Friday, September 26, 2008
Not a Region 7 candidate, but . . . awesome Libertarian!
For those of you who don't know, Libertarian Mike Munger is running for Governor in North Carolina.
He has had an incredible battle; getting ballot access and getting the statists to take him seriously.
And this week, Dr. Mike Munger, chair of the Political Science Department and appointed to both the Economics and Public Policy departments at Duke University, got into the debates.
Dr. Munger is appealing to Democrats and an editorial in the News & Observer said "Munger offered some interesting and in some cases commendable views -- allowing illegal immigrants to study at state community colleges (McCrory and Perdue oppose that), calling financial incentives for corporations "economic prostitution" and saying he's opposed to the death penalty. Of course, the Libertarian philosophy generally is one of minimal government and maximum individual choice."
A nice bio of Dr. Munger . . .
Archived papers and podcasts
His blog, Rights of Man
So the message is . . . sometimes, the good guys do win . . . battles, if not the war. And Dr. Munger may surprise us and win the war.
Thank you for putting Your Time, Your Treasure, and Your Sacred Honor on the line, Mike . . .
Check USA Today!
From ID State Chair Rob Oates -
Today's (9/26/08) USA Today (Fri, Sat, Sun edition) has a story on page 6 about the Libertarian Party of Idaho and Libertarian presidential candidate Bob Barr. There are quotes from Chairman Rob and national convention delegates Harry McKinster and Dylon Starry and a nice picture of Dylon at the University of Idaho.
It's rare for Idaho to be mentioned by the national media and almost unheard of for the Libertarian Party of Idaho to merit a (almost) half-page story. The reporter called me a couple of weeks ago to get the ball rolling.
I certainly recommend the print edition, but the story is online, if that works better for you.
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
Jumpin' on the Gravy Train?
It's the best job I've ever had. Travel 3-4 times a year, staying in nice hotels, opportunities for vacation each time . . . and I didn't even have to fill out a job application.
NOT!
I'm from the Seattle area, Washington State. When I got to Denver for convention in May, I found out that we weren't part of a region, and didn't have any representation on the LNC.
Some preliminary attempts to put together a region that was made up of Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Hawai'i, and the remainder of California's membership had been made, but nothing was final. California is large enough to have one representative of their own, and a large number of members left over.
California made some demands that were unacceptable to the smaller states, and the deadline for region formation was fast approaching. Washington's State Chair hadn't arrived yet - there were tornadoes in the area, and many flights were late. After hours of back-and-forth, back-and-forth, I thought that we had things all negotiated, when California decided that they were not going to relent on one point that was totally unacceptable to the smaller states. It was 3pm, and the deadline for filing the papers was 5pm.
At just about this point, Florida pulled out of the SE Region, and requested that we join with them. Bravo! Region 7 was born.
That's how I got here.
Now for the gravy train . . . When I first considered doing this, my husband and I talked about it. See, I don't work at a job, so I have time, but I don't make large decisions all on my own. I am married, and I like it that way.
My Hugs' response? "Go for it, babe! If you want this, we'll do it, and I'll support you completely."
Hugs knows that total support is not just money, it's listening to me complain and moan, putting up with me laying awake at night, thoughts racing, checking eMail or writing notes. It's laughing when I'm bouncing off the walls excited about LPWA's newsletter, or attaining ballot access in Washington.
I went to my first meeting after the convention, to find out that we'll have meetings in DC (Sept '08), San Diego in December, and Charleston in the Spring of '09. Cool.
So, the first meeting in DC - let's start with the cost - $600 for plane tickets (I have to take Hugs, it's his birthday!), and another $600 for hotel. Of course, there are all the incidental costs - food, internet access ($10/day!), parking at SeaTac, etc.
The meeting is contentious; thoroughly unpleasant, for the most part. There are
some good parts, too. Afghanistan Resolution passes, small birthday party with a friend, getting to know some fellow Committee members.
Travel home is a nightmare - 4 hour delay in Newark due to weather, then Continental Airlines loaded a plane clear full, and made us sit at the gate for ANOTHER 4 HOURS! No crew. Loaded us by mistake, not enough intestinal fortitude to say "We're sorry, there's going to be a delay. Let's unload, and have a snack."
Then 45 minutes or so standing on line to take off. Runways were backed up. 5 hours with tired, cranky passengers (especially me!) and crew. We finally arrive at SeaTac, and wait to pull up to the gate. You'd think that when an airline knows a plane is coming in, they'd go move one of those planes that is waiting for morning, huh? (Remember, I said this was Continental.)
A 5 hour flight has now taken over 13 hours, and we have been traveling for about 18 hours.
Now, I'm not complaining (well, I am complaining about the airline - that's Continental!), but there seems to be the perception that LNC members get all kinds of perks. Yep, we did - a "continental breakfast" grabbed as we went into meeting on Saturday and Sunday. Yoghurt, fruit for Hugs, coffee for both of us. (I'm a double dipper - about 3 cups/morning for me!) Oh, and more coffee mid-afternoon.
And there was that $50 person fundraiser that we went to Saturday night. WooHoo! Yeah, we paid $50 each to go. But Hugs drank 2 glasses of wine, and I took my wine to our room. For the birthday party. :o) Which we drank with a flourless chocolate cake and whipped cream.
Okay, to summarize, we spent approximately $1400.00. We travelled for 28 hours, spent 20 hours in a meeting room with with a bunch of other unhappy people.
Best job I've ever had. :o)
NOT!
I'm from the Seattle area, Washington State. When I got to Denver for convention in May, I found out that we weren't part of a region, and didn't have any representation on the LNC.
Some preliminary attempts to put together a region that was made up of Washington, Idaho, Oregon, Hawai'i, and the remainder of California's membership had been made, but nothing was final. California is large enough to have one representative of their own, and a large number of members left over.
California made some demands that were unacceptable to the smaller states, and the deadline for region formation was fast approaching. Washington's State Chair hadn't arrived yet - there were tornadoes in the area, and many flights were late. After hours of back-and-forth, back-and-forth, I thought that we had things all negotiated, when California decided that they were not going to relent on one point that was totally unacceptable to the smaller states. It was 3pm, and the deadline for filing the papers was 5pm.
At just about this point, Florida pulled out of the SE Region, and requested that we join with them. Bravo! Region 7 was born.
That's how I got here.
Now for the gravy train . . . When I first considered doing this, my husband and I talked about it. See, I don't work at a job, so I have time, but I don't make large decisions all on my own. I am married, and I like it that way.
My Hugs' response? "Go for it, babe! If you want this, we'll do it, and I'll support you completely."
Hugs knows that total support is not just money, it's listening to me complain and moan, putting up with me laying awake at night, thoughts racing, checking eMail or writing notes. It's laughing when I'm bouncing off the walls excited about LPWA's newsletter, or attaining ballot access in Washington.
I went to my first meeting after the convention, to find out that we'll have meetings in DC (Sept '08), San Diego in December, and Charleston in the Spring of '09. Cool.
So, the first meeting in DC - let's start with the cost - $600 for plane tickets (I have to take Hugs, it's his birthday!), and another $600 for hotel. Of course, there are all the incidental costs - food, internet access ($10/day!), parking at SeaTac, etc.
The meeting is contentious; thoroughly unpleasant, for the most part. There are
some good parts, too. Afghanistan Resolution passes, small birthday party with a friend, getting to know some fellow Committee members.
Travel home is a nightmare - 4 hour delay in Newark due to weather, then Continental Airlines loaded a plane clear full, and made us sit at the gate for ANOTHER 4 HOURS! No crew. Loaded us by mistake, not enough intestinal fortitude to say "We're sorry, there's going to be a delay. Let's unload, and have a snack."
Then 45 minutes or so standing on line to take off. Runways were backed up. 5 hours with tired, cranky passengers (especially me!) and crew. We finally arrive at SeaTac, and wait to pull up to the gate. You'd think that when an airline knows a plane is coming in, they'd go move one of those planes that is waiting for morning, huh? (Remember, I said this was Continental.)
A 5 hour flight has now taken over 13 hours, and we have been traveling for about 18 hours.
Now, I'm not complaining (well, I am complaining about the airline - that's Continental!), but there seems to be the perception that LNC members get all kinds of perks. Yep, we did - a "continental breakfast" grabbed as we went into meeting on Saturday and Sunday. Yoghurt, fruit for Hugs, coffee for both of us. (I'm a double dipper - about 3 cups/morning for me!) Oh, and more coffee mid-afternoon.
And there was that $50 person fundraiser that we went to Saturday night. WooHoo! Yeah, we paid $50 each to go. But Hugs drank 2 glasses of wine, and I took my wine to our room. For the birthday party. :o) Which we drank with a flourless chocolate cake and whipped cream.
Okay, to summarize, we spent approximately $1400.00. We travelled for 28 hours, spent 20 hours in a meeting room with with a bunch of other unhappy people.
Best job I've ever had. :o)
Sunday, September 21, 2008
Internet recruiter . . . :o)
This morning, I received this note. It was written by a young man who is not a member of the party, but a "natural born" libertarian; he was raised by two. It was forwarded by his Dad, who is understandably proud.
____________.:snip:._____________
But here, dad, I got good info for you... I think I'm making libertarians on Quizilla. I published a quiz on there called "What Political Party Are You?"
The quiz asked questions to get personality traits of people so I could associate them either with being democrats, republicans, or libertarians. Each answer, had an explanation of what each party represented. I explained how democrats were never happy and always wanted to change something or enact a new law, how republicans feared change and just wanted to leave things as they are (with them in control), and how libertarians just wanted the government to have less power, and to stay out of other people's business. Almost immediately after posting this quiz, this asian girl sends me a message telling me that my description of a libertarian sounded just like her, and that she's happy to know what political party she is now, and says she's "a proud libertarian or whatever you called it." - her words.
Friday, September 19, 2008
Action Item: Open the Debates!
Dear Open Debates Supporters:
The Commission on Presidential Debates, which was created by the
Republican and Democratic parties, still refuses to make public the
contract negotiated by the Obama and McCain campaigns that will
govern our presidential debates. This lack of transparency is
unacceptable. It is time to take action.
Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) of the McCain campaign and
Representative Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) of the Obama campaign directly
negotiated the secret contract that will dictate the terms of the
upcoming presidential debates.
PLEASE CALL the offices of Sen. Graham and Rep. Emanuel and demand
that they make public the debate contract. They are elected
officials who are obligated to serve the interests of the voting
public:
Phone number of the Office of Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC):
202-224-5972
Phone number of the Office of Rahm Emanuel (D-IL): 202-225-4061
Also, PLEASE CALL the Commission on Presidential Debates and demand
that it makes public the debate contract. The Commission claims
that its mission is to “provide the best possible information to
viewers and listeners.” Hold them accountable to their mission.
Phone number of the Commission on Presidential Debates: 202-872-1020
Please let us know what happens.
Open Debates is teaming up with nine other pro-democracy
organizations to issue the following press release today demanding
the release of the debate contract:
http://www.opendebates.org/makecontractpublic.html
Additionally, you can hear Open Debates Executive Director George
Farah on the radio show “CounterSpin” at the following link:
http://www.fair.org/index.php?page=3610
Thank you for all your support!
-- Open Debates Team
The Commission on Presidential Debates, which was created by the
Republican and Democratic parties, still refuses to make public the
contract negotiated by the Obama and McCain campaigns that will
govern our presidential debates. This lack of transparency is
unacceptable. It is time to take action.
Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC) of the McCain campaign and
Representative Rahm Emanuel (D-IL) of the Obama campaign directly
negotiated the secret contract that will dictate the terms of the
upcoming presidential debates.
PLEASE CALL the offices of Sen. Graham and Rep. Emanuel and demand
that they make public the debate contract. They are elected
officials who are obligated to serve the interests of the voting
public:
Phone number of the Office of Senator Lindsay Graham (R-SC):
202-224-5972
Phone number of the Office of Rahm Emanuel (D-IL): 202-225-4061
Also, PLEASE CALL the Commission on Presidential Debates and demand
that it makes public the debate contract. The Commission claims
that its mission is to “provide the best possible information to
viewers and listeners.” Hold them accountable to their mission.
Phone number of the Commission on Presidential Debates: 202-872-1020
Please let us know what happens.
Open Debates is teaming up with nine other pro-democracy
organizations to issue the following press release today demanding
the release of the debate contract:
http://www.opendebates.org/
Additionally, you can hear Open Debates Executive Director George
Farah on the radio show “CounterSpin” at the following link:
http://www.fair.org/index.php?
Thank you for all your support!
-- Open Debates Team
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Important Ballot access case in Texas - Barr leads!
For those who haven't seen today's campaign eMail - it appears below, in its entirety.
Why did I post it here?
Because Richard Shepard, who is the litigation "Election God" (OK, he's a damn fine attorney, and an expert in election law!), says . . .
"Whatever else anyone may think of Barr, this is the one truly great thing he is doing for third parties of all persuasions."
And that's why . . . he is doing some good.
____________.:snip:._____________
Dear Rachel,
Just moments ago, Bob Barr and our campaign manager, Russ Verney, stood on the steps of the Supreme Court of Texas to rally a crowd of supporters and answer questions from the media.
Today, we filed an emergency stay to prevent the Texas Secretary of State from printing ballots until after our case was decided.
For a quick recap, earlier this week we filed a lawsuit to remove both John McCain and Barack Obama from the Texas ballot. Texas election code §192.031 requires that the "written certification" of the "party's nominees" be delivered "before 5 p.m. of the 70th day before election day" and both candidates missed that deadline.
When this story first broke, the New York Times , took a jab at us saying that if our campaign prevailed in Texas, the action may, "thoroughly alarm foreign investors."
This morning, political pundits beholden to the status quo got a bit more serious. In a scathing hit piece published by CQ Politics, Craig Crawford wrote that Bob is in Texas "promoting a bogus claim that John McCain and Barack Obama should not be on the state ballot in November."
Sorry, Craig, but you might want to do your homework the next time before you put pen to paper.
When we missed our deadline in West Virginia (a month before Republicans and Democrats were required to file I might add), we were forced off of the ballot. The law is clear and belonging to the Republican or Democrat party does not exempt you from its rule.
Politically biased members of the media are going to move into position and recite talking points that read "BOGUS" each time they are given the opportunity to do so. They'll also be sure to throw in a few other stretches of the imagination or bits of misinformation to smear our candidate and our Libertarian Party.
At this time, we need to simply acknowledge that the attacks will continue. They will be designed to discredit our efforts and demoralize our base.
If you're reading this right now, I doubt you're feeling demoralized. If you're like me, you're ready to do all that you can to fight a clearly corrupt system.
Today our fight is in the Texas legal system.
The first thing that we need is funds to fight this battle We've already incurred tens of thousands of dollars on this effort and we expect the costs to climb.
Please make a donation today and give us BOTH a financial and morale boost we so need.
Thank you for all that you do.
In Liberty,
Shane Cory
Deputy Campaign Manager
Bob Barr for President
To donate by mail:
Barr 2008 Presidential Committee
P.O. Box 725007
Atlanta, GA 31139
To donate by phone:
Call 1-800-Bob-Barr
Paid for by Barr 2008 Presidential Committee.
Federal law requires us to report the name, address, and name of employer and occupation for any individual whose aggregate contributions total over $200 in a calendar year. Corporate contributions and gifts from foreign nationals are prohibited. Personal Credit Card gifts only. Contributions are not tax deductible for income tax purposes. Limit of $2,300 per person per election and $4,600 per couple if signed by both parties and drawn on a jointly held bank account.
Wednesday, September 17, 2008
Bob Barr Files Suit in Texas to Remove McCain, Obama from Ballot
Atlanta, GA – Bob Barr, the Libertarian Party's nominee for president, has filed a lawsuit in Texas demanding Senators John McCain and Barack Obama be removed from the ballot after they missed the official filing deadline.
"The seriousness of this issue is self-evident," the lawsuit states. "The hubris of the major parties has risen to such a level that they do not believe that the election laws of the State of Texas apply to them."
Texas election code §192.031 requires that the “written certification” of the “party’s nominees” be delivered “before 5 p.m. of the 70th day before election day.” Because neither candidate had been nominated by the official filing deadline, the Barr campaign argues it was impossible for the candidates to file under state law.
Find the rest of the story . . . here.
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