HammerDR
08-14-2007, 05:26 PM
Campaign Fatigue
Many supporters of the good doctor have declared that their interest is starting to wane in regards to their fervent support. None are jumping ship but rather are concerned that they cannot keep up their enthusiasm for the campaign for much longer, let alone the 4-5 months to the first caucus and beyond. Rest assured, fatigue supporters, that you are not alone nor are you wrong in such fatigue.
When many of us first heard of Dr. Paul, we, for our own reasons, were incredibly excited that a man such as him was running for the Oval Office. We stayed up long hours of the night, sacrificing TV, video game or other 'fun' activity time in order to read up on this great man. We joined Meetups and wanted to have 7 meetings a week, lasting 2 hours each. We sent our money to the campaign and donated to grassroots causes such as newspaper ads and signs.
However, we now find that 7 meetings a week is seemingly tenuous to some of us and that its becoming more of a job to get this campaign off the ground and launching into space. We see that t
he campaign is still hardly registering in the national polls despite all of our efforts. The media focuses on McCain, Rudy and Thompson. We hear the rancorous laughter of the neocons that said "You can't do it." and now say, "See! You can't!" All of this coalesces into a declining enthusiasm for many of the grassroots supporters.
At Ronstock, Dr. Paul said something that was very, very important. He said, basically, that while the message of liberty is an entirely serious one, we should be having fun while spreading that message. He was beaming while he said it--Dr. Paul is having fun with the wild campaign ride. We, his supporters, should follow in his stead. We should focus on doing what is fun for us, not what we think we should be doing. In another thread, one supporter frustratingly concludes that we need attack ads. I do not agree. We should, instead, just do the things that we find entertaining. We should hang out on street corners with friends: holding Ron Paul signs, talking to people about our Congressional and Presidential hero and, in general, just having fun. We should organize live music events at local venues that combine the ordinary fun that comes with said live music with our impassioned and inspirational message. We should smile when we talk about Ron Paul. We should enjoy every single second of this campaign.
In short, don't be frustrated. Don't treat this as a job. Do what you think is the most fun--and, surprisingly, you'll find that it's also the most effective way to do it. Fun--like humor--is contagious.
Note: There are other grassroots campaign issues that I'll be writing about. I could use my blog but I want to inspire discussion rather than just having people read :P
Many supporters of the good doctor have declared that their interest is starting to wane in regards to their fervent support. None are jumping ship but rather are concerned that they cannot keep up their enthusiasm for the campaign for much longer, let alone the 4-5 months to the first caucus and beyond. Rest assured, fatigue supporters, that you are not alone nor are you wrong in such fatigue.
When many of us first heard of Dr. Paul, we, for our own reasons, were incredibly excited that a man such as him was running for the Oval Office. We stayed up long hours of the night, sacrificing TV, video game or other 'fun' activity time in order to read up on this great man. We joined Meetups and wanted to have 7 meetings a week, lasting 2 hours each. We sent our money to the campaign and donated to grassroots causes such as newspaper ads and signs.
However, we now find that 7 meetings a week is seemingly tenuous to some of us and that its becoming more of a job to get this campaign off the ground and launching into space. We see that t
he campaign is still hardly registering in the national polls despite all of our efforts. The media focuses on McCain, Rudy and Thompson. We hear the rancorous laughter of the neocons that said "You can't do it." and now say, "See! You can't!" All of this coalesces into a declining enthusiasm for many of the grassroots supporters.
At Ronstock, Dr. Paul said something that was very, very important. He said, basically, that while the message of liberty is an entirely serious one, we should be having fun while spreading that message. He was beaming while he said it--Dr. Paul is having fun with the wild campaign ride. We, his supporters, should follow in his stead. We should focus on doing what is fun for us, not what we think we should be doing. In another thread, one supporter frustratingly concludes that we need attack ads. I do not agree. We should, instead, just do the things that we find entertaining. We should hang out on street corners with friends: holding Ron Paul signs, talking to people about our Congressional and Presidential hero and, in general, just having fun. We should organize live music events at local venues that combine the ordinary fun that comes with said live music with our impassioned and inspirational message. We should smile when we talk about Ron Paul. We should enjoy every single second of this campaign.
In short, don't be frustrated. Don't treat this as a job. Do what you think is the most fun--and, surprisingly, you'll find that it's also the most effective way to do it. Fun--like humor--is contagious.
Note: There are other grassroots campaign issues that I'll be writing about. I could use my blog but I want to inspire discussion rather than just having people read :P