Scientology needs to be stopped. I had no idea what it was until I started watching some videos on YouTube. It is unbelievable that people think an alien being is going to come to Earth and save them. The really scary part is that they have recruited major celebrities such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta.

How can our government let this group go on, knowing that you have to pay thousands of dollars to be a memeber, and if you leave the group they harass and slander you. This is the biggest cult in history and they are getting away with it.

I think the problem is that people have no idea what it is. People are doing exactly what I do and pay no mind to religious groups, but in this case we need to take action and contact our government officials to put an immediate stop to this.

Ummmm...no. Sorry, but that's not the way we do things in America. You can believe in any crazy non-sense you want as long as you are not harming anyone or infringing upon their rights. As far as I know, you don't need to worry too much about that from Scientology. Mormons and Evangelic Christians on the other hand you should watch out for.

I actually think your show (and other atheists' blogs and books) have an important role to play in bringing down cults like this. The more socially acceptable it becomes for people to say "this is total nonsense" to religions in general, the fewer members sign up, depleting the money going to these types of charlatans. The government can't do a damn thing without proof of wrong doing. That takes former members coming forward. And that takes media. And news organizations today are pretty damn cowardly. They won't do a thing until their market research tells them to. Scientology only flourishes because of its secrecy. Keep talking Matt. The more atheists talk, the more closet-atheists come out of the woodwork to join the discussion. I have never believed the statistics stating the number of atheists in the U.S. What people say they believe and how they actually live are two totally different things. Ask someone what they ate that day, or ask them how much television they watch...you will rarely get an accurate answer. Heck, when Nielsen ratings stopped being done by people recording the shows they watched in notebooks and started being done electronically, it turned ratings on their ear. I think a lot of people say they believe in god, well, for many reasons. Cultural conditioning is a big one. But little by little the cultural climate is changing. So keep talking.

Matt D. usually uses his initial, so, I think it is safe to say the "Matt" who posted this message is not Matt D. on the broadcast.

I've seen other posts with (Matt) that I doubt were posted by anyone in this group. They need to use their initials or last names if someone is already using that name.

I'm speculating, but I doubt that any atheist group would single out any religious group for reproach. There are enough atrocities (past and present) to go around for all of them, and the media hasn't done that much reporting on them either. Particularly notable is their silence with regards to the New Apostolic Reformation / Third Wave movements. I read it was formed in 1990, and that's why it's remarkable that so little has been reported on this. I have read that these networks plan to take over the world. Right now they are taking over the third world countries where poverty, and superstition is rampant. However, it is on the rise in America.

Well, who ever posted it, my point remains the same. Atheists need to focus on spreading reason by being seen and heard.

I don't dispute that the religion and members of the religion do some seriously awful things in some instances. But I'm unconvinced that it is substantively any worse or better than any other religion. What evidence do you have that it is such a threat to individual liberty and public safety that the government should violate the Constitution to bring Scientology down?

I don't think the original post was suggesting anyone needs to violate the constitution in order to put the clamp down on Scientology.

But it seemed too obvious to remark that any case by the government against Scientology would need former members to testify against the organization. And that is happening in some places, France I think and Australia, but my memory could be faulty on that.

If the US government had any balls in the area of religion, I am sure that simply revoking their tax-exempt status until they provide a full accounting of their activities would be a really good start. But oh, guess what? We still kowtow to religion on capitol hill.

I still think that the greatest weapon against charlatans (and the out-and-out hoodlums who disguise their antics as religion) is to keep building an atmosphere of intolerance for this kind of crap. When it becomes socially acceptable to laugh at these kinds of groups instead of tip toeing around them because "its religion, we must respect the beliefs of others"...then and only then will this type of madness really end.

I would argue in favor of revoking the tax-exempt status of all religious institutions, but I recognize I'm an outlier. I agree about the importance of pointing and laughing at the absurd claims.