‘Cult City’ Ted takes a body blow from the Tampa Bay Times, but says it won’t slow him down

 
We listened in on Saturday’s “Cult City” tour of downtown Clearwater over a phone line, and we enjoyed what we could hear. It was fun to hear Mike Rinder, for example, talk about what really went on inside the Clearwater Bank building, a noted Scientology landmark.

One person we didn’t hear from was the tour operator, Ted Reinhard, who let his special guests tell the story Saturday. But then yesterday some unflattering information about Ted showed up in a story at the Tampa Bay Times. We thought we’d check in with Ted to see how he was taking the news.

The Bunker: Well, that was rough. You want to talk about it?

Ted: Sucked for a moment. Then we got a dozen reservations. Got another local newspaper that wants an interview. And a radio station interview in an hour.

The Bunker: But what about what Tracey pointed out, that you put a couple of one-star reviews on businesses that didn’t want your after-tour parties. Are you having second thoughts about that?

Ted: That’s easy, you get bad service, you leave a bad review. I’ve only had one experience, so that’s the experience I wrote about. So no second thoughts at all, just honest observation based on my interaction with them. If they wanted something else, they could have done something else.

The Bunker: This is what the article said: “The negative reviews Reinhard left on Google falsely accuse Pour Yours and BlackBrick Tavern, which Reinhard also said declined to host his after-party, of only welcoming Scientologists.” Are you falsely accusing these businesses of something that isn’t true?

Ted: Well, if they’re not welcoming non-Scientologists, who’s left to welcome? “80 non-Scientologists told to get lost” isn’t as sexy as a headline I suppose.

The Bunker: We remember when you went to talk to the Downtown Development Board, you made a good point, that you were trying to bring business downtown and you were not welcomed.

Ted: Yeah, honestly that was what hit me personally hardest.

The Bunker: But we guess some people would say those reviews don’t show that you have the downtown’s interest at heart.

Ted: Reality has a way of changing perspective. I fell for the narrative, but a narrative is just a story.

The Bunker: The story also said that you were a full-time social studies teacher for the county, but then “He received a ‘coaching memo’ that year after he said any student who disrupted the educational process to participate in a vigil for the Parkland school massacre is ‘no longer an activist, you’re a terrorist.'” That seems to have surprised some of our readers.

Ted: Always more to a story than that.

The Bunker: OK, we’re interested to hear more.

Ted: Pinellas County Schools called me a ‘leader of technology in the classroom’ and did a 1-hour training video using me and my class as a county-wide example. I raised test scores 32 percent to the highest the schools seen. And I even adopted one of my former students. The article she quoted was pulled from publication, but it’s true that every student, regardless of zip code, deserves the best education possible. We as teachers need to make every minute of every day count, and when outside politics, influences, etc, take those few precious moments from our students, they’re stealing our kids’ future. That’s theft, that’s destruction of lives. Nothing short of terrorism.

The Bunker: So you’re saying the quote was taken out of context?

Ted: That’s why the student’s article was pulled. But I had an assistant principal who thought because I said “terrorism” that I was Islamophobic. Funny enough, I’m actually Muslim. But everything turned out fine. I got a new daughter that traveled the world with us and is working to get into the military.

The Bunker: So no plans to slow down?

Ted: Oh, hell no. We’re actually tripling down. Fall/winter we’ll be getting our Cult City Van service going…

 
…doing hotel-to-tour transfers from the beach hotels and St Petersburg. Also adding a driving portion showing people Hacienda Gardens and the records storage facility. By Spring 2022 we’ll have a storefront office/giftshop/museum (outside of Clearwater of course).

The Bunker: That’s ambitious.

Ted: Just for fun, guess what our marketing budget was to start this company?

The Bunker: Two nickels?

Ted: Now guess ten cents less. We’ve gotten this far thanks to the city of Clearwater and Scientology. They’ve been our marketing arm. Every nasty thing they say we post as a testimonial. I was telling Tracey, if it wasn’t for Paris M. giving us the works, we wouldn’t have lasted two weeks.

The Bunker: We guess what is concerning about the TB Times story is that it portrays you as someone who doesn’t have helping the downtown businesses as a main concern.

Ted: That drives me a little crazy. Why are businesses downtown? To make money. Why can’t my main concern be the same? We run a business, and we’re blessed we were able to raise over $1,200 for the Foundation. But they’re the charity…we’re not.

The Bunker: OK, thanks Ted.

Ted: No problem.

 
UPDATE: Ted has informed us that he has taken down the 1-star reviews of local businesses.

 
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Source Code

“With governments leaning all over Scientology and looking down our throats, for instance, the probability — Mary Sue was always curious. She always said, ‘The government wants something out of Scientology.’ She’s always saying this. ‘The government wants something. There’s some reason for this.’ And we finally found it. They want the E-Meter for front-line combat troops. I thought that was very interesting. Yeah, it’s pretty crazy, isn’t it? Typical. You see, they get so much infiltration — this is serious — they get so much infiltration in modern warfare of the type that is being fought, that they can’t tell friend from foe. So they’re going to equip front-line combat troops with portable lie detectors. And, of course, there’s only one portable lie detector in the world, the E-Meter. I knowed something was getting those chilluns, you see? But apparently they have some kind of an interest in it. And you would — a thief or a criminal never can ask you for something. They’ve got to steal it. And I wasn’t saying all the governments are thieves or criminals. Don’t get me wrong. I think there’s one or two that aren’t. I know this is about the wildest curve you ever heard of and it’s completely unbelievable. You can see a soldier walking around carrying an E-Meter. Before he shoots the guy, you see, he puts the electrodes in his hands, you know? Bunch of psychotics. I know, it doesn’t sound right. But it sounds just exactly what a government would do.” — L. Ron Hubbard, March 17, 1964

 
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Avast, Ye Mateys

“Norman Starkey is welcomed to the post of Deputy CS-2. Student riots are really tearing the ground up. The Office in the Capitol is now acting to help the government. Things are cool on lines. ASHO is down again, measures are being taken. London has some out Ethics. DK needed help — they had 3 minor blows and a stat drop for 2 weeks — and are getting it. Their stats are now up again.” — The Commodore, March 17, 1970

 
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Overheard in the FreeZone

“Genocide on a galactic magnitude does not work. Look what happened after a galactic ruler attempted that on us. The solution for these hivemind Gray ETs is auditing, not genocide. The problem is that there are good Grays and bad Grays. They come from Andromeda. They are minions of the reptilians, but I see the lizards from Buckingham Palace very alive and kicking. That without mentioning that they seem to RULE THE WORLD including the USA. Also, remember that LRH said the future civilization for Earth is a Galactic Confederacy type of society described in the taped lecture ‘The Free Being.’ In it the society includes all kinds of beings, from OTs, limited OTs, Doll Bodies, Meat Bodies and in the meat body bracket comes the Gray ETs and their ant hills. It is probably not well known that, according to Bill Robertson, the government of this Galaxy met with the good Grays from the government of Andromeda to reach an agreement.”

 
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Past is Prologue

1997: The San Jose Mercury News ran an article on Luckman Interactive, the Scientologist-owned company being sued for excessive spending and contributions to Scientology. “A small, promising software company, in need of capital, looked for help to keep growing. For the owners of Marietta-based MicroHelp, a merger with Luckman Interactive of Los Angeles seemed the route to deeper pockets and success. In November, the $17.5 million deal was signed. Three months later, MicroHelp was dead. The 60-plus MicroHelp jobs were gone and the company’s cutting-edge Pentium computers packed into trucks headed for the coast. Customers calling for assistance got no answer. Meanwhile, Canadian-based Yorkton Securities, which owns 22 percent of Luckman and had pumped $20 million into the company, has sued Luckman, charging officials with looting assets, spending lavishly on personal items and shifting funds to the Church of Scientology. In a Los Angeles meeting, MicroHelp Chief Executive Officer Tim O’Pry agreed to become president of the combined company. He was on his way back to the airport when he began receiving calls from employees, with accusations: employees forced to record financial data in questionable ways and meetings of the Church of Scientology held in company offices with employees forced to attend.”

 
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Random Howdy

“Capt. Howdy swears by some Dr Pepper and Jim Beam Black at the end of another lackadaisical day.”

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

Criminal prosecutions:
— Danny Masterson charged for raping three women: Masterson arraigned Jan 20. Next conf to set prelim, March 24.
— Jay and Jeff Spina, Medicare fraud: Jay’s sentencing delayed to April 13.
— Hanan and Rizza Islam and other family members, Medi-Cal fraud: Trial scheduled for May 20 in Los Angeles
— David Gentile, GPB Capital, fraud: Charged in Brooklyn federal court on Feb 4. Arraigned on Feb 9. Pretrial conference set for Apr 29.

Civil litigation:
— Luis and Rocio Garcia v. Scientology: Oral arguments were heard on July 30 at the Eleventh Circuit
— Valerie Haney v. Scientology: Forced to ‘religious arbitration.’ Petition for writ of mandate denied Oct 22 by Cal 2nd Appellate District. Petition for review by state supreme court denied Dec 11.
— Chrissie Bixler et al. v. Scientology and Danny Masterson: Dec 30, Judge Kleifield granted Scientology’s motions to compel arbitration. June 7: Status conference.
— Matt and Kathy Feschbach tax debt: Eleventh Circuit ruled on Sept 9 that Feshbachs can’t discharge IRS debt in bankruptcy. Dec 17: Feshbachs sign court judgment obliging them to pay entire $3.674 million tax debt, plus interest from Nov 19.
— Brian Statler Sr v. City of Inglewood: Second amended complaint filed, trial set for Nov 9, 2021.
— Author Steve Cannane defamation trial: Trial concluded, Cannane victorious, awarded court costs. Case appealed on Dec 24.

Concluded litigation:
— Dennis Nobbe, Medicare fraud, PPP loan fraud: Charged July 29. Bond revoked Sep 14. Nobbe dead, Sep 14.
— Jane Doe v. Scientology (in Miami): Jane Doe dismissed the lawsuit on May 15 after the Clearwater Police dropped their criminal investigation of her allegations.

 
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SCIENTOLOGY BLACK OPS: Tom Cruise and dirty tricks

The Australian Seven News network cancelled a 10-part investigation of Scientology and its history of dirty tricks. Read the transcripts of the episodes and judge for yourself why Tom Cruise and Tommy Davis might not have wanted viewers to see this hard-hitting series by journalist Bryan Seymour.

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’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] Clearwater takes a stand against Scientology: MARK BUNKER WINS!
[TWO years ago] Scientology pitches a fit about sensible mental health reform in wake of Parkland shooting
[THREE years ago] Scientology’s L. Ron Hubbard considered James Bond’s nemesis SMERSH his biggest enemy
[FOUR years ago] A HowdyCon 2017 announcement: Special guests and performances!
[FIVE years ago] Scientology’s ‘personality test’ taken apart like never before, and by a former member
[SIX years ago] More proof that Scientology used the ‘R2-45’ method to intimidate enemies
[SEVEN years ago] Here are the wealthy people keeping Scientology alive
[EIGHT years ago] ABC finally takes on Scientology…with General Hospital
[NINE years ago] Why Irish (Ex-Scientologist) Eyes are Smiling

 
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Posted by Tony Ortega on March 17, 2021 at 07:00

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