Talk:Operation Freakout/Archive 1

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laundromat

....to frame writer Paulette Cooper for bomb threats against the Church, Henry Kissinger, Arab nations and a laundromat.

Must've been some laundromat.--Wasabe3543 16:24, 24 December 2005 (UTC)

Hmmmm, I'll have to check that out. I believe it might be true, actually; the Scientologists drew up the Operation Freakout plans in great written detail and at least one of the steps in the plan was to have a Scientology agent impersonating Paulette Cooper have an apparent psychotic episode in a laundromat, in which she would mention "her" intentions to bomb the above-mentioned targets. However, I don't remember off-hand whether the agent impersonating Cooper was directed to threaten the laundromat as well. I'll check into it. -- Antaeus Feldspar 21:36, 24 December 2005 (UTC)
Yup, checks out. http://www.skepticfiles.org/sciento/sci592.htm The agent assigned to impersonate Cooper was supposed to go in the laundromat, ask if they had her clothes (which they wouldn't, since the real Cooper had never been there), and when they told her they didn't, to scream "You're one of them! I'll kill you. You're a dirty Arab. You fucking basterds. I'll bomb you. I'll bomb the Arabs. I'll bomb the President. I'll kill that traitor Kissingner. You're all against me." As their own documents show, they were trying to get Cooper locked up in a mental institution; to have "her" apparently issue a death threat over something so unproportionate was perfectly in their interests. -- Antaeus Feldspar 21:49, 24 December 2005 (UTC)

Origin of the code name "Operation Freakout"

Will someone kindly find some indication, somewhere, somehow, that this title was created by the CoS? and then post it as a verification for the title? Terryeo 19:04, 29 December 2005 (UTC)

The code name was used in the header of the 1 April 1976 document outlining the aim of the plan as "To get P.C incarcerated in a mental institution or jail, or at least to hit her so hard that she drops her attacks." and again as "Op Freakout" in the 13 April 1976 document which identifies the problem as "Cooper is getting her power back, attacking again." and the solution as "Attached is approved Op Freakout. This additional channel. Should really have her put away. Worked with all the other Channels ... The FBI already think she really did do the bomb threats on the C of S.", with the parameters of the operation being specified to include getting one of Cooper's "friends" who was actually a Church plant to obtain her fingerprints on a blank piece of paper then type a bomb threat on a library typewriter and mail it to Henry Kissinger. These documents were among the many seized by the FBI in their raids on Scientology's Los Angeles bases in 1977 following the exposure of Operation Snow White.
That, I think, is more than the "indication" you asked for. I don't understand exactly what you mean by "then post it as a verification for the title?" -- Antaeus Feldspar 20:43, 29 December 2005 (UTC)
Images to back that up: [1]--216.165.33.63 00:22, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
I see. I was asking, "where do the word come from?" You know, where did the term originate. The article seems to imply the Church of Scientology thought up the term, created a plan, called it by that name, etc. I was hoping to get some clarification. Terryeo 20:29, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
And you got it. -- Antaeus Feldspar 21:01, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
Viewing user 216's link it looks like someone who's name appears as "Buck" or "Puck" originated the name and plan. It is a little difficult to be sure exactly who that might have been. Certainly the photographed document isn't as clear as could be wished for. Terryeo 20:33, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
This page ([2]) provides some background info on the circumstances of the document's recovery. As for why the operation was called "Freakout", there are two possible explanations. First, it might be a purely descriptive name (like "Iraqi Freedom" or "Desert Storm" - the US military seems to like that sort of name). Googling for the term "freak out" returns the definition: "lose one's nerve; "When he saw the accident, he freaked out" ". The objective of the operation could be interpreted as making Paulette Cooper "freak out", by hitting her so hard that she would never dare to criticise Scientology again. (Hubbard's "Manual of Justice" certainly advocates using blatant intimidation to "shut down" critics.)
Alternatively - and I know this is a long shot - it might be a Frank Zappa reference. Freak Out! was his debut album back in 1966. I think that explanation might be a red herring, though. :-) -- ChrisO 22:22, 23 January 2006 (UTC)
My question is, why would anybody join a religion as crazy and relentless as Scienology? Longbow 12:40 16 June 2005 (EST)

Operation Snow White

Have added a mention of this as what resulted in the papers being siezed that proved her innocence. Adam Cuerden 22:31, 7 March 2006 (UTC)

Article lacks reliable sources

It's based almost entirely on information from personal webpages. BabyDweezil 18:22, 12 February 2007 (UTC)

Changed that. AndroidCat 20:20, 12 February 2007 (UTC)


I love how Scientologists scream "SEE! SEE! IT's not true! No legitmate source!" Then you give a whole slew of good, legit sources and they magically shut up.

Sentencing Memoranda

There are two memorandums that are key for Operation Freakout. Kember and Budlong, and Mary Sue et al. The second has a PDF scan and a converted text (possibly with deadly misplaced commas). AndroidCat 02:07, 14 February 2007 (UTC)

I've added an HTML version of the Kember memorandum to Wikisource - I corrected it from an existing HTML version, which had some serious formatting errors and quite a few typos in it. We really ought to try to get the Hubbard memorandum on Wikisource as well. -- ChrisO 02:12, 14 February 2007 (UTC)

This article needs verifiability, these sources do not cover it. Mr mellowguy (talk) 01:30, 12 February 2008 (UTC)

The memoranda are extremely verifiable. What exactly do those and the other refs not cover? AndroidCat (talk) 02:59, 12 February 2008 (UTC)
Scientologists like to leave verifiability comments on articles critical of Scientology. If you look in the archives, this matter has already been addressed. Idag (talk) 22:17, 20 February 2008 (UTC)

Archiving such a short talk page?

Looks like Scientology attacked by archiving 4 items on the talk page. Looks like the disgusting truth just hurt too much. --Chinese3126 (talk) 17:49, 21 March 2008 (UTC)

I set that stuff to archive, for discussions older than one month with zero new posts or discussion in that time. Will get to working on this article and upgrading its quality status at some point soon. Cirt (talk) 20:41, 21 March 2008 (UTC)

Documents seized by U.S. federal government

[3] Bottom of page has section with documents seized by U.S. federal government that relate to Operation Freakout. Cirt (talk) 21:27, 30 November 2008 (UTC)

Scientology Inc.

In the ‘70s, the church launched Operation Freakout on author Paulette Cooper, after the 1971 publication of her book, The Scandal of Scientology. The goal? To allegedly put Cooper in a prison or mental hospital by having her framed as a terrorist. Church members would make threatening calls to consulates posing as Cooper and attempted to get her fingerprints on a piece of paper and then mail it as a threatening letter to Secretary of State Henry Kissinger.

In 1979, court documents revealed the plot to get Cooper. But in a New York Times article that November, church spokesman Dennis McKenna intimated that Cooper was covertly working with the FBI and other federal agencies to harm the church. (McKenna was not accused of participating in Operation Freakout.)

  • Evans, Jim (August 23, 2001). "Scientology Inc. - Publishing executives in Folsom are spreading the word on technology in government. Some employees say it's actually the words of L. Ron Hubbard that are being spread". Sacramento News & Review. www.newsreview.com. Retrieved 2009-11-21.

Cirt (talk) 11:14, 21 November 2009 (UTC)

Source for this article

  • {{cite book|title=Introduction to New and Alternative Religions in America|first=Eugene V. |last=Gallagher |coauthor= W. Michael Ashcraft|pages=185-186| publisher=Greenwood Publishing Group |date=2006|isbn=9780275987121}}
—Preceding unsigned comment added by MartinPoulter (talk • contribs) 23:21, 8 July 2009 (UTC)

The Rundown Truth: Scientology Changes Strategy in War with Media

Hugh B. Urban is a professor of religious studies at Ohio State University. This article is a good source of info on multiple topics. -- Cirt (talk) 19:27, 18 March 2010 (UTC)

Never put into action?

So looking at the article, it looks like the activity was planned, and actions taken, that resulted in the victim being arrested and charged. Is it accurate to say it was never put into action? Sephiroth storm (talk) 13:46, 7 May 2019 (UTC)

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