“Resistance to sudden violence, for the preservation not only of my person, my limbs, and life, but of my property, is an indisputable right of nature which I have never surrendered to the public by the compact of society, and which perhaps, I could not surrender if I would.”
— John Adams, Boston Gazette, Sept. 5, 1763, reprinted in 3 The Works of John Adams 438 (Charles F. Adams ed., 1851).

The subject of firearms has been a topic of passionate discussion since their invention. As we work to restore liberty, we will be asked to address firearms and their uses. We all have opinions and ideas about firearms. People base their opinions on experiences with firearms or what they have been told about them. It is in the interest of liberty that we detach ourselves from the passion and emotion that the subject of firearms evokes. It is important that we speak without judgment because our listeners are ready to defend their positions on the subject. Find a common ground. People are more receptive to what you say if they know you understand their position.

When speaking about firearms or the Second Amendment it is imperative that we use the word “firearm” instead of “weapon” or “gun,” Why? Because there is a small, yet vocal, group of people who do not want anyone except the military or police to have a firearm. The demographics of this group are: White, middle-income urbanites. Some people who live in urban areas only see firearms used as tools to commit crimes and acts of violence.

The topic of firearms has many layers or levels. Each layer of this subject corresponds to how firearms are used by people.

Combat – When considering firearms, most people automatically grant military and police personnel permission to own or use firearms without much inquiry. Firearms are a part of war and police protection. Firearms are used both offensively and defensively. Military and law enforcement personnel are required to carry firearms. It cannot be denied that some people who work in law enforcement and the military abuse their authority with the use of firearms. However, this probably has more to do with personality than career choice.

It is essential that we respectfully consider the veterans who have had to use their firearms in combat for killing. This is a severe trauma for that person. Some veterans never recover from this tragedy. Whether or not we agree with the reason for combat is inconsequential. If you are speaking to a veteran about firearms or the Second Amendment know that they have had an experience that you can never fully understand unless you have been in this situation yourself. Also, remember that police and military veterans have had firearms used against them.

It is a fact that most military and police personnel support the people’s right to keep and bear arms. This almost wins the argument by itself. Veteran’s and those who have experience with firearms are the real experts on the subject.

Collecting – Firearms are a part of our culture. They are a technology and art form that has developed over time. Consider the firearms used in the Revolutionary War or the Civil War. These firearms have great historical and monetary value. Firearms are objects that people collect, just like people collect cars, art, or guitars. There are museums dedicated to the history of firearms. Perhaps the most famous is the Springfield Armory in Massachusetts http://www.nps.gov/spar/historyculture/index.htm. My personal favorite is the Ralph Foster Museum located at the College of the Ozarks near Branson, Missouri http://www.rfostermuseum.com/.

Crime and defense – It is a fact that firearms are used by criminals. It is important to remember that a firearm does not make someone a criminal. Someone with nefarious intentions will use whatever is available to carry out their plan. Rape is one of the most violent acts that can be done against a person. In the instance of rape, the penis is a weapon used to control the victim. Most women’s rights and crime victim’s rights advocates support the security and empowerment that owning a firearm can give women.

It is a documented fact that the institution of stricter gun laws raises crime rates. When the restrictions are loosened crime rates drop. The reason for this is very simple: Someone cannot harm you if you are armed. There are people in the world who take pleasure in committing acts of violence. These people will derive their pleasure from harming someone with or without firearms. If you have a firearm you can protect yourself. Knowing that you can defend yourself from crime is very empowering. People who commit acts of violence know this. Why do you think crime rates fall when there are fewer restrictions on the possession of firearms?

Sport – Success in hitting a target builds self-esteem and confidence. It is like making a hole-in-one on the golf course or making a three-point shot on the basketball court. More than 19 million Americans safely participate in target shooting. Their numbers break out into subsets of people who enjoy shooting handguns, shotguns and rifles. Add special-interest shooters such as muzzleloader enthusiasts, and the total number of active shooters jumps even higher! Target shooting varies from leisurely hobbies to competitive local leagues and from collegiate athletics to the world stage of the Olympic Games.

The National Shooting Sports Foundation is an excellent example of how firearms are used positively. http://www.nssf.org/shooting/index.cfm?AoI=shooting.

Being proficient in the use of firearms is a tradition that is proudly passed down through generations. There are children who are being taught how to safely use a firearm through mentoring and educational programs. There is risk of physical harm in most sports. We may not allow OUR children to participate in the sport of football because of this risk, but we would not end high school football for every child. The same principle applies to sports shooting.

Hunting – For as long as there have been people in the world there has been hunting. It has only been in the past one-hundred-years that people have had the luxury of going to supermarkets to purchase meat.

The philosophy of wildlife conservation began with hunters and fishermen. They realized that if they kill everything they will have nothing to eat. To conserve means “wise use.” If you conserve money, does this mean you never spend money? No. It means that you use your money wisely.

There are people who do not eat meat or believe in killing animals at all. I understand their point of view for the following reason: Most people who eat meat buy their meat in a supermarket. They do not see the horrible living conditions and lives that animals live when they are raised in feed lots by huge agri-businesses that receive tax incentives and subsidies. They do not realize the growth hormones and antibiotics that are pumped into these animals are also being taken into their bodies when they eat this meat. There are people who eat meat but are against hunting. All I can say to this is: “So you let other people do your killing for you.”

It is the people who hunt that will ensure that the right to keep and bear arms will never be infringed. People who hunt own firearms and know how to use them.

In conclusion, people who stand for liberty will be required to speak on the issue of firearms. It is our responsibility to hear people’s concerns regarding firearms. It is our responsibility to address these concerns in a manner that ensures that the point of view of the collector of firearms, the people who have engaged in combat or police service, the sportsman, the victim, and the hunter are represented.

People fear what they do not understand. It is our duty to help people understand that firearms are necessary to our society for many reasons. If we speak with respect and we speak the truth we will be free to own our firearms without fear of losing them.

Your friend in liberty,

Renea McMasters

Liberty Lovers,
I am so excited to write you today. The Liberty Restoration Project has some big plans for 2009 and we want to share them with you! We have put in many exhausting hours into this organization over the past year and we feel we have paved the way for a very rEVOLutionary 2009! Once reading about our upcoming projects, please consider supporting us with positive thoughts, or time/ energy /financial contributions.

If you don’t know much about our organization, the Liberty Restoration Project (LRP) is compromised of a politically diverse group of concerned citizens who have decided to break down the arbitrary barriers (such as political parties) that divide us and work together as American Citizens to improve our country, starting as locally as possible.

The members of our organization care about freedom, liberty and the constitution and have been working in the Kansas City area for just under a year to restore all three.

This is document is rather lengthy and encompasses many of the plans we have for 2009; although I must admit a few additional ideas have cropped up in the past few days, so stay tuned for an amended version

Enjoy!

Yours in liberty,
Catherine Bleish
Executive Director
Liberty Restoration Project
Catherine@libertyrestorationproject.org
www.libertyrestorationproject.org
816-868-8806

Liberty Restoration Project: 2009

Liberty Work House
The leadership within the LRP takes great pride in thinking outside the box and feels this innovative idea will help channel positive energy into our local community, resulting in liberty minded changes throughout the Kansas City metro area.

By summer of 2009 we plan to obtain, through purchase, donation, or lease, a facility that will serve the following three functions:
1. House 5-6 volunteers – rent, utilities and food included
2. Provide office and meeting space for the LRP, storefront for our screen printing business.
3. Provide office and meeting space for any or all community groups

Volunteer Housing
There are many individuals across the nation struggling to eat and pay their rent while they fight to restore The Constitution in these United States. LRP realizes that this causes inefficiency for our movement and seeks to provide a solution. Through donations and the income provided by our t-shirt store (see later in document), we plan to house 5-6 volunteers who will dedicate 30 hours per week toward the Liberty Restoration Project.

Positions to be filled from within the Liberty Work House
Executive Director: Oversee the operation of the Liberty Restoration Project, strategic planning, fundraising, research, supporting all other volunteers in all the projects they are working on.

Assistant to the Director: The Assistant to the Director will help the Executive Director with a variety of administrative functions. Including but not limited to, maintaining a volunteer, supporter and donor database, helping with phone calls, and working on a variety of projects and events.

House Parent: The House Parent will be responsible for the routine operations of the house. This will include making sure the volunteer and public food pantries are stocked, overseeing volunteer schedule of daily, weekly and monthly duties (such as dishes, cooking, cleaning, etc..), oversee the community garden, maintain the meeting room schedule, and various other duties.

Other existing volunteer positions: Possibilities include Director of Community Outreach, granter writer/fund raiser, someone to run the screen printing business under our Director of Marketing, anyone that is willing to fill a current void!

Volunteer Recruitment
Volunteers will be recruited from all across the nation. Over the course of the past two years some very talented, motivated and driven leaders have emerged. Many of them would likely be interested in a situation where they can dedicate their energy solely to this cause without having to worry about the cost of survival.

Volunteers will be expected to
• Make a one year commitment to volunteering in the Liberty Work House
• Work thirty hours a week for the Liberty Restoration Project(one whole week off every three months)
• Be willing to help out in all areas of operation as we learn and grow
• Agree to and abide by a list of mutually agreed upon “house rules”

LRP Distributors Store front and operations
Inside our Liberty Work House we would like to run our screen printing business. This will include: screen printing, packing, shipping, and sales. This will likely be ran by a resident in the house with the aid of other volunteers. This is expounded upon later in this document.

Resource Library
We would like to provide the community with a resource library including informational DVDs, books, pamphlets, etc… Any organization would be welcome to contribute their materials and specific items would be for check-out only. We would like to include a video viewing room for people to plan documentary viewings, etc….

Food Bank/Clothing Closet
We know times are going to get tough very quickly and we want to make sure our fellow patriots are cared for. We plan to open a food bank and clothing closet made available to our members and supports to take care of emergency needs. We will be networking with all area support systems, such as food pantries and transitional housing organizations to make sure we can find immediate help for those in need. We would like to start a network of people willing to care for a patriot in distress. Please contact Catherine@libertyrestorationproject.org if you are interested in helping with such a project.

Community Garden
On our facility we plan to have a large organic community garden. This garden will serve several purposes.
1. To feed the residents of the Liberty Work House
2. As a training ground to show others how to grow their own food
3. As a place for local food banks and homeless shelters to “teach a man to fish”
Other foods obtained for consumption by our volunteers will be purchased by local companies such as Farm to Market Bread in an effort to support the local economy.

Meeting Rooms
We would like to provide meeting rooms available to the public on a first come first serve basis.

LRP Distributors (T-shirt store)
To complete our educational and programmatic goals for 2009 we need to secure a steady stream of revenue. This will help ensure the success of our efforts and the longevity of our organization.

The idea of a T-Shirt store makes perfect since for our organization.

The objective of this store will include the following:
1. Provide a revenue stream for the Liberty Restoration Project
2. Provide the liberty movement with access to affordable printing services
3. Educate the public through witty and creative representations of the issues that we feel the most passionate about.

Through partnerships with local liberty-minded screen printers, we have negotiated a rate that will afford us the opportunity to begin our store through utilizing a third party’s printing services. After the initial investment of money into this program, we plan to save our funds to purchase our own screen printing equipment.

To be specific: from the initial investment of $300, 75% of the generated revenue will be earmarked for future screen printing investment, while 25% will go into general fund. We have set our three month goal of raising $2,500 ($625 into general fund and $1875 for future t-shirt investment).

If our designs prove to be desired by the public, we will grow our business by moving from online sales only to obtaining a storefront and selling at booths at festivals weekly throughout the summer months.

Timeline
January 14, 2008: David presents draft t-shirt designs (Images will be loaded to the website in the upcoming days – stay tuned!)
End of January: Online store will open at www.libertyrestorationproject.org
April 1, 2009: Evaluate the success or failure of t-shirt store and consider expansion, deletion, or simply maintaining the program. (ie: did we meet our goal, is investing in equipment worth it?)
Summer 2009: if successful, obtain storefront/business location; begin participating in fairs/festivals.

Topic Expert Program
In an effort to cultivate local leaders while simultaneously working to educate the public on the various critical issues facing American Citizens today, the Liberty Restoration Project has developed the Topic Expert Program. The objective of the Topic Expert Program contains the following points:
1. Foster and support local leaders within the liberty movement.
2. Educate the masses, starting in Kansas City, one person, one group at a time.
3. Minimize the burden of research and duplication of research/education efforts for the liberty movement.
4. Provide the movement and our community with a set of informed, peer reviewed, speakers available to present all over the country.
5. Serve as a bridge, or point of collaboration, between LRP chapters in various cities/states.
6. Provide a rally point for groups who span across the entire political spectrum.

After extensive research and planning, Topic Experts will make presentations on their issue in a variety of settings. For people who have a basic understanding of their issue, the Topic Exerts will provide an in-depth lecture that will ALWAYS end with a clear plan of action for citizens interested in contributing their time, energy or finances to that particular issue. For citizens or groups who have little to no knowledge of the specific issue, the Topic Experts will provide an introductory level course which, too, should end with a call to action. Courses can be designed to last over multiple sessions or to fit into a one-time slot. Once the program is in full swing, Topic Experts will be available to speak to groups all across the country. A list of all topic experts from all cities and states will be made available on our website, speaking requests may require financial assistance for travel in order for the request to be fulfilled.

Topic Expert Expectations
A.Choose an LRP “issue” (http://www.libertyrestorationproject.org/issues/ ) or submit their Topic expert Idea to the Executive Director for approval.

B.Blog about their topic of interest (current events, interesting historical facts, etc..)

C.Create and maintain a resource page on our website. This should have a very easy to understand explanation of the topic and how it impacts citizens in our city, state or country (lets try to keep it as local and focused as possible) and should also include an in depth resource list for people interested in doing their own research on the topic. If there are multiple topic experts for a specific issue, they will work together to develop and maintain this.

D.Produce, or help produce, informational fliers about their topic to be used at booths, events, etc…. If there are multiple topic experts for a specific issue, they will work together to develop and maintain these.

E. Develop a beginner and advanced educational curriculum regarding their topic. If there are multiple topic experts for a specific issue, they will work together to develop, update, and improve these training courses.

F.Before becoming an official Topic Expert, trainees will practice their training course(s) in front of representatives of LRP and toastmasters and use their constructive criticism to improve their course in anyway possible. Depending on the clarity of the course, there could be anywhere from 1-5 critiques before the trainee is graduated to an official Topic Expert position.

G.Commit to providing their course to the public at least three times per year.

H.Utilize creative forms of communication, such as You Tube, to reach out to all learning styles.

April 1st is the deadline to submit courses to the communiversity schedule through UMKC ( http://www.umkc.edu/commu/) for their summer schedule. I would like to see at least three topic experts signed up to provide a training course during the summer of 2009.

Timeline for first and second wave of Topic Experts:
• Immediately: First round of Topic Expert Trainees begin blogging.
• January 31st: First round of Topic Expert Trainees complete initial drafts of their resource page for the website by.
• February 15th: First round of Topic Expert Trainees complete initial drafts of their first informational pamphlet/handout/flier.
• Month of March: First round Topic Expert Trainees will present their training courses to members of LRP and/or toastmasters.
• April 2009: First round of Topic Expert Trainees who graduated to Topic Experts will sign up on the communiversity schedule and their information will be listed on the website as a Topic Expert available to make presentations!
• May 31st: Second round of Topic Expert Trainees will complete their resource page (or have begun collaborating with existing experts if there are multiple people working on the same issue)
• June 15th: Second round of Topic Expert Trainees will complete initial drafts of their first information pamphlet/handout/flier.
• Month of July: Second round of Topic Expert Trainees will present their training courses to members of LRP and/or toastmasters.
• August 2009: Second round of Topic Expert Trainees who graduate to the Topic Expert level will register to teach in the Fall 2009 communiversity schedule.

As this program grows, the research and materials developed during the initial stages (now) can be shared with individuals and groups across the country to utilize in their own local educational efforts. This will have many benefits, including a reduction of duplicate efforts and building cross-country activist coalitions.

To anyone interested in becoming a topic expert, please contact Adam Gross, our Director of Community Outreach, asap to get the ball rolling. You don’t have to live in Kansas City to participate in this program. You can email him at: info@libertyrestorationproject.org or by telephone at: 816-305-9980.

Project Participation
The Project Participation Calendar will serve as one central point for Kansas City residents to find political groups and events they are interested in. No matter the political party affiliation or issue advocacy position, all political events will be included on this calendar.

The objective of the Project Participation Calendar includes the following points:
1. Provide an answer to the question, “how can I get involved?”
2. Raise awareness for liberty minded groups, issues and events through their inclusion on this public calendar
3. Increase attendance at liberty minded events by trafficking the general public as well as the liberty movement to this calendar

Currently there are many events that span the political spectrum included on this calendar and we hope to grow the content by giving local leaders direct access to include their events on our calendar. Currently, our calendar includes approximately three events per day spanning from city council meetings, to pachyderm meetings, to anti-war protests, to republican/democrat/libertarian/constitution party meetings and everything in between. For the liberty lovers out there, but sure to keep your eye out for Hope For America Coalition, Campaign for Liberty, Legislators Against Real ID, Students of Liberty (KU) and Iraq Veterans Against the War (KU) events!

Once the calendar is “beefed” up with information, we plan to present our calendar to 96.5 the Buzz to be included on their Rock the Vote page. We already have been included on their Rock the Vote page for event specific purposes and hope this is an idea that is appealing to them!

All efforts are made to include every event we can find online, but it helps reduce the date entry burden on our volunteers greatly when the organization signs up for direct access. All that is needed is a google calendar account and you can be given access to post your events directly to the Project Participation Calendar! Please email Catherine@libertyrestorationproject.org if you would like to be included on this calendar!

http://www.libertyrestorationproject.org/calendar.html

City Council
LRP would like to support at least 6 candidates running for City Council in the upcoming election in Kansas City, Missouri. We can not work with your campaign, but if you have principals in line with ours, please let us know of your intention to run so we can fully support you in a manor consistent with our 527 status!

Why Support us?
Successes and Lessons Learned
As a group, the Kansas City area liberty movement has accomplished a lot! Before the Liberty Restoration Project came into fruition, we were a loosely affiliated group of activists working on the Ron Paul Campaign. As a team, we fought against a slanted system and found many great successes and learned from each experience. Here are a few examples:

Delegate Process: The Liberty Restoration Project was formed by the team of individuals who successfully overthrew the Republican Jackson County Caucus (the chairman walked out half way through!), elected a full slate of liberty loving delegates, fought the challenges thrown at us from the MOGOP, and sent 3 delegates and one alternate to the 2008 RNC.

This effort took the contribution of a significant amount of energy from a core team about twelve in size. Our strategy meetings happened almost nightly, our training classes 2-3 times per week, and our effort enormous.

We learned a lot about the processes within the Republican party, about our skills, strengths and weaknesses as a group, and we learned a lot about inter-personal communication.

Freedom Tour: The Liberty Restoration Project successfully hosted the Kansas City leg of the 2008 Freedom Tour, with liberty loving Marc Scibilia. As a group we learned the joys of working with a band (change of KC tour date) and how to work together to turn lemons into lemonade.

Anti-Bail Out Rally: Two television stations were present at the event and for the first time we found liberty loving patriots shaking their fists in the air right next to old school republicans.

END the FED Rally: A trans-party collaboration. A successful turnout with some fantastic speakers. We learned the lesson of not testing the electricity before the day of the event. We also learned a lot about the processes of marching and rallying in the city of Kansas City

Proven Leadership
The Executive Director, Catherine Bleish, has contributed a significant amount of her time and energy into this movement during the past 18 months. To let you know that this organization is ran by competent hands, we would like to provide a list of the experience and activities Catherine has contributed to during the course of this rEVOLution.
• Kansas City area Grassroots Leader for the 2008 Ron Paul Presidential Campaign
• Elected Secretary at the 2008 Jackson County Republican Caucus
• Elected Delegate to the 2008 District, State and National Republican Conventions
• Co-Founder and Executive Director Liberty Restoration Project March 2008
• Communications Director for the Revolution March (www.revolutionmarch.com) summer 2008
• Lieutenant Marshall (Logistics Assistant) for the Revolution March summer 2008
• National organizer for all Ron Paul supporting delegates and alternates to the 2008 RNC
• Guest Speaker at Park University MPA program fall 2008 (topic: grassroots mobilizing)
• Head Marshall for the Kansas City END the FED rally
• Invited guest speaker to the December 2008 Constitution Party National Committee Meeting held in Orlando (topic: trans-party collaboration and local organizing)

Expected Budget

2009 Expected Expenses

Travel: New Jersey (David and Catherine) 1000
Travel: Minnesota (David, Catherine, Bryon) 439
Travel: Revolution March (David) 600
Rent: Ed Kendrick 6 mo LRC 300
Supplies: Printing, etc.. 3000
Infrastructure: Website 200
T-Shirt Store: initial funding 300
T-Shirt Store: Silk Screen Equipment 4,000
Infrastructure: PO Box 160
Infrastructure: Cell Phone 900

Sub Total 10899

Housing: Rent 9000
Housing: Electricity 1200
Housing: Water 1200
Housing: Gas 1200
Housing: Insurance 1200
Housing: Food 6000

Total 30699

We have a lot on our plate this upcoming year and this is just a peak! Stay tuned for our plans to reach out to high school and college students, to support the upcoming Continental Congress, as well as a second END the FED rally!

Your feedback and support are both desired.

-By: Kevin Kobe

Please Make 2009 a year for personal change
Globalism or Patriotic Sovereignty?

It’s now 2009, a year that promises change on a grand scale, worldwide. As we enter this new year, it could be a time to reflect on mistakes past, instead, maybe we should look at possible mistakes to come. I know you are probably a very busy person, but I hope you can take a short time out of the next year to become involved in being independent in your own life.

Many persons believe that many of our problems come from big business acting outside of the interests of the people. Others blame government, whether through failures in bureaucracy, flat out ignorance between the highest forms of government and the needs of the populous, or even designed greed and inability to care. Other people blame the citizens for sitting by and allowing control structures to seize power when the people could be taking care of each other and their selves.

No matter what you believe the root problems are, we can still turn the direction of these problems around, if we keep looking into the problems. Do you sometimes have thoughts that you think others will dismiss as “crazy?” Big banks received a large amount of taxpayer dollars, and the credit market did not improve. When this bill was passed, it was passed in under a week. The final version was written mere days before the final vote. Is it the banks or is it the politicians we should be mad at?

The intent of this paper is not meant to tell you what to be angry at, Instead, the hope is that you understand that some of the things around you, that you have grown to trust, may not be as honorable as you would hope, and hopefully you educate yourself on the structures of society around you, so that you can allow yourself the true freedom of educated choice that truth brings.

Are you aware that most of the television stations on American Cable and Satellite networks are owned by the same 5-6 corporate companies? Last summer you probably watched the Olympic Games spread across many channels owned by NBC Universal, a Subsidiary of General Electric. On New Year’s Eve, 19 channels (including MTV, Comedy Central, and Nickelodeon) were in danger of being shutdown by many cable networks due to contract problems with CBS Parent company Viacom.

Many of these companies receive their advertising from the same food companies, drug companies, and financial services companies. These same companies have news divisions that rely heavily on their access to politicians.

These same news divisions own many of the newspapers across the country. Do you trust that you’re being told the whole truth, and nothing but the truth, from the media, when it comes to the politicians and corporations, and the media needs their support just to exist?

There is a term for these “Elites” cooperating with each other. It is a term, thought of mostly as a conspiracy theory, yet used by many politicians. It’s called a New World Order. They operate on the basis that old forms of society and
diplomacy need to change to allow for the inclusion of everyone’s rights. It is irrelevant if you believe in the conspiracy, just ask yourself if you can feed yourself better than a CEO from Pepsi-Co or Monsanto Corporation.

Luckily, in the Kansas City area, we have many patriots who are knowledgeable about the structures around us, and are politically active enough to do something about it. You don’t have to be politically active to ask questions, about any issue that you feel is important.

The Patriot Movement, are people who have pledged their allegiance to the United States, and the constitution that forms the backbone of our nation.

A country is essentially three things: A land mass with borders, A constitution (or
form of governing within that land mass) and an economy (or social structure of providing for the population)

True patriotism believes in national sovereignty and rejecting anything that would be an abuse of those three things. The number one assault to these things is Globalism. Nobody is denying that we live in a more global society in
current times, and that we should strive for global peace, social justice, and economic prosperity worldwide.

What we argue, is that our constitution was written to form a more perfect Union, where All men are created equal, with unalienable rights. And that the constitution protects those rights, and we should respect that above all, because as long as we remain free, we can still be of help to our fellow people around the world. If we let ourselves believe that helping others is more important
than remaining free, we run the risk of becoming as oppressed and starving as those we are trying to help.

————————–

Rumor has it that there are still three “FIRE CLEAVER” signs hanging on overpasses along highway 71.  Before the November 4th election, about a dozen of such signs were spotted on I-70, highway 71 and Southwest Trafficway.  To me, this is indicative of a sentiment shared by many citizens here in Kansas City and across America alike.

We are taught to avoid certain areas of the city from a very young age; ignoring the poverty found just blocks from many of our corporate conglomerate shopping areas.  As our elected official choose to subsidize large private industry projects, such as the Power and Light district, neighborhood after neighborhood struggles to provide a safe, positive and educational environment for children to be to raised.  And day after day we witness those with no homes, suffering on the street.  For years we have walked through life with virtual blinders; but today, as we watch our federal, state and local governments swindle our money away through frivolous legislation and focus their energy on issues irrelevant or harmful to most Americans, our eyes are beginning to open.

Our expectation of the state to provide for those in need is obviously flawed.  Unbeknownst to most Kansas City citizens, there are a series of heroes working daily to provide to those in our community who need it the most.  Volunteers from the Liberty Restoration Project worked with one of these heroic groups on Christmas Day.  The Holy House, located on 31st and Troost is providing an amazing service to our community.  Daily they provide nourishment for over 200 hungry folks and work to meet the immediate needs of anyone who walks in their door.

I feel in love with this organization when I read the first page of their most recent newsletter,

• Our country’s greed and arrogance-driven stance of domination actualizes the global violence of endless war, terrorizing and devastating those countries recipient of our wrath, thereby diverting and depleting the resources which could otherwise promote meaningful employment, just wages, decent and affordable housing,  comprehensive health care, stimulating education and creative leisure.

While I don’t necessarily agree that our government should be promoting/funding all of the above listed things, I agree that the money currently spent devastating other countries would do a LOT of good in the pockets of American citizens.  Also, inside their newsletter, the Holy House included an article on Conscientious Objection which includes a link to Iraq Veterans Against the War!

At our grassroots discussion after the END the FED rally, local patriots indicated they wanted to volunteer in our community as a group.  The delivery of the meals on Christmas Day was our first attempt and I would like to call on any of you who happen to be interested in volunteering with the homeless to look into participating with this organization.  They would like volunteers to join the breadline at the Holy House for dinner at 4pm everyday other than Friday to let the hungry know they are cared about.

I plan to put a volunteer day for Holy House about once a month on the Project Participation Calendar.  Please join us if you are interested in rolling up your sleeves and making a difference in our hometown!

Please check out their website and learn more about their mission: http://www.holyfamilycwhouse.org/

On another note: With all the negativity happening across the globe, I thought maybe you’d like some beautiful music and lyrics to reflect on… Click Here:  Something Good to Show You

Stay tuned for an announcement about BIG things happening in 2009 for the Liberty Restoration Project!!!

Peace and lots of love,
Catherine Bleish
Executive Director
Liberty Restoration Project
816-868-8806
Catherine@libertyrestorationproject.org
www.libertyrestorationproject.org

Freedom reaches across party lines.

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