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The quirky candidate
The Boston Globe ^ | 14 November 2007 | Scott Lehigh

Posted on 11/14/2007 6:28:52 AM PST by Hemingway's Ghost

RON PAUL has just reached the peak of geek chic.

Having delivered a passionate paean to libertarianism at Oyster River High School, Paul has been presented with a pair of sporty two-tone sunglasses.

"Put them on!" the students yell. The 72-year-old Republican presidential candidate obligingly dons the youthful shades - then stands there beaming as the assembly hall erupts in delight.

Moments later, the kids flock around him, seeking autographs. Later that afternoon, Paul earns another enthusiastic reception from a capacity crowd at the University of New Hampshire.

So what explains Paul's appeal?

(Excerpt) Read more at boston.com ...


TOPICS: Government; Politics/Elections
KEYWORDS: notquirkywacky; paulnuts; ronpaul
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1 posted on 11/14/2007 6:28:53 AM PST by Hemingway's Ghost
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
a "Dukakis" Moment Frozen in time.
2 posted on 11/14/2007 6:32:25 AM PST by SandRat (Duty, Honor, Country. What else needs to be said?)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost

The fire marshal was turning people away from the UNH event for about half an hour before it started.


3 posted on 11/14/2007 6:35:12 AM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: SandRat
The youngsters sure have been thoroughly indoctrinated in the catechism of the Church of Al Gore, haven't they?

Queried on global warming, Paul makes it clear that he is agnostic on the issue. Afterward, Erin Thesing, a UNH sophomore, presses him on the matter, telling him she lies awake at night worrying about climate change.

"If you want to lay awake at night worrying about something, worry about the value of the dollar," replies Paul.

"I don't understand how someone can not care about the future of the world," she tells me later.

What an ignorant tool that chick is.

4 posted on 11/14/2007 6:36:50 AM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
So what explains Paul's appeal?

I'm not sure its so much appeal as an indication that people want something different. Unfortunately he won't be elected and is only paving the way for top tier CDEOs.
5 posted on 11/14/2007 6:38:44 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost

Why is RoP campaigning at a high school? Doesn’t he know most of them can’t vote?


6 posted on 11/14/2007 6:41:32 AM PST by Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus (Conservatives - Freedom WITH responsibility; Libertarians - Freedom FROM responsibility)
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To: mvpel
What an ignorant tool that chick is.

Agreed. Also:

But in other areas, his emphasis on self-reliance - he wants to cut government spending enough to eliminate the income tax - may put him at odds with the idealistic, activist ethic often important to the young.

I wonder if Lehigh misses the boat here. Is the idealistic, activist ethic congruent with the income tax?

7 posted on 11/14/2007 6:41:40 AM PST by Hemingway's Ghost (Spirit of '75)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
"He doesn't use big, complicated words," says Louis Maude, a junior.

People underestimate the power of the idiot vote.

Ron Paul does indeed have strong appeal for simpletons.

8 posted on 11/14/2007 6:42:27 AM PST by wideawake (Why is it that so many self-proclaimed "Constitutionalists" know so little about the Constitution?)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
The kids praise him for being "authentic" and "straight up". He's also a lunatic.

If they want a sane variety of "authentic", they should tune in to Duncan Hunter.

9 posted on 11/14/2007 6:42:29 AM PST by ClearCase_guy (The broken wall, the burning roof and tower. And Agamemnon dead.)
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To: Titus Quinctius Cincinnatus
Why is RoP campaigning at a high school?

I don't know. Why do politicians read books to children at day care centers?

10 posted on 11/14/2007 6:42:43 AM PST by Hemingway's Ghost (Spirit of '75)
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To: wideawake
People underestimate the power of the idiot vote.

I'm not so sure about that. Swing voters seem to decide every Presidential election these days, and by definition, swing voters are the idiot vote.

11 posted on 11/14/2007 6:44:17 AM PST by Hemingway's Ghost (Spirit of '75)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
The quirky candidate

The title pretty much says it all!

12 posted on 11/14/2007 6:46:33 AM PST by Road Warrior ‘04 (Officially Fredbacker1 but don't know how to change my name)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
"So what explains Paul's appeal?"

Someone who is not a blow-dried phony uttering media acceptable canned goods has has, if fleeting, a listening acceptance. Sort of 'it's the message, stupid'.

13 posted on 11/14/2007 6:46:45 AM PST by ex-snook ("Above all things, truth beareth away the victory.")
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
Paul now appears to be entering a classic arc in presidential politics: that of the quirky candidate who suddenly catches fire, but often fades when his unorthodox ideology comes into sharper focus.

Still, right now he is clearly on the ascending leg of that arc. And that means the likable Lone Star State libertarian is poised to become a wild card in New Hampshire.

I agree with the first paragraph. However, I do doubt that Ron Paul will be a "wild card" but I'm willing to wait and see. Folks from New Hampshire do like the latest "maverick". Ron Paul has much the same appeal as Obama. He's new and somewhat untainted so he appeals to the usual desire for something new and improved. As long as candidates like this keep it simple, they sounds great and especially appeal to the younger ones among us who tend to see things in blacks and whites. However in the larger scheme of politics and the broad expanse of presidential history, I'd be surprised if Ron Paul actually rose above the level of a footnote. If he declines from running as a third party he won't even rise to the level of Ralph Nader, Ross Perot or even John Anderson.

14 posted on 11/14/2007 6:49:25 AM PST by rhombus
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To: cripplecreek

Before he challenged the prevailing nation-building orthodoxy, he had plenty of appeal around here - his articles on getting the US out of the UN were quoted lovingly.


RON PAUL: “The Deepening United Nations Quagmire”

Government Extended News Editorial Keywords: RON PAUL, UNITED NATIONS
Source: Ron Paul’s website
Published: 5-14-01 Author: Ron Paul
Posted on 05/14/2001 10:00:00 PDT by oursacredhonor


To: mit

DITTO! DITTO! DITTO! DITTO! I’m hoping and praying that we pull out of the UN forthwith. But Congress voting to give the bastards money has left me doubtful.

8 Posted on 05/14/2001 10:27:02 PDT by .308
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15 posted on 11/14/2007 6:51:13 AM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost

Asked what he’d do if a bloodbath occurs when we leave Iraq, Paul notes that there was “a surge upward in violence” when we left Vietnam, “yet they sorted it out.”

They sorted it all out!!! What an idiot. They were not sorting laundry.....thousands and thousands and thousands and thousands were slaughtered.......that statement alone disqualifies RP from anything.


16 posted on 11/14/2007 6:51:14 AM PST by svcw (There is no plan B.)
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To: ClearCase_guy
If they want a sane variety of "authentic", they should tune in to Duncan Hunter.

Instead they've chosen to help install more of the same old crap from Washington.
17 posted on 11/14/2007 6:51:59 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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To: cripplecreek
I'm not sure its so much appeal as an indication that people want something different.

I think you nailed it. Paul's been talked up by the Internet and the DBM as the "counterculture" candidate, so some young people think it's "cool" to follow him and "stick it to the man." He's seen as outside the mainstream (which he is) and for whatever reason, he's getting a lot more traction than, say, Kookcinich.

I realize he's got some serious support among libertarians, paleocons, and Constitutionalist Republicans (especially here). But so much of his support is coming from the Code Pinko anti-war radical left, and some also from the Troofer nutburgers, and he's courting these groups at the expense of Republicans who would be more receptive to his domestic messages instead of his suicidal foreign policy.

}:-)4

18 posted on 11/14/2007 6:52:23 AM PST by Moose4 (When all else fails, read the instructions.)
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To: Hemingway's Ghost
I wonder if Lehigh misses the boat here. Is the idealistic, activist ethic congruent with the income tax?

Indeed - most leftists only want to be idealistic and charitable if someone else is being forced to pay for it. They don't earn enough money with their Irish Lit degrees to afford to be charitable on their own.

19 posted on 11/14/2007 6:54:23 AM PST by mvpel (Michael Pelletier)
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To: Moose4

I suspect a lot of his support is coming from people who have no intent to vote for him in a general election. After all, he’s only hurting the true conservatives in the race.


20 posted on 11/14/2007 6:55:25 AM PST by cripplecreek (Only one consistent conservative in this race and his name is Hunter.)
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