We’ve been on the road with our appearance yesterday in Clearwater, but thankfully, our friend Jeffrey Augustine sent in another of his deep dives into the weird world of Scientology infrastructure. Take us down the rabbit hole again, Jeff…
In our last article, we showed that the word “Scientologist” is a collective membership mark used by members of the affiliated churches and missions of Scientology:
This statement is found in the fine print of Impact, the official magazine of the International Association of Scientologists. Curiously enough, and as documented last week, the IAS itself is not a part of the ecclesiastical hierarchy of Scientology churches and missions:
Given the autonomy of the IAS from the Church of Scientology, we are left to ask by what right or privilege is the IAS able to use the word “Scientologist.” The Scientology weasel answer is contained in the correspondence between the Church and the IRS in 1992:
Let’s look at the Scientological sleight of hand here:
— The IAS is the official membership organization of the Church of Scientology.
— The purpose of the IAS is quite lofty and soaring:
Despite the IAS’ overarching purpose and centrality to the Scientology religion itself, the Church’s trademark counsel has advised all of us that the IAS engages in only “mere references” to Scientology’s trademarks and service marks.
One of those trademarks, by the way, is the word “scientologist” itself, which is owned by the RTC.
From the US Patent and Trademark Office:
So, Scientology is so anal, it trademarks the very use of the word “Scientologist,” and yet it somehow leaves unlicensed its massive slush fund, IAS. What gives?
An unlicensed IAS would seem to be a breach of David Miscavige’s duty to protect the ecclesiastical purity of the Scientology trademarks. Indeed, as we read in the Command Channels of Scientology, RTC is a policing function:
Why does David Miscavige apparently abrogate his primary duty to safeguard the “proper use of the trademarks” when it comes to the IAS? This most curious omission is “hats, not wearing” in the language of Scientology. “Hats, not wearing” means that one is not performing their assigned duties or not carrying out their assigned responsibilities. This is a very serious crime in the Church. L. Ron Hubbard warned against “hats, not wearing” in this policy letter:
Likewise, the IAS is not licensed by the Church of Spiritual Technology (CST). Instead, the IAS merely offers grateful acknowledgement to the Church of Spiritual Technology dba L. Ron Hubbard Library. This acknowledgement is also contained in the fine print of Impact Magazine:
The unlicensed IAS stands in stark contrast to the RTC-licensed Church of Scientology international (CSI) and all of its sub-licensees who must at all times operate under the strict licensure of RTC. And to be clear, all Scientology operations are done under licensure, i.e. they require a license from RTC, or from CST via RTC. In this sense, RTC could be viewed as the operating arm of CST. Thus, the “hats, not wearing” policy letter is relevant as it shows David Miscavige is not doing his duty by allowing the IAS to exist as an unlicensed Scientology entity.
One of the main lessons I have learned through many years of Scientology watching is this: Scientology never does anything legally without a reason, and, this reason is almost always hidden or not obvious. Therefore, even though it violates Miscavige’s duties and the stated functions of RTC, there is a reason David Miscavige and his attorneys did not want to license the IAS.
My thinking here is that IAS-IASA-US IAS Members Trust is a cabal that embodies a gigantic pool of unrestricted cash donations exceeding one billion dollars. Miscavige himself said of the IAS in 2014 “this is the year we went stratospheric.” I personally took this as Miscavige cryptically boasting that the IAS had crossed over some enormous target for cash holdings. It is fashionable these days for corporations to have large cash holdings and so the IAS would be no different.
Thus, in m my view, the IAS must be so completely autonomous legally that it cannot be sued as a licensee of RTC or CST. At present, Miscavige’s attorneys are laboring feverishly to preven the Rathbun v. Miscavige case from piercing the CSI corporate veil by proving that Miscavige is actually the managing agent of the Church. As presently constructed, Miscavige can secretly control the IAS money while being legally untouchable in any lawsuit.
As we mentioned previously, the invisible hand of the Sea Org is at work: As Captain David Miscavige controls the Sea Org, he therefore controls the IAS, the IASA, and the big fat piggy bank known as the US IAS Members Trust.
Therefore, the IAS must have the freedom to use RTC trademarks and CST copyrights on an unrestricted and unlicensed basis under the rubric of “mere references” in order for Miscavige to remain at arm’s length legally.
All of this Church of Scientology conduct reflects badly upon the IRS. Why the IRS allowed such contradictions from the Church of Scientology is beyond the intellectual grasp of your humble correspondent. Had I been the IRS Commissioner, I would have thrown these chattering Scientology jackdaws and their lawyers out of my office. Nevertheless, as the Proprietor of the Underground Bunker maintains, the Church caved in the IRS. This would explain why the IRS chose to ignore contradictions that should otherwise throw up red flags.
For the IRS to have allowed the IAS, an autonomous fundraising organization (and one that pays fundraising commissions no less), to exist within the Church of Scientology seems very questionable.
But then, it was the IRS that didn’t flinch at the plans of the Church of Spiritual Technology to spend tens of millions of dollars to build twelve Scientology obelisks engraved with The Way to Happiness on each of them:
What a shame they were never built. Instead, Miscavige built his monument out of hard, unlicensed cash.
— Jeffrey Augustine
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Scientology’s Mecca draws a crowd
Just time enough to mention that we had 240 people — our largest crowd so far — to hear Paulette Cooper and your proprietor talk about our book, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely yesterday in Clearwater, Florida.
On Saturday we met longtime former Scientologists whose families have been ripped apart — families you haven’t heard about because they still can’t talk publicly. Others came out to the event on Sunday and told it us it was the first time they’d ever come to a public gathering that Scientology itself might not find salubrious. These were brave folks.
And there were some pretty epic meetings. Former Scientology spokesman Mike Rinder and attorney Ken Dandar in the same room probably, we’re guessing, for the first time since the end of the Lisa McPherson litigation in 2004. There were many Bunkerites and Bunkeroos it was a pleasure to meet for the first time, including Sid, Vinay, LC Spencer, and Chukicita.
But how about this historic meeting. Between the man who used to run OSA, and the woman who was the most famous target of OSA’s predecessor, Scientology’s Guardian’s Office (and your proprietor)…
That photo was snapped by Paulette’s husband, Paul Noble. At another time, when Paul took a photo of Paulette and Rinder, another person stood up and got a shot of his own. It was Freedom magazine editor John Sugg. Does that mean the former Creative Loafing journalist is going to take a shot at us for daring to come to Clearwater and talk about Scientology just steps from where high-level Scientologists are paying hundreds of dollars an hour to drive away invisible entities from their bodies? Apparently, we’re going to find out.
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BOOK NOTES
We didn’t get a chance to include photos in our book, so we’ve posted them at a dedicated page. Reader Sookie put together a complete index and we’re hosting it here on the website. Copies of the paperback version of ‘The Unbreakable Miss Lovely’ are on sale at Amazon. The Kindle edition is also available, and shipping instantly.
Our upcoming appearances (and check out the interactive map to our ongoing tour)…
June 28: Clearwater, Florida (with Paulette Cooper) Clearwater Public Library, 2 pm, sponsored by Center for Inquiry-Tampa Bay and the Humanist Society of the Suncoast.
July 12: Washington DC, Center for Inquiry (with Paulette Cooper)
July 14: Hartford, MARK TWAIN HOUSE (with Tom Tomorrow)
July 17: Denver, The Secular Hub, 7 pm (with Chris Shelton)
July 20: Dallas, Times Ten Cellar, 7 pm (with Robert Wilonsky)
July 22: Houston, Fox and Hound, 11470 Westheimer Road, sponsored by Humanists of Houston
July 24: San Antonio, Folc Restaurant, 6 pm
July 25: Austin
July 29: Paris (with Jonny Jacobsen)
August 4: London, Conway Hall, (with John Sweeney)
August 24: Boston, Boston Skeptics in the Pub, 7 pm
Sept 15: Arizona State University
Sept 23: Cleveland
Sept 24: Minneapolis
Sept 27: Portland
Sept 28: Seattle
Sept 30: Vancouver, BC
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Posted by Tony Ortega on June 29, 2015 at 07:00
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Learn about Scientology with our numerous series with experts…
BLOGGING DIANETICS: We read Scientology’s founding text cover to cover with the help of LA attorney and former church member Vance Woodward
UP THE BRIDGE: Claire Headley and Bruce Hines train us as Scientologists
GETTING OUR ETHICS IN: Jefferson Hawkins explains Scientology’s system of justice
SCIENTOLOGY MYTHBUSTING: Historian Jon Atack discusses key Scientology concepts
PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | Scientology’s Private Dancer
The mystery of the richest Scientologist and his wayward sons | Scientology’s shocking mistreatment of the mentally ill
The Underground Bunker’s Official Theme Song | The Underground Bunker FAQ
Our Guide to Alex Gibney’s film ‘Going Clear,’ and our pages about its principal figures…
Jason Beghe | Tom DeVocht | Sara Goldberg | Paul Haggis | Mark “Marty” Rathbun | Mike Rinder | Spanky Taylor | Hana Whitfield
