Thanks for the big welcome back. Glad to know someone still remembers me
To answer your question with an extremely short reply.... the liberty movement is controlled by intelligence operatives. I mean, isn't that obvious by now? I must admit that I haven't paid attention to it in quite a few years, as I got sick of the madness. But ultimately, it was always designed to corral those who were still anchored in the US Constitution and to render them meaningless, either through exhaustion, discrediting them, or any other means imagineable. It's been going on for a long long time, but since the turn of the century the efforts have been extended significantly. Sorry to be the bearer of bad news.
Here is the problem. People want something to believe in. It's hardwired into our DNA. That is why religion is so powerful. I found out recently that when someone prays, they release oxytocin. That's the same hormone that is released during sex that causes mammals to bond to each other. It's also released other ways (hugs for example) and it builds trust. I am a religious person, so I think we were designed that way. An atheist might say we evolved that way. But there's no denying that the ability to have trust, or "faith" is part of our survival skill set.
Bringing that to this thread, even in politics there is an inward desire to trust. And that can be a good thing, or a bad thing. For example, I have some relatives that I did convince to step outside their box and cross over and vote for Ron Paul in the primary since the democratic side wasn't having a presidential primary, and they did (and do) genuinely like Paul. But some are still Obama supporters and in ways that don't make sense to me. I still here "They just don't want him to succeed". They? They who? I explain that an administration that admittedly spent 82 billion to create 2,000 "green jobs" can't really be working in their best interest or that the increase wars and the support of Al Qaeda in Libya and possibly Syria isn't what they thought they were getting. Things just get quiet these days when I bring that stuff up. But I understand. They
need to trust in someone to get this country back on track.
Then I think of my own support for Rand. And yes I do support him. I will admit my support waivered back in 2010 when I heard him in an interview give a question about Gitmo that sounded like an endorsement of torture. In retrospect, with enough hair splitting, it wasn't. But I caught hell back then for suggesting that there were risked to the whole "Walk and talk like a teocon" strategy. I didn't bring up the torture interview. It's funny, but years later I've seen at least one of the same people who gave me hell for daring question strategy back then later give Rand hell for his Romney endorsement among other things. Some of the things that freak others out don't bother me. If I can make peace with the most absurd thing Rand could possibly ever say, then him saying "I'm not a libertarian because I'm not for people running around half naked and smoking dope" doesn't at all bother me. Maybe it should? I go back to the G. Edward Griffin video
An Idea Who's Time Has Come, where he basically pushed the idea of doing and saying whatever it takes to get power so that you can turn the "ship of state" around. But every time I go there, I think about your criticism of Griffin in this thread. And the "stealth" strategy has an obvious danger. How can you be sure the person you are supporting who is in "stealth mode" really is on your side?
For me, Rand's currently done enough for me to believe he's on my side. He still
says stuff to at times draw my ire, but I haven't seen a problematic vote yet. But there have been clear problems. The CFL endorsed (kinda sorta) Ken Buck for senate. Buck would later lead the charge
against marijuana decriminalization in Colorado and Tom Tancredo, of all people, ended up on the right side of that issue. Kerry Bentivolio, who's roll in a 9/11 truth mockumentory film made me think he had to be real, voted to increase the debt ceiling. And I will not trust Jesse Benton until I see a formal apology from him for how he treated the organizers of PaulFest, including our own DeborahK. (And I know that's not going to happen).
Anyway, what to do? I don't know. I do think people need to do more to be independent forces for change on their own. I'm cautiously optimistic about the "Bitcoin" movement, though I haven't gotten into it myself. I'm looking into getting into aquaponics. People will always have to eat. And if I just feed myself and my family, that's doing good. I've thought about creating a self organizing "action network" type website, but I haven't done it yet. If/when I do you will certainly be invited.
Thanks for the reading list. I'm familair with Tragedy and Hope and "really need to read that" list.
