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Liberator Online, Volume 7, Number 01
January 8, 2002
In This Issue:
ID and register every human being on earth,
politician says;
"Star Trek" star is now a libertarian freedom fighter; Stop
the presses -- politician tells the truth; It's 2002 -- why
isn't America drug-free like the Republicans pledged?; Mary
Ruwart tells how the Drug War kills more people than the
drugs themselves, discusses the pros and cons of a national
sales tax, and buckles down to discuss seat belts; Michael
Cloud tells us why we need "Political DMZ's"...
All this and *much much more* in the world's
largest-circulation libertarian email newsletter...
THE LIBERATOR ONLINE
January 8, 2002
Vol. 7, No. 1
Circulation: 52,489 in 101 countries
Published by the Advocates for Self-Government.
Created and edited by Paul Schmidt, mailto:paul@self-gov.org
Co-edited by James W. Harris, mailto:james@self-gov.org
_____________________________________________________________
"Thank you, Advocates, for your great tools!
They make life
easier for all of us!"
-- Ben Steele III, Chair, Libertarian Party of
Shiawassee County, Michigan
_____________________________________________________________
CONTENTS
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
* Some suggestions for a New Year of liberty
WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE ADVOCATES
* Advocates in Libertarian Party News
...and much more!
GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS, UNBELIEVABLE NEWS
* "Star Trek" star is now a libertarian
freedom-fighter
* Politician tells the truth
* Worldwide ID scheme proposed
* How the Republicans didn't make America drug-free
* "Mind-Altering Drugs..."
ASK DR. RUWART
* Does the War on Drugs really kill more people
than illegal
drugs do?
* Do libertarians support a national sales tax?
* Aren't seatbelt laws justified because they save the lives
of non-drivers?
PERSUASION POWER POINT #115
* Do We Need Political DMZs?
by Michael Cloud
PRODUCT REVIEW
* Help the Advocates -- and get GREAT gifts!
_____________________________________________________________
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
Dear friends,
Welcome to our first issue of 2002!
I'm so delighted to have you -- someone who cares
enough
about liberty to want to do something about it -- as a
reader!
It's a new year, and a time for new beginnings,
new goals,
new commitments, new achievements.
As you consider the roles you will play for
liberty in 2002,
please remember that the Advocates exists to offer you
opportunities to do serious, important and effective work for
liberty.
Please consider adding any (or all) of the
following to your
2002 goals.
* Become a 2002 Lights of Liberty winner: You do
this by
writing 3 letters, giving 3 speeches, or doing 3 OPH booths
in a calendar year. Take the message of liberty to the world
-- and win awards and thanks from your fellow libertarians!
Details here: http://www.self-gov.org/lights/.
* Participate in Discover Liberty: We're at the
half-way
point in this ambitious and acclaimed Advocates effort to
discover thousands of new libertarians and take the ideas of
liberty to hundreds of thousands of Americans --
face-to-face. Six months to go -- and we need YOUR help to
make this a success! Details here:
http://www.DiscoverLiberty.org.
* Share the Liberator Online with a
liberty-minded friend: If
you know someone who'd appreciate and benefit from this
publication, please email them this issue, and include a
short personal note recommending it. Tell them they can
subscribe -- for free -- at:
http://www.self-gov.org/liberator/maintain.html.
* Become a more powerful, more persuasive
libertarian
communicator: Request a free copy of our magazine The
Libertarian Communicator -- just send us your mailing address
and we'll send you a sample. And order Michael Cloud's
acclaimed "Essence of Political Persuasion" 3-tape audio
course at our give-away price of $7.50 postpaid:
http://www.reliablehost.com/self-gov/persuasion.html.
* Publicize the online World's Smallest Political
Quiz: Our
world-famous interactive online Quiz has opened the eyes of
millions of people. You can be one of the people who help
take it to millions more. Please consider creating an email
signature (most email programs make it easy to do this)
recommending the Quiz -- a simple, no-cost, effortless way to
bring enlightenment to others. (If every Liberator Online
subscriber sent just ONE email signature per day, that would
be about 20 MILLION Quiz recommendations per year! Wow!)
* Carry Quizzes with you: The card version of the
World's
Smallest Political Quiz is *the single most popular outreach
tool in the libertarian movement* -- a wonderful eye-opener
and mind-changer. I never go anywhere without Quizzes.
Perfect for pockets, wallets, purses, dashboards...You can
see the different models and order them here:
http://www.reliablehost.com/self-gov/outreach.html.
* Publicize Discover Liberty, Lights of Liberty,
the Quiz and
other Advocates outreach programs and tools in your
libertarian organization. Your local and state libertarian
organizations, mailing lists, newsletters, and meetings are
all great places to tell fellow libertarians about the
Advocates programs and tools that can help them become more
effective and find more members and supporters. Most
libertarian newsletter editors are delighted to get a short
article or letter describing them. You can cut and paste info
from this column and other Advocates publications. The
Advocates is all about making outreach easy, fun, and
effective -- let your fellow libertarians know what we're
doing that you like.
* Support the Advocates financially if you are
able: We rely
upon the support of generous friends of liberty to help keep
these and other Advocates programs freely available for the
libertarian movement. And your support is especially needed
during this time of political turmoil and economic slowdown.
See my "PS" just below for more details - or see the "Product
Review" section at the end of this issue.
* * *
That's quite a list -- and it doesn't begin to
scratch the
surface! I hope you've found one or more projects here to
help you in your goal of spreading the good news of liberty
this year.
I'm proud to be associated with an organization
that offers
so much for liberty.
And again, I'm *delighted* to have you onboard as
a Liberator
Online reader -- someone who wants to see a freer, more
abundant, more peaceful world.
In the coming months we'll share some exciting
NEW ways to
make libertarian outreach even more effective. We have great
things planned.
Let's get to work!
Thank you, and enjoy this issue of the Liberator
Online.
Sharon Harris, President mailto:sharon@TheAdvocates.org
PS: A free magazine subscription. A great-looking
Statue of
Liberty mouse pad -- with an intriguing libertarian message.
A classic book on liberty that will give you a lifetime of
inspiration and pleasure.
These are our "thank-you" gifts for
supporting the Advocates
with your financial donation.
Every donation of any size is greatly
appreciated. Your help
is especially needed now, during this time of crisis and
financial slowdown.
More details are in our "Product
Review" section at the end
of this issue.
Or, if you want to contribute right now -- and
learn more
(including pictures) about the "thank-you" gifts we're
offering you, you can go here now:
http://www.theAdvocates.org/Jan2002Donor.html ).
<A Href=http://www.theAdvocates.org/Jan2002Donor.html>
AOL
users click here</A>
Thank you for caring about the Advocates!
_____________________________________________________________
WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE
ADVOCATES
* Advocates in LP News: The Advocates
"Lights of Liberty"
activist award program was the subject of an excellent
article in the January 2002 Libertarian Party News, the fine
newspaper of America's third-largest political party. (For
more on those awards -- and to see if you or someone you know
has qualified -- see just below.) That same issue also
featured a great photo of a Washington State OPH booth in
action -- part of the Advocates' Discovery Liberty outreach
program. (You can learn more about that exciting project in
the paragraph below.) Thanks, LP News!
ONGOING ACTIVITIES AND
OPPORTUNITIES
* Discover Liberty: The Advocates' new Discover
Liberty
program is the biggest-ever one-on-one libertarian outreach
effort! It's designed to take the message of liberty to
500,000 people in 12 months -- by doing OPH booths in all 50
states. See how your home state is doing, see how the program
is doing nationally, and -- most importantly -- see how *you*
can take part! Exciting graphics and full details at:
http://www.DiscoverLiberty.org
* FREE "Libertarian Clips": Libertarian
Clips is a daily (or
weekly, if you prefer) clipping service that brings you news
stories from around the world that use the words
"libertarian" or "libertarianism." See what libertarians are
doing, and see how the media is using those words. It's FREE,
and subscribing is a snap. Just click here:
http://www.self-gov.org/clips/
* FREE Year 2002 Lights of Liberty Awards: You
can win
certificates, public recognition, prizes and more for your
vital activism for liberty. Awards are given for: 3
libertarian letters to the editor; OR 3 sessions working at
an OPH booth; OR 3 libertarian-oriented public speeches.
Click here http://www.self-gov.org/lights/ to learn more.
* Libertarian Communicator published: The second
issue of our
print magazine, The Libertarian Communicator, has been mailed
to 20,000 libertarians interested in becoming more powerful,
more effective, more successful communicators of the ideas of
liberty. This issue features articles by some of the finest
communicators in the libertarian movement: David Bergland,
Bob Burg, Michael Cloud, Mary Ruwart, Sharon Harris... as
well as additional articles, columns, and more! We'll be
happy to send you a FREE copy of The Libertarian Communicator
-- just click here: http://www.self-gov.org/newmag.html
* Communication Bargain of the Century: You can
get the great
3-tape audio course "The Essence of Political Persuasion"
from us at the GIVE-AWAY price of only $7.50 - that price
includes handling and First Class mail so you'll get it right
away! Libertarian Party Political Director Ron Crickenberger
says this Advocates offer is "... the greatest gift the
libertarian movement has received in years." We've put over
6,000 sets into the hands of libertarian activists in the
past couple of years! To order, call us or see:
http://www.reliablehost.com/self-gov/persuasion.html
* Quiz FAQ: Who created the World's Smallest
Political Quiz?
When and where? What does your Quiz score mean? The Advocates
has created a huge FAQ ("Frequently Answered Questions") to
answer many of the most common questions about the history
and theory of the Quiz. You can get to the FAQ by clicking
here: http://www.self-gov.org/wspq.html.
_____________________________________________________________
GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS,
UNBELIEVABLE NEWS
by James W. Harris
"Star Trek" Star a Libertarian Freedom
Fighter
Actor Wil Wheaton, says Salon.com, "will
forever be
associated with the television role he played more than a
decade ago: Wesley Crusher, the whiny, wimpy teenage ensign
on "Star Trek: The Next Generation."
Wheaton has played numerous other roles in film
and
television, too. And he's also a libertarian -- one who is
actively working to promote and protect online civil
liberties.
In a recent interview with Salon.com, the
29-year-old Wheaton
spoke of his concerns -- and described himself as a
libertarian and "computer geek." Some excerpts:
"I am particularly concerned right now with
the political
climate in this country. Everyone, or at least the vast
majority of people, seems to be all too willing to give away
the basic rights that separate America from so many other
countries.
"It really bothers me, for example, that the
Justice
Department wants to do warrantless searches, and it really
bothers me that they want to be able to go to my ISP and
monitor my e-mail and monitor my traffic in real time across
a cable modem. Stuff like that really makes me angry.
"These debates have been going on for a long
time, but it
seems like a lot of the things that are being crammed down
our throats with the USA-Patriot Act are things that the FBI
and the Justice Department and a lot of the corporate
sponsors of government have wanted for the last year or so.
And they're using everyone's fear of terrorism to ram laws
down our throats that are so clearly unconstitutional, and so
blatantly violate due process. They would never pass in any
other political climate..."
When Salon asked "What's it like being a
geek in Hollywood?"
Wheaton replied:
"I'm a geek and a libertarian, so I'm really
on my own. There
aren't very many people who are aware of these kinds of
issues."
Thanks to Wheaton's vocal public advocacy, more
people in
Hollywood -- and elsewhere -- will be. Incidentally, at his
personal Web site Wheaton says that, though he voted for
Nader in 2000, "if I had my druthers...I'd have the
Libertarians as a third party..." and his site provides a
link to the Libertarian Party.
(Source: Salon com:
http://www.salon.com/tech/feature/2001/12/12/wheaton/index1.html
Thanks to Ron Crickenberger.)
* * *
Politician Tells the Truth
The House Ways and Means Committee "is
probably the most
appropriately-named committee in the House," quips Committee
Chairman Bill Thomas (R-CA). "Our job is to figure out ways
of separating people from their means."
(Source: Wall Street Journal, December 5, 2001.
Thanks to
Libertarian Party News.)
* * *
Worldwide ID Scheme Proposed
Never mind a national ID card. How about
fingerprinting and
registering every single human being on earth?
That ambitious proposal was made in mid-December
at a United
Nations meeting, by Pascal Smet, the head of Belgium's
refugee review board.
Noting that the European Union is already
considering a
Europe-wide ID system, using fingerprints or eye scans, Smet
suggested the benefits of such a system be shared with the
whole world.
"There are no technical problems. It is only
a question of
will and investment," Smet said.
"If you look to our societies, we are
already registered from
birth until death. Our governments know who we are and what
we are. But one of the basic problems is the numbers of
people in the world who are not registered, who do not have a
set identity, and when these people move with real or fake
passports, you cannot identify them."
This is a problem, Smet noted, if you believe
that government
should "manage" and track people: "It's a basic rule of
management that if you want to manage something, you measure
it."
Naturally, all this registering and managing and
tracking is
for our own good. Smet said that worldwide national ID --
presumably managed by the UN -- would grant "dignity" to
people, and would help fight the horrors of illegal
immigration.
(Source:
http://www.smh.com.au/breaking/2001/12/14/FFX058CU6VC.html )
* * *
How the Republicans Didn't Make America Drug-Free
It's 2002, and America is drug-free!
Right?
Well...no.
Oops -- looks like the Drug Warriors failed
again.
Voters with good memories might remember that on
April 30,
1998, Republicans in the US House of Representatives held a
press conference and, with great fanfare, solemnly signed a
"Declaration of Commitment" pledging "a drug-free America by
2002."
No, they weren't kidding.
Well, here we are well into 2002, and illegal
drugs still
seem pretty widely available. Indeed, government figures say
fully 14 million Americans current use illicit drugs. (Eleven
million of them use marijuana, the major target of the War on
Drugs despite the fact that no one in recorded history has
ever died from it.)
So what happened to the confident GOP Drug
Warriors? Did they
fail because President Clinton was soft on drugs? Absolutely
not. Under Clinton, arrests for marijuana soared to record
levels, and the Clinton administration favored, and enforced,
savagely severe penalties for drug crimes.
No, the Republicans failed to reach their goal
simply and
plainly because it was idiotic and unachievable. Drugs are
found even in maximum-security prisons. The idea that they
can be kept out of an entire nation is lunacy defying all
history and plain common sense. Politicians who promise they
can somehow achieve a "drug-free America" are either
incredibly ignorant or downright dishonest.
So has this dismal failure shamed GOP lawmakers
into
reconsidering our modern-day Prohibition? Or have they at
least admitted they were, to put it politely, naïve?
Of course not. In fact, the Bush Administration
has promised
to escalate the Drug War to new levels.
No doubt GOP leaders would prefer that this
particular
failure be forgotten. Certainly they're not holding any press
conferences about it. But the National Organization for the
Reform of Marijuana Laws (NORML) is determined to remind the
public.
"The point of raising this matter is to
underscore the
exaggerated rhetoric that pervades and distorts our drug
policy debate in this country," says NORML Executive Director
Allen St. Pierre.
"Politicians promise unrealistic and
unattainable goals, with
the expectation they will never be held accountable by the
voting public. This is pandering at its worst.
"Of course we are not a drug-free society;
there are none on
the planet. Our goal should be to discourage harmful and
abusive drug use, while adopting policies that minimize the
harm from marijuana use and marijuana prohibition. And the
first step toward that goal must be ending the arrest of
responsible marijuana smokers. There were 734,000 marijuana
arrests last year in this country and 88% were for possession
only.
"The next time you hear a politician promise
unattainable
drug policy goals while pandering for votes, remind him of
the drug warriors' last failed promise: a drug-free America
by 2002."
And hey, if he was one of those GOPers pledging a
Drug War
utopia back in 1998, why not laugh in his face, too?
(Source: NORML
http://www.norml.org/news/archives/01-12-27.shtml )
* * *
"Mind-Altering Drugs..."
"I began to study marijuana in 1967... I had
not yet learned
that there is something very special about illicit drugs. If
they don't always make the drug user behave irrationally,
they certainly cause many non-users to behave that way."
-- Harvard medical professor Lester Grinspoon,
author of
"Marijuana: The Forbidden Medicine."
* * *
"Good News, Bad News, Unbelievable
News" writer James W.
Harris is co-editor of the Liberator Online. His articles
have appeared in numerous magazines and newspapers, including
The Nation, Reason, The Freeman, the National Taxpayers
Union's Dollars and Sense, the Atlanta Constitution, and many
more. He has been a Finalist in the Mencken Awards, given by
the Free Press Association for "Outstanding Journalism in
Support of Liberty."
_____________________________________________________________
ASK DR. RUWART
How can you answer difficult questions about
libertarianism
-- in short, positive, persuasive soundbite-sized responses?
It's a challenge every libertarian communicator faces.
Dr. Mary Ruwart is a leading expert in
libertarian
communication, and author of the international bestseller
Healing Our World. In this column she gives readers "short
answers to the tough questions" that libertarians are
frequently asked.
If you'd like Dr. Ruwart to craft effective
answers to YOUR
"tough questions" on libertarian issues, just email the
questions to her at: mailto:ruwart@self-gov.org . *Due to
volume, Dr. Ruwart can't personally answer or acknowledge all
email queries.* But we'll run the best questions -- and Dr.
Ruwart's answers -- in upcoming issues.
Dr. Ruwart's past answers are archived in
searchable form at
http://www.self-gov.org/ruwart/
* * *
Does the War on Drugs really kill more people
than illegal
drugs do?
Question:
"You recently said that you think the War on
Drugs has killed
more people than illegal drugs have. You're joking, right?"
My short answer:
"The War on Drugs has indeed killed more
people than the
drugs themselves (for details and references, see Chapter 15
in my book, "Healing Our World," which can be read and
downloaded free at my website, www.ruwart.com, or purchased
in paperback from the Advocates).
"Approximately 7000 people die each year
from drug overdose,
compared to 100,000-200,000 annual deaths from alcohol and
320,000-390,000 from tobacco. However, 80% of drug deaths
(5600) are due to impurities and other factors that would not
be present in legal preparations. Because needle sales are
banned, shared needles have become the primary mode of AIDS
transmission in the U.S. (approximately 3,500 new
cases/year). The turf wars over drug territory result in gang
shootings in which innocents (1,600 annually) are killed.
Because drug prohibition makes the price of drugs almost 100
times higher than they otherwise would be, addicts rob to
support their habit, killing many of their victims in the
process (about 750 each year).
"Thus, the death toll caused by the War on
Drugs
(5600+3500+1600+750=11,450) is about 8 times higher than it
would be if drugs were legal (20% of 7000=1400/year). Since
almost one out of eight people in the U.S. use illegal drugs
regularly, the whole population would have to use them in a
legal setting for the death toll to be as high as it is under
drug prohibition.
"These estimates are consistent with the
death toll per
capita from drugs in Amsterdam, which does not prosecute
users. Only an average of 60 people per year are killed by
drugs in a population 20 times less than that of the U.S."
* * *
Do libertarians support a national sales tax?
Question:
"I have read about proposals to eliminate
the income tax and
replace it with a consumption tax (national sales tax). To me
this seems like a very good idea.
"First, it would mean foreign manufacturers
would pay almost
the same tax as domestic ones.
"Second. it would remove the need for large
accounting and
legal departments in corporations, and would certainly
simplify the paperwork of small businesses.
"Third, it would eliminate the ability of
the wealthy to
utilize loopholes in the present tax system.
"There are many more benefits I can see, and
I can't see a
downside. Am I missing something? Do libertarian support this
idea?"
My short answer:
"Libertarians recognize that taxation of any
kind is theft
and therefore do not support taxation. However, some
dedicated libertarians have been working to replace the
income tax with a consumption tax, like the one you've
outlined.
"They feel that people would feel the bite
much more if
everything that they bought came with a double-digit sales
tax. Tax raises would be more visible -- and more unpopular
for politicians to propose. The abuses perpetrated by the IRS
would also end. Public support for abolishing taxes
altogether would increase.
"One danger that many libertarians see in
proposing this
switch is the possibility that we would end up with a
national sales tax AND an income tax. Why not simply get rid
of the income tax and replace it with nothing, as Libertarian
Party presidential candidate Harry Browne proposed in 1996
and 2000? If all we did was to restrict government to its
constitutional limits, we could provide for defense and other
necessary functions with constitutionally-permitted excise
taxes. Next, libertarians could work on getting rid of those,
too!"
* * *
Aren't seat belt laws justified because they save
the lives of
non-drivers?
Question:
"I've read your comments about seat belts,
and just don't
agree with you. I know it is popular among libertarians to
condemn seat belt laws, but remember the original purpose of
seat belts: to allow the driver to remain in his/her seat,
and therefore to remain in control during an emergency
maneuver. If you accept that reasoning, then seat belt laws
for the driver make sense, because you are protecting *other
people's* rights to life: passengers in the car, people in
other cars, etc. because the driver theoretically will remain
better in control in emergencies if wearing a seat belt."
My short answer:
"Libertarians don't believe that it is right
to force someone
to do something even for "their own good." Dictators often
believe that they benefit those whom they oppress; some slave
owners justified buying and selling of black people, who
"otherwise would not be able to enjoy the benefits of
civilized society." If we can't persuade others that what we
want is good for them, maybe it isn't.
"Studies in both Britain and the U.S.
repeatedly show that
seat belt laws don't lower the traffic death toll. Drivers
forced to buckle up are protected, but more passengers,
pedestrians, and cyclists are killed. Evidently, drivers
forced to wear a seat belt drive more aggressively. If no net
lives are saved, the aggression of seat belt laws has only
set the precedent for would-be dictators and slave holders.
"We should rejoice that forcing others, even
for their own
good, backfires. Otherwise, each of us would try to save our
neighbors by bending them to our will. This is the
prescription for eternal war!"
* * *
Dr. Ruwart's book "Healing Our World"
features persuasive
arguments for liberty, backed with *over 500 references*
showing how liberty works. You can browse the entire book
online at: http://www.ruwart.com/Healing/
You can order it at a special reduced price of
only $12.95
(plus shipping) from the Advocates.
Dr. Ruwart's book "Short Answers to the
Tough Questions" --
an essential guide for anyone wanting to become a better
libertarian communicator -- is also available from the
Advocates for $12.00 (plus shipping)::
http://www.reliablehost.com/self-gov/opp.html
_____________________________________________________________
PERSUASION POWER POINT #115
Do we need Political DMZs?
by Michael Cloud
1. What is abortion?
A. "Abortion is murder. Anyone who would
have an
abortion is a baby-killer. Shame on America for allowing the
genocide of over 1,000,000 abortions every single year," said
the pro-life activist.
B. "Every woman has the right to chose. It's
a woman's
body, a woman's choice. Without legal abortion, hundreds of
women would die from back-alley, coat-hanger butchers. We
must keep abortion legal," answers the pro-choice activist.
2. What about immigration?
A. "America is a nation of immigrants. They
are
productive, responsible, hard-working members of
society. They often take the jobs Americans refuse to
take. Then they earn promotions or build their own
businesses. America needs immigrants," said the advocate of
open borders.
B. "America is being invaded by illegal
aliens. They
take advantage of free health care, public schooling, and
welfare. They refuse to learn our language. They refuse to
become true Americans," responds the advocate of closed
borders.
The Death Penalty? Military Intervention in other
countries? School vouchers? The phony "purist" vs.
"pragmatist" debate?
These issues are a Free-Fire Zone for
libertarians. There are
good libertarians on each side.
Our internal fights over these issues are often
more brutal
and ruthless than the fights we have with the backers of Big
Government.
We need to turn these conflicts into a political
DMZ. A
political De-Militarized Zone. An area where civilians and
non-combatants are welcome and safe.
An argument-free zone.
Why?
We've had no-win, endless arguments in these
areas for
years. The militant combatants refuse to withdraw their
troops. Refuse to leave the battlefield. Refuse to beat their
swords into plowshares.
The rest of us keep getting wounded and killed by
their
friendly fire. Our efforts are hindered and harmed by this
ceaseless internal conflict.
As Ayn Rand observed, "The most vicious wars
are civil wars."
We need a libertarian civil peace.
We need to take 4 steps.
1. Notice what's happening in these libertarian
political
Free-Fire Zones.
What are the recurring, enduring conflicts? What
does one
side say? What does the other side say? What are the
consequences and responses? Notice the ritual script that
each side uses.
Notice that neither side changes its mind. Notice
that both
sides look for new arguments to bolster and defend their
positions.
2. Declare a cease-fire. Both sides need to stop
shouting,
stop shooting, and leave the battlefield. Both sides need to
stop drawing non-combatants into their endless ideological
wars. Need to stop making the rest of us feel frustrated,
angry, and at the end of our ropes.
3. Negotiate a truce. Agree to disagree.
Acknowledge that
there are good libertarians on all sides of these
issues. Agree that continued internal conflict divides us.
Weakens us. Diverts our attention and energies from our true
mission: to achieve individual liberty, personal
responsibility, and small government.
4. Create reminders for the truce. We're flawed
human beings.
Sooner or later, someone's going to push our buttons.
Someone's going to bring up abortion, immigration, the death
penalty, or something else that will trigger our passions.
Here are a few reminders we may want to use:
* "We're in the political DMZ -- let's agree
to
disagree."
* "Red light. We're turning this into a
free-fire zone."
* "What if they gave a war and nobody came?
This is a
no-win war. I'm not coming."
Political DMZs do NOT resolve areas of conflict.
They free us
to work together where we DO agree. Where we CAN
cooperate. Where we CAN make progress.
If we DO work together where we CAN work
together, we can
make government small.
And once we've achieved that, we can turn our
energies to the
more difficult problems.
******************
Michael Cloud is the Persuasion columnist for the
Liberator
Online and The Libertarian Communicator. In July 2000, at the
Libertarian Party national convention, Cloud was voted the
Most Persuasive Libertarian Communicator in America and
honored with the Thomas Paine Award.
Michael Cloud is creator of "The Essence of
Political
Persuasion," the classic 3-tape libertarian communication
course, available exclusively from the Advocates at the
*give-away* price of only $7.50 postpaid (includes First
Class postage!). For more information, or to order, click
here: http://www.reliablehost.com/self-gov/persuasion.html
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