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A word of caution for state’s ‘invaders’ [Nashua (NH) Telegraph Editorial]
Nashua Telegraph ^
| Oct 3, 2003
Posted on 10/03/2003 10:02:24 AM PDT by Living Free in NH
KEY POINTS
BACKGROUND: New Hampshire is the state that libertarians have
adopted for their project to revolutionize government.
CONCLUSION: This is an open country and libertarians may move
to the Granite State at will, but they shouldnt be surprised if their
far-out ideas dont go over with the rest of the population.
The libertarians are coming invited or not. New Hampshire by a vote of libertarians nationwide is their first choice for their Free State Project.
They aim to attract up to 20,000 of like-minded individuals to move to New Hampshire over the next three years to eventually revolutionize its government. By that, they mean to shrink government by privatizing many of its services and by expanding personal liberties. They are also highly tax-averse.
Does anyone remember being asked if we wanted our state government to be taken over in this fashion? Who is asking for this invasion?
How nice of the libertarians to attempt a takeover, even when they cooked up the idea without consultation with the non-libertarian inhabitants.
Many of us think our state government is already lean and we differ with the libertarians on what an essential service is.
Take schools. Some libertarians believe parents should pay tuition for their childrens schooling or home school them. They propose raising scholarships for those who cant afford to pay tuitions by collecting private donations.
Most New Hampshire residents, we believe, think that a public school education open to all up through grade 12 is one of the mainstays of a democracy. Nobody has to go without or beg for financial support because the schooling is paid through tax dollars.
Some libertarians also advocate decriminalizing marijuana use, prostitution and other victimless crimes. And theyre big on gun rights.
The Libertarians, many of whom can afford to be self-sufficient because of their upscale incomes, are part of a fringe political group.
The few libertarians who have run for high public office in New Hampshire in recent years have reaped slim support. So plumping up their numbers should, in theory, give them greater leverage at the ballot box.
America is an open country and the libertarians have a right to move to New Hampshire as well as any other group. Yet New Hampshire residents arent required to welcome them with open arms or to embrace their ideological form of escapism.
Whether 20,000 of them will actually pull up stakes and move to New Hampshire remains to be seen. The states motto, Live Free or Die, is a stirring one, but most of us who endure the daily grind to make do know it shouldnt be taken literally.
So while Gov. Craig Benson, who is working hard to pile up conservative credentials, may encourage the libertarians to relocate to New Hampshire, these newcomers should be aware that other residents of the state will view their many proposed changes with a broad streak of old-fashioned Yankee skepticism.
Its nothing personal just a difference of opinion over the role of government and individuals in an increasingly complex society.
To respond to this editorial e-mail the following: letters@telegraph-nh.com or solomond@telegraph-nh.com Be sure to include contact information if you would like your letter to appear as a letter to the editor.
TOPICS: Business/Economy; Constitution/Conservatism; Culture/Society; Front Page News; Government; Miscellaneous; News/Current Events; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: freestateproject; fsp; libertarian; newhampshire; porcupines
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Personally, I'm looking forward to it. This state is getting a little too liberal for the exile from Mass.
To: All
I'M BACK!!!
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2
posted on
10/03/2003 10:04:00 AM PDT
by
Support Free Republic
(Your support keeps Free Republic going strong!)
To: Living Free in NH
Hey, it could be illegal aliens from Mexico, or worse, Canada!
To: Living Free in NH
The states motto, Live Free or Die, is a stirring one, but most of us who endure the daily grind to make do know it shouldnt be taken literally. It's a pity the Founding Fathers didn't realize this wasn't to be taken literally.
SD
To: Living Free in NH
Drugs, guns, and wild sex parties - what's not to like?
To: Living Free in NH
Nobody has to go without or beg for financial support because the schooling is paid through tax dollars. Why go begging when you can get the state to put a gun to the head of your neighbors and force them to pay?
6
posted on
10/03/2003 10:08:17 AM PDT
by
TheDon
(Tick, tock, tick, tock....the sound of the clock ticking off the time until Tom drops out.)
To: Living Free in NH
The states motto, Live Free or Die, is a stirring one, but most of us who endure the daily grind to make do know it shouldnt be taken literally. Thus the editors are revealed to be afraid of freedom. To paraphrase from a pop song of a few years ago, you have the right to XXX (fill in the blank - speak freely, exercise your religion, own private property, etc.) as long as you're not stupid enough to actually try it.
To: Living Free in NH
I'm taking a wild guess that this editorial was written by a woman who recently moved to New Hampshire from Massachusetts.
Massholes are continually moving north to escape the hellhole they've created, and that's the main reason I think NH was the wrong state to pick.
8
posted on
10/03/2003 10:19:22 AM PDT
by
freeeee
(Control freaks unite and pass more laws so we can all be free!!!)
To: Living Free in NH
Hey gang,
You must understand that the Telegraph is an organ of the democrat party. Its completely unsurprising they took the stance they did. Its dawning on them that they may become the 3rd party in the state. LOL!
9
posted on
10/03/2003 10:19:23 AM PDT
by
556x45
To: 556x45
You must understand that the Telegraph is an organ of the democrat party. I know exactly what organ.
To: Living Free in NH
How nice of the libertarians to attempt a takeover, even when they cooked up the idea without consultation with the non-libertarian inhabitants.Xs attempting a takeover without consulting the non-Xs is happening pretty much everywhere humans exist.
11
posted on
10/03/2003 10:24:14 AM PDT
by
snarkpup
To: Living Free in NH
Where is the Telegraph when it comes to the hordes of Massholes who, after ruining their state, come north for a "better way of life" but then proceed to insist that the locals change the way things are? I don't recall the Telegraph wondering why "we" weren't asked if "we" wanted all those Massholes moving in....
12
posted on
10/03/2003 10:27:07 AM PDT
by
whd23
To: archy
ping
13
posted on
10/03/2003 10:34:03 AM PDT
by
jmc813
(Arnold needs to drop out now for the good of the party.)
To: freeeee
Massholes are continually moving north to escape the hellhole they've created, and that's the main reason I think NH was the wrong state to pick. The first locusts to arrive reap the greatest benefits.
14
posted on
10/03/2003 10:41:29 AM PDT
by
Eala
(If used-car salesmen misrepresented cars the way the press does truth, they'd be jailed.)
To: Living Free in NH
Having grown up in NH, I still think of NH as the most pleasant geography there is. I might even move back when I retire, just to be near my pre-Revolutionary ancestral home. Any idea where the gang of 20,000 will settle? Conway?
15
posted on
10/03/2003 10:42:43 AM PDT
by
RightWhale
(Repeal the Law of the Excluded Middle)
To: TheDon
In my little piece of NH there is a school bus fee and a fee to partisipate in extra cirricular activities. Government school taxes constitute 60% of my property tax bill, but I will say that the schools are better than Mass.
16
posted on
10/03/2003 11:02:15 AM PDT
by
Little Bill
(No Rats, A.N.S.W.E.R (WWP) is a commie front!!!!,)
To: Living Free in NH
Does anyone remember being asked if we wanted our colonial government to be taken over in this fashion? Who is asking for this invasion?
How nice of George Washington and his bunch to attempt a takeover, even when they cooked up the idea without consultation with the pro-Crown inhabitants.
Many of us think our Colonial government is already lean and we differ with the George Washington on what an essential service is.
17
posted on
10/03/2003 11:06:13 AM PDT
by
Blood of Tyrants
(Even if the government took all your earnings, you wouldn’t be, in its eyes, a slave.)
To: freeeee
18
posted on
10/03/2003 11:12:38 AM PDT
by
mrustow
(no tag)
To: Living Free in NH
"Whether 20,000 of them will actually pull up stakes and move to New Hampshire remains to be seen. The states motto, Live Free or Die, is a stirring one, but most of us who endure the daily grind to make do know it shouldnt be taken literally."
Tell that to the Founding Fathers (in particular, Patrick Henry---"give me liberty or give me death") and every soldier that has died fighting under the American flag, jackhole.
To: Blue Screen of Death
I know exactly what organ.Does a sphincter muscle count as being an organ? :-) (Or were you thinking of something else?)
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