Are Libertarian Republicans like Black Democrats? by The English Teacher
(libertarian)
Saturday, April 26, 2008
Do you remember when George Bush made his big outreach to black voters in the country? He offered them jobs, education, positions in his party, loans to start new businesses ... basically anything they wanted. Despite his best efforts, it didn't work. They voted for Al Gore in droves.
Now that Barack Obama is in the race and it looks like he will do well, black voters are understandably excited and they should be. The Democratic party has been treating the black voter like an embarrassing relative at a dinner party for a long time. They provide them with lip service from time to time and then vote for every pro-union-anti-black bill that they can find.
Why do they do that? Because they know the black vote won't stray. Their only worry is that they will stay home on election day. So they make some last minute appeal to them about black churches being burned to try to get them to the polls. Other than that, they get nothing.
Are Libertarian Republicans treated the same way as Black Democrats? Do we get lip service and then find that our leaders are voting against us every chance they have? I submit to you that the answer to that is yes and for the same reason.
The Libertarian Republican doesn't stray and that's why they are taken for granted by the GOP. Now, if you don't believe me, ask yourself this - what was the last Democrat you voted for? Could you see yourself getting excited about a Clinton presidency? What about an Obama presidency? What about some other Democrat who didn't make the cut in the primary?
Most Libertarian Republicans voted for Bush in at least one of the last two elections. We either held our noses and punched out our chads or we stayed home and sulked about it. What thanks and reward did we get for that? I'll tell you what we got - an insane federal debt, a weak dollar, a housing bubble, two new wars, and insanely high gasoline prices.
This year is more of the same. Libertarian Republicans have rallied around Ron Paul. We have held out hope for a return to the base of the Republican party - to conservative principles like small government, reduced taxes, and peace whenever and wherever possible. What we have received for that is John McCain. The GOP message is clear - screw the Ron Paul Republicans, they aren't going anywhere, let's have the 100-more-years-in-Iraq guy.
It's time we all woke up and smelled the coffee. The only thing the GOP leadership understands is triumph and defeat. If the GOP wins the November election they will take that as validation of everything they have done previously. McCain will view that as a mandate to bomb Iran. The Democrats will edge even further towards the bomb-everything-in-sight philosophy and all our efforts to reform the GOP will be in vain.
This year I won't do it. I won't hold my nose and vote for McCain. I won't give a vote to a Libertarian guy (who will it be this year anyway? I have no idea, yet), and I won't stay home.
I'm voting Democrat. Even if that Democrat is Hillary Clinton, she has my vote. I'm sending a message to the GOP leadership that they can't take my support for granted anymore. I will defect and vote for Democrats unless they start giving me a candidate I can get behind.
I'm asking you to do the same. Send the GOP leadership the message that they can't just ignore the Ron Paul Republicans with impunity. That's really the only chance we have of getting a decent candidate in 2012.
If McCain wins in 2008, he'll be on the ballot again in 2012 and we'll have another unappealing Democrat running against him and we'll be stuck with the same choice as always. The way things are going it may be too late by then. The time to stop it is now.
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Here's a better idea.... Instead of voting for Hillobama and be one of the 100 of millions of voters; why don't you just vote for the Libertarian Party candidate. At least then the GOP will know just how many "Ron Paul libertarians" made them loose. If you vote Democratic, then the "Ron Paul libertarian" vote is smothered in the big-government liberal mass and people won't know how many "Ron Paul libertarian" votes are in there.
How do we 86 the Diebold voting machines? Every single one of those machines is a threat to freedom.  It would be a good start to remove the source of most of our problems first. Currently it doesn't matter who you vote for because the "powers that be" are just going to manipulate the vote anyway. We need to push for citizen based voting oversite. The people are brighter than they are given credit for, there is no way in hell that John McCain won the nomination without some sort of "help." The guy is a warmongering dingleberry with NO PLAN WHATSOEVER. As my friend calls him, "The McChurian Candidate." It's is scary to me how absolutely brainwashed most Americans are. I try to get my friends to read articles in an attempt to "wake them up." It would be okay if they read it and disagreed but most are adamantly refusing to read anything that goes againts the MSM view...it's disgusting. All we can do is just keep plugging away, this is just going to take some time...I just hope that there is enough time left. God Bless.
Voting for the democrat is just nuts. The message that sends is that the Republicans should nominate someone even more liberal/big government than the one they have now. If you want them to go the other way, write in Ron Paul, or if Bob Barr is the LP guy, vote for him. I predict that if Barr is on the ballot, the LP will get a record percentage.
Bob Barr is a Confederate flag waving fanatic! The fact that he authored DOMA, impeached Bill Clinton, and was the chief of the War on Drugs is just SICKENING! I don't care how much flipping or changing this man has done.
Nothing changes the fact that this man led the Nazi Homophobe movement of the 1990s that still poisons this country today. He has yet to even apologize for his bigoted ways. If he becomes the LP nominee then it proves they have sold their soul out. They have put forward a candidate with a higher profile but not necessarily a good one. Libertarians will be harmed for ages to come if he is the nominee.
 Libertarians should either support Barack Obama or find a more honorable candidate for their party. Although the LP will not win the Presidential election, all it needs is 5% of the vote and by 2012 will be able to compete for matching funds w the Dems and GOP. I will not support Bob Barr if someone puts a gun up to my head. The man is nothing but evil.
Posted By: Jake, the champion of the constitution
Date: 2008-04-26 17:38:34
Dear English Teacher,
I think you are a little nuts for supporting the Democratic nominee because you hate the likely Republican nominee. But you can "defect" wherever you want, but I will make up my own mind, thank you!
Have you read the works of Tom Paine from the post-Revolutionary War? He was referring to the European powers of his day but, sadly, I believe his comments apply to our America. The "chief of the successful partisans" below could easily be HillarObama. Freedom is a choice.
"[The purpose] of other nations are, in general, little more than the history of their quarrels. They are marked by no important character in the annals of events; mixed in the mass of general matters, they occupy but a common page; and while the chief of the successful partisans stepped into power, the plundered multitude sat down and sorrowed. Triumph on one side and misery on the other were the only events. Pains, punishments, torture, and death were made the business of mankind, until compassion, the fairest associate of the heart, was driven from its place, and the eye, accustomed to continual cruelty, could behold it without offence.
But as the principles of the present Revolution differed from those which preceded it, so likewise did the conduct of America both in government and war. Neither the foul finger of disgrace has hitherto put a blot upon her fame. War, so much the trade of the world, has here only been the business of necessity; and when the necessity shall cease, her very enemies must confess, that as she drew the sword in her just defence, she used it without cruelty, and sheathed it without revenge."
If you support the Democrat cantidate it will be interpreted as a vote for socalized medicine. If you support Dr. Paul, the best thing to do is vote Libertarian. There are a number of contenders for the nomination, which should appeal to Ron Paul Republicans. Â
 If for some reason, you can't support the eventual LP cantidate, the constitution or even green cantidate would be good second choices.
Yes I agree with much of what you said, although I could not find myself voting for Clinton( the honor factor ), very frustrating listening to this election garble....
Posted By: Alex Wallenwein
Date: 2008-04-27 10:40:37
Have we learned nothing from Ron PauL?
Say what you really think, do what is right, as much as you can - and then let the chips fall where they may.
How does voting for a Democrat make sense for someone who really supports Ron Paul? Bush is out. There is no "anti-incumbent" protest vote to launch in the presidential race. I do, howerver, agree that letting McCain win will embolden the Neo-Convicts.
Here is an idea: Write in "Ron Paul" to log your protest as Stevo suggests - and then vote against your incumbent in Congress.
Congress is where the founders put the real power of the federal government, not the presidency. The presidents of today only have as much power as they do because we have allowed a slew of corrupt incumbents to give their own power away to the executive or the federal reserve in derogation of their oath of office.
Read my article "Beyond Ron Paul - FIRE CONGRESS!" here on NolanChart. It's time to make things happen around here.
I come at this from a slightly different angle but reach a similar conclusion. I could never vote Republican because of the war. Not Iraq, but Vietnam. I first voted Libertarian when I cast a write in for John Hospers over thirty five years ago. Sadly, I have seen the LP commit suicide over the years by insisting on being a debating society rather than a political organization.  I really had to hold my nose to vote for Badnarik last time around.
For the first time in my life I registered Republican so I could vote for Ron Paul, even though I consider his views on immigration, abortion, and trade to be truly horrible.  I admire his views on the war and hate that he kept them almost a secret through most of his campaign.
Who will I vote for in the general election? If Obama wins the nomination I will vote for him. Why? His policies are not significantly different from Hillary's or even McCain's (who seems to change his position about as often as his socks) but he is different and oddly, that may be enough. Â If Hil wins the nod, I will probably vote for whichever name the LP throws up. Â Voting Democrat will be hard enough. Supporting Clinton would be too much of a stretch.
Posted By: Dennis Johnson
Date: 2008-05-13 12:51:33
The English Teacher should obviously stick to teaching English if he/she knows anything about that subject. It is most likely that the teacher is a democrat anyway. If Libertarians vote for a demoncrat, nobody will know. If Ron Paul or Bob Barr is voted for, the vote will count for Libertarianism and the percentages will be displayed.
 Unfortunately, a vote for anyone other than McCain this year will actually be a vote for ALL of the following...Hil/Bil/Barack/Michelle/Hamas/Al Quieda...  A president Hussein or Resident hillary in white house again? More ULTRA-LIBERAL Supreme Court justices to LEGISLATE against the Constitution and our values? McCain would do a good job of providing for a strong defense. Hillary/Bill/Barack/Michele would be married to the UN. Vote out Congress!!!
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