Expert on fraud warned: "Do not trust NarConon!"

'Great is the Truth and it will Prevail'
Don't trust quick fix solution

2 February, 2006

SHETLAND drug and alcohol workers have warned islanders to think twice before signing up to rehabilitation programmes offered by Narconon Scotland.

They said support and rehab programmes were available locally and it should not cost =A36,000 to kick the habit, as the organisation suggests.

Narconon has an international network of drug rehab centres, sponsored by the Church of Scientology. There are two in the UK, one in West Linton, Peebleshire, and the other in East Grinstead, West Sussex.

Mike Gallant, of the Community Drugs Team (CDT), said: "It is essential that people take local expert advice before believing everything they hear and read. People having problems controlling their alcohol or drug use often have very different needs, and there's no such thing as a 'quick fix'. This particular programme may be good for some people, though there are many other ways of getting help to help yourself."

Jenna Leask, from the Alcohol and Drug Development Office at NHS Shetland, added that help could be available to pay for detoxification and rehabilitation. She said: "If you contact the Aftercare and Resettlement team on Lerwick 696698 they can assess you with a view to getting funding. They have all the information to help you decide what's right for you, including residential treatment outwith the islands if necessary.

"Shetland Alcohol Support Services (SASS), the CDT and your local NHS health centre can also offer other help, including access to a specialist detox nurse, alternative therapies, practical assistance and counselling."

Mr Gallant added that his main concern was that Narconon might not be quite what they appear to be.

"They're heavily supported by the Church of Scientology, and the BBC TV programme 'Watchdog' did an investigation of them. The results of that are available on the BBC website.

"Of course people may be desperate for help, but I'd urge people to think again if they're believing there's a magic pill out there to fix everything - if anyone knows that's not the case, it's someone with a drug or alcohol problem!"

http://www.shetland-news.co.uk/pages/news%20stories/02_2006/don't_trust_quick_fix_solution.htm

Illegal activity at NarConon

From: Orozco, Linda
Sent: Mon 2/13/2006 9:56 AM
Subject: For Public Meeting

SAVE YOUR NEIGHBORHOOD FROM NARCONON

Feb. 13, 2006
Leona Valley Town Council Meeting:

My name is Dr. Linda Orozco and I have lived with Narconon as a 'neighbor' for over 7 years. I strongly encourage you to reject Narconon, and work intensely to block them from coming into your neighborhood. Thank you for allowing me to share my experience and that of dozens of neighbors of the multi-million dollar Narconon business in Newport Beach.

Narconon rents an oceanfront residential triplex at 1810 W. Oceanfront, on the Newport Beach peninsula. The property has NO street access, only a narrow alleyway--which we all share to access our garages/carports and homes. One must drive past at least twelve other properties on both sides of the alleyway to access Narconon. Please note, our windows and homes are located only a few feet from this alleyway. We, as neighbors, were always aware of the high traffic, noise, littering, profanity, lack of parking, and high occupancy use of this property. Over the years, city officials pushed our complaints away by saying, "Narconon is licensed by the state of California and there is nothing you can do." We now know better. But we continue to suffer because this multi million dollar business continues to 'cultivate' favor with our local government leaders, and threatened lawsuits when anyone tries to correct, limit, or stop their expansion in this property. [I have personally received 2-3 letters threatening legal action against me by Narconon because of my 'legal' efforts to expose their lies, illegal operations, and document their intrusion/disruption of our neighborhood.]

Over the years, here is what we have observed, videotaped, photographed and suffered through. Remember, this is a $4 million dollar a year business on a residential property ($25,000 per addict for a 2-5 month stay):

OVER OCCUPANCY

Repeated violations of maximum occupancy limits observed by neighbors, videotaped, and documented in written violations by the state licensing agency, Calif. Dept. of Alcohol and Drug Programs (ADP).

Narconon houses addicts/clients on the property with 27 beds, and 29 full time staff (documented by ADP). The property only has 3 parking spaces! In addition, they bring in dozens more PER DAY with at least 3 vans they operate specifically for this purpose. Vans arrive in the morning, and take the additional clients back to other residences (in Costa Mesa and other cities) in the evening. Because we have videotaped these illegal 'overage clients', Narconon now drops them 1-2 blocks away from their property, and they all walk in from various directions to the Narconon house. (We have even videotaped this practice) It is all a farce and a sham attempt to get more and more clients served by this oceanfront residential property with 27 beds.

OVERWHELMING VEHICULAR TRAFFIC

All vehicles by staff/clients place an enormous burden on traffic and public parking around this oceanfront residential property (with only alley access!). Yet they claimed in a City Council meeting that the 29 staff don't drive, but instead 'bicycle' to the property. Really? NO! We see and experience the lack of public parking and alley traffic (and the blocking of the alley) in our neighborhood to sustain the vehicles by Narconon.

Commercial trash service, with commercial trash containers, and 'special' trash trucks picked up on an almost daily basis. This has now been reduced to 3-4 times a week, plus our own city service to our homes. The result is we have trash trucks in our neighborhood, in our narrow alleyway ALMOST EVERY DAY.

Daily deliveries by FedEx trucks.

Multiple deliveries a week from Office Depot

Regular (multiple times a week) maintenance vehicles for plumbing, rug cleaning, electrical, repair, handywork, cable, etc. Don't fall for their claim (nor their attempt) to show you receipts proving limited services of this type- they did this with our city council. We see it every day, and have tired from taking the pictures.

The drug/alcohol rehabilitation nature of the business also requires regular doctors' visits, drug testing vans, paramedic vans, etc..

To feed the overwhelming large number of residents and staff, there are delivery vehicles twice a week from SYSCO foods, and 2 twice for fresh produce. For years, SYSCO delivered in large (and I mean LARGE) refrigeration semi- trucks. Deliveries would take almost 30 minutes while the truck motor idled in a very small shared public alleyway. The alleyway would be completely blocked during these times. For over a year we complained to Narconon and the city, both did nothing. Finally we contacted SYSCO, and the President of the company kindly responded to our complaints and now deliveries by SYSCO commercial food service, is done with multiple vans. A much needed improvement, but still impacts traffic and blocks the alley.

Multiple times a month, paramedics, fire &/or police are called to the property. Overdoses by addicts, fights, and other problems requiring fire/police have become a routine for our neighborhood.

Sundays are visitors day! Expect a doubling of people on the property as relatives and friends of the 'clients' come on Sunday. Also remember that according to David Feinberg, an administrator from Calif. Dept. of Alcohol and Drug Program, 80-90% of clients in these facilities have criminal convictions. Imagine the 'friends and family' that will now be welcomed into YOUR neighborhood?

The vehicular traffic and necessary public parking needed to maintain the operation of this business is staggering, and has negatively impacted our neighborhood.

ILLEGAL EXPANSION

In October 2003, the neighborhood became enraged to find Narconon opening a SECOND separate property at 1811 W. Balboa Blvd. This location was just across a 20ft wide alley from their first house. We began to aggressively find out more about this 'business' and try to protect the 'residential quality of our neighborhood'. In March of 2004, Narconon announced in a City Council meeting that they were closing the 2nd residential rehab in response to the neighbors. Narconon lied. The Calif. Dept. of Alcohol and Drug Programs closed them down. We didn't find this out for months until we forced ADP to give us copies of public access documents. [See ADP letter dated 12/4/03]

NOISE & OTHER

As noted, above, the traffic noise is terrible.

We regularly hear yelling, fighting, profanity, spitting, vomiting, coughing. etc.. With the large number of people on this one residential property 29 full time staff, and 27 beds, (plus more clients delivered daily by van), just imagine how disrupting these sounds are to children, the elderly, and ourselves.

We have suffered thru the noise and disruption of commercial vacuum cleaners and commercial washers/dryers. Again, imagine the volume of clothing generated by this many people. These appliances seemed to be operating around the clock. These could easily be heard by neighbors almost 4 homes away from Narconon.

Foot traffic. These clients and staff walk thru the neighborhood on a regular basis coming to and from the property. Trespassing thru our property by Narconon 'clients' has been a problem. Their talking, yelling, coughing, smoking- pass by our windows/homes constantly. We estimate that there are almost as many persons on this single residential tract as there are on the entire block of other residences COMBINED.

Recruitment & Tours: Narconon recruits new clients by giving tours and orientations to prospective clients on the property. They have even hosted large numbers of international visitors as they continue to expand their international business.

Cigarette butts and Littering. We are amazed at the constant smoking of clients and staff at Narconon. And we continue with efforts to stop them from littering their cigarette butts on our properties or smoking outside our windows in the alleyway. This may sound like a mild issue, but neighbors report problems cigarette butts everywhere in great volume. I have picked up over 50 butts from my property alone in just a matter of one week.

CITY BUSINESS LICENSE CLAIMS ZERO EMPLOYEES?

The city issues a business license to Narconon. On the city's website for their business license, ZERO employees are listed for Narconon. Why? Narconon is state-licensed with 29 full time staff. Why does Narconon continue to mis-represent the truth about this business?

City Business License Website: http://www.city.newport-beach.ca.us/revenue/revenue.htm http://owaportal.fullerton.edu/exchweb/bin/redir.asp?URL=http://www.city.newport-beach.ca.us/revenue/revenue.htm

Based on our experience, we encourage Leona Valley to consider intervening to stop Narconon from entering additional residential neighborhoods based on the violations, intrusions, disruptions, and suffering we, the neighbors of this business in Newport Beach, have experienced.

In sharing my experience and FACTS with you-Narconon may try to silence me again with legal threats. These threats are illegal and violate 'anti-SLAPP' legislation in California, which protect individuals speaking/writing on public issues in a public meeting. Is THIS the kind of business you want in your neighborhood? One that has a proven record of threatening neighbors with legal action when they tell the TRUTH in public meetings, and try to protect their families, neighborhoods and others?

Sincerely,
Dr. Orozco

Behind the scene at Scientology's NarConon scam

Subject: Hello, My name is Patty Pieniadz
Date: Wed, 1 Mar 2006 13:22:23 -0500
Message-ID: <46m73cFbkt0nU1@individual.net>

My name is Patty Pieniadz, I am an Ex-Scientologist and I've been an on and off lurker on a.r.s. for a couple of years.

After reading what OSA has been doing to Chuck Beatty and witnessing his strength and courage, I have decided to delurk and tell my stories.

This post is my "short story". I have written up more of my stories in Scn and will post them soon.

I became involved with Scn in 1973 at the Narconon program in New London, Connecticut. I was 18 years old at the time. I had been accepted to the University of Connecticut but I dropped out and joined the VISTA volunteers, which was a sort of a Peace Corps program for the impoverished areas of the US.

I became a heavy drug user and came to a point in my life where I realized I had to handle my drug problem. That decision led me to Narconon and then directly to Scientology.

At that time (1973) NN didn't hide the Scn connection. It was quite open and the Narconon Course packs were the actual HCOB's and PL's and not the glossy Narconon packs that you see today. The Narconon Objectives Course was called the HQS Course or the Hubbard Qualified Scientologist Course when I joined up in 1973.

After a few years I became the ED of Narconon Connecticut (NN CT) and then was recruited into the Boston Guardians Office (GO) in 1979. I held the post of Dir of Rehab, Social Coordination Boston, and ran the Narconons, Applied Scholastics and Schools (Apple and then Delphi) in the New England area.

I left the GO in 1981 to have a family. I did not want to raise children while on Church staff and year or so after I left the GO it was disbanded for being a "suppressive group".

I stayed off lines for several years but then eventually found my way back and was recruited as an "OSA volunteer". At first I did overt data collection for OSA Boston and then after a while I was involved in more "covert" activities such as infiltrating a "squirrel group", stealing trash and other OSA "ops". I did this kind of volunteer OSA work for approximately 14 years on and off and will be writing more detailed accounts of my activities as an OSA volunteer.

It's nothing I am proud of, it's just information that I think should be made known.

I don't remember what it was that got me interested in reading critical sites but one day I just jumped in and started reading. After a while I came to realize that current C of S was not the same C of S that I joined in 1973. I decided that I would no longer support the C of S and slowly drifted away.

In Sept, 2003, Maureen O'Keefe, a woman that I recruited into Scn and one of my closest friends showed up at my home unannounced and uninvited. Maureen was the Invest Dir for OSA Boston and she brought along a woman named Kathy True, from OSA Int. They arrived on a Saturday night around 9:00.

When they arrived I had already fallen asleep on the couch while watching TV and so their knocking at my front door startled me. I invited them in, after all Maureen was a good friend and her mother lives only a few towns away from me so it sort of made sense that she might drop in to see me, but it was strange that she hadn't called first.

It didn't take long for me to find out that it was not a friendly uninvited drop by. They were there on official business and accused me of sending out OT III data from my yahoo account to a Scn mailing list.

I told them no way, this was not possible, and that I would never do such a thing. I was told that if they could just have access to my computer they could clear this entire matter up. I realized they expected me to just let them have access with no questions because if you are a good Scientologist, and you were innocent of any "crimes" you would not hesitate to do what OSA wanted you to do.

My computer was located in my bedroom and at that moment my husband was asleep in bed and there was no way I was going to have them go in there and start looking around and disturbing my husband. I don't know about you, but I don't like people in my bedroom. And I knew my husband wouldn't appreciate it.

Kathy True told me that they had a computer expert look at the email and he concluded that the OT III information definitely was sent from my account. Of course they brought no proof of this.

I told them someone must of hacked into my account and done this and that I would close the account and inform hotmail of what was going on.

I refused them access to my computer not only because it would have disturbed my husband, but also because this whole caper stunk and I knew they were lying but I couldn't figure out why. I had worked for OSA long enough to know that they were running some kind of crazy con on me and I was a bit upset that they were not forthcoming with the real reason why they were there. Maureen O'Keefe knew me and knew I would never mail out OT III data but she sat there and lied to my face. It scared the hell out of me that a woman that I loved and trusted for so many years would do this to a friend.

Maureen O'Keefe, the woman I recruited into Scn, the godmother to my son, the woman that was a bridesmaid in my wedding, this same woman who called herself my friend was in my home and lying to me and running some kind of OSA op on me. Why?

Finally I told them I was tired and they got me to agree that they could discuss this further with me on the next day.

Maureen and Kathy showed up the next day but ran into the problem of it being Sunday and the only thing that happens on a Sunday afternoon in the fall/winter in the Pieniadz house is eating, drinking and watching football and/or watching UConn basketball. I forgot that I had invited friends over to watch with us and so Maureen and Kathy walked in on a little football party and seemed none to pleased.

Maureen and Kathy wanted to talk to me privately but I explained to them that I told my friends about the problem of my hotmail account being hacked into and that confidential data sent out from it and so they could freely discuss the matter with my friends (Wogs) in the room.

Maureen proceeded tell me that the problem was all solved! All I had to do was give them my computer and then they would put in a PO (purchase order) for me to have a brand new computer. These two girls must have thought I just fell off the turnip truck. I am going to give them my brand new computer and THEN they will get a PO approved? Right, sure! The chances of them getting a PO approved for a brand new computer for someone they suspect is sending out OT III materials is about triple zero. None, nada, no way, forget about it.

I told them NO WAY it wasn't going to happen and they both were a bit miffed at my refusal to their brilliant idea. I invited them to stay, have lunch and watch the football game but they declined.

I noticed a few months later that I stopped getting Scn magazines and Scn junk mail, and thought it was weird but figured they were mad a me and this was how they were letting me know.

Nine months later I got my official SP declare in the mail and just for good measure they declared my husband as well. I'll get it posted as soon as I figure out how.

I have to say I was rather ambivalent when I got that declare. I was sort of curious as to what it was all about but I had no interest in querying it or getting copies of these KR's that were never sent to me and that might explain what exactly my "crimes" were.

It proved my point that my friend Maureen was lying to me because the declare said nothing about sending out OT III data but instead accused me of passing on information to critics.

I was actually relieved when I received that declare because I would never have to answer up or explain why I wasn't following one of the many Scn's rules of life. I was free to pursue whatever interests I wanted to and was no longer restricted in looking and learning in life. I was free of them and was happy that I would not have to deal with them ever again.

Then a few days before Christmas 2004, Maureen O'Keefe showed up at my work. Yes, I work in donut shop!

I am an OT III that works in a donut shop. I spent all of my adult life in Scn and after 30 years of being with them the only skill I had was being a Scio and working in a Scio company. The only thing available to me was minimum wage because I had no real prior experience in anything else.

So I took the job of working in the donut shop with my mom and we have lots of fun. That photo of on the Scn website (Religious Freedom Watch) was taken on what is known as "wacky Wednesday". That was a day that we had a great time and everyone at work dressed up kind of wacky. So of course, in true Scn style, one of Scn's PI's or "volunteers" came to my work that day and took the picture. Scn has a very perverted sense of "fun". Only they would use something theta like a bunch of women having fun and dressing up funny, and using it to belittle that person.

But just recently the local paper did a feature article on me and mom. I'll also post that article as soon as I figure how to do that.

I think OSA thought that it might embarrass me to work in a place like that but it doesn't. I love that job and have a great deal of fun there. I know hundreds of people from working there. I can't go anywhere in town without seeing 4 or 5 people I know and we say hi or stop and chat. It was never like that when I was in Scn. I work with wogs now and we all get along and we even do things together outside of work. I don't have to worry about stats or conditions or fake status levels.

Maureen O'Keefe showing up at work right before Christmas kind of surprised me. I was curious as to why she was there and realized she must have gotten some sort of special OK to speak with me now that I was a declared SP.

Maureen took me out to lunch (Dutch treat, of course) and we chit chatted about friends and family and then Maureen asked me why I thought she was there. I told her I thought that she must be here because she cared about me and want to talk me into doing my A to E.

She was seemed a bit surprised by my answer and said, "well actually, no, that would be nice, but I am here to tell you that we know you are posting to the internet as Cerridwen and that we can't have you do that". She did not wait for a reply but instead just started what appeared to be a scripted talk about how she knows that I might have disagreements but she knows that I loved Scn as much as she does and she can't understand why I am doing this and if I continued posting to ars that she would be forced to apply the PL on handling critics.

We talked for about 2 and a half hours and when I asked what proof she had to say that I was posting, she said that it was done through a process of elimination, whatever that means.

I didn't bring in up at the time but it occurred to me that Cerridwen posts reports on the C of S events and I haven't been to an event in years and OSA knows that because they keep lists of who attends.

Maureen was trying to "pull strings" to find out when and why I became disaffected. She said something about having spent a lot of time with my folders and putting together a time track of me but she still just couldn't figure it out.

Well of course she couldn't figure it out. Maureen O'Keefe is a very indoctrinated Scientologists and couldn't figure her way out of a paper bag without Hubbard telling her how.

It finally came down to Maureen saying. "If you don't stop posting, we will apply the policy on handling critics". I told her if she did apply those policies against me I would forgive her.

A few days after our lunch together, Maureen called my house and left a message for my husband Bobby. Bobby has no interest in talking with Maureen or any one from the Church as he had already left the Church years before me.

We had a family conference with my son Derek and decided that we would just write a letter of disconnection to Maureen and the C of S and tell her to just leave us alone. The day after I sent the letter of disconnection, they put up a webpage about me on Religious Freedom Watch.

I currently suffer from several autoimmune diseases that I am working hard on getting under control and getting myself healthier. I finally started doing something about these diseases once I left the church and rid myself of my agreement with Scn's viewpoint on the medical profession and that all illness stems only from ptsness and spiritual problems. I finally got rid of the false information that I truly believed in . That false information assisted in me neglecting my health for a very long time thinking Scn tech (the OT levels) would handle it.

And as far as all my "finance crimes" -- I swear I was just following LRH finance policy!;)

I figure any critic with one of those disgusting pages already knows that they are filled with half truths and lies. I'm not going to even bother to explain the real truth behind them. I don't really care what they say about me. They are only words and lying words at that. They have no power over me any more.

I have a lot more to report on and give my permission for this and my other stories to be webbed by critics of Scientology.

Patty Pieniadz

Tel Aviv Rejected Narconon Scam

http://www.haaretzdaily.com/hasen/spages/676239.html

Last update 04:19 30/01/2006

Tel Aviv to try Scientology founder's drug rehab program

By Yuval Azoulay, Haaretz Correspondent

The Tel Aviv municipality will soon be running a drug rehabilitation program developed by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Drug addicts enrolled in the program, called Narconon, spend extended periods in a sauna and receive food supplements and vitamins to increase their perspiration rate and speed up the detoxification of their bodies. The program is being financed by private donors.

Despite City Hall's enthusiasm, the Health Ministry and the Israel Antidrug Authority have not approved the program.

"In my opinion, the Tel Aviv municipality cannot start such a process without the approval of the Health Ministry and the Antidrug Authority," said authority director general Haim Messing last week.

"The patients will receive large doses of vitamins and food supplements while in the sauna to increase the excretion of toxins by the body," explained Messing. "This method has not been checked out in Israel. We are in favor of pilot programs in Israel and will follow it with an evaluation study."

A few months ago three representatives of Tel Aviv City Hall visited the United States and were impressed with the success rate of the program, which Dr. Benny Avrahami, director of the Tel Aviv Municipal Anti-Drug Authority, reported as ranging between 50 and 75 percent.

Avrahami explains that the program will be run twice a year, with 150 participating drug addicts. The patients will be treated at a special rehabilitation center on a residential basis. During their first six weeks at the center, patients will spend 40-60 minutes in a sauna three or four times a day.

Between the sauna sessions, they will participate in physical exercises in a fitness room at the center and will receive food supplements. The second stage of the program, called Criminon, involves studying a curriculum that teaches participants how to cope with various situations.

"We received a donation of $1.5 million in the U.S. to run the program," says Avrahami. "The only condition set by the American donors was that we run this specific program." Avrahami is aware that the man behind the program is the founder of Scientology, but is undeterred.

"There is nothing in the implementation of this program that indicates spiritual goals. There will be no religious messages, not even veiled ones," assures Avrahami.

Criminon, which is part of the Narconon program, has been implemented in Israel's prisons for five years. So far 60 inmates addicted to drugs have been treated through the Criminon program. An Antidrug Authority source noted that in the Prison Services case, approval was given for the program because it did not involve the physical side of the program, only the educational one.

Brigadier General Yossi Beck, the Israel Prison Authority's head of treatment and rehabilitation, highly recommends the program.

"Of the 60 men treated via the program and released from prison, only one is back behind bars for a drug-related offense," says Beck. "The program seems to have a positive effect." Beck also hastens to add that despite the connection between the program and the founder of Scientology, there are no religious or spiritual messages in the program.

"Sure, the program was developed by the founder of Scientology and Scientologists use it, but a professional theory should not be discounted because its propounder is a member of a certain religion," says Beck.

Messing, too, does not link his objection to the program with its relationship to Scientology. "In all my conversations with various people, I have not found any connection between Scientology and saunas. We are in favor of effective methods for drug rehabilitation, on the condition that programs be adopted only after being properly researched."

Neighbor's Complaint Letter for Narconon Bouquet Canyon

Los Angeles County Department of Regional Planning Zoning Enforcement Section 320 West Temple Street Los Angeles CA 90012

Dear Zoning Enforcement:

We understand the "Church" of Scientology is now trying to sneak a drug rehab center onto its property at 36491 Bouquet Canyon Road, by passing it off as a "school." This proposed criminal rehab center is on land contiguous to our property and home. Other residences with families and children are next door and across the street. This would mean murderers, rapists, people convicted of assault, burglars, and who knows what else would be living next door to me, my wife and other families with children. This facility would be threatening the health, safety, and the right to a peaceful existence of the residents of Bouquet Canyon and adjoining communities. Property values for this rural area would plummet.

Somebody will get hurt, or lose their life if you allow this to happen. Why? One reason is The "Church" of Scientology is notorious for defying government, on a local or national level. We believe they have proven their disregard for laws through lying, defiance and deceit.

1=2E The children of the "Church" of Scientology Canyon Oaks "School" played unsupervised on the highway, congregating in underground culverts. We have seen as many as a dozen children sitting on the highway pavement at one time. The children appeared to range in age from about 5 to 14 years old.

2=2E The children rode horses on our property, and other neighbor's property in total defiance of our protests over the years, claiming "they didn't know." These children were schooled in how to defy authority (refer to L. Ron Hubbard's Dianetics book). We have had to call the Sheriff on them. At whose expense?

3=2E Scientology supervisors ignored our protests and treated each one of our numerous calls to complain as though nothing had ever happened prior.

4=2E Two summers ago, a boy who said he has been housed at the cult's premises for years was caught at our fence agitating our dogs. He had to trespass over 20 acres of our property and ignore "No Trespassing" signs to do so. Same old story: "I didn't know this was private property," he told us. He was either lying or it was further proof of lack of supervision, or an example of the "Church" of Scientology's disregard for those outside their cult. Adults from the school have been caught trespassing as well.

5=2E When this Scientology group was initially moving in to occupy their property, they appeared to seek the good will of Leona Valley residents and Town Council. They gave assurances to us at a Leona Valley Town Council meeting that lighting at the school would be low-key in order to preserve the rural nature of Bouquet Canyon and its beautiful starry nights. Once they occupied the premises, unshielded lighting proliferated all over their buildings. This not only disrupts the once-beautiful, black, rural, Milky Way night sky, but is also a hazard to motorists because the unshielded lights shine into driver's eyes and can cause disorientation when driving past the property. 6=2E Sewage smells emanate from the Scientology property over acres of land and into the intersection of Spunky Canyon and Bouquet Canyon Road. Foul! The Department of Health should inspect! What is happening to the ground water? How many occupants are allowed?

This was the history of the "Church" of Scientology's children's boarding school. So, why should they now be allowed to run a drug rehab center with the attendant liabilities to the county, and to the community? The name of the entity we understand is planning this disaster is NARCONON. They are Scientology based. Whatever their history or claimed qualifications, the risks and threat to us are well documented by the following sources:

(Following, are reports of associations of criminal arrests with positive drug use tests, from the Executive Office of the President's Office of National Drug Control Policy)

Signed

(Neighbor of 36491 Bouquet Canyon Road property)

Email from NarConon Survivor

E-Mail about "Huntington Beach" NarCONon
From: (Rev. Fredric L. Rice)
Date: Tue, 30 Jul 2002 04:51:30 GMT
Organization: The Skeptic Tank

Yesterday I received E-Mail from someone claiming to have unwittedly subjected themselves to Scientology's "NarCONon" fraud out of their business office in "Huntington Beach" (though the actual place was likely Balboa and one of the major street names is Huntington, it looks like. I didn't ask for a better description of which NarCONon office it allegedly was.)

Some times I posted redacted copies of such e-mail however I've asked the woman to file a criminal complaint as well as a report with the California state licening board which has the authority to shut the criminal enterprise's "NarCONon" facilities down. So I won't post it here, even redacted. But I will mention three things that appear to be common allegations from victims of NarCONon. Whether they're true or not, I'll have to ask you to be the judge based upon what's known about Scientology.

First, it was claimed that the criminal enterprise demands that its victims hand over their driving license and any other ID when they "check in" for the dubious quack medical "treatment." It seems likely that the alleged crooks do this to try to keep the victims who twig to the fraud from escaping in the middle of the night (and there-in lies another story I can't forward.) There should be no reason for any _real_ "drug treatment" facility to demand that its customers / clients hand over all of their ID -- and certainly not their driving licenses.

Second, when the woman attempted to leave, she claimes that Scientology wouldn't let her and tried to keep her ID. She had to inform them that it was against the law to hold her against her will before the criminals allowed her to leave. The first thing I would expect Scientology to do is to make photocopies of all driving licenses and other ID when it's handed over and that doubtlessly goes into the victim's folder for later abuse.

Finally it was said that when she tried to leave and was surrounded by people who wouldn't let her, they kept telling her that she wouldn't be able to make it out in the real world and that if she did leave she would be a drug addict all her life and that she'll probably die if she left.

It had been my understanding that the State licencing agency was going to pull these crook's license and shut them down in California yet with this E-mail I see that they have yet to do so. While I encouraged the woman to file complaints, passing along the contact information for the licensing authority, I'm worried that she won't.

NarConon victim brutalized

"Tara J" describes her hellish experience at Narconon of Southern California (Newport Beach) and Narconon Warner Springs. With supporting documents:

http://Stop-Narconon.org/Personal/TaraJ

=======================================

Tara J.'s Narconon Experience
January 2005

I'm 47 years old and live in the Baltimore, Maryland area. I do customer service work for a travel agent; in the past I have worked as a paralegal. My husband and I also own a small computer-related business. We have two adult children. In mid-July of 2004, I left my husband and moved to Phoenix, Arizona. I was drinking heavily, and started dabbling in cocaine and "meth" (methamphetamine).

My husband and I reconciled in October. He said I needed to get some professional help, and went on the Internet to find a rehab facility I could go to. He searched for "drug and alcohol rehab in Maryland". Narconon has flooded the web with advertising under many different domain names, so these kinds of searches end up returning dozens of hits leading to them. He ended up calling Narconon, although he thought he was contacting another group.

There is a Narconon facility in the Washington, DC area, but they want to get people away from their families, so I was told I had to go to California for treatment. I agreed to go to Narconon of Southern California, which is located in Newport Beach.

Before I left for Newport Beach, we received a lengthy email describing the facility and treatment program. This email was sent by Julie Bryant, the Admissions Director. It mentions bike riding and rollerblading activities, and says that Narconon has an 80% success rate. But nowhere in this email, or in the orientation material, or on the Narconon web sites is there any mention of Scientology. The email was sent from "info@usnodrugs.com", but the receipt for payment Julie sent on Narconon letterhead showed a different email address: "info@drugrehabamerica.net". These are two of the many names Narconon uses. The charge for my stay was to be $25,000, broken down as follows:

Narconon program 21,500.00
Medical detox 3,500.00
Books 464.04
Sales tax 35.96
Total cost: $ 25,000.00

The "medical detox" was subcontracted to another facility, Chapman House, located 15 miles away in Orange, CA. This wasn't a serious medical detox, though; I had already been sober for two weeks. They just had some medically-trained staff there to monitor people. I flew to California on October 27, 2003, and Narconon drove me to Chapman House from Newport Beach. I could not leave the facility unless escorted by staff. After three days, Narconon came and got me, and brought me back to Newport Beach, where I ended up spending one night. I was given vitamins and CalMag (a mixture of calcium and magnesium that Scientologists believe has a calming effect). When I woke up the next morning I had broken out in a rash from head to toe.

One thing I noticed right away at Newport Beach was that the place was full of young people; there were no "students" (that's what they call their clients) my own age. So Narconon offered to move me to their Warner Springs facility, where they said they had people my age. I was driven there along with a staffer, and a 20 year old female student who I'll call Megan (not her real name), who was there for an eating disorder.

Narconon Warner Springs was pure hell. There were cockroaches in the bathroom. My room, the size of a walk-in closet, was shared with two other women. The pay phone was apparently bugged. We had to buy our own towels and soap, because Narconon supplied nothing.

Warner Springs had about 50 "students" when I was there, divided pretty evenly between men and women, three to a room. 90 to 95% were young people age 18-22. There were only a few middle aged folks, despite what they told me at Newport Beach. And no black people. I did meet one black student at Newport Beach. He was enraged with the place and wanted his money back. He had to ask me for a quarter to make a phone call.

The staff at Warner Springs was not large, and every one was a former student who had spent six months on the program and "graduated" to a staff position. Dave, the alcohol and drug counselor, had a business card that says he's in charge of the "Department of Expansion". He also said he'd been to about thirty different psychiatrists in his time.

There were no licensed medical personnel of any sort at Warner Springs. They had a so-called "nurse", Sherry, who took us to a man she claimed was a doctor (his office was in a trailer in Temecula, and he was really strange) for a TB test, for the sauna. And she would give you cold medicine if you were sick, and take you to Walmart when you needed to buy something. But she wasn't a real nurse. She said she used to own a mortuary. She was also on the Narconon Warner Springs board of directors. Besides her, and a guy named John, and the CEO, Kathy Dion, they had about 6 recent graduates who served as staff and "ethics officers". [Ed.: see chapter 7 of Bob Penny's book, Social Control in Scientology, for a description of what "ethics" means in this context.] Plus there were two kitchen staff -- I'm not sure if they were also Narconon graduates. The rest of the kitchen help were the current Narconon students.

And then they started with those stupid books. We had to ask "Do birds fly?" over and over again. We were yelling at ashtrays. This is what the Narconon program requires. In Scientology, it's known as the TRs, or Training Routines. The TRs also include an exercise called "bullbaiting", where you have to say horrible things to someone and they must listen without showing any reaction. They wanted me to tell Megan that she was fat -- a terrible thing to say to a woman with an eating disorder. Their bullbait "patter" included things like "you nigger" and "you fucking crackhead". They really seemed to have a problem with black people. One of the first things that Ron, a senior staffer who was in charge of detox, said to me, was that he had just gotten a black roommate. He said: "You know how it goes; you have your black people and you have your niggers."

Narconon promised to provide family therapy, but we never saw any. They did get all my siblings' phone numbers from me. And they hounded the young people to give them the names and cellphone numbers of their drug dealers. The "therapy" they did provide was Scientology, and it was useless. Students weren't even allowed to talk about their drug or alcohol problem (rule #27 of the Narconon of Southern California Student Rules). But they were encouraged to spy on each other and turn each other in for rule infractions: that was Rule #29.

The treatment program included doses of niacin -- which is probably what caused my allergic reaction. When I had a cold they gave me a "cold pack", and they also had something they called a "sleep pack". They said both contained niacin.

Once, when my husband called, my roommate Megan told him "This place is a cult, and I'm running away." She hid in the back of the Newport Beach van when a group came up to look at the facility. They got her back, though, and interrogated her for hours. She told them all the dirt on who was flirting or sleeping with whom, and even made stuff up just to get on their good side. After the interrogation she came back to our room and flopped on the bed like a wounded animal. She was never the same.

Needless to say, there was no bikeriding or rollerblading. We couldn't even walk up the hill because that's where the staff compound was. The CEO, Kathy Dion, also lives on the property.

Finally I'd seen enough, and told my husband how crazy this place was. He said he was getting a plane ticket and coming to get me. Immediately after that, Narconon started isolating me. They put me on kitchen work and wouldn't allow me to be around anybody. Other people got sent to "Ethics". An instructor said to me: "I hear you're leaving us", when I hadn't discussed this with anyone other than my husband on the phone. This is why I think the phone was bugged. Another counselor said to me: "When you leave, you don't talk about this place." They kept asking me over and over: "Are you a reporter? Do you work for a newspaper?" I started yelling at them: "This is a cult! This is not a drug or alcohol rehab!"

Before I left they surrounded me in my room and made me sign something saying that I wouldn't sue them (plus that I would get most of my money back).

My husband showed up a couple of hours later. This was November 8, 2004. When he got there, he walked up to my room, and when he saw it he started crying because it was so bad. We left immediately.

I did not get to do the sauna. They were getting ready to start me on that when I left. They keep it hidden out of sight. (In Newport Beach it's in the basement.) The sauna program was 30-40 days in length, 5 solid hours per day with no breaks. They brought in water and vegetables for the students to consume. People didn't seem the same when they came out of the sauana. I think it makes people so weak they can't resist the cult indoctrination.

I spent a total of two weeks at Narconon, leaving in mid-December 2004. They agreed to refund $20,000 of the $25,000 fee, but so far we've seen no money.

We were also told, by a guy named Mike Colburn, that I could have my file back, but of course that has never happened. (The day that I got there they had me spend 2 hours on paperwork. Alison Prestridge, the Director of Service Consultation, sat with me and would hand me things to sign, a lot of questions about my past drug use, etc.)

I have filed a complaint with the Maryland Attorney General's office, and they are investigating. I am also seeing a private psychiatrist once a month, not just for my drug addiction, but also for the trauma resulting from my Narconon ordeal. I am clean and sober now. And I'm mad as hell.

Postscript:

After Tara J filed her complaint, Narconon's refund coordinator,June Rosenberry, sent her a release form to sign in order to receive $20,000 of the $25,000 she'd paid. The terms of the release prohibit her from making any negative comments about Narconon, L. Ron Hubbard, or the Association for Better Living and Education (the Scientology front group that is Narconon's parent organization). After signing this form and cashing her refund check, she cannot contribute further information to this web page. As of mid-February 2005 she was doing well.

Why does Narconon, a program that claims a 78% success rate, have a "refund coordinator"? And why are refunds contingent on a promise never to disparage cult leader L. Ron Hubbard?

Supporting Documentation: see http://Stop-Narconon.org/Personal/TaraJ

* Email message to Tara J.'s husband describing the services to be provided

* Receipt for $25,000 issued by Narconon of Southern California

* Narconon Orientation Material

* Narconon of Southern California Student Rules

* Release form for refund

Holy Dianetics, Batman! The Narco-weenies are after me!

J. Pilkonis

May 5 - 11, 2002

So there we were in the stark, feng shui correct offices of The Carroll Star News: myself, Bill Chappell, Sue Horn, Brian Crotty, and Larry Johnson. We were waiting. Waiting for a showdown. The Scientologists were a-comin'. [music swells]

Or, at least, they said they were a-comin'. Over the last few weeks, I'd covered the saga of the "Church" of Scientology - under the guise of a quasi-medical drug counseling program called Narconon - as they attempted to infiltrate the sleepy little town of Bowdon, Georgia. Now, I won't take any credit for their failed efforts at getting the zoning changes necessary to build their facility. Credit for that goes to the citizens of Bowdon, and the members of the planning and zoning committee. Good job, guys. But I did cover the stories, and took a genuinely investigative interest in them.

I uncovered a lot of disturbing stuff, which I duly reported. And I made them mad, apparently. The first indication of this came after the rezoning meeting, out in the parking lot. See, Narconon's big claim is that, even though their program is based entirely upon the principles and writings of Scientology founder L.Ron Hubbard, they are not in any way associated with the "Church" of Scientology. By the way, there's a pile of evidence that says otherwise sitting on my desk as I write this.

So after the meeting, with my buddy Sharon Clower there as a witness, I went up to Narconon's representative and asked her outright whether she was a Scientologist. Her reply was to flash me a look which would have melted armor plating at fifty yards as she snapped, "That's not an issue here!!" Almost immediately, a big guy gets right up in my face, standing between me and her. (Is this supposed to intimidate me?) He explains that he would be happy to answer whatever questions I might have. And for the next half hour, every question I asked received a pat, well rehearsed response which told me absolutely nothing. I also got a stack of propaganda which told me even less. They also asked for my card.

A few days later, I got a call from one of the Narconon people, asking to "meet me". Fascinating. If curiosity really did kill the cat, I'd have gone through many more than nine lives by now. I agreed to a meeting here, at The Carroll Star News office.

I think I received something like seven calls from this guy, providing me with different pro-Narconon websites and asking that I fax them what I'd written about them. (Oops. I forgot. Darn!)

Okay, so here's where things get weird. As the day of the meeting approached, all of a sudden, a lot of people - people we don't know and who should never have heard of us - start contacting us. These are anti-Narconon/Scientology people, and from the looks of things, there are as many of them out there as there are Scientologists.

Now, we're not talking about locals here. We're talking about people from across the country, sending us e-mails, calling us, faxing us. One woman, a former Scientologist, now an attorney in Marietta, had not only heard about this meeting, she also knew how many of these Narco-weenies were going to be "visiting" me - six - and had, somehow, gotten a copy of what I had written on the subject over the past few weeks. Too weird. One guy out in California sent us an e-mail detailing the intimidation tactics that they might use against us: "noisy" surveillance (that's surveillance where they make sure you're being watched), posing as private investigators and digging through our trash, talking to our neighbors, following us around. He also gave us tips on how to play mind games with these people.

The thing you've got to realize, though, is that just the word "intimidation" got Bill fired up, chomping at the bit in anticipation of whatever showdown these clowns might provide. We were ready for them: documentation, surreptitious recording devices. Newspaper people, traditionally, tend to be some pretty tough hombres, but I doubt that the Narco-Scientists would have been prepared to deal with the reception planned for them here at The Star. But it never happened. They didn't show, and it was anti-climactic for all of us here. They did call later in the day (just a few minutes ago, actually) and demand we fax them what I'd written last week on Narconon (which I'm going to forget about also...darn), but apart from that, nothing. Of course, I don't suspect that this is over yet. But we'll see. Ah! It isn't over yet. They just called again, demanding that fax. This time, Sue's accidentally forgetting to do it. Darn.

You know what I find hardest to believe about all this? It's how incredibly fast all of this news spread, especially among the anti-Narconon people. In one way, it's a testament to the influence the internet and newspapers have in our lives. In another, it's an equally compelling testament to how passionate Narconon's opponents are, and that alone speaks volumes. This has been a weird week... and it's only Tuesday...

NarConon "counselor" found guilty of heroin possession

Former city man found guilty of heroin possession, is now working as "drug rehab" counselor in Georgia

The Sunday News (Lancaster, PA)
9.3.2002

By Thomas L. Flannery

A former Lancaster man was found guilty late Friday of possessing heroin with the intent to sell the drug in September of 2000.

Anthony J. Mariani, 40, now of Dunwoody, Ga., also was found guilty of possessing drug paraphernalia.

Mariani, who has undergone voluntary drug rehabilitation and now works as a counselor for the inpatient Narconon program outside Atlanta, faces a possible 2-year mandatory minimum prison sentence.

Judge David Ashworth ordered a presentence background investigation be completed within 30 days and said a sentencing date will be set within 60 days.

On Sept. 9, 2000, Mariani, who had a long history of heroin addiction, was involved in a disturbance at the Turkey Hill Minit Market, 2787 Lincoln Highway East.

When police arrived, they found Mariani in possession of 31 packets of heroin, weighing 1.1 grams, and assorted drug paraphernalia.

Assistant District Attorney Jeffrey Conrad, who also is an agent for the county Drug Task Force, told the jury the individual packets indicated that Mariani was a dealer who sold the drugs to support his habit.

Under questioning by his attorney John Kenneff, Mariani said that he was so heavily addicted that the number of packets was for his personal use.

An addictions expert for Mariani testified that, based on Mariani's history with the drug, having that amount for personal use was not uncommon.

Despite objections from Conrad, Ashworth allowed Mariani to remain free on $15,000 bail and return to Scientology's drug rehab center where he works and lives until he is sentenced.

Narconon rejected: Steve Heilig's letter to SFUSD

From: (Dave Touretzky)
Date: 16 Nov 2004 00:55:20 -0500

In her October 2, 2004 article in the San Francisco Chronicle, which can be found on this page:

http://www.Stop-Narconon.org/sfusd-articles.html

Nanette Asimov describes a letter from Steve Heilig of the San Francisco Medical Society, who headed a six-person review panel that evaluated the Narconon Drug Education Program. The panel had nothing good to say about Narconon. To the contrary, they were highly critical.

Now you can read for yourself the letter from Steve Heilig to Trish Bascom of the SFUSD School Health Programs Department in which he reports the panel's conclusions:

http://www.stop-narconon.org/SFUSD/scans/heilig-letter-2004-09-30.pdf

If someone wants to send me a text version of this document, I'd appreciate it.

No wonder Narconon (Scientology) hates the Internet.

-- Dave Touretzky: "This reads like a high school science paper..." http://www.Stop-Narconon.org http://Narconon-Exposed.org

September 30, 200r

Trish Bascom School Health Department San Francisco Unified School District

RE: NARCONON DRUG EDUCATION

Dear Ms. Bascom:

Thank you for the opportunity to review the Narconon contract for student drug education in San Francisco public schools. In order to facilitate a solid review, I asked five other independent consultants with expertise in drug abuse, including four physician specialists certified in Addiction Medicine, to join me in this review. This letter thus reflects the consensus of a half dozen reviewers.

In summary, we concur with the SFUSD's current decision to terminate Narconon's provision of drug education in San Francisco's public schools. There is now a large body of literature and research on drug education, including a growing number of evaluation methodologies and evidence-based programs. Criteria for what makes for optimal drug education are solidifying. after a long period - over a generation - of mostly haphazard, non-evaluated approaches (see attachment by Rodney Skager, Professor of Education at UCLA and a leading expert in this field, for details and literature citations).

Our reviewers felt that the approach and information described in the Narconon contract and materials often exemplifies the outdated, non-evidence-based, and sometimes factually inaccurate approach which has not served students well for decades. We concurred that the current state of the literature in this field is not reflected in the documents, that the Narconon materials focus on some topics of lesser importance to the exclusion of best knowledge and practices, that some statements in the documents are misleading, and that factual errors in basic concepts such as physical and mental effects, addiction, and even spelling are unlikely to best serve educational goals. Finally, the valid supporting information and references taken from established sources such as NIDA and medical texts are sometimes used out of proper context. One of our reviewers opined that "This reads like a high school science paper pieced together from the Internet, and not very well at that"; another wrote that "my comments will be brief, as this proposal hardly merits detailed analysis." Another stated "As a parent, I would not want my child to participate in this kind of 'education'."

As you are probably aware, there are peer-reviewed, evidence-based options for drug education available, and in fact the California Healthy Kids web site lists some of these. More useful information is available from other sources.

If you wish to discuss this issue further, I would be happy to do so.

Sincerely,

(signature)

Steve Heilig, MPH San Francisco Medical Society

Public schools in Hawaii will not host Scientology Inc.'s NarConon program

http://starbulletin.com/2005/06/11/news/whatever.html

An update on past news
Saturday, June 11, 2005

This update was written by Rosemarie Bernardo.

Public schools will not host Narconon program

Question: What ever happened to the Narconon anti-drug prevention program interested in holding presentations at Hawaii's public schools?

Answer: State Department of Education officials are not allowing Narconon presentations at public schools. In February, state education officials stopped Narconon's drug prevention and education presentations at public schools on Oahu after Narconon received a negative evaluation by the California Department of Education.

The California evaluation "found that the program offered inaccurate and unscientific information and was inconsistent with research-based practices."

Based on the evaluation, California State Schools Superintendent Jack O'Connell urged his schools to drop the program, which is based on the work of L. Ron Hubbard, who founded the "Church" of Scientology.

"We agree with California that Narconon's program is not science-based, is misleading, and there are serious questions about the accuracy of the information delivered. Therefore, the department has decided to deny Narconon permission to make any further presentations in Hawaii's public schools," Clayton Fujie, deputy schools superintendent, said in a letter sent last month to all assistant superintendents, complex-area superintendents and principals.

[....]

Re: Hawaii casts skeptical eye on Narconon

From: barb

> I got alerted to this Hawaii newspaper editorial:
> http://starbulletin.com/2005/02/27/editorial/editorials.html

Letter to the editor:

The state of Hawaii definately needs to pay close scrutiny to California's evaluation of the Narconon drug education program offered free to public schools.

What the Narconon school program teaches, and what the state of California rejected, is the theoretic side of Scientology's "purification rundown."

Ironically, the physical application of these theories are protected as being part of Scientology's "religious" facet, despite the fact that the application can be dangerous to one's health. The excessive amounts of vitamins administered can cause blindness and liver damage.

The best resources on the web for Narconon information outside of Scientology sources are http://narconon-exposed.org, and http://www.stop-narconon.org

These two sites debunk Narconon's claim of 70% success rates, as well as addressing the potential physical hazards of the purification rundown.

The purification rundown is not only being offered to Scientologists. Scientology has tried to acquire government funding to install this bad joke in prisons.

They have also established a "New York Rescue Workers Detoxification Project," which would use state funding to administer this hazardous procedure to fire fighters.

I am thankful that California, that bastion of Scientology in Hollywood, has evaluated the Narconon educational program and rejected it. I don't usually hold California up as an example to be followed, but in this case, I would. Scientology, through its front groups, intends to reach your children and influence them. This must not be allowed to happen.

--
--barb
Chaplain,ARSCC

"Imagine a 'church' so dangerous, you must sign a release form before you can receive its "spiritual assistance." This assistance might involve holding you against your will for an indefinite period, isolating you from friends and family, and denying you access to appropriate medical care. You will of course be billed for this treatment - assuming you survive it. If not, the release form absolves your caretakers of all responsibility for your suffering and death. Welcome to the 'Church' of Scientology." -- Dr. Dave Touretzky Peter Alexander

Hawaii casts skeptical eye on Narconon

Hawaii casts skeptical eye on Narconon

http://starbulletin.com/2005/02/25/news/story8.html

Friday, February 25, 2005

DOE to review California
anti-drug program
A report criticizes Narconon,
which seeks to help isle kids
By Rosemarie Bernardo
rbernardo@starbulletin.com

State Department of Education officials are expected to review a negative evaluation of an anti-drug program that wants to serve Hawaii public school students.

Kendyl Ko, educational specialist with the department's Safe and Drug-Free Schools, said he had sent the evaluation on the Narconon Drug Abuse and Prevention Program to Superintendent Patricia Hamamoto and Deputy Superintendent Clayton Fujie.

Ko noted that he was concerned about the findings in the evaluation by the California Health Kids Resource Center. He said he was particularly concerned with part of the evaluation that stated, "Narconon's program is often inconsistent with research-based practice."

"We're not going to do anything that's going to give our kids any false information or tell them untruths," he said.

Jack O'Connell, superintendent of public instruction of the California Department of Education, called for an independent evaluation on Narconon after the San Francisco Chronicle reported that the organization taught some beliefs and methods of Scientology.

San Francisco and Los Angeles schools banned Narconon after the reports appeared in the Chronicle.

The evaluation was released Wednesday by the California Department of Education.

Narconon representatives have met with Hawaii officials about its interest to "serve" public school students here.

"We need to look at all the data," Fujie said. "With all this coming from California, we need to be prudent."

The evaluation is available on the California Department of Education's Web site at www.cde.ca.gov/ls/he/at/narcononevaluation.asp.

The Associated Press and San Francisco Chronicle contributed to this report.

NarConon "treatment" dangerous

LETTER FROM A LOST MOTHER
Subject: LETTER FROM A LOST MOTHER
Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 05:36:09 -0600 (CST)
Message-ID: <11223-3AB49DA9-208@storefull-156.iap.bryant.webtv.net>

This will be the first of three posts (letters)

One of Dorothy Dickerson's daughters who appeared on the Sally Jessy Raphael show, "SCIENTOLOGY RUINED MY LIFE", appeared in Oklahoma during the late 1991 NarCONon Hearings. She was not allowed to testify, but the Attorney General's office assigned an escort for her to prevent harassment from the many scientologists (from all parts of the U.S., from Texas to California to New York) who were present.

I spoke with her for few minutes during lunch break and she said her 60 + year old mother (Dorothy Dickerson) was completely controlled by scientology. The COS had moved her mother from Michigan to California.

Her mother needed glasses and medical attention and she was very worried about her.

Below are letters from the daughters and the mother which appeared in Letters to Your Views, THE DAILY OKLAHOMAN.

quote:


NARCONON COURSES HARMFUL

I understand the Oklahoma State Mental Health Board is considering an application by Narconon for a drug rehabilitation center. I strongly urge that this application be denied.

I heard that Kirstie Alley testified that the Narconon treatment program includes these four elements, A communications course, a Life Operation course (LOC), a Key to Life (KTL) and something called Purification Rundown. Each of these elements is based on the teachings of L. Ron Hubbard.

One of my longtime best friends took these courses and others by Hubbard. They ha not improved her life; just the opposite. Before she took these courses, (the LOC and KTL in particular) she was a vibrant, enthusiastic, articulate outgoing person full of humor, with many friends of different backgrounds, lots of interests and numerous hobbies. Today she associates almost exclusively with others who have taken one or more of these courses, she has no time for any of her previous hobbies and no interest in her precourse friends. All I see anymore is a quiet, frightened lady who lets other people speak for her.

One brief exchange we had some time ago sticks vividly in my memory. My friend was telling me how good one of the courses was and how much another of our friends would benefit from it...but there was absolutely no emotion or conviction in her voice: the lady who gives the time over the phone conveys more emotion than my friend did in that instance.

I sincerely hope that Naronon's application will be denied. If these courses can do this to my best friend, I believe they can do this to anyone. You see, my best friend is also my mother.

(Name deleted by poster)
Southfield, Mich. (End of quote)

Subject: Re: LETTER FROM A LOST MOTHER
Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 06:32:56 -0600 (CST)
Message-ID: <11223-3AB4AAF8-211@storefull-156.iap.bryant.webtv.net>


LETTER FROM THE LOST MOTHER
December 20, 1991

Your Views THE DAILY OKLAHOMAN
DAUGHTER WRONG

A letter from my eldest daughter (name deleted by poster) was recently published in your newspaper regarding Oklahoma's certification of the Narconon Chilocco New Life Center. To my knowledge, _______ has never seen the Chilocco facility and from the content of her letter, it is clear that her criticisms of Narconon are misinformed an inaccurate.

The Narconon drug rehabilitation program, long supported by members of the Scientology faith[sic] as well as by adherents of many other denominations, can point proudly to a 25-year history of saving lives.

Narconon has centers throughout the world which are successfully assisting addicts to rid themselves of the slavery of drugs and alcohol.

Narconon's Chilocco facility, operating without any government financial aid, has similarly brought relief to many of the afflicted who have sought its help. Once certified, Narconon promises to continue that success on a greater scale.

It is unfortunate that _____ has sought to make my religious[sic] faith[sic] a public issue. As _____ knows from my direct communication, I love her and all my eight grown children and seek to nurture their friendship and mutual understanding.

Obviously______ is seeking the same ends with me in her own way.

Dorothy Dickerson
Albion, Mich.

(End of quote)

Daughter is "misinformed and inaccurate"? Daughter, who lives in Michigan, has never visited NarCoNon Chilocco in Okahoma. Mother is informed and accurate? Mother, who lives in Michigan, has visited NarCONon Chilocco in Oklahoma?

WILL THE REAL TRUTH PLEASE STAND UP?


Subject: Re: LETTER FROM A LOST MOTHER
Date: Sun, 18 Mar 2001 07:09:46 -0600 (CST)
Message-ID: <11224-3AB4B39A-115@storefull-156.iap.bryant.webtv.net>


Letter No. 3
Your Views,
THE DAILY OKLAHOMAN
March 16, 1992
STATE CORRECT

My family has watched with great interest while Oklahoma has dealt with the Narconon issue. Our mother is still being held by Narconon's parent organization, Scientology. She is thousands of miles from home and has no money. Her communication to us is under Scientology's Disconnect Policy. She is under orders not to see us. She must only write "fair weather" and "good roads" letters. (all of her communication is censored) Consequently we hear about beautiful California sunsets. We love her dearly and hope she finds her way home soon.

In this instance your state government took appropriate, balanced and timely action. They did their homework, they were diligent, they were fairminded and they did not sidestep their duties for an easy way out.

So please take a few minutes of your day and thank those in your government, in your press, on your Mental Health Board, your neighbors, all those who had the courage to stand up to this rich, vicious, vindictive, destructive group called Narconon / Scientology.

Mr. and Mrs.---------------and Family
Des Moines, Iowa

End of quote

These were relatives of Dorothy Dickerson who was ordered by the "Church" of Scientology to sue Sally Jessy Raphael so Sally would shudder into silence. Which apparently, Sally Jessy Raphael has done.

NarConon Threatened Blackmail

Narconon Researches Opposition:
Scientology Group Hires Investigator, Buys Ad

The Newkirk Herald Journal (?),
31 August 1989

According to a story by Michael McNutt in the August 25th edition of The Daily Oklahoman, an alleged Scientology group operating as Narconon near Newkirk has hired a private investigator to find the extent of illegal drug use in Kay County and the identity of those opposing "effective drug rehabilitation programs."

Actually, the private investigator was hired over a month ago. Newkirk Mayor Garry Bilger says that he was visited by Woody Bastemeyer, owner of Western Investigating, 4423 N. Greenvale Circle, Stillwater, about July 20th.

Bilger said Bastemeyer told him he had been hired by Narconon to find out who had been supplying the city with information about Scientology and Narconon, and was particularly interested in the source of a British Broadcasting Company [sic] documentary program on Scientology that has been circulating in the area.

Several other area residents have also reported being contacted by Mr. Bastemeyer. Bastemeyer resurfaced around the first of August, according to Bilger, and wanted, but didn't receive, copies of letters the mayor had received from dissident Scientologists from across the country. He also visited with some local law enforcement people at that time.

On Tuesday, August 22, an advertisement appeared in the Ponca City News. It was placed by Western Investigating, and asked people to give the names, addresses, place of employment, and type of vehicle driven by anyone known to be selling drugs or opposed to "effective drug rehabilitation programs."

On Thursday, August 24, Kay County Sheriff Glenn Guinn was contacted by Bastemeyer who was requesting information about Newkirk Herald Journal publisher Bob Lobsinger's wife and children.

The Western Investigating ad reappeared the next day in the Ponca City News.

According to the story in the Oklahoman, Narconon plans to use the information to convince opponents in the area that a need exists for their drug treatment facility. The North Central Major Crimes Task Force ran a similar ad in June, asking readers to identify who is selling drugs and where the suspect lives and works. The Western Investigating ad, however, also asks readers to list "anyone who may be opposed to effective drug rehabilitation programs." Narconon's Gary Smith is quoted in the Oklahoman article as saying, "That' s in there from past experiences that we've had in other areas ... It's something that we're investigating."

The Oklahoman says Smith told them they only intend to send those people informational brochures, "We're not trying to hurt anybody or do any kind of blackmail thing," Smith is quoted as saying, but added that information about suspected criminal activity will be "turned over to the proper authorities."

Another Narconon threat against Dr. Linda Orozco

new Narconon threat against Dr. Linda Orozco
Subject: new Narconon threat against Dr. Linda Orozco
Organization: School of Computer Science, Carnegie Mellon
From: dst@cs.cmu.edu (Dave Touretzky)
Message-ID: <4147ba4d$1@news2.lightlink.com>
Date: 14 Sep 2004 23:43:09 -0400


Narconon of Southern California (in Newport Beach) is continuing to use legal intimidation tactics against Dr. Linda Orozco, a neighbor who is complaining about the facility's ongoing zoning violations and nuisance behavior.

You can read their latest legal threat here:

http://www.Stop-Narconon.org/Newport-Beach/orozco-threatened-2004-08-24.pdf

More on Narconon of Southern California here:

http://www.Stop-Narconon.org/Newport-Beach

Orozco stood on public property and videotaped people coming and going from the Narconon facility, to show the high traffic it generates and the large number of persons occupying the building (far more than the zoning regulations permit.) She presented these tapes to the city council.

Now Narconon is blowing legal smoke, claiming that Orozco's actions violate a state law protecting the confidentiality of drug rehab patients. But the laws only applied on health care providers; it does not pertain to private citizens plauged by a bogus drug rehab scam operating right down the street from their home.

Anyone is free to film people in public places, where there is no reasonable expectation of privacy. Narconon's attempt to censor Orozco's communication with the city council may constitute a SLAPP, or Strategic Lawsuit Against Public Participation. You can learn more about that at the California Anti-SLAPP Project:

http://www.casp.net

The cult is getting desperate. Orozco is standing firm. Let's see what happens next.

No wonder Narconon (Scientology) hates the Internet.

-- Dave Touretzky: "Narconon gets bitch-SLAPPed; film at 11." http://Stop-Narconon.org http://Narconon-Exposed.org

---

Subject: Re: Narconon Legal Threat to Dr. Linda Orozco- 24 August 2004 (Newport Beach Narconon)
Organization: Sandor Arbitration Intelligence at the Zoo
X-RFC2646: Format=Flowed; Original Message-ID: <0FA6d.140$Ii.49@fe51.usenetserver.com>
Date: Wed, 29 Sep 2004 11:37:18 -0400


Feisty wrote: > Narconon Harassing Its Neighbors:

> Legal threats against Dr. Linda Orozco, a neighbor who has complained
> about Narconon's ongoing zoning violations and nuisance behavior:
>
> http://stop-narconon.org/Newport-Beach/


Of course if there were no videos, they'd flip over and say that there was no proof.

Sites (that I know about) registered to Narconon SoCal in Newport Beach.

aboutecstasy.com aboutmobilehomes.com addictionlinks.com addictionwithdrawal.com alcoholism2.com ambienaddiction.com ativanaddiction.com codeineaddiction.com darvocetaddiction.com demeroladdiction.com dexedrineaddiction.com dilaudidaddiction.com drug-abuse-help.com drug-effects.com drug-overdose.com drugrehabamerica.com drugrehabamerica.net drugrehabcenter.net drug-sideeffects.com drug-statistics.com ecstasy2.com factsaboutdrugs.com freeaddictionhelp.com heroinaddiction2.com heroindetox.com interventionspecialists.com (sounds like deprogramming) lortabaddiction.com methadone2.com morphineaddiction.com narconondetox.com narconondrugrehabs.com narcononprogram.com narcononsuccess.com narcononworks.com opiumaddiction.com percocetaddiction.com stopcocaineaddiction.com stopmethaddiction.com stopopiateabuse.com stopoxycontinaddiction.com thedrugbible.com united-states-facts.com (Did you know that Narconon is a CoS front?) valiumaddiction.com

This one /still/ has me puzzled:

Registrant: narconon southern california inc. (FWZWWSZBND) 1810 W. Oceanfront Ave Newport Beach, CA 92663 US

Domain Name: ABOUTMOBILEHOMES.COM

Administrative Contact: Trahant, Larry (ITWZQHZRCI) slhicks91@aol.com 1810 W. Oceanfront Ave. Newport Beach, CA 92663 US 1-800-876-6378 fax: 123 123 1234

Technical Contact: Perry, Ryan (YVFXRPNCGI) phelix@mindimage.net 1810 W. Oceanfront Ave. Newport Beach, CA 92663 US 1-800-876-6378 fax: 123 123 1234

NarConon Terrorized Entire Town

Town Terrorized for Fighting "Church" - they don't just take your money, they take your life

Aug 4, 1991 Newkirk Herald

When Narconon comes to town, the Church [sic] of Scientology--- and trouble--- follows, residents of Newkirk, Okla. warned yesterday.

Newkirk civic leaders were threatened and harassed by the controversial church [sic] and its private investigators after they opposed a Narconon treatment centre set up on Indian territory near the small, rural town in 1989, Mayor Gary Bilger said.

"We had three investigators in our little town of 2,300 off and on for weeks," he said. "My little boy was 11 years old at that time. They'd go up to him and hand him their card to give to his dad. They had contact with my kids on the street, they hung around my daughter's car at school," he said.

Ironically, Bilger and almost everyone else In town welcomed Narconon in the beginning -- Bilger was especially pleased when the Association for Better Living and Education (ABLE) awarded $200,000 to Narconon at a ceremony to celebrate the 33-centre organization's expansion.

Then, local newspaper publisher Bob Lobsinger discovered ABLE and Narconon shared the same address in Los Angeles.

"That was the first deception," Lobsinger said. "They came out here to the country and put on a dog and pony show for all us country bumpkins."

He and other media reports claim Narconon is actually a thinly-disguised Scientology indoctrination program which -- like dozens of Scientology operations -- was set up under a different name to sidestep the bad press the cult has received.

A Narconon spokesperson In Toronto said the group is considering setting up shop in Winnipeg -- it is currently fundraising here.

Lobsinger warned Winnipeggers to investigate Narconon thoroughly if it moves here.

"Don't just take the word of the salesman -- In this case, they don't just take your money. They take your life."

After Lobsinger published a damning two-page report on Narconon in his weekly Newkirk Herald Journal the church [sic] placed ads in other Oklahoma newspapers accusing anyone opposed to Narconon of being involved in, and profiting from, the drug trade.

It sent investigators to dig up dirt on Bilger and Lobsinger, and to hassle other residents, Lobsinger said.

Recently, the Herald Journal's circulation list was stolen -- and coincidentally all 1,000 subscribers on the list received pamphlets by mail a few weeks ago from the Church [sic] of Scientology, he said.

The local Church [sic] of Scientology couldn't be reached for comment.

Cult given 30 days to comply

Judge Gives Narconon 30 Days To Comply With State Law

By Michael McNutt, Enid Bureau

The Daily Oklahoman,
13 September 1990

A judge on Friday ordered the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health to determine by next month whether a substance abuse center operating without state approval should be certified to remain open. In the meantime, the Narconon Chilocco New Life Center will be allowed to operate, but is prohibited from accepting new patients, according to an order issued by District Judge Neat Beckman.

Thirty live patients are at the facility, located on the grounds of the old Chilocco Indian School, said Bill Burkett, an Oklahoma City lawyer representing Narconon. Friday's hearing, attended by more than 60 people, was held after the state Department of Health sought a temporary injunction to shut down the facility.

Beckman issued his order after both sides came to an agreement during more than two hours of discussion in his chambers. Rob Cole, a lawyer with the State Health Department, said officials with the agency will have access to Narconon records to make sure no additional patients are accepted until the facility wins state certification and licensing.

"I don't envision them violating the court order," he said. "Significant sanctions would be imposed if they violate the court order." Tim Bowles, a lawyer with Narconon's offices in Los Angeles, refused to comment after the hearing.

But Burkerr said he was confident Narconon could meet the mental health department's certification requirements. "We don't see any problems with that," he said. If Narconon is turned down in its certification bid, "then it's a new problem," he said.

The facility, operated by Narconon International (Scientology Inc.), has been treating patients since February without a license from the Department of Health or certification from the Department of Mental Health. Narconon originally contended the facility was exempt from state law because it is on Indian land. But Narconon's agreement to comply with Beekman's order seems to make that argument moot.

Narconon last month applied to have its program certified by the Mental Health Department. An agency spokeswoman said then that Narconon's program could not be inspected sooner than November and that the State Mental Health Board would not act until January.

Beekman ordered the Mental Health Department to inspect Narconon by the end of this month and have its staff make a recommendation on certification at the board's October meeting.

Janie Hipp, an assistant state attorney general assigned to the Mental Health Department, said the state agency can meet Beekman's schedule.

Hipp said people wanting a public hearing would have to make a written request to the Mental Health Department after the staff recommendations are released but before the October board meeting.

Most of the people attending Friday's hearing said they were against Narconon primarily because of its "ties" with the "Church' of Scientology, which some consider a cult. "I would like to see Narconon removed from Kay County, the state of Oklahoma and the United States." said one man, who like most other would speak only on terms of anonymity. "I do not like the 'Church' of Scientology."

If Narconon wins certification from the Mental Health Department, it still must be licensed by the Health Department.

Cult given 30 days to comply

Judge Gives Narconon 30 Days To Comply With State Law

By Michael McNutt, Enid Bureau

The Daily Oklahoman,
13 September 1990

A judge on Friday ordered the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health to determine by next month whether a substance abuse center operating without state approval should be certified to remain open. In the meantime, the Narconon Chilocco New Life Center will be allowed to operate, but is prohibited from accepting new patients, according to an order issued by District Judge Neat Beckman.

Thirty live patients are at the facility, located on the grounds of the old Chilocco Indian School, said Bill Burkett, an Oklahoma City lawyer representing Narconon. Friday's hearing, attended by more than 60 people, was held after the state Department of Health sought a temporary injunction to shut down the facility.

Beckman issued his order after both sides came to an agreement during more than two hours of discussion in his chambers. Rob Cole, a lawyer with the State Health Department, said officials with the agency will have access to Narconon records to make sure no additional patients are accepted until the facility wins state certification and licensing.

"I don't envision them violating the court order," he said. "Significant sanctions would be imposed if they violate the court order." Tim Bowles, a lawyer with Narconon's offices in Los Angeles, refused to comment after the hearing.

But Burkerr said he was confident Narconon could meet the mental health department's certification requirements. "We don't see any problems with that," he said. If Narconon is turned down in its certification bid, "then it's a new problem," he said.

The facility, operated by Narconon International (Scientology Inc.), has been treating patients since February without a license from the Department of Health or certification from the Department of Mental Health. Narconon originally contended the facility was exempt from state law because it is on Indian land. But Narconon's agreement to comply with Beekman's order seems to make that argument moot.

Narconon last month applied to have its program certified by the Mental Health Department. An agency spokeswoman said then that Narconon's program could not be inspected sooner than November and that the State Mental Health Board would not act until January.

Beekman ordered the Mental Health Department to inspect Narconon by the end of this month and have its staff make a recommendation on certification at the board's October meeting.

Janie Hipp, an assistant state attorney general assigned to the Mental Health Department, said the state agency can meet Beekman's schedule.

Hipp said people wanting a public hearing would have to make a written request to the Mental Health Department after the staff recommendations are released but before the October board meeting.

Most of the people attending Friday's hearing said they were against Narconon primarily because of its "ties" with the "Church' of Scientology, which some consider a cult. "I would like to see Narconon removed from Kay County, the state of Oklahoma and the United States." said one man, who like most other would speak only on terms of anonymity. "I do not like the 'Church' of Scientology."

If Narconon wins certification from the Mental Health Department, it still must be licensed by the Health Department.

Marmora council rejects drug treatment centre

By Jeremy Ashley

Tuesday, December 03, 2002 - 10:00

Local News - MARMORA --- Before a town hall packed with close to 125 people, council here unanimously denied a rezoning application that would allow a former motel to house a drug treatment centre.

The move followed a special rezoning hearing Monday night, called to allow those opposed and in favour of allowing Narconon to legally continue in the former Treelawny Hotel.

Narconon is a drug rehabilitation program [run by] the "Church" of Scientology and utilizes the methods of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. The establishment of a Narconon facility in Marmora has caused huge rifts in segments of the community, 40 km northwest of Belleville.

After almost two hours of public deputations regarding the application, council, in a recorded vote of 4-0 voted in favor of denying the application to rezone the site.

Reeve Lionel Bennett declared a conflict of interest because his company insures the property in question.

Although the owner of the property, Toronto resident and businessman Devinder Luthra, plans to appeal the decision to the Ontario Municipal Board later this year, the move marked the culmination of months of public debate regarding the property.

Luthra purchased the Highway 7 property in late August and his daughter, Penny, established the program soon thereafter.

Rumours circulating in the tight-knit community of 1,500 soon turned into public outcry when it came to light that the property was not properly zoned to house a drug rehabilitation centre.

Eventually, following a number of letters and phone calls to local newspapers and Marmora councillors, Luthra was forced to apply to rezone the motel as a commercial property with a specific use.

Both sides squared off in front of council, Monday, with seven deputations speaking in favour of the application while 14 spoke against.

On one side, proponents of the endeavor --- six of whom were from the Toronto area --- told of the benefits of the program and attempted to dispel rumours that Narconon would not only bring an influx of criminal activity to the area, but that the operation is an attempt by the "Church" of Scientology to infiltrate the region.

In opposition, Marmora residents --- who presented a petition with more than 350 names of locals opposed to the application --- rallied against the establishment, saying the program would have a negative effect on the area by effectively labeling the region a "drug treatment centre" for outsiders.

"We will be taking this to the OMB (Ontario Municipal Board)," pledged Penny Luthra following the decision.

Currently, she noted, the facility --- which can service up to 15 people --- houses one "student" and two counsellors.

The patients arrive at the centre "from all over Canada," she noted.

During the meeting, her father Devinder --- a devout Sikh --- said he bought the property because he "wanted to bring peace and harmony and revenue to this town."

He claimed he purchased the property with the intent of establishing the centre only after extensively researching Narconon.

"I am not a Scientologist... I am not a part of Scientology," the Toronto businessman added. "I like the way they treat their patients... I want to do some good work for this society."

As for members of the community who feel their safety is threatened by having former drug addicts in the town, he maintained that "none of the students are permitted to leave (the premises of the facility) without a staff member. They don't do anything mischievous. I am concerned about the safety of the local people --- I am a new part of Marmora (and) I want this town to flourish."

A number of Scientology and Narconon supporters insisted Narconon is an arm's length organization of Scientology.

Al Buttnor of the Office of Public Affairs of the "Church" of Scientology rose to say what was before council "was only a zoning issue," and councillors were not called to make a judgment either on Narconon or Scientology.

"You are dealing with people who are part of the community themselves... wanting to improve themselves," he contended.

"Just because somebody's getting off drugs doesn't mean they are a pariah of the community... they're trying to improve their lives."

Compared to some of the clientele who used to live in the motel when it was in commercial operation, Buttnor said "we're not looking at something radically different here."

Buttnor went on to say "there aren't any hidden agendas," with the establishment of the Narconon program in Marmora, and attempted to dispel myths that the "Scientologists are buying up the community... this is just terrible rhetoric.

"If the community does have a concern, the town council can appoint townspeople to come into the facility at any time. The bottom line here is that we're here to help people."

Buttnor's comments were echoed by many who took the stand after him, including Toronto businessman Julian Hay, a Scientologist who was a 12-year heroin addict before entering the Narconon program close to 20 years ago.

He spoke of the program's natural approach to drug rehabilitation, which includes exercise, proper eating and vitamin supplements.

"Narconon is completely non-denominational," he said. "It doesn't recognize a religious philosophy --- it's about getting people off of drugs."

Those opposed to the application quickly lined up to be heard from the podium.

Marmora resident Susan Connolly picked apart the zoning application, stating it was presented without proper site plan documents and the proposed land use was wrongly classified.

"I would suggest to you that this site does not qualify for rezoning," she proclaimed.

Mike and Yvonne McGrath said the municipality should be pushing for more tourism industry for the region --- not drug treatment facilities.

Local Ted Bonter said the establishment of Narconon "contributes nothing to the betterment of this community," and suggested Devinder reopen the facility as a motel.

"This thing has evolved from under the table --- it was a smoke-screen from the beginning, and is tonight," he said as the room filled with applause.

Stuart Newton said the community "does not want to be known as a drug treatment centre," to outsiders.

Following the meeting, Devinder did not say when he would be filing an official appeal to the Ontario Municipal Board regarding the rezoning application.

More dangers with NarConon

http://cbc.ca/stories/2003/01/23/Consumers/vitaminA_030123

Too much vitamin A can lead to fractures: study
Last Updated Thu, 23 Jan 2003 10:54:24

STOCKHOLM - Taking vitamin A supplements can weaken the bones, according to a new study.

A Swedish study conducted on men concluded that taking the supplements increased the risk of fractures by up to seven times.

The study is the first to measure levels of the vitamin in blood, rather than just interviewing the participants about their diet and supplement use. Previous research has indicated high intakes raised the risk of broken hips in women.

The study involved 2,322 men and was conducted over a 30-year period. It's published in the New England Journal of Medicine.

Researchers found one-fifth of the men were at risk because they had the highest levels of vitamin A. The men were about two-and-a-half times more likely to suffer any fracture than those with lower levels of the vitamin in their blood.

They concluded a daily vitamin A consumption of more than 1.5 mg can be dangerous and that supplements are not necessary.

The recommended daily allowance for women is 0.7 mg a day and for men, it's 0.9 mg.

"Unless there is a known medical reason, like certain diseases of the eye,...people should not be taking vitamin A supplements," says Dr. Donald Louria, a preventive medicine expert from New Jersey.

Louria says multi-vitamins containing 0.1 mg or less of vitamin A are fine for people eating a healthy diet.

Vitamin A can interfere with cells that produce new bone. It tends to stimulate cells that break down old bone and interferes with vitamin D, which helps the body maintain calcium levels.

Vitamin A is abundant in beef liver, fish liver oils, egg yolks, butter and cream. Milk and certain cereals are fortified with vitamin A.

Written by CBC News Online staff

NarConon forged photograph to deceive their victims

http://www.crackpots.org/kindfrd2.htm

07.04.98 THE SCIENTOLOGISTS GAVE A FORGED PICTURE

Forward: For a systematic, detailed, professional exposure of Scientology's "Narconon" front group, visit the Narconon Exposed web site.


07.04.98 Helsingborgs Dagblad (Sweden)

THE SCIENTOLOGISTS GAVE A FORGED PICTURE

The King of Sweden, TV3, some bigger newspapers, among them HD and the Swedish Police are described as patrons when the Scientology movement market their Swedish activities internationally.

Behind this disclosure is TV4-News. 'Of course we don't support the movement or their organisation Narconon. On the contrary there is good reasons to critically examine the different activities of Scientology' says the editor in chief of HD, Sven-Åke Olofsson.

The Scientologists propaganda movie shown in TV4 is intended for international use. The movie says that even the King of Sweden has realized that Sweden has an answer to drugabuse. When the movie is zooming in the royal couple the speaker says 'and the answer is Narconon'.

In the same treacherous way is drawn pictures of leading Swedish newspapers frontpages or news bills shown. 'It is grotesque to try to give out an impression that media, the royal family and governments in any way should have patroned or recommended the movement' says Sven-Åke Olofsson.

In the north/west part of Skåne (province in Sweden) Narconon has had a long struggle to establish a Narconon in Brandsberga, Ljungbyhed. Those plans made the neightbors protest against it. The social welfare committee in Klippan said an emphatic NO, but after several appeals in different instances the county administrative courts approval stands.

NarConon flunked out of school

SAN FRANCISCO
"Church's" drug program flunks S.F. test

Panel of experts finds Scientology's Narconon lectures outdated, inaccurate - Nanette Asimov, Chronicle Staff Writer

Saturday, October 2, 2004

A free anti-drug program that teaches children concepts from the "Church" of Scientology earned a failing grade Friday from public health officials who were asked by San Francisco school administrators to evaluate it.

The program, Narconon Drug Prevention & Education, "often exemplifies the outdated, non-evidence-based and sometimes factually inaccurate approach, which has not served students well for decades," concluded Steve Heilig, director of health and education for the San Francisco Medical Society.

In his letter to Trish Bascom, director of health programs for the San Francisco Unified School District, Heilig said five independent experts in the field of drug abuse had helped him evaluate Narconon's curriculum. Heilig declined to name them but said four were doctors certified in addiction medicine.

In its reporting, The Chronicle found that Narconon's lectures often taught students information that is widely dismissed by mainstream medical experts. This includes that drugs -- including ecstasy, LSD and marijuana -- accumulate indefinitely in body fat, where they cause recurring drug cravings for months or years; drugs in fat cause flashbacks even years after the user quits; the vitamin niacin pulls drugs from fat, and saunas sweat them from the body; and colored ooze is produced when drugs exit the body.

Bascom and San Francisco schools chief Arlene Ackerman had asked Heilig to evaluate Narconon after The Chronicle published articles in June and July showing that its anti-drug instruction rests on concepts that mainstream medical experts generally reject but are embraced by Scientology.

The medical experts minced no words in their harsh assessment of Narconon. A local Scientologist who provides the Narconon lectures has made presentations to students of all ages in San Francisco schools since 1991. At least 34 city schools have hosted the lecturer since 2000.

"One of our reviewers opined that 'this (curriculum) reads like a high school science paper pieced together from the Internet, and not very well at that,' " Heilig wrote Bascom. "Another wrote that 'my comments will be brief, as this proposal hardly merits detailed analysis.' Another stated, 'As a parent, I would not want my child to participate in this kind of 'education.' "

Heilig's team evaluated Narconon against a recent study by Rodney Skager, a professor emeritus at UCLA's Graduate School of Education and Information Studies, describing what good anti-drug programs should offer students.

"We concurred that ... the Narconon materials focus on some topics of lesser importance to the exclusion of best knowledge and practices," Heilig wrote, and that the curriculum contained "factual errors in basic concepts such as physical and mental effects, addiction and even spelling."

Clark Carr, "president" of Narconon International, disputed the findings and emphasized that the Narconon program opposed drugs of all kinds, including drugs used to treat addictions. He accused the medical society of preferring programs that rely on a "useless drug-based medical solution."

"We have the results," he [lied]. "The review from biased sources shows that people who endorse so-called controlled drug use cannot be trusted to review a program advocating totally drug-free living. We will continue to work to help [sic] the children of San Francisco to learn factual [sic] and important truths [sic] about drugs.''

L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the "Church" of Scientology, founded Narconon in 1966. He added the niacin and sauna components in the late 1970s. Similarly, Scientology "churches" often feature saunas because the "religion" teaches that drugs and other toxins accumulate in fat and impede spiritual development. Its "tissue-cleansing regimen" is called "purification."

"Church" spokeswoman Linda Simmons Hight told The Chronicle that the secular version is Narconon.

Today, Narconon drug rehabilitation centers and anti-drug education programs are in several nations and states, including California. At least 39 school districts have recently hosted Narconon in the classroom.

After The Chronicle articles appeared, state Superintendent Jack O'Connell asked a Hayward-based public agency known for its rigorous reviews of health curriculum to evaluate Narconon. In July, the California Healthy Kids Resource Center agreed to spend three months reviewing Narconon. Executive Director Deborah Woods said recently that the agency had not started yet because it was waiting for Narconon to send in its curriculum.

In San Francisco, Superintendent Ackerman has barred Narconon from classrooms pending the results of Heilig's report.

She and Bascom, the school health director, said they would not comment on the new review until they had read all of the material Heilig gave them, including the UCLA report titled, "Findings and Recommendations for More Effective Drug Education for Children and Youth: Honesty, Respect and Assistance When Needed."

E-mail Nanette Asimov at nasimov@sfchronicle.com.

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2004 San Francisco Chronicle