This post is fixed here as a landing spot for new arrivals.
If you become independent of the Church of Scientology, you will be exposed to new data on Ron’s life and career, the development of the technology, and an intimate history of the Church that you have never seen before.
(more…)
One of the main things that’s changed in Scientology Inc in the past 35 years is the change of emphasis from the business of training auditors and clearing people to the “business” of collecting donations and doling out “statuses”.
Mike Rinder posted a pretty good piece about unfettered out-exchange donations here. And he wrote a pretty good piece about the “status crazy” IAS here.
It’s not unheard of for a non-Scientology church to do some intense fundraising to raise a new church building. Almost always the fundraising is done amongst current and former parishioners.
My own father was hit up for $30,000 to erect a steeple on his parish church. He didn’t write a check to the Vatican. He wrote a check to his local parish’s building fund.
All the money in the local parish’s building fund was accounted-for and managed by a small board of parishioners. Every week in the parish bulletin was a short report of how much money was in the parish’s building fund and how much, if anything, was spent out of the building fund that week, and what it was spent on. And all the money that was donated to the parish’s building fund was able to be written off the donor’s taxes.
My father told me that his church saved up 55% of the funds necessary to erect the new church building…by setting aside a certain percentage of the regular weekly donations…before cranking up the pressure on big donors.
But Scientology Inc does it differently.
It doesn’t create a “Concord Scientology Org Building Fund” that’s accepts tax deductable donations.
It doesn’t report to parishioners how much has really been collected into that fund.
It pays exorbitant sales commissions to those who convince others to make donations.
It doesn’t report to the parishioners of that org in writing how much money was spent and for what it was spent.
It doesn’t make the org save up 55% of the required real estate and renovation fees before turning up the heat on big donors.
The funds that are collected in the name of “the Concord Org” disappear into some offshore coffers and are never really heard from again.
I’ve come up with some ways to deal with the IAS’s secrecy and hidden fundraising and fund-manipulation.
Recognize this?
It’s an “IAS donation envelope”.
Number of views:8
0The May 9, 2013 event is apparently being held on May 17 this year.
All the better to give Miscavige time to forget the Portland Ideal Org Grand Opening disaster.
Get your signage and t-shirts ready. (I went to the Portland Grand Opening and all I got was this lousy T-shirt.)
And don’t forget your wearable video gear. You’ve got to be able to get footage of Scientology Inc violating your human rights. Ha!
Of course, the Phoenix Idle Org floor plans tell us that max-packed seating in the chapel is 160 persons. 80 if the chairs are comfortably spaced. I guess that’s what “expansion” entails.
— written by Plain Old Thetan
Number of views:1457
First, thanks to our UK informant for the scan and tip.
The Birmingham City Council gave a green light for the Idle Org of Birmingham based on the notion that “we don’t know who would do something worthwhile with the property otherwise”.
What I thought was interesting was the council’s assertion that if there was a Scientology Org there, there would be fewer traffic problems than when the edifice was an office building.
Someone must have told the Birmingham City Council what the definition of “Idle Org” is.
Certainly in Phoenix, Orange County, Buffalo, Inglewood, and Pasadena it’s been proven that the conversion of a building to an Ideal Org results in less traffic in the area, not more.
Maybe the Birmingham City Council is hoping that the Idle Org conversion project will at least put some local tradesmen to work.
If experience in the US can serve as a measure, the real thing that the people of Birmingham need to be warned about is not so much “brainwashing” as “wallet emptying”.
Once again, though, it’s obvious that before the Idle Org program is thrust upon the UK, that a serious and effective effort needs to be put into action to repair Scientology Inc’s crappy image.
— written by Plain Old Thetan
P.S. The Birmingham Mail article is an example of why Travolta couldn’t “come out”, even if he wanted to. Just about every news outlet uses Cruise and Travolta as a reference point for Scientology.
Number of views:158
4
Recent Comments