Customer Reviews

Beyond Jonestown: "Sensitivity Training" and the Cult of Mind Control

5 star:		(1)
4 star:		(1)
3 star:		(0)
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1 star:		(1)

 

 

The author, a police probation officer for many years, reveals the role of "thought control" in the sensational mass "suicide" in Guyana in 1978. An intense investigation of the "sensitivity training" movement convinced the author of its mind- and soul-destroying methods, and harmful social impact. More important, this book shows the malevolent role of these mind control techniques in "race relations" and "Holocaust indoctrination," as pushed by the ADL and similar groups.

A well thought-out analysis that does not relegate Jonestown to a "bunch of stupid people" who "drank the Kool-Ade". What I particularly like about this book is the insight into "Human Relations Training" and its connection with brainwashing, a practice that was in the experimental stages just prior to Jonestown, and is very much a fine- tuned part of our culture today. Most of us are drinking the Kool-Ade and don't even know it. The author, in particular, exposes the non-voluntary nature of "voluntary" HRT, particularly in many workplaces. "Team Building" anyone? I've been there. I'm quite aware how it works. It's good to see it analyzed so thoughtfully in print.

When Jonestown went down, this author is quite aware that it was no mass suicide -- no more than Waco was. People who were still in California were hiding from the assassins for years (Al and Jeannie Mills; not their real names). Some people were assassinated anyway -- and few people know that the connection is Jonestown (Dan White, Harvey Milk). The author runs his thread through a lot of Jewish organizations I don't know much about, particularly pointing the finger at B'nai B'rith, so I'll have to give him the benefit of the doubt there. That just tells me I have more reading to do.

What troubled me about the book is its anti-Semitic slant. It's clear enough that the focus is on Zionism rather than Jews in general, but is troubling nevertheless. I've done enough research to know how right he is about most of what he says. I just wish there was another way to look at the troubling issues around Zionism and the role of Israel in the world today. It may very well be that there are political Zionists at the top of our pyramid. But Zionists are not always, and not even mostly, Jews. They like to hide behind the name, but they have been victimizing Jews for a long time and are good at it. (See review: "Hitler: Founder of Israel")

They can't stay there unless we are all holding them up.

Ed Dieckmann's book can be quite offensive at times particularly when it comes to the Holocaust during World War II and to the Jewish community. The book has anti-Semitic tones and accusations that are not held together. The book is based on half-truths. I can't give it any stars because the book has a lot of problems with the writing structure. I had difficulty in reading it but I managed mostly because of my background in reading Jonestown materials. The book isn't really about Jonestown about the mind control and brainwashing aspects that led to the self-destruction of a community. The book was published in 1981 long before internet research and cable television and easily accessible videos about the Jonestown community were made public for viewership. For three years after Jonestown, the writer like others wondered what happened. He does not really understand the dynamics of Jonestown or the community. The planning commission meetings were the weekly catharthic sessions where people were brought routinely to be humiliated and criticized by their own members. Yes, that did happen. It's a fact. But Jones was far more involved in the lives of his members who were seniors, minorities, and poor. His white members fared better but they all died in the end in Jonestown. The author's constant remarks about the Jewish characters in this book made it uncomfortable for me to read it without being offended. Once I got past the offensiveness and anti-Semitic comments, I could read the book but that's it. I couldn't take it seriously.