Volume 6, Issue 6, page 7

The Six Degrees
Of Certainty to
The "Spin-Bill"
By ART COULTER
INCE I introduced the term "stable" ,
I feel a certain responsibility to
make sure the term is not abused --
or, rather, to correct abuses when
they occur. That's why I wish to
acquaint readers of The ABERREE with
the existence of a"pseudo - stable"
condition of euphoria which may be
confused with stability in the synergic mode.

It took a long time to develop synergic stability -- the true stable state. The
synergic mode is easy to learn, but to
stabilize there takes work -- above all ,
self-honesty. In the course of producing
the true stable state , I encountered many
pitfalls. There were many times I thought
it had been produced but in fact, it had
not. In particular, there is a pseudostable condition that it is easy to fall
into. The individual is euphoric -- he feels
great -- but he is riding a manic. He is
stable, all right -- temporarily, at least
-- but he is not stable in the synergic
mode. Why? Because he does not use the
synergic mode.

This "pseudo-stable" condition has
been produced many times in history - -under different names, of course. One way
that is guaranteed to work is to have the
individual repeat certain rituals over
and over, all the while presenting him
with data -- directly, or implied in the
ritual -- designed to imbue him with a feeling of certainty. Beg panion ; make that
absolute certainty. In this way, all impulses toward self-honesty can be gradually suppressed. Just what he is convinced of it is difficult to pin him down
on , but whatever it is, he is absolutely
certain about it. (If for any reason selfhonesty presents a tiny doubt, there are
techniques to fix that! )
To any impartial observer, this condition of absolute certainty is indistinguishable from any other form of f anatic dogmatism. (How sure can a man get?
Dead sure.) But it is impossible to communicate rationally with a person in such
a state. His certainty takes care of that .

There is no question, however, that a
person in this condition feels great -- on
the surface, at least. (Downstairs, the
reactive mind is brewing up a storm -- but
that comes later.) And his symptoms disappear -- temporarily, at least. He doesn't
realize that he has simply traded one set
of impedances (aberrations) for another.

Usually, these new aberrations take
the form of feeling shutoffs, denials of
reality, intolerance, bigotry, and a grand
set of self-delusions. Actually, he is in
a mildly psychotic condition.

How can this condition be managed?
There are two stages. First, while the
condition lasts, let him alone. Make it
clear that you do not accept his selfevaluation, but do not try to invalidate
it . I n self-defense, it may sometimes be
necessary to use ridicule -- but this should
be done gently, at the same time demonstrating that you retain basic affinity
for the real person who has somehow gotten himself into this awful fix. But
otherwise, don't interfere unless absolutely necessary .

When the condition breaks, he may, of
course, be induced to accept "reconditioning" (for a small fee, of course). If
he does, you can do nothing. But if he
does not -- run grief. It will spill out ,
all over the place. After this, work on
guilt, if he is ready, able, willing. But
a good, long grief discharge will provide
the best possible outlet for the long-repressed feelings so long denied by his
CERTAINTY.

It is interesting to note in passing
that there are degrees of pseudo-stability, The first degree of certainty is,
"I'm certain". The second degree is, "I'm
really certain". The third degree, is,
"My God, how certain I am!" The fourth
degree is, "H'mmm". The fifth degree, is,
"My God, I was right. I cars God!"
The sixth degree is the spin bin.

The interesting thing about this is
that, in a sense, he is right. Man is God .
But not in the sense the fifth degree
psuedo-stable thinks.

The true stable is self-confident, and
he knows a lot. But he also knows that
there is a lot he doesn't know. This is
not cause for concern. On the contrary, it
is one of the joys of the human situation:
It is always possible to learn more. And
here is the fundamental difference between Synergetics and Scientology. Scientology is the science of certainty. Synergetics has discovered the wonderful,
tremendous power that resides in the ability to be uncertain. We have a tool for
this. It is called "Information Source".
It works. 010
If the "Authority" knew half of what
he pretends to know, he'd be the last
person to accept the role of "authority";
but by being an "authority" he prevents
others from looking toward the only source
where real authority is available -- within
themselves. -- Ezekiel Bethosomopulos.

OCTOBER, 1959 The ABERREE 7