"But no one speaks out for businessmen, when they are attacked and insulted by everyone as a matter of routine. What causes this overwhelming injustice? " (Corboy--big business has lobbies and ties to Congress. All this said, people who try to start small businesses, especially brick and mortar small businesses, often have a hard time. But they have merchants associations, chambe
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Ayn Rand, Objectivism and the Western Yoga-Marketing/Industrial Complex Remember that very old and tastless pop song, 'I Got a Party in My Passnts and I want Yo All To Come..Ta da, da da da da daaaah? How about "There's an an Elitist Greed is Good Group in my Leotaaards.... Ta Taaa Ta da da daah The weak and poor and gentle can all go to hell, so's long as I get ri
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Is the Zeitgeist Movement a cult? By Neil Kiernan a.k.a VTV Where did the accusations start that the Zeitgeist Movement was a cult? Well as most unfounded statements about the Zeitgeist movement it usually starts with someone who is angry because they were banned from the forums for being jerks. The next phase of this generally leads to them going from being ardent supporters of the RBE and T
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Quotethey put the experience over and above the welfare of the individual. Friends, before I sign off, I want to alert you that there are unhealthy sectors of the New Age/Fake dharma scene in which a seeker will actually be socialized to believe that the experiences of enlightenment matters more than the welfare of the individual and that any ethos of care, any concern for the welfare of the
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Why the connection with cryonics and some form of Satanism? The most logical explanation is very basic. The basic belief of the Satanists seems to go far beyond generic atheism, into a system of beliefs that says they can do whatever they want, Greed Is Good, there is no such thing as morality, etc. So its a very convenient Belief System, if you want to spend your life deceiving and ripping peo
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

   A contract by which an apprentice is bound to the master who undertakes to teach him a trade, binding one person to work for another for a given period of time, or by which a person binds themselves to service in the colonies, etc. of old has been called    Indenture    ‘An Indenture is a legal contract reflecting a debt or purchase obligation […]’ (Wikipedia). Another word for that pa
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

On a separate side note I've been reading up on Raniere's favourite philisopher Ayn Rand. Gore Vidal has given an eloquent toasting to some of the theories... "Gore Vidal may not like New York Times' critic Orville Prescott, but he dislikes Ayn Rand's "philosophy" even more. "This odd little woman is attempting to give a moral sanction to greed and self
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Suggestion for Journalists and Academic Researchers and Those Seeking Recovery In the 1960s, Hermann Hesse's novel, The Glass Bead Game was quite influential to many who sought to create communes--most notably Timothy Leary. But today, Ayn Rand may be an important, and unappreciated influence on American elitists in the human potential scene--IMO, the potential to regress. It mig
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

   What effect do the above-described mechanisms of devotion have on the espian? How do they affect their ‘internal human existence’, so that they can ignore, suppress, excuse, or simply fail to notice all those paradoxes within NXIVM? In what way does that process play out within the espian? Are there any internal and/or external signs, contradictions, or conflicts that accompany this process of
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

   Maybe not the smartest thing to do for Parlato, to expose such details that may yet be relevant to the case of his former employers in such ‘elegant prose and superb presentation or marshalling of facts’, as one of the commentators quoted. Especially so, if one actually has read the available court document and now can compare the two sides of the story. In my opinion, Plyam never says anythin
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I like the Gleichschaltung analogy. I don't have time to address most of the questions or get into a discussion - I am still digging myself out of the financial hole and feel they have wasted enough of my time, energy and money ... but in case no one was aware, a large part of the philosophy comes from Ayn Rand. Atlas Shrugged was like their bible. They also stole from many other disciplines
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Yes, the LGAT Gurus deliberately and cynically exploit human emotions to their advantage. Most of them approach human emotions like "compassion" in a very cynical way. Many of them think of compassion like Ayn Rand, as a weakness. And they exploit that "weakness" in others. Werner Erhard did that constantly, they all do it. The LGAT leaders deliberately tug on the heartstri
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Its very interesting, the analysis of Dave Lakhani. His name came up in the context of other sleazy covert persuaders like Alex Benzer (Ali Binazir) and James Arthur Ray, and Michael Beckwith from The Secret. Dave Lakhani was basically chosen at random to analyze. He tries to make you believe he is teaching people about cults, covert persuasion, and how to protect themselves from getting exp
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

Kevin Hogan will say anything to make the sale. He tries to sell people what they want to buy. He says his book teaches you tricks to dupe people, as that is directed at the HUGE market of salespeople who buy those books. Salespeople are always looking for new tricks to try and make more money, so he is selling them what they want to buy. He also throws in the opposite, that the tricks are
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

QuotezeebrookI am with you Sistersoap on Truthtesty's less that honest responses. Why is it important about the false impression you make Truthtesty is because in your post of November 8, 2007 you proclaimed "I am an expert in the truth" yet you deliberately obscure it here. Truthtesty: What less that honest post? What? Also? Now it's important just because I said it? Well
Forum: Destructive Churches

Hello truthsetufree, Quotetruthsetsufreetruthtesty, I agree with your assessment of: "Thiemites have a very difficult time admitting Thieme was "wrong", even when they are confronted with the correct truth, even IN THE PRIVACY OF THIER OWN MIND. One possible explanation for this is because the were indoctrinated that Thieme was "right"(as opposed to occasionally
Forum: Destructive Churches

The Anticult wrote QuoteAnd they rationalize it with either not caring, or don't think about it, or think its FUNNY and laugh like Ross Jeffries in that video, or believe some Libertarian stuff, or Ayn Rand Virtue of Selfishness, etc. Or...they see themselves as mind technicians or even as magicians. A little wisdom tale from real life: I knew a fellow who was paraplegic and in
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

The thing with these advanced NLP-style persuaders and conversational hypnotherapists...like the Stever Robbins type of guys, (there are many many of them out there...) First off, anyone who has been immersed in it for decades, has a profoundly different way of looking at the world, and at people. Very serious intellectual arrogance is part of that system, as they generally are very intellige
Forum: "Cults," Sects, and "New Religious Movements"

yes, "A world that works for everyone"...what is that? That is simply the cynical Werner Erhard at work. You see, guys with Werner Erhards philosophy, actually despise what they see as human weakness, human vulnerability, and human sentiment, its a weakness to them. He believes "charity" is something that is damaging. (this is a perversion of ideas from Nietzsche about
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

QuotepaukerRight On - Elena. You see so clearly the threads that connect Alistair Crowley to the 'willfulness' of Narcissism, to Ayn Rand & L. Ron Hubbard, and then on to encyclopedia salesmen like Werner. Its a long thread and it leads straight back to human evil. M. Scott Peck's book called "The People of the Lie" certainly comes to mind in this case. In additio
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Right On - Elena. You see so clearly the threads that connect Alistair Crowley to the 'willfulness' of Narcissism, to Ayn Rand & L. Ron Hubbard, and then on to encyclopedia salesmen like Werner. Its a long thread and it leads straight back to human evil. M. Scott Peck's book called "The People of the Lie" certainly comes to mind in this case. In addition to all th
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

While I would agree that a few semesters of basic college level philosophy courses could be a great way to exercise the dot-connecting 'muscles' of the brain's left hemisphere, I'd be damn careful of swallowing Ayn Rand's bait "hook, line and sinker;" for Objectivism is simply riddled with contradictions of its own. And despite Ayn's Aristotelian bent towar
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Catbus, From your wife's perspective, you probably lack credibility because you have not been "enlightened" by the training. You have never learned that feelings are superior to reason. If your wife is going to be persuaded, she will have to persuade herself. She will have to learn to trust her own mind. My Impact friends often ridicule me for using my mind too much. In my
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Hi Pauker, You wouldn't be the first to make the connection between Ayn Rand and Werner Erhard. You might enjoy this: Iron Maiden; JOURNALS OF AYN RAND. Edited by David Harriman with foreword by Leonard Peikoff . Dutton: 728 pp., $39.95: GARY KAMIYA. The Los Angeles Times. (Record edition).Los Angeles, Calif.: Jan 4, 1998. pg. 10 Like heavy metal music, Kamikaze pil
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

I, too, have been enjoying Elena's insights on this thread. And I'm very glad she brings up the narcissism subject, 'cause it needs to be discussed. I'm an old, former esthole from WAAY back, and I can assure you, we were every bit as insufferable and self-absorbed as any 21st century, card-carryin' "Landmark-hole" (Thank GOD a couple of people in my life then w
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Wow.. glad I found this thread. I know the Chicago media business that uses the Wright principals through a friend of someone they work with. I met the couple that runs the company.. thought they were "intense" people. Didn't know about the Wright thing until I checked out the woman's personal website.. in her bio she mentions Wright, how the philosphy shaped their business,
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Tommy Tsunami: I. The body of work Thieme's word by word, verse by verse, concept by concept exegesis is not just massive but by in large consistent with Orthodox Evangelical doctrine. Orthodox: You should be more cautious with the use of the term Orthodox. A better word would have been Protestant. RBT is as far removed from the true Orthodox Christian faith as Kenneth Copeland.
Forum: Destructive Churches

I agree that possibly almost 100% of commercial "lectures" these days on the free-market are a type of LGAT. The problem is that anyone serious about giving seminars, goes out and studies the LGAT techniques to maximize their profits. Thus it become a mindfuck for profit. But there are little niches with good stuff out there too. But one has to hunt for them. They might be focussed
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

Boonetahoe, I would like to address a few assertions that you have made in prior posts: 1. You have stated that you are maintaining an objective perspective and yet you have seemingly rationalized numerous incongruities in your beliefs and you have exhibited the LGAT tendency to make broad unbelievable statements without providing any kind of credible reason to believe you. For exampl
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"

QuoteImpactedBoonetahoe, >>I promise: I'm way, WAY out of the "program." << >>LGATs, including the one I am involved with. . . << OK, which is it? What LGAT are you involved with? And how can you claim to be WAY out of the program if you are still involved with one? Great Life Foundation -- the grad-run, n
Forum: Large Group Awareness Training, "Human Potential"