Scientology exhibit won’t help the mentally ill

by J Scott Christianson, Columbia Daily Tribune Columnist

On Thursday and Friday, the state Capitol Rotunda will host an exhibit titled “The Industry of Death.” If you’re thinking it’s about time an exposé about corporate chicken farming came to the Capitol, you’ll be sadly disappointed. However, if you believe that psychiatrists and the entire psychiatric profession are part of a secret plan for world domination developed in part by Adolf Hitler, then it’s time to load the kids in the car for a day of fun at the Capitol.

The “Industry of Death” exhibit is sponsored by the Church of Scientology and makes a host of outrageous claims about the field of psychiatry. Twenty-five percent of psychiatrists sexually abuse their patients. Psychiatrists deliberately kill about 10,000 people a year — sounds about right. And for the big surprise, psychiatrists were responsible for the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks — guilty by association, at least, since psychiatrists are responsible for the existence of terrorists and suicide bombers. Last year, Tom Cruise famously launched his own attack on psychiatry after learning some of these “facts” about the profession. This exhibit explains a lot about why he seemed so far out when discussing psychiatry with Matt Lauer on “Today.”

The Church of Scientology has always seemed to have it in for psychiatrists. Perhaps it is because psychiatry and psychology are based on science, while Scientology is based on the ramblings of a science-fiction writer from the…