Anti-Landmark

Comments on Landmark

2010-03-18T13:24:00.004-04:00

(Would you buy a used car from this man?)AlfonsoG left a comment on my recent post:As someone who has taken a variety of Landmark programs, I would take issue with a couple of things that you said. You imply that Landmark doesn't care about the health of the people who take part, not warning people that a course that takes a long, hard look at one's life is not appropriate for everyone. In

What Do People Who Have Been to Landmark Think?

2010-02-07T17:45:00.003-05:00

Not everyone who goes to Landmark Education forums raves about them. Some come away disturbed, but Landmark rarely warns people that their psyches could be seriously damaged. If they did they would lose their income flows, of course. Because ultimately it's about making money out of you--nothing more.So to balance the scales, here are some quotes from people who have attended the Forum from the

Landmark Forum for Cats

2009-11-03T05:46:00.000-05:00

I think this puts it in context...

Landmark Education's "Use" of Volunteers

2009-10-03T13:51:00.004-04:00

Landmark is keen on using "volunteers". I put this in quotes because Landmark has been found in violation of minimum wage laws over the way it dragoons its participants into working for it.In 2006 the US Department of Labor in Dallas, Texas, found minimum wage violations. The department reported:The assistants hour are delegated by an employee of the firm, the work is directed and managed by the

Cafe Gratitude in Berkeley Compels Managers to Attend Landmark Forum

2009-08-22T13:48:00.003-04:00

(Thanks to Mother Jones)Mother Jones has a good piece on Cafe Gratitude in Berkeley. The cafe has links with Landmark Education and insists its managers attend Landmark courses. Those that don't are fired. The full story is in the East Bay Express.Laura McClure also writes an article, "The Landmark Forum: 42 Hours, $500, 65 Breakdowns" about doing the Forum. It has one or two insightful moments

What Does Landmark Do To The Brain?

2009-07-26T17:47:00.001-04:00

Here is a talk from TED by Diane Benscoter, a former Moonie, on how cults rewire the brain. I include Landmark Education in this definition.

Does Landmark Teach You To Tell the Truth?

2009-07-08T11:29:00.002-04:00

Of course it does! Isn't that the principle? To live your life with integrity and authenticity. You wish and don't hold your breath.My former partner who succumbed to the lure of Landmark as a way through a mid-life crisis took an advanced course on "communication". One of her tasks was to speak to me about something she had withheld from me. I recall a long and tortuous phone call as she

The Skeptic's Dictionary

2009-04-09T12:33:00.004-04:00

The Skeptic's Dictionary has quite a good post on Landmark. It's trying to be fair and balanced.While it discusses the advantages and disadvantages of the Forum and other courses, and the money they cost, it leaves one area very grey.The effects of Landmark are often described by acolytes as immediate and profound. That's probably so for those susceptible to this kind of persuasion. What we

Is Landmark All About Interpretation?

2009-03-02T08:32:00.003-05:00

Landmark Education is frightened of criticism, as is Scientology (to which it's related). It will do all in its power to stifle criticism including law suits. Why is Landmark so scared? Why does Landmark refuse to open itself to scientific inquiry and therefore legitimate itself?I use the term scientific inquiry carefully. Landmark has some attempts at research on its website. Don't be fooled as

Landmark the Ponzi Scheme

2009-01-08T18:59:00.003-05:00

With the exposure of Bernie Madoff and his $50 billion Ponzi scheme, someone ought to do the same with Landmark. It's fundamentally a pyramid scheme always depending on new recruits to boost the income. When journalists have attempted to obtain financial information about Landmark, their attornies start the heavy breathing act.Rachel Jones of Noseweek in South Africa asked Landmark for a simple

Spurious Education and the Year's End...

2008-12-29T10:13:00.004-05:00

My apologies for not posting for a while.Landmark Education has a way of insinuating itself into organizations often without them being aware of what they might be harboring. I have mentioned how some companies pay for Landmark "courses" under the belief that they are truly educational and not preying on people's insecurities. This is often done under the guise of continuing professional

Lawyers' Ethics and Landmark

2008-10-05T10:07:00.004-04:00

Imagine the following scenario. A law firm in a major city undertakes much work in media and intellectual property areas. Clients might be seeking to protect copyrights or attack them. The crucial point is that no other lawyers in the firm should be committed to organizations whose positions might make maintaining that independence difficult.Suppose then some lawyers in the firm are acolytes of

Turn up, Tune in, Transform?

2008-10-02T12:05:00.003-04:00

This is one of the fairer newspaper articles on the Landmark Forum that I've seen. Even so, it would appear too critical for acolytes. //Custom Functions for HBX var _hbEC=0,_hbE=new Array;function _hbEvent(a,b){b=_hbE[

Dalai Lama Does Landmark!

2008-09-23T13:16:00.002-04:00

Rachel Jones does a neat job on exposing the phoney academic studies Landmark uses to allegedly support the efficacy of its work at www.rickross.com. She also probes Landmark's continuing links to Eberhard Weber, the founder of est. (Don't forget that Landmark's licensing agreement with Weber expires next year.)But the best and most hilarious part of the article is that David Ure, one of

Q: What Exactly is the Purpose of Landmark? A: It's a Racket

2008-09-12T13:09:00.004-04:00

Most people get sucked into debates about Landmark's brainwashing techniques. This is important because of the consequences to individuals and relationships. Yet the most important issue is often sidelined.Landmark Education is designed to make lots of money for its owners. Nothing wrong with that perhaps, but when you are running what is basically a pyramid scheme something is very

Is It Worth Doing the Landmark Forum? Is It a Racket?

2008-09-07T17:09:00.003-04:00

Buster McLeod has produced an interesting take on the Landmark Forum. As he says, "Mostly, what I got out of the Forum was a collection of very expensive new works and phrases."Here's his report and the comments following: Buster McLeod is feeling crazy do the landmark forum (read all 2 entries…) Worth doing! What I learned at The Landmark

How Landmark Legitimates Itself

2008-09-06T06:20:00.006-04:00

One of the keys to Landmark's success is the missing element that is in its name. How do I mean this? If you google Landmark, what comes up is "Landmark Education". Most forget that second tag. But it is this that enables Landmark to worm its way into the heart of conventional thinking and organizations. And when you have an array of "graduates" from your courses, respectability looks

What Are the Concerns About Landmark?

2008-08-15T18:23:00.001-04:00

Here is a brief survey from Apologetics Index.What Are The Concerns? A Landmark critic sums them up as follows: To round things up, everything in short:1. THE BAITA friend/relative tricks you with the most sincere words into attending an introductory meeting, while appealing to your trust and curiosity, or actual weakness, or all of the above. 2. THE TRAPGroup pressure techniques and wordplay

What is the Landmark Forum Really Doing?

2008-08-13T14:11:00.002-04:00

Scaring the bejasus out of people for one, especially when they start their racket on "fear". They say they are providing tools, a new technology. But this is bullshit.As some have spotted, much of what is said in Landmark forums "...being the potential of...." and so forth, comes straight of Heidegger or Gadamer. So it's a jargon based on philosophy and some sociology. (Bourdieu always argued

Landmark Cited in Religious Discrimination Suits

2008-08-12T04:53:00.002-04:00

The blog, "The Truth about Human Potential Seminars", has a disturbing post on employees of Growing Generations, a sperm bank and surrogacy company, being compelled to attend Landmark Education courses contrary to their religious beliefs. A number of lawsuits against GG have been filed.

Can Landmark Cause Suicide?

2008-08-11T14:39:00.003-04:00

Lars Bergwik, a former Landmark devotee and "Introduction Leader" in Sweden, talks about how Landmark operates by breaking you down until there is nothing and reconstructing a persona that is smaller than the original but controllable by them.He also discusses how psychological disorders can result after participation in Landmark courses, even the possibility of suicide.Here's his talk:

Legal Tactics by Landmark to Suppress Criticism

2008-08-10T09:53:00.002-04:00

Landmark are tenacious at suppressing criticism even that which does not violate law. This video describes how they work.Electronic Frontier Foundation on Landmark Education DMCAAbstract: November 8th, 2006 interview with EFF lawyer, Kurt Opsahl, on EFF's defense of the Internet Archive from the Landmark Education DMCA Subpeona. Landmark Education subpoenaed the Internet Archive, Google Video and

Marion in Wonderland Doesn't Do Landmark

2008-08-10T09:49:00.002-04:00

Marion in Wonderland ultimately refused to take the Landmark Forum. Good for her. She gives a useful list of relevant websites. Here they are:Below are some of the websites I visited, both pro- and anti-. Hopefully you will find them a useful aid to making up your own mind. Tom Hume’s blog - an interesting post, with lots of comments which led me further, to The Truth about Human Potential

A Personal Memoir of the Landmark Forum "Brainwashing"

2008-08-10T09:33:00.003-04:00

In a video called, "brain washing in a godless big business cult", a woman tells of her experience in a Landmark Forum. You can hear the hurt, the distress, the fear in her voice. I felt distressed after watching it, but I knew it was heartfelt.There is one point at 6 minutes in when she describes a particular episode in the weekend Forum. Participants are told to imagine their greatest fears and

Some Really Praise Landmark

2008-08-09T15:17:00.000-04:00

It's clear people do get something out of Landmark courses, so maybe it's not all bad?Here's one example of a positive experience from Carrie & Danielle:Five Ways Landmark Education Impacted My Life Landmark Means Leaving your Past Behind Before Landmark Education I experienced the world based on my past experiences, many of which I considered disappointing. After Landmark Education I create my

Why I Have Set Up Ant-Landmark 2

2008-08-09T15:00:00.000-04:00

Doing Landmark Forums and advanced courses has fallout. Members change their lives dramatically, often destructively to those close to them.Weber says everything is peeled away until there is nothing. Therefore there is no truth but only multiple interpretations, an infinite array of possibilities. Life can be constructed anew. History is bunk.If this is so and you don't like something, get rid

Why I Have Set Up Ant-Landmark 1

2008-08-09T14:45:00.000-04:00

If you are not with Landmark, then you're against it--automatically. In my case my ex-wife joined it. She tried to get me to join and a number of her friends. None of us took the bait.The way she explained it made the Landmark Forum seem quite benign. The Forum is a three day marathon affair which takes place in room with no windows where the participants are under strict instructions only to do

Why Anti-Landmark is Necessary

2008-08-09T14:23:00.000-04:00

Have you ever been part of the Landmark Forum or been affected by it? Maybe a family member or friend has taken part in their introductory forum. I know how you feel.Landmark exists to induct people through a form of brainwashing that means that Landmark can do no wrong. But everyone outside, those who don't participate in Landmark become strangers to the insiders.Landmark derives from Werner