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The Top 25 People Crippling Scientology

Lermanet_com

Gold Meritorious Patron
this is great, Moxon at #21 I posted this to the thread at the Village Voice:

The Moxon entry is a hoot, good call Mr Ortega.
The last time scientology tried to depose me, I got a check from Kendrick Moxon for $45.00 as a witness fee.. I never cashed it as the money was slavers dollars and I wanted a souvenir of this exchange:

Deposition starts with Video running, Scientology attorney Rosen doing questions:

ROSEN: Mr Lerma why do you continue to say bad things about the Church of Scientology?

LERMA: Mr. Rosen, are you referring to the international psychopolitical terrorist organization dba scientology and related entities, doing a brisk yet rapidly shrinking business defrauding the public worldwide?

ROSEN: (Sputters) You can't talk about Church of Scientology that way!!

LERMA: Mr Rosen, Are you trying to trick me into committing perjury on your behalf?

ROSEN: This deposition is over!

-----------------------

And here is image of the uncashed check:
moxon-witness-fee.jpg
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
#20 Trey Parker and Matt Stone (and other media figures)

#20 Trey Parker and Matt Stone (and other media figures including: Conan O'Brian, Stephen Colbert, Howard Stern, and Bill Maher)

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runni...r_matt_stone_top_25_crippling_scientology.php

There is an explanation in the article linked above on why these individuals were awarded the 20th place. As well there are some great video clips as well such as this one I included below. The full article along with all the video clips are definitely worth checking out. :thumbsup:


South Park creators Trey Parker and Matt Stone did not begin skewering Scientology with their infamous 2005 episode, "Trapped in the Closet."
Five years earlier, they were asked to contribute a short South Park bit for the MTV Movie Awards, and riffed not only on that year's big blockbuster, Gladiator, but also 2000's most epic fail -- and what certainly continues to be one of the worst movies of all time -- Battlefield Earth, John Travolta's misguided attempt to actually film some of L. Ron Hubbard's bad science fiction. In the short piece, Travolta's "Terl" kills Russell Crowe, and Cartman wipes his ass with a Scientology personality test...

But of course, it's the Season 9 "Trapped in the Closet" episode which remains the supreme comedic takedown of Scientology, probably of all time.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=8XwWntSvNLE&feature=player_embedded
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
#15: Andreas Heldal-Lund (and other old time church critics)

#15: Andreas Heldal-Lund (and other old time church critics)

#15 actually consists of quite a few people and it's an excellent article. :yes:
I'll put a little bit of an excerpt here but you've got to check out the original here with all the links and photos. Some of you on this board are included here but you'll have to go to the original and click on all the links to find out if you are. :coolwink

http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runni..._heldal-lund_top_25_crippling_scientology.php

Andreas Heldal-Lund was not the first person to provide information critical of Scientology on the Internet, and he was not the only one who fought attempts by the church to have his website taken down. But for many years, Heldal-Lund's "Operation Clambake" has been among Scientology's biggest Internet headaches around the world. A Norwegian computer engineer who became interested in a local Scientology court case in 1996, Heldal-Lund quickly came to symbolize the free-speech fight that was galvanizing Internet activism against Scientology and its heavy-handed methods. As his website grew to be an enormously comprehensive depository of information about the church, Scientology targeted it and Heldal-Lund with retaliation. In liberal Norway, however, they found it tough slogging.
I first wrote about Heldal-Lund in 2001, describing how he was thought of as "the devil" by Scientologists like Tory Christman, who couldn't imagine why Scientology's Office of Special Affairs hadn't been able to take down Operation Clambake and all of its "entheta" -- negative information about the church. In that story, I described how it wasn't only his website that finally broke down Christman's objections, but it was the way he reached out to her, took her seriously, spoke to her in a rational and calm way about his concerns with Scientology, and ultimately helped her leave the church after she had been in for 30 years. When I asked him about it, about how he had reached across the planet and helped a hardcore Scientologist break out of the thinking that had kept her in its grips for three decades, he was so humble, I have never forgotten his words: "I was just there at the right time, maybe saying the right things," he said.

Heldal-Lund has been entirely consistent over the last 15 years. He never criticizes an individual for getting involved in Scientology; it's the church itself and its management that he objects to, and he maintains that the best approach is to provide information and support to anyone who wants to see that information. I've found that the best of the old time critics tend to share that point of view. And the rest of this entry will look at others who fit that description. Some are no longer with us, but their efforts have not been forgotten.


​It was Jeff Jacobsen who, searching for information on Clearwater, Florida before organizing a picket of Scientology facilities there, stumbled on a notice by the town's police department that it needed the public's help regarding an unusual death. Although Jacobsen was in Arizona at the time, he recognized right away the address on the police notice: Scientology's Fort Harrison Hotel. He quickly notified other critics and a Tampa reporter, and soon, the rest of the world became aware of the strange details of Lisa McPherson's life and demise under the care of the church. Before long, the McPherson matter became one of Scientology's worst public relations nightmares in its history. I wrote about Jeff in 1999, first giving him credit for that discovery. He later moved to Florida to be a part of the Lisa McPherson Trust (he now lives in his native South Dakota). To this day, he maintains one of the best sources for information on McPherson's life and death.

That was just a small sample. Also included in the article are:
Bob Minton
Ida Camburn
Kristi Wachter
Rick Ross
Zenon Panoussis
Karin Spaink
MANY others
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runni..._heldal-lund_top_25_crippling_scientology.php

I never realized how many SP's were out there before. :no::coolwink::biggrin:
 
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Lermanet_com

Gold Meritorious Patron
Dear Mr Ortega, Thank you for honoring my mentor and old freind Joe Harrington, and many of my closest friends, especially Tory Christman.. May I propose that. US Federal Judge Leonie Brinkema be considered for an award.

1) For this useful and MEMORABLE quote from Judge Brinkema's Dec 1995 ruling in RTC vs Lerma et al

""the Court is now convinced that the primary motivation of RTC [$cientology] in suing Lerma, DGS and The Post is to stifle criticism of Scientology in general and to harass its critics."

AND

2) for AUTHENTICATING OTIII, The XENU Story in her final Memorandum Opinion in RTC vs Lerma 4 Oct 1996- That scientology had sealed for a short time until Judge Brinkema unsealed it, after returning from vacation...

" Scientologists believe that most human problems can be traced to lingering spirits of an extraterrestrial people massacred by their ruler, Xenu, over 75 million years ago. These spirits attach themselves by "clusters" to individuals in the contemporary world, causing spiritual harm and negatively influencing the lives of their hosts "


And the rest is history!
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
#14: Tory Christman (and other noisy ex-Scientologists)

This #14 slot consists of many of our own ESMB members as well as some other Ex'es as well. Many of them by themselves I consider worthy of a Top Ten finish.
This is a must-read article by Tony Ortega. You'll learn something about some of your fellow Ex'es for sure.
Here is a link to the full article:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/08/tory_christman_top_25_crippling_scientology.php

.
Congratulations to Tory and all the others who filled the #14 slot!
Arnie Lerma, Pooks, Nancy Many, Larry Brennan, Larry Anderson, AnonSparrow, Gerry Armstrong, Chuck Beatty, ​Laura DeCrescenzo, Will and Scarlett, Karen #1, and many others!

:party:


Here is a excerpt (below) for the first entry, Tory Christman:


​Tory Christman was once such a dedicated Scientologist, she called herself "Queen of the OSA volunteers." She was so determined to help out the Office of Special Affairs -- Scientology's intelligence and covert operations wing -- she went online to do battle with the church's critics. But in the year 2000, the skirmishes being waged at the Usenet newsgroup alt.religion.scientology were fierce and frenetic -- how would she be able to make a dent? Her strategy was to post relentlessly, day and night, and under the moniker "Magoo." She wrote so often, defending Scientology by making vicious attacks on its critics, other users of a.r.s came to believe that Magoo was really a team of OSA employees working around the clock.


The truth finally came out in spectacular fashion, when on July 20, 2000, Tory announced to the world her real identity, and that she was abandoning Scientology. It turned out that while she was doing battle with church critics, their arguments had begun to give her doubts, and a caring overture by Andreas Heldal-Lund made her question her deepest beliefs. Tory's defection seemed to symbolize the dire threat a connected world posed to an organization built on secrecy and control.

If Tory was a relentless church defender, she's been an even more relentless critic since her famous escape. I asked Mark Bunker about Tory's stamina as one of the noisiest ex-Scientologists, and he sent this lengthy tribute to her:

I met Tory when she was still in Scientology. I encountered her and her then-husband Harold Bezazian at several protests in which she tried to handle critics of the group. She and Harold were good people. I could see that then. I enjoyed my encounters with them. Tory was feisty but sweet and Harold had a nice sense of humor. He looked a lot like Wayne Newton, too, so it was hard to think of him as a badass. (Here's a little footage of him.) A year later in 2000 Tory left the group and came to the Lisa McPherson Trust for help. I wish I had been at the airport when she arrived in Clearwater because Scientology was waiting to try to snatch her up before she could join us and the police had to intercede. We didn't want our camera there because we didn't want Tory to think we were out to exploit her situation. Ironically, it didn't take long for Tory to decide she wanted to speak on camera and she hasn't stopped since. We took her to a protest in Boston and she was so pissed off by Scientology's actions that she got out of the car to join in. Since that time, Tory has given numerous speeches about her experiences and she always charms the crowd with her natural warmth, her good humor and her ability to connect with people one on one even while in front of a large group. She instinctively picks out a person in the group and explains how a process like disconnection can affect that one person and makes the experience something to which we can more easily relate. Her first speech at the Center for Inquiry West has several good examples of that technique. When she left Scientology, her entire world evaporated. Her husband, her friends, former co-workers all disconnected. She found a new family online. I got Tory a webcam and walked her through how to use it and she makes almost daily videos to post on YouTube. The power of these videos is pretty staggering. There are millions of videos online but Tory has cut through the clutter. I've been around the world with her and seen people stop us in the street because they recognize Magoo from her videos. The most amazing incident was when we were walking outside the BBC in London with John Sweeney. We passed some dude who could have cared less that a nationally renowned TV journalist was standing there with us. It was the sight of Magoo which stopped him in his tracks. Tory also talks about her experiences every day with people in restaurants, and shops. She hands out cards with URLs of sites like xenutv.com and xenu.net and posts her phone number online so people can call her and get answers and advice. I only wish I had her energy. There's no stopping Magoo.
Tory is truly one of a kind. But many other Scientologists who leave the organization choose not to fade into obscurity. We want to recognize those who've had the greatest impact. Some have spent years trying to educate the public about their experiences and warn governments about Scientology's abuses, and some ex-members pose a threat because of who they were in Scientology.


See full article here:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/08/tory_christman_top_25_crippling_scientology.php
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
#13: Janet Reitman (and other journalists)

The #13th person crippling Scientology is another composite being. :coolwink::biggrin:

It consists of Janet Reitman, Paulette Cooper, John Sweeney, Bryan Seymour, Richard Leiby, Lawrence Wright, Jonny Jacobson, John Cook, Mark Ebner, Roger Friedman, Nathan Baca, Russell Miller, Richard Behar, Joel Sappell, Robert Welkos, and others.

Here's an excerpt (below), the entry on Mark Ebner. To see the rest you need to go here:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/09/janet_reitman_top_25_crippling_scientology.php


MarkEbner.JPG


​Mark Ebner has done many good pieces about Scientology, but as far as I'm concerned, he's the author of one of the best pieces ever written about the church: in 1996, Ebner experienced Scientology from the inside, signing up to be audited and purified. In a brilliant stroke, he opened his Spy magazine piece by dead agenting himself -- anticipating the blowback he'd get from Scientology, he started out by listing his own shortcomings and run ins with the law. Inspired. And so Ebner. Watch him describe to Mark Bunker the stunt he pulled with a disguised script of Hubbard's Battlefield Earth.


http://www.hollywoodinterrupted.com/2006/03/23/ebner-undercover-scientology-spy-magazine-1996/

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=zL7PHdzzc88
 

Freeminds

Bitter defrocked apostate
I think it's indicative of just how thoroughly lousy the Scientology cult is, that a list of 25 "people crippling Scientology" isn't long enough, and that so many of the people in question have to be doubled up in this manner.

I'm assuming that the number one slot is reserved for the asthmatic midget himself. It certainly ought to be... but even so, there's still a dozen places left in the rundown.

Fascinating.

A lovely series, Village Voice. Well done and thank you to all who have contributed to this success. (Especially Kendrick Moxon. Love ya Ken!)
 

ClamSource

Patron with Honors
John Sweeney gets a mention. More strength to your arm John Sweeney.

Also, I notice academics only come in at #24. Ex Scientologists are at #12. Journalists come in at #13. Media bias much?

Still waiting with bated breath to see where these figure in the story:

- CoB David Miscavige
- the original ClamSource L Ron Hubbard
- couch jumping Freedom Medallist Tom Cruise
- Lisa McPherson
 

Auditor's Toad

Clear as Mud
Tony Ortega at the Village Voice has started a great series: "The Top 25 People Crippling Scientology"
<snip>

More appropriate would be :

The Top 25 People Killing Scientology

When I read what Ken Dandar, Grahm Berry and so many others endured for years and then contrast that to the patty cake games going on between Marty armed with a garden hose and the Squirell Busters massed in a golf cart with a mini cam and that speedy little paddle boat out in the canal.

The only thing any of that crew could get arrested for is public foolishness.
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
In an article from earlier today Tony Ortega highlighted some of the weeks memorable comments to all of his articles of this week. One of the comments was from Barbara Graham and concerned Ida Camburn who was listed amongst the old time CoS critics in the #15 slot (of the "Top 25" list)

EDIT: I'm going to add in the section about Ida Camburn from the original article for those of you who are unfamiliar with her. Below that will be the comment from Barbara Graham.

IdaCamburn.JPG


Ida Camburn (1923-2010) lost a son to Scientology, and she began fighting the organization so long ago, references to her were found in church documents seized in the 1977 FBI raids. I came to know her because, back in the day, you couldn't write about Scientology without hearing from Ida Camburn. Living right in the shadow of Scientology's secretive desert headquarters, she would send encouraging e-mails and pass on tips, and nothing ever seemed to discourage her. As I said earlier this year, when documents became public that showed Ida had been duped by a Scientology mole to gather information about journalist Richard Leiby, that revelation made me very angry: "No one, in the 16 years I've been reporting on Scientology, was more pleasant and helpful than Ida Camburn," I wrote. She is missed.
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runni..._heldal-lund_top_25_crippling_scientology.php



We also were moved by this remembrance of Ida Camburn by Barbara Graham:

Cool. What a walk down memory lane! I sure miss Ida as she was, making ham salad and famous Snickerdoodles, opening her home to critics targeting Gold Base, hosting amazing gatherings where I met Andreas and other visiting SPs, telling stories of the old days when she single-handedly got Narconon uprooted from a SoCal community before they could get a toe hold. She was our Mother Suppressive, and I am very glad she lived long enough to see the rise of Anonymous. I remember one raid at Gold, we had anons from San Diego, Orange County, Las Vegas, LA, San Francisco and Seattle. After the raid we met at the casino for dinner. My friend and I picked her up. The casino restaurant has semi-private tables; when we brought her in, everyone at the table applauded her. She was so very happy that, at a point in her life when she was having to back off, this new generation was picking up the standard. As one anon wrote after she was gone, "RIP, Ida. We got this." It still brings a tear to my eyes. She knew it, /b/rothers. She knew we'd take it the rest of the way, and she was proud of all of you.
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/09/scientology_fla.php
 
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Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
#12 Tommy David (and other hapless church executives)

Tommy Davis leads the way here in the #12 slot. Congratulations to Tommy and Jessica Feshbach, Jan Eastgate, Bennetta Slaughter, Pat Harney,
Denise Miscavige-Covington-Licciardi-Gentile, John Carmichael, and the others.

It was very well deserved, in fact I'd of been more generous and given you all a Top Ten slot. :biggrin:

Here's the original article here:
http://blogs.villagevoice.com/runninscared/2011/09/tommy_davis_top_25_crippling_scientology.php

And here's a thread that GreyWolf started on this article:
http://www.forum.exscn.net/showthread.php?24627-Gotta-Love-the-Village-Voice.
 

Auditor's Toad

Clear as Mud
Tommy ( Mr Honesty ) Davis most likely is in SP hall... as is his dippy wife whatsherface.

Maybe after a few years on the RPF they'll be rescued by the superhero Marty and whisked away to the hometown of the International HQ of the squirrel busters.

But even Marty can not allow Tommy to do anything but read scripted statements.

Among the evil there is some humor.
 

Thrak

Gold Meritorious Patron
I'm assuming that the number one slot is reserved for the asthmatic midget himself. It certainly ought to be... but even so, there's still a dozen places left in the rundown.

Fascinating.

A lovely series, Village Voice. Well done and thank you to all who have contributed to this success. (Especially Kendrick Moxon. Love ya Ken!)

I'm assuming the top 3 will have to be TC, DM, and the old fart hisself.
 
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