I recently posted this to Ron Paul on his Facebook page:
"Sir - I am a conservative American (Ronald Reagan-conservative, not Bush or Romney-conservative). I believe America is still a slightly center-right country (although the "center" is not in the same place as it once was, is it?). We have an extremist in the White House right now. Why would I want to go "ditch-to-ditch" from the extreme-left with Obama to the extreme-right with you? Thank you"
Of course I did not receive a response directly from Mr. Paul, but I did receive several comments from Paul-followers. I chose to respond to only this one:
"Do conservatives like to go to war? Do they like to spend money?"
Here is my response:
"If the POTUS was only a domestic position, Ron Paul would have my vote. It is not, however; and his stand on foreign policy terrifies me and would no doubt endanger the existence of this great country. He has no issue with allowing countries like Iran arming themselves however they see fit, including nuclear weapons. That is not acceptable to me. "Like" isn't the word I would use when describing conservatives opinion on war. "Willing" fits though (I am a Marine by the way). Willing to fight for our freedom and even the freedom of our closest allies. Willing to PRO-ACTIVELY do what it takes to avoid even larger wars. Allowing Iran to have a nuclear weapon would not only put some of our closest allies in immediate danger, it would no doubt cause a massive nuclear war in the middle-east. We would HAVE to get involved with it ... otherwise it would eventually end up in our doorstep (as would China - please think about this deeply before you dismiss it's significance). Do you want that?
..... on to spending money - I will assume you meant wasting it. This is obviously not something conservatives want (no TRUE Patriot would, not even the liberal ones). Unfortunately, selecting a President is not about voting for the "perfect" candidate, but instead the "lessor of two evils" (in my case, in order to shift things to the right a little further with each election). ANYTHING to the Right of Obama is better than Obama ...... but WWIII is not an acceptable alternative to liberals like Romney and the other Republicans that spend too much, but could actually beat the Communist currently in the White House. Domestically, Paul and I are on the same page in a lot of cases. I really like his spending cuts and the departments he would get rid of (I would actually add to that list if it were me). But again, what good is a solid donestic policy if the entire world is at war (and any costs saved in his domestic policies would be more than used in the massive war he would encourage by his poor foreign policy)?
And although far less important a point to make than the above (fundamentally anyway), Paul cannot beat Obama. America will recognize him as the extremist that he is. He will need around 45%+ of Americans to get behind him. Won't happen. Ever. We need to nominate someone who will CLEARLY beat Obama. I personally do not like ANY of the candidates (nothing new there); but Gingrich clearly has the ability to go toe-to-toe with Obama. That is important. Santorum is a solid person, but I am very concerned about his ability to come off as a leader (same with Bachmann - who is out now of course). Cain was a fresh breathe, but inexperience and corruption have ruined his political career (amazing how those two things propelled Obama to victory though, huh?). Too few Americans relate to Paul for him to actually beat Obama. That in itself is enough for me not to waste a vote on him. Sad that Gingrich is the best the Republicans can offer; but until someone better comes into the picture (and not just better, but someone that is able to beat B.O.), he has my support (albeit grudgingly).
One last note - I was in the Marines when Clinton was voted in for his first term. All I can think about when I see Ron Paul is Ross Perot. Not fundamentally of course, but we got Clinton thanks to a weak 3rd Party candidate. Will we get Obama for another 4 years due to Paul insisting on deluting the non-liberal vote in America? Let me say that differently - Obama LOVES that Ron Paul is staying in the race. That should bother you. Does it? Respectfully, Bryan."
That was my lengthy response on FB. I will probably not post the FB responses and replies as they come in based on that statement; but what do YOU think about my thoughts on Paul?
Thank you,
The Patriot
