The Reality on the ground in Keene, NH

April 14, 2009 by James Schlessinger Jr
Filed under: Copwatch, Corruption, Hypocrisy, Issues, JJ's Fun House, Keene Weekly News, Police

A great deal has happened these last several days involving activists and various Law Enforcement Agencies around Keene, NH. Many videos have been posted and much outrage expressed. In the end I think the heat of the moment causes us to lose sight of the reality and perhaps creates an illusionary world where one does not exist.

I might catch hell from my friends for posting this but I’m the type of person who speaks his mind regardless.

In general the Keene Police Department and the local Sheriffs have acted in a very professional manner and have shown a great deal of restraint in dealing with activists. Most notably, Lt. Shane Maxfield. In every incident I have seen involving the Lt. he has been calm and communicative, dare I say honorable. This is reality. Whether you like the job they do, the actions they take or the orders they follow, we are fortunate to have good humans in those uniforms. And they are human, just as we are, subject to the same flaws and features, the same mistakes and misjudgments.

I do take issue with the way Patrick was carried today and the way Sam was likely treated, I do take issue with the orders to arrest peaceful activists for victimless crimes and I do take issue with the use of force in general to achieve a hegemony of the State over the Individual. One need only read my previous blog entries to see how I feel.

You want to see bad cops search “police abuse” on google or Youtube and you will get an eyeful. You want to see what a lack of restraint truly looks like or what a jackbooted thug really does, see my previous sentence.

This is the reality we live in. No Photoshop, no bullshit just the real truth. We ( the activists and the police ) may not see eye to eye but at least we are given legs to stand on and not lying on the ground with a knee on our throat.

I left the police station this afternoon mulling over a blog post describing the event as merely an exercise in intimidation, which it was, but after cooling down and reading some private information I realized that we were giving up our most potent weapon. The Truth.

We talk and debate about the truth that the State is merely a monopoly of violence and that they do not and can not produce anything because they must first take from the producers. We talk about the truth involving the drug war and victimless crimes. Why then can we not speak the truth about how we are treated for the most part by the KPD with respect and civility. Obviously there are exceptions but they are few.

Here is some more truth. Police Prosecutor Rivera lost his wits today. A dozen or more upset but PEACEFUL activists in the lobby concerned over the screams of a friend in captivity and he calls in the hammer squad to bust up the circus. He knew given our history that we would not harm him physically but the truth is he knows (don’t deny the truth Mr. Rivera) that what was going on was wrong. His position in the argument was morally bankrupt. Arresting someone in a public court room for wanting to video tape a public arraignment is just asinine and asking for civil dissent. Couple that with the fact that no other arraignments were going on at the time and the only people in the court room, other than civil servants, were activists and your left with a What the Fuck situation. There was no reason to not allow cameras other than the whole power trip obey-and-comply bullshit. This is the truth.

One final piece of truth for you the reader. The ONLY reason cameras are not allowed is because Judge Burke embarrassed himself with his little outburst and Youtube ate it up.

When confronted with the truth an individual can choose to do one of the following: deny it, cover it up, ignore it or accept it. Which one are you going to choose? Rivera? Burke? Maxfield? Which is it going to be?

Man up or STFU.

http://ringingliberty.com Paul

I think you make good points here. While it would be great to see the KPD refuse an order because it goes against their moral principles, and it is never justifiable to use force against a peaceful person, they are in general far more professional than most police departments.

The abuse which occurs in may big city departments is simply in another category compared to that of the KPD. Yes, they do things which I certainly consider to be immoral — but they do not pick up pre-teen girls by the hair and beat them, to take one recent big city police incident as an example.

As Ridley says, they are not worse than other departments, only more watched. Let me put it this way, based on my years in keene, and elsewhere, and videos I've seen. If I had the choice of dealing with either a randomly selected police department from this country, or the KPD, I would choose the KPD. This does not excuse immoral activity, of course, and I certainly hope that KPD officers will take a hard look at their actions, realize that many of the actions they take are immoral, and begin to refuse to perform those duties.

Again, I do not currently live in Keene, however, so my opinion is perhaps not as relevant as some.
MKYORDJ

One final piece of truth for you the reader. The ONLY reason cameras are not allowed is because Judge Burke embarrassed himself with his little outburst and Youtube ate it up.

++++++++

Understood, but because One Judge, snapped one day, that's a Justifiable and Valid reason to never allow video recording again?
MKYORDJ

When confronted with the truth an individual can choose to do one of the following: deny it, cover it up, ignore it or accept it. Which one are you going to choose? Rivera? Burke? Maxfield? Which is it going to be?

+++++++++++

I'm sorry but I'm not sure I follow your reference of naming 3 Government Officials and then saying which one are you going to take? Are you saying each one has a different method of operation?

PS: I understand being upset and cussing but I think you'd sound more professional do well to lose the sailor speak, IMHO.
http://ringingliberty.com Paul

MKYORDJ,

I do not think the OP thinks this is a justifiable reason to ban cameras. He is pointing out that it is unjustifiable.

And, regarding your second question, if I understand correctly, I think he is rhetorically asking the three officials which they will choose: that is, will they deny the truth, cover it up, ignore it or accept it?

As I say, that's my understanding anyhow.
JJ

It is not justifiable, what Paul said about how they will deal with the truth and I agree that I cussed too much.
Josh

I'm glad to see Lt. Maxfield getting some much deserved credit. From the videos I've seen, he strikes me as a decent man, willing to talk to people, and very even tempered. He deserves a position in the first Private Defense Agency that pops up in the free state.
MKYORDJ

Thanks guys for making it clear for me(!) I appreciate it.

And I agree with Josh about Lt. Maxwell. Inviting a ride along, answereing Nick's questions via email, telling his Officrs to respect the Liberty Activists.

It's difficult to imagine what else an individual, who works for the P.D. could do, to be more professional and open, in his position.

Sincere Thanks to Lt. Maxwell being the man he is.
Dan Steward

What would be more important than getting the police on your side would be having the media in your corner.

What a cop thinks of you will not significantly affect how the public (you know, the people we are trying to win over) views you.

Take the newspaper reporters out to lunch or better yet, have one of them at home, on your couch, tickling her toes and telling her just how beautiful she is.

Dan
http://ringingliberty.com Paul

Ok Dan, that last bit was a little disturbing. =o

Although I do agree it makes sense to make friends with the press, and be as open and honest as possible.
Patrick

LOL @ Dan for that last bit.

I completely agree with befriending the press though. Befriend everyone, but remember that the opinion leaders (oftentimes the media) have the most influence.
Rebel

I just wanted to compliment everyone for maintaining their composure in the face of pure ridiculousness. That Rivera guy didn't have a leg to stand on, so he calls in his tough-guys to wash over the incident and spare him further anxiety. The man completely went on a power trip in the most juvenile of ways. I got to laugh when he tells the Sentinel that we can't have any cameras in court because there may be a domestic violence person present when he knows damn well that they scheduled Ridley's arraignment by itself–since they knew what would happen. That Rivera is a weasel and is unfit to "serve the public." I hope his wife makes him sleep on the couch for that behavior.
JJ

Does Dan fancy the Sentinel Reporter?
Dan Steward

Comment by JJ

April 14, 2009 @ 12:50 pm

Does Dan fancy the Sentinel Reporter?

Not really as she isn't (IMHO) on board with the program regarding freedom. This however doesn't mean that I would skip the chance to tickle hers or any other even slightly attractive lady's feet in the advance of Liberty. I'd bring my own feather if there would be a need for it.

Sheesh, the things I'd do for this cause.

Dan
Lpviper

When people fear the government, there is tyranny. When government fears the people, there is liberty. It is easy to lose sight of the basic axiom that guides human interaction in this strange 'society' that we live in. Freedom activists love to talk about how right they are. They are right, in large part. But the men with guns, even if not consciously, never forget the basic axiom. They grabbed Sam up and made him scream because they want you to fear them. Let them deny it all they wish and it will still be so. So what do 'freedom activists' do? Continue to document the abuses of the State (by which I mean any government), in the hope that a significant portion of the population will shift from being afraid of the governments to being angry with them. When this shift occurs and more people take action instead of sitting on their asses (oh, did I curse? Blast those social conventions for limiting my word choice!) then the axiom will move in practice toward our side, and the people will begin to withhold their funds from their 'masters' out of righteous anger. FTL Mark can say whatever he wants about Sam 'setting himself up for failure', but without real life victims to show what the State does to nonviolent people who are asserting their natural rights, this shift cannot and will not occur. So congratulations to Sam Dodson for having the balls to stand up for all of us, and to provide a demonstration for everyone of the ridiculousness of the tyranny of the State. And shame on you, Mark, for saying Sam 'set himself up'. Sam didn't set anything up. He had his rights all along, until the tyrants came along and violated them.

Thanks

Andy in Michigan