In Newport Beach you can be arrested for standing on the side-walk. Yes it’s true. Loitering on the sidewalk is illegal. You can be arrested for taking your beer from your patio out on the sidewalk 6 feet over and to your neighbor’s patio. You can be arrested for singing with an acoustic guitar on your patio. It’s ridiculous.
The role of the police should be to protect and serve. To protect and serve the taxpaying residents in their jurisdiction. Not to harrass and levy fines! Last 4th of July my house party got shut down 3 times. The first time was at 2 in the afternoon! Do we need policing of an event that draws 50,000 people? Absolutley. But what they should be looking for is people that are vandalizing, people that are fighting or beligerent, people that are peeing in someone’s front lawn. They shouldn’t be breaking up a peaceful gathering of 50 people socializing, drinking and dancing. This is America. We are supposed to be a free country. You should be free to do whatever you want as long as it doesn’t encrouch on someone else’s freedom. Should I be able to have a party go until 3AM with music and guests outside on my patio? No. Because some of my neighbors would probably like to sleep. And I would be encroaching on their freedom to get a good nights rest. But there is no justification for the cops breaking up a party at 2 in the afternoon. See the difference?
There is a law in Newport beach that requires a bar/restaruant/club to have a license for dancing and if you don’t have one it’s illegal to dance. ILLEGAL TO DANCE! How absurd is that? As far as I can tell they aren’t giving out any of these licenses. Buzz club is shut down. Aysia 101 is now a restaurant and on several occasions the cops have come into El Ranchito and shut the whole place down because there was “illegal dancing.” Does anyone else think this is wrong??? STOP CRIMINALIZING FUN! Stop making unconstitutional laws that encroach on my right to have a good time. Should I be able to go 100 on the freeway? No. Why? Because I might hurt someone else. But what is the rationale behing a no-dancing ordinance? For more on this check out www.freenewport.com. This is an awesome website. I urge the residents of West Newport to GET INVOLVED. Do something. They’ve made too much of daily life illegal already.
