November 29 in Scientology history

Bring the kids So we can reg their parents. You may have heard of a "honey trap" — this is a "candy trap." A Treasure Hunt

Tags: Africa, Chicago, CLO Canada, Dennis Glynne, Durban, Ellen Mupwana, E-meter, Ideal Org, John Parselle, Karen Downing, L. Ron Hubbard, Liberty Cantwell, Louise Campbell, Mike Benetatos, Mission, OT, Photoshop, Pretoria, Purification Rundown, Quicky, Scientology Media Productions, Sea Org, Stuart Campell, Tampa, Thursday Funnies, Tom Cummins, Victoria Cummins, Zimbabwe

"For the truth is that life on the face of it is a chaos in which one finds onself lost. The individual suspects as much, but is terrified to encounter this frightening reality face to face, and so attempts to conceal it by drawing a curtain of fantasy over it, behind which he can make believe that everything is clear." - Jose Ortega y Gasset Conspiracy theorists can be some of the most exasperating, frustrating and annoying people you will ever encounter online and in person. A few of us even know some of them or run into them at family gatherings. After listening to them ramble on, for hours if they are allowed to, we always walk away shaking our head, wondering what kind of idiot pill they must be taking to think the way they do. And that's about all the significance they play in the day-to-day life of the average first-world citizen. We see and hear their crazy spin on such uncontroversial topics as the moon landings; the Bermuda Triangle; the spherical shape of our planet, the efficacy and safety of child vaccines; and, of course, what really happened on 9/11 and who was behind it. However, many other conspiracy theories branch off from these more weird and wild ideas which we don't find so implausible, such as the possibility of secret government operations on our own citizens, carried out by three-letter agencies and paid for by black budgets which we are told are being done for our own safety. Those we might not be so sure about because we know that these kinds of conspiracies have really happened. Or the idea that large pharmaceutical companies or major cable companies are colluding to fix prices for their goods and services, basically creating hidden monopolies which unfairly pillage the pocketbooks of consumers. Or that social media platforms are actively searching for and deleting any content which disagrees with the political beliefs of its board members. When we hear something like that, depending on our own politics and exposure to social media, we might tilt our head and think "Yeah, I think that might be true." And that's exactly how it all starts. Because while I just said that conspiracy theorists seem like a strange kind of people we only infrequently run into, the truth is, that is only what we pretend is the real picture about them. The truth is that, unfortunately, we all have a proclivity for falling for nonsense and the demographics of conspiracy theorists is much broader than just a few crazy relatives.

Tags: 1951, 1952, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, 2014, 9/11, Anti-vax, Barack Obama, Bill Clinton, Christian, Congress, Conspiracy, Denver, Europe, George W. Bush, Holocaust, Iran, Jedi, Jesus, Jonathan Kay, Lucifer, Massachusetts, Michael Shermer, Osama bin Laden, Pentagon, Politics, Quicky, Republican, Skeptic Magazine, Truther, YouTube

From the beginning of A&E's series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, its two co-stars have repeatedly said that they not only want to expose Scientology's alleged abuses, but also convince the government to do something about it. With the premiere of the show's third season this week, that refrain became even more prominent as Leah Remini and Mike Rinder talked about "following the money" and appealing to the US government to re-examine Scientology's tax exempt status in the wake of the show's many revelations. In a promo, Remini even admitted some consternation that her first two seasons weren't enough to get the government to do something. And despite many things we've heard from our own sources that state or federal agencies might, perhaps, be looking into Scientology's practices, the frustration that nothing yet has happened is becoming pretty evident in Leah's show. And then yesterday our man in Hungary, Pιter Bonyai, pointed out something that certainly got our attention:

Tags: 1977, 1980, 1993, 1998, 2016, A&E, Bill Clinton, Budapest, Chris Owen, David Miscavige, DPA, Europe, Foreign policy, Germany, Hungary, International Religious Freedom Act of 1998, Leah Remini, Mexico, Mike Rinder, PC folders, Peter Bonyai, Scientology and the Aftermath, Snow White Program, Tax exempt, Tijuana, US Commission on International Religious Freedom, US Department of Justice, US International Religious Freedom Annual Report, US State Department

The weekly show where I answer viewer questions. This week's Critical Q&A was a livestream episode, so the questions asked were done live from the chat box on YouTube and therefore are not listed here.

Tags: Critic, Quicky, YouTube

Scientology has long attempted to defend the sordid abuses of disconnection by proclaiming it is a "personal choice" and an "individual right." Tad Reeves, a devout scientologist and OSA frontman is active on social media attempting to promote and also defend scientology from "attacks." He has a blog, and frankly, he seems like a decent guy caught in the distorted world of scientology-think. What is most interesting is that he goes into such detail about the subject of disconnection. His utterances on this subject are certainly coordinated/cleared with OSA before he posts them. This is the scientology "party line" with more specifics than you will find anywhere else. I thought it worth reviewing this and noting some of the conflicting information, deceit and outright falsehoods contained within it. This is his website home page. As you can see, he is very upfront about his involvement in scientology:

Tags: 1965, 1983, Disconnection, Ethics, Facebook, High Crime, Huffington Post, INFORM, International Justice Chief, IRS, L. Ron Hubbard, Office of Special Affairs, OT, Potential Trouble Source, Quicky, Review, Scientology Handbook, Scientology organization, Sea Org, STAND, Suppressive Person, Tad Reeves, YouTube

What is it about the Church of Scientology that turns law enforcement and other government agencies into quivering cubes of human Jell-O? How many times have we seen it? In 2009, the FBI launched an investigation of allegations of human trafficking at Scientology's Sea Org bases. But after gathering reams of evidence from dozens of former Sea Org members, that investigation was dropped in 2010 without explanation. (We have a theory as to why the Justice Department lost its nerve.) And in 2012, there seemed to be another golden opportunity for the government to take on Scientology. That July, a young woman named Stacy Murphy died at Narconon Arrowhead, Scientology's drug rehab flagship operation, after the deaths of two other patients — Gabriel Graves and Hillary Holten — in a period of only nine months.

Tags: 1990, 1992, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, 2013, Abuse, Deposition, Dewayne Moore, Durand Crosby, FBI, Gabriel Graves, Hillary Holten, Human trafficking, Kim Poff, Kirstie Alley, Legal, McAlester, Mental Health, Michael DeLong, Narconon, Narconon Arrowhead, Oklahoma, Oklahoma Attorney General's Office, Oklahoma Department of Human Services, Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services, Rachel Bussett, Sea Org, Stacy Murphy, Terri White, US Department of Justice

For the past seven years, conservative operative and convicted criminal James O'Keefe and his Project Veritas have used a mix of selective editing and guerilla filmmaking in a mostly unsuccessful series of attempts to discredit political opponents. On Monday, their latest "sting" operation exploded in their face when The Washington Post caught on to an operative's false claims of statutory rape, designed to discredit those actually coming forward with stories of sexual assault and to undermine the paper itself. Though this is the latest in a string of embarrassments for O'Keefe and his group, both remain well-funded. O'Keefe drew a salary of more than $235,000 in 2015 for his work as chairman of Project Veritas; his executive director received nearly $170,000 over that time. Their organizational revenue for the year was more than $3.7 million.

Tags: Alt-Right, Barack Obama, Bradley Foundation, Charles Koch, David Koch, Donald Trump, Donors Capital Fund, Donors Trust, Dunn Foundation, Heritage Foundation, Hillary Clinton, James O'Keefe, Judicial Watch, Koch Bro, Leadership Institute, Media Research Center, Mother Jones, Project Veritas, Roland Family Foundation, Washington Post

The underhand tactics that Project Veritas adopted in its notorious takedown of the progressive network Acorn and that it later applied to media organisations has attracted growing condemnation from unexpected quarters. In 2011 Blaze, the rightwing outlet founded by Glenn Beck, investigated O'Keefe's treatment of National Public Radio and concluded that the editing of a secretly filmed video seemed "designed to intentionally lie or mislead about the material being presented". But that didn't stop Trump donating $20,000 to the group four years later. Nor did it prevent the then Republican presidential nominee from citing a Project Veritas video at his final debate with Hillary Clinton in October 2016, claiming it proved that Clinton and Barack Obama had hired thugs to cause violence at his campaign rallies. As if to underline the strength of the links, Trump invited O'Keefe to be one of his surprise guests at the televising of the debate.

Tags: 2010, 2011, 2015, 2016, Abortion, Alabama, Barack Obama, Boston University, Breitbart, CNN, Donald Trump, Facebook, Glenn Beck, GoFundMe, Hillary Clinton, Hurricane Irma, James O'Keefe, Las Vegas, Louisiana, Miami Herald, New York, New York Times, Project Veritas, Republican, Reuters, Russia, Stephen Colbert, Twitter, Wall Street Journal, Washington, Washington Post, White House

This talk was given as a book signing in Minneapolis on November 27, 2017. I discuss the lessons that we can learn from destructive cult groups, how these groups operate and can be detected. I discussed Scientology specifically and then took many questions from the audience. CHECK OUT MY SENSIBLY SPEAKING PODCAST: website: http://sensiblyspeaking.com

Tags: Minneapolis, Quicky

https://www.facebook com/narcononojai

Tags: Narconon Ojai

(Shelly Miscavige, Angelo Pagan, and Barbara Ruiz, circa 2004) Forty five years ago this week, on Saturday, November 27, 1971, the daily notices that were sent to the crew of the yacht Apollo, known as the "Orders of the Day," included a notation about a new crew member. The Apollo was Commodore L. Ron Hubbard's flagship, from which he had run Scientology since 1967. It was crewed by young Scientologists, some of them working to keep the ship sailing, others to conduct Scientology drills and processes, and others were tasked with responding to the Commodore's daily needs, including young girls to run his messages around the ship. That Saturday 45 years ago, the newest of his messengers arrived.

Tags: 1967, 1971, 1975, 1986, 2004, 2005, 2007, 2012, 2013, A&E, ABLE, Andre Dawson, Angelo Pagan, Apollo, Barbara Ruiz, California, Colorado, David Miscavige, George Meister, Hemet, Hollywood Reporter, Illustrators of the Future, Int Base, Jenna Elfman, Katie Holmes, King of Queens, Lake Arrowhead, LAPD, Leah Remini, Mike Rinder, Narconon, New Jersey, Orders of the Day, Quicky, Rena Weinberg, Sea Org, Shelly Miscavige, Susan Meister, The Hole, Tom Cruise

Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath premiers tonight on A&E. Check your local cable guide for air times. Karen and I salute Leah Remini for her courage in standing up to the Church of Scientology and telling the very human stories of how Scientology's toxic Disconnection policy destroys families. Mike Rinder just used Facebook to post this ad A&E ran on the NY Post. Hurricane Leah owns Scientology on social media. It sucks to be David Miscavige and OSA.

Tags: A&E, David Miscavige, Disconnection, Facebook, Leah Remini, Mike Rinder, Office of Special Affairs, Quicky, Scientology and the Aftermath

A&E's legal department is no doubt burning the midnight oil to usher its latest series, Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath, on-air. The network has already received multiple threatening letters from the Church of Scientology, in which the show's host, Leah Remini, is described as a "has-been actress" and "spoiled, entitled diva." A defiant Remini, meanwhile, responded by having her attorney send a letter to the church demanding it retract the letters and pay her $1.5 million in compensation. That the church objects to the eight-part series is hardly a surprise. It sees the 46-year-old King of Queens star — who documented her flight from the church in the 2015 best-seller Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology — turn investigative journalist as she documents "shocking stories of abuse, heartbreak and harassment" alleged by former church members. The Hollywood Reporter spoke to Remini ahead of the show's premiere Tuesday, addressing everything from church accusations that she is only "in it for the money" ("Are they going to give me back my $3 million?") to an extremely awkward phone conversation she once had with CBS chief Leslie Moonves at Tom Cruise's behest.

Tags: 2015, A&E, Jennifer Lopez, King of Queens, Kirstie Alley, Leah Remini, Monique Yingling, Quicky, Scientology and the Aftermath, Tom Cruise, Troublemaker: Surviving Hollywood and Scientology

The press build-up to the premiere of tonight's episode has been almost overwhelming. Between Leah's AMA at Reddit and numerous reviews of her show (all but one of which were very positive), it's been a day of growing excitement. So we're going to start a new post for our commenters as we all go through this together. We want to hear from everyone — our lurkers, our regulars, our expert exes, longtime critics, and the rest. Please chime in, and let's all learn something about Leah, Mike Rinder, Amy Scobee, Mat Pesch, and Bonny Elliott. See you in the comments!

Tags: A&E, AMA, Amy Scobee, Bonny Elliott, Leah Remini, Mat Pesch, Mike Rinder, Quicky, Scientology and the Aftermath

This drivel is a full page in the latest edition of Impact magazine - the IAS propaganda organ. You sort of get the idea what he is trying to say. The strange metaphors that are Shermanspeak specialties make it difficult to fathom, sort of like the front porch of eternity or whatever that idiocy was. The great Mr. David Miscavige is trying very hard to portray himself as some sort of humanitarian. Such hypocrisy. Not only does he personally infringe on people's rights with reckless abandon, he oversees an organization that abides by articles of faith to:

Tags: A&E, Church of Spiritual Technology, David Miscavige, Entertainment Weekly, International Association of Scientologists, Jenny McCarthy, Leah Remini, Passport, Shermanspeak

The weekly show where I answer questions from viewers or those sent in by email to AskChrisShelon@gmail.com. This week, the questions I take up are: (1) Hi Chris, i was looking forward to your response to the question about 'going exterior' and was left wanting more because you didn't expand on the concept - i.e. what's involved physiologically, and what function does it serve as far as keeping someone indoctrinated? Maybe some time you can talk about that more. I am interested in the question of exteriorization as well, since Jason Beghe in Going Clear mentioned it as his biggest win in Scientology.

Tags: A History of Man, Anonymous, Australia, Battlefield Earth, Ben Carson, Critic, Disconnection, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Jason Beghe, John Sweeney, L. Ron Hubbard, Mike Rinder, Panorama, Quicky, Rehabilitation Project Force, Sea Org

More bs from Flag. Do people really buy this garbage? Can you imagine promoting the fact that the course you have been delivering for years as "the perfect, standard Golden Age of Tech Solo Course" used to take 5 WEEKS and now takes 8 days? Without ANY explanation, other than "it's better and more golden than it was before." Wonder how those people who paid for 5 weeks of rip off hotel and meals at Flag feel about that? Or those who spent 27 extra days slogging through ARBITRARIES when they had been promised a few times previously that "all arbitraries had been removed." But more important is yet another tear in the wizard's green curtain.

Tags: Advanced Org, AOLA, Clearing Course, Golden Age of Tech, OT, Quicky

Our man in Europe, Jonny Jacobsen, finally found some time in his busy schedule covering the Scientology prosecution in Belgium to give us his thoughts about the other big story this week — the Moscow court's decision to ban the church. Like us, Jonny has his concerns about the way Russia goes about its opposition to Hubbardism. I reported briefly last week on the decision by a Moscow court to order the shutdown of Scientology's Church there. When Tony tipped me off to the story, I was on the way back to Brussels to continue my coverage of the Belgian trial, so I did not have the time to offer any analysis. Here then are a few thoughts now on why I think the Moscow ruling is no cause for celebration. As I explained here on Monday, the justice ministry argued successfully in court that Scientology should be shut down for repeated "gross and repeated violations" of Russian federal laws. The simple fact that Scientology copyrighted its own name and trademarked its symbols meant it was not a religion, Ria Novosti news agency reported. The court seems to have agreed.

Tags: 1984, 1990, 1993, 1994, 1995, 1996, Alexander Dvorkin, Alice VanGrondelle, Arseniy Yatsenyuk, Barack Obama, Belgium, Boston, Brussels, California, Canada, Central Intelligence Agency, Christophe Caliman, CIA, David Miscavige, Europe, European Court of Human Rights, Florida, Germany, GoFundMe, Infinite Complacency, IRS, Janis Johnson, Jonny Jacobsen, Judy Goldsberry-Weber, Karen de la Carriere, Ken Dandar, Lisa McPherson, Los Angeles Superior Court, Moscow, Netherlands, Quicky, Religious Technology Center, Rita Boykin, Room 174, Russia, Strasbourg, Tampa, Toronto, Ukraine, US State Department, USA, Valerie Demange

This is the closing address from David Miscavige at the last IAS event, now transcribed and preserved for eternity as all pronouncements from Dear Leader must be. He is becoming a parody of himself — and the speed of his descent into a character right out of a "Funny or Die" skit or the next Will Farrell movie appears to be accelerating. Even the photos he is selecting for photoshopping are getting stranger. He has almost perfected the Ron Burgundy sneer of superiority.

Tags: Chairman of the Board, David Miscavige, International Association of Scientologists, Quicky, Shermanspeak

Jon Atack is the author of A Piece of Blue Sky, one of the very best books on L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. He has a new edition of the book for sale, and for more than a year on Saturdays he helped us sift through the legends, myths, and contested facts about Scientology that tend to get hashed and rehashed in books, articles, and especially on the Internet. He was kind enough to send us a new post. One of the great surprises for us here in the Underground Bunker over the last couple of years has been our ongoing relationship with Jon Atack. He continually amazes us with his deep delves into the background, motivations, and obfuscations of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. And now, Jon has outdone himself with an exploration of the Scientology mind that leaves us in awe. Prepare to be probed. JON: By now, we know each other well enough to speak plainly. Putting aside all of the hopes and dreams and the sincere belief of its victims that Scientology is the salvation of Humanity, the truth is that the goal of Scientology was to flow money, power and authority to Ron Hubbard. There are no Clears and there are no OTs. Scientology does not lead to success in every walk of life. It all too often leads to catastrophe and despair, to financial ruin, broken families and even suicide.

Tags: 1938, 1940, 1950, 1970, 1986, A Piece of Blue Sky, Aleister Crowley, Alfred Korzybski, Boston, Buddhist, Christian, Christian Science, Clear, Clearing Course, David Miscavige, Dianetics, Disconnection, East Grinstead, Eileen Griswold, England, Fair Game, False Purpose Rundown, Gerry Armstrong, Hypnosis, Infinite Complacency, Jesse Prince, Jon Atack, Keep Scientology Working, Las Vegas, Marty Rathbun, Moonies, Office of Special Affairs, Omar Garrison, OT, OT Committee, OT III, OT VIII, Pat Broeker, Personality test, Potential Trouble Source, Quicky, Reactive Mind, Robert Lifton, Russell Miller, Saint Hill Manor, Science of Survival, Sea Org, Squirrel, Suppressive Person, UK

You can't make this up. Former Scientologist turned critic Mike Rinder posted this speech on his website earlier. It's Scientology chief David Miscavige's speech at the closing of the recent 30th anniversary cult gala in the UK. Your friends Tom Cruise and John Travolta were in attendance. Miscavige, whom Cruise reveres, told the audience "We are everywhere and everyone." In italics. He also said "You are witnessing a space time continuum where clocks stand still, and production hits levels that are are almost supernatural." I'm disappointed to hear that it's just 'almost.' I feel let down by this information.

Tags: David Miscavige, John Travolta, Mike Rinder, Miscavige Hospital for the Criminally Insane, Tom Cruise

Believe it or not, this is the best proof Miscavige has of His "expansion." Everyone knows the stable datum that "the squirrels go crazy when we are expanding" so they MUST be going totally crazy: q.e.d. we ARE expanding. This afternoon, the barricades went up and the armed guards took their positions for the event they like to claim demonstrates their massive humanitarianism.

Tags: David Miscavige, Leah Remini, OT, Paris, Quicky, San Diego, Shelly Miscavige, Shermanspeak

This is a fascinating look into the ever-shifting sands of corporate Scientology hype. J. Swift pulled this up from the Wayback Machine. I am sure a certain individual who cannot be named would rather it remain buried and forgotten. But unfortunately the small handful of bitter defrocked apostate unemployed bloggers on the fringes of the internet don't listen.... Back in 2004/5, COB's Ideal Orgs were the "big thing." GAG II was just a twinkle in the great man's eye at the time. Ideal Orgs were THE THING. Seattle ED Mark Arnold sent around a briefing to urge his people to get behind the Ideal Org program, and within his briefing he faithfully forwarded the campaign that was being run at the time. I include the entire briefing below, but wanted to highlight a few important points right up front.

Tags: 1966, 2004, ABLE, Alaska, Applied Scholastics, Berlin, Birthday Game, Chairman of the Board, Class V, Clear, Criminon, Dallas, David Miscavige, Dissemination, Golden Age of Tech, Idaho, Ideal Org, International Association of Scientologists, IRS, J. Swift, Keep Scientology Working, L. Ron Hubbard, Las Vegas, London, Malmo, Mission, Montana, Narconon, Org Board, OT, OT Committee, OT IX, Quicky, Rome, Sacramento, Saint Hill, Seattle, Suppressive Person, Washington, Will Smith

Just two weeks after Scientology held its grand opening for its new quasi-cathedral — the Super Power Building — it's time for another big party in Clearwater, Florida. The annual International Association of Scientologists gala is normally held in a tent in England in October. But this year, the tent was shipped over to Florida in the summer, and it stands across the street from the Super Power Building. It will host events tonight and tomorrow as Scientology's legal slush fund celebrates itself after another year of fundraising. We're looking forward to leaked photos of the event because we think we'll finally get a chance to see the stage backdrop whose schematic we published here more than a month ago.

Tags: Advanced Org, Chill EB, Clearwater, Copenhagen, England, Florida, International Association of Scientologists, Mark Bunker, Mike Bennitt, Mike Rinder, Quicky, Super Power Building

View my Flickr slideshow from today here http://flic.kr/s/aHsjNfHoxx On Friday 29 November 2013 The International Association of Scientologists celebrated their annual IAS worldwide broadcast fundraiser from Clearwater, Florida USA. Scientology and Sea Organization Supreme Leader for life David Miscavige presided over the fundraising.

Tags: Clearwater, David Miscavige, Florida, International Association of Scientologists, Quicky, Sea Org, Shelly Miscavige, USA

CLEARWATER — Inside the Berry Beautiful Salon and Spa on Court Street, there are lots of things designed to relax and soothe. There are tasteful, low-lit, wood-paneled rooms stocked with massage tables and lotions and creams. But outside, the spa has a provocative sign that's been ruffling some feathers. In red letters facing the busy street, the sign reads, Notice: This is one of the only spas in downtown Clearwater not owned by a Scientologist. The salon's owner, Travis Wilkinson, says he's not trying to offend anybody: "I'm not trying to start a fight. I'm just trying to protect my business."

Tags: Bob Clifford, Clearwater, Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce, Dianetics, Largo, Missouri, Pat Harney, Quicky, Republican, Travis Wilkinson

This new video by two people who call themselves "Pete" and "Hannah" popped up yesterday. It's an awfully fun mashup of Scientology and old school video gaming, and the production values are very high. The Church of Scientology is very clearly mentioned in it, and the church's practices are solidly parodied. But are Pete and Hannah pushing their little project a bit too far?

Tags: Legal, Monique Yingling, Quicky

Narconon is a rehabilitation programme for addicts run on a system devised by Scientology's founder, L. Ron Hubbard. Experts say it is based on junk science and potentially lethal. The way Narconon tells it, their addiction treatment programme is about as good as it gets. Studies have shown that the programme has a 75-percent success rate, the organisation claims on its website.1 "This is one of the best success rates in the field of addiction recovery," it says.2

Tags: 1966, 1989, 1991, 1992, 1993, 1996, 2004, 2008, 2009, A Piece of Blue Sky, Alain Rosenberg, Arizona, Blown for Good, Brian Renegar, Canada, Casualty Contact, Catarina Pamnell, Celebrity Centre, Certification, Chris Owen, Clear, Combatting Cult Mind Control, Commission on Accreditation of Rehabilitation Facilities, Communication Course, Critic, Cult, David Miscavige, David Root, David Touretzky, Deaths, Deposition, Detox, Dianetics, Eric Roux, France, International Association of Scientologists, Jon Atack, Kaw, L. Ron Hubbard, Marc Headley, Mark Bunker, Mark Palmer, Medical, Mental Health, Michael McNutt, Muslim, Narconon, Narconon Chilocco, Narconon International, New Life Detoxification Program, Newkirk Herald Journal, Nightline, Oklahoma, Paris, Patrick Desmond, Purification Rundown, Quicky, Religious Technology Center, Russell Miller, Stephen Kent, Steven Hassan, Success rate, Sweden, The Oklahoman, Tom Cruise, Tonkawa, Tony Ortega, Touch Assist, University of Alberta, Village Voice

This week, we learned that a lawsuit filed against the Church of Scientology by two of its former private investigators was quietly settled, and no terms were made public. In September, before settlement negotiations began, the two detectives spent just more than 24 hours giving the only interviews to reporters they ever will. Here now is one account of that brief period that provided a rare window into the shadowy world of Scientology surveillance.

Tags: 1977, 1980, 1986, 1988, 1990, 1991, 1993, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2007, 2008, 2009, 2011, Annie Broeker, Anonymous, Australia, Bridge Publications, California, Christ, Church of Spiritual Technology, Colorado, Company, Corpus Christi, Creston, Creston Ranch, Czech Republic, Dallas, David Lubow, David Miscavige, DC, Eli Lilly, E-meter, Facebook, Fair Game, FBI, Fidel Garcia, FNG Security Investigations, Gerald Feffer, Google, Greg Arnold, Hemet, Hollywood, Indiana, Ingleside, Int Base, Ireland, Jesse Prince, Joel Sappell, John Brousseau, Karin Pouw, Linda Hamel, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, LRH House, LSD, Marty Rathbun, Mexico, Mike Rinder, Mitch Daniels, New Mexico, New York Times, Office of Special Affairs, Pat Broeker, Paul Marrick, Police, Private investigator, Ray Jeffrey, Robert Lindsey, Robert Minton, Robert Vaughn Young, Robert Welkos, San Antonio, San Patricio County, Sea Org, Spies, Squirrel, Squirrel Busters, St. Louis, St. Petersburg, St. Petersburg Times, Tampa, Tampa Bay Times, Texas, Tom Cruise, Trash collection, Trementina, Twitter, Vault, Washington, Wyoming

The Church of Scientology has had to defend itself again against claims of mistreatment behind closed doors. In this latest scandal a former member claims once inside, they wouldn't let her leave.

Tags: Freewinds, Valeska Paris

Last night, we had a lengthy conversation over Skype with Valeska Paris, and learned much more about her upbringing in Scientology, her time on the ship, and in particular, what it was like when church leader David Miscavige brought aboard his best pal, Tom Cruise, for the actor's big birthday celebration in 2004. We also talked about how she decided to speak out even though she had previously signed confidentiality agreements with the notoriously litigious church. "They're cowards. They always threaten, but they never follow it up," she says.

Tags: 1977, 1979, 1982, 1989, 1990, 1992, 1994, 1995, 1996, 1997, 1998, 1999, 2002, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2009, 2010, Albert Jaquier, Angie Blankenship, Ariane Jackson, Asbestos, Australia, Basics, Bonaire, Cadet Org, California, Caribbean, Chinese, Chris Guider, Clearwater, Conditions, David Miscavige, Days of Thunder, Disconnection, Don Jason, England, Flag Land Base, Florida, France, Freewinds, Golden Era Productions, Guillaume Lesevre, Heber Jentzsch, International Association of Scientologists, Jean-Francois Paris, Jennifer Linson, Karin Pouw, Maiden Voyage, Marc Yager, Marty Rathbun, Melissa Paris, Mike Napier, Mike Rinder, New York, Nicole Kidman, Operating Thetan, OT VIII, Paris, Passport, Penelope Cruz, Ramana Dienes-Browning, Rehabilitation Project Force, Scientology executive, Scientology organization, Sea Org, Sec Check, Skype, St. Petersburg Times, Stacy Francis, Stanley Kubrick, Steve Cannane, Suppressive Person, Switzerland, Sydney, Tom Cruise, Tom Tobin, Valeska Paris

Learn more about the Corporate Scientology "OT VIII" ship:

Tags: OT VIII, Quicky, Valeska Paris, Village Voice

Below is an OSA Int Investigations Division program drafted by Fritz Kavenaar (Invest Officer) in 2006. The intent of the program is evident and in his own words it seeks to "muzzle" Tory Christman. I gave Tory the opportunity to review this before publication and to direct the deletion of material that clearly was taken from her pc folders and information that might violate the rights of privacy of her or others she knows. Wherever a deletion was made a notation is made. Tory has also inserted her own comments throughout the program in italics. OSA programs by tradition are so laden with denigrating reference I felt Tory should be given the opportunity to defend herself, and educate us where appropriate. After the program you will find another write up by Tory that gives some background leading up to her speaking out about the church's abuses. It gives further context to the church's efforts to destroy Tory. I sincerely apologize to Tory for helping to create the monster that attempted to make her life so miserable. My hat is off to her for - all on her lonesome - weathing the storm and continuing to communicate throughout, and continuing to do so to this day.

Tags: 1969, 1972, 1973, 2000, 2001, 2004, 2005, 2006, 2009, Bill Yaude, Clear, Clearwater, Critic, Cult, Epilepsy, Fair Game, Graham Berry, Harold Bezazian, Ministers Course, Office of Special Affairs, OSA Int, OT, OT 7, PC folders, Quicky, Religious Freedom Watch, RFW, Rolling Stone, Skeptics, Tory Christman, ToryMagoo44

The restructuring lowered the school's long-term debt from $10.7 million to $6.6 million. But less than 12 months later, the school went broke and closed. The new bondholders had downtown land, an improved building and equipment valued at $7.4 million. The building was sold two years later for $3.5 million to the Church of Scientology.

Tags: Real estate, Science Museum of Minnesota, St. Paul

But in Chicago, the religious movement founded by the late science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard appears to be flourishing. Signaling that success are plans for a new seven-story Illinois church headquarters slated to open next year in Chicago's historic Printer's Row. The restoration of the $4 million red brick edifice at 650 S. Clark St. built in 1914 follows the church's plan of acquiring and restoring historic structures that embody a city's aesthetic.

Tags: Anonymous, Chicago, Connie Black, David Bromley, Hugh Urban, Jesse Wells, Rebecca Cusano, Sunday service

The literary agency Curtis Brown, which represents several members of the Churchill family, has written to the church's London branch protesting at a range of advertising leaflets and posters that liken the Allied struggle against Nazi Germany to Scientology's efforts to recruit new members.

Tags: Curtis Brown, Nicholas Soames, Winston Churchill

L Ron Hubbard has joined the likes of Wallis Simpson, Eric Morecambe, Marc Bolan and Keith Moon after an application for a coveted blue plaque was rejected by English Heritage. The government agency, which runs the scheme, rejected the application by supporters of the founder of Scientology after its blue plaques panel decided that it was unconvinced about Mr Hubbard's "reputation".

Tags: English Heritage, Fitzroy House, L. Ron Hubbard, Sarah Eicker, UK

In an unlikely dispute that pits Sir Winston's grandchildren against followers of the late L Ron Hubbard - the science-fiction writer who believed, among other things, that mankind descended from aliens who arrived on Earth via spaceships - the controversial church has been asked to remove Churchill's image and quotations from its fundraising literature. The literary agency Curtis Brown, which represents several members of the Churchill family, has written to the church's London branch protesting at a range of advertising leaflets and posters that liken the Allied struggle against Nazi Germany to Scientology's efforts to recruit new members.

Tags: Fitzroy House, Jive Aces, London, UK, Winston Churchill

The Rev. Jesse Wells, an ordained Scientology minister, said the church is restoring a $4 million building in Chicago's historic Printer's Row neighborhood to use the seven-story site for church activities, courses and worship, the Chicago Tribune said Sunday. "That's one of the reasons we need such a large space," Wells said of the 50,212-square-foot location, "to accommodate all the activities."

Tags: 1993, 2010, Chicago, Chicago Tribune, Jesse Wells, Rebecca Cusano

A scientologist doctor, who gave evidence on the suicide of a church member she treated, is promoting a controversial educational resource in New Zealand schools. Dr Helen Smith gave evidence this year to a coroner's inquiry after the death of David Sampson in December 2008. Sampson had won $651,000 in Lotto's first division in 1991, but battled with alcohol abuse and depression. A friend of Sampson was upset at the church's policy against psychiatric help: "He was suffering from depression, but he wasn't seeing a psychiatrist because they're against that."

Tags: Aaron Saxton, Anne Tolley, Auckland, Australia, David Sampson, Gilbert Wong, Helen Smith, L. Ron Hubbard, Mahatma Gandhi, Martin Luther King, Mike Ferriss, New South Wales, New Zealand, New Zealand Human Rights Commission, Paul Cooper, Suicide, Universal Declaration of Human Rights, Youth for Human Rights International

Scientologists are using a get-rich-quick seminar at the Gold Coast this weekend to groom potential new members for the controversial church, say former members. Carly Crutchfield, the key speaker at a 'Massive Results Bootcamp seminar' at the Hyatt Regency Hotel Sanctuary Cove confirmed that she and two other main speakers are Church of Scientology members.

Tags: Australia, Carly Crutchfield, Gareth Jekel, International Association of Scientologists, Knowledge Centre, Massive Results Bootcamp, Nick Xenophon, Performia Australia, Sydney, Tony Melvin

"There are many who have a vested interest in condemning Scientology said Klagenberg. "Like pharmaceutical drug companies, psychologists and psychiatrists, prisons and mental health facilities, because Scientology is diametrically opposed to psychotherapy and psychotropic drugs."

Tags: Gloria Leacox, Mike Klagenberg

Vanity Fair has stringent fact checkers. To repeat "when Spielberg told Cruise the name of a doctor who had prescribed medication to a relative and the doctor's office was subsequently picketed by Scientologists." The sentence begs the question, what kind of doctor and medication? Could it be psychiatric? Cruise and Scientology have a well-documented opposition to psychiatry, and now it seems Spielberg has a documented dislike of Cruise.

Tags: Steven Spielberg, Tom Cruise

The church tried to persuade station KRQE not to air its report last week about the aerial signposts marking a Scientology compound that includes a huge vault "built into a mountainside," the station said on its Web site. The tunnel was constructed to protect the works of L. Ron Hubbard, the late science-fiction writer who founded the church in the 1950s. The archiving project, which the church has acknowledged, includes engraving Hubbard's writings on stainless-steel tablets and encasing them in titanium capsules. It is overseen by a Scientology corporation called the Church of Spiritual Technology. Based in Los Angeles, the corporation dispatched an official named Jane McNairn and an attorney to visit the TV station in an effort to squelch the story, KRQE news director Michelle Donaldson said. ArchiveURL = http://web.archive.org/web/20051202021623/http://www.freenewmexican.com/news/35633.html

Tags: Church of Spiritual Technology, Jane McNairn, Trementina

Tax lawyers are watching a trial in Los Angeles that pits an orthodox Jewish family against the Internal Revenue Service over whether tuition for religious education is deductible -- based in part on a "secret" settlement between the IRS and the Church of Scientology.

Tags: Hernandez v. Commissioner, IRS, Sklar

Seattle chiropractor David Scheer says he simply wanted to build a better practice. He went to one of the country's foremost chiropractic management consultants, paying $4,000 for a year's service. Before he was through, though, he would pay $18,000 to the Church of Scientology and, he says, suffer the "money-hungry rapaciousness" of the cult-like sect. When he "opened my eyes and demanded the money back," he says, "it took us five, six months and we had to hire an attorney to get it back." What happened? Scheer was introduced in 1985 to Scientologists through a seminar run by David Singer Consultants. Singer, a consulting company based in Clearwater, offered to teach Scheer how to attract and keep more clients. How to increase office harmony. How to improve collections.

Tags: 1960, 1985, 1986, Bellevue, California, Chiropractic, Chiropractor, Clearwater, David Riggin, David Singer, David Singer Consultants, Dianetics, Hillsborough County, Hollywood, Hubbard Management, Karyn Kuever, Los Angeles, New Hampshire, OT, Pat Lusey, Richard Haworth, Scientology organization, Seattle, St. Petersburg, Sterling Management, Suppressive Person, Uptrends, WISE, World Institute of Scientology Enterprises