Let's Get On The Campaign Website

[LibertyCzar]

We know we have numbers to express a united front. But we can also use our unity to let the campaign know of a particular desire we have. Ron Paul does say that we are the campaign.

Here's the idea. Do you think having a forum like this one on the official campaign website www.ronpaul2008.com is a good idea?

[RPFever]

I disagree with having forums or any time of "meet up" area on the official site. The whole brilliance of the Ron Paul strategy is having everyone be forced to meet at different areas. This adds exposure to Ron Paul and adds to the "boom". Other candidates that have site forums don't do nearly as successful - some people, namely Fred Thompson, are now looking at setting up a simple website like Ron's where there is no site forum.

Bottom line - having a site forum will take away from Ron's Internet Revolution and I strongly do not recommend lobbying for it.

[LibertyEagle]

I think that would be a big mistake. That would totally associate him with some of the sideline discussions such as on 9-11, etc. How would his campaign handle these? Monitor/moderate them? If they did, people would get angry and huff off. And if they didn't, I could just see the press now. Can't you?

No, I think message boards should be kept an arm's length from his campaign.

Ron Paul doesn't need to corral US. What his campaign needs to focus on is honing his message and getting it out so people who have no idea of what he's about, will know and understand his principles and stances on the issues. I also wish they would offer some high-level coordination from time to time to the grassroots.

[angrydragon]

Maybe Fred should have a forum. If Fred won't have a forum, his supporters would have to looking for info. about him elsewhere, and it might be damaging.

[PatriotOne]

I agree keeping it separate is better. Wouldn't want Ron Paul to have to take any blame for our, errrr, sometimes radical actions...LOL.

[LibertyCzar]

It would be true that the leeway Josh currently has with Administering this forum might diminish slightly, if this were to happen. Some of the topics that currently exist might need modification. On the other hand, independent forums like this might remain independent, and a separate forum would be made official. However, it would be a sign of solidarity, and unification. If needed, the campaign could add its own disclaimer.

Ron Paul's message of Freedom and Liberty could be enhanced with a Forum like this, even with the more controversial topics and posts. Just because someone has a view, that doesn't mean it is consistent with Ron Paul's. And Moderators can still demonstrate that it is not anything goes as far as what can be posted.

[LibertyEagle]

What solidarity would it offer us over what we have now? I don't see why it's needed. Not at all.

[LibertyCzar]

I agree keeping it separate is better. Wouldn't want Ron Paul to have to take any blame for our, errrr, sometimes radical actions...LOL.

People calling and harassing (how it was spun) a guy at home for not including Ron Paul at an Iowa Forum was done without this forum being on the website. And it was blamed on the campaign. This is not a good argument for leaving this forum off the website. Idiots will find a way to be idiots regardless. On the otherhand, having a forum on the website will be a good way to show large numbers of supporters. Having a bunch of entities scattered about only diminishes the totality of the support.

[LibertyEagle]

LibertyCzar:

The same thing could be done now through the moderators. I think ours here suggested that calling people at home wasn't a proper thing to do. The other board is another issue entirely. There's still a guy, FreeState, running around there trying to get people to join him in harrassment tactics of these people. I tried suggesting this wasn't the best approach and he accused me of being a troll. :)

[LibertyCzar]

The reason I brought this up is because I thought it would be welcomed, not to create a wedge.

It seems this forum is a good medium for a newcomer to come to to talk to Ron Paul supporters. If someone is curious about Ron Paul, they would check out his website. Then they could come to a forum like this and talk to a supporter. It seems to me this is a good idea. I mean look at the difference between Flickr and MySpace registration numbers. Not everyone signs up for everything. But this forum is like a one-stop shop. If anyone has any questions, they could get a rapid answer on this forum, which is less intimidating that jumping right in with an in-person Meetup group.

[LibertyEagle]

I think it would be a moderation nightmare and an extreme liability.

[angrydragon]

I think Justine would have said something to Josh, if there was an interest.

http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=3577

[LibertyCzar]

Look at it this way, it's cutting out the middleman. Facebook, MySpace, and Youtube all allow comments. Ron Paul has Official Pages on each. People leave comments. Not all comments reflect positively on the campaign. But does that mean Ron Paul should cancel all those pages? No. If someone says something, and it doesn't removed fast enough, it just has to be disclaimed. Furthermore, a terms of service for a forum like this means that if you violate a term, you could be banned. So if someone DID do something wrong, having them Banned, would be a good thing, and to show that the campaign has everything under control.

I'm pressing the issue as much as I am because I believe that having an online forum is the great equalizer for shy people and others in a general sense, especially newcomers. Not everyone is extroverted enough to feel adequately comfortable holding a sign out in public. Some people become terrified at the very notion. But that does not diminish their eagerness to be supportive.

First coming upon Ron Paul, or any other candidate, if I was curious, it would actually help out to know that even though multiple forums existed, one was mentioned by the campaign. It would point the way. The other forums could continue with self-destructive guerilla tactics.

[B964]

I do not feel that would be good. As already stated, it would make any off camber comment, a Ron Paul comment.
I do think that a random posting by Paul on this, and other forums, would help build enthusiasm.

[LibertyEagle]

Look at it this way, it's cutting out the middleman. Facebook, MySpace, and Youtube all allow comments. Ron Paul has Official Pages on each. People leave comments. Not all comments reflect positively on the campaign. But does that mean Ron Paul should cancel all those pages? No. If someone says something, and it doesn't removed fast enough, it just has to be disclaimed.

Keep in mind that message boards, as opposed to MySpace, allows back and forth conversation.

[LibertyCzar]

I see that this has high resistance. Perhaps this exact forum is not right, but a one-stop shop, online something should be available.

We should always try to reflect Ron Paul's message to the best of our ability. It seems to me there might be a reluctance to give up bad behavior. But this forum is still public. What is done here is still reflective of who Ron Paul supporters are, and Ron Paul by association. Whether or not this specific forum is mentioned on the official website, there will remain the element of guilt-by-association.

[winston84]

I don't even think a link would be a good idea, its good enough that the site links to the various social networks as it is. I would have to disagree with this idea, a truly independent forum such as this one is fine for several reasons.

If we slip up, RP won't be tied to us officially.
We are already quite organized.
Our efforts will seem more genuine without HQ telling us what to do.

[Bradley in DC]

[/B] Therefore, I just e-mailed the campaign regarding the official website, which is: www.ronpaul2008.com. If you want to see a Forum linked on the website, please e-mail the campaign at mail@ronpaul2008.com.

Please refrain as much as possible from emailing HQ and do NOT urge others to do the same. Despite all of the staffers and volunteers best efforts, there were, I think, 1500 unanswered emails when I was there on Friday afternoon.

[EDIT: Oh, and LibertyCzar, love the name! Also, please do join the local MeetUp.com group even if you don't go to the physical meetings. There is a MeetUp.com message board that is more closely related to the campaign (which be all you're looking to acheive).]

[LibertyCzar]

Keep in mind that message boards, as opposed to MySpace, allows back and forth conversation.

Having a de facto on-call customer service sort of thing, with near immediate response makes it a positive, not a negative.

[PatriotOne]

People calling and harassing (how it was spun) a guy at home for not including Ron Paul at an Iowa Forum was done without this forum being on the website. And it was blamed on the campaign. This is not a good argument for leaving this forum off the website. Idiots will find a way to be idiots regardless. On the otherhand, having a forum on the website will be a good way to show large numbers of supporters. Having a bunch of entities scattered about only diminishes the totality of the support.

I disagree. Ron's campaign manager was able to dismiss that the actions of those who called Mr. Failor at home, etc., and said they were not condoned by them. If this was some sort of "official" Ron Paul site, it would be a lot harder, as all of a sudden they would be expected to control how we behave.

[LibertyCzar]

Okay, I concede. Disagreement with the idea seems to be unanimous, and quite staunchly so. I'm not doing myself any sort of favors in continuing to defend it. This Thread has no further purpose other than to accumulate additional comments vehemently stating the foolishness of this idea. The idea itself would only cause unease, if implimented.

[Brandybuck]

I want to keep the forums separate. They've already got a link to here, that should be good enough.

[specsaregood]

I want to keep the forums separate. They've already got a link to here, that should be good enough.

Uhm, I don't see a link to here from http://www.ronapaul2008.com I thought that was the point of this thread, the suggestion that there SHOULD be a link to here, just like the links to digg, meetup, youtube, etc.

I think it is a good idea and would support it with a few caveats:
1. Perhaps a big notice/disclaimer that this site is unofficial and operated independent of the campaign.
2. This site is NOT stable enough, it seems to go down at least once a day. Can we help with this at all?

Also, I think the other posters here do an excellent job of answering questions and discussing sensitive topics --for the most part.

This would suggestion would help improve even more comraderie and help develop working relationships among supporters.

I would rather have a link to HERE than the other forum that is similar.

I like the idea.

[CasualApathy]

Okay, I concede. Disagreement with my idea seems to be unanimous, and quite staunchly so. I'm not doing myself any sort of favors. Therefore, I see no further point in this Thread other than others to vehemently tell me that my idea is foolish.

awww... and i missed out... :D

[LibertyCzar]

I was a bit hungry when I was posting, and the posts in this thread had too much of a personal edge to them. I've edited the text, now that my full stomach has restored my objective perspective. I've also modified the Original post to convert this thread into a dialogue only, instead of a call to action. This better reflects the state of overall opinions.

Dinner was good. :D