We have been taking giant steps in our organization. The RCTPP is now a formally organized and recognized 501(c)(4) non-profit organization. We have a 7 member Board of Director with six positions filled and one vacancy. In accordance with the Bylaws of our organization, the Board has elected Officers. The Board Members are: Jennine Jones, Nancy Ballance, Patrick Ballance, Marie Lanier, Susan Hooper, and Glenn Kimball. The Officers are: President, Jennine Jones; Vice-President, Patrick Ballance; Secretary, Nancy Ballance; Treasurer, vacant. We have established formal membership requirements. Individual members have yearly dues of $10, and families have dues of $15. Only dues paying members can vote at meetings. Each individual is entitled to one vote,and each family is entitled to a total of two votes.
In addition, 3 Committees have been formed. There is a Committee to research and report on local and state legislation, a Committee to research and report on national legislation, and a Committee to contact all local schools to make sure they are aware of their legal responsibility under PL 108-447, Sec.lll.(a), to provide an educational program on the US Constitution on Constitution Day, September 17.
The next meeting of our group is Wednesday, August 11, 6:30 - 8 pm. The primary focus of this meeting is putting a get-out-the-vote operation in place and active. There are only 85 days left until this very critical election. It's up to each of us to do everything we can to turn the trend from voter apathy to a huge turnout. Please come, and let your friends and family know about this meeting. Hope to see you Wednesday.
Sunday, August 8, 2010
Sunday, July 18, 2010
Magical Thinking Collides With Reality
Lately I have been thinking a lot about magical thinking. Magical thinking is a psychological term which has many very complicated definitions, but the one I like best I found at Medical Lexicon.com. Very simply put magical thinking is the irrational belief that one can bring about a circumstance or event by thinking about it or wishing for it. I think we all do it or have done it at some time in our life. It can be both negative and positive. Remember the childhood dare “step on a crack, break your Mother’s back” (negative for most of us), or find a penny and you’ll have good luck.
Medical Lexicon says it’s normal in preschool children. Tragically, millions of adults were lulled into this irrational thinking in the last election. They were bombarded with “Hope” and “Change” and translated this into things like an entitlement to a new washing machine, getting higher salaries at McDonalds, a new kitchen, or just plain cash from “Obama’s Stash.” Who can forget the ecstatic supporter who said now she was not going to have to worry about putting gas in her car or paying her mortgage? They were cleverly encouraged in these irrational beliefs by a campaign that never defined what they meant by their slogans. The public was left to fill in the blanks out of their own despair and disillusionment. You don’t like how much money you make, well vote for the candidate of hope and that will change. Then there was the famous “this is the moment” speech when we were told we would look back and remember that this was the time we began “to get jobs for the jobless” and “when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal.”
Flash forward to the summer of 2010. Perhaps there was some truth in the woman’s belief she wouldn’t have to worry about gas or her mortgage. Quite possible she is one of the millions of Americans who are out of work, therefore she won’t have to put gas in her car as she doesn’t have to go to work and without a job she might also be one of the millions of Americans who are in foreclosure so she doesn’t have to worry about paying her mortgage. Not quite what the magical thinking group had in mind, I’m guessing.
As for getting jobs for the jobless, I believe we were promised that if the stimulus bill passed unemployment would not go above 8%. The Administration claims the current rate of unemployment is 9.5%, which I think if I remember my math correctly is slightly higher than 8. But the 9.5 number is smoke and mirrors and even the Huffington Post (not exactly a conservative source) reported: “All told, 14.6 million people were unemployed in June. An additional 11.2 million have given up their job searches or are working part-time but would prefer full-time work. That adds up to nearly 26 million Americans, and an “underemployment” rate of 16.5%.” As for the planet healing thing, I think the BP oil spill says it all.
What does it say when so many Americans hearing the “this is the moment” speech got all tingly and had chills running up their legs rather than saying “whoa, who is this guy who thinks he can control the oceans and heal the earth?” Why were we so willing to suspend disbelief and go back to magical thinking?
It’s time to face reality. This is the man who promised to bring the country together. Well, that isn’t done by treating the American people like a laboratory to test Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals. When the tea party began, the Administration very pointedly refused to acknowledge it existed. When that became impossible, the President used Alinsky Rule No. 5: “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” He brought the movement up by speaking in an amused voice and with a sardonic smile on his face talking about people waving tea bags around. He then actually told a group he was amused by people having rallies over taxes, going on to say in a good natured way “you would think they would be saying “thank you.” Then in an interview with ABC's Jake Tapper, he actually called us tea baggers. This is a vile and sexually explicit epithet, and is viewed by me and many others as the equivalent of the N word.
Using this word was the beginning of the move to Alinsky Rule #12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it. Since we have refused to quietly pick up our signs and disappear after being ignored, and we have refused to slink away when made fun of, more serious measures were needed. And a new word emerged and was repeated and repeated. That word was “racist.”
Community Organizers look for problems and then agitate. They do not solve problems, and it is counterproductive to their goals to encourage harmony. Our President continues to be a Community Organizer. Unfortunately, his community is not all Americans. We tea party people aren’t part of his community. In pursuit of his goal of fundamentally changing this country, and using the Alinsky model, this Administration is actively pitting American against American.
Well, folks, we better not fall into the magical thinking trap. We can’t just wish that people would see that we are not one monolithical group of people but a cross-section of Americans of all races, ethnic backgrounds, religions (or lack thereof), and socioeconomic classes. We must do more than wishing and hoping. We must stand up for our beliefs. We must refuse to be labeled and dismissed. We must hold to our beliefs and values. And we must do so peacefully. We must refuse to be agitated into acting out in an angry manner. To do so would only give credence to the lies about us and our movement and give approval to those who would like to stop us in any way they can.
We are a country that was founded by people of moral and physical courage. Who saw tyranny and refused to give in. Who did not back down when facing an opponent which was the most formidable empire on earth. Many of the founders lost their fortunes, their families, their friends and even their lives in pursuit of this miracle which is America. We must believe we can make a difference. We must keep our faith.
Medical Lexicon says it’s normal in preschool children. Tragically, millions of adults were lulled into this irrational thinking in the last election. They were bombarded with “Hope” and “Change” and translated this into things like an entitlement to a new washing machine, getting higher salaries at McDonalds, a new kitchen, or just plain cash from “Obama’s Stash.” Who can forget the ecstatic supporter who said now she was not going to have to worry about putting gas in her car or paying her mortgage? They were cleverly encouraged in these irrational beliefs by a campaign that never defined what they meant by their slogans. The public was left to fill in the blanks out of their own despair and disillusionment. You don’t like how much money you make, well vote for the candidate of hope and that will change. Then there was the famous “this is the moment” speech when we were told we would look back and remember that this was the time we began “to get jobs for the jobless” and “when the rise of the oceans began to slow and our planet began to heal.”
Flash forward to the summer of 2010. Perhaps there was some truth in the woman’s belief she wouldn’t have to worry about gas or her mortgage. Quite possible she is one of the millions of Americans who are out of work, therefore she won’t have to put gas in her car as she doesn’t have to go to work and without a job she might also be one of the millions of Americans who are in foreclosure so she doesn’t have to worry about paying her mortgage. Not quite what the magical thinking group had in mind, I’m guessing.
As for getting jobs for the jobless, I believe we were promised that if the stimulus bill passed unemployment would not go above 8%. The Administration claims the current rate of unemployment is 9.5%, which I think if I remember my math correctly is slightly higher than 8. But the 9.5 number is smoke and mirrors and even the Huffington Post (not exactly a conservative source) reported: “All told, 14.6 million people were unemployed in June. An additional 11.2 million have given up their job searches or are working part-time but would prefer full-time work. That adds up to nearly 26 million Americans, and an “underemployment” rate of 16.5%.” As for the planet healing thing, I think the BP oil spill says it all.
What does it say when so many Americans hearing the “this is the moment” speech got all tingly and had chills running up their legs rather than saying “whoa, who is this guy who thinks he can control the oceans and heal the earth?” Why were we so willing to suspend disbelief and go back to magical thinking?
It’s time to face reality. This is the man who promised to bring the country together. Well, that isn’t done by treating the American people like a laboratory to test Alinsky’s Rules for Radicals. When the tea party began, the Administration very pointedly refused to acknowledge it existed. When that became impossible, the President used Alinsky Rule No. 5: “Ridicule is man’s most potent weapon.” He brought the movement up by speaking in an amused voice and with a sardonic smile on his face talking about people waving tea bags around. He then actually told a group he was amused by people having rallies over taxes, going on to say in a good natured way “you would think they would be saying “thank you.” Then in an interview with ABC's Jake Tapper, he actually called us tea baggers. This is a vile and sexually explicit epithet, and is viewed by me and many others as the equivalent of the N word.
Using this word was the beginning of the move to Alinsky Rule #12: Pick the target, freeze it, personalize it, and polarize it. Since we have refused to quietly pick up our signs and disappear after being ignored, and we have refused to slink away when made fun of, more serious measures were needed. And a new word emerged and was repeated and repeated. That word was “racist.”
Community Organizers look for problems and then agitate. They do not solve problems, and it is counterproductive to their goals to encourage harmony. Our President continues to be a Community Organizer. Unfortunately, his community is not all Americans. We tea party people aren’t part of his community. In pursuit of his goal of fundamentally changing this country, and using the Alinsky model, this Administration is actively pitting American against American.
Well, folks, we better not fall into the magical thinking trap. We can’t just wish that people would see that we are not one monolithical group of people but a cross-section of Americans of all races, ethnic backgrounds, religions (or lack thereof), and socioeconomic classes. We must do more than wishing and hoping. We must stand up for our beliefs. We must refuse to be labeled and dismissed. We must hold to our beliefs and values. And we must do so peacefully. We must refuse to be agitated into acting out in an angry manner. To do so would only give credence to the lies about us and our movement and give approval to those who would like to stop us in any way they can.
We are a country that was founded by people of moral and physical courage. Who saw tyranny and refused to give in. Who did not back down when facing an opponent which was the most formidable empire on earth. Many of the founders lost their fortunes, their families, their friends and even their lives in pursuit of this miracle which is America. We must believe we can make a difference. We must keep our faith.
Thursday, July 15, 2010
Next Meeting July 22, 6:30 pm Bitterroot Public Library
On July 14, the RCTPP met for the purpose of organizing. It was gratifying to see that people are eager to move forward with a common purpose. After a discussion of issues, it was decided that we must take steps immediately to form an officially recognized group, elect officers, and agree on a mission statement. Everyone at the meeting enthusiastically agreed that we must be an action-oriented group with common goals, and those goals are centered around making sure that the elections in 2010 and 2012 result in electing people to office locally, state-wide and nationally who reflect the values of the majority of American people.
We agreed to meet again on Thursday, July 22, 2010, and agreed on the following agenda:
• Agree on a Mission Statement
• Elect Officers
• Determine whether or not we will be organized as a non-profit 501(c)(4) understanding this will preclude our group from endorsing candidates
• Finalize bylaws for our group
• Decide on next steps – next meeting, activities, fund raising
This looks like a small agenda, but I am sure we all realize these issues are complicated and will require preparation before the meeting if we have any hope of finalizing these critical steps.
In order to be ready to discuss these items, I encourage you to review the mission statement now posted on our website. It reads:
“This group is created for the purpose of providing a place for citizens concerned about fiscal responsibility and limited government to gather virtually and in person for the purpose of sharing ideas and communicating with elected officials and the general public about matters of concern.”
I also encourage you to go to www.teapartypatriots.org and review their mission statement, core values, and philosophy. I believe there is much in that document that we could adopt. The statement on our website was hastily prepared and is in desperate need of editing. Please feel free to make changes. It would be helpful if you would email me your proposals prior to the meeting so that I can try to consolidate ideas and have several drafts incorporating everyone’s ideas for consideration. My email is donandjennine@gmail.com.
Thank you all so much for your participation and enthusiasm. I look forward to seeing you next Thursday night!
We agreed to meet again on Thursday, July 22, 2010, and agreed on the following agenda:
• Agree on a Mission Statement
• Elect Officers
• Determine whether or not we will be organized as a non-profit 501(c)(4) understanding this will preclude our group from endorsing candidates
• Finalize bylaws for our group
• Decide on next steps – next meeting, activities, fund raising
This looks like a small agenda, but I am sure we all realize these issues are complicated and will require preparation before the meeting if we have any hope of finalizing these critical steps.
In order to be ready to discuss these items, I encourage you to review the mission statement now posted on our website. It reads:
“This group is created for the purpose of providing a place for citizens concerned about fiscal responsibility and limited government to gather virtually and in person for the purpose of sharing ideas and communicating with elected officials and the general public about matters of concern.”
I also encourage you to go to www.teapartypatriots.org and review their mission statement, core values, and philosophy. I believe there is much in that document that we could adopt. The statement on our website was hastily prepared and is in desperate need of editing. Please feel free to make changes. It would be helpful if you would email me your proposals prior to the meeting so that I can try to consolidate ideas and have several drafts incorporating everyone’s ideas for consideration. My email is donandjennine@gmail.com.
Thank you all so much for your participation and enthusiasm. I look forward to seeing you next Thursday night!
Tuesday, July 13, 2010
RCTPP Meeting, July 14, Bitterroot Public Library
It's time we get together and decide how we plan to move forward to be part of a nationwide effort to take back our country. The meeting is scheduled for 6:30 pm at the Bitterroot Public Library, Basement Conference Room. Following is the proposed agenda:
Draft Agenda
1. Introductions
2. Explanation of National Tea Party Patriot Organization and support available
- Internet training for effective grassroots activism
- Yard Signs
- Events
- Website directing people to local tea parties and publicizing local events
3. Who are we? How active do we want to be? Discuss possible activities and resources necessary to organize and successfully accomplish goals.
4. Communicating. Facebook, blogspot, email, call list, more meetings?
If you have additional suggestions, please email me at donandjennine@gmail.com, or post to the Facebook page, Ravalli County Tea Party Patriots.
Hope to see you tomorrow night!
Draft Agenda
1. Introductions
2. Explanation of National Tea Party Patriot Organization and support available
- Internet training for effective grassroots activism
- Yard Signs
- Events
- Website directing people to local tea parties and publicizing local events
3. Who are we? How active do we want to be? Discuss possible activities and resources necessary to organize and successfully accomplish goals.
4. Communicating. Facebook, blogspot, email, call list, more meetings?
If you have additional suggestions, please email me at donandjennine@gmail.com, or post to the Facebook page, Ravalli County Tea Party Patriots.
Hope to see you tomorrow night!
Wednesday, June 9, 2010
Urgent - Call Senator's Baucus and Tester - Stop EPA Regulations to Regulate Greenhouse Gases
The EPA has now assigned itself the right to regulate C02 as a pollutant, without legislative authorization. This is the ultimate tyranny, regulation by unelected, unaccountable bureaucrats, without Congressional authorization. We cannot let this happen!
Congress already has the right to veto regulations from unelected bureaucrats; that power resides in the Congressional Review Act.
Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-AK, is trying to force a vote that would close the door on the EPA's global warming regulations. According to Sen. Murkowski's office, the vote on SJ Res. 26 should be happening very soon. We need to help get that vote to the floor.
At the left are links to SJ Res. 26, which is extremely short, as well as links that summarize the EPA regulations and their effect on our economy. Especially helpful is the link to the Heritage Foundation Talking Points, which gives you the information you need to cover when speaking with Senator's Baucus and Tester's offices. In addition, it might be helpful to point out each Senator's stated position on Montana's agriculture. These regulations will destroy agriculture as we know it.
Jon Tester
Farmers and ranchers are a vital part of Montana's economy. As a third-generation family farmer, Senator Tester is a strong advocate for Montana's agricultural producers and rural communities in the U.S. Senate. Tester and his wife Sharla farm the same land his grandparents homesteaded nearly 100 years ago.
Max Baucus
"Montana's producers and rural communities are the backbone of our state's economy and I'll continue to use my seniority and leadership in the Senate and on the Agriculture Committee to provide producers with the support they deserve and need."
Call and tell our Senators to vote Yea on SJ Res. 26.
Congress already has the right to veto regulations from unelected bureaucrats; that power resides in the Congressional Review Act.
Senator Lisa Murkowski, R-AK, is trying to force a vote that would close the door on the EPA's global warming regulations. According to Sen. Murkowski's office, the vote on SJ Res. 26 should be happening very soon. We need to help get that vote to the floor.
At the left are links to SJ Res. 26, which is extremely short, as well as links that summarize the EPA regulations and their effect on our economy. Especially helpful is the link to the Heritage Foundation Talking Points, which gives you the information you need to cover when speaking with Senator's Baucus and Tester's offices. In addition, it might be helpful to point out each Senator's stated position on Montana's agriculture. These regulations will destroy agriculture as we know it.
Jon Tester
Farmers and ranchers are a vital part of Montana's economy. As a third-generation family farmer, Senator Tester is a strong advocate for Montana's agricultural producers and rural communities in the U.S. Senate. Tester and his wife Sharla farm the same land his grandparents homesteaded nearly 100 years ago.
Max Baucus
"Montana's producers and rural communities are the backbone of our state's economy and I'll continue to use my seniority and leadership in the Senate and on the Agriculture Committee to provide producers with the support they deserve and need."
Call and tell our Senators to vote Yea on SJ Res. 26.
Monday, May 24, 2010
Voting Matters
Over a year ago, many Americans who had been quietly concerned about the direction our country was taking started talking to each other, and felt emboldened. They started to think that collectively they could make a difference. They wanted to be heard. So they got together and made signs. They hadn't done this before, so their first efforts were a little shaky. They used magic markers on poster board stapled to sticks with simple messages like "Stop Spending". Then they went and stood on street corners with those signs, feeling a little sheepish and out of place. But then a strange thing happened. They saw their neighbors, and people from church, and the guy from the grocery store, and they talked and laughed and felt part of something good, something maybe even important.
We've come a long way since then. We have organized into more formal groups. We have been ridiculed and dismissed, and then finally accepted and even feared. We have become a force which cannot be ignored. We have swayed elections. We have made personal decisions about our principles values and what we are willing and compelled to do to stay true to those values. We have learned that bullies and tyrants won't stop us from standing up for the America we know and love.
We also know that just standing on the street corner once or twice a year is not enough. We must do more. We must become informed. We must be active in the political process, which is more than going to the polls and marking all the boxes with R next to it. We are guided by principles and values, not by any political party or candidate.
On June 8, there will be an election in Montana. There is only one national office at stake, and most of the ballot will consist of local and state races. In normal times this kind of election has a low turnout. People aren't that interested and trust things will turn out all right and things will go along as they always have. These are not normal times and if we have learned anything at all it should be that things do not always turn out all right, that every vote counts, and that elections have consequences. I urge you to vote. Moreover, I urge you to be an informed voter. If you don't know anything about a candidate or what he or she stands for, you should not check the box. Learn as much as you can. You can start by going to the Ravalli Republic at the link on the right side of this blog. Look for candidate forums to attend. Contact the candidates and ask them questions about issues that matter to you.
June 8 is another chance to show candidates and elected officials that we have not gone back to our recliners and given up. Show you care. Make a difference. Vote.
We've come a long way since then. We have organized into more formal groups. We have been ridiculed and dismissed, and then finally accepted and even feared. We have become a force which cannot be ignored. We have swayed elections. We have made personal decisions about our principles values and what we are willing and compelled to do to stay true to those values. We have learned that bullies and tyrants won't stop us from standing up for the America we know and love.
We also know that just standing on the street corner once or twice a year is not enough. We must do more. We must become informed. We must be active in the political process, which is more than going to the polls and marking all the boxes with R next to it. We are guided by principles and values, not by any political party or candidate.
On June 8, there will be an election in Montana. There is only one national office at stake, and most of the ballot will consist of local and state races. In normal times this kind of election has a low turnout. People aren't that interested and trust things will turn out all right and things will go along as they always have. These are not normal times and if we have learned anything at all it should be that things do not always turn out all right, that every vote counts, and that elections have consequences. I urge you to vote. Moreover, I urge you to be an informed voter. If you don't know anything about a candidate or what he or she stands for, you should not check the box. Learn as much as you can. You can start by going to the Ravalli Republic at the link on the right side of this blog. Look for candidate forums to attend. Contact the candidates and ask them questions about issues that matter to you.
June 8 is another chance to show candidates and elected officials that we have not gone back to our recliners and given up. Show you care. Make a difference. Vote.
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