Posted by Erik Kritter on 11/11/09

Not long ago I was at a small social gathering of Tea Party folks. There were about a dozen or so people and they were discussing the Patriot Act. Specifically they were discussing how Obama was abusing the powers the Patriot Act granted. I was kinda laying back and listening to what others had to say before I spoke my mind about it & wound up being pleasently suprised.

There was one gentleman there who I had labeled in my mind as one of the bigger "neo-cons" (though I despise that term). He simply stated that "...you know, we made a mistake with the Patriot Act. We should never have supported granting powers to Bush that we do not trust Obama to have." My ears perked up at this & I waited to see what the others would say.

There were a few people who said that "we should never have allowed Obama to be elected" but most of those around the group simply agreed that no president should have been granted the powers & the Patriot Act should never have been passed. The "Obama" is the only problem people didn't want to argue the point. There were two people who pointed out the unconstitutionality of the Patriot Act.

I was dumbfounded & thrilled!

From what I knew of these people they were all Bush conservatives (at least as far as national security) and I had never heard any of these folks say anything like that in the past.  They typically had stuck to issues such as taxation, loss of economic liberties, health care, gun control, and media bias. I'm not sure who started the conversation on the Patriot Act but I'm glad they did! I didn't say a word to these folks.

The subject also didn't last long as a topic of converstation & seemed to end with a substantial majority agreeing that "it" had been a mistake and a lack of desire to belabor the point because they were embarressed that they had been supporters in the past.

Later someone (who knows me fairly well) asked me why I hadn't chimed in on the Patriot Act. I simply asked this lady if she had seen my smile and added that I hadn't needed to say anything at all.

Posted 11/11/09 libertyspirit Modesto, CA

What some people may not realize is that the Patriot Act was actually sitting on the shelf in 1994 waiting for something to happen so that the government could easily get it past the American people without much protest. 9/11 served that purpose. I wonder what else is sitting on the shelves of our government just waiting for the next calamity so they can pass it with no one complaining? Of course, who cares about that now. The dems can pass anything with a supermajority, especially if their arms are twisted a little. Anyway, it is nice to know that some of us have finally awakened to what liberty really is, not what they tell us in the media.

Posted 11/11/09 Erik Kritter Rocky Mount, VA

Sadly, I have to agree with you. I wish it were not so but that does not make it so.....

Posted by Erik Kritter on 11/01/09

Well, lets see...

Last month I managed to get myself elected as Chairman of the Roanoke Valley Libertarian Party. Where I have been reguarly attending meetings since sometime last year. I am also the webmaster for the group.  The Franklin County Libertarians are part of the Roanoke Valley Libertarians.  I plan to start having some meetings in Franklin County of a sub-committe which I hope to grow enough to spin off into it's own group.

I traveled to Stuart, VA (in Patrick County) to speak to a group organizing a new Tea Party group in Patrick County.

I have attended numerous committee meetings & the monthly mass meetings of the Franklin County Patriots Tea Party group. I am also their webmaster.

I have volunteered to serve on a candidate for the 5th district of Virginia Congressional seat who will announce formally later this month. I am super excited about this.  This guy is dynamite!

What are you doing in your area?

Posted 11/08/09 chessman2k Keysville, VA

Great job Erik.. I've been networking,studying and since I travel around Virginia a lot, I've been politican (talking) to as many people as I can. Passing out fliers,videos,constitutional booklets and info across the board. Making phone calls to reps etc. and utilizing the net and facebook to promote the cause of Liberty.learning the ropes so to speak. I hope to see you and others the seminar on the 14th Nov. Again great job Erick.. if we don't make it happen , it will most certainly happen to us! Your friend in Liberty, C.Nix

Posted 11/11/09 Erik Kritter Rocky Mount, VA

Thanks!