Scientology's 'Volunteer Minister' scams Target Victims

Thomas J Best talks about Scientology's 'Volunteer Minister' scams

Over on another thread, Claire's been fluffing over the attempted scam exploiting the September 11 anniversary. Totally blind to the deceipt and immorality involved. Maybe that's because the whole "touch assist" and "minister" frauds are pure Hubbard, and fit into the "99% good" that is the "tech". Well, here's the original "tech" for the "Vulture Minister" scam. What do you think? Is this "99% good"?

This is from Chapter 15 of the Anderson Report:

"In the middle 1950s Hubbard had already developed means whereby unsuspecting and unfortunate people were being exploited by deceitful practices. In PAB 73, what Hubbard calls three plans or methods of dissemination are set out and of them he writes:

"Out of these three plans can come large and vital practices".

These three methods are:

1. I will talk to anyone.
2. Illness researches.
3. Casualty contact.

It was said in evidence that the third method was not tried in Victoria, but that the first two were tried with varying success. The significance of these instructions is not the degree of success which attended their use or the extent to which they were used but the fact that they were methods promulgated by Hubbard and were designed to deceive and ensnare; and they serve as illustrations of Hubard's remarkable propensity for calculated deception.

The second method, "Illness Researches", was of the most callous kind. This method involved the insertion in the press of an advertisement to the following effect:

"Polio Victims. A research foundation, investigating polio, desires volunteers suffering from the after effects of that illness to call for examination at [Scientology.] " When people arrived they were immediately given about three hours processing. This type of conduct Hubbard seeks to justify by writing:

"It was given under the guise of investigation and was in actuality a research project." He gave instructions in these terms:

"Any auditor can constitute himself as a minister or an auditor, a research worker in the field of any illness. In that he is not offering to treat or cure the illness but is strictly investigating it, the laws concerning medicine do not obtain to him. Anybody, even a ditch-digger, can look over polio or arthritis or asthma or anything else. It is best that a minister representing himself as a "charitable organisation" which is what he is, do the research so that the ad would then read:

"Polio Victims - a charitable organisation investigating polio desires to examine several victims of the after effects of this illness. Phone so and so."

One of the side plans of this method, writes Hubbard,

" -- was to have another person good at finance go around to all those who had been helped by the investigation and tell them that their investigation was paid for by another person, and ask the present person whether or not he wouldn't like to pay for somebody else's recovery, but this was never put into effect, although it may be workable."

The third method is the inspiration of a ghoul, and is based on exploiting grief. Of this technique Hubbard writes:

"One takes every daily paper he can get his hands on and cuts from it every story whereby he might have a preclear. He either has the address in the story or he gets the address as a minister from the newspaper. As speedily as possible he makes a call on the bereaved or injured person.

"He should represent himself to the person or the person's family as a minister whose compassion was compelled by the newspaper story

"He should then enter the presence of the person and give a nominal assist, leave his card which states exactly where church services are held every Sunday and with the statement that a much fuller recovery is possible by coming to these free services. A great many miracles will follow in his wake and he is to become the subject of the press himself. However, in handling the press we should simply say that it is a mission of the church to assist those who are in need of assistance.'"

So, Claire, would you like me to explicate just how morally repugnant these instructions by the Great Dead Tub O'Lard are? Are you capable of doing that yourself, or are you going to claim that they fall within your magic 1%?

tam