It's Not Easy Being Third Party

It isn't just that the schools teach "two-party system". It isn't just that the legacy of third parties is scary to some voters because the only ones they knew of were communist. A lot of what makes it tough to be a third party is that the Republicans and Democrats like their duopoly, and collude to protect it. Ballot access laws in Indiana are difficult for new parties to overcome.

The old ballot access threshhold was a 0.5% statewide result in the Secretary of State's race. Once the Libertarian Party topped this level in the 1980s, the Republicans and Democrats conspired to raise the figure to 2%. Through perseverance, the Libertarian Party of Indiana has maintained continuous ballot access since 1994, despite losing access thanks to the colluding parties raising the bar.

It's nice to see some sympathy in the media for the Green Party. Many outlets, including NuVo and the Indy Star have covered the plight of the Green Party in their attempts to earn the necessary signatures to get a Secretary of State candidate on the ballot in the hopes of earning 2% for four-year automatic ballot access. It is curious, however, that the Libertarian Party, which has successfully leapt the hurdles, barely gets mentioned in the same sympathetic passages.

Observe the Indy Star's coverage today:

Stant, the Green Party candidate for secretary of state, was holding out a sliver of hope Wednesday that he would clear the hurdle, one of the highest in the nation. He and volunteers around the state had collected 20,000 to 25,000 signatures, tantalizingly close to the goal he'd been striving toward for more than a year.

"We still have a fighting chance," Stant said, before wearily adding that, really, the chance was "highly unlikely."

The truth, Stant said, is that "it's not easy being a political candidate when you're not a Democrat or a Republican. You're made to feel like a criminal. You're made to feel like someone who doesn't belong. That's very, very depressing."

I can appreciate this very much. But, we soldier on, and do what needs to be done until we can gain sufficient positioning to change the laws. More:

Leaders of the state Republican and Democratic parties think the 2 percent threshold is reasonable and fair.

Of course they do. It means they never have to worry about it, but others do. Also:

"The reason it's there is to make sure only credible candidates reach the ballot," said Mike Edmondson, executive director of the Indiana Democratic Party.

In other words, every Republican or Democratic candidate is credible. The Republicans have a candidate who espouses public flogging. Good thing only the credible candidates are on the ballot! Mr. Edmondson better not issue another complaint or comment about candidate Walker. Per Edmondson's quote above, Walker is credible.

In other words, any candidate who runs on a Green or other 4th party ballot is not credible, but should they merely run as a Democrat or Republican, they suddenly become credible. That's nonsense. More:

Murray Clark, the former state senator who is chairman of the Indiana Republican Party, said he thinks requiring signatures equal to 2 percent of the vote in the last election for secretary of state is "pretty low."

Secretary of State Todd Rokita, the Republican Stant hopes to challenge in November, said the state should have a discussion on where the bar should be set but added: "We have to have some parameters, or we'd be like some country in West Africa with 18 different parties on the ballot."

I'd like to set the bar thusly: If a political party in Indiana does not run a candidate for US Senate, it is automatically declared a minor party in Indiana, because only a real loser of a political party can't find someone to run for US Senate. If a party does not run a candidate in every State Senate and every State Representative race on the statewide ballot, it is automatically declared a minor party. If a political party fails to run candidates in at least 50% of the races in any given county, they are declared a minor party in that county. Hey- what's good for the goose... I get tired of the Republicans and Democrats crowing about being major parites, when they fail to meet these low threshholds. No excuses!

The real losers are the voters on Indiana, who are robbed of choices that would best represent their views. Rs & Ds really don't represent the views of the people very well. Look no further than the turnout numbers for the proof. 21% statewide for the Primary? That's embarrassing.

So what if there are 18 parties on the ballot? So what if there are some nut jobs on the ballot? You mean to tell me you think that government is devoid of nut jobs, and that the restrictive ballot access laws have made it so? Well, I want to step into your Wonderland, then, Alice.

If a candidate is not credible, the voters won't vote for him. Nothing lost by giving the voters the choice. Plenty is lost by restricting choices and low turnout. We end up with dissatisfied, disinterested citizens who become uninformed voters.

Lunch With Steve Keltner

I just had a terrific lunch with Steve Keltner, Libertarian candidate for Indiana House in District 88.

Steve is a very positive, solutions-oriented person, so I have no doubt that he will do well in his attempt to unseat Republican Brian Bosma.

Steve showed me Bosma's recent puffy taxpayer-funded mailing that brags on his great works in the House. Glaringly absent was any word on cutting a budget or spending less. Steve is going to make issue of the failure of the House to cut the budget even 1% while under Bosma's leadership. Steve is also running on his firm opposition to forced annexation. Given the chance to take a position by the Geist United Opposition, Bosma offered very weak statements.

I am looking forward to working together with Steve Keltner to put pressure on the Republican majority to actually deliver smaller government, lower taxes, and budget cuts.

It's About Time

The purging of the voter rolls is finally set to happen. From an Indy Star report:

The Justice Department agreed Tuesday to an Indiana plan designed to eliminate the names of people who have died and those who are listed more than once from the state's voter registration rolls.

Indiana Secretary of State Todd Rokita last week announced the plan to purge the rolls, following negotiations between state Republicans and Democrats. It would also target convicted felons and voters who no longer live in Indiana or in the county of their registration.

This should have happened many years ago, and then been on a regular schedule, per each four-year cycle. Many counties have had more voters on the rolls than actual population. That's absurd. Better late than never, I suppose.

Also, there is no good reason that the Libertarian Party was excluded from the negotiations. Including Libertarians has the effect of making the proceedings less partisan and more focused on the business at hand. Libertarians are on the ballot, so they should have been included. No effort was made by either party to include the Libertarian Party.

Hamilton County Meet-Up Tonight

Libertarians will meet tonight in Noblesville at Barley Island brewery & restaurant, at 7:30 pm. This is not a dry business meeting, but a fun, relaxed opportunity to talk about the issues of the day with others who believe in limited government and lower taxes.

You don't have to be a Hamilton County resident to join the conversation. See you there!

One of the Seven Signs

LPIN State Chair Mark Rutherford advised me long ago that I will know that I am gaining traction on something when someone gets personal about me or brings up the national LP's platform position on drugs.

This one is personal.

It seems that emails have been circulated to a variety of media outlets alleging that I was fired from my job with the Hamilton County Surveyor's Office for ghost employment. Among the outlets to receive the email was Abdul Hakim-Shabazz at WXNT 1430-am. Abdul has asked me to discuss the allegations on his radio show Monday morning at 7am, which I will do to clear my name.

For the record, I left on the most amiable terms with Kent Ward, Hamilton County Surveyor. I left his employment so that I could start my own business. As a courtesy to Mr. Ward, I stretched the customary 2-week notice into an 8-week period, so that he could take his time and find a suitable replacement. I even sat in on the interviews of prospective replacements. I was never disciplined for any infraction while a county employee, much less fired.

Seems the effort could be purely malicious. It certainly has nothing factual going for it as regards me or my employment history.

The email was signed "JQFR". This is an acronym for "John Q. Fishers Resident," an anonymous blogger who has posted comments on this blog many times, in favor of the Town of Fishers' attempt to forcibly annex the Geist neighborhoods north of 96th Street. I am a staunch defender of the Geist residents, and their right to self-determination.

I expect that some people will take issue with my positions. Some will even write that I'm an idiot. That's politics, and I can take that in stride. What I cannot and will not tolerate is defamation of character. Emails and website IPs are neither invisible nor untraceable. I will investigate these emails to learn who sent them. I will be eager to sue the originator for defamation of character.

Update: I appeared on WXNT's Abdul In The Morning show to respond to the allegations. I said many of the things you just read, above. A retratction statement was posted on this entry by JQFR shortly thereafter.

That was gratifying to a point, but once out of the bag, sometimes an allegation starts to take on a life of its own. My former boss Kent Ward called me this afternoon to let me know that Norman Cox of RTV6 called him to inquire about the allegations- after the retraction was posted. Mr. Ward indicated that the allegations were false, and Mr. Cox called it a non-story. It's great that this is a non-story on RTV6, but what kind of impression of me does Mr. Cox have now? Will I be treated with suspicion in the future should he interview me?

Moreover, Mr. Ward has better things to deal with than having his Office called into question. Did his reputation take a hit? I had to apologize to Mr. Ward for his having to deal with this thing. Imagine! I had to apologize!

I'm delighted that I'm having the kind of impact that makes some uncomfortable, but I'd like to see some of the other seven signs, thank you very much.

Calendar

Tomorrow's event is the Wayne County Fair, in Richmond Indiana. I will join Wayne County Libertarians in their booth and meet the voters there, from 7-9 pm.

Stop by and see us!

Visit To MicroVote

As a candidate for Secretary of State, one of the jobs I could possibly hold is that of the state's top elections official. So, with a prominent vendor of voting machines, MicroVote, located right in Indianapolis, in the Broad Ripple area, it was natural to visit their offices this morning.

Steve Shamo met with me and demonstrated the Infinity voting machine, and I grilled him on the fail-safes. One of the main things that interested me was the possibility of VVPAT- voter verifiable paper trails.

I learned that Microvote could do this, but has real concerns about it. (Diebold and ES&S currently have it.) Their big concern is Constitutional. The ballot is supposed to be secret. But, in the course of creating a paper trail, it records the votes in sequence. Especially in places where the precincts are small and only one machine is used, whomever views the paper receipts could trace back to learn who voted how. That's a problem that they haven't figured out how to overcome yet.

I appreciated Steve taking the time to give me the guided tour and to answer my questions. I feel greatly educated on the machines used in the majority of Indiana counties.

Steve offered to forward a link to an 11-minute video discussing pros and cons on the VVPAT. Look for that on an update entry soon.

Geist United Golf Outing

Today I attended the Geist United Opposition's golf fundraiser at Ironwood Golf Course. I didn't play, as the organizers asked me to be the judge for the hole-in-one contest hole, which was sponsored by Ed Martin, with the prize being a snazzy new red Nissan.

The joke was that I should have been standing by the pin. As the referee, I had to verify any hole-in-one, so I stood to the right of the green, near a stand of trees. I had four shots land within 15 feet of me. Something about the contest hole makes good golfers' shots sail wide.

This was a nice event, with 30 golfers and about 8 volunteers. I distributed my logo golf balls to all, and they were very well received. Unique, as campaign items go. GUO raised more money for their legal opposition to the forced annexation attempts by the Town of Fishers.

The golf balls are a little washed out in this photo, but they are truly first class. Libertarian Tim Oatess of the Image Edge produced them for the campaign. They will be available to supporters via the website very soon!

Campaign Update

Saturday was very pleasantly spent in Millville, in Henry County, for the Wilbur Wright Birthplace Celebration.

I was asked to hand out awards to kids who partipated in a "tractor pull". They rode a kiddie John Deere that was loaded down with a weight, and had to try to pull it 30 feet or so.



I really liked the museum site. Many community members pitched in to save the museum from relocation or even scrapping when under state control. The locals asked for and gained complete ownership of the site from the state. Libertarian Rex Bell of Hagerstown is among these people who contributed their efforts to create a really fine museum. Rex and his sons constructed two buildings. Others collected excellent Wright family artifacts, and designed other aspects of the site. It's an excellent example of how private control by dedicated citizens is better than public control by a distant bureaucracy.

Natural Constituency For Libertarians

As many of you know, I enjoy playing poker. I also play online- only the free games. I really don't like the idea playing for cash online, because it's not the full game. If I'm going to play for cash, I want to be able to see real, live human beings in front of me, so that I can read them. It's a big component of the game.

But, if people want to play poker online for cash, they should have that right in America. It's your money. It's your life.

Online poker sites have sadly been located offshore, as they are banned from operation in the US. Imagine the tax revenue they could be bringing to our country! Now there is increased talk of extending the bans on online poker to include playing, not just operation, in the United States.

A new lobbying group, the Poker Players Alliance, has emerged to oppose any bans on online poker. There are some familiar faces leading the lobbying. From a Poker Players Alliance press release:

Three of the biggest names in poker-Howard Lederer, Chris Ferguson and Greg Raymer-and Radley Balko of the Cato Institute joined Bolcerek on the panel, each explaining why efforts to ban online gambling are misguided.

"We are here today to speak about the growing threat to poker as it relates to the online game," said Bolcerek. "We are here to defend the game and express our opposition to Congress' efforts to kill the sport and restrict our civil liberties."

This is a natural constituency for the Libertarian Party to pick up nationally. The timing is good- Texas Hold 'Em is an enormous fad nationally.

At the same time, it is of interest to me is that the various state governments are very happy to have lottery gambling which they control. The state lotteries tend to take about 60-70% as their cut. They advertise on TV & radio encouraging people to play. I haven't heard any calls from Congress to the states to give up their lotteries. Internet gambling sites, on the other hand, take about 10% as their cut. If nothing else, the state lotteries are guilty of a sort of price gouging.

Municipal Micromanagement

Two new municipal ordinances make me glad I'm out of the business of rental properties.

Speedway's new ordinance is especially awful. Do you really want landlords to be police? This is what they will have to become if fines to landlords result from tenant misbehavior. From WIBC's report:

The Speedway Town Council has approved some tough, new apartment regulations, despite protests from apartment dwellers and landlords alike.

The ordinance requires owners of rental properties to pay an annual licensing fee as well as a permit fee, per rental unit. The licensing fees were set at $25 for a landlord with five or fewer units. Those with more than five units will pay a $125 fee.

The ordinance also allows the Speedway Town Council to revoke the operating license of rental properties if those addresses see a lot of police runs.

Opponents say the fees are too high, and say they’ll just give landlords an excuse to raise rents.

And to become extra nosy. It isn't worth it to a landlord to lose his license just because a tenant does a lot of loud late-night partying. So, higher rent is just the beginning of the landlord protecting himself all the way to the expense of the tenant.

Greenwood recently passed an ordinance prohibiting the rental of a home within three years of its' construction. From an Indy Star report:

Mayor Charles Henderson says his plan, motivated by what he describes as a sour housing development deal, is designed to help maintain property values.

"I want to send a message that people deserve some protection and that anybody that buys into an addition can feel comfortable it isn't going to be turned into a rental community," said Henderson, whose idea could also face an up-or-down vote tonight. "It would help protect folks that get crossed up."

The Mayor also sends the message that if you bought thinking you would be there for a while, but got transferred to LA or Chicago within three years, you have to sell and take a major loss in sales commissions to the realtor. After all, the first several years of any mortgage payments are mainly interest, with little equity being built. I guess these people who get crossed up aren't in the Mayor's 'protection' plan. And it does little to help property values. If you can't rent it, you have to sell it fast, which means you sell at a lower price, which reflects poorly on the neighborhood.

It also prevents newer, nicer housing from entering the rental market in Greenwood. Is this a sort of plan to keep renters in older, deteriorating houses?

Local governments sure are making it harder to be a landlord in Central Indiana- and a tenant!

Oh, It's Soooo Hard To Do!

Pity the poor state Republicans. They had to be told not to get all excited and begin making plans to spend revenues that came in above forecast. It's tough because on the one hand you have a governor who promised to eliminate the budget by a certain date. On the other, you have little other than tax-and-spend Republicans in the Statehouse. From Mike Smith's AP report, found in the Fort Wayne News Sentinel:

When state tax collections came in far above the April target, Gov. Mitch Daniels made a big deal of it.

He brought state Budget Director Chuck Schalliol to a weekly meeting with reporters and touted the fact that revenue for the month was $206 million more than projected in December.

...

It's a tough spot for Daniels, who has pledged to eliminate what was a $600 million deficit in early 2005 by the end of this fiscal year on June 30. He said in March that the state likely would be able to afford statewide full-day kindergarten next year. He even hoped it could be implemented by the start of the 2007-2008 school year.

Many Democrats, including state Sen. Vi Simpson of Bloomington, say it's time to get that done. The price tag would be about $140 million a year, according to the Legislative Services Agency.

...

Senate Appropriations Chairman Robert Meeks, R-LaGrange, said the state's first obligation should be eliminating the back payments. He said he was open to discussing full-day kindergarten, "but do we do that at the sacrifice of everything else?"

Meeks sent a letter to all Republicans, issuing a cautionary note about spending.

"I think it's way too early to talk about new programs," he said.

But, when the time is right, Republicans will be there to spend, spend, spend. Maybe sometime after June 30, when the Guv is in the clear.

Libertarians in the Statehouse wouldn't need a cautionary letter advising them not to go crazy on the spending.

It's an interesting article in other ways. Check out this item featuring Brian Bosma:

Republican House Speaker Brian Bosma said recently that "now that the state has balanced its budget," Indiana was in a position to move forward on new education opportunities. They could include a strong kindergarten program, state-funded textbooks for every child, remediation for struggling students.

It was just shown that the budget is not balanced. Could it be that he doesn't know the difference between red & black? Or, is that as Sen. Dirksen once famously said, "a billion here, a billion there, pretty soon you're talking about real money". We're only in the millions on this deficit, so maybe it isn't real money to Bosma yet, or to sadly unnamed State Senators. Again, from Smith:

The December forecast predicted that by the end of the two-year budget cycle in July 2007, revenues would exceed expenditures by $265 million. As fiscal leaders in the Senate note, that's not a lot of money distance between a deficit and a surplus when it comes to a current annual budget of about $12 billion.

This is how they think about your tax dollars. Had enough yet?

Rob Place's DC Report

As mentioned several times previously, Campaign Manager Rob Place attended the recent Campaigns & Elections seminar, "The Art of Political Campaigning" in Washington DC.

This was an incredibly valuable seminar for Rob and for the Kole Campaign, as we have come away with a streamlined plan for the months ahead. I have every confidence that what Rob learned will help us work smarter, and that we will see the results in November.

Here is Rob's report:

“Campaigns & Elections magazine put on a very professional conference. I was able to meet numerous other campaign operatives and political consultants from all over the country and quiz them on specific aspects of the Kole campaign. Most of the attendees were Republicans and Democrats, though there were a few independents and even some from other countries here to learn a few tricks of the trade.

Some of the messages were obvious – campaigns need three things: money, money, and more money. In today’s world consumers are bombarded with advertising on a constant basis, and the only way for them to hear your message is to reach out to them in a concerted, repetitious manner. This takes money – and lots of it. I’ve picked up a few good fundraising ideas, and you’ll be hearing about those in the weeks and months ahead. That being said, if you’d like to save us all some time you can just donate on Mike’s website right now.

Of course, the power of earned media shouldn’t be minimized and I’ve picked up a few tips on how to communicate effectively with reporters. Robert Trayhorn (of Sen. Rick Santorum’s campaign) and Flavia Colgan (of MSNBC) provided attendees with some excellent ideas on reaching out to reporters so that Mike is covered, but covered. Of all the workshops in the conference, this provided me with the most useful information.

The internet was another hot topic, and Joe Trippi (of Howard Dean fame) filled us on using websites and blogs to get a campaign’s message out. Mike’s been doing a great job with his blog already, and I would expect his opponents to follow his lead as the election season shifts into high gear. But will Todd Rokita and Joe Pearson allow public comments on their blogs? I doubt it, and they will be sending the message that they’d rather not have a frank discussion of the issues with Hoosier voters; unlike Mike, who is always happy to discuss the tough questions. In Joe Trippi’s playbook, score one for Mike.

I don’t want to go into specific ideas on strategy that I picked up, for obvious reasons. But needless to say, the trip was very informative, and really helped focus how successful campaigns need to be waged. I want to thank the Kole supporters who made this happen, and I hope to make you all proud in November!”

-Rob Place

I hope supporters will agree that this was a valuable, smart investment. If you haven't made a contribution in support of Rob's attendance at this seminar, please click through this link to make a donation. Contributions of even $10 go a long way.

Inclusion

It is gratifying to see letters like this one, in the South Bend Tribune:

I noticed in the May 23 Tribune it was reported the Democrats have named Joe Pearson as their candidate for Indiana secretary of state.

The article then went on to report that Pearson will be challenging Todd Rokita, the current holder of this very important office. The Tribune does a disservice to its readers, however, in failing to report Pearson and Rokita are also up against Mike Kole, the Libertarian candidate.

Furthermore, the Green Party is working to get Bill Stant on the ballot for secretary of state, something The Tribune recently reported.

The Tribune should stop pretending voters have only two choices come election time and tell the whole story every time.

Kathleen Petitjean
South Bend

I don't know Ms. Petitjean yet, but I'd like to. She knows the ballot status exactly, as newspaper reporters should, too. More voters would become better educated voters, as she is, if the whole story were told every time. You might even see better turnout at the polls.

IBJ Interview

I was interviewed by Chris O'Malley of the Indianapolis Business Journal earlier this morning. The subject was light rail and the possible project on the old Nickel Plate corridor that roughly parallels Allisonville Rd from Fishers to the Fair Grounds.

I've been making the case against the light rail for a few years now. Here are the bullet points:

• This project would cost a billion dollars without any overruns.
• A billion dollars gets about 4% of cars of I-69, on its best days, per MPO.
• IndyGo has an operating loss of nearly 80%, made up for by subsidies. Why extend this failure?
• A single corridor is hardly a network. How do you get around once de-trained?
• Indy is not a walking city, nor has the density where light rail works, as in NYC.
• Light rail isn't even the best use of the corridor. A trail & greenway would be.
• Light rail decreases adjacent property values while trails increase it.
• The people owning properties adjacent to the corridor haven't been asked what they want.

Mr. O'Malley indicated that the article would run in July. I can't wait to see it. Mainly, a lot of ranking Republicans- State Senator Luke Kenley, Hamilton County Commissioner Christine Altman, Carmel Mayor Jim Brainard, and Noblesville Mayor John Ditslear- are in favor of this boondoggle, and there has been very little questioning of the plan. The numbers are atrocious, and yet, there's the GOP going rah-rah. This is why Libertarians are firm that the Republican Party has nothing to do with fiscal conservatism.

Indianapolis once had a network of rails for commuters. It closed up shop in 1952, because it was losing money, even with a complete network. Why not open a bus line along this route first and see if it can hold its own? It would cost so much less than a billion.

Fighting To Claim Libertarians

It's funny- I almost wrote an entry on this thought a few days ago, when I noticed a Dionne column that used the word 'libertarian' in a positive light. Dionne isn't the first person I think of when I think of us, meaning libertarians. In fact, he's one of the last.

That's been happening a lot lately. I know, because I do searches in 20-50 media sites every day on the word 'libertarian' to see what comes up. More often than not in the past, the word 'libertarian' appeared alongside the word 'civil'. Now it seems, when a writer is ascribing virtue, they are describing someone or some policy as 'libertarian'.

Earlier this year, Mitch Daniels was describing himself (with the help of George Will) as a libertarian, and cited Virginia Postrel's book "The Future and its Enemies" as one of his guiding influences. Postrel is the former editor of the foremost libertarian monthly Reason.

Earlier today, Markos Moulitsas explained in great depth that he is a 'Libertarian Democrat'. For those who somehow don't know, Markos is "Kos", as in "Daily Kos"- the foremost political blog in the US, and the carrier of the chevron for many on the left in this country. Kos is featured in Time this week.

I don't think it is any coincidence that there is a very mainstream battle for libertarians. A recent report from the Pew Research Center, announced that only 9% of Americans are libertarians philosophically. So, the rest are liberal or conservative, right? Wrong. 15% are conservative, while 18% are liberal. The lion's share are ambivalent (42%).

That's useful information with the elections only 150+ days away, and Democrats and Republicans looking for ways to earn the edge. I don't know how you go about reaching people who are ambivalent. I do know how you go about reaching people who self-identify as clearly as libertarians do. You point out areas of agreement in order to lure them in. If either side can win that 9% libertarian bloc, they win in November.

Both left and right have the capacity to reach out to libertarians, because libertarians agree with those on the right who believe in economic liberty, while we agree with those on the left who believe in personal liberty. Expect a whole lot of pandering to us in the next 150 days. It's a good thing. It screams, "relevance".

The Kos entry is very telling. The first thing he does is bitch-slap the Libertarian Party. Harshly. That's because the one thing- the logical thing- that those who self-identify as libertarians should be doing is backing the Libertarian Party. Both left and right will be working hard to classify the LP as strictly irrelevant while singing the praises of our philosophy. That's quite a song and dance when you break it down. From Kos:

And what is the common thread amongst these candidates?

They are all Libertarian Democrats.

Ack, the "L" word! But hear me out.

Traditional "libertarianism" holds that government is evil and thus must be minimized. Any and all government intrusion is bad. While practical libertarians (as opposed to those who waste their votes on the Libertarian Party) have traditionally aligned themselves with the Republicans, it's clear that the modern GOP has no qualms about trampling on personal liberties. Heck, it's become their raison d' etre. (Emphasis is mine.)

What Kos points out about the GOP is correct. The thing he wants you to gloss over is that Dems haven't delivered on the civil liberties end either.

See, there's a reason I put the current poll up about wasted votes and failure to deliver. People are looking for alternatives this year like no other since 1974. Democrats really want to capitalize on flailing Republicans and lure new voters to undo Republican majorities. For their part, Republicans just want to hang on. Both will trot out the Wasted Vote Syndrome to thwart votes going to Libertarian candidates.

Indeed, this year, the biggest challenge I see for the Libertarian Party is to at last demolish the myth of the Wasted Vote Syndrome.

Mainly, there are wasted votes each November. If you are a libertarian and you wanted smaller government and less spending so you voted Republican, you wasted your vote. If you are a libertarian and you wanted more personal freedoms and you voted Democrat, you wasted your vote.

Once people realize that the only way to get what they want is to vote for candidates of the only party committed to libertarian principles, they will finally begin to get them.

Republicans enjoy burying libertarians in their Liberty Caucus, and why there is such a thing as the Log Cabin Republican is utterly beyond me. So, let's see what bogus holding corporation the Dems create for libertarians to be buried in this year, because you know they aren't going to go straight to the policy-making positions in the DNC any more than we did in the RNC.

The Kos post is getting a lot of comment among Libertarian bloggers: Cato-at-Liberty #1; Cato-at-Liberty #2; Reason Hit & Run; Hammer of Truth.

Jeff Pruitt asked me what I thought of Kos' take on Libertarianism. I think Kos gets some part of it, mainly the individual liberty part. That's the part I really expect the left to get. Remember, my roots as a youth were as a Democrat, because I believed strongly in the First Amendment and was opposed to a draft, and the Democrats were speaking my language on those things. Then Tipper Gore got involved with the PMRC, and it was all downhill from there with the Dems and me. It's true indeed that we have plenty of common ground, and I really am delighted to see Kos shine light on it. But, forgive my cynicism on the battleground. I've been taken for granted too many times in my short life thus far.

Stephen Gordon from Hammer of Truth says very well what I might say about Kos' take on corporate power and government:

That’s right, [Kos] actually said that government is a check on corporations’ power! Hello! Wake up and smell the reality. Government is the source of corporations’ power. Corporations have gotten very good at getting government to empower them to do whatever they want. Without government, corporations could not exist. And the less power government wields over the people, the less power the corporation can leverage to its own ends. (Emphasis original.)

There is nothing to be feared more than the government-business partnership. Government wields unlimited literal physical power, while business holds limited but vast financial power. Put them together and the little guy will be crushed like so much ant crap under the heel of a polished boot. The government-business partnership is precisely what gave us Kelo v. New London, a taxpayer funded Colts stadium with NK Hurst hanging on for survival, and thousands of other outrages.

Kelo wouldn't have been fighting to save his home without a developer partnered with the City of New London. NK Hurst wouldn't have had to fight to preserve their building if the Colts built their stadium on their own. Both would have told the developers, "Not interested!", and that would have been that. Only government has the power to evict. Corporations partner up to tap into it.

Government a check on corporate power. Sheesh. On that note, I could get going on the 'who is the utopian loon?' angle, but I think the point is made.

Update: The Kos post has more than 850 comments. They're worth skimming. While there is the Libertarian/fiscal conservative bashing and way-off descriptions of what a libertarian is, as you might expect, there is even more thoughtful dialogue. It's a glorious thing seeing libertarian ideas getting a serious hearing in a place like Daily Kos. Here's one particularly astute comment:

I think if you ask any libertarian to rank their trust of "government authority" in order from local, regional, state and federal choices, local would rank highest and federal lowest. So when you hear libertarians bashing government, most of the time it's the centralized federal government they're talking about. We all agree that all politics is local, but the Dems for some reason ignore that tenet to rush up to Washington to try to solve specific problems in a broad, one-size-fits-all approach which leads to massive bloat, waste and inefficiency. Libertarians I believe would rather the local/regional community address their issues in their own way, in ways that are most productive and relevant for their own communities, and look to their state level government for assistance only if needed. The federal government would be the LAST place they'd turn to solve problems in their communities. For Dems, it's the first place they turn, every time.

Got that right! Libertarians are not anarchists, as is often misstated. We fear centralized power, so when you hear a Libertarian describe Democrats as 'evil', 'completely wrong', or as 'opposite to Libertarian', understand that it's hyperbolic speech, but mainly a reaction to centralized government power.

Hat tip to Jeff Pruitt for the original Kos post, and to Andrew Lee for this comment.

How's Your Poker Face?

As many of you know, I enjoy playing poker. I have no idea if I have a good poker face or not. Here are some funny commercials from pros that were rejected by TV networks for air. Link.

I don't know- I think the one with Eric Siedel is airable.

Just a reminder: For those wanting to host a fundraiser at their home, I'm delighted to do Texas Hold 'Em nights.

Hold 'Em is an easy event to run because of its structure. There is no buy-in because that would be illegal gambling. There is a donation to the campaign, and then we play for fun using chips. You can find out whether or not I have a good poker face.

I'm available to do this almost every Friday night from now until Election Day. Contact Jenn Bradshaw by email to set it up.

Regulating Fun Out of Existence

In our quest to minimize potential harm to Americans, but especially to children, we have gone a long way towards squeezing the fun out of youth. The latest threat? Discussions about squirt guns. Check this out, from the Indy Star:

"I don't like squirt guns," said Mendez, 45, of the Northside. "I think toy guns send the wrong message, because what's next? I don't even like my daughter to touch them."

What a load. With that reasoning, let's ban driving 20 miles per hour, because it sends the wrong message. What's next? 55mph? 65?

In order to eliminate all the things that could potentially lead to other things, should we ban all the video games, the TV shows and the books? How about banning butter knives, because they could lead to cutting people, or, banning fire, because someone might think of burning someone. Good grief!

Squirt guns are just like anything on TV. It requires a parent to sit down with the child and explain. With toy guns, you explain to the child that real guns can kill, and that the toy gun, the squirt gun, is made for fun. You don't aim it at another child's face. You squirt each other to cool off, or to play tag, but not to hurt another. That's it.

I know that's really hard for many of today's selfish auto-pilot parents to get their arms around. Selfish, because they don't take the time to be parents, to talk to their kids. Don't leave parenting up to the government. Be the parent. You'll help preserve freedom in this country, you'll preserve your child's fun, and who knows, you might even draw closer to your child in the process of talking to them about how to use objects properly.

Black Expo Muncie Parade

I was delighted to be invited to march in the Black Expo Muncie parade by Carrie Dillard-Trammel, the Libertarian candidate for Indiana House, District 34.

Carrie knew absolutely everyone on the route. I have never seen a candidate sought out for hugs by so many people watching a parade. I thought Dan Drexler knew everybody, but he has nothing on Carrie, at least in Muncie.

Here are some pics from the parade.

Update From Washington

Campaign Manager Rob Place checked in with a quick report on the Campaigns & Elections seminar in Washington DC.

Rob has gathered some key ideas for the structural organization of the Kole Campaign, that we do not currently have in place- but will when he returns.

Rob has been sharing campaigning ideas with a candidate for Oregon governor, and even a Senator from Bermuda.

A very productive and interesting first morning at the seminar! More reports to follow.