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Volume 14, No. 12
July 31, 2009
The
Liberator Online
for everyone who
loves liberty
published by the Advocates for
Self-Government
j |
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Political Quiz is
responsible for many
Americans' first contact
with libertarian ideas.
While traveling around the
country, I have often heard
people say, 'I never knew I
was a libertarian until I
took the Quiz!'"
Ron Paul,
Congressional Record,
November 19, 2008
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WELCOME to the Liberator
Online!
In This Issue
PRESIDENT'S CORNER
* FREE ONLINE BOOK gives
intellectual ammunition for
health care freedom fight
GOOD NEWS, BAD NEWS,
UNBELIEVABLE NEWS
* Ron Paul's Audit
the Fed: Support is
Snowballing
* Health Care Takeover: "All
You Need to Know"
* Obama's First Six Months:
By the Numbers
* Majority Now Opposes Both
Iraq and Afghan Wars
QUICK SHOTS:
Awkward moment.... The
economy is the ultimate
network.... U.S. House
members don't understand the
gigantic health care bill
(but that won't stop lots of
them from voting for it)....
PERSUASION POWER POINT #272
* Are Your Examples
Undermining Your Case
Against Big Government?
by Michael Cloud
ASK DR. RUWART
* Liberal-tarians? Where do
liberals and libertarians
agree -- and disagree?
ONE-MINUTE LIBERTY TIP
* The Myth of "46 Million
Uninsured"
by Sharon Harris
WHAT'S HAPPENING WITH THE
ADVOCATES
* Advocates President at
Illinois LP Convention
* 2009 Annual Freedom Cruise
|
|
 President's
Corner
by
Sharon Harris
FREE ONLINE BOOK gives
intellectual ammo for the
health care battle
The health care debate is
now raging across America.
It's vital that libertarians
and other friends of freedom
understand the issue and be
able to counter the
arguments that proponents of
a government takeover of our
health care system are
using.
I'm pleased to recommend an
excellent
 source
of intellectual ammunition
to help you quickly learn to
do this. It's a short,
easy-to-understand book --
and it is FREE to read
online.
The Top Ten Myths of
American Health Care: A
Citizen's Guide is by health
care expert Sally C. Pipes.
It is published by the free
market Pacific Research
Institute.
You can
read the entire book online
FREE.
(Click on the link at that
page that says "Read PDF
Study.")
You can also purchase it
from that same site.
In only 150 or so
easy-to-read pages, the book
hits all the major issues.
It shows how government
created our health care
mess, answers common
questions, refutes arguments
for a government takeover,
and offers market
solutions.
Each chapter takes on a
complex issue in
straightforward,
easy-to-understand language.
Here's the table of
contents:
* Foreword by Steve Forbes
* Myth One: Government
Health Care Is More
Efficient
* Myth Two: We're Spending
Too Much on Health Care
* Myth Three: Forty-Six
Million Americans Can't Get
Health Care
* Myth Four: High Drug
Prices Drive Up Health Care
Costs
* Myth Five: Importing Drugs
Would Reduce Health Care
Costs
* Myth Six: Universal
Coverage Can Be Achieved by
Forcing Everyone to Buy
Insurance
* Myth Seven: Government
Prevention Programs Reduce
Health Care Costs
* Myth Eight: We Need More
Government to Insure Poor
Americans
* Myth Nine: Health
Information Technology Is a
Silver Bullet for Reducing
Costs
* Myth Ten: Government-Run
Health Care Systems in Other
Countries are Better and
Cheaper than America's
Solutions: Markets, Consumer
Choice, and Innovation
Sally Pipes' work on health
care has been highly praised
by the great libertarian
Milton Friedman.
Renowned free market
economist Thomas Sowell says
this book "can literally be
a lifesaver. What it reveals
is unlikely to be told by
the mainstream media or by
other enthusiasts for the
magic phrase 'universal
health care.'"
It is a great first step to
understanding one of the
most important issues of our
time.
The arguments in this book
can help you persuade others
that a government takeover
of the health care system is
unnecessary, unwise, and
destructive.
And that is urgent. Because,
as libertarian humorist
P.J. O'Rourke says:
"If you think health care is
expensive now, just wait
until it's free."
* * * * * * * *
Welcome to 267 new
Liberator Online subscribers
this issue!
The purpose of the Liberator
Online is to build a
stronger movement for
liberty. We do this by
providing information about
the libertarian movement,
news analysis from a
libertarian perspective,
and, most importantly,
information and resources on
how to best communicate the
ideas of liberty. Thank you
for being a part of this!
Learn more about the
Advocates and our work
for liberty.
Learn
more about libertarianism
-- the philosophy of
liberty.
-- Sharon Harris, President
Email: sharon@TheAdvocates.org
|
Good News,
Bad News,
Unbelievable News
by James W. Harris
Ron Paul's "Audit the
Fed" Bill: Support is
Snowballing
 A
few issues ago we
reported that Ron Paul's
bill to audit the
Federal Reserve -- HR
1207, The Federal
Reserve Transparency Act
-- had reached and
passed the 218
co-sponsors needed for a
majority.
The bill continues to
gain steam. As we go to
press, HR 1207
has an incredible
279 co-sponsors.
This includes EVERY
Republican member of
Congress and 101
Democrats -- a whopping
64% of the House
membership. That's
tantalizingly close to
the 290 votes needed for
a veto-proof majority.
HR 1207's companion bill
in the Senate -- S 604,
the Federal Reserve
Sunshine Act of 2009 --
also continues to win
support, with 20
co-sponsors, almost all
signing on in the past
few weeks.
These bills would,
according to Ron Paul's
Campaign for Liberty,
"pull back the curtain
from [the] secretive and
unaccountable Federal
Reserve."
And the public is wildly
in favor of the idea. A
brand-new Rasmussen
Reports national
telephone survey
finds that a
whopping 75% of
Americans favor auditing
the Fed -- and making
the results available to
the public.
According to Rasmussen:
"The new survey finds
that an overwhelming
majority of Americans in
every demographic
category -- including
age, gender, political
affiliation, race and
income... favor auditing
the Fed to make its
secretive deliberations
public."
Nearly a century after
the Fed was founded, we
may at long last
actually get a good long
look behind that
curtain.
Health Care Takeover:
"All You Need to Know"
"Here's all you need to
know about healthcare
reform,"
says the Buckeye
Lake (Ohio) News Beacon
newspaper about the
following story. And
they've got a point.
On July 14, U.S. Senator
Tom Coburn
 (R-Oklahoma)
introduced a
two-page amendment in
the Senate Health,
Education, Labor and
Pensions Committee. The
Democratic majority on
that committee produced
legislation to create a
controversial
government-run health
insurance "option" that
could destroy private
health insurance in
America.
Coburn's amendment is as
simple as it is
profound. It requires
all members of Congress
and their staffs to
enroll in whatever new
government-run health
care plan emerges from
that committee, should
it become law.
Sen. Coburn believes
this is only fair, since
in his opinion the
creation of a
government-sponsored
insurance plan will
force private insurance
carriers out of the
market by subsidies,
mandates and
regulations.
"Let's demonstrate
leadership -- and
confidence in the system
-- by requiring that
every member of Congress
go into it," Sen. Coburn
said, no doubt with
tongue firmly in cheek.
Sen. Coburn's amendment
was approved -- barely,
12-11. All the
Republicans voted for it
except Republican Judd
Gregg (New Hampshire)
who voted against it on
the admirable grounds
that no one should be
forced to enlist in
government-run
insurance.
However, all the
Democrats but three
voted no.
Among the nay votes were
senators Sherrod Brown
(D-OH) and Sheldon
Whitehouse (D-RI) --
co-authors of a recent
op-ed entitled "Health
Reform That Works for
Every American," which
promises that the
government's plan "will
offer benefits that are
as good as those
available through
private insurance plans
-- or better." But
apparently they believe
their plan will "work
for every American" --
except themselves.
Another "good enough for
thee, but not f or
me" nay vote came from
self-declared socialist
Bernie Sanders (I-VT),
despite the fact that he
supports an entirely
government-run health
care system.
As we reported in our
last two issues, the
U.S. Office of Personnel
Management reports that
members of Congress
"enjoy the widest
selection of health
plans in the country."
And apparently some of
the most ardent
supporters of radical
health care changes are
not willing to swallow
their own medicine --
that is, to entrust
their own health to the
very government plan
they are busily creating
for the rest of us.
We are reminded of the
totalitarian world of
George Orwell's classic
fable Animal Farm, set
in a barnyard where
supposedly egalitarian
animal rulers declare
that "All animals are
equal, but some are more
equal than others."
Obama's First Six
Months: By the Numbers
 July
17, 2009 marked
President Barack Obama's
first six months in
office.
Americans for Tax
Reform, a non-partisan
group that works for
lower taxes and smaller
government, marked the
occasion by
assembling the following
numbers to evaluate
Obama's performance:
10: Number of
years it will take to
*double* the national
debt under the Obama
budget.
16: Number of
days it took Obama to
break his central
campaign promise to not
raise "any form" of
taxes on Americans
earning less than
$250,000 per year by
signing an increase in
the federal excise tax
on tobacco. (The median
income of smokers is
$36,000 per
year.)
153: Number of
days it took Obama to
abandon his campaign
promise to allow the
public to view
legislation on his desk
for five full days:
"When there's a bill
that ends up on my desk
as president, you the
public will have five
days to look online and
find out what's in it
before I sign it, so
that you know what your
government's doing."
500: Number of
Fortune 500 companies
who would ship jobs
abroad as a result of
Obama's proposed double
taxation of American
companies overseas.
0: Number of
developed countries that
have a higher corporate
income tax rate than the
United States (we're
tied with Japan at 40%).
33%: The
percentage of families
filing a tax return that
had zero or less in
income taxes paid
(making it
mathematically
impossible to cut taxes
for "95 percent of
working families").
800,000: Minimum
number of Americans
attending anti-Big
Government tea parties
since Obama's
inauguration.
Majority in U.S. Now
Oppose Both Iraq and
Afghanistan Wars
 A
majority of Americans
now oppose both the war
in Afghanistan and the
war in Iraq.
Opinion is split
severely down party
lines, with two-thirds
of self-identified
Republicans strongly
favoring both wars.
That's the
findings of an
Associated Press/GfK
poll conducted July
16-20. Here are details:
OVERALL RESULTS:
Only 34 percent of
Americans favor the war
in Iraq; 63 percent are
opposed. 44 percent
favor the war in
Afghanistan; 53 percent
are opposed.
REPUBLICANS VERSUS
DEMOCRATS: The
poll split strongly
along party lines. About
two-thirds of
self-identified
Republicans support both
wars: 64 percent of
Republicans are in favor
of the war in Iraq and
66 percent of
Republicans favor the
war in Afghanistan.
In stark contrast, only
10 percent of self- identified
Democrats support the
Iraq War. And only 26
percent of Democrats
support the Afghanistan
War -- even though
ratcheting up that war
has been the foreign
policy centerpiece of
the Obama
Administration.
PRESIDENT'S RATING:
56 percent of Americans
approve of President
Barack Obama's handling
of the situation in
Iraq, and 55 percent
approve of his handling
of Afghanistan. Both
numbers are down
slightly since April.
THE FUTURE: As
opposition grows to both
wars, faith in Obama's
ability to end the Iraq
war is dropping. The
number who think it is
likely that Obama will
be able to pull most
troops out of Iraq in
the next four years has
dropped from 83 percent
six months ago to just
68 percent.
---------------------------------------------
Quick Shots...
THE ULTIMATE NETWORK:
"The economy
 is
not an engine that needs
to be 'driven.' It's an
incredibly complex set
of interactions that no
one can or should
direct. It's the
ultimate network." --
Nick Gillespie,
editor of Reason.TV,
interviewed in the
Washington Post July 20,
2009.
OF COURSE, THAT WON'T
STOP THEM FROM VOTING
FOR IT: "Most
troubling in the short
term is how few in the
caucus of 256 House
Democrats
 understand
the emerging 1,000-page
[health care reform]
bill. Leaders organized
a five-hour seminar for
Monday to brief
lawmakers. 'The bill is
so complex,' said Ways
and Means Chairman
Charles B. Rangel (D-N.Y.),
a co-author. When staff
members agreed to hold
the session, Rangel
said, 'response was
overwhelming.'" -
Washington Post,
"Pelosi Vows Passage of
Health-Care Overhaul,"
July 27, 2009.
AWKWARD MOMENT:
"Today, President
 Obama
spoke to the
Massachusetts police
officer who arrested the
black Harvard professor
Henry Louis Gates, Jr.
They had a conversation.
Yeah. And Obama says the
conversation went well,
but there was an awkward
moment when the cop
arrested Obama." --
Conan O'Brien, "Late
Night with Conan
O'Brien," July 24, 2009.
* * * * * * * *
"Good News, Bad News,
Unbelievable News" is
written by Liberator
Online editor James W.
Harris. His articles
have appeard in numerous
magazines and
newspapers, and he has
been a Finalist for the
Mencken Awards, given by
the Free Press
Association for
"Outstanding Journalism
in Support of Liberty."
|
 PERSUASION
POWER
POINT # 272
Are Your Examples
Undermining Your Case
Against Big Gov't?
by Michael Cloud
Ten or twenty years ago,
when you wanted to show
how bad a new Big
Government program was,
you could compare it the
Post Office or the
Department of Motor
Vehicles.
And everybody would get
your point.
But those examples don't
work today.
First, technology. The
Internet dramatically
reduced the number of
times that people need
to show up and stand in
line at the Post Office
or Department of Motor
Vehicles. Email and
cheap phone rates
slashed the number of
letters and post cards
that Americans send.
Secure servers and
Internet payment options
slashed the number of
checks that Americans
mail.
Second, to build
goodwill, government
copies private business.
Government officials and
employees adopted and
adapted private
enterprise methods to
make the Post Office and
Department of Motor
Vehicles a lot faster,
friendlier, and customer
responsive. Extra clerks
during peak customer
traffic hours and during
peak times of the year.
Putting clerks through
Dale Carnegie and other
human relations
trainings.
The results? Most people
are no longer p.o.'d at
the P.O. A large
percentage of them are
surprised and happy with
the D.M.V.
So, if you tell people
that the new Big
Government program will
be as rude or
inefficient as the Post
Office, or as arrogant
and slow as the
Department of Motor
Vehicles -- a lot of
people will think you
have lost your mind, and
may even look forward to
the new Big Government
program.
If you want to give
examples of government
arrogance or rudeness or
sloth or cost, give an
indisputable example of
Big Government programs
that fills the bill.
* Government handling
and costs of Katrina
aid.
* Government bailout
programs to insurance
companies, banks, and
mortgage companies.
* Government results and
costs of public schools.
* Government "stimulus"
spending that costs
oodles of money and does
NOT produce massive new
private sector
businesses or private
sector jobs.
* Government
unemployment programs
that do NOT
substantially reduce
unemployment.
Make sure that your
anti-Big Government
illustrations illustrate
your point. That your
private enterprise,
small government
examples show that less
government, lower taxes,
and more individual
liberty make life
better.
* * * * *
* * *
Michael Cloud is author
of the acclaimed book
Secrets of Libertarian
Persuasion,
available exclusively
from the Advocates.
In 2000, Michael was
honored with the Thomas
Paine Award as the Most
Persuasive Libertarian
Communicator in America.
|
 Ask
Dr.
Ruwart
Dr. Mary Ruwart is a leading
expert in libertarian
communication. In this
column she offers short
answers to real questions
about libertarianism. To
submit questions to Dr.
Ruwart, see end of column.
Liberal-tarians? Where do
liberals and libertarians
agree -- and disagree?
QUESTION: What common
ground do liberals and
libertarians have? What are
some of their differences?
MY SHORT ANSWER: The
best way to learn the
similarities and differences
between liberals and
libertarians is to check out
the
World's Smallest Political
Quiz.
The Quiz chart shows,
broadly, where and how
liberals and libertarians
agree and disagree.
 To
simplify a bit, liberals
tend to agree with
libertarians on many issues
of personal freedom, and
differ most sharply with
libertarians on issues of
economic freedom.
For example, Nat Hentoff is
one of America's greatest
defenders of free speech and
the First Amendment. He's a
liberal. However, he so
strongly agrees with the
uncompromising libertarian
defense of free speech that
he
recently became a Senior
Fellow at the libertarian
Cato Institute.
Libertarians and many
liberals want to protect
religious liberty, Fourth
Amendment rights, sexual
freedom, and personal
privacy. Many liberals agree
with libertarians that the
Drug War is a failure and
should be ended. The ACLU,
like many other liberal
organizations, agrees with
libertarians that the
current effort to impose a
national ID upon America is
wrong.
For those liberals who
oppose a military draft, and
U.S. military intervention
abroad, libertarians are
staunch and reliable allies.
That's a lot of common
ground!
 The
Quiz also indicates where
liberals tend to
disagree with
libertarians. Libertarians
strongly believe in a
free-market economy, where
people are free to do as
they wish with their labor,
their property, their money,
and their businesses, as
long as they don't initiate
force against others.
Liberals tend to favor far
more government control over
people's money, property,
and the economy.
Again, the place to begin
exploring this issue is the
World's Smallest Political
Quiz. Enjoy taking the
Quiz -- and share it with
your friends!
(One final point: In my
comments I'm using the word
"liberal" in the modern
American sense. In the 19th
century, the word "liberal"
meant something quite
different than it does today
-- it referred to a broadly
libertarian philosophy of
small government, free
markets, personal freedom
and peace. This "liberalism"
was the philosophy of the
American Revolution. Indeed,
even today, many
libertarians refer to
themselves as "classical
liberals." And in Europe,
the term "liberal" is often
used in this older sense.)
LEARN MORE: Is a
libertarian-liberal alliance
possible? The Cato
Institute's
Brink Lindsey
recently
discussed this in his
article "Liberaltarianism."
* * *
* * * * *
Got questions? Dr.
Ruwart has answers! If you'd
like answers to YOUR "tough
questions" on libertarian
issues, email Dr. Ruwart at:
ruwart@theAdvocates.org
Due to volume, Dr. Ruwart
can't personally acknowledge
all emails. But we'll run
the best questions and
answers in upcoming issues.
Dr. Ruwart's previous
Liberator Online answers are
archived in searchable form.
Dr. Ruwart's outstanding
books
Healing Our World and
Short Answers to the Tough
Questions are
available from the
Advocates.
|
One-Minute
Liberty Tip
The Myth of "46 Million
Uninsured"
by Sharon Harris
"[W]e've got to admit
that the free market has
not worked perfectly
when it comes to health
care, because you've got
a lot of people who are
really getting hurt: 46
million uninsured..."
So
said President Obama
on June 11.
Proponents of radical
health care "reform"
repeat "46 million
are uninsured" (or "15%
of the American
population is
uninsured") like a
mantra, arguing, like
President Obama, that it
proves the free market
doesn't work in health
care.
The claim was used
repeatedly in a major
report published in June
by the White House
Council of Economic
Advisers. Members of
Congress regularly trot
it out, and it has
appeared frequently in
the media, including
virtually every major
American newspaper.
However, a closer
examination shows that
number is highly
misleading -- indeed,
downright deceptive.
Following are some facts
you can use to challenge
and refute this
widespread claim.
Most of the numbers and
arguments come from
an analysis by
former White House
senior economic advisor
Keith Hennessey.
 Other
figures come from Sally
C. Pipes' excellent book
The Top Ten Myths of
American Health Care: A
Citizen's Guide, which I
discuss in my
President's Column in
this issue. That book is
free to
read online. (Click
on the link at that page
that says "Read PDF
Study.")
First, the origin of the
number. The "46 million
uninsured" figure comes
from a study by the
Bureau of the Census.
According to that study:
"In 2007, there were
45.7 million people in
the U.S. (15.3% of the
population) who were
without health insurance
for at least part of
that year...."
However, of that
estimated 45.7 million
uninsured people in the
U.S. in 2007:
* An estimated 6.4
million of them are the
"Medicaid undercount."
That is, they actually
*are* on either Medicaid
or S-CHIP, but
mistakenly told the
Census taker they were
not. Thus they are
actually insured. (This
figure is based on a
2005 analysis from the
Department of Health and
Human Services.)
* Another 4.3 million
are eligible for free or
heavily subsidized
government health
insurance (either
Medicaid or SCHIP), but
simply have not yet
signed up. If they go to
an emergency room or
free clinic, they will
automatically be
enrolled by the provider
after receiving medical
care.
* 9.3 million or more
are not U.S. citizens.
Yes: almost 20 percent
of the "46 million
uninsured" are, in fact,
citizens of other
nations currently living
in the U.S., either
documented or
undocumented. (Some
estimates put the figure
at 25%.) Despite this,
you routinely hear that
"46 million Americans"
(implying U.S. citizens)
are uninsured. I have
great respect for
immigrants, but I do not
believe the government
should force taxpayers
to pay for their health
insurance.
* 10.1 million have
incomes more than 3
times
 the
poverty level. For a
single person that means
their income exceeded
$30,600 in 2007. For a
family of four, that
would be $62,000 or
more. Almost 18 million
of the uninsured in
America -- that's 38
percent of them -- earn
more than $50,000 per
year; almost 10 million
of them earn over
$75,000 per year. The
typical uninsured
citizen makes more than
the average U.S. income.
The overwhelming
majority of these people
obviously can afford
health care coverage
under our current
system.
* 5 million are adults
between ages 18 and 34
and without children.
Young singles of this
age are, on the whole,
extremely healthy;
insurance companies
refer to them as "the
Invincibles." Foolishly
or not, many have simply
made a deliberate choice
not to invest money in
health insurance at this
stage in their lives.
What does that leave?
Just 10.6 million people
who are U.S. citizens;
who make incomes less
than 300% of poverty;
who are not eligible for
a taxpayer-subsidized
health insurance
program; and who are not
childless adults between
the extremely healthy
ages of 18 and 34.
That's about... 3% of
the total U.S.
population. And even
some of that 3% are only
temporarily without
insurance; for example,
they may be between
jobs, or looking for
another policy, or only
temporarily unable to
afford coverage.
Further, they still have
access to care; federal
law prohibits hospitals
from denying treatment
to persons who come to
an emergency room.
Bottom line: the
overwhelming majority of
U.S. citizens have
health insurance, and
many who do not can
afford it, but, for one
reason or another, have
chosen not to buy it
this time. The
percentage who cannot
afford or otherwise get
health insurance is very
small.
Yes, libertarians know
that America's health
care and insurance
industries are in dire
need of reform. And we
have great compassion
and concern for every
person suffering because
of the current system's
numerous flaws.
 But
we also know there are
far better ways to help
them than to take the
outrageously radical
step of handing our
health care over to the
federal government. The
solution lies in greater
consumer choice and more
competition. Bold
deregulation of the
medical and insurance
industries. Tax credits
for health care
expenses. Larger tax
credits for donations to
medical charities.
Massive tax cuts to
allow Americans to spend
more money on health
care and charity.
The Obama administration
is proposing
unprecedented new
government controls over
the existing system --
for a problem largely
centered around a tiny
percentage of the
population.
Would people support
such radical changes if
they knew the story
behind the numbers?
I don't think so. It's
up to us to get that
message out to the
public -- while we still
can.
* * * * * *
Sharon Harris is
president of the
Advocates for
Self-Government. See
more One Minute Liberty
tips.
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What's Happening
with the Advocates
* ADVOCATES PRESIDENT AT
ILLINOIS LP CONVENTION:
Sharon Harris will deliver
the keynote address at the
Libertarian Party of
Illinois annual convention,
October 23-25 in
Collinsville, near St.
Louis. Other speakers soon
to be announced. For more
information,
contact the Libertarian
Party of Illinois.
* 2009 ANNUAL FREEDOM
CRUISE: Advocates
Board Member and longtime
libertarian leader Dr. Ken
Bisson invites you to join
him for the 2009 Freedom
Cruise September 19 - 26,
2009. Spend a wonderful week
on a luxury cruiser! The
itinerary: Boston,
Massachusetts; Bar Harbor,
Maine; Halifax,Canada;
Sydney, Canada;
Charlottetown, Prince
Edward; Quebec City, Quebec;
Montreal, Quebec.
Non-libertarians welcome!
Great food and fine company.
(This isn't an Advocates
event, but as noted, Ken is
on our Board of Directors,
and libertarians who have
been on past cruises rave
about them.) For photos and
more details -- or to sign
up for free, no-commitment
email updates about this and
the upcoming 2010 cruise --
visit
Freedom Cruises.
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About Us
THE LIBERATOR ONLINE, created by
James W. Harris and Paul Schmidt, is
the official newsletter of the
Advocates for Self-Government.
Mail: 1010 North Tennessee Street,
Suite 215, Cartersville, GA 30120
Phone: 770-386-8372. For orders:
1-800-932-1776
Fax: 770-386-8373
Email: info@TheAdvocates.org
WWW: http://www.theadvocates.org
Read
previous issues.
The Advocates for Self-Government is
a 501(c)(3) non-profit educational
organization.
Contributions to the Advocates
are tax-deductible in the U.S.
"May it be to the world... to assume
the blessings and security of
self-government."
--
Thomas Jefferson, June 24,
1826.
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