Silver Skater

2007-10-10T09:55:00.000-07:00

Communication

You are alive as you can communicate.

Communication skills are essential in any sphere of human interaction. In fact, when all is said and done, on whatever level, communication is the sole activity all people share. The ability to communicate is vital to the success of any endeavor. And that’s why Communication by L. Ron Hubbard is essential to your greater understanding of this essential facet of life.

Learn what good communication consists of and how to recognize bad communication, what the component parts of communication are and how to utilize them, and why more communication, not less, brings you greater freedom. Included in this booklet are numerous drills which improve communication level and provide great practical application to life. Buy Communication and gain the tools you can use to be alive and improve life.

Communication Testimonials & Results

Growing up as a teenager was very difficult for a young woman from Los Angeles as she was not able to communicate to her parents as she would have liked to. She related:

"I loved my parents, but sometimes my communication would not get across to them. I, of course, blamed them for this. After learning the communication formula, and learning what two-way communication was, I was very surprised to find that it was quite easy to talk to my parents. We can now talk about most anything and there is understanding between us, where there wasn’t before. The love between us has grown and I like it very much. What a difference this has made in my life. Thank you, Mr. Hubbard."

In New York City, a girl who had just learned about L. Ron Hubbard's technology on communication was walking home with her husband one night when they heard sudden screeching brakes and a thump. They swiftly walked over to the scene of the accident—a man had been hit by a car driven by a drunk driver. The wife said that just by knowing and using the communication formula and how to control a situation, she was able to handle a lot of confusion:

"The man was obviously in pain. My husband immediately began using basic Scientology techniques to assist the man and told me to start putting order into the environment. So I got the drunken driver and the other four unruly, intoxicated men out of their car and got them under control. By then a crowd of nearly fifty people had gathered and within ten minutes, using what I had learned about communication, I had them under control too. When the police showed up, there was virtually nothing left for them to do. I told one of them what we had done and then another cop, who hadn't heard our communication cycle, asked me to step behind the rope. The cop I had spoken to told him, 'Not her, she's the one that did our job!' The driver was carted off to jail and the man who was hit was doing much better and on his way to the hospital. We were taken to the police station and filed reports as witnesses and were thanked by the New York Police Department. The sergeant told us that he wished a lot more people could do what we did. This stuff works!"

Communication was a big problem to a woman living on the West Coast. She was painfully shy and life was pretty miserable as a result. Her own description of the situation was:

"Before I learned about the formula of communication, I didn't speak to anyone I didn’t know very well. I used to prop up the wall at parties. I had to ask someone else’s opinion before I made any decision in my life. I had had one boyfriend for four weeks only, and I was twenty-five years old! Now I am a lot more sure of myself: I make my own decisions which are always correct and I feel able to speak freely to anyone I meet. I am a lot closer to my family and last month I got engaged to be married. Knowing and using the communication formula has really changed my life."
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More Scientology Volunteer Ministers Publications

	Assists for Illnesses & Injuries Learn how to administer the same procedures used by the Volunteer Ministers who helped thousands at disaster sites in New York City, Oklahoma, Kosovo, Kobe, Japan and many others. They’re in the booklet, Assists for Illnesses and Injuries by L. Ron Hubbard. But these techniques have a much broader range and use. Because people get hurt and sick in the business of living, the “assists” you’ll learn from this booklet can be applied any time, anywhere and bring spiritual relief to the pain and suffering of people in your family and community. More \| Order Now >>
	The Emotional Tone Scale You can predict other people’s behavior. You are living life and things don’t always go the way you had predicted. You may have a spouse and he is not as you had imagined, so what do you do? You now have no way out. How can you prevent this? You are in business and the deal just fell through. How can you predict what is going to happen in the future? How do you know who to trust? Life and relationships can sometimes be fragile. You can improve your relationships and know who to associate with. More \| Order Now >>
	Answers to Drugs There is an answer to drugs. Effective. Proven. The discoveries in the booklet, Answer to Drugs, by L. Ron Hubbard, has salvaged lives ruined by drug and alcohol abuse. It gets results. Learn the real reason behind substance abuse. Find out the truth about how drugs affect the human spirit and mind. And what you can DO ABOUT IT! It’s practical, easy-to-use and understand. Simple steps to use to help someone kick the drug habit. Order now and start reading. More \| Order Now >>
	Marriage Build and strengthen any marriage or relationship. Here in one booklet is a simple, yet powerful technology for use in building successful and lasting relationships, even when it seems all hope has ended. Something can be done to alleviate the pain and anguish connected to marital difficulties. There are practical tools for restoring any marriage, no matter how badly it’s been torn apart. These solutions come with the best recommendations of all: they WORK. Get the Marriage booklet by L. Ron Hubbard and discover how relationships fall apart in the first place, and learn the practical and effective tools to improve and rebuild them. More \| Order Now >>
	Components of Understanding What constitutes understanding? Know the answer to that and you have the secret to handling life itself. In the booklet, The Components of Understanding, you’ll learn about the magic triangle which makes or breaks life; how to heal a breach in a relationship, and exactly how to prevent that breach; how to avoid conflicts; how to make new friends; how to repair a friendship that seems beyond hope. Read it and know how to understand people and situations. And THAT opens the door to helping people FOR REAL. More \| Order Now >>
	Children Help build your child’s future. Find answers—workable answers—in the revolutionary booklet, Children, by L. Ron Hubbard. Here are simple and effective ways to understand and help your child become a healthy, happy, loving and productive member of society. Discover basic principles about raising children and a wealth of easy-to-apply exercises you can use right now to bring out the best in any child—and the best in you. More \| Order Now >>
	More Publications: Basics Of Organizing Cause Of Suppression, The Communication Dynamics Of Existence, The Ethics And The Conditions Fundamentals Of Public Relations How To Resolve Conflicts Integrity And Honesty Investigations Solutions For A Dangerous Environment Targets and Goals Tools For The Workplace

2007-10-09T11:45:00.000-07:00

Affinity, Reality and Communication

There are three factors in Scientology which are of the utmost importance in handling life. These three factors answer the questions: How should I talk to people? How can I give new ideas to people? How can I find what people are thinking about? How can I handle my work better?

These three factors in Scientology are called the ARC triangle. The abbreviation ARC (pronounced A-R-C rather than arc) is one of the most useful terms yet devised.

The ARC triangle is called a triangle because it has three related points. The first of these points is affinity. The second of these points is reality. The third of these points and the most important is communication.

These three factors are related. By affinity we mean emotional response. We mean the feeling of affection or lack of it, of emotion or misemotion (irrational or inappropriate emotion) connected with life. By reality we mean the solid objects, the real things of life. By communication we mean an interchange of ideas between two terminals (persons who can receive, relay or send a communication). Without affinity there is no reality or communication. Without reality there is no affinity or communication. Without communication there is neither affinity nor reality.

Application of the ARC triangle in the day-to-day circumstances one encounters in life requires an understanding of each of the triangle’s components and their interrelationship.

Affinity
Reality
Communication
The ARC Triangle

2007-10-06T22:35:00.000-07:00

What are you actually accomplishing in life?

How does one get things done? How does one make a dream a reality or carry a plan through to completion? Many of us seem to have unrealized goals or incomplete plans and many of us face tasks that appear overwhelming, even impossible to achieve. This is true not only of individuals, but of companies and even countries. History is filled with failed projects.

Here is the solution.

The Administrative Scale

The achievement of one’s goals, no matter how large or small the endeavor, relies on goals, purposes and activities being aligned and organized.

A goal is not something that one decides upon which then miraculously comes to fruition, just because one decided it would. The attainment of a goal necessitates that certain actions be carried out in the real world which effect some change for the better and a step closer toward its accomplishment.

One can be working toward a goal, but discover that his actions do not yield any forward progress. This occurs not only for an individual in his life, but also for an organization, state or country of any size. This can be a result of the plans, actions and other factors not being aligned to attain the goal.

There are actually a number of subjects that make up an activity. Each of these must operate in a coordinated manner to achieve success in the intended accomplishment of the envisioned goal.

A scale has been developed in Scientology which gives a sequence (and relative seniority) of subjects relating to organization.

Goals
A goal is a known objective toward which actions are directed with the purpose of achieving that end.

Purposes
A purpose is a lesser goal applying to specific activities or subjects. It often expresses future intentions.

Policy
Policy consists of the operational rules or guides for the organization which are not subject to change.

Plans
A plan is a short-range broad intention thought up for the handling of a broad area to remedy it or expand it, or to obstruct or impede an opposition to expansion.

Programs
A program is a series of steps in sequence to carry out a plan.

Projects
A project is a sequence of steps written to carry out one step of a program.

Orders
An order is a verbal or written direction to carry out a program step or apply general policy.

Ideal Scenes
An ideal scene expresses what a scene or area ought to be. If one has not envisioned an ideal scene with which to compare the existing scene, he will not be able to recognize departures from it.

Statistics
A statistic is a number or amount compared to an earlier number or amount of the same thing. Statistics refer to the quantity of work done or the value of it.

Valuable Final Products
A valuable final product is a product that can be exchanged for the services or goods of the society.

This scale is worked up and worked down UNTIL IT IS (EACH ITEM) IN FULL AGREEMENT WITH THE REMAINING ITEMS.

In short, for success, all these items in the scale must agree with all other items in the scale on the same subject.

Let us take “golf balls” as a subject for the scale. Then all these scale items must be in agreement with one another on the subject of golf balls. It is an interesting exercise.

The scale also applies in a destructive subject. Like “cockroaches.”

When an item in the scale is not aligned with the other items, the project will be hindered, if not fail.

The skill with which all these items in any activity are aligned and gotten into action is called MANAGEMENT.

Group members only become upset when one or more of these points are not aligned to the rest and at least some group agreement.

Groups appear slow, inefficient, unhappy, inactive or quarrelsome only when these items are not aligned, made known and coordinated.

Any activity can be improved by debugging or aligning this scale in relation to the group activity.

As lack of agreement breeds lessened communication and lessened affinity, it follows that unreal items on the scale (not aligned) produce upsets and disaffection.

It then follows that when these scale items are well aligned with each other and the group, there will be high agreement, high communication and high affinity in the group.

Group mores aligned so and followed by the group gives one an ethical group and also establishes what will then be considered as harmful, contrasurvival acts in the group by group members.
This scale and its parts and ability to line them up are one of the most valuable tools of organization.

Learn More:
Making planning an actuality >
Plans and programs >

Visit the Scientology Handbook site (www.scientologyhandbook.or g)

2007-10-02T09:16:00.000-07:00

Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health

The bolt from the blue that began a worldwide movement. For while Ron had previously announced his discovery of the reactive mind, it had only fueled the fire of those wanting more information. More to the point — it was humanly impossible for one man to clear an entire planet. Encompassing all his previous discoveries and case histories of those breakthroughs in application, Ron provided the complete handbook of Dianetics procedure to train auditors to use it everywhere. A bestseller for more than half a century and with tens of millions of copies in print, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health has been translated in more than fifty languages, and used in more than 100 countries of Earth — indisputably, the most widely read and influential book about the human mind ever written. And that is why it will forever be known as Book One.

Dianetics Lectures and Demonstrations

Immediately following the publication of Dianetics, LRH began lecturing to packed auditoriums across America. Although addressing thousands at a time, demand continued to grow. To meet that demand, his presentation in Oakland, California, was recorded. In these four lectures, Ron related the events that sparked his investigation and his personal journey to his groundbreaking discoveries. He followed it all with a personal demonstration of Dianetics auditing — the only such demonstration of Book One available.

4 lectures / Titles include: • Introduction to Dianetics • What Dianetics Can Do • Running an Engram • How to Resolve Stalled Cases.

Order On-Line

2007-09-25T13:49:00.000-07:00

The Scientology BASICS

The materials of Dianetics and Scientology comprise the largest body of information ever assembled on the mind, spirit and life, rigorously refined and codified by L. Ron Hubbard through five decades of research, investigation and development. The results of that work are contained in hundreds of books and more than 3,000 recorded lectures.

The books and lectures that follow form the foundation upon which The Bridge to Freedom is built. They are presented in the sequence Ron wrote or delivered them. In many instances, Ron gave a series of lectures immediately following the release of a new book to provide further explanation and insight of these milestones. Through monumental restoration efforts, those lectures are now available.

While Ron’s books contain the summaries of breakthroughs and conclusions as they appeared in the developmental research track, his lectures provide the running day-to-day record of research and explain the thoughts, conclusions, tests and demonstrations that lay along that route. In that regard, they are the complete record of the entire research track, providing not only the most important breakthroughs in Man’s history, but the why and how Ron arrived at them.

Not the least advantage of a chronological study of these books and lectures is the inclusion of words and terms which, when originally used, were defined by LRH with considerable exactitude. Far beyond a mere “definition,” entire lectures are devoted to a full description of each new Dianetic or Scientology term — what made the breakthrough possible, its application in auditing as well as its application to life itself. As a result, one leaves behind no misunderstoods, obtains a full conceptual understanding of Dianetics and Scientology and grasps the subjects at a level not otherwise possible.

Through a sequential study, you can see how the subject progressed and recognize the highest levels of development. The books and lectures that follow show where they fit within the developmental line. From there you can determine your next step or any earlier books and lectures you may have missed. You will then be able to fill in missing gaps, not only gaining knowledge of each breakthrough, but greater understanding of what you’ve already studied.

This is the path to knowing how to know, unlocking the gates to your future eternity. Follow it.

http://goldenageofknowledge.net

2007-09-15T20:14:00.000-07:00

Cathedral Skateboards

Started by my long time friend and brother, Sam Didear. Whom I haven't kept in touch with nearly enough, we'll meet again, in this life or the next.

Taken directly from their site: www.cathedralskateboards.com "Cathedral Skateboards is the realization of a childhood dream for owners Orion White and Sam Didear. Their love for skateboarding began at least twenty years ago and has culminated in giving birth to a skateboard company whose aim is to give back the passion and perseverance that the culture has taught them. The Cathedral Skateboard team is a group of individuals who aggressively embody this ethic, and are here to prove that no matter where you are the whole city is YOUR Cathedral. Keep skating. Keep it Hardcore. Peace."

Cathedral Home
Cathedral Team
Cathedral News
Cathedral Products

2007-09-01T22:05:00.000-07:00

Scientology Churches – Around the World

Church of Scientology in London, England

Church of Scientology of London, England
(Contact Information)

Church of Scientology of Madrid, Spain

Chapel of the Church of Scientology New York

In the five decades since the founding of the first Church of Scientology in 1954, Scientology has become the fastest-growing religion in the world.

Today, its scope extends across 156 countries, with 4,500 churches, missions and groups serving millions of parishioners in 53 languages.

From Los Angeles to Tokyo to London, our churches introduce more than 600,000 people each year to the breakthrough discoveries L. Ron Hubbard made on the spirit and life, not taking into account the hundreds of thousands helped through the social betterment activities and community programs the Church forwards.

As Scientology services are built upon a graduated scale of spiritual awareness, parishioners of the religion begin with introductory services and advance to higher levels. Similarly, there are different levels of Scientology churches that mirror this graduated scale — from those that solely deliver introductory courses to Advanced Organizations, which deliver the upper level services.

Every Church of Scientology, no matter the services it provides, is dedicated to achieving the aims of Scientology: “A civilization without insanity, without criminals and without war, where the able can prosper and honest beings can have rights, and where man is free to rise to greater heights.”

Scientology Church Tours & Galleries :

2007-07-26T19:21:00.000-07:00

Jason Lee Interview
Written by Isaac Randozzi
Monday, 13 November 2006

Questions and photos of Jason by Isaac McKay-Randozzi

Someone once said, “talent lies in everyone, it just takes the right spark to set it off.” Jason Lee’s spark was skateboarding. Skating put him in the right place at the right time to get a spark off of something else, acting. Acting brought him into the world of the movie camera, which sparked off into photography. But his entry into to the visual arts started professionally with his direction of Stereo's classic film A Visual Sound, 1994. It has continued into this new century with photography and directing short films.

As you'll read, Jason's interest and passion about photography runs just as deep as it does for skating and acting. His quiver ranges from the traditional 35mm cameras and large format Polaroids to glass plate negative monsters, like the one used to take the ghostly black and white portrait of Brian Gaberman that you'll see below. His work has appeared in Anthem Magazine, The Skateboard Mag., and Stereo Sound Agency ads. Another saying goes, "a photographer is only as good as the next project", he is currently working on a new project that will be in book form. Jason continues to push himself creatively and speaking as someone who has watched him grow from his early skating years, I'm sure it'll be something interesting to watch.

Age:
36

Medium(s) of choice:
Photography, cinema and music.

Striped or non-striped socks?
Both

How are you today?
Well, thanks.

Why the hell are you doing an interview for a web site named Fecal Face Dot Com?
I have no idea.

What music gets you psyched up?
Cocteau Twins, Miles Davis, Chet Baker, Jazz in general, Mozart, Schubert, Rachmaninoff, Classical in general, Bjork, Midlake, Explosions in the Sky, Godspeed You! Black Emperor, 60s French and Bossanova, Radiohead, Hank Williams, Johnny Cash, Leonard Cohen, Nick Drake. It’s a long list, but probably not too dissimilar to what most folks’ lists would be.

Skating, acting, directing and photography – all things that you have a more than normal aptitude for. Do you think if you never started skating that these talents would have eventually come out? Or was skating the thing that sparked it off for you? Skateboarding sparked it all and Mark Gonzales was a big influence.

It takes some concentrated effort to make time in your life and schedule to devote time to learning photography. What made you decide to do it? And how did you go about it?
I got serious about it from being an actor and being on sets and around cameras and people who know cameras.

How many years ago was that?
5 years ago.

What was it like to make out with Shannon Doherty? Is she a good kisser or is she all teeth?
I was nervous, so I could have been kissing bread. It didn’t matter; I just wanted to get it over with.

What camera did you first start learning on?
Leica, Bolex, Super 8 cameras.

How many cameras do you have and what are they?
A few dozen cameras, which range from 35mm all the way to 20”x24”.

Which are your favorite to use and why?
Large format most of the time because I use mainly Polaroid film with the bigger cameras, and I love that film, but I also love shooting less premeditated with the smaller cameras, like the Leicas and 6x7.

Do you prefer black and white or color?
Both.

What film do you use?
Mainly Polaroid, as I’m working on two separate series using that film, both color and b/w.

What photographers do you like?
Bresson is probably my favorite, or one of them. He was a real pro, and wasn’t afraid to make it all about the emotional experience. There was never anything “cool” about him; he was a true photographer who had a great eye, and I always respond well to sincerity over what’s “hip,” or overly arty. I believe in experimentation, but there must always be a point, or a reason; there must always be a purpose, and one who finds it interesting to be the center of attention, rather than the work itself, must know that they’re going about it all wrong.

What makes a good photograph, is it content, composition, printing techniques? Something else?
I think the composition and content, of course, are huge factors; it really is all about how it's done, and the film you use, etc, and when you get that certain feeling you know you've gotten it. It really is a feeling that you get and a damn good one. That's why photography to me is very much an art form.

Have you taken photo classes, or are you self-taught?
Self-taught, and got a lot of pointers from other photographers and cinematographers.

Do you spend time in the darkroom?
My darkroom is still in storage, but I plan on putting it back together again when I have the right space for it.

How free are you to take photos on the movie and TV sets you’ve been on?
I often shoot when I’m working, and I’ve even used backdrops and props, etc. from the EARL set to shoot people with for magazines. This usually happens during a lunch break or any downtime I can get.

I’ve heard that you have pretty decent art collection. Who’s stuff do you have and who are some of your favorites?
Gottfried Helnwein, Lovis Corinth, Kathe Kollwitz, Bresson, Mercedes Helnwein, Tobin Yelland, Chris Pastras, Chad Robertson, Alex Prager, Joel Sternfeld, Beth Riesgraf, Mark Gonzales, Rachell Sumpter, Clint Peterson, etc. Don’t really have a favorite, but there’s an older b/w print that Beth Riesgraf gave me a few years ago that always gives me a certain, and perfect feeling when I see it. I love it all.

What places would like most like to go to and take photos of, or at?
Right now, America, and that’s one of the projects I’m in the middle of.

Is that the project for Anthem Magazine? Or something else?
It’s for a book of strictly Polaroids that I’d like to put out by 2008. America and Americans, and capturing it all on Polaroid film. The book will be called “Instant America.”

How do you prioritize your busy schedule? Do you always have a camera on you?
I shoot as often as possible, which is a couple days a week.

I read in a publication that you read Charlie Chaplin’s biography. Have you seen “The Great Dictator”? If so what did you think of it?
I love all of his work CITY LIGHTS is nearly perfect.

Nearly perfect? What would you have changed about it or done differently?
Nothing, actually.

You’ve directed a couple of videos and you were recently editing a short film. What are those projects for?
A Beck video, a Midlake video, and my short film from this year, THE WHITE DOOR, which will be released on DVD, etc next year. THE WHITE DOOR is a 34-minute modern silent love story starring Giovanni Ribisi and Beth Riesgraf.

You seem to keep a very busy schedule, how do you keep it straight and remember it all?
If I weren’t this busy I’d probably be even crazier, so I love it; it keeps me alive.

Do you consider catsup a vegetable?
No.

How many interviews do you think you’ve done over the years?
Too many, but maybe not enough.

What is Niva Films? What part do you play in it?
A very small production company that Beth Riesgraf and I started a few years ago. We’ve made a few short films and will continue to grow it over the years and make features films, etc.

How is the Jason Lee Foundation for the Arts going?
No longer exists because of too much red tape in trying to get it set up to accept grants, etc. I still personally support artists and host exhibitions, though.

How long did you live in San Francisco?
Off and on during Stereo’s early SF days.

Where did you live?
With Greg Hunt and then Jeff Klindt; here and there.

What was your favorite part of living in S.F.?
The weather, and being young and getting to skate everyday and create art and design Stereo with Chris Pastras. A good, fresh time - those days, and skateboarding meant something different back then.

Do you think Burt Reynolds would make a good governor of California?
Absolutely.

What is your fascination with Burt? You’ve mentioned him during some of your movies and some of your mannerisms bear a resemblance on occasion.
Need I say more than SMOKEY AND THE BANDIT?

If you had 3 wishes, what would you wish for?
More time, more money to make films with, and for Polaroid to never discontinue its film, which may happen soon...

How much do you skate these days?
Not as much as I’d like to, but it often shows its lovely face in my dreams.

Are you going to pursue getting your photographs published or do you consider yourself, “Mr. Amateur on the freeway with a cupcake?” In other words, how much do you see yourself putting into photography given the time constraints and the responsibilities you have? Is it something you would want to do as another career down the line?
Photography has not only become important to me, it’s become vital. I think about it as much as I think about my family, or food. I’ve been published in Anthem all year and we’re going to make a book of all the images and have a show (they were all Polaroids for the issues) in Feb 2007. And I plan on releasing INSTANT AMERICA in a couple years, and now that I’ve finally gotten my 20x24 inch camera, I’m going to be starting my first Polaroid series with that within a month. I will shoot forever, and I’ll also continue to direct films, as that too has become something I now find I need creatively.

When you talk about the Polaroid you're not talking about the instamatic variety, are you?
Not the instamatic variety.

It's shooting with large format cameras with Polaroid film holders and Polaroid sheet film. 4x5 you just peel them apart out of the camera, but for 8x10 and 20x24 you need processors.

Now that Stereo is solo and living in your photo studio, are you going to be playing a bigger part?
Stereo has since moved into an even bigger space, and we’re growing our staff pretty rapidly. We’re all pretty enthusiastic, and the freedom of being solo and self-dependent is a huge creative relief. I’m of course more behind-the-scenes now, but it’s still a big part of my life.

Are you going to be in any up coming art shows?
The ANTHEM show in Feb, and then Chris and I may have a show together in Australia next year.

Besides filming Earl, what other projects do you have coming up?
No, not yet.

What would you like to see on your tombstone after all is said and done?
Happy to be here.

What makes you smile the most?
Aside from the sight of Pilot Inspektor [Jason’s son], and the way he dances, the way a photograph makes me feel when it’s right. And being out on the road with the windows down and good music in my ears. The American road trip experience is hardly comparable, and I’ll be back out there again soon enough...

2007-07-25T10:37:00.000-07:00

Be Temperate

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Ethics & Morals
An article by L. Ron Hubbard, American Educator and Humanitarian

Ethics are reason. Man's greatest weapon is his reason.

The highest ethic level would be long-term survival concepts with minimal destruction.

In the modern dictionary we find that ethics are defined as "morals" and morals are defined as "ethics". These two words are not interchangeable.

Morals should be defined as a code of good conduct laid down out of the experience of the race to serve as a uniform yardstick for the conduct of individuals and groups.

Morals are actually laws.

The origin of a moral code comes about when it is discovered through actual experience that some act is more nonsurvival than prosurvival. The prohibition of this act then enters into the customs of the people and may eventually become a law.

In the absence of extended reasoning powers, moral codes, so long as they provide better survival for their group, are a vital and necessary part of any culture.

Morals, however, become burdensome and protested against when they become outmoded. And although a revolt against morals may have as its stated target the fact that the code no longer is as applicable as it once was, revolts against moral codes generally occur because individuals of the group or the group itself has become unethical to a point where it wishes to practice license against these moral codes, not because the codes themselves are unreasonable.

If a moral code were thoroughly reasonable, it could, at the same time, be considered thoroughly ethical. But only at this highest level could the two be called the same. The ultimate in reason is the ultimate in survival.

Ethical conduct includes the adherence to the moral codes of the society in which we live.

2007-07-23T10:18:00.000-07:00

Take Care of Yourself

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We live in a world of immorality and rising criminality. We feel the repercussions of this on a daily basis.

Employee theft causes one-third of all bankruptcies and costs employers $1 billion a year. Insurance fraud exceeds $80 billion annually from faked accidents, injuries and illnesses. These are only a sampling of a broader cultural situation—soaring crime, intolerance and hate, corporate greed and corruption, Internet pornography and disintegrating families.

At the root of all is a loss of basic morals and values that would make a decent culture possible.

Reversing the decline and restoring to Man his integrity and trust is The Way to Happiness—the first moral code based wholly on common sense.

Discover how you can use this miraculous yet simple booklet to raise moral standards around you and help others to live better lives.

Click here to view other Public Service Announcements

2007-04-21T23:24:00.000-07:00

Grief Counseling and Trauma Relief for Those Affected by Monday's Shooting at Virginia Tech

With 32 dead and 29 injured, people around the US and throughout the world have been shocked by Monday's events at Virginia Tech, the scene of the deadliest shooting incident in U.S. history.

A team of Scientology Volunteer Ministers (VMs) are in Blacksburg, VA, to provide grief counseling and trauma relief for students, family members, friends and local residents affected by the incident.

"Our team is here to help," said the International Volunteer Ministers Consultant, who is coordinating the VM activities in the area. "Anyone needing to reach us should stop by our yellow tent. They can also contact us through the Founding Church of Scientology of Washington D.C. at (202) 797-9826 or call me on the Volunteer Ministers Hot Line at 1-800 HELP 4 YU (1-800 435-7498)."

"So many people are in shock over what occurred," she went on to say. "That's why, in addition to the one-on-one counseling we are providing, we are also training other volunteers so they can help as well. We've put out a call for any Volunteer Minister who can possibly arrange it, to come join us."

But with people all over the world affected by this disaster, the VM team at Virginia Tech are concerned that anyone needing help be able to get what they need, no matter where they live.

The techniques the VMs use are described online. Anyone who is upset or distraught should visit the Scientology Handbook web site, learn how to apply the procedures and use them to get relief. The techniques are called "assists." Developed by L. Ron Hubbard, founder of the Scientology religion, assists address the emotional and spiritual side of trauma, enabling the person to recover fully from injury, stress or shock."

Anyone needing further assistance should immediately contact the Volunteer Ministers Consultant or their closest Scientology church or mission to speak to someone.

"I can't emphasize enough the importance of getting help," said the VM Consultant. "If you need to talk to someone, call or email me at 1-800 HELP 4 YU (1-800 435-7498) or vm@volunteerministers.org. These techniques may be simple but they are enormously helpful. That's one reason that our motto is, 'Something CAN be done about it.'"

One assist that is very simple to learn is called the "Nerve Assist." When people have come through a traumatic incident like this, they often have trouble sleeping. They can be extremely tense, unable to relax. Some people even shake or experience muscle spasms. Nerve Assists help with this and are a proven way to begin any trauma relief. Instructions on how to do a Nerve Assist can be found online.

Another technique that is recommended is the Locational Assist. Shock tends to rivet an individual's attention. The Locational Assist helps orient the person in his or her environment. The relief people experience from this process can be really dramatic—even with people who were completely grief-stricken. This is also described in the Scientology Handbook.

For those in need of grief counseling, the assist to use is "Handling a Loss." This is online in a chapter of the Scientology Handbook called "Solutions for a Dangerous Environment."

2007-03-08T21:05:00.000-08:00

Big Day Out
Anti-Drug Group Rocks Out at the Sydney

The Drug-Free Ambassadors showed up in force at Sydney's Big Day Out this year to make the point that you don't have to take drugs to have fun.

The Big Day Out (BDO) is an annual music festival that tours Australia and New Zealand. It is so popular that the 2007 Sydney BDO sold out in just 12 hours after tickets went on sale.

But with surveys showing that as many as 60% of those at local nightclubs and concerts take drugs, and with ecstasy the drug of choice, the Drug-Free Ambassadors of Sydney were determined that this year's festival would not only be fun but safe.

Three of the Drug-Free Ambassadors of Sydney, who passed out thousands of copies of drug-education booklets at this year's "Big Day Out."

The Drug-Free Ambassadors program is based on the Drug-Free Marshals of the USA — a campaign launched 14 years ago in Los Angeles in which children and teens pledge to live drug-free lives and to help their friends and family steer clear of drugs as well.

For over twenty years the "Say No to Drugs, Say Yes to Life" international drug prevention program, supported by members of Scientology churches and other volunteer organizations around the world, has been providing the truth about drugs through educational handouts and public events. In fact it is the largest community-based drug education campaign in the world.

Based on their experience and success, the Foundation for a Drug-Free World has created a new Truth About Drugs Education Kit containing a study guide and ten individual well-researched pocket-size booklets with factual information about the most commonly abused drugs.

Production and distribution of the booklets and education kit are made possible through donations and sponsorships by private organizations — businesses, churches and civic organizations that care and want to do something about drug use in their communities.

The Sydney chapter of the Drug-Free Ambassadors handed out thousands of booklets at the Big Day Out concert this year. Effective drug education works. It saves lives. The young volunteers of the Drug-Free Ambassadors of Sydney are committed to seeing that children and teens get the facts they need to decide to lead drug-free lives.

2007-03-04T22:34:00.000-08:00

'Wild Hogs' Debuts at No. 1

The biker buddy comedy "Wild Hogs" and its ensemble cast of John Travolta, Martin Lawrence, William H. Macy and Tim Allen was the weekend box office champ with a $38 million take, according to studio estimates Sunday. It was Walt Disney Co.'s biggest March opening ever.

It was also the largest-ever debut for the 53-year-old Travolta as well as the best non-animated movie debut for Allen, who is also 53. Macy turns 57 next week and Lawrence turns 42 next month. "It's so easy to see in the material how much fun they were having together.

The audience was looking for that first great comedy of the year," said Disney president of distribution Chuck Viane.

more >

2007-02-22T15:06:00.000-08:00

Steve Berra - Professional, Professional Skateboarder

Here's one of the coolest things I've ever read:
(click the image below)

Steve Berra Photos:
A collection of Steve Berra Photos from his site.

Find out more on his site: www.steveberra.com

2007-02-15T19:27:00.000-08:00

Skateboarding capitalist style
The old mall (which will remain nameless as will the city and skaters) rested on the side of a well traveled road in an area of the city that had seen its prime. Open doors beckoned us, voices of the skate gods seeped from within as we approached. It had already been scouted, hushed roumers had moved thought the close knit community of skaters with details vague to keep the rabble away.

The crew rolled deep, three full carloads, most from out of town who had came in to hang. Rain had broken plans for a streetbattle, so we had no choice but to follow the hints and cryptic clues for some kind of session. Anticipation mounted, Can we getin? Will we get busted? Whats it like? Is it worth it?

Then came the moment. We stood in the center of a capitalist's dream gone bad, an abandoned mall. Steps and inclines, even benches had been set upfor our grinding pleasure by those who came before us. Vandals had also beaten us to this place, broken glass littered the floor. We used our boards and fingersto clear the necessary path. Then it was on. Grinds and slides and ollies, sounds of wood hitting the hard floor and the screechof wheels replaced what must have been the murmurs of conversations and jingle of cash registers. Just as quick it was overas the light left the skylights and forced us to our cars and homes and late night hangs.

Used to be when we walked through a mall we looked around and thought "It would be nice to skate this..." now when we walk through the mall we look around and say yea "I hit this".

2007-02-15T18:39:00.000-08:00

The Cause of Suppression

Why are some people ill more often than others? Why are some accident-prone? And is there a reason others live their lives on an emotional seesaw, doing well one day and badly the next?

There is an explanation, and it has nothing to do with the gods, fate or the position of the stars. In fact, the actual reason behind these phenomena-and their resolution-has been explained in Scientology.

L. Ron Hubbard was able to see through the complexities of human behavior and discover the underlying factors which explain the phenomenon of suppression in people-for it is suppression by others that causes these seemingly haphazard events.

The Antisocial Personality

There are certain characteristics and mental attitudes which cause about 20 percent of a race to oppose violently any betterment activity or group.

Such people are known to have antisocial tendencies.

When the legal or political structure of a country becomes such as to favor such personalities in positions of trust, then all the civilizing organizations of the country become suppressed and a barbarism of criminality and economic duress ensues.

Crime and criminal acts are perpetrated by antisocial personalities. Inmates of institutions commonly trace their state back to contact with such personalities.

Thus, in the fields of government, police activities and mental health, to name a few, we see that it is important to be able to detect and isolate this personality type so as to protect society and individuals from the destructive consequences attendant upon letting such have free rein to injure others.

As they only comprise 20 percent of the population and as only 2 1/2 percent are truly dangerous, we see that with a very small amount of effort we could considerably better the state of society.

Well-known, even stellar, examples of such a personality are, of course, Napoleon and Hitler. Dillinger, Pretty Boy Floyd, Christie and other famous criminals were well-known examples of the antisocial personality. But with such a cast of characters in history we neglect the less stellar examples and do not perceive that such personalities exist in current life, very common, often undetected.

When we trace the cause of a failing business, we will inevitably discover somewhere in its ranks the antisocial personality hard at work.

In families which are breaking up, we commonly find one or the other of the persons involved to have such a personality.

Where life has become rough and is failing, a careful review of the area by a trained observer will detect one or more such personalities at work.

As there are 80 percent of us trying to get along and only 20 percent trying to prevent us, our lives would be much easier to live were we well informed as to the exact manifestations of such a personality. Thus, we could detect it and save ourselves much failure and heartbreak.

It is important then to examine and list the attributes of the antisocial personality. Influencing as it does the daily lives of so many, it well behooves decent people to become better informed on this subject.

(learn more >)

The Social Personality

Man in his anxieties is prone to witch hunts.

All one has to do is designate “people wearing black caps” as the villains and one can start a slaughter of people in black caps.

This characteristic makes it very easy for the antisocial personality to bring about a chaotic or dangerous environment.

Man is not naturally brave or calm in his human state. And he is not necessarily villainous.

Even the antisocial personality, in his warped way, is quite certain that he is acting for the best and commonly sees himself as the only good person around, doing all for the good of everyone-the only flaw in his reasoning being that if one kills everyone else, none are left to be protected from the imagined evils. His conduct in his environment and toward his fellows is the only method of detecting either the antisocial or the social personalities. Their motives for self are similar-self-preservation and survival. They simply go about achieving these in different ways.

Thus, as man is naturally neither calm nor brave, anyone to some degree tends to be alert to dangerous persons and, hence, witch hunts can begin.

It is therefore even more important to identify the social personality than the antisocial personality. One then avoids shooting the innocent out of mere prejudice or dislike or because of some momentary misconduct.

The social personality can be defined most easily by comparison with his opposite, the antisocial personality.

This differentiation is easily done and no test should ever be constructed which isolates only the antisocial. On the same test must appear the upper as well as lower ranges of man’s actions.

A test that declares only antisocial personalities without also being able to identify the social personality would be itself a suppressive test. It would be like answering “Yes” or “No” to the question “Do you still beat your wife?” Anyone who took it could be found guilty. While this mechanism might have suited the times of the Inquisition, it would not suit modern needs.

As the society runs, prospers and lives solely through the efforts of social personalities, one must know them as they, not the antisocial, are the worthwhile people. These are the people who must have rights and freedom. Attention is given to the antisocial solely to protect and assist the social personalities in the society.

All majority rules, civilizing intentions and even the human race will fail unless one can identify and thwart the antisocial personalities and help and forward the social personalities in the society. For the very word “society” implies social conduct and without it there is no society at all, only a barbarism with all men, good or bad, at risk.

The frailty of showing how the harmful people can be known is that these then apply the characteristics to decent people to get them hunted down and eradicated.

The swan song of every great civilization is the tune played by arrows, axes or bullets used by the antisocial to slay the last decent men.

Government is only dangerous when it can be employed by and for antisocial personalities. The end result is the eradication of all social personalities and the resultant collapse of Egypt, Babylon, Rome, Russia or the West.

You will note in the characteristics of the antisocial personality that intelligence is not a clue to the antisocial. They are bright or stupid or average. Thus, those who are extremely intelligent can rise to considerable, even head-of-state heights.

Importance and ability or wish to rise above others are likewise not indexes to the antisocial. When they do become important or rise, they are, however, rather visible by the broad consequences of their acts. But they are as likely to be unimportant people or hold very lowly stations and wish for nothing better.

Thus, it is the twelve given characteristics alone which identify the antisocial personality. And these same twelve reversed are the sole criteria of the social personality if one wishes to be truthful about them.

The identification or labeling of an antisocial personality cannot be done honestly and accurately unless one also, in the same examination of the person, reviews the positive side of his life.

All persons under stress can react with momentary flashes of antisocial conduct. This does not make them antisocial personalities.

The true antisocial person has a majority of antisocial characteristics.

The social personality has a majority of social characteristics.

Thus, one must examine the good with the bad before one can truly label the antisocial or the social.

In reviewing such matters, very broad testimony and evidence are best. One or two isolated instances determine nothing. One should search all twelve social and all twelve antisocial characteristics and decide on the basis of actual evidence, not opinion.

(learn more >)

2007-02-14T17:15:00.000-08:00

Creed of the Church of Scientology

We of the Church believe:

That all men of whatever race, color, or creed were created with equal rights;

That all men have inalienable rights to their own religious practices and their performance;

That all men have inalienable rights to their own lives;

That all men have inalienable rights to their sanity;

That all men have inalienable rights to their own defense;

That all men have inalienable rights to conceive, choose, assist or support their own organizations, churches and governments;

That all men have inalienable rights to think freely, to talk freely, to write freely their own opinions and to counter or utter or write upon the opinions of others;

That all men have inalienable rights to the creation of their own kind;

That the souls of men have the rights of men;

That the study of the mind and the healing of mentally caused ills should not be alienated from religion or condoned in non-religious fields;

And that no agency less than God has the power to suspend or set aside these rights, overtly or covertly.

And we of the Church believe:

That man is basically good;

That he is seeking to survive;

That his survival depends upon himself and his attainment of brotherhood with the universe.

And we of the Church believe that the laws of God forbid man:

To destroy his own kind;

To destroy the sanity of another;

To destroy or enslave another’s soul;

To destroy or reduce the survival of one’s companions or one’s group.

And we of the Church believe that the spirit can be saved and that the spirit alone may save or heal the body.

2007-02-09T17:37:00.000-08:00

DIANETICS: UNDERSTANDING THE MIND

Here's a good basic explanation of Dianetics:

Dianetics: Dia (Greek) through, nous (Greek) soul.

Prior to 1950, prevailing scientific thought had concluded man’s mind to be his brain, i.e., a collection of cells and neurons, and nothing more. Not only was it considered that man’s ability cannot be improved, but it also was believed that with the formation of his cerebral cortex, his personality was likewise irrevocably established. These theories were, however, inaccurate, and as a consequence science has never evolved a workable theory of the mind nor a means to resolve problems of the mind.

L. Ron Hubbard changed all that with Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. Its publication in 1950 marks a watershed in the history of man’s quest for a true understanding of himself.

Dianetics is a methodology which can help alleviate unwanted sensations and emotions, irrational fears and psychosomatic illnesses (illnesses caused or aggravated by mental stress). It is most accurately described as what the soul is doing to the body through the mind.

Like Scientology, Dianetics rests on basic principles, easily learned, clearly demonstrated as true, and every bit as valid today as when first released in 1950.

(Learn more about Dianetics >)

2007-02-02T19:59:00.000-08:00

IF YOUR CITY DOESN'T HAVE A SKATEPARK, THEN YOUR CITY IS A SKATEPARK

I just found a site with some really cool stuff on it:

http://www.skatersforpublicskateparks.org

Skaters for Public Skateparks (SPS) is a 501(c)(3) non-profit skatepark advocacy organization, international in reach, dedicated to providing the information necessary to ensure safe, rewarding, freely-accessible skateparks are available to all skateboarders.

If you are a landscape architect, parks and recreation professional, member of law enforcement, or otherwise serve your community, you will come to rely upon us as your trusted skatepark expert. We are your well of seasoned experience and provider of insider information pertaining to skateboarding in general and skateparks in particular. We are here for you.

If you are a grass-roots advocate seeking a skatepark in your town, we are your "technical support" group, available to assist and direct your efforts by the sharing of our hard-earned, pertinent experience.

Another cool thing I found on this site is a visual glossary of skate park terms:

2007-01-28T17:46:00.000-08:00

A Local Hollywood Skate Spot

There are a bunch of spots not far from Hollywood High School, but there is only one main spot at the actual school.

This is the infamous spot containing a 12 and 16 stair. The stairs have perfect rails, and perfect landings. The 12 stair's landing is only 15-20 feet because it goes right into a gate. Both stairs are on either side of the same runway (think about it, it makes sense, trust me). You may know this spot from various videos; Misled Youth, The Storm, Baker2g, The End, Dying To Live, Yeah Right, This Is Skateboarding etc. It's located on North Highland Avenue, Hollywood, CA 90028. If you're nearby check it out for sure.

2007-01-23T22:59:00.000-08:00

Check out this guy from Sydney who's spreading the truth about drug abuse

What do you do when you know drugs are a one-way street down, and your friends are taking them? That was the dilemma facing Rama, a teenager from Sydney. "All drugs lead to one place. Nowhere," said Rama, who had already been through it — ecstasy, cocaine, marijuana — all before he was 18 years old.

Rama counts himself as one of the lucky ones. Because he got help when he needed it.

Things were going downhill at breakneck speed when a friend of his, a Scientologist, saw Rama was in trouble. His friend told Rama about a program sponsored by the Church of Scientology of Sydney, called the Drug Free Ambassadors and handed him a set of booklets about drugs. The Drug Free Ambassadors and their American counterpart, the Drug Free Marshals, created by the Church of Scientology International 13 years ago, have chapters throughout Australia and New Zealand and around the world. read full story >

2007-01-18T17:55:00.000-08:00

Train as a Scientology Volunteer Minister

The people in your community encounter real situations in their day-to-day living — among them, illiteracy, drug abuse, broken marriages and dishonesty. Without solutions to these problems, the work of community leaders is less effective than it could and should be. But there are solutions, real answers that work, and they are immediately available from the Scientology Volunteer Ministers.

Volunteer Ministers deliver on-site workshops, seminars and courses one-on-one and to groups large or small. Guided by simple demonstrations and hands-on experience, you and members of your organization can learn exactly how to apply simple solutions to life situations.

Volunteer Minister training includes the following:

• Communicating effectively
• Creating a lasting marriage
• Learning how to learn
• Bringing up children
• Knowing tools for the workplace
• Building a relationship
• Improving personal well-being
• Overcoming stress
• Handling upsets
• Increasing happiness
• Achieving goals
• Improving honesty and integrity
• Overcoming oppression
• Resolving conflicts
• Knowing the answer to drugs
• Learning basic organizational skills
• Helping the ill or injured
Learn More >

Request a Live Seminar in Your Area
Scientology Volunteer Ministers can come to your area to give your group or employees information on Scientology Volunteer Ministers technology.
Request a Seminar >>

2007-01-16T23:09:00.000-08:00

Another Day in the Life of the Scientology Disaster Relief Team in the Philippines

With the sheer quantity of devastation left by Typhoon Durian, the Scientology Disaster Relief Team in the Philippines realized they simply could not reach every person who needs help. Not by themselves. It was going to take a lot more people trained in Scientology assist* technology to be able to make a dent in the misery they saw around them. (more)

2006-12-18T17:37:00.000-08:00

The Emotional Tone Scale

You can predict other people’s behavior.

You are living life and things don’t always go the way you had predicted. You may have a spouse and he is not as you had imagined, so what do you do? You now have no way out. How can you prevent this? You are in business and the deal just fell through. How can you predict what is going to happen in the future? How do you know who to trust?

Life and relationships can sometimes be fragile. You can improve your relationships and know who to associate with. (find out how >)

2006-12-16T17:43:00.000-08:00

What is Scientology?

Scientology comprises a body of knowledge which extends from certain fundamental truths. Prime among these truths:

Man is an immortal spiritual being.
His experience extends well beyond a single lifetime.
His capabilities are unlimited, even if not presently realized.
Scientology further holds man to be basically good, and that his spiritual salvation depends upon himself and his fellows and his attainment of brotherhood with the universe. In that regard, Scientology is a religious philosophy in the most profound sense of the word, for it is concerned with no less than the full rehabilitation of man’s innate spiritual self — his capabilities, his awareness and his certainty of his own immortality. Furthermore, as religion deals with the spirit in relationship to itself, the universe and other life, and is essentially the belief in spiritual beings, Scientology follows a religious tradition that is at least as old as mankind. Yet what Scientology ultimately represents is new. Its religious technology is new, its ecclesiastical organization is new, and what it means to 21st-century man is entirely new.

At the heart of Scientology lie its axioms that precisely define the fundamental laws and truths of life, including who we are, what we are capable of, and most importantly, how we might realize our native spiritual abilities. These axioms form the foundation of a vast body of wisdom that applies to the entirety of all life. From this wisdom has come a great number of fundamental principles people can use to improve their immediate lives, as well as to achieve spiritual immortality. In fact, there is no aspect of life that cannot be improved through the application of Scientology principles. (Source)

2006-12-13T21:13:00.000-08:00

Speed Your Recovery from Accidents and Injuries

I'm sure you all agree that skating injuries suck. You may or may not have heard of this but there's a way to increase your reaction time, have fewer accidents and make speedier recoveries from injuries.

Check out this news article to find out more http://www.scientologytoday.org/press/610060018241_scn-vm.html

2006-12-04T20:10:00.000-08:00

Career Highlights of Skate Legend Danny Way
www.dannyway.com

He broke the world record for the highest air on a skateboard in 1997.

The first and only skateboarder to drop out of a helicopter onto a ramp. The feat was repeated in 1999 for MTV.

Late in 2002, Way built the first Megaramp. He set a new ramp to ramp record of 65 feet and a new highest air record of 18 feet, 3 inches (5.6 m).

A second version of the Megaramp was built. On June 19, 2003, Danny broke two world records in one run: the longest ramp to ramp record at 75 feet and the highest air at 23.5 feet. He also broke records for the highest Fast Plant, highest Christ Air, and highest McTwist.

He won gold in 2004 at the first ever Skateboarding Big Air contest held at the X Games at the Staples Center in Los Angeles, California. He established a new distance record of 79 feet.

On July 9, 2005, he jumped the Great Wall of China on a skateboard, becoming the first person to clear the wall without motorized aid, despite hurting his ankle the practice run the day before the jump.

On April 6, 2006, Way set the world record for a bomb drop (a general skateboarding term for jumping off anything) in Las Vegas, Nevada He jumped off the 82 foot, 3 inch Fender Stratocaster guitar at Hard Rock Cafe into a quarter pipe[1].

Need I say more...

2006-11-28T21:38:00.001-08:00

Church of Scientology Mission of Sonoma

Here is a Mission from Northern California, Sonoma Mission, and an area I used to live in.

Their open hours are: Tuesday, Wednesday and Thursday 7-9 pm and they deliver Lectures on Wednesdays at 7:30pm.

There is a free local skate park which is not the greatest, but pads aren't enforced and what do you expect for free these days?

The directions to get there are as follows: To get to the Sonoma Skate Park From Highway 101 North. Take the Highway 37 turn off into Sonoma and get on Arnold. Turn right on El Verano and the park is on the right hand side about a mile down the road.

2006-11-24T14:52:00.000-08:00

How do You Make a Better World?

We live in a world of immorality and rising criminality. We feel the repercussions of this on a daily basis.

Employee theft causes one-third of all bankruptcies and costs employers $1 billion a year.

Insurance fraud exceeds $80 billion annually from faked accidents, injuries and illnesses.

The average age for first-time porn site viewers has now dropped to 8 years old (Fox News). (Source)

Underage drinking amounted to 19.7 percent of the alcohol consumed in the year 1999. (Source)

11.2% of 12-17 year-olds reported current use of illicit drugs in 2003. (Source)

A 10% increase in children living in single-parent homes leads typically to a 17 percent increase in juvenile crime. (Source)

One-half of all U.S. children will live in a one-parent house. (CNN, Dec. 10, 2004). (Source)

More than 20% of children are sexually abused before the age of 8. (Source)

There is a sexual assault every 2-1/2 minutes in America. (Source)

Violent Crime Rose in '05, with murders up by 4.8%, according to the Federal Bureau of Investigation. (Source)

Three-quarters of all employees have stolen from their employers at least once and U.S. prison population is now exceeds 2 million with 1 in 142 US residents now in prison. (Source)

Nearly 70% of prisoners released from prison are rearrested within 3 years. (Source)

40,000 children under the age of five die each day from malnutrition and vaccine preventable disease. (Source)

In the last decade 1.5 million children have died in wars. (Source)

Sixty million people have been killed in wars during the 20th Century. (Source)

The five major nuclear powers currently have more than 20,000 nuclear warheads in their arsenals. (Source)

As you read this, over 30 wars and conflicts rage around the world. (Source)

These are only a sampling of a broader cultural situation—soaring crime, intolerance and hate, corporate greed and corruption, Internet pornography and disintegrating families.

At the root of all is a loss of basic morals and values that would make a decent culture possible.

Reversing the decline and restoring to Man his integrity and trust is The Way to Happiness—the first moral code based wholly on common sense. (Find out more >)

Discover how you can use this miraculous yet simple booklet to raise moral standards around you and help others to live better lives.

2006-11-23T11:52:00.000-08:00

GeoGreetings from Google

Check out this site where you can make some hot holiday messages with googlemaps. http://www.geogreeting.com. You can type in any message and they have a database of map images that are in the shape of individual letters and they will spell out your message for you in maps.

Check out the one I did, here.

They are even on the lookout for replacement letters. Currently they need better letters for (A, N, B, D, P, Z, 6, ? ) I would hope you would have better things to do on than scanning the globe with Googlemaps and finding buildings that are in the shape of letters, but maybe not.

2006-11-22T22:30:00.000-08:00

Scientology Mission of Los Feliz

If you live in or around the Los Feliz, Los Angeles area and you want to find out what Scientology is all about, you should stop by The Scientology Mission of Los Feliz. Located at 1934 Hillhurst Ave Los Angeles, CA 90027, it's easy to find.

They're a great bunch of people and are interested in assisting in answering your questions or getting you started on an introductory service. Or maybe you want to buy a book and find out for yourself what it's all about. I've personally met a bunch of them (just because I'm a Scientologist and from the LA area) and additionally they travel all around town doing Dianetics Stress Tests which I've seen and have ran into them doing in Los Feliz, Hollywood, Glendale, Pasadena and Santa Monica. They are also coincidentily all around my age which is cool.

You can also check out their site at http://www.missionoflosfeliz.com

Or their blog at http://www.missionoflosfeliz.com/blog

The Los Feliz area is also a great place for Skating as there are a bunch of spots there. There's a local school there that I learned to do my first handrails at. Actually, it was really because I was skating with some guys that were better than I was that I even attempted it in the first place. Which turned out to be a good rule to live by. Basically, f you want to advance at something, hang out with people who do whatever it is much better than you. Maybe, it's common sense but I've also found some people like to be the best of their crowd at what they do and so don't advance as much as they could because of it.

Anyway, I was skating with Guy Mariano who was not Pro yet but he was locally sponsored. And I think Rudy Johnson who both skated a lot together even back then. They were sort of part of my skate crowd and were the kids advancing faster than everyone else and seriously devoting their time to it. Anyway, I just went for it (the handrail) and pulled off some smaller but steep handrails the first time trying and was totally stoked. This was around 1990. Coincidentally, in 1991 there was a street skate video that came out with Mark Gonzales, Guy Mariano, Rudy Johnson and Jason Lee which really reflected the LA street skate scene. It's good to see Guy and Rudy did so well at something they loved.

2006-11-19T21:15:00.000-08:00

Check out what some religious experts say about Scientology:

Scientology: A Way of Spiritual Self-Identification
by Michael A. Sivertsev,
Expert Advisor on International Matters to the Committee of the Russian Federation

Religous Toleration & Religious Diversity
Bryan Wilson, Pd.D.
Emeritus Fellow
Oxford University

Human Rights & Religious Freedom

Since the end of the Second World War the right of all human beings to freedom of religion has been proclaimed by resolutions of various international bodies, including the United Nations, the Council of Europe, and in the Helsinki Accord. Governments are charged not only to abandon any former policies of religious persecution, but also positively to act to protect religious liberty, so long as the religious practices of a particular sect or denomination do not contravene the ordinary criminal law or invade the rights of other citizens. Particularly in the absence of any scholarly concensus on the definition of religions, such resolutions do not, however, guarantee the elimination of all forms of religious discrimination. Governmental preference for one (or more) religions may still persist, as instanced in the establishment by law of particular religions in various European countries. Such preference may confer economic, specifically fiscal, advantages on particular religious bodies as well as social and even political privileges denied to other faiths. Even where such discriminatory measures are not overtly maintained (by law, custom, or precedent), there may be diverse governmental or social attitudes which favour some types of religious body above others. In particular, there may be official or public suspicion of certain religious organizations, particularly where the teachings and practices of a religious group are generally unfamiliar -- so unfamiliar that, by officialdom or public opinion, they may be regarded as being “not really religious”. The public, and at times the authorities, invoke a stereotype of what a religion should resemble and how religious believers should behave. Bodies which depart too radically from this, perhaps unconsciously hypothesized, model may thus appear ineligible for the extension to them of normal religious toleration. They may, indeed, appear to fall outside the category of what is to be considered as religion at all, or even have to face the charge that they operate in ways that contravene the law.
CONTEMPORARY RELIGIOUS DIVERSITY

Religious Toleration & Religious Diversity

by Bryan Wilson, Ph.D. Emeritus Fellow Oxford University.

2006-11-18T12:05:00.000-08:00

Reactive and Analytical Mind - What's the Difference??

Have you ever wondered how your mind works?

Your mind records pictures of everything you experience throughout life. These “mental image pictures” ARE your memory.

Through mental image pictures you can see the past, hear what was said, feel, taste and smell things from long ago or just from yesterday. Your perception of mental image pictures — however vague at first — can be sharpened with Dianetics.

Mental image pictures are used continually to solve problems, imagine and remember things. L. Ron Hubbard’s #1 New York Times bestseller, Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health, will tell you much more about mental image pictures, how the mind works and even the purpose of the mind.

Two Minds, Not One

Unfortunately, you have another mind, which has been called in the past the “unconscious” or “subconscious” mind. It is a mind which records and stores mental image pictures made during traumatic experiences.

This mind is more accurately called your reactive mind, since it reacts illogically and irrationally, giving you feelings you don’t understand and making you react in ways that are “not you.”

Irrationality comes from your reactive mind, acting upon you like post-hypnotic commands. It makes you say and do things you don’t understand. It is WHY you have inexplicable feelings, strange aches and pains, why you can’t be yourself.

You can learn how the reactive mind works and how to GET RID OF IT FOREVER by reading Dianetics: The Modern Science of Mental Health. This is how Dianetics technology can help you become A WELL AND HAPPY HUMAN BEING, able to think rationally in all circumstances and go forward in life to achieve your goals for real.

The Reactive Mind

You DO have a reactive mind and it IS the single SOURCE of your irrational fears, self-doubts, uncontrollable emotions and even your nightmares as a child.

The reactive mind is also the source of psychosomatic ills — which means illnesses which are caused by the mind. Experts estimate that psychosomatic illnesses account for up to 70 percent of man’s ills, including being too fat or too thin, migraines, allergies and other afflictions not strictly caused by physical reasons.

Feelings of unhappiness, uncontrollable emotions and the like are no more than the “memory” of past painful experience being replayed by your reactive mind.

Find out how to get rid of your reactive mind >

2006-11-16T17:48:00.000-08:00

How Does a Scientology Marriage Work?

"When someone begins on that arrangement called marriage, he is getting into something which is, to say the least, adventurous. When a couple get married, they are doing something they know nothing about. And, from all indications, when they have tried it more than once, they know no more about it the second time than they did the first"...

Get more info at www.scientologywedding.org >

2006-11-13T18:51:00.000-08:00

Selfless Acts

What percentage of people will stop what they are doing to help a complete stranger?

How many times have you seen somebody get in trouble or injured and witness the fact that most people will just "mind their own business" or "won't get involved"? Most likely if you haven't seen this it's because you too just ignored it to the extent that you may not have even realized you were ignoring it.

What separates those individuals who will "go out of their way" or "interrupt their busy schedule" and help "a complete stranger"?

I can't say that I have totally analyzed the answer to this but I do know, as a general statement, that a Scientologist will selflessly assist his fellow man.

The Scientology Volunteer Ministers is such a group that goes out and assists in any and all ways possible. This group is made of volunteers who don't get paid for what they do, leave their homes and family for extended periods of time and volunteer their time just to help others. Check it out for yourself on their site at www.volunteerministers.org.

And check out Tom Cruise, who as you know is also a Scientologist, in this article www.accesshollywood.com/news/ah1230.shtml

If you read the Scientology Code of Honor you will get more of an idea why Scientologists do what they do. This is what I found on the What Is Scientology site, starting with a quote from L. Ron Hubbard on the Scientology Code of Honor:

“No one expects the Code of Honor to be closely and tightly followed.

“An ethical code cannot be enforced. Any effort to enforce the Code of Honor would bring it into the level of a moral code. It cannot be enforced simply because it is a way of life which can exist as a way of life only as long as it is not enforced. Any other use but self-determined use of the Code of Honor would, as any Scientologist could quickly see, produce a considerable deterioration in a person. Therefore its use is a luxury use, and which is done solely on self-determined action, providing one sees eye to eye with the Code of Honor.

“If you believed man was worthy enough to be granted by you sufficient stature so as to permit you to exercise gladly the Code of Honor, I can guarantee that you would be a happy person. And if you found an occasional miscreant falling away from the best standards you have developed, you yet did not turn away from the rest of man, and if you discovered yourself betrayed by those you were seeking to defend and yet did not then experience a complete reversal of opinion about all your fellow men, there would be no dwindling spiral for you.

“The only difference between paradise on Earth and hell on Earth is whether or not you believe your fellow man worthy of receiving from you the friendship and devotion called for in this Code of Honor.”

1. Never desert a comrade in need, in danger or in trouble.

2. Never withdraw allegiance once granted.

3. Never desert a group to which you owe your support.

4. Never disparage yourself or minimize your strength or power.

5. Never need praise, approval or sympathy.

6. Never compromise with your own reality.

7. Never permit your affinity to be alloyed.

8. Do not give or receive communication unless you yourself desire it.

9. Your self-determinism and your honor are more important than your immediate life.

10. Your integrity to yourself is more important than your body.

11. Never regret yesterday. Life is in you today, and you make your tomorrow.

12. Never fear to hurt another in a just cause.

13. Don’t desire to be liked or admired.

14. Be your own adviser, keep your own counsel and select your own decisions.

15. Be true to your own goals.

2006-11-12T17:47:00.000-08:00

PSYCHIATRY An Industry of Death

Do you know much about psychiatry?

Have you ever wondered how 650,000 psychiatrists worldwide are permitted to practice their form of "mental healing" and not be held accountable after huge sums of money are paid to them and there are admittedly still "no cures." And in fact what they are doing is just resulting in family members, friends or loved ones rapidly getting worse - or even dying - under psychiatric treatment. At least 10% of them admitting to sexually abusing their patients. This is literally, 65,000 "professionals" whose "therapy" admittedly includes sexual abuse.

Here are some informational links I've put together on this important topic:

The Official Citizens Commission on Human Rights site: Investigating and Exposing Psychiatric Human Rights Abuse
www.cchr.org

This website provides an anatomy of terrorism, one which was not discussed in the media. It is, however, one that contributes considerable sense to what has been, to date, almost entirely unfathomable.
www.PsychAssault.org

PsychCrime.org contains a database of convicted mental health practitioners reported to CCHR International as a public interest service to law enforcement agencies, health care fraud investigators, immigration offices, international police agencies, medical and psychological licensing boards and the general public.

"In the last 15 years, the Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR) has collected data on the criminal conviction of over 1,200 mental health practitioners. In 2005, nearly half of all psychiatrists, psychologists and other mental health workers were convicted of sex crimes; 35% were convicted of fraud."
www.PsychCrime.org

AbleChild: Parents for Label and Drug Free Education consists of a growing number of parents outraged over both the subjective labeling (ADHD, ADD, OCD, ODD) and pervasive drugging of our children. Our organization's goal in creating this website is to provide information to parents regarding the many subjective labels and the risks associated with drug "treatment" that are critical to their ability in making an informed decision.
www.ablechild.org

Of the 650,000 psychiatrists and psychologists worldwide today, at least 10% of them admit to sexually abusing their patients 65,000 "professionals" whose "therapy" admittedly includes sexual abuse.
www.mental-health-abuse.org/abuseForm.html

The Real Crisis In Mental Health Today Report and recommendations on the lack of science and results within the mental health industry
www.mental-health-abuse.org/realCrisis.html

Massive Fraud Psychiatry's Corrupt Industry Report and recommendations on the criminal mental health monopoly
www.mental-health-abuse.org/massiveFraud.html

Psychiatric Hoax The Subversion of Medicine Report and recommendations on psychiatry's destructive impact on health care
www.mental-health-abuse.org/psychHoax.html

Pseudoscience Psychiatry's False Diagnoses Report and recommendations on the unscientific fraud perpetrated by psychiatry
www.mental-health-abuse.org/pseudoscience.html

Schizophrenia Psychiatry's For Profit 'Disease' Report and recommendations on psychiatric lies and
false diagnoses
www.mental-health-abuse.org/schizophrenia.html

The Brutal Reality Harmful Psychiatric 'Treatments' Report and recommendations on the destructive practices of electroshock and psychosurgery
www.mental-health-abuse.org/brutalReality.html

Psychiatric Rape Assaulting Women and Children Report and recommendations on widespread sex crimes against patients within the mental health system
www.mental-health-abuse.org/psychRape.html

Deadly Restraints Psychiatry's 'Therapeutic' Assault Report and recommendations on the violent and dangerous use of restraints in mental health facilities
www.mental-health-abuse.org/deadlyRestraints.html

Psychiatry Hooking Your World on Drugs Report and recommendations on psychiatry creating
today's drug crisis
www.mental-health-abuse.org/psychiatry.html

Rehab Fraud Psychiatry's Drug Scam Report and recommendations on methadone and other disastrous psychiatric drug 'rehabilitation' programs
www.mental-health-abuse.org/rehabFraud.html

Child Drugging Psychiatry Destroying Lives Report and recommendations on fraudulent psychiatric diagnosis and the enforced drugging of youth
www.mental-health-abuse.org/childDrugging.html

Harming Youth Psychiatry Destroys Young Minds Report and recommendations on harmful mental health assessments, evaluations and programs within our schools
www.mental-health-abuse.org/harmingYouth.html

Unholy Assault Psychiatry Versus Religion Report and recommendations on psychiatry's subversion of
religious belief and practice
www.mental-health-abuse.org/unholyAssault.html

Eroding Justice Psychiatry's Corruption of Law Report and recommendations on psychiatry subverting the courts and corrective services
www.mental-health-abuse.org/erodingJustice.html

Elderly Abuse Cruel Mental Health Programs Report and recommendations on psychiatry abusing
seniors
www.mental-health-abuse.org/elderlyAbuse.html

Chaos And Terror Manufactured by Psychiatry Report and recommendations on the role of psychiatry
in international terrorism
www.mental-health-abuse.org/chaosAndTerror.html

Creating Racism Psychiatry's Betrayal Report and recommendations on psychiatry causing racial conflict and genocide
www.mental-health-abuse.org/creatingRacism.html

2006-09-23T20:43:00.000-07:00

International Association of Scientologists - 2006

I just found a great Blog which gives the contact information and best deals for people traveling to UK for the 2006 International Association of Scientologists Event.

It lists the current best deals, Hotels, Bed and Breakfast places, Hostels and even camping sites for the more adventurous.

The event itself is not just a briefing to find out what's happening in the Scientology community. It's really the place to go if you really want to find out how Scientology is improving conditions on a global level. You find out what's been done so far and what the plans are for the future.

Check out iasmembership.org if you want to find out more information on the International Association of Scientologists (IAS). The home page explains...

"The IAS is the official membership organization of Scientology, the most vital movement on Earth today.

"A Scientologist is defined as "essentially one who betters the conditions of himself and the conditions of others by using Scientology technology."

"The IAS is made up of individual Scientologists who desire to change conditions on this planet for the better. Its purpose is:

"To unite, advance, support and protect the Scientology religion and Scientologists in all parts of the world, so as to achieve the aims of Scientology as originated by L. Ron Hubbard.

"Through their participation, membership fees and donations, members of the IAS support many efforts geared toward achieving the aims of Scientology." (more >>)

Here is the contact if you need help arranging your accommodations: iasevent2006accommodations@yahoo.co.uk

2006-09-09T21:40:00.000-07:00

Childhood Years

To go off on a tangent (though not totally a digression) I just want to say that my childhood was very sane and I was raised in a loving and caring environment where I was free to persue my own interests and was supported in doing so. My family liked the fact that I spent most of my growing years out skateboarding. And even in my teens, high school days and after I graduated and in College I was still spending a majority of my time skateboarding. I never once got any negative comments about how I was "wasting my time" or "Skateboarding is for kids" etc.

This, I believe, was due in most part because my parents are Scientologists. Here is an article, Scientologists Opt for "Hands-On" Parenting Solutions, which gives a little more in depth on how and why this would be.

2006-08-31T01:39:00.000-07:00

Take it to the streets series - Part 3

A piece of my past and streets of Hollywood.

This is really just a continuation of the streets of Los Angeles but as I grew up skating the streets of Hollywood I thought I would devote another post to this.

My first skateboard, was a tiny orange plastic skateboard when I was in the second grade and it's amazing to think back now how well I could ride that thing. I rode it for several years and I took it everywhere with me. I rode it in the dirt, in the grass but mostly a rode it around the concrete school grounds during recess periods and in my backyard when I got home from school.

Embarassingly, what I graduated to from this was rollerskates as my best friend was a roller skating fanatic. And it was really about competition and getting better than he was which I quickly did. This was one of those friends you remain competative with your whole life, it seems, no matter what the circumstances are. You always are comparing what you've done and accomplished in your life to this person. One such instance was at a skating rink, on a school field trip, where I raced against him and about 20 other kids and adults of all ages. I was probably the smallest kid there and I new that if I could muster up all my youthfull energy at the starting line and got off to a fast start I would avoid the inevitable collisions that could occur around the first turn.

As I predicted, almost the entire crowd of kids were fighting for a little patch of free space and literally tripping over each other as I sped to the lead, free and clear and led the pace for the three laps and only came in second at the last second because I slowed down, on the last lap, and wasn't paying close enough attention to the group of frenzied skaters gaining on my heels and frantically trying to catch me. Anyway, that was one of those fond childhood memories you later look back on.

I lost my point to that story and I was really only leading up to the fact that I soon graduated from spending my days rollerskating to purchasing an actual real wooden skateboard that I bought at a shop on Hollywood Blvd, about a block West of Vine called The Spot. I bascally had very little idea what I was buying and just bought it based on the cool skull graphics it had. Anyway these were the days of nose guards, rails, skid plates and lappers (a piece of plastic that goes over your back truck so you could lift the nose of your board over curbs and get up them with ease (this was in '81 or '82 before ollies, or atleast nobody I knew could ollie).

Anyway, now I was skateboarding home every day. (to be continued...)

2006-08-17T20:56:00.000-07:00

Take it to the streets series - Part 2

The Streets of Los Angeles

I grew up in Los Angeles, in the Hollywood area, and I have lived here all my life. When I tell people that (if they didn't themselves grow up in LA) they usually respond with some sort of derogatory comment about how bad it is here and how much better it is where they came from. This may or may not be true and may be why I like it here so much (some kind of ingrained attachment to your home-town which sticks with you) regardless of anything you can say that's bad about it. For me the reason I love it here in LA is the climate, the fact that you can go snowboarding the same day you sunbath on the beach, the fact that you can find basically anything you want to here, at anytime of the day or night, the entertainment industry, including some of the best theatres in the world and when you skate, there's an unlimited supply of concrete here.

Here is a list of some of my favorite places to frequent, in LA (these are not listed in any particular order):

Universal CityWalk is one of my favorite places to go to just catch a movie and eat. There's a wide variety of good places to eat and plenty of shops to look around in (to buy stuff you probably don't need). The fact that there are so many screens also means that even if you don't check what's playing or what the times are you most likely will find something playing that you want to see.

Melrose Avenue is basically where I grew up and I went to Fairfax High School which is on Melrose Ave. This street became popular while I was growing up and is now (and has been for awhile) one of the trendiest places in LA. One relatively new addition has been the Church of Scientology Mission of Melrose.

Citizens Commission on Human Rights (CCHR). Though I have to admit I haven't been there that many times, it is a place you need to visit if you're making a trip to LA. They have a state-of-the-art Museum that was featured on CNN. The Museum features 14 documentaries with statements from a number of health professionals, attorneys, educators and other experts; both historical and modern-day footage of psychiatry's barbaric treatments; and interviews with victims of psychiatric brutalities ranging from electroshock and involuntary commitment to political torture, psychosurgery and the devastating effects of psychotropic drugs. They have a whole bunch of information on Celebrities (including Kurt Cobain, Marilyn Monroe, etc.) and how their abuse and deaths are directly related to Psychiatric brutality.

Hollywood and Highland is also a cool place to see movies as they have the Kodak Theatre and are right next door to the Graumans Chinese Theatre. They also have a Hot Topic, Banana Republic, Cold Stone Creamery and Johnny Rockets.

Celebrity Centre International which recently hosted its 37th Anniversay Gala. The guest list included many of the Church’s well-known members, including John Travolta (the man), Kelly Preston, Jenna Elfman, Leah Remini, Giovanni Ribisi, Jason Dohring, Anne Archer, Sofia Milos and Nancy Cartwright. The legendary guest performer Chaka Kahn entertained guests including parishioners of the Church, local and federal government officials and community leaders.

Just as a little background, Celebrity Centre was founded in 1969. And there are mony other Celebrity Centres are located around the world including New York, Paris, Dallas, Nashville, Vienna, Florence and London. Celebrity Centres, like all churches of Scientology worldwide, are open to the public. I'm very familiar with Celebrity Centre International, in particular, as my best friend growing up lived there and I would play around there after school. Back in those days it wasn't as beautiful as it is now and a lot of the grounds were just dirt hills and ravines. Perfect for a kid to run around in, throw rocks at each other and build forts. Anyway, it was built as a luxury hotel/apartment house in 1929 and in 1992, the building and grounds were exquisitely restored to a level that exceeds its original design.

These Celebrity Centres are the arts and cultural branch of the Scientology religion and as such work with those whose broad visions for social enhancement are the catalyst for positive change in society. L. Ron Hubbard was the founder of Scientology and he held artists in a very high regard. L. Ron Hubbard’s words from 1951, “A culture is only as great as its dreams, and its dreams are dreamed by artists,”

As far as skate spots, I would have to say all up and down Wilshire Boulevard from the beach to downtown LA, has a wide variety of choice, spots. From stairs to handrails to ledges to all kinds of random stuff. For some reason Hollywood High has been a popular place for the past couple years and you'll almost always find skaters out in front. I would have to say that almost everywhere I go in LA I can find something to skate. Even if it's just a little random curb that doesn't look like anything particularly, I may find myself skating there for hours. One of my daily skate routines used to be skating down Hollywood Blvd to Vine and then skating down Vine, which turns in to Rossmore and then all the way down hits Wilshire. From Wilshire I would skate down to La Brea and then down to Olympic to a friends house. Sometimes from there we would literally skate up to Santa Monica and then skate all the way down to Santa Monica beach and then up and down the coast, Venice, etc. And always hitting the good spots along the way.

Anyway, enough of this, I'm going skating...

2006-08-16T22:24:00.000-07:00

Take it to the streets series - Part 1

The Streets of San Francisco

Though I've visited and traveled through San Francisco literally hundreds of times (having lived in Sonoma County) I unfortunatly never got the opportunity (or made the opportunity) to skate there. The times I did happen to drive through with my parents or the countless lunch and break times while I was studying at the Church of Scientology in San Francisco (taking a study course) I frequently pondered the terrain.

Most commonly I looked to the steep hills and how they were a literal concrete playground with driveways and ledges and various other obstacles. It also always reminded me of watching the Search for Animal Chin video section with Guerrero effortlessly skating these downhills with the utmost precision and confidence. I literally watched these downhill sequences more times than I can remember.

Now while traveling through San Francisco not only do I admire the skate terrain but I also gravitate to the beautiful architecture of the old historical buildings of the area. Which brings me back to the Church of Scientology of San Francisco and their beautifully restored, historic building.

In the heart of San Francisco, directly across the street from the world-famous TransAmerica Pyramid, is the sparkling new home of the Church of Scientology of San Francisco.

Bordering on three of the most vital and active sections of the city — the financial district, upscale North Beach and sprawling Chinatown — this building is an important historic landmark built in 1909. The rich style of the original building is carried throughout, with the dark beech wood furniture, velvet drapes and other details. You can go through the photo tour of the org here.

This organization was also fortunate enough to have the Keynote address for this opening delivered by Mr. David Miscavige who is the Chairman of the Board Religious Technology Center. If you go the the Church's website you can read through the full opening.

In this opening Mr. David Miscavige speaks of L. Ron Hubbard and his fondness for the city. Here's a little excerpt from his address during the opening, "It was here, as a young boy, he boarded the U.S.S. Grant for a cruise that would take him through the Panama Canal, en route to Washington DC. Yet more significant than his destination, were the events of that voyage. Specifically, it's where he met and befriended Commander "Snake" Thompson, a man who had studied under Sigmund Freud, at the behest of the United States Navy.

"And while LRH soon discovered those answers left much to be desired, in terms of unlocking the riddle of the mind, it was the catalyst for a young L. Ron Hubbard to embark on a life's journey to find them.

"Then, four years later in 1927, it was San Francisco again where LRH boarded the President Madison en route to Guam. It was an era when very few Westerners, of any age, had experienced, let alone knew about the ancient wisdom of the East extending back thousands of years."

If you want to hear more about What Scientology is you can read "An Overview of the World's Fastest Growing Religion - This is Scientology", by Mr. David Miscavige. This was delivered at Celebrity Centre International in Los Angeles, CA.

After having said all that, I am vowing to make an effort to visit this city in the near future and bring my board, this time. And when I do I will make sure I update my blog with all the skate photos, I've taken.

I'll end this post with a photo of Tommy Guerrero ripp'n it up in the streets of SF. :)

2006-08-13T13:57:00.000-07:00

Professional Skateboarder, Actor and Scientologist - Steve Berra

Stephen (Steve) Berra, is one of the world's best professional skateboarders, a very talented actor and dedicated Scientologist. He was born on May 10, 1973 in the city of St. Louis, Missouri.

He's had many sponsors to support his skating career. Examples are:

The Foundation Super Company
Birdhouse Projects
Orion Trucks
Pig Wheels
Billabong Clothing
Airwalk Shoes

Read an Active interview with Steve Berra.

Trick Tip - Kickflip Backside Tailslides By Steve Berra

1. The secret to this trick is the backside tailslide and a decent backside flip.

2. The angle on this one should be pretty much parallel-not totally, but more parallel with the ledge than not. Another key is to really look at your board. I've found that sometimes when I don't look at my board, I don't seem to make it. I'm either looking at the ledge, the ground, or somewhere else. I know it sounds ridiculous, but you'd be amazed how often it happens.

3. Anyway, look at your board and roll parallel with the ledge. Do it like you're backside flipping, but really focus on your board flipping into your back foot. It should hop right on the ledge.

4. Make sure your head's down and you're looking at your board-that's what makes it easy to ride away fakie. To land

forward, look over your shoulder like a debutante; and to ride away fakie, look down, keeping your shoulders rotating backside and your back foot sweeping behind you. Hell, I guess that's it-roll away and feel sweet.

5. These things are so hard to explain-there's just no substitute for practice.

Actor and Scientologist - Jason Lee

Jason Lee has a rather unique background for an actor: he started out as a professional skateboarder. In 1995, Lee made his feature film debut as Brodie Bruce in Kevin Smith's sophmore effort, Mallrats. Lee went on to play the wise-cracking roommate Banky Edwards in Smith's next film, Chasing Amy, and then acted in the made-for-HBO movie Weapons of Mass Distraction, the Will Smith-starrer Enemy of the State, Kevin Smith's Dogma, and Lawrence Kasdan's Mumford...

Read the rest of his interview.

Jason Lee is a Southern California boy, as I am, and I grew up admiring him as a professional skateboarder and buying his decks and stuff. I only found out a couple years ago, through Celebrity Centre International, that he is also a Scientologist and I have admired him and his career even more, ever since. He had one of the main roles in one my my all time favorite movies Almost Famous where he plays the lead singer. He also played opposite Tom Cruise in Vanilla Sky which I also thought was really great. This was even cooler because of the fact that Tom Cruise is also a Scientologist, as I'm sure you already know.

	Assists for Illnesses & Injuries Learn how to administer the same procedures used by the Volunteer Ministers who helped thousands at disaster sites in New York City, Oklahoma, Kosovo, Kobe, Japan and many others. They’re in the booklet, Assists for Illnesses and Injuries by L. Ron Hubbard. But these techniques have a much broader range and use. Because people get hurt and sick in the business of living, the “assists” you’ll learn from this booklet can be applied any time, anywhere and bring spiritual relief to the pain and suffering of people in your family and community. More \| Order Now >>
	The Emotional Tone Scale You can predict other people’s behavior. You are living life and things don’t always go the way you had predicted. You may have a spouse and he is not as you had imagined, so what do you do? You now have no way out. How can you prevent this? You are in business and the deal just fell through. How can you predict what is going to happen in the future? How do you know who to trust? Life and relationships can sometimes be fragile. You can improve your relationships and know who to associate with. More \| Order Now >>
	Answers to Drugs There is an answer to drugs. Effective. Proven. The discoveries in the booklet, Answer to Drugs, by L. Ron Hubbard, has salvaged lives ruined by drug and alcohol abuse. It gets results. Learn the real reason behind substance abuse. Find out the truth about how drugs affect the human spirit and mind. And what you can DO ABOUT IT! It’s practical, easy-to-use and understand. Simple steps to use to help someone kick the drug habit. Order now and start reading. More \| Order Now >>
	Marriage Build and strengthen any marriage or relationship. Here in one booklet is a simple, yet powerful technology for use in building successful and lasting relationships, even when it seems all hope has ended. Something can be done to alleviate the pain and anguish connected to marital difficulties. There are practical tools for restoring any marriage, no matter how badly it’s been torn apart. These solutions come with the best recommendations of all: they WORK. Get the Marriage booklet by L. Ron Hubbard and discover how relationships fall apart in the first place, and learn the practical and effective tools to improve and rebuild them. More \| Order Now >>
	Components of Understanding What constitutes understanding? Know the answer to that and you have the secret to handling life itself. In the booklet, The Components of Understanding, you’ll learn about the magic triangle which makes or breaks life; how to heal a breach in a relationship, and exactly how to prevent that breach; how to avoid conflicts; how to make new friends; how to repair a friendship that seems beyond hope. Read it and know how to understand people and situations. And THAT opens the door to helping people FOR REAL. More \| Order Now >>
	Children Help build your child’s future. Find answers—workable answers—in the revolutionary booklet, Children, by L. Ron Hubbard. Here are simple and effective ways to understand and help your child become a healthy, happy, loving and productive member of society. Discover basic principles about raising children and a wealth of easy-to-apply exercises you can use right now to bring out the best in any child—and the best in you. More \| Order Now >>
	More Publications: Basics Of Organizing Cause Of Suppression, The Communication Dynamics Of Existence, The Ethics And The Conditions Fundamentals Of Public Relations How To Resolve Conflicts Integrity And Honesty Investigations Solutions For A Dangerous Environment Targets and Goals Tools For The Workplace

Silver Skater

Communication

Communication Testimonials & Results

More Scientology Volunteer Ministers Publications

Assists for Illnesses & Injuries

The Emotional Tone Scale

Answers to Drugs

Marriage

Components of Understanding

Children

More Publications:

Scientology Churches – Around the World