When do we become a movement?

[wizardwatson]

We speak very much of the liberty movement, and I'm not at all saying that there isn't a definite movement already in place. My question is: at what point do we go from being "Ron Paul supporters" to something else? Is it after this election? Is it during the midterms? Or will it be in 2016? When do you think our movement will come to fruition to where it's no longer about the man, but the message? At this point, regardless of what we may say, it's still about the man. We're working hard to get Ron Paul into the office of the presidency. But when will it really become more than that?

This is a good question and there are a lot of good observations on this thread.

A lot of people are saying "we're already a movement", etc. but thats not the main question of the OP. We know the liberty "movement" predates Paul, but the movement in the context of Paul deals with spreading the message and acting on the strategies that we've built a consensus on over these last 5 years like taking over the GOP. The OP is right, regardless of what people say on here it's more about the man than the mission right now. Anyone who's been lurking the forums after this whole Benton-throwing-in-the-towel debacle can plainly see that a large swath of supporters believe that it's Ron or bust, not just with the 2012 election but with the whole movement.

I think the point that it "really" becomes more than that is right after Tampa. Or rather, that will be the starting point. Mother bird Ron Paul has been nursing us and fighting for us for 5 years probably as hard as he's ever fought, but after Tampa the movement gets kicked out of the nest. We get to see then whether this movement is going to fly or smack into the ground.

I think it's going to be a wake up call for a lot of people. No more Ron to cheerlead on the forums. It will be harder for people to pretend they are doing stuff in the "movement" when they actually aren't. I for one look forward to this. There's too much "noise" from news articles and cheerleading posters and not enough grassroots activists actually connecting and collaborating. Perhaps when the circus leaves town it will be easier to find each other. Don't know but we will soon find out.

 

[Pauling]

Initially my response would be to re-take the Tea Party but, upon deeper thinking, they have been seriously tainted and their reputation is questionable. Of course because of the new style conservative take over of it. Though there are a lot of cross over Dems who would vote for RP, those same Dems would back away from any connection to the modern Tea Party Movement.

The Liberty Movement seems the way to go. Just by virtue of the name of it there is a bulwark against authoritarian types infiltrating with their freedom robbing measures like support of the Patriot Act which a lot of Tea Party people stupidly supported. Hopefully the Liberty Movement will focus on the Federal Reserve. I think which ever way those of us who remain in the fight go, the Federal Reserve should always remain as our main focus because that is where it all began. In my personal opinion, the Fed is the single greatest threat to freedom, our sovereignty as a nation and our over all security and safety.

I say attack the root and eventually the rest of their poisonous tree will one day fall. If we keep cutting off branches and leaves and leave the root it will find a way to grow back again.

That's where I stand. Whichever group remains focused on eventually abolishing the Fed, I will latch on to

Most people agree that we should audit the fed, right? How about an "Anti-Fed" movement, or even party?

 

[Paul Fan]

I think the movement needs to get broader in terms if what it does. Take over politics, yes. But also create groups/institutions that can supplant government. Don't take government funds, but do try to get 'exceptions' from restrictive laws. Once these type of groups grow, it will be easier for others to join the movement. People need to see where they're going, not just what they're leaving behind.

 

[noneedtoaggress]

I think the movement needs to get broader in terms if what it does. Take over politics, yes. But also create groups/institutions that can supplant government. Don't take government funds, but do try to get 'exceptions' from restrictive laws. Once these type of groups grow, it will be easier for others to join the movement. People need to see where they're going, not just what they're leaving behind.

http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Agorism

 

[brooks009]

I think the movement needs to get broader in terms if what it does. Take over politics, yes. But also create groups/institutions that can supplant government. Don't take government funds, but do try to get 'exceptions' from restrictive laws. Once these type of groups grow, it will be easier for others to join the movement. People need to see where they're going, not just what they're leaving behind.

100% correct. And it needs to be modern in terms of technology. I can imagine a Kickstarter type website that lets people donate to the sick, needy, and welfare organizations.

 

[Warrior_of_Freedom]

We create the Ron Paul Republican party

 

[libertygrl]

Here's my two cents:

1. Core Beliefs: The most important is to first ensure that we don't go the way of the Tea Party & OWS who were co-opted by the establishment. Perhaps creating a set core of beliefs that all can agree upon. I think as long as people keep the constitution as our guide, we can't really go wrong.

2. End The Fed - enough said.

3. Media: Expose the corporate controlled media and promote/provide alternative news. I don't know how this would be possible but I'm just throwing it out there as I feel the MSM and the press, are responsible for keeping Americans ignorant and divided by party lines. We need unity in order to truly be successful. This divide and conquor has gone on long enough. Now it's our turn to conquor.

4. Support government whistleblowers. There are several books written by whistleblowers such as Sibel Edmonds, who have put their lives on the line trying to expose the widespread corruption within our 3 branches of government. There are many people in the senate/congress who are either profiting or being blackmailed into passing unconstitutional legislation and pushing for wars and the police state. Not many people realize this or even discuss it as a topic to be addressed. These whistleblowers are being persecuted and prosecuted for trying to tell the truth and expose the corruption which also contributed to 9-11 and continues to put us all at risk. These are principled and patriotic Americans and we need to help them expose what's going on. We will never restore our Constitutional Republic until the criminal element is exposed.

Here are just a few of these courageous Americans:

Sibel Edmonds:
In this startling new memoir, Sibel Edmonds—the most classified woman in U.S. history—takes us on a surreal journey that begins with the secretive FBI and down the dark halls of a feckless Congress to a stonewalling judiciary and finally, to the national security whistleblowers movement she spearheaded. Having lived under Middle East dictatorships, Edmonds knows firsthand what can happen when government is allowed to operate in secret. Hers is a sobering perspective that combines painful experience with a rallying cry for the public’s right to know and to hold the lawbreakers accountable. With U.S. citizens increasingly stripped of their rights in a calibrated media blackout, Edmonds’ story is a wake-up call for all Americans who, willingly or unwillingly, traded liberty for illusive security in the wake of 9/11.
http://www.amazon.com/Classified-Woman-The-Sibel-Edmonds-Story/dp/0615602223/ref=pd_sim_b_1


Susan Lindauer:
This is the story of what happened when Lindauer tried to disclose the true facts of Iraqi Pre-War Intelligence and the 9/11 warning to Congress and the American people. It details the nightmare of her arrest on the Patriot Act and her imprisonment without a trial at the notorious Carswell Prison inside a Texas military base. EXTREME PREJUDICE is a true life spy thriller.
http://www.amazon.com/gp/product/14...&pf_rd_t=101&pf_rd_p=470938631&pf_rd_i=507846

Tom Drake:
Tom Drake, a former NSA senior executive indicted last year for espionage after leaking to the media allegations that the nation's largest intelligence organization had committed fraud, waste and abuse.



Jesselyn Radack:
In June 2002, Jesselyn Radack exposed one of the first cases of torture post-9/11 - being used on an American - in the case of John Walker Lindh. Her sobering book should be required reading for all first-year law students because it shows poignantly how 'national security' is being used to fundamentally bastardize constitutional law, criminal procedure, human rights, civil liberties and legal ethics

http://www.amazon.com/TRAITOR-Whist...2800/ref=sr_1_1?ie=UTF8&qid=1338933059&sr=8-1

 

[jkr]

here i where i did