Ok, I am NOT a scientologist and know little more than what I've read here and there, but as of late, you can't help but be bombarded with it on every single news channel every single hour. This much I do know...they use SOME form of personality testing (or something they CALL personality testing, at times it sounds a little more invasive than I believe a psychometric tool to measure personality need be). So, because of this, I'd like to express my views on scientology, and hear those of others, because I belive scientology to potentially be a very serious threat to the progress of scientific studies of personality (it has been assualted in the past because of silly methods and theories).

People, unfortunately, love to label things with a broad stroke, and personality (as it can come across at times as an assault on a person's individuality) is one of those things that is very vulnerable to serious public backlash. It's not that I have a serious problem with people who want to believe in space aliens and I even agree with them on the overuse of psychiatric drugs in this country, but the scary part here is that people, if scientology continues to be something people focus attention on, will lump in valid theories on personality, such as those of A. Augusta, Jung, etc..., with L. Ron Hubbard's "Dianetics" or the EXCEPTIONALly bad movie "Battlefield Earth." I seriously urge those people out there who may find scientology interesting or believe in it wholeheartedly to consider how everyday normal people who know nothing of psychiatry's history or personality theories are able to take VALID points of view such as those on psychiatry seriously, when the same person believes that a science fiction book is a prediction of the future and deserves to be called a religion. I'm sorry if I've offended anyone who happens to be a scientologist reading this, as my intention is not to criticize you for choosing scientology, so much as to ask..."consider what is more important....the science and it's ability to help mankind through understanding and new SCIENTIFIC methods yet to be developed....or the religion." Unfortunately, if history has taught us anything, it's taught us that the two are never compatible bedfellows.

All additional thoughts on the issue are appreciated, and I'm always open to being educated on why I'm totally off target on this one.