A Bad Week for Scientology

Holy POOT.

First of all, I had no idea that director Paul Haggis was a Scientologist at all, let alone one for thirty-five years.  Bravo to him for standing up against Proposition 8 and the CoS’s support of it.   My usually reliable Hollywood gossip sources are saying that Haggis’s daughter is a lesbian, and thus this has been coming for a while.

 Guess that means the countdown to Fair Gaming starts…. now.  Or is Haggis a candidate for an R2-45 audit?

Meanwhile, in a blow supporting religious freedom everywhere, a French court has found the CoS guilty of fraud.  And high time, too.

I’ve said it before and I’ll say it again: the CoS isn’t a religion. It isn’t a cult. It’s a Ponzi scheme masquerading as a church. The sooner they’re shut down, the better for all the religions that really want to help people.

In Case Anyone Out There STILL Likes Sarah Palin….

I missed this story on Gawker.com when it was originally posted, because my dad had to be hospitalized that same day. Nonetheless, it’s finally come to my attention, and it’s evidence to me that the Palins are flakier than I thought:

Gawker.com’s posting of the John Coales’ Scientology memo

Who, pray tell, is John Coales. you ask?  One of Sarah Palin’s top advisors, and allegedly the driving force behind her “SarahPAC” (the organization dedicated to Palin’s future presidential ambitions).  A  Scientologist attack-lawyer and husband of Fox news anchor Greta Van Sustern, John Coales is reportedly tasked with using his political influence to advance Scientology’s agenda,  such as their war against psychiatry and psychology.  

Apparently the Powers That Be in Scientology decided that the Palins might be good recruits, because Coales managed to worm his way into the Palin camp.

To Sarah Palin’s credit, she was reportedly aghast to learn of Coale’s involvment with L. Ron Hubbard’s Ponzi scheme, and has since started to distance herself from him.   Which is a no-brainer move.  After all, few things would alienate Palin from the Neo-Con’s Christian-hypocrite base faster than thinking she’s a Scientologist (Mitt Romney already has had difficulty with acceptance within the Republican Party as a Mormon).

The fact, however, that this guy was not only in her organization but was the head of “SarahPAC” is yet another example of the stunningly bad judgement Palin and her cohorts are capable of.  

I’m sure Palin doesn’t have the resources to conduct extensive background checks on everyone that wants to help her out.  But Coales has been a vocal advocate for Scientology for decades.  Not knowing he’s a highly-placed Scientologist is like not knowing that Mitt Romney is a Mormon.

Scientology is already on trial in France, with prosecuters seeking to put them completely out of business on the grounds that the “church” is nothing but a front for criminal fraud (article in French).  In Germany, Hubbard’s scheme isn’t recognized as a religion at all (and neither should it be).  And of course, Scientology’s history in the United States  alone is uglier than homemade sin.

The United States has some of the broadest freedom of religion laws on the planet, which is why Scientology (and other cults) thrive here.   And to be honest, I like it that way.  Even as a Christian myself, I’m a strong believer that religious exploration is healthy.

However, it’s also dangerous, and Scientology is an excellent example of this.  Without question it is a criminal organization masquerading as a church, and should not be allowed to continue to operate as a church in this country.   I applaud the German government, and the efforts of the French, to once and for all bring this long-running con to heel.  And if Sarah Palin has any sense, she’ll do the same thing.

Brangelina-Free Zone! But drop by for a dose of Scientology-mockery.

I love celebrity gossip, and I plan to discuss more of it on this blog.

But I will be damned if I add to the current Brad-Pitt-Angelina-Jolie frenzy.

I like Brad Pitt, have been a fan for years (although I think he did wrong by Jennifer Anniston). And I like Angelina Jolie. But I am sick to death of hearing about them, their kids, their public appearances, the whole bit. It’s worse than Tom Cruise and Katie Holmes.

So I hereby declare this blog a “Brangelina-Free Zone”! There will be no mention of them, at least until the hype dies down to a dull roar. Say, around the time little Shiloh gets out of grad school….

I will probably mention TomKat occasionally, but only in the context of mocking their Scientology beliefs. Sorry, folks, but freedom of religion sometimes means that I’m free to make fun of your religion.

Seriously, I’m all for religious diversity, but to paraphrase South Park, how can anyone take Scientology seriously except for Star Wars convention-goers?

Actually, my favorite South Park quote regarding Scientology is the following from the infamous Return of Chef (10.1) episode:

Kyle: Do you realize how retarded that sounds?

Mr. Connolly: Is it any more retarded than the idea of God sending His only son down to die for our sins? Is it any more retarded than Buddha sitting beneath a tree for twenty years?

Stan: Yes it is! It’s way, way more retarded!