Appalachian Gathering 2012: Whose Job Is It?

Where in the Appalachian Bioregion are we going?

Where in the Appalachian Bioregion are we going? The consensus was for the White Mountain National Forest (in the Northeast), or the Appalachian states of Kentucky, North Carolina, Tennessee, Virginia, Georgia. Spring Council selected a site in North Eastern Tennessee.

If you're not familiar with the gauntlet on the road into the gathering, and want to avoid a mandatory court appearance ticket click here.

For the Howdy Folks and directions to the gathering, click here. For the United States Forest Service Incident Command website with groovy maps and updates, click here.

Thursday, March 1, 2012

Whose Job Is It?

Thanks to whoever made this beautiful image. Click image to enlarge.

1 comment:

AnonymousMay 4, 2012 at 2:01 PM
Brothers & Sisters;
Remember to think collectively and to leave the rules and regulations of Babylon behind you as you depart for our Gathering. I have found through the many Gatherings I have participated in one of the most important things to think about is Water. Babylon creates a problem about water, we are so very used to turning on the tap for water we do not consider or understand our personal water needs honestly. Please remember to bring a container large enough to hold the water you will need; a gallon container is technically not enough for an individual living outside. My job at Gatherings is to make filtered drinking water and I am amazed at the number of individuals with tiny personal canteens. I suggest everyone should have a gallon milk/juice container with a SCREW-ON CAP! as a personal canteen and your camp should have a 5-7 gallon back-up container. There is not a shortage of water at Gatherings; there is a shortage of canteens and large drinking water storage containers for each camp. Think about taking care of the whole family by taking care of yourself. Bring at least a gallon container as your canteen, please. You should not be asking Brothers and Sisters to drink from their canteen you should have your own, it is insulting and self-centered not to understand and embrace your water needs and force the Family to take care of you. Water is the most important consideration; you can survive two weeks without food and only three days without water. Bring a gallon canteen, please
Love & Light,
Water Faerie of Faerie Camp
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Getting into the gathering without getting a mandatory court appearance ticket

Getting into the gathering without getting a mandatory court appearance ticket
Every year the United States Forest Service Law Enforcement (USFS) Incident Management Team (the cops) attempts to write as many tickets to family coming home as they possibly can to justify their presence. They give out tickets for broken tail lights, failure to use a turn signal in a deserted parking lot at 2 AM, lack of seat belts, controlled substances (even just a trace amount), beads hanging from your rear view mirrors, prescription medications if the label doesn't clearly have your name on it and you can't prove who you are, dogs off leash, a vehicle missing a front license plate even if you live in a state that does not issue a front license plate and a lot more violations of the letter of the law.

However, these tickets are not the type of citation you would probably receive for any of these issues in your hometown. These are mandatory court appearance tickets. There will be special court dates set up just for us, so we can go to the local courthouse, fire station or visitors center and go before a magistrate. In the past, charges have been reduced, fines were often minimal and the court has allowed people to make payment plans ranging from 90 days to pay $75 to 18 months to pay $25 depending on the hardship cases people have expressed.

If you do not show up for your mandatory court appearance on the date indicated on your ticket, a Federal Bench Warrant will be issued for your arrest. Then the USFS LEOs will come into the gathering looking for you. If they find you they will arrest you and put you in jail until the next court date. If this happens on a Friday afternoon, you will be in jail until Monday. If they do not find you at the gathering, the next time a law enforcement officer for any reason stops you, your ID will be run through the database and you will go directly to jail.

Of course, everyone is free to manage this situation as they wish but I strongly recommend you go to your court date. I have seen people charged with crimes that could potentially result in a six years sentence walk out with a $500 fine and three years’ probation. Keep in mind that every year the dynamic is different and these results may not always be available. There are lawyers at the gathering (I am not a legal expert) who attend the court dates and will assist as best they can although I recommend you catch up with them before your court date to gain a better understanding of your specific charges and strategies to get the charges dropped or reduced. If you do not know these people personally, go to INFO and let them know you received one of the magic tickets and you need legal assistance.