FrankRep
09-25-2007, 06:53 AM
Ohio 4 Ron Paul
Maverick prez candidate garners student support
Sept. 24, 2007
Athens News
Who is Ron Paul? Aside from the mysterious, spray-painted "Ron Paul '08" vans, and traditional campaign fliers and rallies, Ron Paul has become the new underground presidential candidate, with a strong Web 2.0 following.
"The internet is a great tool for this campaign," said Geoff Shough, an Ohio University junior from Columbus and Paul supporter.
A group of about 15 Paul supporters stood at the College Gate Friday afternoon with signs and posters, then marched around campus.
Interviewed later, Shough said he first discovered "Constitutionalist" Congressman Ron Paul, R-Texas, on the Internet, where he watched a video on U.S. Rep. Paul's opposition to the interventionist foreign policy of modern neoconservatives (i.e. Iraq).
"From there, I went straight to Facebook," said Shough, where he then searched for other Paul supporters in the OU community. He formed the group, "Ohio University Students for Ron Paul," and has been campaigning for the candidate ever since.
According Shough, the group has 16 to 20 regular members who attend meetings and promote the campaign, but so far he said the reaction to campaigning around campus has been positive; many students are getting involved.
Though Congressman Paul is running for the Republican candidacy for president in 2008, his supporters' affiliations cross party lines. "We have a really diverse group," said Shough, "Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians and Constitutionalists." Shough explained that they all have a common belief in Paul's core "freedom principles."
"You should be able to do whatever you want to do as long as you don't harm anyone else," Shough summarized Paul's approach, and that's what attracted him to Ron Paul as a candidate.
Shough said Paul appears to be a truly honest politician, who doesn't believe in state coercion. According to Paul's campaign Web site, some of the congressman's platform issues include border security, opposition to the draft, freedom of health care, and the revocation of the Patriot Act, which he voted against in Congress. Paul stands for small government and is fiscally conservative.
"One of the great things he (Paul) has going for him is not only his philosophy, but so many people are dissatisfied with either party's politicians, and they're looking for a change," said Shough.
Ron Paul isn't as well recognized as the major power-player candidates of either party, but that doesn't discourage his supporters, especially this early in the campaign. "Any discouragement we encounter is easily trumped by all of the positive responses we get after talking to people," said Shough.
The Internet has changed the present-day presidential campaign immensely, and Paul has used this trend to his advantage. Blogs, Web sites, social networks and YouTube have contributed to spreading the word about this relatively little-known candidate. At the time this article was written, Ron Paul's YouTube channel had more than 4 million views and over 28,000 subscribers. His campaign has reached the Web pages of MySpace, Facebook and Wikipedia, and if you Google his name, you'll be met with nearly 48 million hits.
He's a long shot in the presidential race, but the media frenzy surrounding the unconventional Republican has gained him ample name recognition among young voters. In June he appeared on "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central.
"It's nice to use technology and Internet to organize campaign events, and then see it transfer into real life action," said Shough.
The OU group for Ron Paul plans to have more "free society" rallies in support of their candidate, and more information can be found on their Facebook group page.
SOURCE
http://athensnews.com/index.php?action=viewarticle§ion=news&story_id=29350
Maverick prez candidate garners student support
Sept. 24, 2007
Athens News
Who is Ron Paul? Aside from the mysterious, spray-painted "Ron Paul '08" vans, and traditional campaign fliers and rallies, Ron Paul has become the new underground presidential candidate, with a strong Web 2.0 following.
"The internet is a great tool for this campaign," said Geoff Shough, an Ohio University junior from Columbus and Paul supporter.
A group of about 15 Paul supporters stood at the College Gate Friday afternoon with signs and posters, then marched around campus.
Interviewed later, Shough said he first discovered "Constitutionalist" Congressman Ron Paul, R-Texas, on the Internet, where he watched a video on U.S. Rep. Paul's opposition to the interventionist foreign policy of modern neoconservatives (i.e. Iraq).
"From there, I went straight to Facebook," said Shough, where he then searched for other Paul supporters in the OU community. He formed the group, "Ohio University Students for Ron Paul," and has been campaigning for the candidate ever since.
According Shough, the group has 16 to 20 regular members who attend meetings and promote the campaign, but so far he said the reaction to campaigning around campus has been positive; many students are getting involved.
Though Congressman Paul is running for the Republican candidacy for president in 2008, his supporters' affiliations cross party lines. "We have a really diverse group," said Shough, "Republicans, Democrats, Libertarians and Constitutionalists." Shough explained that they all have a common belief in Paul's core "freedom principles."
"You should be able to do whatever you want to do as long as you don't harm anyone else," Shough summarized Paul's approach, and that's what attracted him to Ron Paul as a candidate.
Shough said Paul appears to be a truly honest politician, who doesn't believe in state coercion. According to Paul's campaign Web site, some of the congressman's platform issues include border security, opposition to the draft, freedom of health care, and the revocation of the Patriot Act, which he voted against in Congress. Paul stands for small government and is fiscally conservative.
"One of the great things he (Paul) has going for him is not only his philosophy, but so many people are dissatisfied with either party's politicians, and they're looking for a change," said Shough.
Ron Paul isn't as well recognized as the major power-player candidates of either party, but that doesn't discourage his supporters, especially this early in the campaign. "Any discouragement we encounter is easily trumped by all of the positive responses we get after talking to people," said Shough.
The Internet has changed the present-day presidential campaign immensely, and Paul has used this trend to his advantage. Blogs, Web sites, social networks and YouTube have contributed to spreading the word about this relatively little-known candidate. At the time this article was written, Ron Paul's YouTube channel had more than 4 million views and over 28,000 subscribers. His campaign has reached the Web pages of MySpace, Facebook and Wikipedia, and if you Google his name, you'll be met with nearly 48 million hits.
He's a long shot in the presidential race, but the media frenzy surrounding the unconventional Republican has gained him ample name recognition among young voters. In June he appeared on "The Daily Show" and "The Colbert Report" on Comedy Central.
"It's nice to use technology and Internet to organize campaign events, and then see it transfer into real life action," said Shough.
The OU group for Ron Paul plans to have more "free society" rallies in support of their candidate, and more information can be found on their Facebook group page.
SOURCE
http://athensnews.com/index.php?action=viewarticle§ion=news&story_id=29350