Why I Got Arrested

Why I Got Arrested

When I was in Junior High School, well over 50 years ago, the staff at the local recreation center would not allow my friends and me to play baseball during the time the recreation center was open. We thought this was outrageous. We listed our grievances, and I wrote a letter to the Director of Recreation. He wrote back and told me that he had spoken to the staff at the local center and that we would be allowed to play any time that there were not planned activities on the field. I have that letter to this day. It was the confirmation of a sacred truth — that our “government of the people, by the people, and for the people” was fully functioning. That interaction helped inform the next 40 plus years of my life.

I was arrested on January 31, 2023. Some of my friends and I decided to force an encounter with one of our “leaders.” Senator Scott Martin was holding a $1000 per plate fundraiser at a restaurant near the Capitol in Harrisburg. These fundraisers are where the bribers can bribe our legislators over a very expensive meal. We sat at the entrance wearing Hazmat suits with a banner that read, “You Take Bribes, The Planet Dies.” At some point, State Senator Mike Regan arrived and pushed me to the ground to gain access. This was captured by a journalist, https://twitter.com/pennslinger/status/1620460640161910785, and all of the sudden, this old retired teacher with…