Independent Scientology Religious Liberty League: The Free Practice of Scientology. Independent Scientology Religious Liberty League: The Free Practice of Scientology http://religiouslibertyleague.org/the-free-practice-of-scientology/ * * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * * The Free Practice of Scientology Posted On: 26 Dec 2015 By: admin The best way to practice Scientology is to do so openly… as a religion. The First Amendment to the United States Constitution recognizes the inalienable right to freely practice one’s religion and prohibits the government from establishing (or favoring) one religion over another. The scriptures for the Scientology religion are the writings and lectures of L. Ron Hubbard on the subject. Because Scientology by definition is a highly skilled applied technology comprised of precisely worded counseling processes, use of these materials (Scientology’s “scripture”) is vital to the practice of the religion. Any writings and lectures other than those of L. Ron Hubbard, or variations and alterations by others, are not Scientology. The use of source materials in a religious setting likely will be legally sanctioned, at least in the United States, so long as it is clear to the general public that you are not affiliated with or sanctioned by Church of Scientology International (CSI). David Miscavige cannot dictate by arbitrary decree who can and who cannot practice the religion; he can only control membership in his church. For the courts to uphold his edicts would be tantamount to the government limiting the right to practice Scientology to those approved by Miscavige. The Religious Liberty League has multiple law firms on retainer for the express purpose of protecting the free practice of Scientology. We encourage practitioners to notify us if you receive a cease and desist letter or other legal threat from Religious Technology Center (RTC, the holder of Scientology trademarks and trade secrets) or Church of Spiritual Technology (CST, the owner of LRH copyrights). The legal issues involved are complex, but the battle to break the Scientology monopoly can be won – and must be, in order to preserve the technology that has been altered inside the church, producing tech failures by the score and, significantly, are not producing real OTs.[1] (How can one who has ceased to look and think for himself possibly achieve such a high state of spiritual awareness?) The church no longer offers the original OT levels, which attracted tens if not hundreds of thousands of people into Scientology in the late 1960s, and the church hasn’t offered them since the late 1970s, giving them a fleeting existence. Could their introduction explain the heavy counter-intelligence campaign waged against the church? The Guardians Office – the management counter balance to the Sea Organization – was heavily infiltrated by government intelligence agencies, weakened and made vulnerable to a takeover by David Miscavige. The culture of criminality inside the G.O. was “rolled back” by an internal investigation to two major figures (neither of whom were indicted) and then the matter was dropped. All this is described in the book, Arrows in the Dark. Did the government install “their man”? Will the original OT levels rise again? In a big way, we mean, with a strong movement behind them. We’re sure we speak for many Scientologists practicing the religion outside the church when we say that users of copyrighted and trademarked materials (i.e., scripture) are willing to provide legal consideration for their use. In legal terms, many users are willing to enter into license agreements – provided sufficient protections for independence are assured. (We have a framework in mind that has a chance for success, but it is premature to discuss.) The simple fact is that no person or agency less than God can dictate who can practice this or any other religion. History has proven this fundamental truth. It now repeats itself. At some point, however, the window for reconciliation will close and the church of Scientology, like the Roman Catholic Church before it, will splinter into a thousand pieces. And history will record that it occurred on the watch of David Miscavige and the special directors of CST who enabled him and breached their fiduciary duties in the process: Sherman Lenske, Stephen Lenske, Lawrence Heller, and Monique Yingling (successor to one of the latter two.) ________________________ END NOTE: [1] OT stands for Operating Thetan. In Scientology thetan means spirit or soul in other religions. In Scientology you are the soul. You don’t have one. The state of Operating Thetan refers to a state of awareness of his spiritual self and the ability to operate free of the body, the body’s limited senses (e.g., sight through eyes, etc.) and ability (e.g., physical mobility, etc.) * * * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
Isn't access to the cult's copyright materials the biggest problem indies have? I wonder which way the court would rule if they ever raised enough money to sue Miscavige's cult. Religious freedom vs. copyright?
I find it interesting that the RLL is really pushing the idea that Independent Scientology should be practiced as a religion. From the comments to the article on RLL. http://religiouslibertyleague.org/the-free-practice-of-scientology/ * * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * * Michael Moore December 26, 2015 at 8:44 pm Reply Good site. Well written and concise. In fact we have a framework for the practice and application of Scientology. It is called the Association of Professional Independent Scientologists and can be found here http://independent-scientologists-association.net/ admin December 26, 2015 at 10:17 pm Reply Thank you for your validation and for encouraging the delivery Scientology services through your organization. The APIS, however, is not a religious organization and lacks religious status. Delivering Dianetics and Scientology as non-cleric professionals has been tried and failed. Early Dianeticists, for example, were forced to either not charge for services or risk being charged with practicing medicine without a license. Some did go to jail. Only because Scientology was faced with being regulated by mental health authorities did LRH reluctantly form a religion. It was a life-saving decision. Later when the FDA raided the Founding Church, carted away E-meters and charged the church with using an unapproved “medical device,” it was Scientology’s religious status that saved the day. The U.S. Supreme Court acknowledged that Scientology was a religion and, based thereon, ruled that the E-meter could not be regulated when used for religious counseling. Too many Scientologists are unaware of this history. Some even have jumped on the bandwagon of anti-Scientology forces and cheered for the revocation of the church’s tax-exempt status. Religious status is imperative for the free practice of Scientology. Right now all practicing Scientologists are riding the coattails of LRH and all those who fought so hard to obtain religious recognition and the attendant protection of the First Amendment. And many of you are aging solo practitioners who are not training auditors to replace you. The only long-term solution for the religion of Scientology is the reform of the church or the creation of a new one. Some people discount the threat of the medical-pharmaceutical-psychiatric industrial complex and cannot see the 800-pound gorilla in the living room that is waging a heavy propaganda campaign against Scientology as I type this comment. Instead, they have gone “suppressively reasonable” and actually entertain, agree with, and pass on many of the enemy lines of these covert operators. Perhaps I should write more about these techniques. I let pass a perfect opportunity a few weeks ago. A whistleblower inside Monsanto revealed that the global corporation had an entire unit set up to spread propaganda through the Internet about the positive benefits of genetically modified organisms (GMOs). Among other things, they paid people to “troll” anti-GMO sites and attack those writers. Point is, people should be aware of these techniques and be highly alert and on guard for anything negative written about, for example, LRH or the religious status or tax-exemption of the church. Not saying LRH was perfect. Nor does he. But, the fact is there is a campaign to malign and discredit him and the religiosity of Scientology that dates back to 1950. * * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
This new manifesto is certain to cause a major schism between the Deluded Clams and the Paranoid Moonbats. My hope is that they find a way to co-exist peacefully. Or whatever.
LRH's false promise of a Clear with perfect vision, perfect recall, freedom from most major illnesses and higher IQ's never happened, not once. Hubbard's false vision for his phony science / fake religion was nothing more than endless hypnotic processing, isolation, controlled thought, bankruptcies and misery for his mentally deluded overprocessed minions who believe in entheta and suppressive persons when in fact noone is more suppressed than a being who closes out critical thinking in the name of Scientology. Hubbard belonged in jail as do all those who continue to promote his lies and scam. He was an abusive monster who abused all including children. Google: L. Ron Hubbard / Abuse of Children in Scientology Google: 4 year old Derek Greene abused by L. Ron Hubbard on the Apollo
Milestone Two has linked to the Religious Liberty League article: https://milestonetwo.wordpress.com/2015/12/30/free-practice-of-scn/ The comments on MS2 are positive.
Category:Religious Liberty League About the only interesting thing that they can do is to yank the IRS into court and make them spread the actual 1993 agreement in court, since they'd have standing to do so, unlike Sklar. The judges would be pissed off because it would again be someone who wants the same deal, rather than having Scientology's deal revoked as unconstitutional. The problem is a track record of moonbat lawsuits.
I see another possibility: they could finish what Marty started when he first came out into the sunshine and troll the RTC into filing a fresh copyright infringement lawsuit. IOW, resurrection of the Mayo lawfare playbook. And I don't believe that's been done post IRS tax-exempt status. So it could potentially be the ultimate footbullet.
CoS has been pretty careful not to invoke the copyrights after they had to settle out of some cases like Netcom. Granted, the new DMCA meant that they didn't have to, but they've used even that sparingly in the last decade, relying on cut-outs to do mass fraudulent take-downs. I think CoS is worried that a lot of their bogus re-registrations of Hubbard's pre-1964 stuff will get broken, putting it into the public domain. Due to great work like Stanford's Copyright Renewal Database, it's possible to see what they did renew. Anything not on that list is probably public domain.* Soon it'll be possible to cross-check to see if the works were ever copyright in the first place, and then SHTF. (* This isn't legal advice. US law covering the change-over from the old system to the new is a swamp.) http://umbraxenu.no-ip.biz/mediawiki/images/7/77/RawHub.txt I'm sure Merrell Vannier would love them to come at him, but I think CoS will be skittish.
Independent Scientology Religious Liberty League: Religious Thought Police. Rather than create a new thread, I thought this would be best placed here. Religious Thought Police http://religiouslibertyleague.org/religious-thought-police/ * * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * * Why can’t the major media and critics of Scientology see the difference between a religious philosophy and the abuses of an institution acting in the name of the religion? They can, and do, for other religions. Seems simple to do so. A high IQ is not required. Example: Islam. A peaceful religion. It ushered in great advances in mathematics and science. Its members boast of its benefits. Yet bad things have been done in the name of Islam. Witness the Islamic crusades. The religion has also been perverted. The Wahhabi sect in modern times treat women as subjects, behead Christians and political dissidents, and engage in terrorism. Yet many in the media – with notable exceptions – refrain from attacking the religion and its adherents, and caution Americans against doing so. Instead they target the radical groups such as al Qaeda and ISIS who act in the name of this distorted form of Islam. Example: Christianity. Similarly, a message of peace that has brought comfort and hope to billions of people across the ages. Yet when multiple Catholic priests from different dioceses were charged with pedophilia, the mainstream media did not call for the Church’s tax-exempt status to be revoked or deride its religiosity. The media exhibit an ability to differentiate from occasional lunatic leaders like Jim Jones and David Koresh – and, when speaking historically, do not lump the brutal and corrupt regimes of some popes into the philosophy of Christianity. One answer, of course, is the difference in the number of the adherents. Bullies never take on people their own size or bigger. Another answer is given in a Bill Maher joke about the difference between a religion and a cult: time. It took the Mormons almost a hundred years, its own territory/state, millions of members and a political presence to throw off the cult label, although many Christians, particularly evangelicals, still consider it a cult, and of course, the Mormons have their own “cults” with child brides, Warren Jeffs, and others. Scientology faces all of these base prejudices. The current leader of the church of Scientology, David Miscavige, has perverted the original religious philosophy, abused its members, and adopted draconian, oppressive policies (e.g., “Disconnection”). Miscavige only acts in the name of Scientology, however; he is not Scientology. As with any religious philosophy, good or bad can be done in its name. Some people have the ability to recognize differences. Two things, in our view, prevent otherwise smart, sane people from doing so. One is prejudice. The other is propaganda. Prejudice can be deep-seated, and widely shared among the populace. Throughout history, majorities of any kind have been very cruel and intolerant toward minorities. Every minority, from race to religion to sexual orientation to… you name it, has had to fight for recognition, respect, tolerance and inclusion. This is part of life on planet Earth. The propagandist fans the flames of prejudice in the general public to achieve his or her agenda. A Brief History of Attacks on Scientology Scientology is a new religion. Obviously. Its origins date back to 1950 with the publication of Dianetics, by L. Ron Hubbard. The book isolated the source of human aberration and psychosomatic ills. Moreover, Hubbard gave ordinary people a technique they could use on one another to reduce or eliminate entirely these unwanted human conditions. It became an overnight sensation, jumping onto the New York Times bestseller list. Dianetics groups sprang up across the nation, and quickly extended to other parts of the English-speaking world. Tremendous results were obtained and the word spread. And then the mental health authorities entered the picture. Through their media and political connections they launched a black propaganda attack on Hubbard and Dianetics. (Black propaganda “is that which is produced and distributed with the intent of subversion.”)[1] Among other things, they went after individuals for providing mental health counseling without a license. It is important to note that these attacks occurred before Dianetics evolved into Scientology; before a church was formed; before there was a Sea Organization; before confidential upper levels were released; before the Guardian’s Office existed; and before David Miscavige took over the church and ushered in a “Golden Age” of Scientology. The only reasons Scientology survived the onslaught were because: (1) it became a church and obtained religious status through various court opinions, including the United States Supreme Court, and (2) it fought back. True, in the battle the church erred. But then, so has every minority group that has had to fight for its survival. The black propagandists and their media whores realize the importance of Scientology’s religious status, so now they seek to undo it with calls for revocation of its tax-exempt status. Were they to succeed, they would then seek to regulate Scientology, first by lawsuits for malpractice, using agreed upon mental health counseling standards, and ultimately by laws requiring counselors in Scientology technique to be licensed mental health care practitioners. The goal of the black propagandist was then, and is now, no matter the changing rationalizations or circumstances, the containment of the technology of Scientology. The Black Propagandist There are two reasons why people engage in black propaganda, according to Hubbard. One is a confession that “he can’t make it in open competition.”[2] This applies particularly well to the Mental Health profession. It can’t compete openly with Scientology technology. The demand for psychiatry and psychiatric drugs would plummet, if not cease to exist, if the general public were to learn the benefits of Scientology technology when correctly applied. Therefore, they have to mischaracterize it as science fiction masquerading as a religion and, most importantly, discount its workability. This is why the media and the critics of Scientology refuse to discuss or talk about the benefits of Scientology. They will only give a reluctant, belittling acknowledgment of them, at most. They prefer to talk about the portions of Scientology technology that are unreal to people. In this regard, they speak as religious thought police, declaring what is, and is not, acceptable religious material. Incidentally, whether past lives or the confidential levels of Scientology or any other part of the religion is unreal has nothing to do with religious status. The question is, rather, whether it works; that is, was a spiritual benefit derived from the application of the technology in the estimation of the parishioner. And this question is not fully answered just by those who failed to achieve results. The investigator who only wants to hear from one side has an agenda. In that case, he is not an honest investigator, he’s a propagandist. The Role of David Miscavige in the Black Propaganda Against Scientology The other reason given by Hubbard for why a person engages in black propaganda is because he or she is “using a wrong way to right a wrong.” Never has the church had so many former members on a rampage against it. In Scientology jargon, the size of its ARC broken (i.e., pissed off) field is at an unprecedented level. Hubbard lays the blame for an ARC Broken field squarely on the shoulders of church leadership.[3] And since there is only person who runs – indeed, who micromanages – all of Scientology, that person (David Miscavige) is responsible for the wrongs against former members. That these abuses and wrongs have occurred is beyond serious question. There are too many detailed, verifiable stories being told. For example, the policy of disconnection is real. Families have been torn asunder. Severe emotional damage has been caused those affected by disconnection. The technical failures are real, too. One only has to open their eyes or ears to read or hear some persons say they did not receive the benefit they expected, breaking Scientology’s most basic policy to always deliver what was promised. Religious benefit is in the eye of the receiver. Just as critics should accept the claims of benefit being made by Scientologists so should the church accept the claims of lack of benefit being made by some former members. As Hubbard states: “The only thing you can be upbraided for by [persons who receive Scientology services] is ‘no results.’” And, he continued, “Trouble spots occur only where there are ‘no results.’ Attacks from governments or monopolies occur only where there are ‘no results’ or ‘bad results’.”[4] This is on Miscavige. He has made Scientology into what is currently delivered by the church. The so-called Golden Age of Tech was supposed to make “perfect auditors.” Instead it has made robots who might be perfect in technique, but are devoid of auditing basics, such as judgment and the communication cycle, which are both essential for good results. But just who is this guy, David Miscavige, anyway? Is it possible that he is doing to Scientology on the inside of the church what the black propagandists are doing on the outside? Is there a common source to the black propaganda campaign being waged against the church, giving the religion a good ole one-two punch from both sides? These questions are addressed in the book, Arrows in the Dark. The reader is left to form his own opinion. Ultimately the motive doesn’t matter; the damage being done is clear. As the religion of Scientology gets pummeled, Miscavige refuses to apply church policy, such as the ones mentioned above and elsewhere on this site, and on its predecessor site, SaveScientology.com. A manager of any major organization with half a brain would address the claims of critics and separate out the fair ones from the propaganda, then address the former, and thereby deflate the latter. That David Miscavige refuses to do this is telling. But Miscavige and his twisted use of Scientology techniques to control and dominate people is not the religion of Scientology, which is a religious philosophy intended to restore a person’s self-determinism and assist them lead better, happier lives. And tens of thousands of people have received this benefit. Scientology is no more the proper target for Miscavige’s abuses and objectionable policies than Christianity is a proper target when perverted and used by leaders such as Jim Jones to control and harm people, or than Islam is a proper target when corrupted by extremists who commit atrocities in its name. This distinction should be easy to grasp for any rational person who does not have an agenda. * * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
Maybe this can clear things up a bit? From "rational" Llana talking about the Cause Resurgence Rundown: "I rediscovered space. I rediscovered life, energy and life. In fact at one point on the Cause Resurgence Rundown I experienced blue sparks of energy arc’ing from my body across to the tree, and then I went exterior and simply skipped the body around the tree, effortlessly, despite the hours it had been running. I rediscovered Cause. I feel that rundown was like recharging the theta battery and brought me back to full power." nuff said
Alternative tldr: Miscavige bad, psychs bad, Scientology good and even though it is a religion we should be free to charge money for unregulated therapy.
We do. And it's getting really really old that we don't assholes. Too bad you're butthurt that many of us think that Scientology Inc and "applied religious philosophy" of Scientology are both heaps of smelly crap that hurt people. Scientology Inc obviously abuses people. Scientology, the "religious" wankery (aka unlicensed untrained psycho-therapy), regardless if delivered by Church of Scientology, Radical Corporate Scientology, Freezone Scientology, Indy Scientology, Mindfuck'R'Us, doesn't deliver on Hubbard's promises, don't provide objectively measurable results, and has quite a track record of messing people up.
" skipped the body around the tree, effortlessly, despite the hours it had been running. I have never referred to myself as "the body" or "it".
Lana - stupid, delusional, foolish and ignorant piece of nonsense. If there were any evidence from this piece that the author had done what she accuses scientology critics of failing to do - ie to look at the other side - she could not have written such arrant nonsense. Her claims for scientology's superior effectiveness (or "workability". which is itself a nonsense word) over psychiatry are utterly bogus. More to the point, such claims are not religious, but medical in nature, so the accusation that opponents of such nonsense are anti-religious bigots is equally bogus, and dangerously so. Not that she would know that - she never looked at the other side, because Hubbard's whole agenda forbade her from doing so, while encouraging just enough magical thinking to allow her to be manipulated.
Not surprising that the Ronbots in and out of the "church" carry on the Hubbard scam of religious cloaking. The tax-exemption and entitlements they get n the U.S. arouse their greed.
Indeed, Larry / Denise Brennan's affidavit that exposed L. Ron Hubbard's religious cloaking many years ago was a pivotal moment in the fight against this abusive, phony 'Church' of Scientology. Hubbard's 'research' was`absolutely laughable in both the world of Science and Religion. Scientology has been a total scam from its inception in this conman's mind. Sadly Hubbard's hypnotic, controlling, abusive processing still has a grip on many exes and current Scientologists who still try and promote his absurd philosophy and fully exposed lies. I hope that all exes (even Rinder, Rathbun and the like) will eventually see through the maze, stop promoting any reform of this LRH monstrosity and tell all one day as Denise Brennan did so bravely for many years before she passed on. Thanks, Denise Brennan for all you did to take a stand and help end the abuses that you admitted to being involved in and worked tirelessly to undo once you did that for the sake of others. I hope that my kids can be as strong as you were someday. Rest in Peace, Denise, you certainly deserve to.
Scientology faces a trademark fight we've been waiting for - but will it get spoiled? February 1, 2016, Tony Ortega, Underground Bunker
IMHO, a closer look at the author of the site might be of interest: http://www.merrellvannier.com/biography http://www.merrellvannier.com/reviews Very busy man, indeed. Some fact-checking might be useful
http://tonyortega.org/2015/03/02/ne...by-notorious-scientology-spy-merrell-vannier/ Long summary of his book, with comments about some discrepancies.
