Letter from the Chair
Dear Colorado Libertarians,
Thank you everyone who attended the LP National Convention held in Denver. The Colorado delegation was not only full but we successfully seated all of our alternates and ten additional people (in other delegations). The convention went off spectacularly well. I have been receiving constant compliments including how hard our activists worked, how professional our participants looked, and how well the LPCO represented the image of Libertarians. The real heroes are Bette-Rose Ryan, Michelle Poague, and Eva Kosinski. Those ladies sacrificed and risked a great deal of their personal lives, time, and money to pull this off and they did it extremely well. Thank you again for everything.
To address the results of the convention itself I have the following to say. Please feel free to distribute this as you see fit but understand it espouses my personal feelings.
Liberty is a luxury. It must be earned. It must be tirelessly defended once acquired. It must be spread as if it were a cure for the terminal disease of despotism and cruelty. Liberty is a wildfire and once started can not easily be put out. It takes a fire some amount of time to spread from its initial spark but as it does it begins to grow exponentially and becomes a fierce roaring blaze. This is especially true if the fire is attended properly and fanned.
The spark of liberty in a person’s heart can be the most moving and powerful feeling in existence. I speak from personal experience. When I first grasped the beauty and simplicity of the libertarian philosophy I did not understand, nor care, why it made sense. I was merely overwhelmed with an insatiable desire to spread these deepest of heartfelt feelings and thoughts. I believed that if I could just talk loud enough or long enough that people would see what had become so obvious to me. Over time, this feeling became so ingrained that it is now a dear part of my soul. This powerful of a feeling takes time to mature. An individual must come to terms with all of the consequences of altering deep seated personal beliefs. Ego, regret, guilt, and embarrassment are all strong feelings that can shape how a person grows. The sheer force of will required to make that initial leap is more than most people may be capable of summoning. But just as one makes the decision to risk their life for their country or step from the financial safety net of their parents or become a parent themselves and be responsible for another human life, so does this decision create more conviction within the heart. A conviction which is so strong that no amount of ego or guilt can stop its manifestation. It is by this virtue of human nature that I choose to believe honorable any individual that acts as, and claims to be, a libertarian.
I had one of the proudest moments of my entire life on Saturday evening after the presidential debates. My father was in attendance along with his wife and two friends. They are not Libertarians. I invited them so that I may be able to visit with them. I have had many heated and sometimes heart wrenching debates with my father and his wife about the cause of liberty. I have seen how two very intelligent people can be bound by convention and tradition. But what occurred Saturday night brought tears to my eyes (and still does). After more than a decade of arguing, explaining, shouting, and describing the concept of freedom I had felt that my progress of convincing my father (and more so my step-mother) was going poorly. When the debate ended I walked into the vendor hall and caught up with my father and his friends. Under my father’s arm was a Root for America sign and he was proudly wearing a Root button. At the same time, his friend was extolling the benefits of Gravel over some of the other candidates on stage. My step-mother chimed in with the obvious benefits of putting a woman on the ballot but wasn’t comfortable with the lack of polish of Mary, yet. Regardless of what anyone thinks of those candidates, there were four people who walked into that hall not libertarians. And when they exited they were so passionate about their support for our candidates that they were discussing in great depth the benefits of each. I was speechless. The following evening, after Barr had secured the nomination, my step-mother was extremely upset. She did not understand why we would choose him. In the space of one weekend she had gone from having no concept of marriage deregulation (she is fervently Christian in that regard) to criticizing Bob Barr for his waffling on the issue. Then they said to me “He may not be a perfect Libertarian but maybe we can get someone better next time”. She told me, as did my father, that for the first time in their lives they were going to vote Libertarian. I had to walk away. I was so overcome with emotion at the magnitude of what I was hearing. I have been striving for this day for more than twelve years.
My father and step-mother are not perfect Libertarians. But with the appropriate amount of attending, that wildfire within them will grow to uncontrollable proportions. I tell this story so as to add my personal perspective on our presidential ticket. While some may be dismayed or even angered by the delegates’ choice for president, please realize that fully embracing liberty, when one has been confined for decades to the false pretense of the two-party paradigm, is a long process. I believe Congressman Barr has felt that spark. I believe that as long as we attend and fan that fire, it will grow to uncontrollable proportions. This is not about unity or defeating the vast neo-con conspiracy. This is for nothing less than the freedom of 300 million Americans.
I encourage all to let actions speak louder than words and give our candidates a chance to prove how much liberty they can spread. Now is our time. It may not be our time to win the White House, but instead our time to win over the hearts and minds of America. We need to remain focused on the things over which we have control. As long as there is one spark of liberty then a free society is attainable.
Thank you all for everything you do for liberty. It is due to the efforts of all of you that people like my father have the opportunity to see liberty for what it is...the answer.
In liberty,
Travis Nicks
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