Freedom Costs

The Bedlam Bards is a RenFaire duo whose world view was apparently considerably affected (perhaps just focused) by the short-lived, late lamented Fox (no surprise there, eh?) series, "Firefly." They've even produced an evocative album of "Firefly"-inspired songs, called "On the Drift." This video of an as yet unreleased song just arrived in my inbox at, shall we say, a delicate time, and I dearly appreciated it. May it comfort and fortify you, too. Sure wish I could sign on to that gorram ship (maybe I could be the funny one now), but I guess we got us plenty a' work to do right here...

NHLA Visits the NH LOB

The NH Liberty Alliance visits testimony in several NH House Committees at the Legislative Office Building, 1/9/2008, including CACR23, "Providing that the State shall not abridge the right of parents to control the welfare and education of their children," and HB1347, referenced here.

NH Rejects Liberty

CONCORD, NH - Last night, NH voters, in their "First in the Nation" primaries, chose the status quo over "the animated contest for liberty;" preemptive interventionism over MYOB; warmongering over peace; fascism and collectivism ("We are Borg. You will be assimilated.") over sovereignty; the political machine over original intent; force over freedom; even theocracy over religious liberty for all. Their next objective was not clear at press time.

As I stood, darkly contemplating these implications in the shower this morning, and again as I sat in on legislative hearings with the NH Liberty Alliance in Concord this afternoon, it occurred to me that perhaps Ron Paul's message of liberty didn't actually fail in NH (I'm grasping for a "benefit of the doubt" here, in case it's not obvious). Perhaps, just perhaps, the problem is with the messenger, or more accurately in this case, the delivery boy.

Liberty activists in NH are becoming increasingly effective at getting the correctness, the consistency, the "honor" of the message across to powerbrokers and advocacy groups. But we're still ignoring -- well, perhaps that's too strong a word -- the masses: the far too high percentage of the population that's still so abysmally unaware of the principles and the stakes, of the original design of this Constitutional Republic, who, as NH Public Radio reported last night, still can't make a choice until they're standing in the voting booth. And then with an arbitrary coin flip, they choose McCain and Clinton. Name recognition. Comfy.

*sigh* I certainly don't know what the answer is. But I deeply fear we're rapidly running out of time, and we need to come up with something. Soon. I shudder at the conventional wisdom -- and I do accept it -- that NH is one of the most liberty-minded places in what is continually billed as "the freest country in the world." Empirically, that ain't sayin' much. Not much at all...

1/10/2008: Here's a partial answer. Thanks, Jim...

2008 NH Liberty Forum, Day 3

Saturday at the Free State Project's 2008 NH Liberty Forum, 1/5/2008.

Part 1



Part 2

2008 NH Liberty Forum, Day 3 - Mincin-Stephen Debate

Free Stater Dave Mincin holds the feet of NH 1st District Congressional candidate, former NH DHHS Commissioner John Stephen to the fire at the Free State Project's 2008 NH Liberty Forum. Yeah, yeah: half a minute without video. Rest your eyes or something...

2008 NH Liberty Forum, Day 2

A sampler of daytime activities at Day 2 of the Free State Project's NH Liberty Forum, 1/4/2008.



And evening festivities. Specifically, the dinner speaker, "Cap'n Roughseas," AKA "enemy of the state" (but who of us isn't these days) Liberty Dollar's Bernard von Nothaus. Hey, find a Liberty Associate, get yourself a paper Certificate, and join the class action...

2008 NH Liberty Forum State House Tour

The NH Liberty Alliance takes the Free State Project's NH Liberty Forum attendees on a physical and political tour of the NH State House and Legislative Office Building, 1/3/2008.

Ron Paul's Speech at the 2008 NH Liberty Forum

GOP Presidential candidate Congressman Dr. Ron Paul's amazing address to the 2008 NH Liberty Forum, admittedly a friendly audience, 1/6/2008. Watch for the spontaneous ghost of Barry Goldwater. (Yeah, ok: "Jr." But it's still kinda freaky, ain't it...? And no, not when he's introduced.)

Ron Paul Presence at Fox News GOP Forum

Ron Paul at the 1/6/2008 Faux- er..., Fox News GOP Forum -- in spirit, anyway -- at St. Anselm's College in Goffstown, NH, from which he was banned, 3 days after pulling double digits in the Iowa Caucuses, and 2 days before the NH primaries. Agenda, you say? Noooo...

2008 NH Liberty Forum Firearms Shoot

Scenes from this morning's Firearms Shoot to open the 2008 Free State Project Liberty Forum, at Manchester Firing Line & Range in Manchester, NH. My Reason interview even made it to the web before my video...

So I did most of my talking on the bus to and from the event and milling around. Bill Alleman, who blogs and posts videos under the name NHBikerBill, laughed about the Mitt Romney and Hillary Clinton ads that trumpet their work for average schlubs ("He saved my daugher! She unclogged my toilet!") and argued that only Paul's got truly excited supporters.

"Nobody wants to vote for Romney or those other guys, but there are these voters who vote out of habit: Oh, there's an election, I'd better decide. Why should those votes count as much as votes for Ron Paul?" Bill shook his head. "You listen to him and you say 'This is how it should be, goddamn it!'"

Well, he almost got the username right (he scored on the YouTube url, though). Thanks, Dave! Here's the video (yes, I said the wrong date)...