<html><head><base href="x-msg://360/"></head><body style="word-wrap: break-word; -webkit-nbsp-mode: space; -webkit-line-break: after-white-space; "><div><br></div><div>Hi Ben,</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Thank you for writing, and apologies for the delay responding. When I first read your message, I wasn't sure what to say. Looking over it again, I'm still not quite sure what to say. You've titled your essay "The Standard of Liberty", but I don't understand what precisely you're claiming that standard is. Can you sum it up in a sentence or two? You say none of the usually cited eminent intellectuals who have written on liberty have managed to write about the subject without still justifying some measure of tyranny in their philosophies. That's an interesting claim; I'd like to hear more about it. Where do you think they go astray, or where do you think tyranny creeps into their thinking? How have you avoided it in framing your own standard of liberty – or do you think you have? Do you believe that someone who advocated, or adhered to, the Non-Aggression Principle with perfect consistency, would still in some way be failing to live up to the ideal of liberty, and if so how?</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Getting more practical, I'm curious as to your purpose in writing to members of the Libertarian National Committee. How would you have us apply these ideas to the day-to-day affairs of the Libertarian Party's operations? You mention feeling somewhat disappointed in the party's disunity, yet you (wisely, in my estimation) also reject a party in which people bend their principles and vote party loyalty, and wish for a party that's about uniting people under a common banner of truth. What would a party united around truth, but not around party loyalty, look like to you? Can you identify the concrete differences between such a hypothetical party and the Libertarian Party as you see it existing now? If you've been paying attention to the LNC email list, what positions would you have taken on some of the recent mundane matters we've been discussing, and why? (If you haven't been paying attention and would like to check out the matters we're dealing with in order to attempt to provide some practical advice or guidance, you can read the LNC's email correspondence online, or sign up to receive the messages via email, here – <a href="http://hq.lp.org/pipermail/lnc-business_hq.lp.org/">http://hq.lp.org/pipermail/lnc-business_hq.lp.org/</a> .)</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Philosophy is well and good, but for it to help me in my role as an elected representative on the LNC, I need to understand how it applies to the actual decisions I'm called upon to make and the actions that are within my scope to take, and in the case of what you've written I confess that I lack any such understanding. Can you distill your thoughts into some specific recommendations? If so, please feel free to send them along.</div><div><br></div><div><span class="Apple-tab-span" style="white-space:pre"> </span>Either way, I appreciate your commitment to the Libertarian Party and the cause of liberty for which it stands, and thanks again for taking the time to write. I hope you are also taking the time to engage in pro-liberty activism where you live, because achieving a free world requires not only that those of us who have some understanding of freedom try to live in accord with libertarian ideals ourselves, but also that we work to stop the aggression being committed by others, and to dismantle the organized structures and systems that facilitate that aggression.</div><div><br></div><div>Love & Liberty,</div><div> ((( starchild )))</div><div>At-Large Representative, Libertarian National Committee</div><div> (415) 625-FREE</div><div> @StarchildSF</div><div><br></div><br><div><div>On Mar 6, 2017, at 5:29 AM, <<a href="mailto:sonoflibrty@gmail.com">sonoflibrty@gmail.com</a>> <<a href="mailto:sonoflibrty@gmail.com">sonoflibrty@gmail.com</a>> wrote:</div><br class="Apple-interchange-newline"><blockquote type="cite"><span class="Apple-style-span" style="font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; font-size: 15px; ">To Libertarian Party Officers and Members:</span><span class="Apple-style-span" style="border-collapse: separate; font-family: Helvetica; font-style: normal; font-variant: normal; font-weight: normal; letter-spacing: normal; line-height: normal; orphans: 2; text-align: -webkit-auto; text-indent: 0px; text-transform: none; white-space: normal; widows: 2; word-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-horizontal-spacing: 0px; -webkit-border-vertical-spacing: 0px; -webkit-text-decorations-in-effect: none; -webkit-text-size-adjust: auto; -webkit-text-stroke-width: 0px; font-size: medium; "><div lang="EN-US" link="blue" vlink="#954F72"><div class="WordSection1" style="page: WordSection1; "><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><o:p> </o:p></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">I joined the Libertarian Party ten years ago, out of firm convictions regarding the principle of liberty. I am now somewhat disappointed in the Party’s disunity.</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "> Ian Tart, a writer for the Libertarian Republic, expressed this disunity in a recent article identifying five kinds of Libertarians, ranging from moderates to anarchists. All of these, as I see it, differ in their standards of liberty.</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">The subject of Liberty has weighed heavily on my mind for the past thirty of my sixty-three years, in every area of my life, including relationships with family, employment, church, “friends,” and governments. </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">The following article is a summation of the convictions I have formed over those years. It is a gift to you, to the Libertarian Party, to anyone who shares my conviction that we will never be united as a party or a nation unless we embrace a common Standard of Liberty; a standard of Truth. </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">For whatever it is worth, coming from a common member would like to remain common, it is time to raise the bar.</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">Was the Libertarian Party established to influence people, under mob rule, to bend their principles and vote party loyalty, or was it established to unite free-thinking people under a common banner of truth? </div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">For me, this is the Party’s decisive moment. Do people really want peace? Do they really want Liberty? Or are they willing to continue to live their lives slogging through various degrees of tyrannical slime and contention because they would rather do that than face the truth and be responsible for themselves?</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">I do not want recognition. I would prefer anonymity, but will do whatever I can to help promote the principles defined in the following article. It is copy written only to maintain my integrity; not for profit. You may use or discard it, as you please.</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">Your Servant,</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; ">Ben H. Szymanski</div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><o:p> </o:p></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 14pt; ">THE STANDARD OF LIBERTY<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><o:p> </o:p></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Does anyone really want peace?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Do you want it?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> What would you give to have it?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> The price of peace includes nothing of value.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Peace requires only your pride.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Peace requires abandonment of every assumption that you are entitled to something.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> The price of peace is embracing full responsibility for yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> The price of peace is abandonment of tyranny.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Is the price too great? Are you willing to pay it? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Can you give Liberty to the people in your life?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> I am frequently complimented on my ability to write, but seldom on my message.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Perhaps this is because the truth is seldom pleasant and hardly ever flattering. We are all inclined, by nature, to avoid the truth about ourselves.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> What, exactly, is Liberty? What does the word mean?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Is there a universally acceptable definition?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> In all my experience, I have never heard or read one. I’ve encountered definitions of Liberty ranging from total responsibility for self to absolute freedom<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>from</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>responsibility, but I’ve never heard or read a definition, formed by the mind of man or woman, that nails down Liberty as a firm state of being or standard of behavior. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Everyone comprehends liberty, but no one agrees on the standard of behavior precisely defined by that word. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is a fundamental principle of Moral Law. It was etched in every heart, in every<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>conscience</i>, by our Creator.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Listen to your heart, and you will hear the truth of this definition:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is the opportunity to love.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> In Liberty, you have a choice: you can give the energy of your life to others, or you can focus it upon yourself. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Without liberty, this choice does not exist for you. Without Liberty, someone you fear consumes your interest and attention.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Without liberty, you cannot give anything to anyone. Without liberty, you have nothing to give. Without liberty, nothing belongs to you; not even yourself. Without Liberty, someone you fear owns you; someone who believes they are entitled<i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>to everything you have, and everything you are.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Without liberty, you have no power to love; no right or power to express who you are or what you feel. Without liberty, outside of yourself you do not exist.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is the opportunity to love.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Is this untrue?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> You cannot win liberty by fighting for it. You cannot buy Liberty. Liberty exists only as a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>gift</i>. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is the opportunity to love.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> The more I contemplate this definition, the more I am convinced of its truth. Every effort I make to talk about it, however, results in one of two reactions from people:<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> In one, I am presented with a list of philosophers like Thomas Jefferson, John Locke, John Stuart Mill, or Ayn Rand; eminent intellectuals who have written profound thoughts about Liberty. These are people who, supposedly, can<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>really<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>teach me about this subject. I find, however, that all of them justify some measure of tyranny in their philosophies. No one defines a standard of behavior that would eliminate it. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> In the second reaction, I am dismissed as an arrogant nobody who has the effrontery to suggest that Liberty<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>can</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>be defined, or that defining it even matters.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> In either case, the subject of Liberty is avoided.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> If you want to get into a raving argument, try cornering someone about the definition of Liberty. After repeated attempts, I can bet that you will come to the same conclusion that I have; Liberty is<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>the</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>common underlying issue in every human conflict. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Everyone wants Liberty for themselves. Few are willing to give it, without reserve, to others. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> I am no authority on this subject. In your heart, you know as much about Liberty as I do. I just don’t see that Liberty is so complicated that it requires books by intellectuals to comprehend it. We all have the pure knowledge of this principle written in our hearts; within the attribute we call<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>conscience</i>. Liberty is the fundamental principle of Moral Law; the Law that God has written in our hearts. But ultimately, unless his mind submits to his heart, it is the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>mind</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>of a man that governs his actions; and the<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>mind</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>of man is the source of tyranny. Liberty comes from his<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>heart.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> I obtained books on Liberty by intellectuals and read them, or at least I attempted to. In every case I felt like I was wading through a waist-deep bog of quicksand. I kept setting the books aside, asking, “Why am I doing this? Is reading the works of an ‘expert’ going to make me one? Are these people saying anything profound, or are they complicating liberty to justify their own denial of it? Are they revealing truth, or clouding it over?”<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Your mind defines Liberty in terms that bend to your own standard of morality. It depends upon how well you listen to your heart. Everyone wants Liberty for themselves, but few are willing to grant it to others. Most people reserve to themselves some right to be tyrants.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> What tyrant does not loudly proclaim “Liberty!” while arrogantly believing that Liberty gives him the right to enslave others? In his mind, he has convinced himself that slavery<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>benefits</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>“lesser” people! <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is not about you. Liberty is a gift that you give to others. Liberty is a gift that you<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>receive</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>from others. <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> Liberty is the opportunity you give others to love you, rather than<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>fear</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>you.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> What good is there in holding yourself or others to a standard that is loosely defined and compromised at will; that can be bent or denied by your mind to justify tyranny? <o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> What light are we to hold political issues and candidates up to, if the light of liberty can arbitrarily be dimmed to any standard we choose?<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> The only constant beacon of light I know of is the light of conscience; the light by which men of peace govern themselves and their relationships with others. By that light people of virtue, people of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>conscience,</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>ought to agree on a firm standard of Liberty, a standard of behavior by which statesmen can be differentiated from politicians.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "> I offer you, in friendship, my own standard of Liberty. I ask you to consider it, in the light of<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>your<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>conscience. Can you find a statement within this that is not true? If so, I would consider it an act of friendship on your part to make me aware of it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><b><span style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p> </o:p></span></b></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">THE STANDARD OF LIBERTY</span><span style="font-size: 14pt; line-height: 28px; "><o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is your opportunity to<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>love.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is your opportunity to<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>give.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Liberty is your opportunity<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>not</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>to give.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is self-ownership, and as such,<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Liberty requires self-responsibility.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">You have nothing to give if you do not own yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">You have no power to choose if you do not own yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">You have no self-respect if you do not own yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">You are nothing If you do not own yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Regardless of inequalities, two people are equal<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">when neither is entitled to anything from the other.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">We are equal when we mutually embrace self-ownership.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Every contention stems from denial of equality.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Every contention is a battle for self-ownership.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">There is no peace without equality.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">There is no peace without liberty.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">If one person is entitled to something from another,<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">they are not equal.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">What one is entitled to, the other is enslaved to.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Neither has liberty,<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Neither knows peace.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty grants opportunity to destroy it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty grants you opportunity to destroy yourself.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is your opportunity to be self-indulgent.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Self-indulgence evolves into hoarding.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Hoarding evolves into inequality.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Inequality claims entitlement.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Entitlement denies liberty.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">We were endowed, by our Creator, with<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>rights.</i><o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">We were<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>not</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>endowed with entitlements.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">You have a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>right</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>to Liberty, as Liberty<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>is</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>right.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">You are<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>entitled</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>to nothing, as entitlement<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>is</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>not</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>right.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is a<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>gift;</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>something you<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>receive.<o:p></o:p></i></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">If you have Liberty, it is because someone<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>gave</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>it to you.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">If you have Liberty, it is because someone<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>defended</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">If you have Liberty, it is because someone<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>loved</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>you.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Honor the gift, for by so doing, you<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Honor the givers of the gift.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Liberty is the opportunity to love.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is a gift;<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>receive</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; ">Liberty is a gift;<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>cherish<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span></i>it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 22px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 24px; ">Liberty is a gift;<span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span><i>give</i><span class="Apple-converted-space"> </span>it.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; line-height: 30px; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; line-height: 32px; ">Liberty is the standard by which men of peace govern themselves.<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: center; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: 'Freestyle Script'; ">Ben H. Szymanski<o:p></o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p> </o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0.5in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; text-align: justify; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p> </o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><span style="font-size: 12pt; "><o:p> </o:p></span></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><o:p> </o:p></div><div style="margin-top: 0in; margin-right: 0in; margin-left: 0in; margin-bottom: 0.0001pt; font-size: 11pt; font-family: Calibri, sans-serif; "><o:p> </o:p></div></div></div></span></blockquote></div><br></body></html>