Monstrous
The Darker Side => Demons, Demonology and The Devil => Topic started by: Loki on September 27, 2010, 02:12:55 PM
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Satanism in America: How the Devil Got Much More Than His Due. (reprinted from the pamphlet that came with the book in 1989).
SATANIC CRIME IN AMERICA: Wild Rumors; Reasonable Explanations.
Satanism is alive and well in this country... on afternoon talk-shows and in police seminars. In reality, the number of Satanists in America is very small, and so far no Satanic cult or organization has ever been convicted of criminal activity. However, this has not prevented a number of individuals, often with hidden religious agendas, from making their livings by informing our legislators, therapists, and law-enforcement personnel that Satanism is a growing threat to our society and our children. This myth has distracted attention from some very real problems in our society and has led to great damage to the lives of many individuals.
[With his permission I have shortened Don's account here to include just the major conclusions in order to focus on what I find particularly fascinating in his account. If there is demand for it I'll post the edited parts as well, but they deal with a happily now passed Satanism hysteria.]
...Every criminal case involving allegations of Satanic cult activity has either resulted in a not guilty verdict or has been thrown out for lack of evidence. Cases of "Satanic" crime resulting in actual convictions have all involved individuals acting alone (or with a couple of buddies) and practicing highly idiosyncratic forms of Devil-worship.
...Setting aside the observation that it would be hard to hide a quantity of ritual sacrifices that is more than twice the number of murders recorded each year by the F.B.I., the fact is that the number of genuinely missing children is very small. The National Child Safety Council (a branch of the Justice Department) and the F.B.I. together receive about 240,000 missing child reports each year. Once you remove the repeat reports of straying toddlers, the known runaways, and the children known to have been taken by parents in custody disputes, you are left with about 67 children abducted by strangers each year. Both groups agree that they receive at least half the reports, so no more than 140 children are being abducted by strangers each year. At least half of these children are eventually recovered; so far none have reported having been taken by Devil-worshippers. This means that even if all of the remaining children are being abducted and sacrificed (which seems unlikely) at most 70 children could be being killed by Devil-worshippers each year. If true, this would still be an alarming and distressing figure! But compare this with the 150 children who drown in swimming pools each year, or the 2,100 that are killed by their own parents, and it becomes apparent that other threats, especially those within the home & family, are much more of a real danger than are Satanists.
...The vast majority of so-called "survivors" are Born Again Christians who only "remembered" being ritually abused in the course of therapy, often under hypnosis. So far, not a single one of these women, who were allegedly more deeply involved in these groups than any F.B.I. Mafia-infiltrator, has been able to produce verifiable names, dates, or places. This makes their information highly suspect. Two of the most well-known of these "survivors," Lauren Stratford and "Elaine", have been thoroughly investigated and their stories proven to be substantially false. As Lauren Stratford was the first woman to use the term "Breeder", and her story is a complete fabrication, the stories of all the other women claiming to be "Breeders" must be called into question.
...As with the "Breeders" and other "survivors," these alleged former Satanists have yet to produce any tangible evidence to support their claims. This is especially puzzling as some, such as Mike Warnke, claim not to have been victims, but to have been masterminds and ring-leaders. Somehow, they feel that they now have no more obligation to expose their alleged former co-Satanists other than to lecture about Satanism on the Christian speakers' circuit. This would be like a Mafia Don leaving the Mob, going on the Tonight Show, and feeling that they have done their bit for law and order simply by saying publicly "Yes, there is a Mafia." Why have none of the "reformed Satanists" turned themselves and their co-conspirators in to the police?
... None of these accounts have evidenced a knowledge of the occult or of Satanism that is deeper than that available to the general public in horror films or comic books. In fact, many of the survivors' accounts include information that is only found in conservative Christian anti-occult tracts.
It should be noted that this is the same kind of argument used to support the claims of alleged "abductees" by U.F.O.'s. However, the evidence in favor of the U.F.O. "abductees" is marginally better in that it sometimes includes physical evidence, of which the Satanic "survivors" have produced none. The rule here should be: If you are not willing to believe that people are being kidnapped by space aliens, then there is no reason for you to believe the stories of alleged "survivors" of Satanic cults.
(Note: None of this means that we are arguing that these adults and/or children weren't abused, sexually or otherwise. We just question the Satanic aspects of their stories. Clearly these individuals are in need of therapy and counseling by professionals conversant in the myths and realities of Satanic crime.)
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Read more: http://blog.beliefnet.com/apagansblog/2010/09/of-abductions-satan-ufos-and-masons.html#ixzz10lagwwxS (http://blog.beliefnet.com/apagansblog/2010/09/of-abductions-satan-ufos-and-masons.html#ixzz10lagwwxS)