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

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http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology_as_a_business

http://http//ap.google.com/article/ALeq ... AD8TCNPU80

I think that it should, like other cults which spread bullcrap and utter tripe without any shed of proof or reason.

Being the naive sucker that I am, I fell into their "Personality Test", and got pulled into this weird little world where everyone pretends that all you need are made up words. What worries me is that there are so many people who have also fallen into the trap, and live their lives with tests they do not really understand themselves. And you HAVE to pay to be a Scientologist. That is not a belief, that is a drain on your bank account.

When my dad found out he was livid, and marched me in there and demanded I got my money back. They said it was impossible for that to happen, my dad suggested otherwise. Eventually, of the £25ish that it cost to be a member of their secret club, I got about £3 back. Fortunately I got out before aliens came into play. L Ron Hubbard made it up, all of it, for money and women. And they think that they are better people because of that.

Believing in stuff that isn't true, and mass ignorance is what religion is all about. It should not be baned

People have right to believe in anything they want,no matter how this belief may be absurd to others.
If adult person gives his money by his own free will to some organization,than thats his problem,no matter if this organization is a hoax or not.

However,if some religious or political organization behaves contrary to laws of state in which it reside,then indeed this organization may be banned.

After all in democratic societies people have freedom of beliefs and expression,right?

I have no opinion about whether or not it should be banned, but you can't stop certain people from believing certain things. I want to believe that logic works against it, but frankly, there is just no medicine for ignorance. In my personal opinion, scientology is just a cult founded on science fiction principles, and they are precisely that--not real science, but fiction that reflects science in a shallow and meaningless way. So I'll have none of their membership for my money, and I have no interest in being a part of a "special" club.

I still find it amazing (even more so than people who believe everything the bible says) that people would even treat something that's clearly written as science fiction as the truth. Humanity biting itself in the ass just has no lows, does it?

It charges for membership and various fraudulent "treatments", harrasses critics, and has highly questionable beliefs and practises. It has no coherent beliefs or foundation whatsoever, the Jedi "religion" is more valid and much nicer to outsiders than that crap.
Nothing against freedom of belief in non-cult religions which don't try to control members, Scientology is one of those nasty, no good cults which has to use extortion, aggressive practises, bullying, and legal threats in order to defend against highly valid criticism.

While I agree that scientology is full of dangerous lies and is a psychopathic religion, you can say that to some degree about every religion out there...... Difference is that scientology's doors are closed to everyone but the very rich people (celebrities, business owners, and politicians and such).

Yes. It was made up by a science-fiction author for money on a dare.

I do not think it should be banned, people want to belief this stuff, let them. But they should make a choice. You want to be called a religion, fine. You want to charge people to be a member, fine. But dont do both at the same time. If you are charging people for it, its not faith its a pyramid scheme.

I'll only let you do it if you outlaw all religions; they all equally "spread bullcrap and utter tripe without any shred of proof or reason"

Germany has tried banning Scientology. However, doing so has, IMO, made them look as bad as the Chinese government for persecuting Falun Gong.

As I see it, the best weapon against alleged deception is information. For a government to ban a religious organization is cowardly. If, on the other hand, members of an organization have broken the law, as may have been the case with some Scientologists in the past, they should be prosecuted. However, the organization itself should be left alone.

I still think charging people to become a scientologist is wrong. You charge money for people to join a club, not a religion. Surely, in the whole freedom of choice issue, someone telling you that you have to pay if you wish to believe is not freedom? Neither is pushing your "religion" on to others, mind, but that is another issue entirely.

Oh, and they do not refer to themselves as a religion, they are a belief. Hmm, yes...

i agree that people have a right to believe in whatever they want no matter how silly it seems to the rest of us

I don't think that Scientology should be banned. Banning it opens up a can of worms of judging religions on "truthfulness", which to me is just an open door for authoritarian practices of social control. We could then have Christian groups lobbying against Islam or Hinduism or even atheism, atheist groups against all religion, liberal groups against Objectivism, and all sorts of nonsense. Just let these things be and let people be idiots. I don't like Scientology but I would not ban it.