Well, there's the before, during and after.
The Church of Scientology certainly did exploit Marty's unstable and violent youth and dysfunctional family to get him in.
That doesn't mean he was a nice guy while he was in, nor that he suffered the same way as many others in the SO did for most of that time. Marty lived like a king compared to many SO members due to his loyalty to DM, and he hurt a lot of people for many years.
When he left, it took him a long time to shed that Scientology persona as well as his beliefs. In his early years, he condemned and criticized ESMB and fully out exes, as well as some of the Australia media because he did not want to see Scientology, which he still believed, criticized. In that egotistical state, Marty claimed credit for things for which he had no involvement - exes who had already been out for years, coupes against COS by other groups that had nothing to do with him. At that time, I openly criticized Marty. I do not apologize for that, because he had his own agenda then, one which I never comprehended, but one that was different than the simplicity of taking down the cult and exposing Scientology for the scam that it is.
Marty's boasting also made him a big target for OSA and the cult, which made it easier for the rest of us to get on with destroying COS. It worked to our advantage, but not to Marty's.
Some of his early writings the first years he was out were funny, the way Scientologists are so ridiculous that you can't help laughing. I'll never forget, "Ode to L Ron Hubbard".
And I don't apologize for laughing then, either. Marty had a huge fan club of followers and Indies then, too, and enjoyed playing guru to them. I poked fun at that, too.
So as he changed, he lost most of the Indies. Well, that's how it is sometimes when the only thing you have in common with someone is a shared belief and then stop sharing those beliefs. At that time, Marty could not see past his beliefs to just like people for themselves, even if they didn't agree with him. That wasn't my personal experience with him, anyway - he was pretty rude to me when I tried sending him a few simple messages. Whereas many fully out exes and Anons developed and kept friendships with some Indies and others as they changed and put religious differences or beliefs aside, Marty did not. Not then.
So now Marty finds himself at a new crossroads. It's painful, but I don't believe it is anywhere near as bad as he sees it at this moment. He is not as isolated as he thinks.
Most exes and Anons are forgiving. We get it. We've been through it. I won't make friends with a Scientology persona, but Marty is being himself now and I welcome the person he is, the real Marty, in my heart without reservation.
I believe others here do so as well.
I don't see Marty's future as nearly as bleak as he may have envisioned it when he made the vid, or that some others may envision it. There is neighborhood watch, there are places to live where a Scientologist stands out like a slab of beef in a vegetarian soup. There are plenty of communities where people are just people who work together and look out for themselves and each other.
Maybe it's time Marty said hello to us here on ESMB again - as the new Marty - and see for himself how many friends and how much support he now has. It's not too late for a new start. Life is a series of learning, changing, and new beginnings.
