08 Oct 2000

realpch <realpch@aol.com>

SF Picket Report, Sat Oct 7, 2000

It was a cloudy and pleasantly cool day, and I hadn't enough sleep by a long shot, but it was the first Saturday of the month, and time for the regularly scheduled picket at the San Francisco Scientology Org.

Jour and I arrived at the Org shortly before noon. Jour was wearing her bright red Picketing Jammies, and I was casual myself, my most notable article of attire being corduroy bellbottoms, a recent present. Can you believe bellbottoms are back in style?

We did our usual flyering to passers-by and showing our signs and waving to the driving public. There were a couple of interesting discussions with people walking by, including one man who had worked at a store in Los Angeles, whose customers included Scientologists and Heaven's Gate members. He felt that some of these people did not "have their feet on the ground", and his opinion was reinforced the day he read a newspaper which had a picture of one of his customers who had participated in the Heaven's Gate mass suicide. Another man said, "They bankrupt you."

We didn't see Jeff Quiros again this picket, and frankly we are wondering if he is doing ok, or if he has gotten into trouble for not "making it go right" in regards to stopping us from picketing the SF Org. Should anyone be interested, Mr. Quiros is not responsible for my picketing. The policies and actions of the Church of Scientology are responsible for me picketing. Would anyone care to change some of these policies, such as the fair game policy?

Craig, the Scientologist who has picketed Jour and me at our homes, turned up at the Org without flyers, and issued forth from the Org with stack of boilerplate Religious Bigot flyers of both Jour and myself and proceeded to hand them out to people who had accepted our flyers. He also, once again, attempted to have a discussion with me (every time he has done this he adopts a particularly unpleasant hectoring tone which might be familiar to those who have viewed recent LMT picket videos), this time apparently on the topic of my neighbours and his interactions with them, despite the fact that I have told him I do not want to talk to him. I told him this again. He was less interested in talking to Jour who actually is ready and willing to talk to him. Sheesh!

After awhile he went back into the Org, and we saw him leaving with a picket sign, on his way to picket the homes of Jour and myself. I guess they store our DA flyers and the picket sign at the Org, hey? He did apparently picket my house later.

There were a lot of Scientologists at the Org, and we saw someone leaving with a hand truck full of materials, apparently to set up a recruiting table somewhere. The Stress Test Table didn't make an appearance while we were there. Possibly it's not too popular during the weekends. Many of the street people we have talked to while picketing have investigated it and haven't been too impressed.

A few of the Scientologists on their way into the Org accepted flyers this time. I wonder if they got to read them. One fellow declined an offer of a flyer by Jour with a hearty "Fuck You!" Well, at least it wasn't just me being cranky yesterday. Oh yes, one of the "regular" Scientologists made sure to thank Jour because a couple she had been talking with went into the Org. We will have to remember to ask this fellow at another picket if the couple signed up for some courses.

We broke off at 2 pm, and patronized the pleasant cafe across the street where we were joined by Phr, who also had stayed up too late the night before.

Peach