Published 030526

Brettstam wellcomes the challange of comparison

Narconon reviews - secret so far

- It sounds to good to be true. The proposal from the scientology PRO, Gullevi Almgren, concerning a comparisional evaluation between medical and scientologybased treatmentmethods , is wellcomed with open arms. This says Ulf Brettstam chiefpsychiatrist regarding the pressdebate about a Narconon established treatmentcentre at Lättarp outside Forserum.

Brettstam is strongly critical to Church of Scientology and its branches like Narconon an others. He says:

- Many serious scientists and healthauthority employees all over the world ,has for decades been trying to get hold of the statistical data behind scientologists claims of sensationally successful treatment results within Narconon. According to scientologists own different evaluations of Narconon, successrates pendes between 60 - 85 %. Another general claim is that they can reach the same success independently of , where, when and whom they are treating. So far the scientologists has not provided any data that could verify the correctness of their claims.

Mentally ill

The rehabmethods used by Narconon is basically founded on the scientology leader L Ron Hubbards thoughts , formulated from his own experiences. Brettstam states regarding the connection between Hubbard and psychiatry that he in october 15 1947 in a letter to Veterans Administration appealed for an outdoor psychiatric treatment for his seriously disturbed mind. He states that he suffers from long and continuous periods of depression with suicidal thoughts. He said he was unable to cure himself, although he had been medicating for long. As he was cleaned out of money, he requested treatment free of charge.

There was no treatment , but a book 1951 about "brainwashing experiments" within psychiatry and 1967 he recorded in his journal that he had identified who on this planet that was after him. They were fewer than twelve men, all members of the Bank of England , and according to Hubbard , behind all the psychiatric and psychologigal institutions on this earth.

Brettstam put it like this:

Hubbard and his followers has deemed psychiatrists being an alian invasionforce from outer space, out to get them especially. This does give the accusations from scientologists a sense of "clearness" about it.

Physiological reactions

The E-meter, mentioned in previous articles, is said to measure physiological reactions on different questions and is used in the therapy which is supposed to make a person "clear", parallelling the state of salvation in a christian language. Brettstam has stated that a US Courtruling has prohibited using this instrument, but this has been denied.

This is what Brettstam says:

In the courtruling , the Church of Scientology was prohibited to use the E-meter in the same way they had been doing sofort - that is - through false pretexts about the scientific grounds to cure almost any disease, scamming money from the public in the process. In the courtruling it is stated that the E-meter by itself is harmless. It is a simple galvanic element who anybody can build from two tin-cans, a metalthread and a voltmeter. The ruling means that scientologists only was allowed to use the E-meter on themselves, Brettstam says and refers to Courtruling "No.DC.1-63.United States District Court,District of Columbia.July 30,1971".

- This is called a totally recognition of the E-meter as a religious mean" , an interesting and , would I say, for this cult a typical interpretation method to reverse critical viewpoints to their own favour.

Brettstam ads that PRO Almgren ,as the Narcononrepresentatives,Bo Persson and Thomas Pettersson, in a similar way is downplaying the connection between Narconon and Scientology.

-The truth is that Narconon is totally runned by scientologists and that the major part of the incom goes straight into the Scientology cult. Proof of this can be found in the 1992 year edition of "Flag FSM Newsletter (vol.XIX,noXVII) which is an internal scientology publication. In this Newsletter Narconon hits the 4:th place in the top ten list with 2261 usd. Treaters in Narconon does also have to pay for their own "studycourses" in scientology.

Clearly false

Brettstam also want to refute the medical claims made in connection with the Narconon rehabprogram:

-Narconon claims that you with saunas and daily physical excecises can speed up the elimination of toxic substances. This is clearly false. To detox a drugaddict without drugs can seem to be a good thing to do, but in a worst case scenario it could prove fatal.Especially without access to a highly specialized intensive care unit. Acute psychotic states (Delirium Tremens) and epileptic seizures , is to every basically trained physician, well known complications in the abstinence fase after a long addiction to alcohol or certain anxiolytics . Both these conditions can be fatal if untreated with certified drugs, partly to minimize the risk of developing delirium and / or seizures and partly to minimize the risc of secondary braindamages.

Clearifying report

Ulf Brettstam refers to an authority on highest level, when he makes his statements regarding Narconon.

-Prof.Folke Sjöqvist, scientific advisor to the National Board of Health and Wellfare, stated in his report to the board 26 nov 1996 (Dnr.00-10129/95), that the methods used by Narconon was based on directly false and untrue theories. He also states that the documentation provided by for instance Bo Persson, in principle was without substance and with meaningless references and certificates. He totally dissmisses the claims made by Narconon, to be able to speed up elimination of toxic substances and that this claim totally lacks evidence in the scientific litterature. Hes definit opinion was that Narconons methods should be forbidden because they contradict swedish medical laws of scientific and evidencebased treatment traditions. He also warned about using the method.

Brettstam makes the folowing reflection:

- To expose vulnarable and fragile people in great need of treatment to a cult with well trained brainwashers who put them in a potential risk of a fatal outcome , will to him always be clearcut cases to report to the National Board. Brettstam tips the readers that all facts above is publiced on the internet thanks to the, relative the swedish, more extensive US Freedom of Information Act.

A good startingpoint on the net is the honored and prize awarded xenu.net Information about Narconon can be read on Narconon Exposed