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My reaction to the open-ed "Ron Paul's Radical Views"
by Mike Kuykendall

."I have written previously about Representative Ron Paul's extremist views, but with his surging fundraising and steadily climbing poll numbers it seems another visit to this deluded Libertarian's views is in order.

Many of my non-political friends have asked my opinion on Paul. They are seduced by his anti-war views and GOP underdog status, and somehow consider him a real alternative to the current crop of warmongering Republican and "celebrity" Democratic candidates." [ read article>> ].


My long response:
I'm a former Democrat against preemptive military aggression and am crossing over and voting for Ron Paul in the primary. (We can do that in my state.)

If Ron Paul wins the GOP nomination, I'm betting the majority of conservatives (give or take the strict pro-war minority) will buck up and rally around him, plus he'll win a lot of anti-war, fringe, and not-Hillary vote. He could WIN against Hillary because of her stance and record on the civil liberties and on the Middle East, etc.

From my perspective, bothering to show up and vote for any of these top-tier candidates from either party is the worst demonstration of adult naivete' Like it makes a difference which of them you vote for, whether it's Tweedle Dum or Tweedle Dee. At this point, reinforcing the status-quo is a masochistic impulse to see how much worse things will get before they get better. I'm not saying someone like Ron Paul would always be the best choice for president. At this point in time, he might just be what this country needs though. In better times, he would not be my first choice. For certain, Hilly Clinton would not be my choice. Ron Paul is most definitely the lesser of the Republican evils and less evil than the Clintons. As for the rest of the Dems, I think she's got that locked up. The top three are so similar, she'll win by virtue of celebrity. (She is a Senator and former First Lady of two terms). Some of the more extremist lefties are really bugged by Ron Paul's views but really, I think they're just getting overworked. If he gets elected, he'll have to work with congress and senate to accomplish anything. I think he's going to make some strides in some areas but less in others. I definitely think he'll wield that power of veto on war spending. Think congress will overturn it? Doubtful.

We should stop acting like voting is solely about backing candidates because they reflect all of our views...most of us must prioritize our issues and make concessions on the rest...sometimes we might back someone because they're the right person for a particular purpose addressing a particular need at a specific point in time. I think that now is the time to tighten the belt and pare down a government that's surging out of control toward fascist Imperialism. We're living beyond our means. And Ron Paul is not afraid to point both out. Once we get some things back to a comfortable and stable level, maybe it will be time for a more liberal change/choice in a presidential candidate or more socialist type programs if it's what the people want. Let's just ensure that meanwhile (as has been the case with the present psycho POTUS), no more changes take place that damage the elastic nature of our present system of checks and balances.

I'm flexible enough to allow for someone like Ron Paul during a time of extreme national debt and the threat of long-term commitment to a wartime economy that will destroy the dollar and leave us at the mercy of our debtors but there's one thing I will not abide is our foreign policy of being a complete jerk and a bully so Hillary Clinton is not an option. At least Ron Paul wants the U.S. to start minding their own damn business. I think the world would be glad to see him in there, even if he did manage to get the U.S. to leave world organizations. Do you think that would last? Short-term, don't you think the world would be glad if we just butted out for a while? I get the impression they're sick to death of the U.S. anyway. As for foreign aid, if Darfur bothers you so much, join with others of like mind and organize as a private citizen. Far as I know, nobody's robbed you of the power to organize humanitarian aid or adopt refugees. Or are you saying you want to militarily intervene? Save lives and bring more peace at gunpoint? Why should we police the world? Do we own it?

It's not as if people are FORCED to look to the government to solve all the world's problems. It's only because we're such lazy babies that we keep expecting a parent government to make the world a better place when we could be making that happen ourselves by taking personal responsibility and initiative, working together... Anyone who seriously thinks politicians will fix all the world's problems, there's your Radical, there's your extremist viewpoint. The rest of us are reasonably cautious about handing over too much power to the government. Politicians create more messes than they clean up. They traditionally leave their messes for others to clean up. Then the new guy comes along and creates a distraction or changes the subject. Meanwhile, the mess is forgotten. Bill Clinton's administration might have lowered the debt but they did that, in part, by "borrowing" money from social security. Who's going to put that money back now? Hillary? Forget it. She's just coming back to finish the job, my guess. The Clintons brought us NAFTA and Hillary will lead us into a North American Union and full-out socialism. Forget That! Canadians want their national sovereignty and Americans want theirs too and if you like the U.S. capitalist system, live here. You like socialism, go to Canada if they'll have you. But blur the boundaries? Who's getting a say? You see how nobody came to the rescue of state's rights with the Warner Act. Now a president can declare marshal law and bypass the consent of the states. Ron Paul voted against that, by the way. And Ron Paul is against the North American Union.

Politicians are pulling all the strings and making bold moves without our say. And they're doing it in plain sight but Big Media's not covering it and so they help to legitimize these naked power plays. If you think it's not a feudal plutocracy already, you live in a charmed world.
Ron Paul is not afraid to draw attention to the obvious. Frankly, that will be a refreshing change from the usual political spin.

If enough voters disenfranchised by the two-party system get out and vote for Ron Paul in the Republican primary, we could make a significant statement against Imperialism. If you're not stirred by the ethical implications of continuing a policy of preemptive warfare, at least recognize it's well past time to address the debt or lose the dollar. [ Reference Einstein on the symptoms of insanity... ]

The GOP primary will decide this race if it's not rigged.