For the first time in over 2 decades, the Libertarian Party is having a primary in New Hampshire. While I would prefer NH to join the list of states that allows a party to opt-out of having a taxpayer funded primary, I will be voting in the Libertarian Primary and casting a ballot that looks like this:
Governor: Jilletta Jarvis Congress: Justin O’Donnell State Senate: Ian Freeman State House Cheshire 16: Darryl W Perry Sheriff: Aria DiMezzo (write-in) Treasurer: Kenneth Kelly III Register of Deeds: Darlene Lester
You can find your polling precinct, and a sample ballot here
MPD patrolman Ryan Olsen prepares to assault software programmer and father Jeremy Kauffman.
Originally streamed to his social media profile live, Jeremy Kauffman of LBRY.io has been arrested for “Disorderly Conduct” by a Manchester police officer for simply trying to leave his home. The Manchester police state descended on Kauffman’s neighborhood to conduct a homicide investigation in a home at 332 Hanover St., which is apparently near where Kauffman lives. Apparently this included preventing all the neighbors from simply leaving their own properties, a lot like being locked down in a prison by the guards.
Kauffman, a respected software engineer and entrepreneur currently CEO and founder of the decentralized blockchain-based media protocol called LBRY.io recorded the threats and eventual attack by Manchester Police’s patrolman Ryan Olsen on his smartphone. In the approx two minute video, Kauffman is in his driveway and explains to the viewer that he is being kept in his property against his will by the arbitrary detention by MPD. He is not told he’s a suspect in the homicide investigation but is being prevented from leaving to pick up his son.
When he merely walks down his driveway to investigate what is happening near his own home, Kauffman is threatened by officer Olsen who tells him to “go back that way” and when Kauffman asks on what law he’s basing his orders, Olsen says “I’m not gonna tell you again.” When pressed to cite the statute, Olsen pulls out the old police catch-all, “Disorderly Conduct“. Seconds later, Olsen leaves his post across the street, shouting at Kauffman, then manhandles him after telling him repeatedly to “walk back please”. Please? Is this a request or an order?
Olsen arrests Kauffman, charging him with a “Class A” misdemeanor version of “Disorderly Conduct”, which means Kauffman will be facing down up to a year in jail for his heroic non-cooperation with the oppressive Manchester police state. He was released on PR bail pending arraignment in Manchester District Court.
Despite the awful arrest by the terrible Manchester cops – the worst gang in the state – it was refreshing to see some courageous activist video by a Manchester area activist. Kudos to Jeremy for doing a great job standing up for his freedom to travel and proving that when the police state comes down, we’re all just in a big open air general population prison cell. If only we had more activists like him. May his example inspire others to stand up to the police state. Freedom was never won by begging.
Related news: Keene Cop Block has just released our new updated-for-2018 know-your-rights flyer! It’s a simple rundown of individual rights when dealing with the police. It is intended for distribution across New Hampshire, but may also be useful to other areas. It’s informative and keeps-it-simple. 2018 Edition: Front Side / Back Side. I’ve handed out several hundred of these in just the last two weeks around Keene State College and the students really appreciate the information.
Stay tuned here to Free Keene for developments in this case.
Thanks to Darryl W Perry for putting together his ongoing Candidate Spotlight series. This five minute speech will be airing on Cheshire TV, the local cable access channel until the 2018 election. Here’s an HD version with the correct campaign website (http://ianfreeman.nhliberty.info) on-screen. I misrecalled the URL when we were recording.
Ian Freeman, NHLA Endorsed Candidate for NH Senate District 10 in 2018.
According to a letter I received this week by the Chairman of the New Hampshire Liberty Alliance Keith Ammon, I have received their endorsement for the NH Senate District 10 race in which I am the Libertarian candidate against a Democrat incumbent and Republican opponent here in the Monadnock region.
The New Hampshire Liberty Alliance has become a respected force in the NH state house over the last decade plus, where they are constantly informing all 400 state reps and 24 senators of the pro-liberty positions on various legislation. They also rate every legislator in New Hampshire each year based on how pro-liberty their voting records are. Here are the recently-announced 2018 rankings of the current state legislature.
As a mere candidate, they can only rate me on my answers to their candidate survey and not surprisingly, I received their endorsement along with a very generous check, which I politely refused, as I’m running a near-zero-budget message campaign and am not accepting contributions.
This year, Ammon’s letter informed me that the NHLA is tightening up their endorsement requirements and only endorsing incumbents who receive a B+ or better in their yearly liberty ratings over the last two years and only endorsing candidates who score at least 85% on the survey. That’s great news! I’m glad to see the NH Liberty Alliance demanding more adherence to principles by their endorsed candidates. I’m proud to be one of them. Here’s their list of endorsed candidates statewide so far for this year’s election.
As part of my near-zero budget campaign for NH Senate district 10, I’ve been posting my responses to various candidate surveys and questionnaires. Here are the latest ones I received this week.
First up, the Marijuana Policy Project’s survey, where I had to answer no to one of their questions about supporting regulation and taxation of cannabis. That’s because I’m against government control of cannabis in any way. I understand MPP is trying to lobby politicians and that’s why they propose such schemes to them. As a principled libertarian, while I’d vote for a tax-and-regulate bill if it were the only way to end prohibition, I don’t support taxes or regulations. I only support freedom, which means ending drug prohibition across the board and letting people grow, sell, possess, smoke, and distribute cannabis without annoying and restrictive government licenses.
Next, it’s the NH Right to Life survey. Abortion is an issue that libertarians have strong disagreements with each other over. While all real libertarians are against aggressive force against other humans, none of them agree at which point a fetus becomes a human. I choose the side that as long as the fetus is dependent on the mother’s connection to survive, it is a part of her and she can decide what to do with it, which will likely not make me popular with the anti-abortion group. That said, I do respect their right to protest and express their opinion. The correct libertarian position on abortion is that the government should neither prohibit or pay for them.
The following press release was received from the Secretary of the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire
For Immediate Release
July 29, 2018
(Concord, NH)- Yesterday, the Libertarian Party of New Hampshire (LPNH) wrapped up the business from their State Convention in late April at a second special convention at the Grappone Conference Center. Among the items on the agenda were revisions to the Party’s bylaws and several platform plank proposals, including one regarding sex work decriminalization, continuing their fight against the state run liquor store monopoly, as well as the first Libertarian Gubernatorial Debate in the state’s history. At the special convention there were 32 credentialed delegates from across New Hampshire. The Libertarian Party of New Hampshire also has the highest number of dues-paying Libertarians per capita in the United States.
The LPNH added several new planks to its Party Platform, including one calling for the decriminalization of sex work; becoming the first political Party in the state to take a position on this issue. Representative Brandon Phinney (L-Rochester) said decriminalizing prostitution gives sex workers access to reproductive services, and the ability to report sexual assaults without fear of legal repercussions. Phinney went on to say, “This would mitigate the effects of human trafficking. If sex work is decriminalized for adults, then you essentially reduce the incentive for human trafficking. It’s not the role of the state to dictate what a person does with their own body.”
