Be Wary of Soka Misinformation

Funny how telling the truth gets under some people’s skin. Just what is untrue about Tom Hayden’s recent statement that “a Japanese religious cult subsidized with our tax dollars will be ruining the Santa Monica Mountains?” Soka is a branch of Nichiren Shoshu--Soka Gakkai of America, a Japanese Buddhist group that many commentators, including respected Japanese, label a cult. So the first part of his statement appears to be true.

As a tax-exempt religious sect, it receives tax benefits that are, in effect, tax subsidies. So the middle part of this statement also appears to be true.

As for the last part, that Soka is “ruining the mountains,” decide for yourself: Should those 580 acres of exquisite oak meadow be preserved forever as parkland or should they disappear forever under 1.7 million square feet of concrete, steel, glass and asphalt? Do we need Soka City, or more open space and parkland? If we need the latter, then Soka’s development plan will, in truth, ruin the mountains.

The way I see it, Hayden got it exactly right.

LES HARDIE, Calabasas. Hardie is president of the Las Virgenes Homeowners Federation Inc.