I recently read a column by Alex Beam in the September 16 edition of the Boston Globe. It was titled "Boston U's Scientology Connection" and it was about Earle Cooley. One thing that really caught my eye was the part where Beam said that "whenever Cooley and I discussed the excesses committed by the church - the harassment of a journalist, for instance - he said he had no knowledge of illegal activities." I had to laugh when I read ...

(Gerry Armstrong is my friend now that we are both out of Scientology, and I have already told him this story. I have told him how sorry I am for my part in trying to destroy him when I was still an OSA staff member. I’ve told several other people this story as well, and they have urged me to share it because it is such a classic illustration of how far DM and his cronies are willing to ...

Boston University has the faculty, staff, and financial resources to become one of the nation's great research institutions. One obstacle in that path has always been the unpredictable behavior of John Silber, a master builder whose norms of academic freedom are not universally accepted. It is also hard to take seriously a university where the president, Jon Westling, lacks the basic teaching credential — a doctoral degree — required of assistant professors nationwide. It is not widely known that the man ...

The doctor who pronounced Scientologist Lisa McPherson dead pays her estate $100,000. A Clearwater doctor who declared Scientologist Lisa McPherson dead when she arrived at a New Port Richey hospital in December 1995 has paid her estate $100,000 to settle his portion of a wrongful death suit McPherson's family filed against the Church of Scientology and others. James Felman, the Tampa lawyer who represents Dr. David Minkoff, said two medical malpractice insurance companies paid the entire amount. "It wasn't our idea ...

John Travolta has denied those pesky gay rumors for years. but in a shocking lawsuit set to be filed in Los Angeles federal court at press time, Beverly-Hills-based artist Michael Pattinson alleges that the Church of Scientology used Travolta as an example of a homosexual "cured" by the church. Pattinson's complaint alleges that he "reasonably relied upon" Travolta's marriage to fellow Scientologist Kelly Preston as proof that Scientology processing and courses would 'handle' my own homosexuality." Pattinson is suing the church, ...

Some of the study techniques, such as students' learning at their own pace in multigrade classrooms, are being tried in public schools. [Picture / Caption: Visitors file past a bust of Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard after opening ceremonies Tuesday at Clearwater Academy International.] CLEARWATER — A new private school using educational concepts promoted by Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard is scheduled to open today downtown. Clearwater Academy International, at Drew Street and Myrtle Avenue, will have an enrollment of 120 ...

The American West, like this country itself, was a refuge for religious movements. The Mormons moved to Utah - or Zion as they preferred to call it - because of its isolation from the rest of the country. But it didn't quite work out as expected. The federal government in 1857 insisted that the Mormons end the practice of polygamy - and sent a military force to occupy Utah and convert the territory and its theocracy into a secular state. The ...

SAN FRANCISCO — A federal appeals court has reaffirmed $1.09 million in damages against an anti-cult organization for its role in trying to "deprogram" a Washington state teenager, despite a warning from seven judges that free speech was under attack. The 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals denied reconsideration Wednesday of a panel's 2-1 decision in April upholding damages against the Cult Awareness Network (CAN). Without announcing the exact vote, the court said a request for a rehearing had failed to ...

DEAR DRUM I think Geri Halliwell (Ginger Spice) would think twice about joining Scientology if she visited http://www.xenu.net If she joins, who will be next? TISM? (If so, God help us!) Best wishes WGERT'S PIG (harryburton@hotmail.com)

CLEARWATER — Members of the Church of Scientology recently have been rising to the defense of embattled City Manager Mike Roberto in an outpouring of public support for a Clearwater official that would have been inconceivable in the past. The unusual display, in the form of letters and e-mails to City Hall and the Times, is an indicator of how dramatically City Hall's relationship with the church and its members has changed — from the icy co-existence that began with Scientology's ...

From: jesse_prince@minton.org (Jesse Prince) Subject: What—–Who? Date: 1998/08/04 Message-ID: <35c67b4b.1795322@news.tiac.net> X-Deja-AN: 377691976 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Organization: ARSCC Mime-Version: 1.0 Reply-To: bob@minton.org Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology If you had the unfortunate experience of having had the "privilege" of paying tens of thousands of dollars for Scientology auditing, then you'll have an idea of what I'm about to say here. If not, I'll make it simple for you. When a Scientology victim progresses up to OT3, what do you find out? L. Ron ...

Each side is consumed with painting the other as evil in a battle that recently came to gunfire at a 200-acre estate. SANDOWN, N.H. — So is Boston financier Robert S. Minton an arch-enemy of the Church of Scientology or a prospective member? The multimillionaire, who has infuriated the church with his financial support of its enemies, says top Scientologists recently tried to recruit him as a member. Scientology leaders deny offering membership but acknowledge they made overtures to help Minton ...

SANDOWN — A longtime opponent of the Church of Scientology allegedly fired two shots into the air Saturday after telling Church of Scientology members — who had been picketing outside his summer home on Fremont Road — to leave his property. Robert Minton, a longtime church opponent and defender of those he believes have been victimized by the church, fired a 12-gauge shotgun into the air after asking four pickets and a private detective hired by the church to leave, Police ...

If you are a Scientologist, your church is hoping that you'll get online and build a Web site endorsing your religious beliefs. In fact, the Church of Scientology will give you a Web starter kit to do just that. It will even host your site for you, alongside those of thousands of fellow Scientology members. But if you want to visit alt.religion.scientology, the Web site of Operation Clambake or just about any page that mentions the word "Xenu," you're out of ...

CLARIFICATION is required regarding the article on Scientology (June 21), as no German court decision exists which states that Scientology is not a religion, while 36 local and regional courts there have held that it is a bona fide religious community. It appears that the German courts have had to shoulder the whole burden of being objective and just. The Government inquiry on new religions was roundly condemned by parliamentarians and scholars and solidly lampooned in Spiegel magazine as "a kindergarten ...

Dear 3D, I just read on the Internet that the founder of Scientology - L. Ron Hubbard "was not only an accomplished songwriter and composer, his breakthrough work in computerized music influenced professionals around the world." (see the website http://www.lronhubbard.org/lrhhome.htm) This makes me really angry, as this is from one of Scientology's websites. I mean, WHAT A LOT OF CRAP!!!!!! I reckon http://www.xenu.net tells the real story. Cheers and too few beers, Slugfest

AFTER reading so many news articles of violent deaths and murders in the past few weeks I am sure I am not alone in wanting a solution to the problems that cause such occurrences. Frustrated politicians and social commentators tell us that we have to stop the killing, and the primary solutions offered are more police, tighter gun controls, "intervention" with enforced mental health "treatment" and tougher prison sentences. And while it is obviously true we have to do something about ...

The Church of Scientology has launched a countrywide personal attack against a University of Alberta professor who has publicly criticized some of their practices. Sociology professor Stephen Kent was the subject of a scathing article in a 16-page Church of Scientology supplement entitled Freedom that was distributed with the Globe and Mail newspaper Friday. In the two-page article, Kent is compared to well-known neo-Nazi hatemongerer Ernst Zundel and is referred to "as the academic point man for the voices of hate ...

Dear Revolver, I pass on a big yawn to letter writer "Slug" (Revolver #28) who recirculated once again a tired old lie about L. Ron Hubbard which has been disproved in various forums around the world on many, many occasions. I quote from a statutory declaration by David A Kyle, a publisher who was present at the meeting of literary figures at which L. Ron Hubbard was supposed to have made the statement ascribed to him so smugly by Slug. ...

The Southern California Internet Service Provider has defied conventional wisdom just by surviving. Now Dayton and Betty are betting the company on a $180 million deal with Sprint. Driving down a steep mountain road after a weekend on the slopes of Big Bear in Southern California, EarthLink Network (ELNK) founder Sky Dayton and his promising COO candidate, Charles "Garry" Betty, had an unexpected chance to see how well they worked together. A storm the previous night had covered the road with ...