Walden: Gabbard Cult Hires Scientology Lawyer to Intimidate Hawaii Media

Hawai’i Free Press: Birds of a feather flock together.

With Tulsi Gabbard running for President, her cult guru, Chris Butler, is lawyering up.  The Star-Advertiser, January 27, 2019, reports:

…Butler and the Science of Identity Foundation hired a Beverly Hills, Calif., attorney who threatened to sue the newspaper. Their primary focus was on ensuring the Star-Advertiser didn’t publish allegations from people who say they were former practitioners of the religion, including two who told the newspaper they grew up listening to Butler’s lectures.

The “false allegations” under consideration by the newspaper “paint our clients as charlatans and hypocrites,” said attorney Anthony Glassman, in a letter to the Star-Advertiser. He said that if published it “will severely damage SIF’s and Mr. Butler’s well-­deserved reputation in their community, as religious, spiritual and moral guides (and Ms. Butler’s reputation as a yoga instructor.)”

Glassman is known for his years of work suppressing media coverage of the Scientology cult – with a special focus on preventing former cult members from speaking out.  A 2009 Tampa Bay Times article titled, “Three of Scientology’s elite parishioners keep faith, but leave the church” includes this:

Responding for the church, Los Angeles lawyer Anthony Michael Glassman said it’s “astonishing” the Times is giving “a public platform for the views of disgruntled and biased former members. …”

Attempting in 2014 to shut down media inquiries into Scientology’s Narconon front group, Glassman drew derision from Scientology critics:

He would not win a lawsuit based on the article. Glassman is like Tom Cruise’s attorney, Bert Fields (and the same age of 74) – all smoke & hot air. 

Most threats are toothless – they have not sued media in 14 years. MORE