Jere,
I think Hubbard ought to have stuck with fiction writing, period.
Scientology is a “Prison of Belief” as Lawrence Wright pegged it.
I think all the public needs to know, is that Xenu earth dumped zillions of “body-thetans” onto earth 75 million years ago during the 4th Dynamic Engram, for which today Scientology has five long levels of exorcism to rid themselves of their infestations of Xenu’s earth dumping of these implanted “body-thetans.”
The Xenu story is the most relevant theory a public newcomer to Scientology needs to hear as soon as possible.

Jere. Right!

Conscience is the expression of the ego in the moral realm. To make a moral judgment and to act on it are basically selfish acts. It’s the self that sees through its own eyes and acts on its own knowledge of right and wrong. You couldn’t be selfish if you can’t live with yourself. Rational Selfishness as defined and advocated by Ayn Rand was limited to acts which benefited one’s self but caused no harm or inflicted a cost on another person. The narcissist, especially in the political realm, isn’t concerned with the injuries and burdens inflicted on other people. In fact, the more destructive the consequences of obedience to those who obey the narcissist, the better. Human sacrifice with beating hearts cut out and victims flayed alive, that’s great. Millions worked to death in slave labor camps in Siberia, as far as the narcissist is concerned that’s better. In order for me to say, “I, Leslie Bates, do solemnly swear to uphold and defend the Constitution of the United States of America…” I have to say “I”. That was my ego speaking when I took the oath of enlistment.

LmR observed:
“Falsehood brought to its finest level.”
At the risk of repeating myself redundantly: scns lie, must lie, can’t not lie. It’s at the core of their “scripture”. nothing works in scn as promised. If they ever realized what the truth was, they’d be out here with us.WE care more about KSW and what DM’s done to what used to be scientology than his circle of minions does.The rank and file just follow along — or ELSE.

It’d be great if they ALL could get OUT. Their stories would be the cherry on the top, of course, but David’s Minions would find some way to spin it in Davey’s favor, discrediting the inmates as he’s done with every ray of truth about his little fiefdom which has escaped scientology. That would be a fun set of events to see documented so outlandishly as previous reports were “DA’d”.”Inch-spouses”, anyone? I’ll take the bet that they will appear; the tactic worked SO well the last time, didn’t it?

“Complying with LRH when LRH’s was ignorant of the problem he was creating. This is an LRH mistake carried out by Int Management trying more to comply with LRH than with the law.”
Chuck, you know how fruitless it was to try to educate the old man when he’s got his mind set on something. Couldn’t teach that old dog any new tricks like actually listening to sound advice. Ron just loved flouting “wog” law anyway, so would have wanted to take things as far as he possibly could. IIRC, he lost scn’s tax exemption by getting a little too close to evident illegality, particularly inurement. Though by all reports, he lived fairly frugally, his most visible error was being surrounded and served hand and foot by a bevy of nymphettes in hot pants 24/7. He so did love those unknowing slaves, didn’t he?
And he was SO incognito in foreign ports, wasn’t he? surrounded like that wherever he went. He could have only flouted laws and customs more by requiring the Messengers carry him in a litter. He would have needed more messengers to do that, as if the number he had wasn’t already too much.

Agreement LmR. scn is in an Enemy condition — with the civilized world. The “Utopia” they/he would try to enforce makes “1984” seem like a carefree summer camp. And the tiny tyrant is in a state of “Besotted”; formula: “Sleep It Off.” then Confusion:Find out where you really are.” He knows exactly who he is, never any doubt of that.But does he know exactly WHAT he is? [Jury’s out on that, I suppose.]

Has anyone actually seen those folks for a few years? Is it possible that the “SP Hole” ceased to exist like the RPF has been rumored to have been? I’ll believe the RPF’s dissolution only if the little guy says so in writing AND we hear from some inmates who were freed thereby. The RPF was/is just too good a punishment mechanism for the punching pontiff to let go of; and he can’t be faulted by us out here for squirreling in keeping the prison detail going which Ron established and thoroughly documented. It’s failure is that there’s supposed to be a defined way to “graduate”. If so, I wasn’t informed of it when I was an RPF inmate. The Hole was a spur-of-the-moment “bright idea” which was not nearly degrading enough, even though it had a number of characteristics in common with the RPF. AFAICT, Dave hasn’t made much of a mark differentiating it from the RPF other than the folks in the Hole aren’t let out to get work done. Perhaps getting out from the desks to work in the wider world of the Int Base would seem too much like freedom? Or is it more likely that too many of the prisoners aren’t physically capable enough any more? That didn’t stop him from trying to run David Mayo into the ground, of course. BTW: Is David Mayo still alive? I kinda liked the guy — when I wasn’t terrified of him, of course.

The platypus analogy is growing on me since it *almost* works, just like scientology itself. Of course the government flunkies are hamstrung since scn claims “religion” or “secular” seemingly randomly, as the mood strikes any particular day; and the revenuers can’t even try to sort it out as that’s too close to determining (establishing) what is or is not part of a ‘religion’. I know which side *I* fall on, but I can’t change the Constitution from my comfy desk chair, here.

otherles stated:
“Unlike LRH I served my country. LRH served himself.”

So true. and thanks for your service

Dang, that sounds too trite:
You didn’t HAVE to volunteer, though, so it AFAICT, was a selfless decision to do right by the country, of which I am a small, but appreciative piece. Our all-volunteer military is a wonderful proposition, and seems to have worked out well — absent a certain President who made volunteering and military bad words back about that time, IIRC.