Paul Haggis renounces Scientology

[Boblobla]

What is this place?

http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ie=...12,294,,2,5.27

Edit: This is the one 4X4 is talking about.

[HeartsOfFire]

Looks to me like the First Church of Christ, Scientist.

Which has nothing to do with Scientology.

Don't be fooled that because Scientology refers to itself as a 'church' that it has Christian roots. They refer to themselves as a 'church' to make it easier to get status as a Religion and dodge taxes.

I'm heading off to work now. I'll try and answer any questions anyone may have once I get there, provided things aren't too busy.

[4X4]

Originally Posted by HeartsOfFire

Looks to me like the First Church of Christ, Scientist.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Church_...ist,_Scientist

[HotHotHeat]

Originally Posted by Phaneuf3

Unless you went to the nuttiest catholic church ever with the nuttiest nutbars every in attendance what you saw as "very aggressive" is absolutely nothing compared to what scientology does. If someone even went as far as tell you you were ruining your life you have absolutely nothing on what people leaving scientology go through. Please educate yourself and/or stop making ridiculous statements.

What are you talking about? What ridiculous statement? The part where I tell of my experience? What a terrible post.

[HPLovecraft]

Originally Posted by HeartsOfFire

It was in line with the 'private navy' topic. Though I got a bit carried away and went off on a tangent. :P

The founder of Scientology -- Lafayette Ron Hubbard (L. Ron Hubbard, or LRH) -- was a man of the sea and had a career as a naval officer during the second world war. Lots of early activities in Scientology were conducted on the ocean on boats the cult owned. Now, it's just the one big cruise ship.

I hardly think that counts as a private navy... So what about a fisherman that owns a fleet of fishing boats? Can he says he has his own private navy? The definition of navy usually has to do with warships, not cruise ships or yachts.

That whole pamphlet just read like a lot of propaganda not much different from what Scientologists try to pawn off as fact. It left me with a bad taste in my mouth, and a feeling that the Anonymous protesters are almost as out to lunch as the Scientologist members they seem to hate so much.

[RougeUnderoos]

Originally Posted by Boblobla

What is this place?

http://maps.google.ca/maps?hl=en&ie=...12,294,,2,5.27

Edit: This is the one 4X4 is talking about.

Yeesh, I really should fix my driver's side door. That looks awful.

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

It would be interesting to see what Scientology's version of The Inquisition would look like.

Cowperson

Ask Lisa McPherson. Oh wait, they killed her.


http://www.lisamcpherson.org/

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by HPLovecraft

You know who are almost as crazy as Scientologists? Those Anonymous guys who wear V masks and protest outside their "churches" all the time. Have any of you ever actually read their pamphlets against Scientology?

Underground slave labour camps?! Really? A private navy?! A secret police force?!

Its actually true (though not the "underground" part in a literal sense).

They have a couple of ships that are manned by the "Sea Org". The "Sea Org" wears military uniforms when manning their ships. So not really a "Navy" proper, but their weapons aren't guns, their weapons are much worse.

They also have hired private security, and use private investigators extensively.

A book is coming out in a few days named "Blown for Good". Check out the website www.blownforgood.com. The author was a Scientology executive for something like 25 years.

Also see: http://www.tampabay.com/news/article1012148.ece for a recent news series on the bizarre inner workings.

I've been reading about Scientology for a few years when I get really bored just because I found some of it so bizarre, but the more I read, the more I'm convinced how looney tunes they are.

[HPLovecraft]

Originally Posted by Delgar

Its actually true (though not the "underground" part in a literal sense).

They have a couple of ships that are manned by the "Sea Org". The "Sea Org" wears military uniforms when manning their ships. So not really a "Navy" proper, but their weapons aren't guns, their weapons are much worse.

They also have hired private security, and use private investigators extensively.

A book is coming out in a few days named "Blown for Good". Check out the website www.blownforgood.com. The author was a Scientology executive for something like 25 years.

Also see: http://www.tampabay.com/news/article1012148.ece for a recent news series on the bizarre inner workings.

I've been reading about Scientology for a few years when I get really bored just because I found some of it so bizarre, but the more I read, the more I'm convinced how looney tunes they are.

So, really, they don't have a private navy like the Anonymous pamphlet says they have? It's just some guys on boats in pretend military garb with no weapons? That seems a bit misleading of them, doesn't it? Almost reads like some other religious propaganda...

[Kjesse]

Originally Posted by HPLovecraft

So, really, they don't have a private navy like the Anonymous pamphlet says they have? It's just some guys on boats in pretend military garb with no weapons? That seems a bit misleading of them, doesn't it? Almost reads like some other religious propaganda...

Fair enough-- its overstated (but I haven't seen the pamphlets, I just figure you're correct in what they are printing)

But its been pretty effective at exposing Scientology.

EDIT: And the first "anonymous" youtube video really gave me the creeps.

[HPLovecraft]

Originally Posted by Delgar

Fair enough-- its overstated.

But its been pretty effective at exposing Scientology.

EDIT: And their first "anonymous" youtube video really gave me the creeps.

True, there's no denying that Scientology is creepy and pretty much a brain-washing pyramid scheme, but it just seems odd to me, having come across Anonymous protests plenty of times here in Toronto (I lived right across from the Scientology church or whatever it's called here), that an organization that blames Scientology for being secretive and misleading would choose to be secretive and misleading themselves. I would expect a group that wants some respect or for people to take them seriously to have a modicum of transparency when blaming another group for doing the exact same things.

It's a kooky way of going about things.

[Thor]

Originally Posted by Cowperson

It would be interesting to see what Scientology's version of The Inquisition would look like.

Cowperson

Forcing people to watch Battlefield Earth over and over till death from insanity.

[photon]

Originally Posted by HPLovecraft

True, there's no denying that Scientology is creepy and pretty much a brain-washing pyramid scheme, but it just seems odd to me, having come across Anonymous protests plenty of times here in Toronto (I lived right across from the Scientology church or whatever it's called here), that an organization that blames Scientology for being secretive and misleading would choose to be secretive and misleading themselves. I would expect a group that wants some respect or for people to take them seriously to have a modicum of transparency when blaming another group for doing the exact same things.

It's a kooky way of going about things.

Looking at it reasonably, I would agree with you.

But you kind of miss the whole point of Anonymous. Anonymous doesn't want respect. Anonymous doesn't take themselves seriously.

Anonymous is not a person, nor is it a group, movement or cause: Anonymous is a collective of people with too much time on their hands, a commune of human thought and useless imagery. A gathering of sheep and fools, s and trolls, and normal everyday netizens. An anonymous collective, left to its own devices, quickly builds its own society out of rage and hate. Anonymous can be anyone from well-meaning college kids with highly idiosyncratic senses of humor trying to save people from Scientology, to devious nihilist hackers, to clever nerds, to thirteen year old boys who speak entirely in in-jokes on an endless quest for porn, to 16 year old girls posting pictures of their B-cups because they think they look good, to potential rapists browsing through MySpace to find some well established young ladies of which to make the acquaintance of.

In essence don't take anything Anonymous does seriously, even if they are acting seriously. Reasonable isn't in the picture.

[HeartsOfFire]

Originally Posted by HPLovecraft

True, there's no denying that Scientology is creepy and pretty much a brain-washing pyramid scheme, but it just seems odd to me, having come across Anonymous protests plenty of times here in Toronto (I lived right across from the Scientology church or whatever it's called here), that an organization that blames Scientology for being secretive and misleading would choose to be secretive and misleading themselves. I would expect a group that wants some respect or for people to take them seriously to have a modicum of transparency when blaming another group for doing the exact same things.

It's a kooky way of going about things.

Except Anonymous isn't an organization. There is no leader, no headquarters, no vision. You can't 'join' Anonymous in the sense that one joins, say... the Freemasons, Skull and Bones, Illuminati, or any other 'openly secret' society. You either are, or are not Anonymous. Anonymous is everyone and no one. It is the absolute freedom. There can't be any transparency because there is nothing to hide. Literally. Normally when one says they have nothing to hide, they mean that they have no ill begotten posessions or imply they are not involved in criminal conspiracy. In Anonymous' case, they have nothing to hide because they have nothing in the first place.

I've heard the argument about being taken seriously before. Truth be told, Anonymous doesn't care what anyone else thinks about it. The anons that protest just want to provide you with a snippet of information, with the hope that your interest may be piqued enough to go and do further research for yourself. That being said, Anonymous as a whole would be ecstatic if Scientology were to disband, and would more than likely claim most of the credit. Truly, no entity has brought more attention to Scientology than Anonymous has. They may not destroy it, but at least now John Q Public is more likely to think twice about joining.

What Photon said is also pretty much spot on.

[HPLovecraft]

Originally Posted by photon

Looking at it reasonably, I would agree with you.

But you kind of miss the whole point of Anonymous. Anonymous doesn't want respect. Anonymous doesn't take themselves seriously.

In essence don't take anything Anonymous does seriously, even if they are acting seriously. Reasonable isn't in the picture.

I'm confused... So basically Anonymous "protestors" are just a bunch of kids wearing masks when it isn't Halloween, just outside because they want to chat with friends and do something besides skateboarding? Did they just choose Scientology to "protest" against out of a hat?

This is what I get from their Wiki entry:

Members of Project Chanology say their main goal is "to enlighten the Church of Scientology (CoS) by any means necessary."[25] Their website states: "This will be a game of mental warfare. It will require our talkers, not our hackers. It will require our dedicated Anon across the world to do their part."[26] Project Chanology's stated goals include the complete removal of the Church of Scientology's presence from the Internet and to "save people from Scientology by reversing the brainwashing".[6][27] Project Chanology participants plan to join the Church of Scientology posing as interested members in order to infiltrate the organization.[5]

I guess kooky really is as kooky does...

Edit: Are these the same folks that post on those *Chan websites? Oh Lord, now it makes sense.

[HeartsOfFire]

Originally Posted by HPLovecraft

I'm confused... So basically Anonymous "protestors" are just a bunch of kids wearing masks when it isn't Halloween, just outside because they want to chat with friends and do something besides skateboarding? Did they just choose Scientology to "protest" against out of a hat?

This is what I get from their Wiki entry:



I guess kooky really is as kooky does...

Edit: Are these the same folks that post on those *Chan websites? Oh Lord, now it makes sense.

Hehehe!

In its earlier stages, yes. But as time went on, most of the *Chan frequenters got bored with the protests and went on to other things while others stick to the cause. I'm one of the former.