We’re waiting for your ideas, Jasmine.

I appreciate it. Again, I’m not mal-intentioned and I think you offered some great points to Ian that I could not have worded on my own.

I think it was a successful conversation

I’m off as well (for real this time!)

In my first post, I think I mentioned that I’m not sure how to present myself and my protest more effectively. I am seriously having a problem with that personally. Just talking to my parents, who raised me to believe what I believe, told me I sound like an extremist when I am talking about politics. I don’t think I am even close to an extremist, in fact I am most likely a moderate if anything. But obviously I am failing in my attempt to convey my thoughts and beliefs. So I’m not really sure if at this moment I have an answer to your question. Also, I am a street performer so most likely, I would have had a bite of pizza if I was in Keene on the day you had pizza. With that said, I’m not sure if any else in that office who was not affiliated with Free Keene would have understood what your protest meant. Honestly, I think this is a long conversation that could not be settled with talking anyone, but only through action. So until we come up with a better solution, let’s eat pizza but aspire to do better.

Jasmine,

Sorry I used the word “bicker.” I have no idea of your relationship with Free Keene and it was wrong to place any judgement through my choice of words. With that, I am offering the olive branch and backing out of this conversation.

When did any of these events ever occur?

Yeah, I guess you’re right about being a disinterested third party. Is that allowed? I stated earlier that I’m interested in the concepts intellectually, but seriously I’m pretty average and am not seeking this stuff out. I guess I thought it was more like church, where they accept everyone in hopes to evangelize. I thought that if you wanted to recruit more members then it was your job to convince me that the FSP ideals are worthwhile. And yes, I believe in the non-aggression principle.

I was making you all aware that a different type of activism might reach people like me better.

What form of activism would you say would be most effective in reaching people like you?

How do you think we can better emulate Gandhi or MLK? Would you say that more serious civil disobedience is preferable, and how would that look? I do think that people refusing to obey immoral edicts out of principle is a powerful statement. Refusing to pay taxes, for example, would be very powerful — unfortunately, it would also likely land you in jail for a long time.

So, I guess the question really is, what do you think the most effective way would be to protest government actions without full civil disobedience? Or, what manner of protestant obedience, as Ian was doing, would you say is most effective?

Immaturity,

You’re acting like a third disinterested party, leaving it up to others to convince you, as if you have no responsibility for your own beliefs or actions. It’s your job to seek out the truth, not sit back and hope it comes to you. What is it that you do believe? Do you agree with the non aggression principle?

I didn’t think I was bickering, I somehow thought I was making you all aware that a different type of activism might reach people like me better.

I didn’t realize it was assumed that everyone on here shares the same ideals…what about people who share some of the same ideals?

At any rate, I thought much of what you said above made a lot of sense and was exactly the message I was trying to get out.

Sorry I got the wrong impression about the giggling. Maybe it was my own giggling I heard. Who knows?

Regardless, I feel like I got dragged into an old, private argument. You’ll have to forgive me, sometimes I can be a little naive and overly optimistic. Here I was thinking I could build a bridge between “Immaturity” and Free Keene. Apparently, there was more going on than I was privy to. C’est la vie’. It’s pretty sad if an individual who assumedly has the same ideals as Free Keene chooses to bicker rather than help work to achieving those shared ideals. Shameful… Hence the anonymous name?

- April Elizabeth Reed