Thoughts, opinions and fascinating discoveries by Elliot, a student at USC
Part 2 of Ron Paul’s speech at the College of Idaho 4/25/08. Part 1 here
We were allied with Osama bin Laden when he was a freedom fighter in Afghanistan. Now that we are the occupiers, he’s a terrorist. Obviously, our foreign policy is screwed up. Let’s change it. It’s not hard to do. It’s described in the Constitution and by the Founding Fathers.
I’ve been reading Ron Paul’s The Revolution, and have already mentioned what it says about gold. Today I’d like to quote a bit about what Paul says regarding the income tax. Essentially, he believes we should completely abolish it, and replace it with nothing, not even a sales tax– and after reading his argument, I fully agree. It would eliminate about 40% of government revenue . . . which would make the government’s budget about the same as it was in 1997! Think about that.
The income tax implies the “government owns you, and graciously allows you to keep whatever percentage of th fruits of your labor it chooses. Such an idea is incompatible with the principles of a free society” (78). As Frank Chodorov puts it: “It is like saying that the slave is free because he is allowed to do anything he wants to do (even vote, if you wish) except to own what he produces” (79).
Ron Paul does not sit around and vote “No” on everything. Although he wants to eliminate the income tax completely, that is currently impossible, so he tries to at least “make dents in the edifice in the meantime.” Thus, he makes lots of proposals, such as the proposal that, “for all those whose income consists largely of tips, that income in the form of tips be exempt from income taxation. I have proposed that America’s teachers be granted tax credits, thereby increasing their salaries. I have proposed that people with terminal illnesses be exempt from Social Security taxes while they struggle for their lives. (There is surely no moral justification for taxing people who are trying to maintain their very lives.)”
These are moral and sensible tax breaks, unlike the subsidies specific business interests currently receive from the government. It’s a complex issue, and Paul is careful never to make overarching generalizations. The ideal, however, would be to abolish the income tax and replace it “not with a national income tax, but with nothing.” The federal government is currently funded by:
Abolishing the individual income tax “would cut government revenue by about 40 percent. I have heard the breathless claims about how radical that is– and compared to the trivial changes we are accustomed to seeing in government, I suppose it is.” I love that line: compared to the trivial changes we are accustomed to seeing in government, abolishing the income tax would be radical. “But in absolute terms, is it really so radical? In order to imagine what it would be like to live in a country with a federal budget 40 percent lower than the federal budget of 2007, it would be necessary to go all the way back to . . . 1997″ (80). Paul continues: Continue reading ‘Eliminate the Income Tax Without Adding a Sales Tax’
I mentioned this book previously. Bought any gas lately? How about food? Do you think prices are going up by only a few percent per year?
Consider this, from page 144:
…the “inflation rate” itself, which is tracked using the Consumer Price Index (CPI), tends to be measured in a misleading way. Ask the average American if he thinks prices are going up by only a few percent per year, as the official figures would have it. So-called core inflation figures do not include food or energy, whose prices have been rising rapidly. (emphasis mine)
Do you own any gold? I’m considering looking into it. With the Fed cutting rates even more today, I don’t think the dollar will be worth much in the future.
Think about this, and please, refute it if you can:
When the Fed artificially lowers rates, it misrepresents economic conditions and misleads people into making unsound investments. Investments that would not have been profitable beforehand suddenly seem attractive in light of the lower interest rates…In the short run, a false prosperity takes root. Business expands. New construction is everywhere. People feel wealthier. This is why there is always such political pressure on the Fed to lower rates around election time: the prosperity comes in the short run, and the painful correction comes much later, well after people have cast their votes. (145, emphasis mine)
This is the sort of thing that makes me want to be an economics major. Then I’d be able to say whether this is true with some authority and judgment. For now, I have to rely on what I learned in high school, college introductory microeconomics, and intuition. And all of what I know indicates that Ron Paul is right. It’s scary… but if it’s true, the only way out is to stop the Fed from manipulating the money supply. Continue reading ‘Gold in Ron Paul’s The Revolution: A Manifesto’
It’s no secret that I’m a supporter of Ron Paul - here’s one post I wrote about him earlier. That’s why I was excited when I discovered today that he’s coming out with a new book, entitled The Revolution: A Manifesto - his first book in over 20 years. One person has created a site at RonPaulBookBomb.com, where you can pledge to buy one copy of the book when it’s released on April 30, 2008.
Here’s what it’s about. Continue reading ‘Ron Paul’s New Book: The Revolution’
Getting rid of the Department of Education used to be part of the Republican platform. But when people get in power, the temptation to abuse their power becomes too great. It is extremely easy to justify certain government expansions, especially around something that sounds good, like Education. So instead of abolishing the DoE as promised, the Republicans have doubled the size of it.
Ron Paul, Republican candidate for President, often mentions that he wants to get rid of the DoE in his speeches. Indeed, getting rid of useless (or even harmful) departments such as this one are one of the primary ways of cutting government spending, getting the deficit and debt under control, lowering taxes, and improving the economy.
But many people, myself included, have no idea why the DoE should be abolished. After all, there are indeed many things the government does which we are very thankful for. So what’s wrong with the Department of Education? All he says is that we should abolish it.
Here’s what one person has said about Ron Paul’s position: “problem is he has NEVER explained why and it TURNS viewers off. Not once in a debate has he said that he wants teachers and parents to make decisions locally on what their children should be getting in the way of education.”
Another person replied, “I have heard him talk about this in interviews and speeches. Like the other candidates, Ron Paul gives a lot of ‘Readers Digest’ versions of his answers in the debates. He’s telling the truth and he’s appealing to those who favored abolishing the DOE during Reagan’s time, but that doesn’t seem to matter much to a great number of Republican voters.”
But here’s the kicker: “The problem with a lot of conservatives is that they tend to support existing institutions. If something’s been around a while, the idea of getting rid of it seems kinda nutty to them.” Continue reading ‘Abolishing the Department of Education’
Read about the legislation sponsored by Ron Paul (Wikipedia).
And: What does freedom really mean?
Finally: Who would the world elect?
Giuliani got 95,876 votes already, likely from absentee ballots. I can practically guarantee that this is because the mainstream media picked him as the winner at the beginning. Only when everyone started to realize how much he actually sucked, did his support numbers finally start to dwindle. Of course, the people voting for him are far more passionate than he is. He dropped out of the race long ago.
Polls are rigged and idiotic, yet they seem to be accurate because they’re self-fulfilling. Many people I’ve talked with only select from the top 2 candidates. If they prefer #2 over #1, they select #2 even if they really believed in the positions and leadership ability of #4. I don’t necessarily blame them, the problem being that other people do this, too. Thus candidates that the MSM (mainstream media) did not select have no chance, despite the fact that a candidate which did not get media coverage may be a far better leader for our country. Continue reading ‘The Mainstream Media is Biased’
Update: On February 28th, 2008, the Seattle Times observed the support that Dr. Paul has from tech companies:
U.S. Rep. Ron Paul, R-Texas, has proved his popularity in the tech world, far outpacing Sen. John McCain in support from donors. Paul received twice as much money from Microsoft employees as McCain did, and five times as much as McCain from Google employees.
According to the Center for Responsive Politics, employees of Google and Microsoft are number three and four in a list of top contributors to the campaign. (First and second on that list are the Army and Navy respectively.)
Congressman Paul has repeatedly said that he doesn’t want to tax or regulate the internet, and internet innovators - who have thrived from the freedom of the internet - support candidates who understand that freedom is key to the success of the e-Economy.
- From the Ron Paul 2008 Blog. Now back to my original post…
For the past few days, reports have been floating around about how well Ron Paul did in the last quarter of 2007 with donations from veterans and current servicemen and women. Many people are concerned that, with his anti-war stance, Ron Paul does not understand our military defense needs. Let these people be reassured. The troops absolutely support Ron Paul.
Patrick Semmens crunched the numbers to get the most accurate figures, and sure enough, Dr. Paul beats all other candidates, Republican or Democrat, in military donations. And by a significant margin, too.
Dr. Paul has worked his entire career working for veterans, and has many awards and endorsements due to his dedication to their cause.
A search of the FEC database by employer reveals that Dr. Paul has received 1160 donations from military donors, nearly triple that of John McCain, and more than McCain, Mitt Romney, and Mike Huckabee combined.
Dr. Paul™s total military donations of $249 thousand are almost as much as the $260 thousand of combined donations received by the other five remaining candidates.
Congressman Paul is no stranger to military support. Former president Ronald Reagan once said, Ron Paul is one of the outstanding leaders fighting for a stronger national defense. As a former Air Force officer, he knows well the needs of our armed forces, and he always puts them first. We need to keep him fighting for our country!
Left to right: Ronald Reagan, Ron Paul
Image Source
According to the FEC reports, these are the total number and amount of military donations for each of the presidential candidates*:
Ron Paul: 1160 $249k
John McCain: 438 $83k
Mike Huckabee: 126 $37k
Mitt Romney: 126 $24k
Barack Obama: 443 $76k
Hillary Clinton: 154 $41k*Methodology: Searched FEC reports for occupation/employer contains: Army Navy USN USAF Air Force Marine USMC Coast Guard USCG then removed duplicates and non-military occupations (i.e. marine repair)
Now, the important question is: why? My theory is that the military knows the issues, and knows the situation in Iraq. I do not know the real situation in Iraq. I am far more inclined to listen to their money, than any words that can spew out of a candidate’s mouth in a debate.
Oh, and here’s even bigger news: “Ron Paul … is attracting the most individual campaign contributions from employees of major U.S. high-tech companies.” Source
Again, why are technology people supporting Ron Paul? I think “websmith” put it well: “Tech workers are a smarter than average bunch …”
Continue reading ‘Ron Paul Receives the Most Military Donations’
Ron Paul is a Republican running for President of the United States. Today I remixed some videos about Ron Paul and posted it on YouTube. Watch it now:
Grassroots supporters have designated today, Ron and his wife Carol’s 51st wedding anniversary, as a “money bomb” date. That means all Ron Paul supporters should donate as much as they can.
To be clever, it’s been suggested that donors contribute $51, since it’s their 51st anniversary.
Some serious supporters put in their maximum contribution, $2,300. I donated, but far less. Here’s a live graph of today’s donations…
Yesterday, Ron Paul posted this:
Did you see that funny YouTube where Mike Huckabee’s young Iowa spokesman endorsed me, “by mistake”? We know what was in his mind! Indeed, I am amazed at the friendliness of the supporters of other candidates. Many Obama voters, for example, in Iowa and New Hampshire are reading our literature, and studying our ideas. It’s just one of the reasons I am so optimistic about what we are doing, and where we are heading. And so were the 500 or 600 people at our New Hampshire rally after the primary. I talked to everyone there, and they are rightly enthusiastic about our movement.
My answer was, “No, I didn’t see that YouTube.” So I searched for it. And it took longer than I expected, although I did eventually find it. To save you some time, here it is:
Tonight I watched the Presidential Debates on ABC. The revolutionary thing about the debate is that it was closely tied with Facebook and the “US Politics” application. I’ve mentioned it before, but it’s worth saying again: the Facebook Platform is a winner, and Facebook is now the #1 way for college students to socialize online. They also published “thoughts” from random people throughout the debate. One person said it was interesting that the only candidate not referred to by last name is a woman. Well, duh: her husband has already been president, and using her last name would just be confusing.
I don’t think the candidates got to see the Facebook poll results while they were debating, but it’s worth noting that the Economy was, by far, the main issue people wanted to hear more about.
One thing I found very interesting is that almost every presidential candidate cites the internet as being crucial to their success. Yet the only one who has received genuine, grassroots online support is Ron Paul. At this moment, there are 806 active users discussing him on the Ron Paul Forums. He has 37.31% support on Facebook (versus 6% in the ABC News Poll), which is far ahead of Mike Huckabee, who is in second place with 17.87%.
Most of Ron Paul’s supporters are young people and independents, which means they have never voted before or they are not registered Republicans. This means they are not included in phone polls, like the one ABC News probably did.
On Nov 5, 2007, Ron Paul supporters raised $4.3 million in a single day, and then raised over $6 million in another 1-day drive on Dec 16th (Wikipedia). That’s seriously solid proof that people like his message of freedom, non-interventionism, and sound monetary policy. He is the only politician I know of who is trying to abolish the Federal Reserve (Ron Paul on the falling value of the dollar). The above poll shows that Facebook users want to hear more about the Economy, and that’s exactly what Ron is delivering.
But I’ve written about Ron Paul before. So tonight I’m going to focus some more on Mike Huckabee. Continue reading ‘Jan 5 Presidential Debates by ABC: Mike Huckabee’
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