Reports are coming in that the big Scientology New Year's Event was another big window into the rapidly vanishing planet Scientology.
No one was there.
Oh, there were some Scientologists in the audience, although not nearly as many as previous years. The few remaining True Believers, plus the not-yet-announced ex-Scientologists were there, but Church of Scientology upper management totally failed to appear.
David Miscavige, leader of the church and re-inventor of Scientology was missing.
Marc Yager was missing. Mark Rathbun was missing.
[EDIT] This is unconfirmed, but there are reports that Guillaume Lesevre was a speaker. It is important to note that he's no longer part of International Management. He used to be Executive Director of the Church of Scientology but is no longer listed anywhere as such. Reportedly, what he does every day is "conditions", punishment and "deck work" (digging ditches, etc.). Apparently he was pulled off of his punishment to speak at the event.
Heber Jentzsch was also reportedly a speaker, but he is not part of International Management either. He was President of the Church of Scientology, years ago, but no one handles that post any more. According to recent leaks, Heber is also on "conditions", punishment and "deck work" and only gets a reprieve when he speaks at an event.
Neither Guillaume nor Heber are in Scientology International Management positions.
Top management was missing.
Tommy Davis, a second-string PR flack was running the event -- not someone from management, not anyone who actually does anything, just a PR flack.
All the puffy and fluffy stories were there. All the we-have-no-proof-but-look-how-great-we're-doing creations were there, but nobody from top management bothered to show up.
Is there anyone still there in top management, or are they all on "conditions", punishment and "deck work"?
It appears that all the Church of Scientology has left is PR. Everything else, everyone else is gone.
Where are all the Scientologists?
-
Tuesday, December 30, 2008
Sunday, December 28, 2008
Scientology Thought Control - Part 1
First, let me clarify what is meant by "Thought Control". Many people believe that thought control means that a person's thoughts are controlled by some external force -- another person or group -- but that isn't the case. Thought control is that a person learns to control their own thoughts based on certain rules. It is self-imposed control over one's own thoughts.
When you start talking about Scientology's "thought control", many Scientologists get upset, "No one is controlling my thoughts, I'm the one in full control," and that is, actually, true. They are in control, but they are not free.
To become a Scientologist, you must learn to control your thoughts, and your actions, to conform to the rules and requirements of Miscavige's Church of Scientology.
Let me give one example of how this works. There are many, many ways this is done, but this example is one of the earliest learned.
"Entheta"
As is standard in Scientology, this is a made-up word by L. Ron Hubbard. The definition of "entheta" is "enturbulated theta". "Theta" is defined as "life force". "Enturbulate" is defined, by Hubbard as "to agitate or disturb; to upset."
So "entheta" is "agitated or disturbed life force". Or, more simply, "entheta" means upsetting news, information, circumstances, etc.
In Scientology, entheta is bad. Scientologists learn that good news (or "theta") is "good" and bad news (or "entheta") is "bad". Entheta must be rejected by all loyal Scientologists -- especially "entheta" about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard or Miscavige. Anything upsetting must be rejected as entheta. Entheta will harm you. Entheta will interfere with your "progress up the 'Bridge to Total Freedom'!" Entheta is bad.
But notice something very, very important. The definition of "entheta" has absolutely nothing to do with what is true or what is false!
The automatic response that Scientologists have learned, that they must reject all entheta, is completely outside of truth and lies. Negative and upsetting information about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard and Miscavige must be rejected as entheta even if absolutely true.
And the corollary is also learned and practised by all Scientologists: Good news and information about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard and Miscavige must be accepted because it's "theta" even if completely false.
Of course, Scientologists are not allowed to think in terms of what might be true in any negative information or what might be lies in any good news. They may only think in terms of "entheta" and "theta".
And so, Scientologists learn to control their thoughts according to what is "entheta" and what is "theta", and not by what is true and what is false.
If a Scientologist reads or hears something about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard or Miscavige that upsets them, they automatically and without thought reject it as "entheta". They no longer allow themselves to think about truth and lies. It is self-imposed thought control.
It's easy once you get the basics down.
-
When you start talking about Scientology's "thought control", many Scientologists get upset, "No one is controlling my thoughts, I'm the one in full control," and that is, actually, true. They are in control, but they are not free.
To become a Scientologist, you must learn to control your thoughts, and your actions, to conform to the rules and requirements of Miscavige's Church of Scientology.
Let me give one example of how this works. There are many, many ways this is done, but this example is one of the earliest learned.
"Entheta"
As is standard in Scientology, this is a made-up word by L. Ron Hubbard. The definition of "entheta" is "enturbulated theta". "Theta" is defined as "life force". "Enturbulate" is defined, by Hubbard as "to agitate or disturb; to upset."
So "entheta" is "agitated or disturbed life force". Or, more simply, "entheta" means upsetting news, information, circumstances, etc.
In Scientology, entheta is bad. Scientologists learn that good news (or "theta") is "good" and bad news (or "entheta") is "bad". Entheta must be rejected by all loyal Scientologists -- especially "entheta" about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard or Miscavige. Anything upsetting must be rejected as entheta. Entheta will harm you. Entheta will interfere with your "progress up the 'Bridge to Total Freedom'!" Entheta is bad.
But notice something very, very important. The definition of "entheta" has absolutely nothing to do with what is true or what is false!
The automatic response that Scientologists have learned, that they must reject all entheta, is completely outside of truth and lies. Negative and upsetting information about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard and Miscavige must be rejected as entheta even if absolutely true.
And the corollary is also learned and practised by all Scientologists: Good news and information about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard and Miscavige must be accepted because it's "theta" even if completely false.
Of course, Scientologists are not allowed to think in terms of what might be true in any negative information or what might be lies in any good news. They may only think in terms of "entheta" and "theta".
And so, Scientologists learn to control their thoughts according to what is "entheta" and what is "theta", and not by what is true and what is false.
If a Scientologist reads or hears something about Scientology, Dianetics, Hubbard or Miscavige that upsets them, they automatically and without thought reject it as "entheta". They no longer allow themselves to think about truth and lies. It is self-imposed thought control.
It's easy once you get the basics down.
-
Thursday, December 11, 2008
Scientology: Why "Religion"?
Recently, I was asked to look at why Scientology characterizes itself as a religion.
Anyone who pays any attention to the various controversies surrounding David Miscavige's Church of Scientology knows that there is a lot of information available about this "religion" angle. It is obvious that the Church of Scientology was set up and is run like a business, and that the whole "religion" thing was tacked on as an afterthought, so the question is, "Why?"
Why does Scientology call itself a religion? And why is it important?
We'll look at "why" in a bit. First, let's look at who says it is a religion. The answer may surprise you.
Did Hubbard call Scientology a religion? Well... no. And yes. Originally, Hubbard was quite emphatic -- Scientology is not a religion:
OK, who else says Scientology is a religion?
Does the Church of Scientology itself call Scientology a religion? Well... yes -- and very emphatically, NO!
Surprised? It's very, very true.
The Church of Scientology is "recognized as a religion" in only a small handful of countries. It is difficult to get an exact count, but it appears to be officially recognized in only eight or nine countries. Period. In case you were wondering, there are almost 200 countries in the world.
Now, you would think that the Church of Scientology would be fighting for religious recognition in all the rest of the countries, but, in most places in the world, Scientology itself insists that it is not a religion!
Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in Israel. Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in any predominantly Catholic country (like Mexico or even Spain where "church" and "religion" are in English only). Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in any predominantly Muslim country. Check it out. See what Scientology says about whether it is a religion or not. The Church of Scientology says it is not a religion in most countries. In most areas of the world, Scientology's organizations are called "centers" or "associations" or something, but the words "religion" and "church" are not included.
Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi in the Marburg Journal of Religion: Volume 8, No. 1 (September 2003) writes about Scientology:
It could be argued that the organization that is most vocal and most insistent, around the world, that Scientology is "not a religion" is ... the Church of Scientology.
So, finally and inevitably we come to the question, "Why?" Why does Scientology characterize itself as "a religion"?
Well, we have to reword the question now, don't we? In context of the above, it no longer is a correct question. In most of the world Scientology vehemently insists that it is not a religion. So the question is incorrect. The accurate question is:
Pay close attention here. This is key. The factor that determines whether Scientology claims to be a religion is not what Scientologists believe. This doesn't change from country to country. The factor that determines this is not what Scientologists do. This also doesn't change. The deciding factor that determines whether Scientology claims to be a religion or not is the balance between the benefits and liabilities of doing so. That's a business consideration.
When Hubbard implemented this "religion" angle he wrote:
Their front groups are the Church of Scientology's attempt to have their cake and eat it too. The front groups are supposed to allow the church into areas barred from churches -- like attempts to get Scientology's children recruitment group, the Drug Free Marshals, into New Mexico schools. Unfortunately for Scientology, the group was linked back to the church, and then appropriately barred from the schools.
But all in all, the benefits in the U.S. outweigh the liabilities, so "it's a religion!"
In other countries, the balance is different. And, as is often the case, when the liabilities of calling itself a religion are too great, "it's a business!"
And that's the answer to "Why 'Religion'?" It's just a "good business decision". As some of the less ethical business executives might say, "If you can get away with it, why not?"
How pragmatic! How practical!
How hypocritical!
-
Anyone who pays any attention to the various controversies surrounding David Miscavige's Church of Scientology knows that there is a lot of information available about this "religion" angle. It is obvious that the Church of Scientology was set up and is run like a business, and that the whole "religion" thing was tacked on as an afterthought, so the question is, "Why?"
Why does Scientology call itself a religion? And why is it important?
We'll look at "why" in a bit. First, let's look at who says it is a religion. The answer may surprise you.
Did Hubbard call Scientology a religion? Well... no. And yes. Originally, Hubbard was quite emphatic -- Scientology is not a religion:
Scientology has opened the gates to a better world. It is not a psycho-therapy nor a religion.Later, Hubbard changed his mind and declared that Scientology actually was a religion. Hubbard's decision to start claiming Scientology as a religion was highly unpopular with many Dianeticists and Scientologists at that time and many did, in fact, leave because of it.L. Ron Hubbard
Page 251, Creation of Human Ability 1954
(Statement removed from later editions, for obvious reasons)
OK, who else says Scientology is a religion?
Does the Church of Scientology itself call Scientology a religion? Well... yes -- and very emphatically, NO!
Surprised? It's very, very true.
The Church of Scientology is "recognized as a religion" in only a small handful of countries. It is difficult to get an exact count, but it appears to be officially recognized in only eight or nine countries. Period. In case you were wondering, there are almost 200 countries in the world.
Now, you would think that the Church of Scientology would be fighting for religious recognition in all the rest of the countries, but, in most places in the world, Scientology itself insists that it is not a religion!
Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in Israel. Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in any predominantly Catholic country (like Mexico or even Spain where "church" and "religion" are in English only). Check out Scientology's official presentation of itself in any predominantly Muslim country. Check it out. See what Scientology says about whether it is a religion or not. The Church of Scientology says it is not a religion in most countries. In most areas of the world, Scientology's organizations are called "centers" or "associations" or something, but the words "religion" and "church" are not included.
Benjamin Beit-Hallahmi in the Marburg Journal of Religion: Volume 8, No. 1 (September 2003) writes about Scientology:
6. Self-Presentation as a Secular Movement.Now isn't that so odd? A "religion" that, well, if that interferes with the business operation, just casually drops the whole "church" façade in an instant. When it interferes with business, it turns out the "religion angle" isn't important at all.
Some Scientology representatives state that the so-called church is not a religion. When a Scientology branch opened in Japan in 1985, it was careful to present itself as a 'philosophy' and not a religion (Kent, 1999). In the United States, an article in a Maine newspaper that solicited thoughts about the "new millennium" from local church leaders reports that "Barbara Fisco, mission holder of the Church of Scientology in Brunswick, said that Scientology is not a religion and therefore not subject to the religious implications of the Year 2000" (Smith, 1999\www.timesrecord.com/main/79c6.html_).
The case of Scientology in Israel is quite instructive. In various organizational forms, Scientology has been active among Israelis for more than thirty years, but those in charge not only never claimed the religion label, but resisted any such suggestion or implication. It has always presented itself as a secular, self-improvement, tax-paying business. Otherwise, they offered the familiar products and deceptions, from the Oxford Capacity Analysis to Dianetics and Purification. The current Israeli franchise holder told me rather proudly that he pays all required taxes. In its history as a commercial venture, the organization still got into legal trouble, and was charged with tax evasion at least once.
It could be argued that the organization that is most vocal and most insistent, around the world, that Scientology is "not a religion" is ... the Church of Scientology.
So, finally and inevitably we come to the question, "Why?" Why does Scientology characterize itself as "a religion"?
Well, we have to reword the question now, don't we? In context of the above, it no longer is a correct question. In most of the world Scientology vehemently insists that it is not a religion. So the question is incorrect. The accurate question is:
Why does Scientology only call itself "a religion" in a few, selected countries, but insists on calling itself a "self-improvement business", a "philosophy", a "community group" or something else equally non-religious, in the rest of the world?Worded correctly, the answer now becomes much more obvious.
Pay close attention here. This is key. The factor that determines whether Scientology claims to be a religion is not what Scientologists believe. This doesn't change from country to country. The factor that determines this is not what Scientologists do. This also doesn't change. The deciding factor that determines whether Scientology claims to be a religion or not is the balance between the benefits and liabilities of doing so. That's a business consideration.
When Hubbard implemented this "religion" angle he wrote:
Scientology 1970 is being planned on a religious organization basis throughout the world. This will not upset in any way the usual activities of any organization. It is entirely a matter for accountants and solicitors.Get it? "Accountants and solicitors". It was then, and is today, solely a business matter. What are the benefits? What are the liabilities? In the United States, there is considerable legal protection and there are vast tax benefits for being a religion. The liabilities are relatively small. Sure, that "religion angle" has caused problems, like Albuquerque where Scientology wanted to move into a business location which was deemed "inappropriate for a church". Oh, Scientology sure wanted a variance then. They wanted to be treated like a business.L. Ron Hubbard
Policy Letter 29 Oct. 1962, "Religion"
Their front groups are the Church of Scientology's attempt to have their cake and eat it too. The front groups are supposed to allow the church into areas barred from churches -- like attempts to get Scientology's children recruitment group, the Drug Free Marshals, into New Mexico schools. Unfortunately for Scientology, the group was linked back to the church, and then appropriately barred from the schools.
But all in all, the benefits in the U.S. outweigh the liabilities, so "it's a religion!"
In other countries, the balance is different. And, as is often the case, when the liabilities of calling itself a religion are too great, "it's a business!"
And that's the answer to "Why 'Religion'?" It's just a "good business decision". As some of the less ethical business executives might say, "If you can get away with it, why not?"
How pragmatic! How practical!
How hypocritical!
-
Friday, December 5, 2008
Scientology: Why Doesn't It Work?
Now, before all you Scientologists get your knickers in a twist, I'm not talking about personal, subjective experiences. These kinds of things happen to almost everyone for any number of reasons and can't be proven or disproven. That's not what this article is about.
I'm talking about all the stuff that the Scientology technology is very explicitly supposed to accomplish in the world. Why doesn't that work?
For example: All Scientologists are required to do the "PTS/SP Course". The full, actual name of the course is the "How to Confront and Shatter Suppression - PTS/SP Course". Most Scientologists today have actually done this course.
And don't even mention "shatter". If graduates of the PTS/SP Course could "shatter suppression", there wouldn't be any protests, would there? All the negative information about Miscavige and his church would simply go away. But that hasn't worked either, has it?
No confront. No "shattering." Virtually all Scientologists have "learned" this technology but the promised results just aren't happening.
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Contrary to what one might expect, Scientologists really do know there are problems in the Church of Scientology. They even talk about it with each other. While they don't see the big picture, they see the local manifestations.
They see the local problems, but they believe that things are better elsewhere; things are better for other Scientologists.
And they expect that, sooner or later, someone will notice that things are going bad for this Scientologist, or things aren't going well with this local church -- and someone will come and fix it.
And these loyal Scientologists carefully write up reports, sometimes to "RTC", sometimes to David Miscavige, sometimes to someone else who is "in charge". They carefully look up the policies, they carefully document all their problems, they carefully present their information, they carefully suggest what should be done -- then they wait.
And they wait.
And the problems persist and get worse.
So they carefully write it all up again. And they carefully send it "up lines" again.
Surely this time, someone will read their report, see the horrible misapplication of Hubbard's policies or technology, and they will fix it. It's obvious what is wrong. It's obvious what should be done. All it takes is that one person in authority reads their careful report and sends the proper orders.
But it doesn't happen. Scientologists all over the world are having serious problems, they are carefully writing up their reports and sending them "up lines" to RTC or Miscavige or someone in authority -- and nothing is getting corrected. Why?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Quite a few years ago, OT VIII was released. It was heralded as the "first true OT level". While David Miscavige, himself, has been unable to attain this level, many other Scientologists have. Some of them are still in Scientology and are still working to support Scientology.
But where are the results of these "true OTs" who are supporting Scientology? These OTs are supposed to be far beyond anything that has ever existed on this planet. These OTs are supposed to be incredibly effective. Around such OTs, things "just go right". Yes?
No.
But why? Why is so much going so wrong for the Church of Scientology? Why is it such a struggle for Miscavige and his church? Why have so many OT VIIIs dropped out of sight, left the church, moved away?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Scientology is supposed to be fun. Scientology is supposed to increase communication, increase ARC, increase a person's ability to face difficulties. Scientologists are supposed to end up flourishing and prospering. Scientologists are supposed to be happy. Scientologists are supposed to be more connected with people.
The difference between what is promised by Miscavige's Church of Scientology and what actually happens is stark. Why?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
And don't look at the colossal failure of Miscavige to get all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill". Don't look at Miscavige's failure to complete his "SuperPower building" in Clearwater. Don't look at the failure of the "Ideal Org" campaign which has caused untold problems for the local churches.
It doesn't take any effort at all to see that Scientology is not working. Things are not going well at all. It is obvious.
It takes a tremendous amount of effort, continuous effort, to keep not seeing this -- to make excuses, to hide from the facts, to grit your teeth and see the illusion and not the reality. Being a Scientologist today is a lot of work -- and none of it is fun.
And the bottom-line question that Scientologists must not ask is:
I'm talking about all the stuff that the Scientology technology is very explicitly supposed to accomplish in the world. Why doesn't that work?
For example: All Scientologists are required to do the "PTS/SP Course". The full, actual name of the course is the "How to Confront and Shatter Suppression - PTS/SP Course". Most Scientologists today have actually done this course.
PTS="Potential Trouble Source", someone connected to an SP.So, do any Scientologists actually confront anything that might upset them? Do any Scientologists look at and confront any opposition to Miscavige's church? Scientologists don't look at any media that might mention negative things about Scientology. Scientologists carefully avoid most of the Internet. When the Anonymous protests take place near any Church of Scientology, Scientologists run and hide. Scientologists cover the windows and hunker down, waiting for the protesters to go away. Where is the confront?
SP="Suppressive Person", someone who, for instance, attacks Miscavige's Church of Scientology.
And don't even mention "shatter". If graduates of the PTS/SP Course could "shatter suppression", there wouldn't be any protests, would there? All the negative information about Miscavige and his church would simply go away. But that hasn't worked either, has it?
No confront. No "shattering." Virtually all Scientologists have "learned" this technology but the promised results just aren't happening.
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Contrary to what one might expect, Scientologists really do know there are problems in the Church of Scientology. They even talk about it with each other. While they don't see the big picture, they see the local manifestations.
They see the local problems, but they believe that things are better elsewhere; things are better for other Scientologists.
And they expect that, sooner or later, someone will notice that things are going bad for this Scientologist, or things aren't going well with this local church -- and someone will come and fix it.
And these loyal Scientologists carefully write up reports, sometimes to "RTC", sometimes to David Miscavige, sometimes to someone else who is "in charge". They carefully look up the policies, they carefully document all their problems, they carefully present their information, they carefully suggest what should be done -- then they wait.
And they wait.
And the problems persist and get worse.
So they carefully write it all up again. And they carefully send it "up lines" again.
Surely this time, someone will read their report, see the horrible misapplication of Hubbard's policies or technology, and they will fix it. It's obvious what is wrong. It's obvious what should be done. All it takes is that one person in authority reads their careful report and sends the proper orders.
But it doesn't happen. Scientologists all over the world are having serious problems, they are carefully writing up their reports and sending them "up lines" to RTC or Miscavige or someone in authority -- and nothing is getting corrected. Why?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Quite a few years ago, OT VIII was released. It was heralded as the "first true OT level". While David Miscavige, himself, has been unable to attain this level, many other Scientologists have. Some of them are still in Scientology and are still working to support Scientology.
But where are the results of these "true OTs" who are supporting Scientology? These OTs are supposed to be far beyond anything that has ever existed on this planet. These OTs are supposed to be incredibly effective. Around such OTs, things "just go right". Yes?
No.
But why? Why is so much going so wrong for the Church of Scientology? Why is it such a struggle for Miscavige and his church? Why have so many OT VIIIs dropped out of sight, left the church, moved away?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Scientology is supposed to be fun. Scientology is supposed to increase communication, increase ARC, increase a person's ability to face difficulties. Scientologists are supposed to end up flourishing and prospering. Scientologists are supposed to be happy. Scientologists are supposed to be more connected with people.
ARC: Scientology acronym for Affinity, Reality, Communication, which equals Understanding.I'm sure there are brief moments of happiness for many Scientologists, but, in general, none of this is happening. There is very little fun, very little happiness, not much flourishing or prospering. As a rule, Scientologists withdraw from friends, family, and society. Being involved in Scientology is not supposed to make one's life more of a struggle, but this is exactly what happens. Life, for Scientologists, just becomes harder, grimmer and more guilt-laden.
The difference between what is promised by Miscavige's Church of Scientology and what actually happens is stark. Why?
Why doesn't Scientology work?
And don't look at the colossal failure of Miscavige to get all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill". Don't look at Miscavige's failure to complete his "SuperPower building" in Clearwater. Don't look at the failure of the "Ideal Org" campaign which has caused untold problems for the local churches.
It doesn't take any effort at all to see that Scientology is not working. Things are not going well at all. It is obvious.
It takes a tremendous amount of effort, continuous effort, to keep not seeing this -- to make excuses, to hide from the facts, to grit your teeth and see the illusion and not the reality. Being a Scientologist today is a lot of work -- and none of it is fun.
And the bottom-line question that Scientologists must not ask is:
Why doesn't Scientology work?
Tuesday, December 2, 2008
Scientology Trolls Again
I wrote about the rather annoying and self-embarrassing Scientology Trolls before, but there is something else I've noticed that I don't think has been discussed much.
I think that many posters don't understand what is going on when Scientology trolls appear in a discussion. They think that we're all discussing Scientology; we're debating Scientology; we're going back and forth about Miscavige's Church of Scientology's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud. Critics of Scientology are working to expose and document these things and the Scientology trolls (they think) are defending, explaining and arguing about that.
Nope. Couldn't be further from the truth.
Oh, yes, the critics certainly are working to expose and document the Church of Scientology's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud, but the Scientology trolls are not arguing about that. Take a look. The Scientology troll's posts ignore and avoid those subjects.
The Scientology troll's only job is to distract, derail, "enturbulate" and bury any thread that mentions anything negative about Scientology. That is all.
And they do exactly that.
Time and again I've seen a thread about one or more of David Miscavige's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud get sidetracked by a Scientology troll. When that happens, the troll has succeeded in their job.
You might think that the troll would be concerned that they inevitably give Scientology and all Scientologists a bad image by their insults, crazy statements, false accusations and general stupidity, but (this is important) they don't care!
You see, their job, which they get "stat" points for, is to distract, derail, "enturbulate" and bury threads about Scientology's lies, crimes abuses and fraud. If they look like complete idiots, but accomplish that goal, they "win". Their "stats are up!"
They are playing a different game. They are not arguing about Scientology. They will never argue about Scientology. They won't justify their statements. They won't explain or defend Scientology's actions. They never will answer questions about Scientology.
Their false accusations are ironic. It is ironic because Hubbard said that criminals will accuse others of doing what the criminal is, in fact, doing. The Scientology trolls will inevitably accuse everyone of what Scientology is guilty of: Bigotry, intolerance, lying, making up stuff, hate speech, hate crimes and running intelligence operations against their enemies. Ron said they'd do it and the criminal Church of Scientology does it.
If posters react to the troll's false accusations, the troll "wins". If posters react to the troll's insults, the troll "wins". If posters argue about wild statements the troll made, the troll "wins". When posters go away from the subject of Miscavige's and his church's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud -- they are then wrangling about subjects of the troll's choosing, and the troll "wins".
The troll does not care one bit that he makes Scientologists look stupid, paranoid, crazy, brainwashed, etc. There are no "negative points" for such things. If the thread veers off from the lies, crimes, abuses and fraud of Miscavige and his church, he "wins", he gets his little points.
Understand the real game going on. Critics of Scientology are working to expose and document these lies, crimes, abuses and fraud and Miscavige's Church of Scientology, through its trolls, is working to hide them.
They know they cannot disprove the facts. They know they have absolutely no proof of their claims. These church operatives know they have no defense against the truth. The only thing they can do is desperately try to hide their lies, crimes, abuses and fraud.
So the absolutely worst thing you can do to a Church of Scientology troll is -- ignore those attempts , ignore those insults, ignore those false accusations and go back to the subject that the troll is attempting to stop. If Miscavige and his little troll-people hate it, then it must be good, keep on it.
-
I think that many posters don't understand what is going on when Scientology trolls appear in a discussion. They think that we're all discussing Scientology; we're debating Scientology; we're going back and forth about Miscavige's Church of Scientology's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud. Critics of Scientology are working to expose and document these things and the Scientology trolls (they think) are defending, explaining and arguing about that.
Nope. Couldn't be further from the truth.
Oh, yes, the critics certainly are working to expose and document the Church of Scientology's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud, but the Scientology trolls are not arguing about that. Take a look. The Scientology troll's posts ignore and avoid those subjects.
The Scientology troll's only job is to distract, derail, "enturbulate" and bury any thread that mentions anything negative about Scientology. That is all.
And they do exactly that.
Time and again I've seen a thread about one or more of David Miscavige's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud get sidetracked by a Scientology troll. When that happens, the troll has succeeded in their job.
You might think that the troll would be concerned that they inevitably give Scientology and all Scientologists a bad image by their insults, crazy statements, false accusations and general stupidity, but (this is important) they don't care!
You see, their job, which they get "stat" points for, is to distract, derail, "enturbulate" and bury threads about Scientology's lies, crimes abuses and fraud. If they look like complete idiots, but accomplish that goal, they "win". Their "stats are up!"
They are playing a different game. They are not arguing about Scientology. They will never argue about Scientology. They won't justify their statements. They won't explain or defend Scientology's actions. They never will answer questions about Scientology.
Their false accusations are ironic. It is ironic because Hubbard said that criminals will accuse others of doing what the criminal is, in fact, doing. The Scientology trolls will inevitably accuse everyone of what Scientology is guilty of: Bigotry, intolerance, lying, making up stuff, hate speech, hate crimes and running intelligence operations against their enemies. Ron said they'd do it and the criminal Church of Scientology does it.
If posters react to the troll's false accusations, the troll "wins". If posters react to the troll's insults, the troll "wins". If posters argue about wild statements the troll made, the troll "wins". When posters go away from the subject of Miscavige's and his church's lies, crimes, abuses and fraud -- they are then wrangling about subjects of the troll's choosing, and the troll "wins".
The troll does not care one bit that he makes Scientologists look stupid, paranoid, crazy, brainwashed, etc. There are no "negative points" for such things. If the thread veers off from the lies, crimes, abuses and fraud of Miscavige and his church, he "wins", he gets his little points.
Understand the real game going on. Critics of Scientology are working to expose and document these lies, crimes, abuses and fraud and Miscavige's Church of Scientology, through its trolls, is working to hide them.
They know they cannot disprove the facts. They know they have absolutely no proof of their claims. These church operatives know they have no defense against the truth. The only thing they can do is desperately try to hide their lies, crimes, abuses and fraud.
So the absolutely worst thing you can do to a Church of Scientology troll is -- ignore those attempts , ignore those insults, ignore those false accusations and go back to the subject that the troll is attempting to stop. If Miscavige and his little troll-people hate it, then it must be good, keep on it.
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Thursday, November 27, 2008
Scientologists Don't Look
This is another mystery. Scientologists are taught, again and again, by L. Ron Hubbard to "Look, Don't Listen" and "What is true is what you, yourself, have found to be true."
This is, according to Hubbard, very, very important. Hubbard spent entire lectures and extensive written issues, stressing this exact concept. He even coined his own term for it, "obnosis", which he defined as "observing the obvious". Any Scientologist doing any significant training has done the "Obnosis Drill". The whole purpose of the drill is to look and observe what is really there, not what one thinks is there.
And yet...
Scientologists don't look. They simply do not look.
You see, Scientologists listen to what they are told by David Miscavige in his wondrous Scientology Events, but they never, ever go look for themselves.
Even when the situation is right there in front of them, they refuse to see it.
Scientologists are told, by Miscavige, that Scientology is booming everywhere. But that isn't happening where they can actually see it. They hear, from Miscavige, that things are wonderful, but what they could see if they looked at their local church, their local group, their friends, their own situation, does not show that. They believe what they are told despite what what is right in front of them.
Hubbard told them to "look, don't listen" but Scientologists will not look.
And the mystery deepens: Not only don't Scientologists look, but they believe what they are hearing has, somehow and by someone, been verified as "true", but they didn't verify it for themselves.
Scientologists are told, by Miscavige, that "Scientology's solutions" are improving bad situations all over the world. They are told by Miscavige that HIS technology is solving drug addiction, solving illiteracy, solving war and reforming criminals -- and they never, ever look. They believe it is true, but don't know of any real world examples themselves where such things have actually happened.
Scientologists listen and never look.
Miscavige tells all Scientologists that "major media", the Internet and, well, the rest of the world, are all liars and evil people who are out to destroy Scientology, and that looking anywhere but straight at David Miscavige is dangerous in the extreme. If Scientologists look anywhere but at Miscavige's Church of Scientology, they will get corrupted and will require "Ethics handlings" and special "security checking" before they become clean again (and that is very expensive).
And Scientologists, despite what Ron emphasized many times, cannot look at anything. They must only listen to Miscavige or, somehow, "be corrupted!"
But the mystery remains. Scientologists are told, directly from L. Ron Hubbard, that they must look, and not listen. Ron says that you must see what is really there, and not listen to what anyone says is there. Ron says that you cannot handle a situation if you listen. You can only handle situations if you look.
Scientologists are proud that their religion says that one should only accept as true what you, yourself, have found to be true...
But they don't practice this themselves. They accept, with blind faith, what they are told by Miscavige's Church of Scientology. They do not, will not and cannot look for themselves.
So, Scientologists, here is a brand new idea for you: Why don't you look, don't listen, like Ron told you to.
-
This is, according to Hubbard, very, very important. Hubbard spent entire lectures and extensive written issues, stressing this exact concept. He even coined his own term for it, "obnosis", which he defined as "observing the obvious". Any Scientologist doing any significant training has done the "Obnosis Drill". The whole purpose of the drill is to look and observe what is really there, not what one thinks is there.
And yet...
Scientologists don't look. They simply do not look.
You see, Scientologists listen to what they are told by David Miscavige in his wondrous Scientology Events, but they never, ever go look for themselves.
Even when the situation is right there in front of them, they refuse to see it.
Scientologists are told, by Miscavige, that Scientology is booming everywhere. But that isn't happening where they can actually see it. They hear, from Miscavige, that things are wonderful, but what they could see if they looked at their local church, their local group, their friends, their own situation, does not show that. They believe what they are told despite what what is right in front of them.
Hubbard told them to "look, don't listen" but Scientologists will not look.
And the mystery deepens: Not only don't Scientologists look, but they believe what they are hearing has, somehow and by someone, been verified as "true", but they didn't verify it for themselves.
Scientologists are told, by Miscavige, that "Scientology's solutions" are improving bad situations all over the world. They are told by Miscavige that HIS technology is solving drug addiction, solving illiteracy, solving war and reforming criminals -- and they never, ever look. They believe it is true, but don't know of any real world examples themselves where such things have actually happened.
Scientologists listen and never look.
Miscavige tells all Scientologists that "major media", the Internet and, well, the rest of the world, are all liars and evil people who are out to destroy Scientology, and that looking anywhere but straight at David Miscavige is dangerous in the extreme. If Scientologists look anywhere but at Miscavige's Church of Scientology, they will get corrupted and will require "Ethics handlings" and special "security checking" before they become clean again (and that is very expensive).
And Scientologists, despite what Ron emphasized many times, cannot look at anything. They must only listen to Miscavige or, somehow, "be corrupted!"
But the mystery remains. Scientologists are told, directly from L. Ron Hubbard, that they must look, and not listen. Ron says that you must see what is really there, and not listen to what anyone says is there. Ron says that you cannot handle a situation if you listen. You can only handle situations if you look.
Scientologists are proud that their religion says that one should only accept as true what you, yourself, have found to be true...
But they don't practice this themselves. They accept, with blind faith, what they are told by Miscavige's Church of Scientology. They do not, will not and cannot look for themselves.
So, Scientologists, here is a brand new idea for you: Why don't you look, don't listen, like Ron told you to.
-
Wednesday, November 19, 2008
Where Are All the Scientologists? Part 2
Since the previous article on Where Are All the Scientologists? got such a strong reaction from some Scientologists, I thought I'd expand on it a bit.
Even today, with all the evidence against it, the Church of Scientology claims eight million members! Or sometimes more. Where did that figure come from?
According to an insider, sometime in the 60s or 70s at International Management, top management wanted to issue a press release about Scientology and they wanted to know how many Scientologists there were. Nobody knew. Not only didn't they know, but their records were so messed up there was absolutely no way to find out. What to do?
They just made it up, "Five million Scientologists world wide with more than three million in the U.S." They didn't know, but then, who could prove them wrong?
This fictitious number was picked up by others. For example the The Encyclopedia of American Religions (1991, Vol. 2:312) stated:
The numbers got pretty crazy at times.
In a reprint of Hubbard's book "Death's Deputy" in 1970, in the front cover it says that Hubbard
While the Church of Scientology can't admit it lied all these years, it realized that it couldn't just keep arbitrarily adding millions to their membership numbers every few months -- so for many years now they've been stuck at "eight million". They can't increase the number, because it has become obvious they don't have those kind of numbers -- but they can't reduce the official numbers either without admitting they lied, or worse, that Scientology is shrinking. So the official pronouncements from the Church of Scientology usually talk about eight million.
Church of Scientology, Office of Special Affairs (OSA) senior official Mike Rinder said the following at a press conference on Dec 1997, in response to accusations made by former Scientologists:
(By the way, Mike Rinder left Scientology recently and now has nothing more to do with the church.)
In 1992, Heber Jentzsch tried to explain how the membership numbers got so badly out of sync with reality. This is from Forrest Sawyer, on ABC Nightline, Feb. 14, 1992 interviewing Heber Jentzsch, President, Church of Scientology:
So how many Scientologists are there really?
There are many independent and unbiased organizations working to count, classify and understand the various religious affiliations of people. These organizations have found out this exact information.
In 2001, the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) estimated 55,000 Scientologists in the U.S.
Other, more recent, religious surveys are no better for Scientology. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life completed a comprehensive survey based on interviews with more than 35,000 Americans age 18 and older. The findings? Scientology didn't show up in enough numbers to even be mentioned. They noted religious affiliations down to less than 0.3%. This survey found, at the smallest numbers, Wiccan and Pagan -- but below that they stopped specifying.
Since the Church of Scientology has always stated that a majority of it's membership resides in the U.S., this doesn't bode well for totaling eight million world wide.
Indeed, as we look to official census statistics from other parts of the world, the numbers look even worse for Scientology.
The British 2001 Census reported only 1,525 Scientologists in Canada, 282 in New Zealand, and only 1781 in England and Wales.
According to the latest Australian Census, there are only 2508 Scientologists in the whole of Australia.
[EDIT] This just in from Germany: There was a proposal to ban Scientology in Germany. I've always opposed such a ban on the grounds that it gives Miscavige's Church of Scientology too much importance and stature. It turns out the German government thinks the same way. Referring to the prohibition lawsuit, Minister of the Interior Körting said:
Once again, the definitive answer to the question "Where are all the Scientologists?" is, "Gone!" David Miscavige is desperately looking for a different answer, but that isn't working. Reality is what is, not what you pretend it to be. Hint for Miscavige: You can't find Scientologists where there aren't any.
While it is undoubtedly true that the Church of Scientology membership numbers never were as high as they claimed, even during better times when L. Ron Hubbard was running the church, the numbers today are far fewer than many thought, and, from all the evidence, the numbers are still dropping. The latest verifiable figures are from 2001 and things have not gone well for the Church of Scientology since then.
For example, the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, used by the Church of Scientology for some of its big events holds over 6,000 people in the main auditorium. Many years ago the events would fill the main room and they had to provide an "overflow room" for those that couldn't get in. Today, the Church of Scientology can't even fill the main auditorium. As another example, in Clearwater, reportedly the second largest concentration of Scientologists in the U.S. after Los Angeles, they hold their "big event" in Ruth Eckerd Hall, which holds only 2,000 people.
The real answer to the question of how many Scientologists seems to garner a lot of denial from Scientologists, but this isn't opinion and it isn't speculation, this is fact from official sources. At a very generous estimate, Scientology's actual membership is considerably less than 1% of their claimed membership.
Fact are facts. Reality is reality. Of course, the Church of Scientology doesn't associate much with reality.
-
Even today, with all the evidence against it, the Church of Scientology claims eight million members! Or sometimes more. Where did that figure come from?
According to an insider, sometime in the 60s or 70s at International Management, top management wanted to issue a press release about Scientology and they wanted to know how many Scientologists there were. Nobody knew. Not only didn't they know, but their records were so messed up there was absolutely no way to find out. What to do?
They just made it up, "Five million Scientologists world wide with more than three million in the U.S." They didn't know, but then, who could prove them wrong?
This fictitious number was picked up by others. For example the The Encyclopedia of American Religions (1991, Vol. 2:312) stated:
No precise [membership] figure... currently exists; however, church statistics of its membership were reported in 1977 to be more than 5 million with more than 3 million of those in U.S. Those figures represent a cumulative number of people who have participated in one or more of the church's programs or availed themselves of the church's services over a period of several years.The next year, management asked the same question, "How many Scientologists now?" The insider tells me that the guys looked around and said "Um... five and a half million!" And so it went on, year after year. Management would come in and ask, "How many now?" and there'd be a small discussion, "How about six million?" "No, we said that last time, it has to be more!" "Then, how about six and a half?" "OK!" Then they'd give top management the answer, "Six and a half million now, sir!" It's based on nothing.
The numbers got pretty crazy at times.
In a reprint of Hubbard's book "Death's Deputy" in 1970, in the front cover it says that Hubbard
...is also renowned as the founder of Scientology and the creator of "Dianetics" with an estimated 15 million adherents around the world.As the numbers became more and more unreal, even mainstream press started questioning them. People wanted to have SOME evidence of that kind of Scientology membership.
While the Church of Scientology can't admit it lied all these years, it realized that it couldn't just keep arbitrarily adding millions to their membership numbers every few months -- so for many years now they've been stuck at "eight million". They can't increase the number, because it has become obvious they don't have those kind of numbers -- but they can't reduce the official numbers either without admitting they lied, or worse, that Scientology is shrinking. So the official pronouncements from the Church of Scientology usually talk about eight million.
Church of Scientology, Office of Special Affairs (OSA) senior official Mike Rinder said the following at a press conference on Dec 1997, in response to accusations made by former Scientologists:
If any of the things these people say are true, there would not be eight million Scientologists in the world today.Actually, that is a very true statement, Mike. You see, the things people are saying about the Church of Scientology are true, and there aren't eight million Scientologists (and never were).
(By the way, Mike Rinder left Scientology recently and now has nothing more to do with the church.)
In 1992, Heber Jentzsch tried to explain how the membership numbers got so badly out of sync with reality. This is from Forrest Sawyer, on ABC Nightline, Feb. 14, 1992 interviewing Heber Jentzsch, President, Church of Scientology:
Sawyer. How do you get to call them members?(By the way, Heber Jentzsch is reportedly now locked up at the International Base in Hemet California, unable to leave, unable to communicate with family and friends, a prisoner of Miscavige.)
Jentzsch: Because they joined and they came in and they studied Scientology.
Sawyer: They took one course, maybe.
Jentzsch: Well, that's how valuable the course is. Eight million people, yes, over a period of the last - since 1954.
So how many Scientologists are there really?
There are many independent and unbiased organizations working to count, classify and understand the various religious affiliations of people. These organizations have found out this exact information.
In 2001, the American Religious Identification Survey (ARIS) estimated 55,000 Scientologists in the U.S.
Other, more recent, religious surveys are no better for Scientology. The Pew Forum on Religion and Public Life completed a comprehensive survey based on interviews with more than 35,000 Americans age 18 and older. The findings? Scientology didn't show up in enough numbers to even be mentioned. They noted religious affiliations down to less than 0.3%. This survey found, at the smallest numbers, Wiccan and Pagan -- but below that they stopped specifying.
Since the Church of Scientology has always stated that a majority of it's membership resides in the U.S., this doesn't bode well for totaling eight million world wide.
Indeed, as we look to official census statistics from other parts of the world, the numbers look even worse for Scientology.
The British 2001 Census reported only 1,525 Scientologists in Canada, 282 in New Zealand, and only 1781 in England and Wales.
According to the latest Australian Census, there are only 2508 Scientologists in the whole of Australia.
[EDIT] This just in from Germany: There was a proposal to ban Scientology in Germany. I've always opposed such a ban on the grounds that it gives Miscavige's Church of Scientology too much importance and stature. It turns out the German government thinks the same way. Referring to the prohibition lawsuit, Minister of the Interior Körting said:
The Federal Office for the Protection of the Constitution has come to the insight that Scientology is anticonstitutional, but since Scientology is a small, insignificant organization, with just few members in Germany, the principle of proportionality must be retained. There would probably be no successful Scientology prohibition lawsuit, but the warnings and monitoring against Scientology will continue.If anyone wants to locate and translate recent religious surveys from other parts of the world, I would appreciate it. However, we can safely assume the results would be quite similar.[Thanks to Simon for translating. Emphasis added by me.]
Once again, the definitive answer to the question "Where are all the Scientologists?" is, "Gone!" David Miscavige is desperately looking for a different answer, but that isn't working. Reality is what is, not what you pretend it to be. Hint for Miscavige: You can't find Scientologists where there aren't any.
While it is undoubtedly true that the Church of Scientology membership numbers never were as high as they claimed, even during better times when L. Ron Hubbard was running the church, the numbers today are far fewer than many thought, and, from all the evidence, the numbers are still dropping. The latest verifiable figures are from 2001 and things have not gone well for the Church of Scientology since then.
For example, the Shrine Auditorium in Los Angeles, used by the Church of Scientology for some of its big events holds over 6,000 people in the main auditorium. Many years ago the events would fill the main room and they had to provide an "overflow room" for those that couldn't get in. Today, the Church of Scientology can't even fill the main auditorium. As another example, in Clearwater, reportedly the second largest concentration of Scientologists in the U.S. after Los Angeles, they hold their "big event" in Ruth Eckerd Hall, which holds only 2,000 people.
The real answer to the question of how many Scientologists seems to garner a lot of denial from Scientologists, but this isn't opinion and it isn't speculation, this is fact from official sources. At a very generous estimate, Scientology's actual membership is considerably less than 1% of their claimed membership.
Fact are facts. Reality is reality. Of course, the Church of Scientology doesn't associate much with reality.
-
Saturday, November 15, 2008
Why Do Scientologists Trust Miscavige?
This is truly one of the biggest mysteries about the Church of Scientology: Why do Scientologists trust David Miscavige?
Scientologists consider him right up there with L. Ron Hubbard, pretty much "Source". But why?
What has he done that warrants such absolute, blind faith?
I guess some Scientologists figure that, since he was "put in charge by Ron, he must be OK." The only problem with that belief is that it isn't true! He specifically was not "put in charge by Ron." When Ron died, there was a whole organizational hierarchy that was in place to run the Church of Scientology, with other people in charge. David Miscavige wasn't included. So, no, Ron didn't assign or approve Miscavige as head of the church. Didn't happen.
If Ron didn't particularly trust Miscavige with the job, why do Scientologists trust Miscavige?
Well, there is the story about how Miscavige "put down a mutiny of mission holders" back in 1982. That's the story from Miscavige. The mission holders have a completely different story. Scientologists will undoubtedly choose to believe Miscavige's version -- but there is something they should look at. Prior to Miscavige's take-over of the mission network, missions were in a period of sustained and exciting expansion. Prior to Miscavige's action, missions were springing up all over the place and they were huge. Since Miscavige's action, the mission network has fallen on very hard times, with missions closing rather than expanding or opening. Based on results, Miscavige factually destroyed the Mission Network and killed a huge period of expansion for Scientology. Is this a person to trust with running the Church of Scientology?
So, if Miscavige actually destroyed this vital Scientology expansion, why do Scientologists trust him?
Perhaps some Scientologists trust him so much because of the whole "Golden Age of Tech" that Miscavige developed -- a complete change in all Scientology training. Miscavige touts this as a "great achievement" and Scientologists believe him. Those who trained directly under Hubbard have a completely different view of things, but they are not allowed to voice any disagreements. Once again, "good" Scientologists will believe Miscavige's version -- however, they should look at the results of this "Golden Age of Tech". The results are depressing.
Some people have been completing their training under the new methods, but after that, things are not looking good. Auditors have stopped auditing and have dropped out of sight. Auditors and Case Supervisors have gotten into trouble for messing up cases. Today, there are far fewer auditors than before the "Golden Age of Tech". A "training improvement" that causes auditors to fail and stop auditing? That doesn't sound good.
But, despite the obvious problems with Miscavige's "improvements", Scientologists still trust him implicitly. Why?
He is "expanding Scientology" isn't he? As leader of the Church of Scientology, David Miscavige's highest priority target from extant Hubbard orders, was to bring all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill" (the main organization when Scientology was booming). Scientologists will recall church after church receiving their recognition for "reaching the size of old Saint Hill". Then nothing. What happened? Did they make it? Are all the churches at that size now?
No. The few that did (barely) make it to that size, quickly collapsed to much smaller sizes almost immediately. Miscavige's "management" had artificially boosted these organizations just enough to "win" the award, but it was bad management since it fell apart immediately. At this time no church is even close to the size of "old Saint Hill". The most important orders from Hubbard are now in a drawer somewhere, ignored and forgotten.
The results of Miscavige's attempt to carry out Hubbard's big project to get all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill" -- nothing. No churches are at that size. Total failure!
Well, there is this new program to expand Scientology: Forcing the public Scientologists to cough up millions and millions of dollars to buy big buildings for their local church. Scientologists are told by Miscavige that this is a wild and wonderful success. Scientologists sincerely believe this view of things. But they should look at the results. What are the results? A few of these new buildings have been completed and opened. Very few. More new buildings have been purchased but not renovated. What happened?
So, Miscavige is a total failure in expanding Scientology, and, in fact, every action he takes causes the Church of Scientology to shrink. There really is no reason anyone would trust a person with a track record like Miscavige's. So why do Scientologists still trust him so much?
Maybe some Scientologist will tell me.
But I'll tell you why I think Scientologists trust Miscavige despite his abysmal record. Based on my own experiences when I was a "loyal Scientologist", I think it's because David Miscavige is the one who controls all information to the loyal Scientologists. They are forbidden from reading or watching or listening to anything else. Miscavige controls the Scientology newsletters and magazines. Miscavige controls the press releases. Miscavige controls the Scientology events. And everything a Scientologist is allowed to see modestly proclaims David Miscavige as the most amazing and wonderful person in the whole world.
And, of course, Scientologists believe him and they trust him. He wouldn't lie to them, would he?
-
Scientologists consider him right up there with L. Ron Hubbard, pretty much "Source". But why?
What has he done that warrants such absolute, blind faith?
I guess some Scientologists figure that, since he was "put in charge by Ron, he must be OK." The only problem with that belief is that it isn't true! He specifically was not "put in charge by Ron." When Ron died, there was a whole organizational hierarchy that was in place to run the Church of Scientology, with other people in charge. David Miscavige wasn't included. So, no, Ron didn't assign or approve Miscavige as head of the church. Didn't happen.
If Ron didn't particularly trust Miscavige with the job, why do Scientologists trust Miscavige?
Well, there is the story about how Miscavige "put down a mutiny of mission holders" back in 1982. That's the story from Miscavige. The mission holders have a completely different story. Scientologists will undoubtedly choose to believe Miscavige's version -- but there is something they should look at. Prior to Miscavige's take-over of the mission network, missions were in a period of sustained and exciting expansion. Prior to Miscavige's action, missions were springing up all over the place and they were huge. Since Miscavige's action, the mission network has fallen on very hard times, with missions closing rather than expanding or opening. Based on results, Miscavige factually destroyed the Mission Network and killed a huge period of expansion for Scientology. Is this a person to trust with running the Church of Scientology?
So, if Miscavige actually destroyed this vital Scientology expansion, why do Scientologists trust him?
Perhaps some Scientologists trust him so much because of the whole "Golden Age of Tech" that Miscavige developed -- a complete change in all Scientology training. Miscavige touts this as a "great achievement" and Scientologists believe him. Those who trained directly under Hubbard have a completely different view of things, but they are not allowed to voice any disagreements. Once again, "good" Scientologists will believe Miscavige's version -- however, they should look at the results of this "Golden Age of Tech". The results are depressing.
Some people have been completing their training under the new methods, but after that, things are not looking good. Auditors have stopped auditing and have dropped out of sight. Auditors and Case Supervisors have gotten into trouble for messing up cases. Today, there are far fewer auditors than before the "Golden Age of Tech". A "training improvement" that causes auditors to fail and stop auditing? That doesn't sound good.
But, despite the obvious problems with Miscavige's "improvements", Scientologists still trust him implicitly. Why?
He is "expanding Scientology" isn't he? As leader of the Church of Scientology, David Miscavige's highest priority target from extant Hubbard orders, was to bring all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill" (the main organization when Scientology was booming). Scientologists will recall church after church receiving their recognition for "reaching the size of old Saint Hill". Then nothing. What happened? Did they make it? Are all the churches at that size now?
No. The few that did (barely) make it to that size, quickly collapsed to much smaller sizes almost immediately. Miscavige's "management" had artificially boosted these organizations just enough to "win" the award, but it was bad management since it fell apart immediately. At this time no church is even close to the size of "old Saint Hill". The most important orders from Hubbard are now in a drawer somewhere, ignored and forgotten.
The results of Miscavige's attempt to carry out Hubbard's big project to get all churches to the "size of old Saint Hill" -- nothing. No churches are at that size. Total failure!
Well, there is this new program to expand Scientology: Forcing the public Scientologists to cough up millions and millions of dollars to buy big buildings for their local church. Scientologists are told by Miscavige that this is a wild and wonderful success. Scientologists sincerely believe this view of things. But they should look at the results. What are the results? A few of these new buildings have been completed and opened. Very few. More new buildings have been purchased but not renovated. What happened?
- The few churches that have newly renovated buildings are doing poorly -- they are not expanding. Because of the additional expenses associated with the newer, bigger buildings, their staff are paid little or nothing. It's a real struggle.
- The churches that have purchased but not renovated their buildings are also in deep trouble. They have additional expenses, but find it difficult to make any money from their parishioners -- the parishioners have been tapped out on money.
- The churches still working on buying new buildings are really struggling. Their parishioners have been hammered for money and more money -- so they're not taking courses either. It is an incredible struggle.
So, Miscavige is a total failure in expanding Scientology, and, in fact, every action he takes causes the Church of Scientology to shrink. There really is no reason anyone would trust a person with a track record like Miscavige's. So why do Scientologists still trust him so much?
Maybe some Scientologist will tell me.
But I'll tell you why I think Scientologists trust Miscavige despite his abysmal record. Based on my own experiences when I was a "loyal Scientologist", I think it's because David Miscavige is the one who controls all information to the loyal Scientologists. They are forbidden from reading or watching or listening to anything else. Miscavige controls the Scientology newsletters and magazines. Miscavige controls the press releases. Miscavige controls the Scientology events. And everything a Scientologist is allowed to see modestly proclaims David Miscavige as the most amazing and wonderful person in the whole world.
And, of course, Scientologists believe him and they trust him. He wouldn't lie to them, would he?
-
Wednesday, November 12, 2008
Where Are All the Scientologists?
I overheard someone talking about a recent "big" Church of Scientology event in Los Angeles the other day. This was one of the biggest of the six yearly events that David Miscavige puts on for all Scientologists. The Scientologist was quite perplexed, "There are 40,000 Scientologists in Los Angeles, and, at best, we can only get 4,000 to the events. Where are the rest?"
It is well known outside of Scientology that quite a number of those "Scientologists" who do show up at the big events do not consider themselves Scientologists. They show up out of curiosity, but slip past the post-event "sales gauntlet" without buying the latest Miscavige release. So even the count of event attendees is inflated -- there are even fewer active Scientologists than event attendance would indicate.
Where are all the Scientologists?
Recently, David Miscavige released "The Basics": A liberal rewrite and repackage of the basic books which were originally authored by L. Ron Hubbard. Based on the "number of Scientologists world wide", Miscavige had a large number of the book and tape sets printed up, ready to be grabbed up by all those faithful Scientologists. "The Basics" were released with great fanfare ... but surprisingly (to Miscavige), very few book sets actually sold! He had tons of books left over. How could this be?
In desperation, Miscavige has now resorted to sending out hit teams of loyal Scientologists, with lists of "Scientologists" who didn't buy the new books -- to force the recalcitrants with threats of dire punishments, to buy Miscavige's new books! But the hit teams are having a lot of trouble. The books just aren't selling!
Where are all the Scientologists?
After a tremendous push, using the heaviest threats over a period of years, the Church of Scientology has managed to purchase a small number of their well publicized "new buildings" but that has been a disaster. The "showcase" buildings bought and renovated at the beginning of the campaign, years ago, are expensive and empty debacles today. The more recent purchases remain as uninhabited shells with no money left to renovate them. The few parishioners who had any money have either been tapped out, have dropped out, or both.
Where are all the Scientologists?
Miscavige's Church of Scientology claims more than eight million members world wide, but book sales and event participation show the numbers, world wide, are in the low tens of thousands. And the numbers keep dropping.
The local churches are empty; course rooms are empty; donations are down; world wide the church's statistics are crashing.
There has been a huge project recently, ordered with the highest priority by Miscavige, to bring all Scientologists' address information up to date -- find out where everybody is! They are using every technique they can think of to track down everyone who ever had any contact with the church -- much to the dismay of those who thought they'd finally managed to stop the junk mail from Scientology. And, again, the results have been a complete catastrophe. What they are coming up with is merely confirming that a vast majority of those "Scientologists" are not, in actual fact, Scientologists. They don't want to have anything to do with the church.
Because of the church's threats of "fair game" and "disconnection", many of those who have left Scientology do not talk about it with other Scientologists. They just stop participating. In this way they can keep contact with friends, family and clients who may still be in Scientology. As a result, the church still thinks these non-Scientologists are "faithful but inactive". They aren't. The number of Scientologists is even smaller than Miscavige thinks.
So, where are all the Scientologists?
Gone. Miscavige's Church of Scientology no longer controls these people. They are free.
-
It is well known outside of Scientology that quite a number of those "Scientologists" who do show up at the big events do not consider themselves Scientologists. They show up out of curiosity, but slip past the post-event "sales gauntlet" without buying the latest Miscavige release. So even the count of event attendees is inflated -- there are even fewer active Scientologists than event attendance would indicate.
Where are all the Scientologists?
Recently, David Miscavige released "The Basics": A liberal rewrite and repackage of the basic books which were originally authored by L. Ron Hubbard. Based on the "number of Scientologists world wide", Miscavige had a large number of the book and tape sets printed up, ready to be grabbed up by all those faithful Scientologists. "The Basics" were released with great fanfare ... but surprisingly (to Miscavige), very few book sets actually sold! He had tons of books left over. How could this be?
In desperation, Miscavige has now resorted to sending out hit teams of loyal Scientologists, with lists of "Scientologists" who didn't buy the new books -- to force the recalcitrants with threats of dire punishments, to buy Miscavige's new books! But the hit teams are having a lot of trouble. The books just aren't selling!
Where are all the Scientologists?
After a tremendous push, using the heaviest threats over a period of years, the Church of Scientology has managed to purchase a small number of their well publicized "new buildings" but that has been a disaster. The "showcase" buildings bought and renovated at the beginning of the campaign, years ago, are expensive and empty debacles today. The more recent purchases remain as uninhabited shells with no money left to renovate them. The few parishioners who had any money have either been tapped out, have dropped out, or both.
Where are all the Scientologists?
Miscavige's Church of Scientology claims more than eight million members world wide, but book sales and event participation show the numbers, world wide, are in the low tens of thousands. And the numbers keep dropping.
The local churches are empty; course rooms are empty; donations are down; world wide the church's statistics are crashing.
There has been a huge project recently, ordered with the highest priority by Miscavige, to bring all Scientologists' address information up to date -- find out where everybody is! They are using every technique they can think of to track down everyone who ever had any contact with the church -- much to the dismay of those who thought they'd finally managed to stop the junk mail from Scientology. And, again, the results have been a complete catastrophe. What they are coming up with is merely confirming that a vast majority of those "Scientologists" are not, in actual fact, Scientologists. They don't want to have anything to do with the church.
Because of the church's threats of "fair game" and "disconnection", many of those who have left Scientology do not talk about it with other Scientologists. They just stop participating. In this way they can keep contact with friends, family and clients who may still be in Scientology. As a result, the church still thinks these non-Scientologists are "faithful but inactive". They aren't. The number of Scientologists is even smaller than Miscavige thinks.
So, where are all the Scientologists?
Gone. Miscavige's Church of Scientology no longer controls these people. They are free.
- Those few who still wish to practice Hubbard's technology do so as part of the loose association known as the Freezone. Everything is available there.
- Some ex-Scientologists have needed help recovering from bad experiences within the church, especially if they were in the Sea Org. They are recovering.
- But most ex-Scientologists are living good lives, free to look at anything they want, free to think the thoughts they decide to think -- simply living life the way they decide.
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Wednesday, October 29, 2008
Scientologists: Vital Financial Data You May Have Missed
Are you deeply in debt? Are your credit cards maxed out? Is your home mortgaged to the hilt? Are you looking for ways to borrow even more money to give to the church?
If so, then you are just an average member of the Church of Scientology. Miscavige's church just keeps hammering at you for more money, doesn't it?
But you may be missing some very important information from L. Ron Hubbard about all this. Something that the church really doesn't want you to know. The church wants you to borrow more and more and more and send everything to them, but that violates Ron's very specific policies about how to handle your finances. You didn't know that, did you?
You see, Ron didn't want you to go into debt. He really didn't want you to go into debt. He was very adamant about it.
I've mentioned this policy to the Registrars* and they do know about it. They hate it. They don't want you to know this policy letter.
To attempt to negate what Ron says, the Registrar will probably say something like, "Oh, just postulate* the money being there -- that makes it 'in sight' doesn't it?"
Factually the answer is "No, it doesn't". "Postulated money" is not "immediately in sight" by any definition. That's just irresponsible! Can you imagine some church executive explaining to Ron why he put the church deeply into debt, "Oh I just postulated that money would come in!" Can you imagine what Ron's response to that idiocy would have been?
No, finances are very important to your survival. You don't operate your finances on "maybe", "if", "soon" or "I hope". With finances, you operate from the way things are, not the way you wish they were. You must not go deeper and deeper into debt. Not only does Ron tell you not to, but simple common sense tells you not to. The basic principle of financial management is "income must be greater than outgo". If you run up any debts, you are violating this vital rule.
But Miscavige's Church of Scientology doesn't want you to know this key policy from Ron. They need you to keep violating this important financial policy so they can get more money. The fact that your survival is severely endangered by their actions doesn't bother them at all.
*OEC: Organization Executive Course. A set of eight volumes containing most of church policy.
*Registrar: Sales person who brings in money for the church.
*Postulate: To say and believe something will happen.
-
If so, then you are just an average member of the Church of Scientology. Miscavige's church just keeps hammering at you for more money, doesn't it?
But you may be missing some very important information from L. Ron Hubbard about all this. Something that the church really doesn't want you to know. The church wants you to borrow more and more and more and send everything to them, but that violates Ron's very specific policies about how to handle your finances. You didn't know that, did you?
You see, Ron didn't want you to go into debt. He really didn't want you to go into debt. He was very adamant about it.
The basic principle of financial management is a simple one, income must be greater than outgo.Oops! Did the Church of Scientology forget to tell you about that one? It's right there in OEC* Volume 3. It's one of the most important financial policies that Ron wrote -- and you should be following it.
Amongst the principles of financial management are these: One cannot spend money unless he has it. Never contract bills or debts unless the money is immediately in sight to pay them.L. Ron Hubbard
From HCOPL 3 JUNE 1959 - FINANCIAL MANAGEMENT
I've mentioned this policy to the Registrars* and they do know about it. They hate it. They don't want you to know this policy letter.
To attempt to negate what Ron says, the Registrar will probably say something like, "Oh, just postulate* the money being there -- that makes it 'in sight' doesn't it?"
Factually the answer is "No, it doesn't". "Postulated money" is not "immediately in sight" by any definition. That's just irresponsible! Can you imagine some church executive explaining to Ron why he put the church deeply into debt, "Oh I just postulated that money would come in!" Can you imagine what Ron's response to that idiocy would have been?
No, finances are very important to your survival. You don't operate your finances on "maybe", "if", "soon" or "I hope". With finances, you operate from the way things are, not the way you wish they were. You must not go deeper and deeper into debt. Not only does Ron tell you not to, but simple common sense tells you not to. The basic principle of financial management is "income must be greater than outgo". If you run up any debts, you are violating this vital rule.
But Miscavige's Church of Scientology doesn't want you to know this key policy from Ron. They need you to keep violating this important financial policy so they can get more money. The fact that your survival is severely endangered by their actions doesn't bother them at all.
*OEC: Organization Executive Course. A set of eight volumes containing most of church policy.
*Registrar: Sales person who brings in money for the church.
*Postulate: To say and believe something will happen.
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