April 12th is nearly here, and with that Operation Reconnect. Here's an update.

• Schedule. Meet in front of WWU's Viking Union at 10:30 am and walk down to the local Scientology Office at 722 N. State Street, arriving at 11:00 am. Please respect private property laws by not trespassing in their parking lot. We will be across the street at all times. We will probably stay until 2:00 pm. People may stay longer, but please don't stay alone.
  
• Signs. Make them Large, to the Point. Funny signs are good too, but be sure your humor can be understood by an average person. Signs can also be directed at people inside the Scientology office. These should aim to break the conditioning upon them. Such as "Your family cares about you".
• Masks. They're legal, and they protect your identity. You can Google "Fair Game Law" and get the gist of what this is all about. Or dig through the video evidence that exists out on the internet that shows Scientology critics being followed around, especially after anti-Scientology demonstrations. Wear masks to protect them from knowing who you are. It is unlikely that they will follow us home here in Bellingham, but you never know.
• Code of Conduct. Make sure you read the code of conduct, it will keep you and everyone safe. Most of all, use your own common sense. Also remember we should be having fun doing this too.
• Music and Snacks. An anon has volunteered to bring a boom box. So if you have some music you want to listen to bring a CD. Bring some snacks and water so you don't get hungry.

Finally, here's some awesome news reports.

• Baltimore City Paper This Front Page story gets so many things right, it's awesome.
  
• Scientology threatens to sue wikileaks Wasn't the suppression of information how this whole thing started?
  
• Israeli TV airs a half hour expose on Scientology (Part 1, Part 2). Scientology is in serious trouble in Israel.

http://xenutv.wordpress.com/2008/03/17/a-heartbreaking-tale-from-dc/

Anonymous not only did an effective protest on March 15th but they gave voice to a young woman who grew up in Scientology and lost her father to the cult. John H. Boucher committed suicide after being convinced he was an SP.

As the Ides Grows Nigh...

Well! It's been quite a while since the announcement of the Ides of March rally--one month, to be exact. This has given us a lot of time to prepare, and to evaluate what things went right on 2/10/2008 and what things needed improving. We are beginning to muster once again for this, and we do believe these rallies will become a regular occurrence for us.

Here's our current schedule:

• The day for our rally is on 3/15/2008, outside of the local Scientology mission here in Bellingham (at 722 N State St.). Please respect private property laws by not trespassing in their parking lot. We will most likely be situated across the street from the mission itself. It shouldn't be too hard to spot us.
• WWU Students and Bus People - You will be meeting at 10:30 am in front of the VU building (the side that's on High St., facing the Library). This is a great place to meet as it's a central bus hub, and it is situated within close proximity of the library building so those wishing to print off last minute fliers may do so.
• The general time for meeting up is at 11:00 am on Saturday. I know most of us would rather be doing something else on our weekends, especially students who are currently feeling the pre-Spring Break pinch by Academic fingers. Please try to show up at around that time, but if you are late don't feel like it's all for naught. Drive/walk on by and see if we're still there, and join up if we are.
• In regards to delicious cake. Bring cake for yourselves, and don't serve it to more than a few friends lest you have a food handler's permit. One alternative is to bring cupcakes. These are pre-packaged, and therefore do not require a food handler's permit. While the scientologists at the local mission just sit/stand around, chain smoking cigarettes while watching us or making poor attempts at bull-baiting, don't underestimate their prowess at litigation and blowing a whistle on anything that could shake up the protest. If they see us doing anything that warrants police, whether or not it directly affects them, they will not hesitate to call. Please look at the other rallies and protests that took place on 2/10 and some of the previous protests done by other veterans, and you will see just how far they will go sometimes to silence dissent.
• Wear Masks. They're legal, and they protect your identity. You can Google "Fair Game Law" and get the gist of what this is all about. Or dig through the video evidence that exists out on the internet that shows Scientology critics being followed around, especially after anti-Scientology demonstrations. Wear masks to protect them knowing who you are and prevent them from attempting to ruin your reputation. One of their favorite things to do is to gang up on someone and toss out verbal implications that the dissenter is a child molester or something to that tune (and yes, there's even a video on the net showing that).
  

Here is a list of what we currently require:
- Music (of some sort)
- Water (bottled; unopened)
- Etc.