Thursday, December 17, 2015

A Rikers Island Board Of Corrections Meeting











And on this day finds itself as Occupy Wall Street day one thousand and something, and Occupy Wall Street is still moving fast. And Black Lives Matter, that all things police brutality and beyond movement is still moving fast as well. And so after going to one of those March to Shut Down Rikers protests for Kalief Browder, I found myself at a Rikers Island Board of Corrections meeting yesterday, at a building with a lobby decorated in holiday decorations, surrounded by guards, or corrections officers as you can call them, at every step of the way, something reminiscent of Rikers Island itself, in that city of New York for some reason or another. #shutitdown, #shutdownrikersisland, shut it down, shut down Rikers Island, shut down a Rikers Island Board of Corrections. As Rikers Island is named after Richard Riker who used bounty hunters to collect slaves from the south and it is ranked as one of the ten worst prisons in America, a concentration camp, a torture chamber, a slave plantation, a prison for profit industry that has been compared to Abu Ghraib prison where you have to hope you make it out alive and you have to worry for the guards more than the prisoners, a place rampant with abuse, drugs, legal and illegal, sexual violence, and no oversight. And yet it is still open for business.  And so there was a New York City Department of Corrections, Board of Corrections meeting yesterday of people who seemed to be making life and death decisions of others in bondage, with an agenda that read something like:

NEW YORK CITY
BOARD OF CORRECTION

December 16, 2015, 3:30 PM
455 1st Avenue, New York, NY 10016 - Auditorium on Ground Floor

PUBLIC MEETING AGENDA

1.  Aproval of November Meeting Minutes
2.  Publie Comment Related to Proposed Variances and Final Rule
3.  Discussion and Vote on Limited Variance:  BOC Minimun Standard 1 - 17, Punitive Segregation (Waiver of seven days release from punitive segregation requirement) - DOC
4.  Discussion and vote on Final Rule
5.  Update on Young Adult Plan
     a.  DOC Update
     b.  Ad Hoc Adolescent and Young Adult Committee Update
     c.  Discussion of Variance and Proposed Conditions of Limited Variance: BOC Minimum Standard 1 - 02 (c) (Date by which the Department shall implement the requirement that inmates aged 18 - 21 be housed separately and apart from inmates over the age of 21)
     d.  Vote on Limited Variance: BOC Minimum Standard 1 - 02 (c) (Date by which the Department shall implement the requirement that inmates aged 18 - 21 be housed separately and apart from inmates over the age of 21)

And there was public commentary from members of the audience from groups like  NYC Jails Action Coalition and Resist Rikers amongst others, and discussions from the Board of Corrections that had something to do with rolling back reforms, moving backwards, revised rules being much more restrictive, that vote we just had doesn't matter anymore, delaying regulations til the next board meeting, reviewing solitary confinement for more than 30 days, 7 day variances, concurrent infractions, serious infractions, rules, restraints, being cost effective, staff, waiting 6 months, punitive settings beyond 30 days, being confused on 30 day sentence, being concerned about 60 day overrides, the Chief of Staff and amendments, rule violations, out of cell time, serious assaults, alternative settings, owing more time, mental health workers (psychiatry kills, abolish forced psychiatric treatment....), people that work at Rikers Island, visitors, non violent acts, prolonged amounts of time in solitary confinement, waivers, and all things profit for prisons and more.

Welcome to America, home to 5% of the world's people and 25% of the world's prisoners. No one is free when others are oppressed. Is another world possible.  And what does this have to do with a No Police State.
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Friday, November 27, 2015

The Mark Of The Beast


And sometimes it seems as if the world is going to hell in a hand basket these days when one reads the headline news of the day. Where is the world headed?  And on this day finds itself as Black Friday, the day after Thanksgiving Day, #boycottblackfriday or Buy Nothing Day in that country of North America. And Occupy Wall Street and Black Lives Matter are still moving fast.  And there's something about #Paris, #PrayForParis, #passports #refugees and the worlds growing focus on Jerusalem that's been in the news a lot lately and posted all over social media, or at least Facebook, the past few days.  So much that I thought to recycle these passport blog posts again in an attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blagh whenever blaghers block possible. Pray For The World


"And he causeth all, both great and small, rich and poor, free and bond, to receive a mark on their right hand, or in their foreheads. And no man might buy or sell, save he had the mark of the name of the beast, or the number of his name. Here is wisdom. Let him that hath understanding count the number of the beast: for it is the number of a man, and his number is six hundred three score and six." rev. 13. 

And after what seems like millennials of blogging away on this blog, I don't know what compels me to keep attempting to blagh away on this blog every so often whenever I am able to except for the sake of whoever could be reading this blagh and that attempt to maintain content for this blog and my other blogs whenever social media web 2.0 user generated content bloggers block possible, that now gives everyone the opportunity to blagh away in social media web 2.0 land. And there is always that question of what to blog about on any given current event headline news random thoughts day. And so in between reading about black lives matter events, articles with titles that read Here’s Definitive Proof Gentrification Is Racist, As Told By A Participating Brooklyn LandlordEast New York Residents Demand Relief From Gentrification's Tightening GripBeekeepers see 42% of US honeybee colonies die off in a single year27 Powerful Images That Sum up How Smartphones Are Ruining Our Lives and other headline news stuff, I came across someones post in facebookland complaining about immigration, illegal aliens, detentions, customs, border patrol and passport problems that reads something like:

"Well there are worse things than getting deported back to such and such place. I suppose I'm not meant to return to such and such place quite yet...?

"The border control guards also seem to find it incomprehensible that someone would travel so much. Telling her that I was just back home in such and such place and then at a such and such event and then at a such and such event made no sense to her. "You were just in such and such place too!" she said accusingly and told me to stop lying when I told her that airfare is $300-$400 cheaper from such and such place to such and such place if you travel thru such and such place & then hop on such and such airplane."

"Ha, such and such person, looks like that just might happen. Except that they probably wouldn't even let me commute. auch and such person, I think I'm on a list of people who were refused entry but it seems this is quite common now. Big flag is that there's a cross over the stamp I got at the such and such Airport. Doing research, however, it seems it would be a bigger flag if I "lost" my passport & got a new one."

"Border patrol guard cut me off when I started to say something about applying for a visa at the such and suck embassy, declaring, "Why would you go to the embassy? It has nothing to do with the embassy. We make the decisions." And there seems to be so many stories online of artists who have proper visas but they were denied entry despite all their legal papers. At any rate, it seems I have to find someone to clear out my flat in such and such place since I can't afford to pay for it and fly back to such and such place. Or such and such place. Or wherever might have more options."

And I'm pretty sure the list of border you can't be free to travel where ever you want to in this world because we say so patrol horror stories goes on and on....

And this was enough to make me want to repost this post about passport problems that I posted on this blog awhile ago. And I have blogged about this topic before in times past. No one is free when others are oppressed. And what if anything does this have to do with No Police State.

The Passport

And so this seems to be yet another one of those recycle this blog posts that I find myself posting on this blog every so often these days...
For what reason is the number of that passport immigration law that prohibits freedom of travel amongst humanity anywhere on planet earth, and that Section 666 Social Security Act, cashless society, national I.D., the number of your name to receive any state services and everything else in between thing, 666? Is this that save no man that he may buy or sell except that he have the mark of the beast thing in the book of Revelations. Is this written in prophecy somewhere. Did George Orwell or Nostradamus predict this? Is that a coincidence or on purpose that this law has the same number of that beast thing. And who or what is the beast, and what is that mark on ones right hand or forehead. What does that mark represent or mean, if anything. And what's up with that UPC bar code photo that I placed in this blog entry. And for what reason do all universal product codes contain this number. What the heck does that mean? Is that the number of the beast, the number of man? And what's that New World Order, Verichip and RFID tag thing all about. Big Brother, Brave New World and technology are here and that's a whole another blog posting. And I have heard so many green card immigration nightmare stories about green card marriages, lotteries and green card everything else in between. Of people leaving a country and not being able to return for whatever reason. And the stories of loss of life while crossing a border, whether by land or sea. And for what reason are there boarders, divisions, restrictions, barriers and territories of land in this world. And for what reason are people not free to travel anywhere in the world without the permission of someone else. Who invented this concept. Is it possible to undo this passport, visa, citizenship, where are your papers to come here law so that everyone can be free to travel anywhere in this world. For what reason does this concept exist. And who is a foreigner. Aren't we all strangers in this land. Is another world possible. No one is free when others are oppressed. It is Sunday today, day of God, a day of rest. Or is that Saturday, the Sabbath, Sabado. And what does this have to do with a No Police State?
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Tuesday, November 10, 2015

Honor The Veterans Again?


And in between reading Resist Rikers and Campaign to Shut Down Rikers Protest Department of Correction and Mayor de Blasio's proposed harmful changes to Rikers Facebook event invites where that Campaign to Shut Down Rikers video says something like "The PEOPLE rise in Board hearing to expose Commissioner Ponte and Norman SeaBrook and the Mayor's plans for more repression on Rikers!" and "Campaign to Shut Down Rikers activists interrupt DOC Commissioner Ponte speaking on the proposed harmful reforms to the jail complex at today's Board of Corrections hearing. ‪#‎shutdownrikers‬ ‪#‎blacklivesmatter‬" and an Observer article titled Rikers Island Leader Under Fire From Both Sides at Board of Correction Meeting and other headline news of the day, I realize that according to that Gregorian calendar on the wall that Veterans Day, another one of those patriotic flag waving holidays similar to Memorial Day has rolled around again this time of year, so much that I can just recycle the same No I am Not Going To Honor Veterans Day blagh post all over again in an attempt to maintain social media web 2.0 user generated content for this blog and my other blagh whenever blaghers block possible. No I am not going to honor war today. And what does this have to do with a No Police State.

Honor The Veterans?

I thought I heard someone say yesterday that today or tomorrow is Veterans Day, another one of those patriotic holidays where the flag wavers come out in force. Let me check the calendar to see. Oh yeah, the calendar says Veterans day is today. Is this day observed in America only, or is this day observed in the rest of the world also? And so I find myself reposting a posting I posted several months ago for Memorial day, another one of those patriot holidays where the American flag wavers come out in force. Veterans account for a majority of the homeless mentally ill population these days, and a majority of them are disabled now as a result. For what reason is this an honor to support? I consider myself antipsychiatricky and do not believe mental illness exists and that psychiatry kills and originates from Nazi Germany where psych cia trists were mass murderers in white coats as is the case today, and that the mental death system is also an extension of Orwellianism, where family members turn in family members, and neighbors turn in neighbors to the thought police for thought crimes. Psychiatry and psych trickery is an art and not a science. And so I would like to think of mental illness as problems in living. And I believe in the abolishment of forced psych cia trick treatment that is often cruel and inhumane. Therapy? The rap y? Y the rap? Therapist, The rapist. Mind Freedom is a great website to read for all things alternative to the mental death system. And so today is Memorial Day in America. I mean Veterans day in America. A celebration of the war day. Another one of those patriotic holidays. The flag wavers are out and yellow ribbons, badges of honor, medals, parades, marches, prayers, patriotic songs, tributes and ceremonies are being broadcast everywhere. The headlines read "Honor the dead soldiers, honor the fallen soldiers and comrades". Today is the ultimate patriotic fanatic holiday, or the ultimate hate hour as George Orwell might say. My question of the day; for what reason is it an honor to volunteer to be fodder for the canon. For what reason is it an honor to die for nothing, to fight for reasons that do not exist, to fight against the flesh for powers that be that one cannot even see. For what reason is it an honor to be so poor that one will volunteer their life in exchange for money after one leaves the service, if one leaves the service. For what reason is it an honor for persons to be brainwashed with propaganda, theirs or mine. For what reason is it an honor to become a violent person and pick up a gun and kill another person for no reason at all, except for the fact that guns have been invented, the worst invention of an industry ever. For what reason is it an honor to be a veteran who now make up the majority of the homeless population. For what reason is it an honor to attend one of those military sponsored funerals and cry over the image of a flag that propagates violence, the same flag that caused ones death. For what reason is it an honor to fall and die for nothing. For what reason is it an honor to promote this ideology. What is heroic about all of this? And why does the word "Patriot" have the word "Riot" in it? And why does the word "Military" militant militia have the word "Mal" in it? "Parens Patriae, father of the people", the guardian. That phrase seems to be the basis of an endless amount of death and suffering in the world; the protection of property or other material things. I saw Michael Moore's Fahrenheit 9/11 documentary. It is nineteen eighty four and Orwellianism is everywhere at its best today. Is it written somewhere that this must all come to pass? Happy beach bar b queing Memorial day, I mean Veterans day. Peace on earth and goodwill to all mankind. And what does this have to do with a No Police State?

Monday, October 26, 2015

A Rise Up October Rikers Island Protest









































And on this day finds itself as  Occupy Wall Street day one thousand and something. And Occupy Wall Street is still moving fast. And Black Lives Matter, that all things police brutality and beyond movement is still moving fast also. And as I had blaghed about that March to Shut Down Rikers Island the other day, there was another one of those #RiseUpOctober: Shut Down Rikers Island and Resist Rikers protests this past weekend as part of Stop Mass Incarceration Network's #RiseUpOctober. And those Facebook event invites for these events read something like:

#RiseUpOctober: STOP Police Terror & Murder! Which Side Are You On?

11:00 Washington Square Park
1:00 MARCH 
3:00 RALLY Bryant Park, 6th Avenue & 42nd Street

STOP POLICE TERROR! 
WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON?

affiliated actions:
October 22 -- national protests and NYC reading of names of those killed by police:
https://www.facebook.com/events/867605399984510/

October 23 -- non-violent direct action
https://www.facebook.com/events/424613221065195/

People take to the streets in cities all across the country on October 22. People won’t be able to turn their heads and say they didn’t see it. On October 23, when students and clergy alongside and in solidarity with those who feel the lash of this every day, engage in non violent direct action and shut down one of their institutions of misery and terror - that will send a powerful message to all – this movement is serious.

Then on Oct 24, we, all of us, will march in from Grant Homes and Strivers’ Row in Harlem, from Washington Heights and Jackson Heights, from Bed-Stuy and Hunt’s Point and from Jamaica and Staten Island. There will be students from CUNY, Columbia and dozens of other campuses from this area, people from Newark and Paterson and Hartford, numbering in the thousands and thousands. We will be joined by thousands and thousands more from Atlanta and Chicago, from Detroit and Cleveland, from New Orleans and Mississippi and many other places. Millions of people all across the country and around the world will hear our powerful cry - WHICH SIDE ARE YOU ON? Millions more are gonna say, okay, I gotta choose sides and many of them will decide they have to be with the ones trying to STOP this.

We will change history. We will inspire thousands and yes millions, who are tired of being treated like criminals and tired of seeing cops patrolling their communities like occupying armies, to see that they don’t have to take this, to see that it’s their fault. And they will stand up and act to stop this. We will rally to their side thousands of people from other sections of society who refuse to stand aside while horrors are inflicted on people because of the color of their skin. We will open the eyes of those who don’t suffer these horrors, challenging them to quit swallowing the lying justifications the authorities give for continuing to give a green light to killer cops, challenging them to get off the sidelines – Which Side Are You On? Are you on the side of acting to STOP these horrors? Or are you on the side of continuing to let them go down? There’s no middle ground, no neutrality, on this. You gotta choose a side. And I don’t mean just giving us your sympathy. I mean actively joining in the resistance and mobilizing others to resist too. You gotta join with this effort to make Oct 24 as powerful as possible. You gotta listen when somebody here tonight tells you what you can do and who you can hook up with to be part of#RiseUpOctober, or and let me be real – if you and people like you don’t throw in on this - it ain’t gonna happen.

And it HAS to happen.
(from http://stopmassincarceration.net/4528-2/)


#RiseUpOctober: Shut Down Rikers Island

It's been called "New York's Abu Ghraib," a combination torture chamber & concentration camp. After years of exposure, after lawsuits and decrees, horrors that shock the conscience continue unabated. In the country's largest jail, lives are irreparably damaged every day.

19th Avenue and Hazen Street
To join the action or provide support: AddMyVoice@RiseUpOctober.org
(By bus: Take MTA Q101. The first bus stop is the route is on 2nd Avenue between 60th and 61st streets. It is on the West side of the street.
From wherever you live, make plans to get to the Q101 bus stop at 8:00. The closest trains are the F train to
63rd & Lexington, or the 4,5,6,N,Q, R trains to 59th and Lexington.
The Q101 bus comes every 12 minutes (or so) and takes approximately 45 minutes to get to the Queens entrance to Rikers Island. Relax, sit back, you can’t get lost. You are taking this bus to the last stop. You will be dropped off within eyesight of the big “Welcome to Rikers” sign that is at the intersection of Hazen Street and 19th Avenue.
We will be gathering one block up on Hazen street (away from the bridge) at a little corner just
up the street. Look for the people with the big enlargements of people’s faces. These are the
faces of people who were killed by medical neglect or guard brutality at Rikers. MORE DETAILED DIRECTION SHEET POSTED BELOW)

As part of #RiseUpOctober, join in a non-violent direct action and protest to Shut Down Rikers Island. Sign up to be part of the action, or to provide support. Write: addmyvoice@riseupoctober.org

And flood the streets on October 24:
https://www.facebook.com/events/767581106685589/

Also, take part in the national October 22 National Day of Protest to STOP Police Brutality, Repression and the Criminalization of a Generation across the country:
https://www.facebook.com/events/767581106685589/


Resist Rikers

March to SHUT DOWN RIKERS ISLAND

It is our duty to fight for our freedom.
It is our duty to win.
We must love and support one another.
We have nothing to lose but our chains.


And according to that pix11.com Petition launched to change name of Rikers Island amid slavery connection article that has something to do with Rikers being named after Richard Riker who used bounty hunters to collect slaves from the south, Rikers Island still has the name Rikers. And short of LaGuardia airport shutting down Rikers and expanding it's runways into the Bronx, Rikers Island Correctional Facility still seems to be open for business. And there were articles with titles like:  Videos: 11 People Arrested During "Rise Up October" Protest Against Police BrutalityPBA president calls for boycott of Quentin Tarantino movies after he joins ‘Rise Up October’ protests, Arrests made during Rikers Island protestProtesters SHUT DOWN Rikers Island Prison and more.  And going near the displaced visitors at that Shut Down Rikers Island protest, was the scariest part of it all. #visitsarecancelledfortheday.  And whether or not there'll be another one of those #shutdownrikersisland protests, or #RiseUpOctober protests against police brutality remains to be seen. And according to that NAACP photo posted above, "Welcome to America, home to 5% of the world's people and 25% of the world's prisoners. And Rikers Island is one of the ten worst prisons in America. And New York City is what a police state looks like. And Rikers Island is what a police state looks like. No one is free when others are oppressed. Is another world possible. And what does this have to do with a No Police State.
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