HELP................................
We know we get some readers from down under. We are going to go out on a limb and assume you are bikers. After all, why else would you pop in now and again. Hers the gig, we have been following what your government has been doing to you and, with little success, trying to warn our brothers and sisters in this neck of the woods. You know, America, land of the Free. Where all that loss of rights stuff happens to other people in other countries and won't happen, can't happen here. But is happening right under our noses.
To date we have relied on newspaper reports for information on your governments actions and how it may or may not impact on the Austrailian Biker Lifestyle. We would be extremely grateful if we could get a first hand report from a "Biker" as opposed to a news paper. Preferably a club member since that is the target.
You can e-mail us at rgnostic@gmail.com. Any identifying info will be destroyed upon request. Any reluctance to do so would be understood since our FBI helped your government in regards to "gangs".Add to Technorati Favorites
YO! ARE YOU A GANG MEMBER?
Considering the previous posts this should be interesting:ST. PETERSBURG, FL -- Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum and other top law enforcement are meeting in St. Petersburg today fora conference on eliminating gangs. This is the first conference of several to take place.
Under discussion will be ways to use statewide regional task forces to implement statewide gang reduction strategies.
I rewrote this so as not to violate the copyright notice. Then fully read the copyright notice which states:
Copyright 2008 The E.W. Scripps Co. All rights reserved. This material may not be published, broadcast, rewritten, or redistributed.
(So does this mean that the press, a beneficiary of the 1st amendment for the purpose performing watchdog duties of over the government, can now tell us what they know but can also tell us that we can not share what they are obligated to provide? I think not.)
ARE YOU A GANG MEMBER?
• Admits to criminal gang membership.O.K. all gang members raise your hands.
• Is identified as a criminal gang member by a parent or guardian.
My Moma's dead and my dad is more whacked out than I am. Who ya gonna believe?
• Is identified as a criminal gang member by a documented reliable informant.
Ummmm, could somebody refer me to the languange that defines just what that is?
• Adopts the style of dress of a criminal gang.
O.K. now, no more leather vests will be worn with pants thats hang to your knees and show your drawers.
• Adopts the use of a hand sign identified as used by a criminal gang.
I got a hand sign for ya. Want to see it. I'm showing it now!
• Has a tattoo identified as used by a criminal gang.
Whoops, I may be in trouble. I got a few tatts while either drunk, drugged or both. To this day I still wonder what some of them are.
• Associates with one or more known criminal gang members.
What if we happen to be in Wal-Mart together? Will they have a name tag that says, "I am a gang member"
• Is identified as a criminal gang member by an informant of previously untested reliability and such identification is corroborated by independent information.
Oh come on now, what the hell kind of government double speak is that?
• Is identified as a criminal gang member by physical evidence.
Ever use a craftsman hammer to bludgeon somebody to death? Niether have I. But Sears is in big Trouble.
• Has been observed in the company of one or more known criminal gang members four or more times.
Four? How did they arrive at that number? Why not 3? Or maybe 5? "And what is in the company of"? Can we write each other?
• Has authored any communication indicating responsibility for the commission of any crime by the criminal gang.
Oh yeah, that guarantee's a long and healthy life. Oh damn, does that include reporters? Informants?
AHA! you may say. I'm safe. Although I don't know how you could be if you ever leave the house to go anywhere besides kindergarten. But Au Contraire, oh no you ain't. Cause see here in Florida, the sunshine state, you can be declared a,
MEMBER OF A "HYBRID" GANG
Thats right no reglar gang member criteria for you. You get to be an official "hybrid" gang member.And what pray tell might that be? Hey I didn't know either. Had to look it up. A hybrid gang is:
one which operates locally without national ties. Hybrid gang members rarely exhibit the traditional gang tattoos, signs and colors, but are often just as dangerous if not more destructive than traditional gangs and hold smaller communities hostage under their violent and terrifying influence.
O.K. so what have we all learned here? I'm not sure about anybody else but I'm investing in K-Y!Add to Technorati Favorites
one which operates locally without national ties. Hybrid gang members rarely exhibit the traditional gang tattoos, signs and colors, but are often just as dangerous if not more destructive than traditional gangs and hold smaller communities hostage under their violent and terrifying influence.
O.K. so what have we all learned here? I'm not sure about anybody else but I'm investing in K-Y!Add to Technorati Favorites
Police to crack down on Civil RIghts
CITIES TRY WRANGLING GANGS WITH CIVIL SUITS by USA Today Sept 9-08
This is long, but will probably be one of the most important post we ever make. Australian Motorcycle Clubs have almost been decimated by what, in this country anyway, is constitutionally questionable. These actions address the right to assembly, freedom of movement and free speech just to name a few and has far reaching implications beyond "gangs".
Law enforcement agents fed up with increasing gang violence are turning to lawsuits to help keep gangs from terrorizing neighborhoods.A growing number of municipalities are seeking injunctions -- restraining orders that seek to bar gang members from talking to one another or standing together on public property, said Bruce Riordan,
director of gang operations for Los Angeles City Attorney Rocky Delgadillo.
More than a dozen gang injunctions have been filed in California cities since March, including Rialto, San Clemente and Orange, say law enforcement officials from around the state.
Florida Gov. Charlie Crist signed a bill at the end of June that allows for civil injunctions against any of the state's estimated 1,500 gangs.
The injunctions are civil suits that seek a court order declaring the gang's public behavior a nuisance in order to ask for limitations on their activity, Riordan said. They establish curfews and block members from wearing gang apparel and flashing gang signs in designated safety zones.
"Injunctions (provide) the power to keep gangs from gathering and holding meetings," Florida Attorney General Bill McCollum said.
Peter Bibring, a staff attorney who specializes in police practices for the American Civil Liberties Union of Southern California, said the injunctions place prohibitions on lawful activity, including the right to gather publicly and be out past a certain time of night. For example, two brothers named in an injunction may not be able to eat together in a restaurant, he said.
"It criminalizes ordinary daily activity," Bibring said. "It places a huge burden on the basic freedom to live and engage in ordinary life."
Some states have been hesitant to introduce them, said Andrew Grascia, vice president of the National Alliance of Gang Investigators' Associations, which represents more than 30 states. There is concern
about gang members' civil rights, Grascia said.
When used with increased enforcement and prevention, injunctions can decrease crime 25% to 33%, Riordan said.
There a numerous mentions in this article about the reductions in crime statistics these methods bring about. This country was not founded on the premise that if we cut our ties from the KING we will be SAFE. The rallying cry of our forefathers was not "Safety at all cost". No damnit it was FREEDOM at all costs! Even at the cost of safety and security as Ben Franklin reminds us from his grave. Ah well hell, who was Ben Franklin anyway? You want safety? Build more prisons. Lock up the Hope Steffy's of the world. Kill Off the Rachel Hoffmans of the world! Thats right there will be two classes of people. Like Nazi Germany. Those who are superior to everyone else, the pure, untainted, of like mind who will brook no diviation and fill the prisons with slave labor.
Injunctions can be filed against either an entire gang or its members or associates, Riordan said. Law enforcement must show proof of a person's involvement through either crimes or self-identification as a gang member before they can be named in the suit, Kang Schroeder said.
Javier Pinuelas, 29, who is named in the Barrio Dream Homes injunction, said he served his time and changed his life after a 2004 conviction for receiving stolen property. He wants his name removed from it so he can be free to move about the safety zone at his construction job.
"If I am talking to another guy who they say is a gang member, that's not allowed," Pinuelas said. "I don't want to get arrested for some guy walking up to me and saying, 'Hi.'"
Jake Wark, spokesman for the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office in Massachusetts, said he is keeping a close eye on his state's proposed injunction bill.
"Taking legal action against a person for something they might do is the first step on a slippery slope," Wark said.
No Sir , taking legal action against somebody for something they might do, or might think, or might say, or might go is very close to the bottom of the slippery slope. The first step was even considering it!
We began posting on Austrailias ntent to address Motorcycle "Gang" problems on 2-08
Following are some of our posts:Austrailia Biker Problems among others
Take Comfort in knowing we have AustraliaAustriala Aims to dismantle Motorcycle clubs
How did the FBI help Australiain Government in their war on BIkers
And on 6-19-08 we posted this
Can whats happening to Australian motorcycle clubs happen here
How can you Predict the Future? Study the past many of the methods used in Austrailia are proposed above.Add to Technorati Favorites
Is the Grand Smurf of ABATE of Florida getting soft with age or?
"When White Sands Chapter applied for insurance for a poker run to benefit the Cops & Kids program in the Northwest Florida area, Reichenbach told us he would not issue insurance for "charity". His words in essence were, ABATE does not do charity if you want to do charity work on your own time do it, but not through ABATE. ABATE is a grass roots organization and does not do charity work."
Wondering if the ABATE of Florida discriminated among chapters. Which of course they do. Good God the hoops they made us jumpt through to throw a poker run one time. All the font has to be such and such, etc. etc. This particular flyer does not meet the ABATE of Florida procedural requirements for a "Flyer".
Even got called once accused of trying to pull something because of the wording. But then that's how it can be in an organization that dropped the pretense of being "against totalitarian enactments" in order to engage in "Totalitarian Enactments."
Click on the Flyer above to enlist aid for a "food bank" in Seminole Chapters territory. Note at the bottom where it says,
"This request for help has been approved and authorized (I'm guessing just approving don't get it. You got to "approve" and "authorize" to make it double official?) by:
James "Doc" Reichenbach II and Danny "Doc" Fish
President and Vice President of Abate of Florida, Inc. (But we do know that it is official because as usual Abate is mispelled. Yes a little thing we know, but since Diana has pointed it out before, it does seem they do that a lot, I thought I would validate that she is not hallucinating.)
Now we don't print this because we have anything against giving to food banks. We don't, we encourage it. We are a firm believer in doing what you can for those who can not or have not.
However, and I'll hate myself in the morning for this, there is credence to what has historically been the President of ABATE of Florida's stance. As what started out as a rights organization has morphed into a safety organization, care must be taken to keep it from morphing into an organization that devotes more of it's resources to causes other than that it was designed to serve.
But then one would hope that is what Chapter Presidents, Chapter B.O.D.'s and chapter membership is for. They live in the communities they serve and are best suited to determine what works best in their respective communities. There's a lot to be said for building bridges and networking when done with the primary mission in mind. One would hope that if you give to the community that the community may be more receptive to what you have to say about your cause. It is obviously the better option than an organization such as H.O.G. for example, that do little for either the community at large or in the arena of Bikers Rights and/or safety and/or brotherhood.
One would also hope that Chapters could be trusted make decisions related to their own communities without having to seek authorization and/or approval from a source that can not be predicted and changes the rules based on God only knows. I believe they call that "empowerment," confidence in the people that put you in position and pay your salary, maybe even trust. Whoops, sorry, got a bit delusional there.
So I guess the question might be, is the "grand pooba" of ABATE of Florida mellowing in his old age? Has he seen the writing on the wall as ABATE of Florida continues to lose support? Or is this just another example of arbitrariness being dictated by what may or may not be in it for him? This will be interesting to watch.
It is great to see that Diana continues the fight. Our prayers are with her and our bet is that she will be back in the wind before long.Add to Technorati Favorites
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