Mark Levin's Forth Coming Book

Scott Cooper

This book, TheLiberty Amendments, which comes out in a couple weeks will be required reading for all Conservative Americans – and then we must begin the work of building our STATE Legislatures.  Please take 30 Minutes to listen to Mark talk about it:

Virginia - Generation Opportunity – A Way to Reach Young Adults with the Principles That Made America Great!

Scott Cooper

Abraham Lincoln is reported to have said “The Philosophy of the school room in one generation will be the philosophy of government in the next.”

If you have read any school textbooks or spent any time with today’s young adults, especially those who have come out of the public school system – you will recognize that the majority of today’s students are not well versed in the concepts of Individual Liberty, Personal Responsibility and Private Charity.  The concepts of The Rule of Law, Equal Justice under the Law, or the Invisible hand of the Free Market are also scarce among their thought processes.

There is an organization called “Generation Opportunity” which is working to diligently with the demographic that will inherit the financial burden my generation and those before us are placing on them.  The first step for these young adults is to take a quick survey:

If you are 18 – 29, and live in Virginia, please click here to take the survey!

Please pass this on to every 18 – 29 year old Virginian you know!

Fredericksburg Patriots Election:

Scott Cooper

To my friends in the Fredericksburg Region who have engaged in the local Tea Party Movement – or are simply a conservative who is concerned about the direction our republic is headed and just now feel the need to engage, I want to remind some of you, and let others know about a very important meeting this Sunday in Fredericksburg.

First, let me start by saying, I have very little faith in the Republican Party.  I didn’t get involved in the grassroots conservative movement because of the Democrats.  What pushed me up out of my chair and caused me to run out the door to my first rally was President George W. Bush, when in the fall of 2008 he uttered the words, “I have decided to abandon the free market system, in order to save the free market system.”  Prior to the financial meltdown, during the Bush Administration, while Republicans controlled all three branches of government our Federal Government, they chose not to slow the growth of government – but actually expanded it at an exponential rate.  Think about those two things and let them sink in for a minute or two before you consider what I am asking you to invest your time in this weekend, on what promises to be a beautiful Sunday afternoon.

Second, think about one more thing before getting to my real request.  I have even less faith in Washington DC than I do in the Republican Party.  Our focus needs to be local for two main reasons.  First, the return on investment (ROI) of our time and labor is much greater when we focus local and at the state level.  Unless we build a farm team of conservatives all across the country at the local, county and state levels we will never be able to take on the leadership at the top.

I mention these two things because I believe the Tea Party is a key element of restoring the principles that made our country great: Individual Liberty, Personal Responsibility, Constitutionally Limited Government, Free Markets and Private Charity.  When you look at the top leadership of the Republican Party – there is no one who clearly articulates these principles.  More importantly, look at their voting patterns.  If there isn’t a solid mechanism in place to hold our republican elected leaders in place, history has shown they won’t lead appropriately – so The Tea Party is still needed, more than ever. 

Now to the main point:

This weekend The Fredericksburg Patriots are having their leadership election, where there are two candidates running for the position of Chairman.  You must be a paid member in order to vote, $ 20 per year for an individual and $ 30 for a couple).  I would strongly encourage you to attend this meeting, hear the plans of both men, vote and get engaged in helping steer this ship we call civil governance.  If you aren’t engaged yet, consider this.

I am friends with both men, and have an appreciation for both of them; however having observed and personally worked with both, I support Michael Hirsh. 

I believe each individual has gifts and talents which should be used for this movement; however at this point in the game, I believe a couple of things are critical for whomever is “leading the charge.” 

• First, as I stated prior to being in a leadership position with FVP myself, as well as last year when my term was up, rotation of leadership is critical.  It is important that we consistently seek fresh blood and new ideas.  The other candidate has served on the FVP board for over three years.
• Second, building coalitions with other groups is critical to our long term success.  I have witnessed Michael build coalitions with groups outside the Tea Party successfully not only at the local level, but throughout the state.
• Finally, as we have seen, our movement has and will continue to come under attack, often not only from the left but often from those we think would be our friends.  Sadly, these conflicts often make it into the public eyesight.  As a result, it is important that those we ask to lead will articulate our ideas clearly and concisely in the public arena.  This position is the face of the entire organization.  I have watched Michael in the civic arena for over two years.  He is a man who is not only concise and articulate on our issues, but as a pastor of Calvary Christian Church and founder of Emmanuel Faith Christian School he has a track record of public speaking, which I believe we need at this point.

If anyone would like to call me to discuss, please feel free to call me at 540-455-9306.  If you leave a message, I promise to get back to you within 24 hours.  Just remember the meeting starts at 2 PM on Sunday!

Don’t forget, you need to be a paid member in order to vote on Sunday.  You can pay your membership online at www.FredVAPats.org or get there early and pay before the meeting on Sunday at 2 PM at Salem Church Library.  You can R.S.V.P. for the meeting by clicking here.

Political Correctness Run Amuck!

Scott Cooper

Just about every time I have the opportunity to speak somewhere, I mention Political Correctness.  I have also written about it on more than one occasion.  In a nutshell, Political Correctness is in opposition to the idea that there are moral absolutes and that truth does exist.  It is the view that all views are equal.  I like to refer to it as The Trojan Horse of the 21^st Century.  And just like the Trojan Horse ended up destroying Athens shortly after the warriors of Troy supposedly retreated, we are at risk of political correctness destroying everything we hold dear.

What is happening more frequently every day is not only the idea that all views are equal and that "truth" doesn't exist - but that we aren't even going to discuss certain "truth"s in the battlefield of ideas.

On Wednesday, I posted the following on my Facebook Page, with the attached picture:

I will not submit to Political Correctness. There is a 13 century worldview struggle taking place - and those who want to destroy Liberty want you to submit.

Submission begins with your adherence to Political Correctness.

I will not comply. Will you? Have you already? 

When was the last time you spoke out against Political Correctness?

In the new media world of 140 characters or less (slightly more with Facebook), it is hard to explain what the driving thought behind the “Tweet” or “Update” is about.  I want to elaborate with a real time example that I find absolutely infuriating and scary at the same time!

One of the organizations I work with, High Frontier, which works on National Defense issues prepares a bi-weekly e-newsletter.  In Tuesday’s e-mail this week, my father was discussing the history of Winston Churchill’s “V for victory” sign.  As is High Frontier’s routine, the article was posted on their web-page and also entered into an e-mail.  This Tuesday’s dealt with the history of World War II and the conflict the world had with the Nazi Party in Germany.  High Frontier’s e-mail service is currently (we are in the process of switching) I-Contact.

After I had prepped the e-mail to send, I received the following message:

At this point the I-Contact user has the option to either change the vernacular of the message, or click to certify message, which in essence verifies for the company that your message is accurate, and you want it to be sent that way.  They do a review and then either approve or disapprove your message.  After review of our message, we failed the test.

Thankfully I-Contact’s Customer Service Department opens at 4 AM, because I was up early working! 

When I called, the representative was very pleasant in his demeanor.  He told me that the use of the word Nazi is what was causing the message to be blocked.  I explained to him that I certify the message as historically accurate and that the recipients of our messages have a grasp of history as well and would not be offended by the use of a historically accurate word.  He informed me that it didn’t matter, that the use of such a term was prohibited.  His suggestion was I should use the word German instead of Nazi and the e-mail would then go through.  Please – take a minute to let that sink in. 

Infuriated, but fully aware that my arguing would get me absolutely nowhere, I explained I knew of and would implement a work around.

These were my closing words to the very kind customer service representative.  “Sir, I know you have no control over your policy; however I hope you will convey the following message to those within your company that make such decisions:  I-Contact is banning words that are not only historically accurate, but fit a political party that is active today.  

Furthermore, I encourage the leadership of I-Contact to do a Google search on the Nazi Party in Greece.  Today it is called the Golden Dawn party, but it is the exact same thing.  In 2009 they carried less than 1 % (0.3 % actually) of the popular vote in Greece; however in 2012 they carried 7 %.  That’s over a 700 % increase in three years – for a party that your company won’t allow to be mentioned in written communications.  That policy is seriously flawed and should change.”

The nice gentleman agreed with me, implying he understood and simply apologized.

In closing – there are more of us that understand truth than those who are trying to silence truth.  The challenge and the ironic thing: those who want to silence truth are far more vocal than those who know truth.

Now you know the reasoning behind my post on Facebook this past Wednesday:

I will not submit to Political Correctness. There is a 13 century worldview struggle taking place - and those who want to destroy Liberty want you to submit.

Submission begins with your adherence to Political Correctness.

I will not comply. Will you? Have you already? 

When was the last time you spoke out against Political Correctness?

If you know of other examples of Political Correctness Run Amuck that you would like to see published, and you have not yet started your own blog – feel free to send the stories my way and I will be happy to post for you. 

Blessings,
Scott Cooper

RefFromTheBurg@aol.com

PS – If you haven’t already please read the article written by my father, which couldn’t be sent by I-Contact.  You can read it by clicking here.  You can also subscribe for his updates by clicking here!

If you agree with his analysis and the importance of these issues – I am raising funds to support High Frontier in these very important National Security Issues.  If you would like to learn more about how to help us financially in this very important work, please shoot me an e-mail.

If You Can Keep It!

Scott Cooper

Today millions of Americans will go out to celebrate July 4^th. 

As is often the case these days when I reflect on the liberty our generation has inherited, liberty which is dissipating in our life time - I have a knot in my stomach.  That knot is especially tight today.  Why?  Because today millions upon millions will go out and celebrate their inheritance, then return tomorrow to their lives where they do absolutely nothing to help retain that liberty to pass on to their children and grand-children.

I think of Benjamin Franklin, when he exited Independence Hall on that day and was asked by a woman, “Dr. Franklin, what type of government have you given us?”  His reply – “A Republic, IF you can keep it.”

Will We Keep It?

Our Government was forged in the ideas of Individual Liberty, Personal Responsibility and Private Charity.  We were founded on Independence – thus we celebrate the Declaration of Independence with “Independence Day.” 

So as we celebrate Independence Day today, a valid question of accountability for the government which was formed 13 years after Independence Day by The Constitution, to protect that Independence, should be: Is our government creating an environment which fosters that which we celebrate today, “Independence?”  

I would submit to you, our government has spent over the last half century creating dependency.  With dependency comes control and with greater control comes loss of liberty.  The end result – loss of all that we are celebrating today.  Both parties are to blame for this.  One has created a dependency at the lower level of the society, and one has created dependency through “Crony Capitalism.”  Neither is right – both are against our principles, and both are contributing to the loss of the Liberty we celebrate today.

Will We Keep It?

Two personal experiences come to mind this morning:

1.            Beginning in 2010, I had the privilege of participating in several parades – walking with a conservative who was working hard to get elected.  The parades were always centered on some piece of American History.  I vividly remember one of these parades, as I was shaking hands meeting folks being asked by a group on the sidewalk – “If I vote for your candidate, what are they going to give me?” 

Let that sink in, and the consequences of that rampant mentality that has been bred into our society.  Our citizenry looks to our politicians, not as defenders of Individual Liberty, Limited Government and Free Markets, which has created the largest middle class in human history, but as Santa Clause.

2.            In 2008, while still in banking, I began a relationship with a prominent doctor.  Although still in his early 50’s, he was in the final stages of his “exit strategy” from the work he had invested his life in.  His exit had nothing to do with his love of medicine, or his desire to practice.  It had to do with a government that had made it impossible for him to continue practicing.  This man, in the height of his practice during the 1990’s had 17 doctors and over 10 administrative workers in two offices servicing three hospitals.  When I met him in 2008, due to bureaucracy created by government, he had already implemented phase I, which was to become a one doctor operation with one administrative assistant, his wife.  Based on the trends he saw in Washington, he had cut his schedule to ensure his practice never earned more than $ 250,000 again and his plan was to be out of medicine all together within 5 years. 

This is only one of many, many situations in banking that truly caused me to grieve for our country – and the loss of Independence we are experiencing.

Will We Keep It?

We have a great heritage to keep.  We have an inheritance to defend and protect.  We have an obligation to ensure the liberty which has been bequeathed to us isn’t squandered in our lifetime and a huge debt left to our grandkids who aren’t even born yet to pay.

It is only fitting that today we celebrate our Independence.  We should invest time with friends, family and neighbors.  We should do the cookouts.  We should do the parades.  We should spend money on fireworks and festivities.  It is a grand occasion. 

But the question we should all ask ourselves – as we drive home from the fireworks tonight:  “What am I personally doing to ensure we maintain this inheritance so that I may bequeath the same blessings to my children and grandchildren?

Inaction is indeed action.

There Will Be No Draft for this engagement.

A good place to start is to join Tea Party Patriots, and enter your ZIP CODE to find a group near you and get involved.  They are not focused on creating dependency – but holding BOTH political parties accountable to the principles we celebrate today.

Happy Independence Day!  May we bless God again, so that He may choose to bless us!