Dave Ridley has produced a summary video the shortly offered CopBlock Protection, which was recently launched and quickly halted, after making an undisclosed number of sales of the media product. The protection plan offer guaranteed response in the event of an arrest or prosecution in the form of media coverage featured at CopBlock.org. An update posted to CopBlock shortly after the halt stated that all memberships so far purchased would be honored, but at this time no more memberships were being offered.
Ridley makes smart analysis as usual, though he seems to advocate coupling one’s insurance package in the event of needing defense against the state to include both attorneys and media outreach. The centralization of defense, to have an attorney and PR representatives sourced from the same organization will make both fronts more responsible to each other than necessary. Almost all attorneys advise their clients to retain silence with the media. By ensuring activists will be set in motion in advance to bring eyes to your case, the defendant is relieved of some of the responsibility for reaching out to others in the event of an attack by the state. Others acting independently to bring awareness to your case does not make you responsible for their words or actions, so others can be used as a microphone for those silenced by charges pending. Most attorneys’ offices will not be comfortable giving a case to the media before it reaches their real boss, the judge. The point being it is almost necessary that a public relations front and a legal defense front be leveraged independently of one another.
The idea from which Ridley sources this brand of insurance protection against aggression of the state is an article entitled Freedom Insurance by Warren Tilson, which was published in 2002. The concept of private protection from the public protection is much older than that, with modern concepts of such an organization being fleshed out in The Market for Liberty (1970) as well as the New Libertarian Manifesto (1980).
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This seems similar to George Donnelly’s “Shield Mutual”: http://shieldmutual.com
It is my idea. Adam is copying me and expanding on it. Perfect. Imitiation is the sincerest flattery. I wish them the best of luck.
From Tilson article…
“The idea here is to get it in to the heads of the people who enforce these laws that it just is too much trouble to bother with….Arrest someone with an FI card and he is looking at months of living hell for him and his family and friends. After awhile, if this idea is successful the mere presence of a FI bumper sticker will get the driver of that vehicle a pass.”
http://anti-state.com/article.php?article_id=300