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Blogs
February 1, 2012
The 5 Worst Things Judges Have Said About Scientology
How many times do judges have to say this stuff?Monday evening, we learned that Debbie Cook, who dared to question the health of her religion, is being sued by the Church of Scientology. That night, Joe Childs and Tom Tobin of the Tampa Bay Times broke news of the lawsuit, which alleges that ... More >>
Blogs
January 28, 2012
Scientology Half-Cocked: Commenters of the Week!
It's been another blast of a week here at the underground bunker, where we keep an eye on all things Scientology related. We started off the week by marveling at the "thrill" of Scientology fundraising in our regular weekend feature, Sunday Funnies. On Monday, we collected a few dozen of ... More >>
Blogs
January 21, 2012
Scientology Viscosity: Commenters of the Week!
It was an amazing week here at the underground bunker, where we keep an eye on all things Scientology. Let's take a look back at how the week unfolded before we recognize the work of our illustrious commenting community. We starting things out by having fun with the Tone Scale in our regular weeken ... More >>
Blogs
January 20, 2012
Scientology on the High Seas: The Littlest Sailors!
In November we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of copies of L. Ron Hubbard's previously unpublished "Orders of the Day," which he gave to crew members as he sailed the Mediterranean. Our documents cover the period from late 1968 through 1971, and this time we'r ... More >>
Blogs
January 17, 2012
Scientology's Infinite Pit and Water Wall -- More Crazy Rooms in the Super Power Building!
We've gone through even more files in the massive leak of plans that describe the soon-to-open "Flag Mecca" in Clearwater, Florida -- otherwise known as Scientology's "Super Power Building" -- and we have more things to show you. In the wild "Perceptics" area on the fifth floor, there's this Heartbe ... More >>
Blogs
January 14, 2012
Scientology Recon: Commenters of the Week!
And we thought it was going to be tough to follow Debbie Cook. We're glad that we got those improvements to the underground bunker in place before the new year; we don't know if the old setup could have handled the hurricane-force enturbulation that hit with the coming of 2012. While we were still ... More >>
Blogs
January 13, 2012
Scientology on the High Seas: L. Ron Hubbard Frets Over His Sexy Crew
In November we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of copies of L. Ron Hubbard's previously unpublished "Orders of the Day," which he gave to crew members as he sailed the Mediterranean. Our documents cover the period from late 1968 through 1971, and this time we'r ... More >>
Blogs
January 10, 2012
Scientology and Oiliness: More Renderings from the Super Power Building
Yesterday, we made public a leak of major proportions: we obtained hundreds of new renderings and architectural drawings of Scientology's $100 million "Super Power Building" -- what the church calls "Flag Mecca" -- in Clearwater, Florida. Of all the "perceptics" installations on the building's "su ... More >>
Blogs
January 7, 2012
Scientology, Cooked: Commenters of the Week!
"This Debbie Cook show is just too much!"If the rest of 2012 is going to be like this first week, the hooch reserves in the underground bunker are going to need some bolstering. Things started off one second after midnight as 2012 began, when our pre-loaded first story of the year, "What is ... More >>
Blogs
January 3, 2012
Is Scientology Imploding? Watching the Panic After a Former Executive Dares to Question Church Management
UPDATE: We look back at Debbie Cook's career, from enforcer to whistleblower. The world of Scientology watching is still reeling after Debbie Cook's New Year's Eve e-mail landed in the inboxes of thousands of church members Saturday night. A few minutes after midnight, we began receiving copies of ... More >>
Blogs
January 1, 2012
Our Scientology Puzzle Solved!
In yesterday's story celebrating our commenting community at the end of the year, I mentioned that back in the summer, I had planted a puzzle in our very successful series, The Top 25 People Crippling Scientology. Despite the large readership of that series, no one managed to spot the little visua ... More >>
Blogs
December 24, 2011
Scientology Succession: Commenters of the Week!
[Image blatantly stolen from shoopers at WWP]"Finally, a country that treats its people right!"We had a feeling that this week leading up to Christmas would be pretty quiet around the underground bunker. And boy, were we wrong! What a crazy week, and it all started Sunday morning with our usu ... More >>
Blogs
December 17, 2011
Scientology Infusion: Commenters of the Week!
"This Will guy is so cool! I can't wait to tell Dave."We're still taking your votes for Scientology Story of the Year, and in general, things here in the underground bunker are frenetic as we prepare for year-end festivities. We also managed to keep the beat going this week with some interest ... More >>
Blogs
December 16, 2011
Writing OT VIII, a Pot Bust, and More From L. Ron Hubbard: Sailing the Apollo Dec 11 - 17
On November 18, we started a new feature here on Fridays: the Voice has obtained hundreds of copies of L. Ron Hubbard's previously unpublished "Orders of the Day," which he gave to crew members as he sailed the Mediterranean. Our documents cover the period from 1968 to 1971, and this time we' ... More >>
Blogs
December 10, 2011
Scientology Subluxation: Commenters of the Week!
"Am I doing it right, Mr. Fairman?"Another Saturday morning here in the underground bunker finds us once again picking up the pieces after another hectic week. Let's review, shall we? After starting off the week with another edition of Sunday Funnies, that evening we published our lengthy in ... More >>
Blogs
December 5, 2011
Scientology's Shame: Lisa McPherson, 16 Years After Her Death
On December 5, 1995, a 36-year-old woman perished while several people were taking her to a hospital in Florida. Within a few years, the mysterious and strange circumstances around the death of Lisa McPherson -- who had been a Scientologist since the age of 18 -- had the Church of Scientolog ... More >>
Blogs
December 4, 2011
Scientology Sunday Funnies: Your Tax Dollars at Work
Scientology doesn't really have a Sunday service. They like to say that they do, because they crave mainstream acceptance. But unless Xenu rested after six days and L. Ron Hubbard just forgot to mention it, there's no reason for Scientologists to treat Sunday any differently than every other day of ... More >>
Blogs
December 3, 2011
Scientology Capsize: Commenters of the Week!
The scene here in the underground bunker is like the quiet after a major storm. A hurricane blew up out of the Caribbean this week and hit us square on. The place is a mess. The cats are skittish. But the excitement has finally died down a bit, the lights are low, the empty bottles have been cleared ... More >>
Blogs
December 1, 2011
Scientology Celebrities Who Partied on the Freewinds While Valeska Paris Was Held on the Ship Against Her Will
We've been reporting all week on the stunning story of Valeska Paris, the Swiss-born woman who now lives in Australia and who says that from 1996 to 2007, beginning when she was only 18 years old, she was held on Scientology's private cruise ship, the Freewinds, as a virtual prisoner. Valeska alleg ... More >>
Blogs
November 27, 2011
Scientology Sunday Service: Mind Control and Your Open Thread
It's time for another set of Sunday Funnies here at the underground bunker! We hope you enjoy the set of wacky Scientology mailers we've put together this week. The idea is to inspire you to write about whatever you feel like in our open thread. To get you thinking, we've assembled a very disparate ... More >>
Blogs
November 24, 2011
Paulette Cooper, Scientology's Original and Worst Nightmare: A Thanksgiving Tribute by the Village Voice
[UPDATE: Think Scientology spying and harassment is a thing of the past? Check out our new story about how the church even spies on its most prominent member, Tom Cruise.] I couldn't think of a better way to give thanks this year than to pay homage to the woman who was there first, paid the highest ... More >>
Blogs
November 22, 2011
More Scientology Hip Hop, Yo: The Curious Career of Chill EB
Thursday night, we were quick to jump on the leak of a video that was only meant for internal Scientology consumption. It featured pallid European Scientologists breakdancing and pantomiming to a hip hop track that extolled the virtues of the International Association Scientologists -- the IAS. Wit ... More >>
Blogs
November 21, 2011
Scientology's 'Super Power' Building: Cash Cow for the Church
Part 4 of the epic Scientology series at the St. Petersburg Times hit the web last night and hits streets in Florida this morning. This fourth installment focuses on Scientology's biggest construction project: its "Super Power" building that was started a decade ago and still isn't finished. Whethe ... More >>
Blogs
November 21, 2011
Desperate Scientology Fundraising Caught on Video (UPDATED with more Video)
For the last week, the excellent journalists over at the St. Petersburg Times have outdone themselves with their best series on Scientology ever -- a look at the desperate fundraising by the church, which runs employees ragged and puts intense pressure on ordinary church members. Naturally, the chu ... More >>
Blogs
November 20, 2011
Scientology Sunday Service: Your Thanksgiving Week Open Thread!
We have some especially good Sunday Funnies for you this week as we open up a thread for our loyal readers to jabber on about whatever they want. We figured they better be good Funnies, because chances are Tobin and Childs are sucking up all the attention in the Scientology watching world this morn ... More >>
Blogs
November 20, 2011
Scientology, Indubitably: NYC Anons Make Their Fancy Raid on the 46th Street 'Org'
As advertised, last night's "fancy raid" put on by the local chapter of Project Chanology (the Anonymous wing that protests Scientology) was a sartorial riot. About 20 young Anonymous members showed up with Snidely Whiplash mustaches (even the women!) and with interesting choices in head wear. I ... More >>
Blogs
November 19, 2011
White House Rejects Scientology Petition: Why That's Not All Bad News
"Scientology? Ain't touching that one!"A wail was heard across the land tonight. Just as we were leaving the office for the evening, we were notified that thousands of people who recently signed a White House petition about Scientology had received e-mail notices that the Obama administrati ... More >>
Blogs
November 19, 2011
Scientology's Grand Scheme of Greed Was Kickstarted by the 9/11 Attacks -- St. Pete Times
It's here -- part 3 of the new St. Petersburg Times blockbuster series about the extreme pressure Scientology puts on its members to donate money. And we're thrilled to see this video of Synthia Fagen anchoring the report about the International Association of Scientologists and its constant beggin ... More >>
Blogs
November 17, 2011
Scientology Chillin' With Hip Hop! A Video That Cannot Be Unseen
Oh my. Another jaw-dropping video produced by Scientologists for internal use has made its way to the outside world. Take a look, and after the jump we'll tell you what we've been able to find out about this latest testament to Scientology hipness.
Blogs
November 16, 2011
Scientology Watching Gets Fancy!
New York City's local Project Chanology brigade -- the branch of Anonymous that messes with Scientology -- has kept up its nearly four-year mission by turning protests into fun and comedic events. In the summer, we wrote about NYC anons turning 46th Street into a beach party -- including 300 ... More >>
Blogs
November 13, 2011
Scientology, "The Money Machine:" Explosive New Series by the St. Pete Times
This is the one we've been waiting for, the next big investigative project by Tom Tobin and Joe Childs, the deans of Scientology reporting, who toil for the (formerly) St. Petersburg Times (which for some reason recently changed its name to the Tampa Bay Times -- Go Bucs, or whatever).
Blogs
November 13, 2011
Scientology Sunday Service: Your Open Thread For November 13
Last week, we started something new here at the underground bunker, and it was a smashing success. We brought back the tradition of Sunday Funnies, in this case materials produced by Scientology organizations, which tend to be unintentionally hilarious. We then opened up the comments section ... More >>
Blogs
November 6, 2011
Scientology Sunday Service: Your Open Thread For Worship (Or Whatever)
We're trying something new in the underground bunker this morning. It's that first dawn after the clocks have changed here in the U.S., and we find ourselves with an extra hour to play around with. Naturally, our minds turn to things Miscavigey, and we can't help wondering what you, our loyal ... More >>
Blogs
October 28, 2011
Mark Chauppetta, Private Eye Who Worked for Scientology at the time of the South Park Investigation: "I'm a Fucking Mercenary"
Mark Chauppetta, comparing notes with a certain presidential candidateJust got off the phone with Mark Chauppetta, a private investigator who has done work for the Church of Scientology, sifting through the trash of the church's perceived enemies. Chauppetta worked for Scientology for severa ... More >>
Blogs
October 25, 2011
Scientology Responds in Typical Fashion to South Park Investigation Documents
Karin Pouw loves the word "apostate"As we've been reporting the last couple of days, a man who was once the second-highest ranking executive in Scientology, Marty Rathbun, has made public several documents showing that in 2006, the church attempted to dig up dirt on South Park creators Trey P ... More >>
Blogs
October 21, 2011
Scientology and Forced Abortions: Testimony of an Enforcer
Filmmaker Mark Bunker has released another preview from his upcoming documentary, Knowledge Report. In this segment, Gary Morehead talks about his role as a security officer at Scientology's secretive California desert headquarters, Int Base, where he oversaw the operation that persuaded pregnant ... More >>
Blogs
October 20, 2011
Scientologist Grant Cardone to Occupy Wall Street: Get Off Your Asses!
We just can't seem to get enough of Grant Cardone, the wealthy Scientologist who starred in his own National Geographic Channel reality show, donated millions of dollars to Scientology's war chest, and did Scientology's dirty work to slime fellow church member Milton Katselas, a well known Hollywo ... More >>
Blogs
October 18, 2011
Scientology Petition Going to the Wire: Will Obama Be Forced to Say Something?
Will Obama be made to speak on Scientology?For the last few weeks, we've been inundated here at the underground bunker with our tipsters urging us to write about an online petition that would force the Obama Administration to say something publicly about the federal government's apparent inac ... More >>
Blogs
October 13, 2011
Scientology "Ideal Orgs" Laid Bare In Our Thursday Stats Roundup!
It's that time of the week again -- at 2 pm on Thursdays, Scientology orgs turn in their stats for the week, and so we like to do our own accounting of how things went for the church with our weekly roundup. After the jump, an eye-opening look inside an "Ideal org" by our sister paper in Phoenix. ... More >>
Blogs
October 11, 2011
Scientology and Disconnection: "No One's Going to Take My Eternity Away"
Lori Hodgson keeps telling me she's going to give me the entire story of her time in Scientology. Well, I'm still waiting. In the meantime, she talked to Mark Bunker for his upcoming movie Knowledge Report, and this morning he released a segment of that interview. For those of you still confused ... More >>
Blogs
October 6, 2011
Scientology Raided, Smacked Down in Court, and Accused of Killing Trees -- a Thursday Roundup
Yes, the video we're embedding here is in Russian, (Update: there are now English subtitles, press the "cc" button) but the action is understandable enough: Moscow law enforcement raiding the Church of Scientology there, and getting rather medieval on its locked doors. We made a rare foray out of t ... More >>
Blogs
October 5, 2011
Johnny Depp and Vanity Fair: Confused About Scientology, Or Just Trolling?
Vanity Fair magazine is teasing its November issue with an excerpt from its interview with Johnny Depp, timed to promote his new movie, Rum Diary. One utterance from the Pirates of the Caribbean star has been picked up and flung around the Internets with requisite chuckling -- Depp appears t ... More >>
Blogs
September 30, 2011
Scientology's SF Leaker Talks: We Ask Amy Scobee to Interpret
Lauren Smiley has been publishing a terrific series this week at our sister paper, SF Weekly. Smiley first reported on September 8 that the very active Anonymous chapter there, Chanology SF, had received e-mails from someone inside Scientology's "org" who went by the handle "ethicstrouble." Ethic ... More >>
Blogs
September 29, 2011
Scientology High School, Dating, and Super Powers! A Post-Countdown Roundup
We're struggling with a little post-countdown hangover here in the underground bunker, but time marches on, and we can't let down on our Scientology-watching duties. For the second week in a row, then, we're doing a roundup of items in time for Thursday 2pm Stats -- is the church upstat or downstat ... More >>
Blogs
September 28, 2011
The Top 25 People Crippling Scientology: Readers Poll Results!
LRH came out on top of our countdown, but did he top out our readers poll? Take a look inside!Actually, make that the top fifty people crippling the Church of Scientology -- we received more than 3,000 individual choices by 141 voters, with more than 300 different people receiving votes. Our ... More >>
Blogs
September 26, 2011
Scientology Internal Documents Leaked in SF? We Ask the Experts
We've been watching a developing story in San Francisco, where Lauren Smiley at our sister paper, SF Weekly, has been covering an interesting defection from the Church of Scientology's "org" there. Chanology SF, the very active Anonymous chapter in that city, was celebrating the apparent fac ... More >>
Blogs
September 20, 2011
Scientology Has Marty Rathbun Arrested (UPDATED: CHARGES DROPPED)
Update: After the jump, more detail on Rathbun's arrest from the Corpus Christi Caller-Times. AND NOW, CHARGES HAVE BEEN DROPPED. SEE BELOW. This story was originally posted on Saturday, Sept. 17. Well, it looks like we were premature to say that the siege in South Texas had ended. Apparently, i ... More >>
Blogs
September 13, 2011
Marty Rathbun, Ex-Scientology Exec, Back from Germany: "The U.S. Media Has No Balls"
This TV image couldn't have gone down well at Gold BaseThe siege in South Texas is apparently finally over. Marty Rathbun has returned from his trip to Germany, and he tells me that only one member of the Squirrel Busters goon squad that was previously planted outside his house -- a former co ... More >>
Blogs
July 15, 2011
Scientology's "Documentary" of Marty Rathbun Revealed! (UPDATED -- The Squirrel Busters Respond!)
AFTER THE JUMP: The Squirrel Busters respond to the Voice! Brace yourself, Scientology watchers. This is jaw-dropping territory. You'll remember that former church executive Marty Rathbun complained to local government in his Corpus Christi-area town of Ingleside on the Bay, Texas, that he was b ... More >>
Blogs
July 3, 2011
Scientology's Cover Story for Harassment: "We're Making a Documentary!"
Something tells us Ken Burns doesn't work this way.We've been covering Marty Rathbun's remarkable experiences in South Texas with rapt attention: there's no question that his ongoing battle with his former employer, Scientology leader David Miscavige, is becoming the biggest thing to happen t ... More >>
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