I recently watched a fascinating documentary called Love Has Won, about a truly bizarre cult surrounding a woman with a god complex. This group bore very little resemblance to the commune/cult I lived in several decades ago, which came to be known as The Environment. But still, when I see these cult documentaries, I'm surprised and dismayed that The E hasn't been publicly exposed after all these years. I've started this blog to remedy that.
The E wasn't about supernaturality or religion. It was a cult of personality surrounding Dr. Robert Firestone, an acclaimed psychologist who I presume is retired because he's in his 90s now. I call him Bob because that's how I've known him every since I was a toddler, and that's the name he went by.
The reality of what went on behind the scenes in the E is in stark contrast to the respectable public face, in the form of websites, books, and documentary films...
Bob's website:
https://www.drrobertwfirestone.com/
https://www.psychalive.org/
The Glendon Association, a non-profit established to promote Bob's books and films: https://www.glendon.org/
... which should be judged on their own merit, irrespective of the egregious financial and sexual abuses that Bob's patients were subjected to.
I aim to be factual, and to make it clear when I'm crossing into opinion. I'm doing this in bite-size pieces, because otherwise I'll get bogged down by my irresistible urge to endlessly edit.
I dedicate this effort to Bob's many victims. Names changed to protect the innocent.
And with that said...
3 comments:
Everything you’ve written in this blog eloquently captures life in the E as I knew it. Thank you for lending your voice to those of us who are too timid to speak our mind.
This is hilarious! If you were in this cult, do not be timid. They need to be brought to justice!
Of course everyone should speak out, but it’s not that simple. Many of the people reading this blog are still entangled with the community. Some have their life savings in “family” controlled investments that will leave them penniless if they choose to defect. Others livelihoods depend on the cult-run businesses. Some readers left loved ones behind, parents, siblings, children, who still “believe.”
Many wear a nuetral face because the consequence of speaking out carries such a hefty price.
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