Treatment Abuse, Behavior Modification, Thought Reform > The Troubled Teen Industry
Alex Asch's Story
Froderik:
It does/did look like an interesting story. Thank you for taking the time to trim it down.
Anonymous:
Thank you, Deborah.
I find it heartening that he did not come out of his experience a brainwashed drone.
I suspect his prior experience in activism helped protect him against the mind control techniques.
He didn't think the world was a friendly place in the first place, so he didn't go into shock at finding out it isn't.
He had experience with critical thinking, so he had the tools to think through what his captors were saying and doing and see through the psychobabble.
He had a healthy skepticism of authority already, instead of trusting it, but he'd also had some formal experience and training with responding to abuses of authority in a limited, controlled, carefully considered manner.
He had a very well developed sense of who he was---he wasn't still trying to find out who he was. IOW, he'd already made the psychological transition to adulthood---and it's a lot harder to manipulate an adult than a kid.
All four of those things are terrific tools in resisting the kinds of techniques these places use.
I'm glad he's free. I hope the people who helped free him will continue to try to help free others.
Deborah:
Me too.
That original LONG message came to me as several messages via an email list. The whole story, for those who are interested is now up on a webpage (perhaps I'll whittle more when time allows):
http://www.mindfreedom.org/mindfreedom/alexasch.shtml
What struck me was the questions Alex and his friends posed about the industry in general, particularly their wondering if other teen activists were at risk of being incarcerated.
Anonymous:
--- Quote ---On 2003-11-12 21:07:00, Deborah wrote:
"
Me too.
That original LONG message came to me as several messages via an email list. The whole story, for those who are interested is now up on a webpage (perhaps I'll whittle more when time allows):
http://www.mindfreedom.org/mindfreedom/alexasch.shtml
What struck me was the questions Alex and his friends posed about the industry in general, particularly their wondering if other teen activists were at risk of being incarcerated.
"
--- End quote ---
If the parents object to the activism, the teen certainly is at risk. As are teens with a different religion from the parents, as are teens with different politics from the parents, as are teens who are anything but moral, philosophical, and behavioral clones of the parents.
And even if the teen is a near-perfect carbon copy of the parent, the teen is at risk of being incarcerated is the parent is just plain loopy and doesn't see that the teen is just like Mom and Dad.
On the upside, the word is out there some places. Over ten years ago I knew a woman whose teenage son had become unmanageable in a destructive way---destructive of her property and home.
She considered a boot camp, but didn't send him to one. She had heard of the abuse in the programs and chose not to subject him to it. She DID kick him out of the house, but at least he was old enough to get a job and support himself and become an emancipated minor, and better off than he'd have been in a program.
Anonymous:
Stillwater Turnabout is very clearly a direct Straight or KIDS descendant program-- uses beltlooping, host homes, five point restraint by other kids, etc.
Does anyone have any info linking it to the former KIDS program that was in Salt Lake? Wes posted that KIDS of Salt Lake became Lifeline there-- does anyone have a way of showing descent via staff names
or other material...
Any help greatly appreciated.
Please email maia@echonyc.com or post here; this is for my book on teen behavior mod.
Navigation
[0] Message Index
[#] Next page
[*] Previous page
Go to full version