Prior to, but especially since 9/11, I have often listened to the news and have felt the desire to become more politically active. I have been elected to be a delegate to party conventions and now serve as my party’s precinct chair. I have voted in every elected since I turned 18. I have done all I thought I could to try and make an impact for good in my community but still have felt almost entirely powerless to bring about change.

Also, for the amount of time I spend listening to the news (I have a monster of a commute), I thought I should have been better educated about the issues. I felt informed, but not educated. So, I asked myself, "How can I become politically educated without getting a Ph.D. in Political Science?"

Education takes some effort but I have found that knowledge and understanding is power. An excellent place to start is to go to the sources of Washington policy: “think-tanks.”

These “think tanks” are groups that have an incredible amount of clout with Washington with former representatives, cabinet members, ambassadors and spouses of elected officials serving on their staff. Their ties are closer to policy makers than anyone I am aware of. To learn what they are recommending and why they are recommending it is an incredibly valuable key to understanding how these interest groups affect policy and therefore our liberty. Please click on the links to the right and subscribe to their e-mail alerts. You will learn more than the news could ever teach. Their opinions are well thought out, very educated and combine the ideas of some of the world’s brightest. However, not all of their views are in line with the principles of individual liberty freedom.