jblosser
07-22-2008, 12:45 AM
After much discussion and counsel from many, several Texas grassroots activists including the delegate patriots in Nueces County have decided to CONTINUE TO FIGHT the abuses that occured at the Nueces County Convention and were perpetuated by the Texas Republican Party at the State Convention. To that end, funds are being raised to pursue legal action that will seek, among other things, a ruling that the votes held in the Nueces SD and CD Caucuses were invalid since in both cases the illegitimate delegation from Nueces was the majority vote. Beyond this, we are seeking the relief from the courts that the party was unwilling to provide, and a reassertion of the rule of law over tyranny. This case focuses on Nueces, but beyond that it is for all who have seen the injustice and manipulation of the people this election cycle. If we want to change things, now is the time to stand.
This case will be expensive. We are seeking a full trial with discovery, depositions, etc. Tens of thousands of dollars are needed, and as fiscal conservatives we need the funds to see this through in place before we begin. A year ago that may have sounded impossible, but the Revoluation has shown us that patriots are still out there, and they believe in real action in place of mere words.
THERE IS A CHIPIN at http://fairconvention.chipin.com/remembernueces
Alternately, checks may be made out to "Gary Polland Trust Account," with a note for "Nueces lawsuit," and mailed to Debra Medina at 3027 N. Richmond Ste 500, Wharton, Tx 77488. Gary is a former Harris Co. GOP Party Chair and the attorney on this case. Debra is of course Wharton Co. GOP Party Chair, strong advocate of liberty and the rule of law in the political process, and was a candidate for Party Vice-Chair at this State Convention.
Hopefully you're ready to go donate now, but if not, please read the below which is my take on why this is needed and needed now.
================================================== =======
Some have asked if we should continue this particular fight. Lawsuits cost time and money after all, with unknown chances of success, particularly inside a system where the opposing group exerts significant influence. Perhaps it would be more prudent, they argue, to spend this money in two years on funding candidates to continue to oppose the current elected leadership via the electoral process. This is a fair concern, and it is no doubt shared by many. We all have limited resources, and we want to remain fiscally responsible while still doing all we can to achieve liberty and restore the republic.
This is of course not a new discussion. Similar concerns and arguments were raised during the time preceeding the first American Revolution, and while most of us are not yet threatened by soldiers at our door and in our streets, there are many parallels between their situation and ours. They too faced an opponent with overwhelming resources who was demonstrating a clear pattern of abuse of their rights to liberty and self-determination. They too had tried for years to seek an orderly resolution through dialogue and process, inside the system controlled by their opponent. They too had seen their efforts met with only continuing and ever increasing abuses. And nevertheless, then too there were those advising they simply keep trying.
This was the context in 1775 when Patrick Henry rose to address the Virginia House of Burgesses to urge adoption of legislation placing the colony on a defensive war footing. Others had already spoken in opposition to taking a position so directly threatening to the Crown and counseled further diplomacy and petitions. Given the very real risks involved in the proposal before them, their position was understandable. They preferred to cling to the hope that diplomacy would succeed and other measures would not be necessary.
Henry's argument was simple: while "it is natural for men to indulge in the illusions of hope," we must consider the "lamp of experience" to determine if there is cause for such hope. "I know of no way of judging the future but by the past," he said. "And judging by the past, I wish to know what there has been in the conduct of the British ministry for the last ten years, to justify those hopes with which gentlemen have been pleased to solace themselves and the House?"
That same question is what we must ask ourselves now. What has there been in the conduct of the RPT leadership for the last ten years to justify the hopes that they will allow themselves to be voted out? Very few would claim the current leadership is redeemable, of course, or that diplomacy with them serves a purpose other than marking time. But the events of the last year should make it equally clear that we have little or no hope of even fielding quality candidates who can recieve fair opportunity to voice their opinions and be voted on in fair elections. From denying a sitting Congressman and Presidential candidate the opportunity to address his own
state's delegates--and all that was done to work against his campaign prior to that--to manipulation of microphones and rules to limit any debate and discussion of issues or candidates, to outright electoral fraud in Nueces County and subsequent tyrannical coverup, the current leadership has made it abundantly clear they will go to any measure to retain their power. They believe they are above the law and the electoral process itself and will abuse and violate and quash any person or law that stands in the way of reaching their ends.
In this environment it can easily be argued that it is the campaigns themselves that are a poor use of funds. There is no winning elections this compromised, short of simply bringing overwhelming numbers of supporters who are equally as predecided as the opposition's, who do not need debate or discussion to vote for change. This is exactly what some are advocating, and given time it could succeed, but even then only if votes are fairly counted. With undenied allegations of electoral fraud, and the use of Houston police to intimidate individuals attempting to bring issues to committees and then the floor, fair elections are themselves something we must fight not to retain, but to restore. Without discussion and debate, the elections themselves are merely a sham, and with the current environment allowing delegate fraud they are not even that. RPT's escalation to the use of police further demonstrates this is not democracy, it is tyranny and violence; "the last arguments to which kings resort."
Do not imagine that the delegates will rise to object and support a candidate forced by party machinations into a minority position, or that they would complain even if the leadership simply declined to hold a vote. Just like in Colonial America, most of the people under the tyrant's thumb will always go along to get along. Many only even attend the conventions because they are told it is their civic good Republican duty, and will happily vote through anything without debate if told their betters require it of them. There is very little distance between a vote that is only a show and no vote at all.
Even if our candidates could still receive fair votes and after several more cycles of ignoring these abuses could raise the support to win, we must consider what experience shows us is the probable end result of taking the long view of elections in a corrupt system: compromised movements, candidates, and officials who once gaining power are quite happy to abuse it and become tyrants themselves. The last three RPT chairs were elected by a group that also worked diligently to return the party to the grassroots and use it to promote Republican principles among the people and the government, and all three showed themselves willing to abuse their power at least as much as the individuals they replaced. This does not mean that the democratic process is to blame, or that campaigns and elections are not worth pursuing. It means that when the elections themselves are held by a corrupt leadership, the compromise inherent in ignoring abuse to "run another day" leads to other compromises that make the so-called inevitable eventual victory as likely to be a victory of the opposition subverting our own efforts as anything else. A fight in the
courts may not succeed, but we know that fighting via elections is not working.
There is a popular saying among our group: "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." At the time Henry spoke, the ballot and jury boxes had both been completely subverted by the Crown, as the Declaration of Independence would eventually document. The question before the Assembly was between what was left of the soap box and the ammo box. Henry argued that the British had already moved to the ammo box, and the soap box was now useless as well: "I ask gentlemen, sir, what means this martial array, if its purpose be not to force us to submission? .... They are meant for us; they can be meant for no other. They are sent over to bind and rivet upon us those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging. And what have we to oppose to them? Shall we try argument? Sir, we have been trying that for the last ten years. Have we anything new to offer on the subject? Nothing."
Now, as then, patriots have lost their recourse to the ballot box. The duly elected delegates from Nueces County were completely overrun by individuals who were not elected and who simply threw them out, with the full support of the RPT leadership. In turn, the SD 20 and CD 27 Caucuses were controlled by these illegitimate delegates, where the Nueces delegation is the majority vote, and the others in those districts lost their voice and vote as well. In committee and on the floor of the convention, ALL of us lost the soap box as party leadership manipulated microphones and abused the process to ensure that no mention of this fraud reached the delegates at large, and every vote we as a body cast and all action proceeding since has been tainted. The Committee was not allowed to hear the challenge, the SREC was told nothing, minority reports were denied, floor debate and appeals were quashed, all under the threat of arrest if people protested too loudly or attempted to speak without the blessing of the abusers.
If we hope to reclaim this party and our country, we cannot let this be, and we must escalate to the jury box. We must seek rulings that clearly demonstrate to party leadership that we are not ruled by kings, but by the people. We must bring courage to our fellow delegates who still chafe under the heel of the tyrant, and show them that we are not a minority among real Republicans in Texas. We must assert the rule of law and restore fairness to our convention and electoral processes so that the true will of the majority can be discovered, and so that we can have the option to move forward toward electoral wins next cycle. "If we wish to be free--if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending--if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained, we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!"
Will we succeed? We hope we will, but we may not. We must try, though, and try now, while the jury box is still an option for us. "Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot?" We need to see this through not only for our allies in Nueces who still are being abused and have no voice without us, but for ourselves and our children.
"It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, 'Peace! Peace!'--but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
Join us in this effort. Demand accountability and respect for the law and the will of the people, not just when it seems prudent, but until it is achieved. Now is the time for a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, and to mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
http://fairconvention.chipin.com/remembernueces
This case will be expensive. We are seeking a full trial with discovery, depositions, etc. Tens of thousands of dollars are needed, and as fiscal conservatives we need the funds to see this through in place before we begin. A year ago that may have sounded impossible, but the Revoluation has shown us that patriots are still out there, and they believe in real action in place of mere words.
THERE IS A CHIPIN at http://fairconvention.chipin.com/remembernueces
Alternately, checks may be made out to "Gary Polland Trust Account," with a note for "Nueces lawsuit," and mailed to Debra Medina at 3027 N. Richmond Ste 500, Wharton, Tx 77488. Gary is a former Harris Co. GOP Party Chair and the attorney on this case. Debra is of course Wharton Co. GOP Party Chair, strong advocate of liberty and the rule of law in the political process, and was a candidate for Party Vice-Chair at this State Convention.
Hopefully you're ready to go donate now, but if not, please read the below which is my take on why this is needed and needed now.
================================================== =======
Some have asked if we should continue this particular fight. Lawsuits cost time and money after all, with unknown chances of success, particularly inside a system where the opposing group exerts significant influence. Perhaps it would be more prudent, they argue, to spend this money in two years on funding candidates to continue to oppose the current elected leadership via the electoral process. This is a fair concern, and it is no doubt shared by many. We all have limited resources, and we want to remain fiscally responsible while still doing all we can to achieve liberty and restore the republic.
This is of course not a new discussion. Similar concerns and arguments were raised during the time preceeding the first American Revolution, and while most of us are not yet threatened by soldiers at our door and in our streets, there are many parallels between their situation and ours. They too faced an opponent with overwhelming resources who was demonstrating a clear pattern of abuse of their rights to liberty and self-determination. They too had tried for years to seek an orderly resolution through dialogue and process, inside the system controlled by their opponent. They too had seen their efforts met with only continuing and ever increasing abuses. And nevertheless, then too there were those advising they simply keep trying.
This was the context in 1775 when Patrick Henry rose to address the Virginia House of Burgesses to urge adoption of legislation placing the colony on a defensive war footing. Others had already spoken in opposition to taking a position so directly threatening to the Crown and counseled further diplomacy and petitions. Given the very real risks involved in the proposal before them, their position was understandable. They preferred to cling to the hope that diplomacy would succeed and other measures would not be necessary.
Henry's argument was simple: while "it is natural for men to indulge in the illusions of hope," we must consider the "lamp of experience" to determine if there is cause for such hope. "I know of no way of judging the future but by the past," he said. "And judging by the past, I wish to know what there has been in the conduct of the British ministry for the last ten years, to justify those hopes with which gentlemen have been pleased to solace themselves and the House?"
That same question is what we must ask ourselves now. What has there been in the conduct of the RPT leadership for the last ten years to justify the hopes that they will allow themselves to be voted out? Very few would claim the current leadership is redeemable, of course, or that diplomacy with them serves a purpose other than marking time. But the events of the last year should make it equally clear that we have little or no hope of even fielding quality candidates who can recieve fair opportunity to voice their opinions and be voted on in fair elections. From denying a sitting Congressman and Presidential candidate the opportunity to address his own
state's delegates--and all that was done to work against his campaign prior to that--to manipulation of microphones and rules to limit any debate and discussion of issues or candidates, to outright electoral fraud in Nueces County and subsequent tyrannical coverup, the current leadership has made it abundantly clear they will go to any measure to retain their power. They believe they are above the law and the electoral process itself and will abuse and violate and quash any person or law that stands in the way of reaching their ends.
In this environment it can easily be argued that it is the campaigns themselves that are a poor use of funds. There is no winning elections this compromised, short of simply bringing overwhelming numbers of supporters who are equally as predecided as the opposition's, who do not need debate or discussion to vote for change. This is exactly what some are advocating, and given time it could succeed, but even then only if votes are fairly counted. With undenied allegations of electoral fraud, and the use of Houston police to intimidate individuals attempting to bring issues to committees and then the floor, fair elections are themselves something we must fight not to retain, but to restore. Without discussion and debate, the elections themselves are merely a sham, and with the current environment allowing delegate fraud they are not even that. RPT's escalation to the use of police further demonstrates this is not democracy, it is tyranny and violence; "the last arguments to which kings resort."
Do not imagine that the delegates will rise to object and support a candidate forced by party machinations into a minority position, or that they would complain even if the leadership simply declined to hold a vote. Just like in Colonial America, most of the people under the tyrant's thumb will always go along to get along. Many only even attend the conventions because they are told it is their civic good Republican duty, and will happily vote through anything without debate if told their betters require it of them. There is very little distance between a vote that is only a show and no vote at all.
Even if our candidates could still receive fair votes and after several more cycles of ignoring these abuses could raise the support to win, we must consider what experience shows us is the probable end result of taking the long view of elections in a corrupt system: compromised movements, candidates, and officials who once gaining power are quite happy to abuse it and become tyrants themselves. The last three RPT chairs were elected by a group that also worked diligently to return the party to the grassroots and use it to promote Republican principles among the people and the government, and all three showed themselves willing to abuse their power at least as much as the individuals they replaced. This does not mean that the democratic process is to blame, or that campaigns and elections are not worth pursuing. It means that when the elections themselves are held by a corrupt leadership, the compromise inherent in ignoring abuse to "run another day" leads to other compromises that make the so-called inevitable eventual victory as likely to be a victory of the opposition subverting our own efforts as anything else. A fight in the
courts may not succeed, but we know that fighting via elections is not working.
There is a popular saying among our group: "There are four boxes to be used in defense of liberty: soap, ballot, jury, and ammo. Please use in that order." At the time Henry spoke, the ballot and jury boxes had both been completely subverted by the Crown, as the Declaration of Independence would eventually document. The question before the Assembly was between what was left of the soap box and the ammo box. Henry argued that the British had already moved to the ammo box, and the soap box was now useless as well: "I ask gentlemen, sir, what means this martial array, if its purpose be not to force us to submission? .... They are meant for us; they can be meant for no other. They are sent over to bind and rivet upon us those chains which the British ministry have been so long forging. And what have we to oppose to them? Shall we try argument? Sir, we have been trying that for the last ten years. Have we anything new to offer on the subject? Nothing."
Now, as then, patriots have lost their recourse to the ballot box. The duly elected delegates from Nueces County were completely overrun by individuals who were not elected and who simply threw them out, with the full support of the RPT leadership. In turn, the SD 20 and CD 27 Caucuses were controlled by these illegitimate delegates, where the Nueces delegation is the majority vote, and the others in those districts lost their voice and vote as well. In committee and on the floor of the convention, ALL of us lost the soap box as party leadership manipulated microphones and abused the process to ensure that no mention of this fraud reached the delegates at large, and every vote we as a body cast and all action proceeding since has been tainted. The Committee was not allowed to hear the challenge, the SREC was told nothing, minority reports were denied, floor debate and appeals were quashed, all under the threat of arrest if people protested too loudly or attempted to speak without the blessing of the abusers.
If we hope to reclaim this party and our country, we cannot let this be, and we must escalate to the jury box. We must seek rulings that clearly demonstrate to party leadership that we are not ruled by kings, but by the people. We must bring courage to our fellow delegates who still chafe under the heel of the tyrant, and show them that we are not a minority among real Republicans in Texas. We must assert the rule of law and restore fairness to our convention and electoral processes so that the true will of the majority can be discovered, and so that we can have the option to move forward toward electoral wins next cycle. "If we wish to be free--if we mean to preserve inviolate those inestimable privileges for which we have been so long contending--if we mean not basely to abandon the noble struggle in which we have been so long engaged, and which we have pledged ourselves never to abandon until the glorious object of our contest shall be obtained, we must fight! I repeat it, sir, we must fight!"
Will we succeed? We hope we will, but we may not. We must try, though, and try now, while the jury box is still an option for us. "Shall we gather strength by irresolution and inaction? Shall we acquire the means of effectual resistance, by lying supinely on our backs, and hugging the delusive phantom of hope, until our enemies shall have bound us hand and foot?" We need to see this through not only for our allies in Nueces who still are being abused and have no voice without us, but for ourselves and our children.
"It is in vain, sir, to extenuate the matter. Gentlemen may cry, 'Peace! Peace!'--but there is no peace. The war is actually begun! The next gale that sweeps from the north will bring to our ears the clash of resounding arms! Our brethren are already in the field! Why stand we here idle? What is it that gentlemen wish? What would they have? Is life so dear, or peace so sweet, as to be purchased at the price of chains and slavery? Forbid it, Almighty God! I know not what course others may take; but as for me, give me liberty, or give me death!"
Join us in this effort. Demand accountability and respect for the law and the will of the people, not just when it seems prudent, but until it is achieved. Now is the time for a firm reliance on the protection of Divine Providence, and to mutually pledge to each other our Lives, our Fortunes, and our sacred Honor.
http://fairconvention.chipin.com/remembernueces