Chairman J. J. Chairman J.J. 7 July 2010
The Libertarian Party of Florida
P.O. Box 3012
Winter Park, Florida, 32790
Dear Mr. Chairman,

This letter is the bid from Okaloosa County to host the Libertarian Party of Florida Convention in 2011.

Okaloosa County proposes the following:

Place:
The Emerald Grande Hotel, Destin. Besides being first class lodging, it has excellent conference rooms and support. It is surrounded by first class eating and drinking establishments, and overlooks the Destin Harbor, a truly beautiful view. The Emerald Grande is a well known and stately hotel that would make a strong public relations statement. http://www.emeraldgrande.com/, 850-337-8100

Date:
I am presuming a date in the spring, March or April, such as has been the case with past conventions. Okaloosa proposes a two day program, preferably on a non legal holiday, non major sporting event weekend.

Cost:
Conference rooms, as well as one, two, three and four bedroom condos are all available in the high rise Emerald Grande.

Conference rooms will cost $500 per day. It can be subdivided into smaller conference areas, and the Emerald Grande includes a separately located glass enclosed boardroom type meeting room as part of a Conference room rental. If 100 libertarians attend the next convention, this cost would come to $5 per person, per day, less if more people attend. The conference room is available March 5/6, and single days only 13 and 20 March. In April, single days only 13, 17, and 27 April.

The Emerald Grande also has a meeting room called the Charter Room, which is very large and comfortable, and has a 10th floor view of Choctawhatchee Bay. It costs $250 per day. It has a private bar as well as fireplaces. However, it cannot hold more than 50-75 people. It may serve as an alternative, or supplement, to the Conference room. The front of the Charter room can be seen in the YouTube video 2009-12-09 LPOC Speech.mp4. by Karl Denninger. The Charter room is available all dates in March and April 2011.

The best lodging deal is the four bedroom condo which has four individual bedrooms (with individual doorways and private bathrooms), as well as a common area. The four bedroom units are typically in the corners of the high rise Emerald Grande. One of the four bedrooms is equipped with bunk beds, so this may not suit all participants. It costs $395 per night. Divided by 5 participants (two using the bunk beds) the cost is $79 per night.

A three bedroom condo, again with individual bedrooms, bathrooms and a common area, costs $315 per night. One and two bedroom condos cost proportionately more.

Itinerary:

Day One (Sat)
Introductions
LPF officer reports
Constitution and Bylaws changes and votes
PM
Elections for LPF offices:
Evening Dinner with Guest Speaker:
Location: McGuires, across the street from EG

Dat 2(Sun)
Seminars

The LPOC further proposes the following items:
a) All conference bid proposals should be sent to all county chairs so as to solicit opinions, ideas and support . The date and time of the conference call to determine who wins the bid should be announced well ahead of time. Every county chair should be invited.
b) Proposed bylaw changes should be mailed to County Chairs approximately two weeks prior to the convention so as to prepare for and speed convention discussion and votes.
c) The convention room should be arranged by county with appropriate signs indicating counties present.
d) A trained Parliamentarian should conduct the votes to change the constitution and bylaws.
e) The LPF convention display materials (hotel banners, etc) should be taken out of storage and used, and the meeting place appropriately decorated for maximum public recognition. The public should be invited to the convention as much as is possible without degrading important party matters.
f) Notice of the convention should be sent to the maximum number of media outlets possible. There should be a media interview time/place so party officials or counties that wish to make public statements can do so.
g) Seminars on day two can cover topics such as the following:
- What Florida Issues will bring libertarian victory in 2012?
- Full slate- how to convince qualified people to run
- Libertarian contacts and donors – how to find them, how to keep them
- A libertarian economic program – how to attract the support of business
h) The day one guest speaker should be someone who can draw in people who are not registered libertarians. Okaloosa county suggests that one or more of the following people be contacted, and LPF funds be allocated, so as to determine their availability and cost as guest speakers in the spring of 2011. It is entirely possible that a guest speaker may ask for $5000 to appear, but a good guest speaker will draw in people who refuse to go to a libertarian convention now. Admission can be charged to the public, if necessary, and donated to the LPF to recoup costs. The media should be invited.

Walter Williams
Tom Woods
Drew Carey
Rand Paul
Clint Eastwood
Peter Schiff
Steve Forbes
Federal reserve Board Chair from Atlanta
Penn of Penn and Teller
Jacob Hornberger
Ron Paul
Any libertarian large business owner
Lew Rockwell
Charles Goyette
Heller from Heller vs Wash DC
CATO rep
Wayne Allen Roote
Bob Barr
Andrew Napolitano
Karen Kwiatkowski
Downsize DC rep
Jim Rogers
Marc Faber
Naomi Wolf

Sincerely,
Peter J. Blome, Chairman
The Libertarian Party of Okaloosa County
850-217-6590

For personal reasons, Jeffrey Bullard and Ben Jurgens have resigned as Treasurer and Vice Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Okaloosa County effective 10 May 2010.

Before his resignation, Ben Jurgens participated with Pete Blome and Steve Copus in making two new appointments to the Executive Committee. Also effective 10 May 2010, Steve Copus became Vice Chairman of the Libertarian Party of Okaloosa County and Mike Maier became Treasurer in accordance with the Party bylaws, article 2, section 2b. Mike Maier's appointment ensures that the EC can form a quorum when needed.

Ben Jurgens and Jeff Bullard selflessly volunteered their time and effort, often without any public acknowledgement, and helped the LPOC to grow. Their service brought the benefits of libertarian ideas to their fellow citizens. Pete Blome wished both former EC members good luck, and thanked them on behalf of Okaloosa Libertarians for their dedication to individual rights, free markets and limited government. They remain valued members of the Libertarian Party of Okaloosa County.

The position of Secretary of the LPOC is now open. Any interested, registered libertarian is encouraged to apply. Contact Pete Blome at 850-217-6590 or info@libertarianpoc.org

Labels: Blome, Bullard, Copus, Jurgens, LPOC, Maier

On May 3rd, the Okaloosa Board of County Commissioners held a public meeting to vote on declaring a state of emergency over the Deep Horizon oil well disaster.

By the time the meeting was over certain things were clear. We have an environmental disaster of epic proportions. The BP representative had questions shielded from him by our Commissioners. There was no commitment of resources to Okaloosa by BP, but we were told we should trust them. There was no estimated cost to the County. There was no public discussion of the effects or duration of the state of emergency.

They might as well have had the meeting in private. It quickly became apparent the idea was to get in step with the Governor’s executive order 1099 (declaration of emergency) and not worry about details. No public participation was asked for before the vote, even though it was held before a crowd. It passed quickly and unanimously.

The representative for British Petroleum Corporation was a Mr. Clayton Cochran. He spoke just long enough to say he was given authority to allocate resources to Okaloosa County and would work with the Okaloosa Emergency Operation Center on the next steps. When I asked Mr. Cochran, in the open meeting but after the Board approved the Declaration, exactly what those resources were, our County Commission, curiously, did all the talking for him. Their answer was they didn’t know, but they did know BP already gave $25 million to the State of Florida.

I’d have preferred if Mr. Cochran answered that question. If there is one thing I know about a situation like this, the BP representative was not there to protect the interests of Okaloosa. He was there to mitigate damage for those who employ him.

It is not the role of government to shield a corporation. It is governments role to hold liable those who damage others property and bring them to account.

The County Board’s actions will have other consequences, to be sure. A quick glance at executive order 1099 shows one immediate effect to be anti-gouging price controls. Who decides what is a fair price or gouging will, of course, be the government.

Price controls do not work, and only lead to criminalizing the free market, rationing (think gas lines and per car gallon limits), smuggling and shortages.

I asked the Board if there were going to be restrictions on individuals protecting their property from the oil in the water, and Commissioner Harris said no. But if push came to shove and the County needed, for example, oil containment booms, he said the Counties need would take priority over individuals.

I wonder how Commissioner Harris plans to make that happen. I wonder if he believes he can break a contract between two parties and if that is lawful or constitutional.

Another thing not discussed before the state of emergency was passed was the cost. The County was planning to foot the bill for a lot of emergency equipment, possibly for a very long time. When I asked about this, the answer was they didn’t know, but they did know BP was going to pay for it all. Call me skeptical, but I would be wary of the Counties plan to pay first and then trust a promise from BP.

Government has always acted in a cavalier manner when it comes to spending other people’s money. An emergency is no exception, but it is you and me that have to pay. And this emergency could cost us a lot.

Finally, I asked when the state of emergency would be over. Again, the answer was they didn’t know. I suppose it’s over when the government says it is over.

Our County Commissioners didn’t do the people of Okaloosa any favors this day.

To add insult to injury, those assembled listened to a phone conference with Secretary Michael Sole of the Florida Department of Environmental Protection who assured us that the duration of this disaster would be short and that there was no serious health risk from the oil in the water.

Yeah, and I have an oil well platform I’d like to sell you.

Labels: BP, Emergency, Oil spill, Okaloosa

Published in the Destin Log, April 26, 2010 4:36 PM

In a month or two, the Okaloosa County Commission will cast its annual vote about one of the largest government financial enterprises in the county, the Mid-Bay Bridge Authority Budget.

The Mid-Bay Bridge, and the authority that runs it, are no minor matter. The tolls cost a regular bridge user $3 a day, or $15 a week, or $780 a year — even more if you are a visitor or do not use the SunPass system. This is a significant expense for anyone.

A key factor in this discussion is that the Bridge Authority financial report is “dependent to Okaloosa County” but the county decided sometime in the past to not include it in general purpose financial statements. This is because of accounting differences between the county and the Bridge Authority.

If it were included, the current Bridge Authority debt would represent more than a doubling of the total county commission liabilities, from $130.4 million to $291 million dollars. Future debts caused by funding the $190 million dollar road expansion currently under construction can only get bigger.

The key question to be asked about the road expansion is “will future road traffic justify such costs?”

I do not think so.

The idea that vehicular traffic will appreciably grow in the future is a flawed concept. It has fallen four years in a row.

America is undergoing fundamental economic change. The country as a whole is overburdened with a mountain of debt. Federal taxation is set to explode over the coming year.

The recession will continue to put a damper on summer vacation traffic, and fuel is likely to permanently go up in price in both real and nominal terms, which will reduce vehicular business and vacation traffic.

Furthermore, who knows what effect new auto regulations will have on people using their cars? Future government regulation of vehicles will probably make them more expensive, making them less available, and further reducing money left over for vacations and business travel.

The purpose of any government agency is to provide a service that the private sector cannot provide and to do so at the least cost. The best government services are those that are debt free and cost the user little.

Instead of adopting a strategy of keeping costs to a minimum, paying off debt, and then passing on the savings to those who work and use the bridge, the Bridge Authority has opted for a strategy of expansion.

It will prove to be a costly mistake, with greater debt and higher tolls in our future.

I ask you to consider:
•The bridge cost $67 million to build.
•$12 million dollars has been spent on tollbooth and access road expansions already.
•The bridge and road infrastructure costs roughly $3 million a year to operate and maintain.
•It takes in roughly $12 million dollars a year in tolls.
•It pays roughly $6 million dollars a year in interest payments, leaving $3 million a year to be used for capital projects that will cost $190 million.

If the Bridge Authority road expansion plans continue, there will be bigger government debts funded by fewer people paying tolls.

Mid-Bay Bridge Traffic will not be able to support the debts that the Bridge Authority is currently accumulating, at least not without another toll increase.

Instead of this situation, I propose the Bridge Authority finances be organized to pay off debt and lower tolls.

Had the bridge authority been organized in the past to pay off debt, it is conceivable the tolls could have been as small as 50 cents one way instead of the $1.50 they are now. This would have paid for operations and maintenance and even the accumulation of a prudent emergency fund.

I urge the BCC to review and make a determination about stopping the Capital Improvements Project, and save thousands of users the extra costs associated with high bridge tolls.

There is a real chance of having more road than we need.

The County needs to change assumptions about growth. Reorganize the Bridge Authority finances to pay off debt. Turn the bridge into a low-cost service to the county.

Remember, the only thing worse than having to pay a high toll, is for your kids to pay a higher one for underused roads.
Pete Blome is a Niceville resident and chairman of the Libertarian Party of Okaloosa County. The group’s Web site is libertarianpoc.org

Labels: debt, Mid Bay Bridge, Okaloosa, tolls

Dear Editor:

Successful politicians avoid change like a plague. David Axelrod confirmed that on Sunday’s “Meet the Press” when he used perfect “think-speak” to argue that “eliminating tax cuts while adding in new middle-class tax cuts doesn’t mean raising taxes.” He also argued how it was important that some, but not all, people get some relief now.

How paternalistic! Almost 50% of our population has 100% relief from income taxes already! They are beholden to the government for their Earned Income Credit.

I believe that it is time for the rest of us to receive our 100% relief from personal income taxes! Are we surprised when heavily taxed New Yorkers move to Florida where there is no income tax? No. If America had no personal or corporate income taxes, would we be surprised to see the most productive people and largest corporations from around the world relocating to America?

Mr. Axelrod’s message was not for change, just a little fine tuning. All Americans deserve a better, bolder response than this from a team that ran on a platform of change. In Congress there is a bill to do just that. It is the Fair Tax, a bold major restructuring of how we the people would pay taxes. You would control when you paid this tax, not the IRS. There would be no IRS. When you bought something, you would pay this national sales tax. When you saved money no taxes would be paid. Wealthier people would pay more, less wealthy less and the poorest would receive a monthly pre-bate of the taxes on their necessities.

Act quickly! Inform your Representatives and Senators that we want bold change that will free the taxpayer from the politics as usual of economic manipulation! Adopt the Fair Tax!

Lee Jackson
2009

Recently, the Fort Walton Beach Tea Party held a candidate forum for the Florida 4th District representative election. This was the seat formerly held by Ray Sansom. The five Republican candidates stood next to each other and answered individually crafted questions created by a Tea Party Committee. The one Democrat contender for state representative was invited, but did not appear.

The whole event was very smartly done. It was a testament to ordinary Tea Partiers doing extraordinary things. From a technical point of view they should be proud of what they accomplished.

But Okaloosa County does not need just another forum. It needs competition. It needs a new approach. At the end of the evening it was clear that the Tea Party forum was political routine. Government control over individuals and business will still be the only means of doing business.

The veteran politician, Jerry Melvin, who served in the Florida House for 18 years, said the way to stop rising homeowners insurance premiums was for the legislature to force competition on insurance companies. He proposed solving traffic problems by creating a super multi-county bureaucracy to replace small local ones. When was the last time you saw a government bureaucracy go away by building another one, or the state foster business competition other than by getting out of the game altogether?

The businessman, Kabe Woods, proposed extending the state’s legal sovereign immunity to doctors and clinics as a means of reducing health care costs. He also proposed the state form some sort of transition health insurance for students. Saying that the state should not pay for retirement, he suggested changing state retirement from defined benefit (pensions) to defined contribution (401k, IRA) both of which are still government controlled markets.

The attorney, Matt Gaetz, emphasized that the most critical need in Okaloosa County was jobs, and the best way to get jobs was to build on the military mission. He apparently saw no contradiction in building jobs on a government department while at the same time saying government doesn’t create jobs. He lamented that his generation inherited the greatest America but may pass on a diminished America. Building on government will lead to such circumstances.

The city councilman and FBI agent Bill Garvey said he considered it a form of personal sacrifice to seek government office in Tallahassee, just as when he was an FBI agent he considered it better to be in the field than assume more bureaucratic FBI positions. His priorities would be anti-terrorism first followed by the economy.

Even the mayor, Craig Barker, who, in my opinion, spoke the most libertarian of the group, (in favor of the 9th and 10th amendment, opposition to any bill not allowed by the US constitution, leaving tort reform to the states, and the only candidate to talk about the rash of criminality that has given our county the nickname “Scandaloosa,”) voiced his strong support of protections to the military mission. Like it or not, military spending is a major part of why the nation’s finances are in such poor shape.

The same men, doing the same thing, using the same method, will produce the same results. It’s a pity the Tea Party did not bring this out in the forum. The Tea Party was born out of anger over taxation, bailouts, mountainous debt, blatant fraud in government, ignoring the constitution, and the destruction of the American concept of the rule of law. People did not and still do not know what to do. The political status quo has led to the situation where people do not recognize their country anymore, and the Tea Party forum was more of the status quo.

The answer is to reduce government intervention in everything, let a free market operate, and protect individual rights. It is a libertarian concept, one that candidates sometimes use to gain votes, but quickly dump after an election in order to govern like Republicans and Democrats.

If the Tea Party is the new wave in American politics, what will we get out of the Florida 4th district representative race?

I am sorry to say more of the same.

Labels: Democrat, Libertarian, Republican, Tea Party

The Federal Reserve, our national bank, is criminal brilliance...

It looks like a government agency, but is a private corporation that has a government given monopoly on the creation of money. It can create money, literally, at will.

Its edicts must be followed by the entire banking industry, and are punishable by law. Federal Reserve Notes (otherwise known as cash) must be used as a payment of debt, or the refusal can lead to prison.

It looks and talks like it is a free market proponent, but it artificially controls the price for money (interest). It is actually anti-competition in the banking industry.

It has cultured an image of a wise sage of American business, but has sucessfully resisted any open audit of its operations for 100 years. It says it returns any profit it makes on its regulating functions to the U.S. Treasury, but how does anyone know? They control their own books with no outside oversight. It assumed control of the US gold supply as one of its first actions.

To the average person, it looks relatively unimportant compared with working hard and putting food on the table, but it actually takes a cut of every loaf of bread put on that table. It determines whether you will stay in your house, send your kids to college, or even retire in your old age. It robs the value of your savings through purposefully induced inflation.

It looks like a regulator, but it regulates the for profit private banks that compose itself. It oversees its own operations, which, combined with natural human greed, is a recipe for corruption. It enables and encourages the bank practice known as fractional reserve lending, something which if you or I did would land us in jail.

Although prohibited by law, the Federal Reserve is the owner of Hilton Hotels, Red Roof Inns, and the Crossroads Mall in Oklahoma City, just to name a few. They can openly create money at will, and be the owner of property as well while everyone else has to sweat for it.

It can, and has, used its power to move our whole economy for its own advantage. In the last century National Bank Chairman Biddles publicly threatened President Andrew Jackson to bring down the U.S. economy if he didn't continue the charter of the National bank. Jackson refused ushering in the greatest era of economic growth this country has ever seen, until the creation of the Fed.

Few people understand it, and of those who do, most are coopted by it because of their own self interest (if you can't beat em, join em). Our government politicians and bureaucrats love it because it allows deficit spending that simply could not happen otherwise. If money gets short, Congress just says have the Fed print up some more.

It regularly convenes with other central banks, from foreign nations, swapping our currency for various favors from these banks, so as to manipulate world trade and the value of the dollar. This can amount to as much as $500 billion dollars at a time. Moreover, these meetings are largely unreported and completely unaccountable to any branch of government.

The Congress bickers over $700 Billion in misguided bailout funding, and the Fed creates $12.8 trillion in loans and gurantees for government business (GM, AIG, Chrysler, Fannie, Freddie) without so much as a peep in Congress.

And then, after screwing up the economy so badly the system may collapse, they request more power to regulate the what, where, when and how you use your earnings for your own benefit...slowly, you become a debt slave...

Mind bogglingly brilliant...

End The Fed.

Labels: banking, central bank, criminal, End the Fed