Freedom Flyer January - June 1985 Cover

Freedom Flyer 5

the official newsletter of the
Freedom Party of Ontario

January - June 1985




Fp OPENERS

By FREEDOM PARTY PRESIDENT ROBERT METZ

Freedom Party President Robert Metz
Fp President Robert Metz

We know that many of you --- particularly those outside the immediate London area --- haven't heard from us for a while, but no need to despair, we haven't forgotten about you. In fact, when you don't hear from us for a while, you can always count on the fact that Freedom Party is channeling its efforts and resources towards intensive activities or campaigns aimed at promoting freedom of choice in the community. And that's something we're committed to doing on a full-time basis; after all, freedom of choice is what we're all about!

In these, our fifth and sixth issues of Freedom Flyer, we've done something a little different: we've recapped our activities over the past six months by segregating our election activities into a special Election Issue (Issue no. 6), while emphasizing our non-election issues and activities in Freedom Flyer no. 5.

By no means do these two newsletters represent a total accounting of all our activities here at provincial headquarters. What we report here is merely the tip of the iceberg! For one thing, time and space limitations make it an impossibility for us to report everything, for another, it is impossible to report the amount of background work and preparation that goes behind every effort and campaign. And so much of our current activities are geared towards future campaigns and activities that it's not always easy to keep track of things to let you know about them --- at least, until the results of those efforts are in.

To give you some idea of what I'm talking about (and to let you know where your money and support is going), here's a quick overview of what are essentially our "behind-the-scenes" activities and on-going efforts:

Municipal Elections: Lest we forget, Freedom Party Action Director Marc Emery will be running for alderman in the municipal elections in London this fall. Since he lost by only 500 votes three years ago, and given his current community profile, he stands a very decent chance of being elected to represent his north-east working-class riding.

Emery's election literature has already been drafted, election signs are already in production, and a substantial number of volunteers have already made their commitment to support him. Needless to say, Freedom Party and its supporters will be backing him on this effort so if you live in London, you can expect that we'll be calling on you for your volunteer support.

Recruiting Members and Supporters is an on-going process that involves a great deal of time spent with individuals and groups who have expressed some interest in our ideas or activities. In addition, we're planning to recruit as many new supporters as possible from the ranks of other political parties: our volunteers have already entered thousands of names into our computer files, and we hope that our solicitations to these past supporters of other parties may attract some attention to our efforts.

One new activist gained after Election '85 was a past supporter and active volunteer for a successful Progressive Conservative candidate in the 1984 federal election in London West. But after being disillusioned by the provincial Conservatives' betrayal of free enterprise, and by the lack of actual substance being offered by the federal PC government, he made a choice --- and decided to join and support Freedom Party. He first saw Marc Emery run in the 1980 federal election ("...and I was impressed then") and dropped by our offices to pick up our literature early during the 1985 provincial election. After "thinking it over and over," he decided six weeks later to do some substantial amount of work for us and to run in the next election as a Freedom Party candidate. That's all we can tell you about him right now, but you'll be hearing more about this development in later issues of Freedom Flyer.

Research and Information: Freedom Party has been discovered by an ever-growing number of students (elementary, high-school, college, and university) who are using its up-to-date newspaper and clippings files, books, and reference materials for their essays and projects. These facilities are, of course, also used by Freedom Party in the preparation of issue papers, newsletters, speeches, etc., and are also available to the general public. Need some information on freedom? Check us out! --- We make it our business to know about freedom.

Fairs and Exhibitions: Freedom Party has been travelling on the road to help introduce the party to new communities by setting up booths displaying our literature and newsletters at various fairs and exhibitions around Ontario. Significantly, we will be present at Kitchener's Central Ontario Exhibition to be held August 27 to September 2, and at London's Western Fair, September 6 to 15 inclusive. Look for us!

Speeches and Debates : As part of Freedom Party's involvement in the community, President Robert Metz and Action Director Marc Emery have represented the party and-or free market principles as public speakers on various occasions. While Metz gave speeches and presentations to various service clubs on the party's community activity and its philosophy, Emery was featured in several media events, including coverage in the print media, on CBC television, local television, and as a guest on radio talk shows in London.

Campus Club: Freedom Party's University of Western Ontario Freedom Association is already in the process of gearing up for the 85-86 term. Its new president, Robert Rozanski, has already determined the general direction of its activities; in addition to the association's new campus newsletter, Freedom Forum, it intends to present and sponsor speakers, and to make Freedom Party's various audio and visual resources (including its literature and publications) available to faculty and students on campus. The club is currently seeking the input of both students and faculty and will be appealing directly to both for that support.

Election Literature and Issue Papers: Accompanying our fifth and sixth newsletters you will find, in addition to the reprints and updates of some of our older issue papers, our 1985 election literature and six new issue papers, including our expanded statements (We're In For A $hock with Ontario Hydro, Introducing Freedom of Choice to Education in Ontario) on issues that simply cannot be adequately covered in the space allotted on our regular-sized issue papers. Believe it or not, the process of developing an issue paper or statement can take as long as six months per issue! With each statement being written, re-written, edited, and marketed before we are satisfied with its release, we are confident that when it comes to a statement of political philosophy and intentions, no other party can compare with the offerings of Freedom Party.

Newsletters: Freedom Flyer is not the only newsletter published by Freedom Party. Five issues of our No-Tax for Pan-Am newsletter have gone to press and been delivered to over 1,000 subscribers in London. In addition, our first issue of Censorship Alert!, already in mid-production, will provide an in-depth look at the censorship scene in Ontario, Canada, and the world --- and at its consequences. Censorship Alert! coincides with Freedom Party's anti-censorship campaign, due to swing into full gear early this fall with accompanying buttons, placards, etc. Inquiries: Election '85 produced no less than 300 new inquiries and contacts, and in addition to sending these people their requested issue papers and information on Freedom Party, they will be invited to attend our meeting in September which will kick off our campaigns and activities for the 85-86 season. The meeting will feature speeches from our candidates, audio-visual presentations, and a re-cap of Freedom Party's progress to that point. And of course, members and supporters will be invited to the event as well; we hope to see as many of you there as possible.

GET INVOLVED!

As you can see, there's a lot of activity going on around here at Freedom Party --- and a lot more planned for the future. However, critical to the success of our efforts is your support. We're well aware that many of you don't always have the necessary time available to fully participate in each of our campaigns, and it's not something that we realistically expect. But support can be given in many ways: In addition to offering your time on whatever limited basis possible, financial contributions are always welcomed and always put to good use. If it has been a while since you last gave a financial contribution to Freedom Party, consider that option of involvement right now. Any amount (within provincially-established limits) is welcomed, as is any method or arrangement of payment support (i.e., post-dated cheques).

Though Freedom Party members and supporters have always come through with enough contributions to sustain our high-priority campaigns, many other projects and initiatives (which we haven't even told anyone about yet) are still waiting on the shelf for that financial input that will make them a reality. And if you've got some free time available, by all means, let us know.

The more people that are willing to help us out, and the sooner they are willing to help, the sooner success will be waiting for Freedom Party. Tell your friends and relatives about Freedom Party. Spread the word. Help distribute literature. Help write literature. Write us letters to criticize or compliment us.

It's all part of getting involved.

Do it now!




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