by Gil Gale, Corvallis and Wayne Adair, Hamilton
Update for readers. On March 28 this year at the No Kings rally on First Street in Hamilton, a couple of coal rollers insisted on repeatedly assaulting their peaceful neighbors by deliberately dousing them with toxic diesel truck exhaust. The incidents were not accidents blamed on defective mufflers. These trucks were illegally modified to accomplish this childish goal. Law enforcement professionals wrote the rollers citations. Rolling coal, if you don’t know, is a violation of several legal statutes.
So, what is the point of this rolling? Inflict harm on your neighbors? Avoid having a rational discussion about issues? Thumb your nose at law enforcement officers? Give the city judge a reason to sock you with another fine? (FYI: City of Billings fines coal rollers hundreds of dollars and those folks there value their fossil fuel industry.)
What mature grownup, regardless of political persuasion, thinks that this noxious, dangerous and infantile practice is a way we should treat each other? Condemning and demanding strong penalties for this kind of attack on our mutually shared right of free speech should be a no-brainer.
Here’s an alternative. Rather than wastefully spewing that $4.88 per gallon diesel over your neighbors, just park your rig and have a conversation with us No Kings demonstrators about solutions. Hundreds of us would value that opportunity. That’s how the Constitution of the United States works.
Steve Schmidt says
Rolling coal is an act of hate. Are we going to allow hate to dominate our society? Come on folks, we’re better than this.