Let Freedom Ring! 2000 - any validity?

[labgrade]

OK, comments welcome on this one.

Back in the olden days (April 19, 1989 - had to check my T-shirt for the date), some "crazy" had an idea to see if we could all phone ALL our electeds on the same day. Attempt to shut down the guvmint's phone system through a mass-spamming (for the times) through a consolidated phone-in effort re "don't take our right!"

My thought is we should do it again.

In these modern times, we got faxes (stacks of Armed Citizen article), e-mail (using group accounts/distribution lists) and the old stand-by (the telephone still). 800#s make it cheap (although we should take the long distance hit to cover all their numbers) ...

A huge eletronic protest. Much better communication & coordination today than we ever thought of 11 years ago - everybody's on the net .....

Need to pick a date & I'd agree that 4/19 might not be the best date anymore.

I think it a good idea. You?

 

[labgrade]

Sure seems quiet out there ...

Ya know, it would take perhaps 30 minutes of your time.

Think I'm crazy? A guy I mentioned it to last night said "let's do it a day every week till they start sitting up & listening."

Other than actually getting out on the streets in massive demos, I can't think of a better way to have one, consolidated voice.

 

[Bulldozer]

I'd be willing to fax a letter to each of my Federal Senators and Reps via fax and e-mail every Friday on a weekly basis.

Hell, I'd even include Komrade Klinton too, just as a courtesy to the prick.

 

[Monkeyleg]

Labgrade, I think it's a good idea, but how do we get folks besides those of us on TFL involved? It would take some advance planning to really jam the systems in Washington.

Dick

 

[labgrade]

Thought you'd never ask.

We pick a date (one suggested every 15th - but a calender check would how many in a row of months would land on the 15th - or pick every third Thursday or some deal - should be weekdays or it wouldn't have much impact at all - calling when nobody's supposed to be home). I'm for the "every "3rd" whatever" day type of scenario. Choose a date, say, a month down the line, pass the word & pull the lever.

We do a blanket web-hit (Freepers, here, all other gun-rights forums, all pro-rights forums) & everybody's got e-mail chains that they pass stuff onto. If I send out an e-mail to "my folks," it'll hit 150+ immediately & then they do their bit & it goes 1000+ by the end of the day if they do their stuff. Some overlap, sure, but it does get the word out.

Just floating this idea right now (&'ll be
p!$$ed if it doesn't fly due to inaction) but I'm almost certain that GOA (& associative state groups), JPFO, etc.-types will jump on this in a real hurry.

The MMMs, Silent Shoe-bit folks are mobilizing very hard right now.

I figure we can do our part or sit back & bitch.

Anybody see it getting any better without our vocal contribution to the fray?

I don't & it won't.

We've done 4X demos in Colorado in the past (?) two months. Another one (call it 2X in one day) 3/6 in Denver. Each have been put on in about 1.5 weeks' planning & have received tremendous support (400+ a couple) & we have yet to start to tap the general public. & it's got folks around these parts fired up. Denver's 3/6 demo - we hope to have 1000.

We put together the fax/mailing/phone list (available from several internet sites), post 'em here (& other sites), folks just do the copy/paste bit for their guys & gals ... & wait till The Day. Easy enough.

TFL's got the most thoughtful, interprising, knowledgable & insiteful folks I know of. A discussion here would deliver the best day/s (actually 3/7 when Klinton & the Leadership discuss future plans on our rights would be a good day but a bit early for us ) Plan it as a tactical operation - we got the folks.

Another site such as FR (no slam) would have a hundred different suggestions on which (perhaps) nobody could agree on. Here, we got the brains & talent.

Tell ya what, if nothing else, it would be fun as all get out. And, could unite us all like nothing seen before - one common goal, time & place.

You should see the energy being released here in Colorado right now.

 

[labgrade]

And, BTW, we do a professional press release that goes out with the first "pull the lever" bit so they'll be looking forward to it.

Some will disregard the whole thing as "those crazies" & some won't.

Start piling a few thousand faxes on our Reps desks in one day & people will start to wake up.

The politicians react to what they think the public wants (if that & if they're even half-way "respnsible" to their constituents).

We start hammering them en mass, what do you think the results will be?

& well heck, why just do a press release? Hit all the newsies too with letters to the editor that day - just another piece to the "mailings." Even if they don't take notice of the release, they'll take notice of the stack of letters.

One thing us CO crazies have done is awakened a bunch of people who thought it was "just them." They're now out on the streets with us.

I'm of a firm belief that the more we do, the more will join.

The NRA/GOA-type groups aren't doing any of this "citizens' action" type stuff. No slam, but they do what they do & it isn't this.

Time the citizens themselves take a more active part.

We keep talking about the "70 million gun owners." Probably 80% could really care less about what laws are passed. That leaves "only" 14,000,000 to pick up the slack.

I feel it in my heart that people are only waiting for someone else to show them when & where - & they'll do it.

It's time.

 

[Caeca Invidia Es]

I'm game for this. Just let me know when you want to start.

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"Freedom has always existed in a very percurious balance. And when buildings stop blowing up, people’s priorities tend to change..." Enemy of the State

 

[marley]

I vote for mondays. You have all weekend to do your thing. There is nothing worse than a pile of stuff on your desk on monday.

 

[labgrade]

To readdress the issue .... what a huge response! & I'm pretty impressed as to our activism (not).

After some consideration on the issue, I'll postulate the following:

We kick this thing off on the second Monday of April (it'll give us enough time to gather the resources to do it effectively) & go for broke.

ALL of "us" write (hard copies), e-mail (easy w/group mailings) & fax our local, state & federal politicos (add on your state-wide newsie-types for the press coverage).

We do it the second Monday of April (no, haven't checked the calendar yet & who cares = easy enough, duh, whatever that day is).

Do a massive dump. Think we could get 5 million to participate if "we" all hit all our contacts & every web-site we know? I do.
If you don't, you're not in touch enough with the power of the electronic media these days.

So. Do the dump the second Monday of April & kick back & see what the response is, if any.

Next time, "we" do the same dump for two weeks later & hit Monday AND Tuesday = same thing. Kick back & wait for any response/media reports, etc.

No reaction. Works for me. Who cares, it takes time.

Two weeks later. Do the dump for Monday, Tuesday & Wednesday. Kick back & wait for the response.

Maybe, by this time, we start to go for every week & add a day.

Anybody think that "theyll start to take notice? Will "they" enact legislation to curtail the use of faxes, e-mail, hard copy letters because "they" don't want to hear from us any longer?

I don't see this as in any way illegal. All we would do is effectively communicate as we should do in our "democratic" (I know! so don't go there - just a choice of words) form of government.

Many of us are fighting for our rights on several (and various convoluted fronts - all important, but none concerted) but it is not as effective as it could be.

The electronic media is quick, it's easy. You don't have to leave the comfort of your home. AND, we could have a very powerful influence. I'll even post links to every site I know so you can grab your electeds & e-mail 'em. What more easy thing can you want to have an impact?

Again.

Are "we" up to this? Or, will we only type & whine?

[This message has been edited by labgrade (edited March 20, 2000).]

 

[Libertarian]

It is a nice idea and may have worked at one time (but I doubt it). The way that telephone exchanges work will not let more calls than it has lines to handle have access. The worst that this effort would do is simply deny incoming calls on the portion of the trunk (big bundle of lines) designated to recieve incomiong calls from a specific number. An example: some businesses have only one published numer (555-1212). There may be 1, 12, 24 48... lines serving as access lines using this number. Calling this number woul only interfere with that portion of the circuit dedicated to that number. Most businesses also have other lines coming in AND OUT that have nothing to do with any public number. Those lines would remain free. Basically the only thing that this effort would do is to deny access to other constituents (like the DoS attack on certains boards we all know).

 

[Mr.X]

Is the purpose to shut them down...or to swamp them with e-mails and faxes to tell them to lay off?

 

[labgrade]

The idea is only to get everyone involved on one day in an attempt to get 'em to lay off.

If a boatload says, "NO!" all at once, I think it'd have an impact.

 

[Donny]

LG, I think you've got a hellofa idea there.
I've got all of my electeds numbers already loaded, and it would be minimul effort to set it up to auto dump through my ISP.
This is NOT spamming, so it's not an illegality issue.
I'm a go with this.

Hey, I just got a brainflash (OK, it was a flicker) what kind of media stir do you think this will incur? If there is sufficient volumes generated, who's gonna cry out that they're(government) under attack by hackers/spammers? Ought to be interesting to see this unfold.

Best Regards,
Don

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The most foolish mistake we could make would be to allow the subjected people to carry arms; history shows that all conquerers who have allowed their subjected people to carry arms have prepared their own fall.
Adolf Hitler

[This message has been edited by Donny (edited March 12, 2000).]

 

[DAL]

Sounds cool, but wouldn't your idea constitute electronic terrorism? Be careful when messing with a capricious organization like the U.S. Government, at least publicly. If something like this really did tie up the lines of communication (not that that is your intent) I could see the f*****s in D.C. trumping up some charge to get the organizers of the act. But I'd definitely be interested in faxing/e-mailing my opinion to a select group of pols. on any given day or days.
DAL

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Reading "Capitalism: The Unknown Ideal," by Ayn Rand, should be required of every politician and in every high school.
GOA, JPFO, PPFC, CSSA, LP, NRA

 

[CassidyGT]

I am in on this. Can someone write a script?

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Thane (NRA GOA JPFO SAF CAN)
MD C.A.N.OP
tbellomo@home.com
http://homes.acmecity.com/thematrix/digital/237/cansite/can.html
www.members.home.net/tbellomo/tbellomo/index.htm
"As nightfall does not come at once, neither does oppression.
In both instances there is a twilight when everything remains
seemingly unchanged. And it is in such twilight that we all
must be most aware of change in the air - however slight -
lest we become unwitting victims of the darkness."
--Supreme Court Justice William O. Douglas

 

[labgrade]

Besides what I may have sounded like (above), the intent isn't to shut 'em down, but to speak with one voice - kinda like one big, happy town meeting.

 

[retief_99]

<BLOCKQUOTE><font size="1" face="Verdana, Arial">quote:</font><HR>Originally posted by labgrade:
OK, comments welcome on this one.

Back in the olden days (April 19, 1989 - had to check my T-shirt for the date), some "crazy" had an idea to see if we could all phone ALL our electeds on the same day. Attempt to shut down the guvmint's phone system through a mass-spamming (for the times) through a consolidated phone-in effort re "don't take our right!"

My thought is we should do it again.

In these modern times, we got faxes (stacks of Armed Citizen article), e-mail (using group accounts/distribution lists) and the old stand-by (the telephone still). 800#s make it cheap (although we should take the long distance hit to cover all their numbers) ...

A huge eletronic protest. Much better communication & coordination today than we ever thought of 11 years ago - everybody's on the net .....

Need to pick a date & I'd agree that 4/19 might not be the best date anymore.

I think it a good idea. You? [/quote]

T think that this is a great idea, we should circulate this around to all the gun nets and web sites, maybe we can demonstrate that there is a powerful grass roots of gun owners out here who will vote their conscience.....Bravo

 

[Midnight Writer]

Sounds good to me. You may get more input here if you post pointers to it on Usenet - there's a lot of people out there who don't much use web-boards, but check into the newsgroups regularly.

I only found this because of a link posted to rec.guns.

Pick a date - I'll cheerfully pass it along to as many folks as I can.

Regards,

Dan

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