Miami Chiropractor Forced Employees To Convert To Scientology, Feds Allege
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| photo by PictoralEvidence via Wikimedia Commons |
But if federal investigators are to be believed, those sales folks were also forced to spend half of each day toiling over L. Ron Hubbard's books and were coerced into screaming at ashtrays, staring down strangers in malls, and undergoing "cleansing" rituals in a sauna. If they didn't commit themselves to Scientology, the Equal Employment Opportunity Commission says in a federal complaint, they were fired.
The company says the charges aren't true. "Dynamic Medical Services prides itself on the diversity of its staff and denies that it engaged in any improper or unlawful actions with regards to its employees," according to a statement sent to Riptide.
The firm, which has locations in Hialeah and Coral Gables, is owned by Dr. Dennis Nobbe. According to his personal website, Scientology is a major influence in his life. "We apply Scientology principles in our work, our family life, all aspects of our life," he writes of himself and his wife. "I have applied L. Ron Hubbard's business technology to my practice and immediately tripled my income."
But the feds say that application went too far. The EEOC complaint, filed on behalf of four former employees, says Nobbe regularly pressured employees to join his faith.
Norma Rodriguez, for instance, joined the company in 2008. She was ordered to spend every morning in a "course room" Nobbe had built full of Hubbard's writings, and then do sales in the afternoon, the feds say. Her supervisors forced her to do Scientology exercises such as "walk[ing] out to someone in the mall, stop[ping] them, and star[ing] at them without talking to them."
When Rodriguez finally complained, saying she was a Jehovah's Witness and didn't agree with the faith, she was fired, the feds say.
The other employees cited by the EEOC mention similar problems, such as Dynamic's managers telling them when they complained about coursework or Scientology exercises that "you have to because Nobbe requires it."'
Nobbe didn't respond to a message from Riptide, but the statement sent by his firm promises to fight the federal case. "Dynamic Medical Services intends to vigorously defend against these baseless allegations and believes that it will be vindicated."
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Scientology in the Bay Area — Boom or Bust?
MAY 20, 2013 BY 14 COMMENTS
Last week we showed you the “test center” for Mountain View Org with a “For Lease” sign on it and reported about the two vacant building in an industrial park that have sat idle for 5 years now.
A few miles up the 101 is another “Ideal Org”, San Francisco. It is one of the original 5 orgs that launched Miscavige’s program a DECADE AGO (Tampa, Buffalo, Joburg, NY and SFO).
But even before the Ideal Org hype came the Ideal Mission hype for the “celebrity” Mission of SOMA (“South of Market”) — more on the other “celebrity” missions in Wichita, Memphis and Santa Monica in another post. Izhar Perlman reported on SOMA at his excellent blog a year ago.
Launched with enormous fanfare — it was “Jenna Elfman’s Mission” and Miscavige flew in to conduct the Grand Opening along with a “Who’s Who” of Scientology according to Celebrity magazine: “In the front row were some of Jenna’s closest Scientologist friends, including John Travolta, Kelly Preston, Tom Cruise, Kirstie Alley, Catherine Bell, Juliette Lewis, Jennifer Aspen, Lynsey Bartilson, Denice Duff, Michelle Stafford, Eduardo Palomo, Danny Masterson and Christopher Masterson.”
You may recall the hype….
The Bay area is the largest concentration of “Ideal Orgs” on earth — not only SFO Day and Fdn and Mountain View, but also Los Gatos and Steven’s Creek (now called San Jose) and Sacramento isn’t far away. If there is anywhere on earth that the RESULT of the Ideal Orgs strategy should be visible, it is the Bay Area. Miscavige’s infamous arrows shooting out like flame throwers from his CGI Ideal Orgs in his PR video should have created a multitude of groups that turned into missions and missions that turned into orgs by now. If 10 years isnt enough time to accomplish ANY progress on this, then there is something not too workable about his strategy.
The Bay Area, and particularly San Francisco itself should be leading the way in the massive, straight up and vertical international expansion that is promoted at every international event. In fact, it is going BACKWARDS.
Here is the SOMA building that Miscavige cut the ribbon on, photographed by Paul J Salerno last weekend:
The Mission is now located, according to the Scientology.org website at 604 Mission St, Suite 600. No sign, nothing visible at all except the prospect of climbing 6 flights of stairs.
Meantime, the other Mission in SFO, the “San Francisco Mission” (once had in excess of 100 staff) is here:
These are the only two Missions in San Francisco, though to be fair, the “Mission of Marin” should probably be considered part of the “SFO Org Msns” — no report on this place, but if you look at it onGoogle maps, it is pretty fair to assume it is not flourishing and prospering on the second floor of a building in an industrial parking lot at the end of a dead end street….
Just for entertainment, I checked out the Missions around Tampa and Buffalo too — the two “original” Ideal Orgs.
Tampa has ONE Mission — Ocala — but that is another “celebrity mission” created by John Travolta in his hometown (probably some sort of “amends” handling to create a “model mission”). When I last visited it a year ago one Saturday afternoon there was ONE public in the Purif area breastfeeding her child (not on service) and a receptionist who had been brought in from Eastern Europe with the promise of a job who told us to come back on Tuesday when someone would be there to give us an introduction to Dianetics. The Mission of “Old Tampa Bay” closed it doors a few years ago. (Belleaire and Clearwater Msns were set up by Flag and primarily handle Flag rejects).
Buffalo has ONE Mission — in Rochester. You can see it here — the location is primarily the “SUCCESS SCHOOL OF DRIVING.” No indication that this has anything to do with Dianetics and Scientology, though it is the address on the official Scientology website and shows up as “Church of Scientology” on Google maps.
I guess Miscavige’s CGI arrows are meant to represent actual flame throwers…
These Ideal Orgs are torching everything around them. Groups, Missions, goodwill, PR and their public.
The CAPTION THIS Contest WINNER For May 17th!
OK Goopy we get it. Your backyard cookout is way, way better and more sophisticated than ours. - citizenstrange
Runners-up:
Chelsea Lately overdoes her sunbathing again and has to be scraped up by her assistants, who never let a good opportunity go to waste. - LaChaylo
Chelsea Lately overdoes her sunbathing again and has to be scraped up by her assistants, who never let a good opportunity go to waste. - LaChaylo
Kirstie Alley goes to Hell. - cs182
When John Travolta heard about a piping-hot hole surrounded by wieners, he came running--but left disappointed. - FluffKitteh
In Case You Need More Proof That Taylor Swift Hates Justin Bieber
Taylor Swift displayed her hate for all things Justin Bieber when she did the international sign for "EWWW! Bieber cooties!" by sticking her tongue out while watching him kiss on Selena Gomez. Then later on while talking to the press, Taylor continued to display her hate for all things Justin Bieber when she shooed away a question about him. A reporter asked Taylor (at the 0:50 mark) what she thinks about Justin Bieber winning the Milestone Award at such a young age. Taylor kept herself from dry heaving and then asked for another question.
I didn't think I liked any side of Taylor Swift, but I do like this anti-Bieber side of her. Yes, the crazed Beliebers will soon break out of their playpens at the mental ward and tear Taylor's scarecrow body apart, but I hope she spits out a whole lot of Beiber hate before that happens.
You know, one of my friends (correction: one my EX-friends) said on IM today that it's obvious that Taylor is being mean to Justin, because she really wants to scissor with him on her pirate canopy bed. That makes sense since Taylor is forever an 8th grader on the inside and she's a big meanie to boys she likes. Then this same friend when way too far when he said that if Nick Jr. was ever going to remake Beverly Hills, 90210, Justin should play Dylan, Taylor should play Kelly Taylor and Selena should play Brenda Walsh. I have never blocked a bitch on IM so fast in my life. It's all fun and games until you compare Selena Gomez to Brenda Walsh. Besides, Justin's way more of an Emily Valentine than a Dylan McKay.
And somewhere in a music studio right now, Tom Cruise is working on an album of songs in hopes that he wins a Billboard Music Award next year, because those trophies look like alien dicks.
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