Tomorrow January 21 in Scientology history

A lawyer for That '70s Show actor Danny Masterson pleaded not guilty on his behalf Wednesday to the rapes of three women in the early 2000s. Defence lawyer Tom Mesereau entered the plea for Masterson, who was not present in court, to three charges of rape by force or fear in Los Angeles County Superior Court. The frequently delayed hearing coincided with the inauguration in Washington of President-elect Joe Biden, resulting in far less media attention than Masterson's initial court appearance in June. His arraignment has been postponed several times since.

Tags: 1998, 2000, 2001, 2003, 2006, 2016, 2017, 2019, Ashton Kutcher, Bill Cosby, Chris Jancelewicz, Danny Masterson, Hollywood, Joe Biden, LAPD, Leah Remini, Los Angeles, Los Angeles County District Attorney, Los Angeles County Superior Court, Michael Jackson, Mila Kunis, Netflix, Police, Quicky, Scientology and the Aftermath, Sexual assault, Tom Mesereau, Washington

We were listening yesterday as Danny Masterson's criminal defense attorney Tom Mesereau entered a not guilty plea for the That '70s Show actor at his arraignment on three counts of forcible rape, which carry a potential penalty of 45 years to life in prison. Masterson himself was not in court. He was originally charged on June 16, but several different delays had pushed his arraignment to yesterday. Once again Mesereau objected to cameras being in the courtroom, saying that media reports of the case were tainting a potential jury pool, and that it was the media which was largely responsible for the case being charged to begin with. Prosecutor Reinhold Mueller denied that, saying that the media had nothing to do with it. The court overruled Mesereau's objection and agreed to have cameras present, but didn't permit a live video stream of the matter. (We were still getting a live audio feed at that point thanks to the court's new public access system.)

Tags: 1961, 1969, 1991, 1998, 2001, 2003, 2004, 2017, 2018, 2019, 2020, Bijou Phillips, Bobette Riales, California, Cedric Bixler-Zavala, Chrissie Carnell, Clear, Danny Masterson, Doctor, Environmental Protection Agency, Hollywood, Jackie Lacey, Jenna Elfman, John Travolta, Judge Charlaine Olmedo, Judge Steven Kleifield, Kirstie Alley, LAPD, Los Angeles, Marty Singer, Medical, Michael Jackson, Milton Katselas, Reinhold Mueller, SEC, Sexual assault, SMERSH, Tom Cruise, Tom Mesereau, UK, Valerie Haney

According to police, Peterson was attempting to rob a 49-year-old male employee of the Church of Scientology. Peterson intimated having a gun, but no gun was found on scene. The victim of the attempted robbery suffered bruising and minor cuts, consistent with injuries sustained in a fight. Those injuries are not believed to be serious. Police say they believe the struggle between the two lasted a "considerable amount of time" before help arrived. The victim held the Peterson down on the ground until police arrived. "At some point, with their assistance, he gained control of the robbery suspect and held him on the ground until police arrived," said St. Paul police spokesman Sgt. Mike Ernster.

Tags: Hospital, Police, Quicky, St. Paul

One of our eagle-eyed researchers spotted a stunning photo on Facebook yesterday, and any Diana Hubbard sighting is worth a double-take. The oldest child of L. Ron Hubbard's marriage to his third wife, Mary Sue Whipp, Diana Hubbard is the last member of the Hubbard family who is still an active member of the Church of Scientology. She's 67. For decades she's spent most of her time as a hardcore Sea Org member living at Scientology's secretive 500-acre international management headquarters near Hemet, California known as Int Base or Gold Base.

Tags: 1961, 1979, 1985, 1986, 2002, 2008, 2011, 2016, 2018, Akos Kunfalvy, California, Chris Owen, Clearwater, David Miscavige, Diana Hubbard, England, Europe, Facebook, Florida, Guy White, Hemet, Hungary, Ideal Org, Int Base, International Association of Scientologists, Jeff Pomerantz, Kerri Kasem, Los Angeles, Mary Sue Hubbard, Minneapolis, Patron, Peter Bonyai, Portland, Russia, Saint Hill, Scientology organization, Sea Org, St. Louis, St. Paul

This is a recent posting on the Patheos website — which is really just an outlet for any content the scientology propaganda machine can generate. Some of it offers good insight into the minds of scientology. This article, by T. Riggs Eckleberry (ex-SO — he was just Riggs back then) is another of them. It starts with a premise that is entirely false. Namely that scientology is "truth" and proceeds to build on that false assumption from there. His first sentence asserts that of course scientology is true:

Tags: BBC, Billy Graham, Brigham Young, Charles Manson, David Miscavige, Dianetics, Facebook, Jehovah's Witnesses, Jim Jones, Mary Baker Eddy, Moonies, Nation of Islam, OT, Quicky, Reverend, Riggs Eckleberry, Ron's Journal, Scientology and the Aftermath, Shelly Miscavige, Twitter

Flag is seriously desperate to get anyone into the building for the regges to grab hold of. Flag holding "seminars" by PUBLIC to brief them on "OT" is so weird L. Ron Hubbard would be apoplectic if he had not shuffled off his mortal coil so many years ago. Flag has the highest trained auditors and C/Ses on earth. THE experts on the subject of going OT. But rather than them doing seminars on "the keys to OT" they have two local whales delivering this. Why?

Tags: Black Propaganda, Clearwater, David Miscavige, Field Staff Member, Flag Land Base, Jim Mathers, Mariner Hotel, Mission, Oak Cove, Osceola Inn, OT, OT Committee, Peter Nagy, Quicky, Sandcastle, Sea Org, Yachtsman

As much as Scientology wants the public to think of it as a totally not weird self-help group that offers things like improved communication and business acumen, the reality is much stranger and, frankly, a lot more interesting. What Scientology really offers is a yearslong pursuit of esoteric practices that lead to superhuman powers, granted as a church member reaches the "Operating Thetan" auditing levels. These upper-level secrets are not cheap. And to entice members to keep forking over the big bucks, for decades Advance! magazine has been printing ghost stories, er, totally true and factual accounts of Scientologists discovering their new supernatural skills obtained while they are going through their OTs.

Tags: Advance!, Alejandra Dingler, Andrew Noel, Annette Hochman, Bernard Brecheteau, Betsy Bartlett, Bi-Ju Ho, Bridge to Total Freedom, Chayanee Wills, Chie Mihara, Cia Brenke, Clear, Corinne Silber, Denise Vaughn, Diane Seidule, Donna Boling, Dorothy Wright, Edith Stewart, Freewinds, Gareth Ellzey, Gemma Quiles Raga, Gianluigi Vercellino, Gustavo Carballo Parini, Hila Shabtay, Idan Gov Ari, Ilse Van Hoof, Ingrid Neumann, Isabel Ayuso, Kala Ellenberger, Katsumi Seito, Marcel Matar, Maria Eugenia Cruz Abreu, Maryvonne Hussler, Melinda Konczne Ezsias, Natalia Sultanova, Operating Thetan, OT, OT 8, OT Phenomena, Peter Stephens, Robert Johnson, Rosanna Crepaldi, Sandra Capelli, Sydney, Sydney Sherman, Teresa Gil, Tessy Salame, Tina Melvin, Tom Leach, Tommasina Pasqua Sideris, Tomoko Seito, Yana Magazova, Yung-Hsin Liao, Zoe Lai, Zsolt Nemeth

I answer why Scientologists pay freeloader bills & how Scientology enforces payment of these bills. Aaron Smith-Levin Twitter: @GrowingUpInSCN

Tags: Aaron Smith-Levin, Aftermath Foundation, Facebook, Freeloader Debt, Leah Remini, Quicky, Sea Org, Twitter

The weekly show where I answer viewer questions left in the comments sections of my Critical Q&A videos or sent to me by email to AskChrisShelton@gmail.com. This week, the questions I answer are: (1) You mentioned in "Bridge to Nowhere" videos that, from talking to other OT 8s, they have confirmed there are no other levels to be offered after OT 8. First, as much as I agree with the fact that they are milking people for more money and fund-raising and saying there aren't enough staff to deliver any other levels, there has been talk about introducing levels nine and ten for past many years. From working for them before, do you know if in fact these levels especially OT 9 called "Orders of Magnitude" and OT 10 called "Character" are just made up? (2) Can you answer a question on an upcoming Q and A about the "Why TRs" movie, the one on the Saint Hill Special Briefing Course which Isaac Hayes narrates? I have long believed that movie's concepts get no discussion. LRH makes the point that the Class 6s need to have in memory, the principles for their future lives on other planets when they find themselves sometime in a future life on a decayed civilization and they have to get Scientology going there on their own.

Tags: Critic, Edinburgh, Farsec, Isaac Hayes, L. Ron Hubbard, OT, OT 10, OT 8, OT 9, Quicky, Rehabilitation Project Force, Saint Hill Special Briefing Course, Sea Org, UK, Xenu

Scientology's practice of disconnection pushes members to sever contact with anyone leaving the cult, including rending the relationship between parents and children. This practice, which hangs over the head of anyone starting to doubt their commitment to the group, has been the backbone of much of the recent bad publicity that has turned Scientology's reputation from "odd but harmless" into "dangerous and should be forbidden." I believe that the way Scientology practices disconnection goes far beyond merely unethical and immoral, and its systematic nature may actually cross the line into criminal behavior. Perhaps no Scientology "practice" or policy is more feared or loathed, than that of "disconnection. Despite the church's claims to the contrary, this extraordinarily draconian punishment involves the exile, shunning, removal, or exclusion, of those not doctrinally, philosophically, or ideologically aligned with Scientology's world view.

Tags: 2013, 2014, Advanced Org, Blackmail, Catholic Church, Chris Shelton, Clearwater, Committee of Evidence, Criminal, Cult, David Miscavige, Debbie Cook, Disconnection, Ethics, Ethics Officer, Extortion, Facebook, Florida, Fundraising, Hana Whitfield, Ideal Org, International Association of Scientologists, IRS, Jeff Wasel, Jehovah's Witnesses, L. Ron Hubbard, Lori Hodgson, Marty Rathbun, Master at Arms, Mat Pesch, Michael Fairman, Michael Tilse, Milton, North Korea, Office of Special Affairs, OT, OT VIII, Potential Trouble Source, Quicky, Real estate, Scientology Media Productions, Scientology Money Project, Scientology practice, Sec Check, Suppressive Person, Tax exempt, Threats, WISE, World Institute of Scientology Enterprises, Xenu

Rod Keller has a disturbing report about Scientology using indigenous people in Canada to help spread its misinformation through one of its sneaky front groups. Scientology opened an anti-Psychiatry exhibit this week in the Vancouver, BC neighborhood known as Downtown Eastside. The familiar "Psychiatry - Industry of Death" exhibit by CCHR, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights, is being promoted to expose "Labeling, Drugging and Oppressing First Nations." We have leaked video footage of the exhibit opening. First Nations refers to the indigenous people of Canada below the Arctic Circle and is the prefered term to "Indians," which is considered offensive. There are 634 recognized governments, and First Nations are a protected class under Canadian employment laws. Poverty, unemployment and crime are higher among First Nations, while life expectancy, quality of education and health care are worse than the general population. Fortunately, Scientology has somebody to blame for hundreds of years of inequality in Canadian society - Psychiatrists.

Tags: 1950, 1969, 2008, 2015, 2017, American Psychiatric Association, American Psychological Association, Anonymous, Assault, Asylum, Better Business Bureau, California, Canada, CCHR, Colorado, Dianetics, Director of Special Affairs, Foundation for a Drug-Free World, France, Fraud, Hollywood, Hollywood Boulevard, Holocaust, Kiev, Los Angeles, Mental Health, Mexico City, Office of Special Affairs, Psychiatry: Industry of Death, Quicky, Rod Keller, Sharon Werner, The Way to Happiness, Tom Cruise, Ukraine, Vancouver

Senator Jeff Flake (R - Arizona) made a speech a few days ago on the Senate floor. Though a Republican, he excoriated President Trump over attacks on the media and his catchphrases "Fake News" and "enemy of the people." I was brought up to believe the media are "Merchants of Chaos" and should be "kicked down the stairs" because L. Ron Hubbard said so. He proclaimed the media to be enemies of scientology and therefore enemies of mankind. It was a mindset I held for 40 years. He made no bones about his disdain for the "running dog press" who only want to "take him down" and "destroy scientology and his good work." One of his last public utterances was "if the papers say it, it isn't true."

Tags: 2017, Amnesty International, Arizona, Bill Clinton, Bryan Seymour, Congress, Donald Trump, England, Fake, Freedom magazine, George Orwell, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, HBO, Jeff Flake, Joe Childs, John F. Kennedy, John Sweeney, Journalist, Lawrence Wright, Merchants of Chaos, New York, New Yorker, Paulette Cooper, Philippines, Politician, Quicky, Republican, Richard Nixon, Russia, Steve Cannane, Syria, Tampa Bay Times, Tom Tobin, Twitter, Venezuela, Washington, Washington Post, White House (Trump)

In 2013, France's highest court upheld a ruling that Scientology, in that country at least, is a fraud. And key to that court decision, as well as the one it upheld, was an anti-cult organization named UNADFI that had acted as a plaintiff in both trials and had made sure judges heard damaging information about the American organization. Now, Scientology has managed to get a bit of revenge. Although its status as a fraud is unchanged, Scientology learned that fines levied against UNADFI will be upheld as the same high court has ruled that the anti-cult group never should have been a part of those trials. The Cour de Cassation rejected a bid by UNADFI to overturn an appeal court ruling that it had taken part in the trial when it knew it had no standing as plaintiff.

Tags: 2009, 2013, 2014, 2015, Auckland, Australia, Cour de Cassation, David Miscavige, Denver, Eric Roux, European Court of Human Rights, France, HowdyCon, Ideal Org, Jonny Jacobsen, New Zealand, Olivier Morice, Paris, Russia, Scientology organization, UNADFI

While the new HQ was apparently open to the public, reporters were stalked around by suspicious Scientologists. "When we arrived there we were quickly approached by the press officer. At first she was friendly but she got increasing agitated and followed us around as we talked to neighbours," says Newshub reporter Kim Vinnell. "We asked her to stop, and she said it was a public place and she said we were 'untrustworthy media', and Scientology has the right to control their media image."

Tags: Auckland, Bomb threat, Ideal Org, New Zealand

Another provocative essay from our old friend Terra Cognita. Scientology's End Game One of these days David Miscavige will be gone and then what? Will one of his sycophants take over? Or will a more enlightened individual or group seize the reins and usher in a real "new era?"

Tags: Advanced Org, David Miscavige, Disconnection, Flag Order, Ideal Org, International Association of Scientologists, Keep Scientology Working, L. Ron Hubbard, Org Board, OT, Quicky, Scientology organization, Sea Org, Suppressive Person, Terra Cognita

Last week I posted the second of a multi-part interview with former Scientologist Tim DeWall. In our first interview we discussed how Tim got hooked into Scientology and in our second, we talked about how he got onto staff at the Church of Scientology of Tampa. This week, we go over the rest of his years on staff after he was promoted to the job of Executive Director, the one who actually runs the whole organization. Knowing everything Tim has said in this interview, I want you to know that Tim's experience as a Scientology executive was not unique and different and strange. He tells it like it was and it's not a pretty picture. Unfortunately, the kind of abuses and mismanagement that was going on then remains the same now. When I was in the Sea Organization, I worked at the level of continental org management for my first eight years and I can attest that everything Tim describes was happening in the East US was also happening where I was in the West US. The entire tone and attitude of how the Sea Organizatoin manages the lower organizations such as Tampa and how they treat one another and the staff is set by the Captain of the Sea Org, David Miscavige. It doesn't have to be the way that it is and it never has had to be that way. The frantic and constant stream of orders and emergencies come from the very top and are pushed down to the lower level managers and executives and none of them feel they have any choice but to follow their orders.

Tags: David Miscavige, Quicky, Scientology executive, Sea Org, Tampa, Tim DeWall

AIKEN, S.C. — With a month to go before the GOP presidential primary here, a group of activists in the basement of a local pizzeria called voters Tuesday evening to remind them of "corrupt politicians" and "special interests" hijacking their government. Although the frustrated, anti-establishment tone is similar to rhetoric coming from some of the presidential campaigns, these volunteers weren't working on behalf of any White House hopeful looking for a victory in this early state. Dressed in bright green T-shirts, with their iPads and flip-phones in hand, these activists are part of the largest grassroots operation on the right: the Koch-backed conservative group Americans for Prosperity.

Tags: Alt-Right, Americans for Prosperity, David Koch, Facebook, Grover Norquist, Indiana, Jim DeMint, Koch Bro, Medicaid, Republican, South Carolina, Tax, Tennessee, Tim Phillips, Utah, White House

Should the Church of Scientology be of interest to the Department of Homeland Security? Thanks to the hard work of researcher R.M. Seibert covered recently at the Underground Bunker, the public now knows that Scientology submitted 3,447 R1 religious worker visa petitions between 2009-2015: As Tony Ortega noted:

Tags: 2009, 2015, Abortion, Canada, Clearwater Police Department, Colombia, Department of Homeland Security, Fair Game, Flag Land Base, Germany, Hungary, Italy, Mental breakdown, Mexico, Office of Special Affairs, Passport, Pinellas County Sheriff's Department, Quicky, R.M. Seibert, Rehabilitation Project Force, Religious worker, Russia, Sea Org, Taiwan, Tony Ortega, Ukraine, Underground Bunker, Venezuela

From SNL We Stand Tall parody video Find out what it's been like Seriously? It has sucked. No progress on anything since the "ideal CLO" and "ideal SH" and "ideal NN." A special guest speaker from CLO UK! Wow... Going to fly to Edinburgh tomorrow so I don't miss out. Just think how you would have kicked yourself if you had not taken the opportunity to attend what would have been the last David Bowie live performance...

Tags: Alex Espinosa, Boston, Brighton, Charles Fox, Clear, CLO UK, David Bowie, Denver, Edinburgh, England, Fitzroy House, Hastings, Hubbard Academy of Personal Independence, Inglewood, Jasmin Renna, L. Ron Hubbard, L. Ron Hubbard Hall, Las Vegas, Paola Lombardi, Quicky, Saturday Night Live, Spyro Morfopoulos, Thursday Funnies, Valencia, Vicki Shantz, We Stand Tall

We're getting yet closer to that big anniversary — 30 years since L. Ron Hubbard shuffled off this mortal coil to surf the galaxy in thetan form — and so we're still looking back through our files to remember the Great Thetan in his time. Once again, we have a fun document for you that researcher R.M. Seibert managed to pry out of the FDA as part of its 1960s investigation of Hubbard and Scientology. And this one gives us a nice peek at Hubbard's days before he absconded from the US. To put this in context, remember that Hubbard published Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health in May, 1950, which set off a brief national craze, with Dianetics clubs setting up around the country. Hubbard cashed in by setting up "foundations" in places like New Jersey and California, but soon enough the craze subsided, and Hubbard's nightmare year of 1951 had him mired in a nasty divorce with his second wife, Sara Northrup. With the help of a rich Kansas oilman, Hubbard regrouped and went to Phoenix to start over, coming up with something called "Scientology" because, for a short time, he couldn't use the name "Dianetics." By 1952, he was married to his third wife, Mary Sue Whipp, and he was still struggling to get Scientology hitting on all cylinders. When he did have success, it tended to attract the attention of the government, which was more vigilant then about people making outlandish health claims. So, in 1953 Hubbard proposed to his loyal follower Helen O'Brien that they try out "the religion angle" to throw the government off, and in December of that year Hubbard created the first "Church of Scientology" corporation in Camden, New Jersey. A second Church corporation followed a few months later in Los Angeles.

Tags: 1950, 1951, 1952, 1953, 1955, 1956, 1957, 1958, 1959, 1960, 1961, 1963, 1967, 1969, 1980, 1990, 1991, 1993, Arizona, Art Tavana, Author Services Inc, Better Business Bureau, California, Camden, Chris Shelton, David Miscavige, DC, Dianetics, E-meter, England, Food and Drug Administration, Founding Church, Fred Goldberg, George Washington University, Helen O'Brien, Hubbard Association of Scientologists International, International Association of Scientologists, IRS, Joel Sappell, Kansas, Kim Christensen, LA Weekly, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, Mary Sue Hubbard, Mental Health, New Jersey, New York, Phoenix, Quicky, R.M. Seibert, Robert Welkos, Sara Northrup, Scientology organization, Sequoia University, Tax exempt, Tim DeWall, Tom Cruise, Washington

So far, most of my videos have been about Scientology. As a former member of that organization, I have plenty of reasons to speak out against it and I will continue to do so. But my blog and website are called Critical Thinker at Large for a reason. I'm not the Ex-Scientologist at Large. So here we go with something new. I'm taking up a challenge here. I've been accused of not being a critical thinker because I look on global conspiracy theories with doubts and skepticism. Now a majority of people don't actually buy into the notion of conspiracies. If you are one of these people, I think you're going to find this video very helpful in understanding why people do subscribe to these beliefs. It may also help when you are confronted by someone who insists on arguing with you about them. For those of you who do believe in global conspiracies, I'm not here to tell you that your conspiracy theory is bollocks because I don't know if it's true or not. Just because I don't believe your premise right away does not mean that I'm saying it's not true. It's not a black and white issue to me.

Tags: 2014, Abuse, Alex Jones, Canada, Conspiracy, Critic, Cult, Facebook, Occam's Razor, Quicky

This story first appeared in the Jan. 30 issue of The Hollywood Reporter magazine. Lance Armstrong is not mad at Alex Gibney. No, not even though Gibney's 2013 documentary, which was supposed to be about Armstrong's triumphant emergence from retirement to compete in the Tour de France, turned out to be an exposé on doping called The Armstrong Lie. "I remember vividly when he reached out to me to tell me he had selected the title," Armstrong says. "I said, 'OK, it doesn't make me feel great,' but I don't blame him. I did lie. What the f— are you going to say?" He still thinks Gibney portrayed him as more untruthful than he actually was, but he admires the filmmaker's brains as well as his willingness to tackle subject matter such as that of Gibney's new film. "This Scientology thing — that just takes a huge set to take on," Armstrong says. "But he has the courage to do it."

Tags: 1978, 1981, 1992, 2000, 2003, 2004, 2006, 2007, 2008, 2010, 2012, 2013, 9/11, Alex Gibney, Al-Qaeda, Amazon, Austin, Boston, Catholic, Catholic Church, Celebrity Centre, Content Media, Cuba, David Miscavige, Documentary, Filmmaker, France, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, HBO, Hollywood, Hospital, IRS, Japan, John Schmid, John Travolta, Karin Pouw, Lance Armstrong, Lawrence Wright, Leah Remini, Leaving Scientology, Los Angeles, Los Angeles Times, Mike Rinder, NBC, New York, New York City, New York Times, New Yorker, Park City, Pat Kingsley, Paul Haggis, Private investigator, Pulitzer, Quicky, Rolling Stone, Sheila Nevins, Spanky Taylor, Sundance Film Festival, Tax, Telex, Tom Cruise

The prices are coming DOWN, DOWN, DOWN in a desperate last ditch effort to get some money, any money to keep the Freewinds able to buy oil for the generators to keep the lights on. $100 a day for a shared cabin and food is unheard of. The Freewinds used to charge Ritz Carlton rates for their Holiday Inn accommodations (the food was usually above average, but not spectacular). Now they are trying to get people to pay Motel 6 rates. And this is the PEAK season in the Caribbean. Seems the Freewinds is heading for a Mary Celeste* culmination to her 1,465,385.3 miles of 100% Sea Org safe cruising.... Obviously, the reputation of the Freewinds, based on the experience of so many, has drastically cut the number willing to pay for the dubious pleasure of subjecting themselves to full time regging and harassment. That and the fact that every OT VII is being told to redo Purif and Objectives.

Tags: Caribbean, Congress, Freewinds, International Association of Scientologists, OT, OT VII, Purification Rundown, Quicky, Sea Org, Wikipedia, WISE

With just days to go until the beginning of what may turn out to be the biggest challenge the Church of Scientology has ever faced, we're watching in awe as the organization fires back on several different fronts. With Alex Gibney's documentary "Going Clear" opening Sunday at the Sundance Film Festival and then airing March 16 on HBO, we're seeing church leader David Miscavige respond with a full page ad in the New York Times, an advertising blitz on network television, and other major pushes to get Scientology's message out on its own terms. It turns out, there's plenty of precedence for this. As former Scientology spokesman Mike Rinder pointed out to us, this is exactly the way Miscavige responded to a previous threat - the devastating 1991 TIME magazine cover story about Scientology by journalist Richard Behar. Scientology ran full page ads in USA Today, pursued a major legal onslaught with multiple lawsuits that lasted for years, and denuded whole forests so it could counter the bad publicity with its own publications to 'set the record straight.'

Tags: 1963, 1968, 1991, Alex Gibney, Clear, David Miscavige, Dianetics, Facebook, Food and Drug Administration, Foundation for a Drug-Free World, France, Going Clear: Scientology, Hollywood, and the Prison of Belief, HBO, Hollywood Reporter, John F. Kennedy, Kim Masters, Melbourne, Mike Rinder, Miss New York, New York Times, Park City, Richard Behar, Robert Kennedy, Sundance Film Festival, TIME, Truth About Drugs, USA Today, Utah, Vanity Fair, Vivian Kubrick

LOS ANGELES (AP) — Just as Hollywood's awards season heats up, half the town takes off for a snowy getaway to Park City, Utah, for the Sundance Film Festival. Celebrating its 31st year, the festival has steadily outgrown its indie-film roots to showcase emerging and established talent in art, music, television, film and new media. All kinds of installations pop up during the 10-day event to lure movie lovers and the Hollywood crowd, from Sundance-sponsored panel discussions to concerts, parties, dinners, gift suites, even camera and car showrooms.

Tags: Alex Gibney, BuzzFeed News, Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief, Hollywood, Movie, Music, OT, Park City, Quicky, Sandy Cohen, Seoul, Silver, Sundance, Sundance Film Festival, Utah

My parents joined the Church of Scientology before I was born, and most of my earliest memories of life came from inside that world. My dad wasn't Tom Cruise, and my mom wasn't Priscilla Presley. We were normal, working class Scientologists. And our lives were fucking nightmares. Let me count the ways ...

Tags: Disconnection, Fair Game, Sea Org, Sec Check, Suppressive Person, Tone Scale, Touch Assist, Word Clearing

Woah, wait on a sec. Perhaps that was not the best slogan for Scientology to put a couple of million dollars behind in 2013. When all is said in done, people who do that end up getting booted out and disconnected from. They needed an ad for 2014 that's more in line with the imaginary expansion that Scientology is experiencing at the moment. Imagine science... and religion... connectingImagine technology... and spirituality... combiningNow imagine... that everything you ever imagined... is possibleScientology... there are higher states of existence

Tags: 2013, Battle Creek, David Miscavige, Diana Hubbard, Disconnection, Flag Building, International Association of Scientologists, OT, Quicky, Sec Check

(Article by Special Correspondent) The news is out that David Miscavige is loaning Scientology Auckland the sixteen million dollars needed to renovate their new "Ideal Org". This will follow up the ten million that they were loaned already to buy the building. There has been some speculation as to why he might do this, since Auckland is not exactly the "crossroads of the world". His constant companion Lou Henley-Smith is from Auckland, as is her large and almost entirely Scientologist family. So I would think that would be a factor. Perhaps another factor is that the new Auckland "ideal org" is one of the first buildings David Miscavige announced as being purchased by an "IAS Grant" back in 2007, early on in the Ideal Org campaign.

Tags: 2006, 2007, 2011, 2012, 2013, Auckland, Australia, Census, Church of Scientology International, David Miscavige, Ideal Org, International Association of Scientologists, Mike Ferriss, New Zealand, Quicky, Sunday Star-Times, Tom Cruise

In December, a 56-year-old woman who had long been a prominent presence at Scientology's Hollywood Celebrity Centre, Barbara Cordova Oliver, flew home to Los Angeles from Clearwater and suffered a nervous breakdown. Her mother, Arlene Cordova, 80, called police to her home, where Barbara was staying. (Arlene has never been involved with Scientology.) Barbara was taken by police to Olive View-UCLA Medical Center in Sylmar, where she was held for observation. Arlene visited her daughter in the facility, but on December 12, she says that Barbara's Scientologist husband Robert Oliver and a Scientology attorney attended a court hearing that enabled them to get Barbara out of Olive View.

Tags: 1995, 1997, 2009, 2011, Arlene Cordova, Artists for a Better World, Barbara Cordova, Barbara Cordova Oliver, Buffalo, California, Celebrity Centre, Cincinnati, Clearwater, Dallas, DC, DEA, Denver, Eric Idle, Florida, Fort Harrison, Harlem, Hollywood, Ideal Org, Introspection Rundown, John Wood, Karin Pouw, Las Vegas, Life Center for a New Tomorrow, Lisa McPherson, Los Angeles, Marc Vallieres, Medical, Mental breakdown, My Billion Year Contract, Nancy Many, Nashville, New York, Phoenix, Portland, Psychiatric treatment, Robert Oliver, Sacramento, Seattle, Super Bowl, Tampa, Tennessee, Twin Cities, UK, Washington, YouTube

We are happy to report that love springs eternal for Tom Cruise's daughter Isabella, who has been reunited with her boyfriend Eddie Frencher. In August, we broke the news that Eddie had joined Scientology's elite clerical order, the "Sea Organization," which requires its members to sign billion-year contracts. Apparently, that turned out to be a billion years too many for Frencher, and both lovebirds appear very happy about it. It was about a year ago when the tabloids excitedly first reported that Isabella was dating Frencher, a Los Angeles musician who grew up in Scientology. Later in the year, the couple moved into an apartment with another young Scientology member, Sarah Waterkamp, in downtown LA. But Isabella and Eddie moved out when Sarah's father, Gerhard Waterkamp, left the church and asked for a refund (a big no-no in Scientology).

Tags: 1960, 1975, 2001, 2007, 2012, Apollo, Eddie Frencher, Facebook, Isabella Cruise, Karin Pouw, London, Los Angeles, Mediterranean, Narconon Arrowhead, Oklahoma, Quicky, Sea Org, Tom Cruise

Even more impressive is that many of Scientology's major real estate holdings were acquired in the past decade. From 2004 to 2011, Scientology claims to have doubled its portfolio with 23 new churches. Hundreds of millions of dollars have gone into buying up landmark businesses, renovating them and rebranding them as ornate Scientology centers - perhaps in an attempt to alter the religion's reputation as a shadowy cult.

Tags: Brussels, Clearwater, DC, Fort Harrison, Ideal Org, Los Angeles, Melbourne, Mexico City, Nashville, Quebec City, St. Paul, Super Power, Tampa

In my view, what we are dealing with for the most part with corporate scientologists is denialism. I came across a very clear description of the phenomenon in a book by Michael Specter, Denialism, Penguin Books 2009: We have all been in denial at some point in our lives; faced with truths too painful to accept, rejection often seems the only way to cope. Under those circumstances, facts, no matter how detailed or irrefutable, rarely make a difference. Denialism is denial writ large — when an entire segment of society, often struggling with the trauma of change, turns away from reality in favor of a more comfortable lie... ...Unless data fits neatly into an already formed theory, a denialist doesn't really see it as data at all. That enables him to dismiss even the most compelling evidence as just another point of view.

Tags: 2009, 2010, Quicky

Someone's been waiting a long time to get his oiliness checked. It was an amazing week here at the underground bunker, where we keep an eye on all things Scientology. Let's take a look back at how the week unfolded before we recognize the work of our illustrious commenting community. We starting things out by having fun with the Tone Scale in our regular weekend feature, Sunday Funnies. Then, on Monday, we asked Jefferson Hawkins for his thoughts on Scientology's sudden big ad buy on network television, which seems to be ongoing. (And the reactions at Twitter when the 2-minute commercials have appeared during shows like American Idol and Glee have been priceless!) On Tuesday, we gave you yet another look at the wacky plans for the Super Power Building, this time with glimpses of the Infinite Pit, Water Wall, and yes, another look at everyone's favorite -- the Oiliness Table!

Tags: 1983, 1984, 2009, Allen Wright, ANZO, Apollo, Australia, Commodore's Messenger Organization, David Miscavige, Disconnection, Elder abuse, Flag Mecca, Gloria Idda, Ida Camburn, International Association of Scientologists, Jefferson Hawkins, Kate Bornstein, L. Ron Hubbard, Mark Ebner, Melbourne, Mission, Missouri, Office of Special Affairs, Patty Moher, Paul Schofield, Potential Trouble Source, Quicky, Rehabilitation Project Force, Religious Technology Center, Squirrel Busters, St. Louis, Sunday Funnies, Super Power Building, Switzerland, Sydney, Synthia Fagen, Tone Scale, Twitter, Victoria, Virginia, Virginia Stewart

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video, Washington

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video

L. Ron Hubbard delivering his Scientology address @ the: Clearing Congress - The Fact of Clearing- 4 July 1958, Washington D.C.

Tags: 1958, Clear, Clearing Congress, L. Ron Hubbard, Video

JB told me that just prior to his blow from the Int base last Spring that he felt particularly ill at ease after a brief encounter he had with David Miscavige's father, trumpeter Ron Miscavige Sr. Ron stopped JB as he was walking across the base and asked him if he knew about me and others being interviewed by Anderson Cooper of CNN. JB knew little to nothing about it at that time and communicated as much. Ron, faced flushed red and trembling, said "they ought to be shot." Mike and I know that Ron Miscavige receives his briefings about such "external flaps" directly and only from David Miscavige. When JB learned that, the incident was all the more chilling to him. He then connected the dots with another incident that occurred just prior to that, wherein Miscavige's communicator asked JB to retrieve a .38 caliber pistol from the guns room for Dave. From the descriptions the pistol belonged to me. The church failed to send it along when I demanded all of my personal MEST after leaving. All of this was reported to law enforcement authorities and it has been investigated thoroughly. So that nobody get too excited about it, apparently, the intended op was not to have me murdered with my own gun, but instead to somehow link it to my brother's murder thirty-one years ago, five years before the gun was even manufactured. To add irony to insanity, the gun was given to me as a gift by Miscavige and I had only shot it once on his exclusive target range at the Int base because I had to per protocol come there when invited by him. Law enforcement found out that the gun was in fact registered to Rick Aznaran, a former staff member who double hatted as Guns I/C on the base in the eighties. Incidentally, most guns – dozens of them – on the base were so registered, and David Miscavige is the ONLY person who controls, and thus effectively owns, all of them. His personal arsenal makes David Koresh look like a kid with a sling shot. This op is typical of the buffoonery practiced under the "leadership" of David Miscavige. For those unfamiliar with the matter concerning my brother's death, please see: https://markrathbun.wordpress.com/2010/08/13/murder-outs/ I tell you this not to frighten you, but instead to illustrate how apparencies projected by a criminal organization can appear far more sinister and threatening than they are in fact. JB – who had more than thirty years on staff – was pretty concerned about my personal physical safety (and bless him for offering to implement all manner of security measures at my home). I could have found a hole to crawl into. But Mike and I knew with certainty, from years inside the evil ops circle, that the facts JB knew were going to wind up fizzling in some comedic, albeit, sick dead end. And so, we reported it but turned most of our attention to getting the show on the road. And JB, holding his position in space against twenty coyotes sent to retrieve him, calmly observing events as they unfolded, decompressing, and learning to comfortably confront evil rather than let it get him, is living a marvelous and fulfilling life.

Tags: 2010, Anderson Cooper, BBC, CNN, David Koresh, David Miscavige, DC, Disconnection, Facebook, Guns, Independent, L. Ron Hubbard, Law enforcement, Lori Hodgson, Mary Jo Leavitt, New York Times, OT, Quicky, Richard Aznaran, Ron Miscavige, Ron Miscavige Sr

Following my posting of the Open Letter from religious scholar James Lewis, if anyone would like to assist in his research into Ex-Scientologists, Independent Scientologists and Freezone, please fill out his survey here: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/SL33DLP (function(g){g.__ATA.initAd({sectionId:26942, width:300, height:250});})(window);

Tags: Freezone, Independent Scientologists, James Lewis, Quicky

Three French members of the Church of Scientology, suspected of holding a fourth person against their will, were arrested Monday in Nuoro, Sardinia, a local police spokesman told AFP. "The three people belong to the Church of Scientology, whereas the person being held was probably not a member," Fabrizio Mustaro, of the Nuoro Prefecture on the Mediterranean island, told AFP. Police were alerted by a phone call that reported cries for help coming from a house on Mount Ortobene, near Nuoro, said Mustaro. Officers found a 47-year-old woman of Tunisian origin sleeping semi-naked on a mattress infested with vermin. She was subsequently hospitalised. Three other people at the house, a 42-year-old woman and two 18-year-old men, one of Tunisian origin, were arrested and charged with kidnapping. The three suspects had been living in the Nuoro region for about year, said Mustaro. They had so far refused to speak to officers, he added. All three were due to appear in court late Monday or early Tuesday.

Tags: Arrest, False imprisonment, France, Italy, Kidnapping, Martine Boublil, Mediterranean, Police, Tunisia

Police were alerted by a phone call that reported cries for help coming from a house on Mount Ortobene, near Nuoro. Three French members of the Church of Scientology, suspected of holding a fourth person against their will, were arrested Monday in Nuoro, Sardinia, a local police spokesman told AFP. "The three people belong to the Church of Scientology, whereas the person being held was probably not a member," Fabrizio Mustaro, of the Nuoro Prefecture on the Mediterranean island, told AFP. Police were alerted by a phone call that reported cries for help coming from a house on Mount Ortobene, near Nuoro, said Mustaro. Officers found a 47-year-old woman of Tunisian origin sleeping semi-naked on a mattress infested with vermin. She was subsequently hospitalised. Three other people at the house, a 42-year-old woman and two 18-year-old men, one of Tunisian origin, were arrested and charged with kidnapping.

Tags: Arrest, France, Italy, Kidnapping, Martine Boublil, Mediterranean, Police, Tunisia

The rotunda, though, is jumping. A group called the Citizen Commission on Human Rights has packed the central space with no fewer than eight flat-panel TVs and 185 feet of six-foot-tall, full-color displays, all of them blasting the practice of psychiatry. The exhibit's title captures its subtlety: "Psychiatry: An Industry of Death."

Tags: CCHR, Kansas City

Hello, Scientology. We are Anonymous. The video that kicked off Anonymous' Project Chanology against Scientology.

Tags: Anonymous, Japan, Project Chanology, Religious Technology Center, Russia, Video

Tom Cruise has personally, PERSONALLY, been pwned. This weekend, an anonymous Internet group (named Anonymous -- these are not masters of subtlety) started a war with the Church of Scientology by hammering the group's web site; Scientology.org is down after a brief traffic spike. This isn't the only group of Internet users unafraid of the intimidating cult; a whole range of sites has turned the Church into a mockery by doing what mainstream celebrity-coverage outlets wouldn't dare. Here's a guide to the war (and a creepy manifesto made by The Internet!).

Tags: Anonymous, Tom Cruise

"It's like arguing that the earth is flat," Dr. James Scully, the Medical Director of the American Psychiatric Association, told The Scoop. "Psychiatry is a branch of medicine supported by substantial research. . . . Comments like that are absurd. . . . If someone is suffering and needs to get help, it would be a shame if they do not get the help that could help them because a celebrity says something."

Tags: American Psychiatric Association, Tom Cruise

Re: Scientology's 70th anniversary celebration for the Fort Harrison Hotel. I could not help but notice the contrast in happenings on the corners of Pierce Street and S Fort Harrison Avenue in Clearwater on Saturday night.

Tags: Christian, Clearwater, Fort Harrison, Tampa

Scientology critic Jeff Jacobsen helped get the church in hot water over a Florida death. Now, church members have figured out where he lives. Residents of a quiet south Scottsdale neighborhood received an unusual present the day after Christmas. In their mailboxes, homeowners found a flier with a picture of one of their neighbors.

Tags: alt.scientology.war, Bruce Pettycrew, Cheryl Waldrip, Fair Game, Fort Harrison, Introspection Rundown, Jeff Jacobsen, Kristi Wachter, L. Ron Hubbard, Leslie Durhman, Lisa McPherson, OT, Phoenix, Russell Shaw, Stacy Young, Xenu

First, our letter never compared modern Germany, as a whole, to the Nazi regime, and we certainly never compared the treatment of Scientologists to the treatment of Jews during the Holocaust. What we compared was the campaign to exclude Scientologists from all aspects of German public life with the similar campaign waged against the Jews in the early and mid 1930s, before there were death camps.

Tags: Bert Fields, Helmut Kohl, Nazi labelling

Glad it's over: Kathy Tonkin, formerly of Kirkland, who hired a cult "deprogrammer" to get her 18-year-old son out of a Bellevue church, will probably not be charged with any crimes following this week's acquittal of the deprogrammer on unlawful-imprisonment charges. "The victim does not want us to charge his mother," said Joe Wheeler, deputy Grays Harbor County prosecutor. "In a week or so, we'll sit down and figure out whether to do so."

Tags: Charles Simpson, Joe Wheeler, Kathy Tonkin, Mark Workman, Rick Ross