Improving Society

I chose this name for my blog because I really believe that if everyone worked on improving society, one person at a time, we would have a far better world.

My father used to say I was just being an idealist and that the world is just heading down and is going to stay down. My sister used to tell me that things were already getting better and it would take care of itself. My father's views were just defeatist. My sister's simply didn't match with what I saw around me.

So I just get on with helping people and doing as much as I can to improve things.

That's what I love about the Scientology Volunteer Ministers program -- it provides effective tools through the Scientology Handbook that empowers anyone to improve things around himself/herself.

With over 6 billion people on Earth, that's a lot of individual help that's needed to improve society. But if everyone can just grab the ball so we all help each other out it wouldn't take that long to make this place a decent place to live.

VM wrote:

Needed -- Real Solutions

In his speech at the Grand Opening of the Church of Scientology of New York, Mr. David Miscavige made a very important point. Mr. Miscavige said:

"...the high technology of this 21st century science can't yet prevent war. And what about the terror alerts that are a part of everyday existence?

"The upsets at home that are so common it's considered a routine part of life? Or what about raising a child today? If it's not the drugs, then it's the all too common worry that they'll actually get an education.

"The answer to this planet's problems will not be found in the material. Of this there can be no question.

"For if those solutions can't prevent war, nation to nation, how then can it be expected to answer questions like love, happiness or compassion?"

There are effective Scientology solutions to each of these problems.

Anyone wanting help is welcome to come to the Church of Scientology of New York. We're open all day, 7 days a week.

Other speeches by Mr. David Miscavige at church Grand Openings:

Church of Scientology of San Francisco
Church of Scientology of Spain
Church of Scientology of Buffalo
Speech at Church of Scientology of Johannesburg and article about the event.

I really agree.

I watch TV or crack open a magazine and if the ads are any measure of how people are doing we are in pretty rough shape. The psychiatric drug ads are pandering on the fact that most people don't live the happy lives of the rich and famous. Most people have trouble at work, can't get along with the boss (or have a stupid employee who always get them in trouble) wonders if her husband will keep her around when her cellulite hits a certain level or will he trade her in for a more Victoria Secret-esque model. Most people are worried about their kids or are beyond being worried.

And the pity is that the pain and turmoil from things like this don't have to be that way at all. In fact there isn't a thing I wrote about above here that can't be handled with Scientology.

I'm sharing this post from humanrights.motime.com because I think it is very important indeed:

Israel/Lebanon

Amnesty International reports that "In the past week some 300 Lebanese civilians, including dozens of children, have been killed and hundreds injured in a large-scale bombing campaign by Israeli forces" and "Hizbullah’s armed wing, for its part, has killed 15 Israeli civilians, including three children, and injured hundreds in rocket attacks into Northern Israel, as well as 14 soldiers."

But while this is enforced or negotiated, there will be no permanent improvement until the underlying causes are addressed.

To begin with, these actions on both sides are a clear violation of the human rights of all civilians in the area.

Without respect for human rights there is no restraint an external body can enforce.

But the real source of the conflict is described in an article by L. Ron Hubbard, printed in Freedom Magazine. This article called The Cause of Conflict" bears repeating here.

The article states:

"Violence and conflict amongst individuals and nations have been with us for ages and their causes have remained a complete mystery, a mystery finally solved in Scientology. "If Chaldea could vanish, if Babylon turn to dust, if Egypt could become a badlands, if Sicily could have 160 prosperous cities and be a looted ruin before the year zero and a near desert ever since—and all this in spite of all the work and wisdom and good wishes and intent of human beings, then it must follow as the dark follows sunset that something must be unknown to man concerning all his works and ways. And that this something must be so deadly and so pervasive as to destroy all his ambitions and his chances long before their time. "Such a thing would have to be some natural law unguessed at by himself. "And there is such a law, apparently, that answers these conditions of being deadly, unknown and embracing all activities. I don't want to reprint the entire article here, but any one serious about handling this conflict should read it here.

Lots of news on the Scientology Volunteer Ministers front.

There is a new Goodwill Tour firing from Auckland New Zealand, which will go to Fiji and other islands in the South Pacific.

It's great to see this happening!

You can read the article on the Church of Scientology of New York web site.

Human Rights in the 21st Century

I was pretty shocked to hear, recently, that there is more human trafficking being done now than ever occurred during the days of the.

According to about.com "During the eighteenth century...the slave trade accounted for the transport of a staggering 6 million Africans" in the trans-Atlantic slave trade.

A year ago, Condoleezza Rice stated, "We estimate that up to 800,00 people are trafficked across international borders every year, millions more are trafficked internally."

I am an advocate of human rights education as an entrance point to changing this and other horrendous human rights violations that are going on right now in this "enlightened era" on our planet.

One thing anyone can do to help this is to promote the new human rights PSAs created by Youth for Human Rights International and the Church of Scientology International.

These are up on Youtube and I Tunes - search for "Youth for Human Rights."

If anything will get through to people on the subject of human rights, these ads will.

Scientology Churches Support the UN Day Against Drugs

Scientology churches around the world are taking action today to promote drug-free living.

The Church of Scientology of Tampa, for example, has this news piece on their web site today:

"At a time when illegal drug trafficking generates as much money as the oil industry — upwards of $400 billion a year internationally — and America's taxpayers now pay more than $100 billion as a consequence of illicit drug consumption, Scientologists are dramatically stepping up their two-decade-long efforts to tackle the spread of drug abuse at its source. Leaders of the Church of Scientology International's "Say No to Drugs, Say Yes to Life" campaign are calling upon community leaders and concerned citizens to join initiatives organized in major cities around the world in observance of the United Nations' International Day Against Drug Abuse and Illicit Trafficking on Monday, June 26. >> more on the Church of Scientology Tampa web site

There is more news about Scientology anti-drug programs on the Scientology Press Office web site

Dianetics - Ignite your Potential

I love the new slogan for Dianetics the Modern Science of Mental Health. and I think the idea of the Scientology publishing house sponsoring a NASCAR car is brilliant.

I never realized how popular NASCAR was until the sudden rush of media that came as a result of this announcement.

Bridge has put up a new web site called Dianetics Racing.

The site has links to some of the recent media and will be updated regularly with news about the races.

Creative Expression

I just found a new blog to go on my favorites. Creative Expression blog

She (I think it's a she) blogs about various things in the arts, and also about Scientology

There's an interesting connection. Here's what L. Ron Hubbard had to say about the field of Art:

"ART is a word which summarizes THE QUALITY OF COMMUNICATION."

This is part of an essay called "Art" which can be read in full here: http://artist.lronhubbard.org/page48.htm

And since so much in Scientology deals in communication and improving one's level of communication, it makes sense to me that so many artists who become Scientologists end up doing far better in their careers.

Today Creative Expressions writes about a particular event at the Scientology Celebrity Centre in Hollywood -- an anniversary celebration a couple of years ago when David Miscavige gave his now-famous speech called "This is Scientology."

Mr. Miscavige describes not only the activities of Scientologists to improve conditions in society but he goes into some of the most basic principles of the Scientology religion. For example:

"Contained in the body of Dianetics and Scientology are answers to those age-old questions — Who am I? What’s the purpose of all this? And, What happens when I die?

The direct answers are: You are a spiritual being, distinct and separate from a body. You have lived lifetime after lifetime and will live again. You are seeking to survive for yourself, your family, group, mankind, the physical universe, and to survive as a spirit. And only when you have fully achieved that level of enlightenment can you truly understand the Creator."

This speech is available to be viewed in full in a DVD entitled "Mr. David Miscavige Presents "This is Scientology" which can be purchased online and can be watched at any church of Scienotology.

Adams is proof that dreams can be rekindled

Nice article on Bob Adams.

Bob is a spokesperson for the Church of Scientology International.

One-time scrawny kid muscles his way into county sports Hall of Fame
By John Horgan, STAFF WRITER

Bob Adams is living proof that first impressions are not always accurate. Far from it. Adams, a slight, skinny kid as a youngster at El Camino High School back in the early 1960s, gave up on football prior to his senior year.

He was too small and slight. The sport didn't appear to be a good fit for him. That all changed when Adams matriculated to the College of San Mateo. A coach, Stu Carter, saw Adams lifting impressively in the CSM weight room and noticed how he had filled out.

Carter urged Adams to give football another try. He did and the rest, as they say, is history. Adams played for CSM for one season, went on to what is now the University of the Pacific and wound up with a solid and productive seven-year career in the National Football League.

Adams, who lives now in Southern California, will be inducted into the San Mateo County Sports Hall of Fame June 22 at the San Mateo Elks Lodge.

The 18th annual event is presented by The Times and sponsored by the First National Bank of Northern California.

That fateful spring 1966 conversation with Carter is still embedded in Adams' memory 40 years later.

"It was like I had broken through," he recalled recently. "I realized that football was what I wanted all along. It was all about purpose. I actually had a pent-up energy to play. I was so excited I was walking on air."

Adams had been on the CSM track-and-field team and played basketball as well. But he was searching for something else to satisfy his competitive juices. It also helped greatly that Adams, whose father had died when he was 16, had grown from a 5-foot-7, 149-pound high school junior to a strapping 6-foot-2, 205-pound collegian in the short span of three years.

At the local two-year college during the 1966 football season, Adams played tight end. Following that campaign he got a call from a former CSM coach, Doug Scovil, who was then running the College of the Pacific football program in Stockton.

"I was intending to go to UC-Santa Barbara to play football and try out for the track team," Adams said. "There was no scholarship. Then Coach Scovil called." He had a full scholarship for Adams. It was a perfect fit.

One of his close friends, Walt Harris, another El Camino/CSM football player (and a member of the County Sports Hall of Fame), was already playing for Scovil. And the financial inducement was too good to pass up.

Adams played two seasons there. In his senior year, 1968, he was captain of the COP offense. By that time, he was 6-2 and 218, and still growing. He wasn't drafted by the NFL. He signed a free agent contract with Pittsburgh for the princely sum of $15,000. He got a $1,000 signing bonus as well.

His first pro coach was also a rookie, Chuck Noll. Adams didn't remain with the Steelers, who would become a dominant NFL entity under Noll's guidance in the 1970s. In his final season with Atlanta, Adams earned $54,000.

He has had a number of careers since then. He has been a teacher, an author, a consultant in the high-tech industry and the owner of a Redwood City fitness center. Now, he is a communications executive with the Church of Scientology in Hollywood.

His advice for young people is pretty simple: "If you have a dream and it gets re-kindled, the fire can still be there. Don't give it up. I had lost sight of my dream. But I found it again."

The King was Born on Monday

I read such a cool story on the Welcome to My World blog about Isaac Hayes and his wife Adjowa. Adjowa just gave birth to a new whose name means "The King Born on Monday." What a beautiful name. Here is my wish to the family -- I wish that young Nana Kwadjo's life is one of happiness and accomplishment and that he lives up to his great name!

According to E-Online:

"Isaac Hayes and wife Adjowa welcomed son Nana Kwadjo Hayes into the world Apr. 10, according to spokesman Rob Moore. The baby boy tipped the scales at eight pounds, five ounces.

"As Tom Cruise's Suri before him, the unusual tot name requires some translation. Per the Associated Press, Nana is the Ghanaian word for "king," while Kwadjo means "boy born on Monday." (Bypass the calendars: Apr. 10 did indeed fall on a Monday.)

"The Shaft singer likely gained inspiration for the moniker during one of his goodwill trips to the African country. In 1992, Hayes was crowned an honorary king of Ghana's Ada district thanks to his humanitarian deeds."

These humanitarian deeds included introducing the nation to the study technology developed by Scientology founder, L. Ron Hubbard.

Isaac Hayes is a Freedom Medal Winner, awarded by the International Association of Scientologists.

Here is a brief statement from Isaac from the What is Scientology? site.