The Shunning: Kelly Cult Closes Ranks

BillJanie@aol.com
Thu, 29 Feb 1996 09:48:08 -0500

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Cult watchers would find a number of interesting phenomena =

at play in recent postings. First, they would note the use of a =

"loaded language." Loaded language is the use of jargon to =

convey unusual meanings that are known only to the initiated =

elite. There is a strong appeal to elitism in cults and indoctrination =

in the loaded language is part of the initiation. Cults use loaded =

languages as a means of narrowing members experiences to the =

party line. Words like "constructivism" are loaded in the Kelly =

cult and serve the function of cutting off the voices of dissent.
=0D
Reid Creech's recent posting suggests that we all define our =

terms and stop the personal attacks. I applaud Dr. Creech's =

call for clarity but I think there is a danger that this line =

become part of the loaded language in word only and not spirit. =

Chanting is not definition. There is also a danger of trivializing =

the issues. Real people have been hurt and continue to be =

hurt by the Kelly cult. I came up through the ranks and was =

expected early on to take a leadership role. Instead, I blew =

the whistle. They kept me in silent isolation as long as they =

could- until I got access to the net. What they have done to =

me and others has been personally painful. Let us define our =

terms but let us make room for pain and guilt.
=0D
The bandwagon is now closing ranks and the shunning of =

Bill Chambers is becoming more public. Bob Neimeyer moves =

to silence my dissent by trying to take me off line with him =

where he can promptly dismiss me, as he and others have =

done for years. This is a type of shunning. Yesterday Mancuso =

made less than subtle suggestions that the folks on the net =

just not read my mail. This is shunning. =

=0D
Why are these PhD professors and clinicians choosing to shut =

me out of the dialogue. Surely such brilliant clinicians can =

handle one little old nut case like me. Its for several reasons. =

Above all else is my pain. They can not handle it through their =

superficial game of professor/doctor/famous person. They find =

pain unseemly and the possibility of their guilt too embarrassing =

for public scrutiny. Another reason is that I know too much =

about them from the inside. They do not know what to expect =

next. They do not know who my sympathizers and sources =

are- which of their "friends" they may have abused a little too
much, and this gives them the creeps. Third, I am good with =

ambiguities. Loaded language operates by the kind of metaphors =

and deceptions that Julian Jaynes describes in his Origins of =

Consciousness book. The loaded language gives them a kind =

of group solidarity based in a shared consciousness that is
split apart from the outsiders. Ambiguity usually differentiates
them from the mere commoners (Brian Gaines arguments)
by making them feel superior- since they know the special
meanings and others do not. The double edge of ambiguity
is too much when it turns back on them. Ambiguous =

ambiguity (complex drama) is too hot for them. By using =

complex ambiguities in my characterizations of the Kelly cult, =

I introduce a meta-counter-metaphorical system. This
confuses their already fragmented consciousnesses. By =

using truthful but inflamatory images, I weaken the split =

consciousness that maintains the separate reality of the =

cult. Threat begins to seep into the core of the cult system. =

This is why they are now shunning me.
=0D
Typically cults who go to the shunning stage turn the =

heat up on anxious dependency . Members are reminded of =

what happens to the "Evil ones" who question the authority =

and legitimacy of the cult leadership. They might end =

up like Bill Chambers, unworthy of existence and
damned as a Pariah.
=0D
When such methods fail, some cults have turned to =

repeated trivial litigation by which the resources of the =

dissenter are exhausted by the petty cash funds of the =

cult. There have also been cases of fraud at this =

stage. Dissenters are "set up". One cult actually broke into =

a critics office and typed bomb threats on her typewriter. =

She was arrested and detained for a while. Other cults do =

things like put rattle snakes in their enemies mailboxes =

and threaten their children. I am not sure how far the Kelly =

cult will go. If they try to sue me, about all they could get
is a lot of marked up old books and a box of dead child's
clothes. That's about all I have. I do not even own this =

computer. The setup stuff and the threats are possible. =

I did live as a kind of hostage to my daughter's illness =

for a long time. I had to avoid "flaming" in hopes of =

having a job to provide for her. She is dead now and =

I am apparently unemployable. So the threat to my =

children will not work anyway. But there is a =

good chance the shunning will work and =

more sinister threats will be a moot point. =

=0D
I recommend ya'll have a look at Michael Langone's book =

Recovery from Cults. He also edits the Cultic Studies
Journal. You might find it has more of worth to say about =

the Kelly cult than some journal that serves as propaganda =

front for people who make George Kelly roll over in his grave.
=0D
Keep watching the cult, even if you chose not to actively =

join the battle. What could it hurt? =

=0D
Bill Chambers
=0D

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