From: Roland <RolandRB@nospam.netcomuk.co.uk>
Subject: London picket report
Date: 1997/04/06
Message-ID: <33474054.536A@nospam.netcomuk.co.uk>#1/1
Organization: Xemu's Church of the Holy Indulgences
Newsgroups: alt.religion.scientology
The picket today of the "Church" of Scientology in Tottenham Court Road was marvellous. I was picketing from 13:00 to 15:40 (I stopped early to watch the Grand National that never was).
I don't like to shove the leaflets into people's hands if they don't really want them so I just held the leaflets out. People actually came up and took them out of my hand! They were congratulating me on doing such a good job. I made it very clear that I was "Picketing against the cult/church of Scientology - Stop Scientology ruining lives" by shouting it loudly. I had about 260 leaflets. All of them were gratefully received.
The mood in the UK has really changed. Scientology was tolerated in 1995 and 1996 but not any more. The press and television are quite hostile towards them now. They are hated by the public.
While I was there a policeman turned up. He seemed to be quite happy with my shouting. Even he came up to me and took a leaflet and read it.
There was a good turn-out of picketers. About 15 I think. The Co$ put their own leaflet distributors out as well. Some people spotted the switch though and some people gave their Co$ literature to me to dispose of and took my leaflet.
Dave Bird was making a fine old racket with his megaphone chanting "Woof, woof, glug, glug. Who drowned the judges dog?" and singing his Lisa McPherson song. He had Duke the dog with him - a dog on wheels wearing water-wings.
They got round some thinking scienos to talk with me. (Some scienos ~can~ think but only if they were in scientology in the early days, like 25 years ago or more). The scienos were genuinely surprised about what I said about Lisa McPherson and Xemu with the DC8s. They did not believe it.
I told the London org OSA man, Jacques Vollet, that I was only picketing because Flag and the Flagship owed me money (which they do. A lot of it). I am sure he can get it back for me. He can now blame the entire picket on Flag not following policy. It's a good way of shifting trouble away from the London org.
We didn't have a Xemu there but we didn't need one really. The public liked us.
All the shouting had made me very thirsty. We all piled in the Finnegan's Wake bar afterwards where I was able to slake my thirst (several times and very thoroughly).
A good time was had by all. Even Jacques Vollet sat with us and talked. Roland
