But there is also the right to criticize an organisation and even to destroy it – in the sense of trying to de-motivate further support for that institution. Such a process can also be conducted legally… and if this is what Anonymous is doing, then I certainly support them.

I believe in reason, knowledge and a critical disposition. I believe these things will help the world. I believe that an institution that tells people that they are alien spirits is not helping them access the truth about the reality we find ourselves within. And we need to do everything we can to discourage people from adopting such a destructive point of view. But again – it has to be done legally, and with respect for those who might not agree with our points of view.

Again, I have to wonder just how many members are aware of some of the stuff that has gone on, either something under the guise of being for the Church’s sake (i.e., as an excuse) or actual directives from the higher-ups in the hierarchy. Given the opportunity, chances are you’ll find someone willing and able to take advantage of whatever situation they may be in.

Don’t get me wrong. I’m not trying to defend the Church, but I do think that in some cases, personal motives and agendas shouldn’t be disregarded. There are many examples of a person in power (or one with enough connections) being able to do as they please with little or no consequences. Unfortunately, the Church Of Scientology hasn’t really done anything to distance itself from these things, regardless of whether they actually had anything to do with it or not.

The fact that more and more people talk about some of the goings on is proof that the COS isn’t as tightly knit as they’d like it to be. Anonymous’ existance (not sure if that’s the right term here, but I’m sticking to it) is further proof that more and more ‘outsiders’ are becoming aware of some of what’s gone on.

Who knows, maybe this will open the doors for people to take a closer look at some of the other organizations out there.

Anonymous commonly attempts to help those unaware of exactly how terrible Scientology’s acts are by asking them to find out about
- Operation Snow White
- Operation Freak Out
- Lisa McPherson (on whose birthday the upcoming Feb 10 protests will be)
Here I ask that if you do not know about them, Google them or look them up on Wikipedia. I promise you will see why Anonymous is so bloody worked up over it all.

Shameless plug: enturbulation.org is a good starting site for those unfamiliar with the Church of Scientology.

It is true that Anonymous has decided to come out of the shadows (while remaining anonymous) and adopt a peaceful and mostly legal strategy. However, when the push comes to shove, despite the freedom of speech, most cities in US have many limits on expressive conduct and protests.

For instance, in NYC there have not been a sucessful communcation with the authorities, despite several attempts. It is my fear, therefore, that the government will misunderstand and underestimate Anonymous by deciding to suppress the unauthorized protests (undoubtedly with involvement of rich $cientologists). This would be a fatal mistake, as it will drive Anonymous back into shadows and the illegal tactics that it involves.

Me, I don’t care for Scientology. Sure, I don’t have much exposure to it and a lot of the exposure is the stuff people like to dissect, twist around and make fun of. I do have to wonder just how much its members really know about the COS, as there’s a hierarchy to it all and only a few know all that the Scientology has to offer (the same can be said of other organizations). I will say this, not everything I’ve read about in Scientology is utter b-grade science fiction garbage. There’s more to what they ‘teach’, but I’m not going to get into that here. From my understanding, that’s not really the main issue anyway.

Also, I don’t know how different the COS is now compared to what it used to be or how much difference there is between the mainstream version or the Free Zone. Perhaps it’s a matter of the COS having allowed itself to become something it never wanted to become and not having enough people around to say so. Or those that do are shunned, resorting to creating their own faction (I assume Free Zone would be something similar to this). It’s not like that’s ever happened before…

Does the Church Of Scientology have a right to be around? I would say yes, just as with any other group or organization, regardless of whether its focus is on religion, politics, philosophy or any number of subjects. It doesn’t really matter who you are or the name you and/or the group uses. If you’re not hurting anyone, spreading hatred, breaking the law or encouraging others to do so, you’re welcome to gather. If you want to gather (literally or figuratively), fine. Do so. As long as you don’t shove your agenda on others who don’t want a part in what you’re saying or selling (as the case may be) and go about your business in a peaceful and respectable manner, there’s not a problem. If you’re not hurting anyone, if you’re not breaking the law, go ahead and do your thing. We live in a society where different viewpoints are tolerated and even encouraged; although I hesitate to say it’s freedom of speech or freedom of expression. I think they’re both overused crutches that have lost some of their meaning. Simply put, we won’t always agree, and that’s okay.

The problem is when a group (any group) turns on others and is able to get away with stuff that we would otherwise take exception to and do something about it. All kinds of “injustices” are performed every day, in every culture and every country and there’s a reason why things are allowed to happen, even if it’s not immediately apparent. You can do something about it if you want to, but you don’t neccessarily need to lower yourself to get something done or bring it to peoples’ attention. I’d like to think we are better than that. We’ve come too far in the thousands of years since our civiliation began and expanded to throw it all away. And we shouldn’t let the “good guys” get away with anything they want to either.

You don’t need to break laws to get something done, not every “revolution” is started by breaking laws. There are other avenues. I don’t know, maybe Anonymous has exhausted everything else and making attacks (whether direct or indirect) against them is the next step? Sometimes that route has to be taken, but it shouldn’t be the first step taken. I would say I’m like Daniel here – laws can work and do work, if you let them. It might not be the fastest route or the most glamourous route, but I’m optimistic in that it’s a far better option than hacking, guerilla tactics, cyber terrorism, vandalism, fraud, defamation, slander or any of the other tactics some groups may use. No, I’m not saying these are the tools of Anonymous (though they did go after the COS website or someone did on their behalf). And hopefully they won’t become the tools that Anonymous uses.

So, does Anonymous have a right to exist? Again, I’d say yes. But in the end, what is their real goal, if they have one? Trigger some kind of change? Bring an end to the Church Of Scientology? Replace it? There’s nothing wrong with criticizing someone and pointing out their faults, but it can be taken too far. Sometimes the reaction can be worse than the cause, sometimes the cure is worse than the disease, sometimes the punishment is worse than the crime. You get the idea. Be careful this doesn’t happen.

Whatever you’re planning to do on the 10th (if anything), just make sure it’s nothing stupid. Don’t forget, the members of the Church Of Scientology are people too and you can’t undo certain things.

I think though it’s an interesting question though as to what distinguishes Scientology from an actual religion. I guess the answer is that we don’t believe their cock n bull story about aliens. But to what extent could that criticism be extended to other religions? The evangelicals have often been caught in various corruption scandals and the like…

Just throwing up the question… I don’t know enough about the individual institutions to be able to categorise them accurately.

http://www.time.com/time/magazine/article/0,9171,972865,00.html

If Anonymous succeeds with its stated aim of destroying Hubbard’s cult, where is it going to go next? During its brief existence, Scientology has suffered more negative publicity than most religions, though many employ comparable methods and may have more sinister agendas. Would the Anonymous crowd be so inclined to take on the Exclusive Brethren, Nation of Islam or Children of God? I guess I’ll have to wait and see…