[FSP: This is the full newspaper version, not the shorter website version]
Liberty-lovers consider Wyoming
by Martin Reed • News-Record Writer • 09/28/03
If 20,000 liberty-loving people move to Wyoming in, say, the next five
years, don't worry. It's not an invasion.
"Twenty thousand is not enough to 'take over' any state and that is definitely
not our intent," said Elizabeth McKinstry, vice president of an organization
that promotes tiny government and big personal freedom.
"But with 20,000 people you can certainly open up the (political) dialogue.
... You can open up debates to third-party candidates."
The Free State Project will announce on Wednesday to which state its membership
will migrate in the coming years with the long-term goal of political
influence. Wyoming is one of 10 states on the list, which includes Alaska,
Montana, Idaho and North Dakota and South Dakota. Delaware, Vermont, Maine and
New Hampshire are also on the list.
And like it or not, Wyoming is also among the top contenders. "The small
population is definitely one of the selling points ... as well as the political
environment," McKinstry said. The low cost of living, low taxes and the
combination of urban and rural landscapes are other positive aspects.
Its geographic location within the country is a plus, too. "Wyoming is not
likely to attract much attention from the federal government like a more
popular East Coast state," McKinstry said.
For instance, if Vermont legalizes marijuana, it would cause some major bad
vibes with its neighbor Washington, D.C.
"And Wyoming has a real spirit of independence," she added. It's that rugged
individualistic spirit that has driven the state since its inception that makes
some question whether the Free State Project can be as successful in Wyoming as
elsewhere in the nation.
"Some of their thoughts are pretty radical and they certainly believe in
limited government. I'm not so certain that's the right approach," Gillette
Mayor Duane Evenson said.
The government is forced to support many ventures within the state because of
its small population, Evenson said. But he added, "It depends on what they want
to do." Free State participants, about 70 percent of whom are Libertarians,
support reducing the size of government by about two-thirds. They want
reductions in taxation and repeal of regulation concerning most gun control and
drug prohibition laws.
It's not anarchy, though.
"Anyone who promotes violence, racial hatred or bigotry is not welcome," says
the group's Web site,
www.freestateproject.org. Darren Lynde, chairman of the Campbell County
Republican Party, admitted that the group would meet resistance in most every
state. "I don't think anybody would be opposed to opening up the flow of
ideas. When you start seeing those tensions is when those ideas clash. But
that's how you get a strong democracy," Lynde said.
Introducing new ideas could also stimulate the political environment and
participation, he added. "One of the biggest problems we face is apathy.
Sometimes some of these groups can actually interject their ideas and energize
people who have been apathetic."
L.J. Turner, Campbell County Democratic Party chairman, said an influx of
politically minded people into the state would be a boon.
"They're going to have to have jobs and they're going to have to be able to
furnish," Turner said. "Maybe they can bring some new blood in the state and
start something we haven't done."
Turner added quickly, "They're welcome as far as I'm concerned but I just don't
think they're going to take things over and reshape them."
Gillette resident Duffy Jenniges said determination is the key to
accomplishment. "I think 20,000 people moving into the state with some diverse
views might be the impetus we need to get the rest of the people to come
around," he said.
Jenniges, who has run unsuccessfully for the state Legislature three times as a
Democrat, said people at least hear what his campaign platform encompasses even
if they don't agree with it.
The same could happen with the Free State Project.
"I think people might listen. I wouldn't say it would be a resounding
turnaround," he said. "I think they (Wyoming's residents) are getting open to
start looking at change."
The Free State Project doesn't expect to get rolling on its migration until
about 2005 when its membership reaches 20,000.
"That's really our goal, is to get the 20,000 liberty-loving people to the
right state and, once they get there, they'll do the right thing," McKinstry
said.
That could weigh heavily in the group's favor, Evenson said. "If you've got a
long time and time is on your side, you can get a lot accomplished."
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Wyoming is second in Free State voting
10/01/03
Libertarians still hope to persuade like-minded people to move here even
though Wyoming finished second to New Hampshire in Free State Project
balloting.
State Libertarian party Chairman Dave Dawson doubts everyone who took part in
the voting will want to move to New Hampshire. "What I am going to do is start
campaigning for people who absolutely won't move east to come out to Wyoming,
and we can have two free states," he said.
The Free State Project is an effort to get advocates of limited government to
move to a single state. The project says it already has more than 5,000 members
and hopes to have 20,000 by 2005.
Voting results among 10 candidate states -- all with relatively small
populations -- were announced Wednesday in New York City.
New Hampshire ranked first in votes from every region except the West. Wyoming
finished 10 percentage points behind New Hampshire and was followed by Montana,
Idaho, Alaska, Maine, Vermont, Delaware, South Dakota and North Dakota.
Dawson, who got just over 2 percent in the 2002 governor's race, said he was
not surprised that New Hampshire came out on top.
But he believes getting 20,000 people to move there is "probably fantasy." In
Wyoming, the least populated state with just under half a million residents, a
far smaller number of active Libertarians could make a big difference, he said.
Lewis Stock had been hopeful that Wyoming would finish first. But the
Douglas-area farmer and rancher, who got 3 percent in running against Rep.
Barbara Cubin, R-Wyo., last year, also said the movement is not dead here.
In fact, a handful of Free State Project participants who have moved to Wyoming
attended the Libertarians' last state party meeting, according to Stock.
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Free-staters eye New Hampshire, Wyoming
by Kate McCann • 09/06/03
CONCORD, N.H. -- About 20,000 liberty-minded people soon may be putting New
Hampshire's "Live Free or Die" motto to a serious challenge.
Members of the Free State Project, inspired two years ago by a Yale graduate
student, will announce their chosen state on Oct. 1, and New Hampshire could
well be it. The group is also considering Wyoming and several other states.
If it's New Hampshire, 20,000 of them say they will move here within five years
to work for smaller government, fewer laws and individual liberty.
Project members are college students and retirees and small business owners.
Not all are Libertarians, though their principles are similar. They describe
themselves as nonviolent, freedom-loving people. And they call their project
the biggest experiment in democracy since the Revolutionary War.
Graduate student Jason Sorens came up with the idea in an essay written in July
2001. He posted it online, and was immediately flooded with e-mails from people
ready to put it into action. With the Web site (www.freestateproject.org) as a
forum, the movement began.
A year ago, members narrowed the choices to 10 states based on their small
populations, libertarian tendencies, strong economies and other criteria.
New Hampshire, Maine and Vermont are on the list, as are South and North
Dakota, Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Montana and Wyoming. But New Hampshire and
Wyoming are generally seen as the leaders.
New Hampshire is tops for its lack of dependence on federal dollars, projected
job growth, low crime rate and small government. It also gets high marks for
its lack of a general sales or income tax, the relatively weak powers of its
governor and, of course, the "Live Free or Die" motto coined by Revolutionary
War hero John Stark.
There's also the New Hampshire Constitution, which both guarantees the right to
revolt and does not prohibit secession. Project members say secession is not
their goal, but the provision could be a useful bargaining chip.
Strikes against New Hampshire include its lack of support for Libertarian
presidential candidates and its relatively expensive political campaigns.
The campaign to choose a state is being waged mainly on the Internet. But an
"Escape to New Hampshire" picnic in June attracted more than 200 people from 22
states and Canada, including Libertarian presidential candidate Gary Nolan.
And James Maynard of Keene, one of 150 project members who already live in New
Hampshire, has been recruiting in Massachusetts.
"With the attitude of everyone in Massachusetts, that freedom is just to their
north, that would be a great source," said Maynard, 30.
Voting began last month as membership reached 5,000.
Results of the balloting, which ends Sept. 22, are a closely guarded secret. A
contractor is doing the counting, and board members say even they have no idea
what the early returns show.
Though the premise of the project is that 20,000 committed individuals could be
a genuine force in a small state, members bristle at the suggestion they want
to "take over" a state.
"New Hampshire gets 20,000 new residents annually. So 20,000 people is not like
locusts," said Vice President Elizabeth McKinstry, who lives in Michigan. "And
in no state that's on our list will 20,000 people be enough to come in to 'take
over.'"
Even if it were, members say that is not what the project is about.
Henry McElroy, a freshman state representative from Nashua, says the biggest
change would be getting people involved in government.
"You should be reading, you should be studying, you should be doing a better
job of understanding your place in society," said McElroy, a Republican. "And
that is not to be a couch potato that maybe votes every four years."
However, some members say they will work to eliminate laws against "victimless
behaviors" such as marijuana use for medical purposes, prostitution and
gambling.
That's partly why New Hampshire State Democratic Chairwoman Kathy Sullivan
considers the project "sort of a very fringe group that can best be described
as anarchists."
Sullivan was appalled when Republican Gov. Craig Benson told free-staters this
summer, "Come on up, we'd love to have you."
"Is Craig Benson for legalized prostitution? He's for legalizing drugs? Is he
for eliminating public schools?" she asked.
"He doesn't understand what these people stand for," she said.
Benson spokesman Chris Reid said it's Sullivan who doesn't understand.
He said Benson met with project representatives and welcomed them after being
assured that in addition to favoring smaller government and less taxes, they
were for the rule of law and against bigotry.
"Based on that, he told them they were welcome in New Hampshire," Reid said.
Sullivan doubts the free-staters would find a receptive audience in New
Hampshire. But University of New Hampshire professor Mark Wrighton believes the
state might indeed be fertile ground.
"The words 'Live Free or Die' pretty much explains a lot of what goes on in New
Hampshire," Wrighton said.
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Free State Project will likely fizzle
Editorial • 07/29/03
Gazette Opinion
The patient Free Staters say they'll wait until they
have 20,000 advocates before they'll move in.
We're not holding our breath for the moving vans to arrive in Wyoming or
Montana. It is a kooky idea and much overblown.
You've no doubt read about the Free State Project, an effort to persuade 20,000
like-minded advocates of limited government to move to a lightly populated
state and, essentially, take over the workings of government, putting a
Libertarian stamp on the machinery of state.
Keith Carlsen, a spokesman for the project, visited Wyoming last week talking
up the initiative and why the Cowboy state is an attractive option for the
group, which boasts about 5,000 members across the nation.
"We like Wyoming," Carlsen told reporters during a stop in Cheyenne. "it's not
only a beautiful state, but it has the lowest population. It's easier to
persuade less people."
If Gov. Dave Freudenthal is representative of Wyoming residents' opinion of the
idea, the Free Staters may not be welcomed with open arms. He said organizers
"are overestimating the receptivity of their ideas in the state."
No hanging chad, yet
Voting is under way to determine which of 10 states the Free Staters will
target. Joining Wyoming in this sweepstakes are Montana, Alaska, Delaware,
Idaho, Maine, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota and Vermont. Balloters
are asked to rank all 10 in order of preference. The ballot says votes will not
be counted if received after Sept. 8.
Carlsen says in an online report to members that "several critical factors
combine in Wyoming to make it one of the most likely states to succeed."
Those factors?
- Smallest number of people, registered voters and actual voters.
- Smallest number of teachers and unionized teachers.
- Highest vote for small government candidates.
- Highest percentage of gun ownership and gun shows.
- Only candidate state without a budget deficit.
- Access to large metropolitan areas (Denver, Salt Lake City).
- No personal income tax, low property tax rates and low sales taxes. And
those sales taxes, Carlsen says, are often avoided by residents who use
"planned purchasing strategies" and drive two to three hours to Billings or
Bozeman where there is no general sales tax. And in Wyoming, he writes, "people
routinely barter for goods and services."
Glacier or Tetons?
In head-to-head competition, Montana doesn't fare well against Wyoming in
this beauty contest. According to Carlsen, Montana has stronger labor unions --
apparently a bad thing. Wyoming has a "more pro-freedom" ideology -- a good
thing.
And this: "Montana has a big problem with liberals from California moving to
the entire western part of the state; as opposed to Wyoming, where California
liberals are only moving to Jackson Hole."
Given the natural beauty and great lifestyles enjoyed in both Wyoming and
Montana, we expect both to do well in the balloting. And both states would
welcome with open arms people who'd like to move here to create well-paying
jobs and help move their communities forward.
But a Free State haven? We think a 10th place finish in this horse race may not
be such a bad thing.
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and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see
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Free Staters like Wyoming
07/25/03
Every man is an island, even in landlocked Wyoming.
So says Keith Carlsen, a Memphis resident and member of Free State Project, who
is currently touring Wyoming and South Dakota on a publicity/awareness
campaign.
"Everyone's trying to nanny you," said Carlsen of government control in
general. "You have to wear a seatbelt, even though you're an adult. You have to
wear a helmet when riding a motorbike, even though you're an adult."
The Free State Project encourages the kinds of changes often linked to
libertarian beliefs: reduce the size and scope of government control, and
expect individuals to act responsibly of their own accord.
Wyoming is a favorite among Free State members, and is being considered
alongside nine other contending states to host an experiment in libertarianism.
Starting today, Free State organizers will send out ballots to the membership,
and on Sept. 15, Free State will announce the chosen state.
Starting with an initial wave of 5,000 members, Carlsen expects a minimum of
20,000 members to eventually emigrate to the state selected. Once they
establish themselves, Free State members will begin their campaigning.
"We're regular people. We want to interact the same way everyone else does.
Work with them, talk to them, go to the bars with them," said Carlsen.
While Keith did not rule out members running for government, the pooled
influence of the 20,000 plus Free State residents will bolster the campaigns of
candidates whose beliefs mesh with those of Free State.
"We would form a nonpartisan group," said Carlsen. "We would rate every
representative, every senator based on a certain grade -- like the N.R.A.
(National Rifle Association) does right now."
Carlsen expects Free State politics to attract what he describes as the
"independent personality" of Wyoming residents.
"Let's say he's a salvage yard owner, the EPA will back off him a bit. If he
wants to carry a gun concealed, the newspapers aren't going to be so pissed
off," said Carlsen. "They're going to relax and let him carry his gun
concealed."
Carlsen argues that government is inefficient, and privatization is a preferred
alternative. He gives the example of Casper's skateboard park -- paid for
mainly by a one-cent sales tax.
According to Carlsen, all of Casper's residents had to pay for a project not
everyone wanted.
"Jack and Jill take money away from Bob because they outnumber him," said
Carlsen.
While Carlsen said his reception has been generally positive, Gov. Freudenthal
said he felt that Free State advocates was being optimistic, overestimating
Wyoming residents' enthusiasm for the project.
Gov. Freudenthal's comments, however, are relatively mild, Carlsen said.
"There are two governors who really haven't been supportive at all," he said.
"The Idaho governor suggested we move to Montana, and the Montana governor
suggested we move to Idaho."
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Libertarians eye Wyoming for relocation of 20,000
by Ilene Olson • 07/23/03
CHEYENNE – Wyoming's low population and conservative mentality have put
the state in a prime position be the target destination for 20,000 Libertarians
as part of the party's Free State Project.
"We like Wyoming," said Keith Carlsen, spokesman for the project. "It's not
only a beautiful state, but it has the lowest population. It's easier to
persuade less people.
"Wyoming is one of the most pro-freedom, independent-minded states in the
country," Carlsen said.
But Gov. Dave Freudenthal said Libertarians "are overestimating the receptivity
of their ideas in the state."
And local economist Dick O'Gara warns that an influx of 20,000 people could put
a burden on the state's employment system and cause unemployment to rise.
As of Friday, 4,703 Libertarians had signed up nationwide to participate in the
project. Literature on the Free State Project describes it as a plan in which
20,000 or more liberty-oriented people will move to one state and work within
its political system to reduce the size and scope of its government by
two-thirds.
One-fifth of the project's members are retired, with most of the remaining
members in their 20s and 30s, he said. Carlsen, who stopped off in Cheyenne
during a publicity trip through Wyoming this week, is 21.
A vote on which of 10 states identified as possible homes for the movement will
begin Friday and continue through Aug. 15, Carlsen said. In addition to
Wyoming, those states are Alaska, Delaware, Idaho, Maine, Montana, New
Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota and Vermont.
"We're not actually going to move until we have 20,000 people," he said. While
plans call for membership to swell to that number by 2006, "I think we can do
it in two years," Carlsen said.
After that, the members will move to the selected state within five years.
Carlsen said Wyoming and New Hampshire are the unofficial favorites so far.
Selling points for Wyoming include the state's lack of an anti-hate crimes bill
and the Wyoming Supreme Court's recent ruling that bars cannot be sued for
continuing to serve already inebriated customers, even if they go on to cause a
fatal car crash afterward.
Those are indicators that political correctness has not infiltrated the state's
government, Carlsen said.
A report co-authored by Carlsen says, "This is a state that consistently
responds to candidates advocating a small government agenda."
But another report by Greg Garber and Peter Saint-Andre notes that "Wyoming's
government sector is a bit larger than one would desire," with 22 percent of
the state's population working for federal, state or local governments.
That report said the archetypical Wyoming resident "is characterized by the
various meanings of the word 'ornery.' This can mean obstinate, cantankerous,
obstructionist, resentful and revengeful, or independent, individualistic,
non-conformist, and strong-minded.
"Over the years, outsiders (particularly Easterners used to the snarls of city
dwellers), have fallen in love with the good, sweet, innocent, lovable,
open-handed sons and daughters of the West, only to find out later that there's
hard rock underneath. Things like loyalty, respect, consideration and instant
handy response to emergencies and disaster are embedded in the rock too."
Carlsen's report touts Wyoming's lack of personal or business state income
taxes. It also cites the state's rating as "America's Wealth-Friendliest State"
by Bloomberg, and its ranking by the Tax Foundation as the state with the most
business-friendly tax climate.
In addition, the Republican Liberty Caucus considers Wyoming's congressional
and legislative delegations to be the most libertarian in the nation for both
fiscal and social issues, the report says.
Carlsen cited examples such as U.S. Sen. Mike Enzi, R-Wyo., who was the only
senator to vote against a recent trade restriction bill, and state Rep. Keith
Goodenough, D-Casper, who voted against a tax on cigarettes during the 2003
Legislature and is pushing to legalize marijuana in the state.
"Can we win in Wyoming?" the report asks, then answers with "a resounding yes."
Free State Project members "could build a majority by capturing a mere 57 seats
among … the smallest districts of all our candidate states. Elections are
so cheap in Wyoming that the Wyoming U.S. House and Senate elections cost less
than 25 percent as much as the same elections in New Hampshire," the report
said.
Freudenthal disagreed with that logic.
"I do think they're picking out a few things and reading more into them. They
see them as much greater bellwethers of opinion than the average citizen does,"
he said.
In a separate report, Carlsen predicts that finding jobs won't be a problem for
the 20,000 people the project would relocate to the selected state.
Because 20 percent of the people in the project are retired or will soon be
retired, only about 15,000 would need jobs, he said.
Carlsen writes that many of the project's members are single.
"Chances are high, that if these single members marry, they will marry other
Free State Project members or citizens of the selected state." Some of those
families are likely to choose to live off one income, he said.
In addition, a large number of Free State Project members are self-employed,
with another group working through the Internet, he said.
Additional jobs are available within 100 miles of the state's borders for
professionals who feel the drive is worth it, he added.
Carlsen says in the report that moving 20,000 people into any state will create
new jobs and demand for services.
"By the time the move to the selected state is being completed, 1,000 to 3,000
jobs will have been created simply because of our moving to the selected
state," he said.
In addition, "as many as thousands of us will be elected to office," Carlsen
writes. "Many of these public office jobs are full-time jobs with full-time
pay. Once in office, we will begin to reduce regulations and business
restrictions.
"This will open up, potentially, thousands of new jobs for the taking. The
selected state will turn into the Free State and become a per-capita
powerhouse" regardless of which state is selected, he said.
O'Gara, director of the Center for Economic and Business Data at Laramie County
Community College, called that assertion "laughable."
O'Gara said an influx of 20,000 people in the state is more likely to create a
rise in unemployment than many additional jobs.
"There would be some truth to that on the retirement side, where people have
existing incomes. They're in a position to buy homes."
The rest are job keepers and are looking for income. They're not going to be
generating jobs.
"Either the unemployment rate will soar, or they are going to displace existing
workers. My guess is that the majority will not have the job skills we're
looking for, and that most of them will have to take a wage/salary cut if they
move to Wyoming," O'Gara said. "The cost of living may be higher than they are
anticipating, especially in terms of housing."
"We're barely holding our own when it comes to any job creation," O'Gara said.
"It would probably take them 10 years to get 20,000 people in here.
"It is extremely remote that this will ever materialize," he said of the entire
project.
Though he disagrees with the logic behind the Free State Project, Freudenthal
said the Libertarians are free to move forward with it.
"They're entitled to their opinions and whatever actions as long as they
operate within the laws," he said. "It's a free country."
More media articles about the FSP
These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by
The Free State Project,
a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship,
and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see
US Code Title 17,
Chapter 1, Section 107).
Free State Project vote set for August
by Nadia White • Star-Tribune staff writer • 07/08/03
Liberty-minded activists will choose which sparsely-populated state will be the
focus of their collective political might in a vote beginning in August.
Members of the Free State Project will have until Sept. 8 to vote on which of
10 states they would like to move to in order to advocate for limited
government. Wyoming and New Hampshire are top contenders in the effort.
The Free State Project is an effort to sign up 20,000 advocates of limited
government to move to a single state in which they can incrementally reduce the
reach of government. That effort passed the 4,000-member mark earlier in June,
prompting organizers to set a vote date.
The deadline to sign up to participate in the vote is Aug. 15, by which time
the FSP should have more than 5,000 members, according to the group's
projections. The deadline for members to return their ballots is Sept. 8, and
the selected state will be announced on Sept. 15, according to a press release
from Jason Sorens, the Yale University doctoral student who founded and leads
the effort.
Tom Parker, a Louisville, Colo., resident who serves as the group's liaison to
Wyoming, said the movement is a reaction to the current government climate.
"In terms of liberty, we see things drifting away with the latest moves like
the USA Patriot Act, and the various wars, now Liberia, we feel our government
is not playing by the rules of the Constitution so we're hoping to change
things," Parker said. "By concentrating our numbers in one state we're hoping
to have more influence and move things more toward liberty."
Eligible voters will be able to choose from among Alaska, Delaware, Idaho,
Maine, Montana, New Hampshire, North Dakota, South Dakota, Vermont, and
Wyoming. Once the group reaches 20,000 commitments, members have five years in
which to move to the chosen state. Some members have already indicated that
they will move as soon as the state is chosen, Parker said.
Dennis Brossman, a Wyoming Libertarian, said the project is very appealing.
" I am tempted by the project even if Alaska or Vermont were to try it. I
prefer Wyoming, the climate and terrain and being in the heart of the 48
states, but the freedom experiment is very alluring to me," Brossman said. "
I'd be willing to move to Alaska."
Brossman said the idea of newcomers changing the way things are done in Wyoming
is nothing new.
"I think it's done in other realms, but not so openly and honestly," he said.
"For example, in Lander and Jackson in the last 10, 15 years, we've had a large
number of environmentalists move in and they heavily affect the policy in these
areas."
He said he thinks the plan has a shot: "I think it's something that would be
workable and doable. I don't think it's a pipe dream."
The Free State Project posts additional information on its Web site, (http://www.freestateproject.org).
More media articles about the FSP
These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by
The Free State Project,
a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship,
and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see
US Code Title 17,
Chapter 1, Section 107).
Free State Project comes to Wyoming
By Matthew Van Dusen • Star-Tribune staff writer • 05/18/03
One might compare the dining room of the Szechwan Chinese Restaurant in Casper
where Libertarians met to discuss the Free State Project Saturday, to the
reading room of the British Museum where Karl Marx wrote Das Kapital.
In both places, political thinkers were trying to find a different way to
govern people. Still, it's best not to mention Marx around adherents of the
Free State Project.
The project, devised by Yale doctoral student Jason Sorens, aims to have 20,000
liberty-minded people move into a sparsely populated state and renounce big
government through incremental political action. The group rejects violence as
a means of change.
Debra Ricketts, a project board member, met with a group of about 15
Libertarians, including former gubernatorial candidate Dave Dawson, to talk
about the project Saturday in the dim light of the restaurant.
Project leaders have identified Wyoming as a potential candidate because of its
low population and libertarian sympathies. The project is not formally
affiliated with the Libertarians, but the groups share similar interests.
Ricketts said that among those who have signed on with the project, "Wyoming
certainly seems to be one of the front runners. It gets a lot of talk." New
Hampshire is also high on the list.
Dawson said he had seen ideas like this before, but "this is the first one I've
seen that is well organized and actually has legs."
The plan, however, has lots of foggy bits.
How, for example, will an economy the size of Wyoming's absorb 20,000 people,
most of whom are not oil and gas workers, over five years?
Ricketts, a technology worker in Las Vegas, said some members are already
looking at the job markets, and many of them are entrepreneurs. Those already
in the state could ease the transition for others who would follow.
Once people get here, the blueprint for change remains unclear. Ricketts was
not troubled by that, saying the project's goal is to get 20,000 people into a
state and the rest comes later.
Movement leader Sorens had put some thought into the matter.
Based on a rough analogy to the sovereigntist movement in Quebec, Sorens
calculated that 20,000 people, half of the paid membership of the United States
Libertarian Party, could exert up to 62 times that much voting influence.
Sixty-two times 20,000 equals 1.24 million, more than double the population of
Wyoming. The 20,000 activists could mobilize much of a state's population and
win government majorities, Sorens believes.
The group would then roll back gun and drug laws, privatize utilities and limit
the government to securing the freedoms laid out in the Bill of Rights.
Project supporters reject the idea the end of big government would lead to a
cruel society without programs to support the poor or elderly.
"I would rather fall through the cracks than be pounded through collander,"
said Wyoming Libertarian Party chairman Dennis Brossman.
Carol Ann Remington of Missouri was so eager to get the project started she has
even dropped off a few job applications while in Casper.
"This is not a whim and a fancy," she said.
But mobilizing 5,000 members by September 2004, and 20,000 by September 2006,
as is Sorens' plan, will not be easy.
The frequently-asked-questions section on the Free State Project Web site,
reads, "I am interested in joining the FSP, but I wouldn't be willing to move
to a place like Wyoming or Alaska. What do I do?"
More media articles about the FSP
These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by
The Free State Project,
a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship,
and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see
US Code Title 17,
Chapter 1, Section 107).
The Grand Western Conference Report
By Ben F. Irvin • 05/27/03
The most significant libertarian event of the year has just concluded in
Missoula, Montana (May 24 and 25). Almost two hundred freedom seekers from
around the nation and Alberta attended.
Fantastic presentations were given by the main presenters: J.J. Johnson, Nancy
Johnson, Senator Jerry O'Neil, Jason Sorens, Vin Suprynowicz, and Claire Wolfe.
All the presenters, save Jason (being neutral) agreed that liberty has the best
chance surviving and expanding in the West. A couple of the main speakers
indicated that freedom as sought by the FSP can only be procured in the West. A
consistent point emphasized by the speakers was the idea that liberty needs
elbow room to expand, and that the tiny Seaboarder states lack both the space
and motivation for freedom to flourish. Jason seemed impressed by the
attendance and enthusiasm of the gathered.
The Missoulian (Montana's second largest newspaper) and the Missoula
Independent covered the event. The Montana Television Network and KPVI
television from Pocatello, Idaho videoed parts of the event (video tapes were
made of all activities by the MTLP).
State panel discussions were given by Idaho, Montana, South Dakota and Wyoming.
In the final session on Sunday, the four Western state panels answered
questions by participants. To demonstrate Instant Runoff Voting (another type
of ranked choice voting called "Condorset's Method" will be used to select the
free state), all porcupines (that's what FSP folks call themselves) were asked
to gather around the table of the state they desire to be the free state. In
the first round, South Dakota was eliminated and its supporters were asked to
select their second choice. In the second round, Wyoming ended up with the
short stick. A third round was not done as even if all of Wyoming's supporters
moved to the Idaho table, Montana still had a majority. Indeed, Montana almost
had a majority in the first round. It was observed that all of the presenters,
save one (who was in the lobby in deep discussion) voted for Montana.
It was difficult to get many of the GWC participants motel/hotel rooms;
however, most finally got accommodations. Nearly a dozen porcupines camped out.
Most camped on Gary Marbut's ranch just a few miles north of Missoula. Gary was
nice enough to provide free lodging for Jason. Both Gary and I supplied
transportation for Jason.
A surprise at the GWC (Montana's winning was expected) was the six or seven
Albertans that drove down to attend. Jim Turnbull explained in informal
gatherings the Alberta plan for independence and liberty. It seemed to most
that the Albertan political philosophy was compatible with that of most
porcupines. Towards the end of the GWC three young Albertans told the Montana
table that they intended to move to Montana regardless of which state becomes
the free state and whether or not Alberta gains independence.
It took the work and effort of many people to make the GWC the libertarian
event of the year. Special appreciation should be given to Mike Fellows (MTLP
Chair), Gary Marbut, Andy Lochridge, and Mykl Meagher. Numerous others, too
many to list, contributed heavily to the success of the Grand Western
Conference.
I should also mention that my youngest son and I did manage to get Jason away
from Missoula just long enough to see the National Bison Range and a panoramic
view of the Mission Mountains and Flathead Valley.
More media articles about the FSP
These media articles are maintained on a non-commercial basis by
The Free State Project,
a non-profit organization, for historical, educational, scholarship,
and research purposes. (For information regarding "Fair Use", see
US Code Title 17,
Chapter 1, Section 107).
in New Hampshire
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