Cop Free Zone at Burning Man?

[CornMan]

Suppose that the Burning Man festival was to be split cleanly in two zones with one zone the same as Burning Man has been, and the other side designated as an area where no law enforcement is allowed to continually patrol - but alcohol is not allowed either. The alcohol rule would be enforced in an informal manner much like we do with MOOP. You can elect of receive a day pass to either side, but cannot cross the line. Which side would have more problems? If you state that the side with cops patrolling would have more problems, wouldn't that indicate that law enforcement could conceivably afford to reduce their preoccupation with drug enforcement?

[TT120]

I'd go to the alcohol and cop free zone.

[CornMan]

Actually, I think I'd switch it up and visit each side for a few days. I like alcohol, and trouble is fun to watch.

[Eric]

The side without cops would obviously have booze & drugs in it - you can play "theoreticals" all you want, but there is no way you're going to keep Burners from figuring out how to get alcohol over to that side if it's cop free. The people who have problems with the cops are probably the most likely the ones who want to get around the laws, so they're not going to play by any "rules" set up to keep them from drinking & getting fucked up. Unless they have to walk into that side bare-ass naked & undergo a cavity search, substances would be there. Since they would be there, and the people who brought them have problems with authority in the first place, I see that side having way more problems.

Even with the excessive amount of LEOs, stupidity happens in BRC, and it's not just drug busts. Fights, rapes, accidents, theft... there are more things the LEOs do then try to separate you from your precious drugs. I would rather be on the same side they're on then play "Lord of the Flies" or Somalia with people who want to ignore whatever laws they don't like. You think people assuming gifting means they can take what they want from your camp is bad now? *Oi*

[Sham]

Just to be sure that the cop free side stays drug and alcohol free, I think there should be hundreds of undercover police on that side.

[lemur]

anyone who isnt glad that theres a shitload of police and official types at burning man is a fuckin dumb ass.

believe me, youll be glad they are there if you ever need them


and sometimes when you dont need them (they are great people, too, just like you.. )



a cop free burning man is not a place id want to go.

[ygmir]

anyone who isnt glad that theres a shitload of police and official types at burning man is a fuckin dumb ass.

believe me, youll be glad they are there if you ever need them


and sometimes when you dont need them (they are great people, too, just like you.. )



a cop free burning man is not a place id want to go.

I concur.

[Eric]

and sometimes when you dont need them (they are great people, too, just like you.. )

I've met some great, and incredibly funny, LEOs over the years - yet still don't have LEO schwag. Hmmm.

The vast majority love the Burn as much as the rest of us. Like we repeat over & over - Don't Be Stupid, and you'll have no problems with them.

[graidawg]

i have no problem with cops at Bm, but then i'm not stupid

[AntiM]

I love my BLM Schwab. The blinkie SUV pin is the best.

[TomServo]

[CornMan]

I'd prefer to have the BRC Rangers as the primary means of patrol with higher authorities on standby and ready when needed.

[Eric]

Typical Russian. So busy looking down (paying attention to the short term) that he doesn't see that he's about to plow into barbed-wire (the looming long term).


I've always wondered if those helmets work as parachutes?

[Ugly Dougly]

I like informal enforcement. It's easier to get away with shit.

[theCryptofishist]

Maybe if we kept the cop free place at Dunbar's number. But that would be tiny, and I'm not sure if the effect would work in a mere week.

[C187]

I'd prefer to have the BRC Rangers as the primary means of patrol with higher authorities on standby and ready when needed.

If that ever happened I wouldn't even go to the event.

[TomServo]

Typical Russian. So busy looking down (paying attention to the short term) that he doesn't see that he's about to plow into barbed-wire (the looming long term).


I've always wondered if those helmets work as parachutes?

East German. pretty sure he's trying to escape the looming long term.

They sell those helemts for about $10 at surplus stores. I was thinking frisbees.

[CornMan]

I'd prefer to have the BRC Rangers as the primary means of patrol with higher authorities on standby and ready when needed.

If that ever happened I wouldn't even go to the event.

It's difficult to tell if you guys are paranoid, law and order jingoists, or putting me on.

[lemur]

thankfully the training to be a police officer lasts longer than 1 afternoon.

[ygmir]

I'd prefer to have the BRC Rangers as the primary means of patrol with higher authorities on standby and ready when needed.

If that ever happened I wouldn't even go to the event.

2nd.
too many jankey stupids there, that, knowing no rules enforcement existed, would go way out of bounds.

[theCryptofishist]

Typical Russian. So busy looking down (paying attention to the short term) that he doesn't see that he's about to plow into barbed-wire (the looming long term).


I've always wondered if those helmets work as parachutes?

East German. pretty sure he's trying to escape the looming long term.

They sell those helemts for about $10 at surplus stores. I was thinking frisbees.

Are we not men?

[trilobyte]

It' s an impossible hypothetical. You couldn't realistically create a zone that was free of alcohol (and presumably also controlled substances) without having some sort of individual or group of individuals to enforce it. Even if it's just at the gate, that would mean you've got law enforcement gatekeepers, and I assume also enforcement individuals guarding the perimeter. The more you try to work out the angles of how you'd make the ____ free zone work, the more you may realize it sounds like a prison. And of course, even in prison there's plenty of alcohol and controlled substances.

Personally, I don't mind cops at the event. I haven't seen a whole lot of them, but all those I've interacted with have been respectful and friendly. If you're feeling paranoid and are worried about getting hassled by the man, print out and carry a couple copies of the Law Enforcement Feedback Form in your pack. If you have an experience (good or bad), fill it out and pass it along to a ranger at the event. It's much more effective when the feedback is same-day (versus weeks or months after the event), as representatives from the rangers meet with law enforcement daily during the event and feedback is reviewed.

[lemur]

i wonder what the point of a cop free zone would be in the first place.

or the alcohol free zone for that matter.


ive said many times that burning man is probably the only big public event ive been to where the drinking isnt all that annoying.

go to the baseball game, or a village/city 4th of july event thing and theres always some fool whos actin drunk and almost spilling his beer on you..

ive never seen that at burning man.. people seem to keep the drinking down during the day cuz its so damned hot, .. and many of the bars and stuff arent even really that busy or open in those hours....... and at night its colder and people tend to be in domes/camps so you dont often encounter bad annoying drunks out walking around

ive seen people who drank too much... but in my experience they end up in the med tent pretty quickly from dehydration... and cool it down after that.



is this some bullshit 'i stopped drinking and nobody else should drink either' thing ? .... i think theres already a camp (or few) for that.



outside of getting busted for drugs i dont see why anyone would want a cop free zone.


speeding is dangerous...... theres a good reason for the speed limit (look it up!)

stealing/rape/murder/medical emergencies/fires/fights/crazy weather/gunplay/fireworks in a tent city/rabid dogs/fuckwit arsonists/people slipping drugs into ppls food and drink/tons of other shit....... are all better handled by an on duty officer and all of the resources/communication they have than a buncha costumed people on a golf cart art car which is driven by that guy named LIGHTNING who got a CPR cerfication 15 years ago..

so.... uhh, again, whats wrong with the police and why would anyone ever want a zone without them?

[knowmad]

[media]

[CornMan]

The point? Oh yeah, almost lost sight of that. I'll scrap something up real quick. Alcohol is the most destructive drug out there, but it does not really cause that much problem at Burning Man. The other drugs at festivals that are not drunk fests (meth excluded of course, ugly stuff but rare at events today) sooth rather than inflame problems. Are the cops spying on camps with infrared binoculars really that necessary?

[lemur]

oh yeah, alcohol really is bad.. ..but i see that as more of a longterm problem..... as in addiction/destruction of familial units/auto accidents..etc


it killed my father (along with smoking) ...... had cancer all over his body by the end.. 5 diff places.. not the best way to go.


that being said: i dont drink 51 weeks of the year.


at burning man i do.


not sure why, but.. it does make the evenings a bit more enjoyable.

[CornMan]

At Burning Man, drinking to me almost feels like a duty. We run a pub, and you can't have it run by a bunch of square nuts.

[lucky420]

"Square Nut Pub" kind of has a cool ring to it...

[ygmir]

"Square Nut Pub" kind of has a cool ring to it...

*searching for a peg/hole analogy*

[CornMan]

"Square Nut Pub" kind of has a cool ring to it...

LOL, we should have thought of that. It just might have won the naming competition.