TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Ron Kasman has written for us about his journey into and out of Scientology, and his life as a comics creator. He was kind enough to send us this remembrance of his cousin, Mike Silverman, who was very well known in Scientology and had become less visible after leaving it. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
——————–
Technology Cocktail
“Scientology is a precision subject. It has axioms. Like geometry. Two equilateral triangles aren’t similar because Euclid said so. They’re similar because they are. If you don’t believe it, look at them. There isn’t a single datum in Scientology that can’t be proven as precisely as teacups are teacups and not saucepans.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1971
——————–
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.
——————–
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 [55] Mark Bunker [56] Trish and Liz Conley [57] Trish Conley [58] Alex Barnes-Ross [59] Alex Barnes-Ross [60] Alex Barnes-Ross [61] Alex Barnes-Ross [62] Alex Barnes-Ross [63] Alex Barnes-Ross [64] Tory Christman [65] Tammy Synovec [66] Dennis Erlich [67] Alex Barnes-Ross [68] Valerie Ross [69] Kat in Austin [70] Mark Bunker [71] Phil Jones
——————–
“Faith is a very fascinating subject. Faith can be artificially installed. You can take a person as a clinical experiment, hypnotize him and install the Great God Motaw. You tell him that the Great God Motaw is now taking care of his life, safeguarding him, looking after his concerns, will see that the future is all arranged for him, will see that all goes well and that everybody loves him, and will, beyond everything else, give him absolutely correct data every time he asks for it. The Great God Motaw, installed in such a circuit, more or less takes the whole computer, moves it over, and now he has the Great God Motaw sitting there. You can even install it so that the Great God Motaw has sonic, which is strictly hallucination.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 13, 1950
——————–
“The Supreme Test of a thetan is to make things go right. I want every divisional officer to spot those on the ship who pass this test.” — The Commodore, July 13, 1969
——————–
“You don’t turn someone who is seeking to rehabilitate himself to the authorities. Otherwise, there is no point in being a church, don’t you think? Involving HCO, OSA, etc, that’s perfectly OK and, in fact, expected for the protection of the group and to really get to the bottom of the situation. But the whole idea besides protecting the group first is to rehabilitate. I don’t see how the ‘authorities’ are going to rehabilitate anybody. Throwing somebody in jail and locking the door hasn’t rehabilitated anybody as far as I know. Do you know of anybody who did? There are ways to deal with any situation with the correct Ethics tools and to take full responsibility for scene (with every dynamic involved) without playing the cop. We are ministers, not police officers. We are a Church, not a police enforcement agency.”
2000: The St. Petersburg Times reported that the downtown development plan, which was supported by Scientology, was defeated in a voter referendum. “Asked to approve leasing city-owned waterfront land to developers for 99 years for as little as $1 per year, voters said no by a 58 percent to 42 percent tally. The decision, which shocked city officials and civic boosters who had openly predicted victory in the afternoon, capped a divisive campaign in which both sides traded accusations of distortion and outright lying. City land would have been leased to the developers for 99 years. The move was requested by developers who said they needed the incentive to make money on their plans to build a downtown multiplex movie theater, 1,200 new apartments and condominiums, public parking garages and up to 300,000 square feet of new retail space. A group of former city commissioners dubbed Save the Bayfront led the fight against the concept. They played on fear that the Church of Scientology, whose spiritual headquarters is downtown, might benefit from the plan. They also argued that the city couldn’t be trusted to complete a deal with developers George de Guardiola and David Frisbie of West Palm Beach. “It was people like Roger Schaffer who carried the day. He had heard the developer’s plan to bring in restaurants and retailers, but, unimpressed, the 57-year-old voted against redevelopment. ‘I don’t think there’s anything they can do to change what downtown Clearwater is,’ Schaffer said. ‘I don’t see fine restaurants going in. I don’t see high quality. We’re a conservative community made up in large part by a lot of retirees.”
——————–
“Scientologists believe that the Narconon treatment can cure you of alcoholism and once completed you can drink in safety again. In fact from what I’ve read they sometimes make you drink before you leave to prove this.”
——————–
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. Sentenced to 30 years to life 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. Next pretrial hearing May 31, 2024.
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Leah seeking to amend her complaint.
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to arbitration.
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: motion to file new complaint, hearing on May 29.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration, on hold until appeal over new judge heard.
— Chiropractors Steve Peyroux and Brent Detelich, stem cell fraud: Ordered to mediation.
——————–
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] Mark Bunker: How I changed seats and freaked out Scientology last night in Clearwater
[TWO years ago] ‘Arbitration,’ again: Here’s Scientology motion to derail new labor trafficking lawsuit
[THREE years ago] Scientology’s response in Danny Masterson case appeal: ‘I changed my mind’ is not a defense
[FOUR years ago] Kelly Preston dies; Lisa Marie Presley loses son to suicide; Scientology remains useless
[FIVE years ago] Scientology’s targeting of children is only getting more blatant as the church struggles
[SIX years ago] Scientology scrambles to keep Miscavige out of forced-abortion trial
[SEVEN years ago] Almost 12 years ago, Shelly Miscavige vanished. Here’s why we keep asking about her.
[EIGHT years ago] Hey, thetan: Scientology has a few questions for you
[NINE years ago] Hey, Star magazine, why is Tom Cruise afraid of Aussie journo Bryan Seymour?
[TEN years ago] Sunday Funnies: Scientology lets slip the reason it still produces L. Ron Hubbard’s bad fiction
[ELEVEN years ago] Leaving Scientology: Jon Atack Navigates the Labyrinth of Paranoia
——————–
Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 2,960 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,455 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,970 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,520 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,510 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,391 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,695 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,566 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,118 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,459 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,026 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,945 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,113 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,694 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,955 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,991 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,707 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,271 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,586 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,761 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,312 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,443 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,781 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,634 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,755 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,111 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,414 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,520 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,918 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,794 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,359 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,872 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,126 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,234 days.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on July 13, 2024 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, 1995-2023 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2023), 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
Agudath Israel of America
Brunderhof
Catholic Legal Immigration Network, Inc.
U.S. Conference of Catholic Bishops, Committee on Migration
Conference of Major Superiors of Men
Evangelical Lutheran Church in America
General Conference of Seventh-day Adventists
Hindu American Foundation
Leadership Conference of Women Religious
National Association of Evangelicals
The Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-day Saints
The Episcopal Church
The First Church of Christ, Scientist
The Rabbinical Council of America
United Methodist Church – General Board of Church and Society
U.S. Council of Muslim Organizations
Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
