The Ron Paul Nightmareby
Rick Fisk
If you are a bit disheartened by the media blackout and smears by beltway "libertarians" and Republican these past weeks, lighten up. The smears have been dispatched handily and the "think-tanks" and their publications are being seen for what they are: libertine tabloids whose writers have abandoned all propriety and credibility in a desperate attempt to maintain the status quo. None has been more discredited than the New Republic. Thanks to Justin Raimondo, the New Republic may have learned an old lesson about sending a boy to do a man's job. Rudy Giuliani has learned the same lesson. After taking on Ron Paul in one of the early debates, he landed in the dustbin of the 2007/8 campaign season along with Fred Thompson, Alan Keyes, Duncan Hunter, Tom Tancredo, Tommy Thompson, and Sam Brownback. It is becoming abundantly clear that many of the so-called libertarian pundits promoted libertarian ideas (so-called) so long as there wasn't a chance that they'd actually be enacted. They were arguing for the sake of argument. Now that it looks like there is a real possibility that some of these radical ideas are being embraced by a motivated and active group of individuals, they're doing everything they can to stop them, including advocacy of the President's perpetual power to spy on U.S. citizens. Imagine that! You could shake your head and feel bad about it but it's truly a cause for joy. Everywhere you look, statists are tipping their hands out of desperation thanks to Ron Paul. It just sort of unfolds and the corrupting influence of Washington D.C comes into focus. There are very few friends of liberty who have spent any time in Washington. But it isn't just Washington. The centers of power in the states are also being exposed as belligerent to the people. In Louisiana, the establishment there still refuses to acknowledge that Ron Paul has probably won the caucuses there. This after doing everything it could to disqualify the slate of Ron Paul delegates arriving at the contest. The second place finish in Nevada was ignored by the Old Media while being hailed as a turning point for Romney but if you look a little deeper, you will find that the grass roots there knew the rules and beat the "front-runners" at the real political game, not the one presented to us by the Old Media. In some states, like West Virginia, Maryland and Virginia, Dr. Paul's supporters have been very busy to the open dismay of the GOP establishment. The Ron Paul revolution has already this year proven detractors utterly and totally wrong. So, why not the rest of the year? The Old Media insisted that New Hampshire and Iowa would decide the nominee; however, they are but two states and neither are particularly representative of the nation at large, nor are they loaded with delegates. In fact, the Iowa caucuses didn't commit any delegates for the national convention. The real delegates won't be determined until June. A lot can happen between now and June. Personally, I can find no reason not to remain very optimistic about Ron Paul's chances. If they were as slim as the Old Media keeps pretending, there would be no need to produce smears or institute black-outs. They continue to torpedo their own credibility. Some cynics still believe the pundits when they claim that Dr. Paul just doesn't have a shot in the same sentences which expresses amazement at the campaign's achievements. If you remember, the mantra after that famous exchange last May between Rudy Giuliani and Dr. Paul was that Dr. Paul couldn't get 2% of the vote if he paid people to vote for him. At that time, polling reflected the fact that he had little name recognition beyond those who have followed his career these past 30 years, yet he's now polling as high as 12% in some states. But the bar for "failure" keeps being raised. Now that is just hilarious. What most people measure as success, the Old Media says is failure. The same people who claim that what we witness in their contrived debates is serious barely reaches the level of petty squabbling. The establishment is sweating profusely. Ron Paul is their worst nightmare. This becomes more evident each day as one observes the tactics they use and the poor effect of these tactics as evidenced by the growing talent pool signing on with the campaign. Dr. Paul has hired a new national media director, a new national political director, has built a formidable economic team and has been gathering more high-profile endorsements. None of this would have been possible without the grassroots and this won't change. Don't expect the Old Media ever to play along, though. It won't happen. There will be no magic moment where the Old Media starts treating Ron Paul like a serious person and we can breathe a sigh of relief, have a cup of coffee and sink back into the couch. Sorry, but the Old Media is never going to give you the slightest help in this endeavor unless you buy the ads. I wouldn't be surprised to see Ron Paul elected only to have the Old Media, if they can hold out financially until the inauguration, ignore the election, refuse to show up to the inauguration or even refuse to cover subsequent press conferences out of protest. We've just got to quit putting any credence in what Old Media members do and say. They've been wrong, they will continue to be wrong, and their influence wanes. But this was never about taking a pill and having everything magically work out in our favor. Even after Dr. Paul is sworn in, there is a mountain of largess to erode and almost an entire Congress to kick out on its ear. The people we are seeking to depose have a lot of power and influence so our rows are tough to hoe. But our task is not impossible, and every setback so far has been turned into a positive lesson. By the way, did you know that in Maryland the supporters there have 6 Ron Paul candidates running for Congress? I personally believe that the reason some have expressed a lack of confidence in the past few weeks is because they realize the importance of this election and what is at stake. Anything other than total victory has attracted cynicism. Of course, this is exactly what the Old Media has been practicing; resorting to the same is a form of self-fulfilling prophecy. If you are one of those people, hold fast. That cliché about the blackness before dawn is also a truism. The level of effort that is being exerted to minimize Dr. Paul's chances is itself evidence of just how viable he is as a candidate. George Washington lost a battle or two but then learned, regrouped and led his troops to victory over the most powerful nation in the world at that time. We are involved in a historic battle that has raged for as long as there have been civilizations and governments. It is now up to us to crank up the volume, reach deep down into our pocketbooks and step out onto the curbs of our neighborhoods – the very places these allegedly powerful elite will never set foot – and take our country back. The Ron Paul nightmare is coming to a town near you and soon. Don't forget to have fun. This is our country and we're taking it back, precinct by precinct. February 2, 2008 Rick Fisk [send him mail] is a 45-year-old software developer and entrepreneur. He is married, has three children and resides in Austin, TX. Copyright © 2008 LewRockwell.com |
As long as I
have been a libertarian, the Libertarian party has been running
candidates in the national elections resulting in 1–2% poll results
on election days. As the years passed, it has become difficult to
spin these results in a positive light. But now comes a libertarian
who knows how to get elected and has already achieved the equivalent
of the Holy Grail for many libertarians: getting elected and speaking
truth to power in a national forum. Why then has Ron Paul found
his most vocal opponents from within the very ranks of the libertarians?