During a television interview, a Grafton resident accused the Free Towners of “trying to cram freedom down our throats.” The libertarians circulated the quote widely, scoffing at the illogical notion that freedom could ever be seen as a negative. Though the accusation might have been seen as an early sign of trouble, most Free Towners still assumed that the tax-phobic Graftonites would treat them as liberators and political brothers. Condon was among the many organizers who expected that “the people of Grafton would welcome us with open arms.”
