Here is the roundup of the ridiculous that doesn’t fit in daily posts — and there is a lot more that is left out and I try to avoid using anything that has appeared elsewhere.
Gavin Potter Is Everywhere
If this guy knows so much and is so good at telling everyone how to get things done, how come the Freewinds is regging public for money to buy fuel so they can sail?
Money, money, money….
Michael Lewis is giving a seminar at AOLA (because they don’t have any staff competent to do it)
Wonder what his dreams were for his son? Really? This is the best AOLA can do?
Flag has “Cause Resurgence Technicians”
Sounds enticing — come along and you can see a Cause Resurgence Technician. Just don’t ask them what they do — they are proficient at just two things, but they cannot discuss them until you have paid and started on the rundown as “we don’t talk about it:”
1. Watching you run
2. Telling you to continue running
It takes YEARS of intensive training and many tailored uniform fittings to be presented with a “Cause Resurgence Technician” cert.
This weekend some of the most senior Tech terminals from Flag are coming to LA to meet with you at the Flag World Tour:
- Class XII C/S
- Super Power Auditor
- Cause Resurgence Technician
- SOLO NOTS D of P
and more!
Just plain weird
According to one of our Special Correspondents, the image is from the movie Office Space. He is the bad boss who makes people work late and on weekends. One employee rebels and burns the place to the ground.
Not really sure what their message is supposed to be, but it doesn’t seem very “theta” on any level….
There is a “New” OT III?
Whodathunk that one of the two remaining handwritten levels in all of scientology could be “new”? Is this part of the Golden Age of Something that I missed? Miscavige handwrote the “new” OT III?
And he is an ideal org “icon”? Those silicon people come up with the strangest shit.
But no surprise — it is a seminar about MONEY.
The Annual IAS Insanity
Telling people to make their plans to attend the event.
Except there is no date. Just book a flight to England each week in October and it should be covered (it might be in November like it was last year).
And though this is an “invitation” to attend our events, you have to call us to find out what the ticket prices are.
On Aug 28, 2014, at 12:44 AM, Miriam Bright <miriambright@mailpac.net> wrote:
Dear IAS Member,
I am writing to you to personally invite you to join the team of IAS members from the US who are going to St. Hill, England for the IAS 30th Anniversary celebration!
On Friday evening in the Grand Marquee is the 30th IAS Anniversary event. Join thousands of Scientologists from all over the world as we celebrate our wins and accomplishments. Experience the excitement as the curtains rise at the live event. Who will be our next Freedom Medal Winners? What are the next steps in salvaging this planet? Find out at the live event.
On Saturday morning you will get a close up look at the Planetary Salvage campaigns at the Expansion Seminar. There you will receive the tools you need to help others to move up the ranks of the IAS and build a massive membership movement. Then on Saturday evening we honor IAS Patrons from around the world – those who champion the ideals and spirit of the IAS. Be there for the awards presentations as we acknowledge those who have taken monumental steps in supporting the IAS. Enjoy a gourmet dinner, the company of friends old and new, and a spectacular concert at the largest Patrons Ball of the year.
On Sunday evening is the Annual Charity Concert which brings the weekend of activities to a close. Following in the tradition set by LRH when he lived at St. Hill and supported the local community, the proceeds from the concert benefit charities in the United Kingdom. The attire for the evening is cocktail and prices of these tickets are available on request.
I can assist you in making your plans to attend and can be reached at (323) 301-2609. On behalf of the West US Membership Office we look forward to seeing you at St. Hill for the 30th Anniversary of the IAS!
Sincerely,
Miriam Bright
Public Officer
Membership Office WUS
Ideal Orgs Booksales
Tony Ortega included this in his Sunday Funnies, but I have to note something else that struck me as odd (in addition to the idea that Denver is somehow booming and has “5Xed” raw public booksales — apparently from 1 a week to 5). What the hell does having an “ideal org building” have to do with “raw public booksales”? Is this a reflection of books sold to people walking into the magnificent palace? Or is it selling books to people out in the world? (Let’s not forget that the baseball season is almost over and so there won’t be any baseball parking or anyone at all around the org until Rockies home games start again next year).
What? No James Barbour?
Ideal Org PR Area Control
Pretty strange way to promote “ideal orgs” — a quote from the Ideal Orgs PL about PR area control and a bunch of pictures showing anti-drug marches? With the final message “Donate Now” Huh? To accomplish what?
But, how does that square with these quotes from English PR spokespuppet Graham Wilson that appeared in the Herald in Scotland:
Scientology boss: we want to help
A leading member of the Church of Scientology has denied that an anti-drugs campaign targeting Scottish cities is aimed at recruiting people.
The Sunday Herald approached Graeme Wilson, public affairs director for Scientology in the UK, as dozens of activists handed out booklets entitled The Truth About Drugs in the streets of Glasgow.
As we spoke, two people holding long-lens cameras circled us and flashbulbs went off in our faces. We were also filmed on a camcorder.
Wilson, who is originally from North Berwick, said: “We’re not promoting Scientology. If people ask, of course we’re happy to tell them where we’re resourced from, but the whole focus is drug education so it really doesn’t come up.” Hundreds of people in Glasgow and Edinburgh have been targeted by the Drug-Free World campaign.
Wilson added: “We distribute the booklets. We take them into shops. We visit community groups so that they can distribute them to their community, to their people. It’s going fantastically well. It has been very, very well received.”
The Church of Scientology was founded in the 1950s by the late science-fiction writer L Ron Hubbard. By 1966, he had set up his own drugs rehabilitation programme known as Narconon which is now a global network.
The controversial programme, which sees patients spending prolonged periods in saunas and taking high doses of vitamins, has been linked to several deaths in the United States.
Wilson said he would refer addicts in Scotland to Narconon, adding: “If somebody asked us if we know of any good rehabs we would definitely give them that as a referral.
“Any programme that is a drug-free rehab system is in our view a good one. The methadone approach is a road to nowhere.”
However, Wilson was also keen to distance Drug-Free World from Narconon. He said: “This campaign itself is funded by the International Association of Scientologists. It’s a fully secular campaign itself.
“There is another programme called Narconon. It has centres all over the world and it’s a drug rehab. But that’s not directly part of The Truth About Drugs.”
Hmm, one or the other of these things cannot be true (or maybe it’s both are untrue)?
More wack from the Freewinds:
The Freewinds is absolutely obsessed with money. And they go out and conduct seminars as the “experts” on how to deal with money yet they are utterly incapable of sustaining themselves even though they have an absolute monopoly on OT VIII and charge people a fortune for it…. Go figure.
The new Tone Scale App
Brought to an unsuspecting world by Sterling Management. I doubt this is going to hit the top 100 (or 100 million) most downloaded apps…
But it is interesting that while the church refuses to put “tech” on the internet available for anyone to access, some public scientologists are attempting to do so.
Cringe Corner
And what would a week of “funnies” be without something really cringeworthy. This will be hard to top. Ever.
A Special Correspondent sent this to me. It appears on the Delphi Academy Mass instagram account under the heading “Sea you in September.”
All I could think of when I saw it was this:
Maybe it is innocent and has nothing to do with the Sea Org. Pure coincidence. If so, are they really that blind to public perception?
Wonder how long it will stay up?
Me too, Jane. Many, many years ago I recall someone just walking INTO an org and experiencing relief from the environment due to the friendly atmosphere and lots of people willing to grant beingness. I still remember this person’s exact words: “I don’t know what this place is…..but I know I’ve found it! 🙂 ”
Unfortunately, today the opposite is happening. People are experiencing relief and case gain by walking OUT of the Church of Scientology.
But that’s OK. It’s all good. In the applied religious philosophy of Scientology any case gain is still case gain.
+1 Keep up the good work Espiritu!
Right on, Espiritu! Anything that raises tone level is valid therapy!
Mike, I just want to acknowledge that your blog has been and is VERY effectively in bringing the truth about the current state of the COS to light. You keep your postings coming, day in and day out, and they are very effective at reaching people still “In” who see all of the outpoints in their immediate areas. Your blog lets them put their own observations in perspective with a broader pictures of what is happening in the COS internationally. It lets them see that they are not the only ones who see what they see.
A couple of days ago, as a member of our local indie unofficial “underground railroad”, I helped someone get out of a snake pit of COS and RTC harassment, quietly cut comm with that whole suppressive scene and move into a safe environment. The relief that this person experienced was palpable and I just wanted to convey to you that your Blog was a key inspiration for this one person swearing off the cool aid. It was so nice to see the VVGIs that resulted and this being coming back to life. I am sure that there are many other similar events occurring all over the world. Keep up the good work. It is very much appreciated.
Thanks. Good to hear. It’s the only reason I keep going.
I second that Espiritu! And I want to thank you for helping an UTR escape from the cult. Way to go.
That’s so cool Espiritu. We got into Scn to free ourselves and others and we’re still on that task. Freedom of the tech itself, of thought, of our physical movement, of our communication, and of control over our lives with privacy, even the right to walk away, are still, at the core of my beliefs. +1!
Great post Mike.. just hilarious!! You should have to pay for coffee spit up on the screens of PCs…
Gawd, the “Autumn Gala” flyer looks exactly like the ones from 1986. Same glitzy bullshit and fonts. Different “stars.”
And WTF with Sherwood Ball? Ernie Jr. needs to pull his head out of his ass.
So…. you know how Saddam Hussein had body doubles in case of assassination? I think I know what Gavin’s future entails…. He just needs to poof his hair a little and lose about 30 pounds to get that lean fighting machine look DM is now sporting.
Chee, you were being sarcastic, right? Carefully coiffed, no hair out of place, spray tan, those dapper little suits, always photographed at the podium with the same staged-looking hand pose, (what’s up with that, anyway, does anyone know?) – honestly, anything less than a fighting machine would be hard to imagine. In fact, there’s something artificial about him, like he’s not quite – real.
Don’t forget the pasty orange fake tan Chee!
I suggest DM open his ecclesiastical barge at the Int base to the whales for future services. He can blow them 50 feet out of their heads.
I have the solution to ALL of the Fleecewinds’ (love that) problems, and then some.
Makemerich, listen up!
1) CEASE DELIVERY OF OTVIII ON THE SHIP. Get busy and find some Lost Tech where LRH states that what he really envisioned as re OTVIII delivery would best be done at a special building at Flag. Announce this with huge fanfare at the next New Years’ Event. Tell everyone that some SPs and Degraded Beings perverted the meaning of “Off the crossroads of the world” as meaning at sea and not on land but that that’s actually not true at all and if anyone ever did OTVIII and felt like they really didn’t get “Truth Revealed” they aren’t stupid, it wasn’t delivered correctly! Begin regging to buy or convert and refurbish this building which will correctly 100% standardly deliver OTVIII. Convince the current OTVIII public that a redo of their OTVIII will give them wins and gains beyond anything before even imagined on the whole track.
Create new Statuses to get everyone excited.
2) CONVERT THE SHIP INTO PURELY A LUXURY CRUISE LINER FOR YOU AND YOUR WHALES. Create an entire new set of Statuses for eligibility to even board the ship. Make it so that only the creme de la creme de la creme of donors to the IAS, Ideal Orgs etc will be worthy to relax and be entertained on this ship. Raise the bar to a whole new level for this worthiness. Make your whales salivate at the thought of being luxuriously pampered and love-bombed for a few days, in exchange for their 10 million dollars.being. Make them long for some time when they can hob nob with a celeb or two and kick back and relax with other Big Beings in an exclusive space where they can all agree on their Big Beingness and how they are all saving this sector of the universe from the dwindling spiral and another Dark Age. Beg or blackmail TC, JT, and your retinue of major and minor celebs to be on hand for these very short trips to meet, greet and socialize with your Whales. Renovate the ship; making the cabins much larger and far more luxurious. Start regging everyone immediately for the renovation; create new statuses to get everyone excited.
3) DIVERT A SMALL PORTION OFF THE TOP OF IAS DONATIONS TO RUN THE SHIP. Keep it in dry dock a lot. Only sail it for brief trips of 3 or 4 days and then only when huge donation targets are met. It is now purely a luxury ship, a status symbol. When once someone has been allowed on the ship present them with a unique newly created Commendation in the newly renovated Starlight Cabaret. Create fantastic names for these Commendations to get everyone excited.
4) THINK UP AN AMAZING NAME FOR THIS ENTIRE PLAN, PROMOTE IT CEASELESSLY AS THE SOLUTION TO PLANETARY SALVAGE, AND MAKE THE OT COMMITTEES RESPONSIBLE FOR IMPLEMENTING IT.
There it is, Makemerich. There may be a few wrinkles to be ironed out but here are the essentials.
Aquamarine,
You got an A + at the Learning Annex in David Miscavige 101 also I see.
You have done your homework.
I hope the Church folds.
Yesterday.
So Mr. Cave-In Potter is one busy guy – I love these Funnies, Mike.
“Money makes the world go ’round, that clinking clanking sound, it makes the world go ’round…”
Reading these just gave me a flash of a costumed Miscavige (as the Master of Ceremonies) and Lou (as Sally Bowles) performing that song together the way Joel Grey and Liza Minelli did in the movie “Cabaret”
…at the next IAS Event. Oh, if only! Look – Makemerich has the right height and slight build, and from a picture I saw of her Lou’s already got the Minelli/Sally Bowles haircut – the crowd would go wild with donations highest ever. Spirit of play!
You know a lot of these closing techniques are very outdated. Les Dane, Zig Zigler etc. Basically it’s what you can do to trick the person into buying what you have. All the different closing techniques are really based on you vs your potential customer. With the justification that it’s for their own good. Personally it’s a game I’d rather not play anymore. I used to work for a Scientology co. and we played this game religiously. (Is there a pun there)? Little tricks and scams to keep your foot in the door. Most “regular” folks are more than wise to this. Sorry, I don’t want to play anymore. Besides if you have a good product…..well you know what they say about mouse traps.
Mike, really important correction here — The character, Milton, in Office Space that buns the place down didn’t do it because of the boss making him work weekends. He did it because the boss stole his red Swingline stapler. Also because the management consultants (the Bobs) found out that Milton had been fired years before, but no one had told him and Accounting didn’t get notified to stop paying him. They just fixed the error and stopped his paycheck, still without telling him he’d been fired. I hope that helps. Also, Jennifer Aniston doesn’t want to talk about her flair.
“Looks like somebody’s got a case of The Mondays.”
Why not an Ideal Morgue – Freewinds – Fund Raiser? I usually charge a lot of $$$$ for my promotional ideas but this one, I offer – FREE – to Slappy. “Before the next OT level can be delivered, we must make the Freewinds Ideal…etc, etc etc.” Then you can make up some more bull sh-t and call it OT9. At least you still have a few sheepie coming and going on that old boat. Your current scam to get money – appears to be running out of steam.
That aside, and for the rest of us, go take a look inside your local orgs. New public into orgs is practically non-existent. Scientology has become so TOXIC that no raw public, in their right mind, will set foot in an org, Ideal or not. Occasionally, I sneak into one and take a look around…They really are like morgues! There is no one around except for a few gaunt looking staff!
I am also finding that getting second generation children into Scientology has become much more difficult, with all the information that is available to them. This is creating a situation where parents are forced to tell their kids, “OK, fine if you don’t want to do Scientology, but do not create any entheta for us and stay off the internet.” Whether that works or not, I have no clue.
Bobbo,
You are right about getting the second gens into Scn today. Especially if those kids were born in the 1990’s and 2000’s. They were born in the age of information and have grown up with computers, internet, cell phones, etc. I have kids in this age group and they know a lot about Scientology because they’ve read all about it. I find that if parents are ‘in’ then their kids won’t talk about what they’ve read on the internet with them and keep it quiet. An RCS parent would not tolerate kids reading Scientology blogs, etc. and would also have a pretty hard time with kids who do not want anything to do with Scientology either. As far as what or how it works, it depends on the family and individuals involved, so anything goes.
Mike seems to be building a better bridge over the communications gap.
The Freewinds death ship: I have always wondered where they get the money to purchase fuel oils, they simply don’t have enough paying customers left year after year, and the whales can’t be asked to pay for *everything*, after all.
There are other consumables that the ship uses as well, all of which are expensive. Nancy Cartwright can’t write a $5 million check every year to keep that thing moving, after all.
At some point the insane crooks are going to moor it at its final destination and shuttle what few customers they have left to an unmovable derelict, telling the dimwits that they’re taking a sea voyage and the dimwits will believe it.
The Freewinds is the last operational whaling ship in the Caribeean. It catches whales and renders their blubber into whale oil.
LOL!
+1
The oil is then sold as snake oil.
+1
I love Gavin Potters bullet points, “are you depending on only one source of income?’ Now comes the Ideal Second Job. Just to pay IAS statuses and to fill the new Ideal Zodiac boat for OT8’s.
More to the point…..
“are you depending on only one source for your eternity?”
May want to revisit that belief system before it buries you Gavin!!!!
Mike please take the time to watch Office Space sometime – trust me you’ll love it. 🙂
One of my favorite comedies. Mike Judd also did Idiocracy, which is also pertinent to CoS.
You mean Mike Judge, right? And Idiocracy is a terrific film. It’s my go-to reference whenever I get jaded about society.
Idiocracy is basically a cleaned-up version of The Marching Morons by Cyril Kornbluth.
Failwinds out of gas. LOL Surprised they don’t have a huge “Ass, Gas or Grass” sign hanging off the stern!
With all the Oatees on the ship why can’t they just mock up some money? Maybe they need to call the …..
POSTULATE GUILD
http://bowyersandfletchersguild.org/images/craft-guild.gif
Things are getting better and better on the Thursday Funnies- the “Stat of Laughing” is highest ever, straight up and vertical and it all just happened before Thursday 2pm. VWD and a Special Commendation is on its way for you Mike for your high productive blog. Thank you.
Lets keep smiling, lets keep this blog going.
Mike,
When I was the Say No To Drugs In Charge for Birmingham UK, Graeme Wilson came up from St.Hill to hat me on what to do. We cleaned up a needle strewn allyway, along with the Drug Free Kids. We then had the children hand out drug free literature and we personally met with the local business manager and shop keepers to inform them of our cause.
I was also interested in helping the homeless- the majority of the needles in the city that we were cleaning up were due to them. I brought up the idea of having a soup and blanket rally on the really cold evenings for the homeless but Graeme Wilson batted that idea down saying that some people may disagree with helping the homeless and it was controversial but nobody could disagree with children against drugs.
The Church is only interested in gaining acceptance and getting good PR not in effecting a change in the world or REALLY helping people.
So true! Just the same as the stated intention of clearing the planet yet setting “donation” rates high enough out of reach for most. IT’S ALL ABOUT THE MONEY.
Nyuck,Nyuck ,Nyuck, the Freewind’s out of GAS and Gavin Potter
is fixing that , next thing you will hear is that the Pope in Vatican has made Adolf Hitler a SAINT. The Freewinds s a floating ATM for David Miscavige, it does not need to go anywhere and it has cash reserves to purchase a nuclear powered ship to replace
it, even a submarine!!!. The money I gave the Freewind’s for tons of services and
they pretended as if they were going to deliver then bailed at the last moment.
What a joke, out of gas ! They don’t deliver anything except if you are David Miscavige
making a withdrawal from an offshore bank account for Heaven knows what.
Hell, turn that rust bucket into a permanently anchored Casino / Brothel, a least the
Sea Org will be making an HONEST LIVING then!!!!
I think “out of gas” might be the perfect metaphor Jose, especially since it was all hot air to begin with!
I was told Delphi has a recruitment office on the the premises.
It was bad enough when they were on the parking lot !
Marie, isn’t that a given? I always thought that ANY scientology school was set up to recruit the kids into the SO. We all know that there’s no formal education going on. With membership sliding off the face of the Earth, they really need to indoctrinate these poor kids early.
Yep. They are already off purpose, “making” money instead of auditing people, so a school that has no intention to educate is perfect. The compulsive lying continues on and on.
You summed up the last days of the scientology reckoning succinctly: Strange Shit
Delphi – grooming children for a life of servitude.
Chilling, but true. Those poor kids don’t realize what they’re in for.
Cavin Potter and Miscavige look like twins separated at birth….same hair, same jawline, same predatory look in the eyes….
Almost as creepy as the kiddies in future SEA ORG hats doing their salutes….( but I must admit, the comparison with the Hitler youth sending up their Nazi Salutes was very creepy too)
“Cavin Potter and Miscavige look like twins separated at birth….same hair, same jawline, same predatory look in the eyes….”
and same asshole.
same bafoonery
How come this guy Gavin is wearing stripes on his shoulders, he’s not S.O.?
Greta
I thought the mission in Sunland was closed? And what does Denver have to do with the UK? I see I’m getting out of touch with the bubble… better reconnect to the mother ship.
That picture of the kids saluting gave me a real chill down my spine. Nazi youth blitzkrieg here we come. And I have had enough interaction with the new breed of young SO members coming off the line. Utterly bereft of any ARC or compassion – chrome hard steel. No quarter given.
As for the rest, blah blah and more blah. All of it over the top, all of it delusional and all of it mega information overload. And the same “catch phrases” time and again.
Delusion knows no bounds.
BP,
Makes one wonder if the SO is connected to ISIS on back channels?
+1
Well, they’re definitely a terrorist group.
Hell, Coop, I’m pretty sure the Volunteer Vultures are already over there talking with ISIS. I mean, c’mon, they both have the same battle plans in place: Destroy & Discard.
If they can get the Nation of Islam sucked in, how hard can it be for them to rope in ISIS?
Seems I recall some tie to the Nation of Islam ……….. hmmmmmmmmmm
Yo Dave,
Where are you headed with this. Any plans for an ideal morgue in Mosul?
I just checked Delphi’s Instagram account and the mini sailors are still there. This definitely is a nod to the Sea Org. Many of Delphi’s graduates enter the Sea Org within a year of graduation, if they even make it to graduation. One of the public ‘rumors’ about Delphi is that it was started to make future Sea Org members. I don’t know if that’s actually true but I do know kids who were recruited AT Delphi Oregon and on Delphi LA school premises for the Sea Org. I’ve seen it myself.
“A whole new world awaits you” at Flag. Sure it does. A world where you are spied on in your hotel room, yelled at in the org (sometimes by the receptionist!), screamed at by an IAS reg as he points to the picture of LRH on the wall, given endless progress programs and sec checks to use up all your auditing hours so you have to buy more…. What a wonderful world that one is.
I saw that too Pepper. Delphi and the other Scn schools in LA had that hidden agenda that the kids were headed for the SO. Forcing kids into a single purpose line is truly suppressive. Recruiters were crawling all over the place for awhile, until a brave woman who was running Pinewood Academy pointed out, that what they were doing was illegal. Sorry, I don’t remember her name. She was of course, drawn and quartered for having the audacity to protect the children’s rights. One of my little friends used to hide in the bushes waiting to be picked up. What an unsafe space! Delphi was particularly bad at rowdy kids or dreamers because they didn’t lockstep. I had one of each so I knew it would be a disaster and went public. Also, Scn schools had very few high school students, they really dwindled off. Adolescents were obviously not being addressed or their needs met. That was a danger point where teens wanted to bust out of their parents control and tired parent would say, fuck it, let the SO deal with them. The public school had so much better understanding of what the teens were going through. In addition to a full spectrum of academics, they had all sorts of things to offset their arrogance/immaturity like sports, community service, political activism, debate and arts. The professional and caring way they went about it was truly impressive and in stark contrast to the child neglect and abandonment that I’ve seen in the SO.
Hallie Jane – that brave woman running Pinewood Academy is Rose Hogg. She’s a great person. She was on OT7 and then got off and never went back. I wonder why. Her son Robert Hogg joined the SO (as an adult) and was in the landlord’s office in Hollywood. Rose thinks he may have designed some of the machines for Super Power but you know, it’s all a big secret. He stayed in for about 5 years or so and left and went back to his high-tech job at JPL-NASA in La Canada. Good for him!
Hallie Jane – good for you for putting your kids into public school because they weren’t lock-steppers. I also have a few rowdy kids so I know what that’s like.
One time I asked an administrator at Delphi if they allowed Sea Org recruiters on school premises for recruiting and her answer to me was “Well, we can’t stop them”. I questioned her Why not, shouldn’t a school have control over who enters the property and interacts with the students? She was offended that I said that and gave me a look.
Regarding teens wanting to exit parental control, the S.O. recruiters take advantage of that. One of my kids had her best friend join at 14-15 and then they came after my daughter. These vultures actually told my daughter that after 10pm they drink beer and have dance parties. I know this sounds unbelievable but my daughter came to us with this news. When she told her father and I this, we flat out told her that was a lie. Her dad told her that he would take her to the org at night, so she could see for herself what was really happening after 10pm. He made it clear to her that they are doing nothing but WORKING. We also told her that underage drinking is against the law, so did she really think that could be true? She believed us and dropped it. Recruiters will tell kids anything to get them in the S.O. They lie like rugs. Sick.
It’s been long known in LA that the Delphi LA is a recruiting ground for the SO. The recruiters come on campus regularly and some of the teachers/execs such as Missy Sleigh (one of the Henderson family) don’t even push the idea of college to her high school students and she takes a personal win when any of them join the SO. When my own kids were in HS, they attended a party and when I picked them up, I saw several recruiters from Flag, dressed in civvies. I asked them what they were doing there? They said recruiting. So now they even infiltrate kids’ parties. Shameless!
I thought the picture with the Delphi kids in “Sea Org” uniforms very disturbing. The head of upper school, Missy Schlaich, ex-Sea Org, has five children, four of them went into the SO, none of them ever graduated Delphi. I don’t know about her youngest daughter though and one of her daughters got pregnant and is out again.
Missy’s highest goal is to get “her” students to drop school and join the “force”. She is a SO recruiter paid by the school. I was a Middle school supervisor for four years there and both my daughters went to Delphi and had their experiences with this.
Thanks for the data Sabine. I am sooooo glad your kids didn’t join SO.
Oh, forgot to mention: I had not heard that they were regging people to pay for fuel on the Freewinds. That speaks to almost total collapse of the business (which I had been forecasting in published comments on my blog and on Tony’s site for some time). The boat is long since paid off and the crew costs nothing — those are the two biggest expenses for normal ship operators. Fuel comes third after those two. So if they can’t buy fuel for the ol’ rust bucket, that means that they are probably only getting a couple hundred people a year to come to the ship, and I’m sure most of those are non-US folks doing the “Competency & Leadership” course (i.e., providing free maintenance labor in the guise of a training program) rather than doing OT VIII or anything serious.
Mike, do you have any more details such as flyers or e-mails about the regging for fuel costs?
JPC, The old Fleecewinds was built in 1968 and discarded by legitimate operators 18 years later. We can speculate if it was an economic decision based either on operating cost ratios or realization of the asbestos liability. None the less, its 46 years old! Its a cantankerous antique!
Even with minimal crew labor costs, maintenance costs must be straight up and vertical, with availability of parts for obsolete equipment being a major factor. Even when welded to the pier, stuff breaks. You have to believe that major maintenance is continually ‘deferred’ and band-aid fixes are the norm. Someday, even the Panamanian authorities will deny continued license, maybe when her bottom falls out.
Harbor fees, ship husbandry support, routine consumables and the like are probably pretty steep. It must be one of those seaorg ‘now, now, now’ nightmares when the thing actually has to power up and move, with long-idle equipment failing to start, etc. Since she barely ever gets underway, and rarely goes far, fuel costs are probably not a huge percentage of the cost of ownership. Begging for gas money is, however, an indicator. The number of sheep going there, regardless of the amount they get squeezed for, cannot possibly cover the nut (a couple of mil/year, easy) for that bucket.
If the cult survives that long, they will eventually be forced to scrap it. If they keep up the farce about oatee8 delivery at sea, that means they’ll need to replace it. That may not fit miscavige’s real estate retirement plan, but would be a dandy new fundraising campaign.
I’m just waiting for the fundraising to start for a new “Ideal Ship”.
If all that a ship is truly needed for is oatee8, they don’t need to replace it with a ship of quite that size. They could use something more like this (donkey not included):
http://www.hilariousheadlines.com/wp-content/uploads/2010/01/funny-boat-picture.jpg
Thanks John P. for your info on the above.
I, too, would like to know, Mike, if you have any more details on the “regging for fuel” for the Freewinds.
I wonder when they will “temporarily” dry dock the ol’ rust bucket and move all services that were provided on the ship to land (Flag).
McCarren, I do believe the Fleece Winds is also regging for toilet paper.
JPC,
Based on your crystal ball (gut feeling) and analysis techniques, how far out on the current timeline is Global Capital’s opportunity to put a fork in Miscavige’s real estate portfolio?
As you know, the CoS cash flow is one way–UP! Forcing the crew to reg for fuel (even if organizationally it can be paid) is Dave’s way of giving them the problem of making even more money on their own (‘playing the piano’). Besides, the bucket of bolts isn’t really seaworthy anyway.
Hi JPC – my husband was regged for fuel for the Freewinds during his last trip to Flag within the past year. Yes, by an executive in full military regalia no less. He was told that the cost to sail is $70,000 per week. My husband told me that the exec was desperate and was begging for “a flow” towards his future services but that the real need was for fuel so the Freewinds can travel per the words of the executive.
Now I ask you, what do you think would have happened if it was the other way around and my husband pulled one of these on the execs at Flag? As in he dressed up in his best suit and tie and asked for a flow towards our property tax payment, or some such thing. Oh, he would be held up there at Flag while his folder gets reprogrammed for a nice long progress program for “resistive cases” and maybe a sec check too!
I’m going to go out on a limb here and guess that maybe the $$ raised from begging for fuel dollars is perhaps ‘diverted’ for other uses.
The Freewinds Crippled and Adrift in the Ocean!
http://otviiiisgrrr8.com/2014/09/05/the-freewinds-crippled-and-adrift-in-the-ocean/
We in Global Capitalism HQ know quite a few Silicon Valley legends. That’s because we’ve financed most of them. Apple Computer? We own that one. Microsoft? That was us. Facebook & Google? Ours, too. Intel? Back in the day…
So when I saw the ad featuring “Silicon Valley Legend” Bob Twaalfhoven, I was quite surprised never to have heard of the guy since I have encyclopedic knowledge of most of the executive suites in the home of high tech. Took me a few seconds with The Google to figure out the guy’s background.
Apparently, he used to run a small CNC software company called BobCAD (how modestly named!) which doesn’t appear to be in business any longer. Apparently he’s now involved in some D-list auto enthusiast web site as his main occupation. BobCAD, unsurprisingly, employed mostly Scientologists and seems to have acquired the typical reputation among its prospective customer base for sleazy business dealings. Not exactly what I, who have met extensively with REAL Silicon Valley legends would consider the sort of success that would put him in the techno-geek Hall of Fame.
John,
Well he doesn’t exactly look like an over the top guy in the photo either. More like “I’ve been beat down by those stinkin regges and now they still want more ….. bastards!”
Yo Julian,
Perhaps a couple of intensives of sec checking would be in order for Robert. You know, get his crimes exposed and cleaned up so your MAAs can mold him into a proper shape for Teddy Braggin to conduct a ‘Doncha feel better now fleecing’ extravaganza!
Then maybe you have heard of Reed Slatkin? A true Silicon Valley Legend…though maybe not in the way you are used to hearing the word ‘legend’ used!
Mike – the SO kids pic was posted on the SP’s r US facebook page awhile back and I posted a very similar pic as yours in my response to it 🙂 Thnx for the Thurs funnies. You could take the Pepsi challenge up against Tony’s Sunday funnies any day!
About the new OTIII and Bob’s secret to helping make 12 Ideal orgs and move up the Bridge, that’s a no brainer. Just take the commissions you get on crush regging suckers and promptly hand it over to the “church” to move up the Bridge, duh! Earning commissions off collecting donations, sickening.
Yes it does take a monumental step to fork over
one’s hard earned cash to a group who could care
less about YOU.
So Gavin Potter gives his “say no to maybes” seminar at the Sunland Mission – and it immediately closes! Hmmm – guess someone WAS applying what they learned!
They should call it “The Fleece Resurgence Rundown.”
Just another day in the Vulture Culture.
Invitations, you say, Miriam?
That’s grand!
UK-SPs Inc (a wholly owned subsidiarity of AstraGlaxoSmithZeneca) accept your kind invitation, and will be happy to attend as soon as you can confirm dates.
So, the IAS event will be moved back to the UK, Wonder what happens with the tent in Clearwater now (if it’s still there)? Another exciting voyage across the Atlantic?
The tent was shipped back to the UK once the events were done in Clearwater.
We should be hearing about the ‘over the top’ stat generated by ‘the tent’ which has traveled a never before equaled 278,546 miles in the pursuit of total freedum!
Yo Dave,
Better start thinking about getting a few more miles on your tent. You will need to move it to Ukraine to set up an IAS distribution center for TWTH booklets. Last I heard when the Berlin wall came down was that your OT VIIIs on the maiden Voyage caused it to happen. You are slippin dude ………….. better get them and your new Cause Resurgence guys over to the Black Sea and save the day. Maybe your team can turn it white and put a smile on it’s face.
I know! As my twelve year old daughter would say this is – like – the best news EVER! I so missed the fun and frivolity last year.