TODAY AT SUBSTACK: If you’ve signed up for free emails at Substack, you will receive today’s feature story at your inbox: It’s always interesting when the national press takes a look at Scientology’s actual doings in places like California or Florida, and what a fine job by the Wall Street Journal on the situation in Clearwater. But will the people there ever get the message? [What is this Substack thing, anyway?]
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Technology Cocktail
“Birth is occasionally found ‘floating free’ of earlier incidents. The same situation may obtain with almost any other engram. But as one returns into the prenatal area earlier and earlier there is less and less chance of an independent reduction. From around eight months back to two months, engrams received are peculiarly liable — according to incomplete studies — to lock on earlier material. After the eighth month, however, it seems to be the case that engrams are more and more likely to reduce independently of earlier reductions, and many cases have been observed where engrams received after the eighth month have erased with unconsciousness coming off fully. Whereas laws probably exist which would determine this, and manifestations not so far observed can be suspected to exist, which on being observed would assist the auditor, no data on this is at hand. It is only known that many engrams, particularly when located after the eighth month, reduce or erase without the auditor first having contacted the basic area. Engrams in the basic area, of course, always erase or reduce, which is the definition of ‘basic area’.” — L. Ron Hubbard, 1950
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“I remember one time I was arrested by mistake. They do that in the United States every once in a while. Somebody wanted me as a witness. They wanted me as a witness in a bankruptcy case of some kind, and I was just a witness, innocent bystander – factually an innocent bystander, but I must have had something about that particular area in some past life because the next thing I knew why the cops rushed in you know and practically shot everybody down and grabbed me and took me off and held me very carefully so that they would have this witness for this case. And I said to ‘em, ‘Don’t you think this is sort of unfair?’ And they didn’t pay any attention to that. So I got kind of mean, in my own inimical mean way. And when I finally appeared on the witness stand, I had the prosecuting attorney and the attorney for defense arguing with the judge that I shouldn’t be required to be held more than the next 15 or 20 minutes anyway because they wanted to help me. The judge helped me too. That was the end. I sat down and gave some testimony. I said, ‘Well I don’t know anything about it. I was hardly there.’ And that was it. Boom.” — L. Ron Hubbard, July 7, 1960
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“MARY SUE HUBBARD is assigned Power as a student, 2nd week running, with 441 points. She also got 100 percent on her Exam. DIANA HUBBARD having gotten 100 points is upgraded to Emergency as a student. KEN URQUHART, with only 10 points, is assigned Non Existence as a student. The Class in general is doing well on Dianetics, will soon complete, and be ready to audit. When so qualified they go onto VI or VIII as eligible.” — The Commodore, July 7, 1969
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“I had an OT 2 win regarding postulates. It was not something I had expected to happen at that level, but it did. One time, I needed to have my stove repaired. I called the gas company and was told that the repairman would arrive sometime between 7:00 a.m. and noon on the following day. I decided that the time would be 9:00 a.m. The repairman arrived and as he was standing in front of my stove, about to begin working on it, the time piece in his pocket rang. He took it out of his pocket, looked at it, turned to me and said, ‘9 o’clock exactly.’ Coincidence? Possibly. I told this win to a Sea Org member, and she, with a snotty manner, asked me why I couldn’t postulate getting my Bridge paid for. It crossed my mind that perhaps I was reluctant to give much money to a fascist, totalitarian organization.”
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1996: Martin Poulter reported that the case of Ron Lawley against the cult of Scientology collapsed last week, due to his bankruptcy last year.
“More than a decade of litigation ended last week for Ron Lawley of East Grinstead in the UK. Ron, an ex-Sea Org’er, had been fighting for the return of a set of NOTS documents. It was decided in a hearing on Wednesday that, as a bankrupt (he was bankrupted last year by legal costs), he did not have locus standi to continue the case. The courts had ordered Scientology to return a NOTS pack to Ron, but they appealed this order. Scientology now gets to keep the material because Ron cannot fight the appeal. “The case has cost Scientology many many times what it cost Ron. Ron has been appearing pro se while Scientology has probably spent a seven-figure sum on its legal costs. Ron has been helped in his case by kind donations from some ‘netizens. The considerable legal knowledge he has built up has been useful to other litigants such as Bonnie Woods.”
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“Hubbard said that Mohammed was a hustler and a ‘small town booster’ and that the ‘Black Stone’ was a piece of the R6 implant.”
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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.
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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?
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THE WHOLE TRACK
[ONE year ago] Scientology sells spirituality, but delivers crushing debt: A case study
[TWO years ago] Scientology pulls out its secret weapon in Boston: An ideal crustacean!
[THREE years ago] Scientology whines that its arbitration process is misunderstood, asks court for hug
[FOUR years ago] Scientology will try to derail new labor trafficking lawsuit with ‘arbitration’ strategy
[FIVE years ago] News from Texas reminds us of a legendary fight against Scientology’s goon squad
[SIX years ago] PPP small-business coronavirus bailout loans went to Scientology and Narconon centers
[SEVEN years ago] How Scientology treats a member in real need strains the notion of the word ‘church’
[EIGHT years ago] Scientology’s messiah? ‘Hubbard believed he was as great as Jesus, Buddha, & Mohammed’
[NINE years ago] The Scientology lecture in which L. Ron Hubbard revealed the true name of our Earth society
[TEN years ago] The Church of Intimidation: Scientology stalks another ex-member on the taxpayer dime
[ELEVEN years ago] Monique Rathbun: Hey, Texas court, here’s something to chew on
[TWELVE years ago] Scientology tries to psych out Florida — and Chill EB is back!
[THIRTEEN years ago] Alanna Masterson’s Dad Calls Connor Cruise “Worst Person in the World” for Her to Date
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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 3,682 days.
Valerie Haney has not seen her mother Lynne in 4,186 days.
Katrina Reyes has not seen her mother Yelena in 4,692 days
Sylvia Wagner DeWall has not seen her brother Randy in 4,242 days.
Klaus Büchele has not seen his daughter Jasmin in 5,618 days.
Geoff Levin has not seen his son Collin and daughter Savannah in 3,113 days.
Christie Collbran has not seen her mother Liz King in 6,419 days.
Marc Headley has not seen his mother Trudy in 5,068 days.
Clarissa Adams has not seen her parents Walter and Irmin Huber in 4,286 days.
Jamie Sorrentini Lugli has not seen her father Irving in 5,840 days.
Quailynn McDaniel has not seen her brother Sean in 5,181 days.
Dylan Gill has not seen his father Russell in 13,752 days.
Melissa Paris has not seen her father Jean-Francois in 9,668 days.
Valeska Paris has not seen her brother Raphael in 5,835 days.
Mirriam Francis has not seen her brother Ben in 5,421 days.
Claudio and Renata Lugli have not seen their son Flavio in 5,680 days.
Lori Hodgson has not seen her son Jeremy and daughter Jessica in 4,428 days.
Marie Poulin has not seen her mother June in 3,997 days.
Julian Wain has not seen his brother Joseph or mother Susan in 2,308 days.
Charley Updegrove has not seen his son Toby in 3,483 days.
Derek Bloch has not seen his father Darren in 5,165 days.
Cindy Plahuta has not seen her daughter Kara in 5,502 days.
Roger Weller has not seen his daughter Alyssa in 10,355 days.
Claire Headley has not seen her mother Gen in 5,471 days.
Ramana Dienes-Browning has not seen her mother Jancis in 3,833 days.
Skip Young has not seen his daughters Megan and Alexis in 4,632 days.
Mary Kahn has not seen her son Sammy in 4,516 days.
Lois Reisdorf has not seen her son Craig in 4,089 days.
Phil and Willie Jones have not seen their son Mike and daughter Emily in 4,592 days.
Mary Jane Barry has not seen her daughter Samantha in 4,852 days.
Kate Bornstein has not seen her daughter Jessica in 15,956 days.
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Posted by Tony Ortega on July 7, 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)
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Tony Ortega at The Daily Beast
