Hundreds of Ron Paul Fans Can't Be Right

Comments

He has had an awful lot of practice running a campaign for prez, hence you would expect him to have a remarkably well-organized campaign.

StuckInUtah on February 16, 2012 at 11:02 PM

75% of what he says is a lot saner than what the other candidates are saying. Unfortunately, the other 25%...

sarah70 on February 16, 2012 at 11:22 PM

Most of what he says is insane the only sane policies he has are on drugs and war

Democrat1234 on February 16, 2012 at 11:41 PM

Maybe it's more convenient to for your condescending article that everyone there must have been white, but that's untrue. I attended and there was a solid number of Asians that turned out, and a few dozen other racial groups, albeit in smaller numbers. Lets not let personal bias against a candidate get in the way of facts.

on February 16, 2012 at 11:42 PM

@2 FTW

Foghorn Leghorn on February 16, 2012 at 11:45 PM

wow, we must have been at different rallies. I saw a remarkably diverse crowd. Your point about Mrs. Paul scowling with crossed arms the whole time was completely inaccurate. She was smiling and clapping as well as Dr. Paul's granddaughter. She even came down and talked to us afterward for a while. I'm guessing that you come to a Ron Paul rally seeing what you want to see. If you like him, you're going to see the good. If you don't, you're going to look for the bad.

on February 17, 2012 at 12:46 AM

@5:

I think @2 has the percentages reversed. Then again, even 25% "sane" is way ahead of the standard GOP pol these days.

I use the quotation marks because Paul's seemingly reasonable positions are almost always arrived at from a totally different, totally bizarre, angle. Case in point -- he's against war because he's an isolationist xenophobe who doesn't think the Federal government has the constitutional power to wage war.

Ron Paul doesn't have an iota of liberalism, even if a cursory sound-bite view of several of his positions might make you think he does.

N in Seattle on February 17, 2012 at 12:46 AM

Thanks for the morning belly laugh. This article was hilarious! Wonder where the young man heard that the government wants to ban knives? Faux News? LOL.

Patricia Kayden on February 17, 2012 at 3:26 AM

@4 and @6 ... this is wierd... its like when the Nationalist Party ran here last election. Any article with a comments thread would be ganged by people saying basicly the same thing in this wierd "common sensy" voice... I'm not saying you're doing that (they had basicly a group of volunteers) but it kinda sounds like it.

Is the RP campaign doing something similar in the US? The Conservative Party in Hungary did the same thing and Le Pens gang in France... maybe its a trend?

JensR on February 17, 2012 at 4:12 AM

I totally found the RON PAUL rally to be very diverse; it was represent*tick*
represent*tick*
represent*tick*
represent*wham*
representative of Seattle's diverse culture. This is not a recording.

Banna on February 17, 2012 at 4:34 AM

@4 Asians and a few dozen other racial groups?

I'm not sure I could even name a few dozen racial groups let alone pick them out of a crowd. Can you tell the difference between an Azerbaijani and an an Arminian?

I'm not sure I'm buying your comment. In fact I think you are a sock puppet.

jnonymous on February 17, 2012 at 4:48 AM

"...and a few dozen other racial groups..."

What few dozen other racial groups are there? I can think of some ethnic groups, but not a few dozen racial groups.

Put a token Asian and African in the crowd and suddenly Paul has a diverse audience. Maybe with Photoshop it can really be diverse!

gttim on February 17, 2012 at 5:11 AM

I've been struck by how much appeal libertarianism holds for high-wage earners with narrowly focused technical educations: programmers, engineers, GIS specialists, and the like. I've also been struck by how quickly their social, political, and economic views broaden when their own wages, working conditions, and careers are threatened by outsourcing and loosening of immigration restrictions. But then, walking a mile in the other guy's shoes always *has* been the best remedy for solipsism.

PCM on February 17, 2012 at 6:13 AM

@13: I'm not surprised at that at all - people who think in binary make for great libertarians.

kalel80806 on February 17, 2012 at 6:22 AM

So... Some people at the Paul thingee were ignorant and/or scary. In other words, they resembled every other assemblage ever assembled. Except for skin tone. Then Paul said just what was expected. So, Paul (the other Paul), what's the point?

BLUE on February 17, 2012 at 6:34 AM

"It looked like the staff of every tattoo studio in the greater Seattle area was at the DoubleTree, as well as quite a few scary-looking muscular shaven-headed men (most of them in some variation on the "Don't Tread On Me" t-shirt) who weren't dispelling any rumors about the Paul movement's ties to white supremacist groups."

Gotcha. Muscular, white, inked, and shaved heads equal white supremacist. Stereotypes are FUN.

NateMan on February 17, 2012 at 6:42 AM

@16 Paul is just the type of pussy that would be physically intimidated by big bald white guys. Have you seen what he looks like? Like someone poured a gallon of oatmeal over a tub of play-doh.

Rotten666 on February 17, 2012 at 7:26 AM

@17: Sweet. I like being intimidating. I just don't like it being assumed that I'm intimidating AND racist.

NateMan on February 17, 2012 at 7:28 AM

@2: "75% of what he says is a lot saner than what the other candidates are saying. Unfortunately, the other 25%..."

Right, and that 75% is for the wrong reasons, or necessarily introduces that 25% and is inseparable from it.

I'm sure I could have a nice talk with him, but the freedom to oppress is not "Freedom" as they use the word.

undead ayn rand on February 17, 2012 at 7:56 AM

God people, 75% of what he says is sane? NO. Sanity takes grace and understanding. RON PAUL IS OLD TIM EYMAN... WHY DON'T PEOPLE GET THAT!? A Hatchet is all his ideas provide to a problem! They sound good because of the alluring quality of smashing something quiet, but focus people, just like Eyman, all of Paul's ideas would pout us in a worse place down the road.

And in addition to all that, you are agreeing, even if you protect that agreement with a qualifier to push a joke, it belies that you do give some sort respect to him. and that puts you on the same side as white supremacists, if that happened to me I would go through my reasoning with a fine tooth comb...

Fenrox on February 17, 2012 at 8:07 AM

@7 - Completely incorrect. His view is simply that the US should only go to war if it is declared by Congress and that "nation building" is not a role our military should be involved in.

Paul is no more a racist than your average 76 year old white man. The reason a lot of his supporters are so willing and able to look past that is because they believe freedom is the best way to lift people out of disadvantaged circumstances. Nothing brings a smile to my face faster than when a Liberal expresses confusion about how the poor and minorities could be attracted to Paul.

cliche on February 17, 2012 at 8:22 AM

#20 FTW... Old Tim Eyman! Perfect!

jp on February 17, 2012 at 8:36 AM

@23 - It depends on what other systems would come in to replace a Federal tax, doesn't it? And it's telling that you think the goal of the Federal Income Tax is to help poor people. Poor people are fully aware the cards are stacked against them at a societal level. Those who support Ron Paul are looking for a level playing field more than anything else and a very big part of that is slowing down the current system that funnels money to the privileged. Obama has clearly shown he's cool with the Corporatist status-quo and obviously Romney wouldn't change anything.

cliche on February 17, 2012 at 9:16 AM

"Most of what he says is insane the only sane policies he has are on drugs and war"

I know; it was totally worth it; killing a couple mil brown folk who would otherwise still be living out their average Jamal lives. Iran won't be as easy considering the prevalence of english speaking Iphone users, but I'm sure we can get over that. And de-criminalizing drugs would be super-steroids to a progressive society. With enhanced mdma/lsd techno-therapy all of you crotchety establishment centrists would be propelled into anarcho-socialist ecotopias while the current american right re-visits the flower child movement that escaped their parents.

porchedge on February 17, 2012 at 9:30 AM

@21- "Nothing brings a smile to my face faster than when a Liberal expresses confusion about how the poor and minorities could be attracted to Paul."

Poor people and minorities who support Paul do so for the same reasons rich people and white people do: They're idiots who embrace a completely unfounded view of economics mixed with a dysfunctional idea about state/federal interactions. They have a lot of things they want to smash and a religious idea that invisible forces will then build everything back better than it was before.

dwightmoodyforgetsthings on February 17, 2012 at 10:13 AM

@25: "while the current american right re-visits the flower child movement that escaped their parents."

Hah. Exactly. I find it bizarre that modern conservatives project themselves as loving, revolutionary peaceniks for "freedom" while worshipping 60s era Dixiecrats and being the same repugnant bigots they always were. They're not smashing the military-industrials. They're not breaking down the prison-industrials. They're just saying we should bend over for the corporations and deregulate deregulate deregulate some more.

undead ayn rand on February 17, 2012 at 11:31 AM

@15: I think the point was a truly great last line. :-)

John Horstman on February 17, 2012 at 12:05 PM

Nothing brings a smile to my face faster than when a Liberal expresses confusion about how the poor and minorities could be attracted to Paul.

There is no confusion. They aren't attracted to him. Or are you confusing the poor with the lower middle class? And white ethnic groups with minorities?

keshmeshi on February 17, 2012 at 12:11 PM

The crowd at the rally came to support a man that they can believe in some way vs typical rheteric from the right and the left. If people are looking for a person that offers puriest slogans then either only in their dreams, in hollywood or as the same typical politicans will still rule the day, by singing to you a sweet bye and bye
Is it not time to debate on issues?
.Do you believe in policies that have created 50 years war?
Do yo believe in the Patriot Act?
Do you believe that Wall Street is above the law?
Then you are free to believe who you believe in.
Action speaks louder the rhetorical words!
voiceadded

voiceadded on February 17, 2012 at 12:46 PM

Gibberish

Sandiai on February 17, 2012 at 1:45 PM

This is the expected fecal diatribe from Paul Constant and The Stranger. If one took the time to actually hear and understand the main points of the Libertarian Party, one would have a diiferent opinion. Democrat and Republican idiots and their pathetic sycophants are actually different sides of the same douche. Any political outsider is always marginalized and ignored. In the case of the stranger, They only support politicans who join in with them to make their ever-waking mission to talk about Gay marriage, gAy rights, gaY schools, gay tacos, gay laundry detergent, gay, gay, gay, blah, blah.

liberty4all on February 17, 2012 at 3:48 PM

OBOY, the Paultards have arrived on the scene!

venomlash on February 17, 2012 at 4:14 PM

am i missing something here or is there some reason i should care about some guy's opinion of republicans who happens to be a guy who hates republicans and publish in a free (lol) magazine that hates republicans? i would get an equally fair and objective report about jews from a magazine published by nazis (or iranians).

on February 17, 2012 at 5:39 PM

Consider we have forgiven lying, cheating, stealing, breaking vows, from so many (especially Obama) ... a bit of crazy with a lot of honesty .... yeah, sorry but he's still the best politician we've had in at least 25 years.

KittenKoder on February 18, 2012 at 4:45 AM

Dr. Ron Paul appears to be a pretty decent person.

on February 18, 2012 at 11:12 AM

@21: "Nothing brings a smile to my face faster than when a Liberal expresses confusion about how the poor and minorities could be attracted to Paul."

We express confusion how anybody with a non-shallow understanding of Paul's policies, intentions, and statements would. It all breaks down when you listen to him for long enough.

on February 18, 2012 at 11:33 AM

@39 "Paul's fans are overwhelmingly white" - you seem quite focused on race.. You must be a racist.

on February 18, 2012 at 2:50 PM

@40: It matters when Paul wants to revoke the Civil Rights Act and re-legalize segregation.

on February 19, 2012 at 4:27 PM

@33, I want a gay taco. Where can I get one?

clashfan on February 20, 2012 at 4:42 PM

@5 is right. @2 nailed it.

Will in Seattle on March 3, 2012 at 1:55 PM

That dude in the Mossimo hat is me...LOL

GregEvans on February 5, 2014 at 2:10 PM

Hundreds of Ron Paul Fans Can't Be Right

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