{"id":46,"date":"2013-07-12T03:09:03","date_gmt":"2013-07-12T03:09:03","guid":{"rendered":"http:\/\/OurMission\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0OurTeam\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0YourQuestions"},"modified":"2013-07-12T03:09:03","modified_gmt":"2013-07-12T03:09:03","slug":"about","status":"publish","type":"page","link":"https:\/\/zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/","title":{"rendered":"About Us"},"content":{"rendered":"<div class=\"text-menu\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"\/about\/#mission\">Our Mission<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"\/about\/#methods\">Our Methods<\/a>\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"\/about\/#team\">Our Team<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"\/about\/#questions\">Your Questions<\/a><\/div>\n<div class=\"text-menu\" style=\"text-align: center;\"><a href=\"\/about\/#techfaq\">Our Technical &amp; Site Usage FAQ<\/a>\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0<a href=\"\/about\/#philosophy\">Our Strategy &amp; Philosophy FAQ<\/a><\/div>\n<p><a name=\"mission\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Our Mission<\/h2>\n<p>We promote the adoption of a peaceful and prosperous society based on <strong>The ZAP<\/strong> (Zero Aggression Principle or Policy): <em>Don\u2019t aggress against others, personally or politically.<\/em><br \/>\n<a name=\"methods\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Our Methods<\/h2>\n<p>The Zero Aggression Project is an initiative of the Downsize DC Foundation. The Project uses Mental Levers, editorials, and other media content to explain how a voluntary or &#8220;post-statist&#8221; perspective, including consumer-controlled governance, would greatly benefit society.<\/p>\n<p>Downsize DC Foundation also funds and co-files amicus curiae briefs in federal, constitutional cases. The Foundation argues for upholding the Bill of Rights, especially the First and Fourth Amendments. Along the way, we&#8217;ve secured two major, precedent-setting, landmark victories. The Foundation partners with a sister organization on many of these briefs, DownsizeDC.org, Inc.<br \/>\n<a name=\"team\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Our Team<\/h2>\n<p><strong>Co-Creators of the Zero Aggression Project:\u00a0<\/strong>Jim Babka and Perry Willis<br \/>\nNOTE: The Zero Aggression Project is an initiative of the Downsize DC Foundation (DDCF), a 501(c)(3) organization.<br \/>\n<strong>DDCF Board of Directors:<\/strong>\u00a0Kent White, Chair \u2013 Jim Babka \u2013 Laura Carno<br \/>\n<strong>DDCF Corporate Officers:<\/strong>\u00a0Jim Babka, President \u2013 Linda Slack, Treasurer<br \/>\n<strong>Management Team:<\/strong>\u00a0Jim Babka &amp; Perry Willis, Executive Managers \u2013 Rick Wiggins, Senior Counselor<br \/>\n<strong>Staff:<\/strong>\u00a0Kandy Cowling, Office Manager \u2013 <span style=\"font-weight: 400;\">Lisa Talcott, Production Assistant \u2013\u00a0Susanne DiPuccio, Office Assistant<\/span><br \/>\n<strong>Support Team:<\/strong> Jarrett Tilford, Programming \u2013 Landon Cahow, Webmaster<br \/>\n<strong>Honorable Mention: <\/strong>Chris Wagner, Joe Flynn, Mike Neuliep, Franz Honer, and Shortcreek Strategy (Akron, OH) helped program aspects of the Zero Aggression Project. James Leroy Wilson and John Markley helped develop some content. Jo Vaccarino contributed some graphics.<br \/>\n<a name=\"questions\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Your Questions<\/h2>\n<p>These important documents may answer some of your questions\u00a0.\u00a0.\u00a0.<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"\/about\/privacy-policy\">Privacy Policy<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"\/about\/terms-of-use\">Terms of Use<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"\/about\/disclaimer\">Disclaimer<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Our\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#techfaq\">Technical and Site Usage FAQ<\/a>\u00a0and\u00a0<a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#philosophy\">Zero Aggression Philosophy and Strategy FAQ<\/a>, both featured below, may help with other questions.<br \/>\n<a name=\"techfaq\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Technical and Site Usage FAQ<\/h2>\n<p>If you&#8217;re having difficulty, we&#8217;re eager to help. Send a message to\u00a0<a href=\"mailto:comments@zeroaggressionproject.org\">comments@zeroaggressionproject.org<\/a>\u00a0clearly explaining your issue.<\/p>\n<h3>1) How do I unsubscribe from your email list?<\/h3>\n<p>At the bottom of each Zero Aggression newsletter, in the section we call the footer, you&#8217;ll find a link that you can click to unsubscribe. <em>We encourage you to let us know why you&#8217;ve made this decision. <\/em>But please&#8230;<\/p>\n<p>First, confirm in the header that the message was intended for you. Sometimes, friends forward the message, and you wouldn&#8217;t want to unsubscribe your friend. Simply let them know you don&#8217;t find this information of value.<\/p>\n<p>If this feature is not working as you expected, we want to help \u2014 even if that means you&#8217;ll be leaving us. Send a message with a request to unsubscribe to <a href=\"mailto:comments@zeroaggressionproject.org\">comments@zeroaggressionproject.org<\/a>.<br \/>\n<a name=\"philosophy\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h2>Zero Aggression Philosophy and Strategy FAQ<\/h2>\n<ul>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#philosophy-q1\">Why don&#8217;t you go on The Tonight Show (or whatever show the person asking this question likes)?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#philosophy-q2\">Are you Republicans or Democrats?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#philosophy-q3\">Where does the Zero Aggression Principle come from?<\/a><\/li>\n<li><a href=\"https:\/\/www.zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/#philosophy-q4\">How is Zero Aggression Project funded?<\/a><\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p><a name=\"philosophy-q1\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>1) Why don&#8217;t you go on The Tonight Show (or whatever show the person asking this question likes)?<\/h3>\n<p>We&#8217;d like to get on The Tonight Show, and every other show too. But doing that lies more in your power than in ours. TV and radio shows are like any other business \u2014 they tend to do what their customers demand. We can spend lots of money on press releases and booking agents making phone calls in an attempt to get ourselves on shows. But none of that is nearly as effective as you calling, or emailing, or writing a letter to a particular show and saying, &#8220;Please interview Jim Babka of the Zero Aggression Project.&#8221; In fact, a few calls or letters to a talk show can have far more impact than the same amount of pressure on Congress!<\/p>\n<p>Press availability is handled through the offices of partners at DownsizeDC.org. Please have producers or hosts contact <a href=\"mailto:PressRoom@DownsizeDC.org\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">PressRoom@DownsizeDC.org<\/a>.<br \/>\n<a name=\"philosophy-q2\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>2) Are you Republicans or Democrats?<\/h3>\n<p>We&#8217;re legally non-partisan, but we&#8217;re temperamentally anti-partisan. We want to persuade people that&#8230;<\/p>\n<ul>\n<li>Partisanship and cults of personality are both toxic to honesty and critical thinking<\/li>\n<li>Power-brokers rarely give up their power voluntarily<\/li>\n<li>Political parties exist to divide up the spoils of power<\/li>\n<\/ul>\n<p>Political parties, by their nature, oppose the Zero Aggression Principle. All political parties believe that if only they had the power, they could do good with it, and not be corrupted by it. We think this is a delusion.<\/p>\n<p><em>Trying to change things through politics has a better chance of changing you.<\/em><\/p>\n<p>Positive change can only come when you win the battleground of your neighbor&#8217;s mind, the district of their heart, and the precinct of their conscience. Our current corrupt system requires mass public support. When a sufficient portion of those around you withdraw their consent from things like political parties, this ancient system will falter.<br \/>\n<a name=\"philosophy-q3\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>3) Where does the Zero Aggression Principle come from?<\/h3>\n<p>The Zero Aggression Principle (or Policy) is a more vibrant and vigorous term for what is more commonly known as the <a title=\"Non-Aggression Principle Wikipedia\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/Non-aggression_principle\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Non-Aggression Principle<\/a>. ZAP is also a more electrifying acronym compared to NAP, which suggests the need for rest.<\/p>\n<p>The non-aggression principle has a long history in libertarian thought. The &#8220;Zero Aggression Principle&#8221; is a new label for that principle.\u00a0 The late <a title=\"L Neil Smith Wikipedia\" href=\"https:\/\/en.wikipedia.org\/wiki\/L._Neil_Smith\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">L. Neil Smith<\/a>, perhaps best known for the trilogy of <a title=\"Lando Calrissian novels\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Adventures-Lando-Calrissian-Star-Legends-ebook\/dp\/B00513F9UM\/%20\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Lando Calrissian novels<\/a> and <a title=\"Probability Broach\" href=\"http:\/\/www.amazon.com\/Probability-Broach-L-Neil-Smith\/dp\/0765301539\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">The Probability Broach<\/a>, coined the phrase.<\/p>\n<p>We first discovered this label through <a title=\"Kent McManigal ZAP\" href=\"http:\/\/www.kentforliberty.com\/zap.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">Kent McManigal, who shared this rather thorough definition<\/a> by Smith&#8230;<\/p>\n<blockquote><p>&#8220;A libertarian is a person who believes that no one has the right, under any circumstances, to initiate force against another human being, or to advocate or delegate its initiation. Those who act consistently with this principle are libertarians, whether they realize it or not. Those who fail to act consistently with it are not libertarians, regardless of what they may claim.&#8221;<\/p><\/blockquote>\n<p>Smith also believed that libertarians should say ZAP because it sounds less passive than NAP. Some <a title=\"Constitution and Zero Aggression\" href=\"http:\/\/www.ncc-1776.org\/tle2011\/tle609-20110306-05.html\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">people &#8220;assume&#8221; that the NAP is pacifist.<\/a> In our experience, sharing this phrase, Zero sounds at least as pacifist. But we at the Zero Aggression Project are okay with that because it opens the door for further clarification and conversation. In fact, we address the pacifism objection with one of our Mental Levers.<\/p>\n<p><strong>We started Zero Aggression Project because we noticed few libertarians were using the NAP. It was a &#8220;sleeper idea,&#8221; hidden behind the pragmatic, issue-by-issue arguments libertarians were using most often.<\/strong><\/p>\n<p>We talked to many libertarians. We concluded that they weren&#8217;t using this principle in conversations, but their mind was actively utilizing it.<\/p>\n<p>We wondered why libertarians weren&#8217;t leading with this powerful moral principle? It seemed to address and solve so much! We started Zero Aggression Project believed we had some innovations that would encourage people to begin moral conversations around this idea instead of hiding it. These approaches have worked for us, and we wanted to share them.<\/p>\n<p>We wanted you to give ZAP a try as your leading and key argument for a more peaceful, prosperous society. The ZAP is a very powerful argument waiting to be used correctly.<\/p>\n<p>To bring the right energy to the project, we adopted this label, Zero Aggression Principle. In fact, like greeting a friend with a blessing such as Shalom, we&#8217;re fond of saying, &#8220;ZAP the State, and have a nice day.&#8221;<br \/>\n<a name=\"philosophy-q4\"><\/a><\/p>\n<h3>4) How is the Zero Aggression Project funded?<\/h3>\n<p>For now, Zero Aggression Project is an initiative of the Downsize DC Foundation, a 501 (c) 3 non-profit, public education organization. Contributions to the Foundation are tax-deductible for those who itemize deductions.<\/p>\n<p>We accept zero government funding because we believe that money was largely extorted. We are funded entirely by voluntary contributions from mostly small, one-time donors, monthly credit card pledges, a few larger donors, and even fewer contributions from other foundations.<\/p>\n<p>Our budget is modest. We are very frugal. We share office facilities and staff with <a title=\"Downsize DC\" href=\"https:\/\/downsizedc.org\/\" target=\"_blank\" rel=\"noopener\">DownsizeDC.org, Inc.<\/a> (Gary Nolan, Chair). We spend less on basic operations in a year than most organizations spend in a month. We welcome your support <a href=\"https:\/\/zeroaggressionproject.org\/contribute\/\">ZeroAggressionProject.org\/contribute\/<\/a>.<\/p>\n","protected":false},"excerpt":{"rendered":"<p>Our Mission\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Methods\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Team\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Your Questions Our Technical &amp; Site Usage FAQ\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Strategy &amp; Philosophy FAQ Our Mission We promote the adoption of a peaceful and prosperous society based on The ZAP (Zero Aggression Principle or Policy): Don\u2019t aggress against others, personally or politically. Our Methods The Zero Aggression Project is an initiative of the Downsize DC Foundation. The Project uses &#8230; <\/p>\n<div><a href=\"https:\/\/zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/\" class=\"more-link\">Read More<\/a><\/div>\n","protected":false},"author":2,"featured_media":0,"parent":0,"menu_order":0,"comment_status":"closed","ping_status":"open","template":"","meta":{"footnotes":""},"yoast_head":"<!-- This site is optimized with the Yoast SEO plugin v22.5 - https:\/\/yoast.com\/wordpress\/plugins\/seo\/ -->\n<title>About Us - ZAP - Zero Aggression Project<\/title>\n<meta name=\"robots\" content=\"index, follow, max-snippet:-1, max-image-preview:large, max-video-preview:-1\" \/>\n<link rel=\"canonical\" href=\"https:\/\/zeroaggressionproject.org\/about\/\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:locale\" content=\"en_US\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:type\" content=\"article\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:title\" content=\"About Us - ZAP - Zero Aggression Project\" \/>\n<meta property=\"og:description\" content=\"Our Mission\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Methods\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Team\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Your Questions Our Technical &amp; Site Usage FAQ\u00a0\u00a0|\u00a0\u00a0Our Strategy &amp; Philosophy FAQ Our Mission We promote the adoption of a peaceful and prosperous society based on The ZAP (Zero Aggression Principle or Policy): Don\u2019t aggress against others, personally or politically. 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