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2020
2020-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
2020-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
On January 30 there's going to be a huge early showdown for the major lawsuits filed against the Church of Scientology last summer. On that date, Scientology is going to try to convince Los Angeles Superior Court Judge Richard J. Burdge Jr. that Valerie Haney's lawsuit should be put on ice so she can be forced into "religious arbitration."
Haney spent years as Scientology leader David Miscavige's personal steward, working in his private quarters at the organization's secretive international management compound near Hemet, California known as Gold Base or Int Base. She argues that because she knew so much about Miscavige's private life, she then became a prisoner on the base after she was moved to another job. She ultimately escaped in 2016 by hiding in the trunk of a car.
Now she's not only suing for kidnapping, but also for stalking, slander, and other counts resulting from the harassment she says she experienced after she went public with her story on Leah Remini's A&E series, Scientology and the Aftermath.
Tags: 1962, 2013, 2016, A&E, California, Church of Scientology International, Danny Masterson, David Miscavige, First Amendment, Hemet, Int Base, Leah Remini, Los Angeles Superior Court, Luis and Rocio Garcia, Religious Technology Center, Saint Hill, Scientology and the Aftermath, Sea Org, St. Louis, Tampa, Valerie Haney
2019
1 year ago2019-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Danny Masterson's attorneys wasted no time reacting to the news that his accusers will be featured in an upcoming episode of A&E's Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath.
On Monday, we reported that the episode was being resurrected and has been scheduled to air on February 18 after it was originally filmed in 2017 for Remini's second season, but was pulled at the request of the Los Angeles District Attorney's Office.
The episode featured three women who allege that they were violently raped by the Scientologist actor, but the DA's office asked Remini to hold it back as they considered the allegations. Now, more than two years since the investigation of Masterson began, DA Jackie Lacey still has yet to make a decision to file charges, even though her office has recommended that she do so.
2019-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
Scientology's international headquarters, and the center of so much of the physical abuses, mental torture and human trafficking over the years, sits in the center of Riverside County CA.
Yet, in all this time, no government agency has done anything to curtail the abuses that have been occurring under their noses. Not the Riverside County Sheriff's Office, nor the District Attorney's Office nor the Adult Protective Services. Nobody.
Meanwhile, scientology seeks to influence officials in Riverside. Tony Ortega wrote an article about this just prior to the election in November 2018.
2019-01-17, vagabond TV, YouTube
Tags: Sec Check
2018
2 years ago2018-01-17, MeathChronicle, YouTube
2018-01-17, MILO, YouTube
Deceptive phony, connected with a horrible group, struggling to regain popularity, denounces another deceptive phony, connected with a horrible group, struggling to regain popularity.
2018-01-17, Chris Shelton, YouTube
Harassment, stalking and other dirty tricks are the hallmarks of the Church of Scientology, and specifically its Office of Special Affairs. In this video, I speak with a former military intelligence analyst, Jeff Wasel, about how OSA operates and how their entire claim at being an intelligence branch for Scientology is actually just so much huffing and puffing because in reality, OSA is just a goon squad and propaganda arm. We talk in some detail about all this and how Hubbard really missed the boat in putting this all together.
MY PODCAST:
website: http://sensiblyspeaking.com
2018-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
Things are not looking up for scientology in Hungary.
This is the call that went out recently, and it is enlightening just how much trouble they are in:
HUNGARY NEEDS OUR HELP TO SECURE THEIR RELIGIOUS FREEDOM!
2018-01-17, John P. Capitalist, Reasoned.Life
Today, it was announced that Spinal Tap's bassist Derek Smalls will be releasing a new solo album on April 13. It'll be called "Smalls Change (Meditations Upon Ageing)."
Derek Smalls (Harry Shearer) in concert in 2009
The mind-blowing news, from my view, is the presence of Donald Fagen, co-founder of Steely Dan, on one of the songs.
2018-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
The new Freedom magazine is here!
The Church of Scientology's propaganda rag has put out a new issue, several months after its last, and once again we are sorely disappointed that it is no longer the cartoonish attack dog it once was.
Long gone are the days when the cover of Freedom contained caricatures of church enemies, like the time it parodied New Yorker magazine staffer Lawrence Wright, or portrayed Marty Rathbun's "Posse of Lunatics" in high style.
2018-01-17, John P. Capitalist, Reasoned.Life
Recently, tawdry fame whore/Scientologist Joy Villa announced that her strategy for gaining fame involved waiting for Scientology's new media arm to begin broadcasting, as she expected it to become a bigger media platform than Fox News, thus boosting her career stratospherically.
Scientology spent millions to acquire the historic five-acre KCET Studios in Hollywood in April 2011, then spent five years and untold millions more to refurbish it into Scientology Media Productions (SMP). Scientology leader David Miscavige held a grand opening event in June 2016 (press release on Scientology web site here) and promised that broadcasting would begin by the "summer solstice 2017." Seven months after that deadline, the radio silence continues.
We look at the strategy driving the creation of SMP and assess whether Scientology will ever begin broadcasting to the "wog" (their derogatory term for non-Scientologists) world and how they might justify their lack of action to their membership and those donors who gave to open the facility.
Tags: 1981, 2005, 2008, 2011, 2016, 2017, Amazon, Anonymous, Brooke Shields, California, Charlottesville, Cincinnati, David Miscavige, Fair Game, FBI, Fox News, Freedom magazine, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, Golden Era, Golden Era Productions, Hemet, Hollywood, Human trafficking, Ideal Narconon, Ideal Org, Int Base, Jason Beghe, Joy Villa, KCET, Lawrence Wright, Los Angeles Times, Membership, Michael Fairman, Narconon, Nation of Islam, New Yorker, OT IX, OT X, Paul Haggis, Quicky, Scientology Media Productions, Scientology practice, Sea Org, Slate, The Hole, Tom Cruise, YouTube
2017
3 years ago
2017-01-17, Michael O'Connell, Hollywood Reporter
A+E Networks president and CEO Nancy Dubuc has not been shying away from hot-button issues of late. The exec recently launched, to much success, a Scientology exposé starring former church member Leah Remini and, to less success, attempted to put a documentary series about the KKK on the air.
Dubuc, appearing at the Miami conference for National Association of Television Program Executives, broached both subjects during her Tuesday keynote — and shared an interesting fact about Scientology's campaign against the show.
"My personal Facebook is all anti-Leah," she said, adding that the church must be buying negative social media about the project. "My friends think it's wild."
Scientology and the Aftermath has been a success for A+E. The doc series brought the network its best premiere ratings in years, has inspired a rabid community on social media and, perhaps best for the flagship network in Dubuc's portfolio, has given it some critical cachet.
Tags: 2016, A&E, Clear, Facebook, FBI, Ku Klux Klan, Leah Remini, Miami, Nancy Dubuc, Scientology and the Aftermath
2017-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
(Recognize your lord and savior?)
It's one of the questions we've been getting the most in recent weeks as A&E's hit series Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath has brought around a lot of curious new folks here and at Twitter. Is it true, they ask us, what Scientologists say — that you can join the Church of Scientology and still remain a Christian, or a Muslim, or a Jew?
Former Scientology spokesman and Leah's co-star, Mike Rinder, gave the best answer to that question we've ever seen over at his website a couple of weeks ago, and if you haven't seen it yet, you really should.
Tags: 1977, 1994, 2005, 2007, A&E, Abortion, Alan Scherstuhl, Amelia McDonnell-Parry, Bill Price, Buddha, Carrol Alexander, Casavius Tabayoyon, Christian, Claire Headley, Corfu, Denver, eBay, Gary Lew, Golden Era, Hiro Kimoto, HowdyCon, Int Base, Jesus, John Gonzalves, Kansas City, Kenny Seybold, L. Ron Hubbard, Leah Remini, Marc Headley, Mike Rinder, Muslim, Photoshop, Quicky, Rehabilitation Project Force, Robert Barry, Scientology and the Aftermath, Scientology Handbook, Sea Org, Terrence Une, Twitter, Uwe Stuckenbrock, Village Voice, Volunteer Ministers
2017-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
This is an interesting article I came across in the Huffington Post a few days ago (click the link to read the full piece)
I have included some excerpts and highlighted key points.
I think it's relevant to comments and arguments one often sees on this blog And elsewhere, especially concerning the subject of scientology "tech"/beliefs, both from those who find the "tech" to be invaluable and infallible and those that find everything about it to be crap/evil.
2017-01-17, Jeffrey Augustine, Scientology Money Project
Monique Yingling, Esq.
Preface: My article below originally appeared on Tony Ortega's Underground Bunker. It is reprinted here with additional material added. I republish the article here because the Church of Scientology has used tens of millions of tax exempt dollars, or more, to pay Monique Yingling (and the law firm for which she works) for her four decades of legal services to Scientology. And yet Yingling had the shamelessness on her recent interview with ABC 20/20's Dan Harris to criticize Leah Remini for making money to produce and appear in the A&E show Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath. Monique Yingling's hypocrisy is staggering: She is a financial beneficiary of the human suffering that occurs in Scientology, and, Yingling helps to enable that suffering by defending it as an attorney for Scientology. Yingling also made a point to ABC's Dan Harris that she raised her children in the Catholic faith; it is unfortunate that none of the love, compassion, or mercy of the Catholic faith seems to have affected Monique Yingling in her professional work.
Following the sudden departure of Tommy Davis as the Church of Scientology's spokesman in 2011, the organization no longer has an actual Scientologist to represent it on television or in documentaries. Seemingly by default, Scientology leader David Miscavige's attorney Monique Yingling — a non-Scientologist – has found herself cast in the unlikely role as the international spokeswoman for the church.
Tags: 1947, 1950, 1960, 1966, 1969, 1972, 1986, 1995, 20/20, 2000, 2005, 2007, 2011, A&E, ABC, Apartheid, Catholic, CCHR, Commission of Inquiry, Cult, Daily Mail, Dan Harris, David Miscavige, E-meter, Farsec, Hollywood, Holocaust, International Association of Scientologists, Johannesburg, Leah Remini, Los Angeles, Matt Lauer, Monique Yingling, New Year's Eve, Police, Psychiatric treatment, Psychiatry: An Industry of Death, Psychiatry: An Industry of Death Museum, Psychiatry: Industry of Death, Quicky, Ron Miscavige, Ruthless: Scientology, My Son David Miscavige, and Me, Science of Survival, Scientology and the Aftermath, Scientology: A War Without Guns, South Africa, Tax exempt, Tom Cruise, Tommy Davis, Tone Scale, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker, Vistaril
2017-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Tonight's episode of Leah Remini: Scientology and the Aftermath is not the last we're going to hear from this A&E series. There's yet another special episode scheduled for next Tuesday that is apparently going to focus on Leah herself.
But tonight's is the last episode that Leah, Mike Rinder, and their production team filmed. And so there is a sense of finality to it when Leah signs off tearfully, thanking fans for so much support. And we can't help feeling a little thrill when she says that this is the end of filming "for season one," which sure seems to imply that there's going to be a season two. At this point, however, we've heard nothing definitive about that.
So what's in this episode, the second of the "Reddit AMA" specials? Leah and Mike answer more questions that have been sent in by viewers, including questions about celebrities in Scientology and the church's reputation for homophobia.
2016
4 years ago2016-01-17, Chris Shelton, Critical Thinker at Large
The weekly show where I answer questions left for me in the comments section of my Q&A videos or by email at AskChrisShelton@gmail.com. This week, questions I answer are:
(1) I have a question about the concept of God in Scientology. I have heard you say before in one of the lectures on your channel that Scientology doesn't have any concept of god, so day to day 'worship' for the lay Scientologist takes the form of reading LRH's materials. However, on the Scientology website, they make reference to God as the Supreme Being, the relationship to which constitutes the Eighth Dynamic. It also has an LRH quotation saying that people who have some concept of a God are morally superior people.
Obviously the concept of God is Scientology is not emphasized, and from the website, seems to be little more than a bit of PR to make Scientology look more like a mainstream religion. However, it does appear the LRH discussed it somewhat.
Tags: Celebrity Centre, Clearwater, Critic, David Miscavige, L. Ron Hubbard, OT, OT III, Quicky, Sea Org, Steven Mango, Xenu
2016-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Recently, we wrote about a police chief in a small Minnesota town who found himself being flown to Washington DC to be feted by the Church of Scientology and one of its celebrities, actress Erika Christensen. Why did he deserve this treatment? He was being celebrated because he had purchased anti-drug pamphlets from a Scientology front group, the Foundation for a Drug-Free World. After we wrote a couple of stories about how the police chief was being used in Scientology public relations, he had a change of heart and is no longer teaching the Foundation's classes in his town. Now, contributor Jeffrey Augustine looks a little more closely at how Scientology uses the Foundation to lure in unsuspecting public officials.
How does the chief of police of a small town in Minnesota find himself in Washington DC unwittingly promoting a Scientology "drug prevention" front group? It was the result of a well-designed Scientology program that is intended to lure unwary educators, law enforcement figures, and other overworked public officials tasked with drug education. This machine has ten parts:
1. A lofty and noble-sounding name: The Foundation for a Drug Free World. Who would suspect that an organization with such a fine name and apparently noble purpose is actually a shill for the Church of Scientology and designed to spread awareness of its founder, L. Ron Hubbard?
Tags: 2010, 2014, Bob Adams, Brandy Harrison, California, Christian, DC, Dianetics, Erika Christensen, Foundation for a Drug-Free World, Google, Haiti, Hollywood, Hollywood Guaranty Building, International Association of Scientologists, IRS, Jeffrey Augustine, Katie Hawley, Kendrick Moxon, Legoland, Louisiana, Mental Health, Minnesota, Narconon, Office of Special Affairs, OT, Police, Quicky, Sea Org, Snow White Program, Suppressive Person, Truth About Drugs, US Secretary of State, Volunteer Ministers, Washington
2016-01-17, Hemant Mehta, Friendly Atheist
Our latest podcast guest is Chris Shelton, a man who spent 27 years in the Church of Scientology. Shelton attained those high levels you only hear about in HBO documentaries, but he got out about three years ago and is now a vocal critic of the Church.
He just published a book called Scientology: A to Xenu: An Insider's Guide to What Scientology is All About.
2016-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
Valley OTC Minutes | Mike Rinder's Blog
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Tags: 1948, 1967, 1969, 1975, 1996, 2014, 2015, Alex Gibney, Basel, Ben Ghiora, Bob Welch, Bonita Wilson, Boston, Carol Loweree, Cause Resurgence Rundown, CCHR, Chairman of the Board, Charlene Thorburn, Cindy Plahuta, Colombia, David Miscavige, David Wilson, Debbie Suplee, Degraded Being, Denver, Diane Temps, Dissemination, Division 1, Division 2, Division 4, Division 6, Donation, England, Eric Krackow, Escape, Facebook, Field Staff Member, Flag Service Organization, Flag World Tour, Freewinds, Fundraising, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Google, GPS, Hagit Ron, HBO, Heelah Cohen, Ideal Org, Int Base, IRS, Kansas City, Karen Brown, Kathy DiGalbo, Kathy Welch, Kentucky, L. Ron Hubbard, Lawrence Wright, Len Zinberg, Linda Massey, LinkedIn, Manchester, Mark Anderson, Mary Elizabeth, Mary Elizabeth Glosup, Mary Lee Krackow, Mission, Nancy Parodi, New Year's Eve, Office of Special Affairs, OT, OT Committee, OT VIII, OTC, PAC Base, Pasadena, Phoenix, Pittsburgh, Portland, Purification Rundown, Quicky, Ralph Temps, Reddit, Rochelle Goodrich, Running Program, Scientology Handbook, Seattle, Simi Valley, South Africa, Super Bowl, Tax exempt, The Way to Happiness, Twitter, UK, Vered Ziv, Whale, Wisconsin, WISE
2015
5 years ago2015-01-17, Jeffrey Augustine, Scientology Money Project
Scientology cult leader Captain David Miscavige.
Above: Captain David Miscavige is the leader of the Church of Scientology's sinister paramilitary group known as the Sea Organization.
Although Captain Miscavige hotly denies it via his attorneys, he is the absolute and unchallenged leader of the Church of Scientology International, Narconon, IAS, and all other parts of the Scientology franchise system. In Rathbun v. Miscavige, Miscavige's attorney Lamont Jefferson spent time arguing with opposing counsel that Mr. Miscavige was not to be called Captain Miscavige. This was so preposterous that I satirized it at my other blog: How Dare You Call COB "Captain Miscavige!"
Tags: Alex Gibney, Chairman of the Board, Church of Scientology International, CNN, David Miscavige, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, HBO, International Association of Scientologists, Lamont Jefferson, Lawrence Wright, Narconon, New York Times, Quicky, Sea Org, Tax exempt, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker, Vanity Fair
2015-01-17, Nancy Tartaglione, Yahoo
Content Media has acquired international sales rights to Alex Gibney's documentary Going Clear: Scientology And The Prison Of Belief. The film will have its world premiere at Sundance. Gibney wrote and directed based on the book by Pulitzer Prize-winning author Lawrence Wright. In the film, he profiles eight former members of the Church of Scientology, shining a light on how the church cultivates true believers, including their experiences and what they are willing to do in the name of religion. HBO has U.S. television rights to Going Clear and is eyeing a March 16 airdate. Gibney's Jigsaw Productions is a partner company of Content Media.
2015-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
A friend of the Underground Bunker who is also a researcher at WhyWeProtest.net hit a small jackpot this week when a Freedom of Information Act request she made through the MuckRock website yielded fascinating new disclosures about Scientology in its early decades.
In the early 1960s, the Food and Drug Administration was concerned enough about the health claims being made by Scientology with its "e-meters," that it raided the "Founding Church" in Washington DC after several years of investigations.
Our researcher's request yielded documents in the FDA's files that its inspectors had been gathering for those investigations, both before and after the raid occurred on January 4, 1963.
Tags: 1957, 1958, 1960, 1963, 1987, Alex Gibney, Baltimore, Bare-Faced Messiah, C.E. McElwee, Cynthia Harrison, DC, E-meter, FDA, Food and Drug Administration, Founding Church, Freedom of Information Act, George D. Tilroe, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Houston, Hubbard College, IRS, Joseph Ettelman, Malcolm Houston, Marilyn Routsong, Mary Sue Hubbard, Mongolia, Muckrock, Park City, Pinkerton Agency, Quicky, Russell Miller, Sundance Film Festival, Utah, Washington, WhyWeProtest
2015-01-17, Roger Friedman, Showbiz 411
The war between the cult of Scientology and HBO could have a domino effect in other places. Yesterday, Scientology took out a full page ad in the New York Times decrying HBO for its upcoming documentary "Going Clear." Based on Lawrence Wright's much praised book of the same name, "Going Clear" is directed by Alex Gibney. The book rips open the cult's secrets along with many stories about Scientology's Hollywood members including Tom Cruise and John Travolta.
When "Going Clear" is finally seen, we'll see just how much of it takes in Hollywood. That may put HBO's parent company, Time Warner, in some trouble. HBO's cousins are Warner Bros, movie studio and CNN. Also still in the family, although at arms' reach, are the Time Inc magazines including People and Entertainment Weekly.
2015-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
The latest begging from the infamous pirate ship Freewinds.
Trying to entice the suckers by boasting speed of delivery. And on a co-audit no less!
And suckers, don't forget, they have limited space. They can hold about 250 passengers. Their current occupancy is around 10 per week. So of course, speed is of the essence.
2014
6 years ago
2014-01-17, Yasmine Hafiz, Huffington Post
The great-grandson of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard, DeWolf is an outspoken critic of the controversial faith. He reveal the history behind his name in a highly-charged spoken word performance, explaining that it was changed by his grandfather as a way of distancing himself from Scientology's contentious leader.
Tags: Jamie DeWolf
2014-01-17, Mike Rinder, Something Can Be Done About It
Following the recent post about Dublin and Scientology's fictitious activites there, here is more news about the imaginary activities of Scientology in Ireland, this time from across the border.
One of our eagle-eyed readers sent me a note about the "Mission" in Belfast. They report that the Mission has been "closed for ages" even though it still appears on the official Scientology website.
No doubt this is one of the Missions they count in the 11,000 total orgs, missions and groups. And no doubt Northern Ireland is one of the countries they count in the "186 around the world."
2014-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Our video source has come through again, sending us another "quote video" that is meant only to be seen inside a Scientology "org."
As we learned earlier, many of these videos were created in order to highlight a portion of a particular L. Ron Hubbard lecture as new editions of his lectures were produced and Scientologists were encouraged to buy them. In this case, we're seeing a portion of "The Factors: Admiration & the Renaissance of Beingness." (Online price, $250.00)
According to Scientology's own website, this was a series of lectures given in the spring of 1953, and they contain "the knowledge of universal truth unlocking the riddle of creation itself." Wow! OK, so prepare to be blown away!
2013
7 years ago
2013-01-17, Joyce Chen, US Magazine
The 30-year-old actress — a lifelong member of the controversial church — chatted with her Parenthood costar Joy Bryant about the controversial religion in a recent interview on Bryant's Across the Board web series, poking fun at some of the public's misconceptions.
"[People assume] we're some kind of closed group and we're just the Hollywood religion and we worship rabbits," joked the actress of the faith practiced by Tom Cruise, John Travolta, Kirstie Alley, Beck and other stars. "I don't actually know how many people think that."
Christensen explained that she was raised in the Church by her Scientology parents, Kathy and Steven Christensen, and would thus have no issue with introducing her future children to the religion's practices.
Tags: Erika Christensen
2013-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Now that we've read Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, & the Prison of Belief, we're going to refrain from writing the sort of thing you've been seeing in some other publications. You know, the "Ten Most Explosive Things in Lawrence Wright's New Book" sort of article.
For those of us who watch Scientology closely, and have for many years, most of those articles that have popped up in recent days seem to be gasping over things that have been known or written about for many years.
Look, the history of Scientology is very weird. And scary. And the abuses detailed by former members can be shocking. And so can the tales of Scientology's appetite for retaliation.
Tags: 1987, 1990, 1993, 2009, 2010, 2011, 2012, A Piece of Blue Sky, Anonymous, Bare-Faced Messiah, Cuba, David Miscavige, Dianetics, England, Fair Game, FBI, First Amendment, Gerry Armstrong, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Hollywood, Hugh Urban, Int Base, IRS, Jack Parsons, Janet Reitman, Joe Childs, John Travolta, Jon Atack, Lawrence Wright, NBC, New York Times, New Yorker, Ohio State University, Paul Haggis, Pulitzer, Quicky, Robert Heinlein, Russell Miller, Sara Northrup, Spanky Taylor, St. Petersburg Times, Stephen Kent, Steve Pfauth, Tom Tobin, Tone Scale, University of Alberta, Wall Street Journal, Xenu
2013-01-17, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
Last night we had a helluva time live-blogging Nancy Many's docudrama about Scientology spying on the ID network. Many of you joined us, and it was exhilarating to trade observations about the show as it was happening.
Hey, let's do it again for tonight's big show on NBC's Rock Center with Paul Haggis that marks the publication of Lawrence Wright's book, Going Clear!
The show airs at 10 PM Eastern, and the Bunker will be rocking as we learn more about Haggis and his decision to leave Scientology. This should be a landmark show — and we have a feeling there will be more folks featured than just Wright and Haggis. We'll soon find out.
Tags: 1993, 2009, BuzzFeed, CIA, Disconnection, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Haydn James, Ideal Org, IRS, Karin Pouw, Lance Armstrong, Lawrence Wright, Nancy Many, NBC, New Yorker, OT VII, Paul Haggis, Quicky, Religious Technology Center, Richard Behar, Rock Center, Scott Pilutik, Tax, Tom Cruise, Truth Rundown
2013-01-17, Michael Calderone, Huffington Post
The Church of Scientology has been thinking for some time how to handle Lawrence Wright's highly-anticipated book hitting shelves Thursday, "Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief."
In late 2012, the church reached out to the Atlantic magazine about running an advertising campaign around the book's release, according to an Atlantic source with knowledge of the situation. On Monday, the Atlantic published an advertorial -- an advertisement resembling editorial content -- describing how David Miscavige led Scientology to a "milestone" year.
The Scientology-glorifying advertorial was met with ample mockery online. Before the The Atlantic removed it and acknowledged having "screwed up." Atlantic writer Jeffrey Goldberg offered his two cents on the site, writing that "there is no more careful reporter in the world than Larry [Wright], and no one who is as thorough and as indefatigable."
2013-01-17, Michael Calderone, Huffington Post
NEW YORK -- The Church of Scientology has been thinking for some time how to handle Lawrence Wright's highly-anticipated book hitting shelves Thursday, "Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief."
In late 2012, the church reached out to the Atlantic magazine about running an advertising campaign around the book's release, according to an Atlantic source with knowledge of the situation. On Monday, the Atlantic published an advertorial -- an advertisement resembling editorial content -- describing how David Miscavige led Scientology to a "milestone" year.
The Scientology-glorifying advertorial was met with ample mockery online. Before the The Atlantic removed it and acknowledged having "screwed up." Atlantic writer Jeffrey Goldberg offered his two cents on the site, writing that "there is no more careful reporter in the world than Larry [Wright], and no one who is as thorough and as indefatigable."
Tags: 2006, 2008, 2011, 2012, Anderson Cooper, Apostate, Canada, CNN, Daily Beast, David Miscavige, David Remnick, Dianetics, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, Hollywood Reporter, John Travolta, Karin Pouw, Lawrence Wright, New York Times, New Yorker, NPR, Paul Haggis, Publisher, Pulitzer Prize, Quicky, Random House, Scientology: A History of Violence, Sitrick and Co, The Atlantic, The Hole, Tom Cruise
2013-01-17, Marty Rathbun, Moving On Up a Little Higher
I have a feeling that Rock Center's segment tonight on Scientology from the viewpoints of Paul Haggis and Lawrence Wright is going to be rather interesting. You may not agree with all you see and hear, but I suggest you ought to see and hear it.
NBC Rock Center Scientology segments
And, A preview from NBC Today show.
2013-01-17, Marc Weisblott, Canada.com
The state of Scientology headquarters at 696 Yonge St. in Toronto has been deteriorating for decades. The neglect has contributed to the overall blight of that particular stretch of Canada's most famous street.
A rendering of its proposed overhaul suggests that it hopes to be a better, or at least more attractive, neighbour.
Still, a slicker structure doesn't necessarily mean that Scientology will eradicate efforts to reveal what exactly goes on inside.
The criticism has soared in the past five years, at least since online activist group Anonymous targeted the organization for its secrecy, which reached a boil when it tried to get a recruitment video starring Tom Cruise removed from the web.
2013-01-17, Daily Mail
New York Post claimed to leak excerpts from the tome earlier this year.
'It is important to note that Wright's British publisher had second thoughts, choosing not to publish Wright's book after being informed of the numerous inaccuracies and defamatory lies it contains that were told to Wright by a handful of bitter and discredited former Scientologists,' she said.
Watch video here
2012
8 years ago
2012-01-17, Chris Davies, SlashGear
Scientology is known for being one of the more unusual - and secretive - religions, but we almost feel like signing up ourselves having seen that practitioners at the new Super Power Building will get access to an "infinite pit" and an "oiliness table." Details of the $100m "Flag Mecca" facility in Clearwater, Florida leaked to�The Village Voice, spilling hints at some of the more esoteric equipment being installed. According to the plans, there'll be everything from a wall made of water to an "Electric Fields Generator."
Tags: Oiliness table, Super Power
2012-01-17, Tony Ortega, Runnin' Scared, Village Voice
On drawings we looked at last night, we noticed something that seemed to be missing on other blueprints. Near the Sound Rooms -- a couple of circular chambers -- there was something called "Barriers." Looking around some more, we found this drawing, which was labeled, Solid Barriers, Infinite Pit, and Water Wall.
Wait a minute. Did they say Infinite Pit!
Tags: 2007, 2009, Clearwater, Flag Mecca, Florida, Marcab, Oiliness table, Sea Org, Super Power, Super Power Building, Tone Scale
2011
9 years ago2011-01-17, Marty Rathbun, Moving On Up a Little Higher
Reading some MLK this morning, which has become my habit on the day designated to acknowledge the man and his work, I came across some material you might find useful.
Martin Luther King arrested
On the mechanics of suppression and how it denies an individual the power of choice, MLK from What Is Freedom?, The Ethical Demands for Integration:
2009
11 years ago
2009-01-17, Steve Bousquet, Miami Herald
Gus Barreiro, a crusader for kids and former Miami-Dade lawmaker who helped bring down a fellow legislator in a high-profile race case, has been unexpectedly fired from the Department of Juvenile Justice.
Tags: Gustavo Barreiro
2009-01-17, anonseatac, YouTube
Another calendar year has begun and now it's time to add more wins against the bumbling cult of fail. The LOLrus was still looking grumpy as ever and I think it was a great day, even if it was freakin' cold for our anons with thinner blood.
2008
12 years ago2008-01-17, Strombo, YouTube
Here's an amazing clip from the late 1960's addressing the growing concern around scientology. It's not Tom Cruise..but its pretty cool.
2008-01-17, Anderson Cooper, Android Cooper 360, YouTube
With the recent Anderson Cooper series on Scientology, it is worth reuploading this video from January 17, 2008. Bruce Wiseman is the father of Kendra Wiseman, webmaster of exscientologykids.com
2008-01-17, Alison Boshoff, Daily Mail
Tom Cruise is not a man who is generally given to moments of self-doubt. In times of crisis, his habit is to open up his daredevil side and go skydiving, or take off for a ride on a motorbike.
This January, however, things are bleak indeed. Sources in the U.S. say that he has had trouble sleeping and been tearful at times - much to the distress of his young wife, Katie Holmes.
For just as Katie, 29, reinvents herself as a glamorous, strong young woman, all toned biceps and couture frocks, Tom is entrenched in a crisis.
Tags: 1980, 1990, 1991, 2006, 2016, Andrew Morton, BBC, Bert Fields, David Beckham, David Miscavige, Google, Hollywood, Iraq, Karin Pouw, Katie Holmes, Mimi Rogers, Mission, Movie, New Year's Eve, New York, Nicole Kidman, Oprah Winfrey, Paramount, Paul Barresi, Pope, Private investigator, Quicky, St Martin's Press, Sumner Redstone, Tax exempt, Tom Cruise, Twitter, UK, United Artists
2008-01-17, Simon Scowl, Deceiver.com
These videos have more material on the Scientology "9/11 rescue worker detox" project I've been talking about for the last couple of days. I've been doing more research on it, and it's just another name for an L. Ron Hubbard-designed technique called the Purification Rundown: sauna, exercise, vitamins. That's all it is. But Scientology uses it for everything and says it can cure anything.
2008-01-17, Ian Munro, Sydney Morning Herald
What the book does assert is that Cruise has become the Scientology cult's principal propagandist in trying to win recruits and extend its reach into Europe. His method includes targeting high-profile individuals, such as the soccer star David Beckham and the businessman James Packer.
2008-01-17, Queerty
First came Andrew Morton's Tom Cruise tell-all, now author Ian Halperin turns his attention to the out-of-this-world religion. Hollywood Undercover chronicles Halperin's adventures as a "gay actor" trying to join the church, which he says promised to cure him of his homosexuality.
2008-01-17, Jonathan Kay, Blog, National Post
But perhaps the weirdest part of it all is that Hubbard himself -- a paranoid megalomaniac and sci-fi writer who cobbled the roots of Scientology together out of eastern mythology, utopian futurism, and his own eccentric phobias and schoolboy's love of campy sci-fi neologisms -- was able to attract followers despite being quite plain about the mercantile side. A quote of his from a 1980 Reader's Digest article sums it up: "If a man really wants to make a million dollars, the best way would be to start his own religion."
2008-01-17, quentinkrisp, YouTube
These fair use reportage clips are owned by my friend Rupert. They are not the property of the so called "Church" of Scientology or the hetrosexual actor Tom Cruise. If you actually bother to watch the clip then you'll see that any tiny percentage of non-rupert footage clearly passes the legal test of News Reportage with respect to copyright claims on the whole clip.
2008-01-17, quentinkrisp, YouTube
Note to YouTube Legal:
These fair use reportage clips are owned by my friend Rupert. They are not the property of the so called "Church" of Scientology or the hetrosexual actor Tom Cruise. If you actually bother to watch the clip then you'll see that any tiny percentage of non-rupert footage clearly passes the legal test of News Reportage with respect to copyright claims on the whole clip.
2008-01-17, quentinkrisp, YouTube
Note to YouTube Legal:
These fair use reportage clips are owned by my friend Rupert. They are not the property of the so called "Church" of Scientology or the hetrosexual actor Tom Cruise. If you actually bother to watch the clip then you'll see that any tiny percentage of non-rupert footage clearly passes the legal test of News Reportage with respect to copyright claims on the whole clip.
2008-01-17, quentinkrisp, YouTube
Note to YouTube Legal:
These fair use reportage clips are owned by my friend Rupert. They are not the property of the so called "Church" of Scientology or the hetrosexual actor Tom Cruise. If you actually bother to watch the clip then you'll see that any tiny percentage of non-rupert footage clearly passes the legal test of News Reportage with respect to copyright claims on the whole clip. This 4th one in the series is especially ironic.
2008-01-17, Patrick Barkham, The Guardian
Eighty Scientologists have been awarded Scientology's standard "Freedom Medal" since it was established in 1985, including Kirstie Alley and John Travolta. Cruise's is the same, says Janet Laveau, of the Church of Scientology in Britain, but "the Medal of Valour means the humanitarian work he did reached a larger global population".
1997
23 years ago
1997-01-17, Associated Press
ATHENS, GREECE ATHENS, Greece (AP) _ An Athens court has called the Church of Scientology a danger to society and ordered it to close, drawing fire from Scientologists, who called the decision a sham.
A copy of the ruling obtained by The Associated Press on Friday accused the church of operating under the cloak of a philosophic society to try to lure, brainwash and exploit members.
"It is an organization with medical, social and ethical practices that are dangerous and harmful," Judge Constandia Angelaki wrote in her ruling. "It claims to act freely so as to draw members who subsequently undergo ... brainwashing by dictated ways of thinking that limit reaction capabilities."
FrontCite 01/17/2020 09:03a
See also:
FrontCite Mediawiki
xenu-directory.net: Scientology in the news
Scientology in the UK Media
See also:
FrontCite Mediawiki
xenu-directory.net: Scientology in the news
Scientology in the UK Media