Tonight February 26, 2011 (Sat) 7 PM I'm speaking at Missouri Zen Center, 220 Spring Ave., Webster Groves, MO 63119
I have a new piece up on the SuicideGirls safe-for-work blog. this is the link. Or just cut & paste:
http://suicidegirlsblog.com/blog/brad-warners-hardcore-zen-how-to-make-a-zen-monster/
It starts off the same as the Elephant Journal article from a little while back, but then veers off into different territory after about the second paragraph. I didn't want to presume the readers at Suicide Girls knew anything about Dennis Roshi.
You'll note that I provided a link to Dennis' upcoming Big Mind® retreat in Maui with Jack "Chicken Soup for the Soul" Canfield. It's a bargain at $15,000. Only 20 lucky people will be selected to join, it says.
Like I said before, I'm as sick of writing about Dennis Roshi as everyone is sick of reading about him. But I submit to you that this new piece on SuicideGirls is not about Dennis Roshi at all. It's about an all-too-common phenomenon of which he is just the latest example. It didn't start with him and it won't end with him. He's not even the only guy out there right now doing this.
It's hard for me to feel too much grief for people who can blow $15,000 on a rip-off like this. But it does worry me that there are people in this world who can afford to do that. It means something very bad is going on with our economic system.
Think about it. It's not just that there are a few stupid rich people who can spend $15,000 to hang out with fake "spiritual masters." Only 20 of the applicants will be selected for the honor. That means there are a lot of stupid rich people out there. And Dennis Roshi isn't even like an A-List fake spiritual master. He's probably a B or C list guy. And not only that, he's a B or C list guy who is currently going through a major sex scandal. Yet he can still pull in these kinds of numbers.
That means there are not just a lot people out there who can afford to blow $15,000 on a rip-off fake spiritual master with a ridiculously transparent scam. There are a whole fuck of a lot of these people.
Dig these lines pulled straight from their own pitch, "When you’re immersed in a relaxed setting surrounded by confident 'players' who are comfortable with their immense success, there’s no doubt you’ll emerge with the same abundant mindset! This program is designed to give you private time with proven professionals—who will work on your personal goals and address your unique needs." It also says, "They (Dennis Roshi and his slimy cronies) are all successful, and comfortable with their achievements. They know how to get things done. To them, most dreams are easy to accomplish. In fact, it’s what they do every day. And it’s one reason why working with mentors at their level will catapult you further—faster—than virtually any other approach."
There are also vague lines about Genpo's Big Mind® House in Maui. I assume this is one of the three the submissive people he has surrounded himself with bought him. According to the pitch $15,000 is about 1/5th what you'd (who'd?) expect to pay for the privilege of hanging out with people of Dennis Roshi's caliber. Don't even get me started on what caliber of person I think that scumbag is. This, then, implies further that there is a whole tier -- perhaps several tiers -- of even more expensive rip-offs than this one.
If there are this many people with this kind of money to blow on something as immensely frivolous and decadent as this, why, then, is there any poverty at all in the world?
This kind of thing makes me angry. It used to make me red faced, smoke-coming-out-of-my-ears angry. Now it just makes me plain old angry. If this makes me angry, as a person who has spent decades working on the problem of anger, think how it makes people who have not spent any time at all working on their anger issues feel.
This is a dangerous situation. This is a fucking powder keg just waiting to go off.
Thanks Dennis Roshi. Thanks a whole lot.
***
Don't forget that the following events are coming up and you are required to attend. If not, your grade point average could be affected!
THIS WEEKEND: February 26, 2011 (Sat) 7 PM I'm at Missouri Zen Center, 220 Spring Ave., Webster Groves, MO 63119
On March 5, 2011 (Sat) I'll be in Cocoa, FL, Zazenkai from 9 AM, Talk at 2 PM Brevard Zen Center 1261 Range Road Cocoa, FL
From March 16-20 I'll be in Saskatoon, Saskatchewan in the Great White North! I'll post a schedule of events soon. There are several planned.
Oh! And don't miss the article below this one about Shoplifting From American Apparel.
(I’m still taking a break from reading the comments section of this blog. If you have something you feel you must say to me in response to this, write me an email at spoozilla@gmail.com. If you just post something in the comments section, I will not see it.)
