[johnwilliamson062]

I wrote this letter and sent it to Governor Strickland today. I was just thinking it would be good to send acknowledgment to a politician who 'gets' the importance of the First and Second Amendment. This might be a good time to look for allies where we might not normally and send them a note of thanks and praise. Any use of my letter in its entirety or part is fine as long as its message is not misconstrued. Lets keep this positive.

Governor's Office
Riffe Center, 30th Floor
77 South High Street
Columbus, OH 43215-6108

Dear Governor Strickland,

I wanted to first congratulate you on the success of your party nationwide over the last few weeks. The Democrats ran an amazing campaign across the board and deserve every victory they received.
You personally have been doing an exceptional job and will more than likely receive unprecedented conservative report in the 2010 election. Almost every conservative I speak to at least admits he/she has nothing bad to say about your performance, and many admit they will vote for you. Your common sense approach and willingness to stand up to unions on issues which would destroy Ohio’s economy indicate fortitude rare in politicians.

I wanted to tell you that, as a young businessman, I see the state of our nation as very similar to one I have seen in many people’s personal lives. Everyone realizes the bankruptcy is approaching, and it is now time to max out the credit cards and transfer the cars title to the kids before anyone comes to collect the debt. I think the conservatives would have done this as much as the liberals, they just would have chosen different programs. Now we will just have to wait around and see how kind the lenders are when we finally get to court.

My major area of concern following this election and the current economic trend in our nation is the preservation of our First and Second Amendment rights. I fear these rights will stand for more in the next decades than they have in the last century. I fear the Second Amendment will be the first to go and will suffer the more direct and combatable restriction. It is important to see the difference between a privilege to pursue a hobby, such as hunting, and a right guaranteed under the Constitution such as that of citizens to bear arms of kind and quality similar, if not equivalent, to the military. When the Right to bear arms is restricted the government is no longer, “…of the people…” May we both hope and pray the time never comes when the citizens of this country feel it is necessary to utilize their right to retain the legitimate use of force instead of delegating it to their elected representatives, and may we both strive to protect the citizens’ right to do so as the greatest check and balance.

The following is the URL of a second amendment defense from a liberal perspective:
http://www.dailykos.com/story/2008/4/21/19133/5152
For further guidance on this issue, I believe the best source is the remarks of our founding fathers, who almost universally agreed on the First and Second Amendment despite heated differences on the others. This almost universal agreement underlines the import of these rights in a free society.

Thank you for your time. I hope you will continue to support both of these issues at the state and, where possible, national level with the common sense you have in the past.
Sincerely,



John Williamson
A Concerned Libertarian
(937) 672-0270