A number of our readers noticed that Scientology has been putting out gushing news about its unstoppable “expansion” in press releases that show up in the oddest places, like in a piece masquerading as a story that showed up in Digital Journal and in Jim Cramer’s news website The Street. We have to wonder at the people who might take such claims of Scientology’s growth seriously.
Yes, David Miscavige has convinced some of his followers to fork over huge amounts to pay for some new buildings, but these “Ideal Orgs” have replaced perfectly serviceable facilities and didn’t actually represent any growth in the movement. Meanwhile, the orgs and missions that haven’t gone Ideal are suffering as fewer and fewer people visit them.
We want to thank the tipster who has given us a glimpse of what’s going on in Brighton, England, for example. He sent us the photo above, explaining that a few years ago, the Brighton org was housed in the top floor of the building you can see on the left. And, at one time, it was a thriving concern on a busy street.
But that was years ago. What sort of shape is Brighton org in now?
Well, to find out, you’d have to notice this attractive advertisement as you were strolling through one of Brighton’s less glamorous areas…
And if you decided that you were, in fact, interested in a personality test, you’d need to negotiate your way down this alleyway, which doesn’t look sketchy at all…
And that would bring you to this totally welcoming store front. Well, it’s just a door really. Not a store front at all. More like a prison door, actually, but as prison doors go, it’s rather inviting, isn’t it?
Just imagine the straight up and vertical stats the Brighton org must be getting out of that traffic-stopping setup. England will be cleared in no time!
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Jonny Jacobsen on the Brussels prosecution
Here’s part two of Jonny Jacobsen’s interview with Allison Hope Weiner at Media Mayhem…
And hey, your proprietor was on radio this weekend in Ireland on the Dave Fanning show.
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Babywatch, day ten: Lisa McPherson in Room 174
David Houghton, the Sea Org’s would-be dentist, made his final visit to Lisa McPherson’s room on the afternoon of Tuesday, November 28, 1995.
“She looked like she’d had a rough 24 hours,” he later told police. Houghton noticed that Lisa had bruises on her shins, like she’d been kicking something. Later that night, Houghton left to take his board exams, and never saw Lisa again.
Lisa’s caretaker, Valerie Demange, reported that Lisa had been violent the night before. But today, she was “calmer and looks very tired.” Valerie reported that at about 7 pm, Lisa had a protein shake and a glass of water, and took some herbs to help her sleep. After a bath, Lisa slept for a couple of hours.
“The ‘watch’ said she was quieter, but suspects it’s because she’s weak, in spite of protein drink,” says a report in the file.
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Bonus photos from our tipsters
Mikhail has learned how to learn!
Surely you want to join this tough crew…
Ah, the holiday cheer!
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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 book tour is concluded for now. (But you can re-experience it through this nifty interactive map!) We’ll let you know about future appearances. Previous events: Santa Barbara (5/16), Hollywood (5/17), Orange County (5/17), San Diego (5/20), San Francisco (5/22), New York (6/11), Chicago (6/20), Toronto (6/22), Clearwater (6/28), Washington DC (7/12), Hartford (7/14), Denver (7/17), Dallas (7/20), Houston (7/22), San Antonio (7/24), Austin (7/25), Paris (7/29), London (8/4), Boston (8/24), Phoenix (9/15), Cleveland (9/23), Minneapolis (9/24), Portland (9/27), Seattle (9/28), Vancouver BC (9/29), Sydney (10/23), Melbourne (10/25), Adelaide (10/28), Perth (10/30)
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Posted by Tony Ortega on November 28, 2015 at 07:00
E-mail your tips and story ideas to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We post behind-the-scenes updates at our Facebook author page. Here at the Bunker we try to have a post up every morning at 7 AM Eastern (Noon GMT), and on some days we post an afternoon story at around 2 PM. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
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
