FOLLOW ME ON
Daily Notifications
Sign up for free emails to receive the feature story every morning in your inbox at tonyortega.substack.com

Categories

Philadelphia freedom: Scientology proves that it never gives up on brotherly love!

Once again, we have to differ with all of the negativity out there being forwarded by merchants of chaos: Scientology is taking this country ideal, and Dave’s troops are on fire!

The latest evidence of this is a report out of Philadelphia, where a new Ideal Org has been in the works for years and years. But no one there has given up! Scientology forges on, people!

We think you will enjoy this report put out by the folks there, and especially with the testimonial from the couple in Florida who forked out hard-earned money for an org they will probably never set foot in! Now that’s an L. Ron Hubbard miracle, right there. (They indicate, by the way, that they have contributed “six humanitarians,” which means they have donated $600,000 to this one project.)

Please let us know what part of the flier you found most intriguing, and assess for yourself how Scientology is going gangbusters in the City of Brotherly Love!

Advertisement

 
——————–

Technology Cocktail

“There is nothing less than complete precision required of today’s auditor. The precision can be learned and is being learned. It is marvelous to be audited by an Auditor who knows his Model Session and TRs, who doesn’t Q and A and who just goes on and gets the job done, who stays in two-way comm with his pc during the CCHs, and who doesn’t flinch at asking embarrassing questions in Prepchecking. It is NOT difficult to obtain this perfection. Its attainment guarantees the success of session and the future of Scientology.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1962

 
——————–

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.

 
——————–

Advertisement

THE PODCAST: How many have you heard?

[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

— The first Danny Masterson trial and beyond

[18] Trial special with Chris Shelton [19] Trial week one [20] Marc Headley on the spy in the hallway [21] Trial week two [22] Trial week three [23] Trial week four [24] Leah Remini on LAPD Corruption [25] Mike Rinder 2022 Thanksgiving Special [26] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part One [27] Jane Doe 4 (Tricia Vessey), Part Two [28] Claire Headley on the trial [29] Tory Christman [30] Bruce Hines on spying [31] Karen de la Carriere [32] Ron Miscavige on Shelly Miscavige [33] Karen de la Carriere on the L’s [34] Mark Bunker on Miscavige hiding [35] Mark Plummer [36] Mark Ebner [37] Karen Pressley [38] Steve Cannane [39] Fredrick Brennan [40] Clarissa Adams [41] Louise Shekter [42] John Sweeney [43] Tory Christman [44] Kate Bornstein [45] Christian Stolte [46] Mark Bunker [47] Jon Atack [48] Luke Y. Thompson [49] Mark Ebner [50] Bruce Hines [51] Spanky Taylor and Karen Pressley [51] Geoff and Robbie Levin [52] Sands Hall [53] Jonny Jacobsen [54] Sandy Holeman

 
——————–

Source Code

“Little boy is a kick. My little girl requires interest to be kind of generated by the vicinity. You know? It’s got to be heavy matter and that sort of thing. She’d get interested. Yes, she’s very alert and very interested. But this little boy, her brother, is practically an Operating Thetan. And he is a fabulous little character — not just because he’s my son, of course — but he’s a fabulous character in that he’s always exteriorized. You walk past his room — his door is closed, you see — in the middle of the night and he’ll do a flip-flop on his bunk, bang! and he’ll be right up there scratching on the door saying, ‘Hey, say hello,’ you know, that sort of thing. You open the door and say, ‘Hello, Quentin,’ and he’s real happy.” — L. Ron Hubbard, October 6, 1954

 
——————–

Avast, Ye Mateys

“FAN MAIL: Items which bring in nice comments and congratulations lately have been Expanded Lower Grades and the Data Series. Numerous pleased comments came in on Expanded Lower Grades with no adverse ones. The Data Series gets good comment and is well liked. It has run into only a couple of adverse where the Out-points restimed some out-points but by auditing them straight it came out great. Hymn of Asia is also very popular.” — The Commodore, October 6, 1970

Advertisement

——————–

Overheard in the FreeZone

“I know that jewish dna tends to produce more 1.1s, but that doesnt mean we are going to single out a whole group of people as being 1.1 and that we should be racist or anything, the free zone is open to all and sadly the atlantean/aryan race is full of bad bodies too, i think its better than other bodies but sadly here on earth all bodies are bad for the thetan and we need to empower the thetan and ignore the corrupted bodies.”

 
——————–

Past is Prologue

1999: An affidavit by Scientology leader David Miscavige was posted to a.r.s this week. It was filed in the Wollersheim case, in which Lawrence Wollersheim is attempting to have Scientology pay a multi-million dollar judgment, even after bankrupting the Church of Scientology of California. Some excerpts: “A great deal has been made of my role and authority in the Scientology religion because of my position as RTC’s Chairman of the Board. Let me emphasize that I am not ‘Chairman of Scientology.’ It is RTC, as a whole, that is responsible for the orthodoxy of the Scientology faith. It then follows that as Chairman of RTC, its most senior executive, I am entrusted with the ecclesiastical position that has the highest scriptural authority within the religion. My authority derives exclusively from that position and extends no further than RTC’s mission. In summary, my job is to ensure RTC carries out its function of assuring the orthodox and proper use of the Scientology religious ‘technology.’ My duties are completely unrelated to, and I do not participate in, the ecclesiastic governance of the many
churches of Scientology around the world. That function is performed by Church of Scientology International. As Chairman of RTC, I am not the ‘successor’ to L. Ron Hubbard. Plaintiff
attempts to mislead the Court regarding Mr. Hubbard’s and my role in the religion. Mr. Hubbard was the Founder of the religion and the sole Source of its Scripture. In that capacity, he will never have a ‘successor.’ A primary and fundamental doctrine of our faith is that the teachings be kept pure and that the only source of those teachings is Mr. Hubbard. When plaintiff and his witnesses say I am ‘just like L. Ron Hubbard,’ that is the highest compliment one could receive in the Scientology religion, if their intention were to communicate that I am keeping the religion true to his teachings. Of course, their statements are accompanied by an inaccurate and negative description of Mr. Hubbard’s character and role in the religion. But even if that were not the case, I would still reject their compliment as I simply am not and never will be what Mr. Hubbard was to the religion. By way of analogy, consider an apostate Roman Catholic claiming, in the context of litigation, that the Pope is ‘just like Jesus Christ, and assumed his role after Christ’s death.’ Needless to say, this would be offensive to any Roman Catholic, as a matter of religious belief. The Pope may be the keeper of the Roman Catholic faith, but it would be heresy to say he was, in any manner, Christ himself. I do not disregard the corporate lines of authority, responsibility or control of any church of Scientology. Contrary to the allegations of Wollersheim’s declarants, lines of corporate authority in RTC, and its relationship to other churches of Scientology, are firm and I see to it they remain that way. Because of these allegations, the IRS review of RTC and all other churches of Scientology, had as a primary focus of
investigation the corporate and financial integrity of those churches. After the most exhaustive review of any non-profit organization in history, the IRS found such allegations to be without basis, not only with respect to Mr. Hubbard’s relationship with the churches of Scientology when he was alive, but with respect to the relationship and integrity of all Scientology churches since that time…”

 
——————–

Random Howdy

“Man, my groovy shark vid got no votes, but my simple-minded off-the-cuff remark got top vote. You people are weird.”

Advertisement

 
——————–

Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker

Criminal prosecutions:
Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Found guilty on two counts on May 31, remanded to custody. Sentencing on Sep 7.
‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Trial scheduled for August 15.
David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud.

Civil litigation:
Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Complaint filed August 2, first hearing set for Dec 4.
Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration. Plaintiffs allowed interlocutory appeal to Eleventh Circuit.
Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
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 sentencing of Masterson on Sep 7. Next hearing set for Sept 26.
Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Next hearing Nov 6.
Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Ordered to mediation.

 
——————–

SCIENTOLOGY: FAIR GAME

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?

 
——————–
THE WHOLE TRACK

[ONE year ago] With a trial looming, here’s what it’s like to go up against Scientology’s code of silence
[TWO years ago] Scientology’s evangelist is coming to town, and he wants to discuss your origin, thetan
[THREE years ago] Danny Masterson’s attempt to get out of rape accusers’ lawsuit to be heard today
[FOUR years ago] For you doubters, here’s proof of Scientology miracles that demonstrate the power of ‘OT’!
[FIVE years ago] In the Sea Org, under suspicion: ‘I accepted that I was, in Scientology terms, an ethics particle’
[SIX years ago] This new image of David Miscavige makes years of Scientology Watching all worth it
[SEVEN years ago] Chris Shelton dives into Scientology culture with the Larisa Smith story, part two
[EIGHT years ago] SCIENTOLOGY SPIED ON JIM CARREY TO GET HIM ON ‘PURIF,’ SAYS FORMER EXEC
[NINE years ago] A Bunker Exclusive: Jonny Jacobsen’s 2008 book introduction describing Scientology
[TEN years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology’s Shiny New Freedom Magazine!
[ELEVEN years ago] Another Narconon Lawsuit, Oregon Dentist to Fight Order, and More Scientology Links
[TWELVE years ago] Scientology Raided, Smacked Down in Court, and Accused of Killing Trees — a Thursday Roundup

 
——————–

Scientology disconnection, a reminder

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 3,174 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,689 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,239 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,229 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,110 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,414 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,285 days.
Doug Kramer has not seen his parents Linda and Norm in 2,390 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 4,837 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,179 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 12,745 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,664 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 4,831 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,413 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,674 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,710 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,426 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 2,990 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,305 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,480 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,031 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,162 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,500 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,355 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,474 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 2,830 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,133 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,239 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,637 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,513 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,078 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,591 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 3,845 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 14,954 days.

——————–

Posted by Tony Ortega on October 6, 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, 1995-2022 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2022), 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

 

Tony Ortega at Rolling Stone

 

Share Button
Print Friendly, PDF & Email
ADVERTISEMENT