This week, we fill you in on egregious violations of your Right-to-Know by discussing three current cases in front of the NH Supreme Court (read more here), how use of force compares between law enforcement on the streets of America and soldiers in combat zones (the rules of engagement in war zones are stricter! Wut!?!), the City’s police surveillance cameras are coming, and more!
School choice
This week, we discuss how Democrats, led by Lou D’Allesandro, tabled $46 MILLION bucks in federal grant money for NH charter schools out of… Why? What could possibly motivate them to do such a thing? Watch to find out what we think, and repeat after me: “My Education, my choice!”
NPR has an article out today: “Experts worry active shooter drills in schools can be traumatic for students.” As someone who has first hand experience under a police state regime that used similar tactics against its children in schools, let me tell you, Yes, it IS traumatic, and parents, children, and teachers should DEMAND that these drills stop IMMEDIATELY, or you should withdraw your children from these schools, and support charter schools, homeschool, or un-school.
Despite high-profile media coverage, school shootings with multiple victims are still rare. The overall number of students killed in shootings at schools is down from the early 1990s to about 0.15 per million in 2014-2015, according to researchers at Northeastern University. One Harvard instructor estimated the likelihood of a public school student being killed by a gun in school at about 1 in 614 million.
Below is my article from 2016 which first appeared on Carla4NHSenate.com. To Granite Staters, I implore you to stop voting for candidates, like Lou D’Allesandro, who support and condone this militarized behavior in our state. Vote these bums out!
02 Aug 2016
War is coming home
Having grown up in South Africa under apartheid, I am no stranger to the dangers of police militarization. In high school in the 80s, I attended an all-girls boarding school in Pretoria. The police would frequently come to our school to warn us “the terrorists are coming.” The “terrorists” were anyone the regime did not like.
One day, unbeknownst to us, the police detonated smoke bombs in our school to simulate a terror attack. We girls truly believed we were under fire. I was eleven or twelve, a volunteer school fire-fighter, and I leopard-crawled upstairs–fighting the smoke, tears and snot streaming down my face, bruises forming on my elbows and knees–to try to save my friends. Needless to say, when I learned the “attack” that terrified us so was orchestrated BY the police, my views about “good guys” and “bad guys” started to evolve.
America is marching lockstep towards a bona fide police state. This is not hyperbole. America incarcerates the most people on the planet. Today, police commit 1 out of 12 of all killings in the United States. In 2015, 41 officers were slain in the line of duty, while police killed 1,207 Americans. You are 8 times (some say 55 times) more likely to die at the hands of the police than a terrorist. Here in Manchester, an entire neighborhood was recently placed under lockdown, a daytime curfew, something you would never expect to see in a free society.
If you believe police militarization is necessary to protect you from the virtually nonexistent threat of terrorism, understand this fear mongering is being pushed on you by politicians and news media outlets who stand to gain from your fear. Scared people are controllable people.
Your children are being trained in school, like I was, to fear. In Manchester in May [2016], schools were locked down 11 times in 3 weeks. Active shooter drills with “simulated injuries” that “may be visible on volunteer participants” take place in New Hampshire routinely, in hospitals, schools, and elsewhere. In other parts of the country, things are worse, e.g. the CIA forgot a bomb on a school bus after a drill. Do you want this to happen here?
And while you are being scared into submission, the police are being armed and trained to see you as the enemy. The police are being given more and more military grade equipment, funded mostly with federal grants, paid for by YOU, the taxpayer. You are literally paying for your own enslavement.
In 2013, while I was president of the FSP, the then police chief of Concord falsely claimed participants of my organization were a “domestic terrorist threat” in a federal grant application to get a $260,000 BEARCAT–a cuddly name for a Ballistic Engineered Armored Response Counter Attack Truck. The kind of vehicle you see in a war zone, not in a town with 2 homicides per decade. If YOU lie on a government form, you can be fined and/or imprisoned. When government officials break the law, they get off scot-free because “accidents happen,” or, when the crimes get Too Big to Jail, they run for president!
Long story short (you can read more here, here, here, and here, which includes links to media coverage), despite more than 1,500 paper petition signatures garnered from Concord residents, the town voted to accept the BEARCAT. The city council flat-out ignored their constituents, siding with the police over the people, something we see all too often in New Hampshire. The police chief kinda, sorta apologized for demonizing peaceful, limited government proponents, and quietly stepped down a few months later.
Even if you think BEARCATs proliferating across the state isn’t a big deal, what about the increasing military tactics being used on our streets, or all the rifles, scopes, and other tactical gear local police are being armed with, even in places like little ole Laconia? Don’t take my word for it, watch what this retired Marine colonel has to say about what is happening:
“We are building a domestic military, because it is unlawful or unconstitutional to use American troops on American soil, so what we are doing is building a military… Homeland Security is pre-staging gear, equipment… What they are trying to do is use standardized vehicles, standardized equipment… Let’s not kid ourselves, what we are doing is building a domestic army because the government is afraid of its own citizens.”
Why? Why are they afraid? Could it be because we are over-taxed, over-policed, and over-incarcerated? That 79.8% of people disapprove of the job congress is doing? Could it be because there was no real economic recovery after the 2000 and 2008 crashes caused by the federal government’s inflationary policies and money printing? Could it be they are worried about the ever-growing $19 TRILLION dollars of debt, a number so unfathomable people gloss over it, unaware this astronomical number excludes unfunded liabilities like social security and pensions?
Perhaps it is the fact that for the first time, thanks to the internet and social media, we can discover the truth for ourselves, and communicate directly with thousands of other people across the state, country, and globe? That they realize they no longer control the narrative, that, as Hillary Clinton put it in 2011 in a bid for more funding for the state department’s propaganda machine: “We are in an information war and we are losing that war.”
Sadly, America loves war. Besides the foreign interventions, at home we have the war on drugs, the war on poverty, the war on terror. Frankly, none of these “wars” work out as intended, and all of us end up as collateral damage to failed DC policies.
It is imperative that we reverse the militarization of police here in the Granite State.
As your senator, I will not support legislation to increase police militarization and will actively work to reverse this trend. We also need more accountability and transparency regarding these programs, especially those being pushed locally by the federal government. We need more reporting on what equipment is available, how it is being used, and what training is taking place.
Remember, when all one has is a hammer, eventually everything looks like a nail. As I said in this speech during the pro-police accountability rally I organized as a West Manchester homeowner after the lockdown, YOU are the nail.
If we don’t end this trend towards police militarization, one day soon you will find yourself living under tyranny and wonder how we got there. Not on my watch!
LISTEN NOW
America’s imagination has been captured by the “miracle” of the Scandinavian “third way” – a mix of socialist safety net policies and market-friendly policies that seem to have helped them avoid the worst excesses of socialism while continuing to grow their economy.
But is the story really that simple? Your hosts explore the real story of Scandinavian socialism, focusing on Sweden. From the historical forces that shaped the Swedish welfare state to the economic collapse that their government’s largesse brought on in the early 90s, it’s been anything but a utopian fairytale.
Find out if the Scandinavian third way is the future for New Hampshire on this week’s episode of Told You So!
We mentioned the following lectures, topics, and articles in the show – follow the links to get more info!
- “THE ICELANDIC ALTHING – Dawn of Parliamentary Democracy” by Jesse Byock
- Anders Chydenius
- “The Swedish Model – Myths and Realities” – a talk by Johan Norberg at the Free Market Foundation
I was invited by School Choice for NH to share my views on school choice.
Every child is a unique individual and “one size” does not fit all when it comes to his or her educational path. Some children thrive in government-run schools, others do not. I support school choice and expanding options for parents who know what is best for their child…
The answer lies in freeing the education market to more choice and competition. In Nordic countries, often cited by Democrats as the future “democratic socialist ideal” for America, school choice actually forms the bedrock of their educational system.
School choice is a form of freedom, and improves your child’s chances for success. As your Senator in District 20 (Goffstown and Manchester Ward 3, 4, 10 and 11), unlike my opponent, Lou D’Allesandro, who opposes school choice, I will support legislation that provides more educational choices for your child, which is ultimately good for your kids, good for you, and good for New Hampshire. A vote for me, Carla Gericke, is a vote for a better, brighter future!
You can read the full letter here. I ask for your vote on November 6th. Let’s get to work!
Pamela Ean, who is running in District 15 and I recently penned an op-ed for the Concord Monitor in which we make a case for your support and vote on November 6th.
"New Hampshire consistently ranks as the best state in which to live, work, and play exactly because of our limited government, low-tax approach to life. Low taxes result from low spending, allowing you to keep your money to spend on the things you personally like and value, allowing you the freedom to choose where to spend your money – including on private charity and the needs of others – instead of having it taken from you under the guise of “helping.” If increasing taxes ended poverty, wouldn’t poverty have disappeared by now?
Raising taxes, increasing fees and adding more regulations, as Democrats advocate, do not help working families and do not put people first. Letting us all make our own decisions on how our hard-earned money is spent is what puts people first.
Instead of suffering under the disastrous ideas trotted out by incumbent Democrats Dan Feltes and Lou D’Allesandro, why not give Republican women like Pamela Ean (District 15) and Carla Gericke (District 20) the chance to show you how rich your life can truly be when you are free from these entrenched politicians’ failed economic policies?
We ask for your vote on Nov. 6 and promise to serve with integrity, character and compassion."
Read the entire op-ed at the Concord Monitor.
(Pamela Ean is a former police officer and public school teacher who lives in Concord. She is seeking the state Senate seat as a Republican in District 15, which includes Concord, Penacook, Hopkinton, Henniker and Warner. Carla Gericke is a former lawyer and writer who lives in West Manchester. She is the Republican nominee for N.H. Senate in District 20, which includes Goffstown and Manchester Wards 3, 4, 10 and 11.)
Last night, I was honored to attend a graduation ceremony at West Side High for students receiving their High School Equivalency certificates.
These students ranged in ages from young to not-so young, but what they all had in common was a dedication and desire to better themselves. They worked hard, and you could tell they were proud of what they had accomplished.
The audience was encouraged to whoop and holler when "their" student received their certificate, and it brought tears to my eyes to hear dads proudly (and loudly) yelling: "That’s my son!"
Sitting next to me was a woman who warned me I might need ear plugs when her sister received her certificate. "Don’t worry, I’m loud too," I said, laughing. When her sister, in mid-life and dressed in a purple gown and cap stepped up to receive her certificate, the lady went wild. While it was moving to see her family and friends so supportive of her accomplishment, I did jokingly say, "Maybe I did need the ear plugs after all!"
Life is all about challenges. It is also about how YOU face and overcome those challenges. Every day, you have a choice about how you are going to live your life TODAY. It was rewarding to see all these people willing to put in the work and take the steps to improve their futures!
Thanks for having me. Kudos to all!
Life in NH is never dull! Look at this turnout for the injunction hearing in the matter of NHDoE vs. Town of Croydon school board.
Cliff-ish Notes:
The state is arguing that *it* needs an injunction to immediately remove 4 kids who were placed in a Montessori school otherwise *the state* will suffer irreparable harm. Notwithstanding the fact that the children are FLOURISHING at their new school, and despite the fact that the taxpayers of Croydon are actually saving $3,000 per kid.
Said the AG’s office: “Public students with public funds need to be in public schools. Those children don’t belong there [at Montessori]!” The state lawyer asked for an injunction, saying that parents can either pay privately, out of pocket for their children to go to Montessori (double taxed jeopardy, anyone?) or the court must order the kids back to the Newport public school IN THE MIDDLE OF THE SCHOOL YEAR.
This, argued with a statist-straight-tist face after the DoE KNEW about the issue in JUNE DURING THE HOLIDAYS and after this is the second year in which this approach has been taken for kids who need it.
In a June letter to the DoE, the Croydon attorney wrote: “This practice [sending kids to the best school for them] will continue,” and yet, the AG and the DoE did NOTHING…
…Until the school year started to… sue and disrupt perfectly happy kids lives… I smell… let me be gracious… incompetence?
The Croydon attorney, who is a former NH Supreme Court judge, more rationally argued–after saying, “We told them in June, so BRING IT ON, BABY!” (best line of the day)–that allowing the children to go to a school better suited to their needs was better. *Doh.* He went on to say: “The bill is already paid until February 2016. The parents want their kids there. The school board wants the kids there. The kids WANT TO BE there. They are paying less money for a better education.”
BUT NOOOOOOO… the state in all its wisdom wants to kids back in their pre-approved reeducation camp. Must not allow this flight, this, shall we say, brain drain to begin, otherwise, oh, lordy mama, everyone might want to… choose what is best for them, and we can’t have that now, can we???
My money is on the DoE’s request for injunctive relief not being granted, mostly because the state dillydallied and didn’t file the motion during the vacay. If that’s the case, 1-0 for Croydon and school choice. Either way, a hearing will be set on the merits of the case, and this too should be interesting. The AGs office, IMO, overplayed its hand in trying for injunctive relief. But, then, this is the nature of statism: you belong to us. They also underestimated the courageous people who believe in what is best for the individual person.
If the court does the right thing–the order about the injunctive relief will come out in the next 48 hours–then the children can at least see out the current school year at their CHOSEN, CHEAPER school.
This case can have a monumental impact on school choice in NH, where, btw, several other schools already send their kids to non-public schools, like Pinkerton and schools in Vermont. Stay tuned for details as they unfold.