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This is dedicated to Kevin, who I thought might find it interesting. :>)
The prolific Polish (and ex-Communist) philosopher Leszek Kolakowski's masterwork may be his formidable and authoritative trilogy, Main Currents of Marxism. I am still in the first volume, which begins with a discussion of Plotinus and the early Christian neo-Platonists, and proceeds through several more of the Christian mystic philosophers through the Enlightenment (which he does not break down into different categories), Rousseau and Hume, Kant, Fichte, Hegel, and the Young Hegelians. At long last he arrives at Marx....
Dr. Kolakowski was one who finally became convinced that Stalinism was an inevitable result of Marxism, and turned his back on it altogether. (He wrote a famous Open Letter to his Communist colleague, the English historian E. P. Thompson, on the subject: "My correct views on everything: A rejoinder to Edward Thompson's 'Open letter to Leszek Kołakowski'". Click the title to download the pdf.) To quote from Wikipedia: "He became increasingly fascinated by the contribution that Christianity makes to Western, and, in particular, modern thought, and sought to defend the role that freedom plays in our pursuit of the transcendent."
The reviewer is one T. E. Wilder, of whom I know nothing whatsoever except that he (or she) has a few pieces on the Web and he is NOT, he avers, a "Rev." So not having read Dr. Kolakowski's book (although I now have it on order!) I can't attest as to the accuracy of the review. However, it sounds creditable enough to me; and at the least I thought some folks, perhaps especially Kevin and James (if he hasn't read the book) might find themselves tempted to give the book a go.
As presented at the source (in "scribd" format), material quoted from the book is indented. Here, I've italicized it instead.
--J.
http://www.cairnsweb.net/book/essay-questions-for-the-humanistic-tradition/
Review of Modernity on Endless Trial
by T. E. Wilder
Modernity on Endless Trial, by Leszek Kolakowski (Chicago: University of
Chicago Press, 1990) vii, 261 pages.
Contra Mundum, No. 1, Fall 1991
The failure of the modern age is generally acknowledged. What it was exactly, and how it
failed are greatly in dispute. Most writers have in mind something they think should
replace modernity. One who favors, e.g. international socialism, is interested to show that
the flaws of modernism that produced its dissolution are just those that the favored
alternative will correct. Only a few Marxists (for whom 'postmodernism' is heresy) have
directly challenged this postmodern enthusiasm. Books and essays proliferate designating
the key theme or idea that made the modern era modern. What is the same thing, debate
rages over the point where the West took a false turn leading to the modern dead end.
Was it Hegel? The Renaissance? The historian Stephen Toulmin blames Descartes. In its
more restricted field of philosophy of religion the Calvin College "Reformed
Epistemology" has laid the blame on John Locke. The debate still seems to be
intensifying and spreading to more disciplines.
Kolakowski, a Polish philosopher associated with Oxford University and the University
of Chicago, writes on this topic as one conscious of a Christian civilization in his past, a
civilization that seems to have run aground. He writes in criticism of the modern failure
to provide a workable substitute for Christianity. An unease with the cult of reason and its
effects is prominent in the title essay. The laments of contemporary cognoscenti over the
dissolution worked by the acid of secularization are, he notes, reminiscent of warnings
heard from ordinary pulpits for three centuries.
Written from 1973 to 1986 Kolakowski's essays precede the height of this debate and are
probably too probing, sane, and most of all too concerned with enduring questions to
satisfy postmodernists. Indeed he is skeptical of the debate.
Having no clear idea of what modernity is, we have recently tried to escape
forward from the issue by talking about postmodernity... I do not know what
postmodern is and how it differs from premodern, nor do I feel that I ought to
know. And what might come after the postmodern? The post-postmodern, the
neo-postmodern, the neo-antimodern? When we leave aside the labels, the
real question remains: Why is the malaise associated with the experience of
modernity so widely felt, and where are the sources of those aspects of
modernity that make this malaise particularly painful? (p. 6)
But the question cannot be avoided; Kolakowski blames Descartes's rationalistic
mechanics as a key instigator, and singles out Nietzsche as the one who finally smashed
the illusions that permitted traditional values to coexist for so long with modernity.
It seems to Kolakowski that "The explicit orthodoxy still consists of patching up. We try
to assert our modernity but escape from its effects by various intellectual devices, in order
to convince ourselves that meaning can be restored or recovered apart from the traditional
religious legacy of mankind..." Because of their artificiality, he has little regard for the
prospects of such attempts. "There is something alarmingly desperate in intellectuals who
have no religious attachment, faith or loyalty proper and who insist on the irreplaceable
educational and moral role of religion in our world..." This manipulative mentality
expresses modernity's tensions instead of healing them.
In "Looking for the Barbarians" he explores the problem of Western homage toward
other cultures. Does this mean that we cannot value our own? Further: "we have managed
to assimilate the kind of universalism which refuses to make value judgments about
different civilizations, proclaiming their intrinsic equality; on the other hand, by affirming
this equality we also affirm the exclusivity and intolerance of every culture—the very
things we claim to have risen above in making that same affirmation." The discipline that
most clearly embodies that ambiguity is anthropology. The anthropologist's attitude or
"spirit of research" is by no means shared or valued by the cultures he studies.
A European who says that all cultures are equal does not normally mean that
he would like to have his hand cut off if he is caught falsifying his tax forms...
To say, in such a case, "This is the law of the Koran, and we must respect
traditions other than our own" essentially amounts to saying "That would be
dreadful if it happened here, but for those savages it's just the right thing."
(p.21)
Similar difficulties arise in trying to assimilate all aspects of world or even European
cultural heritage.
In this connection Kolakowski reiterates a major theme of these essays. Historical change
has generated new cultural forms that cannot coexist with continuing elements from older
ones. Europe found in Christianity the balance it needed for scientific and cultural
development, but the humanistic tradition which emerged, once freed from Christianity,
appears to be self-destructing. For example:
the theory of inalienable rights of man was developed from the Christian idea
of a person as an unexchangeable value. Again, this theory was to establish
itself despite resistance from the Church; and later, when its various
imperatives proved less than perfectly compatible, and the idea of the State as
the distributor of all material and spiritual goods took precedence over the
idea of the inviolable rights of persons, it turned against itself. Thus the rights
of man became the right of the State to possess man, and a foundation was
laid for the idea of totalitarianism. (pp. 29-31)
At the end of the essay Kolakowski reaches for a consciousness of limitation, and anti-
utopianism as the enduring and universal value of European civilization. Christian
Europe, he thinks, achieved a sort of balance, especially between ascetic rejection of the
world and a pantheistic embrace of everything in it. But it has generated movements
which destroy the balance. The Reformation destroyed the mediæval barriers to
rationalism, issuing in the Enlightenment which degenerated into a deification of man and
nature. Out of this collapse there is a groping after the restoration of balance.
The twenty-three essays are organized into sections: I On Modernity, Barbarity, and the
Intellectuals, II On the Dilemmas of the Christian Legacy, III On Liberals,
Revolutionaries, and Utopians, and IV On Scientific Theories (these last are cleverly
humorous). We cannot explore each of the essays, but note briefly: 6. The enduring
psychological and social need for some form of religious values, 11. A study of the nature
of religious conversion. Some of the essay titles speak for themselves: 3. "The
Intellectuals:", "In God's Menagerie, Are They Necessary?" 7. "On the So-Called Crisis
of Christianity", 13. "The Idolatry of Politics", 18. "Revolution - a Beautiful Sickness".
The most important essay is "The Self-Poisoning of the Open Society"", an examination
of the weakness inherent in modern pluralism, "the process by which the extension and
consistent application of liberal principles transforms them into their antithesis". The
welfare state arises when the weak or disadvantaged are to be protected against the
stronger, but a free market involves competition. Thus a fully instantiated welfare state
results in suppression of the market, that is, suppression of disposal rights to property.
Also the Open Society where there is no coercion in beliefs or values becomes a society
without values since the values implicit in the tolerant society are by no means obvious or
natural. But there must be some moral education, some coercion, some imposed tradition
to maintain the society. Thus the institutions of law and education which enable society to
function are targeted by its enemies using the Open Society's values of openness,
tolerance, and disestablishment of authority.
Kolakowski in a sense follows his own heritage in providing a Romish reading of cultural
history. From that vantage the Reformation is seen as a humanistic break from long
standing consensus, emphasizing as it did the freedom of the individual conscience.
Calvin "by pitting his profound biblical conservatism against the haughtiness of
scholasticism ... left to future generations only the very secular reason he so vigorously
had condemned. In spite of his intentions, he thus created an intellectual environment that
soon nurtured the advocates of natural religion and the deists." And it is true that 17th
century freethinkers, 18th century skeptics, and 19th century theological liberals have all
claimed the Reformation's spirit as their own. (On the other extreme the radical secularist
perspective cannot distinguish Geneva from the Spanish Inquisition.) He is also attracted
to elements of the Enlightenment, and the ethical absolutism of rationalism, which
preceded the historicism so useful to totalitarians, but he can find no better ground for it
than its utility for free societies.
Kolakowski is offering us the reflections of a philosopher struggling with the diverse and
conflicting elements in his heritage and trying to see beyond the present darkness. Free of
the self-deception that characterizes the American liberal they are fresh alternatives to the
common intellectual fare. This book is literature. It deserves to be read for its examples of
the art of the essay, which is insufficiently practiced by American writers. In addition, on
most pages the reader will find probing comments on issues ignored or misunderstood by
the liberal intelligentsia. Kolakowski is aware of Calvinism and theocracy as constituting
at least theoretical options, though he doesn't like them. Thus he exhibits a better grasp of
the issues of modernity and can put them in a clearer perspective than the entire tribe of
postmodernists.
Of course we want more than this. The diagnosis should precede a prescription for
treatment, and it is here that the Reformed "world and life view" should transcend
Kolakowski. A lesson to be learned from the postmodernism debate is that diagnosis and
prescription are inseparable. Thus Rushdoony's probing books of social analysis in the
1960's are tied to his theonomy, and those who reject any form of the latter have
abandoned interest in his earlier work. Sadly most intellectuals who operate under the
Reformed banner offer a "me too" liberalism that falls far short of even Kolakowski's
reflections, even considering his deep suspicion of Calvinism. A smaller number are
offering biblical alternatives to modernism, and among these the most vigorous are the
theonomists. Perhaps now that the fundamental nature of the problems of the modern age
are so widely acknowledged, radically biblical solutions will be taken seriously.
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Hey Bruce,
I never watched that show, albeit I admit that I was a big Trekker guy....I still miss the shows, (and have not seen the new movie, because I heard that Paramount and JJ Abrahms changed the timeline and several storyline plots),
Good Morning Terril,
Admittedly, I don't know a lot about the Scientologists. I have heard similar stories of abduction and false imprisonment from others, and I am aware of the case down here in the Tampa Bay area about fourteen or fifteen years ago, where they had kept a woman purportedly against her will, who was deathly ill. This woman eventually died, and there was a big scandal and investigtion by the St. Petersburg and Pinellas County Law Enforcement agencies, as well as the Florida Department of Law Enforcement, (Our state version of the FBI).
I wrote my above post somewhat in jest, and as stated, I openly admit that I am not real familiar with the tenets of Scientology. I've read several articles about the Scientologists, and being here in the Tampa Bay area, where the Scientologists are based, (St. Pete) I know a number of folks who are Scientolgists. Good people.
Maybe you can shed some light on what these illicit immoral acts are that you would have us petition the federal government's involvment in? I see that there is nothing documented or not even any links to alleged crimes....No details to your petition.
KeithInTampa
On Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 7:50 AM, Bruce Majors <majors.bruce@gmail.com> wrote:
Thetan
Theten is from Babylon5
On Thursday, October 13, 2011, Terril Park <terrilpark3@googlemail.com> wrote:
>
>
> On Thu, Oct 13, 2011 at 12:27 AM, Keith In Tampa <keithintampa@gmail.com> wrote:
>>
>> I'm not sure about this, but don't the Scientologists have some kind of a device that they can use, to detect the Theten in you, (provided that you donate or give up enough money, and reach the level of consciousness that you have to reach, which again I think is dictated by the pocketbook)?
>>
>> WhuzHisName was a damn good science fiction writer!
>>
>> Draining your bank accounts is one of the least of the problems. The imprison people illegally.
>
> Please sign the petition. :)
> best wishes
> Terril
>>
>>
>> On Wed, Oct 12, 2011 at 3:05 PM, plainolamerican <plainolamerican@gmail.com> wrote:
>>>
>>> One belief of Scientology is that a human is an immortal alien
>>> spiritual being, termed a thetan, that is trapped on planet Earth in a
>>> physical body. The thetan has had innumerable past lives and it is
>>> accepted in Scientology that lives preceding the thetan's arrival on
>>> Earth lived in extraterrestrial cultures.
>>>
>>> On Oct 11, 9:52 am, Terrilpark <terrilpa...@googlemail.com> wrote:
>>> > WHITE HOUSE PETITION RE SCIENTOLOGY
>>> >
>>> > I am an independent or Freezone Scientologist which gives me one more
>>> > reason
>>> > to see action taken as per this petition. 5000 signatures are needed
>>> > by
>>> > the 24th of October. Believe it or not what is posted below is just
>>> > scratching
>>> > the surface of abuse committed by the Church of Scientology.
>>> >
>>> > Please read and if in agreement sign.
>>> >
>>> > thanks
>>> >
>>> > Terril Park
>>> >
>>> > http://tinyurl.com/62eqyyl
>>> >
>>> > EXAMINE THE GOVERNMENT'S FAILURE TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE CHURCH
>>> > OF SCIENTOLOGY CRIME, FRAUD AND ABUSE.
>>> >
>>> > WHEREAS, the FBI has 300+ recent complaints of Scientology crimes and
>>> > atrocities - human trafficking, forced abortions and civil rights
>>> > violations, and the IRS has evidence of private inurement violations
>>> > justifying INTERMEDIATE SANCTIONS, and existing evidence on hand meets
>>> > RICO statutes, WE REQUEST that the White House investigate and employ
>>> > a Special Prosecutor to:
>>> >
>>> > EXAMINE why, with such an abundance of RICO evidence of Scientology
>>> > being a corrupt and criminal entity, no law enforcement agency has
>>> > moved forward;
>>> >
>>> > INVESTIGATE undue favor and pressure brought by lawyers for
>>> > Scientology leader David Miscavige to stop the investigations;
>>> >
>>> > EXAMINE why around the world the "church" is investigated as a
>>> > criminal entity while the U.S. Government does nothing?
>>> >
>>> > Created: Sep 24, 2011
>>>
>>> --
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""I had an agreement with at least one person to attack the United States in retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and in retaliation of the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Palestine, especially in the blockade of Gaza, and in retaliation for the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, Afghanistan and beyond, most of them women, children, and noncombatants."
Transcript: Read Abdulmutallab's statement on guilty plea
1:59 PM, Oct. 12, 2011
The following is the transcript of what accused underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab said to the court today as he pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges in federal court in Detroit. The transcipt was provided by the U.S. District Court in Detroit.
"In the name of Allah, the most merciful, if I were to say I the father did not do it, but my son did it and he conspired with the holy spirit to do it, or if I said I did it but the American people are guilty of the sin, and Obama should pay for the crime, the Court wouldn't accept that from me or anyone else.
"In late 2009, in fulfillment of a religious obligation, I decided to participate in jihad against the United States. The Koran obliges every able Muslim to participate in jihad and fight in the way of Allah, those who fight you, and kill them wherever you find them, some parts of the Koran say, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
"I had an agreement with at least one person to attack the United States in retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and in retaliation of the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Palestine, especially in the blockade of Gaza, and in retaliation for the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, Afghanistan and beyond, most of them women, children, and noncombatants.
"As a result, I traveled to Yemen and eventually to the United States, and I agreed with at least one person to carry an explosive device onto an aircraft and attempt to kill those onboard and wreck the aircraft as an act of jihad against the United States for the U.S. killing of my Muslim brothers and sisters around the world.
"I was greatly inspired to participate in jihad by the lectures of the great and rightly guided mujahedeen who is alive, Sheikh Anwar al-Awlaki, may Allah preserve him and his family and give them victory, Amin, and Allah knows best.
"Participation in jihad against the United States is considered among the most virtuous of deeds in Islam and is highly encouraged in the Koran; however, according to U.S. law, which is unjust and oppressive according to the Koran, my actions make me guilty of a crime in the United States, in particular, the following counts in my indictment.
"Count 1, conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, so by me traveling to Yemen, then to Djibouti, to Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, the Netherlands, and eventually the United States, with an agreement with at least one person to carry an explosive device in an attempt to kill those onboard for the U.S. killing of innocent Muslims, I'm guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 2, possession of a firearm or destructive device in the furtherance of a crime of violence, I carried with me an explosive device onto Northwest 253, again, to avenge the killing of my innocent Muslim brothers and sisters by the U.S. So I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 3, attempted murder within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, again, in retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and Israel massacres of innocent Palestinians, so I am guilty of this count, too.
"Count 4, use and carrying of a firearm, destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence by carrying an explosive device and attempting to use it on Flight 253 for the U.S. killing of innocent Muslims, I am guilty of this count, too.
"Count 5, willfully placing a destructive device in and upon, in proximity to a civil aircraft which was used and operated in interstate, overseas, and foreign air commerce which was likely to have endangered the safety of such aircraft, I intentionally carried an explosive device onto Flight 253, for the United States tyranny and oppression of Muslims, so I am guilty of this count in U.S. law, but not in the Koran.
"Count 6, possession of a firearm/destructive device in furtherance of a crime of violence. I was in possession of an explosive device intended for use against the United States for U.S. interference in Muslim countries, so I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 7, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, I attempted to use an explosive device which in the U.S. law is a weapon of mass destruction, which I call a blessed weapon to save the lives of innocent Muslims, for U.S. use of weapons of mass destruction on Muslim populations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, and beyond. So I am guilty in U.S. law of this count and innocent in Muslim law.
"Count 8, willful attempt to destroy and wreck a civil aircraft, I intended to wreck a civil aircraft for the U.S. wreckage of Muslim lands and property, so I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"The United States -- the United States should be warned that if they continue and persist in promoting the blasphemy of Muhammad and the prophets, peace be upon them all, and the U.S. continues to kill and support those who kill innocent Muslims, then the U.S. should await a great calamity that will befall them through the hands of the mujahideen soon by God's willing permission. Or God will strike them directly with a great calamity soon by his will, Amin.
"If you laugh at us now, we will laugh at you later in this life and on the day of judgment by God's will, and our final call is all praise to Allah, the lord of the universe, Allahu Akbar."
Source: U.S. District Court, Detroit
http://www.freep.com/article/20111012/NEWS01/111012038
Transcript: Read Abdulmutallab's statement on guilty plea
1:59 PM, Oct. 12, 2011
The following is the transcript of what accused underwear bomber Umar Farouk Abdulmutallab said to the court today as he pleaded guilty to eight criminal charges in federal court in Detroit. The transcipt was provided by the U.S. District Court in Detroit.
"In the name of Allah, the most merciful, if I were to say I the father did not do it, but my son did it and he conspired with the holy spirit to do it, or if I said I did it but the American people are guilty of the sin, and Obama should pay for the crime, the Court wouldn't accept that from me or anyone else.
"In late 2009, in fulfillment of a religious obligation, I decided to participate in jihad against the United States. The Koran obliges every able Muslim to participate in jihad and fight in the way of Allah, those who fight you, and kill them wherever you find them, some parts of the Koran say, an eye for an eye, a tooth for a tooth.
"I had an agreement with at least one person to attack the United States in retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and in retaliation of the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Palestine, especially in the blockade of Gaza, and in retaliation for the killing of innocent and civilian Muslim populations in Yemen, Iraq, Somalia, Afghanistan and beyond, most of them women, children, and noncombatants.
"As a result, I traveled to Yemen and eventually to the United States, and I agreed with at least one person to carry an explosive device onto an aircraft and attempt to kill those onboard and wreck the aircraft as an act of jihad against the United States for the U.S. killing of my Muslim brothers and sisters around the world.
"I was greatly inspired to participate in jihad by the lectures of the great and rightly guided mujahedeen who is alive, Sheikh Anwar al-Awlaki, may Allah preserve him and his family and give them victory, Amin, and Allah knows best.
"Participation in jihad against the United States is considered among the most virtuous of deeds in Islam and is highly encouraged in the Koran; however, according to U.S. law, which is unjust and oppressive according to the Koran, my actions make me guilty of a crime in the United States, in particular, the following counts in my indictment.
"Count 1, conspiracy to commit an act of terrorism transcending national boundaries, so by me traveling to Yemen, then to Djibouti, to Ethiopia, Ghana, Nigeria, the Netherlands, and eventually the United States, with an agreement with at least one person to carry an explosive device in an attempt to kill those onboard for the U.S. killing of innocent Muslims, I'm guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 2, possession of a firearm or destructive device in the furtherance of a crime of violence, I carried with me an explosive device onto Northwest 253, again, to avenge the killing of my innocent Muslim brothers and sisters by the U.S. So I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 3, attempted murder within the special aircraft jurisdiction of the United States, again, in retaliation for U.S. support of Israel and Israel massacres of innocent Palestinians, so I am guilty of this count, too.
"Count 4, use and carrying of a firearm, destructive device during and in relation to a crime of violence by carrying an explosive device and attempting to use it on Flight 253 for the U.S. killing of innocent Muslims, I am guilty of this count, too.
"Count 5, willfully placing a destructive device in and upon, in proximity to a civil aircraft which was used and operated in interstate, overseas, and foreign air commerce which was likely to have endangered the safety of such aircraft, I intentionally carried an explosive device onto Flight 253, for the United States tyranny and oppression of Muslims, so I am guilty of this count in U.S. law, but not in the Koran.
"Count 6, possession of a firearm/destructive device in furtherance of a crime of violence. I was in possession of an explosive device intended for use against the United States for U.S. interference in Muslim countries, so I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"Count 7, attempted use of a weapon of mass destruction, I attempted to use an explosive device which in the U.S. law is a weapon of mass destruction, which I call a blessed weapon to save the lives of innocent Muslims, for U.S. use of weapons of mass destruction on Muslim populations in Afghanistan, Iraq, Yemen, and beyond. So I am guilty in U.S. law of this count and innocent in Muslim law.
"Count 8, willful attempt to destroy and wreck a civil aircraft, I intended to wreck a civil aircraft for the U.S. wreckage of Muslim lands and property, so I am guilty in U.S. law of this count.
"The United States -- the United States should be warned that if they continue and persist in promoting the blasphemy of Muhammad and the prophets, peace be upon them all, and the U.S. continues to kill and support those who kill innocent Muslims, then the U.S. should await a great calamity that will befall them through the hands of the mujahideen soon by God's willing permission. Or God will strike them directly with a great calamity soon by his will, Amin.
"If you laugh at us now, we will laugh at you later in this life and on the day of judgment by God's will, and our final call is all praise to Allah, the lord of the universe, Allahu Akbar."
Source: U.S. District Court, Detroit
http://www.freep.com/article/20111012/NEWS01/111012038
The old chinese curse, May you live in interesting times.
Scientologists in CO$ do :(
WHITE HOUSE PETITION RE SCIENTOLOGY MORE REASONS TO SIGN
Corporate Scientology is even more bizarre than anything Orwell imagined.
Karen De La Carrierre is trained to the highest levels with regard
to Scientology
One of only 7 people. She was Married to the former President of the
Church of Scientology. He is kept under lock and key and armed guards
at the International headquarters. Her son has been told to
"Disconnect" from her and thus she can't communicate with him.
She has posted this below on the Ex Scientology Message Board.
From Karen De La Carrierre
Even though this is written with satire, there is much truth to this.
More than you know.
Sometimes I ponder as to how much of a sucker I have been, what was it
that made me so dense ? In my last 3-4 years I paid them $250,000 !!!
I saw the out points. I witnessed the insanities, but I was tunnel
visioned within the cult and could not think straight.
And what did the "Church" do as soon as I started whistleblowing on
the atrocities and Miscavige ?
They built a tabloid hate web site on me within days !
That's right. $250,000 supported their OSA and PIs and the dirty Fair
Game "Anonmymous" phone call to Law enforcement that I was peddling
underage children for SEX !
I truly threw the gauntlet down at that point.
Nothing will stop me and my revelations.
They have my son as in disconnection, but I have a voice and I intend
to speak....
On 10/13/11, plainolamerican <plainolamerican@gmail.com> wrote:
> I am a Freezone or Independent Scientologist
> ---
> cool shtick ... way more interesting than islam, judaism or xianity
> but still fiction
>
> On Oct 13, 7:03 am, Terrilpark <terrilpa...@googlemail.com> wrote:
>> WHITE HOUSE PETITION RE SCIENTOLOGY
>>
>> I am a Freezone or Independent Scientologist which gives me one
>> more reason
>> to see the Chuch of Scientology brought to justice for its crimes.
>> The petition
>> below gives a very limited amount of information re COS criminal
>> actions.
>>
>> The COS managed to get stopped a 2 year FBI investigation.
>>
>> Please sign this petition and forward it also. If 5000 signatures
>> are collected by
>> 24 oct 2011 the Obama administration will have to act is some way. One
>> dosn't need to be a US citizen or have a zip code.
>>
>> http://tinyurl.com/62eqyyl
>> we petition the obama administration to:
>> EXAMINE THE GOVERNMENT'S FAILURE TO INVESTIGATE AND PROSECUTE CHURCH
>> OF SCIENTOLOGY CRIME, FRAUD AND ABUSE.
>> WHEREAS, the FBI has 300+ recent complaints of Scientology crimes and
>> atrocities - human trafficking, forced abortions and civil rights
>> violations, and the IRS has evidence of private inurement violations
>> justifying INTERMEDIATE SANCTIONS, and existing evidence on hand meets
>> RICO statutes, WE REQUEST that the White House investigate and employ
>> a Special Prosecutor to:
>> EXAMINE why, with such an abundance of RICO evidence of Scientology
>> being a corrupt and criminal entity, no law enforcement agency has
>> moved forward;
>> INVESTIGATE undue favor and pressure brought by lawyers for
>> Scientology leader David Miscavige to stop the investigations;
>> EXAMINE why around the world the "church" is investigated as a
>> criminal entity while the U.S. Government does nothing?
>> Created: Sep 24, 2011
>
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Forget Fingerprints...I need your Faceprint....
The FBI by mid-January will activate a nationwide facial recognition service in select states that will allow local police to identify unknown subjects in photos, bureau officials told Nextgov.
The federal government is embarking on a multiyear, $1 billion dollar overhaul of the FBI's existing fingerprint database to more quickly and accurately identify suspects, partly through applying other biometric markers, such as iris scans and voice recordings.
Often law enforcement authorities will "have a photo of a person and for whatever reason they just don't know who it is [but they know] this is clearly the missing link to our case," said Nick Megna, a unit chief at the FBI's criminal justice information services division. The new facial recognition service can help provide that missing link by retrieving a list of mug shots ranked in order of similarity to the features of the subject in the photo.
Today, an agent would have to already know the name of an individual to pull up the suspect's mug shot from among the 10 million shots stored in the bureau's existing Integrated Automated Fingerprint Identification System.
Using the new Next-Generation Identification system that is under development, law enforcement analysts will be able to upload a photo of an unknown person; choose a desired number of results from two to 50 mug shots; and, within 15 minutes, receive identified mugs to inspect for potential matches. Users typically will request 20 candidates, Megna said. The service does not provide a direct match.
Michigan, Washington, Florida and North Carolina will participate in a test of the new search tool this winter before it is offered to criminal justice professionals across the country in 2014 as part of NGI. The project, which was awarded to Lockheed Martin Corp. in 2008, already has upgraded the FBI's fingerprint matching service.
Local authorities have the choice to file mug shots with the FBI as part of the booking process. The bureau expects its collection of shots to rival its repository of 70 million fingerprints once more officers are aware of the facial search's capabilities.
Thomas E. Bush III, who helped develop NGI's system requirements when he served as assistant director of the CJIS division between 2005 and 2009, said, "The idea was to be able to plug and play with these identifiers and biometrics." Law enforcement personnel saw value in facial recognition and the technology was maturing, said the 33-year FBI veteran who now serves as a private consultant.
NGI's incremental construction seems to align with the White House's push to deploy new information technology in phases so features can be scrapped if they don't meet expectations or run over budget.
But immigrant rights groups have raised concerns that the Homeland Security Department, which exchanges digital prints with the FBI, will abuse the new facial recognition component. Currently, a controversial DHS immigrant fingerprinting program called Secure Communities runs FBI prints from booked offenders against the department's IDENT biometric database to check whether they are in the country illegally. Homeland Security officials say they extradite only the most dangerous aliens, including convicted murderers and rapists. But critics say the FBI-DHS print swapping ensnares as many foreigners as possible, including those whose charges are minor or are ultimately dismissed.
Megna said Homeland Security is not part of the facial recognition pilot.
But, Bush said in the future NGI's data, including the photos, will be accessible by Homeland Security's IDENT.
The planned addition of facial searches worries Sunita Patel, a staff attorney with the Center for Constitutional Rights, who said, "Any database of personal identity information is bound to have mistakes. And with the most personal immutable traits like our facial features and fingerprints, the public can't afford a mistake."
In addition, Patel said she is concerned about the involvement of local police in information sharing for federal immigration enforcement purposes.
"The federal government is using local cops to create a massive surveillance system," she said.
Bush said, "We do have the capability to search against each other's systems," but added, "if you don't come to the attention of law enforcement you don't have anything to fear from these systems."
Other civil liberties advocates questioned whether the facial recognition application would retrieve mug shots of those who have simply been arrested.
"It might be appropriate to have nonconvicted people out of that system,"
said Jim Harper, director of information policy at the libertarian Cato Institute. FBI officials declined to comment on the recommendation.
Harper also noted large-scale searches may generate a lot of false positives, or incorrect matches. Facial recognition "is more accurate with a Google or a Facebook, because they will have anywhere from a half-dozen to a dozen pictures of an individual, whereas I imagine the FBI has one or two mug shots," he said.
FBI officials would not disclose the name of the search product or the vendor, but said they gained insights on the technique's accuracy by studying research from the National Institute of Standards and Technology.
In responding to concerns about the creation of a Big Brother database for tracking innocent Americans, Megna said the system will not alter the FBI's authorities or the way it conducts business. "This doesn't change or create any new exchanges of data," he said. "It only provides [law enforcement] with a new service to determine what photos are of interest to them."
In 2008, the FBI released a privacy impact assessment summarizing its appraisal of controls in place to ensure compliance with federal privacy regulations. Megna said that, during meetings with the CJIS Advisory Policy Board and the National Crime Prevention and Privacy Compact Council, "we haven't gotten a whole lot of pushback on the photo capability."
The FBI has an elaborate system of checks and balances to guard fingerprints, palm prints, mug shots and all manner of criminal history data, he said.
"This is not something where we want to collect a bunch of surveillance film" and enter it in the system, Megna said. "That would be useless to us.
It would be useless to our users."
http://www.nextgov.com/nextgov/ng_20111007_6100.php?oref=rss
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