Once Again The St. Petersburg Times Rips Scientology A New One In A Scathing Three Part Series
The St. Petersburg Times continues to be a huge thorn in Scientology’s side. Their Sunday edition reported horrific stories told by former Scientology members who have left the cult. Or should I say when they TRIED to leave the cult. It is part one of another three part series that they are continuing to run in addition to their Truth Rundown Series that they ran back in June.
Once again these former members were in Scientology for years and years and held very prominent positions.
The ex members talk about the two ways that a member can leave the cult. Which are called “routing out” or “blowing”.
If members have doubts and have decided they want to leave, Scientology has a procedure called routing out. To route out of the cult is of course Scientology’s preferred method. Reason being…. there is a good chance that you will end up staying in the cult because of Scientology’s continued manipulation, brain washing, emotional distress and they also tell members that they are giving up their chance at eternity. It also gives the cult the chance to have a leaving member sign a “pumped up” affidavit. (which Scientology will embellish) This affidavit along with confidential and personal information that is in a member’s file, while in turn will be used against them if they choose to speak out.
Scientology member’s personal and intimate information is acquired through auditing sessions and “sec checks” and kept in a member’s ”PC file” which is held by the cult. Actor Jason Beghe who left the cult has asked for his files back, and as far as I know, has not received them back as of yet. Correct me if I am wrong.
Scientology has continued to prove that they do in fact use this tactic every time they respond to any ex member’s story that has gone public. Former member’s confidential information was not only printed in Scientology’s edition of their Freedom Magazine for all other members to read, but this time around member’s information along with out right lies and were used by Tommy Davis in his response to the SP Times latest stories. Former member, Oscar winner and actor Paul Haggis who has just recently left the cult, said this was one of the many reasons why he decided to leave. It was mentioned in a letter that her personally wrote to to Tommy Davis. So to any members still in… your information in your PC file is not safe!
Many members also tell of being chased and harassed by the cult for years. Not to mention the heart break of the family disconnection they have endured which continues today.
Basically, the more you know about the cult’s inner secrets and the higher position you hold, the more you will be sought after to come back. The cult is in fear that you will spill the beans on the cult’s activities. Well like it or not Scientology, there has been an awful lot of bean spilling lately.
When an ex member “blows”, it means to just leave and not follow proper cult protocol. It’s not that members are actually able to just walk out Scientology’s door, it means that many had to actually ESCAPE in secrecy to leave.
If a member routes out, it is a VERY long process. It involves “sec checking“. Which are hours and hours of being auditing on Scientology’s e-meter, which is short for Electropsychometer. This same exact unit is used on the general public at their Stress Test Tables, which you may see at a fair, flea market or city sidewalk.
Scientology not only considers the e-meter a religious artifact, they claim that this unit can help find a member’s area of distress and it can help address it and also cure it, as well as other ailments. Even claims of curing homosexuality.
According to Scientology, e-meters are also used in finding member’s past lives during auditing. Many members have claimed that some of their past lives were that of very well known pillars in history, such as Julias Caesar, or Ben Franklin, and so on.
One former member, Steven Fishman, was convinced by auditors that he was the biological father of Jesus Christ and to quote: “it was his responsibility to de-Christianize the planet by exposing the lie and the myth of the immaculate conception, and thereafter bring all of Christianity into Scientology as the largest FSM (Field Staff member) or conversion movement of planet earth.”
His story is a must read if you haven’t read it. He sued the cult back in 1993. There also is a series of interview videos of Fishman, which I have watched more than once. I was in total amazement as to how far this cult can really brainwash someone. Most people think he is a total “moonbat”, but when I watched these videos, all I felt was sincere pity for the man. Thankfully Steven is deprogrammed (which was not an easy task) and out of Scientology for good.
So back to the e-meter….
In actuality, the e-meter is nothing more than a simple lie detector. The same unit which reveals that you were Elvis in a previous life, can also be used to tell if Scientology members have any “overts” or “withholds”, which in Scientology lingo is basically sins or crimes, and bad thoughts that a member has not told anyone. Which of course proves further that it is merely a lie detector. FYI… it was also rated one of the top “most stupid inventions” by Life magazine.
Scientology lingo can be very confusing, and in the latest article of the SP Times (nicknamed by Scientology itself, as the SP stands for Suppressive Person), they included a small glossary of Scientology acronyms and lingo. Scientology lingo is not only VAST, but it is also plays a huge part in the cult’s secrecy. If someone was to read an entire paragraph of scieno speak, it would leave them scratching their head.
So back to routing out. It can be a very horrific experience for ex members, and some of these members were interviewed by the SP Times. They were asked to sign affidavits before leaving Scientology, and were subjected to horrendous treatment, and it took years for them to finally leave for good.
Here is a short summary on Part One from the SP Times:
For years, the Church of Scientology chased down and brought back staff members who tried to leave.
Ex-staffers describe being pursued by their church and detained, cut off from family and friends and subjected to months of interrogation, humiliation and manual labor.
One said he was locked in a room and guarded around the clock.
Some who did leave said the church spied on them for years.
Others said that, as a condition for leaving, the church cowed them into signing embellished affidavits that could be used to discredit them if they ever spoke out.
The St. Petersburg Times has interviewed former high-ranking Scientology officials who coordinated the intelligence gathering and supervised the retrieval of staff who left, or “blew.”
They say the church, led by David Miscavige, wanted to contain the threat that those who left might reveal secrets of life inside Scientology.
Marty Rathbun, a former church official and confidant of Miscavige, said the leader especially targeted those he had edged aside during his rise to the top or anyone he feared might threaten his position or the church if left alone on the outside.
When the church founder L. Ron Hubbard was in charge, “there were no fences,” Rathbun said. “If somebody blew, they blew. It wasn’t until these purges started with Miscavige — where he was creating enemies and people … became a threat to him — that we went into this overdrive scenario.”
Church spokesman Tommy Davis “categorically denied” Miscavige knew about or was involved in the pursuit of runaways or spying on former members. He said Rathbun and other former staff are liars, taking their own misdeeds and blaming them on Miscavige and the religion they have forsaken. He said they are trying to undermine Miscavige’s leadership even as he presides over unprecedented church growth.
Miscavige “redefines the term ‘religious leader,’ ” Davis said, while some of the Timessources are on the “lunatic fringe” of anti-Scientology. He said they are the real villains, who Miscavige dismissed for “suborning perjury, obstruction of justice and wasting millions of dollars of parishioner funds.”
He accused the Times of “naked bias” and engaging in tabloid journalism.
“You have a few petty allegations,” Davis said.
“In fact, all you have is a few people who left a religion after committing destructive acts and are now complaining about what they did while in the church.”
The story of how the church commands and controls its staff is told by the pursuers and the pursued, by those who sent spies and those spied upon, by those who interrogated and those who rode the hot seat. In addition to Rathbun, they include:
• Mike Rinder, who for 25 years oversaw the church’s Office of Special Affairs, which handled intelligence, legal and public affairs matters. Rinder and Rathbun said they had private investigators spy on perceived or potential enemies.
They say they had an operative infiltrate a group of five former Scientology staffers that included the Gillham sisters, Terri and Janis, two of the original four “messengers” who delivered Hubbard’s communications. They and other disaffected Scientologists said they were spied on for almost a decade.
• Gary Morehead, the security chief for seven years at the church’s international base in the desert east of Los Angeles. He said he helped develop the procedure the church followed to chase and return those who ran, and he brought back at least 75 of them. “I lost count there for awhile.”
Staffers signed a waiver when they came to work at the base that allowed their mail to be opened, Morehead said. His department opened all of it, including credit card statements and other information that was used to help track runaways.
• Don Jason, for seven years the second-ranking officer at Scientology’s spiritual mecca in Clearwater, supervised a staff of 350. He said that after he ran, he turned himself in and ended up locked in his cabin on the church cruise ship, the Freewinds. He said he was held against his will.
And then there’s the story of the cook, his wife and the movie stars.
Rather than try to cover this immense story, it’s best for you go to the SP Times yourself and read the entire coverage of the alarming stories from ex members, Betsy Perkins, Mark Fisher, Don Jason, Gary Morhead, Jackie Wolfe, and Mike Rinder. There is more from Marty Rathbun and also the story from ex member Sinar Parman .
Sinar was not only the personal chef to cult founder L. Ron Hubbard, but he also was the personal chef of current cult leader and high school drop out, David Miscavige and several Scientology celebrities including Tom Cruise and Nicole Kidman.
The SP Times also have a very helpful who’s who in part one which gives you a small bio of former members.
Kudos to all the brave former members who are speaking out to help others. And a big thank you to Joe Childs and Thomas Tobin for once again helping to exposing this insidious cult. Hopefully this continuing exposure of the cult’s activities will get law officials to pay attention and finally get off their butts and do something about it.
Now of course Scientology always claims that the SP Times is guilty of bigotry and are completely biased.
Not true. They are reporting the stories from ex members and have included all of the cult’s responses. They have included all of the responses from Scientology spokesman Tommy Davis. A copy of the TEN PAGE letter that Davis wrote to the SP Times is also listed on their site. Which I have to mention that the response letter from Davis makes the cult look really quite bad once again. They have also included the responses from ex members to Tommy Davis’s response.
Part one of the SP Times series, is followed by the second part which came out this morning. Today’s story is called What Happened in Vegas. It also includes How Scientology Got To Bob Minton and more.
And up on deck for Tuesday from the SP Times, is part three, which will tell the ingenious escape from Scientology’s asbestos laden cruise ship the Freewinds by former member Don Jason who was the No. 2 cult officer in Clearwater. We will write up a small outline of parts two and three tomorrow, but again, please go to the SP Times website and read the former members entire stories and the cult’s responses.
To start from the very beginning of the St. Petersburg Times wonderful coverage on their entire Scientology series starting with the The Truth Rundown which started back in June, click here.
It is getting to the point where Scientology is desperately trying to keep waves from coming ashore by shoveling them back into the ocean. The waves will not stop coming, no matter how hard they try to push them back. Scientology is literally drowning in a sea of lies and deception, and their time is running out.
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Comment by tiger — November 2, 2009 @ 2:26 pm
This is very shoddy journalism. Anyone reading this article and thinking they are getting an accurate picture of Scientology or the surrounding issues and/or events mentioned is being grievously mislead.
If you want to know what an e-meter does, read Dianetics. If you want to know what Scientology teaches, read Fundamentals of Thought. Then, if you want, read the hit pieces like this one so you can at least form an informed opinion.
Comment by Eric — November 2, 2009 @ 3:04 pm
Looks like Eric the Scientologist has showed up to defend Scientology. Good luck with that Eric.
I suppose the new books coming out by ex members Nancy Many and Marc Headley are also BS according to you?
Get out Eric before it’s too late dude!
Comment by Justice — November 2, 2009 @ 3:11 pm
Eric you are a riot!
Why would someone have to read Diantects to find out about the stupid e-meter? Just google it or look it up on Wikipedia.
Eric, you say find out about Scientology by reading Fundamentals of Thought? HA HA HA!
The public is finding out about Scientology through investigativereporting and googling Scientology on the internet.
One does not have to become a Nazi to know that it is wrong.
Comment by Jelly Bean — November 2, 2009 @ 3:15 pm
Hey Eric,
Just for kicks, why don’t you try telling us yourself what an e-meter is supposed to do. Or try convincing us yourself about why Fundamentals of Thought such an important read. I’d really like to see you do that. Or are you afraid that your explanations won’t hold water?
Comment by sk8mike — November 2, 2009 @ 3:58 pm
Eric can’t answer questions. The only answers Scientologists ever have is “BUY MORE L RON HUBBARD STUFF FROM US!”
Eric, get out of that glorified bookstore pretending to be a religion while you still can. Call 866XSEAORG to get help blowing.
Comment by Kevinonymous — November 2, 2009 @ 4:08 pm
Is this what the tipping point looks like? Well if not yet, then soon.
Well done yet again Queenie.
And Eric..seriously dude, the cult is playing you. If it makes you feel any better, they’re playing Tom Cruise too.
Comment by anne — November 2, 2009 @ 4:13 pm
Eric, Scibots admit that the emeter does does nothing. LRH admitted that he wanted men to be his slaves, even if it meant lying to them. Dianetics and Fundamentals of Thought are gibberish–I read better things in elementary school. Have a nice day!
Comment by Jim — November 2, 2009 @ 4:28 pm
Queen, nice job.
These cult apologists are hilarious. They obviously never read any of the articles that they comment on and, as has been pointed out, can’t offer any other response than “buy Dianetics” or “get auditing.”
While people question the pseudoscience of this “religion,” the real issue that’s brought this to the fore is the abuses of the Scientology’s “spiritual leader,” David Miscavige.
I wonder how he’s doing now, now that there really are lots of people working to expose his abusive practices?
Best quote of the SP Time’s article had to be Tommy Davis, stating that DM “redefines” what it means to be a spiritual leader. Ain’t THAT the truth?
Comment by Marc Abian — November 2, 2009 @ 5:27 pm
Dude, Eric, some of us- like me- have lived this nightmare. I was raised in this cult, and I know all the ins and outs. It’s people like you that try so hard to justify your existance by keeping people “in” that ruin lives and families. how horrible.
Comment by exsci — November 2, 2009 @ 6:23 pm
This part of the series is about the PIs they hire to dig dirt or intimidate critics, pressure put on fleeing Sea Org members and general nightmare that Scientology becomes for some. One woman talks about working 18 hour days building and fixing e-meters, and then getting jeered in a meeting of her fellow zombies (I’d be a zombie too if I worked that much) for not producing enough. Maybe it’s a credit to LRH tech that they train their zombies to be so submissive. Still, I find it remarkable that people pushed and humiliated to this extreme don’t ever go postal.
Comment by Ian — November 2, 2009 @ 6:49 pm
Ian, there have been MANY suicides that are scientology related. One very recently.
And don’t forget when Mario M. showed up at the celebrity center with swords and the cult guards shot and killed him, DEAD.
Comment by Enough is Enough — November 2, 2009 @ 8:01 pm
Little Tommy Davis’ response to the report is a must read. In it he makes HILARIOUS claims, such as “$cientology isn’t just growing, it’s expoding!”
And “we don’t hire private detectives” etc etc.
You can always count on the $cientology spokesthing for a good laugh.
As for Joe and Tom, they deserve, and hopefully will win, a Pulitzer for this series.
Comment by Rachel — November 2, 2009 @ 9:34 pm
Eric did’nt work a “success story” into his post/attack so I have to give it a 4/10.
Comment by bob dobbs — November 3, 2009 @ 1:29 am
It’s funny how Tommy Davis threw their lawyers under the bus. I believe Tommy was referring to Moxon and Kobrin. That’s going to make Moxon and Kobrin labial for lawsuits. Scientology’s lawyers can’t be happy about this. That little slip is probably going to cause a lot of problems for Scientology. Scientology is going to completely unravel.
Comment by sk8mike — November 3, 2009 @ 1:36 am
Queen has established herself as a legitimate source of information relating to this oppressive cult. There is a lot of research which goes into these reports and she does a great job tackling. I am proud to have her writing for Glosslip and carrying on the fight.
Nice job!
Comment by D — November 3, 2009 @ 1:42 am
[...] Queen Related Posts:Once Again The St. Petesburg Times Rips Scientology A New One In A Scathing Three [...]
Pingback by Celebrity Blog | Babelogs | Celebrity Gossip » Blog Archive » Once Again The St. Petersburg Times Rips Scientology A New One In A Scathing Three Part Series — November 3, 2009 @ 1:44 am
Oh, btw it’s not “sect checking”, it’s “sec checking”, as in “security”.
Basically the person is interrogated – asked a series of questions from a particular list while hooked up to an e-meter.
And if you were wondering, wikileaks has some prime examples of this – completely insane and totally sickening respectively:
http://wikileaks.org/leak/scientology-whole-track-sec-check.pdf
http://wikileaks.org/leak/scientology-cult-childrens-security-check.pdf
Comment by El Diablo — November 3, 2009 @ 5:11 am
Thanks D!
*blushes*
Comment by Queen — November 3, 2009 @ 1:37 pm
http://blog.taragana.com/e/2009/11/03/tom-cruise-katie-holmes-renegotiating-marriage-contract-56139/
Wow, look at this: Katie will support Co$, but only if you give her half a million bucks. Sheesh, aren’t celebrities greedy–there are people who would support it for half that!
Comment by Jim — November 3, 2009 @ 2:41 pm
Scientology’s Fatal Flaw: “Waking the Sleeping Giants” For every 1 Ex who knew too much, there are 1,000 (over the span of 5 decades) that knew too little. We quietly scampered off. Now we too are being harrassed and hunted, on smaller scales. Miscavige forgot 3 major points: 1) We outnumber his flying monkeys. 2) We were trained to handle flying monkeys and not give up. 3) We actually got “in” to preserve and protect human rights. Anonymous woke us, then the midget provoked us. The media spoke for us, now it is up to us: http://www.justice.gov/criminal Write up your reports. It is time for action
Comment by RosyGlass — November 4, 2009 @ 9:31 pm
[...] were convinced to come back and “route out” of Scientology. For more on routing out, click here. These former members were also asked to sign a ”pumped up” affidavit, so the [...]
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