Hulda Clark



Consumer Health Digest reported on January 28th that the U.S Federal Trade

Commission has brought charges of false advertisement against a

Scientologist and a non-profit organization headed by Hulda Clark.



"The U.S. Federal Trade Commission has charged the Dr. Clark Association,

Behandlungzentrum GMbH (a Swiss company), and Scientologist David Amrein,

a Swiss citizen who is the sole officer and director of both, with falsely

advertising devices and herbal products related to the theories of Hulda

Clark. The complaint, filed in an Ohio federal court, alleges that the

defendants made unsubstantiated representations that the Super-Zapper

Deluxe device is effective to kill bacteria, viruses, and parasites in the

human body, and is effective against chronic infections, cancer, and AIDS,

is effective to cure diabetes, multiple sclerosis, Alzheimer's,

endometriosis, asthma, and many other diseases.



"Hulda Clark is an unlicensed naturopath who obtained her 'degree' from a

nonaccredited correspondence school. She has written several books and

operates a clinic in Mexico where she offers treatment for cancer and

other serious diseases. In 2001, the FTC obtained a consent agreement with

another company selling Clark-recommended products."



Message-ID: 3E385D36.4060107@netscape.net





Germany



A Scientology press release on January 30th claims that nine churches of

Scientology have been recognized in Germany as a tax exempt organization.



"The Federal Finance Office, Germany's equivalent of the IRS, this week

issued ruling letters to the Church of Scientology International, granting

full tax exemption on license payments it receives from nine Churches of

Scientology in Germany.  The decision by the Federal Finance Office means

that for the first time the Los Angeles-based mother church of Scientology

is officially recognized as tax-exempt in Germany. CSI has now received

exemptions for license fees due from all German churches: Munich, Hamburg,

Stuttgart, Berlin, Frankfurt, Dusseldorf, Eppendorf, and the Church of

Scientology Celebrity Centres in Munich and Dusseldorf. Each exemption is

valid until the end of 2005 and three are retroactive to 1994.



"The Federal Finance Office's decision to grant CSI exemption follows a

precedent-setting decision in October 2002 by the German Federal Tax Court

in Cologne. The Court ruled that Scientology Missions International and

the International Hubbard Ecclesiastical League of Pastors qualify for

exemption under a 1989 income tax treaty between the United States and

Germany. Following the ruling in October, the Federal Finance Office

informed Scientology representatives that the German government would not

appeal and that the decision clearly applied to CSI as well."



Message-ID: 20030131155955.10142.00000074@mb-fk.aol.com





Ireland



The Irish Times reported in articles on January 25th, 30th and 31st on the

progress of a case of a Dublin woman who is suing Scientology for

misrepresentation and violation of constitutional rights.



"A woman former member of the Church of Scientology had her free will

compromised because of dependency, intrusion and pressure, a Canadian

professor who claiMs. to be an expert on the practices of the church told

the High Court yesterday. Prof. Stephen Alan Kent said he was concerned

about the nature of dependency which grew from the process of dianetics

which, he said, would focus on negative events in a person's life. He said

Ms. Mary Johnston had developed a dependency relationship because, it

seemed, a member of the church, Mr. Tom Cunningham, had used these

techniques, and she was under constant pressure to join Scientology."



"A woman told the High Court yesterday that she had become aware of a

change in her sister at about the time the latter became associated with

the Church of Scientology. Ms. Margaret O'Kelly, from Edenderry, said she

had always been very close to her sister, Ms. Mary Johnston, but became

aware of a change in her, through 'a lot of little things,' in the early

1990s. Ms. Johnston was involved at that time in dianetics with Mr. Tom

Cunningham, a member of the church's mission in Dublin. Up to then, her

children loved to see Ms. Johnston coming to visit, but over a period of

time they would say: 'Oh no, not Auntie Mary.' She felt that her children

did not want Ms. Johnston around.



"Ms. O'Kelly said that her sister had talked a lot about dianetics and had

said that it involved auditing. Her sister had talked a lot about

dianetics and wanted to use it to do away with Ms. O'Kelly's 10-year-old

daughter's grumpiness. Ms. O'Kelly said she felt this was an imposition

and she was worried about it. Ms. O'Kelly said that Ms. Johnston had acted

totally out of character. She would insist that she was right and

Scientology would always be brought into it.



"In August 1993, her husband's cousin had died suddenly and, despite the

fact that Ms. Johnston was close to him, she was apathetic about what had

happened. Ms. O'Kelly said she was appalled that her sister did not go to

the funeral but rather talked about reincarnation. She showed no empathy

with anybody and this was 'totally out of character.'"



"While she was with the Church of Scientology, Ms. Mary Johnston was 'like

somebody playing a role in a pantomine', the High Court was told

yesterday. Mr. Paul O'Kelly, brother-in-law of Ms. Johnston, said he found

Ms. Johnston was dealing with him in a planned and structured way and

there was no genuine effort to engage.



"Yesterday, Ms. Margaret O'Kelly, sister of Ms. Johnston and wife of Paul

O'Kelly, said she and other members of her family made efforts in early

1994 to get her sister to meet them to view material, newspaper cuttings

and videos about Scientology. Before she invited her sister to the

meeting, members of the family needed time to research Scientology and to

gather as much information as they could, Ms O'Kelly said. They contacted

Ms. Johnston and arranged to meet in Edenderry on May 2nd, 1994.

Initially, Ms. Johnston wanted to know why and rang every day for two

weeks to find out the name of a book they had about Scientology and where

they had got the information.



"Ms. O'Kelly said she and her mother arranged to meet Ms. Johnston at 2

p.m. but she did not turn up until 6 p.m. Ms. Johnston never apologised

for being late. They wanted her to make up her own mind when she saw the

information they had. Ms. O'Kelly said her sister was not relaxed and was

very tense, with a continuous grin on her face. She was under stress. She

refused to read any of the material they had. By 8 p.m., their mother was

getting upset because Ms. Johnston could not bring herself to read the

material.



"Ms. O'Kelly said she had asked her mother to leave and she did. After

that, Ms. O'Kelly said, she herself broke down and told Ms. Johnston they

loved her and did not want her to disconnect from the family. Ms Johnston

then said she would read the material. They talked about family matters

and the tension was gone. The next morning, Ms. Johnston said there was a

lot of questions to which she wanted answers. Ms. O'Kelly said her sister

told her she was very frightened. Ms Johnston had said there were things

that Ms. O'Kelly did not know about her but which the Scientologists knew

and that she was afraid they might reveal them."



Message-ID: 80ee9418.0301270526.7090c92d@posting.google.com

Message-ID: gbfj3vgip6r2i6svnmbp96vujntcta792h@4ax.com

Message-ID: 80ee9418.0301311607.2cdc3bdc@posting.google.com





Protest Summary



John Ritson reported a protest on February 1st at the London Scientology

org.



"Approximately ten suppressives had sunny albeit cold weather to picket

the Tottenham Court Road 'org.' The 'org' was as downstat as usual. No

students, only the regulars on the Foundation shift (apart from one

newcomer in a light brown leather jacket, who just stood around chewing

gum as if his life depended on it - we never actually saw him chew and

walk at the same time). After the obligatory telephone call to get their

orders, and the obligatory visit from the police, who made it clear to

them that we were perfectly entitled to picket them, we spent a couple of

hours leafleting and enturbulating.



"Even the normal receptionist only turned up and took photographs after an

hour. Before that they had been handing out Issue One of a news sheet

about education (basically a puff piece for their private Greenfields

School near Saint Hill - notorious for the 'death classes' and the

'withhold-pulling' sessions). After an hour they just went inside and hid.



"We remained outside, and had lots of support from the passers-by, as long

as we made it clear that we were AGAINST Scientology. After a couple of

hours we ran out of leaflets and retreated to a warm pub."



Message-ID: kOjBLFEZvBP+EwN4@jritson.demon.co.uk





Lisa Marie Presley



Salon.com reported on January 30th that Lisa Marie Presley's new album is

filled with references to Scientology.



"Lisa Marie Presley's forthcoming album sure sounds more and more like one

you're gonna wanna rush right out and buy, especially if you happen to be,

say, Tom Cruise, John Travolta or one of Hollywood's other ardent

Scientologists. Elvis' little girl tells Launch.com that the title track

of her CD, 'To Whom It May Concern,' is an anthem dedicated to spreading

the word of one L. Ron Hubbard, of whom she is a follower.



"'This is me. This record is me. Every song is me. You're going to see who

I really am and not what the tabloids say or whatever anyone has to say

about me,' Presley told the music Web site. And while she's on her musical

soapbox, the estranged Mrs. Cage also plans to take a moment to sing loud

and proud about one of her favorite causes:  the dangers of overmedicating

children."



Message-ID: l0c_9.1988$gU.622587@news2.voicenet.com





Christopher Reeve



MSNBC reported on January 27th that portions of a new book by Christopher

Reeve describe his experiences in Scientology.



"The 'Superman' star once dabbled in Scientology, but Reeve doesn't give

it a rave review in his memoir, 'Nothing Is Impossible.' Reeve describes

how he took courses and underwent numerous, expensive 'auditing' sessions

during which he was quizzed about his life, including his drug use

history, while hooked up to an 'e-meter' machine designed to get to the

truth.



"But Reeve says he 'grew skeptical' of the whole process and told an

outrageous lie - which wasn't caught by the auditor or the e-meter. 'The

fact that I got away with a blatant fabrication completely devalued my

belief in the process,' Reeve wrote. He felt similar disillusionment with

various alternative religions and cults he encountered in Hollywood."



Message-ID: 80ee9418.0301270529.1c59f7d6@posting.google.com





In Memoriam



The St. Petersburg Times reported that Scientologist Daniel Wagner passed

away on January 24th.



"WAGNER, DANIEL H., 45, of Clearwater, died Friday at Morton Plant

Hospital, Clearwater. He came here in 1995 from his native California. He

was a self-employed computer consultant. He was a member of the Church of

Scientology, Clearwater and was a Marine Corps veteran."



Message-ID: RWE8226I37647.8779513889@anonymous.poster





Russia



Interfax reported on January 27th that a group that supports Russian

President Vladimir Putin have held rallies against Scientology in St.

Petersburg.



"Members of the Moving Together organization have started an indefinite

rally in protest of the Church of Scientology on Vosstaniye Square in

downtown St. Petersburg. Vasily Yakemenko, the movement's leader, told

Interfax on Monday that 'the organization's activists have been living in

a tent at the entrance to the sect's headquarters for the past five days.

A huge sign indicates the sect's location to city authorities and

passers-by. Several tens of thousands of citizens have already signed a

request to close the sect that will be sent to St. Petersburg Governor

Vladimir Yakovlev,' Yakemenko said.



"He specified that the sect's victiMs. already include hundreds of St.

Petersburg residents. That is why the city's public has given such strong

support to the rally. 'We believe that this sect is a Satanic cult and

poses a criminal threat. We hope that the city's authorities will take all

the necessary steps to close the sect,' he said, stressing that his

organization intends to continue its protest until the sect has been fully

removed."



Message-ID: 80ee9418.0301270734.1d7504a6@posting.google.com





Volunteer Clean-up



The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported on January 20th that Scientologists

participated in a clean-up weekend to fix up apartment buildings in

Kinloch, Missouri.



"Volunteer workers spent Saturday and Sunday sprucing up the old Dunbar

Gardens apartment complex in Kinloch. Hours after Casetta Rosborough had

started cleaning the long-abandoned apartment, she said in a cheery voice,

'This is beginning to look like a home.' Rosborough and about 135 other

volunteer workers spent Saturday and Sunday fixing up the old Dunbar

Gardens apartment complex in Kinloch.



"Kinloch acquired them from the Kinloch Housing Authority in October 2002.

Faith Beyond Walls, an organization based in St. Louis, is helping to get

the apartments ready for occupancy this spring or summer, at fair-market

rental rates. 'This apartment was pretty rough when we got here,' said

Rosborough, a member of the Church of Jesus Christ of Latter-Day Saints in

Hazelwood, one of the many groups that make up Faith Beyond Walls. 'You

should have seen the bathroom. I didn't want to touch it.'



"Tom LoGrasso scrubbed black mildew that had collected along the wall of

one apartment. The pungent smell from the cleaning solution didn't seem to

bother him. And scrubbing hard made the mildew disappear. LoGrasso came as

part of a contingent from the Scientology Church of Missouri, in

University City. 'We believe that you can do something positive and make a

difference,' he said. 'The apartment really isn't so bad. This is the

worst spot. There must have been a waterbed here.'"



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