I knew I was going to support Ron Paul when....

[ForLiberty2012]

... when I heard him in one of the 2007 debates schooling Rudy and the rest of the muppet show on foreign policy. I had already felt that the wars were immoral and unjustified and everything he said made perfect sense and introduced me to the concept of blowback. I started researching him more, and I realized that everything he was saying made perfect sense!

When/what made you decide to support Ron Paul??

[dmitchell]

Same story.

[Elfshadow]

The last debate. When he was schooling them about Iran. Sadly it was the first time I figured out there was a librtarian running under the republican banner. Wish I had known in 07'-08' when I was just assuming any republican and democrate was the same

[dusman]

I was deployed to Korea in '07 and heard him during the '07 debates ask why we had troops there. It was like a tractor-beam that sucked me in. Once I started looking into his policies and saw how strongly he upheld the Constitution, it was a done deal.

[TexMac]

I was blogging on AntiWar.com at the time and we all supported him because he was antiwar before he declared. After he declared, most of us started campaigning for him.

[ForLiberty2012]

I was deployed to Korea in '07 and heard him during the '07 debates ask why we had troops there. It was like a tractor-beam that sucked me in. Once I started looking into his policies and saw how strongly he upheld the Constitution, it was a done deal.

That's interesting you say this, because 20% of the traffic on these forums come from South Korea according to alexa.com

[Travlyr]

I read The Revolution: A Manifesto

[Cleaner44]

...when I heard he had entered the race. I don't remember when I first found out about him, but I long considered him one the only honest people in D.C. so when I haerd he was running I was on board. Probably my learning about Michael Badnarik led me to Ron Paul.

[rp713]

in 08 i supported obama simply for his wanting to end the wars, and it seemed like he wanted change. after his first term i stopped supporting him. just more of the same. early this year i started looking at the gop field and found ron paul on youtube. the rest was history.

[FSP-Rebel]

I've been heavily indoctrinated as a libertarian since I was around ten y.o. and always knew Ron to be a good friend to the ideology. Twenty years later and here I am.

[Eric21ND]

When I saw his very candid interview in Freedom to Fascism by Aaron Russo. I remember thinking, "wow I wish someone like him would run for President". Within a year he was a candidate. His early appearance on Bill Maher and his subsequent debate performances only solidified my support...He was "my guy".

[Crickett]

Had heard his name, but did not pay attention. Then I had gone to the Liberty Dollar website and that guy was talking about him, quite at length, so I finally checked him out (2007, before he was arrested). IMMEDIATELY I knew he was the one, and found DP and RPF and have supported Ron ever since. So, it was basically just people on the internet, talking about him.

[Steve-in-NY]

hear about him on some internet forum or comments or something, found out he hadnt wavered on his positions in years, looked into him a bit more, decided.

[69360]

... when I heard him in one of the 2007 debates schooling Rudy and the rest of the muppet show on foreign policy. I had already felt that the wars were immoral and unjustified and everything he said made perfect sense and introduced me to the concept of blowback. I started researching him more, and I realized that everything he was saying made perfect sense!

When/what made you decide to support Ron Paul??

Same thing, the 07 debates. Voted for RP in 08.

[leonster]

That's interesting you say this, because 20% of the traffic on these forums come from South Korea according to alexa.com

I'm one of them! I'm an (American) English teacher here in Ilsan, Korea.

But 20%?? Wow, that's high!

[IDefendThePlatform]

I was blogging on AntiWar.com at the time and we all supported him because he was antiwar before he declared. After he declared, most of us started campaigning for him.

That's great to hear. How do we get more of the antiwar vote?

[Sola_Fide]

...when I was supporting Bob Dole and some volunteers from the Constitution Party told me about this congressman from Texas who was the only true conservative left.

[dusman]

That's interesting you say this, because 20% of the traffic on these forums come from South Korea according to alexa.com

Is that historical or current? During my deployment it was probably a hot topic because we had about 400 soldiers writing Congress. They DEPLOYED our unit (first in 50 years) under Operation Iraqi Freedom. Not only was it probably fraud and unconstitutional, it also came with no pay benefits. I lost $50.00 a month when we got on the peninsula. Hundreds of our unit's families were ran broke because of the pay cut to deploy and had to maintain two households, essentially.

Pretty nasty scenario. We were successful in moving Congress to make the change, but it didn't impact us. The response from command was that our deployment was experimental and that future units won't go through what we did. They did do an interim pay increase that was about $100 more per month. However, for a whole year every other soldier/airman/marine on the peninsula was making about $300.00 more per month than we were.

Want to piss off a mass of soldiers? Make their families poor deploying to a country with no apparent necessity besides being a deterrent, while working next to other soldiers who are living it up with their extra money being stationed in the same location.

[bluesc]

Yahoo answers back in '07. I saw a mention of him, and looked him up. Never looked back.

Now I'm very active in the election section of Yahoo Answers, all pro-RP answers and I have 33% best answer, so I guess we are doing well there.

It's a great way to reach undecideds.

[TexMac]

That's great to hear. How do we get more of the antiwar vote?

You mean the website? As far as I know, the webmaster is foursquare behind RP, as are almost all of the writers. As for the rest of the true antiwar voters, at least this time around we don't have Obama pretending to be antiwar and siphoning off some of the antiwar vote. Now we just have to win those voters and get them to switch to the R party.

We didn't do a very good job of it last time around.

[dusman]

I'm one of them! I'm an (American) English teacher here in Ilsan, Korea.

But 20%?? Wow, that's high!

I'm jealous! I considered doing the same thing, because it's a great career to have there.

Where is Ilsan in regards to Osan AB?

[Ronpauljones]

I wasn't awake back in 2007/08 but Paul was one of the few candidates I liked. I ended up voting for McCain because there already were strong hints at what we were going to get from Obama. Since then I have gradually woken up more and more. This election cycle I was a big supporter of Herman Cain. Until I began researching the candidates and found out all of them are globalist puppets except Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann. I still think Bachmann is too but I can't find anything on her (she is fake Tea Party for sure). So by process of elimination I left with Ron Paul. I have since researched alot about him and realized I should have been supported him as the one and only true candidate since 2007.

[Maximus]

Youtube after the 2008 primaries but before the general

[XTreat]

I read The Revolution: A Manifesto

This. I didn't even vote in '08 because of questioning the two party system, and just happened across the right book at the right time.

[Ekrub]

To be honest I didn't really like any of the candidates in '08 except for RP in '08 but I was still on the fence about the wars. Swallowed some pride and hard truths, admitted to myself I was foolish for supporting them and after McCain got the nomination I really began looking into Ron Paul and I "woke up." spent months looking at Youtubes, found the DP a little while later and then eventually found RPF.

[sorianofan]

... when I heard him in one of the 2007 debates schooling Rudy and the rest of the muppet show on foreign policy. I had already felt that the wars were immoral and unjustified and everything he said made perfect sense and introduced me to the concept of blowback. I started researching him more, and I realized that everything he was saying made perfect sense!

When/what made you decide to support Ron Paul??
He was on Alex Jones for years and I knew he was libertarian. Only afterward did I appreciate he was a Christian. He woke me up concerning the evils of abortion.

[Ronpauljones]

Good friend of mine was knee deep in conspiracy theories for about a year. I had written him off as crazy for months. When he brought me a flyer that's headline said George W Bush is the anti-Christ I got defensive and wanted to prove to him once and for all he was crazy. At the bottom of said flyer was a article about Ron Paul. Started doing research and fell in love. Foreign Policy was the hardest pill for me to swallow initially, but now it is what I appreciate the most about our good Dr.

Some people get way too deep into the "conspiracy theory" thing.

[surf]

i'm not that old, but i've got everyone here beat so far: 1988 when he won the libertarian nomination. he's always been a clebrity as our only elected congressman and it was with strong reservations that i joined the GOP in 2007, became a PCO, and convinced some neighbors to go through the whole heartbreaking caucus process with me. i'm feeling more optimistic this time. people are definitely willing and excited to vote for him if we give them a chance.

[Invi]

In 2008, I didn't vote, but I kind of liked Obama because, lol, he said he'd bring the troops home. I vaguely remember seeing Paul in an 07 debate, but I didn't know who he was, and I wasn't paying attention. I wasn't into politics. Bringing the troops home struck me because my dad is in the army, and has been for a lot of his life.

Early last year, a user here whom I met over the internet on another site got me to look into Ron Paul. I don't think I was really sold until I finished reading End The Fed, and realized how serious our monetary issues are, and the ways inflation comes about.

I was already open to him because of his view on foreign policy, but everything after that.. Well, down the rabbit hole, apathy out the window. Now I'm here, and stress about the way things are going way more than I ought to. :|

[JohnRego]

Found out he was a friend of Rothbard. I've now distanced myself from Rothbard because I don't believe in natural law, but I retained my allegiance with Ron Paul as the person closest to my position with political power. Especially since he considers himself an voluntarist, a word which I'm sure he knows the meaning of.

[BuddyRey]

Was a hardcore Democrat until after the '06 midterm elections when Pelosi did an about-face and said Bush wouldn't be held accountable for war crimes and that impeachment was off the table. Started getting into Alex Jones' documentaries and website, where one day I saw this ad:

http://www.truthalliance.net/Portals/0/Archive/Gallery/28/RonPaulForPresident.jpg

It looked kind of silly with the wig and everything so I didn't take this guy seriously at first, and I didn't think he was running on a major party platform either. But then in May '07 I saw a familiar name and face on the debate stage in SC where he thoroughly trounced Rudy Giuliani on foreign policy and came across as an extremely bright, reasonable, and compassionate person (qualities I'm not used to seeing in politicians). From there on out, I knew I had found the guy I was going to support in '08 and beyond. He even cured me of my socialism, though that took a bit more time and effort, plus learning from the folks here at RPF's.

[Eric21ND]

What a silly picture, and I've never even seen it before. lol

[tfurrh]

When he schooled Chris Wallace on heroin at the SC debate.

[BuddyRey]

What a silly picture, and I've never even seen it before. lol

LOL! I know, right? Now imagine that this image was your very first glimpse at RP before knowing anything else about him. I thought, "that guy looks absolutely insane and off-the-rails." It was a classic example of a first impression being proven completely inaccurate.

[Aldanga]

It was really a homeschool textbook that got me moving in my junior year of high school. I had a class on government (I picked it, as I did not know much about social studies), and read this book with amazement. When the Constitution was covered, what was stated in it was so plain and clear, and yet I knew it wasn't followed. I wondered why it was ignored and what could be done to fix it. The writers of the book (some large Christian university out east; I don't remember the name) made excuse after excuse for the path of the government, but I refused to buy it. That started a chain reaction that would not be stopped.

Since I had just turned 18, and having already been on a path of questioning what I had been told by Republicans, the media (particularly Limbaugh, as I had been a big listener in jr. high and high school), and just conventional wisdom, I was open to any candidate. I had considered joining the Constitution Party or Libertarian Party, but didn't see them going anywhere soon. So I had no outlet for my strong beliefs.

I was on another (very small) forum and there was a thread around June '07 discussing the '08 Republican nomination race. Someone mentioned he was supporting Ron Paul, so I googled him and looked up his issues page. I saw he was totally right about everthing—the perfect candidate it seemed—save for the wars. (Yes, it is very possible to be pro-war and a small-government conservative, albeit a mislead one.) I said, "Well, if he's exactly right about all of these things, he might be right on the wars too. But he probably doesn't have a chance." So I forgot about him for a while and continued on.

Later down the road (probably around September), I had come to a point where I believed the wars were not in our best interests, and that Ron Paul was right, so I started looking into Ron Paul again. I was paying some attention to the debates, and read RPF some. I decided that if Ron Paul was right, I needed to support him if I wanted to have any shred of credibility. Even if he wasn't going to win, I was going to still support him. I eventually donated during the November 5th money bomb and that set history in stone.

[Birdlady]

I know people hate to hear this, but I have to give credit to AJ. I've been "awake" since 2003 and first heard RP on AJ's radio show.

[mosquitobite]

I've been a Ron Paul fan since somewhere between 2003-2004. I was THOROUGHLY disgusted with the Republican congress and Bush for not shrinking our federal government in the slightest. Ron Paul was the only republican politician speaking out against it and I was in love! I voted for Badnarik in 2004.

When Dr Paul announced he was going to run in 2008 I was thrilled. I have donated to EVERY moneybomb he's ever had. I went the Indiana Republican Convention as a Ron Paul delegate, at 5mos pregnant. :)

Between 2004-2007 I had hoped that Mark Sanford was going to run in 2008, and had McCain picked him as his running mate, I probably would have voted for McCain holding my nose. As it was, I voted for Barr in the general.

Still debating whether or not to try being a delegate this time around. I'm sure I'll be remembered as "one of them" if I try...

[JohnGalt23g]

... when he decided to run on the Libertarian ticket in 1988.

[ProBlue33]

YouTube 2007 debate clips, he just made logical sense, and all the other guys came off as fanatical war mongers that were just scared of the bogeyman.
Funny thing is I had seen Ron Paul in other clips before but I never new what he stood for. When the Nov.5 moneybomb hit I knew something special was developing, and signed up with RPF.

[Jared Thrasher]

I never really paid much attention to politics in High School. I started to wake up to some things shortly after 9-11 when I was in Vo-Tech School. I still never had really felt like I had seen a candidate who seemed like a real human. After stumbling across a Ron Paul video on YouTube back around '07 I thought, now there's a guy I could vote for, but I was pretty ignorant about the whole Primary process. I had always been registered Independant, and never realy understand anything about Oklahoma ballot access laws, so I just assumed that Ron would be on the ballot in the general. I was disappointed for sure when he wasn't an option in the general for 2008. I voted for Obama because when faced with the choice of someone who says that they want the war to go on for the next 100 years vs someone who is talking about ending the war - of course I chose the peace candidate. Alas, I slipped back into apathy. Time went on and I had just about forgotten about Ron. Then I see that he makes the anouncement about forming an exploratory commitee for 2012. Remembering how pissed I was when he wasn't an option on the 2008 general ballot motivated me to register as a Republican so I could vote for him this primary. I have since read The Revolution: A Manifesto and Liberty Defined. Once you go Ron Paul, you never go back!

[leonster]

Not sure where Osan AFB is... Pyeongtaek, perhaps? To the south of Seoul then, if so.

Ilsan is northwest of Seoul, getting kinda up near North Korea actually. Supposedly safest major city in Korea from nuclear attack, as the fallout here would reach Kaesong city across the border. :P Not that I think they'd be suicidal enough to attack or anything. Anyways, it's a new neighborhood, about a half million people. Semi-posh, nice place.

I know there are lots of US soldiers scattered in Korea, but in my 5 years here I've rarely come in touch. Met a few soldiers at a Seoul Ron Paul meetup in Itaewon, and also have seen some soldiers around Itaewon in general (some of them dumbasses, but oh well) when I venture there.

Edit: sorry, off topic but was supposed to have been a reply to dusman. :P




ON topic now... I saw him in the spring of 2007 in a debate and instantly liked him on foreign policy... I'd voted Bush in 2000 based on "a humble foreign policy, no nation building" then got disillusioned on Iraq and voted Badnarik in 2004 despite knowing absolutely zero about him except the (Libertarian) next to his name. Thought Ron Paul didn't stand a chance though, so kinda ignored him and tuned out to the whole thing. Then I randomly saw a bunch of people had raised millions of dollars for him on Nov. 5th, started thinking maybe he DID have a chance, started browsing YouTube and within a day found this forum and joined. I may not have been a terribly active poster over the several years, but I don't think there's ever been more than a few days gone by when I didn't drop by and read what others were saying.

[wowrevolution]

I don't remember exactly when or how. I do remember in either 2004 or 2005 I wrote Dr. Paul a letter in which I simply said: "You have to run for President, you're the only one that can win and restore hope to this country." (or something to that effect)

I created a WoW Guild called <Vote Ron Paul> that had a successful raiding career until it became <The Revolution> after the book once he withdrew from the race. I think I made sure he had name recognition for 10s of 1000s of people and every day I saw lights coming on as people would see him on TV and then in the game. I pride myself on helping with creating name recognition.

I believe that may be successful again but I'm not sure if Dr. Paul needs name recognition any more. I may just bring that guild back to life anyways but I'd really like more support if I did. Managing a WoW Guild really is a lot of work.

[sailingaway]

in 08 i supported obama simply for his wanting to end the wars, and it seemed like he wanted change. after his first term i stopped supporting him. just more of the same. early this year i started looking at the gop field and found ron paul on youtube. the rest was history.

Welcome to the forum!

I was on another politics forum during 2007 and some people there said I'd like Ron's views, and explained a few of them. They sounded ok, but I had read bad spin against him (the usual) and reserved judgment figuring I'd look into him before I voted. I did glance at his web page but his issues page was nothing special. The one thing that did strike me was that he had never voted for some things, like raiding social security and the patriot act, even the first time. The point being that what got me was not what he was saying now, but that he'd been consistent when others hadn't been. People kept tying the Constitution to him, which intrigued me, because I am pretty attached to the Constitution. I did donate a bit in Nov and again in December but only after the second big money bomb on December 16th did I actually look into the newsletter smear, which popped like a soap bubble. I went on youtube and watched some videos -- ELiberty and Avaroth etc....and a lot of others.

Once I realized how consistent he was to the Constitution and civil liberties, as much as war issues, I lost my apathy so to speak. I'm not sure if I ever voted in a primary, before that....

[Ronpauljones]

I know people hate to hear this, but I have to give credit to AJ. I've been "awake" since 2003 and first heard RP on AJ's radio show.

+ rep simply because I know people hate hearing the name Alex Jones. For whatever reason.

[R3volutionJedi]

Fmr. Huckabee supporter.
I woke up to the NWO through Alex Jones' films, then heard Ron Paul on the radio; Looked into him a bit, then ran into him in front of the capitol.

[Shane Harris]

I was 18 at the time of the 2008 general, and i voted for McCain. I didn't vote in the primary and paid no attention. It was clearly R v. D. no need to go any further. One year earlier I had read the fountainhead by rand and that had turned a light on inside me that was already there and waiting. the notion of the collective v. the individual all of a sudden became very important to me, and had got a little interested in Milton Friedman, but hadn't put the political pieces together. i was never presented with the option. i found ron paul about December 2008 when my dad mentioned him being interesting and suggesting i look him up, after sparking my dads interests by suggesting we eliminate the income tax and large departments of the government. i did. and this was the missing piece. everything fit together and all i wanted was for him to run in 2012 so i could vote for him. i read revolution over Christmas of 2008 and like some others i had been raised very neocon and so the foreign policy pill was the hardest to swallow (and took about 2 years to swallow completely) but now i have seen the light and could never vote for an interventionist. it is one of my favorite things about paul. rp has lead me to peter schiff, tom woods, austrian economics, henry Hazlitt, etc. RON PAUL CHANGED MY LIFE.

[USAFCapt]

First president vote: Supported Buchanan in 1999, then stumbled upon HARRY BROWNE and the Libertarian party. Expected Browne's views to get him millions of votes in 2000...he only got 500k while Gore received 51 MILLION - became aware of two party duopoly. Then voted for Badnarik and placed a Ron Paul bumpersticker "The Taxpayers Best Friend" on my first car because he wanted us to stop funding the UN. When I saw his exploratory website in late 2006 I about had a conniption.

[CaptUSA]

When I realized the American public may actually be waking up to what's been going on and that Ron Paul acutally had a shot.

I must admit that I watch 2008 with curiosity, but didn't get involved because I knew America would never elect him. Now, I feel differently. After 2010, it seems that people are beginning to realize the destruction that has been done to our country. Many of these people are going back to sleep or never really understood it, but there's an opportunity here. This is one that didn't exist in 2008. It's up to all of us to re-ignite this in the American public in 2010.

[Carehn]

sometime back in 07 or 06 I was convinced I would never vote again. I was told by TV that republican meant smaller government and democrat meant more. this was the depth of my political thinking. I was in high school so give me a brake (edit- I had been out of high school for 3 years but stopped caring back in high school) . At least at the time I was thinking enough to know that nether party represented small government. I just decided I would not waist my time anymore.

Then I was walking out of the mint, a diner in Haylie Idaho (spelling?) and seen a slim jim posted on a cork board. I read it and googled Ron Paul when I got home.

Ron Paul was the gateway drug that lead me to other parts of the liberty movement.

So ya, slim jims work and I put them all over now.

[ronpaulfollower999]

Good thread. Proves that every little thing we do does bring in supporters! I found out about him in October, but didn't really go full on until I heard about the November 5th money bomb.

Slim jims, bumper stickers, money bombs, sign waving, Alex Jones, etc…they all work. Though, I'm curious if anyone was brought in because of the blimp. :p

[sailingaway]

Good thread. Proves that every little thing we do does bring in supporters! I found out about him in October, but didn't really go full on until I heard about the November 5th money bomb.

Slim jims, bumper stickers, money bombs, sign waving, Alex Jones, etc…they all work. Though, I'm curious if anyone was brought in because of the blimp. :p

The blimp definitely caught my attention, and was cool. It was the people on the other forum who seemed to share some of my views and thought I would like him who actually got me to research him and donate to him, though.

[LinuxJedi]

I first heard about Ron Paul when he had the guts to address the TSA mass-molestation, and government-mandated radiation scans. Hearing him introduce legislation to ban this practice was the first time I felt proud to be American since around 2003. My refusal to fly under these conditions are a major obstacle to my personal life, and career. Later on when I heard he was running for president, I was excited... and somehow I found out more about the guy, and now I'm spreading the message, and doing everything I can to help get him elected.

[Paul4Prez]

When I first heard that he had formed an exploratory committee, in early 2007. I voted for Ron Paul in 1988, and had hoped he would run in 2004. An online draft effort that year drew only 3,000 signatures. How times have changed....

[D.A.S.]

Back in 2007, I was leaning solidly Democratic, and the Republican Party looked to me like big-business cronies that wanted to screw the average American to help their corporate pals. The Democrats always seemed to be the people's party, friendlier toward the environment, compassionate toward the less fortunate, and generally anti-war.

In the 2007/2008 presidential election cycle, I was intent on watching all the Republican and Democratic debates on TV -- the Republican ones mostly for entertainment only because I couldn't see myself supporting any Republican candidate at that time. The pivotal moment for me was when during the first Republican presidential debate Ron Paul openly came out against George Bush's wars, stated that he actually voted against the Iraq War, and proceeded to blast our foreign wars and foreign policy. I was FLOORED!! I just couldn't believe that there would be someone with so much spine to come out against his party and actually stand up for the cause and show real principle. I still flirted with Democratic candidates, but I always paid special attention to what Ron Paul had to say during the Republican debates.

In early 2008, I voted for Ron Paul in the NJ Republican Primaries. In November 2008, on the day of the general election, I knew Ron Paul didn't have a chance to be elected, and that saddened me, but I was proud to exercise the "write-in" feature, and I wrote in Ron Paul. :-)

In the 2008 cycle, I didn't run into any Ron Paul supporters, didn't see any bumper stickers, t-shirts, slim jims, etc. As of now, I'm yet to run into someone in NJ with a Ron Paul bumper sticker or a t-shirt. So I do my part here by sporting a bumper sticker and wearing a Ron Paul t-shirt here in central NJ.

[CaptainAmerica]

When I looked at his voting record in 2007 and read that he wanted the U.S. to end funding of NATO and to disengage completely from the United Nations and basically everything he supported was sound to restoring the United States Constitution.

[Crystallas]

When I got off my libertarian high-horse and finally said, f--- it, I'm voting for Ron. I knew about Ron for a long time, and I have always liked him. I guess it was that one stupid hurdle that I had to get past, and it has been well worth it!

[ILikeRonPaul]

took me a while cause in 2007 i became deathly ill and was not in the mood for politics . but by 2009 i was already back to normal health and i started looking for any candidate that wanted to legalize marijuana cause i was disappointed in Obama's stance . i came across Ron's so-called "banned" 20/20 interview on YouTube and was quite shocked at what i was hearing . i was a pretty gnarly dude and i still got a little intimidated by his views on government . but i started researching what he was talking about, thought about it real hard, saw a couple documentaries (zeitgeist, obama deception) and sometime in late 2009 i fully endorsed Ron .

[Crickett]

[QUOTE=BuddyRey;3528073]Was a hardcore Democrat until after the '06 midterm elections when Pelosi did an about-face and said Bush wouldn't be held accountable for war crimes and that impeachment was off the table. Started getting into Alex Jones' documentaries and website, where one day I saw this ad:

I will never understand why a Democrat took impeachment of Bush off the table when I was a Republican and wanted him impeached because he did IMPEACHABLE things! Now he is trying to raise money for a Presidential Library when he should be living in shame. In fact, I hate Pelosi more than Obama.

[Corydoras]

In the spring of 2007 I read Naomi Wolf's "Fascist America, in 10 Easy Steps" in the U.K. Guardian. She mentioned the American Freedom Agenda. I found out that Ron Paul was the only candidate who signed their pledge.

http://www.guardian.co.uk/world/2007/apr/24/usa.comment
http://www.americanfreedomagenda.org/About/freedompledge.htm (http://www.americanfreedomagenda.org/)

[kojirodensetsu]

In 2007 when he was on Stephen Colbert. He started talking about cutting things like department of education. I was confused as to why you would cut departments like that. Looked into him and got hooked.

[Ronpauljones]

Good thread. Proves that every little thing we do does bring in supporters! I found out about him in October, but didn't really go full on until I heard about the November 5th money bomb.

Slim jims, bumper stickers, money bombs, sign waving, Alex Jones, etc…they all work. Though, I'm curious if anyone was brought in because of the blimp. :p

Hmmmmm

http://img209.imageshack.us/img209/5894/mccainblimppy7.jpg

[liberalnurse]

Being a 30 year voting Democrat I was resistant when a friend tried to intoduce me to RP in Jan. 2007. He kept telling me I was a Libertarian. My then college attending son said the magic words, "What about Ron Paul?" So, began my research and my journey. Only 98% convinced, in April 2007, I went to a to a RP rally @ Penn State, in State College, PA with the above mentioned friend. We got there early and were able to stand, in the front row, right off to the left of the podium. The crowd overflowed the field house and the fire marshall stopped letting people in at 1,500, and mind you, it was pouring down rain. And what a truly happy crowd it was.
During his speech I was overwhelmed with his message of liberty and freedom and the response of the crowd. I made eye contact with Dr. Paul during his speech and when it was over he exited the stage on the left and immediatly walked over to me and shook my hand first. That was it for me. Put a fork in me I was done. :) Changed my voter registration, became the campaign co-coordinator for our county and very active in our local meetup. And so it began and so it continues....

[NoahRI]

2005-6 I was going through a major re-awakening via Alex Jones who I caught a snippet off a local cable access program which also featured David Icke. I began seeing the Matrix, for the first time all around us. I began tuning out the O'Reilly's of the world who had programmed me into the left/right paradigm. In 2006 through an interview with Aaron Russo on the AJ show I watched Freedom to Fascism on you tube and purchased copies to wake up my friends and family. There was Congressman Ron Paul speaking in absolute truths and he was just the type of person I prayed would be president of this country one day. When he announced in 2007 I made it a point to get involved and help the campaign with Ballot access and grassroots activities sign hangs etc. Things are so much tougher financially this time around for me. I wish I could do more but I will continue to help in whatever ways I can. He has my vote no matter what. Been a lurker on here since then. What is this post 2? sorry guys just don't post much :)

[sailingaway]

2005-6 I was going through a major re-awakening via Alex Jones who I caught a snippet off a local cable access program which also featured David Icke. I began seeing the Matrix, for the first time all around us. I began tuning out the O'Reilly's of the world who had programmed me into the left/right paradigm. In 2006 through an interview with Aaron Russo on the AJ show I watched Freedom to Fascism on you tube and purchased copies to wake up my friends and family. There was Congressman Ron Paul speaking in absolute truths and he was just the type of person I prayed would be president of this country one day. When he announced in 2007 I made it a point to get involved and help the campaign with Ballot access and grassroots activities sign hangs etc. Things are so much tougher financially this time around for me. I wish I could do more but I will continue to help in whatever ways I can. He has my vote no matter what. Been a lurker on here since then. What is this post 2? sorry guys just don't post much :)

feels kinda odd saying 'welcome to the forums' to someone who joined before I did..... but welcome!

[ForLiberty2012]

These are all awesome! Not only do I love hearing these stories, but they offer insight into how people are swayed, and what makes them realize Ron Paul is the man!! Keep 'em coming people!

[NoahRI]

Thanks, for the warm welcome. :) I have been a guest on here since the very beginning. This forum is the best source of what is going on in the world I have seen. It is amazing how the pulse of the world can be found in this forum coming from so many like minded people. I'll try to dip my toe in the posting water more often. lol.

[anewvoice]

The moment I heard he was announcing for the Presidency in 2007. I'd followed him for a couple years already from MI because he spoke truth which I could not find elsewhere. Ron Paul is my hero!

[smtwngrl]

I started to get educated about the Constitution in the mid 90's and the about things that had gone on/were going on in our country.

Not long after that, Ron Paul got back into Congress. I was paying attention to bills in Congress, and sometimes contacting my representatives/senators. It seemed like whenever there was a bad bill, Ron Paul was opposing it. People sometimes question how much Ron Paul has accomplished in Congress, but I have no doubt we would be less free without his efforts. At one time, he and other members of the House started an organization called the Liberty Committee. They reviewed various bills to monitor things that would impact freedom, for the better or worse. People could choose to be on a list, to receive emails about those bills. I think you could even email your representatives directly through their website. I also had seen Ron Paul on CSPAN a couple of times, speaking in Congress, and I was impressed about how knowledgeable he was.

I didn't know he had run for President in 1988 until 2007, when he was running again. But I always thought he would be a great presidential candidate. The "Freedom Movement" was not very united, between the Libertarians, Constitution Party, an others. But they all respected Ron Paul, so I thought his running could unite them. I just didn't know, until 2007, that he had the ability to unite not only those groups, but also traditional Republicans, Democrats, Independents, and people who had been uninvolved/uninterested in politics.

In around late March or early April 2007, I found out he was running for President, and I was very pleased. And once I started to watch him on youtube, in the debates, etc.., and to get a more complete picture of who he was and his message, I was even more thrilled. He has also educated me about some things.

[Kimmie]

The federal deficit, the federal reserve, the corporatism, the bailouts, the inflation, the wars, the flip flopping of politicians especially of President Obama among other things built up resentment and frustration that led me to Ron Paul. Since then, I have never looked back.

[ForLiberty2012]

The federal deficit, the federal reserve, the corporatism, the bailouts, the inflation, the wars, the flip flopping of politicians especially of President Obama among other things built up resentment and frustration that led me to Ron Paul. Since then, I have never looked back.

There is no looking back once you are educated! Unless you have brain damage lol

[Kimmie]

Yes, you are right, "ForLiberty2012". As a disillusioned Democrat, I definitely know what it was like being "brainwashed" all these years by the media.

[FreeTraveler]

I'm one of those old farts you young kids are always railing on. :D I was anti-war, anti-draft, pro-civil-rights in the 60s and 70s, which made me a hippie, but I was one of those that supported property rights, so that made me a libertarian by default. I'll be voting for Dr. Paul for President for the THIRD time. :p

ETA: We old hippies are easy-peasy converts to Dr. Paul. Even the ones that sold out and don't bother to vote anymore still have that idealism lurking inside, and most have property and have gotten over the socialism bug. Tap it.

[Dsylexic]

can non voters tell their story? i am not an american- i am an indian.however when i was working in the US in 2005,I heard Ron Paul's name being referred to as "OUR MAN in congress" by some guest on financialsense.com -i was more invested in the economics at that point,learning about gold etc. when i later heard Marc Faber and Jim rogers(my favorite pundits) refer to him glowingly -i knew i had to look him up. i already was in agreement with all he stood for.except abortion- my wife was pregnant then and we had decided to abort IF the Down syndrome test proved positive (fortunately it didnt,and we have a great little boy).i didnt know it was nothing less than murder that i was contemplating.
we would give an arm and a leg to get a politician with half the integrity of ron paul here in india.
ps:i thought it must be really odd that here i was sitting in a Rothbard "enemy of the state" Tee shirt,reading Bob Murphy study guide to the Human Action -far away in India,wishing desparately that an american Ron Paul gets elected!it would be awesome for the whole world.
pps:and i dont even vote in indian elections.

[ds21089]

... When I turned 18 in 2007 and became interested in politics by listening to it on the news and hearing my stepfather talking about it. Even though he just blindly followed Fox news, I have never been one to trust any information I hear without researching it. I began to look up every single candidate that was running, and I kept finding dirt on all of them. I stumbled across a few Ron Paul speeches and I could tell that while he wasn't the greatest speaker in the world, you could tell by his passion that he means everything he says. You can't fake that. There would be times where I'd say...let 'em have it, Ron! Times he could easily throw insults to hurt the other peoples' campaigns, but refused to do so because of his integrity.

I have never had a hero before I met Ron Paul. In my eyes, he's even greater than a founding father, because when they got together, they were more so like-minded in the cause of liberty. Ron Paul is fighting tooth and nail against the establishment and all of these frauds, battling constant false attacks in order to restore America back to it's greatness. He is THE Re-Founding father, and he will go down in history as the person who awakened a sleeping public to the tyranny of its government and sparked the change that was needed to see that all of us have a free, prosperous life for generations to come. Ron Paul will always be my president.

[mconder]

Back early or mid 90's when I saw the New America conservative index scores for congress and Ron Paul always had a perfect scorecard. No one else was ever close. Subsequently I would watch votes on CSPAN and there was very frequently that one lone descenting vote of Ron Paul.

[satchelmcqueen]

in early 07. heard his debate answers and i just couldnt believe what i was hearing. so i googled some vids of him and it was all the same honest answers. i was hooked.

[kazmlsj]

I heard him on CSPAN in 2007 and almost passed out [having NEVER heard a politician speak directly to my heart!].

Never looked back...will vote only for him or not at all.

[kazmlsj]

I'm one of those old farts you young kids are always railing on. :D I was anti-war, anti-draft, pro-civil-rights in the 60s and 70s, which made me a hippie, but I was one of those that supported property rights, so that made me a libertarian by default. I'll be voting for Dr. Paul for President for the THIRD time. :p

ETA: We old hippies are easy-peasy converts to Dr. Paul. Even the ones that sold out and don't bother to vote anymore still have that idealism lurking inside, and most have property and have gotten over the socialism bug. Tap it.

LOVE your story!

But, I have a hard time here in the South with the older crowd - way too brainwashed by FOX News - had one say to me, "Why would the media lie?" I know, I know, crickets were just-a chirpin's as I sat there with my mouth open.

[kazmlsj]

GREAT story! And great to hear how ALL generations understand that Ron Paul is the best man for the job.

[archlinux]

Seeing him in Aaron Russo's 2006 film, "Freedom to Fascism." I remember seeing it in the theater and the entire audience gave it a standing ovation at the end, an amazingly powerful moment. After that, I had to research him. Next I was donating to his congressional re-election campaign. I still have the two old school shirts he sent me as a thank you for donating. They are a bit tattered, but they are my favorite Ron Paul shirts.

[justinpagewood]

My friend kept asking me to watch these YouTube videos about some politician.

I told him, no way am I listening to any politician! They're all boring and self-centered.

3 months later, I finally caved after his relentless bothering, and watched one video of Ron Paul speaking, and then another, and then another, until I was addicted.


So, personally, having something like www.ronpaulflix.com (http://www.ronpaulflix.com) to spread the message is really important to catch people like me.

[josiahkeller]

An acquaintance showed me the video of Ron Paul on the Colbert Report in 2007.
I became an instant supporter.

[Simple]

Ron Paul stood out in the debates in '07, but I'll admit I never really paid him much attention until last year when the Tea Party started ramping up. The more I heard the Tea Party called racists, the more I was intrigued to see why this group was getting attacked. The more I heard from Ron Paul the more I realized that his views were a close reflection to my own. I voted for the first time in '10 and I plan on supporting Ron Paul in '12. Ron Paul cured my political apathy and now I'm reading stuff from Rand, Friedman, Hayek, and of course Ron Paul.

[ForLiberty2012]

Reviving this thread for more awesome stories!

[hmochel1992]

I googled him. I didn't even know what libertarianism was until then. The reason I googled him was actually the passionate '08 supporters. I was driving through a nearby town when I saw people standing on the sidewalk enthusiastically waving Ron Paul signs... I picked up "The Revolution: A Manifesto" and was sold. I continued reading Dr. Paul, as well as other Austrian School/libertarian writing and here I am as a college student studying political science/economics hoping to find a career where I can advance liberty!

[jason43]

I found a speech he gave about Kosovo when I got back from there (army) and agreed with everything he said. My best friend died in iraq in march 2007 and I went full on with Ron for president in 08. I knew he was the only one opposed to war on principle aside from kusinich and gravel. Sucks we lost. Lots more dead soldiers from our "anti-war" demopublican. Anyways that was about it. I became an anti interventionist because I was sent to intervene one time and it was bullshit. Ron is the real deal.

[simplyjacy]

Yahoo answers back in '07. I saw a mention of him, and looked him up. Never looked back.

Now I'm very active in the election section of Yahoo Answers, all pro-RP answers and I have 33% best answer, so I guess we are doing well there.

It's a great way to reach undecideds.

i shall try that way to spread the message.

[simplyjacy]

my husband mentioned Ron Paul to me when I first got here in the US. he came across the good doctor in YouTube. since i was not an electorate back then, i didn't pay so much attention. when my husband watched the Presidential Debate '08, i learned more of his principles and such match my views on most if not all issues. since then, i've been following him until now... first time to get involved in politics; first time to join a campaign; first time to donate to a candidate; and my first time to vote and it will only be him - No One but Ron Paul.

[bb_dg]

I heard of Ron Paul when I was a freshman in college during the 2008 election but didn't pay much attention to him. about 8 months ago I was watching an Episode of Penn and Teller's Bullsh!t (episode on Taxes). Ron Paul was in that episode and he sounded really honest in what he was saying. So I just went on youtube, typed in Ron Paul debate, and found this video.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TV6JXoTvG84

It just made complete sense to me and I couldn't stop watching videos of him for the rest of the day.

[Conza88]

I've been heavily indoctrinated as a libertarian since I was around ten y.o. and always knew Ron to be a good friend to the ideology. Twenty years later and here I am.

You mean enlightened, to the political philosophy, right? :p

[jasonxe]

when i saw this ad


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhyaiOZhpSg

[TheTexan]

I knew I was going to support him the moment I heard him speak. He'd said things I'd been thinking for years, but I never gave any serious consideration to previously.

I also used to talk about how it's "literally impossible for an honest person to become President. That's not the way politics works." Then Ron Paul happened.

[jeremiahj13]

Hm my story is interesting! I could not vote in 2008, but supported Huckabee because I am a born again Christian :). The war issue I was undecided about, and I respected Ron Paul because he was different, and offered a different perspective on the war. Also one of my friends supported Paul. So Paul was my 2nd pick, but I always support my number 1 to the fullest extent without wavering!

However, I joined the army, and got back from basic training. Now that my opinions were not just developed from behind a computer screen, but now having real life experience, I realized being away from home sucked also how difficult the military experience truly is. This made me staunchly anti-war, and very depressed because all of my SGT's throughout training all stated "I promise you, and gaurantee you will deploy to the middle east." I was disillusioned with these wars, and of course came to the conclusion it is time to end them. Of course Ron Paul rang a bell in my head, and I was a Ron Paul fanatic when I got home from Basic Training (November 2010). So I was calling for Ron Paul to run way before anyone even thought about him... I felt so alone, I ordered a generic Paul 2012 sign on www.gopmall.com and tried to muster what support I could to get a Paul 2012 ticket. Here we are today, with so much more support, and Ron Paul running well in the GOP primaries :P

[dannno]

I was a former libertarian/Republican turned Green/Independent during my liberal university education, voted Nader in '00 and '04. Never voted for any Democrats for anything that I could recall. I didn't think most of them "got it".

I wanted to see if there were any good Republican candidates because not only were the Democrats that were being talked about initially in the press sounding like complete tools, but I didn't want it to be (some random Democrat) vs. Bush III. Plus I knew when I heard there was a guy named "Barack Obama" running I knew somebody was pulling some shenanigans on that side. So I watched the debates one night, but my roommates were talking over most of it so I didn't hear much. There was one guy I heard talk about economics that I thought made sense, but I didn't remember who he was. A few weeks went by and it was bothering me that I couldn't find which of the Republican candidates I identified with that night at the debate, and finally I came onto Ron Paul doing some research. Watched some of the debate videos including the one of Guillianni and I was pretty much hooked. Wasn't sure about his immigration policy so I e-mailed the campaign and got a very re-assuring response. Wasn't excited about his pro-life policy, but that was never an issue that I voted on if for any reason because it never changed no matter who was in power. In fact, I knew that in '00 when the media announced Bush won and the girls watching the news in the college dorms started almost crying and really freaking out. One of the reasons was because he was pro-life. I actually remember assuring them that it was unfortunate that he won, but that there was no way he was going to do change the country's abortion policy. Accurate prediction on my part.

Anyway, another concern was environment. It didn't take long at all for me to realize that I pretty much agreed with him on everything, and soon discovered that I couldn't really disagree with a word he said about what he would do in federal office.

[dolphin]

... when I heard him in one of the 2007 debates schooling Rudy and the rest of the muppet show on foreign policy. I had already felt that the wars were immoral and unjustified and everything he said made perfect sense and introduced me to the concept of blowback. I started researching him more, and I realized that everything he was saying made perfect sense!

When/what made you decide to support Ron Paul??

48 years old and I have never once voted in my entire life.

My only regret over the years was not getting off my butt to help Ross Perot.

Ross Perot was the only Presidential candidate that ever gave me a sense of being real.

Having only experienced that once in all my years made it easy for me to realize I was experiencing it again with Ron Paul.

I decided to get off my butt this time rather than live to regret it like I did last time.

[PierzStyx]

I never knew much about him until teh recent debates. About 2 months ago I was listening to him in a debate and what he said BLEW MY MIND. It wasn't the ideas themselves, I had already thought down similar lines myself. But I had been yearning to hear a politician speak the truth and stand for the Constitution. And there was Ron Paul doing exactly that. I investigated him for a few days, to ensure he wasn't another Romney or McCain. When I discovered who he was and his record, I fell in love with him. He is my political hero now!

[ForLiberty2012]

I never knew much about him until teh recent debates. About 2 months ago I was listening to him in a debate and what he said BLEW MY MIND. It wasn't the ideas themselves, I had already thought down similar lines myself. But I had been yearning to hear a politician speak the truth and stand for the Constitution. And there was Ron Paul doing exactly that. I investigated him for a few days, to ensure he wasn't another Romney or McCain. When I discovered who he was and his record, I fell in love with him. He is my political hero now!

It is so inspiring to hear people that are just hearing about him and getting just as excited as we are/have been! The flame of liberty can only grow.

[Eric21ND]

I heard of Ron Paul when I was a freshman in college during the 2008 election but didn't pay much attention to him. about 8 months ago I was watching an Episode of Penn and Teller's Bullsh!t (episode on Taxes). Ron Paul was in that episode and he sounded really honest in what he was saying. So I just went on youtube, typed in Ron Paul debate, and found this video.


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=TV6JXoTvG84

It just made complete sense to me and I couldn't stop watching videos of him for the rest of the day.
There is so much WIN in that video its mindblowing! :eek: What does your family think of you getting involved?

[gmc1988]

I don't know when exactly I became a supporter or even exactly why to be honest. It was sometime around the debate where he got into it with Rudy about 9/11. He was different from the other candidates on stage at the debates, and I believed in him and his message and started supporting him. :)

[Karsten]

I would like to answer a slightly different version of this question:

I WISH I knew I was going to support Ron Paul when...
We took a field trip to the Federal Reserve Los Angeles in my high school senior economics class in 2004.

[SpiritOf1776_J4]

when i saw this ad


http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=lhyaiOZhpSg

I like that video.

[Justinfrom1776]

Great thread, I thought about starting one like this the other day. In identifying what brought us to Ron Paul, perhaps we can bring others along as well.

I have always been a Libertarian, My eyes were opened at the age of 18 when I took my voting rights serious enough to do some research and that year (2000) I came to the conclusion of Harry Browne. I still admirer him. I have also always been cynical toward politicians, especially those with an (R) or (D) in front of their name. During the debates in 2007 I became particularly cynical when evaluating the Republican choices, Ron Paul's exceptional authenticity prompted me to look into him a bit and I've been hooked ever since.. A genuine statesman.. I was blown away by his overall character. It's funny because the one position of his that I had a hard time swallowing at first was non-interventionism and now it's what keeps me coming back.

[ForLiberty2012]

Bringing this thread back... I want to hear more stories!

[IterTemporis]

Bringing this thread back... I want to hear more stories!

I have posted mine before, but I suppose I can post it in this thread, as well.

I was for Obama in 2008, I fell for his 'change, hope we can believe in' message, and because he wanted to bring the troops home, and the media's influence. Shortly after the election, I stopped watching the TV and migrated over to my computer instead. Then I started researching online about Obama's promises and which ones has he broken, kept, etc. I discovered many things, needless to say. I was discontented, I had trusted him. As for whether or not I knew about Ron Paul, I knew his name and that he was a 'loon'. That is what I had been told, therefore that is what I believed. (Quite robotic, huh?)

I knew that I would not be voting for Obama, so I turned to the GOP. Please note, that I had never before watched any debates, and I thought that they were boring. One night, I decided on a whim to watch the latest GOP debate. I watched it on YouTube, and I told myself to not be biased and to give each candidate an equal chance.

I was watching the debate.. Santorum attacked Ron about the wars, the way Ron responded and how upset he got... A nice, luminous light bulb lit up in my head. I literally thought "...!!". He was making sense, and I agreed with him completely. Thanks to that I became a Paul supporter. I paid close attention to him the rest of the debate, then went online to do more research on him. I liked what I found. Thought I do not agree with him on everything, I fully support him.

[mport1]

Probably my learning about Michael Badnarik led me to Ron Paul.

Same here. Back in 2004.

[PatriotOne]

RP had me at "What if China....."

[jlaker]

I saw Dr. Paul in a debate back in 2007. I was a dem back then and thought I would watch the republican debate for a laugh. Then I heard Ron Paul and agreed with him on a lot of things but still wasn't trusting because he was a republican. What sold me was the interview afterward with Hannity and Combs. When they were arguing about the curds being gassed and Ron Paul said "we gave them the gas." I knew he was honest and fair and that's someone I would want to be president.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=i2fxzliDhSk

^this was how my journey to Ron Paul started

[vechorik]

I'm new to Dr. Paul's campaign (just this year). I always pulled the "R-lever" before. Obama showed me how much money Bush spent. LOL I was also ticked at Bush II for not closing the borders. What the heck is wrong with America? Neither Democrats, nor Republicans want to close the border - even after 9/11? I was also tired of constant war, so I started searching for answers. I stumbled upon an Alex Jones YouTube and was shocked. Fox News had already told me Jones is a conspiracy nut, but I investigated anyway. Once I found United Nations Agenda 21 was real -- all the light bulbs went off. Everything in the political scene since Bush I made perfect sense. The light bulb went off "Both parties want the same thing!"

Jones also mentioned Ron Paul. I didn't know much about him, but I started listening to the great YouTube videos supporters uploaded. I'm a 60 year old Christian Tea Party lady and you must imagine my shock at thinking about legalizing drugs, and such. I was also shocked by the crude language of some of the supporters. The truth I settled upon is that I could TRUST Dr. Paul. Even if I'm afraid of some things that could happen, in the long run I was convinced that Dr. Paul could save America and the Constitution! The few negatives I perceive are nothing compared to the greatness that Dr. Paul can give America!

I'm like a new religious convert now when it comes to Dr. Paul -- I want to tell the world!

[ForLiberty2012]

vechorik, that's an inspiring story! It really sheds light on the fact that the older generation gets their news from the mainstream media outlets. If that's all you see, that's all you know. And the mainstream media likes to paint Ron Paul as an extremist that wants to legalize heroin, end social security, and let you die if you have healthcare problems. I think that many older people think Ron Paul is a threat to their benefits that they currently get. But in reality, Ron Paul's plan is the only one that can effectively keep these benefits for those reliant on it, as well as protecting the value of the dollar through sound money. Please do spread the message!

[JohnGalt1225]

I wasn't awake back in 2007/08 but Paul was one of the few candidates I liked. I ended up voting for McCain because there already were strong hints at what we were going to get from Obama. Since then I have gradually woken up more and more. This election cycle I was a big supporter of Herman Cain. Until I began researching the candidates and found out all of them are globalist puppets except Ron Paul and Michele Bachmann. I still think Bachmann is too but I can't find anything on her (she is fake Tea Party for sure). So by process of elimination I left with Ron Paul. I have since researched alot about him and realized I should have been supported him as the one and only true candidate since 2007.
That was me for sure. Back then I was still a progressive. I really wanted a candidate who was anti-war and for a more scaled back foreign policy. I wasn't a liberty minded person yet so I didn't whole heartedly endorse and love Dr. Paul but I liked him a lot. I ended up voting for Ralph Nader who was my hero growing up.

I didn't fully awaken until early this year. I can't point to any one specific aha moment. It was more like the culmination of years of research and soul searching.

[limequat]

First heard about RP in the book Crossing the Rubicon about 9/11. Ironically, this is a truther book and RP is not, however it planted the seed that there was one worthwhile congresscritter. I think it was WND that started posting in 2007 that he was going to run. I was onboard before I had even seen a picture or heard him speak.

In 2007 there was debate and all the candidates were making overtures about war with Iran (look how much has changed). RP gestured at his adversaries and fumed, "This is all just WAR PROPAGANDA!" My god RP, just reach into my wallet and take what you want!

Edit: time 4.24 here:

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Ps0O0MbrVjE

[Bodhi]

...when I heard about him on a forum around '07 and decided to look up some info on him. I realized right away he was an "honest" politician, I had different views then him at the time, but the more videos I watched, the more I realized I was wrong and he had the right idea. 30+ years of brainwashing by the media and public education was undone in a few hours of listening to Ron Paul. It is amazing how powerful the truth is, it is easy to recognize when you see it and very hard to deny.

[Eric21ND]

It's especially ironic because Paul has never spent a dime from Social Security, and he would actually shore the program up and turn it into a real trust fund.

[ChrisDixon]

I first got involved with politics in 2007. I was a neoconservative high school activist. Summer of 2007, I was a Romney guy. Eventually, I shifted to Thompson and then Huckabee. Supported Iraq and Afghanistan, annoyed my liberal friends endlessly with my warhawk attitudes. I didn't know much about Paul, but subscribed to the mainstream idea he was crazy.

The first I really thought about him on any level was in class my senior year. At the end of class, everything was done and people were scattered. My teacher talked to those of us sitting about his love for politics, and how it drove his wife crazy. We started talking about the primaries and he had said he liked Ron Paul, and that he thought he had some really good ideas.

Beyond that, I worked near a Border's store for a while. I used to go down often to read, the Politics and Government section was like my home away from home. One night I came across "The Revolution" and decided to do some reading. I ended up reading half of the book before deciding to buy it and finished it that night at home. I was sold from there. The only crazy part, I thought, was that he makes sense and too many people think he's nuts because of it.

Since then, I've been a very strong supporter of Ron Paul. And like the long hair I had back then, I don't like to talk about the neoconservative days. :P