But the deeper reason to support Ron Paul is a simple one. The great forgotten principles of the current Republican party are freedom and toleration. Paul's federalism, his deep suspicion of Washington power, his resistance to government spending, debt and inflation, his ability to grasp that not all human problems are soluble, least of all by government: these are principles that made me a conservative in the first place. No one in the current field articulates them as clearly and understands them as deeply as Paul. He is a man of faith who nonetheless sees a clear line between religion and politics. More than all this, he has somehow ignited a new movement of those who love freedom and want to rescue it from the do-gooding bromides of the left and the Christianist meddling of the right. The Paulites' enthusiasm for liberty, their unapologetic defense of core conservative principles, their awareness that in the new millennium, these principles of small government, self-reliance, cultural pluralism, and a humble foreign policy are more necessary than ever - no lover of liberty can stand by and not join them.
He's the real thing in a world of fakes and frauds. And in a primary campaign where the very future of conservatism is at stake, that cannot be ignored. In fact, it demands support.
Paul is likable enough, but I'd still have side with the only other authentic candidate on the Republican side. I mean I like crazy (McCain, like Paul has that sort of crazy edge) but Paul is just too out there. But I doubt either will get the nomination, barring a miracle. Of course the amazing thing is that (about 14 hours into my wife's labor) we watched the last Republican debate and she actually liked Huckabee. (And she will vote for Hillary, if she gets the nomination) And I'm still struggling with how the Christian Right can actually support him, when he sounds socially (if probably not culturally) liberal enough. Weird.
Back to the kid-ferry.
No comments:
Post a Comment