Civil Disobedience

[SethCohn]

2.  The first event on May 9th is the main event, but I will continue running this business, every Monday at the same time and place, and perhaps more than once per week, until I receive a fine or court summons.  I will do this even if there are very few attendees.

Cool... I won't be able to make the May 9th event, but I'll have my hair cut  (well more like  ??? ) at one of the future events, assuming you aren't in handcuffs by then.  Handcuffs and scissors are a bad mix...

[Michael Fisher]

2.? The first event on May 9th is the main event, but I will continue running this business, every Monday at the same time and place, and perhaps more than once per week, until I receive a fine or court summons.? I will do this even if there are very few attendees.

Cool... I won't be able to make the May 9th event, but I'll have my hair cut? (well more like? ??? ) at one of the future events, assuming you aren't in handcuffs by then.? Handcuffs and scissors are a bad mix...

Thank you very much, Seth! 

Umm, one thing is going to change about this.  I think manicures are much less dangerous than haircuts so that's all I'm going to do.  Manicures are easier to do, easier to learn, safer, and cheaper!

[FTL_Ian]

Be careful not to inhale the vapors of the nail polish, or you may violate the drug laws!   

[Michael Fisher]

I'm trying to edit the press release, but it's giving me this error when I try to login:? "You have to enable cookies to be able to login to this site."

???

Anyways, here's the new one.? Thanks for the help, Dada!

Mike Fisher, 362 Lita Ln, Newmarket, NH? 03857

For Immediate Release

For further information, please contact:? Mike Fisher, 603-498-7935

Activists to Defy State Licensing Laws

Concord, NH, April 19, 2005 ? On Monday, May 9, at noon, Mike Fisher plans to violate New Hampshire?s licensing laws at the State Board of Barbering, Cosmetology, and Esthetics in Concord. In an act of civil disobedience, he plans to sell manicures for profit without obtaining a license from the State government.

The purpose of this event is ?to call attention to the State?s intrusive and unnecessary licensing restrictions on entry-level workers and entrepreneurs in many industries,? according to Fisher, the activist heading up the effort through the NH Underground (NHFree.com). ?In a free country, people do not need permission to start a business. We are no longer free to make a living without government approval.?

It is a misdemeanor in New Hampshire to sell services such as manicures, haircuts, or massages without a license. These licensing laws were expanded in January to include all tanning businesses.

?In the famous Dandi March, Gandhi walked to the sea to create salt and was arrested along with 60,000 others for violating British colonial salt licensing laws,? Fisher proclaims. ?Gandhi?s example inspires me, and that?s why I?m doing this. This will open a lot of people?s eyes. It?s time to put an end to licensing laws once and for all.?

The general public and supporters are invited to attend this act of civil disobedience. The event will be held on Monday, May 9, at noon, at or near the NH Board of Cosmetology at 2 Industrial Park Drive, Concord, NH 03301. Attendees and customers are asked to bring friends, families, cameras, signs, and positive attitudes.

# # #

Mike Fisher, 603-498-7935

[FTL_Ian]

Nice release.  Cameras good.

[Kat Kanning]

So...er...Mike.  Have you cut anyone's hair before?  Just wondering how funny Seth's going to look when you're done with him. 

[SethCohn]

So...er...Mike.  Have you cut anyone's hair before?  Just wondering how funny Seth's going to look when you're done with him. 

My hair is breathing a sigh of relief... but my fingernails are now worried about Mike's manicure skills.

Just a trim and a buffing, no nail polish please.

[Kat Kanning]

I'm trying to edit the press release, but it's giving me this error when I try to login:  "You have to enable cookies to be able to login to this site."

???

I put up your new release. 

Do you have cookies shut off?

[Pat K]

So...er...Mike.? Have you cut anyone's hair before?? Just wondering how funny Seth's going to look when you're done with him.?

My hair is breathing a sigh of relief... but my fingernails are now worried about Mike's manicure skills.

Just a trim and a buffing, no nail polish please.

Don't let him talk you into that Bamboo under the finger nails treatment.

[Russell Kanning]

The manicure idea is good...it is pretty insane that the STATE thinks it should regulate that activity.
After a while instead of Dada showing up as a "zombie" he could go for the "edward scizzorhands" look.
We could have scizzorhands t-shirts that say something like "Regulate this" or "Unlicensed"

[Kat Kanning]

Added some links to articles on the subject:

http://www.soulawakenings.com/underground/tikiwiki/tiki-index.php?page=Activists+to+Defy+State+Licensing+Laws

[SethCohn]

By the way, anyone notice that it wasn't until I offered to get my hair cut that Mike changed plans to not do haircuts?

Must be my hair that scared him off the idea.  "Cut HIS hair?  O MY GOD... they'd better arrest me quick."

oh well.

[Russell Kanning]

You can't expect one would-be barber (MikeF) to be able to handle everything from Dada's shaved head to Seth's thick head of hair.

[Dave Ridley]

Working up customized release which folks may send out if they wish.


Protesters to defy NH haircut law - in front of its enforcers

Invoking the patron saint of civil disobedience, New Hampshire entrepreneur Mike Fisher plans to violate our state's licensing laws - right in front of the officials who enforce them. 

Fisher, 22, of Neumarket, says he is so exasperated with regulations on small businesses that the time has come to force the state government's hand.

His plan is to set up a haircut booth right in front of the New Hampshire Board of Cosmetology, a bureacracy that regulates salons and barbershops.  There, he says, he will administer haircuts - for profit - "until they force me to stop."   

Fisher says he got the idea from watching the movie "Ghandi."

"The British government (In India) had salt licensing laws," he says. "You could not make salt without a license. Now we cannot cut hair without a license...and I really don't see the difference."  In the case of India, the now-legendary Mahatma Ghandi fought back by making salt without a license, a "crime" for which he and others were arrested.  The logic-challenged spectacle mobilized independence activists and drew attention to British misrule.

Fisher, a computer repairman, admits he doesn't know first thing about cutting hair.  But he points out that anyone who *does* want to work as a barber would probably not be able to break the law as he is planning to.  "They could lose their ability to get a license." he says. 

It's the principle of the thing that bothers Fisher and a desire to see a rollback of state restrictions on most industries.  ?In a free country," he growls "people do not need permission to start a business."

As in most states, it is a misdemeanor in New Hampshire to cut hair for profit without a license.  In addition, such laws were recently expanded to include all tanning businesses.  Many other industries also require licenses.  Fisher believes these simply provide a barrier to entry for young entrepreneurs like himself, without protecting the consumer or the public.  "Private institutions and competition are more effective protectors of the customer," he adds, "and these are both weakened when government tries to do the job."

The general public and supporters are invited to attend, join the fun and witness Fisher's act of civil disobedience.  But you do not have to disobey the law yourself unless you wish to man the clippers!  The event will be on Monday, May 9, at noon, at or near the NH Board of Cosmetology at 2 Industrial Park Drive, Concord, NH 03301. 


Summary:

What:  Civil disobedience of "haircut law"
Why:  To call attention to state govt. overregulation of small business
How:  By cutting hair without a license
Where: At or near the enforcing bureacracy: NH Board of Cosmetology, 2 Industrial Park Drive, Concord, NH 03301
When: Monday, May 9, noon
Who: Activists from NHfree.com and whoever wants to join us.   Expected turnout: 10-20
Contact: Mike Fisher, 603-498-7935   Backup:  Dave Ridley 603-721-1490

[Lloyd Danforth]

So...er...Mike.? Have you cut anyone's hair before?? Just wondering how funny Seth's going to look when you're done with him.?

My hair is breathing a sigh of relief... but my fingernails are now worried about Mike's manicure skills.

Just a trim and a buffing, no nail polish please.

You want to get with the times!  Nail Art!  Little Porcupines on your nails.