Kelo Report, Part 2

[Michael Fisher]

Someone in New London needs to reply to this LTE: 

Blame Politics For Fort Trumbull Delay
http://www.theday.com/eng/web/news/re.aspx?re=62F52AD8-DFE1-4BF9-B33A-6EB99E17857E


Published on 9/26/2005

Letters To The Editor:
Most speakers at the City Council meeting Tuesday held the New London Development Corp. responsible for the delayed development of the Fort Trumbull neighborhood. Not true.

NLDC implemented as much as was possible under the directions of the state and the city. The many suits brought by property owners caused the delays. Some were considered frivolous by the courts and all were won by NLDC and the city. Property owners were represented at no cost by the Institute for Justice while the city and NLDC paid attorneys to prove that they were acting within the law. Those seven property owners tried to force NLDC and the city to pay outrageous amounts to stop the suits and purchase their properties.

Some spoke against Corcoran Jennison, saying that it delayed development for five years. Not true. Corcoran Jennison could not get financial backing while the suits were being fought in the courts, and while national opinion was brought to a frenzy by the Institute for Justice.

Some blame NLDC, which continued to move development plans forward as far as it could given the constraints by the city and the state. Some blamed the council for the eminent-domain decision. Not true. The state ordered the city and NLDC not to take these properties based on the neighborhood being blighted, but rather use eminent domain, which has taken years.

Citizens have lost due to political posturing by the state that has changed its collective mind because of public opinion and the city councilors, not one of whom spoke in support of NLDC. Even those who promised to not support this no-confidence vote did not keep their word. In November, I am casting a vote of no confidence in the entire City Council.

Sandra Clarke Oney New London
Editor's note: The writer is a member of New London Development Corp.

[Russell Kanning]

I never looked at it that way ..... the nldc is just trying to do its job and those rotten kelo 7 get in the way ..... with their big Wash. DC lawyers and their calls for justice .... why don't they take the generous offers from the nldc and buy a condo in the wonderful new development

[Michael Fisher]

LOL

[Michael Fisher]

09-25-05 Kelo Report
by Mike Fisher
2:33 PM 9/26/2005

At our protest yesterday at the York women's prison, several important things took place.

When I began talking about our New Hampshire-based nonviolent noncooperation campaign with other protestors, including several Fort Trumbull property owners, there was a great interest in our prior actions of nonviolent noncooperation and how these relate to Lauren's.

I met one man known as "Gandhi Gregory" who was very interested to learn that we have been thoroughly studying Gandhi's nonviolent noncooperation campaign in order to plan our own actions.? Before we arrived yesterday, I do not believe anyone in New London knew about our noncooperation campaign or the extent of its success in New Hampshire.

On Saturday night, her husband told me that she had the utmost respect for our campaign and she had been studying it diligently.? It seems obvious to me that this is what Lauren is doing right now.? So this is my conclusion.? I believe Lauren Canario has begun a campaign of nonviolent noncooperation in New London.? She is voluntarily self-suffering for the freedom of the Fort Trumbull property owners.

The goal of this type of civil disobedience is to educate public opinion and bring attention to a cause.? Her arrest accomplished this immediately, as she somehow managed to get TV news coverage Monday evening.? By her complete refusal to compromise, the waves of her influence are spreading.? The City's filthy attempts at blocking the public from a very important public meeting are now finding their way into regional news coverage specifically because of Lauren's continued imprisonment.

Her apparent fast of silence has the police, courts, and prison in disarray.? "I don't know what to do with this," Judge Hillary Strackbein said on Friday during Canario's second silent court appearance.? Canario sat silently with a peaceful smile on her face and refused to say a single word, according to reporters.

I spoke with a Captain wearing an orange shirt at the prison entrance right before we left, but I cannot remember his name (Kertrek?).? I asked him if we could speak to Lauren.? Police Officer Rivera (Riviera?), who sat in his police car about 10 feet away from our protest, told me that visiting hours ended at 2:15pm.? The Captain added, "you have to be on her list, and you have to be family.? It also takes a few weeks."

I don't know if this is normal, but probably not considering that a woman 50 to 60 years old drove up to us while we were protesting and blamed us for a change in visiting hours.? "I drove all the way out here to visit someone and they said they shortened our visiting hours 'because of the protestors outside,' and I blame you," she said in anger before driving off.

When it seemed fruitless to try to visit her, I asked the Captain about Lauren's status.
Me:? "Is Lauren okay?"
Capt:? "She's okay.? We're monitoring her very closely."
Me:? "Is she fasting?"
Capt:? "She's drinking water."
Me:? "Well, fasting includes drinking water, but is she eating?"
Capt:? "Once in a while."

Even though he said what Lauren is doing is "pretty radical," the Captain said he supported what we're doing and I asked him to explain.? "Of course we support what you're doing against eminent domain.? I just don't know how I can help," he said, with Officer Rivera nodding in agreement.

While holding my sign that said "You have the right to remain SILENT", I told the Captain, "she's not going to speak in court, she's not going to ask permission for a phone call, and she's not going to speak to the police [or corrections officers].? I think we're the only ones she'll talk to."? "Then she's going to be in there for a long time," he said, implying that her silence is some type of crime punishable by endless imprisonment.

Based on this information, I'm not sure if she's also partially fasting from food, such as a 12-hour fast each day, or a fast every other day, for example, but I do not believe so.? I do believe she is in a fast of complete silence, and she may not have spoken to us if we somehow managed to visit her.

Then, I told the Captain and Officer Rivera that we were going to leave.? The officer was confused and thought we were going to come back later, like this was a trick.? "I don't lie," I said seriously.? "We're not coming back."

"I don't really see what you accomplished here," the Captain added.? "Why would you drive all the way down from New Hampshire to protest for one hour?"? "We protested, the media interviewed us, and we got our message across," I replied.? "Some lady told us they shortened her visiting hours because of us, so we're leaving."

Bill VonWinkle, one of the Fort Trumbull property owners, bought us lunch at a local restaurant.? At lunch, we found out that Lauren already found a job in the area, and we don't know if she's going to lose it because of this ordeal.

After lunch, we visited the Fort Trumbull properties and saw Lauren's apartment from the sidewalk, including the shrine she is building.? I was told that this side of the street is being taken by eminent domain for private use and, as one property owner pointed across the street to an empty field, the entire neighborhood on that side of the street was taken by eminent domain for public use, a Navy base, in the 1940s.? This disgusted me to the core.

In a cool breeze that afternoon, on the sidewalk in front of Lauren's apartment, one property owner filmed us for a documentary, asking me several questions about Lauren, nonviolence, and the Free State Project.

Question:? "What do you think Lauren's protest is about?"

Answer:? "I can't speak for her, but her husband said she has been seriously studying nonviolent noncooperation and our civil disobedience events in New Hampshire, and this is what I believe she is doing.? Some people say she was angry at the City Hall on Monday, but she clearly wasn't.? Look at the pictures of her in the media.? You can tell from the peaceful look in her eyes that her protest is not backed by anger.? Gandhian nonviolence includes voluntary self-suffering backed by love.? She is suffering willingly for her cause."

Question:? "What cause?"

Answer:? "Freedom.? I believe she's suffering for the freedom of the Fort Trumbull property owners to protect them from eminent domain and to bring attention to their cause - to protect all of us.? She is suffering for our freedom."

Question:? "Can you explain the three parts of Gandhi's nonviolence?"

Answer:? "Gandhian nonviolence is nonviolence in word, thought, and deed.? It is the absence of malice, anger, or hatred.? You are not angry at the world.? Your suffering is backed by love.? If nonviolent noncooperation is your means, you will achieve nonviolence in the world around you.? The means is the same as the end."

Question:? "What do Free State Project members believe?? What is your philosophy?"

Answer:? "I don't speak for anyone but myself, but I think most of them believe that people should be free to do whatever they want as long as they don't hurt anyone or steal anything."

Question:? "Do Free State Project members believe in eminent domain for public use?"

Answer:? "I can't speak for anyone but myself, and I know some libertarian types disagree, but I believe eminent domain is wrong in every case.? I believe stealing is unacceptable.? If I could save the lives of everyone on the planet by stealing and bulldozing your home, I still would not do it.? It's your home, and I have absolutely no right to it, not even for the 'greater good' of others."

Question:? "What do you think will happen in the short term?? What will happen to Lauren?"

Answer:? "I think they're going to have to just let her go.? They need to look at her miniscule charges and her extreme punishment, and maybe say 'okay, you're guilty, sentenced to time served, and you're free to go.'? They can't hold her forever just for being silent."

Question:? "What do you hope will happen in the long term?"

Answer:? "This all started with one or two people.? One guy was arrested for refusing to stop handing out flyers at an NRA event, another for refusing to stop petitioning at a Post Office.? I saw these events, watched the movie Gandhi, started to study nonviolence, and planned my own civil disobedience event."

"I was thrown in jail for doing a manicure and it received enormous media attention in New Hampshire.? Then, Russell Kanning was arrested for his civil disobedience event after refusing to show ID at an airport.? Now Kat Dillon, his wife, is doing her own civil disobedience against property taxes.? Now Lauren studied our actions and adapted them in her own way.? It's catching on rapidly.? Like Russell once said, I hope it catches on until nobody even remembers who started it all."

"In the long term, I hope nonviolent noncooperation spreads more and more until it is a normal part of our culture, we have learned to self-govern, and the government has no more control over us."

[Lloyd Danforth]

There was a short story about it on the local Fox station WTIC-TV. I taped it and will put it in the mail today.
The station has, at least, not yet, ?included it in their video archives, but, I am including a link to them as they have archived video of earlier ED stuff.

http://fox61.trb.com/news/wtic-news-videogallery,0,4709483.videogallery?coll=wtic-news-1&track=newslink

Can someone copy the tape for me?

OR can someone rip the tape's video and audio into digital format?? I want to figure out how to do that.? ?

Then we could have anyone who records the news send us a copy of the tape and we could just upload it.

Lloyd sure as Hell can't!

[president]

Jason Sorens can go fuck himself too.

I second that.

"You go ahead and move to New Hampshire now! Oh, me? Well, I have to take this job over here in New York. Yeah. Have fun over there! Now, don't piss any statists off or I might have to call you a dingbat! Toodles!"

He had to buy a home in NY too.

http://forum.freestateproject.org/index.php?topic=10415.from1121264283;topicseen

Currently, I'm paying $4200 per year on a $125,000 home in a suburb of Buffalo, NY.

[Lloyd Danforth]

I'm not crazy about defending his moving to NY. Probably a career move.  But, I believe he has 5 years from when the FSP reaches 20,000 like everybody else.

[JonM]

Perhaps he is recruiting all those political science students he teaches!

[Russell Kanning]

I don't mind it if people delay their moves to NH ..... as long as they do stuff like Lauren and Jim and move to New London to take their stand

[JonM]

600 trillion. ?This number may be somewhat off.

[WinBear]

Because he IS a stuttering jackass. Just over a year ago, he was just a stutterer. What changed, Alan?

Um, lets see ... I spoke at a couple of more conferences to hundreds of people, made another $400K or so in sales (being a CEO of two companies means I have to sell a whole bunch), and in general do lots of talking in public - and listening.  Guess my stuttering doesn't hold me back much, eh?  Didn't hold me back when I took
Front Sight Institute training recently, either.  Always a student, sometimes a teacher.

So what's changed?  Apparently I've acquired a real *fan* here.   

As to what you think of me, you anonymous fan .... remind me again who you are?  Remind us all what you've done for liberty?

WinBear

[WinBear]

I will call Alan a jackass because he is. I am not trolling. If you want to ban me, fine. But I'm not holding back for the sake of some sort of "respect".

Jason Sorens can go fuck himself too.

Yeah, you wouldn't *ever* want to earn respect with, say, your actions or your words.

WinBear

P.S:  you're real brave online.  You wouldn't say that to my face.  Ever heard of polite society?

[WinBear]

Free Lauren!

You guys totally and completely exhibit the second half of the Statement of Intent.  I've defended Kat and Russell before, and I'll do it again.  This is activism.

I don't really care if Kat wants me to kiss her ass, or not.  <shrug>  She and Russell rock.  Its not about me.  Its about fighting intelligently.  This was a good protest.

Did y'all get interviewed by the press? 

WinBear

[WinBear]

Kat was thinking of sending a package to the city hall.

Teddybear
note "Free Lauren Canario"
copy of the Bill of Rights

I sure hope they don't think it is a bomb

After what happened to Rick Stanley, its better to call a press conference on the steps of City Hall, invite the media, and give them what you want to.  Get it in public, on the record.  Otherwise, they just MIGHT accuse you of all sorts of nefarious things.  Planting evidence?  What?  Law enforcement?  Nah, that NEVER happens.   

WinBear

[SethCohn]

I'm not crazy about defending his moving to NY. Probably a career move.  But, I believe he has 5 years from when the FSP reaches 20,000 like everybody else.

Jason applied for NH positions in his chosen field.  Nobody offered him a position.   He needs to feed himself and his family.
If you think anyone _wants_ to move to Buffalo NY, think again.  I'm sure he'll continue seeking a NH based job until he gets one.

Same with Amanda.  She applied and was accepted to Harvard Law school.  Should she turn it down, just because she is supposed to move early in your mind?  If she graduates and becomes a lawyer in NH, that's better than her taking any ole job in NH she can get just to make the move....

Of the 7 current FSP board members, 4 have moved already.  That's better than 50%.
Of the current 'leadership' (meaning those with some sort of recognized titled role 'in charge'), despite the larger size group, the percentage consistently remains in the 40%s... with new people moving all the time, and many of those moving on to more NH focused roles, leaving their FSP role behind...

Any claim that 'FSP leadership' isn't moving themselves is just not true.  (And it can be successfully argued that having too much leadership all moved to NH is not good either, we need people all over, not all of us in NH (yet))