The Church of Scientology says it is considering proposals to sell its headquarters in the central business district, in its move to the suburbs. The controversial religious denomination can expect to make about $8 million in today's market for the historic four-level building, on the corner of Russell Street and Flinders Lane. The building occupies a tiny slice of the city block, dominated by the Grand Hyatt hotel and near the 101 Collins Street office building. The Church of Scientology recently ...

Washington, USA — With their dark suits, leering masks and signs warning of what they call the "cult" of Scientology, the protest group Anonymous may startle a few visitors to Millennium Park on Saturday. But that's what the participants are hoping for. "Outfits and the outrageous help get people's attention," said Eric Szulczewski of Clarendon Hills, one of a few members of Anonymous willing to give his name. An Internet-based group that claims more than 10,000 members worldwide, Anonymous has assembled ...

ALBUQUERQUE (KRQE) - An Albuquerque rehabilitation program doesn't have nearly as good a success rate as organizers claim, a News 13 investigation finds. The Second Chance program, developed by the founder of Scientology, uses saunas to sweat out toxins and other techniques to try to get people off drugs and alcohol. Judges have sent more than 90 convicts to the facility near the Double Eagle II airport on Albuquerque's West Mesa since it opened in September 2006. The federal government and ...

The Scientology cult loudly boasts that after 9/11, its "Volunteer Ministers" were awarded the Fire Department of New York's highest honor, the "Medal of Valor." This is not only a lie, but an insult to the memory all the brave firefighters who died in the line of duty and were awarded this Medal posthumously. Dozens of Scientology web site and blogs brazenly make this claim, in a continuing effort to legitimize their cult. Scientology's "Volunteer Ministers," or more accurately, "Vulture Ministers," ...

The Cook Islands High Court will hear an application today (Friday local time) for the demolition of a tent set up by the Church of Scientology in the middle of the capital, Avarua. The writ was filed in court by Reverend Alfred Morris, who leads a local Apostolic church in Rarotonga. Last week the Cook Islands government gave the green light to visiting Church of Scientology representatives Mathew Andrews and Winnie Lawrence to put up posters. However, they were advised the ...

A rival church’s petition against the Church of Scientology was dismissed by the Cook Islands High Court this afternoon after Scientology officials removed a display tent that was the focus of the court action. Local church leader Reverend Alfred Morris applied to the court this week for the removal of a display tent erected by the Church of Scientology in the capital Avarua. Morris said that apart from having no approval under the Religious Organisations Restrictions Act 1975, the Scientologists were ...

When talking about the Church of Scientology, the township of Tuolumne probably doesn't immediately come to mind. But the small town might as well be mentioned in the same breath as Los Angeles, the religion's mecca, and movie star adherents like Tom Cruise and John Travolta. Tuolumne is home to an archive of the religion's relics, and has been so for the past decade, according to Jane McNairn, a representative of the Scientology-affiliated Church of Spiritual Technology. According to published reports, ...

BATTLE CREEK, Mich. (NEWSCHANNEL 3) - The video of two men involved in an altercation outside a Church of Scientology has garnered a lot of hits on YouTube, but it happened right here in West Michigan. Two men protesting the Church of Scientology got more than they bargained for when a man and a woman from the church came out and confronted them last week. Even though they had the right to stand on the sidewalk in front of the Church ...

THE Church of Scientology has been banned from a Midland shopping centre after a string of complaints that they had been preaching to children. Church leaders understood to be from Birmingham set up a stall at Wolverhampton’s Wulfrun Centre after making a booking under the name Dianetics, the church’s main theory. Bosses ordered preachers to pack up and leave after angry parents said their children had been invited to take part in “stress tests” and then lectured about the religion. “We ...

I had never been this close to a real cobra before. As it rose up and spread its hood, I could feel my hackles raise and a primordial fear tickle some primitive level of my brain. The handler said we were perfectly safe, but even so, I didn’t want to get too close to the thing. [...]

Truck maker Paccar has Bellevue’s business community buzzing over a recent property shopping spree. Downtown property owners, developers, city officials and real estate professionals alike are wondering what prompted the conservative Fortune 500 company to buy two parcels of land across a major arterial from its headquarters and main holdings. Thanks to a $21.53 million spree in the summer of 2000, Paccar Inc. already owns most of the east side of the Bellevue superblock that stretches from Northeast Eighth Street all ...

THE South Australian Government was at odds with the Church of Scientology last night after backing the right of a senior state minister to brand its members "bastards". Education Minister Jane Lomax-Smith has also questioned the organisation's tax-free status in comments to an anti-Scientology group called Anonymous, which it posted on popular internet site YouTube. While declaring Dr Lomax-Smith was entitled to her opinion, a spokeswoman for Premier Mike Rann distanced the Government from the remarks, saying they represented a private ...

Scientology’s International Base is located on the sloping foothills at the north end of California’s San Jacinto Valley, about ninety miles east of Los Angeles. When I first moved there in 1989, the valley was still mostly a rural farming community – sheep still grazed on fields near the Base. But the area was being rapidly taken over by LA’s "Inland Empire" suburbs, spreading out east from Riverside like a virus. Nearby Moreno Valley had already achieved the dubious status of ...

EDUCATION Minister Jane Lomax-Smith has been caught on tape declaring Scientologists “should be taxed, the bastards”. Footage from a video recorded during a protest on May 10 by internet activist group Anonymous has emerged which shows Dr Lomax-Smith casually chatting to protesters in Adelaide. Clearly not a fan of the controversial Church of Scientology, Dr Lomax-Smith asks protesters how frequently they gather and exclaims, “oh, it’s great”. She then asks about the protest group, which is dedicated to “dismantling and ...

The Church of Scientology is planning to increase its foothold in Sussex, The Argus can reveal. Graeme Wilson, the director of public affairs, said the organisation was looking at the local property market and it is thought any new premises could provide a headquarters for members in Brighton and Hove. Mr Wilson said: "The Church of Scientology internationally is very much expanding and to accommodate that expansion, new premises are being acquired for our existing churches worldwide. advertisement "There is nothing ...

DESTIN — Destin's hands are tied if Narconon Gulf Coast wants to open a home for recovering addicts in a city neighborhood, a city attorney says. "I'm aware that you're tempted to shoot the messenger on this because it may not be popular with all the residents," City Land-Use Attorney Scott Shirley told the City Council Monday. "It's something the city's required to accept." Narconon Gulf Coast wants to open a "community residential home" for recovering addicts, in addition to the ...

Novosibirsk, July 8, Interfax - Prosecutor of the Novosibirsk Region addressed the Novosibirsk central district court a demand to close up Dianetics Siberian Center non-commercial partnership. The regional prosecutor's office has reported on Tuesday that law-enforcement agencies together with experts of regional educational department analyzed activities of the scientologist center and examined printed publications by Ron Hubbard used in the center. "Educational activity is subjected to licensing in the Russian Federation. The license for conducting educational activity is given to religious ...

[Interview with Jason Beghe on Australian TV.]

As a member of two vindictive cults — Fox News and Scientology — cable news anchor Greta Van Susteren is an absolute pro at channeling rage. Witness the blog post she typed up on the 4th of July holiday. The executive producer of CNN's Anderson Cooper 360 last week called Susteren's On The Record "not a news program. It's missing-person of the day." Hoo-boy. Susteren's 1000-word response swiftly pinned blame for the comments on Cooper, since he should be able to ...

Rex Fowler, Denver I was surprised that out of all of the remarks that comedian Kathy Griffin made during the fourth season debut of her TV show, Kathy Griffin: My Life on the D-List, the Rocky Mountain News chose to include a discriminatory remark about my religion ("Griffin always 'on,' "" Spotlight, June 11). If the remark had been about Judaism or Islam, would the Rocky have included it in the article? I am very proud to be a Scientologist. I ...

Critics of Scientology say they plan another theatrical protest against the church — this time targeting its intelligence division. The anti-Scientology group known as Anonymous says its July 12 "Spy vs. Sci" demonstration will be held in "cities all around the world," according to a press release. Anonymous members — who include former Scientologists — are focusing on alleged "abuses" of the church’s intelligence agency, known as the Office of Special Affairs (OSA), says the release. It asks, "Why does something ...

"You wanted to see me, Sir?" I poked my head into the office of the new Commanding Officer of the Planetary Dissemination Organization, Ronnie Miscavige. "Yes, come in Jeff." He indicated the chair across the desk from his deputy, Bill Dendiu, and I sat down. They both looked very serious. [...]