Houstonians,
We now face a great threat. There are many troubles in the world, and many I am sure are more severe and problematic, but in our age of advancement and technology, one thing stands to crush our free speech, intimidate and skew our media, pervert our children's education and ruin the lives of innocent individuals.
While they may have a very aggressive PR team, nothing can be further from the truth than the image they project for themselves. I speak, of course, about the CoS, the Church of Scientology. The CoS is, by all means, a cult, and one of the most dangerous cults in the world today. Scientology, founded by a science fiction writer named "L Ron Hubbard," was started based on the science fiction works of said author in 1953. L Ron Hubbard was even quoted at one point as saying that his father "told me and a lot of other people that the way to make a million was to start a religion."
Some of you have seen the video on youtube "
The Unfunny Truth About Scientology," but by far, sadly, most of you have not. As some consolation a great deal of you were fortunate enough to see the episode of South Park dedicated to making fun of Scientology, and hopefully this episode generated a good deal of publicity for those who seek to inform the general public about what news outlets are afraid to - the cold, hard truth about The CoS. The CoS has killed, and continues to kill, hundreds of its members. They ignore modern psychiatry and the significance of psychiatric drugs, to the extent of using their legal power to remove people from medicines that maintain their livelihood, often ending in their deaths or the deaths of others.
To get right down to it, the CoS was founded as a way to make money by a science fiction author, and soon after being founded was seen as a serious threat by governments. Australia declared it "evil" and stated it was "a serious threat to the community, medically, morally and socially," and found its adherents to be "sadly deluded and often medically ill." According to an article by Slate.com, many governments were quick to react to the churches cult like qualities. The United States was one such nation. "In 1963, federal agents, suspicious that Hubbard's therapy might pose a health risk, raided the church's Washington, D.C., branch. The IRS concluded soon after that Hubbard was skimming millions of dollars from church funds and revoked Scientology's tax-exempt status." That didn't stop the CoS though, who sued the IRS aggressively until 1993, when they finally wrestled back their tax exempt status and resumed their pattern of legal bullying and lies.
Don't believe me? How about Operation Snow White? "Operation Snow White was the Church of Scientology's name for a project during the 1970's to purge unfavorable records about Scientology and its founder L Ron Hubbard. This project included a series of infiltrations and thefts from 136 government agencies, foreign embassies and consulates, as well as private organizations critical of Scientology, carried out by Church members; the single largest infiltration of the United States government in history with up to 5,000 covert agents. This was also the operation that exposed 'Operation Freakout' due to the fact that this was the case that brought the government into investigation on the Church." This is straight from the wikipedia for "
Operation Snow White," with a source from
The Phoenix New Times and
Time.com for proof.
This is just the tip of the iceberg, however - the beginnings of what is possibly todays most dangerous organization. If you ever speak out against scientology, they will sue you, ruin you, discredit you and destroy you whatever way possible. This is part of a statute of the church that is actually taught to its members known as the "Fair Game" policy, where anyone who speaks out against the church is liable to be destroyed or discredited by any means - even killed.
Beyond the organization and its dangerous tactics, rabid misuse of the legal system and deadly agenda, are its devout followers. These followers are individuals who seek out and join the church, often in search of counsel and help for diseases and mental illnesses. Instead, they pay for expensive auditing and therapies that have a history in ending in suicides, natural deaths, and murders. The amount of money people must spill into Scientology to reach their highest ranks, (thats right, not only do you have to pay to be "cured," you have to pay to progress up "ranks" in the organization), has been estimated to be above $300,000. Where does this money go? It certainly never goes back into the followers pockets, thats for sure.
So, how does Scientology get away with it? How does it get away with its scare tactics, Nazi-esque brainwashing, and downright robbery? The money that its millions of members funnel into it often goes into a top shape legal team, is how. And they use that legal team to remove objections to their organization from everywhere. They remove objections from the internet, from TV, from the radio. They abuse laws to suit their needs, to remove all opposition, to keep their image fresh and clean as possible so as to not interrupt their modus operandi.
I have seen the stories, the elderly that looked to scientology for help and lost their last pennies to scientology and died trying to get it back. I have seen the stories of people such as
Lisa Mcpherson who had mental illnesses and died as a result of Scientology's empty promises.
Recently, people have stood up to the CoS's bullying. In response to bullying and abuse of our right to free speech, people on the internet have recently begun to strike back by taking scientology websites offline, faxing endless loops of black paper to scientology centers, and making endless prank calls. This has gathered the attention of the media and a large portion of the public eye.
The organization, known only as "Anonymous," released this
video press release.
While I may not condone their tactics, they're showing that there is still one last patch of ground that Scientology can't urinate on and claim as its own. While they have muted the media from reporting on their atrocities, muted our radio airwaves, and even begun to silence the internet by suing simple bloggers and forcing the removal of even youtube comments, they may have met their match in internet users who love their freedom.
So, under the flag of Anonymous, I shall march, but in my own way. I won't hack websites, but I will do my part to see that the CoS doesn't silence the internet and make its grip on modern America whole.
February 10th, in Houston Texas, we will march. We will march for what is just. We will march for those who lost their lives and livelihoods. We will march for those who scientology sent to jail for speaking out against them. We will march for those of us who have fallen. We will march for everyones right to express themselves, for everyone that looks over their shoulder when saying an ill word about the CoS. For the News outlets that are aware of the facts, but afraid to touch on them for fear of legal recourse. For the families that have lost loved ones. For the ones who have lost it all, even their families.
February 10th, we will be there, at 1PM, wearing Guy Fawkes masks, in a protest styled like the days of old. Exercising our rights as citizens, distributing fliers, making the truth known.
It is time to remind the world that Scientology does not own the streets and CERTAINLY does not own the right to free speech.
I urge anyone who would like to see action taken to attend a peaceful protest the 10th of February at the Houston Center of Scientology, located at
2727 Fondren Rd # 1A, Houston, TX.
The Unfunny Truth About Scientology
XenuTV's response to Anonymous
Operation Clambake
A Great Source of Anti-Scientology Facts
The Sad Story of Lisa Mcpherson, Victim
