Posted on 11/06/2007 4:44:35 PM PST by Redcloak
Guy Fawkes, a 17th-century English mercenary and terrorist who tried to blow up the Houses of Parliament, is an unlikely figurehead for a US Republican presidential candidate.
But Ron Paul is neither a run-of-the-mill Republican nor a typical presidential aspirant.
His supporters announced yesterday that they had smashed Republican fundraising records by hauling in a total of $4.3 million (£2 million) for his campaign from more than 37,000 donors over the previous 24 hours.
And they did it online, through the website ThisNovember5th.com, where Mr Paul’s speeches have been mashed up with clips of the film V for Vendetta, in which a sinister – but ultimately heroic – terrorist modelled on Fawkes destroys a fascist government in Britain. “Remember, remember, the fifth of November” is moved from British nursery rhyme to a campaign slogan in America.
Mr Paul, a 72-year-old ten-term Texas congressman, has been dismissed widely as a “kook” in the 2008 race. He advocates “Austrian economics”, a return to the gold standard and an end to the Iraq war.
He also wants the withdrawal of all American troops from abroad and the abolition of most government departments, including Energy, Education and Homeland Security.
Some of his supporters believe that 9/11 was an inside job by the American Government, others are white supremacists. Much to his own surprise, Mr Paul has become a cult figure among libertarians and students who pack rallies wearing “Ron Paul Revolution” T-shirts.
Like Howard Dean four years ago, it is the internet and a host of unofficial websites that are propelling him forward: Mr Paul’s name is the most searched of any candidate, his YouTube videos are the most watched and he regularly wins online polls after Republican presidential debates.
Unlike Mr Dean, who came close to winning the 2004 Democratic nomination, Mr Paul stands no chance of becoming the Republicans’ 2008 nominee. In national opinion polls he barely registers, and even in New Hamp-shire – the “live free or die” state – he gets an average of only 3.6 per cent support, according to RealClearPolitics.com, which tracks such surveys.
But his phenomenal fundraising achievements mean that Mr Paul has more than mere nuisance value in this White House race. In the third quarter of this year he raised $5.3 million, an amount similar to that generated by the former front-runner John McCain. He has set a goal of raising a further $12 million by the end of the year.
Yesterday Mr Paul attributed the record-breaking achievement to a “powerful message” and the frustration of people “who do not like the war and do not like the economy”.
Asked whether it was appropriate to use the image of Fawkes and November 5 in this way, he said that it was “just a gimmick”. He added that he had never spoken to organisers of the website. “We advocate a nonviolent – but revolutionary – approach.”
His spokesman issued a further clarification, saying that Mr Paul did not support blowing up parliaments or assassinating kings.
“He wants to demolish things like the Department of Education, but we can do that very peacefully.”
Of course not. The good folks at the UK Times want the government to chew their food for them. A candidate espousing limited government is TERRIFYING to them. If the idea of liberty catches on, the government might not wipe their bottoms! How will they survive?
So holding up a terrorist as an example is perfectly fine with you? Sick...
So encouraging violent action against our constitutionally elected government is not terrorism, but perfectly acceptable “revolution” and “war”? Shame on you, Ron Paul and his supporters. This is disgusting.
YEah, it would all be great if Paul wasn’t a total flake.
Conservatives used to applaud people who preached the Founder’s cause.
But that was before the Neocons and Socons redefined the term.
****While Fawkes remains mostly hated in England, he’s also come to be seen by many as a symbol of revolt against tyrannical authority — “the only man to ever enter parliament with honourable intentions”. Who among us would not at times like to (at least figuratively) do something similar?***
I love that line. I think Ron Paul has entered congress with honorable intentions.
Love him or hate him, you have to admit that he is one of the most honest politicians of our time.
Knew very little about Ron Paul except for a few things he has voted on in the past. But when I saw the YouTube clip from when he was on The Tonight Show with Jay Leno he just really struck me all wrong--came off as a smug jerk I thought.
Here is the best I’ve seen today, Ron Paul on Tucker Carlson:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2LYp7_fCyZo
Oh he is honest.
Most voters prefer to be pandered to nowadays.
see post 28
As Thomas Jefferson wrote in his Nov. 13, 1787 letter to Col. William S. Smith:
"God forbid we should ever be twenty years without such a rebellion. ... What country before ever existed a century and a half without a rebellion? And what country can preserve its liberties if its rulers are not warned from time to time that their people preserve the spirit of resistance? Let them take arms. The remedy is to set them right as to facts, pardon, and pacify them. What signify a few lives lost in a century or two? The tree of liberty must be refreshed from time to time with the blood of patriots and tyrants. It is its natural manure."
The federal government does many unconstitutional things, and it's high time we scaled it back to it's limited Constitutional functions. Ron Paul wants to do that peacefully, by running for President. But one way or another, as Thomas Jefferson pointed out, we need to preserve our liberties.
Yup Von Mises is such an outcast...
Too many these days still prefer Keynes and the safety of Big Brother.
Remember remember the fifth of November
Gunpowder, treason and plot.
I see no reason why gunpowder, treason
Should ever be forgot...
President Paul! Get used to it!
While I support your right to use recreational marijuana, I urge that you abstain before posting.
You know, I never even hear of the Guy Fawks guy, I don’t think, until I am chatting with a friend in England telling me it’s Guy Fawks Days over there. Then that movie came out V for Vendetta.
I think Ron Paul should wear the Guy Fawks mask to the next debate.
I’m not a Paul supporter or opposer, but this thread is about what was expected...FreeRepublic Groupthink. Which candidate is the flavor of the month, per the mandate from FR management and owners? Fred?
You are either drunk, or demented.
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