Quote of the Day: “The only thing that Evil needs to conquer, is for good men to do the wrong thing.” – Michael Cloud
It’s almost certain that a day will come when you disagree with something we write at Downsize DC. If that hasn’t happened to you yet, you’re due.
We all have different experiences and views. We’re all at different points on our philosophical path.
That’s not surprising. We’re all individuals. Yet we cannot accomplish our goal to reduce the size, scope, power, and expense of the Leviathan State if we can’t accept the inevitable diversity that freedom brings. Liberty requires tolerance for individual differences. That’s why . . .
I want to ASK you to tolerate us when we write something you dislike, or . . .
detest, or . . .
despise. In fact . . .
Downsize DC was built around the idea that we’re all different, with our own unique values, priorities, and aptitudes. We did this in two ways.
The Freedom Train
This is an old concept. I didn’t originate it. But here’s the concept in a nutshell. Assume that our Downsize DC ideal is represented by San Francisco, but our current state of affairs has us, metaphorically speaking, in Boston.
Good news! A train is available to take us to San Francisco. It’s called “The Freedom Train.” The train passes through with stops in Pittsburgh, Indianapolis, Kansas City, Denver, and Salt Lake City before arriving at its destination.
Each successive city represents smaller government, fewer taxes and regulation, and greater individual liberty. Pittsburgh is still big government, but smaller than Boston. Indianapolis is better still, but nowhere near as free as Kansas City, and so on.
The Freedom Train works like this. Everyone on the train is moving in the same direction –- pointed towards San Francisco. But when you buy your pass and get on the train, you can choose to get off as soon as Pittsburgh, or as far down the line as Salt Lake City, or any of the other stops along the way.
When you get on the train, everyone is glad to see you –- even if you’re only going to Pittsburgh. You see, on the Freedom Train they’re having a ball.
- There’s a movie on board, it tells how lovely San Francisco is.
- The conductor passes out colorful brochures encouraging you to go on to additional stops, especially San Francisco.
- In the lounge, you meet other passengers who’ve made the trip. They tell you how wonderful each successive stop is.
You make friends, and decide to go on past Pittsburgh, to see what Indianapolis will be like.
Maybe convincing you to go to Kansas City will be even easier, and then to Denver will be easier still. Hopefully, you’ll want to go San Francisco.
Perhaps you’ll enjoy the journey so much you’ll end up like me, and you’ll want to hop a boat and head to Hawaii.
But then again . . . Maybe not. Maybe you’ll disembark in Pittsburgh or Indy. That’s OK. We’re glad you came along with us as far as you did. We’re thrilled that you want a smaller State, and that you worked with us to shrink it, even if you can’t continue further.
Riding with us — going our mutual direction — doesn’t mean you need to go as far as we do.
A La Carte Activism
When you go to a restaurant, you might notice that they serve a food you dislike. It might even be your favorite restaurant that serves a dish you detest. Maybe you hadn’t noticed before.
If you discover a food you detest on the menu, would you write an angry letter to the manager? Would you . . .
- Get up and stomp out?
- Demand your money back?
- Tell all your friends to stay away from that dining establishment?
Or would you just order the food you like, instead?
Most of us, seeing the object of culinary hatred, would simply think to ourselves, “Well, maybe someone really likes that item.”
At present, DownsizeDC.org has 37 campaigns in our Educate the Powerful System. We publish four or five Downsizer-Dispatches per week. We write additional blog posts, at both the Downsize DC Foundation and DownsizeDC.org websites.
Maybe there’s something in that menu of ideas you don’t like. Will you still dine on our OTHER offerings?
We sure hope so. We need your help.
Your Megaphone
Not only do we need your help, but YOU NEED the HELP of the Downsize DC Army.
The most important question of political strategy is, “You and what army?” You, alone, can’t win a political battle. None of us, YOU included, can achieve our political goals if we let small differences separate us.
We’re NOT Asking You to Just ‘Go Along With Everything’
We’re encouraging you to choose when and how much you want to participate. We’re advising you to put aside small differences.
“But it’s a big difference,” you might reply. “I can’t believe Downsize DC would take ‘such-and-such’ a stand.”
We understand where you’re coming from. You may even be right, and we may be wrong. But in comparison to the total menu, do you really disagree so much that you want a divorce?
- If you didn’t like today’s Dispatch, did you like the other ones this week? …last week?
- If you don’t like the new campaign, do you like the other 30 or 35 campaigns?
From a relative perspective, our differences are quite little — too small to divide us, because . . .
When you leave, YOU LOSE the army at your back. You no longer have a political megaphone.
And we lose an important ally. We want you to stay!
When you angrily quit, it might feel righteous. But what actually happens is that the forces of Statism win. As Mr. Cloud pointed out, doing the wrong thing allows the bad guys to succeed.
And if the Statist, of EITHER party, can find a way to divide us, you can rest assured they’ll do it. Partisan politics is about dividing and conquering. And to be frank, whether or not they succeed at driving a wedge between us, is up to you.
Copyright (c) 2011 by Jim Babka. Permission to distribute this blog post for educational purposes is granted, if done with attribution to the author and the Downsize DC Foundation. Permission to use for commercial purposes is denied.
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