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ABATE of SC continues to grow and improve

State of the State midway though the 2005-2006 Legislative Session

ABATE of SC continues to grow and improve.  Please consider becoming more involved by running for an office in ABATE at the chapter, area, or state level.  Nominations are open for state officers and the elections will be help during September.  I will again be seeking the position of State Coordinator of ABATE of SC.

Make plans to attend our state party and celebrate 25 years of freedom from a repressive helmet law in South Carolina.  Hard work by people just like you regained that freedom 25 years ago and hard work has continued to defend it ever since.

The US Senate voted down an attempt by Senator Lautenberg to reinstate the Federal Helmet Law Mandate.  You can all be proud that both of our senators voted on the side of liberty.  I would like to extend my thanks to each of you who called and emailed your US senators.

On the state level we need to really get behind S772 and repeal the handlebar law in South Carolina; it will not be easy to pass S772 but it is possible.  Please contact your senator and ask him to co-sponsor and support S772.  This bill will go a long ways towards helping end discrimination against bikers if it is passed into law.  It is up to the membership of ABATE of SC to make this bill a law.  Write and call your senators and representatives at home this summer asking them to take action and support S772.

The state legislative session has finally recessed until January but our work continues.  It appears Representative Wilkins wishes to leave us the present of more authoritarian socialism before he leaves for Canada; first he tried to give us S40 and red light cameras and failing that he decided to push S1 and try to give us a primary seat belt law.  I hope our friends in the Upstate will fill his old seat with a friend of liberty.  I hope Wilkins finds a permanent home in the Great White Socialist North.

I suggest we need to get more involved in campaigns and political parties.  The recorded vote on the second reading of S1 in the House shows both parties have lost sight of individual liberties and individual responsibilities.  We have enough members to take over both major parties in most counties of South Carolina.  If we get more involved we can remove planks from the party platforms we dislike and possibly add some of our own planks.  Would you like to see a plank in both parties recognizing the right of individuals to enjoy liberty?  A better plank might be one clearly stating that liberty always precedence to safety concerns or a plank stating the government has no right to mandate personal safety devises to the citizens of South Carolina.

This legislative session has blessed us with two lists; the first list contains legislators who are friends of liberty and the second list contains legislators who are opponents of liberty.  Both lists are printed in the senate and house journals; see how your elected officials voted in the 02/02/05 Senate Journal and the 05/18/05 House Journal.  I would suggest we use these lists to decide which campaigns to work for and against next election cycle unless individual legislators redeem themselves.

The following is the Legislative Honor Roll based upon S1 voting records; these legislators deserve your thanks:

Senate Honor Roll: Alexander, Bryant, Campsen, Grooms, Hawkins, Knotts, McConnell, Mescher, Peeler, Pinckney, Scott, and Verdin.

House Honor Roll: Altman, Bailey, Barfield, Cato, Chellis, Clemmons, Coates, Cooper, Dantzler, Davenport, Duncan, Edge, Haley, Hamilton, Hardwick, Hinson, Kirsh, Leach, Limehouse, Loftis, Mahaffey, Merrill, Perry, M. A. Pitts, Rice, Simrill, G. R. Smith, Thompson, Toole, Tripp, Umphlett, Vaughn, Viers, White, Witherspoon, and Young.

I have spoken with Dennis our legislative coordinator and we both agree that legislative meetings should continue throughout the summer; the legislative session has been hard and it is time for our legislative warriors to regroup and rearm.  I look forward to seeing you at the state party and our next state meeting on July 23rd.

FastFred Ruddock
ABATE of SC State Coordinator

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