In recent weeks the thundering Ron Paul freight train has kind of derailed. Even though Paul announced that he was ending his campaign on March 8, his supporters are apparently convinced that he's still a viable candidate, despite his repeated public statements that they should move on and try to do some good working within the GOP. Nonetheless, many of them are pushing for a final surge and a surprise (and entirely delusional) victory at the GOP convention this summer. Admittedly, Paul is still making a lot of speeches and pushing his agenda, so maybe that's contributing to their confusion, but he's made it pretty clear he's campaigning for his ideas not an office.
Yet if anyone had any question about the viability of Paul as a national candidate, the issue ought to be put to rest by his recent decision to leap boldly onto the electrified third rail of politics and accept an invitation to be the keynote speaker at this fall's 50th annual convention of the John Birch Society.
For those not already familiar with the John Birch Society, it is a secretive and rather paranoid extreme-right organization which was originally founded in the era of Joe McCarthy's witch hunts to help root out the communist infiltrators who infested American society. Those communists were easy to spot because they were all immigrants or blacks or Jews, plus the occasional homosexual. The Birchers have always been big on 'real' American values and good at finding imaginary windmills to joust at. They borrowed a lot of ideas from their enemies in the process, including much of the methodology and organizational structure of Soviet covert operations of the Stalinist era, with a well developed propaganda machine, multiple front groups, and a cell-like organization.
The Birchers kind of lost their way during the 1980s and 1990s, eclipsed by the rise of the religious right and losing focus with the fall of communism, but today they are back and stronger than ever, riding a wave of conspiracy fanaticism which has grown from seeds they've been nurturing for years. They're still racists and anti-Semites and nativists and isolationists and conspiracy obsessed. Their followers are fanatics and the organization has a lot of the characteristics of a cult. Many participants are intensely religious and the membership has a lot of overlap with groups like Christian Identity. I give them credit for putting up a fairly reasonable seeming front on their website, but if you read their publications, email lists or blogs you see what issues really excite them.
Article comments
— go to most recent comments1 - Matthew T. Sussman
"Admittedly, Paul is still making a lot of speeches and pushing his agenda, so maybe that's contributing to their confusion."
But the thing is, he didn't drop out. Just ended his campaign. Technically still on the ballot. John Edwards and Mittens did the same thing.
2 - crystalmethod
YOU are the 3rd rail. Only a conspiratorial nutjob would spend time worrying about the JBS. [Personal attack deleted]
3 - NH
This is an interesting piece of disinformation.
He just opened an office in a state where they have not yet voted.
He is taking caucuses everywhere by about 3/4 the delegates.
And the GOP is crying foul. Wahhhhh.. Heh.
JBS is one of the best research groups around. You ought to read their magazine sometime and educate yourself.
If all you have is to cry 'conspiracy' then you have nothing.
4 - Dave Nalle
Good point, Matt. There's a technical difference. However, with this endorsement of the JBS his campaign and his hopes of ever being anything more than a rogue congressman are over.
NH, I didn't cry conspiracy. That's what the Birchers do. I just pointed out what a terrible mistake it is for Paul to embrace them.
Dave
5 - NH
Considering you don't like personal attacks you've made some pretty bad ones yourself.
FACT: JBS are not racists, most of their staff are 'foreign' types.
FACT: Communism is not dead, it's just been accepted as the one-world philosophy of Marxism in our schools and churches and even promoted by our Fed gov't in the schools with the mandated UNESCO curriculum.
FACT: Gorbachov and Brzezinski are now working for US, Gorby out of the Presidio. You thought that the cold war just 'ended'? Nope that was a red herring.
So your whole premise is flawed.
And therein lies the reason this country is doomed, blind people like yourself.
6 - leftcoastfool
"They borrowed a lot of ideas from their enemies in the process, including much of the mission and organizational structure of Soviet covert operations of the Stalinist era, with a well developed propaganda machine, multiple front groups, and a cell-like organization."
You could say the same about our Federal Government... They CONTROL the media, ignore the Constitution ("God-damned piece of paper" per our President) while continually eroding our civil liberties, and now they are implementing a COMMAND ECONOMY by working on expanding the powers of the (ILLEGAL) Federal Reserve. If you want to attack anyone, you should at least recognize that your attacks are equally valid when used against the Government that you are supporting. No, not all conspiracy theories are true. But YES, the Fed IS destroying our currency and the Federal Government IS bankrupting us. We are going the way of all previous empires, but you and your ilk are either too blind, too stubborn, too closed-minded, or too STUPID to see it.
7 - ricknhouston
what an idiotic thing for a libertarian leaning "journalist" to say. You know, you have been trying to pick a fight for some time now, I'll be in town for the ROT rally at the end of the month, I think I'll look you up while I'm there to see what your old man ass is made of...
8 - George
It sounds to me like you are the one who is the conspiracy theorist. You went off on a complete emotional rant, pointing at ghosts in every corner, but didn't back up even one accusation with any facts whatsoever.
Practice what you preach, my friend. Or at least take a couple of deep breaths and think about what you are writing before you go off on a senseless tirade.
9 - Dave Nalle
George, there's only one fact needed for this article, the fact that Ron Paul is speaking at the JBS convention, and I provided a link to that.
As a Paul supporter, aren't you even a little bit disappointed to find out that he has allied himself with the most irrational and deranged elements of the far right?
IMO Paul himself is a lost cause. I wanted to make that point clear before moving on to try to salvage some good from the movement that grew up around him.
Rick, the fact that you have to resort to physical threats is very telling. When that happens it means that you've lost the argument or perhaps you just had nothing to say in the first place. Have fun at ROT.
Dave
10 - tom mullen
I would have believed everything you wrote about the John Birch Society until about a month ago, when I heard their president speak. I grew up and completed my education occasionally hearing about these people, and always accepted my spoon-fed opinion that they were nutjobs. However, after hearing their president speak for about 45 minutes, I found myself at the end still waiting for the crazy to start. As usual, any constitutionalist person or society automatically gets labeled a racist. I think its time to shed some light on this. Constitutionalists reasonably come to the conclusion that the federal government has gone WAY beyond its proper role. This was an argument put forth by the Confederacy during the civil war. The Confederacy also refuse to free their slaves, at least at that point in time and because the federal government told them so. Therefore, (bear with the tortured logic), all constitutionalists are pro-slavery, anti-black, and deep down wish the south would have won the civil war. Ron Paul was accused of being a racist. David Duke is a racist. Some more tortured logic: David Duke is a racist. David Duke supports Ron Paul. Therefore, anyone who supports Ron Paul is a racist. And that is how we know that witches are made of wood.
11 - steve
hello dave well i see your lame article will once again get many responses as if this is all you can come up with on the good dr. paul what a joke even makes me snicker a bit about you reaching for negative stuff on dr. paul as is this the best you can do, why dont you try some of this as follows, check him out on you tube questioning general petraeus on iraq and iran recently as he takes them to school and all they can say is no comment duhhhhhhhh, fed chief bernanke gets taken out behind the tool shed numerous time by the good dr. paul as he states nothing but cold hard facts on our economics, i mean can you also add what he is trying to do to help this country get going in the right direction as i dont see any other canidates come close to how dr. paul takes these people to task. why is it none of you people can put positive flow on the great things he is doing? i mean dave are you enjoying whats happening to your dollar in your wallet as the fed runs rampent in printing endless dollars and inflation as the good dr. has at least a plan to get the rudder of the ship going in the right direction. look how dr. paul is out to educate people on how the economy works as he has enlightened many people that didnt have a clue on how the fed works a year ago. look at all the young americans embracing his message of freedom and economics, i mean dave isint there so much more positive flowing from the good dr. paul than this article that you choose to write about as most folks could give a rats ass about the jbs situation. why is it that as our economy and civil libertys get more eroded you cant write about that???? as that seems to be a skosh more important in my book. i think dr. paul is one of the most honest forthright individuals in politics today and this is all you have to offer on him??? hmmmmmmmm wake up dave as this man has a lot more to offer than the puppets of choice running for office as whats available out there is more of the hold your nose funk that people have put up with for years, well not me as its a no brainer to see who im voting for as dr. paul is the only logical choice regards steve
12 - Robert
Dave,
Actually, you are incorrect. There is not "only one fact needed for this article."
You said that Ron Paul ended his campaign. Ron Paul did not end his campaign. THAT is a fact that you are choosing to ignore.
If you feel personally threatened by The John Birch Society, that is your problem. It is also your right to publicly broadcast your fear and paranoia.
However, spreading misinformation and lies about a current Presidential candidate is morally wrong.
You are the one who is confused!
13 - Clavos
spreading misinformation and lies about a current Presidential candidate is morally wrong.
Tell that to Obama and Hillary, who have been doing just that for months, now.
Forget baseball; that's the gringo national pastime...
14 - Dave Nalle
Robert. Do you know how to click on links? The WaPo article is titled "Paul Ends His Campaign" and repeats that statement in the first line of the first paragraph. If that's a morally wrong lie I suggest you take it up with the Washington Post and Ron Paul himself. They're the source, not me.
Watch Paul's statement on YouTube he declares that he can't win and that his followers need to move on. That's the same thing I'm saying. Why don't you save some of your insults for Dr. Paul?
Dr. Paul in his statement suggests that his followers work within the system and move on.
Dave
15 - Dave Nalle
David Duke is a racist. Some more tortured logic: David Duke is a racist. David Duke supports Ron Paul. Therefore, anyone who supports Ron Paul is a racist.
Tom, this is specifically what I did NOT say here. I made it quite clear that Duke's endorsement didn't taint Paul in any way. It is Paul's choice to voluntarily speak to the JBS which taints him.
Dave
16 - Brian
John McCain, Hillary Clinton, and Barack Obama have all spoken at and are members of the Council on Foreign Relations, whose goal by their own admission is to bring about one world religion and one world government.
Jimmy Carter had so many CFR in his staff that the press called it an old boy's club.
Reagan made numerous statmements about his wariness of the CFR, right up until the eve of the Republican convention when he begrudgingly accepted George Sr. as his running mate. He never spoke ill of the CFR again.
Every president in the last 40 years has been a member of the CFR.
I'm sure it's all just a coincidence.
Conspiracies happen every day in life over much more trivial things, in state elections, local politics, school board meetings, business golf deals, and even a guy driving a buddy to a drug dealer to get a fix. Yet far be it from reasonable that people in power of the wealthiest nation on earth might "conspire", or work together towards, a common goal that would protect their interests and the billions of dollars of their supporters.
To think that conspiracies of this nature don't exist harkens back to 1996 when the first planet outside our solar system was found. Now they are on #287 and finding a few every month. In 1995 you were crazy to think there were other planets outside our solar system.
The earth is flat, our solar system is unique, there are no conspiracies. You seem to fall into this category of disbelief in events around you.
17 - Tony
Dave,
Sometimes I think writing politics on this site is completely pointless. You were obviously making the point that, while Dr. Paul is unforuntately the only candidate to speak any truth concerning the Iraq war and the economy, he totally discredits himself with his alliances with groups like this.
While Ron Paul economically displays so many attributes and reflections of the TRUE Reagan policy, he totally elimates his viability with these ridiculous moves at a time that we direly need someone who actually understands the economy to stand up and, at the very least, present some truth to the electorate.
Now if people want to argue that the JBS is not what you make it out to be then fine; they are entitled to that opinion.
The attacks these people have made, focusing on the semantics of whether he is literally in the race or not, are totally missing the point.
You present a solid, overall thesis. That the only candidates that operate and think outside of the narrow perameters of the two party platforms, end up being so eccentric to either side that they eventually discredit themselves and nothing changes. Ron Paul is meerly the latest, and most disapointing, manifestation of this.
Imagine a republican that actually believes in small government and supply side economics and doesn't waste his efforts pushing forth the Christian agenda and spending gobs of money on unbeneficial wars and federalized education. I thought we almost had one!
18 - Frank (yeah, right)
Ron Paul HAS NOT ended his campaign. If you can prove he has ended his campaign I'll give you $100.
Paul is still giving speeches all over the country. Paul's supporters and interested people attend his speeches in greater numbers than the other "candidates". Ron Paul's speeches are informative, intellectually stimulating and rational. All of the other candidates are merely attempting to get into office for their own financial gain and have no interest in saving our country from the financial ruin which WE THE PEOPLE will have to pay for....not them. Has anyone considered asking the other 3 where they think the money is going to come from to pay for their govt. programs?
19 - R
Wow man! What lies!
20 - Robert
Dave,
Yes, I can read. However, unlike you, I do not believe everything that I read. If you want to be an honest journalist, you should really learn how to check your sources a little better.
So Dave, I will go ahead and repeat myself. RON PAUL did NOT end his campaign.
Want to see what a legitimate source looks like? How about a press release straight from Ron Paul's campaign? Would that do? It's dated April 10th 2008. Please note: "Who: Republican congressman and presidential candidate Ron Paul"
Can't get much clearer than that can ya Dave?
I'll check back for your corrections.