PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult
Tom Cruise Giving the Scientology “Salute”
If there’s any doubt that the enforcement of political correctness in the U.K. is turning ordinary citizens into criminals, a 15-yr-old youth was issued a criminal summons after he had written on a sign that Scientology was a cult.
Police confiscated his protest sign at a demonstration against the Church of Scientology at their headquarters in London and then issued him a criminal summons. According to the British newspaper the Guardian, the 15-yr-old had written on a sign: “Scientology is not a religion, it is a dangerous cult”. The police called it “abusive and insulting”.
Just who was abusive and insulting?
The unnamed 15-yr-old boy stood his ground and quoted a 1984 High Court ruling by Justice Lahey in which the justice described the religion as “corrupt, sinister, and dangerous”.
We agree. We find the fact that anyone could face a criminal proceeding for calling Scientology a cult, abusive, insulting, and sinister.
This means that Scientology, which many people consider a cult, can now peddle its wares with impunity.
We wondered what Tom Cruise, producer, movie star, and the world’s most famous and vocal member of Scientology would say about police arresting people for calling his church a cult? Is his religion so fragile that a 15-yr-old boy, in a peaceful demonstration, now faces a fine or jail? Since when does a worldwide church with megabucks allow the U.K. police to act as their enforcers, effectively silencing its detractors? What does this say about the British government, who are protecting a “religion” and not the rights of its citizens to voice their opinions about a religion?
This smacks of the Saudi Arabia’s Sharia police, which are referred to as Haya or the Commission. The Haya are under the aegis of the Commission for the Promotion of Virtue and Prevention of Vice.
The Commission are the watchdogs of the Saudis and are hyperguardians of all things Islam. Women, not accompanied by a male member of her family, can be promptly arrested by the Haya. Improper dress or enforcing the strict Islam dress code and arresting those who, in the minds of the Commission, speak “ill” of Islam are some of the daily duties of the Vice and Virtue Squads that hit the streets of Saudi Arabia.
Now we’re beginning to see some of the same type of pattern, of a police organization, the Brit coppers, being used to effectively silence critics of a religion, Scientology.
Political Correctness, the use of governments and laws to foist thought behavior and what people can and cannot say in order to “not offend”. It’s evident that the police are now being used to protect certain people and organizations from being “offended”. Being “offensive” is now considered an illegal activity and punishable under the law.
This is a matter of legal ethics, people are being punished for vocalizing what others have deemed to be unethical, offensive, or insulting. The people who should be offended or insulted are the taxpayers who foot the bill for this and the citizens who are being branded as criminals for exercising their right to free speech.
Scientology and the British authorities should be ashamed of themselves. The Brit police for making criminals out of people who protest that Scientology is a cult. Scientology, for hiding behind the skirts of the British government, allowing people to face criminal charges because they’ve offended the religion.
In order not to “offend” the British authorities have become the offensive, abusing their authority, turning people into criminals for exercising their right to free speech.
Only cults are afraid of criticism and are willing to punish people.
By LBG
Source – The Guardian – Teenager Faces Prosecution for calling Scientology a cult
Source – The Economist – Vicious About Virtue
Image – Tom Cruise
[...] PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult has just been posted on Death By 1,000 Papercuts (DBKP) by LBG. Quotes: [...]
Great article. But “without fear of impunity” should surely read simply “with impunity”.
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Great post. Surely “without fear of impunity” should read simply “without impunity”.
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Absolute solid gold! Ovar 9000 troy ounces! Good job.
google “Fair Game Policy” and “Suppressive Person”
it is not pretty
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I feel obliged to point out that Anonymous has a very good relationship with the police. This sordid affair is the result of the Crown Prosecution Service caving to Scientology pressure and failing to research something. The police were visibly unhappy with the judgement, but have no option but to do as they are told.
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The turd in the punchbowl is the “church” of scientology. Police, prosecutors and the judicial system have been mis-used for decades by the CULT of scientology.
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Amazing that they would fear what a 15 year old had to say. Could it be because it’s the truth? We are the emodiment of Scientologies crimes. And they are many, as are we.
Expect us.
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Just to clarify, Justice Lahey described the religion as “corrupt, sinister, and dangerous” AND also called it a CULT.
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Gods bless the Second Amendment, the only defense of the First. Sadly, the same rights don’t apply in Great Britain.
Political Correctness is a fine thing to practice in moderation. Voluntarily. It’s another thing entirely when it is mandated by law.
Great article.
Keep dishing the dirt on $cientology. They do a lot to suppress criticism and free speech, not all of it legal. That’s because they have a lot to hide. Check out Youfoundthecard.com and Whyaretheydead.net for some examples. The anti-scientology movement is one of the few that seems to have united a lot of loony lefties and radical righties (not to mention normal people) that ordinarily wouldn’t be caught dead in the same city block. If they can agree on that, how can it be wrong?
Keep fighting the good fight. Free speech. Forever.
~ Whistler
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God forbid we should ever have such Bu** Sh** rules in the USA. That’s when I take to the streets in protest (after having bombarded my senators, my representatives, etc.).
Ministry of Truths last blog post..Which Sports Car are You?
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It is worth mentioning here that scientology is not recognised as a religion in the UK. It has been refused charitable religious status and the City Police said that they were “treating it as a religion” for the purpose of the demonstration.
Also worth noting is that the City Police have been in the press for accepting gifts from the cult, including tickets to premieres and charity dinners.
Does this have anything to do with it?
Make up your own minds.
http://www.guardian.co.uk/uk/2006/nov/23/freedomofinformation.religion
http://news.bbc.co.uk/1/hi/england/london/6171948.stm
http://www.thisislocallondon.co.uk/mostpopular.var.1035044.mostcommented.police_received_gifts_from_church_of_scientology.php
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The first amendment is what prevents Clearwater, Florida (the mecca of Scientology) from becoming a fascist place. Too bad there is no such thing in the UK.
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Oh BTW, if any of you are interested, please check out enturbulation.org, which is the hub of Anonymous. We have held 4 major protests since February, and our fifth big protest is June 14th.
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When Freedom of Speech is outlawed, only outlaws will [this portion censored by the Cult of $cientology].
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Thank you for giving your opinion on this.
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Heh, I just noticed the banner on top. Goes well with the theme for the next protest. June 14th. Go to enturbulation.org to find the protest closest to you.
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For my part, I just went to:
https://secure.met.police.uk/yourvoicecounts/index.php
and told them “Scientology is a cult.”
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Scientology no doubt sees this incident as the first step…
“Once the world is Clear – a nation, a state, a city or a village – the Scientology-organization in the area becomes its government! And once this has taken place the only policy accepted as valid is Scientology policy.â€
from “Future Org Trends,” January 9th 1962. By L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Cult of Scientology
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Very good article.
I encourage readers of the article to find out more.
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i see that the kid did something and the cops did something. i dont see any action taken by the Chuch one way or another.
its amazing that you are taking as an authority on Scientology a clearly biased ruling from over 20 years ago.
Scientology has withstood attacks by Interpol, the IRS, the German government, worldwide media and on and on.
The only reason it still exists is because its intentions are good, the technology of Scientology works as demonstrated by over 50 years of happy parishoners and just a few bad apples who couldn’t make upward spiritual progress because of their own crimes and many, many court cases around the world ruling in favor of Scientology’s veracity.
You might ask yourselves a question.. WHERE DID YOU GET YOUR INFO ON SCIENTOLOGY?
it is more than likely that you got your info from the mass media.
So my questions are then…
If the mass media has been attacking Scientology and the government and the mass media are owned by the same corporate interests then why would they defend Scientology and attack them simultaneously?
And more to the point… how long have you been in the enemy camp where you listen to, believe and support what mass media has to say about Scientology?
Hubbard picked up the dropped balls of the philosophers who had preceded him and he sorted out what works and what doesn’t work and what helps people and what doesn’t. He applied the methodology of Western science to the wisdom of the East and he codified a way for people to arrive at their own answers with greater understanding awareness and ability.
When I do Scientology my life is better and I am happier and more effective.
So what do you have a problem with exactly?
GARKO
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Sup Garko?
the first sentence of you TL;DR essay:
“I see that the kid did something and the cops did something. i dont see any action taken by the Chuch one way or another.”
That would possessing a history of PAYING OFF THE POLICE who took action.
Where do we get our information?
Your very own websites. FromPublic domain documents from the many times your organization has been involved in litigation and or criminal proceedings because of abusive and fraudulent behavior. From the legion accounts of your defectors, who at this point outnumber actual members of your church. From leaked secret documents which your organzition claims are fabricated yet at the same time sues for copyright infringement. From the words of your own guru, L. Ron Hubbard.
Do you realize how ridiculous you sound now, attacking our ‘source’?
Our sources are the facts.
Flunk Garko.
When DM goes to prison, where will that leave you?
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Dear Garko
I am writing this for your benefit. Good for you for feeling happier and effective with scientology therapy. But, can you imagine an organisation that sold enjoyable therapy doing bad, manipulative things?
Scientologists have been instructed to believe that critics of scientology are agents of an ill-intentioned conspiracy. Accordingly, compliant scientologists will dismiss negative information, because they
know beforehand that all criticism of scientology has been made up.
Scientology the organisation won’t give you damaging information, and you won’t believe it when it comes from anyone else. Even if it comes from OTs, you believe that as soon as they give you damaging information about scientology, they are proven not to be OTs because of their crime of criticising what is perfect.
You are in a trap. If there is bad information about scientology, you have been primed not to ever believe it. When your fellow scientologists wake up, you cannot learn from them.
While you are in this trap, there is no way for you to understand bad information about scientology.
This is called fanaticism.
For the people of Nazi Germany, failings and criticism could all be blamed on Jewish people or their paid co-conspirators. The death camps of Nazi Germany, were made-up propaganda, that could be dismissed in utter confidence as the made-up criticism of paid troublemakers or dupes, because the Nazi state was perfect, or would have been if not for the critics.
I think there must be a part of you that knows you are just going through the motions, trying to find the right way to break out of the trap and preserve your equilibrium.
What do you think?
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I’m as appalled by this as you all are, and I think the cops acted disgracefully. But -
Whistler: “Gods bless the Second Amendment, the only defense of the First”
Whistler, are you seriously sugesting that the guy should have pulled a gun on the cops? Over a sign?
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[...] LBG Source: PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult Source – The Guardian – Teenager Faces Prosecution for calling Scientology a cult Source – The [...]
[...] at DBKP: * Scientology: Never Recognized by UK as Religion, Cops Bust Kid for Calling it a Cult * PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult “Scientology is not a religion, it is a dangerous [...]
[...] the UK doesn’t recognize Scientology, which makes this 2008 story all the more reprehensible: PC Run Amok: UK Cops Bust Teen For Calling Scientology a Cult. Don Surber: “Pope [...]