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View Full Version : Why do people hate Ron Paul?




a_moran3
02-23-2008, 09:57 AM
Not the mainstream media but the common man. I hear a lot of people saying that he's a kook and we're all "drinking the kool-aid" or something immature like that.

A lot of people just can't stand him. But why? Everything he does follows the Constitution and common sense. Is it because the mainstream media tells them to? Ignorance? Is it because he has a "R" next to his name? All of the above?

I really get mad when I hear smearing against our Constitutionalist. The two biggest smears I hear are: "He's irrelevant, he's not going to win." Or "He's a racist."

A lot of people have been complaining for years that the government is corrupt and they want someone who is honest, fights for the people, yada yada yada. But finally someone comes a long and is exactly like that and they ridicule him?

Again this isn't just the mainstream media.

homah
02-23-2008, 10:04 AM
For most people, it is because they don't do a lick of research and parrot what they hear from the MSM and their friends (who get their information from the MSM). It is easier for them to say he is a kook than to do some digging to figure out why he is or isn't one. For some people, it is because they don't like honest, decent, hardworking people. Having those qualities is generally frowned upon these days, whereas in the past they were seen as positive qualities.

yongrel
02-23-2008, 10:05 AM
msm

Zolah
02-23-2008, 10:07 AM
Mass-media manipulation, it's one of the age olds..I wasn't aware just how much propaganda is used against us until this past year, especially after hearing about how Iraq and that sort of area is bombarded with military propaganda from the good ole U.S...Brainwashing sounds extreme, but think about the word association techniques used by the MSM during the elections - everytime the elections mentioned they talk about Obama and Clinton first, whenever they mention Ron Paul (if ever) they say "dark-horse" or "long-shot" or associate him with "kooks" and "conspiracy nuts", and it's not just 1 or 2 channels, once or twice a week, it's thousands of times, it's literally battered into people's minds.

Maybe I'm overthinking it but one quick example is the label, "isolationist", it was one debate, where Giuliani moronically called Ron an isolationist, and even though he was completely wrong (about so many things), people picked up on that term, not caring how wrong it was..

pacelli
02-23-2008, 10:09 AM
The 'drinking the kool-aid' reference was popularized after the Jim Jones fiasco. Basically referring to people lining up to drink a deadly poison, and continuing to drink it even though people in front of the line were dropping like flies. I think the saying was resurrected into the modern political culture by Bill "Don't block the shot" O'Reilly. 'Drinking the kool-aid' is basically saying that people are behaving in a sheep-like fashion. I'd say that would apply more to Barry Hussein's feinting sermons.

I think the common man's thought processes have been under assault by the media for years. I haven't heard the 'kook' argument in person. I've only heard it on the media. I also haven't heard the racist argument in person.

I think there is the perception that people hate Ron Paul, but any negative opinions that people have are gestated in their minds based on what they have seen in the media, or in how RP has placed in the primaries & caucuses we've had.

Instead of getting mad when these hypothetical real-life people smear Dr. Paul, counter their smears with facts. Racism? Talk about Ron's fight against the vicious drug laws that are biased against imprisoning minorities. Irrelevant? Talk about how he has more donations from the military than all the other candidates put together. He won't win? Talk about how the primaries are for voting your heart (emotional appeal).

It might not be "just" the mainstream media, but those bastards sure have an influence over folks that aren't plugged into the net.

Roadrcr
02-23-2008, 10:12 AM
Ask them why and for specifics .. That usually shuts them up.

pinkmandy
02-23-2008, 10:12 AM
Yes, MSM. If Hannity says it then it must be so. He's a good Christian who doesn't lie. If O'Reilly says it then its gospel. If the media doesn't cover him then he isn't important. If they say he can't win then I won't vote for him. On the intellectual side, they think he's racist. I've had more than one run in with DK folks who believe that crap. Again, thanks to the corrupt media.

So basically our country is ignorant and many are downright stupid. Even people who normally seem highly intelligent have given up thinking for themselves when the media volunteers to do it for them.

ETA: The kool-aid bit has been recently repopularized by O'Reilly. It's one of his favorite slams.

IPSecure
02-23-2008, 10:12 AM
They are babies, wanting 'Mother GovernLess' to take care of them, cradle to grave.

Little do they realize, 'Mother GovernLess' could care less about them...

phixion
02-23-2008, 10:14 AM
Who really wants their entire reality and world-view flipped entirely on its head?

Most would rather the USA be at war just because they feel safer that they're actively fighting a perceived enemy, hence McCain citing his 100 year war to keep everyone safe rhetoric and beating the war drums.

Believe it or not the majority want more war. More war the better (since they think it makes them safer) - until it begins to effect their lives and that of their relatives, etc. Then when the reality dawns that war makes everyone less safe, they will protest in the streets in the hundreds of thousands.

Then the same process will repeat over again.

Pete

abe447
02-23-2008, 10:30 AM
I don't know why it's so surprising to you that libertarianism isn't widely popular. If it was, we wouldn't have drifted the opposite way in the past 70-80 years. The role of the federal government has gotten bigger in both economic and social issues and some of it is for the better. So when you've got someone who opposes the greatest piece of legislation in most people's lifetimes, The Civil Rights Act, you're going to have people who think that's crazy. Income tax, federal reserve, social security, medicare, welfare, subsidies, etc. etc. These have been around in everyone's lifetime and we're taught in school that these are very good things. Most people either don't look into the costs and benefits of them and don't care.

Ron Paul opposes a lot of things we've done since the 1930s and his solutions are perceived by most people to just undo it all. Has America prospered since then? Of course it has, so you're going to have people who think it's completely crazy to just do the opposite of everything. If he were better at making arguments that seem more realistic to people, we'd be in better shape than we are now. When asked about social security, don't just say "ABOLISH IT!" Income tax- Abolish it. Federal Reserve- Abolish it. Dept. of Homeland Security, Education, Energy, Agriculture- Abolish it, abolish it, abolish it, abolish it. And on and on. You've gotta explain why, how, what would we do instead which is hard to do in a debate.

Most people don't like radical change!

Spirit of '76
02-23-2008, 10:39 AM
A lot of what's been said so far is accurate, and also it should be pointed out that a lot of people simply don't want to face the reality of how bad things have become, so they lash out at the man who's willing to point it out.

They're terrified of the future, but they'd rather stick their heads in the sand and pretend everything is just fine than listen to someone who faces the facts and offers radical solutions.

rvkpa
02-23-2008, 12:10 PM
People are afraid of losing government services like welfare, unemployment, and especially social security. Even if they don't collect them. Ever since Roosevelt people seem to gravitate toward the Nanny state. If they dug a little deeper they'd know that the new deal and every program in the same vein were spectacular failures.

nbhadja
02-23-2008, 12:13 PM
They are ignorant and uneducated about politics, economics, and our constitution and history.

Elwar
02-23-2008, 12:18 PM
two words: baaaa

flames2dust77
02-23-2008, 12:23 PM
Ask them why and for specifics .. That usually shuts them up.

QFT. They usually don't even know why they're saying what they're saying. Ppl have been so manipulated by the msm...and well, ppl are just lazy. Anyone who seriously researches Dr. Paul will find that he makes the most sense. JMO.

RonPaulalways
02-23-2008, 12:36 PM
They think government programs are good and Ron Paul wants to eliminate them. They think he is crazy to think that the good that does come from governments programs will be replicated by non-governmental organizations.

They are ignorant and need to be taught how the world works. Getting Ron Paul elected means educating every single American.

dealerjim
02-23-2008, 01:28 PM
Most people are lazy and feel they have no reason to take responsibility for their own lives. Another problem is that people don't realize entitlement programs and government bureaucracies cost more to operate than just manning up and taking care of themselves. The government is responsible for creating a nation of lazy bastards.

benhaskins
02-23-2008, 02:01 PM
too many people are still glued to the tube

Agora
02-23-2008, 02:23 PM
“The first reaction to truth is hatred”

Tertullian

Luft97
02-23-2008, 02:30 PM
Who really wants their entire reality and world-view flipped entirely on its head?



This is very true, if you have ever sat down and tried to change anyone's mind about government or world issues most of the time you are met with anger being the first response. Especialy if they have strong beliefs on the subject, misinformed or not. The problem is most people don't move past the anger to actually do the research they walk away and think "Those people are crazy".

nodope0695
02-23-2008, 02:37 PM
They don't like him because they are SHEEPLE. They don't even know why they don't like him. These are the people who watch Faux and believe every word. Again, the are the SHEEPLE. They like ignorance because ignorance carries no responsibility.

haigh
02-23-2008, 02:44 PM
"Why do people hate Ron Paul? "

The conservatives who rejected my pitch for Ron Paul did so because of his Foreign Policy not because they hated him. I talked to many conservatives who liked a lot of what he said but would not support his radical change in Foreign Policy.

Their sense was that the US Foreign Policy is like a boot holding down the head of a snake and if you back off the pressure you are going to get bit. Fear trumps reason.

Paul's position was 100% idealogical and if he had included some practicality like a four year phased withdrawl from Japan, Korea, and Germany he might have gotten more conservative voters.