About Dave Wood

I was born in Rockford Illinois May 17th, 1944

My family moved to Boulder in 1953. Graduating from Boulder High School in 1962 set the stage for a very eventful and rewarding life. With help from a Kiwanis scholarship, I attended University of Colorado in Boulder, and then went to the Berklee College of Music in Boston.

In 1966 I decided to challenge the morality and constitutionality of the military draft. By refusing to be drafted and by hiring Henry Mark Holzer, a libertarian-minded lawyer who had experience in front of the Supreme Court, we moved the case forward.

Our principal argument was the protection offered by the 9th amendment to the Constitution:

“The enumeration in the Constitution, of certain rights, shall not be construed to deny or disparage others retained by the people”.  

I believed it then, and I believe it now… We must have the right to decide if we will or will not take up arms in military service, and that we should not be forced against our will into combat.  If our nation came under attack from an enemy and congress officially declared us at war;  there would be no shortage of volunteers to defend our country.

The Federal Circuit Court of Appeals upheld the guilty verdict of the Boston District Court, as I had expected.  The Supreme Court considered our challenge for several months and then refused to hear our case.

In 1967 I started serving a 3-year sentence in Federal prison facilities.  The District Judge changed his sentence to 18 months, and I was released after serving 13 months.

Note: In 1969 that Boston District Court Judge, Edward Wyzanski, said the Selective Service Act was unconstitutional because it discriminated against “men who are motivated by profound moral beliefs”.

Note: In 1977 on his first day in office, President Carter granted a full and unconditional pardon to all those who refused the draft.

By 1968 I was back in Boston managing health & beauty stores including a CVS in Boston before moving on to TV repair.

I’ve been very fortunate to play saxophone in several bands, including The Five Satins, best known for their 1956 million-selling song “In the Still of the Night”.  And it was a privilege to host a dance event, Dance Free, at Christ Church in Cambridge. A very historic church where President George Washington and his wife Martha attended a special prayer service way back on December 31, 1775.

I joined a couple of proto-libertarian groups and was a first subscriber to Reason magazine.

1975. I attended the 2nd Libertarian Party convention in New York City where Roger McBride was picked as the presidential candidate. McBride received national publicity in 1972 when, as one of Virginia’s 12 Republican electors, he cast his vote not for Nixon and Agnew, but for the Libertarian party’s candidates, the only vote they received.

1976. I moved back to Colorado and bought a TV repair shop. I also designed and installed antenna systems for new construction and for mountain communities.  I played in a variety of bands across Colorado when I could and ran “Dance Free” weekly in Boulder.

1978. I bought a home in the town of Superior and was asked to run for mayor a year later (got 40% of the vote!)

1989. I married my beautiful and wonderful wife Betsy who has stuck with me and now she’s helping me with this campaign.

During that time I went back to school for a year to learn computer operations and programming.

1990. I joined a very small start-up company that has grown and grown to become a premier international internet marketing firm.  My responsibilities grew along with the company and I retired after 28 years in 2018.

In retirement I enjoy talking with neighbors, exercising, playing my keyboard and going for walks and drives with our Greyhound dog Rafa.

I’m looking forward to spreading the good news about how libertarian principles can bring us peace and prosperity by running for Congress on the Libertarian Party ticket.

Dave Wood for Colorado Congressional District 8