Have you read the book, "The Secret"?

[Blue_Roses]

And if so, what did you think?

I'm reading it now and I have to say it is speaking about the very thing that defines John and Elizabeth Edwards decision to continue with this race--the power of our mind and the decisions you make to enhance your life.

It doesn't really matter what your religion is 'cause this book speaks to everyone.

[meegbear]

1. So what is "The Secret"?

Or is that a secret?

[Blue_Roses]

2. read the book

then you'll know.

[meegbear]

8. Why don't you just tell me ...

Because it's no secret that the best thing about a secret is secretly telling someone the secret, thereby adding another secret to their secret collection of secrets...secretly.

[Blue_Roses]

17. you do the work yourself

I just asked if you had read it. Not going to read it for you.

[Richard Steele]

50. Well, thanks. You just saved me the time it would have taken to read it.

I already know how to be a cryptic jerk. Ask anybody.

[NoSheep]

86. No shit. I got this crap one time when I asked for more info about a post.

What's with the attitudes around here? Damn. If you don't want to "discuss" then why the hell are you on a discussion board?

[elehhhhna]

9. some airy-faierie new age stuff that's been recycled--

which says "You attract what you ask for". Oprah LOVES it because it supports her theory that she's the shit.

"Ask, believe, receive".

If you follow this line of reasoning, people create their own cancer, etc.

[Blue_Roses]

19. How's that bullshit working for ya?

[elehhhhna]

35. "The Secret" is an exultation of selfishness...

Like mega-church wealth doctrine, without the Jesus business.

It's shallow and silly. It'll make a fortune.

[Blue_Roses]

44. well, you seem to be doing well

so obviously you don't need it. Good for you.

[Rydz777]

26. Good summary

Oprah is so amazed her success that she thinks that it must have something to do with universal principles.

[Connie_Corleone]

15. The Secret is there is no secret.

It's the same stuff (positive thinking, law of attraction) that's just repackaged into a very successful marketing campaign to make millions off of people who think they're getting some profound "secret" that's never been revealed before.

[helderheid]

49. Only Victoria knows...

:hide:

[meegbear]

52. ...

:spank:

[iamjoy]

3. I've Heard It's Bunk

like, all Elizabeth Edwards has to do is wish hard enough (or visualize it well enough) and her cancer would be gone.


Insert either Peter Pan or "There's No Place Like Home" reference here.


That's not to say positive thinking can't help, but it isn't going to change reality.

[immoderate]

6. Yep -- Think positive (and then work your ass off)...

and everything will be OK.

--IMM

[enki23]

20. unless you get cancer and die, of course

but that can't happen to those who think positively enough. that's the secret.

[Blue_Roses]

7. no, it's not bunk

it's about the power of positive thinking.

*cough*

[Blue_Roses]

12. Also to add

it's not saying that if she "thinks positive enough" all things and all cancer will go away. It's saying live your BEST life NOW.

That's what they've chosen to do.

[Danieljay]

4. Its about the "law of attraction" .. n/t

[GregD]

5. I have not read it but

it is "all the rage" around my community. All the new-agers are bubbling about it.

[elehhhhna]

13. Yeah. The EST Training of the 80's all in one ocnvenient book.

LOL

[leftchick]

82. they did it in the sixties and seventies too

but it was more fun then because it involved a pipe to know "the secret".

:smoke:

[truebrit71]

10. Isn't that the bullshit new age book currently all the rage amongst the weak-minded?

I think it was mentioned on Real Time with Bill Maher...and was roundly derided as complete, total and utter horseshit....

[Orrex]

11. I've read about it but haven't read it

Most of what I've read reveals that it takes a lot of uplifting gobbledygook and mixes it into a touchie-feelie optimism about "vibrational energies" and whatnot.


Is that a reasonably accurate assessment?

If so, then I'm afraid that this book has little to offer anyone who doesn't subscribe to new age feelgoodism.

[Blue_Roses]

16. It amazes me how people who haven't read it

seem to know all. :eyes: Explains a lot.

..."gobbledygook and mixes it into a touchie-feelie optimism about "vibrational energies" and whatnot."

[Connie_Corleone]

22. Well, I've read it and watched the DVD.

It's a slick marketing campaign to make money off of suckers.

[Orrex]

24. It amazes me how people who've read it and watched it

Can still form a negative opinion of it. Surely you've been poisonously brainwashed by mechanistic and scientistic western thought?

:sarcasm:

[Orrex]

23. Well, read what I wrote

I was summarizing the reviews/critiques/assessments of it, which I have read, and I asked whether or not that summary is accurate.

So answer me this: does that assessment describe the book? Or is the book not another in a ridiculously long line of touchie-feelie manuals for new age optimism?

[Blue_Roses]

25. If you don't like

"touchy feelie" books, then it's not for you.

[Orrex]

28. I guess that was my point

But if it makes people feel better to pump more money into the pockets of New Age hucksters, far be it from me to tell them not to.

[Blue_Roses]

47. you're right--it's their choice

kind of like the Edwards choosing theirs. What gets me is how everyone seems to think they know what's best for others as they just type away behind their computers. Not that I'm saying that about you of course, but it does seem to be the general vibe here.

[Orrex]

55. Look at it like this

If someone were selling a expensive book that claimed that all of your life's problems could be rememdied by ingesting large daily doses of arsenic, would it still be appropriate for dissenters to sit by while others happily funnelled their money into the arsenic purveyors' pockets?

The responsible thing to do IMO is to point out the apparent failings of the proffered method, even if its proponents find my objections to be unduly negative or closed-minded.

Sure, we have the right to make our own informed choices, but to sit back and allow opportunists to make a quick buck off of the vulnerable, the trusting, and the desperate would be largely equivalent to victimizing those people myself.

The least I can do is object to the product and its marketing.

[Orrex]

27. Here's a tiny exerpt--tell me that it's not crazy

The most common thought that people hold, and I held it too, is that food was responsible for my weight gain. That is a belief that does not serve you, and in my mind now it is complete balderdash! Food is not responsible for putting on weight. It is your *thought* that food is responsible for putting on weight that actually has food put on weight.

Nothing newagey about that, nosiree!


Wow, and here I thought that it was the evil HFCS Industry Lobby that was making me gain weight.

[mwb970]

37. And we castigate the righties for cherry picking!

Even if you are completely right, I don't see how pulling four sentences from a whole book proves it. Yes, what you quoted sounds dumb. But maybe there is some wheat in with the chaff? It happens.

Also, you sound angry about this. Is there an issue?

[Orrex]

46. Not angry with this book per se, but with the pervasive magical thinking in our culture

I submit that magical thinking is the single biggest impediment to societal progress that has ever existed. Every book, film, and religion that makes its money off of this kind of hucksterism is intellectually offenseive to me. So that, if anything, is the issue.

Is that four-sentence excerpt non-representative of the book's message? If so, then I will happily retract my post.

But if it is an accurate sampling of the book's message, then I don't see a problem in citing it as emblematic of the book's shortcomings.

[AZBlue]

61. There's definitely an issue - with all the naysayers.

They don't want to take responsibility for their lives, which is what this book promotes. You have to understand that all that's in your life, the good AND the bad, is your doing. That scares a lot of people and they'd rather complain and moan about how life's not fair and they weren't born with a trust fund so how can they ever get anywhere financially or how their spouses are mean or their jobs are awful and that's why they are the way they are. It's a lot easier to just complain than to actually get off your butt and do something about it.

[Connie_Corleone]

63. So people who use the law of attraction and end up dead from cancer anyway...

it's their fault?

These marketing hucksters give examples of people who were "cured" of cancer, were able to walk again when they were told they couldn't. That isn't going to happen for everyone. Sometimes, shit happens.

[AZBlue]

72. There's real proof that the body and the mind work hand in hand.

That has nothing to do with the Secret. Not just your habits (smoking, eating, etc) but your emotions and outlook affect cancer - both if you get it as well as your prognosis if you have it. All of that is controlled by you. There are some instances that don't fit this, but those are the minority, not the majority.

[Connie_Corleone]

76. I'm not going to blame people who get cancer, especially if it's hereditary or rare.

My mother had a rare form of cancer that had nothing to do with habits. She really believed that she would get better. She died in less than 2 years.

I'm not going to let some idiots tell me that my mother brought the cancer and her death on herself.

What about fatal car accidents when it's someone else's fault? You're going to blame the dead victim for driving a car in the first place?

Plane crashes? The people who died on 9/11?

Like I said. Sometimes, shit happens.

[AZBlue]

87. Who's blaming anyone?????? Don't put words in my mouth.

And even if shit does sometimes happen, it doesn't mean you have to just roll over and take anything and everything that happens to you.

Look, you live your life the way you want to and I'll live my life the way I want to, simple as that.

[EC]

75. Sorry, but I don't see that reasoning in the excerp above

it doesn't lay the weight gain on the fact that the person opens their mouth - shoves food in - then doesn't exercise....no it merely says that the thought that the food is causing the fat is wrong...


When taking responsibilty for ones actions would have been, yes the food is making me fat, maybe I should change how I eat and what I eat and exercise, instead it just says to stop thinking the food makes you fat and walla, everythings cool...

[hyphenate]

85. Someone I knew quite a long time ago

was very tall and super thin. She also happened to be a Christian Scientist. When people asked her how she stayed so thin, she often replied (quite seriously, I might add) that she didn't "believe" in calories, and since she didn't believe in them, they had no power to put weight on her.

The fact that she was likely pre-disposed to being of a body type that has a higher metabolic rate means nothing, I guess. :shrug:

[Richard Steele]

And yet, when people ask YOU to enlighten them, you only reply, "read the book".

Not a terribly convincing arguement for its worthiness, you know.
That "I have a secret and I'm not telling it" routine
quit piquing my curiosity sometime back in grade school.

If you are sneakily trying to convince people that this book
is a waste of time, congratulations: it worked on me!

[Blue_Roses]

74. If you notice, the question was,"have you read, "the secret"

and if so, what did you think? Not, "I'll read 'the Secret' to you if you'll agree with me.

Spoon-feeding. That's all your asking 'cause if you seriously wanted to know the "logistics" of the book, you would have framed your question in a different way.

Nice try.

[Richard Steele]

79. Well, that sure cleared things up!

It's utter crap, then; and you feel the need to
be defensive about it rather than DISCUSS it.

People have asked honest questions about this book,
and you have rudely dismissed them. Is that the "secret"?

Good luck with that.

[Blue_Roses]

81. Honest questions?

:rofl:

and I guess no one's been rude to me just for a simple question. No not all.:sarcasm:

Whatever.:eyes:

[AZBlue]

57. If you haven't read it how can you summarize or judge it?

[Orrex]

83. Perhaps you misunderstood my post

I was summarizing what I'd read about "The Secret" and was asking if it was an accurate assessment.

That's very different from summarizing the book without reading it, don't you agree?

[AZBlue]

88. Ah, I did misunderstand - thanks for the clarification!

Yes, there are some that say exactly that - but I would say that no, it's not an accurate assessment. To each their own I guess.

[Lorien]

14. I've seen that set of beliefs taken to an extreme

A former friend of mine took those ideas to heart years ago. She visualized finding the perfect man, cleared out part of her home to "make room for him", but the perfect man never came. When I was late for work because of a traffic jam she would say "it was your negative thinking, and the negative thinking of everyone on the freeway that caused the traffic jam". When a jumbo jet crashed, she claimed that the people on board wanted it to crash. I believe in free will, but I don't believe that will alone creates our lives. It's a combination of intention, opportunity and incentive, and coincidence.

[Cassandra]

51. That is an extreme version but...

clearing out some space for a man isn't a bad idea. Better than scrambling at the last minute to find him half a dresser drawer.
In my women's group, we go about this a bit differently. It's more about noticing what's around you, seeing opportunities that you might not have thought possible and changing your vibration (however that works) so that you are no longer attracting more of a long line of sleazebags, for example, but are actively looking for a nicer man who will treat you better. That search might have you looking for this man in a different place (a museum or a hiking club, perhaps, rather than a roadhouse) or trying different activities. There is no perfect man, anyway. There are nice men who are capable of giving you most of what you want if you know what you want but they are still human beings who make mistakes, as women do.
BTW, Cheney is a perfect example of negative attraction; he thinks everyone is out to get him and he is making that come true.

[Lorien]

65. I didn't think making space for someone was a bad idea, but expecting

that and "positive thinking" alone to bring her the "perfect" man was absurd. Feng Shui also advocates making space to attract more of what you want-and heck, it's pleasant to have a little extra room in your home anyway! I've tried many of the steps you've outlined when attempting to find the right guy, and so far, no luck...but as I mentioned earlier, I think elements like coincidence, dumb luck, and taking incentive to create opportunities, and plain old hard work create our personal fortunes.

[fasttense]

18. Not another post about the secret?

Are you folks being paid by the publishing company to advertise this self-help book? I mean really what in it is not obvious? Not to mention it has a built in excuse for predators to blame their victims. This think right and all will come your way magical thinking is of little value.

[Blue_Roses]

21. Darn it, I wish we were. I didn't know there was a thread

about this before. However, with all the negativity on this thread, I see why :eyes:

Geeze..maybe I should have just asked if people read at all.

[mwb970]

29. All "Secret" threads are mostly negative.

Many of the negative comments are over-simplified critiques from people who have not read it, others are more measured. Sometimes people who have read it find it empty. Usually there are one or two defenders with open minds and a nuanced view (and sometimes a success story, which is then flamed), but I don't see that in this thread.

[ScreamingMeemie]

32. Partial success story below. I say partial because it's not my story

but my brother's.

[Orrex]

33. A negative critique of hogwash does NOT indicate a closed mind

That (or some similar formulation) has got to be number one on the New Age list of accusations: "you won't appreciate it unless you keep an open mind."

Which translates, in practice, to "if you don't accept the wisdom of this book, however self-evident, wacky, or far-out it seems, then you're being closed-minded."

[Blue_Roses]

58. No, I don't either

wow--now I know what topic to post to get a huge post count. NOT.

I've been at DU for over 5 years and it hasn't changed in GD.

Thanks for you nice post.:)

[Orrex]

30. Maybe you should repost your original question to the Fiction forum?

Just sayin'

[Blue_Roses]

34. you know

I think after reading all these "wonderful" posts of people who haven't read it, you are right.

GD is known for being a negative forum. Damn, should have just said, "fuck reading" and "i are a dumb ass for trying to invoke some positive vibes."

[elehhhhna]

38. Sorry, blue, but I have to ask...

what is wrong with YOUR intention that caused you to CREATE this awful and negative thread about the Secret?


LOL

[Name removed]

48. Deleted message

Message removed by moderator. Click here to review the message board rules.

[elehhhhna]

59. It was a perfectly legitimate question within the context of "The Secret".

Please do not insult the State in which i reside while accusing me of "attacking" you.

[Blue_Roses]

60. I reside in the same state, so

I have EVERY RIGHT to insult this state. Your negative attacks started right out of the gate:

"some airy-faierie new age stuff that's been recycled--

which says "You attract what you ask for". Oprah LOVES it because it supports her theory that she's the shit.

"Ask, believe, receive".

If you follow this line of reasoning, people create their own cancer, etc."

It's fine if you have this opinion, but to continue to insult me is not.

"Sorry, blue, but I have to ask...

what is wrong with YOUR intention that caused you to CREATE this awful and negative thread about the Secret?


LOL"

[Orrex]

39. Is that from "The Secret" too?

No one here has voiced any objections to reading, so I don't know where you're going with that strange accusation.

But perhaps the way to innoculate this kind of thread against an overwhelmingly negative response is to phrase your OP in a way that solicits positive feedback? That is, maybe something like "I really enjoyed 'The Secret,' did anyone else?"

That way, you've sort of directed the course that you intend the conversation to follow, and if anyone comes in and causes a big, negative disruption, then you can call them on it. But if it's an open-ended "what did you think" thread, you're going to have to deal with people telling you what they thought, positive and negative alike.

[WinkyDink]

40. Yes, that's right. Nobody here reads nothin'. Ignorance "R" Us.

[elehhhhna]

42. lol

thanks, I needed that.

[AZBlue]

62. See reply #61.

Unfortunately there's a lot of that here on DU - people who'd rather just bitch and moan instead of doing something - whether the topic is politics or their own lives or poverty or anything else, it doesn't matter. They'll take the easy way out.

Don't let them get you down - know that you're doing the right thing by at least exploring different views and options, even if they aren't right for you. That's huge and you should be commended for doing so and for trying to share something with others!

[Blue_Roses]

67. thanks

after 5 years of this on DU you'd think I'd be used to this. That's why so many of us oldies "check out" of here eventually.

[AZBlue]

69. Oh, I've taken several "vacations" already and I've only been here 1 1/2 years.

But I'm trying to ignore the ignorant and lazy posts (and posters) and just focus on the proactive ones instead.

[Lilith Velkor]

45. They are being told that advertising the book is good karma and helps the magic work

It's basically the principles of Multi-Level Marketing and Social Darwinism, only applied to spirituality.

[ScreamingMeemie]

31. Here is my take on it... and this is a pleasant post, I Promise.

My brother really, REALLY believes in it and I think that is great. They utilized the "Secret" and believe it is what was behind their daughter being accepted into LA's prestigious Wildwood School. And I'm happy for them...and her, if my little niece is happy about it.

They sent me the DVD and I found it not to be for me. I already employ some of the Secret and also found (this might be the only unpleasant part) the DVD to be rather offputting. Maybe they were trying to reach a large audience, but I found the examples to be rather frivolous in this time of major financial suffering for many. But I am glad it is bringing happiness to people. We could all use that.

[Blue_Roses]

41. I don't think you can take everything

verbatim and that's what gets everyone's panties in a wad --the illusion that what is being said is truth to paper. I am one who always likes to see the glass as half-full. Maybe it's Pollyannaish but it works for me, long before I read this book. I can see where you're coming from and it's like politics, I take what works for me.

As far as the "pleasantries" of some posters, that speaks for itself. I've been here at DU for five years and it hasn't changed yet.

Thanks for your thoughts:)

[elehhhhna]

53. Works for me, too, sometimes...

just maybe not lately.

intention is powerful stuff. sometimes we forget our power.

[WinkyDink]

36. Mind over matter. The end.

[MistressOverdone]

43. I heard it was Normal Vincent Peale

revisited.

[Quixote1818]

54. My problem with the Secret

I actually own the book and think it has some useful suggestions however I think it diminishes how important hard work and research are at reaching your goals. Success is 1% inspiration and 99% perspiration. However, I think it's very important to stay focused on your dreams and to keep a positive attitude but the only way mind is more powerful than matter is when you work your ass off to change things. It won't happen just by thinking rosy thoughts.

[Blue_Roses]

56. I totally agree

and those who think it will just come to you with no effort, are the ones who didn't "get it."

[AZBlue]

68. Exactly.

And I think that the DVD and book are a little at fault there for that too - they do say that you will have to work for it, but they probably don't say it enough for most people. They were trying to stress the other information so much, and with good reason since it's hard for some to accept, that they probably didn't spend quite as much time on the other points as they should have. Then again, I went to a James Ray seminar that was advertised through the website and he had over 2000 people there - and said it's like that everywhere he goes. So, there's a lot of people out there who do get it without having it spelled out for them.

BTW, I've seen quite a few positive threads on the Secret in the Spirituality forum - might want to check those out!

[Blue_Roses]

80. Hey thanks, I'll check that out

What I see as the premise of the book, is you have to be "ready" (if that makes sense) to do the work. It's like that old saying, "when the student is ready, the teacher will appear."

Oops. I guess I better be careful. Some here might interpret that as "touchie-feelie." :eyes:

Some have seen this book as a "wish" book. You get what you "wish" for and that's not it at all. All these people asking me to tell them about the book, don't really care about knowing. They just want more ammo to bash.

[Connie_Corleone]

70. They shouldn't give examples of people being "cured" of cancer

just by watching some funny shows on TV and not going thru chemo. Or the example of the little boy who put the intention in the universe of getting a new bike and PRESTO! The bike shows up at his front door one day, all by itself. They never explain what the boy did to get the bike. Did he ask his parents to buy him the bike? Did he get a paper route and pay for it himself?

The marketers don't explain that there are actions you have to take in order to get what you want. Also, watching funny shows isn't going to take your cancer away. It might go into remission, it might not. And sometimes, you DON'T get what you want. Shit happens sometimes.

[AZBlue]

73. The grandfather gets him the bike as a gift - they do explain that.

I've already addressed the cancer comment earlier.

[Connie_Corleone]

77. The explanation is not in the DVD version.

And your cancer explanation is bullshit.

[Beaverhausen]

71. I hear there will be a follow-up book/DVD about taking action to achieve success

I have been following the principles in "The Secret" for some years and I believe in it. I have found that, for me, I have to have the mental belief and willingness to achieve the success I seek before I can take action. I have achieved a lot in the past few years, including getting the job I wanted, fixing a relationship, losing weight, etc. Big and small successes.

It works for me.

It doesn't work for some people.

[EC]

64. It's not centered in reality

just like all the other positive attitude tomes....believe it and it will be...is fantasy...

[annabanana]

66. I think an Uncle of mine read it back in the 40's. . . . back then it was

called "The Power of Positive Thinking".

same stuff exactly

[Dervill Crow]

78. And in the 1970s it was Psycho-Cybernetics.

I won't debate whether it works or not, but it definitely is no secret.

[Swede]

84. Nothing wrong with self improvement. I have not read it.

But if it works for you,that is a good thing.

[Shine]

89. I have not read the book, but we own the DVD and I think it's great.

a lot of the stuff it covers is really not "new" information, but nonetheless, it is valuable to be reminded of.

People are either open to it, or not.

Clearly, here at DU, and in GD specifically, the general consensus seems to be one of derision and criticism....which is really too bad, but oh well.

[Fenris]

90. Locking.

Per the OP's request.