What you can do

Sometimes people ask "can I help?" and nothing happens. Other make a www page that they no longer care for after some time. So here are a few small projects you can work on. Some take as little as a few hours, i.e. no long term committment is needed, but your help is appreciated. If you chose a project, please give me some feedback.

The Problem: Broken links

Many people link to anti-scientology sites that no longer exist.

Hundreds of web pages still link to these non existant sites:

What you can do:


If you have written to a web page owner, bookmark the page and verify it a week later.

The Problem: Dictionaries

The Oxford Dictionary of Quotations has attributed the quote "If you really want to make a million, the quickest way is to start your own religion" to Anonymous. However, several witnesses have reported that the quote comes from Scientology founder L. Ron Hubbard. Scientology claims that the quote is from George Orwell. The person who found it out, Robert Vaughn Young, found out also that LRH said it.

What you can do:

Write a letter to the publisher to explain this matter. You can print out the web pages, or copy the first page of Chapter 3 of the book "Messiah or Madman" from Bent Corydon, or on page 137 in the Chapter "The Religion Angle" of the book "A piece of Blue Sky".

Look also at your library in encyclopedias for the definition of Scientology or Dianetics. If you consider the definition too soft or inaccurate, write to the publisher. Include evidence for everything you allege.

Consider contributing to Wikipedia, and watch Scientology definitions for vandalism.

The Problem: Scientology letters to the Editor

Scientology uses a high amount of resources to write (sometimes by "individual" scientologists) letters to the Editor, even when newspapers just forward wire reports.

What you can do:

Writing a letter in support of the paper, thanking them for the article, and adding your opinion on Scientology, pointing to your favourite website, etc.

Your letter should be short (one page maximum), easy to understand, not too complicated, and not be sent as e-mail. If the letter has several paragraphs, these should be independant from each other (so that the paper can choose to kill one or several of them). If you make factual allegations, add the evidence (a copy of another newspaper article, or a court decision).

The Problem: Articles only available as text

What you can do:

You can help OCR newspaper articles, or you can type them in manually. Many people collect all articles to establish searchable databases. If you want to contribute, e-mail me. Even articles that do not seem to be "breaking news" might be useful in a large context. I would then post your article to the usenet, this making the original article available to a larger audience, thanks to your contribution.

The Problem: Stolen books

Scientology or "individual" Scientologists have been reported to steal books from libraries, or critical magazine articles.

What you can do:

Buy and donate books critical to scientology to your local library. If magazine articles are surgically removed, donate a printout of the article to the library. If books are missing, warn the librarian that this is an organized effort.

The problem: Scientology books in the self-help section

Scientology claims to be a "religion", yet their books are often in the self-help section of bookstores or libraries.

What you can do:

When you visit a bookstore or a library, explain that Scientology is a religion (well, they say so!), and persuade them to put the book in the "religion" section.

Alternatively, insert a Xenu Leaflet into the scientology books.

The problem: bogus cult information hotlines.

Scientology and cult apologists have set up or participate in bogus cult information hotlines. Although it is obvious that these hotlines won't be critical of cults, not much actual information is known.

What you can do:

To participate in this operation, you need "social engineering" skills.

Call these hotlines to ask for information. In the UK, call INFORM at 0171 955 7654; in the US, call the scientology-run cult awareness network at 1-800-556-3055 (attention: "caller id suppression" does not work for 800 numbers, so consider calling from a pay phone) other cult apologists are mentioned at http://www.cultawarenessnetwork.org/referrals.html (Top people to call from the list are: David Bromley, Frank Flinn, Jeffrey Hadden, Lonnie Kliever, James Lewis, Gordon Melton, James Richardson, George Robertson. Start with Jeffrey Hadden, he is the dumbest).

Tell them an average story, like that your sister has joined Scientology, and that you are asking for information. Ask them also some specific questions. Examples (These are just suggestions. Add your own or modify them, since these people will be forwarded this post by scientology)

When adding your own questions, chose them so that the answer would be pretty easy for an honest cult information source, and that a dishonest source would always lie or refuse to give the information.

In the conversation, stick to your script. Have the person answer the question. If the person tries to change the topic, ask again. Do not become verbally abusive - remain polite but "anxious". Avoid giving out your address and phone, there are many reasons for not doing this (tell that phone lines might be snooped, and you have heard that cults information hotlines have plants, whatever). If the cult information resource refuses to help you, end the conversation.

Write down date and time of the call, and name of the person you are talking to, and the responses given. If it is legal in your state, record the call. E-mail me the results or post them to alt.religion.scientology.

First success: Don NOTS called Rev. N.J. L'Heureux of the Queens Council of Churches.

The problem: Chick Corea recruiting for scientology

Chick Corea is quite proud of recruiting for scientology through his CDs, and mentions this in scientology publications.

What you can do:

Go to a big record store. Look at CDs from Chick Corea, especially the current ones. Don't bother buying the CD, just write down the title. If it mentions L. Ron Hubbard, complain to the record company in writing (not e-mail). You will find the address on the web or inside the CD itself.

Writing letters to Stretch Records is useless because this is Chick Corea himself. However the distributor of Stretch is Concord Records:

A record company isn't assumed to promote a "church" unless it is about "church songs". Be polite, and make a good argument. Just saying "it's a criminal cult and they hurt people" is not enough. Submit actual examples that scientology hurts people, and that it is "not good" that a record company promotes them. Worse, it might put them at legal risk, because someone recruited by Corea, who gets defrauded later, might sue everyone involved.

The problem: open stories

What you can do:

(solved)

The problem: cool stuff hidden in court records

Lawsuits are not litigated in the media. But very embarassing information on Scientology or on Scientologists are filed, and are available to anyone who takes the time to look up the files and copy them.

What you can do:

Visit court houses to find interesting affidavits, and ask for copies (costs around $.50 per page). A top source is the United States District Court in New York City, which should have many affidavits in the CSI vs. TIME case.

But even if you don't live in NYC, you should look at your local courthouse. If there is an org or a Scientology "management" front nearby, there will be scientology-related lawsuits.

Do not only look at affidavits of critics or victims of Scientology. Even filings by Scientology might be revealing. As we remember, in the Lisa McPherson case, Scientology argued indirectly that it has the right to kill its own members as part of "freedom of religion".

Other lawsuits that should be interesting:

The problem: Operation Clambake needs your help

See Projects Outstanding

The problem: no time, but money

You don't have any time, but want to spend some money.

What you can do:

Make a tax-deductible donation to ICSA (formerly AFF) This is used for general research and educational activities.

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