Friday, August 1, 2008
Shout Out to a New Blog
I've been asked to give mention to the Central PA Anon Blog. If any of you find yourselves out that way at protest time, give them a look.
August Protest
According to enturbulation.org, the next protest will occur on August 16th. Unfortunately, I'm not going to be able to make it to this one either, due to work -- I missed three weeks of it to study abroad, and I need money/to not irritate management further, and desperately.
However, I am switching to a new job with no/minimal weekend hours once school starts, so I should be able to make it to protests again starting in September.
Are there any college Anons planning to be back in Pittsburgh by the sixteenth? I know my school doesn't start until a week or two after that, but from what I recall Pitt and a few other local ones start significantly earlier. I know we lost a lot of participants due to summer breaks.
Also, since our numbers have been down, we definitely need some new recruitment ideas. Thoughts?
And here is the current link to our thread on enturb.
However, I am switching to a new job with no/minimal weekend hours once school starts, so I should be able to make it to protests again starting in September.
Are there any college Anons planning to be back in Pittsburgh by the sixteenth? I know my school doesn't start until a week or two after that, but from what I recall Pitt and a few other local ones start significantly earlier. I know we lost a lot of participants due to summer breaks.
Also, since our numbers have been down, we definitely need some new recruitment ideas. Thoughts?
And here is the current link to our thread on enturb.
Monday, July 21, 2008
Maxim article - epic win!
http://forums.enturbulation.org/15-media/anonymous-august-maxim-magazine-22236/
Yeah, yeah, Maxim isn't exactly the most reputable news source, people don't read it for the articles, blah blah blah, but I still think this is pretty cool.
Yeah, yeah, Maxim isn't exactly the most reputable news source, people don't read it for the articles, blah blah blah, but I still think this is pretty cool.
Thursday, July 10, 2008
This Saturday
If anyone has an interest in serving as a police liaison for this protest, please email me at missanonymouspgh@gmail.com for the phone number of my contact from the last protest. I am in London for the month and will not be protesting in Pittsburgh on Saturday.
Saturday, June 21, 2008
July Protest
Okay, so yes, the June protest was a wash- only five people, and really lousy weather. Like I said before, I will not be able to make it to the July protest, as I will be in London, so I need a volunteer who will definitely be there on the 12th, so that I can pass on Sgt. Washington's number in case we need police intervention in July.
And yeah, a flyer campaign around the area wouldn't be a bad idea.
And yeah, a flyer campaign around the area wouldn't be a bad idea.
Friday, June 13, 2008
New Police Contact Anon
As some of you may already know, I will not be at the July protest in Pittsburgh, because I'm studying abroad in London. I will continue updating the blog, but I'm looking for someone to temporarily replace me as a police contact for that month's protest. Hopefully, since our current contact, Sgt. Washington, is supposed to be working tomorrow, and we're meeting at the station, I can introduce the volunteer to be the next contact to him, and have the two of you exchange information tomorrow. If anyone's interested, comment here tonight or tell me tomorrow.
Thursday, June 12, 2008
A Few Things About Saturday.
Since we ran into problems meeting up and getting ready outside the problematic store, this time I think we should all meet outside the nearby police station and walk over.
Here is a map.
Also, any good sign slogan ideas for Sea Arrrgh? I have a blank poster board and no ideas for it.
Here is a map.
Also, any good sign slogan ideas for Sea Arrrgh? I have a blank poster board and no ideas for it.
Monday, June 2, 2008
Phone Tag Over!
I finally got Sgt. Washington on the phone today. He says we're fine across the street from the Scientology building and that if this guy makes threats again to file a police report. We just need to be very careful to keep moving around and to not block anything. Walking up and down that sidewalk would not be a bad idea, just to be safe. He says he will be working that day and I should call him directly if we have any problems with other police officers telling us to leave. We have each other's names and numbers, so I can get in touch with him easily. There will be an off-duty guy outside the Scientology building, as usual, keeping an eye on things.
Friday, May 30, 2008
Phone Tag
I am now playing phone tag with the police station after leaving my name and number. They had someone named Sergeant Washington call me today, but I had to let it go to voicemail because management frowns upon whipping out the CrackBerry in front of customers. I called him back after my shift but then got his voicemail, so I left a message asking him to call me back later. I'm now waiting on that call, and I'll try him again if it seems he forgot.
Wednesday, May 28, 2008
More Update
Just spoke to the Commander's clerk at the South Side precinct. I gave her the basics on what happened last time: we were at the edge of the sidewalk near the road, the off-duty officer outside the Scientology store said we were fine, but then when the store owners called the police the officer who responded told us that we were blocking the sidewalk and had to leave.
I gave her my name and number, and she said she'd talk to the Commander about all of this and call me back then.
I didn't get a chance yet to bring up the threats from the shop owner, but when they call back I definitely will.
At this point, I'm not entirely sure when or if we'll need to actually go down there and meet with them. They seem inclined to handle most of this via phone calls. Also, the Commander I'm referring to seems to be on-duty before two in the afternoon, not weeknight evenings like we had been planning to go down there (they keep telling me I should call before two).
I'm hoping if I speak to their highest-up person (which seems to be this Commander I left the information for) then we can at least clarify things enough for the next protest, although if anything's left unresolved I'm going to ask them to schedule a meeting for us.
Additionally, one thing I can think of for June 14th, since this was going to be an issue anyway. Instead of meeting across the street from the Scientology store (even if that's where we end up protesting and we're okay being there), let's meet outside the police station (It's on Sarah Street, which isn't that far from the Scientology bookstore), drop in and let them know who we are and what we're doing, and then walk over to the protest site together (thus avoiding having a few Anons alone out there to be threatened by the store owner). Any thoughts?
I gave her my name and number, and she said she'd talk to the Commander about all of this and call me back then.
I didn't get a chance yet to bring up the threats from the shop owner, but when they call back I definitely will.
At this point, I'm not entirely sure when or if we'll need to actually go down there and meet with them. They seem inclined to handle most of this via phone calls. Also, the Commander I'm referring to seems to be on-duty before two in the afternoon, not weeknight evenings like we had been planning to go down there (they keep telling me I should call before two).
I'm hoping if I speak to their highest-up person (which seems to be this Commander I left the information for) then we can at least clarify things enough for the next protest, although if anything's left unresolved I'm going to ask them to schedule a meeting for us.
Additionally, one thing I can think of for June 14th, since this was going to be an issue anyway. Instead of meeting across the street from the Scientology store (even if that's where we end up protesting and we're okay being there), let's meet outside the police station (It's on Sarah Street, which isn't that far from the Scientology bookstore), drop in and let them know who we are and what we're doing, and then walk over to the protest site together (thus avoiding having a few Anons alone out there to be threatened by the store owner). Any thoughts?
Tuesday, May 27, 2008
Update on Police
Okay, I just spoke to the South Side's desk sergeant. He said our best bet would be to call back tomorrow sometime before two when the Commander or his clerk would be on duty and ask them about this, so I'll try and do that.
Friday, May 23, 2008
Arranging a Meeting
Okay, since this is a holiday weekend for them and a hellish working weekend of departments store sales for me, I don't want to badger the higher-ups just now, but I think on Tuesday (after Memorial Day weekend), I'm going to call them and ask when a good time to speak with someone would be. Now, evenings Monday-Thursday seem to be okay for everyone right now, but if you have any specific blackout dates when you CANNOT come down and you very much would like to be able to, please comment with them here before I make arrangements on Tuesday so that I can try and avoid them.
And if they just give me a general range of times/dates it would be okay to stop by, I'll post back and we'll figure out together when we want to go.
Also, it would be totally cool if anyone can start putting together some basic information to bring to them -- specifically, simple, brief stuff about why we're protesting and evidence refuting any "terrorist" accusations Scientology has made against Anonymous thus far, since I think that's the kind of thing they'd be most interested in seeing. I don't think we're presumed terrorists by the local police, since the off-duty guy last time had no idea we were so evil until he saw their video that morning, but just in case, we should have something prepared. If you find stuff, post links please.
Happy Memorial Day everybody.
And if they just give me a general range of times/dates it would be okay to stop by, I'll post back and we'll figure out together when we want to go.
Also, it would be totally cool if anyone can start putting together some basic information to bring to them -- specifically, simple, brief stuff about why we're protesting and evidence refuting any "terrorist" accusations Scientology has made against Anonymous thus far, since I think that's the kind of thing they'd be most interested in seeing. I don't think we're presumed terrorists by the local police, since the off-duty guy last time had no idea we were so evil until he saw their video that morning, but just in case, we should have something prepared. If you find stuff, post links please.
Happy Memorial Day everybody.
Wednesday, May 21, 2008
Police Meeting?
Okay, reading over the comments from the last post, I'm going to tentatively say a weeknight evening (monday-thursday?) would probably work, sometime in the next couple weeks. Comment with more specific date/time suggestions.
Thursday, May 15, 2008
On The Police and Our Legal Right to Protest
A few comments on my last post:
Blogger ManySigns said...
Would it be possible to get some sort of legal notice or documentation of our right to protest there, of which we can give a copy to any store owner who causes us problems? We have the right to be there, and we're not disrupting their business every day of the week, or even once every week. One or two days out of the entire month is not something to get that irate over, especially when there's only a handful of people showing up. We have the right to be there, unless I'm gravely mistaken (and all the police officers who haven't given us trouble are gravely mistaken), and while I don't want to cause problems with the locals, I don't want to be pushed out by some irate asshole who gets upset because his 'special imports' store doesn't do quite as well on the day or two out of each month we protest as it usually does.
I say we consult with local law enforcement, and local legal counsel, if possible, to confirm our rights in the matter, and then if we are in the right, continue to protest in front of the Scientology building, while staying as much out of in front of the problem stores as possible, and simply ignore the store owners if they continue to be threatening and hostile and irate, beyond making further (reasonable) effort to stay out from in front of their stores.
May 13, 2008 4:11 PM
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Yes. I agree. We do have a legal right to be there. I don't know what to do do appease the store owner but if we get some sort of legal documentation to show the store owner, he can be mad all he wants but there will be nothing he can do about it.
*******************************************************
We definitely need to establish a more solid connection with the South Side police department prior to June 14th, and to get written confirmation of what exactly our legal rights are while protesting. At this point, I think the best way might be to have a couple of us go to the police department in person sometime in the next few weeks and speak with someone there and try to establish some kind of contact person within that precinct who will be willing to work with us.
A few issues to bring up during such a consultation (please comment with more!)
-What, precisely, does "blocking the sidewalk" mean? Does it mean completely barring passersby from using it, or can it also mean taking up about half the width of it for prolonged periods of time, as we do in a standing protest?
-How should we react if, provided a standing protest IS indisputably legal, the import store owner confronts us and threatens us again? Do they advise that we escalate the situation to a 911 call, as the desk sergeant instructed when we called them on 5/10, or is there a better way to resolve the situation? Would it be possible for the police department to contact the store owner in question to warn him about crossing the line when we're there?
-Would it be possible for the officers we speak with to send out an email or memo (we can provide the text, they would only have to facilitate its delivery to other officers) about the protest and what we'll be allowed to do, to prevent misinformed officers from ordering us to leave?
-We may want to offer some information about WHY we protest in the first place, to make our cause a bit more sympathetic and understandable, rather than us just being the weird kids in masks who freak out the neighborhood once a month. The off-duty officer outside the Scientology store last time was very friendly, but he had absolutely no idea why we were protesting Scientology. They had already shown him the Anonymous Exposed video, and he was confused because we didn't seem like such huge bad guys, but he also had no idea why we'd stage a protest, either.
Now, one thing -- talking to the police in person about this and establishing a contact within the department will require going down there without masks, willing to give our names and some basic contact info for them to keep in touch. Is there anyone still in the city who would be willing to do this sometime soon? I may have a bit of trouble scheduling a visit to the station given my new full-time summer work schedule, but I'm willing to try and work it out if anyone would like to accompany me. Xenu has already left town for the summer, as have several of the other Anons I've worked with to organize previous protests.
I don't think we need to be TOO worried at this point -- it all seems like logistical problems to me. They don't think we're hardened criminals -- we're just weird and we picked an inconvenient place to stand, in their eyes. I don't think the black PR has gotten to them much yet. Yes, apparently that one officer told the Anons wearing shirts over their heads and carrying no signs on their way to the protest that they "looked like terrorists," but at this point, I don't think there's a correlation between that and the allegations Scientology has made about Anonymous engaging in terrorist activity -- those guys weren't really associated with us yet, in the officer's mind.
So, let's do some preventative/restorative work on our image with the local law enforcement and see how it turns out. If a standing protest as we have done in the past is considered blocking the sidewalk under the city code, then we'll adapt. Before we write it off though, let's try and talk to the police.
Blogger ManySigns said...
Would it be possible to get some sort of legal notice or documentation of our right to protest there, of which we can give a copy to any store owner who causes us problems? We have the right to be there, and we're not disrupting their business every day of the week, or even once every week. One or two days out of the entire month is not something to get that irate over, especially when there's only a handful of people showing up. We have the right to be there, unless I'm gravely mistaken (and all the police officers who haven't given us trouble are gravely mistaken), and while I don't want to cause problems with the locals, I don't want to be pushed out by some irate asshole who gets upset because his 'special imports' store doesn't do quite as well on the day or two out of each month we protest as it usually does.
I say we consult with local law enforcement, and local legal counsel, if possible, to confirm our rights in the matter, and then if we are in the right, continue to protest in front of the Scientology building, while staying as much out of in front of the problem stores as possible, and simply ignore the store owners if they continue to be threatening and hostile and irate, beyond making further (reasonable) effort to stay out from in front of their stores.
May 13, 2008 4:11 PM
Anonymous Anonymous said...
Yes. I agree. We do have a legal right to be there. I don't know what to do do appease the store owner but if we get some sort of legal documentation to show the store owner, he can be mad all he wants but there will be nothing he can do about it.
*******************************************************
We definitely need to establish a more solid connection with the South Side police department prior to June 14th, and to get written confirmation of what exactly our legal rights are while protesting. At this point, I think the best way might be to have a couple of us go to the police department in person sometime in the next few weeks and speak with someone there and try to establish some kind of contact person within that precinct who will be willing to work with us.
A few issues to bring up during such a consultation (please comment with more!)
-What, precisely, does "blocking the sidewalk" mean? Does it mean completely barring passersby from using it, or can it also mean taking up about half the width of it for prolonged periods of time, as we do in a standing protest?
-How should we react if, provided a standing protest IS indisputably legal, the import store owner confronts us and threatens us again? Do they advise that we escalate the situation to a 911 call, as the desk sergeant instructed when we called them on 5/10, or is there a better way to resolve the situation? Would it be possible for the police department to contact the store owner in question to warn him about crossing the line when we're there?
-Would it be possible for the officers we speak with to send out an email or memo (we can provide the text, they would only have to facilitate its delivery to other officers) about the protest and what we'll be allowed to do, to prevent misinformed officers from ordering us to leave?
-We may want to offer some information about WHY we protest in the first place, to make our cause a bit more sympathetic and understandable, rather than us just being the weird kids in masks who freak out the neighborhood once a month. The off-duty officer outside the Scientology store last time was very friendly, but he had absolutely no idea why we were protesting Scientology. They had already shown him the Anonymous Exposed video, and he was confused because we didn't seem like such huge bad guys, but he also had no idea why we'd stage a protest, either.
Now, one thing -- talking to the police in person about this and establishing a contact within the department will require going down there without masks, willing to give our names and some basic contact info for them to keep in touch. Is there anyone still in the city who would be willing to do this sometime soon? I may have a bit of trouble scheduling a visit to the station given my new full-time summer work schedule, but I'm willing to try and work it out if anyone would like to accompany me. Xenu has already left town for the summer, as have several of the other Anons I've worked with to organize previous protests.
I don't think we need to be TOO worried at this point -- it all seems like logistical problems to me. They don't think we're hardened criminals -- we're just weird and we picked an inconvenient place to stand, in their eyes. I don't think the black PR has gotten to them much yet. Yes, apparently that one officer told the Anons wearing shirts over their heads and carrying no signs on their way to the protest that they "looked like terrorists," but at this point, I don't think there's a correlation between that and the allegations Scientology has made about Anonymous engaging in terrorist activity -- those guys weren't really associated with us yet, in the officer's mind.
So, let's do some preventative/restorative work on our image with the local law enforcement and see how it turns out. If a standing protest as we have done in the past is considered blocking the sidewalk under the city code, then we'll adapt. Before we write it off though, let's try and talk to the police.
Saturday, May 10, 2008
Ideas for increasing turnout?
So, like I mentioned before, it seems like turnout was a bit down today, which is understandable because I think we've had a lot of college students in the past, and most local schools are finishing up finals at this point. I myself will actually be out of town for the next protest as well (though I'll be reppin' the 'burgh at the Austin, TX protest), but I'll still try to help some with the coordination. You'll also still have Miss Anon, who's more conscientious than me about updating the blog/has more free time/nothing better to do anyway.
Anyway, I'm trying to figure out ways to increase turnout for the summer protests. I guess one easy-ish way would just be for the people that are staying around (or even the people that are leaving) to get friends that are going to be in town to come. I'm not really sure what we can do beyond that, except for some sort of flier campaign with info specific to the Pittsburgh protest. I might try to create such a flier, but won't be around to distribute it, unfortunately.
Does anyone else have any ideas?
Anyway, I'm trying to figure out ways to increase turnout for the summer protests. I guess one easy-ish way would just be for the people that are staying around (or even the people that are leaving) to get friends that are going to be in town to come. I'm not really sure what we can do beyond that, except for some sort of flier campaign with info specific to the Pittsburgh protest. I might try to create such a flier, but won't be around to distribute it, unfortunately.
Does anyone else have any ideas?
Today's protest (crosspost from Enturb)
I know Miss Anon wanted to update the blog, but I figured I'd post something since I went to all the trouble of putting together an enturb post. Also, she's not online yet. She can fill in any details I may have missed.
Enturb post at: http://forums.enturbulation.org/103-usa-east-coast/pittsburgh-pa-13349/#post241985
Text:
I just got back from the Pittsburgh protest (still wearing part of my suit). This one went a little less smoothly than previous ones, though through no fault of any Anon's.
Basically, this one local business owner had decided somehow that Anon was losing him a whole ton of money (for one day a month every month...), and so took it upon himself to oust us from our position across from the Scientology building. At first, he actually came up to us, and asked (not very politely, even at first), that we leave. When we declined and explained to him that we were allowed to be where we were, as long as we didn't block foot traffic, he said, and I think I'm directly quoting here, that if we didn't leave "shit was going to get fucking ugly". At this point, we actually called the police, since that sounded like a threat, but they directed us to the emergency number, and we didn't really feel like it was urgent enough to warrant calling 911. I should also note here that we were being exceedingly careful to only stand in front of unoccupied buildings - we were not in front of this guy's store, just near it.
About this time, an officer (off-duty, I believe) showed up at the Scientology building, as has been usual here. One of our anons went and talked to him for a while, both about Scientology (they showed him the "Anonymous Exposed video, he was confused"), and about the guy who'd been threatening us. He was pretty understanding, and I think when the storeowner tried to talk to him, he basically told him that we were completely in our rights to be there.
The problem was the second officer that showed up, a few hours later, almost definitely called in by the storeowner. I don't want to get into a "fuck the police" type rant, because the vast majority of the police we've had involved in the Pittsburgh protests have been good people and understood what we were doing and what our rights were, but this guy was a bit of an ass, and seemed pretty misinformed as to what we were actually allowed to do. He claimed that we were blocking the sidewalk, and that we were affecting the local businesses, so we had to leave. The first claim would have been legitimate if it were true, but we had left a very wide lane for pedestrians, and were very careful about not blocking foot traffic after a few previous instances (where the cops had been a lot more understanding). The second claim was ridiculous, and had no legal basis. The sidewalk's city property, we had every right to be there, and they can't kick us out just because the businesses claim we're losing them money. The officer made it sound like we basically weren't allowed to protest anywhere because no matter where we went, it would affect some business.
Since we didn't want any legal trouble, we did start moving, and some of us ended up calling the police department again to make sure of our rights. They told us that yes, we were allowed to protest, but apparently we had to keep moving (something that we had never been told before, the past 3 protests had been stationary across from the Scientology building). So, it turned into a walking protest. While this was a little more tiring, it did let us distribute more fliers, and may not have been that bad in the end. After we started moving, we had no more trouble from the police, excepting one group being stopped for apparently looking like terrorists or something (yeah, I'm not really sure what was up with that). As an extra bonus, some anons got the plate number of the jerk cop's car, and apparently some storeowner may have got a video of some anons being harrassed by him, which may pop up on YouTube at some point.
Other than that whole legal mess, I think it was generally a successful protest. Numbers were a bit down from last time, but that's to be expected with colleges letting out and such. Chuck Beatty did stop by and give us some signs, which was pretty awesome. It seemed like we had a good deal of interest from passersby, too, and we got a lot of fliers out there. I'm still hoping that we'll be able to clear up this business with the police, and return to stationary protests across from the Scientology building in the future, but this time around, all the anons handled the problems with the police in a very mature fashion, and I'm proud that we didn't actually get cited for anything despite all the issues we had.
Pictures sometime when I offload them from my camera.
tl;dr: Jerk storeowner, questionable cop, and legal confusion forced us to become a moving protest, but it was still overall good
Enturb post at: http://forums.enturbulation.org/103-usa-east-coast/pittsburgh-pa-13349/#post241985
Text:
I just got back from the Pittsburgh protest (still wearing part of my suit). This one went a little less smoothly than previous ones, though through no fault of any Anon's.
Basically, this one local business owner had decided somehow that Anon was losing him a whole ton of money (for one day a month every month...), and so took it upon himself to oust us from our position across from the Scientology building. At first, he actually came up to us, and asked (not very politely, even at first), that we leave. When we declined and explained to him that we were allowed to be where we were, as long as we didn't block foot traffic, he said, and I think I'm directly quoting here, that if we didn't leave "shit was going to get fucking ugly". At this point, we actually called the police, since that sounded like a threat, but they directed us to the emergency number, and we didn't really feel like it was urgent enough to warrant calling 911. I should also note here that we were being exceedingly careful to only stand in front of unoccupied buildings - we were not in front of this guy's store, just near it.
About this time, an officer (off-duty, I believe) showed up at the Scientology building, as has been usual here. One of our anons went and talked to him for a while, both about Scientology (they showed him the "Anonymous Exposed video, he was confused"), and about the guy who'd been threatening us. He was pretty understanding, and I think when the storeowner tried to talk to him, he basically told him that we were completely in our rights to be there.
The problem was the second officer that showed up, a few hours later, almost definitely called in by the storeowner. I don't want to get into a "fuck the police" type rant, because the vast majority of the police we've had involved in the Pittsburgh protests have been good people and understood what we were doing and what our rights were, but this guy was a bit of an ass, and seemed pretty misinformed as to what we were actually allowed to do. He claimed that we were blocking the sidewalk, and that we were affecting the local businesses, so we had to leave. The first claim would have been legitimate if it were true, but we had left a very wide lane for pedestrians, and were very careful about not blocking foot traffic after a few previous instances (where the cops had been a lot more understanding). The second claim was ridiculous, and had no legal basis. The sidewalk's city property, we had every right to be there, and they can't kick us out just because the businesses claim we're losing them money. The officer made it sound like we basically weren't allowed to protest anywhere because no matter where we went, it would affect some business.
Since we didn't want any legal trouble, we did start moving, and some of us ended up calling the police department again to make sure of our rights. They told us that yes, we were allowed to protest, but apparently we had to keep moving (something that we had never been told before, the past 3 protests had been stationary across from the Scientology building). So, it turned into a walking protest. While this was a little more tiring, it did let us distribute more fliers, and may not have been that bad in the end. After we started moving, we had no more trouble from the police, excepting one group being stopped for apparently looking like terrorists or something (yeah, I'm not really sure what was up with that). As an extra bonus, some anons got the plate number of the jerk cop's car, and apparently some storeowner may have got a video of some anons being harrassed by him, which may pop up on YouTube at some point.
Other than that whole legal mess, I think it was generally a successful protest. Numbers were a bit down from last time, but that's to be expected with colleges letting out and such. Chuck Beatty did stop by and give us some signs, which was pretty awesome. It seemed like we had a good deal of interest from passersby, too, and we got a lot of fliers out there. I'm still hoping that we'll be able to clear up this business with the police, and return to stationary protests across from the Scientology building in the future, but this time around, all the anons handled the problems with the police in a very mature fashion, and I'm proud that we didn't actually get cited for anything despite all the issues we had.
Pictures sometime when I offload them from my camera.
tl;dr: Jerk storeowner, questionable cop, and legal confusion forced us to become a moving protest, but it was still overall good
Tuesday, May 6, 2008
When You Get To The Protest on Saturday..
As always, unless you hear differently, you can just assume we're meeting at 11 am across the street from the Scientology store. However, due to the issues we've had with the shop owners immediately across the street, I'm going to suggest that until we get enough of a crowd to get things started, stay on an intersection or in front of the abandoned office building (if you haven't been there before and don't know which one that is, just stay with an intersection until someone who does know gets there). The last thing I want is for some early-bird Anon to get harassed all by his or her lonesome because they stood in the wrong spot. Once we get a dozen or so there, we can start splitting up and standing at two intersections on that block and in front of the abandoned building, being careful to avoid the troublesome storefronts and to keep moving around the area if needed.
Attention Valiant Anons
Due to the fact that I actually plan to prepare for my finals this week while Xenu slacks, I have bequeathed him my usual duty of calling to alert the South Side police of our protest date and informing the media via phone/email. Since I fear that he will forget to do these things and I might be too busy to remind him constantly, everyone send him a nice reminder note at his xenupgh AT gmail.com email address. Feel free to include your most obnoxious memes in the messages.
I wonder if he'll even notice this post....
I wonder if he'll even notice this post....
Friday, May 2, 2008
Law and Order (Sort of) Takes on Scientology
This new episode that aired last night supposedly portrays a fictional cult called "Systemotics" that is basically Scientology with a name change. I haven't had a chance to watch the episode yet (and I'm trying to refrain from linking to blatantly pirated torrents on this blog, I trust you guys to find that crap yourselves) but I guess the cult got portrayed as vaguely creepy and toeing the line between weirdness and actual law-breaking harassment. And the critics got portrayed as paranoid tinfoil-hatters. So, based on enturb's analysis, neither side is going to be particularly pleased about their portrayal, but at least someone mainstream is taking them on.
Also, apparently it aired on Davey Miscavige's birthday. Win.
Also, apparently it aired on Davey Miscavige's birthday. Win.
Thursday, May 1, 2008
Obligatory Media Info Repost
We haven't been getting much in the way of local media for the last couple protests, but I say its still worth a shot to contact them now. One thing I'd like to do differently for this time around is to collect up some photos RIGHT AFTER the protest and compile an email to send out after-the-fact, in addition to a tipoff prior to the protest, so that they can possibly choose to publish something even if they don't show up themselves. If anyone would be interested in being a photographer for that purpose and thinks they'll be able to upload their shots immediately after the protest and email them to me, I'd be quite grateful. Feel free to send in your own in your own email, too -- more can't hurt.
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Edit: called PPG before last protest, they directed me to - tbirdsong@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Edit: when I called the Trib prior to the last address, they suggested I send info to this address - stolliver@tribweb.com
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Edit: called PPG before last protest, they directed me to - tbirdsong@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Edit: when I called the Trib prior to the last address, they suggested I send info to this address - stolliver@tribweb.com
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
Wednesday, April 30, 2008
A Possible Alternative to the Stationary Protest Permit
Would anyone be up for making the May 10th protest a "moving" protest, where we all wander the South Side in the general vicinity of the Scientology building, handing out fliers and not constantly blocking off the same shops? We could reach a decent number of people that way, and we might not provoke the same ire we do when we park our butts outside on their sidewalks. There is the abandoned building the cop suggested standing in front of last time, which we tried, but we tend to spill over past either side of it, so maybe a few of us could stand there, and the rest could move to intersections and corners and we could rotate through the day without blocking any active businesses.
I'm just brainstorming here, seeing as we have under two weeks until May 10th, and I don't know what the turnaround time would be for a permit if someone started now. If anyone's got other ideas, please post them.
I'm just brainstorming here, seeing as we have under two weeks until May 10th, and I don't know what the turnaround time would be for a permit if someone started now. If anyone's got other ideas, please post them.
Update on the Shopowner Situation
I've been reading up about it on enturb, and many of the anons there are discussing getting a permit for our protest to ensure they don't have any grounds to get us in trouble in the future. Has anyone started this process? Anyone willing to get the ball rolling on a permit application? I'm not all that knowledgeable about the process, so if we have anyone around who is, I'd be grateful if they'd speak up.
Monday, April 28, 2008
A Small Problem from Our Protests
This was just mentioned by manysigns in the comment section of the last post, and it's something I think we've all noticed since the last raid.
The store owners across the street from the CoS bookstore are becoming increasingly agitated with us and our gatherings on their sidewalk. The police have been summoned about it more than once, and although they have always stated that we're doing nothing illegal by being there, the last thing we want is for someone to create a huge problem and try to turn us into the bad guys.
Does anyone have ideas for handling this? Last time we ended up moving down the sidewalk a bit to stand in front of a vacant building, but I'm afraid even if we do this from the start, they're still going to complain.
The store owners across the street from the CoS bookstore are becoming increasingly agitated with us and our gatherings on their sidewalk. The police have been summoned about it more than once, and although they have always stated that we're doing nothing illegal by being there, the last thing we want is for someone to create a huge problem and try to turn us into the bad guys.
Does anyone have ideas for handling this? Last time we ended up moving down the sidewalk a bit to stand in front of a vacant building, but I'm afraid even if we do this from the start, they're still going to complain.
Sunday, April 27, 2008
Possible Pittsburgh Miniraid
Some of the Anons have been discussing one for this week/weekend in the IRC channel. Comment here if you're interested in arranging one.
Friday, April 25, 2008
I'm/We're Not Dead.
My apologies for the long lapse between updates here. I've been bogged down with school and work, and Xenu is infested with sickness and cooties (I think the thetans finally got him).
For those who haven't heard, Mark Bunker's full interview with Jason Beghe is up -- linking to WBM's blog, since the YouTube's been having problems.
Also, one issue that's been bugging me about the upcoming protest -- attendance has been down, here as well as most other cities. We peaked at about half our peak from 2/10 last time. I understand that a lot of our original Anons are only here for school and as a result may not spend all their time locally, but I think it's important that we recruit new people and try to keep our local numbers up. Any opinions on the matter? Ideas for how to do this?
For those who haven't heard, Mark Bunker's full interview with Jason Beghe is up -- linking to WBM's blog, since the YouTube's been having problems.
Also, one issue that's been bugging me about the upcoming protest -- attendance has been down, here as well as most other cities. We peaked at about half our peak from 2/10 last time. I understand that a lot of our original Anons are only here for school and as a result may not spend all their time locally, but I think it's important that we recruit new people and try to keep our local numbers up. Any opinions on the matter? Ideas for how to do this?
Thursday, April 17, 2008
The YouTubes Are Down, and Another Possible Celeb Blow.
The other day, Tory Magoo's YouTube account was suspended due to mass-flagging. Today, WBM's is down for the same reason -- the account with the Jason Beghe interview. See enturbulation's Breaking News forum for more discussion on these.
Also, lots of rumors in the works that Katie Holmes may be taking Suri and running away from Tom and CoS. Could be just celeb gossip, but I sure hope it's true.
Articles on TomKat split:
The Superficial
News.com.au
Other Gossip
Also, lots of rumors in the works that Katie Holmes may be taking Suri and running away from Tom and CoS. Could be just celeb gossip, but I sure hope it's true.
Articles on TomKat split:
The Superficial
News.com.au
Other Gossip
Tuesday, April 15, 2008
Monday, April 14, 2008
Pictures from 4/12
Just offloaded the pictures from my camera, resized them, blurred faces, and all of that. You can find them here.
Note: I only blurred your face if you weren't wearing any facial covering at all, I figure sunglasses are enough to at least partially conceal your identity. If you really want to be blurred, email me and point out who you are and I'll do it.
Note: I only blurred your face if you weren't wearing any facial covering at all, I figure sunglasses are enough to at least partially conceal your identity. If you really want to be blurred, email me and point out who you are and I'll do it.
Saturday, April 12, 2008
Our Original IRC is Back
Apparently this happened a while ago and I failed at noticing. The interim channel we had was dying off in terms of attendance, so we'll be back at #pghraid on the partyvan servers.
Quick Updates from 4/12
Hey, guys, good work today. A quick summary for those who couldn't be there:
Had some issues with nearby small businesses calling the police and claiming that Anonymous was driving away customers. A police officer stationed at the Scientology bookstore came out and talked to us about it -- he said they'd received 5-6 calls about the matter, one of which went to his personal cell phone (which he didn't know how anyone had accessed). Now, since we did have one neighboring storeowner complain last time, it's not unreasonable to think it could have happened again. We did witness a young male employee of the shop that called police last time going to other shops on the block and purportedly asking them to call the police on us, also. At least of these shop owners seems to like us and apparently told the kid to get lost. However, 5-6 calls still seems excessive, and officer mentioned that one had been directed to the mayor's hotline, which SEEMS like something the Scientologists might do, but again, that could be jumping to conclusions. Overall, though, the officer was cool and requested that we shift down the block slightly so that we only blocked a vacant building, and there were no more complaints after that.
Had a drive-by Rickroll at 11:24am. Young male in a car pulled to the side of the road, rolled down the windows, and blasted the song at us. Win. Footage here.
We were joined briefly by Chuck Beatty, ex-Sea Org member and prominent local SP, as well as another older male who said that he was once in the Sea Org as well and had been in CoS for something like twenty years. This one brought two signs and stayed all day, which was awesome. Beatty in particular, I think it was (I didn't talk to him personally as I was holding up part of our giant EXSCIENTOLOGYKIDS.COM banner at the time), had some interesting things to say about the local bookstore. Specifically, that there's really only one full-time employee there, a Russian or Ukrainian immigrant who gets paid only about $100 a week and was desperate for work and took the job.
Turnout appeared to peak at 25-30, still somewhat less than the 2/10 protest peak of 40-50, so I think that for May 10th, we really need to focus on recruiting a larger group. I did get in contact with all the major media outlets and some seemed interested over the phone, but as far as I know none of them came out this time. We did have giv3m3truth's coverage (thanks again, and I'll be looking out for your footage =]) and a local South Side paper that wants to put our pictures in their next issue. Lots of passersby were taking photos (interestingly, many had professional-looking Canon cameras) and some potential Scientologists photographing from across the street. Also, a couple people who run an about.com page on Agnosticism/Atheism were there taking pictures, and gave one of us their business card.
UPDATE: giv3m3truth's video
UPDATE: Austin Cline's About.com Coverage
UPDATE: Many Signs' photo gallery
UPDATE: Xenu's photo gallery
I will update this with any important media/etc. as it comes up. If anyone has links to photos or whatnot, post comments and I'll add them to this entry.
Had some issues with nearby small businesses calling the police and claiming that Anonymous was driving away customers. A police officer stationed at the Scientology bookstore came out and talked to us about it -- he said they'd received 5-6 calls about the matter, one of which went to his personal cell phone (which he didn't know how anyone had accessed). Now, since we did have one neighboring storeowner complain last time, it's not unreasonable to think it could have happened again. We did witness a young male employee of the shop that called police last time going to other shops on the block and purportedly asking them to call the police on us, also. At least of these shop owners seems to like us and apparently told the kid to get lost. However, 5-6 calls still seems excessive, and officer mentioned that one had been directed to the mayor's hotline, which SEEMS like something the Scientologists might do, but again, that could be jumping to conclusions. Overall, though, the officer was cool and requested that we shift down the block slightly so that we only blocked a vacant building, and there were no more complaints after that.
Had a drive-by Rickroll at 11:24am. Young male in a car pulled to the side of the road, rolled down the windows, and blasted the song at us. Win. Footage here.
We were joined briefly by Chuck Beatty, ex-Sea Org member and prominent local SP, as well as another older male who said that he was once in the Sea Org as well and had been in CoS for something like twenty years. This one brought two signs and stayed all day, which was awesome. Beatty in particular, I think it was (I didn't talk to him personally as I was holding up part of our giant EXSCIENTOLOGYKIDS.COM banner at the time), had some interesting things to say about the local bookstore. Specifically, that there's really only one full-time employee there, a Russian or Ukrainian immigrant who gets paid only about $100 a week and was desperate for work and took the job.
Turnout appeared to peak at 25-30, still somewhat less than the 2/10 protest peak of 40-50, so I think that for May 10th, we really need to focus on recruiting a larger group. I did get in contact with all the major media outlets and some seemed interested over the phone, but as far as I know none of them came out this time. We did have giv3m3truth's coverage (thanks again, and I'll be looking out for your footage =]) and a local South Side paper that wants to put our pictures in their next issue. Lots of passersby were taking photos (interestingly, many had professional-looking Canon cameras) and some potential Scientologists photographing from across the street. Also, a couple people who run an about.com page on Agnosticism/Atheism were there taking pictures, and gave one of us their business card.
UPDATE: giv3m3truth's video
UPDATE: Austin Cline's About.com Coverage
UPDATE: Many Signs' photo gallery
UPDATE: Xenu's photo gallery
I will update this with any important media/etc. as it comes up. If anyone has links to photos or whatnot, post comments and I'll add them to this entry.
Friday, April 11, 2008
Another Update (Miss Anonymous must have no life.)
Just wanted to give a bit of a shout-out to giv3m3truth, he posted a video update here here. He's been at all the protests so far but will be taking a bit of a break from Anonymous after Reconnect to diversify his work.
I think we all owe him a big thank you and some Anonymous love for his great coverage of the protests thus far.
Also, giv3m3truth, apparently Noah, myself, and some other Anons will be giving out free hugs tomorrow in the interest of showing how kind and loving Anonymous is, and I'll make sure you get one.
I think we all owe him a big thank you and some Anonymous love for his great coverage of the protests thus far.
Also, giv3m3truth, apparently Noah, myself, and some other Anons will be giving out free hugs tomorrow in the interest of showing how kind and loving Anonymous is, and I'll make sure you get one.
Media Updates
Okay, so here's a quick briefing on what's been done so far:
Called WTAE. They confirmed that they already had the info. Don't know whether that was from my email or if I was beaten on the phone by another Anon, but they're the ones who sent the 2/10 camera guy, so I'm optimistic about them.
Called KDKA. They gave me the proper email address for news releases (which was nowhere to be found on their website, from my searches at least): newsdesk@kdka.com
Called WPXI. They said they'd heard about the protest and took down my phone number.
Called the Post-Gazette. They gave me an email address for the guy in charge of local news on Saturday, and I sent him information.
Called the Tribune-Review. They also gave me the address of the person in charge of local news this weekend, and I emailed that address.
Also, got through to the South Side police, they seemed kinda busy, just took down the time and place and said thanks. They probably already know what's up, but so far no efforts to stop us, so that's a victory for Anon.
Called WTAE. They confirmed that they already had the info. Don't know whether that was from my email or if I was beaten on the phone by another Anon, but they're the ones who sent the 2/10 camera guy, so I'm optimistic about them.
Called KDKA. They gave me the proper email address for news releases (which was nowhere to be found on their website, from my searches at least): newsdesk@kdka.com
Called WPXI. They said they'd heard about the protest and took down my phone number.
Called the Post-Gazette. They gave me an email address for the guy in charge of local news on Saturday, and I sent him information.
Called the Tribune-Review. They also gave me the address of the person in charge of local news this weekend, and I emailed that address.
Also, got through to the South Side police, they seemed kinda busy, just took down the time and place and said thanks. They probably already know what's up, but so far no efforts to stop us, so that's a victory for Anon.
Thursday, April 10, 2008
Some Minor Updates
I emailed all the media sources that I posted on this blog with some information about Reconnect today, using a pseudonym. Tomorrow, I'm going to try and call a few of the television stations and talk to someone about it and see if they'd be able to bring out a camera crew - I figure chances might be better this time, as its likely to be a slower news day than 3/15 was. Xenu is going to call the South Side police station tomorrow to give them a heads-up about the date and time of the protest, though Scientology will likely be taking care of that for us, as well.
Also, we're still working on selecting leaflets and handouts to print for the protest, so if anyone has contributions or suggestions, post here.
Also, we're still working on selecting leaflets and handouts to print for the protest, so if anyone has contributions or suggestions, post here.
Tuesday, April 8, 2008
Flyers and Handouts for 4/12
If you're willing to print up leaflets or simply have ideas for producing leaflets that us Anons with university print quotas can use, please post here! Also needed are ideas for foamboard slogans -- remember the theme of Reconnect is Scientology's forced disconnection of members from family and friends. And NO hate!
Also, check out this thread on enturb, which is basically an archive of the work of more creative Anons who have contributed their work.
Also, check out this thread on enturb, which is basically an archive of the work of more creative Anons who have contributed their work.
Permit Troubles for our Brothers in Philly
From comments on the last post: Philadelphia had their permit jacked, and are inviting all neighboring city's anons to show the Scilons that no amount of permit shenanigans will dissuade us. Visit their Google Doc here for more information: http://docs.google.com/Doc?docid=dhbcgwts_80vjfh8bdz
I was afraid upon initially reading this that it was another case of the police being out to get Anon, like in Atlanta, but upon reading the doc it appears to be foul play by Scientology that the police had no way of really stopping. So the Philly protest was moved to 4/13 so they could have their permit. And that means if any of our Anons feel like heading out that way, you can double-protest for this month!
I wish I didn't have to work.
I was afraid upon initially reading this that it was another case of the police being out to get Anon, like in Atlanta, but upon reading the doc it appears to be foul play by Scientology that the police had no way of really stopping. So the Philly protest was moved to 4/13 so they could have their permit. And that means if any of our Anons feel like heading out that way, you can double-protest for this month!
I wish I didn't have to work.
Saturday, April 5, 2008
< One Week to Go.
And it's time to ramp up efforts to attract media attention. In the interest of saving people search time, I'll repost here the list of media contact info I posted weeks ago. You can call/email as an anonymous participant who wants to get word out, or you can call as an average citizen who saw previous press and wants to hear more about this cause. Either way, it'd be a good idea for everyone to encourage the local media to look into Reconnect.
If anyone has media contact info to add, comment and I'll edit this post.
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
If anyone has media contact info to add, comment and I'll edit this post.
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
Tuesday, April 1, 2008
Post-Gazette Sunday Forum Article
Link to the article
It really goes in for the shock value at first when describing Anonymous, but generally is critical of Scientology for the same reasons Anonymous is. However, the comments about "hate" signs really drive home that fact that there can be none of this at future protests -- "Honk if you hate Scientology" is not the right approach if we're seeking the support of the media or of non-Anonymous critics.
It really goes in for the shock value at first when describing Anonymous, but generally is critical of Scientology for the same reasons Anonymous is. However, the comments about "hate" signs really drive home that fact that there can be none of this at future protests -- "Honk if you hate Scientology" is not the right approach if we're seeking the support of the media or of non-Anonymous critics.
Friday, March 28, 2008
More Links
Time Magazine article on "The Thriving Cult of Greed and Power" link.
Many of you have probably seen this before, but it's got some decent Operation Reconnect relevant info.
And in addition, The Road to March 15, link courtesy of cultlord.
Many of you have probably seen this before, but it's got some decent Operation Reconnect relevant info.
And in addition, The Road to March 15, link courtesy of cultlord.
Thursday, March 27, 2008
Some New Links
This is one of the links that roj commented with on our last post -- I don't think this has been discussed on the blog yet, so I'm giving it a post of its own.
The injunction against Anons in Florida
The injunction against Anons in Florida
Sunday, March 23, 2008
Saying Thank You
I mentioned before putting together a letter on behalf of Anonymous to send to the South Side police precinct thanking them for fair treatment, but then I got a better idea, partly inspired by my suggestion that we each contact the media as average citizens.
Anyone with an interest in thanking the police for their fair treatment, try this: get a thank you card, or even just paper and an envelope, and write your own personal note expressing gratitude. It can be Anonymous. I think a larger influx of brief, grateful notes will have more impact that a big boring letter.
I'm going to be writing my note this week.
Here's a mailing address I found for the South Side police station, the place of employment for any officers who have covered our protests:
Pittsburgh Police
Zone Three (South Side)
1725 Mary Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
Edit: I encourage everyone to post the text of their note in the comments in case anyone's having trouble coming up with something to say. I will post mine sometime this week.
Anyone with an interest in thanking the police for their fair treatment, try this: get a thank you card, or even just paper and an envelope, and write your own personal note expressing gratitude. It can be Anonymous. I think a larger influx of brief, grateful notes will have more impact that a big boring letter.
I'm going to be writing my note this week.
Here's a mailing address I found for the South Side police station, the place of employment for any officers who have covered our protests:
Pittsburgh Police
Zone Three (South Side)
1725 Mary Street
Pittsburgh, PA 15203
Edit: I encourage everyone to post the text of their note in the comments in case anyone's having trouble coming up with something to say. I will post mine sometime this week.
Fair Gaming Anonymous
Not sure if everyone's keeping up with all the Anonymous happenings outside of Pittsburgh, but this is probably one of the most significant I've read since the arrests of the Atlanta Anons.
Ath's Story
Basically, a few Anons were outed in SoCal, and this document details the alleged Fair Game attempts. Following by a minivan, possibly poisoned outdoor cat, various instances of gaslighting trickery, and so on.
Moral of the story: be careful. This fellow seems to have pinpointed the instances where he went out, unmasked, in situations where he could be identified as a member of Anonymous.
Ath's Story
Basically, a few Anons were outed in SoCal, and this document details the alleged Fair Game attempts. Following by a minivan, possibly poisoned outdoor cat, various instances of gaslighting trickery, and so on.
Moral of the story: be careful. This fellow seems to have pinpointed the instances where he went out, unmasked, in situations where he could be identified as a member of Anonymous.
In the Spirit of Operation Reconnect
A video from Tory about Scientology, disconnection, Fair Game, and Anonymous. Specifically directed at the parents of young Anons who don't understand what we're doing, but still has a lot of great information. Enjoy.
Video Message to Parents of Anonymous
Video Message to Parents of Anonymous
Wednesday, March 19, 2008
Temporary (?) IRC Channel for Pittsburgh Anons
Those of you who visited our channel on partyvan might have noticed that it's been somewhat inaccessible. free was kind enough to set up an interim channel for us on irc.freeshell.org, the channel is #anonpgh.
I still don't know what the deal is with partyvan's IRC servers and when or if they'll be back up, so for now, I'll be hanging out in #anonpgh.
I still don't know what the deal is with partyvan's IRC servers and when or if they'll be back up, so for now, I'll be hanging out in #anonpgh.
Tuesday, March 18, 2008
Enturbulation Forums Are Back Up
Edited: Xenu and I are both back on enturbulation now. You may have to change your password to access old accounts, but you should all be able to get back on there. Pittsburgh thread's been started for April 12.
Monday, March 17, 2008
Intro to Operation Reconnect
Since someone commented asking about Reconnect, I figured I'd put up the few details I have thus far.
It will occur on Saturday, April 12th, at 11:00am. The location will be the same: sidewalk across from the Scientology bookstore at 1906 E. Carson Street on the South Side.
This protest is supposed to focus on the Church of Scientology's policy of forced disconnection from family members and friends who refuse to convert to Scientology or who criticize the organization. This policy is designed to lead to isolation of new members from support outside the Church, making it easier to control them and forcing them to become dependent on the cult for socialization and emotional support.
Regarding signs and media for Reconnect: while the typical "Honk if you think Scientology is a cult" fare will still be useful, propaganda should lean more toward exposing how Scientology tears apart family and friends, which is a standard cult practice designed to seize control over a victim's life. It is also an effective recruitment technique, forcing new members to either bring their loved ones into the organization or to cut off all contact with them.
Media coverage, as I had begun to expect a few days ago, is going to be somewhat less for Partyhard than it was for the 2/10 protest. Why? Well, I contacted all the same media outlets as before, spoke to the same people, etc., but this time, it was St. Patrick's Day, there was a huge parade, and the Clintons were in town, with Hillary Clinton marching alongside Governor Rendell and Mayor Ravenstahl at the same time as our protest, whereas 2/10 was a comparatively slow news day, and the only article that trumped us on the PPG front page was one covering a mass wedding ceremony.
So, we need to start working early on perfecting our coverage for Reconnect, and start honing our message to focus on the theme of the 4/12 protests. One idea is, in addition to me contacting the media as Anonymous media representative, for all willing Pittsburgh Anons to pick a station or paper or two, give them a call as an average citizen who happened to hear about these protests and would love to see them given more attention in the media, since you've come to feel strongly about educating the public about Scientology.
Give a name when you call, for the sake of sounding more normal and approachable and average-Joe-like, but it doesn't need to be your own. Just make up a reasonable pseudonym, even just a first name. They shouldn't need any further contact info. Emails can be sent with a throwaway gmail address that uses your fake name. If you're really paranoid and you don't have an unlisted number, there are these nifty things called payphones that actually still exist.
I've compiled a list of media contact information for this purpose, to simplify things. I'll post it here, so you can all start when you're ready. If you'd like to contact people sooner rather than later, one approach would be to state that you saw an interesting slideshow about this on the WPXI site, and you've heard there's another protest planned for next month, and you'd appreciate more coverage of this issue. One or two calls like this might get ignored, but a few dozen would have an impact. If you have too much time on your hands, make up multiple pseudonyms, mix up your story a little, and repeat as many times as you like (well, within reason).
If I've missed any important contact info, please leave it in the comments.
Love,
Miss Anonymous
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
It will occur on Saturday, April 12th, at 11:00am. The location will be the same: sidewalk across from the Scientology bookstore at 1906 E. Carson Street on the South Side.
This protest is supposed to focus on the Church of Scientology's policy of forced disconnection from family members and friends who refuse to convert to Scientology or who criticize the organization. This policy is designed to lead to isolation of new members from support outside the Church, making it easier to control them and forcing them to become dependent on the cult for socialization and emotional support.
Regarding signs and media for Reconnect: while the typical "Honk if you think Scientology is a cult" fare will still be useful, propaganda should lean more toward exposing how Scientology tears apart family and friends, which is a standard cult practice designed to seize control over a victim's life. It is also an effective recruitment technique, forcing new members to either bring their loved ones into the organization or to cut off all contact with them.
Media coverage, as I had begun to expect a few days ago, is going to be somewhat less for Partyhard than it was for the 2/10 protest. Why? Well, I contacted all the same media outlets as before, spoke to the same people, etc., but this time, it was St. Patrick's Day, there was a huge parade, and the Clintons were in town, with Hillary Clinton marching alongside Governor Rendell and Mayor Ravenstahl at the same time as our protest, whereas 2/10 was a comparatively slow news day, and the only article that trumped us on the PPG front page was one covering a mass wedding ceremony.
So, we need to start working early on perfecting our coverage for Reconnect, and start honing our message to focus on the theme of the 4/12 protests. One idea is, in addition to me contacting the media as Anonymous media representative, for all willing Pittsburgh Anons to pick a station or paper or two, give them a call as an average citizen who happened to hear about these protests and would love to see them given more attention in the media, since you've come to feel strongly about educating the public about Scientology.
Give a name when you call, for the sake of sounding more normal and approachable and average-Joe-like, but it doesn't need to be your own. Just make up a reasonable pseudonym, even just a first name. They shouldn't need any further contact info. Emails can be sent with a throwaway gmail address that uses your fake name. If you're really paranoid and you don't have an unlisted number, there are these nifty things called payphones that actually still exist.
I've compiled a list of media contact information for this purpose, to simplify things. I'll post it here, so you can all start when you're ready. If you'd like to contact people sooner rather than later, one approach would be to state that you saw an interesting slideshow about this on the WPXI site, and you've heard there's another protest planned for next month, and you'd appreciate more coverage of this issue. One or two calls like this might get ignored, but a few dozen would have an impact. If you have too much time on your hands, make up multiple pseudonyms, mix up your story a little, and repeat as many times as you like (well, within reason).
If I've missed any important contact info, please leave it in the comments.
Love,
Miss Anonymous
Pittsburgh Media Contact Info
WPXI (telephone): 412-237-1100
WPXI (email): assignments@wpxi.com
WTAE (telephone): 412-244-4444
WTAE (email): newsroom@thepittsburghchannel.com
KDKA (telephone): 412-575-2245
KDKA (email): Submit via form on this page
Post-Gazette (telephone): 412-263-1100
Post-Gazette (email): localnews@post-gazette.com
Post-Gazette reporter who covered 2/10, Jerome Sherman: jsherman@post-gazette.com
Tribune Review (telephone): 412-321-6460
Tribune Review (email): opinion@tribweb.com (for letters to the editor and giving your opinion -- they don't really have a more appropriate avenue for directing emails listed on their site).
Local University Press
CMU, The Tartan (telephone): 412-268-2111
CMU, The Tartan (email): contact@thetartan.org
CMU TV (email): cmutv@andrew.cmu.edu
CMU, WRCT Radio (email): info@wrct.org
The Pitt News (telephone): 412-648-7980
The Pitt News (email): pittnews@pitt.edu
Pitt TV (telephone): 717-475-2848
Pitt TV (email): pitttv@pitt.edu
The Duquesne Duke (telephone): 412-396-6629
The Duquesne Duke (email, editor): leonee@duq.edu
Point Park, The Globe (telephone): 412-392-4740
Point Park, The Globe (email): globe@pointpark.edu
CCAC Student Newspapers:
Allegheny Campus (telephone): 412-237-4632
Boyce Campus (telephone): 724-325-6730
North Campus (telephone): 412-369-3698
South Campus (telephone): 412-469-6352
Sunday, March 16, 2008
Co$ Reacts
They like us! They really like us!
Also seems to be experiencing server overload issues, but it comes up for me after a few refreshes. Enjoy.
I especially enjoy how their idea of not interacting involves slander.
In addition, are any of these alleged threats involving nitroglycerin explosives or the gunshots fired at the churches verifiable? I know there was a benign white powder mailed at some point, but I can't recall anything about the other stuff they claim happened.
Also seems to be experiencing server overload issues, but it comes up for me after a few refreshes. Enjoy.
I especially enjoy how their idea of not interacting involves slander.
In addition, are any of these alleged threats involving nitroglycerin explosives or the gunshots fired at the churches verifiable? I know there was a benign white powder mailed at some point, but I can't recall anything about the other stuff they claim happened.
Servers Down at Partyvan and Enturbulation
For the past few days, myself and a few other Anons I've spoken to have been unable to access the Pittsburgh IRC channel hosted on the partyvan.info servers. The original Project Chanology wiki at partyvan's site has been suffering frequent downtime as well. Xenu and I are working to establish an interim IRC channel on another server, and we will post information as it becomes available. I am unsure whether there was foul play involved here, but there's a good chance it was just overloaded as a result of the influx of information being edited regarding the March 15th raids.
Also, enturbulation appears to be in the process of upgrading server hardware to account for the growing number of anons using the forums there. Yesterday, there was a barebones forum available after the raids, and today, the site appears to be altogether inaccessible. Enturbulation, to my knowledge, should be up again soon.
In the meantime, I'll keep this blog as updated as possible, and feel free to dialogue with one another in the comments section while the enturb forums are down.
Also, enturbulation appears to be in the process of upgrading server hardware to account for the growing number of anons using the forums there. Yesterday, there was a barebones forum available after the raids, and today, the site appears to be altogether inaccessible. Enturbulation, to my knowledge, should be up again soon.
In the meantime, I'll keep this blog as updated as possible, and feel free to dialogue with one another in the comments section while the enturb forums are down.
Saturday, March 15, 2008
A Quick Word Regarding the Police
So, you know that lone officer who was posted outside the CoS store today? Apparently, he was there (with his own non-police vehicle, as well) because, even though it was supposed to be his day off, the Scientologists called the precinct four times this morning begging for assistance -- and this was very early in the day, likely before Anon even began gathering at eleven, because the officer arrived before noon. And in spite of the lousy circumstances, he wasn't at all unpleasant to have there (at least for Anonymous) and even honked for us when he left.
And of course, last time was a similar deal, except they apparently had two officers there. I'm guessing the South Side can't spare much in the way of law enforcement on St. Patrick's Day.
Especially in light of what went down in Atlanta today, I think it's important that Anonymous acknowledge how fair and respectful our police officers have been to us here in Pittsburgh, and give our support to the Atlanta anons who were arrested for what so far appears to be a petty noise ordinance violation.
And of course, last time was a similar deal, except they apparently had two officers there. I'm guessing the South Side can't spare much in the way of law enforcement on St. Patrick's Day.
Especially in light of what went down in Atlanta today, I think it's important that Anonymous acknowledge how fair and respectful our police officers have been to us here in Pittsburgh, and give our support to the Atlanta anons who were arrested for what so far appears to be a petty noise ordinance violation.
Post-Game: March 15th Protest
For great justice: if anyone has links to photo or video of the event in Pittsburgh, please leave comments on this post and I will add your links to the list at the end of this recap.
Well, the weather was somewhat better this time, thankfully. We peaked at around 35 anons, though some were coming and going throughout the day so its hard to say if there were 35 or more unique participants in total.
We got off to a bit of a rough start, as the owner of a shop near the sidewalk where we were gathering called the police to report a disturbance, and she accused us of blocking the sidewalk. A police officer showed up and Xenu and I spoke to him - he was really nice about it and basically didn't even make us move, although we did spread out down the street just to avoid future problems.
And, of course, there were drunks. We got there at 11 in the morning, and the drunks beat us there. For most the day, the drunks just found us amusing and screamed obscenities about Tom Cruise to the crowd. We saw a few of them stagger into the Scientology bookstore briefly, and I'm not sure what exactly came of that.
We had 30+ Anons sing "Happy Birthday" to L. Ron on video, which I assume will be found on YouTube by nightfall.
Again, they had a police officer stationed outside their store for the entire day. He seemed to like us, though. One Anon went over to offer him a piece of our birthday cake we dedicated to L. Ron after our song. He declined, but was very nice and told us to "have fun."
Also, when he left in his car toward the end of the protest, he honked for our signs (as did many others throughout the day). Epic win there.
There were two figures defending CoS that appeared and spoke to Anon during the day. Both were ostensibly on the South Side to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, based on the way they were dressed.
The first one was extremely polite and strongly defended Scientology's beliefs and said they helped him clear his mind and such. I spoke to him extensively, and I urged him to check out the Free Zone. He didn't outright the deny the cases I brought up, like Lisa McPherson's, though he did say they were only "mistakes." By the end of our talk, he said he would look into the Free Zone. I asked him if he'd be willing to divulge whether he was a member of the Church of Scientology or just a supporter of some of their beliefs, and he said that he was not a member, and he enjoyed learning about all kinds of beliefs. We shook hands before he left and he said I seemed very smart.
The other man who came and debated with members of Anon was not quite so polite as the first, though I mainly just listened to this one from the sidelines, since a small group had already gathered around him and started a dialogue. He seemed as though he was more interested in criticizing us for being there than he was in convincing us of the merits of Scientology, and again, he may or may not have been involved with them. He was with a friend dressed up in festive St. Patty's day stuff, so he may just have been a legit passerby. He didn't leave us on the best terms, and I saw a lot of frustration going on in that conversation. I'll leave further explanation to some of the Anons who actually spoke with this man extensively, and post here once I get details from them. (Edit: this guy confirmed unaffiliated with CoS; just looking for an argument.)
A woman stopped to talk to me and a few others when she saw the protest, and said that when she was living in Boston, her husband got involved with Scientology and they attempted to pressure her into joining and she couldn't stand it. We gave her some of our handouts and the URL for enturbulation's forums, and she said she'd be interested in writing up something about her experience and posting it there, so I'll be keeping an eye out for that. She told us she definitely supported us, as well.
Also, we had a very popular dancing Anon with speakers strapped to his belt. The drunks just loved that guy. He definitely kept morale up.
We pretty much ran out of fliers by around 4-4:30, and cleared out shortly thereafter, because the drunks were starting to get belligerent and curse at the protesters for no apparent reason.
One of our Anons went over to the CoS building when we heard they might be handing out DVDs about our hate crimes. They gave him a DVD, The Way to Happiness (not a hate crime one), and an amusing pamphlet about drugs that referred to Ritalin as "kiddie cocaine" and "Skittles." An Anon then went to Rite Aid and purchased Skittles for everyone.
The YouTube reporter who's been covering this, giv3m3truth, went over to the CoS building as well, after he taped interviews with us, and asked them if they'd like to make a statement about their stance on the protest. They refused, said something to the effect of "their actions speak for themselves" and shooed him out of there. Way to go, Scientology.
If anyone's got experiences to share that I missed here, comment please.
Media Coverage and Other Documentation of Great Justice:
WPXI Main Page slideshow
This is Pittsburgh
Brief (friendly) encounter with police after a storeowner complaint.
giv3m3truth's coverage
Well, the weather was somewhat better this time, thankfully. We peaked at around 35 anons, though some were coming and going throughout the day so its hard to say if there were 35 or more unique participants in total.
We got off to a bit of a rough start, as the owner of a shop near the sidewalk where we were gathering called the police to report a disturbance, and she accused us of blocking the sidewalk. A police officer showed up and Xenu and I spoke to him - he was really nice about it and basically didn't even make us move, although we did spread out down the street just to avoid future problems.
And, of course, there were drunks. We got there at 11 in the morning, and the drunks beat us there. For most the day, the drunks just found us amusing and screamed obscenities about Tom Cruise to the crowd. We saw a few of them stagger into the Scientology bookstore briefly, and I'm not sure what exactly came of that.
We had 30+ Anons sing "Happy Birthday" to L. Ron on video, which I assume will be found on YouTube by nightfall.
Again, they had a police officer stationed outside their store for the entire day. He seemed to like us, though. One Anon went over to offer him a piece of our birthday cake we dedicated to L. Ron after our song. He declined, but was very nice and told us to "have fun."
Also, when he left in his car toward the end of the protest, he honked for our signs (as did many others throughout the day). Epic win there.
There were two figures defending CoS that appeared and spoke to Anon during the day. Both were ostensibly on the South Side to celebrate St. Patrick's Day, based on the way they were dressed.
The first one was extremely polite and strongly defended Scientology's beliefs and said they helped him clear his mind and such. I spoke to him extensively, and I urged him to check out the Free Zone. He didn't outright the deny the cases I brought up, like Lisa McPherson's, though he did say they were only "mistakes." By the end of our talk, he said he would look into the Free Zone. I asked him if he'd be willing to divulge whether he was a member of the Church of Scientology or just a supporter of some of their beliefs, and he said that he was not a member, and he enjoyed learning about all kinds of beliefs. We shook hands before he left and he said I seemed very smart.
The other man who came and debated with members of Anon was not quite so polite as the first, though I mainly just listened to this one from the sidelines, since a small group had already gathered around him and started a dialogue. He seemed as though he was more interested in criticizing us for being there than he was in convincing us of the merits of Scientology, and again, he may or may not have been involved with them. He was with a friend dressed up in festive St. Patty's day stuff, so he may just have been a legit passerby. He didn't leave us on the best terms, and I saw a lot of frustration going on in that conversation. I'll leave further explanation to some of the Anons who actually spoke with this man extensively, and post here once I get details from them. (Edit: this guy confirmed unaffiliated with CoS; just looking for an argument.)
A woman stopped to talk to me and a few others when she saw the protest, and said that when she was living in Boston, her husband got involved with Scientology and they attempted to pressure her into joining and she couldn't stand it. We gave her some of our handouts and the URL for enturbulation's forums, and she said she'd be interested in writing up something about her experience and posting it there, so I'll be keeping an eye out for that. She told us she definitely supported us, as well.
Also, we had a very popular dancing Anon with speakers strapped to his belt. The drunks just loved that guy. He definitely kept morale up.
We pretty much ran out of fliers by around 4-4:30, and cleared out shortly thereafter, because the drunks were starting to get belligerent and curse at the protesters for no apparent reason.
One of our Anons went over to the CoS building when we heard they might be handing out DVDs about our hate crimes. They gave him a DVD, The Way to Happiness (not a hate crime one), and an amusing pamphlet about drugs that referred to Ritalin as "kiddie cocaine" and "Skittles." An Anon then went to Rite Aid and purchased Skittles for everyone.
The YouTube reporter who's been covering this, giv3m3truth, went over to the CoS building as well, after he taped interviews with us, and asked them if they'd like to make a statement about their stance on the protest. They refused, said something to the effect of "their actions speak for themselves" and shooed him out of there. Way to go, Scientology.
If anyone's got experiences to share that I missed here, comment please.
Media Coverage and Other Documentation of Great Justice:
WPXI Main Page slideshow
This is Pittsburgh
Brief (friendly) encounter with police after a storeowner complaint.
giv3m3truth's coverage
Thursday, March 13, 2008
Bullbaiting
So, cultlord posted a comment on the last post that I think merits a post of its own. Everyone should take a look at this Enturb post:
http://forums.enturbulation.org/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=6849
While I don't think it's likely that something like that will happen here, we should be on our guard once again for attempted bullbaiting by Scientologists. Like last time, we will be doing our protesting across the street from them, which creates a barrier between us and them. In addition, if last time was any indication, we will far outnumber them, which is a help to us in the event of any bullbaiting attempts. The police will most likely be there again, which should provide another buffer between us and them. For those of you who weren't there on 2/10, the police pretty much sat inside the Scientology building the whole time, except to come out once to warn us about stepping onto the street.
However, another known strategy employed by the CoS is to plant members in protest groups, who will try to incite the group to perform illegal acts. The same policy as last time will apply to this: if anyone in the group tries to get you to do anything illegal, report them to one of the media reps, and we'll dissociate the group from them. If anyone in the group does anything illegal, we will call the police on you ourselves. Basically, just keep it legal and peaceful. It's really not that hard.
That said, everyone did a great job keeping it completely civil and peaceful last time, and I have no reason to suspect otherwise this time, unless there are infiltrators. Even in that case, I trust everyone to deal with them properly.
See you guys on Saturday!
-Xenu
http://forums.enturbulation.org/viewtopic.php?f=12&t=6849
While I don't think it's likely that something like that will happen here, we should be on our guard once again for attempted bullbaiting by Scientologists. Like last time, we will be doing our protesting across the street from them, which creates a barrier between us and them. In addition, if last time was any indication, we will far outnumber them, which is a help to us in the event of any bullbaiting attempts. The police will most likely be there again, which should provide another buffer between us and them. For those of you who weren't there on 2/10, the police pretty much sat inside the Scientology building the whole time, except to come out once to warn us about stepping onto the street.
However, another known strategy employed by the CoS is to plant members in protest groups, who will try to incite the group to perform illegal acts. The same policy as last time will apply to this: if anyone in the group tries to get you to do anything illegal, report them to one of the media reps, and we'll dissociate the group from them. If anyone in the group does anything illegal, we will call the police on you ourselves. Basically, just keep it legal and peaceful. It's really not that hard.
That said, everyone did a great job keeping it completely civil and peaceful last time, and I have no reason to suspect otherwise this time, unless there are infiltrators. Even in that case, I trust everyone to deal with them properly.
See you guys on Saturday!
-Xenu
Wednesday, March 12, 2008
Watch out for the drunks...
So, miss_anon just informed me that she called the police about the 3/15 protest (on her break, even - so committed...) and they were generally nice about it, but did warn her to watch out for the drunks, since 3/15 is kinda St. Patrick's Day. In case you either weren't there for the 2/10 protest or didn't notice, there are a lot of bars/clubs in the vicinity of the Scientology building down there (I believe there's even one right next to it), so this is definitely a concern.
I think the best idea might be to disperse before it gets dark (not like we're doing much good after dark anyway). Seems to me like somewhere around 6 PM might be an optimal time to finish up, though I'd figure on clearing out earlier if the drunks show up earlier.
Oh also, remember, we're celebrating a birthday here! Anyone who can bake ought to make cake (I'm going to, because I'm just that awesome). If you can't bake but have money, buy one! Also, wear party hats and all that. We might have some extra if people don't have them, and we will make you wear them. Also we will be singing happy birthday for dear Elron. This is also non-negotiable.
Oh and I guess if we have cake we need paper plates and plastic forks and stuff, so if you have extra or feel like picking some up, that'd be cool, too.
More updates if I think of anything more. I guess miss_anon covered most of it in her last post.
-Xenu
I think the best idea might be to disperse before it gets dark (not like we're doing much good after dark anyway). Seems to me like somewhere around 6 PM might be an optimal time to finish up, though I'd figure on clearing out earlier if the drunks show up earlier.
Oh also, remember, we're celebrating a birthday here! Anyone who can bake ought to make cake (I'm going to, because I'm just that awesome). If you can't bake but have money, buy one! Also, wear party hats and all that. We might have some extra if people don't have them, and we will make you wear them. Also we will be singing happy birthday for dear Elron. This is also non-negotiable.
Oh and I guess if we have cake we need paper plates and plastic forks and stuff, so if you have extra or feel like picking some up, that'd be cool, too.
More updates if I think of anything more. I guess miss_anon covered most of it in her last post.
-Xenu
Friday, March 7, 2008
Details for the 3/15 Protest: It's Party Time!
Details have been requested for the 3/15 protest, so here they are.
Date: 3/15/2008
Time: 11:00am-? (Let's stay as long as we can)
Place: The sidewalk across the street from the Scientology bookstore at 1906 E. Carson Street on the South Side.
Masks are legal, so wear them, along with whatever other implements of disguise you deem necessary.
It is very important that we stay on the sidewalk and off of the road. While on the sidewalk, make every effort possible not to block passersby. It's a pretty wide sidewalk, so this shouldn't be difficult. By doing these things, we can avoid having to apply for a permit. The police who were present at the CoS building last time were fine with us being there as long as we followed these rules.
Additionally, and this is pretty obvious, do not litter. If you bring leaflets or signs, take what hasn't been handed out with you when you go, or make sure they find their way into a trash can. I will be bringing some garbage bags in case we need them.
Noise ordinances in Pittsburgh prohibit us from having boomboxes, so please do not bring them.
Any member of Anonymous who persists in violating local laws applying to our protest, threatening or harassing the Scientologists, or otherwise disrupting the protest will be asked to leave. If a major problem occurs, the police will be summoned. Let's keep this legal and give them nothing to get us in trouble over.
Please check the weather forecasts before 3/15. I know it's been warming up recently, but I've heard rumors of impending snow, and if we want to stay longer, appropriate dress will be important.
If you have cameras or camcorders, bring them. Last time, a strange fellow took pictures of us from outside the CoS building, and it's important for us to keep our own photo records. Plus, we need something to post online afterward for great justice.
Bring signs to hold. Large foamboard ones worked best for cheap and easy-to-make ones. Just don't try and tape stuff to other stuff, because the wind wrecked those last time. Markers do just fine.
Regarding signs: Do not use the word "hate" on them. At all. This happened last time and drew some criticism from a reporter because it conflicted with our overall message.
"Honk if" signs were excellent, and got an awesome response from passing cars. However, since there can be no more "honk if you hate Scientology," here are a few other suggestions:
*Honk if you think Scientology is a cult*
*Honk if Scientology should pay taxes*
*Honk if religion should be free of charge*
Of course, non-honking signs are great too, and again, no "hate."
If you have other sign ideas you'd like to share, please comment! The more the better. Just steer clear of attacking their beliefs or anything generally profane.
Bring some snacks and drinks for yourself. I've heard stories of businesses refusing to serve protesters, especially those who won't take off their Guy Fawkes masks, although we did not have problems with this last time.
We recommend that you not drive your car to the protest, as early raids in Orlando led to some of the protesters being followed home in their vehicles, and license plate numbers are a great way to give up your identity. Most of the Anons took a bus to the South Side. If this is not an option for you, consider parking your car in one of the public garages outside the South Side Works shopping area. The rates are affordable, and it's about eight blocks from the CoS building -- far enough for them not to find your car easily, close enough to be a reasonable walk.
Although this did not happen last time, since the police were present at the CoS building for the duration of the protest, should you be bullbaited or harassed by a Scientologist handler, do not respond in kind. Either completely ignore them, or respond civilly and politely. I recommend silence, since their behavior may make civility difficult at times. The most they did last time was have a creepy guy who came out of a white van snap some pictures from across the street, and most of us just waved and gave him peace signs.
I will be alerting the local news stations and newspapers again, along with giving the South Side police a heads up (though I'm assuming that the Scientologists will be taking care of this for us). However, if any of you have contacts within the local media, PLEASE do not hesitate to use them -- university press would be great too! Last time, we got televised coverage from WTAE, online coverage from WPXI, and print/online coverage from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
We have two Anons who are prepared to greet the media representatives with statements and information regarding the protest. After that, the media is free to interview any member of Anonymous who is willing to speak with them. Naturally, most of you will want to remain anonymous, but you may give the press a more specific pseudonym, rather than just "Anon," if you choose. Just make sure to clarify that it is an assumed name, and if necessary, give an explanation of why it is important that your identity remain secret. Backed up with a solid argument, this can be pretty powerful in itself.
And, of course, have fun out there!
See you all in a week or so.
Love,
Miss Anonymous.
Date: 3/15/2008
Time: 11:00am-? (Let's stay as long as we can)
Place: The sidewalk across the street from the Scientology bookstore at 1906 E. Carson Street on the South Side.
Masks are legal, so wear them, along with whatever other implements of disguise you deem necessary.
It is very important that we stay on the sidewalk and off of the road. While on the sidewalk, make every effort possible not to block passersby. It's a pretty wide sidewalk, so this shouldn't be difficult. By doing these things, we can avoid having to apply for a permit. The police who were present at the CoS building last time were fine with us being there as long as we followed these rules.
Additionally, and this is pretty obvious, do not litter. If you bring leaflets or signs, take what hasn't been handed out with you when you go, or make sure they find their way into a trash can. I will be bringing some garbage bags in case we need them.
Noise ordinances in Pittsburgh prohibit us from having boomboxes, so please do not bring them.
Any member of Anonymous who persists in violating local laws applying to our protest, threatening or harassing the Scientologists, or otherwise disrupting the protest will be asked to leave. If a major problem occurs, the police will be summoned. Let's keep this legal and give them nothing to get us in trouble over.
Please check the weather forecasts before 3/15. I know it's been warming up recently, but I've heard rumors of impending snow, and if we want to stay longer, appropriate dress will be important.
If you have cameras or camcorders, bring them. Last time, a strange fellow took pictures of us from outside the CoS building, and it's important for us to keep our own photo records. Plus, we need something to post online afterward for great justice.
Bring signs to hold. Large foamboard ones worked best for cheap and easy-to-make ones. Just don't try and tape stuff to other stuff, because the wind wrecked those last time. Markers do just fine.
Regarding signs: Do not use the word "hate" on them. At all. This happened last time and drew some criticism from a reporter because it conflicted with our overall message.
"Honk if" signs were excellent, and got an awesome response from passing cars. However, since there can be no more "honk if you hate Scientology," here are a few other suggestions:
*Honk if you think Scientology is a cult*
*Honk if Scientology should pay taxes*
*Honk if religion should be free of charge*
Of course, non-honking signs are great too, and again, no "hate."
If you have other sign ideas you'd like to share, please comment! The more the better. Just steer clear of attacking their beliefs or anything generally profane.
Bring some snacks and drinks for yourself. I've heard stories of businesses refusing to serve protesters, especially those who won't take off their Guy Fawkes masks, although we did not have problems with this last time.
We recommend that you not drive your car to the protest, as early raids in Orlando led to some of the protesters being followed home in their vehicles, and license plate numbers are a great way to give up your identity. Most of the Anons took a bus to the South Side. If this is not an option for you, consider parking your car in one of the public garages outside the South Side Works shopping area. The rates are affordable, and it's about eight blocks from the CoS building -- far enough for them not to find your car easily, close enough to be a reasonable walk.
Although this did not happen last time, since the police were present at the CoS building for the duration of the protest, should you be bullbaited or harassed by a Scientologist handler, do not respond in kind. Either completely ignore them, or respond civilly and politely. I recommend silence, since their behavior may make civility difficult at times. The most they did last time was have a creepy guy who came out of a white van snap some pictures from across the street, and most of us just waved and gave him peace signs.
I will be alerting the local news stations and newspapers again, along with giving the South Side police a heads up (though I'm assuming that the Scientologists will be taking care of this for us). However, if any of you have contacts within the local media, PLEASE do not hesitate to use them -- university press would be great too! Last time, we got televised coverage from WTAE, online coverage from WPXI, and print/online coverage from the Pittsburgh Post Gazette.
We have two Anons who are prepared to greet the media representatives with statements and information regarding the protest. After that, the media is free to interview any member of Anonymous who is willing to speak with them. Naturally, most of you will want to remain anonymous, but you may give the press a more specific pseudonym, rather than just "Anon," if you choose. Just make sure to clarify that it is an assumed name, and if necessary, give an explanation of why it is important that your identity remain secret. Backed up with a solid argument, this can be pretty powerful in itself.
And, of course, have fun out there!
See you all in a week or so.
Love,
Miss Anonymous.
Tuesday, March 4, 2008
General Information: Scientology in Pittsburgh
Requests were made on enturbulation.org's forums for some information specific to Scientology's presence in Pittsburgh, and this post should deliver. As a note, this is mostly a primer on basic stuff, but newcomers to the protests should find it informative. If anyone has a fact that they think should be added, feel free to comment on the post and I'll see if we can incorporate it.
********************************************************
The only current CoS facility in Pittsburgh, which is where the protests have been and will be held, is a bookstore located at 1906 East Carson Street in the South Side of Pittsburgh. This is not a full Scientology Church. It is a small facility, and it appears to have only one or two workers inside at a time, with the exception of when protests occur, at which point there seem to be three or four employees/members, joined by members of the Pittsburgh Police. The storefront offers written works like Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard, and they advertise the ubiquitous "Free Personality Test" on a sign outside.
Although you can go inside for the personality test and presumably be subject to recruitment attempts and financial solicitation, this facility does not offer the courses required for a new member to become Clear. In order to become Clear, Scientologists must go out of town to a larger, full Church location that offers the full course catalog. Because of this, it can be inferred that the Pittsburgh location is primarily a recruitment center to pull in new members that can be shipped elsewhere for training and service, and an outpost to keep in touch with the handful of members who live in the Pittsburgh area.
There was a rumor going around prior to 2/10 that Scientology had already purchased a new building on East Carson Street to be renovated and converted to a full Church. However, this no longer appears to be case. The cause of the confusion appears to have been a Pittsburgh Bizjournal article that, despite having a URL with "Pittsburgh" in it, was actually referring to a CoS building purchase in Portland.
The bookstore they currently have is relatively new, and there appear to be plans in place to make improvements to it, but any renovations currently being undergone are at 1906 E. Carson Street, not a separate building. There do not appear to be plans at present for them to build a full Church in Pittsburgh. It is not listed on the official Church of Scientology website as a Church, but a more extensive search will yield the address and number, etc.
As some of you likely already know, Scientology publishes a business directory, and it indicates at least a few professionals in the area are adherents of CoS, so their presence among the general public here is limited, but it does exist. And I apologize for the dated link, but the directory appears to be somewhat private and the only copy I could find was on a protest site that had an old copy up -- if anyone finds a more recent copy, please comment on this post and I will update the link with it.
That being said, the presence of Scientology critics in the area seems to overwhelm the presence of their adherents. In addition to the 40+ valiant Anons who participated in the 2/10 and those who will be joining us on 3/15 for more great justice, we have several higher profile non-Anonymous critics in our city.
First of all, there is Professor Dave Touretzky of CMU, who many of you have probably heard of already, due to his highly-publicized efforts to spread the truth about the CoS via his website (scroll down for most of the Scientology-relevant links) and various interviews he has conducted regarding Scientology. And we can also consider him proof positive that even in cities like Pittsburgh where Scientology appears to have minimal influence, revealing one's identity can lead to Fair Game harassment.
We were lucky enough to have Professor Touretzky join us on our IRC channel prior to 2/10, and he mentioned a few other harassment attempts made by Scientology as a result of his constant protests of the CoS, including calling his parents at home to denounce him and make false accusations. He also noted that he will be supporting us from the sidelines, but that he would not attend the protests themselves out of fear that his presence would attract too negative/violent a reaction from CoS and put the rest of us at heightened risk.
Pittsburgh is also currently home to former CoS member and Scientology critic Chuck Beatty, who spent 27 years serving in the Sea Org.
Though there have been examples of Fair Game harassment here, there have been no Scientology-related deaths like Lisa McPherson's in the area, which is unsurprising given the limited number of people involved in Scientology here and their limited facilities in the area.
So what can we take away from this information? In my opinion, the goal of Pittsburgh's protests should be to inform the public and to contain the influence of the CoS. If we can show them that Pittsburgh is unreceptive to their practices, they will be less likely to make the multi-million dollar investment that bringing in a full Church will entail, as we will have gotten to the public first and ruined their potential recruitment base with the truth about Scientology.
Love to my Anons,
Miss Anonymous
********************************************************
The only current CoS facility in Pittsburgh, which is where the protests have been and will be held, is a bookstore located at 1906 East Carson Street in the South Side of Pittsburgh. This is not a full Scientology Church. It is a small facility, and it appears to have only one or two workers inside at a time, with the exception of when protests occur, at which point there seem to be three or four employees/members, joined by members of the Pittsburgh Police. The storefront offers written works like Dianetics by L. Ron Hubbard, and they advertise the ubiquitous "Free Personality Test" on a sign outside.
Although you can go inside for the personality test and presumably be subject to recruitment attempts and financial solicitation, this facility does not offer the courses required for a new member to become Clear. In order to become Clear, Scientologists must go out of town to a larger, full Church location that offers the full course catalog. Because of this, it can be inferred that the Pittsburgh location is primarily a recruitment center to pull in new members that can be shipped elsewhere for training and service, and an outpost to keep in touch with the handful of members who live in the Pittsburgh area.
There was a rumor going around prior to 2/10 that Scientology had already purchased a new building on East Carson Street to be renovated and converted to a full Church. However, this no longer appears to be case. The cause of the confusion appears to have been a Pittsburgh Bizjournal article that, despite having a URL with "Pittsburgh" in it, was actually referring to a CoS building purchase in Portland.
The bookstore they currently have is relatively new, and there appear to be plans in place to make improvements to it, but any renovations currently being undergone are at 1906 E. Carson Street, not a separate building. There do not appear to be plans at present for them to build a full Church in Pittsburgh. It is not listed on the official Church of Scientology website as a Church, but a more extensive search will yield the address and number, etc.
As some of you likely already know, Scientology publishes a business directory, and it indicates at least a few professionals in the area are adherents of CoS, so their presence among the general public here is limited, but it does exist. And I apologize for the dated link, but the directory appears to be somewhat private and the only copy I could find was on a protest site that had an old copy up -- if anyone finds a more recent copy, please comment on this post and I will update the link with it.
That being said, the presence of Scientology critics in the area seems to overwhelm the presence of their adherents. In addition to the 40+ valiant Anons who participated in the 2/10 and those who will be joining us on 3/15 for more great justice, we have several higher profile non-Anonymous critics in our city.
First of all, there is Professor Dave Touretzky of CMU, who many of you have probably heard of already, due to his highly-publicized efforts to spread the truth about the CoS via his website (scroll down for most of the Scientology-relevant links) and various interviews he has conducted regarding Scientology. And we can also consider him proof positive that even in cities like Pittsburgh where Scientology appears to have minimal influence, revealing one's identity can lead to Fair Game harassment.
We were lucky enough to have Professor Touretzky join us on our IRC channel prior to 2/10, and he mentioned a few other harassment attempts made by Scientology as a result of his constant protests of the CoS, including calling his parents at home to denounce him and make false accusations. He also noted that he will be supporting us from the sidelines, but that he would not attend the protests themselves out of fear that his presence would attract too negative/violent a reaction from CoS and put the rest of us at heightened risk.
Pittsburgh is also currently home to former CoS member and Scientology critic Chuck Beatty, who spent 27 years serving in the Sea Org.
Though there have been examples of Fair Game harassment here, there have been no Scientology-related deaths like Lisa McPherson's in the area, which is unsurprising given the limited number of people involved in Scientology here and their limited facilities in the area.
So what can we take away from this information? In my opinion, the goal of Pittsburgh's protests should be to inform the public and to contain the influence of the CoS. If we can show them that Pittsburgh is unreceptive to their practices, they will be less likely to make the multi-million dollar investment that bringing in a full Church will entail, as we will have gotten to the public first and ruined their potential recruitment base with the truth about Scientology.
Love to my Anons,
Miss Anonymous
Sunday, February 24, 2008
R.I.P. Shawn Lonsdale
In case anyone's living under a rock lately, Scientology critic Shawn Lonsdale died recently in what is being called an 'apparent suicide.' It is unclear whether there was room for Co$ involvement, but the circumstances were sketchy -- he died in his home after a hose had been pushed into a window and attached to his car exhaust, similar to how Quentin Hubbard, L. Ron's homosexual son, died. This is, to say the least, an unusual and inefficient way to commit suicide.
If indeed this was technically suicide, it is fair to say that the harassment he suffered at the hands of Scientology likely contributed to the state of mind he was in at the time of his death. Also, given that he lived in Clearwater, whether or not the police department is capable of an investigation not colored by the interests of the Co$ is up for debate, and many posters on enturbulation have been working on the Tampa area media and their FBI branch office.
At any rate, Shawn made many excellent contributions to our cause, and it is a shame that he is gone now, when progress is finally picking up speed. My condolences go out to his surviving friends and relatives.
Whether or not it was intended as such by the Co$, let this be a wake up call concerning what can happen to critics who devote themselves to exposing the Church. If you become prominent and non-Anonymous, you are subject to Fair Game.
Personally, just in case of the rare and absolutely terrifying consequence of dying under suspicious circumstances, I am writing an anti-suicide note and saving it to my desktop and leaving copies in various other places and in the hands of loved ones, so that anything that happens to me will not be presumed a suicide. After all, I appeared on the news in only sunglasses, was quoted in the paper, and my name is known by a few who are aware of my involvement. Though it is very unlikely, I just want my bases covered.
All my love, to Anonymous and to Shawn,
Miss Anonymous.
If indeed this was technically suicide, it is fair to say that the harassment he suffered at the hands of Scientology likely contributed to the state of mind he was in at the time of his death. Also, given that he lived in Clearwater, whether or not the police department is capable of an investigation not colored by the interests of the Co$ is up for debate, and many posters on enturbulation have been working on the Tampa area media and their FBI branch office.
At any rate, Shawn made many excellent contributions to our cause, and it is a shame that he is gone now, when progress is finally picking up speed. My condolences go out to his surviving friends and relatives.
Whether or not it was intended as such by the Co$, let this be a wake up call concerning what can happen to critics who devote themselves to exposing the Church. If you become prominent and non-Anonymous, you are subject to Fair Game.
Personally, just in case of the rare and absolutely terrifying consequence of dying under suspicious circumstances, I am writing an anti-suicide note and saving it to my desktop and leaving copies in various other places and in the hands of loved ones, so that anything that happens to me will not be presumed a suicide. After all, I appeared on the news in only sunglasses, was quoted in the paper, and my name is known by a few who are aware of my involvement. Though it is very unlikely, I just want my bases covered.
All my love, to Anonymous and to Shawn,
Miss Anonymous.
Flyers?
Spotted on the CMU campus on a pole near Hunt Library. Anyone want to take credit? Any other flyer sightings in Pittsburgh?
I think the time has come for some kind of larger-scale flyer campaign on campuses, etc. Comment with feedback and plans.
Also, while I applaud the effort here, this flyer misspelled "Government," so be careful to proofread any future signage. Also, as a given, do not post things where you are not allowed to post them, such as to other people's private property.
Saturday, February 16, 2008
Friday, February 15, 2008
Project Chanology on Wikipedia
So, the Pittsburgh protest made the Wikipedia page on Project Chanology protests...they noted the cold weather and the people who traveled from Penn State to attend.
I'm sure one of you probably wrote it, but in case anyone hasn't seen it yet, I'm leaving it up here.
And, in other not so good news, for anyone who hasn't heard yet: YouTube has pulled the Anonymous "Message to Scientology" video for some form of terms of service violation.
Love,
Miss Anonymous
I'm sure one of you probably wrote it, but in case anyone hasn't seen it yet, I'm leaving it up here.
And, in other not so good news, for anyone who hasn't heard yet: YouTube has pulled the Anonymous "Message to Scientology" video for some form of terms of service violation.
Love,
Miss Anonymous
Thursday, February 14, 2008
Wednesday, February 13, 2008
Signage for the 3/15 Rally
Hey guys,
Just a few things I wanted to point out about signs for the next protest -- specifically, the large foamboard-type signs to hold up for passing cars during the event.
First off, the most durable types of handmade signs turned out to be the traditional marker-on-foamboard variety. Things that had printed paper taped to a board did not hold up to the wind, so refrain from this style of sign next time. The more professionally made ones, like the one on the pole with the "When your check clears" bit were very effective, I thought, so if anyone has the capability to make signs like that, go for it.
Also -- when the PPG reporter visited, he commented about how we were claiming not to be a hate group, but we had a "honk if you hate Scientology" sign. Now, the "honk if" concept turned out to be very effective -- I heard people estimate an 80% honkage rate, which is awesome. However, we need a new verb for signs like this. Something that won't send a mixed message when we try to portray the fact that we don't hate religion or other people's beliefs. "Oppose" or a less "hate"-like word would do. Feel free to post suggestions here. We definitely need the honk signs, though -- clearly, the cops didn't mind the horn noise, and it obviously got the attention of motorists.
XOXO,
Miss Anonymous.
Just a few things I wanted to point out about signs for the next protest -- specifically, the large foamboard-type signs to hold up for passing cars during the event.
First off, the most durable types of handmade signs turned out to be the traditional marker-on-foamboard variety. Things that had printed paper taped to a board did not hold up to the wind, so refrain from this style of sign next time. The more professionally made ones, like the one on the pole with the "When your check clears" bit were very effective, I thought, so if anyone has the capability to make signs like that, go for it.
Also -- when the PPG reporter visited, he commented about how we were claiming not to be a hate group, but we had a "honk if you hate Scientology" sign. Now, the "honk if" concept turned out to be very effective -- I heard people estimate an 80% honkage rate, which is awesome. However, we need a new verb for signs like this. Something that won't send a mixed message when we try to portray the fact that we don't hate religion or other people's beliefs. "Oppose" or a less "hate"-like word would do. Feel free to post suggestions here. We definitely need the honk signs, though -- clearly, the cops didn't mind the horn noise, and it obviously got the attention of motorists.
XOXO,
Miss Anonymous.
Monday, February 11, 2008
How to Approach Operation Party Hard (3/15/2008)
It seems to be considered a given at this point that Pittsburgh Anons will be taking part in Operation Party Hard, the next tentatively-planned raid on Saturday, March 15, 2008.
Now, considering the press that Anonymous and the Pittsburgh Anons have gotten with the first demonstration, it is quite possible that we're attracting a new demographic of people who are interested in participating for the next round. I'm writing here as a way of eliciting ideas for the handling of an influx of new potential protesters.
Currently, the Anonymous protesters seem to be college-aged or recently graduated from college, Internet-savvy/obsessed, and reasonably in keeping with the necessity of keeping identities discreet, obeying local codes of conduct for peaceful protests, not giving in to the temptation of directly confronting members of CoS, etc.
But last time, Anonymous was pretty easy to keep under control. The vast majority of us were either active posters or friends of active posters in such places as forums.enturbulation.org, Something Awful, or CoSplay, and as a result updates were easy to dispense, rules easy to lay down, and so on.
I'm beginning to get the sense that next time, we're going to have a whole slew of newbies involved. And while the greater exposure and with it the increased support from the local community is a wonderful, wonderful thing, I personally believe it is a double-edged sword.
Case in point: I have an annoying little sister who has never heard of 4chan, rickrolling, neckbeards, Guy Fawkes, or goons. She likes such things as Hannah Montana and cute purses. However, she tells me that my high school alma mater is abuzz with news of Project Chanology and the Pittsburgh protest. Because she is a flipping idiot, she has semi-outed me, no doubt due to her immense pride in my actions, to her classmates. As a result, she has been inundated with offers to "help" with Party Hard.
Needless to say, I reamed her out for her ignorance regarding WHY the group had to remain Anonymous. I don't think she quite managed to convey to others the importance of this aspect of our movement. And it makes me uneasy that the only real way we have to communicate with this group is by using her as a proxy.
I wouldn't be blogging this if I didn't suspect this high school incident of being a microcosm of the situation that is about to arise in the weeks leading up to Party Hard. Basically, the next generation of Anonymous is going to be well-intentioned but more unpredictable and difficult to communicate with en masse.
Please comment with suggestions for handling the participation in the next protest. Despite the drawbacks of it all, I still believe there is strength in numbers and that surpassing fifty for the next event will be a win for us, so I don't want to write off new protesters.
Love Always,
Miss Anonymous
Now, considering the press that Anonymous and the Pittsburgh Anons have gotten with the first demonstration, it is quite possible that we're attracting a new demographic of people who are interested in participating for the next round. I'm writing here as a way of eliciting ideas for the handling of an influx of new potential protesters.
Currently, the Anonymous protesters seem to be college-aged or recently graduated from college, Internet-savvy/obsessed, and reasonably in keeping with the necessity of keeping identities discreet, obeying local codes of conduct for peaceful protests, not giving in to the temptation of directly confronting members of CoS, etc.
But last time, Anonymous was pretty easy to keep under control. The vast majority of us were either active posters or friends of active posters in such places as forums.enturbulation.org, Something Awful, or CoSplay, and as a result updates were easy to dispense, rules easy to lay down, and so on.
I'm beginning to get the sense that next time, we're going to have a whole slew of newbies involved. And while the greater exposure and with it the increased support from the local community is a wonderful, wonderful thing, I personally believe it is a double-edged sword.
Case in point: I have an annoying little sister who has never heard of 4chan, rickrolling, neckbeards, Guy Fawkes, or goons. She likes such things as Hannah Montana and cute purses. However, she tells me that my high school alma mater is abuzz with news of Project Chanology and the Pittsburgh protest. Because she is a flipping idiot, she has semi-outed me, no doubt due to her immense pride in my actions, to her classmates. As a result, she has been inundated with offers to "help" with Party Hard.
Needless to say, I reamed her out for her ignorance regarding WHY the group had to remain Anonymous. I don't think she quite managed to convey to others the importance of this aspect of our movement. And it makes me uneasy that the only real way we have to communicate with this group is by using her as a proxy.
I wouldn't be blogging this if I didn't suspect this high school incident of being a microcosm of the situation that is about to arise in the weeks leading up to Party Hard. Basically, the next generation of Anonymous is going to be well-intentioned but more unpredictable and difficult to communicate with en masse.
Please comment with suggestions for handling the participation in the next protest. Despite the drawbacks of it all, I still believe there is strength in numbers and that surpassing fifty for the next event will be a win for us, so I don't want to write off new protesters.
Love Always,
Miss Anonymous
Front page!
So, we got on the front page of the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette, which is pretty awesome. I thought their article had a few issues, but at least they make it clear that we're protesting their tactics, not their beliefs. Read it for yourself here:
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08042/856555-85.stm
http://www.post-gazette.com/pg/08042/856555-85.stm
Sunday, February 10, 2008
giv3m3truth's coverage of the protest
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vBqN9d8D_Zc
Seems like he was mostly there right at the start, but he got some good interviews with "Lisa" and "Noah" (I hope he knew those were pseudonyms).
Seems like he was mostly there right at the start, but he got some good interviews with "Lisa" and "Noah" (I hope he knew those were pseudonyms).
Channel 4 Coverage
So, for those of you who missed the Channel 4 coverage of the raid, it was generally very positive. They explained very clearly how we don't attack CoS's beliefs, only its methods, and had an interview with Miss Anon where she did a very good job of representing our position. They also had more than a few shots of our signs, which does a good job of spreading our message. They did, of course, have to air the response from the Scientologists, which was basically the standard "Anon == bigots" thing, but that argument rang pretty empty when taken together with the rest of the segment. I think, though they couldn't say it, Channel 4 was pretty clearly on our side (we got a lot more airtime than the CoS :p). Hopefully all the other news reports will be equally well done.
Also, it'd be really great if people, particularly people who saw the report, would voice their appreciation at a job well done. Channel 4's contact page is:
http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/station/index.html
Also, it'd be really great if people, particularly people who saw the report, would voice their appreciation at a job well done. Channel 4's contact page is:
http://www.thepittsburghchannel.com/station/index.html
2/10 Protest Results
So, for a summary, a shameless copypasta from what I wrote on Chanology:
It was damn cold, and damn windy, but we had at least 30-40 people despite that. The protest was right next to a busy street (Carson St.), and many drivers responded to the "Honk if you hate Scientology" (as well as "Honk if you think Tom Cruise is insane") signs. We even had an ambulance honk. Virtually no response from the CoS, there were a couple of police officers stationed across the street at the CoS building, but this may have been because we contacted them beforehand. We had a good amount of media coverage, including newspapers and even a local news channel. Will post links to these as they become available.
Overall, a very good, peaceful, protest, which I think got the message across very clearly. No legal troubles or troubles with CoS members.
Now, a request: if anyone has any pictures, videos, etc., please either email them to me or email me a link where I can find them. I'll be putting up a compilation of media from the protest once I get some more responses to this.
Another request: as some of you know, we got media coverage (epic win!). I don't have all the info on who's going to be covering us when, etc., so email me that, or drop a comment, if you have that info.
And now, a personal message to all of you who braved the single-digit windchills to get out there and fight the good fight: Awesome job, guys. Everyone did amazingly well at keeping the protest nonviolent and informative, rather than offensive. It's absolutely great that the police who were there spent 99% of their time inside the CoS building. Hopefully the media coverage will reflect what I saw today: a group of concerned, committed citizens fighting to get the truth out there in a nonviolent fashion. Let's see the CoS try to spin that one the same way they attacked us in their last press release (though I'm sure they'll try). Excellent work, everyone.
Love,
Xenu
It was damn cold, and damn windy, but we had at least 30-40 people despite that. The protest was right next to a busy street (Carson St.), and many drivers responded to the "Honk if you hate Scientology" (as well as "Honk if you think Tom Cruise is insane") signs. We even had an ambulance honk. Virtually no response from the CoS, there were a couple of police officers stationed across the street at the CoS building, but this may have been because we contacted them beforehand. We had a good amount of media coverage, including newspapers and even a local news channel. Will post links to these as they become available.
Overall, a very good, peaceful, protest, which I think got the message across very clearly. No legal troubles or troubles with CoS members.
Now, a request: if anyone has any pictures, videos, etc., please either email them to me or email me a link where I can find them. I'll be putting up a compilation of media from the protest once I get some more responses to this.
Another request: as some of you know, we got media coverage (epic win!). I don't have all the info on who's going to be covering us when, etc., so email me that, or drop a comment, if you have that info.
And now, a personal message to all of you who braved the single-digit windchills to get out there and fight the good fight: Awesome job, guys. Everyone did amazingly well at keeping the protest nonviolent and informative, rather than offensive. It's absolutely great that the police who were there spent 99% of their time inside the CoS building. Hopefully the media coverage will reflect what I saw today: a group of concerned, committed citizens fighting to get the truth out there in a nonviolent fashion. Let's see the CoS try to spin that one the same way they attacked us in their last press release (though I'm sure they'll try). Excellent work, everyone.
Love,
Xenu
PGH Anon blog created
I coordinated the 2/10 raid/protest nearly entirely over email, with a little help from the IRC channel. This turned out to be reasonably effective, but it was a lot of work, and it made it so that the only way to get information on the raid was to contact me directly, or use the slightly limited resources available online. While this did have the advantage of keeping the information contained to a smaller group, it's not like it would've been hard to infiltrate - pretty much, if you contacted me, you got on the mailing list. The list was also somewhat difficult to maintain, particularly with having to figure out who needed what information, etc.
So, I had the idea (naturally, during the raid itself) to set up a blog as a central point of information for the Pittsburgh area Anons in our fight against Scientology. I feel that this way we can have a website anyone can point to that has up to date information on events (no more business like the 9th/10th confusion caused by a misprint on ED). In addition, we can have multiple people certified to post, which will lessen the load on me (wondering why some emails got out later than they probably should have? Xenu had work...or was lazy...) It also gives you a good site to link other people to when trying to recruit them for events.
So yeah, we have a blog now. If you want posting rights, contact me, though this will probably be limited to people I've met IRL (no offense, but you guys understand the need for security). While most posts will be event-related, some may just be relevant info about Scientology, etc. We'll see how it goes
-Xenu
So, I had the idea (naturally, during the raid itself) to set up a blog as a central point of information for the Pittsburgh area Anons in our fight against Scientology. I feel that this way we can have a website anyone can point to that has up to date information on events (no more business like the 9th/10th confusion caused by a misprint on ED). In addition, we can have multiple people certified to post, which will lessen the load on me (wondering why some emails got out later than they probably should have? Xenu had work...or was lazy...) It also gives you a good site to link other people to when trying to recruit them for events.
So yeah, we have a blog now. If you want posting rights, contact me, though this will probably be limited to people I've met IRL (no offense, but you guys understand the need for security). While most posts will be event-related, some may just be relevant info about Scientology, etc. We'll see how it goes
-Xenu
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