Gary Douglas has a bridge to total…something…to sell you
Press veteran Craig Malisow has a barnburner of a story about a 70-year-old man named Gary Douglas who is doing something of an L. Ron Hubbard impression while running “Access Consciousness,” which Malisow characterizes as a “Scientology knockoff.”
After reading Craig’s article, we had to agree that Access is pretty much a bizarre imitation of Hubbard. We also wondered why this doesn’t happen more often.
Malisow writes that Douglas learned about Scientology from people involved in a Scientology splinter group in Santa Barbara, the Advanced Ability Center. The AAC was formed in 1983 by David Mayo, who had been Hubbard’s own personal auditor until he broke away from the church.
Malisow shows that through his AAC friends Douglas took away some of Scientology’s basic concepts — that adherents pass through multiple levels of learning using secret materials which teach them that they are immortal beings who work to unlock their true potential.
(Douglas told the world about his revelations after channeling Grigori Rasputin, the Russian monk who was killed in 1916.)
But beyond those superficial connections, Access Consciousness, as Malisow describes it, makes Scientology look almost tame by comparison. If Scientology thinks of children as tiny adults with ancient souls, Access considers them “sexy.” If Scientology tells its members that “what is true for you is what you have observed yourself,” Access goes even further and says that there’s no right and wrong.
The most troubling aspect of Access seems to be its open misogyny and a new focus on bringing in children. We hope that Malisow’s expose, however, will get the word out about this group before it ropes in many more new suckers — er, members.
Next thing you know, Douglas will start up his own Sea Org. And no one wants to see that, right?
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A programming note: We’re on the road today and can only make limited progress on several good stories we’re tracking down. But we’ll be back in the bunker tonight and we’ll have a very good set of Sunday Funnies in the morning. Thanks again to our great tipsters.
