I could tell stories for days of my parents’ selfless generosity. My upbringing was unconventional. Many people who needed a place to live came and went on the 80 acres I grew up on in Southwest Missouri. Some lived in a tiny cottage that came with the property, some lived in mobile homes, and some even created a home in the old hog barn. There was no judgment – if it was within our ability to help neighbor or stranger, we did. 

Although we did not celebrate some of the traditional holidays, we did celebrate Mother’s and Father’s Day. But there was always a hint of rebellion at the idea of honoring parents just because the government said we should. (Those of you who know me will begin to see where I get my libertarian bent.)  As I grew older, I decided to honor my father and mother on the day they became my parents – my birth date. It made more sense to give back to them on the day they gave life to me. For a long time, I tended to resist some of the holidays because they have become so commercialized, laden with material expectation, obligation, and guilt.

I was wrong.

As a country, we are bonded with our fellow citizens by shared national ideals and values. Holidays of remembrance, honor and celebration are vital to our unity – especially given our uniquely American foundation of fierce individual rights and liberty. In today’s culture where there are those determined to usurp and devalue the role of women as mothers, honoring motherhood and elevating the traits a mother should possess while celebrating their differences is more important than ever.

 A couple of weeks ago, I texted my daughters to remind them that I did not expect and did not need anything for Mother’s Day. They show their love for me in a thousand ways any given day of the year. They lol’d and said okay. No expectations. No obligation. No guilt. 

When I woke up on this second Sunday in May, my older daughter was already gone to work and I walked into the kitchen to find flowers, homemade cookies, and gift bags for both me and my mother. I was not surprised. This is how she expresses her love. When the younger returned home that afternoon from a weekend with her dad, she helped me prep Mother’s Day dinner for my parents with some of my mother’s favorite dishes. And then she went the extra mile and did additional tasks without being asked. This was her gift, just as meaningful as flowers and sweets.

A friend texted that morning, wishing me a Happy Mother’s Day, and I asked, “What was your favorite thing about your mother?” He immediately replied, “Her patience, her ability to take a joke when we all made fun of her, the sense of overwhelming unconditional love.”

Something about that seemingly simple, yet profound description struck a deep emotional chord. Isn’t that what all mothers should strive for? Aren’t those among the qualities we all need from our mothers? If my daughters can say only that about me, I could ask for nothing more.

Throughout the day on social media, I read story after story of how mothers shape the lives of their children, and messages from moms encouraging other moms. In the minutiae of the day-to-day, we often don’t consider the long term impact of what we do for our children. We just do what needs to be done in that moment. 

But there are moments in history when mothers doing what needs to be done changes the course of a nation.

There is no greater recent example of this than the movement we saw come out of the covid lockdown of schools. There was an awakening across the country as parents’ eyes were opened to what was happening in their schools and what their children were being taught – and not taught. For many, their trust in the public education system was destroyed. 

In Florida, Moms for Liberty formed in 2021 to push back against covid mandates in schools. They grew to hundreds of groups in 45 states by 2023. In Missouri, there were mothers (and fathers) who suddenly became involved in politics out of the necessity of doing what needed to be done for their children in that moment. They showed up at school board meetings, they ran for those school boards, they formed coalitions in their communities, went to the Capitol, got involved in political campaigns, and filed lawsuits against the education bureaucracy that was actively doing harm to their kids.

Shannon, one of those Missouri moms who stepped up to lead, shared this in a Facebook group:

“…Those years taught me how to stand up for my children and my liberties. I fought for all my children but none more than Max. He was a Freshman in high school at the time. It was him who came to me and begged me to help get school in person. He was struggling emotionally and mentally aside from starting to fail academically.  He was the reason I even got involved at all. I didn’t know how to get the school’s attention, what avenues I needed to take. I just knew my child was pleading to me with tears in his eyes to help. You know that feeling. You remember that feeling with your own children.

Last year, in Max’s machine tooling class, they made metal hearts with “Happy Mothers Day” on them. He told me he wanted to say something different, more meaningful so he inscribed “thanks for saving the world”.  This is probably the most treasured Mother’s Day gift any of my kids have ever gotten me.

No one person can save the world. That’s not what he meant, but I do believe I helped save his little world. Through this group, through our advocacy and our determination and my family’s decision to move, I in some small way helped save his world. I am sure I could say the same thing about you and your children would agree. You helped save their world.”

Early attempts to establish holidays for mothers included a committee to establish a “Mother’s Friendship Day,” organized by Ann Jarvis in 1868. The purpose of Ann’s holiday was “to reunite families that had been divided during the Civil War.” Many women’s peace groups had organized similarly in the 19th century with the common theme of mothers coming together whose sons had fought or died on opposite sides of the war. 

Mother’s Day is rooted in peace, forgiveness, unity, and finding common ground.

Of course, there are bad mothers. There are mediocre mothers. There are mothers lauded as the epitome of maternal virtue. None of us are perfect mothers. Our shortcomings are ingrained into our children along with our strengths. When a child is rude or misbehaves, how many times have you heard, “Didn’t your mother teach you any manners?” (Or does anyone still actually say that???)

In our highly polarized and tribalistic political culture, I often wonder where we went wrong. I think of all the old sayings our mothers and grandmothers used to repeat: “You catch more flies with honey.” “Two wrongs don’t make a right.” “Life’s not fair.” “Do unto others as you would have them do unto you.” And so many more, including one that was a constant in my childhood, “What is right is not always popular, and what is popular is not always right.”

If you’ve paid much attention to politics in Missouri (or wherever you are, no doubt) at all lately, you’d think a whole lot of adults either missed out on some of these lessons or have forgotten them entirely. And if you’re paying attention, you will also notice that conservatives and libertarians are losing the war for the principles and values that have made these United States of America a “shining city on a hill.” We have a “supermajority” of Republicans in our state, yet we are increasingly divided as purism breeds contempt and disharmony.

We lack legacy thinking. The gains for liberty we saw in the unified grassroots pushback against covid tyranny have already begun to wane as we are consumed by infighting. We have short memories, forgetting so quickly the lessons we learned. Our “solutions” tend to be stopgap measures that get social media clicks, but sweep the problems under the rug of the next generation. Our mothers should be disappointed in us. I can almost hear them saying, “Just wait ‘til your Founding Fathers get home!”

“If you don’t have anything nice to say, don’t say anything at all.”

 If we’re not persuading, we’re losing. Our words matter. Our rhetoric matters. Even when we fall short of them – especially when we fall short of them. You might have heard the admonition to “let your speech always be with grace…” Perhaps we should spend more time listening to understand so that our words will likewise be heard and considered. After all, “God gave you two ears and one mouth so you can listen more than you speak.” 

When I think of my mother, I think of how she is always singing or humming, her penchant for practical jokes, her unerring belief that I can do anything I put my mind to, her unending generosity, and her unconditional love even when I am sure I have disappointed her. To this day, I want her to be proud of me. And I want to take the lessons that I learned late and teach them to my children early. I want to leave a legacy they can build on. I want to save their world.

Mother’s first to guide the streamlets,
From them souls unresting grow—
Grow on for the good or evil,
Sunshine streamed or evil hurled;
For the hand that rocks the cradle
Is the hand that rules the world.

Looking ahead to the second Sunday of 2025, I believe the best way we can collectively honor our mothers is to honor the Mother’s Day holiday legacy of peace and reconciliation. Working together, finding common ground, being patient with each other, and treating each other well even when we disagree. And above all, keeping a sense of humor. Are there gifts greater than these?

The post The Hand That Rocks the Cradle: A Mother’s Day Retrospective appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

While we don’t know what preceded the start of the recording, about 19 seconds in the young man can be heard responding that he has “mental issues.” The man recording continued his tirade, telling the desk clerk that he was recording him. After the distraught employee began to hit himself and smash the computer monitor into his head, he began to sob, saying, “you’ve ruined my life.” The guest then attempted to follow him, laughing, as he went into a back area, presumably in an attempt to calm down.

Nasheed’s attempt to expose another instance of supposed racism instead resulted in a backlash against both the hotel guest and Nasheed. The overwhelming majority of responses expressed support of the Holiday Inn staff member and disgust with Nasheed and the man behind the camera.

The unnamed hotel clerk reportedly responded on Reddit, alleging that prior to recording, the guest had called him a “faggot” and that he suffers from borderline personality and schizoaffective disorders. “Right before he started recording, I TOLD him ‘I have mental illness I need a moment to think’ before he just kept going and going and going and going before it became too much.” 

Although this has not been verified with the hotel management, he also stated that while he has quit the position at the hotel, the management supported him and the guest was “ejected from the hotel for escalating issues with staff and the owners.” 

Some felt like people should not continue to share the disturbing video, but doing so was the only way to express support for this young man. Once considered a taboo subject, publicly talking about mental illness and how we cope with it begins to remove the stigma that has long accompanied it. Seeing real life examples of the struggles of those with mental illness elicits increased empathy and understanding, making us better as individuals and as a society.

What was meant for evil has been used for good. Shortly after the video, people began looking for ways to help the devastated hotel employee. Jeremy Hambly of The Quartering set up a GoFundMe which amassed over $30,000 in the first 24 hours. He eventually made contact with the man in the video, who we now know is named Caleb. He transferred the GoFundMe account to Caleb as donations continued to pour in.

As of Wednesday afternoon, the fund has skyrocketed to over $90,000. 

The post Race-Baiting Tariq Nasheed’s Viral Post Backfires appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

Much like the CARES Act, the American Rescue Plan is an omnibus budget bill, which allows Democrats to use the budget reconciliation process to avoid a filibuster in the Senate. Also like the CARES Act, this Covid relief package is stuffed full of partisan waste and pet projects, including a $15 minimum wage increase and over $100 billion for public schools whether they open or not. Less than 9% of the $1.9 trillion bill is allocated to Covid-related public health spending.

Following the early morning vote, freshman House Representative Peter Meijer (R-Mi) tweeted about the legislation, calling it an “institutional abomination” and proposing his own alternative—Direct Dollars Over Government Excess, or the $DOGE Plan.

Meijer claims his proposal funds all urgent essentials and increases the direct cash payment to $2,400 as opposed to the $1,400 included in the current omnibus bill. The $DOGE Plan was scored by the Committee For a Responsible Federal Budget and found to save $1 trillion dollars. Income thresholds are lower than the Democrats’ plan, with single filers receiving $2,400 which would phase out at $40,000 and cap at $50,000. Dependent adults and children would qualify for $1,200. Unemployment benefits would be extended at $200/week through June 29, before dropping to $100 until Labor Day. The Democrat proposal allows for $400 through August 29.

Meijer urged Speaker Nancy Pelosi to “Consider $DOGE. Give people $2400 not $1400. Focus relief where it’s needed, not on random miscellany.”

Since winning the seat held by retired Libertarian Congressman Justin Amash, many have watched Representative Meijer with interest as he responded to the January 6 attack on the Capitol and the ensuing second impeachment of former President Donald Trump. Like his predecessor, Meijer voted in favor of impeachment. His $DOGE Plan also brings to mind Amash’s proposal nearly a year ago, when the CARES Act was being debated. 

At the time, Amash advocated for immediate, direct, universal relief payments for a minimum of three months—”unless the lockdowns end sooner.” Little did anyone know those lockdowns would last for a year or more. Even then, Americans would have received greater benefit from Amash’s plan, just as they would with Meijer’s current plan.

The current $1.9 trillion relief bill has been sent to the Senate where it may be voted on tonight. If passed by the Senate, it will then return to the House for final approval. Democratic leadership cannot lose more than four votes if all Republicans vote against it. Some major obstacles have been removed, such as the exclusion of the $15 minimum wage provision after the parliamentarian determined it violated Senate rules. Other changes included phasing out checks more quickly for those making above $75,000, and removal of funding for projects, such as transit rail in California and Seaway International Bridge in New York. Senate Republicans have indicated they will force a full reading of the bill, which could take as long as 10 hours, before the vote-a-rama.

The post Rep. Peter Meijer Urges Pelosi to Give Americans More Relief With the $DOGE Plan appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

Backlash Grows After Young Americans for Liberty’s “Deficient” Response to Sexual Misconduct Allegations

Shortly after rumors that the board was meeting with YAL staff, Regional Director Tony Gaujardo tweeted, “A statement from @YALiberty is coming soon. Cliff has been placed on administrative leave. I support the ladies of our movement and the statement from Cliff on Saturday does NOT reflect the stance of me personally nor this organization.”

Within an hour, an official statement was released on the Young Americans for Liberty Twitter account (as of Tuesday morning, it has not been posted to their Facebook page). “YAL will address these issues head-on and begin the process of healing and rebuilding a culture of trust, safety, and accountability.”

In the statement, board chairman Jeff Frazee emphasized the organization’s commitment to an independent investigation and transparency regarding the process. Anyone with evidence was encouraged to contact YAL’s outside HR representative, whose name and email were included.

Also in the statement was action which many had been demanding on social media. “As a result of these allegations and details, the board has placed President, Cliff Maloney, and Vice President of Grassroots, Justin Greiss, on administrative leave pending the conclusion of a thorough investigation into all allegations.”

Former Maine state senator and current YAL policy advisor Eric Brakey tweeted, “All of us who love @YALiberty have been shaken by the allegations made against some leaders at the organization. After a staff meeting this evening with the Board of Directors, I can say with full confidence that these allegations are being taken very seriously.”

Other staffers, such as Data Director Stuart Henchman expressed relief. “It’s been an emotional few days. I want to talk about it but that can wait. Let’s make right now about making sure victims are heard and people are held accountable. But what I will say is this evening was the first time I felt positive and optimistic in a few days.”

While responses to the organization’s statement on Twitter were cautiously positive, many had questions about the process. Some also questioned Frazee’s alleged prior knowledge of the incidents and whether that would be addressed.

Former Congressman Justin Amash, who had publicly called for a better response from YAL, responded, expressing his thanks and some advice.

Young Americans for Liberty is encouraging anyone to report any allegations or evidence regarding such to their third party HR department at (703) 338-7176 or amanda@hranswerbox.com. They have not yet stated who will serve as interim president for the organization during the ongoing investigation.

Image: Gage Skidmore

The post YAL President and VP Staff Member Placed on Leave Pending Alleged Sexual Misconduct Investigation appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

Her tweet spread quickly, with several women relating similar experiences of reporting harassment incidents they say were handled inappropriately if at all. One of the common themes reiterated was that this was not an uncommon issue among liberty organizations. One woman tweeted, “reading through #YALtoo is difficult because it has resurfaced my negative experiences with TPUSA, but I’m disturbed that liberty organizations have continued to systemically fail to believe and protect young women. it’s an egregious, unacceptable failure.” Many people expressed their appreciation for YAL, but said that what was being reported has been an open secret for years.

Taylor Hall was one of the women referenced in Garner’s original post. Saturday morning, she came forward detailing an incident with Cliff Maloney at a YAL Convention in 2017. She reported that after asking her to bring food to his room, “He lectured me about loyalty to him, and that people who aren’t loyal to him “don’t stick around long” in the organization, before asking me to come get in bed with him.” She then went on to relate how she had reported the incident to multiple people in leadership, including YAL founder and former president Jeff Frazee. She continued working for the organization with the assurance of an investigation, but said there was no resolution. Since that time, she says she has continued to hear more stories and that there are pending lawsuits. In her post, she also included screenshots of texts with Maloney, which she says are in reference to the incident.

As word spread, many began calling for a statement from YAL and demanding an immediate independent investigation. Late Friday night, the following statement was released on Cliff Maloney’s Twitter account, including a link to a statement from YAL founder, former president and current board chairman, Jeff Frazee.

There was immediate outrage, with many calling the statements “weak” and criticizing the lack of commitment to specific action regarding the allegations being made. As individuals began commenting on posts on both the Cliff Maloney and Young Americans for Liberty twitter accounts, several reported being blocked as a result. Local campus chapters began issuing public statements, addressing the response of the their national organization leader, including American University, University of Tulsa, University of New Hampshire, and Mississippi State University, with more continuing to come out.

The backlash to the posted statement grew to include prominent voices in the liberty movment, including liberty advocate and author Julie Borowski, and Reason Magazine editor Liz Wolfe.

As the #YALtoo hashtag continued to trend through the weekend, many began tagging public figures and elected officials associated with the organization, such as Thomas Massie, Rand Paul, Ron Paul, Glenn Jacobs, and Justin Amash. Former Congressman Amash posted a tweet thread regarding the claims on Sunday evening.

“Recent claims of misconduct suggest Young Americans for Liberty hasn’t adequately or always protected the rights of individuals in its care. As a longtime ally and contributor to @YALiberty, I’m devastated and saddened by the organization’s deficient response to the allegations. People deserve real answers about how allegations will be handled and investigated, not simply generic assurances that accusations of misconduct are taken seriously. This isn’t about making assumptions or prejudging guilt; it’s about identifying the specific steps being taken. At a minimum, any investigation should be conducted by persons independent of YAL, and anyone accused of misconduct should be placed on administrative leave pending completion. It will be difficult to rebuild trust, but it will be impossible without a full and fair examination.”

Former Libertarian Party Vice Presidential candidate Spike Cohen also issued a statement:

“Given the mounting allegations of sexual abuse and cover-up at YAL, it is clear that they need to order a truly independent investigation and fire anyone proven to have committed assault/harassment or complicit in covering it up. Sexual assault has no place anywhere. It is a disgusting violation of the autonomy and rights of its victims, they need to be protected and their abusers punished. If it turns out that it has been allowed to fester there, letting that continue creates more harm and more victims. Whether an independent investigation discovers that these allegations are true, or that they’re false or isolated, there is simply no good reason not to do it at this point. Ignoring it will not make it go away.”

Liberty advocate, author, and criminal justice reform activist Hannah Cox shared her response Monday morning:

“I joined YAL as a college student in 2008. I have worked alongside the organization for over a decade. My organization has been a sponsor and supporter of YAL since our inception. I have dear friends within its ranks, including Cliff Maloney, against whom many of these allegations have been levied… To young women within the liberty movement who have been harmed. I hear you, I support you, and I am so sorry that you’ve had these experiences. 

There is also another lens through which I am processing this story, and that is through the lens of my role as a leader in the criminal justice reform movement. 

I do not stand by cancel culture or internet mobs. Due process is an essential human right that must never be overlooked. This is exactly what I have seen the majority of women ask for in this case, and I join them in demanding an independent investigation. If that investigation proves misconduct, or the covering up of misconduct, those responsible should be held accountable.

Lastly, there are those who will use these stories to discredit the important and incredible work of YAL. I want to actively admonish them. This is a tremendous group filled with many hard-working, good people. They have done much to grow our movement. But that movement must be a secure space for all people, one that lives up to our values and ensures the rights of all are protected.”

When asked what prompted her to go public now, Addyson Garner replied that, “Inside pressure to handle sexual misconduct didn’t work, and more women were getting hurt.” She said that the incidents have involved multiple staff members, with the most recent occurring within the last six months. By applying public pressure, Addyson said she would like to see “a truly independent investigation, creation of a solid HR department, and removal of abusive staff starting with Cliff Maloney and Justin Greiss.”

At this time, there has been no further response from Young Americans for Liberty or Cliff Maloney.

Update: YAL President and VP Staff Member Placed on Leave Pending Alleged Sexual Misconduct Investigation

Image: Gage Skidmore

The post Backlash Grows After Young Americans for Liberty’s “Deficient” Response to Sexual Misconduct Allegations appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

The rally took an ugly turn as protesters stormed the steps of the Capitol, assaulting police, and breaking into the Capitol building. Legislators and staff were evacuated as the rioters broke into the House chamber and other areas, including Speaker Nancy Pelosi’s office.

Several lawmakers called for the President to make a statement, including Texas Congressman Chip Roy, who tweeted, “Mr. President – get to a microphone immediately and establish calm and order. Now. And work with Capitol Police to secure the Capitol. It’s the last thing you’ll do that matters as President. …”

The President continued to tweet, calling for peaceful protests while continuing to refer to the “stolen” election. Twitter responded with warnings on the tweets, followed by deleting them and locking the President’s account for 12 hours.

The following are three of the deleted tweets, including a video message the President recorded, addressing the protesters.

Earlier, Ivanka Trump also tweeted, calling for a stop to the violence, but promptly deleted it after she was questioned for calling the protesters “Patriots”.

As of 9:00 p.m., the building had been cleared and Congress reconvened to continue the counting of the electoral college ballots.

More scenes from the riots inside the Capitol:

The post President Trump’s Twitter Account Locked As Rioters Storm the Capitol [VIDEO] appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

This time, however, the restaurants are fighting back.

The coronavirus pandemic has been an unpredictable rollercoaster for restaurants in STL County. When the first mandatory stay-at-home order was issued in late March, many scrambled to adapt by adding or increasing curbside carryout options. By mid-May, indoor dining was allowed at 25% capacity, and then increased to 50% in June. Between the end of July and October, dining capacity allowances vacillated between 25% and 50%—until the most recent closure order taking effect this week. Except this time, there is no expanded unemployment option for employees, and no Paycheck Protection Program loans for businesses. 

On Saturday, Bartolino’s Restaurant announced on social media their intent to join other restaurants in a suit against County Executive Sam Page. 

We, and other Family owned Restaurants in St. Louis County are not going quietly You have been there for us, we are going to be there for you! Sam Page’s overreach with the arbitrary closure of indoor dining for county restaurants and bars is irresponsible. 

The final weeks of the year are consistently one of the most important times of the year for restaurant employees. Our employees are FAMILY, and Sam Page took a direct uppercut towards their livelihood. We have partnered with other local county restaurants to file a lawsuit against Sam Page, and plan to REMAIN OPEN for SAFE Indoor Dining.

 

View this post on Instagram

 

A post shared by Bartolino’s Restaurant (@bartolinos_stl)

Amid a public outpouring of support, many restaurants have stated they will remain open in defiance of Page’s closure order. It is unclear how the county intends to handle violations of the order. The St. Louis Post-Dispatch reported that St. Louis County Prosecuting Attorney Wesley Bell stated violations of the health order would be handled on a “case by case” basis and that they would not “tolerate irresponsible behavior” in putting people at risk. Restaurant owners report they have a longstanding good relationship with St. Louis County law enforcement, and do not expect they will interfere with any restaurants who choose to remain open.

Benjamin Brown, owner of Satchmo’s Bar & Grill in Chesterfield, has been active in advocating for dining establishments during the course of the pandemic. In April, he and another restaurant owner successfully lobbied for a suspension of a law prohibiting restaurants from selling sealed curbside cocktails. It is no surprise that he is among those leading the way this time as well. 

Monday afternoon, Brown announced that he had spoken with the CEO of the Missouri Restaurant Association. He stated they “will now be joining the independent restaurants suing the county and the Missouri Restaurant Association council will now be working in conjunction with the attorney for the restaurants.” 

Mr. Brown expanded on this in the following statement to The Libertarian Republic:

“The fact that an organization like this is willing to get involved so directly only highlights the ludicrous and arbitrary nature of these restrictions. I believe that is pretty clear to anyone that has been closely following the county’s covid response and the information they have been providing to the public. 

How you can you believe this is really about saving lives when: 1) 50% of the new hospitalizations in St. Louis are coming from places outside of the county, 2) they state that most of the new spread is coming from small gatherings in homes, and 3) Dr. Garza of the St. Louis county covid taskforce recently stated publicly that, “Even if we did shutdown restaurants and bars, I don’t know how much of an impact that would have on transmission, because there is so much now out in the community,”. 

I understand the pressure felt by a politician to “act” during trying times. However, it’s clear from the very information they’ve presented to the public, that restaurants in St. Louis County are NOT one of the major drivers of increased transmission of the virus nor the increase in hospitalizations. Our restaurants are being used as a scapegoat. A convenient target for a county executive lacking the power to to change human behavior in places where they claim the higher rates of transmission are actually occurring.”

Neil Struharik, owner of Tucker’s Place steakhouses, spoke with Austin Petersen on the KWOS Morning Show about his frustration with Sam Page’s handling of the coronavirus pandemic, and the lawsuit being brought in response to the latest mandatory closure orders. Struharik talked about the hundreds of restaurants and distributors getting involved in the pushback against Page. He stated the St. Louis County Executive has been stricter on St. Louis County than any other region in Missouri, and that he is specifically targeting and bullying restaurants in the midst of the holiday season—one of the most important times of the year for restaurant employees. Struharik also pointed out that, in spite of being the most restrictive, St. Louis County has one of the worst records for coronavirus cases and that Sam Page is looking for a scapegoat.  

Later in the day, Struharik told The Libertarian Republic that he had spoken with attorneys for the pending suit, and that a “complaint from 40 local restaurants with a restraining order” would be filed Tuesday. It is expected to be in front of a judge by the end of the week. He went on to say that the number of restaurants joining the lawsuit is expected to increase dramatically by the end of the week.

Ultimately, the Tucker’s Place owner said everything they are doing is for their people.

“This really isn’t about money or even principle. This is about people. This is about the families that we care about that have carried us all these years in our businesses and helped us build the businesses that we have.”

The post Fed Up With Sam Page: The St. Louis County Restaurant Rebellion #STLFoodFight appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

Musicians have attempted to adapt by livestreaming shorter performances. In recent months, some have played at outdoor events, such as the Smash Mouth concert held in conjunction with the Sturgis Motorcycle Rally. 

In August, LiveNation reported a loss of $558 million in the previous quarter, compared to a profit of $176 million the previous year. According to Deadline, the CEO of the company, which owns Ticketmaster, says that most fans have opted to keep tickets for rescheduled shows and festivals in anticipation of a return to normal in the summer of 2021. But with the continued rise in the number of reported COVID-19 cases, will this be feasible?

On Monday, the New York Times reported that pharmaceutical giant Pfizer had announced early coronavirus vaccine trial results indicated the vaccine was more than 90% effective. They plan to request emergency authorization of the vaccine from the Food and Drug Adminstration later this month, and report they will be able to manufacture enough doses to treat 15 to 20 million people by the end of the year. 

On the heels of the Pfizer announcement, Billboard.com released an exclusive report detailing Ticketmaster’s post-pandemic plans to keep concertgoers safe by requiring COVID-19 vaccination or testing in order to be admitted to concerts. Smart phones would be used to verify vaccination or testing status for each attendee. 

Preliminary details indicate the plan would include using the Ticketmaster app, third party health information companies, and vaccine and testing providers. After purchasing a ticket, fans would need to provide verification of vaccination (presumably within the last year). If they have not received the vaccine, they would need to visit a lab or clinic to be tested for coronavirus within a specified time frame of the event. The lab or clinic would then send the results to the fan’s health pass company, such as CLEAR Health Pass or IBM’s Digital Health Pass.

While Ticketmaster reports it would not have access to fans’ medical records, the health pass companies will collect data to send to partner companies in compliance with HIPAA. Much of the technology is not in place to provide real time results, but Ticketmaster president Mark Yovich anticipates demand will spur investors and entrepreneurs in COVID-19 technology. Yovic told Billboard, 

“We’re already seeing many third-party health care providers prepare to handle the vetting — whether that is getting a vaccine, taking a test, or other methods of review and approval – which could then be linked via a digital ticket so everyone entering the event is verified. Ticketmaster’s goal is to provide enough flexibility and options that venues and fans have multiple paths to return to events, and is working to create integrations to our API and leading digital ticketing technology as we will look to tap into the top solutions based on what’s green-lit by officials and desired by clients.”

As companies grapple with the liabilities of COVID-19, it remains to be seen whether fans will embrace giving up more privacy in order to return to “normal”. The entertainment industry is counting on it as they look forward to 2021 in hopes of regaining the massive revenue losses of 2020.

The post Ticketmaster Plans Mandatory Vaccinations, Testing for Return of Live Concerts appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.

The 17-year-old was among a group protecting private properties during the ongoing riots in Kenosha, Wisconsin. During an altercation with the rioters, he shot three people, two of them fatally. He has been charged with First Degree Intentional Homicide, Reckless Homicide, Attempted Intentional Homicide, Recklessly Endangering Safety, and Possession of a Dangerous Weapon While Under the Age of 18.

Rittenhouse is being represented by Pierce Bainbridge, who also represented Representative and former presidential candidate Tulsi Gabbard in her suit against Hillary Clinton. Bainbridge is also joined by Nicholas Sandmann attorney L. Lin Wood, and several other prominent criminal defense lawyers.

Bainbridge released the following on Friday evening:

VERNON HILLS, ILLINOIS / August 28, 2020 / Pierce Bainbridge is honored to represent 17-year old Antioch, Illinois resident Kyle Rittenhouse, who has suddenly found himself at the center of a national firestorm and charged with murder after defending himself from a relentless, vicious and potentially deadly mob attack in Kenosha, Wisconsin.

On August 25th, 2020, Kenosha spiraled into chaos following the Jacob Blake shooting. The Kenosha Mayor and Wisconsin Governor failed to provide a basic degree of law and order to protect the citizens and community buildings in Kenosha. The city burned as mobs destroyed buildings and property, and looters stole whatever they wanted. Rioters defaced storefronts, the courthouse, and many other public and private locations across the city.

After Kyle finished his work that day as a community lifeguard in Kenosha, he wanted to help clean up some of the damage, so he and a friend went to the local public high school to remove graffiti by rioters. Later in the day, they received information about a call for help from a local business owner, whose downtown Kenosha auto dealership was largely destroyed by mob violence. The business owner needed help to protect what he had left of his life’s work, including two nearby mechanic’s shops. Kyle and a friend armed themselves with rifles due to the deadly violence gripping Kenosha and many other American cities, and headed to the business premises. The weapons were in Wisconsin and never crossed state lines.

Upon arrival, Kyle and others stood guard at the mechanic’s shop across from the auto dealership to prevent further damage or destruction. Later that night, substantially after the city’s 8:00 p.m. curfew expired without consequence, the police finally started to attempt to disperse a group of rioters. In doing so, they maneuvered a mass of individuals down the street towards the auto shops. Kyle and others on the premises were verbally threatened and taunted multiple times as the rioters passed by, but Kyle never reacted. His intent was not to incite violence, but simply to deter property damage and use his training to provide first aid to injured community members.

After the crowd passed the premises and Kyle believed the threat of further destruction had passed, he became increasingly concerned with the injured protestors and bystanders congregating at a nearby gas station with no immediate access to medical assistance or help from law enforcement. Kyle headed in that direction with a first aid kit. He sought out injured persons, rendered aid, and tried to guide people to others who could assist to the extent he could do so amid the chaos. By the final time Kyle returned to 2 the gas station and confirmed there were no more injured individuals who needed assistance, police had advanced their formation and blocked what would have been his path back to the mechanic’s shop. Kyle then complied with the police instructions not to go back there. Kyle returned to the gas station until he learned of a need to help protect the second mechanic’s shop further down the street where property destruction was imminent with no police were nearby.

As Kyle proceeded towards the second mechanic’s shop, he was accosted by multiple rioters who recognized that he had been attempting to protect a business the mob wanted to destroy. This outraged the rioters and created a mob now determined to hurt Kyle. They began chasing him down. Kyle attempted to get away, but he could not do so quickly enough. Upon the sound of a gunshot behind him, Kyle turned and was immediately faced with an attacker lunging towards him and reaching for his rifle. He reacted instantaneously and justifiably with his weapon to protect himself, firing and striking the attacker.

Kyle stopped to ensure care for the wounded attacker but faced a growing mob gesturing towards him. He realized he needed to flee for his safety and his survival. Another attacker struck Kyle from behind as he fled down the street. Kyle turned as the mob pressed in on him and he fell to the ground. One attacker kicked Kyle on the ground while he was on the ground. Yet another bashed him over the head with a skateboard. Several rioters tried to disarm Kyle. In fear for his life and concerned the crowd would either continue to shoot at him or even use his own weapon against him, Kyle had no choice but to fire multiple rounds towards his immediate attackers, striking two, including one armed attacker. The rest of the mob began to disperse upon hearing the additional gunshots.

Kyle got up and continued down the street in the direction of police with his hands in the air. He attempted to contact multiple police officers, but they were more concerned with the wounded attackers. The police did not take Kyle into custody at that time, but instead they indicated he should keep moving. He fully cooperated, both then and later that night when he turned himself in to the police in his hometown, Antioch, Illinois.

Kyle did nothing wrong. He exercised his God-given, Constitutional, common law and statutory law right to self-defense.

However, in a reactionary rush to appease the divisive, destructive forces currently roiling this country, prosecutors in Kenosha did not engage in any meaningful analysis of the facts, or any in-depth review of available video footage (some of which shows that a critical state’s witness was not even at the area where the shots were fired); this was not a serious investigation. Rather, after learning Kyle may have had conservative political viewpoints, they immediately saw him as a convenient target who they could use as a scapegoat to distract from the Jacob Blake shooting and the government’s abject failure to ensure basic law and order to citizens. Within 24-36 hours, he was charged with multiple homicide counts.

Kyle now has the best legal representation in the country. With help from Nicholas Sandmann attorney L. Lin Wood, Pierce Bainbridge and multiple top-tier criminal defense lawyers in Wisconsin immediately offered representation to Kyle.

Today, his legal team was successful in working with the public defender to obtain a several-week continuance of his extradition hearing to September 25th. This at least partially slows down the rush to judgment by a government and media that is determined to assassinate his character and destroy his life.

Kyle, his family, the team at Pierce Bainbridge and his other lawyers intend to fight these charges every step of the way, take the case to trial and win an acquittal on the grounds of self-defense before a jury of his peers.

The legal fees and other costs of Kyle’s defense will be provided through donations to #FightBack Foundation Inc., a Texas 501(c)(4) foundation created by John Pierce and Lin Wood to protect lawabiding American citizens whose rights are being trampled on by state and local governments that are more concerned with appeasing mobs than protecting those rights.

Pierce Bainbridge founder John Pierce praised Kyle’s strength and resilience. “A 17-year old child should not have to take up arms in America to protect life and property. That is the job of state and local governments. However, those governments have failed, and law-abiding citizens have no choice but to protect their own communities as their forefathers did at Lexington and Concord in 1775. Kyle is not a racist or a white supremacist. He is a brave, patriotic, compassionate law-abiding American who loves his country and his community. He did nothing wrong. He defended himself, which is a fundamental right of all Americans given by God and protected by law. He is now in the crosshairs of institutional forces that are much more powerful than him. But he will stand up to them and fight not only for himself, but for all Americans and their beloved Constitution. We will never leave his side until he is victorious in that fight.”

Further updates will be provided as the investigation and legal proceedings unfold.

#FightBack

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In the history of America, there has always been a tug of war of ideas and philosophies. This free discourse is a hallmark of American values. To listen to the glowing accounts of the founding of our country, you would think that Americans were unequivocally united in our quest for independence. The reality is the leaders of the colonies disagreed on whether to separate from Britain at all. Ultimately, we united in our common desire for liberty, and our grievances against King George III as presented in the Declaration of Independence. 

Our history is filled with triumphs and failures. But the guiding principle has always been the truth that all men are created equal with the unalienable rights of life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness—Liberty. Achieving and keeping that liberty for all people continues to be an ongoing struggle.

Today, political unity in the goal of securing the blessings of liberty is but a distant memory. While we all have our ‘tribes’ (a good thing), ‘tribalism’ has become the sole focus of political interaction between the two primary parties. Republican and Democrat policy platforms take a backseat to the overriding imperative of ‘owning’ and resisting the other side. 

Caught in the middle are libertarians and independents, rendered impotent not only by the machinations of the two major parties, but also by their own inability to move forward toward their common goals. If you want to know why that is, all you have to do is ask a libertarian—and they’ll point at all the other (not real) libertarians.

How does the liberty movement—and specifically the Libertarian Party—break out of the endless cycle of spinning their wheels and begin to gain significant ground?

I recently discovered the book Tribal Leadership by Dave Logan, John King, and Halee Fischer-Wright. While it is primarily directed at businesses and corporations, I immediately recognized the potential for application to liberty organizations. I spoke with John King, as well as Eric Schleien, who is certified in Tribal Leadership, about the principles of tribal leadership and how they could impact libertarianism.

John King has taught, lectured, and consulted with organizations on leadership and strategy for many years. When he and Dave Logan noticed and began researching the reasons behind the high strategy failure rate in the companies they were working with, what they discovered was that these strategies were failing because “culture eats strategy for breakfast every day.” From this study of organizational culture came the concepts of “tribal leadership.”

A tribe consists of 20-150 people, and an organization can be one tribe or several. How effective a tribe is depends on its culture, which is reflected in its language. The book notes that the authors’ research stemmed from “an ancient way of understanding people: that they—we—create our reality with language.” It focuses on the language and behavior within a culture. 

There are four to five cultural stages, identifiable by their behavior and language:

• Stage One: alienated from others; “life sucks.”
• Stage Two: still largely separate; “MY life sucks” (implying that life is better for others).
• Stage Three: more connected to others in dyadic (two-person) relationships; “I’m great” (yet implying that “you’re not”).
• Stage Four: forming triadic, values-based relationships; collectively, “we’re great”; tribal leaders are formed here; success is multiplied.
• Stage Five: collective focus on a noble cause; “life is great”.

As a nation, we are largely a Stage Three culture. However, as John explains, when coming together on causes such as protests against racism and police brutality, there are those who will only work together on the terms of ‘agreement’ – and if you do not agree with them precisely, they will loot and burn. We should, rather, come together in ‘alignment’ on working toward a common goal, even if we approach it in different ways.

“The insistence on agreement is dominating and it brings about war. Aligning on a greater goal like liberty and the pursuit of happiness, racial equality – those are worthy goals that we can all become aligned on. And regardless of our differences of agreement, we can all work on that goal. Alignment is harmonizing. Agreement is winning an argument – usually in a destructive or violent way.”

As we turned to application to the liberty movement, John stated that although he is not as familiar with the Libertarian Party itself, he was very familiar with Ron Paul and Rand Paul as he is aligned with their principles of individual liberty and small government. He noted that both men had to become aligned with the Republican party principles and platform, and “even though they’ll never be at the top of the food chain in that one, they had to become aligned with other people in order for them to be effective.”

The liberty movement (which is stagnant in reality) has the most potential for Stage Four as it is most based on shared ideas and principles – as opposed to the two major parties who function in constant resistance to each other. However, you don’t have to look far on social media to see that the Libertarian Party is NOT functioning anywhere near Stage Four. The language of the leadership is, at best, Stage Three (I’m great – you’re not).

Eric is a libertarian and has worked with several liberty-oriented organizations. He practices the principles of tribal leadership in both his personal life and business practices. Eric acknowledged that the Libertarian Party has primarily been mired in a culture of personal domination in Stage Two and Three. Who is right. Who is wrong. Purity politics. All within the area of agreement rather than alignment. 

“If you were to avoid complaining about the way circumstances are, or how you think they should be— if you were to avoid name calling, putting another person or group’s point of view in the wrong or that they’re somehow bad—invalidating them. If you were to avoid all of that, and all you were to focus on is aligning with people with resonant values and creating strategies to align on larger projects, the Libertarian party, or any organization, would be significantly more effective in the goals they wanted to accomplish. And they would bring in a lot more people to partner with. 

They’ve done studies, like the Nolan Chart, and you get people to take a poll and ask questions, and generally people are pretty liberty minded. So it’s not like there’s no acceptance of that in the culture already. So that’s not the problem. One of the issues that a lot of these groups face, whether it’s the Libertarian party itself or a liberty-minded non-profit, is they have built a culture that is not sufficient for the strategies that they say they are committed to. 

So the fundamental principles of liberty is a Stage Four to Five project—to empower people to come together to work toward a larger, noble cause. To take on a project like that, you really have to have a Stage Four culture.”

If the “liberty movement” is to truly become a movement, we must find a way to come together to rise above the deafening noise of political tribalism from the Right and the Left (and even within the LP). This is especially important in the Libertarian Party if there is to be any hope of stopping the hemorrhaging of our liberties in Washington. 

What can we do to change the culture of the Libertarian party? What can we do to be more effective in both our messaging and strategy? What can we do to make significant gains in increasing liberty and decreasing government? This has only scratched the surface of the concepts of tribal leadership. In subsequent articles, we will look more closely at the specific components and how they can be put into practice.

It is time to do more than pay lip service to the oft-quoted words of Frederick Douglass—

“I would unite with anybody to do right and nobody to do wrong.”

Camellia Plosser is the Editor In Chief of The Libertarian Republic. She is passionate about increasing liberty and decreasing government. You can find her on Twitter @RareCamellia.

John King is co-author of The Coaching Revolution, from Adams Media, presenting best practices in the field of business and executive coaching. His second book, the New York Times  #1 best selling Tribal Leadership, published by HarperCollins, provided a unique and highly accessible cultural map.

John is in demand as a keynote speaker, and is internationally recognized as a senior teacher, coach, and program leader. His executive clientele have been featured on all major television networks and in the New York Times, The Wall Street Journal, and Forbes. A brief sampling of John’s corporate, public sector and pro bono clients include Intel, Cedars-Sinai Health System, SEHA (Abu Dhabi) Southern California Edison, CB Richard Ellis, Colliers International, The California State Appointed Executives, Amgen, The American Express High Potential Executive Development Program, The Executive Committee of The Los Angeles Department of Public Health, and The Space Frontier Foundation. 

John is a frequent lecturer in the Marshall School of Business and the Price School of Public Policy at the University of Southern California. He delivers the capstone module, The Cultural Map, Triads and Strategy, for the University of Arizona Eller College of Management, Southwest Leadership Program, and was the 2012 Visiting Scholar on Leadership, lecturing on Culture, Triads and Strategy at the University of Oklahoma. 

Recently, John has also been teaching Leadership and Strategy at The University of Central Asia in Tajikistan, being simultaneously translated into Russian and Tajik. He was an honored guest lecturer at Texas State University in San Marcos Texas, The College of the Bahamas MBA Program in Nassau, Bahamas, and The Georgian Leadership Development Program in Tbilisi Georgia.

John is currently one of the senior faculty for the Central Eurasia Leadership Academy (CELA) at Koc University in Istanbul, Turkey, the Middle East Leadership Academy (MELA) in the Gulf Region, and is on the inaugural faculty for the Southeast Asia Leadership Academy (SEALA) in Chennai, India. John is Professor Emeritus at the Moscow International Leadership Academy, a program he delivers via Skype. 

John is a certified facilitator of The Samurai Game®, conducts an intensive seminar regarding the establishment and sustainability of Communities of Honor, entitled, The Gatherings.

Eric Schleien has been featured in The Wall Street Journal, GuruFocus, and was in Warren Buffett’s Biography, “Of Permanent Value.” Eric is also a certified Tribal Leadership with over a decade’s worth of experience in the field of breakthrough coaching and since 2012 has specialized in producing breakthroughs at the level of organizational culture under the mentorship of John King who developed the Tribal Leadership Methodology and co-authored the New York Times Bestseller, Tribal Leadership. He’s also the co-creator of the Udemy course, Leadership By Design. Eric also hosts The Intelligent Investing Podcast which is a business/value investing podcast featuring mostly interviews from great value investors from around the world. Eric loves interviewing interesting people and has interviewed Warren Buffett’s son, Peter Buffett, and Jimmy Fallon. Eric currently serves as the Chief Executive Officer of Granite State Capital Management, LLC. You can learn more about Eric, here.

The post Tribal Leadership in a Culture of Tribalism: A Conversation With Eric Schleien & John King appeared first on The Libertarian Republic.