Mike Rinder's Blog

Something Can Be Done About It

Freewinds Runs Aground

By 71 Comments

They were having a rough time of it even before the pandemic. Lacking paying customers, they had a hard time finding money to buy fuel to move from one port to another.

Now they are slipping beneath the waves with hardly a murmur…

Their latest promotional piece “Making the IMpossible possible” is offering a “convention” 4 months from now…

They don’t have people coming for OT VIII (the ONLY feeder for that is Flag and completions on OT VII — if they get one a week they are excited. If half of them went on to OT VIII right away that would be one arrival every two weeks. And it takes an average of 6 weeks to get through OT VIII so the entire ship would be servicing 3 people at a time…

So, they try and get anyone to show up they can. But obviously they cannot promote for people to travel there right now. How are they going to stay afloat between now and September? Not with extension courses… Going to be getting bailed out no doubt, and will be considered “DB’s” and “out exchange.”

And let’s not forget what this “convention” is. Total crap — the PR of scientology is worse than it has EVER been.  Remember this very convention was where the fake award for Miscavige by the “Colombian government” originated… Some PR.

Imagine paying to have these people “teach” you how to generate good PR. It would be like enrolling on a course that teaches speed reading at the school for the blind. If they actually DID teach anything valuable at their PR convention it would truly be the best example of making the impossible possible.

Comments

  1. “Imagine paying to have these people “teach” you how to generate good PR. It would be like enrolling on a course that teaches speed reading at the school for the blind.”

    How true.

    What does Fleet Admiral Miscavige do with his floating paperweight? Maybe he can rent it out to haul cattle between the islands?

    Reply

  4. I see a huge error in their promo cover:

    MAKING THE POSSIBLE IMPOSSIBLE

    There, fixed it.

    Reply

  5. Someone today celebrates a book published exactly seventy years ago that “changed the world”.

    For the better? Of course it didn’t.

    But it has changed the lives of many for the worse, certainly.

    And something can be done about it.

    Reply

    • IT hasn’t affected MANY people; FAR fewer than they would have us believe. As undesireable as those effects have been, the few that scientology has affected is ‘WAY too many. Thanfully, the word is escaping and fewer than ever before are being lured into its evil grasp. I’m hoping that I’m contributing to that contraction from miniscule as cults to to nonexistent.

      Reply

      • Thanks Jere. Got it. I am sure you are contributing. And so others who comment here. A lot of people visit this blog and every time I hope to be helpful to someone. You sure are doing it.

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  6. So that’s what happened to Mick Davies. Looks like the Freewinds beached him on land and turned him into a reg. Not very befitting for someone Scientology prompted as a Sea .Org veteran who “worked directly with LRH.”

    At least he’s not condemned to telling stories about the good ol’ days to a handful of people at a mission potluck like James Byrne.

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  7. Okay Scientology, let me help you out of this mess and the fact that the Freewinds has been a VERY expensive embarrassment for decades. Have Miscavige announce that while doing renovations at the Cresent Ranch, the last place LRH lived, an amazing discovery was made. Inside a wall that was being torn down were notes from LRH laying out how OT 8 was to be revised. Apparently SPs had hidden the notes in an effort to sabotage mankinds only hope of not being stuck in the dark for all eternity. Everyone who earlier attested to OT 8, who didn’t die or go nuts, should immediately do a NEW eligibility program and NEW NEW OT 8 aboard the Freewinds.

    Reply

    • Cute, Mat, but you really shouldn’t be giving the Dwarfenführer® such good ideas. That’s actually do-able, and WELL within the bounds of what crimes the twerp™ has already committed.

      Reply

  8. An eleven-day public relations convention? Whoever is in charge of irony is screaming loudly right now. Getting PR advice from Scientologists would be like getting dating tips from Harvey Weinstein. Cruel, but true.

    Reply

    • Perhaps it would work if they had a speaker with a proven record of getting products in the area that they were teaching.
      If they could get Adolf Hitler to give a seminar, that would be something. He could give them DEATH and make it sound like a big win.

      Reply

  9. The graph of the cognitive dissonance within Scientology must be the ONLY thing straight up and vertical.
    How, exactly would a Scientologist reconcile the “delusional certainty” of being “total cause over MEST” with the stark reality of being “total effect” of a microscopic virus?
    One can almost hear the pillars groaning under the weight of it all.

    Scientology is comprised of a significant demographic profile that is rather long in the tooth. This strongly suggests that the manner in which elderly Scientologists deal with this “bullbait” could be far more consequential than anything they can imagine.

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  11. Mike, does DM still need the Fwds for the IASA, do you know? And does he still need the ship for the prestige of OT and of Sea Org heritage?

    What do you think why he still holds on to the Fwds with all the trouble, instead of getting the OT8 delivery and the OT-hatting courses to Flag? It would be much easier and the logical thing to do, also taking into account that the ship is getting really old. Also the initial PR that the delivery of the advanced OT level has to be “off the crossroads of the world” sounds outmoded after all the “unprecedented expansion”.

    Could it be that he is afraid of some (old-time) OT8s getting impatient and asking what’s up with OT9 & OT10 if he would say something like it is safe now to deliver OT 8 ashore/at Flag (e.g. for a reason)?

    Reply

    • Because he would have to admit her was wrong and/or lied about the need for OT VIII to be delivered “off the crossroads of the world” and that this is what LRH said.

      Admitting a wrong move is the absolute last move a sociopath will make. They will destroy everyone around them rather than acknowledge they made an error in judgment or mistake. And there is nobody else Miscavige can blame for that, so it’s never going to change. If there was an easy scapegoat, it would have already happened.

      No, it is not needed for the operations of the IAS — once IAS Administrations was granted tax exempt status there was no need to keep IAS money outside the US.

      Reply

  12. With so many OTs aboard they can make the ship disappear. A ship going submarine handle questons deeply under the surface where only hydrophones can detect them.

    Cults are more visible above the surface than below it and easier to judge.

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  13. Mike the word ‘bailout’ made my day.
    The SO reserves pay the Flatwinds to don’t sink. Meanwhile they have no Payments to Flag from org and SO orgs. The int SO reserve statistic starts going down after decades.
    What a shock!

    Reply

      • Wynski proffered:”No, IAS donations also go on his stat so the stat isn’t going down yet”

        Davey-boy don’t care WHERE the money comes through. It’s all HIS to do with as he wishes. If he has to bail out that deathtrap of a non-cruising “cruise” ship for a bit to keep up appearances, so be it. It’s all grist for the mill within his shinking bubble of unreality.

        Reply

      • Wynski. Really? Counting IAS money on SOR is a bit stat push and weird.
        IAS is a separated entity and should have separated FP and reserve stats.

        Reply

        • Loosing My Religion you are conflating different S.O. corporations with the SO. The AIS AND CSI are BOTH 100% controlled by the Sea ORG and thus the funds are only usable by that group. Regardless of corp identity. Therefore they constitute SO reserves.

          Reply

          • Wynski. Thank you for this clarification. I really mean it. I also worked on finances but always thought being two different things.
            Anyhow I hope that a bailout is gonna happen.

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  14. Interesting that they picked Columbia. I wonder if that’s because they figured it would be most likely to loosen pandemic restrictions the fastest – or the the place where they had the most influence to get around any restrictions. I could also imagine them trying something typically sneaky like flying people into a neighboring country Panama or Venezuela that lifts travel bans sooner – or is more pliable with some scheme to get people in, like supposedly traveling with decontamination equipment – and then ferrying them to the ship in port in Cartagena.

    Who knows, they could even be sneaking people on and off right now. Someday I think we will hear very intereresting stories of how Scientology evaded restrictions – or maybe even their typical devil’s luck will fail them, and as happened in operation Snow White, they will get busted big time.

    Reply

    • PeaceMaker. You are right. The location is a little out of the usual context.
      It seems that having some friendship on the spot served him to organize some medical and bureaucratic shortcuts.
      And so it will change the name in Fluwinds will return to sail the seas.

      Reply

    • Peacemaker, my guess is that it was the most corrupt country with a seaport and international airport. A few bribes in such a third-world place alllows him to do whatever he wants; UNLESS he crosses the wrong guy and then all bets are off — including the chance that he lives until his next case of whiskey gets opened. “Move to Bulgravia with your pockets full of money”, inDEED.

      Reply

    • Why of course they would use Columbia. After all, Columbia owes Scn a big debt for their single handedly cleaning up all the drug trafficking and drug usage in Columbia with the dropping of the WTH books in Columbia. So Columbia will welcome them with open arms for solving their number one problem in the country with the WTH tech. It was a rough job but someone had to do it. Huzzah!

      Reply

  15. As I recall, Hubbard defined public relations as maki9ng good works known and well thought of.
    In Scientology PR today, the first missing ingredient is “good works.”

    The Miscavige definition of PR might be:

    Put a few bodies in place to look like they might be doing something useful and use the photo ops. to best advantage. Don’t spend much money and while put as little real effort into really helping out as is compatible with looking as though you are of any value. Smoke and mirrors !

    And hasn’t this approach worked out well for them!

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    • Cavalier, scientology never had “good deeds” to make known, only aspirations the rank-and-file ascribed to but Tubby always worked against. Those “star-high” goals really were an attempt to enslave everyone who heard about the guy. IF you heard of him, but didn’t get to the enslaved KSW level, you were deemed DB and hopefully(in his mind) destroyed utterly. IF you were destroyed, you were just a step lower than slave; That was good enough in his book.

      Reply

    • Wynski stated:”Saying, “scientology PR”. Is analogous to stating, “Stalinist compassion”.

      GOOD! That deserves multiple repetition.

      Reply

  18. $cientology is it’s own self-perpetuating black PR. All they have to do is what they have always done – lie, cheat, manhandle, disconnect, attack & steal. Oh and be terribly obvious while doing it.

    Reply

    • Exactly. If the tech WORKED, they’d be using it. As it stands, even people who are only vaguely aware of it know that it’s got a bad reputation for suing its critics.

      No religious group is better at making enemies than Scientology.

      Reply

      • Right James, but I take it a little further: If scn had ONE piece of “tech” that worked AS ADVERTISED, their buildings would be overflowing, bursting at the seams.
        But it merely works as INTENDED, and the advertising was tailored to capture as many victims as possible. All quite callously and intentionally done to maximum ill effect.

        Reply

        • Back in the day, a “Clear” was advertised as having perfect memory. This is so MIND BOGGLINGLY USEFUL that if it was true, i’d go to the local org and become a Scientologist in less than an hour.

          And no, i’m not kidding about that either. I’m a pharmacist, and i have to remember literally thousands of little details; but the closest any scientologist has come to making this promise is by claiming that their tech can make my memory a little better. Um excuse me but 1)that wasn’t LRH’s claim, and 2)i can do THAT with other self-help books that won’t cost me hundreds of thousands of dollars, f**k-you very much!

          Reply

  19. “Lower the crime rate of a nation by over 60%”

    “Drop drug production by over 60%”

    “Increase the economy by over 700%”

    “Increase tourism by over 800%”

    Gee Whiz!! Scientology “tech” sure produces a lot of unverifiable results! Wait a minute…Maybe that is their “tech!” It’s the “How to Make Outrageous Claims That No One Will Fact Check Course!!!” Mike Rinder, you are sure making it hard on this group with what you are doing out here on the fringes of the internet. Your site is more popular than Scientology sites. And that’s a simple, provable statistic that doesn’t require a trip to the Freewinds.

    Reply

      • Right, Surfer Dude! Go get some quality wave time. Perhaps scientology will take care of itself by the time you think to come back. I’m so PROUD that lately I’ve not bothered to bring up the counter-scn sites until I’ve had lunch and a good poop, lately. I feel MUCH better, more relaxed, for that

        Reply

    • According to alexa.com, this website is currently ranked as the #16,591 most popular in the US, #104,102 most popular in the world. Scientology.org ranks a much lower #37,416 in the US and only #151,569 in the world. What is notable about Scientology.org’s global ranking is the country providing the second highest number of web hits is Turkey. Correct me if I am wrong, but Turkey has no orgs and Scientology doesn’t publish a web page in Turkish. The reason for so much web traffic from Turkey is likely caused by paid hits from a clickfarm. Scientology has to buy web traffic to prevent its stats from being even more dismal than they really are.

      Reply

      • You are right. There is nothing in Turkey. No org in India or the Philippines either. Two other large sources of hits over the past few years.

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  20. “And it takes an average of 6 weeks to get through OT VIII so the entire ship would be servicing 3 people at a time…”

    Yep!
    1 week with Teddy Braggin lining up your finances to support the International Assoc of Shucksters
    2 weeks of interrogation to verify that you didn’t lie about your credit card balances or anything you said, did, thought, speculated or inferred when you finished the other forever level at Flog.
    1 week of ‘study’ and emeter drills that you have done 1000 times before.
    1 week on Oh Tea Ate nothing burger.
    1 week of interrogation to verify that you have told the whole truth and have not stolen, said,thought or imagined anything but happy thoughts about yer church.

    The rest of your life being harrassed about how much you owe El Con for all the wonnerful tech you have received and your forever debt of gratitude owed to the guy who most closely resembles a miscarriage.

    What’s not to like about that? Smile, after all, you’ve been broken, beaten and battered in the name of freedum and now yer broke and bewildered.

    All that vanishes like mist in the morning when you take back your self determinism and say no more ……….. I’ll take a real burger with an extra helping of truth.

    Yo Dave,
    Find yer ruin good buddy.

    Reply

    • Newcomer, Davey-boy FOUND his ruin, at least what he was GOING to ruin, and has spent about half his life tearing it down quite effectively. That other minor “ruin”, his asthma, was dealt with many years ago as effectively as anything is in scientology, which is to say he THOUGHT/believed it to be “cured”, but he stll suffers from it, of course.

      Reply

      • Happy Mothers Day to all mothers here!

        I think He ought to do another Anderson Cooper interview Jere. Show the world how a $cientologist handles a virus.

        I think it went something like dauntless, defiant and resolute or some such Dave Drivel.

        Yo Dave,
        Give em a flash of how it’s done good buddy. Git yer scrawny ass on bored yer rust bucket and go in circles out in the Caribbean till things calm down. Make sure you socially distance, which shouldn’t be a problem given that yer already pretty distant ……… just sayin good buddy.
        By the way Dave, so glad yer done with the asthma thing, it could have been a problem with this covid issue. If yer worried, have a nip big boy………… and redo the Pee Tee Ess/Ess Pee Curse.

        Reply

  21. It appears to me that they are gearing up for a safe pointing PR campaign.

    Who knows what the future is going to hold for them in the current and future environment of post covid-19.

    One thing is for sure they are going to want people, organizations and communities to think they are valuable, so it makes sense for them to try to get ahead of the curve and assemble a little army of PR soldiers for themselves.

    Remember everything that this group does is all about themselves, there is no other care factor that’s only what your lead to think.

    Reply

    • scientology “PR” amounts to loudly proclaiming some “acceptable truth” (a.k.a an outrageous LIE) as often as they can insert it into the conversation. THEse days, it’s synonomous with “alternate truth”

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  22. The Freewinds was an exciting idea back in 1988 – that is over thirty years ago. Hubbard’s bridge became less and less valid at the higher levels as the years passed. The OT VIII disaster in 1988 totally ended the value of the Freewinds.
    Miscavige would have been better off simply promoting Hubbard as Lucifer and the anti-Christ. At least he would have held onto the Occult market which is small but active.

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    • You mean to tell me LRH is really anti-Christ? I knew it!!! I just knew it! OH, crap. LRH is still on Target 2!!! Well…looks like I’m screwed!

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      • OSD observed:”OH, crap. LRH is still on Target 2!!! Well…looks like I’m screwed!”

        No, Surfer Dude, you’re snagging a great ride on a wave if anything. Getting screwed comes afterwards, I believe.

        Reply

    • “Miscavige would have been better off simply promoting Hubbard as Lucifer and the anti-Christ. ”

      RIGHT! There are more than a few who got hooked on scn/hubbard BECAUSE he was an occultist follower of crowley. Returning to that earlier successful “truth” might inject new life into the old cult.

      Reply

      • Yes, I think if Miscavige just told the truth for once it would shock the world. It is very easy to lighten the load about Lucifer and it could be used as a symbol of knowledge. There are a lot of folks who just see the anti-Christ as an alternative. All Miscavige would need to do to re-position Scientology would be this and the renunciation of Hubbard as the Buddha or as the future Buddha. That is pure nonsense. Just skinny down Scientology and admit that it is limited.

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  23. Colombia? Gasp! The mind reels at the thought of what could possibly be behind the idea to have this thing in Colombia.

    Could it possibly be because any other country would arrest and hold the people who organized such a thing because they are the only people they can get their hands on who have some connection to the Rat?

    I would imagine there is a good possibility that if the Rat would ever show his face in any other country, there would be a good chance he would be arrested and held on some kind of bogus warrant (like a Material Witness Warrant) which would really just be a way to shake him down i.e. some kind of extortion for a huge payday. If so, that would mean that he can no longer step foot into any other country ever again.

    Could the reason be that Colombia is one of the only countries around that have a corrupt regime that can be bribed to allow them to step foot into that country? Sufficiently corrupt to accept a bribe (cash-in-advance) yet (and this is a mighty big yet) sufficiently trustworthy such that they would not arrest and hold everyone in charge in order to have a much bigger shake down and get even more of their money in cash?

    There are quite a few possibilities when trying to figure out why Colombia would be the place. Maybe it was because they figured they could arrange transportation from the USA on their FartWinds?

    I would bet the reason they didn’t try to strike a deal with the crazy monster in charge of The Philipines is because he could never be trusted not to grab them and try and work out his own shake down. Besides, they could never find an easy way to transport people from the USA to the Philipines.

    In conclusion, it would appear they are sinking ever faster and are approaching the end of their rope at an ever accelerating rate? I long for the day that I go to my favorite news site and see some headlines saying something like, “Choich of Scamology Bites the Dust. Fake Pope is arrested and held in a Real prison. After a long run, he is finally all pooped out!

    IMO, this is surely one of the best news items I’ve seen in a long time and it makes me very happy because it leaves the scent lingering in the air that these Wahoos are slipping and sliding on their way to oblivion.

    I just hope that when the Rat is finally thrown into prison that all the victims who are trapped in the mental prison associated with this scam will be released and be reunited with their families.

    Reply

    • Skyler. In colombia DM has good friends. They gave him a medal. You know with way to happiness they changed the country. So they will guarantee him some good treatment.
      Fartwinds, sounds appropriate. Lol.
      Also Fleewinds or (for the current situation) Fluwinds sound good.

      Reply

    • Skyler opined:”I long for the day that I go to my favorite news site and see some headlines saying something like, “Choich of Scamology Bites the Dust. Fake Pope is arrested and held in a Real prison. After a long run, he is finally all pooped out!”

      I long for the day that there IS no news for scn; soon after that, it’ll be forgotten except as a footnote in histories of the “big” scams of the 20th Century.

      Reply

  24. I’m sure they can hand out a 100,000 of their enlightening booklets on how to take care of yourself during a pandemic and get everyone there to do a course on it and get 1 million new completions.

    Maybe Colonel Prado can pin his Freedom Medal on david miscavige. Hip Hip!

    Reply

    • Mary, they’ll SAY they handed out 100,000 or some other clearly bogus number and claim that they’ve thus “helped” some even bigger, more bogus number of people —or are they counting BTs?
      My guess is they’re not actually counting anything at all, other than the cash that the Dwarfenführer® has at his disposal. And they’re not publicizing THAT stat for good reasons.

      Reply

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