This is not a shoop, a spoof or a joke (though SNL or John Oliver would be hard pressed to come up with satire to beat it).
If you read this poster and took it to heart — it would prevent most of the “donations” made by people to scientology. That is OBVIOUSLY not the intention. It’s a fundraiser for Santa Barbara “ideal” org.
But then again, if you read and follow L. Ron Hubbard policy on finance it would prevent most donations made to scientology.
In scientology words do not mean what they say. They mean whatever you are told they mean. So “don’t go further into debt” means “don’t go into debt with anyone other than scientology as we don’t want your money going to someone else.’ Everyone understands that.
It is 1984 newspeak.
But just as crazy is that this is being done by Kevin Wilson. The stories about his financial fiddlings at Sterling Management are legendary. This is like Matt (I filed for bankruptcy and am being sued by the IRS for fraud) Feshbach conducting seminars on how to be financially successful and prosperous.
The hypocrisy in scientology knows no bounds.
The second Fair Game Law of scientology (adding to the existing “Anything can be done to an SP, just don’t get caught doing it”) is:
Anything can be said or done as long as it is intended to make money for the organization.
LRH policy dictates an old form of accounting known as “fund accounting”, which requires funds to be set aside before making an expenditure. This is a good way for any individual or charitable organization to run its finances because it enforces “Spend no more than you make.”
However, Scientology organizations don’t teach fund accounting because it would dry up donations. Scientology registrars (sales people) routinely destroy the finances of Scientologists by goading them to borrow beyond their ability to repay. To a registrar, a Scientologist is prey.
In addition to declining revenues due to declining membership, the finances of Scientology organizations have been destroyed by all of the money taken off the top of their income by supposed management organizations and the income lost to IAS and its ilk.
In Scientology, all reason must yield to the incessant demand for money. This has become so apparent that new recruits are scared off with the stick (money demand) before they can even get a good taste of the carrot (course or processing “wins”).
This blatant demand for money allows people to more quickly see Scientology for what it is and always has been: A money-obsessed cult disguised as a religion.
Note: Financial advisor Dave Ramsey has built a hugely successful business from instructing folks in the ways of fund accounting. For the price of one of his books you can learn how to apply the principles necessary for financial viability. He even offers free budgeting software.
I think education is a good investment that might require getting a loan, but Scientology is not education and not a good investment in terms of determining future income. I don’t know of any active Scientologist who isn’t either dirt poor or carrying a large amount of debt. Any savings is likely looked at as an unethical withholding of resources by the Church of Scientology. This financial situation results in really stupid financial decisions. I knew of an OT couple that didn’t purchase car insurance because, they rationalized, it was expensive and falsely assumed that they were PTS, which they emphatically claimed was the only reason that an accident could ever occur. Their car was ultimately involved in a head-on collision on the Golden Gate Bridge. The driver ended up with a criminal conviction, serving time on a probation work detail, a loss of his license and his family having to cover the financial impact of the accident. I’ve seen Scientologists stop paying their income tax, claiming that it was unconstitutional, only to owe hundreds of thousands in fines and penalties. I’ve seen others forego medical care for themselves and their children. It is really sad, because they likely had the resources to cover these obligations, but they give it all away to the Church.
“Scientology works!” That’s the one thing you can believe in as a scientologist. It’s the mantra that offers reassurance when things aren’t looking so good. However, if you introduce a different concept, this one for instance: “Scientology does NOT work” then a multitude of things start to make sense.
Hey, who remembers Scientologist financier Reed Slatkin? In 1997, Slatkin admitted lying to Securities and Exchange Commission investigators, yet Scientologists who had invested in his ponzi scheme were unwilling to step forward to denounce his unethical activities. By 2000 while Slatkin was still under SEC investigation, Scientologists were apparently unalarmed. In 2001 when Slatkin finally filed for bankruptcy, Scientologist investors remained silent. Even when the IRS and the FBI were searching Slatkin’s home in Santa Barbara, Church members who stood to lose huge amounts of money were incredibly understanding.
Reed Slatkin managed to remain a Scientologist in good standing, even as his bail was being set. It was only after he plead guilty to fifteen counts of fraud, money laundering and conspiracy, that the Church expelled him. This is Scientology Ethics at work. As long as the Church benefits, all’s fair. But as soon as you get caught, you’re on your own.
Hi Murray Luther, Good to meet you. The last lines of your post are some of the best concerning what happens when one tries to leave or question Scientology. When one gets caught doing either, it is very very lonely indeed! That is part of the trap of cos in my view. Love-bomb you in and walk away leaving one broken in all directions and completely alone.I was doing treason formulas a lot my last year in Sea Org. The thing was I did not know who my friends were anymore because they had all turned against me. This side of cos is hidden until it is whipped out and shoved in one’s face.Not kind, helpful or loving! Thank you for the info on Reed.I recall a little of the SEC but did not know what happened with him.Love, Ann.
“Love-bomb you in and walk away leaving one broken…”
Ann…what a perfect way to put it! I was fortunate enough to have a few people that were not very good liars to deal with and it was their fake love that made me suspicious and cautious and ultimately leave. Unfortunately, there are many good liars in cos and that’s what strung me along for so long. “Love-Bomb”! I love it!!!!! 🙂
Hi Jennifer, Really liked your post. Oh yes the lies that roll so easily through cos and off the tongues of cosers.As easy for the cult as breathing.So glad we are out! All Love, Ann.
Just a smidgen of common sense is all that’s needed to kill the idea behind this seminar come-on. Unfortunately the target audience have had all common sense bleached out of them by years of Scientology brain washing.
The idea that a person can turn the dial on either or both their spending and their income is pure fantasy. It’s the spending side of the equation most people can impact. The income side is limited by the paycheck being offered by their employer, who in turn is paying according to the conditions of the labor market. So, that’s the set-up — induce magical thinking in the mark about being able to earn more money.
What’s really on offer from Scientology is, as usual, the exact opposite of what’s being advertised. They act as if they want you to bring your finances into balance. What they intend is to convince you that you can do that by spending more, in advance of the promise of earning more. The spending demand will be quite specific — “flow” money to Ideal Org, to IAS, to whatever bullshit scam. The increased earnings prospect, by contrast, is vague — enhanced money-making capacity, karmic returns, magical payback.
I remember one time when I called the reg at Aola and said I would rather be in debt and keyed out rather than out of debt and keyed in.
She was a bit taken aback but yes, I was able to muster up enough money from our almost maxed out 13 credit cards.
Not keyed in or keyed out now, debt free, savings, and plan to slowly retire and enjoy what life I have left.
Three or so years ago we went by the Santa Barbara Org. during the day. Hard to tell if anyone was inside.
Hi 1-18-16, Really good to meet you. Congratulations and I mean that on your debt free life and your retirement plans. My hubby has been retired about 10 years and honestly I have always been retired smile, but the thing is there is more stuff going on since we retired than before. Forget the twilight years, I still have some DawnWalking to do.As in hoping the still ins see it and vamoose! Love,Ann
Good to meet you to Ann, enjoy your posts.
I have friends now that are retired and they don’t seem to have a problem with it and they didn’t win the Lotto or Power Ball.
A funny thing that I realised after leaving was that I was keyed in a lot while a member of the cherch and scn. Since leaving, I don’t know what keyed in means. You’ve only now just reminded me about it. I may have a blue day once is a while but that’s all.
I remember well, this tech. I tried to argue this with the reg, but they managed to talk me out of most of my savings. Never thought it was right and always hung onto a few dollars. Good article!
My fellow Scientologists … Are you spending more money than you make? ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha ha …. That was funny! Just kidding with that question, folks.
Perhaps Santa Barbara is one of the very, very few places on earth where the demographics are wealthy enough that scientology cannot easily take every last penny from them….. maybe ?
Dreamer…I like your spunk, but….Dreamer…
I did think it odd that the very successful retired businessmen OT 8’s who gave me rides to and from the org drove beat up old mini vans. Lol
Oh, Gawwwwd. I did one of those finance seminars years ago – it was all the policy on “spend less than you make, don’t go into debt, maintain good credit and then never use it” and then after the seminar the guy tried to get me to borrow money for a course. What a crock of shit.
What blows my mind is the lack of self-awareness someone would have to have to create a flyer like that.
Are you spending more money than you make?
Yes, every time I get near someone in good standing, i am forced to dig deeper than I can possibly dig to come up with money I don’t have, how did you know?
Are you unable to put away money towards savings, a better future and achieving your spiritual goals?
Yes, because every time someone finds out I have a penny or two that I plan on spending on myself, they convince me that I am a DB and that I should be spending it on “clearing the planet” not doing something for myself.
Do you spend your savings and go further into debt?
When was the last time any person inside the bubble could actually say they HAD savings? Debt is something they are supposed to brag about. Triple mortgages are the norm. Now, what did you say about spending savings? Of course I don’t spend my savings. Spending my savings would entail having savings.
I can’t imaging anyone inside the bubble reading the questions on the flyer and actually thinking that seminar could help them. Savings has got to be a distant memory to anyone who has that “dedicated glare.
SMDH.
When I was in as a public , these posters would confuse the hell out of me. I wondered what these seminars could bring to the table that I was not aware of… was I missing something? …As far as I knew there was only one way to go up the bridge unless you belonged to the millionaires’s club , going into debt , hope to make more money , be on the edge of financial disaster , and forget savings.
Ultimately it only makes them look good , the good guys with the solution to everything , but the average scientologist lives on high hopes and constant stress to keep the head above water. Being barely able to take the next step on the bridge , writing that success story with the momentary high , going back to real life and the realization that there is no more money. And back to the vicious circle.
Go to the seminar , listen to the good sense Lrh had about money , feel good about being validated in your own good sense , until…. the next reg cycle…. and watch all good sense leave the room .
Scientology dis empowers members by getting their money and wasting their time. People go broke and into debt for big empty buildings and a Bridge that leads to no where but “do overs”. Scientology promises levels of awareness never achieved by man before.
Being really, really broke, homeless and financially ruined is the “new normal” for Scientologist’s everywhere.
No, no, no Idle! It’s: Scientology promises levels of POVERTY never achieved by man before man. I’m talkin’ the hopeless, grinding type of poverty . The kind people NEVER get out of. That kind of poverty…
That is correct OSD. My case is mild compared to other’s but I have been out just a few months and I am in poverty. I am still paying on credit cards for big services that I did and that hurts, every month, when I have to pay that and go without a lot of things I really need. It’s a temporary situation though. I’m on the upswing!!
And no husband or kids. Sad but true.
Yes, it is simply educational, they still want to open Ideal Org buildings that they cannot economically operate. This is a primary principle of Finances. Feasibility . Not a single Org if feasible, yet they say they WILL when they have an Ideal Org building. Who are they fooling?????
Mr. Wilson has attained the heights of scientology’s ecclesiastical knowledge. This would make him the equivalent of a yogi, a mahatma or a rinpoche in other spiritual disciplines. Those sages would tell you the pursuit of gold leads to spiritual impoverishment but look at the symbolism used to promote Wilson’s scientology gospel. It’s all dollar signs and lucre! It’s naked, unselfconscious materialism. Anybody can see it except of course a scientologist.
Well said Brother.
“don’t go into debt with anyone other than scientology as we don’t want your money going to someone else.”
This is the exact modus operandi of the clampire. So the revival tent is now in Santa Barbara, Johnp says there might be as few of 5 attendees out of a clam population of perhaps 50. Not much of a potential audience is it? So, if no one will go to the prosperity preaching on the Fleecewinds, the show goes on the road. The barkers are now on shore duty and working for peanuts.
How are these barkers going to be paid? Is Sterling Management going to get more ‘investors’ or will the reg kick back something? What happens when all those who practice Lroon’s money magic are bankrupt or in jail? That day is getting closer ever time these barkers hit the mOrgs.
The current theme of $cientology is ‘give us your money, all of it’. Cue Pink Floyd’s Money……..
But while we’re about it: if the finance tech is so effective then how come the staff are not paid and how come there’s no toilet paper and how come everything they need to do requires a fund raiser????????
Toliet paper is for mere wogs…….do you think Tom Cruise needs toliet paper?!
Poppycock! Tom air dries with ‘LRH Wipe Tech’
” Tom air dries with ‘LRH Wipe Tech’”
This loosely translates into an MAA with a blow dryer.
Hi Newcomer, Thank you, your post gave me a good laugh and so True, Love,Ann
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA!!!!!!!!!!
How about let’s see a few posts from some who have worked for Kevin Wilson. I know a couple and it appears that getting ahead financially involves not paying your employees or negotiating their pay (down) after the fact.
You got that right, Tim S! I worked for Kevin at SMS and they didn’t pay their staff for 3 months and convinced us to work like dogs for no pay to dig them out. Most lived on credit cards or borrowed money,; some put a 2nd or 3rd mortgage on their house in order to work for free. Yet his kids continued to go to expensive private Scn schools, he still drove a BMW, he still wore $1,000 suits. So this tightening of the belt didn’t fly for Kevin and Barbara Wilson. At one point he brought in a rep from a lending institution to lend him money so he could make payroll. I saw her and thought, “Great! Now we’ll get paid.” But that loan never happened. Apparently even they wouldn’t lend money to him. So how ironic that he is now telling others how to live within a budget and be financially fit! Ha! The irony!
McKinsey & Company, a consulting Firm listed by Forbes as the Number One has these numbers:
Employees: 68,383
Sales: 84.79 BILLION
Kevin Wilson’s entire revenue for 30 years is less than a week’s worth of McKinsey’s income in any given year.
The unmitigated arrogance of some of these people.
Hubbard sure knew how to make money, but he hasn’t shared that particular advice with any scientologist.
Here it is :
Start a religion. This will allow you to avoid those pesky taxes.
Then start a “religious” order of people who will work for (i.e., get moar money) you for peanuts.
You can’t make money starting a religion. A cult, on the other hand, can be quite profitable.
Hi Chee Chalker, Your posts always find their mark with me! Love, Ann
And a cult who’s aim is taking every single dollar you have, is profitable into the Billions…
Ah ! I should have written “religion”.
Makes me think of that old Simpson’s episode where Homer gets involved into a cult and Mr. Burns, seeing the cult devotees working for nothing, gets the idea of starting his own cult, whose symbol is a christmas tree.
It’s really weird and hilarious how Her Royal Governess of Teh Valley didn’t understand the not-so-subtle critic of her own cult while making that episode.
Mike, I’m just curious about this proven LRH Tech: if it is all it proclaims to be why isn’t there a list of big corporations that use it, apply it, etc? Such as Ford motor Corp, IBM, Microsoft, Facebook, Alcoa, Phillip Morris or any large corporation. Maybe I’m just being too picky, but if it’s so damn good why hasn’t even one big corporation used it & become even more successful?
I think Enron and Pan Am used SCN management tech.
Allstate did, for a bit.
Allstate Acknowledges Scientology Training Program Was A Blunder March 23, 1995, Associated Press
And when $cientology was sacked, they replied, “The Church of Scientology responded to the report by saying the report represented a “controversy being created by what appears to be a few disgruntled employees of a huge corporation.”
Don’t know whether to laugh or spit.
“…a few disgruntled employees….” I don’t know….1,000? 1,500? I mean, it is a HUGE company…
Thank you for the link. That was a good article. I have learned so much from the links to articles and youtube videos. The response from the cos was typical. They say the same about all of us!! LOL
The answer to that is that Hubbard’s knowledge about administration and business is probably about as accurate and current as his knowledge of physics, medicine, advanced math, music, photography, …
Read All About Radiation, and you will understand.
@Kemist My dad was a Radiological Technician at Anaconda Mining in New Mexico. Why oh why did I not just pick up and read All About Radiation way back then, I would have opened my eyes WIDE and run the opposite direction a lot faster. I just actually read it for the first time a few months ago. I did NOT realize that it was a humor book. Wait, you say LRH didn’t write it as humor? My bad.
Hi Kemist, Really like your post. And hey Ron do not just read All About Radiation, but how about do as I did and get a month of highly refined pinpoint octane particle beam radiation.Change your perspective that is for sure! Whoops I hear a peep from target 2, what? Just keep taking my vitamin cure? I take a lot now but to boast my immune system, not to cure cancers. What Liability again?! Laughter,Love, Ann.
Funny not like Ha,Ha,Ha, but Funny like Oh My God.
The Ghost of Reed Slatkin has returned and giving
lectures on raising money !!!!!
BOOOO, BOOO ( sound of clinking chains) bring
cash and credit cards and you will get 90 percent return
on investment ,BOOO, BOOO, BOOO
I think this phrase sums it all up: “scientology words mean whatever you are told they mean”.
And this is precisely why tech and admin ‘scriptures’ have been altered, changed, enforced, re-written and, of course, interpreted by seniors and leaders to fit their own ends.
This re-afirms the category of scientology being a cult; that is why its members still buy it. Amazing, isn’t it?
Thank you Mike
The gold coins and the red stat arrow going up, makes me want to go to Santa Barbara! I mean, those are real gold coins, right?
CHOCOLATE
Jose: Chocolate is close enough!
Jose, you mean to tell me that those gold coins are nothing but chocolate wrapped up in gold tin foil? Really??? Well….I’m still going to Santa Barbara as my wife loves chocolate….
Yes, Chocolate coins wrapped in gold tin foil is
very popular and a gimmick to sell other products.
It’s a “lead in” even on printed sales material.
@Jose, glad you warned me they were chocolate. I’m allergic to chocolate (true story) another reason to stay far far away.
Hi Jose Chung, I Love chocolate but in moderation! xo Ann.
Me too.
My last 6 months of working for a living was in Santa Barbara
which I enjoyed the seafood and took showers on the beach
after swimming.The Mexican Food place across the street from
the S.B.Org was very good. The Org was almost empty , Reed Slatkin
was in court getting crucified.
I would love to know how many people attended this comedy show and how their finances are one year from now. You just can’t make this stuff up!
Well, Lori, their finances were ok in ’15, as they only donated $300,000 to the IAS, $50,0000 to the Idle Morgues and all of the other “betterment groups” as a collective, $2, 162, 433. However, I’ve heard tell that the regges are mounting an offense this year to collect what they didn’t get last year. Their slogan: “Bankrupting The Public in 2016 – No Prisoners Taken”
Yes, and it is the same people who keep on going in the hopes that they’ll glean something that works for them that they didn’t get the last few times they attended these types of seminars.
Also, it’s when Miscavige is not getting as much money out of the koolaiders that you get a whole lot of these types of seminars happening all over the place. It’s all your fault if you can’t give any more of your hard earned money to him.
Remember that quote in the admin dictionary about it being out-ethics if your earnings didn’t cover your bridge! Everyone who read this and to whom it may have applied was majorly keyed in afterwards!
CoS is the only “Religon” I can think of that has seminars on how to profit/achieve financial success, where they list their speakers religious completions, or the selling of religious services, as evidence of qualification.
Actually a few “Prosperity Gospel” churches do the same thing… Believe in God’s Mercy, which works kind of like a Heavenly Amazon.com: “House? New Car? College?” Angels are waiting for your call. Give your allegiance to the Church and Its Pastor, and give freely, and you, too, will have all these things…and furs and jewels for the old lady!
The poor? Who ever talks or thinks about the poor these days? They brought it all on themselves….It’s much nicer to listen to this handsome guy with the expensive sweater on…
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=35K6vQRt67g
It’s hysterical, because the only people he is generating income from (out of) is W.I.S.E. members that have to give money to avoid an SP declare. Doesn’t Scientology suck?
Of course, the fact that this event is being held in Santa Barbara means that nobody will actually receive any of the amazing wisdom that will be dispensed. If the Valley Ideal Org OT Committee is seeing gross income of $850 a week and active membership of 20-25 OT’s on the committee in the richest concentration of Scientologists on earth, what would the membership in the Santa Barbara area be?
1.8 million people live in the Valley, 20x the 90,000 people who live in Santa Barbara. I’d have to believe that there would thus be a total public of something like 20-30 people who still consider themselves active church members in Santa Barbara, and perhaps as many as 5 or 6 of them would show up for this event. The number is so low that they might, in fact, score a perfect “goose egg” and have zero people show up.
Incidentally, the flyer brags that Sterling Management has “delivered over $175 million in services.” That sounds impressive until you look on Sterling’s web site and realize that they’ve done it over a 30-plus year period. In other words, less than $6 million a year. If the “admin tech” actually worked, people would be beating down the door to get more of it. In other words, numbers that are supposed to show success actually reveal that WISE is a complete fail.
And the magnitude of fail in terms of direct royalties to the cult from WISE is clear — if Sterling is paying 15% of $5 million a year, and if they are by far the biggest WISE consultants out there, then the WISE scam is only bringing in a couple million a year into the coffers. If there weren’t slave labor being paid to run the program, it would be bleeding cash and, in a well-run business, it would be shut down. But since they don’t pay the people running WISE anything, they’ll keep the net in the water as long as even a handful of dollars jump in, which is a huge embarrassment. But, of course, when it comes to raking in even one more dollar, Miscavige got over embarrassment a very long time ago.
well, if it were only a case of the direct royalties to WISE, we would be talking about a loss maker. But don’t forget that WISE is also a handy way of infiltrating innocent companies and convince employees to part with their every cent and to donate the company’s money.
In France we’re still in a trial where a company, Arcadia, was run into the ground. While the boss had become a victim of the mind-fuck perpetrated by the criminal organisation known as the “church” of $cientology before WISE was let into the company, I understand that it was WISE which tried to convert the other staff members, clam consultants certainly changed the company to the “seven division” LRH model…
http://www.english.rfi.fr/americas/20140724-scientologists-accused-brainwashing-french-company-s-employees
http://www.liberation.fr/societe/2014/09/10/arcadia-entreprise-noyautee-par-la-scientologie_1097689
Guess what?
Without using any scientology tech I am perfectly able to put a large part of my income into savings.
The tech I use is called self discipline. 😛
That’s the very last tech they want you to know or practice!
+1. ?