Deciphering Scientology: How Scientology Justifies Locking People Up In Isolation

By Mark Plummer (Warrior) 18 Aug 1997 L. Ron Hubbard, founder of Scientology, is well-known for his complete disregard for the rights of individuals who, in his words, "are not surviving". His so-called "tone scale" which he touted as a way to gauge the emotional state of individuals, places anyone below 2.0 (antagonism) in a "lower band". Here are excerpts from his 1951 book, Science of Survival, part one, page 157, second paragraph, which clearly illustrate his views regarding "low-toned" individuals: "The reasonable man quite ordinarily overlooks the fact that people from 2.0 [antagonism] down have no traffic with reason and cannot be reasoned with as one would reason with a 3.0 [conservatism]. There are only two answers for the handling of people from 2.0 down on the tone scale, neither one of which has anything to do with reasoning with them or listening to their justification of their acts. The first is to raise them on the tone scale by unenturbulating some of their theta by any one of the three valid processes. The other is to dispose of them quietly and without sorrow." According to Hubbard, individuals in the lower "tone levels" are not succeeding in life, since they are connected to, or have in the past been connected to evil, "suppressive persons" or "SPs" which causes the person to assume the "suppressive" characteristics of their oppressor. Hubbard states that such persons cannot be trusted since they are not sane. In Science of Survival, part one, page 131, first and second paragraphs, Hubbard wrote: "The only answers would seem to be the permanent quarantine of such ['1.1, or covertly hostile, low-toned'] persons from society to avoid the contagion of their insanities and the general turbulence which they bring into any order, thus forcing it lower on the scale, or processing such person until they have attained a level on the tone scale which gives them value. In any event, any person from 2.0 down on the tone scale should not have, in any thinking society, any civil rights of any kind, because by abusing those rights he brings into being arduous and strenuous laws which are oppressive to those who need no such restraints." A "1.1 person" is said by Hubbard (and Scientologists, therefore, since they adhere to Hubbard's philosophy) to be "in covert hostility" emotionally. One "training aid" used by the cult, called the "Tone Scale Illustrated", depicts a person at the "Tone Level" of 1.1 by a drawing of a man smiling, while holding a knife behind his back. Hubbard wrote that a person becomes an "SP" by being suppressed by another person until he takes on the "valence" (characteristics) of his "suppressor". He states that "SPs" are the cause of all illnesses, and he states that people "making mistakes is evidence that there is a suppressive in the vicinity". The name Hubbard gave for a person who is at adverse effect of a real *or imagined* suppressive person is "PTS", which stands for "Potential Trouble Source". In a bulletin dated 24 November 1965, Hubbard wrote about "Suppressive Persons" and the three types of "Potential Trouble Sources" (persons who are sources of trouble due to their connection to

'Suppressive Persons'). In the cult of Scientology, a "Type 3 PTS" includes persons who have become psychotic. Hubbard wrote: "Type Three [PTS] is beyond the facilities of [Scientology] orgs not equipped with hospitals as these are entirely psychotic." I find this statement regarding "orgs not equipped with hospitals" to be idiotic, since I have been in numerous Scientology organizations, including three of the six or seven "advanced orgs", and NONE of them has a hospital on the premises. Knowing Hubbard's extreme dislike for medicos" and "psychs", it is highly unlikely that there will ever be a Scientology org equipped with a hospital. Interestingly, Hubbard wrote that Scientology orgs are NOT in the business of healing the insane. In fact, persons with known "psych" histories are not even eligible for Scientology's "services". Hubbard wrote that Scientology offered its help to "help make the able more able", saying that Scientology OWED its help to no one. With regard to the treatment by Scientology toward "Type Three PTS" (insane) persons, Hubbard said: "The Type Three PTS is mostly in institutions or would be." He recommends that in the treatment of psychotics, "one must disconnect the person from the environment" and further states that "The task with a Type Three is NOT treatment as such. It is to provide a relatively safe environment and quiet and rest and no treatment of a mental nature at all." In fact Hubbard even went so far as to state that placing the crazy person in a room, with nothing but an object, such as a *rock*, would cause an insane person to "rise in tone"! This is Hubbard's "scientific method". What else does the one-time science fiction writer have to offer? Read on. Hubbard also states that in the handling of psychotics, "Medical care of a very unbrutal nature is necessary as intravenous feeding and soporifics (sleeping and quieting drugs) may be necessary, such persons are sometimes also physically ill from an illness with a known medical cure." Perhaps for reasons intended to explain or justify failures of his "technology" [sic] for treating psychotics, Hubbard stated: "But there will always be some failures as the insane sometimes withdraw into rigid unawareness as a final defense, sometimes CAN'T BE KEPT ALIVE [emphasis mine] and sometimes are too hectic and distraught to ever become quiet...". My guess is that Hubbard foresaw failures in handling psychotics with his methods. Unlikely however, is the possibility that he ever considered people would DIE while undergoing "treatment" with Scientology's methods, especially by certain procedures contained in his Introspection Rundown. Sadly, Lisa McPherson is one such person who died as a result of negligence from her Scientologist "friends". She had been held in isolation at Scientology's facility in Clearwater, Florida for seventeen days, during which time her body weight dropped an estimated 47 pounds, going from about 155 pounds down to 108 pounds! Hubbard mused: "Classification [of psychotic individuals] is interesting but non-productive since they are all PTS, all will Roller Coaster [get better, then worse, then better, then worse] and none can be trained or processed with any idea of lasting result no matter the temporary miracle." Hubbard wrote in an article entitled "Psychotics", which was published in Volume 13, Number 2 of "Certainty Magazine An Official Periodical of Scientology" published in February 1966:

"The true psychotic is one who causes hysteria, apathy, mis-conceptions and the reactions of stress in others.That is the identity of the being that is the source of psychosis." "The actual psychotic is covertly or overtly destructive of anything the rest of us consider good or decent or worthwhile." "The true psychotic worships destruction and abhors reasonable, decent or helpful actions." "The statistics of psychosis are not going to lessen in the society until this type of personality is completely isolated and understood." These sections of Hubbard's "technology" are part of the basis for Scientology's justification for their "treatment" of individuals by ISOLATING the person from the rest of society. In this same article "Psychotics", Hubbard wrote: "We do not consider psychosis a field of practice in Scientology and Scientology was not researched or designed as a cure for psychosis or 'substitute for psychiatry'. But in the course of research, I have discovered these things and found them to be workable." I have known of three Scientologists who went "Type Three PTS" and were isolated. All were subjected to procedures contained in the following referenced HCOB, or "Hubbard Communications Office Bulletin". In HCO Bulletin of 23 January 1974RA "The Technical Breakthrough of 1973! The Introspection Rundown", Hubbard wrote regarding psychotic breaks: "I have made a technical breakthrough which possibly ranks with the major discoveries of the Twentieth Century. It is certainly the greatest advancement of 1973 and is now being released after final wrap-up of research. It is called the Introspection Rundown." [...] "The breakthrough was made on a person who, after a series of wrong indications, went into a full-blown psychotic break - violence, destruction and all. [...] "Steps of the RD [Rundown] (Steps 0 and 00 are for a person in a psychotic break, not a normal person.) Put this checklist on inside front cover of folder as a pgm. "0. On a person in a psychotic break isolate the person wholly with all attendants *completely* muzzled (no speech). _______ "00. Give Vitamins (B Complex, including niacinamide) and minerals (calcium and magnesium) to build the person up. _______" Additionally, Hubbard wrote in another "technical bulletin" - HCOB 20 February 1974 "Introspection Rundown Additional Actions":

"ISOLATION "In a person in a psychotic break, it is necessary to isolate them for them to destimulate and to protect them and others from possible damage. While in isolation the person receives the Introspection Rundown..." The Scientology employee in charge of supervising a person suffering from a psychotic break is called a "Case Supervisor". According to the same HCO Bulletin of 20 February 1974, the "C/S Action Cleared Cannibal Step" is given by Hubbard as: "The C/S's action is a direct comm[unication] line to the person by notes. The person is provided with paper and pen to reply. The C/S must determine the person's responsibility level. Example: 'Dear Joe. What can you guarantee me if you are let out of isolation?' If the person's reply shows continued irresponsibility toward other dynamics or fixation on one dynamic to the exclusion of others damaged the C/S must inform the person of his continued isolation and why. Example: 'Dear Joe. I'm sorry but no go on coming out of isolation yet. Your actions threatened the survival of hundreds of people indirectly and 6 families directly by burning down their houses. You are unaware of the effects this could have had and still only concerned about your own welfare. You must hate the human race quite a bit." Scientology's recommended treatment of psychotics, according to Hubbard's "technical" bulletin of 24 November 1965 entitled "Level IV Search and Discovery", consists of: "The modern mental hospital with its brutality and suppressive treatments is not the way to give a psychotic quiet and rest. Before anything effective can be done in this field a proper institution would have to be provided, offering only rest, quiet and medical assistance for intravenous feedings and sleeping draughts where necessary but not as 'treatment' and where NO treatment is attempted until the person looks recovered and only then a Search and Discovery [Hubbard method] as above under Type Two [PTS]." Somehow I doubt Lisa McPherson would have been subjected to "brutality and suppressive treatments" had she received treatment for her psychotic break ANYWHERE BUT at Scientology's facility in Clearwater. And to think that Scientology refers to this facility, the Flag Service Org, as "The Mecca of Standard Tech" ...

Warrior - Sunshine disinfects

For more information on Scientologys Introspection Rundown: http://www.xenu-directory.net/practices/introspection1.html