TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: Saturday in Clearwater, Scientology’s David Miscavige held a ground-breaking for the church’s future auditorium, L. Ron Hubbard Hall, and put the exclamation point on the city’s capitulation to him. We have some initial images, and Mark Bunker gives us his thoughts. [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
——————–
Technology Cocktail
“The weak are strong only when they are protected by the strong. Only the aberrated weakling believes that a strong man is a cruel one. Only the weak are cruel. Only the afraid are vicious. All experience bears this out. Only the whining theorist who claims that personality is aberration would blind himself to the evidence on every hand that trouble, distress and disaster stem from the aberrated weakling. Take a square look around you and trace back trouble wherever it existed to somebody’s irrational fear of some imagined threat. When personality can be pronounced to be the result of aberration and when individualists can then be silenced and driven into the herd, Man is looking down the barrel of the last gun he will hear.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1950
——————–
“If you ever want to see tiredness overwhelm the PC, run him into the area of the whole track called Arslycus. And there thetans were actively producing matter, you see. And they were hanging off walls, making walls and making tilework and mocking everything up and smoothing it out and you couldn’t get away….How about the fellow who ran Arslycus? How about the overt, man? Look at that level of overt. Thetans by the ton, all around, working like mad to build walls and build this and build that and finally, through some mysterious circumstance that nobody has ever been able to trace, Arslycus fell apart and everybody fell and fell and fell. It, by the way, wasn’t on a planet. It was, of course, just a construction out in space as itself. Nobody had invented planets yet and planets undoubtedly were invented to cure things happening that happened at Arslycus because they had walls and roads and courts and houses and towering buildings and everything. And of course they just ran without foundation, Uninfluenced with gravity or anything else. And one fine day it all fell apart.” — L. Ron Hubbard, August 3, 1961
——————–
“Suzette Hubbard, Ann Tidman and Terri Gillham are confined to the ship for a week for staying on liberty till after midnight without my permission, and for leaving the ship again after midnight, without my permission. QMs, please note.” — LRH Pers Comm, August 3, 1970
——————–
“On a really positive note I attested to my advanced level yesterday. Took a year of slogging away, digging that ditch and blowing away mountains of charge to complete! Feels like a thick concentric layer of case has been handled finally! It’s just awesome. I love the newfound space to stretch my theta muscles and postulate with far less CI! All my dynamics feel calm and focused in alignment. You only know there was a large background noise when it switches off haha!”
——————–
1995: A new document was released to a.r.s this week concerning the death of US President John F. Kennedy. L. Ron Hubbard sent a Telex on November 23rd, 1963 to discuss the events. He was apparently in his “Red Scare” phase. “Resume or policy and events. Kennedy assassination regrettable but we could have prevented it if the government had not been fighting meters. We had long standing and insistent offer to government to be permitted to check out all repatriates from Russia and China. Only Scientologists can detect brainwashing. Our offer of 1962 to help administration with Scientology was only one of many such offers which included in 1955 strenuous offers of help to be permitted to handle all Russian and Korean repatriates for brainwashing and sub-conscious hypnotic suggestions such as Oswald was undoubtedly given. All attacks on Scientology and the meter and Scien. Orgs. can be traced to original Communist influence and misinformation carefully fed to government agencies, police and organizations such as the AMA. Please inform Los Angeles and New York of our policy on these matters. We will ride our position as known right wingers very hard and demand the location and ousting of every commie element and extreme left winger in the US. Scientology should publicly demand the right to be permitted to spot subversives in the US including the US government. The story that right wing elements had assassinated Kennedy was broadcast on Radio Moscow the moment the news was received and simultaneously the Moscow grapevine all over the world issued the same statement via left wing mouthpieces. This coup was designed to blame rightists for the assassination but evidently judging from partial data to hand they failed to get the assassin away and the whole plot collapsed on their heads. You see everybody but Moscow mouthpieces guessed it might have been one of several groups that assassinated Kennedy. However Moscow line held only that it was right wing. So get this data around however you do it and let all Scientologists in on it and raise some hell. We’re going to clean up the US eventually. Play it close with the Birch Society and all other rightist groups. Back Goldwater. Subversion came within an ace of sweeping America and we were only saved by a crazy freak.”
——————–
“Hubbard went after anyone like a honey badger who tried to make one thin dime off of his con. If he remotely suspected you had plagiarized his plagiarizing he would declare you and sic the GO/OSA on your ass. He did this to the crazy couple who started the the Process Church and he also notoriously went after Werner Erhard, the conman who created EST. Erhard claimed that LRH had put out a contract on him.”
——————–
Full Court Press: What we’re watching at the Underground Bunker
Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Sentenced to 30 years to life on Sep 7, 2023. Appeal now fully briefed, oral arguments scheduled for June 25. Masterson has also submitted a habeas corpus petition.
— ‘Lafayette Ronald Hubbard’ (a/k/a Justin Craig), aggravated assault, plus drug charges: Grand jury indictments include charges from an assault while in custody. Pleaded guilty on Nov 10 to a 17-year prison sentence. Now serving time in state prison.
— Aaron Matthes charged for SA of child under 12 years old: OT Scientologist facing multiple mandatory life sentences. Next pretrial court hearing set for June 19.
Civil litigation:
— Leah Remini v. Scientology, alleging ‘Fair Game’ harassment and defamation: Some defamation claims were removed by Judge Hammock. Judge Hammock’s ruling is on appeal, which is now fully briefed. Oral arguments hearing set for July 23.
— Baxter, Baxter, and Paris v. Scientology, alleging labor trafficking: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ 15 days of arbitration completed, Val waiting for further word from the IJC.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson. Judge Upindra Kalra’s ruling denying Scientology’s motion to strike upheld on appeal. Scientology expected to file additional petitions before case can return to Kalra’s court.
— Jane Doe 1 v. Scientology, David Miscavige, and Gavin Potter: Case unsealed and second amended complaint filed. Scientology moves for religious arbitration. Trial has been set for January 10, 2028.
——————–
Other links: The prosecution of Danny Masterson. Leah Remini’s Fair Game Podcast. Leah Remini’s A&E Series. Scientology’s Celebrities, from A to Z. Bryan Seymour’s suppressed series, 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] Recruiting dentists for Scientology, and bringing L. Ron Hubbard’s shrine to life!
[TWO years ago] LA Mayor Karen Bass to have another awkward Scientology moment, thanks to Tom Cruise?
[THREE years ago] Coming Sunday: Valerie Haney talks to Aussie 60 Minutes in first TV sitdown since ‘Aftermath’
[FOUR years ago] Amended complaint: Even more horror in labor trafficking lawsuit against Scientology
[FIVE years ago] Scientology wants your money coming & going: Two new hype videos to loosen up your wallet!
[SIX years ago] Karen Bass says she attended Scientology event because it was in her district. But it wasn’t.
[SEVEN years ago] Out of sight, out of MIND: How Scientology tried & failed to destroy psychiatry in the UK
[EIGHT years ago] The two-wheeled spy who loves Blighty: An action report
[NINE years ago] ‘Going Clear’ author Lawrence Wright celebrates a milestone with a different kind of keyboard
[TEN years ago] Scientology appeals $1 million loss to Florida supreme court, and Ken Dandar gets canny
[ELEVEN years ago] Scientology’s Freedom magazine congratulates itself for going ‘Ideal’
[TWELVE years ago] Sunday Funnies: More Scientology fliers than you can shake a stick at
[THIRTEEN years ago] Scientology’s Crumbling: Can Gerry Armstrong Begin to Think of Crossing the Border?
——————–
Bernie Headley (1952-2019) did not see his daughter Stephanie in his final 5,667 days.
Joe Reaiche (1958-2024) did not see his daughter Alanna Masterson in his final 6,999 days.
Mike Rinder (1955-2025) did not see his son Benjamin and daughter Taryn in his final 7,589 days.
Tammy Synovec has not seen her daughter Julia in 3,709 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 4,213 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,719 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 4,269 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,645 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 3,140 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 6,446 days.
Marc Headley has not seen his mother Trudy in 5,095 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 4,313 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,867 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 5,208 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,779 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,695 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,862 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 5,448 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,707 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 4,455 days.
Marie Poulin has not seen her mother June in 4,024 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 2,335 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 3,510 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 5,192 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 5,529 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 10,382 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 5,498 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,860 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,659 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 4,543 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 4,118 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,619 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,879 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,983 days.
——————–
Posted by Tony Ortega on August 3, 2026 at 07:00
E-mail tips to tonyo94 AT gmail DOT com or follow us on Twitter.
Our book with Paulette Cooper, Battlefield Scientology: Exposing L. Ron Hubbard’s dangerous ‘religion’ is 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, 1995-2024 Just starting out here? We’ve picked out the most important stories we’ve covered here at the Underground Bunker (2012-2024), The Village Voice (2008-2012), New Times Los Angeles (1999-2002) and the Phoenix New Times (1995-1999)
Check your whale level at our dedicated page for status updates.
Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
