Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 9, No. 2, 1992, Page 24
SP (Suppressive Person) Order: Fair Game. May be deprived of property or injured by
any means by any Scientologist without any discipline of the Scientologist. May be
tricked, sued, or lied to, or destroyed.66 *****
The Church of Scientology has been accused of using private detectives, attorneys, and the
legal system to harass critics in attempts to silence them.67-70 Thaler Singer appears to have
been a systematic target of harassment by some groups: Dead rats have been placed
carefully on her doorstep her home has been vandalized, and she has personally caught a
stranger entering her home through a window dozens of her research interview tapes have
been stolen she was detained by immigration police in a foreign country on a false report
lodged by one of the cults that she was a member of the Irish Republican Army (IRA).
In sum, using “the big lie” in an environment that promotes “fair game” is the modus oper-
andi of some current groups that have much to lose and little to gain by allowing their
practices to be exposed to the public. Our purpose here is to expose some of the deceptions,
distortions, and dissimulations propounded by “cult apologists.”71 The apparent goal of cult
apologists seems to have been to misrepresent the issues, to distort or deny the existence of
the scientific and legal literature, to make false attributions to critics of totalistic groups, and
to create a false sense of social danger to direct attention away from the real dangers
inherent in totalistic groups.
Deceptions, Distortions, and Dissimulations
For brevity, in the following discussion we use the descriptor “distortion” to introduce each
issue. The distortions listed here are merely examples of attempts in the literature and in
public forums to confuse the issues raised by the practices of many exploitative groups.
West‟s conceptualization of these practices as public health issues is a helpful reference point.
Distortion 1: Brainwashing Does Not Exist, or if It Does, It Cannot Be Proved
The assertion that brainwashing does not exist or that it cannot be proved is a core, though
incorrect, assertion. This chapter has already reviewed the scientific basis for what we are
calling “exploitative persuasion.” It would be very easy if the “technology” of thought reform
could be reduced to a simple equation that says “If you do a, b will happen if you do x, y will
follow.” However, we are dealing with intrapsychic and psychosocial aspects of being human,
and such reductionist approaches are simplistic and impossible. The vast literature already
cited that, together, makes up the theory of thought reform has a significant common thread
it documents techniques that influence behavior and attitudes. These techniques do not
depend on physical coercion to effect the behavioral or attitudinal changes.
The scientific and anecdotal documentation of techniques that can influence behavior and
attitudes is so threatening to some groups that their representatives have launched an un-
founded and contrived campaign to get the American Psychological Association and the
American Sociological Association to declare that coercive persuasion and thought reform do
not exist. Cult apologists allege that experts on exploitative persuasion are unreliable there-
fore, they (the apologists) must reinterpret what the experts mean. In doing so, cult apolo-
gists rewrite history and distort facts to support their contention. Two (of many) examples
follow.
One author blatantly misrepresented the written record when he wrote, In discussing the
brainwashing theory of Communist influence on Koreaan [sic] P.O.W.‟s, [LJ] West repeatedly
argued that this theory was a “hoax” (p. 143).72 In fact, West32 was not stating that
*****In 1968 and again in 1970, the Church of Scientology issued a new order stating that "Fair Game" would no
longer appear on any written policy documents. However, some believe that the "Fair Game" policy appears to con-
tinue as a means to suppress criticism of the church. As recently as 1984 and 1989, justices in U.S. and London
courts ruled that "Fair Game" practices had been applied to plaintiffs in cases that appeared before them.63

Cultic Studies Journal, Vol. 9, No. 2, 1992, Page 25
brainwashing was a hoax but that the “hoax” was the myth that American military personnel
had been weak, passive, and cowardly. West cited numerous studies indicating that “Accord-
ing to all available evidence, the behavior of the [American] fighting men in Korea during
combat and during subsequent captivity upheld the military and moral standards of our
fighting forces at least as well as it has in any previous war.”32
The same author says, “Singer is arguing that brainwashed cult converts have been
hypnotized and remain in hypnotic trance through their stay in the cult” (p. 160).72 In fact,
Singer does not believe this and has never made such a statement, in print or verbally.
Distortion 2: If Brainwashing Does Exist in Cults, It Is Suffered Voluntarily
In addition to belying scientific documentation to the contrary, the assertion that
brainwashing, if it does exist in cults, is suffered voluntarily puts the action in the transaction
between cultic systems and their members completely on the shoulders of the individual
member. This emphasis accomplishes three goals for the cults.
First, it avoids assigning group or leader responsibility for building systems of influence that
produce and guide the unethical (and sometimes illegal) acts perpetrated by group members,
including those related to charity status and tax exemptions, labor and social security laws,
infringement of personal freedoms, physical and psychological damage, fund-raising practices,
deception in recruitment and immigration laws, spurious lawsuits, and others.47
Second, it blames the victim for actions he or she would not have taken had it not been for
the influence of the group.
Third, it avoids taking group responsibility for deceptions in recruitment and implies that
people seek out totalistic groups to join, an implication that victims of this deception
vociferously deny.
Distortion 3: Belief and Behavior Cannot Be Separated from Each Other in
Scientific Examination
The assertion that belief and behavior cannot be separated from each other in scientific
examination is used to attempt to obfuscate the well documented scientific literature on social
influence and the centuries-old legal separation of belief from behavior.
Distortion 4: New Religions Hold Their Converts by Nothing More than Preaching
The Unification Church (whose members are often called “Moonies”) preaches “heavenly
deception” the International Society for Krishna Consciousness (whose members are known
as the Hare Krishna) preaches “transcendental trickery.”43 Both of these practices are the jus-
tification for lying to potential recruits and to those from whom members are soliciting funds.
Are these concepts merely beliefs that are preached? Or are they instructions to behave in
deceptive ways?
Of equal interest in examining the distortion that new religions hold their converts by nothing
more than preaching is: What is the emotional goal of the preaching? Congregation-oriented
preaching is designed to benefit positively the listeners‟ earthly and spiritual lives. Exploitative
preaching, in contrast, creates strong feelings of guilt, anxiety, and fear to manipulate the
congregation for the preacher‟s benefit.
Distortion 5: Cult Is a Pejorative Term and Should Not Be Used to Describe “New
Religious Movements”
The term cult is merely descriptive of the power structure and the control of decision making
in a group it has nothing to do with belief systems, religious or otherwise. Further, many
cults are not religious in content, but are based on psychological, political, health fad, or other
themes. So why are cult supporters so concerned? The answer may be in the classic 1984.73