Page 101 - Agenda 21

Page 101 of 121

Who are their members in your community? Are they residents or did they come from “out of town?”
(That could prove to be valuable information later in the fight). Finding this information may be the
hardest of your efforts. They like to operate out of the spotlight. It’s not likely that the town will carry
official documentation of who it is working with. It probably will require that you attend lots of
meetings and hearings. Take note of who is there and their role. Do this quietly. Don’t announce to the
community what you are doing. Don’t make yourselves a target. You may have to ask questions and
that may raise some eyebrows. But stay out of the way as much as possible.”

“Get all the details on the plans your community is working on. Has there already been legislation
passed? Most of this information can be found on the town website. Knowing this information will
help you put together a plan of action. Once you have it, you can begin to take your fight public.”

“With the information you have gathered, begin to examine the effect the policies will have on the
community and its residents. Find who the victims of the legislation may be. This will be of great value
as you confront city council. People understand victim stories – especially if it is them. It is the best
way to undermine the process.”

“You will find that Conservation Easements have raised taxes as much of the county land is removed
from the tax rolls – someone has to make up for the lost revenue and the payment of easements. Are
“stakeholder” groups helping to get landowners to sign up for the easements – and if so – do they get
any kind of kickbacks? Who are getting the easements? You may find the rich land owners have found
a great loophole to cut their own property taxes as the middle class pays for it.”

“Does the community plan call for reduction of energy use? If so, look for calls for energy audits and
taxes on energy use. The audits mean that the government has set a goal to reduce energy use. It will
follow that government agents are going to come into your home to inspect your energy use. Then they
are going to tell you what must be done in your home to cut usage. That will cost you money. Don’t fall
for the line that it is all voluntary – to help you save money. They haven’t gone to this much trouble to
be ignored. Regulations are not voluntary.”

“These are just a couple of examples of what to look for as you do your research. There are many more,
including meters on wells to control water use, smart meters on your thermostat to take away your
control of your thermostat; non-elected boards and councils to control local development and
implement smart growth, leading to population growth; Public/Private Partnerships with local and
large corporations to “go Green;” creation of open space; pushing back live stock from streams,
enforcing sustainable farming methods that restrict energy and water use in farming practices; and
much more. It all leads to higher costs and shortages, in the name of environmental protection and
conservation.”

“Your goal is to stop Sustainable Development in your community. That means to stop the creation of
non-elected regional government councils that are difficult to hold accountable. It means to stop local
governments from taking state and federal grants that come with massive strings attached to enforce
compliance. And it means you must succeed in removing outsider organizations and Stakeholder
groups that are pressuring your elected officials to do their bidding.”

“Armed with as much information as you can gather (and armed with the ability to coherently discuss
its details) you are ready to take you battle to the public. First, it would be better for you to try to
discuss it privately with some of your elected officials, especially if you know them. Tell them what you
have found and explain why you are opposed. First discuss the effects of the policies on the average
citizen. Explain why they are bad. Slowly being the conversation around to the origin of such polices –
Agenda 21 and the UN. Don’t start there. It is important that you build the case to show that these
policies are not local, but part of a national and international agenda. If this conversation does not go
well (and it probably won’t) then you have to take it to the next level – to the public.”

“Begin a twofold campaign. First, write a series of letters to the editor for the local newspaper. Make
sure that you are not alone. Coordinate your letters with others who will also write letters to back up