Readers' correspondence with the Spotlight editor

The readers of "The Spotlight" do not appear to be of a Nazi, anti-Semitic, Hitleresque or Holocaust-denying inclination, as the 1995 "Freedom" article in part 1 implies. A former acquaintance of the author of the following Dec 10, 1993 letter, reports that Mr. L.S. is an extremely likable Scientology "Operating Thetan" (OT) from a nice Jewish family in California. Of course, coming from a Jewish family whose mother is just happy that he's not into drugs or devil-worshipping, when Mr. L.S. writes something like: "My mother says that just reading Hubbard's books made her life much happier," -- if the good Mrs. S. is not a Scientologist by now then she probably never will be, but of course she would be happy to read a Hubbard book if it puts her boy's mind at ease and keeps him off drugs and away from the devil-worshippers.

A word of caution when reading this material: accusations of criminal wrongdoing, i.e., embezzlement, money-laundering, etc., in the absence of a specific criminal (as opposed to civil) court conviction for that particular crime are libelous in nature.

In addition to the possibly libelous nature of these transcriptions, some may contain spelling errors, as well, either faithfully carried over from the original or as part of the transcription process.


[Letter is handwritten letter on 11x17 paper. A note from "J.F." of "The Spotlight" in the upper right hand corner of the letter indicates this author is not a subscriber, not on circulation, and not on file.]
Dec 10, 1993
Dear Editor,
Regarding Nov 29, 93 issue of "The Spotlight" article on Scientology -- I have been reading 'the Spotlight' for fifteen years.
I am a software engineer who has studied Scientology and the Scientology movement for over twenty years.
Several of my family members have taken Scientology courses with remarkably positive results. One brother claims he would have committed suicide if it were not Scientology lifting him out of despair. Another brother says it has definitely helped him to maintain his marriage. My mother says that just reading Hubbard's books made her life much happier.
I took some courses at the Florida retreat mentioned in the article and saw only hundreds of people who were very, very happy with what they were learning.
I am not surprised that the Swiss government is attacking Scientology with the help of Interpol. Hubbard was one of the first writers to warn the public about the international bankers, the one-worlders and their plans for a world-wide government which could control "rebels" through psychiatric "treatments" such as electro-shock and mind-altering drugs. (The Clinton health bill, by the way, calls for free access to unlimited psychiatric treatment).
As for Interpol, the article referred to it as a "crack crime-busting organization". "Crack-trafficking organization" would be a much more accurate description. The list of Latin American and Swiss Interpol personnel who have been linked to drug trafficking and arms trafficking is impressive. To name a few:
General Jose Jorge Zarate, Interpol chief of Peru from 1981 to 1988. Indicted for drug trafficking in 1987, but remained Interpol chief until April, 1988! Convicted and sentence to fifteen years in prison for transporting cocaine.
2) Manual [sic] Noriega, headed Interpol's Drug Division and awarded by Interpol for his effectiveness in fighting drug trafficking! Hah! 3) Miguel Aldara Ibara, Interpol chief of Mexico until U.S. Agents revealed in 1989 that he had taken a bribe from drug traffickers. Later indicted for participating in the murder of U.S. DEA Agent Enrique Salazar.
4) Florentino Ventura, Interpol chief of Mexico from 1985 until 1988, when he murdered his wife and another woman, then committed suicide. After his death it was revealed that he had been a member of Palo Mayombe, a devil-worshipping group that drew international notoriety for its crimes of drug smuggling and murder.
5) Elisabeth Kopp, formerly in charge of Switzerland's Interpol NCB. Resigned shortly after it was revealed that her husband's company, Shakarchi Trading Company, was involved in money laundering These are only some of the crimes revealed in a document which the European Scientologists circulated to all European governments two or three years ago. Of course the Swiss government and Interpol would like to smash up the Scientologists after this!
And Switzerland, of course, has long been a center of international banking and a center of the psychiatric drug industry.
Since when does Spotlight rely on "facts" from the European Establishment press??
Sincerely L. S.

[reply]
THE SPOTLIGHT.
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE S.E. WASHINGTON, D.C. 20003 (202) 544-1794
Jan 8 1994
Dear Mr. S[xxx]:
Thank you very much for your letter of December 10. I am going to enclose with this a copy or a letter written to another Scientologist which, I think, will be of interest and saves me having to retype it. We have supported Scientology for years and until now have had no reason to be sorry. The big question, it seems to me, is if the top leaders of the church have an agenda the sincere members and supporters do not know about.
What controls do they have on the leadership of the church; even what knowledge do they have about the real agenda, or different agenda church leaders might have?
History shows that whenever there is a lot of money around, corruption inevitably follows. This rule is good for everything. It happened in the Roman Catholic Church and in every human institution.
I'd really like to hear from you about this. Thanks again for writing. Sincerely,
Willis A. Carto
Treasurer


received Dec 20, 1993
Chico California 93926
The Spotlight,
Well, I guess I will have to keep searching. Several had told me that your magazine Was the best on What is »sally happening. So I subscribed. While many of your articles I have found most enlightening, there is one area (at least) where you are falling flat on your face. Scientology.
Like any organization, Scientology has its faults. But since I have been with Dianetics-Scientology (hence DS) for over eight years, and my older son worked full time for them for awhile, just down the hall from David Miscavich's [sic] office, I feel I know something about them. I yet maintain ties with the christian religion of my upbringing, for Whom I admit feeling more than a little disappointment.
Scientology did not disappoint me. Indeed, they have allowed me to helpfully understand and practically deal with life, to such a degree, that my well-understood Christian concepts seem most hollow indeed. You see, I had an infant daughter die. Several years later my wife of l3 years suddenly died. Then years later my next wife whimsically ran off in blatant adultery. After-death answers to life and death in this life were no longer enough. I needed real, and truely helpful methods and information, now.
So when I see articles by your newspaper slurring DS, I have to wonder about you. When those artiles use the New World ORder's Interpol as source, I no longer wonder about you.
Scientology principles and auditing have literally kept me out of the spin bin. I cannot thank this extremely hard working organization enough I have studied many religions over the last few years. Sorry, but no other religion offers near as much bottom line truth and practical (real) help, as does DS. Seriously. Good fraternity and idealism does NOT resolve most deep problems and questions. I am 48, and recently had a heart attack. I am not so easily swayed by mystical sweet-sounding dreams any more. If it dosn't work, nor can be proved, I toss it. My sanity depended on such "radicalism." well, I am still in DS, as strong as ever. The DS product line of life I now clearly see is absolute tops, With no decent rivals. So why shouldn't they be a liftle sure-footed?? Perhaps you should consider Christianity, Islam, Hinduism, etc for your next series of petty slurrs. I'm sure that your friends at Interpol, or the CFR, etc, has something on them too. So don't ask me to renew my substription to Spotlight. It's been... S[xxx] D[xxx] S[xxx] --

[reply]
Jan 8, 1994
Dear Dr. S[xxx]:
I sincerely appreciate your very expressive letter. We have received many letters like yours, and it is very sad.
I'll enclose a longer letter I wrote to one of those who inquired. I hope it answers your questions at least partially. ?nom being a friend of Scientology, who has done many favors for them, I hay been forced to become an extremely disillusioned skeptic If the top Scientology leaders treat their friends the way they have treated me, they will have no friends, regardless of their real or alleged merits.
I hope you will see that there are real problems here and that you will renew your subscription when it comes due.
Sincerely,
Willis A. Carto Treasurer


[received Dec 9, 1993] R. and B. D.
Los Angeles, Ca. 90026
The Editor Spotlight
300 Independence Ave. S.E. Washington, D.C. 20003.
OK you've asked for it, I've asked you to cancel my subscription if you couldn't apologise for your lapse into insane attacks on your friends, so you counter by going berserk on the subject of Scientology and publishing crap spread around Europe by Bill Connet, who lost his job as head of LA CID, IRS after the Guess Jeans affair. Well you are out of date.
Oh! and that wonderfull line "Interpol- the crack crime busting international organisation" !!! Crack Cocaine, Crime and Organisation may be right, but it looks as if you just blew your cover, they are also servants of the one worlders!
I'm sure someone thought how clever it would be if a paper pretended to be against the Rockefellers, the IRS, the Israeli lobby, the Clintons and NAFTA. All you are is a little packet of bought media designed to covertly monitor for your masters any potential forces some few of them in their insane apology for a mind. feel are against them.
Bye suckers and traitors to mankind and Populism. I tested you and you fell for it. When you come to your senses let me know.
R.D.

[reply] LIBERTY LOBBY
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE, S.E. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20003 PHONE: 202 LIBERTY 6-5611
December 20, 1993
Mr. R. M. D.
Los Angeles, Calif. 90026
Dear Mr. D.:
In spite of your instructions to cancel your subscription immediately I want you to know some background to The SPOTLIGHT's new attitude of deep skepticism in regard to Scientology so that you can make up your mind with that knowledge. Hopefully, you will not pursue your cancelation.
For years in the past, we have been supportive of Scientology - perhaps more supportive than any other organization not controlled by it. We have shown this support by permitting Tom Valentine to interview leaders of Scientology front groups on Radio Free America and printing the interview in The SPOTLIGHT and editorially supporting your campaigns against drugs, psychiatry and have felt a special kinship for your courageous fight vs. the IRS before the church received its tax exemption/deductible status.
Thus, it comes as a tremendous shock to believe that I have been declared "fair game" by top Scientologists in the takeover of a very worthwhile organization I support, the Institute for Historical Review. This attempted coup is being directed by a high-level Scientologist who, after 14 years, has proven to be the most duplicitous liar and schemer I have ever encountered and it seems impossible that the conspiracy could happen without the full knowledge if not complicity of the top Scientology leadership.
It makes me wonder if the good-hearted and sincere membership of the church -- just like in masonry -- are kept ignorant of the schemes and real aims of the top leaders, and are used for their ends? Do the members have any controls on their leadership at all, or do they simply accept it without questioning? Do the top leadership have a program of their own and alliances (such as with the criminal organization known as the anti-Defamation League) they do not reveal to their members? Can the membership even conceive of such a betrayal by their leadership?
I don't know but I do know that the actions of top Scientologists have been grossly immoral and contemptible and have turned this former friend of your church into a very suspicious skeptic.
I'd like to hear more from you about this, and please reconsider your cancelation.
Sincerely,
Willis A. Carto Treasurer
Your Influence Counts . . . USE IT!


L[xxx] Chiropractic Center, Inc.
San Diego, CA 92109
Dec 8, 1993
The Spotlight
Dear Editor,
I recently subscribed to your magazine as I've been excited to see a newspaper that wasn't afraid to tell truth behind the corrupt ideas of special interest groups.
I recently read an article in your 11/93 paper on Scientology & find it very inaccurate & rediculous. I have been involved in Scientology since 1987 & have never experienced anything what you've published. Sure, there are bad in all professions (including chiropractic & journalism) but you data on LRH is the farthest from the truth, I had to write.
Scientologists are people looking out for good & greatness in people. They assist people in how to become more able & free so they can achieve their goals & stop/irradicate their "reactive mind".
Please show me in future publication that you share the truth about LRH & Scientology by calling "Flag" in Clearwater, FL. to get the facts. If I don't see anything showing the truth by 2/1/93, I will request you can cancel my subscription.
Thank you
D. L.

[reply]
LIBERTY LOBBY HEADQUARTERS OFFICE
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE, S.E. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20003 PHONE: LIBERTY 6-5611
DEC 20, 1993
Dear Dr. L.:
I appreciate yours of the 8'th very much. It is clear from the letters we have received from you and other Scientologists that you are exactly the sort of reader we want most--bright, articulate and. alert. And we don't want to lose your support. Please read the copy of the letter I wrote to another Scientologist which will save me having to peck cut another. I hope that it explains my personal extreme disappointment with Scientology which has turned me from a friend. of your church. into a pronounced and suspicious skeptic. After you've read and considered the enclosed, please write again and answer my sincere questions.
Sincerely,
W. A. Carto Treasurer
Your Influence Counts . . . USE IT I


To Spotlight Letters to Editor
11/24/93
Dear Editors,
Your front page article on Scientology and the ADL (Nov 1, 93) is a case of erroneous source. I have been in Scientology for 25 years and have worked inside the church and have observed the actual facts. Your linking the Church with the ADL is about as likely as reporting that President Lincoln got us into the Viet Nam war. The two organizations have in no way worked together to influence the IRS.
I have appreciated much of the fine information in your newspaper but you should check your sources on this one. The Church has been instrumental in uncovering many of the same crimes and clandestine operations that you have reported about. You should be applauding the heads of the Church for their diligent and persistant work that brought about the long overdue recognition of the Church of Scientology as a legitimate tax exempt Church. All this article does is cast aspersions on the accuracy of your reporting. We get enough of that from the traditional newspapers. I hope you take the time and effort to get the real facts. G. L., Burbank, Ca.

[reply]
LIBERTY LOBBY
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE, S.E. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20003 PHONE: 202 LIberty 6-5611
December 20, 1993
Mr. G. H. L. Burbank, Calif. 91506-2528
Dear Mr. L.:
We have received a number of letters from loyal Scientologists as a result of our article and all of them are from people who are obviously bright and alert. Scientologists are just the sort of Americans we want as readers.
Perhaps you are unaware that over the years we have supported the church gratuitously. Tom Valentine has interviewed numerous church spokespersons because we support your fight vs. drugs, psychiatry and, at least until recently, the income tax/IRS. I am sure we have brought hundreds of inquiries to Scientology and many new members. Why, then, the change?
Simply put, it is because I feel victimized by Scientology. "fair game"? At this time a Scientologist I have known for 14 years has turned out to be the most duplicitous liar and schemer I have ever known and who is working to destroy the Institute for Historical Review, an organization I have strongly supported. I am personally convinced for very good reasons that this despicable conspiracy could not take place without the full knowledge and. complicity of the toplevel leaders of the church.
I seriously would like to know if the reality of Scientology is similar to masonry in that the lower level members, who are good-hearted and honest, have no knowledge of the real aims and secret strategies of the top leaders. Are there any sort of controls the members have on their leadership or do they just accept the status quo? I really would like to know these things because I have found that the reality of Scientology is different and the reverse of the public image is.
In any event, this former generous friend of Scientology has been turned into a very bitter and suspicious skeptic.
I'd sincerely like to hear more from you and to know the answers to the above questions.
Sincerely,
Willis Carto Treasurer


[received Dec 13, 1993]
This letter is in response to your recent articles on the Church of Scientology.
Is this how your contributors come up with their own articles and "investigate" controversies; By reading and quoting other newspapers who basically quote only the disaffected?
Please cancel my subscription to the Spotlight immediately! In fact, I would like a refund!
Trashy reporting!
[return address label]
Mr. S. U.
Mililani, HI 96789-3423

[reply]
LIBERTY LOBBY
HEADQUARTERS OFFICE
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE, S.E. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20003 PHONE: LIBERTY 6-5611
DEC 20 1993
Dear Mr. U.:
Resulting from the article you cite in The SPOTLIGHT we have received a number of letters from members, all of which make clear that the writers are exactly the sort of intelligent readers we want for The SPOTLIGHT. I hope you'll give me a chance to respond to your questions before putting through your cancelation order.
Enclosed is a copy of a letter I wrote to another Scientologist which, I hope, explains my deep personal disillusionment with Scientology. This experience has turned me from a friend and supporter of your church into an extreme and bitter skeptic. If Scientology treats its friends the way it treats its enemies, it will have no friends. After you've read the enclosed, I'd appreciate another letter.
Sincerely,
W. A. Carto Treasurer
Your Influence Counts . . . USE IT !


[handwritten note: not on file]
J. C. La Crescenta, California 91214
Spotlight Editor Washington, D.C. December 6, 1993
I am incensed that you would be so irresponsible as to reprint excerpts from the European press re: Scientology as though they were factual without any effort whatsoever to explore the other side of the story. You take on the characteristics of the American establishment press that you loathe so much when you stoop to such levels.
Having been a Spotlight reader for about fifteen years, I know that you are capable of much better. My experience with Scientology has been much different from what you describe in your article. (I have been an active Scientologist for 24 years now.) Before learning about Scientology, my life was in ruins. Although it was one of the primary problems I had as a youth, my chronic shyness was only one of my serious problems. My problems with alcohol began at age 15. The alcohol seemed to help me loosen up and express myself. Boy was I wrong. All the alcohol really did was add another, much worse problem to the ones I already had. For instance, I got caught at a high school football game with a bottle of whiskey in my coat which led to my being suspended by the principal.
To make matters worse, I managed to develop a drug problem even before I graduated from high school in 1967. I even had the audacity to smoke pot in the boys bathroom a few times. (Not something I'm proud of at this point.) From there the scene just continued to deteriorate. By 1969, when many of my peers were furtively trying marijuana (perhaps without even inhaling, as some claim), I had "graduated" to cocaine and heroin. Needless to say, these habits played hell with my attempts at higher education.
December 6, 1993 Page 2
Whereas I was getting all A's and B's in junior high school, I barely managed to pass in my senior year of high school. I was so concerned about my own behavioral problems that I decided to major in Psychology at B.U. so that maybe I could figure out what made people do crazy things. By the middle of my first semester of Psychology it was apparent that the study of that subject was not likely to lead to the answers I so desparately needed. At the end of my first year at B.U. I was failing in some subjects. I quit.
After a few weeks of working at a glass factory on an assembly line, I was happy to go back to school, this time at UMASS (Boston). After one semester there, although I wasn't failing, I quit again.
The problem was I didn't know what I wanted to do with my life. In the meantime, I had begun to develop a bit of a criminal resume'. I started dealing drugs (pot and speed) on a very small scale in 1968, participated in rioting, was shot at by the police, was turned in by a fellow thug and was put on probation for six months. I was even involved in a couple of mugging incidents. To be sure, I was headed for no good. The worst part of it was that I was so full of hatred. What started out as hatred for whites turned into hatred for everyone after being betrayed by a "comrade". So, I decided, it was to be me against the world.
In 1969,1 began seeing a shrink on an out-patient basis. That only made me more confused. I think that's what shrinks do best when they aren't seriously abusing people with harmful drugs or shock treatments. I had also tried Transcendental Meditation for a spell (pun intended). I needed much stronger "medicine" however.
One of the only things I had going for me was that I had a nice girlfriend, but I was becoming increasingly abusive to her also. You get the picture? I was a very miserable, wretched creature. But then, right when I was about to go down for the count. Just when I was starting to use heroine, I turned it all around. My cousin told me about the works of L. Ron Hubbard that he had been studying in Dianetics and Scientology and I was fascinated.
December 6, 1993 Page 3
One of the first things I liked about these subjects was that they were very practical. Not just a bunch of high sounding ideas but things you could actually use to improve conditions in life for self and others. No matter how low a person might have sunk or how well someone might be doing, they could use this technology to make conditions better. And use it I did. Right away I started seeing results. I quit using drugs immediately and have never returned to them. But that was only the beginning. Some of the other problems were much harder to deal with and took a lot of work and time to resolve.
Dianetics is the only subject which has an actual technology of the mind with exact axioms and procedures just like any other science. Being involved in these subjects while Hubbard was still evolving them has been the most exciting adventure I could have imagined and over the years I have derived so many benefits from the application of these subjects that I can't even begin to enumerate them but I shall endeavour to convey a few of them to you.
At this stage in my life I am very, very, very happy. Having married at a very young age (22), I now have three children and my oldest daughter is already married herself and has a beautiful baby girl. (I guess that makes me a proud grandfather.) Although I never returned to college and I have
no formal training in computers, I have a thriving career as a software development consultant. A key facet of Scientology includes an extremely effective technology on study itself. With this very workable study tech under my belt, learning how to program computers was not overwhelming. I taught myself enough to get my foot in the door and from there I learned on the j ob. No longer shy or hateful, I enjoy people very much and seldom have any problems getting along with others.
Although my first marriage only lasted 18 months, my second and current wife has endured me for well-nigh 14 years now. She is indeed a blessing for me. She has given me two beautiful children and my relationship with her keeps getting better and better. In fact, we're more like newlyweds now than we were when we first got married.
Page 4
I'm going to try not to go on about my children too much as parents are wont to do, but they really are very special. My wife is so permissive towards them that I worry sometimes that they will be too spoiled but they are very bright and very capable and of course, very entertaining. Who needs a TV with children around (we only turn it on on the weekends to watch a couple of videos) ? My son, age 10, is into gymnastics and wants to go to the Olympics someday. My daughter, who is seven, is very academically inclined and loves to read. Last but not least, my 20-year-old daughter, has blossomed into a beautiful swan. She is a devoted mom and wife and has given me the most adorable grand-daughter, the apple of my eye. No Bostonian sternness with this chickie; I spoil her rotten.
So life is good now and seems to just keep getting better, but the thing that I appreciate most of the many benefits I have derived from the application of Dianetics and Scientology is the ability to apply this technology to another person and watch that person blossom before my eyes. Sometimes this is very dramatic where a person's illness or intense emotional trauma vanishes during one counselling session (the 'dreaded auditing' as the European press referred to it). I have had the pleasure and privilege of accomplishing this kind of effect on several occasions when I was a full-time counsellor (auditor) back in the 70's. There's no feeling that is even comparable to the satisfaction one gets from helping one's fellow human beings to this degree.
You guys have to remember that Europe has 'establishment media' too. The New World Order boys ("NWO") have been after Dianetics & Scientology since the release of 'Dianetics' in 1950. They don't want people healthier, happier, more successful, more able, free from drugs, etc. They want people drugged, stupid, brainwashed by the boob-tube, etc. People are more tractable that way. Through their psychiatric arm, through Interpol and for a long time through the IRS, the NWO has attacked us every chance they could. Undaunted we have persisted. I have never been exploited, threatened, confined or any of the other awful things you quoted from the Swiss press. There have been many periods when I did not have the time to be involved with the Church activities, but there was no harassment for it. I also have known some
Spotlight Editor December 6, 1993 Page 5
people who have left the church (including my own sister) and have not been threatened or harassed. As you know the NWO will stop at nothing to destroy a group that they particularly want to 'get'. 'Planting' someone in a group and then having them leave as a disgruntled former member' only to spread lies about the group in an attempt to discredit them is not beneath the NWO minions.
If you want to be objective, why don't you do some interviews of active members of the Church. You readily printed the slander from 'former members'. In fairness, you ought to let your readers know that this is a small fraction of the people who have been members.
A vast majority of people who have been members will report (if you would even give them a chance to) that they have gotten benefits beyond their expectations and some (like myself) beyond their wildest dreams. My sister is no longer a member, but she acknowledges that the auditing technology is very effective in helping people improve conditions in their lives and that it helped her a lot. No one has harassed her in any way about leaving the church.
If you are not, yourselves, trying to smear Scientology, you will print the other side of the story.
As far as the church striking up some nefarious scheme with the ADL to get the tax exemption, I can't say what happened there, because I was not personally involved, but I doubt very much if the church has established any very special relationship with the ADL. I think the leaders of my church know that the ADL has worked very closely with the Cult Awareness Network (CAN) in the past. CAN has been an enemy of ours for a long time. I'm sure the church tries to maintain communications with the ADL in order to work out truces with enemies like CAN or whatever. I can assure you that there is no evil plot, however. You have to understand what our group is all about. If you did, you wouldn't be printing these hateful articles. Read the 'Aims of Scientology', the 'Code of a Scientologist', and the 'Auditor's Code'. These are all official, published documents. They are included in the book 'What is Scientology'
December 6, 1993 Page 6
which you can attain from any Scientology bookstore. We are trying to help salvage mankind on planet Earth before the NWO people can complete their task of reducing this to a slave planet. You shouldn't be throwing stones at us. I thought we were on the same side.
L. Ron Hubbard, himself, said it directly back in 1967 when he said the only enemies we (in Scientology) have are a handful of international bankers. He knew it then and it is still true today. We did not go over to their side. They are still attacking us (this time through Swiss channels) and will continue to attack us through Interpol and every other avenue they can manage. Don't be surprised if the IRS winds up back into the fray against us before it is over.
If it ever seems like we have gone over to the other side, don't be misled. Remember the Trojan horse. Sometimes you have to pacify an enemy who greatly outnumbers and outguns you to lull him into a misguided sense of security to keep him off your back long enough so that you can continue to fortify yourself so that you will be ready later when the really critical battles are fought. Don't let yourself be led down the garden path by lies in the press, be they American, European or otherwise. Sincerely,
J.C.

[reply]
LIBERTY LOBBY
300 INDEPENDENCE AVENUE, S.E. WASHINGTON, D. C. 20003 PHONE: 202 LIBERTY 6-5611
December 20, 1993 Mr. J.C. LaCrescenta, Calif. 91214
Dear Mr. C.:
We have received many (too many) letters from Scientologists resulting from our articles recently but yours is surely the most impressive. -I have read it twice and appreciate that you went to all that effort.
Further, your 15 years of reading The SPOTLIGHT speaks for itself. You are sincere and concerned, and so are we.
As you know, we have often helped the church by having Tom Valentine interview your spokesmen heading front groups fighting Prozak and other harmful drugs, psychiatrists and the income tax/IBS. I am sure we've brought hundreds of inquiries to the church and been responsible for many new members. In short, we've been a friend of Scientology up until now, as you must know.
Unfortunately, the situation has radically changed thanks entirely to the greed, duplicity and treachery of an influential Scientologist who is strenuously trying to injure me and the entire movement of historical revisionism. And in my firm judgment, his duplicitous and immoral acts could not have been taken without the knowledge and complicity of your highest levels.
The publicly-expressed goals of Scientology are laudable, and there can be no doubt but that thousands of people like yourself have been helped by the church. But now I'm wondering if the top leadership have their own agenda they do not share with mere members, much like the top masons have theirs of which the lower levels are unaware I have other questions and your letter convinces me that you may be able to help me answer them. I live in San Diego and wonder if you and I might get together for a cup of coffee at some time because I'd like very much to talk with you personally. 'his former friend of Scientology feels as if he has been made "fair game" by your church.
Please use the enclosed SASE to answer. I tried to get Trout telephone number from Information but you aren't listed. Send me your number and let's try and work out a date.
Sincerely,
Willis A. Carto Treasurer
Your Influence Counts . . . USE IT!



[A fellow critic of Scientology adds his two cents:]

Barstow, CA 92311
Mr. Willis Carto
The Spotlight
300 Independence Ave. SE
Washington, DC 20003
2-17-95
Hi Willis!
Thought you'd get a kick out of the enclosed brief exposé of Scientology. There's some real juicy stuff in it you can probably draw from to make the IHR gang look ridiculous.
It's from an old book I found called Bigger Secrets by some guy named Poundstone. Houghton Mifflin Co. of Boston is the publisher. Copyright 1986. It's probably still in print. The article on Scientology is based on info the author got from public record after a Scientology student sued the cult for fraud.
The stuff on Hubbard's fraudulent background (pg. 60) and on the secret teachings of Scientology (pgs. 61-62) is dynamite. Also, note the name of the president of Scientology (at least, as of 1986) at the top of page 61 -- Heber Jentzch.
Also, if I remember correctly, Reader's Digest did quite an exposé on Scientology six or eight years back. You might want to have your writer check back through the Reader's Guide to Periodical Literature to find it. Apparently, according to the enclosed article, Time magazine also did quite an exposé. Best of luck in ruining these thieves.
Sincerelv,
S[xxx] B[xxx]

THE SECRET TEACHINGS OF L. RON HUBBARD
Scientology, a cult, church, and self-development program, was founded by the reclusive science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard. His worldwide organization offers counseling based on his best-selling Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. The Scientology organization actively recruits members. John Travolta, Chick Corea, Sonny Bono, and Karen Black are Scientologists; so is Sylvester Stallone's brother Frank. In 1985 Larry Wollersheim sued the Scientology organization for not making good on its promise to increase his intelligence. One of the exhibits in the case was a copy of Hubbard's secret teachings, arcane wisdom that is revealed only to those who pay $12,100 for a special course. Thus the teachings briefly became a matter of public record. On November 4, 1985, about fifteen hundred Scientologists stormed the Los Angeles County Courthouse to request photocopies of the documents in order to keep outsiders from getting them. Less than three hours after the documents were made available, they were sealed on the request of Scientology's attorneys, who objected that disclosure would subject the cult to "ridicule, hatred, and contempt." Bigger Secrets got a look at those documents.
Getting Clear
The cornerstone of Scientology is "auditing," a form of analysis or confession using an "E meter," a homemade lie detector of Hubbard's invention. You hold on to two tin cans, and the E meter measures the resistance between there. That's it. While you are "on the cans" - that's what Scientologists call it - an auditor asks you embarrassing questions. If your palms sweat, the resistance goes down, the meter's needle jumps, and the auditor figures you're lying. Auditing costs about $300 an hour.
The goal of auditing is to confess all your painful thoughts and thus become "clear." In practice, Scientology students keep going to auditing sessions as long as their money or interest holds out. If the numerous lawsuits filed by former members are any indication, it is easy to drop anywhere from $5,000 to $40,000 on getting clear. Scientology is big, big enough to have an espionage agency that has employed as many, as five thousand spies. Scientology moles have infiltrated the IRS, the Drug Enforcement Agency, the Justice Department, and sundry other U.S. and foreign agencies believed to be critical of the organization, according to testimony at the trial of Hubbard's third wife. Hubbard had a thick Dossier on Richard Nixon. All those auditing classes pull in as much as $100 million a year. No one is quite sure what happens to the loot. Scientology has a string of dummy corporations based in no-tell countries like Liechtenstein, Luxembourg, and Liberia. It is unclear who is sincere and who is cynical in Scientology. Hubbard once quipped that the best way to become rich is to start your own religion. He never entirely shed suspicion that he was taking his own advice.
In 1975 Scientology tried to takeover the city government of Clearwater, Florida (pop. 70,000). That never panned out. But the group is believed to have hidden enclaves in Dunedin, Florida, and La Quinta and Gilman Hot Springs, California. Scientology also has a secret movie studio out in the California desert.
Disillusioned Scientology graduates have charged that Hubbard has blatantly falsified his biography. He is supposed to have traveled in the Orient for inspiration as a teen. School records show he was attending high school in the Midwest. Biographies say he wrote the screenplays of Treasure Island and Dive Bomber, both produced by Columbia. The films were actually produced by RKO and Warner Brothers and credited to Lawrence Edward Watkin and Frank Wead and Robert Buckner, all well-known screenwriters with many other credits. Hubbard made himself out to be a naval hero. "Blinded with injured optical nerves, and lame with physical injuries from hip to back, at the end of World War II, I faced an almost non-existent future," he claimed. Naval records show he never saw combat.
Off Oregon, Hubbard's ship engaged what they thought was a Japanese submarine. The navy thinks it was just a log. Hubbard's ship next sailed down the coast and opened fire on Mexico. Since we weren't at war with Mexico, the navy thought this was a dumb idea. Hubbard was discharged for arthritis and bursitis.
In 1966 Hubbard took to sea again. This time it was aboard the Apollo, A 330-foot customized ferryboat. Hubbard and his entourage steered a course for international waters, never to return until he got the "all clear" - news that the organization's mounting tax and legal troubles were over. It never came.
"Aboard the Apollo, Hubbard acted out his wartime fantasies as he sailed the world's oceans," Time magazine reported. "He was addressed as 'the Commodore,' his bevy of young women servants were called 'Commodore's Messenger Org' (for organization), while his uniformed 'Sea Org' elite formed his crew."
After almost a decade at sea, Hubard was believed to have gone into hiding in the Southern California desert. Widely reported rumors had it that he was dead or a pathetic mental vegetable. In an unexpected development, his literary career resumed in the wake of the death rumors. In 1983 his nine-hundred-page Battlefield Earth: A Saga of the Year 3000 became a best-seller. It was followed in 1985 by The Invaders Plan, which was advertised as Volume One of a ten-part series. There has been speculation that Scientology's high command hired ghostwriters for these books to combat the dead-or-demented stories.
Finally in 1986, the Scientology organization conceded that Hubbard was permanently indisposed. The word death was studiously avoided, but we were given to understand that Hubbard "no longer had need of the encumbrance of the physical identity we have known as L. Ron Hubbard," in the words of Scientology President Heber Jentzsch. The Commodore's ashes were scattered in the Pacific.
The $12,100 Xemu Revelations
The longer a person stays in Scientology, the more layers of Hubbard's revelations he learns. The forbidden central core of Hubbard's philosophy is disclosed only to those who have been prepared by extensive auditing. Regular folks aren't ready for these shockers, according to the leadership, and such knowledge could actually be harmful to the uninitiated.
The organization charges $12,100 for a course on the secret teachings (this does not include the cost of prerequisite auditing). Scientology splinter groups have offered no-frills versions of the same course for as little as $1,500, but this was ruled a violation of Scientology's rights in 1985 by U.S. District Judge Mariana R. Pfaelzer. "It's the first time you've ever seen a decision that religious scriptures constitute, trade secrets," a Scientology attorney claimed. According to the documents Wollersheim placed in evidence - the documents that fifteen hundred loyal Scientologists tried hard to conceal - here is what Hubbard and his inner circle believe: Seventy-five million years ago, the earth was called Teegeeach. It was one of a federation of about ninety planets. A bad guy named Xemu ruled the planets. The federation was overpopulated, so Xemu rounded up the surplus population and beamed them down to ten volcanoes on earth/Teegeeach. Then Xemu dropped H-bombs on the volcanoes, and they all died.
No, really. Then the spirits of the dead guys, the thetans, all stuck together in clusters. Xemu imprisoned the clusters of thetans in a frozen mixture of alcohol and glycol for thirty-six days. (Note: Glycol, synthesized by Charles-Adolphe Wurtz in 1856, is the main ingredient of Prestone antifreeze.) During the thirty-six days, Xemu put bad personality traits in the thetan clusters. When the thetans got out of the antifreeze, they attached themselves to humans and infested with bad personality traits. All emotional illness and antisocial behavior come from the thetans. When a person dies, the thetans move on to another person. The upshot is, when you do something bad it isn't you, it's the thetans and Xemu. The practical side of the course tells you how to identify thetans and exorcise them.
Wollersheim didn't think this was worth $12,100.