Greeting
From the Chair
LibertyFest 2011
LPM Convention 2011
A Time to Kill... the Patriot Act?

Quote of the Month
Image of the Month

Book/Movie
Past Blast
Letters
Contacts
Calendar

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Welcome to the February 2011 issue of the online newsletter of the Libertarian Party of Michigan, the Michigan Libertarian. The newsletter is our main vehicle for sharing what's happening for Libertarians in Michigan. You may manage your subscription by going here or visiting our Web site www.mi.lp.org (same as www.michiganlp.org).

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The Libertarian Party of Michigan is sad to report that David Nolan, founder of the Libertarian Party, died November 21, 2010. He was living in Arizona, where he ran a solid race for the US Senate receiving 4.7% of the vote in a three-way race. In addition to founding the party, David created the Nolan Chart to replace the traditional (and misleading) left-right axis for describing political positions. Those of us who knew David personally will miss his charm, lightning-quick intellect, and incomparable passion for freedom. The New York Times obit is decent, revealing some early background many of us did not realize.

For those who would like to make a gift in memory of David, the family has asked that contributions go to the Advocates for Self Government, http://theadvocates.org/.

TWO IMPORTANT BUSINESS ITEMS

For this issue I have two items to announce that are important to the future of the party.

LPM Leadership Meeting March 12 in Lansing

I would like to invite all Libertarian Party leaders and activists to a meeting on Saturday, March 12 at the Hampton Inn, 525 North Canal Rd, Lansing from 1 - 4 pm. It’s free, requires no advance reservations, and refreshments will be served. There’s a reason why I’m making this free, easy and bribing you with food…

We need to discuss our future.

Four of the people on the LEC are not running for re-election and several major committee chairmanships are waiting to be filled. Some affiliates are looking for active leadership, and we all need good ways to turn names on an inquiry list into active volunteers. We also need a chance to talk about strategies and plan how we can better engage voters to win races in the next election cycle.

We have a lot to talk about.

Platform and Bylaws Committee Chairs Named for the State Convention

At each state convention, part of the business session is devoted to deliberating changes to our Libertarian Party of Michigan Platform and, in odd years, considering changes to our Bylaws. At the April 30 state convention in Midland, Daniel Grow of St. Joseph will be the Platform Committee Chair and Jay Longtain of Freeland will serve as Bylaws Committee Chair.

The current platform can be accessed at
http://www.mi.lp.org/Shared%20Documents/Platform.aspx;
the current bylaws, at http://www.mi.lp.org/Shared%20Documents/Bylaws%20Of%20The%20Libertarian%20Party.aspx.

Members with proposed changes to the platform or bylaws should submit them in writing to the chair of the appropriate committee by Tuesday, April 5 at these emails

Platform: grow.daniel@gmail.com
Bylaws: jlongtain@yahoo.com

Proposals will be reviewed by the committees, discussed at a breakfast workshop at the convention, and considered during the business session.

Reminder: The 30-day Rule for Voting at LPM Conventions

Just a reminder that our bylaws require first-time members of the Libertarian Party of Michigan to have joined at least 30 days prior to the convention to be eligible to vote there. That means if you’ve never been a member of the LPM, make sure to join by March 31, 2011 so you can vote in Midland. Please go to http://www.mi.lp.org/Shared%20Documents/Join%20Us.aspx and join today!

LIBERTY FEST 2011*: A CELEBRATION OF LIBERTY
* (We honor our super LPM volunteers in 2010)

Saturday, February 5, 2011--Holiday Inn Gateway Center
5353 Gateway Centre, Flint, MI
6 p.m.to 10 p.m.

Program
Social time with cash bar: 6 - 7 p.m.
Plated dinner: 7 p.m.
Libby Awards: 7:45 - 8:30
Speaker: 8:45

Guest Speaker:
Charles Earl Communications Director LP of Ohio
Former State Representative for Ohio.

Cost
$70 basic level and at the door
$95 Friend of Liberty level (name appears in program, reserved preferred seating, and free drink)

Open to everyone! Plan to bring your friends and family to enjoy this informative and entertaining evening. Come show your support for limited government in Michigan by supporting the Libertarian Party! Questions: Contact Denee Rockman-Moon (810-241-8561)
email: denee.rockman-moon@live.com

More information and online reservation:
http://michiganlp.org/Shared%20Documents/LibertyFest.aspx

Convention 2011—"Bring a Friend to the Party"

Saturday, April 30, 2011
Valley Plaza Resort, Midland

Come one, come all. The theme for the State Convention this year is "Bring a friend to the Party". The main events will take place on April 30, 2011—with possible expanded fun on Friday and/or Sunday. Final schedules will be available on the LPM website in coming weeks.

With the continued growth of interest in the values of Libertarians, this year is a great opportunity for new members and others to learn more and get engaged in the activist opportunities of the LPM. Unlike nominating conventions, the off-year gathering presents a great opportunity to both learn and contribute to the plans and activities that drive the freedom message. Plans include several breakout sessions:

• Libertarianism 101—a great chance for new members and others to discuss the presentation of liberty-focused ideas.


• The Active Campaign—Nuts and Bolts for taking your candidacy to the next level In addition to several interesting speakers, there will be opportunities to meet and engage leadership, hear both statewide and affiliate activities, and offer ideas of your own about our movement. Don´t miss the evening banquet—which year after year has been a great time for all.

The Convention will take place at the Valley Plaza Resort in Midland. See: http://www.valleyplazaresort.com/.  Alongside the LPM convention, this venue offers a wide range of conveniences. If you would like to get involved with the Convention Committee, contact Bill Gelineau @ 616-723-2776 or freedomlover59@hotmail.com

FROM DOWNSIZE DC — Jim Babka
Let's get rid of a very bad law

Quote of the Day: The right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures, shall not be violated, and no Warrants shall issue, but upon probable cause, supported by Oath or affirmation, and particularly describing the place to be searched, and the persons or things to be seized. — Fourth Amendment to the Constitution

Forty-five days after 9/11, Congress passed the USA PATRIOT Act without reading it. This new law was supposed to protect you from terrorism, but it has really left you unprotected against lawless federal agents.

The Patriot Act contains numerous violations of the Fourth Amendment. It gives federal agents vast new powers that have been abused to investigate innocent Americans. In 2001 and 2006 concerned members of Congress urged expiration dates on some of the Patriot Act's most controversial powers.

Regrettably, Congress has constantly renewed those powers, despite a multitude of FBI abuses. Last year, the extension was passed with just a voice vote! Now, another expiration is at hand -- February 28, 2011. Unfortunately, Rep. Mike Rogers, Chairman of the House Intelligence Committee, has introduced H.R. 67 to renew the provisions for another year.

If you support Constitutional government please send Congress a letter asking for repeal of the Patriot Act, and opposing H.R. 67. [https://secure.downsizedc.org/etp/campaigns/129] The hardwired letter on this campaign reads:

--------------- START LETTER ---------------

Repeal the Patriot Act. Do NOT renew any of its provisions. [To this I added the following personal comments, which you may copy from or borrow for your own letter:] All of the following provisions of the Patriot Act violate the Constitution:

• Roving wiretaps, where my calls can be monitored without specific warrant
• The infamous "library provision" where The State can monitor my reading habits
• National Security Letters (NSLs) that allow federal agents to spy on me without a Constitutional warrant, and where the service providers who share my private info can't tell me about it
• Requirements that my bank report my financial activities to federal cops and bureaucrats

This is only a partial list. Nearly everything in the Patriot Act violates the Constitution, which you swore to defend. Please take note -- you did NOT swear an oath to defend me and my fellow citizens from every threat that makes you nervous. It's the Constitution that you're supposed to worry about first.

Everyone agrees that terrorists [especially state terrorists—bw] should be caught and stopped. But before 9/11, the federal government already had all the tools it needed to prevent that attack. The failure to prevent 9-11 was due to incompetence, NOT the Constitution.

{Note: increasing numbers of libertarians subscribe to an alternative theory to the Official Conspiracy Theory (OCT): That is, it wasn't government incompetence that enabled 9/11, rather: [it was a] rogue network serving the Anglo-American MOPS (Men of the Power Sickness) elites [that] infiltrated and took over key USG functions to orchestrate the attacks and destruction of 9/11. Motive: war/plunder. Means: best-ever military/state-security technology. Opportunity: fan Joe Sixpack's hatred of Muslims and Arabs thru shock-and-awe greater than Pearl Harbor, enhancing police-state- and mind-control of the people. [Including the Patriot Act!!] — Brian Wright editorial insert}

Now, the Patriot Act has made federal incompetence more likely, NOT less. It has caused federal agents to lose their focus. The Justice Department's inspector general reports that between 2003 and 2006 the FBI granted itself nearly 200,000 NSLs, but most of these were directed at innocent Americans, NOT potential terrorists. What this tells me is that you are endangering me, NOT protecting me. This kind of abuse is why the Constitution limits State power, because no mere human can be trusted to use unlimited power wisely. In conclusion . . .

• The Patriot Act should not be a law because it was NOT read before it was passed.
• The Patriot Act should not have been passed because it violates the Constitution.
• The Patriot Act would not have prevented 9-11, and it is NOT needed to combat future terrorist acts.
• The Patriot Act has been constantly abused, in spite of the usual worthless political promises that it would not be.

Please obey your Constitutional oath of office. Repeal the Patriot Act, and OPPOSE any extension of its provisions.

--------------- END LETTER ---------------

You can send your letter to Congress using DownsizeDC.org's Educate the Powerful System. [https://secure.downsizedc.org/etp/campaigns/129] And please tell your friends about this campaign. "Like" us on Facebook and share this: http://www.facebook.com/downsizedc

Jim Babka
President
DownsizeDC.org, Inc.

The day we see the truth and do not speak out is the day we begin to die. — Rev. Martin Luther King

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The link is to a fairly anarchistic analysis of the disease of statism. Good visuals, courtesy Mike Shanklin of Strike the Root. It's not so much who's in charge of the state as the state itself... and the money power it serves. Please submit photos and cartoons for inclusion in the monthly newsletter by sending them to E-Newsletter@michiganlp.org

The following review excerpts are courtesy LPM Webmaster Brian Wright's commentary and review site, The Coffee Coaster. If you would like to submit book or movie reviews (or commentary for that matter) please notify the editor.

Movie Review
Robin Hood (2010)
Prince of Thieves rallies the Magna Carta __ 5/10

I mentioned to a fellow movie fan that by confusing the history like this, Scott is playing with fire. We have all these American children trying to make their way in the government schools, not learning how to read or to write, getting most of their world understanding from movies and TV. They're going to walk away from this film thinking Robin Hood signed the Magna Carta and possibly the Declaration of Independence. How are they going to score more than 200 on their SATs with such a barrage of misinformation? Way harsh. [Full Review]

Book Review
The Truth about Geronimo (1929)
Fascinating story from a soldier who lived it
by Britton Davis

"In my talks with the Indians they showed no resentment of the way they had been treated in the past; only wonderment at the why of it. Why had they been shifted from reservation to reservation; told to farm and had their crops destroyed; assured that the Government would ration them, then left to half starve; herded in the hot, malarial river bottoms of the Gila and San Carlos, when they were mountain people? These and other questions I could not answer. And above all they wondered if they would now be allowed to live at peace. Poor devils! Their fears were realized. In two years they were in prisons in Florida; four hundred innocent people, men, women, and children, who had kept the faith with us, punished for the guilt of barely one-fourth who had been lied to and frightened into leaving the Reservation by Geronimo, Chihuahua, and two or three other malcontents." [Full Review]

Take a stroll down memory lane with this excerpt from one of the longest-running state Libertarian newsletters. Today, check out the Winter 1986 issue. Click on this link for the full PDF version of this newsletter.

Newsletter editor Greg Stempfle has compiled the entire body of available Michigan Libertarian newsletters up on this page of the LPM Website.

Please submit letters to the editor here, along with any personal communications that may pertain to the LPM .

February 2 – LP of South West Michigan Executive Committee Meeting – 6:00 – 6:50 pm at IHOP, 1981 Pipestone Rd., Benton Harbor. Guests are welcome.  Followed by: Round Table Political Forum hosted by the LP of South West Michigan. 7-9 pm at The Livery, 190 Fifth St, Benton Harbor. Visitors are welcome to participate. Contact Bill Bradley, wbradley@i2k.com 269-637-4525, or Dan Grow, grow.daniel@gmail.com.

February 2 - LP of Washtenaw County Monthly Business Meeting -7 to 9 pm at Classic Cup Cafe, 4389 Jackson Rd, Ann Arbor (In the Parkland Plaza west of Ann Arbor). Contact Larry Johnson, michlibertarian@gmail.com

February 3 – Wayne County LP Monthly Meeting – 7 p.m. - Kiernans Steak House, 21931 Michigan Ave, Dearborn (at Monroe). Contact Ray Warner, 313-598-3666

February 3 – Livingston County LP - 7-8:30 pm. The Livingston County LP meets the first Thursday of each month at Cleary's Irish Pub, 117 E Grand River Ave, Howell 48843 (non-smoking area). The meeting will have 4 parts: Mingling (over dinner, if you want), studies in liberty, news and party business. Contact Tim Keirnan mailTim@sbcglobal.net

February 5, 2011 – LibertyFest Dinner - Gala dinner and presentation of the 2010 Defender of Liberty Awards. Guest speaker is Charles Earl, former State Representative from Ohio and now the LP Ohio Communications Director.
Where: Holiday Inn Gateway Centre in Flint.
When: Tickets $70-$95 per person.
Contact Denee Rockman-Moon denee.rockman-moon@live.com

February 7 – Great Lakes Bay Region LP - Monthly Meeting – The group meets on the 1st Monday of the month.  Dinner at 6, meeting at 7 at Damon’s, 4960 Towne Centre Rd, Saginaw Township, MI  48604 (off Tittabawassee, just west of I-675 at exit 6).  Everyone interested in liberty from Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Midland, Saginaw, Genesee, Huron, Lapeer, Sanilac and Tuscola counties is invited. Contact Al Chia, chia4senate@gmail.com or Denee Rockman-Moon, denee.rockman-moon@live.com.

February 8 – LP of West Michigan Monthly Meeting – 6:30 pm. Join the LPWM on the second Tuesday of the month at Perkins Restaurant, 5121 28th St SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512 (just off I 96). Contact Nick Sundquist, Nicholas.sundquist@yahoo.com, 231-750-5468

February 8 – Capital Area LP Monthly Meeting – 7 pm at former LPM office, 2722 E Michigan Ave, Ste 22, Lansing (park and enter in back). Contact Will Tyler White, 517-349-3806, whitewi5@msu.edu

February 16 – Libertarians of Macomb County Monthly Meeting - All members of the Libertarian Party, their friends and family, and anyone interested in learning more about the LP are invited to attend.  The meeting begins at 7:30 but feel free to join us for good food and conversation at 6:30 pm at the Loon River Café, 34911 Van Dyke Ave, Sterling Heights. Contact Jim Allison, jim.e.allison@gmail.com

February 16 – LP of Oakland County Monthly Meeting – The LP of Oakland County meets on the 3rd Wednesday of the month. 6:30 pm dinner, 7:30 meeting. Sila's Restaurant, 4033 W. 12 Mile (2 blocks east of Greenfield), Berkley. Contact Jim Fulner, fulner@gmail.com

February 16 – LP of Washtenaw County Social/Work Meeting -7 to 9 pm at Classic Cup Cafe, 4389 Jackson (In the Parkland Plaza west of Ann Arbor). Contact Larry Johnson, michlibertarian@gmail.com

February 22 – LP of Calhoun County Monthly Meeting - Executive Committee, 7 p.m. Please contact Jack Worsham for location. (269) 963-2679, WORSHAM74@aol.com

March 2 - LP of Washtenaw County Monthly Business Meeting -7 to 9 pm at Classic Cup Cafe, 4389 Jackson Rd, Ann Arbor (In the Parkland Plaza west of Ann Arbor). Contact Larry Johnson, michlibertarian@gmail.com

March 2 – LP of South West Michigan Executive Committee Meeting – 6:00 – 6:50 pm at IHOP, 1981 Pipestone Rd., Benton Harbor. Guests are welcome. Followed by: Round Table Political Forum hosted by the LP of South West Michigan. 7-9 pm at The Livery, 190 Fifth St, Benton Harbor. Visitors are welcome to participate. Contact Bill Bradley, wbradley@i2k.com 269-637-4525, or Dan Grow, grow.daniel@gmail.com.

March 3 – Wayne County LP Monthly Meeting – 7 p.m. - Kiernans Steak House, 21931 Michigan Ave, Dearborn (at Monroe). Contact Ray Warner, 313-598-3666

March 3 – Livingston County LP Monthly Meeting - 7-8:30 pm. The Livingston County LP meets the first Thursday of each month at Cleary's Irish Pub, 117 E Grand River Ave, Howell 48843 (non-smoking area). The meeting will have 4 parts: Mingling (over dinner, if you want), studies in liberty, news and party business. Contact Tim Keirnan mailTim@sbcglobal.net

March 7 – Great Lakes Bay Region LP - Monthly Meeting – The group meets on the 1st Monday of the month. Dinner at 6, meeting at 7 at Damon’s, 4960 Towne Centre Rd, Saginaw Township, MI 48604 (off Tittabawassee, just west of I-675 at exit 6). Everyone interested in liberty from Bay, Clare, Gladwin, Gratiot, Isabella, Midland, Saginaw, Genesee, Huron, Lapeer, Sanilac and Tuscola counties is invited. Contact Al Chia, chia4senate@gmail.com or Denee Rockman-Moon, denee.rockman-moon@live.com.

March 8 – Capital Area LP Monthly Meeting – 7 pm at former LPM office, 2722 E Michigan Ave, Ste 22, Lansing (park and enter in back). Contact Will Tyler White, 517-349-3806, whitewi5@msu.edu

March 8 – LP of West Michigan Montly Meeting – 6:30 pm. Join the LPWM on the second Tuesday in January at Perkins Restaurant, 5121 28th St SE, Grand Rapids, Michigan 49512 (just off I 96). Contact Nick Sundquist, Nicholas.sundquist@yahoo.com, 231-750-5468

March 12 – LPM Leadership and Strategy Meeting – 1 - 4 pm at the Hampton Inn Lansing, 525 N Canal Rd, Lansing (of I-96 at Saginaw). Free. All Libertarian Party of Michigan activists are invited to discuss leadership, strategies, and the future of the Libertarian Party of Michigan. Contact Emily Salvette chair@mi.lp.org, 734-645-5809.

March 13 - Libertarian Executive Committee Meeting – 4:00 pm teleconference. All LPM members may dial in to listen 218-844-3366, pin #576532 (long distance charges may apply).  Contact Emily Salvette chair@mi.lp.org.

March 16 – LPOC Annual County Convention – The LP of Oakland County will hold its annual county convention to amend the bylaws and elect new county officers. All members highly encouraged to attend. 6:30 pm dinner, 7:30 meeting. Sila's Restaurant, 4033 W. 12 Mile (2 blocks east of Greenfield), Berkley. Contact Jim Fulner, fulner@gmail.com

March 16 – Libertarians of Macomb County Monthly Meeting - All members of the Libertarian Party, their friends and family, and anyone interested in learning more about the LP are invited to attend. The meeting begins at 7:30 but feel free to join us for good food and conversation at 6:30 pm at the Loon River Café, 34911 Van Dyke Ave, Sterling Heights. Contact Jim Allison, jim.e.allison@gmail.com

March 16 – LP of Washtenaw County Social/Work Meeting -7 to 9 pm at Classic Cup Cafe, 4389 Jackson (In the Parkland Plaza west of Ann Arbor). Contact Larry Johnson, michlibertarian@gmail.com

March 22 – LP of Calhoun County Monthly Meeting - Executive Committee, 7 p.m. Please contact Jack Worsham for location. (269) 963-2679, WORSHAM74@aol.com

March 31 – Thirty Day Membership Deadline for Convention Voting – Anyone who has never been a member of the LPM must join by this date to be eligible to vote at the April 30 convention. Go to http://www.mi.lp.org/Shared%20Documents/Join%20Us.aspx to join online.

April 5 – LPM Bylaws and Platform Changes due – Proposed changes must be submitted in writing by this date for consideration at the state convention. Send platform changes to grow.daniel@gmail.com and Bylaws changes to jlongtain@yahoo.com.

April 30 – Libertarian Party of Michigan State Convention – All day – Valley Plaza Resort, Midland. Training and workshops, revision of state platform and bylaws, election of state officers.  Contact Bill Gelineau freedomlover59@hotmail.com.

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More...

For all events, see the full online calendar on the Website:
http://www.mi.lp.org/Shared Documents/Calendar.aspx

The Michigan Libertarian ONLINE is distributed on the first of each month. Send calendar events and news articles by the 25th of the prior month to:
e-newsletter@michiganlp.org

Note: The final print edition of the Michigan Libertarian is available online at http://www.mi.lp.org/Past%20Newsletters/ Michigan%20Libertarian%2038.2%20summer%202009.pdf

The Michigan Libertarian is published/posted on the first of each month. Send calendar events and news/articles to e-newsletter@michiganlp.org by the 25th of the prior month.

The Michigan Libertarian is one of the longest-running Libertarian newsletters in the country, debuting in 1973 shortly after the founding of the Libertarian Party of Michigan. The "new" Michigan Libertarian (a predominantly online version) debuted on August 1, 2009 and replaced the weekly LPMOnline and the printed-and-mailed ML.  We will post the newsletter on the Website and deliver via email on the first of every month. A printed version of the new Michigan Libertarian will be sent free to anyone who signs up, which you may do at the LPM web site www.mi.lp.org (or www.michiganlp.org).

LPM members who need a hard copy may request one be mailed to them by contacting
e-newsletter@michiganlp.org or calling the LPM toll-free number 888-Free-Now.

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Newsletter URL (Webpage address for this issue of the ML):
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