I have been receiving a few emails about MR and MR anonymously, but most of them seem to be CofS trolling. This one isn't obviously so, and it was requested that I post this. So here it is. I don't agree with the perspective, but the writer could be correct. The part about the long downtrend in the CofS is obvious, though.
Message follows:
I've taken all I can take, and I can't take no more. I'm not going to tell you who I am, where I am or what I do, but I'm sitting in a position to see the big picture by connecting together the data passing through. Shit, I am surprised; I haven't seen anyone out there among you, put this together yourselves, so it I'm crossing the River Styx.
The cartel that is in control of the CofS, regardless of all the lying boasts of growth, has long been aware of its downtrending membership and income. The same public can only be squeezed for finances so much and for so long. The need to keep up the appearance of being true to a "source" that expired in 1986 does place limitations on how many times "new and improved" products and services can be successfully marketed - especially given the dwindling market. Those, who have an accustomed level of cash flow, remain bent on maintaining that level, and will consider and apply any method(s).
Bear in mind that often, with an organization that controls and takes in enormous amounts of money in ways that, if known, would endanger its continuing, the real power(s) often hide behind a figurehead who enjoys the attention while in reality acting as a lightning rod for their masters, who find it convenient for that figurehead to believe he is powerful and important. These powers can have little or no concern for how employees are treated or compensated by that figurehead, as it is no liability to them as long as the cash flow is maintained.
Powers so motivated, observing a down trending income, find this unacceptable, and are now amenable to finding or accepting a new manager / lightning rod who they believe will provide the best bang for their buck. They may encourage competition between potential candidates and the incumbent, as they can only benefit from this. The rewards of compensation of money and power make it a highly pressured competition, not unlike politics.
This downtrend would not be so steep if there was a sufficient stream of new customers, but with the negative word of mouth coming from all of those riding the exodus out of the organization, Scientology has become a very tough sell. This leaves as the greatest potential untapped market former adherents of the CofS who remain believers in the doctrine, but do not trust the current management.
The ideal choice at this time becomes a figure that former adherents could trust and rally around. Enter Mark ("Marty") Rathbun. If he could garner widespread support among the disaffected, and deliver back to CoS substantial numbers of pre-indoctrinated public, he could ride this wave to the top management position. In a blaze of celebratory promotion, and in the terms CoS members are accustomed to, it is broadly announced that "The suppressive squirrel who has been working all this time to destroy Scientology has at long last been rooted out", a "Suppressive Person Declaration" with particulars several pages long is issued, "Basic Scientology is now being restored across the planet under the caring direction of the new Executive Director International", and "A full amnesty" is declared for all those "good Scientologists driven out by out-tech and injustice".
All this, of course, hinges on Rathbun's success in garnering observable widespread support among the disaffected. To that end, Mr. Rathbun has assembled an advance team. His people apply Scientology principles to ingratiate themselves to disaffected Scientologists and then, having gained acceptability, use whatever credibility gained to promote acceptance of himself well enough that he can then step into the scene without risking negative public reaction and win people over.
It appears that he's had some success, mainly with former Sea Org members who served in his era and during their tenure had become accustomed to holding him in high esteem, but that hasn't accumulated anywhere near the substantial numbers needed to triumph over the incumbent "COB", The telling blow would be to win over the popular active "free zone" auditors, which would ultimately entail bringing them "back into the fold" so that they would turn in PC folders to CoS, and/or sign Sea Org contracts themselves, resulting in a significant flow of both paying public and staff, and giving an appearance that "all is now right" in the CoS, with a resultant marked improvement in marketability to potential fresh customers.
Rathbun has not had notable success in this effort, almost universally being rebuffed in his attempts to make inroads directly with operating "free zone" opinion leaders. It appears that for the most part, they have experience of conflicts with the CoS in which Rathbun was an aggressor toward them, and they are unimpressed with what some regard as Rathbun's "charisma". The result is that he must try to find and win over some other substantive "public", out of desperation, or else fail in his bid to out-maneuver the incumbent "COB". It isn't enough to wage campaigns to discredit and weaken David Miscavige. He, MR, must demonstrate that he brings more income stream to the table.
The remaining avenues are (a) starting his own service facility and attracting a large volume of new public, and/or (b) recovering the numbers of disaffected former customers accumulated and accessible through the Freezone lists, XSO, Ex-Scientologist Message Board and other internet opinion machines. The latter, unlikely as it is, is less formidable than the former. It is less work, less demanding, and far less time consuming to change opinions here with clever and well placed PR activities, as challenging as that is, than it is to build up a following among those uninitiated to Scientology.
This has been the focus of MR's recent activities. Working from the playbook he learned so well as a high CoS official, Rathbun evades engagement with unsupportive elements, so as to avoid unflattering, detrimental exposure. His PR training taught him to employ others, i.e., an "advance team", to "handle" opinion leaders to create a more favorable predisposition ahead of his personal appearance in an area. This is the mission assigned to Karen De La Carriere, Mike Laws (surprisingly*) and perhaps others not openly known to be agents or associates of Rathbun.
*("Surprisingly", because Laws operates with support from the highest levels behind the CoS, has operated with impunity within the CoS and maintained his connections with CoS execs and public even as he quietly backed and provided for Rathbun's "landing out of the CoS" in Texas from the very beginning, and had always lurked quietly in the background of Rathbun's self-promotional activities from the very beginning. So much for his "Marty befriended me when my dog died" shore story).
I have put myself as far out on a limb as I feel is warranted here, and I will not apologize for presenting no additional proof, names, evidence or documents. This report has been done, at my risk, as a courtesy to you all. Understand this: whether you support and/or contribute to David Miscavige's Church of Scientology, or to Mark Rathbun and his efforts, in the end you are supporting the same machine, with or without superficial cosmetic change. Those of you who have left behind the oppression of the CoS would be well advised to consider "Fool me once shame on you, fool me twice shame on me".
