"Anonymous" declares war on Scientology

[ThunderPeel2001]

I don't know what to make of this. I suppose I wish these guys had some sort of real power, but people are apathetic and it's a lot easier to make a YouTube video than to carry out anything useful.

http://www.smh.com.au/articles/2008/02/07/1202234012004.html

[Noyb]

So they're trying to protest Scientology attempting to "censor the Internet" by...effectively censoring Scientology websites by bringing them down through DDoS attacks? Are these the same people who protested Cooper Lawrence negatively portraying Mass Effect without playing it by negatively reviewing her book without reading it? Don't get me wrong, Scientology creeps the hell out of me and I'd hate to see any of my friends fall victim to their bunk, but you've got to see the irony in the protesters' actions.

[Roderick]

Actually, this sunday there's going to be worldwide protest rallies in front of Scientology churches, organized by Anonymous.

I don't necessarily agree with their methods, but I do think it's good that more attention is being forced upon the unwholesome practices of scientology.

[Marek]

Are these the same people who protested Cooper Lawrence negatively portraying Mass Effect without playing it by negatively reviewing her book without reading it?

Whoa, that was very different. The majority of the Amazon reviews acknowledged the irony and were tongue-in-cheek. It was clever.

I agree these hackers might not be, though.

[Salka]

I'd be interested to see if anybody protests outside the doors of the Scientology church in Brighton... though it's a strange day to choose for protesting. It's hardly as though Sunday is a big religious day for Scientology as it is for Christianity for example... It's also not a big day for people actually being around to see the protests. I doubt any Scientologists will even be in or around the church on that day, in fact....

I was under the impression that Anonymous were just a bunch of hackers with not much else to do though, so I'd really be surprised if any protests or pickets took place...

While I immensely dislike the church of scientology, I disagree with anonymous' method of protesting them. It's strange, weird and aggressive, and in being "anonymous" and having those silly threatening videos with the silly voiceovers, it loses any feeling of authenticity and will probably only serve to stir up some feelings of sympathy for the 'church'. I'd love to be proven wrong though, of course... but I think "anonymous" are just a group of silly kids. I mean, they can't even come up with a very good name for their group...

[n0wak]

I was under the impression that Anonymous were just a bunch of hackers with not much else to do though, so I'd really be surprised if any protests or pickets took place...

If by "hackers" you mean people that post animated gifs and hentai pictures up on 4chan all the time, then you are under the correct impression.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=UxWgRY1I_SI

Watch out or they'll BLOW UP A VAN.

[Nachimir]

I find it quite funny that the 4chan kids have actually laid claim to the name Fox News sensationalised them under.

[DanJW]

Thing is, Scientologists love to be persecuted. It makes them feel like a real religion. They''ll probably use this opportunity to get all martyr-y and stuff.

[David]

I suppose I wish these guys had some sort of real power, but people are apathetic and it's a lot easier to make a YouTube video than to carry out anything useful.[/url]

I've been following some of the organizational threads related to this (mostly at Something Awful; I have not quite worked up the courage to check out the infamous *chan sites for more than a few seconds). This seems to be snowballing a fair bit, taking on a more serious tone, and getting more of the right kind of media attention. I'm really curious to see how the 10th turns out. There've been some warm-up rallies that people actually showed up to (150 picketers in Orlando on February 2).

[Wrestlevania]

This Scientology schtick is definitely coming to a head; I'm also interested to see how this pans out.

I also agree with the "martyr" sentiment though -- I'll be shocked if this doesn't give the crack pots some serious fuel.

[ThunderPeel2001]

Post Feb 10th, I think Scientology are still going...? Anyone hear of any success or news stories that came about because of their protests?

[Roderick]

The worldwide protests were mostly a success:

Scientology is in the news again, in the way Anonymous wants. So everyone will know they're a crazy cult.

[n0wak]

anon in NZ.jpg"]This is exactly how I pictured Anonymous members to look like. I'm glad reality matched my worst nightmares in this case.

[Duncan]

anon in NZ.jpg"]This is exactly how I pictured Anonymous members to look like. I'm glad reality matched my worst nightmares in this case.

Hahahahahahahaha ohhh that's my country oh fuck.

[miffy495]

Oh god that's a brilliant picture. Love it so much.

[Roderick]

Hahaha, that's superb. But there were actually much nicer costumes around. Here's a picture from the Amsterdam raid:

This is more along the lines of Anonymous. Classy suits and afros

[Wrestlevania]

Nifty papercraft Guy Fawkes mask, too. Much more visually effective, though sadly not as entertaining.

[DanJW]

anon in NZ.jpg"]This is exactly how I pictured Anonymous members to look like. I'm glad reality matched my worst nightmares in this case.

Heh. Props to those guys though, for being brave enough to stay put with so few of them.

[n0wak]

Hahaha, that's superb. But there were actually much nicer costumes around.

Yeah, other protests were more... interesting.

[David]

Here's a nifty summary of events (in video form) leading up to and including the Feb 10 protests.

[ThunderPeel2001]

In a word; Wow. It's great to see the youth of the day not being as utterly apathetic as mine was. Good on them!

[Twilo]

I'm Anonymous and so's my wife.

(not really)

[brkl]

I am Anonymous:

[DanJW]

Nice tights.

I was going to be Anonymous, but then how would I claim all the credit?

[brkl]

Thanks.

We did a little Guy Fawkes skit on Bonfire Night in our faculty's cafeteria. It was fun. You can see King James on the table.