Judging from the attendance at the Conservative Leadership Conference in Reno, I'm not sure that I agree that young people and old people cannot socialize. I saw a great deal of that this past weekend.
The reality is that we've got an opportunity if we start doing more face-to-face events and bring Libertarians together in "hostile" territory to argue for our cause. The impact on GOP supporters in Reno was tangible and we got a lot of people interested in both the LP and Outright in general.
We also scored some significant victories for California within the LP -- including one major coup I'll be announcing in due course after consulting with the Outright executive committee. *If* we can field a serious candidate against Nancy Pelosi, the LNC will be able to give us some significant firepower in the campaign (and I'll be able to raise significant sums of money along with other LNC members to back the candidate).
The key is whether we're going to be able to deliver on the demand for a world-beating candidate -- or at least a good one -- within the next couple of months. Some folks are going to have to step up to the plate and start searching/recruiting heavily to do so.
TJ, I'll try and make your HMB conference next weekend if I can.
Cheers,
Brian
Brian, I am willing to be a serious candidate. I intentionally have filed very clean tax returns to allow me the ability to run a serious campaign if there is money there. I think I ran a darn good campaign the last cycle considering no one was willing to be a treasurer so I elected to spend no money. you may ask others, from both inside and outside the party how I appeared in public. Luke Thomas of The fog city journal just last week made a point of telling that I did a terrific in the debate that we consponsored with the greens and repubs with an empty chair for Nancy. My performance in the 65 minute spot on channel 4 also got good reviews. You might want to listen the interviews o that are on my website at ww.choosepeacenow.us with Misha on enemycombatantradio and with pam-pam on KPOO. I am gay, am blind from AIDS and already have some credibility from my performance in the previous election. I was not in the closet as you will read in my Bio also at www.choosepeacenow.us and have considerable business experience as well as a long resume in gay activism dating back to 1978.
If you find a candidate who is more credible I will gladly step aside, but I hope you would look at previous effort and help me build on that experience. We could make a good go of it.
Phil
I'd enthusiastically support your candidacy, Phil, if there weren't
already a prominent candidate who strongly opposes the war and has
already called for the abolition of the Federal Reserve. I say let's
support Cindy Sheehan, and save your resources for another race.
I suggest that since Phil has been in contact with Cindy Sheehan, that he tell her we are weighing whether or not to run a candidate in that race, and invite her to come speak to us and answer our questions regarding why we should support her rather than running a Libertarian. If she values our views enough and cares enough to come talk with us, and makes a good case for herself, then I say we give the idea serious consideration.
If she does not do this, or fails to present enough evidence that she will run a sufficiently libertarian-leaning campaign to satisfy us, then I would fall back on my general agreeement with Phil that (a) it's good to have candidates representing the Libertarian Party on the ballot, and (b) it is helpful to have multiple voices in the debates, and would say these considerations should take precedence.
Of course if there are plenty of other open slots on the ballot for which we do not have anyone running and which are not being sought, to our knowledge, by any candidate sharing significant views with us, then I would encourage Phil or any other LP member interested in seeking office to consider filling one of those slots first before running in a race where there is a candidate who is with us on many issues.
If the Libertarian National Committee is interested in pursuing some national strategy that involves us running a strong candidate against Pelosi -- reading between the lines of Brian's message, I almost get that sense -- then someone on the LNC should get in touch with us and share their thinking so that we are in a position to take informed action.
Love & Liberty,
((( starchild )))
When I wondered aloud, at the SF R.P. meet-up group a month ago, in
relation to Cindy Sheehan's surprising opposition to the Federal
Reserve, whether she had been listening to R.P., one of the prominent
members of that group (whose name I'm not pulling up at the moment)
identified himself as Sheehan's campaign manager, and said that he was
responsible for apprising her about the Federal Reserve. I don't know
what possibilities may lie in that direction, though I note that her
skeleton website makes no mention of that issue. With her call for
universal health care, she is clearly someone whom it would be hard for
us even formally to recommend; but I personally would still like to see
her defeat Pelosi.