No Need to Guess On the Issues

[Brandybuck]

Ron Paul has attracted a lot of people. This is good! They hear his message on the war, and suddenly become Ron Paul supporters. Or they hear his message on the Federal Reserve and the IRS. Or industrial hemp. Or something else that struck a chord. Welcome all, this is a big tent with room for lots of folks.

But I am seeing a disturbing trend. I am seeing a lot of people bringing their own issues to the table, and assuming that Ron Paul stands for them as well. It is tempting to think so, but that is not necessarily the case. Examples include those that think he believes 9/11 was a Mossad plot (not true), that he is in favor of "fair" trade (not true), that he is a pacifist (not true), wants to abolish the MPAA and RIAA (i have no idea), etc, etc. I've fallen into this error as well.

There's no need to guess on any of this. Besides being the most consistant congressmen in half a century, he's also the most prolific writer. While I haven't yet found his position on the MPAA/RIAA, I have found his positions on nearly every other topic. He makes frequent speeches to congress, writes an considerable number of essays, and is the author of numerous books. There shouldn't be any disagreement as to his stand on the issues of our day.

Please folks, before you assume he stands for something, double check yourself to make sure. It is okay if it turns out that you and he are not 100% in sync. Most likely there WILL be something you disagree with him about. That's okay.

Two excellent places to start:

http://www.ronpaullibrary.com/
http://www.lewrockwell.com/paul/paul-arch.html

[Bryan]

Thanks Brandybuck- you are correct that one should read (and search) the archives first- the new Ron Paul Library is great. I like this forum because it gives an opportunity to discuss, provide support for and better understand Dr. Paul's positions. Of course, we don't all have to agree and there are sometimes trade-offs to a position so that is open game as well.

Maybe we should rename this sub-forum to "Dr. Paul on the Issues" which would better align with the intent. It would to let this develop as such with minimal need for moderation to keep things on-topic.

[AZ Libertarian]

His official site has merit. His weekly 'Texas Straight Talk', his speeches and statements, and his press releases are listed.

http://www.house.gov/paul/legis.shtml

[TrybalRage]

Well, after the firing of talk show host Don Imus, he made a statement about how the federal government does not have the right to regulate speech "in any way".

Perhaps that's where the confusion came from.

[ReneInMiami]

Where can I find Ron Paul's stance on protecting the environment? Does he believe that the free market will protect it? Is he a global warming skeptic?

[tonyr1988]

...the most consistant congressmen in half a century...

Did you have someone in mind that was more consistent than RP 50 years ago? Just curious.

[Nathan Pannbacker]

Where can I find Ron Paul's stance on protecting the environment? Does he believe that the free market will protect it? Is he a global warming skeptic?

Check out the Green Scissors project.
http://www.greenscissors.org

Ron Paul is involved with them. That, I believe, represents one of the cores of his environmental policy. He wants to cut ecologically dubious government spending and programs. There might be more, but I don't know of other things.

[eted]

Examples include those that think he . . . wants to abolish the MPAA and RIAA (i have no idea) . . . [/url]

I was listening to him speak about the network neutrality issue. It seems that, in spite of massive Internet campaign, he is self-admittedly illiterate when it comes to these issues. I would assume that this goes for his knowledge of MPAA and RIAA as well.

Most importantly, though, this shows that he does not hesitate to admit when something is out of his current knowledge base. I think this is a good trait and I am sure his advisors will fill him in.

[tonyr1988]

About the MPAA / RIAA, I don't see how the President would be able to do anything about it. They aren't government agencies. They use controversial tactics against people in court, but that would be settled by the courts themselves, right?

[Brutus]

In a constitutional government the President's opinion about every little matter doesn't matter because he is not allowed to intervene. See his comment about thinking being President of Switzerland on the Google interview.

Since 95% of the legislation passing Congress is not Constitutionally authorized (hence his record as Dr. No) his opinion after vetoing the bills will simply be "let the States and the free market work it out."

So, if you disagree with him on MPAA/RIAA/MADD/PETA whatever it really doesn't matter.