Mx. Chara Aznable (they/them) of PnictogenThere are two errors into which persons can fall about #LRonHubbard. One is to disbelieve in his significance. The other is to believe, and to feel an excessive and unhealthy interest in him. In the 1990s and early 2000s there flourished a lively geek-culture obsession with Hubbard and #Scientology in which I participated to a small degree, drawn like a moth to a flame whose fuel was supplied by the somewhat unhealthful fascination which cults of all sorts exert upon the skeptical and overconfident minds of young nerds of the sort who imagine that it's easy to refute #Christianity merely by pointing out that virgins don't usually give birth, or by quoting Richard Dawkins.
Christianity may seem like an easy mark for skeptics and "rational" persons, but I daresay that even the most brazen and breezy dismisser of the Jesus-cult must be forced to concede, under pressure, that no matter how ridiculous the premises of Christianity seem to them and no matter how obviously wrong seem the assertions of Bible-bashers, Christianity isn't exactly doing that badly for itself. There are more nonbelievers than ever, but #Christian organizations and Christian propagandists (e.g. Christofascist politicians and pundits) still wield a frightful degree of power and unquestioned authority in the United States and "the West". Attacking Christianity is scarcely the ticket to an easy life or the satisfaction of racking up decisive victories against a sinister social force. Jim Bakker is still around, for fecking sake!
So...why not pick an easier target? That, I suggest, has been a motivation for focusing upon Scientology as an avatar and embodiment of the evils of irrationality and religious devotion.