Anonymous VS Scientology in Vancouver

taken from a local site, personally i dont think I feel really "against" scientology, but I felt fairly disgusted and akward after watching all 4 parts of the "Scientology and me" Videos, for Anyone who doesnt know there are worldwide protests going on against Scientology by "Anon" a group formed over the internet with the purpose of being an anonymous voice against the "cult" another protest will happen the weekend after L Ron hubbard's birthday [the founder and creator of scientology, a fictional author from the 60's]

So I went downtown today to take a look at the scientology protest by Anonymous. As I walked towards the offices, it looked like a typical Sunday; a few people on the sidewalk, but mostly empty streets.



As I got closer to the scientology offices, however, I saw the people out in front of the scientology offices. Not a bad turnout, all things considered!



Not as many, but still; a signholder and some pamphlet tossers! I start to cross the street yet again...and what should I see?

yep, that's right. A third group of anonymous. Now, at this point, you're probably thinking "hah. 20 people. Look at those internet nerds just geeking away. But before you finish that thought, you should see this:

 

This sign was responded to by a chorus of boos by the crowd, however let it not be said that a group without a leader cannot take initiative.



I proceeded at that point, to work the crowd, acquiring the aforementioned pamplets and leaflets. While there, I ran in to two people who I recognized (while they were part of the protest, they were oddly not anonymous, not wearing masks and showing their faces freely), who fortunately returned the favour I gave him by not acknowledging me with anything more than a nod.

As I wondered through the crowd, however, I was confronted by the most disturbing part of the entire protest.



This guy. He's a member/worker/part of the CoS, and was wandering through the crowd using a videocamera to record peoples' faces, and the actions of the crowd.

Now, while I can understand using a videocamera on the protesters, monitoring any trouble, dealing with any problems, I was thoroughly creeped out with how he acted towards me.

I was carrying a camera, and had been wandering through the crowds asking for information, taking pictures, and just generally getting a feel for the situation. He saunters over from the main doors of the scientology building, walks behind me, and then circles around in front as I'm taking pictures to get a shot of my face.


While I don't actually fear for any kind of retribution, it is an interesting psychological tactic, and highly orwellian. What it says is, "We're watching.". And to be honest, it was the most unsettling part of the entire protest. As I took that picture, he moved his videocamera in front of his face to try and hide it--an odd action for someone who is undoubtedly "Simply taking these videos for our own protection and to ensure that no damage or harm comes to scientology property". At least, that's probably what their PR people and spinmasters will have to say about it.



In any case, I decided to take one last group picture before I took off (plans with friends) and snapped this one, and it looks to me as though the crowd had grown in the half-hour I was there.



As I got on the bus to go back home, and it slowed near the protest again, guess who I saw across the street from the actual church?



Yep. It's him. Again.

Seriously, he gave me the fucking creeps.




All in all, I thought it was a very well-organized and well-done protest. There was one crazy guy yelling and on the megaphone, but he seemed to have some serious emotional beef with the Church, which actually interested me. When we think about these kinds of things, we think in terms of past statistics, we think in terms of large groups, and, if you'll forgive the term, Anonymous people who aren't really us.

Several times, people honked their horns spontaneously, and to be honest, I was quite surprised at the variety of people who were honking and giving support. A shitty old 80s tercel beater, an E46 bimmer, several busses, a couple trucks, a guy riding a bicycle flipping scientologists the finger...it seems like anonymous was right; they truly ARE all walks of life, not just the youthful computer nerds (although it seemed that they were in the majority).


The most informative of all the documents is available online, and it outlines the rationales behind the protests, as well as the goals Anonymous has set for themselves.

http://docs.google.com/view?docid=dcgn7gtc_12d3f8hsd2


The scientologists were much less agressive about handing out their materials, and seemed simply to have L Ron Hubbard's dianetics book out for sale, along with an E-meter (the thing they use for testing). Around 12.40 or so, they started to play what seemed to be a recruiting speech with background music, but it wasn't loud enough to be carried over the sound of traffic, so I haven't a clue what was said.


Final feelings: It was an orderly protest, but I'm not entirely sure how much was accomplished, at least at this one. There is another protest scheduled for Sunday the 24th, and if they keep them up, then perhaps they'll finally make an impact.

Personally, I had no specific negative feelings towards scientology, and I always kind of laughed when I heard about them doing recruitment drives, and thought that people who said they were being followed or videotaped by scientologists were paranoid or just the exception.

I can honestly say that while I don't have negative feelings towards scientology, I feel distinctly uneasy thinking about their reaction to the protest.

Next up: signs spotted at the protest.

Scientology and me part 1

Scientology and me part 2

Scientology and me part 3

Scientology and me part 4

 

hmn whats scientology? animal testing or something? sorry this isnt stupidity, just ignorance < i have no research or knowledge on what your talking about

everyone seems to be covering theyre faces as if they were the kkk or something. honestly, if that guy was treating me in same manner as you, and popping up all over, i would be freaked also.

 

Its some wacked out religion that thinks were made of clay and put here by some alien from mars 20 billion years ago or some stupid thing like that.

 

I don't blame you since you don't live in the us.. Read this from wikipedia:

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Scientology

I think I first heard about scientology because of tom crusie. I saw little "book stores" in this little college town that I lived in once with that word on the store front, and I wondered what does that mean?? But then I found out what it really is, and it's basically just a crock of shit started by some crack pot trying to make money by starting a cult. I seriously lost ALL respect for these famous actors and actresses who believe in it. Including will smit, john travolta, tom cruise, and a LOT more.

It's based on this dumb ass who wanted to start his own religion to make money. Ron L Hubbard or whatever, and it worked! That's the sick part.

 

I heard about this as well.

The London protest looks pretty damn big.

 

^Its a religon started by a science fiction writter, whom on his death bed admitted that it was a load of shit, started to get money.

Your a southpark fan greenz. Go watch the episode (trapped in the closet) its late in the ninth season. Its all about it.

 

thats not stupid at all, well the religion factor yes but not the idea. for years and years ive never heard of this, but thought of it and its still one of my posible 4 reason how we are what we are.

my idea is:
were an experiment, put here by another species to see what becomes of us. just like we do with fish, we put em in the tank - where theres possibilty of survival and just check up on them for medical purposes. maybe its a test to see the long term effects of this planets atmosphere, like maybe we only have emotions because of this galaxy for example. to express myself fully it would take a while, so unless anyone is truelly interested i wont.
but this thought truelly isnt outcasted for me, i could very easily except this as truth if evidence came up which would pull it out of the theory bin. and its not clay, right now were fucking with genetic engineering, interspecies mating and all these other unnatural methods - fuck knows what we might develop in 50years, and ofc it will need to be tested. for all you know we could be a time capsule with a cell sent off to space, reacted in this particular area of the universe due to say bib bang, and evolved to its environment.

yet as i said, i dont want to type a 10 page long post since no one will care, this just a brief summary of my personal ideas and theorys.
But im completely discusted someone turned this into religion, like fucking hell seriously < thats saddening. escaping the in most cases needless boundaries of common religions for a free theory like this? fuck me.

But most of all, why protest against it? if some ppl want to pray to aliens (which IF the are involved in the similar methods described) then let them, its just innocent stupidity waaaay bellow the IQ of a little puppy, i mean maybe were here to be destroyed when the test ends, maybe they dont even give a fuck about us. MAYBE WERE JUST AN ACCIDENT that evolved into a species we are now. ofc its stupid, but protest against serious matters, not simple oppinions and money littering.

 

aaaaaaaah, i read a wee little bit of the wiki, and i must say - fuck this shit, i thought it was an innocent theory about our beginings < turns out a god thing xD

 

ive seen it once < but mustve missed alot. will do m8








AND BTW SORRY ABOUT 3 POSTS, I feel too lazy to copy and paste quotes into one page tonight :/

 

Yeh but scientology has a massive bullshit story.. not only the 'put here by alien' thing.. loads of crap to do with volcanoes and spirits n stuff.

And in relation to your theory.. it's the same as the one in 'the hitch hikers guide to the galaxy'. The earth and all its people were created by aliens to find out the ultimate question to the ultimate answer (which is 42). We as people act like electricity in a computer.. but ofcourse thats only a book.

 

^ well another theory of mine is (thought of when coming down from alot of weed, while smoking a cigg and looking at it) :

we are part of something. like you see an apple. theres a nucleus, a cell, little fibers, seeds, tree, fruits < repeat. you know people say universe is endless, and thinking about this for longer then a few minutes results in a headache and complete mind fuck, but i believe its endless not in volume, but in entity in an entity. that nucleus in the cell could be a completely different galaxy, yet its part of the seed. we could be some sort of beind idea thing inside a object in a completely different reality. once again it would take long and its hard describing what im thinking and picturing, but its just a brief example.







OH and the cigg helped me realise it lol, how a little bit of it burned, and you see it branch off, and then even out again for a few sec, and then a whole bunch burn off again. just made me think how a universe could have just been desrtoyed, and how we are just something part of something else.

OFC this is theory, and one of many open personal beliefs, not a worshipped truth


OH and also, ive never seen that film, will watch it thought. but sounds dumb, theres no real reason, were just here, we might be part of something alot bigger, but its most likely far from something we would be able to handle

=)

 

before you post anymore in this thread green actually read up and watch the video's i posed in the latter half of my post

People are protesting against it because people they know are being sucked in and killed, commiting suicide, and completely taking over their lives by taking them away from their families permanently in an attempt to be true to scientology

the main difference between normal religions and scientology is that normal religions dont cost thousands upon thousands of dollars to be a part of, when i Say commit suicide, many many people have commited suicide because of the debt they have put themselves into through trying to be a part of the church

Watch those Scientology and Me videos i posted and it will give u alot more insight on their style and ability, it's not really a small thing anymore as thousands of people are protesting against it all over the world.

 

The group protesting is mainly made up of racist internet nerds from 4chan.org and they aren't doing it for any good 'moral' reason... they are just doing it to stir shit up. Seriously.. they don't know the members of the church who died.. they don't really have a reason for protesting.

Also, the church of scientology is legal.. it doesn't take part in any illegal operations.. sure it takes alot of money off of people.. but stupid is as stupid does. We can't stop people legally giving all their money to a church that is just a bullshity as the christian religion..

Thousands of people gamble all their money away every day in casinos.. why aren't there protests about that?

I agree that the protests might be fun.. or what not.. but there is no real good reason.

 

Anonymous doesn't forgive and doesn't forget. Anonymous is legion.

 

I can respect a Scientologist's right to their beliefs. However I feel uneasy about everything I have heard, and if what I have heard is true then I think it is wrong. Neglecting the sick, killing those who break the rules? I can understand no medications, but the things they (may) have done? Atrocities.
The belief that we were put here by aliens does have a vague sort of merit, just about as much as us all being descended from a single couple made directly by god (who also cast out an independent woman who was Adam's equal, but thats another story I suppose). Its the carrying out of the faith that is suspicious, frightening, and possibly dangerous.

 

what's the only difference between a religion and a cult? 50 years.

jesus i love that joke.

 

Scientologists are trying to infiltrate and take over governments. They already have in Clearwater, Florida. These protests are educating others and for that I strongly support them and believe they are important in helping to stop the spread of scientology.

 

We live in a democracy.. if they get into our government it will be because they were voted in fairly.. thats democracy for you.. if everyone gets brainwashed by scientology.. you can't do anything about it.. because the majority always wins.

 

I dont see where racism comes in to play

and the Co$ have had many many documented illegal actions which were overlooked or bribed away