Frankly, anyone who has watched Mat speak on The Aftermath has no doubt that he is a straight-shooter and an all-around stand up guy. Nobody believes the tripe scientology says about him, not even the people that wrote it. But they think they might be able to convince some of their KoolAid drinkers it’s true, maybe.
I feel Mat (and anyone else who has appeared on the show) should have a forum here to respond to scientology if they wish, though I am pretty sure it’s not necessary.
But on the other hand, sometimes it is cathartic to just get it out of your system, put it on paper, and have it there for the world to see.
Believe me, if I were in a burning building, Mat would be one of the people I would hope would be in the rescue party.
Let it rip Mat.
Truth Regarding Scientology’s Hate Page on Mat Pesch
In Season 2, Episode 9 of Scientology And The Aftermath, I talked about my experiences regarding Scientology’s money making operation.
Of course, Scientology immediately created a hate website on me that is full of lies (which is their trademark).
In order to further expose Scientology for what it is, I decided to shed some light on what they claim.
- Mat joined the church as a “pot head”
Actually, I graduated high school without ever doing any drug. I did smoke pot after graduating. When I got into Scientology (at 20 years old) I had probably smoked a handful of joints during the previous year. Note that I had my own apartment on Long Island, NY and I was fully supporting myself working at a tile company. Hardly a “pot head”.
- In 1983, I held a post that ended in disgrace with an order for me never to be given an executive position again.
In 1983, Sea Org members from all the various RPFs (Rehabilation Project Forces) in the world were brought to the international Sea Org base in Hemet, California to make up one huge RPF.
They were there to be the labor force for various construction projects. Most of these RPFers had left behind spouses and in many cases, children. In order to get off the RPF, they are supposed to be given 5 hours per day to get through a series of courses and auditing (counseling) steps.
The problem is they were given ZERO enhancement time. They did hard labor in the desert with little sleep. On a good day, they got 3 or 4 hours sleep. Many times they worked 2, 3 and once 4 days straight without sleep – all dictated from the highest levels of Scientology management.
I was the non-RPF staff member responsible for overseeing the work. I kept the same schedule as the RPF. I was told to tell the RPF that if they completed Project X they could get enhancement time. They would complete Project X and then I would be told to tell them now they just needed to complete Project Y. This BS went on month after month.
One day I was called in and told I needed to announce a “game” to the RPF regarding the need to construct a huge music studio before Christmas and then they could get rewarded with enhancement time.
Ground hadn’t even been broken. It was a 2 year project. I refused to make that announcement despite threats. I was done with the BS. For that, I was labeled “worker oriented” and “disaffected” and I was assigned to the RPF in Florida.
Those labels followed me for the next 20 plus years because I tried to be human and fair to those that worked for me and I tended to call out obvious BS.
Scientology says my time at the Int base in Hemet ended in disgrace.
All I know is that I was more than happy to get away from that psycho base. The way those RPFers were used and abused was the real disgrace.
- “In 1988, Pesch was put in charge of the unit responsible for the upkeep and maintenance of properties in Clearwater, Florida”
That “unit” was the Flag Crew Organization which had 200 staff and I was made the Captain, the person who runs the whole thing.
This organization was bringing in about $250,000 per week.
It is responsible for the upkeep of all the buildings as well as the food, berthing and transport for all the staff & public at the base in Clearwater, Florida.
In 1988, Flag Crew had almost $1M in unpaid bills. The food companies were about to cut off business, the Coachman building (which the church was renting) was about to have the doors chained closed, phone & utilities were about to be shut off, etc. The place was a MESS.
I was taken from running renovations projects to being made the Captain of Flag Crew, inheriting a million dollar debt. I don’t mind saying that I did an incredible job and came up with bright idea after bright idea to make that organization solvent again, getting the bills down to ZERO after about 6 months.
So why was I removed from that post and sent back to run the renovations?
There was an executive at International Management named Jennifer DeVocht who was insisting that the Fort Harrison be made into a “5 Star hotel” on an immediate basis. The fact that 5 Star hotels don’t have 4′ x 8′ bathrooms and 14′ x 10′ bedrooms with 25-year-old window A/C units was irrelevant to her insane orders. She wanted the 1 Star Ft Harrison transformed into her idea of 5 Star immediately. But I wanted to handle the insolvency first and THEN work to achieve 2 Star, then 3 Star, etc.
Jennifer removed me from post for being “CI (counter intention) to going 5 Star”.
The first week I was off post, Jennifer came down to Clearwater from the Int base and she purchased over $100,000 worth of amenities, special robes, towels, soaps, etc., for which there was NO money, in total violation of Hubbard finance policy, let alone common sense.
She then showed off all the stuff she illegally purchased like she was some kind of wonder woman. I found her to be the nasty, arrogant and ignorant.
- “Mat held a position of Treasury Secretary where he was removed for dishonesty and falsifying records.” Scientology also refers to this as a stint in the local book keeping department.
That statement is a complete lie. As part of Scientology trying to gain tax exemption from the IRS in the mid 80’s, Scientology agreed to have an outside tax accounting firm have complete access, each year, to all the Treasury records to ensure everything was being done PERFECTLY, to the penny.
At the time, Treasury at Flag was a backlogged mess.
There was a concerted effort from the International Finance Office and the Flag Service Org to man up and establish the Treasury Division, and as part of that I was made the Treasury Secretary.
As a team, we got in every point of what L. Ron Hubbard laid out would be needed to have a Power Quality Treasury. Miscavige himself did the final inspection and gave me a commendation stating that we had achieved the first power quality division in the history of Scientology.
I held that post for 7 years and each year, we passed our inspection 100% from the outside company. So why was I removed from post, you might ask?
Per scientology policy, the main responsibility of the Treasury Secretary is to ensure there is no free service occurring. Key to this is inspecting where the auditing is being done and ensuring all the public have a proper invoice.
Policy states that no public can be awarded free auditing, even if they are a celebrity or VIP. The staff in the delivery area also want to ensure they are delivering against a proper invoice or else they can’t count the delivery on their statistic, which is what they pretty much live for.
All was well for 7 years until family members of Tom Cruise came to Flag and the word coming down the line was that they were to get FREE auditing.
No one liked it, but no one wanted to put their neck out to stop it. Pretty soon they had received over $100,000 worth of free auditing and there was no end in sight. This put me in a position where I could be shot if I did take action and shot if I didn’t. The usual solution to such a situation is to at least write a report. So, I wrote my report to RTC, which is Miscavige’s organization. At the time I didn’t realize that Miscavige and Tom Cruise were exchanging valuable gifts and were fixated on stroking each others ego.
I was removed from post by Mark Ginge-Nelson who was a key Miscavige enforcer in Clearwater.
(As a note, this is the same Mark Ginge-Nelson that Debbie Cook would later testify was beaten and made to lick a bathroom floor clean, when he inevitably fell out of favor with Miscavige.)
Mark told me that I was being removed for being “CI to Miscavige” and I had the choice of going to the RPF (Rehabilitation Project Force) or being posted in the furniture mill for the rest of my life.
I chose the furniture mill.
- This next lie gets into some real nasty territory, even for Scientology: “Morally, he was a failure as well. His first wife wrote that he terminated their 20-year marriage and started a relationship with another woman when she was out of town. Pesch even saw a lawyer to see if he could divorce her without her consent.”
Okay, here is some background data. When Scientology first purchased its international base in Hemet, California in 1978, everything was supposed to be kept secret. We all had fake names (AKAs), you needed to travel 45 minutes away to call a family member while someone in Security listened to the call, you couldn’t use Scientology terminology outside the buildings, etc.
Another rule was that if a couple wanted to get married they needed to drive to Tijuana, Mexico. We were given the address to some house where a guy in his best sleeveless T-shirt answered the door and for $20, he wrote out a marriage license.
So, that’s what a pretty girl with long red hair named Mary and I did and for over 20 years, we had a very good marriage despite the normal challenges of the Sea Org.
At one point, she did the RPF (for recruiting someone that turned out to have taken LSD) and I did the RPF for “disaffection” where we were separated for years. Other times we were on opposite schedules or even posted on opposite sides of the U.S. Despite this, we had never considered ending our marriage.
In around the year 2000, I was working as the Treasury Sec FSO and Mary was a maid for 3 floors of the Fort Harrison Hotel. Mary was a very capable, hard working staff member that just happily got her job done no matter what it took. One night I came home and found a note on the bed saying simply “I have been sent to the RPF.”
I find out that Mary has been sent to the RPF for refusing to disconnect from her entire non Scientology family. Mary was raised in a VERY close family of 9. Mary has been in the Sea Org for over 20 years and her family had no problem with it – none. Mary’s dad, who was about 80 years old and in very poor health, had worked for decades as a social worker. As a social worker he had sometimes referred people to mental health professionals (psychiatrists and psychologists).
L. Ron Hubbard basically says that psychiatry is the cause of everything bad in the Universe since the beginning of time. So now, out of nowhere Mary is being told that she has to disconnect from her entire family or go to the RPF until she comes to her senses.
As an RPFer you are totally cut off from everyone outside the RPF including your spouse and children. You are also constantly under watch.
The order regarding this was coming down from above our organization and so couldn’t be resolved locally. I didn’t know it at the time, but Miscavige was actively ordering scores of marriages to be dissolved at the International base and it was that insanity that was filtering down the line.
During the months that followed, I was getting pressure to divorce Mary. It was one of those crazy situations brought about by Scientology for which there is no good solution. I knew Mary would never disconnect from her family which meant that she would never come off the RPF and I would never be with her again. I didn’t want to leave the Sea Org at the time and it wasn’t something I could discuss with Mary (as we were kept separated per their policy). Even if I could get face to face time and I brought up the subject of leaving, there would be the possibility that she would either report me or have it come up in her metered interrogations. Also per policy it is a “suppressive act” to talk to another about an intention to leave the Sea Org. It was a f#@*ed up situation.
The church says that I saw a lawyer. No, I was a broke ass Sea Org member that had never used a cell phone or the internet. I didn’t have a lawyer on speed dial. A Scientology lawyer was put on the phone with me to inform me that my “marriage” in Tijuana was not legally recognized by the U.S. Government. I did write Mary saying that due to the circumstances we should end the “marriage”.
The woman I later married was a new Sea Org member and someone I didn’t know until after Mary and I ended our marriage. The church says that Mary wrote up something stating otherwise. Mary was isolated in the RPF. If she had that idea I can guess who gave it to her.
Not to leave anyone in mystery, Mary routed out of the Sea Org, started a successful business, bought a house and went on to create a happy life. From her facebook page I see that she maintained friendships with many Scientologists who are still connected to the church. I hope she looks at some of the information now available so as to strip away at the false information she was fed for decades. Do I feel bad about how the whole thing went down? Of course.
- He and Amy hooked up with each other when he was married to another.
Surprise – another lie. While Amy and I did start a sexual relationship while in the RPF, we were both unmarried – two single adults in our 40’s. I hadn’t been married for 2 years prior to going to the RPF. We knew we were going to leave the Sea Org together and we were no longer willing to be obedient robots.
As a note, Scientology points out our relationship violated the standard application of Scientology.
While that is true, they are missing a much bigger violation of their precious technical application.
How can the average person in the Rehabilitation Project Force be there for 7 years, with some being there for over 10 years???? This is despite getting 5 hours a day to audit and do the required courses. Of course the technical arbitraries have to be HUGE and they are. They were also all put in place by Miscavige himself.
No one wanted to say or even think that thought because of the consequences. While in the RPF, Amy Scobee actually laid out what the destructive arbitraries were that were making the program nearly impossible to graduate and she proposed a solution. The proposal was approved by the top technical people at Flag, then approved by two of the top technical people at the international level.
But when Miscavige saw it, he came down hard on everyone who signed off on it and his insane arbitraries remained in place.
- The last point of attack in the hate site is to insinuate that I am a terrorist because I posted that the demonstrations done by Anonymous were key in motivating Amy & I to speak out.
That’s quite a stretch. Obviously Scientology’s definition of a terrorist is anyone that demonstrates or speaks out against its abuses.
Let’s take a look at the actions and characteristics of the Church of Scientology itself and see whether or not it qualifies as a terrorist group. Here are just a few points to consider.
- They have a policy which calls for the utter ruin of anyone they deem an enemy. To better understand to what extremes they will go, I suggest reading “The Unbreakable Miss Lovely” by Tony Ortega.
- Direction by its Founder to take over governments and the world.
- With the help of hired PIs and its own spy network Scientology investigates individuals and infiltrates groups, agencies and businesses to gather intel that can be used to its advantage.
- Controlling its staff and public with the threat of losing contact with family and friends. Watch Season 1 of Scientology And The Aftermath for numerous examples.
- Holding members against their will. (Search Don Jason for a perfect example.)
- Recruiting foreign staff members with false promises and then taking their passports upon their arrival so as to control them.
- Having a whole drill in place, including the use of PIs to track down and bring back staff who attempt to escape. Search Gary Moorehead, former Security Chief of the International base. He states that he tracked down hundreds of escaped staff from his base alone.
- Having labor camps for handling unwanted thoughts and conduct of its staff members. This handling routinely takes 5 to 10 years where the individual is allowed no physical contact with their spouse and children.
- A long history of protecting child and adult rapist in an effort not to tarnish its own reputation. Watch Season 2 of Scientology And The Aftermath for examples – plus my wife’s rape at age 14 as covered in Season 1, Episode 1.
- A long history of subjecting its staff to sleep deprivation. Many staff have experienced working months and even years with an average of 4 or 5 hours sleep a night. Many staff have also worked doing manual labor for 1, 2 or 3 days at a time with no sleep. Note that sleep deprivation has long been used by military units to torture and mentally break spies and prisoners.
- A long history of using under-aged children as full time workers while denying them a proper education.
- A long history of isolating pregnant female workers and pressuring them to get an abortion so their production is not slowed or lost.
- A long history of intentionally breaking up marriages and families where it sees a potential benefit for itself. Sees no real value in the family unit despite public claims that it does.
- Spends tens, even hundreds of millions of dollars to observe, monitor, harass and attack anyone it considers to be an enemy or potental enemy. This includes the creating of hate magazines, hate sites and hate videos. There is a whole part of the Church of Scientology dedicated to these activities.
When a Scientologist shares their most personal information with the minister, the information is recorded in writing, as well as with hidden cameras and microphones. That information is many times released publicly to hurt the person when they fall out of favor with Scientology. The recent hate page put up on Mary Kahn is a perfect example of this.
Many people have come forward to report being physically beaten by the leader of Scientology, David Miscavige. In several cases, these people have reported multiple incidents. This includes accounts of being punched, choked and kicked. Debbie Cook also testified that Miscavige ordered his Communicator to slap her so hard it knocked her over. He also had the same person bend Debbie’s finger back and he threatened to have it broken if she did not answer his question properly. A video of her court room testimony can be found online.
Scientology has a history of what can only be described as committing acts of torture. These are some examples:
- Scores of Sea Org members at a time were held in double wide trailers known as “The Hole”. The trailers had bars on the windows and a guard at the only door. These people spent months and even years living and sleeping side by side in these trailers. Despite being on the California desert the airconditioning had been turned off for weeks at a time to further punish the inmates. They were literally fed from a bucket of slop. Many of the prisioners were physically beat up.
- Debbie Cook was made to stand in a garbage pail for hours with a sign hung around her neck that said “LESBO” because she stood up for someone Miscavige was wrongly and intentionally accusing of being homosexual. Water was poured over Debbies head while she was yelled at and slapped.
- Debbie Cook observed a staff member named Mark Ginganelson being beaten, then made to lick a bathroom floor clean for speaking out against the physical violence being dished out by Miscavige.
- Holding someone in the RPF with no physical contact with their spouse and kids, year after year, after year, after year, after year (despite them even living on the same property) is a form of torture. I have seen it mentally break people and I mean just that.
I don’t know if “terrorist group” is the right label for Scientology. I do know that they are a greedy, nasty, dangerous, well-funded, well-organized group that is a threat to any individual, family or society that comes in contact with them.
They certaintly don’t deserve tax exemption and you don’t want them working their paws into schools, children groups, etc. You also don’t want them using their money to gain favor with police, judges, politicians, etc.
It is exactly their doctrine to do these things.
I would say that Scientology is morally and ethically one of the worst groups on the planet.
Hubbard’s handling of all concerns voiced regarding himself or Scientology was to lie, deny, attack and eventually to hide.
Scientology needs to realize that that formula is no longer workable, now that the internet exists.
Mat Pesch
11/17/2017
This post from Mat, introduced by Mike, shook my world. Inspiring discussion here. Mat, enjoyed you and Amy, both of you, so much on “Aftermath.” I am now listening to you in a podcast with Jeffrey Augustine. U R thoroughly straight-up. I love how you have post-ers here who were your juniors. previously. They celebrate your skill and compassion as a leader and manager. Much happiness to you and Amy.
Omg!! Someone in authority has to wake up and stop this horrific BS!! Thank u Mat for the additional info. I didn’t think it could get worse. Wrong.
Really this has to stop.
Oh my god, i have read Amy’s book. Along with others, they all read like a horror film, very sad, and disturbing, this cannot go on, thankyou for sharing, this has to stop, xxxxxxxxxxx
Dont worry Mat. Amer now knows the truth and Scientology has no credibility. . Their responses are always so ridiculas. Im glad that people like you have stepped up..You have done a great justice because with the help of you its about to change. Scientology is about to fall. Untill people like you people spoke up we just didnt know, but now we do. I hope that it happens very soon. Have peace in knowing that its not Scientology that is helping mankind, its people like you that saved people from it.
The government & law enforcement needs to get involved & destroy this “cult!” This is so disgusting! It is even more pathetic that they try & justify it and completely deny that any of this is true! How could all of these people speaking out be lying???? Similar & same stories. It is so disturbing & I’m so glad this is out there and this show is great in exposing the “truth!” Keep it going!
Hi Mat!
All I can say is that Hubbard developed Scientology in the role of Lucifer. Here
is Lucifer (Hubbard) speaking in Paradise Lost:
“The mind is its own place, and in itself can make a heaven of hell, a hell of heaven..”
“What hath night to do with sleep?”
“Better to reign in Hell, than to serve in Heaven.” .
Thanks for sharing.
Hubbard hooked me but only to OT VIII as public. You got the real Lucifer.
Thank you Matt. Very well said.
Great post, Mat. Love to you and yours!
Excellent article Mat.
Scientology is a hideous lying cult.
I know Mat personally, he’s the salt of the Earth.
Bravo!! I’m so sorry this hell happened to you and so very many! It’s kidnapping, false imprisonment, and torture that defies logic! It all must be stopped, and I am so mad , my blood is boiling! What can we do to shut the entire evil Satan infused cult down.. for over a billion years? I feel so helpless, yet I want to do something NOW! No more waiting! Thank you for your story.. as I’m sure it wasn’t an easy one to tell! And yes, you let her rip! Let’s do the same to that pure evil putrid disease called Scientology! R.I.P. her til nothing is left!
I am starting to enjoy the scientology smear videos. They are actually comedy gold!
The next time someone speaks out publicly about scientology on a program like Aftermath, try to envision a typical scientology smear video.
Then go and watch the actual smear video and see how close you were in your imagination. It actually would make a good drinking game.
Geez, I might just run with this idea. Scientology is such an embarrassment to themselves, their lame-ass smear videos might make for an excellent drinking game at parties.
For example, everytime the North Korean scientology prisoner featured in the smear video uses the phrase “terrible father”, or “terrible mother”, or whatever… TAKE A DRINK! Ha Ha this could be a lot of fun!
Hey Dave, Lord knows we ALL are aware how much you like your scotch, maybe you could play too!
Lou might even have a little fun with it too, if you demand it.
Scientology defense tactics are such a joke.
Thanks for taking the time to write this excellent rebuttal. It’s important to show the consistency of their acrobatic twists of the truth in these videos. I feel you on what happened when you stood up for the RPFers- so many situations where we did the right thing and then subsequently were punished. And somehow kept going, hoping for a new situation or senior where a crisis of faith wasn’t a daily occurrence. But I don’t know anyone who wasn’t caught in this cycle for the entirety of their time in the SO, persistently interfered with when doing their job in a successful and sane manner. Thankfully we are now free.
Thank you Mat
Hi Mat,
A never in here. First of all thank you for confirming for me what an entitled ass Tom Cruise is. He is or was probably the richest movie star in Hollywood if not the world. A-list all the way. Claims to be so dedicated to his church but yet he feels he and his family are entitled to free services! The fact that it’s against policy isn’t what upsets me the most because well I was never in. The thing that upsets me the most is that he could afford to pay for services for all his relatives, everywhere and it wouldn’t even put a dent in his pocket. And also, I remember on Aftermath Leah saying that it is your responsibility to help your family up the bridge by buy them services. She did it for her mother. It just makes me want to go up and smack him in the face that he is so rich but still this entitled! It makes me want to scream and again…I was never in.
Second, you say your Flag Crew Organization took in $250,000 a week? How did it do that? Or why did it do that? Were you in charge of the restaurants, etc. and you made the money off of food services?
Third was or is this DeVocht person related to Tom DeVocht who was also interviewed on the show?
Fourth, Scientology must be the only place where you do an excellent job, make them money and turn things around and they punish you! Must be crazy making!
Anyway, I enjoyed seeing you on the show. Sorry about all the lies. I’m assuming your former wife Mary is still in. Hope she can get herself out too.
Dawn
Good, there is Tom Cruise’s name again. Let me once again take another opportunity to pick up the challenge to celebrities that Paul Haggis and Leah Remini threw down.
Tom Cruise is a beneficiary of horrific abuses of human beings. He would have to be completely thick not to be aware of these abuses, or, more frightening, he is complicit and approved of these evil abuses.
Which is it Tom? Dumb, or evil?
This question also is directed at the following:
Kirstie Alley.
John Travolta.
Kelly Preston.
Bart Simpson
Danny Masterson
Beck.
Elizabeth Moss.
… and all you other celebrity scientologists …
YOU must be held accountable.
This is YOUR church.
This is YOUR legacy.
So say something, you cowards.
There IS a simple explanation at to why they remain silent:
Better to keep your mouth SHUT & be thought a fool……
then to open your mouth & PROVE it…….
& so it goes………………….
I’m disgusted by all the celebrities in this cult. How can they close their eyes to these abuses. Disgusting.
Yes, say something cowards! What we can’t hear you!
“Fourth, Scientology must be the only place where you do an excellent job, make them money and turn things around and they punish you! Must be crazy making!”
This is not as uncommon as you might think. I’m talking politics now not scn, but come out here to Africa and you will quickly see that anything successful which intrudes on the responsibility of government is soon destroyed. Success shows up the incompetence of the leaders of many African countries. Those leaders seek to reduce the competence of everything and to surround themselves with incompetents to a level below their own level of competence so that eventually they might look superior. Just look at Zimbabwe – it had a flourishing farming sector (and industry, to a lesser degree) that was destroyed violently. South Africa used to be one of the strongest rugby-playing countries in the world. The government inevitably attacked it endlessly, insisting on the selection of players and managers on the basis of colour rather than ability – and now we’re beaten by the likes of Japan and Italy. That might not mean anything to Americans, but those countries are absolute minnows in rugby.
As you said, must be crazy thinking! Here in Africa we can understand the mind of Miscavige perhaps more than other nationalities, because so many of our miserable leaders are just like him. Destructive, narcisstic.
Hello Dawn, Flag Crew makes money by charging Scientology public to stay in their hotels and eat in their restaurants and snack bars. Also, there is usually 250 – 500 trainees from lower Scientology organizations studying at Flag for months or years and Flag Crew is paid for their room and board. Jenifer is Tom’s ex-wife.
Thanks for answering me Mat. I figured it must be something like that. Sounds like you were really efficient and got things humming. Jenifer DeVocht sounds like a real trip! Sheesh!
Aside from Mat’s articulate litany of oppression, organizational malice, insanity and hate, what stands out to me is the irony of his personal excellence when compared to the general incompetence, stupidity, and incoherent behavior of the church at large. Despite having numerous dedicated, talented, and highly skilled staff such as Mat, Scn still can’t get anything done independent of DM’s idiotic meddling, taking forever to accomplish the most basic of tasks, with a predisposition that all molehills inevitably become mountains. Incompetence is endemically ingrained, due to Hubbard’s absurd managerial and administrative pronouncements. Yet they stumble on, since $1.5 billion in hard cash reserves can buy you a lot do-overs, redundant labor, and “success”, despite one’s self…
awesome post today Mat.
the Cult of SMEAROLOGY….takes smearing to a whole new level….
It is all so theta….
and religious…..
NOT~!
Excellent show tonight MIKE and LEAH – fricken awesome how you exposed David Miscavige’s
EVIL Cult called Scientology and his sordid crimes he commits daily.
“Make a career out of exposing this organization” THANK YOU LEAH!
Stick a fork in it….Scientology is DONE!
WELL… WOW. WOULD IT DO ANY GOOD JUST SAY RUSSIA CHECK THEM OUT LET’S CHECK THEIR EMAILS I CAN’T BELIEVE HOMLAND SECURITY AND CPS OF EVERY STATE IS NOT HAVING A PROBLEM WITH. A TERRORIST NAVY A PRIVATE NAVY AND THE HORRIBLE TREATMENT OF CHILDREN. DOES LIST PRIVATE NAVY DO THEY HAVE WEAPONS ON THEIR SHIP AND THEY HAVE TO FUEL UP SO HOW CAN THE KIDS GET OFF(I’M SURE. THEIR. PASSPORTS. ARE BEING. WITHHOLDING)HOW CAN THEY GET HELP. SO ANGRY. I CAN’T SPEAK. ANYONE. WHO NEEDS HELP JUST ASK.
Reading this made me desire that a congressional hearing of representatives could also hear it..
It’s hard for exes who have been through so much, who are pushed and pushed by the church in attempts to derail and discredit them, to then be able to sit and recall for others all the main highlights of just how bad the Church of Scientology has been, and continues to be, in abusing the spirits of so many, especially those who stand up and say “NO!!”.
I have never seen a statement like this before by an ex member, Laid out, well written,simply detailed with the facts and realities so that even that the average non-scientologist will to be able to read and have their breath taken away. Mat Pesch did it here. He starts out clearing the air on the propaganda put up about him and Amy., but then it becomes something much more for others to read and understand the big picture of what this church has put its members through.
I’m sure that writing this was hard but cathartic for Mat, putting all this in perspective. But I can tell you that he isn’t the only person who will be moved by his having written it. I know I was, in spite of having already known of or experienced,many of the events and activities he mentions. It’s disturbing to see the truly dark, depraved indifference given to members in exchange for the sacrifices they made. There is so much of it, for so long, that we need the stories of those who stand up despite the bullying, who help put it in perspective for us, so that we can become emboldened against the oppression of the past and attempts in the present. That we can be further freed from what may still bind us in thought, as others are unbound for what they have shared.
I never visit and read the church propaganda sites against critics, I never give a fraction of my attention to the lies. But I understand why Mat Pesch wrote this and I am thankful that he did.
Excellent coverage of your experience. No one else knows who or what you thought but you!
I hope an pray this shite called Scientology blows like the windbags they are……
Thanks Matt and Mike. So many bad ,horrible things in the s.o.and especially at the base.I’m sorry you had to go through all that. As a public person for over 20 years,I feel so bad about all this.I ‘m so sorry because you did all this for our benefit and dm.Thank you for everything . Good luck and Happy Thanksgiving to all.
This Long Island girl is proud of how you have rebuilt your life. Brightest Blessing and much Joy to you.
I am also from Long Island. I grew up in North Babylon, across from its high school.
Mat –
This was very well-put! I think it’s so important that Mike does these pages each time an episode airs and a new hate site or attack is launched. Those of us who’ve followed for some time obviously know their ridiculous tactic, but people introduced recently via Aftermath, don’t necerssaily know how far they’ll go or the degree of deceit under which they operate. Your breakdown (and past guests for which Mike has done the same) really help to illustrate this to people new to the subject.
Mike –
Thank you SO much for giving the courageous guests on the show an opportunity to not only tell their side (the truth!) which, as you said, is cathartic… but ALSO for helping create the highest level of awareness regarding the dangers of this cult that we’ve ever seen! Like you’d mentioned, so many people were harassed, bankrupted and so much worse for being brave and speaking out when very few would or could. But you both honor each and every person that came before AND their individual sacrifices by ensuring the WORLD is being made aware how insidious and dangerous CO$ truly is! I do pray for the reunification of your family/children often, as I know so many others do also!
Thank you so much. We, (never-in’s), need to hear from all of you as much as you need to fight back the smear campaigns of Scientology. We watch and know there is far more detail than there is time in the show to share with us. We stand behind each and every one of you and your truths!
I began to read through the first part and couldn’t tolerate the Co$ BS any longer. I have a hard time with BS over and over and over again. I have known exactly who and what Mat Pesch is and everything that counters that is nothing but horse crap. Mat is one of the most honorable beings I have ever known and I have always found him to be trustworthy in every way.
It was the facebook police who discovered my name on other’s FB friends lists who were not in good standing with the church that got me declared. I find that the co$ always attacks those they are frightened of. All those who produced for this cult and produced honorably are ALWAYS attacked.
SCREW THEIR VIEWPOINT!
By attacking good honorable men like Mat will spell their downfall.
Very well written, Mat. Thank you.
Thanks Matt for telling the truth.
These Scientology slave weasels just condemn themselves by opening their mouths.
Or should I say, these Scientology slaves wastes condemn themselves by applying to philosophy of a mentally deranged madman
Mat excellent rebuttal. Thank you for taking the time to write it and expose the horrible criminal and immoral activities this “church” is up to. And thank you to you and Amy for speaking out on Leah’s show. You are a good man and so are the many others who have spoken up. I am honored to know you all from this blog.
This is all true…and more. I personally was held prisoner for about 3 months when I dind’t want to do the RPF pgm. I was first put in the RPF, told them I wanted to leave, then was put into the RPF’S RPF…told them I wanted to leave, so I was then put into the RPF’s, RPF’s RPF. (That’s right, 3 of them). I was trying to be a good guy, not blow, and route out “standardly”. But I don’t recommend it. Just blow! My car keys were taken away, I was held prisoner with a guard! Barely fed. When I was fed, it was the scraps the other RPF folks left on their plates, or cold extras if I was lucky. When you want to leave you’re considered worse than filth. And although you’re trying to route out correctly, it’s Dev-T to those who control that, so you’re just basically treated like shit and ignored. The only way I got out was “legal threats”, I won’t get into details (don’t want to give myself away) but it was the only way I could get out. Fun place.
It seems like a better solution than drinking bleach! Good on ya!
Yea, got me out quick 🙂 No bleach for me. Told them I was going to call the cops…declared right on the spot. This was back in the time just before the Complex (Big Blue) opened. Diane Marple was the RPF I/C. If you want to know what she was like, just Google “Wicked witch of the west”. And as we all know, by the time I got there, this had been S.O.P. for quite a while.
I am so relieved every time I hear of another person able to break away from the cult! Good for you! I can imagine it was very difficult to readjust! More power to you! Thank you for sharing!
Bless your heart. I applaud your amazing courage and tenacity.
While I can’t say I’ve visited a known scieno site in eons (no page clicks for you, Capt David Miscavige, COB, RTC!).
This was a lovely response. Good Show, Mr. Pesch.
Thank you Mike and everyone else for your kind words and support.
One thing I have diffiCULT to understand is the management and the top auditors thru the years. Do they really live so much in the bubble that Mike R refer to so often? How do they live? I mean are they taken good care of, or kind of. Last time I was at Flag, autumn 1982, there were names that seems to be still in the top today; Leserve, Starkey, Yager, Jentzch etc and at least two class 12 auditors from Sweden; Ragnhild McFarlane and Malin Gelfan. Ragnhild and Malin has to at least be 70 to 75 years old today. Are they taken care of? How much do they understand? ( Malin has a brother, Sven Petersen who worked at the Apollo for some years. Sven left also in 1982 and joined Capt. Bill….He is today close to 80 and about a year ago he wrote that Malin is still in, but of course no contact betwwen them…)
Now it´s 35 years ago and I just find it almost unbelievable that there still are old timers left.
Would appreciate if you or anyone else know anything about this esp. Malin and Ragnhild.
Thanks,
Stefan
Stefan / Ragnild Mc Farlene is out and is a counselling in the USA ,Knew her very well and good mates same as Sven Peterson I last saw him 20 years ago in Spain with myself and Bill Robertson ( he since died) whether Sven alive or not do not know .Lerserve still in as far as I know Hemet location, he left years ago to be ED INT from his Post as CO FOLO EU Malin Gelfan last seen ( if correct she was Swedish yes? If correct it was in Denmark, god knows what happened to her. Starkey your referring to Owen or Norman .they are brothers .I haven’t seen Mark Yager in years last was on a on mission to destroy missions , as for Heuber Jentzch appears he remains inside from data I got 12 months ago.
Thank You Hadley for answer:-)
Nice to hear that Ragnhild is out.
re Sven I got a letter from him, about 1.5 year ago, and there he wrote that his sister Malin is still in at Flag. They are both swedish.
Re the top mngmt guys I find it almost unbelievable that those so able guys are still in for so many years. What´s going on in their head really?
Regards,
Stefan
Yes Stefan I realized Malin was Sven’s sister once you reminded me sad situation over all.You might have remembered me I was at AOSHDK Registration ,then div 6, then Tours EU along side worked with Owen Starkey then later Ronny de Arman who was tours in charge back then I heard within the last 6 months he is back in location not sure.
Stefan as for your comment on management and those able people you say , Well only one or two answers it could be, and that is that those that are in management of who you may know and can I say did know aren’t in their right minds IN PT.
Either taken over, but for certain definitely P T S because they are connected to a suppressive person , they respond to Yes sir no Sir free bags fall,, or they are dissociated with and isolated and punished and degraded and most of all under fear if they show any change or alter from or are seen to divert in any way from the dictator s orders . He has cut contact outside the iron bars and the out side world does not exist for them from inside to be able to contact because if so why haven’t they left ? and that can only be all is monitored.and controlled.
Hi again Hadley, no don´t remember you, are you danish?
I was only one time on a short visit to AOSHDK , did my services at Stockholm org and Flag. Hmm, only person I remember now that went to work at your place is Katrin Pasic, thinks she worked at Div. 4.
You´re problaby right about PTS etc and somewhere I also believe that we basically choose our games to play in our lives, perhaps as in the high class TV series “Westworld”! http://www.imdb.com/title/tt0475784/
OK Stefan and I will just laugh at your last comment towards the end of your post take care
Just started watching the aftermath and came across your thread. Malin and Sven are my aunt and uncle. Yes, they are both still alive. Yes, Malin is still in Clearwater, yes she is over 80. Her younger sister is my mom. Sven is still in Sweden and still alive. Malin left behind four very young children in the 60’s to go to London to join CofS. very sad.
Hello Stefan, As of 2005, Malin Gelfan was still an auditor at Flag. Leserve, Starkey, Yager and Jentzch live 24/7 in the well guarded compound at Gold, in Hemet, CA. Each of them have been beat numerous times by Miscavige, imprisoned in what is called “The Hole” (see Wikipedia) and declared SPs while still held in the Sea Org. When veteran staff at Flag get too old or sick to produce any more they usually wind up at the care facility in Clearwater or they are sent off to live out their final days with some relative. Scientology wants them out of site and out of mine in the cheapest way possible that doesn’t create bad PR for them.
Outstanding synopsis of this cult Mat. Until we find the one person(s) to bring them to justice and willing to stand up against the ney sayers and to take a whole lot of hate and harassment then things will begin to change for the good. The Catholic church had to deal with untrustworthy priests and still making attempts to thwart it. These are not easy things to do taking on a “church” but we need the brave and strong individuals to rise. Many of the replies to the daily blog show that people whether not in or out or never been in $cientolgy want action.
The IRS needs to see your comprehensive write-up.
I’m sorry you and hundreds and hundreds of others are having to experience this torture.
Just saw my first Scientology commercial on FX . was about Hubbard. Very weird
They’ve started showing up on multiple different channels like rabid minions
Using scio. parlance I have to say DM surely has “evil purposes on the 2nd dynamic”. What I find outrageous is all that free auditing for TC’s family. Free anything in this cult is considered a GROSS violation of policy. How telling is it that the staff is in such tremendous fear of the twirp that they would go along with his shenanigans. Also makes me wonder what other celebrities receive or have received free services.
Thanks for this posting Mat you are free now and enjoying your life. You will be enjoying Thanksgiving with loved ones, which is the best revenge, unlike the many others having to do hard labor and eating rice and beans.
Thank you Matt. Not only do you debunk all the church’s lies but the truth behind what was actually going on are examples of horrific human rights abuses that are exceeded by very few other groups, much less religions. You can’t measure the deaths that this church has caused. Sleep deprivation alone is so horrible and done on such a broad scale within the Sea Org that I’m sure it has caused not only acute but maybe chronic psychosis and a plethora of other illnesses and disease. The church comes out unscathed on this count, however, because how does one prove that their cancer (or psychotic behavior) was due to days or years of sleep deprivation.
This is just one man’s account but one needs to look no further than reading this to make up ones mind about this cult. Shame on those still in that turn a blind eye to such abuses and damn those that scream “religious bigotry.”
Wonderful Mat. They just lie and lie…..same with me and my husband……same bullshit. Good for you by setting the record straight. The truth is needed out there as many UTRs are reading sites like this one.
I was Mat’s Finance Inspector over his Treasury Division at Flag. What he says here is true and correct. He ran that place perfectly, with many staff members in other divisions wanting to transfer to his Treasury because he had the happiest and most productive Division in the entire organization. I know he kept things straight, because I inspected his Division. ?♂️
I too worked with Matt and can vouch for his honesty and integrity. I would be glad to work with him again. He was the best senior I had while in the Sea Org. Ironically, I probably stayed in the SO longer than I should have because of Matt and a couple of other honorable SO members who served as admirable models of service and decency. It took a while for me to realize that they were the exceptions who somehow overcame the sociopathic underpinnings of Scientology.
Thanks for the kind words and support David and WhatWall. I appreciate everyone’s support. There were so many of us that just hoped our contribution would create a better world…..
*DROP MIKE! ……..??
Mat, Mike Rinder and others have done such a good job exposing the Scientology smear tactics in general that I can’t believe anyone in the real world believes Scientology’s ridiculous lies about people. I never look at “smear” sites because I don’t want Scientology folks to see traffic on their sites and rub their greedy little paws together. I see enough examples of these lies from Mike Rinder’s defense posts. On the other hand, I am glad you felt like putting the record straight. I hope it was cathartic and that the process did not raise your blood pressure.
I have a question for anyone though. I just looked up “libel laws.” They seem too friendly to the defendant in the US, but has anyone tried suing the Scientology organization for libel, maybe where the laws are better for the plaintiff?
Good question, Ann C. Why has no one sued the church for libel?
Dont have millions of dollars to spend or years to devote to fighting in an arena where the side with the most money usually prevails.
Bloody good question why ?
Remarkable story Matt thanks for sharing but appalling really really .
This “pot head” loves you Matt.
And of course you too Mike.
Excellent article Mat!
Well said Mat.
Thank you Mat for this vibrant and moving testimony. I have never been a scientologist, but I am very affected by any notion of human rights infringement. I read a lot of things about the fraud and abuses of the Church of Scientology (though in my mind it’s clearly a Cult and a criminal organization, the word “church” being in the name of that corporation is the worst hypocrisy I’ve ever heard of). When you think you’ve read and learned everything there is to know about them, then you learn something new and that brings the horror to a new level of insanity. The list of crimes is so long: money extortion, physical and mental abuse, forced abortion, involuntary confinement, slavery, sleep deprivation, denigration and destruction of the family nucleus, homophobia, deny proper education to children, forced labor in children, deny appropriate treatments for mental disorders, hiding crimes committed internally like rapes, framing people for crimes they didn’t commit, harassment, distortion of the truth, falsifying documents, damage to reputation, and countless lies. Of course there is more but it’s kind of impossible to list them all.
And their attitude is most deplorable: rather than confess their wrongs, apologize and take action to correct their deviant behavior, they embark on a campaign of smearing with their ad hominem attacks, depriving them of all ethics and moral integrity. Result: they have no credibility.
Each testimony of the abuses of that cult makes my cry, wondering: how is it possible that those practices go on without being punished? What kind of world do we live in if crimes can be committed behind the banner of “religion”? Do really the government and judiciary system has no power in that matter?
The main problem is the malignant narcissistic, sadistic psychopath at the head of the organization. I truly hope from the bottom of my heart that David Miscavige will someday respond to his acts and be thrown in prison. But even getting rid of that guy won’t solve the entire problem, the organization itself must be totally dismantled. Of course it’s easier said than done. At least with all those crimes and abuses being exposed, more and more people escape from the cult, and there should be fewer and fewer new members getting caught in their clutches.
Continue your good work Mike and Leah, you have my unconditional support.
Best summary of the operating process of organised Scientology I’ve ever read, thank you Mat. I feel sick after reading it and anger doesn’t quite cut it as a word to describe how I feel about that organisation. Thank you once again for the well articulated truth of what actually happens internally and the way people are treated in Scientology.
Hubbard talks about earth as hell, well… he sure did his part in making sure his organisation got the mass on that!
I truly hope all who suffered at the hands of that organisation find the peace they deserve.
What in the fuck were we a part of?
“What in the fuck were we a part of?”
Yes, I’m grappling with this, too, Yawn. This thing helped it…in a stubborn, self righteous, somewhat smug way, under the delusion that it was totally the right thing to do, I HELPED this toxic organization…its rough, looking this in the face.
And me whining about how rough it is to confront and how I didn’t know, etc. etc. does not alter one bit the fact that for whatever reason for nearly 30 years I helped an organization that was hurting and destroying innocent, undeserving people.
So, its not a question of “forgiving” myself. I forgive myself. I didn’t know, and when I knew, I left. Self forgiveness is not the issue. This a a “man in the mirror” thing. The Michael Jackson song. Hard to explain.
Yep, there’s a type of unwanted veteran status connected with involvement in Scientology that is indeed hard to explain. The more that is exposed about the corruption within Scientology the deeper it bites. Someone mentioned the other day how living well is the best revenge. It’s also the best cure all too.
But as long as there’s one prisoner left in the Scientology organisation or another victim created by them it plays on the conscience of those that know. It’s irony at its worst to realise the remarkable quality of person that gets draw into Scientology by the promise that it’ll help others, oneself and mankind, only to be stabbed in the back so viciously.
Aqua – exactly how I feel, “What in the fuck were we a part of?”. Back in the day I rarely told people I was a scio., too much explaining to do. But NOW after Aftermath and more and more people are finding out the truth, I’m even more mortified at the thought of telling my friends I was in this cult. I tell my sis, “don’t friggin tell people, please”. I don’t want to have to explain anything. How do we explain the horrors we were part of? We didn’t know this crap. It’s enough having to explain to the people who come on this blog and others (some who understand) but I find it tiring and draining. How could you let yourself be brainwashed? How could you let yourself be conned in giving away all that money? etc.
The rage in me (and my sis) after finding out one story after another is intense. Once I got on the blogs and found out what was really going on, that was it for me, I decided no more. I can’t be part of this cult. This is why I’m outraged at all the lurkers here that are not walking away. They can do this quietly no need to announce, just slink away. Stop funding this cult because you fear consequences. Don’t announce it to your family, your friend or employer. Slink away, find every excuse not to be on course, auditing, fund raisers. To all you UTR’s just SLINK AWAY.
Ms. P,
We are tracking. “Mortified” is the adjective for which I was searching and you said it for me
Mortified that I helped an organization that was destroying others while helping me.
Now, not necessarily to make you feel better (although I would certainly like to do that) I’d say, don’t be TOO certain that the “lurkers here are not walking away”.
Just a heads up; I lurked on Marty Rathbun’s (first) blog for a year and a half before mustering up to the nerve to POST UNDER A FAKE NAME.
From that point on it was another year before I was fully out. I eased out. I made no waves.
While on Marty’s back in the day I was gathering data, weighing and measuring it against what the cherch was telling me. I said nothing to no one about leaving and quietly let it unfold. What I was trying to do was determine for myself what was true. The Data Series that I had done while in helped A LOT. (Ah, the irony!)
One step after another, I eased out.
Point being, if I left in this uninspired way, this unspectacular, head down, mouth shut/ ears & eyes open kind of way, I would think that its the way-out of choice for most Still Ins.
Its certainly the safest way to leave. I’m not proud of that, btw. But I knew I would never be able to survive as OSA bait.
These people – its hard to describe, but once I learned of Scientology’s underbelly, these people, well, they appalled me. I was horrified by them. Shocked. But I didn’t let it show. I didn’t trust ANY of them anymore, but I didn’t let them know that, gave them no inkling.
I just had to get away, so I used what I guess could be called the “Concentration Camp” method. Make no waves, give no sign, appear to go along with the program, and all the while, “ease on down the road”, step by step.
And I’ll tell you further: the cult had no human leverage on me. No spouse, lover, children in the cult. No parents or siblings with which this “church” could use as a wedge to get me to comply, and still I went thru this dance…
Long time friends, yes. (Friends”. Hah.) Well, but then, I saw that they were afraid. THEY were PTS to an SP. Ironic. I was being labeled PTS by THEM and yet THEY were the PTSs, AND I knew who their SP was. Funny, in a way. I did see the humor in this.
In any event it took me nearly 3 years with the cult yet having NO disconnection leverage over me.
Nor did they have any FINANCIAL leverage over me.
As a public and never staff, my business has never depended upon the good will or patronage of fellow Scientologists.
Just the thought of that is nightmarish. I’d rather be Blanche Dubois at the end of the play depending on the kindness of strangers, you know? 🙂
It indicates to me that there are lurkers here planning their withdrawal.
I don’t consider the way I did it in any way brave or bright, and that’s not false modesty nor am I denigrating myself. I did it the way I did it.
Of course, I can’t prove it but I think there have been thousands of people to date who’ve left Scientology in the same way and that many more are today in the process of leaving this way.
Just 6 months ago some people I thought were active still in were described to me by the head of their household as “quiet” Scientologists.
I thought to myself, “What the hell is a ‘quiet’ Scientologist but I didn’t pursue it with this person because conceptually I DID understand and didn’t want to press. These were people who had been in for nearly 40 years. “Quiet Scientologists”…sure, I knew what that was. I was one myself before leaving.
The Brite Star leavers, those who came out publicly, who signed the Indie Scn 500 thing – I believe these people are in the stellar minority and that the majority, like me, and as you described, “slinked away”.
This is just a sense I have. I can’t prove it.
Whew! How I do run on, as Scarlett O liked to say. Thanks for reading if you’ve managed to do so.
Aqua – oh my, I LOVE your reply. Your statement “don’t be TOO certain that the “lurkers here are not walking away”, as they say from your lips to GOD’s ears.
I also waited over one year to post here, I had a lot to ingest and digest, and two plus years to post on Ortega.
Yes, the “Quiet Scientologists”, I’m hoping there are more than we think.
And Scarlet O, got to love her! Fiddledidi.
Aquamarine, it’s not too late for you to “be a star” too. You can come out with your name and a coming out story and join the Indie 500 list. It’s not too late. In fact, I think every person who comes out with their story creates strength to the movement against Scn’s criminal actions. And lucky for you that you don’t have family or friends still in who would disconnect from you and that your business doesn’t depend on Scn. So come on in, the water’s fine! Love your posts by the way.
I have never been in Scientology, but I want all of you who have been in it to know that when I watch The Aftermath, the farthest thing from my mind is judgement about the people who were in it. In fact, I think the opposite; I have nothing but respect and admiration and compassion – and I truly believe that this is how most people feel when they watch it.
I know it must be hard with all this (necessary) exposure to admit to others that you were a part of it (as one woman wrote), it would be hard for me too. But never has there been ONE SECOND when I haven’t believed what people have said about their experience with it. And if someone I knew told ME they had been (or were) a member of CofS, I would feel only powerful respect and deep caring – not in a “you poor sap” kind of way, but just as one human to another.
I know that I am a nobody, but I still feel like I want to tell any and every CoS escapee – “We all believe you, don’t even question that! We all know DM is horrible and that you are good. And we don’t think your are stupid. You had a caring heart and just wanted to make your lives, and other’s, better. Most humans do. And even if you knew about the abuses going on, brainwashing is real!” And I really believe that most decent people feel the same way.
The CoS is so stupid in its responses and attacks that I can’t imagine any viewer believing anything they say. Even before this show came on, I knew it was a cult, and I only felt bad that people were trapped in it. I think most of the world feels the same way. Brainwashing is a real thing and I, myself -as a spiritual seeker all of my life- have gotten “taken” in my own ways. When your heart and mind are open, shit happens. It isn’t so hard to understand.
The point is, YOU ARE NOT ALONE AND YOU ARE NOT JUDGED. To someone like me, it is so completely obvious that everyone on that show is telling the absolute truth. Honestly, it is so obvious! And I think most of us feel like we would do anything we could to help the nightmare end in the hearts and minds of everyone who has ever been affected by it. I can honestly say that I have felt like every one of the people on that show is someone I would like to have as a friend. You all seem like good peeps to me! Love. Kimberly
THIS Kimberly… 100%!
Makes me sad to see anyone (especially people like Aqua & Ms P who SO many lurkers see and relate to as they become “quiet Scientologists” and lurk here!) beat themselves up for being involved!
That they’re not any longer AND spending much time/energy to post here, follow and find ways to support the ex-community is what’s important!
“Pope Slappy” has so much to be proud of!
Here’s a reply from Ohio’s Senator Portman on “Protecting” the Johnson Amendment in the new tax plan:
Dear Python,
Given your previous interest in tax policy and other economic issues, I wanted to give you an update of my latest work as it relates to fixing our broken tax code.
On November 16, the Senate Finance Committee voted to approve the Tax Cuts and Jobs Act, the Senate tax bill that will provide meaningful reforms to our tax code for the first time in 31 years. The Committee’s approval marks an important step towards providing tax relief to the middle class, growing our economy, creating more jobs, and increasing wages for American workers. I am proud of my colleagues’ hard work, and I am excited to continue moving forward together in our effort.
Tax reform has long been one of my top priorities. Since 2011, my Senate colleagues and I have had an open process, holding over 70 tax reform hearings and forming several bipartisan working groups whose ideas serve as the foundation of this bill. As the Finance committee considered the current bill, we had a four-day markup where each committee member had the opportunity to offer amendments. Every member will have the opportunity to introduce unlimited amendments as the full Senate considers this bill, and I look forward to working with my colleagues on both sides of the aisle to get this done.
Our tax reform plan is focused on providing middle-class tax relief to help Ohio families who are dealing with this middle-class squeeze of higher expenses and flat wages. Under our plan, a median income Ohio family will save potentially thousands of dollars annually on their tax bill. These are dollars that they can instead use for gas or groceries, a car payment, retirement, college savings, or a family vacation. Our plan will help make American companies more competitive so we can create more jobs and increase wages in the United States rather than sending them overseas. Our plan will also level the playing field internationally so we can bring back jobs and investment.
You may remember that America’s last major tax overhaul took place in 1986. Back then, Ronald Reagan was president, a gallon of gas cost 86 cents, and Pete Rose still played for the Cincinnati Reds. The simplification and lowering of tax rates in the 1986 reform law gave our economy a needed shot in the arm in the ‘80s and ‘90s. After more than three decades, it is time to do it again.
I commend the House, Speaker Ryan, and Chairman Brady for passing their tax reform bill. For my Senate colleagues and I, it is now our turn to deliver results for the American people by reducing the tax burden on the middle class, helping American businesses grow and prosper, and creating better jobs and wages for our workers. We have a significant opportunity before us, and I’m optimistic we can get tax reform done.
Thank you again for taking the time to contact my office. For more information, I encourage you to visit my website at http://www.portman.senate.gov. Please keep in touch.
Thanks Python. I have added my concerns regarding the repeal of the Johnson Amendment to Sen. Portman’s website.
Matt, thank you so much for your detailed refutations of the cult’s lies about you.
Unlike the Church of Scientology, you CAN address the various points on its hate site concerning your behavior.
Having arrived at the point (finally) of full conceptual understanding that, in the event CO$ has no or insufficient reputation damaging and degrading TRUTHS with which to smear a person who has spoken out against them publicly, it is therefore POLICY for them (my God, POLICY!) to MANUFACTURE whatever damaging material is necessary to smear such a person. POLICY!
Nothing dirty to reveal? No problem! Make it up! Blood, sex, whatever! Go for it! Theft, adultery, get it going, get it out there, spread this shit around, QUICK! We’re the Church of Scientology, the Only Hope For Man! Its all good!
The true cycle of action – create, create, create. Scientology excels at it in whatever it takes. The horrible part of it is, is that if you take the lying out of Scientology, it wouldn’t exist. The whole thing floats on an ever creative sea of lies.
Without doubt one of the worst enemies of Scientology from their perspective is not the psyches, nor apostates or anything that lives actually, it’s the internet!
Mat, thank you for your report and informing the public at large about what is really going on in the CoS and what you have experienced and witnessed.
The responses to their smear sites are important documentation. They are also “Knowledge Reports” for everyone to see, exposing how the CoS with their “Office of Special Affaires” is twisting the truth to denigrate former members and staff. It shows their mind-set and their standard Scientology operating procedures as a warning for others to not fall for their PR-facade.
What a great rebuttal, Matt. Miscavige, his underlings and sycophants are pretty much done with their cult adventure. It is painfully obvious to anyone with even half a brain that Miscavige is the liar.
Big thanks to your wife, Mike, Leah and the folks at A&E. Without all of you exposing the Co$ for what it really is and does, all of this stuff would have swept under the rug and the door would be wide open for the abuses to continue.
Hi Mat:
I’ve heard enough by now so that I don’t believe anything the cult says about ex-members. I assume that any thinking person wouldn’t believe a word the cult said at this point. I’m so glad that you and Amy got out. I’m just so very sorry for what you both had to endure when you were in. You’re both very strong people (I don’t know how long I could have survived what you went through in the cult). I wish you both very long and happy lives.
Thank you Matt, thank you, Mike. I have enought self-insight to know that I would have been broken completely by what you and so many others have been through. Scientology is so utterly horrible, it’s almost hard to believe that something that evil could exist – right here, right now. We’ve all got to end this nightmare.
Excellent report Mat!
The truth about $cientology is much worse than people can deal with. We are told North Korea, Putin, ( on and on ad nauseum) are bad, evil empires but we here in the US are upholding the principles of decency, democracy, human rights and willing to ‘fight the war against terror’. Well there is a lot of terror hiding right here in plain sight and there seem to be few officials willing to engage in that battle.
Thanks for exposing the truth about ‘Americas fastest growing religion’.
Yo Dave,
Know this good buddy; every person who has been touched by Your cult is like a sharp knife. You will disappear not from some big wound but rather from a thousand cuts. Every yelp, every smear, every hate site, every whine and snivel is just Your reaction to another small cut. You my friend have many more days of wincing to enjoy in what is left of this life of Yours, …………….. Dave. And we all get to watch ……….. if we really care to.
I am so sorry Mat that you felt the need to explain yourself but I know the feeling when things just go so far and you just can’t keep it in any longer and you need to set the record straight. Please be assured that we don’t believe anything that we see on their stupid websites. I have never seen one of them nor do I go to look because that is just stupidity and lies. The only people looking are the brainwashed ones that are still in the church, it is certainly not people who have a brain in their head and have common sense. I know that reading your rebuttal was mentally exhausting and I am so sorry that you had to live through that day after day. I am sorry about your first marriage as well, I think that was absolutely awful especially the way you both were treated but I am glad that your first wife stood up to them and kept in touch with her family that takes real backbone. I am so glad you and Amy got out and I wish you nothing but the best. It must be such a relief not to live in that fish bowl anymore and be able to do what you want ,go where you want and talk to who you want. It is really like breaking out of prison and I hope people start leaving in droves. Best wishes to your family and thank you Mike for letting him take over the blog for the day. I am sure there are many x CoS’s who are wanting to set the record straight after years of being told what to say ,how to feel and what to do. How truly empowering that is to a person.
Sounds the like Nazi Germany.
Praying for all of you! Such courage and stamina!
Very well stated! I admire you.
Excellent synopses. Thank you Mat, for your clarity. Hopefully the Evil Empire will lose its tax exempt status. The walls of Mordor already seems to be crumbling around the edges.
Thanks Mat. While I never look at the lying hate sites which are written to further brainwash scientologists, I think it is important that you put on the public record the truth. I was in for 35 years and really never fully realized what a completely suppressive and fucked up insane group the CoS had slowly but surely morphed into. The day I got at least a real hint of that, I walked out the door and was done.
Has there ever been another group which so punishes productive and well intentioned members? And those who have been such for 10, 20, 30 or more years.
My best to you and Amy.
yeap!, that group really does need help, maybe we should push that button , to them
Very happy you got out, Joe!
By the way, how many times have you seen Here Comes Mr. Jordan:-D
One of my absolute favorite movies of all time!!!
Excellent article Mat. You have somehow managed to fit nearly all the crazy that scientology is and does, in one article.
It encapsulates just how insane scn is.
“Hubbard’s handling of all concerns voiced regarding himself or Scientology was to lie, deny, attack and eventually to hide.”
This is DM’s MO as well. But even though for 99% of the time he is physically hiding, his deeds can no longer be hidden and kept secret by the very people he abuses. If they can’t or won’t talk, others are talking on their behalf.
Tick tock, Davey … the Internet never sleeps. Pretty much every minute of the day, someone, somewhere is reading about your malicious, malevolent self.
One could annotate each of Mat Pesch’s responses with books, blogs and web articles supporting his push back – even more than he has already done – and not use the same reference twice.
Critical mass is approaching.
I was thinking the same. And the list of references is growing exponentially. Put together, they form a picture of scientology that is extremely damning and incriminating. How long will responsible authorities allow this cult to continue?
Thank Matt. That is the way the S.O. was and is. Like the rhyme, The Grand Old Duke of York cum malus.
Is there anyone Scientology couldn’t write a hate site for? How about JC from the Bible?
SO Officer Jesus was disciplined for:
1. Out Exchange for providing downstats with charity.
2. Failed to use Standard Tech during healings.
3. Out 2D for foot washing episode with a Mary Magdalene. Sent to RPF.
4. Finally, terroristic attack against lawful merchants at the Jerusalem Temple. Arrested by Wog officials, creating black PR for the SO and Scientology.
Well, you know, Rick, as Krustie Alley said to Howard Stern, “Scientology is not a ‘turn the other cheek’ kind of religion”.
True enough, but then, the question begged would be, “Got it, so if the Church of Scientology does not espouse this Christian doctrine, then why do they have crucifixes on their churches? What Christian doctrines DO they espouse?”
In actuality….COS does NOT use “the crucifix”…..A crucifix (from Latin cruci fixus meaning “(one) fixed to a cross”) is an image of Jesus on the cross, as distinct from a bare cross. The representation of Jesus himself on the cross is referred to in English as the corpus (Latin for “body)
The COS uses a seemingly “Christian Cross” with an “X” through it…..it’s almost as if they are using the “X” addition to cancel OUT symbol of the Cross.
What OTHER religious symbol could they USE to help themselves be recognized & declared a religion……maybe a flying saucer with Xenu at the helm??? Too laughable!
A flying saucer flown by Xenu?
That really would drive people away!
amazing discussion and frankly upsetting that this has gone on this long and authorities aren’t stepping in or if so dam slow at acting those out and suffered same tactics should document with advice from lawyer all should speak out now, contacting advisory Lawyer that deal with abuse , trauma , and held against will, threatening behavior and sabotage to families must be done , This is not Scientology and has nothing to do with it at all ,it must get to higher authorities in Washington this investigated .
As for the remark mentioned in listed scenarios 11-17-2017 that happened as Mat Pesch and Amy named as a person wanting this known “The last point of attack in the hate site is to insinuate that I am a terrorist. ” Unquote
The question is to ask what right or allowance of unauthorized ethical practices has David Miscaviage have to be allowed to do this, and when theirs many documented stories , court appearances etc etc, its just endless and so appears still goes on . The the mighty question is where are the authorities?
Remember how the IAS War Chest was created in the ’80’s? It was to fund legal fights against the church. Well maybe we as Ex Scns should start our own war chest with donations so that people like Mat and Amy and the Kahns and others can sue the church for libel of their character on their web hate sites? Each person who has spoken out has been slandered, so what if we donated to cover legal fees so that the vast majority of them could all sue? Maybe it is time for us to organize.
Standing ovation.
Well said, Mat!
Mat, got to love you. You stand tall.
we BELIEVE you, not the crazy cult, You no longer have to defend yourself, You are free, you are a good and decent human being and we all thank you for coming forward, telling the truth and helping to expose the cult for its inhuman practices.
So, Scientology takes good people with good intentions and totally destroys them. Unbelievable. Glad you and Amy made it out with your wits about you!
Wow Matt, tellin’ it like it is. Thank you for standing up and speaking your truth! Best wishes to you and Amy for happy lives!
Wow Mat, you sure know how to dead agent the C of S. I am sorry for their attacks on you and good on you for responding. I know it must have been difficult to do so! (but not as difficult as going through all that crap!). You are a hero in my estimation!
Mat (and Mike) –
You guys are the definition of stand up guys. Most normal people don’t believe that garbage but it sucks that there are those who will read this hit site and it had the potential to affect job opportunities, etc. Keep fighting their lies with the truth!! I wish I could do more than just try to encourage with my words and prayers but I’ll give you all the encouragement you can handle ????❤??
Remarkable, thank you Mat Pesch.