Scientology spoof site has its own cult following

The Church of Scientology has lived up to its litigious reputation once again, this time threatening court action against a New Zealand-based Web site that satirizes Tom Cruise and his affiliation to the organization.

The site, ScienTOMogy.info, states in its introduction that it is in no way affiliated with the church and links those who may have gotten there inadvertently to the church's official home page. ScienTOMogy also labels its spoof videos and other material as "satirical." Still, church officials are claiming copyright infringement over the domain name.

Bloggers, many of whom say they consider Scientology a cult rather than a religion, have noted that the legal action has given ScienTOMogy a cult following of its own. The site has gone from getting 100 hits a day to more than 1 million in a matter of hours, according to a ScienTOMogy blog. The blog goes on to say that its founder would be willing to change the site's name to "Passion of Cruise," but he won't relinquish the ScienTOMogy domain name to the church. Incidentally, the site can now also be viewed at www.passionofcruise.info.

Blog community response:

"I hope these guys have deep pockets. Scientology has a history of burying opponents with lawsuits, and they do have deep pockets."
-- Skeptico

"Even though the site's clearly not a Church-approved re-seller of refurbished e-meters, it's not without potential value to Scientology. What could be a better recruitment tool than insinuating that spiritual seekers willing to join the COS will gain the ability to kill Oprah with enchanted lightning?"
--Defamer

"ScienTOMogy is only part satire, and what is satire is clearly labeled 'SATIRE.' Two-thirds of the main page consists exclusively of downloadable video evidence of Tom's manic panic to save the world from, I don't know, rational thinking?"
--OddVitamins