The peaceful village of Pinetop-Lakeside sits at 7200 ft. elevation in the White Mountains of NW Arizona, under a canopy of the largest stand of Ponderosa pine in the world.  It is populated by forty-two hundred, happy residents who love their quality of life. Gridlock, pollution, shopping malls, high crime, and tall buildings don’t exist here. The town is governed by a Council-Manager form of government composed of average, every day, individuals.  The Town Manager, like many Town Managers throughout the country, is a member of the ICMA, (International Cities Managers Association), and often relies on the Arizona League of Arizona Cities and Towns for advice.  

Every ten years, as dictated by AZ state statue, the Town must present a General Plan to the public for approval.  The General Plan is the roadmap for the town’s future planning.  Pinetop-Lakeside depends heavily on state and federal grants for its local improvements, and employs a full time grant writer to secure these funds.  One might think that Pinetop-Lakeside is well out of the reach of international planners.  Think again. 

Although not reported much by the mainstream media, even the average man on the street in this small, out of the way village may have heard reports of the invasive arm of Washington infringing on their rights (i.e. NSA domestic spying, TSA body searches, FCC takeover of the Internet, called, Net Neutrality, drone warfare, federally mandatory vaccines, etc.).  But allow me to bring you up to date on how close to home a lesser known threat has evolved.  Be assured that if the extent of intrusion of our long-held, basic rights is threatened in this small hamlet, it has also taken hold in your town or city---often without the knowledge or understanding of your local leaders. 

After the Earth Summit of 1992 the United Nations implemented a “sustainable development” plan, (www.sustainabledevelopment.un.org), designed to affect future planning on global, national and local levels.  On the surface, sustainable development sounds like a positive proposal that most would accept and approve. That was my initial impression because I respect the environment and want reasonable portions of it to remain intact for future generations.  When I sat down and actually read the directive, however, I realized how invasive it was to life, limb and property. The Plan seeks for the government to curtail your travel as you please, own a gas powered car, live in suburbs or rural areas or raise a family. It would also eliminate your private property rights through eminent domain.  As Orwellian as it may sound, it is a plan that would inventory and control all land, all water, all minerals, all plants, all animals, all construction, all means of production, all energy, all information, all education, and all human being in the world, including you, (www.postsustainabilityinstitute.org). It’s implementation includes placing international bodies of authority over local zoning, encourages stack and pack housing, and, believe it or not, even the reduction of the current world population.  

The International Council for Local Environmental Initiatives, (ICLEI), was established to implement the U.N. sustainable development plan.  The ICMA, (mentioned above), is an offshoot of ICLIE designed to indoctrinate local Town Managers into the program.  Thus far in Pinetop-Lakeside six of our local codes, (Uniform Building Codes), have been replaced in favor of U.N. International Codes. Pinetop-Lakeside has also adopted a Town Plan calling for several nodal areas whereby residents would inhabit living spaces crammed into condo-like buildings.  The persuasive promise to Town leaders and residents from those promoting this planning scheme was that by abandoning single family dwellings, more of the natural environment could be preserved.  While preserving our natural environment may be a noble cause, residents should ask, at what cost? 

We have already seen actions from the federal level that curtail our privacy, ( i.e. the Patriot Act , the Department of Homeland Security, NSA domestic spying), effectively eroding our 1st,4th, and 5th amendments---all of which offer some degree of privacy, (www.law.cornell.edu/wex/privacy).  Like the U.N. Plan sold to us to preserve our environment, these additional impositions on American freedoms were sold to protect us from terrorism.  It is becoming more and more obvious since 9/11 that our freedoms and rights are intentionally being assaulted.  If the movement continues without citizen resistance, our way of life, and quality of life, will be a thing of the past. 

The 2015 Pinetop-Lakeside General Plan which will be presented to local voters as an efficient, condensed Plan may appear acceptable on the surface, but the devil is in the details.  Although only six pages long, it has hundreds of pages of appendices attached, many endorsing the U.N. sustainable development proposals.  This author strongly advises local voters who value their private property rights not to be fooled by this innocuous plan and reject it in the voting booth.  

Andrew Jackson, in his Farewell Address to the nation told us, “But you must remember my fellow citizens, eternal vigilance by the people is the price of liberty, and you must pay the price if you wish to secure the blessing.  It behooves you, therefore, to be watchful in your states as well as in the federal government.”  At no time in history prior to the founders’ great experiment of creating a government of the people, did such a marvelous design exist.  Nations were governed by monarchs, and dictators--and under such systems freemen did not roam the earth.  The Founders knew, however, that only if the people maintained a constant vigilance in combination of an informed electorate could this untested type of government function efficiently---or even survive.  

The patriot, Samuel Langdon, stated before the Massachusetts legislature in 1788:  “From year to year be careful in the choice of your representatives and the higher powers of government.  Fix your eyes upon men of good understanding and known honesty; men of knowledge, improved by experience; men who fear God and hate covetousness; who love truth and righteousness, and sincerely wish for the public welfare . . . .  Let not men openly irreligious and immoral become your legislators . . . .  If the legislative body is corrupt, you will soon have bad men for councilors, corrupt judges, unqualified justices, and officers in every department who will dishonor their stations . . . . ”  

Today, and for quite some time, too many Americans have sadly forgotten their most vital responsibility with regard to the preservation of Freedom and Liberty.  We have allowed immoral men and women to hold high office in all levels of government, we have chosen our leaders, not on sound and wise principles, but often on the party they belong to, the cleverness of their sound-bites, or sometimes their hairstyle or smile.  Pinetop-Lakeside is really not much different in this respect as with other towns or cities in America: The public has forgotten their civic duty.

In Jefferson’s Declaration of Independence, he wrote: “To secure these rights, governments are instituted among men, deriving their just powers from the consent of the governed . . . .  Whenever any form of government becomes destructive of these ends, it is the right of the people to alter or abolish it and to institute new government . . .”     

In Pinetop-Lakeside, Jefferson’s sage words seem to have fallen on deaf ears---as it has all across the country.  It could not be stressed enough that because it is often the nature of some to gravitate and lust for power, wealth, and control; and as history has shown us, evil men have always managed to gain position in high office; and when this occurs, freedom is lost, and the people suffer the unfortunate results. 

At a typical Pinetop-Lakeside Town Council meeting, it is rare to witness more than two or three members of the public in attendance, and often it is the same few faces.  The public at large has no idea how their elected representatives are voting, and consequently, as in Congress, the big spenders on the Council abuse taxpayers revenues and as a consequence vital needs (like roads) are neglected.  The per capita income, (2009), in our town is $24,165. (www.pinetoplakesideaz.gov), but the previous town council had the town manager’s salary at $116,000., (not including $10,000. in deferred income), while the AZ Governor’s salary is $95,000.  This is the result of an uninformed, uninvolved electorate, with few exceptions. 

Our country’s founders created a federal government with specific, and limited, enumerated powers.  They knew that citizens living farthest from the federal seat of government would affect less influence so they placed emphasis on strong local government with problems being solved to the greatest extent possible where they originated, and where people could more easily influence their local representatives living in their community or who may even be their neighbors.  

The colonists were very familiar with the Constitution and Bill of Rights, unlike today where the average man in the street may have no idea what ‘inalienable rights’ are.  Public schools can be blamed for a good portion of the problem as Constitution studies, for the most part, are a thing of the past.  Consider if we had a fully informed, totally literate population on the subject of civics how greatly improved our various levels of government might be?  One might even suspect the dumbing-down of the American public was intentional because informed voters would have thrown out all the inept, unqualified representatives serving for the wrong reasons. 

Like the story of the frog on slow boil, we are gradually losing our basic rights, the fruits of our labor are being squandered through misuse of our taxes, and our personal property rights are being diminished.  If we don’t wake up and get involved at some level, the future is clear:  We will no longer enjoy the blessings of Liberty.  It certainly is time---indeed, well overdue---that good men and women must familiarize themselves with the tenants of proper government, in order to restore the Republic . . .  starting locally.  

There are solutions to all these problems, and steps each of us could take, but it will require that we all first recognize that Liberty and Freedom cannot be taken for granted, and that many of our representatives do not have our best interests in mind.  We have to place liberty and freedom as a priority in our life, and make room in our schedules to get involved, and educated.  

A few suggestions from this author would be to become better informed.  Two great starter books might be, “The Making of America,” by W. Cleon Skousen, published by the National Center for Constitution Studies, (www.nccs.net), “The Shadows of Power” by James Perloff, (www.jamesperloff.com).  Since we were meant to be a nation of self-rule by the people, I’d suggest supporting groups like:  Citizens for Self Governance, (self govern.com), Center for Self-Governance, (www.mrspowell.org), and/or, American Academy for Constitutional Education, (www.aace.com). 

Americans should be aware a movement has been started in Navajo County, AZ with the intent to restore American Liberty-One County at a Time (www.constitutionalcountyproject.org).  I’d also suggest supporting Freedom’s Phoenix Digital Magazine, (www.freedomsphoenix.com), stop watching  FOX, MSNBC, and CNN, and switch to alternative news:  www. drudge.com, www.RepublicBraodcasting.com , and The Declare Your Independence Ernest Hancock Radio Show.  

Whenever possible, attend your local Town Council meetings, and don’t vote for any incumbents unless you familiarize yourself with their voting record and agree with it.  Write a few Letters to the Editor alerting Americans of the problems we face and the need to become involved, educated, and active. Lastly, join, (or start), a local citizens watchdog group. 

Any effort you make is better than none.