An Open Letter to Mr. Joe Vitale:
Dear Mr. Vitale,
This is timely to talk about since the movie "The Secret" has gained so much attention lately.
So, I'd like to offer some important clarifications and distinctions on this subject, as well as offer some important commentary on your recent blog/forum post about The Secret, and those making comments about it.
First, what I have to say here is in the spirit of frank and open discussions - clearly, the presenting of various perspectives very often leads to greater understanding.
Similarly, it should be obvious to all free-thinking people that if we're only presented one-sided, myopic view points, then that will not give us greater clarity. Isn't that why when we elect leaders, we like to hold debates so that we may attempt to more clearly understand the true positions of those that would desire to lead us?
I'd like to start with Mr. Vitale's commentary: Why must he refer to people who either criticize the information presented in The Secret, or otherwise are offering important distinctions, as "flying out of their dark hiding places"?
In my case, I'm not coming from any dark hiding place. I've always been right here out in the open, never hiding in any dark places. Frankly, I have worked a long, loooong time on my own personal development, and I'm a big fan of self-help, and those who truly help others to move past their limitations to achieve their goals. I've never taken the position of "critic"; I simply feel that, as a big fan of self-help, there are important distinctions that MUST be made at this juncture with respect to a now widely-popular dissemination of specific self-help information via The Secret movie.
Besides being a big fan of self-help, I'm also a HUGE fan of Discernment, capital D. Discernment may be one of the most powerful abilities one can have. Discernment is defined as "acuteness of judgment and understanding" - a very important skill to possess. Mr. Vitale talks about critics: one of the main parts of the definition of a 'critic' is "one who evaluates", and now we're back to Discernment. If a critic is a person who possesses Discernment, we need MORE critics, not less!
Discernment is the key to being able to sift through information - and especially half-truths - and separate out the part that IS the truth, and perhaps more importantly, the part that is NOT the truth. Now, what do we call it when people are telling you something that is NOT true? A lie, right? Then what about people who spread half-truths, are they half-liars? This is Mr. Vitale's next main comment, he says, and I quote: "It's no more a lie than anything else taken out of context and reinterpreted in a filtered, limited, negative way." May I redirect our attention back to Discernment, please? If someone is able to discern that a half-truth has been presented, and reports the details of that finding, how is that "limited" and "negative"? It's NONE of those things! Being able to sift through information presented using discernment is a valuable and needed! It's Vital to correct apprehension and understanding of Truth!
Next, Mr. Vitale makes the question/statement, "And is The Secret dangerous? At most, it may be guilty of leaving out some important extra steps to creating your ideal life." While I agree with Mr. Vitale that there are indeed important steps missing - and let's set aside for now the important issue of WHY those steps are missing - I completely disagree that there's no danger involved here. One of the most dangerous things in this world, is the "half-truth". The way the law of attraction is presented, is indeed a half-truth. Please let me elucidate and expand on this urgently important point: Without true discernment, and when we're presented with a half-truth, we will tend to swallow the part that is NOT true, along with the part this is true.
This is exactly the reason why the half-truth is so very dangerous: the part that is true resonates with us, so we bite, the problem is that we'll also swallow the part that is not true. And the dangerous half-truth we are being asked to swallow whole is "if you visualize it clearly and with emotion, it will come true like a Genie granting a wish" AND, "you get what you focus on".
Mr. Vitale, this is at the very least a slippery slope, but at the most it's outright, dangerous "magical thinking". Here's the dangers: if you get what you focus on, then that means that people who get cancer have been focusing on cancer. Women who are raped were focusing on being raped. Someone who was robbed was focusing on being robbed. The other major danger is that "if you visualize it clearly and with emotion, it will come true like a Genie granting a wish" is purely magical thinking.
I won't repeat the details I've already put in my booklet "The 5 Biggest Lies About The Law Of Attraction" that anyone can get free either by emailing me, or by going to www.davidportney.com. In fact I encourage Mr. Vitale to read that booklet himself, I'd welcome his views, based on his Discernment.
My point is that yes, there are lies embedded in The Secret, and yes, they are indeed dangerous! And it's not "negative" or "limited" if someone stands up and proclaims that "the emperor has no clothes", if it's the Truth that needs to be told!
Because this letter is already quite long, I'll cut it short here, although there are a number of other things I would like to say.
Thank you to you all, and Mr. Vitale, for your time and courtesy, and PLEASE read my booklet - it's free, no sales pitch is in it, and I do NOT try to capture your contact information.
As a fan of self-help who values Discernment and Truth, I feel it's my duty as a human being to help shine the light of day on these important subjects which so many people are talking suddenly about, and which I've been involved with for many, many, many years!
Sincerely,
David R. Portney
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Is "The Secret" spreading dangerous lies, or not? - An open letter to Joe Vitale...
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