Posted on 09/14/2003 5:12:59 AM PDT by csvset
Housemates say suspect is not a terrorist
By JANNISE JOHNSON
STAFF WRITER
Saturday, September 13, 2003 -
POMONA — The garden of the Regenerative Co-Operative of Pomona is in what Kathe Todd-Brown calls typical summer disarray.
Some of the herbs are overgrown, the banana trees hang low with fruit nearly ready for harvest and a few of the ornamentals need to be cut back.
But there was more disarray Saturday, both inside the co-op and within the minds of those who dwell there.
Authorities arrested their housemate, Joshua Thomas Connole, early Friday morning in connection with last month's $1 million vandalism and arson attack on SUVs at a West Covina auto dealership.
Authorities say Connole is an environmental terrorist. Co-op members say he's an environmental activist and peace protester and described him in more benign terms.
"He's just a goofball," Todd-Brown said with a grin. "They're accusing him of something that's completely out of character. Here he is charged with arson, and it's just not Josh."
Connole, a solar-panel installer, was part of a social experiment started in 1999 by William Korthof, who trained in regenerative studies at Cal Poly Pomona and wanted to continue to live in a communal setting after he graduated, Todd-Brown said.
He purchased the three houses that comprise the cooperative with money he earned from his solar energy business.
Co-op members tend to be recycled out regularly because many of them are students, Todd-Brown said as she gave a brief tour of the Craftsman house at the corner of Alvarado Street and Bradford Avenue Saturday afternoon.
The cooperative - or Regen 5 as it's often called - is a loose-knit group of students, former students and others who agree to live together in an environmentally responsible way, said Jessie Dowling.
Group members pay rent, and take turns cooking one large vegetarian meal per week where a vegan option must be available. Vegans are vegetarians who abstain from dairy and eggs as well as from wearing leather.
Co-op members are a peaceful group, Dowling said. They fix up old bicycles, use electric vehicles to get around as much as possible and feed the homeless at area parks on a regular basis.
Dowling, a house member since July 2002, said the 15 members all pursue different activist interests. Some, she said, aren't activists at all.
For example, one woman is an environmental activist who has been involved in some nonviolent tree-sitting protests. Another house member, Helena Koelle, has an interest in vegan activism. Dowling has attended some anti-war demonstrations but said her main interest lies in what is known as perma culture. Perma culture advocates attempt to design living spaces that are suitable to the environment they're in. For instance, she said, if you live in a desert area, it makes more sense to design the landscape with plants that are drought resistant rather than with tropical plants that require frequent watering.
That way of life includes using alternative energy methods and alternative fuels whenever possible, she said. Her own car "died" on her some time ago and she's not mourning its demise.
Now, she borrows one of the electric vehicles which are open to all co-op members' use or she uses a bicycle to run errands.
Other co-op members are either new to activism, or not activists at all, she explained.
Members are chosen to live at the co-op after filling out an application and going through an interview. Any member chosen must agree to live in a communal setting and be as environmentally conscious as possible. For instance, the whole house is run on solar energy, Todd-Brown said.
Their diets are as eclectic as their interests, Todd-Brown said. There are vegans, vegetarians and the more mainstream meat eaters who live in the three houses, she said. Todd-Brown, a math major at Harvey Mudd, eats meat but said no meat is allowed in the house.
Members also contribute $15 per week which enables the co-op to buy food.
By Saturday afternoon, house members were busy trying to recover psychologically from the previous night's activity, and figure out what to do next to help Connole.
Todd-Brown surveyed her room and another of the bedrooms upstairs hours after the FBI had searched and removed several items, including all of the computer towers and data storage.
Authorities didn't tear the rooms up, she said, but it was still an invasion of house members' privacy.
"It could have been worse," Todd-Brown said. "But it's discouraging."
Jannise Johnson can be reached at jannise.johnson@dailybulletin.com or by phone at (909) 483-9318.
"He's just a goofball," Todd-Brown said with a grin. "They're accusing him of something that's completely out of character. Here he is charged with arson, and it's just not Josh."
Geez, Louise! Anyone who would protest peace would Shirley be in character smoking out someone's Hummers and Tahoes.
Well, at least they agree.
Wow! Cutting edge stuff there.
Roger. We have Clarence.
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