Northern Illinois Campaign for Liberty

By Ron Paul

Last week we were reminded that ours is not the only country suffering from severe economic turmoil. The Greek government is the latest to come close to default on their massive public debt. Greece has insufficient funds in their treasury to make even the minimum payments that are now coming due. Their debt level is about 120 percent of their gross domestic product and their public sector absorbs what amounts to 40 percent of GDP. Any talk of cutting costs and spending is met with violent protests from the many Greeks heavily dependent on government payments. Mounting fears of default have sent shockwaves through their creditors and all of the eurozone countries.

But there have been statements made by the European Central Bank to calm fears and give assurances that Greece will get the aid it needs. Details of agreements are not forthcoming.

Is it possible that our Federal Reserve has had some hand in bailing out Greece? The fact is, we don’t know, and current laws exempt agreements between the Fed and foreign central banks from disclosure or audit.

Click here to read the complete article.

By Ron Paul

We have been on a disastrous course for a long time. The money supply has doubled in the last year, our debt is unsustainable, the value of the dollar is going to continue its drop, and those Americans who understand where we are headed feel helpless and held hostage by foolish policy makers in Washington. When the bills finally come due and the dollar stops working we are in for some real social, economic and political chaos. That is, unless we take some major steps now to allow for a peaceful transition in the future. These steps are laid out in my legislation to legalize competing currencies.

Click here to read the complete article

From Campaign for Liberty, by Deb Wells

Four more House Reps co-sponsored HR1207 on December 1:

Rep Reyes, Silvestre [TX-16]
Rep Rodriguez, Ciro D. [TX-23]
Rep Kilpatrick, Carolyn C. [MI-13]
Rep Boren, Dan [OK-2]

The state of Oklahoma is now a premier member of what we call the “HR 1207 100 Club”, where all House Reps have co-sponsored Ron Paul’s Audit the Fed bill.

Other HR 1207 100 Club member states:  Alaska, Arizona, Arkansas, Delaware, Hawaii, Iowa, Idaho, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississipi, Montana, Nevada, Nebraska, New Mexico, South Dakota, Vermont and Wyoming.

Now, the real test will be whether these 317 co-sponsors will support HR1207 as a stand-alone bill rather than as added language to the woefully inaccurately named “”Financial Stability Improvement Act” (wherein the Fed would be given even more power and thus give us even greater instability).

Every HR 1207 co-sponsor needs a phone call from you to remind them that HR1207 has everything required to stand very well on its own, thank you very much.

Find the full list of co-sponsors here.  Then, click here to find your U.S. House Representative’s phone number.

If you see that your House Rep hasn’t co-sponsored yet, you might want to ask them why….

After all, isn’t transparency exactly what we were promised last fall?

Ideas are formally known as “the content of cognition” or the main thing of which you are thinking. That may be the dictionary (or technically the Wikipedia) definition, but for many of us, ideas are much more than that.

Ideas were a common theme in Ron Paul’s presidential campaign. From the Rally for the Republic he said, “Ideas spread, they cannot stop them. Ideas whose time has come cannot be stopped by any government or any army.”

I think an important difference between Ron Paul’s campaign, and the campaigns of other candidates, especially Obama’s, is that Ron Paul wasn’t trying to create a personality cult.  I was a Ron Paul fan long before I watched any of his speeches, or actually saw him.  I was excited about the ideas that he was spreading. I wasn’t thrilled over Ron Paul personally, but what he stood for.

So what is it about ideas? What makes them so powerful?

1) Ideas Unite

This too was a major theme of Ron Paul’s campaign. There were people from different races, different socio-economic backgrounds (that seems to be the politically correct term, “socio economic”), people who were life-long staunch Republicans, people who couldn’t stand the 2-party system, Libertarians, even, I daresay, some Democrats…all these people had one thing in common–they wanted liberty. They believed in the idea of individual liberty, of limited government, of free markets.  Unlike Obama’s campaign, this was not a racially charged run. It had absolutely nothing to do with race, because all people, no matter what skin color, should be free. It had absolutely nothing to do with religion, because all people, no matter who they believe in, should be free. It had absolutely nothing to do with wealth, because all people, no matter how poverty-stricken or filthy rich, should be free. It had nothing to do with education because all people, no matter if they didn’t finish 8th grade, or have six degrees, should be free. That is the power of liberty. I know this personally. It has been a tremendous experience, walking beside so many different people in tea parties and rallies, and working C4L booths with various people, liberty unites and draws people together. I attended an Audit the Fed rally in Chicago this fall, it was a very inspiring event, especially for someone who is new to political activism, who hasn’t attended many rallies or big events. There were all sorts of people at that rally, and we all got along just fine and were drawn together because we all wanted liberty. The idea of liberty united us.

2) Ideas Inspire

I often think about what made me get politically active. It certainly was not the plea of any person that pushed me on. I didn’t see someone on TV, and decide I would go do something for them, because they “asked” me to.  I convinced my family to make Tea Party signs and attend the April 14th Tea Party because of the ideas I believed in. And the idea of liberty keeps me going. This work can be very discouraging sometimes. Especially at times like this, when the House passed that huge healthcare bill, even after a summer of strong, and sometimes violent, townhall meetings.  I start wondering, is all of this worth it? I’ve put enormous efforts into this work, I’ve sacrificed a lot of time to the cause, mostly because I am at a place in life when I have more time than people generally do. I’ve organized, I’ve planned, I’ve so much, and yet it seems like we aren’t getting anywhere.  Maybe I should go back to being a silent observer, a quiet patriot. Is this worth it? And then I think of the world we’re trying to create. A world in which all people are free to pursue their dreams, make a business (and succeed, or fail at it), use their money any way they want, learn whatever they want, and do anything they want as long as they let everyone else do the same. Can you imagine a world where I wouldn’t have to ask permission from Our Father Who Art in D.C. every time I want to do something? I could put an addition on my house without having a government official come look at it, and without paying a hefty fee! I could decide I wanted to drive somewhere, without getting permission to drive a vehicle of transportation. I could start up a business selling cookies from my home, and if people didn’t trust that my home was clean and sanitary…well, I’d go out of business.  I could buy and sell anything I wanted, without doing it “under the table” with fear of someone catching me. I could marry someone I loved without asking the government for permission. I could teach my children whatever I wanted, without asking permission.

Now, that’s an idea worth fighting for. That’s an idea I hope I would be willing to give up everything for. That’s the idea America was founded on, and that’s the idea we can’t give up.

Northern Illinois Campaign for Liberty

Reclaim the Republic

Restore the Constitution

October 27, 2009

Wecome to the Northern Illinois Email Newsletter!

Upcoming Events:

Details for these events can be found under the “Calendar” at www.northernillinoisliberty.com

Gubernatorial Candidates Forum, November 14^th (see note below)
Join us for a discussion with some of the candidates running for the governor’s seat. If you want to make an educated decision at the polls in February, this is a great way to meet the candidates and ask questions about issues that are important to you. Very important: This event has been moved from November 7^th to November 14^th due to scheduling difficulties. And the location has now been determined. The Candidates Forum will be held at the North Suburban Library in Rockford, 6350 North Second, Loves Park.
The exact time has yet to be finalized, but will be in the early afternoon. Please check back for more details.

Local News:

We now have 60 members and 5 coordinators in Winnebago County. In Illinois there are 7,397 members, and 99 coordinators.  If you have not yet joined the Campaign for Liberty, you can do so at www.campaignforliberty.com. Please consider becoming a local coordinator in your area. The training that Campaign for Liberty provides for coordinators is some of the best of any similar grassroots organizations, and, the more coordinators we have, the easier it will be for each one. All it takes is a passion for liberty…will you do it?

We need volunteers to help promote our upcoming candidates forum. It can be as difficult as creating and sending out press releases to all local media…or as easy as putting a flier on a restaurant bulletin board. To make this event successful, we need to let everybody in the Rockford area know about it. Email me if you’d like to help out.

We are also interested in holding Constitutional Classes this winter, using Michael Badnarik’s 8-hour DVD lectures, meeting perhaps every other week for about an hour and a half. I recently went through this course, and it changed the way I look at government, history, and individual rights. If you are at all interested in this, please let me know because we need to know how many people would like to attend this in order to find a location and time that works for most people.

Featured News:

“H1N1 declared a ‘national emergency’ by the President”

On Saturday, October 24^th, President Obama declared H1N1, or “Swine Flu” to be a national emergency. This enables hospitals to override normal regulations in order to treat the massive waves of sick people rushing to the emergency room. However, the idea of a national emergency goes back to 1933 and FDR’s War and Emergency Act, which allows the government to nullify the Constitution during a time of national emergency. This obviously concerns Americans, and many people are wondering if H1N1 is so dangerous as to call for a radical declaration such as this. Click here for more info, and we also have some blog posts on our Northern Illinois website about H1N1.

Healthcare Updates

The Democrats are still struggling to pass a healthcare reform bill and will have to push hard if they want to get it through by the end of the year, as was President Obama’s goal. Click here to read the AP article. It is important that we continue to keep the pressure on our senators to vote against this bill.

Sen. Durbin, 202-224-2152

Sen. Burris, 202-224-2854

Audit the Fed

Neither of our senators, Sen. Durbin and Sen. Burris, have cosponsored S. 604, the Senate bill to audit the Federal Reserve. Please continue to call their offices and tell them how important transparency is to America.

H.R. 1207, the House bill to audit the Federal Reserve, now has 307 cosponsors, and S. 604 has 30 cosponsors.

Illinois Corruption and the “Put-Back Amendment”
As anyone who lives in Illinois knows, Springfield is corrupted by Chicago politics. Well, one man is trying to solve this problem and would like to propose the “Put-Back Amendment” that would do just that—put government back in its place and end the “back room dealings of the General Assembly.” The author of this bill, John Bambenek, needs help collecting the 500,000 signatures required to put this amendment on the ballot in 2010. Please visit www.putbackamendment.com to find out more about this amendment. Let me know if you are interested in helping with with this effort.

Featured Blog Posts:

Unalienable Rights

Northern IL Campaign for Liberty Newsletter, October 20

The Threat of Mandatory Vaccinations

Economics and Moral Courage

Up, Up Goes the National Debt

Go to www.northernillinoisliberty.com/blog to read these posts and more.

Featured Resources:

Freedom Under Siege, “Here is Ron Paul’s political manifesto, a courageous book on civil liberties and the rights of Americans that are relentlessly under assault from government. It was written in 1987, on the 200th anniversary of the Constitution, and is back in print for the first time.”

Liberty and Property, by Ludwig von Mises, a small book (53 pages) that is “one of the most dazzling presentations of the case for economic liberty ever written.” Available through the Mises Institute, $5.00.

Note: I figured I better say this so I don’t get in trouble with our ever-watchful government, but I am not getting anything from anyone for recommending these resources. There, I think that covers pretty much all  possibilities.

From the Grassroots

I’ve decided to do a short, maybe long, series of articles on simple ways to get involved and start making a difference. Maybe call them stepping stones, just one small step at a time, from simply calling your senator to protesting outside his office—yes, it can be done because that’s where I came from! So, I am going to start with phone calls.

Step #1, Calling your elected officials. Maybe you’re used to it now, and don’t have a problem with making phone calls and registering your complaints or suggestions. Or maybe you’ve never done it. Firstly, you have to find out who your elected officials are and get their phone numbers. Campaign for Liberty has a great tool for easily finding your representatives and senators, just enter your address and it will give you information about your elected officials in DC, from their party to phone number, to a short bio. So, after you find their number, decide what issue to call them about. And I had to say that because it can be hard to pick… “should I tell them I don’t want government healthcare, or government bailouts or…?” Anyways, decide on an issue, and then do the research if necessary to come up with a bill number. Instead of saying, “I support an audit of the Federal Reserve” it is more professional to say, “I support H.R. 1207, the bill to audit the Federal Reserve.” If you’re like me, you’ll want to write down the bill number so your mind doesn’t go blank once you get on the phone. And now you’re ready to call! When you call, be polite, but be brief. Simply state your opinion. “I’d just like to say I support H.R. 1207, the bill to audit the Federal Reserve, and ask that Sen. _______ or Rep. _____ cosponsor H.R. 1207.” They may ask for your zip code, but generally not any more information than that. And resist the temptation to explain everything to the person at the other end of the line. They have no influence over the elected officials, so don’t say, “I’d like Sen. ______ to cosponsor H.R. 1207, the bill to audit the Federal Reserve because the Federal Reserve is a private institution, and under the GAO laws currently is not required to open up their books to Congress and…” because you’ll just annoy the other person. All they can do is mark down that you are either for or against something, they’re not going to write down all the extra history and information. It is just important that they hear your opinion, but you don’t need to explain it to them. And that’s it…call, briefly state your opinion, give your zip code if asked, and hang up. So try it this week…previously in this email I listed some issues right now that we need to contact our elected officials about, so pick one, be it Audit the Fed, or healthcare, and make your first step. Remember, your representatives are in DC to represent you—but how will they know how to represent you if you don’t tell them what you stand for?

If you are not a member of the Campaign for Liberty, please consider joining. Click here to become part of this movement dedicated to prosperity, free markets, the Constitution, and liberty.

Savannah Liston, Winnebago County Coordinator

“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword, the other is by debt.”

– John Adams

Find Us on Facebook

Follow Us on Twitter: @northernILC4L

www.campaignforliberty.com

www.northernillinoisliberty.com

For questions, email savannah@northernillinoisliberty.com

For technical assistance, email webmaster@northernillinoisliberty.com

Click here to read the Bloomberg article.

Northern Illinois Campaign for Liberty

Reclaim the Republic

Restore the Constitution

October 20, 2009

Wecome to the Northern Illinois Email Newsletter!

Upcoming Events:

Details for these events can be found under the “Calendar” at www.northernillinoisliberty.com

Gubernatorial Candidates Forum, November 14^th (see note below)
Join us for a discussion with some of the candidates running for the governor’s seat. If you want to make an educated decision at the polls in February, this is a great way to meet the candidates and ask questions about issues that are important to you. Very important: We may be moving the date to November 14^th, so please watch for more details.

Local News:

We now have 60 members and 5 coordinators in Winnebago County. In Illinois there are 7,357 members, and 99 coordinators.  If you have not yet joined the Campaign for Liberty, you can do so at www.campaignforliberty.com. Please consider becoming a local coordinator in your area. The training that Campaign for Liberty provides for coordinators is some of the best of any similar grassroots organizations, and, the more coordinators we have, the easier it will be for each one. All it takes is a passion for liberty…will you do it?

We need volunteers to help promote our upcoming candidates forum. It can be as difficult as creating and sending out press releases to all local media…or as easy as putting a flier on a restaurant bulletin board. To make this event successful, we need to let everybody in the Rockford area know about it. Email me if you’d like to help out.

We are also interested in holding Constitutional Classes this winter, using Michael Badnarik’s 8-hour DVD lectures, meeting perhaps every other week for about an hour and a half. I recently went through this course, and it changed the way I look at government, history, and individual rights. If you are at all interested in this, please let me know because we need to know how many people would like to attend this in order to find a location and time that works for most people.

Featured News:

Urgent Healthcare Action!

Today, October 20^th, the continuation of Obama’s presidential campaign, the organization Organizing for America is asking government healthcare supporters to call their senators and representatives. They are hoping for over 100,000 calls today that will bombard the phone lines. We need to counter this plan and call our senators urging them to oppose a government takeover of healthcare. We need to make our voices heard as well. Please call our senators and tell them that you do not want the government interfering in the healthcare system. That is all it takes. You don’t have to explain why, just say you oppose it.

Sen. Durbin, 202-224-2152

Sen. Burris, 202-224-2854

Audit the Fed

Neither of our senators, Sen. Durbin and Sen. Burris, have cosponsored S. 604, the Senate bill to audit the Federal Reserve. Please continue to call their offices and tell them how important transparency is to America.

H.R. 1207, the House bill to audit the Federal Reserve, now has 303 cosponsors, and S. 604 has 30 cosponsors.

Illinois Corruption and the “Put-Back Amendment”
As anyone who lives in Illinois knows, Springfield is corrupted by Chicago politics. Well, one man is trying to solve this problem and would like to propose the “Put-Back Amendment” that would do just that—put government back in its place and end the “back room dealings of the General Assembly.” The author of this bill, John Bambenek, needs help collecting the 500,000 signatures required to put this amendment on the ballot in 2010. Please visit www.putbackamendment.com to find out more about this amendment. Let me know if you are interested in helping with with this effort.

Featured Blog Posts:

Ignorance is Bliss

Campaign for Liberty October 13^th Newsletter

U.S. Congressman Ron Paul to make Iowa visit

Go to www.northernillinoisliberty.com/blog to read these posts and more.

Featured Resources:

Money, Banking and the Federal Reserve, a movie distributed by the Mises Institute about how the Fed controls the American economy. This film is available for free viewing online.

The Politically Incorrect Guide to the Constitution, this book provides information about the founding of our country that cannot be found anywhere else. It is available through the Mises Institute.

If you are not a member of the Campaign for Liberty, please consider joining. Click here to become part of this movement dedicated to prosperity, free markets, the Constitution, and liberty.

Savannah Liston, Winnebago County Coordinator

“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword, the other is by debt.”

– John Adams

Find Us on Facebook

Follow Us on Twitter: @northernILC4L

www.campaignforliberty.com

www.northernillinoisliberty.com

For questions, email savannah@northernillinoisliberty.com

For technical assistance, email webmaster@northernillinoisliberty.com

Northern Illinois Campaign for Liberty

Reclaim the Republic

Restore the Constitution

October 13, 2009

Wecome to the Northern Illinois Email Newsletter!

Upcoming Events:

Details for these events can be found under the “Calendar” at www.northernillinoisliberty.com

● Gubernatorial Candidates Forum, November 7^th
Join us for a discussion with some of the candidates running for the governor’s seat. If you want to make an educated decision at the polls in February, this is a great way to meet the candidates and ask questions about issues that are important to you. The location and time have not yet been determined, watch for more details.

Local News:

We now have 60 members and 5 coordinators in Winnebago County. In Illinois there are 7,327 members, and 99 coordinators.  If you have not yet joined the Campaign for Liberty, you can do so at www.campaignforliberty.com. As one of our state coordinators said,  “Members with user accounts have the benefit of receiving breaking news as it happens, access to all upcoming events, a personal blog, and the invaluable ability to network with other liberty minded individuals. Dues-paying members receive a 20% discount at our Campaign for Liberty store as well as discounts at Campaign for Liberty National events, and the ability to lead in your area by becoming a Local Coordinator,” …so what you are waiting for?

We need volunteers to help promote our upcoming candidates forum. It can be as difficult as creating and sending out press releases to all local media…or as easy as putting a flier on a restaurant bulletin board. Any help you are willing to give is appreciated.

We are also interested in holding Constitutional Classes this winter, using Michael Badnarik’s 8-hour DVD lectures, meeting perhaps every other week for about an hour and a half. I recently went through this course, and it changed the way I look at government, history, and individual rights. If you are at all interested in this, please let me know because we need to know how many people would like to attend this in order to find a location and time that works for most people.

Featured News:

Audit the Fed

Neither of our senators, Sen. Durbin and Sen. Burris, have cosponsored S. 604, the Senate bill to audit the Federal Reserve. Please continue to call their offices and tell them how important transparency is to America.

H.R. 1207, the House bill to audit the Federal Reserve, now has 301 cosponsors, and S. 604 has 30 cosponsors.

Nobel Peace Prize
Click here (YouTube video) to hear Ron Paul’s response to Obama winning the Nobel Peace Prize, or here is a link to the press release from Campaign for Liberty if you have a slow internet connection.

Hate Crimes Legislation
Congress is still working on a bill that would “protect” homosexuals, and as Rep. Alcee Hastings said about this bill, “alternative sexual lifestyles should be protected.” However, that protection means that our right to speak our opinion will be ignored. And the American Family Association pointed out, since “sexual orientation” nowhere is defined in the law, “this law will give pedophiles, voyeurs, and exhibitionists special protections, which is why the bill has correctly been called ‘The Pedophile Protection Act.’” Read the complete story here.

Illinois Corruption and the “Put-Back Amendment”
As anyone who lives in Illinois knows, Springfield is corrupted by Chicago politics. Well, one man is trying to solve this problem and would like to propose the “Put-Back Amendment” that would do just that—put government back in its place and end the “back room dealings of the General Assembly.” The author of this bill, John Bambenek, needs help collecting the 500,000 signatures required to put this amendment on the ballot in 2010. Please visit www.putbackamendment.com to find out more about this amendment. Let me know if you are interested in helping with this effort.

Featured Blog Posts:

Obamacare Invades Your Wallet
C4L Mass Action Day Winners
Illinois September C4L Wrap-Up
Regarding the U.N. Convention on the Rights of the Child

Go to www.northernillinoisliberty.com/blog to read these posts and more.

Featured Resources:

Introduction to Austrian Economics Analysis, a free 10 lecture course by Joeseph Salerno of the Mises Institute. If you are interested in getting a solid grasp on the fundamental principles of economics, this is a very helpful course.

The Case for Gold, by Ron Paul and Lewis Lehrman, this book “covers the history of gold in the United States, explains that its breakdown was caused by governments, and explains the merit of having sound money: prices reflect market realities, government stays in check, and the people retain their freedom.” Available through the Mises Institute

If you are not a member of the Campaign for Liberty, please consider joining. Click here to become part of this movement dedicated to prosperity, free markets, the Constitution, and liberty.

Savannah Liston, Winnebago County Coordinator

“There are two ways to conquer and enslave a nation. One is by the sword, the other is by debt.”

– John Adams

Find Us on Facebook

Follow Us on Twitter: @northernILC4L

www.campaignforliberty.com

www.northernillinoisliberty.com

For questions, email savannah@northernillinoisliberty.com

For technical assistance, email webmaster@northernillinoisliberty.com

October 16, 2009

DES MOINES, IOWA

Iowa Campaign For Liberty is pleased to announce that U.S. Congressman and former presidential candidate Dr. Ron Paul will make a visit to Iowa this November 13^th and 14^th.

Congressman Paul’s 2008 presidential campaign ignited a grassroots movement that culminated in the formation of Campaign For Liberty, a political and educational organization focused on the principles Dr. Paul championed during his presidential campaign and in his eleven terms in

congress.

Details of Dr. Paul’s visit are forthcoming and will be announced as soon as the schedule is determined.

For more information contact David.Fischer@CampaignForLiberty.com.

Iowa Campaign For Liberty, a partner with the national Campaign For Liberty organization, is an all-volunteer organization of over 2,300 Iowans dedicated to promoting more freedom, more prosperity, and less government.

UPDATE:

At 7:00 p.m. on Friday November 13th Congressman Paul will speak in Benton Auditorium in the Scheman Building at Iowa State University in Ames, Iowa.  This event will be free and open to the public.

By Deb Wells, Direct of Membership Services for Campaign for Liberty

Since Ron Paul’s Audit the Fed bill was introduced, you’ve reached millions of Americans through phone calls, mailings, radio and television interviews, letters to the editors, emails, social networking sites, door-to-door canvassing, booths at fairs, gun shows and music festivals, and a host of other local events and activities in communities around the country.

Then we turned up the heat.  You put the pedal to the metal, shifted gears and took aim at the Senate.

You made your voices heard loud and clear by calling your Senators and attending Town Hall events, and collected petition signatures for the cause at every possible event.  Then on September 15, you hand-delivered thousands upon thousands of petitions to Senators across the country, making S.604 Mass Action Day a resounding success!

There are currently 30 co-sponsors in the Senate!!

To make it interesting, Campaign for Liberty held a competition…click here to read the rest.