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Editor: Jeffrey Russell |
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Successful OPH Booth at Bard College
The New York Libertarian Party has recognized that it is essential that Libertarians be found at all age levels in the state but has focused on young students at universities and colleges in New York since there seems to be a consensus that young Americans are more receptive to Libertarian ideas.
At Bard College on Saturday, May 16th, John Holowatch (Bard College student), Meghan Smith (Carnegie Melon University student), Jason Gagnon (SUNY-New Paltz student), and I (UT-Edinburg graduate) set up an Operation Politically Homeless booth. We were there from 11:00 AM to 3:00 PM. We set up in front of the cafeteria. We had a table, some signs, Libertarian literature, and the big Nolan Chart.
I was surprised by the number of students that came by to take the political quiz. The number was 101! This was twice the number who took it at the Million Marijuana March-Phase I, back on May 2nd.
This OPH would not have been this successful without the four of us there. It really does go much smoother with more Libertarians at the booth. If you look at the time we were there, three people were quizzed every seven minutes.
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We gave a definition sheet for what Libertarian, Liberal, Centrist, Conservative, and Authoritarian mean (from the Advocates Quiz/definitions site) and the flyer "TOWARD PEACE AND FREEDOM - The Libertarian Challenge Around the World" and the web site address (http://www.LaissezFaire.org/li7725.html) to everyone who came by the booth. This helped everyone understand that Libertarians are real and that there is legitimacy in libertarianism. For the students that scored Libertarian, we got their names and addresses to invite them to events this Fall and send them Libertarian information.
We plan on finding more Libertarians and spreading the ideas of liberty to the students at Bard College and SUNY-New Paltz this Fall. There is a definite acceptance of Libertarianism among these students. The seeds are being planted here and now, so that further down the road the principles of libertarianism will flourish.
Garvey Speaks Out Against Sports Subsidies
Christopher Garvey, the Libertarian Party candidate for Governor of New York, calls tax-paid sports activities a "foul committed against the taxpayers and against free enterprise." Garvey calls for the "separation of sports and state", just as the First Amendment to the Constitution provides for separation of church and state.
Who is Christopher Garvey? He is a patent attorney in Roslyn, and lives in Amityville, Long Island. He graduated from Sacred Heart High School in Yonkers, and Columbia College of Columbia University. Yeshiva University Law School granted his law degree with honors. Besides his legal work, Garvey is an avid sailor, and is a licensed charter boat captain and sailing instructor, making him sensitive to pollution issues.
According to Chris Garvey, both Giuliani and Vallone are wrong on Yankee Stadium. Giuiliani wants to move Yankee Stadium (at the taxpayer's expense) from the Bronx to Manhattan. Vallone wants a vote in a referendum whether the taxpayers should pay for the move. But Vallone fails to ask the taxpayers whether they should pay for the Bronx location either. Libertarians reject the notion that the taxpayers should pay for it, even if a majority of the handful of voters does approve it. Taxpayer financing is "ball pork" to Libertarians.
Garvey charges that "Although Mayor Giuliani opposes welfare for the poor, he is not against welfare in principle. Witness his advocacy of a massive welfare scheme designed to provide tax-subsidized benefits to George Steinbrenner: a new Yankee Stadium.
"Giuliani proposes taxing every struggling ma and pa enterprise in this city, in order to subsidize and increase the profits of multi-millionaire Steinbrenner. The opportunity to transfer vast amounts of wealth from poor and disfavored New Yorkers to Giuliani's political cronies and contributors is too good for him to miss. Meanwhile, Vallone poses as the defender of the Bronx."
"Libertarians oppose all theft of some people's earnings to benefit others, whatever their standing. But I especially oppose robbing from the poor and middle class to give to the rich. That's why I oppose the Mayor's Yankee Stadium scheme on principle. While there are many logistic and economic reasons not to move the stadium, it should not be Giuiliani's decision nor Vallone's decision nor even the voters' decision. None of them have the right to take from others to finance their pet projects, ideas or values."
The entanglement of government with sports is not limited to Yankee Stadium. Nassau County Executive Tom Gulotta proposes giving the new owners of the Islanders hockey team a new stadium at a projected cost of $150 million, part to come from all the state's taxpayers. The Libertarians in Nassau County and Chris Garvey want to "block the Coliseum shot on the taxpayer's net." They dismiss the "Nassau Veterans Coliseum Privatization Committee" Gulotta set up as just double-talk and a smokescreen for his legal theft. Meanwhile, a self-styled taxpayer advocate, State Senator Owen Johnson of Suffolk wants a minor league baseball stadium on Long Island, at the New York taxpayer's expense. New York State owns three ski resorts in competition with private enterprise. Garvey wonders who from the Albany crowd is on the payroll there. In any case, he says "Sell all the government-owned stadiums and sports facilities."
"There are two ways to get wealth in society: the economic means of free exchange in the marketplace, or voluntary gifts; and the political means of force, indirectly by government or directly, like the mugger. Corporate welfare such as sports stadiums or the LILCO bailout is a principal target of my campaign for governor," says Garvey.
How is Libertarian Garvey different from Republican Pataki or Democrat X? "They are just different flavors of the same recipe: more government, more intrusion, more spending of your money. I will attempt to dismantle as much of the government as possible. I will try to repeal as many laws as possible. I will veto unneeded spending and taxing at every opportunity. For me, liberty of the citizens is the primary goal of good government." Therefore, Garvey says "Separate state and sports."
Garvey's running mates are: William McMillen, a Delmar CPA, for US Senate; Donald Silberger, a New Paltz math professor, for Lieutenant Governor; Daniel Conti, a Port Washington lawyer, for Attorney General; and Robert Goodman, a Bronx biochemist, for State Comptroller. Garvey's campaign can be reached at NY Libertarian Campaign '98, 1773 Harold Avenue, Wantagh, NY 11793 or by phoning (5l6) 292-8340. They have an Internet website: http://www.civic.li/lpny/.
LI Teenager Addresses Nassau Libertarians
A resident of Middle Island, Adam Martin, is 15 1/2 years old and will begin at Longwood High School this fall. Previously, he went to the Long Island School for the Gifted and North Shore Montessori School. He attended this spring's Libertarian Party of New York convention in upstate Poughkeepsie which nominated Long Islanders Chris Garvey for Governor and Dan Conti for Attorney General. There he signed the delegate list, spoke to the convention, and was elected to represent the New York party at Washington's national convention.
Adam notes that the government taxes him and others under 18 but denies them the right to vote and that compulsory education prevents him from earning money.
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Do you feel like a lone libertarian in a sea of statists? Yes? Then you probably don't have a local LP chapter in your county. The remedy is simple: start one! Here's how. First, you'll need to request a few things from the LPNY (you can contact any of the LPNY officers.
The final step is to apply to the LPNY for certification. You'll be asked to present your by-laws and the names and addresses of your officers. Assuming you did everything by the book, certification should be more or less automatic. As you can see, the procedure for getting started isn't complicated. You may hit bumps in the road, but where there's a will, ... well, you know. For example, at the Queens County chapter's first meeting, only four people showed up, so we worked out a plan for calling everyone on our list to try for another meeting. On our second try, we held a successful founding convention. Once you get started, there'll be work to do. You'll need to maintain a membership list and reply promptly to anyone who inquires about your organization. You'll also need to develop plans for meetings and for getting involved in politics. LP Communications Director Bill Winter's Checklist of Success for State Libertarian Parties (at right) is an excellent guide for mapping out a county organization's activities. Getting a new county LP chapter up and running will involve some work, but you don't have to quit your day job. Your officers' committee can meet and decide how to divvy up the necessary tasks. And you can always call on the State Committee and people in other county chapters for help. Starting a new county chapter will be worth whatever effort it takes. If you haven't experienced it yet, there's nothing like that first meeting with a room full of committed libertarians. And you'll be helping to restore the true values of the American Experiment; you'll be working to promote liberty itself. It can be done. Why not start right now?
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Ten-Point Checklist of Success for State Libertarian Parties 1. Maintains an accurate, up-to-date database of members and prospects.
2. Sends out a prompt, professional information package to interested prospects, and sends out timely membership renewal notices to current members.
3. Engages in ongoing, constant prospecting to increase the size of the organization.
4. Publishes a regular, decent-quality newsletter to keep members and prospects informed. Uses newsletter to publicize activities and successes.
5. Has a bank account, and an ongoing, implemented plan to raise money.
6. Runs candidates for political office. Monitors elections (or registration numbers) which affect ballot status.
7. Is active in the political system - whether through elections, referendums, lobbying, or whatever.
8. Has regular, publicized, productive, and interesting public meetings. And has regular meetings of party leadership to plan strategy and projects.
9. Has an organized media outreach plan - which can include press releases, press conferences, and personal contacts - to promote the party and earn publicity.
10. Has leadership dedicated to growth, success, and professionalism - and determined to avoid factionalism, arguments, and obstructionism. Party leadership has a solid, realistic vision for success.
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Will LPNY Be On The Ballot?
The Libertarian Party of New York is currently wrapping up its petition drive for 1998. All signatures must be turned in by Tuesday, August 18. To get its slate of statewide candidates on the ballot, LPNY must turn in a minimum of 15,000 signatures. To withstand a possible challenge, we should really aim to get about 30,000 signatures.
As of August 1, approximately 4,000 signatures had been collected. That number is growing rapidly, but it may not be growing fast enough. We may just barely get the 15,000, leaving us potentially vulnerable to a challenge.
Attached to the back of this newsletter is a copy of the petition. Please make as many photocopies of it as you need, and collect as many signatures as you can in the next few days. This mailing is going out to over 1100 members across New York. If everyone can get 10 or 20 signatures in the next few days, it could give us the cushion we need.
But the clock is ticking and time is short. You must act now. A week from now will be too late. Mail completed petitions to Jeff Russell, 55 Via DaVinci, Clifton Park, NY 12065-2903. Remember, the signatures must be delivered to the Board of Elections before 4:30 PM on August 18th.
If you're not sure that the USPS can deliver them in time, call a local contact (see page 3) or a State Committee member (see page 4). Someone from your area may be driving to Albany over those last couple of days.
LPNY is trying to get 5 candidates on the statewide ballot for this November's election. They are: Christopher Garvey for Governor, Donald Silberger for Lieutenant Governor, Daniel Conti for Attorney General, Robert Goodman for Comptroller and William McMillen for United States Senator.
Garvey's race for Governor is the most critical to LPNY. Under New York State law, a political party is not officially recognized until its candidate for Governor gets at least 50,000 votes. When that happens, the party is no longer required to collect petition signatures to get its candidates on the ballot.
Will LPNY be on the ballot this November? That depends on you.
Mail completed petitions to:
Jeff Russell
55 Via DaVinci
Clifton Park, NY 12065
Remember, all petitions must be delivered to the Board of Elections by 8/18.
(continued next month)
Update: we have submitted more than the required number of signatures, and there don't appear to be challenges!
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US Mail: Jeffrey Russell
55 Via Da Vinci
Clifton Park, NY 12065
Phone: (518) 371-3641
E-Mail: JRuss1776@aol.com
Fax: (518) 371-3364 (but call first, normally it's not turned on)
Address Changes
The mailing list for LPNY is now being maintained by national.
All address changes/corrections can be sent to:
Libertarian Party HQ Watergate Office Building 2600 Virginia Ave. NW, Suite 100 Washington, DC 20037
Chair: James Harris, PO Box 1036, Rockville Centre, NY 11571
(516) 646-8897
Vice-Chairs: Blay Tarnoff, 50 DeKalb Ave., Apt S6, White Plains, NY 10605
( 914) 949-1945 e-mail: blay@bigfoot.com
Audrey Capozzi, PO Box 613, Bellport, NY 11713
(516) 286-7631 e-mail: Audgeo@aol.com
Secretary: Caryn Cohen, 601 Pine Drive, Bay Shore, NY 11706
(516) 968-6164 e-mail: CCohen@suffolk.lib.ny.us
Treasurer: John Ayling, 337 Lakeview Drive, Mahopac, NY 10541-3344
(914) 628-7676 e-mail: John.Ayling@IBM.com
At Large: Bradford Arter, 7912 31st Avenue, Flushing, NY 11370-1820
Robert Goodman, 1402 Astor Ave., Bronx, NY 10469 (718) 547-4165
e-mail: RobertGoodman@godi.adirondack.fidonet.org
David Harnett, 234 Cream Street, Poughkeepsie, NY 12601-6316
(914) 452-4753 e-mail: doberman@sprynet.com
Mary McAllister, 18 Craigville Road, #8-3, Goshen, NY 10924
(914) 294-5264 e-mail: MaryMc@warwick.net
Donald Silberger, PO Box 1080, New Paltz, NY 12561-0020
e-mail: DonSilbs@mhv.net
Past Chair: Lloyd Wright, 16 Fairview Road, Hopewell Jct., NY 12533
(914) 226-3387 e-mail: lw.free.ny@mhv.net
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