He Was ALWAYS The Mad Bomber

On July 28, 1943, a U.S. Navy lieutenant ordered his minesweeper to use the isles for target practice. By the time the PC-815's third shell slammed into South Island – the chain's only inhabited island – the Mexican government was angrily protesting to its U.S. allies.

The lieutenant lost his command. “Consider this officer lacking in the essential qualities of judgment, leadership and cooperation,” read the official reprimand. That officer was L. Ron Hubbard, the future science fiction writer and founder of Scientology.

-- Peter Rowe, R-Calif., reminding us that, early on, the U.S. Navy saw in the cult leader what the rest of us now know, in The San Diego Union-Tribune.