God Bless John Travolta's big, confused and misguided heart. CNN reports Travolta, a licensed pilot, flew his own plane down to Haiti to bring supplies, several doctors, his wife and Scientology ministers.

Er, wait, back up, did that say Scientology ministers? Ok, this went from a mercy mission for the people of Haiti, to a mission to disseminate cult materials and annoy the crap out of an already destitute and broken people. Seriously, let me illuminate you on what a Scientology crisis mission entails.

Scientology trains some of their members to join what they call their "Volunteer Ministries."  The VM, or Vulture Ministries as those in the know call them, are a group of untrained members who go on "relief missions" to the poorest parts of the world or those hit by disaster, under the guise of helping.  However, that's only part of the picture.

Using the religious cloaking they so effectively shroud themselves in, some past missions have included 9/11, Katrina, the Virginia Tech shooting massacre and recently, opening Scientology schools in India.  While on the surface this sounds great, what you don't see is what actually happens on the ground once they are there.

First, they set up yellow tents with tables that have their various "religious materials" displayed for your viewing pleasure, including their ubiquitous pamphlets advertising their "Bridge to Total Freedom." Then, if they are bored, they will wonder around and see if any other relief organizations have supplies which need to be handed out, like water or food, and these VM's, with their uniforms on proceed to pass out OTHER group’s supplies. Kind of a sweet deal if you can get it.

The worse part of all this, because so far, what I've described isn't terribly different than some other religious organizations, is when they start preaching the virtues of Scientology. Or administer their "Free Stress Tests" by using their e-meters (a cheaply-made lie detector) to try and find a victim's "ruin" (the source of his or her's pain, which the Church hopes is something deviant or sexual in nature).  Pat Robertson would love this, as you know, Haiti signed that pact with the Devil two centuries ago.  Oh religion, how you have forsaken us.

I freely admit I am biased in a negative way towards the Church of Scientology. However, after years of reporting on their innate level of malevolence towards anyone who does not rabidly adhere to their philosophies (new-age self-help schlock) I feel responsible to warn the public of their hidden agenda. 

John Travolta is the only Scientologist celebrity I hold any sympathy for, so I am sure, positive in fact, his heart is in the right place.  He wants to help the people of Haiti and probably truly feels by going there, that's what he is doing.  However, for those of us NOT trapped by their cultish devices, all they are doing is impeding progress, harassing the down-trodden and foisting poorly-written Scientology documents on an already overwhelmed and devastated population.

If people really want to help Haiti, give to any of the responsible and reputable relief organizations taking donations for the relief effort.  We recommend checking out our post on donation entry portals, or Doctors Without Borders, Red Cross, Unicef, Clinton/Bush Haiti Fund, Hope For Haiti Now.

Posted originally at Technorati.com

Yesterday during Rush Limbaugh's radio show he discussed with a caller the grave situation in Haiti. True to form, Rush used this as an opportunity to bash President Obama and his request for people wanting to donate, to do so to Red Cross through the White House website. I realize asking people to donate to Red Cross is some pretty polarizing stuff, but I guess sometimes you have to put your political views aside when there's a crisis of epic proportions going on.

Rush Limbaugh unleashed a barrage of sarcastic commentary bent on discouraging people from donating ANYTHING to Haiti, for, as he said, "We've already donated to Haiti. It's called the U.S. income tax."

In a way Rush is right, the U.S. donates millions and millions of dollars in aid to Haiti, and often it goes right into the hands of the corrupt-to-the-core leadership of the poverty-stricken nation. However, what Rush fails to comprehend (he is the epitome of failing upward) is that donating to the Red Cross, Unicef, Yele or any number of relief organizations isn't the same as the government distributing aid dollars.

Money given to relief organizations goes directly into buying supplies those in need require to survive: medicine, heavy moving equipment, water, food, shelter, bandages, clothing and the list goes on. What Rush takes for granted in his sheltered wealthy world doesn't apply to a injured 15-day old baby whose mother was killed in the quake, or a trapped 11-year old girl who has a concrete block on her leg and faces amputation or death.

In a decent world where even the most hardened political blowhards exist, most humans can set aside their viewpoints and empathize with the suffering of another, unless of course, your brain is damaged by bitterness and oxycontin.

When all else fails in the world, you can count on one thing: Rush Limbaugh will always act on the most base motives. His cynicism is pathological, his hatred for the human race palpable.

Then there's the decrepit and misguided televangelist Pat Robertson, who stated as fact, that a 200-year old pact with the devil is as at the heart of Haiti's centuries-old troubles. It's almost inconceivable that someone who calls themselves a studied Christian would conjure up some ages-old Haitian urban legend to dismiss an entire population of people and the pain they are enduring — and have endured. Obviously Pat's people have never heard of Snopes.

Rush and Pat, please do the world a solid, and shut the hell up.

Queen here, I decided to compile a list of Scientology’s most memorable moments blunders of 2009. This will be my final article…so I thought I would leave with a bang!

I wasn’t able to include EVERYTHING or all the pending court cases, as the list was way too LONG.

Sorry if the time line is not entirely correct by the exact month and the events may not be in exact chronological order and I am sure I left out some things, so feel free to contribute and list whatever I missed in the comments section. Please click on the various links in this article, to read further.

The list below, is definitely tl:dr, but after all, it is an entire year of Scientology fail, and there was plenty of it!

Thankfully, and as always, Scientology has brought on this bad publicity and pending court cases themselves. They will be responsible for their own demise.

Let’s start the 2009 time line with the tragic death of John Travolta’s son, Jett.

This tragedy opened up many doors, that Scientology would have liked to have kept shut.

I think it is important to remind people of this story. I feel there were too many puzzling questions in this story, that didn’t make any sense and remain unanswered.

Jett was Travolta’s 16 year old son who had autism. Many people never knew he existed because Jett was kept out of the limelight. Or shall I say hidden from the limelight.

Jett suffered from epileptic seizures. According to Travolta and wife Kelly Preston, Jett was taken off his anti-seizure medication, claiming it wasn’t working for him and that it was harmful to his liver. Ironically, Jett’s parents put him on the Purification Rundown, which can be very harmful to the liver.

Scientology believes that this treatment can cure many problems. Even though there has never been any medical or scientific proof that Scientology’s Purification Rundown has any benefits what so ever. In fact it has been called pseudo science and quackery. Disturbingly, this treatment is administered by untrained staff with no medical backgrounds. 

I am amazed that Scientology is still able to offer this treatment legally. This treatment is also goes under the names Narconon, Criminon and other Scientology front group names. 

Travolta and Preston admitted to taking Jett off his anti seizure medication and putting him on Scientology’s Purification Rundown. Jett then began suffering from seizures every 1-4 days. 

John and Kelly flew to the Bahamas for a 60 person New Year’s Eve party they had planned. I will never understand why they flew to the Bahamas to have a party, when Jett was suffering from so many seizures so often.

They traveled with two male nannies who did not have medical backgrounds or proper training for a special needs child. Didn’t anyone find this strange? The night of Jett’s death, he was left unattended for over 10 hours. He had a seizure, fell and hit his head and died.

Tabloids began speculating whether this was a case of negligence, and whether or not Jett would still be alive today, if he was put on a different seizure medication and if his parents were not Scientologists.

From the tragic death of their son, emerged a much publicized court case of alleged extortion.

John and Kelly cried “extortion”, and claimed that defendants tried to extort a large sum of many from them in exchange for some alleged damaging documents relating to Jett’s death. 

Although the mysterious circumstances surrounding the death of Jett is not what the court case is about, there are still too many unanswered questions concerning the death of Jett.

The following questions should have been investigated. Why did the body of Jett have such a quickie cremation? Why did Travolta and Preston have two male Scientologist nannies who were void of medical or special needs training? One of the nannies was Jeff Kathrein, who was photographed previously kissing Travolta. Strange…

Why was Travolta’s son left unattended for over 10 hours after last being seen entering the bathroom? Why weren’t the two nannies
investigated or interviewed by authorities or questioned by the media? Especially the fact that Jeff Kethrein, was the one that found Jett dead at 10 am the next morning. Where were the two nannies when they were supposed to be watching Jett the night he fell?

Why didn’t Preston and Travolta hire round-the-clock care by highly TRAINED medical professionals for their son? Money certainly wasn’t an issue. Why was Jett put on the very dangerous Scientology Purification Rundown in the first place? AND how was a 16-year autistic child made to endure such long hours in saunas for weeks at a time and ingesting oil and dangerous mega vitamin bombs of niacin?
How was this obviously arduous task achieved? Strange?

Some day, someone will come forward and spill all the beans. I hope this mystery doesn’t get swept under the rug. We may never know the true answers to what, why and how this all happened, due to Travolta’s fame and fortune. Very sad.

The Travolta “extortion” court case continues in the Bahamas in Jan 2010. It will be interesting to see what further shenanigans Scientology lawyers will pull in court and the outcome to this complete and utter MESS. Stock up on popcorn!

Another court case which was previously filed against a Scientology dentist which was settled. Reported in the Chicago Tribune:

“A Chicago dentist has agreed to pay$462,500 to settle federal allegations that he violated U.S. discrimination laws by sexually harassing workers and by forcing employees who wanted to keep their jobs to submit to indoctrination in the tenets of Scientology.”

On to the following months.
FEBRUARY brought the ban of Scientology in the Karaganda region in Kazakhstan.

Then another big court case hit.

This time, it was filed against Scientology.
Former Scientology members Claire and Marc Headley. They filed against Scientology for unfair labor practices. They claimed:

“they were paid less than 50 cents an hour and forced to work more than 100 hours a week. They claim they never received overtime pay or meal breaks and were required to sign documents under duress acknowledging they had forfeited their rights.”

FYI, Scientology’s Sea Organization, is supposed to be the most elite. They are also the most dedicated members of Scientology. Unfortunately, the Sea Org members are also the most abused.

If you asked the general public what the Sea Org is, most people wouldn’t know. But hopefully, more and more people are starting to learn about this abused sect behind Scientology.

The sad stories from former ex members are coming out more and more these days. Many ex members still live in fear, do to Scientology’s family disconnection policies and Scientology’s litigious nature of silencing their critics. Scientology is finally starting to lose this war and they will find it impossible to silence the new onslaught of ex members coming forward with their stories.

In Florida, a mom filed a suit against Scientology, claiming that her son Kyle Brennan died at the hands of Scientology because the father who was a Scientologist denied the son his anti depression medication. The father tried to put his son Kyle into a Narconon drug treatment program. (Narconon is a Scientology front group name and the exact same treatment that Travolta’s son Jett was put through)

Sadly, Kyle ended his life by shooting himself. Yet another tragic Scientology related death. Click for a copy of that case.

Another blow to Scientology in February, was the release of ex Scientology Sea Org member John Duigan’s book, The Complex. A very damaging book that tells the sad story of his escape from Scientology, after being a member for twenty two years.

It was also announced that Marc Headley’s book, Blown For Good, Behind The Iron Curtain Of Scientology was set to hit book stores later in the year.

The veil of secrecy continued to lift, with the story of ex member Jeff Hawkins, who spent more than 40 years in the cult and was interviewed by many media outlets and  ABC’s KATU news.

Anti Scientology critics, Mark Bunker and Doug Owens were arrested at Scientology’s Golden Era Productions aka Gold Base for “trespassing” while attending a protest there. They were walking across the driveway of the gate to Gold Base, when Scientology spokesperson Catherine Fraser (who was present) had them arrested by citizen’s arrest. Oh Catherine, Barney Phife would have loved you. *snicker*

The kicker of this arrest is, that both Mark and Doug were not on Scientology’s property. The charges were of course later dropped due to lack of evidence. (what a surprise)

Another prime example of the cult taking up police time and tax payers money with frivolous arrests. Scientology should have been charged for making false arrests and fined.

There was another arrest at Gold Base for another Scientology protester who goes by the name of “Angy Gay Pope”. He was arrested at Gold base for “stomping on the cult’s pansies”. I kid you not.

See the day of the protest, the cult turned sprinklers on the protesters, even though there was a watering ban in effect that day for that area. Of course the cult was never fined for this crime. WHY?

To avoid the sprinkler’s water, “Pope” walked through “their” pansy patch. Catherine Fraser once again called for a citizen’s arrest, and had him taken to the pokey. AGAIN… the cult wasting police time and tax payer’s money. Is anyone paying attention here?

FYI… the pansies were not planted on cult property to begin with, and in a preliminary hearing the cult claimed that the patch of pansies cost them $1,000!!! *snort* This case continues in Jan. 2010. Stay tuned!

February saw Nancy Cartwright caught using Bart Simpson’s voice to “robo call” Scientology members for a Scientology event. Cartwright is of course the voice of Bart Simpson. Her robo message said the event was “going to be a blast man!”

Simpson’s creator, Matt Goering didn’t have much to say about this escapade by Cartwright, nor did he do anything about it. Major pussy IMO. Sorry Matt, you really disappointed me!
All the more reason I will never watch the Simpson’s!

MARCH found Scientologists Gretta Van Susteren and hubby lawyer John P. Coale getting awful cozy with Palin. (this was way before Palin the ”Maverick” went “rogue” *snicker*).

Nathan Baca of KESQ TV, interviewed Scientology cult spokesman Tommy Davis. During the interview, Davis admitted that he knew what Baca was talking about when Baca started to read the story of Xenu and OTIII.  (a level in Scientology’s Bridge To Total Freedom)
The cult has always denied OTIII’s existence. As a matter of fact, in an earlier interview on CNN, Davis DENIED knowing about Xenu and OTIII and said it was ridiculous. Here is a back to back video that someone put together on YouTube of the two interviews. (don’t mind the little silly things that were added) You can see for yourself, that Davis indeed lied during the CNN interview. What a great “church”!

Back to Baca’s interview….
Davis became very heated during the interview and claimed he was very insulted by Baca’s questions. It was a classic. And worth the view. Click here and enjoy!

Baca also reported on how Riverside County, Ca. officials got involved with the fight between the group Anonymous and Scientology at Golden Era Productions aka Gold Base. Matters where brought up at the board of supervisor meetings, which eventually lead to Supervisor Jeff Stone (Mr. Arrogance) pushing through Ordinance 884, which was about restricting targeted residential picketing. This ordinance was not needed and of course it was introduced to Stone by Scientology. What a surprise! Click here to watch.

Baca continued being a thorn in Scientology’s side when he interviewed ex Sea Org members. Maureen Bolstad and others told their sad stories of abuse. (Maureen says she still has a twin sister trapped inside Gold Base) Click here to watch Part one. Part Two

In other news, many grotesque pictures and stories started circulating the tabloids of Katie Holmes and how God awful she looked from being on Scientology’s Purification Rundown. She looked pale, skinny and like she aged twenty years. Nice going Tom!

Then came a real sneaky Scientology move by another one of their famous members.

Performer Beck, pulled a fast one on his fans at The Echo club in California. He played a “benefit” for Educating Children International. But fans soon found out that they plunked down $35.00 a pop for a Scientology front group benefit. Fans were NOT happy that they were never told it was Scientology related. Beck received some very deserved bad PR for pulling the wool over his fan’s eyes. Wonder where all that money ended up anyways?

The March merriment continued….

Scientology’s Fort Harrison Hotel aka Flag,  gets a “supposed” $40 million dollar face lift and has a grand re-opening to the chagrin of local residents. (although today the Fort Harrison’s assessment has dropped down to an alarming low) Blame it on recession? Hmmm, don’t think so.

The Fort Harrison promised that it was going to be beneficial to the residents of Clearwater and help to bring life and commerce back to that area. Didn’t happen. Their banquet facilities are not available for rent to the public and their restaurants are not open to the public either. And the icing on the cake?  There was that not one local resident hired for employment for the Harrison, due to the fact that the entire staff of the Fort Harrison is employed with Scientology’s very own Sea Org slave labor force. Scientology does not pay their slave labor anywhere close to minimum wage. Try $35.00 – $50.00 a week. That’s when and if they get paid. 

I guess Scientology is just too darn busy spending money by opening up new “orgs” elsewhere and paying for their advertising campaigns to worry about paying fair wages, having decent food for their employees or medical care for that matter.

And does the cult pay any taxes on the Fort Harrison? Again… is anyone paying attention?

Tell me again the benefit of having the Fort Harrison Hotel and the Super Power building in Clearwater? The Super Power Building *snicker* remains unfinished (sorry cult members who got duped into donating millions for this fail).

The Super Power Buidling is also racking up $250.00 a day in fines for not being finished. And as of last March 2009, the fines owed  by the cult to the town were over $245 thousand dollars. Maybe that is where all the Scientology member’s donations will end up going? To pay off fines? Yep! Clearing the planet! *scam alert*

APRIL! Scientologist, Ben Kasle was arrested and charged with two counts of gross sexual misconduct with a 13 year old girl at the “church”. Even though he only received a slap on the wrist for his crime in my opinion, I hope Ben has learned that you should only touch your own body thetans,and not under age gals.

Then another court case arises!

Former Scientology member, Laura DeCrescenzo filed against Scientology. Click for her case.
From Infinite Complacency about the lawsuit:

“DeCrescenzo is seeking her back pay, damages, the formal cancellation of any illegal documents she signed while on staff and an injunction against Scientology to prevent them either bribing or intimidating potential witnesses in her case.”

MAY was a busy month.
France charged Scientology’s six top officials with fraud and illegally practicing as pharmacists. Two out of the four plantiffs who filed cases against Scientology, settled out of court. (grumble).

Former member, Aude-Claire Malton, claimed she was forced by her Scientologist boss to do auditing, and when she refused, she was fired. Nice going!

Of course this is not the first time Scientology has been in trouble in France. A little refresher:

“As in the five previous cases France brought against Scientologists, prosecutors are focusing on charges and evidence of the organization’s manipulating members to wring money out of them — not on any of the spiritual beliefs or practices that may be involved. The first time that happened, in 1978, a Paris court found Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard guilty of vulgar fraud.

In 1997, a Lyon court convicted five Scientology officials of similar charges, which were linked to the suicide of a debt-ridden church member. That verdict came with fines and a suspended prison sentence.”

Then rounding out the end of the month, Wikipedia bans Scientology from editing entries. This was a major win and also a major embarrassment for Scientology. Sorry trolls!

Oh dear….. and it continues…

JUNE ….
a wife sued Narconon (be sure to read the whole story) for treatment of her then fiance. She claimed:

“Daniel Locatelli was subjected to verbal attacks, often of an anti gay substance. He was denied medical care when he needed it and the staff kept him and his belongings against his will when he asked to leave. He finally escaped after 4 days. Among the claims against the facilities and their employees and agents are breach of contract, fraud in the inducement, negligent misrepresentation and fraudulent misrepresentation.”

The two facilities involved were Narconon Southern California and Narconon Joshua Hills.

Zingo! Scientology!

Actor David Carradine was was found dead in a Bangkok Hotel room. Cause of death was erotic asphyxiation. *kinky* His family members, Sienna, Calista, and wife Anne are all avid Scientologists.

Although Carradine was supposedly not a “practicing” Scientologist, he performed in many Scientology functions, including riding the float in their shameless participation of the Christmas parade in Hollywood, as well as reading Christmas stories in the Scientology Celebrity Center Christmas Celebrations.

Then came two shining knights.
Those two knights are Joe Childs and Thomas Tobin. Authors at the St. Petersburg Times.

Joe and Thomas wrote a scathing series called the Truth Rundown for The St. Petersburg Times. 

They interviewed ex Scientology top officials, Marty Rathbun, Mike Rinder, Amy Scobee, and Tom DeVocht. These former Sea Org members spoke of a sadistic game of musical chairs, physical and mental abuse and beatings of other members that they witnessed at the hands of current cult lead David Miscavige.

This series was very lengthy and too long to list here, so please be sure to click on the “Truth Rundown” link above and read the coverage in it’s entirety. There is also recorded interviews of ex-members on video on the “SP Times” website.

Also in June, on the Why We Potest website, a list was started by Anonymous. It is a list of ex-Scientologists who have left the cult and have spoken out. You can find this list on the Why We Protest Wiki. The list has reached over 875 names and continues to climb weekly. Kudos to Anonymous!

Then on a sad note, another tragic Scientology death.

But wait, there’s more…

I am still trying to come to terms with the untimely passing of Brittany Murphy. Of course, Hollywood is full of sad tales of artistic journeys of self-destruction, but somehow that doesn’t jibe with what we know about Brittany. While so far, her death appears to be from “natural causes,” reports of large quantities of prescription drugs cluttering her nightstand brings to mind the story of another talented actor whose life was cut short: Heath Ledger.

I don’t believe Brittany killed herself, was killed by her husband or even intended on dying at the age of 32. I think she was killed by a system which encourages artistic types to cloister their pain, hide their tics and pretend to be something they aren’t. The demands of Hollywood are often under-reported in contrast to the benefits, and living a healthy lifestyle is in contrary to the face-paced, falsely glamorous trappings of fame and wealth.

The list of prescription drugs in Brittany’s name reads like a medicine cabinet belonging to somehow who was having a difficult time coping with some major physical and mental problems. TMZ reports the following drugs were found in the home belonging to Brittany:

Topamax (anti-seizure meds also to prevent migraines), Methylprednisolone (anti-inflammatory), Fluoxetine (depression med), Klonopin (anxiety med), Carbamazepine (treats Diabetic symptoms and is also a bipolar med), Ativan (anxiety med), Vicoprofen (pain reliever), Propranolol (hypertension, used to prevent heart attacks), Biaxin (antibiotic), Hydrocodone (pain med) and miscellaneous vitamins.

Painkillers, anti-anxiety meds, Diabetic meds, depression meds. Surely, by now, we know you can’t mix these drugs indiscriminately and after the deaths of Anna Nicole, Heath Ledger and Michael Jackson, one would think Hollywood’s elite would feel a sense of responsibility to change the culture which fosters this grotesque over-medicating.

If the MLB can clean up baseball, why can’t we apply this same philosophy towards Hollywood? These people died from the misuse of PRESCRIPTION DRUGS, not illicit drugs. Somehow, the belief exists that just because a doctor prescribes something, it’s safe. Is it time to start using drug testing on actors and actresses? Sound over-controlling? Tell that to the loved ones of those who’ve died because there a complete lack of regulation over the misuse of prescription drugs.

How long until this Hollywood trend starts spilling over into popular culture? Any one of these meds by themselves may provide life-saving measure for the sufferer, but together and unmonitored, they are a ticking timebomb.

When you consider the sycophantic world of Hollywood, where no one wants to say no the ’stars,’ it’s simply a matter of time before we will be hit by the next tragic death.

Man, you know you are lame when the likes of Jessica Simpson are embarrassed to be associated with you. Jessica Simpson’s been called fat, touched in the head, the worst actress to ever be paid to act and yet, it wasn’t until someone accused her of boning Tiger that she decided to sue. I shouldn’t laugh, but how can I not?

According to Contact Music, Jessica Simpson is planning to sue Us Magazine for romantically linking her to Tiger Woods. However, I am pretty sure that it was Star Magazine which reported it, not that it makes any difference because they are all liars. Although, Jessica does fit the Tiger Woods ho-file: blond and kind of dopey — so hey, anything’s possible.

The singer/actress’ publicist tells E! News, “Literally the only thing that’s true in the story is the fact that they met. It was a quick meeting, and they posed for a photo together – that was it. Jessica’s lawyer is sending them (Star magazine) a letter this afternoon.”

I remember when I first started covering tabloid news I’d pick up these stupid magazines as part of my “research” and week after week none of their “predictions” or “facts” turned out to be true. Lately, only the National Enquirer seems to be reporting any real hard-hitting news. I’m not even sure what to make of that.

Guess Who’s a dickhead? Me and this guy.

Well, that was a short-lived goodbye. I know, I know, how can you miss us if we don’t go away. Apparently I was premature in my departure and will be sticking around for a little while longer. The good news is we won’t lose our archives and all the great resources of information about the cult of Scientology won’t be lost, we promise — so suck it David Miscavige!

A recap of the previous post. I will still be tending to my Technorati editorial duties and feel pretty awesome about that, but I also get to post over here. Still not sure what lay at the end of the road, but I promise to keep you informed.

I have heard from many of you about my request for Technorati writers – and that is fantastic. I should clarify some things about what we are looking for.

In October of this year, Technorati re-launched itself as an original content provider. Before the “new” Technorati, the site was best known for being the blog authority and a blog aggregator, or what I like to call, the Google for blogs. Technorati still catalogs and tracks the blogosphere, but now we are also a news provider generating really great content in our Channels focusing on Blogging, Technology, Videos, Entertainment, Lifestyle, Politics, Business and Sports. It’s a big umbrella and there’s a channel for everyone. I run the Entertainment Channel, and help oversee the daily operations of the site.

We are searching for blog-savvy individuals who want to increase their traffic, expose their writing to the millions of readers who visit Technorati each day and help writers improve their writing skills through editorial mentoring. This isn’t a paid writing job, but the benefits of writing for Technorati pay for themselves in the many ways I mentioned above.

I am sorry for the false alarm and Queen and I were overwhelmed with the almost universally positive response from so many of you.

So, I hope you will stick around, because there will be delicious caek and sexual favors punch offered later.

Dear Glosslip Readers,

It is with mixed feelings, both sad and hopeful, I write to inform you that Glosslip is to be no more. We’ve had a great run in our almost 3 years of publishing. During that time we chronicled the sad story of Anna Nicole, the meltdown of Britney Spears, the multiple missteps of Lindsay Lohan and most important, we helped expose the dangerous cult of Scientology. It is my sincerest hope that the latter will be the legacy of this site.

While there were many great moments over the last 3 years, it is time to move on. I have been hired as the Senior Editor at Technorati.com and I am really excited about my new job which includes mentoring new writers, generating new content and hopefully creating a wonderful mix of entertaining original news stories. I hope you will join me over at my new home.

Also, we are actively recruiting new writers at Technorati, and if you are a blogger, this is a great way to expose your writing to an even bigger audience. At close to 90 million pageviews a month, Technorati is still the blog authority and on its way to becoming the news authority. If you are interested in writing about Sports, Entertainment, Blogging, Technology, Video, Politics, Lifestyle or Business, we have a channel for that and you can contact me personally for more information at dmdo1016@yahoo.com.

I would love to find some new entertainment writers and continue our coverage of our pals still trapped in Scientology, so if that’s an interest for you and you have strong writing skills, please do email me.

Thank you Glosslip readers, I still believe we had the most intelligent readers on the web and I thank each of you for your support.

Best,
Dawn Olsen

———————————————

From Queen, my partner and crime and the glue who held the site together for the last few months:

A big thanks to all the regular readers and people who have taken time to leave comments on my articles. Thanks to all who have put up with my poor grammar, typos and my forever babbling.

I thoroughly enjoyed shedding light on the cult of Scientology and will continue to do so. I am asking everyone to join in the fight against the abuses and human rights violations that Scientology is guilty of. Write your legislators, speak out, or join a protest. Do what you can to help members who are still trapped inside.

Boycott any performers who support Scientology. Their money only ends up in Scientology’s pockets. The less you support them, the less they will have to give to the cult.

For those members still in…

Be part of the solution, not part of the problem. For help leaving Scientology, call 1-866-XSEAORG (toll free call) I wish everyone good health, wealth, peace and romance. I think that about covers it.

Over and Out.

Affectionately,
Queen

Glosslip is currently working out a few bugs and glitches.

Stay tuned…..

Glosslip will be taking a break starting Monday Nov 23rd.

We should be back to the grind by the 30th.

We would like to wish everyone a very Happy Thanksgiving.

See you soon!

Scientology has had a horrendous October.

They were convicted of fraud in France and both the St. Petersburg Times and ABC’s Nightline had very damaging reports from ex members who have spoken out.

A multitude of lawsuits are moving forward and the media continues to be a thorn in Scientology’s side.

One of Scientology’s long time members, celebrity Paul Haggis has recently flown the coop and has spoken out. Also many members, and high level “OT’s” have left the cult.

Two new books by ex members have just been published.

Marc Headley wrote “Blown For Good, Behind Scientology’s Iron Curtain” and Nancy Many has written, “My Billion Year Contract“. Kudos to them!

Both Books Available On Amazon.com

Well, November isn’t looking any better for Scientology.

Just yesterday, Australian Senator, Nicholas (Nick) Xenophon has called for a Senate inquiry into Scientology.
 

The Senator presented horrific stories that were sent to him by ex Scientology members, Aaron Saxton, Carmel Underwood, Paul Schofield, Anna and Dean Detheridge and Kevin Mackey. 

Xenophon stated,

 that the ex members claim that Scientology is an abusive, manipulative, violent and criminal organisation, and that criminality is condoned at the highest levels and thatand said he is seeing a worldwide pattern of abuse and criminality.

The Senator’s presentaion was well researched with highlights on the cult’s many abuses and their tax exemption status. 
Click the following links to watch Part One and Part Two on YouTube.
For the transcript listed on the Parliament of Australia website, click here.

A little look into what was said by ex members and reported by the Senator.
Ex member, Aaron Saxton’s who was born into Scientology, was made a security guard for the cult at age 16. His time while in the cult, tells a horrific tale of what Scientology forced him to do or suffer their consequences. 

Aaron said he had to commit many fraudulent acts on behalf of the cult. These acts included coercing Sea Org members into having abortions, family disconnection, he was made to falsify bank records, he blackmailed other members by using their private info from their files, and participated in defrauding of credit cards.

More disturbingly, Aaron had to pull out his own teeth because of lack of medical care. He was also told not to report that a man attempted to rape him. 

A couple of snippets from the Senator’s transcript, (please read the entire transcript):

Aaron said he was so heavily under the control of the organisation’s bizarre power structure he was complicit in ordering the beating of one follower and facilitated the beating of another.

Aaron has now left the organisation and is willing to cooperate with police investigations into these matters. He was born into the cult, and he says he regrets the control it had over him and the things he did as a result.

Ex Sea Org member, Carmel Underwood.
Carmel worked for the cult in Sydney. She was also the financial planning arm of the cult. When she became pregnant, she was pressured to abort her child.

Some snippets on Carmel from the transcript:

She was working for the organisation in Sydney she fell pregnant and was put under extreme pressure to have an abortion. When she refused, she was put on a disappearing program.

Carmel says she chose to speak out because she knows there are many more victims of Scientology many of whom are still caught up in the organisation and are being physically, financially and mentally abused.

Carmel’s husband, Tim, supports his wife’s story and says the couple suffered serious financial hardship because of their involvement in the organisation. He says they were forced to pay more than $100,000 to publicise the organisation and for so-called religious texts and courses.

And finally on to the very sad story of Paul Schofield.
Paul lost his two young daughters while in the cult.

Snippets from the transcript on Paul:

He alleges the cover-up of child abuse by the organisation and admits being part of a campaign to cover up the facts surrounding the deaths of two of his daughters. Paul says his first daughter, Lauren, who was 14 months old, was being babysat at the organisation’s building in Sydney when she was allowed to wander the stairs by herself and fall. She died in hospital two days later. Paul says he felt pressured by Scientology executives not to request a coronial inquiry—pressure he ultimately gave in to. He was also told if he sought compensation from Scientology he and his wife would be ineligible for any other services.

His second daughter, Kirsty, who was 2½, died after ingesting potassium chloride—a substance used as part of a so-called purification program run by the organisation. Under the direction of  Scientology executives, Paul says he perjured himself to the police, and during the coronial inquest, in order to protect the organisation. Under incredible pressure he agreed to lie because he was scared he would be heavily punished by Scientology if he told the truth. It is a decision he regrets to this day.

 

From ex members Anna and Dean Detheridge, taken from the transcript:

claim to have been subjected to physical and mental abuse during their time with the organisation.

From Kevin Mackey taken from the transcript:

Kevin Mackey wrote to me detailing his 26 years of abuse in the organisation.

Once you have taken the bait and become hooked, the real Scientology is presented, very slowly, over years.

This psychological conditioning Kevin is talking about eventually saw him and his wife hand over almost a million dollars to the organisation in exchange for services and products.

Senator’s closing statements to parliament pretty much sums up what anti Scientology protesters and ex members who have spoken out against the cult have been all saying right along:

Do we really want to be funding an organisation that turns supporters into victims in its pursuit of power and wealth? That is why I am calling for a Senate inquiry into this organisation and its tax-exempt status. In the past Scientology has claimed that those who question their organisation are attacking the group’s religious freedom. It is twisted logic, to say the least. Religious freedom did not mean the Catholic or Anglican Churches were not held accountable for crimes and abuses committed by their priests, nuns and officials—albeit belatedly. Ultimately, this is not about religious freedom. In Australia there are no limits on what you can believe. But there are limits on how you can behave. It is called the law, and no-one is above it.

Thankfully, the Australain Police are now taking complaints on Scientology.

Ex members are starting to come out from the veil of secrecy and fight more than ever. Yesterday, it was announced on the Ex Scientology Message Board, that former member Kevin Mackey, (mentioned earlier) is getting together a class action lawsuit along with twenty other former Scientologists.The lawsuit willbe filed against the I.A.S. (which stands for International Association of Scientology) and Super Power. Both are incorporated in California, so that is where the case is being filed. He is asking for any ex members interested in participating in this class action suit to please contact him.

Kevin and other ex members are demanding their money back for contributions that they made. The money they handed over to the cult, did not go where the cult promised it was going.

FYI … The Super Power they speak of is a building attached to the Ft. Harrison Hotel in Clearwater. It is of course called The Super Power Building. (<click to read about it, it’s a real hoot!)

Funds have been collected from members for years through Scientology’s  “Super Power Expansion Project”. Where did all that money go?

The building was supposed to have been finished by the cult years ago. But it still remains an empty shell to this day. As of late March 2009, work on the building which is the length of a whole city block, is still at a standstill; the daily fines levied by the city now total $245,000.
Click here, for more info on why the Super Power Building remains closed by Marc Headley aka BFG which was written almost THREE YEARS ago.

Why Clearwater stands for Scientology’s shenanigans, is beyond me. I would imagine since Scientology has managed to slink their way in and buy up most of Clearwater over the years, (originally came in under a FAKE church name to purchase the Fort Harrison Hotel), that city officials are probably afraid of falling prey to the cult’s litigious nature and fair game tactics. Sad.

So once again America…
Why so lax? What’s it going to take?

The more our government sits idly by and allows the abuses and fraud of Scientology to continue, the more complicit they are in helping them to survive.

Again, as always…
you can believe in what you want, and that is your right. But when there is a continuous mountain of evidence that your “church” is being an abusive and corrupt organization that does not follow it’s own creed, it’s time to reavaluate the reasons why you joined Scientology in the first place.
Be part of the solution, not part of the problem. Plain and simple.

If you need help leaving Scientology, or just need someone to talk to:
Call 1-866-XSEAORG.  (1-866-973-2674) This is a toll free call.
Visit the XSEAORG website:
http://www.exseaorg.com/

The people who contacted Senator Xenophon, are all listed on the “ex members who have spoken out” list on the Why We Protest Wiki along with their testimonies, interviews and videos. To view the WWP Wiki  list click here. (Thanks Anonymous!)

Currently, the count on the Wiki has reached 812 names, and it continues to grow.

WOW! That’s an awful lot of people saying the same thing.

How many times can Scientology deny all these claims before everyone including our government, realizes that Scientology is nothing more than an abusive, fraudulent business that is far from credible?

WAKE UP AMERICA!