Ryan Gilroy

Rock Concert on Campus

Oct 25, 2011 at 2:29 PM

By Ryan Gilroy

If you're looking for a social event to host on campus, consider a concert with Jordan Page:

If you're interested please email him here.

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Since I graduated from college in May 2009, I've gained some experience in studying America's unique political system. While I was in college, I was introduced to the American National Elections Studies, or ANES, from Michigan.

I saw this graphic from ANES and imagined this picture has a great thing to tell us:

or even this one:

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Spending Money We Don't Have on Things We Don't Need

Oct 3, 2011 at 12:27 PM

By Ryan Gilroy

Forbes has put together a list of the silliest uses of tax dollars by our government:

$930 Million: On unnecessary printing costs
$175 Million: On an unused monkey house (and other structures)
$112 Million: On fraudulent tax reimbursements to prisoners
$47.6 Million: On streetcar system that runs the same rout as the subway system below it
$15.68 Million: On an unprofitable shooting range
$5 Million: On a three week conference for the Federal Aviation Administration
$4.2 Million: "Duplicative Shuttle Services for Federal Employees"
$3 million: Treadmills for shrimp
$2.5 Million: On a U.S. Census commercial that appeared during the Super Bowl
$2 Million: On a study about posting pictures online
$1.5 Million: On new toilets for Denali National Park
$1.5 Million: On a laundry-folding robot
$1 Million: On a study about baby names

Click here for details on each item. It is really amazing what dumb ideas manage to get government funding!

Comments (32)

Paying it Forward

Sep 16, 2011 at 10:47 AM

By Ryan Gilroy

Paying it forward: It's the simple idea that doing good shouldn't be forced upon you, but welcome. Charity is deep within the American spirit; I believe it's based in America's unique ability to create community through faith and civil society, not the heavy hand of government. Watching this video gives me hope that other people will continue to pay it forward:

Comments (4)

Updating an Old Classic

Aug 25, 2011 at 11:27 AM

By Ryan Gilroy

If you've never taken the Youth Leadership School from the Leadership Institute, you're truly missing out. It's an easy way to maximize your effectiveness as a student activist.

One of the techniques the YLS teaches is especially applicable for those heading to a Division I campus this fall: Operation Pigskin. The idea is that you create a flyer for whatever sport is most popular at your school (usually football) with a roster and season schedule on one side and information about your YAL chapter in general or an upcoming activism event on the reverse side. Hand out the flyers to fans who will happily take it to learn about their team -- and then also learn something about liberty. Use school colors to make the flyer more appealing to fans, and make sure to hand it to people with the roster/schedule side up.

I've attached a basic template to give you an idea of how to make your flyer. Good luck!

File Attachments
Pig_Skin_2.0.docx	30.1 KB

Comments (3)

Activism Idea: Move-in Day

Aug 17, 2011 at 4:07 PM

By Ryan Gilroy

If you're a YAL member who's a sophomore, junior, or senior, take a hint out of the fraternity and sorority play book and use freshmen move-in week as a recruitment opportunity! If you can get back to campus in time for when the freshmen move in, wear a YAL shirt and help the new students get settled in their dorm rooms.

Once you've helped them move in, invite your new acquaintances to your first YAL meeting (have some flyers on hand). If your plan works, they just might feel obliged to check YAL out!

Make sure you leave contact info like your email, Facebook, and even phone number so they can get in touch with any questions about YAL or their new school in general -- and if they seem interested in YAL, ask for their info as well so you can follow up.

Comments (2)

Annoyed by College Advisors? Want to work for liberty?

Mar 21, 2011 at 9:47 AM

By Ryan Gilroy

As Spring Break ends, I have to admit to missing college a little. However, for those of you who are still in school, I've got an offer you can't refuse.

Is your college advisor or career office...not exactly liberty friendly? Are you having difficulty getting through to them that you want a career advancing liberty?

Advisor If you would like a free, liberty-minded consultation for your resume, I currently work for a staffing agency in New Jersey. I'm happy to discuss your resume and help you design it for success in the liberty movement. Feel free to contact me at my personal email, though we can also arrange a phone call if you'd prefer.

P.S. -- Active YAL chapters, don't forget about my plan to help your group design and produce chapter t-shirts!

Free Coffee?

Mar 5, 2011 at 12:20 PM

By Ryan Gilroy

There's an old adage which says "there's no such thing as a free lunch." However, if you're in a unionand you have the government behind you, there apparently is free coffee. I wonder who will be paying the bill for this one.

Want to create some awesome t-shirts for your chapter?

Feb 26, 2011 at 2:17 PM

By Ryan Gilroy

After a personal hiatus, I'd like report that I'm back to liberty activism and I've come away from CPAC 2011 with an exciting new plan!

A while back I'd created a program to help YAL chapters inexepensively create unique shirts for their chapters and get myself an awesome liberty wardrobe in the process. Here are a couple of the results:

back2 front1

back Front

My new plan is similar: I'll donate $20 to YAL National and $20 to an individual chapter as seed money for creating their own shirts if they meet a few simple guidelines.

Nit-picking Nanny Statists

Dec 6, 2010 at 11:47 AM

By Ryan Gilroy

After reading about California's "Recycling Ambassadors" and their job description, I've come to realize that the state of California has truly reached the breaking point:

A little-known regulation is costing the city's taxpayers at least $1 million a year to employ trash cops to root through bins and tag residents who don't separate the paper and bottles from the coffee grounds and chicken bones.

In an era in which the City of Angels is trying to stay afloat with a budget deficit projected at $330 million for 2011-12, a dozen uniformed "recycling ambassadors" armed with clipboards are busy traversing the city trying to get residents to dump recyclables in their blue bins, trash in the black and landscaping in the green.

Tellingly, when the reporter question city council members about the regulaton in light of budget deficits, the officials essentially refused to answer questions.