Ron Paul takes the lead in Iowa.

[Dinner]

Yeah, that's why candidates have a tendency to have minimal support for a long time and then suddenly "surge". Most Republicans will only take a candidate seriously if they see other Republicans doing it. This is an example of multiple equilibria. The Republicans are literally a herd.

To be fair Democrats have the exact opposite problem. We all think we're Einstein with unique view, opinions, and knowledge of the facts so trying to get Dems to agree on anything is like herding cats. You put 20 of them in a room and you'll have 25 opinions as to what should be done.

[Dinner]

damn, Gary Johnson endorsed Paul and dropped his bid for the LP nomination.

Yep, Paul will eventually end up as either the Libertarian nominee or the Americans United nominee (maybe both) when it becomes obvious he's not going to be the Republican nominee. How many times will this make him running as an independent (I honestly don't know)? 2, 4, 6? I know he's been doing it since 1988. People like HalfLotus will insure he does it again and that's what will end up tanking Romney in the swing states giving Obama the victory. On the upside, from a Paultard point of view, it will make it perfectly clear that the GOP has to stop pushing the elite/insider pick on the rank & file so they're going to have to make their primaries more open (instead of lining up the insider money 3-4 years in advance) and actually pander to the people like the Paultards so this torpedoing Romney should give the Paultards more influence over 2016; "Give us what we want or we'll kill your candidate".

[Felch]

Every time you say "Paultard" it makes you look like a jackass. We're not all like HalfLotus, some of us just don't want a trillion dollar wars or the DEA ****ting on our fun. If Obama weren't a ****ing coward, I might actually support him.

[Dinner]

You might not like it, being a Paul supporter, but damn if it isn't a shoe which perfectly fits your average Paul supporter. That's just reality unlike Paul's news letters about Jewish Conspiracies, supposed government conspiracy to destroy the American economy, or to make white women subject to the sexual whims of "young black bucks". You buy that crap then you're a ****; a Paultard.

I can agree Obama is spinless and will just do what ever the big money wants him to do. He's an institutional man all the way but he at least doesn't want to blow up the whole system which is better than the alternatives. My expectations have gotten so low I'm happy just to find a guy who won't torch the place and might actually occasionally throw me a bone.

[Jon Miller]

After NDAA I am maybe OK with 'blow up the whole system'.

JM

[HalfLotus]

...your average Paul supporter....

Contrary to what your pitiful leftist sources are telling you, Paul's support is deep and wide. It would be very hard to pin down an "average" Paul supporter, if not impossible.

He brings in conspiracy theorists like me, in addition to Constitutionalists, Libertarians, the anti-war vote(he is the ONLY peace candidate), disaffected moderates, liberals, and right-thinking (i.e. not neocon) conservatives. He has old-timer support, and an enormous base of youthful political activists.

Essentially, he brings together everyone who doesn't wait for the New York Times to tell them what to think - which is, thankfully, a rapidly growing portion of the the US electorate.

[Dinner]

I'm sure, I'm sure. I also look forward to your conspiracy explanation when your predictions don't come true.

[kentonio]

Essentially, he brings together everyone who doesn't wait for the New York Times to tell them what to think - which is, thankfully, a rapidly growing portion of the the US electorate.

Absolutely, not supporting Ron Paul definitely means we're all mindless automatons who just DON'T SEE THE TRUTH!!!

Do you ever read back the stuff you write and just think 'What the **** am I doing with my life?'?

[Zevico]

Every time you say "Paultard" it makes you look like a jackass. We're not all like HalfLotus, some of us just don't want a trillion dollar wars or the DEA ****ting on our fun. If Obama weren't a ****ing coward, I might actually support him.

Yeah. So the solution is to bring a crackpot into power? You haven't thought this through.
Do you understand how dangerous conspiracy theories are? A conspiracy theorist is a person who is basically incapable of making a rational decision if it doesn't fit his preconceived conspiratorial worldview. Paul doesn't just want to cut defence spending; he thinks there are no dangers to the United States that could ever justify defence spending. He thinks the defence department is an evil unto itself. Literally. It's a dark force or whatever. The United States simply won't act on the global stage anymore. At all. Think about that.
Paul's willingness to truck with Alex Jones, or Neo-Nazis, bespeaks, at the very least, a stunning naivete. If you can't recognise a neo-Nazi as an enemy than there are no enemies.
If you can't find a candidate that fits your politics, well, that's tough. That's how it works. Maybe if you put in the time you or someone else can find a non wack-job candidate to support. I mean one who doesn't truck with conspiracy theories. But the solution is not to support a wackjob.

[Boris Godunov]

Paul will certainly pick up most her votes.

What? Why? Bachmann and Santorum occupied the exact same niche: loony far-right religious moralizer. Now that she's out, Santorum is the obvious next choice for her supporters. What possible evidence do you have that they'd go for Paul?

[giblets]

Yeah. So the solution is to bring a crackpot into power? You haven't thought this through.
Do you understand how dangerous conspiracy theories are? A conspiracy theorist is a person who is basically incapable of making a rational decision if it doesn't fit his preconceived conspiratorial worldview. Paul doesn't just want to cut defence spending; he thinks there are no dangers to the United States that could ever justify defence spending. He thinks the defence department is an evil unto itself. Literally. It's a dark force or whatever. The United States simply won't act on the global stage anymore. At all. Think about that.

Sounds okay

[Felch]

Paul doesn't just want to cut defence spending; he thinks there are no dangers to the United States that could ever justify defence spending. He thinks the defence department is an evil unto itself. Literally. It's a dark force or whatever. The United States simply won't act on the global stage anymore. At all. Think about that..

Every dollar we spend keeping Australian freeloaders safe, is a dollar wasted. We're not in any danger. American citizens have more guns than all the armies and police forces in the world. If you're afraid of the big bad PLA, maybe your own country should pay its fair share.

[OzzyKP]

damn, Gary Johnson endorsed Paul and dropped his bid for the LP nomination.

Not true. Was a hoax:

http://www.washingtonpost.com/blogs/erik-wemple/post/msnbcs-gary-johnson-moment-what-happened/2012/01/04/gIQA9wq3aP_blog.html

[RGBVideo]

Rallying behind Santorum

Sounds completely insane. Didn't he lose his home state in a Senate election 40-60 after comparing all homosexuals to animals?

[giblets]

Santorum is just the flavor of the month.