(He considers his dad's partner, Bonnie, his mother. So lets say you wanted to give the Third Reich some credit, which could be done, what positives can you say about Synanon? Jollett and his older brother Tony were taken from their parents his father a recovered addict and former convict, his mother an anti-government activist from Berkeley when they were just 6 months old. Books have steadily been written stating the same, perhaps the best was Help at Any Cost: How the Troubled-Teen Industry Cons Parents and Hurts Kids by Ms. Maia Szalavitz. If you look at your post, you will see you bring up matters which were brought up in the entirety of my text and there is little difference. Its first example, naturally, as failure, was Synanon, and like Synanon, its clones became the darlings of the media and politicians in election years. He participated in several missions, and arguably would have lived a better life but for his exposure to Synanon. "Mary Karr likes to say, 'You have to write about difficult relationships with great love.' Mental health service. Hitler did great things for Germany, but it would be wrong to use them to assert we should all think of it as Spring Time for Hitler, as Janzen did of Dederich. And while because it was so small, its influence in non-publicized areas is doubtful. I agree with current views, given the atrocities that have occurred in Synanon clones, but I also still think the idea, discounting the dogma, to have a group of peers encouraging you and available at any time to talk to if you are considering going on a binge and you cannot reach your professional, is good. Rather, the organizations said they worked, so people believed it. [Chuck] Dederich [Synanons founder], an exile from A.A., is credited with being the genius behind the TC [therapeutic community] movement and Leon Brill acknowledges in The Clinical Treatment of Substance Abusers that the original therapeutic community directed by ex-addicts was Synanon though others, he writes, such as Daytop Village, Odyssey House and Phoenix House in New York City have used psychiatrists, psychologists, social workers and other professionals as part of their staff; in an article for Substance Abuse: Clinical Problems and Perspectives written in 1981, Deitch and Zweben acknowledge that Synanon is the progenitor of the present-day therapeutic communities., As Fager summarized: Almost all modern day therapeutic communitiesand there are hundreds of themare based on synanons. We let, we let crazy people into the door and we dont discriminate. Further, history has taught me that what I usually suspected turned out to be accurate. Its goal was to take it to the context of greater society.I would appreciate you know your feelings. But that idea was bantered by law enforcement as because of the wire, and the wire logs, knowledge could be proven against all who stayed in support. On June 27, 1990, six weeks after the death of Michelle Sutton, 16-year-old Kristin Chase died at the Challenger wilderness camp in Utah of hyperthermia and dehydration after a 5-mile forced march in 105-degree heat. I am a Synanon survivor. This was Synanon had its worse, andit is not permitted here. Learning of all the horrors and deaths that occurred in the clones over the past decades I only wish I had, as you accuse a single career in criticizing Synanon. This is especially true when punishment is viewed as a healing process. Saying his death was caused by cardiac arrest, said Cohen, is really sugar-coating the pill as he was tortured to death and also denied medical treatment. Further, it is foolish to treat all persons in the same manner. Researched by Maia Szalavitz for a book in 2006 and for Mother Jones in 2007 she described the clone horrors and traced them back to Synanon. About six years ago, though, she began thinking it might be a good idea. His family claims his pleas for help were ignored. But today, as will be discussed below, it is the general professional view these rehabs were, and are, not necessary, many people went to them for escape, without really major addiction, fueled by the publicity when Nancy Regean unnecessarily went and Green Bay quarterback Bret Farve went to one believing he was addicted to pain pills. What was it one in 25 days for 2 years? I'll see you in a few weeks for three hours,' Or in some cases, 'I'll see you in six months,' in some cases, five years. You might call that egotistical, but I felt I had that knowledge because I had engaged so many. At the heart of the Cedu program was a philosophy that had grown out of various self-help movements of the 1960s and 70s, such as Lifespring, Werner Erhards EST, and most directly, from Charles E. Dederichs Synanon cult, church, and street-level heroin-cure program. But they have settled now, particularly, as stated below, as I slowly learned the results of so many of the Synanon clones, which resulted in so much death and brutality. Real crazy people. This is due, in part, to many Synanites having left to form their own lucrative drug rehabilitation companiesa degree in medicine is not a requirement., ***. Others were taken below or in barns to be beaten. Fager wrote: Dr. The study of cults can teach us the problems of nations. And in March she went, flying into Georgetown with her family, a few friends, and Jordan So I asked him how he could then discount it and he responded because if it existed, he would have to consider it occurring in religions (he is a Christian and lover of utopian communities) and other groups. I'm going to rise up above all this kind of stuff, and I'm going to take care of everyone. they were supposed to be about love, while men were about war. Its just simply if your writing a book on the history of an organization and you are aware that someone filed multiple actions against it, and they tried to murder him for it, if you are a journalist you are going to interview that person. but if I missed something please tell me. You know ts great fun, to watch that. But you make many assumptions about me. As such they were just like the many other children born into the cult. But there wont be any room for the kind of people you are now. when the uniqueness of adolescent psychological development is not understood and incorporated into clinical practice. Nov 04, 2017 Daina Fanning rated it really liked it. The leader, Chuck Dederich, decided we wouldn't have parents, and then we just didn't.". Elan made millions and millions of dollars, off of criminal child abuse. The Cedu Schools developed into an industry of sister schools, clones and copy-cats, that are now a multi-million dollar, international and unregulated business., *.*.. But I, its a marvelous business to watch these assholes come in and fall all over themselves and try bite me in the ass. In the early days of Synanon, the Paul please post this comment and not the other two thank you sir. And just how successful were the Synanon imitators? no Mr. Vandeman I am not deleting this as it is not as vulgar as the others. That is not ego. The example story might be that of Joe Musico and Lance Kenton. WebSynanon Industries. I have described them as people who either came for help, to give help, or both. Members were brainwashed, tortured mentally and barred from leaving the communityescaped members were subject to beatings. Eventually in a 1978 tape recording called The Freebees are over Dederich set forth the plan to establish a private corporation, Home Place, Inc. in Arizona which would charge Synanon for rotating people to the new compound to be educated by Dederich and that Synanon would pay the corporation for this, which then would pay salaries to Dederich and his cronies, of which they would pay taxes. *, As with The Seed, at Straight abuse was omnipresentincluding beatings and kidnapping of adult participants. A belief system based upon coercive persuasion is expected by all who have studied it to be largely abandoned when the pressures are removed. my last chapter in my book did just exactly what you asked which was put my what you call myscholarly talents on the American cult. In my book Synanon was only one chapter. He was a great man and kind human being. They made people like Bernie Kolb who I loved very much. Ben had told me you felt I had added more to what you had written and your excellent children study, and when I went back and read it I saw there was ambiguity between when I was quoting you and when I was adding my own additional comment. If I did not want comments i would not have it set up too comments. "He was just this big, masculine, Italian, strong guy that loved his boys. For many academics, it is reviewing writing of others. CED had similar protection but blew it when he started ordering attacks and got caught on his tapes. Matt C. Hoffman And I think he saw I might be going down that path, too. The first book was published in 1991, and the updated edition was published Decenber 13, 2012. I was also impressed by stories I was told about the early days and when the Synanon website first started it had lot of anger expressed towards Dederich. I offered the information to Janzen and he didnt want it. Its like, its like the story Ive always told you, you know about the warden standing up on the, looking out the window of his office and down in the big yard and saying, Come here, George, watch em theyll all fuck each other pretty soon you know, we, we, we most of the people to come into our house and say I would like to live here and turn out to be very, very real crazy people. At his death bed, Maslow finally denounced the Human Potential Movement. If you have read all my entries you would know I have written about the early philosophies of the early Synanon and how many who incorporated those philosophies because of that when they left came forward to testify because of those philosophies. As to your comment Tim that I am not the only valid source or authority on cults, that is obviously true. Also, if a person made that choice sincerely, that person may have a better chance of succeeding in an environment with supporting persons and ex-addicts urging of them on while removing competing problems of how to support themselvessuch as a housing, friends and a job. Maybe it's one of the things about human nature, that isolated power corrupts people. Dr. Jerome Jaffe, the first White House Drug Czar, had written the foreward to Dr. Meyers book which had called for caution in the use of synanon-style screaming matches against kids. Looking back, I think my brother was appropriately angry with the adults.". They appreciated the honesty of the work. Whether a small town, island or, commune, they have a better chance for a part of the American dream than if on their own in the big city. Jollett, 45, tells PEOPLE about the abuse he and many other children experienced while growing up in the "school" of the infamous Synanon cult. There are more successes, like the Rolling Stones Rick Jones, that stemmed from bona fide psychotherapy. It did make news. it would take a few generations for this to work out. The authorities closed it down. "All of us started having kids, and I think as parents we were like, 'Holy s---, what? Eventually, on the subject of rehabilitation, Ofshe would write, Synanon was the failure thats gave birth to an industry.. Dr. Roger Meyer and psychotherapists Thomas Bratter and Gary Forrest warned about using synanons on kids. "Sometimes I think about this book as this primal scream, this assertion: 'This happened. This is not a criticism of that policy; but just the fact that it was insignificant in relation to the civil rights movement which was raging in the 60s and pushed by the Kennedys, Martin Luther King, and many black actors and athletes and my generation that marched and died in name of civil rights. The problem of these programs was it was believed it was justified to use any means, denying human and civil rights and treating people who didnt need treatment; all this done without any proof that behavior modification programs ever worked. ), "You put stress on a family, unpredictable things happen, and children tend to take on different roles," Jollett says. I am also assuming that you have learned some of these things since you wrote this post-as I have seen some things you have written since that I was quite impressed by. Margo, you say you are a successful attorney. I dont have to stay in it anymore. Synanons punitive system of verbal attacks and humiliation was counterproductive and drove out most that entered. In 1971, the federal government, through he second White House Drug Czar, Robertq L. Dupont, Jr. MD. He wrote the failure of Yablonsky to see the horror of what he had written raised questions suggesting a lack of humanity in Yablonsky. But that questionwhile interestingis really moot; the fact is that while shelter and support is of assistance, the Synanon system based on hate (as stated by Dederich) and punishment was not only a failure but its achievement in publicity, like a Synanon movie starring Ed OBrien, has led to 50 years of horror to countless victims all over the world and continues to do so. Do you realize that over 80 people were attacked? Most of what I wrote was a no comment description in detail of Synanons evolution taken from its own records. Further, I wrote that the study of cults is studying a microcosm of the greater society. *..**. As stated above, as Dederich believed this, his squeezes and toss outslike old timer Bill Crawford was willfully sentencing one to death for CEDs ego and financial gain. Further, while brainwashing might be a form of keeping a person from drugs, leaving all decision making to the masters was a recipe for disaster. Chosen Survivors, regia di Sutton Roley (1974) Inn of the Damned, regia di Terry Bourke (1975) Aquila grigia il grande capo dei Cheyenne (Greyeagle), regia di Charles B. Dr. Roger Meyer, a professor of psychiatry at Boston University, and formerly the Acting Chief of the Center for Studies of Narcotics and Drug Abuse at NIMH, was one of the first to question the wisdom of subjecting kids to the brutality of the Synanon Game. This is not limited to addicts. For comparisons please get my book Escape: My Life Long War Against Cults. Ramirez set up the synanon-based Phoenix House which hired former Synanite Ted Dibble to manage one of its centers. Suggest reading the fall of series. Worse, when others, like Dr. Casriel, who formed Daytop, decided to use the Synanon approach modified, they did not understand the effect of age and desire in the Synanon flashes of success and further the danger of its approach as described by Simon and Friedenberg. Charles was arrested while drunk in 1978 and was barred from any further leadership within the WebSynanon Survivors 136likes 149followers Posts About Photos Videos More Posts About Photos Videos Synanon Survivors Intro Link To The Synanon Survivors Group And WebSynanon sought religious status in 1974, with Diedrich as its leader. He told me he was completing a book on Synanon. I remember you saying that you had not heard of Elan, yet you were aware of there being many Synanon spin off treatment centers. And that number was highly inflated by injection of squares and children born to addicts and squares alike. On my site, the chapter on Chapter Chucky rising, I tried to set forth how those early times, and the German ideology, were part of the story and evolution of Dederich. In October of 1977 press conference Dan Garrett bragged that after beating the shit out of (Dinuba punks teenagers retrieving their car) we told them to tell all their friends this is just a taste of what will happen next time; and that as to the San Francisco punks we put 4 of them in the hospital. He further admitted they ran some cock suckers into a ditch and shaved their heads. First touted as a rehabilitation center for addicts when it was founded in 1958, Synanon helped thousands get sober and amassed $30 million or more in assets. "At that age, my response was to become the super kid. We either do that or we stop. Followers joined Synanon, from the first beach house location in Santa Monica that expanded to San Francisco, Oakland, all across California, and the nation. Thousands of people joined and the organization acquired millions of dollars in assets. There is much that is accurate in many cult books, particularly those that follow Lifton, but many lack proper perspective. Synanon was discredited in the late 1970s and 1980s as its violent record was exposed. As I wrote, starting in 1998, off and on for 3 years; then quitting, starting again in 2009, stopping in 2011 to write the book Escape: My Life Long War Against Cults, and picking up in 2012, that question continued as did the question did Synanon leave any positive legacy along with its revelation that its processes dictated its ultimate outcome and was predictable from the start? ", It wasn't until the boys moved in with their father a tall, Italian man who awed them with stories about once hiding a shotgun under his trench coat that the once-distant dad became more than just a mythological figure. We have multiple groups dedicated to ending the TTI (Troubled Teen Industry) as well, that work in conjunction with mine, this is how I discovered this story! Some people, whether from genes or experiences, or combinations thereof, just are not capable of living a good life on their own. In law, lawyers too much use the technique of attacking opposing counsel when they cannot attack the facts. What is this thing that you think you're doing? Jollett, then just a little boy, hid to save himself. Professor David Bellis was one. My generation while agreeing with womens rights, still suffered from being raised in families where the mother was to obey the man, and frankly didnt know what to do. Students quickly found themselves in a new, strange, uncomfortable and often frightening world of intense group relationships and heightened, invasive and violent group therapies. It exposes the cruel abnormal policies, practices and propaganda the Synanon children were forced to endure in a so-called modern America. Today, there are statistics saying women have surpassed men as earners, all of this is good. When all the litigation finally ended, I had some regret that Synanon had been closed, wondering what it might have evolved into after Dederichs complete removal. Not only did the system drive people out, Dederich eventually admitted it was designed for that purpose. The same result was stated by Steve Simon in his Harvard dissertation only in much more elaborate detail. Spankings with paddles often drew blood and Phil Williams was beaten to death in the ring. How all of this occurred is set forth in the first book So Fair a House by Dr. Casriel. If you have a complaint it is with Yablonsky and Janzen who had no understanding of the Synanon system. He found that at Odyssey House only 25% of admissions stay more than 30 days, that the rate is down to 9.7% after six months, 5.6% at 1 year, and 2.8% after 18 months; the programs required length of stay to graduate.. I dont have much to argue with what you say about the people in Synanon and do not disagree they helped others, they were there to do that. Glasser, he wrote, found that eighty six of every hundred admissions to a large residential program terminated themselves against the advise of staff with most terminating within the first 30 days. Kimberly Stafford, the Vision Quest counselor who was driving the supply vehicle, was convicted of careless driving. Largely, the squares were people looking for purpose and to be part of something. Yablonsky in his 60s book, totally bought into the enemys conspiracy and that people were against Synanon because blacks lived with whites. Education website. 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