The masks are symbolic, but also a necessity for Anonymous, the group/movement that has stepped up their criticism on The Church of Scientology over the last year.

Which makes it all kind of complicated, weird and spooky that they're sitting in a packed auditorium talking about their fight against Scientology.

You may first remember hearing about Anonymous several months back during the coordinated national and international protests at Scientology churches around the globe.

The forum at ROFLCon 2008 on Anonymous was kept quiet, and not mentioned on the official schedule until people arrived at the convention. That may be part of the secrecy, or fun of being anonymous.

Of all the memes, sites, personalities and other online luminaries here, Anonymous seems to have attracted the most attention and excitement.

Behind the masks Anonymous purports to be just like the rest of the random geeks and Internet adventurers who are here. They make the same jokes, reference the same sites, love the same things, but they're different because they appear to have taken on a cause.

As they allege - "they" in this case being a group of four people wearing "V for Vendetta" masks - the church is responsible for many abuses, from fear mongering and preying on the sick to cheating people out of thousands if not millions of dollars.

And that's just the tip of the iceberg.

As Anonymous explains it, they need to obscure their identities comes from the church's history of retaliation against those who have tried to expose them in the past and the people who have left the church.

(One Anonymous member told the audience they church took him before a judge on charges such as criminal harassment and trespassing after taking out a demonstration permit.)

They want the church to pay for its crimes (real or perceived) and to reform its practices.

In the eyes of the Anonymous crowd and their supporters - it's a more than receptive crowd here - it's an epic struggle, as hard fought as it is fantastic.

To be honest it's a little hard to believe, mostly because the Anonymous crowd gives off mixed messages.

While they strongly criticize the church, and decry their methods and attacks on those who question them, they have no problem using terms that would be seen as racist, sexist or homophobic among each other (something they freely admit.)

They're see themselves fighting an uphill battle to gain support and credibility, but they hide behind masks.

They claim to be a large movement, with members and action taking place around the world and on the web, but admit they can't control everything being done under the banner of "Anonymous."

It's clear that Anonymous faces more than a few obstacles in its fight for cultural relevancy and credibility.

But they may be on to something: the afternoon session had several sound problems, with mics screeching feedback into the auditorium. Coincidence?

"Scientologists are trying to shut you down," someone in the crowd shouts.

To the crowds here - the same ones they attract to protest as well as forums and websites - they're activists and heroes. The crowd loves them because in part they are them, and believe because they're taking on a socio-political-religious problem that has gone unchallenged.

When asked what they would do if and when their rebellion succeeds, an Anonymous member told the crowd they'll go back to their parents basements and pick up where they left off before the revolution came.

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