2010 Rainbow Gathering to be in New Hampshire?

[littlehawk]

I never miss them. Even if you are not a "hippie" it is a great adventure and some civil dis as well.
They assign special police forces for this event. It is usually the same assholes too.
You MUST know your rights so you do not get taken advantage by these nazi bastards.

Littlehawk

[Kat Kanning]

Rutting_Rob, if you continue to post the same thing over and over, I'll have to ban you for spamming.

[kzirk]

10,000 people camping together in the woods and learning how to manage their community.

For more info on gatherings in general, visit http://www.welcomehome.org
or visit my blog from last year http://newmexicogathering.blogspot.com

Love,
Karin

[kzirk]

In almost 40 years of gathering with 5,000 to 30,000 people per annual gathering crimes do get committed. The reported incidence of child molestation is very very small and the only time I know of anything actually happening (as opposed to inappropriate interest in children) was in the 1980s.  I'm sure other people will have other recollections.  A book has been written about that incident - you can read the NY Times Book Review here
http://www.nytimes.com/2009/05/07/books/07masl.html
I can't promise you that it won't happen again, but neither can any Boy Scout troup or Elementary School in the country.

[kzirk]

I think a more accurate way of expressing the ideas on property - is that we don't buy and sell at a gathering. We share what we have to share. No one is forced to share anything and nothing should ever be taken without the person's consent.

Most gatherers are opposed to theft of any kind including local stores or things lifted from people's tents. We have a saying "There are no ground scores at Rainbow."

Now like any group of 10,000 people, some of the folks in attendance aren't going to play nicely, but we do our best to catch them. We do our best to reimburse local stores from any thefts, and most of the local stores to a large business from the bulk of the gatherers who want to support the local communities by shopping and dining in their establishments.

[kzirk]

Most gatherers believe in "sharing" - which is completely different than "taking".  Of course we have a few bad apples, as does every large gathering of people, but we work very hard to protect ourselves and the surrounding communities against such people. Are we 100% successful? No, but then again I know of no place in the world that is 100% successful at preventing bad apples from preying on others.

[kzirk]

I have a blog going that will get busier the closer we get to the gathering. http://eastcoast2010gathering.blogspot.com/
If you're interested in the type of information you might find for the annual gathering in 2010, visit the blog from the 2009 gathering here http://newmexicogathering.blogspot.com/

[kzirk]

NOt exactly true. Some years we have a permit, some years we don't. Either way it's still a Rainbow Gathering

[kzirk]

The only place at a gathering where money is appropriate is when donating to the "magic hat". Magic hat money donated at dinner circle or Info goes to buy food, pay dump fees, purchase medical supplies, etc.
Individual kitchens may also have their own "magic hat" at their kitchen that is used for food purchases for that kitchen.
That's it.  If anyone else asks you for money, JUST SAY NO.

[TruthAndLove]

While I agree that anyone, or any group of any size, should be allowed to gather on "public" land, I disagree with the concept of "public land".

"The Family" objects to the notion of property in any form. They allow barter for items deemed to be "luxury" instead of "necessity", but any "necessities" are supposedly free for the taking. Even if they're groceries in a grocery store: if you need it, take it.

I know there is lot of inaccurate, government-driven press spin about the Rainbow Gathering, much of which obviously can't be trusted because of the source. On the other hand, I've read a lot of local reporting about the Gathering in Arkansas a few years ago, where local store owners had initially welcomed the group, but found themselves robbed blind by groups who would swarm their stores, pocket as much as they could, and flee in multiple directions without paying.

I imagine that assigning a single descriptor to the "Rainbow Family" would be as futile as defining "Free Staters". I'm sure there are good folks amongst them, but they carry a lot of bad baggage.

I really cannot believe the "I checked with the local media" BS that follows gatherings. Sources, links, proof please??? Some drunks and drug addicts follow "A" Camp - the rainbow version of cling-ons you can't wipe off your ass with any amount of tissue or water - kind of like rednecks attraction to country bars (the music, beer and hot wimmen would be fine without the 2% of loser drunk cowboys). If swarming thieving happens anywhere like that you call the cops and Rainbows attract lots of cops so there shouldn't be a problem.

This same mindless, unsubstantiated rumor spun around the Woodstock anniversary in 1996 after a housing development got torched - the hippies dun it! They found out later it was some local did it but before they cleared "the hippies" land sale negotiations between "the hippies" (actually a bunch of us old hippies with companies and $1.5MM cash to buy the place) and it was promptly sold to Alan Gerry a cable TV millionaire - who unsurprisingly paid for all of the local arsonist's legal bills "as public service". Cmon buddy - show me sources.