Bare-Faced Messiah (PDF) - Apologetics Index

idea (this was while we were at Hemet). She'd already been in jail once. In conversation between
Hubbard and me before I went, he said he'd divorce her to "sever any connection with her". I was
shocked, I remember afterwards thinking, how did he think a divorce would make him any less
culpable? Later I heard Pat Broeker saying that Hubbard was talking about divorcing Mary Sue to
put himself at a distance from the GO's actions.
Mary Sue was in LA when I went to see her. She had a house off Mulholland Drive overlooking the
valley, a fairly posh area. There was a point earlier when she had been told he was going to divorce
her and she was extremely upset. The fact that after all she had done for him and the fact that there
had been numerous opportunities to betray him - she had already covered up for him - and she
had taken so much brunt, she couldn't even believe he would think that was letting her face the
music. That had an eye-opening effect on me.
He could be capable of incredible cruelty. On the ship there was an old man on the Royal Scotman
who he made push a peanut round the decks with his nose. He had to get down on his hands and
knees, he had to go round the deck, quite a long distance in a race with one or two others also in
trouble. The first one back got let off and the last one got a double penalty. It was really tough on
this old guy, Charlie Reisdorf. The surface of the deck was very rough wood, prone to splinter, so
after pushing peanuts with their noses, they all had raw, bleeding noses, leaving a trail of blood
behind them. I not only saw it but the entire crew of the ship was mustered - a mandatory
attendance - we were required to watch this punishment, to make an example of it for the rest of us.
Reisdorf was in his late 50s probably. His two daughters were messengers, they were 11 or 12 at
time and his wife was there also. It was hard to say which was worse to watch: this old guy with a
bleeding nose or his wife and kids sobbing and crying at being forced to watch this. Hubbard was
standing there calling the shots, yelling, "Faster, Faster!". It was indignity, degradation and breaking
a person's will, and making people watch. It was disgusting.
They used to have people locked in the chain locker, including small children. It was very
dangerous because if the anchor started to slip and start running out, it would turn a body into pulp
in no time at all. I saw children locked up in the chain locker.
He had a birthday party on March 13 1968; there was a woman who he ordered locked in the chain
locker. During the party he had her brought out. She was filthy, covered with dirt and rust, and had
not been allowed to wash or change clothes - she had been in there a week. She was pretty dirty -
he brought her out to the party, he said he was giving her a reprieve and permitting her to come to
the party, as if that was a nice gesture. She still wasn't allowed to wash or change, so she was
brought to the party and had to stay and later she was returned [to the locker]. He said he was
giving her a reprieve but it was just flaunting her degradation. It had looked like things were
lightening up a little, people thought maybe things were getting better, then this happened and
people were shocked and it gave us a sinister chill. She was in a dress.
Why did people stand by? Another common reason was that if a person doesn't make waves they
hope to rise up high enough in the org to get to a position of authority, to the top of the org board
and "I'll be able to change it." A very high percentage of staff hoped that one day they would be able
to change it.
From time to time, Hubbard would cancel such activities, like the chain locker, and blame it on
someone else. He said that no one was to be put into the chain locker by his order or decree, and
Baron Burez was an evil monster for having chain lockered people. Baron was a US crew member
and went into disfavour. He would start such pronouncements with, "It has just come to my
attention that..."