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 You may remember that we’ve written previously about the ordeal of Richard Teague, a man who in 2011 set himself on fire at a Scientology-affiliated drug rehab center in Michigan, resulting in a lawsuit that we’ve been keeping an eye on.
The last time we checked on the case, Teague’s attorneys had found some fascinating new testimony from a nurse who worked at a facility where Teague spent time. Now, the lawsuit has been settled and Teague did not sign a confidentiality agreement. So, for the first time, he’s talking to the press. Continue reading Richard Teague speaks out after his horrific ordeal at a Scientology rehab center
 The Underground Bunker is proud to present another example of Scientology hip hop so new, it was sent out to church members today.
Yes, our tipsters are amazing, and we are grateful that they take the chances necessary to bring us this amazing material. We have, in the past, marveled at amazing examples of Scientology hip hop — we have never really fallen out of love with the Copenhagen miracle, but we will forever bemoan losing the awesome Melbourne Day Rap Battle Team. If only someone would turn up a copy of it. We’re also huge fans of Scientology in-house rapper Chill EB (pictured), and we wish he’d been involved in this newest joint. Oh well. Continue reading Scientology Hip Hop: Is there anything better in the world?
 Amy Nicholson is the film reviewer for LA Weekly and she is disappointed that Tom Cruise is not the movie star that he once was.
OK, fair enough. But Nicholson doesn’t bemoan Cruise’s choice of movie projects. She wants to place the blame on us — the Internet consumers who ruined Tom’s career because we thought we saw Tom jump on Oprah Winfrey’s couch back in 2005 and made fun of him for it. Continue reading No, LA Weekly, Tom Cruise’s career was not ruined by a GIF
 We can’t believe it’s been nearly five years since we first talked to Marc Headley about his book, Blown for Good. A gripping read, the book describes Headley’s experience growing up in Scientology and becoming a worker at the church’s secretive International Base east of Los Angeles, where he became a guinea pig for Tom Cruise to learn how to ‘audit.’
While workers in Scientology’s ‘Sea Organization,’ Marc and his wife Claire were prohibited from having children. In a lawsuit they later filed against the church after their 2005 escape, the Headleys said that Claire was forced twice to have abortions to comply with the no-children rule. Despite losing in court, the Headleys have thrived after leaving Scientology, and now have three young boys. Continue reading Marc Headley returns to Scientology and finds a whole new ballgame
 Eric Tenorio The National Association of Forensic Counselors filed a stunning lawsuit on Friday against not only Scientology’s Narconon drug rehab network in the US, Canada, and the UK, but also Scientology leader David Miscavige himself, alleging that Scientology knowingly and for years conspired to give the false impression that its rehab facilities and many of its staff members were accredited by the NAFC. This lawsuit is the culmination of an investigation that began more than a year ago. At that time, we talked to Karla Taylor, CEO of the NAFC, who was incensed when she found out that Narconon officials were falsely claiming to be certified by her organization. Continue reading Scientology’s drug rehab network sued for conspiring to misuse counseling credentials
 It’s that time of the week again, when we reveal the fliers and mailers and other items that our great tipsters have forwarded to us during the week.
Before we get into the glossy fundraising appeals that pour in each week, we have a stark reminder that as much as Scientology wants to give the impression that it’s expanding in leaps and bounds, the opposite is the truth. It’s dying. And week after week, there’s more evidence provided here and at Mike Rinder’s blog and at forums like WWP and ESMB that document the church’s inexorable slide. Continue reading Sunday Funnies: Scientology fundraising fliers try desperately to hide the truth
 Our source has really come through for us this week with one of the best “quote videos” that we’ve seen so far. This is another clip that you aren’t supposed to see until you’re actually a member of Scientology, and after viewing it we can certainly see why.
This is L. Ron Hubbard at his best, spinning a series of tall tales about how, while he was a patient at Oak Knoll Naval Hospital in 1947 for his war “wounds” (an ulcer and conjunctivitis), he infiltrated the hospital’s medical library and then showed up the scientists there with his amazing discoveries about the thinkingness of thought on the way to publishing Dianetics three years later. Continue reading L. Ron Hubbard describes infiltrating a veterans’ hospital in a lecture only for Scientologists
 We had some difficulty hearing former Scientologist Micheal Leonard Tilse speak at last week’s Flag Down conference over its live feed. But he’s loud and clear in a new clip that Mark Bunker is making public from his upcoming documentary, ‘Knowledge Report.’
In the clip, Tilse tells us about a remarkable moment in church history when, he says, he was ordered by a young, rising church executive named David Miscavige to alter documents to hide the ongoing control exerted by L. Ron Hubbard, even though Hubbard had gone into hiding. Continue reading Hiding L. Ron Hubbard’s control of Scientology in the 1980s
 Former Scientologist and music producer Tiziano Lugli has given us the opportunity once again to debut one of his highly polished short films about the Scientology experience.
Previously, Lugli made us laugh with ‘Shit Scientologists Say,’ and hit us in the gut with ‘The Shrinking Cult of Scientology.’ Now he’s got a parody of a film made by Scientology itself, ‘No Slavery,’ which it uses as part of its cynical ‘human rights’ campaign aimed at teenagers. Continue reading TIZIANO LUGLI: A new short film about Scientology and ‘slavery’
 Evgeny Zharkin, who also went by “Gene.” On January 28, a man named Evgeny Zharkin died after falling from a building in Clearwater, Florida. Clearwater is the spiritual worldwide headquarters of the Church of Scientology, and Zharkin was a Scientologist. Also, Zharkin was a Russian national, and increasingly, many of the Scientologists in Florida are from that country. Did Zharkin’s death implicate Scientology in some way? Did he commit suicide? Was he thrown from the building? Those of us who watch the church couldn’t help being curious about Zharkin’s death, and there’s been a lot of speculation about it online. Continue reading Falling death of a Russian Scientologist in Clearwater: The police investigation
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You may remember that we’ve written previously about the ordeal of Richard Teague, a man who in 2011 set himself on fire at a Scientology-affiliated drug rehab center in Michigan, resulting in a lawsuit that we’ve been keeping an eye on.
