Church of Scientology guilty of fraud and banned in France

There is hope!
Sorry Tom ;-)

so what are the other religions excuses...

Perhaps they can put all other religions on trial while they're at it.

Woohoo!! Wait.... only in France? Nevermind.

Banning a religion is not the answer.

actually, they are banned for fraud, black mail, threats on ex-members, money extortion, etc etc, Church of scientology is not recognized as a religion but as a sect in France & Germany, all their criminal activities requested the ban.
Hope some country will follow, scientology ruined enough life already

actually nicole kidman is not a scientologist. she is roman catholic.

I think the point France is making is that it's not so much a religion as it is a fraudulent cult.
If you give me some money and more people join up, we could have a Pizza religion too.

Ugh, this is so hard.

One part of me thinks that these people are stupid enough to have been duped into believing every trite piece of shit handed to them and my first reaction is to say, "Let 'em roll around in their own waste and suffer."

But then the other side says that this church is doing wrong, evil things to people and should be stopped.

Then another split personality emerges and says that no religion, no matter how wicked, conniving or dirty should ever be banned or suppressed.

Then Super Nettle puts her foot down and says, "Oh well. I don't live in France and I'm not a Scientologist."

When is the trial for Catholicism? Sounds like the same charges would apply as well as child molestation.

That's 2 countries with half a brain, now only 100's more to go.

If we can say Scientology is not a religion and ban it, what stops some militants on either side of the issue from saying the same thing about Wicca or Mormonism?

Wow, really? Ever hear of the first amendment?

Fallen, I don't think it includes fraud

The Mormon Church is a religion like any other.

i think mormon is a "nicname" not the name of the church...in responce to previous post

"They argued that 'beneath the religion there is a clear, institutionalised business drift' in which money was extorted by psychological manipulation. They said people with real psychological problems had been targeted."

-Remember that thought the next time the collection plate comes past you at Church, or the next time that your donation is due . . .
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But on to the overall point, no western country should be in the business of banning any religion . . . no matter how stupid and asinine it may be.

But if they are separating the organization (which may be acting in a criminal manner) with the actual religion itself . . . then banning a criminal organization, and not the corresponding religion, would be ok imo.

a famous french man once said

"religion is the only thing keeping the poor from killing the rich"

...

we tend to forget..oh well

It's obvious that organized religion has been the most CONSISTENTLY PROFITABLE BUSINESS in the civilized western world for the last 1,500 years. Christianity has been busy redistributing wealthy and power most of that time and yet it is revered more than despised.

The Church of Scientology hasn't committed any more crimes than the Church of Christianity has throughout history. The only difference is more people are willing to fight an obvious fraudulent institution in the modern day than to cower in fear of it's political power.

The most damaging effect of religion is it's effectiveness at creating enemies. While staking a moral claim to peace and civility, it is the most powerful fuel of the bloodiest of conflicts known to man.

They have not been judged and banned as a Church but as an organization involved in dirty business with mafia methods.
There is nothing link to religion on the French Legal action but all based on a wast series of fraud and crimes.

Now if only they could target the Bilderbergs that run the neo nazi environmentalists movement that support dehumanization or destroy of human quality to save the planet or they try to start taking away Americans money and make them more poorer while the real corporate pollutive bandits like Enron start robbing more poor people blind to save the planet run by Al Gore the Bilderberg criminal.

Why don't they disband the Bilderbergs for fraud, murder, pedophilia at the highest degree, murder at the highest degree, violation of about every human right, theft at the highest level, public corruption, subliminal advertising, treason against all countries worldwide, and for worshipping a 90 foot stone owl on Bohemian Grove.

I try to save the environment without being some loser nazi that likes to ruin American lives and force millions of people out on the streets to save mother earth. I try to get trees planted and want CO2 removed without taxing American people.

Hahaha! I am doing better then the propaganda movements, global warming is a fraud and a scam just like the federal reserve! Al Gore Your gonna be exposed as a fraud too!

@markmorford on twitter says "Cult of Scientology busted for fraud, banned in France. Xenu promises retribution, volcanoes, aliens, other stuff"

@Kcruark on twitter says "@Rocoulm Look when you can:"

Lol, get fucked.

The trial opened in September amid controversy over the disappearance of 50 boxes of evidence from the Marseilles prosecutor's office.

50 boxes of evidence disappeared from the prosecutor's office and the prosecutor says, "it is just a mistake"? Don't know all that much about Scientology so I don't defend or condemn it....But I do know that 50 boxes of important evidence in a trial don't just disappear like that unless someone wants them gone.