Topic: Libertarianism
Rand Paul, Are You Really a Republican? KY Wants to Know. Dr. Rand Paul is running for the U.S. Senate as a Republican. But is he one?by John Armstrong
(libertarian)
Friday, November 13, 2009
Dr. Rand Paul, son of Congressman Ron Paul, has raised more than eyebrows and money during his run for the U.S. Senate; he's also raised questions as to whether his loyalty is to the "wing-nut" libertarian Republican "fringe" or to the G.O.P. and the people of the Kentucky.
Imagine how you would feel if you fell in love with a woman nearly 30 years ago. You vowed your loyalty to this person because of who you knew her to be. You went through the good times and bad with her for 20 years. You believed she'd always be faithful.
But then something happened about a decade ago. She changed. And it really wasn't her fault, per se, there was a tragic event and she started hanging around some shady people to help her deal with it. They seemed to have all the answers. At first, you didn't notice the change, after all it was a very tough time. She was still your wife. She seemed to be pulling herself together. Then people started telling you that your wife was cheating on you. You told them that you supported her no matter what and that you believed her explanations unequivocally and fully. You loved her more than ever and knew that she loved you.
Then about a year ago the unthinkable happened. She left you for another man. A man whose beliefs were so far out of line with the woman you fell in love with that you still haven't come to terms with the fact that it really happened. People may have told you what was coming, but as long as the evidence wasn't right in front of your face, you were okay with just not knowing. Despite all this, you think you may even want her back. But you don't.
Who you really want back is the woman you fell in love with. You really want to feel the way you felt 30 years ago when anything seemed possible. More than anything else you want your heart to beat and soul to glow again.
Trey Grayson, Dr. Paul's main opponent in the G.O.P. primary is fond of saying that Paul's allegiance is more to his "libertarian donor base" than it is to the people of Kentucky and the G.O.P.
Mr. Grayson, there is a man you may have heard about at some point. Granted, he's not from Kentucky, but nobody would question which party he represented. This is what he had to say about libertarianism a little over 30 years ago:
If you analyze it, I believe the very heart and soul of conservatism is libertarianism.
The man who said it?
That ole party destroyer himself: Ronald Reagan in 1975.
Libertarians aren't fringe "wing-nuts", we are the only true REPUBLICans left. After the superficial body of the party was destroyed last year, it shouldn't surprise you that what you can now clearly hear is the heart that still beats and what you can now clearly see is the soul that still glows.
Mr. Grayson, you're welcome to hang on to a corpse, Dr. Paul represents the Heart and Soul of the Party. As long as he and others like him keep it alive, America has a chance to fall in love all over again.
Your Fellow American (but not a Kentuckian, unfortunately; I'm one state south),
John Armstrong
After all, this is just stage two of the revolution. I'm glad to be able to say,"I told you so" last year in this article:
As always, unlike the NFL, you have the author's permission to rebroadcast, retransmit, reproduce, or do anything else you'd like with this article to promote the Restoration of our Republic.
The views expressed in this
article are those of John Armstrong only and do not represent
the views of Nolan Chart, LLC or its affiliates. John Armstrong is
solely responsible for the contents of this article and is not an
employee or otherwise affiliated with Nolan Chart, LLC in his/her role as a columnist.
What do you mean 'he isn't from Kentucky'? He wasn't BORN in Kentucky, but as he himself has pointed out, he has lived in Kentucky longer than Greyson has been a Republican. Greyson started out as a Democrat.
Posted By: Jahfre Fire Eater
Date: 2009-11-13 10:19:33
Hi John,
Good article. The crux of what you are saying is the basis for much of what I write. Political parties are tools, not brands, or faiths or traditions, or even philosophies (Except for the LP and a few other self-marginalized philosophical herds.)
Both Ron and Rand Paul and a growing number of other candidates at every political level understand that the only way to get folks to stop using the GOP tool to create oppressive government is to take that tool away from them. These guys are in the spotlight of course because they have a national following but the MOST important defenders of our liberty are those candidates who are emulating the Dr's Paul in their efforts to wrest control of the GOP and their local communities from the liberals who now control them both in many areas. Liberals used to be content with population centers but now they are infiltrating every aspect of our society from local school boards and fire district boards to county commissioners and small town councils. This is where the real struggle for our liberty is taking place. No one who voluntarily excludes themselves from this struggle at the local level by joining useless fringe herds because dealing with people who disagree with them puts them off has any standing in the larger political picture either as far as I'm concerned.
Posted By: Jake Towne, the Champion of the Constitution
Date: 2009-11-13 12:15:32
Dear John -
Thanks for the honorable mention in your article as you are probably referring to my (disclaimer for Jahfre) independent campaign. Meanwhile I will continue to reach as many people as I can with the non-GOP, non-Dem message of liberty. :)
Posted By: Steven Robinson
Date: 2009-11-15 03:58:59
Our Founding Fathers were libertarian at heart. At the same time they fully understood that a free society depended on a morality based on Natural Law which are rooted in the Biblical principles found in the 10 Commandments and the Golden Rule.
I really appreciated the quote from Ronaldo Magnus (President Reagan). Libertarianism is NOT the freedom from ANY rules, (that would be anarchy); but rather it should be the freedom to choose your own course of actions based on the belief system that first believes: do no harm to others. It does not impose beliefs on others (that is impossible); however the actions of citizens must necessarily follow the standards outside themselves as a necessary prerequisite for an orderly society. Our founder fully understood this as well.
We choose to work within the Republican Party, not as cultists blindly following the ordained, rather it espouses (at least in print) the values this country was founded on and which made it great. Remember, originally it was the Democratic-Republican Party of Jefferson and Andrew Jackson that believed and practiced limited government. The Republicans were the original interventionists and proponents of controlling others. The first Roosevelt was a Progressive, like Clinton and the other modern Democrats.
What a nasty rhetorical trick Grayson is using. "he's loyal to libertarianism while I'm loyal to the GOP AND THE PEOPLE OF KENTUCKY" Paul should turn that around and say "I'm loyal to the people of Kentucky and libertarianism, Grayson is loyal to the bank bailout wing of the Republican Party."
Garret Garret, Rose Wilder Lance, H. L. Menken, Hebert Spencer, Auberon Herbert, were the biggest opponents of Wilson's war, and the new deal, and the founders of what would be first time in history an anti-statist conservative movement emmerged. Mostly they all wanted drastic reductions or rollbacks of the state, they just disagreed on how far it should be. Modern libertarians minarchist and anarchist alike are a continuation of this intellectual dynasty.
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