[Maryjane]

I thought you said you were withdrawing from this debate?

Let's not make this personal. My observations weren't directed at you.

I agree with you, I never feel comfortable when so-called "human potential experts" charge large amounts of money for workshops and study programmes - particularly when the people attracted to them are often vulnerable and in crisis.

I didn't see how the Monroe Institute's programs are any different than PTL, the 700 Club, or any other religious programing that flash their "promises" in exchange for "donations."

But people, in the West at least, can do what they want with their money... surely?

People can do what they want with their money, I'm not saying they can't make a donation of a few hundred dollars for a fabric swatch prayer cloth. What I am saying is if Moen and the institute are capitalizing from someone's misfortune by insinuating they can and do communicate with the dead and present that as FACT and yet have no proof, then they are indeed not an organization I would hold in high esteem.

Out of curiosity, I wondered what the super-rich did with theirs. Here are some examples. A man recently paid $502,400 to have lunch, yes lunch, with the world's leading investor and businessman billionaire Warren Buffet. All the money went to charity. In 2005, an art collector paid $104m for Picasso's 1905 painting Boy with a Pipe. In the same year the Bugatti Veyron, the world's fastest legal on-road sports car, went on sale for $1.7m. The most expensive yacht is owned by Oracle founder Larry Ellison - cost $68m. A toy collector recently paid $60,000 for a pre-war Dinky box of 6 type 1 vans.

You are comparing apples to oranges. The super rich have it to give, not to mention they received something tangible for their money. Hopefully the charity that benefited will do great things with that money.


I'm concerned with the people and organizations waiting in the wings to capitaize on a person's emotional vunnerability. The only thing the institute offers is a memory. Amusing the literature states that if you are a $10,000 member you get 4 books "free." Ahem...that's not free. Maybe they don't understand that receiving a death benefit is often one of the most painful moments for a survivor. It's tangible evidence that your loved one is no longer alive. You get the same feeling in the pit of your stomach when they hand you a death certificate.

So, $2,000 for a week long seminar. The obvious question, what do you get for this money.

I was curious too. What kind of bang are these people getting for their buck other than an expensive getaway. It's like going to a psychic and being told...I'm sorry, they didn't come thru. An opportunity with no guarantees.

Therefore, I would suggest this is good value for money when compared to the cost of expensive material objects. You have a choice. Follow the creeds ignorance is bliss and shallow is good, or, choose the more challenging but far more gratifying exploration of other worlds and your inner self.

Never under estimate the power of material objects. Spirituality can be tied to them. Many people get memorial tattoos or purchase something their loved one dreamed of having but could never afford.
So after the week long seminar, those that still don't believe are ignorant and shallow thinkers? Or did the institute fail to deliver? It's quite cocernining that people have to follow anyone's thinking other than their own. Dealing with grief is very personal. One size does not fit all.

I do have one question...Are you affiliated with the institute or it's members in any way?