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MrZach
01-25-2008, 03:45 PM
UPDATE 2: We're forming teams now...

If you are interested in being a part of this project, send me a private message in site here and I'll send you further instructions....

*** IMPORTANT *** I'm very paranoid about sabotage, so I'm not going to just let any Joe in who wants to be a part of this. I'm going to check your history on these forums if I have *no* idea who you are, or I'm going to need someone whom I can trust vouch for you if I cannot do that...

We particularly need people with:

graphic design skills
web design skills
web database skills
research skills
legal experience
business experience
professional campaigning experience
big IDEA people


...but really ANYONE who wants to help is going to be welcome, so please don't think that just because you don't have a "special skill" that you're not wanted. If you're willing to spend your time doing work or helping out or discussing what needs to be done and contributing good ideas - you're welcome on this project!! =o)





UPDATE 1: See LONG post below...

Some friends of mine are working on developing a website to basically nationalize LOCAL campaigns of people running for office on the "Ron Paul platform." This is for DEMOCRATS and REPUBLICANS since many of his views are considered a mixture of both and in many areas you cannot get elected unless you are a Democrat or a Republican (Ron Paul would have NEVER been elected in his district if he ran as a Dem - even if his platform was the exact same).

Why "nationalize" local campaigns? Well, this way this national movement can help lend support to people campaigning locally in their areas. For example, specific house districts where it looks like a "Ron Paul platform" candidate has a very strong shot of winning can receive extra attention and support from individuals who might live in a district where they don't have a viable candidate running.

Speaking of the House of Representatives... Don't you think its time we sent Ron Paul a couple of allies so he doesn't have to always be the LONE "no" vote against all these unconstitutional bills?

Well, the first step in developing this network is going to be a little site we're working on SPECIFICALLY to help organize campaigns for individuals seeking a seat in the House of Representatives.

Right now we're thinking of calling it:
liberateadistrict.com OR
takethehouse.org OR
takebackthehouse.org

...does anyone have any suggestions for a better domain name, or some features you would like to see on this site and others in this "network" ?

Thanks!

james_joyce
01-25-2008, 04:11 PM
I would just call it libertycandidates.com, so it doesn't sound so militant. But domain names are so cheap, there's really no reason not to get all of them and direct them all to the site.

Good luck!

seeker5
01-25-2008, 04:22 PM
If you want to make clear it's Ron Paul type of candidate, why not use his name in the domain.

I haven't checked to see if they are available, but how about:

RonPaulCandidates.com

RonPaulTakeTheHouse.com

etc.

JeffSchulman
01-26-2008, 08:30 AM
paulcongress.com already does this for national races.

MrZach
01-26-2008, 03:39 PM
Ah - I've seen this, but I was actually wanting something a lot more in depth... This is a great start though!

rs3515
01-28-2008, 08:57 AM
Hey you should definitely check out Freeople.com (www.freeople.com). It's going to be live in a couple of weeks! There are a team of people working on the site and they are definitely looking for others to jump in and participate. Sounds like some of your ideas fit in to where it's headed.

MrZach
01-28-2008, 11:26 AM
Yes that sounds great! Basically, what I have in mind is somewhat of a hybrid of Facebook, Meetup.com, the RonPaulForums, RonPaul2008 Precinct Leader program, and a giant Knowledge Management Program all rolled into one... So, yeah... this is going to take a lot of collaboration to come up with the final product..

driller
01-28-2008, 08:43 PM
I support this idea 100% and let me know how it is going. I would like to run for congress in AZ dist 2 in two years.

Goldwater Conservative
01-28-2008, 11:16 PM
Since I know "electability" is an issue Paul has been facing and many of those running like him will face, a while back I suggested a website called something along the lines of HeCantWin.com where people could register their support for such candidates. They could be emailed updates about how many people in their district or whatever also support this candidate compared to how many votes it has historically taken to win. I think tying something like that into what you're suggesting would be a nice feature. If people know they're not alone, they will no longer be scared about voting for someone they actually like.

MrZach
01-30-2008, 08:12 PM
This is actually a feature I was also going to include! There is voting data available for basically every precinct in the nation, and I am working on creating a massive database that will show where Ron Paul hot spots are, (how many votes he received and percentage of vote).

The key to this information is you will see how many people voted in the primary - what is needed to WIN that precinct, that county, that state, etc. I'm also going to make an interactive map to drill down to this info and it will be color coded (think SimCity's maps) to show Ron Paul Hot Spots - which will not only help people find areas of strong support - BUT help us identify areas were grassroots campaigning is WORKING and how to piggyback off of that and incorporate their methods.

Since this is will be a bi-partisan alliance, we'll have to find a way to incorporate vote information on democrats as well... That will be more difficult, but not impossible... Eventually, the data will be flowing and as long as we capture it and make sense of it... we'll be able to harness it!

One of the KEY things about this alliance is it being bi-partisan, however I am strongly considering splitting it into 2 agendas - a foreign policy agenda, and a domestic policy agenda. Members of the alliance - democrat or republican - can pledge to one or both of those agendas. I have a device to actually identify people based on what agenda they are pledged to...

...the tricky thing is whether or not to split this... Ideas...?


Finally, the initial design of this will be to identify congressional districts from which we can elect Representatives - however, since many members of this "alliance" will be running for other offices, I am going to ultimately leave it open to incorporating all elections into this. I may do this before I take the site live - it depends on how much work that takes organizing the mechanics of it all.

Like meetup.com and the Precinct Captain program, every member will belong to a state, a county, a town, a precinct, a congressional district (which overlaps many of these things AND unfortunately can be changed - no big deal, we're going to make the site easily adaptable..!). This will help people stay organized and know what their areas of influence are...

There will be an organizational hierarchy (NOT a leadership hierarchy) as well...

Of course, there will be precinct captains - these will be on a volunteer basis. Precincts can organize HOWEVER they want. I think the way meetup groups are organized is nice though - one main organizer - or basically point of contact - and as many co-organizers as possible.

Speaking of which, the next level of hierarchy will be at the county level. The county coordinator will be one of the precinct leaders and again, this isn't a leadership position, per say, as much as it is useful for organizing precincts.

There will also be a "congressional district" organizer position. This is interesting because for some states - that's the whole state, or at least a massive portion of it! For other areas this is just a portion of a city (like my good town, Chicago).

Oh - and just so you know, I've looked at EVERY Ron Paul meetup group in existance, and I've noticed that this is somewhat of an informal structure that has developed there naturally already... I'm just talking about "formalizing" it and having a pre-existing organizational structure for people to "fit into" which I think will help organizing, but mainly help people get access to the right INFORMATION and DATA that is pertinent to their domains.

Moving on, I think it would be a prudent to set up Metro-Area Coordinators, in the same way meetup groups are becoming organized. These will be used for coordinating metropolitan areas that are so large they represent multiple precincts.

Since there is STATE specific information that will need to be taken care of, there will also be state coordinators. In the case of one congressional district state - thats you person.

FINALLY, this will not replace the meetup groups completely - unless we actually just outgrow them and don't need them anymore. The meetup groups are transcending these formal boundaries I'm coming up with, so... yeah.

Anyway, this way, with this organizational structuring, there will be state-specific, district-specific, county-specific, metro-specific, town-specific, message boards, communication channels, databases, etc. I think this will REALLY help the grassroots get organized better than all pre-existing systems in place.

Again- ideas, ideas, ideas - start brainstorming them out here - EVERY detail you can think of (I have many more, but too much to write out here right now). EVERY last feature and detail you can think of that will help coordinate and organize this movement through one main website. Oh, and I have the name picked out finally... to be revealed at a later date. I will say it does not have Ron Paul's name in it - but I'm creating "pointer sites" with Ron Paul's name in it... The idea is that this "movement" is one of ideology and transcends any one political party and even our main man, the good Doctor Ron Paul.

NONETHELESS, fear not - he will be featured as our "leader" lol... Plus, the ideology will come prominently from his platform and writings, and I plan on incorporating his visage into the main graphic design of the site. *wink*

Thoughts...? =o)

rs3515
01-31-2008, 02:26 AM
I support this idea 100% and let me know how it is going. I would like to run for congress in AZ dist 2 in two years.

Definitely get in contact ... let's talk! I think what we are doing with Freeople will be able to help you. I can fill you in on more details. Visit the site (www.freeople.com) and send an email.

rs3515
01-31-2008, 02:28 AM
MrZach and GoldwaterConservative, get in contact with me through the Freeople website (www.freeople.com). I'd like to talk with you ... I think many of your ideas could fit very nicely on where we are headed.

MrZach
02-01-2008, 12:53 AM
Will do... after Super Tuesday... =o)

Where in the US are you located, btw?

rs3515
02-01-2008, 02:14 AM
Will do... after Super Tuesday... =o)

Where in the US are you located, btw?

Most definitely. Austin, TX ... previously a resident of Chicago and still spend a lot of time up there. ;)

MrZach
02-01-2008, 03:03 AM
Facebook Event Page (http://uic.facebook.com/event.php?eid=23060142352)
Making America a better place, one campaign at a time...

TIME: Friday, 8 Feb, 6pm
LOCATION: Restaurant/Bar (TBA) Chicago, IL

This is first and foremost a "Post-Super-Duper-Tuesday celebration" - discuss the election, swap stories, etc. We will meet for dinner at a restaurant/bar and

This is SECONDLY, an informal meeting to discuss the formation of a national bi-partisan coalition and online social network centered around Ron Paul's campaign platform.

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=101426

In a nutshell, this is about re-organizing the grassroots and combining the functionality of of Meetup.com, the Ron Paul 2008 precinct leader program, RonPaulForums.com, Freeople.com, & Facebook etc. into one centralized online social network, database, and knowledge management system.

This will be organized by cities, counties, congressional districts, and states. It is intended to help both Republicans and Democrats who unite around Ron Paul's message get elected to office locally - specifically, though, to the US House of Representatives.

MrZach
02-06-2008, 12:41 AM
ttt

Liberté
02-06-2008, 02:28 AM
Well, I love Ron Paul, but I want to try and indentify more as a mainstream Republican (I think RP having run as a Libertarian once really hurt him)... how about ConstitutionalRepublicans.com or something like that... I will be running for CD5 in Minnesota... send me a private message if you have any advice about running for Congress. I am meeting with the MN GOP fatcats later this month.

MrZach
02-06-2008, 03:58 AM
Liberté - that is EXACTLY what we're trying to achieve through this project - infiltrate the mainstream of both parties.

Gustogus
02-06-2008, 04:12 AM
http://www.libertypac.net/html/about_lpac.html


ISn't this Dr. Pauls official Pac?

MrZach
02-06-2008, 04:14 AM
We're not forming a PAC - way too limited in scope - not what we're doing. Actually, we're thinking about incorporating as a "for profit" business. Everything will be transparent, though. That seems to be one of the safest routs to go right now... Things are still in discussion, but a PAC is not what we're going for - more of a Ron Paul Facebook with a lot more bells and whistles. An IT solution if you will... *wink*

Gustogus
02-06-2008, 04:20 AM
I like it. Let the Neo-Cons keep their radio and the Evangels keep there pulpits.... We can have the tubes!

Tubes are the medium of the future :)

shooter_tx
02-06-2008, 09:18 AM
I like it.

spacehabitats
02-06-2008, 10:35 AM
and gets to the heart of the issue. We are in this for life.

ChicagoLawyer
02-08-2008, 11:54 AM
The ideas on this thread are fantastic. Check out what some of us are trying in Illinois: www.ourr3volution.com . It's envisioned as a "clearinghouse" for limited government supporters to recruit and help limited government candidates for office, as well as "issue oriented" campaigns, such as defeating an eminent domain land grab or a tax hike. I've posted our announcement below. Any of you in Illinois please see if you can make our first meeting this Sunday at the Lincoln Restaurant in Chicago (see below for details). For those of you around the country please feel free to contact us and see what we can all coordinate going into the future.

Announcement:

Continuing our R3VOLUTION


?It does not require a majority to prevail, but rather an irate, tireless minority keen to set brush fires of liberty in people?s minds.? ? Sam Adams


In the late 18th century, a ?tireless minority? fought unjust taxation and, in doing so, brought about America?s independence from England. Within the last ten months, another ?tireless minority? has emerged, this time surrounding the 2008 presidential election.


Who is it? It is the energetic, broad-based grassroots phenomenon that is the Ron Paul RE3VOLUTION. Under this banner, hundreds of thousands of people across the country have come together to promote the ideas of liberty, free markets and individual responsibility. Having Congressman Paul as a serious presidential candidate ? a principled and libertarian-leaning constitutionalist ? has had the effect of awakening and energizing pro-liberty individuals everywhere. It has started a national movement composed of hundreds of local groups. And the Greater Chicago area ? with a Meetup group of over eleven-hundred ? is one of the most impressive.


But where do we go and what do we do from here? What happens to our local movement, to our R3VOLUTION, in the next few months? After all, the Illinois presidential-nomination process is just about complete; and following the 5th of February, the fate of a Ron Paul presidency is, for the most part, out of Illinoisans? hands. Our R3VOLUTION, of course, must live on. As Dr. Paul himself has repeatedly said, it?s not about him but about liberty. So how can we harness this incredible energy that is our R3VOLUTION into other avenues, into concrete political action? Are there pressing local issues that require our attention? The answer is that, yes, there are plenty?


? eminent domain abuse

? massive tax hikes

? school choice legislation

? the upcoming Illinois Constitutional Convention

? planning an Income Tax Day Protest


?and plenty more that we need to address immediately and plan for accordingly. So let?s do it!


Please join us from 2pm to 4pm on Sunday, February 10th, at the Lincoln Restaurant ? 4008 N. Lincoln Ave, Chicago, 60618 (at the intersection of Damen, Irving and Lincoln) ? to discuss and plan what we can do with our R3VOLUTION?s energy and how we can connect it with similar efforts across the state. Anthony Sanders, a private attorney, and Richard Lorenc and Nic Hall, both of the Sam Adams Alliance, will be moderating the discussion. Local activists ? regardless of political affiliation or persuasion ? are welcome. However, space will be limited to 80 people, so please RSVP as soon as possible atchicago@ourr3volution.com. Also, there will be a suggested $2 donation to help with the costs associated with the event. For more information, check out http://www.ourr3volution.com.


Let?s continue our R3VOLUTION!


FYI, this event is not affiliated with the official Ron Paul campaign.

nbruno322
02-08-2008, 11:28 PM
Zach I support this idea 100%, lets hope it can be up and running to give enough time for people to research before the next election cycle. It will be an important tool to retake our country. Is there anything we can do to help?

tomcat
02-09-2008, 10:21 AM
I want to see this happen. I am willing to do work for it too. MrZach, let's talk?

DavyDuke17
02-09-2008, 04:00 PM
I think its a great idea and would love to try to help out in some way.

MrZach
02-11-2008, 07:16 PM
bump

Jane Aitken
02-11-2008, 08:12 PM
I have been listing Ron Paul Republicans on my site now on each state page.
Please send me info @ ronpaulhive dot com if you know of any.