Please send this info to everyone in your meetup group

I recognize that much scrambling is going on in the movement to
build something to replace the costly Meetup system. My take
on this, from what I have been able to gather, is
unconventional. All of the potential solutions out there that
I have seen, and most that I have heard about, continue with
the concept of groups.

Groups form a hierarchical structure. They establish
divisions, or boundaries, between subsets of the population.
When attempting to organize atop an existing bureaucracy, such
as the Republican Party, groups divided by state and county
make sense. However, when attempting to organize an organic,
grassroots movement, the group divisions are essentially
arbitrary. I therefore think we should consider alternatives
to perpetuating the artificial boundaries that the group
structure imposes.

The alternative that I envision is a communications network
based not on groups but rather on locations and distances.
Unless I'm writing on an issue pertaining specifically to my
county, I don't really want to talk to everyone in my county,
but rather only to those people who are within a particular
distance of myself, which could very well include people in
other counties! For some topics I want to reach only people
very nearby, and for other topics I want to reach a larger
area. On the receiving end, I don't always care about events
going on clear on the other side of my county (counties in
Florida are large), so I would prefer to "dial down" the
messages I receive to include only those originating closer to
myself.

Such a system wouldn't replace the group-centric system of
Meetup or Google Groups, but would instead be a parallel system
serving a different purpose. Many discussions need to take
place on a county or state level, and those discussions should
be held via the group system, whichever one or ones we wind up
choosing. However, many discussions would be better focused
around individual locations with no regard for arbitrary
political boundaries.

As a software engineer, I naturally had to implement this idea
I've had. The active and fully-functional system can now be
found at www.freedomfortress.net.

In the coming weeks, I will be working on adding an event
system to Freedom Fortress. This will allow users to place a
pin on the map, choose a date, and enter a description of their
event. Then members within a given distance of that event will
receive notification of the event via email. Members will
additionally be able to select a range of dates from a calendar
widget and see the corresponding events on the map. Clicking
one of the pins on the map will pop up a bubble showing the
description of the event.

Another idea, which Nathan Estey, organizer of the National Ron
Paul Organizers Meetup, came up with and related to me, is a
member directory. Members could optionally choose to be
published in the directory and could enter some keywords
related to their profession and skills. Then other members
could search the map by keyword to locate members with a
particular skill.

And all of this operates without the need for segregating the
member population into groups.

I think there is great value in having one of our own build the
tools we will use to organize and communicate. Literally
anything is possible, and we won't have company XYZ telling us,
"deal with it," when we mention a shortcoming or request a new
feature.

Fantastic idea! I will go check it out right now. I've been wishing for something like this. I hardly ever hear from anyone in my groups, and we really need to get organized for the upcoming protest and rally season. Especially April 15th.

I love this thing... so I added it to the "about us" drop down menu at the top of the site so our visitors can have quick access to it, while still having access to the other tools at RTR.

Check it out by clicking HERE

Gary wrote:
I love this thing... so I added it to the "about us" drop down menu at the top of the site so our visitors can have quick access to it, while still having access to the other tools at RTR.

Check it out by clicking HERE

Wow!! That's great Gary.. I am glad you liked it and i hope people will use this great new tool.

Here's the FAQ's i recieved on the freedom fortress. Hopefully it will help any questions you may have on the use of the great communication tool.

1. Sending Messages
1.1. How do I start a new thread?

Send an email to <distance>@freedomfortress.net, where <distance> is a number followed by "mi" for miles or "km" for kilometers. For example, to start a new thread reaching members within 25 miles of yourself, you would send an email to 25mi@freedomfortress.net.
1.2. How do I reply to a thread?

Just press the Reply button. Your reply will be sent to everyone participating in that thread.
1.3. Can I send a message to a single member?

Presently Freedom Fortress does not provide a way to contact a single member. If there is sufficient demand, this capability may be added in the future.
2. Reducing Mail Volume
2.1. How do I block a thread?

If you are included in a thread that you find offensive or uninteresting, you can block future messages in that thread by clicking the link that says "Block all future messages in this thread" at the bottom of a message in that thread.
2.2. How do I block a specific user?

If a particular user is being abusive or offensive, you can block messages from that user by clicking one of the links labeled "Block messages from this sender" at the bottom of a message you received from that user.
3. Membership
3.1. How do I deactivate my Freedom Fortress membership?

There are two ways you can do this:

* Click the link in your welcome letter to access your options page. Then check the check box labeled "Deactivate my membership" and press the Save button.
* Click the link that says "Unsubscribe from Freedom Fortress entirely" at the bottom of any message you have received through Freedom Fortress. You will need to have previously accessed your options page with your current web browser in order to be authenticated to use this method.

3.2. How do I reactivate my Freedom Fortress membership?

If you've deactivated your membership, you can reactivate it by accessing your options page through the link in your welcome letter.
3.3. How can I get another copy of my welcome letter?

You can request another copy of your welcome letter by filling out this form.
3.4. How do I change my display name, location, or other membership options?

Click the link in your welcome letter to access your membership options page. There you can change your display name, your location, and your reception radius.