From: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com (roc-digest) To: roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Subject: roc-digest V2 #424 Reply-To: roc-digest Sender: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Errors-To: owner-roc-digest@lists.xmission.com Precedence: bulk roc-digest Sunday, February 11 2001 Volume 02 : Number 424 ---------------------------------------------------------------------- Date: Sat, 10 Feb 01 01:22:34 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: Want Your Country Back?] (fwd) On Feb 09, Charles C. Carter wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] Great article: Begin recruiting pro-Constitution candidates for 2002. Go to your county voter registrar's office and obtain the list of open non-partisan and partisan public positions coming up and fill all of them. JUST DO IT!!!!! From: "quixote" Subject: Want Your Country Back? Date: Fri, 9 Feb 2001 13:47:11 -0800 Want Your Country Back? Here's A Start... by Darrel Mulloy An Internet Publication for Real Americans Last Roundup: 02/07/2001 Want Your Country Back? Here's A Start Action Speaks Much Louder Than Words By Darrel Mulloy - Published: 02.07.01 It appears that it is our fate, the fate of the American people, to be turned from citizens into subjects. Subtle changes in the way we are governed are taking place daily, and day by day we lose some of the freedoms that for so many years were taken for granted. While we are not directly cut off from these freedoms, we are incrementally losing them anyway. The sad thing is that we seem powerless to do anything about those changes. Affluence builds complacency, and today we are for the most part an affluent society, with most households the proud owners of at least two cars, multiple television sets, at least one computer, microwaves, electronic games of some sort, all of the food we could want, at the drop of a hat, and multiple other creature comforts that our parents and grandparents would have thought were only attainable by the very richest in our society. We are fat, comfortable, and complacent! We have the ability to take long vacations, buy expensive toys, and find many other diversions to take us away from the reality that will inevitably face us, and there appears to be nothing we can do to stop that inevitability. We read a lot of material on the internet, written by those of us that have deep concerns about the doom we are facing if we don't find a way to turn things around, but for the most part, we are too disorganized to make the necessary changes, and too complacent to really care all that much. After all, life is good, isn't it? As a young man, a boy actually, I could walk into a store that sold guns, and if I had the money, buy one. The proprietor of that store was pretty sure that I was going to use that gun for hunting or target practice, as the thought of a boy buying a gun to use against his fellow schoolmates was unheard of. Also unheard of was the use of drugs like Ritalin or Prozac to keep those same schoolchildren sedate and controllable. The thing that kept us controllable was that paddle hanging in the principal's office, and it didn't usually take more than one visit to that office to change your attitude and your deportment. That paddle got your attention. Today a principal would probably be hauled off to jail for even having such an item in his office, let alone using it. I raised seven children, and for the most part they are pretty good citizens today. I think the occasional spanking they got for doing wrong is the reason that they are. Today's children who have an average attention span and are products of either dysfunctional homes or are in single parent upbringings are not offered the tough love that we used to get form our schoolteachers. Such an offer by a teacher would more than likely get them tossed out of their jobs. It is unfortunate that today most parents feel that creature comforts, toys and games are more important than giving children the kind of upbringing that I had the luxury of getting. The students of today are the citizens and legislators of tomorrow. Sadly, there are too few of those students that are getting the needed education to fulfill those roles. Indoctrination has taken the place of education, and feeling is taking the place of knowing, self-esteem is more important that individual responsibility. Today's graduates are leaving school with too little knowledge and too much indoctrination, and are perfect pawns for the use of those that want to change us into a socialist government. The recent presidential election has demonstrated to us how evenly we are divided as a nation, half believing in constitutional principles and the other half more than willing to accept socialism. Subtle changes have occurred over the years that have caused a change in the basic thinking of the American people. Today a fruit fly has more importance than the farmer whose land it lives on, trees are not God's gift to us for lumber and furniture, and the oil in the ground is not supposed to be taken from that ground for the use of man. Coal is bad, nature is good. Land is meant to be seen but not owned by man. Guns are only supposed to be in the hands of the military and police personnel, and it is wrong for the average citizen to own one, let alone carry one. Such thinking would have gotten one tossed into the loony bin about fifty years ago, but today it seems to be the prevalent way to think. While there are those of us that recognize that the change is happening, there appears to be nothing we can do about it. Sure, we write columns about it, email our associates and friends, and accept email and news updates from all sorts of sources we never had before the World Wide Web, but we are doing nothing. It is easy to write to our congressperson complaining about some upcoming legislation, and it is just as easy for them to write back, thanking you for your concern, but they are not doing anything to satisfy our concerns. Few, if any, of them understand their role in office, and even fewer understand the Constitution, their own job description. Few of us understand the role of local government, including those in local government. Until local governments understand their role in this whole picture, effective change will not be made. If a governor of a state and his legislature told the federal government that they had no claim on land in their states, and that they had no control over how a farmer or rancher in his state did his business, the federal government would have to allow the state to control all concerns within that state. Unfortunately, most of those we elect to our local governments, from small town government, county government, big city and state government, are either afraid or do not know that they have this authority. Probably the most important person you can elect in your local government is your county sheriff. Unknown to most who are serving as sheriffs in their respective counties, they have authority over any other law enforcement agency in the country, within their county. The Tenth U.S. District Court has declared that no law enforcement agency may do business within a county without first getting clearance from the sheriff of that county (2:96-cv-099-J). They still do, but only because we have sheriffs that either are ignorant of that ruling, or just don't care. There are a few, and too damn few, sheriffs that do have knowledge of that ruling and who do care, and in their counties there are no illegal intrusions by federal forces. To make the changes that we know have to be made, we must first elect to office those that understand this important ruling, and are willing to and have enough backbone to enforce the law in their counties. Dave Mattis in Bighorn County Wyoming was instrumental in getting this ruling passed, and in his county, he is the law, over all other law. Richard Mack in Arizona, also knows his role and duty under this ruling. In Colorado, we have a Libertarian sheriff in San Miguel County Bill Masters, that, while he may not be aware of that ruling, enforces the law there as if he was. Sheriff Masters says that if he had his way the slogan on the side of each police car in America would be "Liberty, Responsibility, and Community". It seems that too many are willing to give up their liberty, fail to accept responsibility, and lack the sense of community. Once we have elected sheriffs who understand that the federal government cannot intrude in their counties, and those sheriffs educate their county commissioners and the town boards in their counties, it won't be long before the state governments will follow and we can have our country back. Look around your community. Find someone who is willing to run for sheriff that is also willing to enforce his authority over those branches of government that would take your liberty and property away from you. It is up to us to make the change, and not by emailing our congressmen or writing letters to the editor, but by getting those that understand their job descriptions (The Constitution) elected, first to local positions, and if they prove satisfactory, to federal offices. Some may not be suited to the higher offices, and it is at the local level that we must weed them out, as when they get to the national level, it seems to be too late. I'm not suggesting that you stop writing to your congressmen, but that is not the only responsibility we have as citizens. Follow through by electing those that are willing to serve and who are willing to enforce the Constitution. www.SierraTimes.com All Sierra Times [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 22:13:31 -0600 From: larry ball Subject: [Fwd: Gun Show Loophole] This is a multi-part message in MIME format. - --------------02E14510C0F869B1F3B2771C Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit - --------------02E14510C0F869B1F3B2771C Content-Type: message/rfc822 Content-Transfer-Encoding: 7bit Content-Disposition: inline Received: by pigeon (mbox lball) (with Cubic Circle's cucipop (v1.22 1998/04/11) Sat Feb 10 18:36:28 2001) X-From_: majordom@mainstream.net Sat Feb 10 16:58:34 2001 Return-Path: Received: from fs1.mainstream.net (fs1.mainstream.net [206.97.102.4]) by pigeon.inebraska.com (8.9.3/8.9.3) with ESMTP id QAA13132 for ; Sat, 10 Feb 2001 16:58:33 -0600 (CST) Received: (from majordom@localhost) by fs1.mainstream.net (8.9.3/8.9.3) id RAA07513; Sat, 10 Feb 2001 17:56:20 -0500 (EST) Message-Id: <200102102256.RAA07513@fs1.mainstream.net> Date: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 14:56:14 -0800 (PST) From: Donald Blackburn To: Multiple-Recipients-noban@mainstream.net Subject: Gun Show Loophole Content-Type: text/plain; charset=us-ascii MIME-Version: 1.0 Precedence: bulk Reply-To: noban@mainstream.net X-Divvy-no: 1 X-Mozilla-Status2: 00000000 Ceasfire, NRA, CCRK&B, and WAC have been secretly plotting a compromise gunshow background check. They planned to have a "done deal" to spring on gun owners. We would, and will be told that we can't win and if we don't cave Ceasefire will start an Initiative and they have $2,000,000 to spend on it. Well, let them spend it. If we cave on this they will just save the money and hit us with background checks for all private gun sales and worse. In a few days I will try to put together an e-mail list of the House Judiciary Committee members, our two Washington NRA Directors and a few others. Don't show them any mercy. Attached is a copy of the news release. Don Blackburn "LIVE FREE OR DIE, DEATH IS NOT THE WORST OF EVILS" Delicate talks progressing on gun show loophole bill By HUNTER T. GEORGE The Associated Press 2/8/01 10:10 PM OLYMPIA (AP) -- After weeks of delicate negotiations, key lawmakers say the gun lobby and advocates for gun control may be on the verge of an agreement to close the so-called gun-show loophole. Reps. Chris Hurst, D-Enumclaw, and Mike Carrell, R-Lakewood, have been serving as mediators as representatives of the National Rifle Association and other gun-rights organizations negotiate with Washington Ceasefire, the state's leading advocate for gun control, over a proposal to require buyer background checks at gun shows. The groups still face thorny disputes over record-keeping, fees and how quickly the checks must be performed. But some participants are feeling optimistic, particularly in light of voter-approved initiatives in other states and a shared goal of public safety. "The NRA doesn't want guns in the hands of criminals any more than Ceasefire does," Hurst said Thursday. "What's holding this together is a recognition that the issue must be dealt with and that if the Legislature does not deal with it, there will be an initiative. "And I don't think that benefits anyone." Hurst, a police detective, predicted a deal could be struck within a couple of weeks. Carrell was more guarded. Calling himself "cautiously optimistic," he expressed disappointment that details of the talks were leaked to media organizations this week. "I've got something going here that could disappear in the blink of an eye," said Carrell, co-chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. "All a story like this will do is force people to harden their positions." Indeed, two of the main participants took minor shots at each other in interviews Thursday. Bruce Gryniewski, executive director of Seattle-based Washington Ceasefire, said the gun lobby is "backpedaling big time" following voter-approval of initiatives in Oregon and Colorado requiring background checks before sales at gun shows. Alan Gottlieb, executive director of the Bellevue-based Citizens Committee for the Right to Keep and Bear Arms, said Gryniewski walked away from the table last year just as the two sides were reaching agreement on another raging battle -- whether to hold adults liable for failing to safely store guns out of reach of children. "If we end up agreeing on a bill, I'll be shocked if Ceasefire goes along with it," Gottlieb said, adding "I hope they prove me wrong." Still, all of the parties agreed that negotiations have been conducted in good faith. Carrell noted that all of the participating groups have to walk a fine line with their respective memberships, which may explain the tough talk in public. According to various participants, there are four main issues to resolve: the time limit for performing a background check, whether the state or federal government conducts the check, whether the government keeps any record of gun sales and who pays for the checks. Record-keeping could be the biggest problem. Ceasefire wants local law enforcers to keep records of background checks, and the state to keep some kind of "tracking number" that would allow authorities to identify the history of guns found at crime scenes. Gottlieb said the gun lobby will insist that all records be destroyed. "We want to do everything we can to keep criminals from buying guns at gun shows, while at the same time not putting gun shows out of business and respecting people's rights and privacy," Gottlieb said. Other participants include the Gun Owners Action League, Washington Arms Collectors, the Washington State Patrol and organizations representing rank-and-file police officers and state troopers. - - __________________________________________________ Do You Yahoo!? Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail - only $35 a year! http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ - - To unsubscribe, send a message to majordomo@mainstream.net, and as the body of the message (plain text, no HTML), send the following: unsubscribe noban email-address where email-address is the address under which you are subscribed. Report problems to owner-noban@mainstream.net - --------------02E14510C0F869B1F3B2771C-- - - ------------------------------ Date: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 22:43:10 -0800 From: boyd Subject: Re: [Fwd: Gun Show Loophole] This was previously covered in the Seattle Post Intelligencer, and the negotiations have been at public hearings. So, what part of it is "secret" "plotting" again? Boyd Kneeland larry ball wrote: > > ------------------------------------------------------------------------ > > Subject: Gun Show Loophole > Date: Sat, 10 Feb 2001 14:56:14 -0800 (PST) > From: Donald Blackburn > Reply-To: noban@mainstream.net > To: Multiple-Recipients-noban@mainstream.net > > Ceasfire, NRA, CCRK&B, and WAC have been secretly > plotting a compromise gunshow background check. They > planned to have a "done deal" to spring on gun owners. > We would, and will be told that we can't win and if > we don't cave Ceasefire will start an Initiative and > they have $2,000,000 to spend on it. Well, let them > spend it. If we cave on this they will just save the > money and hit us with background checks for all > private gun sales and worse. In a few days I will try > to put together an e-mail list of the House Judiciary > Committee members, our two Washington NRA Directors > and a few others. Don't show them any mercy. > > Attached is a copy of the news release. > > Don Blackburn > > "LIVE FREE OR DIE, DEATH IS NOT THE WORST OF EVILS" > > Delicate talks progressing on gun show loophole bill > By HUNTER T. GEORGE > The Associated Press > 2/8/01 10:10 PM > OLYMPIA (AP) -- After weeks of delicate negotiations, > key lawmakers say the gun lobby and advocates for gun > control may be on the verge of an agreement to close > the so-called gun-show loophole. > Reps. Chris Hurst, D-Enumclaw, and Mike Carrell, > R-Lakewood, have been serving as mediators as > representatives of the National Rifle Association and > other gun-rights organizations negotiate with > Washington Ceasefire, the state's leading advocate for > gun control, over a proposal to require buyer > background checks at gun shows. > The groups still face thorny disputes over > record-keeping, fees and how quickly the checks must > be performed. But some participants are feeling > optimistic, particularly in light of voter-approved > initiatives in other states and a shared goal of > public safety. > "The NRA doesn't want guns in the hands of criminals > any more than Ceasefire does," Hurst said Thursday. > "What's holding this together is a recognition that > the issue must be dealt with and that if the > Legislature does not deal with it, there will be an > initiative. > "And I don't think that benefits anyone." > Hurst, a police detective, predicted a deal could be > struck within a couple of weeks. > Carrell was more guarded. Calling himself "cautiously > optimistic," he expressed disappointment that details > of the talks were leaked to media organizations this > week. > "I've got something going here that could disappear in > the blink of an eye," said Carrell, co-chairman of the > House Judiciary Committee. "All a story like this will > do is force people to harden their positions." > Indeed, two of the main participants took minor shots > at each other in interviews Thursday. > Bruce Gryniewski, executive director of Seattle-based > Washington Ceasefire, said the gun lobby is > "backpedaling big time" following voter-approval of > initiatives in Oregon and Colorado requiring > background checks before sales at gun shows. > Alan Gottlieb, executive director of the > Bellevue-based Citizens Committee for the Right to > Keep and Bear Arms, said Gryniewski walked away from > the table last year just as the two sides were > reaching agreement on another raging battle -- whether > to hold adults liable for failing to safely store guns > out of reach of children. > "If we end up agreeing on a bill, I'll be shocked if > Ceasefire goes along with it," Gottlieb said, adding > "I hope they prove me wrong." > Still, all of the parties agreed that negotiations > have been conducted in good faith. Carrell noted that > all of the participating groups have to walk a fine > line with their respective memberships, which may > explain the tough talk in public. > According to various participants, there are four main > issues to resolve: the time limit for performing a > background check, whether the state or federal > government conducts the check, whether the government > keeps any record of gun sales and who pays for the > checks. > Record-keeping could be the biggest problem. > Ceasefire wants local law enforcers to keep records of > background checks, and the state to keep some kind of > "tracking number" that would allow authorities to > identify the history of guns found at crime scenes. > Gottlieb said the gun lobby will insist that all > records be destroyed. > "We want to do everything we can to keep criminals > from buying guns at gun shows, while at the same time > not putting gun shows out of business and respecting > people's rights and privacy," Gottlieb said. > Other participants include the Gun Owners Action > League, Washington Arms Collectors, the Washington > State Patrol and organizations representing > rank-and-file police officers and state troopers. > - > > __________________________________________________ > Do You Yahoo!? > Get personalized email addresses from Yahoo! Mail - only $35 > a year! http://personal.mail.yahoo.com/ > - > To unsubscribe, send a message to majordomo@mainstream.net, and as the > body of the message (plain text, no HTML), send the following: > unsubscribe noban email-address > where email-address is the address under which you are subscribed. > Report problems to owner-noban@mainstream.net - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Feb 01 11:33:57 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: Freedom (fwd) On Feb 10, Dennis Justice wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] Friends, Pass this on to those you know who just-don't-get-it. Um, if you are one of the ones who doesn't get it.......read it again...... =================== Jon Galt wrote: LAND OF THE FREE? BY Winston Smith None are so hopelessly enslaved as those who falsely believe that they are free . Free people do not fear their servants, they FIRE them! Free people are not punished for praying. Free people are not forced to ride busses. Free people do not have compulsory education. - ----Johann W. von Gothe Free people do not have dictionaries revised to fool them. Free people do not have minimum wage laws. Freedom is the absence of legislation Free people do not have maximum price laws. - ----Merrill Jenkins, Monetary Realist Free people do not have legal tender laws. Freedom and legal tender are incompatible. Free people do not have compulsory unemployment compensation. Free people are not compelled to pay overtime premiums. Free people are not compelled to join labor unions. Free people are not forced to give union benefits to non union workers. Free people are not forced to fight phony wars that they are forbidden to win. Free people are not controlled with medicated drinking water. Free people are not compelled to take lethal vaccinations. Free people are not punished for discriminating. Free people are not incited to discriminate. Free people do not have to feed and finance their enemies. Free people do not have enemies created to justify taxation. Free people are not forced to surrender their gold to government. Free people do not have an FDIC (Fraudulent Deceptive Instillers of Confidence) Free people do not have their uninflatable silver confiscated under any pretext.. Free people do not have economists confusing them about inflation Free people do not have inflation! (bank credit). Free people do not labor for strips of paper that the first users get for nothing. Free people do not fear ANY of their servants including the IRS or others. Will YOU dare ask the IRS to define dollar or income ? Free people are not intimidated to waive their God-given rights on 1040 forms. Free people are not tried by intimidated judges. Free people do not fear jail more than they fear death on the highways. Free people are not jailed for upholding and defending their Constitution. Free people are not jailed for obeying Exodus 23:1 or God s other laws. Free people do not have propaganda machines that would have make Hitler blush. Free people do not have state controlled press, schools or churches. Free people are not punished for owning guns. Free people are not conditioned by the press, and schools to oppose freedom. If you controlled 250 million heavily armed slaves with legal tender, credit, fear, lies, illusions, disease and amusements that inhibit serious thinking, would you stand on a platform and snap a whip at them or would you remain anonymous and hidden as you seek disarming them while highly rewarded slaves on radio and on TV entertained them with laaaand of the freeee and hooome of the braaave? [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Feb 01 11:33:08 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: GUN SHOW STINGS (fwd) On Feb 11, Joe Waldron wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] Given the current interest in gun shows and gun show legislation, I would suggest you visit the below sites for information about what is occurring in Arizona. Do you think that Washington is any different? Or that we don't have any BATF agents with time on their hands up here? Just to sorta put things into context. JW http://www.azcentral.com/news/0211guncover11.html http://www.azcentral.com/gunmain11.html [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ Date: Sun, 11 Feb 01 14:13:41 PST From: roc@xpresso.seaslug.org (Bill Vance) Subject: THE WAY WE SEE IT - NATIONAL SECTION (fwd) On Feb 11, APLsauce@aol.com wrote: [-------------------- text of forwarded message follows --------------------] GRASSROOTS ALLIANCE presents THE WAY WE SEE IT NATIONAL SECTION shep shepardson, editor email address aplsauce@AOL.com, 2/12/01 Tel. 727 943 2438 ================================= Political Activists aren t fighting the system, they are fighting those in office who are corrupting an important inherited system.... - --Shep Shepardson ==================================== "It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires in people's minds...." - --Samuel Adams ================================== "It is not the function of our Government to keep the citizen from falling into error; it is the function of the citizen to keep the Government from falling into error." ~American Communications Association v. Douds, 339 U.S. 382, 442 ==================================== "The accumulation of all powers legislative, executive and judiciary in the same hands . . . may justly be pronounced the very definition of tyranny." - James Madison, Federalist 47 ==================================== "Those who expect to reap the blessings of freedom must, like men, undergo the fatigue of supporting it." --Thomas Paine ==================================== Do You Have Too Much Freedom? by Harry Browne Many people are trying to figure out where George Bush is coming from. On the one hand, he seems to stand up for conservatives by backing John Ashcroft and trying to subsidize religious charities -- but on the other hand, he's proposing to expand federal control over local schools, push the government further into health care, and even expand Bill Clinton's AmeriCorps program. Dana Milbank of _The Washington Post_ says that these seemingly contradictory policies are actually consistent. According to Milbank, Bush is ignoring the old labels of "left and right" and embracing "the movement known as 'communitarianism,' which places the importance of society ahead of the unfettered rights of the individual." (I'll bet you didn't realize how "unfettered" your rights have been lately.) On January 31, Milbank wrote: (http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/articles/A10634-2001Jan31.html) on WorldNetDaily.com at "Communitarian-ism," or "civil society" thinking (the two have similar meanings) has many interpretations, but at its center is a notion that years of celebrating individual freedom have weakened the bonds of community and that the rights of the individual must be balanced against the interests of society as a whole. Inherent in the philosophy is a return to values and morality, which, the school of thought believes, can best be fostered by community organizations. . . . Bush's inaugural address, said George Washington University professor Amitai Etzioni, a communitarian thinker, "was a communitarian text," full of words like "civility," "responsibility" and "community." . . . Bush has recruited some of the leading thinkers of the "civil society," or "communitarian," movements to his White House . . . " Communitarianism seems to look good on the surface: decisions will be made for the good of the community. But, in fact, like any government-based philosophy it is a sham. Communities Don't Make Decisions Communities don't think, don't believe, don't want, don't have needs, don't have interests, and don't make decisions. Only individuals have minds that generate desires and needs -- and only individuals can make choices and decisions. Because "society" doesn't make decisions, the issue isn't a case of balancing individual rights against the interests of society. The question is: will you make the decisions that control your life or will someone else impose his way upon you? That someone else won't be the community or society, it will be whoever seizes the power to run the community. By subsidizing "faith-based" charities, for example, George Bush isn't acting on behalf of the community. He's confiscating your earnings and giving it to the charities that please him and his political associates. He may do it in the name of society, compassion, community, or Snickers bars. But it is simply raw political power -- the same kind exercised by Bill Clinton and all his predecessors, preempting your right to use the money you earn in the way _you_ think best. The communitarians may say you've been enjoying too much individual freedom, and that you must give up some of that for the benefit of the community. But they really mean that they want more power over your life -- to force you to subsidize, obey, and conform to _their_ choices. Let's Look at True Freedom And the idea that you have too much freedom is really laughable. Are you enjoying unfettered individualism when, according to the U.S. Census Bureau, 47% of the national income is diverted to federal, state, and local taxes? How free are you when the politicians impose their choices on your life in whatever way they want -- unrestrained by the limits written in the Constitution? What would a society that truly honors individual freedom be like -- a society in which the government is chained down by the Constitution? Let me paint a picture for you. In a Libertarian America . . . * You will pay no income tax -- because a government limited by the Constitution would be small enough to get by on today's tariffs and excise taxes. Your annual take-home pay should be thousands of dollars larger than it is now. * You no longer will be forced to pay 15% of your income to a fraudulent retirement scheme like Social Security. Every dollar you earn will be yours - -- to spend, to save, or to give away as you see fit. You might arrange to have your employer automatically deposit 5% or some other nominal amount of your paycheck into a bank savings account or other retirement plan -- and come out many times better off than with Social Security. * In the absence of drug laws, drug users will buy their drugs inexpensively and safely from pharmaceutical companies, putting the criminal drug gangs out of business. The nightmare of Prohibition will finally be over. * No one will interfere in any way with your right to defend yourself. Whether or not you choose to own a gun, your neighborhood will be much safer because criminals will have no way to know which residents are armed. * Health care will be much more accessible and much less expensive. Insurance will be available to virtually everyone, at much lower cost than is the case today. Charity hospitals and free clinics will proliferate. Hospital stays will be far less expensive, and most doctors will make house calls. (How do I know this would be the case? Because that's the way it was in America before the federal government took over health care in the 1960s.) * Your person and property will be safe from intrusive searches and seizures. No longer will government agents paw through your bank records or monitor your email, looking for suspicious activities. Your personal life will belong to you and no one else. * There will be those who will use their freedom to act irresponsibly. But you will be free to protect yourself from their actions -- far more easily than you can today. And companies will be free to offer all sorts of ways by which you can insulate yourself from the irresponsibility of others. You can choose for yourself who's best qualified to help you, and you can choose to dismiss anyone who doesn't live up to his promises. A Libertarian society of unfettered individualism spreads its benefits to virtually everyone -- not just those who have the resources to seize political power. Time to Bring Back "Unfettered Rights" :Government control -- whether it's called "communitarianism," "compassionate conservatism," "liberalism," or anything else -- means someone else has the power to run your life. Since no one but you can know what's best for you, government control can't make your life better. It confiscates what you've earned, reduces your welfare, subjects you to regulations designed for the worst-case person, and gives power and wealth to whoever has the most political influence. No, we aren't living in an age of "unfettered individualism." We're living in an era of big government.That's too bad, because freedom benefits everyone -- except for the few people who are hell-bent on running your life for you. Harry Browne was the 2000 Libertarian presidential candidate. More of his articles can be read at http://www.HarryBrowne.org, and his books are available at http://www.HBBooks.com CauseNET The Common Cause Email Alert Network http://www.commoncause.org Friday, Feb. 9, 2001 In this email alert: - - New Soft Money Numbers - - Live Webcast of Chicago Town Hall - - Archived Webcast of Little Rock Town Hall NEW SOFT MONEY NUMBERS The Democratic and Republican national party committees raised a record $463,123,755 in soft money from January 1, 1999 through December 31, 2000, according to a Common Cause analysis released today. Democrats raised $219.3 million in soft money, while Republicans raised $243.8 million. The $463.1 million raised during the 1999-2000 election cycle was nearly double the $235.9 million raised during the 1995-1996 election cycle, the last comparable presidential election period, according to the study. The complete study is online at: http://commoncause.org/publications/feb01/020701st.htm LIVE WEBCAST OF CHICAGO TOWN HALL MEETING This Monday, Americans For Reform is holding the second in a series of town hall meetings nationwide to discuss landmark campaign finance reform legislation with hundreds of Chicago area residents. A live webcast of the event will be available. For more information, see: http://www.americans4reform.com/townhallil.htm Participants include: * U.S. Senators John McCain and Russell Feingold * Common Cause President Scott Harshbarger * Committee for Economic Development President Charlie Kolb * Senator Dick Durbin (D-IL) * Representative Mark Kirk (R-IL) ARCHIVED WEBCAST OF LITTLE ROCK TOWN HALL An archived webcast of last week's Town Hall meeting in Little Rock, AR, is now available. Senators John McCain & Russ Feingold led a discussion with Little Rock residents on campaign finance reform: http://www.americans4reform.com/townhallar.htm [------------------------- end of forwarded message ------------------------] - -- - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- RKBA! ***** Blessings On Thee, Oh Israel! ***** RKBA! - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- An _EFFECTIVE_ | Insured | All matter is vibration. | Let he who hath no weapon in every | by COLT; | -- Max Plank | weapon sell his hand = Freedom | DIAL | In the beginning was the | garment and buy a on every side! | 1911-A1. | word. -- The Bible | sword.--Jesus Christ - ----------------+----------+--------------------------+--------------------- Constitutional Government is dead, LONG LIVE THE CONSTITUTION!!!!! - ---------------------------------------------------------------------------- - - ------------------------------ End of roc-digest V2 #424 *************************