Greater Rochester Libertarian Party

Yesterday over 50 people attended the Genesee County Libertarian Party’s Inaugural Convention. The GCL committee of the GRLP has now officially become a local Chapter of the LPNY! We are excited to see this happen as Liberty Is Local! Now we can make a real difference in Genesee County! Thanks to their Chair,  Phil Ricci, and his great team of activists to make this happen in 4 short months!

Click here for the newspaper article

Chair Phil Ricci

City Council Candidates, Jim Rosenbeck and Lisa Whitehead

Women’s Rights

Article by Irene Magee

In its Statement of Principles, the Libertarian Party says “We hold that all individuals have the right to exercise sole dominion over their own lives, and have the right to live in whatever manner they choose, so long as they do not forcibly interfere with the equal right of others to live in whatever manner they choose.”

The only difference between this statement and the aims of the second wave of the feminist movement is the breadth of its application. Feminism worked to establish equal political, economic and social rights for women. Libertarians believe those rights belong to all people – men and women alike.

Despite what we hear from the administration (which is actively promoting class warfare), we have been successful. Any discrepancies in opportunity or pay are now due solely to the choices we make. If you don’t believe that, I refer you to Chapter 3 of Economic Facts and Fallacies by Thomas Sowell.

So we have equality but what does that equality consist of?

The opportunity to die: A report prepared by the Congressional Research Service in May 2013 lists 233 instances of military action in foreign countries since 1900. Of these 2 were wars declared by Congress. Not only do these actions endanger our sons, daughters, brothers, sisters and husbands, they create hatred of America around the world precipitating retaliation on our citizens both at home and abroad.

The opportunity to be ripped off: They’re stealing our money – We all know that we work almost 5 months per year just to pay our federal, state and local taxes. But there is an even more insidious way they are grabbing the money we work so hard for. According to Wikipedia, “inflation is a rise in the general level of prices of goods and services in an economy over a period of time. When the general price level rises, each unit of currency buys fewer goods and services. Consequently, inflation reflects a reduction in the purchasing power of money – a loss of real value in the medium of exchange”. The US Census Bureau set the poverty threshold at $6,612 in 1978; in 2012 it was $23,283. Therefore, based on the government’s own statistics, the worth of $1 U.S. has decreased by roughly 72%. Economists generally agree that a root cause of inflation is an increase in the supply of money. Quantitative easing? I call it highway robbery.

The opportunity to be poisoned: Does anyone else think that our population seems to be less healthy than it was 50 years ago. I suspect that most of you don’t remember those days. Do you think that it’s only because we spend so much time watching garbage on TV while stuffing ourselves with garbage. That’s some it but there’s more.While publicly advocating “green” in all things, our government is working with companies like Monsanto to genetically engineer foods that absorb the active ingredient in their herbicide which causes a host of physical and mental illnesses. According to an article in Entropy, this ingredient has been linked to autism, gastrointestinal issues such as inflammatory bowel disease, chronic diarrhea, colitis and Crohn’s disease, obesity, cardiovascular disease, depression, cancer, cachexia, Alzheimer’s disease, Parkinson’s disease, multiple sclerosis. But if you want to sell real health foods, raw milk for instance, you’re a criminal.

The United State of America is becoming a fascist nation. The primary duty of our government is to protect the liberties of its citizens but it seems that the primary purpose of our government has become to police the world, rob us of the fruits of our labor and enrich the cronies of those in power. This has been going on under both Democratic and Republican administrations. It’s time for a real change.

What is a Libertarian?

Article by Jeff Magee

The Republican Party is always talking about needing a “big tent” to include more of society in their party while not standing for the values stated in their platform. The Democrat Party asserts the claim that their group represents the interests of all minorities while stomping on individual rights and pushing a “collective” view of the world. Both parties are ignoring that the truest minority is the minority of one – the individual. Both parties would like nothing more than authoritarian control of the lives of the People. Both parties are complicit in in their ignorance of the rule book, the Constitution.

Conversely, the Libertarian Party actually stands for the individual, believing that each person has the right of self-determination of their own lives as long it doesn’t interfere with the rights of another. It stands for the rules as laid down at the beginning of the country, the Declaration of Independence, the Constitution and the Bill of Rights. These are core principles incorporated into the Party and on these there is no ground given.

The Libertarian Party is actually the biggest tent in the political campground, embracing all religions and no religion, housing all views on such partisan issues as abortion, global warming and gay marriage. While the Party has stated policy on these issues a wide range of thought and debate is welcomed into the tent because we believe in the individual’s right to their opinion and the need to limit government’s control in these areas.

The Libertarian Party believes that group identity, the “collective”, is a flawed concept and nothing more than a means to create division among the People. As Lincoln so aptly put it: “a house divided against itself cannot stand”. We feel that such group identity politics is a major source of the problems we are experiencing with government today and was foreseen from the beginning as something to be avoided. To draw from the wisdom of the first president under the Constitution, “They serve to organize faction, to give it an artificial and extraordinary force; to put, in the place of the delegated will of the nation the will of a party”.

In short, the Libertarian Party is founded in the same beliefs of the great minds which brought forth a nation based in freedom. After all, if we don’t have freedom, we have nothing.

The War on Drugs Costs Too Much

Article by Kevin Wilson

The failed War on Drugs destroys our liberty, wastes our money, and perpetuates injustice right here in Rochester. What can we do to stop it?

Just like the War on Terror, the war on drugs generates fear that robs us of our rights and squanders our tax dollars; it has destroyed millions of lives, cost us billions of dollars, has consistently failed to curb drug use, fills our prisons, perpetuates gang violence, violates our civil liberties, and has consistently failed to curb the market for drugs.

Americans are fed up with the government controlling what should be an individual choice: According to a new Pew Research Center poll, 52% of Americans now support marijuana legalization. That includes 65% of Millennials and 50% of Baby Boomers.

Many of us recognize drug abuse as a serious problem but understand that over-criminalization and high incarceration rates for non-violent users is hardly a just solution in a free society. Our drug policy creates far more problems than it solves. The human and financial costs are too staggering to allow the failed war on drugs to continue.

The Greater Rochester Libertarian Party recognizes the cost of the War on Drugs in Rochester

Chris Edes and Drew Beeman at the rally to support Benny Warr

Benny Warr was waiting for the bus on the corner of Jefferson Avenue and Bartlett Street in Rochester, NY when police asked him to clear the area. He told the police officers that he was waiting for the bus and did not want to move. Apparently Mr. Warr was less than polite about it, but that’s not a crime. When he refused to comply with police authority, the police officers knocked Mr. Warr out of his wheelchair, beat him, and charged him with disorderly conduct and resisting arrest.

Why were the police so insistent on removing Mr. Warr from this corner? Not because he was committing a crime, not because there was an ongoing incident that could jeopardize his safety, but because there had been drug activity in the area and they wanted all citizens off the public streets. Mr. Warr, a wheelchair bound African American man, may be one of many victims of racist policing and systematic oppression that the war on drugs enables.

Recognizing one of the root causes of this incident, GRLP Chair Drew Beeman spoke at the rally supporting Benny Warr. See him speak at about 26:10. Drew pointed out that while the infamous stop and frisk policy of the New York Police Department lead to a disproportionate 52% of non-violent marijuana arrests being African American, Black Rochestarians make up over 80% of non-violent drug arrests locally. With agreement from the crowd, Drew asserted that incidents like these are not indicative of a marijuana problem, but rather a racist policing problem. By decriminalizing marijuana and other drugs, we take this tool away from the police.

After decades of militarization from the war on drugs and now the war on terror, many police forces are overgrown, aggressive, and unaccountable. The new warrior cop class is destructive to all of us but hits low income minority communities the hardest. The War on Drugs is a major source of contention that pits peace officers against communities they are sworn to protect. So please, join the Libertarian Party in calling for the decriminalization of private behavior. It’s time to restore liberty and peace by ending the war on drugs.

Support GRLP efforts to scale back the war on drugs:

• Elect local libertarian candidates that would pull resources away from drug enforcement and focus on real crime

• Encourage state and local officials to reform drug forfeiture procedures so governments cannot profit from drug arrests

• Call your New York State Senators and tell them to support bills like A6716-A that make marijuana possession a violation punishable by a summons and fine, not arrest and jail.

• Encourage your member of Congress to end unconstitutional drug policy by cutting off funding for drug enforcement and giving control back to the states where it belongs

• For the especially bold, you could always try jury nullification

Want to get involved with local efforts? Sign up on our volunteer form today!

http://www.motherjones.com/politics/2013/04/new-york-nypd-stop-frisk-lawsuit-trial-charts

http://rochester.indymedia.org/node/98962

http://www.drugscience.org/States/NY/NY_3a.htm

http://www.drugpolicy.org/news/2013/05/new-york-state-assembly-passes-legislation-fix-marijuana-possession-law

http://www.democratandchronicle.com/article/20130514/NEWS01/305140030/Stories-differ-case-arrest-Rochester-man-wheelchair

http://reason.com/archives/2013/05/31/government-is-addicted-to-crackpot-scare

http://www.nytimes.com/2011/12/21/opinion/jurors-can-say-no.html?_r=0

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=dgaAcsmx1o0&feature=player_embedded

http://www.people-press.org/2013/04/04/majority-now-supports-legalizing-marijuana/

http://www.drugpolicy.org/drug-war-statistics

http://reason.com/blog/2013/05/30/the-drug-war-graph-is-embarrassing-so-is

Article by Jeff Magee

On March 30^th, 2013 the Greater Rochester Libertarian Party held its annual convention where a group of liberty minded People came together to listen to very informative speakers and discuss the issues facing all Americans. By any measure the event was a huge success.

The lineup of speakers was wide ranging and very informative, and accolades are due the Chair of the Greater Rochester Libertarian Party, Drew Beeman, for his efforts in making this a success. Drew opened the convention reinforcing the Party principles and reading from our bylaws, noting in particular the rights of the individual.

The Chair of the newly forming Genesee County Libertarian Party, Phil Ricci, gave us an update on their lightning progress in the creation of the chapter and their methodology. As we are well aware, a friendly press is God send to a political party and Phil gave rightful praise to The Batavian for their honest reporting of the rise of the liberty movement in Genesee County. An effective speaker such as Phil and a unifying issue played a huge part in their success.

Shauna O’Toole gave us an enlightening perspective of her journey to live free and pursue happiness as a transgendered individual. She not only informed us of the science behind the transgender population, discussing the various studies that have been done confirming the physiological makeup of the group, but the difficulties therein. She opened a discussion that covered some very personal and heart rending issues she had to deal with in her life as she came to realize who she was. Shauna was a wonderful addition to the convention and we appreciated her sharing her story.

Next up was our State Representative to the Party, Chris Edes. Chris is also the Monroe County Chair of S.C.O.P.E., and it was in this capacity he spoke with us on the issue of the Second Amendment and the charge S.C.O.P.E. is leading against the tyrannical NY S.A.F.E. Act. Chris explained the role S.C.O.P.E. plays interfacing with the state government and defending the individual’s right to keep and bear arms. He also referenced the failure of the Republicans to stand firm against Cuomo’s self-serving gun statute and the consistent position the Libertarian Party has always had on the on the issue.

Our final speaker, Paloma Capanna, is an attorney and Policy Analyst (as well as a writer and photographer) and was to cover the issue of drones and the leaked memos regarding the same. She actually covered the drones as well as the Second Amendment and the role of government in our lives. Paloma articulated the Libertarian policy of limited and accountable government, individual rights and the need to adhere to the Constitution to ensure these liberties. She proved an engaging speaker and we were all disappointed when our time ran out as we could have questioned her for hours.

It should be noted that during the convention we elected our officers. Drew Beeman was unanimously reelected as Chair, Jack Terran was also unanimously reelected as Treasurer while gratefully relinquishing his role as Secretary to Sean Sherman. Last, but definitely not least, Chris Edes was also unanimously reelected as our State Representative. Congratulations to the officers!

The convention officially over, a subset of the group retired to TC Riley’s for more conversation and refreshments. In all the convention was a true exercise in freedom and open communication. Our sincere thanks to the speakers and the attendees.

In anticipation of the Secession of Genesee county from the GRLP we have changed our emblem and website header.

Next Saturday, June 8th, the Genesee County Libertarian Committee will become it’s own independent chapter of the Libertarian Party of NY.

Check out their facebook page here and their facebook event page for the convention here

They will be having their inaugural convention Saturday June 8th at 1pm at the Homestead Event Center in the Batavia City Centre

5 Main Street

Batavia, NY 14020

(585) 344-2518

Our Chair, Drew Beeman, and the Chair of our Outreach committee, Dan Cole, went to the 19th Ward Square Fair. We handed out a flyer calling for the legalization of marijuana in order to relieve the police of one of it’s weapons in the War on Drugs, which in Rochester is a war on communities of color. In it we share the shocking statistic that in 2007 marijuana arrests in Rochester were %80 African American. Worse than in NYC with it’s horrendous “Stop and Frisk” program. Rochester does not have a drug problem but a racist policing problem!

Dan Cole reaching out in the community.

On May 1st the Rochester PD attacked Mr. Benny Warr. Mr. Warr was in a wheel chair waiting at a bus stop. Witnesses claim there was nothing to provoke the police and that he was kicked repeatedly after he was knocked out of his wheelchair by a couple of RPD officers. Our Chair was able to give a speech representing the GRLP.

GRLP Chair Drew Beeman speaking about the Libertarian Party

Shauna O’Toole speaking about Transgendered rights and issues facing their community

Chris Edes Monroe County Chair of S.C.O.P.E. speaking about the 2nd Amendment

Paloma Capanna Policy Analyst and Attorney speaking about the leaked Drone memos (unfortunately the camera’s batteries died only 3 minutes in. Sorry folks)