Hey folks. I am putting this out on many different tribes post to invite as many people over as possible.
If it doesn't seem as if it is on topic (it's community building and political) with your tribe I apologize. I'm sending it where I think the people that will be interested might go.

The tribe is called Renaissance Farms and the idea behind it is to get people connected. We have let too many politicians and corporate types run things for too long. I wasn't a big Dean supporter but it shows what you can do with the internet and a little imagination.

I am going to use this tribe and a website that I am currently working on to try and connect a LARGE group of like minded people together. I had originally said that this was for people from the the " Left to FAR Left, Libertarian, Progressives, Dems and Open Minded Republicans (yes they do exist)" although all views are welcome as long as they aren't hateful. (All that really maters is that you have a mind open to what is possible, which is anything. Oh yeah. The no Hateful still applies) It is about taking back some of the economic power.. The idea is to to keep the money within the group(or demographic or tribe or among people that vote similiarly or whatever you want to call it).. I am going to set up a website for the state of Ohio that will be a kind of directory of liberal links and businesses that are owned by people with a more left leaning attitude. Yes that is a divisive and partisan way to set something up but I have found that people on the left are more likely to give "experiments" and "crazy projects" a chance. If you have a different opinion i'd be glad to hear it. I've already been called on it by one person and learned something new.

A good example is that say you were going to donate money to a political campaign. Then there was storm and a tree fell through your roof. So now that money needs to go to fix your roof. If you go through a service provider that has similar political beliefs then it is possible that some of that money may still go to the same causes that you support. It is just closing up the system to a degree. .(Yes we already have some sites like these but I have not found any that are anywhere comprehensive enough)

There are an endless number of organizations and businesses in each state but they have never been put into one place. So I will get numbers and contact info from people like Stonewall and environmental groups, Unitarian churches, NPR affiliates and other organizations (Political Orgs-Dems, Green, Libertarian, do Anarchists organize???) and every kind of business that I can think of. The GLBT community has the Lavender pages (some are the Pink pages). Same concept. So now I need to start compiling a list of these groups and places. If you know any please start a list and pass it on and I will make contact to get all of the necessary info. It will take some time to get a comprehensive site going but I will keep the members of Renaissance Farms notified of progress as I go. I have posted to see if there are people in other Ohio cities that can help. Then once it is up and running it can be a place for people to find service providers and organizations. Then we can create sites for other states and group them together under one site. Make connections. And eventually it can be more. One importatnt thing will be the quality of the markeing blitz that we put out.(no not superbowl ads or even what Moveon.org does) We can use conventional marketing to get the word out. Things like the Alternative Papers. Booths at festivals and Bumperstickers. It's drive with which it is done that matters.

How many people do you know that are trying to run painting companies or freelance web design so that they can control their time and spend more with their families? How often would one sale make the difference between their staying in business or not. The stronger each individual is the stronger the whole. If a person has more time, money and less stress then there is a better chance that they will work to improve their community and world. I would prefer to give them my business than give it to someone that I have no connection with. We have to take care of each other just as the Conservatives have. Ours can be a community with all ethnicities and creeds, orientations and leanings. All that matters is an open mind. And the stronger each individual is in the community the stronger the community.

If you know anyone else that might be interested then pass along the info. The bigger it gets the more power it will have to change things and educate people (humanities, arts, history, even business and economics). THe more we all know and know about each other the better.

My goal right now is actually very simple. We just need add a few names of organizations a week to our local lists and then hopefully it will snowball. If we can get these lists going then maybe we can get other projects going along side of it. Like getting the business people on the list to get involved with mentoring kids. Encourage them to work on the creative side but also give them the tools to manage money and time so that they can make the most of life. I have a friend who is an artist and does go to the gatherings. She is great with money. She has been a perpetual student and a river guide and a nanny in London. But being able to manage her life gives her more time and possiblities for growth. The right wing cares mainly about wealth so that managing money is the main thing that they care about. People on the left care more about quality of life and experience. About creativity and imagination. We need to continue on with our strengths and improve our skills at managing things like money and time. Not trying to turn anyone into a republican. Just giving us the ability to do more of the things that are important to us. Less stress and more money can be achieved (or at least greatly helped along) by learning to manage our lives and time and fianances better. I work two jobs right now to pay off past excesses. If I had more time I could be campaigning for someone to beat dum dum. I will slowly do what I can. If you know anyone that is fed up with the way things are then please send them to Renaissance Farms. I will work with anyone who wants to help. All that we need to do tight now is to compile names addresses, numbers, email etc... for organizations and companies that are open minded. Most will be left leaning but you never know. We will surely miss things if we only hear one side of the argument. Open minds and imaginations are the important things.