Labels, Campaigns, and You

by Jacqueline Smith

I recently received an email sent out by the Democratic Candidate for Treasurer.  It linked Henry Glasheen the Republican Candidate for Treasurer to the “right wing” group The STAR Forum in a negative way.  First, Henry Glasheen is not a member of our group.  While most of the members support Henry in his election because he is a fiscal conservative, and qualified enough to handle this position, my main point of this article is to discuss labels. 

Labels are a way for the opposing view to denigrate individuals and groups.  Going back in history, we look at the Nomad age.  Those who were living on farms and in stable homes, also known as the Agrarian culture called the Nomads “barbarians.”  Once the Industrial Age caught on, those people building factories looked at the Agrarian age as “Third World.”  Each group wants to denigrate the other with a label.  What might the Information Age call the Industrial Age builders?  Polluters maybe.

Many labels have been attached to the freedom movement, such as “tea baggers,” “racists,” “hate-mongers,” and “right-wingers“ etc.  This type of label is not only inaccurate, but can fool us, if we as a people do not look at the entire picture.  We have a right / left paradigm in our society, and I have used the terms myself.  Liberal / Conservative is thrown around a lot as well, but with less negative connotations.  If you are using a term to describe a standpoint, be sure you are using it with accuracy.  Liberals call themselves liberals.  That is not a derogatory term.

 I think it would be good to define right-wing.  The video linked here is a video that shows why right-wing is the opposite of the definition many people place on groups intent on supporting the Constitution of the United States as seen through the eyes of the founding fathers.  Right wing actually is a call for anarchy.  This is not the case for The STAR Forum at all. 

The STAR Forum stands for Save The American Republic.  I cannot imagine a Republican, Democrat, Libertarian or Independent not wanting to Save the Republic.  Unless you believe in total anarchy or Fascism / Communism, we have common ground.  If you believe in God or simply in good, we have common ground.  If you believe that the Constitution of the United States is the law of the land, and holds government at bay to ensure the highest level of liberty for the people, then we have common ground.  If you believe that government is necessary, but should be limited, we have common ground.

The purpose of The STAR Forum is to educate people in ways of government workings.  We seek to give individuals the tools necessary to participate in an environment that may otherwise seem foreign.  We teach the proper role of government, and give the individuals the ability to look at history and better understand the period we are entering, known as The Fourth Turning.  It is individuals aligning themselves with others that want to recognize the vital role they can play in ensuring liberty for all.  It is recognizing the need for charity, honesty, and public virtue from ourselves on a daily basis.  We believe that an educated electorate is the most important thing in maintaining a Republic as our form of government.  We are not a democracy, because our founders understood as James Madison said, “…democracies have ever been spectacles of turbulence and contention; have ever been found incompatible with personal security or the rights of  property, and have in general been as short in their lives as they have been violent in their deaths.”  In addition, Samuel Adams stated, “Democracy never lasts long.  It soon wastes, exhausts and murders itself.”

If placing labels on individuals or groups is the only way to win elections, and it works, it will not be the fault of the person placing the label, but the individuals who are fooled by those labels and vote based on the “feeling” the label creates.  Be an educated voter.  Look at comments and phrases placed on opposing candidates in context.  Do not believe everything you hear.  Study things out for yourself.  Find the candidates that align most with your views and belief systems.  Above all else, remember that this Republic has lasted longer with our Constitution than any other written Constitution on the earth.  It is the duty of all who take office, and all who vote, regardless of party to align themselves within the bounds of that document.

 FREEDOM CAN WIN!

Where are the Washingtons?

Many of my followers are not necessarily Glenn Beck fans, but recently Glenn Beck said something on his radio show that I would like to share with you.  His words represent the direction I have wanted this 9.12 project The STAR Forum to turn.  We must be educated to win.  We must change our very lives and decide we are willing to make sacrifices so that our children and grandchildren can live under freedom.  We must receive a liberal arts education.

Those that know me are aware that this has always been my goal.  While the politics of this movement can be exciting and interesting, and important, we must not forget the things that will change our society from the bottom up.  We must begin educating ourselves and our families, changing the way schools teach, and how they prepare our children for the world we live in.  Skills will never be enough.  We must have amazing young men and women of real character. We have been raised ourselves in a society that has not taught us to think sensus plenior, we have not learned to look to the great minds of the past that our founders studied.  We are in a 4th Turning, and honestly time is running out.  What an exciting and important time to live in.  We will only make a difference if we are educated.  This education can come many ways, but I have one solution, that although costs money, will not break the bank.  I have invited Dr. Shanon Brooks, who holds a PhD in Constitutional Law to begin to mentor us through a series of lectures beginning on June 26, 2010.  We only have room for 50 students.  This first of 5 lectures will open our minds and begin the process of all of us thinking on a different level.

To find out more about the Foundations of Liberty Seminar #1 , click here.

Here is the message from Glenn Beck:

May 10, 2010 – 15:29 ET   

GLENN: I’m going to say some things here that are not going to be for everybody, and that’s fine. And if it means that I shake some listeners loose, that’s fine. I’m charting my own course and I am trying to, I’m trying my hardest to preserve the voice of — or a voice of man a’s freedom, individual freedom for as long as possible. And I’m also trying to create other voices that understand the difference between individual freedom, individual rights and human rights. There are two kinds of rights and they are both important. But I’m going to chart a different course than others. Others are going to say get involved in politics and everything else. And while I think that I don’t have any problem with that, not a lot of people have been doing as much research as I have for the last five years. And a lot of people, I mean, everybody has gotten this wrong every step of the way. They’ve had pieces of it here and there but I don’t know anybody that has had the majority of pieces. We have.

This, I don’t even know what you would call it. This plan, this hijacking of our country. It didn’t start with Obama. It’s not about Obama. It’s not. This started a long, long time ago. And you are much farther behind than you think you are. I know. The only thing that gives me peace and comfort is I know what this land is. I know whose rights these are. No sword formed against thee shall prosper. He will destroy the devourer, not you. Not me. For our sake those who want to devour man’s individual rights will be destroyed. My guess is they will destroy themselves. It’s the way it always happens. These people are radicals. They are not rulers. However, I will tell you this, Cass Sunstein is the man that is wildly important. Because I see his fingerprints on almost everything now. So here’s my recommendation. The 9/12 project started a year and a half ago. I haven’t talked much about it because I don’t do anything with it myself. I mean, I’m not — I’m a proud 9/12er but I’m not involved in running it or anything else. This was yours. I will advise the 9/12 group, double your efforts. Get more people into the 9/12 project. Tea parties, while you play a valuable role, be very careful because you are not rooted in values and principles. What are your charting values and principles? 9/12 members, if you are not studying the values and principles and the founding fathers, it was set up as something different. It wasn’t a tea party. It wasn’t a political action committee. It was a preservation committee. As I saw it, it was a way for people to get together and learn and teach each other what values and principles were important. This is important because just like any kind of rights movement, there will be others just like with Martin Luther King, there was Malcolm X, there was William Ayers. Only one succeeded. People are going to be going through — when Europe begins to fall and you are seeing the very beginnings of it now, when Europe falls, the thing will come down, crashing down quickly and people are going to be herded into one direction. And it’s going to be a global direction. You need to be values and principles. You need to teach your children. You must see yourself — how many years have I said this? Wives, mothers, you must see yourself as Sarah Connor. You must. As Ronald Reagan said, if this country falls, where does the rest of the world go for freedom? But he also said this: This is the last stand. On the globe this is the last stand. And if this generation loses man’s freedom, this generation will not see it again.

I just read a letter from Thomas Jefferson, between Thomas Jefferson and James — or John Adams, 1823. I read it this morning. In it Thomas Jefferson said, if they lose freedom — speaking of us, future generations, if they lose freedom, there will be rivers of blood back and forth, back and forth. There will be a first attempt and a second attempt and a third attempt. And maybe after the third attempt they will win it back again. You must see yourself as a guardian, as someone who will preserve what is true and pass it on and not be a guardian — not be a militant but a guardian. A leader. Where are the — there are plenty of minutemen. Where are the Washingtons? Where are the Franklins? Where is Sam Adams? Where is John Adams? That is what the 9/12 project is. Not to create a warrior but to create great minds that understand it. To be able to create the next George Washington. That is your role. It may not be you. Find them. Teach them. Guide them. Shape them. Live principles and values. Almost no one in this country is.

The next step, you must know ten people. You must know ten people out of your circle of friends in your area that think like you do. Know them. This Internet nonsense of a public utility and this speech that the president gave over the weekend is positively chilling, especially if you couple it with the knowledge that we have been trying to impart to you for the last year and a half about what they are doing with the Internet and control of language and control of — I’ll show you tonight at 5:00. It is positively horrifying. You say it can’t happen in America. I hope to God it can’t. But it might. It could. All they need is an emergency. Know ten people because those ten people know other ten people. There’s got to be lines of information. If they control everything, you must have lines of communication. But God, I can’t believe I’m saying this stuff. This is the territory of the insane. But you better prepare and then hope for the best. You must prepare a freedom library. You must have the books on paper, have them on paper. You must have the books that are essential. You must have the Federalist Papers, the Constitution, original intent. The 5,000 Year Leap, please, if you haven’t gotten that yet, please get that. You must know, if you are working on the Internet and you see something, don’t just e mail it. Screen shot it. Pull it off. Put it onto a DVD. Save it. I can’t tell you the number of things that we have gone back and they have scrubbed. Things are disappearing like you would not believe. Learn the truth. Live the life of our founders. Be a decent, righteous, forthright honest man or woman in all of your business dealings. Demand it of yourself. Demand a higher standard for your children and do it now. Your children need to know. Your children must be prepared. Your children need to know what is true, what is not, how to work, what merit is. And here’s the part that is going to seem so simple and everybody’s going to say no, it’s better to organize, it’s better to, you know, get behind a candidate. Look, you’ve got to do that, too. When Moses was out in the wilderness, my gosh did the Israelites just, they were constantly complaining, “It’s hot, I’m cold, are we there yet,” over and over and over again. And Moses got to the point to where he was like, okay, you know, God, just kill me, just kill me, I can’t do it anymore with these people. When are you going to do it? Because just kill me, I can’t take it anymore. God didn’t. At some point God was like, I’m sending snakes or scorpions, I’m sending fiery, fiery snakes, man, just kill you all; I can’t take it anymore. He told Moses, put one, put a symbol of one up on a stick and tell everybody to look at it. They will be fine if they just look at it. A lot of them died because they didn’t look at it. It’s too easy, doesn’t make sense. What is the message? The message is look to God and live. Look to God and live. Please, please. It’s not you and me. It’s our children. It’s man’s freedom. Look to God to live.

The Boston Freedom Trail

 

By Jacqueline Smith

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 The beauty of the Northeast is breathtaking.  The lush green forests that hide the buildings, homes, and even the freeways are amazing.  Only when you are right in a city do you feel the city at all.  Part of our adventure for the march on Washington, DC, was to come to historic Boston, Massachusetts.    

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 A good friend of mine, Andrew Mismash, and member of  The S.T.A.R. Forum, served an LDS mission in Boston and suggested the Freedom Trail.  Since we are in an RV, Parking was a bit of an adventure, and we ended up parking by the wharf.  Our freedom trail began in the middle.  While we didn’t make it down the entire trail, we saw many wonderful and important sites in Boston.  There is so much history.  I wondered at the liberal views that seem to emanate from this state, when there is so much Constitutional history right at your fingertips.  There are many Universities in this state, and according to David Nobel’s Understanding the Times, the liberal professors apparently are having quite an influence.  Nevertheless, I digress. 

With five children in tow, the 7-hour walk (with a wonderful stop for seafood) was quite exhausting.  What a day.  My feet are aching, and my heart is full.  I am so grateful to the men and women of courage who took a stand in Boston, for this is truly where it all started.  According to the Fourth Turning, by Strauss & Howe, a catalyst must set off the crisis at the end of the 3rd turning..  The Boston Massacre and the Boston Tea Party were the catalyst of that period.  Then the Declaration of Independence was signed and the Revolutionary War began. 

9/11 marks the day in our time when it is believed we had our catalyst.  About 7 – 10 year following a catalyst, an alignment takes place.  The alignment in their day, was the signing of the Declaration of Independence.  Is the march on DC the alignment of our time?  Only time will tell.

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It is the oldest building in Boston at over 300 years, because it was already 90 years old when he bought it.  My daughter, Silvére, mentioned that the bed in his upstairs room looked the room of Felicity from her American Girls Series.  This is where she first learned of the Boston Tea Party. 

This brings us to the point of this trip.  The Tea Party Movement and the 9.12 Projects  When we mentioned back in April that we were having a Tea Party, she asked me if was like the Boston Tea Party.  I was grateful she had connected history to today so well.  While the original Tea Party movement in this country was about the upcoming taxes we know will be levied to pay for the outrageous spending and unreasonable programs being set forth by the current administration, and past bailouts and spending of the Bush administration, it has morphed into a rally for liberty.  Constitutional principles are at the forefront.  We want to tell our government “Don’t Tread On Me.”

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This flag here, is still hanging in the Old North Church in Boston.  Out in front of the church in the courtyard, is the statue of Paul Revere making his famous ride.

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  We saw the grave marker of John Hancock, signer of the Declaration.

 

 

 

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 We saw Samuel Adams gravestone, and the markers of those who died in the Boston Massacre.

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The gravestones of the early colonists and Americans are interesting, and macabre. 

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 And of course we saw the oldest pub in the state, dedicated to “patriot brewer” Samuel Adams. 

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 Bunker Hill Memorial can be seen from across the harbor. 

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What a beautiful place is Boston, and so full of the memories of our patriot founders and those who courageously helped them.  

The founders wanted to put an end to aristocracy.  They wanted no more Lords and Ladies, Kings and Queens, simply, no more titles.  The future day of 300,000 million people without title is here…or is it?  The titles have changed, but an aristocracy has arisen in these United States.  Now we call them Senator, Congressman, Representative, Czar (oh, I mean Special Advisor to the President), CEO, CFO, Professor, and PhD (and I do not mean the medical kind.)

 The business suits, and tweed jackets are gods no more in the minds of the people.  We are ready to end this new aristocracy.  I am not against capitalism by any stretch, but I am against corruption whether it is in business or government.    No special rules for the wealthy, no special rules for the government.  The laws that are created must be laws they are bound to.  Laws on taxes, laws on health care, laws on retirement must apply to our government officials as well as those they serve.  Did you hear that?  They serve us, the people.  We the people of these United States will hold our politicians to a higher standard, and they will not be re-elected unless they are truly statesman, and understand the meaning of public virtue. We will end the taxes that take from the wealthy, and give to the poor.  Our government does not get to play Robin Hood.  Our growth as individuals depends our opportunity to choose to give to the poor rather than be robbed by taxation, otherwise we are merely slaves under an oppressive self-righteous government.

This is the greatest country in the world.  We have a wonderful system of government.  But, it must be filled by men and women of virtue, with an educated, and informed public standing behind them. 

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FREEDOM CAN WIN!