just a reminder

yet another reason to wear my t-shirts:

Published on Wednesday, March 5, 2003 by the Times-Union (Albany, New York)

He Kept His Shirt On -- And Got ArrestedCrossgates Mall shopper charged after refusing to take off shirt with peace slogan

by Carol DeMare

An attorney for the state was arrested and hauled into court after refusing to take off a T-shirt that said "Give Peace a Chance" while shopping at Crossgates Mall.

Roger and Stephen Downs had these shirts made at Crossgates Mall, but Stephen Downs was arrested when he refused to take his off and leave the mall. This is at least the second time in recent months that mall security asked people wearing T-shirts with peace slogans to leave.
Steve Downs, 60, of Selkirk, said he was minding his own business Monday when he refused to remove the shirt and was charged with trespass.

"My point was I'm not trying to convert anybody," Downs said Tuesday. "This was a statement of where I was in my life."

He had purchased the shirt in a shop in the mall shortly before the arrest. The store put on the lettering while he waited: "Peace on Earth" on the front and "Give Peace a Chance" on the back.
His son, Roger Downs, 31, of New Baltimore, an ecologist, also bought a shirt. It read "No War With Iraq" and "Let Inspections Work."

"When they asked me to take it off, I took it off," Roger said. "I think it was ridiculous. I guess the way we see this is we feel the mall has a right to control assembly, not want large protests or large special interest groups or rallies. We were just individuals with T-shirts on, and we were shopping. We weren't talking to people or handing out leaflets."

Numerous calls to Crossgates Marketing Director Sarah Nieves regarding mall policy were not returned.

Heidi Siegfried, interim executive director of the Capital Region chapter of the New York Civil Liberties Union, said, "We have the position that the public space in the mall should be a First Amendment protected activity. Even when they have the right to control and prohibit ... someone shouldn't be removed when doing activity consistent with the normal uses of the mall."

On Dec. 21, about two dozen anti-war protesters wearing pro-peace T-shirts and carrying signs were asked to leave Crossgates. The group complied.

The incident with the father and son occurred shortly after 7 p.m. in the food court. They said they were asked by two security guards to take off their T-shirts, leave or be arrested.

"I don't think we have to take off the T-shirts," said Steve Downs, chief attorney in the Albany office of the Commission on Judicial Conduct.

The guards returned with a Guilderland police officer and, "It was the same routine all over again," the father said. "I said 'OK, arrest me.' "

The cop talked to him for an hour after he was handcuffed, Downs said, trying to get him to drop the whole thing and take the shirt off.

"I didn't want to do that," Downs said. "They were just doing their duty. They were trying to be very peaceful. They didn't want any confrontation."

He was repeatedly told the mall was private property and what he was wearing was unacceptable, the same as if he went to someone's home wearing something unacceptable.
"I said it's not the same thing, it's not a good analogy," said Steve Downs, who insisted he wasn't protesting or demonstrating by wearing the shirt.

Guilderland Town Justice Kenneth Riddett released Downs on his own recognizance and set a return date of March 17. Trespass, a violation, carries a maximum of 15 days in jail. A fine or conditional discharge with community service is more commonly given.

Copyright 2003 Times-Union

Peace Shirts: http://RoyAnthonyShabla.com

peace on earth ~ one t-shirt at a time.

in case president obama lost my t-shirt catalog, he can go to my website and select the image, style, and color he likes. in whatever size he needs... royanthonyshabla.com ~ maybe the girls will order stickers and do some peace graffiti!

http://RoyAnthonyShabla.com

barack obama

i have written letters to president obama. the first one i sent as a congratulations on his election and inauguration. i sent a copy of my book (PEACE) WORDS as a gift. i never got a response ~ no thank you. i sent him another letter asking him to remember his committment to peace and to not let the small-minded idiots sway him from his ideals. i wanted to send him one of my t-shirts ~ i thought the "what have you done today to save the world" image would be good for him... or the "one for all" would be good... but even though we have all seen him with his shirt off, i couldnt guess his size. anyone who has seen me dress knows i couldnt guess my own. so i sent him a "one for all" button and the t-shirt catalog instead. no response.

in the third letter, i said his idea of non-partisan government should be expanded to the entire planet... that governments and international businesses should be asked to work toward the greater good of all instead of trying to carve out their own niche of security and prosperity. when one prospers, all prosper. maybe that sounded too much like communism... but i think he is smarter than that. still, the monologue goes unanswered...

one day we will live in a golden world where the president of the united states answers your letters and wears your t-shirts. one day we will live in a world of grace and peace and joy. but for the moment, president obama has something more important to do than respond to me. and i have another letter to write.

taliban video of american hostage

i dont know what to say.

inter sweat

i sit at my computer more than web nerd trixie sits at hers. today, the entire day has been spent working on the website with web nerd trixie on the phone. we are updating, correcting, inter-linking... i am inter-sweating with all the internet work i do!!! tomorrow i will sit at the computer all day with lily working on pics and graphix. and tomorrow night i will sit at the computer and work on films with jason. my ass is sorry with all this work!

look at my work: http://royanthonyshabla.com

the event of the season

my party was fabulous. many people arrived an hour early and quite a few stayed hours after... the paintings looked great and three sold. the slideshows and films got a lot of attention (there were seven different media playing on eight different monitors). the blowups of poems set a romantic tone... the house and garden looked like a dream and the luminaria made magic once the sun was set. the band was fantastic and everyone raved about them. the food was interesting and delicious and the wine flowed and flowed and flowed...

people came from all over, young and old, cool and dorky ~ it was the perfect mix and a lively communion. charlie sheen, pete seeger, and mary oliver (the great poet) made appearances.

i am still hearing from guests saying they had a wonderful time, saying they have been talking about the event since they left... if you missed it, you missed something! it got into your psyche.

i am hearing from people a second time to say they loved all the details of the gift bags, all the work it took, all the interesting items like the handmade book... they are just getting through all the stuff.

to me it was a blur, a three day blur that seemed like 45 minutes.

i want to thank everyone who helped ~ it took a huge crew to ready the house and garden, the paintings and prints, the films and slideshows, the giftbags, the food... many people pitched in before, during (alot of the "party" things like serving the food would not have happened without people just pitching in), and after the party ~ just out of love. i tried my best to invite everyone in my life ~ 75 lucky people showed up to celebrate the deliciousness of life and the exquisite perfume of my existence. i am very very blessed.

because it was such a blur, i didnt put together some connections i should have... jack should have met leslie; beto should have met charles rosenberg; martha and george should have talked; likewise little pam and cousin jeanie; and jason and johnny... and so on and so on and so on... but i did visit and mingle ~ it was a delight to see people i havent talked with in awhile. and there were some missed connections because of timing ~ one coming after another going... but a lot of guests did make new friends. and everyone had a magical time. martha and i are not quite sure how (or who!) we made it into our respective beds...

galleRoy at casa la reina was a huge success and i am so proud to have put it all together. now i need a little nap!

until galleRoy.com is completed, visit http://royanthonyshabla.com

royanthonyshabla.com forever!

patrick told me i was a little hard on the hindus. he meant that in my newsletter, my description of how the indian internet technicians attempted to extort money from me by changing the passwords to my websites was harsh. he doesnt realize the emotional distress and huge amounts of money this cost me. he doesnt realize the loss of business and extra hard work it cost me. just today, my dear friend and new webmistress karen guido of tinicum designs made a report: all websites are returned to my control, all domaine names are returned to my property, and the renovations of both blesstheworld.com and royanthonyshabla.com are completed. we definitely have a reason to celebrate! almost $15,000 later, everything is back on track! and the bonus is this: if you go to google and search on "spiritual remedies" or psychic consultation" i come up on the first page, in the top ten. now that is amazing!