[Transcribed by Mail-to-Jail. Though Ian has been released from jail, we just received his blog #9 – his last blog from jail – in the mail and we are posting it now.]
“Gratitude”
By the time you read this, I may be out of jail. I am writing it on Sunday, October 2nd and my early release date is this Friday. In New Ham,shire, a jail must hold a prisoner for at least ? of the sentence. At that point, they have discretion on when to release the prisoner. Since my issues is with the police and “justice” system for aggressing against peaceful people, I do not give the jailers any trouble by non cooperating or being disobedient. My beef is not with them. This decision is even easier considering that the Cheshire jail is one of the better jails and actually has a mostly friendly, humorous, and compassionate staff. Many of them are able to empathize with the plight of the nonviolent, victimless “offenders” that they are tasked with keeping.
Though, not all the jail’s policies are humane. For example, a local activist, Andrew 280″ Mercer recently checked in for alight here due to a speeding ticket. During the booking process he refused to give his address and phone number and was held in a cell in booking without any bedding, socks, shoes, water, or food – with cold A/C – for 24 hours. I’d say that amounts to torture – there is no reason why a non-cooperative could not be relegated to segregation. That is a 23-hour-per-day lockdown where “privileges” are severely limited, but segregated prisoners are fed and given bedding. So, while I have my critiques of the Keene Spiritual Retreat, there is still a lot that sets it apart from many jails, much of which I detailed in blog post #2. (more…)
[Transcribed by Mail-to-Jail. Though Ian has been released from jail, we just received his blog #8 in the mail and we are posting it now.]
“The Greater Jihad”
If you’ve been following these blogs of mine from jail, you’ve probably noticed me referring to the Cheshire “House of Corrections” as the Keene Spiritual Retreat. Like most of my ideas, this one is not original. It was coined by Sam Dodson a couple of years ago when he was imprisoned by Edward Burke for not revealing his name. Sam spent 58 days in the Cheshire jail before being quickly and unexplainably released – still wearing his jail orange! Dig back into the Free Keene archives to learn more about that situation.
At first blush, calling a jail a “spiritual retreat” appears to be a joke, but really, perspective matters. You get to choose how you feel and how you approach the events in your life, so why not look on the bright side? In jail there is plenty of time to yourself. Lots of time to read and no access to the internet. (Amazingly, I did not experience withdrawals, but I do miss easy access to information.)
I have been reading some great liberty-oriented books and graphic novels sent in to me by some wonderful people, and also acquiring books on religions of the world from fellow prisoners and the jail library. One of the first books I read was the Qur’an, which I followed with more on Islam and its prophet Muhammad, in addition to discussions and study with a Muslin in my cell block.
I already knew from my conversations with Muslim callers to my radio show that most Americans’ views on Islam are at best misinformed and at worst, dangerously ignorant, but I wanted to know more. I wanted to be able to say I’d actually read the Qur’an, so I needn’t rely on others’ opinions in the way I had been. (more…)
Ian Freeman was released from the Cheshire County yesterday, a day early, and today at 2 pm a man – Fred Parsells, former Keene Police Det – claiming to represent the City of Keene came to Ian’s home with demands. The “city” seems to be upset that gravel, cars and MARV – an RV – are on Ian’s property. Something that was brought to the “cities” attention by a “city employee” who just so happens to live down the road.
Sad “the city” is targeting Ian. Just one day after being caged in ‘house of corrections’ the last 60 the “city” comes with more threats. They know Ian has 10 months of jail time hanging over his head. That if the RV – that came back to visit their recently released friend -, car or gravel aren’t removed than Ian could be charged, which would violate his good behavior clause and send him back to jail. Sad thing is it will cost the city alot more to cage Ian than it is to simply leave these issues alone.
Does the “city” have the right to tell you what you can park on your property? Can they tell you if you can or cannot have a driveway? Where is the line? What can’t the “city” tell you to do on your property?
I’d like to comment on the vernacular of the liberty movement. I’m sure some critics will find this analysis to be trivial, but to me, words are very important. You will be judged by the words with which you choose to express your ideas. In addition, the words you select will reveal your mindset.
I was inspired to write this post, as in several of the kind, thoughtful, and encouraging letters I have received while incarcerated her at the Keene Spiritual Retreat, I noticed the writers chose words that I find counter-productive, mentally. Here are three that appear frequently: “fight”, “struggle”, and “sacrifice”. I understand why these words have been chosen – they are commonly used in activist literature and culture, and I mean all activism, not just the liberty-type. For instance, some national liberty political group sent me one of those multi-page fundraising letters (you know, where they try to make it look like someone went in and underlined words, then signed it, and maybe made “notes” in the margins – but of course, you know it’s just a form-letter) after I had become aware of the :fight” mentality. I took a highlighter and went through the letter and highlighted all the fighting-related terms. “Fight” and “battle” appeared many times. There is probably a reason why these organizations use this conflict-oriented language. They want to maximize the effectiveness of their fundraising direct mail campaign, and what American doesn’t like a good war? Who wouldn’t want to be on the side of the winning team – having vanquished the enemy? Who wouldn’t want to sink a bayonet into – (more…)
