Freedom to Travel Event, Part 3

[John]

The New Hampshire Union Leader has the AP story on line, but in the New Hampshire Sunday News (same paper, different name on Sunday, (for those who may not know) has their own story on page A8.

The story by Michael Cousineau (Union Leader staff) wich does not make unnecessary references to miscellaneous groups to tell the story, also has a nice picture by Tom Thibeault (Union Leader staff).

[Kat Kanning]

BTW, thanks Mike for putting info up on the wiki so quickly yesterday.  Russell's parents got the word that he was OK from that before I could get home and call them.

[Dave Ridley]

I've sent the press release to WKBK, WKXL in Concord, Keene Sentinel and NH web forums.  It's also now updated again:

------

Keene's "Unidentified Flying Objector" charged, jailed

From NHfree.com
Manchester, N.H.
6/11/05

Right on schedule and true to his word, 35-year-old Russell Kanning of Keene, New Hampshire attempted to board his flight at Manchester Airport Saturday...without showing I.D. or submitting to a pat-down.

The "Unidentified Flying Objector" and 15 of his supporters found themselves slightly outnumbered by police, TSA "suits" and FBI agents, at least two of whom surveyed Kanning's home all morning and politely followed his car to the airport. 

Entering the security checkpoint clutching a Bible and a copy of the Declaration of Independence, Kanning spent four minutes conversing with security and state troopers.  A TSA employee stood in the metal detector to block his way.  Kanning showed his boarding pass and requested passage to his flight but refused to show I.D., remove clothing or submit to a patdown.

"That's the way it used to be done; we fought 40 years of Cold War without needing those things," said his wife Kat Dillon, who watched with mixed feelings from twenty feet away.  "But now we have all these alphabet agencies that take more of our money; they still stop our pilots from arming themselves and still don't protect us very well."

Six media representatives including a Manchester TV crew documented Kanning's progress - or lack thereof - as state troopers flanked him, held him loosely by the arms and escorted him away from the checkpoint.   After Kanning promised them he would continue peacefully trying to board his flight until arrested or allowed to do so "the pre-911 way", officials placed him under arrest and took him to a small "law enforcement center" near the airport entrance. 

Mike Fisher, a friend of Kanning's who witnessed the arrest, says the bearded NHfree.com activist was charged with criminal trespass, a Class B misdemeanor.  Then they transported him to Rockingham County Jail, where he will remain for at least two days...until arraigned at Derry District Court Monday morning.   Fisher says his understanding is that the Class B charge means no there will be no additional jail time for Kanning.  Fisher himself is no stranger to civil disobedience.  He earned statewide chuckles last month for performing a manicure without a license - in front of the licensing board.   His penalty - a Class A misdemeanor charge and a 30 day suspended sentence - was harsher than Kanning's.

Harsh or not, Kanning's sacrifice is meant to draw attention to what he calls an out of control "papers please" approach forced on travelers by government.   He's urging Washington to end its involvement in airline security, pointing out that D.C. commandeers billions for it while making it difficutl for pilots to arm themselves and using bailouts to prevent airlines from being held accountable.

"In a free country," he adds, "you do not need government permission to travel."

Kanning is a member of NHfree.com, a loose-knit organization set up by local Free Staters and conservative/libertarian New Hampshire natives.  It currently runs the state's most active political forum, where the next arrest is already being planned. 

From the original press release:
What: Civil disobedience against ID requirements under federalized airport security.
Where: Manchester Airport in New Hampshire
When: Saturday, June 11 @ 12:30
Who: Russell Kanning of Keene, NH, supporters from NHfree.com
Why: To draw attention to the recent and continuing loss of privacy and freedom due to federalized airport security and National ID.
How: By approaching a TSA checkpoint with a ticket but no I.D., refusing to show I.D. and refusing to cooperate with the I.D. requirement until arrested or allowed to board the plane.
Contacts: Russell Kanning: (603) 357-2049, Kat Dillon (same number), Mike Fisher (603) 498-7935, NHfree.com

[Lloyd Danforth]

Not to be critical.........OK, I'm being critical.
I understand there were 15 supporters at the Airport event, some of you must have been listening to FTL and Ian's request for someone to call in.
I endured almost 2 hours of what amounted to the 'Art Bell' show, with the goddamn streaming breaking up, going away and coming back, waiting for a report from someone who had been, only to listen to an article about the event being read.

[Lloyd Danforth]

I just caught the New England Cable Networks coverage of Russell.  It was short, but good.

[GT]

Sounds like FTL will continue the show on Monday for anyone that can call in.

[Dave Ridley]

Sent this to Portsmouth Herald, and a truncated version to Free Talk Live for use on the air.


Dear folks at the Herald:

With regard to the "Unidentified Flying Objector" Russell Kanning and his arrest at the Manchester Airport for refusing to comply with TSA regulations:

There are some interesting highlights about his case which haven't come up much in the press yet.

1) Whether you approve or don't approve of Kanning's precise approach, he has helped the public become aware of something hardly anyone knew before:  It is possible to fly without I.D. if you are willing to submit to a secondary search.   Kanning wasn't, but if you are then you can fly I.D.-free!  If Russell had done his protest last year it would have saved me countless hours trying to procure a new I.D. for my grandmother who had lost hers but needed to travel.  Hopefully his sacrifice will save many others this hassle in the future.

2) Kanning and his wife Kat had company during their drive to the airport...at least three FBI agents.  I more or less confirmed this with one of the other FBI guys.  Kat reports that she and Russell led the tailing agents on a couple quick detours just to mess with them...earning a grin from one of the drivers.  It's an amusing anecdote, and the agents have remained friendly, but this doesn't seem to be a very efficient use of tax dollars.   The Kanning home in Keene has also been under open surveillance off and on since Kanning announced his protest.   

History doesn't look kindly on Hoover's waste of resources investigating peaceful activists in the 60s; it may frown a bit on this allocation as well.

3) There had been some concern among Kanning's supporters about making sure no travelers were delayed by his protest.  I timed it out...Kanning was in his line for a little under 5 minutes before being hauled off; the other line (which remained open) reached a length of five persons but never more than that.  As Kanning put it...Manchester airport is one of the best in the country but would be better without TSA!

4) Kanning didn't just have a complaint to make; he also has a couple of solutions in mind, solutions he believes in strongly enough to face arrest.   These include allowing pilots to arm themselves and ending the practice of government bailouts for airlines who let terrorists seize their planes.   Both of these goals would of course be realized by getting government *completely out* of aviation, and we'd all be safer for it.  As one local pilot put it:  "I am willing to bet my life on that proposition."

[Dave Ridley]

More media coverage (an editorial):

http://www.freeliberal.com/archives/001119.html

Also Fox25 news in Boston ran a 15 second blurb on it during the 10PM news Saturday.

[Dave Ridley]

From NH Indy Media:

"Flipside congratulates Russell Kanning for keeping up to his word and following through to perform his publicity stunt. He has successfully tested the limits of the Newstates of America, and was informed that Americans do not have an express right to travel. News to us all. Further, he showed how easy it is to get on television, if one only acts normal and does something normal in a nation full of kooks."

[John]

From NH Indy Media:

"Flipside congratulates Russell Kanning for keeping up to his word and following through to perform his publicity stunt. He has successfully tested the limits of the Newstates of America, and was informed that Americans do not have an express right to travel. News to us all. Further, he showed how easy it is to get on television, if one only acts normal and does something normal in a nation full of kooks."

Aint it the truth!  Russelll does act normal "in a nation full of kooks."

[Dave Ridley]

Free talk live coverage:

http://freetalklive.com/files/FTL061105C.mp3

it comes up toward the end

[Michael Fisher]

Wait until Monday's papers come out.  That's the real test of Russell's coverage.  The absolute deadline for most Sunday papers is Saturday afternoon, so this probably delayed most coverage until tomorrow.

The manicure event was on a Monday, which for at least one paper is "production day" according one of my reporter contacts, so it was probably easy to publish that story by the next day.

Actually, there could be even more coverage on Tuesday, the day after he is released.

[Dave Ridley]

laconia citizen online has it on front page, copy of ap article

http://www.fosters.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20050612/NEWS0201/106120042/-1/CITIZEN

[foreverfree]

Sent this to Portsmouth Herald, and a truncated version to Free Talk Live for use on the air.


Dear folks at the Herald:

With regard to the "Unidentified Flying Objector" Russell Kanning and his arrest at the Manchester Airport for refusing to comply with TSA regulations:

There are some interesting highlights about his case which haven't come up much in the press yet.

1) Whether you approve or don't approve of Kanning's precise approach, he has helped the public become aware of something hardly anyone knew before:? It is possible to fly without I.D. if you are willing to submit to a secondary search.? ?Kanning wasn't, but if you are then you can fly I.D.-free!? If Russell had done his protest last year it would have saved me countless hours trying to procure a new I.D. for my grandmother who had lost hers but needed to travel.? Hopefully his sacrifice will save many others this hassle in the future.

2) Kanning and his wife Kat had company during their drive to the airport...at least three FBI agents.? I more or less confirmed this with one of the other FBI guys.? Kat reports that she and Russell led the tailing agents on a couple quick detours just to mess with them...earning a grin from one of the drivers.? It's an amusing anecdote, and the agents have remained friendly, but this doesn't seem to be a very efficient use of tax dollars.? ?The Kanning home in Keene has also been under open surveillance off and on since Kanning announced his protest.? ?

History doesn't look kindly on Hoover's waste of resources investigating peaceful activists in the 60s; it may frown a bit on this allocation as well.

3) There had been some concern among Kanning's supporters about making sure no travelers were delayed by his protest.? I timed it out...Kanning was in his line for a little under 5 minutes before being hauled off; the other line (which remained open) reached a length of five persons but never more than that.? As Kanning put it...Manchester airport is one of the best in the country but would be better without TSA!

4) Kanning didn't just have a complaint to make; he also has a couple of solutions in mind, solutions he believes in strongly enough to face arrest.? ?These include allowing pilots to arm themselves and ending the practice of government bailouts for airlines who let terrorists seize their planes.? ?Both of these goals would of course be realized by getting government *completely out* of aviation, and we'd all be safer for it.? As one local pilot put it:? "I am willing to bet my life on that proposition."


PILOTS ARE ARMED....Oh boy....More reasearch needs to be done in the future.

[danhynes]

Someone noted that the gov indicated citizens do not have a right to travel. I was wondering if you could show me where they said that. Because, it seems to me, under the implied right to association in the first amendment would have to be a right to travel, and therefore if Russell were to plead not guilty this would be a good arguement.