96 International Journal of Cultic Studies ■ Vol. 10, 2019
expensive mission to Mars became an exotic
greenhouse purchased for the University of
Arizona. Curiously, when Ed Bass had a falling-
out with Allen, the Bass family hired Steve
Bannon (later to be Donald Trump’s close
campaign advisor see Anglen &Janetsky, 2016)
in 1994 to lead a hostile takeover of the entire
facility, eliminating Allen and his Synergia cult
from the project.
Hawes eventually got training for work, adapted
to postcult life after an initial struggle, and
married in 1993. In 1991, with help from his
father, Hawes started publishing a newsletter,
The People’s Network, to support and inform ex-
members who grew up in the Synergias.
Through his networking he learned that some of
the “people” suffered in the cult even more than
he did. He would move his family to Maine in
1994, where he worked through various jobs,
including being self-employed as a ceramics
artist and teacher. Lately, he has found work
with the sheriff’s department in Portland.
The People &the Idiots. ..evoked a range of
emotions from me as I read and reacted with
anger, tears, and thankfully, some laughter at
childhood pranks played by the “people” when
they could hide from the “idiots.”
References
Anglen, R., &Janetsky, M. (2016, August 31). “Trump's chief
strategist Bannon spent tumultuous time at Biosphere 2 in southern
Arizona.” The Republic. (updated Nov. 15, 2016). Available online
at https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2016/08/
31/trumps-campaign-ceo-stephen-bannon-biosphere-
arizona/89613838/
Peters, F. (1964). Boyhood with Gurdjieff. New York, NY: Dutton.
The Skeptics Dictionary. (n.d.). G. I. Gurdjieff (1872?–1949).
Available online at http://skepdic.com/gurdjief.html
Veysey, L. (1973). The communal experience: Anarchist and
mystical communities in twentieth century America. Chicago, IL:
University of Chicago Press.
Webb, J. (1987). The harmonious circle: The lives and work of G.
I. Gurdjieff, P. D. Ouspensky, and their followers. Boulder, CO:
Shambala.
About the Reviewer
Joseph Szimhart, cult information specialist
and author of Mushroom Satori: The Cult Diary
(2012), began research into cultic influence in
1980 and began to work professionally as an
intervention specialist and exit counselor in
1986. Since 1998 he has worked in the crisis
department of a psychiatric emergency hospital
in Pennsylvania. He continues to assist families
with interventions and former members in
recovery. In 2016 he received an ICSA Lifetime
Achievement Award.
expensive mission to Mars became an exotic
greenhouse purchased for the University of
Arizona. Curiously, when Ed Bass had a falling-
out with Allen, the Bass family hired Steve
Bannon (later to be Donald Trump’s close
campaign advisor see Anglen &Janetsky, 2016)
in 1994 to lead a hostile takeover of the entire
facility, eliminating Allen and his Synergia cult
from the project.
Hawes eventually got training for work, adapted
to postcult life after an initial struggle, and
married in 1993. In 1991, with help from his
father, Hawes started publishing a newsletter,
The People’s Network, to support and inform ex-
members who grew up in the Synergias.
Through his networking he learned that some of
the “people” suffered in the cult even more than
he did. He would move his family to Maine in
1994, where he worked through various jobs,
including being self-employed as a ceramics
artist and teacher. Lately, he has found work
with the sheriff’s department in Portland.
The People &the Idiots. ..evoked a range of
emotions from me as I read and reacted with
anger, tears, and thankfully, some laughter at
childhood pranks played by the “people” when
they could hide from the “idiots.”
References
Anglen, R., &Janetsky, M. (2016, August 31). “Trump's chief
strategist Bannon spent tumultuous time at Biosphere 2 in southern
Arizona.” The Republic. (updated Nov. 15, 2016). Available online
at https://www.azcentral.com/story/news/local/arizona/2016/08/
31/trumps-campaign-ceo-stephen-bannon-biosphere-
arizona/89613838/
Peters, F. (1964). Boyhood with Gurdjieff. New York, NY: Dutton.
The Skeptics Dictionary. (n.d.). G. I. Gurdjieff (1872?–1949).
Available online at http://skepdic.com/gurdjief.html
Veysey, L. (1973). The communal experience: Anarchist and
mystical communities in twentieth century America. Chicago, IL:
University of Chicago Press.
Webb, J. (1987). The harmonious circle: The lives and work of G.
I. Gurdjieff, P. D. Ouspensky, and their followers. Boulder, CO:
Shambala.
About the Reviewer
Joseph Szimhart, cult information specialist
and author of Mushroom Satori: The Cult Diary
(2012), began research into cultic influence in
1980 and began to work professionally as an
intervention specialist and exit counselor in
1986. Since 1998 he has worked in the crisis
department of a psychiatric emergency hospital
in Pennsylvania. He continues to assist families
with interventions and former members in
recovery. In 2016 he received an ICSA Lifetime
Achievement Award.
