Two suggestions to campaign

[Publicani]

A few comments first.
Ron Paul is in charge of his campaign. He is not an absent - minded professor, who is being manipulated by some people around him. He is a doctor, a Congreeman, he knows how to run business.
And he wants to win.
So I don’t believe that he does not understand that his campaign is, as many of us feel, underperforming. I also don’t believe that he would not be able to make some changes in his staff if he thought it’d improve his chances.
The problem is that his campaign has greater obstacles.
Other campaigns have to sell the candidates. His campaign has to sell the message. It is much harder to do. Try to sell groomerics before anybody knows what it is. It is much easier to be selling a particular kind of groomerics after majority is sold on this concept. All other republican candidates have more or less the same message (staying in Iraq indefinitely, keeping bases in other countries for centuries, increasing the role of the federal government in solving our domestic and foreign problems, sacrificing our liberties for our perceived safety.) Ron Paul is the only candidate opposing all of these. But the MCM, and therefore the people, supports their message not his.
There is another problem with taking high principled road. He just can’t use sleazy tactics in his campaign without affecting negatively his message.
So what is he to do? Should he bring in some high paid professional to run his campaign as many have suggested?
There are not many libertarians who ran successfully national campaign. I don’t know any.
So suppose he brings in Dick Morris, one of the top managers in this country. What can he learned from him? Put on a cross in your ad and insist that you did not notice it? It was a bookshelf, people, a bookshelf?
At least his people know him, know his message, and want to run an honorable campaign. No problem if they are negative but they want to be truthful. So we have to convince them if we want to win.
Here are two suggestions to his campaign. Actually they are suggestions to Ron Paul, because I don’t believe that his campaign will do anything not approved by him.
First suggestion is general. We have to have two way unfiltered communication with Ron Paul. I believe that he is aware of main points made on dailypaul and this forum. Is it not enough. We should be able to argue our point of view on various issues. It is in his interests to respond and make his case. Not just to get the money, but to make our efforts more efficient.
It does not have to take a lot of time from him. We can vote on, say, a top dozen questions of the day and it should not take Ron Paul more than 10 -20 minutes of his time to answer them. That would be best spent 20 minutes of his time. Hopefully every day.
My second suggestion is specific, and I may be wrong on that one. I don’t like the official ads. They are not professionally done. I would prefer to have more Ron Paul there then some other talking heads.
When I see some of McCain or Huckubee ads, I like them. I realize that they are lying, but I see how efficient they could be. None of them are as good as some of grassroots’ ads of Ron Paul. But all of them are better than the official campaign ads. In my opinion.
What do you think?

[wil-c]

I agree with you, I think. By no means do I consider myself an expert but from what I can see they're making several mistakes.

1. The message. What he stands for "should" sell itself, but with the society & the attitudes we have today, that isn't the case. What I see the campaign doing is relying on the message to sell itself, it isnt. You literally have 100 years of social conditioning (dumbing down via the public schools, public opinion formed by the MSM, etc) to contend with. The job of the campaign is to educate people on the facts in a real world sense which the public will understand. And hence understand how it's to thier benefit.

2. KISS keep it simple stupid. Not the best analogy for what needs to be said but I lack for a better one. The average schmoe out there has about a 2 minute attention span, not that they're stupid in lacking intelligence, the hurdle isapathy, fear, and the one that torques me off the most. The stupidity born of arrogance. People think they have this figured out and don't either realize they've been had or just don't want to admit it.
Too much of what I see in the message is too much too soon. RP sitting there talking about the civil war a week in front of the primaries is NOT the way to do this. Most of us who're RP supporters are fairly well up on history and the facts.
The average schmoe is not, and will not understand what RP is talking about.
Keep to a few basic things as he was in the beginning:
A. End the war in Iraq
B. restoration of our civil liberties
C. Save the dollar and our economy.
D. END the taxes, end of the IRS is a good start.
E. bonafide downsizing of the .Gov.

These were basic simple themes the average schmoe could understand in a two-minute message and were selling quite well. They've gotten too far off track.
For example:
C. most people don't understand the difference between fiat currency and gold-backed currency. I don't see how it can be adaquately covered in a two minute spot to explain the difference and the need and why it's the answer to so many of our economic woes. RP will need more than a two minute spot to educate the public on this. Keep it quick and at a level the average schmoe will respond to.
Maybe as you said, simply illustrate the differences between his beliefs, record, ect, vrs McCaniac & the rest. Maybe a quick precis' of his stance and refer folks to his website for further detailed information.
RP has gotten too intellectual with the message for it to work in what the system is comprised of now, both getting the word across as well as the audience he's speaking to.

3. Get some bonafide professional help with the ads. I agree with you, this needs to be done NOW. Grassroots is good, however RP is now in the big leagues and it's time to play at that level in terms of getting the message across.
Before I go any further, THIS IS NOT A DENIGRATION IN ANY WAY of all the grassroots work that's been done. That is what got things this far, however Iowa is a lesson for us all. That being, mistakes are being made and they have to be recognized and corrected or we will not win.
Getting professional, experienced help does not mean changing the message or what RP stands for or otherwise compromising, it is simply to get the message across effectively and/or efficiently. Most of us are rank amateurs at this.
People who are experienced and know how the system works and know how to fight within it and work with it are whats needed. This does NOT mean compromise integrity and/or become like the rest of the crooks, it does mean fight fire with fire and play hardball. Taking the high road at least for now only goes so far, look at the Iowa results they speak for themselves.

4. RP needs to be more careful in what he says. This does NOT mean changing what he stands for. It does mean to not waste time standing there talking about the civil war a week in front of the primaries. The same for the comment about the cross. RP needs to understand what the genuine level of hostility he's up against with the MSM and the establishment. It just doesn't appear he really sees no interview or anything else he engages in is anything but an attempt to set him up. What he said in both examples is the truth, but now is not the time for discussions such as that. I AM NOT ADVOCATING HE LIE, OBFUSCATE, OR OTHERWISE PLAY WITH THE TRUTH. If he did my support of him ends that second. Discretion is hopefully the correct word I'm looking for.
Keep to a simple, honest, easily communicated message and not get dragged down into a discussion such as these which, while is the truth serves no useful purpose at this point.
ON the hope RP is in the white house, that will be the time for a discussion such as that, when he has the bully pulpit and can speak to the entire nation unimpeded by the MSM.

I only hope I am correct on this and hopefully Iowa was a lesson to the campaign.
Otherwise while Iowa has other factors involved (demographics, evangelical, political, etc.) I don't see too much of a difference in results as this goes along.
I hope RP & staff do see these forums and hopefully get the message, if any of this is the message they need to get.