Plymouth Liberty Network and Pistol Permit

We had a nice little meeting of the Plymouth Liberty Network last night. The numbers weren't as high as the first meeting, but it was a good time and we still got some ideas floating around. I gave my pitch about the NH Liberty Alliance and Toastmasters. I recommend anyone that is interested in pro-liberty politics to check out the NHLA. Also, anyone that wishes to improve their public speaking should go to the Toastmasters website and search for a local group; it's a great way to improve your confidence and quality of speaking.

In addition to a wonderful meeting, I applied for my concealed carry permit yesterday. New Hampshire is a "shall-issue" state; they are required to give me a permit to carry a concealed handgun (barring that I am not a convicted felon, a domestic abuser, or mentally unsound) . The police department has 14 days from the time I handed in the application to either approve or deny it. Given that I am not a felon, domestic abuser, or mentally unsound (at least I think I'm not) I should be able to start packin' heat within two weeks. Now the only problem is I don't have a gun. I guess I'll have to work on that.

In Libertate,
Tyler

My Picador Article: The 2006 Elections

I wrote an article about the 2006 elections for my school newspaper. It's just a simple synopsis of the elections for those who don't know too much about it, but I think it offers a few fun facts and some interesting topics for debate. Here is the article:

The mid-term elections have come and gone. The only people with something to celebrate this time around are the Democrats. Many pundits called this election a “vote against Bush” or a “vote against the war in Iraq”. Despite being very simplified, these statements fairly assess the results of the election.

The U.S. governmental breakdown before the election: the Republicans held the Presidency, the Senate (55-45 majority), and the House (232-203 majority). After all of the electioneering mayhem: The Democrats gain control of the House (232-202, with 1 undetermined) and the Senate (49-49, with 2 independents that will caucus with the Democrats).

New Hampshire was not immune from the Democratic romping. The Republicans controlled every branch of the New Hampshire government, except the governorship, prior to the elections. Now, the Democrats hold each governmental division, which includes the Governor, House, Senate, and Executive Council. Some believe that this is the first time this has ever happened. You have to look back to the 1800’s for the last time the Democrats even controlled the New Hampshire House.

Why did this happen? Well, as said above, a large part of this “Democratic Tsunami” was due to an unpopular war and an unpopular president. In New Hampshire these effects were amplified. Our Democratic governor is the most popular governor our state has ever seen. He won his election by an historic 48-point margin. Many other Democratic candidates were pulled along for the ride.

The Republicans always talk about “getting out the base” of good voters; some blame the poor results on a bad turnout among these voters. New Hampshire Secretary of State William Gardner predicted the state-wide turnout to be high. In fact, there ended up being 20,000 more ballots cast than predicted. Traditionally there are more straight ticket ballots for Republicans in New Hampshire; this year there were about 20,000 more for Democrats. Republicans still have the most registered voters in New Hampshire. This has left many GOP leader thinking that maybe it’s time the Republican Party rethinks who constitutes this “base” of good voters.

I think the greatest question here is: what can be done to revive the NH GOP? I am a personal believer that the so-called "social conservative" and "values voters" are not the true base of the Republican Party, especially in New Hampshire. In our state we have Republicans that I like to call "New Hampshire conservatives". For the most part they tend to be more libertarian-leaning conservatives. I count myself among this group. We tend to have a distrust for big government and enjoy low taxes and personal freedoms.

One reason the Democrats took control of the New Hampshire government is because they realized a big part of the New Hampshire conservative ideology; they realized that the voters of New Hampshire don't want any more taxes. Most of the popular Democrats in New Hampshire have said they oppose a sales or income tax.

Democrats tend to be more for socially liberal policies that usually mean more personal freedoms. Now combine that with the recent switch to an anti-tax sentiment in their party and they send a message that appeals to NH conservatives. The best thing for the NH GOP to do is to show that the Democrats are merely paying lip service to this idea of low taxes and smaller government. The voters of this state have to realize that the only guarantee against a broad-based tax is a government consisting of traditional NH conservatives.

The real base of the New Hampshire Republican Party is the NH conservatives. For us to take back the government, we need to work on making a plan that shows how we will fight to reduce the size and scope of government. We need to show voters that we are the party of low taxes, smaller government, and personal freedoms. New Hampshire voters (which includes conservatives) do not want a government of socially conservative Republicans. They just want to be left alone to attend to their own business.

In Libertate,
Tyler

The Blog

I got an email the other day asking if I wanted to be a contributor to the Free State Blogs. Of course I said yes, after all I want to do whatever possible to advance the cause of freedom. I said that this gave me a much needed incentive to update this blog more frequently, and it has.

I am OK doing the posts, but I need help with a couple things:

1. I need a better title for this blog. Something that isn't boring like my name.
2. I can not figure out for the life of me how to change the size of my picture on the right hand side of the page. It is too condensed and it makes the picture look bad.

With those two things this blog will be a lot more professional looking. They seem kind of small in the big picture, but its those small details that count.

In Libertate,
Tyler

P.S. - I am trying to learn how to work with the technical stuff on here a little better. I wrote that list of two things in Html code. All by myself!

Plymouth Liberty Network

My previous post talked about possibly getting a pro-liberty group together from the Plymouth area. Well, it is almost a reality. We have decided on a name (Plymouth Liberty Network) and we have a website in the making (www.plymouthliberty.org). The structure, as of now, is still pegged as an informal umbrella group that will serve as a connection spot for pro-liberty ideas and activities. I am hoping that we can get some projects underway and have a few meetings after the holidays.

If you have any ideas or questions feel free to get in touch with me.

In Libertate,
Tyler

Attention Freedom Lovers from the Plymouth Area

The best part of not winning the election: it has given me a new drive to make a difference in New Hampshire politics. I sincerely believe in freedom and liberty for everyone. The hard part is that the liberty movement is so unorganized.

I have been in contact with Plymouth resident Jason Rand. We decided it was high time that the people of the Plymouth region got involved in fighting for liberty. That is the reason we wish to form a group for liberty lovers to come and discuss important issues and talk about action plans. It will start as kind of an informal get-together, but I hope it will morph into a more structured organization.

If you would like to attend a meeting to learn more about freedom, contact me.

In Libertate,
Tyler

Election Results

Well, the results weren't in my favor. I ended up losing by a mere 90 votes. The Democratic challenger, Bob Matheson, won the seat. This was truly the year of the Democrats. I am not too worried, however. I see it as a semi-victory. I showed that young people can indeed make an impact on the political scene. I also showed that a third party candidate can do more than poll at 1% in a race (I got about 31% of a three-way vote).

In Libertate,
Tyler

Campaign Update

Wow. Long time since the last post. Almost a whole month! I have been extremely busy with school, but now it's parents weekend so I have a little down time. I figured this would be a good time to write a few posts.

A little over a week ago I spoke in Assembly at School (weekly all-school meeting). I talked about how young people need to become more involved in politics. I got to speak directly before Deb Reynolds. I think I might have stole her thunder; there's only one generic speech that politicians can give to young people you know (go out and vote, get involved, etc.). Everyone congratulated me for doing a good job so I guess it was a solid performance.

The past couple of days I have been trying to catch up with all this campaign stuff. I sent out my first mass mailing (I had a few small targeted ones earlier on). Just under two thousand postcards were sent out to all the PO Boxes and Rural Routes in Thornton and Woodstock. They are very high quality glossy postcards. I think they make a good impression.

Looking ahead at the final stretch there are a couple of things to take care of. First of all, anyone want to help do some door knocking/literature dropping the next two weekends? Probably the next two Sundays would be the best times. I will probably go all day; you can join for whatever amount of time. Secondly, I have just started the process of making a list of volunteers to come to the polling places on election day to hold signs. Election day is Tuesday, November 7th. If you wanna help out then send me an email at Tyler@VoteStearns.com or send me a message on AIM - Afookanack.

Check out the Plymouth Record Enterprise for a story on me coming out soon. Also check the Enterprise and the Littleton Courier for my advertisements.

In Libertate,
Tyler

The Picador and Assembly

A short article I wrote for my school newspaper, The Picador, came out yesterday. The paper comes out every other week. My article yesterday was kind of an introduction to my campaign for all the students of the school. I plan on making it a multi-part series that will highlight all of the memorable events so far in my campaign. Here is the text of the article:

By now many of you have heard that I, Tyler Stearns, am running for political office. However, it is still a mystery to most people which office I am actually running for. I have been asked if I am running for the following: Senator, Mayor, Governor, and Representative in U.S. Congress. The actual position is New Hampshire State Representative.

The seat that I am vying for is Grafton County District 4 Representative. This district covers the towns of Thornton and Woodstock. Why such a small district? Well, the New Hampshire legislature is actually one of the most representative bodies, per capita, in the entire world.

The New Hampshire House currently has 400 members. That is about one representative for every 3,000 people. The New Hampshire House is the fourth largest representative body in the entire world; it is only surpassed by the U.S. Congress and the British and Indian Parliaments.

Now, why would I want to be one of these 400 lawmakers in Concord? I think the biggest reason is because we need more young people involved in politics. Besides the abnormally high amount of legislators in the New Hampshire House, they only make $100 per year. That leads to the fact that the average age of a New Hampshire legislator is over 60 years old. Only retired and independently wealthy people can afford to take the time off to serve.

I am sure that this miniature history lesson might not have been that entertaining, but in the coming weeks I will write about what I have actually done while attempting to get myself elected.

For more quick info you can visit my site: www.VoteStearns.com.

To Be Continued…

The paper is made available at Assembly on Friday. Assembly is every week and the whole school has to come. Well the teacher that was running Assembly this week asked me to stand up and share my main issues with the whole school. It was a great opportunity to share my views. It also made many students aware of the current issues of eminent domain abuse and the Real ID Act.

I think I might be giving a more formal presentation at Assembly in the coming weeks. Maybe I will be able to share my insight on some more of the issues I believe are important.

In Libertate,
Tyler

Talkin' the Talk

This is only my third post since I made this blog. I was planning on updating it a little more frequently, but school has gotten the best of me. It's tough being there almost 12 hours on some days.

Off to the real point of this posting. I just wanted to give an update on the people that are "talking." It really started on the NHFree forum. A man that lives in Thornton put a post up about me. Then other freedom loving people started to check out my campaign. They all seem to be very supportive. After these freedom lovers posted on NHFree some mentioned me at the Hammer of Truth in a discussion about a posting there. I don't really think people ready the HoT out in California will really care about some kid in New Hampshire, but it gets my name out to a broader audience. Remember, young people like me (and you?) are the future of this nation, and the future freedom fighters.

That was the "talk" from the bloggers. I guess you could say I'm getting some more "legitimate" sources talking. Of course if you read Plymouth's Record Enterprise paper you will see my name quite regularly. I've also been featured in the Laconia Citizen. Most recently it was the Concord Monitor with its Teen Life column about me.

All this great attention has lead to some good things. Apparently there is a high school here in NH that wants me to go speak to them about what I am doing. A man that lives in my neighborhood really liked what I was doing so he wants me to go to his school. One of my teachers I had in 3rd and 4th grades wants me to come speak to her 4th grade class when they learn about NH History. In addition to all this I am doing stuff at my own school. We have assembly every Friday. Sometime soon I am going to speak at assembly (along with Deb Reynolds I believe) about what I am doing. Then I am writing a multi-part piece for the school newspaper, The Picador. What better way to show young people they can make a difference? It's also a good opportunity to spread the idea that more freedom is better for all.

As the title says: Talkin' the Talk. There is definitaley a lot of talk about me. Now I have to show them that I am for real; I have to be Walkin' the Walk. I'm not just some kid trying pull a crazy stunt. If there is anyway that you can help my campaign contact me! Since school is so busy I really need people to help with door knocking. Any writers out there? I want a person (or many persons) to write Letters to the Editor telling voters to support Tyler Stearns for State Representative for Thornton and Woodstock. I will also need volunteers out campaigning for me at the polling places on November 7th.

In Libertate,
Tyler

Primary Election

We went out nice and early (about 7:30 AM) to set up shop in Thornton and Woodstock. Throughout the day I switched between the two polling places with my mom. At least ten other people helped out throughout the day at both places (Thanks for your help guys!).

I started off in Thornton. The people there were very receptive of me. Almost all of them took my little piece of paper that said "Write In Tyler Stearns - State Representative". Very pleased with the efforts that went on there all day.

Woodstock was a different story. When I got there I see that there is a designated electioneering zone. On one side it was 30 feet away from the polling place and on the other side it was over 50 feet away! That made me very angry. We were the only ones there; did they think we were going to somehow make people not come to vote? We also weren't allowed to 'solicite' people. That means we couldn't say "Write In Tyler Stearns" OR offer people the paper we were handing out. They said the voter had to come to us first.

Since I wasn't allowed to stand within 30 feet of the polling place I decided to move my truck closer to the entrance. My truck has big magnets on the tailgate that say "Vote Tyler Stearns -- State Rep - For Change". I then put one of my signs that said "Please Write In Tyler Stearns for State Rep" in my truck so people could see it. The town moderator came out and took down my sign and told me to move my truck because the messages it had on it were "inappropriate". I told him that since the sign was on my truck it could be there, but he rebutted by saying it wasn't attached so I couldn't have it. I said that the car magnets weren't technically attached either, so he said I should probably take those off too.

Well, I always make a point to question authority (which every good citizen should do), so I called the Secretary of State's office to check on the legality of what he did. The law states that any legally parked vehicle can display any kind of political message it wants, without interference from the town. The SoS's office said that the town moderator was NOT allowed to touch my private property and that all of the political messages on my truck were protected speech. They said that if he wanted me to move my truck he would have to move every car in the entire parking lot and not allow anyone to park there.

After that call I proceeded to put the sign back up because it was totally within my rights to do so. Well the moderator came back out and asked me to move my truck. I told him I had every right to be parked there and he couldn't move my truck unless he moved every other car. He called the SoS's office to try and get me to leave. They said they would call him back and he would talk to me later. Either they didn't call him back, or they gave him news he didn't want to hear; he never came back out to talk to me all day.

Lesson: Always stand up for your rights even if an authority figure says you don't have any.

However, I don't think that the moderator was used to anyone contradicting him (let alone a young person doing so). According to my mom, who is also my campaign manager, a man came out of the polling place in Woodstock and said that he had written in my name for State Rep. He went on to say that I should probably make amends with the moderator cause he was angry that I was being "disrespectful." There are a few things wrong with this. First of all, I wasn't being disrespectful; I was just being firm in asserting my rights. I always kept my voice low and never made any attacks at him. Secondly, it is against the law for an election official to make do any kind of electioneering while performing their duties. It is also illegal to do any electioneering while inside a polling place. Add in the handling of my private property on my truck and that is two violations and one misdemeanor. A total penalty of up to $1,000 per violation and $2,000 for a class A misdemeanor.

I am not going to be filing a formal complaint because I am not that kind of guy. I don't have any vendetta against the moderator; infact he seemed like a very nice man and I respect his many years of service for the town of Woodstock greatly. I just want everyone to have an equal chance to be elected to office, as provided by the NH Constitution. What's good for the average citizen is good for the government also.

Now enough of that story about the Individual vs. The State. Onto the more important aspect of the day, the results of the primary. It was a hard fought day but we didn't win (or did we?). Out of the two towns I won the Republican and Democratic Primary in Thornton, but lost both in Woodstock. Given the spread I lost by about 10 overall in the Democratic Primary and by about 20 in the Republican. Not too shabby as a write-in. But thise is the part I like: combined between the two primaries (Dem and GOP) I got over 110 votes. Bonnie Ham, the Republican, got 86. Bob Matheson, the Democrat, got about 57. So if this were a race between all of us in one single race I would have won! I like to think of it as we lost the battle, but we are winning the war.

This is all a great sign of things to come. These results were so great that I was mentioned on the Front Page of the Record Enterprise! I still need lots of help to get things done. I need volunteers to go door knocking and people to stand at the polling places on November 7th.

If you can help in anyway just tell me.

In Libertate,
Tyler

The First Post

I've been writing my blogs over in the myspace profile. I've decided I wanted a new venue to release my thoughts in, hence this new place totally devoted to my blogging. This will be where I vent and also where I post information regarding the status of my campaign for State Representative.

Enjoy!

In Libertate,
Tyler