It is with a sense of awe and splendor Glosslip is reporting on what may be the most damaging coverage of the cult of Scientology ever written.

The St. Petersburg Times Newspaper unleashed a three part series, that must have cult leader David Miscavige popping veins in his head. This three part series is of such EPIC proportions, that we were only able to outline the stories and touch on a few of the most maligning accounts and testimonies given by four top ranking Scientology defectors. It would have taken pages and pages to tell the whole story and even more pages to include all of their quotes.

We will provide links to all three parts of this story directly to the SP Times, so you will be able to read the stories in their entirety.

The St. Petersburg Times has been a thorn in Scientology’s side since the cult first skulked into Clearwater over three decades ago. Dubbed by Scientology as The SP Times, as a derisive play on their own “SP” term, which stands for Suppressive Persons, the SP Times has continued to be one of the only mainstream media sources investigating Scientology’s continued abuses and shady activities.

In 1975, the Church of Scientology purchased the historic Fort Harrison Hotel under an assumed name and have maintained an overwhelming presence in Clearwater, buying up land and setting up shops in the seaside town.

Residents of Clearwater watched their own town slowly being taken over by Scientology and the cult has been sucking up real estate like a vacuum, and thankfully the SP Times has been reporting their every move. But this time around, people seem to be finally listening. This story is being covered globally and in all facets of the media.

Although Scientology has tried numerous times to squash The SP Times in the past, their latest series of articles written by hero staff writers Joe Child and Thomas Tobin reveal an even more damaging look into the cult of Scientology that has never been reported before by a mainstream outlet. So damaging are the allegations many critics are wondering if Scientology will survive this huge blow.

The SP Times were successful in securing interviews with four top exec Scientology defectors. Much of what they revealed is a reaffirmation of rumoured abuses that have been circulating for years, but with their testimony, give a new urgency and credibility to these audacious and harrowing accounts. These revelations are pointedly attacking Scientology cult leader David Miscavige (Tom Cruise’s bestman at Cruise’s wedding), who has managed to slink under the radar for far too long. Not since the death of Lisa McPherson in 1995, has Scientology’s been under such deep scrutiny and these four high profile defectors, Mike Rinder, Marty Rathbun, Tom DeVocht and Amy Scobee’s testimonies, may be the final threat to drive the cult into the ground OR an even worse alternative, underground.

Part one of the series deals mostly with reported beatings of staff members. The defectors claimed they witnessed church leader David Miscavige beating several members many times over the course of many years, with the beatings becoming more severe and widespread as the behavior became accepted as the norm. We also included a bizarre account of Sea Org members, dressed in their quasi-military uniforms, who were forced to play a perverse game of musical chairs to the tune of Queen’s “Bohemian Rhapsody.” This elaborate, but twisted game was conceived by cult leader Miscavige as a means to prove his members loyalty. Whomever was unable to get a chair, were met with the threat of being shipped off to distant countries and disconnected from their families. David Miscavige’s sadistic game of having control over his minions gives real insight into the mind of Scientology’s enigmatic leader. It’s no exaggeration to suggest any evil dictator throughout history would have been proud of Miscaviges craven tyranny.

Part two of the series, deals mostly with the cover up of the death of Lisa McPherson, which we will discuss later in this post.

The third and final part of the comprehensive series was a wrap up of the testimonies and dealt with the “overboarding” which was used as punishment within their Sea Org.

Overboarding is when someone gets thrown in a pool or lake as a punishment. This punishment started back in 1968 and was ordered by founder L. Ron Hubbard himself. Sea Org members were thrown right into the ocean off any of the three ships that Hubbard owned. Depending on the severity of the punishment, different decks in varying heights, were used. Some decks being 25 feet from the water’s surface below. Even when the Sea Org moved on to land, this punishment still continued.

Below are the four defectors at the center of this stunning investigation.

Mike Rinder, was top lieutenant in the Sea Org (Scientology’s fake navy). Rinder left Scientology two years ago, but had been a member since he was 18 years old.

Marty Rathbun-was a top lieutenant and in Scientology for 27 years. Marty, perhaps unable to truly disconnect from the emotional attachment to his former “faith,” still practices Scientology today and still offers auditing in his home.

Tom DeVocht, third from the left, oversaw the church’s spiritual headquarters in Clearwater and was vice president of real estate and construction for the cult. He was in for 28 years, and left with a “free loader debt” of owing the cult $98,000.00 of which he thankfully has not paid them one dime. Free loader debt is money owed to the cult for courses taken, which they will try to collect from you once you leave.

Amy Scobee was a top exec who helped create Scientology’s celebrity network and worked for the cult for more than 25 years, joined the Sea Org when she was just 16 years old.

These defectors were quoted as saying:

“the leader established a culture that encouraged physical violence.”

A video compiled by the SP Times features interview with Marty Rathburn and Amy Scobee who talk about the violence and beatings doled out by David Miscavige, and in a nutshell what this news breaking three part series uncovers. Click here to watch.

Scientology also plans on opening up the private files of these four defectors, which are supposed to be confidential and only for the church’s eyes. These well-guarded files chronicle EVERY Scientology member during their Scientology auditing sessions on the e-meter. Lawyers and spokespeople claim that these files will divulge comments from these defectors which will clear the cult. But it will also in turn finally prove that Scientology will use member’s private files to blackmail people. One also has to ask if the cult is doing this to set an example and to curtail any more defectors from speaking out?

If that’s the case, I say open up the files on all members who have defected and files on all top execs and put all the cards on the table. Of course I refer to files that haven’t been doctored up by the cult.

A list of what defectors revealed:

• Physical violence permeated Scientology’s international management team. Miscavige set the tone, routinely attacking his lieutenants. Rinder says the leader attacked him some 50 times.

Rathbun, Rinder and De Vocht admit that they, too, attacked their colleagues, to demonstrate loyalty to Miscavige and prove their mettle.

• Staffers are disciplined and controlled by a multi­ layered system of “ecclesiastical justice.” It includes publicly confessing sins and crimes to a group of peers, being ordered to jump into a pool fully clothed, facing embarrassing “security checks” or, worse, being isolated as a “suppressive person.”

At the pinnacle of the hierarchy, Miscavigecommands such power that managers follow his orders, however bizarre, with lemming-like obedience.

• Church staffers covered up how they botched the care of Lisa McPherson, a Scientologist who died after they held her 17 days in isolation at Clearwater’s Fort Harrison Hotel.

Rathbun, who Miscavigeput in charge of dealing with the fallout from the case, admits that he ordered the destruction of incriminating evidence. He and others also reveal that Miscavige made an embarrassing miscalculation on McPherson’s Scientology counseling.

• With Miscavige calling the shots and Rathbun among those at his side, the church muscled the IRS into granting Scientology tax-exempt status. Offering fresh perspective on one of the church’s crowning moments, Rathbun details an extraordinary campaign of public pressure backed by thousands of lawsuits.

• To prop up revenues, Miscavige has turned to long-time parishioners, urging them to buy material that the church markets as must-have, improved sacred scripture.

For a more detailed look into each defector, click here. They also told how they left the cult and just how difficult it was.

Cult lawyers (Monique Yingling) and cult Spokesperson Tommy Davis are of course crying character assassination of cult leader David Miscavige:

That’s what the defectors are doing to Miscavige, according to a team of two church lawyers and two spokesmen.

Rathbun, Rinder, De Vocht and Scobee: All of them failed at their jobs, broke Sea Org rules and were ethically suspect, the team said. Stack these four failures against a man of Miscavige’s stature and it’s clear who is credible and who is not.

“It’s not a question of they have a version and we have a version. It’s that this never happened,” said Monique Yingling, a non-Scientologist lawyer who has represented the church for more than 20 years. “There is a story here, and it’s not what you’ve been told.”

Here is an audio recording from one of MANY posted on YouTube, where you can hear cult spokesperson Tommy Davis completely losing it while talking about defector Marty Rathbun, and shows his psychotic side defending David Miscavige when interviewed by Joe Childs from the SP Times, at one point, even demanding Joe to look at him.

I am incredulous that anyone would consider Tommy Davis’ claims reliable when defending cult leader David Miscavige, considering Davis wasn’t present for any of the occurrences in which the four defectors witnessed. Clearly Davis can only be going by what he was told by Miscavige and Miscavige, like his mentor L. Ron Hubbard, was a well-known prevaricating charlatan. Even more perplexing, is Davis does admit there were beatings, and that there are several witnesses who can verify what he is saying, but none of course, implicating Miscavige. Rathbun already admitted he beat people under the orders of Miscavige, so my question is, if all these beatings were going on over the years, which according to Davis were up to 50 times, why did this go unreported? Is this acceptable behavior of this “church”, or any church for that matter?

And another telling part of the audio tape, is Davis lists other critic’s names and he states that they all are claiming the same story. This shows that ALL critics witnessed the same occurrences of abuse, corruption, mind control and this makes their stories even more credible from my perspective. How can so many individuals who are willing to speak out, all claiming the SAME story, who have witnessed the same behavior on several different occasions, be not credible? Mind boggling.

And what of the Lisa McPherson case?

Rathbun spoke about the case at length with the SP Times, and one quote in particular thoroughly sums up the way Lisa McPherson was handled:

“It was a “perfect storm of incompetence and irresponsibility” within the church, he said. “You couldn’t justify it.’’

But wait, there’s more…

Just when things are looking up and NBC drops Scientologist Jason Lee’s show, “My Name is Earl,” (the dumbest show ever…right up there next to My Mother The Car) CBS says they are coming out with a new comedy this Fall called “Accidentally on Purpose”, and will star Jenna Elfman. Thanks CBS, thanks A LOT!

Jenna was recently interviewed on the Early Show, to promote her new flop show and they ran a clip of Accidentally On Purpose. It is beyond BAD. In the small clip you can already tell the show is loaded with bad acting, lousy writing and it’s just NOT funny.  See for yourself.

For those of you who don’t know who Jenna Elfman is, she made it big with the TV show “Dharma and Greg” years ago. Now for all you youngins’, who are saying, who or what the hell is Dharma and Greg, allow me to enlighten you.

The show aired from 1997 - 2002 and was about a culture-clashed couple, with Dharma, a goofy neo-hippy whose parents are new agey types and her husband, Greg (played by Thomas Gibson) a straight-laced lawyer, whose parents, you guessed are also uptight yuppies. Oh the hilarity that ensued (or didn’t depending on who you ask) as the quirky Dharmas and the uppity Gregs dealt with life’s little mysteries. Ok, enough of that drivel.

In real life, Jenna is NO Dharma, abiding by the live and let live policy of her on-screen persona, but rather she and her husband Bodhi, (son of director Richard Elfman) are die-hard Scientologists. And just to keep you apprised of what Scientologists believe about other religions — they don’t. Even worse than most mainstream religions, Scientology is one of the most intolerant of outside beliefs and other faiths of any cult around.

Not surprising… Bodhi’s father Richard, is also a Scientologist. Jenna and Bodhi met at auditions for a Sprite commercial. Bodhi was responsible for getting Jenna into the cult. The BOTH studied under Milton Katselas who is the teacher at the famed The Beverly Hills Playhouse. Unfortunately Katselas has pressured MANY celebrities to get into Scientology, but since he has “dropped his body” at least he won’t be able to lure any new converts (thanks Liz).

The Elfmans have one child, Story Elias, who will presumably be raised as a Scientologist. SAD I believe Jenna is OT V on Scientology’s Bridge To Nowhere. Correct me if I am wrong.  And she has also been on Scientology’s Freewinds cruise ship which was laden with asbestos when she traveled on it. Better get those lungs checked Jenna!

Now this new show, “Accidentally On Purpose” is supposed to be a comedy, but the true comedy here is definitely Jenna herself. She has been known to come out with some pretty off-the-wall statements over the years, and Jenna and Bodhi defend their cult with an iron fist.

Back in 2006, when Elfman was out one day with Bodhi, they happened to come across someone wearing a Scientology is Gay t-shirt which pictured Tom Cruise on the front, and a young John Travolta, with VERY GAY written underneath.

This prompted Jenna to scream at and berate this man wearing the t-shirt with standard Scientology attack behavior, asking him what his crimes were and if he raped a baby. Yes you read that right. Seriously, WTF is up with that line of defensive, or in this case, offensive? That’s a classic sign of instability and insanity if you ask me. 

TMZ reported:

 ”Tom Cruise’s recent public displays weren’t evidence enough, Scientologists Jenna and Bodhi Elfman prove that they, too, are willing to go to great lengths to defend their religion.

Indie film director John Roecker tells TMZ he was walking to his car with a female friend in the trendy Los Feliz neighborhood last Sunday when he was approached by a shirtless man and a tall blonde. “Hey, man, you’re making fun of my religion,” said the stranger angrily.

Roecker quickly recognized the couple as actor Bodhi Elfman and his wife, ‘Dharma and Greg’ star Jenna Elfman. Mr. Elfman’s ire was apparently drawn by Roecker’s self-made t-shirt, which had a picture of Tom Cruise on the front under the caption “Scientology is Gay!” and a ‘Stayin’-Alive’-era John Travolta on the back with the words “Very Gay!” For the record, both Cruise and Travolta have said repeatedly they are not gay.

According to Roecker, whose encounter was first reported on LA’s KROQ-FM’s Kevin and Bean Show, the invective started to fly after he made several references to Scientology theology and its reported central tenent, the story of Xenu.

Roecker says Jenna repeatedly said “What crimes have you committed?” and began screaming at Roecker, “Have you raped a baby?” as motorists on Los Feliz Boulevard drove by in snarled traffic.

Roecker says it appears that Bodhi Elfman prepared to take a swing at him, but thought against it.

Bizarrely, Roecker also says that the Elfmans had a young, twenty-something male companion with them whom they continually instructed to move away and cover his ears whenever references to Xenu were made.

Roecker says this is not the first time he has worn a t-shirt that has provoked similar reactions from fellow devotees of L. Ron Hubbard like Juliette Lewis, Lisa Marie Presley, and actor Hal Ozman, who worked on ‘Dawson’s Creek’ with none other than a certain Katie Holmes. Sources at the Church of Scientology’s Celebrity Centre say Roecker is no stranger to them. Several non-celeb parishioners have also complained about Roecker’s t-shirts.

Bodhi Elfman’s rep Jenni Weinman tells TMZ that according to Bodhi “He was out for a Sunday stroll with his wife, when some guy walks by with a t-shirt on, very prominently attacking his religion. Words were extended and Bodhi and Jenna were personally attacked for their beliefs. As they went about their business, the guy continued to try to illicit negative responses from the both of them. As they walked away he continued to scream propaganda and hate at them. Apparently he spent all Monday calling the press to promote himself.

Yikes! Elfmans, grow the hell up and get a clue on reality! Oh wait… too late, you’re Scientologists, things like reality and a clue are foreign terms.

I was going to give Jenna a good dissing in this article, because she most definitely deserves it, but it’s really not necessary. All one has to do, is quote Jenna herself, her quotes pretty much diss herself.

So here we go…a few charming quotes by Ms. Jenna Whack-a-Do Scientology Extraordinaire.

But wait, there’s more…

Kirstie was recently on Oprah. You know how much Oprah loves her Scientology cult friends. From Tomcat to Travolta and Kelly Preston to her larger-than-life pal Kirstie.

The main topic of the show was Kirstie’s 83-pound weight gain, which of course she whined about and successfully made a total ass out of herself. 

Kirstie has been struggling with her weight for years. Even when she appeared on Oprah post Jenny Craig wearing a bathing suit and claiming to be down to 140 pounds a while back, I think she was kidding herself. I know she had lost weight, but this picture shows Kirstie showing off some pretty thunderous CRL’s (charging rhino legs).

I used an acronym, because you know how much Scientology loves to use them in their “Sci speak”.

As you may or may not know, Kirstie is a HUGE supporter (don’t mean that literally, although it certainly applies) of the Cult of Scientology. She is the receiver of the Diamond Meritorious Award, which basically means she gave a butt load of money — FIVE MILLION to be exact — to the cult and in return, she received some phony ass award which consists of a crappy cheap statue and some back slaps.

Members “donate” cash so they can contribute to the cult’s mission of ”clearing the planet” and obliterating psychiatry. Although nobody has ever seen any evidence of this ”plan” actually working. Apparently, that tiny little fact doesn’t bother celebrities and other cult members, who still dig deep in their pockets for the cause. I don’t get it. Whatever happened to the ol’ cliche “Seeing is Believing”?

Just for fun, let’s see what some of the other celebrity cult followers have donated in the past….

• Nancy Cartwright, 50, Patron Laureate Award: $10 million.
• Kirstie Alley, 57, Diamond Meritorious Award: $5 million.
• John Travolta, 53, Gold Meritorious Award: $1 million.
• Kelly Preston, 45, Gold Meritorious Award: $1 million.
• Priscilla Presley, 62, Patron Award: $50,000.

L. Ron Hubbard’s teachings of his vision to “clear the planet and obliterate psychiatry” is followed religiously by cult members. (Even though it is FAR from a religion). Especially for the fact that L. Ron Hubbard was the biggest con since the original snake oil salesmen of yore.

Many people ask why Hubbard was so against psychiatry, and that still stands true for his cult members today. Scientologists are actually holding a protest against psychiatry in San Francisco on May 16th, and I am sure the group Anonymous will be there to protest the Scientologist’s protest. Wish we were there to cover it!

The simple reason why Hubbard hated psychiatrists began as deep-seated mistrust born of his own mental illnesses, and when Hubbard set out to create a new brand of “psychotherapy” the psychiatric community saw through his junk pseudo science and called him on it. Like any paranoid megalomaniac, he set out to destroy his enemies (and competition in this case.)

In Hubbard’s own words:

“We know more about psychiatry than psychiatrists” and “We can brainwash faster than the Russians” taken from his HCO Technical Bulletins Volume 2

Hubbard also had grandiose claims of curing many ailments and illnesses. Here are some actual excerpts (borrowed from Wiki) of L. Ron Hubbard’s babblings taken from his books of data, brace yourself for the b.s.:

“The problem of psychosomatic illness is entirely embraced by Dianetics, and by Dianetic technique such illness has been eradicated entirely in every case. About 70 percent of the physician’s current roster of diseases fall in the category of psychosomatic illness.” Hubbard added, “That all illnesses are psychosomatic is, of course, absurd, for there exist, after all, life forms called germs which have survival as their goals.” [emphasisin the original.] Later in the chapter Hubbard asserted, “Bizarre aches and pains in various portions of the body are generally psychosomatic. Migraine headaches are psychosomatic and, with the others, are uniformly cured by Dianetic therapy.”

“MAYBE YOU’RE NOT SICK

“MAYBE YOU’RE JUST SUPPRESSED

“SEE US AND FIND OUT”

“Legally, this permits us to heal without engaging in healing as, in actual fact, we address no illnesses and indeed, DENY people are ill–they are only suppressed. Sickness occurs, we say, where suppression has been too great…. The legal argument is simple; we don’t believe in sickness, we do not address illness, we do not diagnose, we believe that freeing the human spirit also incidentally prevents sickness…. We do send acutely ill people to doctors. We advertise to cure no diseases! That last is legally important.”

From his writings in the History of Man:

Numerous medical cures are claimed:

• “Today, Eleanor has arthritis. She is audited… tonight she doesn’t have arthritis” (pg.7)
• “Paralysis, anxiety stomachs, arthritis and many ills and aberrations have been relieved by auditing them.” (pg.14)
• “Cancer has been eradicated by auditing out conception and mitosis.” (pg.20)

From Dianetics:

Originally published in 1950, this book (full title: Dianetics: the Modern Science of Mental Health)  has undergone many slight changes and alterations over the years, so one edition may vary from another. Among its claims:

• “arthritis vanishes, myopia gets better, heart illness decreases, asthma disappears, stomachs function properly and the whole catalogue of illnesses goes away and stays away.” (pg.72, 1987 edition)
• “Clears do not get colds.” (pg.121, 1992 edition)

“Clears” for all of you who do not know what Scientology lingo… 
From Wikipedia (and no, it’s not squirreled tech):

Clear  is stated to be a condition in which a person is free of the unwanted influence of engrams, unwanted emotions or painful traumas which are not readily available to the awareness of present time. A person in this condition, then referred to as a “Clear”, would be a person cleared of those negative influences. Such a person is said to be “at cause over” (in control of) their “mental energy” (their thoughts), and able to think clearly even when faced with the very situation which in earlier times caused them grave difficulty.

A Clear is a being who no longer has his own reactive mind, and therefore suffers none of the ill effects the reactive mind can cause. The Clear has no engrams which, when re-stimulated, throw out the correctness of his computations by entering hidden and false data.”

Ok got that? No?  Well you’re not alone, and even to this day, taking into account Scientology was started back in the 1960s, there has been absolutely NO evidence whatsoever that a “clear” exists at all.
Hey Scientology! Scam much?

Hubbard’s own words from the books Dianetics Today and All About Radiation:

In the 1975 edition of Hubbard’s Dianetics Today, it is claimed:

• “A broken limb will heal (by X-ray evidence) in two instead of six weeks.” (pg.110)
• “I’ve seen a goiter the size of a baseball visibly shrink and disappear in the space of one-half hour right after an engram was run.” (pg. 280)
• “A girl crippled by polio was able to throw away her crutches after my first session.” (pg.353)
• “ONLY processing by Dianetics and Scientology can handle the effects of drugs fully.” (pg.481)

 All About Radiation
Hubbard’s 1957 book  introduced a vitamin supplement called “Dianazene.” Hubbard promoted it as a form of protection against radiation poisoning during the 1950s, saying that “Dianazene runs out radiation - or what appears to be radiation. It also proofs a person against radiation in some degree. It also turns on and runs out incipient cancer.”

So I think you get where I am going with this?

But wait, there’s more…

Scientology Ministries, known to its critics as the “Vulture Ministries” has “crashed” many US disaster sites. The VM’s have wormed their way into “helping” (I use the term help lightly), in many disasters world wide, and let’s not forget their presence at 9/11!

One could safely assert, no disaster is safe from the Scientology Volunteer Ministries. They show up uninvited, empty handed with the exception of L. Ron Hubbard’s Way To Happiness pamphlets. Pretty smooth eh?

Recently, the Scientology “Vultures” were in L’Aquila Italy, in the wake of the devastating earthquake in Central Italy. Disturbingly, there are 62 Scientology Orgs in Italy, and sadly Scientology has quite a strong hold in Italy. The VM’s have been in Japan, Taiwan, Australia and not too long ago, had their “Good Will” recruitment tours in Košice located in the Slovak Republic, Romania and Poland.

That’s just to name a few, if sources for recruits are drying up in the US, than one needs to take it globally.

Also noteworthy in the Scientology global spread, is a CASTLE the church purchased in Africa. That’s right a freakin’ castle! Perhaps with all the new pending lawsuits filed, and more to follow, church leader David Miscavige will be setting up his new cult refuge there? Hiding out in 3rd world countries is all the rage for cults, just ask Jim Jones. Oh wait, scratch that.

Oh! We’d be remiss to mention that yesterday, April 30th was DM’s birthday, enjoy your freedom while you still can.

Scientology spokesperson Karin Pouw says:

“Scientology Volunteer Ministers, whose help in nearly every major disaster over the past decade has earned them a reputation for their indiscriminate acts of kindness and compassion, have joined the rescue workers. They have been manning field kitchens to provide hot meals, setting up tents for the homeless and working with local emergency services to locate survivors. They also bring personal help to the survivors using technology developed by Scientology Founder, L. Ron Hubbard. No matter how hopeless the situation may seem, their motto is “something CAN be done about it.”

What Ms. Pouw neglects to mention, which Glosslip talked about in Part One , is that the meals and tents ect. are always provided by someone else’s donations. NO donations come from the Scientology Volunteer Ministries Organization. If they hand out water… someone else bought it, food handed out…someone else donated it. Even the booklets they hand out which are PRINTED by Scientology Sea Org members, were purchased by a Scientology member. I guess in Scientology’s eyes, passing out other people’s donations and hawking L. Ron Hubbard Tech and applying their pseudo-sciencey “touch assists” on disaster victims is considered “indiscriminate acts of kindness and compassion,” and the only thing these victims need.

In the aftermath of the 2005 tsunami, areas were flooded by relief organization and opportunistic religious groups seeking to take advantage of confused and traumatized for a variety of purposes. This is a perfect breeding ground for a group like Scientology. As quoted from the Guardian Uk:

One of the religious groups in Aceh is the Church of Scientology. Gregory Churilov, who is working for the Scientologists there, explained his faith offers the Acehnese “a methodology to handle loss and trauma”. But, as England observed, “in an unusual twist on the notion of bringing aid to the destitute, Churilov says his group arrived in Aceh with nothing and were given tents by the army and food by friendly locals. Unfazed that the aid flow was meant to go the other way, he used this as an example of how well accepted the Scientologists were by local people, rather than as an example of traditional manners.”

The Volunteer Ministers logo is “Something Can be Done About It“.
That “something” is pushing recruitment and fueling the Scientology PR machine. Scientology is ALL about PR.

A comment by an ex-Scientologist on the Why We Protest forum, explains what the VM Ministers actually do when they arrive at a disaster:

“VM’s go to disaster scenes as part of their recruitment campaign, and to gather points for their PR stat: “Scn doing good works promoted.”

When the VM team arrives they set up an OrgBoard (organizational chart) and the first two appointed jobs are the I/C (in charge) and the PR Rep. The PR rep has the job of getting lots of photo’s showing Scn doing a great job as well as to “ally” as many officials as possible. This is standard VM tech. They usually don’t bring the water, food, supplies. Instead, they just help pass it out. Of course, that’s in between them giving people “touch assists” and other scn hocus pocus, and letting them know that Scn can help them with their spiritual problems.”

So there you have it.

The words of an ex-Scientologist who knows first hand what Scientology’s true agenda is, and the importance of their disaster visits are to TAKE PICTURES of the VM’s passing out other people’s donations, so they can ally as many officials as possible.  

What about some concern for the disaster victims?

From the Volunteer Ministers website:

“Scientology Volunteer Ministers have provided assistance to refugee camps in Kosovo, to earthquake victims in Kobe, Japan and to survivors of the bombing in Oklahoma City. They have trained Red Cross personnel in technologies to further their relief efforts in Western China, to aid those displaced by an earthquake on Russia’s Sakhalin Island and to assist victims of Hurricane Andrew which devastated parts of Florida.

“The first to take advantage of the Volunteer Ministers disaster relief training program was the local Red Cross, whose staff and volunteers attended seminars on communication and ethics. The Red Cross personnel also learned to deliver Scientology assists—simple techniques developed by L. Ron Hubbard that handle the spiritual component in trauma.”

The Red Cross? Really? That’s Interesting. The Red Cross has denied that they “team up” with Scientology in any capacity.

Here’s an interesting email from the Red Cross in response to someone’s inquiry on the legitimacy of Scientology’s claims of a “formalized national relationship”:

“The American Red Cross does not have a formalized national relationship with the Church of Scientology. Additionally, I contacted Doug Wallace, Director, Disaster Services, St Louis, who stated the Church of Scientology did assist St. Louis in the 1995 floods, but they were not Red Cross volunteers. It is often difficult to request that organizations eliminate Red Cross references on their web sites. Their statement regarding Red Cross relationship is relatively generic; although the photo alludes to a more specific Red Cross relationship. I suspect the photo opportunity presented itself when someone was simply standing in front of the Red Cross sign. I have forwarded your email to information services and to our General Counsel for their perusal. We will continue to monitor the web site for other Red Cross references.Thank you for your email and your concern regarding American Red Cross Disaster Relief efforts.”

Well that’s pretty cut and dry. Even the Red Cross realizes some shady groups will take advantage of tragedies to align themselves with legitimate charitable organizations to improve their own public image, and there is precious little the Red Cross or any other group genuinely helping people can do about it.

Scientology Ministries recently has been putting their focus on third world countries. You may ask why would Scientology branch out to impoverished third world countries who haven’t the income to climb the many levels of their “Bridge To Total Freedom?” *ahem*

The answer? FRESH MEAT. A term which Scientology uses for new recruits. People who can’t afford to take the exorbitantly priced “spiritual courses, can always join their Sea Organization — an all volunteer paramilitary group. And what are the “perks” for joining the Sea Org, besides labor law violations and many documented many human rights abuses? You can take the Scientology courses and auditing for “free”. Well, it’s free unless you leave, at which point you are promptly presented a bill for all those “free courses” not to mention disconnection from love ones still in the cult.

Now is that a deal or what?

These foreign recruits may work in their own country, or they are enticed by Scientology’s promise of a better life in the US. Of course upon arrival the new recruit’s passports are confiscated and held by Scientology, and most are greatly disappointed once they find out what being in the Sea Org  is all about. But how does Scientology transport newbies LEGALLY into the US to and from other countries? Well of course the Religious Worker Visa! Ta-Dah!

Scientology is crafty, we’ll give ‘em that!

Ex-Scientologist, known as Twin A, said this about how Scientology gets around the rules:

“I went to other countries numerous times to do video shooting for Scientology propaganda videos. England, Italy, Denmark, Switzerland, Venezuela, all the Caribbean Islands, Mexico. I was told to say I was on “vacation”,when I wasn’t. I was working. It was ingrained in my head, at an early age, by other Church of Scientology staff, that it was completely OK to do things that were illegal and to lie to officials about it, because it was for the “greater good.”

That’s how Scientology gets away with paying their Sea Org members WAY below minimum wage, often for double the number of hours most people work. And not only is it ok to lie to officials, but it’s encouraged by higher ups in the organization. Who’s going to argue with the “most ethical people on the planet?”

So, who can apply for a religious worker visa?

“Religious worker visas are available to people coming to work for a religious organization in the United States as a minister, in a religious professional capacity, or in a religious vocation or occupation. “Ministers” are individuals authorized by a recognized religious denomination to conduct religious worship and perform other duties normally performed by the clergy. “Professional capacity” means that the position the individual will be working in requires at least a bachelor’s degree. A “religious occupation” is any activity which relates to a traditional religious function. Persons in a religious occupation include liturgical workers, religious instructors, missionaries, religious counselors, workers in religious hospitals or health facilities, cantors, catechists, or religious broadcasters, but not janitors, clerks, or persons involved solely in the solicitation of donations. A “religious vocation” is a calling to religious life evidenced by the demonstration of a commitment practiced in the religious denomination, such as the taking of vows.”

Visas and passports however, run out and expire…

So what to do? From exscientology.com :

“Scientology has been known to change members names and “move” them elsewhere. So although passport and visa fraud are federal felonies, with penalties of 10 years (for a first offense if not tied to terrorism or drug trafficking), 15 years for fraud with other criminal links, 20 years for fraud related to drug trafficking and so on, so far,Scientology has remained under the radar.”

The Volunteer Ministries has also reached the far corners of India. One man, who is called “Father Hope” by the orphans in the slums of Kolkota (formally called Calcutta) is Mohammad Khalil Ullah.

Mohammad is a Scientologist.

Back in 2006, Mohammad attended the Scientology Volunteer Ministers World Tour, where he learned the technique of Scientology’s “Touch Assist” and was intrigued by the Hubbard tech and now heads Scientology Ministers. Mohammad is currently working on a project to build an orphanage outside Kolkata.  He has also opened up four “Scientology Free” schools for the orphans in the slums of Kolkata. These quickly assembled ”make shift” schools, are are no more than woven bamboo walls without doors or windows, dirt floors, and a tarp on the roof that displays a big “Scientology Free School” sign.

Mohammad supposedly also supplies meals, some health care, and medicine to the children supposedly, but OUT OF HIS OWN POCKET, not from the vast and rich coffers Scientology has amassed over the years.

In Part 3 in the series, we will delve more into how Scientology is taking advantage of these poor and uninformed children of India through Mohammad’s Educating Children International program. You will also meet Erin and Nick Banks. Two Scientology ministers who flew to India from the US to help Mohammad build an orphanage and who were behind the Slums to Schools website/blog.

As we broke here last week, Scientology spokesperson (and son of actress Anne Archer) Tommy Davis was confronted about several issues surrounding the controversial religion by ABC affiliate reporter Nathan Baca. The 45 minute interview took place at the Scientology Celebrity Center in Hollywood, and only after Davis and select Sea Org members “asked” (read: insisted) Baca to sit through over an hour’s worth of Scientology propaganda videos, including an anti-Anonymous video. It was only then, that Davis agreed to be interviewed by Baca. You can read Nathan’s full report of how the interview was secured here.

What’s most interesting from my perspective is how prepared Baca is in forcing Tommy Davis to actually ANSWER his questions. Davis and Scientology in general, are extremely adept at avoiding truths and they are the masters of spin. Fortunately, Baca studied previous Davis interviews and new what he was up against. Watch as Davis squirms under the pressure and is forced to answer questions about the security at Gold Base and information pertaining to Scientology manuals covering their Operating Thetan Level 3 materials, or the “Xenu Story” as it’s affectionately known around here.

A couple weeks back Glosslip posted an exclusive breaking story about arrests at the Church of Scientology compound in Hemet, California called Gold Base. High profile Scientology critic and Emmy-award winning journalist Mark Bunker was subjected to a “citizen’s arrest” executed by Riverside sheriff’s deputies for essentially “meandering” too long in front of the gate. Bogus indeed.

What is not bogus however is the connections between Riverside County Commissioner Jeff Stone and the Church of Scientology. Investigative reporter Nathan Baca for ABC affiliate station KESQ dug deeper into the hows and why of a recent proposal to ban all public protests outside the compound. Please watch both videos for a revealing look at what Scientology is trying to hide and how Commissioner Stone is complicit in covering up the illegal actions of the Scientology organization.

The report also includes an incredibly awesome interview with Scientology spokesperson Tommy Davis. Talk about squirming. Nathan Baca deserves some serious kudos and footrubs for his brave reporting. Dude, word of advice, watch your back. Scientology’s only good a one thing, harassing critics.

As reported HERE FIRST, Glosslip revealed, thanks to some super-sleuthing by our friend MT and the folks at www.WhyWeProtest.net, voice-over actress Nancy Cartwright used her Bart Simpson voice character to make some promotional calls on behalf of the Church of Scientology for an upcoming event.. The video has been removed from YouTube by 20th Century Fox due to copyright infringement, but the word about what Cartwright did is already out, and her bosses as Fox are none too happy about it.

An article in the Daily Mail reveals that Cartwright’s bosses do NOT approve this message:

Executives at 20th Century Fox are reported to be fuming after Cartwright recorded a voicemail message using her ‘Bart’ voice to boost turn-out for the event at the organisation’s Hollywood centre.

The message begins with Cartwright introducing herself as Bart in the character’s voice.

She says: ‘Hey, what’s happening man, this is Bart Simpson!’ - and laughs using Bart’s trademark chuckle.

The actress - who is a Scientologist - then reveals her true identity, saying: ‘Just kidding, don’t hang up, this is Nancy Cartwright. This is a very special phone call to you.’

During the 59-second message she switches between her voice and Bart’s, ending several sentences with the word ‘man’.

‘It’s gonna be a blast man!’ she says in Bart’s voice, chuckling before describing what she will be speaking about at the event in Los Angeles on January 31.

Blogger Perez Hilton posted the audio on the internet on Wednesday but it was quickly removed due to a copyright claim by 20th Century Fox when the story made headlines, according to The Times.

Simpson’s executive producer Al Jean said: ‘This is not authorised by us.

”The Simpsons’ does not, and never has, endorsed any religion, philosophy or system of beliefs any more profound than Butterfinger bars,’ according to TV gossip website The Live Feed.

DOH! It seems what started out as an internal leak from within the Scientology community, may come back to haunt Cartwright, Scientology and the folks at the Simpson production team.

This story, which is now not only all over the gossip rags, is also hitting mainstream media. The “religion” that is Scientology has been reduced to a punchline to almost any and every joke related to cults, religion and celebrity culture, and they are doing a fantastic job of marginalizing themselves even further with incidents like this. In researching this story, I came across several commenters who voiced concerns over having their kids watch a show which uses its characters to promote one religion over another. Some parents said they were going to ban the show from their homes and inform their friends to do the same. Word is spreading like a virus and Scientology is the STD no one wants.

Nancy Cartwright, who donated $10million dollars to the Church of Scientology, has crossed a line with the public and this may turn out to be a major fiasco.

Oh, and be sure to call that number at the end of the video above (the one that doesn’t use Simpson images and hasn’t been pulled yet) and ask what an OT7 is, what’s the Wall Of Fire and if Lord Xenu will be there. But hurry, the event is this Saturday!

It’s been years since I took German, so I can only pick out a few things they are saying in the above German broadcast covering Tom Cruise and wife Katie Holmes visit to Berlin to promote Tom’s film Valkyrie, a WWII epic about a failed assassination attempt on Nazi leader Adolph Hitler.

Germany is the least hospitable country to the pseudo-religion Scientology, of which Cruise is the de-facto 2nd in command, and has listed the group of their “watch list”. During the making of the film, Cruise and company were presented with numerous obstacles to having the film made in Germany. Government officials spoke out about Scientology, and tried to pass legislation to ban it from the country.

The one thing we can ascertain from the above video is that members of the anti-Scientology group Anonymous were on hand to “welcome” Tom and Katie to Germany. I’d love to know what the reporter was saying — any translators out there?

Update: Here’s a link with some more footage of Tom and Katie, and Anonymous members protesting and being removed.

(link courtesy of WhyWeProtest.com)

Anonymous and Cruise Meet At Last

While in Germany promoting his latest film, Valkyrie, Tom Cruise was confronted by a critic. The gentleman who took the video was wearing a Guy Fawkes mask, like those seen in the film V For Vendetta, and have become synonymous with the anti-Scientology group who call themselves “Anonymous.”

Members of Anonymous have been staging monthly global protests against the Church of Scientology since last January (in fact the one year anniversary was last week, I enjoyed a slice of cake to celebrate). The group also staged protests at Cruise’s wife Katie Holmes Broadway debut in the fall and the movie premieres for Valkyrie.

While the battle to expose Scientology as a dangerous cult intensifies, Tom continues to serve as the goodwill ambassador of the celebrity sect and this is evident in the above video.

During the signing, fans lined up to get Tom’s autograph, including the gentleman in the video who politely, but tenaciously pressed Cruise to sign his mask. A member of the security detail took the mask, but Tom, the consummate people-pleaser he is, retrieved it, signed it, and put a nice little peace symbol on the mask before returning it.

Pretty sweet I’d say.

Honestly, as I reflect back on the last year, including Glosslip’s extensive coverage of Scientology, this is an interesting sign. Either Tom Cruise is allowing himself more autonomy away from the group, or he is attempting to extend an olive branch of sorts.

In the famous KSW (Keeping Scientology Working) video, Cruise declared he would shatter suppression when confronted, perhaps even Tom has learned a lesson or two about tolerance and openness.

Now, if only his church would stop swindling money from its members and disconnecting loved ones from one another, we could all make peace.

Hey, this is an historic time, anything is possible I guess.

(thanks to M2 and DM for the link)

Glosslip is thrilled to announce we will be interviewing author John Duignan, whose new book, The Complex: An Insider Exposes The Covert World Of The Church Of Scientology is currently embroiled in controversy stemming from Amazon.com.uk (and apparently the U.S. Amazon.com) having pulled the book due to legal pressure from the Church of Scientology.

Here’s a brief subject description from Amazon’s site, where you can no longer get the book (read about how Amazon pulled this book after a visit from top Scientologist and second in command, Tom Cruise on Nov. 5.)

For the first time ever, a former high-ranking member of the Church of Scientology is lifting the lid on life inside the world s fastest growing cult. The Complex reveals the true story behind the religion that has ensnared a who’s who list of celebrities such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta, and convinced thousands of ordinary people to join up.

Duignan describes how two years ago he staged a dramatic escape from the elite paramilitary group at the core of the Church, the Sea Organisation, and how he narrowly evaded pursuit by Scientologists from the Office of Special Affairs. He looks back on the 22 years he served in the Church s secret army and describes the hours of sleep deprivation, brain-washing and intense auditing or religious counselling he endured, as he was moulded into a soldier of Scientology. He talks about the money-making-machine at the heart of the Church, the Scientology goal to Clear the Planet and Get Ethics In , the training programmes, the Rehabilitation Project Force and the punishments meted out to anyone who transgresses, including children. We follow his journey through the Church and the painful investigation that leads to his eventual realisation that there is something very wrong at Scientology s core.

The beliefs of the Church of Scientology might sound like something from a science fiction book but The Complex reveals that the Church s growing power base is a shocking reality.

Show begins at 12:00Noon, EST, on Tuesday, November 18.

CLICK HERE TO LISTEN TO THE SHOW.