Stop thinking small.. The Campaign for Liberty CAN and SHOULD become the new ACLU

[agaiziunas]

The ACLU sounds great. They stand for civil liberties, they even defended KKK members in court for free speech, right? WRONG... they have some very unconstitutional viewpoints, I was almost convinced enough to donate to them until I dug deeper and saw what they really stood for.

Look, we have a lot of grassroots support here. Ron Paul, through his bid for the presidential office in 2008, has stirred the pot beyond all expectations. All these people talking about how the Fed is unconstitutional, the fiat currency is unconstitutional, how passport/"show me your papers" checkpoints within US borders are unconstitutional, and that is just to name 1% of what Ron Paul has been talking about.

It's obvious Ron Paul will not be president in 2008. I doubt a 2012 run would work, Dr. Paul is getting too elderly to be considered a viable candidate then (think of all the flak McCain caught this year, Dr. Paul is older than McCain)

The Campaign for Liberty has a LOT of momentum. Let's snowball it!!! We have numbers (for the moment) behind us. Let's make the C4L the NEW ACLU. The ACLU, while having championed & defended many important civil liberties, still has a very slanted view on many issues, and is not a TRUE champion of all civil liberties, nor is it a true champion of the US Constitution and its ideals.

We raised over $30M in just a few months for Dr. Paul's campaign. This shows how much WE believe in the ideals Dr. Paul stands for. The ACLU received $85M in donations for the entire year of 2004. Imagine what the Campaign for Liberty could accomplish with not only OUR support, but the support of many others who BELIEVE in the US Constitution, but simply did not donate to Dr. Paul because they felt he had no chance.

I think we have a chance to use the momentum from the RP'08 campaign & base to form a new and REAL civil liberties union -- I myself would gladly donate $250 annually to be a card-carrying member of the C4L/CFL. We could stand for the ideals Dr. Paul has defended his entire career, a group capable of influencing and steering Washington politics, and one that could really organize the grassroots into something more than just standing for the candidacy of Dr. Paul.

[Grimnir Wotansvolk]

Um, mind telling us what the ACLU really stands for?

[sratiug]

The ACLU sounds great. They stand for civil liberties, they even defended KKK members in court for free speech, right? WRONG... they have some very unconstitutional viewpoints, I was almost convinced enough to donate to them until I dug deeper and saw what they really stood for.

Look, we have a lot of grassroots support here. Ron Paul, through his bid for the presidential office in 2008, has stirred the pot beyond all expectations. All these people talking about how the Fed is unconstitutional, the fiat currency is unconstitutional, how passport/"show me your papers" checkpoints within US borders are unconstitutional, and that is just to name 1% of what Ron Paul has been talking about.

It's obvious Ron Paul will not be president in 2008. I doubt a 2012 run would work, Dr. Paul is getting too elderly to be considered a viable candidate then (think of all the flak McCain caught this year, Dr. Paul is older than McCain)

The Campaign for Liberty has a LOT of momentum. Let's snowball it!!! We have numbers (for the moment) behind us. Let's make the C4L the NEW ACLU. The ACLU, while having championed & defended many important civil liberties, still has a very slanted view on many issues, and is not a TRUE champion of all civil liberties, nor is it a true champion of the US Constitution and its ideals.

We raised over $30M in just a few months for Dr. Paul's campaign. This shows how much WE believe in the ideals Dr. Paul stands for. The ACLU received $85M in donations for the entire year of 2004. Imagine what the Campaign for Liberty could accomplish with not only OUR support, but the support of many others who BELIEVE in the US Constitution, but simply did not donate to Dr. Paul because they felt he had no chance.

I think we have a chance to use the momentum from the RP'08 campaign & base to form a new and REAL civil liberties union -- I myself would gladly donate $250 annually to be a card-carrying member of the C4L/CFL. We could stand for the ideals Dr. Paul has defended his entire career, a group capable of influencing and steering Washington politics, and one that could really organize the grassroots into something more than just standing for the candidacy of Dr. Paul.

Excellent post. If everyone could actually get a jury trial (as required in the constitution) for any criminal offense, and jurors were educated about the right of jury nullification we should be able to end the drug war, and a lot of other wars...

[Truth Warrior]

http://www.stoptheaclu.org/ (http://www.stoptheaclu.org/)

[dr. hfn]

bump! I love this idea! But, I think the movement is financially tapped out for now

[Kludge]

http://www.stoptheaclu.org/ (http://www.stoptheaclu.org/)

What ACLU Issue or Group Concerns You the Most?
Abortion on Demand
Same Sex Marriage
Assault on Boy Scouts
NAMBLA
Legal Action Against the 10 Commandments/Pledge
Legal Action Against Prayer in Schools/Government
Illegal Immigration Undermining the War on Terror
Death Penalty Opposition
Legal Action Against Christmas

:rolleyes:

[Grimnir Wotansvolk]

lol seriously

I can't imagine what kind of sick individual is bothered by the ACLU's presence. The Hannity forums are that way --->

[Truth Warrior]

What ACLU Issue or Group Concerns You the Most?
Abortion on Demand
Same Sex Marriage
Assault on Boy Scouts
NAMBLA
Legal Action Against the 10 Commandments/Pledge
Legal Action Against Prayer in Schools/Government
Illegal Immigration Undermining the War on Terror
Death Penalty Opposition
Legal Action Against Christmas

:rolleyes:
Most of the above. PLUS

[agaiziunas]

Um, mind telling us what the ACLU really stands for?

The ACLU has some great ideals, but they also promote:

-Affirmative action (I think that's a bit passee, don't think it's constitutional, either)
-Unless for police/military, firearms are not a constitutional right

Look, I'm not bashing the ACLU. I think they are a fantastic, and necessary organization. But why let them have a monopoly on watching our civil liberties, especially being a left-leaning organization (i.e. the gun control issue).

The C4L/CFL has the opportunity to become the TRUE barometer for the legality of issues important to us.


Imagine a well-funded C4L/CFL providing legal defense to an individual who practiced civil disobediance by not paying his/her taxes. The issue reaches the US Supreme Court. It becomes the "tax" equivalent of Roe vs. Wade. The ACLU doesn't TOUCH topics like this.

Imagine a well-funded C4L/CFL providing legal defense to an organization like "liberty dollar" after they were raided by the FBI. The issue reaches the US Supreme Court. It becomes the "competing currency" equivalent of Roe vs. Wade. The ACLU doesn't TOUCH topics like this.


Let's just say this, the ACLU is a great organization to have, but they have a limited view of things. Why can't we have a C4L/CFL organization with the goal of defending the US Constitution from the encroachment of big government.

[agaiziunas]

lol seriously

I can't imagine what kind of sick individual is bothered by the ACLU's presence. The Hannity forums are that way --->

You didn't read the post. If you had read it, you would see I am not bothered by the ACLU, rather I am bothered by their monopoly on being the only real watchdog for our civil liberties, when they have the tendancy to abandon the constitution for their left-wing viewpoints.

I am talking about having the Campaign for Liberty become the bigger and BETTER "ACLU" of our time. In other words, become the ACLU "plus", where we also file suits to define whether institutions such as the Fed & IRS really are constitutional. We all know they're not, why not bring it before the supreme court to get a ruling????


Cheers

[sratiug]

You didn't read the post. If you had read it, you would see I am not bothered by the ACLU, rather I am bothered by their monopoly on being the only real watchdog for our civil liberties, when they have the tendancy to abandon the constitution for their left-wing viewpoints.

I am talking about having the Campaign for Liberty become the bigger and BETTER "ACLU" of our time. In other words, become the ACLU "plus", where we also file suits to define whether institutions such as the Fed & IRS really are constitutional. We all know they're not, why not bring it before the supreme court to get a ruling????


Cheers

Yes, we all know the courts are extremely biased, being full of holders of Titles of Nobility. But at the same time, many laws still exist only because they have not been properly challenged. The Supreme Court attempts to throw out every case on technicalities and only decides issues forced into their laps. It will take a concerted effort to reverse many idiotic decisions of theirs, if possible at all.

In my state we have a BAR association monopoly, as do many others. That is totally illegal even if you agreed with state licensing of lawyers and doctors and such, which is of course also totally illegal. Free competition in the courts should be a major objective, and medicine too of course.

[nobody's_hero]

I like this idea. We need a liberty defense counsel.

[mport1]

I say stop thinking big. We shouldn't be wasting our resources across the entire country trying to wrestle back the federal government which is an impossibility. I think the Free State Project is a much better way to spend resources.

[yongrel]

I, personally, am a great fan of the ACLU and the work they do. I'm not thrilled with their blind eye to the second and tenth amendments, but other than that they're pretty solid.

Also, when I spoke with DC's executive director, he told me that the ACLU's positions come from a belief in Natural Rights, which sealed the deal for me.

[Spirit of '76]

There are a few libertarian legal foundations already out there doing this kind of work.

Pacific Legal Foundation (http://community.pacificlegal.org/NETCOMMUNITY/Page.aspx?pid=183&srcid=-2)

Institute for Justice (http://www.ij.org/) (probably the largest of its type)

The Jefferson Legal Foundation (http://www.jeffersonlegal.org/) (new startup by Ron Paul 2008 legal counsel Joe Becker)

[libertygrl]

Here's another libertarian legal foundation I recently discovered:

The Rutherford Institute - www.rutherford.org

[slothman]

What is your opinion on the American Center for Law and Justice?
It is like the ACLU but it wants to inject Christianity in to the gov't.

[Kludge]

Institute for Justice (http://www.ij.org/) (probably the largest of its type)

IJ is fantastic! They were very much involved in the DC v. Heller case (with an IJ lawyer being one of Heller's co-counsel).

Robert Levy of CATO also aided Heller.