Scientology is all dangerous lies, but should it be banned?

Post Reply New Topic

That is true, the moment you ban one particular faith, then you open the floodgates of religious argument as to whom should be banned next. Everyone believe what you want, just, keep it to yourselves.

If Scientology were just a belief system, I wouldn't care if it continued to exist, but from what I've seen of it, it seems more like a huge religious pyramid scheme. It just seems as if the peripheral monetary benefits of the organization are more important than the heart of their beliefs, whatever they are. I guess you could say the same thing about most Christian mega churches, also. In these cases, it just seems like religion is the cover for a much more sinister operation. I really wouldn't mind the government stepping in and shaking them down.

No, I don't think it should be banned. I support freedom of speech.

Some people have made the same argument about the Roman Catholic Church. Once you open the floodgates of government intrusion into the behaviors of private actors, one can find a justification for banning many activities.

Banning Scientology is not a question of banning a belief structure or religion because it's weird and insane, but a question of preventing people from killing or doing actual, physical and psychological harm on others.
People can believe whatever they want to believe but if people are hurting others that's a whole other thing.

If so, then I would say you prosecute the behavior, but not attempt to shut down the religious organization.

Au contraire, mon ami!
People can believe they have invisible leeches attached to their body or that DC 10:s with rocket engines transported 180 billion dead bodies to blow them up in volcanoes all they want, but if the people telling them that it's true also physically and psychologically tortures and kills them on a regular basis, we have a problem here.
It's not the belief and ideas themselves that is hurting them, but the organization enforcing it.

But since it's hard to study and actually believe the pseudo-science BS of Hubbard without the "help" of the church, that problem will probably solve itself once the church is neutralized.

Also, you can't really legislate behavior.

But if the religion condones hurting others, and hurting others is a part of the religious practice, then the religion (or more appropriately, pyramid scheme) does need to be stopped.

Yes, the organization is the problem and if the organization is the problem then we continually sue the heck out of that organization and prosecute it until it reorganizes itself.

Yes, laws against murder and theft are futile. As a lawful society we attack organizations and individuals based upon their deviance from the law, not based upon the concern about possible deviance. Once we go into speculations on future behavior we go into a sketchy area of thought crime, political retribution, and all sorts of other evils. The great thing about rule of law is that it makes society stable, and the unfortunate thing is that even if an evil organization exists we must resist a short-run good for the long-run good given by rule of law.


The behavior of the organization should be targeted and it should be handled like other deviant institutions. Hurting people must be stopped based upon the nature of the workings of our society, and the religion is either going to have to stop existing or change its practices.

If individuals running organizations, religious or otherwise, violate laws, they should be prosecuted. My concern is that governments do not put themselves in the positions of deciding on acceptable forms of religious practice.

Banning the scientologists would cut markedly into my entertainment quota...

Churches are also businesses. You can't have any religion without generating an income stream.

Maybe some of the other religions are just envious.

Yes you are right, it should be banned because it's full of lies ....and so all the other religions including your Christianity religion which is also very full of lies. You religious people are so hypocrite.


Regards,

I'm not religious, but I respect, and am open minded to certain major religions and the possibility of that which cannot be detected by science, not a load of ill-thought out cult crap that's only been established very recently. There is a chance that Jesus was the real deal, through the various accounts of him and his followers. To turn a blind eye to that is folly.

Christianity was very well received at first, either.

The cure for lies is truth, not violence. When you are violent towards people's beliefs, you make them stronger and give others who don't believe an added incentive to sympathise with them.