A problem is this: Despite many faults, I don't know of another organization that could or did to what the RC was doing in Monroe. Shelter for 2900 people is pretty good. Showers, three meals a day and snacks, medical services, and so on? It's pretty amazing that it's done at all, and not surprising that it's not done as well as it could be if, well, if a Freeper were running it .....
But there sure was a strong hierarchical ethos, and a very strong sense that we should just drink the kool-aide and shut up.
A part of me wants to say, "Okay, no more blood donations, no more financial donations, and no more donations of my time to them." On the other hand, who else ran an operation that could compare with the hundreds of thousands of people served and millions upon millions of meals, and so on?
As far as the Scientologists and so forth are concerned: this was presented as a new policy brought into effect on 10/15 or 10/16. The week before, I was told, announcements were made and Mass celebrated. On Saturday 10/15 a volunteer was asked to put up a poster about a bus to a church. On Sunday, the poster, and all like it, were taken down. It could even be that the policy arose out of objections to the Scientologists .....
Bad experiences here too with the Red Cross, but not just me. Both my grandfather of WW1 and father of WW2 had experiences with the Red Cross that turned them against it for the rest of their lives. Then here in the Atlanta area, they provided shoddy service during the Katrina experience and sometimes didnt even show up.
SA got my money too.