Help Us Plan Our Trip North
Wow! We’re nearing the end of our Southern Style route with a bang. We were fortunate to score some great interviews with many wonderful people including David Nolan and not one but two videos with Ron Paul. Sadly a few days ago we were unfortunate enough to be driving through Jones County, Mississippi where they locked all three of us in a cage for twelve hours after pepper spraying and chocking Jason. But I digress.
We’d like your help in deciding where we should head next. For those new to our travels, our legs thus far have been:
- 1st leg: Northern VA to NH. We stopped in NJ and spent five days in Keene, NH getting legal.
- 2nd leg: NH to Los Angeles. We had meetups in Chicago, Omaha, Denver, Las Vegas, Fullerton and Los Angeles. We had to be in LA as a couple of us participated in panels at the Atlas Foundation’s Liberty Forum. We also spent the night in Wal-Mart parking lots in NY and OH and in the Mojave Desert.
- 3rd leg: LA to Auburn: We had meetups in Phoenix, Tucson, Albuquerque, Santa Fe, Austin, Houston, New Orleans (video forthcoming) and will soon have one in Birmingham and then stop by the Mises Institute. We also stopped in Amarillo, Wichita Falls, Waco (video forthcoming), Lake Jackson and Lake Charles (where we took my 96-year-old grandpa to dinner).
We’ll be in Auburn on May 26th and have to be in NH by June 25th for the Porcupine Freedom Festival (Porc Fest). Based on our travels thus far, we decided that we need to spend more time in each city to give us time to investigate leads, connect with other fans of freedom and those not-yet-on-board and to edit videos.
The cities that we will hit for sure are Atlanta, Charlotte, Virginia Beach, D.C. and NYC. The question — and this is where you come in — is what other cities we should visit (potential cities in bold). Check out the three options below and vote for the route you think has the most potential for the Motorhome Diaries to promote freedom (i.e. groups of receptive individuals, high-caliber interviewees, events, potential for activism, etc.).
Note that after Porc Fest we’ll be in the New England area for a month, as we’re heading to Ontario, Canada at the end of July for the Liberty Summer Seminar. If you would like to be our point person on the ground please let us know in the comments below.
This poll will end at Midnight on May 22nd, to give us time to plan logistics and contact folks in the areas we are to travel.
What route should the MHD crew take?
- B. Atlanta, Charlotte, Virginia Beach, D.C., Baltimore, Wilmington, Philadelphia, NYC (40%, 166 Votes)
- A. Gainesville, Orlando, Jacksonville, Savannah, Atlanta, Charlotte, Virginia Beach, D.C., NYC (39%, 159 Votes)
- C. Atlanta, Savannah, Charleston, Charlotte, Virginia Beach, Richmond, D.C., NYC (21%, 87 Votes)
Total Voters: 412
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to “Help Us Plan Our Trip North”
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- May 21, 2009: » Thank You Thursday: Special Jones County, Mississippi Edition | the Motorhome Diaries
- May 23, 2009: » The Eastern Excursion | the Motorhome Diaries
An interesting stop you could make is Polyface Farm in Swoope, VA. The farm was featured in the book The Omnivore’s Dilemma as an example of a more natural and organic method of raising cattle and poultry.
What’s noteworthy about this particular farm is that the owner, Joel Salatin, is strongly opposed to the government interventions that affect his business. He despises the corporatism that has manifested in the food industry, particularly the abuses by companies like Monsanto.
I think an interview with such an individual would be compelling. Maybe it would be possible for you guys to catch up with him, if so interested. You can find some more info on polyfacefarms.com.
If you end up going, see if you can sneak me in somehow. I’ve been wanting to check out his farm since reading about it and learning he shares many libertarian principles.
What about Minnesota? Or Wisconsin? Or the Dakotas? How about Detroit?
Why spend all your time in the south, where the weather is warm and the living is easy?
Get up here and see the rest of America.
DaveP, great question. As I noted we’re going to be in NH in late June and Ontario in late July. After that we DO plan to make it to the northern US — including WI (where Adam hails from), MN (where my bro and his wife and many friends live), the Dakotas, Montana (where our friend Rachel Maxam lives) and make our way to Vancouver (Mark Emery) then head down the West Coast and go into Baja CA and then probably back to the central US.
Looks like each option includes NYC so I won’t bother voting.
Hey, I am totally with Dave on this one. I totally think you should stop in St. Paul, MN.. I have so many friends up there that I could totally find you guys some where to crash and lot’s o people to interview! St. Paul!!!! The Dakota’s and interview the Indian’s who are making their own banks with gold etc?! The name escapes me at the moment, but that would totally be interesting! Just a thought. Love you guys, and glad you are out of jail! I nearly choked on my food when I read that you’d been locked up. Glad everyone is ok. Stay “safe” lol Katie
Oh, and what about Seattle???? Pacific Northwest?
I will be your point person in Vancouver, BC or Edmonton, Alberta. Schedule a date and I’ll get people out.
In Vancouver, you could likely speak at a libertarian supper club. In Edmonton, a nice evening out for dinner with libertarian friends.
Good to see that you are stopping in Charlotte. If you don’t have a point person here yet, let me know. Our State Convention is June 12,13 and 14th, so 90% of our Liberty Lovers will be in Raleigh…
If you’re passing through southwestern Connecticut on I-95, I could take you on a tour of Long Beach West, a ghost town created through government strong-arming. It’s visually stunning and would make great video. Go to my website and click “Long Beach West” on the left to launch the photo essay. I could try to set up interviews with former residents for you too.
Also, if you stop by, we could maybe discuss this case.
Philadelphia is the cradle of liberty!
Take MARV to Havana
It’s a shame you all can’t make it to Boston. The history of liberty here is incredibly strong (you could walk the “freedom trail” and see landmarks in the history of the revolution) even if the current realities are somewhat disappointing. You could also take the time to dump some tea into the Boston harbor, and with all the colleges in the area I’m sure you could organize a meet-up of some sort.
You guys would get an outstanding turnout in Philadelphia. I can guarantee that you’ll get your biggest crowd yet!
Plus, you have to get a video of the steps at the Philadelphia Art Museum, grab some steaks at Pat’s and Geno’s, and hit up Independence Hall. It’s like…required as an American.
I second the first suggestion about the farm. Salatin’s “Everything I Want to Do is Illegal” is a brilliant takedown essay on state regulations in the food production industry: http://www.acresusa.com/toolbox/reprints/Salatin_Sept03.pdf
Of course if you were going to head that way I’d suggest stopping in Arkansas and heading to Kevin Carson’s. Kevin would probably be an ideal interviewer for Salatin, seeing as how much of his own anarchist writing takes into account farming techniques and yields.
I look forward to seeing you in NYC though
Whichever route you choose, I suggest taking the shortest possible route through Maryland, and avoid New Jersey if possible.
What about Salt Lake City, Utah? You could also hit up Provo just south of there. Lots of Liberty lovin’ folks here!
PHILADELPHIA
You really should come see the beaches in southern alabama, since you’re already near…
we had a tea party here in Mobile Alabama and the organizers were the youngest organizers in the country – i think they were around 20-22 years old… if that is of interest to you…
You definitely need a “Best of Joe Biden” tour through Delaware!
I think y’all should come to the coast in Mississippi and hopefully see that we’re not all like Jones County!! We value freedom just as much as you do!
Well, Route A potentially comes down through my neck of the woods in Albany GA. Also, the Libertarian candidate for GA Gov in 2010 – John Monds – happens to live down in this region. Thus far, he has been the only Libertarian any time, any where to break 1,000,000 votes, and we’re looking for even better things – specifically, moving him to the Governor’s Mansion – with the 2010 election!
We’d love to have you through Southwest Georgia as well. Jeff and I run a quickly growing Libertarian political blog that is starting to turn some heads in the area, and I’d love to run an interview with you guys
Guys: When you’re planning your route through New York, keep in mind that you can stay with Megan and me. Our house is about 30 miles north of the city but we have room to park the RV and the three of you can sleep in the house. Chris
Being on the West Coast (and I assume you’re coming to Northern California eventually, right?), I don’t have much of a horse in this race. But I know that my own (relatively brief) visit to Philadelphia helped awaken my inner activist in unexpected and wonderful ways, so I voted for that route.
I wanted Charleston, but whatever will get you guys to Atlanta sooner- I am for!!
Slovakia options are missing. HALP.
I’ll buy some beers for the crew in Philly.
None of these come close to Kansas City. The Boston Tea Party – bostontea.us – is having our national Meatspace Gathering in Kansas City on 30 May. Speakers include Tom Knapp, Angela Keaton, Jim Davidson, Brad Spangler.
Otherwise, I might see y’all for PorcFest – if I ever get any money.
How about a Paul Bunyan run through WI, MN, etc…? I can cook up a mean Friday Night Fry for ya’ll in the Lodi Valley! A neighbor (taking the ferry across the lake to the next town) is the Libertarian congressional candidate in 2010 against incumbent Tammy Baldwin.
Ya’ll should let me know when you’re coming through VB, I’ll try to set up a friendly reception for you.