Monthly Archives: August 2006

Downsize DC Conference Call – August 20, 2006

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch…:::DownsizeDC.org President Jim Babka will be on the show Taxpayer’s League Live! with host David Strom on Saturday, August 19 on 100.3 FM KTLK, Minneapolis/St. Paul. ::::::The subject?

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

Please forward to concerned friends . . .:::

Tuesday August 22 is the deadline for Iran to respond to a U.N. ultimatum about its nuclear program. If Iran rejects the ultimatum then that could also be the day President Bush orders an attack on Iran. This would be a disaster for our country and the world, for reasons described below. :::

President Bush would likely call war with Iran another step in the war on terror. But we would call it another step in the war FOR terror. War with Iran would make terrorism more likely in the future, not less. :::

We stand on the brink of an abyss. We must not step over the edge into the void. It is time to chart a new course. It is time for a new policy. It is time to . . .:::

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

We are so impressed by the quality of the email we got in response to yesterday’s message about U.S. foreign policy. We received an even mixture of support and criticism, but surprisingly little hate mail. This doesn’t mean the hate mail and un-subcribes won’t flow in once we launch our new campaign, but so-far-so-good. :::

We were equally impressed with both the positive and negative messages, but we want to take special note of the criticisms we received. Most of them were incredibility thoughtful and eloquent. They weren’t knee-jerk pro-war for the most part. Instead, people took the time to challenge our plan based on our own stated strategic and tactical principles. This was very gratifying. It shows that many people have been paying attention to what we’ve said about our overall strategy and actually understand it.:::

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

We’re afraid. We’re afraid of more war. We’re afraid because war makes government grow and organizations devoted to downsizing government shrink. This is what happened after 9/11. This is what happened when our government invaded Iraq. This could be what happens again if our government attacks Iran.:::

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

We have a short, simple action item for today. One of our strategic partners, “Free Talk Live,” is going toe-to-toe in a contest with the White House. Here’s the message we receieved from “Free Talk Live” host Ian Bernard . . .:::

Downsizers have an opportunity to defeat the White House! The voting has begun in the Podcast Awards for 2006, and “Free Talk Live” has been nominated for Best Political Show. So has George W. Bush’s podcast! Downsizers wanting to vote for Liberty and Downsize DC should go here.:::

Scroll down to the Political category third from the bottom on the right, and vote for “Free Talk Live”! The voting window ends TODAY, August 11th!:::

Also, the regular monthly voting at Podcast Alley has reset, and we need your once-per-month votes here.:::

Both of these votes directly spread the message of Downsize DC!:::

Thanks for your help,:::Ian Bernard:::Host, “Free Talk Live”

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

Our media campaign is paying off. New members are pouring in — 200 hundred in just the first ten days of August. But it gets better . . .:::

Uber-talk-show-host Roger Hedgecock loved the “Read the Bills Act!” So much so that he mentioned it again on his show yesterday. But it gets even better . . .:::

Hedgecock is a guest host for Rush Limbaugh. He’ll be doing Limbaugh’s show today and tomorrow. Yesterday, on his own show, Hedgecock said he asked Limbaugh’s producers for permission to talk about RTBA!:::

National exposure may be just around the corner. :::

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

This year, as last year, August is strategy-and-tactics month — a time when we explain what we are doing and why. Here’s the latest installment . . .:::

Relentless Incrementalism:::

Today’s Downsizer-Dispatch . . .:::

Many in Congress wanted to stop you from using DownsizeDC.org to contact your elected representatives in one easy step. They added special codes to their web forms. These codes would have forced you to visit all three webstites for your Rep and your two Senators — just to send one message. We told you about the problem, you provided the funding to deal with the problem, and now . . .:::

We think we’ve fixed it. :::

But we won’t know for sure until we give our solution a good test. The best way to perform that test is to have Downsizers send a message to Congress. Some of you will encounter new fields you will have to fill-in, others won’t, depending on whether your elected reps use a CAPTCHA code. So to perform this test we’re asking everyone to send a message. If you have a problem getting your message to go through send us an email at “comments at downsizedc dot org” We’ll investigate and take steps to correct the difficulty.:::

We need your help to make sure we’ve actually solved the problem. :::

The campaign for this test is “Repeal the REAL ID Act.” For those of you who don’t remember, this is the legislation that creates a national identification card. You can send your message here.:::

Thank you for being a DC Downsizer.:::

Jim Babka:::President:::DownsizeDC.org, Inc.

Major media alert