Freedom in the Bluegrass
columnist: Josh Koch

Topic: Ron Paul
Revenge of the Spambots

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Paulites aren't throwing their votes away. They're simply refusing to throw their efforts away.

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by Josh Koch
(libertarian)
Monday, June 23, 2008

Struggling to be heard above the fray, liberty activists and Paulites find themselves in an awkward position.  We have gone from being reviled, to being briefly bought and sold by the media, and we're headed back to being reviled.  It's not that we've changed because we haven't.  It's that we're viewed as political serfs of the GOP, and the peons are not falling into line as we were ordered to by the RINO overlords.

First, we realize that the GOP is going to blame us when McCain loses.  It's not our fault that McCain stinks, and it isn't our fault that the GOP picked him.  See, in the LP, we made the decision amongst ourselves.  Like it or not, it was a fair decision.  Contrast that with the Ron Paul movement's treatment in the GOP!  The McCain/Rockefeller crowd violated rules of order, decency, and tact to annihilate us and erase our voices.  What loyalty do we owe them?

Second, the GOP doesn't like us.  Oh, sure, our money is just as green as Big Oil's, but they don't really want us involved.  We're acceptable to go chase down signatures, send money, and put up John McCain signs, but we're not good enough to get a seat at the table in the fabled "big tent."  The honeymoon with libertarian conservatism isn't over...it never happened.  The RNC and the McCain campaign don't want a meaningful relationship.  They want us as hookers, to be used for certain basic political needs (money and time), who can then be discarded after the  moment of need has passed.

Finally, we are thinking people.  There are several choices available, and we all have reasons and data to support our ideas.  We really care about our votes, which is why we supported Dr. Paul when every GOP drone under the sun reviled us.  No offense to the McCain people, but I care enough about my vote not to waste it on either socialist, major-party candidate.

We, the Paulbots, don't need fawning approval from the RNC, the media, or the GOP elders to give us closure.  We don't need closure.  Do you see the Romney people hanging together?  Where have all the Giuliani acolytes gone?  And yet we prevail, even in our initial defeat.  What happened during those cold winter months, and why won't we just go away?

Our enemies in the RINO establishment don't get it.  They made the mistake of crucifying the messenger in the hopes that his followers would disband, the classical tyrannical response that becomes a martyr factory.  Ron was the messenger, but he was just a messenger.  The message he came to give was not meant for the MSM.  Rather, it was for those of us who had no voice.

Ron came to give the disaffected hope.  Yes, you can oppose the war without being a traitor.  No, the income tax system, fiat money, and banking cartel are not as American as mom and apple pie.  Yes, the GOP has sold its soul.  No, you're not crazy.  Yes, there are still some heroes who will actually read and obey the Constitution.  The messenger wasn't nominated, but he succeeded in getting his message to the people who needed it most.

This is where the Good Doctor won his stunning victory.  We are free to do as we will.  No RINO or talking head can tell us what to do anymore.  We can vote for Barr, Baldwin, or "None of the above" with confidence.  We aren't wasting a vote by taking our votes and support elsewhere.  We're merely refusing to let the GOP sell our souls by proxy, and such a move is never a wasted effort. 

We have hope, and that's why we won't pass quietly into the night.  The political serfs have been freed.   The hopeless are now rabid activists.  The oppressed freedom advocates have found that their unified voice can send Rockefeller Republicans running for the hills.  We may go LP or CP or RLC, but we can pick up the phone and coordinate efforts with other Paul Alumni.  We're a fraternity of freedom-loving individuals united by a common calling, and Dr. Paul put all of us under one roof long enough to figure out that we really like each other.  We're just beginning to appreciate our power, and, when we take shape again, the establishment will find itself in a Whig-like collapse.

I pity the poor RINO's who are trembling in fear, frustration, and quiet desperation.  You picked the nominee and put your faith in a mere man, but we picked freedom and patriotism, and those ideas will be in play long after John McCain and Obama are forgotten by history.  One can only find lasting success by sticking with timeless ideals, and the r3VOLution has definitely harnessed that law.  GOP leaders, you haven't heard the end of us.  We don't need you...you need us, and you cannot co-opt us.  When grassroots people refuse to spend time and money, they're refusing to throw away their efforts on a party machine that is a lost cause.

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©2008 Josh Koch, all rights reserved. You must have written permission from the author in order to republish this work.
Published: Monday, June 23, 2008
Last modified: Monday, June 23, 2008

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