Promotion
The Purification Rundown is promoted as having physical and mental benefits such as lowering cholesterol, relieving pain, and improving memory. Scientology's promotional materials claim it can boost IQ by up to 15 points. Scientologists are strongly encouraged to take part in the program as a necessary step in their spiritual progress. Scientology promotes the Rundown to the public as a "detoxification" program, while it also works with allegedly non-religious but Scientology-affiliated groups such as Narconon to offer this program as a treatment for addiction and high levels of stress. Conditions that are said by Scientologists to respond to the program include cancer, AIDS, heart problems, kidney failure, liver disease and obesity.
In a January 1980 announcement, Hubbard told his followers that a nuclear war was imminent and that the Rundown would enable them to deal with heavy fallout. He warned that only those who completed the program would survive.
The Church of Scientology unsuccessfully tried to have the Nobel Peace Prize awarded to Hubbard for his invention of the program.
In California, two organizations have been set up by Scientologists to try to give scientific legitimacy to the program. These were Foundation for Advancements in Science and Education and the HealthMed Clinic. The Executive Director of the Church of Scientology was involved in creating the Foundation and later described it as a "front group". The Foundation funded research and published articles by Scientologists hailing the effectiveness of Hubbard's procedures. HealthMed, an ostensibly independent organization, used this material to promote the Rundown to public agencies all over the state. Both bodies were strongly criticized by a group of physicians from the California Department of Health Services.
The program, as delivered by HealthMed, is heavily promoted in the book Diet for a Poisoned Planet by journalist David Steinman, who denies any connection with the Church of Scientology. The book was the subject of a paper from the U.S. Food and Drug Administration which accused Steinman of distorting facts. C. Everett Koop, the former Surgeon General of the United States, also criticized the book, recommending that the public stay away from Hubbard's "detoxification" procedure.
Read more about this topic: Purification Rundown
Famous quotes containing the word promotion:
“I am asked if I would not be gratified if my friends would procure me promotion to a brigadier-generalship. My feeling is that I would rather be one of the good colonels than one of the poor generals. The colonel of a regiment has one of the most agreeable positions in the service, and one of the most useful. “A good colonel makes a good regiment,” is an axiom.”
—Rutherford Birchard Hayes (1822–1893)
“Parents can fail to cheer your successes as wildly as you expected, pointing out that you are sharing your Nobel Prize with a couple of other people, or that your Oscar was for supporting actress, not really for a starring role. More subtly, they can cheer your successes too wildly, forcing you into the awkward realization that your achievement of merely graduating or getting the promotion did not warrant the fireworks and brass band.”
—Frank Pittman (20th century)