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Laxer, Mark Eliot

"Take Me for a Ride: coming of age in a destructive cult"


"Five out of twenty women could get breast cancer. Twenty out
of twenty women could get breast cancer. Some women get cancer
of the uterus..."
* * *
I was shocked when I learned how Rama had treated Rachel, Dana, and Anne.
I was shocked that Rama's world had gotten so out of hand.
But according to what I read in the press, the experiences of my
friends were by no means isolated.
In 1990, Anne and I sat together and read Rama's seven-page "Statement
To The Press." Near the start of the "Statement," Rama lists the names
of "credible persons who can verify the truth of my assertions."
I glanced at the names. "Karen Lever." True, she had been
accepted at a number of medical schools, including Stanford.
She *was* extremely bright. But as Rama's mouthpiece,
she was the one who had threatened dissenters with serious harm.
"Dr. Wayne Surdam" and "Dr. Ermano Rambaldi." True, they were an
award-winning UC Berkeley scholar and a UCLA geologist respectively.
True, they *had* taken the study of spirituality to heart. But they
had never gotten close enough to Rama to observe his *other* side.
"Richard Loftin." I did not know him. But during nightmare weekend
in Seattle, he reportedly sat across from the three tripping women
and giggled.


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