A post on an indymedia website says activist Joshua Kinberg — inventor of a wireless, bike-mounted, dot-matrix printer for spraying protest messages in the street — was arrested yesterday at the RNC in NYC. At the time, he was reportedly being interviewed by Ron Reagan, covering the convention for MNSBC.
Kinberg's invention allows users to spray messages transmitted to the bike-printer by way of the 'Net or SMS. They're painted in a water-soluble chalk solution that washes away with water (not spray-paint, as misreported elsewhere). Link to indymedia post, Link to previous BB post about Bikes Against Bush, Link to August 02 Wired News story with background on Kinberg's invention, Link to yesterday's NYT piece on Bikes Against Bush, and link to a torrent identified as video coverage of the incident, via DV Guide. (Thanks, Patricia and el norm)
Update: BoingBoing reader Paul says, "It seems he didn't even get a chance to use his invention, save the demonstration for MSNBC which resulted in his arrest. Snip from report: "When Kinberg showed the police sergeant how the bicycle used a non-permanent spray chalk, the sergeant seemed to agree that it wasn't defacement, at which point Kinberg asked, 'Am I free to go?' After conferring about it, officers decided to call superiors, then came back moments later to place Kinberg under arrest and confiscate the bicycle."
And BB reader yatta says, "Joshua was released at 11:00 AM Sunday morning after being charged with vandalism. His bicycle, laptop, and cell phone have all been confiscated and are being held until his court hearing. A lawyer from the National Lawyer Guild believes that the case is a clear violation of the first amendment (Houston v. Hill). In the meantime, the likelihood of his getting the bike back to use during the RNC is pretty much nil. (The court date has been set for Friday, 9/3, after the RNC ends.) Link to details."
Reader Mike Harris says, "The New York Post is reporting that it was spray paint, instead of a water-soluble chalk mixture. Users might want to ask that they correct their reporting. The online edition/news editor's name is Chris Shaw, at cshaw@nypost.com."
