Volume 1, Issue 46 vom 23. 03. 1997

Alt.religion.scientology Week in Review
Volume 1, Issue 46
03/27/97
by Rod Keller [rkeller@voicenet.com]
copyright 1997

Contents

1. Arizona Picket
2. Boston Picket
3. Boulder Picket
4. Melbourne Picket
5. San Francisco Picket
6. Lisa McPherson
7. Luckman Interactive
8. Keith Henson
9. Grady Ward
10. Germany
11. American Spectator
12. Equal Time
13. George

Alt.religion.scientology Week in Review summarizes the most significant
postings from the Usenet group Alt.religion.scientology for the preceding
week for the benefit of those who can't follow the group as closely as
they'd like. Out of thousands of postings, I attempt to include news of
significant events, new affidavits, court rulings, new contributors,
whatever. I hope you find it useful. Like many readers of a.r.s, I have a
kill file. So please take into consideration that I may not have seen some
of the most significant postings. 

The articles in A.r.s Week in Review are brief summaries of articles
posted to the newsgroup. They include message IDs for the original
articles, and many have a URL to get more informtion. You may be able to
find the original article, depending on how long your site stores articles
in the newsgroup before expiring them. 

Free A.r.s Week in Review subscriptions are available, just email me
at rkeller@voicenet.com
It is archived at:

http://wpxx02.toxi.uni-wuerzburg.de/~krasel/CoS/ars-summary.html
        http://user1.i1.net/~mallen/scn/arswr/ars-summary.html
        http://users.aimnet.com/~jdiver/scieno.htm
        http://www.thur.de/religio/publik/arsfaq.html

#####

Arizona Picket

"We arrived at the site to find the sidewalk in front of the building cordoned off with ribbon and folding stands. The scienos were doing a little landscaping. We had the Mesa police verify their permit, then picketed from across the street, with all the same visibility as from the blocked off site.

"My wife and I were joined by Jeff and Tashback (that's two weeks in a row for them, after Clearwater last week). After a break for lunch, we returned to find the orgites still busy as bees, bees with one leg and one wing, maybe. At least we have the satisfaction of keeping them doing harmless work, instead of the usual brain-washing."

Message-ID: <5gf6rh$arv@nnrp1.news.primenet.com>

#####

Boston Picket

"I was not interested in going alone, Ron Newman and Sam Gorton guaranteed their attendance. On arrival, we found two more people there, who are unidentified, so I'll call them Jane and John. They had a banner.

"[T]hey told me 'We know you live in Newton'. Which I don't, so I said 'No I don't'. 'Yes, you go to high school in Newton' I was slightly confused. 'Last time, you said you lived in Newton.' 'Oh, uh.'

"A second woman joined us. She held the banner with Jane and John. At some point she told them she was a psychiatrist. This set off the most embarrassing harassment I have ever seen. They started surrounding her, and hounding her and proclaiming she drugged kids. And performed electroshock. She refused to speak to them. Although, from my side of the street I heard them taunting her, trying to push her buttons. She apparently said something eventually, which elicited the reply 'SHE SPEAKS! THE PSYCH SPEAKS!' They're awfully heavy on psychiatry. Immediately they proclaimed the evil of psychiatry.

"They put up a lot of balloons and stuff. Handed out flyers and Freedoms. They had a few signs as well. They also put out a boom box and played ThetaRock.

"Seems like they loved us so much, they decided to not let go after 2:15, it was 6 of us walking down the street plus 1 OSA. We decided to split up. I looked behind us and there were 3 more running to catch up. SG and I walked one way and had one guy follow us. We turned around, pointed the videocam at him and asked 'Are you following us?' to which he replied he had to hand out all the Freedoms he was carrying so we took them all. He went away. We disposed of the Freedoms. We found the Trident and caught up with 'Fred'. We found an OSA hiding behind a stack of books. We walked up to Tower Records (SG, Fred, the 'psych' and I) where we met 2 OSA's. 'Hello again'

"We walk into Tower Records. I ask an employee 'Pardon me, is there a rear exit to this building?' I explain that they are harassing our friend. Just then, who shows up again? Out comes the cam. 'Are you following us?' 'No' 'I thought you wanted lunch' 'We decided to look at some music.' In the end, we take a side handicapped entrance/exit and scoot into the trolly station. We waited for 10 minutes, no OSA showed."

Sam Gorton also described the event.

"I asked the person who had his van parked in an illegal spot blocking the view of the corner from the street why he was there. He certainly didn't appreciate that, and declined to answer any questions. In fact, he threatened to sue if his picture ended up on the Internet! One of the counter-picketers told me I was 'illegally' videotaping him, and blocked my camera with his sign.

"They also read some sort of 'rules for picketing' that they said they found on the internet. I never saw the hardcopy, so I have no idea where they dug it up from. The line they kept reading was advocating that everyone bring a weapon to the picket, so it wasn't Jeff J's rules! They tried to use our attempt to convince them that those rules were crap to prove that everything on the Internet was of the same factual quality."

Message-ID: <5gkpb9$v86@reddragon.empire.net>
Message-ID: <5gfe67$gam$1@lator.cybercom.net>

#####

Boulder Picket

"We came, we saw, we gasped in amusement when we saw the very tall Robert Anderson, Boulder Mission Holder Man, dressed in an Uncle Sam costume. Three cheers for Mr.Anderson for having a sense of humor. By the time we arrived, the picket was in full swing. Scientologists (maybe 15 to 25??...they kept marching in a circle) Anyway...by the time we arrived A BUNCH of Scientologists were marching in a long circle and chanting 'Blah Blah Blah. Blah Blah Blah. Blah Blah Blah Blah..Blah Blah Blah!' Well, they used actual words...I just forgot what they were saying. Something about THE INTERNET and RELIGIOUS BIGOTRY...i believe....it just sounded like a robotic chant to me."

>From Ray Randolph:

"The picketers refused to cross the street. Eventually, they did move, though...after many complaints from the business owners next to the Org. We started picketing and the counter picketers rolled out. It wasn't long before I heard a 'hi Ray' from behind me and turned around to see none other than Joe Neal. I said, 'Long time no see. Did you miss me?' He said, 'No.' Xenu showed up...and the scieno's avoided him like he was some kind of Alien.

"The bullbaiting was done in Boulder Scieno style. Which is to say, they kept their distance, they talked nicely, they didn't cover the signs, etc. The dumbest move of the picket was when DSA of Denver, Deb Danos had the sign saying 'Wollersheim used Penny.' I told her, 'you're going to look like an idiot when Penny shows up.' Show up he did. THE Bob Penny. I was busy protesting and didn't take the time to introduce myself. Bob and Lawrence stood there and talked to the media, had pictures taken of themselves, and put the whole 'they hate each other' rumor to rest.

"The second dumbest move of the picket was for the Boulder scns's to start chanting, 'Internet bigots, spreading lies blah blah blah something something.' This was a stupid move because it prompted a handful of internet users to join our protest."

>From Michael Reuss:

"A German freelance film crew based out of Washington DC interviewed Larry and some of the Scientologists. The Germans are astounded at how little Scientology is understood in this country, and about how disinterested the American public is with fascist totalitarians.

"Several Scientologists said I was a dupe, groupie, cultie, and/or follower of Larry Wollersheim. One even repeated the peanut butter in the underwear story to me, claiming it was in Larry's service records. That really made my day. And it gave me the perfect opportunity to tell him about Hubbard's service records, the lying, the screwing off, the shelling of Mexican goats, the lying, being paid a VA disability for his entire post-navy life, even after he'd claimed to have found all this healing technology."

Message-ID: <5gi588$c0f@dfw-ixnews3.ix.netcom.com>
Message-ID: <858559758.14770@dejanews.com>
Message-ID: <332e4657.8368667@news.rmi.net>

#####

Melbourne Picket

"We'd used more or less the same leaflet the previous three Melbourne demos, so I decided to do a different one (the demo announcement as posted), adapted from Ray Randolph's Boulder picket leaflet; mainly on the theme of Lisa McPherson. Also, to make it *absolutely clear* which side we were on, I made up new signs: one sign with 'ANTI- SCIENTOLOGY DEMO' on both sides, and the other with 'SCIENTOLOGY HURTS PEOPLE' on one side and 'IT'S NOT ABOUT RELIGION' on the other. Font used was Univers Bold, 200- point for the word 'SCIENTOLOGY' and 255-point for all other words; readable from way down the street.

"The demo was basically uneventful; three of us (four for the last half hour), five or six of them at any time. The public was very happy with what we were doing, though even with our new-look ultra-obvious signs it still took a moment for some to work out what side we were on."

Message-ID: <slrn5infon.ium.fun@dora.tertius.net.au>

#####

San Francisco Picket

"The scienos came out and did a very aggressive counter picket; they were hostile and abusive. They tried to provoke violence with me. How? By placing some of their faces very close to mine (about an inch away) and shouting insults, things like 'you are dogshit' 'asshole' 'loser' and other similar utterances. The scienos used at least one child (about 8 yrs old) as a counter picketer.

"About 10 people came to picket against the scienos, and the scienos used about 25 different people to counter our picket with a pro-scientology picket, same stuff, 'scientology saves lives', 'scientology fights drugs', etc. Several scieno faces were new, perhaps public, probably brought in just for the counter picket.

"A person off the street (really an OT 8 under OSA direction who deceived me into believing he was a non-scientologist) approached me as soon as I arrived and pretended to be uninformed. I spoke with him for about an hour (I'd arrived early), and he asked tons of questions, about who I was, why I was doing this, was I ever a scientologist, how had I become involved, etc.?"

"The OT8 guy tried a tactic that consisted mainly of repeating the word 'loser' over and over at me. He's got kids. He paused when I asked if he'd set aside money to send them to college or if he spent everything on auditing. He also didn't like being asked what it felt like to be at effect to a loser. I feel real sorry for his kids.

"I made up my own fliers, but they were too URL saturated and probably weren't as effective as they could have been. the flip side was a cut'n'paste of Jeff Jacobson's Lisa page, 2 paragraphs from the St. Petersburg Times on the candles getting blown out at the vigil and an ending line that said 'Scientology[tm] makes victims out of the uninformed. Arm yourself with knowledge' I figured that would push some buttons in the poor souls who get taken by the scam."

"My sign was $cientology Church Of Cockroach The Holy Cult Law$uit

"There were a couple of young ladies - college dropout age - who were there, who turned out to be Scn. Trying to give them a flier was the first time (of 3) that the jackass took my leaflet, crumpled it up, and threw it away (not that he was always successful - one time he didn't get his hand on it in time, the other he surrendered it after a little tug of war).

"At one point I started talking about OT3 with another picketer. She took off, and he started singing and following me around. He said something like 'I'm not stopping your free speech, I'm just ignoring it' while singing loud enough to block our conversation. Me and the other Sp split up, and eventually he stopped."

"This time I arrived carrying a sign which read, 'STOP HURTING YOUR OWN MEMBERS.' I held this sign in memory of Lisa. This sign I kept facing the org at all times as opposed to facing it towards those on the street as I normally do. I see this woman walk out the front door heading straight for me holding a small sign which read, 'WAYNE STOP HURTING YOUR OWN MEMBER'. When I saw that sign my first thought was, 'Geez, I always thought I took great care of my own member'. She walks up to me and sticks the sign right in my face to make sure that I saw it. She then gets behind me and starts to follow me wherever I go.

"After awhile that one guy (who had gotten antagonistic earlier) came back. This time he was quite a bit calmer and seemed interested in what I had to say -- at first. I related some my negative experiences and tried to explain WHY I was out there picketing. Once again he got right in my face and said in a loud voice, 'You've got to be the most stupid person alive. Stupid, stupid, stupid, stupid. I just can't believe how stupid you are. I can't believe how stupid you are to have kept giving them money when you weren't getting anything out of it.'"

Message-ID: <5gfk7m$f49$1@news.aimnet.com>
Message-ID: <5gfs0j$ntd@nnrp1.news.primenet.com>
Message-ID: <332f1262.4789405@nntp1.ba.best.com>
Message-ID: <19970317063700.BAA04126@ladder01.news.aol.com>

#####

Lisa McPherson

"Several familiar faces of Scientology observers were in the footage of the picket; I'm sure I saw Dave Touretzky, Ron Newman, Rod Keller, and others in it.

"The show mentioned something I hadn't heard before, the name of a different medical officer, a former doctor who lost her license, who was there at the time of Lisa's death, in contradiction to Ableson's proclamations about the ignorance of all involved."

Martin Ottmann provided information about the Scientologists who were with Lisa in the last weeks of her life.

"When Lisa McPherson was taken from the Morton Plant Hospital and brought to the Fort Harrison, after she had the car accident, one of the Scientologists who guarded her was Alain Kartuzinsky.

"As 'Deputy Senior Case Suprevisor' (D/Senior C/S) he was responsible for her programming and the supervision of her auditing up to Clear. He was also a specialist in 'handling rough cases' as he supervised the 'Case-cracking unit'. Two years earlier, in 1993, he even reviewed an 'isolation watch'- case that happened in Saint Hill, when a German Scientologist, Heidi Degro, was held in captivity for several weeks."

The St. Petersburg Times printed a letter from Scientology attorney Elliott Abelson, in which he again denied the allegations in the McPherson case and attacked Medical Examiner Joan Wood.

"The investigation was reportedly closed except for the final report from the medical examiner's office last May. Now, after 14 months, it is time to bring to justice those officials and reporters in collusion to waste huge amounts of taxpayer dollars to destroy a group that is bringing law and order and clean-living family values to Clearwater, America and the world."

The Times also ran an article on Janis Johnson, who was the medical officer in Clearwater when Lisa died.

"A Church of Scientology staff member who helped care for Lisa McPherson shortly before her death is a medical doctor whose practice in Arizona was restricted after two hospitals raised questions about her use of prescription drugs.

"The doctor, Janis K. Johnson-Fitzgerald, agreed to an order in October 1993 in which she surrendered her right to write prescriptions; promised not to see patients; agreed to random drug tests; and was to have her progress monitored by another doctor."

http://www.sptimes.com/News2/32297/METRO&STATE/Troubles_dogged__medi.html
http://www.users.wineasy.se/noname/multimed/multimed.htm
http://www.whidbey.net/~skyhawk/cos/
Message-ID: <EG7MzMdlggTD092yn@islandnet.com>
Message-ID: <199703211911.LAA12704@mailmasher.com>
Message-ID: <332AFCCE.41A5@online.no>
Message-ID: <332feaed.7922986@news.eskimo.com>
Message-ID: <5h10u5$agg@shell1.cybercom.net>

#####

Luckman Interactive

"A small, promising software company, in need of capital, looked for help to keep growing. For the owners of Marietta-based MicroHelp, a merger with Luckman Interactive of Los Angeles seemed the route to deeper pockets and success. In November, the $17.5 million deal was signed. Three months later, MicroHelp was dead.

"The 60-plus MicroHelp jobs were gone and the company's cutting-edge Pentium computers packed into trucks headed for the coast. Customers calling for assistance got no answer. Meanwhile, Canadian-based Yorkton Securities, which owns 22 percent of Luckman and had pumped $20 million into the company, has sued Luckman, charging officials with looting assets, spending lavishly on personal items and shifting funds to the Church of Scientology.

"In a Los Angeles meeting, MicroHelp Chief Executive Officer Tim O'Pry agreed to become president of the combined company. He was on his way back to the airport when he began receiving calls from employees, with accusations: employees forced to record financial data in questionable ways and meetings of the Church of Scientology held in company offices with employees forced to attend."

>From the complaint filed by Yorkton, posted to a.r.s this week.

"Rather than using the money raised in the offerings for the benefit of the Company and its shareholders, the Director Defendants have squandered significant funds by, among other things: (i) diverting payments made by customers for Company products to personal control and only returning them on demand of the Company's counsel; (ii) using corporate funds for personal purposes such as purchasing home furnishings, stereo equipment and leasing luxury automobiles; (iii) 'donating' corporate funds to the Church of Scientology, a religious cult group infamous for its use of 'brainwashing' and other techniques of mind control to convince its followers to surrender their assets to 'Church' control; (iv) diverting corporate funds to 'friends' for which the Company received no value; (v) employing relatives and 'friends' in corporate positions for which they were unqualified at exorbitant rates of compensation; (vi) drawing 'advances' and submitting for payment purely personal expenses unrelated to Company business; and (vii) traveling first class and staying at luxury hotels at a time when the Company was in financial distress.

"From February 1996 through May 1996, Luckman caused the Company to employ as a 'marketing person' his wife Joy Westrum at a salary of $80,000 per year even though Ms. Westrum had no qualifications for that position. Remarkably, Luckman instructed the Company's Controller, Michael Fuentes to continue paying Ms. Westrum's salary even though Ms. Westrum left the Company in or about May 1996 following her separation from Luckman. The Company had no legal obligation to make such payments, but Luckman insisted the payments occur.

"Luckman also instructed Mr. Fuentes to pay a series of charges from June to September 1996 on Luckman's personal credit card for 'donations' to the Church of Scientology in excess of $52,000; In or about September 1996, Luckman instructed Mr. Fuentes to pay $12,899.50 for a trip taken by Mr. and Mrs. Siebers (the parents of a woman Luckman was then involved with) for a 'vacation' trip."

Message-ID: <333a0d81.11718899@news.snafu.de>
Message-ID: <33363c47.76329776@news.snafu.de>

#####

Keith Henson

"This action exists because defendant H. Keith Henson regards it as 'a great game' and 'screamingly funny' to have witnessed this Court enjoin infringement of certain of RTC's copyrighted works and then -- the very next day -- infringed one of those works himself Henson also regards it as a component of what he calls his 'entertainment budget' to tax the resources of this Court and of RTC by prolonging this litigation because he believes that his conduct enhances his prestige among, and generates amusement for, a handful of Internet users, such as Grady Ward, a defendant in a related case with whose postings this Court is familiar, whose approval he courts. RTC now moves for summary judgment on its copyright claims because Henson's liability is indisputable, and because it is not amusing to RTC to have to expend parishioners' religious contributions to halt infringement of RTC's rights in its scriptures committed for 'entertainment.'

"This evidence also exposes Henson's affirmative defenses to be untenable. After hearing the Court enjoin the defendant in another case from further infringements of NOTs Series works, the very next day Henson posted NOTs Series 34 to the Internet. Indeed, his contempt for the law and the plaintiffs rights in its intellectual property is so substantial that he regards all of RTC's intellectual property rights as subordinate to the caprice of 'Netiquette' and the whims of individual Internet users. To Henson, his infringements and the resulting litigation are 'a great game,' and 'extremely amusing,' and it is 'screamingly funny' to provoke RTC into filing an expensive lawsuit to preserve its rights."

Keith also posted a filing in which he quoted four lines of NOTS34, which show the medical intent of the procedure. Scientology has attempted to seal his filing.

"Defendant takes the position that such evidence of ongoing criminal activity should be turned over to the appropriate law enforcement agencies. One such agency is currently investigating a horrifying death of a woman in Clearwater, Florida who was apparently subjected to some of Scientology's medical 'treatments.'

"Defendant reproduces here four lines of the NOTs 34 document (which plaintiff is expected to try to get sealed) to demonstrate to the Appeals Court the nature of this material.

">Step Four -- Cures for Ill| > You will now find BTs| [Vertical snip to keep Helena >illnesses of the body part| from going ballistic. See >blowing them off. 'Cures f| Clambake or Wever's page.]

"'BT' and clusters are 'body thetans' and groups of 'body thetans.' 'Body thetans' are imaginary infestations of spiritual 'lice' which scientologists are indoctrinated into believing they are possessed by. According to Scientology teachings 'BTs' are the spirits of extraterrestrial aliens who were murdered in volcanoes on earth by a despotic galactic ruler named Xenu 75 million years ago."

"This emergency motion is brought as the Opening Brief filed by defendant/appellant H. Keith Henson ('Henson'), styled 'Appeal of Order on Defendant's Motions to Modify Preliminary Injunction and Plaintiffs Motion to Clarify' ('Appeal Brief'.), contains quoted language from the unpublished, copyrighted work that is the subject of RTC's copyright infringement and trade secret misappropriation claims in this case, in violation of the Preliminary Injunction and Protective Order in the case and the district court's clarifying instructions to Henson as to the prohibition on verbatim copying. As this verbatim quotation is prohibited by two court orders, and as the information it contains is maintained by RTC as a trade secret, RTC therefore requests that the Court immediately seal at least page 3 of Hanson's filing."

Keith is also attempting to depose David Miscavige, claiming that Alan Cartwright has been keeping him informed during depositions.

"Mr. Miscavige makes the claim in his declaration that he has 'no personal involvement in this case.' Defendant has reason to believe this is not true. Defendant has noted the behavior of scientology personnel during depositions and after every hearing in this and the two local related cases, particularly the activity of Mr. Cartwright who is reputed to be a personal assistant or is otherwise close to Mr. Miscavige. After hearings, Mr. Cartwright does not communicate with Mr. McShane or the Scientology legal team but goes straight to the telephone and makes a lengthy report.

"If Mr. Cartwright is *not* reporting to Mr. Miscavige, then defendant would like to depose the person he *is* ultimately reporting to. This person is clearly not Mr. McShane.

"Mr. Miscavige also claims to the be the 'most senior ecclesiastical official in the Scientology religion.' Part of defendant's defense depends on showing that NOTs 34 is a criminal instruction manual for the illegal practice of medicine. Defendant would like to ask questions about 'therapy' involving the 'e-meter' and other actions taken by Scientology 'to cure illness,' as well as the outcome of specific cases such as the one which resulted in the horrible death of Lisa McPherson by dehydration in December 1995."

Message-ID: <hkhensonE784D5.FGo@netcom.com>
Message-ID: <hkhensonE7Atyy.JuH@netcom.com>
Message-ID: <hkhensonE7Ax9p.1sL@netcom.com>
Message-ID: <hkhensonE79C6B.24J@netcom.com>

#####

Grady Ward

"In two orders filed March 13, 1997, Magistrate Judge Edward A. Infante has ordered the criminal cult of scientology to produce to Grady Ward:

"(1) documents and identifies of all investigators and investigations of facts surrounding SCAMIZDAT, Vorlon, a.r.s, Grady Ward. Objections of privilege with respect to this data are OVERRULED (2) documents and identities of all custodians of Advanced Technology since inception, whether authorized or not (3) All confidentiality agreements in the possession, custody, or control, of RTC (4) identities and structure of RTC management, command lines, etc. (5) financials relating to income from the A.T. for the last three years (6) a complete privilege log for all claims of privilege

"RTC is ordered to comply by March 24, 1997 It is also ORDERED that Grady Ward be permitted to take notes of all confidential material produced by the criminal cult."

Message-ID: <3330ab12.3702099@207.126.101.80>

#####

Germany

"Germany will identify companies owned by Scientologists with an 'S' in employment office data banks, saying job-seekers have a right to such information. Federal Labor Minister Norbert Bluem defended the plan Tuesday, saying federal employment offices will only pass on such information when they are 'absolutely certain' it is correct. 'That's part of the educational duties of the office,' Bluem told the private television network RTL.

"A spokesman for the U.S.-based Church of Scientology, Sabine Weber, criticized the plan as further evidence of government harassment, saying the 'S' label was similar to a 'computerized Star of David.' 'Earlier it was `Don't buy from Jews.' Today it's `Don't buy from Scientologists,'' she said.

"Guenther Beckstein, the state interior minister, called on his colleagues in Germany's 15 other states to agree at their June conference to place the organization under surveillance nationwide. 'Scientology wants to expand its totalitarian internal system to the state and society,' he said. A federal-state committee is reviewing whether such a step is needed."

http://www.lasvegassun.com/sunbin/stories/archives/1997/mar/18/031800515.html
Message-ID: <199703191639.IAA05303@mailmasher.com>

#####

American Spectator

"The Whitehouse refused comment when asked why Secretary of State Madeleine Albright apologized to the German government for the State Department's latest human rights report that - in harsher language than any directed at China - accuses Germany of discriminating against the Church of Scientology. That part of the report was written by the White House, and now staffers on the Senate Finance IRS Oversight subcommittee want to know why. The slam at Germany isn't the first favor the Clinton administration has done for the Scientologists. In 1993, after 26 years of trying, the church was granted tax-exempt status as a religious organization in one of the first actions taken by the Clinton-era IRS. Clinton fundraisers have long understood the need to maintain friendly relations with the church: it boasts real star power in Clinton's beloved Hollywood, counting among its members the likes of John Travolta and Tom Cruise, and sympathizers such as Dustin Hoffman, Goldie Hawn, and Oliver Stone, who recently signed an open letter comparing the the plight of the German Scientologists to that of the Jews in the 1930's."

Message-ID: <ftilley-ya02408000R1803970009390001@news.goodnet.com>

#####

Equal Time

"Guests were Jim Siegelman, author of Snapping, and Monique Yingling, the CoS attorney who handled their tax deal with the IRS.

"Siegelman knew his stuff and presented it well, in spite of Yingling's constant interruptions and her efforts to talk over him. The main focus of the show was the New York Times article about the CoS/IRS deal. It also touched on Lisa McPherson's death. Yingling was obviously unprepared to discuss that and appeared thoroughly rattled when it was brought up.

"Monique Yingling did not come off nearly as well -- she appeared to be talking around the issues and her demeanor was thoroughly unsympathetic. Siegelman called for a Treasury Department investigation into the CoS/IRS deal. He also mentioned 'the Internet' as a source of information about the CoS."

Message-ID: <5gvdl2$g4e$1@kiki.bway.net>

#####

George

"A rather balanced article appears in the April 1997 George magazine. It has some of our favorite Hubbard quotes, tells about Xenu, and basically discusses the half truths that Freedom has been tossing around about the persecution of Scientologists in Germany. Germany doesn't come off as entirely the good guy, but Scn comes off looking *pretty* bad."

Message-ID: <33337b34.2568457@news.xmission.com>