Church of Scientology waiting to pounce in Mumbai, India
As events unfold in Mumbai, India, there are already murmurings among Scientology front groups about how best to take advantage of the tragedy.
The Way To Happiness, a book written by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, has the honour of an organisation (the innocuous-sounding Association for Better Living and Education) dedicated solely to its distribution. The British branch of ABLE just sent out an email to members, asking for money to print copies of The Way To Happiness to be sent to Mumbai. Thanks to an ex-Scientologist, we have acquired the leaked email.
This is not the first time that Scientology front groups have taken advantage of tragic events: after the September 11 attacks in New York City in 2001, a group called the “Volunteer Ministers” appeared at Ground Zero along with other “charitable” organisations. But the Volunteer Ministers were sent solely to keep people away from trained mental health professionals, and to use their own form of mental therapy - Scientology - to console the bereaved. The same thing occurred after the Beslan massacre in Russia in 2004, in London on July 7, and in Blacksburg, Virginia after the mass shooting at Virginia Technical Institute. And now, while the gunfire and explosions continue in Mumbai, Scientology is wasting no time in spreading the word.
