The Three Christs of Ypsilanti - Milton Rokeach [37]
As Leon himself said, he was closer to Clyde than to Joseph; he was somewhat paternalistic, protective, and patient toward Clyde and tried as best he could to find grounds of agreement with him. This was not too difficult because Clyde, more confused than the other two, was not really capable of holding his own. Leon was able to get him to agree on many points, at least on the surface. At the same time, the breach between Leon and Joseph appeared to grow, and manifested itself outside as well as during the group sessions. Even when they were not having battles, an almost open hostility existed between them.
When Leon was asked which of the others was more mentally ill, he replied: “It varies. At times one is lesser and then the other is lesser, but neither of them cares to be cured. Duping is the name of the illness. Dr. Freud died in 1948 and didn’t know about duping.”
Their reactions toward me also showed characteristic differences. Clyde said that he was the boss, not I. He said that I “pick quite a bit”; that I was “looking for something—I don’t know what”; that I was a Catholic: “quite a few foreigners are Catholic, but you can’t hardly tell. Take the Swedes—they’re quite Protestant.” Whatever personal feeling he might have had, he saved for Joseph and Leon. He never addressed me by name and I suspect he did not even know my name, or the names of the other research personnel.
Joseph, on the other hand, was unable to criticize me and always defended me against Leon’s attacks. He steadfastly maintained that I was there to “iron things out”; that I was helping him, but that he wanted to do his work undisturbed and wished I wouldn’t say some of the things I said. “I know that I am God, but you go to the other fellows and ask them if they are God and these fellows are tempted to say ‘yes.’ ”
Leon, of course, had the most to say. “When one person is used to suppress another person, discussion ends and ridiculism begins. Clyde, I know that you are being used through duping and I know the goon who is behind it. It’s very possible that he is here in the same room with us. I know the tactic of electronic tuning in on the three persons here, and it could very well be that it is Mr. Rokeach who is pre-imposed on all three of them and at his pleasure makes one agitate against the other. Deviation from the word of God is sentimentality and says ‘you’re right’ to this one, and ‘you’re right’ to that one, and the guy in the middle is an ass-hole. The bringing up, the knowing what agitates this man and what agitates that man! You can’t use one patient against another to agitate, to deplore, to besmirk.”
Occasionally, he spoke to me directly: “You come under the category where a person who knows better and doesn’t want to know is also crazy to the degree he does not want to know. Sir, I sincerely believe you have the capabilities to cast out negative psychology. I believe you can aid yourself.” He said of me, once: “He wants to get me under his power, to use the power that was invested in me by God. He wants to turn me into a disfigured midget.”
Another time he proclaimed: “There’ll be a showdown, Mr. Rokeach [Only once, at one of our very early meetings, did Leon refer to me as Doctor], and you’re going to become dung when my uncle gets through with you, and I don’t mean maybe. One bolt of lightning is all you need and your electronic duping and the rest of your cohorts are going too, with one bolt of lightning. That’s my sincere belief. The warped psychology you’re carrying on. I was sent to this place to find out some inside information. Yes, sir, Mr. Rokeach, the breaking day isn’t far away. I’m telling you sincerely, man to man. I don’t hate you. I’m sorry for you. I believe I’ll have the privilege of making out the corpus delicti papers on you. I will request that of