Germany. Scientologists Fined for Hate Literature Three Scientologists were fined 5400DM [over $2,000] by the Hamburg Town Council in January for slander in connection with the printing and distribution of literature that compared Scientology critics to Nazi stormtroopers, and Scientology suffering at the hands of its critics to the situation of Jews under the Third Reich. One booklet, "The Merchant of Hamburg," said that members of the Social Democratic Party [a major German political party] had, through attacks on Scientology, stooped to the level of the old Nazi Party;

another pamphlet had a caricature of critic Heinrich Westphal, a theologian, as a stormtrooper, with the title, "Their God is their Money." In the pamphlet "Hate and Propaganda," there were numerous examples of anti-Semitic hate articles from the Nazi propaganda newspaper Die Sturmer [The Stormtrooper] positioned near articles from recent German newspapers critical of Scientology practices.

One of the accused said he simply wanted to make sure his religion was recognized in Germany, but Judge Lutz von Selle called the Scientology comparisons "the height of hypocrisy."

SPD parliamen-tarian Ursula Caberta --- whom the Scientology publications accused of waging a campaign against them --- reportedly met with Hamburg officials after the trial about researching Scientology's political and business activities. (From "Editor of Scientology Publications Found Guilty of Libel," Neumunster/Holsteinischer Courier, 1/14/94; "Sciento-logists Sentenced for Insults,"

Hamburger Abendblatt, 1/14/94; "Editor of Scientology Writings Convicted of Insults," Bergedorfer Zeitung [Hamburg-Bergedorf], 1/14/94, 2/12/94)

"A long-term propaganda technique used by socialists (communists and Nazis alike) is of interest to the PR practitioners. I know of no place it is mentioned in PR literature. But the data had verbal circulation in intelligence circles and is in constant current use.

"The trick is - WORDS ARE REDEFINED TO MEAN SOMETHING ELSE TO THE ADVANTAGE OF THE PROPAGANDIST."

(HCO PL 5 October 1971, Propaganda by Redefinition of Words) In his two page article Hubbard gives examples for the application as well as further instruction:

"Many instances of this exist. they are not "natural" changes in language. They are propaganda changes, carefully planned and campaigned in order to obtain a public-opinion advantage for the group doing the propaganda. Given enough repetition of the redefinition, public opinion can be altered by altering the meaning of a word. [...] "Psychiatry" and "psychiatrists" are easily redefined to mean "an antisocial enemy of the people." This is a good use of the technique as for a century the psychiatrist has been setting an all-time record for inhumanity to man. [...] "... we can redefine modern psychology as a German military system used to condition men for war and subsidized in American and other universities at the time the government was having trouble with the draft. [...] "The way to redefine a word is to get the new definition repeated as often as possible. Thus it is necessary to redefine medicine, psychiatry and psychology downward and define Dianetics and Scientology upwards. A constant, repeated effort is the key to any success with this technique of propaganda."

The end justifies the means. It is important for any group to be a unified whole. This also holds true for Scientology.

It creates strength and cohesion. Internal criticism then is a point of weakness. Therefor it makes sense for such groups to build up an external enemy and to keep him alive in the minds ofthe followers and to blame him for all the evil. This way you can always divert attention from your own group.

Hubbard says that in PR-literature he had not found any mention of this Nazi-propaganda technique which he published as a binding policy. I went for a search and found it after about 10 minutes using the comprehensive index of - Adolf Hitler's "Mein Kampf":

"For these reasons an effective propaganda has to limit itself to just a few points and must keep repeating them in the form of catch phrases for as long as it takes to have ascertained that even the very last person understands under these words what one wants him to understand."

Hitler clearly says that specific words are to cause specific concepts in the minds of those who are subjected to the propaganda - the concepts of the propagandist. In this context Hitler disapproves of the German propaganda at the time of the First World War and then, in order to give a good example of the just discussed technique, writes:

"[...] the war propaganda of the British and the Americans was psychologically correct. By inducing in their own people the picture of the German being a barbarian and a Hun, they prepared their soldier for the horrors of war and thus helped to save him from disappointment. Even the most horrible weapon which was now being used appeared to him (the soldier) as nothing but a confirmation of the information already received and thus strengthened the belief in the rightness of the assertions of his government, just as it raised the anger and hatred against the atrocious enemy.

After all the cruel effects of the weapon, which he know came to experience from the enemy, step by step served as proof of the already known "hunish" brutality of the barbaric enemy, without having been given rise to the thought that his weapons might have, and probably had, even more cruel effects."

The promotional and PR-methods of Scientology are embracing. They especially also contribute to the cohesion within the group. The positions are: Scientology saves the world - psychiatrists want to enslave the world. The enemy picture has been created.

To which degree this is legitimate PR-work or whether this is overdoing it is a matter for each reader to determine for himself. However, whenever an ideology or movement is marching forward with such means, convinced only they can bring salvation to the world, this must be observed by many watchful eyes.

The above is an excerpt from and an expansion to chapters of the book "Scientology with(out) an end", by author Tom Voltz, published in 1995 in Germany and Switzerland. The book excerpt is copyright © Walter Verlag, Zürich/Düsseldorf, additions and translation is copyright (c) Tom Voltz.

Webbed with permission from Tom Voltz.

Go Back