If, as Ron believes, it's all about the "message" rather than winning the Presidency, isn't that an even bigger argument for running as an Independent?
Millions of people are clamoring for real change but will never hear about the Ron Paul message because they didn't pay much attention to the Republican primaries in the first place. They will see the economy collapsing but they won't know what's happening to them and they'll never realize there was an alternative. Their lives will be ruined, their spirits weakened, their hopes for the future smashed. They will readily agree to more wars and loss of liberty, and all that only because Ron Paul didn't run as an Independent and use that platform to tell them what's really going on.
As for winning, to really succeed as an "educational campaign", you have to run it as if you actually wanted to win. If Ron hadn't stared down Stephanopoulos and made clear that he was in it for the win, he would have never attracted the massive grassroots attention that he got. If he had said from the beginning, "Let's be realistic, the chance is close to zero, but it's all about the message anyway", I'm sure that most of us wouldn't even have bothered.
Many of us here are young (or young at heart), and though we appreciate the education, we want a courageous hero, someone we can look up to, whose memory will inspire us for the rest of our lives, who was far from perfect but who nevertheless overcame his personal shortcomings and took the battle to the enemy against all odds.
Right now, Ron Paul will be remembered as an armchair revolutionary who happened to start a movement but then didn't know what to do with it. His recent waffling leaves a bad taste, has alienated many supporters and will have the effect of practically throwing away the chance of inspiring millions more about the message of freedom.
If he runs as an Independent and doesn't win, at least the "message" will have been heard by a larger part of the population than it would have been otherwise. And I do believe that Ron could actually win if he applies the lessons learned from the primaries. Here's a couple of things he could do:
1. Relentlessly attack Obama, Clinton and McCain and expose and analyze their lies and shenanigans. Instead of the "Daily Dose" it should be the "Daily Attack". Get this to the point where when Americans hear one of the "big three" make some promise or pronouncement, they will instinctively think, "I wonder what Ron Paul has to say about that?"
2. Tailor his messages to the audience he is speaking to. He must be brought to realize that this is the only way to actually educate them. Right now he just throws out facts that average people simply won't understand, nor will they care much because he doesn't explain how it affects them anyway.
3. Stop justifying his actions with weak expressions like "my supporters would be disappointed if I dropped out...", or "endorsing McCain would go against what I've talked about for the past 30 years, and nobody would understand it" and so on. Be a man and say "I'm doing that because I choose to and because it's what's best for America, period".
4. Meet with foreign leaders as the inofficial representative of his voters, a small but growing part of the US population that wants "peace, commerce and honest friendship" with all. Meet with Chavez, Castro and Ahmadinejad and expose them to the wonders of free markets and gold-backed currencies. There's some free worldwide publicity for ya.
5. Apply any and all the other lessons learned from the present campaign, including interactions with the press, etc.
What are your thoughts on this, Jonathan? Based on your personal knowledge of Ron Paul, do you think he would be open to reading a letter by supporters that would outline some of these points and persuade him that he should put the interests of the country first and "jump over his shadow" so he can reach new audiences rather than continuing to preach to the increasingly discouraged choir?
I believe that running as an Independent won't hamper the effort to retake the Republican party in any way. On the contrary, pursuing both paths at the same time could make things happen so much faster.
