This has been a busy month for the Kent County Libertarians, as it has been a busy election cycle for the statewide party. This explosion of activity was clearly evidenced by the Kent County meeting which took place on Tuesday, May 18th at the Touchdown Lounge in South Dover. For some time the Kent County meetings, such as they were, consisted of 2-5 people meeting together and having a meal and informal conversation about the direction of state and national politics, the Libertarian party and response, and whether or not the food at the Touchdown was good (it is). The most recent meeting saw over 20 Delaware voters in attendance, continuing a trend in which the meeting turnout has nearly doubled each month since March.
To take full advantage of our growing numbers, one of the primary items on the agenda for discussion was the suggestion to relocate the monthly meetings to the Uno Bar and Grill near the Dover Mall, in order to take advantage of the fundraising opportunities they are known to offer for many other civic groups. Concerns were raised that relocating the meeting would be a break in the county party's tradition and result in shifting business from a locally owned establishment with connections in the community to a chain without that distinction. As a result of these concerns, those present at the meeting resolved that the next monthly meeting will take place at Uno, and we will make an evaluation at that time where to hold our meetings on a regular basis.
A number of other fundraising ideas were discussed, including concerts, open houses, car wash events, Dover Downs roles, and a few others. Anyone who would like to assist in organizing any of these events should contact the County Chair. As the county party will now be participating in fundraising operations and handling money on behalf of its members, another part of the agenda was a discussion on the restrictions and processes which the party should put into place to restrain the impulses of those with access to funds and to inspire confidence in potential donors that their donations will be efficiently and effectively spent. Drafting and maintaining these rules and procedures will be an ongoing task in which all Kent County Libertarians will be welcome to participate.
Due to the time gaps between monthly meetings and in order to facilitate an ongoing, current conversation between the various members of the Kent County Libertarian Party, the party will be starting an online forum. These rules and procedures to ensure a transparent and effective financing system will be drafted and posted for comments on these forums; events will be posted; information on candidates for public office; information about the Kent County, Delaware, and National Libertarian parties; discussions of our founding documents, current laws, and current events; and much more will all be available on the forums. Please register at:
http://kcdelibs.forumotion.com/profile.forum?mode=register
Please use a variation of your name so that you can be identified by others and given the proper permissions for the various forum boards.
Also in attendance at the meeting were a number of candidates running for office in the local area. In addition to the County Chair, Will McVay, who is running for the 32nd District Representative seat, Jonathan Marango, Independent Party candidate for the 34th District, Tim Webb, Libertarian candidate for Kent County's 2nd Levy Court District, Jesse McVay, Libertarian candidate for Kent County Recorder of Deeds, Brent Wangen, Libertarian Party candidate for the US House of Representatives, and Jim Rash, State Libertarian Party Chair and candidate for the US Senate were all present and offered some brief remarks. As we continue to grow in size, we will continue to grow in strength and more and more candidates for public office will seek the ears of Libertarian voters.
The candidates were all familiar with an internet movement called the Rule Of Law Restoration, which is a pair of candidate and voter pledges not to violate the law or the Constitution while in office. This seems like a no brainer, but not all of the candidates have signed it! Check out their web site here:
http://www.ruleoflawrestoration.com/
Their remarks also focused on these necessary conditions for any free country to remain so. The importance of the Constitution, its enumerated powers, and the sovereignty of the states which formed it were also prominently featured.
See the candidate's web sites here:
Jim Rash - http://jimrash.com/
Brent Wangen - http://wangen2010.com/
Will McVay - http://wmcvay-de32.blogspot.com/
Jonathan Marango - http://www.facebook.com/jonsamarah
A brief conversation was conducted regarding the upcoming Libertarian National Convention. Not all of the proposals which will be under consideration are currently known, but the campaign for LNC chair, as well as recommendations to amend the bylaws and platform are largely known. Links to the various web sites for the LNC chair candidates and the recommendation reports for the described changes are below:
Platform: http://gatewaytoliberty.com/static/LP2010PCR.pdf
Bylaws: http://gatewaytoliberty.com/static/LP2010BRCR.pdf
LNC Chair Candidates (alphabetical):
Ernie Hancock - ErnestHancock.org
Mark Hinkle - Mark4Chair.com
John Jay Myers - JohnJayMyers.com/LNC.htm
George Phillies - NewPathForTheLP.org
Wayne Root - RootForAmerica.com
If you have any questions or comments, the delegates to the convention are:
Jim Rash
Will McVay - mcvay.will@gmail.com
Jesse McVay
Mary Pat McVay
Also discussed was the 32nd District Freedom Walk, wherein Will McVay, Libertarian candidate for this district, would walk a route through the 32nd District. In addition to raising the party's profile, these walks serve as a "Roving 32nd District Libertarian" meeting. Although there were very few willing to join in the walk, and only Will and his dog made it through the whole thing, the event still put the Kent County Libertarians in contact with the voters of the 32nd District to promote the party and Will's candidacy. The next such event will take place in June and will be planned and announced further in advance to attempt to address these issues. A larger group will draw more attention and encourage voters who had not yet considered the Libertarian Party to ask questions and join our conversation. Please look out for announcements on Will's Facebook page and blog for updates.
Thank you to all of those who attended. The next meeting will take place on June 15th, 7:00pm, at the Uno Bar and Grill near the Dover Mall.
-Will McVay
Kent County Chair
Libertarian Party of Delaware
Sunday, May 23, 2010
Sunday, May 16, 2010
Why Libertarian?
The main reason I'm running as a Libertarian, besides my predisposition to their philosophies, is that the Ds and Rs have run the country for 150 years, trading back and forth, and they've made a mess of it. The best they've ever done is in periods where one party controlled congress, and the other controlled the presidency. They couldn't agree on how to mess things up, and could only agree on how to save money and eliminate waste.
On the other hand, when one party has at least 51% of both houses of congress, and the presidency, they make a huge mess of things. Think the Democrats now, or the Republicans in '00-'06. I want to help make the Libertarian Party a real alternative that can eventually hold enough seats in any legislature to prevent any one party from owning it completely. If no party ever has a majority, they will all have to work with at least one other party to get anything done. This will pull the country together rather than driving it apart. We will have to reach compromises with each other instead of only talking to people who agree with us.
I'm also running as a Libertarian because I believe in small, local government. The Federal government should be very small, to keep all 300 million US citizens happy. State governments should take on a lot more responsibility than they do now, and most issues should be settled at a state level. If you are unhappy with how your state is being run, it is a lot easier to change, and ultimately easier to move to another state than it is to move to another country.
The Libertarian Party is also less established and so exerts much less influence over its state affiliate parties and candidates. This means that Libertarian candidates and future Libertarian office-holders are beholden to the voters in their districts, and vote to represent them, rather than voting to represent the entrenched special interests and party establishments running the show in the other two parties. No Libertarian would have supported TARP or the bailouts and we've been kicking and screaming since.
By introducing the Libertarians as a real "Third Way", we can show the other two parties exactly what they are doing wrong in a way they MUST address in order to maintain any influence over the electorate. Even if the Libertarian Party never holds a majority and never takes the Presidency, we can serve as a moderating influence on the other two parties and a referee to their disagreements.
Please support your local Libertarian affiliate by attending local meetings and becoming acquainted with party leaders. I don't know of any politician anywhere who will say no to donations!
On the other hand, when one party has at least 51% of both houses of congress, and the presidency, they make a huge mess of things. Think the Democrats now, or the Republicans in '00-'06. I want to help make the Libertarian Party a real alternative that can eventually hold enough seats in any legislature to prevent any one party from owning it completely. If no party ever has a majority, they will all have to work with at least one other party to get anything done. This will pull the country together rather than driving it apart. We will have to reach compromises with each other instead of only talking to people who agree with us.
I'm also running as a Libertarian because I believe in small, local government. The Federal government should be very small, to keep all 300 million US citizens happy. State governments should take on a lot more responsibility than they do now, and most issues should be settled at a state level. If you are unhappy with how your state is being run, it is a lot easier to change, and ultimately easier to move to another state than it is to move to another country.
The Libertarian Party is also less established and so exerts much less influence over its state affiliate parties and candidates. This means that Libertarian candidates and future Libertarian office-holders are beholden to the voters in their districts, and vote to represent them, rather than voting to represent the entrenched special interests and party establishments running the show in the other two parties. No Libertarian would have supported TARP or the bailouts and we've been kicking and screaming since.
By introducing the Libertarians as a real "Third Way", we can show the other two parties exactly what they are doing wrong in a way they MUST address in order to maintain any influence over the electorate. Even if the Libertarian Party never holds a majority and never takes the Presidency, we can serve as a moderating influence on the other two parties and a referee to their disagreements.
Please support your local Libertarian affiliate by attending local meetings and becoming acquainted with party leaders. I don't know of any politician anywhere who will say no to donations!
Friday, May 7, 2010
Facebook Politics
Facebook offers a unique method for marketing a political message to a broad audience. Unlike traditional marketing on TV, radio, and newspapers, Facebook marketing relies heavily on the community itself to spread the message.
A Facebook marketing campaign begins with a Facebook Page. My political campaign has a campaign page which can be accessed at http://tinyurl.com/wmcvayFacebook The page allows for the community to post to a common message board. The posts will also be displayed on the news feed of every user who "Likes" the page. Finding new Facebook users to "Like" the page will broaden exposure to the campaign's message. For all the time that I have spent suggesting the page to my friends, for each user to suggest the page to their own friends would have an exponential benefit. Please, suggest the campaign page to your friends to grow the 32nd District Libertarian community!
You may suggest the campaign page to your friends, but they won't necessarily like the page themselves. Another way to expose your friends to the information from the campaign page is to "Share" the campaign page's posts. When you click the "Share" link on a post from the campaign page, the post will be reposted to your own profile with your own comments.
Similar to "Share" is an option available only for events, "Invite Guests". This is useful for the same reason the "Share" link is useful. Some of your friends may not take your suggestion to "Like" the page and receive their own updates, but if you "Invite" them, they will still find out about events and have an opportunity to RSVP. Please share posts from the campaign page and invite your friends to campaign events!
The difference between "Recent News" and "Top Rated News" is the "Like" link. The more users "Like" and comment on a post, the higher that post will appear on the "Top Rated News" screen. Items on the "Top Rated News" will be seen by less active Facebook users who don't spend as much time catching up on all of their favorite pages and profiles. "Like" posts from the campaign and leave your own comments on the discussion. Push our conversation to the "Top Rated News"!
The easiest way to help out with a political campaign is to follow these simple steps of Facebook Politics. Including your own network of friends, sharing, inviting, liking, and commenting will help turn a simple Facebook campaign into a viral movement to win an election. I need your help!
A Facebook marketing campaign begins with a Facebook Page. My political campaign has a campaign page which can be accessed at http://tinyurl.com/wmcvayFacebook The page allows for the community to post to a common message board. The posts will also be displayed on the news feed of every user who "Likes" the page. Finding new Facebook users to "Like" the page will broaden exposure to the campaign's message. For all the time that I have spent suggesting the page to my friends, for each user to suggest the page to their own friends would have an exponential benefit. Please, suggest the campaign page to your friends to grow the 32nd District Libertarian community!
You may suggest the campaign page to your friends, but they won't necessarily like the page themselves. Another way to expose your friends to the information from the campaign page is to "Share" the campaign page's posts. When you click the "Share" link on a post from the campaign page, the post will be reposted to your own profile with your own comments.
Similar to "Share" is an option available only for events, "Invite Guests". This is useful for the same reason the "Share" link is useful. Some of your friends may not take your suggestion to "Like" the page and receive their own updates, but if you "Invite" them, they will still find out about events and have an opportunity to RSVP. Please share posts from the campaign page and invite your friends to campaign events!
The difference between "Recent News" and "Top Rated News" is the "Like" link. The more users "Like" and comment on a post, the higher that post will appear on the "Top Rated News" screen. Items on the "Top Rated News" will be seen by less active Facebook users who don't spend as much time catching up on all of their favorite pages and profiles. "Like" posts from the campaign and leave your own comments on the discussion. Push our conversation to the "Top Rated News"!
The easiest way to help out with a political campaign is to follow these simple steps of Facebook Politics. Including your own network of friends, sharing, inviting, liking, and commenting will help turn a simple Facebook campaign into a viral movement to win an election. I need your help!
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