Happy New Year!
We thought we’d kick off 2023 with something that seems to confound many of the people we run into: How, after all of the things that have been exposed about it, is Scientology still in business?
Sure, we understand why people are confused. After all, the horrible press Scientology regularly gets, the terrible reputation it has with the public, and the weak sauce Scientology has on offer (staring exercises, really?) should make it very difficult for this odd organization to pull in new people today.
And for the most part, we think that is the case. Scientology has hit on hard times, and it struggles to bring folks in.
But we thought it would be a good idea to start out the new year by reminding you that Scientology never, ever gives up. It doesn’t care about its public image, it doesn’t care about bad press. All it cares about is total, utter control of the few people who still think it has all the answers.
And so we thought we’d show you what that looks like in 2023, specifically. A reader let us know that the Scientology oversharer is at it again, and this time she’s let us in on the mentality of a church member and how they convince themselves to give so, so much money.
You remember our oversharer. She’s a young woman enthusiastically going up the “Bridge to Total Freedom” and sharing the experience with her social media followers. She’s posted some pretty remarkable videos gushing about the accomplishments of going through the “grades” and also “going Clear.”
Most recently, we checked in with her as she shared her travels in Dubai, her new relationship with a man who is as dedicated to Scientology as she is, and to her involvement with Scientology’s sneaky business consulting fronts.
This time, she let her followers know that she’s engaged to be married (and congratulations!) and she has now become a Scientology “Patron.”
What that means is that she’s given at least $50,000 to the International Association of Scientologists, which is Scientology’s membership organization. This is above and beyond the money she’s spent for Scientology courses, auditing, and other donation initiatives.
And yes, that seems like a lot of money for someone like our oversharer. How can she justify it? Well, glad you asked. Because she explains herself, and we found her statement really interesting…
Another huge win and accomplishment this year!!
This is something I’ve been persistently working toward in any way I can (and doing everything I can, despite anything) for many years and it’s my Christmas present to humankind.
One thing [fiancé] and I both did that made all the difference was to become monthly supporters toward our humanitarian campaigns.
That way we’re able to make small contributions of our choice and ability regularly and thus have a direct impact on making a better world and helping humankind.
AdvertisementIt’s so simple and so doable and yet makes all the difference and has a huge impact overall.
I think it’s a responsibility we all share. And it’s a small way to make a massive difference.
If you think about it, you don’t even question making contributions toward yourself and your family to survive, but your dynamics don’t stop there: the group and humankind are also part of your life.
If you are interested in finding out how you can help in this way too, PM me and I’ll be happy to help!
We’d love to hear some thoughts from some of our former Scientologists about the oversharer’s concepts: That donating money for Scientology leader David Miscavige to use for new Ideal Orgs, and for litigation, and for hiring private investigators to spy on and destroy people, is “making a better world and helping humankind.”
We know the oversharer doesn’t believe that’s where her money’s going. But what does she think Scientology does to make the world a better place? Let us know what you think.
And let’s all remember, as bad as things seem to be for Scientology these days, it still has a powerful hold on people like our oversharer, and will continue to do all it can to maintain that grip.
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A commotion at Gold Base
A reader asked us yesterday about a law enforcement response at Scientology’s Gold Base this weekend.
We get this request every once in a while, and so we have an email already filled out to send to the Riverside County Sheriff’s Office in such cases. Several times, they have responded, and it’s usually nothing much so we usually don’t say anything about it.
This time, it was a strange one. A 34-year-old Hesperia man named Robert Scott Sigmund pointed a rifle out of his car at an employee at Scientology’s base.
Police were called, and then pursued Sigmund when he fled.
The car chase led to Hemet, where Hemet PD picked up the chase.
Sigmund then got into an accident, and he was taken into custody, and the rifle was found in the car. No injuries were reported.
Sigmund was booked just after midnight on December 31 on assault with a deadly weapon and held in custody, with bail set at $25,000.
Why Sigmund would point a rifle at an employee of the base was not explained by the Sheriff’s Office. But we imagine that Scientology spokeswoman Karin Pouw is being kept busy by church leader David Miscavige coming up with a way to blame Leah Remini for it!
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A special treat for our subscribers
Last night at midnight our subscribers received the first episode of our new podcast series, “Group Therapy.”
We had assembled a crew of great Underground Bunker regulars — Andrea “i-Betty” Garner, Lynette “Observer” Waggoner, Phil Jones, and “Panopea Abrupta” — and we discussed the Scientology news of the week with them.
We had a great time! And we hope our subscribers did too. We wanted to give you something for helping to support the work we do here at the Underground Bunker.
We can hardly wait to record the second episode!
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Technology Cocktail
“Whenever a person of the usual Mark I Homo Sapiens type is asked to remember something, he gets a picture along with it. This, no matter what names or description you place upon it, is simply a picture which has been taken of an event in the past, said picture now being in the present. This automatic feed mechanism has gone relatively unnoticed but occasionally described back through the centuries. It seems that this should be considered very usual. However, it was not until Dianetics that anyone made any kind of a thorough study of these pictures.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1954
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THE PROSECUTION OF DANNY MASTERSON
We first broke the news of the LAPD’s investigation of Scientology celebrity Danny Masterson on rape allegations in 2017, and we’ve been covering the story every step of the way since then. At this page we’ve collected our most important links as Danny faces a potential sentence of 45 years to life in prison. NOW WITH TRIAL INDEX.
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THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?
— The Underground Bunker Podcast
[1] Marc Headley [2] Claire Headley [3] Jeffrey Augustine [4] Bruce Hines [5] Sunny Pereira [6] Pete Griffiths [7] Geoff Levin [8] Patty Moher [9] Marc Headley [10] Jefferson Hawkins [11] Michelle ‘Emma’ Ryan [12] Paulette Cooper [13] Jesse Prince [14] Mark Bunker [15] Jon Atack [16] Mirriam Francis [17] Bruce Hines on MSH
— SPECIAL: The best TV show on Scientology you never got to see
[1] Phil Jones [2] Derek Bloch [3] Carol Nyburg [4] Katrina Reyes [5] Jamie DeWolf
— SPECIAL: Your Proprietor’s updates on the Danny Masterson trial
[1] Sep 21 [2] Sep 28 [3] Oct 4 [4] Oct 10 [5] Oct 11: Day One [6] Oct 12: Day Two [7] Oct 13: Day Three [8] Oct 17: Day Four [9] Oct 18: Day Five [10] Oct 19: Day Six [11] Special interview with Chris Shelton, Oct 19 [12] Oct 20: Day Seven [13] Oct 21: Day Eight [14] First week in review, with Jeffrey Augustine [15] Oct 24: Day Nine [16] Oct 25: Day Ten [17] Oct 27: Day Eleven [18] Oct 28: Day Twelve [19] Second week in review, with Jeffrey Augustine [20] Halloween special [21] Nov 2: Day Thirteen [22] Nov 3: Day Fourteen [23] Nov 4: Day Fifteen [24] Third week in review [25] Nov 5, Saturday special [26] Nov 6, Sunday special [27] Nov 7, Day Sixteen [28] Lisa Marie Presley breaking news [29] Nov 8, Day Seventeen [30] Nov 9, Day Eighteen [31] Nov 10, Day Nineteen
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“There’s lots been doing lately and there’s lots of road ahead. If there’s ever been a point where we jumped off this is it. You know, we jumped off in 1950 — something on the order of the Christians going into the Roman arena. And those psychiatrists were very hungry lions; they were very hungry, very hungry — very proud, very proud lions, beating their paws against their somewhat mangy chests, saying, ‘We are the bosses of this here arena.’ That’s what they thought. And today I hope that you will get information which will permit, in another year, a Scientologist to say, ‘Scientology processes more psychiatrists in any given year than any other psychotherapy.’ That’d be fun, wouldn’t it? Nice ad in The Saturday Evening Post.” — L. Ron Hubbard, January 1, 1960
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“OLD 1970: So Good-bye 1970. It was a tough year on the world. But it was a great year for development. Both tech and Admin research results were the greatest since 1950. All the years contributed but the payoff was 1970. So Happy 1971, AD21. Let’s make the new tools take the world.” — The Commodore, January 1, 1971
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“Being aberrated in an aberrated society actually raises your survival potential in the SHORT TERM (not the long term) and that’s what I’m having a hard time overcoming right now in my journey with Dianetics and Scientology. I’ve taken on the valence of a rat who hides and sneaks around trying to use and steal things for his own benefit without being detected and sadly, its working.”
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2001: “Ethercat” reported a protest in Atlanta this week. “Arrived around 2, left around 3. There were two adults who left in one car, and an adult with a child in the second car. Wynot made sure they got a glimpse of the ‘Who is Xenu? Find the answer on xenu.net.’ sign, keeping the ‘Scientology Lies’ sign aimed at the street. My sign said ‘What is Scientology? A bait and switch SCAM!’ Once thing I’ve noticed about the honks and waves – they’re becoming bolder. We’re getting people laying on the horn, for a long honk as they pass. Some of the people waving or giving us thumbs ups take great care to make sure we see, and we always give them a wave or a smile.”
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“In the 1980s Scientology had 100,000+ members. Today, it has 20,000 or less, plus the more competent members have left. In the 70s & 80s there was Operation Snow White, Operations Daniel and Dynamite (Paulette Cooper) etc. Today, It’s Squirrel Busters, Freedumb Magazine and smear sites no one sees. We have THEM running scared. OSA is a joke.”
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Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Mistrial declared November 30. Status conference scheduled January 10, retrial scheduled March 27.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Plea deadline scheduled for December 16.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay sentenced to 9 years in prison. Jeff scheduled to time served with three years supervised release, restitution of $9.7 million.
— Rizza Islam, Medi-Cal fraud: Trial scheduled for March 1 in Los Angeles
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud: Next pretrial hearing December 9.
— Yanti Mike Greene, Scientology private eye accused of contempt of court: Found guilty of criminal and civil contempt.
Civil litigation:
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Complaint filed April 28 in Tampa federal court, Scientology moving to compel arbitration. Plaintiffs filed amended complaint on August 2. Hearing November 17 to argue the arbitration motions, awaiting ruling.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Selection of arbitrators underway. Next court hearing: February 2, 2023.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Appellate court removes requirement of arbitration on January 19, case remanded back to Superior Court. Stay in place at least through February 7.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Case settled ahead of scheduled Dec 6 trial.
— Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: New trial ordered after appeals court overturned prior ruling.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Lawsuit filed by the FTC and state of Georgia in August, now in discovery phase.
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After the success of their double-Emmy-winning, three-season A&E series ‘Scientology and the Aftermath,’ Leah Remini and Mike Rinder continue the conversation on their podcast, ‘Scientology: Fair Game.’ We’ve created a landing page where you can hear all of the episodes so far.
LEAH REMINI: SCIENTOLOGY AND THE AFTERMATH
An episode-by-episode guide to Leah Remini’s three-season, double-Emmy winning series that changed everything for Scientology watching. Originally aired from 2016 to 2019 on the A&E network, and now on Netflix.
SCIENTOLOGY’S CELEBRITIES, from A to Z
Find your favorite Hubbardite celeb at this index page — or suggest someone to add to the list!
Other links: SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks. Scientology’s Ideal Orgs, from one end of the planet to the other. Scientology’s sneaky front groups, spreading the good news about L. Ron Hubbard while pretending to benefit society. Scientology Lit: Books reviewed or excerpted in a weekly series. How many have you read?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Ten years later: Debbie Cook’s indictment of Scientology under David Miscavige, annotated
[THREE years ago] Mike Rinder: What the Church of Scientology has coming in 2020
[FOUR years ago] Scientology watchers, start making your plans for HowdyCon 2019 in Los Angeles!
[FIVE years ago] Scientology watchers, start making your plans for HowdyCon 2018 in the Windy City!
[SIX years ago] Five years later: Debbie Cook’s indictment of Scientology under David Miscavige, annotated
[SEVEN years ago] Scientology watchers, we’re kicking off the new year by revealing the poster for HowdyCon 2016
[EIGHT years ago] A Scientology untold history special report: ‘My lunch with Quentin Hubbard’
[NINE years ago] BUNKER SPECIAL: David Touretzky on L. Ron Hubbard, Mark Twain, and Mary Baker Eddy
[TEN years ago] Another Indie Goes All the Way: Simi Valley Ditches Scientology For Good
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology Rocked By Allegations of Greed in E-mail to 12,000 Church Members
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Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 2,896 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,401 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 2,951 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 1,941 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 1,832 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,137 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,007 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 2,112 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,585 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 3,901 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,467 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,386 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,554 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,135 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,396 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,432 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,147 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 2,712 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,027 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,202 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 6,753 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 3,884 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,222 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,077 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,196 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,552 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 6,855 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 2,961 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,359 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,235 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 2,818 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,313 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,567 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,676 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on January 1, 2023 at 07:00
E-mail tips to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter. We also post updates at our Facebook author page. After every new story we send out an alert to our e-mail list and our FB page.
Our new book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is now on sale at Amazon in paperback and Kindle formats. Our book about Paulette, The Unbreakable Miss Lovely: How the Church of Scientology tried to destroy Paulette Cooper, is on sale at Amazon in paperback, Kindle, and audiobook versions. We’ve posted photographs of Paulette and scenes from her life at a separate location. Reader Sookie put together a complete index. More information can also be found at the book’s dedicated page.
The Best of the Underground Bunker, 1995-2021 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2021), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Other links: BLOGGING DIANETICS: Reading Scientology’s founding text cover to cover | 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 | Shelly Miscavige, 15 years gone | The Lisa McPherson story told in real time | The Cathriona White stories | The Leah Remini ‘Knowledge Reports’ | Hear audio of a Scientology excommunication | Scientology’s little day care of horrors | Whatever happened to Steve Fishman? | Felony charges for Scientology’s drug rehab scam | Why Scientology digs bomb-proof vaults in the desert | PZ Myers reads L. Ron Hubbard’s “A History of Man” | Scientology’s Master Spies | 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
Watch our short videos that explain Scientology’s controversies in three minutes or less…
Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates, or join us at the Underground Bunker’s Facebook discussion group for more frivolity.
Our non-Scientology stories: Robert Burnham Jr., the man who inscribed the universe | Notorious alt-right inspiration Kevin MacDonald and his theories about Jewish DNA | The selling of the “Phoenix Lights” | Astronomer Harlow Shapley‘s FBI file | Sex, spies, and local TV news | Battling Babe-Hounds: Ross Jeffries v. R. Don Steele
Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
