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Scientology says construction has begun on its next Ideal Org — in Puerto Rico!

[The money is flowing in PR!]

TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Thanks to one of our readers, we have another Scientology fundraising letter, and this one claims that construction has begun on the Ideal Org project in Puerto Rico. Didn’t Boston say it was going to be next? Those Beantown OTs better pick up the pace! [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]

 
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Technology Cocktail

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“The disadvantages of Quad Dianetics outweigh any advantages in actual practice. Flow Zero is therefore cancelled as part of Dianetics and lower grades. This flow is self to self. It remains in use only in C/S Series 37R where it is one of the 7 basic flows. What happens when you use Flow Zero as an addition to Flow 1 (another to self), Flow 2 (self to another), and Flow 3 (others to others) is that the pc now and then runs the same chain twice, usually two F 1 s rather than an F 1 and F0.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1971

 
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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?

[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

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Source Code

“All sorts of disastrous things will occur If you become an expert Dianetic auditor. Then we’re all in trouble because we will start curing everything, you know, and knocking out psychosis and neurosis and doing all those poor doctors out of their jobs. And you don’t want to do any doctors out of their jobs. But I say this in all sincerity, this leads you in to the fact that you can heal, and that is not your profession. You’re trying to clear people, and these processes will heal people, even badly run. They’ll cure migraine headaches and arthritis and lumbosis and medicosis and all kinds of wild illnesses. But it doesn’t necessarily follow that it’s uniform. In other words, you don’t get one for one for one, you see, for the excellent reason that the whole reactive mind is the reason for very severe illnesses. It’s the whole mind. And you can key out parts of it and make somebody quite well, you see. You can key out some very specific illness like that and have it go away but don’t be too surprised if it comes back. So therefore, ‘cure’ is not well used. It’s ill-advised as a word.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 21, 1966

 
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Avast, Ye Mateys

“WWIII: The 18 July statement of Russia that it would back Arabs against Israel after an apparent squeeze play on Nasser is the first whiff of World War III. Yesterday’s news items of Soviet Rocket tests north of Hawaii is a confirming item. The Soviet has the US will to fight very knocked out internally in the US and is now following up to pressure the Middle East and the Pacific as a strategic action. They have of course misgauged the US reaction and a belligerent response wrongly done can tip over the cold war into a hot one. This is mentioned because it becomes a factor in our operations to be alert, preserve reserves, and beef up UK and EU.” — The Commodore, July 21, 1970

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“He is part LRH-Tech genius in some ways but he has also a lot of Justin Craig the Gangbanger, Ex-Con, and thug still in him. I can grant beingness to all of that, we are all works in progress, and he admits he has not regained all of the wisdom or charisma or writing ability that LRH had. He may be the same being, he may not, but his universe and his personality is not at all the same.”

 
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Past is Prologue

2001: “Noumenon” reported on an event on the Freewinds featuring a video from David Miscavige. “I went to the second installment of the ‘maiden voyage’ event which features the head of the church, Miscavige. It was a video of an early-June public presentation given on the church’s ocean-going vessel. This was billed as a ‘must-see’ event for all scientologists, promising to give information on the incredible breakthroughs for opening up the bridge to total freedom for everyone. The entire event was a presentation by Miscavige and no one else. ‘With pre-OTs now enrolled on new OT 8, the next target is the release of new OT 9 and 10. So tonight I’m going to talk to you about technical application and recent actions that have been taken to cause a dramatic impact on speed up the bridge. The goal is no less than every Scientologist moving up to OT. And to comprehend the full significance of that, let’s take this datum that comes from HCOPL 28 July 59, Our Goals; “You’ve heard it said everybody is a Scientologist, some just haven’t cognited yet.” — LRH. We could have located and listed out every error, every auditor or solo auditor in the world and then addressed each of them one by one. Dramatically increasing the speed of progress up the bridge so it helps every Scientologist make it to OT. Let me give you the big picture on how we’re dramatically speeding case progress up the bridge: DO THE GRADE CHART.”

 
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Random Howdy

“He’s found the right balance between non-sequitur sesquipedalian punster and heartfelt commenting.”

 
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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.

 
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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?

 
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THE WHOLE TRACK

[ONE year ago] Valerie Haney: Here’s why the press should be asking Tom Cruise about Shelly Miscavige
[TWO years ago] While the planet melts: What Scientology predicted about climate change
[THREE years ago] US Supreme Court: Valerie Haney fires back at Scientology about its ‘religious ritual’
[FOUR years ago] ‘We’ve talked to the FBI’ Leah Remini says in first podcast, calling for Scientology raid
[FIVE years ago] Evidence that Scientology is adopting an anti-vaxx strategy, and with political aspirations
[SIX years ago] From Sands Hall’s excellent ‘Flunk. Start.’ — the paradox of ‘Keeping Scientology Working’
[SEVEN years ago] As Leah Remini’s second season approaches, more Scientology survivors are opening up
[EIGHT years ago] Scientology goes shopping for a new top cop in L.A., and a new video from Chris Shelton!
[NINE years ago] Scientology’s speechwriter, the word of God, and a Hubbard bio that will never see the light of day
[TEN years ago] Surviving Scientology podcast: Former treasury employee Mat Pesch spills the beans
[ELEVEN years ago] Neil Gaiman’s Nephew Fights for Scientology Marriage Rights in the UK

 
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Scientology disconnection, a reminder

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 2,968 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 3,463 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 3,978 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 3,528 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his grandson Leo in 2,518 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 2,399 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 5,703 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 3,574 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,126 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 4,467 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,034 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 8,953 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,121 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 4,703 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 4,963 days.
Sara Goldberg has not seen her daughter Ashley in 3,999 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 3,715 days.
Marie Bilheimer has not seen her mother June in 3,279 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 1,594 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 2,769 days.
Joe Reaiche has not seen his daughter Alanna Masterson in 7,320 days
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 4,451 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 4,789 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 9,642 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 4,763 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,119 days.
Mike Rinder has not seen his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in 7,422 days.
Brian Sheen has not seen his daughter Spring in 3,528 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 3,926 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 3,802 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 3,367 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 3,880 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,134 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,242 days.

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 21, 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

 

Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast

 

Tony Ortega at Rolling Stone

 

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