December 2023
Seasons Greetings!
Hello Liberty Lovers of Riverside County!
If you would like an essay featured in the Liberty Letter, or if you read or watched something awesome that you think should be in the Suggested Reading of one of these newsletters, reach out to us at admin@rclp.us and let’s chat!
In the News: The Debate
Which debate? Pick one. They’re all the same at this point. The Republican clown-car has started ejecting occupants, but there are still plenty of pugilists willing to sling mud at each other over Scary Topics That Should Scare You so you elect them. They’re all lying. You know that.
On the Democrat side, Biden’s handlers won’t risk letting him walk onto a debate stage (literally, like he actually might not be able to walk onto the stage), but that didn’t stop California’s Gavin Newsom from having a totally-not-a-presidential-debate-cross-my-heart with Florida’s Ron DeSantis. You might be wondering what that was all about, so here’s a breakdown: it was two narcissists competing to see who can snow the public deepest. Neither of them is worth a hill of beans. Both are walking authoritarian disasters. Neither would be smart to vote for.
That all may seem really depressing, or infuriating, or both. But that’s not what the holiday season is about. This is a season of hope. So what can you do? How do you find hope? Turn your focus local. There’s a Newsom or DeSantis lookalike running for City Council or School Board in your town right now. There’s a clown-car full of candidates rushing madly toward the County Board of Supervisors right now. Those people can screw your life up in very specific ways, AND you can actually do something about it.
Like how? Well, first it might be very helpful to be familiar with how voting works in your community and in the county. In that respect, we invite you to consider becoming an official election officer.
Election Officer Opportunities
The county registrar of voters needs help every election. In today’s environment, rife with charged suspicion about how votes are collected, transported, and tabulated, there has never been a better time to get involved and make sure the system itself is fundamentally fair and secure. As libertarians, we are uniquely positioned to help keep the voting system neutral, since it is much easier for us to avoid being accused of partisan shenanigans by the apparatchiks of the duopoly parties. And the ROV is even paying people now (which we mention here even as we recognize that as libertarians there may be some very strong opinions from this newsletter’s readership about how and why that would happen).
Take a look at the details at this link, and get involved if you can (and share your experiences in a future newsletter!).
https://voteinfo.net/county-riverside-registrar-voters-seeking-election-officers
More Suggested Reading/Viewing/Listening This Month
In a delightful turn for libertarian principles in the world, Javier Milei won the presidency of Argentina. He has big plans. If you haven’t noted Milei’s rise to the south, check out Jon Miltimore’s summary:
AIER on the subject of “philanthro-tainment”. Does it matter why someone does charitable work, voluntarily bettering the lives of others? Good question. Find AIER’s thoughts here: https://www.aier.org/article/why-mr-beast-is-under-fire-for-bringing-clean-water-to-500000-africans/
Ilya Shapiro, writing in The Free Press, on free speech surrounding the latest flashpoint in the culture war (and a real war of its own).
And speaking of that flashpoint, here’s Patrick Carroll at FEE with a libertarian primer on war and the State. https://fee.org/articles/three-principles-for-libertarians-in-times-of-war
AB 446 was signed into law in October, and mandates cursive education in grades 1-6. On the surface, as usual, it is easy to read that and think it’s not a big deal. Cursive is good! Kids should learn it! We should preserve these old skills! But if “we” need to do this, why don’t “you” do it? If you want kids to learn cursive, go teach kids cursive. Set up a time and a place, advertise your service, and “preserve this important literacy tool.” If you’re not going to do that, don’t you dare try and force others to do it for you. And don’t you dare extort money from your neighbors to pay for it.
Calendar Notes
As always, bookmark and regularly check our website for the most up-to-date event details:
13 January 2024: Riverside County Libertarian Party annual convention. We will elect new county officers for 2024 and chart a course for liberty in the coming big election year. Vice Chair Matt Gunnell has unfortunately moved out of state, so there is at least one position wide open going into 2024. If you have ever wanted to get involved, being an officer is a great place to start! If you would like more information on being an officer, contact us (check the bottom of this newsletter) and let’s chat.
23-25 February 2024: Libertarian Party of California annual convention. Since 2024 is a presidential election year, this convention will include the election of state delegates to the national convention in May (in Washington D.C.). For us here in the southern parts of the state it’s conveniently located in Orange County this year! Find details (schedule, procedures, hotel reservation, etc.) here: https://ca.lp.org/2024-convention/
5 March 2024: The California Primary election. It never hurts to plan ahead for these, especially since ballots will be coming in the mail starting in early February. Find details here: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/upcoming-elections/pres-prim-march-2024
23-26 May 2024: The Libertarian Party National convention. Under this year’s theme, “Become Ungovernable,” libertarians from all over the country will discuss and debate the issues of our time. LPN will also conduct its regular election of officers. As this is a big election year, this will also be the event where the LP nominates its presidential ticket for the general election. Find details here: https://lnc2024.com/
Voter Registration and Party Membership
If you vote, be sure your registration is Libertarian (don’t let either the Rs or the Ds think they’ve got you in the bag). With elections coming up, it is also important to be sure your party preference is clear in your registration, because different ballots get mailed to different people depending on that stated preference.
Whether you vote or not, stay abreast of your registration details on the California Secretary of State page at this link: https://www.sos.ca.gov/elections/cavoter
Being a registered Libertarian voter certainly allows you to call yourself a real libertarian. However, there is more you can do. You can join the national Libertarian Party as a “sustaining member" by signing the membership application statement and paying dues (currently a minimum of $25 per year) to the national organization. Note that while paying dues at the state level (California) makes you a local "central committee member," national membership is separate.
If you aren't a dues-paying member at all, you can join as a national member AND as a state/county member using a single online form:
Combined National/State/County Membership Form
Join us in taking a stand for a world set free!
Closing Thoughts from the Chair
December is a time of religious holidays. Many faith traditions observe some flavor of holy day/period this month. I am certainly among them (celebrating Christmas) but while I’m happy to have a conversation with anybody about what I believe, I’m not here in your inbox this month to do that. After all, we’re libertarians: you get to kneel at whatever altar moves you, you just don’t get to force anybody else to kneel alongside you.
What I do want to highlight in this holiday-season newsletter message are some common threads we can all keep in mind regardless of the nature of our individual observances. As you read each of these, consider how it applies to you and reflect on how you can grow and improve as a person through application of the principle.
December is a time of giving.
December is a time to consider things larger than yourself.
December is a time for peace.
To all who read this, on behalf of the RCLP executive committee, I wish you the happiest holiday. I hope you use the traditions of your holiday to find time to reflect and reorient yourself, and head into the new year with renewed faith, hope, and charity.
–Loren Dean
Find us on the web at https://rclp.us
Email us at admin@rclp.us
LPCA Discord server: https://discord.gg/wfXzapGsTd
LNC Discord server: https://discord.gg/fxdH2bre