Progressive NH State Rep Cynthia Chase (D): (concerning the Free State Project having chosen NH as their destination state, even as Chase did the same as a R.I. transplant): “What we can do is make the environment here so unwelcoming that some will choose not to come, and some may actually leave. One way is to pass measures that will restrict freedoms that they think they will find here.
Sucks to be that micro-totalitarian, huh! So willing to strip we who are already here of our Freedom (who aren’t even FSPers) to keep those that love Liberty from coming. Typical Progressive – absolutely willing to PUNISH the innocent for the “sins” of the targeted folks they hate. But the good news is here:
Free State Project Officially Announces 20,000 Signers: 100% Reached
The 3rd of February will now forever be known in liberty circles as “Porcupine Day”–the day after Groundhog Day–and the day the Free State Project officially announced the move has been triggered. Join us in the Free State!
(H/T: Concord Monitor – irony: the socialist leaning rag that is no Liberty lover itself)
Free State Project President Carla Gericke speech after the jump.
Five years ago, when I became president of the Free State Project after having organized two Porcupine Freedom Festivals, aka PorcFest, now one of the largest liberty gatherings in the world, the signer counter stood at nearly 11,000. I calculated that all things being equal, we would Trigger the Move in 2018, and with 5 years for signers to move, it would be 2023–and I would be in my fifties!–before I would see the full effects of our historic mass migration movement. I knew I wanted to do it sooner, and as a firm believer in “exerting MY fullest practical effort,” a line from our Statement of Intent, which in its entirety reads: “I hereby state my solemn intent to move to New Hampshire within 5 years of the Free State Project reaching 20,000 participants. Once there, I will exert the fullest practical effort toward the creation of a society in which the maximum role of government is the protection of individuals’ rights to life, liberty, and property,” I knew, based on my own actions, and those of other early movers, that concentrating liberty activists together in one geographic area worked, that the tide could be turned, that principled human action could, and did, make a difference in expanding liberties in New Hampshire. Three years ago at Liberty Forum–our world-renowned winter conference where Edward Snowden will be headlining live from Russia in a few weeks–I announced that with enough financial support to implement my strategic plan, we could Trigger the Move sooner. New Hampshire’s largest newspaper, The Union Leader ran a front page article with the headline: “Free Staters told to set clock for 2015.” Well… I was off by about a month–that one time I took vacation–but WE DID IT! Today, we announce that the Free State Project has officially Triggered the Move, and that participants now have five years from February 3, 2016 to move to New Hampshire to help build the world’s first intentional liberty community. I don’t mean “intentional community” like a kibbutz or commune, but a statewide community bound by the principles of liberty, which can be neatly summarized as a “live and let live” mentality. New Hampshire was selected as the destination for the Free State Project for many reasons–you can read about them online or watch the independently made documentary on YouTube–but, in addition to New Hampshire being a small state with low taxes–with no personal income or sales tax–it offers many attractive lifestyle choices, from city-living to rural and off-the-grid, from mountains to seacoast, from rolling hills to quaint New England towns, and some of the best private schools in the nation. New Hampshire consistently ranks as having the best quality of living in the U.S. and is a great place to raise a family, and, in a recent study by the Mises Institute, New Hampshire was identified as the wealthiest state in the developed world, beating Luxembourg, Norway and Switzerland. As philosophical and physical pioneers hoping to create a more peaceful and prosperous society where human interactions are based on voluntary exchange, it is fitting that our movement was born on the Internet. Dr. Jason Soren’s original essay was posted online in 2001–years before Facebook even existed–and the idea immediately caught fire–people were looking for answers. Historically, most of our participants have signed up online, visiting our website and our forums–remember those?–for more information. As the years progressed, online social media tools became more sophisticated, and our reach expanded. It is therefore also fitting that the End of the Beginning should take place online, through our targeted social media marketing campaigns. Since last fall, we have been using social media targeting tools to expand our audience. For our Facebook marketing, we did several rounds of A/B testing, and then started ramping up our daily advertising spends, culminating in $500 per day. This yielded a significant number of new signers. These signers are vetted in the same way as everyone who has come before. They provide an email address, and in more than 86% of cases, even though it is not required, a physical mailing address. They receive a welcome email, followed by a welcome packet in the mail with an invitation to attend our events and other ways to connect with the community. From October 1, 2015, we have gained a record breaking 2,539 participants. It is important to note WHY. I have always held the opinion that if we could get the concept of the Free State Project in front of a larger audience, more people would bite. And I was right. Look, the Free State Project is not everyone’s cup of tea, not everyone wants to LIVE their principles, but a large number of people are dissatisfied with the direction this country is heading–71% according to a recent poll cited on Politico–and 49% of those people expressed dissatisfaction with the federal government, 29% going so far as to say they were “angry.” Some people just want to sit around and complain–or, apparently, vote for Trump. Others are seeking solutions. They want to DO SOMETHING. And that’s ultimately what the FSP is about: ACTION. Upping and moving to one geographic area to concentrate principled liberty activists together to effect change. As our slogan says: Liberty in OUR Lifetime. Nearly 2,000 people have already Made the Move. With just 10% of number of the ultimate 20,000 MOVERS, these early movers, working as individuals have already expanded liberties in New Hampshire. Some run for office. Over the past decade, 40 free staters have been elected to the state house. These representatives have worked on issues like legalizing same sex marriage, cutting the budget, expanding school choice options, and passing life saving drug reform legislation. Others bring or start new businesses, creating jobs. Many buy and invest in real estate, more than $30 million to date. The world’s first Bitcoin ATM was invented right here in Manchester by free staters and was debuted at Liberty Forum. Many of our participants are techies, and a start-up culture abounds. Others practice civil disobedience to raise awareness about issues like drug prohibition and regulatory licensing, both which disproportionately negatively affect the poor. Others, like me, fight back in the courts. In 2014, I prevailed against the Town of Weare in my landmark 1st Circuit Court of Appeals case. This precedent setting case affirmed the right to film police encounters–even, as in my case, the camera isn’t functioning, which means every person should always point a smartphone towards a police encounter. My case has positively influenced the rights of millions of residents in several New England states and Puerto Rico. It also denies police officers the defense of qualified immunity–you know, their “get out of jail free” card–if they arrest people for filming them in these jurisdictions. This means that “ignorance of the law” is NO LONGER an EXCUSE for the ENFORCERS of the law when it comes to filming police officers in public. It also means they can be held personally liable if they DO arrest you for filming them. If you’re curious about this, you can learn more in my forthcoming book. There are many other examples and stories about what early movers have worked on, and I encourage you to speak to people afterwards, many of these thought leaders and state representatives are here today, or will be available tonight at the soiree. You may be wondering what the future of the Free State looks like? We will be be unveiling a comprehensive plan about the next phase at Liberty Forum in a few weeks, but I can say this: We will continue to solicit signers, and we will be encouraging all past participants to move. Over the next few months, we will be reaching out to them via email, mail, and phone. Ultimately, we want 20,000 people to move to New Hampshire. Now, I know the question you all want to ask is, how many will actually come? First, 10% have ALREADY come, without the move even being triggered. Second, it’s difficult to speculate at this time, but the goal remains 20,000 movers. Finally, I believe, if we build it, they will come. As we continue to build on our early, impressive successes in the Granite State, the federal government will continue its brazen overreach, whether it is police state tactics like national surveillance and police militarization, or the unconstitutional wars taking a toll on millions of innocent lives across the world, or them trying to get their grubby little paws on OUR internet. As more people awaken to this reality, more people will seek solutions, which life in New Hampshire as part of the Free State offers. In the future, we will see the expansion of personal and economic freedoms here. People somehow seem wary of the notion that freedom works, but what if New Hampshire can lead the way? If autobahns work in Germany, why can’t they work here? If pot legalization works in Amsterdam and Colorado, why can’t it work here? If gambling works in Monaco–or, apparently, as long as the government runs it, like the Lotto–why can’t it work here? If deregulated markets keep Hong Kong competitive, why can’t we see more of the same here? If unfavorable tax burdens are forcing people and companies to leave certain states, why not welcome them to New Hampshire and build the Silicon Millyard right here? In ten to twenty years, I know New Hampshire will stand as a wealthy, prosperous, autonomous example–a beacon of liberty–for the rest of the world to emulate. The future for the Free State Project in New Hampshire looks bright… First New Hampshire, then the world! – See more at: https://freestateproject.org/blogs/press-releases/its-official-fsp-president-carla-gerickes-speech-trigger-move-press-conference#sthash.TMDEy5YC.dpuf
