I met an ex-Synanon member today.

[Anonymous]

Believe it or not.  I couldn't believe it myself.  He was a "square gamer" as they were called when Synanon was in Santa Monica.

It was very interesting talking to him.  He described the "game" to me. He also told me that the "square gamers" were looked down upon by the resident members.

A "square gamer" was someone who was not an addict as it was described to me but rather a person who was basically sucked in by the "fad" of the time.  They were allowed to come and go freely.

He told me this was 40 years ago.  He even mentioned C. Dedrich.

I noticed that the synanon portion of fornits is basically devoid of information.

If the posters would like to compile a list of questions (not stupid B.S. questions) then I will gladly present him with the list and report back.

[try another castle]

For some reason, I vaguely recall hearing on this board that Mel Wasserman and Brigette were both considered square gamers.


Didn't stop him from being a tremendous, horrible, ass, though.

Would be interesting to see if this guy knew Mel. Sounds like they were there at the same time, since CEDU started in 67.

[Ursus]

I have pored over the Synanon site, viewing every single photograph and document in the Museum section that is open to the public.  I am convinced (but have no proof) that Joseph Gauld was quite influenced and inspired by Charles Dederich when he founded the Hyde School in 1966 (Bath, Maine).  

Joe is a real megalomaniac, and ego considerations would undoubtedly prevent him from ever fully acknowledging such an impact.  However, there is much in his personality that could conceivably have caused a feeling of great sympatico with Dederich.  They were both AA veterans, had differences with the norm of AA protocol, saw themselves as tough guys, and enjoyed confrontation and being in the spotlight.  

Synanon was all over the popular media in those days and, even given just the sole fact of Joe's predilection for reading Time Magazine, he would have been well aware of them.  I am curious whether Joe Gauld ever contacted Dederich or Synanon.  It is the Synanon of the earliest days that I imagine he would have had greater interest in.  He allegedly came up with the idea for his school in 1962.

Thank you in advance for considering my question!

[nimdA]

Man.. just find out what details you can in general about the program. What was the lifestyle like.. Day in the life of a programmie.. etc.. stuff like that.. I'm more interested in the mundane day to day living arrangements, education, and basic therapy components.

[Anonymous]

yes ask him to give you a narritive...I hope they dont mind me reffering to them by name but one of the more intense and complete descriptions were given by two girls from the AARC Mylita and Racheal, perhaps you can print them out and give them to him to show what a narritive should look like in terms of form.

1)Personal backgound
2) overall structure of cult-program
ie levels, groups, heirarchy, ways to move up in heiarchy,
3) personal experience of cult
4) the behavior and inimate details of other cult members especially members of the upper high archy

5) did he know Mel Wassermen or any of the future program leaders


thanks this is a find

[Anonymous]

op here.

I'm not sure that asking him about particular names etc would really have much relevance.  He may or may not know some of the people as it was 40 years ago.

I think that TSW has a better idea of what questions to ask.  Things that involve the "mundane" things that we might be able to link to our TBS experiences.  His description of the "game" and the fact that he mentioned that during the game you had NO allies...and the fact that they would attempt to pin false labels on you only so that they could subsequently attack them was commonplace.  It sounded all too familiar.

I'm not sure that we will get the same picture/story that a resident synanon member would give but he gives a perspective that comes from a mixture of being an insider/outsider which I find unique.

He ultimately felt that Synanon and their methodologies were more abusive than helpful and stated that he stopped participating as he said that many times he ended up leaving the sessions feeling worse rather than "enlightened" and made his personal decision that the program was a joke.

His story will most likely differ from that of someone who was in fact a "hard-core" addict and *may* have been helped.  I state this after reading the recent entry by an ex synanon "resident"in the Synanon threads.  Different people there for two completely different reasons.

I'll see what info he is able to remember and then we can compare it to what we already know or what we think we may know.  It may be a bit before I talk to him again so please bear with any time delays.

I would however like to take TSW's ball and run with it a bit.  Are there any particular questions that pertain to day to day life that would be relevant and specific?  This person most likely isn't going to write a lengthy testimonial about it nor do I expect him to touch on every aspect due to memory (40 years is a long time) or time constraints (he does have a life after all).

TSW...do you have any ideas on what specific things I should be asking him about?  I was thinking about asking if they had workshops in addition to the game.  

thanks in advance

[Rachael]

One of my perpetual obsessions is the shared language of the programs. Language goes a substantial way towards indoctrinating a person; when forced to communicate in a way completely different from what you're used to, it makes it exponentially easier to also change the way you think. I would be most curious about similarities in jargon: "working the program", "relating", "dead, insane or in jail", "justifying", "intellectualizing", "in your head", "hurting", "in my using", "oldcomer/newcomer".... I'm at a point right now, where I've been working tremendously hard not to remember day-to-day stuff, so that's all I can recall at the moment, but please anyone else add what you can remember.

Also, I'd be interested in whether or not they had specific levels/phases, whether they used "host/recovery" homes at any point, how newcomers were treated (what restrictions on communication, etc.), whether they allowed/prevented/encouraged family involvement.

That's all I can think of at the moment, but also I'm curious about what this person thinks is important to tell. Ask him/her what they remember most.

Thanks for the opportunity as well, not often you get to hear from someone there at the beginning.


Rachael

[nimdA]

I think Racheal nailed it pretty good.

This is what I would do..

Just start at the beginning with this question..

When did you find out you were going to Synonan?

Then start letting the process take its own natural course. Don't feel obligated to be trapped to a arbitrary set of questions. Sure at some point you want to steer the discussion in a direction of your liking, but for the most part you want to ease him into a comfortable enough state to let him conversate freely about his experiences.

Just keep asking him simple questions.

Why?

What?

When?

How?

Where?

Who?

Personally what I definitely want to know is the following:

1) Stage/level systems...

2) Consquences/interventions... did synonan have them or not?

3) Living arrangements...

4) Dining Arrangements..

5) Recreational activities...

6) What sort of contact was allowed with family?

7) Staff.. qualifications.. etc.. find out about these jazbos.. not so much who where they, but more like what sort of desirable qualities where sought in a Synonan staffer. I think most of their staff came from within the programme, but I'd still like to know what they looked for in a staff member. Did they have educational requirements, or did they just go for the biggest programme zombie?

Medical services.. how were those needs attended to.. Did they have a doctor or nurse on location? Did they transport to offsite medical facilities... What process did they have to go through to obtain medical help?

9) How did a person leave/graduate Synonan? Could they get out early, and what was the general concencous of those who bailed out early?

I've a few more questions, but if you can get those answered that would be a great start. Remember, just sit down and try to turn it into a casual conversation. This way the gentleman will feel more at ease and more likely to divulge information of all sorts.

[Ursus]

When did they first start accepting juveniles to Synanon?  I have read mention of the "1st teenager" being in 1959 (19yo), and I have read mention of an 18yo in the 1961 Times article.  I am curious about younger ages, e.g., 14-17yo, for typical juvenile offensives...

Additional bit, added later:  I just read an account of a teenager in the mid to late 60s, a local, in his early teens at the time, who felt drawn to Synanon's idealism and used to come there after school to help out.  He later ended up joining, or at least getting even more involved, for the next 20 years or so...

[Anonymous]

i'd like to know if the members often changed their names after having gone through some of the life altering time.

why did they do this or synanon encourage this?

[Antigen]

Does this guy know about LGAT seminars and programs using the Synanon method? What's he think of that? And why are Synanon ppl such big snobs! Man, we never hear from them and they don't let anyone in. What, do they think they're better than the rest of us? Or are they, maybe rightly, scared of us?

[try another castle]

i'd like to know if the members often changed their names after having gone through some of the life altering time.

why did they do this or synanon encourage this?

Why do cults do anything? So you can belong to them. If one changes their identity in simpatico with  the cult, all the better. Cult-bestowed names are included in this.

Sounds like the summit. (CEDU's last workshop) A lot of us changed our names afterwards. Normally it was a variation on our given name, or a middle name, although Caroline Wolf changed her name completely, and used her grandmother's name as the new one. It symbolizes an abandonment of the old self and the birth of the new one which is cult-approved.

As far as I know, name changes are fairly common in cults. Look at the moonies, for instance.

And why are Synanon ppl such big snobs! Man, we never hear from them and they don't let anyone in. What, do they think they're better than the rest of us? Or are they, maybe rightly, scared of us?

My theory is that a lot of them still believe in the program. I mean, look at what they started after they left. NA, several rehabs, etc. Like you said before, synanon may  be dead, but it's influence is not.

I say we should HUNT THEM DOWN, MAN!

I'll get the net. Or maybe a box with a stick and some sort of bait inside.

"I swear, we aren't going to hurt you. We just want to know WHAT THE FUCK IS GOING ON???"

[Ursus]

Has there been any news about this?  Updates?  Anything happening?  

[Anonymous]

op here.  my neighbor was out of town for a while so I wasn't able to get in touch with him.  I'm currently travelling but will try to get in touch with him again in a few weeks when I return.

don't worry. I haven't forgotten.  I've just had alot of stuff on my plate lately and do feel bad for not keeping you guys updated.

[Ursus]

Mucho thanks!  Enjoy your traveling...