Suggestions for signs?

Hi, I'm brand-new here and this is my first post. I just wanted to jump in with a couple of ideas for signs.

If someone's already started this topic, please move me. :>)

OTs Phone Home!

Thetan is Satan with a Lisp
(We're just sayin')

Ask me about the L Ron - Aleister Connection (done like a crossword puzzle, with L Ron and Aleister intersecting at the Ls

Focus on the cult damage, not the beliefs - we should be working on the reconnect theme this time round. The "Thetans are lol wut" junk is misdirected.

Ah, thanks; you're right, o/c. It's just that these people get me so p*ssed... well, you know.

check out the video in my sig -- I'm hoping that we all take this message to heart and try a different tactic, at least for April -- let's keep in mind that we trying to reach the scilons, not shut them out.

but hey, I'm with ya being pissed off -- this organisation is pure evil - I mean, their intent is to take over the world -- wtf!!!!

Can be arranged in hugebig format for signmaking

I recall a video from the last protest where there was a Scieno who was crying. Before the video started shooting he apparently flashed the peace sign to the crowd. I think if someone had a sign that said "If you wish to leave, we can help you get your life back", might have been very effective, and maybe could have motivated the man to come outside to the crowd. Protestors in each city should have a plan for the possibility that a church member will wish to get out right then and there and not have anywhere to go, as far as being able to help the person connect back with the real world.

Originally Posted by Anonymeep

Can be arranged in hugebig format for signmaking

A little meme heavy, don't you think?

The crying guy in NYC made me think of this:
"We don't know you, but we still love you!"

Plus the gold standard:
"Call your mother/Son/friends/ect.."
"Your Disconnected Family Loves You."

Fuck, now my face is leaking.
I'm sick of this cult.
Why is the faceless nameless internet hate machine the only people to stand the fuck up?

For Operation Reconnect, the important thing is to let those inside know that Anonymous is willing to help them. (I recommend some of Anon getting attitude adjustments, but that's beside the point.) Things like "Your family misses you" is pathos, to get them to want to leave through appeal to their emotions. Some of them don't need convincing in that way, truthfully. They're scared of leaving because what will they do without Co$? They'll be disconnected from all of their friends and left alone in the big, wide, unforgiving world when they leave, with barely a clue of how to live and robbed of many of the things normal people use to function from day to day.

I think that's where the signs can come in. Anonymous needs to let people who want to leave know that they won't be alone, even if there is no family to take them back. Blowing is not as easy as many Anons seem to think; it requires surmounting one of the biggest and thorniest obstacles known to man: the human mind. Fervent Scientologists have built for themselves a titanium wall that must be climbed with no handholds, no rope, and with only the hope that there is something worthwhile on the other side. With that in mind...

"We are here to set you free"
"Anonymous is here to help, not hurt"
"[insert contact info of someone who can help out] <-- Call/fax/e-mail this person/people if you want to leave"
"You have friends on the outside, too"
"We will help you find your family"

et cetera, those are the kinds of signs I would suggest. The signs that pull on heartstrings are good as well, but I think the two in conjunction would do lots of good.

noitulover, that video is great. Here's one of the comments left by a viewer there:

what about a "have you seen" campaign by family members whose loved ones have been "abducted".
keep up the great work anon. you ARE legion and growing stronger with each operation

That's a thought, huh?

I like the cat pic. It's memeful, but it's also touching, beautiful and not overdone. I know that if I were one of their prisoners and I saw that sign it most likely wouldn't have me running to the nearest phone, but it would plant a seed; I'd notice it and remember it, especially if I'd left a beloved pet behind. Some of my best friends have had four legs.

Maybe one of my original suggestions: OTs phone home! A whole generation grew up with that movie and it's as classic and beloved as The Wizard of Oz. Just a thought.:-)

But yeah, I like the "Have you seen _________?" approach. Just like missing children on milk cartons. That particular method and medium is iconic here in the States so unless somebody's been living under the proverbial rock for thirty-odd years, they'll recognize it immediately. Very powerful visual.

Thanks, guize! :D

Originally Posted by noitulover

check out the video in my sig -- I'm hoping that we all take this message to heart and try a different tactic, at least for April -- let's keep in mind that we trying to reach the scilons, not shut them out.

Not shut them down....just yet.

My idea isn't a sign but I noticed the heavy Portals references in the last protests. I was thinking some people could dress up as the Companion Cube. I do believe people on April 12th will need a companion. Those who are dress up as the cube would be their shoulder to cry on or someone to comfort them.

CO$ MISSES
YOUR $TAT$, <- use red lettering
YOUR MOM
MISSES YOU! <- underline YOU

Home is the place where
when you have to go there,
They have to take you in.
- Robert Frost (I know TL;DR for a sign, but might help a scilon )

Home is where
there's one
to love us.
- Charles Swain

Good friends are
hard to find,
harder to leave,
and impossible to forget.
- Anonymous (that's right, quotes by people who chose to remain anonymous)!

YOU CAN'T FOOL
YOUR MOM WITH
"GOOD ROADS AND
FAIR WEATHER" - reference to scilon policy when communicating with concerned parents

"YOU CAN ALWAYS
PATCH THINGS UP
WITH YOUR FAMILY" - good sign for pirate-themed anonymous with eye patch, or medically themed anon with doctor's lab coat or nurse-themed outfit (yes, horrible pun but I think effective)

"LOVE IS
NOT A P.T.S" (potential trouble source in scilon speak)


The other thing I would suggest is to have contact information for help in very large letters at the base of your sign. XENU.NET is great for people looking for information on the evils of Scientology, but if the theme is reconnect we need shelters or supportive information relevant to the location you are protesting.

For example, I see this person invites people to call him:
Chuck Beatty
ex Scientology staffer (1975-2003)
412-260-1170 Pittsburgh, USA (anyone call me anytime!)

Can anyone vouch for this person as a helpful contact? If others are willing (i.e. Arnie, Magoo, call we get phone numbers up on signs as well?

Finally, watch youtube of protests and try to read signs. If you can't read the sign in a youtube video, or at a reasonable distance (say across the street at a Scientology building) then it probably won't be read at all. My signs were made using 3 inch high vinyl letters you can buy at stores like Staples.

Try this link for info: http://www.lisamcpherson.org/cos/make_sign.htm
Critiques of signs: http://www.lisamcpherson.org/pktsigns.htm

Hope this helps,
- ExpendableAnon

Originally Posted by anony428

The crying guy in NYC made me think of this:
"We don't know you, but we still love you!"

It seems strange that my life should end in such a terrible place, but for three years I had roses and apologized to no one. I shall die here. Every inch of me shall perish. Every inch, but one. An inch. It is small and it is fragile and it is the only thing in the world worth having. We must never lose it or give it away. We must NEVER let them take it from us. I hope that whoever you are, you escape this place. I hope that the worlds turns, and that things get better. But what I hope most of all is that you understand what I mean when I tell you that, even though I do not know you, and even though I may never meet you, laugh with you, cry with you, or kiss you, I love you. With all my heart, I love you. Valerie.
Now I just have to figure out how to put that on a flyer.

And if anyone asks what that's from, I'ma e-slap ya.

Originally Posted by anonchoir

A little meme heavy, don't you think?

What's wrong with that? I'm of the opinion that a couple of memes (note not tons, but a couple) make the protest more lighthearted and accessible, and less threatening.

Plus it's a relevant meme

Originally Posted by Tweenon

For Operation Reconnect, the important thing is to let those inside know that Anonymous is willing to help them.

I agree, but I think if we want to go toward having a 'railway' to help people if they do leave, we need to do some serious organisation and pre-planning. For one thing I've been racking my brain trying to work out a way that would not leave the helpers incredibly vulnerable in the case of a fake leaver.

(ie, if someone should come out of the church with a bag with their stuff and announces they are leaving now, please help me, having them crash on your couch might be the first reflex, but not necessarily the safest for any of the involved. With a fake leaver, you are widely exposed. With a legitimate leaver, Co$ is likely to call all hands to get that person back)

It's probably worth contacting local cult-watching and help organisations to find out if they have a network in place we could make use of if someone should blow at a protest.

Originally Posted by Anonymeep

What's wrong with that? I'm of the opinion that a couple of memes (note not tons, but a couple) make the protest more lighthearted and accessible, and less threatening.

Plus it's a relevant meme

I think the chatspeak spoils it, myself.

Leavers wouldn't necessarily leave their houses completely unless they live alone or something. Not all of them will dramatically march out of the building and declare themselves done with Scientology (although that would be amazing if done en masse) and suddenly become homeless.

I guess the important thing is to exercise good common sense (and in case of a dramatic blow out, prepare a really cheap motel room or something).

Originally Posted by Anonymeep

What's wrong with that? I'm of the opinion that a couple of memes (note not tons, but a couple) make the protest more lighthearted and accessible, and less threatening.

Plus it's a relevant meme

My usual reaction to memes is "What the fuck is this shit?" but in an amused way. CoS does not like cats, by the way.