Airport staff overreacted, Robo says - Times-Standard reports his side
Airport staff overreacted, Robo says
Sean Garmire/The Times-Standard - 08/05/2008 01:21:19 AM PDT
A Humboldt State University student arrested at a Boston airport following his alleged role in an airplane scare spoke to the Times-Standard Monday, calling his arrest an overreaction and saying he was mischaracterized by the Massachusetts district attorney who charged him with disorderly conduct.
Jason Robo, a 26-year-old political science major and student activist, spoke Monday from Boston, where he has been since his arrest last week.
On July 31, Robo was formally charged with disorderly conduct by the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office. The charges stemmed from Robo's alleged misconduct on a Salt Lake City-bound plane as it was docked at a Logan International Airport gate, forcing the evacuation of the airplane and a three hour flight delay.
”I think that this atmosphere of fear is completely unwarranted,” Robo said. “It was not the passengers of the plane that were concerned. These reactions clearly illustrate how vastly things can be blown out of proportion.”
According to information from the District Attorney's Office, Robo allegedly affixed a sticker reading “9/11 was an inside job! PrisonPlanet.com,” inside the airplane lavatory. Additional stickers were found in the airplane and inside the airport terminal, the office reported.
The office also reported Robo was wearing a T-shirt depicting George W. Bush and Adolph Hitler, which Robo said reads, “Orwellian doublespeak.”
neither admitted nor denied placing the stickers onboard the plane, but he said “in this country, there's a nonviolent tradition of civil disobedience. We're really not told the truth about 9/11. There's a moral imperative to get that message out.”
After the sticker was found, Robo said the captain announced over the intercom there would be a delay while airport staff inspected the luggage. A second sweep was conducted, which was followed by an evacuation of the cabin.
The District Attorney's Office reported Robo “charged off the plane after telling a flight attendant, 'I have to get off this plane right now.'” Robo said that never happened.
”I did not run off the plane,” he said. “They asked everybody to get off the plane. There was no running.”
While authorities swept the plane with bomb-sniffing dogs, Robo said he returned to the terminal. Robo said he arranged for a room at a nearby hotel, and went to claim his luggage when he was arrested.
Following his arrest, the Suffolk County District Attorney's Office reported Robo said the stickers were “just a joke.” However, Robo said he was misquoted, and was actually referring to his treatment.
”I referred to the process of my rights being violated,” Robo said. “I wasn't told what charges there were or what grounds I was being arrested on.”
A former HSU student legislative vice president, Robo ran for student body president in 2008, but was removed from the ballot after he was placed on disciplinary probation. Robo also participates in and leads a number of social activist clubs, including NORML -- a marijuana law reform club, and the 9/11 Truth Movement.
Robo was released from jail Thursday, but he said he is now waiting for his Aug. 19 pretrial court date. He faces three charges of interfering with aircraft operation, disorderly conduct and disorderly conduct on a public conveyance.
The Suffolk County district attorney and a Logan airport spokesperson were unavailable for comment Monday.
”After my pretrial I'm going to come back and do my semester,” Robo said. “I look forward to a positive outcome.”
Sean Garmire can be reached at 441-0514 or sgarmire@times-standard.com.
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In his own words
August 4, 2008
Jason Robo tells Alex Jones his side of the story.
http://www.radiodujour.com/people/robo_jason/
Also...more details in this radio interview...
I Like Robo. Sharp, sane, above average guy! And he stands up for 9/11 Truth!
Listen to this interview."Boston911Truth" posted this radio interview on the previous thread. Many details are explained. http://khum.streamguys.us/John_Matthews_KSLG-Jason_Robo080108.mp3
When you watch him on TV or listen to the interview which I posted, he sounds like a guy I want to call a friend. He sounds like a great guy! I admire the hell out of him. He handles himself well. They just targeted him. I think it all started from one stewardess who was a gossipy, paranoid, schizo, thin-lipped bitch. She probably escalated the whole scenario.
Robo issued a statement: http://www.911blogger.com/node/16936#comment-193895
Go Robo!
As an activist here's the spotlight ! Sharpen your focus and shed some light on the truth brother. This guy needs all our support. Tee shirts and stickers are part of free speech! There was no threat in the message he was sending with his tee shirt or the alleged stickers. The real threat is in the media and corporate message not to speak out ! Don't rock the boat, or put stickers on the boat, Don't Talk On The Boat !
I want to encourage people to put out signs, wear shirts, etc.!!
I want to encourage people to put out signs, wear shirts, freeway blog, hit the streets, post flyers, handout DVDs, and continue more now than ever to spread the news, to repeat the message of 9/11 Truth.
REALIZE THAT THIS DISTORTION OF FACTS BY MAINSTREAM MEDIA in the Robo case IS AN ATTEMPT TO SUPPRESS ALTERNATIVE MEDIA & 9/11 TRUTH.... ...It is an effort by the mainstream to damper our efforts to spread the message of 9/11 Truth. -- Fight back. -- Put out more messages of 9/11 Truth. --
Keep putting out the message. By now, I have personally posted more than 1,000 stake signs and posters. I always have to look at the potential consequences, and what price am I willing to pay. A few months ago, I was finally caught staking signs near roadways and the highways. I was issued a citation, because it violated local municipal sign codes enforced by the Building Inspections Dept. It cost $167. I was aware from the get-go that this was a potentiality. But...over the weekend 100's of thousands of drivers COULD NOT MISS these signs for 9/11 Truth as they drove down the freeways and roadways and neighborhoods. I thought that I got a great deal on the cost of advertising. ;) I am ready to do it again. You can see just a few dozen from past efforts in this video... http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ZpH453BTUJk
[For those who have reservations, compare corporations who may intentionally pollute or violate certain regulations, knowing that they will be paying a fine. They pay the fines gladly because it is a cost-benefit.]
What is the price of freedom? Are we willing to pay it?
Robo needs to Gogo...
Just another adolescent playing in one of the most adult games of our lives.
People who call themselves activists should view the film "Sir! No Sir" and see why the Vietnam War really ended. This will allow them to then see how the HI PERPS have led the activist community to continue to betray and nuetralize itself through ill thought out, incredibly inefficient, highly ignored, and, in this and many other such cases, simply foolish childlike actions.
This behavior by Robo shows actions serving an obvious narccissistic short term "high" for Robo. Sadly, it creates a longer term systemic low for the community in which this fellow claims he is part of. The amount of time and energy that his behavior has taken from REAL 9/11 Truth activists is such a waste.
With activists like this, we do not even need any opposition.
It is now 2008, and it is not 1968...and such last century tactics need to be discarded.
If we need to do some CD...we will know the time, the place, and how to do it. In the meantime, its 1000% better to be civil, respectful and thoughtful in public.
So, how many airplane bathroom goers do you think that YOUNG Mr. Robo has convinced about the veracity and worthiness of 9/11 Truth?
This young man has very little wisdom and poor judgement, and those who celebrate this action and this fellow's behavior are serving the HI PERP's goals.
In the same time period where we get Steve Jones and Kevin Ryan published in very credible publications, we have to spend time on Robo's immaturity...AND
...it gives the corporate media an opportunity to BURY the Jones-Ryan accomplishments, and to highlight Robo's GOON SQUAD ANTICS!
Congratulations...cointelpro could not ask for anything better...a movement ruining itself from within along with the hearty cheers of others in the movement who are celebrating narccissism that serves ONLY to destroy the host movement. A movement that takes its strengths and buries them, and takes its weaknesses and highlights them. What the F___! You just gotta be kidding me here...
So, here is the choice down the road:
...more of Jones'-Ryan's [et al] accomplishments in the future...versus
...more of Robo's types of antics...
Robo has gotta Gogo...along with anyone else's beliefs that such activity is a positive.
The 9/11 Truth Movement is maturing along with most of the activists and members, but this is not the case for Robo and his supporters.
We can, will and need to do much better than Robo...
Robin Hordon
Give this guy a break.
We can't all be professor Jones. This guy is standing up for the truth and is not afraid to confront our new police state. The sixties actually reflected a time of more activism with 100's of thousands going into the streets and SDS and the weatherman, the black panthers, the pentagon papers. Plenty of evidence and experts have outlined the JFK, RFK,MLK, assassinations but where is the Justice? I think now that he has the spotlight he could use some first class coaching on how to use it to the best possible advantage.
I respectfully disagree
Sorry Robin, but I think you are completely wrong on this one.
I think everyone should do everything in their power to get the word out, whether it is a sticker here or there, or a scientific paper in a peer reviewed journal. Your message of outrage serves only to chill future activities from those who want to get the word out but don't have the credentials of a university instructor.
It is strange and kinda sad to see this kind of elitist attitude when it come to 9/11 activism, and its one of those things that makes me to blurt out "who the hell do you think you are, anyway?" It is reminiscent of those misguided Daily-Kos-type progressives out their who say "we shouldn't focus on 9/11 activism because it is a waste of time and a distraction from all the REAL crimes of the Bush administration". Disappointing to say the least.
I'm so sick of activists telling other activists that their particular activism is The Only Way and anyone who disagrees is acting with "poor judgment", "serving the HI PERP's goals" and has got to "gogo".
Put more stickers on airplanes. Put them everywhere else too! Every little action counts. Don't be afraid of the mainstream media's spin machine and how it might make the movement look, or nay-sayer, know-it-all-activists from within the movement who tell you that exercising your right to free speech is "childlike" and "narccissistic".
More power to you Jason. Nice work on the newspaper quotes and Alex Jones interview. Keep doing what your doing and don't take any crap from these swine!
No Stickers on Planes from me, I agree with Robin
Admittedly there was an overreaction and Robo's account that all passengers were asked to leave and he didn't run off may be correct; but how does the uproar that resulted over this get people to look at 9/11 questions and evidence? The media coverage, for the most part, has portrayed him as a selfish, irresponsible whacko, right in line with the way the MSM has been painting truth activists.
Planes will always be associated with terrorism, and many media have equated truthers with terrorists- why give them fuel for the fire? Do we have a "right" to deface private property with stickers? This doesn't seem like a free speech issue. There's many places stickers can be put that won't cause a reaction like this, and many ways to get out the truth besides stickers. Talking to people in the carbon world and blogging are the reason the movement has grown so large.
9/11 Family Steering Committee Review of the 9/11 Commission Report:
http://911truth.org/images/resources/Family%20Steering%20Cmte%20review%2...
Complete 9/11 Timeline
http://cooperativeresearch.org/project.jsp?project=911_project
Swine?
I think not.
you are not swine Robin
Sorry Robin
Re-reading my comment, I realize it sounds a little harsh at the end. Sometimes I get a little carried away with the Hunter S. Thompson-esq language. I wasn't meaning to insult you in any way. Please forgive my brashness and insensitivity.
Thought On How To Gift Truth
I would suggest courage, civility and sensitivity.
I remember the sickening impact of my own 'first awakening'. It's not something I would wish upon travelling airline passengers.
I also prefer to give out materials which offer more than the '9/11 - Inside Job' statement. Questions, transcribed interviews, scholars' papers. I place these in environments which are 'reading-friendly' and I give them to people who express interest, following a polite, no-pressure introduction.
yeah, i remember the night i saw Loose Change
i was skeptical at first, but watching the towers come down while suspending my belief in the OCT did it for me. I finished watching it, stunned and numb, and was paranoid for a week.
Whenever i stop to buy gas with declining dollars, i always stick a Deception Dollar or 11 Remarkable Facts card somewhere on the pump, there's usually cracks that hold them
9/11 Family Steering Committee Review of the 9/11 Commission Report:
http://911truth.org/images/resources/Family%20Steering%20Cmte%20review%2...
Complete 9/11 Timeline
http://cooperativeresearch.org/project.jsp?project=911_project