Pitching Ron Paul
By: BJ Lawson
Several of our Meetup members spent a week at the GOP booth during the North Carolina State Fair introducing folks to the message of liberty and a Constitutional federal government. Speaking with over 1,000 people over 6 1/2 days was indeed trial by fire, but after the first couple of days we developed a rhythm hitting the same themes that resonated with attendees.
We engaged folks with our “Liberty Packs”, pictured below. They contained a Pocket Constitution/Declaration of Independence (with an excellent introduction, from the Cato Institute), Slim Jim, four pages of issues-based handouts including Rep. Paul’s Statement of Faith, and a Ron Paul DVD.
Our Meetup members did a fantastic job blanketing the area with Ron Paul yard signs and banners in the weeks leading up to the State Fair, so many people were wondering about Ron Paul before they even showed up at the booth. It was our pleasure to answer their questions!
The conversation summaries below are organized as Question, Answer, and Response. We provide the question, the other person provides the answer, and we provide the response.
The Generic Pickup Line:
Q: Have you heard of Congressman Ron Paul, Republican running for president? (Show the Liberty Pack, with or without the Constitution — not everyone received a Constitution, so we generally led with the pushcard)
Path 1: Unfamiliar but willing to learn more
A: No, but I’ve seen the signs!
R: He’s a ten-term Congressman who just wants to restore the Constitution and the rule of law, which we’ve been missing for the past hundred years or so (Show Constitution/Declaration of Independence).
A: Tell me about it!
R: I’m just a grassroots guy out raising awareness — and this is the first time in my life I’ve ever volunteered for a candidate. Would you like to learn more about Representative Paul?
At this point, the person is willing to take a Liberty Pack. Depending on how willing they are to engage in a deeper conversation, I’d then ask about the Constitution:
Q: Does your family have a copy of the Constitution?
A: No…
R: I’m ashamed it took me until this summer to read it as a thinking adult, but now consider it the second most important book in my family’s life after the Bible. Would you like a copy?
A: Yes…
R: Please take and read this. It’s a gift, and every American family should have one. Do you know why I’ve come to support Ron Paul so strongly?
A: Why?
R: Because he’s been in Congress for 20 years trying to return us to the Constitution — it’s only now that people are waking up to how far we’ve come from our founding documents. Our Founding Fathers (and Mothers!) would be pretty upset if they knew we were sending 40% of our income to the government every year, and THEN our government was borrowing an ADDITIONAL $1-3 BILLION per DAY just to keep the lights on!
For folks who want to continue the discussion, they would typically respond with concerns about big government, out of control spending, inflation, and our declining currency.
Path 2: Familiar but not a supporter
A: Yes, he’s crazy.
R: (Pull out pocket Constitution) Do you like the Constitution?
A: What?
R: Our Constitution — right here. Do you like it?
A: What do you mean?
R: Do you think our federal government should follow the Constitution?
A: Yes!
R: Well, that’s all Ron Paul wants to do: return to the Constitution and the rule of law. How is that a crazy idea?
At this point, we delve into the specific reasons behind the person’s not supporting Rep. Paul. See “Responding to the Issues”, below. Depending on the tenor of the conversation and person’s willingness to discuss, it can be a short conversation where they take a Liberty Pack and express a willingness to learn more… or a longer debate focused on specific issues. There were only a (very) few folks who said they did NOT “like” the Constitution, nor care if our government followed it. One can only assume they wanted to avoid discussion at all costs.
Path 3: Familiar but skeptical
A: Yes, but he doesn’t have a chance.
R: Have you seen any volunteers spreading the word about other candidates? (For most of the fair, we were the only people there representing a presidential candidate. Some Romney folks showed up occasionally later in the fair, but they would typically only work a brief shift.)
A: No…
R: Ron Paul has over 60,000 volunteers like me getting the word out across the country, he raised over $5 million in the third quarter, and he has the third most cash on hand of all the Republican candidates. Do you support his candidacy?
A: I like him, but he’s not electable.
R: What do you mean?
A: I mean, he can’t beat Hillary.
R: Look, we have over 250 people in our local Meetup, and it’s split between Democrats, Republicans, independents, and Libertarians. All Ron Paul wants to do is follow the Constitution — he’s bringing people together because the Constitution is a unifying document. It’s what makes us Americans, it doesn’t divide us.
A: Yeah, but he’ll never win the primary.
R: What is the typical turnout in a Republican primary?
A: I don’t know… pretty low.
R: Yes, around 20-25%. Do you vote in primaries?
A: No…
R: Well, I’ve never voted in a party primary either. But this year, knowing what’s at stake, you can bet I’ll be there. And every Ron Paul supporter who knows what’s at stake feels the same way. So why don’t you think he can win?
A: He’s nowhere in the polls.
R: Have you been called by any of these polls?
A: No…
R: Me neither. Mainstream polls are only polling “likely voters in the Republican primary”. That automatically excludes me, since I’ve not voted in primaries, and all of my Democrat friends who have changed their party affiliation to Republican just to vote for Ron Paul. Would you like to vote for someone who’s not the lesser of two evils?
A: Yes…
R: Then would you like to learn more and support his campaign?
At this point, the person is generally willing to take a Liberty Pack, and perhaps a Constitution, and hopefully will learn more about Rep. Paul.
The Tailored Pickup Line
The best part about the GOP booth was its location — directly across from North Carolina Right to Life, and two booths down from a World Peace booth. When someone stepped away from the Right to Life booth, or approached with a Right to Life sticker on, I’d simply ask:
Q: Are you familiar with the strongest pro-life candidate for president?
A: No, who?
R: Texas Congressman Ron Paul. He’s a 10-term Republican Congressman who is actually an obstetrician by training and has a fantastic record protecting the Constitution and the right to life. Would you like to learn more about him?
A: Yes, please!
Likewise, when someone walked by (or frequently tried to avoid) the GOP booth wearing a world peace sticker, I’d ask:
Q: Are you familiar with the strongest pro-peace presidential candidate?
A: No (suspiciously)…
R: Republican Congressman Ron Paul — he’s the only major candidate calling for an immediate and orderly withdrawal from Iraq, and understands that our counterproductive foreign policy is bankrupting our country and hurting our security.
A: A Republican? Who?
R: Yes, Ron Paul is a ten-term Republican congressman who just wants to restore the Constitution and rule of law, which we’ve been missing for the past hundred years or so. Would you like to learn more about him?
That’s typically enough to get someone concerned about the war or pro-life issues to take some information, and I’d also try the Constitution tack if time permitted.
Responding to the Issues: Foreign Policy
A: I disagree with him on foreign policy.
R: How so?
A: He’s an isolationist.
R: No, he’s a non-interventionist — he’s thinks, as our founders did, that we should talk to countries, and trade with them. Do you think that’s a good idea?
A: Those guys are crazy. You can’t talk to them.
R: Kennedy talked to Khrushchev at the height of the cold war. Do you think that was a good idea, or should we just have launched missiles?
A: But he thinks we should get out of Iraq — he’s a pacifist.
R: No, he thinks we should only fight just wars that are declared by Congress as required by the Constitution. Would you like to read about what defines a “just war”? (Hand a copy of Ron Paul’s Statement of Faith)
A: Ok… but we need to fight them over there.
R: Why? Like you said, those guys are crazy. The Shia, Sunni, and Kurds have been fighting among themselves for hundreds of years. How can we make them like each other?
A: Well, we can’t… but we need to defend ourselves and stop the terrorists over there.
R: Are you more concerned about jihadists thousands of miles away, or our own wide-open borders?
A: Both.
R: We’re over $9 trillion in debt with a currency that’s now worth less than the Canadian dollar — we simply can’t afford to do both. Pick one — what’s MORE important?
A: Well, we need to defend our borders.
R: I agree, and so does Ron Paul. Do you think we’ll be safer if we secure OUR borders, bring the troops home, talk with countries, and use our military in defense instead of offense?
A: No, we need those bases overseas.
R: Why? How many military bases does China have outside of its country?
A: I don’t know…
R: None. Who is going to attack China?
A: No one.
R: Right. Why do we need 100,000 60,000 troops in Germany? Who is going to attack Germany?
A: Ummmm….
R: Why do we need 20,000 30,000 troops in Korea? China shares a border with North Korea. Do you think China would let North Korea mount a nuclear threat against the region?
A: Ummmm… but we can’t let Iran get a nuclear weapon!
R: Are you more concerned with Iran potentially getting a nuclear weapon, or the many unaccounted for Soviet nuclear weapons that could be walking across our open borders right now?
A: Well, we need to secure our borders, but we can’t let Iran threaten Israel.
R: Israel already has over 100 nuclear weapons. Do you think Israel is capable of defending herself?
A: Well, we should let Israel do what she needs to do…
R: Exactly. It’s her backyard…
At this point most rational folks would agree to take a Liberty Pack and learn more… or perhaps I’d steer the conversation towards monetary policy if they were still interested in talking.
Responding to the Issues: Monetary Policy
A: Isn’t he that guy who wants us back on the gold standard?
R: Does it make sense that a piece of paper would be money?
The answer to this question could be anything — some folks would mention the gold standard dismissively, yet still thought the gold in Fort Knox had something to do with our currency…
A: Well, I guess I never thought about it…
R: How much are you paying for milk at the grocery store? Four dollars? How about a box of cereal? Three dollars?
A: About that…
R: How much are you paying for rides on the midway? Four dollars? How about a game on the midway? Two dollars? How about a corn dog? Three dollars? (Thanks, State Fair! Inflation is easy to explain when it’s so blindingly obvious…) Does that sound right to you?
A: Yeah, things are getting expensive.
R: Do you know that the Canadian dollar is worth more than the U.S. dollar now?
A: Yeah…
R: Why is that?
A: I don’t know…
R: It’s because we have a $9 trillion national debt, and we’re borrowing an additional $1-3 billion per day just to keep the lights on… and everyone is beginning to realize that the dollars in your pocket aren’t worth as much since we’re borrowing and creating so many new ones. Is that a good thing?
A: Doesn’t sound like it…
R: Look, Ron Paul is the only presidential candidate who understands economics and monetary policy. He understands that the federal government can’t help us any more, and that we’re killing our currency, and our economy, with our endless wars, entitlements, borrowing, and spending. Would you like to learn more about him?
A: Sure, but how is he going to fix the problem?
R: All he wants to do is legalize the Constitution: we need to repeal legal tender laws and eliminate capital gains and sales taxes on gold and silver. That will allow gold and silver currency to be used as money, as the Constitution specifies. Check out this documentary, or this speech by Rep. Paul, to learn more. (In fact this entire section at the Ron Paul library is fantastic.) We also have to stop borrowing and spending so much money. But if we don’t take these simple steps, our paper currency will continue to decline along with our standard of living as inflation makes everything more expensive, and the working poor and middle class will be the biggest losers.
Responding to the Issues: Income Tax
A: He’s crazy. He thinks we can just get rid of the IRS, with our massive national debt.
R: No, he understands that we can only get rid of the IRS if we change our definition of what the government is supposed to do. If the federal government needs to take care of us from cradle to grave and police the world, we can’t get rid of the IRS. But should we be doing those things?
A: Well, no, but we can’t just stop.
R: Ron Paul understands that we have generations of individuals who have become dependent on government assistance, and we can’t switch that off overnight. But he also knows that we waste even MORE money on corporate welfare, and on a foreign policy that is killing our currency, and our economy. Does it make sense to stop foreign aid, corporate welfare, and a counterproductive foreign policy so we can save money overseas, and work on gradually ending the welfare state at home?
A: Yes…
R: Well, that’s all he wants to do — it’s just a matter of following the Constitution when we decide where we should be spending money. Would you like to learn more and support his campaign?
A: I like Huckabee and the Fair Tax.
R: Does it make sense to pay a 23% sales tax that’s “revenue neutral” at just over $1 trillion dollars, but still add to the $9 trillion deficit by spending $3 trillion per year? (2006 numbers)
A: Well, we need to cut spending too.
R: Exactly. That’s what Ron Paul has been doing for twenty years. Trying to cut spending and restore a Constitutional federal government. How is Huckabee going to cut spending?
As you can see, I evolved towards a style that was heavily biased towards asking questions whenever possible. It’s not about preaching to folks, it’s about engaging them in a meaningful dialog and letting them express their underlying concerns. I was amazed by how willing people were to talk (granted, folks browsing around the GOP booth are a highly-targeted population), and heartened by how many people share the same concerns as Americans.
Despite the passion we all feel about these issues, it’s important to avoid being too pushy with folks and let them break off if they’re not inclined to discuss. But most folks were more than happy to talk, and the vast majority left the discussion with a smile and a handshake. It’s also important to tell new supporters about ronpaul.meetup.com, and ask if they have any friends in key primary states — for us, South Carolina! Letting them know that the campaign is run entirely by individual donations, and that they should call their friends in early primary states to spread the word, are critical ingredients for success.
In the end, we had 6 1/2 days of fantastic interactions. Eventually we were kicked out of the fair, but it was halfway through the next-to-last day. Since I was representing a candidate and the GOP can’t make any endorsements, I couldn’t hand out material from inside the GOP booth… but since I wasn’t an official state fair vendor, I couldn’t be distributing materials outside the GOP booth. Whoops. Catch-22. To their credit, the GOP booth personnel fought for us as they’ve always welcomed candidate volunteers passing out information, and there had never been problems in the past. Both I and the Mitt Romney supporter (who was Mitt’s cousin, with Romney as his first name — small world!) tried to fight back against this oppression, but the State Fair folks remained steadfast. So I left materials for folks to pick up at the GOP booth, as well as with a couple of other vendors who had become (or were already) Ron Paul supporters.
October 29th, 2007 at 5:24 pm
Great job!
October 29th, 2007 at 5:59 pm
Good job, SC’ans! You got it! Be at every event where the GOP is.
October 29th, 2007 at 6:45 pm
WOW!
What a blueprint!
Thank You!!!!
October 29th, 2007 at 7:24 pm
Great job!
We (Plano TX) had a booth at the Star Wars Convention -paid $300, but it gave us unlimited opportunity to talk to people. I had great success with the introduction, after the “have you heard of Ron Paul” question: “He’s a medical doctor. He served 20 years in Congress, but doesn’t take a pension. He says he has no right to take money out of your paycheck and you have no obligation to take of his retirement. He says he has to set an example as he fights government waste.” Very favorable response follows.
“We spend $1 trillion a year on our foreign empire. We have troops in 130 countries, but our own borders are unguarded. Guess what? If we stop taking care of people in other countries, we can abolish the income tax. Dr. Paul will bring our troops home and give you back 100% of your paycheck. If we cut the size of government back to where it was in 2000, the government won’t need our taxes. Check him out this website and please vote for him in the primary. he is a once-in-a-lifetime candidate.” “I will and thank you very much!” An amazing number of people thanked us. We have just let them in on a secret and they felt so privileged to have heard about Ron Paul.
We have a booth at the Texas Speedway this weekend at a cost of $5,000. We have a Chip In, trying to raise the money. We signed the papers on faith. We are still $2,000 short. The booth gives us unfettered access to a half a million people. An airplane will pull a Ron Paul banner during the last three days.
October 29th, 2007 at 7:30 pm
Fantastic!
October 29th, 2007 at 7:55 pm
Pretty much word for word what I say. Glad we think alike. You a former neocon?
October 29th, 2007 at 11:39 pm
We did a gun show (Jackson,Ms meet-up)# 156 (I think) We had to keep it short to 90% of the folks (many didn’t want to spend 60 sec. listening), but about 5% interested and 2%very interested, a lot of apathy… You would think the gun folk pop. would have quite a few activists!!! Small crowd (2 days/300-500 each day) I like some of these ideas…
Oh, the Granny Warriors use an RV and pay for parking and work out of the RV parking lot, don’t know if it even feasible or the cost, just an idea!!!
October 30th, 2007 at 12:34 am
WELL DONE BJ!
Thanks for taking the time to write this up.
Some more facts to add to your responses on fear of Iran getting nukes.
======================================
Most people are unaware that Israel has a second strike nuclear capability.
Do you really think Iran would destroy Israel (religious holy land to Islam as well) when they know a retaliatory second strike from Israel will destroy them even if they succeed?
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2006/08/24/AR2006082401050.html
German built diesel electric subs armed with nuclear cruise missiles. A very formidable deterrent.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:16 am
Your approach is excellent! The arguments are very well constructed and the method of asking questions forces them to engage instead of being dismissive. I hope you can circulate this approach to as many other groups as possible. Well done!
October 30th, 2007 at 3:24 am
excellent work!
October 30th, 2007 at 4:01 am
Can I suggest that you snapshot and printout a copy (best in color for the dots) of the maps on this page:
http://www.infiniteronpaul.com/meetupmaps/
You could use THAT as a *visual* indicator of the comparative grassroots support of the various candidates for your “Path 3: Familiar but skeptical ” section; saying 60,000 is one thing — SHOWING the comparative maps is much more convincing.
October 30th, 2007 at 4:03 am
OH, by the way, absolutely GREAT page…
Two questions though:
Where do you get the copies of the Pocket Constitution?
What do they cost?
Only places I can find them online they seem to want ridiculous prices (I can buy New Testaments for less!)
October 30th, 2007 at 6:12 am
Hi,
I came over to look at your Ron Paul pack — I saw your post on Daily Paul. It looks like the “Statement of Faith” web page has been hacked? All I get is a foreign script on that page.
Gwen
October 30th, 2007 at 6:15 am
And the Ron Paul DVD page too?
October 30th, 2007 at 10:34 am
Great Job!!!! Keep the faith & keep up the good work.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:01 pm
Alot of what Ron Paul stands for I approve of. I’m not sure about killing all foreign aid as the reality of the world is we need alliance partners who share in our ideals. Life, liberty and the pursuit of happiness applies to everyone and it’s what makes Americans special. Yes, we have a welfare state at home. Why? Global disparity in income is one of the issues and foreign aid, properly applied, changes that.
October 30th, 2007 at 1:16 pm
Good stuff here. I would make one suggestion though. Actually, it’s not my suggestion. It’s from Dale Carnegie, author of How to Win Friends and Influence People. One of his rules is never to argue. He most certainly would never begin a response with the word “No.” First find and agree upon a common goal. Appeal to the other person’s good character and principles. There’s lots more. I recommend the book very highly. Its antique language makes it sound out-dated, but believe me, it still works.
October 30th, 2007 at 3:40 pm
And how did you respond to questions about race relations, racist supporters, or Ron Paul’s acceptance of that support?
October 30th, 2007 at 4:01 pm
After reading this post it seems like the Ron Paul following is turning into a church. I am all for the constitution as the “rule of law” but who appointed Ron Paul an expert on it?
The “Statement of Faith” I find somewhat disturbing. Here is a counter post to Ron Paul and his ideas here….
http://shadowdemocracy.wordpress.com/2007/10/09/ron-paulconstitutionalist-or-just-another-christian-fundamentalist-nut/
October 30th, 2007 at 5:01 pm
Awesome post man. You do a great job of countering all of the people who are either unsure or don’t believe it can happen.
October 30th, 2007 at 5:57 pm
@jennaraby — it’s pretty well documented that our foreign “aid” doesn’t actually help the folks it’s intended to help. Check out “Confessions of an Economic Hit Man” by John Perkins for some firsthand experience. But a free society tends to be a generous society — not that it matters, but our family and church support a variety of missionaries around the world. And the accountability provided by giving aid under such *extremely* local control is fantastic. The federal government itself would NEVER qualify as a legitimate “charity” based upon the percentage of each dollar taken in that makes it out to its desired recipient.
October 30th, 2007 at 6:21 pm
@nicolen, great question. I take it all the way back to the Declaration of Independence — what part of “all Men are created equal, that they are endowed by their Creator with certain unalienable Rights…” don’t folks understand? We’re now progressive enough to understand that equality includes men and women of all creeds and colors. Our founding documents are not written to divide us, they are written to unite us as individual Americans who ALL share the same rights.
Regarding who chooses to support Ron Paul, well… people have done a lot of evil things throughout history in the name of Jesus Christ. The Inquisition and various forms of religious persecution come to mind. Do the actions of such miscreants make Jesus evil?
Please understand I’m in no way comparing Ron Paul to Jesus Christ. It’s just that one should not judge a man, or his message, by his supporters. Each individual must evaluate the message herself. How has Ron Paul “accepted” the support of racists?
Check out this excellent video “performance” of the Declaration of Independence:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYyttEu_NLU
As you can see, it’s not about black versus white, or any other label typically used to divide us as a nation.
October 30th, 2007 at 6:27 pm
@MJ, I think it’s quite a stretch to call Ron Paul’s support a “church”. I’ve never seen a church with a tent this big. It’s about individual liberty, and each of us having the same God (or Creator, or whatever you like) given rights as individuals.
Why do you find Ron Paul’s Statement of Faith disturbing? I’d be curious to hear what disturbs you about one man’s personal statement of what he believes.
One primary difference between Ron Paul and what some might call (rightly or wrongly) a “Christian fundamentalist nut” is that he has no wish to force his belief system upon you, or anyone else, either via the force of the state or at gunpoint. Do you think a “Christian fundamentalist nut” or even a “social conservative” would wish to end the “War on Drugs”?
Also, please don’t fall for attempts to use abortion as a splinter issue. Check out this audio interview where Rep. Paul speaks extensively about the topic:
http://www.podshow.com/shows/?mode=detail&episode_id=84569
You can skip ahead to the 5 minute mark to get started, abortion starts at 22 minutes.
As far as who appointed Ron Paul an “expert”, I think his writings speak for themselves. I didn’t become a supporter overnight, but over about a month of reading through http://www.ronpaullibrary.com I began to realize he’s actually put a lot of thought and study into how one would implement a Constitutional federal government.
That’s not to say he’s the last word on the subject, and there are areas where I personally want to learn/discuss more (i.e. global warming, or at least our unsustainable use of fossil fuels). But he’s pretty much alone among our elected leaders in at least TRYING to follow, and discuss, how we should apply (as opposed to ignore) the Constitution.
October 30th, 2007 at 6:45 pm
Ron Paul…”If we’re not involved in anything, how can anything go wrong?”
I’m Ron Paul, and I approve this message.
October 30th, 2007 at 7:14 pm
bhday, thank you for the reply. However, I am quite familiar with the Declaration of Independence and I find it amusing that you would link me to such a theatrical presentation in an attempt to prove that Dr. Paul does not embrace racist ideology. Why would you do such a thing?
Of course, Dr. Paul may not be responsible for the ground-swell of support that he is getting from racists and anti-Semites. But…and this is a very big but…where has Dr. Paul repudiated racism or the racist who support him? Even more importantly, why is it that such large numbers of bigoted and racist individuals are in support of Dr. Paul?
I have been reading and studying and, generally, familiarizing myself with all of the candidates and Paul disturbs me. He disturbs me not just because of those he seems to be attracting, but because he seems to be very adept at side-stepping, denying, and passing the buck. Now, some might say that makes for a good politician - personally, I have had enough of that kind of politics.
Again…your candidate has a history of racism, is being supported and promoted by organized racist groups, has been asked repeatedly to speak to this, and remains in a mode of tacit acceptance. Sending those with legitimate questions about this to a slicked-up Hollywood reading of the Declaration of Independence doesn’t answer those questions and does nothing to enhance one’s opinion of Dr. Paul.
October 30th, 2007 at 7:37 pm
@nicolen, all I’d ask is to separate the message (i.e., the text of the Declaration of Independence and Constitution) from the messenger — whoever it happens to be. I frankly found the “theatrical” production of the Declaration by a few Hollywood elites to be pretty inspiring — just because silently reading the words *can* be dry and cumbersome. Sorry you didn’t see it that way.
Look, I don’t care if you like/dislike/support/don’t support Ron Paul. All I’d ask is that folks read the documents themselves, and evaluate the merit of the documents themselves. Period.
Don’t judge the Constitution and Declaration of Independence based upon how you feel about Ron Paul. Maybe he’s just not the “messenger” for you. But can you be a messenger for, and supporter of, those founding documents?
If racists and bigots also embrace a politician, or even — God forbid — these same founding documents… well, they’re still racists and bigots. And we can debate them until the cows come home regarding the irrationality of their respective positions.
Good night, and good luck.
October 30th, 2007 at 10:09 pm
Ron Paul’s personal hero is Ludwig von Mises, a Jewish refugee from Nazi Germany and one of the primary exponents of the Austrian school of economics. He is a great supporter of the Mises Institute (http://mises.org/) How can he be an anti-Semite?
Please don’t read hit pieces as Gospel truth. Dig in yourself and try to find more reliable sources of information. How is it you “know” racists support him? Even if some do, how would they ever get the idea he agrees with them on race? Might their support have more to do with the fact he is a constitutionalist and does not like big government? Or that he’s the strongest opponent of victim disarmament (aka “gun control”)?
95% of the political world is bullshit, and it’s tough to wade through it sometimes. But Ron Paul is the real thing.
October 30th, 2007 at 11:23 pm
Oh, @nicolen, one more thing. While I would never attempt to explain/justify all of Ron Paul’s real or imagined supporters, I let you off a bit too easily with your racist presumptions about Rep. Paul. Please check out his appearance in the PBS Republican debate, hosted by Tavis Smiley. The first part is here on YouTube:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=O6O0AlS4Nm8
While no one can make you like anyone, I certainly hope that you’ll keep an open mind as you evaluate candidates and seek truth. In my months of study, I’ve found nothing Ron Paul has done, said, or written that shows any evidence of racism or prejudice. Simply saying that he has a “history of racism” is unjustified without any supporting evidence.
Finally, watching that Declaration of Independence video again, I’m actually a bit shocked by your dismissive response. My favorite quote is listening to Morgan Freeman say, “The real glory of the Declaration of Independence has been our nation’s epic struggle throughout history to close the gap between the ideals of this remarkable document and the sometimes painful realities of American life.” (Sometimes? That’s an understatement for many…)
Seriously, don’t you want to fight for something? Or should we just sit back and take it?
October 30th, 2007 at 11:44 pm
Very good tools you’ve assembled. Thanks.
October 31st, 2007 at 12:12 am
Way to go!!!
That was excellent.
November 1st, 2007 at 8:49 pm
Thank you so much! Great job!
November 5th, 2007 at 4:02 pm
A very nice toolkit you have assembled bhday; thanks!
Thelen Paulk has been about liberty for a long time; you might want to consider what is here: http://autarchic.tripod.com/files/visitor.html
[And I hope NOT to attract any more comments about the Ron Paul phenomenom being a "church" by posting that link - haha. BTW, Thelen is legally blind and sales of his booklet go a LONG way toward his support]
Also, I can’t remember how many times I have referred to THE FACTUAL GUIDE TO THE CONSTITUTION OF THE UNITED STATES, available to my pleasant surprise just now, here: http://www.rochesterlaw.org/store/index.php?main_page=product_info&products_id=5
[The indexing and cross-referencing make it worth its weight in gold.]
November 7th, 2007 at 10:43 pm
Path 3: Familiar but skeptical-
R: Me neither. Mainstream polls are only polling “likely voters in the Republican primary”. That automatically excludes me, since I’ve not voted in primaries, and all of my Democrat friends who have changed their party affiliation to Republican just to vote for Ron Paul. Would you like to vote for someone who’s not the lesser of two evils?
A: Yes…
R: Then would you like to learn more and support his campaign?
“Would you like to vote for someone who’s not the lesser of two evils?”!!!!!!!!!!!
Ron Paul is not the lesser of two evils, because he is not evil. That statement sounds like something Fox News would say.
You may want to rephrase this statement to:
Ask yourself this…Would you rather have to choose the lesser of two evils or vote for someone such as Ron Paul, a good man who is campaigning for the GOOD of ALL people.
BTW… Unless the person you are speaking with has begun a Christian dialog with you, I would refrain from the statement about the Bible and the Constitution being #1 & #2 on your best seller list. Their are many people who do NOT believe Jesus is their savior and they equally want to have their freedom to choose their beliefs, etc. so this puts the constitution in first place and the Bible, Koran, Bhagavagita, etc. tied for second. You risk loosing potential Non-Christian voters when referring to the bible in this way.
I’ve been speaking to many people about Ron Paul and his campaign and I find that what works best is to ask what the person wants from their president and what changes the want to see in the world and then I answer them as Ron would.
November 8th, 2007 at 3:19 pm
@Jerry, thanks for the comment. The “two evils” question was intended to communicate exactly that — would you (finally!) like to vote for someone who is NOT the “lesser of two evils” but who is truly a great American statesman?
The Christian piece is also well-taken, and I prefer not to wear my faith on my sleeve but instead attempt to quietly live it. I should note that the audience around the GOP and Right to Life booth at the North Carolina State Fair is highly self-selected, and even if someone has a fear/dislike of the Bible, mentioning the Bible in honest conversation is also a useful path for exploration.
For example, there are people who fear/dislike the Bible based upon unfamiliarity with the book itself, and human corruption of Biblical principles. Likewise, there are people from disenfranchised groups who fear/dislike the Constitution while not having read it as a result of our own country’s record of oppression and denial of individual rights.
A longer conversation typically reveals that a negative impression of the Bible, or Constitution, results from events that occurred *despite* (as opposed to because of) these two documents.
Here is the best post relating Ron Paul’s candidacy to Christian philosophy that I have seen yet — this guy should be a preacher:
http://jwharton.com/wordpress/?p=3