My old friend Andy Porter sent in another article, and some more of magnificent photography (The last one I published is here) Recruitment Day It was late 1980 and I had been in Scientology for a few months, I’d completed the Communication Course and the Purification Rundown at the Bellevue Mission and I was doing auditor training when a FLAG World Tour came to town. They were looking for people to work in the Universe Corps! Here was an opportunity to get right to the top of the Bridge. The coolest thing you could do, on the WHOLE planet was to be an auditor, and they were o … [Read more...]
Episode 63: Former SO Member Nora Ames
This week we welcome Nora Ames, former SO member and outspoken whistleblower concerning the hypocrisy of scientology's rampant homophobia. She has one of the most incredible and harrowing escape from the Sea Org stories. We cover it in some detail, as well as what she did to get her mother out of scientology. Both her father and mother were scientology Guardian Office workers. Nora's video from 2016 on Tony Ortega's Underground Bunker. Direct link to video on YouTube: In the episode, Leah says to Google the Guardian's Office. These days, the Wikipedia … [Read more...]
Thursday Funnies
Take Control of Your Mental Health? What if we told you up front that after you pay tens, if not hundreds of thousands to clear the effects of your reactive mind, that you will eventually realize it was something YOU "mocked up"? How would your mental health seem then? Fully In Control of Life From reading a book? At least he/she won't need to waste money on auditing. Focusing on Human Trafficking I bet nobody has let Mona in on the secret that scientology is engaged in systemic human trafficking? And that Columbus org is staffed with … [Read more...]
Episode 54: The Sea Organization Deep Dive with Hana Whitfield
Hana Whitfield is such a pleasure to talk to. One of the nicest, kindest people I have had the pleasure of knowing, she is also one of the most interesting. She helped us on The Aftermath, appearing on the episode "The Life and Lies of L. Ron Hubbard" (S2 E 13). Hana joined the Sea Org before it was the Sea Org (it was originally named the Sea Project) in 1967, and went on to Captain various Sea Org ships and bases. We do a deep dive into the early years of the formation of the SO, her recollections of Hubbard, his "Mission Into Time" and much more. Hana was a highly trained scientologist … [Read more...]
The Children Sacrificed to Scientology
It is sadly true that many children raised in scientology families, especially those that attend "Study Tech" schools, have a pre-ordained future in the Sea Org. While scientology and Applied Scholastics claim they are NOT scientology, and certainly are NOT Sea Org recruitment pools -- sometimes the truth leaks out. Here they are, thinking they are safe inside a scientologists only FB group, telling it like it is: Their "product" is a graduate who joins the Sea Org. And here is a parent laying out her "win" that she "made the decision that I was raising Sea Org members. … [Read more...]
The Incestuous World of Scientology Staff
The shrinking world of scientology.... These days, about the only hope they have of getting new people to join staff or the Sea Org is if they are the children of scientologist parents. Rarely are the "successes" about staff from anyone else, unless it is an old person who says they’ve been on staff for 40 years and are still hoping to make it to Clear. We have had a number of people who were not scientologists recruited for "ideal orgs" with the promise of a job, pay and accommodations that have ended up being helped by the Aftermath Foundation. Typically they have not e … [Read more...]
Episode 38: Listener Questions #4
This week is another episode answering listener questions. We cover a range of topics and below are related documents. The first is that scientology paid the IRS $12.5 million as part of the settlement which resulted in tax exemption. At the event announcing the exemption, Miscavige said the bill to the IRS was $1 billion: This is a fairly comprehensive summary of the story of the IRS and Scn on Wikipedia: How to find your US Representative: and US Senator: And here are some twitter … [Read more...]
Sign Up For The Sea Org
This "briefing" is clearly a recruitment event (and of course, if they cannot get you to sign up for the SO or staff they will definitely take your money). How can you tell? You don't have Senior HCO there for a straight fundraiser. They are only there to try to get new staff. I suspect this is connected to the post of yesterday where they announced a "big thing coming" -- the orgs will be expected to send staff for OEC training at Flag. Many orgs don't have anyone to send, so they need to recruit someone. They will use this as a recruitment gimmick. Promising … [Read more...]
A Primer on Brainwashing
If you have watched either The Vow on HBO, or Seduced on Starz about NXIVM, or The Aftermath or Going Clear about scientology, this article will ring a lot of bells. Many of the specific control mechanisms Dr. Burkley cites about NXIVM have direct parallels in scientology. As she says, "the psychological tricks Raniere used are not particularly special. In face, his ability to ensnare so many victims is rooted in his reliance on several core psychological principles -- principles to which each of us is vulnerable." One of the great accomplishments of The Vow was how … [Read more...]
“Welcome Home”
How sad is this. "AJ" from Minneapolis just arrived at Flag to join the Sea Org. He just graduated high school. No doubt the child of some long term scientologist or staff member. This is the age I joined the Sea Org -- wide-eyed and enthusiastic to save the world. It won't be long before the promises he heard when they were recruiting him are forgotten and he becomes another drone in the money machine that is Flag. He will soon find out that he now belongs to the organization and his free will is meaningless. It used to be a thing to say "A mind is a terrible thing to … [Read more...]