Anyone else notice this interesting tidbit? "Lisa Mansell, the Public Affairs Director for the Church of Scientology, welcomed attendees and talked about the work that the Church and its parishioners have done...." So Lisa is head of OSA PR Flag if that statement is correct.
There's a related post here: https://whyweprotest.net/threads/alex-gibney-going-clear.121403/page-39#post-2556450 New 'Going Clear' Dropped from Florida Theater After Pressure from Church | The Hollywood Reporter A movie theater in Clearwater, Florida — home of the world spiritual headquarters of the Church of Scientology — has dropped plans to play Alex Gibney's documentary Going Clear: Scientology and the Prison of Belief after being pressured by the church, sources tell The Hollywood Reporter.
That used to be Pat Harney's title. http://www.sptimes.com/2004/07/18/clearwatergallery/page6.shtml Since Peter Mansell is head of Office of Special Affairs FSO, it'll give them something to talk about.
I thought Petey was seen walking around with Sea Orgers in a kinda recent vid? Was it Xanders? Does he still have that position?
All Flag execs and staff should be Sea Org. For 2015, he was dumped from the board of directors of Church of Scientology Flag Service Organization, Inc. I don't know if that means anything internally, but he might be in the doghouse for now.
More of the cult's craziness in Clearwater is mentioned in this article about the Washburn Academy. Money Drilling At Washburn Academy | Sec Check Washburn Academy is a Scientology-operated school in Clearwater, Florida. Students there recently took part in a “money drill” in which thousands of dollars were thrown up in the air, and students rolled around on the floor, covering themselves in money. The money drill is intended to get one’s “havingness” on money up – so you can “have” more money. The students will now be better prepared to earn and donate money to Scientology as adults. Our sources say this is a common drill, although the rolling around in money at Washburn is more intense than they have seen and experienced elsewhere in Scientology. Continued here, with more photos depicting depraved, dysfunctional douchebaggery: https://seccheck.wordpress.com/2015/10/14/money-drilling-at-washburn-academy/
Sounds like an exaggerated variant of Hubbard's "money havingness drills" that Flag Banking Officers, Treasury Secretaries, and Registrars would very infrequently do by taking wads of money and throw it in the air, pretending to "waste it". Hubbard believed that if you can waste something, then you can have it. I agree it's nuts.
Those photos and that "lesson" are so disgusting. Just when I think I've seen it all from scientology.
Inside the secretive 'Super Powers' building: Pictures emerge of Scientology's $145million 'spiritual headquarters' in Florida Photographs have emerged of the Church of Scientology's multi-million dollar 'spiritual headquarters' in Florida The Flag Building is a massive seven-story, 377,000-square-foot complex which opened in November 2013 It's home to the Super Power program which was designed by the religion's founder L Ron Hubbard in the 1970s Followers believe the method - which uses a 'wall of smells' and a 'gyroscope' - will grant them special abilities The building also features an office for deceased Hubbard, indoor running track and a 'Purification Program' Take a look inside the Church of Scientology's 'spiritual headquarters' in Florida after detailed photographs have emerged of the $145million behemoth. The Flag Building, also known as the Super Powers building, is a massive seven-story, 377,000-square-foot complex which was the tallest building in Clearwater when it opened in November 2013. Now new pictures have emerged which give an insight into the notoriously secretive organization and their headquarters which is regularly frequented by Scientologist celebrities such as Tom Cruise and John Travolta. The jewel in the crown of the property is the fifth floor Super Powers program where church followers are charged thousands of dollars for courses which they believe will give them special abilities. <snipped> Emmy-award winning film director Mark Bunker, a Scientology critic for the last fifteen years, said the Flag's main attraction for followers was its super powers program, which they believe would really give them special powers. 'The Super Powers building is this center for people who do the Super Power Rundowns, these are a series of routines which are meant to give you super human powers,' he told Daily Mail Online. 'There are things like the wall of smells, which has 47 different smells, where you can open up a scent jar and perceive one scent from another. There's a thing called the oiliness table. 'They also have some sort of gyroscope device that you get spun around everywhere and still be able to orientate yourself. They have an entire floor made up of a running track with a pole in the middle of it, where you pay for the right to run in a circle for hours until you have a certain cognition or realization of what you've done wrong. 'It's astonishing the things they do, which people have to pay for.' <snipped> An analysis by the Tampa Bay Times discovered that the church had raised $145million for the building, much higher than the $100million it was estimated to cost. Former Scientologist couple Rocio and Luis Garcia of Irvine, California contributed more than $340,000 to the construction of the Super Power building, before ultimately suing the church in federal court for dragging out the project 'as a shill'. Church representatives have described the Garcia's suit as 'frivolous'. The Super Powers building now stands as the crown in 'Scientologyville' - an area of downtown Florida which has been taken over by the group in the last forty years which now owns dozens of buildings worth well in excess of half a billion dollars. Founder L. Ron Hubbard arrived in the town in 1975 to begin 'Project Normandy', the code name for a top secret Church of Scientology operation to take over the city. Two years later, an FBI raid found documents which stated the group's aim 'to penetrate and handle in order to establish area control.' The document goes on to say its 'Major Target' is 'To fully investigate the Clearwater city and county area so we can distinguish our friends from our enemies and handle as needed.' Bunker explained: 'They came into town and paid cash for two buildings - the old Clearwater Bank Building and Fort Harrison Hotel. At first people were excited that some religious order was coming in and sprucing up the area and hotel. 'Scientologists were meant to get themselves in every job and function in the city - from the police to newspapers to council - and leverage power. It eventually led to the arrest and conviction of the top ten people in Scientology including Hubbard's wife Mary. Hubbard himself escaped arrest and went into hiding for the last ten years of his life in the desert.' Today, local politicians, police and residents have long given up fighting Scientology. Now the central city is mostly deserted apart from thousands of uniformed Sea Org members - the ultra devoted members of Scientology who have signed one-billion year contracts that bind themselves to to the Church. According to local newspaper the St Petersburg Times, the Church owns 67 buildings over ten square miles, which includes motels, training centers, offices for 'Special Affairs' and 'religious retreats' for visiting Scientologists, who often pay upwards of $100,000 each for its services. The church has denied that there are fixed fees, adding that 'Donations requested for 'courses' at Church of Scientology begin at $50 and could never possibly reach the amount suggested.' The Scientologists even own a working mill, which makes all the furniture and equipment used in their offices. Ex-Scientologist Mike Rinder said Clearwater had always been a focus for Scientologists since Hubbard first descended on the town. Rinder served on the Church's Board of Directors and was executive director of its office of special affairs, overseeing the corporate, legal and public relations matters of the Church at the international level. But he defected in 2007 and is now considered a 'Suppressive Person'. He left his mother, father, wife and two kids to flee from the Church and is an outspoken critic. 'Clearwater should have a prosperous, flourishing downtown, but instead it's the dead zone. People steer clear of it because it's Zombie Land. The generally impression of Scientology to them is sinister and secretive and they don't want to go anywhere near it. Most of them are too afraid to say anything critical as they fear repercussions.' He claims that while 'hundreds of millions of dollars go through Clearwater each year', many members are crammed into rooms of six, separated from their wives or husbands and forced to work over a hundred hours a week for less than $50 a month. 'The Sea Org in Clearwater live in a controlled environment. They live for the Church full-time. Many live in a compound called Hacienda Gardens,' says Rinder. 'It looks okay from the outside, but then you see it's a fortress. There may be a basketball court and swimming pool on campus but it'll be the most underused in Florida, as everyone is working. If you are allowed a car, you'll only be allowed to travel from the campus to another Scientology building. If you get stuck in traffic, they'll be on the lookout for you.' The full article, which includes more than 30 photos and open comments, is here: http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/art...s-massive-spiritual-headquarters-Florida.html
Two years after Scientology’s ‘Super Power’ debuted, it’s still a flop By Tony Ortega, The Underground Bunker, October 20, 2015 The Telegraph yesterday posted a number of photos from inside the “new” Scientology Flag Building in Clearwater, which actually opened a couple of years ago. (This isn’t even the first time we’ve seen actual photos from inside the building, which we brought you in 2013.) The occasion, the newspaper said, was that the photos had been released by “Vantage News,” which is a PR firm in England. So, in other words, this was the latest “look upon our works, and despair” moment from Scientology leader David Miscavige. But the release of these photos from inside the “Super Power” building only reminded us of how we kept a close eye on this overblown funhouse years before it actually opened. And it also gave us an opportunity to reflect on what little impact the place has had after such a long buildup. Super Power, in fact, turned out to be a Super Dud. And with so much bad news happening for the church, it’s interesting to see Miscavige try to get some publicity out of a place the public can never enter. If you’re not sure what we’re talking about, we’re referring to a massive, city-block sized building in Clearwater that Scientology finally opened in November 2013 after first breaking ground fifteen years earlier, in 1998. The building cost something like $80 million to construct, but Mike Rinder and other former church officials say the project raised as much as $200 million or more as it became another cash cow, one of many different initiatives church members were pressured to donate to over the years. And for what, exactly? Scientology has referred to the structure as a modern-day “cathedral,” but that’s not really accurate. This place offers no sanctuary even to most members of Scientology. Only some members qualify to go through the “Super Power Rundown,” which was actually developed by L. Ron Hubbard in the 1970s to perk up flagging staff members who were fatigued by long hours. The rundown is intended to help a Scientologist hone his or her “theta perceptics” — the 57 senses that the thetan uses which are separate and superior to the senses used by a thetan’s meat body. But Hubbard’s successor, David Miscavige, turned what was a set of different exercises (“rundowns”) intended to help revive staff members and instead turned it into a culminating experience for the non-staff but high-ranking (and wealthy) Scientologists. And it wouldn’t be cheap. Last year, former spokesman Mike Rinder, who keeps an eye on Scientology’s fliers and emails and other sources to keep track of what’s happening in the Flag Building, totaled up what a visit there costs: So, if you buy 6 intensives upfront and then add the mandatory surchage of $5,000 for the “perceptic drills” (which cost nothing to deliver other than some people in “special uniforms” who “supervise”) you are shelling out $32,200, without including accommodations, meals, and mandatory contributions to the IAS/Ideal Orgs/L. Ron Hubbard Hall and Planetary Dissemination campaigns. And what do you get for that $32,200? In 2012, we were the first to publish a complete set of renderings of what the Super Power building would look like, from its basement Sea Org mess hall to David Miscavige’s offices on the seventh floor. We also revealed the actual content of one of the Super Power “rundowns.” It involves an auditor asking a subject over and over again the same question. That question? “Where would you be safe?” Yes, for tens of thousands of dollars, you get to hold the sensors of an e-meter and answer, hundreds of times, the question “Where would you be safe?” until you finally realize that you are “in present time.” In other words, young Buckaroo Banzai, you are where you are, and you are in that moment. What a bargain. And again, only some Scientologists even qualify to pay these prices and step foot in the building. Last year, Rinder cited Scientology’s own records to show that only about 15 people were going through the process each week, even though it had been built to accommodate hundreds at a time. Continued here: http://tonyortega.org/2015/10/20/two-years-after-scientologys-super-power-debuted-its-still-a-flop/
The scientology "suggested donations" are, in fact, fixed fees and are never even negotiable. This statement stems from my own experience with scientology regges and what I observed over several decades of being involved with that cult.
Inside the new Scientology headquarters in Florida, in pictures | Telegraph http://www.telegraph.co.uk/news/pic...logy-headquarters-in-Florida-in-pictures.html A Look Inside Scientology’s Colossal High Tech Headquarters | World Religion News http://www.worldreligionnews.com/re...-scientologys-colossal-high-tech-headquarters
Pic 4 in the Telegraph showing it lit up emphasises what a vulgar monstrosity the place is. Bills for electricity alone must be colossal, all of it is a vain extravagant waste.
Tampa Bay Times writer Daniel Ruth mentioned the cult today in an editorial pointing out some of the challenges that Florida is facing. Ruth: Bribing companies not the way to bring jobs to Florida | Tampa Bay Times Last five paragraphs: Public safety? Oh boy! Florida is awash in guns. The state has issued at least 1.3 million concealed carry permits. The Florida Legislature is little more than a dancing organ grinder monkey doing the bidding of the National Rifle Association, and it looks entirely possible that pretty soon our universities will start to look like Deadwood once Tallahassee approves concealed weapons on campus and the open carry of weapons everywhere. Tolerance? Let's say 10 percent of the jobs the CEO is planning to relocate represent nonwhites. The CEO decides to take a tour of the state and as the executive drives into Tampa from Orlando what is the first thing he or she sees? A giant, honking, massive Confederate flag fluttering at the junction of I-4 and I-75, advertising for all the world to see that one is now entering redneck, yahoo, racist Gooberville. Miscellaneous? There are Floridians who keep cobras for pets. George Zimmerman calls Florida home. The Church of Scientology has its spiritual headquarters in Clearwater. Florida leads the nation in identity theft. Florida leads the nation in weird, from hanging chad to Duke Energy charging customers for a nuclear reactor that will never be built, to the election of a governor who ran a company that later paid a record fine for Medicare fraud. Three final words: stand your ground. Yet Bill Johnson can't figure why it's so hard to persuade corporations to create jobs in Florida? And now Scott wants to sweeten the Enterprise Florida slush fund by adding $250 million to the pot, on top of the $142 million the state has been unable to spend because the promised jobs aren't here? We're not known as Flori-Duh for nothing. http://www.tampabay.com/opinion/col...-not-the-way-to-bring-jobs-to-florida/2251020
Ask the Locals: Clearwater Mayor George Cretekos | Creative Loafing Tampa Here's the relevant excerpt: There’s that big church: “There are people who don’t want to come into downtown because of the Church of Scientology. But I can also tell you people in COS live in Clearwater and care about this city as much as anybody — and the church is one of the city’s biggest taxpayers.” http://cltampa.com/dailyloaf/archives/2015/10/29/ask-the-locals-clearwater-mayor-george-cretekos
Here’s your chance to meet the Sea Org at Scientology’s open house next week | The Underground Bunker Quote: ...we wanted you to know that Scientology is having an open house! Yes, a week from today, our friends in Clearwater, Florida have the opportunity to visit the fastest growing church in the world to see how they do it. And even better, the event will be held in that new little Potemkin village of storefronts that church leader David Miscavige had opened along Fort Harrison Avenue recently. Here’s the full announcement, as it was posted in the little local Clearwater Beacon: Scientology center to host open house CLEARWATER — The Scientology Public Information Center will host an open house from 5 to 10 p.m. on Jan. 29 as a part of Blast Friday activities on Cleveland Street in downtown Clearwater. The Scientology Information Center, located at 500 Cleveland St., will invite guests to peruse audio-visio and informational displays in the center and sample a variety of festival-style refreshments. The center is housed in the lobby of the historic Clearwater Building. It is open for residents and visitors to learn about basic Scientology concepts. The center includes a full biographical display of the life and legacy of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology’s founder. The center hosts a variety of receptions for local groups and organizations. It is open to the general public from 10 a.m. to 10 p.m. daily for tours, and makes its conference room available to social, civic and nonprofit groups. For more information, please contact Amber Skjelset at 467-6966 or by email at amber@cos.flag.org Audio-visio — cute. Now, assuming the readers of the Underground Bunker are considered welcome public at this event — and were on their best behavior (which we must insist on) — what sorts of questions might it be most fun to ask at such an event? Let’s keep it friendly, but fun. What sorts of questions would elicit the most fruitful responses? Source and comments: http://tonyortega.org/2016/01/22/he...sea-org-at-scientologys-open-house-next-week/
Florida Legislature Votes to Gut Sunshine Law; Bill Would End Open Records Access Advocacy By Grant Stern, PINAC Quote: Florida’s famous Sunshine Law is under attack in the state legislature today as a state House Committee has already voted to eliminate the provision that guarantees government agencies must pay citizens’ attorney fees when public records are illegally withheld. Its companion measure, Florida State Senate Bill 1220, passed in committee today with a 3-0 vote and two abstentions. Hialeah Senator Rene Garcia proposed the Senate Bill, and maintains offices in both his district – which can be reached by phone at (305) 364-3100 to leave comment -and another office in Florida’s capitol of Tallahassee which can be reached at (850) 487-5038 while the legislature is in session as it is right now. Emails to the legislature can be sent through Garcia’s official page of office as well. Please call him and ask him what he has to hide. The senator’s proposed changes make awarding attorney fees discretionary for judges when plaintiffs prevail in public records lawsuits that prove that government agencies have violated the law. Today, judges must order the state and its covered agencies to reimburse citizens’ attorney fees mandatorily, and this acts as the only enforcement mechanism to keep Florida’s government agencies, school districts, cities, counties, tax districts and town honest about responding to public records requests and providing citizens with the records created at taxpayer expense. Garcia’s proposed bill 1220 would give judicial discretion to award attorneys fees to Florida citizens who’ve had their civil rights violated under the State Constitution’s much ballyhooed “Sunshine Law”, which is Article 24 of its Declaration of Rights also known as Article I. “This is without a doubt the worst attack I’ve ever seen on open government in Florida,” said Florida open government activist Joel Chandler, “If it passes, it’s going to be a train wreck.” “The “shall pay” provision in the Sunshine Law saves taxpayers money in a few distinctly important ways,” says Chandler, whose Sunshine Law advocacy includes lawsuits which he pursues pro se (without a lawyer), “First, it greatly incentivizes agencies to settle public records actions, rather than going the distance. “Second, it limits the amount of fees these cities and agencies spend on outside counsel defending these actions. Also there’s an immeasurable value to the possibility of official misconduct being discovered, which acts as a check on government abuses.” Chandler says that he will only settle with a government agency that agrees to ensure future compliance with the Sunshine Law as part of its terms, including remedial training and/or to place and maintain a printed copy of the Florida Attorney General’s Government in the Sunshine Manual (free download) in the publicly accessible areas of their government offices. “Keeping the Sunshine Manual available is intended to avoid future litigation,” said Chandler, “so that if I or anyone were to show up in the future and have a dispute about the Sunshine Law, the reference is right there for our public servants to use.” Additionally, changes proposed in Garcia’s bill would force citizens to put their governments on further notice of non-compliance and crucially, the changes would require citizens to list all documents for which they wish to sue and deliver those formal notices five days before the lawsuit. Continued here: https://photographyisnotacrime.com/...shine-law-bill-would-end-open-records-access/
Here's a new press release from the cult. Scientology Information Center Hosts Its First Business Reception for 2016 On February 3rd, 2016 the first Business Reception for 2016 was held at the Scientology Information Center located in downtown Clearwater. Individuals from dental and chiropractic offices, title clearing firms, promotion and marketing companies and independent members of businesses got together to network and expand their professional contacts and learn more about the basics of Scientology. “Most businesses and business owners know that networking can be crucial to its expansion,” stated Amber Skjelset, Manager of the Scientology Information Center, “We like to give the local community a hand in doing that by providing a forum where meaningful business connections can take place.” Following the event, the attendees toured the six humanitarian centers giving them an overview of the programs available to the community. These centers also provide solutions to the common problems faced in the workplace. These include: drug prevention education, handling immorality, and fair/equal treatment (human rights). The attendees received complementary information from these centers allowing them to learn more about the programs, as well as the “Problems of Work” DVD which provides solutions to stress, exhaustion, and how to achieve success at work. The Scientology Information Center, and the Church sponsored humanitarian program centers, were opened on July 11th 2015. The Information Center has 4 interactive audio/visual displays which contain over 300 videos covering beliefs and practices of Scientology, interviews of Scientologists from various professions and walks of life, what is inside a Church of Scientology, and a brief overview of the life and legacy of Mr. L. Ron Hubbard, its founder. All of the centers are open daily, 10am-10pm The Information Center has hosted a number of receptions for other groups from the community. It also makes available its conference room for local, civic, social, and non-profit groups in the community. “All members of the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce and all Tampa-Bay businesses and individuals are welcome. We plan to make this a monthly tradition where more and more favorable local connections can be made," stated Skjelset. The future Business Networking events will be held the 2nd Wednesday of every month. Upcoming dates are: March 9th and April 6th. For more information, please contact Amber Skjelset, the Center’s Manager... Continued here: http://www.pr.com/press-release/657771
You were involved for several decades? I feel humbled thinking of how bad your experiences as a scientologist must have been. Good health man, and long may you enjoy it and your freedom too.
Here's another cult press release. Quote: Local High-School Class Visits the Scientology Information Center On Friday, February 19th, twenty-five students from a local private school visited the Scientology Information Center to learn more about Scientology. Clearwater, FL, February 25, 2016 -- While the Scientology Information Center has hosted close to 7,000 visitors including those from various schools for religious studies classes since opening on July 11th 2015, this was its first high-school class visit. The students watched videos covering, “Inside of a Church of Scientology”, “The Eight-Dynamics (parts of life)” and the meaning of the Scientology Cross, and other basic symbols and concepts. A few of those questions were, “Does someone have to be a Scientologist to study or use Scientology?” and “Does Scientology have confessionals?” “Like any religion, Scientology has fundamental beliefs, its own theology, and the members are looking to understand life, their own spirituality and increase their understanding of their relationship with the Creator,” stated Amber Skjelset, Manager of the Information Center. “This center is open so that anyone can find out about those basic concepts themselves.” The Information Center has 4 interactive audio/visual displays which contain over 300 videos. These include a brief overview of the life and legacy of Mr. L. Ron Hubbard the founder of Scientology. The center is open daily, 10am-10pm. It is located at 500 Cleveland Street in the Historic Clearwater Building. The center hosts a variety of receptions for local groups and organizations, and makes its conference room available to social, civic and nonprofit groups. One of the responses of the students best summed up the experience of the class, “I liked learning about some of Scientology’s most basic ideas. I also learned how to explain Scientology to other people who don’t know what Scientology is. Everything the manager covered was easy to understand.” For more information please contact Amber Skjelset, the Center’s Manager, at 727-467-6966 or e-mail her at amber@cos.flag.org Source: http://www.pr.com/press-release/659690
From 2015: From today: Kathy Griffin will needle Trump, Scientologists in Clearwater | Tampa Bay Times You have to be fast to get a word in when talking to comedian Kathy Griffin, who is making her eighth appearance at Ruth Eckerd Hall in Clearwater on Saturday. On an 80-city comedy tour, the inexhaustible comic promises two hours of new material including her personal run-ins with Donald Trump and the backstage dirt she's famous for. Her recent encounters include Sean Penn and Leonardo DiCaprio. You have to interrupt her to get in a question. She talks as fast as she does on stage. She Googled me. She knew I write the "5 things to do under $5" list each week and wanted to be clear that people wouldn't get in free to her show if they wear a toga, like an event I wrote about last week. She knows the Tampa Bay Times has won 10 Pulitzer Prizes, she said, quoting the banner on the TampaBay.com home page. I had to stop her mid-sentence to ask why she loves Clearwater so much. She said the area's "Sci-Ties," what she calls members of the Church of Scientology, are a plus. She poked fun at the church's celebrity followers like John Travolta and Kirstie Alley. She pointed to the wife of Church of Scientology leader David Miscavige, who hasn't made a public appearances since 2007. "I'm going to bring Shelly Miscavige with me in the trunk of my car," she said. With two Emmys, a Grammy and a record-setting number of TV specials under her belt, the 55-year-old Griffin has superhuman focus. This talk was a sales call for her "Like a Boss" tour, making four stops in Florida this month. Have the Scientologists really shown up in her past seven Clearwater visits? "Scientologists have never really done anything except wait for me outside," Griffin said, adding that she wished them luck on their trip to Pluto. "But I think Sci-Ties secretly show up. Kirstie Alley and the rest, they like a good laugh as much as anybody. "I would not be surprised to find John Travolta disguised in a wig in the audience and I do not mean the wig he's wearing to play Robert Shapiro in the most bizarre performance I've ever seen." Continued here: http://www.tampabay.com/things-to-d...le-trump-scientologists-in-clearwater/2271033
The 'Church' has Billions in the bank. A Scientologist's dream comes true. She thinks she's swimming in money. Sadly, it's about 64 single dollar bills (more than a week's pay) which were dutifully put back in da till after da drill. ''Wipe that stupid smile off of your face and get back on your $.35 an hour post!'' Back to the reality nightmare of Scientology for this poor, deluded soul.
Chatty Kathy: Comedian ready to spill secrets in Elmira Here's the part of the article that's relevant: GRIFFIN: Just next week, I’m going to be in Daytona Beach, Florida; Fort Lauderdale, Florida; Fort Myers, Florida; Clearwater, Florida, for four days in a row — and keep in mind that Clearwater is the hub of Scientology. I will not be holding back on Scientology, nor will I be holding back on John Travolta’s performance in “[American Crime Story:] The People vs. O.J. [Simpson],” where he’s playing a version of Robert Shapiro that’s a combination of Snooki and Michael Douglas in [the Liberace biopic] “Behind the Candelabra.” I find it to be very bizarre. So I will be standing onstage in Clearwater, the hub of Scientology, and I’m not going to hold back just because John Travolta might be in the back row with yet another wig, ready to heckle me. Q: Well, I hope you make it out of Clearwater alive. GRIFFIN: Yup, fingers crossed! I’ve actually played this venue six times, and every time I’m hoping they don’t beam me up to Pluto or wherever they live. Q: You and Xenu can have a chat! GRIFFIN: Xenu cannot stand me. I’m a PTS [potential trouble source]. I’m sure you saw “Going Clear”? Q: Oh yes. GRIFFIN: All the categories. I’m sure they’d love to dress up like squirrels and come to my house, and I would do nothing but Periscope it — so they know there’s no point anymore. I think the “Sci-Ties” have given up on me, frankly. Q: If you’re off their radar, that might be for the best. GRIFFIN: Yes! I’d also like to find Shelly Miscavige [wife of Scientology leader David Miscavige] and save her! Q: There’s your next reality show idea, Kathy — “Finding Shelly Miscavige”! GRIFFIN: I bet she’s somewhere in a room, like in that film “The Room,” and then I could be the hero: “Shelly, I’m throwing down a rope!” http://www.stargazette.com/story/en...comedian-ready-spill-secrets-elmira/82956170/
Galaxy Marketing Solutions opened a new office in Clearwater, Florida this week, complete with “Admin Tech” reference books, a photo of L. Ron Hubbard and a Scientology seven-division Org Board. Galaxy produces web sites, newsletters, flyers and advertising postcards for their clients. http://tonyortega.org/2016/04/24/te...ue-rathbuns-response-to-scientology-petition/
Scientology's Fort Harrison hotel hosts mass transit pitch By Tracey McManus, Tampa Bay Times A pitch by a local advocate trying to interest City Hall in a fledgling transit technology took an atypical turn this month when one City Council member received what appeared to be a special briefing at the Church of Scientology's Fort Harrison Hotel. Four of the council members met individually on May 5 with skyTran promoter Tom Nocera at City Hall, the standard venue for information meetings. However, newly elected council member Bob Cundiff sat in on a private meeting May 4 held by Nocera at the Fort Harrison, along with representatives from the Florida Department of Transportation, the Pinellas County Metropolitan Planning Organization, the Clearwater Regional Chamber of Commerce, congressional candidate Mark Bircher, and others. "I think it was unusual," said council member Hoyt Hamilton. "I asked the question of myself: 'Why was Mr. Cundiff invited to the Fort Harrison and why was no (other elected official) at the presentation?' It's a reasonable question. I don't know why I only got 30 minutes, and Mr. Cundiff got, what, two hours?" Cundiff said he used the meeting at the Fort Harrison as his one-on-one for the skyTran session because he had scheduling conflicts the next day when all other council members were meeting individually with Nocera at City Hall. Nocera said he wanted a city representative at this specific meeting and asked Cundiff because he had advocated for skyTran during his election campaign. Nocera, who pushed Cundiff to run in the March 15 election, said he briefed the church's public affairs office on skyTran in February as he continues to search for the best routes for the proposed elevated transit system. When he needed a suitable conference area for the May 4 meeting and approached church representatives, Nocera said they offered the Fort Harrison. "For Clearwater to advance, you have to bring in everybody," said Nocera, who also made a 30-minute presentation for the public at the May 6 City Council meeting. Although Cundiff, a member of Lakeside Community Chapel and former Baptist preacher, said he didn't over-think the venue beforehand, the Fort Harrison meeting marks a distinct departure from the historically tense relationship between city officials and the church. That relationship has been marked by a decades-long territory struggle over real estate as the church, the biggest property owner downtown, continues to expand its worldwide spiritual headquarters while the city tries to revitalize downtown business and retail. After the Clearwater Marine Aquarium publicly identified a one-acre parcel on Drew Street for a parking garage, Scientology snapped it up — adding one more roadblock that prevented the aquarium from relocating into downtown last year. In addition, the church ran up $435,000 in fines for construction delays on its massive Flag Building, which opened in 2013, and has clashed with the city over illegal tree cuttings and code violations. City Manager Bill Horne said city related meetings at the church are infrequent, and he had a rare sit-down with Scientology leader David Miscavige in 2014. "We have some anxiety over an expanding campus," Horne said, adding the relationship between the city and Scientology now is "functional and very cordial." "We're trying to revitalize our downtown," he said. "That requires, in our view, more private sector investment in the business side of the downtown, and we'd like to have business on the tax rolls as much as possible." When Urban Land Institute consultants said the city and church must improve communication to revitalize downtown in 2014, Vice Mayor Bill Jonson said he took their advice. He's had occasional coffee meetings at the Fort Harrison, most recently in January with Lisa Mansell, community affairs director of the Church of Scientology. "After the ULI report came out, I've been trying to (do) more listening to all segments of the downtown area," Jonson said. Cundiff said he is interested in working with all citizens and organizations in the community, including the Church of Scientology. He also said he doesn't believe his meeting being more in-depth and longer than what his colleagues received was improper, but as a newly elected official, he's still learning. "For me it was no big deal, although I'm new on what constitutes a one-on-one," he said. "I don't know what usual is. If it was a mistake, it was an honest one." Church spokeswoman Pat Harney did not respond to a request for comment. Continued here: http://www.tampabay.com/news/transp...rrison-hotel-hosts-mass-transit-pitch/2277234
Today the cult published this press release. Quote: Tips for Success From Tampa Bay Entrepreneur The Way to Happiness Association of Tampa Bay hosted a seminar at the Scientology Information Center in Clearwater, Florida, where entrepreneur Christopher King covered three precepts for success in business and in life. At a seminar at the Scientology Information Center in downtown Clearwater, Tampa Bay entrepreneur and community activist Mr. Christopher King covered precepts from The Way to Happiness that he says are key to success: “Take Care of Yourself,” “Set a Good Example,” and “Safeguard and Improve Your Environment.” He emphasized that by following these precepts one establishes a firm foundation as an individual. From there one can more confidently reach out to accomplish ones goals and plans. Mr. King, the grandson of the legendary B.B. King, has built a fashion brand, an acting career and a nonprofit organization — The Gentlemen’s Course — that provides life skills to youth. He frequently holds seminars covering the essentials of business etiquette, branding, marketing and what it takes to succeed. Written by L. Ron Hubbard and published in 1981, The Way to Happiness is a commonsense guide to better living — a means of arresting the current moral decline in society and restoring integrity and trust to humankind. The campaign to distribute the book has been embraced by more than 257,000 groups and individuals, with some 115 million copies given out in 186 nations. Source: http://www.digitaljournal.com/pr/2962911
Is he clammy, or just naive? The 3 items listed are very generic; no need to be a clam to believe in the importance of
I love how the WTH thinks they are spreading the word on how to be a good and normal person, only to get them hooked into the COS and then turn them into a non normal person and sometimes bad person. Wonderful stuff.
