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The State of the Union: Scientologists, Moonies, Doctors and Iraq editorial 1-30-03. Two nights ago George Bush, Jr. gave his state of the union message and there are a few points that need to be addressed. Thirteen years ago Scientology-linked Narconon, the drug treatment program based on the zany writings of the second-rate, science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, tried to establish a drug rehabilitation program in Chiloco, Ok on an Indian reservation. (One wonders why Art Barker initially took kids out on his boat for treatment. And why others do it on Indian reservations, remote islands in the Pacific, Mexico and Moravia; or in remote desert or mountain regions in the vast American west.) Anyway, state health officials refused to license Narconon. It got into a big battle and to make a long story short the Oklahoma legislature suddenly passed a law which stated that if you can't get accredited by our own officials then we will accept accreditation from anybody you can get accreditation from. So Narconon went to Tuscon, Arizona and got an accreditation from CARF. Now they operate the world's biggest (in size) drug rehabilitation program. In case you're interested CARF accredits the Straight-legacy program Growing Together in Lakeworth, Fl. (In 1992 Growing Together, which is recommended by Miller Newton in his book Adolescence, was accredited by the Joint Commission of Health Care Organizations. Newton's own program, Kids, was accredited by the Accreditation Association for Ambulatory Health Care, Inc. According to its web page SAFE, Inc. declares no accreditation but in their lawsuit against SAFE the Henschels and Manoly's alleged that SAFE had fraudulently claimed that it was accredited by JCAHO. Pathway Family Centers is accredited by the Council on Accreditation for Services for Families and Children.)

Like Narconon in Oklahoma, Teen Challenge (a church affiliated institution) in Texas had a similar problem in getting licensed. When Texas health officials refused to license it because of allegations of child abuse, school officials went to then Governor George Bush, Jr. In response Governor Bush pushed through legislation to exempt religiously run social programs from licensing by state health officials. The new law allows for religiously run social programs to get accreditation from alternative sources. The Texas Association of Christian Child-Care Agencies (TACCCA) licensed many programs under Bush's new law. On Tuesday night the President announced during his "state of the union" message that he would seek to expand his faith-based initiative. An initiative that would use my tax money to support religiously run social/rehabilitative programs and also would presumably exempt them from normal state health licensing requirements. A few years ago the IRS treated the Church of Scientology as a business as far as tax exemption is concerned, a position still maintained by Germany. The Scientologists have been accused of brainwashing and of all sorts of mischievous behaviors. A few years ago several prominent Scientologists, including the founder's wife, went to prison for spying on the United States government. Under these circumstances, I don't want my tax money being given to Scientologists, for one. Think about this. Second Chance, Phoenix Adolescent Institute, SAFE and Growing Together are all Straight legacy programs that have some relationship to religion.

And then the President went on to say that he would support legislation to cap law suits against doctors at $250,000. His reason for this is because he says there are many frivolous law suits against doctors and consequently medical malpractice insurance premiums are so high that doctors are refusing to practice in certain areas. What a stupid position. Yes, Mr. President, there are far too many frivolous law suits made against doctors. But then there are far too many frivolous law suits period. Why single out doctors. On January 19, 2003 the Virginian Pilot published a special investigative report by Liz Szabo on how Virginia's medical system lets questionable doctors continue to practice. She documents cases of a doctor who injected cancer patients with their own feces; a surgeon who accidentally cut out most of a woman's bladder; a ENT specialist who fondled six young boys; a doctor who is in prison for sexual battery of two underage girls. These are not all the cases, just some of them--and just in Virginia! How can an arbitrary limit for damages be placed upon a doctor who intentionally injects her patients with their own feces? That's not frivolous, its down right disgusting. And that's why I'm so upset this morning. It's only 9:00. I just saw a TV commercial showing a distraught woman saying that she used to have a happy life but now that's all changed since her husband had an accident and could not find a medical doctor because the high cost of medical liability insurance. The President gave his speech Tuesday night. That gave the lobbying company which produced the film Wednesday to find a victim, write a script, hire a studio production company, tape her story, contract with FOX News and show the commercial at 9:00 Thursday morning. Bullshit. The medical establishment lobbied the President and got his endorsement. That commercial was produced long before Tuesday night. They already knew what the President was going to say Tuesday night.

I do applaud the President's initiative on a big brother mentoring program. God knows there are kids who need someone to look up to. And I gave the Pres an A+ on foreign policy as well. As much as I disagree with him on domestic matters, I think he's doing a fine job on the international scene. Several times during the latter half of his speech he had me standing and applauding and cheering (and I was all alone). He's doing the right thing. I just hope he won't let the Korean problem drag out for quite so long.

Many used to think of the Moonies as a cult. But we don't think that anymore. Why? Because the President's mother and father have gone around the world making speeches for the Unification Church. George Bush I and G. Gordon Liddy read from the Washington Times every day. (The Washington Times is owned by billionaire and convicted felon Reverend Moon. Moon also owns the UPI, Insight on the News magazine, The World and I magazine, The New Yorker Hotel and the University of Bridgeport Connecticut.) Ollie North is a now a columnist for the Washington Times and has had Wesley Pruden, the editor of the Washington Times, on his radio talk show. Rush Limbaugh has been sponsored by the Washington Times. Greta Van Sustern, formerly a commentator for CNN, is now with FOX News. She is a Scientologists. Roy Masters, the newage hypnotist who created the Foundation for Human Understanding, has been a guest on FOX's Sean Hannity's talk radio show giving guidance on improving one's life. If you go to Masters' web page you can link to an on-line book named The Soviet Art of Brainwashing, A Synthesis of the Russian Textbook on Psychopolitics by Kenneth Goth (alias John Keats, former member of the Communist Party). Actually this absurd book is The Brainwashing Manual which is almost universally accepted to be written by L. Ron Hubbard. It talks about Russian psycho-political plans to undermine certain groups like "specifically" Scientology. Many people don't think Straight is a cult because Bush I made a TV commercial for it. Why would he do that? Once again for money. Now Bush II is tied to the money of the medical lobby. A few years ago a negligent woman was awarded $200,000 in compensatory damages and $2.7 million in punitive damages by McDonalds because she set her hot coffee between her legs and got severely burned. Now that's frivolous. Maybe McDonalds should close Ronald McDonalds Charities and spend that money lobbying the President to place a cap for them. Then again maybe not, Ken Barun, director of Ronald McDonalds Charities, is a big proponent of Straight, Inc.

Of course, if the medical malpractice commercial has been shown prior to Tuesday night, then as Rosanna Rossana Dana would say, "Never Mind."