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Earlier ↓ Earliest ⇓ Aug 3, 1994
A battle of beliefs waged in megabytes — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: groups.google.com , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
Wayne Garcia Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Scientologists and their critics are colliding in cyberspace. The critics started the fight, creating an electronic bulletin board dubbed alt.religion.scientology on the Internet, a worldwide web of computer networks with an audience pushing 25-million. Then they downloaded their knowledge and opinions in e-mail messages that just about anyone with a computer, a little money and a modem can view. "As you will see, Scientology is astronomically prohibitive," one anonymous writer said on a.r.s in a message that reprinted the church's price ...
Aug 3, 1994
Network gives voice to former Scientologists — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: groups.google.com , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
Wayne Garcia Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Computers have done what years of opposition couldn't do, uniting the handful of former Scientologists who have waged war against the Church of Scientology. These dissidents are now gathered under the rubric of the Fight Against Coercive Tactics (FACT) network, or FACTnet, a free data base and electronic bulletin board available to the public. The network, based in Golden, Colo., electronically stockpiles information critical of Scientology, from affidavits to court rulings to federal investigations. Although fewer than 150 people now use ...
Jul 7, 1994
Church of Scientology settles suit with PR firm — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s):
Wayne Garcia Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) On the verge of a trial, the Church of Scientology has settled a $40-million federal lawsuit against its former publicity agent, Hill & Knowlton, and foe Eli Lilly and Co. for an undisclosed sum of money. "All parties acknowledged that they are pleased that the case has been settled," said a statement from the Church of Scientology International in Los Angeles. The agreement requires confidentiality, said Kurt Weiland, a director of the Church of Scientology International and head of its Office ...
Apr 1, 1994
Chief of police fires warning at Scientologist — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s):
Ned Seaton Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Police Chief Sid Klein is warning a prominent Church of Scientology official not to interfere in a police investigation again. Richard Haworth, Scientology's spokesman in Clearwater, could have been booked into the county jail March 24 for obstructing an investigation into an alleged battery of a Scientologist that night, Klein said Thursday in a letter. Haworth was not charged only because of the "training, patience and professionalism" of a police officer involved in the incident, Klein said. According to a police ...
Mar 31, 1994
Scientology suit on PR firm heads for trial — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s):
Wayne Garcia Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) For both sides, the relationship between the Church of Scientology and the nation's largest public relations firm, Hill & Knowlton, had been a good one. But that relationship fell apart in 1991, just two days after a cover story in Time magazine blasted Scientology as a cult of greed. Hill & Knowlton dropped Scientology as a client. Lilly and Scientology have been locked in battle over Scientology's campaign to discredit Prozac, an antidepressant drug made by Lilly. Scientology blames Prozac for ...
Feb 25, 1994
Scientology pulls out of suit against ex-member — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Jan 26, 1994
Scientology, county settle tax suits — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Jan 23, 1994
Scientology Files — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Author(s):
Ned Seaton Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) They never broke into church buildings or planted electronic bugs, but for the past 13 years, undercover Clearwater police detectives have investigated the Church of Scientology. They never developed a case against the church that was prosecuted. The work ranged from gathering Scientologists' names to seeking refunds for dissatisfied parishioners. Police once stormed Scientology headquarters after hearing anonymous allegations - unfounded, it turned out - that Scientology children were being strapped to gurneys and given electric shocks. The investigation boils down ...
Dec 19, 1993
Commentary: Taking exception — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Dec 1, 1993
Letters // Criticism of Scientology is 'old worn-out record' — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Editor: In order to build a better future it often is necessary to let go of the past. I am referring to the Nov. 17 letter on Scientology by Gabe Cazares, which sounded much like a record stuck in the nine groove for far too long. Mr. Cazares may disagree with the IRS' exemption riling on the Church of Scientology, however, that decision followed the most thorough and demanding investigation ever conducted of any exempt organization. The result: The IRS granted ...
Nov 21, 1993
Did he have Scientology in mind? — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Nov 21, 1993
Editorial // Exempted, not vindicated — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) This is a business that was set up, according to the son of Scientology founder and science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard, to avoid taxes. Its counseling process can cost a participant as much as $400,000, and it now claims offices in 78 countries. It reported $74.3-million in revenue last year from its Clearwater facility alone and says it will spend $185-million during the next five years to acquire more properties worldwide. It is a business that, according to records filed ...
Nov 21, 1993
Letters / Scientology should be taxed — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Nov 17, 1993
Letters // Debate over Scientology continues — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Editor: The much publicized IRS rulings do not bestow credibility or legitimacy to Scientology. The IRS rulings cannot rewrite history or wipe the slate clean for this most destructive cult. Never forget that this cult committed what is, in my opinion, the greatest conspiracy against the government — crimes for which its top leadership went to jail. Never forget that this cult occupied Clearwater with secret military-style orders. And never forget the cult's infamous "fair game" policy, which says anyone declared ...
Nov 15, 1993
The Scottish highland quietude club — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Oct 29, 1993
Letters to the editor / Scientology hurts Clearwater, writer says — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Oct 28, 1993
Clearwater to see changes — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
David Dahl Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) WASHINGTON — Since coming to Clearwater in 1975, the Church of Scientology has grown into a dominating presence in the city and now owns 11 properties in the area. Clearwater, known as Flag Land Base in Scientology jargon, is considered the international spiritual headquarters of the religion. The church has 750 or so staff members based in Clearwater, and hundreds more come from around the world to take part in Scientology religious services. Even before the IRS granted tax-exempt status to ...
Oct 28, 1993
Scientology has $297-million growth plan — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
David Dahl Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) A new six-story training and counseling center is planned for Clearwater. WASHINGTON — Hoping to expand to "every city on earth," the Church of Scientology plans to spend $185-million during the next five years to renovate and acquire properties, plus another $112-million on a campaign to spread its message around the world. The Scientologists' spiritual headquarters in Clearwater would get the biggest chunk of construction money over the next few years, the Church of Scientology said in documents filed with the ...
Oct 27, 1993
Hue and cry over Scientology amounts to hate campaign — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
Alice Levine Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Upon my return to Clearwater after a month's absence, I was greeted with the news that the Scientologists had been granted tax-free status by the IRS. I hurriedly resumed delivery of the St. Petersburg Times to discover the facts and the community reactions to the news. To my relief, Associate Editor Martin Dyckman's column the following day was a model of intelligent reporting and analysis. "Why should any religion enjoy tax exemptions?" he asked. Later in his column he quoted Justice ...
Oct 25, 1993
Letters to the Editor // Leave Scientologists alone — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) It is appalling to see the intense scrutiny and negative examination of the Church of Scientology by reporters who assume expertise in the subject. Obviously, the subject is sensational: "Church of Scientology declared a bona fide religion by IRS!" But to stir it all up again, to continue to try to get the fire going again, is not only insulting to Scientologists, but I would say to all religions. Has it been forgotten that the right to religious worship is one ...
Oct 24, 1993
IRS examined Scientology dollars, not dogma — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
David Dahl Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) When the IRS granted tax exemptions to the church, it did so mainly on the basis of what Scientology did with its money. WASHINGTON — It might be easier for a camel to walk through the eye of a needle than for the IRS to judge the merits of a religion. So when it comes to considering tax exemptions, the agency sticks to what it knows: money. For the Church of Scientology, which won a series of tax exemptions earlier this ...
Oct 21, 1993
Clearwater to keep battling Scientology — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Type: Press
Author(s):
Ned Seaton Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) At issue is an ordinance on solicitations. At stake is residents' security — or religious freedom. CLEARWATER — The city is still fighting the Church of Scientology. Despite a strongly worded recent court decision in favor of Scientology, city commissioners have decided to continue the decade-long legal battle over a rule that would let the city police the organization's financial records. The commissioners reached their decision at a closed-door meeting Tuesday, Alan Zimmet, a lawyer who attended the meeting, said Wednesday. ...
Oct 20, 1993
Letters // IRS decision on Scientology brings comment — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Re:
IRS Scientology is tax-exempt religion, Oct. 13. The Internal Revenue Service's reversal of the income tax status of the Church of Scientology was both stunning and perplexing. What is the story behind the story? Was some kind of compromise arrived at? A deal? Unanswered questions abound. Taxing personal income, for many Americans, has created a strong moral distaste and sense of injustice, unlike what is felt for other forms of taxation. These Americans have seen, over the years, the ...
Oct 19, 1993
[Cartoon re. "Religious tax exemptions"] — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Oct 17, 1993
Will Clearwater raise white flag on Scientology? — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link
Type: Press
Author(s):
Ned Seaton Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) The city's 10-year battle has been expensive and fruitless. Commissioners will meet Tuesday to discuss their next move, if any. CLEARWATER — The Church of Scientology, it appears, is winning the war. After years of bitter fighting with various government entities, Scientology has been granted the same status as mainstream churches by the Internal Revenue Service, and an appeals court has said the city has no right to police the organization's records. The touchy question facing city leaders: Hunker down for ...
Oct 16, 1993
IRS ruling raises questions — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Oct 16, 1993
Ruling by IRS leaves doubt — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)
Oct 15, 1993
Editorial // Scientology's 'charity' — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Forget, for a moment, the corporate spying, the illicit attempts to discredit its opponents. Forget the seized Church of Scientology documents that revealed a plan "to fully investigate the Clearwater city and county area so we can distinguish our friends from our enemies and handle as needed." Forget the "church" members who bugged U.S. Internal Revenue Service offices and stole files from government agencies. Consider merely the practical effect of the IRS' decision to grant tax-exempt status to 153 Church of ...
Oct 15, 1993
Scientologists profited from new members — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
Karl Vick ,
David Dahl Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Newly released earnings reports show late founder L. Ron Hubbard's disciples can earn big money by soliciting members to Scientology. WASHINGTON — It pays to pitch Scientology, according to earnings reports the church has filed with the Internal Revenue Service. One man averaged almost $200,000 a year in commissions from the fees of new members he had solicited to become Scientologists. The church gives its proselytizers 10 to 15 percent of what newcomers "donate" for church services, such as the process ...
Oct 14, 1993
Clearwater changes foreseen from ruling — St. Petersburg Times (Florida)More: news.google.com , link , pqasb.pqarchiver.com
Type: Press
Author(s):
Ned Seaton Source:
St. Petersburg Times (Florida) Pinellas County's property tax lawsuit with the Church of Scientology is badly wounded by an Internal Revenue Service ruling that the organization is exempt from federal income taxes, Property Appraiser Jim Smith said Wednesday. CLEARWATER — Now that the Church of Scientology has been granted IRS approval as a tax-exempt religion, downtown Clearwater could be in for some major changes. Scientology has no immediate plans to buy more property downtown, the home of the organization's international spiritual headquarters, said spokesman Richard ...
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