Scientology is still hard at it, raising money for the completely superfluous auditorium they say they are going to construct next to the Super Power building. And they are sending out new promotional pieces about it at an increasing rate.
This is a very recent fundraising letter and there is also a whole magazine devoted to the subject:
This is the cover of the mag…
It is a strain for them to come up with reasons why anyone should be giving money to such a boondoggle.
That this is going to be an event hall “large enough to hold every international event” is a very revealing statement. The plan only calls for 3600 seats. Back in 1993 scientology held an event with 10,000 people in attendance. Since then, attendance has been steadily decreasing. That they only see a need for 3600 seats says a lot about the “expansion” of scientology.
That it has “satellite relay capability” is like saying it will have “internet capability” — this is not something they have lacked for the last 3 DECADES in any event hall they have used.
And that this is somehow going to “bring the power of Source to all Scientologists on earth” is a very odd pitch. Hearing Miscavige babble on in Shermanspeak is now the “power of source” apparently?
Obviously they don’t need a lot of good reasons for people to hand over cash. They have been at this for 25 years, collecting money for this “planned” hall that has no real purpose (as I have said before they already have a hard time filling Ruth Eckerd Hall… they don’t need something else), and there seems to be no shortage of suckers. Just look at the SP building that is virtually empty and how much money they raised for this, though it did have the advantage of bringing with it “Super Power” — though of course that could have have been delivered anywhere.
This is the list of people and their “status” though I have no idea what the numbers are associated with each of these spectacular sounding “titles” they have been bestowed — illuminare?? Here is the latest list for posterity’s sake.
But like the Super Power building, this is better as a fundraising idea than an actuality.
They are in no hurry to build the thing because once it is built then they have no reason to suck more money out of people.
Tracey McManus wrote an article earlier this month about the Hall — Scientology hypes downtown auditorium but still lacks a building permit.
In that article, Tracey reveals the reality behind the hype:
“As designs are finalized, permits acquired and land prepared, the buzz is speeding around the globe,” the publication declared, adding that Scientologists were spreading the news “like wildfire.”
Since then, Scientology has pushed social media ads calling the project “the largest architectural undertaking in Clearwater’s history” and suggested it was ready to start.
However, 26 years after first announcing the project, it appears the church is still far from breaking ground.
Scientology applied in November 2018 for a building permit to construct a $137 million auditorium on the 2-acre site on Garden Avenue that is now a vacant lot with a small office building. More than a year later, the church has not secured approval from the city of Clearwater to begin construction.
The permit is held up because Scientology has not responded to minor feedback from the city: requirements to install erosion control measures and tree barricades, according to building records.
The SP Building finally got done when the Garcia’s sued. Wonder if that is what it will take before the L. Ron Hubbard Hall gets done?
Meanwhile, scientology is also trying to sell it to the community as a good thing and these lies are even more ridiculous.
In their recent Freedom mag article they went all in, claiming this hall will bring 200,000 “through its doors” — implying that this means an extra 200,000 “visitors” to Clearwater. First, if there are 200,000 people going through its doors, this means they are rotating Sea Org members through a turnstile as a daily routine in order to get their count up. Even if they fill the hall to capacity for their “international events” that is only March 13th, Maiden Voyage (some “voyage” that will be landlocked in Clearwater), IAS and New Years. In reality, 3 events per year. Which accounts for 10,000 people — the same people that already attend the March 13th event held annually at Ruth Eckerd Hall. Most of them are Sea Org members, the rest live in the local area. This 200,000 number is as inflated as their hype about 11,000 churches, missions and affiliated organizations.
And then they try to sell the idea it will generate income for the local community. If they pay $1.8 million in bed tax now, just think how much it would be then? Actually, the REAL equation is “if we are paying $1.8 million in bed tax now, if we were not tax exempt we would be paying $100 million”… That IS the solution for the city of Clearwater.
I guess there are some who take them at their word. But I cannot imagine it is anyone in Clearwater.
Will all the live events then originate from Flag, robbing LA?
Events used to be an important part of building and maintaining the field. Brought public in, got them “in-comm” in ARC, blah blah blah.
Live events benefit the originating org.
Looks like Dave’s crack solutions will continue to kill LA.
Who’re you running from Dave?
“Who’re you running from Dave?”
At this point, he’s only running from himself — and previous foot-bullets.
If they gave up on the Shrine in LA they might be able to hide their contraction with a switch to LRH Hall, if they then then expected members to fly from other places to Clearwater every year. They can apparently still fill Eckerd Hall in Clearwater – though gone are the days when they needed overflow tents – which has a capacity of about 1,000 less than their proposed hall, and they could probably make up the difference with out-of-towners.
They could then claim it as a big “win” to fill the new facility, even though it is actually about 3,000 less than the Shrine, and it would buy them a few more years before the shrinkage of their events had to be reckoned with.
This was also where my thinking was directed…
If SCN is the only solution, and SCN is composed of that magik tek, shouldn’t we fire a mission into INT to get the priorities straight?
Shouldn’t we pull every available SO member off this mad race to acquire large fancy MEST, and assign them all to the top priority of SHSBC & VIII Course?
What would Ron L. say to Da-Midget about the BC not being delivered for over SIX YEARS now?
The new quickie training doesn’t take more than 6 months from ST. Hat – class 5, right? So …
Who’s going to go tell Elron that there is no longer a bridge beyond class 5, we don’t have time to fix all the out tek on his personally recorded and delivered courses? You know, those courses he deemed as THE standard of standard Tek?
Dukes of the Elite and stuff?
And that this has been the case for 6 years now…?
The tek will save the universes full of suffering thetans … and we’ll get to it when we have a new party hall?
….
go to the NYs event and ask around for me, n’kay?
Its safe to ask. Its not like it’s a cult or anything.
What a horrible waste of real estate that will only be used a few times a year. It should be illegal to waste money and resources for no reason.
They state 200,00 each year into the building. That works out to 547 people every single day of the year.
My comment: FAT CHANCE!!! LOL
It has been a very long time since they stopped doing live satellite events. Last one I remember was mid 90’s, not long after the “War is Over” event.
Probably not because of the cost or technical issues, I think Dave fell in love with the idea of being able to edit out all his goofs. They record all the rehearsals to make it possible to use recorded footage to paper over stumbles, and then do “pick-ups” (redoes) after the event. Perfect nonsense delivered to perfection!
“Satellite-relay capable” is particularly meaningless these days when your kid brother can live-stream his birthday using a $200 tablet. In full HD! Is there anyone using live satellite TV at all anymore? Why?
Certainly they won’t record the Maiden Voyage events in scenic downtown Clearwater. The Freewinds would go from broke to utterly busted. Can it make enough money as a prison ship to stay afloat?
Scientology, always at least a decade or two behind the times. Satellite TV, telexes and cassette tapes will always live on in the Scientology world, trapped like a fly from the Jurassic period in undying amber. Just like the Tech. The 50s forever!
Great comment.
“Perfect nonsense delivered to perfection.” Nice quip, Bruce. I’m stealing it for use elsewhere 🙂
Bruce:
“The 50s forever!”
They’re always a half-century behind the times — at a minimum. Even in the ’50s, Hubbard was behind the times.
Snake oil being sold by a snake oil salesman to the brainwashed seeking a cure for what ails them and thinking this building will play a role in saving the Earth. But what does this building have to do toward the betterment of the community in conjunction with it’s tax exempt qualifications? And one final note – the building is ugly and whoever designed it should give the money back and/or get comm-ev’d!
Exactly right! If buildings mattered so much to man’s salvation for all eternity, we could all just go to Notre Dame in Paris, or Saint Patrick’s Cathedral in New York, or the Sistine Chapel, or Westminster Abbey, or or or or…good grief there is no dearth of gorgeous, astounding religious architecture all over the world! Mosques, temples, churches – just walk in and be blown out of your mind and your head by the beauty and grandeur…instant salvation!
Exactly, that’s the first thing I thought: I’ve been to some very nice venues both here in the US and in Europe – that rendering looks like a Kindergarten classroom designed it.
And more technically, that “Front of House” (where the mixing board is, in the middle of the seating) is a complete joke.
But, in true Miscavige style, there’s plenty of gaudy gold crap and crimson curtains – the surface trappings of what He no doubt perceives to be “luxurious.”
And only 3,600 seats lol
“…gaudy gold crap and crimson curtains – “.
Yep, that’s the Little Plug Ugly’s taste, alright.
“Legion of Honor with Honors” ROFL!
Great article, Mike. The Super Power building regging went on for DECADES because it was a great way to get money from people. The only reason they finished the building at all is as you said, because the Garcias sued. This new hall will never be built because that would end fundraising and also because by that time they won’t be able to get even 3,000 people to attend. How the mighty have fallen.
I also remember at the time of the Super Power Bldg., heavy regging, my son being heavily pursued for the Sea Org and being told that 200 plus new Sea Org members were needed to man the Super Power Bldg. That was also a crock of shit, easily identifiable as such by the 200 plus Sea Org members sent to LA shortly after that. No way Flag would let go of 200 of its Sea Org members if they were needed at Flag.
The church of deceit and lies.
Mary Kahn, Great points. Yes, no way Flag would let go of 200 SO members to go to LA to man up LA Org if they were needed for the SP building. This is just more proof of how they lie. I remember as a public around that time, whenever I would ask why the SP building was not finished or when would it be finished, they would glare at me and say it is because they need staff members to operate the SP building and that I should join staff if I wanted to see it done.
This same argument was always used if you tried to KR an outpoint or even talk about it. It was “well we’re doing the best we can being under staffed. If you want to see an improvement then you need to join the SO and put your shoulder to the wheel too.” That usually shut up anyone who dared to point out something or ask a question.
Mary Kahn:
“The church of deceit and lies.”
And the most basic deceit/lie is the “church” part. Never was, can’t be.
Mike, I beg to differ with you. If the Lron Hall of Halls is ever built, there will always be something else to ‘fundraise’ for.
DM may want to replace the Fleecewinds when it
sinks<s? runs aground burns to the water line is transported to Betleguise by the Space Org.He may need to replace all those expensive tile floors in the mOrgs if they are ever walked upon.
Where there’s a greed, there is a way to fulfill that greed.
Good point. I suspect the future may hold projects that disguise contraction, such as consolidating facilities that are spread all across Clearwater and LA, into new ones that are actually smaller. But they would probably then have to be offset that with large new international management facilities elsewhere, like records storage buildings out in the desert, in order to keep the total number of square feet “stat” continuing to increase.
They could even decide they need their own auditorium in LA, when it becomes impossible to try to fill the Shrine anymore.
Megalomania knows no bounds.
Perhaps a new “central” central files center in the desert?
“Perhaps a new “central” central files center in the desert?”
Hey! That’s not entirely a bad idea! They’ve already started consolidating CFs, AFAICT, with computer-linked data access, from the strange orgs who have called me in the last couple-three years. NY & FLOG(where I should be in CF), DC & AOLA, (where I shouldn’t), plus who-knows-how-many- times we didn’t pick up the phone; ya’ gotta love caller ID.
Don’t forget they will always need to fund-raise to cover DM’s mounting legal bills due to attacks by bigots and SPs.
Weather Watcher, make that APOSTATE bigots and SPs, and you’ve nailed the reason that Dwarfenführer created the IAS (I am Screwed”) slush fund.
They need to build the LRH Hall because, at some point, a super entity like, say, the IRS, will start asking questions about the whereabouts of the money raised. To get the goons off their backs they will need to show something to ‘prove’ that the fundraising was legit.
You’re right, Alcoboy. And that’s all the IRS needs to see. Never mind that it sits empty. There are plenty of empty churches all around, churches of all faiths.
They will have to build the hall as a size-flexible space so that it won’t look half empty – or else it will never be built, because it would provide embarrassing evidence of Scientology’s actual shrinkage. They can apparently no longer even fill 2,000 seats at Ruth Eckerd Hall.
And of course it’s amazing how they can claim “success” after decades, when they still don’t even have building permits – and even getting that far doesn’t necessarily mean that a building will be started, or finished, expeditiously, based on Scientology’s history of drawn-out project and construction debacles.
Scientology’s inability to begin and complete construction projects in any sort of reasonable time frame is, if anything, proof of their lack of competence at real-world endeavors. Only in the middle ages did ecclesiastical construction consistently take longer.
That means that the Start-Change-Stop rule is out of whack in the organization. FLUNK!!! All senior staff, especially the Poop (that IS the spelling, isn’t it??) himself must report to parking garage for assignments in the RPF. Minimum sentence: THREE YEARS!!!
To: Peter
From: David Miscavige COB RTC
Re: out-tech
SPOT ON, MY BOY. ANYONE WHO DARES TO ALTER THE MOST HOLY SEQUENCE OF START-CHANGE-STOP WILL BE SENT TO THE RPF FOR THREE YEARS! ANYONE WHO CONTINUES TO SQUIRREL THE TECH WILL BE SENTENCED TO THE RPF’S RPF FOR ETERNITY! ONLY I, THE SUPREME RULER OF TEEGEACK AND THE MEST UNIVERSE AM ALLOWED TO ALTER TECH. WHY, YOU ASK? BECAUSE I SAY SO!
ML
Dave.
“based on Scientology’s history of drawn-out project and construction debacles.”
DM hasn’t figured out that cycle of action. He gets from start to change, then keeps cycling around:
change, change, change, change — until someone or something slaps him into getting around to the stop part.
Laurie Webster signed the letter. I knew her and her husband very well. In 1987, she became one of the most obnoxious registrars in the history of Scientology. She was in the advertising business before Scientology and had a massive break with her parents. She was the last person I ever spoke to in Scientology before I was declared. Laurie is one of the most deluded people you would ever want to know. She called me after we moved to Massachusetts after OT VIII in about 1990. By that time I knew that Hubbard was totally wrong and totally full of beans. I was so high above her at the time she sensed that I was talking down to her and ended her tirade.
Here is another Hubbard hall.
https://hubbardhall.org/
Might be worth spending some cash on. 😉
Mike,
“though I have no idea what the numbers are associated with each of these spectacular sounding “titles” they have been bestowed”
For some of the titles you published January 29, 2014, the amounts required.
https://www.mikerindersblog.org/the-scam-rolls-on-the-lrh-hall-and-museum/
Not for all though, and amounts may have changed. (Do they do that?)
A above even the exalted illuminare donor is the illustrious Bigvs Dikvs
Ahnd do yoo find something fonny about my fwiend Biggvs Dickvs?
“Illuminare”. No words…
Great film scene Alcoboy!
Yes. I know.