Summary. This is the true account of a pseudonymous blogger from Whitewater, Wisconsin who became the target of public officials’ months-long witch-hunt, to learn his identity using public resources, on public time. I am that blogger. My name is John Adams, and I am the pseudonymous author of FREE WHITEWATER, a local website with commentary on life in Whitewater, Wisconsin. My website is published almost every day at www.freewhitewater.com.
Although my story may seem incredible, I have obtained the public records to confirm these events under the provisions of Wisconsin’s Public Records Law, Wis. Stats. 19.31 — 19.39. I sought these public records after fair-minded residents warned me that public officials might be working, with considerable zeal, during public time, in public facilities, on hunting through the community to determine my identity.
Who am I, by the way? That depends on whom you ask. These public officials describe me one way; I would describe myself in another. I blog about municipal affairs, and other topics, as a libertarian, and my website has sometimes been critical of certain police practices and actions, and government planning. Most of all, I have hoped for a better leadership for our police force for our city, and I know that one day we will have just that.
The real message of my site, though, is an uplifting one: the greatness of the American promise of individual liberty and the liberating power of free markets. I have been fortunate to grow up libertarian, am religious, have celebrated the joy of a citizen’s life, offered photos of beautiful spots in my town, cheered public accomplishments, offered classic American animation, and even what’s great about HP calculators!
In the end, I’m just a common man, like so many others — citizen, resident, property-owner, husband, and parent. Bloggers are from all walks of life, across the political spectrum, and are, I think, just modern-day pamphleteers.
Plan. In each subsequent post, I will reveal results of my public records request, link to the actual PDF files I obtained, and then offer comments.
When. When does Witch-Hunting a Blogger in Whitewater, Wisconsin begin? Right now.
Next Up on Monday, March 3rd at 8:07 AM CST: Part 2, “The Police Chief Recruits a Computer Sleuth.”