What next New York? Kissing in public? Holding Hands?

Well, you know … it was the Charleston they were doing. If they had only merengued, that would have been fine.

Well, I guess you'll be reading about me in September, because every time I leave an Ian Hunter concert, I'm dancing all the way to the subway, on the subway, all the way through Grand Central, and I don't stop until I get on the train to come home. (But I won't be doing the Charleston. Or the merengue!)

o_O

Years ago we'd call it by its legal name, "disorderly conduct" and by its colloquial name, "contempt of cop". In private industry we train our corrections officers to have a hair-trigger response to any implied contempt. Public police forces are now doing the same thing, too. Good to see the public sector learning managerial technique from the private sector. Surely no libertarian can oppose that kind of learning ;)

Call it performance art and file a free speech lawsuit and be done with it.

Nothing but a credit card? Well, I guess it could have been used as ID if he'd danced off the edge of the platform.

"Resisting arrest". I.e. daring to not grovel sufficiently in the presence of a sanctimonious cop with delusions of grandeur.

"Well, you know … it was the Charleston they were doing. If they had only merengued, that would have been fine."

Merengue, bleh. I'll take a good cha-cha or mambo any day over a merengue.

Seriously, what is up with this? Is the law now perscriptive -- you can only do what the law explicitly allows? And in New York?

Cousin Dave: Merengue, bleh. I'll take a good cha-cha or mambo any day over a merengue.

It occurs to me that since there were two cops there, the four of them could have formed a conga line!

It won't be long until those cops are providing backup for TSA goons in the subway.

If you don't trust us, you don't trust yourself. If you don't trust us, you don't believe in our great future. And if you don't trust in our glorious future, you are a traitor. You must always trust the authorities. None of that liberal "question authority" stuff the liberals have been saying a few years ago.

I'm not sure why we have to trash New York City cops over this.

Cops are heroes, remember?

9/11.

Lesson learned:

When the cop asks to cut in, LET HIM.

"Kathianne Boniello writes in the New York Post that a couple was handcuffed and jailed for dancing on a subway platform. "

Those goddamned straight people, always flaunting and smearing their sexuality in everyone's face!

Bloomberg and Kelly and their uniformed goons are out of control.

It used to be illegal in NYC to dance in a bar or restaurant that didn't have a specific "cabaret license". It happened to me a couple times, I was in company with a young lady in a bar, a good song would come on the jukebox (back when they had CDs instead of internet connections), we'd get up and start dancing, and the owner/manager would come over and tell us to stop. If we'd been caught by the bar-cops the BAR would've gotten a hefty fine (so you can't blame the manager, it's his money we're risking). That was actually shot down, probably in the late '80's or early 90's on First Amendment grounds.

The funny part is, it's not illegal to play music in the subway, only to dance to it.

If I lived in New York, I'd stage a dance-in to protest. Get a few million people to pour into the subways and start doing the Macarena!

On second though, the Macarena should be illegal.

Kathianne Boniello writes in the New York Post that a couple was handcuffed and jailed for dancing on a subway platform.

So life in New York is not like a musical? People don't just break out into song and dance for no reason?

Lerner and Loew lied to me!

Next thing you'll tell me is that the corn in Oklahoma isn't as high as an elephant's eye and that everything in Kansas City isn't up-to-date.

Oh what a horrible morning.

Yep, Conan. There's trouble right here in River City. Or New York City.

Good night, my someone.

Fynne: ...every time I leave an Ian Hunter concert, I'm dancing all the way to the subway...

That big of a fan, eh? I respect your opinion since you seem to like music a lot and I recall you saying that you're a big fan of R.E.M. I never disliked Mott, just never listened to any of their albums. The only song of theirs I'm familiar with is "All The Young Dudes" (which I really liked.)

A few months ago, I found Hunter's 2007 album Shrunken Heads in a bargain bin and bought it (mainly because it's on Yep Roc, one of my favorite labels), but haven't gotten around to playing it. If I can find it (I have thousands of CDs), I'll give it a spin and let you know what I think. The All Music Guide says "Perhaps it took a songwriter born in Britain to see the soul of modern America as clearly as Ian Hunter does, for no other songwriter in the 2000s has addressed the disarray of modern life as directly, or as savagely, as he does here."

That brings to mind The Jefferson Memorial: A First Amendment-Free Zone

I am going to have to develop a constant re-post post for Amy's blog similar to my TSA post. Don't talk to cops.

If a cop steps up to you and asks

Cop: "Do you know why I stopped/contacted/am talking to you.
You: "No." (add honorifics if desired)
Cop: "You were [doing whatever]"
You: "Is that against the law?" (add honorifics if desired)
Cop: "Yes."
You: "What part of the [state]'s law was I violating?" (add honorifics if desired)

This is where it branches. If the cop can cite what part of the state law they are going to charge you with, hand over ID. If they can't then the next part is relevant.

Cop: "Can I see ID?"
You: "Can you articulate or the suspicion why you are talking to me?" (add honorifics if desired)
Cop: "Can I get your name?"
You: "No." (add honorifics if desired)
This section repeat as needed.

Under the (en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Terry_stop) Terry Stop rules, police must be able to point to "specific and articulable facts" for why they are even talking to you.

Just saying. If a cop gets to the point that they slam you to ground -- they are in the wrong.

I used to respect police, judges, and the legal system.

They've as a group steadily eroded that respect to the point where now, the only reason I don't spit on the courthouse steps when I walk past, is because I was taught not to spit as a child and I consider it a nasty habit.

That, and the majority of them are not worthy to be near my spit.

I've seen good people's reputations tarnished and their livelihoods threatened, I've been wronged by the legal system and seen how sloppy and lazy it really is as a collective.

I'm sure in that pit of sloth and power tripping bullies that there are good people who truly believe and try to keep to their ideals of protecting and serving the public. But they too are guilty, as they cover for, work beside, and tacitly or actively support a system which has grown more and more corrupt and abusive of the freedoms of every day law abiding American citizens.

Service has replaced by Authority
Duty has been replaced by Do as I say
Protect has been replaced by harass
Justice has been replaced by Just Us
Law has been replaced by whim

Is there a way to go a day without breaking a law?
Dance on a subway, criminal
Give free rides home, criminal
Grow food on your yard, criminal
Let your child go out without supervision, criminal
Buy fresh milk, criminal
Exercise your rights, criminal
Accused absent evidence of being a criminal, pay through the nose to prove you're not

And if you travel, minimum wage less than minimum qualified thugs will steal from and or molest you.

JD: That big of a fan, eh? I respect your opinion since you seem to like music a lot and...

Well, thank you, JD! And yes, I'm a big fan of Ian's, I've seen him lots of times, made his acquaintance a couple of years ago, and try to get to as many local shows as I can. This year he's touring Europe after September, so I got tickets to the one show he's doing in New York before he goes. The current band he's heading up, the Rant Band, is exceptionally tight! I like his newer CD, "Man Overboard" (released in 2009) has some great stuff on it, especially the title song, as well, and he's got a new release coming out on September 4th, called "When I'm President". Haven't heard anything off it yet. I like a lot of his previous solo work, too, like "All American Alien Boy", and "Just Another Night" to name a couple. Oh do you remember the Drew Carey Show? The opening song, "Cleveland Rocks" is Ian's.
He's really a class act, and I just love his music!

Robert, your post is spot on! I used to have respect for the law, as well, but lately I've seen so much corruption, I've nothing but contempt for the people who try to enforce it.

As someone who has actually done a (slightly inebriated) Fred-and-Ginger routine on a light rail platform, I suppose my wife and I should be grateful there were no Phoenix cops or TSA goons hanging around.

You seem to be overlooking the failure to supply valid ID which cops in NY and many other states are allowed to ask for.

http://www.wired.com/politics/law/news/2004/06/63926

Flynne, I looked for that CD last night but couldn't find it (I'm sure it's buried in a box o' CDs somewhere.) I suspect I won't be as crazy about his stuff as you are but you do have me intrigued.

I think I watched the Drew Carey show once and vaguely remember "Cleveland Rocks" (wasn't the cast dancing along to the song?)...didn't know that was his. Coincidentally, I was just at a Half-Price Books warehouse sale this past weekend, saw the Drew Carey soundtrack CD and almost bought it (I had no idea Craig Ferguson was on that show.)

No great shakes, JD, it happens. But yeah, the cast of the show did dance to "Cleveland Rocks" and it's not a half bad song. You could probably find a lot of Ian's stuff on Youtube. If you can find the live recording of "Bastard" that'd be worth it! Mick Ronson did a LOT of guitar for Ian back in the day.

(Just FYI, my boyfriend and his buddy use that ("Cleveland Rocks") when we're out and about and they don't want me to know they're checking out some other chick's cleavage! Cracks me up but I haven't let them know I've caught on. It would ruin the fun!)