Charlotte Proposes Banning Sleeping Dragons
Seriously.
On Monday night, January 9th, the Charlotte City Council will hold a public hearing on the proposed ordinances that will affect protests during the DNC and the Occupy movement. The Council’s schedule for the evening is available HERE, and the specific proposals being discussed can be found HERE.
Among the proposals are the creation of a new class of event to be called “Extraordinary Events”.
Extraordinary event means a time period during which a large-scale special event of national or international significance and/or that is likely to attract a significant number of people is occurring within the City and for which a large number of permit applications are expected.
Complete power over the declaration of an “extraordinary” event is given to the City Manager.
Unclear as to whether the proposal is restricted only to “extraordinary events” is the prohibition of camping on public property.
Camp or camping means the use of city property for living accommodation purposes such as sleeping, or making preparations to sleep (including the laying down of bedding for the purpose of sleeping), or storing personal belongings, or placing any tents or a temporary shelter on city property.
Temporary Shelter means tents, tarps, or any type of structure or cover that provides partial shelter from the elements.
Obstruction of roadways and public rights of ways are prohibited.
Obstruction object or instrument as used in this section means a device commonly known as a “lock box” or “sleeping dragon” or any of the components of such a device including’ but not limited to: pipes, tubes, wire handcuffs, chains, carabiners, or padlocks, or containers either weighted or not.
The possession and dispersal of noxious substances will be prohibited and are defined as
any substance that is harmful or destructive or foul or offensive to human beings, such as but not limited to garbage, trash, refuse, animal parts or fluids, manure, urine, feces or other organic waste by-products.”
There are also significant changes made to the rules and processes by which citizens can use streets, sidewalks, and public spaces to conduct activities. These need to be looked into further.
Reading through government speak can be a challenging ordeal. The logic structure is often abysmally complicated as every section and subsection reflects back or references other sections and subsections. Sometimes it’s like giving the definition of a word by using the word being defined in the definition.
Some of the proposals seem common sense enough, but it also seems like the entire section of rules and regulations is significantly more complicated than it needs to be. How about making the entire section just about a sentence long? How about, “Don’t hurt anyone, clean up your mess, and don’t stop traffic.”
The more we try to micro-manage human behavior by attempting to define each and every possible path of activity, we are only running the risk of turning the average person into a criminal. For example, it is unlawful to be present at a parade or festival if one possesses or has immediate access to “A bar, chain, shaft, staff, cable, wire, lumber, or plastic pipe capable of inflicting serious injury to a person if thrown at or struck upon another”. So, if one just so happens to be a plumber with some plastic pipe in the van and decides to go to a parade, are they violating the law? Seems like it.
We definately need to be prepared for the DNC and any other large event to ensure the safety of our citizens, but do these proposals, in attempting to define *everything*, not run the risk of unindended consequences? When common sense and the law collide, common sense should win out. Will it?
Read through the proposals and comment on anything you see as unclear or with the potential for interpretations other than indended.
If you’d like to speak on the subject at the January 9 meeting, call the City Clerk’s office at 704-336-2248.
Great article Christian! Don’t forget extra long fingernails and strong perfume as weapons. Those can be extemely harmful in a large crowd.
You wrote that whole article and forgot to define what a “sleeping dragon” is for those of your readers less inclined towards protest lingo. Of course, I found out all about sleeping dragons myself this morning at Warren Cooksey’s weekly coffee chat.
My concerns over some of the ordinances stem from the use of overbroad language which could lead to possible 4th Amendment violations. I agree that the city needs to carefully consider the proposed language so as to limit potential civil rights violations as well as the number of lawsuits that could result because of ambiguous ordinances.
there’s also the opportunity to slay a dragon;
http://www.dungeoneers.com/ronpaul
“It does not do to leave a live dragon out of your calculations, if you live near him.”
J. R. R. Tolkien
Hal, that’s awesome.
A) I’m a Tolkien fan.
B) That game looks like Diablo, which is great…and horribly addicting. I may have to give it a shot if I ever actually have some free time. 🙂
Haha. I honestly had no idea what a “sleeping dragon” was as well, but as a fan of fantasy books and movies, I thought it would make a great headline. I, too, learned what it was from Warren last night at a meeting in South Charlotte about Agenda 21. Here is the Wikipedia version for anyone else interested:
“A sleeping dragon is a maneuver used by protesters to cause disruption. It involves handcuffs and PVC pipe: a series of protesters are handcuffed together through the PVC pipe, which precludes police from simply using bolt cutters to break the handcuffs. Advanced variations include covering the PVC pipe with elements which might make it more difficult to break. Examples include chicken wire, tar, and duct tape. Another variation is filling the PVC pipe with concrete. Often the protesters will chain, lock, or otherwise secure themselves to immovable objects, resulting in a difficult-to-remove human obstacle.”
“There’s no way to rule innocent men. The only power government has is the power to crack down on criminals. Well, when there aren’t enough criminals, one makes them. One declares so many things to be a crime that it becomes impossible for men to live without breaking laws.”
– Ayn Rand