by Ian | Oct 5, 2009 |
Thanks to Phil Bantz for this article about the Keene police’s position on the cannabis celebrations at 4:20 everyday in Central Square. While KPD is doing the right thing and ignoring the peaceful people gathering daily and toking up, it’s amusing to listen to them attempt to explain that they are serious about cannabis use and would be arresting people if they could only just determine that laws were being broken. Maybe someday they’ll actually admit that what they have been doing in the name of some arbitrary words on paper has been WRONG, and they are sorry.
Until then, leaving peaceful people alone will suffice. Here’s the story:
The marijuana protesters in downtown Keene are getting high on publicity, while city police have adopted a wait-and-see strategy.
Every afternoon for the past week, protesters have gathered at Central Square to promote the decriminalization of marijuana. They upped the ante Sunday by showing up at the Keene Police Department lobby, where they cheered and smoked.
No protesters were arrested during the demonstration at the police station. So far, just one protester has been arrested and charged with marijuana possession. (more…)
by Ian | Oct 3, 2009 |
During last week’s “Talkback” on WKBK, Free Keene’s Nick Ryder appeared as a guest interview in regards to his city council candidacy. Following that, more liberty activists called in to discuss the conflict promoted by the existence of the state. Also discussed was cannabis decriminalization, violence, neighborly interaction, zoning, changing Keene, Free Staters, hugging, cannabis users, angry people, and freedom. You’ll also hear the smarmy Dartmouth guy call in and attack the intellect and accomplishments of liberty activists.
Grab the archive.
Please join us for our weekly listening, chat, and calling sessions on Saturday mornings from 9a-12p in the Free Keene Chat room. If you’re online, you can listen to Talkback streamed live via the Liberty Radio Network and if you’re in the Keene area you can tune in to WKBK 1290 AM or 104.1 FM. The Talkback discussion thread is here on the Free Keene Forum.
by Ian | Oct 2, 2009 |
Thanks to NHPR’s Josh Rogers for this report: (Audio Version)
The smokers are protesting marijuana laws and say they’ll smoke in Central Square daily until the law changes. Police say they won’t tolerate wanton law-breaking, but have no plans for a crackdown.
Marijuana may or may not spark creativity, but it has long inspired music. Bessie Smith and Willie Nelson have sung its praises, as has pretty much any reggae and hip hop artist you’d care to name. But none of them were in Keene Wednesday.
“Well in my life I’ve learned that serving’s not the point
Give me a toke off that joint, oh yeah
There’s a 420 fest every day in Keene
People being peaceful and free….”
That’s Richard Onley. (more…)
by Ian | Oct 2, 2009 |
Is anyone really surprised? A majority of the people calling themselves the Keene city council could have shown a little compassion and voted in favor of a resolution that would have encouraged cannabis decriminalization at the state level. This would have been a symbolic gesture, nothing more. Rather than choose to do that, they opted to do nothing as they similarly chose two weeks ago to do nothing for medical patients who could use cannabis to get relief from debilitating disease.
To their credit, some city councilors including Pam Slack, did take a compassionate position. Others claimed they favored the issue personally, but didn’t think it their jobs as city councilors to weigh in on decriminalization. Still others seemed confused and claimed they’d originally voted the wrong way.
Welcome to politics. People who know next to zero about an issue get to make decisions that will rule the lives of other human beings who did not consent to being ruled. Elected bureaucrats across the country are regularly doing nothing about the millions of Americans who have been arrested for possessing a plant, seed, or chemical. Yet, people still attempt to appease these political rulers by supplicating to them and obeying their every arbitrary demand, not to mention paying their capricious fines.
Until now. (more…)
by Ian | Oct 1, 2009 |
Free Keene’s blogger Nick Ryder is running “at-large” for Keene city council and the Keene Sentinel recently asked him to respond to several questions. Here are the questions and his responses:
Nicholas J. Ryder
Age: 22.
Address: 29 North Lincoln St.
Family: Single.
Education: High school graduate; some Keene State College.
Occupation: Print and tech specialist at a local printing company/self-employed videographer.
Organizations to which you belong/have belonged: Cheshire TV volunteer; FreeKeene.com blogger.
Previous elected office: None.
How long have you lived in Keene? 22 years.
1. Why are you running for City Council? (more…)
by Ian | Sep 30, 2009 |
Thanks to the Concord Monitor’s Ray Duckler for this report:
Rich Paul smokes pot. So do dozens of his new friends. Each day lately, in Central Square, right in the middle of Keene.
They huff and they puff and they blow the smoke out, daring the police to arrest them while they make their point. Smoking pot, they believe, should be legal, because smoking pot is their constitutional right. The war on drugs creates violence and unnecessarily jams our prisons, they say.
And Paul alluded to these points yesterday, telling about 100 people through a bullhorn. His voice was measured yet confident. The rally started in the afternoon, at 4:20, the insider’s term for pot smoking. No one seems to know why. Nobody seems to care, either. (more…)
