This is the first time I've read the articles in your first post and if I read that 2001 thread before, it felt like the first time. All of it is as disturbing as ever. My first thoughts are always that it should be enough to shock any morally guided premie into leaving, but then I remember that so few of them even know about these things because they're heavily conditioned to not seek the truth when it comes to Prem Rawat. They're litterally like the three wise "see no evil, hear no evil, speak no evil" monkeys. (In some instances, there's a fourth "do no evil" monkey, but that's clearly not the case in this cult.)

Regarding the small percentage of premies who are aware of these things, as the reporter observed, "Ji's conspicuous consumption, ideological inconsistencies and outbursts of intemperate behavor do not shake the belief of faithful premies." Nor does everything in that 2001 thread and so much more! In fact, the cult indoctrination is so inpenetrable that nothing shakes their "knowing." Instead, they simply block it out, deny it, suppress it, ignore it and if all else fails, rationalize it away:

They accept it with glee as if Prem Rawat's consciousness is so pure that it's high above and impervious to such toxic and sociopathic behavior. How sad that that's the only excuse they can come-up with. It would be much easier to simply accept the truth about Prem Rawat, call it for what it is and walk away. No... that's an order of magnitude more difficult because sadly and tragically, it requires honesty, courage, soul-searching, integrity and a bunch of other things that can't co-exist with the cult indoctrination.

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To add my penny to the 2001 thread, I mentioned before that I saw the dark side of Charnanand when I had the audacity to walk into a public bathroom when he happened to be the only one in there right after one of his bhajan stage acts. He scowled at me darkly as if I had no business being there. My interpretation (because it's exactly what it looked like) was that he was angry and disgusted that he had to perform like a circus monkey for room and board and he was in there trying to wash it off.

Then there was the Tucson Conference I mentioned, the most intense verbal and emotional abuse I've ever been subjected to. After pummeling us, Prem abruptly walked off the stage leaving us in pin-drop silence for about ten minutes. Suddenly the silence was broken by three loud bangs that sounded like large, heavy bricks being thrown at something just behind the curtain. Then more silence.