======================================================================

The Atlanta Declaration: Every man, woman, and responsible child has a 
natural,  fundamental,  and inalienable human,  individual, civil, and 
Constitutional right to obtain,  own, and carry,  openly or concealed, 
any weapon -- handgun,  shotgun, rifle,  machinegun, \anything\ -- any 
time, anywhere, without asking anyone's permission.

======================================================================

L. NEIL SMITH'S \LEVER ACTION\ LETTER                       NUMBER 00b

                    == SOME TACTICAL REFLECTIONS ==

If you're not a bit uncomfortable with your position, it isn't radical 
enough. How can you be \too\ principled? Take the most extreme position 
you can. You're claiming territory you won't have to fight for later, 
mostly with your "allies".
     
Let the \other\ guy offer compromises. Think of them as rungs on a ladder. 
Keep your own goal firmly in mind and make sure you never move any 
direction but upward. That's how the other side got where they are. It works.

     Never aim at anything but total achievement of your goal, utter 
capitulation of the enemy. Every effort involves inertia and mechanical 
losses, so adopting lesser objectives means partial defeat. Total victory 
means you don't have to fight the same fight again tomorrow.

     Second thoughts, failure of confidence, nervous last-minute 
course-changes are all \detours\ and recipes for defeat. The time to think 
is \before\ the battle -- if possible, before the \war\ -- not in the 
heat of it.

     The shortest path to victory is a straight line. He who remains most 
\consistent\ wins.

     Go straight to the heart of the enemy's greatest strength. Break that 
and you break him. You can mop up the flanks and stragglers later, and they 
may even surrender, saving you a lot of effort.

     Attack in "perpendicular" fashion, from an unconventional and unexpected 
(but relevant) direction. The enemy will be unprepared; you can strike with 
your full strength while he finds nothing to attack effectively.

     Remain the judge of your own actions. Never surrender that position by 
default. When the enemy screams "Foul!" the loudest, you know you're doing 
him the most damage. Those who \help\ him scream are also the enemy.

     If you can avoid it, never play on the other guy's \field\, by the other 
guy's \rules,\ or with the other guy's \ball.\ He didn't design \his\ system 
to give \you\ the advantage. Remember that organisms defending their own 
territory are twice as effective as an intruding attacker.

     You may never convince the other guy, but it's often worthwhile to keep 
arguing for the effect it has on bystanders, especially \his\ allies.

     Well-timed silence is an effective bargainer. Most people fear silence 
at a level below conscious analysis and rush to fill the emptiness with 
accommodation. A difficult tactic to learn and use, but it works.

     The more fundamental position is the highest ground, allowing the most
"perpendicular" attack. If he argues politics, argue ethics -- things 
seldom go beyond this stage. If he argues ethics, argue epistemology (look 
it up). If he argues epistemology, argue metaphysics. If he argues 
metaphysics, you're up against Darth Vader and you're in trouble. Switch 
back to politics and accuse him of being out of touch with everyday reality -- 
or ask him if he's stopped beating his wife.

     Conservatives are accustomed to being called fascists and well prepared 
to defend themselves on that ground. Liberals are used to being called 
socialists. Those labels can be switched, however, and remain valid and 
instructive. It also catches them completely unprepared.

     Understand from the minute the fight begins that you're going to take 
damage. Accept it. (You'll suffer more from idiots and cowards on your own 
side than from any enemy.) Keep your overall goal in mind above all. Those 
who swerve to avoid a few cuts and bruises defeat themselves.

     If you lose, go down fighting. It costs nothing extra, and now and 
again ...

     Know down to the last cell in your body that \he\ started it. \He's\ 
the one who put things in an ethical context where considerations like 
decency and mercy have no referent. The less pity moves you now, the sooner 
you can go back to being a nice guy.

     Otherhandwise, the easiest, most humiliating path to defeat is thinking 
that to beat your enemy you must be like him. Avoid the temptation to set your 
values aside "for the duration". What's the point of fighting if you give up 
what you're fighting for? If remaining consistent with your values leads to 
defeat, you chose the wrong values to begin with.

     Truth is a valuable commodity which you don't automatically \owe\ to 
anyone. Remember, however, that lies are even more expensive -- they're 
tiring and costly to maintain -- and even a tiny one can utterly destroy you.

     Never soft-pedal the truth. It's seldom self-evident and almost never 
sells itself. There's less sales resistance to a glib and comforting lie.

     Lies can be custom-tailored. Truth comes straight off the rack. One size 
fits all.

     Those who lead through authority have rivals on whom they must expend 
as much energy and attention as they do on their enemies. Those who lead by 
example have enemies, but no rivals.

======================================================================

L. NEIL SMITH'S \LEVER ACTION\ LETTER                       NUMBER 00b
111 EAST DRAKE ROAD        SUITE 7032
FORT COLLINS, COLORADO  U.S.A.  80525

L. Neil Smith is the award-winning author of 16 novels including 
\Henry Martyn, The Crystal Empire, BrightSuit MacBear, Taflak Lysandra, 
The Probability Broach,\ and the forthcoming FORGE OF THE ELDERS 
trilogy, beginning with CONTACT AND COMMUNE.

Your contributions to this effort, while extremely welcome, are not 
tax-deductible.

======================================================================


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