Irrelevance is a State of Mind; Change Your Mind in 2010…

No one is irrelevant; everyone is irrelevant, that is the question. I am tired of hearing people say they have no ability to change things, especially the course of our current out of control federal government. If that is what you believe, that is the impact you will have. You will have made yourself irrelevant. By believing you are, you become what you believe. The case holds true the other way as well.


I believe I am relevant even when it seems at times I am all alone in the battle. But I march on writing blogs, talking to my family, friends and neighbors, sending out a newsletter, running for office, starting a new business, writing and calling political representatives. I march on even if at times I feel like I am being ignored.


But here is the secret you must cling to when you think you are irrelevant. The most credible political and business leaders felt the same way at some time. And their efforts are now marked in history because they knew deep down that any action taken towards a cause is a small piece of necessary fuel to achieve the bigger cause. How do you eat an elephant? One bite at a time.


A call to your senator on the healthcare bill is one call. But when you put it next to my call it makes two calls. And when you put it next to the million other callers who feel irrelevant; you achieve relevance. Each relevant action is the accumulation of people that feel irrelevant at times. We can and we will change this government to be more responsive as our founders intended in our constitution. But you must believe you can be relevant in the cause. Any time you feel irrelevant you must take an action. Action is the key to relevance.


Here is an action I have taken to be relevant; I am running for Governor of Colorado. Even though I am being ignored by the people who have an interest in making me irrelevant, I keep taking action. I am writing, reading, calling, and setting up infrastructure to take this government back. And I don’t care if I am alone right now; I know that the only way to be relevant is to get in the “game” through my actions.


Follow me here. If I didn’t have a website and Blog, newsletter, signed up with the Secretary of State’s office, created a committee to elect me, and be willing to be ignored, would I have any chance of being relevant? If I had taken no action would I have chosen to be irrelevant? You bet. Now I ask you to look at you and your actions. Are you acting in a manner to be relevant, or are you not taking action? Therefore choosing to be irrelevant.

It is 2010 starting tomorrow and it is time to become a relevant player in the efforts to return to the founding principles of this great nation. It takes action. Not one big action but many little ones. Here are the things we all can do every day leading up to the 2010 elections:

• Get informed by reading and doing research on issues and candidates.
  


• Find a campaign and offer to get involved.
  


• Read the US Constitution, and every week pick it up again when you are listening to the political arguments and find whose responsibility it is according to the constitution. (Hint: the federal government only has 18 enumerated powers (Article I Section 8), the rest fall to the states and we the people. Read the Tenth Amendment closely and often).
  


• Give $5.00 to at least one campaign you believe deserves it in 2010.
  


• Look at candidates beyond the two parties. The two parties both have track records that must be considered. Both have failed us and don’t be hoodwinked into believing you are wasting a vote on a candidate you believe in that is outside the party.
  


• Keep calling and writing your political representatives as often as you can even if it is one sentence. Let them know you are watching and intend to vote.
  


• Hug your children every day and explain to them why you are getting involved in the process. Show them how to become relevant.
  


• Don’t give up. Read about our history and the founders and the circumstances they faced at the founding of our country. Read the Real George Washington, Samuel Adams, Thomas Jefferson, Ben Franklin, and other books, and what you will find is that our founding was often in peril but these men were always relevant even when the cause seemed overwhelming. Be like the founders. They are truly inspirational.
  


• And finally, remember you are not alone. Eighty percent of the country in some way believes we need to reduce government in our lives. Imagine if eighty percent of the country made one phone call to your home phone to ask you to be relevant.
  

Being irrelevant is a choice, but it is not the right choice. Make a commitment to yourself this year to be relevant.

Happy New Year!

Going Nuts?

Sometimes when you read the headlines you get the feeling the world is going nuts! I check the Drudge Report in the morning to see what the topics of the day will be for talk radio. If you don’t follow every day you may not know that most news stories are generated by Drudge and what he puts on his website. And no matter what people say, the website is not bias. The stories are equally disturbing whether you are a conservative or liberal.

Whether it’s something you read that is happening around the world, or on the local street corner, the stories give you an impression of a movie, building up the chaos until finally there is a breaking point. It feels like we are at a breaking point. The middle east is a mess, China is a thug, the US is going broke, Russia is trying to go backwards toward communism, Mexico continues to export its poverty to us, as teenagers brutally beat each other up, and politicians do what they do; behave badly.

But in my personal circle of friends and family I see a different world. It is a world of people that care for the US, each other, and the world. They behave as humans should. They are productive and giving in their daily lives. They go to work, church, and volunteer. They make me proud to be associated with them.

My gut tells me this is a more realistic representation of the world. My gut tells me that the news on Drudge as a percentage of reality is small but it doesn’t make it any less disturbing. So I guess my thought is to continue to live they way we do, influence what we can, and ignore the news as much as possible. The world may seem like it is going nuts but for now, we are not. Let’s do our best to keep it that way. Just a thought…

Living his life; ignored!

Senator Sam Brownback is living his life; ignored! For all of you that have read my book you know that is a good thing. This picture of the senator standing in front of a nearly empty room, reminds me of the cover of my book. I have been where he is in this picture at my debate during the 2006 campaign for congress.

The media is doing this to marginalize the senator but I applaud him. He is in the “game”. He is making a difference in the world in his own way and his kids and family are surely proud of his efforts. Compared to most, Sam Brownback is a winner because he has chosen a passion and followed it. This is a man I would like to meet just to talk to him about his view on the world. He may never become president, but it is not because he didn’t try. Think about that for a moment. Then think about what you’re doing with your life. Are you willing to go out and get ignored?