a youth division leadership position and I gave it the ol' college try - once. I felt so slimy afterwards that I quickly told them "no thanks." I felt like a complete fraud, like a snake oil salesman manipulating people. I'll never forget that and looking back I think it was a kind of turning point for me because from then on out I realized that I had to stop fooling even myself,
first.
Agenda - I was a long time lurker to this mb (mainly the sg section) before I decided to join and share my "experiences." I did so, not to fight against past injustices (because trust me, I could name names and really start some fires, but I won't), but to offer (perhaps) a unique perspective of somebody who grew up in the practice, has seen behind the curtain of the top pioneering usa leadership and has a perspective of the gakkai from the Japanese side as well. I share my experiences in hopes that they may add to the weight of evidence in this 350 page thread that may help others to also eventually see the light as to the true character of the sg(i) cult.
My sg(i) memories - they're always guaranteed to bring me a good laugh, that's for sure.
Edited 1 time(s). Last edit at 02/29/2012 04:58PM by Hitch.