Freedom of Speech

Asheville City Police Officer Russell Crisp and Sergeant Randy Riddle believe in your freedom of speech - if they like what you say.

Asheville Police arrested a protestor for "impeach Bush, Cheney" sign - citing him with dubvious charge of "obstructing a sidewalk" this Wednesday. Since he wasn't actually blocking the sidewalk, they are looking for something else that could stick - and said Thursday "a N.C. Department of Transportation violation would be more fitting."

Charges against ‘highway blogger’ will changeby Adam Behsudi, August 17, 2007

ASHEVILLE — Police said Thursday that it would change charges against a man who held an “impeach Bush, Cheney” sign from a bridge over Interstate 240.

Jonas Phillips, a 35-year-old West Asheville resident, said he had recently taken up “highway blogging,” a protest practice of displaying signs of political discontent from highway overpasses.

Police cited him Wednesday for obstructing the sidewalk but said Thursday a N.C. Department of Transportation violation would be more fitting.

In other words, as soon as they can trump up something that might stick.

A message from Phillips was forwarded to the Veterans for Peace list serve:       (read more below the fold, fp by gf)

Now I'm not one to go about sticking up for federal employees, as I worked on-site as a contractor at a federal facility, where some of the folks I worked with were what I termed "professional welfare recipients" due to their utter lack of work (not all of them, but close to 40% of the folks I knew). However, I will defend them against what I found from the Environmental Resource Center, and it's a doozy:

Federal climate, weather, and marine scientists will be subject to new restrictions as to what they can say to the media or in public, according to agency documents released by Public Employees for Environmental Responsibility (PEER). Under rules posted last week, these federal scientists must obtain agency pre-approval to speak or write, whether on or off-duty, concerning any scientific topic deemed “of official interest.”

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With all the rights we have lost under this President I wonder if we will remember all the rights we have lost?

Somehow the idea of liberty has become retro.

The Brock Log is down for repairs, so this is all new, all original material.

I'm sorry to say, but America is dead. Perhaps it was the Military Commissions Act of 2006, maybe the shelter given to a pedophile in the Congress. It could've started with the PATRIOT Act and certainly, the illegal invasion and occupation of Iraq didn't provide a healing salve to the nation still wounded from September 2001.

Regardless of the mortal wound, the evidence is clear. America has died and it's clear who killed her.

According to the lawsuit filed at U.S. District Court in Denver, Howards and his son walked to about two-to-three feet from where Cheney was standing, and said to the vice president, "I think your policies in Iraq are reprehensible," or words to that effect, then walked on.