The Redhunter

Get Out And Campaign

No matter where you live you've got a congressman, and every two years they're up for reelection. If you like the incumbent, campaign for him or her. If you like the challenger then contact that person.

I know what you're worried about: "I'm not a professional" "I don't have any skills they could use" "I don't have much time" "They'll turn me away"

Not to worry. Believe you me, they'll take you for as long or as short a period as you can spare the time, and they've got jobs from stuffing envelopes to standing in front of shopping centers handing out flyers to putting up (and later removing) the signs you see along the roads. It all needs to be done, and every bit helps.

Contact Local Activist Groups

I know of two conservative groups that organize rallies and counter-protests and have chapters around the country: Free Republic and Protest Warriors.

I'm affiliated with the former and know members of the latter. All you have to do is go onto their websites and there are contact forms you can fill out. If someone doesn't get back to you please send me an email and I'll do what I can through my contacts to help you out.

"But there's nothing going on in my area"

My guess is there's a lot more going on than you realize, you just don't know about it.

Also, don't think that contacting one of the above groups obligates you to anything. Believe you me, whatever you can do, whatever you can attend, it all helps.

Also, if you've got images of 1960s style protests with clouds of tear gas and the cops arresting everyone, forget it. At all the big ones I've been to the police form a barrier between us and the lefties and there's never been any trouble.

In the smaller events just keep your distance and don't let your emotions take control. Advise others in your group to do likewise. Rarely are there personal confrontations and when there are it's because people forget to keep their distance, or let their emotions take them away.

So take the plunge and make the contact.

Monitor the Lefties Yourself

Much of the time the leftists post notices of their rallies and protests on their websites. This is partly how people at FreeRepublic and the Protest Warriors get their information on what the left is going to do.

If you're really bold, get on a leftist mailing list. Most sites allow you to do it free, you just sign up on their site. If you're worried about being identified or don't want to give out your main email address, simply go to yahoo or hotmail and set up an email account specially for that purpose. I haven't done this, but may do so if I feel the need arises.

The point is that I read all the time on various blogs and whatnot about some leftist protest in some other part of the country. These provide a perfect opportunity to get out and counter-protest the lefties. Believe you me, they'll be surprised and taken aback that they don't have the streets to themselves. But then, that's the idea.

Some of the big leftie sites than I'm aware of where they often post notices of rallies are AntiWar.com, Indymedia, and of course MoveOn.org Each of these groups have local chapters, and most of the time each has it's own website. Further, each site has dozens of links to other leftist organizations.

If you do decide to organize rallies or counter-protests yourself, beware that you may need a permit. Different areas have different laws, and it behooves you to become familiar with them.

Support the Troops

Most of all, let's not forget who's fighting the real war; the troops around the world, particularly those in Afghanistan and Iraq. They need our direct support, and this certainly anyone in the country can do even if you live on a mountaintop in the middle of nowhere.

I've spoken to many (relative term there) troops who've returned from one or another theater, and they all say the same thing.

"Send mail. One time or every week, it doesn't matter. A simple letter or a big package, it all helps."

Chris Missick told me that from talking to a lot of people his impression was that people thought that unless they could send the "big" package, it wasn't worth sending anything at all, because one single letter either wouldn't be appreciated or wouldn't matter. He stressed to me that every single thing matters to the troops in the field.

At right you'll see a section called "Helping the Troops". Actually, you'll need to click the left/back arrow of your brower and return to theredhunter.com to see all the blogrolls.

Take your pick as to which one you'd like to contact. I've chosen Adopt-a-Platoon, and have participated in one of their programs for almost a year and a half.

They've got many different levels that you can choose, from supporting an entire platoon, to an individual soldier, to a one-time letter, gift, or package. I've chosen the weekly letter to a soldier one and am on my fourth trooper now, the others having been rotated back home. I usually try to stuff the comics or sports section of the paper in the envelope with my letter, as I'm sure they're happy to have something to read besides the side of an MRE.

In the End

Blogging is great. I love doing this, and I love visiting other blogs.

But there's nothing as rewarding as getting out and actually doing something. Whether it is campaigning, countering the lefties, or just sending a soldier a letter. It all counts.

I don't call myself The Redhunter for nothing.