After I published something in the Thursday Funnies about a tabloid story pegged to the fact that scientologists are not supposed to use scented products., a number of people asked me for the reference.
Of course, the source of all knowledge in the universe issued an HCO Bulletin on this topic. It took me a bit to find it, but here it is Data About Fragrances:
You can see once again, Hubbard’s obsession with the psychs — who are the cause of all evil in the universe — is apparent once again in this reference: “The psychs even have a campaign running right now to dull people’s awareness and render them more suggestible by dousing society with cheap perfumes.” “the psychs, on the track, used such scents…”
The idea that all perfume/scents are bad is prevalent among scientologists. Only unscented products are sold in the canteen at Flag and in PAC.
There was another blurb by the Fatman regarding fragrances that mentioned orange blossom scent as being used as some sort of hypnotic on the whole track or some such BS. I thought it was in this bulletin (I thought it was in the same one about coal tar derivative), but I guess not. Unless this is a later revised version or something. That’s been known to happen haha.
Anyway, I personally can’t stand the odor of laundry detergent and dryer sheets. I figure if someone wants to “smell nice” one can use unscented everything – soap, shampoo, laundry stuff – and then spritz on a bit of high quality perfume or cologne. That’s what I do. Who wants to smell like freakin’ Tide and Bounce??
When I was on the Apollo Hubbard was obsessive about no scented products.
How did Hubbard write this in 1991 if he died in 1986?
Quite coincidentally LRH is preaching to the choir with me. I’ve never liked most perfumes and most artificial scents very much. Real French perfume used to be wonderful when I would smell it on some adults, but that was a long time ago. Perfume is made differently now and even the most expensive French perfume I don’t like and wouldn’t buy even if I could afford it, which I can’t. I’ve never been crazy about men’s after shave either. I do like a kind of soap smell. That doesn’t bother me. The scents I like are natural scents, i.e., fresh flowers like roses, lilac, and then the way the air smells after a spring rain…apple trees with full of ripe apples, ditto lemon trees …hatural scents like these. And then most hand soap smells and shampoo smells are OK with me. Clothes washed in Tide and Downey smell nice to me. Oh, well, how I do run on…like, who cares, right 🙂
Except, what about the hypocrisy where the higher ups, organizations like author services inc don’t have those restrictions, only the finest expensive perfume and makeup. I’m sure the good folks at rtc are also exempt. You know, rules for thee but not for me mentality.
Being overly sensitive to odors is associated with emphysema, a condition also associated with heavy smoking – and who smoked any heavier than Hubbard, with his chain-smoking of unfiltered and heavily mentholated Kool cigarettes?
As usual, Hubbard’s so-called research consisted of nothing more than a quick observation of one or a few incidents, pulling their consistent properties together and ignoring their inconsistent features, adding in his own fears, imagination, and opinions, and expounding it into a world-wide edict.
Man, I love my Dolce & Gabbana, and my Antaeus!
Why is everyone ignoring the psychs’ attempt to hypnotize the world with the abominable outpourings of the individual marketed as “Taylor Swift”?
It’s called hyperosmia, and among its causes are psychiatric disorders. Shocking, I know. I’m not talking about things like being trapped in a room with someone who has bathed in cologne. As I recall–and someone please tell me if I’m wrong–Hubbard was like that with any scent, which is why his laundry had to be rinsed many, many times before he wore it.
https://health.clevelandclinic.org/whats-that-smell-what-you-need-to-know-about-hyperosmia
I’m nowhere near as smell sensitive as Hubbard was but being trapped in a room or a vehicle with someone reeking of any kind of perfume or drowned in aftershave is torture for me. On the other hand, going into a Chinese hand laundry that has that clean-clothes- and-ironing smell I find delightful! Go figure.
I agree with Hubbard that most odors are particles, not gaseous.
Most gases that do have their own odors are highly poisonous. One could mention Chlorine, Sulfur Dioxide and Hydrogen Sulfide.
Tying all of this to the psychs and most of the rest of this is sheer nonsense.
Seems to me that Hubbard was trying to justify his own phobia.
This may be the one area where I agree with Scientologists. There is an increasing awareness of environmental sensitivities and the need for fragrance free areas. There are a number of events in my area that are advertised as being fragrance free. The Kaiser medical centers that I use have a fragrance free workplace policy, as do other places from universities to community gathering places.
I used to live with someone who was very sensitive but she was not unique. I have read that one out of three people in the United States experience respiratory difficulties and migraines after exposure to fragranced products, and they are a common cause of contact dermatitis. I notice the difference when we are traveling and use laundries where people have been using bounce and other scented products. One of the first thing we do is to rewash our clothes.
The EPA states that “we know that many fragrance materials may be associated with sensitization and allergenic responses and lack toxicological data. Health and environmental stakeholders have expressed the need for products that are certified to be fragrance-free products for individuals with fragrance allergies or sensitization concerns.” As a result they developed a safer choice certification.
Although I would not endorse Hubbard’s reasoning – its not my area of expertise – I can agree with the result. Fortunately there are safer choice alternatives.
Also, if he is less than perfect physically that means he is downtone. Pretty sure he’d be in denial of any evidence of that.
So Blubbard thought the psychs spewing fragrances all around the universe caused a reduction in our sense of smell.
If he was still around today I guess he’d take the same position about COVID-19 since it did the same.
What an idiot.