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The Debbie Cook Scientology letter 5 years later - Annotated.

CommunicatorIC

@IndieScieNews on Twitter
The Debbie Cook Scientology letter 5 years later - Annotated.

Tony Ortega: Five years later: Debbie Cook’s indictment of Scientology under David Miscavige, annotated

http://tonyortega.org/2017/01/01/fi...-scientology-under-david-miscavige-annotated/


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Five years ago, a little after midnight as 2012 had just begun, we started to get emails.

Later that morning, we realized that what was happening was significant enough to write a story about it. A woman named Debbie Cook had sent her fellow Scientologists a message for the new year, and it was hitting Scientology like a tidal wave.

For 17 years, Debbie had been “Captain FSO,” the Sea Org official who ran the Flag Service Organization, the outfit that oversees Scientology’s spiritual mecca, the Flag Land Base in Clearwater, Florida. The Captain FSO has to be a hard-as-nails Sea Org commander who runs a small army of similarly dedicated fanatics, but also serves and interacts with the wealthy “publics” who come to Flag for its high-priced counseling. And to have that position for 17 years made Debbie almost legendary. But by the end of 2011, she had been moved from that position and then had quietly left the Sea Org itself, although she was still a Scientologist in good standing. Other church members may have not seen or heard from Debbie in some time, but her name was still one that carried weight. Here’s how Jefferson Hawkins explained to us what Debbie meant to most people in the church:

For many, many years, Debbie was used as the spokesperson for the Flag Land Base. Her picture was featured prominently in every issue of “Source” Magazine, with a “Message from the Captain.” She made many, many promotional videos extolling the virtues of coming to the Flag Land Base. The Church deliberately built her up as an “opinion leader” for Scientologists. There was a lot of work that went into establishing her as a high-profile opinion leader for the top Scientologists.​

And now, in a lengthy message that was forwarded to thousands of Scientologists around the world, Debbie used the words of L. Ron Hubbard to take apart David Miscavige.

Five years later, we can say that Debbie Cook’s email is one of the things new defectors from the Church of Scientology most often cite as the reason they began to take seriously the idea of leaving an organization they might have belonged to for decades, or had even grown up in. There’s just no question that Debbie Cook’s message had a devastating effect on the loyalty of many longtime Scientologists, and helped them decide to walk away.

Debbie was sued by the church for writing it, based on draconian agreements she had signed when she left her position in the Sea Org. Debbie was living in the San Antonio area at the time, and she hired a local attorney name Ray Jeffrey to represent her. We were in the courtroom that February day for a preliminary hearing, and we can tell you it was a nervous moment. According to a strict reading of the contracts Debbie had signed, Scientology could potentially convince a judge that she owed them millions of dollars for criticizing Miscavige. On Debbie’s side, Jeffrey argued that she had signed those contracts under duress after being abused in the Sea Org. And in order to prove that, he wanted to put Debbie on the witness stand. Scientology’s attorneys were against it, but Judge Martha Tanner said she wanted to hear Debbie’s testimony.

What Debbie said in the witness box was devastating. She talked about leaving her FSO post and being sent to California, where she was tasked with overseeing the imprisonment of executives in “The Hole,” Miscavige’s bizarre jail for underlings he suspected of sabotage. Before long, Debbie was thrown into The Hole as a prisoner herself, and was subjected to disturbing abuse, such as being stood up in a trash can with water poured over her while the other inmates chanted insults at her and called her a “lesbian.” After seven weeks, Debbie managed to get away from the Hole, and she was happy to sign anything to get away from the Sea Org altogether. At that point, she said on the witness stand, she would have signed a confession to killing babies if it meant getting away from that sick organization.

The press coverage of that day of testimony went national, and it was brutal. And that’s why the Church of Scientology waived the rest of the hearing and then eventually settled with Debbie for an undisclosed amount — but we’re pretty sure it was in the millions. Millions of dollars, that is, paid by Scientology in order to end the lawsuit that it had filed. We always have to remind people of that who criticize Debbie for accepting the settlement and not somehow pushing on with a lawsuit which she had not filed and which potentially had liabilities in the millions of dollars against her.

We don’t know the terms of the settlement, but they obviously included the stipulation that Debbie and her husband Wayne Baumgarten leave the country for a few years. They’re back now, in Texas, but they still won’t give interviews about their experiences, which it’s not hard to conclude is a condition of the settlement they signed.

And that’s a shame, because we’d still like to talk to Debbie about the effect her 2012 email has had on the Church of Scientology. We have a feeling that she knows what a big effect it’s had, and she could probably tell us some interesting things about what she’s heard from the people who were affected by it.

Instead, to mark this anniversary, we’re posting her lengthy email again, and with the annotations we wrote for it back in 2012, with some slight edits to update things. We hope you enjoy this examination of what Debbie wrote, and that it becomes plain why it was such a challenge to David Miscavige and his leadership of an organization that is now in serious decline.

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

Letter quotes and annotations follow in original post.
 

Knows

Gold Meritorious Patron
The Debbie Cook Scientology letter 5 years later - Annotated.

Tony Ortega: Five years later: Debbie Cook’s indictment of Scientology under David Miscavige, annotated

http://tonyortega.org/2017/01/01/fi...-scientology-under-david-miscavige-annotated/


* * * * * BEGIN EXCERPT * * * * *

Five years ago, a little after midnight as 2012 had just begun, we started to get emails.

Later that morning, we realized that what was happening was significant enough to write a story about it. A woman named Debbie Cook had sent her fellow Scientologists a message for the new year, and it was hitting Scientology like a tidal wave.

For 17 years, Debbie had been “Captain FSO,” the Sea Org official who ran the Flag Service Organization, the outfit that oversees Scientology’s spiritual mecca, the Flag Land Base in Clearwater, Florida. The Captain FSO has to be a hard-as-nails Sea Org commander who runs a small army of similarly dedicated fanatics, but also serves and interacts with the wealthy “publics” who come to Flag for its high-priced counseling. And to have that position for 17 years made Debbie almost legendary. But by the end of 2011, she had been moved from that position and then had quietly left the Sea Org itself, although she was still a Scientologist in good standing. Other church members may have not seen or heard from Debbie in some time, but her name was still one that carried weight. Here’s how Jefferson Hawkins explained to us what Debbie meant to most people in the church:
For many, many years, Debbie was used as the spokesperson for the Flag Land Base. Her picture was featured prominently in every issue of “Source” Magazine, with a “Message from the Captain.” She made many, many promotional videos extolling the virtues of coming to the Flag Land Base. The Church deliberately built her up as an “opinion leader” for Scientologists. There was a lot of work that went into establishing her as a high-profile opinion leader for the top Scientologists.​

And now, in a lengthy message that was forwarded to thousands of Scientologists around the world, Debbie used the words of L. Ron Hubbard to take apart David Miscavige.

Five years later, we can say that Debbie Cook’s email is one of the things new defectors from the Church of Scientology most often cite as the reason they began to take seriously the idea of leaving an organization they might have belonged to for decades, or had even grown up in. There’s just no question that Debbie Cook’s message had a devastating effect on the loyalty of many longtime Scientologists, and helped them decide to walk away.

Debbie was sued by the church for writing it, based on draconian agreements she had signed when she left her position in the Sea Org. Debbie was living in the San Antonio area at the time, and she hired a local attorney name Ray Jeffrey to represent her. We were in the courtroom that February day for a preliminary hearing, and we can tell you it was a nervous moment. According to a strict reading of the contracts Debbie had signed, Scientology could potentially convince a judge that she owed them millions of dollars for criticizing Miscavige. On Debbie’s side, Jeffrey argued that she had signed those contracts under duress after being abused in the Sea Org. And in order to prove that, he wanted to put Debbie on the witness stand. Scientology’s attorneys were against it, but Judge Martha Tanner said she wanted to hear Debbie’s testimony.

What Debbie said in the witness box was devastating. She talked about leaving her FSO post and being sent to California, where she was tasked with overseeing the imprisonment of executives in “The Hole,” Miscavige’s bizarre jail for underlings he suspected of sabotage. Before long, Debbie was thrown into The Hole as a prisoner herself, and was subjected to disturbing abuse, such as being stood up in a trash can with water poured over her while the other inmates chanted insults at her and called her a “lesbian.” After seven weeks, Debbie managed to get away from the Hole, and she was happy to sign anything to get away from the Sea Org altogether. At that point, she said on the witness stand, she would have signed a confession to killing babies if it meant getting away from that sick organization.

The press coverage of that day of testimony went national, and it was brutal. And that’s why the Church of Scientology waived the rest of the hearing and then eventually settled with Debbie for an undisclosed amount — but we’re pretty sure it was in the millions. Millions of dollars, that is, paid by Scientology in order to end the lawsuit that it had filed. We always have to remind people of that who criticize Debbie for accepting the settlement and not somehow pushing on with a lawsuit which she had not filed and which potentially had liabilities in the millions of dollars against her.

We don’t know the terms of the settlement, but they obviously included the stipulation that Debbie and her husband Wayne Baumgarten leave the country for a few years. They’re back now, in Texas, but they still won’t give interviews about their experiences, which it’s not hard to conclude is a condition of the settlement they signed.

And that’s a shame, because we’d still like to talk to Debbie about the effect her 2012 email has had on the Church of Scientology. We have a feeling that she knows what a big effect it’s had, and she could probably tell us some interesting things about what she’s heard from the people who were affected by it.

Instead, to mark this anniversary, we’re posting her lengthy email again, and with the annotations we wrote for it back in 2012, with some slight edits to update things. We hope you enjoy this examination of what Debbie wrote, and that it becomes plain why it was such a challenge to David Miscavige and his leadership of an organization that is now in serious decline.

* * * * * END EXCERPT * * * * *

Letter quotes and annotations follow in original post.

Welcome Lurkers. From what we are hearing - you are here lurking trying to get out of DOUBT.

Well - read Debbie Cook's Email, watch her video deposition on You Tube, watch the Church of Scientology's video of her being forced to sign a GAG ORDER in exchange for Blood Money.


# of times over = EXPOSING THE TRUTH FOR EVERYONE TO SEE! Welcome to the missing data.

It was true then - it is true now. $cientology is a criminal con organization exploiting human vulnerabilities and capitalizing on their flaws.
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
One of the comments in response to this post on Tony's blog today was from Aharon Friedman, and there are some incredible things within it!

I'm posting it in full here:
http://tonyortega.org/2017/01/01/fi...david-miscavige-annotated/#comment-3077774725

Aharon Friedman9 hours ago

For me, Debbie's letter was the last straw in a process that started years before.

When Miscavige started the ideal orgs program, the doubts that I had already before due to the fascistic behavior of Scientology started to amplify. How come, all of the sudden, Scientology became the matter of fancy building? How come the orgs were empty? How come all the stuff they brag about in events never shows up in real life?

This came after years were Scientology was trying to penetrate my company (at the time the sixth largest in Tampa Bay Area). This was after countless harassment by Ethics Officers from Flag and Tampa. It was after many intensives of Security Checks and False Purpose Run Down. At one point I started having hallucinations, and decided to stop getting auditing. The hallucinations disappeared.

I could write a whole book about what Scientology did to me. I could tell you how WISE (unknown to me) advised Scientologists not to do business with me. I could tell you how they revealed information from my folders to potential business partners, and this is while I was in "good standing", and giving them money.

I am not a stupid person. In fact' only one person in 70 millions has my IQ level. Yet, I believed that Hubbard had somehow found a way to spiritual fulfillment. Thus, I was willing to overlook the obvious contradictions. I am a good judge of character. Therefore, in the few time I met Miscavige, it became clear to me that he is a bully. Yet, perhaps this was what was needed to forward Scientology.

December 31, 2011 found me in a state where I knew that I will never achieve the OT levels (I did not know at the time the madness of them). My wife and I went to the New Years Event. We both came back depressed from the amount of BS that was poured on us. We were both very skeptical about the future of Scientology.

Then I opened my email and saw Debbie's post. I knew Debbie and her husband Wayne, and considered them friends. The letter put into words what I was thinking, and I agreed with it completely. Debbie was a Facebook friend, and all of the sudden, her Facebook page was full of hate comments. I urged her to purge these comments, and she did. I praised her for doing so.

Two days later, My wife and I were called to a meeting with Kathy True of OSA. Kathy was wandering about why I praised Debbie, and I told her that if she knew anything about PR she would not have asked. Then she did something surprising; she showed me an email that she received from Wayne (Debbie's husband). In this mail he detailed out what was going on in The Hole, and what Debbie endured. This was atypical, as OSA never shows this material to public or staff. I looked her in the eyes and asked:
"Why are you showing me this?"
She answered that she was seeking my advice. My advice to her was to never get Debbie in court. I told her that suing Debbie would force her to reveal this information under oath.

Two days later Scientology sued Debbie Cook. You all know the outcome. I want to add that when Debbie was negotiating a settlement, she informed me about it. She felt guilty for abandoning her supporters. I encouraged her to pursue the settlement. She has suffered a lot and sacrificed a lot. Now it was time for her to care for her own house and let somebody else complete the work.

I was well into the process of learning what Scientology really is, and who Hubbard really was. A process that landed me with the honorable title of SP. A title both I and my wife carry with pride. Our children, alas, are disconnected from us. We believe this will change shortly.

Today, I am working very hard against Scientology, and other such harmful cults. Our work is carried out both in the public arena and behind the scenes. I do believe that our work will eventually, result in their eradication.
 

Jump

Operating teatime
Welcome Lurkers. From what we are hearing - you are here lurking trying to get out of DOUBT.

Well - read Debbie Cook's Email, watch her video deposition on You Tube, watch the Church of Scientology's video of her being forced to sign a GAG ORDER in exchange for Blood Money.


# of times over = EXPOSING THE TRUTH FOR EVERYONE TO SEE! Welcome to the missing data.

It was true then - it is true now. $cientology is a criminal con organization exploiting human vulnerabilities and capitalizing on their flaws.


That's great advice Knows.

Debbie Cook's deposition was given in court. Think about it... she was not countersued, David Miscavige paid her to stop telling the truth and shut up.

This deposition is totally true:

[video=youtube;Htn1PauZUYs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Htn1PauZUYs[/video]
 

Type4_PTS

Diamond Invictus SP
That's great advice Knows.

Debbie Cook's deposition was given in court. Think about it... she was not countersued, David Miscavige paid her to stop telling the truth and shut up.

This deposition is totally true:

[video=youtube;Htn1PauZUYs]https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Htn1PauZUYs[/video]

Actually, Debbie didn't sue the Co$. They sued HER because of the email she wrote and sent, then they paid her to make their own case against her go away. That's got to be pretty unusual and I wish the media picked up that aspect and reported on it more.

Typically, if someone is suing you and the result of the suit was the judge/jury wasn't convinced and refused to award any damages to the plaintiff than that is a win. In some cases the plaintiff is required to pay your attorney fees as well which would be even better.

But in this case, the co$ paid Debbie well (probably millions) to make their own case against her go away. It was a devastating loss for the "church" because Debbie's video testimony was all over the internet.

As Tony O wrote this morning:

Debbie was sued by the church for writing it, based on draconian agreements she had signed when she left her position in the Sea Org. Debbie was living in the San Antonio area at the time, and she hired a local attorney name Ray Jeffrey to represent her. We were in the courtroom that February day for a preliminary hearing, and we can tell you it was a nervous moment. According to a strict reading of the contracts Debbie had signed, Scientology could potentially convince a judge that she owed them millions of dollars for criticizing Miscavige. On Debbie’s side, Jeffrey argued that she had signed those contracts under duress after being abused in the Sea Org. And in order to prove that, he wanted to put Debbie on the witness stand. Scientology’s attorneys were against it, but Judge Martha Tanner said she wanted to hear Debbie’s testimony.

What Debbie said in the witness box was devastating. She talked about leaving her FSO post and being sent to California, where she was tasked with overseeing the imprisonment of executives in “The Hole,” Miscavige’s bizarre jail for underlings he suspected of sabotage. Before long, Debbie was thrown into The Hole as a prisoner herself, and was subjected to disturbing abuse, such as being stood up in a trash can with water poured over her while the other inmates chanted insults at her and called her a “lesbian.” After seven weeks, Debbie managed to get away from the Hole, and she was happy to sign anything to get away from the Sea Org altogether. At that point, she said on the witness stand, she would have signed a confession to killing babies if it meant getting away from that sick organization.

The press coverage of that day of testimony went national, and it was brutal. And that’s why the Church of Scientology waived the rest of the hearing and then eventually settled with Debbie for an undisclosed amount — but we’re pretty sure it was in the millions. Millions of dollars, that is, paid by Scientology in order to end the lawsuit that it had filed. We always have to remind people of that who criticize Debbie for accepting the settlement and not somehow pushing on with a lawsuit which she had not filed and which potentially had liabilities in the millions of dollars against her.

Read Full Post: http://tonyortega.org/2017/01/01/fi...y-under-david-miscavige-annotated/#more-36644
 

Operating DB

Truman Show Dropout
I'm reading Ortega's thing posted January 1, 2017 about the 2012 Debbie Cook email. So far I have two questions. She wrote "I have seen some of the most stunning and miraculous results in the application of LRH technology". For real? Or this just more delusion and hype. I don't know of anyone who had been in the cult that honestly experienced the most stunning and miraculous results.

The other thought I had was it's five years later and does Debbie Cook still think that hubbard's words and tekh are all that and a bag of chips? Or has she peeled away more of the onion and realized that hubbard wasn't all he claimed he was cracked up to be and is a criminal con man.
 

Jump

Operating teatime
I'm reading Ortega's thing posted January 1, 2017 about the 2012 Debbie Cook email. So far I have two questions. She wrote "I have seen some of the most stunning and miraculous results in the application of LRH technology". For real? Or this just more delusion and hype. I don't know of anyone who had been in the cult that honestly experienced the most stunning and miraculous results.

The other thought I had was it's five years later and does Debbie Cook still think that hubbard's words and tekh are all that and a bag of chips? Or has she peeled away more of the onion and realized that hubbard wasn't all he claimed he was cracked up to be and is a criminal con man.


I'm sure there were many stunning and miraculous SHORT-TERM (delusional) results that led to the person being further scammed, manipulated and abused.
 

CommunicatorIC

@IndieScieNews on Twitter
I'm reading Ortega's thing posted January 1, 2017 about the 2012 Debbie Cook email. So far I have two questions. She wrote "I have seen some of the most stunning and miraculous results in the application of LRH technology". For real? Or this just more delusion and hype. I don't know of anyone who had been in the cult that honestly experienced the most stunning and miraculous results.
I don't know. But I would like to speculate what might have happened.

One of the fundamental rules of statistics is that correlation doesn't imply causation. In my experience, Scientologists have absolutely no clue about this rule.

So what happens is that a PC gets auditing, and then their cancer goes into remission. Everyone in Scientology hails this "most stunning and miraculous result." Nobody in Scientology considers the possibility that the cancer would have gone into remission even if the PC had received no auditing. Nobody in Scientology considers the fact that the other 999 cancer patients who received auditing didn't go into remission and died horrible, painful, deaths.

As for correlation not implying causation, I enjoy these graphs from: https://www.fastcodesign.com/303052...-graphs-prove-that-correlation-isnt-causation

3030529-slide-wufrozj.png



3030529-slide-q54so25.png



3030529-slide-xqot9mp.png


3030529-slide-prjk5ql.png


3030529-slide-rnhex7v.png


3030529-slide-vskqqzc.png
 

Jump

Operating teatime
Actually, Debbie didn't sue the Co$. They sued HER because of the email she wrote and sent, then they paid her to make their own case against her go away. That's got to be pretty unusual and I wish the media picked up that aspect and reported on it more.

Typically, if someone is suing you and the result of the suit was the judge/jury wasn't convinced and refused to award any damages to the plaintiff than that is a win. In some cases the plaintiff is required to pay your attorney fees as well which would be even better.

But in this case, the co$ paid Debbie well (probably millions) to make their own case against her go away. It was a devastating loss for the "church" because Debbie's video testimony was all over the internet.

As Tony O wrote this morning:


Oh, right. The court hearing was Debbie being sued BY the cos.

Further underlining the fact that however you slice, dice or cover in special briefings, her testimonial is totally true. The cos is malicious and destructive to its own members.
 

freethinker

Sponsor
I have to say that I question the following part of Mr. Fiedman's post.

He praises Debbie for her posting the email, OSA finds out and calls him in for a chat, asks him why he praised, he gives a flip answer, OSA shows him an email of what happens in the "Hole", he asks why they show him and they say they want his advice, he says don't sue because she will testify, they let him go and sue against is advice and then says we all know the result.

Then he states he's beginning to learn what Scientology really is when... he was called into OSA, shown data about the "Hole" and then gave his advice that was rejected but he received no warning himself.

OSA doesn't operate that way, they don't ask advice and you don't begin to learn about Scientology when you have been privy to an email that shows abuse to the extent that you advise against suing because it will become public record which means you weren't just learning about Scientology, you knew what was in the email was true.

How did Mr. Friedman know Debbie would be put under oath when no one knew that would happen?

In addition, Mr. Friedman had communication with Debbie about a settlement that no one else had details or knowledge of and OSA apparently didn't seem to mind that.

I don't buy this story.

One of the comments in response to this post on Tony's blog today was from Aharon Friedman, and there are some incredible things within it!

Two days later, My wife and I were called to a meeting with Kathy True of OSA. Kathy was wandering about why I praised Debbie, and I told her that if she knew anything about PR she would not have asked. Then she did something surprising; she showed me an email that she received from Wayne (Debbie's husband). In this mail he detailed out what was going on in The Hole, and what Debbie endured. This was atypical, as OSA never shows this material to public or staff. I looked her in the eyes and asked:
"Why are you showing me this?"
She answered that she was seeking my advice. My advice to her was to never get Debbie in court. I told her that suing Debbie would force her to reveal this information under oath.

Two days later Scientology sued Debbie Cook. You all know the outcome. I want to add that when Debbie was negotiating a settlement, she informed me about it. She felt guilty for abandoning her supporters. I encouraged her to pursue the settlement. She has suffered a lot and sacrificed a lot. Now it was time for her to care for her own house and let somebody else complete the work.

I was well into the process of learning what Scientology really is, and who Hubbard really was. A process that landed me with the honorable title of SP. A title both I and my wife carry with pride. Our children, alas, are disconnected from us. We believe this will change shortly.

I'm posting it in full here:
http://tonyortega.org/2017/01/01/fi...david-miscavige-annotated/#comment-3077774725
 

Gib

Crusader
Actually, Debbie didn't sue the Co$. They sued HER because of the email she wrote and sent, then they paid her to make their own case against her go away. That's got to be pretty unusual and I wish the media picked up that aspect and reported on it more.

Typically, if someone is suing you and the result of the suit was the judge/jury wasn't convinced and refused to award any damages to the plaintiff than that is a win. In some cases the plaintiff is required to pay your attorney fees as well which would be even better.

But in this case, the co$ paid Debbie well (probably millions) to make their own case against her go away. It was a devastating loss for the "church" because Debbie's video testimony was all over the internet.

As Tony O wrote this morning:

What I remember reading the sequence of events went like this:

1. COS sues Debbie Cook

2. She gives testimony

3. Cook/Sugar Ray team countersue

4. Case is ended.

5. Any settlement is speculation.

6. Cook leaves the Country and sends pictures living in paradise via social media.
 

scooter

Gold Meritorious Patron
What I remember reading the sequence of events went like this:

1. COS sues Debbie Cook

2. She gives testimony

3. Cook/Sugar Ray team countersue

4. Case is ended.

5. Any settlement is speculation.

6. Cook leaves the Country and sends pictures living in paradise via social media.

^^^This^^^ is what has publicly been noted and there's been a lot of speculation fuelled by rumours as to what went on to fill in the gaps.:yes:

Regardless of what Debbie did to various peeps in her time as CO FSO, I personally think that she struck a pretty effective blow to the toxic cult in sending out her email that nailed the asthmatic gnome to the wall with Hubbardian logic and quotes. I don't see that she could be expected to do more than she did, given the amount of damage that Duke Miniscule suffered from the email and then Debbie's media appearances and testimony.:happydance:

And the ultimate insult in signing a gag order and then posting pictures of the good life on social media for all fence-sitters to see.:roflmao:

The last act alone must've sent the Drunken Maggot into paroxysms of pain and petulance.:woohoo:

And I think what a lot of folk overlooked at the time was how much stress the cult had her and Wayne under in those days - they were facing pretty much everything the Dwarf Malignant could possibly throw at them in the way of Fair Game.:omg:

And, regardless of what any of us now think of "The Tehc", there's no way your average cultie would even contemplate a criticism of Hubbard's words as the first step out of the Bubble. The way that message was worded was pure gold, and it had an enormous effect of the average sciloon who received it.:thumbsup:

There's more to this story than the bare bones listed above, and I reckon some day it will emerge. But in the meantime I'll just say that IMO Debbie is one of the bravest people ever to take on the cult in the way she did.:clap::clap::clap:
 

CommunicatorIC

@IndieScieNews on Twitter
How did Mr. Friedman know Debbie would be put under oath when no one knew that would happen?
I'm not contesting or invalidating your concerns generally about Friedman's story. Much of what you wrote stuck me also. I'm writing this only to note that I think a lot of people thought it highly likely Debbie would be sued for breach of a confidentiality agreement and thus wind up under oath. I did.
 

Churchill

Gold Meritorious Patron
Actually, Debbie didn't sue the Co$. They sued HER because of the email she wrote and sent, then they paid her to make their own case against her go away. That's got to be pretty unusual and I wish the media picked up that aspect and reported on it more.

Typically, if someone is suing you and the result of the suit was the judge/jury wasn't convinced and refused to award any damages to the plaintiff than that is a win. In some cases the plaintiff is required to pay your attorney fees as well which would be even better.

But in this case, the co$ paid Debbie well (probably millions) to make their own case against her go away. It was a devastating loss for the "church" because Debbie's video testimony was all over the internet.

As Tony O wrote this morning:

It was Judge Martha Tanner's ruling, over Scientology's strenuous objections, that put Debbie Cook on the witness stand. Game, set, and match!

We've also seen too many inexplicably stupid rulings in cases involving the Garcia's, Ken Dandar, the Headley's and others from too many clueless and lazy judges.

Right now, there are over 100 Federal judicial vacancies. I hope and fervently believe that the incoming Trump administration will appoint Judges who will hold Scientology responsible when they find that the facts establish that the civil and human rights of former members have been violated.

The bedrock principle is that no one, not even a billion dollar (ersatz) religion is above the law. Neither Scientology's abusive thugs nor any of their violence-prone Nation of Islam affiliates should ever be allowed to circumvent this idea of equality and justice before the law.
 
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