After the Desmon Patric case, it shouldn't be too hard to dig up documents showing the mothercult run the show.
I didn't think a thread was needed, so I'll just leave this here. Does anyone have any knowledge of this weirdness? The address is tied to two places (the same) on Google Maps: Narconon Colorado - A Life Worth Saving and Wingshadow Frontier School - High School. I just found this interesting and figured i'll ask. Thank you in advance! Addy in question: 1225 Redwood St, Fort Collins, CO 80524 Coloradoan: http://www.coloradoan.com/story/money/2016/06/13/larimer-county-restaurant-inspections/85836342/ Google Maps: https://goo.gl/IupGjU Searching for "1225 Redwood St, Fort Collins, CO 80524" https://goo.gl/tPP64e
Weird. Somehow associated with Narconon, but it's a private 8-12 high school? Very fishy, imo. This link shows their blurb as: Wingshadow Frontier School: if you or a loved one is struggling with addiction, please visit Rehab.com http://www.ratemyteachers.com/wingshadow-frontier-school/523377-s
No Form 990s for Wingshadow. They should be required to file them http://www.eri-nonprofit-salaries.c...&EIN=841268863&BMF=1&Cobrandid=0&Syndicate=No It is showing a different address for the IRS:
As Stacy Murphy lawsuit heads to crucial hearing, two Scientology entities settle By Tony Ortega, July 28, 2016 Quote: Thanks to one of our researchers, we noticed something odd about the docket in the wrongful death lawsuit that Stacy Murphy’s family is pursuing against Scientology’s drug rehab center in Oklahoma, Narconon Arrowhead. And when we looked into it, we learned something pretty surprising. Four years ago this month, Stacy, 20, was found dead in the withdrawal unit at Arrowhead, the victim of an overdose in a drug rehab facility that had no medical personnel on hand. The eastern Oklahoma rehab center was supposed to be the flagship of Scientology’s Narconon network, but Stacy’s was the third patient death there in nine months, which led to national media and local official investigations. The lawsuits over the previous deaths, of Gabriel Graves and Hillary Holten, have been settled. But we reported last month that the defendants in the lawsuit filed by Stacy’s parents had filed a motion for summary judgment, hoping to get the lawsuit kicked out of court. One of our crack researchers noticed that there were two dates for a hearing on the motion, set for both August 3 and August 17. That didn’t seem possible, so we called up Gary Richardson, the former federal prosecutor who is representing Stacy’s parents — Robert Murphy and Tonya White — in the lawsuit. He told us that it was probably a mistake, and that the second date, August 17, was the correct one. But he then told us something that stunned us. “Narconon International and ABLE have settled,” he told us. “And we’re very happy with the settlement,” he added, which is lawyer-speak for ka-CHING. We know that nothing will bring back Stacy Murphy, but we hope that getting some compensation from Scientology’s two top Narconon umbrella groups, Narconon International and ABLE (the Association for Better Living & Education) will come as some relief to her parents. Narconon of Oklahoma, the corporate entity of Narconon Arrowhead itself, is still a defendant, and will present its argument for the motion for summary judgment on August 17, but Richardson didn’t sound very worried about it. We sure wish we could be in the courtroom to hear Narconon Arrowhead’s attorneys argue their motion now that the facility’s two boss organizations have bailed. Have we got any Bunker readers in Oklahoma who might be able to attend? Meanwhile, one of our good sources of Narconon Arrowhead information, who has been right in the past about the place, tells us that the dwindling facility is now down to only 10 staff and only three patients. While that’s pretty shocking for a major Scientology project that was built to house more than 200 patients, it’s consistent with the declining revenues of the place, which have plummeted from $11 million in 2007 to less than $1.5 million in 2014, according to tax returns. Scientology leader David Miscavige is apparently letting Narconon Arrowhead die on the vine as he puts a new emphasis on smaller, less regulated and upscale facilities in Ojai, California and elsewhere. We have to wonder if Narconon Arrowhead will have anything left to give Stacy Murphy’s parents after Gary Richardson is done with the place. Source, and open comments: http://tonyortega.org/2016/07/28/as...cial-hearing-two-scientology-entities-settle/
I wonder how much money in total has been raised by Narconon Arrowhead and how much has been sent uplines within this 'Non-Profit' Scientology organization over the years, it must be in the millions. It's disgraceful that this LRH House of Horrors has been allowed to not only operate this non-medical bogus scam that has ripped off and harmed the duped 'patients' several who have died, many who have been harmed irreparably. The court system is a joke if they allow Narconon Arrowhead (who sent millions to DM and co.) to splinter off and leave nothing for these victims. Shut these untrained, unconscionable Scientologist scammers down and go after any and all spin offs with vigor. DM is a racketeer, where's the RICO indictment from our supposed 'Justice' dept?
Not that I trust their Form 990s further that I could comfortably spit a rat... Category:Narconon Arrowhead
Category:Narconon Arrowhead Thanks for this link, DH, over 75 million in a 10 year period 'reported'. How many have been cured from drug addiction by taking Scientology courses? The only successful participants, imho is similar to real life success in beating drug addiction and that's because of the addict finally having reached the very bottom, more like 15 to 20% (with opiates in particular) in most legitimate programs and less on their own with no treatment. The blatant lie of Scientology that they have an over 75% success rate attracts many addicts who pay upwards of $30,000.00 apiece for this mirage. Narconon is nothing but Scientology, how many of the completely fabricated 80% success rate can Narconon produce from these 10 years and 75 million dollars worth of 'treatment'? They don't track them, could care less, t's all about the next sucker to believe their completely fabricated success rates of over 75% in their illegal fraudulent promotions. May the victims of Narconon Arrowhead rest in peace, amazing incompetence by untrained staff involved in this bogus program and these horrific deaths. My best guess is that they didn't even have Narcan available or anyone trained to use it that could save a life in an overdose situation. They didn't even have the common sense to call for an ambulance. Unforgivable!
New Scientology financial disclosures reflect the dire state of its chief drug rehab By Tony Ortega, August 18, 2016 Quote: Contributor Jeffrey Augustine keeps a close eye on Scientology’s financial documents. And he has some new information today that backs up what we’ve been told anecdotally by our other sources — that Scientology’s flagship drug rehab center in Oklahoma, Narconon Arrowhead, is in serious trouble. Take it away, Jeffrey: Here in the US, religious groups do not have to file tax returns. The only exception is if they have “unrelated business income.” If they do, thanks to a 2006 law change, religious groups must file an IRS form “990-T.” And even then, we don’t have much interest in the “unrelated” income that they report. The Church of Scientology, for example, owns a nine hole golf course at Gold Base that it rents out to local civic groups. The Flag Land Base in Clearwater and Celebrity Centre International in Hollywood each have ballrooms that they rent out. These tend to be trivial amounts and don’t tell us much about the real money they’re taking in for courses and donations. However, the real value of the 990-T form is that it contains one really interesting question: It requires that the filer estimate the total “book value” of the organization. In other words, Scientology entities that submit these forms have to admit how much they’re worth. And that’s forced several Scientology entities to admit to being worth a total of about $1.7 billion in assets. (And that’s only for the entities that report unrelated business income. Some of Scientology’s entities don’t submit 990-T forms, so we can only guess at their book value. But it would certainly mean that Scientology as a whole is worth billions more.) Meanwhile, Scientology’s entities that can’t claim to be religious in nature — like the secular front groups, including the drug rehab companies under the Narconon umbrella — do submit annual tax returns (990 forms) if they have gross receipts of more than $200,000 or assets of $500,000 or more. There is typically a two year lag in getting 990s and 990-Ts. The forms Scientology submitted for the tax year 2014 are just now beginning to become available. David Miscavige has always held out Narconon Arrowhead as the “flagship” of the drug rehab network. Located in Canadian, Oklahoma the facility has been rocked by a series of scandals and lawsuits – as have Narconon Georgia, Narconon in Canada, and several other Narconon centers. The Underground Bunker has broken these stories to its international audience, and readers here have followed what seems to be the implosion of Narconon. Now, we can report that Narconon Arrowhead lost money in 2014 and has experienced a serious “stat crash.” Narconon Arrowhead’s most recent 990 tax return, for 2014 (see below), paints a grim story. Gross receipts that year were $4,117,845, a combination of gifts ($2,034,017) and sales of services ($2,044,407). How did Narconon Arrowhead come up with $2 million in gifts? The answer is on another 990 tax form, the one submitted by Narconon’s Scientology umbrella organization, the Association for Better Living & Education (ABLE). In 2014, ABLE gave Arrowhead a “grant” of $1,879,286 for “general support.” Arrowhead’s remaining gift amount presumably came from other Scientology organizations. We can say that with some confidence based on precedent. In 2008, Scientology’s Social Betterment Properties International (SBPI) donated $180,000 to Narconon Arrowhead. Apparently, and for public relations reasons, David Miscavige cannot allow Narconon Arrowhead to become insolvent — it is, after all, the flagship of Narconon. Arrowhead’s losses (revenues less expenses) for the year were $310,714. But that’s misleading. The real number, once you take away what was “gifted” to Arrowhead by ABLE to keep it afloat, is a real annual loss of at least $2,190,000. In other words, Scientology’s other groups had to prop up Narconon Arrowhead with $2 million in gifts so it would only show an annual loss of $310,714 in 2014. Of course, it is possible to work the numbers in different ways, but I am using very basic accounting. I welcome comments and analysis from the real numbers people here at the Bunker. Even with Arrowhead’s lousy 2014 numbers, its losses in 2013 were even worse — a total of $3,713,907 in losses after subtracting operating costs from revenue. That might explain why Scientology found a couple of million to “gift” Arrowhead in 2014, which it didn’t do in 2013. Meanwhile, ABLE wasn’t only propping up Arrowhead. It “gifted” plenty more to other Narconon entities that are struggling: Narconon International ($541,053), Narconon Fresh Start ($866,739), Narconon Pacific Coast ($15,561), Narconon Freedom Center ($34,047), International Academy of Detox Specialists ($30,762), and Narconon Georgia ($33,620). For decades, Narconon was a reliable moneymaker for ABLE and the Church of Scientology. Now, after Narconon became a nightmare of lawsuits and scandals, Scientology is having to fork out serious money to keep it from collapsing. Arrowhead’s decline is particularly stark. After its income rose to a peak of $12 million in 2012, it fell off a cliff after, that year, three patients died in a nine-month period: 2010: $8,793,476 2011: $11,091,425 2012: $12,333,912 2013: $4,332,483 2014: $2,044,407 As Tony reported recently, he’s heard from his sources that Arrowhead, which was designed to house more than 200 patients, is reportedly now down to ten staff and only three patients. If Miscavige is going to continue to prop up his flagship drug rehab, he’s going to have to keep giving it “gifts” in the millions. — Jeffrey Augustine Continued here, with Narconon Arrowhead's 2014 990 tax return: http://tonyortega.org/2016/08/18/ew...flect-the-dire-state-of-its-chief-drug-rehab/
GoFundMe: Narconon Louisiana Re-start Fund seeks $ 75,000. Photos at link. https://www.gofundme.com/2jus9nxa * * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * * Narconon Louisiana Re-start Fund This campaign is trending! $6,225 of $75k goal Narconon Louisiana's Re-start Fund. The water is down and we are ready for cleanup and to get back in business. All donations will be used for restarting the facility so we are up and running to help others once again. We have met many heroes and heroines during this time. Thank you to all those for their assistance! Narconon Louisiana, New Life Retreat is a non-profit drug and alcohol rehabilitation and education facility. Located just outside of Baton Rouge, LA. * * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
For about $25K they could turn it into a gator farm, and probably make more money than scamming the desperate. BigBeard
A GoFundme for Narconon? Fuck no. This shit has to stop! Can't someone flag this campaign for being fraudulent?
Where is the IAS?? By Mike Rinder, August 29, 2016 Quote: Narconon Louisiana went under. Literally. Drowned in the recent flooding. They started a Go Fund Me page to try and collect money to clean the place up and get operating again. They claim to need $75,000 (and in 13 days managed $11,520). $75,000 is pocket change for the IAS. The IAS repeatedly claims they support Narconon and take credit for all sorts of Narconon “accomplishments” (like reduced the rate of drug addiction 175% in Burkina Faso or whatever…). They say they support people in times of natural disaster — if you listen to them they pretty much single-handedly put New Orleans back together after Hurricane Katrina and every other disaster subsequently. So, how come when a natural disaster sinks a Narconon, right here in the US, the IAS isn’t there to bail them out? You want to bet they started “fundraising” for “disaster relief” for the Louisiana floods about 15 minutes after the first news broke. If the IAS cannot cough up $75,000 to save a Narconon from a natural disaster, what CAN it do? In the corrupt world of scientology fundraising, the IAS stands unchallanged as the biggest con of all. Source, and open comments: http://www.mikerindersblog.org/where-is-the-ias/
Like I said, Stay in your watery grave like your founder. How come the whales aren't bailing you out? TODAY IS AUGUST 29th 2016 WHY ARE ANY NARCONONS STILL OPEN? (well, not this one! BWA HA HA)
Aaron Olson- "Narconon staff members Aaron Olson (left) and Bryan Wesson (right) presented the Narconon drug program at the Bishop Ott Homeless Shelter in Baton Rouge, Louisiana. Below, Wesson describes L. Ron Hubbard’s theories on how drugs affect memory." I guess they forgot to bring the "degraded beings" food, toiletries and clothing. Looking for fresh meat are yah? https://seccheck.wordpress.com/2015...gram-welcomes-scientology-narconon-louisiana/ Mary and David Smith are scilons- both in completions Dixie Smitherman - $500.00 Owner at Bankingforms Alexandria, Louisiana Area Printing
Judge to decide dispute over Trout Run records request | Frederick News Post Quote: A judge will decide whether Frederick County government must turn over emails to attorneys representing the Church of Scientology’s real estate arm. The church has two open court cases against the county relating to its effort to open a group home for drug and alcohol abuse treatment operated by Narconon, a program based on the writings and techniques of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology’s founder. Frederick County Circuit Judge Scott Rolle heard arguments Monday in one of the cases, a dispute over a Maryland Public Information Act request. At issue are 54 county records — emails or parts of emails — dealing with an application from Social Betterment Properties International for a historic designation of Trout Run, a 40-acre Catoctin Mountain fishing camp. Continued here: http://www.fredericknewspost.com/ne...cle_9c24cc17-9a75-5803-9b95-242202573d51.html
Bonus items from our tipsters By Tony Ortega, September 28, 2016 Quote: Jens Tingleff last night reported in our comments section that in Copenhagen, Narconon ads are being removed from city buses after a local newspaper made an inquiry about the ads violating a rule about promoting a religious viewpoint. For once, local authorities were not snowed by Scientology’s obfuscations that its drug rehab clinics are not really a part of Scientology. The local newspaper pointed out that the Narconon building had been purchased by Social Betterment Properties International, which is a subsidiary of the church itself. And that proved to the bus company that the tie was real. Nice going, “Information!” Here’s a translation of their story. Source: http://tonyortega.org/2016/09/28/dr...of-scientologys-gold-rush-mine-in-california/
County must turn over documents tied to Scientology-connected property | Frederick News Post Quote: Frederick County will have to turn over more than three dozen records it withheld from a public records request filed by a Church of Scientology-affiliated real estate group. Frederick County Circuit Judge Scott Rolle ruled Monday that the county will have to turn over 39 documents or redacted portions of documents within the next 10 days. Rolle concluded that the county did not knowingly and willfully violate the Maryland Public Information Act in responding to the request. The records dispute is connected to a second lawsuit, in which Social Betterment Properties International, the Church of Scientology’s real estate arm, alleges religious discrimination by the County Council in a land-use decision. The Frederick County Council voted in June 2015 and again in April of this year against a historic designation for Social Betterment’s property at Trout Run, a 40-acre Catoctin Mountain fishing camp. The designation would have paved the way for a special exception under the county’s zoning ordinance. That exception would let the Church of Scientology open a group home for drug and alcohol abuse treatment, to be operated by Narconon, a program based on the writings and techniques of L. Ron Hubbard, Scientology’s founder. In an August hearing, Jennifer Kneeland, an attorney representing Social Betterment, said seeing the redacted portions of the records in the Public Information Act dispute could help the organization understand whether there was discriminatory intent behind the council’s decision to deny the necessary zoning changes. Kneeland questioned the county’s basis for redacting the information, saying the county didn’t meet the state’s standard for withholding the information under the exceptions for deliberative process, interagency communications or executive privilege. She pointed to one withheld record that was disclosed by a different county attorney in the other court proceeding. Linda Thall, a senior assistant county attorney, said that missed disclosure was an error and the county would not contest handing over a second copy of the record. She said Social Betterment’s information request was very broad, yielding more than 1,300 pages of records from the county from before, during and after the council’s meetings on Trout Run. Some documents in question are emails between council members. Others include interview requests from members of the media and internal discussions about executive branch policy changes during and after the council’s decision. Rolle reviewed 64 disputed records to decide whether they should be turned over. He ruled that 18 remained privileged and that 39 records should be turned over. Rolle’s written opinion did not outline his conclusions on seven records. Rolle concluded that some documents were not privileged because they did not contain deliberations between council members, which could be shielded, or were purely factual. The judge also ruled on a complaint that the county violated the Maryland Public Information Act by failing to provide attachments to emails and by taking 48 days to respond. Rolle concluded that the county did not willfully and knowingly violate the public records law. Under Maryland law, an agency generally has up to 30 days to meet or deny a request. “Given the large number of documents, coupled with the presence of potentially privileged material, the Court finds that the Defendants acted as expeditiously as possible in responding to Plaintiff under the circumstances,” Rolle wrote. He said that in addition to 1,300 documents that were turned over, the county provided an extensive log explaining the documents that are withheld. “All of these acts, when taken together, show considerable effort ... to accommodate the Plaintiff’s MPIA request and comply with all applicable law,” he wrote. Continued here: http://www.fredericknewspost.com/ne...cle_929dd2ea-77fd-593d-8eae-0617741577d8.html
uh... problem.... It ISN"T really "a home for drug and alcohol abuse treatment". Why isn't anyone asking for scientific proof that NN's treatment actually works AT ALL and also for actual proof of NN's trumped up success rates? Why are people who have died at these facilities not taken into account? Surely if there was a ride that killed 9 people at an amusement park, wouldn't that ride be first shut down and than investigation would be made? I struggle to understand how and why NN still gets away with this scam of a "treatment" center that not only abuses people, but harms their health and sometimes kills.
EXCLUSIVE: Recent deaths of Scientology rehab staffers points to ongoing problem By Rod Keller, October 9, 2016 Quote: Karl Richard Tempest died on September 24. Karl had become a “student” at one of the Church of Scientology’s drug rehab centers, the Narconon Sunshine Summit Lodge in Warner Springs, California in 2012 after he experienced seizures as he came off an airplane after attending a family wedding. He was suffering from delirium tremens, a condition that results from a lack of alcohol after a period of heavy drinking, most common in those who have abused alcohol for 10 years or more. Unlike traditional addiction rehab facilities, Narconon encourages patients to go directly from treatment to an unpaid internship, and from there to become a member of the staff, earning minimum wage. In traditional rehab centers years of sobriety and an undergraduate or graduate degree can be required to become a counselor. After completing his Narconon program in California he became an intern there, and later became a staff member at Narconon Rainbow Canyon in Caliente, Nevada. He served as a course supervisor. Course supervisors in Narconon have the same responsibilities as they do in the larger Scientology organization. They sit in the courseroom and assist students as they study materials. In Scientology they supervise students of Scientology as they make their way towards Clear and beyond to the Operating Thetan levels. In Narconon they supervise substance abuse patients as they study the eight Narconon courses. Karl was promoted to Director of Inspections and Reports, an executive position within the Hubbard Communications Office, or HCO. Commonly known as “ethics,” the position is responsible for handling real or imagined misbehavior, but is also the person responsible for compiling the statistics of any Scientology org, including Narconon. By all accounts he did not relapse in his four years at Narconon, and made many friends. He is remembered fondly, as many students credit him as the person who made their stay more bearable. Karl left Narconon earlier this year and returned to live with his mother in Linn Creek, Missouri. His father recalls it was either because he wasn’t being paid or he wasn’t being promoted. His mother is the owner of Donna’s Ice House, a bar known for hosting live music events. On September 26th his mother found Karl had passed away on the floor of their home and called the Sheriff’s office. The Camden County Medical Examiner performed an autopsy, and the results may be available in a few months, but Karl’s father Joe Tempest is sure his death was related to his addiction. “Karl fell back into a bad crowd with people at his mother’s bar. He told me he was having seizures again and vomiting. I told him to go to a doctor, but he didn’t.” Continued here: http://tonyortega.org/2016/10/09/ex...ogy-rehab-staffers-points-to-ongoing-problem/
Scientology Narconon rehab teaches alcoholics they can drink in moderation. The linked and excerpted post is about another tragic Scientology Narconon rehab death. You can, and should, read the details of that death on Tony Ortega's website. The purpose of my cross-post here is to highlight one aspect of the problem. Please note I have given the most generous possible interpretation to the Scientology Narconon Way to Happiness material used by the rehab program (i.e., limiting the permission to indulge in moderation only to alcohol), an interpretation that appears to be more generous than that adopted by Rod Keller, the author of the article. Emphasis added to the graphic below. Tony Orgega - EXCLUSIVE: Recent deaths of Scientology rehab staffers points to ongoing problem http://tonyortega.org/2016/10/09/exclusive-recent-deaths-of-scientology-rehab-staffers-points-to-ongoing-problem/ * * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * While relapse by addiction professionals from traditional centers has happened, the relapse and death of up to fourteen staff members from one program is unheard of. Narconon’s advice to departing staff is the same as for all graduates – “Be Temperate.” The advice comes from The Way to Happiness, a booklet by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Narconon teaches that addicts do not need to live a life of abstinence. A former staff member says that Narconon requested permission to make it clear that addicts risk relapse if they use drugs or alcohol, even in moderation. The request was denied by higher level Scientology officials because they hold that the words of Hubbard are not to be altered in any way, and so Book 8 continues to support temperance, not abstinence. * * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *
One of Scientology’s new Narconons got inspected — and turned up one surprising result By Tony Ortega, October 10, 2016 Quote: On September 5 last year, the Church of Scientology opened a Narconon drug rehab center in a country that it had forsaken several years earlier. Narconon United Kingdom was formally opened on that day at its East Sussex location with the usual fanfare — a fancy backdrop, some confetti, and a few speeches. The decision to open a Narconon center in England after closing a previous facility there was part of Scientology leader David Miscavige’s grand new strategy about the rehab network. For several years, we’ve been documenting how Narconon has had to adapt to a new reality after several patient deaths in the U.S. resulted in heightened press and government interest, as well as dozens of lawsuits around the country. For decades, Narconon had been a reliable moneymaker for Scientology, and had managed to avoid much controversy, in part because Narconon tried to keep its connection to Scientology somewhat murky. But investigations, particularly after three patient deaths in Oklahoma in 2011-2012, produced documents making it crystal clear that Narconon was part of Miscavige’s plans for Scientology “expansion.” In the face of that increased scrutiny, particularly in Oklahoma, Miscavige had to face reality. Narconon’s grand plans to build large facilities and to look for ways to bring in revenue from insurance claims and even government subsidies suddenly seemed untenable. So instead, Miscavige regrouped and announced a new strategy two years ago. No more would there be a focus on large facilities and “independence” from the church. Now, there would be a focus on smaller, boutique facilities that would cater to wealthy clients in exclusive settings. Other new centers would be located in remote countries where there would be less chance for oversight. And all of it would be under tighter and more direct control of the Church of Scientology itself. In California, for example, Miscavige paid $5 million for Larry Hagman’s exclusive estate in the town of Ojai, and the place is being turned into a rehab for celebrities, with only six beds. Just six “students” in a pricey facility — it’s the perfect embodiment of Miscavige’s new initiative. And in England, Narconon United Kingdom joined that new wave of rehab facilities last year and opened for business in September. The good news for us, as Scientology watchers, is that the UK keeps a closer watch on such facilities than American jurisdictions do. It turns out that England’s Care Quality Commission visited Narconon United Kingdom, and has now put out a report about what it found at the rehab center. Continued here: http://tonyortega.org/2016/10/10/on...nspected-and-turned-up-one-surprising-result/
Our story last week about Narconon deaths kicked up a fuss — and news of two more deaths By Rod Keller, October 16, 2016 Quote: Last week, we reported on the deaths of three young men who had worked at Scientology’s “Narconon” drug rehab centers, and we talked to other former Narconon workers who told us they knew about several other recent deaths as well. They charged that Narconon centers offer no continuing care, and don’t even tell former patients and employees to remain strictly sober. Now, our sources have identified two more Narconon staff members who relapsed and died in recent years. Nathan Dwyer passed away on November 11, 2013. <snipped> Former staff member “Beth” from last week’s article now wishes to use her real name – Wendy, and recalls about Nathan: He was an intern in Caliente, Nevada, and went on a leave of absence with his family for one day and ended up using cocaine. They kicked him out even after he begged to stay because if he went home he would OD. Nathan died a week later in Pleasant Prairie, Wisconsin. The Medical Examiner lists the cause of death as Acute Mixed Drug Intoxication. On February 19, 2014 in Los Angeles, Jacob Joseph Heider died of a heroin overdose. He was a staff member at the Narconon in Warner Springs, California. Here's the complete article, with open comments: http://tonyortega.org/2016/10/16/ou...kicked-up-a-fuss-and-news-of-two-more-deaths/
Scientology will go after your kids with its quack ideas on drugs — even at a Christian school By Rod Keller, October 30, 2016 Quote: On October 19 Westside Christian High School held a drug education seminar. Westside is a small bible-based private school of about 250 students located in Tigard, Oregon, a suburb of Portland with about 50,000 residents. The presenter was John Bitinas, who is a Scientologist on staff at the Portland Ideal Org. The students were not told of his affiliation, only that he represented “Obstacle Champion LLC,” an entity that does not appear on the Oregon Secretary of State’s web site of registered corporations. School officials did not return emails or phone calls for comment, but students I spoke to were surprised to learn of his affiliation. “He spoke at a Christian school. I think he’s a Christian, is he not?” asked one. At last report Bitinas is a Case Supervisor, or “C/S” at the org, a position for a senior auditor who supervises and reviews the work of other auditors working there. In January, 2015 he attested to the state of Clear, meaning that he no longer has his own reactive mind. From 2007 to 2012, Bitinas served as Director of Drug Education at the Scientology-run drug rehab facility Narconon Arrowhead in Canadian, Oklahoma. In 2013 he served as Public Relations Officer, dealing with news that a flurry of lawsuits against Arrowhead were filed that year. The photo below shows Bitinas at a 2011 meeting of the Stillwater, Oklahoma Rotary Club, captioned “John Bitinas, center, provided an overview of the Narconon Arrowhead Rehabilitation Program, which has a 70 percent success rate with graduates of its unique drug and alcohol addiction treatment and recovery program.” Critics of Narconon dispute their claimed success rate. Continued here: http://tonyortega.org/2016/10/30/sc...ck-ideas-on-drugs-even-at-a-christian-school/
After Scientologist is outed, leaders he fooled still stick up for his quack drug theories Last week’s article on Scientologist John Bitinas’ anti-drug presentation at Westside Christian High School in Tigard, Oregon prompted one reader to contact school officials, and they forwarded the reply to the Underground Bunker. http://tonyortega.org/2016/11/06/af...d-still-stick-up-for-his-quack-drug-theories/
Tigard Turns the Tide Parent and Youth Group http://www.guidestar.org/profile/93-0846088 No Form 990s since 2010.
The Insidious Nature of Scientology's Outreach Programs | Big Think By Derek Beres, November 7, 2016 Quote: The IDEA World Fitness Convention is the country’s largest annual gathering of instructors, personalities, and products in the fitness industry. You attend to check out the touring circuit of top professionals as well as educate yourself on groundbreaking ideas and platforms in the exercise world. So it was rather surprising to find Scientology manning a booth at the downtown Los Angeles convention in the summer of 2015. There’s plenty of pseudoscience and nonsensical trends at these conventions, such as the notion that chocolate milk and juice cleanses are healthy and the idea that hand weights in an indoor cycling class is anything but a biomechanical nightmare. Players in the fitness industry maximize profits wherever possible regardless of ethical, anatomical, and physiological missteps. Lack of oversight in this industry is rampant. But the fact that the convention itself took money from a program that preaches spirits — thetans — heal injuries and illness is beyond bad form. Scientology’s booth, Nerve Assists, featured a woman practicing some sort of massage, armed with the cult’s infamous E-meter and copies of Dianetics. L. Ron Hubbard’s Assist programs are not only applicable to the living; such touch and vocal commands, barked in boot camp style glossolalia, is marketed as bringing dead bodies back to life as well. This program, advertised at IDEA as ‘Scientology Solutions for Athletes,’ is but one of the many crafty ways the cult embeds itself in seemingly helpful industries in attempts of winning converts. Given the many lumps the organization has taken since the proliferation of the Internet, church leaders have spread its wings far and wide to save face. Nerve Assists is just one of its many programs. Others include Criminon, a non-profit prisoner rehabilitation program. While this business has been criticized for recruitment and shady techniques, the state of New Mexico once dumped $375,000 to an offshoot called Second Chance, which, among other things, made inmates spend four hours a day in a cedar sauna while ingesting niacin, vitamin B, and an olive oil chaser. As details of the program reached the public the government quickly cut off funding. Then there’s Narconon. William C. Benitez used Hubbard’s The Fundamentals of Thought when founding this organization in 1966. Hubbard approved; four years later Narconon was an official offshoot, though the founders claim the organizations are separate. Numerous former patients and state officials disagree. A short list of grievances includes: One California facility was cited as having alcohol on the facility and doling out unauthorized medications. A similar facility in Clearwater included a proposal with a fake endorsement from Los Angeles officials. In 2012 a member of Pur Detox and Recovery in Dana Point, California, attempted suicide after facility administrators took him off psychiatric medication. Hubbard was outspoken in his disdain of psychiatry. Scientology offshoots everywhere keep his grievances alive and well. A Narconon facility in Georgia closed in 2013 due to insurance fraud. Among the complaints was patients being billed by doctors that never actually visited them. Recent lawsuits in California, Nevada, and Oklahoma, combined with organizational trouble in Quebec, Russia, Spain, and Kazakhstan, have kept authorities and potential clients suspicious. In each of these cases money problems and proselytizing go hand in hand. The “studies” that Narconon relies on to promote its services are tremendous, mostly because falsified. This Scientology offshoot, like others, proves that fruit never falls far from its tree. Narconon has spun off numerous other groups to shield Scientology’s involvement, including Blue by the Sea, Fresh Start, Israel Says No to Drugs, and Sober Living in Orange County. Addiction to drugs and addiction to ideologies both involve neurochemistry; both exploit patterns of behavior; both create new identities that tend to be abrasive and dangerous. Alcohol might destroy livers, but the notion that you must confront and merge with your thetan comes with its own attendant problems, including neurosis, depression, anxiety, and a gullibility that permits all sorts of errant behavior. For better and worse, charitable arms of religious organizations spread their messages under disguise of service. Such initiatives work best when faith is invisible. In the case of Scientology’s long reach of training routines, the cult has proven itself little more than an insidious mocking of charity. Source: http://bigthink.com/21st-century-spirituality/the-insidious-nature-of-scientologys-outreach-programs
Self-examination and correction requires some cognitive dissonance. When you deal with non-existent abstractions promoted as facts, jumping from one set to another that does not contradict the first requires little effort. The people duped by Bitinas would have to make an apology to their congregation. It looks like they don't want to deal with it.
Mikael Kras @KrasMikael @TonyOrtega94 Are they still running those "rehab"-clinics (Narconon)? Tony Ortega @TonyOrtega94 27 seconds ago They had to retool them after several recent patient deaths. They're scaling them back so they're too small to be regulated by govt.
Scientology-backed rehab center continues to operate with little oversight It lost certification as medical detox center in 2013; now halfway house Posted: Sunday, January 22, 2017 12:00 am | Updated: 12:12 am, Sun Jan 22, 2017. By Brianna Bailey The Oklahoman | 0 comments CANADIAN — After the death of 20-year-old Stacy Dawn Murphy at a Church of Scientology-backed drug rehab program in Pittsburg County, the state enacted a new law to provide more oversight of drug and alcohol rehabilitation centers. However, Narconon Arrowhead, where Murphy and three other clients died, continues to operate legally because the law allows only limited supervision from the Oklahoma Department of Mental Health and Substance Abuse Services. “I am very surprised they are still open, I sure am,” said Gary Richardson, a Tulsa attorney who represents former Narconon Arrowhead clients and their parents, including Murphy’s parents, in nearly a dozen lawsuits against Narconon. continues: http://www.tulsaworld.com/homepagel...cle_1c69982f-5392-597f-902d-db4da80e7863.html
Arrowhead Medical Detox was at a different location. I wish they were clearer about what's open/closed. 1500 South George Nigh Expressway, McAlester, OK, 74501 I still see that address advertised on a whole lot of sites as a medical detox.
