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[linnea]

Careful, Smick.  That might be what you think now.  Get them cell phones and the next thing you know they'll be running an Amway distributorship when you're not home and bitching about their lazy downlines.

For some reason I used to confuse Amway and United Way. WTF? I just read Amway's wiki entry and damn do they sound like a crazy-ass cult.

[jaydub]

For some reason I used to confuse Amway and United Way. WTF? I just read Amway's wiki entry and damn do they sound like a crazy-ass cult.

Yep, that's the short version of it...
Old girlfriend got into it.  Pretty much their technique is "your friends make the best customers!", then they want to suck you into their crap pushing.  If you're not interested, you must not be a very good friend...

[mavies]

Damn, that amway sounds a lot like scientology to me. A fair bit less retarded though.. paying to become stinking rich seems a much better incentive paying to get the evil alien spirits out of your brain.

This thread has inspired me to actually try using the internet on my phone. Man is it cool! I just checked my gmails wirelessly. I bought a fancy new (relatively speaking) nokia n70 a few months ago, and all I've done with it is send texts. Didn't think of trying to go online with it. This is great news! I can go online in the 2 hours a day I am not sitting in front of my laptop or sleeping. Hurrah!

[Gimpson]

This thread has inspired me to actually try using the internet on my phone. Man is it cool! I just checked my gmails wirelessly. I bought a fancy new (relatively speaking) nokia n70 a few months ago, and all I've done with it is send texts. Didn't think of trying to go online with it. This is great news! I can go online in the 2 hours a day I am not sitting in front of my laptop or sleeping. Hurrah!

Muahahaha...  My plan to infiltrate this message board and increase data ARPU for my employer finally comes to fruition. 

[Gimpson]

Woah!  TOUAMB Mobile!

[CortJstr]

Muahahaha...  My plan to infiltrate this message board and increase data ARPU for my employer finally comes to fruition. 

I'll stick with my $10 per year rate plan, thanks.

[smick]

Muahahaha...  My plan to infiltrate this message board and increase data ARPU for my employer finally comes to fruition. 

Don't forget the CCU and OIBITDA for the added data plans!  Which carrier do you work for?  I'm at one of the smaller regionals.

[theinevitable]

Damn, that amway sounds a lot like scientology to me. A fair bit less retarded though.. paying to become stinking rich seems a much better incentive paying to get the evil alien spirits out of your brain.

I got in a big argument with my friend where she said that Scientology is just as bogus as every other religion. I could not come up with a good argument other than "but... it's dumb! it's so dumb!"

[smick]

I have a hard time with that.   Religious bigotry sucks, and who am I to say that Scientologists have any less claim on higher truth.   They have a rep for doing some scary stuff.  So do most of the big religions.   

I guess, people are pretty much horrible as a giant chunk.   Religion is supposed to fix that on an individual level, but sometimes, as a giant chunk, religious people can sometime still be pretty much horrible.


On a subtler level, I have problems with the cash changing hands, and the methodology.   I ran into of a group called Landmark a couple years ago.   Google 'em up.  They have similar practices to Scientology, but without the Thetans.  Here's how I ended up in their midst.  Some friends of mine invited my wife and I to an informational night.   We sat in on an uplifting group where people talked about how they were taking charge of their life.   Then my wife and I went off into a side room with the local muckymuck, and two other people.   There were 5 seats in the room.  Three tall stools, and two normal chairs.   The stools were in a triangle around the smaller chairs, two Landmark people sitting behind us, and 1 landmark guy right in front of us so we had to crane our necks up at them.  Then started an hour and a half of hard selling. 

By the end, my wife and I had handed over $1400 for the Landmark forum, and some other Landmark courses.  I went home, and sat at my computer, and slowly went "HOLY CRAP!"   They'd gotten me.   I called them and said that I wasn't interested in Landmark, and that I wanted my check back.  They said they couldn't give my check back, and that would have to go through the NW Regional coordinator who was in Seattle.  A little research showed that they didn't have an office, but a rented cubicle.  I called, left a message, and then put a stop on the check through my bank.

They turned around and had the friends that invited me to the informational meeting call me, and shake me down as to why I didn't have the integrity to go to the Landmark forum, and to follow through on my word.  Nice... nice.

Fair or not, from what I've read, Scientology operates a lot like Landmark/Est, which is alone enough to make me REALLY wary of them, especially with the added religious component.

[theinevitable]

yeah, see, Yes. To me, the difference is that it is unapologetic bullshit. It was started by a guy who wanted to make money.

I don't know. It's just... Fuck. I want to stop these people.

[Arachno-capitalist]

Ive done a pile of research on scientology and all i can say is that it is obviously a pyramid scam. The head of the pyramid is/was a mentally disturbed science fiction writer who was quoted many times saying that the best way to make money was to create a religion.  He protested anti-psychotics his entire life but spent the last years of it on anti-schizophrenic drugs. The many many many lawsuits against the church of Scientology reveal the truth. The truth that they offer lessons in how to advance to the next truth of purification from ancient past life spiritual *****s if only you pay them a couple thousand dollars and sign a contract on your life for the next couple million years. I dont know of any Christian sect that demands you pay them thousands of dollars to advance one level of 30 in order to receive the real truth. The real truth being that millions of years ago your souls were all implanted with some evil spirits and you must pay the church all of your money and all of your future souls in order for them to help you relieve you of your spirits. These cleansing activities include telling your deepest darkest secrets to head church members and healing other new members....
Scientology is whacked. Just search google video for scientology

[Nabubrush]

All them guys are the same. Scientology, Amway, vacation properties, Avon, Melaluca, Jonestown, all of it.

[AugustWest]

There are undoubtedly tons of greedy Christian sects or preachers motivated by nothing more than the bottom line.  However, there are far more Christian communities that you can fully participate in if you are flat broke -- free, gratis and for nothing. 

As skeptical as I am of organized religion in general, I think it's pretty naive to equate Scientology with Christianity because both have examples of financial exploitation.  Scientology appears to be set up solely to empty members pockets.  A vast portion of Christianity does not engage in such venality.

[theinevitable]

I said that, and she said I was being Naive.

To be clear, she is also considerably more observant of her faith than I am. So... I don't know what that means.

[smick]

As skeptical as I am of organized religion in general, I think it's pretty naive to equate Scientology with Christianity because both have examples of financial exploitation. 

I only equate them in the same bucket to illustrate that I am not the decider, all goin' around pointing out which religions are awesome, and which are frauds, and that there are dirtbags, pukes, and ghouls in any group of people larger than 5.  (I'll caveat, that here on TOUAMB they at least announce their intentions.)