Business Insider: Libertarianism Won't Tend My Lawn

From Business Insider:

I wandered over the Libertarian Party and I found their Platform. I'm sure there are a few items here and there with which some libertarians disagree, but in general, it seems to me to be a pretty fair representation of libertarian beliefs, so I encourage you to read the whole thing. That said, I do not believe libertarians live up to their stated beliefs. Here's the first sentence of the pre-amble:

As Libertarians, we seek a world of liberty; a world in which all individuals are sovereign over their own lives and no one is forced to sacrifice his or her values for the benefit of others.

To that end, of course, the libertarian philosophy also seeks to minimize government, in particular, government coercion . . .

And it is precisely here - in the first sentence of the pre-amble, and its implications, where libertarians go off the rails. Consider the following... my neighbor, whom we have never met and might not even have seen (we're not certain) despite living in this house for two years, seems to enjoy letting her lawn grow uncontrollably . . . 

CA: Local Green Growth Spurt

From Green Party Watch:

The San Fernando Valley Green Party has seen a recent surge of outreach, networking, and coalition building; this is how a grassroots movement is built. Our principles of social justice, environmental responsibility, grassroots democracy, and non-violence will prove to be the way of the future if we are to build the party in the next few years, and I am confident people will not give up to reach an attainable goal of informing our fellow citizens about the importance of the Green Party and the voting power we all hold. So with that, here are some of the thing that we have been working on…

Constitution Party Drafts Resolution in Opposition to Top Two Style Primary

From the Constitution Party of Missouri:

Whereas, popular dissatisfaction with the Democrat and Republican parties has never been higher and demand for more political change has never been greater, and

Whereas, in a Top Two election system all candidates for an office run against each other in the first round of voting, the two candidates with the most votes in the first round are nominated to move on to the final election, and in the final election between two candidates, the candidate with the most votes wins, and

Whereas, calls for Top Two election methods claim election efficiency and more representative candidates, but implementation of such systems has effectively limited choices for voters, therefore be it

Resolved, that the Constitution Party stands opposed to all Top Two election systems which result in limiting the choices for voters in general elections, and be it further
Resolved, the Constitution Party stands in unity with the principles espoused by The Free and Equal Elections Foundation and other like minded groups in opposing implementation of Top Two election systems and be it further

Resolved, the Constitution Party supports legal, legislative, and political action to repeal and rescind California and Washington “Top Two” election laws.

Constitution Party Discussion: Should Muslims have the same religious rights as other Americans?

Apparently, some elements in the Constitution Party are not very enthusiastic about extending constitutional protections to certain people.  From the Constitution party discussion forum:

There will come a time in this great country when we will have to question and decide: “Should Islam have the same religious freedom that the rest of us enjoy?” I know that Islam and those who want to see America destroyed will say “Yes”. They will quote the constitution and say “Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof."

For some time this troubled me because it appeared that Islam can use our own constitution to take over America. However, I now do not believe Islam should have the same religious rights . . .

In Defense of the National Security Police State

Rep. Steve King is the quasi-fascist head of the House Homeland Security Committee.  If there is any police state measure that the likes of King would oppose, news of it has yet to come across our desks.  In defense of the national security police state, and routine violations of constitutional rights and liberties, King defends the Patriot Act in a recent op-ed by arguing on the basis of fiction.  Literally.  Excerpt:

If a roving wiretap is good enough for Tony Soprano, it’s good enough for Mohamed Atta.

Is King aware that The Sopranos was not reality television?

A Political Word Puzzle

From The Daily Nexus:

Can you think of two separate words that perfectly divide and encapsulate the beliefs, preferences and characteristics of 300 million different people? No? Well then, how lucky are we that our country’s government has been able to base its entire decision-making process on that very concept. There may have been a time when it really meant something to be a Democrat or Republican (say, when the parties were first founded so that like-minded people could band together in order to give their collective interests a larger voice), but when your group’s membership begins to number in the tens of millions, acting like everyone’s desires are exactly the same becomes something of a charade . . .

NY-26: Independent Pulls 9% in Special Election

From Ballot Access News:

On May 24, New York voters filled the vacant U.S. House seat, 26th district. The results are: 48% for the Democratic nominee, 42% for the Republican nominee, 9% to Jack Davis (the independent candidate with the Tea Party label), and 1% for Ian Murphy, the Green Party nominee.

The Good, the Bad and the Ugly of (Party-List) Proportional Representation :Lessons from Britain’s 2009 European Elections!

I summarize a review of the use of PR in the UK in 2009 and point out how if 3-seated LR Hare and Alternative Vote (IRV) were used together to elect four M(E)Ps per mega-district then the goods would be retained while the bads would be significantly reduced.
dlw

Media Ignore Green Party Candidate for Sheriff

From a letter to the editor of Philly.com:

In an article Tuesday ("Marge looking at end of her city reign?"), Bob Warner noted that "in the fall, [Jewell] Williams will face Republican Joshua West" in the race for sheriff. That's true, but Williams will also face the Green Party candidate, Cheri Honkala.

The fact that the Green Party was not in the primary, or that Honkala's candidacy could be judged a long shot, does not mean her candidacy is not newsworthy.

Honkala is running to shift the focus of the Sheriff's Office away from selling foreclosed houses and evicting people to an advocacy for the poor and middle class who have suffered from the mortgage and financial debacle. Honkala says she will not evict people or sell foreclosed homes.

Interestingly, Williams' posters and lawn signs are not the usual Democratic blue. They are green. Moreover, in a recent debate, Williams seemed to borrow some of Honkala's Green Party ideas. It is to be hoped that, in the future, your newspaper will give the Honkala campaign better coverage.

John Grant
Honkala For Sheriff Campaign
Plymouth Meeting

Check out Honkala's Facebook page.

NYT Profiles Communist, Socialist and Democratic Socialists of America

From the New York Times:

In some ways, the Left remains locked in place. Its three major national parties are still confined to cramped Manhattan offices that are plastered with gaudy posters and honeycombed with pamphlets for distribution and envelopes for stuffing.

But in other ways the landscape has changed significantly. All three parties are finding the Internet to be a fruitful recruiting tool and believe their message has been given a fresh, beguiling appeal by the failures of capitalist symbols like Lehman Brothers and by debacles like the billions of dollars in securities tied to subprime mortgages.

“The economic crisis of 2008 gave us new life,” said Billy Wharton, a co-chairman of the Socialist Party, who grew enamored of socialism while battling tuition increases as a student at the College of Staten Island. “We have ideas for resolving the economic crisis, and people began to listen to them.” . . . .

PA: Republican Party Judge is Declared Enemy of Free Elections

From Politics PA:

Both the Pennsylvania Green and Libertarian Party representatives slammed the GOP’s choice for Superior Court judge, Vic Stabile, citing his efforts as a Republican party official to knock third party candidates off of ballots in PA.

The Pennsylvania Libertarian Party chair Lou Jasikoff called it “shameful.” . . . “Mr. Stabile led the charge to get Libertarians knocked off the ballot in 2008 and was recently quoted as being pleased by efforts to keep the Green and Libertarian Parties from appearing on the statewide 2010 ballot." . . .

Candidates from several third parties expressed their displeasure at Stabile. Carl Romanelli, the US Senate candidate in 2006 for the Pennsylvania Green Party, has long contended that his own removal from the ballot could not have been accomplished without the aid of partisan judges.

“The last defense of democracy and the Constitution is the judiciary. When it is corrupted or co-opted, it represents the most significant threat to the principles that once made America the grand protector of liberty,” said Romanelli. “The lack of meaningful review reflects as poorly on justice in Pennsylvania as does Stabile’s blatant obstruction of our rights. It is sad to think that the cradle of democracy, Pennsylvania, has now become its graveyard.”

Wayne Allyn Root, the 2008 Vice-Presidential candidate on the Libertarian ticket, stated that Mr. Stabile’s actions not to be tolerated. He called them “Unamerican”

Independent Marginalized by Mainstream Press in NY-26

From the Suffolk County Liberty Report:

Voters in New York’s 26^th Congressional District in Western New York are preparing to vote in a special election May 24^th to replace disgraced Republican Representative Chris Lee, the married “Craig’s List Congressman” whose solicitations of women on the internet was exposed earlier this year.

The race, which should be a slam-dunk for the GOP, is instead a more closely contested three-way race because self-financed faux “Tea Party” candidate Jack Davis has done well in the district. A Siena College poll taken April 26^th-27th, the most recent, reliable, independent poll, showed none of the three candidates with a majority. The leader was Republican Jane Corwin (36%), followed by Democrat Kathy Hochul (31%) and Davis, the “Tea Party” independent,(27%). The poll had a margin of error of plus or minus 4.5 percentage points, so the two major party candidates could be in a dead heat, but only because of Davis’ strong showing as an independent.

To read reports from the New York Times and the Associated Press, though, one would think this was only a two-way race. Davis, whose populist, anti-NAFTA, anti-immigrant, anti-Wall Street message has played fairly well among rank-and-file Republican voters, is barely mentioned in most news stories. The 27% Davis polls, and which comes mostly from Republican voters, isn’t mentioned at all. Instead, the liberal media portray the Davis’ candidacy as merely a “complicating factor”, practically a statistical blip in the scheme of things . . .

OH Action Alert: Libertarians Fight to Stay on Ballot

Former Libertarian Party candidate for Congress in Ohio, Travis Irvine, asks Ohioans to pressure their state representatives to stop an anti-third party ballot access provision from being written into the state's election code.  From the LP Ohio:

Ohio SB 148: Ask your Senator to amend Ohio Revised Code 3517.01 to allow for "Resonable Ballot Access Provisions."

As you should already know, the Ohio Senate is voting Tuesday on a bill which will effectively eliminate the Libertarian Party from appearing on the ballot. The next 2 days are the most important in Ohio Libertarian Party history. It's more important than voting twice per year. We need every soldier to put in every spare hour they have. Skip sleeping and have some coffee. I have included some tools to help in the fight.

First is a list of all the talk radio stations in Ohio. It includes the time that they have call in hours on Monday. The information is as accurate as I can find, so double check. If you don't have a station close to you at they time you can call, then call a station across the state. If you search for the call letters, you can find their site where they usually have a "listen live" on your computer option. That list is below.

Second is a tool to find out who your state senator is. Call, fax, email, and then call again. Just enter your zip code or address where it says "Find Your Candidates"to find out who your Senator is. The link: http://votesmart.org/

Third is a link to the story about what Michael Johnston told House and Senate committees last week. There are links in the story to his power point presentation, his talking points, and the legislation. That link is: http://lpo.org/news/state-announcements/447-lpo-testifies-before-house-and-senate-committies-on-voters-rights.html

Fourth; the Libertarian Party of Ohio facebook page has a discussion tab at the top. I started a discussion there where we can post notes to each other. Find a friendly radio host? Post it. Know a Senator that is on board (or not)? Post it. Any other strategies? Post it. Here is the link: https://www.facebook.com/LibertarianPartyOhio

Finally, post comments on all you favorite blogs. Post comments at online news paper sites.

Cynthia McKinney in Libya and Iran

Former Democratic Congresswoman and Green party candidate for president, Cynthia McKinney, has recently been interviewed by Libyan state TV and Iran's Press TV.  From CNN:

A former U.S. congresswoman slammed U.S. policy on Libyan state TV late Saturday and stressed the "last thing we need to do is spend money on death, destruction and war."

The station is fiercely loyal to Moammar Gadhafi and her interview was spliced with what appeared to be rallies in support of the embattled Libyan leader.

"I think that it's very important that people understand what is happening here. And it's important that people all over the world see the truth. And that is why I am here ... to understand the truth," former Rep. Cynthia McKinney said during a live interview . . . .

And from Iran's Press TV:

The political process in the United States is more responsive to the special interests of the country's two major parties than it is to the wishes of the Americans, says a former US Congresswoman.

In an interview with Press TV, Cynthia McKinney, a former US Congresswoman, commented on the political atmosphere in the United States. The following is the transcript of the interview:

Press TV: You have been here in Iran for a couple of days now with this anti-terrorism seminar. Give us a brief explanation of your overall thoughts about that seminar.

McKinney: I think it was a wonderful experience for me. Of course this is the first time I have ever been to Iran, and there are many perceptions out there, particularly in the United States, about the character of the state of Iran.

I got a chance to see and greet, firsthand, Iranians in their own setting; in their own homes. For me this has been not only an interesting, but an enlightening experience.

The conference itself brought people from all over the world. More than one hundred countries were represented. I was able to network and interact with my sister from Venezuela; my brother from Bolivia; my brothers from Africa; there were people from North America, South America, Asia; you name it -- all the four corners on the planet were represented at this conference. And the thing that brought us together was our singular interest in peace and justice. . . .

A Critique of Pure IRV.

There was a recent bill proposed to enable the use of Rank Choice Voting, or Instant Runoff Voting, in Minnesota. I proposed again a tweaked version of IRV that simplifies the vote-tabulation process with the use of a modified form of Approval Voting for the first stage.

I got a good feeling about this one...
dlw

UK: Independence Party Reaches Out to Members of Former Libertarian Party

From the UK Independence Party:

Following news of the proposed deregistration of the Libertarian Party of the UK, UKIP Executive Chairman Steve Crowther has said that the party will extend a warm welcome to former LPUK members who wish to join or rejoin UKIP.

"The values and beliefs of UKIP and the Libertarian Party are very closely aligned," he said. "While we may not agree on everything, our shared commitment to freedom, personal responsibility and minimal government interference in our lives is absolutely clear. UKIP is a party making real progress, under a new management team, and is now firmly established as the ‘fourth force’ in British politics.

"Now is the time for all libertarians to put our shoulders to the same wheel. Former LPUK members will be able to make a valuable contribution to our mission to wrest power from the political elites in this country, and hand it back to the people."

MN: Libertarian Party Opposes GOP Measure to Ban Gay Marriage

From the LPMN:

In an unusual action, the Libertarian Party of Minnesota held a special meeting on May 7 to consider a response to the anti-liberty legislation now being proposed by Republican legislators in the Minnesota House and Senate.

By an 11-0 vote, the LPMN Executive Committee unanimously passed a resolution opposing a constitutional amendment that would prohibit gays from becoming married.

The proposed Gay Marriage Ban would expand government control and restrict the freedom of consenting adults to live their own lives as they choose. Libertarians believe that marriage is a private matter between individuals . . .

Trumka to Call for Independent Labor Movement

From The Hill:

AFL-CIO President Richard Trumka will say Friday that workers want an “independent” labor movement designed to help the working class, not a specific party or candidate.

In a speech at the National Press Club, the head of the nation’s largest labor federation will say that unions intend to focus their 2012 political efforts not based on lawmakers’ party affiliation but rather their stance on issues near and dear to labor.

An Indpenendent Mayor for Philadelphia?

From Uncovered Politics:

The polls had barely closed last night when former Philadelphia mayor John F. Street told the local Fox affiliate that he’s seriously considering challenging Mayor Michael Nutter as an independent candidate in the autumn mayoral election.

Nutter easily defeated T. Milton Street, John Street’s older and arguably more colorful brother, in yesterday’s Democratic primary, garnering nearly 76 percent of the vote and carrying every ward in the city.

“I am not prepared to make an announcement at this particular time, but nothing that happened in the election today at all is discouraging when it comes to the possibility of an independent running for mayor,” Street defiantly told Fox29 . . .

OH: Voting Disqualifies Independent Candidate for Mayor

From The Chronicle Telegram:

Tim Quinn, who is running for mayor of Elyria as an independent, voted in the city’s Democratic primary earlier this month, a move that could cost him his place on the November ballot.

Quinn

Lorain County Board of Elections Director Paul Adams said that according to the Ohio Secretary of State’s Office, independent candidates aren’t supposed to vote in partisan primaries after filing to run as independents. They are also barred from being members of a political party’s central or executive committees when they declare themselves independents.