One of the things that frustrates me the most about Patriots and Freedom-lovers is their overwhelming desire to lose. While we keep griping on email lists and websites about how the government is infringing on our rights, we are, in essence, contributing to the government's efforts to expunge our Bill of Rights by refusing to do anything about it.
Here are some common phrases that I get tired of hearing on a day to day basis.
***"The American People are uneducated. What the American People needs is to be educated on how their rights are being taken away, then they will do something about it!"
The reality is, most Americans DO know what is going on. The problem that the general public has with this "educated information" is that they don't know what to do with it, or about it. What needs to happen, in my honest opinion, is that the American People need to be taught how to write letters to their congressmen. They don't need to be told that they should. It isn't that they don't think it would work, it's that they don't know how to do it!
I know this because I can sit here and tell someone who runs yourwebsiteforfreedom.org that they should send out a press release about their website, and nine times out of ten, I will get ignored. When I finally get down to the root of the problem, it turns out that they do not feel confident in sending those press releases because they don't know how, or who to send them to.
***"That organization only wants to make money. So, I won't support them"
Okay, let's look at this phrase for a minute: Let's say the organization in question has a website at 101gunfacts.org. And, let's pretend that this website gets five million hits a day. That would make their internet bill closed to $600 per month. Their phone bill is likely $500 per month, due to phone calls to radio stations, and
people who need their story verified on gun infringements. And, if 101gunfacts is a news site, they have to use the telephone to do interviews, and $500 is really a REAL low estimate of what it probably actually costs. This does not include postal newsletters for people who do not own a computer. The monthly mail-out costs including shipping and handling can run close to $200 per month (again, a REAL low estimate of the probable actual cost). The organization probably employs someone to work and update the site if it is updated daily -- which amounts to at least another $500 per month in service fees for scripts and software, and let's not forget labor.
Now, let's say they send out an email that asks people to donate. They get 2% of the total emails sent out that will respond. That is roughly one hundred thousand people who visit their website who will more than likely write to encourage them to keep up the good work. But, the scary part is that only 2% of those will donate anything to support them. So, 2,000 people end up sending a donation that they probably
will only send once per year. Do you think that will cover the costs of running such a large organization (especially if the organization has a recruitment program, complete with Television and radio ads that also cost quite a bit of money -- and let's not forget the staff members who often have to work full time for the organization and have families to feed and bills to pay as well!) for the whole year?
And you wonder why they keep asking for donations, or they start offering products for sale to meet their expenses? There is no such thing as a free ride, even when it's free.
By not supporting that organization you are helping the government infringe on your rights.
***"We had a rally for (your favorite cause) the other day, and none of the media showed up!"
Oh, that's a good one. Let me ask you this: Did the chairmen of the organization who put together the rally send out timely press releases that were professionally written? By this I mean, did they check for spelling, punctuation and grammar, and did they provide the correct contact information, complete with dates and times. And did they hold a press conference about the rally at the rally, after sending a media
advisory inviting the media to attend? Nine times out of ten, the answer is "No".
But, people like to complain about being ignored, don't they?
***"No one supported (your event)"
Before the event, did you solicit the support of nearby businesses? Did you search for sponsors aggressively? Or, did you just put up a passive note on your web page about needing sponsors, while you negated to send a press release out about the existence of your website?
If you want to do something pro-active, rather than complain about what is not being done, the best thing you can do for your cause is learn how to promote it.
Friends of Liberty offers that information for free in our Promotional Skills for the Chronically Amateur. All you have to do is sign up for it. Friends of Liberty doesn't just tell you what you need to do, we show you HOW to do it.
If you aren't signing up for it, do us all a favor and stop griping over things you refuse to do anything about.
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