Jill Stanek on Obama, Abortion & FOCA + Sam Sewell: Is Obama a Pathological Narcissist?

Comments

1. Not_So_Gullible says:

   March 10, 2009 at 1:58 pm

   A word about “Dr.” Sam Vaknin. Truth be told, he’s apparently no more a credentialed Ph.D. than a doornob. His credentials come from a well known diploma mill in the United States.

   Google Sam Vaknin’s name and take a look at a few top results. According to what is purported to be Vaknin’s own website, http://samvak.tripod.com/cv.html, his only degree is a “Ph.D. in Philosophy (major: Philosophy of Physics)” from “Pacific Western University.”

   Vaknin’s glorious Ph.D. degree, his curious “major” notwithstanding, turns out to be from a world-class diploma mill that was one of several investigated by the nonpartisan US Congressional Budget Office (CBO) in 2004.

   See: “Diploma Mills Are Easily Created and Some Have Issued Bogus Degrees to Federal Employees at Government Expense.” Here’s the link to download the report:

   http://www.gao.gov/new.items/d041096t.pdf.

   Pacific Western University apparently changed its name after the CBO investigation. Even Wikipedia has a special entry about it. The new name, if your are interested, is “California Miramar University.” So well known is this diploma mill that the state of Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board has Vaknin’s school listed on a webpage titled “Institutions Whose Degrees Are Illegal To Use In Texas” for example.

   Don’t believe it, here’s the link:

   http://www.thecb.state.tx.us/AAR/PrivateInstitutions/NoTX.cfm

   Reply
2. Aristotle the Hun says:

   March 10, 2009 at 11:50 pm

   Arlen,

   So Sam has accurately reported where his PhD came from on his own web site. I’m not sure what there is to this message once one deletes the rhetoric.

   I don’t have any doubt about Sam’s intellect. My PhD comes from a religious organization that no longer exists. I don’t think that has anything to do with my ability.

   If Sam was claiming to have a degree from Harvard and it turned out not to be true I would be concerned. If he claimed to be a therapist when he isn’t I would be concerned.

   I am more suspicious of the motives and background ofour “snitch” than I am of Sam.

   Reply
3. Sam Vaknin says:

   March 19, 2009 at 12:50 pm

   Alas, Not So Gullible’s ability is only matched by his gullibility (in relying on Wikipedia, the “encyclopedia” that anyone and everyone acn edit).

   This is VERY old hat. The “info” is maliciously (and libelously) false. It
   is based on the Wikipedia, the “encyclopedia” that anyone can edit and which
   I nearly sued a few years ago (regarding an unrelated issue).

   In retaliation, Wikipedians (as members of this cult are known) started to
   disseminate (anonymously) libelous tidbits about me:

   http://www.narcissistic-abuse.com/wikipedia.html

   I studied in 1982-3 in ENCINO, California. At that time, there was a
   university there called “Pacific” (yes, replete with a campus with very real
   students, faculty, exams, and all the paraphernalia of higher education.)

   Later, to distinguish itself from other Pacific universities, it added the
   moniker “Western”. Sometime during the 1990s it merged out of existence.

   I have never been to Hawaii, let alone studied there. The diploma mill that
   used to call itself “Pacific Western University” (and then was litigated
   into changing its name) was based in Honolulu.

   To obtain my Ph.D., I had to submit a dissertation and defend it.

   That I have a bona fide doctorate is very easy to prove: it is available
   from the Library of Congress and from UMI.

   HOW TO VIEW MY DOCTORAL DISSERTATION

   To see a list of some of the books I had published in the English language,
   please follow this procedure:

   1. Go to the Library of Congress Catalog by clicking on this link
   (http://catalog.loc.gov/ )

   2. Click on Basic Search

   3. Select Author/Creator Browse from the Search Type pull-down menu

   4. Type “Vaknin” in the Search Text dialog box.

   My books (and doctoral dissertation) are listed under Vaknin, Sam; Vaknin,
   Sem; and Vaknin, Samuel.

   To view my books click on “Vaknin, Samuel” and “Vaknin, Sem” and select the
   Full Record tabs.

   To view my doctoral dissertation, click on “Vaknin, Sam”.

   You will be forwarded to a page titled:

   Time Asymmetry Revisited

   Select the Full Record tab.

   My dissertation is also included in UMI’s databases (University Microfilms
   International).

   Here is some correspondence which may be of interest to you (though it is 10
   years old):

   —– Original Message —–
   From: “Dawn Perri”
   To:
   Sent: Sunday, November 23, 1997 1:01 AM

   Here is the reply I received with respect to your dissertation

   Pax.
   D Perri

   From: “Connell, Bonnie”
   To: “‘puccinsk@2xtreme.net’”
   Subject: RE: Vaknin
   Date: Thu, 20 Nov 1997 15:08:21 -0500
   X-Mailer: Microsoft Exchange Server Internet Mail Connector Version
   4.0.995.52

   From: Liming, Lee
   Sent: Thursday, November 20, 1997 1:31 PM
   To: Sales Support
   Subject: FW: Vaknin
   From: Dawn Perri[SMTP:puccinsk@2xtreme.net]
   Sent: Thursday, November 20, 1997 12:41 PM
   To: Webmaster
   Subject: Vaknin

   I am looking for a dissertation that was registered with your service in
   the early 1980’s. The Author is Sam Vaknin, and the title of the
   dissertation is “Time Asymmetry Re-Visited” , I did not have any luck
   finding it with your search engine. I am reasonably sure that it is
   registered with your service, as the author himself has directed me here
   for a copy.

   Thank you for your time,
   Dawn Perri

   Thank you for your recent inquiry. The dissertation(s) or thesis(es) you
   requested is/are available from UMI. To order by phone please call
   1-800-521-3042. If you wish to pay by check or money order, please mail
   your request to the address listed below. Copies can also be orderedover
   the Internet at http://wwwlib.umi.com/dxweb/gateway. Please feel
   free to contact a UMI representative if you require further assistance.

   Best regards.

   Pricing: Catalog #LD00714

   Academic(students/faculty) Non-Academic
   Paper – softcover: $36.00 Paper – softcover: $57.50
   Paper – hardcover: $43.50 Paper – hardcover: $69.50
   Film/Fiche: $32.50 Film/Fiche: $46.00

   Author Title Order #

   Please allow 2-3 weeks delivery time.
   A 5 to 6 day rush service is available for an additional $25 per copy.
   Some restrictions may apply.

   —–Original Message—–
   From: Michael Hart [mailto:hart@pglaf.org]
   Sent: Sunday, May 06, 2007 9:05 AM
   To: Book People
   Cc: Michael S. Hart; hart@pobox.com; hart@readingroo.ms
   Subject: [BP] Sam Vaknin’s PhD Thesis

   A bit of factual evidence on Sam Vaknin’s doctorate that, perhaps,
   takes us a little more out of the subjective realm:

   While I am certainly no authority on “diploma mills” and the like,
   but I have never heard of one that would have required or accepted
   a 225 page Doctoral Thesis. Even more suprising would be accepted
   theses of such institutions by Uniersity Microfilms Interenational
   of Ann Arbor, Michigan, pretty much the world thesis authority and
   then accepted by the Library of Congress, whose entry follows:

   Time asymmetry re-visited by Sam Vaknin.
   LC Control Number: 85133690
   Type of Material: Book (Print, Microform, Electronic, etc.)
   Personal Name: Vaknin, Sam.
   Main Title: Time asymmetry re-visited [microform] / by Sam Vaknin.
   Published/Created: 1982, c1984.
   Description: [225] leaves.
   Notes: Thesis (Ph. D.)–Pacific Western University, 1982.
   Microfilm. Ann Arbor, MI : University Microfilms International,
   1984.
   1 microfilm reel ; 35 mm.
   LC Classification: Microfilm 85/871 (Q)

   Reply