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Gold Base (also variously known as Gold, Int Base, or Int) is the international headquarters of the Church of Scientology. It is located in Riverside County, California to the north of San Jacinto and about from Los Angeles. The heavily guarded compound comprises about 50 buildings surrounded by high fences topped with blades and watched around the clock by patrols, cameras and motion detectors. The property is bisected by a public road, which is closely monitored by the Church with cameras recording passing traffic. The Church of Scientology acquired the property, which had formerly been a resort called Gilman Hot Springs, in 1978. It had previously been a popular Inland Empire vacation spot and spa established in the 1890s but went bankrupt in the late 1970s due to changes in American vacation habits. Bought for cash in great secrecy by the Church, using the alias of the "Scottish Highland Quietude Club," it has since been developed and expanded considerably. The base now houses numerous Church organizations and subsidiaries, including its in-house media production division, Golden Era Productions, which has its own movie studio on the site. The Church's leader David Miscavige and other senior church officials live and work on the base. It is also the location of a $10 million mansion built for Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Although he never lived there before his death in 1986, the mansion and his living quarters are still maintained in anticipation of his predicted reincarnation. A number of prominent Scientologists have studied Scientology at Gold Base, notably Tom Cruise. Up to 1,000 members of the Sea Org, the elite "inner core" of the Church of Scientology, live and work on the base. Conditions are said to be harsh, with staff members paid only $50 for a 100-hour week and subjected to punishments for failing to meet work quotas. Media reports have stated that around 100 people a year try to escape from the base but most are soon caught and returned by "pursuit teams". Despite many accounts of mistreatment from ex-members, law enforcement investigations and lawsuits against the Church have been thwarted by the First Amendment's guarantees of religious freedom and the Church's ability to rely on "ministerial exemptions" in employment law. The Church denies any mistreatment and calls the base "the ideal setting for professional and spiritual growth".〔 ==Description== Gold Base is located at the base of the San Jacinto Mountains. The base covers an area of in unincorporated Riverside County, California, outside of San Jacinto, and north of Hemet. It is at or near 19625 Gilman Springs Road, Gilman Hot Springs, California, 92583 and is bisected by a public highway, Gilman Springs Road, just off California State Route 79. It consists of two compounds on either side of the road with underground pedestrian tunnels connecting them. Both parts of the property are surrounded by a chain link fence topped with "Ultra Barrier" spikes and razor wire, with motion sensors and lights about every . There are five heavily guarded gates into the base, three on the south side of Gilman Spring Roads and two on the north.〔 A Scientology spokesperson, Catherine Fraser, told the ''Valley Chronicle'' newspaper that the spikes on the fences were intended to "prevent people and animals from intruding." When asked why half of the spikes face inwards towards the interior of the compound (as pictured below), Church spokesman Tommy Davis told KESQ-TV that "that's just how they were installed." There are around 50 buildings on the property, many built in a mock-Scottish Highlands style.〔 Most are obscured from public view by tall hedges and high walls, monitored by video cameras.〔 According to the local ''Riverside Press-Enterprise'' newspaper, Scientology employees in uniform and guards on motorcycles can be glimpsed by motorists through the metal fence that surrounds the compound. Although the road that goes through the middle of the compound is public property, the church has installed video cameras and lights adjacent to traffic signs to record traffic heading in both directions. 抄文引用元・出典: フリー百科事典『 ウィキペディア（Wikipedia）』 ■ウィキペディアで「Gold Base」の詳細全文を読む スポンサード リンク
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