This is a repost of something we wrote before last year’s Burn. Has anything changed since then? Well, we’ve had a big K9 bust of what seemed to be some relatively sizeable dealers. We heard about other, bigger ones, but don’t have enough confirmed evidence to write about it. A teenage girl went missing, shutting down the entire city so no-one could leave – luckily, she was found later. We had a high profile rape, also of an underage girl. In addition, politically in the last year we’ve had Burning Man suing local law enforcement, going around them to the State legislature and Capitol Hill, with the outcome seeming like they’ve been put in their place with wowser teetotaller Burner-hating Pershing County now seeming to be quite firmly in control and with a budget shortfall. We have Burning Man people taking on wealthy and powerful Wild West locals, with first a lawsuit, and then a strange luxury houseboat sinking. And just recently, we also have a mysterious death on our hands from the local area, involving a director of one of the Burning Man nebula of companies.
Does all this mean the cops this year are going to be much nicer to Burners, than in the past? Maybe the local judge and sheriff love losing lawsuits, and not getting the money they put their hands out for. Maybe their attitude will be “it’s no big deal, we tried and we lost, since we work in the justice system, let’s change our minds and be positive towards anyone from this party that sued us”. Or maybe their attitude could be “we lost, we didn’t get the money, so we’re gonna make it back in fines“. Or maybe, they could be petty and vindictive: “they sued us, so now we’re going to punish them as hard as we can”. Make your own judgement. Of course, justice is blind, and there is no such thing as corruption, bias, or opinion. “The law says you’re not allowed to have corruption!”
I know that you Burners are conscientious and would never dream of breaking the law, but discretion is the better part of valor. California marijuana prescriptions are not recognized in Nevada, and being caught with ANY type of drugs in a moving vehicle is considered to be felony narcotics trafficking out there. Just sayin’…
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Inspired by Papa Swan’s brilliant idea, here’s some advice from Burners.Me, to the “new-bees” and veteran Burners alike. Make sure you read the official Burning Man guide to dealing with Law Enforcement at Burning Man.
The BLM, DEA, NDI, FBI, and all kinds of other bored agents have been running stings with underage snitches spies trying to bust
The worst thing about Nevada’s “statutory sexual seduction” law is that in most cases the Court will order the convicted perpetrator to be listed on the Sex Offenders Registry, for “any kind of penetration” – including digital and oral – regardless of whether or not it’s consensual. Ignorance is no excuse in the eyes of the law, and neither is consent or “she lied about her age”. If you’re over 21 then they’ll throw the book at you for being a pedophile.
And I don’t want to be a party pooper, but be safe people! Beware of Burning Clam! Unprotected sex with strangers in an environment like that is just plain stupid. Get that jimmy hat on, check their ID, and chiggady-check yo’self before yo wriggady-wreck yo’self!
The fine for serving alcohol to a minor is $1100+ – not to mention that getting caught committing any kind of crime on these Federal lands, might then open you up to “probable cause” that might lead to a search of your person, tent or RV, or maybe even
If anyone asks you if you have any drugs at Burning Man, tell them to fuck off.
Being careful is always a good idea. Watch your drinks at all times, and don’t let anyone spike them. There are plenty of free drinks handed out at Burning Man, and 99% of them are fine, but still…don’t accept anything from either a friend or a stranger, without asking exactly what it is in it. If you’re not sure, just do a little bit and see how you go. Drink a lot of water, and if you’re new to all this, make sure you know where your camp is, where the bathrooms are, and how/where you can find medical help if you or anyone else ever needs it.
If you have a wayward partner, you might find this a useful hi-tech bondage accessory.
Burning Man has a 911 channel but the only way to reach it is if you have a MURS walkie talkie. This does not work on the standard ones. It’s only $70 bucks, make sure someone in your camp has one and everyone knows where it is and how to use it. Keep the MURS spectrum free for serious emergencies, and use the more common FRS channel for general communications. The MURS walkie talkie is longer range but kind of bulky and clunky, the FRS ones can be quite small and cute, and easily attach to your bike or person with a belt clip. You might want to consider one with a neoprene holster and an earbud.
Your entry fee provides medical insurance. And some of the best doctors in the country are at Burning Man. Still, if anything happens, Reno is a long way away – by helicopter, or if it’s not quite that serious, a really long way for an injured person by road.
Don’t let this post freak you out too much, I’m just warning you to take precautions, don’t be careless. Burning Man is great, it’s crazy, everyone is having a good time, there are all kinds of stranger dangers and adventures and fun experiences to be had. Just be aware that not everyone is on your side, it is a city of 60,000 people, be mindful of what could go wrong. You ain’t in Kansas no more! All kinds of shit is going down, everywhere, all the time. Burn on!