Im not sure how long this is going to be, but I will try to make it as interesting as possible. I would greatly appreciate it if you would read it all.
I'm sure that you have seen the threads made by ZackMario which give you a selection of questions for you to vote on in the hope that Ron Paul gets the best questions possible for the upcoming debate. My point is that the questions we are attempting to get to the top and therefore be chosen have been chosen without any sort of consideration, and will do more harm than good. I hope to be able to objectively prove this to you.
To keep this simple, I will go through my reasoning step by step. If you disagree with any of the steps, tell me.
My first point is a obvious one. Through the debates we are looking to get new voters. This is the only reason any candidate is taking part. Linked to this is the other obvious step- the people watching this will be Republican voters, many of them undecided. It is unlikely that a Democrat will be watching and taking a specific interest. Even if there are, and they agree with candidates on a few of the issues, there is still a very low chance they will change to Republican to vote for the candidate (indeed, in some states it will be impossible to do so by the time the debate comes around). So, put simply we must attract undecided Republican voters.
Therefore, when we pick a question it must be one which will attract the average Republican voter, and certainly not put them off. I am sad to say that every question on Iraq, or one where the focus could be moved to Iraq would be disasterous for Paul.
When a question on the Iraq war is asked, Paul answers of course condemning it. The forum celebrates him and there are cheers from the debate hall. We don't really concentrate on the other candidates. They talk of 'patriotism', 'winning the war' and 'a responsibility which comes with being a superpower'. Guess which one Republican voters would prefer to vote for? Paul is preaching to the choir, and alienating himself.
Every question which we vote for which mentions Iraq drives Republican voters away from Paul. Yes, it is very sad, and unfair, as we all know how bad the war is for the economy etc etc. But the average Republican does not care. They want to win this war. Ever wondered why in all the latest Ron Paul adverts the war is not even mentioned? It's because it doesn't win votes.
Try this thread: http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=100790
search for Iraq. You will see how strongly against it they are. Every time it is mentioned it disgusts them. Goto the source of the quotes and read them for yourself. Still not convinced? Goto ANY poll of potential Republican voters.
Questions on Iraq do more damage to Paul's campaign than any other questions. Be certain of this now.
Yes, you may say that the basis of the main questions we are going for is the economy. But do you think thats what the candidates will talk about? Of course not. They will briefly mention something very vague on the economy, before moving on to the flag waving, superpower american patriot answer.
So, what do we vote for instead? Personally I believe it is far too late to get the questions on Iraq off 1 and 2. Mostly because it is likely that it wasnt only us that were voting for the Iraq questions- it was the other candidates supporters as well.
If you want to vote for something, go for TAXES or the CONSTITUTION. Scroll down the 101 quotes, and head to the forum where they were made. Paul gets grudging appreciation from the GOP supporters for his stance on them.
tl;dr- The only people who like Paul's answers on Iraq who will be watching the debate are already going to vote for Paul without doubt. If we actually want to get votes from this debate, instead of cheers from the audience we need questions on taxes and the constitution.
I'm sure that you have seen the threads made by ZackMario which give you a selection of questions for you to vote on in the hope that Ron Paul gets the best questions possible for the upcoming debate. My point is that the questions we are attempting to get to the top and therefore be chosen have been chosen without any sort of consideration, and will do more harm than good. I hope to be able to objectively prove this to you.
To keep this simple, I will go through my reasoning step by step. If you disagree with any of the steps, tell me.
My first point is a obvious one. Through the debates we are looking to get new voters. This is the only reason any candidate is taking part. Linked to this is the other obvious step- the people watching this will be Republican voters, many of them undecided. It is unlikely that a Democrat will be watching and taking a specific interest. Even if there are, and they agree with candidates on a few of the issues, there is still a very low chance they will change to Republican to vote for the candidate (indeed, in some states it will be impossible to do so by the time the debate comes around). So, put simply we must attract undecided Republican voters.
Therefore, when we pick a question it must be one which will attract the average Republican voter, and certainly not put them off. I am sad to say that every question on Iraq, or one where the focus could be moved to Iraq would be disasterous for Paul.
When a question on the Iraq war is asked, Paul answers of course condemning it. The forum celebrates him and there are cheers from the debate hall. We don't really concentrate on the other candidates. They talk of 'patriotism', 'winning the war' and 'a responsibility which comes with being a superpower'. Guess which one Republican voters would prefer to vote for? Paul is preaching to the choir, and alienating himself.
Every question which we vote for which mentions Iraq drives Republican voters away from Paul. Yes, it is very sad, and unfair, as we all know how bad the war is for the economy etc etc. But the average Republican does not care. They want to win this war. Ever wondered why in all the latest Ron Paul adverts the war is not even mentioned? It's because it doesn't win votes.
Try this thread: http://www.ronpaulforums.com/showthread.php?t=100790
search for Iraq. You will see how strongly against it they are. Every time it is mentioned it disgusts them. Goto the source of the quotes and read them for yourself. Still not convinced? Goto ANY poll of potential Republican voters.
Questions on Iraq do more damage to Paul's campaign than any other questions. Be certain of this now.
Yes, you may say that the basis of the main questions we are going for is the economy. But do you think thats what the candidates will talk about? Of course not. They will briefly mention something very vague on the economy, before moving on to the flag waving, superpower american patriot answer.
So, what do we vote for instead? Personally I believe it is far too late to get the questions on Iraq off 1 and 2. Mostly because it is likely that it wasnt only us that were voting for the Iraq questions- it was the other candidates supporters as well.
If you want to vote for something, go for TAXES or the CONSTITUTION. Scroll down the 101 quotes, and head to the forum where they were made. Paul gets grudging appreciation from the GOP supporters for his stance on them.
tl;dr- The only people who like Paul's answers on Iraq who will be watching the debate are already going to vote for Paul without doubt. If we actually want to get votes from this debate, instead of cheers from the audience we need questions on taxes and the constitution.
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