This is not directed at any one individual or group. Last night the city of Springfield took a step closer to closing the center city of town from 11:00 PM until 5:30 AM, to guard our town from what is best described as riff raff(downtown patrons terminology). This ordinance wasn't even proposed by a business owner in the area, the police, or any other governmental agency. The not-for-profit Urban District Alliance(a quasi branch of Springfield government controlled by no one or it seems so)has made this request. Council bill 2008-337<http://www.springfieldmo.gov/egov/agenda/2008-337.pdf>this would have effectively made a criminal out of anyone crossing the center portion of the square between the hours listed above.
I'm quite sure this was NOT the intent of anyone in the city to make innocent people into criminals with such an ordinance however this is how quickly when we the people aren't paying attention to the actual wording of these ordinances that they run astray an allow for ordinary people to run afoul of law enforcement. You'll notice the ordinance doesn't really do anything to the element that they are trying to rid center city area of but it does prevent us from going down to the center city area grabbing a cup of coffee or hot chocolate at Rendezvous Coffeehouse and walking down to sit on the park bench or the concrete steps while admiring the calm of the city or just gazing up to the stars. This is the same type of mindset that got us breed specific legislation for dogs, commercial licensed vehicles over one ton prohibited from being parked in ones driveway, and an ordinance which requires dogs be leashed any time they are outside of a fenced yard even if they are laying on the front porch between the owners feet and the dog would never leave that position. Much of what transpires isn't to correct the criminal element, it has the exact opposite effect where it makes most of us the criminal element. -- http://votetom4council.webs.com/ http://417-political-pundit.blogspot.com/ www.moliberty.org "lite a fire for a man he'll be warm for a day, lite the man on fire and he'll be warm the rest of his life". Just because you do not take an interest in politics doesn't mean politics won't take an interest in you! -Pericles (430 B.C.) "You don't pay taxes - they take taxes." ~ Chris Rock~ "no cause is lost if there is but one fool to fight for it" ~Will Turner~ ~Pirate's of the Caribbean @ World's End~ Save your property rights www.mo-cpr.org http://www.radiofreeliberty.com --~--~---------~--~----~------------~-------~--~----~ This is a Free Speech forum. The owner of this list assumes no responsibility for the intellectual or emotional maturity of its members. If you do not like what is being said here, filter it to trash, ignore it or leave. If you leave, learn how to do this for yourself. If you do not, you will be here forever. -~----------~----~----~----~------~----~------~--~---
