Date: Saturday, July 1, 2000
Start and End Times: 11:50 - 2:30 pm, plus more after 3:30 pm Location: San Francisco Picketers: Kristi Wachter, Peaches, Murdoch, Adam, Phr Handlers: Jeff Quiros, Josh Weather: overcast and cool Number of Handouts given away: 224 (upstat!) - includes EVERYONE's contribution Comments: two newcomers, lots of interaction flier stats:

26 Scn's Lies: It Works/What's Wrong with Scn 46 Costs a Mint/Breaking the Law 69 raided in Belgium/fraud in France 10 Xenu 26 Lisa 12 Rodney Rimando 12 Bowfinger 17 Travolta 2 advisory 224 total This is the number of fliers given out by all five of us. Good work, you guys!

----------------------------------------------- Familiar faces seen:

Jeff Quiros Josh Mr. Get-Your-Facts-Straight Lucretia Ms. A Familiar faces not present during this picket:

Burly Guy Craig El Greco Mr. Tall Thin Sea Org Mr. Lady-I-Work-Here Movie Star Miss Pixie ----------------------------------------------- Note: Quotes may not be exact, since I didn't listen to my tape recording at all. Also, I occasionally rearrange the chronology slightly to enhance the narrative flow.

Photos at http://www.scientology-lies.com/picketphotos.000701.html. (I forgot to have someone take a picture of me! Sorry. If you want to see me, you'll either have to look at a previous report or ask Jeff Quiros for one of the ones he took.)

Peaches, Phr, Murdoch, Adam, and I picketed the San Francisco org on Saturday.

WHAT CONDITION MY CONDITION WAS IN
================================== As faithful readers will remember, I was suffering from an ankle injury last month. Although I'm not completely recovered, the ankle is much better, so I decided to try picketing on foot and see how it felt as the day progressed. I brought the chair just in case, but as it turned out, my ankle held up pretty well. I'm hoping it'll be fully recovered by next time.

I'm aware of at least three foot injuries afflicting critics during the past month. OT powerz, or sympathetic footbullets? It couldn't be a coincidence ...

Once again, I must express my great gratitude to Peaches for the ride to and from the picket. My ankle appreciates it!!!

ISN'T SHE LOVELY
================ Peaches and I started picketing at about 11:50 - early, for a change! Peaches looked resplendent in her long braid and natty suit, complemented by a lovely necklace she picked up that morning. We strolled and chatted and passed out fliers and generally had a grand time.

YOUNG BLOOD
=========== As Peaches and I strolled westward, we suddenly saw two young gentlemen with flapping posterboard emerge from the walkway behind the org. "We have company!" I called out to Peaches, and the two young men strode up to us and introduced themselves - Murdoch and Adam. They assembled their signs - Murdoch's said:

"There is no Christ."
L. Ron Hubbard, Founder of Scientology
But Xenu is REAL!!!!
xenutv.com on one side, with photos of LRH, a space ship, and Xenu (I didn't think Xenu had a goatee <grin>); on the other side:

Hubbard Says:

"There are men DEAD because they attacked us."

-L. Ron Hubbard "The only way you can control people is to lie to them."

-L. Ron Hubbard, your founder Adam's sign had the Scientology logo, the quote "If there ever was a devil, he invented it."

and a picture of LRH with little devil horns drawn on it;

on the other side:

the Scientology logo with the universal NO circle-and-slash and the phrase "Just say no." (I told Peaches that perhaps he could start a chapter of the Scientology Free Marshalls.)

Adam had rigged his sign so that he could open it to present a special message:

AUDIT THIS Our two newcomers were full of enthusiasm and energy. They distributed loads of fliers and generally kept things lively. We've often noticed the difference people pay us when there are more of us, and we noticed more honks and supportive comments yelled from windows after Murdoch and Adam joined us. I was delighted that they came, and I'm looking forward to seeing them at future pickets.

GIVING IT ALL AWAY
================== Since I've been working on editing the Lisa McPherson files from the Clearwater police investigation, I didn't have time to create a new flier for this picket. Instead, we distributed a variety of different fliers left over from previous pickets (hence the varied flier stats above).

THE LANGUAGE OF LOVE
==================== I had an opportunity to practice two of my foreign languages with passersby. A gentleman took a flier and said in Spanish to his companion something about translating it into Spanish. I asked him (in Spanish) whether he needed information in Spanish, and he said no, the flier I gave him was fine.

Another gentleman asked if I spoke French, and I handed him a flier and told him that it had information about Scientology and there was lots of info on the Internet. He said he was against Scn and I said, "Us too." I told him we were out there to help educate the public, and that of course in France everyone knows about the dangers of Scientology. He agreed that in France they're against Scn. We briefly discussed the recently-passed cult law in France, and I said, "Well, you know all this already," so we smiled and he continued on his way.

WHEN YOU SMILE FOR THE CAMERA, YOU KNOW I LOVE YOU BETTER
========================================================= Shortly after Adam and Murdoch arrived, Josh came out to take photos. I greeted him warmly as I usually do. He snapped shots of all of us, especially our two newcomers. I asked him what the photos were for, and he said he wasn't at liberty to tell me. I said I thought Scientologists could talk about anything with anyone, and he said they could also choose NOT to talk about anything.

We also had at least two other anonymous photographers; one of them said something about ars, but I have no idea who either of them were.

DR. HECKLE AND MR. JIVE
======================= When Josh seemed to be our photographer du jour, Peaches expressed dismay that Jeff Quiros might not appear. After all, it hardly feels like a picket without Jeff. Not to fear, though - a short while later, Jeff appeared. I spotted him across the street and gave him a friendly wave, which he returned. I informed Murdoch and Adam that Jeff had arrived and told them who he was, and that he would be taking pictures.

I was disappointed to see that Jeff exhibited some very immature behavior during our picket. He yelled at and swore at our two new picketers; he told Murdoch "You're a lying sack of shit" and told me that I'm certifiably insane. We had some calmer conversations, too, but he certainly didn't exhibit the kind of rational, mature behavior I would expect from a middle-aged gentleman, especially one who's advanced to one of the highest levels in his church. I just can't imagine picketing a Catholic church or a synagogue or a Buddhist temple and having a minister or church representative come out and call me a lying sack of shit.

The first shouting match happened during Jeff's first photo session. Murdoch was not at all shy about talking with Scientologists and quoting LRH to them, and his initial encounter with Jeff - Jeff snapping photos all the while - quickly turned into a heated discussion. Jeff told Murdoch he was full of shit and that he was "a lying sack of shit." He went to point at some of the quotes on Murdoch's sign, causing Murdoch to back away from him. Fortunately, Adam brought a camcorder and got this exchange on tape.

After Jeff finished that photo session, he went back inside, but he re-emerged later. During his second photo shoot, he tried to convince us that our picketing constituted a hate crime. When I asked him why he didn't report our supposed hate crimes to the police, half a block away, he said it was because San Francisco has a very liberal attitude about these things (so I guess it's not really a hate crime after all, eh, Jeff?). Jeff said we were attacking Scn's beliefs and trying to prevent them from believing what they believe. (Never mind that it's impossible to prevent anyone from believing what they believe.) I asked if he felt *I* was attacking their beliefs, and he said I was different. I pointed out that perhaps it would be better not to generalize. <grin> Jeff said Murdoch's LRH quotes were incorrect quotes. I asked him if he would provide the accurate quotes to me, and he said he would if I turned off my tape recorder and moved away from Murdoch. I asked why he would need my tape recorder off to provide me with correct information, and he said because it would be for me only. I asked him if he believed that all Scn critics have criminal records, and he said he did believe that. I asked him why he hadn't found my crimes yet, and he said maybe I just didn't get caught.

After our cafe break (post-picket), Adam and Murdoch wanted to picket a bit more, so Phr, Peaches, and I went off to run an errand. When we returned, we found that Jeff had called the police because he believed Murdoch and Adam were blocking access to the Stress Test Table that had been put out shortly after we left at 2:30. Apparently, Jeff had been yelling and swearing at Adam and Murdoch - again, not very mature behavior. When Phr, Peaches, and I returned, Jeff was preparing to leave and told us that he had called the police. We then proceeded to have a very long conversation - all six of us (although Phr thought a call to the police provided an excellent opportunity to picket some more and he picketed while the rest of us talked). During this conversation, Jeff started out calm, got agitated and told me I was certifiably insane, calmed down, got agitated again when claiming that psychiatry was killing people, then calmed down a bit again.

He also had a bit of trouble with details - he made a comment about three guys with signs standing in front of the table (there were only two), and said something about the three or four years I've been picketing (it's only been 2 1/2).

At one point, Murdoch said he expected an OT4 not to get so upset. (I had thought Jeff was OT5. I stand corrected.) Jeff said he'd never read anywhere that OTs don't get angry. As so often happens, I was dismayed that he didn't take the opportunity to offer more accurate information on Scientology. Instead of just saying "I've never read that OTs don't get angry," he could have explained to Murdoch that Scientology training is supposed to help you get rid of *inappropriate* emotional responses that are triggered by past traumas rather than current situations. He also failed, repeatedly, in my opinion, to demonstrate Scientology comm tech and raise our collective ARC.

So, unfortunately, Jeff does not get the coveted Kristi's Favorite Scientologist award this month. In fact, I'm afraid it will have to go unawarded (unless some other Scientologist would like to do something to get it - like calmly and helpfully pointing out some incorrect information on my web site).

Jeff, if Murdoch and Adam reappear next month - or if we have other protestors - or even if we don't - I hope you can behave like a mature and rational gentleman ... like the kind of representative that a beleaguered organization with a serious public relations problem can be proud of.

Also, I'd like to remind Jeff to keep his hands to himself. His poking at Murdoch's sign could have resulted in an assault (by touching Murdoch's property) if Murdoch hadn't backed up. Also, during one of our later, calmer discussions, Jeff joked about how, with Adam's camcorder off, he was now free to say REALLY heinous things, then noticed my tape player and playfully put his hand over the microphone. I doubt he intended to actually touch it, or me, but he did - he touched the recorder and my finger. This was clearly not anything worth wasting the police's time on, but seriously, Jeff - please make an effort to avoid any questionable incidents that could cause extra paperwork for the police. We don't touch you (I offered him a hug or a handshake, but he declined both, so I refrained); please make sure no Scientologist touches us without clear prior consent.

DREAM POLICE
============ As we were conversing with Jeff, a very nice, friendly police officer came over and introduced herself as Maureen. Jeff told her, in a fairly calm, conciliatory way, that the protestors had been standing at the table and talking to the people working at it, and the officer informed us that we weren't allowed to interfere with their business. I asked whether it was alright to talk with them if we weren't blocking access to the table, and she said it was, unless they asked us to stop talking to them. I thanked her for the clarification, and she went on her way.

More notes from earlier in the picket (sorry - I'm messing up the chronology here):

TALK TO ME
========== As I said, Murdoch was not shy about engaging Scientologists in conversation and offering them fliers. (His picket technique is much more in the tradition of Roland and Keith, as contrasted with the "focus-on-the-public" style that Peaches and I use.)

Adam and Murdoch had visited the San Francisco org twice before the picket, so they knew something about the org, they had done an auditing session on each other, and they knew a few of the faces of the staff. Murdoch had a bit of a conversation with the Scientologist who taught the two of them to peer audit.

He also had a conversation with a couple of Sea Org members. The SO gentleman was nice enough to tell me his name (Dennis; he sounded like he had a bit of a French accent), but the SO lady chose not to give me a name or a nickname, so I'll call her SOsan. (I briefly thought I heard a bit of an East Coast accent in her speech.) I didn't catch much of Murdoch's conversation with them (hopefully he'll post a picket report of his own, or maybe Adam got it on video). However, I listened for a while and joined in a bit myself. Some highlights:

SOsan thinks someone is paying us to picket.

I asked her whether she's done the Data Evaluation Series, but she says she hasn't.

Murdoch asks her how long she's been a Scientologist; she says all her life, since she was 4. (She looked to be in her late 20s or early 30s to me, but I'm terrible at estimating ages.)

I asked her whether auditing would work if I didn't believe in it. We kind of went around and around about that for a bit, with her saying it wasn't about what you believed in and me restating my question, but she finally said she didn't know whether it would work or not, because she'd never experienced approaching it that way.

When I pointed out that Scientology has been convicted of lying, she refused to believe it ("That's not true", she said). I told her about the Casey Hill case and I mentioned the Bonnie Woods case (and just to clarify, in case this reaches you, SOsan: Scientology was not convicted of lying in the Bonnie Woods case, but they did apologize for lying in open court, so it's on the court record there, too). I encouraged her to investigate the Casey Hill decision for herself; I'm perplexed that she can be so sure it didn't happen.

As she and Dennis turned to go back into the org, I called after her and told her I thought she had excellent confront - much better than many of the Scientologists who have talked to us. It's a shame that she's unwilling to confront the Casey Hill decision, though.

In an unrelated incident, Murdoch came up to me and told me that he had just succeeded in giving a flier to a young Scientologist lady who emerged from the org - and I immediately saw Josh sprint out of the org, catch up to the young lady, and put his arm around her as he walked with her. I have no evidence that he was concerned about the flier she took, but it made me wonder.

Murdoch also had a bit of dialog with Mr. Get Your Facts Straight, who tried to tell Murdoch that our picketing just brings in more new recruits. I pointed out once again that Scientologists have picketed my home to try to get me to stop picketing, so either they were counter-intention or Mr. Get Your Facts Straight was mistaken. I asked him whether he wanted us to picket more, and he said he didn't care.

THE REVOLUTION WILL NOT BE TELEVISED (but the picket will)
========================================================== Much of this picket made good narrowcast material, so I'm glad we had lots of recorders running. I'll try to get a tape of audio out to Xenu TV soon, and I believe Adam will try to dupe a copy of his video for Xenu TV as well. I may also do a transcript of the more interesting parts.

GO BACK, JACK, DO IT AGAIN
========================== Once again, HUGE thanks to Peaches for the ride to and from, and gratitude to everyone - Adam, Murdoch, Peaches, and Phr - for joining in the picket.

The next regularly scheduled first-Saturday-of-every-month picket is August 5 from noon until 2 pm, rain or shine. See you then!

Kristi -- Kristi Wachter
the activist formerly known as "Jour" (before $cientology outed me) I think $cientology is hurting people and breaking the law, and I want them to stop it. See http://www.scientology-lies.com for more.

Can you say "Xenu?" ... I knew that you could.

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