July 8-10, 2006 Camp-Out at the Halper Farm to Stop Eminent Domain

Freestar Media ^ | 06/30/06 | Logan Darrow Clements

[Freestar]

We need YOU to drive your RV, pitch your tents, and take a stand against eminent domain abuse by camping out at the Halper Farm until the moment of eviction. We hope it will be like Valley Forge without the frostbite and Woodstock without the mud.

We have received word that the government plans to send over a large number of well armed police officers to evict this family from what is rightfully theirs. We must draw a line in the sand and say: NO MORE! We must defend our constitutional right to own property. If this event isn't worthy of your time then you will never find an event that is. Please, we need YOU. Don't hope someone else shows up. WE NEED YOU.

Date: Starts Saturday, July 8, 2006, stay as long as you like. The eviction is Monday, July 10 at 3pm

Location: Farm of Larry and Clara Halper 4 Bella Drive, Piscataway, New Jersey 08854

Activities: Traditional camping activities and we invite musicians, comedians and performers to show up and entertain the "troops". If you want to go you do not need to RSVP, just show up. There is plenty of space and the Halpers welcome you to camp on their land. However, we'd like to keep a count so we encourage you to RSVP through http://www.freestarmedia.com/halper.html

STORY

On Monday July 10 at 3:00 the government of Piscataway, New Jersey will evict a family from their farm using eminent domain. While the U.S. Constitution should have protected their home now it is up to YOU. If enough people join us we can form "Human Constitution" around their home when the police arrive to take it.

The Halper family has farmed their land for over 80 years. Now the government of Piscataway, New Jersey will take their 75 acres using eminent domain. The government claims it wants to take the farm to preserve "open spaces." It's a farm. It is already an open space.

Furthermore, the family has turned down offers to develop it and even tried to sell the development rights to the State of New Jersey so they can be left alone. A representative of a Democratic campaign committee demanded a "contribution" in exchange for giving the Halpers a good price for the development rights. This request for a bribe was caught on tape by the FBI and lead to the resignation of Governor McGreevy.

With the "open space" argument shown to be absurd, the government next accused the farm of being a "toxic waste dump" althought they have failed to provide any proof of this. The only chemicals found were pesticides against mosquitos that the city itself was caught spraying on the farm in the middle of the winter.

The government of Piscataway has taken over the property of many other people in the area using all sorts of rationale (senior housing, open spaces, etc.) most of it has been sold to developers for high-density housing. Many people believe the Halper farm will also be sold by the city to well-connected developers.

The government of Piscataway, New Jersey has been harassing the Halper family for years by sending over police officers on bogus code infractions, driving by and shining bright lights in their windows and even arresting Larry Halper on superficial charges. When Freestar went to a public fair to interview Mayor Brian Wahler (and offer an award from Vladimir Lenin) we were surrounded by police and chased away. A government like this should not exist in America. See it here: http://www.thepeoplescube.com/red/viewtopic.php?t=736

You can help draw a line in the sand in the battle over eminent domain. Take a stand at the Halper Farm. Don't assume others will preserve your freedom for you. We need YOU to join us. In addition to helping stop eminent domain abuse you can help the Halpers by purchasing a ornamental pear tree or shrub . They have spent a fortune on legal bills to try to fend off this land-grab by the government. Buy a plant, don't let the government steal it.

VOLUNTEERS NEEDED

Get the media involved: contact talk radio hosts and encourage them to do a live on-site broadcast, to get people to show up for the Halper Camp-Out, and to generally promote it.

Contact groups that might get their members out: RV owners, camping groups, property rights groups, other victims of eminent domain.

Contact entertainers: musicians, comedians, performers, Civil or Revolutionary War re-inactors. Help us rent a flat bed truck for a stage, a PA system for the entertainers, and port-a-potties. Help us buy food and drink for the campers, make banners, and cover other costs. If you want to help...just do it! You don't need prior authorization from anyone as long as you are just promoting the event as described.

QUESTIONS e-mail: logan@freestarmedia.com

RSVP here http://www.evite.com/app/publicUrl/objective1@aol.com/halper

[Freestar]

This is an urgent plea to all Americans for help. I hope you will join us at "Camp Halper".

[Axhandle]

I would absolutely love to participate, but being in the military I would be carried on the books as AWOL and probably arrested in an incident quite separate from the rest of the police work.

Just out of curiousity, are you folks going to get arrested for this?

[JingoJim]

Good luck!!

[Hildy]

OH MY GOD...I know Bonnie Halper. We were great friends when I lived in New York, and she would always tell me about her family farm in New Jersey. This is outrageous!

[Calpernia]

PING!

[Calpernia]

HOTD, could you give a ping to the Stable thread?

ALSO KNOWN AS:

Washington Riding Stables

[Calpernia]

THE GOVERNOR & THE PRINCE: NEW JERSEY DEMOCRAT MCGREEVEY USED 'MACHIAVELLI' AS A CODE WORD FOR EXTORTION DEAL 

What does a New Jersey governor have in common with an Italian philosopher? About $40,000 in extorted campaign donations

New Jersey governor, James McGreevey, is in a pickle. He's been identified as "State Official No. 1" mentioned in a federal indictment of a fund-raiser concerning an extortion deal. The fund raiser, David D'Amiano, met with farmer Mark Halper. Halper wanted to sell his 74 acre farm to a developer but government officials wanted it preserved as open space. The government threatened to invoke eminent domain and take the land for government use. D'Amiano told Halper that if he made a $40,000 contribution to the Democrats, the government would make a higher bid for his land.

The indictment, unsealed in Newark today, said McGreevey used the word ``Machiavelli'' during a meeting with the farmer. The fund-raiser, David D'Amiano, told the farmer before the meeting that McGreevey would use the word as a signal that the farmer's political contributions had bought influence with the governor, the indictment said.

Governor Jim McGreevey's subsequent explanation for using 'Machiavelli' in a conversation is laughable, priceless at best.

``Yes, I did use the word `Machiavelli,''' said McGreevey, 46, during press conference in Somerdale, New Jersey. ``It was not a code word. It was a literary allusion.''

The governor must surround himself with a literary crowd because 2 more New Jersey Democrats saw fit to bring up the literary allusion, too.

In conversations about the payments, D'Amiano once referred to the payments as ``mulch and topsoil'' and said Halper would have to pay ``20 loads and 20 loads'' to win his case in court and with the county, the indictment alleges.

Two unnamed state officials and several Middlesex County officials got involved in the case after D'Amiano intervened, the indictment said.

One ``top state official'' and one county official worked the name ``Machiavellian'' or ``Machiavelli'' into separate conversations with Halper to signal that they had agreed to help him, the indictment said.

D'Amiano had told the farmer in advance that the officials would mention the words as a sign that they would deliver on promises to intervene in the land sale, the indictment alleges.

There was a lot of back and forth on the land and extortion deal.

Piscataway officials have condemned the Halpers' 75-acre farm on South Washington Avenue. The township had offered $4.3 million in 1998, but the family balked, saying they didn't want to sell and the land was worth more. In 2002, the state offered the Halpers $3 million for preservation rights, but the family declined. In March 2003, Mark Halper wanted $10.5 million for the development rights to the farm, according to the indictment.

D'Amiano helped coordinate meetings between Mark Halper and DeAngelo and Kelso where the county officials offered a compromise amount -- nearly $7.4 million to preserve the property as farmland.

For further discussion about extortion deals, ahem, literary allusions, check out the following articles...
1. Bloomberg, July 6: McGreevey Says He Is Unnamed `Official No. 1' in Bribery Case
2. NYTimes, July 6: A Fund-Raiser for McGreevey Is Indicted
3. NYTimes, July 6: The gov loves Cicero, too! Yes, McGreevey Said It, but Did He Know It Was a Code Word?

He gave a simple explanation for his reference to Machiavelli: he often drops the names of writers and political thinkers. Indeed, his aides said, he has invoked writers ranging from Cicero to John McCain.

4. NJ.com, July 7: After governor mentioned a book, the plot thickened
5. NYTimes, July 7: In the spirit of Clinton and Torricelli; When you're caught red-handed, blame the prosecutor. McGreevey Accuses U.S. Attorney of Smear
6. NJ.com, July 9: `Machiavelli' explanation twists, turns

"A literary allusion, give me a break," said one Democrat. "It makes things look worse, worse than I hope they are. No one believes you use Machiavelli to strike up a conversation with a dairy farmer."

7. Home News Tribune, July 10: Halper's wife cites meetings with gov

Amy Halper dismissed the explanations by McGreevey and Kelso, asking on the radio how many people in the course of a conversation spit out the name of the 16th-century Italian author.

"It was too much of a coincidence that that term was used," she said.

8. The Trentonian, July 11: McGreevey takes another near hit

The governor wasn't happy about the indictment, nor being named in the document, but what does he do when it goes public? He follows this little tidbit up with a 20-minute tirade to proclaim his innocence in the case. That’s the punchline. The people who are usually out front proclaiming their innocence early are usually the ones with the most to hide.

9. Home News Tribune, July 13: Governor admits he, Halper met three times

[little jeremiah]

This is absolutely evil.

[Coleus]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/802501/posts

[Axhandle]

Could you add this to the "activism" category for greater visibility?

[Shannon]

Now if they really want a crowd they should ask Rush to go do a bake sale like he did some years back. It turned into an enormous event.

[Calpernia]

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1171516/posts
McGreevey Utters the Secret Word

http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/f-news/1218382/posts
NJ Gov. McGreevey bribe scheme AND the meaning of "Machiavelli"

[Hildy]

Were you there in Ft. Collins at Dan's Bake Sale??? I was.

[Shannon]

No I didn't go but of course heard all about it on Rush's show. I sure wish he'd get involved in this eminent domain case.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

KELO BUMP

[MinnesotaLibertarian]

This is terrible. I'll be there.

[Incorrigible]

I don't understand QA. Last I read I thought the Halpers had negotiated a more fair deal from the state for the development rights and that was the end of it.

What did I miss?

[Focault's Pendulum]

I've got a couple of extra tents and sleeping bags if anyone is interested...plus I'm a mean outdoor cook.

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

BUMP

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

ping, esp. to post 7

[The Spirit Of Allegiance]

Ping, esp. to post 7

[Question_Assumptions]

The deal feel through when, as I understand it, the Halpers wanted to reserve some of the land so they could change the use (so they wouldn't be locked into unprofitable farming). There is also the bribery scandal angle. I'm sure they didn't make any friends getting McGreevey's boys wiretapped by the FBI.

FYI, I think there is also an environmental angle here that the conservative defenders of the farm are missing, that might help get some of the (numerous) environmentall conscious leftists in Piscataway involved, too. According to the flyer we got from the mayor in Piscataway, they want to turn the land into things like soccer fields. What people need to realize is that a lot of the Halper property remains fallow and, as a result, we've got a lot of wildlife in the area, including a flock of wild turkeys. If they turn that land into mowed soccer fields, I'm not sure where all that wildlife is supposed to go. I suspect the turkeys and other animals will be lost because they won't have any place to feed.

[Freestar]

"Just out of curiousity, are you folks going to get arrested for this?"

---

Don't know. It's on PRIVATE PROPERTY, right? ....

[Freestar]

Hi, hope you can make it and bring or send others. This is just WRONG.

[Freestar]

TERRIFIC research! Thanks for your encouragement.

[Freestar]

It would be great if Rush would take this one on. If anyone can get through to him...just wow.

[Freestar]

MANY THANKS. Freedom isn't free and we must take a stand.

[Freestar]

"a lot of the Halper property remains fallow and, as a result, we've got a lot of wildlife in the area, including a flock of wild turkeys. If they turn that land into mowed soccer fields, I'm not sure where all that wildlife is supposed to go. I suspect the turkeys and other animals will be lost because they won't have any place to feed."

---

from http://www.freerepublic.com/focus/news/1658708/posts?page=22#22

[Calpernia]

bump for publicity

[Hildy]

I live in Arizona, so I don't think I can come. I'll try to contact Bonnie and see what she has to say about the whole thing.

[Axhandle]

"Just out of curiousity, are you folks going to get arrested for this?"

Don't know. It's on PRIVATE PROPERTY, right? ....

Well...

"On Monday July 10 at 3:00 the government of Piscataway, New Jersey will evict a family from their farm using eminent domain... If enough people join us we can form "Human Constitution" around their home when the police arrive to take it."

Sounds like you'll be interfering with an eviction.

[Freestar]

Could you possibly get her to join us for a LIVE THREAD on this? Maybe she could phone you and you post, or something like that? This is an overt Marxist ruling of national importance.

Please see what you can do.

[Calpernia]

By 'her', did you mean Hildy, Bonnie or one of the Halpers?

[Hildy]

I'll see what I can do.

[Hildy]

I'll see what I can do.

[Calpernia]

bump

[cf_river_rat]

Independence Eve Bump

BTTT

[editor-surveyor]

Thanks for the ping!

Read Post #7

[E.G.C.]

BTTT

[PGalt]

Independence Day

BTTT

[sergeantdave]

Seizing a farm for "open space?"

This is absurd.

What would prevent Trout Unlimited members from using the state to seize 1,000 miles of stream access on private property? If TU can raise the money, why not?

How about an ATV club seizing 500 miles of 20 foot wide road access across 200 pieces of private property?

[TheSpottedOwl]

Thanks for the ping, ES.

What a thing to see on the Fourth of July :(

Anyone who goes out there should have bail money/family members available. The people who are carrying this out are despicible, and will take great joy in busting people.

Pinging you LE for an FYI.

[Conservativegreatgrandma]

In total agreement but being over 1000 mi away and with Iowa fighting our own eminent domain battle, I'll keep you all in my thoughts and prayers. We must win this one.

[La Enchiladita]

Halper Farm bump. This is outrageous. More power to the "Human Constitution."

[mware]

Hey are you talkin' about me?????

[HKMk23]

BUMP in the name of all that's Holy.

[djreece]

BTTT. (I'm 3,000 miles away so I'm afraid that and my prayers are all I can do.)

[Freestar]

BUMP

Thanks all for the bumps.

Please let this not go silently into that Marxist night.

[wmileo]

I thought that as long as he announced he was "GAY" the former Governor has a blanket "Get out of jail free" card for this and other crimes.

[Calpernia]

http://www.c-n.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20060712/NEWS/607120309
Halpers stand firm, refuse to leave farm
Piscataway family defies eviction order for second day.

PISCATAWAY -- The Halper family remained on their farm Tuesday, loading and hauling heavy machinery and other belongings off the 75-acre property on South Washington Avenue in the wake of Monday's 3 p.m. eviction deadline set by the New Jersey Supreme Court.

Despite the notice to evict, Clara and Larry Halper and their four children stayed at their farm Monday night.

As of 7 p.m. Tuesday, they planned to spend another night on the farm. Judging by comments from Larry Halper, the family may stay even longer.

"We're not giving up our property rights; we're not leaving until we get a fair trial," he said.

"We haven't been paid a nickel for our land, crops, moving expenses for anything," he added. "We haven't gotten due process yet. How would you feel if someone was taking your home and not paying for it?"

(snip)