Comments on: Film director accuses Scientology of homophobia

By: Luke

Luke — Sun, 01 Nov 2009 00:31:29 +0000

I’ve been a Scientologist for three years now and it has done me the world of good. The church is sort of split on the gay issue but I’ve certainly never had anything homophobic said or done to me in the Church or by any other parishioner.

By: lizichell

lizichell — Fri, 30 Oct 2009 00:27:06 +0000

Scientology is stupid and has no historical basis to be against homosexuality.

By: Aussie Gay Activist Paul Mitchell

Aussie Gay Activist Paul Mitchell — Thu, 29 Oct 2009 10:13:30 +0000

All religions in the world are wrong and full of bigotry – that is why I am a full atheist!!!!!!

By: flapjack

flapjack — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 13:36:59 +0000

Brian – Thanks . Hmmm, Jehovas Witnesses. Yes I’ve had many encounters with them before. I think I must give off an evil vibe as zealots keep attempting to ‘save’ me.
Experience has taught me that rather like those annoying telesales people or the T2000 in Terminator 2 they are more or less relentless, and will continue talking at you right up until you either put the phone down or slam a door in their face. Or until you’re blatantly rude and abrupt with them.
Unfortunately they invariably send around a sweet old lady or a mum with a new baby in a pushchair to make you feel rotten if you give them short shrift.
My most successful attempt to cut a Jehova’s witness off in full flow was when one such sweet old lady rang the intercom of my flat and opened with “Hello, we’re just going door to door today to ask people ‘what do you think happens when you die?’
I retorted “You rot. Goodbye!” and cut the line dead. She didn’t buzz me again.

By: Brian Burton

Brian Burton — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 12:44:43 +0000

Flapjack, you are a Star! I only get button-holed by Jehovah Wittnesses!

By: flapjack

flapjack — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:13:40 +0000

Iris – LOL! Like the ‘callanetics’ response, though I’d be tempted to ask if ‘Dianetics’ was the medical term for wanting to pee after drinking lots of caffeine.
You could also ask if Xenu was that warrior princess played by Lucy Lawless on Channel 5 to see if that gets a rise out of them. IMO ‘fair game policy’ is a two way street

By: Iris

Iris — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 11:02:13 +0000

@ flapjack. I’ve never been approached like that but I’ll remember that for future use!

They usually just ask if I want a stress test. Oh, and once they tried to give me a ‘know more about yourself’ questionnaire with literlly 200 questions! What annoys me is that they’re often quite shy about saying that they’re Scientologists and hide behind the Free Stress Test with no mention of their ‘religion’. I like to make sure that anyone tempted to have a free test is aware that these people are Scientologists. That usually loses them a few victims. Asking them if Xenu wrote Dianetics is good too Oh, and once I asked if it was the sequel to Callanetics

By: flapjack

flapjack — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 09:42:51 +0000

Iris – I have my own method of scaring away Scientology recruiters. Encountered one in Chichester town centre once. I tried blanking him but he kept jumping in front of me as I was walking past going “excuse me, excuse me, EXCUSE ME”.
I thought ‘well if you insist on wasting my time, I’m going to waste some of yours’. This was the following exchange…
Scientology Drone-
Hi I’m just here today asking people a number of questions if you have a spare minute [I thought we'd already established I didn't. He continued his prepared script]
Scientology Drone –
OK, if you could have anything at all in the world what would it be?
Me –
This jacket [pointing to the jacket I was already wearing]
[Scientology drone looks a bit uncertain but soldiers on with his prepared script]
Drone –
Right… erm… if you could be anything in the world, what would you be?
Me- Indecisive [yeah, let's see you spin some 'road to Damascus' conversion out of that one]
Drone –
erm, uh right [his forced bonhomie begins to falter, his paste-on smile is showing signs of muscle fatigue. He valiantly ploughs on with his prepared script] OK… so if you could choose between ‘that jacket’ and ‘being indecisive’, which would you choose?
Me-
[I can't believe he just asked me that question with a straight face] erm, this jacket… no wait… indecisive, no sorry… this jacket… aw but indecisive seems sooo tempting…
[Scientology Drone visibly looses the will to live]
Drone – Look do you want to buy this book or not [half heartedly holds up copy of 'Dianetics']
Me – Nah, I wouldn’t touch that b@ll@cks with a 40 foot pole
Scientology Drone gives me a withering “thankyou” and proceeds to next target.

By: Iris

Iris — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 08:52:29 +0000

Great site here:

hXXp://exscientologykids.com/

You can read the ‘top secret’ stuff too and use the mention of it to scare away approaching Recruiters

By: Will

Will — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 06:34:37 +0000

They’re probably less worried about the gays than they are about those little dead aliens stuck to them causing them all sort of grief….

By: Jean-Paul Bentham

Jean-Paul Bentham — Wed, 28 Oct 2009 06:30:49 +0000

Tuesday, 27 October 2009

Scientology Guilty of Fraud in France

The French aren’t buying Scientology’s claim to be a religion – they see it as the racket it is.

PARIS (Reuters) – A Paris court on Tuesday fined the French branch of the Church of Scientology a total of 600,000 euros ($902,200) after finding it guilty of fraud but allowed the group to continue operating in France.

When the hearing opened, there were expectations that the court could order the group to be banned in France but due to a mix-up over a law that passed in parliament just before the start of the trial in May, that option was ruled out.

The legislation has since been changed back to allow the dissolution of an organization found guilty of fraud but because of the timing of the case, there was no question of forcing the Church of Scientology to be wound up.

“It is very regrettable that the law quietly changed before the trial,” Georges Fenech, head of the Inter-ministerial Unit to Monitor and Fight Cults, told television station France 24.

“The system has now been put in place by parliament and it is certain that in the future, if new offences are committed, a ban could eventually be pronounced,” he said.

The court handed down suspended prison sentences ranging from 10 months to two years and fines of 5,000 euros to 30,000 euros to four leaders of the group in France.

“This is an important and historic decision because it is the first time that Scientology has been found guilty of involvement in organized fraud,” Olivier Morice, one of the lawyers for the civil parties to the case told reporters.

Just because some people claim a system of thought is a religion, doesn’t make it so.

By: Brian Burton

Brian Burton — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:16:19 +0000

I wonder If there are any scientoligy Poofs?

By: Brian Burton

Brian Burton — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 17:06:06 +0000

I think the Scientologists use the word church of…quite loosely. They did not want to say Group or organisation because in the American Bible belt, Church always sounds better. Hubbard was hard selling his product Sy-Fi to people he knew would accept the concept of it all since space exploration was really comming into it’s own. Once the Russians launched Sputnik, the US Government was determined to out do the Russians at their own game. And so It opened the many doors for Ron Hubbard.

By: flapjack

flapjack — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 13:51:55 +0000

Simon Murphy – I hear what you’re saying, as an atheist I find it difficult to credit those other religions too.
However I do give them this much credit, neither Christianity, Islam or Judaism have their respective prophets on record as saying “you know, if you wanted to make a fast buck you could do worse than start your own religion”.
Moses and Abraham weren’t spotted chatting down the Dog and Duck one day saying, “hey Abe, my bargain bucket sci-fi career has gone down the tubes, I think I might start a bogus religion”.
That conversation may have happened but it has long since been lost in the mists of time.
L Ron Hubbard however has existed within living memory and has singularly failed to produce the original ancient ‘sacred’ texts his bumper banquet of sub-’Bablylon 5′ quality sci-fi bullcrap was based on.

By: Brian Burton

Brian Burton — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 12:51:51 +0000

I think that miget actor Tom Cruise is a Scientology nitwit!

By: Simon Murphy

Simon Murphy — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 11:41:57 +0000

Wow – flapjack.

$cientology sounds as weird and bizarre as christianity; islam or judaism.

By: George Broadhead

George Broadhead — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:53:19 +0000

Ironically there is a Google ad on the same page as this report for an almost equally crackpot, and certainly equally homophobic Christian outfit called the Jesus Army.

By: Bishop Ioan

Bishop Ioan — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 10:28:20 +0000

For anyone who would like to read more on the topic of Scientology (anti) you might want to check out this link I found at Salon.com–great article.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972865,00.html

By: Bishop Ioan

Bishop Ioan — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 09:55:22 +0000

You’re right on the e-meter (sorry, I forgot to mention the dials and bottons. They had e-meters for sale at the org (as they call their church) and they cost well over a couple of grand if my memory serves me rightly. You’re right about the toys…at least they sometimes squeak if you hit them the right way lol

Oh and another thing, if you want to have fun reading some real stuff on Scientology, google “Sea Org”. It actually started when old Ron took to the high seas. He used to have girls in nautical tops and hot pants serving him cocktails (that was when he wasn’t popping pills). On a far less amusing note, read about the abuse of Sea Org members go through. It is a real eye opener.

By: flapjack

flapjack — Tue, 27 Oct 2009 08:56:20 +0000

For further viewing, here’s the BBC’s notorious Scientology expose on Panorama
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=QuJlZ_f1594
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=gdCBeMlLTSQ&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5FCfO741sr4&feature=related
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=DY_MLq7mwac&feature=related
And here’s Martin Bashir on America’s ABC network
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Hkh2TPhoZgo&feature=player_embedded
Apparently Scientologists don’t like the word “cult” and don’t like to talk what they believe either. Wonder why?
http://derrenbrown.co.uk/blog/2009/06/church-of-scientology-abuse-claims/