Equlibrium. One of my favorite movies of all time and a movie with a message that changed my life.
The movie centers around a government enforcement agent in the future where everyone is forced to take medication to repress emotion. When the agent stops taking medication he begins to realize all the cruelty that he is inflicting on people. Once he realizes the cruelty that the government represents, he violently destroys it. The message, minus the violence (violence is the problem), is one that I wish every person who enforces government laws would absorb, reflect, and find metaphors for.
I too was a government agent doing cruel things to people. I wasn’t taking medication to repress emotion like in the movie… but I was led to believe that what I was doing was the right thing to do. Hurting someone is never the right thing to do.
Today while shopping at the local Wal Mart Pete Eyre and I noticed a Keene Police officer shopping as we left. To no surprise we saw he was parked illegally outside. We waited around so we could ask him why he felt he was privileged enough to park there, while others would be ticketed.
The man with the badge claimed to be on official police business, though that looked alot like shopping to me, and stated that since he drives a different car than most he was allowed to park where ever. Even if he was shopping for the department couldn’t the man, who presumably tickets (fancy word for stealing or ordering) others for parking infractions, just park in a open spot?
There’s a video contest going on now for similar videos.
My advice echos Barry Cooper’s: Never talk to the police. It will further serve to get you in trouble.
Activists should be aware that the United States Supreme Court said yesterday that your right to remain silent does not bind on government agents unless you tell them so.
This morning, activists gathered for a grand jury outreach event at the Cheshire superior court. The last time we had a confrontation by the armed men was the very first week almost two years ago where they merely asked what we were there doing. Now, all of a sudden, they have decided to threaten us over, of all things, opening the door for the people entering the building! First a grumpy white-haired female bailiff came out and demanded we stop opening the door for people. When we indicated we had no intention of stopping, she said she’d get the sheriffs. I didn’t have enough time to get my QIK.com broadcasting for this encounter, but I certainly had it ready for when four uniformed armed men came out and did their best to try to intimidate us. More video from another angle to come, but for now, here’s the raw video as originally broadcast at QIK.com. According to the costumed men, it is apparently disorderly conduct and impeding traffic when we hold open the door. Clearly we should have known we were in the people’s way when they smile at us and thank us for getting the door for them! Needless to say, we continued to open the door for folks, despite the threats. Visit the Free Keene Forum for more info on regular jury outreach and grand jury outreach.
And here they come.
