Keene’s not the only hot activist destination, Manchester, the “big city” is as well. Though, you wouldn’t know it from the blog activity there. Here are some folks who are moving now, expounding on why they think Manchester is pretty spiffy:
Tomorrow morning we’re heading out on a seven day journey that ends in Manchester, New Hampshire. Tonight I want to address why we chose to land in Manchester and not any of the other NH hubs of Free Stater activity. I think every place has its pros and cons, and I also realize that I currently have an outsider’s perception of NH and things could very well change once we’ve been there a while, but here goes!
Manchester is the biggest city in New Hampshire, with a population of about 110,000. The other sizeable cities are Nashua and Concord, which are both an under-30-minute drive from Manchester. Adam grew up in Southern California and has never lived in a small city or town. (more…)
New mover Chris Cantwell blogs on his facebook about his experience at the Memorial Day parade in Keene yesterday. It’s called, “When and Where Exactly are the Time & Place for Peace?”:
Happy Nationalist War Propaganda Day!
Today, people across the country are holding parades, having barbeques, and taking the day off of work in celebration of the deaths of hundreds of thousands of people, who were conned into dying for the false religion of statism. They call this ritual, Memorial Day.
Personally, I find it all rather disturbing. I don’t think it is good that we send men and women off to die in foreign deserts, jungles, and cities. I don’t think it is good parenting to tell your children that they should grow up to be like the dead people. I don’t think I have rights granted to me by violent institutions or men who act as their agents.
It was with these concerns that I grabbed a sign and joined some fellow peace activists at Central Square for the Memorial Day Parade in Keene, New Hampshire this morning. It was a lot of fun (more…)
1. Jared Chase and the NATO Summit in Chicago
2. Chicago Police Violence
3. Keene State College is offering two new baccalaureate degrees
4. Mitt Romney and the NH “bridge to nowhere”
5. Bob Murphy’s theories on law enforcement in a free society
6. Dave Ridley has a critique for Free Keene activists
Today Emberlea, Chris Cantwell, Darryl Perry and I held signs for peace in front of the military recruiting center, then walked to Central Square until the memorial day parade began, which we entered at the end. The parade route was up Washington St. to a gathering at the war memorial at the Rec Center. Many people were stationed along the route, and many of them were very happy to see pro-peace people – we got lots of waves and peace signs.
Of course, we got the inevitable angry war-mongers with their snide comments calling us “chicken” and making the ridiculous suggestion that it’s thanks to decades of killing people is why we are free to hold our signs. Others told us we were wrong for coming to a pro-war parade and that it was “inappropriate”. Here’s what I have to say to them:
Please remember to write to Derrick via Mail to Jail – he still has another month left in jail and your letters make a difference!
Dear Mail-to-Jail Users,
Thank you for writing to me using this wonderful service. Because of the generosity of local Shire activists, enough money has been added to my commissary account to allow me to respond to your messages. Though it may take some time, I am dedicated to taking time to respond to each one. It is because of letters like yours that I am able to maintain a positive attitude while enduring this difficult time; they remind me that though my body has been isolated from the rest of the world, in some ways I am never truly alone. I want you all to know how happy it makes me to receive messages from people all over the world whom I haven’t even met – even if they are just writing to say a simple “Hello, hope you are well.” I want to thank activist and activism enabler Jay Denonville for making it all possible. If you are able, I hope you will make a donation to support the continued efforts of Mail-to-Jail.com. I’m sure I speak for Jay when I say that all donations, no matter how small, are greatly appreciated. After all stamps are only 45 cents =D.
I want to thank those of you who have generously offered to fund my commissary account. (more…)
Over the past weekend I have visited both Derrick J. Freeman and Beau Davis at the Keene Spiritual Retreat aka Cheshire Co. House of Corrections. As many of you already know, both are incarcerated for victimless crimes. Friday night I visited Derrick and in the course of our conversation Derrick relayed to me the following story: Late one night Derrick was in his cell catching up on writing letters when he happens to look over at the door and sees a correctional officer staring at him through the window in the door. This is incredibly creepy, how long was this state thug watching our sweet, handsome Derrick? What might his intention be? Can you be safe in a place like this? These are some of the questions that went through Derrick’s mind. He also told me that he and Beau have a new job in which they cart the various meal times to each incarceree. At the beginning and ending of each shift, both are physically patted down. Seriously? They are in a secure facility, yet handing out plates of food deems it necessary to pat them down up to 6 times a day. Later I wondered, who are the real criminals? The corrections officers that stares through the door at night and the “pat down” officers or the two lovely activists who have never hurt another person? Otherwise, both Derrick and Beau are doing well, they both have some great ideas for the future!
