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 Jon Atack is the author of A Piece of Blue Sky, one of the very best books on L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. He has a new edition of the book for sale, and for more than a year on Saturdays he helped us sift through the legends, myths, and contested facts about Scientology that tend to get hashed and rehashed in books, articles, and especially on the Internet. He was kind enough to send us a new post.
Jon, we’re tickled that your column this time was prompted by a response one of our readers made to a previous piece. We really do have a great commenting community here. So please take us on another exploration of Scientology lore… Continue reading Jon Atack: The games L. Ron Hubbard played
Scientologists call themselves “the most ethical people on the planet” because, well, founder L. Ron Hubbard told them to say that, and Ron had a great talent for saying things that were the complete opposite of what they meant. Continue reading Scientology ethics: Raising money from Ferguson and swiping J.K. Rowling’s image
 Narconon Arrowhead Yesterday, we brought you news of an explosive new lawsuit which alleges that Oklahoma state mental health officials covered up wrongdoing at Scientology’s flagship drug rehab facility in Oklahoma, Narconon Arrowhead. That news came out against the backdrop that a grand jury is considering claims of insurance fraud at the facility, leaked documents suggest the center is suffering badly with few patients, and there’s also news that Arrowhead has applied for a new certification as a “halfway house” as it gives up its status as a major treatment center. Continue reading Narconon’s cancer spreads: New lawsuits and a court order for Scientology’s rehab network
 Kim Poff An explosive lawsuit has been filed by a former Oklahoma state inspector general who says she was fired because, in part, she found evidence of illegal wrongdoing at Scientology’s drug rehab that her bosses then told her to hide. Kimberly Poff was Inspector General at Oklahoma’s Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services and had worked for the agency for more than 5 years and the state for more than 22 years when she and her employee Michael DeLong were asked to investigate recent deaths at Scientology’s flagship facility of its Narconon drug rehab network, Narconon Arrowhead. [UPDATE: DeLong is also suing, and we have his petition, below.] Continue reading LAWSUIT: OKLAHOMA OFFICIALS HID WRONGDOING AT SCIENTOLOGY DRUG REHAB
 We love our tipsters. They are constantly alerting us to interesting stuff about Scientology. Some of it is just strange, like this rabbit hole we went down yesterday. Is it important? Probably not. But we thought readers might find it amusing. So here we go.
On Sunday, a couple of pages appeared online from a recent issue of The Comm Line, a newsletter that’s printed for Scientologists and can be picked up in some shops in Clearwater, Florida. One of the pages contained a curious ad… Continue reading Scenes from the Scientology underground
Solid evidence presented here and at the blog of Scientology’s former spokesman, Mike Rinder, leave no doubt that Scientology is shrinking, and fast. Even loyal, longtime church members are becoming more reluctant to take part in David Miscavige’s desperate scheme to open new empty churches to give the impression that Scientology is expanding.
But you have to wonder, who’s left? Who’s still hanging in there as the collapse seems inexorably to be drawing near? Continue reading Scientology graduation videos from Copenhagen? Yes, please!
 It’s that time of the week again, when we show you the best items that have been forwarded to us by our great tipsters.
We have some fun items for you this week, and most of it has to do with dragging Scientologists to events to get them to donate, for the umpteenth time, to their local Ideal Org program. The Ideal Org push began more than a decade ago, in 2003, and frankly, we’re getting pretty tired of David Miscavige’s emphasis on renovating buildings so they can sit empty. And if we’re feeling fatigue, imagine what Scientologists are feeling after they’ve been pushed to donate so much money, time and time again. Continue reading Scientology Sunday Funnies: The apocalypse is here, and it is ideal
We want to thank LA Curbed for so generously crediting the Underground Bunker with our scoop last year about Mary Sue Hubbard’s Los Feliz house. After a year’s delay, it’s on the market for the price we said it would be listed at, a cool 2.5 million clams! Continue reading After a year’s delay, Mary Sue Hubbard’s house is on the market for $2.5 million
 Las Vegas attorney Ryan Hamilton has filed another federal lawsuit against Scientology’s drug rehab network, Narconon. This time, he’s representing two San Bernardino County residents, Sherri Brown and her daughter Emily, who are suing Scientology’s rehab center in San Diego County, Sunshine Summit Fresh Start in Warner Springs.
This brings to 19 the number of lawsuits that Hamilton has brought since January, and all but one in federal court. Each time, he’s sued a local facility in California, Nevada, or Colorado, as well as Narconon International and its umbrella organization, the Association for Better Living and Education (ABLE). As we reported earlier, in seven of the lawsuits, International and ABLE have settled with the plaintiffs. Continue reading Ryan Hamilton files 19th lawsuit against Scientology’s drug rehab network
 Our readers know that we are huge fans of A Queer and Pleasant Danger, Kate Bornstein’s remarkable memoir about her experience in Scientology’s “Sea Org” and her later transformation into a nationally-celebrated trans performance artist.
Kate’s book Gender Outlaw is considered a classic in the field, and she’s constantly in demand for speaking engagements at universities. But her many fans were stunned when she announced last year that she had been diagnosed with lung cancer. She raised more than $100,000 in less than a week after breaking the news, an indication of just how much she means to people. Continue reading Kate Bornstein kicks cancer’s ass
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Jon Atack is the author of A Piece of Blue Sky, one of the very best books on L. Ron Hubbard and Scientology. He has a new edition of the book for sale, and for more than a year on Saturdays he helped us sift through the legends, myths, and contested facts about Scientology that tend to get hashed and rehashed in books, articles, and especially on the Internet. He was kind enough to send us a new post.
