Resources
International Cultic Studies Association (ICSA)
Seeks to put a damper on cultic recruitment, membership and activity by supplying educational materials, research, and information via a network comprised of websites, periodicals, phone contact, conferences and workshops. Cult recovery and family counseling regarding cults are available. Over 200 so-called cults are explained, study guides and articles, plus an e-library for a fee are accessible.
Steven Alan Hassan
Mr. Hassan is a Nationally Certified Counselor and licensed Mental Health Counselor who is an expert in cults and mind control He has created a specific approach for rescuing and de-programming cult practitioners and overcoming associated symptoms. As an ex-member of a famous cult, the “Moonies,” he exposes cults, their practices, and brainwashing/recruiting methods by writing and selling books, maintaining website, speaking engagements, etc.
Books by Steven Alan Hassan: Combating Cult Mind Control: The #1 Best-selling Guide to Protection, Rescue, and Recovery from Destructive Cults (1988) and Releasing the Bonds: Empowering People to Think for Themselves (2000).
Hassan has appeared on 60 Minutes, Nightline, Dateline, Larry King Live, and The O’Reilly Factor.
Freedomofmind Discussion Group
http://groups.yahoo.com/group/freedomofmind/
This is a discussion group website for anyone wanting to read other’s insights and experiences as well as provide one’s own - based on cults knowledge, experiences of others, and/or and personal experiences. Open expression is encouraged, mutual respect is required, proselytizing not allowed.
Wellspring Retreat & Resource Center
http://www.wellspringretreat.org/
A “live-in” counseling/therapy retreat to help those that have been abused by: sexual or other types of abusive and/or manipulative assault from professionals, coercive cult practices or relationship coercion. They are the only fully accredited practice that handles these issues. They participate in university research regarding “thought reform”, a cultic tool, also known as coercive persuasion or mind control.
Kentroversy
Who is Kentroversy?
Kentroversy is the pen-name of Kent Daniel Bentkowski, a research-journalist from the Buffalo, New York USA area, which is a short drive away from Niagara Falls. The name came from my best friend, who one day long ago, mentioned that because of my journalistic specialty, that I was always trying to start a Kentroversy. I knew immediately upon hearing this nickname, that it suited me perfectly.
I have been a published author since 1985, when I sold my first article for twenty dollars. Since then, I have been writing and working as a journalist and researcher pretty much full time. I also have the ability to see the bigger picture, and as such, I have felt obligated to add my voice to those calling out from within the darkness that surrounds this planet.
What is research-journalism?
Research-journalism is the best way to describe what I do. I work completely independently, and as such, I focus on researching many relevant subjects, then I write about the subject being researched, here on my blog site, and I have been fortunate to have my work quietly make its' way around the Internet. Instead of getting an assignment from an editor, I select my own assignments, where I write about the things that I believe are important. I have been published online in every area of the world, and I work hard to continue to build my readership.
Simply put, most journalism is strictly the reportage of daily news. I call what I do research-journalism, and that is because my writing comes out of research more than it does from daily news, although I do some of that, as well. Most of my work comes out of discussions or questions that I receive from people in my private life. I then go out and research the subject(s) being discussed, as was the case with my financial white-paper entitled "Will You Survive The Coming Financial Crash?"