Lol, a whole long thread of FFL old-folks posting, without one voice of reason among them.
OffWorld --- In [email protected] <mailto:[email protected]> , Vaj <vajradh...@...> wrote: > > http://www.examiner.com/x-20682-Boston-Underground-Examiner% <http://www.examiner.com/x-20682-Boston-Underground-Examiner%> > 7Ey2009m11d1-Transcendental-Meditation-in-schools-the-David-Lynch- > program > > ARTICLE > > Wikileaks Threat from TMO > > Transcendental Meditation in schools, the David Lynch program > > November 1, 4:36 PM Boston Underground ExaminerDouglas Mesner > > > This previously posted article has been updated with appended > material following a letter received from the General Counsel for > Maharishi University of Management and the David Lynch Foundation for > Consciousness Based Education and World Peace, William Goldstein, > under the subject heading "Retraction of Defamatory Article". Upon > reviewing Goldstein's criticisms, the author has decided that there > are no grounds for labeling this article "defamatory". An open reply > to Goldstein's letter follows the article below: > Expel from your mind the stereotyped image of the robed, bearded > yogi. Forget the worn image of the unkempt, hash-headed, lotus- > seated hippy listening to sitar music in an incense-filled room > behind a beaded curtain. This is not the Transcendental Meditation > [TM] we are talking about. This is Science! > âHundreds of scientific studies have been conducted on the benefits > of the Transcendental Meditation program at more than 200 independent > universities and research institutions worldwide in the past 35 > years,â explains the TM-promoting David Lynch Foundation for > Consciousness-Based Education and World Peace website. Among the > positive side-effects of the TM program, we find: increased focus, > decreased hostility, reduced anxiety, even a reduction in > cardiovascular disease among practitioners. > Surely, with this in mind, no reasonable person would argue against > teaching the TM method in public schools. > And this is exactly what the David Lynch Foundation - founded by the > cult film director of Twin Peaks, Blue Velvet, and Mulholland Drive - > proposes: implementation of a TM teaching program âin public and > private schools and in after-school programs across the U.S. and > around the world, with thousands of students enjoying its benefits.â > This past April, the foundation held a large benefit concert in New > York - including performances by Paul McCartney, Ringo Starr, Ben > Harper, and Moby - which, according to USA Today, raised an estimated > $3 million toward funding the TM-in-schools program. > But, despite the attributed benefits and celebrity endorsements, some > worry that the teaching of a TM-based program in public schools > constitutes another breach across the ever-eroding church-state > dividing line. Americans United for the Separation of Church and > State reports, âSlowly but steadily, TM seems to be gaining a > foothold in public schools across the country. The trend has alarmed > some advocates of church-state separation, who point out that the > practice is based in Hinduism and that the federal courts removed it > from New Jersey public schools on church-state grounds in 1979.â > In regards to funding being offered by the David Lynch Foundation in > support of the TM program, âAmericans United is urging school > officials to turn down the money, reminding educators that TM in the > schools can spark litigation. In 1976, Americans United and other > groups joined with Roman Catholic and Protestant parents to bring a > lawsuit against the use of TM in five New Jersey public > schools.â [â¦] âA federal court struck down the TM classes in > October of 1977, a decision that was affirmed by the 3rd U.S. Circuit > Court of Appeals in February of 1979â¦Ruling in Malnak v. Yogi, the > federal appeals court declared that TM is grounded in Hinduism. > Students, the court pointed out, were assigned the name of a Hindu > god to chant, and even went through a type of religious initiation > ceremony called a puja.â (http://www.au.org/media/church-and-state/ <http://www.au.org/media/church-and-state/> > archives/2009/06/levitating-over-the.html) > Indeed, though the David Lynch Foundation seems keen to express that > TM is just a technique, with real estate holdings, schools, and > clinicsâ"even a town, Vedic City, in Iowaâ"âworth more than $3 > billion in the late 1990s,â TM is clearly something more. Some go > so far as describe TM as âa cult that ultimately seeks to strip > individuals of their ability to think and choose freely.â > Therapist John Knapp, specializing in providing help to ex-cult > members and people entangled in âcultic relationshipsâ left TM > after 23 years of involvement. âI married somebody who was not > involved with the group, and part of my group experience was that I > was asked to lie about a number of items. And living every day with > someone and having to lie to them was extremely difficult⦠It caused > what you could call a cognitive dissonance. It really caused a > bifurcation in my mind. It was really difficult to live with. And > Iâd also gotten very far away from my family, which is not uncommon > for people who are in these kinds of [cultic] relationships. As my > mother was getting older I wanted to re-establish my ties with her > and the family. These kinds of things led me to begin questioning my > relationship [with TM].â > > Upon deciding that he would leave TM, Knapp reports that he suffered > a good deal of harassing behavior from the group. âIt was difficult > for me, because I had believed so strongly in this group [TM]. My > spiritual and emotional life was really bound up completely with this > group, so when they turned on me it was very confusing and very > difficult for meâ¦â > Worse, Knapp reports negative effects derived from the meditation > technique itself, from addictive behavior to increased feelings of > dissociation. He claims that many clients of his that come from TM > have experienced the same. > TM was founded by a man known as Maharishi Mahesh Yogi in 1956 in > India, and the revered guru himself had once been accused of using > âfear and intimidationâ in order to work to prevent a disciple > from leaving the Maharishi International University in Fairfield, > Iowa. The disillusioned student, Robert Kropinski, and six other > people sued Maharishiâs University for $9 million on the grounds > of âfraud, neglect, and intentionally inflicting emotional > damageâ. Kropinski stated that none of the promised TM benefits ever > surfaced during his time as a student, and he was awarded $138,000 by > a Washington D.C. jury. Maharishi did not appear in court, as he was > never available to receive summons. > > Admittedly, all of this sounds most unpleasant, but what of the > scientific data supporting the individual benefits of TM? > There are problems with TMâs data. While the David Lynch Foundation > endlessly promotes the âuniqueâ benefits of TM, there is a > conspicuous shortage of comparative analytical studies that measure > TM against other relaxation techniques. Surprisingly, studies > measuring the effects of a simple mid-day nap report many of the > same âuniqueâ benefits touted by TM. > > In fact, a study published in the journal Science in 1976 found in > studying âfive experienced practitioners of Transcendental > Meditationâ, that they âspent appreciable parts of meditation > sessionsâ merely napping. > > And, according to a June 2007 report, sponsored by the U.S. > Department of Health and Human Services that evaluated the quality of > the meditation research along an array of standard scientific > criteria such as the proper use of randomization and control group > techniques, âOverall, the methodological quality of both > intervention and observational analytic studies on meditation > practices is poor.â > According to Dr. Barry Markovsky, professor of Sociology at the > University of South Carolina, âPoor evidence, even in large > quantities, falls short of establishing scientifically the benefits > of TM.â > > Worst of all, TM makes a series of staggering claims that can be > charitably described as âunlikelyâ. Old advertisements for TM > claim that practitioners of TM will develop âsupernormal powersâ > including âsupernormal sight and hearingâ, invisibility, and > levitation! The organization even circulated photos with pictures of > lotus-seated students apparently hovering above the ground, but first- > hand observations of the âlevitationsâ left many unconvinced. The > levitators never managed to levitate for very long; they never > really âhoveredâ. In fact, they sprung up rather abruptly and > dropped immediately to the ground again. Really, it was quite > apparent that these transcendent hopefuls were merely hopping about > from a seated position. > > Nor has TM provided any legitimized demonstrations of any of its > supernormal powers. > > When asked about âadvanced techniquesâ such as âyogic flightâ > during a press conference promoting his benefit concert, David Lynch > replied with some rambling vagaries about a âfield of unityâ, > âblissâ, and the âcollective consciousnessâ. > > The David Lynch Foundation has a stated of goal of teaching TM to one > million children, which is reminiscent of another supernatural claim > of TM: the Maharishi Effect, which states that a certain critical > mass of TM meditators can affect change upon the material world. > While John Hagelin of the David Lynch Foundation claims that the > Maharishi Effect is a scientifically proven phenomenon, there is no > reliable evidence to support this. (Hagelin, it should be noted, is > partially to blame for the simple-minded buffoonery of the best- > selling book The Secret, which promotes a simpler version of the > Maharishi Effect: The idea that one can obtain what one wants through > mere wishful thinking.) Hagelin claims that in 1993 crime was > reduced in Washington, DC during a two month period due to the > collective effort of 4000 TM practitioners. > > As Skeptico reports: âThere were many problems with this experiment. > One was that the murder rate rose during the period in question. > Another was that Hagelinâs report stated violent crime had been > reduced by 18% (in the film [What The Bleep Do We Know] he says 25%), > but reduced compared with what? How did he know what the crime rate > would have been without the TM? It was discovered later that all the > members of the âindependent scientific review boardâ that > scrutinized the project were followers of the Maharishi. The study > was pseudoscience: no double blinding, the reviewers were not > independent, and the experiment has never been independently > replicated. Hagelin deservedly won an Ig Nobel Prize in 1994 for this > outstanding piece of work.â > > James Randi, famed stage magician, author, founder of the James Randi > Educational Foundation, and debunker of supernatural claims, explains > that TM has âalways maintained this⦠[the idea] that if a certain > critical number of people take up TM, they will protect everybody, > and the world will be perfectly safe from then on.â > > Randi came to be aware of TM through his friend and fellow magician, > Doug Henning. âI knew [Henning] very well as a kid, and later as a > mature magician. We were always in touchâ¦â Randi describes a > deeply cultic relationship between Henning and Transcendental > Meditation that would destroy Henningâs career and eventually take > his life. Henningâs career as a television magician was compromised > as he strove to hire only TM initiates to work on the set. According > to Randi, this was not only problematic for the fact that it was > difficult to find people within TM who were talented in television > production, but âevery so often they went in to meditation and work > just stoppedâ¦â Eventually, TV executives grew weary of Henningâs > professional antics. > > Henning became even more deeply involved with TM following his > diagnosis of liver cancer, eventually removing himself from contact > with non-TM practitioners. âHe gave up all medical care⦠the > Maharishi had told him that he could recover from his liver cancer > simply from meditating⦠he meditated himself to death.â Henning > died in February of 2000. > > âIâm so angry at the TM movement,â says Randi, âfor having > taken an innocent person.â > > John Knapp feels that the drive to bring TM into more schools is > destined to failure as any critical scrutiny of the organization will > prove its undoing. According to him, âItâs just too damn > strangeâ¦â > > Relaxation â" whether by crude napping, or practiced meditation â" > holds certain benefits that are not the monopoly of the TM brand. It > is this authorâs hope that schools will continue to seek techniques > to aid the reduction of stress and conflict - while increasing health > and focus - without reducing their curriculum to supernatural > philosophies that cross the church-state line. > > ******************* > > On October 13 editors at Examiner received an email from William > Goldstein, General Counsel for Maharishi University of Management and > the David Lynch Foundation for Consciousness Based Education and > World Peace. The email's subject heading was "Retraction of > Defamatory Article", and it ended with strong words claiming that the > "falsehoods, defamations and omissions [in the article above] compel > me [Goldstein] to ask you to remove this article from your newspaper > to put an end to the continuing damage its publication causes to my > client." > > And what were these "falsehoods, defamations and omissions"? > Goldstein opens: "I will not comment on the inappropriate statements > on the scientific research conducted on the TM program contained in > Mr. Mesnerâs article. Dr. Orme Johnsonâs comments you have > received reply more expertly than I could on that subject and I > incorporate them." > > I had read Dr. Orme Johnson's criticisms and found them less than > compelling, some of them nonsensical. For instance, this comment - > "To Knappâs statement that TM is âtoo strangeâ for America, one > has to ask, strange for whom, the narrow minded and ethnocentric? I > think our nation has gotten past a lot of that." - left me to merely > wonder what in the world ethnocentricism might have to do with any of > this if TM is not to be viewed as an Eastern practice rooted in > Eastern beliefs and traditions? > > Dr. Orme Johnson made comments suggesting that James Randi was > incorrect regarding Henning's situation: "Maharishiâs advice was > always to seek medical attention when one gets sick, not âjust > meditateâ as Randi alleges. Studies of medical care utilization that > I conducted on Blue Cross statistics found that 2,000 TM subjects > over a five-year period had on average 50% less hospitalization and > doctors visits than the norm or matched controls, with reductions in > all categories of disease." > > This comment would be laughable if the ramifications were less > grave. When the criticism is that TM discouraged a sick man from > seeking medical attention, the statistic of 50% less hospitalization > amongst TM practitioners hardly makes that claim seem less credible. > But, just the same, if Randi's comments are "falsehoods, defamations, > or omissions", that is problem that must be taken up with James > Randi. He is accurately quoted in the article above. > > Likewise, the claim that TM is a "cult" is attributed, and Goldstein > must take any disagreement with that label up with those who use it > to describe his... "client". In my favorite part of his email, > Goldstein writes: Mr. Mesner then goes on to paste the horrific label > of a âcultâ on the TM program. Al Gore, Jerry Seinfeld and Paul > McCartney would find it remarkable to be told they are members of a > cult, but that does not mitigate the serious damages that such > thoughtless labeling can have on the organizations which teach these > programs to the public. And while Jerry may laugh at such a > characterization, Al Gore may not have as well developed a sense of > humor. > > This shameless name-dropping is pointless, as it can be worked both > ways. "Jerry may laugh", and Al Gore may be a humorless bore. Or > Jerry may in fact cringe in disgust if presented with the idea that > TM practitioners may learn to levitate, or that the Maharishi Effect > is a proven phenomena. Al Gore may laugh at such nonsense. We > really don't know, do we? Were Jerry Seinfeld, Al Gore, or Paul > McCartney asked to give an opinion of my article? Is it just too > remarkable to imagine that such celebrities might be involved in a > "cult" or cult-based practices? Do Tom Cruise and John Travolta find > it remarkable that many accuse Scientology of being a cult? For that > matter, isn't Scientology's Dianetics "auditing" practice nothing > more than a therapeutic technique? As such, perhaps it too should be > welcomed into school rooms. > > Goldstein goes on to question the credibility of John Knapp: "Mr. > Knapp has developed a niche in the field of counseling for victims of > cults which he actively promotes on his websites. He has created a > straw man, and now he is selling expensive medicine to him. " > While I'm not exactly sure what is meant by this, it seems to imply > that counseling ex-TM practitioners has proven lucrative for Knapp > which would also imply a consistent client base of TM disaffected. > But, again, if Goldstein takes issue with what is said by Knapp, he > must take it up with him. Knapp is accurately quoted in the article > above. > > The one helpful item mentioned in Goldstein's email was the fact that > the Kropinski finding was over-turned on appeal - though this would > better have been mentioned in the comments, not in a full letter > claiming "defamation". > > Most other comments regarding this article, by Dr. Orme Johnson and > others, take exception to the criticisms regarding the Maharishi > Effect. I have no intention of being ambiguous about this: the > Maharishi Effect is not a proven phenomena. I seriously doubt it can > even be considered a valid hypothesis. It's failed hippy mysticism, > and it has no place whatever in public schools. > > I said it. > > Go ahead and sue me. > > Speaking only for myself, > > Douglas Mesner >
