Police State Downtown - Enough!

Was this supposed to be funny or something? It reminded me of one of those hilariously terrible public pervice announcements from the spoof cop televsion show, Reno 911, on Comedy Central.

So now people aren't supposed to drink AT ALL downtown on holidays? Is that a joke, too? Even Queen Victoria let the peasants revel drunk in the streets for a couple days out of the year. What constitutes being "intoxicated?" Are they going to Breathalize people at random?

I actually appreciate that the cops are trying to something to keep people from being stabbed, like what happened to seven people last year, apparently. However, it is my understanding that they were gang-related. Those kind of problems are closely tied to quality of life issues and poverty and don't disappear with a warning like this one.

I've got no beef at all with people enjoying a party atmosphere on Halloween; but ask yourselves--why should your right to party preclude my right to set foot downtown with my child? Why can't we negotiate some kind of coexistence?

The messege is clear on the flyer. Dont come downtowm to make problems, get in fights, and ruin the night for everyone. come to have fun. Thats not a police state, that is what we all want.

It IS a police state when your fucking "social peace" is maintained by armed thugs beating up, kidnapping, threatening, intimidating, and terrorizing people.

"Bar owners and liquor stores who provide the holiday drug of choice make a killing."

Revealed: Drug dealers experience increased sales activity prior to and during a major celebration. Hmmm, I never would have guessed. But isn't part of the implicit message of this poster that you shouldn't get drunk downtown, or at least drink less --> buy less alcohol from local businesses? Or maybe the message is that it's OK to get drunk downtown on Halloween, but just don't fuck shit up and stab people. Do you think it's the City's fault that people drink so much alcohol?


"Police crack down with zero tolerance on any wayward activity."

That's just not true. There's all kinds of things every day that cops don't enforce, or only mildly enforce, or only enforce against certain people. Not saying that it's right or wrong, just the facts. Numerous times when someone gets "spoken with" instead of getting a ticket or even an arrest. And even with all the warnings and threats being officially issued about Halloween, the cops will still probably be quite lax in enforcing any number of laws on that night. Even with extra officers, there's only so much they can do and presumably they'll be focused primarily on potential violence to try and avoid last year's tragedy. My guess: peaceful drunks and people discreetly smoking pot will be virtually ignored by the cops, while people who are even slightly agressive or are found with any sort of weapon will be immediately arrested. Let me know if I'm right, will you? Because I'm sure not going to drive into Santa Cruz just to find out first hand.


"Then the city blames gangs and drunks for any outbreaks of agression."

Seven people stabbed in the course of one evening, five of them airlifted to hospital. Are you saying this is the City's fault? You're suggesting that the bright lights and chain-link fences were the things that encouraged people to pull out knives and start fucking stabbing others over and over and over again?

"Seven people stabbed in the course of one evening, five of them airlifted to hospital. Are you saying this is the City's fault? You're suggesting that the bright lights and chain-link fences were the things that encouraged people to pull out knives and start fucking stabbing others over and over and over again?"

Gee, I wonder what happens when you FORCE a large number of people into a small area. Maybe they get aggressive? People have been spontaneously celebrating Halloween in the streets for years. The government comes along, confines everyone into a small space. People die. Hmm...

Too bad it wasn't the cops who got knifed.

Ahhh... forgive me then. I didn't realize people last year were FORCED to go party on Pacific Ave. I thought they had voluntarily made that decision for themselves. My mistake.

I have no idea why "Anarquista" is linking his post with greenanarchy.org . It doesn't have anything to do with what he/she said and isn't focused on police violence. Mmmm....trying get police (since we all know they are reading this) to focus on the peaceful green anarchists, perhaps???

"Ghetto," stabbing anyone out of anything other than self-defense IS WRONG and people are always, in the end, RESPONSIBLE FOR THEMSELVES (by the way, that is also one of the underlying ideas behind most theories of Anarchism.) Stop trying to stir shit up. I can tell you are a CHAIN YANKER, so I am now going to ignore you and suggest others do the same.

Every single internet news site I've visited generally requires author's of articles to include their full names; it's means accepting responsibility for the primary content of a website. Comments sections are anonymous, unless the poster wishes to state their full name, which seems okay. Take a look at http://www.commondreams.org, http://www.guerillanews.org, http://www.alternet.org, etc.

It would give indybay a lot more credibility if the authors of news articles would simply state their full names. Independent journalism is needed these days, and you don't see people like Amy Goodman hiding behind 'anonymous' while using profanity - maybe that's okay for the comments section, but not for the articles.

Just a suggestion, feel free to throw in your two cents (or more).

OK, there is no *direct* relevance between Green Anarchy the magazine and the police state in Santa Cruz. However, given that the site and the magazine have a whole section devoted to state repression, I don't think it's irrelevant. All anarchists, not just green anarchists, are opposed to the police as an institution. I felt that Green Anarchy's website would be far more interesting reading on institutions of social control than say, Democracy Now.

The accusations that are flung around this website are utterly fucking ridiculous. Trying to attract the cops' attention to a magazine based in Eugene, Oregon? Or even to green anarchists (like myself) in general? That's just a fucking stupid accusation. Now, to return some accusations: you probably aren't getting paid to spew this shit, but you've certainly got an internalized cop inside your head.

Yes, the police read this site. Yes, the posts, the comments, and profiles about posters turn up in police files. Yes, they act on what they read here. I really do hate the anonymity, but I've been targeted by the SCPD, profiled, catalogued, classified, dosiered. While I don't want to make myself a further target via the interweb, I'll also take my grievences to the street.

For me, my primary gripe isn't so much that the police are trying to prevent violence (though I have my critiques of police in general), but that few acknowledge that police escalation inevitably plays a part in violence. It is a very old story that police seize on any crime as an excuse for more repressive laws and enforcement.

On the other hand, when communities work together to find non-authoritarian solutions to community challenges they can solve it without the implicit (and too often explicit) violence of police.

It's quite simple, vote for those who share your views, if the majority elects someone else deal with the fact that you can't always get what you want.

What we need is... Street Theatre NOW!

What this town needs is less cops and more humor.
The only way we are ever gonna get that is if we model it!

What's our reaction to this completely STUPID PR campaign? We propose dressing up as Clown-Cops and giving people and especially Cops citations- for whatever we as clowns determine a crime... We have the complete RIGHT to clown if we want in downtown SC- AND THE POLICE CAN'T STOP US!

At presen we have 4 fairly complete cop outfits a few extra clown wigs if you like to join us. Do you have an orange jump suit?

Trick or treats for kids and lots of costumed people on Pacific Ave. begin at 2PM

We don't need a prison yard set-up! like last year. Chain-link fences and floodlights.... again? Has the City of SC lost all ability to spend money on positive, pro-active, creative channels for people to express themselves?
Kirby's Night Light Project on West Cliff and the 3 day SF Hardly Strictly Bluegrass Fest come to mind. Both had thousands of people and at Hardly Strictly you could bring and drink yer own alcohol... in public!!!! Didn't seem to be any major problems there. Do you think the SCPD could actually be willing to learn from other successful events????
OK I'll get off of my whining soap-box now.

We need another Million Clown March (that took place in SC about 5 years ago). to the POLICE STATION and step on it!

Check out this

C U in the streets!

Squeaky
Clandestine Insurgent Rebel Clown Army (CIRCA)

Check us out! rockin cops with clowns!
http://www.clownarmy.org

also:
Clownarchy SF http://www.clownarchy.org

I shall be happy to add my heavy-handed humor to the Silly Clownsill's "Triple Fine Zone" ticketorama tomorrow night. I may even have my "Clowns for Rotkin and Mathews" button to support their expected coronation. Where do we meet and who will bring the seltzer bottles?

How come, with so many bright ideas for how to recreate Santa Cruz, Robert Norse has never been on the City Council? What's up with that? Bring your ideas off the web. Maybe the goal of allowing drunk and unruly crowds stabbing each other is the vision that would come out in a Norse campaign... I can see the Clown poster now -- holding a bottle of beer in one hand and a knife in the other. Yeah, my kind of town... NOT!

Let's see. $25,000.00 for an ADVERTISING CAMPAIGN to discourage crime on Pacific Ave for ONE DAY.
150 cops all scheduled on duty----what does this cost?
Renting useless chain-link fences and huge bright lights---another expense.
Triping fines for ALL offenses on Pacific Ave ( is this a revenue producer?)
Or does this kind of announcement discourage visitors to Santa Cruz?

Those 7 stabbings last year were all gang-related if I recall correctly.
Triping the fine for sitting on the sidewalk is going to prevent a gangland stabbing how?

NOTE: with double the alcohol outlets in the City of Santa Cruz, and drunken disorderly the number one crime, why was no effort made to shut down the alcohol providing establishments? That would be the only possible CAUSE that could affect the resulting behavior of the Halloween participants. But Mathews and Rotkin ONLY want to fund police to the max and blame the community!!

And somehow Robert Norse is to blame? C'mon!! That is just ridiculous.

It may well be a cultural aspect which I am unaware of, but why on Earth should people stay completely sober, as advised to do so ?

In the UK, consuming alcohol in moderation is not merely tolerated, but actively encouraged, both by peers and government.

I wish you well, in any case.

Reclaim the streets.

Of increased fines, and lots of cops is to prevent and punish those who are irresponsible, and allow those who are responsible to have a good time.