Life before 2008 19 Jul 2007 10:05 pm
Sticking my toe back into politics…
The last time I felt any amount of passionate interest in politics was back at the first Clinton election. I was a nanny and a daycare worker and we workers fought like crazy over who should be president (yes, that’s what they do when the mommies are away).
Clinton depressed me. It wasn’t just scandal, but it was so…. icky. Onward. I, ame>feeling a charm with a familial legacy not seen since the Kennedys, liked the idea of George W. picking up where his father had left off. That was the last time I voted.
Shocking? Well, only kinda. I’ve been very, very busy with babies in the last decade and didn’t like the idea of voting when not informed. I’ve been waiting this presidency out; we’ve been against the war since it began (David pretty much lost his job over this too), are way too green for the current administration, and are generally sick of the way of things. We have no TV so have skipped all the addresses, debates, and political harriness going on right now. Reading Crunchy Cons: How Birkenstocked Burkeans, gun-loving organic gardeners, evangelical free-range farmers, hip homeschooling mamas, right-wing nature lovers, … America (or at least the Republican Party)
But for my business clients I’ve been hunting out the hot search words each week and for over a month now, one of the hottest search and tag words in Technorati is the name Ron Paul. Who is he? I had no idea….
Watching a steam of youtubes about him last night, I now have a better idea. What an enigma! He is barely a republican; more of a libetarian. I’m not sure he could even get the nomination. But in interviews and debates he doesn’t miss a beat: he’s not just against what he calls “this undeclared war” but has radical plans to remove the “big government” that is making us broke. Not just cutting taxes but by radically restructuring everything….for someone keenly interested in not having debt, not being a wasteful consumer who thinks shopping and accumulating more stuff will solve the world’s problems, Dr. Paul (yes he’s an MD) was a refreshing voice last night. For the first time in well over a decade I felt myself get a little excited about a politician’s message.
I figure it at least bears watching. Watch for yourself:
On the hilarious Steven Colbert Report.
on 19 Jul 2007 at 11:03 pm 1.Phil Durgin said …
Epiphany - a sudden, intuitive perception of or insight into the reality or essential meaning of something, usually initiated by some simple, homely, or commonplace occurrence or experience.
Dr. Paul has become the initiator of that epiphany for many people. What has been amazing to watch at the MeetUp get togethers here in Austin is the diverse people who are showing up to help with his grassroots campaign.
Republican, Democrat, Libertarian, Reform, Constitution, and Green Party. Our personal beliefs range wildly from atheist to the evangelical, transcendentalist, Christian, and Buddhist. We span a wide dichotomy of people, personalities and ideas.
I think a group like this that has set a side their differences so they work towards a common goal is what will change the political landscape.
Those who are in power will defame us as kooks because we no longer will follow them blindly anymore. If we want our nation to return back towards freedom and liberty, I guess that makes me a kook.
on 19 Jul 2007 at 11:28 pm 2.TJ said …
You’ve gotta see this video if you haven’t yet!
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=J8oO_OD3PtI
on 19 Jul 2007 at 11:30 pm 3.picaro said …
Paul is the one bright spot in a field of insipid choices.
The rally in Iowa was amazing. Lots of energy and enthusiasm for Paul and his ideas.
Paul’s candidacy threatens to upset the establishment applecart. Gate-keepers and machine politics will attempt to squash his candidacy — but the power to choose is ours.
on 20 Jul 2007 at 7:12 am 4.Christian Faith said …
I have only voted one time in my life. I am going to be 32 next month too. I am signing up to get my voters card again because I believe in Ron Paul. I believe in what he stands for. The government has got to big, in my opinion and we are suffering for it. I was not raised in a political family at all so I have had to learn about things the hard way but from what I can see, Ron Paul would do a great service to our country. Can you imagine how much better things could be if he would be President? We can only hope for such a good man in office. -That does not mean I hate Bush, I am a Texan after all
I just think it is time for a change for the people, not the people in GOVERNMENT.
on 20 Jul 2007 at 8:42 am 5.Keith said …
Ron Paul is contributing immensely to “the conversation”.
Also, he’s an example of how the internet is changing politics, for the better, imo. We surfers can view lots of informative videos of him (and of any candidate we’re interested in), not just short clips on tv. Also, it’s easy to “click to donate”: small $ contributions are WAY up this election cycle, and are making a big difference. (Move over big business!) So, as far as becoming informed and making a difference, the common folk are gaining ground.
on 20 Jul 2007 at 10:30 am 6.Tia said …
Hilarious video TJ and at the end was a good reminder: to vote in the Republican primaries, one has to register “Republican”. Ron paul brings together so many different people, from different backgrounds, and unites us…I think we should all BUST THE BOX American politics has made us conform to and teach them a thing to or two about what the people really WANT and NEED.
on 20 Jul 2007 at 1:19 pm 7.Joel said …
Ron Paul put himself at the bottom of the stack for me in the second debate. It wasn’t the much-maligned Sean Hannity interview but what he himself said during the debate.
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=vLkJCjipIAk
Occurs around the 1:45 mark. Listen to what he says was the reason for 9/11. Listen to Giulliani’s response and the crowd’s reaction to it. That, more than any other reason, is why he will not be getting the nomination and why I cannot vote for him. He’s got some fine ideas otherwise and I can accept flaws in a canidate but the man outdid John McCain in shooting off his mouth and drowning his campaign.
My three largest issues for any candidate are
1. Judicial Nominee philosophy
2. National Security
3. Fiscal Responsibility
Paul has #3 down. #2 is clearly beyond him and not many candidates are strong on #1. Gonna be a long year…
on 20 Jul 2007 at 2:43 pm 8.Tia said …
LOL Joel…I saw that debate. I thought Ron totally rocked it; I agree 100% with it and have since 9/11. The video that TJ posted shows how well Ron did in Fox’s text message poll, even as the news guys claimed Guiliani won over Ron. The votes did not agree….
I’m ready to think outside the box. I’m ready to give someone a chance who isn’t a “formula politician”. I think our generation has a chance to try something different.
I guess we’ll see.