Note: text slightly reformatted for readability.
From: Fier@burning.org (Fier)
Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology
Subject: Picket Report, Canberra Aust. 13/Oct 99.
Date: Wed, 13 Oct 1999 06:45:04 GMT
Message-ID: <38041eb4.22119341@news2.lightlink.com>
A small and quiet picket outside the Canberra Org today, from 12:30 til 1:45pm.
We handed out around... 90 flyers, (space alien scam and insane cult).
Mr Xemuson was unable to be there, so Goombaj and I took control of the
street corner with our signs and flyers. My mum and sister came along again,
and gave out flyers, and waved the signs around, great fun all round. There
were NO handlers for the very first time.
I was talking to a nice young lady whom I knew from within the cult, she agreed
that all they want is your money, and said she hadn't been into the org for a
long time. (Her parents are scientologists) I was just explaining the space
cooties to her incredulous and interested self and friends, when a clam came
out to say "Hemi is guilty of more than enough crimes to put him behind bars
for a very long time" to me. I wish I got that slander on tape, but I do have
2 witnesses.
I quickly demanded him name just one, which he couldn't do. She walked
away from us picketers with this clam (The Courseroom Supervisor), because even
though she had stepped back from the cult, and was into a Gothic reality, she
obviously still retained respect for the the "very nice people up there" and
maybe some of the Drecknology. She came back past later, and was friendly, so
at least they don't have any deep hooks in her.
We met another ex-scientologist (the young lass above is virtually
an ex- , I would say) who was involved for about a year and a half, round
the time I was. He was blown away with the true reality after reading BFM
and reading WWW.XENU.NET (Hail Xenu!!, Hail Andreas, once again your work
frees someone from the bondage that is scientology). He was very happy to
have seen the light, so to speak, and mighty glad we were out here
picketting the cult.
Another fellow, born-again-christian I believe, wanted to talk..and
talk and.. I felt sorry for the other picketters, but he soon left, with a
strong purpose to expose the cult, and took about 10 flyers with him, to
show lots of people.
The other interesting episode was this professionally suited fellow
watching us for a bit. Mum thought he was CIA "ya can tell em, see" she said
to me while I tried not to laugh..couldn't tell if she was joking or not.
Anyway, it turned out he was a reporter from Canberra University, and wanted to
do a documentary on us, as he had seen/heard of our regular counter-cult
activites. He had also concluded that their recent "Child molestors survey"
was to obtain names for their files, and had no real use or backing. I said
that would be great, and he will meet us at a later picket, now he knows the
secret password.
I saw 2 clams pop their heads out for a few seconds, but none came to
counter-picket. - They werent expecting us, see. Anna Detheridge, as she
walked past, continued the slanderous implied molestor remarks loudly, for
others to hear, but she is just repeatedly incriminating herself and making no
sense to the general public.
Canberra is a small city, no more than 400,000 people, and the word is
spreading quickly. More and more people at the recent pickets are saying "I
have already read that one" as we offer flyers, and many flyers are being
showed to their friends, or talked about. When one other very nice woman asked
me what the best methods are, of stopping this evil [scientology and similar
cults] from spreading, I had to respond that it would be by informing everyone
of their true nature. Only then can people be inocculated against the poison
in their teachings, hidden as it is wrapped in a cloak of truth. She bade us
good luck and continued on her way. We again met the humourous fellow, who
last time suggested tying $50 notes to string and dragging it along in front of
the scientologists, like the pied piper, and this time he suggested we
Super-glue their door closed each night, around 4 AM. It would stop them from
doing business, and it would inhibit their attempts to rip people off. We
laughed and got along well, but didnt admit intention to do anything of the
sort.
Without clam handlers, we had a much more enjoyable protest, but
there was opposing viewpoints to discuss. That is not a bad thing though,
our facts are just that, and theirs are so slanted and outrightly false, so
it was good to be free of their presence for a while.
A short picket, but lots of silent support and voices of agreement
among the pedestrians.
Fier.
Posting as: Fier@burning.org Email: eclipse AT dynamite.com.au
"Scientology is evil; its techniques evil; its practice a serious threat to the
community; medically, morally and
socially." -Report of the Board of Inquiry into Scientology for the state of
Victoria, Australia, 1965.