People that say "I don't like Ron Paul"

[dannno]

I don't think that would have been a good answer for the phD I talked to today. Finally got it out of him that he didn't like him because he supports "the gold standard", for one... and of course Ron Paul doesn't support a "gold standard", but I also got to talk about monetary policy.

 

[ericthethe]

Right. If Obama was a below average orator he would have never even gotten close to the nomination. But he gave a good speech and connected his issues to people's needs. People weren't sold on Marxism, they were simply wooed by his charisma.

Mhmm, there was a lot of mysticism around him, too. I had friends who said they were voting for him because he was going to legalize weed. And others who thought he was going to end all wars and bring peace around the world. It's like people thought he was going to change everything and be a savior and fulfill everyone's wishes. Where if you looked at the actual issues and what he believed he is basically a centrist/rightist.

There is no reason that a libertarian-conservative could not also be a skilled orator and connected his issues to the people's concerns, and still remain committed to his core principles. Reagan was masterful at that. And while some here may or may not agree with how Reagan governed, the message he delivered on the campaign trail in 76 and 80 was a lot closer to libertarian conservatism than it is to the ideology of Romney, Newt and Santorum.

True. Unfortunately, it's just not in Ron anymore. He's old. His speaking style is even worse than last time. He mumbles over words a lot and doesn't complete sentences. He really needs to slow down and choose his words more carefully. He needs to relax. Hopefully the coming PBS debate will allow for this. Apparently it's being marketed as a smaller, more intellectual discussion.