Comments on: Live Free or Whatever: A Ron Paul Postmortem http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/ Conservatism for punks. Sat, 22 Nov 2008 05:43:56 +0000 http://wordpress.org/?v=2.0.9 by: Brain http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9960 Tue, 15 Jan 2008 18:55:16 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9960 We feel your pain, Todd. Come away from the Dark Side. Come to the side of fiscal responsibility. Come to the Democratic Party. We feel your pain, Todd.

Come away from the Dark Side. Come to the side of fiscal responsibility. Come to the Democratic Party.

]]> by: Charles http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9903 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 17:20:59 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9903 I wrote Paul off as a probably racist when he waved off his John Birch Society connections without so much as an acknowledgment its support of segregation. I wrote Paul off as a probably racist when he waved off his John Birch Society connections without so much as an acknowledgment its support of segregation.

]]> by: Todd Seavey http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9899 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 15:38:56 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9899 It would appear the website accidentally labeled Paul's totals as McCain's and vice versa, which would then jibe with the opinion surveys and official results. As with so many things in life, much easier to be incompetent than to pull off a vast conspiracy, as critics of government should be the first to recognize... It would appear the website accidentally labeled Paul’s totals as McCain’s and vice versa, which would then jibe with the opinion surveys and official results. As with so many things in life, much easier to be incompetent than to pull off a vast conspiracy, as critics of government should be the first to recognize…

]]> by: Flick http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9895 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 15:05:38 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9895 I don't have the link with me now 'cause I'm at work, but over the weekend I saw a YouTube video of a guy showing AP-reported results from the N.H. vote. At the top it showed the reported percentages, but below--and what did not get reported--were the totals by precinct. In that portion, Ron Paul's numbers were far higher than any other candidate. Hopefully, if you want to see it, you find it with a search on YouTube. I don’t have the link with me now ’cause I’m at work, but over the weekend I saw a YouTube video of a guy showing AP-reported results from the N.H. vote. At the top it showed the reported percentages, but below–and what did not get reported–were the totals by precinct. In that portion, Ron Paul’s numbers were far higher than any other candidate. Hopefully, if you want to see it, you find it with a search on YouTube.

]]> by: Zariou http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9850 Mon, 14 Jan 2008 00:40:54 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9850 A month from now, libertarianism will have reframed its relationship to political intolerance in a way that will profoundly affect its viability for years, maybe decades. It will either succeed in shaking off the reformed racist publisher currently leading the movement and drumming out his "it's a smear/that's not racist, it's true" supporters. Or it will continue to defend Ron Paul and confirm itself as a cozy place for small-government racists to call home. And if they move in, libertarianism will be as important and vital as David Duke in American politics. A month from now, libertarianism will have reframed its relationship to political intolerance in a way that will profoundly affect its viability for years, maybe decades.

It will either succeed in shaking off the reformed racist publisher currently leading the movement and drumming out his “it’s a smear/that’s not racist, it’s true” supporters.

Or it will continue to defend Ron Paul and confirm itself as a cozy place for small-government racists to call home. And if they move in, libertarianism will be as important and vital as David Duke in American politics.

]]> by: Todd Seavey http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9844 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 22:24:29 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9844 Another Jacob plug: in this entry from his blog, he describes his own ties to Ron Paul stretching all the way back to work on Paul's _prior_ presidential run when, by my calculations, Jacob was only a precocious four-month-old or so (Jacob also links within it to an article he wrote about two kinds of federalism, the kind that prevents subsidiary factions from doing horrible, bigoted things and the kind that lets subsidiary factions get as oppressive or libertine as they like, roughly speaking -- liberal vs. neo-confederate, in some sense): http://jacobtlevy.blogspot.com/2008/01/gone-fishin-expect-posting-to-be-much.html Another Jacob plug: in this entry from his blog, he describes his own ties to Ron Paul stretching all the way back to work on Paul’s _prior_ presidential run when, by my calculations, Jacob was only a precocious four-month-old or so (Jacob also links within it to an article he wrote about two kinds of federalism, the kind that prevents subsidiary factions from doing horrible, bigoted things and the kind that lets subsidiary factions get as oppressive or libertine as they like, roughly speaking — liberal vs. neo-confederate, in some sense):

http://jacobtlevy.blogspot.com/2008/01/gone-fishin-expect-posting-to-be-much.html

]]> by: Christopher http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9842 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 21:02:20 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9842 "The only possible way I could see a libertarian being a racist would be if they didn’t believe people from other races weren’t individuals." The whole "libertarians can't be racist" line that I keep reading is a joke. Clearly people can call themselves libertarians, believe in a minimalist state, and hate people of other races based on incorrect assumptions about them, just as people who call themselves Christians and believe that Jesus is the son of God made flesh sometimes have sex with little boys, kill people, and do other horrible things seemingly in contradiction to the tenets of their beliefs. That's not to say that Ron Paul himself still or ever has had the views towards blacks expressed in his newsletters, but please drop the whole plea to some kind of mutual contradiction that proves libertarians can never be racists. “The only possible way I could see a libertarian being a racist would be if they didn’t believe people from other races weren’t individuals.”

The whole “libertarians can’t be racist” line that I keep reading is a joke. Clearly people can call themselves libertarians, believe in a minimalist state, and hate people of other races based on incorrect assumptions about them, just as people who call themselves Christians and believe that Jesus is the son of God made flesh sometimes have sex with little boys, kill people, and do other horrible things seemingly in contradiction to the tenets of their beliefs. That’s not to say that Ron Paul himself still or ever has had the views towards blacks expressed in his newsletters, but please drop the whole plea to some kind of mutual contradiction that proves libertarians can never be racists.

]]> by: Todd Seavey http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9837 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 18:07:26 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9837 And just prior to Bush's election, Jacob wrote a great analysis of why symbolic politics, such as insulting an ethnic group, matters even when there are no major policy consequences, called _The Multiculturalism of Fear_, so check that out: http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780198297123&itm=1 And in just a few minutes, read my moving-on-to-other-candidates blog entry, alas. And just prior to Bush’s election, Jacob wrote a great analysis of why symbolic politics, such as insulting an ethnic group, matters even when there are no major policy consequences, called _The Multiculturalism of Fear_, so check that out:

http://search.barnesandnoble.com/booksearch/isbnInquiry.asp?z=y&EAN=9780198297123&itm=1

And in just a few minutes, read my moving-on-to-other-candidates blog entry, alas.

]]> by: Jacob T. Levy http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9836 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 17:23:34 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9836 Allowing one or two unpleasant ghost-written things to go out under one's name without adequate supervision: understandable. Allowing stuff to keep reappearing for ten years and keeping the ghost-writer on board as a trusted aide: not so much, unless you just don't find the things written to be especially unpleasant. Allowing one or two unpleasant ghost-written things to go out under one’s name without adequate supervision: understandable. Allowing stuff to keep reappearing for ten years and keeping the ghost-writer on board as a trusted aide: not so much, unless you just don’t find the things written to be especially unpleasant.

]]> by: John Reading http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9834 Sun, 13 Jan 2008 15:28:25 +0000 http://toddseavey.com/2008/01/12/live-free-or-whatever-a-ron-paul-postmortem/#comment-9834 The notion - that Ron Paul's mistake in failing to more carefully supervise the newsletter is somehow proof that he is not qualified to be president - is nonsense. That sort of mistake is made by everyone in politics with a staff of humans. Such nonsense is available about every candidate. That he has gotten as far as he has - in spite of the dishonesty and unfairness of the TV hairdos (they are not journalists) means his real appeal is enormous and he could win if given equal, fair treatment. That our nation is in the hands of the war-mongers and their TV hairdo whores is now obvious. Evan if a viewer did not know of or care about Ron Paul, seeing John McCain and Rudy and Mitt smirking and giggling likie wicked schoolboys on split-screen while Ron Paul tells the truth would be enough to make clear the nature of the whole ugly, sadistic process of engineering the presidential election by dishonest, government-licensed and corporate-funded TV hairdos. Good luck America. You are on the road to hell. The notion - that Ron Paul’s mistake in failing to more carefully supervise the newsletter is somehow proof that he is not qualified to be president - is nonsense. That sort of mistake is made by everyone in politics with a staff of humans. Such nonsense is available about every candidate.

That he has gotten as far as he has - in spite of the dishonesty and unfairness of the TV hairdos (they are not journalists) means his real appeal is enormous and he could win if given equal, fair treatment. That our nation is in the hands of the war-mongers and their TV hairdo whores is now obvious.

Evan if a viewer did not know of or care about Ron Paul, seeing John McCain and Rudy and Mitt smirking and giggling likie wicked schoolboys on split-screen while Ron Paul tells the truth would be enough to make clear the nature of the whole ugly, sadistic process of engineering the presidential election by dishonest, government-licensed and corporate-funded TV hairdos.

Good luck America. You are on the road to hell.

]]>