Promoting at Punk/Hardcore shows

Metal shows are a great place to "recruit" people. I'm located in Cincinnati and used to go to a lot of local shows.
 
Some of it has to do with what you believe.

"I am 100% for abortion, but I am still for Ron Paul as it is not a primary issue right now and his personal take on abortion is fairly meaningless, since he wants this to be decided upon by the states. Ron Paul is the only candidate that will get us out of the wars, end the Patriot Act, and fight against the corporate and banking interests in Washington."

(If they argue that he is corporatist, etc) "No, don't confuse him with the scumbags at the CATO institute. Ron Paul doesn't work for the Koch brothers. If he did, Fox News would love him. Most Ron Paul supporters consider Fox News, with a couple of exceptions, to be the biggest liars in the media. Ron refuses to even go on Bill O'Reilly's show. This is why there is a groundswell of support for him. This is why you see his signs and bumper stickers everywhere, but everyone in the media wants to marginalize him. Ron actually names the military-industrial complex, he goes after Goldman Sachs, and he wants to end the Federal Reserve."

I have a lot of experience with left-anarchists, and that is partly my background. A major portion of them don't vote period, so while you could have a good conversation with them, it won't mean a lot if your only goal is to get votes for Ron Paul. Many of them are very cool, though. The brighter ones will be familiar with John Zerzan, Bob Black, and the Situationists, and have a strong ecological/holistic perspective. The dumber ones will typically identify as anarcho-syndicalists, and they are viewed as sort of a joke by the other anarchists. They are like Marxists without the intellectual veneer.

Marxists/RCP'ers are more volatile and strident. These guys can be a waste of time, but it is interesting to see how they view the world.

Amongst the more moderate left-wing crowd, the types who look to Chomsky and Michael Moore, you can mention things like how Dennis Kucinich said back in 2007 that he would have chosen Ron Paul as his running mate if he won the 2008 Democratic nomination. They can look it up on the internet. That is how much Ron's integrity and common interest in ending the wars, the Federal Reserve, and corporate interests meant to a genuine progressive. Ron Paul agrees with Chomsky that our problems around the world arise from blowback, from the hundreds of thousands of people who have died due to our wars and our sanctions. He has been saying this since the 1970s.

Be prepared to rip into Obama, and go into his ties with Goldman Sachs, Monsanto, and others.

Btw, I would recommend watching the interactions that Adam Kokesh has had on his Youtube channel with the OWS crowd. It is pretty interesting.
 
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I was very into punk rock when I was in my teens, my favorite bands were Fifteen, Capitalist Causalities and Brother Inferior.

I think Ron Paul would be a fairly easy sell to Punks as many are libertarians like Jeff Ott.
 
I have a lot of experience with left-anarchists, and that is partly my background. A major portion of them don't vote period, so while you could have a good conversation with them, it won't mean a lot if your only goal is to get votes for Ron Paul.

I agree, but if you could market the idea to bands and get them to get on board with the idea. The people would be more influenced to get out to the polls.
 
wow! I was wondering something concerning promoting Paul at shows as well. I go to alot of metal-core and hardcore shows, and I've been trying to figure out a good way to promote Paul there. I noticed Peta at Warped Tour both the last two years, and how they've had a tent, spreading pamphlets at the gates, ect. We can do that too.

The most important thing to bring up to people there is how everything going on right now effects them. Bring up the point that gas taxes, subsidies for certain corporations, carbon emission regulations that make vehicles more expensive, ect all tie into the fact of just how many people will be able to come to a show. It's hard to shell out even 10$ for a local show that is an hour and half away with the current price of gas. (Especially when they are kids just out of high-school making 10$ an hour if they are lucky.) Your favorite band doesn't have enough money to tour through your state? Make them ask the most important question, "Why"

The issues I've found that have really resounded with alot of people there our age are:

The Patriot Act: Anyone being branded a terrorist doesn't go over to well.
Drug Legalization: As much as I hate to do it, there are alot of kids who light up either in the back parking lot, their car, ect and making sure the know that Obama is using the Federal Government to shut down pot shops, regardless of what the perspective state's laws are on the matter, and that Ron Paul is for legalization.
The Wars: Everyone usually seems to be anti-war.
Corporate Capitalism: There is alot of hate for "capitalism" out there. Point out that we have never had anything close to a true free market, and that we in fact now have a system which benefits corporations and big business thanks to the government meddling in the market.
Consistency: Paul is someone who doesn't flip flop. He almost always votes no.
Regulation: Make sure they know why its so hard for venues to function when they are being crushed by over-regulation. Make sure they know why they can't have a show at their house without all the proper permits. Permits for this, permits for that.
Piracy. Make sure they know that Paul seems through the media giants efforts to use the government to try and "contain" piracy. Paul, as well as all of us, can see the much bigger picture as to the precedent those laws will set.
Small Government: The best way to solve social issues and bring the most power to the people to control how they will choose to live.
 
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