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Hi! (they phone me, I join here)

Xclam

Patron
Hi everyone -
it seems that the dear "church" has a phone campaign going - they are calling me from the US (to Sweden!), on every phone number I'm registered to, from different numbers, all the time. They just won't stop. And I haven't had any contact with them for 20 years! I was a member in 87-88 in Australia.

Anyway, one consequence of this is me joining here. I hope to catch up on the latest news about Scn (a success story as always, or?), and maybe to even meet up with some old friends from the Adelaide org. Anyway, glad to have found this place!
 

Wisened One

Crusader
:welcome: Another Aussie staff here! :)

Yeah, they're callin' many of us exes (also that haven't had any contact with scn in over 20 yrs) It's nuts, huh? :eyeroll: Tryin' to sell the repackaged 'Basics' books squirreled by Misavige, himself, I'm sure!

Anyways, you'll be in company here, as there are lots of Aussies here! :thumbsup: (I'm not, tho, call me a yank, I 'spect). :coolwink:

Michelle
 

Xclam

Patron
Hey - actually, I'm not an aussie either, I'm Swedish. Well, the good thing is that they must really be desperate considering the energy they spend on trying to contact me...
 

NeXTep

Patron with Honors
:welcome: aboard. :thumbsup:

I am out for 20 years too, they never called me. :)

Sweden happens to be my last station within Scientology.
 

Operating DB

Truman Show Dropout
They've been hounding me too. John Devries from ASHO calls. The last message he left he wanted to know if they should be sending me mail or not and even stated my full address. I know not to answer based on the caller ID. It's just a ploy to get you to talk to them and try to get you in their dragnet. They've also been contacting other exes in my area that have been out for 20+ years. The scios must be DESPERATE!
 
Howdy Clammmie!

Hi, Welcome XClam! I think you'll enjoy yourself here.

Yes, there is a big push on at present to get everyone offlines back on, and to sell the new basics. Don't worry about it, it's not personal.

Glad you joined us! :happydance:
 

Xclam

Patron
Thank you all :) Seems like a very active board this. A few years ago I posted on Operation Clambake, but that site doesn't seem very active any more.

What bugs me about the phone calls is that they also call my wife and kids - since their phones are also registered in my name. Often there is noone there when we answer, but once I talked to a woman from Clearwater, and told her (not very politely I'm afraid) that I didn't want anything to do with them. Well it didn't help... Hopefully it won't go on forever. What's the best policy, just not answer? Try to convince them to delete me from their lists? Be abusive and hope they'll get the message that way?

And again, glad to be here :happydance:
 

Megalomaniac

Silver Meritorious Patron
What's the best policy, just not answer? Try to convince them to delete me from their lists? Be abusive and hope they'll get the message that way?

Since you asked. I recommend the following:

- Treat the caller like a real person. Don't think of him as some cult wacko. Be polite. Be honest and straightforward.
- Be ready with a summary of what you want to say. What *I* want to say is:
--- I had some great experiences with Scientology.
--- I also had my own communication crushed by LRH policies.
--- I am outraged by the abuses I've learned of: coerced abortions, in particular. I've gone to great lengths to get the truth on these abuses, and so far, the info I have says they are real.
--- I demand a solution.
- Demand from them, personally, a solution. That specific person calling you needs to explain why they, personally, support an organization that has committed such abuses and have not taken responsibility. Pressure them into taking responsibility.
- Make 'em a deal. Offer to buy a book if they can provide specific credible evidence, say, that refutes Astra Woodcraft's story. Offer to buy a CD if they cancel the Disconnection policy. That would be a fair deal.
- Ask to talk to their senior, since the phone calls aren't stopping. Get the name and phone number of their senior. Follow through and call the senior.

Or just be snarky. Whatever.

:)
mac
 

CherryTree

Patron
Actually the best way to get them off is very simple:
1, don't answer the phone with your name, just Hello or something.
2, When they ask for you just deny it, sorry you called the wrong number.
3, Repeat if needed.

It worked for me! :D They somehow got my cellphone number a few months ago, did just that and never got another call. :happydance:
 

Zinjifar

Silver Meritorious Sponsor
Answer with 'Lord Xenu's Yummy Pastry Barn and PDH Factory' 'Would you like fries with that?'

Zinj
 
I kept seeing "UNAVAILABLE" numbers on my caller ID after they sent me the Basics DVD a few years back, I happen to answer on of the calls one day and it was the cult. The female on the other end was nice enough, but I didn't bother listening to her questions and started asking her the questions, mainly why they waste so much of the church's resources filling my trash can with their junk mail. I think they finally took me off of their mailing lists, I now only receive a few pieces of junk mail from them a year, mainly around the holidays. I have no idea if they are still calling because I rarely answer the phone when I see "UNAVAILABLE" on my caller ID, and they never leave a message.
 

supafreak

Patron Meritorious
:welcome: Glad you joined ESMB!

Would love to hear your story about your time in Adelaide. As far as I know, the Adelaide org is pretty dead these days.
 
Welcome Xclam.:welcome:

I ended up here after they tracked me down and started calling me. I am also out of the church for 20+ years.

Mostly I screened the calls and said that I wasn't there and who's calling. (I have been called by perhaps 5 different orgs or divs). One day my daughter got on the phone and led the caller to believe that it was me. (she never said so, though). Then they started sending literature. Now I send it back marked "Refused, Return to sender"--let them pay for the return postage.
Under General Discussion, there is a link called Scn Staff at my doorstep.(last post June 12) There are a lot of other suggestions on it for handling phone calls.

They don't get hold of me much these days, since I spend the time here reading and some posting and that ties up my line. They were calling me sometimes after midnight!!!!!!

The above-posted ideas are really good. If I do get called again, I may just use another of those ideas. When they started calling, I knew not to engage them in any conversation. I well remember being regged.

Plenty of good reading here especially for catching up on what has really been going on. The C0$ has become really twisted under Miscavage and there are a lot of staff and other horror stories. You'll find out if you have the time to read some.

Hope you can connect with people you know. I doubt any of my old friends are here. I moved out of LA and many were still in scn or on lines with splinter groups so I lost contact with all of them....there was no internet then. It was so transient living in LA. It was easy to lose touch with people even while living there.

Best to you.
 

myrklix

Patron with Honors
Answer with 'Lord Xenu's Yummy Pastry Barn and PDH Factory' 'Would you like fries with that?'

Zinj

As Ronald Reagan said in one of his more lucid moments "There he goes again!"
I will remember this reply as an alternative to Megalomaniac's
 
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myrklix

Patron with Honors
Since you asked. I recommend the following:

- Treat the caller like a real person. Don't think of him as some cult wacko. Be polite. Be honest and straightforward.
- Be ready with a summary of what you want to say. What *I* want to say is:
--- I had some great experiences with Scientology.
--- I also had my own communication crushed by LRH policies.
--- I am outraged by the abuses I've learned of: coerced abortions, in particular. I've gone to great lengths to get the truth on these abuses, and so far, the info I have says they are real.
--- I demand a solution.
- Demand from them, personally, a solution. That specific person calling you needs to explain why they, personally, support an organization that has committed such abuses and have not taken responsibility. Pressure them into taking responsibility.
- Make 'em a deal. Offer to buy a book if they can provide specific credible evidence, say, that refutes Astra Woodcraft's story. Offer to buy a CD if they cancel the Disconnection policy. That would be a fair deal.
- Ask to talk to their senior, since the phone calls aren't stopping. Get the name and phone number of their senior. Follow through and call the senior.

Or just be snarky. Whatever.

:)
mac

Megalomaniac,

Looks like you learned something from your comm course. ;)

Actually, I really like your reply and see potentially really good communication in it. You just never know when some doubt may be instilled in someone doing call-in. I'd love to try it out but I haven't gotten a call in almost a year since allegedly being declared. (Never was told officially & never saw any goldenrod.)
 

Tiger Lily

Gold Meritorious Patron
:welcome: Xclam!

Funny -- it was the phone barrage from the Basics release that precipitated me finding EMSB too!

I just didn't answer -- got the most out of my caller ID, and finally they stopped. But since they called from so many different numbers, cell phones even, I had to screen every call that from a number I didn't recognize.

Glad you are here!
-TL
 
Suggest you talk to them but say: "excuse me, I can talk to you but I can't give you my full attention because I am reading some very interesting articles in our Swedish newspapers right now...":)
 
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