Who here got on board with Ron Paul after Nov 2008 and why? Tell us... what converted you?

[Cleaner44]

We have a valuable resource right here in our hands. We have people that were persuaded to support Ron Paul when they did not previously. How did that happen and how can we duplicate it?

[Sentinelrv]

I don't remember what led me to him, but I found out about Ron Paul on the December 16th Tea Party money bomb. This is the video (http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=FG2PUZoukfA)that instantly converted me. Before finding out about Ron, I was non-political. I didn't understand politics and wanted nothing to do with the subject. Ron changed all that. What about the video converted me? The fact that I was witnessing a guy that said what he believed no matter what people thought about him. It was his principled nature. I had never seen that before in any politician. They were all liars to me, so I immediately latched on. Also, most of what he believed made sense to me.

If I had to sum it up in one word, it would be "Trust." I'd trust him with my life. We'd need to figure out how to convey both trust and principles in an ad. We need to appeal to people's emotions, their sense of security. We need to create an ad that injects the viewer with uncertainty about the economy, jobs, gas and food prices and in the same ad introduce Ron Paul and make them feel safe again. The ad would introduce an uneasiness and then wipe it out by tying a feeling of certainty to Ron Paul.

[Aratus]

i happily arrived here on the forums AFTER supertuesday!
i applied to admin about two weeks BEFORE supertuesday!
i am a bay stater & i did not think i was a trend at the time!

[CaptUSA]

I've always been a libertarian-minded independent. I watched with fascination at Paul's last run, but didn't get too excited because I wasn't a republican, and I knew he'd never get the nomination.

Over the course of the last 2 years, I've gotten more involved locally, and due to several Reason.com articles and links, I finally thought that Paul may have a real chance in 2012 if the effort was well-orchestrated. I wanted to help out.

So what persuaded me to support Paul instead of someone else that could never win? I began to realize that perhaps people were beginning to wake up and they actually might vote for Paul. It wasn't that I found Paul, it was that I saw a glimmer of hope in the people of the US. I hadn't felt that before.

[ApathyCured]

I'm Canadian so I never was very interested in US politics except for 9/11 type topics.
I first heard of him when I was watching Penn & Teller Bullshit: Taxes and they interviewed Dr. Paul for literally 45 sec. I never heard of a politician who didnt like taxes so I was surprised that "some old politician" talked like that.

I googled/youtubed him, found clips on the primary debates and was instantly blown away by how much common sense he had and how he didn't change his tune to win votes. He was a man of priciple.

I don't think I knew what liberty was until I read "the Revolution". Before that I was all for the Iraq war, drug prohibition etc and just accepted the role of government in my life as a necessary evil. I never liked government interference in business but was ok with some interference in private lives.
After a few months of googling, reading and listening, I completely flipped views.

Not to shamelessly promote, but my blog (in my sig) has an early posting of my general progression towards where I am now.

[sevin]

I liked him in early '08 during the primaries and saw how he was being treated unfairly by the MSM. When the housing bubble popped I realized his predictions had come true.

[cavalier973]

I was a die-hard Huckabee supporter in 2008, and felt betrayed by the news sources I usually went to (National Review Online, Rush Limbaugh) when they all went nuclear on Huckabee, calling him things like "Christian Socialist", which, even if true, did nothing to persuade me to abandon my support of him. I rather abandoned those news sources, and began looking for other sources of information that seemed to be pro-liberty, pro-free market, and found the Ludwig von Mises Institute. It took about a year for me to consider myself "libertarian" or "minarchist" rather than "conservative". It took about two weeks of consideration to move from "minarchist" to "anarchist" (although, I suppose it's more accurate to label myself "anarcho-austrian"). Ron Paul is the natural choice based on my newly adopted worldview.

[Oukvekpwv]

Why I ever considered myself a republican was because I valued the philosophy of freedom, small government, and economic conservatism. When I was in college I met someone who called themselves a libertarian.. I didn't know or realize what that meant.. Over all though I had the values I have had I remained apathetic to politics, sometimes going along with main stream republican thought because of the two I would rather align myself with that. During the '08 election this was where I was. I started hearing about Ron Paul and the Tea Party, started to see a new sort of ferver build, yet I still didn't know much about it or understand it. Something that turned me off a bit from looking more into it was the seemingly unorganized, emotion driven, mob like mentality of Ron Paul's and or Tea Party supporters (I must sound like a broken record with that)

After the election died down and all that craziness (election times are always one of my least favorite periods of times, even more so than holidays) I started to listen to Ron Pauls words. One thing early on was when Rand gave his speech after he was elected to the senate. Watching them talk about their values and what they would like do to and see in this country, put me in awe.. Not only were they saying things that I believed so fervently and thought have become forgotten, but they actually had the means and the testicular fortitude to do something about it. From that my interest was built into what it has become, I keep an eye on Freedom watch, and yes I sometimes watch Alex Jones, and other things, I watch clips of Ron and Rand on the floor when I can, and the feeling I had of 'I'm the only one' began to disappear. I have since tried to keep my eyes and ears open, and have developed an actual interest in participating to help the cause when and where I can (though I still retain the mentality I did about what I have witnessed in '08) I still don't know many Ron Paul supporters personally but I would like to see that change.

thats my story..

[bwlibertyman]

I was a neocon. I voted for the "best republican". I voted McCain in 2008. I read the Manifesto 3 days later. I switched.

[NewRightLibertarian]

I was already a libertarian involved with the Libertarian Party when Paul showed up. I was hooked immediately.

[Invi]

The beginning of last year, a man I met online (actually a member here) told me to look up "Ron Paul A New Hope" on youtube. I did, and it was inspiring, but not so much that I dove in and was suddenly interested in politics.
Over time, he kept talking to me about RP and policy, and I started to find it more and more interesting and to see the sense in it. Previously, I was rather liberal. The idea that taxation is theft was foreign to me. He is very opinionated, though, and enjoys discussing politics, so there was a lot of that.
His encouragement ultimately led to me reading The Revolution, and End The Fed, and learning Dr. Paul's positions and some things I didn't know about the Fed while I was at it.
Looking back, I vaguely remember seeing a 2007 debate, seeing that he was against the "war on terror," and thinking that, "at least one republican is."
I was never very political prior to meeting BrooklynZoo. Like, at all. I had my stances on social issues and would argue them until I was out of breathe, but the economy and fiscal issues did not concern me.
So I suppose Ron Paul, along with a little help from Zoo, cured my apathy.

I can't really imagine any other guy I've met talking about politics in the first couple dates, with someone who is not particularly interested. Haha. Maybe more should try. I think this instance turned out alright.

[Ex Lux lucis]

I'm Canadian, but I'm very interested in US politics, as I anticipate moving there after I finish school(Especially if Paul wins :p ). I think he was linked in a Milton Friedman video on Youtube, under "related videos". I was overjoyed to find there was a politician whose views I agree with so completely.

I've been a diehard Paul fan since.

[marc1888]

I was BJ Lawson's strategist in 2008 and he led me to Ron Paul :)

[centure7]

After a few seconds of watching Ron Paul: A New Hope on Youtube, I was hooked! Youtube is an excellent place to promote Ron Paul. If not for Youtube it would have taken me a whole lot longer... months or years longer... to learn of the liberty movement.

Then this forum lead me to the Free State Project, which I signed up for!

[Wren]

I never really paid any attention to politics or the presidential primaries, it was only halfway into the general election did I start paying attention. I found myself liking obama and ended up donating to his campaign when approached by volunteers on the street. To someone that was as politically ignorant as I was, and to the average folk in general, Obama seemed liked the only sane choice. All of my friends and most of the people on college campuses were supporting him, people went rabid when anyone started criticizing him. I guess it was the 'hip' thing to do.

Had no idea who the hell Ron Paul was until my older brother brought him up when we started talking about the election. Said to me "If you had watched the republican primaries , there was this guy called Ron Paul who wanted to bring all our troops home, close down all the bases we have, end the war on drugs, stop aid to foreign countries, close gitmo and all this other stuff". I thought to myself "Wow, a politician actually said that?" but I told my brother that he wasn't running so we should probably support Obama. He disagreed and said he was going to just stay home.

Fast forward to Nov 4, Obama wins (as expected), I was pretty happy and upbeat the next morning thinking he'd do a good job, until a few months later I remembered about this Ron Paul guy my bro told me about and went on youtube to look him up because I was intrigued about his positions. First video I found: Ron Paul courageously speaks the truth. Holy shit, mind blown. I was completely absorbed into my laptop screen and after that, I looked up every single video I could find of him. Having been so used to hear politicians bullshit around with their emotional, mind numbing rhetoric, it was so cool and new to me listening to RP driving it straight home like that and presenting a logical argument every time he explained his positions. After that: life changed. Realized that I was very libertarian-leaning, bought and read the economic books he recommended, bought a few peter schiff books and yeah...still learning.

[ConvertedRepublican]

I was a diehard Republican until they became the party of endless wars, torture, and TSA groping pervs.
The last nail was the "Patriot" Act.
Ron Paul was the last voice of reason.
I never left them, they left me.

[Jandrsn21]

The bubble burst and I found out the Federal Reserve was private! I could go into more details, but needless to say when I found out about the FED it was over!

[LibertyEagle]

We'd need to figure out how to convey both trust and principles in an ad. We need to appeal to people's emotions, their sense of security. We need to create an ad that injects the viewer with uncertainty about the economy, jobs, gas and food prices and in the same ad introduce Ron Paul and make them feel safe again. The ad would introduce an uneasiness and then wipe it out by tying a feeling of certainty to Ron Paul.

YES!! This would be awesome.

[Oukvekpwv]

I dont think the point should be to try to invoke emotion.. people will see through that and be offended by the attempt.. emotions are already invoked.. my motto is just let the man speak and let the message be heard.. thats just my opinion

[Athan]

I usually read an article off a funny local newspaper. Nothing newsworthy, just liked how the author rolled, and he would regularly have advertisements of Ron Paul around (unfortunately with no actual direct information other than his name) so I looked into him more after the news of the money bomb. Hearing him speak on youtube, I was stunned how much he sounded like the founding fathers on one of my favorite cartoon's Liberty's Kids. I became VERY informed simply by listening to him speak on money which interested me.

[corysoulier]

Initially it was Ron Paul's non-interventionist foreign policy that got me hooked. At the time I had an Obama bumper sticker on my car. After watching his back-and-forth with mayor Guilliani in South Carolina (several months after on youtube) I immediately slapped a Ron Paul bumper sticker over my Obama sticker. Mind you, this is coming from someone who-- at the time -- was extremely liberal minded. It didn't matter to me that he believed in free markets because he was actually a Republican that had the guts to openly dismiss the Bush doctrine! Before I knew it I was studying the Austrian school of thought, researching the fed, and here I am now, a born again Libertarian.

[Cleaner44]

Blimp

[r3volution]

edit , oops . sorry . i missed the part about it being after 2008 .

[Jingles]

I was converted during/right after the 2008 election. Up until that time I was an establishment towing, warmongering, bomb-em-all USA USA Republican. I had some friends that were Libertarians and Ron Pauls supporters. They would always talk good things about him so I figured I'd see what it was all about. I listened to him speak in the debates and etc... on youtube and realized he made complete and total sense. So I decided to read The Revolution: A Manifesto. The rest is history...

I think one of the main things that helped me switch was the fact I bought the standard Republican line on social issues but never thought it made any goddamn sense. I basically just supported those positions because "That's what Republicans are supposed to do". Same with like the wars. I always kind of questioned them in some sense, but never really could put my finger on why I wondered about them. So I blindly supported them because "That's what Republicans are supposed to do". Limited government always made sense to me though... Its just when I found out the standard GOP position on social issues and foreign policy was not inline with limited government is when everything clicked for me.

Then I began to further read and etc... Now I'm basically an AnCap.

[amyre]

A yard sign, google & YouTube, then Revolution: A Manifesto, in that order.
This is my favorite thread since I've been here.
Whatever happened last go round to get people here, (or not here but actively supporting Ron Paul), needs to be repeated.
I wish I had found Ron Paul sooner....sounds like campaigning was lots of fun, if not a bit heartbreaking all at the same time. I'm grateful I was able to place my vote for him, but regret that I didn't campaign or make a t-shirt or attend any events.

I have tons of gratitude and respect for those of you have signed up yet again for another emotional roller coaster in the name of liberty....especially knowing what to expect from the MSM and people in general. Thanks for not giving up.

[KingRobbStark]

I don't know how, but I think it was through youtube (late 2007). After that I started posting Ron Paul materials all over my high school and town.

[Rothbardian Girl]

I think my whole experience with Ron Paul started in sophomore year of high school. Back then I was pretty much a Republican, owing to the influence of my parents. I would characterize myself as a bit of a contrarian, however, and I always believed some of the socially conservative and foreign policy views of the Republican Party were somewhat at odds with what I personally accepted. However, the real trouble started (I'll never forget it) when I was in tenth grade and we finally started talking about the modern era in American politics. I noticed right away when the Republicans were infiltrated by the "war hawks" as I knew them (neoconservative became part of my vocabulary much later) and their outlooks on foreign policy changed. I had always found the atomic bombings of Japan appalling, and I noticed that once we started taking a more active role in war and adopted "the enemy of my enemy is my friend" mantra, our country seemed to go downhill.

But I was significantly more... leftist (I hate using terms like that) at first. I remember totally loving the idea of agrarianism, because I wrongly assumed that all forms of capitalism were what led to wars. Eventually a while spent on Wikipedia turned up the name of a book "Atlas Shrugged". The name really sounded intriguing to me and I had heard of Ayn Rand before without knowing anything about her, so I picked it up and read through it. That really turned me on to the idea that government officials were doing a lot of the "mooching" and "looting", not necessarily your average Judge Judy deadbeat. Then a little while after that I found out about Murray Rothbard. I read his Wikipedia page (yay for my intense research here!), particularly the part detailing his feud with Rand, and then I realized that he was correct on a lot more issues than Ayn Rand, especially in his condemnations of foreign policy and corporatism. For whatever reason, his works were what really plunged me over the edge. When I found a few articles on LewRockwell.com dealing with Ron Paul (whom I probably knew all along was the best candidate), I really started getting behind Paul.

I would say I'm not strictly Rothbardian/ancap now... I haven't lost all faith in the political system and I recognize Ron Paul and a return to honest constitutionalism is the best shot we've got right now. My name is probably a little inaccurate for that reason. It's been a long, strange journey and I would say I'm a little more leftist than some in this movement, but I think we can all set aside our differences and work towards getting this man elected.

Sorry for the huge post. It's so much fun detailing your political history! :D

edit: I just noticed this topic was supposed to be useful for conversion strategies... I think if we target people who at least have a basic working knowledge of American history, and a desire to think outside the box, we will do fine. It's just such a damn shame those people are in short supply nowadays.

[cucucachu0000]

I was non politiical but thinking back I was always libertarian minded. I was told to like bush so I did I was told torture and war was good so i convinced myself it was ok. I started watching glenn beck after work I liked him and I bought aaaaalllll his books. After that I couldn't stop reading books about history, economics, and philosophy. Then I stumbled over a youtube video of milton friedman.....I couldn't get enough of him. I watched like 20 other of his videos he just made a ton of sense. I decided to buy atlas shrugged after it was mentioned in an interview with him. and that book changed my life forever I'm hooked on liberty. After loooking around for a president candidate for a while I liked perry at first then allen west (failure), then to herman cain. I watched the first debate and ron paul blew me away, everyone told me he can't win forget about him find someone else. So I tried, but he was right about everything I watched his videos and I can't help myself he's the only candidate for me, I pledge to write in ron paul I will not asist the status quo in ruining this country.

[WesF]

I was a typical republican and was even excited about McCain. I started watching Glenn Beck and through his show I got introduced to Ron Paul. When I watched him being interviewed I heard a politician talk like no other politician and the amazing part was that I believed him! This led to google searches and youtube. After I researched him I realized how far off course our country was and I knew he was the only one that made sense.

[willwash]

I was a hard core Libertarian (big L) until 2004. I was an undergrad at UNC at the time, and Michael Badnarik came to campus to give a speech (he was on a tour promoting his book Good to Be King) in APril 2005. I had the good fortune to breakfast with him and got a copy of his book. In retrospect I don't buy about 75-85% of what's in that book, but at the time it really lit my fire, but what REALLY caught my attention was the endorsement of the book in the dust jacket. The endoresement was from Texas Congressman Ron Paul...I thought, oh, some state legislature representative from Texas endorsed a (L)ibertarian book. But I googled him and learned he was a real, actual Congressman. What the hell was a US Congressman doing endorsing a Libertarian's book?? I was intrigued, and read everything I could find about him. I actually wrote him in 2005 saying he should run for governor of Texas, not knowing he was entertaining much higher ambitions. I gradually lost interest in politics and stopped renewing my Libertarian Party membership...I had given up. When I learned in late 2006 that Ron was considering a presidential run, however, I went ape-shit crazy supporting him.

[outspoken]

I was a working as a doc in the Veterans Affairs hospital right after the 2008 election. Like a good, subservient citizen I did my homework(ignorant that both parties were basically the same) on Obama and McKain with McKain edging out Obama ever so slightly while I was in the voting booth. A few weeks later after the election, I was chatting it up with a younger vet about politics which I rarely do because most vets at least in the VA system are ardent neo cons... and many of the older ones have a tendency to be a bit racist which is a pet peeve of mine. The young vet recommended I read RP's The Revolution. While I liked a lot of the stuff Glenn Beck was putting out on TV, this was my first taste of true, distilled liberty. Now I can't get enough RP and just wish I knew more people who felt about him and his views as I do so whole heartedly. I don't remember that vet's name but he forever changed my views on politics and the world in which we live, and I am eternally grateful to him. Once you take the red pill there's no going back!

[Nate-ForLiberty]

A yard sign, google & YouTube, then Revolution: A Manifesto, in that order.
This is my favorite thread since I've been here.
Whatever happened last go round to get people here, (or not here but actively supporting Ron Paul), needs to be repeated.
I wish I had found Ron Paul sooner....sounds like campaigning was lots of fun, if not a bit heartbreaking all at the same time. I'm grateful I was able to place my vote for him, but regret that I didn't campaign or make a t-shirt or attend any events.

I have tons of gratitude and respect for those of you have signed up yet again for another emotional roller coaster in the name of liberty....especially knowing what to expect from the MSM and people in general. Thanks for not giving up.

As someone who signed on in November 2007 (it was the first moneybomb that convinced me to get onboard), I can tell you that Ron Paul's campaigns are only small (but significant) events in the long push for freedom. Once Freedom and the Truth grab you, it'll never let go.

thanks and welcome!

[Cleaner44]

This is great stuff people. We must keep sharing Ron Paul with people and these posts can tells us what works!

[The Dude]

Started getting interested in politics around 06-07 and decided that I was a Republican on the red team. When the primaries started I picked McCain as my "guy", supported him all throughout the primaries and the general without really paying that much attention to what he was saying and stood for. After Obama won I came upon some Ron Paul videos on Youtube which sparked my interest in reading The Manifesto. After reading that I've been reading countless books on philosophy and economics, gradually getting closer and closer to a full blown anarchist, but I believe Ron Paul is the best option we have of living within the current system.

[Nastynate]

I was casually into politics, keep up to date with minor things didn't really pay too much attention. I was tuning into C-span for the republican nomination ceremony in Minneapolis but they canceled it because of a hurricane down in Louisiana (rolls eyes) so instead they had Rally for the Republic on and listening to the speakers for that and eventually Ron Paul which I thought before I liked him but I didn't know why. When Ron Paul was speaking so much truth that day my head exploded and I ran to my computer and youtubed Ron Paul and the rest is history.

[tfurrh]

I did not vote for Paul, or in the primaries, in 08; I had honestly never heard of the guy. My dad told me to pull up the SC debate because he wanted my opinion on Cain. Though I am not a drug user, the heroin comment had me sold. I showed the clip to my wife later that night, and now we are Ron Paul junkies.

The opt out would have done it too, but the heroin comment was first.

[Patriot123]

Meh. To be honest, I was... 14? I started liking Mike Gravel -- I was just getting into politics and the election. Then I found Ron Paul through some video about an up and coming "revolution." Funny thing is that I actually thought "revolution" meant some violent 2nd American Revolution... interesting the imagination a 14 year old can have. I guess I just got caught up in the whole energy of the movement, though. I was a young kid. Everything about the Constitution just... I dunno', seemed to make sense to a kid without much sense. Not to say what Ron Paul believes isn't true, but I just got caught up in it, which was sort of stupid. I did do some serious research, though, and learned a ton.

I'm glad I supported Ron Paul in 2008, and I'm glad I've been able to be a part of the movement. I got involved for really stupid reasons, though, admittedly lol.

[Pipeking]

In 2008 I was a big time Neo-Con and Huckabee FairTax supporter....but being from AZ, I didn't much care for McCain, but I followed "my" parties line and so I voted for that clown anyways. That December, I lost my job and after not being able to find a job, I decided had to cancel my cable. I started watching YouTube for entertainment during the day after putting out resumes. One day, I decided to watch a documentary just to kill time. The documentary that moved me and opened my eyes was Aaron Russo's America Freedom to Fascism. That film feed my hunger for more information, so I watched Alex Jones' Endgame. Seeing those two films I noticed Ron Paul was featured in both and started looking him up on the web. After watching the tubes of Ron Paul I knew I found what I was looking for.

[Jandrsn21]

I was not very poltical until the wars started taking their toll. The war waged on for years and there was little to be optimistic about. One after another, many of my high school friends starting coming up in local news stories. In my subdivison alone, I had three who joined, all of them to come back extremely traumatized. Then not to soon after I learned a gentlemen had died in the war, this guy was the epitome of all that was good in this country, a scholar, a perfect athlete, and always a gentlemen. His death crushed me and I began to ask myself was this worth it. After a brief reunion with an old friend,one of the people I mentioned above living in my subdivision. I got a chance to see what effects the war really had. I had to watch while my friend snorted anti-psychotics off a glass mirror, followed by a healthy dose of liquor. What happened next I will not go into, but needless to say, it changed my views permanently! It was time to bring these guys home! I voted Obama in 2008 believing he was the man. Soon after I was welcomed with the harshness of reality and was awakened to the political process. Obama was a flop and I needed an individual who would honor his pledges and commit to his constituents. I was oblivious to Ron Paul during the 07/08 years and it took months after the inauguration to learn of him. To make a long story short, all of his views started making perfect sense, from foreign policy, economics, social ills, and the government's role in general. I am 100% committed to Mr. Paul and I am willing to do whatever it takes to win this election!

[king_nothing_]

I was intrigued by Ron Paul for awhile before I became a full-fledged supporter, but I was still fairly apathetic. I've been playing online poker for a living for a few years now. In April of this year, the DOJ indicted the owners of the three largest online poker companies for violating the Unlawful Internet Gambling Enforcement Act (http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/UIGEA), among other things, which resulted in them having to cut off all U.S. players from their sites (known as Black Friday). I was no longer able to play online poker in the privacy of my own home on the best sites (I've since moved to a much smaller poker site, but it pales in comparison to the profitability I was able to attain at PokerStars). I guess it took a really home-hitting thing to happen for me to really sit and think about the role of government and how seriously things needed to be changed.

[Dianne]

I came on board in 2007. I was a solid democrat, who campaigned for George McGovern, Clinton, Edwards. I have always been anti war, and marched in a number of anti war demonstrations.

I came to realize the GOP/DNC wrestling matches were a hoax, a fraud against the people. Both major parties are owned and controlled by the same corporations and global interests.

Although I do not agree with 100% of what Ron Paul says; he is an honest man with integrity. He will stop the wars and bring our troops home. He will stop the Federal Reserve in its' tracks. With Paul as President, there will be an end to corruption in the White House.

[Corpsman4Liberty]

I came on board about a year ago. To be honest, I wasn't really aware of Ron Paul. I've been living overseas for the last 3 years though and during the 08 campaign, I was in Kuwait.

What converted me over was learning that our dollar isn't backed up by gold which then led me to research the federal reserve which then led to Ron Paul, the rest is history.