Tulsa County GOP State Committee Members

October 2013

How fast can you spend $1 BILLION dollars!? by TC Ryan

That is exactly what the City of Tulsa is trying to find out. In this upcoming November election you will not only have the opportunity to vote for Dewey Bartlett for mayor, but also against another government-gone-wild tax and spend package. The City of Tulsa has placed two propositions on the ballot equaling an estimated $917.8 million. They always have to include the word estimated before any dollar amount because, as we all know from experience, government math, when it comes to how much of your money they want to take, can get a little fuzzy. You may be saying to yourself, MY! Thats a lot of money! and you would be right! Lets take a look at some of the projects the city leaders want to spend your hard earned money toward. $200,000 on a STUDY for a Creek Turnpike Trail Pedestrian Bridge Over Memorial Drive $9,055,000 toward Gilcrease Museum, which charges admission $5,530,000 toward the Tulsa Performing Arts Center, which charges admission $11,750,000 toward the Tulsa Zoo, which charges admission $4,000,000 on Private Retail and Residential Development. Whaaa?! $1,500,000 toward something they call Strategic Mobility Plan

Insanity Defined

by Joanna Francisco

Party leadership, like our legislative bodies, should be responsive to the grassroots, not simply function as a rubber stamping entity for the establishment agenda while presenting an illusion of representation to the people they supposedly serve. This comment is from a portion of my report about the first Oklahoma GOP State Committee meeting of this term. Last week it was unfortunately, but not unexpectedly, proven very relevant on the national political scene. (You can find the rest of the report here: http://www.scribd.com/doc/170881117/OklahomaGOP-State-Committee-Meeting-Recap-September-2013) I dont know about you, but last week my social media newsfeed was flooded with cries from Oklahomans and others calling on their friends to contact their representatives at the federal level and beg them to do their job, namely to uphold their oath to support and defend the Constitution. Actually the people were referring to efforts to stop the unlawful Affordable Care Act, a.k.a. Obamacare. Simply put, as there is no portion of the Constitution that grants the federal government any power or role in healthcare, sick care, mental health, medicine, supplements, exercise, food, jogging shoes, or choosing a doctor, any representative or senator who voted to pave the way for nationalized healthcare violated their oath of office. It is not controversial that I state this. This is fact. It is, however, scandalous that voters repeatedly re-elect representatives who abuse them via legislation. Predictably after the senate vote last week, many people were shocked and outraged over the vote of their representative. Im not sure why anyone was shocked. Remember TARP? When politicians bought into and/or used fear tactics -- such as the fallacious sky-is-falling claim that economic collapse was looming -- to orchestrate an enormous wealth transfer from lowly taxpayers to too big to fail banks and government -favored investment firms, they sent an important signal to the voters. They told you that legalized theft of the plundered masses is justified to
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I think you are starting to get the idea. What is the proper role of city government? Is it to fund organizations like the privately operated Tulsa Zoo? Is it to fund and operate concert venues or museums? Is it to study retail or residential development? I would argue that it is not.
continued on page 2 Most, if not all, of the suggested projects could be handled within the free market Members devoid of any Tulsa GOP State Committee Newsletter government intervention at all. As conservatives our fight to limit the size and scope of government should not be limited to the national scene as it is the activities of local government that will directly impact our lives

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continued from page 1, TC Ryan

continued from page 1, Joanna Francisco

Most, if not all, of the suggested projects could be handled within the free market devoid of any government intervention at all. As conservatives our fight to limit the size and scope of government should not be limited to the national scene as it is the activities of local government that will directly impact our lives the most. Over the next month you will hear campaign ads describing these tax packages as infrastructure necessities, brick and mortar projects, and even that if both of the proposals dont pass, the city will suffer. But do not let fancy political talk scare you into believing that government is somehow more capable than the free market in growing Tulsa into a more prosperous city. I urge you to take a look at the proposals and determine for yourself whether or not this type of wealth redistribution should be allowed in our city.

bail out a privileged few and centrally plan the economy. This is a philosophical issue and so therefore it does not matter whether we are discussing banking or healthcare. Politicians who support government and business entering into a predatory partnership against the taxpayer support fascism. They can proclaim their fondness for capitalism or the free-market all day long, but their behavior against their constituents demonstrates that they are indeed fascists. I recall during the TARP fiasco that people were up in arms over the blatant display of crony-capitalism in which politicians, lobbyists, and well-connected bankers joined hands to loot the taxpayers. But here is the frustrating part. When the writing was on the wall, many loyal devotees unquestioningly reelected the very people who did this based on a letter after the persons name. And now, here we are on the eve of the nationalization of approximately one-sixth of the American economy. Politicians have learned that they will most often not be held accountable by their constituents or their own parties. This partisan go along to get along approach to politics only serves to exacerbate the problem du jour while enabling the very people who created the problems in the first place to increase their own power and enrich the politically wellconnected. This runs contrary to OUR purpose in engaging in the political process. Grassroots Republicans are involved to affect public policy and hold our representatives accountable to our partys principles. This is an approach that should be adopted by our party leadership and our elected representatives if the political process is to ever regain its legitimacy. Joanna Francisco State Committee Member j2and4@sbcglobal.net

TC Ryan State Committeeman Tulsa County GOP tc_ryan@yahoo.com

https://www.facebook.com/CitizensForaBetterVision

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What is Grassroots? By Doug Landers, Guest Contributor

My first major realization of the power of grassroots was when I was visiting my friend Jack in Northern California. My friend Jacob and I had taken it upon ourselves to drive there for a week to campaign for Ron Paul, and while there were engaged in some other forms of activism. There was a congressional candidate named Stewart Cilley running, whose platform was the only in the race in opposition to the endless wars and in favor of personal freedom. Unfortunately, this candidates campaign consisted of a website with one video on it, and no other signs of an active voter-base. Jack, Jacob, and I took it upon ourselves, since we were already hitting the campaign circuit, to get the word out for this candidate as well. In the end, Stewart Cilley managed to pull a meager 9% of the vote, which to most would appear a complete loss; but to the mere three volunteers for the entire campaign, this was a sweeping victory. Within a course of three days, the efforts of three individuals were able to pull 9% of Californias 5th congressional district! The scope and power of grassroots activism is truly impossible to know given the amount of people inadvertently educated, inspired, or otherwise affected by such actions or ideas. Especially with the use of the Internet, it is difficult to know just how powerful one is as an individual. Just one simple Facebook or Twitter update could set off a chain reaction of inspiring another individual towards massive action, and reasonably, changing the course of a community or countrys future. Never underestimate the power within you as an individual. This is a movement whose lifeblood is the individual, because it is one that finally recognizes that single entitys power. This power is most feared by international bankers, power hungry politicians, corrupt lobbyists, and all their extensions of force. This power is called human energy; it cannot be controlled by those who seek control, but solely by the individual. This power can be temporarily stifled with taxes, regulations, oppression, starvation, torture, endless war, or even murder; but it cannot be stopped. The power to affect change is inherent in each and every one of us, each of you reading these words. You are a free and sovereign individual, whose duty is to claim the liberty that is rightfully his. Roots- In plants, a root is the part that provides both necessary nutrients and support. It keeps the plant grounded and healthy, while typically going unseen by the world. To be rooted is to plant and fix deeply in the earth; to implant firmly; hence, to make deep or radical; to establish. Activism- a policy of taking direct and militant action to achieve a goal. So what is grassroots activism then? What does it look like, and how can one get started down that path? The assorted definitions just given may leave one slightly confused as to what grassroots efforts are. A simple formula for grassroots activism is as follows: (1) identification of a problem in a community, (2) the individual bearing some form of personal responsibility for past action or inaction, and finally (3) action on behalf of implementing some form of solution. Many times this happens as part of a group that has realized the problem and has formed a mastermind group to come up with potential solutions and a plan of action. This activism can take just as many forms as the uniqueness of the individuals that are a part of it. For communities attempting to remedy the hunger of children in the local or global community, it may take the form of community gardening, implementing food education and after-school programs for children to help grow their own food. For those interested in decreasing the size, scope, and aggression of the government, it could be something to the effect of political lobbying and staying in touch with local officials. For those that may be interested in the financial or economic problems of the day, grassroots activism may manifest itself as education for local business owners to succeed in a recession. For groups whose goal it is to move towards energy sustainability, the solution may show up as a bike shop offering education and alternative transportation. You may notice that there is one common thread running throughout these different scenarios: education. This thread binds all grassroots activists together in a common purpose of empowering the individual through the spreading of knowledge. So naturally, one might ask, what can be done on my part? I would urge you to begin at the most local level possible. Find an issue that speaks to you in your home or community, and search for other like-minded individuals. This could mean implementing a healthier diet and exercise regimen in your own home. Maybe it could mean cleaning up graffiti in your neighborhood, or assisting elderly neighbors with their yard work. It could even mean planting a community garden in an attempt to reduce crime rates, like the Urban Farming Guys. The most important thing is that you find a cause you are passionate about and begin taking action immediately, even if it begins with educating others on the problems being faced. Meetup.com is a great website to find others interested in similar causes as well; if there is no Meetup group for your cause, create one! If you have no clue on what sort of solutions could be implemented, refer to the Internet to see how other communities have been taking action. We as powerful and inherently free individuals must finally come into our true power and step into the leadership roles that have been waiting for us. Freedom does not come for free, but at the cost of personal responsibility. As Mahatma Gandhi said, we must Be the change we want to see in the world. Change is much like a ripple effect, like that o f a pebble thrown into a pond; it begins at one central point (the individual) and spreads outwards further and further, eventually reaching the edges of the body of water. Sometimes the pebble will not be large enough to ripple across the whole pond, just as your efforts may or may not affect massive global change. But just maybe they will, too, and you may never know it. So I urge you today not only to take action, but to share your experiences with others through every medium possible. Every activist has learned something unique from their experiences, and harnessing the power of the Internet for the power of collective wisdom is an absolute game-changer when it comes to the effect one can have on the community. No one knows everything, but everyone knows something worth learning.

Tulsa GOP State Committee Members Newsletter

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