Noted psychologist and cult expert Paul Martin, 63, passed away after an 8-month battle with leukemia on August 14, 2009.
Dr. Martin was the founder and director of the Wellspring Retreat in Albany, Ohio; the only licensed mental health facility exclusively devoted to the rehabilitation of former cult members in the United States.
Since its inception in 1986 Wellspring has helped more than 1,000 clients through its residential treatment program and countless others through educational outreach.
Dr. Martin was the son of Rev. Paul and Esther Martin both now deceased who served churches in Athens, Ohio. He is survived by his wife, Barbara of 42 years and his son, Timothy Paul, now a senior at Ohio University in Athens. Also surviving are his siblings: Miriam, of Olathe Kansas, Lois of Crossville Tennessee, and Stephen of Albany.
Paul and Barbara Martin worked together tenaciously and selflessly often struggling to make Wellspring a reality and keep it going.
The Martins devotion and dogged determination came from the special understanding and commitment they shared as former “cult” members themselves. Paul and Barbara were once actively involved in the Great Commission International, led by Jim McCotter.
Computer programmer Bruce Raisley waged a one-man-war against his perceived enemies on the Internet, but ultimately was forced to surrender to the FBI as reported by the New Jersey Star-Ledger.
“His actions were alarming in that he chose to attack third party websites when he didn’t like their content,” says Assistant U.S. Attorney Erez Liebermann. “It’s one thing for him to be unhappy with a website. It’s another thing for him to attack third parties that have not done anything, which causes damage on the side of the victim companies and on the side of any affected computer” quoted Wired News.
Raisley, whom Liebermann says works for HSBC in Pennsylvania, faces a maximum of 10 years in prison and a $250,000 fine. He was released on a $100,000 unsecured bond and is restricted to using his home computer for work purposes only. A preliminary hearing is scheduled for July 20.
Raisley 47, specifically attacked both Rolling Stone and Radar magazines, Carnegie Mellon University, the Ross Institute of New Jersey (sponsor of CultNews) and reportedly at least six other targets.
The Ross Institute was first attacked during April of 2007, which continued almost daily for approximately one year. This was done through what is called Distributed Denial of Service (DDOS) attacks.
What do Paul McCartney, Donavan, Eddie Veder, Sheryl Crow and maybe Moby have in common?
Well, besides being celebrity rockers it seems that they can all be seen as supporters of a “cult” recruitment scheme that targets kids.
That’s right, these recording artists not only hope you listen to their music, they want to promote religious beliefs, or at least help to fund programs that are thinly disguised proselytizing aimed at schoolchildren.
Is this yet another example of stars trading on their celebrity status to preach, not unlike Tom Cruise and his endless ramblings about Scientology?
On April 4th McCartney, Veder, Crow and Moby will “come together” at the iconic Radio City Music Hall in New York City, to raise money for the David Lynch Foundation.
David Lynch, the director of “Blue Velvet” isn’t just a “cult” filmmaker; he is also a “cult” follower.
The climate of the 60s: America was to question everything, challenge “the system” and the established world view.
Experimenting with sex and drugs, toying with every new or forbidden philosophy. A better world was around the corner “ we were sure of it. Soon we’d be, as Arlo sang, “walking hand in hand with every man, sleeping in the sun with everyone.”
What happened?
Where have all the flower children?
Some became followers of Maharishi Mahesh Yogi, the founder of Transcendental Meditation (TM) and the Students International Meditation Society (SIMS), an organization that descended on US campuses, recruited kids and cleaned them up, turning them into “upstanding members of society.”
TM gave them a mantra and taught them to meditate.
Hippies turned TM converts, trading in swear words for mantras, tie-dyed shirts for three-piece suits.
Many kids were recruited to become teachers, pulling in still more people.
Merv Griffin featured Maharishi on his prime-time TV show then started TM himself. First promoted by the Beatles, the giggling guru’s meditation program went mainstream, with courses taught in corporations and schools so that executives could relax and students could focus.
What could possibly be more generous than selling your house and giving away half of the money you make to help the poor?
That’s exactly what the Salwen family (photo left) decided to do, so their 6,000 square foot home near downtown Atlanta is on the block.
The Salwens have been featured on CNN and the Today Show, for their seemingly selfless generosity.
This philanthropic family of four has a history of charitable works, which includes supporting organizations such as Habitat for Humanity, Big Brothers/Big Sisters and community food banks.
But the charity the Salwens have chosen as the recipient for what may become their biggest gift, might be just a bit suspect.
The Salwens have announced from their Web site, “Through Hannah’s Lunchbox, we are selling our house in Atlanta, moving to one half the size (and price) and investing the difference in the ‘Hunger Project,'”
CultNews has reported about the Hunger Project (HP) before.
HP is the brainchild of former encyclopedia and used car salesman turned “human potential” guru Werner Erhard, previously known as “Jack” Rosenberg.
Yisrayl “Buffalo Bill” Hawkins, self-styled prophet and religious entrepreneur runs an operation called the “House of Yahweh” (HOY) near Abilene, Texas.
Recently featured in a segment on ABC 20/20 and interviewed on CNN Nancy Grace, Hawkins held forth on the fate of the world, predicting with alleged Godly authority that June 12th was the beginning of “The End.”
That’s right, yesterday was supposedly a day of reckoning when a “nuclear baby” would be born and explode somewhere in the Middle East ushering in the “End of Time.”
But Hawkins (see photo above), who has a long history of failed predictions, bombed again.
The would-be prophet’s last doomsday date was set for September 12, 2006.
According to the bible prophets are only allowed one mistake, after that it’s time for stoning.
So how is it that a loser like Hawkins still has a following, which rather than throwing rocks, showers him with praise and money?
Diehard HOY members seem determined to stay with this guy no matter what happens.
Last year CultNews (Rick Ross) hosted a special for the A&E Network titled “Mind Control,” which included a hidden camera conversation with one of HOY’s top leaders.
For some time Oprah Winfrey has been drifting further and further out to the fringes of “New Age” philosophy, which is strewn with “self-help” claims. And her fans have faithfully followed the star without much meaningful critical thinking, somewhat like cult members enamored with a self-styled messianic leader.
Oprah’s ongoing spiritual odyssey last year included a revelation called “The Secret” (see YouTube clip), a DVD concocted by Rhonda Byrne, a former Australian television and film producer.
Ms. Byrne’s supposed spiritual breakthrough consisted of little more than a synthesis of existing “positive thinking” theories based largely upon what is called the “law of attraction,” essentially you get what you want if you wish hard enough for it.
Skeptic Magazine reporter Michael Shermer labeled Byrne’s bromides “incredibly materialistic and narcissistic…magical thinking…”
But there is a rather dark side to the “law of attraction” through its apparent indictment of those that somehow are blamed for attracting negative things.
John Norcross, a psychologist and professor at the University of Scranton in Pennsylvania who researches self-help books says, “So that would mean that if you’re poor, you have somehow earned it by your thinking, If you’ve been sexually abused, you’d be surprised to hear that someway, you’re responsible for that…Cancer victims. Sexual assault victims. Holocaust victims. They’re responsible? The book is riddled with these destructive falsehoods,” Norcross concluded.
A new book has been released about the business, religious, media and political empire constructed by Rev. Sun Myung Moon, designated “messiah” and leader of the Unification Church.
Bad Moon Rising: How Reverend Moon Created the Washington Times, Seduced the Religious Right and Built an American Kingdom by John Gorenfeld published by Polipoint Press was released March 1, 2008, is now available at Amazon.com.
Gorenfeld says:
“Years ago, Moon was widely considered a dangerous madman, like Jim Jones or L. Ron Hubbard, the inspiration for TV specials with names like ‘Escape From The Moonies.’ His group was notorious for prying young people from families, persuading them to sell flowers to pay for Moon’s mansions and yacht, and marrying them to strangers as a show of domination. Not only is he still around, but he is richer and more influential than ever.”
CultNews has often been asked, “Whatever happened to the Moonies?” As if the purported “cult” had suddenly disappeared after becoming marginalized and insignificant.
But as Gorenfeld reveals Rev. Moon instead became a multi-billionaire and a formidable fixture in American politics, who exerts his influence through media assets such as the Washington Times and United Press International (UPI).
Yesterday the Associated Press (AP) reported ridiculous conspiracy theories about the Waco Davidians as if they were credible.
In an article published by the wire service titled “Agents visit Davidian site 15 years after botched raid” an AP reporter wrote, “The government claims the Davidians committed suicide by setting the fire and shooting themselves. But survivors say the blaze was started by tear gas rounds fired into the compound by government tanks, and that agents shot them ” even those fleeing the burning building.”
This AP report reflects more than just bias by totally ignoring the facts as repeatedly established through numerous investigations and years of litigation surrounding the Waco Davidian Standoff.
Not even noted by AP are the two congressional investigations that found such survivors claims to be totally false.
Republicans, not particularly friendly with President Clinton or his Attorney General Janet Reno, concluded within their report that such conspiracy theories about Waco were completely false. Here are some excerpts:
Mahesh Prasad Varma, better known as “Maharishi Mahesh Yogi,” was born near the Indian town of Jabalpur, into a scribe caste family. He died last night at the age of 91.
At times referred to as a “cult leader,” one BBC website called him a “Rasputinesque” figure.
The Indian guru promoted “Transcendental meditation,” known as TM to its fans and followers. This practice involves reciting a mantra over and over again to still the mind.
However, TM critics saw the technique as little more than self-hypnosis or trance induction.
Classes to learn TM don’t come cheap. The current list price is $2,500 for a five-day session.
Mahrishi launched his public career as the “Beatles guru.” In 1968 the British group journeyed to his Himalayan ashram to study.
But it wasn’t long before the popular band dumped their would-be teacher.
John Lennon felt that the Maharishi’s claim to celibacy was a lie. Lennon said in interviews that the Beatles song “Sexy Sadie,” which includes the lyrics “Sexy Sadie, what have you done, you made a fool of everyone” was originally called Maharishi.
