duffster
07-03-2007, 02:18 PM
Wrote this late last night on Facebook. Was asked to spread it around, so here goes. Feel free to elaborate.
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1) HELP MAKE RON PAUL THE WORST PRESIDENT OF YOUR LIFETIME
Ron Paul could be the worst president we've seen in years—if, that is, you expect a president to establish new offices and departments that will be attached to his name until the end of time.
Whenever people talk about great presidents and leaders, the names that come up are the same people who made catastrophic decisions that created many of the messes that we are in today. Yet, without a doubt, some of the truly greatest presidents were the individuals who did little worth remembering. They didn't drag us into wars or establish programs with great short-term benefits buy disastrous long-term consequences.
Dr Paul says it best himself: "We have had presidents who have tried to do too much. How can I run for office and say I want to be a weak president? We need a strong president, strong enough to resist the temptation of taking power the President shouldn’t have."
2) RON PAUL WON'T/CAN'T DESTROY THE COUNTRY
If you've introduced anyone to Ron Paul, you've probably witnessed the response where their eyes get big and they interrupt with something like, "Eliminate the [IRS, federal income tax, Department of Education, US involvement in the United Nations, Social Security spending, Medicare, Federal Reserve, etc]?!? I hate it just as much as the next person, but I think we'd be worse off if this guy just went in and closed them down."
Time for a reality check, folks. If Ron Paul is elected, he's not gonna enter the White House swinging his axe like Paul Bunyan (perhaps the the chagrin of his most zealous supporters). Paul has acknowledged that he would have to work with Congress to accomplish his goals and has stated on many occasions that reducing the size of government requires a gradual change in the expectations and demands of its citizens.
Even if Dr Paul did want to enact all of his changes on day one, we do still have traces of the checks-and-balances system that our founders envisioned. And a quick look at Ron Paul's history shows that no one respects their views of a balanced government more than he does.
I do find it a little comical, though, that we hear candidates talk about their plans to fix Social Security, balance the budget, and provide health care to all at affordable prices and nobody really even takes much notice because they've been feeding us the same lines for years and no one really thinks they're actually going to do anything about it, but Ron Paul makes a passing comment about the Department of Education being bloated and inefficient and everyone acts like he'd close up its doors moments after taking office. I guess people can just tell the difference between mere lip-service and Ron Paul speak.
3) IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION
You can support foreign and military aid to Israel, or the war against radical Islam, or the torture of enemy combatants and still side with Ron Paul.
More than anything else, Ron Paul stands for the Constitution. And if you're ready to circumvent the Constitution for causes you believe in, then fine—more power to ya. But you must also be prepared to stand by and watch if your government changes direction and starts side-stepping the Constitution to support governments you oppose and send troops and money to kill people of the same religion, race, and ethnicity as yourself.
If you're comfortable treading on the Constitution when the country is headed your way, just understand your diminishing its ability to protect YOU from the government when the tides turn and your the the one being tread upon.
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1) HELP MAKE RON PAUL THE WORST PRESIDENT OF YOUR LIFETIME
Ron Paul could be the worst president we've seen in years—if, that is, you expect a president to establish new offices and departments that will be attached to his name until the end of time.
Whenever people talk about great presidents and leaders, the names that come up are the same people who made catastrophic decisions that created many of the messes that we are in today. Yet, without a doubt, some of the truly greatest presidents were the individuals who did little worth remembering. They didn't drag us into wars or establish programs with great short-term benefits buy disastrous long-term consequences.
Dr Paul says it best himself: "We have had presidents who have tried to do too much. How can I run for office and say I want to be a weak president? We need a strong president, strong enough to resist the temptation of taking power the President shouldn’t have."
2) RON PAUL WON'T/CAN'T DESTROY THE COUNTRY
If you've introduced anyone to Ron Paul, you've probably witnessed the response where their eyes get big and they interrupt with something like, "Eliminate the [IRS, federal income tax, Department of Education, US involvement in the United Nations, Social Security spending, Medicare, Federal Reserve, etc]?!? I hate it just as much as the next person, but I think we'd be worse off if this guy just went in and closed them down."
Time for a reality check, folks. If Ron Paul is elected, he's not gonna enter the White House swinging his axe like Paul Bunyan (perhaps the the chagrin of his most zealous supporters). Paul has acknowledged that he would have to work with Congress to accomplish his goals and has stated on many occasions that reducing the size of government requires a gradual change in the expectations and demands of its citizens.
Even if Dr Paul did want to enact all of his changes on day one, we do still have traces of the checks-and-balances system that our founders envisioned. And a quick look at Ron Paul's history shows that no one respects their views of a balanced government more than he does.
I do find it a little comical, though, that we hear candidates talk about their plans to fix Social Security, balance the budget, and provide health care to all at affordable prices and nobody really even takes much notice because they've been feeding us the same lines for years and no one really thinks they're actually going to do anything about it, but Ron Paul makes a passing comment about the Department of Education being bloated and inefficient and everyone acts like he'd close up its doors moments after taking office. I guess people can just tell the difference between mere lip-service and Ron Paul speak.
3) IT'S ALL ABOUT THE CONSTITUTION
You can support foreign and military aid to Israel, or the war against radical Islam, or the torture of enemy combatants and still side with Ron Paul.
More than anything else, Ron Paul stands for the Constitution. And if you're ready to circumvent the Constitution for causes you believe in, then fine—more power to ya. But you must also be prepared to stand by and watch if your government changes direction and starts side-stepping the Constitution to support governments you oppose and send troops and money to kill people of the same religion, race, and ethnicity as yourself.
If you're comfortable treading on the Constitution when the country is headed your way, just understand your diminishing its ability to protect YOU from the government when the tides turn and your the the one being tread upon.