December 2014 - Lnc-business - Moellman Enterprises Email

Directions to New Orleans Libertarian Party Christmas Party.
by Daniel Hayes 13 Dec '14

13 Dec '14

For LNC members and Libertarians walking from the hotel here are some directions. Walk out the main entrance of the hotel onto Gaienne and take a left. When you reach the next intersection(S.Peters take a right.) Upon reaching the intersection of S.Peters and St. Joseph take a left. Proceed until you reach Carondelet and take a right. The party will be at 845 Carondelet at Indulge Island Grill. The party is a private function put on by the Greater New Orleans area Libertarians. Buffet service starts at 7PM. Food and Spirits are provided. Anyone having any questions can call me at 504-258-6176 or our Louisiana Executive director, Wendy Adams at 504-654-7627 or Orleans Parish Chairman Mike Dodd at 504-432-5005. Daniel Hayes LNC Region 7 Alternate Representative Sent from my iPad

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Website discussion
by Rich Tomasso 12 Dec '14

12 Dec '14

We have the working lunch website discussion planned for tomorrow, and I'm sure more discussions will happen after that. In my opinion we need to think in terms of simplicity rather than complexity. Who is our audience? What information to they need? What should they be able to do on the site? The technology doesn't matter for now, whatever we decide can be done with existing tools. Without a clear direction and purpose all the cool widgets just take up space. We'll pick the tools once we know the task. ~Rich Region 8 Rep LNC IT Committee

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Fwd: LP Ballot Access 2016
by Wes Benedict 11 Dec '14

11 Dec '14

-------- Original Message -------- Subject: LP Ballot Access 2016 Date: Wed, 10 Dec 2014 13:48:34 -0500 From: Bob Johnston <bob.johnston(a)lp.org> To: 'Wes Benedict' <wes.benedict(a)lp.org>, 'Robert Kraus' <robert.kraus(a)lp.org>, Carla Howell <carla.howell(a)lp.org> CC: 'Nicholas Sarwark' <nsarwark(a)gmail.com>, <william.redpath(a)lp.org> Attached is the 2016 ballot access spreadsheet. Also attached is the LP ballot access manual, updated for 2016. Please forward this to the LNC, and feel free to contact me with any questions. Bob Johnston (443) 310-5373 Bob.johnston(a)lp.org

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Region 6 Report
by Rob Oates 11 Dec '14

11 Dec '14

Attached please find a short update from Region 6. Rob OatesRegion 6 Representative Caldwell, Idaho

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John Wayne Smith passed away this morning.
by Vicki Kirkland 11 Dec '14

11 Dec '14

I received a call from a member of John's family a little while ago. I was asked to notify the Libertarian Party. John had been dealing with cancer for several years and went into the hospital in August for an operation. He went back into the hospital November 24th, was discharged last Saturday, and went into Hospice care. My thoughts and prayers are with his family. Vicki Kirkland

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December LNC Request for Itinerary
by Daniel Hayes 11 Dec '14

11 Dec '14

If the members of the LNC and Staff that are flying in to New Orleans for the December LNC meeting can send me in a private email their itinerary for their flight in and out of the city, our local affiliates will be providing pick up for the LNC members and Staff from the airport to the Convention Center Hampton Inn and back as we are able and as requested. Please notify us of any additional guests traveling with you. Looking forward to everyone enjoying our city. Daniel Hayes LNC Region 7 Alternate Representative

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A last-minute argument
by Joshua Katz 11 Dec '14

11 Dec '14

Fellow LNC members: I am sad that I will not be in New Orleans this weekend, both because I'm missing the meeting and because I've heard it's a fun town. As I am not present in person, I would like to make one last argument against a proposal to modify the Policy Manual to eliminate or lower the requirement to pay down mortgage principal in odd-numbered years. I understand that the purchase of the "building," to many, was seen as a way to enhance cash-flow. But this benefit still exists in even-numbered years. In any event, I view picturing a mortgage that way as an act of financial irresponsibility. We serve 2 year terms on the LNC. If this provision is changed, it is likely that many of us will not be on the LNC when the balloon payment comes due. For us to kick to a future board responsibility for a large payment, because we didn't want to chip away at it previously, seems to me to be on par, at a smaller scale, with precisely the way the Democrats and Republicans write this nation's budget. We promise to be different, to be better. Why should any voter believe us that we will manage this nation's resources in a better way if we choose to kick our own expenses down the road? The financial aspects should be clear. We're not just talking about a balloon payment vs. chipping away at the amount owed. We're also talking about a large difference in interest payments. A reduction in the principal every odd-numbered year will make a dramatic difference to this party long-term. Do we intend for this party to be around for the long-haul, or to fold up and disappear? I intend for the former, and think we should look at the long-term health of this party rather than short-term cash-flow. Even those who want this modification agree with this in principle - every time we decide to spend money on ballot access, advertising, or much anything else, while in a cash-flow crunch, we are prioritizing the growth of the party over current cash flow. Why should taking care of our debts be the only victim of a need for more cash? America did not get into its financial hole in one fell swoop. It happened over time - it happened by, one time after another, pushing the can down the road, raising the debt ceiling, and so on. As a voter, I am supposed to believe that the Libertarian Party can do better after watching us walk down the same path? To eliminate this policy manual provision is to put ourselves in the position of the credit card user who, realizing he has spent too much money, decides to make only the minimum payment. We all know this is not financially wise. I disagree with the basic premise that the "building" should be used as an ATM in the first place, but at least this policy manual limits our use of it that way to even-numbered years. The most successful Libertarian campaigns, such as Aaron Starr for Oxnard, have focused precisely on financial responsibility. If we were talking about a newly-purchased federal park or building, and Congress exempted itself from making principal payments that had helped secure passage, Libertarians would be lining up around the block to denounce this action as yet another reason not to trust the two old parties and to elect Libertarians. We'd be absolutely right to do so. Yes, eliminating this would make it easier to have a balanced (or even surplus) budget - and we really need a surplus budget to build reserves going into a Presidential year. I understand that. I urge that we find other ways, find other expenses to cut, before we consider not paying a self-imposed financial responsibility. There is little fat to cut, so balancing the budget, or creating a surplus, requires cutting into muscle. You will say, correctly, that I'm not there for these hard choices. I have passed suggestions about difficult decisions to LNC members who will be there. I urge that we make these hard choices now, not in 10 years. Joshua A. Katz Westbrook CT Planning Commission (L in R seat)

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From ballot-access.org re: larger legal political party contributions
by William Redpath 10 Dec '14

10 Dec '14

Congress Likely to Allow Much Larger Contributions to Political Parties <http://www.ballot-access.org/2014/12/congress-likely-to-allow-much-larger-c…> Published on December 10, 2014 <http://www.ballot-access.org/2014/12/congress-likely-to-allow-much-larger-c…> , On December 9, the text of the congressional bill that would fund the federal government was released. It contains a surprise provision <http://electionlawblog.org/?p=68995> that would make it possible for individuals to give substantially more money to national committees of political parties than the current law allows. Currently individuals cannot give more than $32,400 per year to the national committee of a political party. The budget rider would allow much larger contributions, but only if the money were donated for one of three purposes: (1) to defray expenses of national conventions; (2) to defray expenses incurred with respect to the construction, purchase, renovation, operation, and furnishing of one or more headquarters buildings of the party or to repay loans the proceeds of which were used to defray such expenses, or otherwise to restore funds used to defray such expenses (including expenses for obligations incurred during the 2-year period which ends on the date of the enactment of this paragraph); (3) to defray expenses incurred with respect to the preparation for and the conduct of election recounts and contests and other legal proceedings. Although many news stories about this bill imply that the bill only applies to the Democratic and Republican National Committees, the bill actually applies to all political parties recognized by the Federal Election Commission as “national committees.” They include the Libertarian, Green, Constitution, Socialist, Natural Law, and Reform Parties. The bill is expected to pass Congress this week. Thanks to Dan Tokaji for the link.

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Region I Report
by Norm Olsen 10 Dec '14

10 Dec '14

A very brief report concerning Region I is attached. Norm -- Norman T Olsen Regional Representative, Region 1 Libertarian National Committee 7931 South Broadway, PMB 102 Littleton, CO 80122-2710 303-263-4995

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FW: Good News from Alaska
by Norm Olsen 10 Dec '14

10 Dec '14

I think you'll find the link provided below to be interesting. Good news from the hard working Libertarians in Alaska. Norm -- Norman T Olsen Regional Representative, Region 1 Libertarian National Committee 7931 South Broadway, PMB 102 Littleton, CO 80122-2710 303-263-4995 From: Carolyn Clift [mailto:mamacare50@hotmail.com] Sent: Tuesday, December 09, 2014 7:09 PM To: nobler2us(a)hotmail.com; Ron Windeler; norman.olsen(a)lp.org Subject: News http://www.adn.com/article/20141209/libertarians-win-apoc-seats-following-no vember-election YOURS TRULY, Care Carolyn "Care" Clift (907)337-9679

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