New Content Sandbox

Overview
This page was created because the old content sandbox was full of fail.... and just full.

Here you will find the three main topics, and their sub-questions.

Who is Anonymous?
Assigned to cabbykins

Who Is Anonymous?
Anonymous is a cultural phenomenon which began on internet image boards. Many such boards require no registration for posting, and every poster remains anonymous. This format of communication is inherently noisy and chaotic. However, the unprecedented openness made possible by such boards has nurtured the appearance of a unique and persistent culture.

We are a collection of individuals united by ideas. You likely know Anonymous, although you don't know exactly who we are. We are your brothers and sisters, your parents and children, your superiors and your underlings. We are the concerned citizens standing next to you. Anonymous is everywhere, yet nowhere. Our strength lies in our numbers. Our will as a whole is the combined will of individuals. Our greatest advantage is a knowledge of the fundamentals we share as human beings. This knowledge is a fruit of our anonymity.

Anonymous has left its mark on society more than once. Previous Anonymous projects have resulted in the closing of the white-supremacist radio show produced by Hal Turner, and the criminal prosecution of Canadian pedophile Chris Forcand. Anonymous has been called a "Cyber Vigilante Group" by The Toronto Sun and Global News, though in reality we are much more than that.

We are Anonymous. You can be Anonymous, too. Together, we can shape society.

Why do we protest?
Anonymous originally chose Scientology as a campaign target because of the events surrounding the now famous Tom Cruise Scientology video. While the video itself was not enough to spark interest, the untamed aggression of the Church of Scientology to remove it did.

Since our campaign began, Anonymous has uncovered or brought into the public eye hundreds of illegal actions, fraudulent activities, and human rights violations perpetrated by the Church of Scientology.

Why do we wear masks?
People have asked, and continue to ask, why we wear masks. The primary reason for the masks is the protection of our identities. After all, how anonymous would we be if we exposed our faces to the world? A second reason is the protection of our lives and livelihood. Due to Scientology's Fair Game policy, we put ourselves at risk socially, politically, and financially when we speak out against this dangerous cult. This is a cult that has a well earned reputation for harassing critics and openly critical ex-scientologists at their homes and workplaces. Taking measures to protect your privacy and anonymity when confronted by an aggressively litigious cult - a cult whose mantra is "Never Defend, Always Attack!" - is a matter of common sense.

An in-depth article on the Fair Game policy can be found at Operation Clambake. A quick summary would state that any person declared Fair Game by Scientology may be attacked by legal or illegal means, and the Scientologist who commits this act may not be punished by the cult for it. While Scientology claims to have ended the policy several decades ago, they did so only in name. The cult continues to practice this policy to this day.

How are you organized?
Anonymous is comprised of people from all walks of life and has no rigid hierarchy or leadership. Our organization is accomplished entirely through the voluntary action and collaboration of individuals, many of whom do not know each other directly. Through the use of public communications channels such as IRC (Internet Relay Chat), Forums, and Wiki websites, plans are made by individuals and loose coalitions united by a common goal. If others are inspired by suggestions proposed by these ad-hoc groupings, Anonymous moves as a whole.

The leadership of Anonymous is non-existent. We have no controlling party. We fall under the sway of no individual or organization. We are directed only by the decisions of the whole. Guidance comes from the message, not from the individual.

I've seen your protest videos, it looks more like a party than a protest.
Our objectives are serious, and must therefore be accomplished in a thoroughly enjoyable manner. In keeping with this, we encourage singing, music, and general merrymaking at our public demonstrations. Serious business does not preclude a sense of humor.

There is another reason that we try to remain light-hearted during protests: Scientology Handlers. These are often men/women who are sent out to "handle" protesters by shouting in their faces, hitting them, knocking possessions out of hands, and in general bullying their targets in an attempt to provoke them into violent confrontation, so that the cult can claim "hate crimes" and "religious bigotry". Our lighthearted approach helps us to maintain a sense of perspective, and helps remind people to keep their cool. Since violent confrontation is not our objective, we do what we can to stay aloof when the handlers arrive. This is also the reason why we record everything.

When we remain in good spirits, our sense of perspective keeps us safe.

What is your ultimate goal for Scientology?
While our immediate goal for the corrupt Church of Scientology is to have their (illegal) tax exempt status rescinded, our ultimate goal is to ensure that they are unable to continue their history of fear tactics, disconnection, and other illegal behavior.

This may require completely dismantling of the Church of Scientology as an organized entity, an outcome we are prepared to see through. Keep in mind that this is not an attack against the religion of Scientology. Every person has the right to believe whatever they choose, and we have people from many faiths in our ranks. Religious bigotry is a tactic of Scientology, not of Anonymous. We bear no grudge against the FreeZone, who hold the copyright to the 1934 book "Scientology, Science of the Constitution and Usefulness of Knowledge". This book was released nearly two full decades before the first Hubbard writing with the word Scientology, and contains many of the founding principles of the religion.

Our goal is to stop the blatant illegal actions and fear-mongering used by the Church of Scientology.

What is Scientology?
Assigned to Syrus

how did the CoS start?
The first official Church of Scientology was founded by science fiction writer L. Ron Hubbard in 1953 in the city of Camden, New Jersey. He was assisted by his wife, Mary Sue, and several other of his disciples. By that point, however, the belief system had already been largely developed. The founding of said beliefs can be traced to up to three years previously, to the publication of Dianetics.

The Church is founded on a set of beliefs about mind, body, and spirit that are referred to collectively as Scientology. This set of beliefs contains large elements of Hubbard’s previous self-help regimen, Dianetics, which had enjoyed sizable commercial success when published in 1950.

Who was its founder?
L. Ron Hubbard was an American fiction writer from the state of Nebraska, known prior to the creation of his religion for his emphasis on science fiction. He received a measure of education from The George Washington University, enrolling in 1930 in the civil engineering program. His academic record was decidedly poor, however, and he was discharged from the school the following year.

From that point on he was primarily engaged in fiction writing exploits. He served as a naval officer during World War II, but not to very much acclaim, being removed thrice from leadership positions as well as being the subject to a disciplinary hearing. He was discharged honorably in 1950 with a promotion and half dozen merits to his name, despite his failure as a commander.

He spent the rest of his life focusing on Dianetics and Scientology, returning only briefly to the realm of science fiction during the latter years of his life.

what does the church believe?
The Scientologist belief system is relatively complex, and requires a short summary to properly elucidate the concepts within. It is originally based on Dianetics, Hubbard’s popular self-help book, but can be considered an extension of it. There is no principle book that Scientologists go to for guidance, rather, the religion stresses the need to read and listen to all books and lectures, a costly proposition.

At the core of this system is the belief that all people have what is essentially a soul, referred to as a thetan. Thetans are said to be essentially immortal, living through past lives and living long past the death of the body they currently inhabit. For a person to unlock their true power and ability as an ancient, immortal, and powerful thetan, they must go through the process of auditing and remove any and all negative influences and barriers.

Scientology has many references to conflicts occurring in space among alien species, but many of these beliefs are classified until after a certain point in the religious hierarchy has been attained, through the very long and expensive process of Scientology education.

why is the church dangerous?
The Church of Scientology, while claiming to be a religion and functioning as such, behaves strikingly like a business and cult. The “fair game” policy, for example, is responsible for the harassment of numerous scientology critics over the years. As L. Ron Hubbard said, concerning suppressive peoples (those who are not in support of scientology):

“The homes, property, places and abodes of persons who have been active in attempting to: suppress Scientology or Scientologists are all beyond any protection of Scientology Ethics, unless absolved by later Ethics or an amnesty ... this Policy Letter extends to suppressive non-Scientology wives and husbands and parents, or other family members or hostile groups or even close friends.”

While this is bad enough in itself, Scientology has also been implicated in numerous fatalities among its members, including the famous case of Lisa McPhearson, whose tragic death is remembered at her website (http://www.lisamcpherson.org/).

There have been numerous recorded cases of litigation against people who had attempted to paint the church in a manner that they did not specifically endorse, including Scientology’s attempts at silencing a Time magazine article that referred to them as a greedy and dangerous cult.

Who runs the Church today?
The Church today is comprised of several companies including the Religious Technology Center and the Church of Scientology International. The current leader of the Religious Technology Center, charged with proper administration of copyrighted scientology materials, is David Miscavige. Miscavige took over from Hubbard in 1987, and is the de facto leader of the church to this day. Heber Carl Jentzsch is the current president of the Church of Scientology International, but does not command either the power or general recognition that Miscavige has.

How can I learn about Scientology?
You can learn about the true nature of Scientology from a variety of online resources, including Lisa McPhearson's memorial website, the Operation Clambake website, why are they dead, the enturbulation website and accompanying forums, the new exsci website and many others.

How Can I Help?
Assigned to Sambito

What can I do to help?
You can do a lot to spread the word about the dangers of this cult. The easiest thing is to simply talk to your friends, family, and coworkers about the information you've seen here and on any of the other sites we've linked to in order to spread awareness of the dangers of the Church Of Scientology. Tell them about Scientology's crimes, tell them about the broken families and ruined lives, tell them that Anonymous is giving them a way to make a difference! The more people know, the better!

For those seeking to get more actively involved, the best way to go is to plan on attending one of Anonymous' planned protests of Scientology offices in the upcoming months, and by bringing as many people as possible along with you. You can learn more about those and other events on this site, as well as by contacting Anonymous in your area.

What events are being planned in my area?
If you live anywhere near a major city, chances are there is a protest being planned near you! The next major protest is being held on the 15th of March, in order to coincide with the birthday of their founder L. Ron Hubbard, and is one of the cult's most important holidays. So please do attend if you'd like to join us in wishing L. Ron a happy birthday, bring a party hat and all of your friends, the more the merrier!

There is also an event planned for the 12th of April called Operation Reconnect, which is also being held in most cities. Unlike our previous events, Operation Reconnect is being planned with a number of Ex-Scientologist speakers who are telling their stories, many for the first time. In particular, stories will concentrate the Church's Disconnect policy, which forces families to separate themselves from family members who are outside the church.

How should I act at an Anonymous event?
Your behavior and the behavior of everyone else at a protest or other anonymous event is EXTREMELY important in showing that Anonymous is an organization that wishes to be taken seriously. The most important thing to be aware of is, of course, the law. Different states and cities have their own laws regarding protests, which you should look up on your own, but in general you should simply be courteous and respectful of any police officers and comply with their requests. Anonymous has had absolutely no trouble with the law at our protests up to this point, and we'd like to keep it that way.

Dealing with Scientologists themselves is also something you should be careful of. When dealing with the Scientologists, it is important that you keep cool. Scientologists have a long history of verbally harassing protesters in order to illicit a reaction, a technique called bull baiting, and although it's unlikely that this will happen to you if you are in a large group you should be fully prepared to deal with it. If you happen to be approached by a Scientologist who is bull baiting you, stay calm and walk away. A verbal confrontation is not what we want, we're here to educate the public not scream in the faces of Scientologists.

Please also review the Code of Conduct from our first worldwide protest.

Do I need to be anonymous too?
While it certainly isn't a requirement for you to participate in any protests or similar events, it is highly recommended that, due to Scientology's fair game policy of harassing their critics with lawsuits and other (less legal) tactics, you keep your identity hidden whenever you participate in an Anonymous event.

Most importantly this applies to whatever you do on the internet. When posting to anonymous-run forums or talking in anonymous chatrooms in order to gain information about upcoming events, choose a username that cannot be traced back to you and do not give out your personal information under ANY CIRCUMSTANCES. At protests and other such events, common sense rules and our Code of Conduct apply. Keep your face covered with a mask (a Guy Fawkes mask is recommended, but any will do), a scarf, a bandanna, or anything else that will cover enough of your face to conceal your identity. If you bring any friends along, try not to call them by their real names, and certainly not their full names. As said before, simply use your common sense and you should remain perfectly safe from any Scientology reprisals.

Does Anonymous accept donations?
All anonymous asks is that you donate your time to our cause. While printing out fliers, making signs, and purchasing masks may cost money, you are only asked to do so at your own discretion. While spending lots of money on printing and posterboard is great, the fact that you would simply take the time out of your day to show up to a protest or spread our message in any way is more than enough to help.

How can I contact anonymous in my area?
While there are many places where Anonymous gathers on the internet, the best place one should go to find information about protests, flierings, and other local Anonymous events would be the forums at Enturbulation. The entire board is extremely rich in information on Anonymous and Scientology, and is the best place to go to find information that is pertinent to you. Specifically, the forums on Enturbulation contain a thread dealing with your own area at the protest board.

Most of the events listed on CoSplay have an IRC channel associated with them. The “Join IRC Channel” link under the Event #XX heading will take you to the appropriate chat if you have an IRC client such as mIRC or XChat installed. How active the channel will be depends on your location.